The Inventors or Muckers Who Worked for Thomas Edison

Already by the time he moved to Menlo Park in 1876, Thomas Edison had gathered many of the men who would work with him for the rest of their lives. By the time Edison built his West Orange lab complex, men came from all over the United States and Europe to work with the famous inventor. Often these young muckers, as Edison called them, were fresh out of college or technical training. Unlike most inventors, Edison depended upon dozens of muckers to build and test his ideas. In return, they received only workmens wages. However, the inventor said, it was not the money they want, but the chance for their ambition to work. The average work week was six days for a total of 55 hours. Nevertheless, if Edison had a bright idea, days at work would extend far into the night. By having several teams going at once, Edison could invent several products at the same time. Still, each project took hundreds of hours of hard work. Inventions could always be improved, so several projects took years of effort. The alkaline storage battery, for example, kept muckers busy for almost a decade. As Edison himself said, Genius is one percent inspiration and ninety-nine percent perspiration.   What was it like to work for Edison? One mucker said that he could wither one with his biting sarcasm or ridicule one into extinction. On the other hand, as electrician, Arthur Kennelly stated, The privilege which I had being with this great man for six years was the greatest inspiration of my life. Historians have called the research and development laboratory Edisons greatest invention. In time, other companies such as General Electric built their own laboratories inspired by the West Orange lab. Mucker and Famous Inventor Lewis Howard Latimer  (1848-1928) Although Latimer never worked directly for Edison at any of his laboratories, his many talents deserve special mention. The son of an escaped slave, Latimer overcame poverty and racism in his scientific career. While working for Hiram S. Maxim, a competitor with Edison, Latimer patented his own improved method to make carbon filaments. From 1884 to 1896, he worked in New York City for the Edison Electric Light Company as an engineer, draftsman, and legal expert. Latimer later joined the Edison Pioneers, a group of old Edison employees - its only African American member. Since he never worked with Edison at the Menlo Park or West Orange laboratories, however, he is not technically a mucker. As far as we know, there were no African American muckers.   Mucker and Plastics Pioneer: Jonas Aylsworth (18-1916) A gifted chemist, Aylsworth began working at the West Orange labs when they opened in 1887. Much of his work involved testing materials for phonograph recordings. He left around 1891 only to return ten years later, working both for Edison and in his own laboratory. He patented condensite, a mixture of phenol and formaldehyde, for use in Edison Diamond Disc records. His work with interpenetrating polymers came decades before other scientists made similar discoveries with plastics.   Mucker and Friend until the End: John Ott (1850-1931) Like his younger brother Fred, Ott worked with Edison in Newark as a machinist in the 1870s. Both brothers followed Edison to Menlo Park in 1876, where John was Edisons principal model and instrument maker. After the move to West Orange in 1887, he served as superintendent of the machine shop until a terrible fall in 1895 left him severely injured. Ott held 22 patents, some with Edison. He died only one day after the inventor; his crutches and wheelchair were placed by Edisons casket at Mrs. Edisons request.   Mucker  Reginald Fessenden  (1866-1931) Canadian-born Fessenden had been trained as an electrician. So when Edison wanted to make him a chemist, he protested. Edison replied, I have had a lot of chemists... but none of them can get results. Fessenden turned out to be an excellent chemist, working with insulation for electrical wires. He left the West Orange lab around 1889 and patented several inventions of his own, including patents for telephony and telegraphy. In 1906, he became the first person to broadcast words and music over radio waves.   Mucker and Film Pioneer: William Kennedy Laurie Dickson (1860-1935) Along with most of the West Orange crew in the 1890s, Dickson worked mainly on Edisons failed iron ore mine in western New Jersey. However, his skill as staff photographer led him to assist Edison in his work with motion pictures. Historians still argue over who was more important to the development of films, Dickson or Edison. Together, though, they accomplished more than they did on their own later. The fast pace of work at the lab left Dickson much afflicted by brain exhaustion. In 1893, he suffered a nervous breakdown. By the next year, he was already working for a competing company while still on Edisons payroll. The two parted bitterly the next year and Dickson returned to his native Britain to work for the American Mutoscope and Biograph Company.   Mucker and Sound Recording Expert: Walter Miller (1870-1941) Born in nearby East Orange, Miller started working as a 17-year-old apprentice boy at the West Orange lab soon after it opened in 1887. Many muckers worked here a few years and then moved on, but Miller stayed at West Orange his entire career. He proved himself in many different jobs. As manager of the Recording Department and Edisons primary recording expert, he ran the New York City studio where recordings were made. Meanwhile, he also carried on experimental recordings in West Orange. With Jonas Aylsworth (mentioned above), he earned several patents covering how to duplicate records. He retired from Thomas A. Edison, Incorporated in 1937.

The Geography Of Bliss By Eric Weiner - 1379 Words

There are different factors that affect happiness and it is rooted from the country you were born in. â€Å"We are shaped not only by our current geography, but by our ancestral one as well (Weiner 112). Most countries have different culture that contributes to people s happiness. People who live in America will not be as happy as the one who lived in Moldova. In Eric Weiner s, book The Geography of Bliss. He was searching for data on happiness. He conducts a study on how people in different countries understand and measure their happiness. The biggest factors that affect people s happiness are the environment and cultural differences. Where you live is a big factor of who you are. People find happiness when they feel comfortable and†¦show more content†¦It’s unsettling. The playground! It used to be right here, I swear. Mess with our hometown, and you’re messing with our past, with who we are. Nobody likes that. (108) This relates to his visit in Qatar where he observed that there are several things that are not common to him. Like there are no 7-11 stores in Qatar because Qataris have helpers that can do groceries for them. He compares his hotel to a climate-controlled tomb even though it is a nice hotel that can provide everything he needs, he is not happy. Last is the solid heat that he felt during his stay. Indeed staying or living in a new environment where not everything is normal in their perspective would be difficult and unsettling to people who is new or not familiar with the environment. I have experienced living in a foreign country where I need to work for one year. At first, I find Taiwan exciting. Meeting new friends and exploring new places is fun. Until, I realized that I missed home where I have my own room where I can sleep comfortably without sharing rooms with other people whom I didn t know personally. In addition, I find it difficult to commute, purchase, and communicate because I don t aware which bus I m takin g. I don t know how to read Taiwan s character which is the posted all over the place and I don t speak their language. Moreover, I lose weight during my stay because I cannot eat the food provided by our company and

