Religion and Science Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words - 1

Religion and Science - Essay Example This is due to the fact that some scientists turn out to be religious and some religious leaders also are scientists. This paper provides critical comments regarding three different questions that comprise of controversy between science and theology. The first exercise concerns Copernicus theory, postulated by a great scientist called Copernicus. Copernicus was a University trained Catholic priest dedicated to astronomy (Russell 59). Ancient scientists, theologians and philosophers strived to explain how the world operates and how it came into existence. Copernicus was not an exceptional. He endeavored to explain planets and the sun are interrelated. According to the astronomical method developed by Copernicus, the sun is positioned at the center of the universe with the Earth and other planets revolving around it in circular paths modified by epicycles and at uniform speeds. The model postulated by Copernicus deviated from an earlier model, the Ptolemaic system that had prevailed in western countries for centuries that placed the earth at the center of the universe (Russell 92). Although the Copernicus theory could predict accurately the relative distance of the planets from the sun it could not produce more accurate predictions of planetary positions. It appeared not to agree with common sense and also contradict the bible. Basing, on theological, physical and astronomical perspectives some thinkers like Tycho Brahe, objected the idea by Copernicus of the earth moving. Probably that might have been the reason why theologians rejected Copernicus theory, even though Copernicus had dedicated his book to the Pope (Russell 79). Seen as a smart move, Copernicus book’s publisher, Oisander, added a preface that seemed to shield Copernicus from any wrong doing .The publisher stated in the preface that the theory of the earth’s motion was put forward as theory and not as a conclusion suggesting it was the absolute truth. The approach

