Autism Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Autism - Research Paper Example From the research in this paper, it would be shown that indeed, parents play a critical role in ensuring that autistic children become manageable. Introduction Autism refers to a core disorder among the pervasive developmental disorders which evidences before age 3. The National Institute of Mental Health, NIMH describes autism as a syndrome rather than disease and also as a developmental disorder, hence its influence on growth and development aspects. This has been attributed to genetic factors, environmental causes and brain injury. It has been acknowledged as a dimension and conceived as a spectrum that causes children to have varied degrees of complications in communication, lack of imagination, exhibition of repetitive behaviors and difficulty in social interaction. The constantly revised prevalence of autism ranges between five to sixty cases for every 10,000 children aged 18 and below without the consideration of less severe forms of the disorder such as pervasive developmenta l disorders and Asperger’s disorder (Altiere and Kluge 83). McConachie and Diggle (120) cite the male to female ratio of prevalence at 4.8:1. Any chronic illness presents serious challenges to the individual and the individual’s family at large. But autism has been considered among the most challenging to manage of these disorders with various scholars citing varied challenging traits exhibited by autistic children making it difficult to offer appropriate care like that given to normal children. According to Altiere and Kluge (83), autism would be characterized by communication impairment, self-destructive and aggressive behaviors and low social functioning. In addition to language problems among such children, there would also be troublesome symptoms which include inappropriate public behavior, tantrums and self destructive behaviors. Autistic children present stressors and unique challenges to the parents due to the ambiguity in diagnosis, lack of adherence to the no rms of the society and the long duration and severity of the disorder (Altiere and Kluge 83). In as much as autism symptoms would be exhibited in early childhood, it takes long before appropriate diagnosis would be done. The process of diagnosis would normally be complicated especially when a biological marker misses, encountering such problems among medical practitioners becomes infrequent and due to the normal variations that exist in child development. Even with the diagnosis of autism, the problem of unavailability of treatment persists. Most children would be diagnosed as retarded hence the administration of the wrong approach to treatment (Kogan et al. 1398). The public knows little on autism hence the hostility and insensitivity from the public on parents of autistic children who behave inappropriately in public. The prognosis of autism has also been noted to be limited. Therefore, the important role that parents being part of the family unit would play in ensuring that autis tic conditions in their children become manageable to a larger extent should be appreciated. Even though majority of studies have focused on mother-autistic child relationship, fathers too have a parental role to play in managing autistic children. The involvement of both parents in the care of the autistic

Marketing Management Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 4

Marketing Management - Assignment Example theless, applying a simple but effective strategy before facing a competitor usually gives businesses first hand advantage even before the real battle starts From the story of the warrior and the lion, I have learned that victory is not always for the strongest. All that one needs is to spot a target, stand at a safe distance and make the attack. In relation to business and competition, we can say that it is not necessary that we use lots energy in fighting our competitors; in contrast, we should develop effective strategies that can help finish the competitors at only one strike. The only thing that marketer should ensure a better marketing strategy. Moreover, competition is important because it leads to improved quality product and better services. This is due to the fact that all the business will be competing to remain relevant and not to made exit. It also protects the public being manipulated with sole businesspersons who have selfish stakes. As a result, both the economy and the quality of product will continue to improve making business more` effective and efficient (Viardot 70). Conclusively, applying a simple but effective strategy before facing a competitor usually gives businesses first hand advantage even before the real battle starts. From the short story of the lion and the warrior, we can conclude that one does not need to apply a lot of energy but just use tactics that can paralyses competitor (Viardot 40). Therefore, for continued existence of a business, it must ensure that it develops effective strategies that can act as shortcuts and tam their

