Global Warming Essay -- Environment Climate Change

Global Warming Human kind has entered a brand new relationship with the earth. The constant and increasing pressures we are exerting threaten our planets ability to sustain life itself. Change-in the way we think , and in the way we live-is needed now.Global warming is the most urgent environmental problem the world will face in the next decade and the next century. Few, if any, trends are more important to our future than climate change caused by human activities. Scientist around the world are warning us that global warming poses a major threat to our future quality of life, previously there has been little information on this problem. Right now, the rate of global warming may be 100 times faster than it has ever been. Very soon the earth may become hotter then at any time in human history. In the last decades the problems of atmospheric change have been gravely advanced by pollution resulting from human activities. These environmental changes pose a real threat to the lives of people and wild life.It is vital to all of us that we fully understand the complex relationship between the atmosphere and the earth. The earth is getting warmer. the changes are small, so far, but they are expected to grow and speed up. Within the next 50 to 100 years, the earth will continue to heat up hotter than it has been in the past million years. As oceans warm and glaciers melt, land and cities along coasts may be flooded. Heat and drought may cause forests to die and food crops t...

Mind or Body Philosophy Paper

Alexandra Williams Philosophy 1100 The Mind and/or Body Argument For thousands of years philosophers have acknowledged a boundary between or physical selves and our mental selves. However with the passing of time and the advancements of science whether we are governed by our minds or just our bodies has been debated more and more. There are a long line of ancient thinkers who contemplated the mind-body relationship issue starting with Plato and Aristotle (Waller, 2011). Without knowing what we are run by we can never truly reach our full potential because we may be limited by our physical or mental selves.The mind or body argument consists of arguments for the existence of only the mind, the body, and a combination of the two. Many philosophers put faith in the idea that our bodies are separate entities than our minds. Because they are absolutely certain that we do think they feel they can be sure that we are our minds. Bodies just happen to be our anchors and we can surely live with out them. Rene Descartes once stated â€Å"I exist as a thinking thing. What then is it that I am? A thinking thing. What is a thinking thing?Is it a thing that doubts, understands, affirms, denies, wills, abstains from willing, that also can be aware of images and sensations? †¦ It is certain that I am truly distinct from my body, and I can exist without it. † (Dr. Bob Zunjic, University of Rhode Island). The idea of our existence truly being only our minds we could very well leave our own bodies and without needing to feed our bodies or be weighed down by the frailty of them who knows how long we could live or how much we could learn?While materialist believe that everything is made of matter Aristotle had an argument against this â€Å"if the intellect were material then it could not receive all of the forms. If the intellect were a specific material organ (or part of one) then it would be restricted to receiving only certain kinds of information, as the eye is restr icted to receiving visual data and the ear is restricted to receiving auditory data. Since the intellect is capable of receiving and reflecting on all forms of data, then it must not be a physical organ and, hence, it must be immaterial† (Waller, 2011).While many philosophers believe that the mind is the ultimate power house others believe that the body is. For the last hundred years or so materialism has been the dominant theory in metaphysics. With the rapid advances of science the ideas that our existence is merely physical have been more prominent. Materialism or physicalism is the idea that everything that exists is no more extensive than it’s physical properties, meaning that there is nothing that exists that isn’t tangible.Because scientists have been able to explain things that many accounted to the work of a higher power before many have come to believe that existence is simpler to explain than it was previously. The idea of Ockham’s razor is used to argue against arguments of the mind. Ockham’s razor basically says that simple explanations are typically the best (Waller,2011). Why try to argue that God made the planets orbit the earth with no proof when it is easier to say and prove that all planets revolve around the sun? Materialists believe that we can only be sure of the things that we can touch or see so there is only one substance in the world: matter.Many people have an issue with materialism and the argument of body over mind however because it leads to moral issues. If the only things that exist are physical, things that we can see, touch, etc. then how can there be religion? We cannot see God therefore, in a materialist’s opinion, he cannot exist. There are obviously philosophers that believe in both mind by itself or matter by itself, but there are those who believe in a combination of the two as well. While some philosophers choose to believe that either the mind or the body is superior to the othe r many philosophers believe that both mind and body are what we are made of.According to Bertrand Russell â€Å"the stuff of which the world of our experience is composed is, in my belief, neither mind nor matter, but something more primitive than either. Both mind and matter seem to be composite, and the stuff of which they are compounded lies in a sense between the two, in a sense above them both, like a common ancestor. † (The Analysis of Mind, 1921) To philosophers who believe this, beings are a combination of their physical and mental actions and abilities.Rene Descartes is closely associated with the idea of dualism, which is the idea that mental occurrences are non-physical and that the mind and the body are distinct. He associated the mind with consciousness and self-awareness and differentiated it from the physical brain of a person. Descartes is known as the first philosopher to note the difference between the mind and body. Dualists make their points with such exam ples as when they body is injured it causes pain to the mind and that at times, even when they body is hurt the mind postpones pain in the form of shock.If the body or the mind simply existed by themselves then we wouldn’t feel pain because it’s a physical action with a mental response. You need both in the equation to get pain as the result. Dualism also has an advantage because it is consistent with our experiences. When we have ideas or feelings we don’t think of them in concepts of size, weight, color, shaper, etc. We think of them in terms of good, bad, wise, immature, or otherwise. It also helps explain certain things like human abilities. Things like the ideas of freedom, morality, ethics, and other things that make us discernibly human.Now on top of dualism, Descartes proposed a theory called interactionism, believing that the body and the mind had an actual point where one began and the other ended. He believed it to be where the pineal gland is because at the time they didn’t know what it did. However with the explanation of the pineal gland’s real purpose came the expulsion of interactionism (Waller, 2011). Also dualism came under skepticism because of it’s tendency to be a more complex explanation of things than was needed. Metaphysical issues such as the mind or body dispute are one of the most debated subjects in the philosophical world.So many great minds have been stumped by this issue. To label existence as purely physical means the dismissal of the idea of a higher power. To say that life is purely mental fails to explain how radically different realities interact, such as sensations like pain. Even the idea that both interact together can be challenged because there is no way to fully explain how the two connect and are translated into each other. Sadly this is a question unlikely to have a solution ever, or at least no time in the near future.This can almost be frightening because until we have an a nswer to these inquiries we won’t be able to truly know ourselves or the things around us. In agreement with Thomas Nagel †What is needed is something we do not have: a theory of conscious organisms as physical systems composed of chemical elements and occupying space, which also have an individual perspective on the world, and in some cases a capacity for self-awareness as well. In some way that we do not now understand, our minds as well as our bodies come into being when these materials are suitably combined and organized.The strange truth seems to be that certain complex, biologically generated physical systems, of which each of us is an example, have rich non-physical properties. An integrated theory of reality must account for this, and I believe that if and when it arrives, probably not for centuries, it will alter our conception of the universe as radically as anything has to date. †(The View From Nowhere, 1989). Works Cited Nagel, Thomas. The View From No where. N. p. : n. p. , 1989. Print. Waller, Bruce N. Consider Philosophy. N. p. : n. p. , n. d. , 2011. Print. Zunjic, Bob. University of Rhode Island. N. p. , n. d. Web. 24 Apr. 2012.

