Critical Self-Analysis Paper Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Critical Self-Analysis Paper - Essay Example I have been able to be more careful about the equation between the amount of calories I consume and the amount I spend (Hoeger and Hoeger 2012). I began this workout program in the recent past but I intend to continue to be a part of it in the future. I have already increased the number of times I visit the fitness center from three to five. Given the health record of my family, I believe that it is necessary for me to be a part of a strict regimen for fitness. My father does not smoke and his consumption of alcohol is limited; yet he suffers from high levels of blood sugar and cholesterol. My mother too suffers from high blood pressure. My workouts, as I mentioned, left me tired for a short duration, thereafter raising my energy levels. I found that this left my body in the perfect state for sleep as well. While my sleep used to be fitful earlier, I now have a good night’s sleep every day. The program has also streamlined my physical activity in such a way that I do not work out anytime near my sleep schedule. Maintaining the schedule of my natural body clock is something that this program has enabled me to do. It has at the same time, percolated down to my awareness of the necessity of sleep, something that work and stress often obfuscate (Hoeger and Hoeger 2012). My earlier lifestyle was more stress-filled leading to my inability to provide my body and mind with enough rest. This workout program has been very helpful in this regard. My diet before joining the workout program was not an unhealthy program. My family eats a diet comprising vegetables and adequate protein. Joining the program has thus, enabled the addition of exercise to a good balanced diet, thereby completing the two most important requisites of a healthy lifestyle. I have, however, reduced the intake of fats in my diet, restricting it to the consumption of healthy fats. The workout keeps me thirsty, enabling the consistent hydration of my body. As a result of all these changes, my

Communication & Cultural Studies Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Communication & Cultural Studies - Essay Example The Mexican people identify with their culture and every work that seems to acknowledge this fact is appreciated by everyone in the country. Diego Rivera had this in mind when doing his painting because it captures the attention citizens in respect to the cultural aspect. This paper under the guidance of Stuart Hall focuses on the cultural identity of the Mexican people and their nationalism as is reflected in Zapatista’s landscape painting. The paper also analyses the effects and operations of other aspects such as racism, and sexuality. The researcher also seeks to understand why the Mexican people appreciate their culture using works in reference to different cultural theories. Diego Rivera’s Zapatista’s Landscape panting symbolically translates the cultural identity of the Mexican people in form of a visual image. Diego uses images as a representational system that embarks on using sings and symbols to bring out meaning of what is happening during the post-revolutionary period in Mexico, the best way for people to understand and reflect. As we shall later see, these symbols give the Mexican people a sense of identity. The representations manifested by the painting are cultural products which are created within the contemporary Mexican society during the post-revolutionary period. The painting contains background information that helps provide insight about the complexity of the situation in Mexico. This instills the Mexican people of the need to uphold their nationalism and remain united to face the challenges the strike them. This painting serves to create awareness among the Mexican people and also enhance curiosity concerning the themes that the artist wants to communicate with his fellow countrymen. Diego Rivera clearly communicated his message to the people through his art works and creates the desire