Morality And Guns Today Essay Example For Students

Morality And Guns Today Essay I realize you cannot legislate morality. I agree with that 100 percent. Yes, saying things like Thou shall be moral is foolish, but other things can be done. We have to get back to our roots and become more civil and moral. Throughout recent history our society has continually loosened its moral bonds until we have arrived at the everything goes attitudes of today. This loosening simply has to be reversed. Let me say that this will be a difficult task, but our society MUST put common sense and civility forefront of todays efforts nationwide. It will be harder to fight then any war. We must have an awakening or things will continue to go downhill. Would you agree on that?First of all, I do not have all the answers on this. We could start by looking at our past and seeing what worked when. I am not talking about slavery, segregation, etc etc. What I am talking about is how families worked and how people responded to each other, how neighbors responded to each other. We must explore the brotherhood that existed between friends. We must look back to look forward. I think common sense plays a big issue in this. In todays society there is this idea that we must be politically correct all the time. Remember (or hear) of a time when everything wasnt regulated, and was NOT tied up by the governments beaucracy, and forthere DID NOT destroy personal responsibility? All laws leave some people out. Without this over regulation, people were not excessively left out by red tape crafted divisions. All of this ties into morality. I think people have become less responsible. Seeing the increased role of government in everyday life, too many parents have dedicated the government to educate their child. Less time is spent with each other. Less of that famous bonding time, less family cohesiveness, less family traditions. What has filled the void from the absence of this ever-so-valuable time? Media has filled the gap. This includes everything from TV, movies, video games, music, etc etc. Afterall the media is led by people who grew up without knowing what is right or wrong, just like the people watching it. You now have a society in which few know what is right and wrong because this cycle continues on faster and faster. Believe it or not, I believe there was a time that had universal morals. These include lots of small things, but they are what consisted of the moral foundation we have lost. These small things include street manners, table manners, specific courtesys each directed toward men and women, clothing courtesys, trustworthiness (ever hear of the time when a handshake was worth more than a signature?), a respect of each others doings and business, the Golden Rule, spoken courtesysthe list goes on and on. It is not the medias fault only, they are only the most visable layer. WE, and I repeat WE, the society, are the ones that tolerated or even let the media do something questionable to begin with. WE are the ones that watch and listen to their programs, WE are the ones who give them money, WE are the ones who failed to voice our concerns on something they were airing, etc etc. Now, in a society that has evolved to which everything goes, Hollywood doesnt think twice about showing negatively-influencing movies, or the record companies and singers (especially rap, rock, etc. ..) dont think twice about recording songs about things like getting your girlfriend pregnant and driving the car off the bridge while shes screaming in the trunkthings like that. Whats even worse is that, like I said earlier, WE let it happen, we, as a society, do not have enough balls to say Enough is a Enough!!!!! Afterall, it would be politically incorrect (going back to what I said earlier) and might offend someone right How does all this tie into guns? WE, as a society, would rather blame something inhuman. .ub9b0bd6f8cb5a449543c951727af00c4 , .ub9b0bd6f8cb5a449543c951727af00c4 .postImageUrl , .ub9b0bd6f8cb5a449543c951727af00c4 .centered-text-area { min-height: 80px; position: relative; } .ub9b0bd6f8cb5a449543c951727af00c4 , .ub9b0bd6f8cb5a449543c951727af00c4:hover , .ub9b0bd6f8cb5a449543c951727af00c4:visited , .ub9b0bd6f8cb5a449543c951727af00c4:active { border:0!important; } .ub9b0bd6f8cb5a449543c951727af00c4 .clearfix:after { content: ""; display: table; clear: both; } .ub9b0bd6f8cb5a449543c951727af00c4 { display: block; transition: background-color 250ms; webkit-transition: background-color 250ms; width: 100%; opacity: 1; transition: opacity 250ms; webkit-transition: opacity 250ms; background-color: #95A5A6; } .ub9b0bd6f8cb5a449543c951727af00c4:active , .ub9b0bd6f8cb5a449543c951727af00c4:hover { opacity: 1; transition: opacity 250ms; webkit-transition: opacity 250ms; background-color: #2C3E50; } .ub9b0bd6f8cb5a449543c951727af00c4 .centered-text-area { width: 100%; position: relative ; } .ub9b0bd6f8cb5a449543c951727af00c4 .ctaText { border-bottom: 0 solid #fff; color: #2980B9; font-size: 16px; font-weight: bold; margin: 0; padding: 0; text-decoration: underline; } .ub9b0bd6f8cb5a449543c951727af00c4 .postTitle { color: #FFFFFF; font-size: 16px; font-weight: 600; margin: 0; padding: 0; width: 100%; } .ub9b0bd6f8cb5a449543c951727af00c4 .ctaButton { background-color: #7F8C8D!important; color: #2980B9; border: none; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: none; font-size: 14px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 26px; moz-border-radius: 3px; text-align: center; text-decoration: none; text-shadow: none; width: 80px; min-height: 80px; background: url(https://artscolumbia.org/wp-content/plugins/intelly-related-posts/assets/images/simple-arrow.png)no-repeat; position: absolute; right: 0; top: 0; } .ub9b0bd6f8cb5a449543c951727af00c4:hover .ctaButton { background-color: #34495E!important; } .ub9b0bd6f8cb5a449543c951727af00c4 .centered-text { display: table; height: 80px; padding-left : 18px; top: 0; } .ub9b0bd6f8cb5a449543c951727af00c4 .ub9b0bd6f8cb5a449543c951727af00c4-content { display: table-cell; margin: 0; padding: 0; padding-right: 108px; position: relative; vertical-align: middle; width: 100%; } .ub9b0bd6f8cb5a449543c951727af00c4:after { content: ""; display: block; clear: both; } READ: How to write a definition essay - ideas, examples, structure Right now, we would rather blame something that merely indicates the state of ourselves. For decades we have been slipping down the path of neglecting our present and future moral foundation. We are right now getting a taste of what that neglect has reaped. Right now we would rather blame an objectthe gun, something we have made for five centuriesfor our own irresponsibility. Have I yet to give any specific, direct way to accomplish what we simply have to accomplish? No. Like I said I do not have all the answers. We must first realize what must be done in order to fix the problems. I do believe the best way to restore civility is to start with yourself. After you have started with yourself, start with others. Importantly, set examples. Not only one, but many. In todays society where anything new and anything different someone in doing gets attention, it is especially important to set good, moral examples. Others just might try it. Spend time with your familyand continue to do so, go somewhere quiet everyday, relax, use manners, write your legislators on this very issue, take your family vacation, eat together, etc etc, the list is long and varied. The main point is that it is OUR fault for letting society be in the condition it is in now. We need to be more self-responsible. Guns, and other tools, are only indicators of how bad our society is. Banning them will not help. It may or may not affect crime rates, but, either or, things will continue to degrade if we continue to foolishly neglect the essence and base of our moral foundation. I believe our Founding Fathers had a pretty good idea of what was right and wrong. Many of their truths were expressed in our Constitution and Federalist Papers. Why was there very few, if any, mass-murderers back then? Why was there so few unmarried mothers and fathers? Why was their little public violence? Why was there so little general hatred? Why was there so little deceit? Why were there so few broken families? {all this with guns in every household} Why?.because societythe people and communities themselvessimply DID NOT tolerate immorality and its beginnings back then, and WE shouldnt now! Looking at our past is the way to light our future.Social Issues

Nature Versus Civilization Essays - Cultural Anthropology

Nature Versus Civilization In comparing and contrasting Civilization Over Nature by Michael Heiman with Nature Over Civilization by Robert Kuhn McGregor I have discovered that their main themes over lap in one or more ways. They both define Nature in totally different aspects. Therefore that is way their main themes appear to be so much different. Michael Heiman argues that nature was put aside for the capitalistic views of the nineteenth century. This then implies that nature was put aside for the production of civilization. Therefore associating the human race strictly with civilization and not nature. Nature is only made up of the landscape and the animals and plants within it. In Heimans example of this he speaks of the exploitation of the Hudson Valley for the transportation of goods across the country. He tells of how the destruction of this area throughout the nineteenth century was overlooked by the artists and tour guides that traveled this route. The viewpoints that Heiman carried throughout his essay had a homocentric orientation towards civilization. As for Heimans main theme he proposes that civilization was the ultimate reality. As for McGregor he proposed to agree with the biocentric view that humans and plants and animals were all living actors in the play of life therefore making humans a part of nature as well. As for the civilization aspect of it all he goes on to explain that animals have their own civilizations in which some of them change the environment in the same ways as our civilization. In the end of it all he believes that nature is the ultimate reality. In order to compare and contrast we have to first see the main part where they clash. Heiman sees nature as the landscape, plants, and animals therefore making humans the synonym for civilization. McGregor on the other hand says that nature has its own civilization just as humans do. So humans are now a part of nature just as a horse might be. My question is if everything is a part of nature even our own civilization then what makes up civilization in his eyes? Nature would have to be the ultimate reality because he is not even comparing it to civilization in a sense. Heiman has a solid argument because he is actually comparing the two. McGregor is right in his essay when he says that if you believe in a biocentric history it is a lonely road because not many other people are on it. In closing I agree with Heiman because there is no way that our civilization can be anywhere near the civilization of any other living organism. Due to how we use up all of our resources and exploit the l andscape. Civilization had to have been the ultimate reality no questions asked. I will compare these two essays with the same four documents in order to show the similarities that each has to other in terms of the document. The four documents that I will be comparing these two essays to are; John James Audubon on Shooting Birds, James Fenimore Cooper Laments the Wasty Ways of Pioneers, Hudson River Painters Depict Nature, and Rebecca Harding Davis on Pollution and Human Life in the Iron Mills. Audubon is a preservationist on birds and is one of the earliest. If I had to chose a side I would say that he would agree with Heiman in saying that civilization over rides nature in this case due to the fact that humans are shooting birds. Instead of birds killing birds or horses killing birds. As the civilization of humans is growing bigger and bigger Audubon saw that this sport was getting bigger and nature was getting exploited. I do not see McGregor agreeing with Audubon because my impression of McGregor in the way of nature is a sort of survival of the fittest. In Coopers essay he talks about the pointless killing of birds as well but with a little different twist being that he heavily criticizes the excessive wastefulness of the pioneers due to the abundance of nature. In respect to the two essays I see a representation of both in similar ways. This document corresponds better with that of McGregor seeing that nature is a larger

Managing Multiple Authors Or Blogs With Tools That Dont Integrate - CoSchedule Blog

Managing Multiple Authors Or Blogs With Tools That Dont Integrate Blog Being an editor or managing a team blog means you have to come up with some kind of system to make it work.  It doesnt matter how many blogs and authors and social media accounts there are. The problem of getting it to all work together has to be solved. So, you solve it as best you can. How do you solve the problem of managing multiple blogs or authors? Most of the solutions weve been hearing about are a bit ad hoc, and use different flavors of the following: Project management systems (e.g. Basecamp) Spreadsheets Cloud notes (e.g. Evernote) Email Calendars (e.g. Google) Were no stranger to this kind of setup ourselves.  Our system of managing multiple blogs and authors has a level of complexity that can be frustrating. The main issue is that while each of those listed components, on their own, are great tools, they dont work together. Used together, they are a solution that creates its own problem. They were meant to be for project management or for note-taking or sending messages or for some other specific purpose, but they were never meant to help you completely manage your team blog. Individual components dont make a whole, unfortunately. Project management systems seem very close to a solution, and thats why so many of you have told us how you try to make them work. They dont, however, have a necessary integration with your WordPress blog and social media accounts, so any data will have to be manually entered before it can be managed. Thats yet another time-consuming step, and another system to manage. Cloud  note-taking  services seem like a good place to brainstorm and jot down ideas, but if they arent shared with the whole team, its easy to forget whats in there. If youre not a careful organizer, its easy to end up with giant notes that serve as idea dumping grounds that are difficult to sift through. Your notes arent specifically connected with a WordPress blog post. Yep. Yet another system to manage. Spreadsheets are also a common tool used to keep data organized, but that data, once organized, doesnt do anything unless you actively revisit and push it around. And yes, again, no direct connection to the actual content in WordPress, so you now have spreadsheets to manage on top of everything else. Email allows you to communicate and share versions of drafts and documents, but the threads can get extremely confusing, especially if you have a large team. Its easy to miss a message in an active thread with people replying to everyone simultaneously. And unfortunately, youll need to manually pull tasks or data out of these email messages. Calendars are often read-only, unless in project management apps. A read-only calendar is great for getting an understanding of whats happening, but making quick changes based on that understanding wont be available. Team members are more likely to make necessary adjustments if it isnt a hassle, and a read-only calendar wont fit that bill. Through sheer force of will, you make these tools work. You become fairly quick and adept at using them, and think that they work. You get used to them, and actually prefer them even if a better option were available.

