Inequality: Race, Crime, and the Law Essay

Policing and punishment in America is hardly colorblind. It is not a coincidence that minorities serve longer sentences, have higher arrest and conviction rates, face higher bail amounts, and are more often the victims of police use of deadly force than white citizens. When it comes to criminals, many people have a preconception of what a criminal is. Usually when people think of a criminal they picture a Black or Latino face. The thought of an Asian criminal is often related to Asian gangs. Interestingly enough, White people as a group are rarely associated with the thought of crime, even though they account for 70% of arrests and 40% of the prison population each year (Russel xiv). This seems to be overlooked, though, when people consider their stereotypical views. Minorities have become victims of these stereotypes in the U.S. courts by judges and juries as well as in their neighborhoods by local police. When asking for fairness, the desire isn’t for more rights for the criminally accused, yet for those rights of the accused to be fairly executed, before they are found guilty or innocent. This being because the system is unfair, it seems to be two different systems: one for the privileged, and one for the less privileged. Cops use methods of investigation and interrogation against minorities and the poor that wouldn’t be accepted against more privileged citizens. Courts assign public defenders to the poor in serious criminal trials that a rich person wouldn’t hire to defend them in a traffic court. Many minorities walk into a courtroom with the feeling that they are guilty until proven innocent. The complexion of their skin is too often viewed as negative. There is no doubt what the reason for it is. The evening news often leads off with a crime story, many times showing black males being taken away in handcuffs. Black females are portrayed as grieving mothers over the death or arrest of their son or daughter. This is shown so much that it’s impossible to ignore. I’m not denying that the ones shown on the news may, in fact, be guilty, but seeing it so frequently results in Americans incorrectly believing that most black men are criminals. On top of that, they connect the image of arrested individuals on the news, and begin  to stereotype all individuals they may come across personally that may have a similar appearance. Consequently, the thought of â€Å"black crime† comes to mind. I find it interesting how I have never heard the phrase, â€Å"white crime.† This leads us to racial profiling. Stereotypical views of minorities by police officers can lead to tragic situations. Amadou Diallo was a 22-year-old West African immigrant who lived in the Bronx, New York. He studied English and Computer Science in Singapore and Thailand before coming to America. A devout Muslim, he worked twelve hours a day selling videos to earn enough money to finish his bachelor’s degree. On February 4, 1999, as he was standing in the vestibule of his own apartment, about to open the door, four undercover police in plain clothes, members of the â€Å"elite† Street Crimes unit, approached him. What happened next is unclear, but when the dust settled, the four officers had fired a total of 41 times, at an unarmed man. Somehow, 22 of the 41 shots missed their target, though the officers aimed into a space not larger than a telephone booth. Of the 19 bullets that did hit Diallo, 11 hit him in the legs, five pierced his torso, one hit the right arm, one went through his chest and one entered through his back. The cops’ defense claimed Diallo was behaving suspiciously, and had not obeyed their command to stop. When Diallo raised his wallet, each one of them, imagined that this black man was raising a gun. Because this scared them, they shot at him 41 times. One year later, on February 25, 2000, the four cops were found not guilty of murder. Diallo’s fear doesn’t matter. Who cares that the skinny black immigrant must have been terrified to see four white guys bearing down on him like thieves or murderers? Not guilty, these four police officers are entitled now to return to their jobs, strap on their guns, and hit the streets armed with the same racism, the same fear that killed Diallo. Police brutality is known to be very common in the Bronx. With situations such as this one as well as the Rodney King incident in Los Angeles, Blacks have become to fear the police. When a police car approaches them, they can’t decide whether justice will be served or if the cop’s intentions are to harm or even kill them. The integrity of a police officer  is not guaranteed to the citizen. In past cases police have been known to plant fake evidence simply to have a reason to arrest a â€Å"suspect.† As a result, African-Americans make up about 12% of the general population, but more than half of the prison population (Cole 4). With so much injustice being done to minorities in general, how can you expect minorities to respect a system that doesn’t respect them? In fact, people are so quick to believe minorities are criminals that they are used as â€Å"fake† suspects by citizens who want to hide the real criminals. â€Å"Racial Hoaxes† are defined as: â€Å"When someone fabricates a crime and blames it on another person because of his race OR when an actual crime has been committed and the perpetrator falsely blames someone because of his race.† (Russel 70) The negative image of African-Americans has become so bad that â€Å"imaginary† Black people are invented as criminals. In some cases Black individuals were even chosen out of a line up and after being identified by who would end up to be the actual committer of the crime. Usually, somebody guilty of racial hoaxing is just charged with filing a false police report. On that note, hate crimes have been on the rise this past decade. There have been many race-related assaults on minorities. The majority of people arrested for Hate Crimes are White. So why is it that we rarely hear about â€Å"White crime?† Although the term â€Å"Black Criminality† is often used you never hear the term, â€Å"White Criminality.† White crime is rarely labeled. If the media feels the necessity to label crimes then when rural crimes take place they can easily call it â€Å"White crime.† When they label crime by race it gives the wrong impression that the criminals race had something to do with the reason he or she committed the crime. What most people do not know or realize is that White offenders are the most common. The following is taken from The Color of Crime by Katheryn Russell: Whites account for approximately 80 percent of those arrested: driving under the influence (86 percent), liquor law violations (80 percent), and drunkenness (81 percent). For these offenses White arrest rates are on par  with their percentage in the population. Table 7.2 also reports that Whites have high rates of arrest for several other offenses, including arson (74 percent), burglary (67 percent), loitering (76 percent), vandalism (73 percent), and sex offenses (75 percent). SOURCE: Sourcebook of Criminal Justice Statistics (1991-1995), Bureau of Justice Statistics Whites also have a much higher rate of white-collar crimes. Criminologists Francis Cullen and Michael Benson state: â€Å"The costs of white-collar crime?the violence it entails, the money it transfers illegally, its damage to the moral fabric?may well outstrip the costs of traditional street crimes.†(Color crime PG 116) Still there is no annual count of white-collar crimes. Some say that criminologists don’t view them as real crimes. The belief that black crime is disproportionate is true, but the belief that African-Americans are responsible for a majority of crime is false. Why is it that we hardly see crime represented in other colors? There is no term â€Å"criminalwhiteman† yet people use the term â€Å"criminalblackman?† If more White criminals were in the media’s spotlight, the public image of crime would be completely different. Still, the Black stereotype will never go away unless the media exposes the â€Å"criminalblackman† as a misrepresentation. Whites who live in mainly suburban and rural areas, actually commit at a disproportionate rate as well. Only if the public could actually see the amount of Whites committing crimes, they would learn that their racial views about crime were misplaced. The O.J. Simpson case was proof of the racial division and views about how the law handles cases. Had he been an average middle or lower class Black man who couldn’t afford a good attorney, he would have definitely been found guilty. Even with such overwhelming evidence that this injustice exists to poor minorities, you would never know it by examining the outcome of most minorities accused of a crime. When it comes to statistics, lack of information may be misleading. The media’s overemphasis on how differently Whites and Blacks viewed the criminal case also masked the fact that many African-Americans believed Simpson was guilty, and many Whites believed he was not guilty. In a poll, it was found that 30% of Blacks believed he was guilty while the number of Whites who felt he was innocent outnumbered  Blacks 3: 1. (Color crime, 31). The public as a whole has a general misconception of the relationship between crime and race. Unfortunately, this misconception is brought into courtrooms. It’s no surprise that things are the way they are given the history of this country. You can change laws but you can’t change people. As long you have the image of minorities being portrayed as criminals in the media, the problem will exist. The problem only makes itself worse as it continues. Inequality is inevitable in today’s society. This nation is too busy dealing with the problems that arise from the views of race and crime to focus enough attention on fixing them. The problem can’t be fixed until we as a people can agree on what the root of the problem is. It begins in the communities and ends in the justice system. We must look inside the system and the role it play’s in society and what outcome we want from it. We need to use equality rather than personal views when making difficult decisions in society. Works Cited Cole, David. No Equal Justice: Race and Class in the American Criminal Justice System. New York: The New Press, 1999. Kennedy, Randall. Race, Crime, and the Law New York: Pantheon, 1997 Russell, Katheryn K. The Color of Crime. 1998. 10 Apr. 2002 http://emedia.netlibrary.com/reader/reader.asp?product_id=1331

