Bullying Speech

Imagine getting beating up every day at school for no reason, by your classmate or maybe by some senior guy you don’t even know. Or maybe even by an adult. You come home in bruises and cuts and dried up blood. Can you imagine that? Or can you even image getting punch at and getting pick at, calling you names in class and threatening texts every minute whether you are in class or at home and you’re friends wouldn’t help you out because they are too scared of the bully and the bully would followed you home and wouldn’t you feel scared. Can you imagine that? There are people who experience this in their day to day life.When you bullied someone especially for a long time whether it is physical, verbal, social or cyber, it would make the person’s life very miserable and in some very bad cases it might lead to killing themselves because they just can't hand the pressure or the humiliation they face every day. I am going to tell you about bullying and why I think it is bad to bully someone. There are four types of bullying: Physical, Verbal, Cyber and Social. Physical bullying as you know is when the bully punches, kicks, hits or any other types of physical attacks. Then there is verbal bullying.Basically what verbal bullying is, when the bully uses words to hurt or humiliate you. Verbal bullying includes names callings, racist’s comments and insulting. Social bullying is when the bully is spreading rumours, ignoring or even rejecting you. Social bullying is a strange type of bullying because it kind of links with verbal bullying. Finally there is cyber bullying. Cyber bullying is when you are threatened, humiliated, harassed by the bully using the internet. There is no limitation of cyber bullying because there is so many things you could do in the internet to cyber bully.You could get cyber bullied in facebook, bebo, msn etc or in some cases, the bullies can cyber bully you by making a website just for you. Also the thing wi th cyber bullying is that it is a new type of bullying because if you go back 50 years, there wouldn’t be any internet, or any mobile phone, therefore no cyber bullying. Personally I think that physical bullying is the least dangerous type of bullying because when you get physical bullied there will be scars or marks and your parents will know that you have been bullied where as in verbal, yber, social there is no scar or marks and your parents wouldn’t know you have been bullied. Also when you get physical bullied you know your injures will heal where as in verbal, cyber, social you wouldn’t know when it will go away. For example: You won’t know when the bully will stop calling you names etc. Some of you might still argue that some bullying at young age can be good for you because it will make you have to overcome problems and you will develop some social skills and learn that life is unfair.I disagree with this because most of the victim’s wonâ⠂¬â„¢t stand up for themselves and how would you develop social skills if people are rejecting you. Everybody learns that life is unfair not through bullying but from maybe getting blame from things they didn’t do or having to do chores at home every day, or maybe even through your parents always picking on your younger brother and sisters side and not yours. So what do you think of bullying now? Good or Bad? I hope you agree with me.

Outliers Part 7

In chapter 7 of outliers Gladwell talks about plane crashes in the 1990's in Korea. He says that there are far to many crashes that statistically should happen. Also since Korea was having way to many crashes other countries started to say that they were not going to let Korea fly over them or use their airports if they did not turn themselves around. With this threat Korea began to investigate the reasons for the plane crashes.They first tried to us common sense by saying it was the condition of the plane, the pilots were not trained properly and so on, but what they found out was that everything was up to code. So then they had to investigate deeper and look at other things and what they found out was it was the culture. The plane crashes were happening because Korea had a high power index, this meant that no matter what the pilot said everyone would agree with him and not question him.So int the end common sense doesn't always give you the answer you sometime have to look more dee ply into the situation. Also it's sometimes good to question authority. Its not always good to have a high power index and then again it's not always good to have a low power index. One occasion that it is good to have a low power index is in a hospital. This is good because even though doctors have much more experience nurses are right out of school so that means that they would know more about new technology and newer ways of doing different operations.Doctors may also be used to doing an operation one way but the nurse who is just out of school may now of some newer way of doing the same operation that has been proved to work better. Also since the nurses are with the patients more they may now something the doctor doesn't know that may affect the operation. It's also sometimes good to have a high power index, it would be more beneficial to have a high power index in a family because the kids should respect their elders. The parents and grandparents know more than the kids do and the kids can always learn something from older people.

A Man for All Seasons by Robert Bolt Essay Example for Free

A Man for All Seasons by Robert Bolt Essay ? When looking at the play, A Man for All Seasons, Richard Rich lied, cheated, deceived, hurt close friends and committed perjury to obtain his goal. He went from Attorney General of Wales to the Solicitor General, to the Secretary for Norfolk and finally to the Chancellor of England. Sir Thomas More, was very selfish towards achieving his own personal goals. He believed that if he went about everything the way God would have done it that he would reach heaven. In this process he managed to hurt his wife Alice, his daughter Margaret, and put his friends in awful positions. When every aspect is considered Sir Thomas More, evidently wanted eternal salvation and only really truly cared about him self. King Henry VIII was a man of power and intimidation. He did not let anything stand in his way. Cardinal Wolsey, was executed because he put up resistance toward the King, along with Bishop Fisher and Sir Thomas More. Any individual that caused a ripple in his path was executed. â€Å"Henry VIII, started with everything and squandered it all†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (Bolt, vii). Henry VIII wants an heir for his thrown and no matter how many women he has to marry then divorce to get it that is his primary intention. Richard Rich, Sir Thomas More and King Henry VIII all use reprehensible means, which harm others in order to achieve their own personal goals and in the end are never justified. Sir Thomas More does not justify the pain and suffering he causes by trying to live a glorious life that will put him in heaven. More has a one-track mind. With this, his beliefs and values are very strong towards the way of God and the right and the wrong; but his actions are very self centered and selfish. When More, was asked his opinion on the matter of King Henry’s divorce he replied, â€Å"†¦As I think of it I see so clearly that I can not come with Your Grace that my endeavor is not to think of it at all†¦.There is my right arm. Take your dagger and saw it from my shoulder, and I will laugh and be thankful, if by that means I can come with Your Grace with a clear conscience† (Bolt, pg31). His pride and values get in the way of his loved ones future and outcome. More is acting the way his heart tells him but not the most beneficial way in his circumstance. King Henry is one who hates opposition or doubts and Sir Thomas More is giving him doubt and grief on not siding with him on this issue. With having the King on your bad side the chances of you living a good life or living at all is very slim. Also, More shows selfish acts when Margaret approaches him, while he is in his jail cell. â€Å"When a man takes an oath, Margaret he’s holding his own self in his own hands†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (pg.83) This shows his selfishness towards himself and his goal of going to heaven. He does not care about his life hear on earth or what he leaves behind he just wants what is best for himself. Hence, Sir Thomas More attitude toward his family’s life was very poor. By talking about the King and by not siding with him he threw his life and his families life out the window. For food he made Alice eat mutton and did not provide for his family. Also, by him thinking of resigning his position is another example of himself being selfish and not providing for his family. His selfish acts towards himself hurt his friends and his family and do not justify his means for eternal salvation. Firstly, Richard Rich does not justify his means by his ends at all. This man is a lying deceiving little man that will do whatever it takes to gain rank and power. His betrayal towards Sir Thomas More was very futile in Sir Thomas’s conviction. â€Å"I’ve lost my innocence.†(pg.44) Rich has just sold out information to Cromwell in order to move ahead in rank. From here on Rich is starting down a path that will lead to hurting a lot of people’s lives. Secondly, Rich betrayed More for obvious reasons. He wanted to get ahead in life but also, there was the taste of money that came along with it. â€Å"Every man has his price.†(pg.2) This is just showing again why Richard Rich keeps on hurting individuals. In life one will betray another for some benefit and this in it self is an example of Macchiavelli. Hence, when Rich took the stand in the court to persecute More he showed again his greed and will to not stop at any cost to get what he wanted. â€Å"He said, ‘Parliament has not the competence.’ Or words to that effect.† Rich was saying what he knew the King wanted to hear. He was committing perjury against More so that he could eventually move into the spot of Chancellor of England. With this being said it shows that his greed and lust could not justify Rich’s means for money and self-advancement. Lastly, King Henry VIII only lived and strived for power and for dominance over everybody in England. If anybody ever crossed his path they were executed and nothing was said about it. Henry liked to show everybody that he ruled and no one else. â€Å"No opposition I say! No opposition!†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (pg.33) King Henry is again showing More that his opinion on his divorce is not going to be taken lightly in any sense. Even though More is the Chancellor of England Henry is still pressing him to side with him on the matter and not the Pope. Also, Henry showed dominance over Margaret. The King always has to be the smartest and most powerful one among all. In this certain occasion when Margaret could speak better Spanish then Henry he was very defensive. Right away he asked her if she could dance her response was no. â€Å"Well I can dance superlatively!† (pg.28) Henry is trying to put her down for showing her dominance over him. Also, Henry always wanted to be in power of the Church of England. This was the only thing that he was not in full complete control of and he needed to be to divorce Catherine for Anne Boleyn. The only way he could do this is to kill Cardinal Wolsey and clear the path for his dominance. Catherine provided him with a daughter and without an heir to the thrown this marriage and his legacy would not work. â€Å"Queen on the throne of England was unthinkable.† (pg. Viii) The King had to have power over the Church of England because he would not receive a divorce if he did not receive a boy through Anne. Henry used intimidation to justify his goals and his means were not reasonable nor were his actions justified. With Sir Thomas More, Richard Rich and King Henry VIII all having their means not justify their actions it showed that they were all doing this for some self-advancement in life. So again clearly through points and quotes all three used reprehensible means which harm others, in order to achieve their own personal goals and in the end are never justified. Bolt, Robert. A Man for All Seasons, A Man for All Seasons by Robert Bolt. (2017, Aug 31).