Hand Gestures Around the World and Their Meanings

Hand Gestures Around the World and Their Meanings If you’re looking to travel abroad, it can seem stressful dealing with the language barrier between you and the locals. Learning a new language is not an easy thing to do especially if you don’t have a lot of time to spare. So rather than cramming a bunch of phrases last minute, why not learn how to communicate without saying a single word? The infographic below presents hand gestures around the world and their meanings. All you have to do is master  a few simple hand gestures and identify the one pertaining to the country you’re visiting and you’ll be able to communicate effectively without cramming a ton of phrases last minute.  Source:[BusinessInsider]

Near Eastern and Egyptian Art Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Near Eastern and Egyptian Art - Essay Example The focus of the essay "Near Eastern and Egyptian Art" is on Eastern and Egyptian art and culture. It can be observed that in most of the world’s civilizations, there is a certain kind of interaction involving a deity, a holy person and the people of a nation. Such interactions are exemplified by passages from the Revised Standard Version of the Old Testament/Hebrew Bible like in Numbers 21:4-9 and 27:1-11, and Leviticus 8:1-9 as given from the readings. In all three readings, it is written that God speaks to His people, the Israelites through his prophet, Moses. He does not speak directly to the people, and He does not show Himself to them, but only to Moses. The people, on the other hand speak to God only through Moses, as they are not allowed to even set foot on holy ground. Moses is seen as an intermediary between God and His people, and he can speak to God directly and tell Him the pleas of the people, and he can tell the people the words of God. Based on this situation, there is a certain distance between the deity and the people through a mediator chosen by the deity as his representative to the people. Such similarities in religious customs can also be seen in the polytheism of ancient Egyptians. Much like in the early Israelites, the deities of ancient Egypt also do not speak to the people directly, but through medium such as the high priests in their holy temples, or through pharaohs that were given the same status as the gods. Such division can be seen in the layout of the temple of Amun-Re.

Martha Peer review MS2 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Martha Peer review MS2 - Essay Example Many typographical mistakes were seen in your paper. If you go back and review it once again I am sure you will also see them. E.g. pg 1 â€Å"household andwhat better†, on pg 2 â€Å"can assessa critical†, on pg 3 â€Å"training andpassed the post- training† and many more. Some sentences were very long and thus were confusing e.g. on pg 4 â€Å"The primary goal was to support abusive and neglectful parents, change their unhealthy patterns of †¦..The hope is to improve their parenting skills so that they will begin to derive pleasure from being with their child(ren) and will no longer abuse or neglect them.† Here there is a sudden change tense. On pg 4 â€Å"However, her line of questioning made me†¦. I vacillated between feeling exposed and judged by her as she continued to try and get me to reveal experiences from my past† is unnecessarily long and could have been divided into two sentences. There was some repetition of word like â€Å" Abuse and neglect†, â€Å"albeit†, and â€Å"learned† that did not give a very good impression. Synonyms could have been used. There were some sentences that were poorly constructed like on pg 1† I knew I was a compassionate, sensitive, caring person and was often told by friends that I was easy to talk to† could have been written as I knew I was a compassionate, sensitive, caring and was often told by friends that I was someone who is easy to talk to, On pg 3 â€Å"I felt certain that if I encountered domestic violence, I too, could become a victim by merely being in the wrong place at the wrong time† could have been written as I felt certain that if encountered domestic violence, I too, could become a victim by merely being in the wrong place at the wrong time and on pg 10 â€Å"In situations where I couldn’t relate to a particular event, I explored my own feelings about the situation and handled it the best way I could with patience, tolerance and a sense of humor† as In situations where I couldn’t relate

