My Spanish Dress and the Spanish Fair Essay -- Observation Essay, Descr

At eleven o'clock I am wishing my shoes did not have hobnails in them as I noisily tread down the tranquil street lined with four-o-clocks and horse stables. I try unsuccessfully to not let my footfalls disturb this peaceful night. Silently, I curse myself for deciding to wear this heavy Spanish dress loudly swishing at my ankles. Agitated, I tug at my hair and red shawl. At the comer a rainbow of people spreads out before me. The appetizing aromas of warm bread, seafood, and sherry surge over me and instill a craving. Vibrant colors reflect from the resplendent dresses my friends wear. We greet each other with two kisses and saunter under an arch of lights to the Spanish Fair, la Feria. From the left, screams of delight ascend from the rides on the other side of the Feria. We continue strolling on the gritty dirt road lined with stucco buildings called casetas. From these buildings drift a stifled blend of music and laughter. Families assemble together while eating and telling stories. Children and teenagers are captivated, as their fathers and grandfathers relate (with exaggerated hand gestures) funny stories and old tales. Most men don riding attire: vests, riding boots, chaps, and black wide-brimmed hats. A few women are dressed traditionally as well, in long skirts, riding boots, and amazona jackets. Many more women wear Sevillana dresses like ours. Some even wear the exquisitely hand-embroidered silk shawls called mantones. These dresses have a Gypsy style, heavy with lace and fabric. We all have the same type of shoes although some are more broken in than others. My shoes are new and the stubborn leather constricts my feet. The hobnails, used as taps, make sli ght clicking sounds on the and dirt underfoot. We enter a... ...tly. My wrists rotate and I delicately twist my fingers in the moist air as my hand-made red and black dress swishes with each pass I make. The long fringes of my manton swing smoothly at my sides as I dance with the clapped rhythm. I dance without stopping as each ancient song blends into the next. As the hours pass by I know I could dance fortever and forget about tomorrow. The air at seven a.m. is warmed with the rising sun. Perfumed four-o-clocks are sleeping peacefully, and the scent of the ocean pervades as the new morning begins. My dress sways pleasantly at my ankles. My disheveled hair plays around my face and my manton hangs crooked but comfortably on my shoulders. My legs and feet are exhausted but the nails tap flawlessly on the gritty earth. Their cadence refreshes the sensation I felt earlier while dancing, and I am proud to wear my Spanish dress.

Iraq War Was Wrong Essay

The Iraq war was a horrible thing. It caused many things to happen. I’m against going to war with them because there were no weapons of mass destruction in Iraq as the US government claimed. One of the main reasons listed by George W Bush for the war was to secure Iraq’s chemical and biological weapons, which did not even exist. Secondly, there were no terrorists in Iraq, and Iraq had no connection to Sept. 11. We should have focused our resources in Afghanistan where the real terrorists were. Thirdly, we were underprepared for the occupation of Iraq and couldn’t deal with the insurgency that followed. And lastly, the war was a huge waste of resources which the US gained nothing from. The United States lost over 1,040 American soldiers fighting in this war that we got nothing from. The war has hurt our country economically greatly. Over $151.1 Billion has been out towards the war. I feel since from this outcome that we shouldn’t have gone to war with them. It’s a hard thing to put our country through. Iraq was attacked by the United States in the year of 2003. The US went to war with Iraq, because on either the administration or disinformation, and the started reason have changed over the time. The main reason given by the administration of George W. Bush was that Saddam Hussein the leader of Iraq was engaged in having nuclear weapons. Many thought that Hussein might use these weapons to attack against The United States. One of the main reasons for the attacks on Iraq was to disarm them of any weapons of mass destruction that they have. This makes sense to prevent future terrorist attacks, but no weapons of mass destruction were in Iraq. Iraq did use weapons of mass destruction in the 1980’s but not since then. Almost all of Iraq’s weapons of mass destruction were destroyed or otherwise made unusable in the 1990’s. Also, Saddam wanted to stay in power. Using weapons of mass destruction would mean a sure end to his power. This calls into question whether or not invading Iraq was justified because the Bush administration should have known that weapons of mass destruction in Iraq were effectively contained. Because Iraq is effectively contained, it was no longer an imminent threat to the United States or any other countries anymore. Saddam Hussein had never threatened to attack the United States or to use weapons of mass destruction offensively. Sure, Iraq’s surrounding countries such as Kuwait and Iran hated Saddam Hussein, but they were not afraid of him. They knew that Iraq was the weakest country in the region. Iraq had been weak and under control since the Gulf War and has not troubled its neighbors. If Iraq is not a threat, there was no reason to be attacking them. Iraq was not involved in the September 11th attacks. So why did we go to war with them? Since, the war had continued, because the forces of the US were attacked by Iraqi guerillas. The US supported a new democratic government within Iraq, which was opposed by various Islamic groups that held power in the country. The US attempted to control the flow of oil from Iraq, one of the largest petroleum producers in the Middle East.

