Hebrew Bible Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Hebrew Bible - Essay Example According to the research findings, it can, therefore, be said that the chapters 5 to 12 of the Hebrew Bible are mainly concerned with the record of miraculous happenings that result because of the pharaoh time and again not keeping his promise to Moses to grant them the freedom to pray to Jehovah in the wilderness. It is his pride and unbelief that leads to the occurrence of the ten plagues that visit the Egyptians one after the other and culminate in the death of the firstborn among the Egyptians but still the pharaoh is unrepentant and according to Jehovah is destined to the destruction of his people and himself. His wise men and sorcerers enact the miracles that are performed by Moses but even they are fully convinced that they are not dealing with some odd magician, but instead some supernatural power at work on behalf of Moses. They are convinced that the power or force that backs Moses is beyond them, and they stand no chance but the pharaoh’s heart and mind by the know ledge of the Lord God are hardened against the truth and the righteous. Faith, especially in the Hebraic and the Islamic tradition, is pure and simple blind belief in Jehovah and Allah, so either you possess it or you do not there are no two opinions about it. But for the sake of the unbeliever Jehovah manifests himself through the miracles to open up the eyes of the unbeliever but all to no avail as far as the pharaoh is concerned. The Twelfth chapter is concerned about the feast of Passover and how to avoid the wrath of Jehovah. Historical Background: It has been a topic of heated debate that the account of Bible is historically accurate. This is the traditional view. The opposing view is that the text is not historically correct, not because Bible is a holy book but exactly for that fact because Bible is a religious testament, concerned more with leading the men to good and righteousness and abstain from evil. The historical background is that for four hundred and thirty years th e Israelites were oppressed and kept in utter bondage. The miraculous events that take place, though cannot be verified what can be easily sifted through the annals of another historical record that have been recovered, discovered and unearthed by the researchers. A very important testament, that verifies the miraculous happenings recorded in the Hebrew Bible, of an age and time, specifically of Exodus is (revealed word of Allah), that is the Holy Quran. The story narrated in the Hebrew Bible and the Holy Quran agrees most of the important instances. The whole Surah Al-Baqarah (this title literary translated into English as â€Å"The Cow†), the longest chapter of the â€Å"Holy Quran†, accurately records the history and the travails of â€Å"Bani-Israel† (the Israelites) including the events mentioned in Exodus. It is mentioned on many occasions in the Holy Quran that the Israelites are the most beloved people of Lord God or more accurately Allah. According to à ¢â‚¬Å"Historiography and Self-definition: Josephus, Luke-Acts and Apologetic Historiography†, an authoritative book on the Exodus considers and proves it as â€Å"general history† as opposed to a monograph or antiquarian history.

Soy Food and Semen Quality Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Soy Food and Semen Quality - Essay Example This paper also provides brief summaries of the articles for easy analysis and understanding of the subject matter. The article reports the inverse relationship between the consumption of soy products and isoflavone compounds with respect to sperm count. It states the findings of the original research that men who consumes soy food at an average of one-half serving per day will likely to have lower concentrations of sperm cells. It also highlights that the effects of soy products on sperm productions are heightened on people who are obese or overweight. The article reports on the results of the experiments on animals and points out that there is insufficient evidence that will prove the effects on human reproduction at this point. It also mentions the 15 soy-based foods that were used by Dr Jorge Chavarro and his colleagues on their research: "tofu, tempeh, soy sausages, bacon, burgers and mince, soy milk, cheese, yoghurt and ice cream, and soy products such as roasted nuts, drinks, powders and energy bars."(1) It also relays the conclusion of the research which stated that the inverse relationsh ip between the soy products and sperm count is more evident on people with higher sperm concentration and who are overweight. B. Research Article: Soy food and isoflavone intake in relation to semen quality parameters among men from an infertility clinic Previous researches prior to their study proved the adverse effects of high concentrations of isoflavone compounds which are found on soy-based products on animals but data on its effects on human beings are limited. Chavarro et al. (2) test this relationship on human beings through semen analysis. The semen samples came from 99 qualified male donors and where analyzed at Massachusetts General Hospital Fertility Center. These men were also asked to provide information on their diet involving the 15 soy foods during their last 3 months of consumption. For the statistical analysis, they used linear regression on the male consumption of soy foods and quantile regression for the sperm concentration distribution. The results show that there is an inverse relationship with the soy food consumption and sperm concentration. The results were more seen on the 90th and 75th percentile or those with higher sperm concentrations and on the obese males. The authors conclude that higher intakes of s oy foods and soy isoflavones are related with lower sperm concentrations among males. III. ASSESSMENT For the truthfulness of the media report based on the original research article, the news article has reported the relationship between intakes of soy products with sperm concentrations similar with the findings of the research. The report has cited the important facts in the research study that will prove the linkage of soy foods and sperm concentrations. However, the research article did not focus much on the actual serving size of the soy products but more on the amount of soy food intakes. Although the survey that they used on getting

