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Nursing Care of Pediatric Cranioplasty Patients after Traumatic Brain Injury

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Nursing Care of Pediatric Cranioplasty Patients after Traumatic Brain Injury

Hospitals are associated with pain, illness, and death. Patients, as well as families, go through so much pain both emotionally and physically as they seek treatment for their sickness, some of which are life-altering. Children also suffer through this pain and have to be cared for more closely as they do not understand what is happening to them. Traumatic brain injury (TBI), as the name suggests, involves trauma to the head that causes swelling of the brain. When the brain swells, it is necessary to intervene medically to give the brain more space for it to expand. Rachel McCormick delves into the matter of nursing care of pediatric patients after surgical intervention due to TBI. The article makes for an informative and insightful read, both for medical practitioners as well as lay people.

The author begins with an explaining the meanings of the terms what cranioplasty and craniectomy. This is an important starting point as many people do not understand what this means. The background section gives the statistics of pediatric patients that suffered from traumatic brain injury. The accompanying table enables the reader to see the causes of TBI by percentages (McCormick 216). The analysis by table allows the reader to understand the gravity of the matter and understand that the author’s opinion is backed by facts. Logos has been employed in this section by citing facts and figures.

When discussing the importance of craniectomy and cranioplasty, the author’s tone is direct and succinct. She gives details on the measures that are taken to minimize secondary brain injury including “elevating the head of the bed to promote drainage of cerebral spinal fluid, intravenous hypertonic saline or manitol to shift fluid from the intracranial space into the intravascular space, sedation to decrease the oxygen demands of the brain…” (McCormick 215)The author is unbiased and also goes ahead to outline the risks associated with cranioplasties, including that children had a higher success rate as compared to adults. All through the article, the author backs up the information with research that has been carried out previously by other researchers. Such fact-checking ensures that the reader gets an unprejudiced view of the facts relating to pediatric patients with traumatic brain injury. This is an application of ethos where the author convinces the author of her credibility. She goes out of her way to ensure that her information is factual.

The grouping of the paper into sections helps the reader to understand the subject matter without getting mixed up. The author of the article is quite elaborative and gives explanations for each section clearly and directly. While most of the terms used are medical, a layperson reading the report will have an interest in learning the new terminologies and also be curious to learn more about the subject matter. The use of tables and figures breaks the monotony of reading and enables the reader to quickly skim through the statistics and get a sense of the statistics before they finish reading the article. Visual representation piques the reader’s interest even more, and the delivery of the desired information is more straightforward.

The author discusses the care that pediatric patients have to receive in detail and employs pathos to present a more accurate picture. It is evident that traumatic brain injury is a painful and dangerous occurrence that must be dealt with quickly. The surgical interventions are already quite delicate and operating on children makes it even more so. The author gives an example of a 28-year-old patient who had undergone cranioplasty and the significant improvements to her health throughout months (219). This is under the monitoring of benefits in which nurses are tasked with closely monitoring and examining the patients to observe their improvements after a cranioplasty.

On the side of the complications, the author retains her neutral tone. She gives some of the symptoms that are a sign of complications following surgery (McCormick 219). Precautions towards avoiding some of the complications such as hematoma and hydrocephalus. To conclude her article, the author emphasizes the `critical role that nurses have to play in the pediatric care of patients who have undergone cranioplasty. She author says that “Nurses are highly skilled in monitoring benefits and complications in children recovering from cranioplasty in acute care hospitals, rehabilitation settings, and outpatient clinics, and are essential members of the interdisciplinary team.” (McCormick 220)

The article is generally very informative, and the reader is left with far more knowledge of cranioplasties and craniectomies than they had before reading it. The information given about the causes of traumatic brain injury can help those caring for children avoid such occurrences that are preventable. The conclusion of the article is a fitting end to a well-written piece with the author asserting that there still needs to be more research into the subject of both the benefits and complications of a cranioplasty. Research also needs to be done in the area of nursing care. “Comprehensive data on cranioplasty procedures and outcomes can help guide future research.” Even with this conclusion, the publishing of this article is a step in the right direction for the future of research in cranioplasties as well as craniectomies.

