Alzheimers Disease Essays (2644 words) - Cognitive Disorders

Alzheimers Disease Alzheimer's Disease We are currently living in the age of technology. Our advancements in the past few decades overshadow everything learned in the last 2000 years. With the elimination of many diseases through effective cures and treatments, humans can expect to live a much longer life then that of their grandparents. The population of the United States continues to rise, and with the baby boom era coming of age, the number of elderly people is rising as well. This increase has brought with it a large increase in diseases associated with old age. Alzheimer's dementia is one of the most common and feared diseases afflicting the elderly community. Alzheimer's disease, once thought to be a natural part of aging, is a severely debilitating form of mental dementia. Although some other types of dementia are curable or effectively treatable, there is currently no cure for the Alzheimer variety. A general overview of Alzheimer's disease including the clinical description, diagnosis, and progression of symptoms, helps one to further understand the treatment and care of patients, the scope of the problem, and current research. The clinical definition of dementia is a deterioration in intellectual performance that involves, but is not limited to, a loss in at least 2 of the following areas: language, judgment, memory, visual or depth perception, or judgment interfering with daily activities. (Institute, 1996, p.4). The initial cause of Alzheimer's disease symptoms is a result of the progressive deterioration of brain cells (neurons) in the cerebral cortex of the brain. This area of the brain, which is the largest and uppermost portion, controls all our thought processes, movement, speech, and senses. This deterioration initially starts in the area of the cortex that is associated with memory and then progresses into other areas of the cortex, then into other areas of the brain that control bodily functions. The death of these cells causes an interruption of the electrochemical signals between neurons that are a key to cognitive as well as bodily functioning. Currently Alzheimer's disease can only be confirmed at autopsy. After death the examined brain of an Alzheimer victim shows two distinct characteristics. The first is the presence of neuritic plaques in the cerebral cortex and other areas of the brain including cerebral blood vessels. These plaques consist of groups of neurons surrounded by deposits of beta-amyloid protein. The presence of these plaques is also common to other types of dementia. The second characteristic, neurofibliary tangles, is what separates Alzheimer's disease from all other forms of dementia. Neurofibliary tangles take place within the disconnected brain cells themselves. When examined under a microscope, diseased cells appear to contain spaghetti-like tangles of normally straight nerve fibers. The presence of these tangles was first discovered in 1906 by the German neurologist Alois Alzheimer, hence the name Alzheimer's disease. Although the characteristics listed above are crucial to the diagnosis of Alzheimer's disease upon death, the clinical diagnosis involves a different process. The diagnosis of Alzheimer's disease is only made after all other illnesses, which may have the same symptoms, are ruled out. The initial symptoms of Alzheimer's disease are typical of other treatable diseases. Therefore doctors are hesitant to give the diagnosis of Alzheimer's in order to save the patient from the worsening of a treatable disease through a misdiagnosis. Some of the initial symptoms include an increased memory loss, changes in mood, personality, and behavior, (symptoms that are common in depression) prescription drug conflict, brain tumors, syphilis, alcoholism, other types of dementia, and many other conditions. The onset of these symptoms usually brings the patient to his family doctor. The general practitioner runs a typical battery of urinalysis and blood tests that he sends off to the lab. If the tests come back negative, and no other cause of the symptoms is established, the patient is then referred to a specialist. The specialist, usually a psychiatrist, will then continue to rule out other possible illnesses through testing. If the next battery of tests also comes back negative, then the specialist will call on a neurologist to run a series of neurological examinations including a PET and CAT scan to rule out the possibility of brain tumors. A spinal tap is also performed to determine the possibility of

