The Biological Approach Essay Example for Free

The Biological Approach Essay One of the most perplexing issues in psychology is understanding the relationship between the mind and the brain. We all recognize that we have conscious awareness of our surroundings, and also of ourselves (self-awareness). It is this experience which has normally been described as the mind. But what is the basis of the mind? Is it the expression of a non-physical soul, or is it a product of physical processes within our body? Philosophers and scientists have been pondering this question for centuries. Explaining the nature of consciousness (that is, the mind) was regarded by William James (one of the great pioneers of psychology) as the most challenging question for psychology to answer. Today, a hundred years after James made that comment, the challenge still exists. Physiological Foundations of Behavior Underlying questions about mind and brain are a number of basic assumptions. Most physiological researchers today are materialists, who see both behavior and consciousness as simply the product of physiological processes. In essence, the brain is the mind. Thus, the task is to identify the structures and processes which produce conscious awareness. Among those who take this approach are James Watson (co-discoverer of DNA) and Dominic Domasio. Both are engaged in research aimed at supporting this view, and their work has drawn public attention. (See references below.) Arrayed against this stance are a number of opponents, who argue the issue on various grounds. Some physiological researchers have adopted a neo-Cartesian position, arguing that consciousness (and therefore the mind) is not localized in any brain structure, and can therefore not be unequivocally proven to be purely physical in nature. Among these are John Eccles, an eminent British researcher, and the late Wilder Penfiel d, a pioneering Canadian neurosurgeon. Another approach to the issue comes from those who connect mind to the sense of self. This idea also has Cartesian overtones, since the self is closely associated with the notion of a soul in traditional thought. While many variants exist, the basic argument is that the self is a phenomenological construction, which is both in continual flux, and yet experienced as an on-going identity. In this view, the mind/self may well be a product of physiological processes, but it is no more synonymous with the underlying structures than a building is synonymous with its builder. Roger Sperry, a pioneer in the study of hemispheric specialization, has described consciousness as an emergent process of the braina product of the whole, whose properties cannot be explained simply by studying the underlying structures. At present, of course, the debate cannot be resolvedthe answer to William James century-old question continues to elude us. Studying Mind and Brain: The Use of Case Studies One of the earliest methods used to explore the workings of the brain was the detailed analysis of clinical patientstypically individuals who had suffered some type of physical trauma. Such case studies have often led to remarkable insights. For example, Pierra Broca in 1861 was able to identify an area of the brain involved with speech production (now called Brocas area) based on studying an individual who for more than thirty years had suffered a fundamental language defect: he could understand spoken language, and could make various sounds, but could not produce coherent speech. Based on his behavioral observations and an anatomic analysis after the patient died, Broca concluded that speech capacity is located in the third convolution of the frontal lobe of the left hemisphere. This represented a dramatic advance in physiological understandingforming a direct connection between the structure of the brain and behavior. In addition, Broca saw the broader implications of his analysis, asserting that all behavior can be associated to some specific mechanism/structure in the braina concept called localization of function. Over time, researchers have used case studies to gather further support for this principle. Today, other techniques have provided new ways to study the functions of the brain, but case studies still provide insights, as well as fascinating reading. The Case of Phineas Gage One of the best-known clinical cases involved a dramatic injury to an unfortunate railroad worker, Phineas Gage. One day in 1848, he was working on track construction near Cavendish, Vermont. While Gage was placing an explosive charge, a spark of metal against rock set off the charge, sending a long metal tamping rod flying upwards. The rod entered Gages head just below the left eye, and exited from the tob of his skull, somewhat forward of left center. Remarkably, Gage survived (though he was blinded in his left eye). Even more remarkably, his behavior changed dramatically. Whereas Gage had previously been likeable and responsible, he became erratic, and given to terrible fits of temper. Sadly, he spent his remaining years wandering around the United States, displaying the hole in his skull and the iron rod which had brought him such grief. Gages story has been a source of endless fascination ever since. (His skull, and the iron rod, are still on display in the Harvard Medical School museum.) Given the pathway of the rod through his head, it would seem that the injury extensively damaged the association areas of the left frontal lobe. The behavioral changes, especially in emotionality, have been used as evidence that this region is