Gangs in Rio Essay Example for Free

Gangs in Rio Essay Gangs have always been a challenge to a states government. In Rio de Janeiro slums have always been dangerous because of the amount of the amount of gang members going around with guns, knives and many other weapons. There are many ways to understand these gangs; many believe that they do it for respect while others believe they do it because they have no other choice. In the movie â€Å"City of God† we can see the lives of many gang members that live in the slums. With many different sociologist perspectives we can comprehend various aspects of these gangs. Symbolic interactionist, Conflict theorist and Feminism theory are all different sociological perspective that will be discussed in this essay. First of all, Rio de Janeiro is known for their dangerous slums. Many would automatically think violence when It comes around that neighbourhood. To begin with, Symbolic interactionist focus on the subjective aspect of the social life, they base their perspective on the image they have of humans rather than the image they have on the society. One of the key aspects of the perspective is; we are influenced by culture and social processes, such as social norms. In the movie â€Å"City of God†, we can see that many people join the gangs because it has almost become part of their culture to be gang members. Symbolic interactionist would be interested in the way the gang grows very quickly. We can see in â€Å"City of god† or even in â€Å"News from personal war† that kids join the slums army at a really young age because of the amount of people that are part of it. Taking example on the Runts in the â€Å"City of God† movie, we can see that these young kids are mostly influenced by the older dealers fame and money. I believe that symbolic interactionist would be interested in how the kids from the movie â€Å"News from the personal war† don’t see anything wrong in their violent acts. They believe that they are doing nothing but positive for their society. By bringing back medicine, food and clothes to the population they picture themselves as Hero’s and has great citizens. The society encourages them to continue with these violent and dangerous acts by praising them because of the things they give back to their people. This is a major fact of the gangs growth in these low class countries. In this perspective there is also an important aspect that says; we act towards other based on the meaning that those other people have for us. For example, if we look at Knockout Ned’s murderer, he was just an innocent boy that was trying to get revenge for his father’s killer. Not knowing the consequences that this would have on his life he joined a gang to give honour to his father. Symbolic interactionists believe that our social structure is based by our social interactions with others. In other words, symbolic interactions would believe that hood boys had reason and justifications to why they were part of a gang. The crew tremendous growth is because of the social structure that they have in Rio de Janeiro. Secondly, conflict theories would portray the situation in Rio de Janeiro completely differently. Conflict theorists believe that societies are composed of groups in power, status and influence. For example, in the film Lil Ze and his crew would be considered as the group in power, status and has influence on kid. In the movie, Lil Ze makes a rule of no hold ups or anything in the slums by runts. This proves that Lil Ze has complete control on the community because he sets any rule that he desires, we can basically call him a president. Conflict theorist would also argue that the powerless are more prone to break the rules. We can take example on the Runts once again; they robe stores knowing that it is against the societies rules. In the film, Lil Ze seems to blame victims when he would commit violent crimes. He was convinced that people that break rules should pay for their actions. He found happiness in killing people for no absolute reason. Most times, the neighbourhoods and societies are the subjects of study, the battle between rich and poor. Poor people seem to not be able to escape the streets of the city of God, the opportunities to get out of the slums are really slums. In the beginning of the movie you see homeless people walking on the streets and the narrator mentions that these people have nowhere to but to stay on the streets. It is really hard for the poor to avoid doing crimes because of their low level of education, money and opportunity. At last, Feminist theory is known to discuss the importance of gender inequality. For the movie, I believe that the women are experience all the stereotypes we can imagine. In the movie we can see that women are completely used as object and are not respected. In the scene where Lil Ze rapes Knockout Ned’s girlfriend we can see that it is just because to show how he can get whatever he wants, whenever he wants from any women. He uses the girl as an object as if she wasn’t worth anything. This could be considered as gendercide in other words, he raped her as a war crime. The feminist theory also argues the fact that women are completely ignored in societies. Looking at the â€Å"City of God† film, the scene where the two women are talking about their sex experience and one of them mentions how her husband would beat her for asking such things. This shows how women do not have their word to say about anything in the movies. That same women get beat and barried alive because of her unfaithfulness towards her husband but yet, police are more preoccupied into catching Shaggy. This shows us how important the women’s death is to people. Women are mistreated and ignored from society because they are considered to be housewives by stereotype. To conclude, there are different ways of looking at the movie â€Å"City of God†, Symbolic interactionist can look at it has the subjective aspect of the social life, the look at people’s image instead of people image on society. However, Conflict theorist are interested in the people who basically run the streets, the people in power with status and influence. Finally, Feminism theorist are mostly interested in the gender inequality that we can see in societies. All these theories help us have different opinions of people who live in slums like the movie â€Å"City of God† and may bring to and understanding the people who actually live in them

Heart Diseases and Stem Cell Transplantation

Heart Diseases and Stem Cell Transplantation Abstract According a report published by the World health organization about the most prevalent causes of mortality for the time periods of 2000 and 2011, it can be seen that Ischemic heart disease is the leading cause of mortality. There are many conditions that can lead to heart failure. Such conditions are raised blood pressure, myocardial infarction as well as atherosclerotic heart disease. Ischemia leads to necrosis of the myocardial cells due to lack of oxygen resulting in permanent loss of heart muscle. Stem cell therapy allows us to restore the motor function of the heart by delivering stem cells to the site of function loss. The aim of this review is to highlight key points about the different stem cell types that are being researched. Most importantly we will look at how and why recent advances are better suited for treatment of different conditions of the heart. This shall be argued by looking at the ways in which the stem cells used are obtained and transplanted as well as keeping in mind the natural behavior and purpose of the different classes of stem cells. Different Stem cell Types Being Researched The two classes of stem cells that have been researched the most are mulitpotent and pluirpotent stem cells. Pluripotent cells have a greater potency then multipotent stem cells meaning that only specific classes of multipotent stem cells can be used to restore cardiomyocytes. Multipotent Stem cells c-Kit+Cardiac Stem Cells These cardiac stem cells exhibit c-Kit+ which is a surface receptor that has tyrosine kinase activity. There have been successful studies using these types of cells for myocyte regeneration. According to Sheng and co-workers (2012) use of these stem cells has led to regeneration of cardiomyocytes in the ventricles. SCIPIO, is a phase 1 study conducted by Bolli et al. This study looked at patients who suffered from an MI and then had cardiac stem cells introduced into their left ventricle. They published their results in 2011 showing that left ventricular function improved from the initial ejection fraction that was below 40%. Makkar et al. in 2012 published findings for the CADUCEUS study. This study again introduced CSCs into patients LV just after an MI. Results showed no harm being done to the patient as well as an increase in the ejection fraction of the LV. Fuentes and Kearns-Jonker in 2013 released results were application of ephrin A1 can improve CSC treatment in rats. Ephrin A1 is a human protein important for moderating cell maturation that is introduced before transplantation of CSCs occurs. Most notably repopulation of the damaged area (infarct) was twice as much and as well as having improved systolic function as well as reduced number of complications such as arrhythmias. Bone marrow derived stem cells (BMSC) BMSCs are obtained from that patients bone marrow and then used to treat the same patient. BMSCs have been being used for a long time due to ease of acquirement as well as the fact that they don’t elicit an immune response when used. According to Sheng and co-workers (2012) BMSC therapy hasn’t lead to notable changes in patient quality of life with only temporary mild increase in ventricular systolic function. BMSCs release beneficial paracrine effects (Lee et al., 2005). Paracrines have a number of roles including cessation of apoptosis in sites of ischemic heart damage and stimulation of host vascular (angiogenesis) and cardiac tissue (cardiomyogenesis) growth. Inter-conversion of cells from 1 type to another as well as joining of 2 or more cells to become one cell results in formation of endothelial and ventricular muscle tissue from the precursor stem cell (Lee et al., 2005). Pluripotent stem cells Such cells are capable of forming all 3 primary layers. Embryo Stem cells (ESCs) ESCs are obtained from the mass of cells inside the blastocyst and are capable of self renewal. Compared to adult stem cells, embryonic stem cells have more inherent ability to replace damaged tissue in the heart. This is due to them being pluripotent they replace not only the muscle lost but also perform angiogenesis. Advancements in regulation of developmental pathways for ESCs have enabled improved results. BMP inhibitor improves the conversion of ESCs to cardiomyocytes but in so doing reduces conversion to other tissues of mesoderm origin (Hao et al., 2008). Hao and his co-workers (2008) also state that dorsomorphin can become a great tool for stem cell therapy in the future. Wnt/ÃŽ ²-catenin signaling control with the use of XAV939 improves ESC differentiation into cardiomyocytes. Induced pluripotent stem cells (iPS) Gene Transplantation Direct gene delivery For different forms of gene delivery the catheter has to both compatible to the site targeted as well as not having any property causing injury or eliciting an immune response. Naimark et al. compared the use of Nitinol stainless steel and Stiletto catheters for epicardial administration as well as endocardial showing that Stilletto catheters were twice as effective. Intrapericardial injection Advantage of this method of delivery is that there is no exposure of the heart and other organs. The use of intrapericardial infection in dogs has shown they endure the pain with not too much distress highlighting that the patient will undergo less distress compared to open surgery (March et al., 1999). This percutaneous method introduces the genes into the pericardial sac