Trabecular Bone Structure of the Distal Radius

Trabecular Bone Structure of the Distal Radius Background information The distal end of the radius forms two palpable points, radially the styloid process and Listers tubercle on the ulnar side. Many studies have been carried out using a variety of methods to evaluate bone strength, mineralisation and architecture. Using skeletal remains to identify degradation of the trabecular bone in both male and female of various ages at death. Previous research in the field of forensic anthropology has shown that regional variation across such sections may be masked through use of a global analysis provides good results but with room to improve as technology becomes increasingly available (Boyd, S. 2015). Sode et al carried out a study that looked at sectioning the distal radius into axial sections and using high resolution peripheral quantitative computed tomography (HR-pQCT) to conclude whether similar results were obtained through global analysis and sectional analysis. The distal end of the radius forms two physical points, the styloid process on the radius side and Listers tubercle on the ulnar side. A medullary cavity is enclosed in a strong wall of compact bone, which is thickest at the interosseous border and thinnest at the extremities. The trabeculae of the spongy tissue arch at the upper end and pass from the compact layer of the shaft to the articular head. The radius has a body and two extremities. Sectioning the distal radius and taking images that can be analysed, measured and averages taken will provide higher accuracy and minimise artefacts found in other studies. HR-pQCT is a non-invasive, method for assessing bone microarchitecture and volumetric bone mineral density in cortical and trabecular compartments of the distal radius that has a low radiation risk. Its use in clinical research has increased enormously in recent years and has changed the understanding of age-related changes and sex differences in bone microarchitecture. Changes in bone structure across a wide range of bone metabolic disorders, fracture risk have also benefitted from this method. The accessibility of HR-pQCT has made it viable to gage three-dimensional bone microarchitecture and volumetric bone mineral density in vivo, with an accuracy that had yet to be achieved with other methods ( ). Recent studies using this new imaging tool has amplified understanding of age-related changes and sex differences in bone microarchitecture. The use of finite element analysis modelling to non-invasively estimate bone strength and predict fractures using reconstructed three-dimensional images is a great benefit and more suitable than invasive techniques using stronger doses of radiation. Regional analysis, by dividing the HR-pQCT images of the radius cross-section, provides corresponding information about the core structural diversity of trabecular structure that is coupled with underlying biomechanical conditions. We hypothesize that trabecular bone structure varies spatially across the trabecular compartment at the distal radius, and the degree of differences due to gender and age depend on the region. Gordon et al suggests the increased sensitivity achieved by their indices suggests that an in vivo assessment of trabecular bone structure can contribute significantly to the identification of persons at risk of fracture in the living (Gordon, C., Webber, C., Adachi, J. and Christoforou, N.2017). AIM OF PROPOSED RESEARCH Regional variation in trabecular structure across axial sections is often obscured by the conventional global analysis, which takes an average value for the entire trabecular compartment. The objective of this study is to use in vivo HR-pQCT to investigate regional variations in trabecular structure at the distal radius and its differences due to gender and age. HYPOTHESIS As age progression occurs, the bone volume fraction in trabecular bone of the distal radius will decrease as age increases. The null hypothesis concur that the bone volume fraction will show no change as age increases. RECRUITMENT       Access to a large, modern, well documented bone collection is available. Provenance, age, sex and cause of death are known. Radial bones will be sourced from this collection to include individuals ranging from 18 78 years of age. Two groups, male and female will be used. Statistical values were calculated and are shown in table 1. Table 1: Results of the statistical calculations used on the data set. An estimation of 278 samples is needed for this study. However, for research to progress, this data and calculation will again be confirmed to ensure the figures are correct for valid results. INCLUSION AND EXCLUSION CRITERIA Bones from the radius will be used from the collection and taken from individuals of both genders aged 18 -78 at time of death. Any specimens indicating pathology will be void from this study. ASSUMPTIONS AND PRECAUTIONS Based on a previous study, carried out by Boyd et al states that HR-pQCT is a non-invasive, low-radiation method for the analysis of bone specimens meaning that very limited exposure will result. Health and safety will be witnessed while using the apparatus necessary to obtain the images. In agreement with guidelines published by the health and safety executive in 2012 the doses of radiation will also be monitored and recorded. Personal protective equipment to include a laboratory coat, gloves and goggles will be worn to prevent contamination or damage to the bone collection. As demonstrated in numerous studies conventional global analysis can obscure regional differences. MATERIALS Equipment required for this study is based on the study using HR-pQCT led by Sode et al (Sode et al., 2008) High-resolution peripheral quantitative computed tomography (HR-pQCT)- the XtremeCT Image Processing Language (Scanco Medical AG, Brà ¼ttisellen, Switzerland) Matlab Finite element analysis (FEA) modeling   Ã‚   The x-ray source potential was 60 kVp with a current of 900 ÃŽÂ ¼A. A two-dimensional detector containing 3072 ÃÆ'- 256 CCD elements was used to acquire 750 projections at a 100 ms integration time per projection. The 12.6 mm field of view was reconstructed across a 1536 ÃÆ'- 1536 matrix, yielding 82 ÃŽÂ ¼m isotropic voxels. The images were segmented and managed in agreement with the standard patient-style analysis protocol using Image Processing Language (Sode et al., 2008). ANALYSIS The HR-pQCT systems have been thoroughly tested for both accuracy and precision using ÃŽÂ ¼CT of ex vivo bone as the gold-standard (Sode et al., 2008). The distal radius of each subject was imaged using an in vivo HR-pQCT scanner. A 10mm section of the radius was imaged on both sides to avoid dominant hand Bias. Acquisition time per image was 3 minutes per scan and images were instantly reviewed for artifacts and repeated if any were detected (Boyd, 2015). 