Saturday, August 31, 2019

England In the years 1067-1075 Essay

a) â€Å"How far do these sources support the view expressed in source one that, in the years 1067-1075, William had favoured conciliation in his attempts to establish peace in England?† The view of William I favoring conciliation in his attempts to establish peace, to a certain extent, do agree with a number of the sources. This is only to a degree due to events that occurred between the years 1067 and 1075 that pushed William into more brutal and violent methods of subduing the English and securing his authority over England. Sources that do agree with William I using peaceful procedures to establish peace are sources three and four. Both sources to a great extent agree with the first source. Source three depicts how appeasement established authority. The source describes the naval and land levies, proving that William favoured conciliation. William had enough trust with the English to take them to war with him, and that they would not mutiny. This trust can be linked with source four; William felt strong enough to leave England in the hands of William fitz Osbern and go to Normandy. However, did the English really have a choice? With the erection of castles, the use of cavalry, and Norman landholders, the English may have been forced to fight for him; there is little detail of the events or others before or after. Source four also agrees, for throughout the duration of the documents Lanfranc negotiates peacefully with Roger warning him of the seriousness but giving him a second chance. Lanfranc assures him, â€Å"of safe conduct†, and to â€Å"give the earl what help he can, saving his allegiance†. The source is limited due it being correspondence over just the year 1075. Before and after this date other issues may have aroused, and the letters are not written by William I but by Lanfranc1 who was a very trusted friend to William. However, though acting on the King’s behalf, of appeasement, Lanfranc would have used his own ideas and thoughts on the case. Finally, as Hereford was the son of William fitz Osbern, he could have been treated differently for his links with William I; they were friends from their childhood2. Source two and five disagree with the statement in source one. Source two is from the â€Å"Anglo-Saxon Chronicle†3; as a consequence of the invasion, William is described to have devastated Yorkshire (â€Å"Harrying of the North†) 4 – â€Å"ravaged and laid waste to the shire†. There is no implication of conciliation from William. Source two is inadequate due to it only covering one year, it does not take into account events outside of 1069. The Anglo authors of the chronicle could be biased towards the Normans, exaggerating the truth, leaving out appeasement by William I. Source five also disagrees with the statement recounting how William â€Å"ruined† Norwich, and blinded some of the traitors. The source is partial due to it covering only one date and the account of the situation is brief, and may exaggerate the Norman methods. The primary sources (source two, four, and five), overall, have an unbalanced view of William I and his tactics for establishing peace in England. The main drawback to most of the sources is the lack of facts during the years 1065 and 1075. This means that the revolts that occurred before 1069 are not mentioned. A final limitation, which I believe is the most key, is a list of rules that William I laid down when he first conquered England. The first rule was â€Å"that above all things he (William) wishes one God to be revered throughout his whole realm, one faith in Christ to be kept ever inviolate, and peace and security to be preserved between English and Normans†. William’s want, and favor towards peace is fully recognised in this statement. Foot Notes; 1. Lanfranc was, at the time, head of the new foreign bishops and abbots and also Archbishop of Canterbury. Lanfranc was unimpressed with the quality of the English clergy and during William’s reign supported his policy of promoting foreigners to high office in the Church. 2. William fitz Osbern, as a boy William I â€Å"loved him above other members of his household†. William I and William fitz Osbern were related, as fitz Osbern’s father was the grandson of Duke Richard of Normandy’s half-brother, Rodulf. Later on Roger Earl of Hereford had to forfeit his land and loose his title as Earl of Hereford. This though not brutal is not favoring conciliation by William I or Lanfranc (on William’s behalf). 3. The â€Å"Anglo-Saxon Chronicle† was for the years before and during the conquest of England the main source of evidence and information. There exist three versions: C, D and E, derived from a common source but with some differences. The chronicle supplies a uniquely English account of political events and allows us to make comparisons with the rather obvious Norman propaganda. 4. â€Å"The Harrying of the North† was in response, by William I, to the revolts occurring in the North (Yorkshire) during the years 1069-70. William had marched north with seasoned troops, devastating the countryside as they went, and slaughtering all the adult males. What his troops conflicted on the people was so terrible that chroniclers remembered it over fifty years later. In the Domesday book, made in 1086, it simply records Yorkshire as â€Å"waste† due to the brutality of William the land was depopulated, villages left deserted, farms empty, and this was fifteen years later. b) To what extent did the Revolts in the years 1069-75 aid William I to assist his Royal Authority in England? The revolts between the years 1069-75, to a great extent, aided William I to assert his royal authority across England. They provided William with the chance and excuse to use and show his military power. William was able to remove key Anglo-Saxon lords who posed a threat to him; build castles to maintain his control of the country; and it allowed him to firmly set, in the minds of the Saxons, that the Normans weren’t just invaders, like the Vikings, but conquerors of England. However, the revolts were not the only reason for William’s successful affirmation of royal authority on the country. William adopted methods of conciliation. He kept the Anglo-Saxon traditions such as sheriffs, shires, coronation rights and writs and added Norman culture and society on top to create an Anglo-Norman England. Before the revolts William was in a very exposed position. He had five thousand men to the two million Saxons, and he had no control of the North, West or East of England. Due to this vulnerability William was systematically peaceful in dealing with the Anglo-Saxons; using conciliation rather than consolidation. The revolts were essential to the change in William’s attitude towards the situation. He began to use brutal, ruthless methods to obtain his authority. The importance of the revolts depended on who was involved and the consequences of the revolt. Though there were minor revolts, when comparing them to revolts such as the Northern revolt (1069-70), they are taken into account to supply us, the historian, with a realistic overview of how dire William’s need was to obtain and retain royal authority. Rebellions began to inflame the country, in 1067 the Welsh border, lead by Eric â€Å"the Wild†, revolted in Herefordshire. Subsequently the south-west revolted in 1068, with the city of Exeter refusing to accept William as their King, and Harold Godwinson’s sons attempted a counter invasion in the summer of 1068. Between the years 1069 and 1070 the North revolted. Rebels in the North burned to death a Norman Earl, Robert of Commines, in Durham. A Viking army of 240 ships, led by the sons of Swegn Estrithsson, landed at Humber and marched on York. They gained support from the local Saxons, and they seized York. Their success produced a domino affect sparking revolts in Dorset, Cheshire, Staffordshire and Somerset. William faced the possibility of a Scandinavian Kingdom in the north of England, or a separate Kingdom for Edgar, the last prince of the Royal House of Wessex. William reacted to these revolts with characteristic vigour, skill and utter brutality. He â€Å"became the barbarous murderer of many thousands, both young and old, of that fine race of people†1. The Welsh failed to take control of the border, and retired to Wales with much booty. Exeter, in the south-west revolt of 1068, was laid under siege for 18 days, by William’s troops, by which time they accepted William as their King. Harold’s sons were repelled by William’s forces in the summer of 1068. William to counter-act this made a series of lighting raids through Warwick, Nottingham, York, Lincoln, Huntingdon and Cambridge to show his presence as the new King. In reaction to the revolts in the North, William marched North with troops from York and Nottingham, devastating the countryside, slaughtering all adult males and pillaging as he went, killing animals and burning crops. This was called the â€Å"Harrying of the North† and the destruction of the land was so terrible that when mentioned in the Domesday Book, 20 years later, it was classed as a â€Å"waste† land. From Yorkshire William pushed his men across the Tees in the winter and took Chester, and Stafford, and was back in Winchester before Easter 1070. Due to the revolts and the resulting victories for William, who had either killed or utterly suppressed the resistance, he had to enforce his power, and show that the Normans were the new rulers and would not leave. William accomplished this by first building motte-and-bailey castles across England. William began to erect them right at the start of his campaign, even before the battle of Hastings, and they were virtually unheard of in England. William built hundreds across England, to show the Norman’s strength and power over the population. This geopolitical process meant that they exerted control over the surrounding countryside. The Normans would demolish houses in the centre of towns to erect a castle. This happened in towns such as Cambridge, Lincoln and Dorchester2. These castles were, and still are, â€Å"looming features over the landscape†3. They were built in the centre of towns for economic reasons; the material or foundations of earlier fortifications (Roman/Saxon) were there already, and also it was cheaper to build on existing forts rather than building on top of a hill, having to transport supplies and food up it. Another affect of castles was their psychological affect on the Saxon population. Castles were a â€Å"conspicuous emblem of Royal authority†4, and were â€Å"clearly statements of power to the indigenous people†5. By the end of the revolts, 1075, William felt secure enough with his authority over England that he went back to Normandy and left his trusted advisor and Archbishop of Canterbury, Lanfranc in charge of the kingdom. Another factor which was opened up due to the revolts, and the success for William I, was the replacement of all the Anglo-Saxon earls. The earls were either dead from the revolts or just forced off their land. William strategically placed relatives or close friends to tenet the earldoms. For example Odo of Bayeaux, was earl of Kent and half-brother to William I. Also the new earl of Hereford, William fitz Osbern, was William’s cousin. This formed a tight, trustful network of family and friends which William could rely on. Another advantage to William of the revolts was it allowed him to fully assert royal authority on Anglo-Saxon church. William had to as, 30% of land in England was permanently owned by the church, bishops and abbots were literate, powerful men who advised the old Kings of Saxon England. If William could control the church he would be successful in his total control of England. William achieved this by removing 99% of all Saxon bishops, abbots and clergy, with Norman-French ones by 1087. William built new stone cathedrals, as a sign of domination, on top of old wooden Saxon churches. This had the same affect as the castles, showing the Norman supremacy over the Saxons. In 1070 the most powerful churchman in England, Stigand Archbishop of Canterbury, was deposed and replaced by Lanfranc, an Italian monk who was William’s greatest advisor. Three other important Saxon bishops were also removed, and also many abbots. Finally in 1072 Lanfranc gained superiority over the Archbishop of York, thus making Canterbury the chief church post in England. As Lanfranc had control over the North, this aided William with his control. In the 11th century, people were very suspicious and believed solely in the existence of God. These men of God, the bishops and abbots were trusted by the Saxon people no matter what race they were, even Norman, because of the risk it could cause them in the afterlife if they offended them. The extent of royal authority being asserted on England does not solely come from the revolts but also from William’s conciliation of the country, mainly before the revolts. Although the landscape of England had changed with the formation of castles, looming over the country and the mounted cavalry, trotting through the towns and villages, William I always governed through legal and rightful inheritance from Edward the Confessor with the use of Anglo-Saxon tools of government and traditions of kingship. When William came to the throne, December 25th 1066, he was crowned in the traditional Anglo-Saxon manner, like Edward the Confessor before. This showed his belief in tradition and proved his rightful claim to the throne. By using the ancient traditions of Anglo-Saxon kingship ceremonies alongside the unique circumstances that brought him the crown, William and his successors were able to appeal both to English customs and to the Norman sense of righteous conquest. William in the lead up to the revolts kept the country as it was, making no major changes and if any were made they would consist of a mixture of Anglo-Saxon and Norman customs. The main household after 1066 was not fundamentally changed. The only big difference in the household was that after 1066, and especially around 1087 (William I’s death) the nobles were increasingly Norman. At first William kept some Anglo-Saxons in his household, one example was Regenbald, and he was the chancellor and was in command of the Royal seal under Edward the Confessor and William I. This shows William’s desire for continuity within the government, and only adding extras on top mixing the two cultures of the Normans and the Anglo-Saxons. The earldoms at the beginning of William’s reign did not change. They remained as the four large Earldoms of East Anglia, Mercia, Wessex and Northumbria. However, around the time of the rebellions against William I (1070’s), William I granted the land to new nobles and tenants. As a result he and his two half-brothers owned 50% of England, the Church remained with around 30%, and roughly 12 barons (great lords) shared the remaining 20%. These 12 barons, basically like his half-brothers, were often related through hereditary or marriage to William. Kingship was very much affected by the character of the King on the throne at the time. So this was destined to change with the accession of William I. William I had to be physically strong, spending most of his time on the move (itinerant kingship). Also mentally strong to dominate the churchmen and the barons who all had their own ambitions and interests. With this change in kingship, William introduced a fairly new system of crown-wearing sessions. William I wore his crown and regalia where the people could see him. Three major times for this crown-wearing was Easter at Winchester, Christmas at Gloucester, and on Whitsun in Westminster. This new method and change in kingship could have been a sign of William I’s security as King. However, William I could of used crown-wearing sessions for another reason, to state his claim and right to the throne, indefinitely, upon landholders, and the barons. This would agree with his use of the coinage system set up in England before 1066. William on his coins and seals had a picture of him sitting on the throne with all his regalia, on one side, and on the other him on a horse with a sword; William is declaring his claim to the throne, by right, and if that is not enough by force and bloodshed. William changed the iconography of kingship to add strength to his kingship. The chancery of pre-1066 was only slightly revolutionised. After 1066 the clerks, who wrote up the laws and grants began to progressively, under William, write the laws in Latin. Latin was the language of authority, the Norman nobles and the officials wrote in Latin. This language of power was fully founded around 1070. The use of clerks was not new to England. William I only adapted them to his cultural needs and desires. Also Latin was not known throughout the greater population. This causes supremacy over the plebs on the land, and dominates their lives. Sheriffs were the King’s official in a shire. These officials had been around before William. William I did not have sheriffs back in Normandy, and found them to be very useful. After the rebellions around the 1070’s, sheriffs were increasingly Norman (as were the earls and bishops). The powers of the sheriffs increased hugely, and they were often in charge of royal castles (castellans) as well. Most Norman sheriffs were aristocrats who had much more wealth and power than the previous Anglo-Saxon sheriffs. A final instrument used by William I to completely assert his authority on the country was the production of the Domesday Book6. This book allowed the King to find out who had what and who owed what, twenty years after his seizure of the kingdom. The Domesday Book also shows us how sophisticated the Anglo-Saxon government was before the Normans. Without the shires, hundreds and sheriffs this type of â€Å"census† would have been near impossible to make. The Domesday Book is a record of a conquered kingdom, but it is a testament to the survival of the Anglo-Saxon government in many aspects. William I was aided by the revolts (1069-75) to a great extent. The revolts changed the King from conciliation to consolidation. However, the revolts, the castle building, the revolutionary change of the earldoms and the church, came, all, after the revolts. A new set of values had been introduced into England; these were based upon loyalty and military service. The government of the new king was based upon the traditional procedures and customs of Edward the Confessor but was enforced with a savage energy inspired by, mainly, the revolts between the years 1069-75. Foot Notes; 1. William the Conqueror’s deathbed confession, from Orderic Vitalis â€Å"The Ecclesiastical History† written 1123-41. 2. Cambridge (27 houses were demolished), Gloucester (16 houses demolished), Lincoln (166 houses demolished), and in Dorchester (an area of 150,000 square metres was taken up). 3. Article in History Today, Volume 53, Issue 4. 4. Article in History Today, Volume 53, Issue 4. 5. Article in History Today, Volume 53, Issue 4. 6. The Domesday Book was written in 1086, and was so-called due to its verdicts being just as unanswerable as the Book of the Day of Judgment. It was written in Latin, on parchment and includes 13,400 place names on 888 pages. No other country in the world produced such a detailed historical record at such an early date.