which then migrates into the myocardium. (Kawase et al., 2007) There are varying approaches to how to perform the injection. Fromes and coworkers used a transdiaphragmetic method. What was observed was that injection of the stem cells on their own lead to no gene expression difference in the myocardium. Stem cell expression results at the end of week one improved significantly with addition of proteinase in the injection fluid. Endocardial injection Microsphere retention varies according to volume used and site of injection. Endomyocardial injection had 28% greater retention then epicardial administration. Further retention can be obtained with the use of 10 ÃŽ ¼L rather then 100 ÃŽ ¼L. Greater spread of the adenovirus which encoded lac-Z was observed going to other organs in lower volumes too (Grossman et al., 2002). Use of fluoroscopy proved that this method is safe and that gene expression is present in 81% of the pigs used. Specimens used showed no symptoms and signs of cardiac arrhythmia or disturbance of blood flow. Patients suffering from chronic ischemia can develop complications such as perforation of the ventricle due to its thin nature as well as effusion of fluid in the pericardial sac decreasing cardiac output (Gwon et al., 2001). Intramyocardial injection This method has shown great success in many studies due to direct delivery of vector to site of damage. Injection of reporter gene into cardiac tissue and expression of the gene is feasible in canine myocardium. Response showed to be directly proportional to the volume of plasmid DNA used. Interestingly gene expression was uniform throughout the left ventricle independent of the level of injury. Stem cell expression gradually weakens over time showing greatest activity at the end of the first week (von Harsdorf et al., 1993). Use of plasmid DNA for cardiac muscle shows unique property of the tissue in being able to uptake DNA via the use of T tubules. Weakened expression after the first week is due to immune defensive mechanisms targeting transfected cells (Acsadi et al., 1991). Use of plasmid DNA vectors in early studies showed low efficiency in terms of transduction and time interval in which it is active; this lead to the use of adenovirus to transfer of ÃŽ ²-galactosidase gene an d plasmid. However results showed poor expression after day 7 as well as immune reaction generation (Guzman et al., 1993). Use of rAAV proved to be a more successful vector for the LacZ gene showing no immune response generation or inflammation at the site of injection. Expression was strongest after 1 week during weeks 4 to 8 showing very little results in the first 2 weeks. An increase in efficiency in terms of number of cells that undergo transduction due to perfusion was observed. Half of the cardiomyocytes showed LacZ gene expression (Svensson et al., 1999). BetaARKct gene produces a peptide that improves betaAR (beta-adrenergic receptor) signaling which is seen to diminish after a myocardial infarct. BetaAR function is interfered upon by G protein-coupled receptor kinase 2. BetaARKct gene product will eliminate G protein-coupled receptor kinase 2 interference. rAAV6 was used as a vector. Introduction of the BetaARKct gene further increased the efficiency of the intramyocardial injection with improved transduction cell number and length of time interval expression is strongest – up to 12 weeks from start of experiment. Long term use of BetaARKct gene lead to raised cardiac contractility as well as a turn around in ventricular remodeling (Rengo et al., 2009). Transfer of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) promoted angiogenesis in damaged myocardium and diminished anginal pain (Koransky et al., 2002). Transvascular gene delivery Some diseases such as pulmonary and essential hypertension, long QT syndrome and congestive heart failure require not just a percentage of their cells to undergo transduction but rather the entire myocardium. This can only be done by a method that ensures global delivery to the myocardium (Donahue et al., 1997). This is because it’s not just a group of cells that are contributing to the disease but rather every cell. E.g. Intramyocardial injection in these conditions would be useless as it only affects a small area. Selective coronary catheterization with antegrade intracoronary delivery A single pass method yields poor transduction values showing phenotype expression in only 5% of cardiac muscle at most (Ding et al., 2004). For optimal transduction to take place prolonged exposure time via occlusion of blood supply was necessary. The coronary arteries and coronary venous sinus were the tested targets with the latter producing almost 5 times increase in transduction (Logeart et al., 2001). Donahue and coworkers worked on rabbit myocardium observing key conditions for 96% of myocardial cells to undergo transduction. These parameters included increased virus concentrations, increased exposure, performing experiment at 37 °C, increased coronary flow rate and use of crystalloid media with specific compositions. Almost maximal transduction could be achieved with improved microvascular permeability in a decreased coronary perfusion time period of 2 minutes. Lowered Ca2+concentration coupled to bradykinin or serotonin pretreatment and raised virus concentration achieve this (Donahue et al., 1998). Use of catheters to occlude the aorta and venous return in the right atrium in rodents was coupled to cardiopulmonary arrest with the use of esmolol and acetylcholine for 2 and 5 minutes in order to increase viral incubation time proved to increase transduction response in 43% of cardiac muscle after 3 days. Minimally invasive surgical intervention is still required but the fore mentioned method shows a 400 time improvement in phenotype expression contrasted to the sham-operated group. S-Nitroso-N-acetyl-DL-penicillamine and histamine use failed to improve microvacular permeability (Ding et al., 2004). Nonselective (indirect) intracoronary delivery Using a number of injections to transfer genes with the use of surgery has been studied in research extensively (Guzman et al., 1993). Transduction of human beta 2- adrenergic receptor (betaAR) gene in patients diagnosed with chronic heart failure can restore the cardiac beta-adrenergic receptor system. betaAR function is also compromised in acute myocardial function upset. The betaAR signaling pathway is the main target of most drugs on the market today for heart failure treatment (Parsa et al., 2003). Use of catheter to deliver Adeno-beta 2 adrenergic receptor into the left ventricle in rabbits produced at most a ten fold increase in beta 2- adrenergic receptor expression. After 3 weeks improved myocardial function was observed. Left ventricular pressure was improved as a result of increased myocardial contractility and improved ventricle loading conditions. Isoproterenol receptivity was also observed to increase (Maurice et al., 1999). This indirect method of virus introduction wi ll result in virus transport in the systemic circulation possibly resulting in ÃŽ ²-AR overexpression in the lungs and liver. Larger doses of the virus result in systemic ischemia and decreased cardiac function (Parsa et al., 2003). According to Hajjar and coworkers gene transfer in vivo results in transduction occurring in more then one location. In vivogene delivery involving adenovirus mediated transmission of betaAR kinase carboxyl terminus (betaARKct) or betaAR has shown that use of betaARKct prohibits smooth muscle hyperplasia in vascular intima after angioplasty. BetaARKct use improves ventrivular function via improved betaAR signaling via genetic inhibition of GÃŽ ²ÃŽ ³-ÃŽ ²-adrenergic receptor kinase. Over expression of betaAR improves cardiac function (Eckhart et al., 2000). Gene delivery in vivo improves ventricular contractility as well as adjustment of ECG intervals (Hajjar et al., 1998). Global phenotypic changes can be improved via increased transduction with the use of an improved method of to deliver the viruses. Introduction of the catheter into the left ventricular cavity followed by movement superiorly to end in the aortic root is coupled with pulmonary artery and ascending aorta occlusion. As a result a transcoronary perfusion gradient is generated; which improves viral delivery. This method has a number of modifications such as prompting of asystole pharmacologically, hypothermia use to lengthen cross-clamp interval and occlusion of the distal aorta (Beeri et al., 2002), (del Monte et al., 2001) and (Hajjar et al., 2000). Selective coronary sinus or coronary venous catheterization with retrograde delivery Intracoronary delivery involves systemic spread of the vector due to the brief interval in which the vector can adhere to the coronary endothelium. This is the great disadvantage of the fore mentioned method as coronary flow and endothelial permeability have a large contribution (Logeart et al., 2001). Contrasted to intracoronary delivery, retrograde delivery results in improved expression of the delivered gene (Kaye et al., 2007). Adeno-associated viral vectors do not induce an immune response and cause no inflammation. AAV vectors facilitate long-term gene expression (Sakata et al., 2007). Retro-infusion has proven to transfer AAV vectors efficiently as a long term method of gene transfer. This is due to improved endothelial permeability and lengthening of adhesion time for the vector (von Degenfeld et al., 2003). Systemic spread of vector to liver and lungs was observed however with lack of gene expression due to use of an enhanced myosin light chain promoter sequence (Raake et al ., 2008). Studies have proved that a single administration is enough in order for efficient regional myocyte transfection to occur. The advantages of only a single administration being necessary include minimal washout and controlled dwell times promoting longer exposure. The genes human developmentally regulated endothelial locus-1 and green fluorescent protein were used in this study (Hou et al., 2003). Pulmonary and hepatic transgene expression can be avoided with the use of adjusted models of myocardial gene delivery. Kaye and coworkers established a high efficiency percutaneous closed-loop system. This closed loop system permits increased transduction in the cardiac muscle due to higher concentration of vector present. This method reduces peripheral systemic spread that results in decreased transgene expression outside the heart in the lungs and liver (Kaye et al., 2007). Bridges states that usage of the percutaneous closed-loop system just mentioned would result in loss of more then 99% of the vector to the systemic circulation and not to the myocardium. On close examination of results obtained 2,639 vector genomes/ mg DNA were found in the heart contrasted to 69,595 vector genomes/ mg DNA in the liver. It was suggested that lack of hemiazaygous vein control results in this systemic spread. Ex vivotechnique Many studies have been carried out on the use of transplantation model for gene transfer. In the study done by Griscelli and coworkers recombinant adenoviruses are injected into coronary vessels of the organ then the heart is transplanted. This study carried out on piglet hearts have emphasized prolonged exposure time for vector contact to the heart. The advantage of using such a transplantation model is that this takes place with no coronary flow. Expression of transferred gene was noted with little presence of the transferred genome in hepatic and pulmonary tissues (Griscelli et al., 2003). Wang and Knechtle experimented on and compared 2 different methods of vector delivery prior to transplantation; myocardial injection and perfusion. Injection produced a higher degree of transgene expression. Perfusion resulted in greater overall distribution of transgene expression. Use of these methods only provides as a short term method of gene transfer (Wang and Knechtle., 1996).

