Does nationalism need to be based on ethnic myths of descent Essay

Does nationalism need to be based on ethnic myths of descent - Essay Example Historical process of nationalism will indicate that the nationalism as a process started in the Europe during 19th Century.(Anthony,1993). On a larger scale it attempts to provide the criterion for the creation or ownership of the legitimacy of power over a State by people having certain characteristics. This doctrine therefore indicates that the societies in the world are divided based on the nations each having their own distinctive characteristics and as such the only form of legitimate government can only arise if national self government is imposed over the State. Thus nationalism is necessarily considered as a political ideology which advocates the case of controlling the State by a nation. Since State derives the legitimate obediences it is therefore argued that to wield the control over the population and achieve political legitimacy it is critical that the power must be relocated to a nation to govern the State. (Featherstone,1990) French Revolution is considered as the starting point from where the emergence of strong nationalistic sentiments started to emerge and dominate the political scene of the countries. At this point, it was clearly established that the only sovereign is the nation with the sole power of making laws to its citizens therefore the individuals must show the loyalty to the nation. French Revolution is critical in the sense that it was the turning point to break away the barriers that separated the various regions of the country and united them as a one nation based on single language and culture.

The US intervention in Korean War Essay Example for Free

The US intervention in Korean War Essay The US intervention in the Korean war was caused entirely by the aggressive behaviour of N. Korea. How far do you agree with this judgement? The true reason as to why the US intervened in the Korean war has created a lot of conflicting answers from many historians. The aggression behaviour of North Korea inherently contributed into US intervention. Historians believed that this was another event in a civil war that had been raging since Korea had been divided. Kim Il Sung was seen by Stalin as someone who is capable to destroy left wing factions in the north and his ability to unite the people under a communist leadership. On 25th of June 1950 North Korean invaded the south in a clear act of invasion which quickly brought the attention to the US. It is arguable that the Americans, keen on human rights and democracy, provided military assistance to Syngman Rhee in the south in order to stop further expansion of communism. One of the reasons why the Americans urged to stop the spread of communism is due to the pressures from home. The red-scare started by McCarthy threatened Trumans popularity as the peoples president. He was accused of supporting communism and employing closet communists under his administration. The fact that North Korea invaded the south provided the perfect opportunity for Truman to take action and convince the public that he was no more communist than they were. He assisted South Korea in a war against the ideology of communism. Whether or not Truman fought the war out of priniciple is arguable, however it is more likely that he used democracy and the human rights as a way to protect his presidency by gaining faith from the public again. The fight against communism had domino effect to the other SEA countries as well. If the whole of Korea were under the rule of communism, consequently other SEA nations would fall in Soviet sphere of influence. The security of Japan was particularly important to the US because she wanted a strong area of influence in the Pacific. IT was essential for Japan to maintain as a regional democratic power in South East Asia so that it would provide a bulwark to the spread of communism in SEA and inform the USA on checks on Soviet influence. Korea is only 160 km from Japan, if the whole of Korea fell into the hands of communism, Japan would be the first country affected which would create a domino effect towards the other SEA countries. If all the region of Asia is under the influence of Soviet, America would lose her superpower stature and diminished all ties and faith from other nations such as Western Europe.

