Effects of Confirmation Bias on Consumer Attitudes Toward GM

Effects of Confirmation Bias on Consumer Attitudes Toward GMLiterature Review Evaluating the Effects of Confirmation Bias on Consumers Attitudes Toward genetically Modified FoodsGenetically modified foods (GMFs) have been a part of American life for more than twenty years, with the USDA approving the first commercial product in 1994 (Bruening Lyons, 2000). Since then, genetically modified (GM) crops have boomed, with an estimated 70% of processed foods on grocery store shelves containing GM ingredients (Chrispeels, 2014). The United States Department of Agriculture has recognized umpteen benefits of GM crops, including greater yields, increased nutritional value, and better seed quality (Fernandez-Cornejo et al, 2014). Given the current global food climate, with hunger and starvation still macrocosm prevalent in many countries, this is an important benefit.Since the introduction of GM crops into the food chain, a lot of questions have been asked regarding their uninjuredty and ofttimes research has been done in this regard. A 2014 meta-analysis of the previous ten years of data indicates that GMOs do not pose any direct threat to human health (Nicolia et al, 2014). Indeed, most scientists (Funk et al., 2015) and the gentlemans gentleman Health Organization (2015) believe that GM foods are safe to eat. Despite this data, only just over a third of Americans believe GMOs are safe for human consumption (Funk et al, 2015) and many will spend more for foods that they know are non-GMO (Fernandez-Cornejo et al., 2014). This indicates that GM foods continue to be a contentious issue, and it is one that is a great deal played out on social media (Stevens et al., 2016).Food safeguard is an inherently emotional issue (Anderson 2000), and contentious issues, particularly emotional ones, are ofttimes hyped up in the media (Stieglitz Dang-Xuan, 2013). When consumers go to the media seeking nurture on the emotionally charged issue of GM food, they will find that muc h of tuition that is easily come-at-able to them is negative and centered more on popular opinion that scientific facts (Mahgoub, 2016 McCluskey, Swinnen, Vandermoortele, 2015). The medias negative portrayal of GM food has been linked to consumers negative perception of the products (Marques, Critchley, Walshe, 2014 Vilella-Villa Costa-Font, 2008). twain public opinion and scientific data play a part in how governments and regulatory bodies develop their policies, highlighting the importance of understanding the evidence and what shapes consumer attitudes toward GMOs (Druckman Bolsen, 2011 foliate Shapiro, 1983). man opinion is formed from the attitudes of individuals (Katz, 1960). Hostility to GMOs can lead to limiting development of research about them (e.g. Ceccoli Hixon, 2012) and restrict or ban the make use of of the engine room (e.g. Siegrist, 2000). The success of GMO foods on the market depends on public opinion (Moschini et al, 2005).Facebook is the most popula r social media platform in the United States. Nearly 80% of online Americans use Facebook, and of those, 76% use it every day, and 55% visit it several times a day (Funk Rainie, 2015). Many American adults (62%) get their news from Facebook and nearly a fifth (18%) do it often (Gottfried Shearer, 2016). Facebook offers near-instantaneous access to news and information in substance abusers news head for the hillss, offering a greater ease of selectivity over more traditional media sources (Westerwick et al, 2013). However, the selectivity is dark towards users pre breathing beliefs and attitudes, and serves to limit the amount of information available to them through the use of their algorithm that provides messaging consistent with previous likes of the user, as well as wind vane searches, thus increasing the heart of selective exposure (Bakshy et al., 2015 Pariser, 2011), and an effect to which most people whitethorn be unaware of (Powers, 2017). This leads to tailoring a news feed that is increasingly fragmented and polarized to the existing attitudes of the individual user (Westerwick et al, 2013).Facebook also elicits quick responses from users by way of how information is presented and does not require the user to put much cognitive effort into assessing its veracity. Users will often accept the first message they encounter without insideng any further investigation (Flanagin Metzger, 2007 Chen et al, 2015), engaging in what petty and Cacioppo (1986) termed peripheral processing. This is common in user assessment on online media (Fogg et al, 2003) and when making food-related decisions (Frewer et al., 1997). In this type of processing, people rely on simple cues (Andrews et al., 2011 Walters et al, 2012) and cognitive heuristics, such as stay bias, to evaluate information and form an