Airborne infectious disease

Airborne infectious disease Tuberculosis (TB) is an airborne infectious disease which is caused by bacteria belonging to Mycobacterium tuberculosis complex1. There are approximately one third of the world’s population are infected with tuberculosis where nine millions of new cases reported annually2. Although tuberculosis is essentially curable and preventable, it continues to cause millions of deaths every year2. When infected individual coughs, sneezes or spits, M. tuberculosis is propelled into the air and infected those who breathed in the bacteria that existed in droplets of saliva3. Primarily, tuberculosis will affect the lungs, known as pulmonary tuberculosis3. It will also affect other parts of body, for instance lymph nodes, bones, brain and kidneys3. Once a person is infected with tuberculosis, there are basically three possible ways may occur. Firstly, the immune system plays a vital role and strong enough to kill the bacteria3. Secondly, immune system is not strong enough to fight off the ba cteria but is able to build a defensive barrier against the bacteria3. Individuals who are latently infected with M. tuberculosis show asymptomatic where these bacteria lie dormant in the lungs and able to reactivate after years1. The disease is often reactivated in those who are immunocompromised or generally weakened. Lastly, the immune system fails to kill bacteria causing the bacteria to grow and spread towards other parts of body which is called active tuberculosis3. In the fight of tuberculosis, World Health Organisation (WHO) recommends universal Bacille Calmette-Guà ©rin (BCG) vaccination in the countries with high TB burdens4. BCG vaccine contains weakened form of M. tuberculosiswhich will induce antibodies to fight against this type of bacteria. The efficacy of BCG vaccination can be ranging from 0% to 84%5. This may be due to the frequency of TB exposure and quality of vaccine used, leading to arguments on BCG vaccination efficacies4. One of the greatest arguments is th at BCG vaccination causing positive reactions to tuberculin skin testing and hence interfere with the diagnosis of latent TB4. Existence of evidences showing the rates of efficacy also depends on geographical location, age at vaccination and form of TB further complicate the situation. Currently, TB chemotherapy is made up of a cocktail of first-line drugs isoniazid (INH), rifampicin (RIF), pyrazinamide (PZA) and ethambutol (EMB) 6. If the treatment fails due to bacterial drug resistance, or patient unable to tolerate, second-line drugs for instance para-aminosalicylate (PAS), fluoroquinolones, ethionamide and cycloserine are introduced6. These are considered as second line drugs generally either less potent with larger doses or more toxic with serious side effects6. Tuberculosis is presently treated in two phases, namely initial phase and continuous phase7. In initial phase, the patient will be treated with concurrent use of four first line drugs, with the aim to eradicate or contr ol bacteria population to replicate in rapid motion and also avoid the emergence of bacteria resistance7. The treatment choices available for initial treatment include isoniazid, rifampicin, pyrazinamide and ethambutol7. Streptomycin is used rarely but can be used in patients who infected with bacteria that are resistant to isoniazid before the therapy is commenced7. The duration for initial phase is 2 months whereas the continuous phase takes 4 months7. During the four months of continuous phase, patients are treated with isoniazid and rifampicin at same doses7. Most of the TB treatment is supervised where drug administration needs to be fully supervised by healthcare professions since lengthy duration of treatment causing incompliance in patients7. These patients who are unlikely to be compliance will be given the drugs three times a week until the course is completed while patients who able to comply with the treatment will not be supervised7.

Summary of a scientific article Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Summary of a scientific article - Assignment Example Through different sampling and harvesting techniques, levels of nitrogen and phosphorus were analyzed through soil samples and harvesting flora. The scientists were looking at how the different interactions of shrubs played a role in the levels of nutrients in the soil. They then had samples planted in respective areas in order to determine how different conditions might play a role in the nutrient levels of the soil which effect future growth. These questions were addressed through biochemical analysis. Then statistical data was run in the form of repeated measures ANOVA in order to determine statistical significance of the raw data. They were able to see that there was significance in portions of the data when the biochemical assays were analyzed. There was a correlation between certain shrubs and the amount of nutrients that are found in the specific sample sizes. What this is able to show is that in territorial reclamation of a plant species after devastation, such as a fire, can be important when trying to rebuild an ecosystem. It also serves as a model for both exotic and domestic species.

