Causes And Effects Of Strokes Biology Essay

Causes And Effects Of Strokes Biology Essay Stroke is defined as A neurological deficit of cerebrovascular cause that persists beyond 24 hours or is interrupted by death within 24 hours. WHO (1970) A stroke is the rapidly developing loss of brain functions due to a disturbance in the blood vessels supplying blood to the brain. This can be due to ischemia caused by thrombosis or embolism or due to a hemorrhage. As a result, the affected area of the brain is unable to function, leading to inability to move one or more limbs on one side of the body, inability to understand or formulate speech or inability to see one side of the visual field (Donnan GA, Fisher M. May 2008). PREVALANCE AND INCIDENCE: Stroke could soon be the most common cause of death worldwide (Murray CJ, Lopez AD 1997). Stroke is currently the second leading cause of death in the Western world, ranking after heart disease and before cancer (Donnan GA, Fisher M, May 2008)and it causes 10% of deaths worldwide (World Health Organization. 2004) . It has been noted that stroke incidence may vary considerably from country to country. The prevalence of stroke in India was estimated as 203 per 100,000 populations above 20 years, amounting to a total of about 1 million cases. Stroke represented 1.2% of total deaths in India (PK Sethi Neurosciences Today 2002). SEX DIFFERENCES: Men are 1.25 times more likely to suffer strokes than women(PK Sethi Neurosciences Today 2002), yet 60% of deaths from stroke occur in women (Villarosa, Linda, Ed.1993). CLASSIFICATION: Strokes can be classified into two major categories: ischemic and hemorrhagic. Ischemia is due to interruption of the blood supply, while hemorrhage is due to rupture of a blood vessel or an abnormal vascular structure. 80% of strokes are due to ischemia; the remainders are due to hemorrhage (Donnan GA, Fisher M. May 2008). ISCHEMIC STROKE: In an ischemic stroke, blood supply to a part of the brain is decreased, leading to dysfunction of the brain tissue in that area. The four reasons responsible for ischemic stroke are thrombosis, embolism (Donnan GA, Fisher M. May 2008), systemic hypoperfusion (Shuaib A, Hachinski VC .September 1991) and venous thrombosis (Stam J. 2005). HAEMORRAGIC STROKE: Intracranial hemorrhage is the accumulation of blood anywhere within the skull vault. Intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH) is bleeding directly into the brain tissue, forming a gradually enlarging haematoma. RISK FACTORS: High blood pressure, High blood cholesterol levels, Diabetes, Cigarette smoking (Hankey GJ. August 1999), Heavy alcohol consumption (Reynolds K, Lewis B, Nolen JD, et al .2003) , drug use, (Sloan MA, 1991), lack of physical activity, obesity, unhealthy diet (American Heart Association.2007) and Atrial fibrillation. CAUSES: When the flow of blood in an artery supplying the brain is interrupted for more than a few seconds, brain cells can die, causing permanent damage. An interruption can be caused by either blood clots or bleeding in the brain. Most strokes are due to blood clots that blocks the blood flow to brain. Bleeding into the brain occurs if a blood vessel ruptures or if there is a significant injury (Ay H; Furie KL. 2005). BLOOD CLOTS: A common cause of stroke is atherosclerosis. Fatty deposits and blood platelets collect on the walls of the arteries, forming plaques. Over time, the plaques slowly begin to block the flow of blood. The plaque itself may block the artery enough to cause a stroke (Ay H; Furie KL. 2005). The plaque causes the blood to flow abnormally, which leads to a blood clot. A clot can stay at the site of narrowing and prevent blood flow to all of the smaller arteries it supplies. In other cases, the clot can travel and wedge into a smaller vessel (Ay H; Furie KL. 2005). Strokes caused by embolism are most commonly caused by heart disorders. An embolism may originate in a major blood vessel as it branches off the heart. A clot can also form elsewhere in the body for any number of reasons, and then travel to the brain, causing a stroke (Ay H; Furie KL. 2005). Arrhythmias of the heart, such as atrial fibrillation, can be associated with this type of stroke and may contribute to clot formation. Other causes of embolic stroke include endocarditis, or use of a mechanical heart valve. A clot can form on the artificial valve, break off, and travel to the brain (Ay H; Furie KL. 2005). BLEEDING IN THE BRAIN: A second major cause of stroke is bleeding in the brain. This can occur when small blood vessels in the brain become weak and burst. Some people have defects in the blood vessels of the brain that make this more likely. The flow of blood after the blood vessel ruptures damages brain cells (Ay H; Furie KL. 2005). PATHOPHYSIOLOGY: ISCHAEMIC: Ischemic stroke occurs due to a loss of blood supply to part of the brain, initiating the ischemic cascade. Brain tissue ceases to function if deprived of oxygen for more than 60 to 90 seconds and after a few hours will suffer irreversible injury possibly leading to death of the tissue. Atherosclerosis may disrupt the blood supply by narrowing the lumen of blood vessels leading to a reduction of blood flow, by causing the formation of blood clots within the vessel (National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke.1999). Embolic infarction occurs when emboli formed elsewhere in the circulatory system, typically in the heart as a consequence of atrial fibrillation, or in the carotid arteries. These break off, enter the cerebral circulation, then lodge in and occlude brain blood vessels (National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke.1999). HAEMORRAGIC: Hemorrhagic strokes results in tissue injurys by causing compression of tissues from an expanding hematomas. This can distort and injure the tissues. In addition, the pressure may lead to a loss of blood supply to affected tissue with resulting infarction, and the blood released by brain hemorrhage appears to have direct toxic effects on brain tissue and vasculature (National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke.1999). SIGNS AND SYMPTOMS: A stroke symptom typically starts suddenly, over seconds to minutes, and in most cases dont progress further. The symptoms depend on the area of the brain affected. The more extensive the area of brain affected, more the functions that are likely to be lost (National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke.1999). A sudden development of one or more of the following indicates a stroke: Paresis or paralysis of any part of the body, Numbness, tingling, or decreased sensation, Changed or diminished vision, Language difficulties, including slurred speech, inability to speak, inability to understand speech, difficulty in reading or writing, Swallowing difficulties or drooling, Loss of memory, Vertigo, Loss of balance or coordination, Personality changes, Mood/emotion changes, Drowsiness, lethargy, or loss of consciousness, Uncontrollable eye movements or eyelid drooping. SUB TYPES: If the area of the brain affected contains one of the three prominent Central nervous system pathways-the spinothalamic tract, corticospinal tract, and dorsal column, symptoms may include hemiplegia and muscle weakness of the face, numbness, reduction in sensory or vibratory sensation. In most cases, the symptoms affect only one side of the body. The defect in the brain is usually on the opposite side of the body depending on which part of the brain is affected. In addition to the above CNS pathways, the brainstem also consists of the 12 cranial nerves. Hence a stroke affecting the brain stem can produce symptoms relating to deficits in the cranial nerves. The symptoms are altered smell, taste, hearing, or vision, drooping of eyelid and weakness of ocular muscles, decreased reflexes like gag, swallow