Human Rights And Freedom In Modern Society

Human Rights And Freedom In Modern Society The question of human rights is not a new phenomenon in modern societies. It has always dominated the foundations of modern democracy since 17th century. The discovery of the concept of human rights has contributed to formation of many social and political movements. Many social philosophers have grappled with and discussed the meaning, scope and general application of human rights. Thomas Paine is one of those philosophers, who discussed the rights of human beings in defending the principles of French revolutions (Fink 41). This concept was further developed by Locke, who was preoccupied with the idea of liberalism, following the introduction of English revolutions (Fink 43). As described by Fink, Locke was of the opinion that all human beings have a right to life and ownership of property, an argument that led to introduction and implementation of liberalism political system that left a great human impact in North American and French political revolutions (46). Fink further explain s that the liberalism continued to expand with the social and scientific developments in Europe and North America (Fink 69). China is dominated by authoritarian governance that is characterized by dictatorship and abuse of human rights (Yang 18). The country does not hold elections for national leaders and it lacks freedom of worship. In addition, the country lacks freedom of the press, whereby the media and the internet are heavily censored (Yang 21). Furthermore, the government does not tolerate any form of opposition and criticism towards the leadership (Sen 21). On one hand, power can be used negatively by leaders to opress, manipulate and control people under their leadership, while on the other hand, it can used constructively to foster democracy and countrys socio- economic empowerment (Panu, SY309, 2011). Power has been used to create social identities and political movements, whereby a great number of political philosophies are based theoretical and practical frameworks of human rights, freedom of the press and freedom of religion (Panu, SY309, 2011). In addition, power and knowledge are two inseparable concepts because power is a useful tool in the understanding and application of knowledge (Panu, SY309, 2011). President Obamas observations about China clearly show the lack of freedom and the domineering political oppression faced by the people of China as a result of the authoritarian governance, despite the countrys economic growth. He points out that Chinas authoritarian governance contradicts values of the basic human rights and reiterates the need for Chinese government to promote the ideals of democracy based on the values of Western liberalism. Western liberalism system of governance allows the citizens to engage freely on issues affecting them in relation to governance. Its main strategy is not simply to repress dissent, desire or behavior but to promote the citizens engagement with social, political and democratization process (Panu, SY309, 2011). According to Merton, Western Liberalism is based on capitalist values originating from the American culture that promotes individualism, universalism, materialism and achievement (38). Chinas explosive economic growth has been attributed to introduction of capitalism in 1978, whereby the government aimed at eradicating poverty by abolishing communalism and embracing Western culture and modernization for the citizens to work hard in the belief that getting rich is glorious. However, the Chinas governing authorities have refused to embrace Western form of governance by holding on to power and denying citizens their human rights and freedom of expression (Yang 28). Stepan observes that the concept of freedom has been used both negatively and positively; arguing that in the positive sense, freedom is characterized by absence of coercion or unconstrained decisions (34). Furthermore, freedom should involve making decisions without being controlled by any form of external power or authority (Panu, SY309, 2011). Freedom in a liberal government is where citizens are allowed to make their decisions about normal conducts without being coerced by governing authorities. This disqualifies China from the list of liberal governments because decisions are made by government for citizens to implement without questioning (Panu, SY309, 2011). Furthermore, anyone opposing government policies in China is severely punished. By and large, the theoretical applications of power relations imply that power can be contested and resisted. Resistance of power is based on peoples perception and reactions to different rules, whereby in liberal societies like the U.S, public demonstrations, political activism and political struggles are allowed and accepted within the law (Stepan 34 ).Resistance to power in such countries can be done through the media discourses, public debates and political representations (Panu, SY309, 2011). Nevertheless, in countries characterized by authoritarian governance like China, resistance to power is viewed as a crime and it is totally unacceptable (Yang 28). Sen argues that democracy is a universal value but a contested concept, applied differently in various contexts (Sen 17). For a country like China to become democratic, it needs to undergo radical social transformation and reforms. Conclusion In conclusion, democracy is based on respect for human rights, freedom of press and access to information. In the U.S, it is based on liberalism, allowing the citizens to make decisions without the interference of state or authority figures. Liberal democracies embrace press release, public discourse and political struggle as a way of contesting power for their citizens. On the contrary, non-liberal countries like China view any attempt to resist power as a crime that is punishable by law. This calls for need for human rights activists and international organizations that embrace democracy to seek the way forward in creation of democratic governance for countries dominated by authoritarian leadership like China.