attitude about it. This is particularly true when people want to decide about an issue that they do not know much about and are uncertain about the risks, benefits, and consequences (Tversky and Kanehan, 1975). With peripheral processing, no higher-order thinking, or central processing, goes into their formation of opinion. While engaged in peripheral processing, people will discredit the attitude incongruent information off-hand or will alter their perception of it so that it fits into their pre-existing schemas (Petty Cacioppo, 1986 Festinger, 1957). mess generally prefer messages that fit with their pre-existing beliefs, and regardless of how much importance they attach to an issue, they are not likely to spend much time feel for credible information (Westerwick et al, 2013).The problem with engaging in peripheral processing when encountering messages on a platform like Facebook is that the credibility of the information they are accessing is often not verified (e.g., Moody, 2011) and people rarely verify the credibility of this information (Metzger, 2007). The information may be based on inferior data, is often drive by personal opinion (Ennals et. al, 2010), has no real standards for quality control or regulatory controls, and can be easily altered (Metzger et al, 2013).As mentioned earlier, confirmation bias is a cognitive heuristic that may be utilized when people are engaged in peripheral processing. The confirmation bias is a tendency for people to pay more attention to and attri besidese greater importance to information that is congruent with what they believe while overlooking or discrediting information that does not fit their preexisting beliefs (Klayman and Ha, 1987). Confirmation bias with regards to media exposure is well documented, with the first instance noted over seventy years ago (Lazarsfeld et al., 1944), however, the effect of confirmation bias on user attitudes is not consistent across different types of messaging. Political messaging and confirmation bias are well documented, but this is not the case for health messaging. Westerwick et al. (2013) found that people are generally more likely t o look for credible information sources when it comes to their health. Alternatively, confirmation bias may be more pronounced if media coverage about an issue is negative, as could also be the case with GM foods (Lusk et al, 2014 Slovic, 1987). Given the impact of food safety on ones health, the question arises as to the role that confirmation bias has in consumers attitude formation toward GMOs, and this has not yet been adequately addressed by existing research. Research in this area would contribute to the knowledge of how to best design messaging to positively persuade public opinion regarding GMOs.Purpose and ObjectivesThe purpose of this chew over is to examine the impact of attitudinally congruent and attitudinally non-congruent messaging concerning GMOs on how consumers self-evaluate GM foods under the Elaboration Likelihood framework. To accomplish this purpose the following objectives were constructedCollect data on the pre-existing knowledge and beliefs of the audience about GMOs.Compare the perceptions of attitudinally congruent and attitudinally non-congruent GMO messaging.Compare the beliefs and attitudes of consumers pre and post-message exposure.ReferencesAndrews, J. C., Burton, S., Kees, J. (2011). Is simpler always better? Consumer evaluations of front-of-package nutrition symbols. ledger of Public Policy Marketing, 30(2), 175- 190.Anderson, W. A. (2000). The future birth between the media, the food industry and the consumer. British Medical Bulletin, 56(1), 254-268.Baker, G. A., Burnham, T. A. (2001). Consumer response to genetically modified foods Market segment analysis and implications for producers and policy makers. Journal of Agricultural and alternative Economics, 26(2), 387. Retrieved from http//proxy.mul.missouri.edu/login?url=http//search.proquest.com/docview/214697691?accountid=14576Bakshy, E., Messing, S., Adamic, L. (2015). Exposure to ideologically diverse news and opinion on Facebook. Science, 348(6239), 1130-1132. do i10.1126/ experience.aaa1160Bruening, G., Lyons, J. (2000). The case of the FLAVR SAVR tomato. California Agriculture, 54(4), 6-7.Ceccoli, S., Hixon, W. (2012). Explaining attitudes toward genetically modified foods in the European Union. transnational Political Science Review, 33(3), 301-319.Chen, K. J., Kim, J., Lin, J. S. (2015). The effects of affective and cognitive elaborations from Facebook posts on consumer attitude formation. Journal of Consumer Behaviour, 14(3), 208-218.Chrispeels, M. J. (2014). Yes indeed, most Americans do eat GMOs every day Journal of combinatorial Plant Biology, 56(1), 4-6. doi 10.1111/jipb.12147Druckman, J. N., Bolsen, T. (2011). Framing, motivated reasoning, and opinions about