Work Cited

McCormick, Rachel. “Nursing Care of Pediatric Cranioplasty Patients after Traumatic Brain Injury: Monitoring Benefits and Complications.” Pediatric Nursing 44.5 (2018): 215-221.

Obama Presidency Policies

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Obama Presidency Policies

President Barack Obama won the 2018 election for many reasons, including failures and issues from the Bush presidency before him. President Bush’s presidency was marked by several occurrences, the most prominent being the war with Iraq and Afghanistan. The United States declared war on these countries in the Middle East in 2001 after the September 11th attacks on the country by terrorists. Retaliation was swift and brutal with the US sending military troops to counter the terror threat masterminds in Iraq and Afghanistan. From the onset, Obama had been against launching a full-on war with the Middle Eastern countries. He declared that the war would be a dumb one and would result in more problems than solutions. As one of his campaign pledges, Obama promised to withdraw American troops from Iraq within six months. In addition to this, he vowed to close down the Guantanamo Bay prison that was used for torture of terror suspects (White). Many Americans believed that the war on Iraq had cost the country a lot in the period leading up to the 2008 election, and Obama appealed to them.

The issue from the Bush presidency that helped Obama win the 2008 presidential election was healthcare. For a long time, the United States had been the only industrialized first world country without comprehensive public health insurance for its citizens. As of 2008, more than 48 million Americans had no health insurance (White), and this was a significant policy area during the presidential campaign. President Obama offered a new healthcare plan famously referred to as Obama care that would ensure that all Americans had access to health insurance. For this reason, President Obama won over many American voters.

Works Cited

White, Deborah. “5 Reasons Why Obama Won the 2008 U.S. Presidential Election.” ThoughtCo. 25 May 2019. Retrieved from https://www.thoughtco.com/why-obama-won-2008-3325497

Oedipus’ tragic flaw

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Oedipus’ tragic flaw

Oedipus is the story of a tragic hero by the same name who tries to run away from his fate but fails miserably. At birth, a prophecy regarding Oedipus was made, that he would kill his parents. His father was King Laius of Thebes and his mother, Queen Jocasta. Upon hearing the fatal prophecy, his mother abandoned him by the roadside where he was picked by a shepherd who took him to Corinth where he was raised by King Polybus and his wife Queen Merope as their son. Oedipus heard rumors that he was not their true son and consulted the oracle which informed him that he was destined to kill his father and afterward marry his mother. Shocked, Oedipus fled to Thebes where, unbeknownst to him, the prophecy would be fulfilled. Oedipus tried to do the right thing throughout the story, but in the end, he realizes that he cannot run from his fate (Knox). Oedipus’ tragic flaw is his desire to escape from his fate which ultimately led him to his downfall.

Oedipus is the protagonist in “Oedipus Rex.” The audience of the play forms a strong connection to him. He is seen as a wise and virtuous leader who leads his people in the right way. In Corinth, Oedipus was very uncomfortable with the thought that he may not be the real son to King Polybus. To allay his fears, he decided to consult the oracle at Delphi. The oracle did not give him a direct answer on his parentage, but instead gave him the more distressing news that his father would die by his hand and that he would go on to marry his mother ((Feng). Oedipus assumed that Polybus and Merope must be his parents. To avert the tragedy, he ran away from Corinth and made his way to Thebes. While on his way there, he met a band of travelers who tried to run him off the road. He killed them in self-defense except for one.

Thebes was taken hostage by a Sphinx and Oedipus is the only one who could solve her riddle. For freeing the kingdom, he was crowned king after the death of King Laius. A plague struck the country, and he sent Creon to consult the oracle at Delphi. The oracle explained that the death of King Laius caused the epidemic and it would be eliminated by getting justice for the murdered king. Oedipus embarked on this task, asking Prophet Tiresias to identify the murderer. Tiresias says that Oedipus is the killer and that he is both brother and father to his children. Stunned, Oedipus accuses Tiresias of colluding with Creon to dethrone him (Knox).