Efeects on Moving to Another State

Shanell Broussard J. Davis English 090, 4206 03 April 2013 Effects on moving to another state Moving can be all sorts of things. It can be fun to most; or a worst nightmare. Sometimes moves are forced due to certain situations, such as new job or trouble in home. No matter what the reason; moving to another state for anybody is somewhat difficult. I moved from New York to North Carolina a year ago. I decided to move with my grandmother until I can get on my feet.For me, the specific effects of moving from one state to another were, meeting new people, starting over and emotions. The first significant effect of moving from one state to another for me was meeting new people. Making new friends is not easy, because I am not a gregarious person; which can be a detriment for me. Plus in today’s society I can not trust everybody. Me being from New York, people tend to judge me. They may think I have a nasty attitude or that I think I am better than them; because of where I come from .So when I am out in the public I do try and communicate with others; once I have held a conversation with someone and tell them that I am from New York; they seem surprise, because they heard of northern people being arrogant and rude. Which sometimes get annoying, I feel like I have to put forth extra when trying to get to know someone; I want people to build their own opinion about who I am and not what they heard. I want them to see that there are some good people up north. After a few days I started being more confident in talking to people.The second significant effect of moving from one state to another is starting over in looking for a decent neighborhood, to raise my children. Not knowing which areas were good or bad; made the decision difficult for me. Finding the right neighborhood was not my only issue; finding the right apartment was not easy either. The area would have to be kid friendly, a community park and pool would be nice. I have to be sure if it is the place for me, for I do not plan on moving no time soon. Once that is done, I can move on to my next step; which is finding the right daycare for my children to attend.Just like the doctor issue; it is somewhat similar. I have to really do my research for daycares; I am very nervous about leaving my children with someone I practically know. With younger kids that are unable to communicate the situation is harder to deal with. There are things that I have to look for; such as, the cleanliness of the area, how well do the other assistants interact with the children and so forth. The third significant effect of moving from one state to another was the emotions of the love ones around me. With the big move came a lot of stress.Having to deal with the move, looking for the right daycare and doctors; was not a very easy thing. But what really affected me, is when I knew I was leaving behind all my family and friends. People I known all my life were not going to be there anymore. The children also s howed signs that the move had affected them. They were moody than usual. When dropping them off at daycare; they would cry and scream, sometimes they would even act out in class. I was called several times the first few weeks. Adjusting to this unfamiliar place was somewhat difficult for me.Not knowing where to turn to, feeling like I had no one to confide in was really stressful. Feeling like the move was not going to work out, like if I had failed; and that I was not going to survive. People all around the world has experienced a difficult move once in there life. There will feel like; so many hassles in a situation like this one. I had no choice but to except all that I went through. I had to be strong not only for myself, but for my children. There was no way that I would give up accomplishing something I did all on my own. So I prayed it to be over soon.