Methods of Neuropsychological Studies

Methods of Neuropsychological Studies The term ‘syndrome’ denotes the statistical co-occurrence of a cluster of symptoms. However, it is not imperative that all symptoms of a syndrome be present in a given patient. The statistical cluster is supposed to indicate an underlying cause of various symptoms. A major thrust of cognitive neuroscience is the clarification of structure function of relationships in the human brain understanding the relationship between the human brain structure and function is a major focus of cognitive neuroscience. The methods available to achieve this goal have undergone significant changes over the last 15 years; in particular, functional neuroimaging is rapidly replacing neuropsychological studies of people with brain lesions as the central method in this field, over the last several years, functional neuroimaging has risen in prominence relative to the lesion studies that formed the historical core of work in this field. At the outset, it is important to bear in mind that regardless of the specific method used, inferences from impaired performances following brain damage always focus on the same conclusion; which is, an assumption regarding which structures are necessary to perform a given task. The study of cognitive and behavioural consequences of focal brain lesions has been an indispensable method for relating brain structure to function. Lesion studies rely on correlating damaged structure and abnormal function to determine crucial brain regions necessary for normal function. For this purpose it is necessary not only to detect lesions but also to accurately delineate their spatial extent. The lesion method was influential for our understanding of functions as diverse as memory, emotion, hemispheric specialization, language, vision and motor control. For example, recent neuropsychological research has refined our understanding of how emotions are processed, with damage to the amygdala resulting i n difficulty in recognizing whether faces are expressing fear (Adolphs et al., 1995), and damage to the left insula and basal ganglia leading to a selective difficulty in identifying disgust (Calder et al., 2000).Work involving patients with brain damage has also shown that the posterior ventral cortex is involved in recognizing objects, and that the posterior dorsal regions are involved in integrating visual information with goal-directed motor responses e.g. grasping a door handle (Goodale Milner, 1992). Various types of disorders have been described by clinical neurologists and none has been more frequent and vivid than the syndrome of unilateral spatial neglect. Hemispatial neglect is a common disabling condition following unilateral brain damage, particularly of the right hemisphere. Although it can be caused by various different pathological conditions, it is most often observed after cerebral infarction or hemorrhage and affects up to two thirds of right hemisphere of stroke patients acutely (Stone et al., 1991; Bowen et al., 1999). Unilateral neglect is traditionally defined as a failure to report, respond to or orient towards stimuli in contralesional space (Driver Mattingley, 1998; Halligan, Fink, Marshall, Vallar, 2003; Heilman, Watson, Valenstein, 1993). Perhaps a more appropriate description, especially for severe neglect patients, would be to suggest that the patient behaves as if one half – the contralesional side (the left side for patients with right brain da mage) – of their world has simply ceased to exist, they attend instead to items towards the same side as their brain damage—their ipsilesional side. Their neglect may be so profound that they are unaware of large objects, or even people, in extrapersonal space. Neglect may also extend or be confined to personal space, with patients failing to acknowledge their own contralesional body parts in daily life (Bisiach et al., 1986; Zoccolotti Judica, 1991; Beschin Robertson, 1997). The earliest descriptions of unilateral neglect that were able to localize the underlying lesion with any degree of certainty came from cases initially described by Paterson and Zangwill (1944). Identifying the neuroanatomical correlate of spatial neglect in humans is as challenging because human brain lesions vary tremendously in size and the neglect syndrome itself is multifaceted. While the Paterson and Zangwill (1944) case described a patient with a discrete lesion resulting from a penetrating head wound, the more common cause of neglect is a middle cerebral artery stroke causing widespread damage to the lateral cortical surface and underlying white matter that this artery subserves (Duvernoy, 1999). Unilateral spatial neglect has been investigated in a systematic manner, by comparing performances of unselected groups of right and left brain-damaged patients, both of which were asked to perform tasks requiring an adequate exploration of space. However, the results of these studies have been somewhat varied, and there is still disagreement about both qualitative and incidence aspects of unilateral neglect in lateralized cerebral lesions. For example Battersby et al., (1956) found that lesions of the posterior areas of either hemisphere frequently produced unilateral neglect but Hecaen (1962), in his observation series of 59 patients with unilateral spatial neglect found only one case was suffering from a left hemispheric lesion, and emphasized the relationship between unilateral spatial neglect and lesions of the minor hemisphere. Also, Gainotti (1968) attempted to study the same problem by means of a battery of tests simple enough to be administered to all patients; his results s howed that unilateral spatial neglect is not only significantly more frequent, but also definitely more severe in patients suffering from lesions of the right hemisphere. Lesions of the right hemisphere are far more likely to lead to severe and enduring neglect than left hemisphere damage (Bowen et al., 1999; Stone et al., 1992), perhaps because of the specialization of the latter for language. Cortical damage involving the right inferior parietal lobe or nearby temporoparietal junction has classically been implicated in causing neglect (Vallar Perani, 1986). It has become apparent, however, that the syndrome may also follow focal lesions of the inferior frontal lobe (Vallar, 2001; Husain Kennard, 1997), although lesions confined to the frontal lobe may lead to a more transientneglect (Walker, 1998). Recent studies making use of fMRI scans in neglect patients have suggested that the critical region of overlap in a series of neglect patients’ lesions is either in the superior temporal gyrus (Karnath et al., 2001; Karnath et al., 2004) or the temporoparietal junction (Mort et al., 2003). Regarding localization of functions, research has demonstrated the variability (Kertesz, 1979) as well as the extent of the lesions that give rise to particular language disorders. Paul Broca (1861) suggested that lesions in the inferior frontal gyrus, now corresponding to Brodmann’s areas (BA) 44 and 45, were implicated in speech production disorders (Schiller, 1992). However, as advances in technology have made patients’ lesion information easier to obtain (e.g. CT and MRI scans), lesion–symptom relationships derived from the classical models of aphasia have proven to be less predictive than expected. In many instances, left frontal lesions do not result in Broca’s aphasia (Basso, Lecours, Moraschini, Vanier, 1985; Willmes Poeck, 1993). Moreover, fluency problems can be reliably associated to lesions outside of Broca’s area, including underlying white matter tracts and anterior insula (Bates et al., 2003; Damasio, 1992; Dronkers, 1996; Mohr et a l., 1978). Conversely, lesions to Broca’s area can cause deficits in domains other than speech production, indeed even outside of language (Saygin, Wilson, Dronkers, Bates, 2004). Research has shown that a lesion restricted to Broca’s area gives rise to a transient impairment of language production and that the full complement of symptoms associated with Broca’s aphasia (articulation problem coupled with simplified sentence structure—the pattern known as â€Å"agrammatism†) is the result of more extensive damage to the frontal cortex (Mohr et al., 1978). Evidence suggests, moreover, that the articulation problem present in Broca’s aphasia (â€Å"apraxia of speech†) is associated with damage to a portion of the insula, a part of the cerebral cortex that is not visible from the brain’s surface because of the growth of other parts of the frontal lobe (Dronkers, 1996). There are specialized mechanisms for the perception of speech, which consists of brief stimuli that change rapidly in wavelength composition. Isolating input to critical left temporal areas as a result of a left hemisphere lesion, or in some cases lesions in both hemispheres (the lesion on the right deprives the left hemisphere of transcallosal input), results in the disorder known as â€Å"pure word deafness,† in which patients can hear but cannot understand speech; their native tongue, for example, sounds to them like a foreign language. Moreover, these patients have difficulty discriminating between speech sounds (between â€Å"pa† and â€Å"ba,† for example), although they have little or no difficulty producing speech and understanding written language (Saffarn et al., 1976). Virtually all aphasic patients suffer from verbal short-term limitations (as measured, for example, by asking them to repeat digit strings; their performance tends to be well below the n ormal span of about seven.). One particular group with left posterior parietal lesions (Shallice vallar, 1990) suffers from short-term memory limitations but little else, and many of these patients have sentence comprehension deficits similar to those described in Broca’s aphasics (Saffaran Martin. 