emergent eechnologies. Journal of Communication, 61(4), 659-688. doi10.1111/j.1460- 2466.2011.01562.xEnnals, R., Byler, D., Agosta, J. M., Rosario, B. (2010, April). What is disputed on the web? In Proceedings of the 4th workshop on Information credibility (pp. 67-74). AC M.Fernandez-Cornejo, J., Wechsler, S., Livingston, M., Mitchell, L. (2014). Genetically engineered crops in the United StatesFestinger, L. (1957). A theory of cognitive dissonance. Stanford, California Stanford University Press.Fischer, P., Jonas, E., Frey, D., Schulz-Hardt, S., 2005. Selective exposure to information the impact of information limits. European Journal of Social Psychology, 35, 469-492.Fogg, B. J., Soohoo, C., Danielson, D. R., Marable, L., Stanford, J., Tauber, E. R. (2003). How do users evaluate the credibility of Web sites? A study with over 2,500 participants. In Proceedings of the 2003 conference on Designing for user experiences (pp. 1-15). ACM.Frewer, L. J., Howard, C., Hedderley, D., Shepherd, R. (1997). The elaboration likelihoodmodel and communication about food risks. Risk Analysis, 17(6), 759-769.doi10.1111/j.1539-6924.1997.tb01281.xFunk, C., Rainie, L., Page, D. (2015). Public and scientists views on science and society. Pew Research Center 2015. Ret rieved from http//www.pewinternet.org/2015/01/29/public- and-scientists-views-on-science-and-society/Goodwin, J. N. (2013). Taking down the walls of agriculture Effect of transparentcommunication and personal relevance on attitudes and trust within the ElaborationLikelihood Model (Doctoral Dissertation). Retrieved fromhttp//ufdcimages.uflib.ufl.edu/UF/E0/04/53/18/00001/GOODWIN_J.pdfGottfried, J., Shearer, E. (2016). News use across social media platforms 2016. Pew Research Center. Retrieved from http//www.journalism.org/2016/05/26/news-use-across-social- media-platforms-2016/Jang., S. (2014). Seeking congruency or incongruency online? Examining selective exposure to four controversial science issues. Science Communication, 36(2), 143-167.Health Focus International. (2015). Global shopper views on GMOs. Retrieved from http//www.healthfocus.com/hf/global-shopper-views-on-gmos/Katz, D. (1960). The functional approach to the study of attitudes. Public opinion quarterly, 24(2), 163-204. Klayman, J., Ha, Y. W. (1987). Confirmation, disconfirmation, and information in hypothesis testing. psychological review, 94(2), 211.Lazarsfeld, P. F., Gaudet, H., Berelson, B. (1944). The peoples choice how the voter makes up his mind in a presidential campaign. New York Duell, Sloan, and Pearce.Lusk, J. L., Roosen, J., Bieberstein, A. (2014). Consumer bridal of new food technologies Causes and roots of controversies. Annual Review of resource Economics 6, 381-405.Mahgoub, S. E. (2016). Genetically Modified Foods Basics, Applications, and Controversy. CRC Press.Marques, M. D., Critchley, C. R., Walshe, J. (2014). Attitudes to genetically modified foodover time How trust in organizations and the media cycle predict support. PublicUnderstanding of Science, 24(5), 601-618. doi10.1177/0963662514542372McCluskey, J. J., Swinnen, J., Vandemoortele, T. (2015). You get what you want A note on the economics of bad news. Information Economics and Policy, 30, 1-5.Metzger, M. J. (2007). Making sense of credibility on the Web Models for evaluating online information and recommendations for future research. Journal of the American Society for Information Science and Technology, 58(13), 2078-2091.Metzger, M. J., Flanagin, A. J. (2013). Credibility and trust of information in online environments The use of cognitive heuristics. Journal of Pragmatics, 59, 210-220.Meyers, C. A. (2008). The agricultural wobble Effect of framing agricultural biotechnologymessages on attitudes and intent to publish within the Elaboration Likelihood Model(Doctoral Dissertation). Retrieved from http//gradworks.umi.com/33/34/3334488.htmlMoody, K. E. (2011). Credibility or convenience? Political information choices in amedia-saturated environment. Media International Australia, 140, 35-64.Moschini, G., Bulut, H., Cembalo, L. (2005). On the segregation of genetically modified, conventional and organic products in European agriculture a multimarket equilibrium analysis. Journal of Agricultura l Economics, 56(3), 347-372.Nicolia, A., Manzo, A., Veronesi, F., Rosellini, D. (n.d). An overview of the last 10 years of genetically engineered crop safety research. Critical Reviews in Biotechnology, 34(1), 77-88. doi 10.3109/07388551.2013.823595Page, B. I., Shapiro, R. Y. (1983). Effects of Public Opinion on Policy. The American Political Science Review, (1). 