Video games good or bad Essay Example for Free

Video games good or bad Essay Are Video Games Good For You, by Steven Berlin Johnson a author and writer of numerous magazine articles. Johnson has stirred academia and parents alike by professing that video games have a place in education. Johnsons views on video games are so out of the mainstream most people dismissed his assertions without much thought. His ideas seemed to find traction though when he wrote his book on the subject advocating a controversial view point video games are good for you. Johnson makes a simple claim that video games can be beneficial. Is it possible the biggest distracter of teenagers and college students in America, could actually be doing some good? There are numerous studies on video game play and the amount of time people spend on them, especially our youth. Many previous studies do not reflect Johnsons view point. So, are video games educational, or just another distraction to traditional education and parents? Johnson argues that video games not only attract kids through sex and violence. He claims people are drawn to the structure and sense of adventure. Johnson contends that certain parts of the brain are stimulated that actually make you crave conquest. Johnson claims that video games are so complicated, filled with problem solving and realistic scenarios that they must be doing something positive. He asserts that television has some of the same characteristics as video games. The most debased forms of mass diversion video games and violent television dramas and juvenile sitcoms turn out to be nutritional after all, Johnson writes. They offer an increasingly rigorous cognitive workout. Whats more, the mental skills they hone are just as important as the ones exercised by reading books.(pp. 381-394 ). Johnson continues throughout his article to bring scientific data to light on the subject, but it does not convince this writer that video games are good for you. Johnson does not take all the blame on that data because there really isnt much available on the subject. Johnson tries to take liberty with IQ scores on the rise over the last few years but that is a stretch in his attempt link it to video game play. Johnson ignores any data that conflicts with his position, such as better education techniques or more access to information through the use of the internet. Inquiring deeper in the area of study, there seems to be quite a bit of data that Johnson doesnt mention in his article. Studies reveal that there is a great deal of harm caused by extended video game play. Links have been made to aggressive behavior and even physical altercations to video game play. Parents have nothing but complaints about video games. Most parents want their children to play the traditional way, outside. Parents also have a hard time getting children to do anything else when a video game takes over. Johnson himself backs away from his own argument when he makes statements like dont stop reading books or do not depend on video games for your entire education. Johnson has caused me to explore the idea that video games are more than just a distraction, but in the end they are not best way to educate our children-they are a distraction. References Johnson, S. (2012) Why Games Are Good For You, From Inquiry to Academic Writing, pp. 481-494Ã'Ž

Ballad of Birmingham :: Ballad of Birmingham Essays

Ballad of Birmingham In the poem Ballad of Birmingham, by Dudley Randall, written in 1969, Mr. Randall uses of irony to describes the events of the mothers decision, and also her concern for the welfare of her darling little child. It seems odd that this child would even know what a freedom march is, but this would be considered normal back in the early 1960's, when Mr. Martin Luther King Jr. had rallies and freedom marches to free the African American people from discrimination and segregation (Hunter 6). It also seems very ironic that the young child is acting like an adult in this particular situation (Hunter 12). I think the mother would be the one who would want to got to the march to free her people, not the child. In the poem "Ballad of Birmingham", by Dudley Randall, written in 1969, Mr. Randall uses tone and irony to describe the events of the mothers decisions, and as well as her concern for her child's well being. In the first stanza irony is used in order to make reading the poem more interesting. The situation in this first stanza is also very important. The little child is in a desperate situation and wants to help better the lives of the African Americans. Randall also focuses on specific culture here. The speaker is allowing the reader to make a mental picture of one specific march in Birmingham (Hunter 17). But, you know as well as I, that with peace marches and rallies comes violence and hostility. This is exactly what the little girls mother is afraid of, this is why she will not let her go to the march. It also seems weird that her mother is so sure that going to church, instead of going to the march, will be the best thing for her. (Hunter 19-20). Typically, a church is to be a very safe and sacred place where no-one would imagine a bombing or any other type of violence to happen. What is ironic about this is that going to church turns out to be the worst place for her to be (Hunter 21). Something else that strikes me funny is that her mother dresses her in her daughter in her best clothes to go to church with her. What is ironic here is that she ended up wearing them to her funeral instead (Hunter 26). There is also a shift in dialogue here in the fifth stanza(Hunter 27). Here the narrator starts to take over. The narrator's tone shows the reader the pride and

