Theories in Sociology Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Theories in Sociology - Essay Example According to Herbert Spencer, in this world only those can continue to exist, who are the finest and frail creatures have no right for existence. He believes in the theory of survival of the fittest. Spenser has presented a social evolution theory that can be stated as society undergoes transformation and this transformation is for the betterment of society. This transformation will go on until the society creates a hindrance before it. Emile Durkheim presented the theory of collective conscience that states that the society exists in a collective form because of the collective thoughts, principles and objectives of its contributors. According to Durkheim, society is interdependent on its various components for its working similar to a machine, which has inter-reliant parts for successful running. According to Max Weber, a society is composed of diverse people who have varied objectives in their lives and it is only because of these varied objectives that society has many different aspects. The performances of people depend on their varied objectives. Weber identifies rational and irrational attitudes of people. Rational attitude is reasonable and sensible for the society while irrational attitude has no objective at its root and is insensible and unreasonable. According to Karl Marx, society is composed of two kinds of classes, which are working class and aristocratic class. Working class depends on aristocrats and lacks all kinds of possessions while aristocratic class possesses enough resources. It is only because of the difference of possession between these classes that creates social discrimination. Marx gives magnitude to authority and resourcefulness that form the aristocratic class. Sociology emerged as a discipline in the 18th century because of the works of Auguste Comte, Max Weber, Karl Marx and Herbert Spenser as they are believed to be the initiators of

Unique Perspective on Life by Entering the University Essay

Unique Perspective on Life by Entering the University - Essay Example I had to study. That first day in eighth grade I felt out of place in a strange country, away from the only home I had ever known, helplessly drowning in a sea of strangers speaking a strange language. I was tempted to quit and run back to Japan. I sat there, petrified, with no understanding of what was being said and no clue as to what was being studied. Fortunately, I was blessed with teachers that could sense my fear and uncertainty. With their help and patience, I was able to face my difficult situation and confront the struggle that lay ahead of me. My first challenge was learning the English language. I had the good fortune to attend Westfield High School in Virginia, which has an excellent English as a Second Language (ESL) program. This allowed me to learn English while maintaining an academic pace with my peers. Through hard work, diligence, and the demands of my teachers, I made steady progress and soon began to gain a working command of the English language. This ability opened up new doors for me and allowed me to read, communicate, and make friends. It was through these activities that I learned American customs and developed a greater appreciation of our society, holidays, politics, and history. I progressed through the ESL classes and soon joined my classmates in the regular English language courses. My classes were varied and included music, which is one of my main fascinations and avid interests. As time passed, I was no longer running from my schoolwork or escaping into music, I was pursuing academics. Thoughts of Japan began to fade and I no longer had the urge to run back to my familiar homeland. I was not only beginning to talk like an American, but I was beginning to feel like an American as well. As my vocabulary improved and my interests expanded, I was able to complete high school with an academic performance that allowed me to set my sights on higher education. Now, after two years at Northern Virginia Community College studying traditional academic subjects, I have once again set my goals to a higher standard. I have set my sights on a University degree and I am confident that I can excel in a rigorous academic program at that level.     

Research Paper on Paul Robeson Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

