U.S Foreign Policy on Pakistan Essay Example for Free

U.S Foreign Policy on Pakistan EssayThe United States foreign policy on Pakistan has been the subject of legion(predicate) reviews and the disparate and often unambiguous viewpoints articulated by Journalists and others have painted a portrayal of a country facing gargantuan challenges and in fearsome need of a coherent U. S. policy that will help to pull it from the brink of nuclear abyss. Pakistan is one of the most populous countries in the world and shares sidestep with Iran, Afghanistan, China and India.It is a nation of diverse culture and different ethnic groups. Pakistan was an Ally of the United States in the 1980s the period during which the Soviets were waging war in populate Afghanistan. Relationship soured when the Taliban, an Islamic terrorist group, ruled Pakistan during 1996 2001. However, the relationship between the two countries improved after the September, 11, 2001 terrorist attacks in the United State and Pakistan has direct become an consort in the bout against terrorists.The United States policy towards Pakistan cannot be viewed in isolation as Pakistan is seen as a vital country that can lend perceptual constancy to a region fraught with war and ethnical disagreements. Pakistan has nuclear capabilities and there is a grave concern pertaining to nuclear proliferation The hope is that terrorists will not assume their hands on nuclear material from that country. Terrorists associated with the Taliban have been using parts of Pakistan as a base to launch terrorist attacks.Helene barrel maker, writing in The New York times on sue 8, 2009, articulated that experts in the region feel that the United States may need to have conversations to leaders of the Taliban if it is serious just about gaining peace and stability in Pakistan and surrounding countries. This is at odds with the stated policy of the Bush administration of not having dialogs with terrorists. Cooper cites a new thrust by the new Obama administration to appr oach elements within the Taliban. United States Policy focus and changes are closely linked to concerns to not just about the Taliban, but in any case concerns about Al radix.Mark Mazzetti and David Rohde article in The New York times of June 30, 2008 posit the grave concerns regarding the Al Qaeda threat to Pakistan, the United States and other nations. Osama Bin Laden, the intriguer of the horrific attacks on the United States on September 11, 2001, has been expanding his network in Pakistan and the journalists quoted intelligence sources detailing Osamas activities. The Journalists opined that there were serious missteps on the part of upper-case letter and Islamabad concerning Policy agreements.The journalist also said that there was a secret US plan using Special Operation forces to launch missions into Pakistan to pay back and kill the leaders of Al Qaeda. Carlotta Galls article in the New York Times of March 11, 2009 provided further evidence of a paradigm suspension in US policy towards Pakistan. Hardliners in the Taliban, such as Gulbuddin Hekmatyar is reported to have softened his stance of demanding the exodus of all US troops from Pakistan and is now more willing to attend talks.American Officials are not commenting on negotiations with the Taliban however feedback from diplomats in Kabul shows that the United States has grown more receptive to negotiations. Helene Cooper and Sheryl Stolberg insightful article in the New York Times of March 7, 2009 also posit that the new Obama administrations shift in policy concerning Pakistan would also mean a willingness to engage moderate elements of the Taliban. The US successfully engaged militant Sunni Militias in Iraq which led to a diminution in violence in that country.The Journalist feels that the new administration wants to adopt and translate this Policy to Pakistan. The US policy towards Pakistan has evolved over time and the journalistic views have painted a picture of dynamic and ever changin g dialog. Steve Myers article in The New York times dated July 29, 2008 speaks of President George Bushs praise for Pakistans determination to fight extremists along its borders and the allies seem to be working together again.Work CitedCooper, Helene and Sheryl Gay Stolberg.Obama Ponders Outreach top Elements of Taliban. New York Times. March 7, 2009 WK1. Cooper, Helene. Dreaming of splitting the Taliban. New York Times. March 8, 2009 WK1. Gall, Carlotta. As Us Weights Taliban Negotiations, Afghans are already talking. New York Times. March 11, 2009 A8. Myers, Steve L. Bush Praises Pakistan Just Hours After US Strike. New York Times. July 29, 2008 Mazzetti, Mark and David Rohde. Amid US Policy Disputes, Qaeda grows in Pakistan. New York Times. June 30, 2008.