Friday, August 30, 2019

The Influence of Public Health and Safety Matters on the Invention of the City

Towns are and were ever associated with trade and power [ R1 ] . Although towns every bit good as worlds have to develop. They were formed and shaped by Numberss of assorted factors. This essay would demo how have public wellness and safety affairs in the yesteryear influenced the innovation of the metropolis? One of the really first and obvious that come to mind are rigorous British fire ordinances, clearly and justly linked by most to the Great Fire of London. In its history London as a metropolis had great sums of fires in its history. One of first terrible recorded fires of London happened in 1135. It put down most of the metropolis between St Paul ‘s and St Clement Danes in Westminster every bit good as celebrated London Bridge. â€Å"Little admiration London suffered from fires: lodging and commercial premises existed together ; a Norman jurisprudence banned house fires after dark, but was likely ignored ; edifices were mostly made of wood and thatch ; and no organized fire brigade existed.† ( The 12th of July 1212 AD, Great Fire of London 1212, n.d. ) . It took good over 70 old ages and another immense fire, on 12th July 1212. This fire and figure of 3000 deceases, still appears in the Guinness Book of Records, even though possibly overdone. Those fires caused people to see about edifice regulations. In consequence ‘legislations’ every bit good as methods to stay them were introduced. Crude and really first signifier of fire protection was something every bit simple as censoring thatched roofs in full London. By its first city manager Henry Fitzailwin. He besides signed a papers stating: â€Å"Complaints about edifice nuisances could be brought by one neighbor against another. The city manager and aldermen settled such instances in a tribunal called the Assize of Nuisance† . Opinions were advised by appointed Masons and carpenters. ( History of Building Regulations in the British Isles, 2014 ) Other British metropoliss started follow London’s lead. The existent turning point in constructing history was fire of 1666. [ R2 ] F anger known as the Great Fire of London started in the bakeshop on Pudding Lane and really shortly started distributing west making beyond Roman metropolis walls. On 4th September wind way changed, it headed and about reached the Tower of London. During the firefighting procedure â€Å"King Charles II personally helped contend the fire. He lifted pails of H2O and threw money to honor people who stayed to contend the flames.† ( Museum of London – Frequently asked inquiries, n.d. ) Quenching the fire is considered to hold been successful due two factors: the strong east air currents died down, and the Tower of London fort used gunpowder to make fireguards, and halt further spread eastward. ( Great Fire of London – Wikipedia, the free encyclopaedia, n.d. ) . It’s believed that as a effect of this fire 80 % of capital was burned to the land. Inevitably catastrophe of this graduated table couldn’t go on once more. Therefore London Rebuilding Act of 1667 was introduced. [ R3 ] This papers created foundations of city/master planning every bit good as some other countries of modern edifice ordinances. Was the really first to stipulate how metropolis planning was to be regulated ( i.e. Certain streets need to be broad depending on strength and intent of usage ) . It was depicting what affairs and how they should be resolved by Judgess. Besides stipulating thickness and location of walls, including party walls. It introduced the thought of the committee planing cityscape every bit good as committee to O.K. location and form, every bit good as stuffs used in new edifices. All edifices from that point onwards were to be built of brick or rock. It besides regulated minor issues like precipitation direction, maximal overhangs, which antecedently were doing already narrow streets even narrower and tighter. That was debut to the thought of more pleasant metropoliss, even though done for practical grounds. Some more wellness and safety regulations were issued. [ R4 ] Even though this jurisprudence was highly precise for that clip. It was written by local authorities of London and was to be obeyed merely during reconstructing of the metropolis. As consequence of that British Isles were left without public jurisprudence. In 1898 Ebenezer Howard initiated â€Å"The Garden City Movement† . Garden metropoliss were designed and intended to be self-contained, self-sufficing communities. Separated and surrounded by paths of unfastened, green countries. Taking inspiration and seeking to do a Utopian dream of Sir Thomas More come truth. Howard’s idealise garden metropolis was utilizing clear districting system. Keeping residential and industrial development countries separate, allowed â€Å"smokeless† thought of the metropolis to develop. They would be populated by 32000 people on around 6000 estates ( 2400 hour angle ) . Planned in concentric circles, when to the full populated another garden metropolis would develop nearby. Several o f these would be clustered ‘orbiting’ around the cardinal metropolis ( populated by 50000 people ) . [ R5 ] â€Å"The Garden City Association set itself the ambitious undertaking of developing a first garden metropolis. Work on the chosen site at Letchworth began in 1903 and by 1914 it housed 9,000 inhabitants.† ( The birth of town be aftering – UK Parliament, n.d. ) Letchworth was really advanced and successful, it populated 33500 people. It was perchance impractical to utilize homocentric program, although rules were kept. Letchworth introduced traffic circle ( 1909 ) and was really first illustration of ‘green belt’ . This undertaking didn’t require empowering statute laws, although it was inspirational to â€Å"garden suburbs† . These were foremost introduced in Hampstead. Endorsed by Parliament in 1906, in what has been called â€Å" Hampstead Garden Suburb Act [ R6 ] † . This papers legislated that distance between the two houses on opposite sides of the route, were to be non less than 50 pess ( 15.24m ) apart. And that there sho uld be no more than 8 houses per acre ( 4046.9m2) . [ R7 ] ‘Back-to-back’ houses, so popular in industrial Victorian developments. During the industrial revolution â€Å"great inflow of workers and their households into the quickly industrialized towns during the 1800 ‘s, this figure increased massively and the jobs of over-population became disastrous† ( Public Health – History of medical specialty, n.d. ) . This was revealed by the study of Liverpool ‘s first medical officer of wellness ( Dr Duncan ) . It stated that – tierce of the metropolis ‘s population lived on Earth floored basements of dorsum to endorse houses. ( The birth of town be aftering – UK Parliament, n.d. ) Without any airing and sanitation with every bit many as 16 people populating in one room, these were certainly non what those basements were designed for and what they could defy. They were made illegal in 1909 due to Housing and Town Planning Act, as there was concern that it could be the starting motor of the new concatenation reaction consequence of pestilence for illustration similar in consequence to London’s Great Fire. [ R8 ] Letchworth and Hampstead was the chief inspiration for that 1909 Act. It besides took inspiration of garden metropolis motion rules. Not a surprise that the Garden City Association actively lobbied for it. This besides encouraged to utilize ‘Garden City’ rules. Leading the manner to the more gratifying urban environment and more flexibleness in footings of design. This act obligated local governments to utilize town planning, and control edifice criterions. Specified the occupation of local authoritiess on what they can and can’t do. The new jurisprudence formed the usher on how to be after metropoliss and how to construct safely. It besides specified land jurisprudence, how and where working category lodging should be built. Besides, sing wellness and safety of citizens and future occupants, which could be named as a signifier of sustainable design. [ R9 ] As before mentioned planning jurisprudence has been altering and accommodating for past old ages. Even though fire ordinances in the UK are perchance one of the strictest in Europe. As statistics show there is a batch of betterment to be made. World of be aftering needs people like Ebenezer Howard, dreamer and dreamers that design, program and better urban and universe environment – in consequence devising universe more gratifying. In modern metropoliss chief perplexity are sustainability and public wellness. It’s non easy to diminish fleshiness and other so called civilisation diseases. The rate of these could be lowered by extinguishing factors that do or may do it. The chief 1s being: deficiency of physical activity, unnatural/unhealthy diet, polluted air and some more (Diseases of modern civilization — Frank Fenner Foundation, n.d. ) . These may and should be considered at design phase. To better physical activity. It’s necessary to increase the sum of public conveyance used, every bit good as addition sum of resort areas. Enhancing physical activity from early old ages, followed by pathwaies, Parkss or other green countries. Obviously there is really small interior decorator or designer can make about human diet. However, what could be done is to plan green markets into town flower stalk. These would do fresh, of course grown, healthy fruits/vegetables effortlessly accessible. Another in theory unaccessible country for urban contrivers is air pollution, as we can’t actively decrease pollution. Already Ebenezer Howard has suggested to utilize town districting to travel industrial enlargement out on the fringes of towns. In the long term this would diminish the sum of contaminated air in towns, by administering it more equally across unfastened countries, and most likely lower the urban island consequence. All of those illustrations show how past events were set uping town planning. It proves that there is a set of ingredients and stimulations. They all consequence be aftering jurisprudence and planning methods. Urban environment is ever altering and it is difficult to plan it good. This is why there are groups of urban contrivers, designers, interior decorators and others working to better the design of towns. This has been altering for 100s, or even 1000s of old ages, and they would be. Changes are inevitable, what is now countryside in 10 old ages, or even less could be new suburbs. This should excite interior decorators and visionaries to better interior urban flower stalk, decide current and anticipate hereafter issues and turn to them today. BBC – History – British History in deepness: London After the Great Fire( n.d. ) . [ Online ] [ Accessed on 26th December 2014 ] hypertext transfer protocol: //www.bbc.co.uk/history/british/civil_war_revolution/after_fire_01.shtml. ‘Building Regulations – David Watkins.pdf’ ( n.d. ) . Diseases of modern civilization — Frank Fenner Foundation( n.d. ) . [ Online ] [ Accessed on 1st January 2015 ] hypertext transfer protocol: //www.natsoc.org.au/our-projects/biosensitivefutures/part-4-facts-and-principles/human-health-issues/diseases-of-modern-civilisation. English Historical Fiction Writers: Changing the Face of London – the Great Fire of 1666( n.d. ) . [ Online ] [ Accessed on 26th December 2014 ] hypertext transfer protocol: //englishhistoryauthors.blogspot.co.uk/2013/05/changing-face-of-london-great-fire-of.html. Great Fire of London – Wikipedia, the free encyclopaedia( n.d. ) . [ Online ] [ Accessed on 27th December 2014 ] hypertext transfer protocol: //en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_Fire_of_London. Handbook to the Housing and Town Planning Act, †¦( n.d. ) . [ Online ] [ Accessed on 27th December 2014 ] hypertext transfer protocol: //archive.org/stream/handbooktohousin00thom # page/n1/mode/2up. History of Building Regulations in the British Isles( 2014 ) . [ Online ] [ Accessed on 14th December 2014 ] hypertext transfer protocol: //www.buildinghistory.org/regulations.shtml. History of Building Regulations in the British Isles( n.d. ) . [ Online ] [ Accessed on 26th December 2014 ] hypertext transfer protocol: //www.buildinghistory.org/regulations.shtml. Housing, town planning, etc. , act, 1909 ; a prac†¦( n.d. ) . [ Online ] [ Accessed on 27th December 2014 ] hypertext transfer protocol: //archive.org/stream/housingtownplann00bent # page/n5/mode/2up. London Fire Brigade – The Great Fire of London( n.d. ) . [ Online ] [ Accessed on 26th December 2014 ] hypertext transfer protocol: //www.london-fire.gov.uk/great-fire-of-london.asp. Museum of London – Frequently asked inquiries( n.d. ) . [ Online ] [ Accessed on 26th December 2014 ] hypertext transfer protocol: //archive.museumoflondon.org.uk/Londons-Burning/FAQ/ . Museum of London – The 1667 Rebuilding Act( n.d. ) . [ Online ] [ Accessed on 27th December 2014 ] hypertext transfer protocol: //archive.museumoflondon.org.uk/Londons-Burning/Themes/1405/1408/Page1.htm. Public Health – History of medical specialty( n.d. ) . [ Online ] [ Accessed on 29th December 2014 ] hypertext transfer protocol: //www.priory.com/history_of_medicine/public_health.htm. Samuel Pepys Diary 1666 – Fire of London( n.d. ) . [ Online ] [ Accessed on 27th December 2014 ] hypertext transfer protocol: //www.pepys.info/fire.html. The 12th of July 1212 AD, Great Fire of London 1212( n.d. ) . [ Online ] [ Accessed on 27th December 2014 ] hypertext transfer protocol: //www.information-britain.co.uk/famdates.php? id=1019. The birth of town be aftering – United kingdom Parliament( n.d. ) . [ Online ] [ Accessed on 28th December 2014 ] hypertext transfer protocol: //www.parliament.uk/about/living-heritage/transformingsociety/towncountry/towns/overview/townplanning/ . The Geneva Association ( 2014 ) ‘World Fire Statistics.’ The Hampstead Garden Suburb Act 1906( n.d. ) . [ Online ] [ Accessed on 28th December 2014 ] hypertext transfer protocol: //www.hgs.org.uk/history/h00012000.html.

