Communication in a Diverse World Essays

Communication in a Diverse World Essays Communication in a Diverse World Essay Communication in a Diverse World Essay Log One The aim of day one was to raise awareness of the elements of communication in a diverse world. This was the introduction to Communication in a Diverse World with one of the outcomes being appreciating the value of promoting a safe and positive communication environment as well as indentifying own personal development issues in the context of communication and the diversity when working with not only the service users but with families, parents and carers. Communication is a way of using words to express our thoughts and feelings to another individual (Ellis, Gates and Kenworthy, 2003). Already I felt that I had to develop this outcome quickly not just for the nursing profession but for my own personal area of life. By the end of the session I became extremely aware of the effectiveness of good communication skills within the nursing profession, I recognise that this was the key fundamental skill in nursing. We watched a DVD in the first session which outlined to me what patients really wanted from nurses. I learned that effortless things such as the right facial expressions, listening attentively, or the way we approach and converse to service users will make big differences. This will not only make the duty of care easier but will also create a trusting relationship between the service users and nurse (The Nursing Times (2007). An exercise was conducted in session which involved introducing each other, I felt nervous and limited in what to say simply because of the fear of being judged. I then learned that this may be how patients might feel if they have not been to a hospital before or on having to meet a healthcare professional for the first time. I in addition became knowledgeable of the importance of maintaining professional boundaries with service users (Nursing and Midwifery Code, 2008). Being aware of the difference between social and therapeutic relationship as this will improve on the way we worked and relate to service users. This could be achieved by me being clear of my expectations and check their understanding as this will avoid conflict or misunderstandings also among my colleagues. Furthermore became aware of the way I communicate without affecting the service user or colleagues’ feelings. In conclusion to day one, my awareness to everything was increasingly improved, I am not suggesting that my way of dealing with communication before was in any way bad but I will say that, I had a mild approach to things, I now feel competent enough to approach people the right way with the right mind-set. Moreover assumption is out of my mentality, I am frequently reflecting back on my sessions and immediately I become tuned with the right approach to things. Log Two Day two aim was to define and explore essential human attributes required for working in partnership with individuals, one of the learning outcomes was to define and explore the therapeutic use of self, incorporating the qualities of kindness, sensitivity and compassion. This part of the module has increased my awareness of just how vital these three components are. They are needed in order to be a well developed member of the nursing profession. I learned that these components can be shown and defined in many different ways. I felt that every person involving themselves in the nursing profession must possess some form of empathy not just for the service users but for everyone around them. In my opinion therapeutic self means, knowing the professional boundaries between self and the service user, this includes me as the nurse to be clear of my own expectations as well as those of the service user and to make certain their understanding is checked carefully. Another way is being conscious of self disclosure, knowing what information is safe and relevant to reveal about myself. I learned that being congruent is another essence in nursing as we watch a DVD that touched the subject of honesty, this made me aware that service users values honesty amongst nurses. Following the session I also became alert of the unconditional positive regard that we nurses require in order to provide the best care possible, also being alert of our own beliefs and values and making sure that they do not intervene with the relationship development. Sensitivity in addition to empathy needs to help us endorse emotional comfort (Chambers and Ryder, 2009). The key aspects of care need to be applied to every aspect of nursing, it adds value to the physiological care and gives a sense of being valued to the service user. Kindness can be described as ‘perceived intent to support felt by the care recipient’ (Llewellyn and Hayes, 2008: 109). Clearly this is important in nursing after all, we want the service user to understand and feel aware of our duty and desire to care for and support them. Sensitivity is broadly speaking about being tuned in to the needs of others, being sensitive to their emotional needs, feelings and reactions. We were also given a leaflet on the Johari window and unknown to me, friends said I have grown in wisdom, informing me that I now think before I speak. I also learned that compassion is a basic kindness with a deep