Stress Reduction - Music is the Best Medicine Essay -- Research Essays

Stress Reduction - Music is the Best Medicine Stress is something that I never really came across until college. In high school nothing really mattered to me, I was a very happy go lucky stress free child. I think I really took high school for granted though, I don’t think I took the time to sit down and think about my responsibilities and how they may affect my future. Instead I spent most of my time going out with friends after school and not coming home until late. My weekends were spent mostly drinking and sleeping. I guess I never had time for stress. I was always to busy having fun being a kid. As senior year came along I started dating my current girlfriend. She, unlike I, was very studious, had good grades, and was not much of a, â€Å"party on the weekend’s,† type of girl. I began to take plenty interest in her and we started hanging out a lot, almost to the point where I’d rarely ever see my friends. I began taking a lot more interest in my school work and even ran for student coun cil. As senior year went on I found my self getting much better grades than I had in the past, and I was starting to feel better about myself. I rarely drank on the weekends anymore and usually stayed in on school nights to do my homework. I also started to feel overwhelmed. It was a weird feeling like none other I felt before. This feeling was indeed stress. I started college in august of 2001. Ever since my first week here at IUP I’ve always felt stress; I can’t remember a time I haven’t. Living in the dorm was stressful enough not including classes, but it was also what gave me my chance to use my medicine, â€Å"music†. I found that every time I was stressed I could go to my computer and download a few songs, it was great. I pl... ...u can conclude that your hypothesis does in fact exist. College kids use music as an escape from reality because it makes them feel happy while in times of great physical and emotional stress. That’s definitely what I found out. I used the survey, interview and personal experience to help me prove this. Now, this is not to say that other things could not have been done. I could of used a experiment or a case study as well, which may have deemed different results. Of course my subjects were very limited being 10 but I also could have used larger amount of people. Maybe what I need to do now is research one of the facts I learned in order to narrow my thesis. The possibilities are endless; it’s all a matter of how interested I am in the subject to prove better, more accurate results, and also be able to see who else is prescribed to my musical stress medicine.