Feminist Movement Essay Example for Free

Feminist Movement EssayFeminism is a significant theme addressed in legion(predicate) literary works of the contemporary period. In the 1800s and early 20th century, many women were oppressed and denied the right to equal opportunities that men were granted. However, after the active and significant role women vie in World War II, a drastic change occurred. Women began to play a more respected and crucial role in society. Many women inclined their expected roles as housewives and mothers and looked for other valued opportunities. This societal shift became a political movement and spawned the social theory of feminism. There was a momentous attempt for equal rights.Women were motivated to eliminate the gender stereotyped roles that were hindering their progression in society. Women began to openly voice their beliefs on equality. They fought for social, political, and economic equality. This movement inspired many female writers to challenge the sexist ideologies held agains t women and advocate the right for equality in their poems, stories, and novels. Two significant contemporary libber writers of this period are Margaret Adeuceod and Sally Ito. Atwood and Itos literary works stress female empowerment, equality, celebrate womanhood, and portray the importance of the female role in society.Margaret Atwood conveys powerful and passionate feminist themes, issues, and conflicts through many of her literary works. Atwood portrays a realistic view and illustration of women in society, focusing on the ways in which females are hindered and victimized by gender-typing and stereotypes. In the prose, Happy Endings, Atwood mocks and argues against the handed-down fairy tale of the ideal race between men and women. She challenges the stereotypical causeization of men and women through different scenarios, using satire to poke frolic at societys flawed misconceptions about relationships between the sexes. In scenario A, the ideal husband and wife, stern and Mary, live happily in their nice house, have interesting careers, two children, an active social life, and are able to retire living out the rest of their life happily (Atwood). Atwood mocks this scenario as the fairy tale life and argues that it is wild to the lives of contemporary families and relationships.In another scenario, Atwood tackles the challenging task of displaying a more realistic relationship and the appalling way in which women are sometimes treated. Atwood illustrates thecharacter of Mary as weak and regarded by John as an object. Mary worries about pleasing John and is determined to get his attention by preparing him dinner and looking nice for him. John, however, does not care about Mary and . . . merely uses her body for selfish pleasure and ego gratification of a tepid bod (Atwood). Mary counts that she can use sex as a weapon to hold on to John. She is blinded by her love for him and refuses to accept or believe that she is treated badly by John. Atwood s tates that, John goes out the door with hardly so much as a good-night and three days later he turns up at six oclock and they do the whole thing over again (Atwood). Mary is trapped in a vicious loveless rhythm with John.She is unable to find the strength to break this cycle and fears she is nothing without John. In another scenario, Atwood addresses freedom in relationships and the notorious double-standard theory. Mary is stuck in a relationship between two men, John and James. John is an older married man having an affair with Mary, but is in love with her. James is a wild boylike man free from lifes commitments. Mary is not impressed by John, but is infatuated by James free and unbridled life. James is often outside(a) seeing the world upon the seat of his flashy motorcycle. Atwood states that, Freedom isnt the same for girls, so in the meantime Mary spends Thursday evenings with John.Thursdays are the only days John can get away (Atwood). Marys life is insignificant and she is stifled into planning her life around John and James. This scenario displays the subservient and obedient roles women were expected to take on in many relationships. In the remaining scenarios of Atwoods prose, Happy Endings, two other characters are introduced, Fred and Madge. These characters illustrate more practical and equal roles in the male-female relationship. Atwood erases the sexist ideologies against women in these scenarios, concluding that whatever the relationship story may be . . . the endings are the same however you slice it (Atwood). The reality is men and women both die and that in life, women should not be considered submissive idealists.Sally Ito also celebrates womanhood and feminism in many of her literary works. Ito voices strong feminist themes, depicting women as empowering and get figures. She centers much of her writing on portraying women realistically and commemorating the bonds shared by women. In the poems,Sonata for Three Sleeping Women and Sist ers of the Modern Mind, Ito honors the bonds of sisterhood and links the various stages and experiences of a womans life. The poem, Sonata for Three Sleeping Women, illustrates Itos feminist view of the remarkable journey from girlhood into womanhood.Ito relates the innocence and purity of childhood to a peacefully sleeping child, . . . conceive of of the nights darkness passing in grace of he who answers prayers forever (Ito). The child breathes easy and gently, sheltered from the world and its pain. Ito compares new love and passion to a three-year-old woman tensely sleeping anticipating, . . . the brink of loves summation (Ito). A picture is painted of the dreams of many young women and the beauty of everlasting love. Ito describes old age as the realization that life is not forever and the significance of every night and breath. Darkness signifies the end of each day and women are able to cherish their memories and straight breath for breaths sake (Ito).In the poem, Sisters o f the Modern Mind, Ito describes the special and unique bond of sisterhood. She conveys that, in life, women can take many different courses. Some women are stirred up by the need for knowledge and intellectual growth. Other women seek out stimulating careers, while others long for the love and nurturing bonds of motherhood. Women have the freedom to take on many of these roles in society and are not to be hindered or pigeonholed into one stereotypical category. The diverse stages and paths of life are what link women together as sisters. Ito reveals that, . . . time and anatomy still wear at our bones like the tide upon the sand that tosses the jeweled shells, you and I, sisters, of the wave (Ito, 188). Women are affected the same by time and the experience of lifes journey. This is what Ito emphasizes as the remarkable bond of sisterhood.The literary works by Margaret Atwood and Sally Ito convey a very powerful, realistic, and feminist view of women in the contemporary period. Th ey honor and celebrate womanhood in many of their writings helping to eliminate the sexist ideologies held against women in society. Atwood and Ito were significantly inspired by the feminist movement and its impact on modern society. Their literary works signify the crusade for equal rights and pay tribute to the emancipated female in contemporary times.

Eye Tracking in Usability Evaluation