Essay on Overpopulated Cities

Essay on Overpopulated Cities Essay on Overpopulated Cities This is an example essay on Overpopulated Cities: Many countries throughout the world have the problem of overpopulated cities but none more than those countries that are still developing themselves. This problematic nature of increasing overpopulation in the cities of developing countries is the biggest global problem needing to be addressed in the 21st century, and will continually need to be addressed in to the future, as overpopulation is increasing at an alarming rate. One country suffering such problems is Bangladesh and its hugely overpopulated capital city of Dhaka. Many different factors affect this city from education, water quality, health care, the cycle of poverty and many more, while this is a struggling developing country it can be compared to a very developed country such as Japan which is developed and extremely stable in comparison. Throughout Dhaka the lack of educational services is extremely apparent and the need for new schools, university and other tertiary institutions is more than obvious. This educational problem has become so large that Dhaka is and could quite easily get trapped in the â€Å"cycle of poverty† meaning that their lack of educational facilities means that they cannot produce enough qualified people to do all the jobs a developing country requires. With only about 20 per cent of people able to read and write, and there is only two universities in the whole of Bangladesh, and even when they can get into schools â€Å"about 40 percent of those enrolling in primary school drop out before completing primary education† (General Information, 2001 [Online]). For a developing country such as Bangladesh they need more schools and universities so as they can study technology, find suitable places for mines or other resource stocks. This cycle is nearly impossible to break since if they have very few teachers and schools then it will take a long time to get more teachers even if they were able to put in more teaching facilities. This cruel cycle is heavily fueled by the fact that they are an overpopulated and developing country, for instance if this was Japan, a country with the same population (around 126,000,000) schools and universities could be supplied by the government or privately owned financiers. Famines, drought and poor water quality in cities like Dhaka in developing countries force many of the inhabitants living out in the country farming or what not to move into the city to seek aid. Bangladesh is highly â€Å"Disaster prone and is a victim of repeated natural disasters such as cyclones, floods, droughts and earthquakes† (General Information, [Online]). It is these horrific natural climatic conditions that make it hard for farming and so on but also forces a lot of people into the cities. Around, 48 per cent of rural and 44 per cent of the urban population live below the poverty line defined as 2122-calorie intake per person. Average households spend 59 per cent of their income on food, yet 60 per cent of children below 5 years of age are malnourished. Resources required to bring about improvements in standards of living are limited. (Md. Mujibur Rahman and Hasin Jahan 1997, [Online]) These statistics show how a developing country cannot take the strain of an overpopulated city. And would almost have to look globally for help. As food isn’t the only problem many also are in need of good quality water facilities, More than 90 per cent of the rural people have access to safe drinking water and only 18 per cent use proper sanitation facilities. 47 per cent of the total urban population has access to public water supplies and 42 per cent to hygienic sanitation. (Md. Mujibur Rahman and Hasin Jahan 1997, [Online]) So as urbanization becomes and even bigger factor to life in an overpopulated city in a developing country so to is the problems of water quality, famine and natural disasters/weather, Japan also suffers from these terrible natural disasters (earthquakes) but they manage to survive since they import so much food but there strong economy – compared with Bangladesh can sustain this. Many countries all over the world have overpopulated cities, many in developed countries and even more in developing countries but the key difference is how overpopulated cities like Dhaka in Bangladesh struggle since the country has not yet been able to set up the adequate facilities to sustain such a high population (127,567,002 people). This is when water sanitation and food supply all mentioned above become a real threat to a cities health With Dhaka suffering â€Å"Between 35 and 50 of every 100 newborns suffer from low-birth weight†¦ 70 percent of mothers are afflicted by nutritional deficiency and anaemia. Another perennial health challenge is the long-term effects of naturally occurring arsenic in ground water† (General Information, 2001 [Online]). The city and country is so busy putting money out of its budget into feeding the people and trying to keep some kind of decent standard of living that all the things required for a developing country are neglected. Such as advances in technology, putting in place a good government system and many more. This is why a developing country finds it extremely hard to sustain an overpopulated city. In comparison however a developed country like Japan can support a large population, since everything required is in place; especially government. This overpopulation then becomes a matter on the global scale since, The effects of urbanization on the environment and water resources are evident. When the number of inhabitants in a certain area gets too big the environments own power of regeneration decreases and the problems will occur. Wastes will accumulate to air, soil and water. The level of living decreases dues to pollution, traffic, noise, inadequate housing and lack of own space. The consumption of the hinterland’s goods will increase above the production and food has to be transported from far away.(Summary and Conclusion, 2001 [Online]). This high consumption of resources by an overpopulated city puts high undue strain on a developing country. In turn this also becomes a global problem, since the world can only have so much farming land and so many crops growing at any one time, and if a city requires the importation of food from outside sources this then puts a strain on the global food market, and Bangladesh finds it so hard to sustain good farm land due to the problem of natural disasters. With all global resources being put under pressure. This global problem does require the address of the world’s attention since the strain of world resources is a global problem. As years pass the worlds population is only going to get larger and thus the strain on world resources is going to continue to rise, and the problem of overpopulated cities in developing countries has to be addressed. Perhaps a possible solution could be found in trying to limit the population as was done in Japan with the one child policy. Since when you compare the two countries (Japan and Bangladesh) it is clear that they are two countries of equal size yet of far different economic states. When you compare the two, Japan with a very slow birthrate (around .9) and Bangladesh with hardly any contraception available and a high birthrate of around 1.5. When a health condom survey was done in 2000 it was found that, â€Å"condoms are unpopular in†¦Muslim Bangladesh† (Condoms unpopular in overpopulated Bangladesh, 2000 [Online]). In relation to GNP and so fourth, as seen in tables in Appendix A, Japan has a far better economy and GNP 38,160 (US$) per capita, whereas Banglad esh only have a GNP of 270 (US$) per capita. Bangladesh do keep a decent health system however with some rather unusual strategies put in place, like working over the internet to pick up cheap medical to keep all hospitals fully equipped, at least to there best potential. They even have special services done by the government that allows women in Bangladesh to purchase loans which in turns allows them to set up there very own businesses, this however small does slowly help to breaking the cycle of poverty. Although Bangladesh does implement these unusual methods they have a lot to strive for before being as stable as Japan. With the country of Japan able to keep its birthrate so low, (below 1) this enables that they will not get too overpopulated as they already are, but the fact that they have realized this and implemented measures to contradict a population boom just shows how developed they are. Bangladesh needs to be able to implement some way of educating the men and women of Dhaka and surrounding cities of how overpopulation is a vicious circle and is in fact a global problem, with Bangladesh’s projected population at 80 million by the year 2020. Clearly the growing population of cities in developing countries is going to be a continual problem until some sort of global â€Å"law† can be introduced to help the countries battling malnourishment, education problems and sever lacks of technological advance. It is this problematic nature of increasing overpopulation in the cities of developing countries that is the biggest global problem needing to be addressed in the 21st century, and into the future, as overpopulation is increasing at an alarming rate. ______________ is a professional essay writing service which can provide high school, college and university students with 100% original custom written essays, research papers, term papers, dissertations, courseworks, homeworks, book reviews, book reports, lab reports, projects, presentations and other assignments of top quality. More than 700 professional Ph.D. and Master’s academic writers. Feel free to order a custom written essay on Overpopulation from our professional essay writing service.

