Black Holes Essays - Black Holes, Event Horizon,

Black Holes stence. The Search for Black Holes: Both As A Concept And An Understanding For ages people have been determined to explicate on everything. Our search for explanation rests only when there is a lack of questions. Our skies hold infinite quandaries, so the quest for answers will, as a result, also be infinite. Since its inception, Astronomy as a science speculated heavily upon discovery, and only came to concrete conclusions later with closer inspection. Aspects of the skies which at one time seemed like reasonable explanations are now laughed at as egotistical ventures. Time has shown that as better instrumentation was developed, more accurate understanding was attained. Now it seems, as we advance on scientific frontiers, the new quest of the heavens is to find and explain the phenomenom known as a black hole. The goal of this paper is to explain how the concept of a black hole came about, and give some insight on how black holes are formed and might be tracked down in our more technologically advanced future. Gaining an understanding of a black hole allows for a greater understanding of the concept of spacetime and maybe give us a grasp of both science fiction and science fact. Hopefully, all the clarification will come by the close of this essay. A black hole is probably one of the most misunderstood ideas among people outside of the astronomical and physical communities. Before an understanding of how it is formed can take place, a bit of an introduction to stars is necessary. This will shed light (no pun intended) on the black hole philosophy. A star is an enormous fire ball, fueled by a nuclear reaction at its core which produces massive amounts of heat and pressure. It is formed when two or more enormous gaseous clouds come together which forms the core, and as an aftereffect the conversion, due to that impact, of huge amounts of energy from the two clouds. The clouds come together with a great enough force, that a nuclear reaction ensues. This type of energy is created by fusion wherein the atoms are forced together to form a new one. In turn, heat in excess of millions of degrees farenheit are produced. This activity goes on for eons until the point at which the nuclear fuel is exhausted. Here is where things get interesting. For the entire life of the star, the nuclear reaction at its core produced an enormous outward force. Interestingly enough, an exactly equal force, namely gravity, was pushing inward toward the center. The equilibrium of the two forces allowed the star to maintain its shape and not break away nor collapse. Eventually, the fuel for the star runs out, and it this point, the outward force is overpowered by the gravitational force, and the object caves in on itself. This is a gigantic implosion. Depending on the original and final mass of the star, several things might occur. A usual result of such an implosion is a star known as a white dwarf. This star has been pressed together to form a much more massive object. It is said that a teaspoon of matter off a white dwarf would weigh 2-4 tons. Upon the first discovery of a white dwarf, a debate arose as to how far a star can collapse. And in the 1920's two leading astrophysicists, Subrahmanyan Chandrasekgar and Sir Arthur Eddington came up with different conclusions. Chandrasekhar looked at the relations of mass to radius of the star, and concluded an upper limit beyond which collapse would result in something called a neutron star. This limit of 1.4 solar masses was an accurate measurement and in 1983, the Nobel committee recognized his work and awarded him their prize in Physics. The white dwarf is massive, but not as massive as the next order of imploded star known as a neutron star. Often as the nuclear fuel is burned out, the star will begin to shed its matter in an explosion called a supernovae. When this occurs the star loses an enormous amount of mass, but that which is left behind, if greater than 1.4 solar masses, is a densely packed ball of neutrons. This star is so