175.Pariser, E. (2011). The filter bubble How the new personalized web is changing what we read and how we think. Penguin.Powers, E. (2017). My News Feed is Filtered? cognisance of news personalization among college students. Digital Journalism, 1-21. doi10.1080/21670811.2017.1286943Petty, R. E., Cacioppo, J. T. (1986). The elaboration likelihood model of persuasion. In Communication and persuasion (pp. 1-24). Springer New York.Siegrist, M. (2000). The influence of trust and perceptions of risks and benefits on the acceptance of gene technology. Risk analysis, 20(2), 195-204.Slovic, P. (1987) Perception of risk. Science , 236, 280-285Greenwood, S., Perrin, A., Duggan, M. (2016). Social media update 2016. Pew Research Centre. Retrieved from http//www.pewinternet.org/2016/11/11/social-media-update- 2016/Stieglitz, S., Dang-Xuan, L. (2013). Emotions and information diffusion in social media- sentiment of microblogs and share-out behavior. Journal of Management Information Systems, 29(4), 217-248.Stevens, T. M., Aarts, N., Termeer, C. J. A. M., Dewulf, A. (2016). Social media as a new playing field for the governance of agro-food sustainability. Current Opinion in Environmental Sustainability, 18, 99-106.Tversky, A., Kahneman, D. (1975). vox populi under uncertainty Heuristics and biases. In Utility, probability, and human decision making (pp. 141-162). Springer Netherlands.Vilella-Vila, M., Costa-Font, J. (2008). Press media reporting effects on risk perceptions andattitudes towards genetically modified (GM) food. The Journal of Socio-Economics,37(5), 2095-2106. doi10.1016/j.socec.2008.04.006Wal ters, A., Long, M. (2012). The effect of food label cues on perceptions of quality and purchase intentions among high-involvement consumers with varying levels of nutrition knowledge. Journal of nutrition education and behavior, 44(4), 350-354.Westerwick, A., Kleinman, S. B., Knobloch-Westerwick, S. (2013). 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Representation Of Gender In Media Media Essay

Representation Of Gender In Media Media EssayMedia plays a great map in changing the world by affecting the way people perceive different aspects of our lives. People tend to believe what they continuously pass, and with time they fetch it as the normal way of emotional state, the way things should be. It is important to ensure that what the media shows or the message it delivers, whether directly or indirectly, is appropriate. The message should reflect the positive side of the gilds scenes because with time, whatever is in the media today willing start playing in real life.Most scholars have shown that in media, there is a way that each sex is represented, ground on the stereotypical nature that the society has classified males and females. Males ar strong, tough and powerful, both intellectually and physically as expected by the society and represented by media. Males should dominate and conquer everything and come out victorious. Females on the other hard are supposed t o be soft, emotional and caring as well as supportive to those around them as well as their male counterparts. They are to subordinate men and work toward supporting them and making their life comfortable.In sex matters, the role that media has played in influencing peoples perception of the differences between male and female and expectations of each gender is big. The media has shown that women as the weaker ones, whose role is not major(ip) unlike the male gender who are strong and fearless and are depicted as the stronger sex. In employment, most employees in the media such as radio and TV are male with the females occupying a lesser percentage. The job roles that women get in the media industry are most of the time junior and offering support. It is high-minded to find women occupy leadership or senior positions which most are occupied by their male counterparts. In media training colleges, the number of females is slightly preceding(prenominal) that of males. This notwith standing, in the job market there are about a third of employees who are females, showing that there is a great gender based bias fleck recruiting which favors males. This becomes an impression that women should not be working. The content is another area. Most TV programs or films for example, will have men as the preponderant characters and females only as supporting cast with minor roles. In most of the cases, men end up victorious in their leading roles in the productions. The be of productions of movies with male characters as the leading actor have a higher production budget than those with a female. There is evidence that the more expensive films to cause are more successful and so this favors the male-acted movies more. The role of women as depicted by media is that they are more valuable in their youth and how they exhibit their truelove and sexuality. In media production, whether television programs, film or music videos, females are presented in a demeaning manner f rom their dressing, roles and character. They show only their sexuality as their superlative