Nutritional Analysis Paper

WELLNESS-FOCUS NUTRITION Diet Analysis Paper Being an insulin dependent diabetic with Celiacs Disease has played the main role in dictating my eating patterns for the last six years. I walk a fine line of balancing blood glucose levels with diet and exercise. Many of the foods I eat are simply because I have to follow a gluten free diet to manage my Celiacs Disease. With all of the emerging publicity of gluten free diets people assume that eating gluten free is a healthy, weight friendly, approach to eating.I find that a naturally occurring gluten free diet lives up to many of those expectations, however when certain foods are replaced with a formulated gluten free version it then becomes a different story. When gluten free adaptations of grains in breads, pastas, cereals, etc. are added into my diet I find myself eating a much higher amount of carbohydrates and calories from starch. Many of the gluten free versions of whole grains are very dense in carbohydrates.The reason behind th e heightened calories and carbohydrates is because it usually takes multiple types of gluten free flours mixed together to substitute for one non gluten free all purpose flour. I anticipate my carbohydrate intake will be on the elevated side in the initial three day data, but I am consciously mindful to try to avoid too many gluten free replacements and instead opt for foods that are naturally gluten free. Other influences on my food choices would include my on the go lifestyle and my Diabetes. I have been a type one insulin dependent diabetic for twenty seven years.Over the last three decades the guidelines for a diabetics diet and target blood glucose range have changed drastically. Target blood glucose levels for â€Å"good† blood sugar control was 180 when I was first diagnosed. At the age of 12 I remember 150 being the upper limit. Now, at the age of 29, 120 is considered the highest â€Å"good† limit. These numbers hold relevance to me because they are how I dete rmine my insulin intake and diet adjustments. I have to count my carbohydrates in order to determine how much humalog to distribute. For every ten carbohydrates I consume I require one unit of insulin.These numbers all influence my food and beverage intake. My schedule is also a deciding factor of my diet. I begin my day at five a. m. every day and am headed to the gym by five thirty every morning. From there I head to school, where I am a full time student, until approximately 4 p. m. . I then drive to my job teaching competitive dance teams in Oxford until 9 p. m. . I get home, in Rochester, around 9:30 p. m. and begin my homework. My weekends are filled with competitions many times, which leaves me with very little time to grocery shop and prepare my meals in advance.I try the best I can to prepare my foods at home, but occasionally do resort to microwavable gluten free foods or salads from drive through windows. My expectations for my initial seven day data are that my levels wi ll show higher carbohydrates, but an adequate amount of vitamins and minerals. I do not anticipate my fat intake to be too high because I generally gravitate towards healthy fats. Fiber is definitely well incorporated in my diet through the variety of fruits, vegetables and skin on potatoes I eat. My vitamin D levels via food consumption may be low, but I am not concerned with it because I have been on a Dr. rescribed supplement for six years due to my Celiacs Disease. Based on the data collected in the first seven days of data recording , two of my initial hypothesis are correct. I have an elevated level of grains intake , which is shown on the my plate chart, and an extremely low level of vitamin D. During my second phase of dieting I will definitely be cautious of my starch intake in an attempt to lower it below the 112% of the recommended daily intake. A few things I am surprised to discover are that my vegetable intake and dairy intake are much lower than my recommended daily i ntake .I am also disappointed to find out that my dietary fiber, potassium and vitamin E levels are much lower than expected. Vitamins E and C work to stabilize free radicals and repair injury to the cell membrane and tissues. Thankfully I am consuming three times the amount of vitamin C recommended, however my vitamin E level is at a mere 17% of what it should be. Free radical damage could become quite significant if I continue to be so deficient in vitamin E. Good sources of vitamin E to incorporate into my diet are nuts, more spinach, peanut butter and avocado.Potassium is an essential electrolyte that affects the body’s fluid balances, nerve transmissions and muscle contractions. During dance I have noticed that lately, while pointing my toes, I have been experiencing foot cramping more times than not. The low levels of potassium I am consuming may be playing a role in that. Adding more fruits and vegetables to my diet is going to increase my vegetable intake as well as i ncrease my potassium and fiber levels. Fiber is important in aiding the digestive tract and supporting regular bowel movements. Soluble fiber is known to lower both blood cholesterol and glucose levels.Additionally to fruits and vegetables, adding more legumes to my diet is a great way to get more fiber. Upon completion of the second phase of data entry I had definitely made some effective changes. I increased my vegetable intake from 68% to 209% by adding vegetables in as snacks and incorporating them into as many meals as possible. The most notable effects of eating more vegetables are that my fiber level increased from a 50% to a 96% and my vitamin E from a 24% to a 35%. My folate levels went from a 48% to a 77% and my vitamin A levels went from a 82% to a 230%, both can be attributed to the consumption of more fruits and vegetables.I increased all of my B vitamins except for Thiamin, which respectively stayed the same. By adding more dairy through milk, cheese and yogurt I incre ased my calcium from a 70% to a 116%. My bones will surely thank me for that. Sodium increased from a 87% to a 128%. Ironically I increased my carbohydrate intake from a 55% to a 72%, yet reduced my grain intake from a 68% to a 52%. Adding a larger variety of fruits, dairy and vegetables to my diet was the key to lowering my grain intake while raising my carbohydrate intake.The grain intake on the my plate report is quite a fluctuation between the first and second phases, but I believe with continued monitoring and experimenting with interchanging foods that that can be balanced out. Another notable change is that I cut my fats by nearly half by eating more vegetables and low fat dairy items. I did increase my fruit intake slightly from a 74% to a 83%, but I think that overall I do consume an adequate amount of fruit regularly. My recommended daily caloric intake is 1,858. 11, however I fell short in both phases. I am comfortable at a 1200 calorie diet.I was full every day and could not eat any more without becoming uncomfortably full. Overall this diet analysis was very informative to what changes I can make in my life for a more balanced diet that is high in nutrients, vitamins and minerals. It was eye opening what positive changes adding more variety to my diet can actually make. My stress levels do fluctuate daily, however one stress factor that remains constant and I would rate at a 4 is my frustration with my lack of losing weight while giving a solid 100% effort over the last three months. I did not have any higher than usual stressful days.Mondays are always a higher stress day, simply because I have a more hectic schedule. I teach the largest number of children ages 7-18 dance on Mondays and having that many children for three hours does wear on my patience. I teach a total of 52 children that are split into three separate classes on Mondays. My schedule on Mondays, Tuesdays and Wednesdays has me up at 5a. m. , out the door at 5:45am and not returning home until 9 at night. I go directly from the gym to school to work on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesdays. That being said, I would rate my stress levels on Monday a 6, Tuesday a 5 and Wednesday a 4.Planning and packing meals, change of clothes, choreography, homework and medical supplies ahead of time makes a tremendous difference in how smoothly those three days run. My diabetes is a contributor to my daily stress factor. I maintain some sort of stress on a daily basis that is based around my blood sugar levels, balancing them and the effect a high or low has on my body both physically and mentally. Every single day, regardless of other influences or happenings, my stress is maintained at a level 2 strictly because of my health management.With my activity level being so high and my schedule being so demanding, I know that averaging four hours of sleep a night is not healthy or ideal. I will try to aim for seven hours of sleep a night in order to give my body the chance to rest and re cuperate that it needs. My ability to focus and process information at an optimal level should also improve with more sound sleep. Stress levels may not diminish, but they will more than likely lower for me with improved sleeping patterns. I feel confident in being able to recognize unhealthy patterns and rectify them the best I can while moving towards a healthier future.