A critique of the literature Essay

Nurses are expected to deliver high quality care with the latest techniques and information available. In order to do this nurses are required to actively participate to nursing research and critique them. Nursing research has increased greatly in the past three decades exposing nurses to latest knowledge, to provide quality care to the patients (Polit & Beck, 2004). Further more, to provide evidence based practice, nurses must be able to assess and critique research to evaluate and to judge whether the research is useful, good quality, current and safe to apply in their practice (Fink,2005). This essay critiques a quantitative original research article, which is relevance to nursing. The research article â€Å"Cardiovascular risk of essential hypertension: Influence of class, number, and treatment-time regimen of hypertension medication† by authors Ramon c. Hermida, Diana E. Ayala, Aetemio Mojon and Jose R. Fernandez was published in 2013 by Informa health care USA in Chronobiology international journal volume 30. This essay will critique the above research paper using the systematic frame work provided by Schneider, Whitehead, Lobiondo-Wood & Haber(2013 p 15) including the title, abstract, method, literature review, results, discussion and conclusion of the research paper. Title Title of a research article should describe and focus on the research conducted (Cormack, 2000). The title of the research paper by Hermida et al, 2013, clearly describes the purpose of the research and indicates the relevant area of study and the target population. However, by reading the title alone it is difficult to identify the nature of study and requires the reader to continue reading the abstract. It could be argued that it is better to describe this in the title thus it will help the reader to identify whether the research is useful to their practice (Cormack, 2000). Authors’ qualifications are not provided, however it is indicated that the research was conducted by Bioengineering and chronobiology laboratory in a university in Spain. Therefore, it is unable to decide whether the authors have sufficient research skills and expertise to carry out the study. Abstract According to Schneider et al (2013) abstract of an article is a brief summary of the study at the start of an article. Abstract focuses on the important points of the study. It states the purpose, the method, the results and the conclusion of the study ( Schneider et al, 2013). The abstract by Hermida et al (2013 ) clearly describe the purpose of the study and the method and sample used. It also gives a brief description of the data collected and analyzed to provide a conclusion of the study. It is easy for the reader to identify that the research method is quantitative by reading the abstract. Introduction and Literature review According to LoBiondo-Wood, G., & Laber, J. (2014) a good literature review provide an introduction, which include the keywords and a description of the databases used to conduct the study. In this article introduction and literature review is included as one subheading, and the authors have clearly identified the keywords of the study, which will again allow the reader to assess the relevance of the study. In this article authors have started the literature review from the introduction part and provided the related previous study findings in order to build the hypothesis of the current study. They clearly describe the need and the rational for the conduction of the study, as the lack of study conducted considering the  ingestion time of the blood pressure lowering medication (Hermida et al, 2013). They have used recent research within the last 10 years to support their research study. However, the research does not specify the search strategies used to locate the previous research used, which questions whether the research used are biased or unbiased (Fink, 2005). As the study is accepted in 2012, most of the research articles cited in the review are current. As mentioned in Fink (2005) articles’ cited within the last 10 years from the year the study is accepted are considered as current research. In the article, the authors acknowledge that there are several studies conducted to measure the efficiency of blood pressure (BP) lowering medication, disregarding the time of the blood pressure medication taken during the day (Hermida, 2013) This study is conducted using the Ambulation blood pressure monitoring for prediction of cardiovascular event (ABPM) to