American Government Free Essays

Assignment 2: Current Events Research Paper By Tuesday, February 12, 2013, draft a paper that critically analyzes a current, domestic or foreign political issue of importance to the United States. Students will (1) identify a current political event to analyze; (2) research and summarize the different approaches to understanding the political issue selected; (3) provide a clear, personal analysis of the issue and an explanation of the core values and assumptions that informs their analysis. The student will be expected to support their discussion with primary texts and from pre-approved secondary sources (including, but not limited to the course text, online lectures, and a list of suggested online resources). We will write a custom essay sample on American Government or any similar topic only for you Order Now Your paper should be 6–8 pages in length and include proper APA citation. Submit your essay to the appropriate topic in the W5: Assignment 2 Dropbox. Remember, you should utilize information provided from each week of the course to complete your essay www. tradingeconomics. com/united-states/unemployment-rate United States Unemployment RateUnemployment Rate in the United States increased to 7. 0 percent in January of 2013 from 7. 80 percent in December of 2012. Unemployment Rate in the United States is reported by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Historically, from 1948 until 2013, the United States Unemployment Rate averaged 5. 81 Percent reaching an all time high of 10. 80 Percent in November of 1982 and a record low of 2. 50 Percent in May of 1953. In the United States, the unemployment rate measures the number of people actively looking for a job as a percentage of the labour force. This page includes a chart with historical data for the United States Unemployment Rate. | | | United States Unemployment Rate at 7. 9%, Payroll Employment RisesBLS | Nuno Fontes | nuno@tradingeconomics. com | 2/1/2013 1:36:00 PM Total nonfarm payroll employment increased by 157,000 in January, and the unemployment rate was essentially unchanged at 7. 9 percent. Retail trade, construction, health care, and wholesale trade added jobs over the month. The number of unemployed persons, at 12. 3 million, was little changed in January. The unemployment rate was 7. 9 percent and has been at or near that level since September 2012. Among the major worker groups, the unemployment rates for adult men (7. percent), adult women (7. 3 percent), teenagers (23. 4 percent), whites (7. 0 percent), blacks (13. 8 percent), and Hispanics (9. 7 percent) showed little or no change in January. The jobless rate for Asians was 6. 5 percent (not seasonally adjusted), little changed from a year earlier. In January, the number of long-term unemployed (those jobless for 27 weeks or more) was about unchang ed at 4. 7 million and accounted for 38. 1 percent of the unemployed. Both the employment-population ratio (58. 6 percent) and the civilian labor force participation rate (63. percent) were unchanged in January. The number of persons employed part time for economic reasons, at 8. 0 million, changed little in January. These individuals were working part time because their hours had been cut back or because they were unable to find a full-time job. In January, 2. 4 million persons were marginally attached to the labor force, down by 366,000 from a year earlier (not seasonally adjusted. ) These individuals were not in the labor force, wanted and were available for work, and had looked for a job sometime in the prior 12 months. They were not counted as unemployed because they had not searched for work in the 4 weeks preceding the survey. Among the marginally attached, there were 804,000 discouraged workers in January, a decline of 255,000 from a year earlier (not seasonally adjusted. ) Discouraged workers are persons not currently looking for work because they believe no jobs are available for them. The remaining 1. 6 million persons marginally attached to the labor force in January had not searched for work in the 4 weeks preceding the survey for reasons such as school attendance or family responsibilities. | | | The dictionary definition defines unemployment as one who lacks employment. I define unemployment as a sign of the times. Every time you put on the news you hear of another company who is laying off employees. It started after 9/11 with the Airline industry, now it is the Auto industry and most recently Courier services such as DHL Express. During this presidential election, the major topic McCain and Obama have discussed is our economy. As the nation’s unemployment rate jumped to a 5-year high, the nation is now facing a recession. Since the beginning of the year 605,000 jobs have been lost says the labor department. During the summer the unemployment rate went from 5. 7% in July to 6. 1 % in August. Related Articles Denied Unemployment Benefits Online Loans for the Unemployed status Unemployment Benefits and Bankruptcy Filing Unemployment Claim Outsourcing is one of the major reasons for this problem in America. The outsourcing of American jobs to other countries has become a problem of epic proportion. A report cited on CNN and co-written by Kate Bronfenbrenner, who is a labor expert, documented approximately 48,000 U. S. obs. These jobs were outsourced from January through March 2004 to other countries or publicly announced as being scheduled for outsourcing. It is unclear how many accounting, engineering, technical support and other professional jobs have moved offshore in recent years. For example, if you have customer service questions for Toshiba Computers, you will be directed to an employee in India. S ome experts believe as many as 200,000 service jobs could be lost each year for the next 11 years. On the other hand, outsourcing is a reason that developing countries will not be able to gain economic freedom. The U. S. depends on these countries to provide goods and services at a cheaper rate. The developing country is so poor that they welcome the small amount of money for their goods and services. It is because of their dependency on us that will contribute to their inability to obtain financial independence and financial development. Boeing is one of the largest companies that sends more jobs overseas than any other company. Boeing isn’t only looking for cheaper labor; they are looking for countries that are in the market to buy planes. A Boeing spokesperson stated, â€Å"Officials are drawn to cheap labor, but sales are more important†. Thus if we want to lower the unemployment rate we have to lower the expense of our living. Ads by Google Government Assisted PhoneGet a Free Phone Monthly Plan. See if You Qualify for One Today! www. assurancewireless. com Unemployed Health InsuranceExplore Health Insurance Options for the Unemployed – Online! Unemployed-Health-Insurance. com Grants For Online SchoolsGo To School While Working. You May Qualify For Grants To Start School! ww. classesandcareers. com/schools Though experts say unemployment is going to keep rising, Congress is making an effort to slow the job loss down. For example, Congress is preparing an idea to help Americans out; it is the idea of Unemployment Insurance. For example someone who made $70 a week for three months before taxes will get $40, and someone who made $850 a week for three months before taxes will get the maximum $450. Some peo ple argue that illegal immigrants are causing our economy’s unemployment rate. Congress believes that the 12 million illegal immigrants that are working for $10 an hour are taking the jobs of American citizens. Immigration has reduced all workers wages by 4%. Between March 2000 and March 2004 the number of Americans unemployed grew to 2. 3 million; on the other hand the number of employed immigrants grew to 2. 