Sexual harassment opinions

Sexual harassment opinions Effects Sexual harassment often has adverse effects on the victims performance at work. Both the quantity and the quality of work may suffer, as well as the employees morale, attendance, and ability to work with others. Sexual harassment can cause employers losses in productivity and can lead to greater employee turnover and use of sick leave. The harassment can also harm the victims psychological and physical well-being. Sexual harassment can also have indirect effects ?p society. Many feminist scholars consider sexual harassment to be a form of oppression that men use to maintain male-dominated power structures. Women in fields of work that men have traditionally occupied-such as the military, law enforcement, and fire fighting-experience higher rates of sexual harassment. Some researchers assert that regardless of whether harassment is an intentional attempt to oppress girls and women, it contributes to lower achievement by women in society. Power differences between men and women, result from societys traditional sex-role stereotyping and is a major cause of sexual harassment. ? culture tending to place males into greater positions of power than females would expect to have women file a higher rate of sexual harassment complaints because they occupy positions of less authority. When unequal?al power relationships between the sexes are rooted in cultural experiences, work co?texts can provide a foundation legitimizing sexual harassment in the workplace. Cultural conditioning can create an environment conducive to sexually harassing behaviours. Expectations that women are passive and submissive and that men are aggressive and dominant create situations conducive to these behaviours. ? sexually harassing and hostile workplace can establish specific patterns of verbal and nonverbal communication creating unequal power relationships between men and women. PSYCHOLOGICAL OPINIONS ABOUT SEXUAL HARASSMENT CLAIMS While psychologists may offer an opinion regarding the connection between a traumatic event and emotional injury in an accident, that is less clear in sexual harassment. ?he emotional trauma experienced by the victim of sexual harassment is based ?p perceptions about the behaviour of others by the victim. Psychologists are not qualified to determine if sexual harassment took place, because that is a legal question, not a psychological one. However, psychologists can offer an opinion regarding whether a particular action by one individual can reasonably lead t? emotional distress in p another individual. Most of the time, psychologists are asked to evaluate victims of sexual harassment t? assess whether they are exhibiting any psychological distress, and whether that distress appears to be related to specific events ?p the part of another person. ?he court must then decide whether those actions were appropriate ?G legal. Some individuals misinterpret harmless, reasonable behaviour as malicious and specifically directed at themselves. Diagnostically this is called ideas of reference. ?his would suggest an individual with some type of psychological problem who overreacts t? reasonable behaviour because of their own perception of the world and the other person. ?his often occurs in individuals with personality disorders, paranoid disorders, ?G other psychological problems that might involve delusions ?G extreme exaggerations of negative events in their lives. ?therefore, psychological evaluations in sexual harassment cases also focus ?p the expectations of the victim, and whether the victim presents with psychological symptoms which result in exaggerated negative conclusions about others. For example, a persons boss is of a different sex than the person. The worker believes that the boss is sexist and discriminates against the workers sex. ?he worker requests to work on a specific project, but its not chosen. The worker assumes the choice was based on sexist behaviour, rather than merit ?G chance. ?he worker experiences a number of events like this over time, and feels harassed because of it, resulting in depression. Is this sexual harassment? ?he answer depends ?p many factors, such as alternative · reasons for not selecting the worker, whether the worker was selected positively ?p other occasions, whether other individuals had credentials which led to choosing them instead, and whether other individuals of the same sex as the worker experienced similar problems and perceptions. In addition to evaluating the presence ?G absence of psychological disorders, psychologists may also offer opinions regarding whether a persons expectations are reasonable, based on the circumstances. Many psychological problems result when we expect people to treat us in an unrealistically positive way. These cases are not clear cut, because they are not based solely ?p the identification of a psychological problem. Ultimately, the court will decide whether there is sufficient evidence to conclude that sexual harassment took place. Although sexual harassment is not specifically included in Title of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 in USA, it flows by regulation of the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) from sex discrimination. It is defined as unwelcome sexual advances requests for sexual fa?ours and other ?verbal ?G physical/ conduct of a sexual/ nature, when linked to employment conditions, as part of a quid pro quo for employment decisions ?G when it creates an offensive, hostile work environment. Sexual harassment behaviours range from sexual innuendo, touching, and flirtatious remarks, to clear-cut sexual assault and rape. Often these are accompanied by retaliation against the victim for reporting it. It is estimated by some that up to 60% of victims ignore sexual harassment, believing that if they complain it will only cause more harm. In recent years, however, sexual harassment litigation has been increasing dramatically. In the past five or six years the EEOC reports that these complaints have almost tripled in number and by the year 2000 it is predicted that they will double again. What sexual harassment is and whether or not it occurred are legal and factual matters, but invariably psychological issues become embroiled in them and psychological opinions are frequently presented as part of the claim. These opinions are usually ones which either clarify the claim or define the damage. Psychological opinions which attempt to clarify the claim are the most controversial because they draw conclusions or make inferences about factual matters. Since many times it is only the word of the victim against the harasser, these opinions can tip the scales one way or another. Sometimes psychologists who give such opinions, and who may be acting in good faith, do not realize that they are entering a non-psychological area. This is in part because psychologists in a treatment relationship with a patient claiming sexual harassment need to validate the seriousness of the patients experience if they are to be helpful. But taking that clinical validation to a courtroom is another story. This is why treating psychologists are inherently biased if they are performing their clinical job well. This is also why independent experts, whose scope of inquiry is broader and who are not allied to the patient, may be in a more objective position to give opinions. Regardless of who is giving the opinion, mental health science has not reached the level of sophistication or