An ecosystem as a community Essay

Introduction An ecosystem is a community of living organisms (plants, animals and microbes) in conjunction with the nonliving components of their environment (things like air, water and mineral soil), interacting as a system.[2] These biotic and abiotic components are regarded as linked together through nutrient cycles and energy flows.[3] As ecosystems are defined by the network of interactions among organisms, and between organisms and their environment,[4] they can be of any size but usually encompass specific, limited spaces[5] (although some scientists say that the entire planet is an ecosystem).[6] Energy, water, nitrogen and soil minerals are other essential abiotic components of an ecosystem. The energy that flows through ecosystems is obtained primarily from the sun. It generally enters the system through photosynthesis, a process that also captures carbonfrom the atmosphere. By feeding on plants and on one another, animals play an important role in the movement of matter and energy through the system. They also influence the quantity of plant and microbial biomass present. By breaking down dead organic matter,decomposers release carbon back to the atmosphere and facilitate nutrient cycling by converting nutrients stored in dead biomass back to a form that can be readily used by plants and other microbes.[7] Ecosystems are controlled both by external and internal factors. External factors such as climate, the parent material which forms the soil and topography, control the overall structure of an ecosystem and the way things work within it, but are not themselves influenced by the ecosystem.[8] Other external factors include time and potential biota. Ecosystems are dynamic entities—invariably, they are subject to periodic disturbances and are in the process of recovering from some past disturbance.[9] Ecosystems in similar environments that are located in different parts of the world can have very different characteristics simply because they contain different species.[8] Theintroduction of non-native species can cause substantial shifts in ecosystem function. Internal factors not only control ecosystem processes but are also controlled by them and are often subject to feedback loops.[8] While the resource inputs are generally controlled by external processes like climate and parent material, the  availability of these resources within the ecosystem is controlled by internal factors like decomposition, root competition or shading.[8] Other internal factors include disturbance, succession and the types of species present. Although humans exist and operate within ecosystems, their cumulative effects are large enough to influence external factors like climate.[8] Biodiversity affects ecosystem function, as do the processes of disturbance and succession. Ecosystems provide a variety of goods and services upon which people depend; the principles of ecosystem management suggest that rather than managing individual species,natural resources should be managed at the level of the ecosystem itself. Classifying ecosystems into ecologically homogeneous units is an important step towards effective ecosystem management, but there is no single, agreed-upon way to do this. Classification Classifying ecosystems into ecologically homogeneous units is an important step towards effective ecosystem management.[42] A variety of systems exist, based on vegetation cover, remote sensing, and bioclimatic classification systems.[42] American geographer Robert Bailey defines a hierarchy of ecosystem units ranging from microecosystems (individual homogeneous sites, on the order of 10 square kilometres (4 sq mi) in area), through mesoecosystems (landscape mosaics, on the order of 1,000 square kilometres (400 sq mi)) to macroecosystems (ecoregions, on the order of 100,000 square kilometres (40,000 sq mi)).[43] Bailey outlined five different methods for identifying ecosystems: gestalt (â€Å"a whole that is not derived through considerable of its parts†), in which regions are recognized and boundaries drawn intuitively; a map overlay system where different layers like geology, landforms and soil types are overlain to identify ecosystems; multivariate clustering of site attrib utes; digital image processing of remotely sensed data grouping areas based on their appearance or other spectral properties; or by a â€Å"controlling factors method† where a subset of factors (like soils, climate, vegetation physiognomy or the distribution of plant or animal species) are selected from a large array of possible ones are used to delineate ecosystems.[44] In contrast with  Bailey’s methodology, Puerto Rico ecologist Ariel Lugo and coauthors identified ten characteristics of an effective classification system: that it be based on georeferenced, quantitative data; that it should minimize subjectivity and explicitly identify criteria and assumptions; that it should be structured around the factors that drive ecosystem processes; that it should reflect the hierarchical nature of ecosystems; that it should be flexible enough to conform to the various scales at which ecosystem management operates; that it should be tied to reliable measures of climate so that it can â€Å"anticipat[e] global climate change; that it be applicable worldwide; that it should be validated against independent data; that it take into account the sometimes complex relationship between climate, vegetation and ecosystem functioning; and that it should be able to adapt and improve as new data become available†.[42] Types Aquatic ecosystem An aquatic ecosystem is an ecosystem in a body of water. Communities of organisms that are dependent on each other and on their environment live in aquatic ecosystems. The two main types of aquatic ecosystems are marine ecosystems andfreshwater ecosystems.[1] Marine ecosystems: cover approximately 71% of the Earth’s surface and contain approximately 97% of the planet’s water. They generate 32% of the world’s net primary production.[1] They are distinguished from freshwater ecosystems by the presence of dissolved compounds, especially salts, in the water. Approximately 85% of the dissolved materials in seawater are sodium and chlorine. Seawater has an average salinity of 35 parts per thousand (ppt) of water. Actual salinity varies among different marine ecosystems.[2] Large marine ecosystems: (LMEs) are regions of the world’s oceans, encompassing coastal areas from river basins and estuaries to the seaward boundaries of continental shelves and the outer margins of the major ocean current systems. They are relatively large regions on the order of 200,000 km ² or greater, characterized by distinct bathymetry, hydrography, productivity, and trophically dependent populations. The system of LMEs has been developed by the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric  Administration (NOAA) to identify areas of the oceans for conservation purposes. The objective is to use the LME concept as a tool for enabling ecosystem-based management to provide a collaborative approach to management of resources within ecologically-bounded transnational areas. This will be done in an international context and consistent with customary international law as reflected in 1982 UN Convention on the Law of the Sea.[1] LME-based conservation is based on recognition that the world’s coastal ocean waters are degraded by unsustainable fishing practices, habitat degradation, eutrophication, toxic pollution, aerosol contamination, and emerging diseases, and that positive actions to mitigate these threats require coordinated actions by governments and civil society to recover depleted fish populations, restore degraded habitats and reduce coastal pollution. Although the LMEs cover only the continental margins and not the deep oceans and oceanic islands, the 64 LMEs produce 95% of the world’s annual marine fishery biomassyields. Most of the global ocean pollution, overexploitation, and coastal habitat alteration occur within their waters. NOAA has conducted studies of principal driving forces affecting changes in biomass yields for 33 of t he 64 LMEs, which have been peer-reviewed and published in ten volumes.[2] Freshwater ecosystems: are a subset of Earth’s aquatic ecosystems. They include lakes and ponds, rivers, streams and springs, and wetlands. They can be contrasted with marine ecosystems, which have a larger salt content. Freshwater habitats can be classified by different factors, including temperature, light penetration, and vegetation. Freshwater ecosystems can be divided into lentic ecosystems (still water) and lotic ecosystems (flowing water). Limnology (and its branch freshwater biology) is a study about freshwater ecosystems. It is a part of hydrobiology. Original efforts to understand and monitor freshwater ecosystems were spurred on by threats to human health (ex. Cholera outbreaks due to sewage contamination). Early monitoring focussed on chemical indicators, then bacteria, and finally algae, fungi and protozoa. A new type of monitoring involves differing groups of organisms (macroinvertebrates, macrophytes and fish) and the stream conditions associated with them. Current biomonitering techniques focus mainly on community structure or biochemical oxygen demand. Responses  are measured by behavioural changes, altered rates of growth, reproduction or mortality. Macroinvertebrates are most often used in these models because of well known taxonomy, ease of collection, sensitivity to a range of stressors, and their overall value to the ecosystem. Most of these measurements are difficult to extrapolate on a large scale however. The use of reference sites is common when assessing what a healthy freshwater ecosystem should â€Å"look like†. Reference sites are easier to reconstruct in standing water than moving water. Preserved indicators such as diatom valves, macrophyte pollen, insect chitin and fish scales can be used to establish a reference ecosystem representative of a time before lar ge scale human disturbance. Common chemical stresses on freshwater ecosystem health include acidification, eutrophication and copper and pesticide contamination. Lake ecosystems :The ecosystem of a lake includes biotic (living) plants, animals and micro-organisms, as well as abiotic (nonliving) physical and chemical interactions.[1] Lake ecosystems are a prime examples of lentic ecosystems. Lentic refers to standing or relatively still water, from the Latin lentus, which means sluggish. Lentic waters range from ponds to lakes to wetlands, and much of this article applies to lentic ecosystems in general. Lentic ecosystems can be compared withlotic ecosystems, which involve flowing terrestrial waters such as rivers and streams. Together, these two fields form the more general study area of freshwater or aquatic ecology. Lentic systems are diverse, ranging from a small, temporary rainwater pool a few inches deep to Lake Baikal, which has a maximum depth of 1740 m.[2] The general distinction between pools/ponds and lakes is vague, but Brown[1] states that ponds and pools have their entire bottom surfaces exposed to light, while lakes do not. In addition, some lakes become seasonally stratified (discussed in more detail below.) Ponds and pools have two regions: the pelagic open water zone, and the benthic zone, which comprises the bottom and shore regions. Since lakes have deep bottom regions not exposed to light, these systems have an additional zone, the profundal.[3] These three areas can have very different abiotic conditions and, hence, host species that are specifically adapted to live there.[1] River ecosystem The ecosystem of a river is the river viewed as a system operating in its natural environment, and includes biotic (living) interactions amongst plants, animals and micro-organisms, as well as abiotic (nonliving) physical and chemical interactions.[1][2] River ecosystems are prime examples of lotic ecosystems. Lotic refers to flowing water, from the Latin lotus, washed. Lotic waters range from springs only a few centimeters wide to major rivers kilometers in width.[3] Much of this article applies to lotic ecosystems in general, including related lotic systems such as streams and springs. Lotic ecosystems can be contrasted with lentic ecosystems, which involve relatively still terrestrial waters such as lakes and ponds. Together, these two fields form the more general study area of freshwater or aquatic ecology. The following unifying characteristics make the ecology of running waters unique from that of other aquatic habitats.[4] Flow is unidirectional. There is a state of continuous physical change. There is a high degree of spatial and temporal heterogeneity at all scales (microhabitats). Variability between lotic systems is quite high.  The biota is specialized to live with flow conditions. Wetland ECOSYSTEM A wetland is a land area that is saturated with water, either permanently or seasonally, such that it takes on the characteristics of a distinct ecosystem.[2] Primarily, the factor that distinguishes wetlands from other land forms or water bodies is the characteristic vegetationthat is adapted to its unique soil conditions. Wetlands consist primarily of hydric soil, which supports aquatic plants.[3][4] The water found in wetlands can be saltwater, freshwater, or brackish.[4] Main wetland types include swamps, marshes, bogs and fens.[5]Sub-types include mangrove, carr, pocosin, and varzea. Wetlands play a number of roles in the environment, principally water purification, flood control, and shoreline stability. Wetlands are also considered the most biologically diverse of all ecosystems, serving as home to a wide range of plant and  animal life.[6] Wetlands occur naturally on every continent except Antarctica.[7] They can also be constructed artificially as a water management tool, which may play a role in the developing field of water-sensitive urban design. The largest wetlands in the world include the Amazon River basin and the West Siberian Plain.[8] Another large wetland is the Pantanal, which straddles Brazil, Bolivia, and Paraguay in South America.[9] The UN Millennium Ecosystem Assessment determined that environmental degradation is more prominent within wetland systems than any other ecosystem on Earth. International conservation efforts are being used in conjunction with the development of rapid assessment tools to inform people about wetland issues. Terrestrial ecosystem A terrestrial ecosystem is an ecosystem found only on landforms. Six primary terrestrial ecosystems exist: tundra, taiga, temperate deciduous forest, tropical rain forest,grassland and desert.