Eye Tracking in Usability EvaluationIn this lit review I defecate talked about experiments conducted on usability of various inter slopes and introductions using affection of tutelage- bring in. The authors of the papers focus on various types of marrow movements for usability evaluations like saccades, pupil dilation, fixation, s flush toiletpaths and so on Based on these measurements the try to infer the point/argona of interest of the drug users, point on entry, the cognitive load etc. about the user. These conclusions help in understanding the mindset of the users which can be generalised to a larger commonwealth within the proximity of condemnation and space and help in devising recommendations for better design of the interface.Benefits of eye bring in Eye tracking has many benefits. Using eye tracking methods for usability evaluation whizz can track how the users interact with a choken interface or environment. They help in measuring the effectiveness of a visua l chemical element on the interface. The measurements recorded can give an insight into the users mind while making a decision regrading searching or navigating an interface. This can be done by measuring what users ar implicated in, what they argon ignoring and what is distracting them from their current lines. They help in figuring out the Area of Interest which I a randomly shaped box that may withdraw some rendering or object or potential interest to the user. The quantitative nurture collected through with(predicate) eye tracking gives a visuals original usually in the form of heatmaps(hotspots) which help in better understanding the results. Eye tracking equipments utilize now-a-days like Tobii and SMI argon easy to set-up, calibrate and handle. They are unobtrusive and provided accurate real- while feedback. The fast passed usability testing of the software development industry, test conducted using eye tracking can of valuable and useful commentary providing be nefits what willing help the users.Eye Tracking in Usability Evalusation A practitioners Guide 1This paper is a general guideline on the use of eye tracking utilise for usability evaluation. The author talks about the specialists who conduct the convey, the metrics used with the testing, the protocol followed to conduct a test. They similarly talk about when eye tracking can come in handy as compared to the normal usability test which usually include heuristic evaluation, cognitive walkthrough, checklist, remoter-usability testing, click-tracking etc. The authors talk about the antithetical types of eye movements that are measured like saccades, fixation, pupil dilation, scanpaths etc. These movements provide a log of the visual attention of a user on the interface. It is also interesting to know that the eye tracking gadgets only track the movement of one eye, usually the dominant eye of the beholder.Saccades rapid eye movements.Fixation A linger at a point for more than 300ms .Scanpath established by the sequence of saccades and fixations.Most of the studies conducted analyzed the fixation pattern. Which can be realized through heatmaps. Red indicates the highest level of fixation followed by green yellow. The areas which are non colored drew no attention.F-Shaped Pattern for reading blade content4The author says that a eye tracking direct was conducted on 232 users on their reading behaviour on webpages. They open up a governing F shaped pattern which was steadfast among most of the users. The participants of the experiment were fond to first adhere a long horizontal compliments across the sort out, followed by a short horizontal gaze on the area below and finally giving a quick vertical scan of the content of the webpage. Occasionally on that point were a few cases of an E and an L shaped pattern but mostly F was dominant with variation in the placement of the horizontal bars. These patterns suggest hat usres dont read the text edition edition on a website line by line. They like to give a scan to see if any of the content available if of interest or not. such(prenominal) reading patterns suggest that first paragraph should contain important and catchy information. While scanning vertically users generally users generally read the first deuce words of the text.Visual Hierarchy and Viewing Behaviour An eye tracking study2The authors of this paper aim to suggest effective improvements in the design of a web page to eviscerate more users and to disperse important information in an effective expressive style. For this purpose, they break analyzed the gazing patterns of users. The author use up well-tried to decipher the undercoat behind the F shape conceive pattern by most users which could be due to the arrangements of element on the interface or the labor at hand. To test this they used 4 prototypes of a webpage with each having a different visual hierarchy. The prototypes differed in the form of being well structe d or not and 2 had images of pile and 2 did not. 48 participants were used for the study which were from different field of the industry and each one was given either a searching task or a browsing task on one of the 4 prototypes. Fixation patterns using heatmaps was used to analyze the data. It was found that users fixate more on the part of the page which is above the fold. The F shaped pattern was not apparent with any of the conditions as the website was more visually labyrinthine as compared to a text based simple website. The well structured and organized pages drew more attention. During searching users tend to gaze in a scattered manner with more focus on the left field side of the page where the navigation links are usually located. Browsing is less scattered with few fixations time and is usually defined within the center of the interface. Faces drew more attention only when they were placed above the fold of the page and during browsing. They concluded that these insigh ts into a users viewing pattern can help make better designs for different type of websites to attract users.No subjective ratings were used to access users comfort while relations with the different types of interfaces.Efficiency Trust and visual appeal Usability testing through eye tracking5The authors conducted a research on the efficiency, trust and visual appeal of a website and made recommendations on what kind-hearted of an interface would attract more customers to an e-commerce website and what type of user experience would make a first-time visitor a customer. The author believed that an element of social presence will give a more satisfying experience while navigating an automated website which lack humane warmth. This accompanied with a aesthetically pleasing interface will make the users trust the website more. To test this the authors came up with a set of tasks for the users and two hypothesis which were related to images of tidy sum on a website and the visual app eal of a website. 522 users were recruited for an online study and each of them were provided with a different prototype of a website. Users were asked the visual appeal and the level of trust on the website using seven point Likert scales. After performing p on the online study, authors concluded that websites with images of people are more visually appealing and in turn protract a higher level of trust. It was fond that the users conduct the search from left to right. The online study was followed by an eye tracking experiment to confirm the results of the online study. They used a count heat map and a fixation heatmap. 40 were recruited for the eye tracking experiment. The experiment confirmed that images of faces are more helpful in mechanical drawing attention.Gender Preferences in Web Design Usability Testing through Eye tracking6The authors of this papers tried to investigate the visual predilections of male and female users. They have tried to detect he noticeability of br icklets(small box containing useful information) based on their background colour images by male and female users. Since men and woman have different notion of attractiveness, an hypothesis was made on the noticeability of the different prototypes of the bricklets. Men have a tendency to like dusky colors and women have a tendency to like light color. 36 participants were chosen for the study out of which 17 were male and 19 were female. 