Jocasta describes the death of Laius to Oedipus, who realizes that the events sound familiar. Jocasta asks Oedipus to stop looking into the matter, but Oedipus would not stop. Soon after this, a messenger arrived from Corinth to inform Oedipus of King Polybus’ death. The messenger was the shepherd who received Oedipus from Laius’ herdsman and took him to Polybus. Oedipus summoned the herdsman who corroborates the messenger’s story and confirms that King Laius was indeed Oedipus’ father.

The prophecy about Oedipus had come true; he is the one that killed his father while trying to escape the prophecy. He had married his mother, Jocasta. Jocasta hanged herself on learning the truth and Oedipus stabbed his eyes with pins from her dress. Oedipus had left Corinth since he wanted to avoid killing his parents whom he thought to be Polybus and Merope. However, his efforts to escape his fate were what led him to fulfill the prophecy in the end.

Works Cited

Knox, Bernard. Oedipus at Thebes: Sophocles’ tragic hero and his time. Yale University Press, 1998.

Feng, Chunfen. “Oedipus–A Victim of Human Free Will.” (2017).

The concept of real tides

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Tides

The concept of real tides

In a traditional sense, tides refer to the periodical rise and fall of water levels in the oceans and seas. Geologists, oceanographers and other scientists within earth sciences studied this phenomenon based on a simplified model compared to the actual model. Their studies revealed that tides resulted from the gravitational forces of three main celestial bodies; the sun, earth and moon. The moon’s gravity differential field acting upon the earth’s surface was discovered to be the principal tide generating force. Denny and Paine say it is responsible for the two equipotent bulges at opposite ends of the earth surface, which represent high tides due to centrifugal forces and the moon’s gravitational attraction (2). The areas remaining opposite areas represent low tides. This simplified model is however based on the equilibrium theory of tides.

Real tides are however much more complicated. The equilibrium theory of tides assumes that the sea surface that would be in equilibrium with the tide generating forces is elevated, and as such the earth surface is covered with water. The water would then respond instantaneously to these forces. Real tides on the other hand form on the real earth surface which is uneven in many respects. The ocean basins in reality have a very complex topographical bottom and coastal borderlines (Wright, Colling, and Parks 56). Real tides are the outcome of the interference of multiple tidal components by constructive and destructive waves resulting in a mixed wave. Real tides occur with the interference of semidiurnal tides and diurnal tides making them more complex. They are a representation of what actually takes place unlike the equilibrium theory of tides.

The main factors of real tides

In their research, Pham and Martin concluded that there are a numerous factors that directly influence real tides (67). The first factor that directly impacts the movement of water is the position of the sun and the moon. The moon is much closer to the earth compared to the sun. Its proximity and gravity differential field aggregated with that of the sun determine the timing and amplitude of real tides. The second factor is the topographical nature and features of the particular earth surface. In this case mainly land masses, ocean bed and coastal features. The third is the earth’s declination. The earth is tilted at 23°27’ vertically off, this coupled with the earth’s position relative to the position of the sun and moon as the earth revolves around the sun, the moon around the earth and both earth and moon rotating on their own axis (Pham and Martin 73).

Another important factor is the basin oscillation of the particular water body. Pham and Martin add that all water bodies, based on their size and shape, have a natural oscillation period. In any large water body such as oceans, there exists a number of different oscillating basins which affect real tide movement and wave formation, which are based on the degree of resonance with the tidal curvature (81). Cairns for example, is the most northerly part of Queensland, Austria. It is renowned for its frequent tropical cyclones. Most recently, Cyclone Yasi in 2011 resulted in the formation of waves up to 12 meters high at the coast of Cairns. These are as a result of the earth’s rotation and the subsequent blowing wind in the southern hemisphere (Tang, Yong Ming, et al. 18). The moon’s position relative to that of Cairns at the time played a big part. The Coriolis Effect of the earth’s rotation coupled with its inclination and the tide generating forces relative to the position of Cairns are also major determinant factors in the tidal formation in Cairns.

