Advancements in Medical Technology Essay -- Ecploratory Essays

Advancements in Medical Technology Advancements in technology, especially advancements in computers, have caused a major impact on today’s society.â€Å"More specifically, profound effect on modern day medicine.†[instruct.lanagara.ba.ca 1.] [1] It has changed almost every aspect of the medical field, from the instruments used to the medicines prescribed to the operations preformed.â€Å"New technologies allow healthcare professionals to save people they never could have saved before.†[collegeview.com 1.] [2] â€Å"The 20th-century has brought with it many advancements in medicine.† [utep.edu 1.] [3]Below is a list of the then most important advancements, none of which would have been possible without improvements in technology. The Ten Most Important Discoveries of the Century 1 Antibiotics (Penicillin) 2 Anesthesia 3 Polio Vaccine 4 Birth Control Pill 5 Open Heart Surgery 6 Organ Transplant 7 Medical Imagery (x-rays, MRI, CAT scans) 8 Anti-inflammatory (Aspirin) 9 Ambulance Services 10 Genetic Based Research [4] Almost every instrument in the medical field has become computerized.Everything from thermometers to CAT scans is either a type of computer itself or is monitored by a computer.They calculate and factor all the data leaving rarely any information to be determined.Thus, allowing for more efficient results because it reduces the risk of human error.Plus, since other healthcare professionals are busy caring for the patients new jobs are created to operate the computerized instruments.â€Å"Carefully designed instruments have given researchers the opportunity to better understand biological processes.† [instruct.langara.ba.ca 1.] [5]Microscopes, for example, have allowed organism and cells to be studied a... ...d be significantly increased. Advancements in technology have positively affected the medical field more than any other professional field.Without technology researchers would not be able to discover new medicine and new way of preventing disease.Doctors would not be able to receive such accurate testing results and they would not be able to perform nearly as many surgeries as they can with improved technology.Who knows what even more technological advancements will mean for all of medicine and for all of society. Bibliography Advancements in Medicine.[On-line]. Available:http://www2.utep.edu Medicine and Health.[On-line]. Available: http://www.collegeview.com Technological Advancements in Medicine.[On-line]. Available: http://www.instruct.langara.bc.ca Wilmore, Jack H. and David L. Costill. â€Å"Physiology of Sports and Exercise.† 2nd ed. 1999.