On Paul Robeson - Research Paper Example It was the impact of this social and political contribution of his parents that greatly influenced the mind of Paul when he was being nourished. His parents put their possible parental efforts to nurture Paul in a way that one day he would become a beacon of hope and symbol of justice not only for his African American fellows but also to those who suffer the tyranny of cruel rulers of that time. Consequently, Paul greatly learned and became an owner of remarkable multi-faceted personality. In the subsequent part of this essay, first, Paul Robeson’s birth, his childhood, early life and portion such as why should he be remembered are accounted for before the conclusion. Birth, early childhood and early life Paul LeRoy Bustill Robeson was born on April 9, 1898 in Princeton, New Jersey (Britannica.com, web). He was born the last of eight children in the Robeson family. His father, William Drew Robeson, was a runaway slave, fighting for the North in the era of Civil War in the peri od of 1861 to 1865. And for nineteen years, William remained pastor at church in New Jersey (Robeson, Jr. 2001, p.3).At that time, the South was fighting against the North over the secession. Additionally, his father chose his career in religion and received a degree in divinity from the Lincoln University and became pastor at a Presbyterian church in Princeton. Additionally, Paul’s mother, Anna Louisa Robeson, was a distinguished member of a Bustill family of Philadelphia, in which patriots of the Revolutionary War (1775-83), were included at the time when the America was fighting for their independence from the colonization of the Great Britain. In addition, Paul’s mother was also greatly involved in the social movements such as the Free African Society, developed to help runaway slaves. This entire background in which young Paul was being nurtured depicts the entire future of Paul. At the age of six, Paul lost his mother when she died. After her death, Paul’s father decided to move the remaining family to Somerville, New Jersey. At Somerville, young Paul received the supervision and nourishment from his father. At his childhood, Paul constantly remained in touch with his father, he regularly used to work with his father in church where he sang songs. Almost on each day of his childhood, Paul utilized his entire day with his father and it was his father’s way of life and his thinking that considerably played its role to determine the future direction of young Paul. Additionally, it was the role of William Drew Robeson that taught young Paul the lessons of hard work, fighting for beliefs, pursing valuable goals and helping others to achieve their cause. Political and social role Paul Robeson considerably played these two roles during the period of 1930s throughout the Europe and United States of America (notablebiographies.com, web). And during the period of 1930 to 1950, Paul spoke out against injustice (Freedomways, 1998, p.22). In 1934, Paul made the first trip to the Soviet Union where he spoke out against the rule of Adolf Hitler and his Nazi regime in Germany. In which, Paul severely criticized the radical and racial German army and its role against the Jews and other minorities living under the cruel rule of the Hitler. Additionally, Paul did not support the Italian invasion of Ethiopia and raised his voice against such tyranny at the hands of the Italian forces. In order to support the Ethiopians

