Essay Sample on the Reinforcement of Separation Between God and People

Essay Sample on the Reinforcement of Separation Between God and People The separation between God and people was born at the very beginning of the existence of human beings. Chapters 1-3 of the book of Genesis illustrate the famous Creation account where the idea of separation was first established. From this point and further in the Old Testament, this idea was even more reinforced. The strongest proofs of division between God and people are found in the stories about Gods choice of Abraham to form a chosen nation, Gods exclusive defense of his special people in Egypt, Gods support of Israels holy war against the inhabitants of Palestine, and Gods ultimate revenge on Israels enemies at the end of all time. The separation idea is based mostly on division of all the people by God into two groups – â€Å"insiders† (chosen or special) and â€Å"outsiders† (not chosen). In Gen. 4 God likes Abel more than Cain and this is because Abel brought God â€Å"fat portions from some of the firstborn of his flock† (Gen. 4:4) as an offering while Cain brought him some fruits. It follows that God likes fat that is the flesh of an animal. But to get this fat somebody must kill an animal. It means that God needs death and pain (sacrifice). When God showed preference to Abel’s offering, he treated Cain unfairly. This situation created a feeling of jealousy and separation which in its turn served as an incentive for Cain to kill his brother. It looks like God is guilty for everything that happened because he showed a special love. In Gen. 12 God makes a great choice – he chooses Abraham in order to create a chosen nation through him. First God makes Abraham leave his country and people (God separates him from others), then God blesses him and all his descendants, â€Å"I will make you into a great nation, and I will bless you†¦ and all peoples on earth will be blesses through you† (Gen. 12:2-3). Again God shows preference to one person and one nation over others. God doesn’t explain why he likes one people and hates others. It is a sign of his capriciousness and ego. It is very similar to that how people now choose friends to support their ego. God promises Abraham to make his name famous (Gen. 12:2) but the whole sense lies in such words, â€Å"I’ll make your name famous, because you’re going to be my guy. You’ll go to other places and tell about me†. This is exactly how God supports his ego. In Gen. 12:7 God promises that he will give the land of Canaan t o Abraham’s descendants (so that Israel could feel superiority to Canaanites). When Abraham comes to Egypt (Gen 12:14), he says that his wife Sarah is just his sister. Pharaoh takes her in his palace as a wife and Abraham acquires a lot of stuff (Gen 12:16). But God punishes Pharaoh and his household because of Sarah (Gen. 12-17). If to think logically, Pharaoh is not guilty at all. It is only Abraham who is really guilty for this because he himself said that Sarah was just his sister. It follows that God anyway cares about chosen people only, since he punished Pharaoh instead of Abraham. In Gen. 15:18 God makes a covenant with Abraham and promises that his nation will be superior to others, â€Å"To your descendants I give this land, from the Wadi of Egypt to the great river Euphrates – the land of the Kenites, Kenizzites, Kadmonites, Hittites†¦Ã¢â‚¬  Chapter 17 is a priestly account of God’s covenant with Abraham. Here there is one more proof that God chooses favorites to satisfy his ego, â€Å"The whole land of Canaan, where you now reside as a foreigner, I’ll give as an everlasting possession to you and your descendants after you; AND I WILL BE THEIR GOD† (Gen. 17:8). God also establishes a sign of covenant – every man must be circumcised (Gen 17:9-14). Again it proves that God needs pain of sacrifice. Everything involved in pleasure must feel pain. God expects Abraham to do what is right and just (Gen 18:19). It follows that God knows exactly what it means to be just and righteous. So, there is a paradox – justice stands for equal treatment or fairness, but God doesn’t treat all people equally; instead of this he chooses favorites. Chapter 22 illustrates how Abraham is tested by God. At that moment Abraham has two sons – Ishmael (son of Hagar, Egyptian servant) and Isaac (son of Sarah). God promised that the chosen nation will come from Sarah that is from Isaac (Gen 17:16). It means that Isaac is â€Å"inside† a special group while Ishmael is â€Å"outside† (God again makes an exclusive choice and separates people). So, God decides to test Abraham and commands him to sacrifice his son Isaac (Gen 22:2). When Abraham is already about to slaughter Isaac, God stops him (Gen 22:12). God just wanted to see if Abraham FEARS him, â€Å"Now I know that you fear God, because you have not withheld from me your son† (fear creates separation). God doesn’t let Abraham kill his own son, but Abraham sees a ram that was stuck in the bush by its horns (Gen 22:13), so he takes it and sacrifices instead of his son. It follows that something must die anyway because God needs pain. God tested Abrah am because the death of son must have caused guilt, and guilt entails the fear before God. God wanted to see this. It looks like God doesn’t want people to be happy. He just wants to satisfy his ego. As soon as they feel happy, a fear to lose it appears. People think that God is angry at them and they try to smooth his anger by their own pain. That’s why there is an idea that to satisfy God one must take a thing he or she loves the most and destroy it (the same idea is seen in Ex.13:12 – â€Å"every firstborn belongs to God†). Chapter 25 tells about a birth of Isaac’s sons – Esau and Jacob. Esau has a birthright because he is elder son. It means that he is blessed and is â€Å"inside† of a special group, while Jacob believes that he is â€Å"outside†. Jacob wants to obtain blessing in order to get to â€Å"insiders†, that’s why he makes a trick on his brother Esau so that Esau sells Jacob his birthright (Gen 25:29-34). Blessing is based on the fear of being â€Å"outside†. Then Jacob deceives his father in order to take blessing (Gen 27:14-29). Jacob cares neither about respect to God, nor about faith (Gen 27:20). The only thing he cares about is blessing. When Esau realizes that he is cheated and deprived of his blessing, he gets angry at Jacob and decides to kill him: â€Å"The days for mourning for my father are near; then I will kill my brother Jacob (Gen 27:41). It proves again that special love creates jealousy and attack which reinforces the separati on from God. Having being in fear to be killed by Esau, Jacob flees to Laban, his mother’s brother, and gets married to his daughters (Gen 29). Gen. 30:27 points out the idea that Laban thinks that he got blessing only because God blessed Jacob, so it looks like everyone in the story of Jacob wants blessing (to be â€Å"inside†). In Genesis 30:29-43 Jacob fools Laban and gets rich at the expense of Laban’s wealth. Then Jacob flees with all he had to the land of his father (Gen 31:21), but he fears to meet Esau, so, he sends messengers to his brother and instructs them to tell, â€Å"Your servant Jacob says†¦Now I am sending this message to my lord, that I may find favor in your eyes† (Gen. 32:4-5). It contradicts to what Isaac said to Esau in Gen. 27:40, â€Å"†¦you will serve to your brother†. Here Jacob calls himself servant. There is a direct correspondence between attack and fear of attack. Jacob cheated his brother and now expects to be punished. He is in constant fear. Jacob is weak because he is always trying to solve problems for himself (by cheating his brother, father, and brother-in-law). In Gen. 32:22-29 Jacob has a dream as if he was struggling with God (but it probably was the angel of death). In this dream Jacob also needs blessing (Gen. 32:26). In chapter 33 Esau meets Jacob and embraces him. He has already forgiven his younger brother but Jacob continues to fear Esau and waits for attack from him (Gen.33:12-17). This fear of attack creates separation. In Exodus 3 God again makes a choice. He chooses Moses to bring Israelites out of Egyptian slavery (Ex. 3:7-10). God doesn’t want to be as close to his chosen one as previously, he wants to be holy, â€Å"Don’t come any closer. Take off your sandals, for the place where you are standing is holy ground† (Ex. 3:5). There is the idea that God is too perfect to even be close to him. God has never done this to Abraham. Here the separation is even more reinforced. God points out that Israel is his â€Å"firstborn son† (chosen nation which got blessing) (Ex.4:22). He hurts Egyptians with 10 torments (plagues). Moreover, when God is sending plagues on Egypt, he by himself doesn’t let Pharaoh allow Israelites to go: â€Å"But I will harden his heart so that he will not let the people go† (Ex. 4:21). The same idea is found in Exodus 7:3; 9:12; 10:20; 10:27. In Exodus 6:6-8 God stresses that HE is the Lord of his chosen nation, that HE will bring them o ut of Egypt, and that HE will give them a promised land. Other references to this idea can be found in Ex. 7:17; 10:2. God really cares about his ego. In Ex. 8:22 God avowedly makes a distinction between â€Å"his† people and Egyptians: â€Å"But on that day I will deal differently with the land of Goshen, where my people live; no swarms of flies will be there† (the same distinction God makes in Ex. 9:4; 9:26; 10:1). In Ex. 9:13 God calls himself God of Hebrews only. It follows that God sent all the plagues on Egyptians just to show how powerful he is. He himself set up that situation with Pharaoh and plagues to make Israel fear (Ex. 9:30) and exalt him (Ex. 9:16), thus satisfying his ego. All this stands for the idea of separation model. Chapter 11 accounts for the last plague – killing firstborns by Yahweh. Again God divides between Egypt and Israel (Ex. 11:7) and hardens Pharaoh’s heart (Ex. 11:9-10). He commands Israelites to slaughter a lamb and sprinkle its blood on the doorframes of their houses to be protected from God passing by at night and killing firstborns (Ex.12:3-7, 12-13). It means that blood is what God needs to see in order not to kill. God calls this day Lord’s Passover and tells Israel people to commemorate this day (Ex.12:14). If to think more deeply about what Passover actually celebrates, one may conclude that this is the celebration of separation between God and all the mankind. It celebrates the fact that God makes a distinction (separation) between Israel and Egypt (God kills the Egyptian firstborns only but doesn’t touch Israelites), and it also celebrates the separation between God and his people. The second conclusion is based on the fact that God establishes Pa ssover rules and restrictions (laws of separation) that must be kept by Hebrews (Ex. 12:15-20, 43-50). These rules and restrictions entail a due to follow them because in opposite case God might get angry. It follows that as soon as God set up these rules, fear to break them appeared, and fear gives rise to separation. Chapter 13 points out that Hebrews must consecrate all the human and animal firstborn males to God (Ex. 13:2, 12), but it also says that it is possible to sacrifice a lamb instead of other firstborn animal or son. It means that substitution is acceptable but something must die anyway. God needs death. God also wants people to always remember how he brought them out of Egypt (it is the voice of ego) (Ex. 12:14-16). In chapter 14 also there are evidences about complete separation between God and all the people. God wants to gain more glory and hardens Pharaoh’s heart so that Egyptians start pursuing Hebrews (ex. 14:3-9, 17). God saves Israelites and sinks a whole Egyptian army in Red Sea (Ex. 14:21-27). Israelites saw what God did and feared him (Ex. 14:31). God destroyed one nation to save another one (separation between nations) and wanted â€Å"his own† nation to fear and exalt him (the voice of ego – separation with his chosen people). In Ex. 19:4 God again reminds Israel about what he did to them in Egypt. God decides to speak to people by himself. He did it previously in Genesis, but it was completely different: he was walking along the people who were not afraid of God’s presence. Here in Exodus, people must be completely clean just to hear the voice of God (Ex. 19:9-10), and they must not even approach the mountain Sinai that God is going to speak from because even if they only touch it, they should die: â€Å"Whoever touches the mountain is to be put to death† (Ex. 19:12). It looks like God gets a little scare of a big nearly uncontrollable crowd. In Ex. 19:20-24 God points out once more that everyone around the mountain, including priests, must be perfectly clean and must not try to see God’ face. This is how God separates himself from his chosen people. In chapter 20 God gives people the Ten Commandments. First God again reminds Israelites that HE brought them out of Egypt (Ex. 20-2). Tw o first commandments are about the exclusive worship to God, â€Å"You shall have no other gods before me (Ex. 20:3). You shall not make for yourself an image in the form of anything†¦for I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (Ex. 20:4-5). Jealousy is all about exclusive contact. God takes exclusive worship of people, and this is the projection of ego which always gets one to take something of somebody. If the ego is present, there cannot be any unity with God. The idea of Ex. 20:20 is that God came to people to put them into fear and to make them follow the commandments including the exclusive worship. In chapter 32 Israelites created a golden idol in the image of calf, because they saw that â€Å"Moses was so long in coming down from the mountain† (Ex. 32:1). Then God says to Moses: â€Å"Go down, because YOUR people, whom YOU brought up out of Egypt, have become corrupt.