A Belief Essay

â€Å"I believe in God, the Father Almighty†¦Ã¢â‚¬  starts the famous Catholic prayer, the Apostle’s Creed. And this is how I will also start this paper. I am not a very religious person but I do believe in a Supreme Being, in God, in an invisible an invincible hand that has created everything there is in on earth. This belief of mine is probably one of the most difficult things to prove since no one has ever actually seen this God I am pertaining to. However, a lot of people share my belief and a proof of this is the many religions and religious sects all over the world.The world kneels down and prays. Most of us pray for ourselves, our families, our relatives, our neighbors, even for people we do not know, and even for our enemies. We say our graces before and after meals; we close our eyes and talk to God before we rest for the night; and we blurt out God’s name when we are caught up in extremely tough situations. Why do we do these things? It’s as if p rayers are our e-mails, text messages, or phone calls to the God we cannot see but can only feel.We believe that somebody out or up there actually will read through our messages and reply or someone will answer our calls to listen to our pleas and eventually grant our wishes and fulfill our dreams. Even for not-so-religious or not-so-spiritual people, a simple â€Å"Thank God! † or â€Å"Oh my God! † is already an indirect or subtle acknowledgment that indeed there is a God. But where is God? Is he a male? Is she a female? Who knows? What I know is that when I was a kid, my Mom would always warn me to be good because someone up there in heaven is watching over my actions.So I came to believe that God lives in the heavens, smiling every time I am obedient but frowning in times I am naughty. As I grew older, I knew about the church, the sacred place for worship. It is here where people honor and praise God. A united community gathers and celebrates God’s goodness. Prayers and songs of praise fill the air in glorifying God’s name. But still, no physical being comes down from heaven to join in the holy celebration. Now that I am much wiser, I am told that I can find God in my fellowmen – in my so-called brothers and sisters.God can actually be anyone from my Dad, to the cab driver, to my teacher, to a beggar, to a waiter, to whomever who does good deeds. God can be in disguise, in nameless faces, in unfamiliar places, in unexpected circumstances. Wherever happiness and goodness exist, God definitely exists. The Bible, which has existed since time immemorial, is a living proof of God’s divine existence. Just like us today, the earliest people have felt God’s presence in their lives. However, just like us as well, they only knew God as the creator, the Supreme Being, the higher one.Nobody knew God’s ways – how he/she looks, how he/she speaks, his/her mannerisms or hobbies, what have you. Except probably for films and TV shows that portray God either as an old man in a white shining robe or just plain white light, speaking in a mellow commanding voice, we know nothing of his/her true nature. What we know are the marvelous wondrous things God has done for us. I believe God knows what is best for each one of us that’s why we call him/her the great provider who gives us only the things – material or non-material, which we truly need.God is the hand that showers us with blessings. God is the light that guides every step or endeavor we take. God is the teacher who teaches us valuable lessons to learn in life. God is the kind heart that forgives all our shortcomings. God is the perfect epitome of how we should all live our lives. In my life, I always adhere to â€Å"To see is to believe. † But in the case of believing in God, not everything I do not see is unbelievable. I believe in God and will continue to do so. Why? Just simply call it faith.