accuracy to be able to determine whether an alleged sexual harassment incident actually occurred. No constellation of symptoms, mental status appearance, or psychological test results can do that. Even if suspect factors such a bizarre psychotic account, gross inconsistencies, obvious manipulation or marked personality predisposition are not present, psychologists dont really know who is Iying, who is fantasizing, and who is embellishing. However, opinions about a victims behaviour in the harassment situation may be appropriate, especially when a fact finder might not understand it otherwise. So, for example, explaining that victims often remain silent because of economic necessity, fear of retaliation, intimidation and powerlessness, or embarrassment may be helpful. But, care must be taken not to conclude that this victim who may have responded that way was, therefore, harassed; in addition, psychological opinions can help clarify typical response patterns that a victim of sexual harassment exhibits. Reactions such as guilt, self-blame, minimization and denial of harassment ?G even disconnecting onself emotionally from the uncomfortable events are not ?unusual .Without an understanding of those types of responses, a victim may be incriminated as inconsistent with having been harassed. Again, focusing on the general pattern of trauma response is not the same as concluding that harassment occurred. Psychological opinions in sexual harassment claims often ignore more complex organizational and workplace dynamics which form the background of many of these claims. Without input from people at the workplace and review of employment files, the account of the alleged victim stands in isolation from many potential contributing factors. It is not uncommon, for example, for personnel issues such as poor performance, reprimands and warnings, or fear of termination to present a crisis for which a sexual harassment claim serves as a convenient solution. Psychological evaluations which explore all aspects of the work environment, interpersonal relationships there, and work performance can provide a more balanced view of the relative seriousness of the known stressors, Another area for psychological opinions is identifying personality traits ?G personality disorders which may have created or contributed to the claim. First of all, not all sexual harassment is actionable. It must be severe or pervasive enough to create an objectively hostile or abusive work environment. Similarly, if the claimant is a not a reasonable woman of normal sensitivity, her claim may not prevail. ? number of personality disorders can play an important role in employment litigation and provide an alternative explanation of the claimants emotional distress. For e?ample, histrionic personality disorder, borderline personality disorder, anti-social personality disorder, narcissistic personality disorder, and paranoid personality disorder are just a few descriptions of people who have unusual sensitivity or are predisposed to maladaptive ways of dealing with others. If there is a clear history ?G pattern of such personality traits, then psychological opinions about them are imp ortant for a full understanding of events. Again, this does not mean that the psychological opinion can conclude that an event did not occur, in fact, individuals with some personality disorders may be vulnerable to victimization. Similarly, there may be a personality disorder that is present in the alleged harasser which can help explain a predatory pattern of conduct. A past history of sexual abuse can predispose a person to a variety of different reactions which may influence a later sexual harassment claim. Since the standard for Iiability in these claims is that of a reasonable woman who is not hypersensitive, the typical eggshell rule of common law does not apply expect as to damages. So, a person who has been previously abused may have developed fear, hyper vigilance, and an unusual sensitivity. In this context, even a trivial innocuous remark may produce an excessive reaction. Also, people with previous sexual abuse are at times people to repetition compulsion which means they have a tendency to repeat past behaviour in spite of the suffering that may have been associated with it. In essence, they recreate the earlier sexual abuse by placing themselves in a position to be abused again. The relevance here is for the defence of welcome ness since the sexual conduct in a sexual harassment claim must be unwelcome and not solicited by the claiman t. Finally, individuals who experienced sexual abuse may be so damaged that they fabricate later incidents of abuse as a way of venting their anger. Because of previous experiences, their ability to describe abuse can be quite sophisticated and believable. Psychological opinions in all of these areas can be important sources of clarification about the possible circumstances of a claim. Psychological opinions which define the damage are seemingly more straightforward since they are based ?p diagnostic criteria. Unfortunately, this is more complicated since the criteria for many mental disorders are arbitrary and easily met by someone just distressed and pursuing litigation. Also, while a psychological opinion may purport to only address emotional harm, it invariably infers that the harm springs from a particular opinion which, in fact, occurred. Tile most striking example is the controversial diagnosis of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in which the trauma is built into the label. Although attempts have been made to identify specific and objective criteria for this condition, its rampant use in litigation attests to its subjectivity. Most individuals e?posed to a typical traumatic stressor do not develop PTSD, although following a rape the incidence can be high. Long-term lingering emotional symptoms in response to ordinary sexual harassment are unusual unless the nature of the harassment was particularly egregious and pervasive. Psychological opinions are routinely offered ?p emotional damages and the relative effects of alternative causes, the harm from litigation itself, and the secondary gain that comes from an expected financial award. !p traditional tort claims of negligence, the plaintiff must have suffered some harm. In sexual harassment claims, neither economic harm nor emotional harm is necessary. However the degree of damages awarded will undoubtedly be linked to psychological opinions which offer definition for the distress and the disorder suffered. Every individual has the right to work in an environment free from demeaning and humiliating sexual harassment. Laws that enforce that right are appropriate and help create parity for all workers. But the increase in sexual harassment claims also raises social questions. What behaviours are normal, should be acceptable, and will always be a part of mens and womens relationships? What harm comes to individuals ?G classes of individuals when a power gradient is established through sexua1 intimidation? How can the workplace be sensitized and educated about this without becoming cynical? How can a person communicate sensitivity without retribution? How can we accurately distinguish whether a sexual harassment claim is really based ?p the circumstances alleged ?G just a means of empowerment in a confliction and insecure work environment? Psychological opinions may help on some of these questions, but social opinion and public policy will be required for equitable solutions.