monitor the effect on better BP control and cardio vascular risk with the bedtime ingestion of one medication rather than all the medications taken in the morning (Hermida, 2103). Authors support the ABPM design that is used for the study by citing previous research studies that have used the same design, in order to improve the credibility of the research (Cormack, 2000). Aim and Hypothesis Aim and hypothesis have been clearly stated in this article by Hermida et al(2013). Unlike qualitative research, quantitative research has an hypothesis provided by the researchers to compare the relationship between variables (Polit & Beck, 2004). The aim of the research is to examine the administration time effect on the CVD risk and lowering BP of each class of antihypertensive medication and the number of medication used for therapy (Hermida et al, 2013). Authors have conducted the study based on the hypothesis that â€Å"bedtime therapy with one or more BP lowering medications exerts better BP control plus greater CVD risk reduction than the conventional morning only schedule of all therapy† (Hermida et al, 2013 p 324). This hypothesis can be categorized as directional as it predicts the expected outcome of the study conducted (Polit & Beck, 2004). According to Polit & Beck(2008), directional hypothesis may results in biased outcomes due to the intellectual commitment to the desired hypothesis. Method Quantitative research approach provides a better state of evidence and increase ability to replicate the study (Schneider, 2013). This study by Hermida et al (2013) provides clear information about the methodology, sample and the technique of the data analysis used. Sample Authors have chosen samples for this research based on inclusion and exclusion criteria, providing very clear and specific information of the target population group that can be used for the study. The sample group were from a population of Spanish subjects > 18 years of age then carefully screened using the inclusion and exclusion criteria (Hermida etal, 2013). Sample size was clearly stated, which will allow the reader to decide whether the sample size for the study was adequate, however they have failed to mention how the sample size was determined. Sample size was adequate and included both male and female population without gender discrimination. Therefore, the study can be considered as useful and good quality as there are no gender limitations (Fink, 2005). It has been well described how the samples were recruited for the process and the samples have been chosen from different hospitals to reduce sample bias. According to Hermida et al (2013) the study method was approved by the State ethic committee of clinical research as ethical medical research. And all participants have given written informed consent to participate in research (Hermida et al, 2013). Design The design used by the authors for the study was a prospective randomized open label, blinded end point (PROBE) (Hermida et al, 2013). This design can be compared to the double blind design, which commonly used in quantitative research. In contrast to the double-blinded method, the participants/assessors have the ability to know the nature of the treatment. Major advantages of this design are lower cost, higher similarity to clinical practice and the ability to replicate the study easily in order to apply the results into medical care (Polit & Beck, 2004). In addition, even though it is an open labeled design, due to the blinded end point the results will not be subjected to any bias (Cormack, 2000). The randomized study method used, reduces the sample bias (Cormack, 2000) which is done by  a computerized random number generator in this study (Hermida et al, 2013). However, the authors have failed to mention the name of the computerized random number generator program used, which makes it difficult for the reader to replicate and evaluate the credibility of the study (Fink, 2005). Further more, in order to ensure the internal validity of the study the authors have adhered to their exclusion and inclusion criteria and have recruited a large sample group (Polit & Beck, 2008). Data collection and analysis Data was collected at the start and at every scheduled visit during the follow up appointment. BP of each recruit was automatically measured at specific times for 48hrs. Authors have used 48hrs observation periods rather than standard 24hrs observation periods (Hermida et al, 2013) to improve the reproducibility and accuracy of the results (Fink, 2005). An actigraph was given to all participants to wear and measure the physical activity during the 48hrs, which is then synchronized to a computer. During the follow up data was collected and necessary test were performed to gather more data and the yearly appointments were organized (Hermida et al, 2013). More over, data collection procedures are adequately described in the study which will make it easy to replicate (Cormack, 2000) The use of multiple data collection instruments can be identified as a strength of the study and citations of previous research have been provided to support the data collection instruments, hence will improve the validity and quality of the study (Cormack, 2000) There were no ethical issues identified as the participants provided informed consent prior to the study (Fink, 2005). Results The results of the study are given in great detail using one table and 7 graphs within the paper. They have used subheading within the results section to clearly present the results for different variables of the study. Findings are accessible and p values are clearly stated, which is important in a quantitative study (Hermida et al, 2013). The consistency of the results, logical link between the data analysis and findings of the study presented in text and in numbers are similar which outlines the correctness of the findings and the findings can be used in clinical practice (Polit &  Beck, 2008). The table and graphs used to interpret data are very clear and easy to understand by the reader. Discussion and conclusion Discussion and conclusion are presented under the same subheading in this research paper. The discussion appeared well balanced and very well detailed, making it easy for the reader to understand and analyze the paper (Cormack, 2000). Authors have discussed and compared the findings with the previous credited research, which are mentioned in the literature review. Authors argue the accuracy of the research findings in a logical manner summarizing relevant previous research findings. They challenge the past research stating how this study method of BP lowering is more effective than the traditional way of treatment using their findings. Even though, the authors have not used a separate section for the conclusion, they have strongly supported the hypothesis in the last paragraph of the paper by using the results obtained (Hermida et al, 2013). In addition, the authors do not mention strength and limitations of the study. Limitations and strengths of a study is useful when assessing the validity of the study or to improve the research method ( Cormack, 2000). Reference Reference list is complete and accurate and include all the cited literature, which includes 72 references, most within the last 10 years of the year the study was accepted (Hermida, 2013). In conclusion this study was conducted very well with a strong hypothesis, relevant literature review, appropriate samples, well-organized research design and statistical analysis. This essay has critically analyzed each component of the study by Hermida et al(2013) adhering to a systemic framework in order to assess the quality, credibility and validity of the research study. Reference Cormack, D. F. S. (2000). The Research Process in Nursing (3rd ed.): Blackwell Science Ltd. Fink, A. (2005). Conducting Resaerch Literature Reviews: From the Internet to Paper (2nd ed.): SAGE Publications. Hermida, R., Ayala, D., Mojà ³n, A., & Fernà ¡ndez, J. (2013). Cardiovascular risk of essential hypertension: influence of class, number, and treatment-time regimen of hypertension medications. Chronobiology International, 30(1-2), 315-327. doi:10.3109/07420528.2012.701534 LoBiondo-Wood, G., & Laber, J. (2014). Nursing Resarch: Methods and Critical Appraisal for Evidence-Based Practice Retrieved from http://books.google.com.au/books?id=3tTsAwAAQBAJ&printsec=frontcover&source=gbs_ge_summary_r&cad=0#v=onepage&q&f=false Polit, D. F., & Beck, C. T. (2008). Nursing Research: Generating and Assessing Evidence for Nursing Practice Retrieved from http://books.google.com.au/books?id=Ej3wstotgkQC&printsec=frontcover&source=gbs_ge_summary_r&cad=0#v=onepage&q&f=false Polit, D. F., & Beck, C. T. (2004). Nursing Research: Principles and Methods Retrieved from http://books.google.com.au/books?id=5g6VttYWnjUC&printsec=frontcover#v=onepage&q&f=false Schneider, Z., Whithead, D., Lobiondo-Wood, G., & Haber, J. (2013). Nursing and Midwifery Research: Methods and appraisal for evidence based practice (4th ed.).