and pupil reactivity to light, decreased sensation and muscle weakness of the face, balance problems and nystagmus,altered breathing and heart rate,weakness in sternocleidomastoid muscle with inability to turn head to one side,weakness in tongue. If the cerebral cortex is involved, the CNS pathways can again be affected, but also can produce the symptoms like aphasia, apraxia, visual field defect, memory deficits, hemineglect, disorganized thinking, confusion, hypersexual gestures ,anosognosia (Bamford JM 2000). When the cerebellum is involved, the patient may have the symptoms like Trouble walking, altered movement, coordination, Vertigo and disequilibrium (Bamford JM 2000). ASSOCIATED SYMPTOMS: Loss of consciousness, headache, and vomiting usually occurs more often in hemorrhagic stroke than in thrombosis because of the increased intracranial pressure from the leaking blood compressing on the brain. DIAGNOSIS: The techniques which were used to diagnose the stroke are neurological examination, CT scans or MRI scans, Doppler ultrasound, and arteriography. The diagnosis of stroke itself is clinical, with assistance from the imaging techniques. Imaging techniques also assist in determining the subtypes and cause of stroke. There is yet no commonly used blood test for the stroke diagnosis itself, though blood tests may be of help in finding out the likely cause of stroke (Hill M 2005). PREVENTION: Screening for high blood pressure at least every two years, regular cholesterol check up, treat high blood pressure, diabetes, high cholesterol and heart disease, follow a low-fat diet, quit smoking, exercise regularly, lose weight if you are over weight, avoid excessive alcohol use (Goldstein LB, Adams R, Alberts MJ et al. 2006). TREATMENT: Treatment of ischemic stroke: Pharmacologic thrombolysis with the drug tissue plasminogen activator (tPA), Mechanical thrombectomy and anticoagulants. Treatment of hemorrhagic stroke: Patients with intracerebral hemorrhage require neurosurgical evaluation to detect and treat the cause of the bleeding, although many may not need surgery. Patients are monitored and their blood pressure, blood sugar, and oxygenation are kept at optimum levels. PHYSIOTHERAPY TREATMENT: The rehabilitation techniques commonly used were Roods Sensorimotor Approach, Knotts and Voss Proprioceptive Neuromuscular Facilitation, Brunnstroms Movement Therapy, Bobaths Neuro Developmental Therapy, Motor Relearning Programme, Bimanual Rapid Alternating Movement, Motor Imagery Therapy, Robot Assisted Movement Therapy, Functional Electrical Stimulation, Bilateral Isokinetic Training, Cyclic Electrical Neuromuscular Stimulation, Biofeedback etc. PROGNOSIS: The results of stroke vary widely depending on size and location of the lesion (Stanford Hospital Clinics.2005). Dysfunctions correspond to areas in the brain that have been damaged. Disability affects 75% of stroke survivors enough to decrease their employability (Coffey C. Edward.2000). Stroke can affect patients physically, mentally, emotionally, or a combination of the three. 30 to 50% of stroke survivors suffer post stroke depression, which is characterized by lethargy, irritability, sleep disturbances, lowered self esteem, and withdrawal. Depression can reduce motivation and worsen outcome (Senelick Richard C.1994).

Relationship Between Rubber Hand Illusion And Interoceptive Awareness

Relationship Between Rubber Hand Illusion And Interoceptive Awareness When and artificial hand is placed in a position compatible with the participants own posture, i.e. a position that is plausible anatomically with regard to the participants body, then the combination of visual input from the rubber hand and tactile stimulation to the participants hidden hand produces the feeling that the rubber hand is part of the body in around half of participants. The incidence of the illusion as well as its intensity is substantially reduced when the visual and tactile stimuli are applied asynchronously, so that the feeling on the hand is not matched by what the participant sees on the rubber hand. This reduction also occurs when the rubber hand is put in a posture that is anatomically implausible(e.g. Tsakiris Haggard, 2005). The term interoception was coined by Charles Sherrington (1907) in the same paper that he introduces the terms proprioception and exteroception. in the original definition, the term referred solely to visceral sensations. However, now it has come to encompass the physiological state of the body as a whole, and the mechanism by which afferent information reaches conscious awareness and affects behaviour, which can occur both indirectly and directly. Interoception relates to the way in which people perceive feelings from their bodies that affect mood, the sense of well-being and even emotions (Cameron, 2002). The field of interoception has been aided greatly by the advent of functional imaging. Thus far, research has been limited in its scope to contribute to the understanding of self-awareness and, by extension, consciousness. The rubber hand illusion has important implications for interoception because it implies that information from proprioceptors- the mechanoreceptors in the hand and arm- can be overridden fairly easily by visual information. However, it is important to remember that it is not visual information alone that the participant is subject to; they are also receiving proprioceptive input to their unseen hand. Ramachandran (2005) suggests that rather than the more cognitive Helmholtzian unconscious inference explanation posited by others (e.g. Lackner, 1988), the rubber hand illusion can be explained from a Bayesian perspective. Several (e.g. Alais Burr, 2004; Ernst Banks, 2002) have shown that adults are able to integrate information both within and between senses in what appears to be a statistically optimal (Bayes-optimal) fashion. The fact that Bayesian models fit human behavioural results so well fits with the evidence that synchronous stimulation in two modalities can bring about chang es in interoception. In a more natural environment, the probability of seeing something in the outside world being stimulated and feeling identical stimulation on a consistent body part is vanishingly unlikely and so it seems unsurprising that the neural machinery that fuses information between the senses is subject to this illusion. A more recent experiment has shown that both the afferent and efferent elements of the body in motion are able to influence the feeling of ownership (Tsakiris, Prabhu Haggard, 2006). The authors found that the rubber hand illusion could be elicited solely on the basis of hand movements. In a variation on the methodology, participants had a virtual hand projected to the front of them while their own hand was hidden. Both the participants index finger and the same finger of the virtual hand underwent up and down motions, which could be done either actively or passively. When movements were in synchrony, participants reported that they felt as if their own hand was nearer the virtual hand than when motion was asynchronous as in the classic illusion. Under the passive condition, as in the classic condition, the illusion is a result of integration of visual and proprioceptive information. Conversely, there is also efferent information signalling that the finger is moving in the active co ndition. One difference between the conditions was that the proprioceptive drift only affected the index finger in the passive condition. The rest of the fingers were not perceived as being closer to the virtual hand. However, in the active condition, proprioceptive drift affected the whole hand. Therefore, the effect was more local when afferent information alone was available, but more global when there was efferent information as well. Tsakiris et al came to the conclusion that efferent information can