3 million. Many businesses say that the immigrants just work the jobs that Americans don’t want, but now more than ever Americans need those jobs. There are many negative effects that come from unemployment. One being that those who are unemployed are no longer able to support the economy, because they no longer can afford to buy what they once did. It also forces people into poverty. If someone is let go in order to maximize profits, and they are no longer able to support themselves or their families, and are unable to find a job that can accommodate their needs, how are they supposed to live up to the standard of living? President Elect Barack Obama has given Americans hope for the future. He has spoken about extending the unemployment benefits for Americans that need it. He has spoken about outsourcing and providing companies an incentive for keeping jobs in the U. S. He has spoken about Universal Healthcare. The hope he brings to each American is that he puts them, their families, and their interests first. I believe, as other American’s believe, that President Elect Obama’s intentions are sincere. Only time will tell if he can do all of the things he dreams of. The state of this country’s financial affairs are so low at this point, the hope of the future sure looks good! www. articlesbase. com/business-articles/unemployment-in-america†¦ How to cite American Government, Papers American Government Free Essays I believe that there should be a degree of flexibility in making laws that would either permit or forbid certain rights and freedoms. Although democracy can be a wonderful thing with its tolerance of freedoms, liberties, equalities and rights, too much of it can be very unhealthy for a democracy, especially in times of emergency such as wars and calamities. It is during these adverse times that there is no time to be â€Å"democratic† as expediency must take precedence over debate or consensus. We will write a custom essay sample on American Government or any similar topic only for you Order Now This should give leaders extra latitude in doing what is best for society without being hamstrung by the argumentative nature of democracy without having to become an autocracy. This practice is nothing new as it dates back to the Roman Republic that came up with a similar measure in the form of a dictator which was given considerable power to do what was necessary to bring about order and stability BUT as a safeguard, it was only for a limited time only. The American government need not do this. There is already a provision in the Constitution that empowers the government, particularly Congress to make laws that are necessary and proper and this implicitly applies as well to the President who will be the one to carry them out and can also implement measures as well to do what it takes for the good of society. The bottom line here is that the Constitution is not a â€Å"suicide pact† where too much emphasis is placed on following the letter of the law, but more emphasis should be in keeping with the spirit of it which matters more. Lesson #2: Civil Rights In April 2010, the state of Arizona passed SB 1070, empowering law enforcement officials to ask anyone to produce proof of legal status in the U. S. Research the law, and then discuss it here. Is the law the equivalent of racial profiling, as some have indicated? Is the law a reasonable response to the problem of illegal immigration? Although America is a nation of the free where anyone has the right to come here and live their lives as they please in the pursuit of happiness, security is also a primary concern. The issue of race or racism is coincidental since the United States shares a border with Mexico and majority of its people, especially the illegal immigrants do not happen to be Caucasian. One of the problems with the critics of the bill is that they immediately jump to the conclusion that the bill is a pretext for racial profiling where any Hispanic is easily singled out for investigation or scrutiny on the suspicion that he or she may be an illegal immigrant. As mentioned before, race is coincidential. As most illegal immigrants apprehended and deported belong to that race. Besides, Hispanics, Asians too and numerous and repeated incidents have made authorities easily single out these ethnic groups for investigation and scrutiny. It is rather strange for liberals to defend illegals. While it is understandable that poverty is what drove them to come to the United States, they are taking away job opportunities due to its citizens and looking at it from a bigger picture, this would not be fair, especially if these aliens do not, voluntarily or not, take American citizenship to legitimize their right to stay in the United States or at least secure proper documentation as resident aliens. The bottom line is that the United States does not forbid aliens to live on its lands and not take American citizenship if they so choose. But it is necessary for them to follow proper legal procedures to legitimize their stay in the United States. Lesson #3: Public Opinion It is incredibly difficult to measure public opinion accurately. Why is an accurate measuring of public opinion important for a democratic government? Does public opinion matter in a democracy? One must take into consideration where the word â€Å"democracy† came from. It is derived from the (Ancient) Greek word, â€Å"demokratikos† which means rule by the people. Theoretically, America is a democracy and the sovereignty rests on its citizens. Government officials, elected or appointed, from the President of the United States to the low-ranking government clerk, all SERVE the people. The things they do depends on the needs of the American people since they are bound by the Constitution to serve them. Hence it is essential for them to be able to feel the â€Å"pulse† of the people to know what they want from their public servants. The most obvious way of knowing and measuring public opinion is through the use of surveys or polls. This is by far the most reliable though not perfect instrument in measuring public opinion. The reason why it is not perfect is partly due to the composition of American society. America is a diverse society and being a democracy, people can freely be who they are. It is a society that encourages individualism and diversity. Its relationship in public opinion is there is a likelihood that there will be no definite or absolute response and most of the time, it will be mixed or show ambivalence, a difference in opinion(s). This is the â€Å"flaw† of a democratic society. Despite these â€Å"flaws,† democracy still works in American society and it can be inferred that even though it is not perfect, have been able to make it work for over 200 years. Lesson #4: Political Participation In how many ways can people participate in politics? How have you personally participated in politics? What lessons did your participation teach you? One of the features of a democratic society is that anyone can get involve in politics without necessarily running for public office which is the most obvious form of political participation. Perhaps the most common and simplest political exercise ordinary citizens do is to vote, putting their desired leaders into office. There are also other ways to participate. Another is to talk to their elected representatives – their congressmen and senators for they (theoretically) represent them in government and as such, they are supposed to look after the interests and welfare of their constituents and communicating with them, whether by letters or â€Å"lobbying,† are other forms of political exercises. Other ways are extraconstitutional in nature, usually in the form of rallies and demonstrations as alternative means to air their grievances. I myself have done these exercises and whether the government responds or not does not matter. What matters the most is I made myself heard by the government since I for one, helped put them in office and they are obligated, by law to serve us, the citizens. Besides the given forms of political exercises, virtually anything we do is a form of political exercise though indirect such as paying income taxes and obeying laws. Doing these duties can also be considered a form of political exercise as it suggests not only compliance, but as our way of ratifying the legitimacy of the incumbent administration. In other democratic societies, protests are a sign of rejecting or refusing to ratify that legitimacy. Lesson #5: Campaigns and Elections What is the Electoral College? How does it work and why is it so