† (Ex. 32:7). God always emphasizes that it is he and only he who brought Israel out of Egyptian slavery. It was until Israel had been showing fear before God. As soon as they turned away from God, God turned away from them because this stopped bringing him glory and the exclusive worship went away (it is the projection of ego). Moses comes down of the mountain and finds that only Levites are for God (Ex. 32:26). Then Moses commands them to kill other people in the camp (Ex. 32: 27-28). Levites get blessing in the exchange for death of people who dared to worship somebody else but God (Ex. 32-29). The idea is that everyone who sins against God deserves to death. Here God steps over death of his chose n people just to satisfy his ego. The book of Leviticus is the account of practical separation model in daily life. Leviticus 16 is all about a process of how Israelites must cleanse themselves. The reason why they should do this is that God is perfectly holy, that’s why everyone must be â€Å"holy† as well: â€Å"I’m the Lord, who brought you up out of Egypt TO BE YOUR GOD (ego voice); therefore be holy, because I am holy† (Lev. 11:45) . Exactly the same idea can be found in Lev. 19:2. In Lev. 15:31 there is more clear idea why people must be clean: â€Å"You must keep the Israelites separate from things that make them unclean, so they will not die in their uncleanness for defiling my dwelling place, which is among them†. God’s dwelling place (or Tabernacle) is also called the Most Holy Place because God is present there. So, no one unclean can get to the place of God’s presence because he or she will die for defiling the Most Holy Place of the Most Holy God. Strong s eparation between God and people is felt here. Lev. 16 thoroughly describes all the steps of purification. First it tells that only priest has a right to enter the Most Holy Place. It looks like other people are unworthy of being close to God. A process of purification is based on the sacrifice of animals, â€Å"He [Aaron] must first bring a young bull for a sin offering and a ram for a burnt offering† (Lev. 16:3) and using their blood, â€Å"He shall then slaughter the goat for the sin offering for the people and take its blood behind the curtain and do with it as he did with the bull’s blood: He shall sprinkle it on the atonement cover and in front of it† (Lev. 16:15). In other words, one necessarily must kill something to cleanse oneself. This stands for the idea that God needs to see blood in order not to kill (it is a reference to Passover), namely God needs death (when people think this way, they are separated from God, because real God cannot be that way) . Leviticus 26 and Deuteronomy 4, 5 contain the reasons or incentives for following the law established by God. In Lev. 26 the first incentive for following the law is blessing. It is said that if people keep what God commanded them, they will get a lot of stuff and God will be favorably inclined toward them (Lev. 26:4-13). The second reason for keeping the law is just to stay alive, because God will punish people severely, if they disobey him (Lev 26:14-45). The conclusion is that God keeps people in the state of fear: obey or die! Fear reinforces separation. In Deut. 4: 5-8 God says, â€Å"Observe them [laws] carefully, for this will show your wisdom and understanding to the nations, who will hear about all these decrees and say, â€Å"Surely this great nation is a wise and understanding people.† What other nation is so great as to have their gods near them the way the Lord our God is near us whenever we pray to him?..† It follows that Israelites must follow the law to show how special they are. In other words they must feel special because no other country has such a god as Yahweh. Making such a distinction, God separates himself from other nations. In Deut. 4:15-39 and Deut. 6 God separates himself from the people of Israel. God points out that he needs an exclusive worship (for ex. Deut 4:23, 35 and Deut 6:14-15). To love God here means to fear him (Deut. 6:2, 13, 24), so the incentive to do what God says can be only a desire to stay alive (Deut 6:24). The book of Leviticus conveys the ideas how people should keep themselves clean, and the book of Deuteronomy stresses the importance to keep a whole community of Israel clean of corrupt elements. This cleanness is also referred to the fact that God is perfect (holy) and that’s why everyone must also be perfect (it is the reflection of separation idea). People who break the law of God must be taken out from among righteous Israelites. Purging of evil people is the equivalent to the destruction of these people, so Israel will get afraid of doing detestable things and a whole society can be clean. The references to fact of purging evil are found in Deut. 13:1-5, 6-11; 17:2-7, 8-13; 21:18-21; 22:13-21, 22, 23. Also it is said in Deut. 4:3, â€Å"The Lord your God destroyed from among you everyone who followed the Baal of Peor, but all of you who held fast to the Lord your God are still alive today.† It means that God purged disobedient people from the Israelites. The idea o f purging evil makes people live with their neighbors in a constant state of fear looking for somebody else’s guilt. It also reinforces separation between people and God. In Deut. 7, 13; Joshua 6, 7; and 1 Sam. 15 one can observe how God makes Israel totally destroy the entire nations (â€Å"holy war†). The reason for this is the same idea of cleaning but only outside of Israel (it’s additionally to internal cleaning within the people of Israel). According to such a reasoning, other nations except Israel are unclean and everything that belongs to them is unclean as well (God separates himself from the rest of mankind). Outsiders must be destroyed in order not to contaminate â€Å"chosen people.† Deut. 7:3-6 tells that Israel must show no pity to condemned nations (also in Deut. 13:15, Joshua 6:21, and 1 Sam 15:3) and how exactly they must treat other nations not to get contaminated from them. There is the idea here that everything which is devoted to destruction must not be taken by Israelites because it is detestable and will make them dirty so that they will become subject to destruction as well as their enemies (Deut 7:25-26; J oshua 6:18-19). There is the similar idea of total destruction (Herem), but of Israel towns, is found in Deut. 13:12-18. It means that even if people of any Israel town become corrupt, they are to be destroyed and nothing which belongs to them must be taken. In Joshua 7 Achan, one of the Israelites takes some stuff that belonged to people of Jericho, thus, making Israelites contaminated and liable to destruction (Joshua 7:12). Here God cares about cleanness of his nation (it is again the separation idea) and he will destroy everyone who may contaminate his people (Joshua 7:25). In 1 Sam there is the same situation with Saul who also takes what he must not take, and God rejects him as a king for his disobedience (1 Sam. 15:22). According to OT’s authors, the main purpose of Day of the Lord is REVENGE. This idea comes from the fact that Northern and Southern kingdoms of Israel were destroyed in 722 and 586 BCE respectively by Babylon, and the only thing Israel wanted was to take revenge. When people cannot avenge by themselves, they pray God (Ps. 137). That’s why the main theme of the day of the Lord is that how God avenges his nation. God will come to destroy, â€Å"For the day of the Lord is near; it will come like destruction from the Almighty† (Joel 1:15). But if the nation of Israel returns to God, it will be blessed (Joel 2:18-27; 3:17-21) while other nations will be judged (Joel 3). God will bless and destroy to show that he is God of Israel only (Joel: 2-27; 3:16-17). Even in the day of the Lord, God makes a division between Israel and other nations. The book of Nahum is about that how God will destroy Nineveh, a capital of Assyria, and again God just avenges his chosen nation, à ¢â‚¬Å"Celebrate your festivals, Judah, and fulfill your vows. No more will the wicked invade you; they will be completely destroyed† (Nahum 1:15). In the book of Zephaniah the day of the Lord is presented as DIES IRAE (the day of God’s wrath), â€Å"I will sweep away everything from the face of the earth†¦ (Zephaniah 1:2) I will stretch out my hand against Judah and against all who live in Jerusalem† (Zephaniah 1:4). It follows that God will also destroy Israelites who disobeyed him. He will sweep away all the enemies of Israel (Zephaniah 2:4-15) but will leave some righteous Israelites alive and restore a nation through them (Zephaniah 3:9-20), so God continues to show an exclusive love. In Isaiah 66:15-19 God will be killing so that others could see his glory (ego projection – separation) and in 14 God will become king over the earth (king rules through fear and is separated from people physically and spiritually). The separation model brought a lot of violence in our world. The most vivid example would be World War II during which perished millions of people just because Germany proclaimed itself a chosen nation and decided to invade the whole earth. There is the well-known fact that Germans had been trying to exterminate all Hebrews from every territory they occupied. It was a destruction of one â€Å"chosen nation† by other. This is one of the most dreadful results of separation model which stresses the idea of exclusiveness. The Christian church stands on the ideas which come from the OT. It especially points out the ideas which are the components of separation model. According to church, people must fear God, they must humiliate themselves before God (for ex. a woman must tie a kerchief round her head and must not smile when she is inside a church), they must keep themselves from sexual relations before marriage, etc. Establishing these meaningless laws, a church only puts pressure on society which leads to the fact that nowadays society turns away from real God more and more. Psychologically people don’t want to accept â€Å"God from the OT†, but also they are not trying to find real God. The spiritual result is that they don’t have God inside at all. It means that it is not a mind of God that will accompany people through their life, but a voice of ego. Ego leads to appearance of enemies and feverish fear for one’s body. This in its turn causes violence within and out of so ciety. 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Top 5 Reasons to Attend Private High School