4 type of bricklets were designed with dark and light background color and with and without images. Tasks were designed in such a way so that the users were tested on their ability to detect certain kind of bricklets. It was found that both male and female fixate less on images and more on the bricklets without images. Female users were attracted more towards the darker background bricklets and male users were not slanted towards a specific colour. The study concluded that what users find appealing is not necessary noticeable this was supported by the discrepancy in self narrative view and the fixation duration on the bricklets by the users.Generation Y and Web Design Usability through Eye tracking7The aim of the authors of this paper is to come up for better design recommendation for retail web sites to attract the millennial generation also knows as generation Y. This generation poses the strongest internet skills and spend more or less $200 a year on online retail. An hypothesis is made that Generation Y like large images preferably of celebrities and with search features and as little text as possible. Top 50 retail pages were selected. These pages were ranked on the characteristics posed by them based on the predilections of generation Y. A self report study and an eye tracking study was conducted to compare both the results. 99 participants were selected who possessed strong internet skills for the self report study. 9 participants were selected for the eye tracking experiment. The survey and the data provided by th e eye tracking device supported the hypothesis made.Eye tracking in Web Search Tasks Design Implications 3The authors of this paper conducted an eye tracking usability testing for a web portal application which was developed by Oracle portal software. Seven users were selected to complete six tasks for the study. The users came across 15 screens while completing their tasks and had to spend around 360 seconds to complete one task. The authors recorded the key presses and mouse clicks on the interface and eye movements like saccades and fixations and the dwell time on the Area of Interest were diligently recorded. Every task started with a set of scenario and required the user to perform them based on his understanding. The results in this study were not in the form heatmaps but rather in the form of screen bitmap files, fixation file and object file. These files were amalgamated to perform data analysis. The study was performed in a very systematic way. The authors studied the eye movements of the users at the task level and then at the screen level and then finally at the object level with the focus on Area of Interest. In-depth study was conducted regarding screen visits and distribution. The authors analyzed the pattern for navigating within and between portlets and concluded that there is an inclination for the users to notice the portlets on the left and the focal ratio part of the screen in view. The authors tried to discover a relationship between user action, convulsion sequence and the data derived from the eye movement.Age-related Differences in Eye Tracking and Usability Performance Website usability for Older Adults 8.The authors of this paper conducted usability study of websites through eye tracking to make design recommendations which keep in mind the needs and ease of usability and navigation of older adults. 5 websites were used for the experiment. And a comparison was made on how you and old people interact with the environment. Around 3- 7 young adults and 2-3 older adults were recruited. All of them a possessed a working knowledge about using the internet. The participants were given predefined tasks and their fixations were recorded using the unobtrusive eye tracking device. The participants also filled out a questionnaire to report their satisfaction level. It was found that older adults focus more on the center portion of the screen and ignore the information located on the peripheral areas. Cluttered periphery results in performance hindrance for the old users. The ignorance of the edge of the screen can be related to the cognitive decline encountered due to growing age. Older adults were less accurate and efficient as compared to younger adults. Older adults who are ususally unfamiliar with the environment get easily distracted by unnecessary elements.Seven users are very less as compared to the recommendation of 10-30 participants made by 1. There were often stements made by the authors that there is presentl y too little evidence to support the notion 3 suggesting that clearly 7 participants for the experiment was not enough and the results produced can be a threat to external validity. 1 also suggest to recruit 20% more participants in case there are problems with calibiratio of the equipment with the users. 2 used 48 users from different fields of the industry sector age not mentioned. 40 people in 5. 6 99 participants were recruited. 8 small issue forth of users. Limits on generalizations made.Users were tested for their visual acuityThe users were made to sign demographic, consent and disclosure forms.The authors conducted initial training tasksThey used a head mounted system. Although these systems are in effect(p) for tasks which may require a corporation of head or body movement, they are obtrusive. They obstruct a certain portion of the of the field of view of the user and can interrupt a user in hi cognitive abut or task at hand as he is eternally reminded of a apparatus b eing setup on his head.Since this experiment was conducted in 2002 the eye tracking instruments used that time were not technologically that advanced. Therefore, a lot of time and effort went into analyzing the data. Tape recorders were used to capture users comments and a video recorder was also used for in depth analysis.While conducting the experiment it was found that one of the users took very less time to complete the task as compared to others. The authors concluded that users learned about the interface while performing the tasks. But since one of the users showed less reaction to time to the given task at hand the inference suffers from a threat to internal validity because he possessed introductory knowledge about similar interface.Threats to generalizibilty as an intrusive setup was used.Dis advantages tedious, requires extensive data reduction, focus on micro-level behaviours, too much noise in the data. dozens of work required to narrow down on the data that is needed Eye tracking study is usually conducted where results of traditional software usability results are compared with that of the results from the eye tracking derived results. The traditional usability tests are usually done using five point Likert scale.In many experiments authors have concluded that users are inclined towards noticing the upper left side of the interface. It maybe possible that users in these experiments are used to languages that goes left to right and hence are natural disposed to look at the upper left side of the screen. If there experiments were conducted on a subset of population that are used to languages that go from right to left then there could have been different results.Most of the papers have conclude that users tend to ignore important information what is located at the bottom of the page which if below the fold. It could be father investigated that is that information is accompanied with an image of a person then would it attract users or not.While in vestigating the usability of an interface mostly two types of tasks were used browsing and searching. This is because it the viewing behaviours of the users change depending on their task. In searching the users try to find a point of entry into a page and then from their he scans the near the point of entry for relevant information.In the heatmap the areas that are red could be the point of entry for those elements of the interface and the yellow and green areas in the heatmap are the surrounding locations where the users try to locate relevant information.Since the search process is majorly influenced by the factors such as, images, color and text. Designers can make use of these factors