important? Are there any changes you would make to the Electoral College? What are they, and why? If not, why not? The electoral college is a special (electoral) body that actually elects the President and vice President of the United States. This body is nothing new and dates back to the Middle Ages when it was created as means of choosing its leaders. Theoretically, the College is supposed to vote in accordance to the vote of the majority of their respective states. Despite the mechanisms in place, it is not perfect as there have been instances when the popular votes and the electoral (college) votes do not correspond and in the end, it is the latter that ultimately decides the winner even if the former decided otherwise; the most recent case underscoring this was the 2000 Presidential election which saw George W. Bush winning the electoral votes even though his rival former Vice President Al Gore won the popular votes. Although I could not guarantee that my suggestions are perfect, if there is one thing I would propose, is for the abolition of the College. The reason for its abolition is obvious as its votes sometimes do not jibe with that of the majority. In other words, the popular vote should be enough to determine who gets to be President and Vice President. The only catch here is the ground to cover as the United States has a vast land area and may be difficult to process votes with so large an area and population. Should the College be retained, the electors must vote in accordance to the will of the majority. Lesson #6: Political Parties When Ross Perot ran for President in 1992, he famously said, â€Å"There’s not a dime’s worth of difference between a Republican and a Democrat. † Was he right? Are there differences between Republicans and Democrat? If so, what are they? There is no definite or absolute answer if Perot is right. The difference between a Republican and a Democrat is the ideology they subscribe to. Republicans are by nature conservatives while Democrats are liberals. Their political agendas or platforms correspond to their respective ideologies. Where Democrats are isolationists, Republicans like to engage in foreign affairs; Democrats are pro-choice, Republicans are pro-life, and so on. Both parties present differing agendas which they feel are for the good of the American people and there is nothing wrong with that. However, in recent times, there is hardly any difference between Democrats and Republicans as both sides seem to advocate the platform or agenda of the other once they see it their way. This was shown by Presidents Franklin Roosevelt, Bill Clinton and even John F. Kennedy when they engaged in military interventions when the ideology of their parties did not permit it. When interests of the American people are at stake, history has shown that America’s leaders are willing to overstep party ideology to do what is necessary to serve the people, even if it means subscribing to the other party’s ideas. Lesson #7: Interest Groups Two schools of thought seem to center on interest groups. One school sees interests as good representatives of the people and an added voice for the committed citizen. Another sees them as greedy bribers of elected officials, manipulating government for their own purposes regardless of what the people want. Do you agree with one of those approaches, or perhaps a different one of your own. Explain your choice. Yes. There is no absolute or definite way to label interest groups as good or bad. Both kinds of groups exist and like it or not, they are here to stay. How they function depends on the agenda of its leaders, giving it their raison d’etre. There are â€Å"legitimate† interest groups, sometimes called pressure groups or even cause-oriented groups. They exist because they are pursuing issues ranging from abortion to (anti)war. They provide an alternative venue for the citizenry, especially the marginalized ones, to be represented in voicing out their concerns to the government, which is supposed to serve them. The other group is driven by ambition and profit and they have the advantage of material resources used to leverage the government to lean in their favor in terms of financial rewards or political support whereas the former relies mainly on human resources. Another difference is that the latter represents a select few, they are the â€Å"oligarchs. † They make up for their lack of a majority with their wealth and influence. If there is one thing this shows, interest groups live up to their billing as groups looking out for their interests, whether it is for the good of all, or for self-serving reasons (unfortunately). Lesson #8: Mass Media Liberals tend to complain about a conservative bias in the media, while conservatives tend to complain about a liberal media. Do those two accusations of bias cancel each other out? Read a few news articles (not blogs, but traditional media sources like websites for TV networks or newspapers) and look for bias, either liberal or conservative. Link to the story in your post, and explain why you see bias (if at all) in the piece. Media is a neutral entity, it can be used as instruments of conservatives or liberals but more often than not, they tend to lean more on the liberal side where they tend to be very critical of the government and its policies. A liberal media also tends to be very expository, giving expose-type reports, thereby compromising national security in the name of the â€Å"right to know† and â€Å"freedom of information. † One recent example of how liberal the media could be is the recent leakage of classified military operations ongoing in Afghanistan. One such newspaper featuring is is the British newspaper The Guardian (http://www. guardian. co. uk/world/2010/jul/25/task-force-373-secret-afghanistan-taliban? intcmp=239). What is so â€Å"liberal† about this article is it is exposing classified military operations when it is not supposed to. In this particular case, the â€Å"right to know† cannot be applied because such exposes puts the lives of men in uniform in danger for their identities are revealed and serves the purpose of the enemy more. Liberal media becomes the unwitting ally of the coalition forces and uses their stories to further glorify themselves and vilify the supposed â€Å"good guys. † Lesson #9: Congress Watch one of my favorite video clips ever http://www. youtube. com/watch? v=mEJL2Uuv-oQ Bill, the hero of the story, is trying to become a law. How tough is his job in reality? How likely is it Bill will actually become a law, and why? Should it be easier for laws to pass? Why, or why not? Becoming a law is no easy feat, especially in a democratic form of government. When Bill was â€Å"born,† in the Lower House Congress, not everybody welcomes his arrival and needs a lot of support, more than his sponsor could provide. His sponsor needs to be able to make his colleagues see things his way in order to agree to endorse bill. His passage will face rough sailing as lawmakers debate on the his merits and weaknesses which will take time. By the time he passes the Lower House, the next obstacle is the Upper House for further endorsement and the same â€Å"democratic† process of debating and filibustering. Once he gets through the Senate, it is off to the White House for the President to make him a law, if it does, he becomes recognized nationally as the law of the land. However, there is no guarantee it will happen all the time. The President can veto Bill by simply not signing it if he does not agree to the content but there is a way for Congress to get around it by overriding the veto by at least two-thirds vote and when this is accomplished, Bill becomes a law. One might wish there must be an easier way to make and pass laws, given that the â€Å"democratic† approach seemed tedious. But despite its â€Å"imperfection,† it is still an accepted system. This is what makes democratic systems different from regimes that practice rule by fiat where the word of the ruler alone is the law which may not sit well with the people for they were not given a chance to be heard. The â€Å"democratic† process ensures all concerns are addressed and interests are met. That is the beauty of the democratic law-making