Atmosphere and setting in the 19th century stories Essay Example for Free

Atmosphere and setting in the 19th century stories Essay Consider atmosphere and setting in the 19th century stories you have read, and discuss how the authors have created fear and atmosphere. I am going to discuss how three Gothic stories written by authors in the19th century create fear and atmosphere. The three stories which I will be considering are The Monkeys Paw, by WW Jacobs, The Body Snatchers, by Robert Louis Stevenson and also The Signal Man, by Charles Dickens. The gothic genre was very popular in the late 18th and 19th centuries and was a very fashionable aspect of lives in that era. Almost all gothic stories included similar aspects which made the atmosphere spooky and scary. Most gothic stories included elements such as grave yards and dead bodies creating a sense of death and killing of people. The weather in gothic stories is often the kind that scares you for example thunderstorms, fog and almost all gothic stories are set in the dark of the night. Some gothic stories may include a supernatural aspect, curses, spells, wishes, ghosts , this was very popular in this era because the Victorians were very in touch with the supernatural side of their lives and believed strongly in the presence of ghosts and life after death. Gothic stories would usually include elements of surprise and realism to make the story more believable. A gothic story will always be full of suspense and tension to make the reader tenser and frightened as to what is going to come next. The setting of a gothic story was always very important, the setting would usually be in a remote, exotic or isolated setting for example the original story of Frankenstein which was written in the late 18th century by Mary Shelly was set in the Italian alps, a very remote setting which at that time was known to be haunted. Violence, bloodshed and goriness was always included in the gothic genre and was always a large aspect of the story. Gothic stories never included very many characters, this was a way of keeping the story not only short but also more frightening as it is always scarier when you are on your own or in groups of two or three rather than a large group. The Victorian era is famous for its fascination with death and the gruesome. The Victorians believed that people had a good death surrounded by their families, having made their peace with god and resigned themselves to their fate or a bad death, which was sudden. The Victorians also created a huge business around funerals. A grand funeral was a way of showing their wealth and respect. People even had jewellery made with the hair of their loved ones who had died as way of remembering them and to show that they would always be with them. In the late18th and earl 19th centuries medical science made huge advances. However, doctors in training needed corpses to learn from. Often the bodies of hanged criminals were used for this purpose. Despite hanging being a relatively frequent event, the number of bodies available was always too little and the demand for bodies was large. The resurrectionists found a way to make money here, by digging up fresh corpses and selling them to medical schools. This made the rate of bodies for medical use increase; however in 1832 the Autonomy act was passed which meant that any poor who died in the workhouses, and whose bodies remained unclaimed, could also be used for medical use. Until this act was passed people who could afford it would double or triple line their coffins or have strange devices to prevent the lid of the coffins being taken off. The 19th century saw an increase of death rate which meant that there was limited space in the graveyards particularly in the large cities. The church yards became over crowded as a result of this many people began building private walled cemeteries for their families and close friends. The Victorians were all very interested in the supernatural beings. Sà ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½ances became very popular and mediums developed increasingly outrageous techniques to dazzle and confuse their clients. In Victorian England, alongside the developing scientific principles of research and exploration, accusations of witchcraft were still routine and still taken very seriously. As we become more able to make sense of the physical and the touchable, the supernatural and indefinable becomes even more mysterious. One of the Gothic stories I am studying is The Monkeys Paw written by W.W. Jacobs demonstrates elements of the gothic genre. The Monkeys Paw is W.W. Jacobs most famous story and is considered to be a classic of horror fiction. The story opens with the White family spending a cozy evening together around the hearth. An old friend of Mr. Whites comes to visit them. Sergeant-Major Morris, home after more than twenty years in India, entertains his hosts with exotic stories of life abroad. He also sells to Mr. White a mummified monkeys paw, said to have had a spell put on it by a holy man that will grant its owner three wishes. Morris warns the Whites not to wish on it at all-but of course they do, with horrible consequences. Jacobs uses foreshadowing, imagery and symbolism in this story to explore the consequences of tempting fate. His careful, economical creation of setting and atmosphere add suspense to the tale, while his use of dialogue and slang (one of Jacobss trademark) help reade rs to feel that the characters are genuine. The setting of the story is the type which is considered in the elements of the gothic genre. The story is set when there is bad weather and when the wind is blowing very strongly THE NIGHT was cold and wet, showing us the weather is wet and cold, one of the main elements of gothic story writing. The house in which the story is set is in the middle of nowhere of all the beastly, slushy, out-of-the-way places to live in, this is the worst. Telling us that the story is set in a remote and isolated setting with no one else around, they are alone in the dark of the night with the wind howling, Jacobs had set the story well and with detail to the weather and setting of the story, this immediately makes the reader feel as though there is something superstitious going on or is going to happen. When the man arrives at the door, the readers wonder who it is for a while, but that thought is soon put aside when the Monkeys Paw is introduced and we wonder why the man is so unsure about passing it on to anyone, is there something bad about the Monkeys paw? Does it bring bad luck? We never know until the monkeys paw is actually used and we are kept in suspense, not knowing what to expect, the element of suspense in gothic writing is portrayed well in this story. We are told that the monkeys paw must bring something bad when the sergeant major says but I warn you of the consequences. This shows that the monkeys paw must bring some sort of bad luck, some of the suspense is taken away but we are still wondering what these consequences are and what the monkeys paw will bring. Later in the story we hear of what the consequences are and of course they all as gory as each other and all include elements of the Gothic genre which Jacobs has included, Jacobs demonstrates all of the elements of the gothic genre in his story, shows a typical horror and all its elements. The Body Snatchers and The Signal Man are two other gothic stories which also portray the gothic genre and an insight into the history of the Victorians and the way that they treated the dead. The Body snatchers, written by Robert Louis Stevenson, is a story which is set very much around the Victorian era, it is based on body snatching which was largely popular in the 19th Century, and was in great need for medical reasons and research. Stevenson begins by setting the seen and introducing characters. The first paragraph of the story seems very cozy and a regular evening in the pub with the usual four men sitting down having a drink, it is an ordinary occurrence and those four men would always be there every night but blow high , blow low, come rain or snow or frost, we four would each be planted in his own particular armchair Stevenson begins the story on a very ordinary point which seems to be nothing out of the ordinary and the reader doesnt feel like anything suspicious is going on. The characters are introduced in detail, especially Fettes so presumably he is a key character in the story. He is described in a lot of detail and seems to be a man who everyone knows and is a necessity to the village and the pub, everyone knows who he is however we could be superstitious of him when the story states we had no knowledge of his character and antecedents this shows that many people knew of the man but not many people knew how he thought and his history. The only facts known about fettes are random ones e.g he has doctor knowledge, however they know nothing about his history. He doesnt seem trustworthy, he drinks, vices, infidelities. His special knowledge is vague this cold be dangerous. The characters in the story know each other in strange ways- for instance what they drink and how the drink it. What was happening is the pub was a cycle- it happened everyday. The setting in the first paragraph seems too normal something is going to happen. But the beginning of paragraph two One dark winter night sets the familiar Gothic scene, cold, lonely, winter , dark , scary, this builds up tension and we can tell that the story is about to be told and things will begin to become more irregular. There is a break in the routine of the usual nights it was the first time this suggests that something out of the ordinary is going to happen , we dont know exactly what this is but we know that there is a character that the men are unsure of in the pub sick man in the George however when the mans named is mentioned Fettes, who is drunk, suddenly wakes up after hearing it but at the last word he seemed to awaken Fettes and the man are linked how? shows panic , recognition of the name, the other characters and the reader do not know why which shows that fettes will be an important character, Fettes and the man are linked how? Fettes suddenly becomes sober and has sudden movements this shows that fettes is shocked, it is unusual for him to pay so much attention, and the name must have triggered some sort of memory or feeling in him. There is such a change in Fettes character as if a man had risen from the dead this is spooky and makes a connection with the supernatural, things which should no be talked about, this introduces death and fear and is the first part of the story which links to the title. Fettes wants to meet him so he obviously has some sort of connection with him apart from the fact that they are both doctors Doctor has an unknown past this shows that there are many thing which we dont know about Fettes. Fettes knows the doctor well enough to know that he is older than himself however he has led a good life with a good conscience and digestion. Fettes says himself that he has led a life of sin which makes him sound suspicious rum and sin we wonder what life fettes has led, we dont know much about him and nor do the characters, this makes the reader want to read on and find out fettes history and how he know this doctor who has just arrived in the village. The Signal Mans beginning is similar to the beginning of the body snatchers in the way that we are very supersticous of a certain character, the character being the signal man. The story begins in a pleasant way, again with nothing out of the usual happening or anything which could be portrayed as spooky. The location of where the story is set is slightly remote but apart from that there is no other elements of the gothic genre. However the behaviour of the signal man when he is politely question is slightly mysterious. When the narrator calls to him from above the signal man looks in the opposite direction from where the shout of the narrator are coming from instead of looking up looked down the line does this mean that the signal man is expecting a call similar to that of the narrator to come from the direction of the tunnel down the line, the behaviour of the signal mad is odd and makes the reader want to read on in order to find out why. There is a very detailed description of a train which passes, would this mean that part of the story is revolved around trains, how and when they pass the signalman? When the narrator walks down towards the signal man he describes it as unusually precipitate. Clammy stone, that became oozier and wetter as I went down this suggests that it is out of the ordinary and not what was expected it creates and atmosphere of superstition and makes us question what is going to happen next. Is the path created that way for a reason? Or is it just coincidence? The setting is set well and makes the reader intrigued as to why the signal man acted so oddly in front of the narrator, why did the signal man act as thought he expected something to happen, why was he so sacred of the narrator and why did he think the narrator was going to do something to him. Did he have some kind of experience that was similar to this one before? In the Body Snatchers the narrator is a regular in the pub, he knows everyone in the story apart from doctor MacFarlane. The narrators story is one sided, he could have exaggerated the story. He is also a character in the story and has been drinking which could affect the truthfulness of the story being told. The narrator is probably an old man, an alcoholic, who has lived in Debenham most of his life. He looks up to Fettes but is very curious and claims to be good at worming out a story and is also interested in Fettes past and tries to tell the story of Fettes past himself. The narrator doesnt seem to interact with the characters much, he sits and listens attentively, the story being told could be based on his opinion and we dont know his background. He has an over reactive imagination, we assume he is a man. Suspense at the end of the story builds up rapidly until it is released on the last word, but we find that the narrator jumps to conclusions by judging characters however he is quite well educated. The narrator in The Signal man is very much a main character in the story and is found slightly mysterious as well, to the point that no one knows why he was looking down on the signal man in the first place. The narrator seems to be a very curious character, he leads us to think that he had something to find out when asking the signal man questions because he is so interested and almost intrigued into the signal mans life story. The narrator seems to have some kind of supernatural connection with the signal man especially towards the end of the book when he some how knows that the train is coming and that the signal man has to get out of the way of the incoming train. We dont know why or how the narrator gets to talk to the signal man and we dont know any of his background apart from the fact that he has studied medicines and is well educated. He is a mystery to the audience. The characters featured in the body snatchers are slightly mysterious we dont find out much about each character, especially their backgrounds, we dont know whether we can trust them. One of the most mysterious characters in the Body Snatchers would have to be Fettes. We dont find out much about fettes character arent cant be sure whether we trust him or not. We are not given any background knowledge about him, although we find that he is known in Debenham as Doctor because he had some special knowledge in medicine. We find out that he drinks a lot and is known well in the pub, mainly for the amount that he did drink, most people knew what he drank and knew that the arm chair in the corner of the George was his spot. Although we know these small things about him he is still a mystery, as the narrator says beyond these slight particulars we had no knowledge of his character and antecedents, he is a mysterious character. He becomes even more mysterious when Doctor Wolfe Macfarlane enters the scenes we begin to think that there is a lot more to know about him than he lets on ..you would think I was some good, old, decent Christian, would you not? But no, not I; this shows us that there is in fact a lot more to be known about Fettes than we think and he is a very mysterious character we are led to think that he has some kind of deep secret that is maybe very sinful. We think that the secret could be sinful because he says people think he is a good Christian, followed by But no, not I; Fettes expresses little emotion throughout the first couple of paragraphs until he hears Macfarlanes name, when he suddenly becomes sober and shocked this shows that he has obviously got some hidden facts about him. He shows us that he is full of emotion when he is shown as getting very worried and anxious when he doesnt drink his usual five glasses of rum and couldnt even finish his third he proves be very serious. Fettes also turns out to be less wicked than Macfarlane, which is unexpected, when he begins to feel guilty about people being killed for their bodies, he finds himself feeling regretful and scared. He also shows horrified and panic feelings when he sees the corpse of some one he knew, this shows to us that he does have feeling and can show his emotions and express them, he seems to be more respectable person than we first imagined when the narrator begins to make us feel sorry for him, the narrator does this by talking about how fettes didnt realise what he was doing and what was happening and when he did find out, he was horrified and shocked. He also becomes offended when Wolfe offers him money this emphasised the fact that hes a very proud