Genetically modified organism Essay Example for Free

Genetically modified organism Essay The controversy over genetically modified (GM) food, also known as genetically modified organisms (GMOs), is viewed in diverse manners worldwide. Some individuals believe that GM food is more beneficial to society than not, while others bear strong beliefs that they may cause negative and harmful effects in the future. There are several reasons that could lead a person to believe that GM foods have a variety of advantages. However, there are various factors that could lead a person to believe otherwise as well. In the article entitled, â€Å"Counterpoint: Genetically Modified Foods Should be Carefully Regulated,† Sally Driscoll and David Morley discuss their opinions regarding GM food. Genetically modified foods are produced and sold nationwide. However, the United States government does not require GM food to be labeled as such. Therefore, when Americans purchase food, they are predominantly unaware of what they are buying and consuming. Everyone has their own opinion regarding this matter and whether or not the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) should regulate and identify GM food from the rest. Many argue that consumers should have the right to decide whether or not to purchase GM food as well. In order to do so, GM food would have to be regulated and labeled accordingly before placed on store shelves and sold to consumers (Driscoll Morley, 2011, p. 1). In the article entitled, â€Å"Genetically Modified Foods: An Overview,† written by Alex Rich and Tom Warhol, 92 percent of Americans feel GM ingredients in food products should be labeled. However, members of the FDA argue that GM food is indeed very similar to non- GM food and bears no potential risk. In other words, they feel labels are an unnecessary part of GM marketing (Rich Warhol, 2011, p. 2). Europe eventually made it illegal to sell GM food without labeling it. When labeling became mandatory, the sales of genetically modified food dropped drastically. Many Americans believe if this were to become mandated in the United States as well, many consumers (when afforded the opportunity to have a choice between the two) would chose food that does not contain GM ingredients. Since there is no way to differentiate between GM food and unaltered food, consumers that wish to steer clear of GM food purchase organic food (Driscoll Morley, 2011, p. 3). Research showed that several Americans do not have a side in the issue regarding GM foods. Studies showed the majority was actually â€Å"unaware of, an unconcerned about† GM cropping and marketing (Rich Warhol, 2011, p. 3). Critics of genetically modified food view this situation differently. They believe the primary reason Americans are so laid back with this issue is due to the fact that they are uninformed as to which products they purchase have been genetically modified (Rich Warhol, 2011, p. 4). In other words, how can Americans have an opinion on a topic they know nothing about and have never been educated on? Food is an essential and significant part of everyday life. For thousands of years, humans have been consuming the same types of food. However, genetics have become more advanced throughout the years, allowing scientists to alter plants and animals. Traditionally, animals are the subject of scientific research â€Å"but it is now humans who are being treated as guinea pigs, every time they are subjected to GM meats and other products. † In 2008, the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) deemed it safe for humans to consume cloned animals, while the USDA recommended that GM foods stay off the market indefinitely. However, there is no scientific evidence to prove that GM food will bear any negative long-term effects (Driscoll Morley, 2011, p. 2). Environmentally, some farmers believe herbicide and insecticide-engineered plants are not as beneficial to the environment as they are made out to be. This method discontinues weeds and/or insects temperamentally because it allows them to become immune to crops. However, because they build up a resistance to crops, additional pesticide spraying is needed regardless (Driscoll Morley, 2011, p. 4). Cross pollination is an area of major concern as well. For crops being grown outdoors, cross pollination can occur from the wind or insects. Because cross pollination is an event in which farmers have little or no control over, those who attempt to grow organic food should reconsider their techniques and produce their crops strictly indoors (Driscoll Morley, 2011, p. 3). This is the only true way to prevent these unwanted mishaps. In the essay entitled, â€Å"A Cure for World Hunger or ‘Frankenfood,’† Justin Petersen discusses the benefits and negative aspects of GM food. His argument solely depends upon the situation given at hand. If GM food can prevent malnourishment in some countries, why not produce mass amounts of GM food? However, why are Americans not demanding stricter regulations and research studies so they may decide for themselves whether or not they want to put these types of food into their bodies? These are some of the questions he attempts to answer and he also tries to inform his readers of both the negative and positive outlooks on GM food (Veit Gould, 2011, p. 519). For nearly twenty years, scientists have argued that GM crops can assist in the prevention and elimination of citizens starving in countries where the majority of the population is in poverty. Because GM food can withstand pests, diseases, and droughts, costs can be reduced and larger yields of crops can be harvested. This is one way to alleviate the amount of malnourished people residing in less fortunate countries. According to Petersen, in the year 2000, â€Å"more than 800 million people throughout the world were starving or malnourished, while five million children died each year as a direct result. † Although it is not guaranteed to end world hunger completely and indefinitely, GM technology is continuing to grow and advance (Veit Gould, 2011, p. 510). If utilized properly in underdeveloped countries for people in great need, GM food would terminate a significant amount of starving and suffering families throughout the world. The FDA does not test food for safety before it is placed on store shelves. Instead, they allow the companies themselves to test their own products. Many companies, however, voluntarily test their products before placing them on the market. There are allergens that are introduced into some genetically modified foods in certain companies but since they are not tested by the FDA, they cannot be placed on the labels. Therefore, buyers of the products are uninformed of the ingredients in their food, making those with allergies more susceptible to allergic reactions. As Petersen said, â€Å"That just underscores why it’s so important that the government require companies to test genetically engineered foods for new allergens (Veit Gould, 2011, p. 515). † Several people must consume certain specific GM products in order for a company to be absolutely certain of which proteins will and will not result in an allergic reaction. A recommendation made for the FDA is to â€Å"require companies to test every newly introduced protein to see if it resembles known food allergens (Veit Gould, 2011, p. 516). † Whether or not society is for or against GM food, it will always be an issue of growing concern. As advances in technology progress and people become more open minded about the situation, laws will either be created to provide certain regulations or people will just have to accept the fact that GM food is not labeled. If it is that much of a concern to an individual, organic food is always an option. While fortunate countries may be primarily concerned with government regulations, it would overall, as in Petersen’s essay, be a very beneficial idea for the less fortunate countries since they literally have people starving to death. Petersen’s essay best depicted the overall views of both sides. Several factors made it possible to decipher for oneself what is adequate. References Driscoll, S. , Morley, D. C. (2011). Counterpoint: Genetically Modified Foods Should be Carefully Regulated, 1-4. Retrieved from EBSCOhost Database. Rich, A. K. , Warhol, T. (2011). Genetically Modified Foods: An Overview, 1-4. Retrieved from EBSCOhost Database. Veit, R. , Gould, C. (2010). Argument: Reading, Writing, and Research. Writing, Reading, Research. Boston, MA: Wadsworth.