Blood-brain Barrier and the Sodium-potassium Pump

Blood-brain Barrier and the Sodium-potassium Pump Jocelyn Brown-Eaton The blood-brain barrier and the sodium-potassium pump have many similarities and differences. Similarities include the fact that they both function to maintain a balance and that they both are selectively permeable. Differences includes the way the mechanisms carry out those functions and what kind of balance they maintain. The blood-brain barrier is a mechanism that isolates the central nervous system neurons from chemicals coming from the rest of the body. It is made up of the walls of brain capillaries that are tightly joined together, other capillaries in the rest of the body do not align themselves so close together and they do allow chemicals to pass from the blood into the areas of the body they are flowing through. In contrast, the sodium-potassium pump is a protein in the membrane of cells that helps maintains the difference of electrical charges inside and out of the cell, keeping the cell polarized along with the difference in permeability of sodium and potassium within th e rest of the membrane (Khan Academy 2010). The resting potential is maintained before an action potential arrives and then is restored when the action potential is over. Comparatively they are both maintaining balances. The blood-brain barrier is balancing chemicals and protecting the brain neurons from harmful substances since these neurons do not regenerate, but the sodium-potassium pump is keeping an ionic balance. Selective permeability is also a similarity of the two mechanisms. The blood-brain barrier is only a barrier for water soluble molecules and selectively allows lipid soluble molecules to pass, while the sodium-potassium pump only deals with sodium and potassium. The sodium-potassium pump takes in two potassium ions for every three sodium ions it pushes out. Transporter proteins control the movement of these substances. The difference is that with the blood-brain barrier there is a separate protein that actively transport the selected chemicals, while the sodium-potass ium pump is a protein in itself. There are areas of the blood-brain barrier that are more permeable than the rest in order to allow the function of those specific parts of the brain. One such area is the area postrema. The area postrema detects toxins in the body and initiates vomiting. Khan Academy. (2010). Correction to Sodium and Potassium Pump Video. [Online Video]. 11 July 2010. Available from: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ye3rTjLCvAU. [Accessed: 25 February 2017] Before an action potential arrives, there is a balance between the extracellular fluid (on the outside of the cell) and the intracellular fluid (on the inside of the cell). This difference in the electrical charge is called the membrane potential.ÂÂ   The membrane potential is created by diffusion of ions and electrostatic pressure. Diffusion refers to the process of molecules evenly distributing themselves. Molecules push away from areas that they are more concentrated in. Electrostatic pressure is the force that comes from the attraction or repulsion of ions. Positive charges repel other positive charges, negative charges repel other negative charges, and positive charges attract negative charges. The ions involved in these forces are organic anions, potassium ions, chloride ions, and sodium ions. Organic anions (A-) are negatively charged and found in intracellular fluid. These ions remain in the intracellular fluid because the membrane is impermeable to them. Potassium ions (K+) are positively charged. They try to get out of the membrane because of diffusion, there is a higher concentration of them inside than out. Electrostatic pressure, however, pushes back against them because extracellular fluid is more positively charged inevitably keeping the ions where they were. Chloride ions (Cl-) are negatively charged. They try to get into the membrane due to diffusion but electrostatic pressure keeps them where they are as well. Sodium ions (Na+) are positively charged and get pushed into the membrane due to diffusion. Unlike the other ions sodium is not pushed back by electrostatic pressure. Instead, they are attracted in because the intracellular charge is more negative. The sodium-potassium pump helps maintain the resting potential, which is on average -70 mV. The sodium-potassium pump trades three sodium ions to the outside of the cell for two potassium ions to bring into the cell. During an action potential, a signal is sent to the membrane the membran e to become more permeable to sodium ions increasing the intracellular charge. The membrane potential reaches its threshold and a depolarization spike occurs. Depolarization is when the internal polarization of the cell increases; when it gets closer to zero. Voltage dependent sodium channels, triggered by the depolarization, open allowing sodium to enter at a faster rate. At a higher level of depolarization voltage dependent potassium channels open and potassium flows away from the more positively charged interior. Voltage dependent potassium channels are less sensitive than the sodium channels are. Next sodium channels close and go into a refractory state, preventing them from opening again until the resting potential is restored. The cell goes through hyperpolarization, where the intracellular charge drops in order to get back to normal. When hyperpolarization goes lower than the resting potential it is called the undershoot. When the undershoot is reached it signals the potassiu m channels to close and resting potential is closer to normal. After that all passes the sodium potassium pumps slowly help the resting potential return and everything is back to its original state. Neurotransmitters open ion channels in two ways, directly and indirectly. Directly opening the ion channels occur when there are ionotropic receptors. When a neurotransmitter binds to an ionotropic receptor the ion channel immediately opens and let ions flow freely through. With metabotropic receptors, when a neurotransmitter binds to its binding site it starts a chain of chemical events (Carlson and Birkett, 2017). These chemical events involve the G protein being activated, which in turn activates the second messenger system. The second messenger travels to the nearby ion channel and signals it to open. Metabotropic receptors got their name because they require extra steps that uses up some of the cells metabolic energy. The important differences between ionotropic receptors and metabotropic receptors are the speed of effect and the duration of effect after their activation. Ionotropic receptors are faster because when a neurotransmitter binds to it the ion channel is opened immedi ately and triggers a postsynaptic potential. The whole process happens very quickly. Metabotropic receptors are slower because the signal to the ion channel is transferred between a sequence of different molecules to get to the ion channel and activate it. This process causes a delay in effect, they take longer to begin but they also last longer. Serotonin has both ionotropic and metabotropic receptors. All but one receptor, the 5-HT3 receptor, are metabotropic. The 5-HT3 receptor is ionotropic and it controls a chloride ion channel, therefore producing inhibitory postsynaptic potentials. This receptor plays a role in nausea and vomiting. Because ionotropic receptors act quickly, if the receptor is bound to by an agonist, which would open the ion channel, it would induce vomiting or nausea right away. An example of this would be when a person smells something rotten and immediately feels nausea. Antagonists of this receptor are used to treat the side effects of chemotherapy and radi ation treatments. Serotonin is used for mood regulation, and that happens in the metabotropic receptors. This means that the effects take longer but will last longer. If this happened rapidly then there would be no transitions between our moods. It allows the drugs for mood regulation (like SSRIs) to have compound effects and build up in our system by inhibiting the reuptake of serotonin. Carlson, N. R., Birkett, M. A., (2017). Physiology of Behavior, 12th Edition. [BryteWave]. Retrieved from https://shelf.brytewave.com/#/books/9780134517858/

