Essay on TOY CRITIQUE ASSIGNMENT - 3922 Words

Table of contents Introduction 2 Aim, objectives, rationale 2 List of criteria 4 Detailed assessment of The Toy 8 Physical development: Wellbeing 8 Intellectual development: Exploring and thinking 9 Language development: Communication 10 Emotional development: Identity and belonging, and communication 10 Social development: Identity and belonging, and communication 11 Detailed assessment of the role of the adult 12 Evaluation 13 Conclusion 13 Recommendations 14 References 15 Introduction I am a student at †¦.College and I am doing The Early Childhood care and education Course FETAC Level 5. One of mandatory modules in this course is Early Childhood Education and Play and The Toy Critique assignment is part of†¦show more content†¦There are 4 locomotive sets in the box and up to 4 children can play with it at the same time. 11. Is it aesthetically pleasing? Yes, it definitely is. The puzzle comes in four bright, contemporary colours: red, blue, yellow and green. There are lovely, colourful, attractive motifs of animals and children illustrated on it. 12. Is it educational? Yes, it is. It promotes physical, intellectual, language, emotional and social development. 13. Does it help to develop language? Yes, it does. Child names colours, shapes and animals and talks about pictures that appear when pieces are connected. 14. Does it develop motor skills? Yes, it does. It is a great builder of fine motor skills as a child has to connect pieces without a glitch to get a complete picture. 15. Does it encourage imaginative play? No, it does not. This toy is more suitable for manipulation type of play. 16. Does this toy have any sensory benefits to the child? Yes, it does. Wood has individual character, smell and texture. This awakens the natural senses and kelps the child to recognize and understand natural materials. 17. What size is it? Does it need a special storage? The puzzle comes in hard cardboard box sized 21x8x5 cm and does not need a special storage; can be easily put on the shelf. 18. Does it require batteries or does it need to be charged? No, it does not require batteries or charging. 19. From what kind of material is it made of? It is aShow MoreRelatedAn Investigation Based Research Project1607 Words   |  7 PagesDuring the course of English 102 this semester, I analyzed, questioned, and made critical connections between sources by using my research, my sources, interpretation, analysis, and critique. Upon entering the class, I didn’t understand what an inquiry-based research essay was, and I didn’t see the distinction between this inquiry-based research project and other types of research I have done. However, through several modifications and suggestions from my classmates, instructor, and the Writing CenterRead MoreEng 225 Week 5 Film Critique Final Paper836 Words   |  4 PagesENG 225 Week 5 Film Critique Final Paper Click Link Below To Buy: http://hwcampus.com/shop/eng-225/eng-225-week-5-film-critique-final-paper/ Or Visit www.hwcampus.com ENG 225 Week 5 Film Critique Final Paper Focus of the Final Film Critique Throughout this course, you have been compiling a blog and writing essays that analyze various elements of film such as theme, cinematic techniques, and genre. It is now time to combine those elements into a comprehensive analysis of one movieRead MoreEng 225 Week 5 Film Critique Final Paper New831 Words   |  4 Pages225 Week 5 Film Critique Final Paper NEW To Buy This material Click below link http://www.uoptutors.com/eng-225-ash/eng-225-week-5-film-critique-final-paper-new Focus of the Final Film Critique Throughout this course, you have been compiling a blog and writing essays that analyze various elements of film such as theme, cinematic techniques, and genre. It is now time to combine those elements into a comprehensive analysis of one movie. You will be completing this assignment in two stages:Read Moretoy critique7132 Words   |  29 Pagesthis assignment is to choose a toy and assess and examine it under various headings using both primary and secondary research. Objectives Compile a comprehensive checklist of assessment criteria with which to critique my chosen toy use the checklist to assess my chosen toy. 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In this assignment I am going to create three different scenarios and relate them to the three different attachment styles. These scenarios will demonstrate the varying characteristics displayed from each attachment style and the affects they might have in later life. I will also look at some of the critiques within the attachment theory. Ainsworth produced these different styles of attachment through theRead MoreToy Critique2908 Words   |  12 PagesBoyle-Perry PPS NUMBER: 1378183PA MODULE NAME: Early Childhood Education amp; Play MODULE CODE: 5N1773 TITLE: Toy Critique TABLE OF CONTENTS Table of Contents†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦2 Introduction: Aim, Objectives, Rational†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.3 Comprehensive list of Criteria for Assessing a Toy†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦...5 Safety†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦...9 Play Value†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦...9 Ease of Storage†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Read MoreMedia Analysis Of Gucci Dionysus Advert1251 Words   |  6 Pages MCH8057: Media Analysis Analysis of Gucci Dionysus Advert 10/11/2017 Word Count:1028 I declare that this assignment is my own work and that I have correctly acknowledged the work of others. 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Developing practitioner Free Essays