Works Cited

Denny, Mark W., and Robert T. Paine. “Celestial mechanics, sea-level changes, and intertidal ecology.” The Biological Bulletin 194.2 (1998): 108-115.

Pham, C., and Vanessa A. Martin. “Tidal current turbine demonstration farm in Paimpol-Brehat (Brittany): tidal characterization and energy yield evaluation with Telemac.” Proceedings of the 8th European Wave and Tidal Energy Conference, Uppsala, Sweden. 2009.

Tang, Yong Ming, et al. “A numerical study of storm surges and tides, with application to the North Queensland coast.” Journal of physical oceanography 26.12 (1996): 2700-2711.

Wright, John, Angela Colling, and Dave Park, eds. Waves, tides and shallow-water processes. Vol. 4. Butterworth-Heinemann, 1999.

The Apology by Plato

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The Apology

The Apology by Plato is a narrative of the notorious speaker, Socrates’ speech made at the trial when the states convicted him of not acknowledging the gods. According to the charges, Socrates corrupted the youths through controversial theories and teachings that went contrary to their deity. Additionally, he taught some unlawful ideas that leave an adverse effect on both societies and individuals. Socrates was found guilty of manipulating the young people of Athens and forming false believe in his supernatural deities as opposed to state gods. The term apology originated from the Greek word “apologia,” which means a speech made in defense. In the narrative “The Apology,” Socrates does not necessarily apologize for his actions, but rather defending himself.

For the vast part of the apology, Socrates communicates in a manner that is somewhat very plain and conversational. Socrates warned that he was not accustomed to court system regularities, and instead, he was to apply honesty and directness, just like his character. In his defense, Socrates pointed out that a prophecy orchestrated his behavior by the oracle taunting him as the noblest of all men (Reeve 4). He acknowledges that he has little or no enlightenment when it comes to the world, and at the same time, concluding that he is wiser than other men. It brings about contradiction since how can one say that he is smarter than all people but still so damn and unknowledgeable about the world? It does not make sense. Socrates was determined to spread his peculiar wisdom, but how was he going to execute that? As such, he took the issue of questioning the supposed “wise” men as his moral obligation, not to mention exposing their intellect as negligence. Such charismatic activities won the hearts of many youths in Athens. At the same time, the issue sparked anger and hatred for individuals; he was humiliating.

Philosophy about dialect when an individual puts forward an argument and others might critique, improve the idea, or agree to it. Counter-arguments challenge opinions, and as such, the presupposed “wise” men should have put forward a way to defend their philosophical ideas as opposed to prosecuting someone who was trying to resist their ideologies. Socrates pleads for his defense, making an excellent counter fact against the charges of manipulating the minds of young people of Athens. First, Socrates insists that Meletus, the plaintiff, cares nothing concerning the young people of Athens, not to mention that he lacks real enlightenment on the subject (Reeve 4). Second, Socrates points out that if indeed he was influencing the youth wrongfully, it was unintentional, and that he was standing trials as an innocent person. Lastly, Socrates disregarded Meletus claims that they lacked supporting information or evidence and that there was not even a single witness to affirm Socrates’ charges. The three were fundamental arguments for Socrates’ defense.

Meletus was confronted by the question that if there exists a single person who can choose to be harmed in his/her rightful mind, and Meletus was quick to answer, “of course not” (Hackforth 56). Still, Meletus held that Socrates was deliberately corrupting the youths of Athens. Socrates understands that wicked people are prone to causing harm to both strangers and colleagues. As such, he keeps’ strong ties with his followers and does not intend to harm himself. Hence, Socrates has no intentions or can never have ulterior motives toward the youth. Socrates further added that if he did not intend to manipulate the youth of Athens, then, Meletus charges could not be of any significant value as Socrates charges will be termed as an involuntary misdemeanor.