Global Issues: Obesity, Inactivity, and Water-Crisis

Health is a precious gift that needs to be cherished. Unfortunately, there are three global issues that are destroying people’s health and killing them. These health concerns include inactivity, obesity and lack of safe drinking water. The positive side of these issues is the fact that they are all preventable through making the right decisions and taking action. Due to higher trends of sedentary lifestyles, inactivity has become one of the critical current global issues. Inactivity is defined as a failure to meet the daily minimum physical requirement of moderate exercise.According to New York Times, worldwide, 31. 1% of adults are inactive, from which 43. 4% of North America, 34. 8% of Europe, 30% of Russia, 30% of the Middle East, and 27% African. Based on these percentages, it is reasonable to assume that the wealthy the region is, the more inactive it is likely to be. Sedentary lifestyles have recently been linked to many health issues such as heart disease, Type 2 diabet es, colon cancer and breast cancer. As stated in the New York Times, globally, around 5. 3 million people die from health issues that are related to physical inactivity; however comparatively, 5. million people die due to health concerns that are related to smoking. It is unfortunate that people do not understand the magnitude of the importance of physical activity due to the fact that inactivity is as deadly as smoking cigarettes. In the United States, inactivity level is the highest in the world, which makes it an undeniable concern. The average American lifestyle consists of driving to work, sitting at a desk all day, then sitting in front of a computer or a TV screen until falling asleep. The common trend of this routine is a lot of sitting and very little exercise.Although, the good news is that health issues correlated with inactivity can be easily prevented by meeting the minimum exercise requirement, which is a twenty-minute walk per day. Additionally, as for worldwide preve ntion, governmental intervention may be necessary. Some examples are to build more parks, promote the importance of exercise, and set up financial incentives. Obesity is another growing global concern, which is defined as an â€Å"abnormal or excessive fat accumulation that may impair health,† which is caused by an â€Å"energy imbalance between calories consumed and calories expended. According to the World Health Organization, as of 2008, there are 1. 4 billion adults that are overweight, of which 200 million men and 300 million women were obese. Obesity is the fifth leading risk for deaths around the world; around 2. 8 million adults each year die due to health issues concerning being overweight or obese. Some medical conditions are cardiovascular disease, diabetes, and several types of cancers. Globally, obesity has been a growing concern, due to consumption of high calorie processed foods. In addition, an increased level of inactivity adds to the growing number of obese people.The bright side of obesity is that it is very easily preventable. On an individual level, obesity can be prevented by limited intake of highly calorie processed foods, increased intake of fresh produce such as vegetables and fruit, and regular exercise. The United States, also known as the fattest country in the world, has been battling with the growing issue of obesity. The fast pace and busy lifestyle does not help this fast food loving society. American’s love for McDonalds, Burger King, KFC, and other fast food joints is not helping the battle with the expanding waistlines.In response to this concern, there have been several preventable initiates, such as Michelle Obama’s â€Å"Let’s Move† campaign that aims to teach kids the importance of eating healthy and exercising regularly. Overall, obesity is a fast growing concern but it can be prevented by the correct actions, knowledge and initiatives. Furthermore, the lack of safe drinking water is another critical global concern. According to WHO, unsafe drinking water causes diarrhea, malaria, malnutrition, lymphatic filariasis, and trachoma.The availability of safe drinking water is the essential to staying healthy. The human body is made up of mostly water; thus, to stay healthy, we require clean water just as much as we need proper nutrients from food. The developing areas of the world have the lowest availability of safe cleaning water due to insuffient governmental capital funds. However, clean water concern is not limited to only really poor areas such as Africa and Southeast Asia. Eastern European countries are also suffering from the problem of not having clean drinking water.From my own experience of living in Kiev, Ukraine, the water that comes out of the faucet is pigmented yellow and is not recommended for drinking. There, most people opt for drinking only bottled water. The good news about the issue of unsafe drinking water is the fact that according to the WHO, â€Å"89% of the world’s population had some form of improved water supply. † In order to continue improving the world’s water supply, local governments need to invest in necessary precautions to make the drinking water safe, such as distributing water filters, water bottles, and building protected dug wells.Overall, the three current issues that are affecting global health are inactivity, obesity and lack of safe drinking water. A person cannot be healthy if they sit around all day, consuming more calories than their body knows what to do with and drink contaminated, dirty water. Physical activity, healthy eating patterns and clean water are essential to our everyday health; thus, actions need to be taken at the individual and governmental level in order to save and prolong human lives on this planet. Works Cited â€Å"How does safe water impact global health? † WHO. 9 Sept. 2012 . â€Å"Obesity and overweight. † WHO. 19 Sept. 2012 . â€Å"The C ouch Potato Goes Global. † Well. 19 Sept. 2012 . â€Å"Water-related diseases. † WHO. 19 Sept. 2012 . â€Å"Water, sanitation and hygiene. † WHO. 19 Sept. 2012 .