Blue Shield Health Insurance Essay

The Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association (BCBSA) serves independent local Blue Cross and Blue Shield companies as its trade association. The BCBSA is one of the nation’s oldest and biggest health benefits company, widely recognized in the health insurance industry, given its 800 strong employee strength, across 39 companies in Chicago and Washington D. C. BCBSA companies together cover about 98 million people or about every one in three Americans. The reach and spread of the BCBSA is really immense covering all 50 states and the District of Columbia, in contract with over 90% of the hospitals and 80% of physicians. The products serviced by BCBSA covers individuals to small and large employers, ensuring coverage to all citizens. Through its several unprecedented and innovative schemes, Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association tries to bring healthcare insurance to all people providing hope and security to everyone. The Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association is an insurance provider covering healthcare for more than 98 millions, nearly one in three Americans. Healthcare insurance is a must for everyone. It is necessary to keep the economy going and growing because once the people are covered under some healthcare insurance, their medical needs are adequately taken care of, which makes their productivity go up because better health obviously results in better work performance. If the concept of insurance were not Blue Cross and Blue Shield 3 there, then every individual would have had to save a huge amount of money as reserve to cover some unforeseen or unexpected calamities. Healthcare is one aspect which can never be compromised. With the mounting medical expenses, people without a healthcare insurance can just not afford to avail proper preventive and therapeutic treatment. With the cost of medical services growing by leaps and bounds, healthcare insurance is imperative for one and all. Healthcare insurance company also stands to benefit because when they are likely to pay more in claims than what they get in premiums, a hike in the premium is anticipated. Under the employer-sponsored healthcare insurance, the employer spends roughly five times more than what the employee contributes. But the increasing medical costs have a great impact on the employers who have to pay out huge sums as premiums for their employees. From 1998 to 2003, there was a national increase of 42% in individual premiums after adjustments made with regard to inflation. With the increase in medical costs, employees are forced to contribute a sizable amount towards their coverage, so they opt to stay away from the job-based health insurance plans. The employers depend more on part-time and contract workers who are often not eligible for coverage. So fewer people access employer-paid healthcare insurance. The job instability too contributes in the steady increase of the number of uninsured people. And then there are some firms, which do not provide health insurance to their employees. With the shooting medical expenses, it is difficult for people to go for healthcare coverage, as the premiums are high. This leaves them uninsured, which again has drastic effects affecting Blue Cross and Blue Shield 4 both the people and the company. So, healthcare insurance has now become something that people can neither do with nor do without it. To combat this scenario, Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association brings various new schemes taking into consideration the needs of every individual. With no insurance and with the exorbitant medical expenses, the health care of the people is greatly compromised. They go in for lesser preventive care with the result diseases get out of hand before they are diagnosed, and even when diagnosed, the treatment costs are so huge that the therapeutic care is compromised. With no insurance, people are expected to pay up-front for the medical services and so they defer medical care except when it is life threatening. This also affects the government because it has to cater to the medical needs of the uninsured, which has a terrible impact on the economy because the expenses of the emergency department is much higher than in the outpatient clinics, and the conditions are often those that could have been averted or postponed with preventive care. Proper health insurance package is the icing on the cake. The medical expenses are so much that healthcare insurance acts as a major deciding factor when people seek jobs. With the ever-increasing medical expenses, every individual has to be insured medically so that they can avail the needed healthcare. But with the increased insurance premiums, the number of uninsured people is on the high. Furthermore, insurances have too many exclusions like certain drugs not being covered, certain Blue Cross and Blue Shield 5 procedures not being covered and the like, which again discourages people from being insured, which is detrimental to the citizens as well as the country at large. Even with insurance, the prospects of the people losing their jobs and thereby their insurances is there. There definitely have to be changes in the system so that every individual could be worked into the health insurance plan. The view of Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association president and CEO Scott P Serota testifies this â€Å"With such divergent political ideologies, it is unprecedented for these groups to have a joint agreement. Helping the millions of Americans who do not have health insurance is an issue that needs to transcend politics and partisanship, and that is why we worked together to give Congress a starting point that we can all support. † The 2005 data shows that one in seven American was uninsured thus depriving them of basic healthcare. The Institute of Medicine has that approximately 18,000 die every year of diseases that could have either been treated or prevented had they had health coverage. Lack of insurance prevents people leading a quality life, and it also brings down their productivity because of their recurrent ailments. The first annual National Walk @ Lunch Day to be held on Wednesday, April 18, 2007, by BCBSA (Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association) will definitely bring about an awareness among people about the need for an active lifestyle, which obviously would usher in better health. Unlike the usual health insurance companies, Blue cross and Blues Shield Association design innovative schemes to match the diversified requirement of the market. It does a Blue Cross Blue shield 6 lot of activity to keep the competition at bay. Even though profit making is the main objective in any organization, Blue cross and Blues Shield Association takes care that it does not become the sole objective. A paradigm shift in this regard is obvious by the mere existence of CareFirst, the non profit health care company which provides health insurance products and administrative services. In the current scenario where the number of uninsured people is on the rise, Blue cross and Blues Shield Association has to be applauded for its efforts in trying to bring the maximum people under the healthcare insurance cover. REFERENCES www. nchc. org www. bcbs. com www. money. cnn. com