Witchcraft Essays - Witch Trials, Witchcraft, Magic, Folklore

Witchcraft Essays - Witch Trials, Witchcraft, Magic, Folklore Witchcraft In the modern world witchcraft is a form of nature religion that emphasizes the healing arts. The term is also applied to various kinds of magic practiced in Asian, African, and Latin American communities. Little is known about the history of witchcraft in Europe, and what is known comes from hostile sources. In traditional European society witchcraft was believed to be a kind of harmful sorcery associated with the worship of Satan, or the devil (a spirit hostile to God). The European doctrine of witchcraft was formulated in the late Middle Ages. Just how many of the beliefs about witches were based on reality and how many on delusion will never be known. The punishment of supposed witches by the death penalty did not become common until the 15th century. The first major witch-hunt occurred in Switzerland in 1427, and the first important book on the subject, the Malleus maleficarum (Hammer of Sorceresses), appeared in Germany in 1486. The persecution of witches reached its height between 1580 and 1660, when witch trials became almost universal throughout western Europe. Geographically, the center of witch-burning lay in Germany, Austria, and Switzerland, but few areas were left untouched by it. No one knows the total number of victims. In southwestern Germany alone, however, more than 3,000 witches were executed between 1560 and 1680. Not all witch trials ended in deaths. In England, where torture was prohibited, only about 20 percent of accused witches were executed (by hanging); in Scotland, where torture was used, nearly half of all those put on trial were burned at the stake, and almost three times as many witches (1,350) were killed as in England. Some places had fewer trials than others. In the Dutch republic, no witches were executed after 1600, and none were tried after 1610. In Spain and Italy accusations of witchcraft were handled by the Inquisition, and although torture was legal, only a dozen witches were burned out of 5,000 put on trial. Ireland apparently escaped witch trials altogether. Many witch trials were provoked, not by hysterical authorities or fanatical clergy, but by village quarrels among neighbors. About 80% of all accused witches were women. Traditional theology assumed that women were weaker than men and more likely to succumb to the devil. It may in fact be true that, having few legal rights, they were more inclined to settle quarrels by resorting to magic rather than law. All these aspects of witchcraft crossed over to the Americas with European colonists. In the Spanish and French territories cases of witchcraft were under the jurisdiction of church courts, and no one suffered death on this charge. In the English colonies about 40 people were executed for witchcraft between 1650 and 1710, half of them in the famous Salem Witch Trials of 1692. Witch trials declined in most parts of Europe after 1680; in England the death penalty for witchcraft was abolished in 1736. In the late 17th and 18th centuries one last wave of witch persecution afflicted Poland and other areas of eastern Europe, but that ended by about 1740. The last legal execution of a witch occurred in Switzerland in 1782. Beginning in the 1920s, witchcraft was revived in Europe and America by groups that considered it a survival of pre-Christian religious practices. This phenomenon was partly inspired by such books as Margaret Murray's The Witch Cult in Western Europe (1921). Some forms of modern witchcraft follow the traditions of medieval herbalists and lay healers. The term witch-hunt is used today to describe a drive to punish political criminals or dissidents without regard for the normal legal rules.

Teaching and Learning Strategies for Patients and Family members of Essay

Teaching and Learning Strategies for Patients and Family members of Toddlers with Asthma - Essay Example From Koenig (2007), we are informed that in the United States children with asthma 4 years of age and younger are increasing and disproportionately affecting children who live in poverty and urban areas who are African American or Latino. Koenig (2007, p. 223) also informed us that that preventing, identifying, and controlling asthma symptoms â€Å"remains complex among children who are very young† although we certainly know more of the pathophysiology of asthma today compared to several years ago. Koenig (2007) pointed out that it is essential for health providers to inquire on the family constellations. This is relevant for training and learning because we have to identify the family members who are with the child most so a nurse can focus on them for teaching and learning activities when appropriate. We also learned from Koenig (2007) that parents and family members can be intimately familiar with a child’s distressed breathing and, because of this, nurses must have respectful stance on the parents’ and family members’ â€Å"expertise† in evaluating the severity of a child’s asthma attack. Koenig (2007) emphasized that other than education on symptom recognition and instructions on pharmacological intervention, there is s a need to develop collaboratively developed crisis management with family members or representatives in the event of an asthma attack.... We also learned from Koenig (2007) that parents and family members can be intimately familiar with a child’s distressed breathing and, because of this, nurses must have respectful stance on the parents’ and family members’ â€Å"expertise† in evaluating the severity of a child’s asthma attack. Koenig (2007) emphasized that other than education on symptom recognition and instructions on pharmacological intervention, there is s a need to develop collaboratively developed crisis management with family members or representatives in the event of an asthma attack. Based on the work of Diette et al. (2008) and Koenig (2007), it may be possible that low income groups are more vulnerable to asthma because of their exposure to poor environmental conditions and pollution. It follows therefore that the training and learning strategy must factor in the environmental situation confronted by the asthma patient and it also follows that the nurse must inquire into t he environmental conditions confronted by the asthma patient. Some of the risk factors for asthma include house dust mites, companion animal allergens, cockroaches, fungi, pollutants, and distress (Pedersen et al., 2011). The preventive strategies for asthma include avoiding exposure to atmospheric pollution, avoiding unnecessary use of antibiotics in young children, and providing a calm and nurturing environment (Pedersen et al., 11). Pedersen et al. (2011, pp. 9-14) provided a treatment strategy, a set of recommendations on the use of a home action plan for family and caregivers, and identified the situations where hospitalization are likely needed. Guidelines on Children with Asthma The US Department of Health and Human Services, through the National Asthma Education and Prevention Program, has developed a