Top 5 Reasons to Attend Private High School Not everyone considers attending private school. The truth is, the private school vs. public school debate is a popular one. You might not think private school is worth a second look,  especially if the  public schools in your area are pretty good, the teachers are qualified, and the high school seems to get lots of graduates into good colleges and universities. Your public school might even offer plenty of extracurricular activities and sports. Is private school really worth the extra money? It's Cool to Be Smart In a private school, its cool to be smart. A top-notch education is why you go to private school. In many public schools the kids who want to learn and who are smart are branded as nerds and become the objects of social ridicule. At private school, children who excel academically will often find that the school they are attending will do its best to meet their needs, with advanced courses, online school options, and more.   Focus on Personal Development While the major focus at most private high schools is getting your child ready for college, the students personal maturation and development go hand in hand with that academic preparation. That way, graduates emerge from high school with both a degree (sometimes, two- if there is an  IB program at the school you choose) and a greater understanding of their purpose in life and who they are as individuals. They are better prepared not just for college, but for their careers and their lives as citizens in our world. Superb Facilities Libraries, which are now called media centers, are a focal point of the very  best private high schools  such as  Andover,  Exeter,  St. Pauls  and  Hotchkiss. Money has never been an object at those and similar older schools when it comes to books and research materials of every conceivable kind. But media or  learning centers  are also the centerpieces of just about every private high school, large or small. Private schools also have first-rate athletic facilities. Many  schools  offer  horseback riding,  hockey, racquet sports, basketball, football,  crew, swimming, lacrosse, field hockey, soccer, archery as well as dozens of other sports. They also have the facilities to house and support all these activities. Besides professional staff to manage these athletic programs, private schools expect their teaching staff to coach a team. Extracurricular activities  are a major part of private high school programs as well. Choirs, orchestras, bands and drama clubs can be found in most schools. Participation, while optional, is expected. Again, the  teachers guide  or coach extracurricular activities as part of their job requirements. In  tough economic times, the first programs to be cut in public schools are the extras such as sports, arts programs, and extracurricular activities. Highly Qualified Teachers Private high school teachers  usually have a  first degree  in their subject. A high percentage (70-80%) will also have a  masters degree  and/or a terminal degree. When a private school dean of faculty and head of school hire teachers, they look for competence in and passion for the subject a candidate will teach. Then they review how the teacher actually teaches. Finally, they check out the three or more references from the candidates previous teaching jobs to ensure that they are hiring the best candidate. Private school teachers  rarely have to worry about discipline. Students know that if they cause problems they will be dealt with swiftly and without recourse. A teacher who doesnt have to be a traffic cop can teach. Small Classes One of the top reasons why many  parents  begin to consider a  private high school  is that the classes are small. The teacher to student ratios are typically 1:8, and class sizes  are 10-15 students. Why are small class sizes and low student to teacher ratios important? Because they mean that your child will not get lost in the shuffle. Your child will get the personal attention he or she needs and craves. Most public schools have classes numbering 25 students or more, and teachers are not always available for extra assistance outside of normal school day hours. At private schools, especially boarding schools, the expectation is that teachers are more readily accessible to students, often coming in early and staying late to accommodate extra help sessions with groups or individual students.   Among other considerations to think about as you investigate a private school education for your child, one point to consider is that  most private high schools  are fairly  small, usually 300-400 students. Thats much smaller than the typical public high school which will have 1,000 students or more. Its very difficult to hide or just be a number in a private high school.

