Nuclear Waste Essays (1235 words) - Nuclear Technology,

Nuclear Waste Although the government believes that Nevada is an ideal place for nuclear waste storage, it is simply overlooking the obvious implications that would threaten both the environment and the people of the land. Yucca was suggested to be a waste repository along with several other areas some years ago. This facility located at Yucca Mountain would house some of mans most dangerous elements, like plutonium. As with the Native Americans political power played a key role in the theft of their land. Nevada, having the least amount of political power has been exposed to the same issue Native American's faced years and years ago. There was said to be a handful of proposed nuclear waste sites that were supposed to be individually examined for pros and cons, but after a laconic effort to examine each site some how all proposed sites were decided to be dropped from the list of potential nuclear waste sites except for Nevada's Yucca Mountain. It is also important to point out that the only two potential sites for nuclear waste are on or near Indian lands. These facts show an unjust system of decision made by the Department of Energy. The Yucca Mountain region is one of the least populated regions of the United States and without strong political efforts made it will eventually become a permanent nuclear waste village that all Nevada's population will have to deal with and quite very possible be harmed by. One of the most prominent problems with nuclear waste is the lethal factor it poses to mankind. "To properly understand the scope of the problem it is necessary to take into account the detrimental health effects of these materials" (Kuletz 84). The U.S. Department of Energy estimates that as little as 10 millionths of a curie of plutonium if inhaled can cause cancer in an average human being. But even with these alarming statistics, officials are still willing to take the health risks of storing the waste in a permanent storage facility at Yucca Mountain that in the long run could result in millions of citizens being diagnosed with cancer. If they do end up storing nuclear waste at Yucca Mountain in the end, the only victims will be the citizens of the United States. Even with conclusive studies that are deemed un-conclusive by high paid scientists, the government insists on killing it's own people with mass production of nuclear waste pouring out nuclear plants everyday. Studies reveal these elements kill, yet the DOE or Department of Energy changes science to fit into their master plan. In the grants Uranium Belt region, a major source of uranium mining, over a hundred cases were reported of cancer and birth defects that directly relate to the nuclear materials such as uranium. Not only is nuclear substance extremely lethal to mankind, but the area of Yucca Mountain is said to have a incredible aquifer beneath it's desolated surface. If the nuclear waste were to ever make its way into the vast water channels located within the aquifer there would be complete devastation. At some specific spots on the nuclear landscape underground streams emerge from below and reveal the extensive underground water source in the Yucca Mountain are. It is noted in Kuletz's book on the numerous interviews she had with Native Americans in the Yucca Mountain region that a lot of them complained from thyroid cancer. Also many deaths have occurred in their families that they accredit to the tests and nuclear waste. One must not only examine the effects that nuclear waste has Nevada's water supply, but the adverse health effects when nuclear waste enters into our ecosystem and indirectly into our food chain. As Kuletz points out, "Scientists don't really know how the water will flow through this environment thousands of years from now, how gases will move through it along pneumatic pathways, and most importantly how stable the earth will be (Kuletz 278)." With the notion of a deep geological permanent waste storage facility it is difficult not to imagine the effects seismic activity could have on a such a (death barrel) located deep in the ground. In a world were weathermen have difficulty predicting what the weather will be like tomorrow it is difficult to comprehend waste will be deep in our mantle that is constantly changing and shifting as with the government always changing and neither of the two being static. As an earthquake occurs the epicenter feels the least amount of shock wave from the origin of creation. Which means that any deep

