Friday, January 24, 2020

Bipolar Disorder - Short Presentation :: essays research papers

Bipolar Disorder, also known as Manic Depression, involves episodes of mania and depression, with periods of stability. Manic episodes are characterized by elevated energy levels, restlessness, feeling of nothing can go wrong, and high self-confidence; while depressive episodes are the exact opposite: low energy, sluggish, sadness, and feeling of hopelessness. Occasionally, people suffering from Bipolar Disorder can suffer more severe symptoms such as hallucinations, delusions, and disorganized thinking. Although they do not know the exact cause of Bipolar Disorder, researchers believe that biologic, genetic and environmental factors are all involved in causing and triggering episodes of the illness. Evidence suggests that an imbalance of neurotransmitters in the brain is the culprit. Episodes can last weeks or months. For two years I live with a 16 year-old girl named Nicole who had Bipolar Disorder. I witnessed several episodes ranging from calm to severe. A calm episode would usually consist of only the manic stage. She had about 7 calm episodes while she lived with me. In reality, calm episodes are just episodes caught in enough time so that an adjustment of her medication was able to stabilize her. In a more severe episode, Nicole would usually decline mentally over a 7-day period, at which point she would need to be hospitalized. Nicole’s behavior during a severe episode included wild mood swings: from extreme happiness to anger to sadness; disorganized thinking: she was unable to follow conversations, and would make inappropriate statements; and cutting depression: she tried to kill herself 4 times. Nicole’s illness affected her life completely. Having spent her most of her life in and out of hospitals she was unable to attend school on a regular basis. She had few friends because she was embarrassed to tell them about her condition. Nicole eventually left our house during a severe episode. She became paranoid that we were trying to control her. She packed all of her stuff and left to go live with her mother. We heard that she was hospitalized just 3 days later. She was in the hospital for 5 months, her longest stretch ever. I went and visited her in the hospital several times. I barely recognized her. She was not thinking clearly, delusional, and paranoid. When she was in â€Å"remission†, she was completely normal. Now, she couldn’t pay attention, was fidgety, and told me she was hearing voices again. As of October of 2001, Nicole is living in a halfway house because her illness is unable to be kept under control.

Thursday, January 16, 2020

Bartelby & story

The narrator tries all the way through the story to truly empathize with Bartleby, but he never digs too deep because he is concerned about saving himself. He thinks that doing good deeds for Bartleby will look good for him as well. The narrator, however, sticks with Bartleby longer than most of us would.Bartleby is frustratingly honest about life. He is throroughly unexcited about life in general, and the narrator is maybe a little afraid that he is too much like Bartleby. However, he is an eminently â€Å"safe† man who has made peace with the modern world by working for rich clients but has no inner passion.2. Turkey, Nippers and Ginger Nut are oddly named characters. Turkey and Nippers are named for the volatility of their character and are in themselves caricatures. Turkey gets drunk in the afternoon and becomes enraged at the slightest thing thereafter; in other words, he acts like a real turkey. Nippers is irritable and angry in the morning when he might â€Å"nip† someone. As the day goes on, he is able to get some work done. The two of them together do the work of one man. Ginger Nut is so named because he brings the office Ginger Nut cakes.Their nicknames tell the reader that they are unreliable in assessing Bartleby, since someone could assume by their actions that they are crazy too. These characters also serve to show what the boss already puts up with. 3. Bartleby might want his story told in order to emphasize the futility of the world. He loses two jobs due to some sort of administrative change, and the world does not provide an environment for him that he can become excited about. The tone of his last statement, â€Å"Ah, Bartleby! Ah, humanity!† is a final sigh in the life of someone who has given up completely. Bartleby has not helped anyone, including himself. He may want to warn us of the emptiness of striving to make a living and the bleakness of the business world. He may also want to show us in a more realistic way wh at becomes of the nonconformist in society. It is wonderful for all of us to think about not being â€Å"part of the crowd,† but the reality is very different. Not being one of the crowd makes for a long and lonely existence. Works Cited Melville, Herman, Bartle