string(144) " open and honest accounts in case of bad marks, leading to them writing what they think others want to hear and not the truth \(Teekman 2000\)\." Introduction Reflection has increasingly become an essential element of nursing professionalism. However, the term ‘reflection’ is not clearly defined in the literature and most definitions could be described as complex or vague (Atkins and Murphy 1993). Williams and Lowes (2001) define reflection as; ‘†¦. We will write a custom essay sample on Developing practitioner or any similar topic only for you Order Now a way of exploring and evaluating previous experiences and appreciating their value on personal practice and self.’ (pg. 1) Reflection is important to student nurses as it enables us to look at ourselves and our practice objectively. However, Mackintosh (1998), as well as other authors, are dubious that reflection can do all that it claims to do. What is agreed by nursing writers is that we can grow and mature as both a professional and a person by integrating our theory and knowledge into practice. The process of reflection can help move us from a student, to a nurse, and later to a competent and expert practitioner (Benner 1984). As nurses we should have the competencies to identify and respond to issues and make decisions that are informed and based on knowledge. All healthcare professionals make daily decisions that have ethical implications. Ethics for student nurses can be challenging as many of these decisions are emotive and students find these feelings hard to dismiss and difficult to rationalise (Clarke 2003). In their study, Ellis and Hartley (2001) found that student nurses expressed concerns over ethical problems and their ability to deal effectively with them. With the focus on a legal and ethical issue which I encountered whilst on clinical placement, I will reflect upon and critically analyse the issues raised in the incident using a recognised model of reflection. The model which I have chosen for this purpose is Borton’s Reflective Framework (1970, in Jasper 2003) which is increasingly being used by healthcare professionals as an approach for reflection. Jasper (2003) describes Borton’s model as simple and pragmatic, which meets the needs of practitioners to describe, make sense of and respond to situations. Howev er, the model has been criticised and Rolfe et al (2001) suggest it does not include the finer details of reflection and offers no prompts as to how reflection is to be conducted within each stage of the process. Even so, Rolfe et al (2001) do state that in comparison to Gibbs’s (1988, in Jasper 2003) and Johns (1998, in Johns 2005) models of reflection, it can be seen that the activity of reflection leads to action being taken in Borton’s framework, rather than just proposed, therefore moving from the realms of ‘maybe’ back into the reality of practice. The simplicity of the model and the proposal of action being taken in future situations prompted me to consider this model for this assignment purpose. Also, when reviewing the literature around reflective models, I found evidence by Burrows (1995) to suggest that nursing students under the age of 25 do not have the cognitive abilities and experience to reflect and alter their practice. Bulman and Schutz ( 2004) reiterate this perspective by implying that less mature students are more inclined to use more descriptive models such as Gibbs rather than more advanced, as these may not be of any use to them. As I would consider myself a mature student and want to develop my knowledge beyond that of a novice practitioner, taking into account the simple structure of the model as discussed, I feel that Borton’s Reflective Framework (1970) is an appropriate choice to use as a guide to my reflective account. The incident I have identified to reflect upon involves the refusal of further treatment by a patient who is terminally ill. With a view to gaining new knowledge, insights and to further develop as a nurse practitioner, I will reflect upon the ethical and legal issues that arose from this encounter. These include autonomy, beneficence, capacity and informed consent, as well as my own feelings and preconceptions. I will maintain confidentiality throughout this assignment by changing the names of those persons involved incompliance with the Nursing Midwifery Council (NMC) ‘Code’ (2008). Reflection in nursing Reflection is not just about adding to our knowledge; it is about challenging the concepts and theories as we try to make sense of that knowledge (Burton 2000). Kim (1999) argues that constructing knowledge from clinical practice is not enough and that nurses must also reflect on how that knowledge can lead to intentions to act. Several authors distinguish a gap between theory and practice in nursing (Conway 1994; Lauder 1994) and suggest that reflective practice may be the process with which to alleviate this. However, these authors do not support their claims with any evidence and are only offering opinion. The question still remains as to whether reflective practice produces better patient care as intended as there is very little research evidence on the benefits of reflective practice in nursing (Hargreaves 1997). Burton (2000) further reiterates this point by recognising that reflection relies entirely on information from patients and claims to be to their benefit, but is resear ched solely in the terms of the effects on practitioners. Reflective practice is also a fundamental concept of nurse education, with students encouraged to challenge their clinical practice and widen their knowledge base. However, Mackintosh (1998) stated that; ‘The implementation of reflection for students is as uncertain as its definition, with no guidelines or uniform method of application available.’(pg. 7) This criticism is evident in more recent literature, with Ireland (2008) and Hong and Chew (2008) both recognising that there are no definite guidelines on how to structure reflective practice in education. Writing reflective journals is one way reflective practice is encouraged in education as it allows students privacy and also to look back at previous entries to see how they have developed as nurse practitioners. However, Hargreaves (1997) suggests that reflective journals can be repetitive and time consuming, leading to boredom for the student. Hargreaves (1997) also proposes that when students are required to reflect in groups, this can lead to low self esteem as there is a lack of privacy. Also, when reflecting-on-action for assessment purposes, students may feel anxious about writing open and honest accounts in case of bad marks, leading to them writing what they think others want to hear and not the truth (Teekman 2000). You read "Developing practitioner" in category "Essay e xamples" When reflecting-on-action for this assignment purpose, I have been aware of these issues and this has encouraged me to reflect a true account of the incident, regardless of how difficult I may have found it to expose myself in such a way. Ethical issues relating to confidentiality also arise when reflecting, both for the person writing them and for the patient, as writing ‘stories’ about them without their consent can been seen as bad practice. However, Hargreaves (1997) argues that nurses have always ‘used’ patients and it is these experiences with patients that shape practice and it can be proposed that if a patient’s case is discussed but she has no knowledge then it can cause no harm and may actually benefit the patient directly or indirectly (Hargreaves 1997). Despite these criticisms, as opposed to giving care uncritically, reflection allows nurses to examine, question and learn from their experience and Andrews et al. (1998) recognise a danger of nursing care becoming ritualistic if it is not challenged. Using the three basic starting points in Borton’s Reflective Framework (1970) as a guide to the structure of my account, I am now going to reflect on the ethical and legal issue which I encountered recently whilst on clinical placement. What? It is important to recognise before recounting the incident, that as well as students being inclined to alter the scenario when reflecting-on-action as acknowledged, hindsight bias (Jones 1995) is also a concept by which a person’s recollection of events is influenced once they know the final outcome of the situation. Factors involved in hindsight bias are the desire to appear correct, maintain self esteem and to enhance feelings of competence (Jones 1995). Also stressful situations can affect attention and Saylor (1990) concluded in his study on recall, that for novice nurses and students in difficult interpersonal situations, such as topics on death, these are likely to cause stress resulting in less important issues being remembered. I had been involved in Mrs Jones’s care for a number of weeks and I was aware that she had returned from theatre the day before where she was to have had a secondary tumour removed. I was also aware, as was she, that she was terminally ill. I was in the room with Mrs Jones and her husband and we were chatting as I did her clinical observations. She was telling me that she was not afraid of dying and that she had been very lucky and had had a wonderful life. I felt very saddened by this and can clearly remember thinking to myself that I must remember what they told us in University about communicating with the dying patient, as I didn’t know what I was going to say once she finished speaking. In the end I decided that it was best if I say nothing rather than saying something inappropriate. This made me feel guilty at my own incompetence. The consultant then entered the room with my mentor and I asked my mentor if I should leave, but Mrs Jones insisted that I stay. The consultant then told Mrs Jones that they had been unable to remove the tumour. Mrs Jones nodded at this and said that she thought that would be the case. I suddenly felt out of my depth and wished I could just leave the room. The consultant continued by saying that he could offer Mrs Jones radiotherapy to try and shrink the tumour and prolong her life. He told her the side effects of the treatment, the frequency and also that it would not cure her, only ‘give her more time’. Mrs Jones stated that she did not want any more radiotherapy and just wanted to be pain free. I felt quite upset at this point and was trying not to make eye contact with anyone else in the room as I knew I would probably cry. The consultant continued by saying that although radiotherapy had side effects, it could add months to her life, and that there were options avai lable to help counter the side effects and that it might be worth considering. I remember thinking that Mrs Jones will probably decide on the radiotherapy if the doctor says it is the best thing to do, I couldn’t make sense of why she wouldn’t. Mrs Jones stated again that she did not want any further treatment, that she had discussed it with her family and that all she wanted was for her kids to see that she was happy, pain free and peaceful. Mrs Jones’ husband was crying at this point but told the consultant that they had talked about it and that he respected his wife’s decision and they would now like some time alone. At that the consultant, myself and my mentor left the room. The incident played on my mind immediately afterwards and although I wanted to talk with someone about it, I knew if I opened my mouth to speak I would cry so I busied myself with other things. So What? I had nursed Mrs Jones for a number of weeks and felt personally affected by her prognosis and her refusal of treatment to prolong her life. Mrs Jones was the same age as my own mother and had similar family dynamics to myself. I felt guilty that I could not offer some sort of comforting response when talking with her and during her interaction with the consultant. The feeling of guilt elevated as I felt inadequate to respond in what I felt was an appropriate manner. A study carried out by Kelly (1991) found that feelings of guilt are evident in students and appear more frequently as students gain experience. These findings are similar to those of Smith (1998) who concludes that guilt feelings in students are associated with a perceived inadequacy of personal responses and ethical dilemmas. The more experience gained, the more students felt fearful and guilty as they worry about what will be expected of them. I can relate to this evidence having worked in the health care setting for a number of years prior to starting my nurse training and now being in my second year, I have high expectations of myself and my practice. I feel that if I don’t match up to these expectations, and what I believe other people expect from me, I am letting myself and others down. Smith (1998) recognises that students develop coping mechanisms such as detachment and adopt these when they are in situations that are difficult for them. I tried to detach myself from the situation by not making eye contact or speaking as I felt out of my depth within the situation. Although detachment can be seen as a threat to the nurse-patient relationship, Smith (1998) concluded that some degree of detachment is necessary for students to maintain the ability to function and prevent breakdown. I adopted this coping mechanism to prevent myself from crying and upsetting the situation further, which appears to support the findings proposed by Smith. However in a study carried out by Kralik et al (1997) on patient’s experiences in hospital, the participants stated that, when cared for by nurses who appeared detached, it was a negative experience and they felt vulnerable and insecure. I am aware that if I allow detachment to become embedded within my future practice it may aff ect my ability to offer compassionate care to patients. Although I was aware of the knowledge around communication with the terminally ill, I was unable to reflect-in-action and apply this knowledge to practice. Schon (1983) describes reflection-in-action as the way that nurses think and theorise about practice whilst they are doing it. This is seen as an automatic activity that occurs subconsciously in practice. According to Street (1992), students experience difficulty connecting theory with the realities of practice. However, Street does suggest that there are indications that students are able to integrate theory gained in the classroom with practice, but at first it is deliberate and conscious. This evidence suggests that reflection-in-action is developed through experience. I felt upset that Mrs Jones did not want any further treatment and I kept thinking that if it was my own mother I would want her to stay alive as long as possible. I may have felt like this as I did not want to experience the grief that comes with death, which appears now to be a selfish act. The refusal of treatment with a view to end of life can sometimes be associated with voluntary euthanasia. This term involves the deliberate intervention or omission with the intent of ending an individual’s life at their request (Saunders and Chaloner 2007). Despite a Bill passing before parliament on assisted dying or assisted suicide, existing laws remain unchanged and euthanasia of any sort is illegal in the UK. However a person’s right to refuse treatment is legal in the UK and is supported in the NMC ‘Code’ (2008) which states; ‘You must respect and support people’s rights to accept or decline treatment and care’. Although the consultant was persistent in his offer of further treatment, he did not at any time disregard Mrs Jones’s decision to refuse treatment. UK law goes to great lengths to protect a person of full age and capacity from interference with personal liberty. In the case of Sidaway v Bethlem Royal Hospital (198 5) it was stated that; ‘a capable adult has an absolute right to refuse to consent to medical treatment for any reason, rational or irrational, or for no reason at all, even where that decision may lead to their own death.’ (Lord Scarman 1985 pg. 3) This absolute right has been upheld in more recent cases such as Re T (adult: refusal of medical treatment) (1997) and Re B (adult: refusal of medical treatment) (2002). The courts also recognise that in law there is a distinction between letting die (refusal of treatment) and killing a person (euthanasia), even though this is not accepted by some philosophers (Dimond 2005). Saunders and Chaloner (2007) question whether there is a moral distinction between withholding life sustaining treatment at the patients request and actively taking steps to end the patient’s life at their request. However, a concept that is shared amongst UK law, literature and philosophers is the respect for a person’s autonomy. This makes me consider whether the consultant, despite his persistence, did not disregard Mrs Jones’s decision as he was respecting her right to be autonomous. Buka (2008) proposes that to be autonomous means to be able to choose for oneself and involves individuals being able to formulate and determine the course of their own life. Autonomy consists of values and beliefs that are unique to the individual and that change with circumstances, so what Mrs Jones considered to be of value to her prior to her illness could well have changed at the time of the incident. Also what Mrs Jones believed to be of value to her could very well be different to what I would consider to be of importance. Begley (2008) acknowledges that dying well involves living well until the end of life and living well throughout the dying process depends on the responses of each unique person to the conditions in which they find themselves. Mrs Jones spoke about wanting her kids to see she was happy, pain free and peaceful, which appeared to me to be her main priority. Mrs Jones also spoke about how she was not afraid to die and that she had had a wonderful life. In their study of patients with incurable cancer, Voogt et al. (2005) found that while approximately a third of the participants strove for length of life, a third wanted quality of life. Mrs Jones’s values and beliefs may have been intertwined with an autonomous decision to die with dignity. Radley and Payne (2009) suggest that when people refuse treatment later on they want to spend quality time with their family without the side effects of treatment. Tingle and Cribb (2007) also recognise that although medicine can now provide the means of staving off death, the cost to the individual may be too high. Some may not want to spend their last days or weeks attached to tubes and drips. Tingle and Cribb further reiterate their point by proposing that it needs to be recognised that even if the pain of those who are terminally ill can be controlled, what they may fear the most is the technology that potentially leads to a loss of self-respect and self esteem. The concept of dying with dig nity is supported in UK law, and Article 3 of the Human Rights Act (1998) states that ‘no-one shall be subjected to torture or inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment’, an article which can be used to support cases of withdrawal of treatment. An autonomous person is also defined by Beauchamp and Childress (2001) as an individual who has the capacity to make decisions for themselves, as well as being competent to evaluate and deliberate information in order to reflect their own life plan. Capacity in the law is defined as the ability to understand information and make a balanced decision (Griffith 2007). Capacity is a fundamental component of autonomy and the Mental Capacity Act’s (2005) starting point is the presumption that a person has the capacity to make decisions for themselves unless it can be shown that they are incapable. Mrs Jones had been involved in decisions to do with her care throughout her treatment and the consultant knew her well. However, Tingle and Cribb (2007) suggest that patients are not very good at saying when they don’t understand and Pellegrino (2004, in Harrison et al. 2008) found in his study that patients suffering from cancer are on a negative spiral of events which may diminish their clinical competence and result in feelings of ‘powerlessness’. This evidence could suggest that Mrs Jones may have felt that she did not have the power to not only make a competent decision, but to tell the consultant that she did not understand what he was saying. The decision of whether a person has capacity is to be made at the time of the decision making (MCA 2005) and Larcher (2005) acknowledges that clinical competence may fluctuate, depending on the circumstances and compounding factors such as pain. Mrs Jones had regular analgesia to control her pain and did not before, during or after the encounter make any complaints of discomfort. She had support from her husband and was familiar with her surroundings as well as the staff present in the room. All these factors indicate to me now that Mrs Jones had the capacity to evaluate and deliberate the information given to her and make a decision that reflected her own life plan. The main principle of the Mental Capacity Act (2005) stresses that a person’s right to autonomy must be respected and can be further supported by requiring steps to be taken to maximise decision making capacity. One of these steps is informed consent. The Mental Capacity Act (2005) states that information given must include the nature of the decision, the purpose for which it is needed and the likely effects of any decision made. The need to weigh the information as part of the process of making the decision has been described by the courts as; ‘The ability to weigh all relevant information in the balance as part of the process of making a decision and then use that information to arrive at a decision.’ (Re MB Caesarean section 1997, in Griffith 2007). The consultant gave Mrs Jones information about her prognosis and treatment in compliance with the Mental Capacity Act (2005) as well as other health care policies (DOH 2007; 2008). He disclosed the factual details such as the advantages and disadvantages of the treatment and the potential side effects of undertaking further radiotherapy. However questions still arise as to how much information needs to be disclosed to the patient before consent can truly be said to be informed. As a moral matter it has been suggested that you should disclose whatever information a reasonable person would want to know plus whatever further information the actual individual wants to know (Radley and Payne 2009). However, research carried out by Clarke (2003) does suggest that patients demonstrate poor levels of knowledge and comprehension, particularly where bad news has been given. When the consultant told Mrs Jones that they hadn’t been able to remove the tumour she had replied that she had t hought that might have been the case. This indicates to me that Mrs Jones had already taken the time to consider her options and the possibility that the tumour may not be removed, prior to the encounter with the consultant. Seymour (2001) proposes that the informed decision to refuse treatment may be about regaining control in a situation where there may be few desirable options. Radley and Payne (2009) suggest that the decision to refuse treatment, is not a rejection of medicine but a rejection of false hope or an acceptance of another sort of hope in which quality of life is preferred over quantity of life. Mrs Jones had undergone intensive treatment in the months leading up to this final prognosis and I now consider that the finality of this diagnosis may have given her not the opportunity to ‘give up’ but to spend quality time with her family without the side effects of a treatment which was not going to cure her. Therefore Mrs Jones was taking positive steps to safeguard the death she wanted. After Mrs Jones initially refused the treatment the consultant went on again to say that ‘it could add months to her life’. I thought at the time that Mrs Jones may take time to consider this again given that the consultant was to me the ‘expert’. From a medical viewpoint, death is seen as a failure, rather than as an important part of life (Smith 2000), so there may be a conflict when a patient chooses to make a decision that is likely to end in death. Physicians who are unable to keep patients alive may struggle to avoid experiencing an inevitable sense of failure (Clarke 2003) as it is widely accepted that medicine’s primary goal is to restore a person’s health (Heaney et al. 2007). By offering Mrs Jones a treatment to delay the inevitable the consultant was acting in a beneficent manner and tension can arise when beneficence and autonomy are in conflict. With advanced medicines today life can be sustained for longer periods, however Van Kle ffens et al (2004) found in their study that for the patients who refused the treatment, their decision was not based on the pros and cons of treatment from a medical perspective but a ‘circumstantial basis’. In a further study by Van Kleffens in 2005, the patients who decided not to accept further treatment said it was based on their own experiences, values and meanings in life. Voogt et al (2005) also proposed that physicians do not engage sufficiently with the world of the patient that extends outside of medicine. So although the consultant knew Mrs Jones well and had been involved in her care for many months, he had only been associated with her in the medical concept. Contemporary opinion suggests that where there is tension between autonomy and beneficence, autonomy should take precedence (Dimond 2005). Now What? Mrs Jones passed away how she wished, in hospital surrounded by her family. Consideration of the ethical and legal principles discussed required a depth of knowledge that I as a student did not hold for this particular situation which was to me personal, complex and difficult to define. From reflection on this incident I recognise now that I have gaps in interpreting theory into practice. Benner’s (1984) work proposes that nurses move from novice to expert as a result of both experiences and training. By analysing the situation with reference to theories and concepts, I have come to realise that only through experience, greater knowledge and confidence will these gaps begin to close. I now know that no one solution was correct nor was it incorrect. Nurses have a legal and moral duty to act in a beneficent way which at times may conflict with the autonomy of the patient. However, providing the patient is of age and has the capabilities to make informed and balanced decisions, in cases of conflict the law will favour autonomy over beneficence. I have come to appreciate that the patient is the only one who can decide what matters to them and what is good based on the information given and as a nurse I am in a position to recognise when patient autonomy is at risk of not being respected and help to restore it. This would then result in the principles of autonomy and beneficence working in partnership rather than in conflict, with the act of beneficence being the action that increases the autonomy of the patient. The process of reflection can bring up painful emotions again but if followed properly and supported appropriately, it can help the reflector to come to terms with their emotions and move on. I now know that the feelings I expressed were natural for a novice like me. Should this particular situation arise again I know I would be able to take this new knowledge with me but am unsure as to whether it would diminish my feelings of sadness, I am however confident that I could now put them to one side. Conclusion Reflection is an important aspect of nurse education and can assist student nurses in linking theory and practice and in developing self-awareness skills. Borton’s (1970 in Jasper 2003) reflective framework has assisted me in both reflecting on what was to me a difficult and personal experience and being able to structure an academic assignment based on it. Even though critics claim that Borton does not include the finer details of reflection or any guide as to how reflection is to be conducted within each stage of the process, I found that these omissions allowed me a wider scope and more freedom to analyse and challenge the situation and my own feelings. Had I used a model such as Gibbs (1988 in Jasper 2003), which consists of prompt questions, it may have restricted my reflection as I tried to answer the specific questions. I am aware of the negative elements of reflection but feel that by acknowledging these within my assignment I was able to conduct a reflection that was an honest and true account. The ethical and legal issues that arose in the incident were autonomy, beneficence, capacity and informed consent. All these issues are interlinked and have an impact on each other and I now understand that each must be considered both as individual components and together in order to gain an accurate perception of a situation and provide patient centred care. My professional knowledge and understanding of these issues and the importance of reflection in nursing has increased considerably by completing this reflective assignment. I understand that by reflecting on situations that occur within clinical practice I will gain new insights, knowledge and understanding therefore empowering me in my practice. This will enhance my nursing practice in future in variety of ways, in particular by assisting me in conti nuous professional development throughout my nursing career, as required by the NMC (2008). References ANDREWS, M.; GIDMAN, J., and HUMPHREYS, A., 1998. Reflection: does it enhance professional nursing practiceBritish Journal of Nursing 7, 413-417 ATKINS, S.; MURPHY, K., 1993. Reflection: a review of the literature. Journal of Advanced Nursing 18, 1188-1192 BEAUCHAMP, T.L.; CHILDRESS, J.F., 2001. Principles of Biomedical Ethics, 5th edition. Oxford: Oxford University Press BEGLEY, A.M., 2008. Guilty but Good: Defending voluntary active euthanasia from a virtue perspective. Nursing Ethics 15(4), 434-445 BENNER, P., 1984. From Novice to Expert. California: Addison-Wesley BORTON, T., 1970. Reach, Touch and Teach. London: Hodder Arnold cited in M. JASPER, 2003. Beginning Reflective Practice (Foundations in Nursing and Health Care). Cheltenham: Nelson Thomas LTD B, RE (adult: refusal of medical treatment).; 2002. 1 FLR 1090. Available from: http://www.bailii.org/ew/cases/EWHC/Fam/2002/429.html (Accessed 14th May 2011) BUKA, P., 2008. Patients’ Rights, Law and Ethics for Nurses: A practical guide. London: Hodder Arnold BULMAN, C.; SCHUTZ, S., 2004. Reflective Practice in Nursing, 3rd edition. Oxford: Blackwell Publishing LTD BURROWS, D., 1995. The nurse teacher’s role in the promotion of reflective practice. Nurse Education Today 15, 346-50 BURTON, A.J., 2000. Reflection: nursing’s practice and education panaceaJournal of Advanced Nursing 31(5) 1009-1017 CLARKE, J., 2003. Patient centred death. British Medical Journal 327, 174-175 CONWAY, J., 1994. Reflection, the art and science of nursing and the theory-practice gap. British Journal of Nursing 3, 114-118 DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH., 2007. Cancer reform strategy. London: Crown Publications DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH., 2008. End of life care strategy. London: Department of Health DIMOND, B., 2005. Legal Aspects of Nursing, 4th edition. London: Pearson Education Limited ELLIS, J.R.; HARTLEY, C.L., 2001. Nursing in today’s world: Challenges, Issues and Trends. Philadelphia: Lippincott GIBBS, G. (1988) Learning by Doing: A Guide to Teaching and Learning Methods. Oxford: Blackwell Publishing cited in M. JASPER, 2003. Beginning Reflective Practice (Foundations in Nursing and Health Care). Cheltenham: Nelson Thomas LTD GREAT BRITAIN. Human Rights Act 1998: Elizabeth ll. Chapter 42. 1998. London: The Stationery Office. Available from: http://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1998/42/contents (accessed on 14th May 2011) Great Britain. Mental Capacity Act 2005: Elizabeth II. Chapter 9. 2005 London: The Stationery Office. Available from: http://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2005/9/contents (Accessed on 15th May 2011) GRIFFITH, R., 2007. Making decisions for incapable adults 1: Capacity and best interest. British Journal of Community Nursing 11(3), 119-125 HARGREAVES, J., 1997. Using patients: exploring the ethical dimension of reflective practice in nurse education. Journal of Advanced Nursing 25, 223-228 HEANEY, M.; FOOT, C,. and FREEMAN, W., 2007. Ethical issues in withholding and withdrawing life-prolonging medical treatment in the IC U. Current Anaesthesia Critical Care 18, 5-6, 277-283 HONG, L.P.; CHEW, L., 2008. Reflective practice from the perspectives of the bachelor of nursing students in International Medical University (IMU). Singapore Nursing Journal 35(3), 5-6,8-10,12-15 JASPER, M., 2003. Beginning Reflective Practice (Foundations in Nursing and Health Care). Cheltenham: Nelson Thomas LTD JOHNS, C., 1998. Opening the Doors of Perception. Oxford: Blackwell Science cited in C. Johns and D. Freshwater, 2005 (eds), Transforming Nursing through Reflective Practice. Oxford: Blackwell Science JONES, P.R., 1995. Hindsight bias in reflective practice: An empirical investigation. Journal of Advanced Nursing 21, 783-788 KELLY, B., 1991. The professional values of English undergraduates. Journal of Advanced Nursing 16, 867-872 KIM, H.S., 1999. Critical Reflective inquiry for knowledge development in nursing practice. Journal of Advanced Nursing 29(5), 1205-12 KRALIK, D.; KOCH,T., and WOTTON K., 1997. Engagement and detachment: Understanding patients’ experiencing with nursing. Journal of Advanced Nursing 26(2), 399-407 LARCHER, V., 2005. Consent, competence and confidentiality. British Medical Journal 330, 7487, 353-356. LAUDER, W., 1994. Beyond reflection: practical wisdom and the practical syllogism. Nurse Education Today 14, 91-98 MACKINTOSH, C., 1998. Reflection: a flawed strategy for the nursing professional. Nurse Education Today 18, 553-7 MB, RE (Caesarean Section)., 1997. 2 F.L.R. 426 cited in R., Griffith., 2007. Making decisions for incapable adults 1: Capacity and best interest. British Journal of Community Nursing 11(3), 119-125 NURSING MIDWIFERY COUNCIL, 2008. The code: standards of conduct, performance and ethics for nurses and midwifes. London: NMC PELLEGRINO, E., 2004. Ethical considerations in head and neck cancer. California: Addison-Wesley cited in L, Harrison., R, Sessions., W, Hong., 2008 (eds). Head and Neck Cancer: A Multidisciplinary Approach, 2nd edition. Philadelphia: Lippincott Williams Wilkins RADLEY, A.; PAYNE, S.A., 2009. A sociological commentary on the refusal of treatment by patients with cancer. Mortality 14(4), 309-24 REID, B., 1993. ‘But we’re doing it already!’ Exploring a response to the concept of Reflective Practice in order to improve its facilitation. Nurse Education Today 13(4), 305-309 ROLFE, G.; FRESHWATER, D.; and JASPER, M., 2001. Critical Reflection for Nursing. Hampshire: Palgrave Macmillan SAUNDERS, K.; CHALONER, C., 2007. Voluntary euthanasia: ethical concepts and definitions. Nursing Standard 21(35) 41-44 SAYLOR, C.R., 1990. Reflection and professional education: art, science and competency. Nurse Educator 15(2), 8-11 SCHON, D., 1983. The Reflective Practitioner: How professionals think in action. London: Temple Smith SEYMOUR, J.R., 2001. Critical moments: death and dying in intensive care. Buckingham: Open University Press SIDAWAY V BETHLEM ROYAL HOSPITAL.; 1985. AC 871, 1985 1 All ER 643, 1985 2 WLR 480. Available from: http://www.bailii.org/uk/cases/UKHL/1985/1.html (Accessed 14th May 2011) SMITH, A., 1998. Learning about reflection. Journal of Advanced Nursing 28(4), 891-898 SMITH, R., 2000. A good death: an important aim for health services and for us all. British Medical Journal 320, 7228, 129-130 STREET, A.F., 1992. Inside nursing- A clinical ethnography of Clinical Nursing Practice. New York: Albany TEEKMAN, B., 2000. Exploring reflective thinking in nursing practice. Journal of Advanced Nursing 31(5), 1125-1135 TINGLE, J.; CRIBB, A., 2007. Nursing Law and Ethics, 3rd edition. Oxford: Blackwell Publishing LTD VAN KLEFFENS, T.; VAN BAARSEN, B., and VAN LEEUWEN, E., 2004. The medical practise of patient autonomy and cancer treatment refusals: a patients’ and physicians’ perspective. Social Science Medicine 58, 2325–2336 VAN KLEFFENS, T.; VAN LEEUWEN, E., 2005. Physicians’ evaluations of patients’ decisions to refuse oncological treatment. Journal of Medical Ethics 31, 131–136 VOOGT, E.; VAN DER HEIDE, A.; RIETJENS, J.A.C.; VAN LEEUWEN, A.F.; VISER, A.P.; VAN DER RIJT, C.C.D., 2005. Attitudes of patients with incurable cancer towards medical treatment in the last phase of life. Journal of Oncology 23, 2012-2019 WILLIAMS, G.R.; LOWES, L., 2001. Reflective practice. Reflection: Possible strategies to improve its use by qualified staff. British Journal of Nursing 10(22), 1482-8 How to cite Developing practitioner, Essay examples