America the land of opportunity Essay Example

America the land of opportunity Essay Example America the land of opportunity Paper America the land of opportunity Paper The progressive era, being known for reform of political corruption, health laws, and labor laws all came with the suffering of thousands. Many of these reforms were at the torment of the immigrants that came to America in search of a better life. In â€Å"The Jungle† by Upton Sinclair, we are brought to the pain and distress of the progressive era through Jurgis and his family. Through this family we are taken to Packingtown in Chicago to view the effects of progressivism on the nations industries and immigrant families. In Sinclair’s, â€Å"The Jungle† we are shown the progressive era’s effects on immigrants and their families which lead to the creation of many laws we have today. Immigrant families came to America in search of new opportunities through the idea that America was a place to prosper-possibly become wealthy-and provide a better life for their families. â€Å"It was Jonas who suggested that they all go to America, where a friend of his had gotten rich. He would work for his part, and the women would work, and some of the children, doubtless- they would live somehow. †(Sinclair 22) Every Immigrant who came to America believed that America was the land of opportunity. Between the years nineteen hundred and nineteen hundred and twenty, over fourteen million Immigrants had come to America to make their lives better. Upon arriving in the United States many of the immigrants had a dream that the money would begin to flow in and their dreams would come true. Besides the opportunity to make money most of the Immigrants fled their old lives to escape the shortage of land, and political and religious persecution in hopes that America could free them from all of troubles of their homeland. â€Å"†¦Employment for thousands upon thousands of men, of opportunity and freedom, of life and love and joy. When they came away, arm in arm, Jurgis was saying, ’tomorrow I shall go there and get a job! ’†(Sinclair 29) Many had dreams of finding great jobs as soon as arriving in America. This dream was quickly destroyed when future workers began looking for jobs. True getting jobs were not impossible but for Immigrants these jobs that they were able to acquire were not great jobs. They were jobs that required little skill and much more focused on stamina. These backbreaking jobs were tough and did not let up. Without the labor laws and help from the American Federation of Labor (AFL)-and many of its subsidiaries (i. e. UMWA, IWW, NCL)-that we have today-limiting the amount we work and a set minimum wage-many of the immigrants worked twelve hour days, seven days a week for a mere twelve dollars and fifty cents a week. That’s a fourteen-cent hourly wage. This is shown in Jurgis’ family for which in order for them to get a house and possibly get married, Jurgis’ wife, Ona, has to also get a job. The immigrant women were also a major part of the workforce in the immigrant factories. Along with taking care of children women would work in sewing factories for a small six to seven dollar weekly wage for the same amount of hours that a man would work. These sewing factories were just as dangerous as any other factory with over crowded shops, filled machines that would often injure and possibly kill these ladies. Many of these ladies when they became pregnant, quite possibly, would have to return to work only a week after giving birth in order to retain their jobs. â€Å"This was more cruel yet for Ona, who ought to have stayed home and nursed him, the doctor said, for her own health as well as the baby’s; but Ona had to go to work. †(Sinclair 107) In The Jungle, Ona becomes pregnant and does return to work only a week, leaving her with a fragile body that has not completely healed. She loses her job and goes into the last resort of prostitution which many of progressive ladies resorted to in order to beat the capitalistic society that they thought their dreams were made of. The result of the women suffrage and forced prostitution in the early nineteen hundreds led to the creation of the New York State Factory Investigation Commission (FIC) setting the standard for factories to limit hours that women could work in the factories and make safer working conditions. The FIC not only helped out the women at the turn of the century but also made the lives of many children better. The children before the time of the FIC also had many hardships to deal with. Although being illegal for children under the age of sixteen to work many families in order to survive in the industrial jungle of America. Immigrant families often lied about their children’s age to get them out of schools and into the workplace. â€Å"The law made no difference except that it forced people to lie about the ages of their children. †(Sinclair 68) This was often necessary for families to put their children through the industrial monster of big business in order to possibly have a chance at their own American dream of opportunities. The children often worked in the same hazardous places that the adult men and women would work. The conditions of these factories were grotesque. Fertilizer plants were unsafe with many of the workers possibly falling into the machines and would end up themselves part of the fertilizer. When Sinclair wrote The Jungle, he said that he was writing the novel to touch the American heart but in society actually reading his novel he hit their stomachs more than anything. Through Sinclair’s muckraking tactics in exposing the unethical ways of the meat packing industry he showed how â€Å"meat so spoiled it could not be used for anything else†(133) it would be used to make sausage and how the rat problem was so bad that when they died from poisoned bread â€Å"the rats and the poisoned bread along with the meat would be put in the hoppers together. †(135) After the publication of Sinclair’s all to real novel, the American public as well as the government would take part in investigating the meat packing industry. Directly related to the stories told in The Jungle, President Roosevelt declared the Meat Inspection Act which made the department of agriculture responsible for inspecting and labeling meat. One of the main reasons that there was corruption any way throughout these industries is the fact that they relied on a capitalistic way of business. Capitalism was the way the businesses worked in which the companies would reap all of the profits while only paying the workers the bare minimum. The business controlled the economy and through social Darwinism or â€Å"survival of the fittest† the only people making any money were the business owners. Sinclair often refers to his trust in socialism and dislike of capitalism as a way of lowering the impact of social Darwinism and bring the economy back to the government and the government back to the people. The debate of the capitalistic ways of the companies lead to many violent strikes that lead to distress between companies and its workers. Through the fighting and suffering of the early century immigrants of the progressive era we now have many laws and regulations that we all take for granted today. Sinclair through his writings in The Jungle has showed us that through the lives of Immigrant families what we may have had to live with if they did not go through the turmoil of capitalistic big business. The laws and regulations set as a result of the suffrage in the progressive era and Sinclair’s muckraking make our lives much more enjoyable and healthier. Just imagine without the changes of early nineteenth century progressivism we to could be working eighty- four hour work- weeks and having diseased rats and meat for dinner. Bibliography : Bibliography 1. Sinclair, Upton. The Jungle. New York: Bantam, 1906 2. Faragher, John. Out of Many: A History of American People. 3rd ed. New Jersey: Prentice Hall, 2001