involved in the expression of emotion. (A view seconded by advocates of frontal lobotomies in the 1940s and 50s.) Drugs and Behavior As discussed in the text, psychoactive drugs affect behavior by affecting neural activity. Drugs may do this in various ways (for example, mimicing a natural neurotransmitter, or altering its normal function and metabolism), and many drugs affect a variety of different types of neurons in various parts of the brain. Consequently, it can be difficult to pinpoint precisely how a drug works. This is one reason new drugs must go through extensive laboratory and clinical testing before they are approved for public use. The difficulties are further compounded when dealing with illicit drugs, sold on the street. Because there is no mechanism for quality control, users may receive drugs of varying potency and purityand in some cases, what is sold is not even what it is claimed to be. (For example, a combination of strychnine and milk powder has been sold as heroin, and various substances have been sold as MDMA or ecstasy.) Consequently, street drugs pose two concerns: the effects of the drug (including long-term effects) may not be well understood, and the risks associated with taking something whose true content is uncertain. Note that these concerns have nothing to do with moral attitudes towards drug use: they represent practical concerns about the use of illicit psychoactive drugs. Genetics and Behavior Earlier this year, researchers announced that the mapping of the human genome, is nearing completion, at least in preliminary form. In many ways, this represents one of the greatest feats in the history of science: for one thing, our genetic makeup is extraordinarily complex, being composed of some 100,000 genes made up of millions of individual amino acids. At an even deeper level, identifying our genes poses the possibility of understanding what role genetics plays in our behavior. The debate between nativists, who believe that behavior is fundamentally innate, and environmentalists, who believe our behavior is shaped by our experiences, goes back to ancient times. (As Approaches to Psychology notes, it has been argued that the first known psychology experiment, in ancient Babylon, was concerned with whether language was innate or learned.) Today, a wide variety of techniques are used to explore the issues of heredity; one of the most recent has been the application of evolutionary theory to try to understand how inherited behaviors may have originated, called evolutionary psychology. (Of course, this assumes that behavior is inherited to begin with!) Applying the Concepts: Sensory Processes As noted in Chapter 1, the process of perception starts with stimulation of our senses; our understanding of the world starts with what our senses tell us. Yet how do our senses handle the the diverse types of stimuli we experience so that the brain can process the information we receive? While many details are still not fully understood, it is possible to describe the the general nature of sensory processinga process that is both complex and remarkable. The basic challenge for the nervous system is to translate the information represented by sensory stimuli into neural signalsa process called transduction. Each of our senses is designed to respond to different types of stimuli: light for vision, sound waves for hearing, odor molecules for smell, and so on. In order to handle this diversity, each of our five senses uses different types of receptors, each specialized to process a different type of stimulus. For example, there are receptors for touch that respond to pressure against th e skin, and different receptors that respond primarily to heat or cold. The receptors are the input for sensory neurons in the peripheral nervous system. Sensory neurons in turn connect to neurons in the central nervous system (CNS), forming specialized neural pathways for each of the five senses. This specialization is both practical and necessary, but it does produce an interesting consequencein essence, the pathways for each sense are designed to convey information related to that sense mode, regardless of what triggered the activity. That is, the sensations we experience depend on the pathway stimulated, not the form of the stimulation. A German researcher named Johannes MÃ ¼ller first noted this in the 1830s, calling it the law of specific nerve energies. Thus, if you close your eyelid and press gently on your eye with your finger, you will see spots of lightthe result of the pressure producing randomized activation of receptors rather than light reaching the receptors on your retina. In the end, what we know about the world depends on the characte ristics of our senses as much as it does on what is out there! While MÃ ¼llers law suggests that sometimes our senses can mislead us, in everyday life, sensory processing is remarkably reliable and adaptable. For example, our retina has a complex structure which includes three types of cone receptors, maximally sensitive to three different wavelengths (and therefore colors) of light, as well as narrower rod receptors which are optimized for functioning in very low levels of light (as in night vision). These receptors are in turn connected to two further layers of cells, called bipolar cells and ganglion cells. The cells within the retina are connected in complex ways that enhance contrast and detection of boundaries; in turn, the axons of the ganglion cells form the optic nerve, which relays visual information for further visual