Societys changes reflected in theatre Essay Example For Students

Societys changes reflected in theatre Essay Productions reflect changes in society. In the modern time period, productions have been written due to occurrences or in retaliation to society. For example the acceptance of homosexuality, interracial relationships, religious icons, the role of the government, the use of drugs and alcohol and social morays eg divorce. Before the 1920s plays tended to avoid social issues. But more plays came out that challenged society, especially between the 1960s and 1990s. Homosexuality is once socially unacceptable and thought of as both a mental illness and a crime. However after the Stonewall riots in June 1969, homosexuality became more acceptable and began appearing in many plays including Boys in the band. It was the first play to portray gay men and deal realistically with homosexuality before a mainstream audience. Interracial relationships were also something that was regarded as not acceptable by society. Guess Whos Coming to Dinner was a 1967 groundbreaking play dealt with the then-controversial subject of inter-racial marriage which was still then illegal in 16 U.S. states. In my monologue entitled Night Luster she says Jesus twice in vain. This would have been prohibited by the Lord Chancellors office had it have been written earlier as it would have been considered blasphemy. In the 1690s the age o f the hippies came. Drugs and alcohol was a large part of this era and the theatre adjusted around it and incorporated it into plays. Jesus Christ Superstar incorporated and challenged religious icons. It questioned Jesus relationship with Mary Magdalene and gave the image of Jesus being a rock star and Mary Magdalene being almost a groupie. It placed the religious icons (Jesus) in a contemporary situation.