Thursday, August 29, 2019

Impact of Television on Presidential Elections

Impact of Television on Presidential Elections The Impact of Television on Presidential Elections: The aim of this paper is to look at the relationship between the mass media, specifically television, and presidential elections. This paper will focus on the function of television in presidential elections through three main areas: exit polls, presidential debates, and spots. The focus is on television for three reasons. First, television reaches more voters than any other medium. Second, television attracts the greatest part of presidential campaign budgets.Third, television provides the candidates a good opportunity to contact the people directly. A second main theme of this paper is the role of television in presidential elections in terms of representative democracy in the United States. Researchers tend to hold one of three views about television's influence on voters. Some believe that television affects voters in the short run, for example in an election campaign. Another group of researchers believes that television has a great influence on voters over time and that television's impact on voters is a continuous process from one campaign to the next.Others stand between the two views or combine both. In the last three decades, polls became an important instrument for the media, especially television networks, to determine who wins and who loses the election. Caprini conducted a study about the impact of the early prediction of a winner in the 1980 presidential race by the television networks. He observed that, shortly after 8 p. m. Eastern standard time, NBC announced that, according to its analysis of exit poll data, Ronald Reagan was to be the next president of the United States (Caprini, 1984, p. 866).That early call was controversial because the polls in many states were still open at the time and, in some of the western states, would remain open for several hours. Caprini ended his study with the following conclusion:   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Voting for the Republican candidate was completely unaffected by the early call, with precall and postcall districts varying from their normal patterns in exactly the same amount and direction. The Democratic vote, however, declined 3. 1 percent more in the postcall districts than in the precall districts (p. 874). This result suggests that the NBC prediction did have an impact on the election.Additionally, this result supports the impact of the media on political behavior. Some experts argue that rates of voting in the western states are not affected by early projections. Strom and Epstein argue that the decline in western states' turnouts is not a result of the early projections by the networks but is the result of a complicated combination of factors, none of which is related to information received on election day (Epstein and Strom, 1981, pp. 479-489). This argument denies the influence of polls on the voting turnout in the first place, and it denies the impact of media on political behav ior.Other researchers look at the issue of exit polls from a legal perspective. Floyd Abrams, a First Amendment lawyer, supports the constitutional rights of the media and says their exercising of their rights should not be restricted, even if that influences the voters:   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Once it becomes a legal issue, even people who believe that projections are harmful, or that exit polls are sometimes misused, should unite and say that the law should not be used to stop people from exercising their constitutional rights even if we happen to disagree with the way that they are using them (Abrams, 1985, p. 8). These different viewpoints represent two sides, the public and the media. Few researchers believe that exit polls have no effect on voting behavior. The majority of researchers believe that exit polls and early projections of the presidential elections do influence voters, but they disagree to what extent. The most persuasive reason to include televised debates in presiden tial campaigns is that voters want them.Voters find something in televised debates that confirms their previously held support for a candidate or helps them to decide whom to support. So television debates are now part of the political landscape. However, one expert has written that, even after the Bush-Dukakis debate, thus making four campaigns in a row to include debates, he would not predict continuation: â€Å"there are too many points at which disagreement might scuttle the whole plan† (Mickelson, 1989, p. 164).Stephen Hess in his book, The Presidential Campaign, observes that:   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   While some contend that televised debates of 1960 and 1976 elected John Kennedy and Jimmy Carter, those elections were so close that any single factor – including debates – could have been said to have made the difference (Hess, 1988, p. 76). Debates give people an opportunity to learn about those who will be president. This is probably the most positive thing to come out of the televised debates. People build their images about the candidates through their stands on the issues. For the 1960 ebates, Katz and Feldman reviewed studies:   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   As far as issues are concerned, the debates seem to have (a) made some issues more salient rather than others (the issues made salient, of course, may or may not have been the most important ones); (b) caused some people to learn where the candidates stand (including the stand of the opposition candidate); (c) effected very few changes of opinions on issues; and (d) focused more on presentation and personality than on issues (Katz and Feldman, 1962, pp. 173-223). This conclusion shows the importance of â€Å"psychological factors† in voting.As technology develops, researchers try to determine its impact on voting behavior. Technicians use advanced techniques during the presidential debates to get the viewers' attention. The most impressive effect of the presidential debates is its im pact on voters compared to that of other televised political communication in presidential campaigns. In a 1983 study of 2,530 voting-age Americans, ABC News and the John F. Kennedy School of Government noted that voters and non-voters agree that debates are more helpful in deciding whom to vote for than either television news reports or the candidate's own television ads (Kraus, 1988, p. 28). So it is obvious that such debates will have some impact on the outcome of the elections. Presidential debates are controlled by the candidates in several ways: the decision about whether to participate, the approval of areas of discussion, and the refusal to debate without panelists (p. 142). The 1988 debates were actually just joint appearances by Bush and Dukakis answering reporters' questions in two-minute and one-minute segments (Mickelson, 1989, p. 164). The year 1952 witnessed the emergence of the televised spot commercial in politics.The spot is a very short ad designed to convey a spe cific point or image without going into depth on issues or providing much detail. Since that time, spot commercials have been a main part of presidential campaigns. Joe McGinniss, an expert on campaigns, noticed the importance of the political ads:   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   It is not surprising then, that politicians and advertising men should have discovered one another. And, once they recognized that the citizen did not so much vote for a candidate as make a psychological purchase of him, not surprising that they began to work together (McGinniss, 1969, p. 27).The goals of spots are converting the voters and keeping the committed in line. Also, spots can encourage the voters to go out and vote on the basis of their commitments (Diamond and Bates, 1984, p. 352). These goals are related to the short-term influences of television on voting behavior because spots appear in the last weeks of the campaign. They could make a difference in the outcome of the presidential election. The goals ar e also related to the long-term influences of television on voting behavior because young voters today have been raised with television and they perceive the political process through the media.The evidence supports the idea that spots, more than anything else, could make a difference in the outcome of the presidential elections. Sidney Kraus makes this point in the book, Televised Presidential Debates:   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   It came as a surprise to almost everyone in the broadcasting industry to find a major study of the 1972 presidential race (conducted by two political scientists) concluding that voters learned more about Richard Nixon and George McGovern from political spots than they did from the combined nightly newscasts of the networks† (Kraus, 1988, p. 17).Kathleen Jamieson agrees: . . . political advertising is now the major means by which candidates for presidency communicate their messages to voters . . . Unsurprisingly, the spot add is the most used and the most vi ewed of the available forms of advertising (Jamieson, 1984, p. 446). On the other hand, others argue that spots are not providing the voters good information about the candidates. Theodore Lowi supports that position:   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Since the brief commercials are built on impressions rather than logic, â€Å"instant replay† benefits the sender, not the receiver (Lowi, 1985, p. 4). Others describe these spots as selling candidates like any other product. These experts ask whether presidential campaigns should be run on marketing principles or political tactics, whether the best candidate or the most telegenic performer wins, whether money can buy enough media to buy elections (Lowi, 1985, p. 65). The emergence of spots has been particularly upsetting to those who believe that political campaigns should inform the voters, not manipulate the opinions of the voters.The growing role of television in the presidential elections and its effects on the public gives rise to an i mportant question: Is this phenomenon healthy for democracy in the United States? Television became an important factor in the election process for several reasons: the decline of political parties, which had been the most important factor; (Wattenberg, 1986, p. 108) developing technology, which provided new opportunities for political television, like spots and debates; and, as a consequence of the decline of political parties, decreasing voter turnout in presidential elections since 1960.For example, only 53. 3 percent of the eligible citizens voted in 1984, the lowest since 1948. This is the same period during which the amount of money spent on televised political advertising tripled (in constant dollars) (Diamond, 1984, p. 352). Experts disagree about how television should function in a democratic society. Proponents see television as part of political socialization, and they believe that voters have profited from the presidential debates and political ads. Proponents do, howeve r, suggest particular improvements in presidential debates.Kraus suggests the following:   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Campaign Act of 1971 provides a tax check off to help finance campaigns in presidential general elections, and since the public want presidential debates those who receive funds should debate. Candidates may refuse to debate, but they would not receive public funds (Kraus, 1988, p. 154). Others defend television from a legal perspective. Floyd Abrams defends exit polls as follows:   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Once it becomes legal issue, even people who believe that projections are harmful . . . should write and say that the law should not be used to stop people from exercising their constitutional rights (Abrams, 1985, p. 8). Opponents look at television as a harmful factor in the democratic process of electing a president. According to one expert, â€Å"The promise [of] television . . . has collapsed in an era dominated by packaged campaigns and avoidance of issues (Mickelson, 19 89, p. 167). Others see the media as the main cause of the decline of political parties, which were supposed to be intermediary between the government and the people in a representative democracy, and they believe the decline of the parties will increase the gap between the government and the people. Also, they see the media as a part of the political elite in the United States.Edward Greenberg noticed this point:   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Most importantly, the mass media are themselves parts of gigantic corporate empires and, while a few among them may experience an occasional episode of â€Å"muckraking† these media are firmly, in the long run, entrenched in the camp of the powerful (Greenberg, 1986, p. 22). Regulations are necessary to control some of the bad effects of the media, particularly television. Exit polls could be regulated so that East Coast poll results are not announced until the last poll on the West Coast closes. Participation in presidential debates should be r equired of candidates who want to receive campaign funds.Spots should have more regulations than the previous two areas because the candidates use spots to attack each other. For example, in the 1988 elections, George Bush had one spot in which he rode a yacht through Boston Harbor to show that Michael Dukakis is not an environmentalist and which appeared many times during the last days of the campaign (Mickelson, 1989, p. 162). The public got the impression that Dukakis is not concerned about the environment. Spots should be based on facts. This paper demonstrates that the mass media, particularly television, have a great effect on presidential elections.Analyzing exit polls, presidential debates, and spots shows that television does affect the voters and the voting turnout in the United States. Scholars agree on the effects of television on presidential races; however, they disagree on the extent to which television has affected voting behavior and the voters. Television emphasize d the decline of political parties in the last four decades. Although some experts believe television in presidential elections is healthy, others believe it is harmful to democracy, increasing the gap between the government and the people.The negative effects of political television on democracy can be eliminated through regulations. Such regulations could permit political television without its dangers. References Abrams, Floyd. (1985, Spring). Press practices, polling restrictions, public opinion and first amendment guarantees. Public Opinion Quarterly 49 (1): pp. 15-18. Caprini, Michael X. Delli. (1984, August). Scooping the voters? The consequences of the networks' early call of the 1980 Presidential race. Journal of Politics 46: pp. 866-85. Diamond, Edwin, and Stephen Bates. (1984). The Spot. Massachusetts: MIT Press. Epstein, Laurily R. , and Gerald Strorn. October 1981). Election night projections and west coast turn out. American Politics Quarterly 9 (4): pp. 479-91. Greenb erg, S. Edward. (1986). The American political system: A radical approach. Boston: Little, Brown and Company. Hess, Stephen. (1988). The Presidential campaign. Washington D. C. : The Brookings Institute. Jamieson, Kathleen Hall. (1984). Packaging the Presidency: A history and criticism of Presidential campaign advertising. Oxford: Oxford University Press. Katz, Elihu, and Jacob J. Feldman. (1962). The debates in the light of research: A survey of surveys. In The Great Debates, ed. Sidney Kraus.Bloomington: Indiana University Press, pp. 173-223. Kraus, Sidney. (1988). Televised Presidential debates, and public policy. New Jersey: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates. Lowi, Theodore J. (1985). The personal President: Power invested promise unfulfilled. Ithaca, New York: Cornell   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  University Press. Mcginniss, Joe. (1969). The selling of the President 1968. New York: Trident Press. Mickelson, Sig. (1989). From whistle stop to sound bite: Four decades of politics and television. New York: Praeger. Wattenberg, Martin P. (1986). The decline of American political parties 1952-1984. Cambridge, Massachusetts: Harvard University Press. Impact of Television on Presidential Elections Impact of Television on Presidential Elections The Impact of Television on Presidential Elections: The aim of this paper is to look at the relationship between the mass media, specifically television, and presidential elections. This paper will focus on the function of television in presidential elections through three main areas: exit polls, presidential debates, and spots. The focus is on television for three reasons. First, television reaches more voters than any other medium. Second, television attracts the greatest part of presidential campaign budgets.Third, television provides the candidates a good opportunity to contact the people directly. A second main theme of this paper is the role of television in presidential elections in terms of representative democracy in the United States. Researchers tend to hold one of three views about television's influence on voters. Some believe that television affects voters in the short run, for example in an election campaign. Another group of researchers believes that television has a great influence on voters over time and that television's impact on voters is a continuous process from one campaign to the next.Others stand between the two views or combine both. In the last three decades, polls became an important instrument for the media, especially television networks, to determine who wins and who loses the election. Caprini conducted a study about the impact of the early prediction of a winner in the 1980 presidential race by the television networks. He observed that, shortly after 8 p. m. Eastern standard time, NBC announced that, according to its analysis of exit poll data, Ronald Reagan was to be the next president of the United States (Caprini, 1984, p. 866).That early call was controversial because the polls in many states were still open at the time and, in some of the western states, would remain open for several hours. Caprini ended his study with the following conclusion:   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Voting for the Republican candidate was completely unaffected by the early call, with precall and postcall districts varying from their normal patterns in exactly the same amount and direction. The Democratic vote, however, declined 3. 