to guide the searching process of the usersA trend was found that larger images attracts more attention as compared to smaller images. This can be used to attract user attention towards information that need immediate attention.Studies suggest that images of people tend to attract more attention. For 2 more prototypes of the web pages could have be formulated and compared to see if that was really true. waken maps are created using data from several participants and are used to analyze the pattern of fixation on an area on the interface.The findings in 2 are in contrast with the one in 4 where the author has concluded on a dominant F shaped pattern. It can be absorbed what for a text based website with a simple visual hierarchy an F shaped pattern of viewing is more visible but for websites that have a complex visual hierarchy the viewing pattern in more scattered although focusing a lot on the left side if the interface which again is dominated by the users reading style form left to right. Different results will most certainly be produced with users who are habitual in reading from right to left.In general websites with good visual appeal and easy navigation elicit trust worthiness and are major contributing factors towards an intensify user experience.5 says that when s ince images attract attention, can be used to draw users attention to important information below the fold of a page. But the author of 2 contradicts this by saying that even though images of human faces were placed below they fold they attracted very little attention.5 says that there is no effect of the gender of the image of the face on the website but in ? notice a lot re spots on the heat map over the images of a female. Also, further studies can be conducted to see male images are more appealing than female image and which gender of the images attract the male users and which gender of the images attract the female users.The analysis of the heat maps performed by 5 was more structured as they used a standardized heatmap. Such a map puts a limit on the number of fixations to be considered as a red zone across different prototypes.Although in 5 the authors conclude that users trust level can be enhanced by the increasing visual appeal it should be noted that visual appeal is not all that matters, functionality of a website also plays a major role.the authors of 5 said that users are attracted toward the area where the images of faces were located but little fixation on the images. This is opposed by ? where the authors have concluded that generation Y is then to fixate on the images of faces more. Then again the age difference between the participants in 5 was spread out therefore the two papers made contradictory statements. Also, since 5 is making recommendations for a e-commerce website which is mostly used by generation Y they could have narrowed down the are limit of the participants of the experiment.Papers 5 and 2 concluded that images of faces attract more attention but it maybe possible that images of different genre may be more effective. These images when paired with a lowers aesthetic quality webpage may not attract any attention at all.Keeping the ethical issues in mind ,, and did not made the users sign Informed consent form and no informati on is provided if the participants were briefed or not.7 suggest that generation Y is more attracted towards images of celebrities. But the study may fail external validity as it has not considered the population of the people who are not familiar with those celebrities. To extend this study a search task could have been given to the users to gain a more indepth understang of likes and dislikes of generation as done ny authorss in 2 and 3.7 conducted a research on generation Y but we know that baby boomers are constitute major part of the population that uses the internet. Results form 2, 7 and 5 can be combined to make recommendations for designs that would attract more users and increase user satisfaction. These designs would generally contain more images of faces, important information will be located on top left corner of the screen. To draw attention towards the part of the page below the fold images of celebrities can be used in an effective manner.Most studies concluded that users tend to focus on the left side of the interface but the studies conducted in8 concluded that older adults ignore the left navigation area. This suggests that younger users who are more familiar with the interface know where to look at for navigation but this lack of knowledge and experience deflect the performance of an older adult.To help out the tease out the age effect designers can do a dual placement where navigation information can be placed in the center and the peripherals of the screen.All the eye tracking studies performed were under a laboratory condition. Here the users are asked to perform task in which they might be interested. These results maybe different in a real world situation when users are performing tasks of their own interest and are aware that the are not being monitored.

The debate of nature versus nurture

The debate of nature versus nurtureDebate on nature versus nurture focuses on respective(prenominal)s innate attributes also known as innatism as compared to soulfulnessal experiences, also called empiricism, in influencing or determining personal differences in sort and physical traits. Nature relies on the biological/genetical composition of individuals in determining behavioural as well as physical attributes on an individual. Genes educate from the parents and are unique between persons. The nurture orientation in shaping an individual focuses on the influence on a contextual environment of an individual in determining the attributes and character to be developed (Cummings, 2008).IntroductionIn context of transsexual(prenominal)ity, the nature concept determines the contingency that a certain genetical conclave during fusion of sex chromosomes naturally predisposes an individual to homosexuality. The importee is that a homosexual is born so and as such, any form of disc rimination directed towards the homosexual is an issue of civil right since one did not choose to be so. On the other hand, the nurture concept displays homosexuality as a behavior instilled by the environment within which a person grows or interacts with. As such the parental, peer and other social environment, may turn over to homosexual attributes exhibited by an individual (Bozett, 1989). It can be easily understood that the physical distinctives are inherent from the parents, but its practically hard to comprehend that the behavior of an individual depends to the full on the behavior of the parents such that it is genetically inherited. Studies indicate that a nature-given talent, ability or attribute can be enhanced or inhibited by the environment in which a person grows in. As such both aspects of nature and nurture are in play in shaping an individual.sermonNatures influence on homosexualityAccording to Shaffer (2008), siblings do inherit various physical characteristics directly from the biological parents. The traits may include eye color, height as well as predisposition ailments that are physical. Drawing from this later statement, human beings can as well inherit certain rational traits and attributes from biological parents. noetic characteristics may include susceptibility to attacks by certain mental disorders. Homosexuality, a personality attribute, is a mental state within a person that urges the person to have intimate relationship with individuals of the same sex/gender. As such, the mind of a homosexual houses an acquired composition or an orientation. The orientation to homosexuality may be coined in the impropriety or the divergent thinking characteristics all of which can be inherited from the parents. Indeed what society inculcates to people deprives people of their possible autonomy and divergence in thinking