UK Aviation Policy Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

UK Aviation Policy - Case Study Example Air travel is of primordial importance to the United Kingdom's economy and prosperity. In the last 30 years there has been a five-fold growth in air travel. This vibrant air travel opened up opportunities: half of the population flies at least once a year, and many citizens have began flying far more often than that. The main challenge of UK aviation policy is to deal with the pressures caused by the increasing need to travel whilst at the same time retaining their commitment to protect the environment in which we live. The present UK aviation consists of a global policy framework that achieves stabilisation of greenhouse gas concentrations in the atmosphere at a level that would obviate dangerous man-made interference with the climate system. Aviation in the UK contributes an annual  £14bn value added output to the UK economy, creating and sustaining 675,000 jobs, exporting  £13bn per annum, and is directly responsible for transporting a third by value of our goods. (NATS and Trade Association in the UK, 2007). Aviation is a global industry. Many of its impacts demand global solutions. The International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) must identify the way forward and set the framework at an international level for national and local implementation. The ICAO must consider both the national and international impact of proposed policies. Moreover, it should lessen the adoption of unilateral measures which may result in adverse effects on the UK aviation industry and the national economy. Background of the Greenhouse Common The NATO's Nuclear Planning Group created a High Level Group (HLG) to determine NATO's requirements for handling threat from Soviet nuclear forces. The HLG started analyzing in December 1977 and decided to deploy cruise missiles in Britain. Cruise missiles were chosen as these were cheap, accurate and it could be fired from different platforms. The HLG's modernization plan was approved in 1979. (Sean, 2004). Then on June 17, 1980, British Defence Secretary, Francis Pym, announced in the House of Commons that 160 missiles were to be stationed at the United States Air Force standby base at RAF Greenham Common in Berkshire, and RAF Molesworth. (Parliamentary Debates of House of Commons, 1980). The first cruise missiles were delivered to the airport on November 14, 1983. (Sean, 2004) The NATO's December 1979 information that it had set-up a base for nuclear cruise missiles in a British airport generated instant and heavy public opposition. The anti-cruise missile movement had expanded to include mass demonstrations, peace camps at the bases, and multiple civil action by various organizations. Public opinion against the cruise missile deployment strengthened the

Applying Constructivism and Objectivism Learning Theories in the Essay

Applying Constructivism and Objectivism Learning Theories in the Design of Educational Package Software - Essay Example This essay stresses that a student with no knowledge and background of computers may find the program useless as he does not have even the basic skills. Hence for that situation introductory sessions would be required to make students acquainted with the basic computers skills. The assessment process should be such that it adds on the experience of the learners and helps them in self analysis and improvement. This paper makes a conclusion that technology on one hand has provided an effective means to learn and develop one’s skills. It requires proper introduction and facilitator, who can support the computer, based learning process. Objectivism and constructivism each has its own strengths and weaknesses and are mutually different from each other even in basic approach. Objectivism on one hand emphasizes on the realities existing in the society and focuses on the providing the same to the individuals to develop social reality and knowledge which is existing outside of learners mind. On the other hand constructivist believe that the knowledge and reality is constructed by the learners experience and do not exist outside the mind of learners. These are totally contrast approaches. But each of this approach can be useful in particular situation and conditions based on the learners learning needs. Each of the theory can be included for developing software educational program. The devel opers need to first know their target audience, their background educational requirements and objectives of the software educational program on the basis of which they can decide which

Corporate Social Responsibility - Perrier Contamination Crisis Essay

Corporate Social Responsibility - Perrier Contamination Crisis - Essay Example ........................................... 5 2.3 Ethical Nature of Response ..................................................................... 5 3.0 Conclusion ........................................................................................................ 6 Reference List ......................................................................................................... 7 1.0 Introduction To put it simply, corporate social responsibility is about an attitude and vision on the part of a company to follow goals and fulfil obligations that are not merely legally or economically binding, but which also aim at achieving the results and objectives that serve the larger interests of the whole society (tutor2u 2012). It is a commitment on the part of the businesses to be subject to many charitable goals that are ethical and moral in their scope, and aid the economic development of the society while improving and positively contributing to the quality of life of the varied stakeholders like the consumers, employees, the communities in which they operate and the society at large (tutor2u 2012). It is a tilt in the business processes envisioned, planned and managed by a company in the direction of having an overall and beneficial impact on the society. Corporate social responsibility is about a duty on the part of the modern day corporations to be aware of and respond favourably towards the emerging concerns and objectives of the society (tutor2u 2012). It aims to balance the shareholders’ interests with the societal concerns. Varied researchers and academicians have proposed various models that the organizations could follow to manage their corporate social responsibility liabilities. Carroll model of Corporate Social Responsibility is one important model in that context. Carroll classified the varied CSR prerogatives and obligations of the corporations as a pyramid (Carroll 1991). Economic responsibilities constitute the first level of the pyra mid (Carroll 1991). It is the duty of all the corporations to strive to be profitable. It is the profitability objective that sustains all the other types of corporate responsibilities and obligations. Legal responsibilities constitute the second level of Carroll’s pyramid (Carroll 1991). Laws are nothing but a formal codification of what the society considers to be right or wrong. It is important for the companies to obey laws and play by the rules. It is the responsibility of the corporations to operate in a manner that respects the national and international laws. For example it is the duty of the companies to look to it that the products manufactured by them are as per the set quality and safety standards. Ethical responsibilities constitute the next level of this pyramid that is related to the moral conscience of a company (Carroll 1991). It is important that the companies act in a way that is considered to be right and just and that does not intends to harm others. For instance, if a company uses its financial power and influence to access the resources in a third world community, say mineral wealth or oil, by forcibly uprooting the inhabitants in that community, it may turn out to be profitable, but is certainly not ethical. Companies must behave in a manner that upholds the norms and considerations valued by the society. Philanthropic responsibilities constitute the top level of Carroll’s CSR pyramid. It is when the corporations take the initiative to contribute their resources for achieving social good and for

Google's Three-Thirds HR Team Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words - 1

Google's Three-Thirds HR Team - Case Study Example This third group is complemented by two other groups of thirds, one third having the traditional HR skills and experience with expertise in traditional human resources, relationships with clients, benefits, and the law, among other things. The next third, meanwhile, is staffed by non-savant problem solvers who have no HR background whatsoever, and whose line of work prior included stints in the consulting firms or stints in other functions within Google, including sales, as well as more traditional engineering. Being incorporated into the different functional units within Google, these third of the People Operations Group takes the role of spearheading problem solving initiatives within the context of the departments or functions. The emphasis here is not the kind of work that is done by the group of analytical third with doctorates, but on the solving of problems as they are intimately linked with the functional groups within Google (Case Facts). Bock notes that there is encouragement for the sharing of know-how/knowledge as well as for the groups to interact, but this hardly qualifies as making the diverse thirds into a team. Table 11-1 tells us that there are indicators for when a true team exists, and those must be followed and should serve as guide in determining whether a team exists or not. In Table 11-1 a team is a team when there is the sense that leadership has become an activity that is shared within the group. There is a shift towards joint individual and group accountability. There is the development of a group mission/purpose. Problem-solving becomes embedded into the DNA of what the group does, and not something done on the side. Teams measure themselves by their overall outcomes relative to goals. Given this, the Peoples Operations group would do well to craft its own mission statement, for one. Group goal setting should be done with the buy-in of everyone concerned. The groups compensation can also be tied to the  performance of the whole group, with each of the thirds working together to accomplish this.  

Analytical reserach paper Research Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Analytical reserach - Research Paper Example The research question in this case is that: Does the Internet bring people closer together? The debate over whether the internet brings people closer together or not has been of interest since it attempts to unearth why there are a growing number of social networking sites and users all over the work. As a matter of fact, the last few years have seen a significant growth in the number of social networking cites such as Twitter, Facebook, MySpace, blogs and Badoo, just to name but a few. Facebook users lead the pack, spending over 10.5 billion minutes on the site daily (Consalvo and Ess 55). Research also reveals that over a billion people are currently connected to the Internet either via computer and mobile phones, among other gargets. A majority of the Internet users argue that the Internet has brought them closer to other people according to Internet Communication (Par.4) Some argue that, without the Internet, they would not be able to connect with their friends and families who a re spread all over the world. Those who agree that the internet has brought them closer to other people claim that social networking has enabled them to make friends and communicate with individuals whom otherwise they would not be able to meet without the Internet (Consalvo and Ess 56). ... 2). Those who disagree with the argument that the Internet help bring people closer together also have a strong point, which must be considered. Firstly, according to Consalvo and Ess, internet has done away with interactions that used to be there before its establishment (58). In this regard, Consalvo and Ess note that shopping online or searching information on the Internet has done away with dialogue or face-to-face communication, which used to bring friends and families together (58). As such, they dispel the argument that the Internet has helped bring people closer. Those opposed to the argument say that the type of communication done via the Internet is not genuine as they are recklessly made without critical thought. In addition, they argue that the Internet has broken social values in the family, as the majority of users tend to concentrate more on the Internet and fail to have time for their friends and families. This has created antagonism in the society and domestic violen ce, therefore, has not brought people closer (Internet Communication Par. 5). Why the debate is of interest and its significance As earlier stated the debate is significant because it will enable people understand how well the Internet is perceived by people all over the world., The study will also help in understanding the impact of the Internet on society and any ethical issues that should be noted, especially by web developers so as to meet Internet users needs best. Furthermore, the study will reveal how effective the Internet has been or is in fostering peace and tranquility across the world, which is characterized by great diversity. However, for me to be able to discuss the topic effectively, first I must have a good background of the Internet and its influences on society.