influence interoception and the sense of bodily ownership by unifying the body into a coherent whole. One possible argument against the view that the rubber hand illusion shows that visual information can override proprioceptive information is that the participant may simply be speaking metaphorically when they say that they feel as if the rubber hand is part of their body. This problem arises from the fact that measures of the extent of the elusion are based on self report. Galvanic Skin Response (GSR) studies have examined whether the rubber hand is truly incorporated into the participants body image. Evolutionarily, it is necessary to protect the body from physical harm, and so threat to they body elicits feelings of anxiety, the withdrawal tendency, and increased autonomic arousal (e.g. Cooke Graziano, 2003; Kalisch et al, 2005). Therefore, it seems fair to say that for something to qualify as being part of the body, the brains homeostatic mechanisms should react as if it is when it is under threat. This hypothesis has received support from the fact that hitting the table near t he false hand with a hammer leads to increased GSR during the rubber hand illusion (Armel Ramachandran, 2003). There was no change in GSR during the control condition in which the rubber and real hands were stimulated asynchronously. Ehrsson et al (2007) have gone even further than this and shown using functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging that areas of the brain associated with interoception, i.e. the anterior cingulate cortex and insula are active during the rubber hand illusion. The convexity cortex of the anterior cingulate and cingulate cortex have been shown to become active during both the experience of pain and anticipation of it (e.g. Craig et al, 1996; Wager et al, 2004). The anterior insular cortex has also been shown to become active during pain anticipation, the experience of pain and also pain empathy (e.g. Singer et al, 2004). Furthermore, coactivation of these regions during experiments has been linked to interoceptive awareness and emotional processing (Farrell, Laird Egan, 2005; Craig, 2003). The authors suggested that the activity they found in response to threat to the rubber hand most likely reflected participants anxiety as they were elevated more when the participant felt ownership of the rubber hand than when they did not. Significantly, this activity was specific to threats to the body and was not seen in response to empathy for pain or looking at the syringe (which was used to threaten the rubber hand). This is strong evidence that the rubber hand illusion leads to changes in the participants interoception. Tsakaris (2010) describes the rubber hand illusion as a model example of how the normal sense of embodiment works, and argues that it can be used to examine how the experience of the body as belonging to the individual comes about, is maintained, and perhaps even how it can be disturbed. He puts forward a neurocognitive model in which body ownership is the result of interactions between current information from all of the senses and internal models regarding the body. This model begins with pre-existing models of the body that are stored in the right temporo-parietal junction. These allow distinction between objects that may be embodied and those that may not. Subsequently, on-line postural and anatomical representations of the body (in the secondary somatosensory cortex) allow modulation of this multisensory information. This in turn allows the visual and haptic co-ordinate systems to be recalibrated in order to respond to current demands of the environment. This is done by the vent ral premotor and posterior parietal cortices, which contain neurons that code for recalibration of the hand-centred co-ordinate system. This results in referral of haptic sensation that leads to subjective experiences of body ownership, which arises in the right posterior insula. Some similar ideas are expressed by de Vignemont. She argues that bodily sensations are experience through a multimodal spatial representation of ones body. This view leads directly to the prediction that the sense of ownership of the body should be influenced by information in the visual modality, as in the rubber hand illusion. She also points out that proprioceptive information decays very quickly while the hand is stationary, and that it is often vision that dominates the other sensory modalities (e.g. Welch and Warren, 1986). This provides further support for the idea that the spatial content of haptic sensations should rely more on the visual modality than proprioception. This can account for the fact that when Botvinick and Cohen asked their participants to reach towards the hand that had been stimulated (using their other hand), this motion was displaced toward the rubber hand rather than their unseen hand. This distortion of proprioception and the sense of the location of th e body comes from the emphasis on information in the visual modality, which can also account for the subjective feeling of ownership of the hand. This results from the localisation of the haptic information within a representation of the body that has been constructed from the information available to the participant. In the illusion, the descriptive aspect of the haptic sensation is accurate, however, the spatial aspect has been shifted. Craig (2009) examines the role of the insula in interoceptive awareness in areas as diverse as gastric distension, heartbeat and pain. He identifies awareness of bodily movements (rather than the sense of agency regarding movements) as a possible role for the insular cortex, as well as speech, self recognition and various emotions, describing an emotional salience network in which insular cortical areas feature. He also suggests that the anterior insular cortex plays a role in performance maintenance in which it is put at the heart of the switch to self reflective networks from central executive functioning. The insula is argued to contain representations of the self at every moment in time and to provide comparison between representations at different points in time. The predictive role that this implies may explain the role of the insula in emotions such as anxiety. He also examines the role of the anterior cingulate cortex in interoception and self awareness, noting its numerous c onnections with the insular cortex. He also posits an evolutionary theory, wherein the anterior cingulate and anterior insular cortex developed independently, but subsequently came to have more integrated functioning that performed the role of interoception, specifically managing autonomic activity. He argues that this explains the close relationship of the two areas in various neuroimaging studies. In conclusion, the rubber hand illusion has provided much insight into human interoception. It has revealed the different kinds of information involved in this process by showing how it can be tricked, as well as the flexibility inherent in the system. Neuroimaging studies using the illusion have revealed the mediating brain areas, which in turn leads to tantalising hints about how the conscious sense of the body arises. The experience of ownership of the body may be a significant aspect of self-specificity. This illustrated by the different ways that multisensory integration and internal models of the body are able to manipulate important psychological and even physical elements of the self, the prime example being the rubber hand illusion. Interoception has important implications for some groups of patients, in particular amputees. The rubber hand illusion has shown how outside objects can fairly easily be integrated into the body image. The withdrawal reactions that are elicited f rom participants are the same in kind to those that arise when replacement limbs are under threat.