Aspirin-its preparation, history and applications Essay

How drugs are discovered and developed Pharmacologist along with chemist focus on a specific disease and unmet patient needs in order to discover new drugs. They search for biological targets within the body that play a role in a given disease. Unique molecules are found or created that some day might be medicines. Lead Compound Selection, is the testing of compounds that might undergo the long expensive drug develop process. Random Screening- uses existing ‘library’ of chemical agents. This is the simplest method but the odds are low and patience is needed. Combinational Chemistry Screening- uses a compound (from existing library) as a base, then randomly adding amino acids or molecule segments of other agents to the base compound in order to enhance the base compounds activity and disease fighting potential. The enhanced compounds are then tested in rapid screening test. However this method is complex and costly but it improves the odds. Target Synthesis- targets the disease for drug intervention. For example High Blood Pressure would be studied in detail. Consequently this method still requires screening of hundreds of compounds and extensive amount of research to understand a particular disease process. Drug Modeling- uses more high technology. This method manipulates chemical structures by computers so that they can attach to, activate or deactivate proteins that interfere with or maintain the body’s normal functioning. The model is used to enhance the properties of the other methods but the cost for designer compounds are significant because of the huge amount of research that is needed to identify biochemical target and establish their molecular structure. How safety of drugs is checked before being used on the public A drug undergoes 3 clinical phases before being used on the public. PHASE 1 This is designed to determine the safety of the new drug, how best to administer it and the correct dosage- (one that will minimize desirable side effects). 20-30 patients (volunteers) are used to find out how the drug behaves in their body, so their blood and urine will be frequently monitored. Even though drugs in this will have been already tested in a laboratory. PHASE 2 After the correct dosage has been determined in phase1 clinical trial, it can enter phase2. This trial consists of determining the drug’s effectiveness in treating a specific disease. Phase2 involves more patients (volunteers) and they are tested for the number of platelets in their blood and take frequent blood samples. If the drug being tested brings a positive change in at least 1/5 of the patients then it can be tested in phase3. However if the drug shows very positive effects in-patients, the Food and Drug Administration also have the option of approving the drug for general use at this point. PHASE 3 This trial involves hundreds of patients and is divided into two groups. The control group receives a standard treatment (placebo) and the treatment groups are given the new drug. Results are then compared from the two groups. Blinded studies are used to prevent biased study results. If the new successfully passes a phase3 trial the FDA will approve the drug for marketing to the general public. . Purification -The acetylsalicylic acid is washed with distilled water until all the acetic acid is removed. -It is pressed to be as dry as possible and then dried more by a current of warm air at 60-70 degrees Celsius. The yield of pure acetylsalicylic acid is between 1780-1795kg per batch using this reaction process. * History of Aspirin and its modern development * How aspirin is prepared on the large scale Main reactor for the process- a glass lined 1500 gallon fitted with a water-cooled reflux condenser, thermometers with automatic temperature register and an efficient agitator. The Mother Liquor- 1532kg of acetic anhydride in 1200kg of toluene (this does not get used up. ). The reactor is charged up with the mother liquor. 1382kg of salicylic acid is added to the mother liquor. The reaction mixture is heated to between 85-92 degrees Celsius and kept at this temperature for 20 hours. The reaction mixture is transferred into an aluminum-cooling tank and is allowed to cool for 3-4 days. By the end the cool mixture will have reached room temperature 15-25 degrees Celsius. At this point the acetylsalicylic acid has precipitated as large regular crystals. Mother liquor is removed by filtration or centrifuging. Filtrate solution- 180-270kg of UN-precipitated acetyl acid, 510kg of acetic anhydride, 600kg of acetic acid and 1200kg of toluene. The acetic acid is obtained as a by-product of the acetylation step of the process. An well-agitated reactor using a diffusion plate will introduce Ketene gas, to be passed through the recycled filtrate at a temperature between 15-25 degrees Celsius. When a weight increase of 420. 5kg of the Ketene gas is observed, the mother liquor contains 180-270kg of UN-precipitated acetyl acid and 1532kg of acetic anhydride in 1200kg of toluene. The Mother liquor is recycled and 1382kg of Salicylic acid is added to continue the reaction cycle. BC- the first and most influential physician wrote about the bitter powder extracted from the willow bark that could ease aches and pains and reduce fever. 1700- The scientist Reverend Edmund Stone found out that the part of the willow tree bark that was bitter and good for fever and pain is a chemical known as Salicin. This converts into another chemical called Salicylic acid when eaten. 1829- A pharmacist known as Leroux showed that Salicin is the active willow ingredient and for the first time an Italian chemist Piria used Salicylic acid to treat pain and swelling in diseases such as Arthritis and to treat fever in illnesses like Influenza. The problem was that these chemicals was causing the users upset stomachs. Some people had bleeding in their digestive tracts from high doses needed to control swelling and pain. It was thought that the reason of stomach upsets were because of the acid in the chemical, therefore the compound Salicylic acid went through a couple of chemical reactions that covered up one of the acidic parts with an ACETYL group, converting it to ACETYLSALICYLIC ACID (ASA). It was found that ASA reduced fever and relieve of pain and swelling but also it was much better for the stomach and worked better than Salicylic Acid. 1899- ASA was given the name ASPIRIN- that comes from the plant relative of a rose that makes SALICYLIC ACID (several plants makes this compound not just willow). Â  How drugs such as aspirin work Prostaglandin is a chemical that is released to make the nerve ending register an even stronger pain to the brain. It is made in working cells of the damaged tissues by using an enzyme called CYCLOOXYGENASE 2 (COX-2). Prostaglandin makes you feel the pain of the damaged area and causes it to swell up (inflammation), to bathe the tissues in fluid from the blood so that it will protect it and help it heal. Pain serves the purpose here to remind you that the damaged area cannot be used, as it is not healed. However sometimes we endure pain when there is no real reason to. For example Period Pains and Arthritis. It can make people feel really uncomfortable and arthritis can damage joints permanently. ASPIRIN works by locking itself to the enzyme that makes the chemical Prostaglandin. The enzyme C0X-2 that is found in normal tissues but mostly in tissues that have been damaged in some way, can no longer convert floating chemicals into Prostaglandin because they are unable to move with the aspirin lock on. Aspirin does not treat the cause of the pain; it just lowers the pain signals getting through your nerves to the brain. How effective aspirin is New researches suggest that an aspirin a day is a preventive measure against Heart Attacks. However the effectiveness of aspirin has differential effects depending on genetics.