EVALUATING A WEBSITE AS A SOURCE FOR LEARNING HISTORY Essay - 1

EVALUATING A WEBSITE AS A SOURCE FOR LEARNING HISTORY - Essay Example However, as treasures increased, so did the desire to capture more areas to gain control over the Americans. The reason for choosing this website for analysis is because it provides information on America’s history and recommends other resources rich in America’s history. Therefore, this website serves as a good source of learning history due its diverse information, including artifacts and paintings and also other suggested literatures on America’s history. This website is owned by the library of Congress, the world largest library. Through this site, the library provides diverse books, photographs, recordings, maps and many other academic resources for both teachers and students. The information provided in this website gives insights on America’s history, and it is adequately supported by finding of great historians such as Jay Kislak, who amassed a comprehensive collection of materials on ancient America. In the process of his exploration, Jay acquired rare collection of manuscripts and books that pertained to early America. In this vein, the objective of library of Congress was to avail diverse learning resources to the American people. Therefore, this site seeks to reveal America’s history, creativity and knowledge through both primary and secondary sources to both teachers and learners. Notably, the site has a selection of more than 3,000 rare maps, paintings, documents, prints and artifacts among others. The audience can access information on the early America, including pre-contact America, exploration and encounters and finally aftermath of the encounter through this website. In addition, the site provides more than 3,000 collections of documents, paintings, prints among others. All information accessible through this site is equally useful for a historian, but for this particular paper information on pre-contact, America is of paramount importance. In this regard, the website provides insights on America’s

Art History (Michelangelo) Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Art History (Michelangelo) - Essay Example The placing of David outside of the Florentine government created a symbol for freedom and protection for the residents of the city. Instead of portraying King David from the Scriptures after defeating Goliath, Michelangelo decided to show David before the great battle with Goliath. The slingshot hanging casually over his back show David’s fearlessness fulfilling Catholicism theory that David had God on his side. The muscle toned young man Michelangelo depicted was another portrayal of the heroic nude. The heroic nude of David could be considered as the strength of God through a human in this instance. Although a famous sculpture, David does have a flaw. The most noticeable flaw is the fact that David is uncircumcised. Michelangelo learned to draw nudes from the morgue of Florence, but probably never seen an unclothed Jewish man. Even if he did see an circumcised male, the questions of placing a circumcised male in view of the public would have been too controversial. David fulfilled a prideful purpose for the city of Florence. A strong looking Italian David stood guard over the government. The calmness in the statue’s face shows no fear in the face of an enemy. David reassured the Florentines no matter the other