Economics Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 1

Economics - Research Paper Example When corn was used as an alternative enery source then it is apparent that soy beans will be demanded because it was used in a different manner other than food consumption. The supply of soy beans will decrease because farmers tend to use their farmlands for production of corn due primarily to two supply determinants. The first one is factor prices, since the cost for production is the same. Instead of soy beans they will prefer to farm corn in their lands. The other is expectations for the future because of anticipation that they will be able to easily sell their harvest due to the demand in corn as a raw material in a type of alternative energy. To note, corn was used as a component in alternative enrgy production with no substitute or complement indicated while soy beans was a substitute and not a complement which yields that it is affected in supply and demand parallel to corn. The determinants of demand which includes income, tastes, preferences, prices of substitutes or complements, expectations of the future and population (Carleton University, 2008). Given the scenario, the price of corn oil is likely to increase because the raw material for it which is corn was used in a different manner. Corn oil is a preferred ingredient by people in their daily kitchen use so this lets it fall under taste and preference. Concurrently, Total Revenue will increase based on the assessment that it is inelastic (Internet Center for Management and Business Administration, Inc., 2007). Increase in prices is greater than the increase in the quantity demanded which translate to an agmented total revenue for corn oil producers considering all

Looking to the future Essay Example for Free

Looking to the future Essay The purpose of this assignment is to identify and describe my personal, professional and academic goal, apply the Smart Goal process and explain each component, create how I will predict success in achieving my goals based on my past positive experiences, and my personality as it relates to being an online student. Obtaining my BA in Complimentary and Alternate Health while, attending Ashford University online will most definitely help with achieving my long-term academic, personal and professional goals. My Goals and SMART Goals Creating a game plan for success can be challenging, however after evaluating my future, building on past positive experiences, I need to determine what I need, to reach my long-term goal which is to become a Registered Dietician by the age of 48. By starting with my BA in Complimentary and Alternate Health I can achieve my short-term goal. This is a four year degree program that requires 120 credits to complete the Degree program. In the past, I attended school while being a full time mom and employee. I worked long hours and attend school at night; I was able to complete college with an Associate Degree in Business Office Technology. This is an example of setting SMART goals. After completing my degree program online at Ashford University I plan to continue with online classes at Auburn University. My long-term goal is to achieve my Master of Science with an emphasis in Nutrition Science. These goals will take hard work and commitment but they are realistic as well as achievable. Accountability and Countering Challenges Accomplishing these goals will take accountability, which starts with me. I am responsible for my success so I must have a plan that includes; overcoming obstacles that might have a negative impact on me being successful in school, I must set expectations for myself and meet them.