Stanhope and Raleigh in R.C. Sherriffs Journeys End :: Sherriff Journeys End Essays

Stanhope and Raleigh in R.C. Sherriff's "Journey's End" Journey’s End is a well received play written in 1928, by R.C Sherriff. The play is set in a trench system, which were used during most of the Great War. In the play we get an insight into a fascinating relationship between a Junior officer, Raleigh, and the commanding officer, Stanhope. The relationship shows us some effects of the war and it has many ups and down which are well portrayed. During this essay I will comment about the ever changing relationship between young Raleigh and Stanhope. Commanding officer Stanhope is the company commander and is therefore under constant pressure, as he had to make tactical decisions and is also responsible for the welfare for a number of officers. Stanhope is considered as one of the best infantry commanders, ‘ He’s a long way the best company commander we’ve got’, Osborne (Pg 4). Stanhope forms a strong bond the officers, he is seen as hard working and passionate, ‘His commanded this company for a year – in and out of the front line. He’s never had a rest. Other men come over here and go home again ill, young Stanhope goes on sticking it, mouth in, mouth out’, Osborne (pg6). Stanhope particularly forms a strong bond with Officer Osborne, Stanhope has been involved in war activities since the war started and we see that during this time Stanhope has grown a close relationship with Osborne, and sees him as an ‘Uncle-figure’. Numerous times we see that Stanhope refers to Osborne as, ‘Uncle’. The character of Stanhope also shows the dread and stress of war, we learn of commander Stanhope drinking vice, often he is reduced to endless bottles of whisky to revert from the stress of war, it shows how badly men were affected. His problem with drinking is seen to a large extent, the reason why the relationship between himself and Raleigh is never stable and is continually changing. His drinking problem is highlighted throughout the play, ‘ Drinking as a fish as usual’, (pg 4). He is seen as a workaholic, ‘ I’ve seen him on his back all day with trench fever – then on duty all night’, (pg 6) and it seems as of he is not coping well at all, ‘ Lost control of himself; and the he – sort of - came to – and cried’, (pg 6). Raleigh is a young officer, drafted out from England into commander Stanhope’s infantry. Raleigh is a very inexperienced soldier, having just been transported from England and the prospect of being one of Stanhope’s officers is a momentous boost to his fragile confidence.

research Essay --

An intense research into the structural, physical and transport properties of perovskite manganites with the general formula of R1-xAxMnO3 (where R-rare earth element like La, Pr, Nd, Sm, and A - divalent element like Sr, Ca, Ba, and Pb) has been of recent interest due to colossal magnetoresistance (CMR) discovery[1-3].Attempts have been made to control the effective of one electron band width which primarily governs the magnetic and transport properties of the manganites through doping at the R and A sites[4-6]. In view of the complexity of the manganites, the knowledge on the relationship between the metal–insulator (MI) transition and ferromagnetic (FM)–paramagnetic (PM) transition in CMR manganite perovskites is ever increasing due to its potential applications [7-9]. The metallic properties of doped manganites such as La1-xSrxMnO3 (LSMO) with large band width are explained employing the double exchange (DE) theory [10-13]. It is inferred from the above studies that the narrow band width is not alone responsible for the observed MI transition and CMR in manganites like La1-xCaxM...

Comparing the two poems nothings changed by Tatamkhulu Afrika and still Ill rise by Maya Angelou Essay

My main aim in this essay is to discover how the two poets describe and express their feelings. I will do this by focusing on their use of linguistic techniques and what effect this has given on the reader. Moreover, I will concentrated one how the poets have structured the poem, by carefully analyzing it. Maya Angelou Maya Angelou is one of the most renowned and influential voice of our time. She has many titles such as memoirist, novelist, educator, dramatist, producer, actress, historian, filmmaker, and civil rights activist. She was born on the 4th April 1928 in St. Louis, Missouri. At the age of 26 Angelou studied modern dance and poetry; however her studies did not stop there. She traveled to Cairo, Ghana, New York and in this time she had mastered French, Spanish, Italian, Arabic, and Fanti. In 1993 she composed a poem at Bill Clinton’s inauguration; it was watched live on air all around the world. Stanza 1 â€Å"You may write me down in history, with your bitter twisted lies you may trod me in very dirt but still like dust ill rise† in his opening verse of the poem, the reader automatically senses Maya’s attitude towards the reader and I felt as though she was spearing the reader with these words by saying â€Å"your bitter† by doing this I thought that if made the reader feel as though they had done all this to Maya, therefore it made the reader feel emotional. Maya Angelo wrote at the start of her poem â€Å"Your bitter twisted lies† in this quotation Angelou is presenting her feelings by harshly saying that you can do whatever you want with you bitter twisted lies. The word â€Å"twisted† shows the reader how untrue these lies are and how hurtful, and unpleasant, these lies are to her. Just like when you take a piece of paper and you twist it, the creases are impossible to take out. Then she says the word â€Å"bitter† this shows the reader how distressful this is to her and shows the reader that it really hurts her. â€Å"Trod me in very dirt† by saying this she explains her self and says that, you can do whatever you want but it doesn’t bother me, still ill get there. She shows that she is full of firmness and determination and nothing will stop her. Then at the end of the Stanza off she writes â€Å"but still like dust ill rise† by writing this she shows the reader how confident she is. We can prove this because Angelou has used a simile â€Å"like dust† by writing this she means that just like dust rises in the air and you cannot see it rising, in the same way will she rise. Stanza 2 â€Å"Does my sassiness upset you, why are you beset with gloom, cause I walk like I’ve got oil wells pumping in my living room† Maya is questioning the reader and I thought that this was a really effective way to get the readers attention, she says, just because I’m passionate and lively is that upsetting you, why are you jealous of me? I thought that Maya purposely wrote this because she wanted to show the reader how unfair it is and how cruel it is that a person can’t be themselves. Then Maya writes â€Å"cause I walk like I’ve got oil wells pumping in my living room† I thought that this was a really effective and important line in Angelou’s poem. I thought that Maya used a powerful metaphor â€Å"oil wells pumping in my living room† I thought that the word oil stood for something significant. If a person has an oil well they maybe very rich and the fact that she has used this, shows that she has something special inside her, Maya is showing her determination because just like if you have oil a person can be very powerful in the same way Maya is saying no one will be able to stop her because she has something special which is determination and courage. Now I will start by analyzing the 3rd stanza â€Å"Just like the suns and moons with the certainty of tides, just like hopes spring