person and doesnt like to be pity and also the fact of how much he disliked Wolfe. We as the readers learn to trust fettes because he doesnt seem like a particularly bad person and he reacts t o events that happen in the way that wed expect a good trustworthy person to react. The undertaker in the story is a mysterious character as not much is told about him and he isnt talked about much, only in the beginning. He shows emotion (shock) when he hears that Fettes knows the doctor do you know him doctor asked the undertaker with a gasp. we know here that the undertaker is shocked and slightly taken back because it says that the undertaker gasped, showing that he was shocked to hear this and wanted to find out how and why fettes knew this man. We cannot completely trust the undertaker as we dont know anything about him; he could be anyone with any background, good or bad. Macfarlane is also a particularly mysterious character a snot much is said about him at the start and not much is said about his past, for this reason he also seems Un- trustful and when he is described as being bald, dirty, pimpled and wearing an old cloak he doesnt seem the sort of man who you could rust him seems like a bit of a freak and is probably seen as a bit of a threat to other characters in the story. He also portrays many of the characteristics of an evil man in the gothic genre which encourages us, the readers to feel that he is a threat and has come into the story to create a spooky atmosphere and prepare for what is ahead, he obviously lets us know that Fettes secrets would soon be reviled and the mysteries haunting the characters and questioning the readers would no longer be secrets or mysteries any longer. At the beginning when Dr MacFarlane first enters the pub Fettes reaction this leads us to believe that Macfarlane is not a good person and is probably going to ring bad happenings, Fettes reaction gives us a reason not to trust him and also brings more mystery about him into the story because he is obviously here for reason and this reason is most likely to be about Fettes as Fettes is the only person in the George who actually recognises him name. The doctor shows a lot of emotion when he first sees fettes but also acts in a weird way in a startled whisper,. as though he is trying to hide from someone because he keeps whispering and checking behind his shoulder, acting as thought he doesnt want anyone to know who he is, but is also happy to see fettes I am overjoyed, overjoyed to have this opportunity. He shows that he is offended when Fettes doesnt take the money which is offered a horrible, ugly look came .. this shows he was offended and gave Fettes a dirty look which he slowly got over and made the best of the situation by almost apologising but keeping the offer of money still open to Fettes I will leave you my address however did he says this in case fettes would need money later on? Therefore still leaving the offer open. The Narrator also affects our views on Macfarlane by making the reader dislike him even more by his sneering and growling like these were evil things to do also the way in which he is described makes us think that he is evil and just around to cause trouble. When fettes says that man Macfarlane is not safe to cross; those that have done so already have repented it too late this makes the audience feel that Macfarlane is a very dangerous person and that people should stay away from him. He is not trustworthy and doesnt seem like a nice person. Gray or the stranger is a mysterious character as he is described as strange all we know as the audience is that he is one of MacFarlanes friends, we cant trust him as he is described as course, vulgar and stupid which is an affect that the narrator has on the audience view of this character. He shows his emotion by being bossy and nasty to Wolfe which encourages Wolfe to be more angry and threatening than he is originally. The narrator describes him as a very loathsome rogue, making readers think he again is not trustworthy and not a nice or good person. In the Signal man there are only two main characters, the signal man and the narrator , the signal man and the narrator are both main characters in the story and both of there characteristics can be considered. The signal man is a very mysterious man, when the narrator who is a main character, comes to see him the signal man seems very uptight and worried; he also seems very suspicious and looks as though hes feeling guilty about something. We think this because as soon as the signal man here the narrator shouting to him at the beginning he doesnt look towards the narrator but towards the tunnel on the tracks as though something is there that he needs to keep an eye or to signal to whoever or whatever it was in the tunnel to go away, someone is here. The signal mans reaction to the narrator makes I feel very suspicious and worried for the narrator as the signal man was behaving so oddly. We could also have reason to be suspicious when the narrator states .something in the man that daunted me. This is off putting to the audience as they believe the narrator, there for think that the signal man is a threat and dangerous. Although we dont find out much about the signal man we do know that he was well educated and study science, however he wasted that chance. The signal man doesnt show much emotion towards the narrator, its only when he begins to talk about what he has been through and why he looked towards the tunnel when he heard the narrator calling when he shows the emotion of being scared and confused, he doesnt know what is going on so doesnt know what to do about it. We cannot trust the signal man because we dont know who he is and whether when he tells these stories he is telling the truth or lying to try and play the narrator into some sort of trick. However because the narrator is telling the story we are forced into believing in the same views as the narrator has. The narrator is a main character in the story and so is entitled to have a one sided opinion, if he were looking at the story from our own point of view of the signal mans point of view we may see the narrator and the signal man from a new perspective and from a different angle which could change our views dramatically on whether or not the signal man is strange and mysterious and whether he is trustworthy or not. The narrator in the story is also a mystery to us; we dont know anything about his background or his life. It is also mystery as to why he went to the railway track and wanted to speak to the signal man in the first place, does it have anything to do with the story line or is it just coincidence? We are forced into trusting the narrator because he is the one telling the story so we believe that he has the answers to everything but in fact we probably shouldnt believe him because he is just as much of a mystery to us as The signal man is, we dont know anymore about the narrator than we do the signal man in fact we probably know more about the signal than the narrator. The narrator shows quite a lot of emotion, especially the end of the story when the signal man is killed, the end shows us that the narrator really did care, not only because he was upset when he found that the signal man was killed but also because even from a distance, and not being able to see what was happening he knew what was going on, it was like something supernatural was going on and he subconsciously knew that the signal man was in trouble and that those words halloa! Below there! had been said one last time and the result this time was the death of the signal man. The setting in gothic stories is a very important factor, this is because the setting in a gothic story is what gives it its atmosphere, if the story was set in the summer in the day time on a bright cheerful day, not many people would find it frightening but if the story was set in the dead of night on a long cold winters night an audience would find the atmosphere a lot more spooky. In the body snatchers we are not immediately hit with a description of the setting which creates atmosphere but one which sets the scene, once the scene is set Stevenson begins to create a spooky atmosphere. At the beginning there is a mention of rain, snow and frost which indicate s a dreary setting, the setting cant just indicate the atmosphere but also the moods of the characters, this particular setting portrays the characters as rather weary and lethargic. Stevenson makes the event seem much more normal so he can build it up further and makes it more dramatic. one dark winter night creates and atmosphere and shows us that its no ordinary night it is one dark winters night making the audience think it is out of the ordinary, it had struck nine this emphasises the fact that it is late and getting dark. This shows a sense of mystery, which builds up suspense within the audience. It creates an eerie feeling and also highlights the fact the characters are in a dreary mood, a sense of insecurity that something is going to happen. An inn gives us an idea of normality and security, the loud of an inn highlights a friendly, welcoming place. There was not much light in the George which gave us a mysterious feeling, a gloomy and dreary sense of insecurity. The presence of so many witnesses at the George shows that there was a lot of people in the inn and the fact that there was a big red fire and candles gave a sense of warmth and security and makes the audience feel that they are in a cosy, safe environment this makes the setting seem less frightening, Stevenson could of done this so that when something big and frightening did happen it would seem a lot more dramatic. At four in the morning this indicates the beginning of a new story. The time gives a feeling of mystery, darkness and suspense; it leads the audience to feel curiosity. Later on in the story when things begin to pick up and settings are describe in much more detail which creates a lot more spookiness for the audience and makes the plot more frightening. Stevenson uses the settings to create a sense of insecurity and to make the story seem more dramatic and increase tension and fear. the lights, the fire, the beating rain upon the window, the cold incongruous work that lay before them this for instance emphasises the fact that it is winter and the wind is howling, it creates a gloomy atmosphere and makes the reader tense and in fear of what is to come next. The setting in the signal man is less spooky than that of the body snatchers although it also portrays most of the gothic story characteristics. The signal man is set in a remote place in the middle of the countryside in a deep trench where little people go or visit, the signal mans only company are the trains that pass him every so often. The fact that there is a very dark tunnel lose by adds to this sense of spookiness and gives the audience ideas and superstitions as to why he keeps looking at this dark, black hole. The setting in the signal man doest change in the ay that the body snatchers does and isnt focussed so much on making the story frightening by the atmosphere, settings and surroundings but by the supernatural presence which is in the air, this is what the author uses to make the story gothic and frightening, he know that this will scar the readers because at the time when the story was written supernatural beings and happenings were very popular and believed it to a large extent, this made the setting of the signal man that bit more believable and realistic, increasing how dramatic it was therefore making it more and tense and frightening. The language used in gothic stories is always very important because it describes things happening helping to build tension, suspense and fear to the stories. In the body snatchers the language is very formal, 19th century language, sometimes Archaic language is used in places e.g. begone, where I cast it, lucre this adds to the atmosphere of the gothic century. The verbs which Stevenson uses suggest strong emotions especially of fear and wickedness staggered, startled, dashed, fled, cried, despised and desecrate, forced, torn , leaped and terrified all of these make the emotions stand out more in a gothic way. Stevenson also tended to use descriptive and nominal groups often to suggest the terrifying or evil for example disreputable vices, fleeting infidelities, sudden emotion, gasp, awful pause abdominal ruffians. The language is always used to set the scene, for example, one dark winter night. It is written in formal language and there is no slang. The language used is very descriptive and appearances are described in detail his eyes awoke; his voice became clear, loud and steady. When a character says something, the author Robert Louis Stevenson describes how they said it and often uses other verbs such as cried or repeated this brings variety into the language which he uses and keeps the audience a lot more interested in the story. He uses lots of descriptive language. Theres more adjectives and descriptive writing than dialogue which heightens the suspense, also helping to create a picture in the readers mind. Stevenson uses lots of dramatic language to increase suspense, a horrible sense of blackness and the treachery of fate seized hold upon the soul of a unhappy student the language is also very complex which adds to the effect and makes the story more spooky. Gruesome language and alliteration towards the end makes the story more dramatic e.g. despise and desecrate, world of wet. Corpses are described in many different ways tragic burden, ghastly packages this adds variety and also makes it more gruesome than it already is. Stevenson seems to like using similes they make things more realistic as if a man had risen from the dead, as two vultures may swoop upon a dying lamb all of these also makes the story more personal and makes it easier to imagine. The language in the signal man is formal and not much slang is used, this makes the story more realistic. There is lots of descriptive writing for example . A clammy stone which became oozier and wetter as I went down Dickens tends to use rather complex language which could confuse the character but does show that it is a rather complex story line which it is and questions are left unanswered e.g. precipitate, terminating, barbarous, perused, and saturnine Not so much gruesome language is used in the signal man because it is not a tale of gruesomeness but one of the supernatural beings, there is no need for gruesomeness but for using the supernatural realm to scare readers and make them feel threatened, uptight and to build tension. Dickens chooses the words he uses to describe things very carefully as to get the full effect of what is trying to say into words. This helps the audience to imagine what is going on, dickens does this well as it is very easy for the audience to imagine what is going on in the story and picture what is going on in their minds. Overall I would say that both The Body Snatchers and The Signal Man create fear and suspense: The body snatchers is a story based on true people , Berk and Hare, which make it more believable and realistic and the way that it is written helps to create fear and suspense and to fit into the gothic genre of story writing. It successfully creates fear using its gruesome similes and metaphors, the story line and how the characters are so unpredictable and mysterious; you get worried as to what the characters are going to do next and what other dark secrets they are going to pull out of their closets. The way that Stevenson opens the story is good because it is innocent and creates a more dramatic build up, suspense making the audience tenser and making them want to read on in fear of what might happen. The Signal Man is very different to The Body Snatchers; this is because it is based on a completely different aspect of gothic writing, not the gruesomeness but the supernatural side of gothic writing. This could be seen as more frightening than the body snatchers because supernatural beings were know as being evil, the devil or for having powers which could not be defeated by any human being. The Victorian period was known for having a deep interest supernaturalism which makes the story more realistic to people of that time. Suspense is create well in the story because we as the audience know that the being is going to appear three times but the narrator doesnt so the audience are sat waiting for it to happen while the characters ponder on what is going on, it creates a lot of tension on the audiences behalf and also creates fear. I preferred reading the story of The Body Snatchers because I thought it was a lot more realistic and I could relate it directly to something that happened in history, Berk and Hare, I also thought that it was easy to understand and didnt leave so many unanswered questions like The Signal Man did, I like a story that has a direct, understandable finish, in the signal man you dont actually find out who or what it was that was calling the signal man because eventually the signal man is killed of and the story is left unanswered, I think it Is much more effective to finish a story with no lose ends because then the reader can be satisfied that a conclusion has been reached. The body snatchers was also a more thrilling read and I think that it created fear more successfully than The signal man this could have been because it was set in different places which were isolated and remote and was also set at night when it was dark, the weather was bad whereas in the signal it was set in the day still in a remote place but no reference to the weather was made. Overall I thought that The Body Snatchers had a better and more interesting storyline which one could relate to more easily.