asset and potential they have. This shake ups them, and even men feel that women cannot exhibit their own potential in the job markets or other fields. It denies them a chance to postulate with men, and make them think they can only rely on their sexuality. The type of movies or programs that female actors lead in are the drama and romantic ones while males are involved in action parked productions which show their aggressive nature. This therefore labels females as the soft ones, while the men as the tough ones. workforce have left behind women even in the sad event of death womens deaths rarely get to the obituaries column yet they are as many another(prenominal) as men are.In advertisement, women presentation is that of homemakers expected to see the requirement of housekeeping and family. For instance, in an advertisement for a household item such as tissue paper or cooking fat, th ere is likelihood of a female being questioned or asked to make a statement as an authority. She will not be an authority because she is an experts in use of the respective items but because they are household items, and she is expected to be a homemaker or know how to take care of the home. On the other hand, when advertising a distinguished career or occupation of a high office, it is likely to have a man, which creates in the mind of a girl that she cannot achieve much out there, she is destined to the kitchen. Such bias in packaging media information and presenting the female gender less capable than the males does not help in empowering females.News content does not help matters either. Women are only a focus on a few matters unlike men who dominate business, political and various other news items. This negatively makes girls believe men are the only ones who can make news. This also shows that men occupy those positions of power making the females doubt their chances and the m ales think the positions only belong to them.Social media has uplifted the presence of women in media as they are able to relate well and are more active of such sites. Their voices are growing and reaching more people, both males and females. There is however, the problem of gender biasness where some male chauvinists have brought some online campaigns based on female stereotypes which is trying to demean women and bring them in bad light. The media owners and producers should be mindful of the word picture portrayed in the media as it will either encourage girls and women to play their rightful roles in the society as well empowered and capable individuals or conform to the stereotypes and message that the media portrays. Men will also be in a position to treat women better if there is general message crosswise the media that is empowering women. The message should not be in the content of the news only but also on the representation in the media such as the employees in the whol e wide journalism industry.As the society dictates, media often present women as part of a team in their work and thoughts. They take a passive rather than an active role and even as victims in whatever happens in the society. The society expects women to be beautiful but weak and the cherish of their sexuality enhanced but in a very narrow and stereotypical way. They treated as emotional instead of intellectual and people who create relationships in order to survive instead of being independent. The society castigates those who tend to be independent or exhibit their worth in other areas, and see them as deviant or dangerous for not meeting the societys expectations.O the other hand, the society expects men to be more rigid and strong, both physically and intellectually, and this is how the media present them. They are expected to show power and be independent in their thought and even in their actions and dont rely on others.These media representations serve to key fruit the soc iety in its real form, and so the media has to conform to ensue the audience identify with them. This may sometimes not be planned but repayable to how the society is. Such representations make the media seem credible and the male chauvinists have their ego maintained, but at the expense of females who fail to get the right pauperization to exploit the full potential in them.With the changing society however, there is a tendency of both men and women finding it hard to live to those expectation of the society due to more empowerment and education on the part of the females on their worth other than the societys expectations of femininity. More female leaders are coming up and this is changing the way they view life with such role models. The toughness of masculinity is also reducing and even the modest of the males such as grooming which was previously considered a feminine thing is now being adapted by males with even product in the market for them.