9 images were excluded due to artifacts. A semi-automated edge-defining algorithm was applied to mark areas of cortical bone and the target trabecular bone on the surface. The cortical and trabecular regions were sectioned automatically by the analysis protocol as described in detail by Laib et al (Laib et al,1996). Using MATLAB, the trabecular region was divided into inner and outer sub regions. Additionally, inner and outer trabecular compartments were divided into bony quadrants at each section based on the defined reference line from MATLAB to give 8 sub regions in total. Statistical analysis was undertaken using a Shapiro-Wilk test to predict the normality of the data. Due to separation and standard deviation of trabecular separation the data was not normally distributed so non-parametric statistical analysis was carried out. RECOMMENDATIONS FOR FUTURE WORK This method of analysing trabecular bone thickness will be a valuable tool both with cadaveric material and living individuals due to the low radiation risk associated. In terms of research to aid the living many fields could gain invaluable knowledge of the risk of fractures and the development and tracking of disease such as osteoporosis. The repeatability of this study will enable others to repeat with greater sample numbers. However, at present its high cost means HR-pQCT is still a research tool, the high resolution and efficiency of this method exposes advantages over the methods used at present for bone assessment which will in time prove an invaluable clinical tool. In the future, regional differences in age-related changes of trabecular structure at the distal radius should be examined in a longitudinal study using slighlty larger radial cross sections. References Boutroy, S., Van Rietbergen, B., Sornay-Rendu, E., Munoz, F., Bouxsein, M. and Delmas, P. (2007). Finite Element Analysis Based on In Vivo HR-pQCT Images of the Distal Radius Is Associated with Wrist Fracture in Postmenopausal Women. Journal of Bone and Mineral Research, 23(3), pp.392-399. Boyd, S. (2015). High resolution imaging of bones by high-resolution peripheral quantitative computed tomography. Bone Abstracts. Clarke, B. (2017). Normal Bone Anatomy and Physiology. [online] Clinical journal of the American society of nephrology. Available at: http://cjasn.asnjournals.org/content/3/Supplement_3/S131.full [Accessed 19 Mar. 2017]. Dalzell, N., Kaptoge, S., Morris, N., Berthier, A., Koller, B., Braak, L., van Rietbergen, B. and Reeve, J. (2009). Bone micro-architecture and determinants of strength in the radius and tibia: age-related changes in a population-based study of normal adults measured with high-resolution pQCT. Osteoporosis International, 20(10), pp.1683-1694. Dixon, A. and Jamieson, E. (1937). Dixons manual of human osteology. 1st ed. Oxford: University Press. GENANT, H. (2006). Advanced Imaging Assessment of Bone Quality. Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences, 1068(1), pp.410-428. Gordon, C., Webber, C., Adachi, J. and Christoforou, N. (2017). In vivo assessment of trabecular bone structure at the distal radius from high-resolution computed tomography images. Kalpakcioglu, B., Engelke, K. and Genant, H. (2011). Advanced imaging assessment of bone fragility in glucocorticoid-induced osteoporosis. Bone, 48(6), pp.1221-1231. Laib, A., Hildebrand, T. and Rà ¼egsegger, P. (1996). In vivo assessment of trabecular bone structure with 3D computed tomography and local reconstruction. Bone, 19(3), p.147. Li, H., Zhang, A., Bone, L., Buyea, C. and Ramanathan, M. (2014). A Network Modeling Approach for the Spatial Distribution and Structure of Bone Mineral Content. The AAPS Journal, 16(3), pp.478-487. MacNeil, J. and Boyd, S. (2007). Accuracy of high-resolution peripheral quantitative computed tomography for measurement of bone quality. Medical Engineering Physics, 29(10), pp.1096-1105. McDonald, J. (2012). Standardisation in Standards. Radiation Protection Dosimetry, 148(4), pp.387-388. Melton, L., Riggs, B., van Lenthe, G., Achenbach, S., Mà ¼ller, R., Bouxsein, M., Amin, S., Atkinson, E. and Khosla, S. (2007). Contribution of In Vivo Structural Measurements and Load/Strength Ratios to the Determination of Forearm Fracture Risk in Postmenopausal Women. Journal of Bone and Mineral Research, 22(9), pp.1442-1448. Moore, K., Agur, A. and Dalley, A. (2015). Essential clinical anatomy. 1st ed. Philadelphia: Wolters Kluwer Health. Popp, A., Buffat, H., Eberli, U., Lippuner, K., Ernst, M., Richards, R., Stadelmann, V. and Windolf, M. (2014). Microstructural Parameters of Bone Evaluated Using HR-pQCT Correlate with the DXA-Derived Cortical Index and the Trabecular Bone Score in a Cohort of Randomly Selected Premenopausal Women. PLoS ONE, 9(2), p. e88946. Sode, M., Burghardt, A., Kazakia, G., Link, T. and Majumdar, S. (2010). Regional variations of gender-specific and age-related differences in trabecular bone structure of the distal radius and tibia. Bone, 46(6), pp.1652-1660. Sode, M., Burghardt, A., Nissenson, R. and Majumdar, S. (2008). Resolution Dependence of the Non-Metric Trabecular Structure Indices. Bone, 42(4), pp.728-736. White, T. and Folkens, P. (2005). The human bone manual. 1st ed. Amsterdam: Elsevier Academic, pp.31-48.