1 percent more in the postcall districts than in the precall districts (p. 874). This result suggests that the NBC prediction did have an impact on the election.Additionally, this result supports the impact of the media on political behavior. Some experts argue that rates of voting in the western states are not affected by early projections. Strom and Epstein argue that the decline in western states' turnouts is not a result of the early projections by the networks but is the result of a complicated combination of factors, none of which is related to information received on election day (Epstein and Strom, 1981, pp. 479-489). This argument denies the influence of polls on the voting turnout in the first place, and it denies the impact of media on political behav ior.Other researchers look at the issue of exit polls from a legal perspective. Floyd Abrams, a First Amendment lawyer, supports the constitutional rights of the media and says their exercising of their rights should not be restricted, even if that influences the voters:   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Once it becomes a legal issue, even people who believe that projections are harmful, or that exit polls are sometimes misused, should unite and say that the law should not be used to stop people from exercising their constitutional rights even if we happen to disagree with the way that they are using them (Abrams, 1985, p. 8). These different viewpoints represent two sides, the public and the media. Few researchers believe that exit polls have no effect on voting behavior. The majority of researchers believe that exit polls and early projections of the presidential elections do influence voters, but they disagree to what extent. The most persuasive reason to include televised debates in presiden tial campaigns is that voters want them.Voters find something in televised debates that confirms their previously held support for a candidate or helps them to decide whom to support. So television debates are now part of the political landscape. However, one expert has written that, even after the Bush-Dukakis debate, thus making four campaigns in a row to include debates, he would not predict continuation: â€Å"there are too many points at which disagreement might scuttle the whole plan† (Mickelson, 1989, p. 164).Stephen Hess in his book, The Presidential Campaign, observes that:   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   While some contend that televised debates of 1960 and 1976 elected John Kennedy and Jimmy Carter, those elections were so close that any single factor – including debates – could have been said to have made the difference (Hess, 1988, p. 76). Debates give people an opportunity to learn about those who will be president. This is probably the most positive thing to come out of the televised debates. People build their images about the candidates through their stands on the issues. For the 1960 ebates, Katz and Feldman reviewed studies:   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   As far as issues are concerned, the debates seem to have (a) made some issues more salient rather than others (the issues made salient, of course, may or may not have been the most important ones); (b) caused some people to learn where the candidates stand (including the stand of the opposition candidate); (c) effected very few changes of opinions on issues; and (d) focused more on presentation and personality than on issues (Katz and Feldman, 1962, pp. 173-223). This conclusion shows the importance of â€Å"psychological factors† in voting.As technology develops, researchers try to determine its impact on voting behavior. Technicians use advanced techniques during the presidential debates to get the viewers' attention. The most impressive effect of the presidential debates is its im pact on voters compared to that of other televised political communication in presidential campaigns. In a 1983 study of 2,530 voting-age Americans, ABC News and the John F. Kennedy School of Government noted that voters and non-voters agree that debates are more helpful in deciding whom to vote for than either television news reports or the candidate's own television ads (Kraus, 1988, p. 28). So it is obvious that such debates will have some impact on the outcome of the elections. Presidential debates are controlled by the candidates in several ways: the decision about whether to participate, the approval of areas of discussion, and the refusal to debate without panelists (p. 142). The 1988 debates were actually just joint appearances by Bush and Dukakis answering reporters' questions in two-minute and one-minute segments (Mickelson, 1989, p. 164). The year 1952 witnessed the emergence of the televised spot commercial in politics.The spot is a very short ad designed to convey a spe cific point or image without going into depth on issues or providing much detail. Since that time, spot commercials have been a main part of presidential campaigns. Joe McGinniss, an expert on campaigns, noticed the importance of the political ads:   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   It is not surprising then, that politicians and advertising men should have discovered one another. And, once they recognized that the citizen did not so much vote for a candidate as make a psychological purchase of him, not surprising that they began to work together (McGinniss, 1969, p. 27).The goals of spots are converting the voters and keeping the committed in line. Also, spots can encourage the voters to go out and vote on the basis of their commitments (Diamond and Bates, 1984, p. 352). These goals are related to the short-term influences of television on voting behavior because spots appear in the last weeks of the campaign. They could make a difference in the outcome of the presidential election. The goals ar e also related to the long-term influences of television on voting behavior because young voters today have been raised with television and they perceive the political process through the media.The evidence supports the idea that spots, more than anything else, could make a difference in the outcome of the presidential elections. Sidney Kraus makes this point in the book, Televised Presidential Debates:   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   It came as a surprise to almost everyone in the broadcasting industry to find a major study of the 1972 presidential race (conducted by two political scientists) concluding that voters learned more about Richard Nixon and George McGovern from political spots than they did from the combined nightly newscasts of the networks† (Kraus, 1988, p. 17).Kathleen Jamieson agrees: . . . political advertising is now the major means by which candidates for presidency communicate their messages to voters . . . Unsurprisingly, the spot add is the most used and the most vi ewed of the available forms of advertising (Jamieson, 1984, p. 446). On the other hand, others argue that spots are not providing the voters good information about the candidates. Theodore Lowi supports that position:   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Since the brief commercials are built on impressions rather than logic, â€Å"instant replay† benefits the sender, not the receiver (Lowi, 1985, p. 4). Others describe these spots as selling candidates like any other product. These experts ask whether presidential campaigns should be run on marketing principles or political tactics, whether the best candidate or the most telegenic performer wins, whether money can buy enough media to buy elections (Lowi, 1985, p. 65). The emergence of spots has been particularly upsetting to those who believe that political campaigns should inform the voters, not manipulate the opinions of the voters.The growing role of television in the presidential elections and its effects on the public gives rise to an i mportant question: Is this phenomenon healthy for democracy in the United States? Television became an important factor in the election process for several reasons: the decline of political parties, which had been the most important factor; (Wattenberg, 1986, p. 108) developing technology, which provided new opportunities for political television, like spots and debates; and, as a consequence of the decline of political parties, decreasing voter turnout in presidential elections since 1960.For example, only 53. 3 percent of the eligible citizens voted in 1984, the lowest since 1948. This is the same period during which the amount of money spent on televised political advertising tripled (in constant dollars) (Diamond, 1984, p. 352). Experts disagree about how television should function in a democratic society. Proponents see television as part of political socialization, and they believe that voters have profited from the presidential debates and political ads. Proponents do, howeve r, suggest particular improvements in presidential debates.Kraus suggests the following:   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Campaign Act of 1971 provides a tax check off to help finance campaigns in presidential general elections, and since the public want presidential debates those who receive funds should debate. Candidates may refuse to debate, but they would not receive public funds (Kraus, 1988, p. 154). Others defend television from a legal perspective. Floyd Abrams defends exit polls as follows:   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Once it becomes legal issue, even people who believe that projections are harmful . . . should write and say that the law should not be used to stop people from exercising their constitutional rights (Abrams, 1985, p. 8). Opponents look at television as a harmful factor in the democratic process of electing a president. According to one expert, â€Å"The promise [of] television . . . has collapsed in an era dominated by packaged campaigns and avoidance of issues (Mickelson, 19 89, p. 167). Others see the media as the main cause of the decline of political parties, which were supposed to be intermediary between the government and the people in a representative democracy, and they believe the decline of the parties will increase the gap between the government and the people. Also, they see the media as a part of the political elite in the United States.Edward Greenberg noticed this point:   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Most importantly, the mass media are themselves parts of gigantic corporate empires and, while a few among them may experience an occasional episode of â€Å"muckraking† these media are firmly, in the long run, entrenched in the camp of the powerful (Greenberg, 1986, p. 22). Regulations are necessary to control some of the bad effects of the media, particularly television. Exit polls could be regulated so that East Coast poll results are not announced until the last poll on the West Coast closes. Participation in presidential debates should be r equired of candidates who want to receive campaign funds.Spots should have more regulations than the previous two areas because the candidates use spots to attack each other. For example, in the 1988 elections, George Bush had one spot in which he rode a yacht through Boston Harbor to show that Michael Dukakis is not an environmentalist and which appeared many times during the last days of the campaign (Mickelson, 1989, p. 162). The public got the impression that Dukakis is not concerned about the environment. Spots should be based on facts. This paper demonstrates that the mass media, particularly television, have a great effect on presidential elections.Analyzing exit polls, presidential debates, and spots shows that television does affect the voters and the voting turnout in the United States. Scholars agree on the effects of television on presidential races; however, they disagree on the extent to which television has affected voting behavior and the voters. Television emphasize d the decline of political parties in the last four decades. Although some experts believe television in presidential elections is healthy, others believe it is harmful to democracy, increasing the gap between the government and the people.The negative effects of political television on democracy can be eliminated through regulations. Such regulations could permit political television without its dangers. References Abrams, Floyd. (1985, Spring). Press practices, polling restrictions, public opinion and first amendment guarantees. Public Opinion Quarterly 49 (1): pp. 15-18. Caprini, Michael X. Delli. (1984, August). Scooping the voters? The consequences of the networks' early call of the 1980 Presidential race. Journal of Politics 46: pp. 866-85. Diamond, Edwin, and Stephen Bates. (1984). The Spot. Massachusetts: MIT Press. Epstein, Laurily R. , and Gerald Strorn. October 1981). Election night projections and west coast turn out. American Politics Quarterly 9 (4): pp. 479-91. Greenb erg, S. Edward. (1986). The American political system: A radical approach. Boston: Little, Brown and Company. Hess, Stephen. (1988). The Presidential campaign. Washington D. C. : The Brookings Institute. Jamieson, Kathleen Hall. (1984). Packaging the Presidency: A history and criticism of Presidential campaign advertising. Oxford: Oxford University Press. Katz, Elihu, and Jacob J. Feldman. (1962). The debates in the light of research: A survey of surveys. In The Great Debates, ed. Sidney Kraus.Bloomington: Indiana University Press, pp. 173-223. Kraus, Sidney. (1988). Televised Presidential debates, and public policy. New Jersey: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates. Lowi, Theodore J. (1985). The personal President: Power invested promise unfulfilled. Ithaca, New York: Cornell   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  University Press. Mcginniss, Joe. (1969). The selling of the President 1968. New York: Trident Press. Mickelson, Sig. (1989). From whistle stop to sound bite: Four decades of politics and television. New York: Praeger. Wattenberg, Martin P. (1986). The decline of American political parties 1952-1984. Cambridge, Massachusetts: Harvard University Press.

