Living in a Digital Nation essays

Living in a Digital Nation essays The United States and many other countries have now entered the digital age, an era where electronics, media, and the worldwide web are right at our fingertips anywhere and anytime that our hearts desire. Workplaces, schools, and households have now become more technology friendly and are assimilating into this fascinating age of discovery and innovation. According to Virginia Heffernan, a published author and writer for The New York Times, "65 percent of today's grade-school kids may end up doing work that hasn't been invented yet." Even children are being introduced to electronics and the Internet at a young age, which means the future holds a lot of promise. Technology has flourished and become apart of one's everyday life, and some might even say we abuse it because of our need to be constantly connected; however, it is a beneficial tool to have, and I have welcomed it into my life with open arms. It has allowed me to get my work done easily, helped me make connections, taught me realizations about myself. Also, technology and the Internet are here to stay, which has led me to the conclusion that they will greatly impact my future. Being part of the digital age has made work and business easier. For example, taking online classes is something I was recently introduced to over the summer, and my English course, being my third online class has made me see how a classroom can be brought into a digital setting. Classes offered online are very useful because sometimes a class' time conflicts with my schedule. I am able to do everything online, which leaves some sort of anonymity between my peers, which I like because I am able to state my opinion without fear of being judged in an actual classroom setting where everyone turns and looks at you when you have a contribution to make. Because of the Internet, people are able to get a vast amount of work done The Internet has come very far...

Radiocarbon Dating - Reliable but Misunderstood

Radiocarbon Dating - Reliable but Misunderstood Radiocarbon dating is one of the best known archaeological dating techniques available to scientists, and the many people in the general public have at least heard of it. But there are many misconceptions about how radiocarbon works and how reliable a technique it is. Radiocarbon dating was invented in the 1950s by the American chemist Willard F. Libby and a few of his students at the University of Chicago: in 1960, he won a Nobel Prize in Chemistry for the invention. It was the first absolute scientific method ever invented: that is to say, the technique was the first to allow a researcher to determine how long ago an organic object died, whether it is in context or not. Shy of a date stamp on an object, it is still the best and most accurate of dating techniques devised. How Does Radiocarbon Work? All living things exchange the gas Carbon 14 (C14) with the atmosphere around them- animals and plants exchange Carbon 14 with the atmosphere, fish and corals exchange carbon with dissolved C14 in the water. Throughout the life of an animal or plant, the amount of C14 is perfectly balanced with that of its surroundings. When an organism dies, that equilibrium is broken. The C14 in a dead organism slowly decays at a known rate: its half life. The half-life of an isotope like C14 is the time it takes for half of it to decay away: in C14, every 5,730 years, half of it is gone. So, if you measure the amount of C14 in a dead organism, you can figure out how long ago it stopped exchanging carbon with its atmosphere. Given relatively pristine circumstances, a radiocarbon lab can measure the amount of radiocarbon accurately in a dead organism for as long as 50,000 years ago; after that, theres not enough C14 left to measure. Tree Rings and Radiocarbon There is a problem, however. Carbon in the atmosphere fluctuates with the strength of earths magnetic field and solar activity. You have to know what the atmospheric carbon level (the radiocarbon reservoir) was like at the time of an organisms death, in order to be able to calculate how much time has passed since the organism died. What you need is a ruler, a reliable map to the reservoir: in other words, an organic set of objects that you can securely pin a date on, measure its C14 content and thus establish the baseline reservoir in a given year. Fortunately, we do have an organic object that tracks carbon in the atmosphere on a yearly basis: tree rings. Trees maintain carbon 14 equilibrium in their growth rings- and trees produce a ring for every year they are alive. Although we dont have any 50,000-year-old trees, we do have overlapping tree ring sets back to 12,594 years. So, in other words, we have a pretty solid way to calibrate raw radiocarbon dates for the most recent 12,594 years of our planets past. But before that, only fragmentary data is available, making it very difficult to definitively date anything older than 13,000 years. Reliable estimates are possible, but with large /- factors. The Search for Calibrations As you might imagine, scientists have been attempting to discover other organic objects that can be dated securely steadily since Libbys discovery. Other organic data sets examined have included varves (layers in sedimentary rock which were laid down annually and contain organic materials, deep ocean corals, speleothems (cave deposits), and volcanic tephras; but there are problems with each of these methods. Cave deposits and varves have the potential to include old soil carbon, and there are as-yet unresolved issues with fluctuating amounts of C14 in ocean corals. Beginning in the 1990s, a coalition of researchers led by Paula J. Reimer of the CHRONO Centre for Climate, the Environment and Chronology, at Queens University Belfast, began building an extensive dataset and calibration tool that they first called CALIB. Since that time, CALIB, now renamed IntCal, has been refined several timesas of this writing (January 2017), the program is now called IntCal13. IntCal combines and reinforces data from tree-rings, ice-cores, tephra, corals, and speleothems to come up with a significantly improved calibration set for c14 dates between 12,000 and 50,000 years ago. The latest curves were ratified at the 21st International Radiocarbon Conference in July of 2012. Lake Suigetsu, Japan Within the last few years, a new potential source for further refining radiocarbon curves is Lake Suigetsu in Japan. Lake Suigetsus annually formed sediments hold detailed information about environmental changes over the past 50,000 years, which radiocarbon specialist PJ Reimer believes will be as good as, and perhaps better than, samples cores from the Greenland Ice Sheet. Researchers Bronk-Ramsay et al. report 808 AMS dates based on sediment varves measured by three different radiocarbon laboratories. The dates and corresponding environmental changes promise to make direct correlations between other key climate records, allowing researchers such as Reimer to finely calibrate radiocarbon dates between 12,500 to the practical limit of c14 dating of 52,800. Constants and Limits Reimer and colleagues point out that IntCal13 is just the latest in calibration sets, and further refinements are to be expected. For example, in IntCal09s calibration, they discovered evidence that during the Younger Dryas (12,550-12,900 cal BP), there was a shutdown or at least a steep reduction of the North Atlantic Deep Water formation, which was surely a reflection of climate change; they had to throw out data for that period from the North Atlantic and use a different dataset. We should see some interesting results in the very near future. Sources and Further Information Bronk Ramsey C, Staff RA, Bryant CL, Brock F, Kitagawa H, Van der Plicht J, Schlolaut G, Marshall MH, Brauer A, Lamb HF et al. 2012. A complete terrestrial radiocarbon record for 11.2 to 52.8 kyr B.P. Science 338:370-374.Reimer PJ. 2012. Atmospheric science. Refining the radiocarbon time scale. Science 338(6105):337-338.Reimer PJ, Bard E, Bayliss A, Beck JW, Blackwell PG, Bronk Ramsey C, Buck CE, Cheng H, Edwards RL, Friedrich M et al. . 2013. IntCal13 and Marine13 Radiocarbon Age Calibration Curves 0–50,000 Years cal BP. Radiocarbon 55(4):1869–1887.Reimer P, Baillie M, Bard E, Bayliss A, Beck J, Blackwell PG, Bronk Ramsey C, Buck C, Burr G, Edwards R et al. 2009. IntCal09 and Marine09 radiocarbon age calibration curves, 0-50,000 years cal BP. Radiocarbon 51(4):1111-1150.Stuiver M, and Reimer PJ. 1993. Extended C14 data base and revised Calib 3.0 c14 age calibration program. Radiocarbon 35(1):215-230.