Body Diversity in the Media, Body Types, Obesity in the Media Essay

Body Diversity in the Media, Body Types, Obesity in the Media - Essay Example vanelli and Ostertag, this is the concept of panopticism taking effect in which people alter their behavior due the feeling that other people are constantly observing and judging them (p.1). In fact, these changed attitudes have been incorporated in almost all sectors of contemporary societies such as media hence gaining greater acceptance as time advances. In relation to body diversities such as obesity, people tend to take the one sided view seeking to lay all blame on the victims. Obesity is heavily associated with lack of discipline and self-control with the basic believe that it is the victims’ fault. As such there seems to be no much harm in discriminating against obese people. In fact, having negative attitudes towards obese people is in most instances regarded different from other discriminations such as against race or gender among others. Additionally, unlike lines of discrimination, there are no federal laws or significant measures to defend the rights of fat people except in Michigan where there is ban on discrimination on basis of weight (Brown 2010, para. 2). This explains the shared negative attitude towards fat people that allows people to blatantly comment about them oblivious of the personal harm that may be caused to the victims. Social settings have seemingly no platform for fat people to express themselves and the amount of judgment is unmeasurable. Although in general all fat people receive a significant amount discrimination, there seems to be focus on women. A comparison between obese men and women shows that women are more harshly treated than men. This can be attributed to the definitions of femininity that have become so deeply rooted in people’s minds over time. Women in most societies are expected to be keen about their physical appearances in which body size is at the top of the list. Taking greater focus on Western cultures, there is a general notion that dissociates beauty from fat bodies. To some extent this explains the

Working while being a college student is bad Essay

Working while being a college student is bad - Essay Example Not every student is fit for a work study but a large number participate in the program since they have no other source of funds to cater for their educational expenses. Working while in college comes with some challenges that pose significant obstacles to the students in their pursuit to attain educational excellence thus making it a bad idea. It is prudent that working while in college is not advisable as it is associated with a number of drawbacks that include; careful in managing time for both the job and school work, stress related to the job as well as the wages earned might induce the students into dropping from their studies to concentrate on those jobs (Perozzi 37). Time is a precious resource for any college students since he/she has to balance all activities to attain both academic and extra curriculum excellence. Part-time jobs while in college come with an additional time obligation since the students concerned will have to set aside between four to twenty hours a week for working depending on the kind of jobs they undertake. That implies that students who take work study programs should have an excellent sense of time management for them to juggle between school work and job obligations. Conversely, a majority of the students who are working while in college they do not evaluate their time management abilities prior to indulging in the program rather the desire to make an extra dollar or rather financial constraints drive them to the program. Often students who do not manage to balance their studies with job obligations end up failing in their GPA or worse situations drop out of college before graduating (48). It is apparent that working w hile at college is something that comes along with extra demand for the students’ time thus imposing additional pressure on their lives a thing that a majority of the students are not capable of handling. Conversely, students are denied the chance to take other