awareness and empathy for the suffering of living things. Also carried in compassion is the desire to change or improve the circumstances or situation of the subject that is perceived to be suffering and this described by (Chambers and Ryder, 2009: 2) ‘Compassion is the essence of caring and therefore the essence of nursing’. In conclusion I am now aware of how important it is to demonstrate kindness, sensitivity and compassion to other people, after being a service user myself (I was in hospital earlier this year), I felt well looked after because they constantly demonstrated these components. I will take this experience with me in practice as I now know that if treated with dignity and respect a greater standard of care is received. Log Three One of the learning outcomes of day three was to explain the importance of respecting diversity, individual choice and preferences. In my opinion diversity are the things that make us all individuals, that difficult mix that make us who we are and indentifies us as an individual. For day three we watched a DVD on disability and I felt sad and embarrassed my own past experiences as a child of how I reacted when I saw a disabled individual, the video made aware how the society has now changed since the fifties, I learned they are just as normal as everyone else and should not be judged, everyone deserves equal treatment and respect. Transcultural nursing is a critical aspect of healthcare today. The ever growing multicultural population in countries possess a major challenge to nurses given that individualise and holistic care to service users. This requires nurse to familiarise and welcome cultural differences in healthcare values, beliefs and customs. Nurses must obtain the needed knowledge and skills in cultural competency. Ethnically competent nursing care helps guarantee service users satisfaction and positive outcome (Journal of Cultural Diversity, 2008). I learned about the six strands of diversity and was happy to learn that various laws are now in place to make sure that one may not be discriminated against on these grounds such as the Employment Equality Age Regulation (2003) protects age legislation, The Disability Discrimination Act (1995), Sex Discrimination Act (1975), Race Relations Act (1976) amended (2000), Equal Pay Act (1970), The Equality Act (2006) and many more. I also learned nurses are also protected from being discriminated against because looking after older or disabled people, available on ( qualities. gov. uk). I learned that when dealing with disabled individuals, patience, kindness, sensitivity and compassion are the keys to reach a successful outcome despite of any disability that they may have. I became more aware that if the six strands of diversity are not respected, it can lead to social exclusion and this is how some people become depressed or homeless, as they are shunned and left unsupported. People wit h mental health issues and older people are more at risk of this because of their vulnerability. Whilst it is important to have all these legal frameworks put in place it was also important that us as individuals attitude of the wider society changes too. I now understand how crucial it is being non judgemental and accepting people for who they are. Gaining consent is essential before commencing any treatment of care (Nursing and Midwifery Code, 2008) this clearly made realise that supporting service users right to decline care and respecting their choice at all times was extremely vital. In conclusion to day three, I understand the crucial nature of respecting everyone’s faith and beliefs although some of us are physically or mentally different, we all have an equal right to expect equal treatment and opportunity. For me to perform in nursing at my best the service users must be given an equal stake in it. Diversity is should be embraced as this is what makes the world and interesting place to live. Log Four One of the learning outcomes of day four was to describe the key skills of communication. I will start by saying that communication is the key to everything, without the ability to communicate I could not write this and you would be unable to understand it. Communication is sharing our understandings (Barber, 1993 cited by Hinchcliff et al, 2008). Verbal communication consists of the use of words and language. It is used to think about an idea to share experiences and to validate the meaning of perceptions about the world and one’s place in it (Arnold and Boggs, 2007). Most people would consider verbal communication to be our primary communicative tool and people’s choice of language can vary according to education, race, beliefs and other socio economic factors. We looked at various ways of communicating with different individuals, approaching them the right way without feeling patronised or disrespected. I understood the importance of non-verbal communication, how vital it can be to do the simplest things such as being alert of my body language and posture. I learned different forms of non-verbal communication that I was not aware of before such as appearance, clothing, smell, grooming (Handout Day four, Page 2). Such simple things have now alerted me more on the way a person portrays themselves. Something else new was paralanguage because I did not know that