Views of transcendentalism versus puritanism Essay Example for Free

Views of transcendentalism versus puritanism Essay The Puritans see God as mysteriously involved in the acts of the universe, whereas the transcendentalists think God is connected to mankind through nature and intuition. The outlook on Puritan writing is that their style tends to be plain and introspective. Transcendentalist writing shows how nature and feelings are triumphant over logic and rationality. In contrast to the plain style of Puritan writing, Jonathan Edwards frequently strikes his audience with powerful words in his literature. He exemplifies this style in Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God but still shows the lowliness of human beings in relation to Gods power, another Puritan trait. In transcendentalist writing, the spiritual and ideal worlds are revealed through the physical facts of the natural world. A writer who uses transcendental techniques is Ralph Waldo Emerson. The work written by Emerson reflecting Transcendentalism is called Nature. The name itself portrays the piece as transcendental, but Emerson uses the forest and its components as symbols of the spiritual world. In comparison, both the Puritans and the Transcendentalists focus on their own perceptions of the world and human existence. Edwards sermon called Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God reiterates the fact that God has more power than man. Wickedness and sin, as Edwards describes, leads man closer and closer into the depths of hell. Mankind is weak and helpless if God is provoked. There is no want of power in God to cast wicked men into hell at any moment. Mens hands cannot be strong when God rises up, (Jonathan Edwards). Edwards uses the phrase Mens hands cannot be strong when God rises up to evidently make his point. His intention is to say that God and his powers should not be taken lightly. No matter how strong the will of man, God has the final say in it all. There is, however, a twist to his intention. Edwards directs the wrath of God mainly upon those who sin and that He [God] is not only able to cast wicked men into hell, but he can most easily do it, (Jonathan Edwards). By using the word wicked, Edwards hints at how man acts in order to provoke God. Sin leads towards mankinds wickedness, therefore angering God. His wrath may come in different ways. Instead of throwing the inhabitants of Earth directly into the fiery depths of hell, He will let mankind destroy itself and withhold His retribution. The wrath of God is like great waters that are dammed for the present; they increase more and more, and rise higher and higher the floods of Gods vengeance have been withheld; but your guilt in the meantime is constantly increasing, and you are everyday treasuring up more wrath, (Jonathan Edwards). Obviously, Edwards uses the water held behind a dam as a symbol. The dam represents Gods hand, and the water is His wrath. Comparing this, Edwards tries to explain that the longer the water is held back, the more force it will have when the dam will no longer support it; the longer God puts off judgment of mans sin, the more powerful His punishment. The sermon Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God is a great example of the Puritan belief of society. A man is ether part of the elect, basically chosen to go to heaven, or of the damned that are sent to hell at Gods force. On the softer side of Gods presence, Transcendentalism takes place. Their view is that intuition and nature as a whole is more powerful than intellect. In Emersons Nature, there is a strong sense of God being present through the wilderness and the natural way of life. All the parts incessantly work into each others hands for the profit of man. The wind sows the seed; the sun evaporates the sea; the wind blows the vapor to the field; the ice, on the other side of the planet, condenses rain on this; the rain feeds the plant; the plant feeds the animal; and thus the endless circulations of the divine charity nourish man, (Ralph Waldo Emerson). What Emerson is trying to get through to his audience is that God works in a process for the good of mankind. When he tells about how the wind, sun, rain, and plant, and how each work together in a cycle to support nature, he is comparing their jobs to God nourishing man. Emerson is also trying to say that without nature and its course, man would not survive. The Transcendentalists believe that the physical facts of the natural world are a doorway to the spiritual and ideal world; an apparent example is that nature always wears the colors of the spirit, (Emerson, Chapter: Nature). Emerson considers God to be present within physical properties of nature, in this case, color. The use of the word always suggests that God and the spiritual world are visible through nature to man no matter the condition. Conversely, do these relations of God and nature apply in any way to man? When a man is described as a particle of God, (Emerson, Ch: Nature), he is a piece of God and the spiritual world. There is a connection between man and nature because of Gods visibility through the environment. Ideally, the Transcendentalists show that man is not only a part of God, but also in nature. People living in the Puritan and Transcendental periods of time believed that God was connected to humanity and the life surrounding it; also, God had the power to reveal himself to mankind and even take control, making Puritanism and Transcendentalism equivalent. Texts like Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God and Nature are good examples of Puritan and Transcendental writing because they exemplify the characteristics and beliefs of each era. Elements in transcendentalism are knowledge and spiritual existence in nature, whereas Puritanism consists of discipline and God revealed through the inner self of man. Whether it be for God to cast wicked men into hell at any moment, (Edwards), or divine charity [to] nourish man, (Emerson), God was presented as a power both to reprimand and nurture civilization.