Wednesday, August 28, 2019

St. Augustines Role in the Development of Christianity Essay

St. Augustines Role in the Development of Christianity - Essay Example St. Augustine’s Role in the Development of Christianity The name of St. Augustine is also among such courageous and dauntless personalities, who devoted their life for the uplift of Christianity in his surroundings without displaying any irresoluteness in the face of hardships. St. Augustine of Hippo enjoys very respectable status in the list of the Christian saints, who had rendered exceptional services for the growth and development of the contemporary world’s largest religion i.e. Christianity. He not only dedicated his entire life for the development of Christianity, but also introduced, interpreted and elaborated the fundamental concepts of the belief in order to convey the Christ’s true message to the masses during the era when adopting and supporting Christian teachings served as taboo and forbidden act in the eyes of law and society at large. The Christians were persecuted, tortured and even killed at the hands of pagans and Jews in Africa and Rome respectively. â€Å"Christians posed a problem for Roman rulers beca use Christians refused to worship Roman gods. This refusal was seen as opposition to Roman rule. Some Roman rulers also used Christians as scapegoats for political and economic troubles.† (mmoloneyiths.com) Augustine was born in Numidia, North Africa in 354 A.D. It was the time when Christian faith was in its budding in the entire region. The paganism prevailed all over Africa, and the people, converted to this new faith, were looked upon with extreme suspicion and abhorrence. Being the son of a pagan father, Patricia, and devout Christian mother, Monica, the young Augustine had least interest in Christianity in his early youth. Being an energetic and carefree youth, he spent most of his time in dissipation and revelry making. Hence, he was neither interested in paganism, nor did he display any inclination towards her mother’s conversion. However, he had developed great taste for philosophy and maintained aptitude for reading. â€Å"After a rather unremarkable childhoo d, Augustine drifted through several philosophical systems before converting to Christianity at the age of thirty-one. At the age of nineteen, Augustine read Cicero's Hortensius, an experience that led him into the fascination with philosophical questions and methods that would remain with him throughout his life.† (ccel.org) Since St. Monica, his mother, had dedicated her life for the cause of her religion, she vehemently lamented over Augustine’s sticking to the pagan faith. Somehow, the circumstances observed astounding change, and Augustine started abhorring dissipation; eventually his social life was confined to reading and brooding. The remarkable mysterious call, inviting him to adopt the path of virtue and glory was too powerful to resist. Consequently, he embraced Manichaean faith viewing it as the right path to be followed. Somehow, his discussions with his friend Simplicianus and his mother’s insisting forced him to study the new religious doctrine. St . Ambrose of Milan played decisive role in his conversion, and he adopted Christianity not just to imitate others; rather, he entered the faith on the concrete foundations of his deep study, meditative examination and thorough analysis of the Christian teachings. Augustine has recorded the account of his conversion in his wonderful â€Å"The Confessions.† After conversion, Augustine dedicated himself for the cause of Christianity. He declared his conversion to Christianity as the outcome of countless bounties of his Lord upon him. He studied, taught and spread the basic philosophy of religion, and

Business Of The Resale Stores Dissertation Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 12000 words

Business Of The Resale Stores - Dissertation Example Once this has been done, we will be doing a market segmentation to target our potential customers. Once this has been done, we will design the various strategies required to influence the customers. A detailed plan of how the organization work towards the achievement of its strategic goals and objectives is the operational plan for the business. It provides a clear picture of how the people, teams and the departments of the organizations are collectively working together or the purpose of the business. Finance or the starting capital is the most important thing without which no business can start. Finance is the combination of the acquiring, allocation and the proper management of funds that will actually combine to help in the fulfillment of any business. The financial plan helps the managers to go about with the entire project. It shows the managers and helps them in identifying the different sources of capital and how it can be collected and allocated so that the business may be conducted in a proper fashion. It helps the company to identify the different sources of the capital and how these sources can be properly utilized to actually formulate the business. It also helps in designing and defining the exact way in which the money should be allotted so that the business will be able to breakeven faster and would be successful. In recent times due to the impact of the recession and the inflation on a worldwide basis the consignment shop or resale store is a one-stop solution to all the buyer-seller problems. This is because initially a consignment store or a resale shop is actually a resale business which involves three parties. They are the goods owner or the consignor, the consignee or the seller and the buyer of the resold goods the customer. Goods that are resold or consigned generally are clothes, luxury items, and antiques.

Tuesday, August 27, 2019

The Role of Image in the Formation of Foreign Policy Essay

The Role of Image in the Formation of Foreign Policy - Essay Example For instance, a country that is shrewd in policy making that result in numerous conflicts with other nations will be regarded as hostile and thus the kind of image that it portrays to the world will be negative. It means that any country that will want to engage with this particular nation will have to do due diligence in their policy formulation to incorporate the hostility aspect that is often associated with this country (Smith, Hadfield and Dunne, 2012). In most cases, most nations that are conservative in nature will avoid any form of engagement with this government simply because of the negative image that it has previously portrayed. For instance, a country like the United Kingdom is very conservative and rational in its dealings this enhances its overall image to the world as many other nations will take it as a model nation in their operations. Therefore, whenever they are formulating their policies, they will most likely incorporate the best engagement terms with this country just from the image that it portrays from its mode of governance (Stephenson, 2009). Perception is yet another defining factor of how a nation will structure its foreign policy; take an example in the event of a disaster like a terrorist attack or a tsunami that has swept across a city killing thousands of people. Several nations will stand in solidarity with the affected through sending messages of condolences or offering aid to the victims. These acts o f philanthropy in such situation carry a high perception of how an individual nation feels for the other. The knowledge that a country gets from such actions significantly influences the terms of engagement between the countries, especially when crafting a foreign policy regarding that nation (Stephenson, 2009). Numerous factors are taken into account by countries whenever they are coming up with their foreign policy.

Monday, August 26, 2019

Chapter Summary - Student Aid Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Chapter Summary - Student Aid - Essay Example The cost of college has nearly doubled over the past 20 years, in inflation-adjusted dollars, and college tuition and fees have risen faster than inflation, personal income, consumer prices or even the cost of prescription drugs and health insurance. (2010: 2) The author, based on her in-depth research, also submits to state that the students belonging to lower stratum of society of the USA have far higher percentage of completing their graduation in comparison with those of the middle and higher strata. But the governmental funds and scholarships, once granted to the students on the basis of financial position, have been attached with the grades and scores students get in studies. Hence, the scholarships are divided among the students of all classes, which have accelerated the financial miseries of the students belonging to the lower classes. Though granting of scholarships on the basis of performance in studies is a very healthy trend, but it deprives the financially poor students of the financial support necessary for the completion of their studies. Since they are unable to support themselves, they seek help from different sources. Consequently, private financing companies and organizations are offering their services against heavy in terests, and provide the students with study loans, which become almost impossible to pay by the students. It is therefore instead of deducting the amount of merit based scholarship from the need based one, separate funds must be allocated for the students displaying extraordinary performance in academics and sports. Merit-aid, Clemmitt views, may create heavier loan burdens for low-income students. The University of Maryland recently discovered that low-income students were graduating with more debt than middle and high income students and concluded that its grant program which had 60 percent merit-based awards. (2010: 4) As a result,

Sunday, August 25, 2019

The Responsibility of the Auditor for Fraud and Error Lab Report

The Responsibility of the Auditor for Fraud and Error - Lab Report Example This paper discusses the auditor’s responsibility for fraud and error. It studies the link between the objectives of external audit to this responsibility. It draws on relevant auditing standards that provide guidance on the responsibility of the auditor for fraud and error in the financial statements. It also discusses the responsibilities of the business entities’ board of directors and management. Lastly, it provides some discussions on the higher – profiled fraud cases in the past and the effect on the auditing profession of these high – profiled cases. The Glossary to the International Standards on Auditing or ISA (p. 19, IFAC, 2010) officially defines fraud as â€Å"an intentional act†, committed by a certain individual or certain individuals by using deception â€Å"to obtain an unjust or illegal advantage† that inevitably leads to the misstatement of the financial statements. Error, on the other hand, is defined as an â€Å"unintentional misstatement in financial statements† which may include omitting a certain amount or a certain disclosure (p. 18, IFAC, 2010). Both fraud and error may lead to financial statements misstatements. Both of them may lead to restatements misstated financial statements. However, what sets the two apart is whether the financial statements misstatement is deliberate or not, with fraud considered more serious (and illegal) than error. Financial statements fraud is done due to a variety of reasons. Some of the reasons may include trying to obtain new credit or more investments; â€Å"creating favorable stock value†; trying to conceal an inability to improve the performance of the company; increasing management or the board compensation by showing higher earnings; â€Å"obtaining a promotion†¦within the company† and â€Å"hiding improper business transactions† (p. 58, Rezaee and Riley, 2010).  