‘Hoods’ a Drama Production

The performance ‘Hoods’ by Barking Gecko Theatre Co. is a play about two young children, Jessie and Kyle, who create video game style situations to pass the time as they are left in the car by their mother. This play was performed at Thornlie Senior High School’s Performing Arts Centre on Friday the 1st of April 2011. It was a great honour to have this brilliant play shown to the high school students as it showed perseverance of the young children. The play was written by Angela Betzien and directed by Leticia Ca’ceres. The actors were Sam Longley and Andrea Gibbs, Sam who played Kyle and Andrea who played Jessie. The style in which the play was performed was presentational although there are some parts of realism because situations like these actually do happen. The actors played multiple characters and morphed into each one. The morphing shows visible changes of character. They had great versatility of characters and played each one with passion for the role. The facial expressions they used seemed to add to the way they acted and made us, as an audience believe their roles much more. Other presentational aspects include the use of direct address and poetic narration throughout the performance. Jessie and Kyle’s mother leaves them and their baby brother (Troy) in the car as she went to the shops. Troy get sick and the children are fearful of their situation and go off to seek their grandmother. Their mother hadn’t actually forgotten about them but rather had been caught shoplifting for them and was taken away. The themes for ‘Hoods’ would be child neglect, poverty and domestic violence. The playwright had the intention of telling these children’s story to the audience. As children they don’t have the ability to tell people their situation and get help like adults can. The intentions would be that they wrote the play with the intention of showing powerlessness, and making the characters feel vulnerable as they are so young and in situations we don’t expect children to be in, they delivered these very effectively. There are three main parts of the play where they are powerless, when the children are in the car trying to find their mum, when the counsellor has no power to take the children out and treat them and when the mother is powerless against the father’s violent ways. Their costumes were old and shaggy due to their setting being dirty and poverty stricken. They both wore hoods which they either wore on or off their heads, depending on what character they were playing. The set contained very few objects, a box that acted as a car, the fence and some chairs. This added to the deserted feel of the play. The lighting was dark with the main lighting in the middle, where most of the action took place. There were also few props, the baby, Jessie’s ‘magic’ wand and even though it was clothing, Jessie’s jacket as it was something she never took off, like her comfort blanket. There were different sounds throughout the performance, such as, cars, sirens, explosions and dogs barking. The stage at the high school was quite spacious giving the actors a chance to use it all, which they did perfectly. I really liked the performance, it was interesting and compelling. There was action, comedy and tragedy which all added to the performance’s appeal. It did start to get slightly boring toward the end but it think that was because it was quite long, but overall very good. I think most of the audience liked it due to the attention they payed and the amount of applause at the end. I would definitely recommend ‘Hoods’ to anyone looking for a great play to watch.

Critical Thinking Questions Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Critical Thinking Questions - Essay Example The use of this method will provide different ways of making sense of ideas, developing product, attaining content, and processing information so as to promote effective learning. Question a (ii) The six-column framework highlights the basics of an individual. Everyone must employ these questions to be complete. In addition, scopes of the framework classification technique, the abstractions, and perspectives are complete and can categorize any concept or knowledge. An individual can utilize the what, who, how, where, why, and when questions to classify students. This is because the differentiated instruction understands every student is unique. This framework will assist the teacher to instruct according to student’s learning style and needs. The framework will also determine the students’ skills, level of knowledge, and comprehension in a unit of study. Question a (iii) The leader may employ the framework to assess the readiness and growth level of students. This will help improve instruction. The leader may use the framework to retrieve information on different aspects, for example; the leader may ask the instructor â€Å"how can below average students improve?† or â€Å"how are the students coping with the new teaching techniques?† The different responses will guide the leader on areas that need Improvement or change. The leader may also employ the framework to ensure students are responsible and active. This framework will make both the instructors and students fill challenged whenever they are engaged in an activity, in class (Caine & Caine, 1994). This will help improve instruction or change instruction. Question b (i) Concept formation is an inductive educating technique that assist learners establish an apparent understanding of an idea or concept by examining a small number of examples of a concept. Concepts may be presumed to be fittings in the mind. A mind that is well fitted provides lifelong learning, joy, career satisfa ction, citizenship, and academic satisfaction. When the teachers create a concept from its example, they know more exists to a practice or concept. For example, if they see a student is underperforming in class, they know there is more to it than lack of understanding or grasping of ideas (Tomlinson, 1999). Step 1 allows the teachers examine their preferred or presumed comfortable learning environment. Step 2 permits the teacher compare their findings on suitable learning environment and enable them device the most suitable environment. Step 3 enables the teachers categorize the learning environment in terms of the most suitable. Question b (ii) The steps will act as a pre-assessment to the extent to which the teachers have established their concepts. This is because the proof is not in the decisions they have reached, but the reasons they will provide. In addition, each step provides the leader a chance to understand the backgrounds, interests, weaknesses, strengths, and the dissim ilarities between the teachers in several areas. The pre-assessment will also allow the teachers become extra purposeful in conducting class activities. Question c (i) The factors include cooperative learning groups, ability grouping of learners, class size, and the instructor. Cooperative groups have learners with strong class cohesion, positive perception, adequate degree of social support, and high scores of achievement. The ability grouping

