Free Essays on The Future Of Project Management

The Canadian construction industry is one of the most substantial establishments in the Canadian business industry, and with many other partners, is responsible for the prosperous growth of the Canadian economy. It not only provides many jobs in Canada but also overseas, creating construction jobs for members of other countries. Though the past and the present of the Canadian construction industry have proved to be prosperous, an absence of investment in the future of the Industry will prove to be the industries downfall. When traditional resources run out, Canada will be left behind because it has relied so heavily on existing technologies geared to these natural resources and does not have readily available new procedures and materials to replace old technologies. â€Å"Progress lies not in enhancing what is, but in advancing toward what will be.† – Kahlil Gilbran (Quoteland.) And unless the Canadian construction industry is willing to start investing in the construct ion technologies of tomorrow, the now prosperous industry will ultimately lose its reputation and see its own downfall. The Canadian construction industry made a name for itself in the past based on its innovative ways of dealing with its vast terrain, stretching from the Atlantic to the Pacific coast and from the Arctic Ocean to the Great Lakes. (Industry Canada) While the Canadian construction industry is ninety-four percent Canadian owned, it is made up of ninety to ninety-five percent of firms operating with 20 or fewer employees. (Poh, S.H.) Even though Canada is not named one of the top five growing countries in the construction industry, (Poh, S.H.) Canadians are known world wide for having carved a highly developed and connected nation out of its huge and rugged geographic area. To do this, they built railroads by tunneling through the Rocky Mountains, linked the Great Lakes in a navigable St. Lawrence Seaway, and constructed mammoth hydroelectric dams in the ... Free Essays on The Future Of Project Management Free Essays on The Future Of Project Management The Canadian construction industry is one of the most substantial establishments in the Canadian business industry, and with many other partners, is responsible for the prosperous growth of the Canadian economy. It not only provides many jobs in Canada but also overseas, creating construction jobs for members of other countries. Though the past and the present of the Canadian construction industry have proved to be prosperous, an absence of investment in the future of the Industry will prove to be the industries downfall. When traditional resources run out, Canada will be left behind because it has relied so heavily on existing technologies geared to these natural resources and does not have readily available new procedures and materials to replace old technologies. â€Å"Progress lies not in enhancing what is, but in advancing toward what will be.† – Kahlil Gilbran (Quoteland.) And unless the Canadian construction industry is willing to start investing in the construct ion technologies of tomorrow, the now prosperous industry will ultimately lose its reputation and see its own downfall. The Canadian construction industry made a name for itself in the past based on its innovative ways of dealing with its vast terrain, stretching from the Atlantic to the Pacific coast and from the Arctic Ocean to the Great Lakes. (Industry Canada) While the Canadian construction industry is ninety-four percent Canadian owned, it is made up of ninety to ninety-five percent of firms operating with 20 or fewer employees. (Poh, S.H.) Even though Canada is not named one of the top five growing countries in the construction industry, (Poh, S.H.) Canadians are known world wide for having carved a highly developed and connected nation out of its huge and rugged geographic area. To do this, they built railroads by tunneling through the Rocky Mountains, linked the Great Lakes in a navigable St. Lawrence Seaway, and constructed mammoth hydroelectric dams in the ...