things such as rhythm, rate, volume, pitch, stress are called paralanguage (Burnard, 1997). We also watched a DVD of dementia service users listening to live music. Watching the video they looked happy singing along to all tunes. At the end of this I took home the confidence to do what will be best for my patients regardless of others, also I now know other forms of communicating with disabled sufferers such as being creative or organising other forms of social activities even have symbols or drawings that they can point at to expressed how they are feeling or what they want or need, all conscious person are still able to communicate despite the severity of their disability (Kraszewski and McEwen, 2010). This is where eye contact, proximity, touch and facial expression become important to show care and attentiveness. Although caring for people in distress may be emotionally demanding and challenging, I develop the skill of understanding my role as a nurse as well as remembering why I chosen to be a nurse (Sully and Dallas, 2005). To add to this, we did and exercise of describing shape for colleagues to draw, at first I was feeling incompetent to give the right instruction as I am always panicking but when calm and listening attentively I was able to deliver the appropriate instruction without confusion. This taught me to be calm and attentive to my service users at all times. Something new I learned is that older people sometimes find it hard to reveal private information to younger individuals, even if a nurse, so it is important to show respect when communication by asking how they will like to be addressed rather than assumed that their first names are acceptable. I am now extremely aware of how to communicate with people using the right approach and bring creativity to my workplace. I became aware that although the colours, setting or machine noise and everyone around me may affect my level of communication, I am now competent not to let that distract me and still provide the best possible standard of care for my service users. Log Five One of my chosen learning outcomes for day five was to recognise when communication skills have been effective. I was absent on day five and missed out on all the discussions that were made during the session, however, looking at the handouts of other sessions I was able to indentify that my communication skills have become more effective when I had less need to reflect on previous sessions before approaching the service users or everyone around me. It has now become second nature to me to maintain awareness of paralanguage and non-verbal communication from the first point of contact as well as being aware of what I am saying and I have achieved this by purely maintaining eye contact when talking, giving the appropriate facial expression, touch, asking questions to indicate an interest and at the end of the conversation asking if there is anything else I could do for them. There are other ways that I could develop my skills even when I am not working and is my belief that I will find just as many chances to practice communication skills with my course colleagues and socially as I will professionally. Reading the handout of day five I came across paraphrasing and reflecting feelings, I felt these were new tools to use in practice to help focus and build trust. Summarising was new and useful because I am now knowledgeable of how to review an interview and how to terminate it appropriately leaving the service user feeling satisfied while still using the suitable communication skills. I was also educated by the handout that speaking to older people with patronising speech can have a negative effect on their dignity and well-being (Draper, 2005). Another way of patronising speech that I became aware of was speaking more slowly and in shorter sentences, which does not increase the speech comprehension (Williams, 2004). I became alerted of others ways in meeting challenges, which could be by recognising when am becoming defensive or listening carefully without interruption when someone asks a questions or make suggestions. Log Six My outcome of day six was to identify what communication skills that I have developed and to demonstrate an understanding of the qualities of kindness, sensitivity and compassion. Trying to assess myself as a communicator has been both challenging and interesting. Reflecting on the past I have tried to indentify some shortcomings I have, to gain inspiration from the knowledge base of others and to try and build on my strengths. It has been a real eye opener to me to see and hear what a complex and diverse skill set being a good communicator demands, experts state that communication is composed of diverse methods: words, voice, tone and non-verbal clues. Of these, some are more effective in delivering a message than others. According to research, in a conversation or verbal exchange: Words  are  7% effective, tone of voice  is  38% effective, non-verbal clues  are  55% effective, available on ( itstime. com/aug97. htm). Language is only one part of effective communication and that it can be complimented through non-verbal and paralanguage skills. I have also become intensely aware that communication is not a one way street, that is to say, it is not simply about making myself understood