Meditation Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Meditation - Assignment Example 1). Meditation has been studied by various practitioners and has been determined to contribute to the well-being of an individual and in the relief of medical illness or stress. As Baime averred, â€Å"meditation cultivates an emotional stability that allows the meditator to experience intense emotions fully while simultaneously maintaining perspective on them" (Medical Dictionary, par. 2). Further, there have been specific illnesses and disorders that were validated to be cured, relieved or prevented by regular meditation, to wit: â€Å"meditation is considered to be one of the better therapies for panic disorder, generalized anxiety disorder, substance dependence and abuse, ulcers, colitis, chronic pain, psoriasis, and dysthymic disorder. It is considered to be a valuable adjunctive therapy for moderate hypertension (high blood pressure), prevention of cardiac arrest (heart attack), prevention of atherosclerosis (hardening of arteries), arthritis (including fibromyalgia), cancer, insomnia, migraine, and prevention of stroke. Meditation may also be a valuable complementary therapy for allergies and asthma because of the role stress plays in these conditions. Meditative practices have been reported to improve function or reduce symptoms in patients with some neurological disorders as well. These include people with Parkinson's disease, people who experience fatigue with multiple sclerosis, and people with epilepsy who are resistant to standard treatment† (Medical Dictionary, par. 2). Categories of Meditation According to Scott (2009), the two categories of meditation are concentrative and non-concentrative. For the concentrative category, the meditator focuses on an object outside the body, such as a flickering flame of the candle or a musical background. On the other hand, the non-concentrative category was indicated to have a wider or broader focus from the individual’s external environment (sounds), or one’s own breathing and inner stat e of the physical body (Scott, par. 6). McNeely, presented two meditation techniqu

The Hope Athena Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

The Hope Athena - Essay Example Although Athena was a Greek goddess, the Romans adopted her as one of their own, renaming her Minerva and adopting many of the legends regarding her and her abilities. Her importance to her new society can be seen in the intricate detail of the copyist to remain true to the Greek original.  Athena was a very powerful Greek goddess who epitomized everything the Greeks admired, intellect, wisdom, strength, courage, strategy and more. â€Å"With a battle cry that resounded through the kingdom of heaven and earth, she springs from the head of Zeus. She is one of the most powerful forces on Mount Olympus, representing war and the immortal spirit of wisdom. Athena embodies the matriarchal goddess, a complex figure of internal strength and reflection. She is a powerful source of interpretation for the idea of the goddess as a balance between nature and humanity† (Ortengren, 1998). As a goddess of military strength and protection, she is often depicted in battle, such as in the scen es featured on the Parthenon, or ready for battle. The statue the Hope Athena is believed to be modeled after is believed to have once held a spear in her one hand and a Nike, â€Å"a winged personification of victory†, in the other (Lansberry, 2005). Experiencing the statue in person does little to solve the mystery of her handheld iconography. The details of what the Hope Athena might have held can only be conjecture as one of the first things noticed about her is the fact that she is missing her arms. The scars marking where they once were do suggest that one hand was held out in front of her, as if holding something in the palm of her hand, and one arm might have been stretched to the side somewhat, as it would have been if holding a long spear. There is another evident damage to the statue as well.