Gladiator: Critical film essay Essay

Ridley Scott’s Gladiator is the critically acclaimed 2000 film starring Russell Crowe which won forty-eight awards, including a BAFTA for best film. Gladiator depicts the tale of Maximus Decimus Meridius and his struggle against the might of the Roman Empire and the vicious gladiatorial arenas. Throughout Scott’s masterpiece are a wide range of filmic techniques in the visual and auditory channels that collaborate in enunciating the overall narrative. The opening sequence is a prime example that uses Mise-en-scene, lighting, costume and film speed to enunciate the key scene. The opening scene begins with some historical information that introduces the audience into the scene and sets up the narrative. Scott informs his audience on the vast scale of the Roman Empire, â€Å"One quarter of the world’s population lived and died under the Caesars.† The emphasis is on â€Å"and died† in order to set the scene for the incoming battle. The Universal and Dre amWorks logos are in a sepia colour. This colour informs the audience that the film is set in the past due to it being used for old photographs and ink. The historical information is accompanied by calming, serene music which leads to the first view of the protagonist. Scott has made use of coloured lighting, incorporating gold (which is representative of the wealth the Roman Empire had) in many scenes throughout the film. The colour gold is an interesting choice because it represents peace and riches which could also be a reference to the Roman afterlife Elysium. Scott has used Mise-en-scene in the first shot of the protagonist, brushing his hand in the corn field. Although the audience are only presented with an extreme close up shot of his hand; they learn about his character through Scott’s control of what appears in the frame. The audience sees a wedding ring on his hand and so learn that he is a family man. The critic John Gibbs also comments on Mise-en scene, â€Å"the contents of the frame and the way they are organised.† During the close-up of the protagonist’s hand, the audience can hear a diegetic sound of the wheat blowing. A non-diegetic sound of children playing and soothing music can also be heard which again tel ls the audience he is a family man with something to loose. The consonant tone of music and golden cornfields set up an idyllic scene of calmness which instantly contrasts when the frame cuts to a harsh, cold and dark Germanic battlefield. The camera uses a medium close up of Maximus’s face which reveals the emotions of a tired soldier. Maximus catches a glimpse of a red  robin which symbolises his near return home to the summer and his family. The robin’s red breast could also be a signifier of the forthcoming bloodshed. When Maximus moves on to greet his army a long shot is used which displays him walking alone. The theme of isolation comes into play which also recurs throughout the film. As the battle scene draws near, a high angle long shot is used to display the mighty Roman army. Costume is used a great deal in Gladiator and adds to the films authentic feel. A medium close up shot is used for the first time on Emperor Marcus Aurelius which shows him wearing rich clothing and surrounded by knights. This scene only lasts a few seconds but the audience discover he is a man of importance through costume. Moreover, Scott wanted Maximus to appear as a strong character that holds high authority as an important character. This is achieved through costume as Maximus’s armour is bigger than all other characters and has different insignias weaved into it. The costume for the barbarian army is rather contrasting to that of the Roman Empire. The barbarians are dressed in rugged cloth which suggests they are not nearly as advanced or wealthy as the Roams who wear steel armour. A Critical Introd uction to Film highlights the importance of costume, â€Å"Costume provides information about time and place, but, more importantly, they express social milieu and personal style.† At 04:41 the barbarian leader steps forward from his army and lunges the head of the Roman messenger into the swampy ground and disrespects the Roman army. This is a casual chain of events that help drive the plot forward, â€Å"Film narration moves forward by a succession of events linked in a casual chain.† It is evident that the Roman army will fight now and Maximus kneels down to run dirt through his hands which is a recurring motif. The motif shows the spiritual side of Maximus, he asks the gods to fight beside him. As Maximus kneels down the audience are given a Point of View shot through Maximus staring into a dog’s eyes. The dog symbolises the brute force of Maximus and suggests he is a wild character. As Gladiator mounts his horse the music quickens and a non-diegetic drum beat begins to enunciate the battle scene. The music increases pace as the battle almost begins which heightens audience’s tension and excitement. As the battle begins a wave of Roman arrows are dispersed and computer generated imagery showcases a variety of special effects. A long range establishing shot on a high angle displays the dest ruction that the Roman Empire is unleashing. As  Gladiator rides with his cavalry there is an array of fast cutting shots that last a few seconds each. The fast paced shots give the audience a battle like feel with exaggerated sound effects of swords clashing and explosions. Maximus demonstrates his leadership role by shouting commands like, â€Å"Stay with me† and â€Å"Hold the line† . After the establishing shots of the battle Scott includes scenes that are more subjective to Gladiator. The gory battle follows Maximus as he enters a slow-motion phase that displays his disorientated point of view of the battle and a montage of his men fighting. Furthermore, the dog also engages in battle which suggests he is strong and independent like Gladiator. Ridley Scott’s Gladiator incorporates brilliant techniques that contribute in enunciating the opening sequence. These techniques are things such as the use of costume which generates an authentic feel and camera speed which demonstrates a terrifying battle. A strong use of Mise-en-scene shows how the narrative develops through camera lighting and casual chains in the plot.