Evaluate the Effectiveness of the Legal System Essay Example for Free

Evaluate the Effectiveness of the Legal System Essay â€Å"World order† is the term given to the balance of power among the nation states of the world. Differences between these nations can lead to a power imbalance, which affects world order. It can best be achieved through agreements between states and other international instruments that set out the ideal international standards of behavior for states on a number of issues. But conflicts arise between countries due to differences in cultural attitudes and the desire for extra territory. In order to settle such disputes the international community has legal bodies such as the United Nations to cooperate with countries to find solutions and be a leader in settling and spreading ethical standards. Their prime aim is to promote world order. But for society not only the autonomy of nations and the lack of enforcement power but also a range of other factors limit the effectiveness of such an organisations. Each country has its own perspective on world order and not all meets eye to eye. But it can be argued that world order is a necessity in today’s society. There are many conflicts between majorities and minorities or nation against nation that can take many forms such as guerilla, military and nuclear warfare. An example of a military conflict was the Gulf war between Iraq and the UN lead forces concerning the occupation of Kuwait. But not all conflicts fit into the category of direct confrontation; some arise when a group ignores the needs of another or exploits them. For example after a long civil war in 1996 when the Taliban took control of Afghanistan. Many measures severely restricted women’s rights and alienated other Afghans. Due to an imbalance of economic power further conflicts can arise such as when a third world country cannot compete with developed nations because of the lack of capital they possess. When a dominant group expands its power by taking over territory and increasing its population and its resources, it is called expansion, which affects the international power structure that can possibly threaten world order. Even though it can be achieved through peaceful practices it mainly takes form in a conflict. In a stable global environment, interdependence, this means that nations rely upon others, can have favorable outcomes. But in an unstable world order, it can lead to conflict and the possible subjugation of weaker nations. Throughout history, local communities and indigenous people have suffered dramatically from conflict and expansion as more dominant groups have both directly and indirectly damaged their culture through the loss of customs, social structure and language. International crimes are criminal acts that have international repercussions on people, state, peace, law and enforcement of international law. The ICC has the jurisdiction over some international crimes. Such international crimes include apartheid (South Africa), genocide (Rwanda), Crimes against humanity (Former Yugoslavia), war crimes (Kosovo), piracy and hijacking. In the international sphere, force plays an important role in maintaining law and order which are critical in the success of world order. The use of force is seen as the most obvious way to maintain order and prevent or resolve conflicts. But it comes with such negatives as being highly expensive and costly in terms of the civilians and soldiers lost. Over the last century two world organisations have been established to prevent war and have legal authority to use force in certain circumstances. After World War One in 1920 the League of Nations was created as a place where governments could bring their disputes. But the L of N had no automatic right to intervene and most governments didn’t agree in bringing disputes before it. With limited membership and those that were members weren’t accustomed to working together, it was flawed. It was however able to make progress in the suppression of slavery, world health, the protection and care for refugees and settling minor disputes. But once the 1930’s began it cease to have any political relevance. After the failure of the League of Nations the United Nations formed, which founded a charter that outlined its purpose and methods of achieving it’s goals. The Un charter (1945) enshrined the idea that force or the threat of force should not be the norm in international relations. Although they were realistic enough to realise that force would sometimes be used. The UN was deliberately created as a more ambitious organisation and has six main organs: The Security Council, the General Assembly, Secretariat, the Security Council, Economic and Social Council, International Court of Justice and Trusteeship Council. Membership is based on whether the nation state is â€Å"peace loving† and willing to accept all the obligations of the UN Charter. The Security Council consists of fifteen member states with only five permanent members, which have the power to veto majority decisions. These five permanent members are Britain, France, USA, China and Russian Federation, which reflect the dominance each has in the world order (except Russia). The UN gives the Security Council, which is responsible for international peace and security, two ways of dealing with a threat to world peace. The first involves the use of peaceful methods such as economic sanctions. The second involves the use of armed forces. Peacekeeping is defined by as: The maintenance of international peace using formed troops under UN control to prevent the outbreak or renewal of fighting or by stabilising a situation sufficiently to promote peace. † Butterworths Australian Legal Dictionary. The Un Peacekeepers are an assembly of a very diverse, international group of soldiers and civilians, which assists in settling disputes that restores the peace in an area. However it doesn’t constitute an army as often they are made up of doctors, nurses and pilots. In many situations UN peacekeepers help clear landmines, train civilians and even monitor elections. For example in Namibia, the UN peacekeepers supervised a democratic election, which lead to the county’s sovereignty. The presence of peacekeepers can have positive affects such as the limit in the spread of violence in Haiti and Cyprus, but in other places they have been less successful i. e. the UN peacekeeping in Somalia in 1992. As Somalia fell into clan-based civil war, the country collapsed and the UN was unable to restore peace and eventually departed as Somalia remained in chaos. Originally the five permanent members of the Security Council were meant to coordinate the peacekeeping forces. But in reality they are conducted outside the UN’s regular budget, where national governments deployed troops to the peacekeeping efforts. Much of the peacekeeping is done by Ireland, Sweden and Australia. Australia has contributed either military forces or police to 54 peacekeeping forces and in 1999-2000 Australia played a leading role in reestablishing order in East Timor. Australia has also conducted peacekeeping efforts outside of the UN’s operation in Solomon Islands and Papua New Guinea. On the other hand the UN peacekeepers are limited in their effectiveness as they can only use force in self-defense, therefore they cannot directly intervene unless they are shot at and made themselves targets of conflict. Due to the dominance of some states in the world order, there is no equal treatment between nations states, which are members of the UN. Even though the UN charter states that there must be equality, in practice it does not exist. Due to the nature of certain UN bodies it is inevitable that smaller states are marginalized. However the situating of the United Nations in New York enables every member to sit side by side and have an immediate translation of languages, which breaks down barriers to communication. The UN has successfully raised the conscience of human rights through its conventions and the attention to specific abuses through its resolutions. But its ability to function is hampered by its financial problems as it is expected to govern the country on $8 billion per year, which is less than the amount of money the world spends on defense each week. It is resource ineffective as it ahs gone deeper in to debt as countries are slow to pay. Its enforceability is limited as it lacks the power to sufficient apply equal force to every nation should members ignore UN resolutions. War is not the only means of ending a conflict; a more peaceful method is through international tribunals. The International Court of Justice is an arm of the UN and is therefore one of the worlds main judicial bodies. Established in 1946, it is sometime referred to as the ‘world court. With its jurisdiction applies when it is in accordance with international law. Its primary role is to decide matters submitted by countries and to advise on the matters. It can also apply its authority when there is a special agreement about a dispute in which the parties to a treaty nominate the ICJ as the mechanism for resolution. The ICJ is a permanent court where 15 judges are elected by the UN Security Council and the General assembly. Not only can the ICJ resolve disputes by making a ruling, it can also generate political pressure to persuade countries to alter their behavior. In theory, the courts decisions are binding and without appeal. However in practice the losing party unwilling to abide by the ruling and the Security Council often limits its effectiveness is restricted to enforce the ruling. For example in the case of the US versus Nicaragua (1984), the decision stated that the US had to cease unlawful terrorist activities against Nicaragua and ordered that the US pay reparation. However they refused to pay and subsequently withdrew from the ICJ. But one of the main limitations the ICJ has is that only states can be parties to cases before the court. No individual, organisation or company can bring forth a matter. Plus both parties need to agree to have the court hear the matter. This is a dilemma in itself as the rulings are final and no country is going to openly dispute the matter where there is a possibility of losing. Its restrictive power reduces its ability to take initiatives and its lack of power to enforce and police its decisions has become a major criticism. The International Criminal Court ICC was established in 2002 as a permanent tribunal to prosecute individuals for committing genocide, crimes against humanity, crimes of aggression and war crimes. The ICC is a treaty based, legal entity independent from the UN. Despite this autonomy it works closely with the UN to promote the rule of law. The ICC has the power to imprison the offender if found guilty for life but does not offer the death penalty. One of the main objectives to the ICC is that some countries believe that there is little supervision of the court’s apparatuses and the verdicts may become subject to political matters. For the ICC, it has taken four years for the required sixty signatures to be gained and the treaty ratified. The United States of America can undermine the proceedings of the court by refusing to supply evidence and witnesses, like any other country can. During the 1990’s several atrocities where occurring in the Balkans and Africa. This resulted in specialist tribunals developed to deal with the specific investigations. War crimes and crimes against humanity were happening in former Yugoslavia. Thus in 1993 the UN Security Council created a new war crimes tribunal. The International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia (ICTY) had the jurisdiction over breaches of the Geneva Conventions and international customary law. On 12 February 2002, Slobodan Milosevic, the former president of Yugoslavia was charged of the planning and implementing, on a widespread and systematic scale and attack on the civilian population of Kosovo. Kosovo, which was a province of Serbia, had a majority population of Muslim Albanians and Slobodan was accused of leading a campaign of â€Å"ethnical cleansing†. This was the first time a former head of state had faced charges of crimes against humanity. Unfortunately Milosevic died in 2006 before his trial concluded. The fact that the ICTY tried Slobodan, illustrate that justice can be achieved when nations cooperate with the international community. In Africa, more specifically Rwanda, genocide was occurring between the two main ethnic groups the Hutu and Tutsis. Based on the ICTY model in 1994 the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda was established to prosecute those responsible for genocide in the republic. This tribunal was instated in response to over whelming pressures and has started a series of trials. These Ad Hoc tribunals have one specific purpose and may take time to be established which could mean the loss of thousands of lives. It is not a permanent body and will disband once trials have concluded. Sometimes as in the case with the ICTY where the main target is one person, it can suppress other investigations as most of its resources may be deployed in trailing that one person. The nature of Ad Hoc has proved to be cost ineffective and time consuming. International instruments such as treaties and customary law form the principle source of international law and are some measures of achieving world order. Treaties, which can also be called conventions, statutes or charters, are binding agreements. They formalise the process where by governments through international agencies work together on common problems. The two types of treaties are bilateral and multilateral treaties in where states agree on terms and the parties are therefore bond by it. Since 1945 there has been some significant treaties signed that are an indispensable part of the current world order