high still ill rise† In this stanza Angelo shows her desperation and desire to achieve this goal, which is to end discrimination. Moreover, Angelou refers to the sun, moon and tides to represent her nature. She says that just like the certainty that the sun will rise in the east and set in the west and the moon will appear in the night and tides will wash in and out of seashores in the same way she will achieve this goal. Moreover from my judgment I think that Maya inspires the reader by saying â€Å"with the certainty of tides hopes spring high† she is influencing the reader by saying that your hope will always rise and that it is natural in a persons life just like the tides coming in and out are natural and the sun rise and set is natural. â€Å"Did you want to see me broken bowed head lowered eyes, shoulders falling like teardrops, weakened by my soulful cries† It thought that this stanza was on of the most effective; this was because Maya really expressed her feelings and showed her true inner self. Unlike the other stanza’s I realized that Maya Angelou never wrote â€Å"I’ll rise† at the end of the sentence. This was because she wanted to show the reader how much pain and distress discrimination has caused inside her. I think what made this stanza very special was the fact that, for the first time Maya showed her downside, and by doing this she told the reader that the pain inside her that discrimination has caused is something that will stay their forever inside her, and unfortunately she can not rise above that pain. I thought that this made the stanza very emotional because this was something that Maya Angelou could not rise above. Stanza 4 In this stanza I felt as though Maya was showing her identity and who she is. â€Å"Does my haughtiness offend you, don’t you take it awful hard† what she meant by this was that just because I feel I’m higher than every one else and I’m proud of myself, is that offending you, the reason why I thought this was because Maya wrote â€Å"cause I laugh like I’ve got gold mines digging in my own backyard† and the word â€Å"laugh† proves this because it shows that she is happy. I thought that this was a really powerful stanza because Maya, put across the message that, these people are so arrogant and jealous that just because she is proud to be who she is and she’s proud that she’s black, these people hate it (don’t you take it awful hard) what she means by awful hard is that if a white person was proud of his or her self and was proud to be white would we hate it? No so why can’t she be herself? Stanza 5 â€Å"You may shoot me with your words, you may cut me with your eyes, you may kill me with your hatefulness but still like air ill rise† in this stanza I felt that Maya made the reader feel guilty, this was because she was putting the blame on the person who was reading by saying â€Å"you may†. I thought that this was a really effective way of attracting attention; What Maya Angelou meant when she said â€Å"you may shoot me with your words, you may cut me with your eyes, you may kill me with your hatefulness† is that you can do whatever you like, whether its your lies â€Å"shoot me with your words†, you can have all the jealousy inside you â€Å"cut me with your eyes†, have all the hatred inside you â€Å"kill me with your hatefulness†, but none of these things will ever stop me â€Å"but still like air I’ll rise†, she is saying that its never going to stop me so its pointless. On the other hand, we know that these things hurt her inside because she says â€Å"but still like air I’ll rise†. My opinion of this was that, she meant that just like you can contaminate air, but you can never stop it from being there. In the same way she is portraying that, all the lies that have been said about her, and all the hatred, it does hurt her but it will never stop her from reaching this goal that sh e has always wanted. â€Å"I’ll rise†. Stanza 6 â€Å"Does my sexiness upset you, does it come as a surprise† what Maya was trying to portray is because she is sexy and she is black, it comes as a surprise to them to see that a black person stands out, and a black person to stand up for herself, what she is trying to say, is that it upsets them and they are irritated to see this. I thought that this really showed the character of these white people and the difference it made if you were black or white on how you were treated. Moreover, once again Maya Angelou directed this at the reader by saying â€Å"you† and this made the reader feel as though they were one of these white people. Then when I was analyzing this, I thought that they were many different ways of interpreting the word â€Å"sexiness†. My interpretation was that Maya wrote this because she was speaking on behalf of the black people in the world and not just herself and what this meant was that she was saying that all blacks are â€Å"naturally attractive† in other words they, have something naturally special inside them, and in order to unveil it, they need to stand up and rise and be themselves. Maya is saying to all black people that stand up for yourself and you will be the winner in the end just like she is a winner. My proof of this is, that at the end the poem Maya wrote â€Å"I rise† instead of â€Å"I’ll rise† this showed the reader that just like she has said she â€Å"will rise† but know she has risen â€Å"I rise† and also Angelou wrote â€Å"that I dance like I’ve got diamonds at the meeting of my thighs† this showed the reader that know she has got something to really boast about. To add to that I thought that Maya was a real inspiration to the bl ack community. My second interpretation of this stanza was that Maya wrote this because she was unique, and she was an icon to other black people, and this was very unusual to see in a black person to stand up and become a leader, and my proof of this is she wrote â€Å"does it come as a surprise† Stanza 7 â€Å"Out of the huts of histories shame, I rise† here Maya Angelou talks about that out of all what has happened in history she has risen above. Another explanation was that by saying â€Å"histories shame† she meant that what a humiliation and an embarrassment it is to all of mankind for humans to fight one another and for discrimination to even take place. Then she writes â€Å"I rise† by writing this she is saying that, whatever has happened in history she has know risen above. One thing that I had noticed was that at the start of the poem and through the middle Maya wrote â€Å"I’ll rise† and toward the end it was â€Å"I rise† I thought that this stud as a symbol and had a meaning. My interpretation was that Maya had written this because she was showing that after all the hard work and hard times she has fought through, finally she has got were she has always wanted. Stanza 8 â€Å"Up from a past that’s rooted in pain I rise† This showed the reader how much pain she has been thorough and not only her but her family and her generations. We know this because she writes the word â€Å"rooted†. The word rooted has a significant effect because just like the roots of a tree keep growing and have different braches. In the same way pain has passed through her generations and know finally she is the one to stand up and stop this â€Å"I rise†. Stanza 9 â€Å"I am a black ocean, leaping and wide, welling and swelling I bear In the tide, leaving behind nights of terror and fear behind† I thought that this was a powerful stanza because Maya was rendering an image to the reader of her courage and power, and also inner strength. By saying that she is a ocean, first of all she uses a metaphor and I thought that increased the effect and secondly