Slipping into Newspeak

Slipping into Newspeak Slipping into Newspeak Slipping into Newspeak By Maeve Maddox One of the scariest things Ive read lately is this comment in a language forum: America is based on the tradition of divergent thinking There was a time when nuances were important; larger vocabularies were needed.   These vocabularies will soon be superfluous as we move into an age where communications are devised and sent in the most efficient manner available.  (Emphasis added.) Anyone who has read George Orwells 1984 will hear in this comment an echo of the character Symes conversation with Winston about the shrinking size of the Newspeak dictionary: Were getting the language into its final shape Were destroying words scores of them, hundreds of them, every day. Were cutting the language down to the bone. The Eleventh Edition [of the Newspeak dictionary] wont contain a single word that will become obsolete before the year 2050. Rules of grammar that contribute to precision of thought are already breaking down. Nuances that used to be observed in newspaper writing are disappearing, for example, such pairs as smell/fragrance, peal/toll, famous/notorious: Wedding Bells are Tolling Less in Milwaukee Stories about historys most famous murders at the Crime Library Such a Tiny Flower But What a Beautiful Smell The character Symes explains to Winston that paring English to the bare bones of communication is in the public interest: Dont you see that the whole aim of Newspeak is to narrow the range of thought? In the end we shall make thoughtcrime literally impossible, because there will be no words in which to express it. Every concept that can ever be needed, will be expressed by exactly one word, with its meaning rigidly defined and all its subsidiary meanings rubbed out and forgotten. In Orwells novel, the emasculation of the language is undertaken by the government as a means of controlling and extinguishing dissident thought. In reality, thanks to the neglect of language instruction in the public schools, over-simplified writing in the media, and the popular attitude that standard English is elitist and undemocratic, government intervention has not been necessary. Want to improve your English in five minutes a day? Get a subscription and start receiving our writing tips and exercises daily! Keep learning! Browse the Vocabulary category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:20 Types and Forms of Humor5 Lessons for Mixing Past and Present TenseCharles's Pen and Jesus' Name

Differences Between an Initialism and an Acronym

Differences Between an Initialism and an Acronym An initialism is an  abbreviation that consists of the first letter or letters of words in a phrase, such as EU (for European Union) and NFL (for National Football League).  Also called an alphabetism.   Initialisms are  usually shown in  capital letters, without spaces or periods between them.  Unlike acronyms, initialisms are not spoken as words; they are spoken letter by letter.   Examples and Observations ABC (American Broadcasting Company, Australian Broadcasting Corporation), ATM (Automatic Teller Machine), BBC (British Broadcasting Corporation), CBC (Canadian Broadcasting Corporation), CNN (Cable News Network), DVD (Digital Versatile Disc), HTML  (HyperText Markup Language),  IBM (International Business Machines Corporation), NBC (National Broadcasting Company)Some names that began as initialisms have evolved into brands independent of their original meanings. For example, CBS, the American radio and television network, was created in 1928 as the Columbia Broadcasting System. In 1974, the name of the company was legally changed to CBS, Inc., and in the late 1990s, it became CBS Corporation.Similarly, the letters in the names SAT and ACT no longer represent anything. Originally known as the Scholastic Achievement Test, the SAT became an Aptitude Test in 1941 and an Assessment Test in 1990. Finally, in 1994, the name was officially changed to SAT (or, in full, SAT Reasoning Test) , with the letters signifying nothing. Two years later, American College Testing followed suit and changed the name of its test to ACT. Initialisms and Acronyms   My favorite current acronym is the DUMP, a term universally used in Durham, New Hampshire to refer to a local supermarket with the unwittingly unfortunate name the Durham Market Place. Initialisms are  similar to acronyms in that they are composed of the first letters of a phrase, but unlike acronyms, they are pronounced as a series of letters. So most people in the US refer to the Federal Bureau of Investigation as the FBI...Other initialisms are PTA for Parent Teacher Association, PR for either public relations or personal record, and NCAA for National College Athletic Association.(Rochelle Lieber, Introducing Morphology. Cambridge University Press, 2010) [S]ometimes a letter in an initialism is formed not, as the term might imply, from an initial letter but rather from an initial sound (as the X in XML, for extensible markup language), or from the application of a number (W3C, for World Wide Web Consortium). Furthermore, an acronym and an initialism are occasionally combined (JPEG), and the line between initialism and acronym is not always clear (FAQ, which can be pronounced either as a word or as a series of letters).(The Chicago Manual of Style, 16th ed. The University of Chicago Press, 2010) CD-ROM CD-ROM is an interesting mix because it brings together an initialism (CD) and an acronym (ROM). The first part is sounded letter by letter, the second part is a whole word.(David Crystal, The Story of English in 100 Words. St. Martins Press, 2012) Usage The first time an acronym or initialism appears in a written work, write the complete term, followed by an abbreviated form in parentheses. Thereafter, you may use the acronym or initialism alone.(G. J. Alred, C. T. Brusaw, and W. E. Oliu, Handbook of Technical Writing, 6th ed. Bedford/St. Martins, 2000 AWOL In AWOLAll Wrong Old Laddiebuck, an animated film by Charles Bowers, a woman presents her calling card to a soldier and it reads Miss Awol. She then lures him away from camp without permission. The film is silent, of course, given the 1919 date, but the calling card indicates that AWOL is pronounced as a word, making it a true acronym and not just an initialism.(David Wilton and Ivan Brunetti, Word Myths. Oxford University Press, 2004) Pronunciation: i-NISH-i-liz-em EtymologyFrom the Latin, beginning