Computer Service and Upgrade :: Business Plans Proposals

Computer Service and Upgrade World has not been the same since the invention of a smart machine called a computer. These days, computer has become an irreplaceable tool for human from manufacturing to online banking. People use computers to do various tasks and enjoy leisure times such as playing games, scheduling agenda, communicating via webcam, sharing files, and many others. Thus with the increasing use of computers, the possibility of having problems with computers becomes naturally higher. For instance, your computer can be easily infected with a virus program through insecure internet connection or your computer can even crashed frequently by some unknown reasons. In those cases, you may want a professional to help you figure out the real problems. Due to a high demand in computer services, five of us decided to establish a computer repair and upgrading company called ISU. ISU stands for Iowa Service and Upgrade which is founded recently on the 14th of June 2004. Our main office is located close to Maple dormitory which can be easily recognized by its brown brick color. The office can be reached easily through the main road in Ames called Lincoln Way. From Lincoln Way, you have to turns north onto Wallace road and then turn west onto Richardson Court. Below is the picture of our company’s logo: The blue figure represents the state of Iowa. We marked our company’s name inside the state figure so it symbolizes that our company is located in Iowa. Our slogan is â€Å"your friend is not the expert.† Many people who do not know about computers usually ask for help from their friends instead of using a professional service. Even though using professional service far more efficient compare to â€Å"friend† without any proficient knowledge or experience. Most of the time, bigger problems can occur if your friend did not fix the computers properly. What we are trying to say here is that you should not trust anybody except us, the professionals. Our services will include the following: First, we repair hardware from all brand of desktop and laptop computers. We presumed that most of our customers will want to ask us to do hardware compatibility check; given that a computer is consisted of many parts and those parts are connected to each other organically. Incompatibility makes it easy for the computer to be out of order, especially on a laptop computer with its integrated keyboard, monitor, and hard drive.

Social Networking: Good or Bad?

Gage Stielau Comp I December 7th, 2012 Social Networking: Good or Bad? Social Networking is any way of communication through the internet medium. It has many ups and downs and in todays society it seems almost mandatory to have one, but in reality it is always your choice whether to have one or not. In this paper I will discuss The positives and negatives of today’s most popular way of communication. I will also be discussing my personal opinion towards Social Networking and give some advice for any riding the fence on whether or not to have one.Social Networking can have a very positive influence on society. Many people who lack adequate social skills use places like Facebook to make friends and socialize. Dating sites allow for people to meet and start healthy relationships with people who they share common interests. Many social networks allow estranged friends to reconnect after many years of being apart. Pretty much any social network can be free advertising for a company that creates a page. Creates opportunities for professionals to network and cooperated more efficiently.There are many more pros to social networking that are not even mentioned in this paper. Now on the other hand, there can also be many negatives to getting your own social networking page. Without proper knowledge of privacy settings, all of a person’s personal information can be known by anyone who is accepted as a friend on Facebook or follows you on Twitter. Anyone can be practically internet stalked by someone who has mediocre internet skills. People are also less caring about what they say due to a feeling of anonymousness.People also feel distanced from friends on Facebook so they think that there will be no repercussions for their internet activities. It also allows bullies to follow their targets no matter where they are in the world. The bully’s tools are now handheld in the forms of cell phones. Social networks also lead to less active lifestyles. Most peo ple think if they can communicate with their friends from the comfort of their own homes, then what is the need to go outside? Also social media is a source of wasted time. This wasted time can lead to a lack of productivity in an office setting.Many colleges check to see your social networking history, so that means one wrong post can lead to a rejection letter from your top school choice. The negatives may outweigh the positives in many different aspects of social networking. In my opinion, social media is awesome is and has helped our society in a number of ways. But don’t get a social network because someone told you to, do it because you want to. Always make sure make smart choices on social media and practice safety my activating privacy features. So in conclusion, I feel that social networking has many ups and downs, but I feel the positives tower over the negativity.