but that it is equally important to use my new found communication skills to better understand what others may be trying to convey to me. After all, in nursing our actions and decisions have a direct effect on people who depend on us to enhance their wellbeing and the greater the accuracy of the information we assemble from or interactions with service users, the better we are able to adapt or respond to the individuals need. The can be no effective transfer or information without effective communication. â€Å"To effectively communicate, we must realise that we are all different in the way we perceive the world and use this understanding as a guide to our communication with others† (Anthony Robbins). I need to add also that the same principle would apply in dealing with one’s colleagues and in becoming a valuable and supportive member of a nursing team. I was happy to learn that I was able to influence colleagues in a positive way with my contributions, it was a nice feeling to know that colleagues remembered my contributions. We did and exercise where we had to build a legonian in teams, I learned that good delegation, calmness and effective listening were the way to achieve this effectively and these will be useful tools to take into practice. During the legonian exercise, colleagues were kind and were all aware that some of us may be extremely sensitive which made feel less pressured, I then realise how crucial it is to be kind, sensitive and compassionate towards others. In conclusion to day six I learned the importance respecting people sensitive nature and regularly show kindness and compassion through my actions. Also learned that working as a team effectively leads to positive outcomes. Over the course, key words that were continuously and regularly mention were kindness, sensitivity and compassion and it struck me that knowing the definitions of these words is not enough, but that communicating these concepts through our actions and by learning to better demonstrate them via enhanced communication skills is actually a display of sensitivity to the needs of the service users in itself. I would like to offer the opinion that these can be grouped under the heading of ‘RESPECT’ and it is through the desire to communicate better and understand more that we can demonstrate our respect for service users and everyone around us furthermore properly meet their needs, and at the same time effectively communicate our own needs to those working around us. I have also learned that I have skills I can now put names to! And that I still have a great deal to learn. References The Nursing and Midwifery Council (2008) The Code: Standards of conduct, performance and ethics for nurses and midwives London: NMC Sully, P and Dallas, J (2005) Essential Communication Skills for Nursing Journal of Cultural Diversity, (2008) Madeline M. Maier-Lorentz: Transcultural Nursing: Its Importance in Nursing Practice Chambers, C and Ryder, E (2009) Compassion and Caring in Nursing Kraszewski, S and McEwen, A (2010) Communication Skills for Adult Nurses Equalities. gov. uk www. itstime. com Llewellyn, A and Hayes, S (2008) Fundamentals of Nursing Care: A textbook for Student of Nursing and Healthcare Burnard, P (1997) Effective Communication Skills for Health Professionals Arnold, E and Underman-Boggs, K (2007) Interpersonal relationships:   Professional Communication Skills for Nurses Nursing Times Communication skills: Essence of Care benchmark: Published 13 December (2007) Ellis, R, Gates B, Kenworthy, N (2003): Interpersonal Communication in Nursing: Theory and practice Anthony Robbins (Internet quote) Draper (2005)

Definition of Auxiliary Verb

Definition of Auxiliary Verb A verb that is used with a main verb that follows to help indicate its tense or some other way in which the verb is understood. As such, the auxiliary verb often doesnt have any meaning in itself, only in how it affects the main verb. The auxiliary verb and the main verb together form what is known as a compound verb. Auxiliary verbs are used much more often in English than they are in Spanish ​since Spanish is able to use conjugation to indicate tenses that sometimes are expressed in English with auxiliary verbs. For example, the future tense in English uses the auxiliary verb will as in I will study. But Spanish needs no auxiliary verb in this case, as the future is expressed through a verb ending: estudiarà ©. English also uses the auxiliary verb do to form many questions, as in Do you study? Such an auxiliary isnt needed in Spanish:  ¿Estudias? Two very common English auxiliaries have equivalents in Spanish: In English, forms of to have are combined with the past participle to form the perfect tenses; in Spanish, haber is used. In English, forms of to be are combined with the present participle to form the progressive (or continuous) tenses; in Spanish, forms of estar are used with the gerund. Also Known As Helping verb. The Spanish term is verbo auxiliar. Examples of Auxiliary Verbs Auxiliary verbs are in boldface; note that sometimes an auxiliary is used in one language but not the other. I have bought the medicine. (He comprado los medicamentos.)We are celebrating. (Estamos celebrando.)He does not work. (No trabaja.)I can swim. (Puedo nadar.)I usually drive fast. (Suelo manejar rpido.)