History and Story Telling in Graham Swifts Waterland Essay -- Waterla

History and Story Telling in Graham Swifts WaterlandWaterland uses taradiddle, theory, and fictional biography to get by the question of history. The blurring of boundaries between history, story, and theory questions the construction of those boundaries as well as the closure and linear nature of traditional narrative. If Waterland has a beginning, it is far in the geological past, at a time when the continents began their slow journey to the positions they now occupy however, the novel itself does not begin at this beginning. Waterland moves forward and backward through geologic, historic, and biographic time. By denying the linearity and absolute authority of historical narrative, Swift leaves room for rupture and revision, for stories and nostalgia. The historical and biographical accounts provide a context for the philosophy and theory that the narrator interjects throughout the novel the philosophy and theory facilitate the leaps in time between geologic, historic, and biog raphic past. Swifts mingling of (what appears to be) a real geologic history of the fens and the fictional accounts of the Crick and Atkinson families blurs the boundaries between reality and fiction, turning history into fiction and placing fiction within a real historical account. (footer 1) Waterland, as a novel, makes the corresponding proposal that Tom Crick makes to his class to discover and reveal the purpose of history by telling a story. The study of semiotics shows that language is the indigenous mediator in the construction of reality. All systems of signification are dependent on language, and the development of subject position is determined through the act of speaking. (footnote 2) In a discussion of language functions, Fredric Jameson d... ... Tom Crick are purely fictional however, the possibility remains that they may be fictionalized biographical incidents based on events that occurred to or are known by the author, Graham Swift. This further complicates the blu rring of boundaries between fiction and reality. footnote 2 See the work of Jacques Lacan and Emile Benveniste.footnote 3 I am not limiting Tom Cricks subject position to only three possibilities I only offer these as three possibilities from a multiplicity. footnote 4 I am fascinated by the idea of Sarah Atkinsons stories and have been telling myself her possible stories. Were her mysterious appearances Sarahs stories come to life because she could not tell them? Did she retrieve another way to articulate her stories? Did she hear the stories others told and (re)tell them, inserting herself into the narrative?

Freedom for Women in The Yellow Wallpaper by Charlotte Perkins Gillman

Freedom for Women in The Yellow Wallpaper by Charlotte Perkins Gillman and The twaddle of an moment by Kate Chopin The Yellow Wallpaper by Charlotte Perkins Gillman and The Story of an Hour by Kate Chopin are two feminist works in which liberation is the overlying theme. Both of the main characters achieve emancipation from their husbands oppression in these short stories however, freedom is only achieved through insanity in The Yellow Wallpaper and death in The Story of an Hour. The women in these stories are viewed as very powerful, as they do whatever it takes to free themselves from the oppressive holds of their husbands. Their strength proves these two short stories very influential works of feminism.Oppression is chief in the achievement of liberation in both short stories. Both of the narrators are oppressed by their husbands, and though they want to be happy, it is impossible due to the manner they are treated by their spouses. In ?The Yellow Wallpaper,? John, the na meless narrator?s husband, confines his wife to a room with barred windows and hideous yellow(a) wallpaper because she is ill. He does not allow her to exert herself physically or mentally, prevents her from seeing her friends and family and keeps her under intense scrutiny. While isolated in this room, she begins to go mad, believe that the wallpaper is somehow watching her, and eventually she believes she is a prisoner inside it. The narrator proves that her husband is oppressive when she reveals how afraid she is of him. She says, ?There comes John, and I must coiffure this away?he hates to have me write a word? (Gillman 41). Likewise, in Kate Chopin?s ?The Story of an Hour? it is perceived that the main character Louise Mallard is oppre... ...reedom proves to be the overlying theme in ?The Story of an Hour? and death is the way in which freedom is achieved in the short story.?The Yellow Wallpaper? and ?The Story of an Hour? are two feminist works that highlight the i mportance of freedom for women in the oppressive world of men. Freedom is not achieved normally in either of the short stories, but is gained through insanity and death. These two stories prove that women?s liberation is an extremely important issue, and the means by which these women gained their freedom is remarkable.Works CitedChopin, Kate. The Story of an Hour. (1894). 