Saturday, August 24, 2019

Why World War 2 had the most importance in the 20th century Essay

Why World War 2 had the most importance in the 20th century - Essay Example Post Second World War, the belt of dictatorship became loose. Dictatorship had been a major cause that had led to the rise of the war. Additionally, the war did usher a period of Atomic age. Utilization of the atomic bombs did indicate the advancing nature of weaponry in wars. It was the turning point of many societal issues (Dorn, pg. 540). Many opportunities did erupt after the war, and any person who grabbed them did benefit greatly. Women were the greatest achievers and beneficiaries. The symbol of the women during the war period was Rosie the Riveter. She demonstrated the woman’s worth. She was a strong woman walked head high with super self-esteem. She reversed the mentality that the place of a woman is in the kitchen. Women became a part of the team involved in welfare. They did work as hard as men, and sometimes even harder than the way men did. They had skills to operate heavy machines (Sokoloff, pg. 315). The summation of the war ended up with a third of the women as part of the army fighters. During the war period, women were granted better privileges at work. They were the backbone of the economy. They could build and maintain heavy machinery, as well as operate them. They received a pay increase. The event was detrimental to the position of woman in the society. The African Americans were beneficiaries of the event. There was a down surge in the discrimination levels after the war. Prior to the war commencement, the whites detested any assistance from their black Americans counterparts. In fact, they did hang a big notice in their stores â€Å"No Help Wanted.† After the war, they changed it to â€Å"Help Wanted.† Many African Americans did secure a job and made them earn a decent living. The order from the American president in 1941 even paved a great path for the elimination of discrimination. The President made an order that four businesses linked with the government should support racial equality. In the war, the black

Friday, August 23, 2019

Argument Analysis 2 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 1

Argument Analysis 2 - Essay Example And in the third and final part, I shall assess the truth and validity of Aquinas’ argument with the help of logical reasoning. I will conclude that Aquinas’ argument is indeed a valid argument for the existence of God, based on its logical structure, but I shall argue that the entire argument is weak for it is founded upon a mere assumption. To begin with, Aquinas starts his argument by observing that there exists an â€Å"order of efficient causes† (â€Å"Summa Theologiae†). So, all events entail the existence of a prior cause, which causes its occurrence. If something is caused, then it must be caused by something other than itself. It must be caused by something other than itself, for it is logically impossible to be the cause and be caused in the same way and in the same respect. However, if something causes another thing’s occurrence, which causes the occurrence of another thing, which in turn causes another, then an order of efficient causes would entail, an infinite chain of causes. There cannot be an infinite chain of causes, for there would be no first cause. The absence of a first cause would entail the absence of a beginning from which all things began to occur. There must exist a first uncaused cause that initiated the chain of efficient causes, which is God. Therefore God exists. Given the aforementioned reconstruction, I began by claiming premise one by referring to the law of causality, which is a given in Aquinas’ argument. In premise two, the first premise is then applied to the occurrence of X, from which it was inferred, by virtue of â€Å"material implication,† that X was caused by something prior to it, that is, Y, as premise three verifies it (Copi and Cohen 395). Premise four applies the same principle, by virtue of material implication, from which it was inferred that Y was caused by something prior to it, that is, Z. However, premise five shows that this order of efficient causes lead to an infinite regress, from which