process despite its â€Å"flaws. † Lesson #10: President How much does public support matter for the President? Does the President need public support to get things done? Reference real-life acts of the President and explain how the public was a part of that success or not. Theoretically, the President is the highest-paid public servant, being elected by majority of the people to office and given this fact, he needs the support of the people in order to legitimize his actions as well as determine the policies of the state. But in reality, this has not always been the case and there have been times when Presidents act without the need for public support most of the time. One example would be President Franklin Roosevelt when he passed the New Deal as a way of addressing the problems caused by the Great Depression. It was not popular or accepted and yet it came to pass. A recent example would be the case of President George W. Bush when he ordered the invasion of Iraq despite the large-scale opposition to it. The result of it was it made him more unpopular though the irony of it all was he got reelected in 2004 on the strength of his morality. If there is one thing these Presidents proved, what is popular is not always right and they would be willing to do what is necessary for the good of the country even if it may not be popular. Looking at it from the perspective of the President, they were elected not because they were popular, but expected to serve and run the country to the best of their abilities. Lesson #11: Judiciary The Supreme Court, and the two levels of federal courts underneath it, are not elected bodies. As a result, people are highly skeptical of the power the courts wield. So, how powerful should the courts be? Do the courts have too much power now? If so, what is that relative to? More power than Congress, the President, or its Constitutional grant of power? The Constitution guarantees a separation of powers between the three main branches of government – the executive, legislative and judicial. The rationale here is that it prevents one branch from usurping or dominating the other because, in the Founding Fathers’ minds, domination of one branch was an invitation to tyranny, something that has become anathema to democratic ideals. The idea of the separation of powers is to provide a check and balance and prevent such a domination. In the case of the judiciary, from the lower courts to the Supreme Court, they serve as legal arbiters, determining the constitutionality of actions taken by the executive or legislative. This is its â€Å"power. † In my opinion, this power will suffice for the judiciary. There are times when the executive and the legislative do not get along in terms of policy-making and there is a need for a mediator and that is the judiciary that decides who is right though not exactly in Solomonic proportions. What makes the judiciary a valuable asset are the people in it. Not everyone can be part of the judiciary. One particular qualification needed is wisdom and rectitude. The people who serve here as justices are the ones considered above reproach though not infallible and yet they are the go-to people when legal or constitutional are raised and they are the ones who resolve such issues though the powers they wield. Lesson #12: Bureaucracy Americans’ view of the bureaucracy is highly negative. Why is that? Is that a fair characterization of the bureaucracy? Refer to any interactions you’ve had with the bureaucracy for reference. Whenever one thinks of â€Å"bureaucracy,† negative connotations emerge. It is often associated with red tape and corruption; and members of the bureaucracy are often stereotyped as lazy, pompous or self-important or self-serving, if not corrupt people who like to make things difficult for the citizen in need of their assistance. In reality, this is the price to pay of a democratic bureaucracy. To the insiders, they live by a system of rules and procedures to follow to ensure a smooth and efficient flow of operations. The need of procedures is intended to give some semblance of control for without it, there would be chaos, especially when many people try to expedite at the same time. In fairness, one cannot blame bureaucrats who look so bored considering they do the same jobs every day and the routine gradually diminishes their zeal. But it would be unfair to accuse all of them as corrupt or pompous. Most of them know that public service is a public trust and they knew what they were getting into the moment they joined the government and could not abuse that trust. I experienced that when I got my license from the DMV. The process was tedious given there were many applicants but I did get my license in time because procedures have been followed and the staffers were anything but rude because that would be unprofessional. In reality, these â€Å"bureaucrats† are still public servants and as such, they are there to serve the public and they know that. Therefore, they forfeit the right to complain (needlessly) and what makes them different from employees in the private sector is their standards of professionalism are much more higher given their status as public servants and it is also fair enough that they deserve respect and our cooperation as much as we want them to respect us and serve us. How to cite American Government, Papers

Inventions and Discoveries from the Muslim World free essay sample

PenInventions and Discoveries from the Muslim World By Adnaan Idrees Have you ever noticed that all the books on science and technology somehow only seem to be filled with discoveries and inventions from the likes of Aristotle, Archimedes, Da Vinci and Thomas Edison but what about the Muslims? Where are all our discoveries? A period of a thousand years exists between these thinkers and when great Muslim men and women expressed their religiosity through contributions made to society and the sciences. So what were these contributions? And how many of these things are used today? MEDICINE: Masters of Ophthalmology: All the modern terms that your optician uses like conjunctiva, cornea, uvea and retina come from Muslim eye surgeons of the 10th to the 13th Century. They were conducting operations on diseases of the lids like trachoma, glaucoma or as they called it ‘the headache of the pupil’ back then but the greatest contribution they made to ophthalmology was developing a treatment for cataracts. Also known as al-ma’ nazul’ayn Ma’, which meant â€Å"the descending water onto the eye† (the water accumulating in the lens making it cloudy). Al-Mawsili in the 10th Century Iraq designed a hollow needle and inserted it through the limbus to remove the cataract by suction. This very same procedure is carried out to this very day. From his study and practice he wrote a book called The Book of Choices in the Treatment of Eye Diseases. Not a very good name for a book but hey the man was a genius when it came to diseases of the eye as the book discusses 48 different diseases! The manuscript of this book can still be found to this very day, in the Escorial Library in Madrid, Spain. Surgical instruments: The Muslim Surgeon named Abu Al Qasim Al-Zahrawi (10th century) known as Abulcasis in the West is truly the father of surgery. He devised over 200 instruments; his scalpels, bone saws, forceps and fine scissors amongst others are still used in their original form today! He is the author of Kitab Al-Tasrif (method of medicine)- a 30 volumes encyclopaedia on medical practices and his greatest contribution to medicine; this book includes symptoms and treatments of 100’s of diseases, descriptions of particular aspects of pharmacology and diet; and the last, most famous and influential volume about surgical practices. EVERYDAY INVENTIONS and DISCOVERIES Cheques: comes from the Arabic â€Å"saqq†. As a form of payment it is a written vow to honour payment for merchandise when its destination is reached. The cheque was created due to the possible dangers of transporting coins as legal tender. In promoting the concept of the saqq or cheque Muslims made the financing of commerce and intercontinental trade possible. In the 9th century it was possible to cash a cheque in China and then