A society & dominated Essay

In a society dominated by pop culture, fashion always comes into play. For pop culture always requires novelty, and people has to keep up with the trends as time changes. Fashion has affected almost all aspect of the Homo sapiens way of living for it is the key to change. And because fashion takes many forms as time changes it had even infiltrated our mindset in setting a standard for a good physique—the very idea of sexy per se. In line with this, two writers discuss how fashion has greatly affected the psyche of both male and female of this generation as to how they perceive the image of a sexy person. Andrea Heiman in her article â€Å"When a Fad Does a Body Harm† and Rita Kemply’s article â€Å"Boys and the Beefcake Images† have pointed out that fashion has created a venue for other people to abuse their body and to live an unhealthy lifestyle. That is girls starving themselves to death to look perfectly thin and boys excessively using steroids to live up to the very concept of machismo today. Both Heiman and Kemply agree that a change in fashion as subject to the body form of both men and women has become hazardous to health. However the two authors have taken different sides to explain why this scenario happens. On the one hand Heiman, the feminist said that women starved themselves to death because being thin has become the epitome of looking really good to most men. As women strive to be part of the arena dominated by men, fashion has created ways to repress them. By looking frail men still claims their superiority over women. On the other hand Kemply perceive that the primary reason why men use steroids to maintain the so-called masculine image is that they are being judge with their physicality. Kemply said that women have created a standard that most men look attractive when they have muscles, lean body and no beer bellies. Both authors were able to explain how fashion can become hazardous to one’s health. However it is not sound that the reason why these circumstances happen is blamed on the perception of male and female toward the ideal look of a sexy body. For both genders are just victims of the so called pop culture. Moreover, pop culture has their psyche conditioned to that kind of notion to a point that their self-esteem becomes low. People should not judge a person based on how he or she looks. A standard of looking sexy should not be made for it is not the physical aspects of a person that counts most when we are trying to build a healthy relationship. In addition, fashion should be the melting pot of change that could benefit every regardless of gender. It should not be the key to affect the mentality of everyone that would cause to detrimental effects to our body.