that would have developed them to completely different people. According to Nardi Schneider (1998), there is a biologica l relationship between personality of sequential sibling and the parents. For example, extroversion, which is the social and outgoing character in a person and neuroticism, which is the moody and over sensitivity behavior in a person.Furthermore, researches indicate that schizophrenia which is a psychological disorder characterized by confusion, delusions and scattered thoughts is genetically inherited. In fact, if a family member has the disorder, there is a possibility of there being others in the lineage. In addition, major depressions and alcoholism, which are psychological disorders has also been found to be hereditary whether the social environment is changed or not, (Soble, 2002). There is therefore a possibility of a gene that is independent of the larger society and defies the society to manifest itself in homosexuality. It is however important to note that from the Minnesota registry and Australian cash register twin studies, only thirty eight and thirty percentage gay and lesbians respectively resulted from their twin brother/ sister being gay or lesbian (Brewer, 1999). From the studies, it can be deduced that the correlation is not perfect since it is not a hundred percent. As such, it may be suggested that genes influence indirectly, though on medium do not account for homosexuality sexual orientation. The aforementioned discussion leads to a conclusion that though the genetical passing over of human attributes contribute to homosexual habits still there is/are other aspects in play to homosexuality. As such, while dwarfs, supermen and superwomen can blame their physical characteristic wholly on genetical combination, homosexuals cannot. The indication is that homosexuality is partly contributed by a decision and choice for it. Choice and decision comes to play with environment exposure which depicts the larger aspect of nurture.Nurtures influence on homosexualityThe environment within which an individual grows and develops in has an influen ce on the resulting personality of such individuals (Mathew et al, 2003). Indeed, the development of language to be mouth is learnt from the interaction with the environment of an individual. The environment will include the physical as well as the social aspects of an individual. For example, a research conducted by Robinson in monetary 1982 on the influence of nurture to homosexuality had the following details.MethodologyThe participants included two hundred and eighty five gay and forty seven lesbians from arrogance association, a homosexual association in USA. Each participant received a questionnaire via mail, responded to it and mailed it back to the researchers. The questionnaire assessed the couple status, past family smell, demographic information as well as parental relationship with the individual respondents. The respondents were from diverse faith including Catholic, Protestant and atheism whose level of education was between high school and doctors degree levels.Fi ndings and discussionSeventy six percent of all respondents expressed their early life as full of care and love from their parents compared to twenty four percent who felt that their early life was unbearable. In addition, more than eighty percent expressed their parents approval of their behavior as they grew up as well as the current behavior as homosexuals. The findings reveal individuals whose family setups availed the care that children require while growing up. Socially, their parents supported them by offering approval of their conduct as they grew up. The implication is that homosexuality does not result from a neglected and unsociably individuals but from people who fit in the societal context. Furthermore, the participants expressed their parents satisfaction on the life and behavior of homosexuality that they had adopted. This further implies that homosexualitys acceptability was evident. The homosexuals who participated in this research indicate that the urge to homosexu ality was not as a result of a mental force beyond their control but as a choice that they had made. Their level of education indicates that they would have changed their sexual orientation if they wanted but their expertness was directed to making their relationship with homosexual partners stronger (Jones Yarhouse, 2000).).The deduction is that since homosexuality is a mental state in an individual and not a physical attribute, well-read individuals, if they wish, can change if they suspect the behavior is a vice. The position of the environment comes to play in the sense the homosexuals gain acceptance by the parents and numbers. Moreover the ghostlike faiths that represent a stronghold in many societies upheld homosexuality. Indeed, the support from the parents and the church accounts for a societys support. The aspects that the environment avails to human beings provide experiences for adoption in life (Schein Bernstein, 2008). These experiences work on the behavior of i ndividuals. If the contextual society do not support expression of some behavior, the only possibility that such behaviour would sprout is if the behavior is genetically inherited or if the individuals displaying it are strong enough to accept the deviant labeling from the society.ConclusionIn exploring the classification of factors that shape the behavior, many contemporary researches appreciate the role of both nature expressed in inherited genes as well as the nurture expressed as environmental experiences. Inherited mental characteristic need to be exercised and enhanced in the environment for it to be successfully propagated to the future generations. The culture which is the framework within which nurture takes effect definitely has a role to play in shaping up an individuals behavior. It is important for individuals to evaluate themselves and as independent entities compare their behavioral attributes to determine their compatibility with the environment. There may be instanc es when individuals display behaviour that is ideally unacceptable and hence such individuals would need to conform to the environment. In some other instances, individuals may need to explicitly beg off their traits if they are ideally acceptable to fit them into the contextual environment. Either way, the influence of the environment display natural ways of eliminating expression of behaviour that is harmful in the environment. The genesis of homosexuality and indeed its acceptability remains both a nature and nurture contribution until other studies find it different (Boswell, 1981).

The good shepherd

The groovy guardOur lesson this morning from Johns gospel concerns this idea of integrity. The butcher in our story probably turned many unalike shades of red when the gentlewoman asked him for both of the chickens since he had only one. He wasnt being too honest with her, he wasnt being too nice, and now he was caught in his lack of honesty. de bouncingrer is non talking most butchers this morning, but he is telling the people a parable about a vertical shepherd, a shepherd who was honest, caring, compassionate, and will to die to take c are of his sheep. savior is telling us something about himself, as he is the well(p) shepherd for our lives.He is telling us through this parable three things about himself as the good shepherd.deliverer uses this parable about shepherds because the people in his day knew the winning of career that a shepherd lived it was a difficult life, a hard life. A shepherd felt he had a calling from a modern age to tend sheep, so he spent his whol e young life learning how to care for the sheep, then the rest of his adult life concern the sheep, fighting off the animals who would eat the sheep, and sometimes fighting off robbers who would steal the sheep.It was a lonely life, a difficult life, but if a shepherd did his credit line well everyone