if you are and ocean then how can anyone escape you and she is showing that if anyone wants to fight then they will never be able to escape. My analysis was that she was an ocean carrying fish and plants (people), and without that ocean these fish and plants would suffer, in the same way the black people would suffer from discrimination. To add to this I thought that she is saying that know she has a responsibility to carry these people and to protect them, in a away she is expressing that this gift she has been given has know been unveiled, and she is know were she has always wanted to be, she has power and know one can stop her, in the same way know one can eradicate an ocean. The fact that she is saying that she is leaping far and wide shows us that she is still fighting for freedom and know for all the black people in the world. Stanza 11 â€Å"into a daybreak that’s wondrously clear I rise† here Maya emphasizes the point that know that she has this power, ahead of her lies a future that is so clear and exciting. Stanza 12 â€Å"bringing the gifts that my ancestors gave I rise† Maya Angelou used a metaphor â€Å"gifts† which really made me think about what I was reading, by saying this it made the line emotive. She is saying that for years this gift has been passing on, and yet know one has been successful enough to unveil it and to use it, and know that person is her. The metaphor â€Å"gifts† represents that the rising above discrimination and putting a stop to it and now she has done this and we can prove this because she writes â€Å"I rise†. Stanza 13 The very last few lines of the poem was † I am the dream and hope of the slave, I rise, I rise, I rise† I thought that Maya really summarized the whole poem by saying this because after all her goal was for blacks to have rights, for blacks to have their freedom, for blacks to unveil they’re gifts that they all have, and for them to live up to high expectations, and by saying â€Å"I rise, I rise, I rise† shows that she has done this and succeeded and know she has changed the life of all black people In the world. I realized that towards the end of the poem instead of using anger to convey the message instead Maya used emotion, and hope, and by doing this it really made the reader believe that whatever happens in the world Maya will always rise above it. Now I am going to give a brief summary on the life of Tatamkhulu Afrika. Born in 1920, Afrika was born and bought up in Cape Town, South Africa; he had an Arab father and a Turkish mother. In Africa people were classed according to the color of their skin, However Afrika turned down the chance to be classed as white as he chose to become Muslim which in that time was categorized as colored. Later on in his years he joined the African national congress and but 3 years he was arrested for terrorism and was banned writing or speaking in public for 5 years. He died shortly after his 82nd birthday; he was run over by a bus just 2 weeks after the publication of his final novel â€Å"bitter Eden† he left a number of unpublished works, poems, plays, and novels. I will start now by analyzing the first stanza. In the first few lines of the first stanza, he renders an image of district six and mentions some of its characteristics here I will give a few examples, â€Å"Small round hard stones click under my heels. In the first quotation he talks about that in district six, the governments haven’t taken much care to build roads, and this leads me to think, that it would be very rare to see any modern means of transport. Then it follows on â€Å"seeding grasses thrust bearded seeds into trouser cuffs† he explains that, no one is bothered to cut the wheat and when you walk the wheat is in your trouser cuffs. Moreover, I thought that these two words â€Å"thrust† and â€Å"bearded† gave an unwelcoming feel to the reader. â€Å"cans trodden on† This gives the reader a feel that district six is a place where no body cares, no body can be bothered to throw their litter in the bin its just dumped on the floor. Tatamkhulu rounds the first stanza off by saying â€Å"crunch in tall, purple flowering, amiable weeds† after talking about the uncut wheat and the litter on the floor, he then says that even though district six has all these problems he is used to this he sees them as friendly, and a part of him. The second stanza starts with the poet writing â€Å"District six, no board says it is, but my feet know, and my hands, and the skin about my bones, and the soft laboring of my lungs† To increase tension Afrika has used repetition, by starting the verse of by â€Å"and† three times. He demonstrates that even though there are no signs that say its district six, inside him he know it is, if you look in more detail at the quotation you realize that the poet is conveying the message that he has already been here â€Å"my feet† and â€Å"my hands† and â€Å"laboring of my lungs† by saying that his feet know and his hands it proves that he has been here before because his feet remember the â€Å"clicking stones under his heels† and his lungs remember the polluted atmosphere that was caused by litter â€Å"cans trodden on†. In the next two lines of the poem Afrika has used anger to express his feelings. â€Å"And the hot, white, inward turning anger of my eyes† by writing white with two commas on either side, from my experience by doing this the reader focuses more on this word â€Å"white† Afrika has deliberately done this to increase the tension and to make the reader think just how angry he is. Just like when you heat coal up, and it reaches its hottest, it turns white. Now I will start by analyzing the third stanza â€Å"Brash with glass, name flaring like a flag it squats, in the grass and weeds† In this quotation, Tatamkhulu Afrika first describes the appearance of the building he says the word brash, this means to stand out too much and be energetic and boastful. Then it says â€Å"name flaring like a flag it squats, in the grass and weeds† this explains to the reader that this building and the name of it just sits there( squats), it doesn’t belong their and doesn’t fit in with the visual surrounding in this case the â€Å"grass† and â€Å"weeds† that surround the building. Afrika has used two powerful describing verbs â€Å"brash† and â€Å"squats† this significantly increases the tension and makes the line dramatic. In these next few lines that I am going to analyze, the poet describes his negative experiences. â€Å"Incipient port Jackson trees, new up market haute cuisine Guard at the gate post white’s only inn† incipient port Jackson trees where shipped to Africa from America in the late 1970 when the district six was being colonized by whites. His negative experiences comes from the fact that there is a new market and a haute cuisine, however, there is a guard at the gate post making sure no black person comes in, â€Å"whites only inn† Afrika feels that blacks are being dejected in their own land. Fourth stanza â€Å"No sign says it is but we know were we belong† What is Afrika’s attitude towards whites? Afrika does not express his feeling through anger he expresses them through sarcasm we can prove this because he writes â€Å"we know were we belong† he is referring to the black people, saying that the whites have their cuisine and new markets but we know were we belong. Moreover, Afrika deliberately uses a small stanza, this gives it exceptional flair which increases the tension of this stanza and attracts the reader attention. In this next stanza I will be studying in depth and showing Tatamkhulu negative experiences. His negative experience is the fact that there is that there