Living in the promised land Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Living in the promised land - Essay Example In an interview segment one, Grace Kapuro a physician from Philippines living in America gives a viably different approach to life in America. She alluded that in Philippines she had an easy life compared to the life in America. She claimed that life in America could be described as busy life where one has to do all chores compared to Philippines where she could get house maids. The adjustment in language, foods, dressing and customs as she puts it, was not as easy but was worthwhile. In the career field in Philippines she was a doctor but had to do some academic adjustments to fit if the medical field in America which later became very fulfilling (Luis canjura.segment 1) According to Kapuro the Philams (Philipine Americans) were different from the Philippino immigrants in some aspect of maintaining culture. The immigrants had been able to maintain their culture but the American born Philippines had already been integrated into the American culture. After the adjustments the physician said America is the country filled with milk and honey (Luis canjura.segment 1) Benito Vergara argues that relocating to the United States for their own individual interest is a betrayal to the Philippines because they are only immigrating for their own material success. Grace grabbed the opportunity and struggled the first few years she settled in. Immigrating to America, Grace saw it as an opportunity because she wanted to fulfill her American dream (Luis canjura.segment 2). After settling in America, Grace petitioned for her husband later her father. For the majority of Filipinos, it is true that they immigrate to America for their financial requirements which according to Grace seemed different in the early years of living in America. Homesickness was a common feeling in America, based on the fact that America had own cultures, food, language and the busy life in the city (Vergers, 46). Grace stated that she attended public school where the ratio in the classroom

Earth’s hydrologic cycle Essay Example for Free

Earth’s hydrologic cycle Essay The chemical quality of precipitation in the earth’s hydrologic cycle is significantly altered upon contact with the forest canopy. These chemical changes are traceable to natural biological processes and from polluted airsheds which affects precipitation chemistry. What happens to the water when it reaches solid earth shall be viewed by the chemical changes that occur on the different stages of the hydrologic cycle. Earth’s hydrologic cycle Hydrologic cycle is the process where water moves from and to the earth through the atmosphere over time and space scales powered mainly by the solar energy and gravity. Solar energy drives the evaporation process effectively transforming water from liquid to gas which results to cloud formation through saturation (Davie Davie 2002). The degree of equilibrium then is the maximum point of saturation in any mixed atmosphere of vapor and air. When the air cools below the dew point, condensation of water vapor begins. The air at higher altitude is less dense producing lesser heat and lesser air pressure giving out cooler air. Condensation is the process through which water vapor changes to its liquid state again in the form of dew, smoke or fog. Precipitation occurs when clouds can no longer hold the heavy water vapor and it falls back to the earth in the form rain or snow and other forms. The distribution of precipitation on earth depends on the patterns of rising and falling air currents. Precipitation fills oceans, river, vegetation, land and other surfaces. Part of the water reaching the ground surface is highly dependent on turbulent transport from the atmosphere to the canopy on its composition, structure and properties. Rainwater picks up dust particles, plant seeds, bacteria, dissolved gases and ionizing radiation as it falls. It also accumulates with chemical substances like sulfur, nitrogen, oxygen, carbon dioxide and ammonia upon hitting the ground. Aerosols, pesticides and fertilizers, sewage and industrial wastes which were introduced into the ground also mix with the infiltrating ground water. If precipitation continues, complete saturation of the soil zone occurs. This allows the water to continue to descend until it merges into a zone of dense rock. Density is directly proportional on its ability to allow penetration of water. Around these rocks are unsaturated and permeable materials called gravel, shale or sand. The boundary between the unsaturated and the water bearing rocks is defined as the water table. Water table could be hundreds of meters below the water surface where sometimes water rises without pumping in the form of springs. Drilling an artesian well will cause the water to gush to the surface until the pressure is equalized. Pumping may be necessary to lift water to the surface. Ground water is largest source of fresh water but is very difficult to track. Ground water well is good if the aquifer water level that supplies it stays the same. Cone of depression occurs when ground water is pumped from an aquifer through a well lowering its water level (Strobel n. d. ). A gradient then occurs producing a flow from the surrounding aquifer into the well decreasing water levels around the well. This results in a conical shaped depression that seems to radiate away from the well continuously expanding in a radial fashion until a point of equilibrium occurs. This plays an important role when planning well placements and deciding pumping rates including distances between wells. References Davie, T. Davie, T. (2002). Fundamentals of hydrology. New York, NY: Routledge. Strobel, M. (n. d. ). Let’s talk water cone of depression. Retrieved April 28, 2008 Website: http://nevada. usgs. gov/barcass/articles/Ely27. pdf