Major Components of Of Mice and Men - 1826 Words

Of Mice and Men is a book about two migrant field workers who got run out the town Weed. George, the intelligent one of the two but still uneducated and Lennie, the larger and dumber one suffering from mental disabilities. They hope to own their own piece of land and retire there. This dream is one of Lennies favorite stories, that George constantly retells him on how Lennie will get to tend the rabbits. They go to a farm to get job and do manual labor to save up and earn enough money to own their own piece of land. George and Lennie fit in with the workers just fine, but ran into trouble with the farm owners son, Curly. Curly was a shorter man and automatically hated everyone taller than him. He had a huge problem with Lennie and†¦show more content†¦Research Question, Rationale, and Thesis The purpose of this paper is to breakdown Lennies mental illness and find the most reasonable conclusion of to what he has. This question is important because the book never actually sta tes what Lennie suffers from and is a real problem throughout the world. If people were more able to understand and notice the symptoms of schizophrenia it could help many of the people who are unaware of having schizophrenia or a mental illness and help them get the help they need. Roughly thirty million people suffer from schizophrenia worldwide. Most people who suffer from schizophrenia do not receive the medical help that need or require. Schizophrenia is overlooked and isnt taken with the approach it should, it has similar care to alzheimers, everyone seems to know about it but nothing is really being done to stop or help treat this. Research Types of Schizophrenia â€Å"Schizophrenia is a serious mental illness that’s affecting millions worldwide. It affects a patient’s thinking, emotions, judgment, behavior, relationships and ability to effectively communicate.† (James Rinehart, 2006). Paranoid Schizophrenia is the most common kind of schizophrenia out there. Those who suffer from paranoid schizophrenia, show to be normal with day to day activities, work, or relationships being either friends or a significant other. Although, they suffer from illusions of sound and hear thingsShow MoreRelatedOf MIce and Men Naturalism867 Words   |  4 PagesOf Mice and Men is a famous Naturalist work in American literature. Various elements of Naturalism is exhibited in this novel through its character types and story plot. Charles Darwin, an English Naturalist proposed a theory called natural selection, meaning that nature selects the best adapted varieties to survive and reproduce. Darwin also identified this th eory as survival of the fittest. 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