Usually, when individuals unwillingly engage in crimes, they do not stand trials in the court; instead, they are given sage to give light on the errors of their ways. Why is Socrates standing trials in the court? Perhaps, someone should have tried providing insights to Socrates, and things would have been different, or he could have ceased “manipulating” the youth. Socrates even goes on highlighting that there was nobody who showed any concerns in trying to guide him on his alleged lousy demeanor. So, it still does not appeal as significantly as to why he was brought to court. The court is meant for individuals who are guilty of their crimes as opposed to those who require enlightenment. Throughout Socrates and Meletus’ conversation, it was so explicit and direct, more importantly, intended to humiliate Meletus instead of arriving at the truth (Danzig 12).

Following the case ruling that Socrates was found guilty of the offence, he was requested to suggest a penalty. Socrates jokingly proposes to receive an honor of great meal for being such a fundamental asset to the state services as the basis for what he deserved. Socrates seriously disregarded any attempt to put him in jail or exile, instead of considering to pay a fine. The prosecutor could not buy any of his proposals, and he was sentenced to death. It was pretty much unfair to sentence him to death because there was no evidence, but the law ruled in favor of the people who felt like Socrates was posing a threat to them and their religion. Even so, he accepted the death sentence, and he believed that nobody understands what happens after death. As such, Socrates faced his death with absolute courage as he did not know what death felt like. Socrates could not hesitate to hit out at all jurymen who voted against him, stating that they were more determined to silence him instead of listening to him. He finished by telling them that they have caused more harm to themselves than they have harmed him.

Works Cited

Danzig, Gabriel. “Apologizing for Socrates: Plato and Xenophon on Socrates’ behavior in court.” Transactions of the American Philological Association. The Johns Hopkins University Press, 2003.

Hackforth, Reginald. The composition of Plato’s Apology. Cambridge University Press, 2014.

Reeve, Charles David Chanel. Socrates in the Apology: an essay on Plato’s Apology of Socrates. Hackett Publishing, 1989.

Urban Planning.

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Urban Planning.

Urban planning is both a technical and political process that is concerned with the development and planning of land use, environment use and its protection. It also deals with the growth and functioning of urban cities and towns and development of infrastructures such as transport, communication and distribution networks. It is also primarily concerned with the planning of resources such as water and air. A few basic principles such as development densities, architecture, sustainability, planning, mission and goals of the urban development are crucial when it comes to urban planning.

Savannah is a coastal city in the state of Georgia that is separated from South Carolina by the Savannah River. It is a city with well-manicured parks, non-modern architecture with a historic district filled cobblestoned squares and parks. Most of the trees found in the district are oak trees covered with Spanish moss and at the centre of the district is the scenic landmark which is the Gothic Revival Cathedral of Saint John the Baptist. The city is also known for the presence of horse-drawn carriages.

The initial urban planning of Savannah was done by Oglethorpe in the 1730’s. The Oglethorpe plan was seen to embrace all major themes of enlightenment from science, humanism and even the secular government and would have neither aristocracy nor slavery (Conzen, Michael P., pg 17). The plan also stood out because it embodied the social, military, environmental and philosophical needs of the citizens. The plan was seen to make unique use of squares that led to the city having a street pattern that creates a rhythm of strategically placed openings that gives the town its unique sense of space and solidity in the township.

The basic design unit for the town was the ward. Each ward consists of four residential blocks and four civic blocks arranged around a centre square. Each residential block had ten houses and had a square mile of land for farming. The original numbers of wards laid out in Savannah were six which are now twenty-four (Reps, John William, pg 247). The city, however, does have a modern street grid outside the historic district which also follows the original system of a right of way for gardens, farms and villages that make up the city of Savannah. The streets allowed uninterrupted movement in traffic and the internal streets were designed to be pedestrian friendly. To this day, Savannah retains much of the Oglethorpe original plan and by this has been a reason for increased tourism in the city.