1990). It is interesting to note that Broca patients also have difficulty with certain grammaticality judgment tasks, in particular, those that entail linking particular word identities (and/or their meanings) to particular locations in the sentence. Thus, they proved to be insensitive to infractions involving reflexive sentences (e.g., â€Å"The woman looked at himself in the mirror†) in which the gender of the pronoun conflicts with that of the noun to which it refers (Linebarger et al., 1983; Linebarger, 1995). This further suggests that the capacity to integrate the various types of information required for the understanding of sentences is limited in these patients. It may also be the case that frontal activation is critical for sentence production. One view of the sentence production deficit in Broca’s aphasics is that it reflects a timing problem in which lexical items are retrieved too slowly to integrate with sentence structure (Kolk, 1995). Lesions that affect anteri or inferior regions of the left temporal lobe are known to result in semantic deficits in which patients have difficulty finding words and understanding them and often exhibit impairments with pictured materials as well (Howard Patterson, 1992).Studying aphasia and its associated lesions in the late 19th century led to many insights about the neural organization of language functions and many of these insights have been confirmed and elaborated in more recent studies using advanced imaging to localize areas of dysfunctional brain tissue associated with particular language deficits or using functional imaging to identify areas of the brain that were activated during a particular language task in normal controls (Wise, 2003; Bookheimer, 2002) or in recovering aphasic Individuals (Price Crinion, 2005). Technological advances in recent years (e.g. functional imaging techniques) have allowed neuroscientists to measure and localize brain activity in healthy individuals. This has fueled the zeitgeist that the lesion method is an inferior and conceivably antiquated technique. Nonetheless, while the lesion method has notable weaknesses, it can be argued that it supplements the newer methods. Additionally, recent developments deals with many of the criticisms of the lesion method. Patients with brain lesions provide a unique window into brain function, and this methodology will fill an important niche in the growing resource of tools that constantly become available to neuroscientists and neuropsychologists for future research. Nevertheless, it is beneficial to consider whether new technologies can be used to optimize the lesion method. Whilst, some of the lesion method’s limitations are intrinsic to the technique, other weakness can be addressed by recent technical innovations. Th e lesion method has much to offer, despite its limitations; new techniques for imaging the brain and analyzing lesion data have the potential to improve the lesion method. Still, the strength and weaknesses of the lesion method and other imaging techniques such as fMRI are complementary, as some brain functions might be difficult to determine using the lesion method alone or functional neuroimaging alone, but can be successfully undertaken with a combination of these techniques (Price Friston, 2002).

MacBeth :: essays research papers

  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Macbeth by William Shakespeare has three characters that appear to be the best developed. The first is Macbeth, the main character of the story. The second most developed character is Lady Macbeth, Macbeth’s wife. The third most well developed is Banquo, Macbeth’s friend. Banquo and Lady Macbeth play very important roles in Macbeth’s life.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Macbeth is plagued with paranoia and a thirst for power. Macbeth fears that Banquo has discovered his unclean hands and he will turn him in. â€Å"Our fears in Banquo stick deep, and in his royalty of nature reigns that which would be feared. ‘Tis he much dares†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (III, 3, 53-56) Macbeth knows that he could wipe out Banquo on his own, however he knows there would be obvious consequences for him. â€Å"And though I could with barefaced power sweep him from my sit and bid my will avouch it, yet I must not, for certain friends that are both his and mine†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (III, 1, 134-137) In order for Macbeth to wipe out Banquo without suspicion, he schemes to have other men take care of the matter by convincing them that Banquo is at the heart of their problems. â€Å"Know that it was he, in times past, which held you so under fortune, which you thought had been our innocent self.† (III, 1, 84-86) Macbeth’s desire for power is his downfa ll.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The development of all three characters stems from the prophecies of the Weird Sisters about Macbeth and Banquo. Macbeth feels the need to murder Banquo because of his knowledge of the witches and their prophecies. â€Å"Were such things here that we do speak about? Or have we eaten on the insane root that takes the reason prisoner† (I, 3, 86-88) As a result of the prophecies Banquo suspects Macbeth of murdering the king in order to take his place. â€Å"Thou hast it now King, Cawdor, Glamis, all as the weird women promised, and fear thou play’st most foully for’t† (III, 1, 1-3) Banquo believes that his children and not Macbeth’s will be successors to the throne; the thought of this moves Macbeth to murder. â€Å"But that I myself should be the root an father of many kings†¦May they not be my oracles as well† (III, 1, 5-9) Banquo’s death is a result of his knowledge.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Lady Macbeth is the rock for Macbeth. During Macbeth’s times of trouble she is the one to console him. â€Å"How now, my lord, why do you keep alone, of sorriest fancies your companions making, using those thoughts which should indeed have died with them they think on?

Comparison of Mr. Collins Proposal to Elizabeth with Mr. Darcys Essay

Comparison of Mr. Collins' Proposal to Elizabeth with Mr. Darcy's Jane Austen does not use the word love very often in 'Pride and Prejudice', marriage is mentioned frequently throughout the novel, but love may have been considered too strong a word. During her lifetime Jane Austen was exposed to fashionable society and she learnt to gather inspiration, and then write it down in her witty, poignant way. She lived in a time when reputation was everything and women wanted no more than to settle down with a husband, whom preferably should exceed their own income. Austen received no such husband, but did fall in love, only to be heartbroken when he died before they were even engaged. Though love is a theme in 'Pride and Prejudice' Austen didn't use the word too recklessly but was sure to use it when a relationship was worthy of such a title. The Bennet family consists of Mr and Mrs Bennet and their five daughters Jane, Lizzie, Mary, Kitty and Lydia. Unlike most families of the time all five of the daughters were out in society at the same time. Mrs Bennet wanted no more than to see at least one of her daughters married within the year and strived greatly to do so. Jane, the eldest is admired wherever she goes so Mrs Bennet is quick to do her best to try and marry her off to Mr Bingly, the very eligible bachelor (whom, by the way has five thousand a year!) Once Mrs Bennet feels that Jane would soon be engaged she is happy to oblige Mr Collins, Mr Bennet's somewhat 'silly' cousin, in his quest to find a wife. As most men do, Mr Collins first sets his sights on Jane but is by no mean discouraged when he is told of her expected engagement. Of course the next obvious choice is Lizzie, the pretty, sensible g... ...'s happiness is not mentioned for who could doubt that Lizzie would be happy? Married to a clergyman whom is associated with Lady Catherine de Bourgh? Mr Collins couldn't imagine why she would not be happy so the subject does not arise. The third reason (which he adds should maybe have been mentioned to begin with), that it is 'the particular advice and recommendation of the very noble lady whom I have the honour of calling my patroness'. Clearly Mr Collins had listened attentively to Lady Catherine de Bourgh for she specifically asked 'chuse a gentlewoman for my sake; and for your own let her be an active, useful sort of person.' Whether or not it was Lizzie whom Mr Collins was proposing to, have it be Mary or even Kitty, they would suit this criteria from Mr Collins' point of view, he is not a perceptive type and sees people how he desires them to be. Comparison of Mr. Collins' Proposal to Elizabeth with Mr. Darcy's Essay Comparison of Mr. Collins' Proposal to Elizabeth with Mr. Darcy's Jane Austen does not use the word love very often in 'Pride and Prejudice', marriage is mentioned frequently throughout the novel, but love may have been considered too strong a word. During her lifetime Jane Austen was exposed to fashionable society and she learnt to gather inspiration, and then write it down in her witty, poignant way. She lived in a time when reputation was everything and women wanted no more than to settle down with a husband, whom preferably should exceed their own income. Austen received no such husband, but did fall in love, only to be heartbroken when he died before they were even engaged. Though love is a theme in 'Pride and Prejudice' Austen didn't use the word too recklessly but was sure to use it when a relationship was worthy of such a title. The Bennet family consists of Mr and Mrs Bennet and their five daughters Jane, Lizzie, Mary, Kitty and Lydia. Unlike most families of the time all five of the daughters were out in society at the same time. Mrs Bennet wanted no more than to see at least one of her daughters married within the year and strived greatly to do so. Jane, the eldest is admired wherever she goes so Mrs Bennet is quick to do her best to try and marry her off to Mr Bingly, the very eligible bachelor (whom, by the way has five thousand a year!) Once Mrs Bennet feels that Jane would soon be engaged she is happy to oblige Mr Collins, Mr Bennet's somewhat 'silly' cousin, in his quest to find a wife. As most men do, Mr Collins first sets his sights on Jane but is by no mean discouraged when he is told of her expected engagement. Of course the next obvious choice is Lizzie, the pretty, sensible g... ...'s happiness is not mentioned for who could doubt that Lizzie would be happy? Married to a clergyman whom is associated with Lady Catherine de Bourgh? Mr Collins couldn't imagine why she would not be happy so the subject does not arise. The third reason (which he adds should maybe have been mentioned to begin with), that it is 'the particular advice and recommendation of the very noble lady whom I have the honour of calling my patroness'. Clearly Mr Collins had listened attentively to Lady Catherine de Bourgh for she specifically asked 'chuse a gentlewoman for my sake; and for your own let her be an active, useful sort of person.' Whether or not it was Lizzie whom Mr Collins was proposing to, have it be Mary or even Kitty, they would suit this criteria from Mr Collins' point of view, he is not a perceptive type and sees people how he desires them to be.