Public Health Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Public Health - Research Paper Example In the following discussion, the researcher shall enumerate on the concept of public and community health by tracing its historical development, and comparing it to each other. The objective is to identify the differences and similarities between public and community nursing, and its impact on acute care setting. Health, according to the World Health Organization can be defined as "a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being, and not merely the absence of disease and infirmity" (Stanhope and Lancaster 322). This definition has evolved over the centuries due to several historical health events which shall be discussed as follows: Historically, health care can be traced to the Greeks. They initiated the concept of self-care as the basis for developing a system of health care for the public. They believed that if individuals were free of disease, practice hygiene and care for themselves, then the community would be healthy. Based on this concept in the United States active promotion of health care developed during the 19th century when concern for the spread of epidemic and diseases due to poverty, dirty environment, and lack of awareness among the people led to the first public policies (Scutchfield, Mays and Keck 11). At the time public health organizations developed by political entities were defined as institutions for policing epidemics through quarantine, and keeping diseases at bay. The first American Public Health Association was formed on an entirely different platform as compared to today. The purpose of the Association was to practice public sanitation, and worked in conjunction with medical practit ioners, lawyers, engineers, lay reformers and on. This was more community focus rather than policy based holistically. Yet, it was different from community health, and operated based on national economic and social reforms, and was political in

Communication Theories Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 2

Communication Theories - Essay Example Another criterion that can help me through my pronouncement is that creativity is my department. I have always been enormously creative and therefore I prefer studying a field that necessitates creative minds so that I may easily excel in it. Due to this reason, I get more dragged towards studying marketing as marketing is all about creativity, new ideas and innovations that help in promoting any particular thing. The advantages of marketing that I perceive over communication is that while studying communications I can only utilize my power of communicating whereas marketing will help me exploit both of my capabilities, i.e., communicating as well as creativity. Marketing involves communicating as well as convincing one’s words to others along with ingenious, inspiring and innovative activities, but, communication only involves skills to exchange a few words well with the mass. (â€Å"What is marketing?†) One disadvantage that I feel about marketing is that I might get employed by such a company that produces unhealthy stuff such as tobacco, cigarette etc. in such a case I will have to promote unhealthy and hazardous products and convince people to buy and use them. Marketing infatuates me more than communications but still, there are its drawbacks that compel me to ponder more and more over both the fields before the final