The fact that Savannah still retains its historic, unique city plan is seen to have a negative impact on the neighbourhood in low-income households as gentrification has been rampant leading to displacement especially the low-income households. This can be attributed to the presence of the historical preservation movement encouraging people to return to historic districts. The refurbishing and refining of these houses are leading to an increase in the rent and property taxes of the very houses and thus increasing the rate of displacements for households that can’t seem to afford the high prices. Rehabilitation of the historic houses has led to a movement of high-income earners into these houses as they have ease of access to transport facilities and most end up being nearer their places of work. Rehabilitating and refurbishing the houses into their historic form has led to an increase of tourism in the area which has ended up helping to boost the economy of the town.

The neighbourhood has utilised the land space it has to accommodate ease of transport for both motorists and pedestrians by the strategically placed streets and inner streets. The availability of the kitchen gardens in the historic homes has also helped in the utilisation of land for subsistence agriculture and beautification purposes. The plan and design of the city will not change anytime soon, and this can be attributed to the presence of the Historic Preservation Movement tasked with the role of preserving the historic homes and refurbishing. The areas surrounding Savannah, however, are likely to change to mitigate the negative effects gentrification is having on the city (Levy, John M. , pg 24). There is a task force in place that is dealing with the planning of land use, zoning, affordable housing and development to revitalise and stimulate residents living in the vulnerable neighbourhoods of Savannah. This is also to reduce the negative effects that have been brought about by gentrification.

With the current planning regulations that require urban areas to be zoned, have affordable housing, economic development, education, training and redevelopment programs and economic land use Savannah will end up being a more favorable place to live as it will have integrated both the historic designs and planning and the metropolitan and urban development and planning designs. This will help retain the already existing tourism industry in the city as well as accommodate the low-income households who will not have to lose their houses due to high rent charges and property taxes that are imposed when the area turns to be a boom regarding investments.

Works Cited.

Conzen, Michael P. “The study of urban form in the United States.” Urban Morphology 5.1 (2001): 3-14.

Levy, John M. Contemporary urban planning. Taylor & Francis, 2016.

Reps, John William. The making of urban America: A history of city planning in the United States. Princeton University Press, 1965.

Libyan Islamic Fighting Group

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Libyan Islamic Fighting Group

Since the overthrowing of Gaddafi’s government in 2011, the country faced years of civil war. The Libyan Islamic Fighting Group spearheaded protests against Gaddafi’s government. The group had been in existence since the 1990s and was identified by the United Nations as a terrorist group (Bhardwaj). This group wanted to overthrow Gaddafi and turn Libya into a state under Islamic law. Gaddafi had been in power for 42 years and kept a tight rein on his government, which was ranked among the most corrupt in the world. The United States wanted to see Gaddafi ousted, so on this point their quest was aligned with that of the Libyan Islamic Fighting Group.

Encouraged by the Arab Spring in other North African countries such as Tunisia and Egypt, the rebels marched across the country in protest of Gaddafi. While most of the protesters were Libyan citizens, a significant number of them were from the Libyan Islamic Fighting Group and the United States had full knowledge of this fact. From Wiki Leaks documents in 2005, the leader of the rebels Abu Sufian Ibrahim Ahmed Hamuda Bin Qumu was a member of al-Qaeda (Bhardwaj). It is apparent that the U.S. government was aware of the fact the rebellion in Libya was led by terrorist factions yet did nothing since they too wanted to see Gaddafi ousted from office.

Works Cited

Bhardwaj, Maya. “Development of conflict in Arab Spring Libya and Syria: From revolution to civil war.” Washington University International Review 1.1 (2012): 76-97..

Specific Prevention Intervention

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Article Summary: Internet-Based Personalized Feedback to Reduce 21st-Birthday Drinking: A Randomized Controlled Trial of an Event-Specific Prevention Intervention

Many young people take their twenty-first birthday celebrations very seriously. Twenty-one is the legal age of drinking and those celebrating their birthdays take advantage of this day to celebrate their freedom. This has led to incidents such as deaths and hospitalizations. Parents, communities and hospital administrators have raised concern over this rite of passage that is most common in college students.