Free Essays on Yoga And Its Benefits

YOGA AND ITS BENEFITS Many health and lifestyle benefits are associated with the practice of Yoga. However, it is impossible to understand the attainment of these benefits without explaining the classical form of Yoga, Ashtanga Yoga, as a way of life, the philosophy it is based on, and the eight methods that makes it up. Yoga is a way of life whose creation and systemization is credited to Maharishi Patanjali. According to Patanjali, the basic idea of yoga is to unite the atma or individual soul with the paramatma or the Universal Soul. According to Yoga philosophy, by cleansing one's mind and controlling one's thought processes one can return to that primeval state, when the individual self was nothing but a part of the Divine Self. This is the sense encapsulated in the term samadhi. The aim of the yogi is to be able to perceive the world in its true light and to accept that truth in its entirety. The term 'yoga' stands for 'union'. A yogi's ultimate aim is to be able to attain this 'union' with the Eternal Self with the help of certain mental and physical exercises. Different schools of thought have been derived from Ashtanga Yoga, but they all adhere to different applications of the Ashtanga discipline, and are all ultimately aimed at liberation of the soul and an understanding of the Divine Un ity. For the purposes of this paper, the understanding of the benefits that can be derived from Yoga, only and in-depth discussion of Ashtanga Yoga is necessary. The Patanjala Yoga philosophy is also known as Ashtanga Yoga and is the practical manifestation of the Sankhya and Vedantic philosophies. It is an attempt to understand the nature of the mind, including â€Å"Its different states of being, impediments to growth, afflictions and the methods of harnessing it for the achievement of absolute self realization†. Sankhya philosophy assigns three functions to the mental body: mind, intelligence and false knowledge. Vedanta a... Free Essays on Yoga And Its Benefits Free Essays on Yoga And Its Benefits YOGA AND ITS BENEFITS Many health and lifestyle benefits are associated with the practice of Yoga. However, it is impossible to understand the attainment of these benefits without explaining the classical form of Yoga, Ashtanga Yoga, as a way of life, the philosophy it is based on, and the eight methods that makes it up. Yoga is a way of life whose creation and systemization is credited to Maharishi Patanjali. According to Patanjali, the basic idea of yoga is to unite the atma or individual soul with the paramatma or the Universal Soul. According to Yoga philosophy, by cleansing one's mind and controlling one's thought processes one can return to that primeval state, when the individual self was nothing but a part of the Divine Self. This is the sense encapsulated in the term samadhi. The aim of the yogi is to be able to perceive the world in its true light and to accept that truth in its entirety. The term 'yoga' stands for 'union'. A yogi's ultimate aim is to be able to attain this 'union' with the Eternal Self with the help of certain mental and physical exercises. Different schools of thought have been derived from Ashtanga Yoga, but they all adhere to different applications of the Ashtanga discipline, and are all ultimately aimed at liberation of the soul and an understanding of the Divine Un ity. For the purposes of this paper, the understanding of the benefits that can be derived from Yoga, only and in-depth discussion of Ashtanga Yoga is necessary. The Patanjala Yoga philosophy is also known as Ashtanga Yoga and is the practical manifestation of the Sankhya and Vedantic philosophies. It is an attempt to understand the nature of the mind, including â€Å"Its different states of being, impediments to growth, afflictions and the methods of harnessing it for the achievement of absolute self realization†. Sankhya philosophy assigns three functions to the mental body: mind, intelligence and false knowledge. Vedanta a...

Manta rays Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Manta rays - Research Paper Example This huge ray has an incredibly slow growth rate, which presents a real problem for their struggling population. Interactions with people can be destructive for Manta birostris because of this, for many fishermen utilize them for their fins and meat. The fate of the manta ray is undecided, and relies almost entirely on the human race. â€Å"As manta rays move through their aquatic environment, they process information through many different sensory channels allowing for a complex repertoire of signals and behaviors to be used for finding food, mates, escaping predators, and to facilitate social interactions with conspecifics.† (Deakos,  M. 2011). Records state that manta rays can grow anywhere from 20-30 feet in length. That is, from the tip of one ‘wing’ to the other. The largest batoid fish on the planet, Manta birostris has a lot to live up to. It does this just fine by not only being the largest of its order, but by also being one of the largest fish in the world’s oceans. Their color can vary from shades of green to pure black. Each individual has mottles and spots around the abdominal area, and the shades of solid color can vary over the head and back of each animal. Their underbellies are pale, ranging from white to off-white, which makes the black speckles and mottled dots easy to distinguish. Biologists use these speckles and spots in order to identify each manta ray, and have a catalogue of individuals. Wounds and scars are also occasionally used, but after 12 months many of these