processing. (For more information about the eye, and a self-quiz, see the web site maintained by optometrist Ted Montgomery.) Hearing is mediated by cells in the inner ear which have fine filaments sensitive to mechanical vibration, called hair cells. Normally, sound waves (vibration) are transmitted through the air to the tympanic membrane (ear drum), then via th e bones of the middle ear (which are arranged in way which provides the capacity to amplify or dampen the intensity of the vibrations) to the cochlea of the inner ear. The shape of the cochlea, along with the structure of the hair cells, allows different cells to be maximally sensitive to different frequenciesa basic feature of our sense of hearing. For touch, as noted, receptors of different types are distributed across our body in a non-uniform wayfor example, the density of touch receptors is much greater on our fingertips and lips than it is on our back or upper thighs. The sensory nerves for touch are the only sense mode which link to the spinal cord as the entry point to the central nervous system; the pathways for all the other senses go directly from receptors (sensory neurons) to the brain. (In the case of vision, the retina itself is in fact a combination of sense receptors and cells which are properly considered part of the central nervous system.) Taste and smell are generally grouped together, because of their role as chemical sensesthat is, they function by detecting the presence of particular molecules, rather than types of energy. They are also related in terms of their importance in relation to our experience of food: much of what we call taste is actually a response to smell. For example, try the following expe riment with a friend: In advance, cut a slice of apple and a slice of onion (but dont let the person see them). Blindfold the person, and then ask them to bite the apple, while simultaneously holding the onion close to their nose. Because the texture of the two is similar, the odor of the onion will overwhelm the actual taste of the appleand your friend is likely to believe youve given them a slice of onion to eat! Beyond such generalities, it turns out that smell and taste are extremely complex; current evidence suggests that there are different types of receptors within each of these senses, and that the pattern of response to different stimuli are the basis of experiencing different smells and odors (somewhat analogous to the way cone receptors are the basis of color vision). Beyond the receptors, sensory information travels along specialized pathways within the brain. A major relay point for these pathways is the thalamus en route to the cortex. Remarkably, despite the transformation of the sensory signal into a neural signal, and the routing through a series of connections within the CNS, the information which reaches the cortex typically preserves significant detail about the nature, location, and timing of the stimulus. (For example, one can identify where on the body a touch stimulus occurred, the order in which sounds occurred, etc.) In the cortex, as noted in the text, sophisticated processing occurs, in regions whose functions are dedicated to sensory processing. (Primary locations are the occipital lobe for vision, temporal lobe for hearing, parietal lobe for touch, and frontal lobe for some aspects of taste and smell.) In turn, this information is integrated across senses, and with memories of past experiences, to produce our perceptions of the world. Simple, isnt it?!

Cadburys - Marketing Strategies :: Business Management Studies

Cadburys - Marketing Strategies In order to increase sales Cadburys needs to undertake a range of marketing activities before deciding upon the best way to encourage the purchase of its product. When identifying the basic principals which Cadburys must apply to its marketing will be its basic objectives because all business must have objectives it allows them to increase sales and make profit. Corporate aims are the long term intentions of a business, whereas corporate objectives are the specific targets required to achieve the aims. The common aim and objectives of the corporation such as Cadbury includes the following: 1 Survival 2 Profit maximisation- which is often taken to be the reason why firms exists and to be the primary objectives in practices most firms have a hierarchy of objectives when a firms survival is threaten it may profit maximise in order to restore its financial health. 3 Growth- which includes Cadbury selling new products or expanding overseas. 4 Diversification- which is the spreading of business risks by reducing dependence on one product. 5 Sales maximisation- which is the increasing of sales 6 Improving the product image-which includes creating a new logo or launching a new brand of product and creating more attractive packaging. For example, Cadbury set out two objectives for the development of their chocolate, Fuse. These were: 1. To grow the market for chocolate confectionery 2. To increase Cadbury's share of the snacking sector When launching a product the company Cadbury’s had to make sure that any new product in the snaking sector must establish points of difference, creating a unique selling proposition (USP) i.e. a product with unique appeal which is not shared by any of its competitors. Referring back to the example of Fuse, Cadbury lost a lot of money

10 Class Maths Paper