Thursday, August 22, 2019

Computerized Library System Essay Example for Free

Computerized Library System Essay Chromosomal aberrations are disruptions in the normal chromosomal content of a cell and are a major cause of genetic conditions in humans, such as Down syndrome, although most aberrations have little to no effect. Some chromosome abnormalities do not cause disease in carriers, such as translocations, or chromosomal inversions, although they may lead to a higher chance of bearing a child with a chromosome disorder. Abnormal numbers of chromosomes or chromosome sets, called aneuploidy, may be lethal or may give rise to genetic disorders. Genetic counseling is offered for families that may carry a chromosome rearrangement. The gain or loss of DNA from chromosomes can lead to a variety of genetic disorders. Human examples include: * Cri du chat, which is caused by the deletion of part of the short arm of chromosome 5. Cri du chat means cry of the cat in French; the condition was so-named because affected babies make high-pitched cries that sound like those of a cat. Affected individuals have wide-set eyes, a small head and jaw, moderate to severe mental health issues, and are very short. * Down syndrome, the most common trisomy, usually caused by an extra copy of chromosome 21 (trisomy 21). Characteristics include decreased muscle tone, stockier build, asymmetrical skull, slanting eyes and mild to moderate developmental disability.[51] * Edwards syndrome, or trisomy-18, the second-most-common trisomy.[citation needed]Symptoms include motor retardation, developmental disability and numerous congenital anomalies causing serious health problems. Ninety percent of those affected die in infancy. They have characteristic clenched hands and overlapping fingers. * Isodicentric 15, also called idic(15), partial tetrasomy 15q, or inverted duplication 15 (inv dup 15). * Jacobsen syndrome, which is very rare. It is also called the terminal 11q deletion disorder.[52] Those affected have normal intelligence or mild developmental disability, with poor expressive language skills. Most have a bleeding disorder called Paris-Trousseau syndrome. * Klinefelters syndrome (XXY). Men with Klinefelter syndrome are usually sterile, and tend to be taller and have longer arms and legs than their peers. Boys with the syndrome are often shy and quiet, and have a higher incidence of speech delay and dyslexia. Without testosterone treatment, some may develop gynecomastia during puberty. * Patau Syndrome, also called D-Syndrome or trisomy-13. Symptoms are somewhat similar to those of trisomy-18, without the characteristic folded hand. * Small supernumerary marker chromosome. This means there is an extra, abnormal chromosome. Features depend on the origin of the extra genetic material. Cat-eye syndrome and isodicentric chromosome 15 syndrome (or Idic15) are both caused by a supernumerary marker chromosome, as is Pallister-Killian syndrome. * Triple-X syndrome (XXX). XXX girls tend to be tall and thin and have a higher incidence of dyslexia. * Turner syndrome (X instead of XX or XY). In Turner syndrome, female sexual characteristics are present but underdeveloped. Females with Turner syndrome often have a short stature, low hairline, abnormal eye features and bone development and a caved-in appearance to the chest. * XYY syndrome. XYY boys are usually taller than their siblings. Like XXY boys and XXX girls, they are more likely to have learning difficulties. * Wolf-Hirschhorn syndrome, which is caused by partial deletion of the short arm of chromosome 4. It is characterized by severe growth retardation and severe to profound mental health issues. Cri du chat syndrome, also known as chromosome 5p deletion syndrome, 5p minus syndrome or Lejeune’s syndrome, is a rare genetic disorder due to a missing part ofchromosome 5. Its name is a French term (cat-cry or call of the cat) referring to the characteristic cat-like cry of affected children. It was first described by Jà ©rà ´me Lejeune in 1963.[1] The condition affects an estimated 1 in 50,000 live births, strikes all ethnicities, and is more common in females by a 4:3 ratio. Signs and symptoms The syndrome gets its name from the characteristic cry of affected infants, which is similar to that of a meowing kitten, due to problems with the larynx and nervous system. About 1/3 of children lose the cry by age 2. Other symptoms of cri du chat syndrome may include: * feeding problems because of difficulty swallowing and sucking. * low birth weight and poor growth. * severe cognitive, speech, and motor delays. * behavioral problems such as hyperactivity, aggression, tantrums, and repetitive movements. * unusual facial features which may change over time. * excessive drooling. * constipation. - Genetics Cri du chat syndrome is due to a partial deletion of the short arm of chromosome number 5, also called 5p monosomy. Approximately 90% of cases results from a sporadic, or randomly-occurring, de novo deletion. The remaining 10-15% are due to unequal segregation of a parental balanced translocation where the 5p monosomy is often accompanied by a trisomic portion of the genome. These individuals may have more severe disease than those with isolated monosomy of 5p. Most cases involve total loss of the most distant 20-10% of the material on the short arm. Fewer than 10% of cases have other rare cytogenetic aberrations (e.g., interstitial deletions, mosaicisms, rings and de novo translocations). The deleted chromosome 5 is paternal in origin in about 80% of de novo cases. Loss of a small region in band 5p15.2 (cri du chat critical region) correlates with all the clinical features of the syndrome with the exception of the catlike cry, which maps to band 5p15.3 (catlike critical region). The results suggest that 2 noncontiguous critical regions contain genes involved in this conditions etiology. Two genes in these regions, Semaphorine F (SEMA5A) and delta catenin(CTNND2), are potentially involved in cerebral development. The deletion of the telomerase reverse transcriptase (hTERT) gene localized in 5p15.33 may contribute to the phenotypic changes in cri du chat syndrome as well. people with cri du chat syndrome Down syndrome (DS) or Downs syndrome, also known as trisomy 21, is achromosomal condition caused by the presence of all or part of a third copy ofchromosome 21.[1] Down syndrome is the most common chromosome abnormality in humans.[2] It is typically associated with a delay in cognitive ability (mental retardation, or MR) and physical growth, and a particular set of facial characteristics.[1] The average IQ of young adults with Down syndrome is around 50, compared to children without the condition with an IQ of 100.[1][3] (MR has historically been defined as an IQ below 70.) A large proportion of individuals with Down syndrome have a severe degree of intellectual disability. Genetics Karyotype for trisomy Down syndrome. Notice the three copies of chromosome 21 Down syndrome disorders are based on having too many copies of the genes located on chromosome 21. In general, this leads to an overexpression of the genes.[54] Understanding the genes involved may help to target medical treatment to individuals with Down syndrome. It is estimated that chromosome 21 contains 200 to 250 genes.[55] Recent research has identified a region of the chromosome that contains the main genes responsible for the pathogenesis of Down syndrome.[56] The extra chromosomal material can come about in several distinct ways. A typical human karyotype is designated as 46,XX or 46,XY, indicating 46 chromosomes with an XX arrangement typical of females and 46 chromosomes with an XY arrangement typical of males.[57] In 1–2% of the observed Down syndromes.[58] some of the cells in the body are normal and other cells have trisomy 21, this is called mosaic Down syndrome (46,XX/47,XX,+21).[59] [60] Trisomy 21 Trisomy 21 (47,XX,+21) is caused by a meiotic nondisjunction event. With nondisjunction, agamete (i.e., a sperm or egg cell) is produced with an extra copy of chromosome 21; the gamete thus has 24 chromosomes. When combined with a normal gamete from the other parent, the embryo now has 47 chromosomes, with three copies of chromosome 21. Trisomy 21 is the cause of approximately 95% of observed Down syndromes, with 88% coming from nondisjunction in the maternal gamete and 8% coming from nondisjunction in the paternal gamete.[58] The actual Down syndrome critical region encompasses chromosome bands 21q22.1-q22.3.[61] Edwards syndrome (also known as Trisomy 18 (T18) or Trisomy E) is a genetic disordercaused by the presence of all or part of an extra 18th chromosome. It is named after John H. Edwards, who first described the syndrome in 1960.