Nature versus Nurture: The debate

Nature versus Nurture: The debate A View of Two Fields of Thought: Nature versus Nurture A debate has been brewing in the field of education and philosophy for hundreds of years. Many intellectuals have pondered over this subject and have taken one side or the other, but to this day no definite answer exists. The battle of nature versus nurture, or rationalism versus empiricism, has so long been debated and has been addressed in so much literature that one would be hard pressed to find an educator who hasnt thought about this topic and considered the merits of each school of thought. This debate affects how educators view their students as well as how they believe children can be taught, so it is important to explore the history of each side and investigate the evidence so educators as well as parents can understand how to access their childs potential. In 380 B.C.E. Plato wrote a play titled Meno. In this work, he discussed through his characters how intelligence was based on recollection. This concept was derived from the idea that once a human being dies, his soul is reincarnated into another human being and that newly born person has all of the knowledge that his former life possessed. Therefore, Plato believed in the idea that knowledge was innate (Allen 165-174). He believed that people were divided into social or intellectual classes by the type of metal that supposedly ran through their souls. These metals were gold, silver, brass and iron and they were used to keep the social hierarchy in check. If someone were believed to have gold in their soul, they would theoretically govern the state and be of superior intelligence. Someone who had silver in their soul was seen as a warrior of the state and if someone was believed to have brass or iron in their soul, they were never meant for a high ranking position in the social spher e but to dwell on the earth as members of the lower class (Voegelin 230). The next great mind to enter the nature versus nurture debate came around in the mid 1600s. Rene Descartes created an entire school that is known today as the Cartesian school of thought. Descartes and his followers adopted the idea of dualism, meaning that the soul is separate from the body and that the soul does not have a physical manifestation (Gardner 33). This idea goes along well with the previously mentioned theories of Plato. In a dedicatory letter to the Sorbonne, Descartes attempted to prompt his literary work, Mediations on First Philosophy. This letter outlined Descartes key ideas concerning knowledge and dualism. He emphasized that all that is known about God is manifested in people, and to figure out those manifestations one must use reasoning, which takes place in the brain. Also throughout the letter Descartes made it a point to mention how people have certain aptitudes for different vocations, such as metaphysical studies or geometry; he also explored the idea that people can be intellectually gifted, as to say they were granted their intelligence from birth. Descartes had little evidence to support this reasoning beyond his heavy reliance on philosophy and his strong religious beliefs. Like Plato, he believed that the soul lived on after the body had expired (Descartes 3-11). As time moved on, the nature argument started to move away from the religious vantage point and more toward scientific research. Francis Galton would be among the first men who conducted such experiments. In Galtons book Hereditary Genius he stated the argument that the high reputation of a man could be used as an accurate assessment of high ability. He studied eminent men such as the Judges of England from 1660 to 1868 and also the Statesmen during the reign of George III. Along with these men, Galton also studied men of a wide variety of professions since he believed it was important to study many different grades of ability (Galton 2). He studied nearly 300 families and concluded that eminent men do tend produce eminent sons (307). From this conclusion, Galton set out to continue his research, only this time he wouldnt focus his attention on the biographies of successful men; he would continue his research with the study of twins. Through the process of sending out surveys to people who either were twins or those who were close relatives of twins, Galton found further support for his rationalist theories. At first he addressed a number of twins who were very similar from birth, and then he addressed those sets of twins who were dissimilar from the very beginning, which he considered more relevant to his cause. He presented several testimonies from parents of twins stating that even though the twins were nurtured the exact same way from the moment they were born, they showed great difference. A specific case stated that two male twins acted as compliments to one another. One boy would possess a certain set of qualities and attributes where as the other would be the polar opposite of his twin brother who had received the same nurture. Galton states that through all of his correspondences, he could not find one case where the twins started out different and were assimilated through nurture (Galton 391-406). Galton continued to study the issue of hereditary intelligence in many other books and journals, but one his most famous proposals was his ideas on eugenics. Because Galton believed that knowledge was inherited, he thought that it would benefit humanity if only intelligent people were allowed to reproduce. In â€Å"Eugenics: Its Definition, Scope, and Aims†, Galton laid out his plan for how this process would go about happening. He went as far as to call this way of living a â€Å"new religion† that should be fully pushed upon people so they whole heartedly accept it (Galton ). We now know that for a period in history, Galtons ideas were successful and many people around the world were sterilized against their will as a way to attempt to breed the perfect human race (Dikotter). In Galtons later research he discovered â€Å"regression to the mean†, which is the idea that human beings tend to move toward the average no matter how above or below average their parent s are. This discovery disappointed his hopes of breeding the perfect human race (Galton â€Å"Regression†). Another interesting contributor to the nature argument was Cesare Lombroso. In his book, â€Å"Crime, its causes and remedies†, Lombroso attempted to lie out the naturally occurring tendencies of a criminal. He studied groups of people in Europe and came to the conclusion that features such as hair color, skull size and facial structure were indicators that a person was innately criminal. He also determined that race was a factor in finding naturally born criminals as well. He used the Jewish people as an example for his race theory. He said that Jews were much less likely to commit crimes compared to the gypsies, who he believed where in the same socioeconomic class. Lombroso wrote about schooling as well. He believed that if a student in elementary school displayed the characteristics that he had categorized as criminal then the student should be taken away from the other children and be caught in a way to discourage the innate criminality from surfacing (Lombroso). Much more recently, Charles Murray has addressed this debate and has strongly lobbied for inherited intelligence. In the book â€Å"The Bell Curve† written by Richard Herrnstein and Charles Murray, these men aimed to prove that Americas growing inequality was due to the fact that skilled labor was much more valuable today than unskilled labor. Because both Herrnstein and Murray believed that IQ directly correlated with skill, they believed that the gap between people in society will only continue to grow as unskilled jobs fade away (Murray bell curve). In an article written by Murray published in the Wall Street Journal, he claimed that a persons IQ is directly connected to their intelligence and that that number cannot possibly change no matter what kind of education is given to that student. Through his investigation, he found that when someone tried to raise their IQ, it only went up an average of about 8 points as after time progressed, the number returned back to what it had originally been. Considering the national assessment of educational progress scores, 36% of all fourth graders were below the standards of basic achievement in reading; Murray stated that this number should be considered acceptable since 36% of fourth graders, according to the normal distribution, have IQs lower than 95. He even made the bold claim that if you argue that an IQ test doesnt determine intelligence, then G, someones natural intellectual ability, does (Murray Newspaper). The other side of the nature versus nurture debate lies with those who believe nurture is the predominate cause of intelligence and personality. A few years after Descartes died, John Locke came forward with his views on rationalism verses empiricism. He thought it was wrong to believe a small child had any innate ideas, and he is well known for his theory that a mind is like a blank, white piece of paper that parents and teachers can write on as they see fit to shape and mold the child into adulthood. Locke believed that ideas came from two places: first from sensory information and second from reflections (115spiral). In Lockes â€Å"Essay Concerning Human Understanding† he attacked the theory of innate knowledge by assuming that if there were innate principles in the human mind, everyone would agree on these principles. Because not all people agreed, it proved to Locke that there were in fact no innate principals at all. Also, in what seems like a direct attack at Descartes , Locke argued the innateness of God to be fictional because there are cultures all around the world that do not recognize any god at all (Locke). Around the same time as Locke, George Berkeley achieved recognition for his theories on empiricism as well. Berkeley believed that the mind was what everything in existence revolved around and that matter did not actually exist, thinking that all things in the world were composed of ideas (Flage). He thought that all things were either sensations or perceptions and one can only know what one sees. Berkeley believed that when a person looks at something, they only see the appearance of the object and not the real qualities which arent perceivable to anyone. Human senses are the only way people can understand the things in the world (Berkeley 193-215). The third well know empiricist of the time was David Hume. Hume believed that what was in the mind could be broken down into basic sensations. He theorized that thinking was just a byproduct of disconnected sensations and ideas were like vague copies of distinct perceptions or impressions and everything past those ideas and perceptions were unnecessary to explore (D. Murray 11-12). Years later in the late 1800s, John Watson published a book called Behaviorism. He presented a thesis about human instincts and discussed what human beings are born being able to do. He claims that those functions are in fact not instincts as instincts were defined at the time. He claimed that everything that people had initially thought were instincts were actually learned behaviors that came about as a result of training. On this evidence, he stated â€Å"that there is no such thing as an inheritance of capacity, talent, temperament, mental constitution and characteristics† (Watson 75). He believed that if a child has a father that is a good swordsman, the child will only become a good swordsman if the father nurtures him to be so, not just because he has his fathers genes. He supported this idea by referencing all the different customs and tendencies of people all across the world and how they all differ due to their culture and environment (74-75). One relevantly recent phenomenon is the Flynn Effect, which is describes as significant increases in IQ over time. This effect has been attributed to a variety of factors such as â€Å"improved nutrition; increased environmental complexity; and family, parental, school and methodological factors† (Daley 215). All of these components of the Flynn affect were at first criticized for focusing on only industrialized and urban areas, but a group of people from the University of California went to Kenya to help strengthen the Flynn Effects environmental explanations (215). The study took place in the Embu District of Kenya. The first research was done in 1984 and then again in 1998 with two different groups of children. The researches administered three tests to the group of children they were studying. The tests were: the Ravens Progressive Matrices, the verbal meaning test, and the digit span test. It was determined that the second group of children in 1998 scored higher than those in 1984, proving that the Flynn Effect was definitely present. To explain these increases the researchers looked to see if the environmental factors had changed during the 14 years. Nutrition became better, which is represented by the increase in kilocalories and protein from 1984 to 1998 as well as a decrease in children who had an insufficient caloric intake. The environment also became more complex, with the addition of a few televisions as well as a majority of parents reporting to have read a newspaper or magazines at least once a week. Both of these factors had not existed in the community during the 1984 study. In addition, family size decreased in Kenya, which allowed the households to spend more on the individual children and the family structure shifted from nuclear families to single parent households run by the mother. Parental education and literacy also increased during the 14 years, going from 26% of mothers reporting no schooling in 1984 to only 8.7% in 1998. Schooling didnt change much during the time period, but there was an increase in the number of children who attended Sunday school, so this could be seen as an extra day of schooling. The health of the children didnt improve and the hemoglobin counts actually worsened over the time period, but the most severe causes of anemia decreased from 1984 to 1989 (217-219). The main impacts on the children according to this study were parental literacy, family stature and health. All of the children in the study belonged to the same tribe so the researchers believed this to be proof that the environment a child is raised in has much affect on his or her intelligence (219). One of the most recent empiricists is Geoffrey Canada. Canada grew up in inner city New York but moved to Long Island with his grandparents in his early teens. He graduated from high school and went to college and then attended graduate school at Harvard University. Canada eventually became the CEO and president of Harlem Childrens Zone. Currently, the program spans 97 blocks in New York City and caters to nearly 8000 students. He whole heartedly believes that with the right amount of guidance and direction, the struggling students in inner cities can learn to appreciate learning and to increase their intelligence through their environment in the classroom (Moore). In Paul Toughs book â€Å"Whatever it takes: Geoffrey Canadas quest to change Harlem and America† the program is described in great detail and it shows how the lives of the children have been adjusted to foster learning (Tough). The programs success became evident in 2009 â€Å"when its charter school, the Promise Academy, eliminated the achievement gap for math between average black students and white students in New York City† (Moore). The debate over nature versus nurture spans back to when philosophy was predominantly the way of explaining the acquisition of knowledge and continues in more recent times with scientific evidence consisting of facts and numbers giving support to one side or the other. Both the recent and historical back and forth between great scholars helps each individual, be they parent or educator, come to their own personal conclusions of whether nature or nurture is the more dominant factor contributing to a persons knowledge and IQ. Works Cited Allen, R.E.. Anamnesis in Platos Meno and Phaedo.The Review of Metaphysics13 (1959):165-174.JSTOR. Flage. 