Financial Markets & Risk Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3500 words

Financial Markets & Risk - Essay Example According to this act, FSA is responsible for the authorisation and prudential supervision of banks and building societies. It is also responsible for the supervision of following agencies: It is also entrusted with the supervision of financial markets, securities listings and of clearing and settlement systems. At the same time, it may be responsible for conducting operations in response to problem cases influencing firms, markets and clearing and settlements systems under situation when the nature of the operations was agreed according to the provisions of the tripartite Memorandum. It is also responsible for regulatory policy in these areas, including that aimed with an objective to promote the resilience to operational disruption of authorised firms and Recognised bodies. It has also advisory responsibility and hence it should guide on the regulatory implications for authorised firms and recognised bodies of developments in domestic and international markets and of initiatives, both domestic and international level. Global financial problems may come at an unexpected intervals and hence they are equipped with necessary flexibility in their duties. For example, under exceptional circumstances FSA has responsibility to undertake official financial operations to limit the risk of problems in or influencing particular institutions spreading to other parts of the financial system. It should also ensure proper communication with standing Committees of the Bank of England and HM treasury to co-ordinate the response to a crisis. Like FSA, the Bank of England was also entrusted with huge responsibilities to bring financial stability in United Kingdom. The Bank of England is responsible for the predicting unforeseen challenges of the financial system as a whole. It also ensures the stability of the monetary system as part of its monetary policy functions. It should act in the markets to deal with fluctuations in

Latin music Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2250 words

Latin music - Essay Example This "Latin music" essay describes such musical style as bossa nova. The bossa nova music became a new style that combined samba and jazz pulses in which the complexity of the two was converted into another type of â€Å"stuttering† beat as many music lovers realized from Gilberto’s guitar. It is amazing because the songs were mainly casual and refined, yet infused with an attractive and catching swing. It is also clear that Gilberto sang the lyrics with a personal touch, warm, and whispering tone that made the melodies flow calmly. On his part, Jobim reinforced the amazing melodies with uniform harmonies, which can only compare to the pulses found in today’s classical jazz music. In essence, bossa nova recurring and harmonic productivity was created articulately in a sophisticated simplified manner that was extraordinary in the music industry at the time (Henry 57). In the height of 1960s, bossa nova appeared in American society even though it was indirectly. In reality, the film â€Å"Orfeu Negro† which denoted Black Orpheus based on the trends of bossa nova won a Grand Prize in the Cannes Film Festival acclaiming glory. This is because the song â€Å"Manha de Carnival† was the theme melody for the movie while Samba as well as bossa nova became the chief rhythms that it adopted. In this respect, bossa nova became instantly popular in the international scene and most of the composers of the song were widely known from this performance. Bossa nova attracted many musicians especially in America to introduce the rhythms in American Jazz. It was in this respect that â€Å"Girl from Ipanema† was composed and it became a popular and endowed song across the world (Henry 58). Instruments that Accompany Bossa Nova One of the most important instruments in bossa nova music is classical guitar, which mainly picks on the nylon-string using bare fingers and not a pick or coin. For a clean and clear sound, it requires unaccompanied g uitar combined with intrinsic vocals as Joao Gilberto diligently demonstrated them. The guitar is crucial even when performing jazz like collections for groups so that it is played to

Activity Based Costing Essay Example for Free

Activity Based Costing Essay Activity based costing (ABC) is a relative new way to allocate costs to specific processes and services. This system assures that the costs are accurately distributed to the products or services that generated them. ABC illustrates costs more accurately, giving management insight to the cost associated with certain business activities. ABC extends the decision-making skills of management by expanding on traditional costing (job order costing/process order costing) techniques. However, since ABCs introduction in the 1980s, many corporations are not using ABC, despite gained managerial decision making capabilities. Even by the mid-1990s, ABCs use has not spread throughout the accounting industry and its use is not obvious (Selto Jasinski, 1996). The following article will discuss the pros and cons of the ABC method. ABC is an extension of traditional product costing techniques. These techniques are called job order costing and process order costing. A job order costing system arranges costs for each unit as it goes through a production process. A