How Neorealism before 1950 Affected Film History Essay

How Neorealism before 1950 Affected Film History - Essay Example Instead of overblown and idealistic propaganda films celebrating the ideals of a fascist state, film makers turned to the simple lives of rural peasants, and the struggles of ordinary workers in the cities. The three most famous neorealist directors are Roberto Rossellini, Vittorio De Sica and Luchina Visconti. One critic notes that the neorealist movement is widely regarded to have started with Rossellini’s gritty and unsentimental about a resistance prieced Rome, Open City in 1945. This kind of film became famous for â€Å"a sparse style of shooting on actual locations, with mostly nonprofessional players, and emphasizing themes of basic human problems and issues.† (Hamilton, 2006, p. 61) Children often feature, as in the film Shoeshine by Vittorio De Sica, which tells the at times harrowing tale of two boys who dream of owning a horse and fall into the hands of some corrupt policemen. The realistic portrayal of the sufferings of the boys in prison, raises issues abou t the kind of society that Italy can and should be setting up now that the war is over. Another critic notes: â€Å"neorealism became the repository of partisan hopes for social justice in the postwar Italian state.† (Marcus, 1986, p. xiv). The films of Rossellini deal with the devastation that has been caused by the war in Europe, and he made a trilogy which explored how the poorer people in Italy and German came to terms with the turmoil. These films do not have a traditional narrative line, but show episodes which between them build up a picture of life in those difficult days. Small visual items can have symbolic meaning far beyond the immediate context of the film, and the skill of Rossellini and others was to use the camera to illuminate deeper issues through images. The camera work is the opposite of Hollywood’s slick and artificial interiors, preferring the rather stark and ugly landscape of the war-torn countryside, and the dirty streets where people have to s cratch a living any way they can. The films were popular at the time, despite their lack of a clear plot. People learned to look at the films in a new way, as a window on life itself: â€Å"Even the Italian neorealist directors, who stress everyday reality in their films and deny the validity of invented stories, argue that their particular brand of everyday reality is not boring because of its complex echoes and implications† (Boggs and Petrie, 2000, p. 37) Another feature of the neorealist directors’ work was that it had universal appeal, despite being very firmly tied to local scenery. Rossellini’s vision of a bombed and derelict Berlin in Germany, Year Zero, for example, juxtaposes a blond child and the colossal ruins of the city, with tragic consequences. The overwhelming message of the film is the destruction and futility of war. Heaps of rubble obliterate the civilization that was there before, leaving the boy adrift and hopeless, with no past and no futu re. The second film in Rossellini’s trilogy, Paisan, depicts the American soldiers’ encounter with demoralized Italian rural people in different regions, distilling the experiences of the war years in to the faces and conversations of unsophisticated farm workers. The human cost of the war is depicted starkly, and there is newsreel footage interspersed with the fictional episodes. The director makes every effort to present the material in a clear, unadorned way, so that

Summery of Globalization, Politics, and Financial Turmoil economic Essay

Summery of Globalization, Politics, and Financial Turmoil economic - Essay Example experience such crises mainly because there is a breakdown in communication between the chief executive of the monetary authority and financial officers in such times, leading to insufficient banking regulations and eventually flight of capital out of the country, which then has a snowballing effect. For the purpose, Satyanath elaborates on three bodies of literature – 1) globalization of capital and the political scenario in which there are possibilities of miscommunication 2) the presence of ill-informed chief executive and 3) the existence of veto players, that is, those whose consent is necessary for any policy change. Prior to the 1980s, all developing countries had relatively stringent regulations on capital inflows and outflows. All foreign exchange transactions were strictly monitored and banks had limits on overseas borrowings. From the 1980s, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) began to put pressures on the developing countries to liberalize the financial sectors, justifying that the access to foreign capital would allow these countries to invest more than the domestic savings allowed them to. Besides, short-term cyclical recessions could be balanced with countercyclical capital inflows from overseas. Also, free mobility of capital would also allow domestic investors to invest abroad thus neutralizing domestic shocks while also allowing them to earn higher risk-adjusted returns. Lastly, the dismantling of the bureaucratic shackles would allow the financial sectors of the developing countries become more professional, the IMF argued. Consequently, many Asian countries liberalized the capita l accounts as they did the trade accounts in the 1980s and 1990s, and the result was higher growth rates in Gross Domestic Product in the immediately succeeding years. However, by 1996, many of these same economies began to show signs of slower growth. Simultaneously, what disturbed the analysts were the growing current account deficits and increase in foreign