Complementarity and Substitution in the Theory of Capital :: essays papers

Complementarity and Substitution in the Theory of Capital This essay is an explanation and importance of complementarity and substitution in the theory of capital. Complementarity can be usually seen in goods with â€Å"sympathetic shifts in demand.† It is also important to realize the narrowness of the traditional treatment of complementarity. Complementarity is analyzed in a single enterprise and also in the economic system as a whole. In the latter complementarity is analyzed in an economic system in equilibrium and also in disequilibrium. In an economic system with equilibrium all the acts of all individuals are consistent with each other and all factors of production are complementary. The system with disequilibrium on the contrary, realizes that while a factor of substitution eliminates another factor, another will be created, though possibly it might be of a different mode. It is idealistic to think that capital structure can only exist in equilibrium, but realistically, capital structure is in a state of continuous transformation. Any major change creates a situation of instability of the capitalistic economy. A clear example of this is the accumulation of capital on profits and the inducement to invest. As capital accumulation grows, investment opportunities and the rate of profit decline. Also, the existence of unused human or material resources provides potential complements for new productive combinations, which in result produce the changes in capital. These unused resources have two main functions in the world of dynamic change. First, they reduce the shock when disintegration exists, and second they stimulate the investment of capital goods complementary to them. In conclusion, the theory of capital is a dynamic discipline, and is not in static equilibrium.

Moral Panic Sociology

A moral panic is defined by Cohen as ‘a condition, episode, person or group or persons emerges to become defined as a threat to societal values and interests ‘. In other words, a moral panic is an exaggerated reaction of fear towards a group or issue that causes panic in society, felt and reacted to by the public, media, police, and politicians etc. An example of a moral panic would be the increased fear over knife crime in Britain especially over the last few years. A folk devil is the group/issue at the heart of the panic, which are condemned, feared, labelled and/or blamed.An example of a folk devil would be youths, in relation to knife crime, terrorist, or ‘mods and rockers ‘established in the 1960s. These moral panics and folk devils are created and exacerbated by ‘moral crusaders ‘, the media is most likely the biggest agency that does this. Media reports often greatly exaggerate certain and specific areas of crime or deviance that are aimed to be a moral panic, and to victimize certain groups as folk devils. It reports on, for example, the alleged rising number of knife related crimes, and how a high percentage of youths in a neighbourhood near you are carrying a knife, even if this is a fallacy.  Read also  Sociology and Social Integration.This increase in media attention brings about a what is called a deviancy amplification spiral . This consists of a combination of contributing factors, the increased media attention brings about a heightened sense of public fear, resulting in a real increase in crime, either from the folk devils in question or from copycats, which in turn brings about a police reaction, creating a vicious circle of self-fulfilling prophecies, and the fear and media attention only increases the situation, this spiral also results in these panics lasting a lot longer than perhaps they should.The media uses the weapon of fear to stimulate moral panics, they give the view that firstly these deviant groups offer a threat to the norms, values and attitudes of the majority of society, and that a change will be brought about to people's lives as these cannot be controlled. The media also gives credence to the view that moral standards are declining, and by exaggerating the crime paints the portrait of a country falling into a downward spiral. A conservative media article