heal. Chunks out of ‘wings’ or other missing parts are better to use as an identification tool. Aside from their coloring, manta rays have a long tail that grows thinner and thinner until it reaches the tip. Their tails are whip-like at the end and have a shorter length than that of their body. A manta ray’s tail is harmless, however, and has no spines or stingers. The tails, while short, are thought to help in direction, like a rudder on a ship. On the other side of their body, inside the mouth, both male and female manta rays have 300 rows of tiny teeth. The teeth have flat tops and edges, and are not used in feeding. Manta rays are filter feeders, and have no reason to chew their food. What the teeth are used for has been a baffling topic for biologists all over the world. Because so little is known about the manta ray, even small things such as teeth remain a mystery. One theory is that they are used in combat by males and females alike. ‘Combat’ can mean anything from defending territory to defending a mate. Manta birostris is found in all the world’s oceans. These include the Pacific, the Atlantic, the Artic, the Southern, and the Indian oceans. How many and what species occur in what oceans has yet to be discovered. There could well be even more species of manta ray that haven’t been discovered yet. Despite their gigantic size, manta rays prefer shallower inshore waters close to reefs and rocky areas as opposed to the deeper parts of the oceans. They use the more open areas of these shallower places to gracefully glide through the water. Some species of ray may travel into the depths in order to migrate, although evidence of this fact is scattered and not well documented. What little documentation there is, however, is very valuable. â€Å"An analysis of 79 underwater photographs of Manta birostris gathered over a period of nine years in a marine protected area suggests a high predictability of manta ray occurrences in the region during the austral winter

How sex in advertising has negative effects on societies perception of Term Paper - 1

How sex in advertising has negative effects on societies perception of beauty - Term Paper Example This "How sex in advertising has negative effects on societies perception of beauty" essay outlines the impact of the usage of sex images in advertisement on our society and our standards of beauty. In most of the current advanced societies, children spend more times in front of televisions and computers rather than in play grounds. â€Å"Research has shown that young children—younger than 8 years—are cognitively and psychologically defenseless against advertising. They do not understand the notion of intent to sell and frequently accept advertising claims at face value†. Children during their early developmental stages may not possess the ability to segregate between good and evil. Moreover, children also possess intrinsic thirst for sexual activities even though it may not be visible or identifiable to others. When a sex provoking advertisement is displayed in front of the children, they are getting a new knowledge or a wrong message which they will keep in the ir mind forever. For example, bedroom scenes are common in the advertisements of condoms and beauty products. These advertisements often portray males as the symbol of strength or stamina and females as the symbol of beauty or figure. Children watching these advertisements may develop a feeling that only stronger men and beautiful women are capable of enjoying sexual life. In their 2002 thesis, â€Å"Effects of Sex in the Media,† scholars Richard J. Harris and Christina L. Scott address the effect of visual cultures whose morals are affected by this advertising. They say a worldview that progressively reflects the perception of the media may be refined by repeated contact to a regular set of messages. As an example, they say â€Å"watching numerous sitcoms and movies showing teenagers being sexually active may cultivate acceptance of such a position in the viewer and thus weaken family- taught values against pre-marital sex.† So, the viewing of sexual images in adverti sing also distorts the moral values of teenagers, maybe even to the point of rebellion against the values their family taught them (Robertson, p.2) â€Å"Sex is used in commercials to sell everything from beer to shampoo to cars. New research is showing that teenagers' exposure to sexual content in the media may be responsible for earlier onset of sexual intercourse or other

Understanding Effects Of Ethnicity In Afghan Culture Essay Example for Free

Understanding Effects Of Ethnicity In Afghan Culture Essay Ethnic differences prevalent in Afghanistan have had a great impact on peoples’ personal lives especially during interpersonal communication. As an Afghan citizen, belonging to the Pashtan ethnic group, born and raised in a multicultural society, I had to master the art of effective communication at an early age. Here in this paper, I will explain how my life has been impacted by ethnic differences in Afghanistan especially during interpersonal communication. I will explain how I communicate with my friends from my ethnic group, from other ethnic groups as well as foreigners living in Afghanistan. My paternal grandfather, a Push tan was a governor in Central Afghanistan while my maternal grandfather, a Tajik, was the Interior Minister and finance minister and my father was the Mayor of Herat City, in the west of Afghanistan. Afghanistan is situated in South-western Asia. It borders Iran, Pakistan and several other countries in Central Asia. The â€Å"Islamic State of Afghanistan† is