Mass Media’s Influence on Society Essay Example

Mass Media’s Influence on Society Essay The primary objectives of mass media are to offer information, advertisement, and entertainment. Relative to this, I will talk about the perceived and recognized influence and effect that mass media has in the society in general.   Moreover, I will explore the truth to the statement that individuals are more influenced by mass media than they think. It is a fact that nowadays, people cannot live without mass media because together with the aid of technological improvements, transmitting and conveying messages to the masses is becoming easier. For instance, we are being showered with lots of information, advertising, and other sort of materials by the various kinds of mass media, which have influence in our daily life styles. As maintained by Curran Gurevitch (2000) the issue of media’s influence or impact on society and its cultural context has frequently been deliberated upon from principal theorists to anybody with any kind of media relations. Personally, I believe that mass media does affect society, but by means of employing more varied and slight impact. Meanwhile, a number of theorists propose that it is even an issue of society shaping the media and not the more extensive and supposed report. We will write a custom essay sample on Mass Media’s Influence on Society specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now We will write a custom essay sample on Mass Media’s Influence on Society specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer We will write a custom essay sample on Mass Media’s Influence on Society specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer According to Eldridge et al. (1997), media is considered to be a main piece within society that is frequently associated with the concept of social influence. Bandura (1994) agrees that society acknowledges and recognizes the view or thought of being influenced as an â€Å"external force,† which is the media, associating itself or linking with a personal action or point of view of the receiver. Agenda-setting function of modern mass media According to Stuart Hall, due to the fact that some of the media produce material, which frequently is serious, impartial, and good, they are accorded a high degree of respect and authority (Kosicki, 1993). However, in practice the ethic of mass media is closely associated to that of the standardized enterprise, offering a critical support for the existing order. Nevertheless, independence is not a mere cover; it is fundamental to the manner by which ideology and power are mediated in our society. The public is enticed with good TV, radio, and newspapers into an approval and recognition of the misleading, the biased, and the status quo. Kosicki (1993) asserts that the media are not, consistent with this approach, crude agents of propaganda since they systematize public understanding. Nonetheless, the general interpretations they give ultimately are those, which are most favored by, and least demanding to, those people with economic power. The long-term outcomes of this are important in cooperation with the ongoing awareness of ownership and control of the media, bringing about accusations of a â€Å"media elite† having a type of â€Å"cultural dictatorship† (Mills, 1956). Role of Mass Media in Power Struggle in Society Mills (1956) wrote in his book â€Å"The Power Elite† that the powers of ordinary men are restricted by the daily words in which they live, nevertheless even in these rounds of family, neighborhood, and job they frequently seem motivated by forces they can neither recognize nor manage. Mills (1956) said that a power elite survives in a society that is composed of three spheres. He added that these spheres are divided into political, economy, and military, with the same group of individuals interchanging between the three. This big group of elite is at the top coming up with all the decisions, whereas the masses are at the bottom, ignorant of the process that shapes public opinion. Masses within this viewpoint of society are considered immaterial and do not possess any kind of influence. According to this belief, the media works as an entertainment source, keeping the masses entertained whereas the elite is taking care of all the significant matters. This way, it hides the real ity and truth of the world from the masses. Furthermore, Mills (1956) rationalized what the media does for the masses as they divert him and complicate his opportunity to be aware of himself or his world, by means of fixing his attention upon artificial frenzies that are circled within the program structure, typically by violent action or by what is dubbed as humor. This helps elucidate how the mass media directs, attempts to manage, and influence the masses. In his book, Mills (1956) explains the influence of mass media as a kind of psychological illiteracy to the degree that we frequently do not believe what we see before us until we hear about it on the radio or we read about it in the paper. The masses’ standards of reality and standards of credulity, have a tendency to be set by these media instead of by the masses own fragmentary experience (Mills, 1956). Mass medias function helps avert the questioning of the elite. Mills (1956) added that schools, churches, and families become accustomed to modern life; governme nts, corporations and armies shape it; and, as they do so, they turn these lesser establishments into means for their ends. Meanwhile, Schudson (1978) supposed that society was grounded in the view of society, with the middle class developing and dominating. Medias relationship with its audience helped nourish them, but it did not construct the worldview. The media cannot be established to have several effects and influences on society, and the ones that subsist have to do with advertising as a cultural body. Schudson (1978) said that advertising functions more as a means of celebrating products and buying. It operates to prompt and refocus as it orients individuals to the world and let them know that others share similar opinios. Moreover, advertising reminds people about things in society and strengthens certain social trends. The cultural symbols and trends and make us conscious while at the same time reminding us of what we already know. Television Eldridge, J. et al. (1997) states that television is described as the broadcast of visual images of stationary and moving objects, usually with accompanying sound, as electromagnetic waves and the reconversion of acquired waves into visual images. As we all know, television has of a great influence in today’s world because it transmits images and as one has almost certainly heard of the saying – One picture worth’s more than thousands of words – this is a way in which TV has a major influence in the viewers. Moreover, it is an extensively held idea that the electronic mass media, predominantly television, exercises growing intellectual, social, and emotional influences and impacts on people (Trenaman McQuail, 1961). According to Pico Iyer, author and essayist for Time Magazine in his article during the May 14, 1990 issue of Time, TV consumes us much more than we do it, he talks about the incapacity of children who have grown goggled-eyed around the electronic alter (specifically, TV) to consider that anything is valid unless it comes with a laugh track.   Moreover, they also control their emotions during commercial breaks and expect to cure their sorrow with a PAUSE button. According to Bandura (1994), Mostly in the consumer habits of the public, advertising is almost certainly one the most powerful item concerning mass media. Curran Gurevitch (2000) said that every the average American sees more than 38,000 TV commercial. If we multiply that amount to 20 seconds, which are more or less the average commercial lasts will give us an outcome of 760.000 second an average American sees of commercial advertising products. So, how does this influence our consuming habits? For example, the fast food industry is a great case in point of the influence and impact of advertising in people’s consuming habits. Advertisements can greatly influence people.   For instance in the issue of consumer behavior, the problem is the advertisement, marketing and promotion of unhealthy foods.   According to critics, these advertisements are not only seen on television, but more and more on the Internet, cell phones, and video games (Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania). A lot of nutritionists assert there is sufficient evidence connecting advertising to childhood obesity. In addition, we are now faced with worldwide problem of avoidance of physical exercise, which is sometimes portrayed in advertisements. Literally speaking, people just dont move their bodies sufficiently. Some examples of these sedentary activities are refusal to walk and watching four hours of television each night. It seems that the public is not exceedingly interested in taking care of their own health, and would prefer to turn it over to medical professionals and pharmaceuticals than do their own thinking. To solve this problem, the commercial sector should market healthier foods in the same intensity as that of the less-healthy foods.   Similar strategies should be employed to market better foods, as well as advertisements.   As stressed by Sonya Grier in the article â€Å"Food Fight: Obesity Raises Difficult Marketing Questions† in the website of Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania, there has to be a concerted effort across fields and across disciplines in achieving this goal.   Moreover, the way that food and physical inactivity are marketed, particularly to children, should be changed so that physical activity increases and nutrition improves.   In schools, learning regarding energy balance must be a required part of the curriculum in the elementary and secondary levels.   Furthermore, it indispensable to give children the chance for a considerable amount of physical activity when they are in school and to offer them opportunities to make healthy food options. Conceivably, the greatest opportunity and the greatest challenge to address the problem of consumer behavior and obesity are in reshaping the socio-cultural environment to make physical activity and healthy eating behaviors more normative as portrayed in advertisements and in television (Hill, Wyatt and Peters). Gerbner, G., et al. (1994) claimed that TV characters are frequently acknowledged as heroes, because of the obtaining of respect and various other rewards by means of their actions, they are particularly possible to be copied. Furthermore, the actions of TV characters might likewise serve as a sign to violent behavior, by way of stimulation, uninhibitedness, and desensitization. For instance, a violent scene in a horror movie could affect the mind of young children to imitate the violence that they have viewed. In addition, it has been noticed that obviously belligerent individuals might just desire and choose to view more violent programs than of any other kinds of films. Gerbner, G., et al. (1994) discovered that aggressive-prone kids are possible to turn out to be even more violent after watching a violent program in TV. Meanwhile, propaganda could likewise be achieved by means of television. For instance, the television coverage of the speeches of Bush regarding War on Terrorism explains that Iraq possessed weapons of mass destruction. About year and a half shortly no weapons of mass destruction have been discovered. Nevertheless, the American citizens were convinced regarding the unconfirmed information that Iraq has weapons of mass destruction and were prepared to sue it against America. Hence, this is another example of the influence of TV on the viewers. Newspapers Curran Gurevitch (2000) asserted that newspapers are usually daily or weekly publication that includes news and opinion about current events, featuring advertising, and articles. Due to the fact that there are now approximately 9000 daily newspapers around the world, this shows that newspapers reach a wide audience worldwide, which is why newspaper is another powerful kind of mass media (Curran Gurevitch, 2000). I agree with the authors that newspapers have remarkable influence in society because they can simply affect and change people’s emotions supportive or not supportive of an issue. This is for the reason that we as readers have a propensity to believe everything that is written in the newspaper although it may possibly be the wrong information. Sometimes, newspapers give the wrong impression about information that goes to the public, which instantly influences and encourages the public to react even if they don’t know that the same media is influencing them to do act that way. Furthermore, newspapers can be very biased regarding a story. Even though a reporter has the tendency of being impartial regarding a current event, at times it is not always likely to be that way. For example, in the newspaper coverage of the Iraqi war, the American Press influenced the readers to unleash feeling of patriotism for their army, which cause feeling of discrimination and unfairness against Middle Eastern looking people Then, the construction of the news is another means in which the mass media can have an influence or impact over the masses (Eldridge et al., 1997). By means of the placement of certain aspects of, for instance, a news feature or the selective process made by editors it upholds the concept of media influence constantly. Print and television based news, due mainly to their fascination with crime and violence perhaps has a negative influence upon our societal behavior. On the other hand, I personally do not totally agree with this as I consider that normally news does not lie, apart from it does not enlighten the audience about the whole truth by means of omitting the less interesting and dramatic parts. Therefore, the mass media’s influence through the news is that it affects the public both consciously and subconsciously, and in some cases sends us about our lives needlessly fearing the isolated dangers that we see extremely portrayed in the news. The Internet Age The Internet, also dubbed as the World Wide Web (WWW) contains of a web of computers working together and connecting to each other like a spider web, and it permits the individual to research all kinds of material on their computer and learn more and the topic or issue they are after (Finkelhor, et al., 2000).   This is considered to be the newest kind of mass media because it reaches worldwide.   For instance, if one has a webpage made in Thailand somebody in Colombia can view it. That is how remarkable Internet is, distances become shorter and shorter. However, one of the major problems is that Internet is that it is very addictive.   This means that games pressure kids to spend hours and hours sitting down in front of the screen basically wasting time (Finkelhor, et al., 2000). This has a consequence on less kids developing social skills, consequently it connects to the depression problem that most teenagers are suffering from in the 20th century. The Internet has increased dramatically the availability of sexually explicit content. Computer and Internet use is diffusing more rapidly than any previous technology; as of the end of 1999, more than half (56%) of all adults in the United States were online. It is expected that by 2010 most U.S. homes with children will have access to the Internet (Finkenhor, et al., 2000). The word sex is the most popular search term used on the Internet today (Finhelkor et al., 2000). The Internet may have both positive and negative effects on sexual health. According to one national survey of young people (10-17 years old) who regularly used the Internet, one out of four said he or she had encountered unwanted pornography in the past year, and one out of five had been exposed to unwanted sexual solicitations or approaches (Finkelhor et al., 2000). Radio In the case of radio, there was a study, which documented media-social relations and the influence that the radio had over the masses. This is an example of the â€Å"Hypodermic Needle Model†, a theory that claims that the media are leading instruments of influence, able to introduce concepts and behaviors directly into quite static audiences of remote individuals (Bandura, 1994). Moreover, it could likewise be known as revealing the behavioral changes that can be derived from even a single media output but the fundamental case in point of media influence that experts have studied by means of fieldwork or experiments as well. Long-term Effects of Mass Media While in the short term individuals can be expected to evaluate biased information in accordance with their existing beliefs, in the long term the cultural influence of the media on the average beliefs of individuals may be significant. This operates through a process of using the symbolic materials available to us in society and from our interaction with others to formulate a sense of self-identity (which then impinges further on our self-identity through its effects on our interaction with others and our interpretation of the symbolic materials). New encounters and experiences mean the self-image is constantly re-constructed, and the media here is a crucial source of symbolic material of everything in the world outside the private circle: it mediates Habermas public sphere to us, and distortions in that window on the world will impinge on how we perceive the world, how we interact in our private sphere and how we interact with the public sphere (Bandura, 1994). It is because of thi s that many sociologists view the media as negatively affecting the individuals autonomy. However, others have attempted to demonstrate that the media provides an invaluable source of multi-cultural information which enriches ones perception of the world (by enlarging our window of perception on the world) and of life, allows for a well-balanced opinion, and that the interpretation of symbolic interaction is largely dependent on cultural and socio-economic circumstances (Roberts, 2000). Conclusion In conclusion, I can say that mass media does have an effect of society for the simple reason that is has become part of our daily routine. Thus, as media become part of our daily life, I can say that it has a unconscious effect in our habits, like the shopping habits that people has these days, if they something on television, the Internet or the newspapers there is a big possibility that they will consume it. Moreover, media also influences the way society acts because if the media said that something is wrong, society believes it. However, I still believe that it depends upon an individual if he/she allows that he/she will be a slave to their passions and hence they will embrace and follow everthing that the media portrays or dictates them to follow.

Jest and Earnest Essay by David Woolf

Jest and Earnest Essay by David Woolf Jest and Earnest essayby David WoolfAnnie Dillard's "Jest and Earnest" is a complete contradiction. It compares three different points of views. The title itself is a juxtaposition, the word jest has to do with fun, and earnest is a sort of conservative seriousness. Dillard tries to convey her beliefs on creation and how even seemingly complete opposites have something in common. She depicts for us a vivid description of an occurrence and then justifies that occurrence. The imagery in her essay moves from a depiction of an atrocious act, to a description of beauty, and finally to a vision of both.From the get go, Dillard describes to us a scene in "jest" with frogs of all sorts laying in different positions. Some are above, some are below, and still others are right along the waters edge. Her essay progresses towards a more "earnest" situation where a frog is violently eaten by a giant water bug.dillard'sShe vividly describes the gruesome meal. The giant water bug first grips the fro g and then devours it by liquefying it's organs Using diction that would even make the hardest of biologists tremble, she is able to vividly describe to us the macabre attack and eventual consumption of the frog. She then justifies the act by stating that other carnivorous animals devour their prey in similar or even more vicious manners. Life is hypocritical she says because life itself depends upon the consumption of food yet survival depends on not becoming that food.Dillard then moves on to an act of beauty depicted by a mockingbird. The "jest" action of the mockingbird making a straight vertical decent from the roof gutter of a four story building was a beautiful, spontaneous act. Again, Dillard vividly describes the actions taken by the...

