MacEwan Open Journals (MacEwan University)
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Rachel Carson: Humanizing Nature
No full textRachel Carson was instrumental in changing the way the world viewed conservation. Her initial written works demonstrated the idea that humans were not the center of the earth’s ecosystems by describing the environment from the viewpoint of non-human creatures (Cafaro, 2011, para. 45-48). Carson’s most eminent publication, Silent Spring, was released at the beginning of the 1960s (Cafaro, 2011, para. 25). The book advocated Carson’s concept of enlightened anthropocentrism through the insistence that new scientific innovations should be questioned as to why, whether, and for what purpose they are put into practice (Walker & Walsh, 2012, p.19). Another issue sparked by Silent Spring regarded whether humans should alter nature for our purposes or attempt to leave it unchanged (Cafaro, 2011, para. 67). Silent Spring helped to spark a national debate about scientific responsibility, limitations on advances in technology, and chemical pesticides in general (Lear, 2013, p. 1). The fact that her arguments stimulated such intense discussion is a testimony to how influential she truly was. Furthermore, Silent Spring led to the banning of dichlorodiphenyltricholoroethane (DDT) production by 1972, along with the implementation of government regulations to safeguard the environment (Hecht, 2012, p. 154; Lear, 2013, p. 1). Carson also made individuals realize that what they put into the environment must be regulated in order to keep the effects from haunting them for generations to come. This undeniable truth continues to resonate today.
Dr. Manhattan\u27s Voice
No full textIn this paper, the author analyzes the style of Dr. Manhattan\u27s narrating voice in the "Watchmaker" chapter of Alan Moore\u27s and Dave Gibbons\u27s Watchmen. The use of verbs, phrases, sentence structure, and formatting is examined and found to communicate effectively Dr. Manhattan\u27s unique worldview
Beats from the East: Transcultural Adaptation of Hip-Hop from North America to Eastern Asia
No full textHip-hop culture has spread from its origins in the South Bronx in the late 1970’s to many countries across the globe, leading to the creation of a Global Hip-hop Nation in which artist from every nation have the ability to share, collaborate, and critique the works of others. With the expansion of a culture that was created – predominately – by marginalized African-Americans, an issue that has arisen is the authenticity of what constitutes ‘real’ Hip-hop for those outside of North America. In this paper the author will explore the relationship between Hip-hop cultures in North America and Eastern Asia in an attempt to show how both cultures have influenced each other rather than the commonly held view that Eastern Asian countries (Japan, China, and South Korea) have copied and imitated the styles of North America. Through secondary research and exploring the scholarship surrounding the creation and expansion of Hip-hop culture the author will examine the circumstances that have lead to the popularity Hip-hop has gained in North America and Eastern Asia, and examine the aspects of Eastern Asian culture that have influenced Hip-hop artists in North America to show that the imitation and adaptation of cultures works both ways
Writing Apprehension: An Unnoticed Page from the Book of Anxiety
No full textThis paper ties together some of the limited research done on writing anxiety or writing apprehension. It considers the scope of this anxiety, treatment options, and illustrates the importance of intervention. Lastly, it calls for further research and attention for writing anxiety
The Feminine Voice in Global Journalism: The Example of Ukraine
No full textThis study is designed to identify a discrepancy, if any, between the number of female and male journalists reporting on the crisis in Ukraine. Using a combination of quantitative and qualitative analysis, as well as primary and secondary research, the following paper attempts to bring attention to gendered differences in crisis reporting, and explain how those gendered differences affect the interpretation of a conflict. Previous research shows women are more inclined to cover crises from a human interest or human suffering standpoint, whereas men cover crises through politics and violence. The study concludes that while the majority of journalists reporting on the Ukraine crisis for The New York Times are male, it does not find a concrete correlation between the primary focus of the sample articles and the gender of the journalist. The analysis provides a starting point for future research, as well as a new perspective to a modern conflict heavily covered by North American media
Medical Care on the Euromaidan: Who have saved the lives of the protesters?
No full textLittle changes have been introduced in the health care system of Ukraine since the collapse of the Soviet Union. As a response to health care needs of protesters which could not be satisfied via state health care services, a number of organizations and groups of volunteers serve injured and sick protesters on the Euromaidan. This paper explores the organization and provision of medical care during the period of the Euromaidan: the role of organizations and groups of individuals who provided medical care on the Euromaidan, issues related to financing of medical care and related to ensuring safety in transportation, and treatment of injured protesters. In brief, medical care and relevant Euromaidan organizations can be grouped into three clusters: (a) actors of Ukrainian health care system which had functioned actively before, during and after the Euromaidan events (e.g. emergency medical care; private and state health care facilities); (b) individual volunteers and incident organizations which emerged during the Euromaidan (e.g. Medical Service of the Euromaidan—Medychna Sluzhba, Euromaidan SOS, Safety and Medical Aid); and (c) organizations which had existed before but for the time of the Euromaidan their roles and functions shifted (e.g. churches, monasteries, Red Cross). By and large, enthusiasm of those who supported the Euromaidan and especially of volunteers contributed to a great extent to the number of saved lives; given this situation, the principles of the state health care system should be reconsidered. In the case of disasters when civil society cannot be mobilized rapidly, state medical care does not seem to prevent and minimize losses. Meanwhile, we can only infer how many lives could be saved if medical care of the whole Euromaidan, including state medical care and international support, has been coordinated properly with a focus on efficiency and political neutrality. The experience of medical care provision on the Euromaidan is invaluable regarding the organization of disaster management
The Classic Maya Collapse: The Importance of Ecological Prosperity
No full textThe relationship between humans and their environment is a heavily debated, multi-disciplinary discussion that has raised awareness about urgent issues, such as climate change. Earth’s booming population encourages globalization, greed, and over-consumption and has changed the basic composition of the planet, causing humans to continually possess a distorted view of their relationship to nature. This idea can be applied to the Classic Maya, as their success as a thriving civilization rested on their access to the resources around them. Around 900 CE, many of the heavily populated Maya cities were abandoned suddenly and the reason for this collapse is still heavily disputed to this day. The theory that has gained the most momentum in this debate is the drought theory. The Maya suffered a series of droughts during the Classic Maya era and the most significant was a megadrought that lasted from 800CE to 1000 CE. This particular drought had a catastrophic impact on the political stability, economic success, and societal prosperity of many of the great Maya cities. Through lake core sediment analysis, Curtis, Hodell, and Brenner observed that drought periods coincided with periods of Maya recession; a drought period at 862 ± 50 cal, yr. corresponded with the Classic Maya collapse and a drought period at 585 CE occurred during the Maya Hiatus. Both of these drought periods were times of monument decline, city abandonment, and social cataclysm (Curtis, 1996, p. 45). The megadrought that the Maya were faced with produced complete social upheaval, resulting in their eventual fall. As with any diminishing civilization, all aspects of society were under threat; the political nature of many Maya cities was ominous, economic stability disintegrated, health, happiness, and personal faith were dejected, and social contentment vanished completely. The megadrought and its fatal impact had been the driving force behind the Classic Maya collapse.
The Impact of War on Population Health
No full textThe past few decades of ongoing war in Iraq has had a dramatic impact on the health of Iraq’s population. Wars are known to have negative effects on the social and physical environments of individuals, as well as limit their access to the available health care services. This paper explores the personal experiences of my family members, who were exposed to war, as well as includes information that has been reviewed form many academic sources. The data aided in providing recommendations and developing strategies, on both local and international levels, to improve the health status of the populations exposed to war