Edward R. Murrow, Army-McCarthy hearings Research Paper - 1

Edward R. Murrow, Army-McCarthy hearings - Research Paper Example He constantly accused the federal government of being involved with the Communists. This is what initiated the army-McCarthy hearings in the first place. But in the end, his accusations and remarks were decreed as groundless. McCarthy blamed the army and the army blamed him and said that he was stating those remarks to please his senior David Schine and his friend, Roy Cohn (Caute). Many people in the government were intimidated by Senator McCarthy because of his popularity and his gift of gab. Despite his blames and accusations, people listened to him because he was an excellent orator. But it is unfortunate that he used his skills for the wrong purposes. This is why his sudden decline was his own fault, as was later proved by Edward Murrow. Another reason for McCarthy’s growing popularity was his relation with the Kennedy family. He was in their good books and while the Kennedy family was at its prime, McCarthy took unfair advantage of it. Moreover, the Kennedy’s were Catholics and so was McCarthy and this forged a stronger bond between the Kennedys and McCarthy. This is also why McCarthy gained infinite support when it came to targeting the Communist tribes. Many journalists and critics also claim that for McCarthy, being Communist was more of a personal issue and it was his fault that he amalgamated it with his profession(Caute). After these remarks began to surface, the Senate took the matter in its own hands. The Senate set up a committee to find the root of the problem. Normally, McCarthy was the one who governed these meetings but as this time he himself was being charged, Karl Mundt was elected as the leader of the committee. He was also a renowned Republican senator. At first the Senate was a little hesitant to make Mundt the head of committee because McCarthy was a lot stronger opponent and he made a rude opponent, but many members of the committee voted in favor of Mundt.

Read the document I send you carefully Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Read the document I send you carefully - Essay Example This paper tries to understand how the market for clothes/ textiles has changed over the years to adopt technology and gain competitive advantage. The past and present trends in clothes business will be studied to understand the impact of e-business initiatives in the sector. How value chain has emerged to impact the marketers of clothes will be discussed and recommendations for increasing online purchasing of clothes will be given. e-Marketing and clothing trade Noting Corral (2000), â€Å"The apparel industry has started using the Internet in an attempt to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of marketing, provide customers access to information about products and their availability, build brand value, and to offer customers a convenient medium to make purchases online. The most valuable aspects of Internet shopping, as compared to store-based ad catalog shopping, are typically perceived to be competitive pricing, one-source shopping, convenience and time-savings (Tuunainen an d Rossi, 2002). Rapidly changing consumer preferences and distribution requirements in the increasingly globalized world where trade is liberalized and need innovation is also strong, textile and clothing sector has undergone a sea change as did the other sectors. Businesses in the sector are vying for differentiation on price as there is a high concentration on manufacturing and distribution. Companies that have tried to adopt change are increasingly focusing on reducing operational costs in the supply chain while reducing time to market and lead time. There is an increased use of information technology to integrate the supply chain to control quality, time and operational costs. The European Union is the largest trader and exporter of textile and clothing with a large portion of exports considered temporary as they are re-imported for final production and distribution (e-business watch, 2004). Although there are different opinions as to the impact of ecommerce on retailing in the clothing industry, one fact is true, that those that do not adopt technology will lose their competitive advantage. Ecommerce is set to make a significant and permanent impact on retailing as it is set to increase revenue flow phenomenally. In the US, it is seen that a significant portion of the economy is contributed by internet-influenced revenue with a seven percent sales on internet can reduce profits of brick-and-mortar businesses by almost 50 percent. While e-retailers deliver well on product, price and place, traditional retailers manage to deliver well on margin flexibility, location, selection and delivering physical products at the right time (Taylor and Cosenza, 2013, pp 46, 47). Businesses can transform into electronic enterprises to reduce operational costs and improve process productivity. The speed at which businesses transform to adopt electronic transactions determines the capacity with which they implement processes. Greater the speed of adoption and transformation , higher the number of processes they can execute and the more rapid their expansion since it reduces transactional costs. This also gives enterprises strategic competitive advantage. A business can have a website and the extent to which it is open to customers determines its adoption of ecommerce (Figure 1): Figure 1: Ecommerce industry transformation. Source: (Rollyson,