Military Draft Essay -- United States Military Army Essays

Military Draft According to the U.S. Department of Defense, the United States military now maintains a force of around 1.4 million active duty personnel. In times of relative peace, this is sufficient to protect U.S. interests at home and abroad. But when the United States engages in a larger scale operation, the military may need to call up reserve forces. In a major conflict, the United States may even institute the draft, drawing soldiers from the general civilian population. The idea of a military draft, also called conscription, has been around in one form or another since ancient times. In its relatively short history, the United States has implemented a number of different conscription systems to fill its military ranks in both peacetime and wartime. Currently, the United States is not practicing conscription; it has an all volunteer military, meaning active troops serve on their own accord. By offering a range of benefits to enlistees, the military is able to recruit enough troops to fill its ranks, at least during times of peace. Additionally, the United States maintains a volunteer national guard and a corps of volunteer reserve troops. These highly trained forces stand ready to assist the military at the president's command. In times of peace, the SSS's, Selective Service System, main task is to put together a list of potential draftees in the United States. The potential draftee pool is made up of male U.S. residents between the ages of 18 and 25. Und...

How Money and Appearance Control the World Essay

This is an often discussed topic but I want to talk about both sides ,the supeficial and material Barbie and those who only care about the qualities ,because I can’t decide which side is better and can find both worlds deep in myself. I know judging is a bad thing but most of the people is judging and they just don’t want to admit it. I don’t want to start a debate but I think I need to write this down. I want to start with the supeficial and material people. I classify more and more people to this group. A lot of people say that it’s the society’s mistake, but we are part of the society so when they say this satement it like blaming ourselves, but I know those people who started living their life in a superficial way are part of the society either. We have to care about our body that’s why we have it. I’m not saying that everybody have to be a supermodel with sky-high legs and panther body, but compared to the possibility of everyone should bring out the best of himself or herself. Grooming, dressing sophisticated, stylish and sophisticated look, sport and healthy living†¦ The outside affects the inside and the look has its expressive power. I think that’s enough of the superficiality but I didn’t really talk about the money and what these people think about it. It’ll be weird what I want to say but I think it’s true. It’s better to be rich when you’re superficial. I know it sounds terrible but if someone cannot afford designer clothes and jewellery it can make him or her depression. I know some people like that. They live according to the bigger the better principle, exept clothes. The bigger house, the better car, the remote holiday the valnuable you are. Some of them do things just because these hobbies are make them look richer. I can say that money controls the world. I think that’s enough of this kind of living,but I’m not saying having thousands of clothes, millions and houses in different countries but have no emotions is the life that everybody wants to have but a lot of people is dreaming about a life like that until they find out what it’s like live like when only money can make you smile. Let’s see the other side.These people say that appearance is nothing and only the inside is important. I can partly agree with them, but sometimes they don’t care about their appearance at all. And this is not appealing to me. I think a quote is really needed here.†I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character.†I think judging someone by the color of their skin is uncool. And it’s really unfair not to employ someone because he or she is afro-american or came from another country. I also hate stereotypes like chinesee people are like calculators and they eat cats. And this was just one from the hundreds. Some researches proved some interesting facts like blodies get paid more but fat people get less money. If you’re handsome you’re handsomely paid. Nowadays more and more songs and books are about superficial and selfish girls. A classical song about these boys and girls is:Shania Twain: Don’t impress me so much. I think this song expressess all those things that these people think. She says that you don’t need to have a lot of money to get her. I agree with her and those people who think you don’t need to be rich and famous,you should be kind and nice to find a girl. A lot of women are trying to find Prince Charming but he dosen’t exist. I think I wrote enough about both sides and I wrote things which are not insulting. I think there could be a third group in which there are people like I, who can’t decide, who thinks both sides have it’s advanteges and disadvantages. The best thing you can do is be who you are.

Is Generation Y Unemployed or Just Lazy

Is Generation Y Unemployed or Just Lazy? In recent years, Generation Y is particularly underemployed in the United States. Some people consider sluggish economy as an important reason for Generation Y unemployed. Other said the most important reason is Generation Y is extreme laziness – despite the opportunities that await them. I agree with the second point. In my opinion, Generation Y just lazy, they don’t want to spend a lot of time to work. They are making a choice to work at companies that pay less but offer them that more free time.Although they have bachelor’s degree, they prefer to work in retail jobs. This may be due to their attributes, working attitude and government compensation. The first reason that leads to Generation Y lazy can be Generation Y’s attribute. â€Å"We can learn Generation Y does assign different levels of importance and partially assigns different levels of happiness to the five motivational factors examined in this study: re sponsibilities, compensation, work environment, advancement potential, and free time.This study represents the first attempt to explore motivational factors for the Generation Y workforce within the federal government†(Barford). Depend on my research, I learned Generation Y’s responsibility is least, and free time is the most important for Generation Y. They are making a choice to work at companies that pay less but offer them that more free time. Generation Y’s attributes showed us that they have less responsibility for company and they would like get more free time. In other word, they don’t spend a lot of time to work.Second, underemployed due to Generation Y’s working attitude. We can learn the best-paid jobs with companies ranked high among Generation Y are all in science and technology, the survey shows. Google, Intel and Microsoft are all among the top five best companies for Gen Y, ranked based on average pay for Millennial working there, jo b satisfaction and flexible schedules, among other things. At the same time, it's most common for Gen Y to work for small companies of 100 employees or less†(Hadley). We can learn Generation Y prefer to flexible schedules and chose small companies.They most likely to hold low-paying jobs in retail, so that degree is not important for them. They don’t want to study in high school or university because they can find a job without degree. On the other hand, Internet is very important for Generation Y. In fact more than half of Gen Y workers â€Å"will not accept a job that bans social media. † This report demonstrates that to Gen Y, they â€Å"consider the internet to be as important as air, water, food, and shelter and will choose a lower paying job in order to be able use it – especially in lieu of doing any actual work.Because Generation Y is lazy, they are not employed in large numbers inside America’s biggest companies. This is Generation Yâ€⠄¢s working attitude that is one of reason of lazy. The government compensation effects on unemployment, which stimulate unemployment people, are lazy to seeking job. The government unemployment compensation is likely to have increased the average rate of unemployment. â€Å"Our current system of unemployment compensation has two distinct but related bad incentives. The first one for those who are employed, it reduces and eliminated the cost of increasing the period of unemployment.The second effect for more unsteady work, it raises net wage to the employee relative to the cost to the employer. â€Å"(Feldstein ;amp; Martin, p 39). According to these two effects of unemployment compensation, it stimulates the people who are lazy to seeking job. The government unemployment entitlement gives guarantee for the people who are lose job or seeking job, however, this overprotected politics cases extreme laziness to underemployment to find job. In conclusion, I agree with this point that Generation Y is just lazy. This may be due to their attributes, working attitude and government compensation.Actually, Generation Y can improve their life quality, if they are not lazy. They have ability to get good degree and find a good job. Works Cited Barford, Ian N and Hester, Defense Acquisition Research Journal: A Publication of the Defense Acquisition University; Jan/Feb2011, Vol. 18 Issue 1, p63-80, 18p, 2 Color Photographs, 5 Graphs Hadley Malcolm, Gen Y most likely to hold low-paying jobs in retail, USA Today, 07347456, AUG 22, 2012. Feldstein ;amp; Martin. Unemployment compensation: its effect on unemployment. Monthly Labor Review; Mar76, Vol. 99 Issue 3, p39, 3p.

History of the Mole essays

History of the Mole essays The moles beginning is traced back to the most basic units of matter, atoms. Since atoms are extremely small, scientists have perplexed a great deal over finding a way to measure atomic mass. They struggled to find a universal container that had the capability to mass atoms. Measuring the mass of one atom on a balance in grams is not practical, because the result in grams is an amount too small to be of any use in the laboratory. Fortunately, a new idea came about. If two or more same amounts of different substances are compared, the resulting ratios can be used to deduce atomic mass. These atomic mass ratios always remain the same. For example, one atom of Helium has 1/12 the mass of one atom of Carbon-12. In this way, Helium has an atomic mass of one unit, whereas the isotope Carbon-12 has an atomic mass of 12 units. Carbon-12 is the standard for atomic mass. Eventually, a mass spectrometer was invented to determine a single atoms mass even more accurately. It measured a tomic mass by comparing the time and distance an atom traveled when knocked off its course. The invention of the mass spectrometer led to extremely accurate values for single atomic mass. Now that the mass of a single atom could be figured, the quest for a universal container continued. Knowing how much one atom weighs but not how many atoms exist is not very helpful to the chemist. A universal container must have the capacity to contain the same number of molecules under the same conditions of pressure, temperature and volume. Such conditions made the search for a universal container very difficult. However, an Italian scientist by the name of Avogrado finally solved the dilemma of a container. The answer to this scientific puzzle was in the form of a number, Avogrados number. Avogrados number, 6.02 x 10 ²Ã‚ ³, is known as the mole and an accepted SI standard for finding atomic mass. In a mole, t ...