is still segregation between whites and blacks and nothing has changed, no one has cared to do anything about it he feels that black are being dejected. We know this because he writes â€Å"I press my nose to clear the panes, know, before I see them, there will be crushed ice white glass, linen falls, the single rose† Afrika is trying to get the message that the white people are treated well, with luxury and comfort â€Å"linen falls, the single rose† but then in the next verse he compares this to how blacks are treated â€Å"working mans cafà ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½ sells bunny chows. Take it with you, eat it at a plastic tables top, wipe your fingers on your jeans spit a little on the floor: it’s in the bone†. Afrika uses a juxtaposition I thought that this was a really clever technique because it showed the reader how vulgar and old fashioned the black mans cafà ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½ was. Here he talks about that if you go into a white man s cafà ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½ they have tissues at the table top and crushed ice in a white glass. However if you walk into a black mans cafà ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½ then you eat on a plastic table top, wiping your hands on your jeans. The poet purposely compares the linen falls and the plastic table because this gives the reader a feel that just because of the color of their skin they get treated differently. In these next few pages I will be analyzing the similarities in the style, use of linguistic techniques, and the structure and layout of the poem. Tatamkhulu and Maya both have a lot of similarities regarding their background and childhood. I think their writing represents their childhood and how they have been treated and the terrible times they have been through. Because of this it make an enormous impact on the reader, now I will give an example. Maya writes â€Å"a past that’s rooted in main† this is a very emotive line and represents Mayas background, she tells us that all these years she has been through this torment and her background proves this. The word â€Å"root† shows that it’s not only her who has been tormented, but it’s her ancestors as well that have been through slavery and injustice. Just like the roots of a tree have different channels and can be very long, however they all do the same job. Then Tatamkhulu also shows this, but he does this in a slightly different but clever way and I did not see Maya use this in her poem, but if she did I think her poem would have been much more effective. He writes â€Å"no board says it is but we know were we belong† by saying the word â€Å"we† he is referring to the blacks and saying that even though there isn’t any board we know were we are going. He uses sarcasm to get his point threw to the reader, and I think that it’s a really effective way. Another linguistic technique that I saw was repetition, which was used by both writers in an exceptional way to get through to the point. I noticed that Maya repeated the same word â€Å"ill rise† after the end of every stanza. I think that this had a big influence on each stanza because the reader pays more attention to the words that have been repeated, therefore taking into consideration the meanings of the word being repeated. In this case Maya was portraying the message that what ever they do whether it’s their bitter lies or the discrimination; she will always rise above this, whatever happens and by repeating this at end of every stanza just shows how much courage, enthusiasm, and determination Maya Angelou has got. Repetition was also used by Tatamkhulu Afrika, however he used this in a slightly different style, and however I don’t think that it was as effective as Angelou’s, this was because it wasn’t repeated enough times for the reader to truly believe that he was fully committed to end the segregation between whites and blacks. The title of the poem was â€Å"nothings changed† and Tatamkhulu repeated this at the end, this showed the reader how frustrated he was the see that nothing could be done about the segregation between whites and blacks and that nothing had been done. By repeating this it did not only increase the effect it had on the stanza, but showed and represented the poet’s feelings. Tatamkhulu ended his poem in more of an emotional way whereas Maya ended her poem in more of a forgiving and confident way. I will be looking at the style of the poem and the way they have used anger to portray the message and their similarities. I think that because the 2 poets used of anger this it had an immense impact at the reader because it made you think twice about what you were reading. I thought that both poets did this exceptionally well. In the poem nothings changed, Tatamkhulu Afrika showed his anger to represent his feelings he did this on many occasions, I will just analyze a few of these. Afrika writes in his poem â€Å"the hot, white, inward turning anger of my eyes† I thought this was an outstanding line which really did show the poets feelings. The word white really showed the reader how angry Afrika actually was, just like when you heat something up as it gets hotter the color starts to change and when it’s at its hottest then it turns white, I thought this was a really effective line which really engrossed the reader. One other example was when Tatamkhulu wrote â€Å"hands burn for a stone, a bomb, to shiver down the glass† here he is also conveying the message through anger and saying that his â€Å"hands burn for a stone† by this he means that inside him there is this precipitation to break the barrier between whites and blacks â€Å"to shiver down the glass† and the fact that he writes â€Å"hands burn† shows the longing he has inside him break up this segregation between whites and blacks and his desperation. Maya also used the same technique to convey her message, she writes â€Å"you may write me down in history with your bitter twisted lies, you may trod me in very dirt but still like dust I’ll rise†. She uses harsh words â€Å"bitter† â€Å"twisted† ,however Maya uses the same method but using a different style, she is pin pointing the reader. It seems as though she is blaming the reader, I thought this was a very good method of getting the point across because this made the reader guilty. More over, I think that if Afrika had used the same method his poem would have been more effective. Similarities in structure use From my opinion the structure of the stanza was really important because it increased the effect, which in return had a significant effect on the poem, here I will give a few examples: Tatamkhulu Afrika used this technique a lot in his poem. In the 7th stanza of his poem Afrika purposely wrote a very small stanza, â€Å"No board says it is, but we know were we belong† I thought that this stanza had exceptional flair, it really caught my attention, Afrika deliberately did this because first of all it increases tension and he wanted people to know just how they are being treated and how difficult it is for them to live excluded from other parts of the town. The word white has to commas on either side this is because he wants us to pay more attention to that word white. Then again Afrika used the same style again â€Å"and the hot, white, inward turning anger of my eyes† Afrika is showing us his anger. The word white has to commas on either side this is because he wants us to pay more attention to that word white. Now I will give another example in still ill rise. I thought Maya Angelou structured her poem exceptionally well. After every other