The Spanish Armada of the Anglo-Spanish War

The Spanish Armada of the Anglo-Spanish War The battles of the Spanish Armada were part of the undeclared Anglo-Spanish War between  Queen Elizabeth I of England and King Philip II of Spain. The Spanish Armada was first sighted off The Lizard on July 19, 1588. Sporadic fighting occurred over the next two weeks with the largest English attack coming on August 8, 1588, off Gravelines, Flanders. After the battle, the English pursued the Armada until August 12, 1588, when both fleets were off the Firth of Forth. Commanders and Armies England Lord Charles Howard of EffinghamSir John HawkinsSir Francis Drake35 warships, 163 armed merchant vessels Spain Duke of Medina Sedonia22 galleons, 108 armed merchant vessels The Armada Forms Built on the orders of King Philip II of  Spain, the Armada was meant to sweep the seas around the British Isles and permit the Duke of Parma to cross the Channel with an army to invade  Ã¢â‚¬â€¹England. This endeavor was intended to subdue England, end English support for the Dutch resistance to Spanish rule, and to reverse the Protestant Reformation in England. Sailing from Lisbon on May 28, 1588, the Armada was commanded by the Duke of Medina Sedonia. A naval novice, Medina Sedonia was assigned to the fleet following the death of veteran commander Alvaro de Bazan a few months earlier. Due to the size of the fleet, the last ship did not clear port until May 30, 1588. Early Encounters As the Armada put to sea, the English fleet was gathered in Plymouth awaiting news of the Spanish. On July 19, 1855, the Spanish fleet was sighted off The Lizard at the western entrance to the English Channel. Putting to sea, the English fleet shadowed the Spanish fleet, while remaining upwind to retain the weather gage. Proceeding up the Channel, Medina Sedonia had the Armada form a tightly packed, crescent-shaped formation that would allow for the ships to mutually defend one another. Over the next week, the two fleets fought two skirmishes off Eddystone and Portland, in which the English explored the Armada’s strengths and weaknesses, but were unable to break its formation. Fireships Off the Isle of Wight, the English launched an all-out assault on the Armada, with Sir Francis Drake leading the largest contingent of attacking ships. While the English enjoyed initial success, Medina Sedonia was able to reinforce those parts of the fleet that were in danger and the Armada was able to maintain formation. Though the attack had failed to scatter the Armada, it prevented Medina Sedonia from using the Isle of Wight as an anchorage and forced the Spanish to continue up the Channel without any news of Parma’s readiness. On July 27, the Armada anchored at Calais, and attempted to contact Parma’s forces at nearby Dunkirk. At midnight on July 28, the English ignited eight fireships and sent them downwind towards the Armada. Afraid that the fireships would set the ships of the Armada on fire, many of the Spanish captains cut their anchor cables and scattered. Though only one Spanish ship was burned, the English had achieved their goal of breaking up Medina Sedon ia’s fleet. The Battle of Gravelines In the wake of the fireship attack, Medina Sedonia attempted to reform the Armada off Gravelines as the rising south-westerly wind prevented a return to Calais. As the Armada concentrated, Medina Sedonia received word from Parma that another six days were required to bring his troops to the coast for the crossing to England. On August 8, as the Spanish rode at anchor off Gravelines, the English returned in force. Sailing smaller, faster, and more maneuverable ships, the English utilized the weather gauge and long-range gunnery to pummel the Spanish. This approach worked to the English advantage as the preferred Spanish tactic called for one broadside and then an attempt to board. The Spanish were further hampered by a lack of gunnery training and correct ammunition for their guns. During the fighting at Gravelines, eleven Spanish ships were sunk or badly damaged, while the English escaped largely unscathed. Spanish Retreat On August 9, 1855, with his fleet damaged and the wind backing to the south, Medina Sedonia abandoned the invasion plan and charted a course for Spain. Leading the Armada north, he intended to circle around the British Isles and return home through the Atlantic. The English pursued the Armada as far north as the Firth of Forth before returning home. As the Armada reached the latitude of Ireland, it encountered a large hurricane. Hammered by the wind and sea, at least 24 ships were driven ashore on the Irish coast where many of the survivors were killed by Elizabeth’s troops. The storm, referred to as the Protestant Wind was seen as a sign that God supported the Reformation and many commemorative medals were struck with the inscription He Blew with His Winds, and They Were Scattered. Aftermath Impact Over the following weeks, 67 of Medina Sedonia’s ships straggled into port, many badly damaged with starving crews. In the course of the campaign, the Spanish lost approximately 50 ships and over 5,000 men, though most of the ships sunk were converted merchantmen and not ships from the Spanish Navy. The English suffered around 50-100 killed and around 400 wounded. Long considered one of England’s greatest victories, the defeat of the Armada temporarily ended the threat of invasion as well as aided in securing the English Reformation and allowed Elizabeth to continue supporting the Dutch in their struggle against the Spanish. The Anglo-Spanish War would continue until 1603, with the Spanish generally getting the better of the English, but never again attempting to mount an invasion of England. Elizabeth at Tilbury The campaign of the Spanish Armada provided Elizabeth with the opportunity to deliver what is considered one of the finest speeches of her long reign. On August 8, as her fleet was sailing into battle at Gravelines, Elizabeth addressed Robert Dudley, Earl of Leicester’s troops at their camp on the Thames estuary at West Tilbury: I have come amongst you as you see, at this time, not for my recreation and disport, but being resolved in the midst and heat of battle to live and die amongst you all, to lay down for my God and for my kingdom, and for my people, my honour and my blood, even in the dust. I know I have the body of a weak and feeble woman, but I have the heart and stomach of a king, and a king of England too. And think foul scorn that Parma or Spain, or any Prince of Europe, should dare to invade the borders of my realm!

Was a separate Jewish state necessary Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 4000 words

Was a separate Jewish state necessary - Essay Example Anti-Semitism is commonly said to be the cause which forced the Jews to seek out a separate homeland of their own. This idea is supported by Herzl (1896) who gives several accounts of how Jews were persecuted in his own times and those times which are recorded by history. The keenest memory of anti-Semitic behaviour comes in the form of the German Jews who were persecuted, troubled and harassed by the Nazi regime. The holocaust brought upon by the Nazi regime was a horrifying experience for the European Jews but anti-Semitic feelings also ran to a large extent across Europe and America. Isseroff (2006) says that anti-Zionist propaganda is the main reason why some people suggest that Israel was created out of pity for the Jews of Europe after the Second World War. For him the European influence existed already before the events of the Second World War : ‘Israel was created as a result of the League of Nations Mandate of 1922, which granted a mandate to Great Britain to create a "National Home" for the Jews in Palestine’ (Isseroff, 2006, Pg. 1). Even before the holocaust, and in fact, long before the discovery of the new world, there had been calls for a separate Jewish state. Arguments for a Jewish country had been put forward by many Jewish and non-Jewish thinkers who suggested that separating the Jews from mainstream Europe might be a possible answer to the Jewish question. Despite these calls for a Jewish state, there have been arguments against a separate country for Jews (Scham, 2002). These arguments are based on economic and social factors and the debate means that there is more to the story than can be discerned from a cursory glance. Even the historical background of the Jewish persecution and the problems between the Jews and other nations would require volumes of information. The counterpoints to a separate Jewish state come from many sources and although charges of anti-Semitism can be made against those

Concrete Construction Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Concrete Construction - Assignment Example The joint if any, shall be carefully handled as the poor joining in the concrete process would result in weak spots which would become the locations of future problems in the channel. In order to ensure the flow of water with very low energy loss it is necessary to maintain the channel geometry in the construction. The machinery choice is also a very important component in the construction process. With a proper attachment for levelling and material lining activities the channel construction could be undertaken on a continuous mode (US patent,, 1984). This would help to maintain the required slope and the roughness condition the important criteria that influences the velocity of flow. The concrete mix design shall be prepared as per the design specification and if the construction need to be carried out in adverse condition addition of admixtures is necessary to facilitate the retention of properties of prepared concrete . Finally, proper curing of the concrete works is also required to have the better durability of the construction process. The foot bridge construction requires more care as it is indented to carry moving loads with supports given only at the locations as specified in the design document. The major components of the foot bridge , constructed over the diversion channel , are support piers at the ends and the bridge slab.