Afghanistan’s official name. Kabul is the capital and the other two major cities in Afghanistan are Herat and Kandahar. More than three quarters of Afghanistan’s population inhabits rural areas. The literacy level in Afghanistan is very low and it is among the world’s countries with small economies(Hussain 34-35). My ethnic group, Pushtun, is the major ethnic group in Afghanistan accounting for almost a half the population (42%). Tajiks account for 27% Hazaras 9% Uzbel 9% Aimak 4% Turkmen 3% while the other ethnic groups account for 4% of the population. As a result of the diverse ethnic groups, Afghanistan has been adopting various language policies in a bid to foster national unity. For instance, in 1992, the communist regime fell due to constant fighting which arose as a result of issues such as language policy. Linguistic differences made various factions fight each other. Consequently, between the year 1992 and 1996, Afghanistan’s national anthem was changed from Pashto language to the Dari(Hussain 40-44) The 2003 Draft Constitution in Afghanistan saw the Pashto and Dari languages become the official languages during the Draft Constitution’s amendments of Afghanistan’s language policy. The constitution made provisions guaranteeing all languages as equal. In today’s world, most countries strive to preserve its people’s culture as well as the language. Afghanistan has adopted the Assimilation Language Policy, which is aimed at fostering national unit by having a single national language. Pashtu is the national language of Afghanistan(Hussain 35-39) In Afghanistan, bilingualism is very common. Most people, especially literates can write and speak in at least two ethnic languages. As a child, I acquired two ethnic languages. By the time I went for my primary education, I could speak a few Dari words and phrases in addition to my mother tongue, Pushtan. When I joined school, I learned the Dari language which is taught because it is the national language. When people become competent in two or more languages, they tend to use both languages in interpersonal communications. This results in switching between codes and mixing phrases from two different ethnic languages. Code switching is the use of words or phrases from two distinct languages or dialects in interpersonal communication. Code mixing entails the use of various words or phrases. When participants code-mix, they learn to relate what is altered by the speaker during a speech activity with the intended meaning as well as learning to compare what is spoken with what they know(Wood 67). In Afghanistan, people may code switch consciously or unconsciously. When a person code switches unconsciously, it is because s/he has gained competence in the two languages. Thus, one will switch between the languages and may not intent any communicative effect on the listeners, although the listeners may achieve an effect depending on how the speaker switches or mixes phrases. Conscious switching or mixing between different languages entails the speaker’s conscious effort. The speaker decides where to put a certain word or phrase with the aim of achieving a certain communication effect (Julia 30). Whenever I am with my Pushtan friends, we at times switch between the Pushtan language and the Dari language. At times, we do this unconsciously without putting into consideration the communication effect it will have to our listeners. Competence in both languages enables us to know where, when and how to mix the codes and switch between the two languages effectively. After all, we have spoken and written in these languages since childhood. In Afghanistan, people switch between languages for a number of varied reasons. For instance, whenever I am with my Pushtan friends and a band of people from say Dari whom we may detest and look down upon joins our band, we will code switch and code mix intentionally. We do this in a bid to make them feel unwanted. Occasionally, some of us will mix some Pashtun words with the Dari language. Infact, a great percentage of the words and phrases used in the speech may constitute Pashtun words. Normally, during most interpersonal communications, everyone wants to participate and this entails understanding what the other participants say so as to respond effectively. Since we withhold certain information from them by code switching, this makes the Dari speakers not participate in the speech act. Consequently, some of them may opt to leave the band while the stubborn ones may remain behind. Nothing irritates like people breaking into laughter and you are left wondering what amused them. One can even be made to think that he is the subject of mockery. Thus we may code switch so as to eliminate those we don’t want in our band (Jacobson 54) Our group may also code switch so as to make other groups of people feel appreciated. For instance, whenever we are with our friends from other ethnic groups, some of my friends who have mastered a few phrases and words from the languages will mix them with the Dari language. This makes them feel accommodated in our band. They feel that we appreciate their languages which are deemed to be inferior simply because they are not the official or national languages in Afghanistan. During interpersonal communication, everyone wants to be a part of the speech event. Consequently, our friends will feel motivated to participate because we acknowledge their presence. In addition, whenever I am with my Pushtan friends and we encounter Dari speakers who are not competent in Pushtan, we choose to use the Dari language in a bid to accommodate