Bartolome de las Casas’s Destruction of the Indies Essay

Bartolomà © de las Casas was a Spanish historian and a social reformer who was writing in the 16th century, during the time of the Spanish occupation of the Indies. In A Short Account of the Destruction of the Indies, Casas provides a scathing commentary on the cruelty exercised by the Spanish colonizers on the natives of Hispaniola—as well as explain the aims that motivated this behavior. The account acts as not only an observation on the practices of the colonizers, but is also a reflection of the imperial policies of the Spanish Empire. Through writing A Short Account of the Destruction of the Indies, Casas aims at bringing the Spanish Crown’s attention to the atrocities committed by the citizens of the empire on the natives. In keeping with that aim, he utilizes a rhetoric that seeks to arouse the sympathy of his readers towards the natives and a sense of horror over how they are being treated. Right from the beginning of the account, in the preface, he paints an i mage of the natives as being simple, and harmless. He describes them as, â€Å"the simplest people in the world†¦they are without malice or guilt†¦never quarrelsome or belligerent or boisterous, they harbour no grudges†¦indeed the notions of revenge, rancour and hatred are quite foreign to them†. In contrast to that, he describes the Spaniards as â€Å"ravening wolves† who fell upon the natives like â€Å"tigers or savage lions who had not eaten meat for days .â€Å" Casas sets up a comparison between the helplessness of the natives and the savagery of the Spaniards, and this comparison holds throughout the document. Examples of this comparison are in the frequent accounts he gives of the before and after native population levels once the Spanish occupy an area—â€Å"when the Spanish first journeyed here, the indigenous population of the island of Hispaniola stood at some three million; today only two hundred survive† or â€Å"not a living soul remains today on any of the islands of the Bahamas.† Casas uses concrete numbers in describing the decline in the population level, in the number deaths—he does this as a means of stressing the official nature of the document, to lend it a sense authority. These numbers also help in giving his reade rs a very clear idea of the terrifying extent of the Spanish cruelty. He enumerates the different ways through which the locals are being exterminated, which gives a fair idea of the general colonial practices in the Indies— through â€Å"forcible expatriation†, â€Å"unjust†¦tyrannical war,† working the natives to the  point of death—Casas gives an example of a man who worked the natives under him so hard that within a month, out of three hundred, only thirty survived. More importantly, Casas reveals the motives behind the widespread cruelty as being simple, materialistic greed. He explains that the greed for the gold that the natives have is the driving force behind the actions of the Spanish. The one instance that effectively reflects this fanatical greed is of the local lord who makes an offering of nine thousand castilians to the Spanish and is still seized and tortured for more gold—â€Å"tying him in a sitting position to a stake set in the ground, lit a fire under his outstretched feet to induce him to hand over yet more gold†¦when he produced no further gold, they carried on until all the marrow ran out through the soles of his feet.† What is worth noting is that Casas when first talking about this greed, refers to the Spanish as Christians—â€Å"the reason the Christians have murdered on such a vast scale and killed anyone and everyone in their way is purely and simply greed.† Casas obviously uses the term â€Å"Christian† ironically to draw attention to the un-Christian behavior that the Spanish are displaying in the colonies. Casas was the Bishop of Chiapas. He was a clerical man, and so his primary concern was the un-Christian activities that were taking place in the colonies. He exclaims that the colonizers have â€Å"little concern over their [natives] souls as for their bodies, all the millions that have perished, having gone to their deaths with no knowledge of God.† This clearly defines exactly what A Short Account of the Destruction of the Indies as a text is—it is not a text that is arguing for equal rights, it is instead a text that shows the priorities and concerns of a man living under the Spanish Empire at the time. Casas views the natives not as people equal to the Spaniards, but as potential Christians. He describes them as being, â€Å"innocent and pure in mind and have a lively intelligence, all of which makes them particularly receptive to learning and understanding the truths of our Catholic faith and to being instructed in virtue.† Casas is outraged because the Spanish policy of â€Å"conversion a nd saving of souls as first priority† was not being followed. Instead, it was being used as an excuse—â€Å"The gulf that yawns between theory and practice has meant that, in fact, the’ local people have been presented with an ultimatum: either they adopt the Christian religion and swear allegiance to the Crown of Castile, or they will find themselves faced with  military action.† He describes how the Spanish would unnecessarily pillage an area, but would essentially be within their legal rights as they would make sure that they presented the natives with the royal ultimatum. Casas’ account is a good reflection of the general imperial policy of expansion of the Spanish Empire. The Spanish Empire used religion as a tool to further its aims—the Spanish Inquisition, for example, was established in 1478 by Catholic Monarchs Ferdinand and Isabella as a way of increasing their political authority via religion and to suppress any tension that may arise from social and cultural differences. While the activities of the colonizers wasn’t the same as the inquisition, as Casas points out, the Spanish in the colonies were using religion in a similar way. Therefore, Casas’A Short Account of the Destruction of the Indies gives important insight into the practices of the Spanish Empire. It also presents an interesting perspective from someone who is a part and within the empire—who is aware and recognizes the malpractices of the Crown and more importantly, is attempting to do something to put a stop to it. It’s also important that the way he goes about this, is through literature—it shows us the importance of the written word in the process of trying to affect a change. Though Casas’ sentiment in the account might not be a common one at the time, it does signal a rising awareness of the moral blindness displayed in the activities of the empires/colonies. Works Cited Bartolomà © de las Casas, A Short Account of the Destruction of the Indies, trans. Nigel Griffin (London: Penguin Classics, 2004), 9-37. Bartolomà © de las Casas, â€Å"Bartolomà © de las Casas,† in Norton Anthology of American Literature, ed. Nina Bayme and Robert S. Levine. (New York: WW Norton & Co, 2012), 38.

AIDS and Ignorance essays

AIDS and Ignorance essays When it comes to STDs there is one that strikes fear into anyone who thinks they might have it. AIDS is one of the STDs that does not have a cure, along with Herpes and Human Papillion Virus, but what sets AIDS apart from the other incurable viruses is its violent and destructive nature. Herpes, in most cases when taking care of, can be classified as more of an annoyance because it is most likely to annoy the person infected but will not kill them. AIDS, when untreated, will send the infected person to an early death, but when treated, it will still destroy a person immune system but at a slower rate although it still sets the victim up for an early death. AIDS (acquired Immunodeficiency syndrome), is the last stage of the HIV virus (Human Immunodeficiency virus). HIV works by attacking ones immune system. The virus starts out by attaching itself to a host cell within a person. It then penetrates the host cell and begins replication. While replicating, the virus kills the host cell, which is most likely the T cells and B cells whose main function is to attack invaders by binding two them. While attacking the T and B cells the virus punches holes in the cells membrane. Therefore wreaking the cell so when it fuses with other cells in order to fight the virus back it actually ends up spreading the virus creating massive replication within an infected person. This process is what kills the person immune system subjecting them to many other viruses. It is at this point Human Immunodeficiency virus has become acquired Immunodeficiency syndrome because the person immune is totally destroyed which eventually kills the person. HIV and AIDS cannot be spread through casual contact but instead it is contracted mainly through exposure to blood and blood products semen and female genital secretions from an infected person. The virus is also present in breast milk. A pregnant woman can pass the virus to her fetus across...