withdraw it in Baghdad. Can you say Kerching!? Fountain Pen: Before pens ever came into existence as we know them today, there were other writing instruments like Qalams or reed pens, which were used by the Arabs in the art of calligraphy. But the problem was the same, the ink always existed outside of the pen and it constantly had to make use of an ink-holder. An Arab called Qadi abu Hanifah al-Nu’man ibn Muhammed, who was a close companion to the Egyptian sultan al-Mu’izz, in 953 CE, wrote a book called ‘The Book of Audiences and Concurrence’ in which he recollects how the Al-Mu’izz ordered the commissioning of the fountain pen: â€Å"We wish to construct a pen which can be used for writing without having recourse to an ink-holder and whose ink will be contained inside it. A person can fill it with ink and write whatever he likes and the writer can put it in his sleeve and it will not stain nor leak. The ink will flow only when there is an intention to write. † The companion asked: â€Å"Is this possible? And the sultan replied: â€Å"It is possible if God so wills. † Sure enough a few days later the craftsman brought a pen which wrote when it was filled with ink, never leaked when turned upside down and did not require the use of an ink pot as it held its own. Unlike today’s fountain pens that leak all over the place, this writer sincerely agrees with the Sultans sentiments. Coffee: yep, you read that right, Muslims â€Å"invented† coffee. The first evidence found of coffee-drinking appears in Sufi shrines in Yemen where they would drink this beverage to be able to stay awake late into the night performing dhikr (something we can all relate to). Coffee spread quickly, in one century it has reached Africa and the whole of the Middle East; arrived in Europe through Italy and spread to the rest of Europe. In the 1600’s, sultan Murad IV decided to ban coffee! Some say it was because once, while patrolling his city in disguise, the sultan heard the coffee drinkers having deep and thoughtful conversations about the (sad) state of the empire while the alcohol drinkers were happily partying. Other stories say that coffeehouses had become meeting places for leisure and discussions instead of masjids hence why all coffeehouses were closed down and coffee banned. Whatever the reasons, somehow this bitter yet addictive drink is now found in every household. SOCIETY: Universities: In Islam, we are encouraged to seek knowledge from the cradle to the grave. Some of the very first Muslim schools were in fact mosques which served as both a place of prayer and learning. They taught all manner of subjects including sciences alongside religious studies which was a completely novel idea in comparison to the rest of the world. The oldest university in the world is the Al-Qaraouine University in Fez, Morocco which was established in 841 CE. It may interest all those parents who think girls shouldn’t go to university that the Al-Qaraouine University was established by a pious young Muslim woman called Fatima al-Fahra. She was the daughter of a successful businessman who spent her entire inheritance on building the university and as a result she spared no expense. Upon commencing the project she fasted regularly until the building was complete. On opening its doors the university was flooded with applications from not only the local people but from international students all the way from Iraq. And unlike today’s universities students did not have to pay fees. In fact financial support was part of the package, which was made possible by endowments from the royal families (at least they were once good for something). Its education included all subjects, but in particular the natural sciences. To quote Einstein â€Å"science without religion is lame, religion without science is blind. Weaponry: Military might was something that the earlier Muslims understood really well. One of the most influential book on military technology was The Book of Horsemanship and Ingenious War Devices by the Syrian scholar Hasan al-Rammah, written sometime in the 12th Century. It includes the schematics of the first rocket (a model of which is exhibited at the National Air and Space Museum in Washington DC, USA today), cannons and grenades. Although the Chinese knew about Gunpowder, they only used it in fireworks as they could not get the proportions right for use in war nor were able to purify the potassium nitrate. Hasan al-Rammahs book was the first to explain the purification process of potassium nitrate and the recipe for gunpowder. The Muslim Armies in 1249 used gunpowder in war  resulting in decisive victories against the invading crusaders. In fact the invaders were so terrified of the devices that a French Crusader Army was disbanded and retreated leaving their king to be taken prisoner. An example of such a cannon made from Hasam al-Rammahs book is on display at Fort Nelson Museum in London which was a gift given to Queen Victoria by Sultan Abdul Aziz. Windmills: Ever see one of those environmentally friendly windmills? All across an entire fie ld generating energy from the winds themselves; ever wondered where such a contraption came from? In order to fuel any great society a constant supply of renewable energy is required; over a thousand years ago this energy was harnessed. In the towns, water-driven mills processed wheat but in the drier parts of Arabia, where water was scarce, they had to come up with an alternative. And the one thing that is plentiful in the desert is the wind! Blowing in the same direction all year round. So in 634 a Persian Caliph named Umar was approached by a Persian engineer claiming to be able to make a mill operated solely by the wind. Intrigued, the Caliph immediately ordered him to construct one. The first few windmills were constructed in the Persian province of Sistan and al-Masudi which was later described by one geographer as the country of wind and sand. Early mills had 6 to 12 sails covered with fabric. From this invention many new trades were born and it wasn’t long before these caught the eye of the crusaders who then introduced them to Europe in the 12th Century Ibn Al-Haytham and the Pinhole Camera: I know this doesn’t sound like the most exciting invention ever but bear with me a little. This man, Ibn (Son of) Al-Haytham is known as the father of modern optics, and not for bad reasons either! Back in the fifth century, it was believed that our eyes EMITTED light rays (superman style) and this theory was upheld all through famous Greek and Roman thinkers until the 11th century where our man, Ibn Al-Haytham, proved scientifically that we are not emitting rays but rather visible light enters our eyes and hence we can see. His greatest and irrefutable proof was the pinhole camera, the principle is simple, light rays enters a small hole and an inverted image is formed on a film at the back. The pinhole camera is still used today, the images produced are softer and they have a nearly infinite depth of field, check them out, they’re quite amazing! So you see, our amazing modern world isn’t all about Aristotle and Plato, no, our world was largely shaped by people who were not scared to tackle deep-rooted ideas or taken-for-granted theories, who, with their faith in Allah and Quran by their side, were able to make major breakthroughs and inventions in all aspects of Human life. Our brothers and sisters opened the path for us so what are we waiting for? Don’t be scared to challenge everything and anything, don’t be scared to let your imagination run wild, draw, create, invent, test, prove! Our beloved religion encourages us to do all this: Our Lord’s very first word to the Prophet (pbuh) was â€Å"IQRA† which means Read! Thus showing the importance of knowledge. Also, the prophet (pbuh) said: He who treads a path in search of knowledge, Allah will direct him to tread a path from the paths of Paradise. The Angels lower their wings for the student of knowledge in approval of what he does. All in the heavens and Earth and (even) the fish in the depth of the water seek forgiveness for the scholar, and the superiority of the scholar over the worshipper is like the superiority of the full moon at night over the rest of the stars.