A Fool-Proof Way to Achieve Any Goal - And Thats a Promise

A Fool-Proof Way to Achieve Any Goal - And Thats a Promise The Temptation of Giving Up A friend of mine set out to make croissants for the first time. For those of you unfamiliar with the art of French baking, these pastries require several stages of preparation over 2-3 days. On the second day of his first attempt, when the batter got too thin and sticky, my friend got frustrated and threw the dough into a bread pan instead of finishing the croissant-making process. I protested that he was giving up too soon, but to no avail. He ended up with some cross between biscuits and croissants, and a learning experience for the next attempt. The Art of Perseverance – A Lesson from Mouse Tales My tendency is not to give up on almost anything until absolutely all options have been exhausted. Part of that philosophy was hammered into me as a child through multiple readings of the book Mouse Tales, by Arnold Lobel. I did not realize it at the time, but I think I learned some of my most important life lessons from that book. In one story, The Journey, a mouse ventures out in his car on a road trip to his mother’s house. After driving for some time, he encounters a slight problem: The car, sadly, falls apart. But, thankfully, just at the right moment, there is someone selling roller skates at the side of the road. The mouse purchases a pair and rolls and rolls until, guess what? The wheels fall off of the roller skates. As luck would have it, there is a person selling boots at the side of the road! The mouse wears through the soles of the boots, and then through a pair of sneakers, and then, would you believe, though a pair of feet. When his feet get too tired to walk, amazingly enough, there is a person by the side of the road selling feet! The mouse makes it to his mother’s house wearing his brand new pair of feet. Excuses, Excuses Many of us in the mouse’s situation would never have made it to our mother’s house with all these breakdowns. Do any of these laments sound familiar? My car broke down! Now I have to take it to the shop. Sorry mom. I tried! I even tried getting there on roller skates! But everything just keeps falling apart. It wasn’t meant to be. My hands are tied. Bad things are always happening to me. No one is there to help me. I have to do everything alone! I can’t let my mother know that my car is so old and broken down. I don’t have time for this. These excuses keep us from being creative, from keeping our eye on the prize, and from noticing that person who shows up just at the right time to help us. They keep us from prioritizing our relationships. And they have us tossing in the towel long before the game is truly over. The Magic Formula for Achieving Any Goal Setting aside all judgment about how important our mother would feel if we gave up on our journey, what this Mouse Tale has to teach us is something about persistence and perseverance. This mouse was not about to give up no matter what. He understood that his commitment to his goal was beyond any limitation on how he would achieve it. And at every juncture where he could have thrown up his paws and said â€Å"I can’t† or â€Å"It’s impossible† or â€Å"It’s too hard,† he found an alternative and went with it. My friend Seth and I, some time ago, identified a surefire and quite simple way to reliably achieve any goal: â€Å"Don’t give up until you achieve it.† You will either achieve that goal or you will die trying. Whether it’s making croissants, getting a new job, or making a visit to mom, the rule always applies. That’s the rule the mouse followed. He reached his goal, he could feel proud of himself, and his mother was very very happy. [By the way, my croissant-making friend did try again. Things did not go perfectly the second time either, but he pressed on until actual croissants, albeit dense ones, came out of the oven. Perhaps the third time will be the charm.]

Strategy Development in the Global Oil, Gas and Petrochemical Industry Essay

Strategy Development in the Global Oil, Gas and Petrochemical Industry - Essay Example However, with the passage of time, the company realised that they had to compete with other companies in the global arena. Oil companies such as Exxon were giving Shell a run for their money because they were globally managed. In order to respond to this trend, the company opted to change its corporate governance style. They opted to control almost all their downstream sectors through their headquarters in London and The Hague. (Shell, 2008) Corporate governance within Shell had been carried down from almost a century of its existence. In certain scenarios, some critics have argued that this form of structure has cost the company in a number of ways. This is largely because shareholders in the company do not have as much clout as members of the board. The disadvantage of this structural approach can arise when the shareholders feel that their rights are in danger but can do very little to protect it. Bp has been faced with a number of corporate governance challenges. First and foremost, the company grappled with accusations from critics who claimed that it was doing business with a group that had been responsible for human rights abuses in the Baku Ceyhan pipeline. To add insult onto injury, BP was also faced with huge problems in its pricing strategies. This was especially seen in the United Kingdom. In Colombia, the Company was confronted with a law suit where it had been accused of colluding with terrorists to protect their clients. It lost millions of pounds in paying off that settlement. This goes to show that when companies make miscalculations and fail to implement ethical codes, they are the ones who pay for it through expensive law suits and tarnished images. Business ethics Companies need to have specified code of conduct and ethics principles that will guide their day to day practices. Shell as a company has well written down rules that assist employees in sticking to the company's goals and principles. Some of these codes of conduct include; honesty, trust and integrity. While stakeholders and employees may be well aware of rules, abiding by them is another issue altogether. (Zenobank, 2008) The enormity of this matter came to fore during the 2004 business ethics disaster; at that time, the company announced that twenty percent of all the oil reserves that it claims to have a hold to were overestimated. The revelation of such a matter brought shock waves within the Oil trading sector and even resulted in the company's poor performance. In response to this issue, the company changed its leadership structures. This business dismissed its managing Director - Sir Philip Watts and also changed their management structures. Besides this, the company also responded by providing opportunities for whistle blowers to report any irregularities through an official company website. (Beasnat & Cummins, 2005) BP also has a valid code of ethics and its company purports to a sound code of conduct. However, much like its counterpart Shell, the company seems to have fallen short of these high expectations. An example of how the company did this was when it hired an expensive public relations manager to create an Image of an

Shackleton Case Questions Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Shackleton Questions - Case Study Example From this discussion it is clear that  Shackleton’s utmost strong point was his ability to keep the team together and reduce their tension even in situations of dire crisis. He managed to take fast effective decisions for the need of the moment especially when there was shortage of food on the ice and the decision to abandon the ship at the right time. However, the mains weakness lies in his shortsightedness regarding food supplies. We find examples of the men feasting and entertaining themselves with the flesh they hunted and whatever they brought along but care could have been taken to ration the food from the very beginning such that the animals could be kept alive. In fact his decision to kill McNeish’s pet worked against his relation with his subordinate since the latter never pardoned him for this.This report highlights that  Shackleton knew that an effective leader needs to inform the team members about the rewards and incentives lying in the path of achievin g the goals. He promised his men that they will be compensated in full despite the fact that their ship was lost.   His tactics are similar to that of Agamemnon who sent for Achilles with the promises to shower him with gifts of women, land and riches in order to win against Troy.  Machiavelli’s principles of ruling show some great ideas of leadership some of which have already been applied by Shackleton. According to Machiavelli, a leader can be â€Å"deceitful when it suits his purpose and not appear that way†.... He managed to take fast effective decisions for the need of the moment especially when there was shortage of food on the ice and the decision to abandon the ship at the right time (Koehn, 2010, p.12). However, the mains weakness lies in his shortsightedness regarding food supplies. We find examples of the men feasting and entertaining themselves with the flesh they hunted and whatever they brought along but care could have been taken to ration the food from the very beginning such that the animals could be kept alive. In fact his decision to kill McNeish’s pet worked against his relation with his subordinate since the latter never pardoned him for this (Koehn, 2010, p.30). When the dogs were shot in front of the men, the sight was disturbing to all of them (Koehn, 2010, p.16). In a situation where men are fighting for their own survival such a sight of death at the leader’s instructions might give them little confidence about a safe return. 3. What parallels do you see between Shackleton and other leaders whom you have studied? Shackleton knew that an effective leader needs to inform the team members about the rewards and incentives lying in the path of achieving the goals. He promised his men that they will be compensated in full despite the fact that their ship was lost (Koehn, 2010, p.15). His tactics are similar to that of Agamemnon who sent for Achilles with the promises to shower him with gifts of women, land and riches in order to win against Troy (Bass & Bass, 2008, p.366). Machiavelli’s principles of ruling show some great ideas of leadership some of which have already been applied by Shackleton. According to Machiavelli, a leader can be â€Å"deceitful when it suits his purpose and not appear that way† (Heijden,

Khat Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Khat - Research Paper Example They are likely to smoke cigarette and drink alcohol as compared to the non-user c counterparts. More youth are using khat, and they can be categorized demographically as between ages of 15 and not exceeding twenty five years of age. This group has male and female drug users. Demographic data in relation to the age, gender and level of education can be used to describe the use of khat in African countries. The table below summarizes the khat drug use: (Al†Hebshi & Skaug, 2005). According to Al†Hebshi & Skaug, 2005, statistics show that in Africa, the female and male youth have insignificant differences in the percent drug users at the same educational level. School going youth below the age of twenty years are the majority consumers of khat as compared to those in college with over 20 years of age. It is shown that khat use is high among the urban poor and those in informal settlements, suburbs, the illiterate, and those in informal employment. Majority of the users tend to consume khat on daily basis, the least number are the monthly users. That is: The usage patterns and trends therefore show that khat is highly addictive and use can lead to dependence. Many consume the drug on daily basis. Eighty seven point seven percent is significantly huge value. The effects, signs and symptoms vary. They can be categorized as short term and long term effects. Nencini, P., Ahmed, A. M., & Elmi, A. S, 1986) argue that short term effects include: irritability, a feeling of excitement, euphoria, physical exhaustion, difficulties in breathing, constipation, increased heart rate and blood pumping, hallucinations, feeling of hyperactivity, manic behavior, increased alertness and concentration as well as increased motor activity. Long term signs and symptoms due to khat use include: Anorexia, gastric disorders, depression and elevated stress levels, heart diseases and cancer, tachycardia, liver complications and damage, cardiac complications among