Absoulutely True Diary of a Part Time Indian Struggles of Arnold Spirit Essay Example for Free

Absoulutely True Diary of a Part Time Indian Struggles of Arnold Spirit Essay In the book â€Å"The Absolutely True Diary of a Part Time Indian† by Sherman Alexie, Arnold Spirit the main character struggles with being an Indian and going to Reardan, the all-white school where he wants to find hope. He struggles with acceptance because of his disability and he is an Indian. He also struggle with losing his best friend Rowdy as a friend, and he also struggles with losing loved ones. Though he has many, he copes with them and fixes them in the end. Throughout the story Arnold struggles with his disability. He is a very smart person but because of his disability his appearance makes him look like he is stupid. To top this all off he is also an Indian attending an all-white school. This causes the white people to make fun of him as well as the Indians and he feels different and unwanted by everyone. â€Å"And once I arrived at Reardan, I became something less than less than less than Indian. Those white kids did not talk to me. They barely looked at me†(83). This shows that he was not accepted on the reservation as an Indian or at Reardan because of what he was. He had no friends at Reardan, not even a friend on the rez anymore. When Arnold decided that he wanted to go to Reardan he wanted his only and best friend, Rowdy to go with him. When he told Rowdy about going to Reardan he felt like Arnold was abandoning him. He got really upset and angry and made it clear they were no longer friends. â€Å"I stayed on the ground for a long time after Rowdy walked awayBut I had to stand eventually, and when I did, I knew my best friend had become my worst enemy†(53). This shows that Rowdy resented Arnold so much for going to Reardan he didn’t want to be friends with Arnold anymore. In addition to losing his best friend he lost many other people, only in a different way. One final struggle Arnold faced was losing many loved ones. He lost his dog, grandmother, Eugene (His dads best friend) and his sister. He not only blamed himself for the deaths but also many others blamed him because he left the rez and betrayed them in a way by going to Reardan and making friends with white people. â€Å"‘Your sister is dead because you left us. You killed her.’Rowdy was right. I had killed my sisterIt was all my fault†(211). This shows that Arnold felt like in a way it was his fault and some of the Indians on the rez felt the same. He blamed himself for every bad thing that had happened all his life. Arnold had a tough life, he struggled to fit in, to keep his best friend and with losing many loved ones. Arnold slowly made friends at Reardan by just being himself. In the end he and Rowdy made up. They put the past behind them. Arnold also forgave himself for all the loved ones he lost; he also hoped that everyone else forgave him too. Losing loved ones is a normal part of life. No one should take the blame when it was never their fault. Making friends is also hard Especially when you are in a completely new environment or you are shy. Sometimes best friends will fight. It can last for a short time or a long time. Its important to remember we can not judge someone because of who they are or where they come from. Put yourself in their shoes; how would you feel?

The House On MAngo Street Essay example -- essays research papers

Everyone has specific characteristics and qualities that make them the way they present themselves. Young, middle-aged, and old people are constantly forming the essentials that affect their self-awareness through their daily activities. Forming one’s identity is an ongoing process, because every person in the world can change people one way or another. In The House on Mango Street, the experiences young Esperanza faced day to day develop her true individuality. Young people are easily persuaded and if someone so desired, they could mold them into the person they want. Commonly, young children develop their identity from going the school, playing with other children, and from their home life. When children go to school, if they are teased for being ethnic, colored, unkempt or anything else, this could cause them to be introverted, or ashamed of how they present themselves. On the other hand, the constant teasing from schoolmates may begin to brew strong feelings of anger. If they are rejected by society, when they are just starting to form an identity, this will probably have a negative effect upon them and their surrounding communities.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The identity, also, comes largely from the family, neighborhood and a small crowd of friends. A supportive and functional home life will be positive to a little child’s identity. If children see their parents fighting, the neighborhood they live in is a slum, they are around drugs and addictions, and then most...