[1] A community of organisms and their environment that occurs on the land masses of continents and islands. Terrestrial ecosystems are distinguished from aquatic ecosystems by the lower availability of water and the consequent importance of water as a limiting factor. Terrestrial ecosystems are characterized by greater temperature fluctuations on both a diurnal and seasonal basis than occur in aquatic ecosystems in similar climates. The availability of light is greater in terrestrial ecosystems than in aquatic ecosystems because the atmosphere is more transparent in land than in water. Gases are more available in terrestrial ecosystems than in aquatic ecosystems. Those gases include carbon dioxide that serves as a substrate for photosynthesis, oxygen that serves as a substrate in aerobic respiration, and nitrogen that serves as a substrate for nitrogen fixation. Terrestrial environments are segmented into a subterranean portion from which most water and ions are obtained, and an atmospheric portion from which gases are obtained and where the physical energy of light is transformed into the organic energy of carbon-carbon bonds through the process of photosynthesis. Terrestrial ecosystems occupy 55,660,000 mi2 (144,150,000 km2), or 28.2%, of Earth’s surface. Although they are comparatively recent in the history of life (the first terrestrial organisms appeared in the Silurian Period, about 425 million years ago) and  occupy a much smaller portion of Earth’s surface than marine ecosystems, terrestrial ecosystems have been a major site of adaptive radiation of both plants and animals. Major plant taxa in terrestrial ecosystems are members of the division Magnoliophyta (flowering plants), of which there are about 275,000 species, and the division Pinophyta (conifers), of which there are about 500 species. Members of the division Bryophyta (mosses and liverworts), of which there are about 24,000 species, are also important in some terrestrial ecosystems. Major animal taxa in terrestrial ecosystems include the classes Insecta (insects) with about 900,000 species, Aves (birds) with 8500 species, and Mammalia (mammals) with approximately 4100 species. Organisms in terrestrial ecosystems have adaptations that allow them to obtain water when the entire body is no longer bathed in that fluid, means of transporting the water from limited sites of acquisition to the rest of the body, and means of preventing the evaporation of water from body surfaces. They also have traits that provide body support in the atmosphere, a much less buoyant medium than water, and other traits t hat render them capable of withstanding the extremes of temperature, wind, and humidity that characterize terrestrial ecosystems. Finally, the organisms in terrestrial ecosystems have evolved many methods of transporting gametes in environments where fluid flow is much less effective as a transport medium. The organisms in terrestrial ecosystems are integrated into a functional unit by specific, dynamic relationships due to the coupled processes of energy and chemical flow. Those relationships can be summarized by schematic diagrams of trophic webs, which place organisms according to their feeding relationships. The base of the food web is occupied by green plants, which are the only organisms capable of utilizing the energy of the Sun and inorganic nutrients obtained from the soil to produce organic molecules. Terrestrial food webs can be broken into two segments based on the status of the plant material that enters them. Grazing food webs are associated with the consumption of living plant material by herbivores. Detritus food webs are associated with the consumption of dead plant material by detritivores. Th e relative importance of those two types of food webs varies considerably in different types of terrestrial ecosystems. Grazing food webs are more important in grasslands, where over half of net primary productivity may be consumed by herbivores. Detritus food webs are more important in forests, where less  than 5% of net primary productivity may be consumed by herbivores. There is one type of extensive terrestrial ecosystem due solely to human activities and eight types that are natural ecosystems. Those natural ecosystems reflect the variation of precipitation and temperature over Earth’s surface. The smallest land areas are occupied by tundra and temperate grassland ecosystems, and the largest land area is occupied by tropical forest. The most productive ecosystems are temperate and tropical forests, and the least productive are deserts and tundras. Cultivated lands, which together with grasslands and savannas utilized for grazing are referred to as agroecosystems, are of intermediate extent and productivity. Because of both their areal extent and their high average productivity, tropical forests are the most productive of all terrestrial ecosystems, contributing 45% of total estimated net primary productivity on land. CAUSES OF DESTRUCTION The degradation of ecosystems is an environmental problem that diminishes the capacity of species to survive. This degradation occurs in different ways and is manifested in a reduction in the richness of the ecosystems as well as their biological diversity, and in the goods and services they can offer, thereby affecting indigenous and/or migratory species. The degradation of ecosystems due to overexploitation of their resources, though serving a short-term economic goal, has had direct negative effects on social welfare in the medium and long terms. As long as the ecosystem is not degraded, it represents a source of wealth for society, hence the importance of keeping it in good condition. One of the main causes that contributes to the degradation of ecosystems is the deforestation due to the advance of the agriculture frontier and inappropriate forest exploitation. More lands are deforested for commercial agriculture and live-stock rearing, and due to overexploitation of forest for wood and energy. In Nicaragua deforestation rates reach over 150,000 hectares per year and in Costa Rica over 18,500 hectares per year. At a lower scale, another problem is the uncontrolled fires used to prepare land for agricultural activities or to remove forest for the development of stock rearing areas. This practice eliminates the organic covering of the land, making it more susceptible to erosion by both  wind and water. In addition, the fires cause health problems and detract from the aesthetic value of the landscape. Accidental or natural fires are another case in point. They affect areas of natural forest. In the Upala and Los Chiles cantons, in Costa Rica, some 10,000 hectares were burned between 1998 and 1999. This problem is even more serious in the Nicaraguan territory of the basin. Equipment is lacking and communities need to be organized to control t hese fires as one of the main barriers to the burning of large areas. The construction of roads without proper drainage measures or in territories subject to penetration and settlement are high-stress factors for ecosystems, especially those which are highly fragile as a result of their weather conditions and the nature of their soil and water. Mining and the extraction of construction materials without taking measures to cushion the impact cause drastic changes in the natural landscape while degrading its valuable ecosystems. Wetlands are very fragile ecosystems that are being severely affected, causing a reduction in the number and diversity of the species of terrestrial flora, birds, reptiles, mammals, fish, and crustaceans. This problem results from excessive exploitation of wildlife species either to feed the population, to trade their furs, or to trade live species, and from sedimentation, which causes changes in water quality, thereby significantly affecting the reproduction of aquatic species that live and/or reproduce in the wetlands. The SJRB wetlands are very valuable ecosystems, which regulate the hydrological cycle and provide food and shelter for hundreds of species, including large quantities of migratory birds. One major cause of the deterioration of this ecosystem is the draining of wide areas of wetlands to give access to agricultural zones or human settlements. Aerial photographs of the Caà ±o Negro sector show how the pools of water have diminished over time, due in part to the drainage of wetlands for agricultural purposes and to the sedimentation occurring in recent years in the basin. Owing to the deterioration of these areas and the pressure of the neighboring communities on the use of the natural resources of the wetlands, it is necessary to draw up management plans to outline the socioeconomic characteristics of users and guidelines for usage, since people are highly dependent on these resources for their survival. A large portion of the ecological problems of the wetlands is due to ignorance of their benefits. The use of inappropriate fishing techniques endangers the  existence of certain species, altering the food chain of aquatic fauna and consequently deteriorating the aquatic ecosystems. This is the case of the bull shark that is now hard to find in Lake Nicaragua or in the San Juan River. In some cases, the introduction of exotic species endangers the existence of indigenous species with a high cultural value. Such is the case of the guapote, whose numbers are being reduced by the introduction of tilapias. The deterioration of ecosystems is exacerbated by the lack of an institutional presence in the territory, be it for technical or economic reasons, or a combination of both. As a result, laws on the regulation and control of natural resource use are not enforced. The participation of civil society in controlling the use and exploitation of natural resources is limited and, in many cases, very timid or markedly apathetic. One aspect that has not been evaluated in the degradation of the ecosystems is the incidence of different phenomena on these systems. The geographic location of the SJRB and the various geographic accidents encountered there render it susceptible to the impact of various events of this kind. In the SJRB there are a number of active volcanoes, which spew gas and ash causing damage to the plant life, the soil, polluting water bodies, and causing severe damage to entire populations. These volcanoes include the Masaya, the Maderas, and the Irazà º. Another natural phenomenon in the SJRB is landslides which, though located in specific areas, cause damage to the ecosystems, the soil, pollute water bodies, damage infrastructure and entire settlements. The Maderas volcano on the island Ometepe is a case in point. Similarly, during the last century, the SJRB has suffered the destructive effects of at least three hurricanes which, with their heavy rainfall, cause flooding damaging ecosystems, eroding soil, diverting river courses, causing severe damage to infrastructure and entire populations, resulting in the loss of human lives. Other natural phenomena that have caused damage to the ecosystems of the SJRB are the droughts that have occurred as a result of the El Nià ±o and seismic activity, which have changed river courses, particularly in the case of the Tipitapa River that provided a permanent connection between the Managua and Nicaragua lakes. As a result of an earthquake during the last century, the riverbed rose in a certain sector cutting off the existing connection between the two lakes. The degradation of the ecosystems makes the economic and social infrastructure of the SJRB more vulnerable and  increases the potential impact on the population. This vulnerability is reflected in shorter periods between the occurrence of floods or droughts and the soil becomes more unstable. Possible solutions to the problem of deterioration of the ecosystems include developing formal and informal environmental education programs to make farmers more aware of their actions; increasing enforcement of the existing l egislation; promoting proper natural resource management; and promoting the organization of grassroots groups to control burning from the outset. To prevent or mitigate the damage caused by extreme conditions, such as flooding and droughts and other effects of natural phenomena, it is necessary to set up and early warning system about possible swelling of water bodies and to monitor hydrometeorological behavior. It is also necessary to set up a seismographic network to monitor the behavior of volcanoes and tectonic faults. Similarly, social organization is necessary to design and test emergency plans for natural phenomena, to reduce the damage they cause. Institutions responsible for the control and regulation of natural resource use must be strengthened, both technically and economically, and be given the means for their mobilization. This would enable them to have a real presence in the territory. It is also necessary to create mechanisms for enforcing the current legislation. Conservation practices to save ecosystem Environmental protection is a practice of protecting the natural environment on individual, organizational or governmental levels, for the benefit of both the natural environment and humans. Due to the pressures of population and technology, the biophysical environment is being degraded, sometimes permanently. This has been recognized, and governments have begun placing restraints on activities that cause environmental degradation. Since the 1960s, activity of environmental movements has created awareness of the various environmental issues. There is no agreement on the extent of the environmental impact of human activity, and protection measures are occasionally criticized. Academic institutions now offer courses, such as environmental studies, environmental management and environmental engineering, that teach the history and methods of environment protection. Protection of the environment is needed due to various human  activities. Waste production, air pollution, and loss of biodiversity (resulting from the introduction of invasive species and species extinction) are some of the issues related to environmental protection. Environmental protection is influenced by three interwoven factors: environmental legislation, ethics and education. Each of these factors plays its part in influencing national-level environmental decisions and personal-level environmental values and behaviors. For environmental protection to become a reality, it is important for societies to develop each of these areas that, together, will inform and drive environmental decisions.[1] How to Save Our Ecosystem Instructions Educate yourself about your local environment. Starting small and learning about the plants and animals in your immediate surroundings will give you an appreciation for the enormous variety of ecosystems on our earth. It will also help you understand how you fit into your natural surroundings and get you thinking about the effects of your actions. When you flush the toilet, where does your water go? When you wash the car and soap runs off into the street, what does that soap go on to affect? What animals do you disturb by replacing native vegetation with nonnative landscaping? Asking yourself these questions is a one of the first steps to reducing your carbon footprint. 2  Find an activist group in your area with a cause you support. It can be a local issue, such as preserving open space in your community, or a more widespread issue, like passing legislation that requires cars to produce fewer greenhouse gas emissions. Being part of a group allows you to meet like-minded people and work toward a common environmental goal. Sponsored Links Homeworks for free We answer 1000 questions daily Free and fast brainly.in 3Consider the implications of your consumerism. Everything you buy has a product life cycle, or a history of how it was produced using what materials. When possible, reduce the impact of your purchase by buying products that are made locally and/or are manufactured from recycled materials. 4  Eat local, organic food. Local food travels less distance from farm to your table, which means that it has a lower carbon footprint, is fresher, and supports your community’s farmers. Organic food is produced without the use of chemical pesticides or fertilizers, and without genetically modified crops. Chemical pesticides and fertilizers can get into the natural environment and harm existing plants and animals; genetically modified crops reduce biodiversity by encouraging a monoculture farm. 5  Travel wisely to decrease your carbon footprint. Use alternative methods of transportation whenever feasible—walk to the store, ride your bike to work, take public transportation downtown. When you do drive, accelerate and decelerate gradually to conserve gas. Also, make sure that your tires are properly inflated and that the emissions system on your vehicle is well maintained.