Some of the efforts that have been used previously to prevent this rite of twenty-first birthday drinking include mailed birthday cards containing normative intervention. However, this was found to have limited effectiveness. Providing information such as avoiding drinking games, limiting the number of drinks among other measures was found to reduce extreme drinking. These interventions were found to be effective in cases where the student planned to drink heavily on their twenty-first birthday (Neighbors, et al.). The study is aimed at evaluating the efficacy of web-based interventions.

Participants were selected from large universities, totaling 295 in number. Students were sent emails requesting their participation one week before their twenty-first birthdays. They were screened based on their intention to consume alcohol. The participants were contacted the day before their birthdays and four days after with a link to the web personalized feedback. The control group was only contacted four days after but not before their twenty-first birthdays. The participants were given a list of behaviors to reduce extreme drinking including spacing drinks and alternating between alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages. Hierarchal multiple regression was used to measure the efficacy of the intervention (Neighbors, et al.). From the results, the blood alcohol levels intentions were highly correlated with the levels reached on the twenty-first birthday drinking spree. The measures in the study include evaluating the efficacy of the intervention, perceived norms, and protective behaviors.

From the discussion of the findings, the web-based interventions were effective in reducing the blood alcohol levels of college students during their twenty-first birthdays. However, the limits were still over the legal limit of .08. Students who intended to reach a higher level, however, reached a lower threshold than they earlier planned. The web-based personalized interventions are useful because the drinking behavior of college students is not stable but fluctuates a lot. These interventions should be focused on those at the highest risk of extreme drinking. The main advantage of this study is that it is supported by empirical evidence. Students who had the intention to drink more were the most responsive to the web-based intervention.

Web-based interventions are much cheaper and consume less time. However, personalized feedback for twenty-first birthday drinking would be more effective if presented in person. An example of this is a hard copy of the interventions that would allow the students turning twenty-one to spend more time on the questionnaire. The study faced several limitations, the first of which is the low rate of participation. Abstainers and extreme drinkers are likely not to participate in the surveys (Neighbors,et al.). The second limitation is inconsistency in assessing the intentions of the strategy and the content provided in the intervention. Besides, self-reported levels of blood alcohol content became more inaccurate as the levels of intoxication increased. Students with higher levels may have reported lower levels. Third, the feedback programming did not allow the researchers to assess how long the participants viewed each page. Despite these limitations, the study makes a significant contribution to the analysis of the efficacy of preventive measures on extreme drinking among college students. Inclusion of norms and analysis of blood alcohol levels should be the main focus of future studies.

Works Cited

Neighbors, Clayton, et al. “Internet-based personalized feedback to reduce 21st-birthday drinking: A randomized controlled trial of an event-specific prevention intervention.” Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology 77.1 (2009): 51.

Assigned Film Analysis

Assigned Film Analysis: 30 points

While watching your film, please make sure to focus on the particular storytelling methods used by the filmmakers to convey both the film’s theme and the film’s portrayal of the mass media world.

You may use the following questions to frame the structure of your paper, but your paper should be in an essay format, MLA Style. Make sure you answer each question completely (i.e. answer each part of the question), and make sure to cite any sources you used to answer these questions. This assignment will count as an individual grade and is worth up to 30 points (not counting any bonus points). I expect at least two pages, but keep it less than three max.

What is the film’s story? What is the film all about? Was the story easy to follow?

What is the film’s theme? Remember that theme is the unifying idea that permeates the film via dialogue, plot, visuals, et al.

How did the director visualize the theme to the audience? How did you know what the theme was? What did the director do from a filmmaking standpoint?

What did you think of the film’s portrayal of the particular “mass media” involved? What were your expectations of that portrayal going into the film?

What did you learn about the “mass media” portrayed in the film that you didn’t already know?

What do you think of that “mass media” now after watching your assigned film?