Wednesday, January 8, 2020

Biography of Imhotep, Ancient Egyptian Architect

Demi-god, architect, priest, and physician, Imhotep (27th century BCE) was a real man, who is credited with designing and building one of the oldest pyramids in Egypt, the Step Pyramid at Saqqara. For nearly 3,000 years he was venerated in Egypt as a semi-divine philosopher, and during the Ptolemaic period, as the god of medicine and healing.   Key Takeaways: Imhotep Alternate Names: The One Who Comes in Peace, spelled variously as Immutef, Im-hotep, or Ii-em-Hotep  Greek Equivalent: Imouthes, AsclepiosEpithets: Son of Ptah, Skill-Fingered OneCulture/Country: Old Kingdom, Dynastic EgyptBirth/Death: 3rd dynasty of the Old Kingdom (27th century BCE)Realms and Powers: Architecture, literature, medicineParents: Kheredankhw and Kanofer, or Kheredankhw and Ptah.   Imhotep in Egyptian Mythology   Late period sources say that Imhotep, who lived during the 3rd dynasty of the Old Kingdom (27th century BCE), was the son of an Egyptian woman named Kheredankhw (or Kherduankh), and Kanofer, an architect. Other sources say he was the son of the Egyptian creator god Ptah. By the Ptolemaic period, Imhoteps mother Kherehankhw was also described as semi-divine, the human daughter of the ram god Banebdjedt. Funerary complex of Djoser and Step Pyramid in Saqqara Necropolis, Cairo, Egypt. EvrenKalinbacak / Getty Images Plus Despite his close connections to deities, Imhotep was a real person, in fact, a high official in the court of the 3rd dynasty pharaoh Djoser (also spelled Zoser, c. 2650–2575 BCE). Imhoteps name and titles are inscribed on the base of Djosers statue at Saqqara—a very rare honor indeed. That led scholars to conclude that Imhotep was in charge of building the funerary complex at Saqqara, including the Step Pyramid, where Djoser would be buried. Much later, the 3rd century BCE historian Manetho credited Imhotep with the invention of building with cut stone. The Step Pyramid at Saqqara is certainly the first large-scale monument made from cut stone in Egypt.   Appearance and Reputation   Bronze ex-voto depicting Imhotep, architect of pyramids of Giza. Louvre Museum, Paris, 8th century BCE. DEA PICTURE LIBRARY / Getty Images Plus There are a few Late Period (664-332 BCE) bronze figurines of Imhotep, illustrated in the seated position of a scribe with an open papyrus on his lap—the papyrus is sometimes inscribed with his name. These figurines were made thousands of years after his death, and indicate Imhoteps role as a philosopher and teacher of scribes.   Architect During his lifetime, which intersected Djosers (3rd dynasty, 2667–2648 BCE), Imhotep was an administrator at the Old Kingdom capital of Memphis. Djosers monumental burial complex called The Refreshment of the Gods included Saqqaras step pyramid, as well as stone temples surrounded by protective walls. Inside the main temple are large columns, another innovation by the man described as prince, royal seal-bearer of the king of Lower Egypt, the high priest of Heliopolis, director of sculptors.   Columns inside the funerary complex of Djoser in Saqqara Necropolis, Cairo, Egypt. EvrenKalinbacak / iStock / Getty Images Plus Philosopher Although there is no surviving text convincingly authored by Imhotep, by the Middle Kingdom, Imhotep was remembered as an honored philosopher, and as the author of a book of instruction. By the late New Kingdom (ca 1550–1069 BCE), Imhotep was included among the seven great ancient sages of the Egyptian world associated with literature: Hardjedef, Imhotep, Neferty, Khety, Ptahem djehuty, Khakheperresonbe, Ptahhotpe, and Kaires. Some of the documents attributed to these worthy ancients were written by New Kingdom scholars under these pseudonyms. A sanctuary at Hatshepsuts Deir el-Bahari in Thebes is dedicated to Imhotep, and he is represented in the temple at Deir-el-Medina. The Banquet Song, written for a harper and inscribed on the walls of the 18th dynasty tomb of Paatenemheb in Saqqara, includes an explicit mention of Imhotep: I have heard the sayings of Imhotep and Djedefhor, / with whose utterances people discourse so much.   Priest and Healer The classical Greeks considered Imhotep a priest and a healer, identifying him with Asclepius, their own god of medicine. A temple dedicated to Imhotep was built at Memphis, known to the Greeks as the Asklepion, between 664–525 BCE, and near it was a famous hospital and school of magic and medicine. This temple and the one at Philae were both places of pilgrimage for sick people and childless couples. The Greek physician Hippocrates (c. 460–377 BCE) is said to have been inspired by the books kept at the Asklepion temple.  By the Ptolemaic period (332–30 BCE), Imhotep had become the focus of a growing cult. Objects dedicated to his name are found in several locations in north Saqqara. It is possible that Imhoteps legend as a physician dates from the Old Kingdom as well. The Edwin Smith Papyrus is a 15-foot long scroll looted from a tomb in the mid-19th century CE which details the treatment of 48 cases of trauma, the details of which simply astounds modern physicians. Although securely dated at 1600 BCE, the scroll contains textual evidence suggesting that it was a copy from a source first written about 3,000 BCE. U.S. Egyptologist James H. Breasted (1865–1935) was of the opinion that it might have been written by Imhotep; but that is not accepted by every Egyptologist.   Imhotep in Modern Culture   In the 20th century, several horror films featuring Egyptological plotlines included a mummy regenerated into a ghastly living form. For unknown reasons, the producers of the 1932 Boris Karloff movie The Mummy named this poor fellow Imhotep, and the 1990s–2000s Brendan Fraser movies continued the practice. Quite a comedown for the genius philosopher architect! Imhoteps tomb, said to be located in the desert near Memphis, has been searched for, but not as yet located.   Sources Hart, George. The Routledge Dictionary of Egyptian Gods and Goddesses. 2nd ed. London: Routledge, 2005.  Hurry, J. B. Imhotep. The Vizier and Physician of King Zoser and Afterwards the Egyptian God of Medicine. Humphrey Milford: Oxford University Press, 1926.  Teeter, Emily. Amunhotep Son of Hapu at Medinet Habu. The Journal of Egyptian Archaeology 81 (1995): 232-36.  Van Middendorp, Joost J., Gonzalo M. Sanchez, and Alwyn L. Burridge. The Edwin Smith Papyrus: A Clinical Reappraisal of the Oldest Known Document on Spinal Injuries. European Spine Journal 19.11 (2010): 1815–23.  Williams, R. J. The Sages of Ancient Egypt in the Light of Recent Scholarship. Journal of the American Oriental Society 101.1 (1981): 1–19.