9/11 Photo Essay :: American America History

9/11 Photo Essay The day of 9/11 is a day that will be in the back of everybodys minds for lifetime. On that sorrowful day four passenger airplanes were highjacked and ultimately crashed. Two of the airplanes crashed into each of the Twin Towers located in New York City. After the buildings burned for around 20 minutes they fell to the ground bringing along millions of tons of debris that killed many workers from both towers. One of the other airplanes crashed into the Pentagon also killing many innocent people. The last airplane crashed in a field in Pennsylvania after many believe that the passengers over powered the highjackers. Many people still morn the deaths of the victims from 9/11. From the second the planes crashed, people have tried to make money from this ordeal, making it one of the most advertised and talked about issue the US has ever seen. The photos that are being displayed are showing the emotions that the camera wants to show us. We only feel emotion from this tragedy because we ether have known someone that has been hurt, or we have seen the event happen so many times we just start to feel sad for just trying to imagine it. It was said once that a picture is worth a thousand words. Those thousand words are being manipulated by who has taken the picture. Every event can be made to look bad by a certain camera angle. Every picture and camera is biased to someone's certain point of view. That point of view could either be of a bad or good emotional state. The pictures from 911 are showing the emotions, that he American public wants to feel. In order for America to feel good about killing hundreds of Afghannies we have to see these bad images over and over again so that we can not feel the littlest sympathy for those of the families that we bomb everyday. Since thousands of Americans have died, we should show these ima ges that are all of sad emotions so we can get over this big mess. The pictures taken on 911 are all in sad and shocking mood. There is no way to make 911 happy in any way. Any picture taken from 911 is going to have a very sad and depressing mood to it. But this is the way that day should be looked at, a very sad and depressing mode.

Remember the Titans: Movie Review

The arrival of African slaves, sold in the plantations of colonial America, definitely triggered a superior-inferior relationship and mentality between â€Å"the whites† and â€Å"the blacks†. This present-day culture, resulting from a society of masters and slaves, has struggled against central concepts deeply rooted in the nations past . With strong cultural values on racial discrimination, the path towards the concept of racism in America was a vital moment in the course of the nation’s history. Social concepts and attitudes could not be altered overnight, but it can be altered. Indeed, in the quest for social progress, the struggle for equality has gone a long way, with black Americans now holding high-ranking positions in specialized fields in government and society. The issue on racism started when slave ships arrived in America from the coasts of Africa in the 17th century . Since then it has haunted and continues to haunt the history of the American nation. Racism was generally an issue in Americas history, which included sports as well. Race limited the sporting opportunities of many Americans (mainly African American). During the 1920s, few blacks played in the National Football League before being unofficially banned in the 1930’s. That eventually changed and today it is a sport dominated by mostly African Americans. In the mid 1880’s, whites rejected racially integrated baseball. This changed in 1947, when Jackie Robinson became the first African American to play Major League baseball outside of a segregated black league. He became a living milestone for racial equality and changed the sport of baseball forever. Many stories like these became inspirations to future movies. Many movies, as in numerous things or behaviors in life, show social psychology. In movies (whether they are illustrating racism, pro-social behavior, unselfishness, or even aggression) there are fundamental themes or life lessons to be learned. Throughout the history of sport, you can see that it has collided with several cultural values: gender, class, ethnicity/racism, religion, or region. In the film â€Å"Remember the Titans†, we see a cultural environment in 1971 refusing to accept the idea of racial equality (the main issue raised in the movie). The film displays the issue of racism and illustrates how one can overcome prejudice by uniting for a ommon cause or goal. During the course of this movie, there were many social behaviors at work that dealt with racism and discrimination. These obstacles didn’t stop the football team from socially overcoming those difficulties. In brief, this film is about two schools in Alexandria Virginia that integrated in the early 1970s to form T. C. Williams High School. The white head coach of the Titans (Coach Bill Yoast) is replaced by an African American coach from North Carolina (Coach Herman Boone). Tensions arise when players of different races are forced together on the same football team. Many of these tensions are eased during the two-week training camp in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. When players returned to Alexandria the players found the city in turmoil due to the forced desegregation of the high school. As the season progresses the team's success caused the community to accept the changes. After the Titans' perfect season, the team and the city were closer than ever. There were many scenes in the film that were meaningful to the theme of racism. One important scene is at the Gettysburg battle location. Here, Coach Boone makes an impacting speech to the players on overcoming their racism. During Boones speech there is a shot of Boone and the cemetery behind him. This gets the viewer to focus on the words he is saying as well as the cemetery behind him. While looking at the players, Coach Boone says â€Å"Fifty thousand men died right here on this field†¦ fighting the same fight that we’re still fighting among ourselves†. When they got back to the camp, during a training session, the two captains shout the chant, â€Å"left side† â€Å"strong side† to each other. This shows a new understanding and respect towards each other. They impact the rest of the team, which then come together as well. Gettysburg is the turning point in the film, where the players overcome their racism. Another important and meaningful scene is one of the locker room scenes. The scene starts off with everyone laughing with one another while making â€Å"Mama Jokes†. Then, the radio is turned on and the song â€Å"Ain’t No Mountain High Enough† by Marvin Gaye comes on. The title of the song alone gives great symbolism, showing that racism can be conquered. Slowly but surely, the tension between the players (and eventually the community) diminished. The scene where a few of the players call a team meeting in the gym is another relevant scene. The players get a sense that they’re good because they won a few games. They came together in camp, but they returned back to school and the â€Å"world† told them that they didn’t belong together. In that gymnasium they come together in singing, clapping, and a huddle to conclude the scene. The story of â€Å"Remember the Titans† is not about football. It is about the times of inequality, racism and narrow-mindedness. Students refused to go to class with those of a different race and adults did not want to associate with others that did not look like them. This movie is about the struggle for civil rights, but what makes this movie great is the struggle the football team faced to become one to work together to attain a common goal. Sports made this a powerful movie. Watching the players come together proved it is okay to be friends with, associate with and even care for people that don't necessarily look like you. If the T. C Williams Titans had a lesser role in the movie the concept of coming together (no matter what your background is, even when everyone else is divided) would not have been as strong.