Rubric Element Description Exceeds

Expectations Meets

Expectations Does Not Meet

Expectations

Length and formatting of essay Student essay is minimum of two pages double-spaced.

The essay is formatted correctly with paragraph l indentations, sufficient detail and examples provided and proper use of punctuation and grammar. 10

Student’s essay meets or exceeds the minimum of two pages double-spaced.

Entire essay is formatted correctly, Exemplary detail and many examples provided. Always uses proper grammar and punctuation. 8

Student’s essay meets the minimum two pages. Most of the essay is formatted correctly. Sufficient detail and some examples provided. Sometimes uses proper grammar and punctuation 0-5

Student’s essay does not meet the minimum two pages. Only parts of the essay are formatted correctly. Insufficient detail and few to no examples provided. Rarely uses proper grammar and punctuation.

Questions Answered Each of the 6 questions is answered thoroughly using a minimum of three sentences. Essay includes identification of each of the 5 Ws and H. Essay includes examples, quotes and paraphrases with correct attribution of sources. 10

Student’s essay addressed each of the 6 questions thoroughly using a minimum of three sentences for each question. Essay includes identification of each of the each of the 5 Ws and H.

Essay includes exemplary examples, quotes and paraphrases. Always uses correct attribution. 8

Student’s essay addresses most questions thoroughly using a minimum of three sentences.

Essay includes use of most of the 5 Ws and H.

Essay includes sufficient examples, quotes and paraphrases with occasional correct attribution of sources. 0-5

Student’s essay addresses only some of the questions,

using a minimum of three sentences. Essay includes few to none of the 5 Ws and H. Insufficient use of examples, quotes and paraphrases. Rarely uses correct attribution of sources.

Analysis of film The student essay demonstrates detailed analysis, with examples from their assigned film, through the application of the five media literacy concepts and/or questions. 10

Student’s essay demonstrates exemplary detailed analysis, with many examples of their assigned film, through the application of each of the five media literacy concepts and/or questions. 8

Student’s essay demonstrates sufficiently detailed analysis, with some examples of their assigned film, through the application of most of the five media literacy concepts and/or questions. 0-5

Student’s essay demonstrates insufficiently detailed analysis, with

few to no examples of their assigned film, through the application of few to none of the five media literacy concepts and/or questions.

Benefits of Facebook

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Social network is a term used to describe a system composed of individuals or organizations with a common interest of friendship, communication, advertisement, sharing knowledge and networking. Some of the present social networks include Twitter, MySpace, LinkedIn and Facebook among others. Facebook forms one of the major social networks in the world with over 800 million subscribers. Facebook’s operations are primarily dependent on the internet, where it offers the platform on which it operates (Cragun et al. 83).

Facebook’s operation is straightforward. One only needs to provide a valid email address for registration in order to create an account. One then fills in personal details such as where one lives, works or attended school. The network uses to notify users of any activities taking place in their accounts such as new messages, friend requests, comments or latest news around the globe. People can share their ideas, feelings or recent happenings in their lives. Other people get to comment and make their views on the person’s status update.

Joining Facebook has various benefits. It connects people by enhancing communication as it offers means of keeping in touch through means such as messages, pictures and chatting. It also gives people a chance to market their businesses, keep in touch with their clients and make new ones (Cragun et al. 83). Facebook is also a form of entertainment where one can upload photos, music and videos. They can also download and listen to music, view their friend’s photos and use different applications such as ‘hug-me’.

One does not always gain by joining Facebook. By joining Facebook, one loses privacy as they share personal information publicly with different people. People may want to intrude one’s life so endangering it. Facebook has an impact on people’s syntax and language since it distorts it. The language used in Facebook is redundant and uses the short-form of words such as ‘c u’ to mean see you, ‘l8er’ to mean later, among other forms of words. This can have a negative impact on one’s verbal and written communication.

Work Cited

Cragun, Ryan, Cragun, Deborah, et al. Introduction to Sociology. Alabama: Blacksleet River (n.d.). Print.