THE ECHR AS A LIVING INSTRUMENT Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

THE ECHR AS A LIVING INSTRUMENT - Essay Example One of the powerful interpretive tools used by the EctHR has been the conceptualization of the ECHR as a living instrument. It is settled case law that the ECHR is â€Å"a living instrument which must be interpreted in light of present-day conditions.† A critique of judicial activism may criticize the use of the living instrument rule as an impermissible intrusion of the Strasbourg Court into the policy-making domain. This paper analyses this proposition and the development of the living instrument rule in light of Strasbourg jurisprudence in respect of two articles of the ECHR, article 3 and article 8. Article 3 of the ECHR states that no one shall be subjected to torture or to inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment. The original Court began the articulation of the living instrument methodology in the well-known case of Tyrer v. United Kingdom when it was required to determine the compatibility of judicial corporeal punishment with article 3 prohibition on cruel and degrading punishment. The Government of the Isle of Man argued that judicial corporal punishment was acceptable to the inhabitants of the island. However, the Court held that: â€Å"... the Convention is a living instrument which, as the Commission rightly stressed, must be interpreted in the light of present-day conditions. In the case now before it the Court cannot but be influenced by the developments and commonly accepted standards in the penal policy of the member States of the Council of Europe in this field.

Study case Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Study case - Essay Example The defendant had flouted the civil rights of the employees enshrined in the Civil Rights Act of 1991. The defendant had flouted Civil Rights Act of 1991 which prohibits employers from discriminating their employees. The company resolved this by setting up a prayer special room at the plant (Robert & John 103). Tyson Foods also had a conflict that arose when they attempted to replace Labor Day with Eid al-Fitr. The non Muslim employees complained about this move. The company addressed the issue by allowing all their employees (Muslim and Non-Muslim) eight paid holidays (Robert & John 103). The holidays included; Memorial day, Martin Luther King Day, New Years Day, Christmas Day, Thanksgiving Day and a personal holiday. Subject to the approval of their supervisors, the employees had the option of spending their personal holidays either for their birthday or Eid  al-Fitr. The company thus incurred more operational expenses by increasing the number of paid holidays to eight. Comparing the solutions adopted by the two companies, unlike Tyson foods, JBS-SWIFT’s solution will yield the company the greatest positive yield because, it will not incur additional operational cost (Robert & John