process cost system collects costs in work in progress account. The numbers of units worked are recorded for the accounting period. These systems alone do not accurately illustrate costs incurred. Instead, these two costing techniques generally lump costs into 3 main categories (cost centers). These three categories are direct materials, direct labor and overhead. Cost drivers are then assigned to represent the relationship between the cost and the process it is allocated to. ABC provides a better map of the costs of manufacturing products or distributing services. ABC uses a multitude of activity centers, which are the equivalent to the previously mentioned traditional cost centers. Each of these activity centers has its own cost driver and driver rate. ABC identifies many different costs to products by adjusting the cost driver and driver rates to specific activity centers. This process avoids across the board allocations of cost. For example, a product, which takes up .03% of space in the warehouse, would require .03% cost absorbed by product sales revenue. If the depreciation unit requires 5% cost to replace equipment at a latter date, 5% is the driver rate for that particular product. Unit, batch  and product level costs can be determined with ABC. The following steps can summarize the ABC process. The first step is to identify the activities that consume resources and allocate costs to those activities. For example, purchasing materials, record keeping, labor, materials, miles driven, machine hours and number of customers served are activities, which consume resources and needs costs to be assigned to them. The second step is to distinguish the cost drivers that are related to each activity. For example, if machine hours an activity used in the process, then the number of hours used in production of one unit would be the particular cost driver rate. The last step is to allocate costs to products by multiplying the cost driver rate by the number of cost driver units consumed by the process. There are many inherent strengths in the ABC model. The ABC model allows costs to be allocated to many different activity centers. Few corporations can focus on undifferentiated product lines and be successful. Having multiple product lines means the company has multiple cost drivers associated with each different product line. ABC is helpful in selecting which products are successful and which ones should be eliminated. Accurate cost information is key in determining the actual costs of frequent product changes. This cost is important because costs can be a good indicator of the justification or termination of varying product lines. Product lines have become more complex. Product lines of past were much simpler. For example, the Model T Ford came in one style and one color, black. Today, Ford cars have many different colors and styles. These different styles all have different cost drivers and activity centers. ABC illuminates hidden costs when high volume sales are not present and product differentiation is. This is advantageous because unprofitable lines can be replaced with lines that are profitable. Not many years ago, labor comprised 25 to 50 percent of a products cost. However, since the 1960s, labor is increasingly less involved in the  production process. For example, the textile industry replaced 100-year old shuttle looms for European air-jet looms, doubling output with less labor. In steel, the Nucor corporation used continuous casting machines to yield labor costs of $60/ton verses traditional steels $130/ton. Labor cost today is infrequently the driving force behind costs it was during the development period of cost accounting (1930s). Instead, indirect costs have replaced labor as the dominant portion of costs for some products (Kelly, 1991). To use labor as the major basis for allocating as job costing or process costing accounting does, may lead to inaccurate decisions by management. The accounting profession has largely overlooked ABC. Among reasons cited for low adoption were employee resistance and the organizational changes essential with the use of ABC (Ness Cucuzza, 1995). Some trace the source of hindered adoption of ABC to technical as well as cultural issues. Others feel that ABC would be more widespread in industry if it were marketed better by the accounts themselves (Brausch, 1992). There are several reasons for ABC low adoption rate. Complexity is an obstacle to implementing ABC. ABC requires detailed records of the costs associated with producing products and services as compared to traditional methods. This detailed record keeping requires more effort from the accountants and is more time consuming. The complexity of ABC can contribute to more errors. ABC can require more time to check and recheck to uncover errors. ABC generally requires more effort on the part of the accountant verses traditional methods and reduces the adoption rate of ABC. Another reason for not using ABC is the increased economies of scale. Many corporations are standardizing their products to reduce the costs to manufacture them. For example, Coca-Cola distributes its products in many different countries. The product varies very little in respect to packaging and manufacturing. Traditional methods of accounting can assign costs more easily, quickly and accurately for those products that have little or no product variation. ABC is a valuable