Class Emergence in the Industrial Revolution

Class Emergence in the Industrial Revolution The three main classes emerged in Industrial Revolution During eighteenth to nineteenth century, Britain started their first Industrial Revolution, which brought Britain’s social class into a different stage, and caused the emergence of the new classes, such as middle class. Before the Industrial Revolution, people’s standard of living and working conditions were very simple. Once the revolution started, people changed their work places from farms to factories and moved to urban cities in search of new job. Machines made goods replaced ones that had been done by hand. In a spite of that, the social classes in Britain also altered, which developed three different classes, includes upper class, middle class and working class. The emergence of these three classes followed by the growth of industry, which brought more people to an upper stage, as people’s desire rose, increasing of Capitalism also brought wealth to the rich people, finally, the improvement of education helped increase the population in each class. As the growth of industry boosted rapidly in the society, it created many alternative effects on the social classes, such as the gap between rich and poor. Before the Industrial Revolution started, the Agricultural Revolution caused the appearance of new machines and new farming techniques, which replaced lots of farmer’s works. Those unexpected changes brought many problems between workers and government. Workers form union and stroke, many new machines and factories got ruined at the time, but their strike didn’t take a long time, then government claimed that their movements or meeting were illegal. However, the brutal reality didn’t stand on the same side with those workers, and push the poor move from countryside to the urban, and searching for new jobs (Clifford). Most of the increasing population in the city was form by those who work in the factories, which also became as the working class (Butler). For this reason, more people started to work at factories instead of being a farmer. As the demanded of goods are rising, the needs of factories also became essential at that period, and more and more factories were opened (European industrialization). Due to most of the landlords, bankers and factory owners, their life condition became better than what they used to have, they got better education and health care, some of them were even wealthier than the nobles, which caused the emergence of the new middle class (European Industrialization). The growth of industry brought a great leap of new social classes, the existence of the working class and new middle class appeared. While the growth of factories is keep rising, people started to think about their own business instead of rely on the government, which increased capitalism, and drew the emergence of the new middle class. Before the Industrial Revolution, Britain was ruling under a feudalism system. With the society of feudalism, people got financial assistance from the government, because they only needed to have the ability to carry their own family, which also means that people should return their extra production or surplus to the government (Nairn). Since the Industrial Revolution started, the economy in Britain’s higher classes had a big improvement. With the growth of industry, the invention of new machines and technology allowed many landlord or owners got materials easier from the colonies, also, able to sell out their products in an easier and faster way. Those who were rich landlords and factory owners keep their wealthy and became upper middle class (Lobley). As the ability of fac tory production became better, people’s desire had become stronger, some of the factory or mill owners planned for start their own business, and became the one that taking control of the economy. The idea of the new political form capitalism affected people to repeal feudalism, and overthrew the upper class’s power (Poynton). Not everything came that successful, some of people that used to be working class became landless during the revolution, their life had changed, but not as successful as other classes did. The increasing taxes of goods or not being able to paid the fine to tenant caused them became vagabonds, looking for goods on the streets. Some of them were lucky, kept worked as a labor in the factory, which also became as the working class (Poynton). The increasing of the capitalism courage more merchants and factory owners became upper class, and also helped some landless became as workers in factories. The living standard of society rose by the improvement of the education, which allowed more people learned about society form and developed new ideas of social classes. Before all of the changes, children in Britain couldn’t attend to school like nowadays. The low population density gave a hard choice for the principle to build a school in a certain place. Some children needed to take a long time for getting the school, furthermore, this caused some children lost the opportunity of study. As a result, children went to the factories and lose the chance of study, which also decrease literacy rate. In spite of the bad result in the beginning of the revolution, it started to change from the increasing of the literacy rate of middle class or upper class in Britain, one of the reason is the mortality rate decreased, because the improvement of the medical facilities (Simon). According to rising of the population, more schools were built up around 1700s to 1800s. In around 1710 to 172 0, Great Britain even got about three hundred schools were established (chant). From the Industrial Revolution, more people realized the changing of the ages and the importance of education. Parents tried to send their children to school and let them received an official education, because they knew the new technology was going to replace the agricultural, and their old ways of working (Bulter). The new education brought more people into middle class. Some of the parents even sent their children to other countries for studied or worked under other companies or factories, the parents hoped their children could learn more, and by the chance they might got the right to work for the factories or companies while they grow up (European). The improvement of education helped more people understand their position in the society. The Industrial Revolution helped the developed of the new social classes with the growth of industry that help people getting to a higher stage, and became wealthier by the increased of capitalism, similarly improvement in education also brought more people into middle class. From the changes of the growth in industry, people moved to the cities and got works in the factories, because of the invention of new technology during the revolution, and which became the working class. As well as the growing of factories, many factory owners became wealthier or upper-middle class. The growth also raised their desire of having their own companies and factories, which increase the capitalism, many owners wanted to take control of the economy, and the new- middle class existed. Later on, the improvement on education also became better as the new technology developed, which increase the literacy rate and population in each classes. The new social classes form by the Industrial Revolution changed lots of people’s lives, whether alter to a better life or fell into a lower and worsen condition. Work Cited Chant, Tim De. Population Density Fostered Literacy, the Industrial Revolution Per Square Mile.Per Square Mile., 11 Nov. 2011. Web. 03 June 2014. Clifford. Effects of Industrial Revolution.Buzzle.com. Buzzle.com, 05 July 2011. Web. 21 Sept. 2013. European Industrialization.Faq.org. Faq, n.d. Web. 13 Sept. 2013. John, Bulter Chris. The Flow of History.FC113: The Social Impact of Industrialization . Theflowofhistory, 2007. Web. 21 Sept. 2013. Jordan, Graber Boyd. The Emerging English Middle Class: Illusory Upward Mobility and the Static Elite.CiteSeerX. Jordan Boyd Graber, 17 Dec. 2006. Web. 20 Oct. 2013. Lobley, Pam. Differences Between Wealthy, Middle Class and Poor in the Industrial Revolution | The Classroom | Synonym.The Classroom., n.d. Web. 03 May 2014. Poynton, Darren. The Rise of Capitalism.World Socialist Movement, n.d. Web. 12 Apr. 2014. Simon, Julian L. DEMOGRAPHIC CAUSES AND CONSEQUENCES OF THE INDUSTRIAL REVOLUTION.Juliansimon. Juliansimon, 26 Apr. 2009. Web. 03 June 2014. Tom, Nairn. The English Working Class.Libcom.org. Red Marriott, 14 Feb. 2012. Web. 20 Oct. 2013.