Models Regarding the Emergence of Bipedalism

Models Regarding the Emergence of Bipedalism There are over ten hypotheses as to how and why bipedalism evolved in humans and when. Bipedalism evolved well before the large human brain or the development of stone tools. Bipedal specializations are found in australopithecus fossils from 4.2-3.9 million years ago. The different hypotheses are not necessarily mutually exclusive and a number of selective forces may have acted together to lead to human bipedalism. Possible reasons for the evolution of human bipedalism include freeing the hands for tool use and carrying, sexual dimorphism in food gathering, changes in climate and habitat (from jungle to savanna) and to reduce the amount of skin exposed to the tropical sun. Another explanation is the mixture of savanna and scattered forests forced the first humans to travel between clusters of trees and bipedalism offered greater efficiency for long-distance travel between these clusters than knuckle-walking quadrupedism. Step One: Tool Use Evidence for use of stone tools first came from Olduvai Gorge in Tanzania. These tools were found in the lowest levels dating to nearly 2.0 million years ago. In southern Ethiopia, stone tools dating to as early as 2.3 to 2.4 million years ago have been discovered. Someone or something has modified the. There are different kinds of tools as well. The overall evidence suggests that between 2.3 and 2.5 million years ago hominids began to use stone materials as tools. The first stone tools were probably made for two purposes: cutting something and pounding on something. Obviously you can cut and pound plant materials or use stone tools to dig for roots and such things. However, it is far more likely that some hominids began to cut hides and meat and chop on bones to extract protein rich marrow. Of all of the tools made, the most important was probably the sharp flake that provided the edge by which one could cut even the toughest hides. It is probably unfortunate that the first stone to ol tradition, the Oldowan Tool Tradition, is defined as a core-chopper tradition. Cores are the means to detach flakes and it is these that were so vital to early hominid stone tool users. Step Two: Bigger Brains About one million years ago, hominoid mammals started to exhibit rational thought, a mental process that represented an important advance over simple natural and emotional reactions. Rational thought or is the conscious ability to add sensory input with memory by the use of logical thought processes. Also, morality emerged, which was reliant on the emergence of intelligence.Modern humans (homo sapiens) appeared approximately 160,000 years ago. And until about 12,000 years ago, when agriculture developed, they lived in small groups as hunters and gatherers. They had large brains that had evolved like everything else because it gave the individual and the group, as well as the individual within the group, a competitive advantage: Language allowed better communication within the group and higher forms of thinking. The passing on of knowledge from generation to generation, culture, evolved simultaneously or sometime later. The transfer of more complex information, ideas and concepts from one individual to another, or to a group, was probably the single most advantageous evolutionary adaptation for species preservation. The advantage of learning from passed on knowledge is it allowed foresight and planning. This gave them the ability to adapt to various environments and move to the top of the food chain. With these developments, social survival skills within the group became more important, for the socially fittest produced more offspring. Hence, the larger-brain-yielding genes were more successfully passed on. Step Three: Thermoregulatory Advantages Wheelers thermoregulatory model proposes, as the selective pressure, bipedalism conferring reduction in heat gain and facilitation of heat dissipation. Bipedalism raises the mean body surface higher above the ground, where more favorable wind speeds and temperatures prevail. Greater wind flow translates to higher convective heat loss. Bipedalism reduces evaporative cooling requirements and conserves body water. Vertical orientation also minimizes direct solar exposure during the time of day when the solar radiation is most intense. This basically says that by being upright, hominids were exposed less to harmful elements yet gained the benefits of others. Step Four: Travel For Food More specific causes for the adoption of upright posture could be things such as carrying, display or warning, new feeding adaptations, tools, or a combination of these. A conservative view is that the hominid ancestor maintained the typical hominoid foraging regime in a Miocene habitat in which food was becoming more and more widely dispersed and required greater terrestrial travel to harvest. Bipedalism could easily have been the mode of terrestrial travel for this tree adapted hominoid, as it is in all of the modern species of lesser apes, since modern hominoids are equally efficient as bipeds or as quadrupeds at normal speeds. Given the added advantage of free forelimbs, bipedalism for a small hominoid seems likely. The adoption of bipedalism by a Miocene hominoid need not be taken as such an unlikely occurrence, especially given the fact that all lesser apes today are habitual bipeds and bipedalism can easily be adopted by modern chimpanzees in the wild. Step Five: Avoid Predators During the terminal phase of the Miocene era, or around five million years ago, the climate began to shift from wet subtropical to much more arid, grassland conditions. Over the next three million years, the heavy forest cover gradually died out and tree based hominid ancestors were forced down onto ground. There, they faced the most brutal lineup of predators in the world, including lions, leopards, hyenas, and possibly wild dogs in large packs. Survival in such environments is limited to either predator avoidance or running and hominids such as A.afarensis would have been vulnerable due to lack of swift movements necessary to escape predators. Bipedalism also exposed early hominids to predators by making them upright. They were forced to rely on binocular vision for predatory avoidance, but in cases where a predator was not seen, they were easy prey for ambush hunters. Also, their plant food diet increased their exposure to predators. The combination of other factors such as smalle r body size, and lack of sharp teeth or claws also increased vulnerability of hominids to this fate. Only a few fossilised examples are available; according to the taphonomic studies of Hart and Sussman(2005), 5% of A. afarensis fossils show evidence of having been eaten. Conclusion The emergence of hominids become bipedal has without question was one of the biggest factors in the development of civilization. If our early ancestors had never left the trees, we would not be where we are today, or they wouldnt have developed the way they did. By becoming bipedal it allowed them to travel greater distances and use their bodies in different ways. The bigger brain and the use of tools really allowed hominids to further the range of their existence and become more well rounded. There really cannot be enough said about the emergence of bipedalism. Civilization is directly a result of everything this ability allowed hominids to do.