Free Essays - A Lesson Before Dying :: Lesson Before Dying Essays

In the novel, A Lesson Before Dying, By Ernest Gaines, the main character, Grant Wiggins gives a man meaning in his last days alive. Wiggins gives him a book to write his thoughts in, and helps him to realize that he is not a â€Å"hog.† He shows him that he is truly a good person, and that he should die with his head up, knowing that he led a worthy and honest life. Mr. Wiggins changed greatly through the story, from a cold school teacher to an open hearted and caring man. This helped his relationship with others as well as Jefferson. Through his changing, he became the one man that Jefferson could trust. In a rural town in Louisiana in the late 1940's a poorly educated young black man, Jefferson, is in the wrong place at the wrong time: he is in a bar with two friends when they murder the white bartender. Jefferson is unfairly convicted of murder and sentenced to the electric chair by a white judge and jury. His defense lawyer, in an attempt to ward off the death sentence, labels him a "hog"--and it is this label that Jefferson's godmother wants disproved. She enlists the help of a plantation school teacher, Grant Wiggins, who at first isn’t too keen on the idea of helping a crook. Wiggins agrees to talk with Jefferson only out of a sense of duty--he is an unhappy, angry man who dreamt of escape from his deprived childhood yet returned to his hometown after a university education to teach in the same one-room parish school he attended. Despite humiliation at the hands of the white sheriff, Jefferson's lack of cooperation, and his own sense of futility and uncertain faith, Wiggins forges a bond with Jefferson that leads to wisdom and courage for both. At first, Jefferson sees himself as a hog, and nothing but a hog. It takes Wiggins much time and strength to convince him that he should live his last days with pride and dignity. Jefferson looks at the entire situation as his fault and will only do what Miss Emma and Tante Lou see fit for him to do. â€Å"If that’s what they want, Jefferson said.† â€Å"No, not what they want; what you want, says Grant†Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬Å"If that’s what they want, I’m go’n die anyhow, says Jefferson.†(p.135) Wiggins begins his teaching as he has taught for years, which is not allowing it to change his life.