Unit recall Essay Example

Unit recall Essay Example Unit recall Essay Unit recall Essay I can recall a time where I had to maintain focus and persistence in spite of obstacles that I was facing at the time. This is in fact, in recent history as I was going through a combination of events that seems to have come out of nowhere. I am a full time student, and set to graduate in two quarters. Around the end of Spring quarter and beginning of the Summer Quarter, I lost my Job. In addition to that, I was the nearing the end off long term relationship. Not to mention, it is the start of the Summer! I had to motivation to continue in my education. My main focus was to find work. Money that I had saved up was fading, and fading fast. What makes matters worse, I was unable to receive unemployment. I knew that I needed to find a Job soon. So as you can imagine, that last thing on my mind is getting my education, much less finishing up the summer quarter. But, with all that was going on Im my life, and the combination of emotions and feelings coming and going in my head, I know that I did not come this far to quit now. If I can compare those feeling to a football season, hen it would be similar in many ways. All the hard work, injuries, fatigue, blood, and sweat that was endured during the regular season and playoffs, Just to give up and fold during the Super Bowl is not an option. In conclusion, I did maintain focus and I made it through the summer quarter, but barely. It was not very pretty, in fact was my worst quarter in my time in school, but nevertheless, I made it through. I also started a new Job that pays well. And as far as that relationship, well, lets Just say Eve already moved to bigger and better things. And so far so good.