S P D F Orbitals and Angular Momentum Quantum Numbers

S P D F Orbitals and Angular Momentum Quantum Numbers The orbital letters are associated with the angular momentum quantum number, which is assigned an integer value from 0 to 3. The s correlates to 0, p to 1, d to 2, and f to 3. The angular momentum quantum number can be used to give the shapes of the electronic orbitals. What Does S, P, D, F Stand For? The orbital names s, p, d, and f stand for names given to groups of lines originally noted in the spectra of the alkali metals. These line groups are called sharp, principal, diffuse, and fundamental. Shapes of Orbitals and Electron Density Patterns The s orbitals are spherical, while p orbitals are polar and oriented in particular directions (x, y, and z). It may be simpler to think of these two letters in terms of orbital shapes (d and f arent described as readily). However, if you look at a cross-section of an orbital, it isnt uniform. For the s orbital, for example, there are shells of higher and lower electron density. The density near the nucleus is very low. Its not zero, however, so there is a small chance of finding an electron within the atomic nucleus. What the Orbital Shape Means The electron configuration of an atom denotes the distribution of electrons among available shells. At any point in time, an electron can be anywhere, but its probably contained somewhere in the volume described by the orbital shape. Electrons can only move between orbitals by absorbing or emitting a packet or quantum of energy. The standard notation lists the subshell symbols, one after another. The number of electrons contained in each subshell is stated explicitly. For example, the electron configuration of beryllium, with an atomic (and electron) number of 4, is 1s22s2 or [He]2s2. The superscript is the number of electrons in the level. For beryllium, there are two electrons in the 1s orbital and 2 electrons in the 2s orbital. The number in front of the energy level indicates relative energy. For example, 1s is lower energy than 2s, which in turn is lower energy than 2p. The number in front of the energy level also indicates its distance from the nucleus. The 1s is closer to the atomic nucleus than 2s. Electron Filling Pattern Electrons fill up energy levels in a predictable manner. The electron filling pattern is: 1s, 2s, 2p, 3s, 3p, 4s, 3d, 4p, 5s, 4d, 5p, 6s, 4f, 5d, 6p, 7s, 5f s can hold 2 electronsp can hold 6 electronsd can hold 10 electronsf can hold 14 electrons Note that individual orbitals hold a maximum of two electrons. There can be two electrons within an s-orbital, p-orbital, or d-orbital. There are more orbitals within f than d, and so on.

Nuclear Power Industry Coursework Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Nuclear Power Industry - Coursework Example This reduction in total electricity contribution by the nuclear plants is largely due to the fact that many power plants have been shut down over the past. As constructing more nuclear stations is not considered economically viable, so any such plans are largely abandoned. The supplies of standard quality carbon-free electricity have also increased as a result of fuel reprocessing from nuclear stations in UK. Advantages of using nuclear power to generate electricity: One of the greatest all time advantages of nuclear power is that only a small portion of it can be generated into large amounts of electricity to boost a nation’s economy. Another worth mentioning benefit is that nuclear fuel doe not result into polluting the environment by releasing a lot of poisonous greenhouse gases. Technology provides ready means to reprocess nuclear fuel for generating carbon-free electricity. Recycling used fuel is a great achievement and many â€Å"commercial reprocessing plants operate i n France, UK, and Russia with a capacity of some 5000 tones per year† (World Nuclear Association, 2011). Another advantage of nuclear electricity source is that fuel is inexpensive and waste produced is markedly compact. The acid rain effects are also marginal compared to other electricity sources (Nuclear Tourist, 2009). ... The environmental impact of uranium mines is also less disastrous compared to other fossil fuels. Nuclear power stations also do not emit carbon dioxide and sulphur among other toxicants and sulphur emissions are principally responsible for acid rains. Disadvantages of using nuclear power to generate electricity: Meeting costs for emergency purposes and radioactive waste forms one of the biggest disadvantages of nuclear source of electricity. A large capital cost is required to meet such ends. Waste storage issue is another big problem and large capital is also required for that to be invested in storage systems. The waste produced by using nuclear fuel is highly radioactive. The nuclear wastes are radioactive and capable of posing a health threat owing to emission of radiations unlike the coal wastes which can pose threat to humanity only on grounds of chemical activity (Cohen, 2011). The more nuclear stations there are, the more there is the risk for nuclear attacks and sabotages a lso. Despite the reality-based claims that nuclear power generated wastes can be highly toxic and lethal for the world at large, still handling the radioactive waste is not that much of a big issue and the net amount of nuclear waste produced from nuclear operation based on one year â€Å"would occupy a volume of half a cubic yard, which means that it would fit under an ordinary card table with room to spare† (Cohen, 2011). This means that the quantity of waste produced by nuclear plants is so small unlike the massive wastes produced by coal-burning sources that it can be taken care of very sophisticatedly. The probability of acid rains also increases with millions of tons of waste generated by the

Describe how the ozone layer shields those on earth from harmful uv Essay

Describe how the ozone layer shields those on earth from harmful uv rays describe how ozone at ground level can harm us. you wil - Essay Example If the ozone layer gets ultra-thin, people would be exposed to more UV radiation. UV radiation is the leading cause of skin cancers. High levels of UV levels would also harm the wildlife and plants. If plants get affected, they are unable to carry out photosynthesis. Consequently, there would be a slowdown in the release of oxygen into the atmosphere (Miller and Spoolman 24). Scientists worry that the ozone layer is getting thinner and thinner every day. This trend began in the 1970s. Since the 80s, the level of the ozone layer has been decreasing at a constant rate. By the 90s, the level of the ozone layer had reduced by 3-4 % of the initial levels. Strong reduction in the ozone layer level has been observed in the Antarctica, where the decrease is up to 50 % (Roshchina 4). Ozone depletion is closely associated with the use of chemicals, especially chlorofluorocarbons. Chlorofluorocarbons were widely used in aerosol cans as coolants. The chemical compounds penetrate the upper atmosp here as a result of nuclear explosions, space flights, flights of supersonic aircraft, and applications of chlororganic fertilizers in agriculture as well as by other means (Roshchina 4). Some countries have since banned the use of those chemicals as well as other ozone depleting chemicals. The main effect of ozone depletion in the atmosphere is the increase in ultraviolet radiation to levels that are dangerous to all forms of life (250-320mm). Ultraviolet radiation strengthened by reduction in the level of the ozone layer around the earth causes chromospheres to be activated. This leads to biochemical changes in the cells. The result is the formation of tumors, skin cancers, cataracts, immune-system problems and other potential injuries to human beings. Changes in the ecosystem conditions can also be observed around the ground. Therefore, absorption of the ultraviolet radiation by the ozone layer protects living organisms. Protection of the nucleic acids and proteins is crucial bec ause damage to these substances can result in mutations and even destruction of cells (Starr and Evars 44). Near the ground level, ozone is a pollutant. This is because it causes irritation of the eyes and respiratory tracts of human beings and wildlife. Ozone near the ground level also interferes with growth of plants. This usually occurs when nitrogen oxides and volatile organic compounds, released by combustion of fossil fuels, are exposed to sunlight. Ozone levels vary daily. The amounts of ozone depend on latitude, season and climate. The levels are normally high during the day and the warm seasons. Ozone pollution can be avoided by reducing the combustion of fossil fuels into the air (Starr and Evars 44). Ozone is toxic and corrosive. Repeated inhaling of ozone may permanently damage the lungs and lead to respiratory infections. Exposure to ozone may induce lung infection or aggravate existing respiratory conditions such as bronchitis, emphysema or asthma. It may also cause ch est pain, coughing, throat irritation and congestion. It is dangerous to people who like to spent lots of time in the outdoors especially on a warm weather. Older people and children are at a higher risk in the population as their lungs have reduced capacity. Ground level ozone kills seedlings and damages leaves which makes plants more prone to harsh weather, pests and diseases (Miller and Spoolman 25). However, ozone has some potential benefits. It is essential in maintaining the thermal status of the