Gun Control Essay

â€Å"Should Private Gun Ownership Be Banned?† Widespread gun ownership in a community could provide a general deterrent to criminal predation, lowering the risk to owners and non-owners alike. But widespread gun ownership could also lead to increased risks of various sorts, including the possibility that guns will be misused by the owners or transferred to dangerous people through theft or unregulated sale. Whether the social costs of gun ownership are positive or negative is arguably the most fundamental question for the regulation of firearms in the United States. Gun control laws and policy vary greatly around the world. Some countries, such as the United Kingdom, have very strict limits on gun possession while others, such as the United States, have relatively modest limits. In some countries, the topic remains a source of intense debate with proponents generally arguing the dangers of widespread gun ownership, and opponents generally arguing individual rights of self-protection as well as individual liberties in general. So me in the United States view gun ownership as a civil right (Snyder i-ii), where the Second Amendment to the United States Constitution guarantees the right of citizens to keep and bear arms. One of the earliest U.S. gun-control legislation at the state level were the black codes (laws that replaced the pre Civil War era slave codes which, among other things, prohibited black ownership of firearms) in an attempt to prevent blacks’ having access to the full rights of citizens, including rights guaranteed under the Second Amendment (Halbrook 108). Laws of this type later used racially neutral language to survive legal challenge, but were expected to be enforced against blacks rather than whites. Following the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting in December 2012, where 20 young children were killed, Wayne LaPierre, vice-president of the National Rifle Association (NRA) proposed, at an NRA press conference, that the solution to such tragedies is to place armed officers in schools, saying: â€Å"The only way to stop a bad guy with a gun is a good guy with a gun† (Washington post). LaPierre blamed the media, politicians in favor of gun-free zones, U.S. mental health services, and violent movies and video games for the shooting. He introduced an NRA-backed proposal to put armed guards in all schools in the U.S., which he called the National Model School Shield Program. In January 2013, the Newtown school board voted unanimously to ask for police officer presence in all of its elementary schools. A 2004 review by the National Research Council concluded that, â€Å"higher rates of household firearms ownership are associated with higher rates of gun suicide, that illegal diversions from legitimate commerce are important sources of crime guns and guns used in suicide, that firearms are used defensively many times per day, and that some types of targeted police interventions may effectively lower gun crime and violence† (Welford). Another review conducted in 2011 by the Firearm Injury Center at Penn determined that, â€Å"the correlation be tween firearm availability and rates of homicide is consistent across high income industrialized nations: in general, where there are more firearms, there are higher rates of homicide overall†. A 2004 review of the literature conducted by researchers at the Harvard Injury Control Research Center similarly found that, â€Å"a broad array of evidence indicates that gun availability is a risk factor for homicide, both in the United States and across high-income countries† (Homicide – Firearms Research). Reviews by the HICRC also assessed variation in gun ownership and violence in the United States and found that the same pattern held: states with higher gun ownership had higher rates of homicide, both gun-related and overall. A review published in 2011 found that the health risks of a gun in the home are greater than the benefits, based on evidence that the presence of guns increases the risk of completed suicides and evidence that guns increase the intimidation and murder rate of women (Hemenway 502). The researchers found no credible evidence that guns in the home reduce the severity of injury in a break-in or confrontation or act as a deterrent of assault. A p revious study (2003) had similarly found that the presence of a gun in the home significantly increased the risk of suicide and adult homicide (Wiebe 12). A number of studies have examined the correlation between rates of gun ownership and gun-related, as well as overall, homicide and suicide rates internationally. Martin Killias, in a 1993 study covering 21 countries, found that there were significant  correlations between gun ownership and gun-related suicide and homicide rates. Gun control has a serious public health, political and economic concerns that need to be addressed respectively. HEALTH/SAFETY Every year, more than two thousand people die in the United States from gun-related injuries. The population groups most affected by these avoidable deaths are children and young adolescents. The misuse of firearms is a problem worldwide, of course. However, the incidence of firearm use does vary from country to country. According to the United Nations Report on Firearm Regulation, Crime Prevention, and Criminal Justice (1997), the United States has â€Å"weaker firearm regulations and higher numbers of deaths involving firearms than all other industrialized and even most developing nations.† The study also noted that the total firearm death rate in the United States in 1995 was 13.7 per 100,000 people, â€Å"three times the average rate among other responding countries and the third highest, after Brazil and Jamaica†. More than half the homes in the United States possess firearms, so it is hardly surprising that they rank among the â€Å"ten leading causes of death ac counting for more than 30,000 deaths annually† (Wintermute 3107). While most people have guns primarily for sporting activities, many owners also have them for personal protection and security purposes. The public health approach to violence prevention attempts not only to reduce the occurrence of violence, but also to limit the numbers of fatal and nonfatal injuries when such events occur. To prevent gun-related violence, indeed any type of violence, it is important to understand the dynamics of violence as well as the role of different kinds of weapons in both fatal and nonfatal injuries. Research from around the world indicates that socio-structural factor such as high unemployment rates, ethnic and religious hostilities, political instability, financial inequalities, lack of resources, and economic deprivation increase the likelihood of violence. When guns are readily available in such settings, or where legislation to curb their illegitimate use is lax or inappropriate, injuries are more likely to occur, intentional or otherwise. Individual factors can also precipitate violence, including the use of firearms. Substance and alcohol abuse, mental disorders, feelings of personal i nadequacy and social isolation, and an individual’s experience with violence in the home are  among some of the factors that have been associated with violence. The more guns there are in circulation, the greater the likelihood that they will be misused. Hence, from a public health perspective, it is important to devise strategies which aim to ensure that those in possession of arms use them for legitimate purposes and not for violent or criminal acts. There are a variety of ways of dealing with the problems caused by guns in society, and legislation is one of the methods most commonly used. Franklin Zimring has noted that laws that regulate gun use fall into three categories: those that limit the place and the manner of firearm use, those that keep guns out of the hands of high-risk users, and those that ban high risk firearms. Place and manner legislation sets out to do as it suggests, to limit certain uses of firearms in certain locations. Examples include banning the use of firearms in public places and prohibiting the carrying of a firearm (except for those carried by security personnel and police). This legislation is difficult to impl ement, however, without the active support of the police force, and that support requires additional funding to make sure that police monitor potentially violent events. Successful place and manner legislation has been implemented in the country of Columbia, where firearms are involved in 80 percent of homicides. Here, an innovative gun control intervention was implemented by the Program for Development, Security, and Peace (DESEPAZ), in collaboration with the Mayor of Cali, Colombia’s third largest city. A police-enforced ban was introduced in Cali that prohibited carrying firearms on weekends, public paydays, public holidays, and election days because â€Å"such periods were historically associated with higher rates of homicide† (Villaveces 1206). Media-led information campaigns informed the public of the new gun control measure. On the days when the ban was in operation, police set up strategically located checkpoints in areas of the city where criminal activities were commonplace, and they conducted random searches of individuals. â€Å"During the ban, police policy directed that if a legally acquired firearm was found on an individual, the weapon was to be temporarily taken from the individual and the individual fined. Individuals without proof of legally acquiring the firearm were to be arrested and the firearm permanently confiscated† (Villaveces1206). Denying high-risk users access to firearms is the second type of legislative tool to control gun misuse. In order for this approach to work, the law has to define clearly who falls into the category of â€Å"high-risk user.