I do not know yet Dissertation Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 14000 words

I do not know yet - Dissertation Example For instance, the qualitative research approach has been used to investigate the impact of the Chinese exchange rate policy on South East Asian Economies, as this requires a qualitative evaluation of the policy being followed by the Chinese government over the years. On the other hand, the quantitative research approach has been considered as justified in the evaluation of factors which influence the changes in the exchange rate of the Chinese Yuan and the US Dollar. The study has revealed that there has been a significant impact of the Chinese exchange rate policies on the ASEAN members’ preference for the Chinese Yuan as a currency for international settlements. In addition, the study has concluded that the exchange rate for Chinese Yuan against the US Dollar has been influenced by money supply in China, difference in real interest rate for China and the US and growth in inflation rates for China and the US. Acknowledgements I take this opportunity to acknowledge the help an d assistance of my supervisor, teachers and friends, who offered me unconditional support throughout the conduct of this study. Contents Abstract 2 Acknowledgements 3 Contents 4 List of Tables 7 List of Figures 8 Chapter 1 - Introduction 10 1.1.Background to the Context 10 1.2.Research Aim 11 1.3.Research Objectives 11 1.4.Research Questions 11 1.5.Importance of the Study 12 1.6.Ambit of the Study 12 1.7.Structure of the Research Report 12 Chapter 2 - Literature Review 15 2.1.Introduction 15 2.2.Chinese Exchange Rate Policy 15 2.3.Initiatives taken by United States to Influence the Chinese Exchange Rate Regime 21 2.4.The Relationship between Exchange Rate and Macroeconomic Variables 24 2.5.Chapter Summary 27 Chapter 3 - Research Methodology 28 3.1.Introduction 28 3.2.Research Approach 28 3.3.Data Collection and Information Sources 29 3.4.Data Analysis 30 3.4.1.Econometric Model 30 3.4.2.Descriptive and Graphical Illustration of Variables 31 3.5.Limitation of the Methodology Adopted 31 3.6.Ethical Issues and their Resolution 31 3.7.Chapter Summary 32 Chapter 4 - Influence of Chinese Exchange Rate Policy on South East Asian Economies 33 4.1.Introduction 33 4.2.Internationalization of Chinese RMB 33 4.3.Trade, Economic and Financial Integration between China and the Member of ASEAN 34 4.4.Chapter Summary 38 Chapter 5 - Factors Affecting Changes in Exchange Rate between the Chinese Yuan and the US Dollar 39 5.1.Introduction 39 5.2.Descriptive Analysis of Selected Variables 39 5.3.Relationship between Exchange Rate and Macroeconomic Variables - Findings from Regression Analysis 45 5.4.Chapter Summary 52 Chapter 6 - Conclusion and Recommendations 54 6.1.Test for the Validity of Research Hypotheses 54 6.2.Recommendations for Future Researchers 54 Bibliography 56 Appendix 62 List of Tables Table 1: Top 10 Import Origins for ASEAN (2010 - 2011) 34 Table 2: Top 10 Export Origins for ASEAN (2010 - 2011) 35 Table 3: Swap Agreements between China and Neighboring Countries 36 Table 4: Correlation Results between GDP Growth Rates of China and US (1980 – 2012) 41 Table 5: Regression Model Summary 45 Table 6: Values of Coefficients, Standard Errors and Significance Levels 46 List of Figures Figure 1: Chinese Yuan Settlements of Cross-Border Trade 37 Figure 2: Comparison of Exchange

Economic Issues that Arise in the Decision to Get a Haircut Essay

Economic Issues that Arise in the Decision to Get a Haircut - Essay Example According to Ballestero and Romero (72), decision making is both a formal and a non-formal activity, since everyone does it with or without their knowledge. However, people make decisions with the objective of accomplishing a particular goal in mind. In life, making decision is not a choice but an obligation. The goal of the process for businesses is enhancing efficiency in operations. Furthermore, the process aids in analyzing issues from a financial perspective. This is because decisions made by managers have financial implications on the position of a business in the corporate world. People consider several factors before coming up with decisions in all circumstances. In a business settings, managers consult widely prior to coming up with a decision on a particular issue. Consequently, the person making the decision analyzes the short-term consequences of the decision prior to choosing a particular alternative. It is important to generate alternatives to chose when planning to mak e decisions. In order for one to choose to get a haircut, he should consider the factors involved such as the opportunity cost, gains of the trade and elasticity of the demand. Additionally, the person has to decide the place from where to get his haircut. For instance, the person will consider price as a critical factor in making the decision on the issues. ... In making the decision, the person should note that the decision has both positive and unconstructive consequences depending on the process. Decision-making is the most critical process in business management because it determines profitability. The process also influences directions of operations for businesses. According to business managers, it is the central objectives in management. For the case above, the choice of the machine and the person to conduct the job are critical elements to consider when analyzing impacts of choosing to cut the hair from a business perspective. Consequently, competence of the barber, the barber’s attitude and time are critical in decision-making. Since the alternatives have several financial implications, the individual has to choose alternative that best suit his interest. According to economists, the need to satisfy the basic wants is the basis of decision-making. Interestingly, the satisfaction of one’ needs is not the end goal in it self since a decision leads to other needs. For instance, cutting hair in a particular way, will lead to the urge of dressing a manner that is appropriate to the haircut. Moreover, choosing a particular hairstyle signifies the position of an individual in the society. In modern society, several styles of haircuts have different connotations. The most dominant style resembles popular opinion in the society. Unique hairstyle on the contrary represents nouvelle ideas. The knowledge that different hairstyle espouse different meaning dictates choices in society. Given that many hairstyles are available, selecting one is a daunting task. To the young, shaggy haircuts is trendy and cool, whereas the old dislike the style. Teenagers