29 Mar. 2010. Berkeley, George. A Treatise Concerning the Principles of Human Knowledge. sax: Indypublish.Com, 2003. 193-215. Print. Daley, Tamara, Shannon Whaley, Marian Sigman, Michael Espinosa, and Charlotte Neumann. IQ on the Rise: The Flynn Effect in Rural Kenyan Children . Psychological Science 14 (2003): 215-219. JSTOR. Flage. 30 Mar. 2010. Descartes, Rene. Meditations on First Philosophy. The Philosophical Writings of Descartes (Volume II). New York: Cambridge University Press, 1985. 3. Print. Dikotter, Frank. Race Culture: Recent Perspectives on the History of Eugenics. The American Historical Review 103 (1998): n. pag. JSTOR. Flage. 29 Mar. 2010. Flage, Daniel. George Berkeley (1685-1753). Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy . James Madison University, 4 Apr. 2004. Flage. 28 Mar. 2010. . Galton, Francis . Regression Towards Mediocrity in Hereditary Stature. The Journal of the Anthropological Institute of Great Britain and Ireland 15 (1886): n. pag. Jstor. Flage. 2 Apr. 2010. Galton, Francis. The History of Twins, as a Criterion of the Relative Powers of Nature and Nurture. The Journal of the Anthropological Institute of Great Britain and Ireland 5 (1876): 391-406. JSTOR. Flage. 29 Mar. 2010. Galton, Francis. Eugenics: Its Definition, Scope, and Aims. The American Journal of Sociology 10 (1904): n. pag. JSTOR. Flage. 28 Mar. 2010. Galton, Sir Francis. Hereditary Genius: An Inquiry Into Its Laws and Consequences (Classic Reprint). asdbjsadjkas: Forgotten Books, 2009. Print. Gardner, Howard, Mindy Kornhaber, and Warren K. Wake. Intelligence: Multiple Perspectives. Belmont, CA: Wadsworth Publishing, 1995. 33-36. Print. Herrnstein, Richard J., and Charles Murray. Bell Curve: Intelligence and Class Structure in American Life (A Free Press Paperbacks Book). 1st Free Press Pbk. Ed ed. New York City: Free Press, 1996. Print. Lombroso, Cesare. Crime: Its Causes and Remedies. 1918: Legal Classics Library, A Division Of Gryphon Editions, 1994. Print. Moore, Jina. Empathy is his superpower / The Christian Science Monitor CSMonitor.com. The Christian Science Monitor CSMonitor.com. N.p., 7 Sept. 2009. Flage. 4 Apr. 2010. . Murray, Charles. Intelligence in the Classroom Half of all children are below average, and teachers can do only so much for them. . Wall Street Journal n/a (2007): 1-3. Print. Murray, D.W.. What is the Western Concept of the Self? on Forgetting David Hume. Ethos 21 (1993): 11-12. JSTOR. Flage. 30 Mar. 2010. Tough, Paul. Whatever It Takes: Geoffrey Canadas Quest to Change Harlem and America. New York: Mariner Books, 2009. Print. Voegelin, Eric. The La. Plato. 1 ed. Columbia, MO: University of Missouri Press, 2000. 230. Print. Watson, John. B.. Are There Any Human Instincts?. Behaviorism. San Diego: West Press, 2008. 74-75. Print. Theories of Crime and Gender: Research Study Theories of Crime and Gender: Research Study Crime Gender __________________________________ Contents (Jump to) Introduction    Why Gender? Why Crime? Ground Rules – Laying the Foundation for a Thorough Discussion: Feminism Sociological Motivation Offenders – Women who Violate the â€Å"Norm† Victims –   In their â€Å"natural† place†¦ In the System – The Influence of Dominant Social Structures Paradigms Field Perspective – A Short Experimental Inquiry into Current Perceptions about Women Violent Crime The Verdict – Moving Forward with Facts†¦ and assumptions References __________________________________ Appendix A Research Surveys Appendix B Annotated SPPS Output Appendix C Raw Data Introduction Why Gender? Why Crime? The answer to the question posed above could be any one of the following: In the tradition of Sir Edmund Hillary in referring to why he climbed Mt. Everst, simply, â€Å"Because it is there†. In the modern tradition of rhetoric, â€Å"Why not?† In ‘typical’ answer one might expect, because both are compelling, engaging topics in which virtually everyone has a vested interest in and both are issues fundamental to the social and political fabric of modern life. The truth is simply â€Å"all of the above† with a heavy emphasis on #3. These topics have the fortune of being both broad and â€Å"loaded†. It is broad in the sense that both subjects, in and of themselves, is the subject of the life’s work of numerous notable academians as well as that of many law enforcement, social service and legal professionals. Without question, the subjects, especially gender, is loaded with emotion. While many might believe that feminism is a wasted effort to redirect attention and funds, others pursue the topic with all the righteous vigor of that associated with the abolition of slavery. The topics of gender and crime would be much easier to cover if, like a traditional Venn diagram, there were but a small area of overlap. In contrast, the two subjects seem to only grow when combined. With this in mind, a logical treatise on the subject is yet possible by presentation with a logical stepwise progression through fundamental theoretical perspectives followed by the systematic treatment of each key stakeholder. Following this, original research will be reviewed and discussed in light of the foundations laid. Based on these findings, additional lines of inquiry to tease out further salient differences and issues will be proposed. Ground Rules Laying the Foundation for a Thorough Discussion: Feminism Sociological Motivation Feminism It becomes quite apparent with on a cursory review of literature that crime is a man’s arena. Unanimously, researchers agree that the overwhelming majority of crime is committed by men and that gender is the strongest predictor of criminality (Messerschmidt 1997, p. 1; Belknap 2001, pp. xii, 5-6; Heidensohn 1997, p. 491). In itself, this begs the question of why this is the case. Though any answer to this question falls short of the answer to the ‘whole’ question, it is enough to pique interest and to begin a line of inquiry into the simple matter, given the roughly 50/50 gender distribution, why must is be the case that men commit more than ten times the crimes that women do (or are they just not caught?). The simple fact that most crimes are committed by men and not by women creates questions as to the reasoning behind this. Though seemingly far from what might be considered a typical feminist agenda, the issue of crime and gender is indeed a fundamental issue of gender and, therefore central to the thoughts of feminism. In assigning a feminism interest to the issue of gender and crime, additional complications arise due to the multiple perspectives of feminism within its own ranks. While the uninitiated might label all feminists alike, this is not the case as there are five major division within the overall perspective of â€Å"a woman-centered description and explanation of human experience and the social world† (Belknap 2001, p. 16). Below is a table listing each major faction and the outlook regarding key issues: Label Perspective Liberal feminism Believe that women’s access to equality in education, employment and â€Å"public† things in general are blocked by generally accepted (but wrong) principles, policies and laws. Marxist feminism Disciples of this division are most concerned with class and economic inequalities. Socialist feminists Take issue with Marxist’s in that they insist that it is not class alone but also instilled systems and that perpetuate inequalities. Radical feminists Another reaction against Marxist feminism that again goes beyond it in that they emphasize patriarchal systems as sources of inequality and, of all the factions, this one is the most likely to â€Å"hold individual men, rather than society, responsible†. Post-modern feminists Advocates of a multiple perspective view in that the issues that any woman faces are different based upon class, race, age, etc. (Belknap 2001, pp. 16-17) Though feminism is a diverse and sometimes, even divisive, arena, each ‘faction’ has a belief that men and women should receive equal treatment under the law and in society in general. Criminology, with its overwhelming use of masculine models, theories and subjects has largely attempted to impose these models upon female crime, crime victims and system-issues in an effort to explain how and why female crime occurs. Though these models are insightful and useful, they do not fully explain male or female criminology. Consequently, the utilization of the feminist perspective may be quite useful in not only generating models for female offenders but able to shed light on what went wrong with male criminals. This feminist viewpoint is different from other perspectives in the following ways: Gender is not a natural fact but a complex social, historical and cultural product related to but limited to any biological basis for sex. Gender and gender relation create and sustain fundamental order in social life and institutions. Gender relations are based upon masculine and feminine constructs in which men are viewed are socially, politically, and economically dominant over women. The production of knowledge is gendered in that men produce it from their point of view. Women and women’s issues should be at the center of attention and inquiry. (Belknap 2001, p. 13) With the realization that half of the planet’s population is female, the duration of the dominance ‘typical’ perspectives becomes even more curious. Thus, in consideration of crime and gender, the feminist perspective can be enlightening both for the perspective on the majority as well as to provide novel insight into female-committed crime as well as how it is possible that approximately 93% of the [female] populate are ‘crime-free’. Were we able to find this mystery female ‘ingredient’ (is it butterflies?) and, were it able to be instilled, socialized, taught, administered or cultivated in any way in the other half of the population, the world would be virtually crime-free. An example of how the feminist perspective has already fundamentally changed the view of society at large is in regards to rape. Clearly a violent crime, [male] researchers had, prior to the emergence of the feminist perspective, simply gathered data on this crime in the same way that did not fully capture the reality of situation. Specifically, the number of rapes committed each year was reported based upon statistics gathered from police records, a source that is contingent upon a crime being reported and how a crime is defined. As it would turn out, many â€Å"rapes† are not reported and further, the legal definition of â€Å"rape† may not exactly fit the reality of a victim who may have been forced to have sex (Belknap 2001, p. 20). Sociological Motication: Why People Commit Crime There are a number theories as to why crimes are committed. Clearly, there are crimes of passion and as many other reasons as there are unfulfilled desires of the heart. Despite the overwhelming possibilities, there emerge a few predictable bases as well as other â€Å"systematic† rationale for deviant behavior. Without engaging in the broadest of philosophical arguments as to what constitutes â€Å"right† and what separates this from â€Å"wrong†, a key tenet to lawbreaking that we should accepts is that of â€Å"mens rea† or, â€Å"guilty mind†. This Latin phrase is central in that we excerpt from our discussion those who commit a crime â€Å"by mistake, under duress or while insane† (Hampton 1990, pp.1). Consequently, of the millions of crimes committed, it becomes imperative to study the matter to determine to cause and ultimately to prevent their commission in the first place as those who commit such acts do so willfully, with at least s ome idea of the potential penalties and with the knowledge that harm is likely or, depending on the crime, is certain to occur to persons or property though this will be presented not from a individual psychological perspective but rather that of a large scale sociological perspective. Early criminologists believed primarily believed that crime was a ‘class’ problem, an issue that was confined for the most part to lower socio-economic strata (Lynch 1996, pp. 4, 8-9). This view point is still widely held and, as regression goes, still has significant explanatory power though there are other variables in the equation. As criminologist evolved in their thinking, questions of gender and race began to be considered. Messerschmidt, in Crimes as Structured Action (1997), indicates that each of these variables is more than a simple binary-type factor that someone either has or does not. In the same way that feminists recognize different feminist experiences, Messerschmidt puts for a theory of structured action. Similarly, in this model, each factor is contextual and has a relational aspect with regards to the other factors. For example, in some circumstances, one may be a â€Å"male†, in others, and â€Å"African-American† while yet in others â⠂¬Å"working class†. These identities are constructed through social interaction and existing social structures such as church, home, work, etc. Defined in broader terms, social structures are those â€Å"regular and patterned forms of interaction over time that constrain and channel behavior in specific ways† (Messerschmidt 1997, p. 5). These social structures are created by culpable people and perpetuated by the same. In essence the perspectives that one accepts and endorses, even if implicitly, one also perpetuates, even in cases in which one ‘just goes along with it’ as ultimately, there is an accountability that people take on themselves when they choose to construe themselves as a certain way in a specific situation (Messerschmidt 1997, pp. 4-6). Though it is something of the ‘American way’ and reminiscent of some versions of Arthurian legend that a person who is ‘good’ or works ‘hard enough’ is not limited in their ability to achieve success as the world sees its, there seems to be a great correlation between one’s race, class, neighborhood, gender and other key factors as to how one’s life choices play out. This view is specifically termed the â€Å"structured life course† and indicates that ones choices about any given matter are often not so much a function of a true individual choice but are frequently arise of a function of nearly inevitable consequences caused by political, social or economic forces that serve to either increase of decrease the likelihood of any particular act (Lynch 1996, pp. 6-7,15; Messerschmidt 1997, p. 7). In support of this, consider the following facts: 34% of all families living under the poverty line are headed by single female workers. 65% of all females in the work force are either single, widowed, divorced, separated or married to men earning less that $15,000/year. African Americans earn, on average, 64% of what whites earn.  ½ Of African American children grow up in poverty. The wealthiest 1% possess 42% of the wealth in America. Most millionaires are born, not made. Class affects where you grow up, how you grow up, the quality of schools you attend (from elementary through college), occupational choices, career path, whom you marry and the cycle begins again with your children. (Lynch 1997, p.11, 12, 16) An additional explanation for the problem of crime that has the potentiality to build upon the precept of the structured action theory is the theory proposed by Hirschi and Gottfredson in A General Theory of Crime (1990) in which they posit that the critical variable in an individual choosing to commit a crime is that of â€Å"self control†. With the exception of a very few acts, the overwhelming majority of crimes are â€Å"trivial and mundane affairs that result in little loss and less gain† (Brannigan 1997, p. 405). Further, the authors suggest that crimes, though usually unplanned, are the result of deliberate (though poor) choices and incur a degree of recklessness or offensiveness that is variable to the extent of the â€Å"underlying criminality† of the individual. The degree of â€Å"criminality† is closely related to this extent to which they are impulsive and, according, have low self-control. In terms of their character or behavior, this has a number of outcomes which contribute to the ‘downward spiral’: a need for immediate gratification, the â€Å"utilization of simple means†, i.e., pay without performance, sex without marriage or commitment, justice or revenge without court costs or delays, etc., biases towards risky and exciting activities, little interest in â€Å"skilful or sophisticated criminal planning† and, insensitivity to the pain of others (Brannigan 1997, p. 406). From these behaviors, additional consequences follow such as tendencies to: smoke, drink, use drugs, gamble, have children out of marriage and engage in risky, illicit sex, be impulsive and insensitive, physical (i.e., not ‘intellectual’), short-sighted, and nonverbal (Brannigan 1997, p. 406; Storvall, E., L. Wichstrom, H. Pape Nova. 2003, p. 194) The character trait that produces this string of products is produced (or not) in the first six to eight years of childhood (Brannigan 1997, p. 410). During this period, the institution of the family is particularly important as a person is socialized and receives the psychological grounding that produces good impulse- and self-control. Without discounting either the structured action theory, life course theory or the general theory of crime (low self-control), a discussion of criminal behavior would not be complete without a discussion of life cycle theory of Sampson Laub. In the life cycle theory, the idea of internal and external factors in the commission of crime is viewed within the perspective that criminality is a function of age. In this theory, it is noted that, â€Å"the patterns of offending over [an individual’s] life cycle commonly follow an age curve – a peak†¦ which rises throughout the late adolescence and which declines into early adulthood†. Interestingly, the level of the crest of criminality varies with the race and gender of the offender as well as, accordingly, with those that can be labeled â€Å"high- or low-frequency† offenders (Brannigan 1997, p. 409). With this in mind, Brannigan points out, many programs that are aimed at curbing crime or rehabilitating o ffenders will commit grievous errors if the assumption is made that a certain regimen is effective that fails to account for this â€Å"invariant† feature (Brannigan 1997, p. 410). Another model, social capital or social bond theory, names the additional external factor of positive or negative social pressures in the form of relationships and so-called â€Å"social capital† that exists in the form of a steady job, a good marriage and other stabilizing (or not) relational bonds that influence criminality (Brannigan 1997, p. 411; Belknap 2001, p. 47, Batton 2004, p. 430; Giordano, Cernkovich Rudolph 2002, p. 990). The fundamental approach of this theory is on what induces most people and nearly all females to obey the law. Because of this, it is a distinctly feminist approach in light of the overwhelming data indicating that crime is, in nearly all cases a male issue. In all, there are a number of approaches that one can justifiably take to explain why people commit crimes. Though each one can be viewed as a separate proposition, it does not seem to be a crime to simply use each for what it is, that is, a partial representation of a broad and complex topic. In light of this, it seems to be a reasonable approach to posit a de facto theory by which race, class and gender, in combination with internal self-control and external relational factors work together to create real and virtually real structures and courses that interact over the course of a person’s life span to create a seemingly complete, reasonable and accurate explanation for most criminal acts. Viewed contextually, combinations of such risk factors as being male, having a corrupted network of friends could be overcome by being raised in a caring family environment with other ‘insulating’ factors. Similarly, a moment of poor impulse control could begin a process that quickly spirals out of control. Offenders Women who Violate the â€Å"Norm† In summary of women as principal agents in the commission of a crime, a few general trends become obvious: women commit a very small portion of all crimes, about 4-7% in the US and UK, the crimes they do commit are, on average, fewer, less severe and less likely to be â€Å"professional† or repeat offenders, women form a very small portion of prison populations. (Heidensohn 1997, pp. 491-492) Further, in all crimes except rape, the factor of gender becomes even more disparate as men are not only far more likely to commit a crime, they are even more likely to be a victim (Batton 2004, p. 423). According to 2000 statistics, men accounted for 89.6% of murder arrests and commit suicide at approximately 4x the rate of females (Batton 2004, p. 425). Though women commit far fewer crimes, some authors note that the rate of growth of female offenders is growing at a faster rate than that of males (Heidensohn 1997, pp. 494-496). Despite this, it is important to keep in perspective comparatively diminutive population of female offenders and that a large increase in the relative rate may yet still be quite a small number in absolute value. In regards to our ‘wholly unified’ theory as a composite of ‘all with predictive power’, a review of homicide data from 1960 – 2000 indicates that as female work for participation increased, the rate of murders committed by females has decreased. This suggests that as women gain greater power through increased penetration of established social structures, this has reduced the stress and frustration and subsequent ‘out-of-control’ feeling that can lead to lethal consequences. This finding is in contrast to male homicide rates that, during the same period, either stayed the same or increased, while workforce participation also remained constant (Batton 2004, p. 452). One theme that seems to emerge across studies of deviant behavior in females and males is the tendency of females to reports higher internal sources of problems than males (Storvall, E., L. Wichstrom, H. Pape Nova. 2003, p. 200; Batton 2004, pp. 428-429). Examples of this would be depression, stress from â€Å"success† in breaking through social structures or stress in being frustrated by them. This suggests the possibility that the specific motivations behind the commission behind criminal acts may be more internally driven for females and more external for males. In support of social bond theory are findings from research on female juveniles who socialize in three predominantly different setting with regards to support structures in the form of relationships and friendship networks. In this research, the greater the extent of the female-dominated friendship bonds, the less the extent of property crimes. This effect was greatest in â€Å"school females† and progressively weaker with â€Å"school males† and â€Å"street females† and virtually nonexistent for â€Å"homeless males† (McCarthy, Felmlee, Hagan 2004, p. 805). In regards to women who do commit crimes, particularly violent crimes such as domestic abuse or murder, they do so very much as men seem to do. For example in the case of domestic violence, both women and men were â€Å"equally likely to have used severe violence and inflicted severe injuries†¦, to have previously committed violence against nonintimates, and to have been using drugs or alcohol at the time of their arrest† (Busch Rosenberg 2004, p. 49). Victims In their â€Å"natural† place†¦ Despite males being victims of crimes more than females, no discussion of gender and crime would be complete with out a discussion of women as victims of crimes. Indeed, this fact may even be surprising to many that would think that ‘female’ is synonymous with being weaker and more vulnerable. Though women may not be, on average, physically as strong as men, the image is clearly more powerful than reality and this may propogate the well-documented fact that women, despite being a victim less, fear being a victim more (Belknap 2001, p. 206). There are however, certain crimes that are notably perpetrated almost exclusively against women. The most heinous of these is rape and no legitimate discussion of gender and crime would be complete with its omission. Rape is a crime typically committed against women and, in all likelihood, is committed far more than it is reported. While it is the case that it does disproportionately affect women with figures of 34% of Native American women, 18 % of white women, and 19% for African American indicating that they have been victimized (Belknap 2001, p. 218). An additional study surveyed 930 women randomly who gave responses indicating that 44% had been â€Å"victims of a completed or attempted rape† with 24% indicating a rape did definitively occur. Yet another study indicates that up to 53% of women experiencing some form of sexual assault (Belknap 2001, p. 231). TO put this into perspective, if you are a man, chances are 50/50 that your mother, your wife and your daughter has or will be sexually assaulted. If this was a female issue, it seems that the widespread dissemination of information such as this might affect matters. Though the incidence of any rape is too high, reporting and data gathering on this is itself a confounding issue, due in largely to the twin factors of social pressures to not report a shameful experience and the often uncertain definition of what actually constitutes â€Å"rape† or â€Å"sexual assault†. Also, there is likely the disproportionate reporting of certain types of rape such as the stereotypical â€Å"stranger assault† in which it is more socially acceptable to be a ‘victim’ (Belknap 2001, p. 233). The experience of being violated in the way of a rape is often difficult for women to admit, knowing that they may likely bring negative attention to themselves in the form of â€Å"victim blame† or potentially even with the threat of additional violence. Until comparatively recent times and not until the advent of the feminist influence was there much sympathy in the ‘system’ for rape victims (Belknap 2001, p. 215). Additionally, many of rapes are not the stereotypical ‘man in the bushes’ crime but are committed in situations that are â€Å"fuzzy†. Circumstances involving former consensual partners such as ex-boyfriends or ex-husbands or in scenarios where consent might have been given to point or scenarios that escalate out-of-hand but involved consent for some degree of sexual activity cloud the judgment not only police, prosecutors, and juries but the minds of victims as well. Regardless of the relationships of the victim to the offender who is convicted, Scully, indicates that none of them felt â€Å"guilt† regarding their proven actions. This finding corroborates the findings and predictions of the self-control theory as postulated by Hirschi and Gottfredson in which perpetrators are insensitive to others (Belknap 2001, p. 234). An additional crime that is typically thought of as one in which females are victims is that of domestic violence in which up to 23% of women reporting an incident with this over their lifetimes (Heidensohn 1997, p. 495). This is yet another situation in which there are social structure pressure as well as the familiar problem of definition. In regards to the degree of activity needed to constitute a â€Å"crime†, one study indicates that none of the men that completed a survey on the matter defined a number of listed incidents as a â€Å"crime† while 39% of the surveyed women identified them as such (Heidensohn 1997, p. 495). Clearly, a difference of opinion exists. This difference of opinion, though not justified, is nicely illustrated by research that indicated victims of domestic violence â€Å"justify† it and that the perpetrators â€Å"excuse† it. Specifically, regardless of the degree, women, who comprise 95% of the victims of this crime, either underreport the incidents or the severity of the incidents and men use excuses such as frustration, anger or intoxication to avoid or deny responsibility and justifications to deny â€Å"wrongness† (Belknap 2001, p. 268). In the System The Influence of Dominant Social Structures Paradigms The criminal justice system can be seen as part of the contextual framework that provides for the perpetuation of existing social structures. It can also and has been the cause of much positive change. In this irony of a duality of roles lie specific examples of how these can occur. An example of this occurs in the recently discussed situation of domestic violence. Following an incident, any incident, the police are typically the ones called to address the situation which, according to some view domestic disturbance calls frustrating because they feel they are â€Å"fighting crime†. Additionally, these types of calls can be among the most dangerous due to the unknown risks and the possibility to the police becoming involved with a very emotional perpetrator who may have the perspective that the police are ‘invading the sanctity of his home’ (Belknap 2001, p. 292). On arrival, police may find a situation for which they are untrained to deal in the case that skills such as mediation may be required. Additionally, many calls for assistance are made to prevent or in anticipation of a ‘situation’. If the police defuse the situation by their presence, the situation still exists when they leave†¦ it has only been deferred (Belknap 2001, p. 293). If the police are potentially unprepared to deal with a situation, the courts represent an additional layer of structure that imposes constraints on behaviors. For example, there is a good chance that a matter may not even go to judgment due to either plea bargaining or the defendants refusal to prosecute, sometimes to fear of retribution, sometime with false hopes but always in denial of the sequence of events that has begun (Belknap 2001, p. 294). Another component is the ‘system’ of the courts that merits identification is that of sentencing in cases in which women are offenders rather than being the victims. Though part of the reason the women’s prison population is far smaller than that of men is that far fewer women commit crimes. Despite this, with regards to sentencing for similar crimes, 20% of men convicted go to prison whereas only 5% of women do (Heidensohn 1997, p. 503). One reason for this is postulated to be that of â€Å"chivalry†. This phenomena is marked by the application of stereotypical, broadly-held and socially reinforced belief that one should ‘be nice’ to women (Heidensohn 1997, pp. 503-504). Of final note with regards to the idea of factors within the system that affect the issue of crime and gender are the patterns of employment of women within the ‘system’. In terms of women who are employed either in law enforcement or in the prison system, there are firstly comparatively few with women occupying 9% of police positions, 11.5% of corrections facilities and 20% of attorneys (Belknap 2001, pp. 357-358). This is again reflective a social system that reflects male dominance and a continuing male perspective that is, slowly, adapting to the influence of feminism. Field Perspective A Short Experimental Inquiry into Current Perceptions about Women Violent Crime To test for statistically significant variances with regards to perception of crime, a short survey (Appendix A) was administered to a group of 44 students comprised on 22 males and 22 females. Respondents were asked to read two brief crime scenarios and then recommend a sentence for the perpetrator. The two scenarios were identical with the exception that one involved bodily harm. The results of this survey indicated virtually indistinguishable responses with regards to gender with either case. Despite this, both male and female responders were significantly more likely to sentence more harshly the perpetrator who involved the use of bodily harm by an average of approximately 4.5 months. Utilizing a 2-tailed test, this was significant at the plonger sentence (H0 = sentenceA B) and not just simply a different sentence. With this in mind, the results were significant at the weaker p,0.10 level, a result that would likely change were the sample size larger. The Verdict Moving Forward with Facts†¦ and assumptions While the above experiment did not clearly showing gender differences that might have been expected, it is important to keep in mind that the crime involved property, a likely neutral proposition for which shared social