WordPress Blog Typography How to Improve It

The fonts you use on your blog can have a big impact on how the website feels to your visitors. Are you writing for a formal audience or a casual audience? An audience seeking a feminine lifestyle blog or a forward-thinking technology blog? The choices you make about your WordPress blog typography lend an immediate atmosphere to what your visitors are looking at, even before they ever read a word.Many WordPress themes come with fonts carefully selected and paired by the designer, but some are rather plain. Or perhaps you want to use a theme for something other than its original purpose, and the font choices the designer made no longer match your goals.Maybe you just want to freshen things up without having to go through the sometimes arduous process of migrating to a new theme. Whatever the case, tweaking your WordPress blogs fonts is a great way to change the look and feel of your website without investing a lot of time and effort.How to improve your WordPress blog typographyThis po st will cover a few easy ways to change and improve your WordPress blog typography and font styles, from diving into the settings for your theme, to using a purpose built plugin.Lets get started:Some typography rules to keep in mindIn order to make consuming your content more enjoyable, you need to choose a font size and number of characters per line that is easy to read. To do this, you can use the Golden Ratio Typography Calculator. Just enter your content width, and it will offer you suggestions for the perfect font size and line height for your paragraphs and headers.Once you have these suggestions, you can integrate them with your blog in a number of different ways.For a manual approach, just follow these instructions to determine which elements to edit in your custom CSS. You can place your code in the box under Appearance Edit CSS.Note. Heres a short tutorial on how you can add custom fonts in ThemeIsle themes using this method.Changing your fonts through theme settingsThe o ptions you have for editing your WordPress blog typography vary wildly from one theme to the next. Some themes give you the utmost control over fonts, sizes, and colors if you dig into the settings enough, whereas others give you next to no control (Im looking at you, default WordPress themes).For example, here are the typography settings from a theme I have installed on one of my sites:Compare that to Twenty Fifteen, which only lets you change the colors of the text on your site, and nothing about the font:Since this is completely different from theme to theme, its a good idea to look for typography settings first. Theme settings are typically either under the Appearance section of the admin dashboard  menu, or in their own new menu section under the name of the theme. If you find typography settings for your theme, great thatll be the easiest way to change your sites fonts. But if you dont see them, dont despair, just keep reading.Changing your fonts using a pluginBecause of th e lack of font settings by default in WordPress, developers have released a huge number of typography plugins. Out of all the options available, there are two in particular that I would recommend. One of them is extremely simple and easy to use, while the other gives you a little bit more control:1. Styleguide Styleguide Custom Fonts and Colors Author(s): Ben GillbanksCurrent Version: 1.7.2Last Updated: August 31, 2019styleguide.zip 100%Ratings 65,028Downloads Requires Styleguide is a free WordPress plugin that expands upon the WordPress Live Customizer, a built-in feature that lets you preview changes youd like to make to your site before making them live. It adds 45 of the most common Google Fonts under a Colors Fonts menu, which is an adaptation of the existing Colors menu that is there by default. Google Fonts is one of the most convenient libraries of web fonts because all of the fonts are free, even for commercial use.After searching for the plugin, installing it on your site, and activating it, you can customize your blogs fonts under Appearance Customize in the WordPress menu. This will open the Live Customizer. After you click Colors Fonts, your options will look like this:From here, you can select a font for your sites title, and a font to use for the body text and headings. For each, you can also choose default, normal, or bold font weight. As you make changes, they will be displayed in a live preview to the right of the options.This WordPress blog typography plugin is super easy to use, but it is somewhat limiting. All of your headings will be in the same font as the body text, just at predetermined sizes and weights. There are also no settings in this plugin to recolor specific headings or other paragraph styles. Styleguide is a great choice if you need something super quick and easy, but isnt the best choice if you need to make more detailed changes to the fonts and colors of specific headings.2. WP Google Fonts WP Google Fonts Aut hor(s): Noah KaganCurrent Version: v3.1.4Last Updated: March 4, 2019wp-google-fonts.zip 80%Ratings 1,173,966Downloads 2.0.2Requires For cases where you do want to set specific fonts and font weights for certain headings, WP Google Fonts is the plugin for you. As one of the most popular free WordPress typography plugins, it has over 100,000 active installs plus a 4-star review average, and its a plugin I regularly use when setting up a new WordPress website.In addition to letting you choose from well over 100 of Googles web fonts, you can choose the weight you need, check off which styles to apply it to, and even enter custom CSS. Using this plugin you can customize up to six different fonts and what they apply to. (Not that you should use that many – fonts look most professional when you stick to pairing just two or, at most, three.)When you are done adjusting the settings for your fonts, be sure to click the blue Save All Fonts button to apply the changes to your site.U nfortunately, you cannot preview changes to your website before they go live with the WP Google Fonts plugin, unlike with Styleguide, but the level of customization you get in return is worth it.Final thoughtsChanging your WordPress blog typography styles is one of the quickest and easiest ways to alter the mood of your website, whether you accomplish it through your theme settings, the WordPress Live Customizer tool, or a free plugin like Styleguide or WP Google Fonts.Do you use one of these plugins to customize your WordPress blog typography or do you have another favorite? Please share in the comments below.