stanza Maya wrote I’ll rise, I’ll rise; I’ll rise on separate lines. From my opinion I thought that by doing this it made the reader one hundred percent sure that Maya was absolutely committed, and it showed how desperate she is and how much courage she has, and how much commitment. Differences One language technique that I thought was brilliant was the fact that Tatamkhulu could show and describe the contrasts in the way blacks and whites were treated. I thought that this had an immense effect because it made the line emotional. One example of this was â€Å"I press my nose to clear the panes, know before I see them there will be crushed ice white glass, linen falls, the single rose† he shows the luxury and the quality that whites have been given, and the contrasts this with â€Å"down the road working mans cafà ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½ sells bunny chows, take it with you, eat it at a plastic tables top, wipe your fingers on your jeans, spit a little on the floor: its in the bone† he shows the difference in luxury between a white and blacks cafà ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½ and because he did this I thought that it was very effective and created emotion and made the reader feel sorry for blacks. On the other hand I thought that if Maya did this her poem would have been a little more effecti ve. One more thing that I spotted was that both writers ended their poem differently. These surprised me because they were both black and were fighting the same problem. Maya Angelou ended her poem with â€Å"I am the dream and hope of the slave, I rise, I rise, I rise† she showed a sense of achievement and hope, because by saying â€Å"I rise† three times showed the reader that she has her accomplished her mission of rising and ending above discrimination. On the other hand Tatamkhulu ended his in anger and irritation by saying â€Å"hands burn for a stone, a bomb to shiver down the glass, nothings changed†. Here he showed anger however their was a sense of hope, but by writing this, it told the reader that their was still discrimination between whites and blacks, But this made the reader feel emotional whereas Maya’s was more a feel of accomplishment. To summarize, I thought that the two poems where exceptional, however, I enjoyed Maya Angelou’s most. This was because she blamed the reader and by doing this it made the reader feel emotional. Although â€Å"nothing’s changed† was exceptional I still thought that Maya’s was slightly better.

“Comparing Male and Female Sports ” Eassy

ITCW 11/20/12 Essay from page381 #5 Essay on Male and Female sports teams I personally agree with what the author wrote about in his writing. If you take a look at how both men and women play sports, you will clearly see that not only are men more aggressive with the sports they play; but they also treat each other more aggressively than girls do. If a guy was to be playing football and dropped a pass chances are he will get a lot of grief from his teammates and they might harass him about it for weeks.While if a girl made a mistake playing her sport chances are the girls will try to help her get better. Instead of showing her tough love like their male counter parts would. For the guys I think they act how they act and show tough love and aggression to each other because they normally have to fight and act tough with each other to stand out. Look how guys socialize they normally are insulting and calling each other names.Playing of course but none the less they do it, I believe some forum of that has just carried on to the sports they play. Also guys tend to break into groups more so than their female counter part. Guys who are good at a sport will usually hang out and socialize with other athletes who stand out, leaving the ones who are not as good behind. For girls like I said in my previous paragraph, they normally can keep their cool and know how to talk to each other better during the heat of the moment unlike the guys.This is typically due to the fact that like I previously said the girls tend to help each other more then the guys do. While the guys are cirdasizing each other; the girls who are the stand out stars are helping the girls who are not as good as them. Which in the long run might make it so the girls get a better understanding of the meaning â€Å"Team Sports†? There are also other reasons one must remember when comparing male and female sports teams.For instance Guys normally have to act a certain way and out do his male counter parts when he is in the work field to stand out or even receive a promotion, While normally girls won’t have to act as cut throat as guys in the work field. Which could explain why girl sports teams show more â€Å"team sportsmanship†? All in all both male and female act a certain way when they play sports Now when it comes to how they act, that all just depends on how mature they are and how they are as a person.Me personally I think more so for guys, when they are in the middle of a football game or basketball and a teammate makes a critical mistake. They might over react or say something that might sound a bit harsh but one must remember they are â€Å"In the heat of battle†. So typically what is being said isn’t always how they truly feel about each other. I also believe that girls have more pations then guys do and are more willing to help someone who isn’t as good as them. So that is why girl teams help each other more and show more team sportsman ship.

“Hope” Is the Thing with Feathers: Emily Dickinson

Hannah Hulvey English II Balint 22 April, 2013 â€Å"Hope† is the thing with feathers: Emily Dickinson In this poem, Emily is saying how nature is divided or basically, she employs images from nature for contrasting purposes. In this poem nature is both beneficent and destructive. The division is made between the image of the bird and the images of threatening storms and hostile environments. This split corresponds to a separation between inside and outside, between interior and exterior spaces.The major theme of this poem is that Dickinson is comparing the hope in the soul with a bird. The bird never stops singing. So should we keep singing our songs, our poems, our prose. Even the roughest storms can't keep the bird from its singing. Nor should we let our own storms, our personal disappointments like deaths of family and friends, stop us. The poem uses a bird as a symbol to define the feeling that hope can give an individual. In the first stanza, Dickinson tell the reader th at â€Å"Hope is the thing with feathers .That perches in the soul. and sings the tune-without the words. And never stops at all. † In other words, hope is part of a spirit that lives in all of us. The uplifting feel of hope comes naturally and stays with us. A series of words in the second and third stanzas â€Å"sore,† â€Å"storm,† â€Å"chillest,† â€Å"Extremity† combine to evince a different side of nature, as dangerous and threatening. Here the sense is of an exterior space, wild and unprotected.Dickinson tells us, the tune the bird sings is â€Å"sweetest,† suggesting both that it is the most comforting thing heard amid the noise of the storm, and that, while the tune is sweet when it is heard while one is safe, it is sweetest when one is in danger. If we look at â€Å"‘Hope’ Is the Thing with Feathers† in terms of Dickinson’s life, we can perhaps read a commentary on her withdrawal from the world. Dickinso n turned inward into herself and shut out the world, and she suggests that inside it is peaceful and secure, while outside it is hostile and dangerous. And how does this describe my life?