† The term is usually applied to convicted criminals, those deemed â€Å"mentally unfit,† and to drug addicts. It also applies to minors. Such legislation attempts to make it difficult for members of these groups to possess a firearm. Every year, in developed and developing countries across the globe, thousands of children and young adolescents die while playing with loaded guns. Additionally, studies have shown that adolescents are vulnerable in terms of firearm misuse and successful suicide attempts. In the United States between 1965 and 1985 â€Å"the rate of suicide involving firearms increased 36 percent, whereas the rate of suicide involving other methods remained constant. â€Å"Among adolescents and young adults, rates of suicide by firearms doubled during the same period† (Kellermann 467). Restricting minors the access to have weapons can help to reduce these events. Many states now attempt to prevent high-risk groups from obtaining firearms by identifying â€Å"ineligible† individuals before they can acquire a gun. Minors would obviously fall into this category. â€Å"The screening system included in U.S. legislation known as the Brady Bill which permits police to determine whether a pros pective gun purchaser has a criminal record. If the check turns up nothing the purchaser can obtain the gun† (Zimring 53). The third legislative strategy used to combat the misuse of firearms is to introduce legislation regulating the use of very dangerous weapons. Such â€Å"laws limit the supply of high risk weapons† and â€Å"can complement the strategy of decreasing high risk uses and users† (Zimring 53). Such supply reduction laws â€Å"strive to make the most dangerous guns so scarce that potential criminals cannot obtain them easily† (Zimring 52). They also set out rigid requirements that must be met to prove that possession of such a weapon is necessary. Sawed-off shotguns, machine guns, and certain military devices are the kinds of weapons covered by this type of legislation. Research into this area in the United States has shown that states in which such strict laws operate have lower levels of violent crime than states that do not. Another means of legislating for firearm misuse is to introduce stiff penalties for criminals caught using firearms. â€Å"More than half of t he states in the USA have passed such laws. This approach is popular with gun owners because the penalties concern only gun related crime and place no restrictions on firearm ownership† (Zimring 52). ECONOMICS After the school massacre in Newtown, everyone has been putting out proposals for how to reduce gun violence. President Obama created an inter-agency task force. The NRA asked for armed guards in every school and now economists are weighing in with their own, number-heavy approaches (Washington post). In the United States, there are an average of 32,300 deaths (the majority of which are suicide) and approximately 69,000 injuries annually most common in poor urban areas and frequently associated with gang violence, often involving male juveniles or young adult males, with an estimated annual cost of $100 billion(Bjerregaard and Alan 37). American society remains deeply divided over whether more restrictive gun control policies would save lives and prevent injuries. Scholars agree the rate of gun violence in the United States is higher than many developed OECD countries that practice strict gun control. The United States’ low life expectancy (relative to other wealthy countries) may be attributable to guns, with a reduction in average American lifespan of 104 days (Lemaire, 359). Disagreement exists among academics on the question of whether a causal relationship between gun availability and violence exists, and which, if any, gun controls would effectively lower gun related violence. Cook and Ludwig created a data set that used the number of suicides by firearm in a county as a proxy for gun ownership and checked it against a variety of existing survey data. They figured out the â€Å"social cost† of owning a gun. The two economists determined that a greater prevalence of guns in an area was associated with an increase in the murder rate, but not other types of violent crimes (guns, the authors argue, lead to â€Å"an intensification of criminal violence†). Why does this happen? One possibility: The two economists found evidence that if there are more legal guns in an area, it’s more likely that those guns will be transferred to â€Å"illegal† owners. When the two economists added up the costs of gun ownership, more injuries and m ore homicides and weighed them against various benefits, they concluded that the average household acquiring a gun imposed a net cost on the rest of society of somewhere between $100 to $1,800 per year (379-382). Now, normally when economists come across a product that has a negative externality like cigarettes or coal-fired plants, they recommend taxing or regulating it, so that the user of the product internalizes the costs that he or she is imposing on everyone else. In this case, an economist might suggest slapping a steeper tax on guns or bullets. Others  might object that this isn’t fair. There are responsible gun owners and irresponsible gun owners. Not everyone with a gun imposes the same costs on society. Why should the tax be uniform? And that brings us to John Wasik’s recent essay at Forbes. Instead of a tax on guns, he recommends that gun owners be required to purchase liability insurance (Washington post). Different gun owners would pay different rates, depending on the risks involved. Who pays the least for gun insurance would be least likely to commit a crime with it. Economist John Lott, in his book More Guns, Less Crime, provides data showing that laws allowing law-abiding citizens to carry a gun legally in public may cause reductions in crime because potential criminals do not know who may be carrying a firearm. The data for Lott’s analysis came from the FBI’s crime statistics for all 3,054 US counties (Lott 50). University of Chicago economist Steven Levitt argues in his paper, Under standing Why Crime Fell in the 1990s: Four Factors that Explain the Decline and Six that Do Not, that available data indicate that neither stricter gun control laws nor more liberal concealed carry laws have had any significant effect on the decline in crime in the 1990s. A comprehensive review of published studies of gun control, released in November 2004 by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, was unable to determine any statistically significant effect resulting from such laws, although the authors suggest that further study may provide more conclusive information. Fully automatic firearms are legal in most states, but have requirements for registration and restriction under federal law. The National Firearms Act of 1934 required approval of the local police chief, federally registered fingerprints, federal background check and the payment of a $200 tax for initial registration and for each transfer. The Gun Control Act of 1968 prohibited imports of all nonsporting firearms and created several new categories of restricted firearms. A provision of the Firearm Owners Protection Act of 1986 prohibited further registry of machine guns manufactured after it took effect. The result has been a massive rise in the price of machine-guns available for private ownership, as an increased demand chases the fixed, pre-1986 supply. For example, the Heckler & Koch MP5 submachine-gun, which may be sold to law enforcement for about $1,000, costs a private citizen about $5,000 (Stewart). POLITICS Gun politics addresses safety issues and ideologies related to firearms through criminal and noncriminal use. Gun politics deals with rules, regulations, and restrictions on the use, ownership, as well as distribution of firearms. Gun control laws and policy vary greatly around the world. Some countries, such as Australia, the United Kingdom or Germany, have very strict limits on gun possession while others, such as the United States, have relatively lenient limits. Most nations hold the power to protect them, others, and police their own territory as a fundamental power vested by sovereignty. However, this power can be lost under certain circumstances: some countries have been forced to disarm by other countries, upon losing a war, or by having arms embargos or sanctions placed on them. Likewise, nations that violate international arms control agreements, even if claiming to be acting within the scope of their national sovereignty, may find themselves with a range of penalties or sa nctions regarding firearms placed on them by other nations. National and regional police and security services enforce their own gun regulations. For example, the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) supports the United States’ International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR) program â€Å"to aggressively enforce this mission and reduce the number of weapons that are illegally trafficked worldwide from the United States and used to commit acts of international terrorism, to subvert restrictions imposed by other nations on their residents, and to organized crime and narcotics-related activities. The issue of firearms has, at times, taken a high-profile position in United States culture and politics. Mass shootings (like the Columbine High School massacre, Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting and Virginia Tech massacre) have continually ignited political debates about gun control in the United States. According to a 2012 CNN/Opinion Research Corporation poll, 10% of Americans support banning all guns except for police and authorized personnel, 76% support gun ownership with some restrictions, and 10% support gun ownership with no restrictions. Michael Bouchard, Assistant Director/Field Operations of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, estimates, there are 5,000 gun shows annually in the United States. In 1959, the Gallup poll showed that 59% of Americans supported banning handgun possession. In 2011, the Gallup poll showed that 26% supported banning handgun possession. In 1990, the Gallup poll showed that  78% of Americans supported stricter laws on gu n sales than existed at the time, 17% felt the laws were fine as they were, and 2% supported less strict laws. In 2011, the Gallup poll showed that 43% supported stricter laws on gun sales, 44% felt the laws were fine as they were, and 11% supported less strict laws. In 2001, the Gallup poll showed that 51% of Americans preferred that current gun laws be enforced more strictly. In 2011, it was 60% (Gallup politics). A 2009 CNN/ORC poll found 39% favored stricter gun laws, 15% favored less strict gun laws, and 46% preferred no change. CNN reported that the drop in support (since the 2001 Gallup poll) came from self-identified independents and Republicans, with support among Democrats remaining consistent. There is a sharp divide between gun-rights proponents and gun-control proponents. This leads to intense political debate over the effectiveness of firearm regulation. Democrats are more likely to support stricter gun control than are Republicans. In an online 2010 Harris Poll, of Democrats, 70% favored stricter gun control, 7% favored less strict gun control, and 14% preferred neither. Of Republicans, 22% favored stricter control, 42% favored less strict control, and 27% preferred neither (Krane 1-2). In the same 2011 Gallup poll, 55% of Republicans and Republican-leaning independents had a gun in their household compared to 40% of Democrats and Democratic-leaning independents. Of Republicans an d Republican-leaners, 41% personally owned a gun. Of Democrats and Democratic-leaners, 28% personally owned a gun (Gallup politics). Incidents of gun violence and self-defense have routinely ignited bitter debate. 