Racism In America :: essays research papers

There is surely no nation in the world that holds "racism" in greater horror than does the United States. Compared to other kinds of offenses, it is thought to be somehow more reprehensible. The press and public have become so used to tales of murder, rape, robbery, and arson, that any but the most spectacular crimes are shrugged off as part of the inevitable texture of American life. "Racism" is never shrugged off. For example, when a White Georgetown Law School student reported earlier this year that black students are not as qualified as White students, it set off a booming, national controversy about "racism." If the student had merely murdered someone he would have attracted far less attention and criticism. Racism is, indeed, the national obsession. Universities are on full alert for it, newspapers and politicians denounce it, churches preach against it, America is said to be racked with it, but just what is racism? Dictionaries are not much help in understanding what is meant by the word. They usually define it as the belief that one's own ethnic stock is superior to others, or as the belief that culture and behavior are rooted in race. When Americans speak of racism they mean a great deal more than this. Nevertheless, the dictionary definition of racism is a clue to understanding what Americans do mean. A peculiarly American meaning derives from the current dogma that all ethnic stocks are equal. Despite clear evidence to the contrary, all races have been declared to be equally talented and hard- working, and anyone who questions the dogma is thought to be not merely wrong but evil. The dogma has logical consequences that are profoundly important. If blacks, for example, are equal to Whites in every way, what accounts for their poverty, criminality, and dissipation? Since any theory of racial differences has been outlawed, the only possible explanation for black failure is White racism. And since blacks are markedly poor, crime-prone, and dissipated, America must be racked with pervasive racism. Nothing else could be keeping them in such an abject state. All public discourse on race today is locked into this rigid logic. Any explanation for black failure that does not depend on White wickedness threatens to veer off into the forbidden territory of racial differences. Thus, even if today's Whites can find in their hearts no desire to oppress blacks, yesterday's Whites must have oppressed them.