The Good, Bad and Ugly of Fracking Essay Example for Free

The Good, Bad and Ugly of Fracking Essay There is a gold rush going on right now. Man is breaking the earth, looking for natural gas. It’s a mad scene, with hucksters on every side of the issue. There is a lot going on underground and that process is called Fracking. The word alone can stir up controversy. The process of extracting natural gas through hydraulic fracturing or â€Å"fracking,† might summon in someone’s imagination an environment and damaged communities. Natural gas hides from sight it is invisible. Perhaps envisioned a prettier picture—one that involves clean-burning fuel, job growth and affordable energy. The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) states that fracking â€Å"is the process of injecting large volumes of water, sand and chemicals into the ground at high pressure to break up shale formation allowing more efficient recovery of oil and gas† (Walter). This practice has grown rapidly over the course of the last decade thanks to improved technologies, but it also has fostered debates concerning its environmental, health and safety impact along the way. The process of hydraulic fracturing – shooting water, sand, and chemicals at high pressure into underground wells to release natural gas – is a divisive issue. Some say it dumps chemicals into ground water supplies; others argue it causes earthquakes, and still others think it can revolutionize America’s energy industry. Environmentalists argue that fracking contaminates ground and surface water – a charge the gas companies deny. Here’s the problem: the fracking process begins with a well drilled deep underground. Horizontal passages are then drilled outward from the bottom of the well. Water, sand and chemicals are pumped at high pressure through the water is insignificant, and it has never been proven that those chemicals rise ground water supplies. On the other hand, environmentalists say the downward drilling process, if done poorly, releases chemicals into both ground and surface water. Both arguments are strong, which is why no one can agree whether fracking is a good or bad thing. The science is not settled; arguments are hurled back and forth by both gas companies and environmentalists. On the earthquake issue, seismologists say it is possible fracking can cause small earthquakes. The British Geological Survey researched the Blackpool earthquakes, and the conclusion was reasonable. However, they did come back and say, â€Å"the chances of getting a very large earthquake are insignificant† (Walter). Meanwhile, a contaminated water supply is a hotly-debated issue: there have been cases where fracking has polluted water supplies as a result of poor oversight and procedures, but it does seem that if done correctly, fracking is not nearly as environmentally disruptive as traditional oil and gas extraction. One thing that is settled are the benefits homegrown natural gas adds to the US energy industry. As chemist and author rich Trzupek wrote recently: â€Å"America has become, in the eyes of energy professions, the Saudi Arabia of natural gas thanks to shale gas. The doe estimates that shale gas reserves alone are 750 trillion cubic feet. (McGraw). Combines with other domestic sources of natural gas, the United States has enough natural gas to last for over a century, and the numbers continue to climb. In areas where shale gas drilling is happening, the good times are rolling. Not only are people making money from the energy sales, jobs are created down the line, from the companies who support drilling operations down to the service industries that provide workers with food and shelter† (McGraw). According to Carlton Carroll, American Petroleum Institute (API) the oil and natural gas industry’s number one priority is safety. It is very important to maintain a perfect safety record but even one incident is way too many. In a December 2012 press release, API called the extraction from natural gas from shale â€Å"the most important domestic energy development in the last fifty years†¦poised to reshape American manufacturing. † And Chevron’s web site touts the practice for â€Å"providing the United States with reliable, affordable, cleaner and responsibly produced energy† (Walter). Developing these natural gas resources can help enhance the country’s energy security, strengthen local and state economies, and fuel job growth. Many Americans, oppose any kind of pollution. However, here are reasons to support fracking: 1. It can lead to our nation becoming energy independent 2. It will provide an enormous boost to our state and local economies 3. It has already driven down natural gas prices to the point where utilities are replacing dirty coal-fired power plants with cleaner natural gas-burning plans and increasingly vehicles are burning natural gas instead of dirtier gasoline 4. It will provide many well-paying jobs to geologists, well drillers, office workers, truck drivers, construction workers, and many more. So what is the snag—and how serious is it? Communities where fracking has taken place, notably in Ohio and Pennsylvania, protest the noise and scarring of the landscaping during the initial explorations. Restoration and compensation can better those concerns. The most significant fear is that the wastewater with chemicals from the fracking process, called, flowback, can contaminate the aquifers and drinking water. State regulators in Alaska, Colorado, Indiana, Louisiana, Michigan, Oklahoma, Pennslvania, South Dakota, Texas and Wyoming have stated that there have been no verified or documented cases of groundwater contamination as a result of hydraulic fracking (Zuckerman). The process uses about 99 percent water and sand, the rest being a solution of a few chemicals (Zuckerman). Most drilling experts have asserted that it is highly improbable that fracking liquids will contaminate drinking water. Fortunately, no cases exist in which the fracking process itself has caused drilling liquids to contaminate drinking water. The issue then is whether the flowback hazard can remain at acceptable levels. The real risk of water contamination comes from these flowback fluids leaking into streams or seeping down into groundwater after reaching the surface. This can be caused by leaky wellheads, holding tanks or blowouts. Wellheads are made sufficiently safe to prevent this eventuality; holding tanks can be made secure; and blowouts, while problematic, are like all accidents caused by human error. The energy industry has long stressed that fracking and water contamination has never been definitibely linked.