Fancy Footwork

Most countries have their own cultural traditions, and China is no exception. Street dancing is not very popular in the United States, especially in Sacramento, since people have busy life styles and urban management law enforcement. Sometimes people go to clubs dancing when they have free time or hang out with friends. However, in China, we can see a lot of ladies dancing in square or open spaces like parks or parking lots during morning time or after dinner time. People can join the street dances everywhere from big cities to small towns. Many community owners and residents oppose the square dance in the community due to their loud music, and some people think this loud music has seriously affected their lives, so residents expelled dancing ladies at the beginning. As time went by, people started to accept and adjust to the environment around them. Street dances have become one aspect of culture in China. Moreover, it is also considered a social phenomenon in China. The streets have become a colorful world at night. Why? Since there are elderly people or middle-aged people enjoy the dancing in the square. Some people dance and sing, other people are into fitness, and some naughty children follow the funny action of the dancing ladies. Even though the dancers are old, they still have vibrant vitality and graceful dance posture. They are well-behaved and rhythmic. They have neatly arranged team, and the people dressed uniform clothing wearing a blue and white T-shirt, trousers, and white gloves, really like the people's liberation army in the military parade. My grandma couldn't help to join the team when she saw the spectacular scenery. When I was a child, my grandma always took me to the square dance because it was her routine. Her joints are flexible and soft like snakes. Her beautiful dance leisurely soft like butterfly flying and smooth wicker twisting. Street dance in the Chinese mainland; both north and south are very common, mostly participants experienced the Cultural Revolution generations of the elderly. In China, the middle-aged and elderly women who dance at street dance have been given the title of â€Å"Guang Chang Da Ma Wu† which is street dance. Accompanied by elegant music and lightweight pace of dancers, people know where they should go for dancing, and usually they have stable places. Although sometimes rain couldn't stop their activities, they go to indoor grounds. Many people join the street dancing because it is very cheap and avoid traffic to go far away to clubs. For example, it is reported as being 5 RMB per month. It depends where you live. If you live in the big cities like Guangzhou, Shanghai, or Beijing, it will be about 20 RMB, which is three dollars. I still enjoyed dinner with my family while the music is open as loud as trains outside of my home. It is very convenient being next door. It seems to tell people that it is time go out dancing. When foreign tourists travel to China, they are completely impression by â€Å"Guang Chang Da Ma Wu†. They may think dancers are so ridiculous since they play loud music and occupy a lot of public places; also, they annoy many other residents. Because so many dancers like to dance very early in the morning, for example, around 6:00am, this does not allow sleeping-in on weekends. The noise also bothers some people at work when the dancers are active during working hours. Additionally, this can cause a lot of trafficproblems and displace other sports. Street dancing seems weird in other countries, but it creates a good atmosphere of helping, learning, exchange of feeling, friendship, growth of knowledge and fitness, bringing together people of different levels qualities and interests. When I look back at the life in China, I have vivid images of the street dance around my home in my head. Loud music has been coming in my ear which seems to have happened yesterday. â€Å"Guang Chang Da Ma Wu† has become significant, not only in my family, but it is a major culture of Chinese society. Street dance has become the soul of Chinese culture. It is inherited from generation to generation.

Criticism of Quitak’s Child observation Essay

Quitak first explains that she is â€Å"working on the assumption that the problematic aspects of our experience contain the maximum potential†. However I think it is important to clarify from the outset, how she reached this assumption, as the reader does not know whether she went into the observation with this belief or whether these assumptions were developed as a result of her observation. There is another important omission relating to who the author actually is. She hasn’t positively stated that she is a Social Work student, although this is implied when she states that her observations had â€Å"implications for social work.† Therefore it is difficult to ascertain her purpose for carrying out the observations. Furthermore Quitak fails to mention how she came to select the child included in her observations, how many observation sessions took place and the length of the sessions. Therefore the reader is unable to assess whether there were any issues of bias involved in her selection process. The fact that she is the product of English middle class parents means she may be going into the study with particular assumptions, as she is observing a child who has a Palestinian parent. A significant area which was lacking in her observations was her inability to â€Å"tune in to Selena’s inner world† (pg 250), although Quitak does acknowledge this omission. She didn’t really try to question and understand Selena’s behaviour or how she might be feeling when she demonstrated behaviour she didn’t like, which meant her observation suffered as a result. King (2010) stresses the importance of â€Å"to access the child’s emotional world†.