them. During a speech event, people tend to accommodate the other speakers. This is very crucial for effective communication. Imagine a situation where you speak to someone in, say, Dari, and he responds in Pashtun. Will you continue speaking in Dari? Of course not you would rather opt to switch to Pashtun if you are competent in it so as to avoid communication barriers. Language differences in Afghanistan can lead to communication barriers and so people have learned to accommodate others during a speech event by switching to the language used by other participants (Giles and Coupland 52). During a speech event, we may change our styles from time to time. Some of the reasons which make our band change styles during interpersonal communication include the topic being discussed, the participants in our band, and the motives/intentions of our band and so on. So we accommodate other participants by adjusting the number of times we switch between languages and strive to minimize the number of switches depending on the person we are speaking to. The accommodation is applied in our day-to-day speech events. In fact, some of my Dari friends who are not competent in Pushtan have mastered a few Pushtan words and phrases. Whenever we are conversing, they may mix a few Pashtun phrases with Dari phrases in a sentence. They do this so as to please us. They want us to think that they recognize and appreciate our language. As a matter of fact, some of them do this sarcastically; nothing irritates a Pashtan speaker than to hear a Dari speaker or any other speaker use a Pushtan word or phrase of which he or she does not even have the slightest idea of its meaning. Worse still, some of them may even use the wrong word order. I once lived in Hawaii and learned a few Hawaii words. When I visited the United States, I could hear the Americans switch to the Hawaii language. Some Americans could even mix spiritual phrases and words with English. What irritated me most was the fact that the Americans were not competent in the Hawaii language, yet they could dare mix Hawaii spiritual words and phrases of which they did not even know the meaning. I consider this as a kind of theft and a slap on the face to the Hawaii language. People should respect other peoples’ language especially spiritual words and phrases. In addition, Afghan’s may also code switch because they feel that they cannot express themselves well in a certain language. They feel that they lack certain words or expressions from a given language and that another language may have a ready word or expression for the message they want to convey. Whenever I am speaking with my Pashtun friends, who understand the Dari language, I will not bother much to think for a word in Pashtun when I have a Dari word or phrase for it. Most people will sometimes find it difficult to express themselves in their mother tongue. To some people, expressing oneself in an official language is much easier since it is the language they use most of the time, thus, they always have ready words and phrases. Most people agree that it is easy to express oneself in Dari, the national language simply because they use it more often and they may lack the appropriate words in their original language. Afghans view code switching to be beneficial during interpersonal communication although this will depend on the context or situation in which it occurs. This holds true, especially when a speaker encounters problems expressing himself in a particular language and he/she is competent in another language which his speakers are competent in. Thus, a speaker will break the communication gap by inserting phrases or words from the language his participants understand. Ethnicity also affects communication styles and strategies in Afghanistan in that, people from different ethnic groups have differences in social etiquette, customs and protocol. In Afghanistan, there are some common customs and protocols among the different ethnic groups, which affect interpersonal communication. For instance, men and women should not make eye contact. Men should not prolong their eye contact with other men and when they do, they should do so only occasionally. This custom creates a communication barrier in that communication between men and women is not effective since women are not allowed to speak directly to men. If a woman speaks directly to a man, she is being disgraceful and lowering her dignity. This greatly affects my life since women in our country are deprived of rights of expression, which implies that our mothers and sisters, who are the backbone of our nation, have no direct communicative role to play in the society. This implies that men and women in my country have to employ different styles and strategies in both verbal and non-verbal communication. In order to ensure that they preserve their cultural values, mixing between genders in my country is not freely allowed and free mixing only takes place within families. In places of work, in offices, and businesses or at institutions of learning, both higher and lower, both men and women must respect and maintain each other’s honor. They must also adhere to their culture without putting into consideration the impact it will have on interpersonal relations. Consequently, this has led to poor interpersonal relations in public places, which has led to increased war and conflicts among individuals, groups of people and ethnic societies. These have led to men dominating the country. Since they are the only ones who have a say, they have gone ahead and enacted and enforced laws and regulations which undermine