What Are The Defining Elements Of Democracy Politics Essay

What Are The Defining Elements Of Democracy Politics Essay There is no universally accepted definition of democracy, and Arblaster says, Democracy is a concept before it is a fact, and because it is a concept it has no single precise and agreed meaning. (ARBLASTER, 2002: 3) Essentially democracy has three main ideals: Popular Sovereignty, the belief that the legitimacy of the state is created by the will or consent of its people, who are the source of every political power; Political Equality; and Individual Autonomy. Abraham Lincoln summed up democracy well in saying it is a government of the people, by the people, and for the people, and so, in the case of liberal western democracies it is government by the people in which the supreme power is vested in the people and exercised directly by them or by their elected agents under a free electoral system. For Aristotle the underlying principle of democracy is freedom, since only in a democracy the citizens can have a share in freedom. In essence, he argues that this is what every democracy sho uld make its aim. There are two main aspects of freedom: being ruled and ruling in turn, since everyone is equal according to number, not merit, and to be able to live as one pleases. Democracy is indeed a set of ideas and principles about freedom, but it also consists of a set of practices and procedures that have taken a very long time to develop. In short, democracy is the institutionalisation of freedom. For this reason, it is possible to identify the fundamentals of constitutional government that any society must possess to be properly called democratic: human rights, and equality before the law. Therefore two principles that any definition of democracy incorporates are, namely that all citizens in a state are equal before the law, and they have equal access to power. A third common principle is that all citizens are promised certain legitimised freedoms and liberties, which are generally protected by a constitution or set of legally prescribed democratic practices. This essay will explore these defining elements of a democratic society as well as considering some of the problems faced by democratic institutions in trying to realise and sustain them. One of the most essential elements in defining democracy is self-rule. The word democracy originally came from the Greek demos and kratos, meaning that the people (demos) rule. The only possible object of rule is the people who form the state or political system being considered, hence, the rulers in a democracy, the people, are also the ruled. (HARRISON, 1993) Therefore democracy can be described as people ruling themselves. If one takes the meaning of democracy literally it is essentially the rule of the many. In its original context in the city state of ancient Greece, this rule was exercised directly by the citizens, also called direct democracy. The size and scale of modern states mean this method of rule is often considered impractical. In order to reach an appropriate balance between adequate participation and adequate efficiency and practicability, peoples rule is exercised indirectly through elected political leaders that represent peoples interests (representative democracy ). However, the idea that democratic institutions could accurately represent the people has been debated thoroughly. Some political thinkers, such as Rousseau and Mill, have suggested that some degree of socio-economic equality is needed to guarantee a reasonable level of political equality and therefore indispensable for a stable democracy. Held argued that it is extreme material poverty amongst the masses that renders genuine democracy impractical. On the other hand, Dahl noted that not just absolute poverty but also relative poverty poses a stumbling block for the realisation of political equality and therefore democracy. (SORENSEN, 1993) Rousseau believed that no one could be truly free who did not govern themselves. In his Du Contrat Social, he made fun of the English form of government by claiming that the English people, is free only during the election of Members of Parliament; as soon as the Members are elected, the people is enslaved. (ARBLASTER, 2002: 59), and for him sov ereignty belonged inalienably to the people, the problem was to decide how they could retain it and exercise it. (ARBLASTER, 2002: 60) On the other hand, the English philosopher John Locke defends representative democracy as be believes that men in civil society should enter a contract with their government and that citizens are bound to obey the law, while the government has the right to make laws and to defend the commonwealth from foreign injury all for the public good. (Holden Online) This leads to another defining element of democracy; the fundamental concept which secures the rights of people is the consent of the governed. In a democracy the people are sovereign and are therefore the highest form of political authority. This means the decisions made by the government ultimately have to be accepted by the people. For example, during elections, all the candidates have to campaign freely in order to educate people on their policies and allow them to scrutinise each candidates ideas. Lewis believes Consent is an essential element of democratic theory, but not a distinguishing element. The important test is not whether a major portion of the adult population accepts or approves a government or its policies, but the manner in which this consent is secured (LEWIS, 1940) Hence it is important that elected representatives at a national and local level should listen to the people and respond to their needs and suggestions. However, Hobbes mentions in his book Leviathan t hat in exchange for security, individuals give away their rights to an all powerful ruler (Hobbes, 1651). In the modern day, it is hard for governments to be truly democratic as, due to scale, it is unlikely that all the citizens will agree with all decisions made by the government. The active participation of people as citizens in political and civil life is also important when defining democracy. Active participation of the people is one of the basic requirements for a state to be democratic, and thus it is essential in defining democracy. The main role for citizens in a democracy is for them to participate in public life, hence the right to vote increases participation amongst citizens. Schumpter puts forward a minimalist interpretation of participation in arguing that democracy should only be a mechanism for choosing political leaders. Therefore participation would be limited to voting (SORENSEN, 1993). On the other hand the concept of democratic autonomy can be regarded as an important means of participation which calls for peoples direct involvement at a local level through community institutions. (HELD, 1996) In this sense, participation would incorporate the ability of citizens to directly influence decisions that affect their lives. Therefore, citizens