Speak Essays -- essays research papers

Speak, by Laurie Halse Anderson, is first-person narrative about overcoming our habits and misfortunes. It takes place at Merryweather High over the course of a year. The main character, Melinda, is a fourteen year-old, who is just starting high school. She is introduced, at first, as someone who doesn’t speak to anyone, almost, at all. All the other people in the high school seem to detest her. They say hateful things to her and throw objects at her. She seems not bothered by any of this. She is in her own being.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  As the story progresses clues to why people hate her so much are revealed. There is mentioning of a party that Melinda, some how, ruined. People say that they or someone they knew got in trouble at the party. Melinda wants to forget that party. She blocks it out of her head. At every mention of that night Melinda cringes.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Melinda doesn’t like school. She hates the people and despises the classes. All of the classes except art. She loves her art class. Their assignment for the year is to create a piece of art, depicting a given image, that makes a statement. Melinda’s object is a tree. She has trouble with the tree.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Melinda starts school off in a bad way. She continuously gets in trouble with numerous teachers. She never does any homework. She mostly takes naps. Worst of all, in her mind, she has no friends. This does not change until she meets Heather, the new girl. Heather is...

Business Law Essay -- essays research papers

It is a question concern the law of contracts in particular, the law of misrepresentation. It is my objective to identify the difficult concept of different kind of misrepresentation and analyze why it is problematic. Misrepresentation is a false statement designed to encourage the other party to enter a contract. To prove a statement to be a misrepresentation, 7 essential conditions must be satisfied: 1.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  A statement must be made by word or conduct. 2.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The statement must be factual. 3.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The statement must be false. 4.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The offeree must have reasonable relied on the statement. 5.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The offeree must have been misled by the statement. 6.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The statement must be material to the contract. 7.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The statement must be a factor in including the offeree to enter a contract. In the law of misrepresentation, there are three kinds of misrepresentation. Fraudulent misrepresentation can be illustrated by Polaroid Far East Ltd. v Bel Trade Co. Ltd. (1990), where BTC, who was offered a special discount price by promising not export or re-export their product, re-exported PFEL ¡Ã‚ ¦s films to North America and Europe. It was held that BTC had devised a deliberate scheme to buy film at a lower price and to re-export it, and were liable for fraudulent misrepresentation. Fraudulent misrepresentation simply ...

John Stuart Mill and the Ends of Sport :: Philosophy Philosophical Sports Essays

John Stuart Mill and the Ends of Sport ABSTRACT: While his own preference may have been for an engaging book over an exciting ballgame, John Stuart Mill’s distinction in Utilitarianism between higher and lower pleasures offers a useful framework for thinking about contemporary sport. This first became apparent while teaching Utilitarianism to undergraduates, whose interest is often piqued by using Mill’s distinction to rank popular sports such as baseball, football and basketball. This paper explores more seriously the relevance of Mill’s distinction for thinking about sport, focusing specifically on his claims about intellectual complexity and aesthetic value. It finds that while the distinction of higher and lower pleasures does support a hierarchy among sports, it remains problematic to assert that any sport could in fact constitute a genuine higher pleasure. Mill originally offered the distinction between higher and lower pleasures as a way of defending utilitarianism against critics who found it degrading. Because utilitarianism defines moral rightness solely as the net production of pleasure over pain, critics charged that it portrayed human happiness as no different from the contentment of well-fed barnyard animals. To these critics, any moral theory that cast human life as having no end higher than the pursuit of pleasure was surely "a doctrine worthy only of swine".(1) Mill countered that it was actually the critics of utilitarianism who degraded humanity, for they tacitly assumed that humans were capable of nothing more than animalistic pleasures. Mill maintained happiness is indeed a function of pleasure, although humans are capable of higher forms of pleasure than the other animals. Mill writes Human beings have faculties more elevated than the animal appetites, and when once made conscious of them, do not regard anything as happiness which does not include their gratification.(2) True human happiness thus requires at least some exposure to activities that gratify the higher faculties of the human mind. And though the pleasure of such activity requires greater effort and even some pain to realize, Mill considered it intrinsically superior to the relatively passive and animalistic pleasures obtained from satisfying one's hunger, thirst, or sexual desire. Thus, unlike Bentham, who thought that the pleasure obtained from reading one good poem could be equaled through playing many games of pushpin, Mill's distinction is qualitative: a higher pleasure can never be duplicated through the simple aggregation of lower pleasures. Mill posited three distinct sources of higher pleasure: (1) acts involving intellectual complexity (2) acts engaging the aesthetic imagination; and (3) acts engaging the moral sentiments.