Discuss how an organisation's competitive advantage can be enhanced Essay

Discuss how an organisation's competitive advantage can be enhanced with the introduction of new technology - Essay Example If according to the analysis the expected revenue is more than the technology’s cost then only the company should plan to take the decision of installing the machine. There are several benefits of implementing technology; some of them are discussed as follows: Technology helps reduce cost One of the most renowned company, Procter & Gamble makes use of latest technology to reduce its inventory cost. This company makes efficient use of computer technology to keep track of the amount of products or items that its retailers currently hold in stock so that it can immediately get restocked when required. Makes Distribution Easier Right coordination between distribution channels is not very easy but with the introduction of new technologies, this task has been made easier for the organizations. Just-in-time system helps in better planning of item delivery and can reduce cost of storage. Thus, implementing technology in the distribution process and doing extensive research and intelle ctual planning can help improve delivery time and give organization an opportunity of further growing their business worldwide. Increased Revenue As mentioned earlier, implementation of technology also results in increased revenue. Lets take an example of a very popular automobile company â€Å"Ford†. Ford today is considered to be a technology driven brand. According to the vice president of Ford, Derrick Kuzak, every product sold has added to increased revenue. He further stated that average revenue per vehicle has increased up to fourteen percent from the year 2008 to the year 2009. This increase was due to the implementation of latest technology, â€Å"Sync in-car communication system† in the vehicle. This system provides car drivers a hands free facility to control their cell phones and media systems. Derrick Kuzak stated â€Å"Technology has contributed majorly in enhancing our brand and further expanding our business† Makes Communication Easier Advancemen t in technology also makes communication easier and faster. Through the introduction of new cell phones like blackberry, easy communication between employees through email and blackberry messenger has been made possible. Blackberry service notifies the employees about any new email that comes in their inbox and allows easy exchange or transfer of files and images, providing them with an opportunity, to perform their job sitting home. Various Technologies presently being used in Organizations Majority organizations implement Transaction Processing Systems. This system helps produce data, based on daily operations happening in the company. It produces data regarding inflow and outflow of materials, sales, credit and deposits etc. In simple words, this system provides an answer to all the queries that operational managers might have on daily basis. Another most useful system that is being used world-wide is the Management Information System (MIS). This is a technology that is useful fo r producing reports containing information useful for middle level managers to do short - term assessments. There are several other useful technologies or systems that help companies gain competitive

Children's Rights Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Children's Rights - Essay Example There is a need to create an atmosphere where the children could voice opinions and exercise their rights. "In passing, it may be salutary to remind ourselves, at this point that the role of children's rights in philosophical debate has more often than not been as a testing ground for theories of right whose main significance is held to lie outwith the world of the child," Alston et al (1992, p.3). This happens because adults have created this world without any voice inclusion of the child. "Many factors seem to be influence the way children are included in decision making. This could be classified into factors relating to children, factors relating to adults, and factors relating to situations," Thomas and Campling (2000, p.156). And under more or less all the circumstances, it is mainly the adults who make decisions with hardly any contribution from the children. "Underlying this is a concern that according children their 'rights' may involve adults relinquishing their 'power' and control;" Morrow (1999). In a way this could tend to overburdening children with pressure of decision making. Children's rights should have clear boundaries, separateness and proper divisibility to make them more coherent. As the adults are making laws, laying the rules and doing research without involving children's opinion, it remains mostly from the point of view of the adults. abo "In other words, children's perspectives on their rights might be a useful starting point for finding out what they already know and understand about 'citizenship', 'participation', and politics" Morlow (1999). It is also necessary to take into account the social and cultural background of the region and the limits of children's autonomy. Children, as they grow up, need more information about sex, drugs, alcohol and they have a right to know to protect themselves. Unfortunately in some societies children are discouraged from knowing them. Other factors that could influence are age, gender (this is very important in certain cultures and developing countries), and social diversities make enormous difference here. Children usually feel that they are not trusted; their opinions are not tolerated or even heard, or overruled. Participation in decision making will definitely decrease this assumption. "Article 28 of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC) states that all children and young people have a right to a primary education, which should be free, and those wealthy countries should help poorer countries achieve this". http://www.unicef.org.uk/tz/rights/index.asp The child has a right to depend upon the parental responsibility throughout the childhood. "Parental responsibility lasts until the child is 18, although at that upper end of childhood it should only be exercised in a way, which is consistent with the child's evolving capacity and maturity". http://www.yourrights.org.uk/your-rights/chapters/the-rights-of-children-and-young-people/parental-resposibility/aquiring-parental-responsibility.shtml Real encroachment of children's right prevails in the poverty-stricken and war-torn areas of the world. United Nations Report says: "In the last decade, an estimated two million children have been killed in armed conflict, many of them by some of the 100 million landmines thought to be

The Theory of Population Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

The Theory of Population - Assignment Example The term population cohort is even recognized as population pyramid and this concept forwards the notion that a particular population comprises of organisms that are similar in nature and interbreed in a particular area. The theory states that population changes in three different stages including the growth stage in which population experiences an increase as a result of abundant sources for nutrition and low competition for those sources. The second stage is the stability stage in which population growth increases at a stable rate because of the decrease in resources and increase in competition. The third stage is the decline in which the population growth decreases as a result of lack of resources and ultimately the population comes to an end. The term Islam is used to refer to the submission to what the God wills. This means that the believers in the religion of Islam give precedence to the God’s will over their own will in various endeavors of their life including daily activities, believes and ideas. The term Muslim is used to refer to an individual who follows the religion of Islam and is an individual who has surrendered himself to their God called Allah. This means that a Muslim is an individual who has given himself in the hands of God and has allowed God to decide what the individual should and should not do. The religion of Islam is based on five pillars that every Muslim has to accept and abide by. These pillars include the belief that there is no other God in this world except Allah. Furthermore, a believer has to worship Allah five times a day while facing towards Mecca. A believer even has to share his earnings with others in the form of charity and observe fast during the holy month of Ramadan. Lastly, a believer who has the physical, as well as monetary ability, should visit Mecca as a form of pilgrimage.

On-Campus Living Requirements Personal Statement

On-Campus Living Requirements - Personal Statement Example The reasons accounted for this trend, tradition and/or practice is because studies have established that it promotes higher student retention rates (Garner 114). This is compared to students who live off-campus who according to the respondent from the interview exhibit higher dropout rates than those living on campus. There is a lot of research done by people in the field of higher education looking at the impact that living on campus has for students. It has been shown repeatedly that students on campus are more likely to have a higher GPA than the students who do not. They are more likely to stay at the institution and graduate than those students who do not live on campus. The reasons accounted for this trend, tradition and/or practice is because studies have established that it promotes higher student retention rates (Garner 114). This is compared to students who live off-campus who according to the respondent from the interview exhibit higher dropout rates than those living on c ampus. There is a lot of research done by people in the field of higher education looking at the impact that living on campus has for students. It has been shown repeatedly that students on campus are more likely to have a higher GPA than the students who do not. They are more likely to stay at the institution and graduate than those students who do not live on campus. There are exceptions to the mandatory on-campus living requirements including if someone has ever served in the military and/or is of a certain age usually above 22 years of age. These individuals are allowed to live off-campus because they are deemed to possess the necessary and required skills and abilities to live alone. The insistence on having a mandatory on-campus living requirement is also based on the need for institutions of higher learning to raise funds. These funds are used to support other facilities and amenities in the universities other than the accommodation facilities (Kuh et al 16). On-campus living requirements are policies are supported and opposed in equal measure by both students and parents depending on the perspective one is looking at it from. On-campus living is one of those life stages where young adults get to leave their homes and start living on their own away from home. On-campus accommodation acts as a transition in the journey towards independence (Kwoka-Finning 148). Students in halls of residence learn and acquire essential life skills that help them maneuver out in the ‘real world’ when they leave these halls of residence.  

Fast food restaurant Essay Example for Free

Fast food restaurant Essay Recently, fast food has been from the most popular way for a lot of people. Nowadays, people think that they don’t have plenty of time to prepare food. However, a lot of families have been addicted to that type of fast food, finding it so easy and comfortable for their busy life. Fast food should not be banned because it is a freedom of choice, it has a lot of social benefits and the government offers high taxes on those places which serves that type of food. First of all, every person has the right to choose what to eat or what to drink. It is the freedom of choice. People should be able to put whatever they want in their bodies, whether it be unhealthy or not. Fast food industries started making less harmful products and reducing obesity, but people make their own decision to eat it knowing it is bad for them. So, it is their own responsibility to take care of their own health. Yes, fast food is not doubt unhealthy for people almost all the time. But in modern life, fast food can be helpful and sometimes quite enjoyable. (LEngle, â€Å"Because to take away a mans freedom of choice, even his freedom to make the wrong choice, is to manipulate him as though he were a puppet and not a person. † ) In United States, fast-food restaurants popularity is growing every single second. Nowadays, people can afford any a whole meal for 6 to 7 dollars each. (Bose D,N. D) fast food restaurants can provide customers with simple large meal sets with minimal cost. People admit that fast food restaurant helps them getting their life more easy, comfort and uncomplicated. For instance, if the two parents were having a lot of late work and late meetings and their kids were home without food for dinner without any cooked food, they can pull over at any near restaurant to order food before heading to their shelter. (Clark S, 2010) fast food restaurants are located nearly everywhere, providing customers with simple meals without the need to spend time travelling far distance just to purchase food. This popularity of fast food is increasing because of their main causes: low cost, fast service and restaurants is available everywhere. These are a lot of social benefits and other benefits for fast food that it leads to family gathering, giving that chance to the family to gather with their children, where a lot of these fast food restaurants have some games for those children or some luxury calm places for other families. .Otherwise, today a lot of people and teenagers hangout in a lot of fast food restaurants as a friends outing. However, a lot of people think that fast food is from the most dangerous things that should be banned due to its diseases firstly because it makes you obese; secondly it links a lot of medical problems like diabetes. . some think it leads to cancer and one of the most reasons that fast food lead to gaining of a lot of weight due to obesity. But fast food companies and industries nowadays is trying to fix that kind of problems by producing a lot of healthy choices for fast food as McDonalds, chili’s, Kfc and Papa Jones have produces a lot of diet food and drinks and healthy choices in order to satisfy all the needs needed by all ages of people with different opinions and choices. (Wolverson M.N,2009) fast food provide customers with a wide range of food to choose from. In conclusion , everything in our lives have pros and cons ,advantages and disadvantages . fast food has advantages more than its disadvangtes and at the end of discussion fast food should not be banned as a respect for the human rights as the freedom of choice . Giving people the chance to take their own choices and the decision to select their own style and their own life by eating whatever they want whether it is unhealthy or not.