Immanuel Kant Essay Example for Free

Immanuel Kant Essay The following is taken from Immanuel Kant’s The Metaphysics of Morals (Part II, â€Å"The Science of Right†), translated by W. Hastie with emendations and paragraph numbers added by Jeremy Anderson. The complete text is available free online here. In this excerpt, Kant first explains what crime is and the different sorts of crimes (paragraph 1), which is not very important for our purposes. He then presents his view that punishment is justified by the criminals having committed a crime (par. 2). This is to be contrasted with other theories of punishment such as the Utilitarian theory, according to which punishment is justified by the good it brings to society. Kant rejects the Utilitarian theory for two reasons. First, he believes it treats criminals as mere means to others good; Kant’s Categorical Imperative forbids this. Second, the Utilitarian theory could, possibly, justify punishing an innocent person because of the good it might bring to society. To Kant, this sort of injustice is absolutely intolerable. Having explained why we punish people Kant goes on to discuss how and how much to punish criminals (par. 3-8). Here he asserts that the hurt done to the criminal should equal the hurt the criminal did to others, both in amount and in kind (in class we are calling this the Equal Punishment version of the lex talionis). The rest of the piece mostly explains what he means by this, with particular emphasis on the need for the death penalty. In paragraphs 8 and 10 Kant considers some interesting exceptions to the rule that murderers must be executed. Okay, so Kant believed that punishment should always be in response to a crime punishing someone to protect society or to deter others is immoral. Kant goes on to say that it is also immoral for a person to commit a crime, and not be punished. In other words, every crime merits a punishment; it is Kants form of equality. Kant refers to this as jus talionis, which is loosely translates as the right of retaliation. However, Kant was opposed to punishing people if it took away their humanity. In other words, if a person tortures people, that person should not be punished by torture, because doing so would be dehumanizing OURSELVES. In other words, it would be stooping to the level of the torturer. Kant did believe in Capital Punishment in fact, he insisted on it. He states in his book, Metaphysics on Morals, that according to Jus Talionis, murderers MUST die there is no earthly punishment other than death that can balance out a murder, and thus preserve Jus Talionis, the balance between crime and punishment. It is like a scale the side of justice must balance the side of injustice. An Exposition of Kant’s, Arendt’s, and Mill’s Moral Philosophy Immanuel Kant adheres to Deontological ethics. His theory offers a view of morality based on the principle of good will and duty. According to him, people can perform good actions solely by good intentions without any considerations to consequences. In addition, one must follow the laws and the categorical imperative in order to act in accordance with and from duty. Several other philosophers such as Hannah Arendt discuss Kant’s moral philosophy. In her case study: â€Å"The Accused and Duties of a Law-Abiding Citizen†, Arendt examines how Adolf Eichmann’s actions conformed to Kant’s moral precepts but also how they ran of afoul to his conception of duty. In contrast, John Stuart Mill adopts a teleological view of moral philosophy. He exposes his view of consequentialism and utilitarianism to argue that an action is morally right only to the extent that it maximizes the aggregate happiness of all parties involved regardless of the motive. In the present paper, I will expose Kant’s moral precepts and the importance of duty in his Deontological principles. Then, I will evaluate Arendt’s report on Adolf Eichmann to analyze the ways in which his actions were in accordance to or against Kant’s moral philosophy. I will conclude my discussion with an evaluation of Mill’s approach to morality in order to examine the differences between his teleological philosophy and Kant’s ethical principles. Kant’s moral philosophy is based on the categorical imperative (CI), good will, and duty. According to the CI, it is an absolute necessity, a command that humans should accord with universalizable maxims to treat people as ends in themselves and exercise their will without any concerns about the consequences or conditions of their actions. This concept can also be expressed in systematic terms by the two following formulations.

Nicole Jumper Essay -- Weight Loss Diet Nutrition Papers

Nicole Jumper The desire to change one’s body image is very prevalent in today’s society; and in most cases what people want to change is their weight. Companies who market diet programs and miracle diet drugs are very much aware of this commonality among consumers and take advantage of the susceptible nature of those who want to lose the weight and lose it fast. Among the multitude of pills, programs and promises that are offered as cures to the unhappiness of being fat, one new concept has emerged that stretches the boundaries of logic: the catabolic diet. WHAT IS THE CATABOLIC DIET? The catabolic diet is based on the concept that a person can eat â€Å"catabolic† foods that actually have a negative calorie effect. These are foods that supposedly take a person more calories to digest them than the food itself actually contains. Simply put, they are foods that burn fat instead of creating it. (http://www.rarebooks.net/beck/cataboli.htm) INFORMATION FOUND ON THE NET The creators of the catabolic diet have used the Internet as their primary marketing tool; therefore, there are many sites about the diet. Some are blatant advertisements and others pose as being informative and factual. The bottom line: all the sites found on the catabolic diet are looking to make a profit and want the browser to buy into a program. One site, http://www.blackbeard.com/newlook/, claims that the catabolic diet is so effective that, â€Å"[It] works three times faster than starvation.† Yet, after making this statement the site also says that the â€Å"Catabolic Diet is a medically created diet. . .† Needless to say there is no medical doctor’s endorsement found a... ... REFERENCES Astrup, Arne. â€Å"Dietary Approaches to Reducing Body Weight.† Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism. Ed. Jeff P. Holly. New York: AMA 1999. 109-120. Berstein RS; Thornton JC; Yang MU; Wang J; Redmond AM; Pierson RN Jr; Pi-Sunyer FX; Van Itallie TB. (1983a). Prediction of the Resting Metabolic Rate in obese patients. American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 1983 Apr, 37(4): 595-602. Brannon, Linda and Jess Feist. Health Psychology: An Introduction to Behavior and Health. Belmont, CA: Wadsworth, 2000. Westerterp-Plantega MS; Rolland V; Wilson SA; Westerterp KR. (1999a). Satiety related to 24 h diet-induced thermogenesis during high protein/carbohydrate vs high fat diets measured in a respiration chamber. European Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 1999 June; 53(6): 495-503.

Nutrition Implications in Complex Disease: Whole Grain Oat Cereal Lowers Serum Lipids