The Architecture Of Theatres Architecture Essay

Back to the first half of the twentieth century and it was in America that mass production was going of all time more efficient and ironss of theaters were blossoming all over the state. Architects commissioned to plan these theaters were no longer being briefed by the dramatists and directors but by the proprietors of the ironss with the exclusive purpose on increasing box office gross revenues. The aesthetics were clearly intended for the paying client and the money directed at the entryway anteroom and the of all time turning auditorium infinites and the less exhausted on the of all time smaller dressing suites. This job was less common in Britain around that clip as really few theaters were built during the war but a premier illustration for Britain did come about with the renovation of the Memorial Theatre in Stratford-upon-Avon in 1930. Designed by modernist designer Elizabeth Scott, after months of fundraising and commission meetings, was expressed by the manager of the theatr e William Bridge-Adam as holding, â€Å" Absolute flexibleness, a box of fast ones out of which the kid like head of the manufacturer may make whichever form it pleases. It should be able to offer Mr Poel an Elizabethan phase after his bosom ‘s desire. † The Architectural Review responded to it with critical acclamation. Sightline was an country singled out as being particularily good with no pillars blockading any positions and no boxes. Acousticss were besides mentioned, â€Å" the form of the theater resembles a elephantine horn and is so deigned that the participants can be herd from all parts of the phase and the sound distributed equally throughout the auditorium. The splays and the ceiling of the apron, together with the proscenium when in usage, act as reinforcment to the beginning of sound. † Finally the usage of stuffs and the manner where mentioned. â€Å" Though new theaters continue to look in changeless sequence throughout the state, each fledgling, with really occasional exclusion, represents no more than another measure along the boring way of motif decoration and nonmeaningful ornament. Since Palladio built his theater of Vicenza there has been no development other than an increasing inclination towards coarseness and over-elaborationaˆÂ ¦ in the new theater in Stratford-on-Avon stuffs are used with intelligence, choice and fittingness of intent and designed by the nature of the stuff. † It subsequently became clear that the histrions did non experience the same manner. Remarks were made over the distance from the phase and front row and the bare walls stretching from the apron to the circle. It was described in The Other Theatre, published in 1947, Word count: 294 as if â€Å" acting to Calais from the drops of Dover. † ( Baliol Holloway ) Clearly the designer had non achieved what she had wanted ( an confidant theater ) nor what the client desired. What had happened here was a deficiency of communicating and cooperation between the two professions. In the yesteryear there was an apprehension of what was required and small was said between either professions but back so the designers working on theatre edifices would hold specialised in Theatre design, most of them being builders themselves with several old ages of experience under their belts. The word specializer was non used in Britain until the mid-19th century, pervious to that an designer who designed theaters would merely be referred to as a Theatre Designer. Earlier instances have been recorded in other parts of the universe where renowned general designers have thought they could work out the jobs aroused by the old theater designs. At the terminal of the eighteenth century London had several theaters which had work done to them such as Benjamin Dean Wyatt ‘s Theatre Royal in Drury Lane which besides received architectural critical acclamation. Too frequently theatres built by celebrated Renaissance man designers are more excessive and stop up holding work done to the auditorium within and around a decennary. Fortunately for both designer and theater proprietor money had become available for rebuilds and amendments nevertheless huge. The theatre professions displeasure with the plants of Wyatt ‘s at Drury Lane and Elizabeth Scott at Stratford -upon-Avon are merely a twosome of illustrations of what happens when celebrated designers try and enforce a solution to and old and accustomed job. Their belief that they could rethink the nature of the auditorium ‘s issues upon their first effort can be seen as naA?ve and as the theater profession is more voluble than the architectural kingdom when provoked, the public tend accept the incrimination being placed on the designer.Word count: 385Fortunately there are a few first clip Architects, Theatre Designers and Consultants who do listen to their clients and are willing to pass the clip analyzing the codification for auditorium design every bit good as meet proficient demands. As a consequence there are many theaters in both Britain and America which function out of a healthy relationship between both theaters and architecture professions. The dislocation in communicating is what both sides have to be wary of and this can frequently be caused by the designers instinctive to offer slight resources to the external design. In some instances it may be the instance that the designer has taken a modernist mentality, strange to the theatrical precedency which is by and large that the exterior of the edifice should show what ‘s interior and besides the other manner around. Therefore in the name of architectural truthfulness as a whole, the particularization and form to the auditorium could be sacrificed by the designer under his pronunciamento. Looking at it the issue in item, the same result can be caused by the sentiment that the designer is non altering anything merely reorganizing the auditorium elements more efficaciously which is merely every bit unsafe as believing that they can alter the nature of the auditorium itself. Therefore by seeking to organize these cardinal constituents such as lighting, side seating and acoustic stuffs, and traveling them to the margin of the infinite the oculus of the spectator may be drawn to the exterior of the phase instead than inwards at the histrion. The attending would be drawn to the side walls and ceiling hence the histrion will hold to seek harder to derive the attending of the audience. The job with auditoriums in the yesteryear was the failure to pull the attending to the front 15ft of the phase which should â€Å" look to drift † . Some of the causes may hold been that the seating went excessively far back or was spread excessively broad. The root for this job maybe that some designers are taught and become house trusters that form follows map, therefore the functionality false belief. They work merely with statistics in making a design which is dictated strictly on Numberss. Areas of the design which could non be measured were frequently ignored or left to the designer to make up one's mind on the result unattended. This is a clear illustration of a deficiency of a existent philosophical treatment on the nature of how theatre maps, between the theatrical technician and the designer.Word count: 403To understand the designer Lashkar-e-Taiba ‘s expression at how the development of the proper attack to theatre design. First of all a squad needs to be formed dwelling of: an designer, applied scientist, acoustic adviser, cost adviser and theater adviser. An designer of course heads the squad as is in the designer ‘s office where he or she works alongside spouses, associates and has technicians underneath headin g different sections on the building drawings. There will be some younger members of the squad which would hold graduated high from their architectural schools desiring to work for an experient designer on high degree undertakings who spend their clip seeking to happen rational solutions through planing study strategies with the designer. These immature people are who the Theatre Consultants should intercede with. The Engineers on occasion have a inclination to take over a undertaking which can be unsafe for the place of the designer. The electrical applied scientist has the safest function in footings of illuming which can be overseen by the Theatre Consultant and more cardinal to the success of the undertaking is the mechanical applied scientist. The mechanical applied scientist takes charge of the warming and airing. Theatres require that the infinite be dry and cool whilst besides being soundless, something theater directors specify as being indispensable is the silence. Architecture Actor & A ; Audience states that â€Å" Quite merely there is nil more expensive and nil more necessary. † The overall occupation of the applied scientists be them electrical, structural or mechanical is to work out how the design is put together as opposed to the â€Å" what † and the â€Å" why † of the design. This leads us to the unsafe instances in which the applied scientists take over the function of interior decorator of theaters from the designers. 1950 ‘s America and applied scientists were emerging with legion makings in phase design and acoustic and scenic technology claiming they had solutions to sights and sounds. Fixed angles where determined for acceptable sightlines in the auditoriums. Ceilings hidden by illuming, antecedently referred to as â€Å" the celestial spheres † to capture the lifting human spirit and to maintain a cap on the theatre infinite to concentrate the attending back down to the histrion. The side walls which had been lined with humanity in the early old ages were besides now shaped for acoustic advantages. To make a theater that was confidant, it was suggested that the furthest seats from the phase had to be of a certain distance. Jo Melziner ‘s so called field trials in which he concluded that the furthest distance of: â€Å" 55ft ( 16.8m ) for Julie Harris in play, somewhat more for Gertrude Berg in a instead wide comedy and 100ft ( 30m ) for Ethel Merman in anything. † What had non seemed to be considered was the denseness of the infinite given to the single audience member or of the impact of the sum of people to be fitted into the full distance allocated. Merely to advert some of the theaters loved by the theatre profession ; the Old Vic in London, the Lyceum and the Booth in New York, all of which would be considered severely designed with positions obstructed with bad sightlines and countries with a deficiency of legroom but shows win in these theatersWord count: 331Nowadays this is realised as being a error in design as functionality really took away from the experience but in the 50s and 60s this confusion of the standards of what makes a good theater experience had non been realised. What differentiates the unrecorded theater is the sense of community and engagement non the accent on the ocular lines and sound quality. Possibly if we take a measure back and expression at what Marcus Vitruvius Pollio wrote in the early first century BC on theatre architecture, we could perchance happen another angle on design. Vitruvius holding been an designer and builder shared most if non all his cognition in his 10 books on architecture. He makes elaborate mention to bing edifices and gave recommendations on how to construct new 1s.Word count: 248The decision is that clients are looking to be progressively avaricious desiring larger seating volume with equal comfort. The designer must non fall for the naivete that they can work out the jobs which have been around for centuries. An designer ‘s certitude in his proficient accomplishments can easy do the failure of a production and non hold the endowment of the production or authors to fault. Many freshly emerging designers believe that theaters need modernization but at that place needs to be a greater apprehension of the thaumaturgy and illusionistic handli ng of the infinite of such a complex edifice type. It seems better so to lodge to old schemes which work and if there is an old theater in inquiry so maintain it if it works. Amendments can be made to the dressing room and saloon, perchance the anteroom but non to the infinites in which the audience interact with the performing artists. By looking to the yesteryear for replies we will happen that the bulk of successful theaters are based on the rules of the â€Å" sacred geometry † which should be considered as particular harmoniousness with the purpose to promote motion of energy non as a robust cyberspace of formations. Finally the sightline paradox. It seems the theaters which work good suffer from the occasional positions with obstructors but those theaters which have first-class sightlines all-round are universally disliked by histrions and audience.

How to Choose Your Topic Essay Essay

Good evening Ladies and Gentleman , my name is Adam Maljan. Before we proceed , I would like to ask all of you a simple question . Have any of you had any difficulties on choosing a topic when you are asked to present to an audience ? If your answer is yes , then Do Not Worry . Because you see i. Choosing a topic for a speech is no easy thing to do . Especially if you are a student preparing a speech for your subject . ii. I myself had a hard time in choosing a topic for a public speaking event when I was in my 2nd semester as a diploma student . It took me days just to find the right topic which everyone can understand and relate to easily. Today , I would like to talk to you about how to choose or at least narrow down your choices of topic using the simple criteria of Knowing your theme , Listing and narrowing Down and researching and gaining confidence. The first criteria in order to choose your topic is that you should know your theme. For example , the seminar you were invited to talk to is about Health . But Health, as we all know, is a general topic , there are multiple subtopics that you can relate to with health ,some are maintaining a healthy lifestyle , how to reduce the risk of heart disease, effects of obesity and many more . So if this situation happens to you . Please do not panic , because once you identify your theme or topic using the general topic given to you, you can now look at your audience and use them to determine your decision on which topic to present . For example, if your audience is mostly teenagers , then you can choose the topic on maintaining a healthy lifestyle topic , but if it is mostly senior citizens , then it is better for you to choose the topic on how to reduce the risk of heart disease. The same goes with women or children .