should essentially attempt to gain an understanding of relevant public issues, and be willing to listen to these issues and the views of the government. Education is vital in democracy because, in order for people to fully participate, they have to be informed on the relevant topical issues of their state. It can be argued that democracy relies heavily on collective participation as democracy is stronger as a whole when people actively participate. Rousseau analysed the concept of collective participation when he spoke about the idea of the general will, the result when citizens make political decisions considering the good of society as a whole rather than the particular interests of individuals and groups. (Rousseau, 1762) The active participation of citizens in political and civil spheres of society is a vital element of democracy as, Individuals must be allowed a share in political control because to command obedience without free participation in control is to deny the right of all to self-development through responsibility for their own acts is to reduce men to the degrading irresponsibility of slaves or mules. (LEWIS, 1940) However, personal autonomy must be taken into account when defining democracy. This is because for a society to be democratic people should have the freedom to choose whether to participate in the political process or hand over the decision making to a person or group more qualified to make well informed political decisions, like an elected government. Furthermore, one of the most important defining elements of democracy is that the underlying right of the people is to have rights and more specifically the right of choice. The freedoms to take pleasure in ones own culture, without such minorities being scrutinized; the freedom to express opinions and decide what to do. The European Union believes that democracy and human rights are universal values that should be vigorously promoted around the world. They are integral to effective work on poverty alleviation and conflict prevention and resolution. (http://ec.europa.eu/europeaid/what/human-rights/index_en.htm) Demonstrations against government policies and decisions are also fine in true democracy, as long as the rights of others are taken into account, hence protests should be non-violent. There is now a general acceptance among the international community about the centrality of human rights and their importance to democracy, and Ghandi gave a useful definition of democracy when h e said, My notion of democracy is that under it the weakest should have the same opportunity as the strongest. The greatest protection of human rights emanates from a democratic framework grounded in the rule of law. The principle that all power ultimately rests with the people and must be exercised with their consent lies at the heart of democracy. Democracy is premised on the recognition and protection of peoples right to have a say in all decision making processes which is itself based on the central principle of equality of all human beings. The exercise of this fundamental political right requires a guarantee of crucial freedoms; to express ones thoughts and opinion without fear, to seek and receive information, to form associations and to assemble in a peaceful manner to discuss public affairs amongst others. Accommodation of the views of minorities is essential to prevent democracy from degenerating into despotism by the majority. The purpose of democracy like that of human r ights protection is to uphold the dignity of every individual and to ensure that the voices of the weakest are also heard. Its core values; freedom, equality, fraternity, accommodation of diversity and the assurance of justice underpin the norms of human rights as well. This leads on to another key element of democracy is majority rule and it is often described as a characteristic feature of democracy. The web definition of majority rule is, a decision rule that selects one of two alternatives, based on which has more than half the votes. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Majority_rule) An essential process in representative democracies is competitive elections, that are fair both substantively and procedurally. Furthermore, freedom of political expression, freedom of speech and freedom of the press are essential so that citizens are informed and able to vote in their personal interests. The election process of modern liberal democracies sees the party with the majority of votes leading the government and representing the people on a national scale. This is crucial when exploring democracy because, even though only a proportion of the population are in agreement with the government, it is the largest so the greatest number possible will be satisfied. Ho wever, without responsible government or constitutional protections of individual liberties from democratic power it is possible for dissenting individuals to be oppressed by the tyranny of the majority. So, therefore, a key element of any democracy is to ensure that minorities have the right to promote their representatives for election to government against the majority view. In conclusion, Winston Churchill once said, It has been said that democracy is the worst form of government except all the others that have been tried. Democracy is by no means a perfect system of government but many of its defining elements explored in this essay are vital. Indeed, as Arblaster tells us, democracy is still an unfinished business on the agenda of modern politics. (ARBLASTER, 2002: 10) and there much ground to be covered before we develop a fully democratic system. The original direct system of democracy from ancient Athens was possible down to the fact that the scale, in comparison to the present day, was far smaller. Therefore, it seems that presently, the closest we can get to proper democracy is a representative system with elected representatives making decisions and carrying out policies for the people. The nature of democracy has changed over time but the essential elements that make up its definition remain the same. To summarise, the three main elements of de mocracy are essentially participation, competition and liberties and perhaps what is most important to note is that the ideas behind democracy are based on, the hypothesis that power and the right to exercise power belongs to the people (Goodwin, 2007, p.288). The pillars of any modern day western liberal democracies are as follows; sovereignty of the people, government based upon consent of the governed, majority rule, minority rights, guarantee of basic human rights, free and fair elections, equality before the law and constitutional limits on government. A democratic society must incorporate these values as democracy is more than a set of constitutional rules and procedures that determine how a government functions. In a democracy, government is only one element coexisting in a social fabric of many and varied institutions, political parties, organisations, and associations.