Nonverbal Communication Essay Example for Free

Nonverbal Communication Essay Abstract The goal of this study was to find out if teachers were teaching nonverbal communication in their classroom, and also if it was important to teach nonverbal communication in the classroom. Teachers have a variety of teaching styles, and techniques. Some teachers using nonverbals and some do not. However, sometimes class size, classification levels, and gender can cause teachers to either use nonverbal communication or not. The participants of this study were asked whether or not their teacher use different types of nonverbal communication in the classroom setting. The study found that students said most teachers in their classes use nonverbal communication to teach. This study also provides support of the importance nonverbal communication has when teaching. Nonverbal communication in the classroom: A research about the importance of teaching nonverbal communication Communication in general is the process of sending and receiving messages that enables humans to share knowledge, attitudes, and skills. Although we usually identify communication with speech, communication is composed of two dimensions, which are verbal and nonverbal. Nonverbal communication has been defined as communication, but just without any words. Communicating is not something we can just do without, nonverbal communication especially considering it can never be shut off, unlike verbal communication we are always communicating nonverbally. One cannot not communicate. Nonverbal communication is always around you and impossible to ignore. Research, in many studies, has indicated that nonverbal communication can serve a wide range of functions in human interaction. Nonverbal communication is an essential part of every day life. No matter if at work, school, or even at home, nonverbal communication plays a huge role in life. As Blatner (2002) says, â€Å"Often people cannot understand the impact of nonverbal communications involved in a situation unless it is replayed and figured out† (pg.3). Teachers need to be practicing and teaching nonverbal communication in the classroom everyday, and that by doing so students will become much better communicators. Nonverbal communication strategies are important to the development of an effective educational system. Nonverbal communication should be practiced in more classes than just communication classes, because no matter what major of study you are in communication is always going to be an essential thing to know. Many social scientists have conducted research in the field of nonverbal communication as it affects students and educators. Ritchie (1977) found that seven percent of communication is nonverbal. Voice inflection accounts for 38% of the message, and facial expression, including body language, communicates 55% of the message. Speer (1972) states that because 90% of the total impact of a message can come from nonverbal elements, sharpening nonverbal communication skills cannot help but make a person a better communicator. So why are not all teachers using this method of teaching in the classroom setting? That is one of the questions I would like to answer in my research. This paper will work to determine if nonverbal communication is essential to be taught in the classroom and the importance of the teaching of nonverbal communication. Literature Review Research has been investigated, by many different scholarly researchers, about nonverbal communication and the importance of why it should be taught to students in their learning career. Nonverbal communication can be defined as signing, symbols, colors, gestures, rhythms, and much more. Those are just a few examples that will be discussed (Ritchie 1977). Speer (1972) believes that it is important to know all the different ways to communicate nonverbally and explains all of those ways in the book. Speer (1972) also emphasizes on the fact that in order to communicate, you must first know what nonverbal communication actually is. Pilner, Alloway, Krames (1974) however compare how humans and animals communicate differently nonverbally and the importance of knowing the different ways, and they also point out how humans and animals can communicate very similarly nonverbally as well. Ethology is the way of studying behavior amongst people. Weitz (1974) refers to ethology as a way to condu ct research, knowing how to study different peoples behavior is essential to know before observing how people act. Visual interactions are also ways of studying nonverbal communication in the classroom, according to Weitz (1974). According to Molcho (1985), nonverbal communication is critical in the classroom setting, especially in interpersonal communication. The most credible messages teachers generate are said to be nonverbal. Duggan (2012) discusses all of the different nonverbal cues and why they are important. For example, he states the importance of facial expressions, gestures, and appearance. Along the same lines Carli (1995), Mayo Henley (1981) and Thompson (2012) have different articles about differences between men and women and the different thoughts they have on nonverbal communication. He also discusses different research scenarios in which research has been conducted to prove the importance of nonverbal communication, and why men and women communicate differently sometimes. Area of Study Nonverbal communication plays a huge role in the classroom, and how teachers should be using nonverbal communication. (Pliner 1974) This paper is a research intended to help understand why nonverbal communication is so important in teaching, and what those importance’s are. Teachers should be using nonverbal communication everyday, in every course no matter what the major of study is. I want to research to see if teachers are using nonverbal communication skills in the classroom environment, and if so how they are using them. My hypothesis is that yes I believe teachers are using nonverbal communication as a way of teaching in their classroom. If the answer is no however, I will research why teachers are not using nonverbal communication in their every day teaching techniques, and if there are reasons behind why they are not using it. I will conduct surveys in class to see if students believe teachers are teaching enough about nonverbal communication, and if they believe it is important to be learning about. I would ask, does nonverbal communication play a role in the classroom? For instance, is nonverbal communication important in the classroom setting, whether it be how the teacher dresses, lectures, stands, etc. I also want to find out if teachers are teaching enough about nonverbal communication to their students. Are students gaining enough knowledge about nonverbal communication while in the classroom setting? Also, I would like to find out, what is the importance of nonverbal communication. Why should we study this and why do we need to learn this study for our whole careers. Finally, what would a classroom setting be like with zero nonverbal communication? This consists of no eye contact, appearance codes, gesture, or any other kind of nonverbal communication behavior. The following research questions and hypotheses guide the current study: H1: Students believe teachers are using nonverbal communication to communicate with them on a daily basis. H2: There is no difference between what males believe teachers use in the classroom and what females believe. H3: All ages believe the same thing when it comes to how often their teachers communicate nonverbally and how they are communicating this way. RQ1: Does nonverbal communication play a role in the classroom? RQ2: Are teachers teaching enough about nonverbal communication to their students? Methodology Instrument I used the convenience type sampling method. (see appendix A) This is a nonrandom type sampling; in which I used volunteers in my class to take my survey. The survey contained nine questions. Participants were asked nine questions about how their teachers use different nonverbal communication skills to communicate with them. The students were asked to mark yes or no depending on if the teacher used those certain styles of nonverbals while teaching, Students were also asked some demographic questions: sex, classification, and age. I used evidence by Wilmont (1995), about research of nonverbal communication to come up with my research questions. I developed my questions very carefully before choosing what the right questions were to ask. I thought about questions that could be useful to my research and that would help me develop the results I needed in order to prove or disprove my topic. I choose questions that wouldn’t be offensive to anyone, so that everyone could participate . I was trying to find out the significance of nonverbal communication being used and taught in the classroom setting. Participants I had twenty-five students in my research communication class participate in my survey. There were fourteen males and eleven females who participated, however gender doesn’t have much of an affect on my research. The ages for my survey ranged from nineteen to twenty-three years old. All of the students who took my survey were in some kind of communication field. I conducted my survey and distributed it during our class hour, along with everyone else. I distributed my surveys on Thursday October 18th, 2012. I distributed my survey to each member in the class in a row order. I simply passed my survey out row by row to each class member, and when everyone received my survey they began taking it. When the class was done taking my survey they proceeded to the front of the classroom and put my surveys in a pile for me to pick up. I then took a look at all of my results later that night. I made an excel document and went through each individual paper and recorded my results in to excel. I recorded the number of females and males, class rank, and also the answers to my yes and no questions. Results The first hypothesis was concerned with if students believed teachers were using nonverbal communication with them to teach on a daily basis. The hypothesis inferred that students did believe teachers were using nonverbal communication on a daily basis to communicate with them. . This hypothesis was supported. All students answered yes to at least some type of nonverbal communication. The second hypothesis looked at the sex of the students. This hypothesis inferred that the sex of the student was not significant for this survey. This hypothesis was supported. Sex was not significant in the research. Males and females answered mostly the same for every question in the survey. The third hypothesis looked at age of the students. This hypothesis stated that age was not significant in the survey. This hypothesis was supported. After recording all the results, age was not a factor. All of the students came up with mostly the same answers no matter their age. Research question one asked if nonverbal communication played a role in the classroom setting. From my survey, students believed that yes, nonverbal communication does in fact play a role in the classroom, and the survey also showed that numerous amounts of different types of nonverbal communication are being used every day in the classroom setting. Research question number two asked, are teachers teaching enough about nonverbal communication to their students? The question was answered yes by every single student. Students believe that yes there is enough nonverbal communication being taught in the classroom. Discussion The goal of this study was to see if nonverbal communication was being taught in the classroom and if it was important to be taught. Teachers have many different ways of teaching, and many different techniques but the overall outcome was that yes, nonverbal communication is very important in the classroom and that many teachers do use nonverbal communication on a daily basis to teach. Class size, gender, and classification did not really matter in this study. Previous research has also found that nonverbal communication is a very important factor in teaching as well. My study supported previous research, and agreed that nonverbal communication is being taught in the classrooms, and it is important for teachers to teach and use nonverbal communication. Another interesting find was that gender did not play a big part in the overall outcomes. I figured since females tend to notice things more, like proximity, gestures, posture, etc., that females would answer a lot differently than males but that was not true in this case. All students believed pretty much the same things. I was not surprised that students believed nonverbal communication was important because I agree, it is.   After conducting my survey I learned a lot of things from classmates. Some of the things I discovered were, body posture is a very important nonverbal in the classroom. Body posture can tell when students understand the content presented or when they have trouble grasping the major concepts. A student who is slouching in his seat sends a very different message than the student who learns forward or sits erect. I also learned that eye contact plays a very important role in teaching. Teachers often use eye contact in the classroom to decide who is prepared to answer a question, or who has completed a homework assignment. If a student does not want to be called on they will try and have no eye contact with the teacher, and that indicates to the teacher they do not know the answer or wish to not speak. Students also responded that distance is used on a daily basis in the classroom. The teachers are supposed to stand in the front, and the students sit in desks in the middle and back. I also discovered that students would interact more comfortably with a teacher when they are in same vertical plane. Dress being a form of nonverbal communication, I discovered plays a role in every classroom. Teachers dress appropriately for class everyday, as in dress pants, dresses, nice shirts, etc. Effective teaching depends on successful communication. By definition of non-verbal communication without uttering a single word, teachers and students constantly send messages to each other (Thompson, 2012). Limits and Future Study Although my study found a lot of reliable information, there were some limitations. When conducting my survey, although it turned out very helpful, I would have changed the questions and been a little more descriptive with them. For example, I would have not only asked if the certain nonverbals were used in the classroom, I would have also asked when and how these forms of communication were used. Another limitation was class classification. There were a wide variety of grade levels that took my survey, and all teachers in every grade level have a different way of teaching, so I would have tried to get maybe all Juniors or all Seniors to take my survey. I would have tried to have all people who take the same classes with the same teachers to take the survey. Future researchers could look more in to how students use nonverbal [communication to communicate rather than just teachers. I think students use just as much nonverbal communication as teachers do and that would be an interesting research to conduct also. This research was conducted to show the importance of nonverbal communication while teaching in the classroom. Nonverbal communication plays an essential role in the classroom so I believe more studies should be done concerning nonverbal communication. References Carli, L. (1995). Nonverbal behavior, gender, and influence. Journal Of Personality And Social Psychology, 68(6), 1030-1041. Duggan, T. (2012). Nonverbal cues between men and women in the workplace. Hearst Newspapers. Retrieved from http://smallbusiness.chron.com/nonverbal-cues-men-women-workplace- 11424.html. Key, Mary Ritchie. (1977) Nonverbal communication: a research guide bibliography. Metuchen, N.J.: Scarecrow Press Mayo, C., Henley, N. (1981). Gender and nonverbal behavior. New York : Springer-Verlag. Molcho, S. (1985). Body speech. New York, NY: St. Martins Press. Pliner, P., Alloway, T.,Krames, L. (1974). Nonverbal communication: Advances in the study of communication and affect. New York: Plenum Press. Speer, D. C. (1972). NonVerbal Communication. Beverly Hills, Sage Publications. Thompson, J. (2012). The science and fun of nonverbal communication [Electronic Version]. Are man and woman equals in nonverbal communication? Weitz, S. (1974) Nonverbal communication: Readings with commentary. New York: Oxford University Press. Wilmont, W. (1995). Relational Communication. New York: McGraw-Hill.