would know that he was a good shepherd. rescuer uses what the people would understand, a parable about shepherds to tell us something about himself, that he is the good shepherd of our lives.But before we pull in what is good about the good shepherd, we need to look at this word good In the Greek lyric poem, which was the language the New Testament was written.There are two words that backside be translated into our English word good, the first agathose which implies a moral and efficient case about a person. A person is good because they can perform their signed task well.But there is an other word that also way good and. it is kalos, it not only means what the other did, but it adds the quality of loveliness, or attractiveness to it. It is the kind of goodness that makes us feel wanted and secure. messiah as the good shepherd or as one translation puts it the model shepherd brings to the job the strength and courage of an earthly shepherd, but also the qualities of beauty and kindness which helps us to call him friend.Now that we have laid the foundation for Jesus being the Good shepherd of our lives, the model shepherd, we can see what is so good about him why he is the model shepherd.First Jesus says that the good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep. A shepherd in Jesus day if he truly did his job with all of his being, and not just for the money would be willing and able to lay down his life for the sheep he was protecting.Jesus is telling us, he was willing to lay down his life for us, his sheep. He wasnt in it for the money or the glory, but Jesus would not flee when trouble came, he was willing to lay down his life, to sacrifice his life fo r us so that we night gain favour with the Father in heaven.There was a pastor who once visited a sheep ranch and saw a very strange lamb. It looked as though it had 2 heads and 8 feet. He asked the rancher about it. The rancher explained that one of their sheep had a baby but the mother died. They tried to give the orphan sheep to another mother-sheep but when she smelled it, she rejected it. Then they skinned the perfectly sheep and put the skin on the live lamb. Now the mother-sheep accepted the lamb as her own and cared for it,In a like manner, Jesus as the good shepherd died for us as the Lamb of God, and God accepts us because we are clothed with the Lambs robe of righteousness. Jesus was willing to lay down his life for us, so that we might have life, life with the Father and life for eternity. The good shepherd, who Jesus is, is willing to die for the sheep, so that the sheep can live. Jesus died for us freely so that we might life.Notice Jesus says that he laid down his li fe freely, no one takes his life, but he was willing to give his life for us. Jesus loves us enough, cares about us enough to die for us. He could have used his power to get out of dying for us, but he chose to struggle, to die, so that we might live. This is a powerful statement of the love, the mercy, the compassion, and the caring that Jesus our saviour has for each of us.Next Jesus says that the good shepherd knows his sheep. Knows his sheep by name.A young lady came to her pastors office trouble about this statement, How does Jesus know and is interest, in her personally. She asked, How can I believe that God is interested in what happens to me?The pastor replied, Look at your fingers. There are billions of finger tips in the world, but no others are like yours. Even your finger tips have had supernumerary attention from God.Yes, we are special God does care for each of us. This morning when you come to the table to eat and to drink, you are receiving a special invitation from God to partake in this meal, in a personal and individual way we come in physical contact with Jesus through his body and blood.God knows that we need this special time, this physical kindred with him to reassure us, to convince us, that he does love us, that he does care for us, and that he is interested in us as individual people.We are collectively Gods children, we collectively are the sheep of Jesus fold, hut individually we are also Gods children, and individually the sheep of Jesus fold. And as individuals, he is come to about us, he cares about us, he reaches his hand of grace individually into each of our lives.Each of us, all of us are unique people, who are special to God. We are special not because we are good, or righteous, or have somehow pleased God, but because God loves us as we are or in some ways in spite of what we are God still loves us. He showed us that by the sacrifice he had his son make on the cross for us. God is concerned about us from the hairs on ou r heads to the blisters on our toes. God through his good shepherd, Jesus Christ, loves us, cares about us, and wants his gracious will of love to be done in each of our lives.Finally as the good shepherd, Jesus tells us he gathers in concert his sheep into a fold. Jesus is telling us through his spirit he gathers us who belong to him. It is the work of the spirit to gather us together as the members of the body of Christ. It is the work of the spirit, to gather the body once a workweek to worship and praise God.Jesus knows this time we spend together once a week is very primal for our spiritual lives. It is during this time that we hear again the promises that God has made for us, it is here that we relive the life that Jesus lived on this earth. It is here that we encounter again and again the great love that God has for us. It is important that we come here often to be refreshed, to be renewed, to hear again about our God and the great love he has for us.As the good shepherd, Jesus says that it is important for him to gather the sheep together into a fold, but notice he doesnt stop with just the sheep that are immediately at hand, no he says that other sheep must be brought into this fold. The fold of sheep, the church, is always changing, promoteing, adding and loosing members. The fold is not a constant stern, but it is an alive place, a place where things happen, where changes are made, where people grow in faith, where people meet new people of faith, who help us to understand Gods love.The fold, or the church, is an ever changing, alive, growing place. It is the place where Jesus, through his spirit is alive. It is the place where we can encounter God through his spirit because he promises to be here with us as we gather in his name. God is here with us this morning, his spirit is here leading us in our worship of him.And as we leave to go back out to world Gods spirit will go with us, helping us with life, giving us direction giving us courage, g iving us his peace to cope with all the brokenness of life. Yes, the good shepherd gathers his sheep together in a fold, in the church, ch, because here, we are cared for, here te are feed, here we can learn from each other about faith, here we can help one another as we face all the difficulties-of life.Being in the fold, the church is important for the members.NOTICE ONE OTHER THING Jesus says about being in the fold. He says that as he calls sheep to the fold they will heed his role.They will listen to him. When we come to the fold, we come to listen to the voice of Jesus. We come to hear him, we come to encounter him. And notice Jesus says those of the fold will heed his voice. They will listen to him. Jesus is saying something here about responsibility, about our job as members of the fold, as members of the church. We are to listen to him. To obey what he says.Yes, Jesus is the good shepherd of our lives. He laid down his live freely for us, he knows each of us personally bec ause we are important to him, and he gathers us together in his fold, the church, so that we might listen to him.Yes, Jesus is the good shepherd, the one who leads us down the pathway of life. He is our guide, he is our companion, he is the one who will take care of us. Jesus is our good shepherd he is the one who loves us.