Slavery In The United States Essays -- Slavery Essays

Throughout this course we learned about slavery and it's effects on our country and on African Americans. Slavery and racism is prevalent throughout the Americas before during and after Thomas Jefferson's presidency. Some people say that Jefferson did not really help stop any of the slavery in the United States. I feel very differently and I will explain why throughout this essay. Throughout this essay I will be explaining how views of race were changed in the United States after the presidency of Thomas Jefferson, and how the events of the Jeffersonian Era set the stage for race relations for the nineteenth century. "Nobody wishes more ardently to see an abolition, not only of the trade, but of the condition of slavery; and certainly, nobody will be more willing to encounter every sacrifice for that object." (Thomas Jefferson to Brissot de Warville, 1788. ME 6:428) Thomas Jefferson said this to Brissot de Warville in 1788 explaining his view on slavery in the United States. This was both positive and negative for Thomas Jefferson, in many ways. He was very positive in the abolition of slavery in the United States because Jefferson says he would do anything to stop slavery, and the slave trade in the States. Thomas Jefferson had a theory that the United States could use part of the coast of Africa, and it would be used as an establishment where African American who were in the states would be moved. Jefferson sees this as the best way to deal with the slavery issue. Jefferson thinks this is a good idea because when the African Americans got back to Africa they would take the things they learned w ile they were enslaved here and us them back in Africa. Thomas Jefferson saw this as retribution to the African Americans for all that t... ...nows that slavery would have ripped our great country into two sides, one for slavery and one against slavery. He knew that our county would not have survived it we had slavery in it and through his speech he shows it. Throughout this essay I explained the movie Amistad and how race relations were seen throughout the movie. This movie really helps people see how horrible it was for African Americans back in 1839-1842. The movie showed the bias that this country had against people from Africa and how horrible our country treated slaves. Through John Quince Adams speech it stated how the problem was going to be fixed, and that was through a civil war. Citations http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0118607/ http://www.digitalhistory.uh.edu/modules/jeffersonian_era/index.cfm http://etext.virginia.edu/jefferson/quotations/jeff1290.htm http://www.american.edu/TED/slave.htm

Good Morning Listeners

The term normalization Is the process whereby something or someone Is pushed to the edge of a group and counted not as Important. Normalization Ignores and does not consider or protect the needs of certain people who do not have the same advantage as others. By Ignoring those people they are not able to have the same rights and opportunities as others to participate and succeed in society. In Australia you could say we have marginal's groups such as Indigenous people, the deaf and blind and the mentally ill. People who have migrated to Australia may also be seen as marginalia due to their needs.The immigration history of Australia began with the initial human migration to the continent around 50,000 years ago when the ancestors of Australian Aborigines arrived on the continent from the islands of Maritime Southeast Asia and New Guiana. From the early 17th century onwards, the continent experienced the first coastal landings and exploration by European explorers. Permanent European se ttlement began in 1788 with the establishment of the British Crown colony of New South Wales. From the first contact with the migrants from Britain there was tension. Cultural differences led to exclusion and rejection.Then in 1901 the white Australia policy was introduced to prevent people of African, Asian or even Pacific descent from coming to Australia. However, after World War 2, Australia realized they needed to populate the country so increase security and develop as a nation so they embarked on an ambitious European Immigration program. The first poem that we will be analyzing Is The Unhappy Race by Codger Announced. Australian born poet, political activist, artist and educator. White fellow, you are the unhappy race. You alone have left nature and made civilized laws.You have enslaved yourselves as you enslaved the horse and other wild things. Why, white man? Your police lock up your tribe in houses with bars, We see poor women scrubbing floors of richer women. Why, white m an, why? You laugh at â€Å"poor Blackwell', you say we must be like you. You say we must leave the old freedom and leisure, We must be civilized and work for you. Why, white fellow? Leave us alone, we don't want your collars and ties, We don't need your routines and compulsions. We want the old freedom and Joy that all things have but you, Poor white man of the unhappy race.This small and simple but extremely poem describes This simple but extremely powerful poem in free verse describes Chaos's feelings towards those who do not accept him as â€Å"Australian†. He gives a new twist to the word â€Å"terrorists†. In his poem he sees the Anglo-Celtic Australians as people who strike â€Å"terror† in his heart. â€Å"They are everywhere†. He feels paranoid because at any time â€Å"they' can attack and wound him by saying something which reveals that â€Å"they' do not perceive him as a â€Å"real† Australian though he was born here and has lived h ere all his life.