Methods of Studying the Brain

Methods of Studying the Brain History of brain treatments Trepanning is a surgical procedure where a hold is drilled into the skull using a surgical tool, in the 17th and 19th century. The process involved drilling into the skull and removing a piece of bone. In ancient times trepanning was done as a tribal ritual to let evil spirts escape out of the head. It was performed to cure, headaches, and many mental illness for instance; Huntingtons, Parkinson, schizophrenia and epilepsy. Lobotomy is a surgical procedure in which the nerve pathways in a lobes of the brain are severed from those in other areas. The procedure was used as a radical therapeutic measure distributed patients, who had mental illnesses. Moreover, lobotomy was used in mental institutions where the patients wouldnt understand and known it is been done. (ETHICS) Also, the patients would often could out of the procedure with black eyes from the surgery and they would be given darken glasses to cover up the bruising ( ETHICS) A few years later Thorine a chemical lobotomy was designed which was better as there wasnt a risk of surgery. 2,900 lobotomies were performed. The last one to be performed was in 1967 due to the patient dying of brain haemorrhage. EEG stands for electroencephalogram which is a recording of the brains activity. Small sensors are attached to the scalp to pick up the electrical signals produced when brain cells send message to each other. Helped to monitoring and diagnosing conditions affecting the brain. Invasive methods Invasive methods are a therapeutic technique that involves breaking the skin. It involves the injection or a placement of a device into the body. Invasive pain management therapies have been used to treat neck and back pain. Invasive methods are done by open surgery or laroscopy. Advantages Disadvantages Increase safety less trauma to the body and far less blood loss Can be time consuming for patient and surgeon Less scaring only takes about two stitches to close the womb Long recover, some patient might be lucky to start to feel recovered by 6 to 8 weeks but others longer. You dont have to stay in hospital very long most patients get discharged within 24 hours. At very high risk of infection More accurate As well as find other damaged areas you might damage that area more or even they might have done the damage. When doing the surgery you may find other damaged areas and be able to remove or treat it. Very expensive Non invasive Non-invasive is a therapeutic technique which doesnt involve invading or breaking the skin. Therefore, the produce does not involve tools that can beak the skin or physically enter the body. For example; x-rays, CT scans, MRI, and ECG. Until recent years, exploratory surgery was routinely performed when a patient was critically ill and the source of illness wasnt known. Advantages Disadvantages The patient undergo less stress as no time for healing or been under general anaesthetic. Some of the scanning can be harmful to the body ad involves radiation Less time consuming Might not see if it damages any other area or if there is any other disease or damage to the brain. Very quick recovery Might not always be an opinion, the surgeon might offer Invasive first Reduced risk of infection Some of the scans may stimulate other parts of the brain Cheaper MRI scanner X-RAY machine Deep Brain Stimulation Deep stimulation is a surgical procedure (invasive technique) which is performed under local anaesthetic. It is perform in this situation so that the patient can talk and have brain movement to say the procedure has worked. Deep stimulation is the main type of surgery used to treat Parkinsons disease. Parkinsons is not cure able however; it may help to control the movement of the symptoms. Deep brain stimulation involved very fine wires with electrodes at the tip of the brain, which send electrical impulse to the targeted part of the brain. These are connected to extensions that are tunneled under the skin behind the ear and down the neck. They are connected to a pulse generator, which is placed under the skin around the chest. With Deep Brain Stimulation treating disease of mental health, some people not understand what is mean done and therefore their careers give permission for it to be done and this isnt technical right the patient themselves hasnt full agreed to it. Furthermore, the patient isnt de-brief before the surgery to make sure they full understand what the procedure is and this is all unethical to society. Advantage Disadvantage Very accurate Increase risk of infection. The implantation of foreign objects entering then body. Good technique Additional surgery may be needed is any of the equipment stops working. Sometimes every 3 to 5 years. Minimal opening to brain Time consuming Effective techniquie Devices which are inserted into the body can sometimes interfere with other devices. No damage to the brain during the surgery Sometimes uncomfortable sensations during stimulation can occur. Lesion Production Brain Lesions can be caused by injury, infection, and problems with immune system. There cause is still unknown. There are several of types and some of the effects can cause great harm to you whereas, some are harmless. In lesions, nerve cells die, leaving behind damages areas of the brain. Then after time the brain function in those parts of the brain decrease. Disease such as; Parkinsons, huntingsons Alzheimers and some types of dementia are a group of brain lesions. Some drug additions can be linked to lesions. Symptoms of a brain lesion vary depending on the type, location and size of the lesion. Symptoms include; Headache Nauseas Change of vision Memory loss Seizures Fever There are different types of Brain lesions. For instance abscesses and Alzheimers and other dementias. Abscesses are areas of infection, including inflamed tissue. This isnt a common however, theyre life threating. Brain abscesses often occur after an infection. Moreover, it can also appear after an injury or surgery. Alzheimers disease and other dementias these are another group of brain lesions. In these lesion, the nerve cells die which leaves behind damaged areas to the brain. then Problems which can occur from brain Lesions are: Mood changes Personality changes Behaviour can change Mental ability can change A loss of memory Having pain in joints and having difficulty to move Producing lesion is purposely destroying an area on the brain to research and investigate specific areas of the brain. From this you can see exactly which parts do which function. There are three ways to make an lesion. Chemically to destroy the neurons Electrical current to also destroy the neurons Surgically This involves cutting a part of the brain Advantages Disadvantages The whole of the brain been analysed at once therefore a lot of information and research can be gathered. Involves surgery cutting into patients brain could be a lot of blood loss. The removal of lesion can decrease or even stop seizures Recovery could take away Can look at the size of the lesion and see the damage cause for instance Wernickes or Brocas The surgery could cause stress for the patient Increase risk of infection due to the recovery time and its surgery Removal of a lesion can cause damage in the brain e.g Wernecks or Brocas- language and speech centres. Carbon nanotubes Carbon nanotubes are tubes which have a very small diameter for example it can be as small as one nanometer. This is a very new invention and scientists are hoping to build tiny transistors for computer chips and other electronic devices. Each day carbon nanotubes have more research on and so they are very new. Carbon nanotubes are electrodes which are surrounded by carbon atoms in the shape of a coil. They are really thin! Thinner than a piece of hair. Nanotechnology is used often as it has a lot of uses. For example; sunscreens, self cleaning glass and clothes with UV protection. Uses for nanotubes are Brain tumour research Possibility of using the nanotubes to directly deliver cancer fighting drugs into the brain Medical uses for instance; bone scaffolding and cell therapy. This is achieved by drugs or silencing genes Carbon nanotubes recently used to control the damage caused by a stroke, dental implants or synthetic muscles. Ethnics on carbon nanotubes is it is still experimental and we dont know how it will effect individuals in the long term. Its still be researched and developed. Advantages Disadvantages Many sectors e.g medical, energy and manufacturing benefit from it Newer technology therefore, not much testing been done. New possible cancer therapy Can be difficult to work with Lots of information on neurones and their responses. Very small and can be very expensive to produce. Future treatments of neurological disorders such as Parkinsons and strokes So far it is only been used in experiments so no long term effects seen We as humans are carbon based. Nobody knows how it will react to the body, will it be compatible Surgery will still be required and therefore, surgical; risks attached. Stereotaxic surgery Stereotaxic surgery is also called stereotactic. It is brain surgery where a brain tumour is removed with using image if the brain to guild the surgeon to a target within the brain. Neuro-navigation is a technique which may have an external frame attached to the head or imaging markers attached to the scalp to orient the surgeon in his approach. The term stereotactic came from Greek and Latin roots which meant touch in space. Stereotaxic surgery is used for many reasons, which include: Brain tumors Deep Brain Stimulates Monitoring activity of brain for instance; scanning Monitoring and treating Parkinsons Side effects for stereotaxic is that is have very few immediate effects than the normal radiosurgery, as the area being treated is smaller. However, you are likely to have hair loss, feel sick, feel fatigue, dizzy, have headaches or have rashes appear on your skin. These are common side effects of regular external radiotherapy to the brain. Doctors normal give does of steroid before the treatment or straight after to help prevent side effects due to swelling in the brain. Advantages Disadvantages No cutting is involved in Could stimulate wrong area of brain therefore different behavior would be seen Lots of research taking place Could damage the brain Used in Parkinsons treatment Bleeding could be caused Function Magnetic Resonance Imaging (FMRI) FMRI is a technique for measuring the metabolic changes that occur in brain activity. It uses a powerful magnetic field and radio waves frequency pulses to produce detailed pictures of soft tissues, bone and other internal body structure. It works by detecting the change in blood oxygenation and flow that occur in response to neural activity. When an area is more active it consumes more oxygen and to meet this increased demand