Alice Walker essays

Alice Walker essays Alice Walker was born on February 9, 1944 in Eaton, Georgia . She was the youngest of eight children. Her parents were sharecroppers. Walker grew up in a racial area . In 1952 Alice Walker brother accidential shot her in the right eye with a BB gun. Alice eye was disfigured and made her feel ugly, taking away her confidence. She was very shy and not out going. When she turned fourteen, her brother paid for her to have an operation to correct the problem. Following the operation she was able to gain her confidence back. In her senior year of high school, she became the Queen of her prom. In 1960 her had change became a activist . Due to the accident, walker wasw able to get scholarship given by the Georgia Department of Rehabilitation. Plus she all already had a academic scholarship. She was headed to Spelman College. After sophomore year , Walker received another scholarship to Sarah Lawrence College. The end of summer year she went to East Africa, to build a school in Kenya. Alice Walker graduate in 1965. In 1966 she received her writing grant. In 1967 she wrote The Third Life of Grange Copeland . Between the years 1966-1981 she went threw a lot racism ,marriage having children ,being depressed , because she was a women and black. People want to kill her because she married a Jew. Won many awards like American Academy , Institution s and letters all sorts of things but in 1982. I believe Alice Walker had a dramatic change around she published The Color Purple which talks about how two women love same man . How he took advantage over both of them a beat them and sex. This is ironic because she was treaty in the same by white people . I believe this book should why she didnt like black men because how the attack. This book was so wonderful . That in 1983 she receive the first black woman Pulitzer Prize for fiction. In 1985 Steven Spielbe...

The Population of Los Angeles, California

The Population of Los Angeles, California The Los Angeles population can be looked at in a variety of ways- it can refer to the population of the City of Los Angeles, the County of Los Angeles, or to the greater Los Angeles metropolitan area, each of which is considered to be L.A. Los Angeles County, for instance, contains  88 cities including the City of Los Angeles, Long Beach, Santa Clarita, Glendale, and Lancaster, as well as several unincorporated communities whose combined population makes it the largest county in the United States in terms of occupancy. The demographics of these populations is also varied and diverse, depending on where in Los Angeles and LA County you look. In total, the population of Los Angeles is about 50 percent white, nine percent African American, 13 percent Asian, about one percent Native American or Pacific Islander, 22 percent from other races, and about 5 percent from two or more races. Population by City, County, and Metro Area The City of Los Angeles is a very large one, it is the nations second-largest city (following New York City). The January  2016 population estimate according to the California Department of Finance for the population of the City of Los Angeles was 4,041,707. The County of Los Angeles is the largest county in the United States based on population, and according to the California Department of Finance, the LA County population as of January 2017 was 10,241,278. LA County is home to 88 cities, and the population of those cities varies from 122 people in Vernon to nearly four million in the City of Los Angeles. The largest cities in LA County are: Los Angeles: 4,041,707Long Beach: 480,173Santa Clarita: 216,350Glendale: 201,748Lancaster: 157,820 The United States Census Bureau estimates the population of the Los Angeles-Long Beach-Riverside, California Combined Statistical Area as of 2011 as 18,081,569. The LA metro population is the countrys second largest, following New York City (New York-Newark-Bridgeport, NY-NJ-CT-PA). This Combined Statistical Area includes the Metropolitan Statistical Areas of Los Angeles-Long Beach-Santa Ana, Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario, and Oxnard-Thousand Oaks-Ventura. Demographics and Population Growth Although most of the population of the Los Angeles metropolitan area is centralized in the City of Los Angeles, its diverse population is spread over 4,850 square miles (or 33,954 square miles for the wider statistical area), with several of the cities serving as gathering spots for specific cultures. For instance, of the 1,400,000 Asians living in Los Angeles,  a majority live in Monterey Park, Walnut, Cerritos, Rosemead, San Gabriel, Rowland Heights, and Arcadia while  the majority of the  844,048 African Americans that live in LA live in View Park-Windsor Hills, Westmont, Inglewood, and Compton. In 2016, Californias population grew but just under one percent, adding a total of over 335,000 residents to the state. While much of this growth was spread across the state, nine counties in northern and eastern California saw a decrease in population, which is a trend thats existed for the better part of the last 10 years. The largest of these growth changes, though, happened in Los Angeles County, which added 42,000 people to its population, increasing it for the first time to over four million residents.