12,632 murders were committed using firearms and 613 persons were killed unintentionally in 2007 (CDC 89). Surveys have suggested that guns are used in crime deterrence or prevention around 2.5 million times a year in the United States (LaPierre 23). In 2004, the NAACP filed suit against 45 gun manufacturers for creating what it called a â€Å"public nuisance† through the â€Å"negligent marketing† of handguns, which included models commonly described as Saturday night specials. The suit alleged that handgun manufacturers and distributors were guilty of marketing guns in a way that encouraged violence in black and Hispanic neighborhoods. The NAACP lawsuit and several similar suits, some brought by municipalities seeking reimbursement for medical cost associated with  criminal shootings were dismissed in 2003. Gun-rights groups, most notably the National Rifle Association, portrayed it as â€Å"nuisance suits,† aimed at driving gun manufacturers (especially smaller firms) out of business through court costs alone, as damage awards were not expected. These suits prompted the passage of the Protection of Lawful Commerce in Arms Act (PLCAA) in October 2005. On January 22, 2013, Congressman Adam Schiff introduce d a bill in U.S. House of Representatives to counter the PLCAA, the The Equal Access to Justice for Victims of Gun Violence Act. CONCLUSION Since the days of the pioneers, guns have been around as part of the tradition in countries such as the United States of America (USA), Switzerland and Canada. In recent years, issues concerning the ownership and possession of private guns have become a hotly debated topic in these societies because of the rapid growth of gun crimes. However, guns are still valuable for self-defence. Allowance of private gun ownership can decrease crime rates and a gun abolition policy will produce unwanted outcomes to society. One of the arguments against banning private gun ownership is that allowing private use of guns is effective for self-protection. If a person carries a weapon, it can be used as self-defence against criminals. It is believed that citizens who are unarmed have higher chances to be targeted and assaulted by criminals as most lawbreakers would want to reduce their risks when committing crimes. The supporters of total gun confiscation argue that police who are allowed to carry fir earms will be able to stop the crimes. Americans are finally beginning to have a serious discussion about guns. One argument we’re hearing is the central pillar of the case for private gun ownership: that we are all safer when more individuals have guns because armed citizens deter crime and can defend themselves and others against it when deterrence fails. Those who don’t have guns, it’s said, are free riders on those who do, as the criminally disposed are less likely to engage in crime the more likely it is that their victim will be armed. When most citizens are armed, as they were in the Wild West, crime doesn’t cease. The criminals get better. There’s some sense to this argument, for even criminals don’t like being shot. But the logic is faulty, and a close look at it leads to the conclusion that the United States should ban private gun  ownership entirely, or almost entirely. One would think that if widespread gun ownership had the robust deterrent effects that gun advocates claim it has, our country would be free of crime than other developed societies. But it’s not. When most citizens are armed, as they were in the Wild West, crime doesn’t cease. Instead, criminals work to be better armed, more efficient in their use of guns (â€Å"quicker on the draw†), and readier to use them. When this happens, those who get guns may be safer than they would be without them, but those without them become progressively more vulnerable. Gun advocates have a solution to this: the unarmed must arm themselves. But when more citizens get guns, further problems arise: people who would once have got in a fistfight instead shoot the person who provoked them; people are shot by mistake or by accident. And with guns so plentiful, any lunatic or criminally disposed person who has a sudden and perhaps only temporary urge to kill people can simply help himself to the contents of Mom’s gun cabinet. Perhaps most important, the more people there are who have guns, the less effective the police become. As more private individuals acquire guns, the power of the police declines and personal security becomes a matter of self-help. For the police to remain effective in a society in which most of those they must confront or arrest are armed, they must, like criminals, become better armed, more numerous, and readier to fire. But if they do that, guns won’t have produced a net reduction in the power of the government but will only have generated enormous private and public expenditures, leaving the balance of power between armed citizens and the state as it was before, the unarmed conspicuously worse off, and everyone poorer except the gun industry. The logic is as more private individuals acquire guns, the power of the police declines, personal security becomes more a matter of self-help, and the unarmed have an increasing incentive to get guns, until everyone is armed. The logic of private gun possession is thus similar to that of the nuclear arms race. When only one state gets nuclear weapons, it enhances its own security but reduces that of others, which have become more vulnerable. The other states the n have an incentive to get nuclear weapons to try to restore their security. As more states get them, the incentives for others increase. If eventually all get them, the potential for catastrophe whether through irrationality, misperception, or accident is great. Each state’s security is then much lower than it would  be if none had nuclear weapons. But, as with nuclear weapons, we would all be safer if no one had guns or, rather, no one other than trained and legally constrained police officers. Gun advocates sometimes argue that a prohibition would violate individuals’ rights of self-defense. Imposing a ban on guns, they argue, would be tantamount to taking a person’s gun from her just as someone is about to kill her. But this is a defective analogy. Although a prohibition would deprive people of one effective means of self-defense, it would also ensure that there would be far fewer occasions on which a gun would be necessary or even useful for self-defense. Guns are only one means of self-defense and self-defense is only one means of achieving security against attack. It is the right to security against attack that is fundamental. In other Western countries, per capita homicide rates, as well as rates of violent crime involving guns, are a fraction of what they are in the United States (New York Times). Gun advocates claim it has nothing to do with our permissive gun laws or our customs and practices involving guns. If they are right, should we conclude that Americans are simply inherently more violent, more disposed to mental derangement, and less moral than people in other Western countries? If you resist that conclusion, you have little choice but to accept that our easy access to all manner of firearms is a large part of the explanation of why we kill each at a much higher rate than our counterparts elsewhere. REFERENCES Mcmahan J. The Stone: Why Gun ‘Control’ Is Not Enough. The New York Times December 19, 2012, 1:03 pm. http://opinionator.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/12/19/why-gun-control-is-not-enough/. 5th April 2013. Kellermann A. L., Rivara F. P., Somes G., Reay D. T. â€Å"Suicide in the Home in Relation to Gun Ownership.† New England Journal of Medicine 327.7 (1992): 467-72. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/1308093. 10th April, 2013. Villaveces A., Cummings P., Espitia V. E., Koepsell T. D. â€Å"Effect of a Ban on Carrying Firearms on Homicide Rates in 2 Colombian Cities.† Journal of the American Medical Association 283.9 (2000):1205-9. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/10703790. 10th April, 2013. Wintermute, G. J., Teret S. P., Kraus J. F., Wright M. A., and Bradfield, G. (1987). â€Å"When Children Shoot Children.† Journal of American Medical Association 257.22 (1987): 208-209. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1025799/. 7th April, 2013. Zimring, F. E. â€Å"Firearms, Violence and Public Policy.† Scientific American (November 1991). Brad Plumer. â€Å"The economics of gun control†. The Washington Post December 28, 2012 at 3:42 pm. http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/wonkblog/wp/2012/12/28/the-economics-of-gun-control/. 7th April, 2013. Snyder J. â€Å"Nation of Cowards: Essays on the Ethics of Gun Control†. Saint Louis: Accurate Press, 2001. i-ii. Print. Halbrook S.P. That Every Man be Armed: The evolution of a Constitutional Right. 2nd ed., The Independent Institute, Oakland, 1994. 108. Print. Welford, C.F. Firearms and Violence: A Critical Review. Washington D.C.: National Academies Press, 2004. Print. Hemenway, David (2011). â€Å"Risks and Benefits of a Gun in the Home†. American Journal of Lifestyle Medicine 5.6(2011): 502–511. http://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/753058_2. 10th April, 2013. Wiebe, Douglas (2003). â€Å"Homicide and suicide risks associated with firearms in the home: A national case-control study†. Ann Emerg Med 41.6(2003): 12. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/12764330. 10th April, 2013. Martin Killias. â€Å"Gun Ownership, Suicide and Homicide: An International Perspective† 1993. http://www.unicri.eu/documentation_centre/publications/series/understanding/19_GUN_OWNERSHIP.pdf . 10th April, 2013. Bjerregaard, B. and Alan J. L. (1995). â€Å"Gun Ownership and Gang Membership†. Journal of Criminal Law and Criminology 86.1(1995): 37–58. http://www.saf.org/LawReviews/BjerregaardAndLizotte.htm. 10th April, 2013. National Center for Injury Prevention and Control. â€Å"Nonfatal Injury Reports â €Å". Web-based Injury Statistics Query and Reporting System, December 7th 2012(WISQARS). CDC. www.cdc.gov/ncipc/wisqars. 10th April, 2013. Cook J. P. and Ludwig J. The social costs of gun ownership. Journal of Public Economics 90 (2006): 379–391. www.elsevier.com/locate/econbase. Lott, John R.Jr., â€Å"More Guns, Less Crime: Understanding Crime and Gun Control Laws†. Chicago Illinois: The University of Chicago Press, 1998. 50-122.