Socrates was a Wise and Harmless Man :: Argumentative Persuasive Argument Essays

Socrates and the Apology Some of the best sources of information about Socrates' philosophical views are the early dialogues of his student Plato, who tried to provide a faithful picture of the methods and teachings of the great master. The Apology is one of the many-recorded dialogues about Socrates. It is about how Socrates was arrested and charged with corrupting the youth, believing in no god(s) (Atheism) and for being a Sophist. He attended his trial and put up a good argument. I believe that Socrates was wrongfully accused and should not have been sentenced to death. Within the duration of this document, I will be discussing the charges laid against Socrates and how he attempted to refute the charges. One of the reasons why Socrates was arrested was because he was being accused of corrupting the minds of the students he taught. I personally feel that it is almost impossible for one person to corrupt the thoughts and feelings of a whole group of people. Improvement comes form a minority and corruption comes from the majority. Socrates is one man (minority) therefore it is less likely the youth have been corrupted by Socrates than by some larger group of people (educators, council members, jurymen etc...). Socrates was also put on trial for being an Atheist. In the argument Socrates has with Meletus, Socrates gets Meletus to admit that Socrates is Atheist and theist. Considering that both of these practices are totally incompatible, and Meletus admits to both of theses, maybe Meletus does not really understand what he is accusing Socrates of. I understand that back then; not believing in religion was considered a crime but to actually sentence someone to death for being different is totally uncalled for. Thirdly, because Socrates practiced making weak arguments strong (Sophist). Socrates was a traveling teacher and talked and challenged everyone he met. Socrates taught the art of persuasive speaking. He did not charge people money like most of the other Sophists did, but he did have similar beliefs as the Sophists. Sophists thought that our minds are cut off from reality and that we are stuck in our own opinions of what the world was like. Socrates believed that reason or nature could not tell us why the world is the way it appears. The Sophists' point of view is best summed up as this: we can never step out of the way things appear.