Influence of Cannabis Abuse Variables on Psychotic Symptoms

Influence of Cannabis Abuse Variables on Psychotic Symptoms Influence of variables of cannabis abuse on psychotic symptoms and their severity: an Indian experience Abstract: Context: Cannabis is probably the most commonly used illicit drug. While not all cannabis users present mental health problems, heavy cannabis use may increase the risk of cognitive abnormalities, psychotic illness, and mood disorders. Cannabis-induced psychosis is not easily distinguishable from schizophrenic symptomatology, although it is characterized by more bizarre behaviour, violence, panic, more agitation, and less blunting of affect, and incoherent speech. Aims: To evaluate severity of various psychotic symptoms in relation to variables of cannabis abuse. Settings and Design: A cross sectional study of 30 male patients admitted at tertiary psychiatric centre, with diagnosis of cannabis induced psychosis was carried out. Methods and Material: Cannabis abuse variables along with psychotic symptoms severity on BPRS scale was obtained. Statistical analysis used: SPSS-17 was used for analysis, and significance level was at p-value Results: The symptoms that were associated with increased severity in majority of patients were hostility (83%), excitement (77%), and elevated mood, grandiosity, suspiciousness and motor hyperactivity were preset in more than 60% of individuals in range of severe to very severe form. Conclusions: Patients with long duration and early onset of cannabis abuse were presented with more severe form of psychosis. Frequency of cannabis use was not significantly correlated with total BPRS score, although amount spent over cannabis was significantly associated with total BPRS score. Family history of cannabis abuse predicted early onset of cannabis abuse. Introduction Cannabis is probably most commonly used illicit drug. [1,2] It is widely used in India and is an integral part of Indian culture and religious customs.[3,4] The correlation between cannabis and negative mental health outcomes has been unequivocally established [1,5,6,7,12]. While not all cannabis users present mental health problems, [5] epidemiological studies suggest that heavy cannabis use during adolescence may increase the risk of cognitive abnormalities and psychotic disorders.[1,8-10] Use of cannabis at early age and high frequency are associated with a greater risk of problems [5,7,11]. Arendt et al. consider that this cannabis-induced psychosis is an early expression of schizophrenia in vulnerable individuals rather than part of the differential diagnosis [12]. Moore’s review reported a 40% higher risk of psychosis in subjects who occasionally used cannabis and a probability of 50% to 200% higher in regular cannabis users [13]. Swedish Conscripts Study (Andreasson et al.) of inductees into the military reported a risk for schizophrenia 2.4 times higher among those who had used cannabis by 18 years than among non-users [14,24]. This cannabis-induced psychosis is not easily distinguishable from Schizophrenic symptomatology, [15,19] although it has been characterized by more bizarre behavior, violence, panic, more hypomanic symptoms and agitation, and fewer hallucinations and less blunting of affect and incoherent speech.[20,21] Need of the current study Studies have found cannabis associated psychosis a constellation of affective symptoms (euphoria, increased psychomotor activity), [16,17,18] whereas others have found similarity with schizophrenic symptomology of social withdrawal, thought disorder and disorganized behavior [19,22] so there is immense need to define the presenting features of this disorder in Indian population. Additionally phenomenology of the cannabis use disorder need to be explored to clearly define, identify and manage this population. Despite widespread use of cannabis there is lack of research data from most part of the world including India. Aims and objectives: Based on the existing literature we formulated following hypothesis that â€Å"Patients with cannabis associated psychosis have different symptom profile than other common psychiatric disorders, relating to variables of cannabis abuse e.g. dose, frequency, duration†. To test the hypothesis following objectives were formulated To assess variables of cannabis abuse in patients with cannabis associated psychosis. To explore the relationship between variables of cannabis abuse, and individual symptom profile and total BPRS score. Subjects and Methods: Patients in whom there was temporal association of cannabis use with onset of psychotic illness were included in the study. The study included 30 consequentially admitted, Hindi speaking patients of 18-50 years of age at tertiary psychiatric centre in north India from March 2011 to July 2011. Patients with mental retardation, a significant medical condition compromising ability to participate, history of head injury with any documented cognitive sequele, and inability to provide informed consent were excluded from study. Patients having history of psychiatric illness prior to onset of cannabis abuse, predominant abuse/dependence of other psychoactive substance and having any other significant medical illness were also excluded from study. Study design: A cross sectional study of subjects who satisfied the inclusion criteria was carried out. After recording socio demographic data, each participant in the study was subjected to questionnaire regarding his cannabis abuse and brief psychiatric rating scale (BPRS). To measure the quantity of cannabis intake by individual indirect measure in form of average amount (INR) spent daily was inquired. The age of onset, duration of abuse, and cause of onset- accidental, casual, peer group and offer by elder family members were recorded. The history of cannabis abuse as well as psychiatric illness in other family members was inquired. Results: Majority of the participants were young male adults of the rural background. About 47 % (n-14) of them were unmarried and 60 % (n-18) were belonged to joint family. All the study participants were formally educated and at least one family member of about 43% (n-13) of participants had history of cannabis abuse. As it has been shown in table 2 majority of the study participants were abusing cannabis for more than 10 years with mean duration of cannabis abuse 14.2 years. 50 % of the individuals experienced first cannabis intake before age of 13 years with average onset of cannabis use 14.5 years. Majority of the participants (66%) were daily cannabis abusers. More than 2/3 rd of the subjects was spending Rs. 15 per day on average over the cannabis. Onset of cannabis was occurred mostly due to influence of peer group (n-21). The symptoms that were associated with increased severity in majority of patients were hostility 25 (83%), excitement 23 (77%), and elevated mood, grandiosity, suspiciousness, distractibility and motor hyperactivity in more than 60% of individuals. Other symptoms that were present in severe to very severe form in more than half individuals were hallucinations, unusual thought content, uncooperativeness, and self neglect. Suicidability and tension was absent in 28(93%) of p atients, depression and motor retardation was absent in 25(83%) of participants, guilt was absent in 70% of patients and blunted affect, conceptual disorganization and emotional withdrawal were completely absent in >60% of individual patients. Correlation with duration of cannabis abuse Long duration of abuse was negatively correlated with depression and hostility but other symptoms like suspiciousness, hallucinations, unusual thought content were positively correlated. Duration of cannabis abuse was significantly associated with total BPRS score (p-0.002). Patients with long duration of cannabis were presented with more severe form of psychosis than patients with short duration of cannabis abuse. Correlation with Age of onset of cannabis abuse Older age of onset of cannabis use was significantly associated with depression (p Correlation with frequency of cannabis abuse Frequency of cannabis abuse was significantly associated with self neglect (p-0.007) and tension (p Correlation with amount spent over cannabis The amount spent over cannabis was significantly correlated with anxiety (p-0.030), hallucinations (p-0.001), bizarre behavior (p Discussion: This study was aimed at determining clinical symptoms in relation to variables of cannabis abuse. All subjects were male. This could be attributable to low levels of substance use among females in general and cannabis in particular. Age range was wide and may be due to variation in genetic vulnerability to psychosis, dose of cannabis and duration of illness leading to variable age at presentation. Positive symptoms (motor hyperactivity, excitement, hostility, elevated mood, suspiciousness, grandiosity) were found at higher frequency than negative symptoms (blunted effect, emotional withdrawal and motor retardation). Hallucinations were present in only half of the participants. Other symptoms of the psychosis like conceptual disorganization and catatonic symptoms were absent. Our result was in support of Vani Kulhali and colleagues [23] finding that patients with cannabis associated psychosis had high positive scores (>5) on respective BPRS items were hostility 25 (83%), excitement 23 (77%), and motor hyperactivity, elevated mood, grandiosity, suspiciousness, distractibility in more than 60% of individuals. The least common symptoms were suicidability and tension 2 (6), depression and motor retardation 5 (15%), guilt was present in 30% of patients and blunted affect, conceptual disorganization and emotional withdrawal were completely absent in >60% of individuals. Most studies have reported that cannabis produces psychosis with prominent positive symptoms [16,1718]. Our findings are in keeping with these studies. Scores on BPRS reflected both the total intensity and the profile of psychopathology. Thus our findings largely confirm that reports of other authors that cannabis produces a psychosis with predominantly affective features and more of positive symptoms. Family history of drug disorders is regarded as risk factor for substance use including cannabis, whether it also results in increased vulnerability to cannabis psychosis is not clear. Conclusions The implication of this study is that cannabis contributes in causing and modifying psychosis. Several noteworthy findings emerged from this heterogeneous sample of cannabis associated psychosis. First the severity of psychotic episode was significantly associated with younger age of onset of cannabis abuse and increased spending was associated with more severe psychotic episode. Second family history of psychosis was not associated with increased severity of cannabis abuse, although family history of psychosis predicted more severe excitement, elevated mood and grandiosity and early onset of cannabis abuse. Limitations of the study As this was a cross sectional study and cannabis variables were obtained from interview possibility of â€Å"recall bias† can`t be ruled out. It was not possible to measure the amount of cannabis in unit time. Proxy used to represent this variable may not be representative of active ingredient of delta- 9THC. We have to rely on the subjects `self- report` of not using any other substances and were unable to objectively verify this report. Thus, the possibility that some symptoms were related to abstinence from other drugs cannot be completely excluded. Wide age range could be a drawback of study since homogeneity in duration of illness and amount of cannabis abuse could not be ensured.