tool in calculating the costs of producing varying product  lines. These differing product lines require more extensive accounting practices than traditional costing methods provide. The information obtained from ABC can help promote product lines that managers feel are profitable between those which should be eliminated. Labor is less frequently the major ingredient in the production process. ABC addresses this concern by examining and illustrating the overhead costs associated with particular activity centers. ABC describes these over head costs more accurately and is beneficial when increasingly more complex manufacturing processes are used. Adoption issues should be addressed to implement ABC method when costing decisions matter to managers. Bibliography: ReferencesBrausch, J.M. Selling ABC: New Cost Systems Can Flounder if They Are Not Marketed. Management Accounting, February 1992, pp. 42-46. Geishecker, M.L. New Technologies Support ABC. Management Accounting, March 1996, pp. 42-48. Kelly, K. A Bean-Counters Best Friend. Business Week, October 25, 1991, pp. 42-43. Ness, J.A. and T.G. Cucuzza. Tapping the Full Potential of ABC. Harvard Business Review, July/August 1995, pp. 130-131. Selto, F.H. and D.W. Jasinski. ABC and High Technology: A Story with a Moral. Management Accounting, March 1996, pp. 37-40. 17

DRUGS AND REHAB :: essays research papers

When you hear the word drugs, what do you think of first? Most people think of drugs such as cocaine, weed, heroin, and ecstasy; not many people associate alcohol with drugs. Many young people are developing strong drug addictions these days. The amount of teens and young adults using drugs is going down all the time. Although many teens are beginning small, and ending up in a lot of trouble. Cigarettes and beer are just the beginning; eventually if you stay on this path you will move on to bigger things to get the same effects and end up in a rehabilitation centers.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  First off, I would like to define what an addiction is. Addiction is defined as a compulsive physiological and psychological need for a habit-forming substance such as a drug. Addiction can be to anything in the world. Being addicted to something doesn’t have to be limited to just drugs. People have the ability to be addicted to anything in the world.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  There are many kinds of drugs that young people are getting addicted to these days. Some of the main drugs that are used today by teens and young adults include the following: Marijuana, crack/cocaine, heroin, and LSD. Also a new fad in drugs known as â€Å"club drugs† are entering the picture for teens. Some of these drugs include ecstasy, Rohypnol (Roofies), and Methamphetamine (Speed).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Marijuana is a mixture of leaves, stems and flowers of the Indian hemp plant Cannabis sativa, and is smoked or eaten for its hallucinogenic and pleasure-giving effects. The psychoactive ingredient of marijuana, tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), is concentrated in the flowers. Hashish, a drug prepared from the plant resin, has about eight times more THC than marijuana. (www.allsands.com) People who use marijuana seem to go through two different phases. The first phase being the initial stimulation. This stage consists of hyperness and euphoria. The second phase consists of sedation and a version of tranquility. Many people associate an increased appetite with the use of this drug. Also a heightened sensory awareness and of pleasure go along with the use. Negative effects can include confusion, acute panic reactions, anxiety attacks, fear, a sense of helplessness and loss of self-control. Like alcohol intoxication, marijuana impairs reading comprehension, memory, speech, problem-solving ability and reaction time. In addition to side effects to memory and behaivior, marijuana has effects on your health as well. Smoking this

The Relationship between Faith and Reason

â€Å"Faith and Reason are like two wings on which the human spirit rises to the contemplation of truth† Explain the dangers for a theologian when faith and reason are divorced from each other. Use at least one example of a Christian teaching that shows the harmony of faith and reason The harmony of faith and reason are the grounds upon which many Christian teachings are built. This relationship enhances elements of both constructs, however the danger of separating reason from faith is that reason will endeavour to prove literally and most logically which would cause the ultimate goal and question to be lost in deliberation and, on the other hand, separating faith from reason would cause faith to be viewed as mere fable or superstition. The two must cooperate in equal conjunction in order for the human spirit to rise to the contemplation of truth as proposed in the encyclical letter ‘Fides et Ratio’ by the late supreme pontiff Pope John Paul II. Reason could be simply defined as the logical conclusion drawn from literal occurrences or the confirmed nature of a tradition or practise. However more elements of Reason hold true in addition to the prospect of something that can be ‘proven’. Reason is generally understood as the principals for a methodological inquiry, whether intellectual, moral, aesthetic or religious. 