Later Adulthood Development Report Essay Essay Example

Later Adulthood Development Report Essay Essay Example Later Adulthood Development Report Essay Essay Later Adulthood Development Report Essay Essay As grownups enter the phase of subsequently maturity. many alterations will get down to develop for each individual. The aging procedure includes transitioning from work life to retirement. alterations to functions. societal places. societal policies. finding populating adjustments with health care demands. and relationships with households and equals. The phase known as the aureate old ages comes with great challenges while seting to the many alterations in a person’s life. ( Zastrow A ; Kirst-Ashman. 2010 ) . Passage from work to retirement The passage from a working life to the retirement old ages can be a hard procedure for aging grownups as giving up higher wages for the sum paid for Social Security is drastically different. Coercing retired grownups to look for supplement income during this phase at a lower position than antecedently held in a anterior place. Most companies offer a pension or 401k program to assist employees be after for a better retirement as it is about impossible to populate on Social Security entirely. This alteration besides plays a big factor on how the single positions their personal dignity. Alternatively of pluming themselves in the cognition of an business. retirement forces the individual to give up that function in hunt of another beginning to busy their clip. ( Zastrow A ; Kirst-Ashman. 2010 ) . Passage from work to retirement Cont. Retirement can be an enjoyed clip for some older grownups as they see it as the first clip since childhood they are able to make the things they want in life without worrying about the bounds caused by a profession. Others will fight to calculate out to make with all the excess clip during each twenty-four hours. Depending greatly on the attitude a individual had toward the many old ages spent employed and the ability to go on financially back uping the extracurricular points they would wish to partake in during retirement. Personal wellbeing plays a big factor in how the grownup will manage the retirement old ages and determine extra wellness issues a individual may confront. With a solid retirement program go oning to back up the individual financially. this can be a joyous clip while others larning to populate on a fixed income will detect important alterations to their overall wellness. These alterations are brought on by depression. a feeling of no longer being needed. or the bo red from non holding a specific undertaking for mundane life. ( Allen. Clark. A ; Ghent. 2004 ) . Changes in function and societal place As aging advancements people begin to lose their function and societal places caused by the alterations to activities. each individual is involved in and illnesses the aged develop. The deficiency of physical and mental activities begins to diminish psychomotor accomplishments that affect assorted facets of day-to-day life. When people start aging the alterations in the ability to see and hear Begin to worsen doing it look as if the individual suffers from a diminution in mental competence. which may non be the instance and it merely takes an older individual longer to treat the information that is given to them. Physically the alterations to a person’s organic structure will get down in in-between maturity with the most noticeable occurrence in subsequently maturity. Physical alterations in musculus tone and tallness along with a slower apprehension of the universe around them creates the perceptual experience of the older grownup as a weaker individual in the eyes of their l oved 1s and is the clip when wellness issues become more noticeable. ( Zastrow A ; Kirst-Ashman. 2010 ) . Changes in function and societal place Cont. As reaction times lag. the aged Begin to lose privileges like drive because the reaction clip is greatly affected and is thought to be the cause of extra accidents. Driving is. normally. the first undertaking removed from a individual when they are no longer able to run a vehicle safely without jeopardizing the lives of others. Once a individual begins to see this normal undertaking being taken off from them it causes the individual to go dependent on households or friends to assist with their day-to-day demands. and decreases the feeling of autonomy. which causes the alteration to the function a individual has in society. ( Zastrow A ; Kirst-Ashman. 2010 ) . Changes in matrimony. household and peer relationships Subsequently maturity is the clip in life when alterations in matrimony. households. and peer relationships are affected the most by the loss of person stopping point to that individual. â€Å"Most people 70 old ages of age or older are widowed. divorced. or single† ( Zastrow A ; Kirst-Ashman. 2010. p. 619 ) . Losing a partner or close friend can make a sense of solitariness. which causes depression. anxiousness and the emptiness feeling can go overpowering. Depression besides leads to psychological effects that will deteriorate a person’s wellness doing the opportunity for a terminal disease to go much higher. The weaker visual aspect of older grownups causes household and staying equals to step up in the function of doing certain the person’s well-being is being met. ( Zastrow A ; Kirst-Ashman. 2010 ) . Populating adjustments and health care demands Worsening wellness and depression are two of the largest grounds households look into assisted life places for aging loved 1s. Making certain that the health care needs of the aged are met becomes a precedence for every household as the functions begin to change by reversal from the parent being the primary health professional of their kids to the kids being responsible for run intoing the demands of aging parents. Diseases such Alzheimer’s and dementedness are really hard for non merely the older individual but for their households as good. As a individual with this disease is no longer able to populate on their ain without the fright of something bad go oning while no 1 else is around to watch over them. The disease affects all normal facets of a person’s life. making confusion. aggressive behaviours. incontinency. and the inability to run into the day-to-day demands without supervising doing it necessary to happen a installation that will run into the demands of the patient. ( Zastrow A ; Kirst-Ashman. 2010 ) . Finding a installation that will run into all the demands of the older grownup and have a degree of attention that the household desires can be hard to happen. Researching all installations in the country will assist maintain a peace of head for the household and reassure that their loved 1s are having the attention they need. Medical plans Healthcare for older grownups is expensive. and since many are populating on fixed incomes. they rely on plans such as Medicaid and Medicare to run into their medical demands. Due to the economic position of the authorities and the high cost of medical attention. both of these plans now provide limited services to older grownup. The quality of medical attention older people will have will besides be lessened as many primary attention doctors focus their pattern on younger coevalss. making an inability to right name jobs in older maturity. Treating younger people allows the doctors to do more money off the current Medicare plans because of the restrictions in topographic point to curtail extra processs when needed. ( Zastrow A ; Kirst-Ashman. 2010 ) . Social policies impacting older grownups Social policies were created to help the aging population meet medical. day-to-day and income demands. The Older Americans Act of 1965 was created to guarantee that older grownups receive benefits of income. equal lodging. community services. and nutrition plans. ( Gelfand. A ; Bechill. 1991 ) . The Supplement Security Income plan was designed to supply extra income after retirement for the persons that worked the needed sum of old ages to have full benefits. Medicare programs are split into a bipartite system that will pay for limited medical disbursals incurred after retirement. Separate A of the program pays for limited attention during infirmary corsets. nursing places. and place wellness attention when needed. while Part B covers physician disbursals and out-patient services. Throughout the old ages. many alterations have been made to the policies because of alterations in presidential term and budget cuts to the federally funded plans. ( Zastrow A ; Kirst-Ashman. 2010 ) . Dec ision The alterations that occur for the older grownup population make it necessary for extended planning during the in-between maturity phase. for retirement and reflecting on how each person will supply their basic demands when the clip comes. Plans will assist to ease the emphasis of aging. set less of a load on household members. and do certain that the aged receive the medical attending they need without trusting on authorities assisted plans. Keeping a presence in societal groups will assist the overall mental and physical position of the aging population. The hereafter is up to each individual to command how they want to populate during the last phase of life. ( Zastrow A ; Kirst-Ashman. 2010 ) . MentionsAllen. S. G. . Clark. R. L. . A ; Ghent. L. S. ( 2004 ) . Phasing into retirement. The Industrial A ; Labor Relations Review. 58 ( 1 ) . 112-127. Gelfand. D. E. . A ; Bechill. W. ( 1991. Summer-Fall ) . The development of the older Americans act: a 25-year reappraisal of the legislative alterations. Coevalss. 15 ( 3 ) . 19-22. Zastrow. C. H. . A ; Kirst-Ashman. K. K. ( 2010 ) . Understanding Human Behavior and the Social Environment ( 8th ed. ) . Mason. Ohio: Brooks Cole/Cengage.