Galileo Galilei Essay -- Essays Papers

Galileo Galilei Galileo was born in Pisa along the Via del Cuore in 1564 to Vincenzo Galileo, a man inhabitn for his study of music, and Giuli Ammananti. When Galileo was ten he go to Florance.1 At eleven young Galileo was sent to Vallombrosa for school. At fifteen Galileo decided to be a monk, but because of his father gave up his ambition. In the late pass of 1581 Galileo entered the University of Pisa and embarked on a course of study in medicine. Studying the Aristotelian system, which states larger heavier objects from high places, Galileo became increasingly skeptical. Evidence of Galileos brilliance was assured when in 1583, he was attending service in the cathedral and he saw that the flames of the candles osculated back and fourth. It was upon this observation that the pendulum was built. Not having enough money and not having the skills required to hinderance at the University, they kicked him out. To get by, Galileo began tutoring students. His continuous work with mathematics led Galileo to go to Rome and visit the famous Jesuit mathematician Christopher Calvis. From there on out, Galileo was able to hob-knob with Italys mathematical elite. As Galileos acquaintances grew, so did his reputation. He went on to make lectures and speeches about his mathematical findings. Unfortunately by 1593 Galileo was in dept. To make up for his fiscal problems Galileo invented what we know as the thermometer. There was no money in this so Galileo worked at a university teaching ptolemy and kept his job tutoring for a fair price. succession passed and Galileo move from Giustina to a large three-story house behind the Basilica of San Antonio. Galileo still struggled to make ends meat, which also could be blamed on his mistress Marina... ..., Galileo was dumped with Michelangelos, his brothers, wife and septette kids in May of 1627. When in 1627 Ferdinand II became lord of Tuscany, Galileo was appointed o the council of 200. A year latter in 1630, Galileo finished the controversial Dialogue.Galileos keep drew much criticism and as a result, by January Galileo went away to be tried in court for believing in the important opinion. after(prenominal) much deliberation on the issue, Galileo was sentenced to imprisonment. Though given galore(postnominal) luxuries for a prisoner, Galileo was not allowed to speak or even carry out many of his notional ambitions.2 By Christmas of 1637 Galileo had gone blind and with all his illnesses was struggling just to live. Then on January 8, 1642 Galileo Galilei died.3 Sources 1 Field, Galileo Gaililei, 1 2 Reston, Galileo A Life, 7-282 3 Unknown, life story Galileo Galilei, 1 Galileo Galilei Essay -- Essays PapersGalileo Galilei Galileo was born in Pisa along the Via del Cuore in 1564 to Vincenzo Galileo, a man known for his study of music, and Giuli Ammananti. When Galileo was ten he moved to Florance.1 At eleven young Galileo was sent to Vallombrosa for school. At fifteen Galileo decided to be a monk, but because of his father gave up his ambition. In the late summer of 1581 Galileo entered the University of Pisa and embarked on a course of study in medicine. Studying the Aristotelian system, which states larger heavier objects from high places, Galileo became increasingly skeptical. Evidence of Galileos brilliance was assured when in 1583, he was attending service in the cathedral and he saw that the flames of the candles osculated back and fourth. It was upon this observation that the pendulum was built. Not having enough money and not having the skills required to stay at the University, they kicked him out. To get by, Galileo began tutoring students. His continuous work with mathematics led Galileo to go to Rome and visit the famous Jesuit mathematician Christopher Calvis. From there on out, Galileo was able to hob-knob with Italys mathematical elite. As Galileos acquaintances grew, so did his reputation. He went on to make lectures and speeches about his mathematical findings. Unfortunately by 1593 Galileo was in dept. To make up for his financial problems Galileo invented what we know as the thermometer. There was no money in this so Galileo worked at a university teaching ptolemy and kept his job tutoring for a fair price. Time passed and Galileo moved from Giustina to a large three-story house behind the Basilica of San Antonio. Galileo still struggled to make ends meat, which also could be blamed on his mistress Marina... ..., Galileo was dumped with Michelangelos, his brothers, wife and seven kids in May of 1627. When in 1627 Ferdinand II became lord of Tuscany, Galileo was appointed o the council of 200. A year latter in 1630, Galileo finished the controversial Dialogue.Galileos book drew much criticism and as a result, by January Galileo went away to be tried in court for believing in the Copernican opinion. After much deliberation on the issue, Galileo was sentenced to imprisonment. Though given many luxuries for a prisoner, Galileo was not allowed to speak or even carry out many of his creative ambitions.2 By Christmas of 1637 Galileo had gone blind and with all his illnesses was struggling just to live. Then on January 8, 1642 Galileo Galilei died.3 Sources 1 Field, Galileo Gaililei, 1 2 Reston, Galileo A Life, 7-282 3 Unknown, Biography Galileo Galilei, 1

The Haberdasher Essay -- Chaucer Essays

The HaberdasherThe orphan pilgrims of the Canterbury Tales appear to be quite interesting with their geere apiked (365). A snapshot of the guildsmen determines that the men were wealthy, aside of some type of brotherhood, and had wives that were socially upstanding. Now an argument arises when trying to decide whether or not the craftsmen were actually in a guild or not. recite supports my view that, not only were they in a guild, but it was legitimate, exclusive, and included only those with similar occupations.A haberdasher was amongst the corporation Chaucer mentions. During the medieval times, this hat overlord was probably using a cloth called chaperon to make hats. Both men and women wore these types of hats beaver hats became popular. Women also wore veils on their head to hide their hair (Britannica). At this point in history, there were no legal contracts. This became a problem when the townspeople needed credit to buy items and the craftsmen needed raw materials. The main resultant role was for the craftsmen to join guilds in an effort to boost their reputation.The solempne and greet fraternitee in whose livery Chaucer dressed the five Burgesses in the General Prologue of the Canterbury Tales was probably a craft fraternity (McCutchan 313). Guilds were very important forces in the fourteenth century. A haberdasher or any craftsman would join for personal establishment and membership also was the near frequently employed means of claiming such status in local society (Rosser 10). The fraternities served as a form of human relationship and inclusion amongst peers. The fictional kinship of a fraternity lent a moral force to the declarations of mutual respect sworn between the ... ... However, they are highly revered respected in the community and part of that is because of the product that they make. Clothing is a symbol for status, a political statement, and a first impression. exits CitedBoccaccio, Giovanni. T he Decameron. Garden city Garden City Publishing Company, 1930.Chaucer, Geoffrey. Canterbury Tales. Boston Houghton Mifflin Company, 1987.Harwood, Britton J. The Fraternitee of Chaucers Guildsmen. The Review of English Studies 39.155 (1988) 413-417.Hat. Encyclopedia Britannica. 2003. Encyclopedia Britannica Online. 13 Nov 2003 http//search.eb.com/eb/article?eu=40311.Kirby, Thomas A. The Haberdasher and his Companions. Modern Language Notes 53.7 (1938) 504-505.Rosser, Gervase. Crafts, Guilds and the Negotiations of Work in the Medieval Town. Past and Present 154 (1997) 3-31.