Case Study: Murder of Ashley Smith Essay -- Scott Jones, Frederick Joh

Introduction The purpose of this paper is to discuss and analyze the practices conducted by law enforcement during the investigation of the murder of Ashley Smith. The following pages will discuss the crime scene investigation, the evidence collection, the investigative steps following the initial crime scene investigation, the interviews of witnesses and suspects, and other strategies performed by the acting case investigators. Constitutional challenges have surfaced regarding specific pieces of critical evidence and a section of this paper will analyze the admissibility of this evidence. Lastly this case’s law enforcement processes will be contrasted with textbook processes in an effort to determine the validity of the case’s outcome. The Crime Scene On 11/3/00, two truck drivers discovered the deceased body of fourteen-year-old Ashley Smith in a wooded area behind the Pizza Hut, located on Old Annapolis Rd. Local authorities were dispatched and D/CPL. Glenn Case was designated as the primary investigator on the case. Upon arrival, D/CPL. Case observed that the medical examiner had already examined the body, evidence had been collected, photographs of the crime scene had been taken both on ground and from a helicopter (aerial view), and D/CPL. Case was advised that the victim had not yet been identified. The victim’s body had what appeared to be several stab wounds to her neck and abdominal area. D/CPL Case will later be advised by medical examiners that the victim had been stabbed thirty-four times and had also been manually strangled. The victim’s body was positioned with her head facing towards the Pizza Hut parking lot. The positioning coupled with bloody drag marks on the concrete suggested that the victim had been ... ...e resulted arrest of the suspects reflects this applicably. References Bond, J. (2007). Value of DNA Evidence in Detecting Crime. Journal of Forensic Sciences, 52(1), 128-136. Moston, S., & Engelberg, T. (2011). The Effects of Evidence on the Outcome of Interviews with Criminal Suspects. Police Practice & Research, 12(6), 518 - 526. State by State Compliance. (2010). Retrieved from http://www.vegress.com/index.php/can-i-record-calls-in-my-state Swanson, C. R., Chamelin, N. C., & Territo, L. (2012). Criminal investigation. New York: McGraw-Hill Higher Education. Technical Working Group on Crime Scene Investigation (2000). Crime Scene Investigation: A Guide for Law Enforcement-Research Report (NCJ 178280). Retrieved from U.S. Department of Justice website: http://www.fbi.gov/about-us/lab/forensic-science-communications/fsc/april2000/twgcsi.pdf

Abandon Baby Essay

The abandoned of babies issue is a social disease of our society that lack of humanity values. This problem should not happen in our country which is opposite from our cultural and religious values. Abandonment cases are viewed as a social disease that will shackle our country from being a caring society as the fourth of the nine of Vision 2020 challenge to establishing a fully moral and ethical society, whose citizens are strong in religious and spiritual values and imbued with the highest of ethical standards. See more: Recruitment and selection process essay Most young generations cannot make out and consider what the good and bad things are. It could get rid the moral values in each young generation. The statistics released by Polis Diraja Malaysia (PDRM) regarding the cases of abandon babies in our country since 2005 until January this year was very surprising. Datuk Seri Mohd. Bakri Mohd. Zinin the Director of Criminal Investigation Department in Bukit Aman was disclose the most worrying statistic. Based on PDRM statistics, in the last six year there are 517 recorded cases of abandoned babies. The statistic shows that 517 of infants discharged, 203 boys, 164 girls and 150 are imperfectly formed infants. The worse cases were reports on year 2008 with 102 cases followed by 91 cases on 2010. Over the past six years, only 37 were successful suspects under arrest to help investigations, including four this year. The phenomena of babies born out of wedlock being abandoned or thrown is becoming a worrying trend there has not been any comprehensive study carried out to find their causes and to suggest remedies to shorten the trend including having preventive programmes to youths and teenagers.