blood flow increase to the active area. It can be used to examine the brains anatomy, determines which part of the brain are handling critical functions, evaluate the effect of stroke or disease. FMRI is the only technique which can detect abnormalities within the brain. This is a picture of an FMRI scanner, which is a large tube that contains powerful magnets. You lie inside the tube straight and as still as possible during the scan. Advantages Disadvantages Does not use radiation Scanners usually expensive Has no visual risks Person needs to be completely still for it to capture a clear image Evaluate brain function safely and effectively Researchers still dont completely understand how it works. fMRI is easy to use People are in an enclosed space, so people who are claustrophobic are faced with problems with MRI to be done. MRI scan can provide information about the blood circulation throughout the body and blood vessels The scan involves really loud noises while processing because they involve a really high amount of electric current supple Magnetoencephalography (MEG) MEG measures ongoing brain activity with millisecond time resolution. It works by detecting magnetic fields which are created by the brains electrical signals. MEG is used for finding out about diseases such as; Parkinsons and Alzheimers. But also is used for research to measure the time course of brain activity and can detect epilepsy, as well as detect areas of the brain that are most important to avoid during surgery. MEG has to be carried out in a shielded room often in the night when there are no other electrical devices on. This is because the fields are a billion times smaller than the earths magnetic field. The patient will sit inside a helmet of special sensors that detect the tiny magnetic signals produced by the brain, as shown below; Advantages Disadvantages Makes no noise Time consuming takes 2 hours to be performed. No discomfort for patient Needs a special magnetically shield room Detects areas of normal and abnormal activity in the brain. Used to compliment other imaging techniques Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (TMS) TMS is a magnetic method used to stimulate small regions of the brain. During the procedure, a magnetic field generator, or coil, is placed near the head of the person receiving the treatment. The stimulation take approximately around 20 to 30 minutes. While receiving the stimulations, the patient is normally fully awake, no anaesthetic needed. There are minimal side effects. TSM is used to treat depression, pain relief, feeling of euphoria of fear and patient who do not response well to antidepressant medication. The procedure is associated with mild and minimal side effects, including: feelings of light headedness temporary hearing problems, due to the sometimes loud magnet noise mild headaches tingling in the face, jaw, or scalp Advantages Disadvantages Non- invasive Could damage normal brain function No anaesthetic needed Magnetic items must not be worm Widely available Ethics Informed Consent disclosure of all significant risks, both those known and those suspected possible. Potential Benefit must outweigh risk Equal distribution of risk Particularly vulnerable patient populations should be avoided. Positron Emission Tomography (PET) PET stands for positron emission tomography. PET scans are images which can clearly show the part of the body which being investigated which could consist of abnormal areas of the body or brain and can highlight how well certain areas of the body are functioning. A PET scan works by detecting radiation inside the body, and images are made my passing x-rays through the patients body. Radioactive substances are injected into the body. The level of radiation is very small and the radioactive substance has a short decay time and neither of these will damage your body. A PET scan is pain free, and you should are able to return home on the same day without any side effects or restriction function adequately. Scans usually take around 30-60 minutes. Advantages Disadvantages Detect and monitor cancerous growths Very expensive Makes sure functions in the body are working. Not widely available only certain hospitals have them in the UK, and you might have to travel a distance to get one. PET imaging is able to be used as an alternative to biopsy and other exploratory surgeries to determine how much a disease has spread. Not as clear as CT or fMRI scans Reduce the number of unnecessary surgeries performed due to incorrect diagnosis and staging data. Tumour growth and inflammation of brain areas are difficult to tell apart. Stem Cells Stem cells are a class of undistinguishable cells that are able to differentiate into specialised cell types. It is most like that stem cells come from two main sources, for example: Embryos (embryonic stem cells) adult stem cells Stem cells are unspecialised cells which are restarting themselves through cell division and have the potential to develop into many different cell types which plays a central role in generation and for the generation to come of the body. Stem cells act as an internal repair system, dividing to replace other cells which are lost through wear and tear. Each time a stem cell divides, each new cell may either remain a stem cell or become another type of cell with a more specialised function for example; bone or muscle cells. Stem cells can give growth to any tissue in the body and, from this it can provide nearly limitless potential for medical applications. Current studies are researching how stem cells may be used to prevent or even cure disease e.g Parkinsons, diabetes, heart disease and even Alzheimers ADVANTAGES DISADVANTAGES Medical benefits for example; therapeutic cloning gets treat chronic illnesses. Embryos that are not a patients own and the patients body may reject them. Provide an insight to the growth and development of human cells as the understanding of everything about human cells, scientists and researchers would also have a better understanding of disease, and how it comes and what damages the cells which leads them to illness. Difficult to find and extract from tissue Can replace faulty cells with healthy cells, so the individual is well again Adult stem cells only produce a few types of cells No embryo is destroyed so not an ethical issue Ethical implications Embryonic stem cell research poses a moral dilemma. It forces us to choose between two moral principles: The duty to prevent suffering The duty to respect the value of human life In the case of embryonic stem cell research, it is impossible to respect both moral principles. To obtain embryonic stem cells, the early embryo has to be destroyed. This means destroying a potential human life. But embryonic stem cell research could lead to the discovery of new medical treatments that would stop the suffering of many people. Â   Â   There is two issues of stem cells, one that we highly value the duty to prevent suffering and the other the duty to respect the value of human life. A potential humans life is a risk of life or not. It is more ethical to take stem cells from a bone borrow of an individual to help saves someones life as to do so it needs constant from the individual for the bone borrow to be given. Whereas, a less ethical view is were a stem cell could be taken from a embolic cord where the mother of the child may have given constant and mean it can go ahead however, the baby might not have wanted that therefore this is morally wrong. Foetal Brain-tissue Grafting A method of treating diseases, such as; parkingsons and huntingtons by grafting brain cells from human foetuses onto the affected area of the human brain. Human adults cannot grow new brain cells however, developing unborn foetuses can, this is because, grafting foetal tissue stimulates the growth of new brain cells in affected adult brains. Use of foetal brain tissue is consequent from aborted embryos or foetuses. The ethical issues related to a therapeutic approach, which is relevantly modern and therefore not only concern the possible side effects for a graft-receiving patient, but also the relationship between the requirements for foetal tissue and the decision-making process for induced abortion. Although for human embryos and foetuses have been the subject of biomedical studies, and, in principle, their use has therefore not been seen as ethically objectionable, the above points made it necessary to reconsider the moral issues. Bibliography http://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/BF02700424 http://medical-dictionary.thefreedictionary.com/Fetal+tissue+transplantation History of brain treatments http://www.google.co.uk/url?sa=trct=jq=esrc=sfrm=1source=webcd=1ved=0ahUKEwjN8NXE35bQAhUWz2MKHYl8BFcQFggpMAAurl=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.brain-surgery.com%2Fhistory-of-brain-surgery-1%2Fusg=AFQjCNGfniG_DTtMu0pnbq76NH6vFoSU4Qbvm=bv.137904068,d.d2s A good website to go on to first, as it gave an over view of the different methods but also different times e.g the Hippocrates and how life was like for treating the brain then. https://www.britannica.com/topic/lobotomy lobotomy surgery and how it is done and why it is done. http://www.ancient.eu/Trephination/ Brothwell, D, Diseases in Antiquity (Charles C Thomas Pub Ltd, 1967). http://www.imaginis.com/faq/what-does-non-invasive-mean Invasive and non-invasive http://www.frca.co.uk/article.aspx?articleid=252 Very good website to start on however no pros or cons one it. http://internationaljournalofcaringsciences.org/docs/Vol1_Issue3_02_Lavdaniti.pdf History on the technique http://emedicine.medscape.com/article/304235-overview Good over view and background information Deep Brain Stimulation https://www.parkinsons.org.uk/content/deep-brain-stimulation-surgery-parkinsons how deep stimulation is used to treat Parkinsons. http://www.neurosurgery.pitt.edu/centers-excellence/epilepsy-and-movement-disorders-program/deep-brain-stimulation-movement-disorders This website explains how deep stimulation can cure certain things and what disorders it helps to cure. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WW-SWAnphFU video of the deep stimulation back ground information and how it was performed http://videos.howstuffworks.com/sciencentral/2937-deep-brain-stimulation-video.htm Another video of how it works and what its done. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/25597042 good for information on ethics for DBS. Clearly layout and simple to understand http://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s12152-015-9240-9 very very complex site and not good for getting information. http://www.webmd.com/brain/brain-lesions-causes-symptoms-treatments Lesion Production http://www.webmd.com/brain/brain-lesions-causes-symptoms-treatments http://www.emedicinehealth.com/brain_lesions_lesions_on_the_brain/page10_em.htm