Word Choice Each vs. Every - Writing Tips with Proofed

Word Choice Each vs. Every - Writing Tips with Proofed Word Choice: Each vs. Every â€Å"Each† and â€Å"every† are both determiners. They also both refer to something as singular. They are even interchangeable in some cases! As such, it’s not surprising that people mix them up sometimes. However, these terms also have slightly different uses, so you need to be careful to avoid errors. Each vs. Every (Groups of Three or More Things) Both of these terms can be used to refer to a group of people or things. For example: We were told to read each book on the list. We were told to read every book on the list. In this case, both sentences imply reading all of the books on the list. The only difference is that â€Å"each† makes us think of reading the books one by one, while â€Å"every† makes us think of them collectively. But this only works when the group comprises three or more things. And the difference between these terms becomes obvious if we apply them to a group of two things. Each vs. Every (Two Things) If you are referring to two people or things, the word you will need is â€Å"each†: He had an apple in each hand. âÅ"“ He had an apple in every hand. âÅ"â€" The first sentence here implies that someone is holding two apples. The second sentence, by comparison, suggests that we’re dealing with some kind of many-handed octopus man. Or possibly a Hindu deity. Every vs. All Since it is used for larger groups, â€Å"every† is like the word â€Å"all† in that both terms refer to a group of three or more things collectively. However, â€Å"every† is only ever used with singular countable nouns, while â€Å"all† is used with plural nouns or uncountable nouns: Every alpaca deserves a hug. All alpacas deserve a hug. If we compare the sentences above, we can see the differences: â€Å"every† is used with a singular noun and a singular verb; â€Å"all† is used with a plural noun and plural verb. So while thinking of â€Å"every† as a synonym for â€Å"all† can be helpful, you still need to combine it with singular terms. Hug me! Each and Every? Finally, a quick note on the phrase â€Å"each and every.† Some people combine these terms as a form of emphasis when referring to larger groups. This is fine, but it is technically a redundant expression. You should not therefore use â€Å"each and every† in formal writing (e.g., a college paper).

How has friendship changed because of the spread of social networking Essay

How has friendship changed because of the spread of social networking are these changes more positive than negative, or have they caused more harm than good - Essay Example When friends are connected through a social media site, it is easy to find out the whereabouts of one another. It is also easy to find out what the other people are up to over the weekends, upcoming events, relationships and their current location. One can have as much time on social media as they want since the only charges that apply are those of internet connections. Friendship has changed from physical meetings and contact, to the internet sites. This means that one does not have to go through the hustle of arranging for a meeting when all the information required can be communicated through web platforms. It is easier and convenient to communicate through social networking because it is done at the convenience of the two parties involved. This element is useful; however, friends lose touch with one another in terms of physical approach. There is no much effort placed in making eye to eye contact with friends. The physical boundary has become independent. Friendship has become casual (Farah web). Friendships and how individuals make friends has changed ever since the invention of social media. Individuals prefer to be in a virtual world where one cannot be known fully but only at the superficial level. Social media has the option of adding individuals as friends. However this definition of friend is an online one. The two people may not even know each other but are friends on Facebook because one of them added the other. This kind of friendship is only superficial and shallow and exists in the virtual world. The two people, who call themselves â€Å"friends†, have no real life experiences (Barett web). On the other hand, social media has led to mistrust and deception among individuals. Some people have put a vetting mechanism for all people who add others as friends to avoid misleading characters in the name of â€Å"friends†. Social media can lead to breaking of good relationships (Parrack). Information

Constitutional Law of the European Union Case Study

Constitutional Law of the European Union - Case Study Example Accordingly. Germany must defend that the decision to restrict its national policy of supporting companies with financial benefits should have been taken by unanimous voting. Article 94 also envisages that there shall be a unanimous decision in respect of directives, regulations and regulations affecting the common market functioning. This is a good defence for Germany to maintain that if national companies are not supported with financial benefits, they will be adversely affected by unhealthy competition from the financially strong companies. Though there are proviso for derogation of these requirements by adopting Qualified Majority Voting, (QMV), the derogation power for overriding the unanimous voting requirements can not used for restricting a single member state from supporting its national companies when there possibilities of similar practices being followed at all member states in some form or other though the commission may not have received complaints.. There is no reason how it will distort competition when such practices likely to be followed by all the member states. Hence a decision of this nature should not be discriminatory towards a single member state alone. ... In the instance case itself, though there were complaints against France and Germany, action is directed at Germany only. Hence the decision is blatantly discriminatory by the abuse of QMV. The EC Treaty itself has provisions for creating interventionist funds to ward off difficulties. Hence Germany can rely on the above defences before the court of justice for cancelling the impugned decision. As Luxembourg Compromise was only a guideline and not statutory until recently without anticipating any such exigency, Germany can argue that this QMV principles must be reviewed so as to prevent vested interests from joining together against a single member state by insisting on unanimous voting. Germany's practice has been open and transparent while other member states are not likely to be so as there is no way of detecting such practices in guise. Germany being singled out alone will result in competition distortion. Moreover the commission does not appear to have followed the procedures giving opportunity to Germany before taking the impugned decision. In case no C-288/962, the court of justice has observed as follows. Plea in law alleging failure to observe the rights of the defence 92 By its first plea in law the German Government complains that the Commission denied it and the Land of Lower Saxony access to the observations, mentioned in section II of the grounds of the contested decision, which had been sent to the Commission, during the administrative procedure, by letters of 31 August 1995, 1 September 1995 and 4 September 1995, by four competitors of Jadekost. 93 According to section II, the letters in question pointed out, in particular, that Jadekost had used the aid granted to win market share from its competitors through sales at below-cost prices.