Economic Impact of Affordable Care Act Essay

Impact of the Affordable Care Act† The current healthcare system over burdens the economy and is far too costly in comparison to the health benefits it delivers. The United States spends about 50 percent more on healthcare than any other developed country (as a fraction of our total national economy) and we get less for it on what matters. The human capital required to obtain these services leaves many Americans doing without or not receiving the medical treatment required. The Affordable Care Act may be the most controversial legislation in the modern era. It is marketed as healthcare expansion to about thirty million more Americans. The ACA is also designed to do away with some of the unfair elements of the current system. Health insurers currently are able to deny people coverage for â€Å"pre-existing conditions† which makes out of pocket costs out of reach for most Americans. As with any piece of federal lawmaking, the ACA was the product of political compromise among parties and interests. (Turner) However, the ACA should help to improve the GDP in the long run. In the short term period, the increase in economic security for American families will also mean an increase in consumer spending. Many uninsured consumers are forced to set aside money in low interest liquid accounts to make sure they have enough to cover unexpected medical costs. With the security provided by health insurance, they can free that money up for consumption that is much more valuable to them. When the federal government expanded Medicaid in the 1990s, the newly insured significantly increased their spending on consumer goods. (Brodwin) More purchases of consumer goods will provide short-run stimulation to the economy and more hiring. Opponents of the act have countered this theory saying it will freeze hiring in some industries. Some employers may resist hiring new workers, at least partly to avoid the high costs of the law’s mandated health coverage. The health law will require all employers with more than 50 workers to provide health insurance or pay a fine of $2,000 to $3,000 per worker every year. (Yoo) These added costs could result in companies losing the money needed to grow their businesses and hire new workers. It is feared that small business, usually the nation’s most robust job creators, will be hit hardest and many say the requirement would wipe out their profits. It is alleged that the â€Å"slow down† in hiring has already begin in  anticipation of the ACA. The total cost for healthcare in the US is around 16 percent of Gross Domestic Product, known as GDP. What we pay to doctors and insurance companies directly are included in this, as well as what we pay indirectly to Medicare and other programs. 16 cents of every dollar spent on groceries or clothes that will go to he althcare. This is very high in comparison to most other developed countries that pay between 9-12 percent of GDP. The difference in GDP is almost 5 percent, which works out to be more than half the annual federal deficit. The biggest fear associated to the Affordable Care Act is likely about the financing and â€Å"job-killing taxes†. There are three primary sources that the law applies new taxes to. The first is on parts of the health care industry like medical devices, pharmaceuticals, and insurance. (Turner) These areas that are receiving a new tax are being asked to â€Å"kick back† some of the newly created revenue resulted from an increase in paying customers provided by the law. These sectors should benefit on net in a large way. The second is an extension of the Medicare tax on the wealthiest Americans, those with incomes above $250,000 per year. The impact of tax changes on the highest income taxpayers will avoid some of those taxes by re-categorizing their incomes in ways that minimize taxes. There is nothing that suggests that the upper class will actually work less, invest less, or do anything which reduces their â€Å"real contribution† to the economy. The third major tax provision is a â€Å"free rider penalty† of $2000 to $3000 (per employee) on medium and large businesses that fail to provide workers with affordable coverage, forcing those workers to get subsidized insurance via the new insurance exchanges. This will indeed impose a new financial burden on businesses that, unlike competitors, do not pay their fair share of health insurance costs. But the overall impact is likely to be very small. Only 2. 6 percent of businesses will pay this assessment, and the revenue raised will amount to 1. 4 percent of existing spending on health insurance in the U. S. and only 0. 1 percent of wages. ( Turner) The ACA should raise employment numbers for the medical industry in the short run, more than any partial offsets from new taxes on that sector. The ACA should improve the functioning of our labor market in the medium run, by allowing workers to move to the positions in which they are most productive and satisfied without fear of job lock or losing health benefits. The â€Å"economic slowdown† from taxes on the upper class or the small equity payments imposed on employers should be minimal. In the long run there is a good chance the economy will improve by controlling health care cost. The choice between protecting our most vulnerable citizens and improving our economy is a false one. The ACA should do both. Works Cited Brodwin, David. â€Å"How the Affordable Care Act Helps the U. S. Economy. † US News. U. S. News & World Report, 29 Mar. 2012. Web. 03 Mar. 2013. Turner, Grace M. â€Å"Pro&Con: Affordable Care Act Will Impose New Burdens on Consumers, Businesses. † SouthCoastToday. com. N. p. , 02 Mar. 2013. Web. 03 Mar. 2013. Yoo, Saerom. â€Å"Mid-Valley Social Services. † MidValley Social Services Economic Effect of Medicaid Expansion under Affordable Care Act Comments. N. p. , 07 Feb. 2013. Web. 03 Mar. 2013.