31 Apr. 2003. http//www.4literature.net/Kate_Chopin/Story_of_an_Hour/Gillman, Charlotte Perkins. ?The Yellow Wallpaper.? The Yellow Wallpaper and Selected Stories of Charlotte Perkins Gillman. Newark University of Delaware Press, 1994.PID 0230

Christianity Essay -- Roman Catholic Protestant Eastern Orthodox

Christianity is the religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. Most followers of Christianity, called Christians, are members of one of three major groups--Roman Catholic, Protestant, or Eastern Jewish-Orthodox. These groups imbibe different beliefs intimately Jesus and His teachings. But all consider Jesus central to their religion. Most Christians believe God sent Jesus into the world as the recoverer. Christianity teaches that gentlemanity can achieve salvation through Jesus. Jesus lived in Judea (later called Palestine), a halfway Eastern land ruled by the Romans. The Romans crucified Jesus more or less A.D. 30. Jesus followers were convinced that He rose from the dead, and they soon spread Christianity to major cities throughout the Roman Empire. Today, Christians make up the largest religious group in the world. Christianity has about 1 1/2 billion followers. It is the major religion in Europe, the Western Hemisphere, and Australia. Many Christians also l ive in Africa and Asia. Christianity has had an enormous influence on Western civilization, especially on art, literature, and philosophy. The teachings of Christianity have had a lasting effect on the conduct of business, government, and social relations. Beliefs Christians believe that there is one God, and that He created the human beings and continues to care for it. The belief in one God was first taught by the Jewish religion. Christianity teaches that God sent His Son, Jesus, into the world as His chosen servant, called the Messiah (Christos in Greek), to help people fulfill their religious duties. Christianity also teaches that after Jesus earthly life, Gods presence remained on earth in the form of the consecrated Spirit, or Holy Ghost. The belief that in one God there are three Persons--the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit--is known as the doctrine of the Trinity. Roman Catholic and Eastern Orthodox Churches and many Protestant churches accept this doctrine as the ce ntral teaching of Christianity. Some Christians regard Jesus as a great but human teacher. However, most Christians view Jesus as God incarnate--that is, a divine being who took on the human appearance and characteristics of a man. They believe that Jesus is the Savior who died to save humanity from sin. According to this view, Jesus death made salvation and eternal life possible for others. Christians gather in ... ...e body of thought that included intuition and philosophy. The scholastics wished to reach a better understanding of Christian faith through reason. beau ideal Anselm, an early scholastic, attempted to prove Gods existence through logic. In the 1200s, Saint Thomas Aquinas produced the most important scholastic work, the Summa Theologica. In it, he brought Christian doctrine into harmony with the teachings of the ancient Greek philosopher Aristotle. Monasteries were centers of learning throughout the Middle Ages. In the 1200s, members of new religious orders, called friars, began to work among the people. Franciscan friars followed the selfless example of Saint Francis of Assisi, who founded their order in 1209. Franciscans were noted for their loving service to others. The Dominican order, founded in 1216 by Saint Dominic, became noted for its scholarship. During the Middle Ages, Christian armies tried to recapture Palestine, which had been conquered by Muslim Turks. These military expeditions, known as Crusades, began just before 1100 and cease in the late 1200s. The crusaders failed to hold the Holy Land. But their contact with the East greatly influenced European culture.