1 Any acquisition of intellectual knowledge, through either direct understanding or argument is a representation of ‘reason’ The Internet Encyclopaedia of Philosophy Hebrews 11:1 states that â€Å"faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see†. The basis of faith is usually adapted from the authority of revelation whether that be direct (God speaking directly to a person), or indirect (books of the bible, sermons by priests, etc). Faith depicts a trust in God and his promises to his people. Pope John Paul II stated that through Christian teachings, what humans cannot see or touch is confirmed by faith2 Pope John Paul II, not only addresses the fallacious assertions of modern philosophers, but offers a remedy by demonstrating the truth of the Aristotelian or Tomistic worldview, showing that faith and science are by no means contrary to one another, but that it’s essential for the progression of humanity—of any kind—that faith and science (or reason) be used together. 3 The separation of the two cause a confusion, previously experienced by philosophers, that sections faith and science/reason as two detached entities. Viewing this detachment in its simplest formation, the human thinker surmises that for one to be faithful to God, and a religious being, they must reject all elements of reason and commit solely to the concepts of faith. Alternatively, one who would believe in a greater percentage of reason must be atheist as any rejection of God is inherently a rejection of faith itself. As the world develops and humans become more knowledgeable, it becomes impossible to deny certain facts; however this becomes a danger to all religious communities as by simplest thinking, trusting in any evidence is perceived as a rejection of trust in God. Herein lies the dangers for theologians; prior of course to John Paul II’s Fides et Ratio 2 3 Fides et Ratio, John Paul II Catholic Champion that acknowledges that â€Å"reason and faith cannot be separated without diminishing the capacity of men and women to know themselves, the world and God in an appropriate way †¦There is thus no reason for competition of any kind between reason and faith: each contains the other, and each has its own scope for action† As individuals, we must affectively reason within our own contexts and founded understandings of the world which we live, thus this will help us engage in our faith to make sense of the world we observe. 4 Noticeably it can be understood that faith, tradition and reasoning are intertwined within one another, you cannot have one without the other and all 3 elements are essential components in understanding and living ones faith. The harmony of faith and reason is best seen through the story of creation. â€Å"By faith we understand that the universe was formed at God’s command, so that what is seen was not made out of what was visible†5. This passage highlights the significance of the contributions from both faith and reason through Genesis and the early books of the bible to the validity of belief. Plato tried explaining man’s position in the world and the beginning of our time through the allegory of the windowless cave. In the simplest form, the cave presents the backdrop upon which a play of shadows takes place. The men in the cave watch this play being executed from a light source as the only reality they know. While rumours flare of an outside ‘world’ the play continues, and ‘reason’ creates speculation over what is about to happen next and theories are developed regarding the purpose. Over time, reason will explain most aspects of the show, but would only hold 4 5 Fides et Ratio, John Paul II 94 Hebrews 11:3 vidence enough to understand the earliest moments of the show. To reach full truth, faith needs to be introduced to actually believe in the initial source of light. Furthermore to the prospect, faith and reason question what happens if the light sources goes out; for the play will not â€Å"die† as death is merely an understood element of the play. No one was around at the time of creation and no one has a direct knowledge of what happened; so reason cannot c onfirm whether or not God did it. But reason does suggest that the universe is operating and therefore must have had a beginning. It is very intricately designed, from the basic laws of physics to the incredible complexity of the human brain. Whether a person looks at the beauty and exclaims, â€Å"There must be a God! † or whether that person has to sit down and calculate the probability of these things happening by chance, the conclusion of the honest seeker is that nature does not explain itself. Furthermore the reasonable belief in Genesis 1:1, â€Å"In the beginning God created the Heavens and the Earth† is a sheer step of faith rather than an uninformed stab in the dark. The ideas and theories of past philosophers have greatly affected the divorce between faith and reason however John Paul II’s Fides et Ratio has significantly helped the church and her people understand and feel comfortable with the concept of a ‘circle’ holding both entities together in a strong union where on e feeds off the other. Theologians face a danger when thinking opposed to the late pope’s discussion as the concept draws contradictions and confusion from believers that leads to the assumption that they are less than faithful in the eyes of God for considering reasonable and proven evidence. Olsen, Ross Faith and Reason: What is the Relationship?