Ownership and location of Tesco and McDonalds Essay

There are many different types of business ownership. The four main privately owned enterprises are: Sole traders – owned and run by one person. Partnerships – owned and run by two or more people. Private limited companies – often a business run by a family protected by limited liability. Public limited companies – large organisations whose shares are floated on the stock exchange. In addition there are two other types: Co-operatives – where a group of people run the enterprise together and share the profits or loses. Franchise – where a large organisation allows a person to sell its products and use its name in exchange for a fee and a share of the profits. All privately owned enterprises are able to be divided into two groups: Those with unlimited liability – sole traders and partnerships Those with limited liability – all companies, some franchise and some co-operatives. Unlimited liability means that the owners are responsible for all the debts. They may even have to sell personal possessions to pay them. If this is not possible then they will declared bankrupt. Limited liability restricts the responsibility of being responsible for all you debts. You only have to pay the debts to the limit of what was invested. Not usually do they have to sell their personal possessions. There are many different advantages and disadvantages to all different types of ownership: Sole traders – owned and run by one individual. Advantages: * The owner has full control of the business and all of its profits. * All profits go to the owner. * The owner can make decisions independently without the need to consult anybody else. * Can easily create a report with customer. * Has the ability to exploit niche market. * No Set up for procedures. Disadvantages: * The owner has unlimited liability. * The profits get ploughed back into the business. * To expand the business, financing needs to be found. Partnerships – Owned and run by two or more people. Advantages: * The responsibility of running and managing the company is shared between the two partners. * Access to a wider range of skills. * More ideas and strategies. * Capitals from the partners can bring in more capital and expansion is possible. * Greater ability to gain bank loans/ financial backing. * No need to file accounts for the public. Disadvantages: * Partnerships have unlimited liability. * If a partner leaves or he/ she is not for filling his/ her position it could affect the business. * A decision has to be made a partner can take it upon his/ her self to make the decision and not consult the other partners. Private limited companies – Often a family run business with the protection of limited liability. Advantages: * Shareholders who own the company may have limited liability. * Business finances and the owner’s finances are separate. * Can take more risks due to limited liability * Usually shareholders are closely involved with the running of the business. * Can raise capital more easily. * More professional appearance: more internal structure. Disadvantages: * Shares can only be sold with the permission of the shareholders. * Shares cannot be sold to the public. * Due to their internal structure more formalities arise. * Larger overhead costs of running the companies. Public limited companies – large organisations whose shares are floated on the stock exchange. Advantages: * Shareholders who own the company have limited liability. * Business finances and the owner’s finances are separate. * Shares can be bought and sold on the stock exchange. * Greater ability to raise further capital and expand resources. * Additional shares can be issued for more funding. * More professional appearance. Disadvantages: * There is a danger of being taken over by another company with the trade of shares. * Less flexible in structure. * More formalities when dealing with decision making. * Larger overhead costs of running the company. Franchise – this is a large company who you pay to use the name of. Advantages: For the franchisee * You will own a business that is already running which means it is nearly a guaranteed success. * You will own an already established company. * Capital should be easier to raise because you will be operating under a well known name. * The franchiser will give advice foe the business running and equipment. For the franchisor * They have the possibility to expand very quickly. * It is easier to expand in foreign countries because you would be selling a franchise to somebody that knows the location, language and people. Disadvantages: For the franchisee * Start up cost so you can use the branded name is very expensive. * A set percentage of your profit will go to the franchiser and you will have to buy your equipment and products from them. * You have to stick to the business’ core activities. For the franchisor * They do not have full control over the organisation. Ownership of Tesco. Tesco unlike McDonalds is a public limited company (PLC). Tesco is a PLC because it is on suck a large scale. A group of partners would not be able to afford funding the company and it is highly unlikely they could get big enough loans, because Tesco is a PLC the shareholders fund the company. The shareholders fund the company by simply buying shares. Investors buying shares in Tesco would feel safer buying because they will get limited liability. This means that only money that has been invested can be lost if Tesco fails. The shareholders do not get a profit from Tesco; they make their money buy selling that shares for more than they originally paid. The advantages that Tesco have of being a PLC are; there is a limited liability for Tesco and all shareholders and it is much easier for Tesco to raise funds. The disadvantages are; Tesco cannot make business decisions instantly because they need to confront company directors and major shareholders and the business can be taken over if somebody buy 51% of shares. I think that this type of ownership is the most appropriate for Tesco because they may need to raise capital fast and they don’t need to be making rash decisions. Ownership of McDonald’s. McDonald’s is a franchise company which is completely different to Tesco’s PLC ownership. A franchise company allows people who currently have nothing to do with McDonald’s to buy a restaurant and use the already well established McDonald’s name. This means that McDonalds do not need to fund their own company, the franchisees will do this. McDonalds have limited liability just like Tesco, meaning that McDonald’s and franchisees can only loose investments. The advantages of McDonald’s having this type of ownership for the franchisor are; having the possibility to expand rapidly and the advantage for the franchisee are; you will own a business that is already running which means it is nearly a guaranteed success, you will own a business that is already established, capital should be easier to raise because you will be operating under a well known name and you will have free business advice from the franchisor. The disadvantage for the franchisor is; you do not have full control over the business and the disadvantages for the franchisee are; start up cost so you can use the branded name is very expensive, a set percentage of your profit will go to the franchiser and you will have to buy your equipment and products from them and you have to stick to the business’ core activities. I think that this type of ownership is a good choice of ownership for McDonalds because they do not have to do research on locations because franchisees will do this. Also McDonalds will be expanding rapidly and they do not have the risk of failing their business. They will be making profits when they aren’t even setting up there restraints. Location. Tesco Location. To investigate Tesco’s location I am going to select a small town and a large city to compare how Tesco locate their stores under different circumstances. Some of the different circumstances I am going to look at are; the size of the area in hand and the population. The town I have selected is Pembroke Dock and the city I have selected is London. Populations: Population of Pembroke Dock: Population 8,676 Post town PEMBROKE DOCK Postcode district SA72 [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pembroke_Dock] Population of London. Population – Total – Density Ranked 2nd 7,512,400[1] (mid-2006) 4,758/kmà ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½ (mid-2006) [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Greater_London] Tesco locate their stores where there is a good ratio between population and competing stores. This is because it is highly unlikely Tesco could run a successful store next to an Asda store where the population of the town is 500 people. So it is important that Tesco choose their location wisely because building unsuccessful stores can be very expensive for Tesco. Tesco generally locate their stores on the outskirts of towns, as you can see on the below maps. Land in this area can range from à ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½60,000 for a plot of land where Tesco would not be able to fit a store on up to à ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½250,000 where you still wouldn’t be able to fit a store. Offers in Excess of à ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½60,000 Building Plot at Cannons Lane, Pennar, Pembroke Dock, Pembrokeshire, Pembrokeshire à ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½250,000 Plot 15 Barnlake Point, Burton, SA73 Because I cannot find land that is big enough for Tesco to build a store on with adequate room for parking as well as loading bays I don’t feel as though I can comment on the cost of land in this area. Another Tesco stores location; when I typed in London on the Tesco store locator it came back with 110 stores. This tells me that Tesco locate many stores in big cities to meet the needs of big populations. McDonalds Location. McDonalds is a franchise so it is not actually McDonalds that choose the locations of all restaurants. But the franchisors will try to locate in busy shopping areas. I am going to pick a good and a bad example of McDonald’s location and explain why I feel they are bad. On the below maps I am showing where McDonald’s have recently set up a new restaurant in Pembroke Dock next to the Tesco store. On both maps on the previous page you can see that the locations McDonalds have chosen both are competitor free. By this I mean that in both locations there are no other competing restaurants. This is good because McDonalds do not have to worry about losing custom to other restaurants. Also on the maps on the previous page the McDonalds stores are in the middle a community. This means it should be relatively easy to find employees. This is because they are in the middle of two large populations. The populations of Haverfordwest and Pembroke Dock are: Population of Pembroke Dock: Population 8,676 Post town PEMBROKE DOCK Postcode district SA72 [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pembroke_Dock] Population of Haverfordwest: Population 10,808[1] Post town HAVERFORDWEST Postcode district SA61, SA62 [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Haverfordwest] The populations of these towns are on a reasonably large scale, so I think that it would be easy for McDonald’s to find employees. As you can see from the maps on the previous page these stores are very close to raw material and have good travel systems around them. I think that they are in prime locations for travelling and raw materials. McDonalds will have a lot of choice for land because of the area in hand. It has a lot of undeveloped areas in the towns. In Pembroke Dock there is now a new plot that already has a building on that McDonalds could take up. I think that this would be a more suitable location because they will be attract the custom that comes across the bridge. The ring on the left of the above map is where McDonalds currently have a restaurant. The ring on the right of the above map is where property has become unoccupied. I think that McDonalds could relocate there restaurant here because there is a lot of traffic that come across the bridge and heads away from where the current restaurant is currently located. Although some traffic heads towards town more heads away. I have conducted my own survey to see how many cars that comes across the bridge head towards Carew and Pembroke and how many head toward Pembroke Dock over a one hour interval. Below is my table of results that I recorded. Towards Pembroke Dock. Towards Pembroke and Carew. [http://www.thedock.org.uk/Council%20Data/Pem_Dock_Traffic_Generators_2008%5B1%5D.pdf] Both Tesco and McDonalds could use this