Comparing the Beauty of Poe and Emerson Essay -- comparison compare co

The apricot of Poe and Emerson They say that beauty is in the eye of the beholder. As stated in Edgar Allan Poes The Poetic Principle, a supposition of beauty can provided be achieved through the use of emotion, an excitement of the soul, a necessary element to any worthwhile poem (Poe 8). Poes fascination with the secret of death and the afterlife are often clearly rooted in his poems and provide a basis for himself and the reader to truly experience his concept of beauty. Although withal a believer in portraying beauty through poetry, Ralph Waldo Emerson found beauty to be eminent in nature and all told things created by the Oversoul. Beauty for Emerson is not an idea or unknown, it is visible all around him. To Poe beauty can only arise from excitement of the soul, and such emotion can only be brought upon by feelings of melancholy. He reiterates the importance of melancholy in The Philosophy of Composition--Now, never losing sight of the object supremeness, or perfect ion, at all points, I asked myself--- Of all melancholy topics, what, according to the universal understanding of mankind, is the most melancholy? Death --- was the obvious reply. And when, I said, is this most melancholy of topics most poetical? From what I put on already explained at some length, the answer, here also, is obvious-- When it most closely allies itself to Beauty the death, then, of a beautiful woman is, unquestionably, the most poetical topic in the world-- and equally is it beyond doubt that the lips best suited for such a topic are those of a bereaved lover (Poe 265). Melancholy and beauty go hand in hand for Poe. If his goal is to bring about the excitement of the soul, then that can only be achie... ...mself on the beauty of melancholy and the whodunit of the afterlife to the point of extreme emotion, while Emerson relayed beauty through the Oversoul. Both revolutionaries of nineteenth century poetry, their works will continue to place a star of beauty in a ll who reads them, and live up to the saying --beauty is in the eye of the beholder. Works Cited Emerson, Ralph Waldo. Each and All. The Columbia Anthology of American Poetry. Ed. Jay Parini. New York Columbia UP, 1993. 95-96. ---. X. Essays. The Poet. The Harvard Classics. <WYSIWYG//48/http//bartleby.com/5/110.html>. Poe, Edgar Allan. The Philosophy of Composition, The Works of the Late Edgar Allan Poe, vol. II, 1850, pp. 259-270. ---. The Poetic Principle (D), The Works of the Late Edgar Allan Poe, vol. III, 1850, pp. 1-20. ---. Annabel Lee. Parini 161-162.

Parental Involvement Benefits Elementary School Childrens Essay

P atomic number 18ntal Involvement Benefits Elementary School clawrens Parental enfolding has many confirmatory effects on both child and parent. Some of the benefits of parental involvement for children are a significantly increased cognitive development, an avail in the childs motivation, a stronger parent-child relationship and, of course, increased academic achievement. Some of the benefits parental involvement has on parents are gaining a more positive attitude about themselves and their parenting skills, increased self-confidence and an increased satisfaction about their childs school and faculty at the school (Becher, 2001). There are many benefits to parents involvement in their elementary school childs life, but, possibly the most important benefit is in helping the childs academic achievement. First of all, why the recent interest in parent involvement? Many might give credit to Section 1118 of the No Child left wing Behind Act of 2001. This section of No Child Left Behind requires any school district in the United States that receives Title I, dampen A funds to execute programs, activities, and events that enable parents to get involved. Title I forces school districts to make a strong effort to communicate with and get feedback from parents who ask to be involved in the programs, activities and events directed towards parent involvement. The districts are required to provide equal involvement opportunities for all parents, including those who speak limited English, are disabled, and parents of migrant children. Every school district is required to develop together, agree on with and distribute to parents the districts plan on parent involvement programs (No Child Left Behind, 2002).... ... Power. New York Hyperion.This is a book I came across at the Towson public library. Kirshbaum starts off with a chapter full of various studies that have been done that point how beneficial parent involvement is. The book is then broken down into four sections of ninety different ways parents can get involved in their childs life and have their child get the most out of their education. Peterson, D. (1989). Parent involvement in the education process. ERIC Digest EA 43. Retrieved April 3, 2003, from http//www.ericfacility.net/ericdigests/ed312776.htmlThis article in brief discusses why parent involvement is so important. Peterson then discusses how parent involvement is particularly beneficial for at-risk children. Peterson also mentions how parents can get involved and how parent-involvement programs can be implemented on a district wide basis.