their women folks and children who are regarded as inferior members of the society. Interactions and relations between individuals have also been adversely affected especially in institutions of learning. Foreign students who join universities in Afghanistan are faced with major challenges. To start with, most of these students come from ethnic backgrounds where women and men are regarded as equal. Consequently, they are forced to learn and to read the rules and ensure that they abide by them. This has led to students’ academic performance being affected since they spend a lot of time adapting to cultural changes. Besides eye contact, which is a non-verbal communication style, other types of non-verbal communication are also affected. Signals are also affected by ethnic differences. People send signals to convey messages. Sending of signals has been affected by ethnic differences in that people may send the wrong signals during the process of communication. Since women are not allowed to look at men in the eyes, this may pass the wrong signals to foreign men who have not mastered Afghanistan culture. They may think that the women are shy and may consequently tease them or misunderstand their intentions. In addition, since men and women are not allowed to shake hands, a misunderstanding may arise when an Afghanistan man or woman declines to shake hands with a foreigner who is not aware of the cultural values in Afghanistan. As a result, the communication process among different ethnic groups in Afghanistan has not been effective. The handshake is the most common form of greeting used in Afghanistan, Placing one’s hands over their hearts and nodding slightly is also another form of greeting. Foreigners can misunderstand this and a wrong signal can be sent probably signaling that someone is in love or in shock depending on how placing one’s hands over one’s heart implies in one’s culture. Symbols are also another form of non-verbal communication used. Symbols can be used to represent or express information. For the process of communication to be effective, the transmitter needs to employ both verbal and non-verbal forms of communication because they supplement each other. Ethnicity in Afghanistan has affected interpersonal communication in that cultural values have made the use of symbols ineffective by making them fail to communicate the intended information. Whenever I am socializing with the women folks in Afghanistan, I do not get their message right since they do not use symbols appropriately in a bid to uphold their cultural values. Men are supposed to dominate all interactions including interpersonal communications When a Turtumani person is speaking to a Baluchi speaker, one has to use Dari, which is the official language. The two language speakers have different cultural values and backgrounds. The problem may arise if one of the speakers say the Baluchi speaker, is illiterate and does not understand the national language. Thus, the two speakers will need the assistance of an interpreter. If the interpreter is not competent in both languages, a communication breakdown may arise. Most literate Afghans have learned Social and Humanistic languages and have leaned that each ethnic group is unique in and that no ethnic group should be considered superior than the other. Language reflects a peoples’ culture. Verbal communication entails use of well-constructed sentences with a correct word order. According to linguists, each language is unique in its own way and no language is deemed to be more superior to other. Thus, each Afghanistan ethnic language whether used as a national or official language contains complex structures. Each ethnic language has its own unique way of tense formation. Since the literacy level in Afghanistan is very low, communicating with people who are not learned in Afghanistan has posed a great challenge for me and my literate friends. I recall with nostalgia an incidence where my best Friend, Pierre picked up a fight with an illiterate Dari speaker as he tried to convince him that all languages are equal. In conclusion, ethnicity affects interpersonal communication in Afghanistan in that certain ethnic communities look down upon others. Some communities feel that they are greater/superior than others simply because they are considered to be bestowed with more natural resources than the others. Consequently, a communication gap may arise between the two. For instance, Dari ethnic groups and the Pashtans perceive themselves to be superior to other ethnic groups like Turkmen or Aimak ethnic groups. This is because they are a majority groups in the country’s population and their languages are recognized as the national and official languages. Each ethnic group in Afghanistan has a specific vocabulary, which it uses during the process of communication. For instance, the Pashtans have a specific and unique vocabulary, which they use. These cultural vocabularies hinder communication when one is speaking to members of a different ethnic group who do not have competence in the Pashtan language. As a result, Afghans should learn to embrace their diverse cultures by learning to cope with the challenges they encounter due to ethnic differences on their day-to-day activities. Afghanistan has been through many calamities and disasters, or instance, landmines and explosions. Schools have also been shattered, hospitals and roads demolished not to forget violence against women and drug addiction among the youth. These problems can be minimized by effective interpersonal communication among differing ethnic groups or parties.