Alice Munro “The Shinning Houses” Essay

The Shinning Houses Alice Munro presents a protagonist whose personality and values conflict with her neighbours. The protagonist Mary is an open-minded, fair, but somewhat powerless character. Mary is an open-minded individual who understands values from both Mrs. Fullerton and the new community. She is the only character in the â€Å"Shinning Houses† willing to â€Å"[explore Mrs. Fullerton’s] life as she had once explored the lives of grandmothers and aunts,† and the only one who buys her fresh eggs. Mary â€Å"[smiles]† openly to everyone while her new neighbours, whose â€Å"faces [are] applied,† â€Å"smile in rather a special way† that they only perceive Mary â€Å"as a conversational delight.† Even at the birthday party did Mary keep a smile and listen to the new neighbours talk among themselves, going about in â€Å"circles of complaint.† Mary’s own personality and values conflict with her neighbours’, but she remains open to any situation she faces. Mary is a fair lady, who does what she believes is right. Her name suggests religious allegory with Mary, the Mother of God, and human creation. Mary exhibits her Mother-like qualities at the birthday party, defending Mrs. Fullerton, the neighbour who â€Å"never [changes],† against the mothers who wear â€Å"nylons and skirts,†Ã‚ ¦[their] hair fixed and faces applied.† She knows that Mrs. Fullerton deserves a chance to stay in her home, as Mary, the Mother of God knows that all creation deserves a chance to live. Mary’s fair personality conflicts with her neighbours’ values and beliefs: while she is fair to human rights, the neighbours are fair to their community of â€Å"shinning houses.† Although Mary is courageous in being the only person to defend Mrs. Fullerton, she is somewhat powerless with her arguments against her neighbours. Mary stands alone only listening to her neighbours speak with â€Å"self-assertion.† She remains power less with â€Å"no argument† to defend Mrs. Fullerton and her â€Å"barn.† Outnumbered by â€Å"property-owners† who admire each other â€Å"as people admire each other for being drunk,† Mary is scared to tell her neighbours that â€Å"[Mrs. Fullerton has] been here for a long time.† She tells them anyway because she is compassionate toward Mrs. Fullerton†Mary is the only one who understands that â€Å"her place had become fixed, impregnable, all its accumulations necessary† down to the last  Ã¢â‚¬Å"stacks of old police magazines.† These neighbours however, do not care for compassion. They care for their children and community. Mary’s compassion, her only argument, fails to win support from the neighbours, creating more conflict in values with these neighbours â€Å"who win.† Mary faces a difficult situation in which both sides (neighbours and herself) are correct. Her open-mindedness, fairness, and powerlessness are traits whish create conflict in the â€Å"Shinn ing Houses.† Mary remains unheard, and there is nothing she can do but keep a â€Å"disaffected heart.†