Hannibal’s Crossing of the Alps

Hannibal’s crossing of the Alps is one of history’s most remarkable military achievements even to this day. There are many accounts of the crossing of the Alps and what happened during those weeks and we can only speculate and use the sources and information that has lived through the decay of time. Our main primary sources that historians use to piece together the crossing of the Alps are by two of Rome’s most famous historians, Polybius and Livy.Polybius was a very rounded and mostly non-biased historian who got out of his way to travel to his locations to document facts and information which he used in his text and who lived during the time of the First and Second Punic Wars. On the other hand we have Livy who was a very pro-Roman historian who had documented his facts based on other historians who were before him as he lived almost 200 years after the Punic wars.When we compare the two accounts by both historians we tend to believe and rely more on the accoun ts made by Polybius as we know him as a reliable and fairly non-biased source whereas Livy was very biased towards Rome and based his information off of other historians. Although we see Polybius as the more reliable source, Livy does come up with some points that concern the crossing that are quite conflicting with the information presented to us by Polybius. By analysing both of these accounts we can get a better understanding of the crossing of Hannibal’s crossing of the Alps.Polybius who was a very reliable historian who we know lived around 200-118 BC during the time of the two Punic Wars provided a very detailed account of both Punic wars and Hannibal’s crossing of the Alps. Polybius is known for his determination to get actual factual evidence and firsthand knowledge of events that occurred. He resided in Rome for most of his life and occasionally undertaking long journeys throughout the Mediterranean to get knowledge on historical sites and interview primary so urces who were actually at the events.Polybius’s works (The Histories) documents the events between 264 and 146 BC which mainly involved the rise of the Roman Empire and the effort in which they went to subdue their rival Carthage. Polybius documents the First and Second Punic wars with incredible detail and is our main source for the wars, although Livy also provides some very important facts and information. Titus Livius Patavinus (59 BC – AD 17) (more commonly known as Livy) we know as to be a very pro- Roman historian who can be seen as very biased towards the Romans and paints them in an honourable and almighty glow within his texts.Some of his texts we can see as just plain lies and so we are reluctant to solely use Livy’s information to base our research and understanding around. Livy wrote a complete history of Rome from its very foundations all the way up to the reign of Augustus in Livy’s own time but the only surviving work of his is the  "History of Rome†. During the reign of Augustus Livy wrote his texts emphasizing the accomplishments and triumphs of Rome, and wrote everything with a pro-Roman view to promote a new type of government which was implemented by the emperor Augustus.With that being said a lot of Livy’s texts and accounts mislead to reader into taking a Roman view and often cut out pieces of information which would downgrade the view on Rome, and so we have come to rely more on Polybius’s accounts than Livy’s, although Livy does also provide many accounts and descriptions of events that are unavailable elsewhere and so his texts and reports are still highly valued is one of the main sources we have. Both Polybius’s and Livy’s accounts of Hannibal’s crossing of the Alps can be seen to have many similarities and so we can determine that the same source and information has been used.Although there are many similarities between the two there are also some dif ferences which can be seen throughout both texts. For example when Hannibal is crossing the Alps and he soon finds his path blocked by a pile of rocks Livy states that he uses Vinegar and Fire to break through the rock. Polybius says nothing of the subject and up to this day there has been no evidence of rock that has been carbonized at the site in which Livy had stated. Livy’s accounts of the crossing were very much the same as Polybius’s although we can see in some parts of Livy’s work that his Roman bias has written the work for him.When Hannibal was making a speech to his men after their crossing of the Rhone Polybius wrote that Hannibal spoke of their past achievements and that the hardest part of their journey was already over, but according to Livy Hannibal told his men that they were going to be fighting against the most powerful and grandest city in the world. This was not the case in Hannibal’s time and so we can clearly see that Livy had just c reated a false fact and account just to paint Rome in a brighter light.Livy’s biased for Rome is something that constantly alters Livy’s accounts. Much of Hannibal’s ascent and crossing of the Alps documented by Polybius and Livy are very similar with only a few minor alterations in the accounts of some events which took place. The main reason why the accounts of some events are different is mainly because of Livy’s biased and attitude towards Rome which makes him document the account and alter it in such a way that it paints Rome in a sense of glory and success.Another main reason which dictates the differences of the accounts is that Polybius who lived during the time of these events could go to places and get a firsthand experience and knowledge of the event by interviewing the people involved and taking notes on the actual location whereas Livy who lived a long time after the crossing had to rely on other peoples accounts and could not get firsthand k nowledge on a lot of the events.The crossing of the Alps is a fairly well documented event during the Second Punic war and one that is the most remarkable. Polybius and Livy both have very detailed accounts of the crossing and we rely on this information to piece together Hannibal’s crossing of the Alps. Although some of the facts of the crossing remain disputed and unknown we have sufficient information between both sources to have a good understanding of the crossing.Both historians give a lot of information on the crossing although we tend to use Polybius’s account as it is more reliable and he had firsthand experience and knowledge whereas we know Livy to be a very pro-Roman and did not live during the event but many years later. Both accounts of the crossing have proved to be very useful for our understanding of Hannibal’s crossing of the Alps.