Ecstasy: A Drug That Can Kill :: Illegal Drugs Essays

Ecstasy: A Drug That Can Kill missing works cited Three years ago, Mark*, now a college junior, went to a Dave Mathews concert in Boston with a few friends. He was 18 at the time, and about a half-hour before the concert started, they all decided to take a pill of the drug Ecstasy. This was Mark’s first time taking the drug, so he didn’t fully know what to expect. They chose what is called the â€Å"speedy† type, commonly used at raves and parties rather than the â€Å"dopey† type, which is known to give more of a slow, relaxing feeling. â€Å"Seriously, you get this warm fuzzy feeling that runs up your back, and a feeling that everything in life is right. Your jaw begins to clench and you love chewing on stuff†¦gum, straws, candy,† he said. The feelings that Mark experienced are typical effects of the drug. His most intense feelings lasted about three hours, and the overall feeling of the drug remained for about six to seven hours. Yet the feelings of contentment abruptly ended when he awoke the next day. â€Å"The next day was the most horrible day of my life,† he said. â€Å"All the happiness that was triggered in your brain is drained and you’re left with nothing.† Over eight million people aged 12 and older reported using the â€Å"club† drug ecstasy at least once in their lifetime, according to the National Household Survey on Drug Abuse (NHSDA), an information source on the consequences, patterns, and prevalence of alcohol, tobacco, and illegal drug use and abuse in the general U.S. population, age 12 and older. Methylenedioxymethamephetamine (MDMA), commonly known as ecstasy, is a synthetic psychoactive drug used for its elated and hallucinogenic causes. Formally used to assist psychotherapy in the 1970s, it is now banned in the United States. Although illegal, it is rapidly rising in popularity in the United States, particularly among teenagers and young adults. Taken orally in a tablet or capsule, snorted, or injected, it generally takes 30 to 40 minutes to take effect and lasts about three to six hours, although some side effects can occur weeks after taking the drug. Ecstasy’s psychological side effects include confusion, depression, sleep problems, anxiety, and paranoia. Like Prozac, it causes an elevation in serotonin, a chemical in the brain which triggers happy feelings in people. Some physical side effects are muscle tension, teeth clenching, nausea, blurred vision, chills, or sweating.

Healthy eating in schools

Hi, my name is Ben Dickens and I'm here today to make you are aware of the appalling state of food on offer at Salendine Nook High. We all send our Children to school believing that they will be there to learn and work towards attaining good grades. We also expect them to get a healthy and well balanced meal at lunch but to my amazement, this isn't the case. During a recent visit to the school through my job I was perplexed at how awful the food at the school is. Unbelievably our children are offered crisps, chocolate, cakes and fizzy pop at break times. At lunch times the food gets shockingly worse, our children are once again offered cakes and fizzy pop in addition to chips, burgers and pizzas. This is a total disgrace and it should not be allowed to happen to our children. The school has a responsibility to look after our children and I don't believe that offering this complete rubbish as food is responsible. In fact it's an outrage so I urge you to join me in my fight against the school and force them to change their menu. The only way it can happen is if we all join together and campaign to get the school to change. I feel change starts in the classroom, and educating our children in school would be the first step towards achieving our goal of healthier school meals. The school would also need to train the current staff or find better skilled staff to be able to prepare the meals. Doing this would mean we have a better chance of succeeding on our fight to reform school meals. I really can't stress how important healthy eating is at school, not only does it teach the children good habits and get them used to healthy foods but it can also boost energy and concentration levels. In a recent survey conducted by The School food trust claims that if a child eats a hot, well balanced and nutritious meal at lunch time it can boost concentration levels for afternoon classes. So not only is eating healthy good for our children's physical health it can also have a positive effect on their school work. Recently you may have heard about Jamie Oliver's healthy eating campaign and the positive effect it had on the children at Kidbrooke School. Before Jamie Oliver was involved at the school the exam results of year eleven students was at the lowly level pass rate of 74% after the school food was overhauled the pass rate is now at 90% and rising year by year. This is the effect that eating healthily at school can have on our children's exam results and their overall wellbeing. We all want the best for our children so why shouldn't we campaign for the school to change? Questions needs to be asked of the school as to why they aren't offering wide range of healthy foods. Is it just convenient for them to cook fast food without a thought for our children's future health? Are the school cooks skilled enough to prepare good food? Does the school actually care what they feed our children? Only the school know so we must demand answers and we must plead for change. We must do all we can to force the school to change, starting by directly contacting them and questioning their policies on the food in school. We must also contact local councillors and government officials to see if they can help change the food. Doing this may also spark a more widespread change which can only be good for the future of all our children. Hopefully if we persist with this campaign the school will eventually realise that the food needs to be healthier. I cannot stress enough how important it is to change the food. After all we all attempt to give our children a healthy diet at home so why should the school ruin that by feeding them disgusting greasy food? We don't want them growing up on such a bad diet so we must act now and stop the school from ruining our children's diets. So join me in this campaign so we can ensure a healthy experience at school for all of our children. Thank you very much for listening, on your way out of the venue please take an information pack with some further information for you to read. You can also follow us on twitter for updates on our fight.