Coronary heart disease, CHD, has been predicted to persist as the major cause of high mortality rate for the coming decades. In line with this, the development of ischemic heart disease was attributed to the increasing level of low-density lipoprotein or LDL blood cholesterol. According to the National Cholesterol Education Program or NCNEP adult treatment panel, less than or equal to 5. 17 millimole per liter (200 milligram per deciliter) is the ideal blood cholesterol level for individuals of age higher than 20 years while higher than 6. 21 millimole per liter or 240 milligram per deciliter is risky. In connection to this, about twenty nine percent of adults older than 20 years in the United States have 6. 21 millimoles per liter blood cholesterol. Meanwhile, researches have shown that consumption of dietary soluble fibers lowers blood cholesterol level as epidemiologic studies revealed that the CHD development can be alleviated by means of dietary fiber consumption. In fact, more than thirty researches that were submitted to the Food and Drug Administration of the United States by the Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology Report validated the efficacy of soluble fiber consumption on blood cholesterol reduction. Clinical studies showed that soluble fibers from selected gums, psyllium, oat bran, pectin, and oats generally caused six percent to nineteen percent serum cholesterol reduction. Since the low cholesterol and low saturated fat diet has been employed in hypercholesterolemia medical therapy, this study aimed for the assessment of commercially available whole grain oat cereal, as employed with the step-one diet of the American Heart Association (AHA), in the reduction of blood cholesterol level. Methodology This study has enlisted fifty-seven participants from previous researches advocated by the Heart Disease Prevention Clinic. While forty-six of these participants have joined the intervention phase, only forty-three persevere and endured until the end. The participants have ages in between twenty-seven and sixty-eight years with 50th to 90th percentile range of cholesterol level based on age and gender adjustments. In the recruitment of participants, individuals with higher than 3. 39 millimole per liter of triglycerides, a body weight thirty percent higher than ideal, has major surgery and myocardial infarction history, gastrointestinal illness, unstable angina or heart failure was excluded form the enlistment. Also, those who were presently in taking up drugs for medication such as lipid-lowering agents, thiazides, antibiotics, estrogens, corticosteriods, and progesterones were excluded. In line with this, those who were taking ?-adregenic blockers needed to maintain the dosage of such drug during the duration of the study for them to become eligible. Finally, twenty-one men and twenty-two women were successfully made into the phases of this study. The phases of the intervention plan were four-week washed out stage, two-week baseline, and four-week treatment part. Throughout the intervention phases, the participants were required to maintain weight while consuming about ready-to-eat cereals twice daily within four weeks. In connection to this, all participants were mandated to abide with the AHA step-one diet design during the duration of the study. Meanwhile, physiological data such as weight, nutrient data, and lipid profiles of the participants were determined from zero to four-week baseline. Moreover, the nutrient data based on four-day food records were evaluated by the National Coordinating Center. In the intervention plan, pairing of participants was done based on gender and entry cholesterol data, whereas in each pair one was assigned to â€Å"Country Cornflakes† while the other has undergone the â€Å"Cheerios† diet. The former was the control cereal while the latter was the source of whole grain oat. Both of these cereal types were produced through cereal processing equipment and each were pre-packed into 42. 5 grams upon distribution to the participant. This was done in order to hide the identity of the commercial cereals used in this study. In connection to this, the researchers also ensured which cereal type was assigned to whom and the participants’ adherence to the consumption design by personal interviews and visitation. Meanwhile, the participants’ clinical assessment, as approved by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, was done after twelve-hour and twenty-four fasts from food and alcoholic drinks respectively. In every visit, blood pressure, lipid profile, pulse, and body weight were accurately measured. In relation to this, participants have undergone clinical screening such as urinalysis, blood count, electrocardiogram, and physical examination. The lipid content of the blood collected through sodium-potassium ethylenediamine tetraacetic was analyzed in the University of Minnesota’s laboratory for Lipid Research Core. The high-density lipoprotein or HDL cholesterol, total cholesterol, and triglycerides were determined. Also, very-low density lipoprotein or VLDL and LDL were precipitated; Friedewald formula was utilized for LDL calculation. Lastly, the cholesterol data of the participants before undergoing the treatment was statistically compared with their respective cholesterol data analyzed after the intervention phases by means of t-tests and analyses of covariance. Results and Discussion The participants in this study were equally divided into two groups; the control group received cornflakes food supply while the treatment group was fed on whole grain oat. Both groups have 51. 6 years as average age of the participants. Although the baseline body weight of the treatment group was five kilogram lower as compared with that of the control group, the difference did not make statistics significance. As such, there was no significant difference on the body mass index or BMI, and the baseline and post-intervention phase blood pressure among the two groups. Further, personal interviews on the participants revealed that their smoking and alcohol drinking habits as well as regular exercise in either group was maintained throughout the study. Luckily, complete blood count and blood chemistry of the participants did not change significantly during the study period. In terms of fat consumption, the total intake of the treatment group was decreased non-significantly from 56. 7 grams to 51. 8 grams. Moreover, the average diet changes were 11. 2 milligrams per deciliter and +4. milligrams per deciliter for the treatment group and the control group respectively. Similarly, among the two groups, there was no significant difference on the key nutrients before and after the duration of intervention phases. Except for soluble fiber, there were no other significant changes with respect to diet composition among the two groups. Meanwhile, whole-grain oat group incurred 3. 8% and 5. 4% changes on total cholesterol and LDL cholesterol respectively. As compare with the control group, the treatment group had a decreased of 4. % in total cholesterol and 4. 9% LDL cholesterol. Although, there was no significant difference in HDL cholesterol between the two groups, they had a 0. 20 millimole per liter LDL cholesterol difference. The exact mechanism of the cholesterol reduction was still unclear. It was theorized that the viscosity of soluble fibers lessen the rate of chime transfer in the upper gastrointestinal tract that causes low absorption rates, less blood nutrients, and changes in hormonal responses to delimited nutrients. In their hamsters study, Gallaher, Hassel, and Lee associated the reduction of plasma and liver cholesterol to the increase in the viscosity of the intestinal contents. However, viscosity was deemed only as a crucial requirement for the reduction of serum cholesterol. In this connection, it was proposed that soluble fibers hinder bile activity lessening the absorption rate. This process obstructs enterohepatic circulation leading to fast conversion rate of cholesterol to bile acids. In addition, other compound constituent of the fibers may also promote this process. For instance, tocotrienol in rice bran, oats, and barley inhibits cholesterol synthesis. Furthermore, the soluble fiber fermentation produces chain fatty acids which in turn hinder cholesterol biosynthesis. Changes in Serum Cholesterol and Sterol Metabolites after Intake of Products Enriched with an Oat Bran Concentrate within a Controlled Diet Introduction The United States Food and Drug Administration or FDA, in 1997, approved the notion concerning soluble fiber consumption and coronary heart disease or CHD risk reduction. The serum cholesterol or S-cholesterol reduction was ascribed to the soluble fiber, (1-3),(1-4) ?-D-glucan or simply ?-glucan present in oats and whole oat flour. Based on clinical claims, the consumption of three grams of ?-glucan per day results to S-cholesterol lowering and CHD risk reduction. Meanwhile, the S-cholesterol lowering mechanism was theorized to depend largely on increased bile acid activity due to viscous ?-glucan which in turn induces cholesterol and bile acid biosyntheses. The rate of cholesterol and bile acid biosyntheses can be traced on through the ratio of lathosterol to cholesterol and the presence of 7-?-hydroxy-4-cholesten-3-one, respectively. Thus, this study aimed to assess the S-lowering of oat bran concentrate or OBC food products incorporated in the low-saturated fat and low-cholesterol diet of hypercholesterolaemic patients. Also, the OBC effect on bile acid and cholesterol biosyntheses were examined. Methodology The recruitment of the respondents for this study was done through newspaper advertisement. Twenty-seven individuals were examined but only sixteen has passed the screening and participated in the study. The participants should have ages of 35-70 years and 50-70 years for men and women respectively. In addition, all participants should have less than six millimoles per liter S-cholesterol level. On the other hand, individuals with less than four millimoles per liter S-triacylglycerol or TG, hyperlipedaemia, less than 30 kilogram per meter square body mass index or BMI, and with cases diabetes mellitus, liver disease, thyroid problems or kidney trouble and those under hormonal therapy or cholesterol medication were excluded. Hence, the final participants were composed of seven women and nine men with average age of 57 years, 25. 4 kilogram per meter square BMI, and 7. 47 millimoles per liter S-cholesterol level. This study was a single-blind and randomized cross-over that lasted for two by three weeks with 2. 5 weeks washout period. As such, the experimental group was supplemented with OBC of about 2. 7 grams per day ?-glucan in their diet while the control group was told to maintain their typical diet. In relation to this, laboratory test such as fasting blood sampling and body weight recording were performed. The results of every clinical test were only revealed to the participants after the completion of the study. The American Heart Association recommended diet was utilized as computations of every participant’s daily food requirements and menu planning were facilitated by MATS computer program. Strict compliance with the diet was imposed through regular checking as amounts of sweet foods and drinks were regulated. For instance, maximum of 375 grams of wine or 660 milliliter of beer were only allowed per week. Additionally, participants were given copies of the foods they ate for the first week and told to stick to such as much as possible. Fasting blood sampling was done every morning as the blood samples were analyzed in terms of low density lipoprotein or LDL cholesterol, TG, and high density lipoprotein of HDL cholesterol, and S-cholesterol. Further, serum lathosterol and 7-?-hydroxy-4-cholesten-3-one levels were determined through gas chromatography. Meanwhile, statistical treatments were done by means of MS Excel and SYSTAT package. Pearson’s correlation and t-test were employed for correlational analysis and paired comparison respectively. Results and Discussion As compared with the control group, the experimental group has incurred six percent S-cholesterol reduction based on five-gram ?-glucan daily diet. In fact, a significant correlation S-cholesterol baseline level and total S-cholesterol changes during diet period were observed. In addition, changes on the serum metabolites which reflected bile acid secretion and cholesterol biosynthesis were noted. Moreover, the solubility of ?-glucan in OBC was calculated and found only as 50%. Weight losses which denoted S-cholesterol reduction also were observed. Meanwhile, due to the delimited fat intake, HDL-cholesterol reduction was noted as TG level was decreases in some participants only. Correlational changes on lathosterol and S-cholesterol implied cholesterol biosynthesis after oat diet. This observation was attributed to increase in bile acid production that was mediated by ?-glucan which in turn caused reduction in bile acid reabsorption. This process triggered bile acid synthesis through cholesterol from plasma pool by means of LDL-receptor. Yet, no significant change on serum lathosterol and 7-?-hydroxy-4-cholesten-3-one levels observed on participants. High-Fiber Oat Cereal Compared with Wheat Cereal Consumption Favorably Alters LDL-Cholesterol Subclass and Particle Numbers in Middle-Aged and Older Men Introduction High in fiber diet, in parallel with low-fat intake and other dietary factors, has been associated with the reduction of cardiovascular disease or CVD risk. Based on the meta-analyses of a number of studies, ?-glucan soluble fibers in oat products lessened serum cholesterol and low-density lipoprotein or LDL-cholesterol. It was inferred then that the capability of soluble fibers for CVD risk reduction is in concurrence with its capacity in modifying lipoproteins and serum lipids. In a number of cases, individuals with normal profile of serum lipids developed CVD. Thus, a closer examination on blood lipids attributes may provide insights on the possible CVD risk development and modify the efficacy of intervention for the prevention of such risk. However, no research has been conducted with respect to the effects of cereal and soluble fibers on lipoprotein subclasses, and particle size and number. Also, none has reported on lipoprotein and lipid changes brought either by carbohydrate, and cereal or oat diet. Hence, this study aimed to determine cereal or oat diet on plasma lipid indexes such as LDL particle number, and lipoprotein subclasses and particle diameter. Methodology Men selected for this study were in between 25-35 years of age and have 50-75 kilogram per meter square body mass index. Individuals with CVD, diabetes, abnormal blood pressure, smoking habits, thyroid gland or eating disorders, and those who currently in any medication and with high amount consumption of fibers were excluded. At last, 36 men were successfully passed then clinical requirements that were divided into two groups. Then, weight and bodily measurements were gauged initially and periodically during the study. Nonetheless, the participants, under the instruction of dietitian, recorded their food preparations and sizes in four-day food intake. In connection to this, records of food intake were analyzed through Food Intake Analysis System or FIAS. Meanwhile, participants’ blood samples were taken before and after the twelve-week intervention. By means of nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy or NMR, the concentrations and particle size of blood lipids and lipoproteins were assessed. Further, the insulin-augmented frequently sampled intravenous-glucose-tolerance test or IVGTT was applied to participants. For statistical treatments, Kolmogorov-Smirnov normality tests were employed prior to analysis of variance done through SPSS package. Also, analysis of covariance was performed for body weight changes and macronutrient intake. Nonetheless, t-tests were utilized to examine lipoprotein and lipid response differences. Results and Discussion Based on the results of this study, two large oat servings added to the regular diet of the participants, lowered small, dense LDL and LDL particle concentrations. In addition, in spite of the carbohydrate intake elevation and saturated-fat intake lowering, the concentration of triacylglycerol did not significantly increase for high-fiber oat group. In contrast, it was reported that triacylglcerol in blood increases along with the changes in lipoprotein and lipids in individuals who fed on wheat cereal with high carbohydrate intake and low-fat diet. Meanwhile, the association between triacylglycerol elevation and CVD risk development was linked on the changes in the composition of LDL and high-density lipoprotein or HDL cholesterol. In relation to this, the substitution of triacylglycerol by cholesterol esters in lipoproteins results to accumulation of triacylglycerols in HDL and LDL which in turn serve as reactant in hepatic triacylglycerol lipase. Then, the removal of triacylglycerol leads to particle size decreased and density increased. Hence, in this study, the decrease in plasma tiaclyglycerol resulted to increase in LDL particle size for oat group but not with wheat cereal group. Analysis and Conclusion From the abovementioned studies, it was statistically proven that supplementation of oat cereals to the controlled diet of hypercholesterolemia patients caused blood lipids and HDL reductions. Further, oat meal diet results to LDL-particle size decreased and particle number increased which is beneficial in the part of hypercholesterolemia patients. On the other hand, it was theorized that the viscosity of soluble fibers lessen the rate of chime transfer in the upper gastrointestinal tract that causes low absorption rates, less blood nutrients, and changes in hormonal responses to delimited nutrients (Reynolds, Quiter, and Hunninghake, 2000). This process obstructs enterohepatic circulation leading to fast conversion rate of cholesterol to bile acids (Reynolds, Quiter, and Hunninghake, 2000). Thus, the increase in bile acid production as mediated by ?-glucan caused reduction in bile acid reabsorption (Davy, Davy, Ho, Beske, Davrath, and Melby, 2002). This process triggered bile acid synthesis through cholesterol from plasma pool by means of LDL-receptor (Davy, Davy, Ho, Beske, Davrath, and Melby, 2002). As a consequence, the substitution of triacylglycerol by cholesterol esters in lipoproteins results to accumulation of triacylglycerols in HDL and LDL which in turn serve as reactant in hepatic triacylglycerol lipase. Then, the removal of triacylglycerol leads to particle size decreased and density increased (Davy, Davy, Ho, Beske, Davrath, and Melby, 2002). Nonetheless, other compound constituent of the fibers may also promote this process. For instance, tocotrienol in rice bran, oats, and barley inhibits cholesterol synthesis. Moreover, the soluble fiber fermentation produces chain fatty acids which in turn hinder cholesterol biosynthesis (Reynolds, Quiter, and Hunninghake, 2000). With these reasons, the research question â€Å"What is the effect of a diet high in dietary fiber and how does it decrease LDL – cholesterol and serum lipids? † was plausibly answered.