Effective Rhetorical Strategies of Repetition

Effective Rhetorical Strategies of Repetition Care to know how to bore your readers to tears? Repeat yourself. Carelessly, excessively, needlessly, endlessly, repeat yourself. (That tedious strategy is called battology.) Would you like to know how to keep your readers interested? Repeat yourself. Imaginatively, forcefully, thoughtfully, amusingly, repeat yourself. Needless repetition is deadly- no two ways about it. Its the kind of clutter that can put to sleep a circus full of hyperactive children. But not all repetition is bad. Used strategically, repetition can wake our readers up and help them to focus on a key idea- or, at times, even raise a smile. When it came to practicing effective strategies of repetition, rhetoricians in ancient Greece and Rome had a big bag full of tricks, each with a fancy name. Many of these devices appear in our Grammar Rhetoric Glossary. Here are seven common strategies- with some fairly up-to-date examples. Anaphora (pronounced ah-NAF-oh-rah)Repetition of the same word or phrase at the beginning of successive clauses or verses.This memorable device appears most famously throughout Dr. Kings I Have a Dream speech. Early in World War II, Winston Churchill relied on anaphora to inspire the British people: We shall go on to the end, we shall fight in France, we shall fight on the seas and oceans, we shall fight with growing confidence and growing strength in the air, we shall defend our Island, whatever the cost may be, we shall fight on the beaches, we shall fight on the landing grounds, we shall fight in the fields and in the streets, we shall fight in the hills; we shall never surrender. Commoratio (pronounced ko mo RAHT see oh)Repetition of an idea several times in different words.If youre a fan of Monty Pythons Flying Circus, you probably recall how John Cleese used commoratio beyond the point of absurdity in the Dead Parrot Sketch: Hes passed on! This parrot is no more! He has ceased to be! Hes expired and gone to meet his maker! Hes a stiff! Bereft of life, he rests in peace! If you hadnt nailed him to the perch hed be pushing up the daisies! His metabolic processes are now history! Hes off the twig! Hes kicked the bucket, hes shuffled off his mortal coil, run down the curtain and joined the bleedin choir invisible! THIS IS AN EX-PARROT! Diacope (pronounced dee-AK-o-pee)Repetition that is broken up by one or more intervening words.Shel Silverstein used diacope in a delightfully dreadful childrens poem called, naturally, Dreadful: Someone ate the baby,Its rather sad to say.Someone ate the babySo she wont be out to play.Well never hear her whiny cryOr have to feel if she is dry.Well never hear her asking, Why?Someone ate the baby. Epimone (pronounced eh-PIM-o-nee)Frequent repetition of a phrase or question; dwelling on a point.One of the best-known examples of epimone is Travis Bickles self-interrogation in the film Taxi Driver (1976): You talkin to me? You talkin to me? You talkin to me? Then who the hell else are you talking . . . you talking to me? Well, Im the only one here. Who . . . do you think youre talking to? Oh yeah? Okay. Epiphora (pronounced ep-i-FOR-ah)Repetition of a word or phrase at the end of several clauses.A week after Hurricane Katrina devastated the Gulf Coast late in the summer of 2005, the president of Jefferson Parish, Aaron Broussard, employed epiphora in an emotional interview with CBS News: Take whatever idiot they have at the top of whatever agency and give me a better idiot. Give me a caring idiot. Give me a sensitive idiot. Just don’t give me the same idiot. Epizeuxis (pronounced ep-uh-ZOOX-sis)Repetition of a word for emphasis (usually with no words in between).This device appears often in song lyrics, as in these opening lines from Ani DiFrancos Back, Back, Back: Back back back in the back of your mindare you learning an angry language,tell me boy boy boy are you tending to your joyor are you just letting it vanquish?Back back back in the dark of your mindwhere the eyes of your demons are gleamingare you mad mad madabout the life you never hadeven when you are dreaming?( from the album To the Teeth , 1999) Polyptoton (pronounced, po-LIP-ti-tun)Repetition of words derived from the same root but with different endings. The poet Robert Frost employed polyptoton in a memorable definition. Love, he wrote, is an irresistible desire to be irresistibly desired. So, if you simply want to bore your readers, go right ahead and repeat yourself needlessly. But if, instead, you want to write something memorable, to inspire your readers or perhaps entertain them, well then, repeat yourself- imaginatively, forcefully, thoughtfully, and strategically.