Explore how Friel uses language Essay

Explore how Friel has used language in order to create humour and other emotional responses in the audience? Focus particularly on the exchange between Yolland and Marie in Act 2 scene 2. In this essay I intend to explore the relationship between Marie and Yolland. I want to examine how the overall structure of the language presents a comical piece for the audience to watch and discover how the couple overcome the language barrier to connect on a much deeper level. I would also like to look at how they convey their emotions without verbal understanding. Then finally I would like to look at the way in which Friel provokes emotional responses in the audience. In a short play like Translations, the focus of the drama is on ever changing relationships demonstrated through language and conversation. If we study the relationship between Yolland and Marie and focus on their characters we find how different and individual they each are. The couple, prove to be direct opposites of one another. Yolland is an English soldier who has a romantic outlook on the world, whereas Maire is an Irish milkmaid who has a pragmatic view of the world. Yet both are similar in many ways, they both have hopes, dreams and fears. If we refer to the previous meeting between the couple (End of Act 2 Scene 1 from p58) we find the section where Maire and Yolland first ‘talk’ to each other. This demonstrates the difficulties faced when attempting to talk to someone from another culture. We know they are speaking in different languages and are confused by what the other is saying, whilst Owen is tries to act as an go-between and translator for them. After Act 2 Scene 1, the couple are next seen together, after the dance, trying to talk to each other. This scene is a intensely emotional love scene between the couple and is also a exquisite examination of the barriers between language and communication. The scene opens with the couple, running hand in hand and Marie exclaiming ‘O my God, that leap across the ditch nearly killed me’ and Yolland replies with ‘I could scarcely keep up with you. ‘ So that when the couple first speak, the dialogue is so highly skilled and the syntax is so well structured that it appears to the audience that they understand one another. The opposite is in fact true yet they seem to be making perfect sense. This creates a sense of confusion for the audience as we know, verbally they have little understanding of each other’s language. As the scene progresses Marie and Yolland realise their embarrassment. Before each speaks again their hands disengage and they study one another. Then follows a pause. This displays the hesitancy and the discomfort that the couple are feeling. Each is unsure of what the other is saying yet the following lines say exactly the same things in two completely different languages. Their lines intertwine and the responses are infact an illusion created by the lyrical poise and exact parallel balance. The couples’ observations are also based on very different realities, an example being Marie saying ‘The grass must be wet. My feet are soaking’ and Yolland retorting with ‘Your feet must be wet. The grass is soaking. ‘ Here if we look at the grammar, we know these lines mirror one another and we see how the playwright has developed this by just simply rearranging the subject and predicate to create this syntactic parallel equivalence. This humour is present throughout and this romantic exchange lightens what is quite a serious, political play. However the two characters are both symbols for two different cultures and apart from the language barrier they are divided by underlying conflict. In my opinion this also draws them together. What follows from here between them bears a striking resemblance to the discourse between Manus and Sarah in the opening act. They start with their names ‘George’ (Yolland) ‘Lieutant George. ‘ (Marie) They use basic and simple language and I feel this is done as the playwright is trying to provoke a sympathetic response from the audience. As with Manus and Sarah, the dialogue is drawn out, slow, yet humouress. Yet is also a display of tenderness and affection and is a way of making themselves known. This relates to the overall theme of identity within the play. If we look at the grammar we find again it is makes use of broken grammar, fragmented sentences and short turn taking roles. Together this creates tension in the audience. Friel makes use of this simple language again later on in the scene with the use of ‘water’, ‘earth’ and ‘fire’ after Maire tries to communicate in Latin. It is after both Yolland and Maire both confess – ‘Say anything at all. I love the sound of your speech’ and when they both end their unsuccessful attempting at communicating with an exasperated ‘Oh my god’, it becomes clear just how close a bond the two have begun to form. It is from here that the notion of non-verbal communication is effective. The splendour of this scene lies in the fact that, however meaningless words many be, body language and emotions are universal and can bridge the language barrier. Each becomes increasingly frustrated with their inability to communicate. As they do attempt to ‘talk’ there is plenty of confusion and misinterpretation within the conversation. An example being the plentiful use of what-what? Sorry-sorry? Just as in the previous scene. These two uncomplicated lines also bring about comic and compassion within the audience. Although the difference in this scene is that they have dispensed with Owen.