[1] It is the second most commonautosomal trisomy, after Down syndrome, that carries to term. Edwards syndrome occurs in around one in 6,000 live births and around 80 percent of those affected are female.[2] The majority of fetuses with the syndrome die before birth.[2]The incidence increases as the mothers age increases. The syndrome has a very low rate of survival, resulting from heart abnormalities, kidney malformations, and other internal organ disorders. Signs and symptoms Children born with Edwards syndrome may have some or all of the following characteristics: kidney malformations, structural heart defects at birth (i.e., ventricular septal defect, atrial septal defect, patent ductus arteriosus), intestines protruding outside the body (omphalocele), esophageal atresia, mental retardation, developmental delays, growth deficiency, feeding difficulties, breathing difficulties, and arthrogryposis (a muscle disorder that causes multiple joint contractures at birth).[3][4] Some physical malformations associated with Edwards syndrome include small head (microcephaly) accompanied by a prominent back portion of the head (occiput); low-set, malformed ears; abnormally small jaw (micrognathia); cleft lip/cleft palate; upturned nose; narrow eyelid folds (palpebral fissures); widely spaced eyes (ocular hypertelorism); drooping of the upper eyelids (ptosis); a short breast bone; clenched hands; choroid plexus cysts; underdeveloped thumbs and or nails,absent radius, webbing of the second and third toes; clubfoot or Rocker bottom feet; and in males, undescended testicles. of choroid plexus cysts, which are pockets of fluid on the brain. These are not problematic in themselves, but their presence may be a marker for trisomy Genetics Edwards syndrome is a chromosomal abnormality characterized by the presence of an extra copy of genetic material on the 18th chromosome, either in whole (trisomy 18) or in part (such as due to translocations). The additional chromosome usually occurs beforeconception. The effects of the extra copy vary greatly, depending on the extent of the extra copy, genetic history, and chance. Edwards syndrome occurs in all human populations but is more prevalent in female offspring.[7] A healthy egg and/or sperm cell contains individual chromosomes, each of which contributes to the 23 pairs of chromosomes needed to form a normal cell with a typical human karyotype of 46 chromosomes. Numerical errors can arise at either of the two meiotic divisions and cause the failure of a chromosome to segregate into the daughter cells (nondisjunction). This results in an extra chromosome, making the haploid number 24 rather than 23. Fertilization of eggs or insemination by sperm that contain an extra chromosome results in trisomy, or three copies of a chromosome rather than two.[8] Trisomy 18 (47,XX,+18) is caused by a meiotic nondisjunction event. With nondisjunction, a gamete (i.e., a sperm or egg cell) is produced with an extra copy of chromosome 18; the gamete thus has 24 chromosomes. When combined with a normal gamete from the other parent, the embryo has 47 chromosomes, with three copies of chromosome 18. with edwards syndrome Isodicentric 15, also called idic(15), partial tetrasomy 15q, or inverted duplication 15 (inv dup 15), is a chromosome abnormalityin which a child is born with extra genetic material from chromosome 15. People with idic(15) are typically born with 47 chromosomes in their body cells, instead of the normal 46. The extra chromosome is made up of a piece of chromosome 15 that has been duplicated end-to-end like a mirror image. It is the presence of this extra genetic material that is thought to account for the symptoms seen in some people with idic(15). Individuals with idic(15) have a total of four copies of this chromosome 15 region instead of the usual two copies (1 copy each on the maternal and paternal chromosomes). The extra chromosome is rarely found in mosaic state, i.e. some of the cells carry the marker chromosome. However, mostly because of the markers instability and tendency to be lost during cell division (mitosis), some cells are completely normal with 46 chromosomes. Occasionally, cells may have more than one idic(15), resulting in 48 or 49 chromosomes in all or some of their cells. A similar clinical picture albeit to a milder degree could be expected in individuals that have the extra chromosome 15 material as an interstitial duplication; not as a marker chromosome; thus having 46 chromosomes.[1][2] Signs and symptoms Individuals with idic(15) have delays in language development and motor skills such as walking or sitting up. Other traits may include low muscle tone (hypotonia), seizures, short stature, and mental retardation. Distinctive facial features associated with idic(15) may include epicanthal folds (skin folds at the inner corners of the eyes), a flattened nasal bridge, button nose, and a high arched palate (roof of the mouth). Some individuals with idic(15) also have features of autism, such as problems with communication, social interactions, and repetitive and stereotyped behaviors (e.g., lining up toys, playing with a toy in the same manner over and over again, hand flapping, rocking back and forth). These are some mild features but with a severe person there may be more such as inability to talk at all. Genetics Generally, idic(15) is not inherited; it is said to appear de novo; in one member of the family, by chance. In most cases, the abnormal chromosome is generated in the mothers germ cells; oocytes. This finding is due to ascertainment bias; i.e. cases with maternally derived idic(15) usually have clinical findings and attract attention but those with paternally derived idic(15) usually do not. Thus, established cases are usually patients with maternally inherited idic (15).[4] . The smallest markers appear to be harmless and they may go undetected. However, if they are large enough to contain a number of important genes, they may result in idic(15) syndrome which is characterized by mental retardation, autism and other neurological symptoms.[5] One of the regions responsible for the symptoms of idic(15)syndrome is the critical PWS/AS-region named after the Prader-Willi and/or Angelman syndromes. Jacobsen Syndrome, also known as 11q deletion disorder, is a rare congenital disorder resulting from deletion of a terminal region of chromosome 11 that includes band 11q24.1. It can cause intellectual disabilities, a distinctive facial appearance, and a variety of physical problems including heart defects and a bleeding disorder. The syndrome was first identified by Danish physician Petra Jacobsen,[1] and is believed to occur in approximately 1 out of every 100,000 births. Possible characteristics * Heart defects * Mild to severe intellectual disabilities * Low-platelets (thrombocytopenia) * Facial/skeletal (dysplasia) * Wide-set eyes caused by trigonocephaly * Folding of the skin near the eye (epicanthus) * Short, upturned nose (anteverted nostrils) * Thin lips that curve inward * Displaced receding chin (retrognathia) * Low-set, misshapen ears * Permanent upward curvature of the pinkie and ring fingers (camptodactyly) * Large great toes/Hammer toes Klinefelters syndrome, 47, XXY, or XXY syndrome is a condition in which a human has an extra X chromosome. While females have an XX chromosomal makeup, and males an XY, affected individuals have at least two X chromosomes and at least one Y chromosome.[1] Because of the extra chromosome, individuals with the condition are usually referred to as XXY Males, or 47, XXY Males.[2] This chromosome constitution (karyotype) exists in roughly between 1:500 to 1:1000 live male births[3][4] but many of these people may not show symptoms. The physical traits of the syndrome become more apparent after the onset of puberty, if at all.[5] In humans, 47,XXY is the most common sex chromosome aneuploidy in males[6] and the second most common condition caused by the presence of extra chromosomes. Other mammals also have the XXY syndrome, including mice. Patau syndrome, also known as trisomy 13 and trisomy D, is a chromosomalabnormality, a syndrome in which a patient has an additional chromosome 13 due to anondisjunction of chromosomes during meiosis. Some are caused by Robertsonian translocations, while others are caused by mosaic Patau syndrome. The extra chromosome 13 disrupts the normal course of development, causing heart and kidney defects, amongst other features characteristic of Patau syndrome.[vague] Like allnondisjunction conditions (such as Down syndrome and Edwards syndrome), the risk of this syndrome in the offspring increases with maternal age at pregnancy, with about 31 years being the average.[1] Patau syndrome affects somewhere between 1 in 10,000 and 1 in 21,700 live births.