SAMPLE PAPER – 2008 Class – X SUBJECT – MATHEMATICS Time: 3 hrs Marks: 80 General Instructions: ( I ) All questions are compulsory. ( ii ) The question paper consists of 30 questions divided into four sections –A, B, C and D. Section A contains 10 questions of 1 mark each, Section B is of 5 questions of 2 marks each, Section C is of 10 questions of 3 marks each and section D is of 5 questions of 6 marks each. ( iii ) There is no overall choice. However, an internal choice has been provided in one question of two marks each, three questions of three marks each and two questions of six marks each. ( iv ) In question on construction, the drawing should be neat and exactly as per the given measurements. ( v ) Use of calculator is not permitted. SECTION A ( Qns 1 – 10 carry 1 mark each ) 1. If HCF ( a, b ) = 12 and a x b = 1800. Find LCM ( a, b ). 2. Find the zeros of the quadratic polynomial from the graph.Y 4 3 2 1 X X’ -4 -3 -2 -1 0 1 2 3 4 -1 -2 -3 Y’ 3. If the pair of linear equations x – y = 1 and x + ky = 5 has a unique solution x = 2, y = 1, find the value of k. 4. If x = 4sin2? and y = 4 cos2? + 1. Find the value of x + y. 5. Find the value of P, if cos( 810 + ? ) = sin( P/3 – ? ). 6. A horse is tied to a peg at one corner of an equilateral triangle shaped grass field of side 15m by means of a 7m rope.Find the area of that part of the field in which the horse can graze. 7. Two tangents PQ and PR are drawn from an external point P to a circle with centre O. If LQOR = 1200, then what is the value of LOPQ? Q O P R 8. An observer 1. 5m tall is 28. 5m away from a tower. The angle of elevation of the top of the tower from her eye is 450. What is the height of the tower? A B 450 C 1. 5m D 28. 5m E 9. The graph of the less than ogive and more than ogive intersect at the point ( 4, 15). What is the value of the median? 0. Suppose you drop a die on the rectangular region shown in fig. What is the probabil ity that it will land inside the circle with diameter 1m ? 2m 3m SECTION B ( Qns 11 – 15 carry 2 marks each ) 11. If 9th term of an A. P is 99 and 99th term is 9, find its 108th term. 12. A letter of English alphabet is chosen at random. What is the probability that the chosen letter is ( i ) a vowel ( ii ) a consonant. 13. If 2x + y = 35 and 3x + 4y = 65, find the value of x/y. 14.Show that the three points ( 3, 3 ), ( h, 0 ) and ( 0, k ) are collinear if 1/h + 1/k = 1/3 15. Find the zeros of the quadratic polynomial x2 + 11x + 30, and verify the relationship between the zeros and coefficients. OR Divide the polynomial p ( x ) by g ( x ) and find the quotient and remainder. p( x ) = x4 – 3Ãâ€"2 + 4x + 5 g ( x ) = x2 + 1 – x SECTION C ( Qns 16 – 25 carry 3 marks each ) 16. A shopkeeper buys a number of books for Rs80. If he had bought 4 more books for the same amount, each book would cost him Re 1 less. How many books did he buy? 7. Prove that v3 is irra tional. 18. Find the values of k for which the quadratic equation 2Ãâ€"2 – kx + x + 8 = 0 will have real and equal roots. 19. Draw a right triangle in which the sides ( other than hypotenuse ) are of length 4cm and 3cm. Then construct another triangle whose sides are 5/3 times the corresponding sides of the given triangle. 20. Prove the following identity: 1 – 1 = 1 – 1 . cosec? – cot? sin? sin? cosec? + cot? OR Without using trigonometric tables, evaluate:Sec2100 – cot2800 + sin150cos750 + cos150sin750 . Cos? sin( 900 – ? ) + sin? cos( 900 – ? ) 21. In fig. DE // OQ and DF // OR. Show that EF // QR. P D E F O Q R OR XP and XQ are two tangents to a circle with centre O from a point X out side the circle. ARB is tangent to a circle at R. Prove that XA + AR = XB + BR. P A O RX Q B 22. Show that the line segment joining the points ( -5, 8 ) and ( 10, -4 ) is trisected by the coordinate axes. 23.The line segment joining A ( 6, 3 ) to B ( -1, -4 ) is doubled in length by having half its length added to each end. Find the coordinates of the new ends. 24. In fig. LACB = 900 and CD + AB. Prove that BC2 = BD AC2 AD C A D B 25. Find the area of the shaded region if radii of the two concentric circles with centre O are 14cm and 21cm respectively and LAOC = 300. O 300 B D A C OR Calculate the area of the designed region in fig. common between two quadrants of circles of radius 8cm each. cm ***** 8cm ****** 8cm ****** * * 8cm SECTION D ( Qns 26 – 30 carry 6 marks each ) 26. Prove that in a triangle, if square of one side is equal to the sum of the squares of the other two sides, then the angle opposite to the first side is a right angle. Using the above do the following: In quadrilateral ABCD, LB = 900. If AD2 = AB2 + BC2 + CD2, then prove that LACD = 900. D C A B 27. From a stationary shop, Joseph bought two pencils and three chocklates for Rs11 and Sumeet bought one pencil and two chocklates for Rs7.Represent this problem in the form of a pair of linear equations. Find the price of one pencil and one chocklate graphically. 28. A man standing on the deck of a ship, which is 10m above the water level, observes the angle of elevation of the top of a hill as 600 and angle of depression of the base of the hill as 300. Calculate the distance of the hill from the ship and the height of the hill. 29. A vessel is in the form of a hemispherical bowl, surmounted by a hollow cylinder.The diameter of the hemisphere is 12cm and the total height of the vessel is 16cm. Find the capacity of the vessel. Also find the internal surface area of the vessel. OR A hollow cone is cut by a plane parallel to the base and the upper portion is removed. If the curved surface of the remainder is 8/9 of the curved surface of the whole cone, find the ratio of the line-segments into which the cone’s altitude is divided by the plane. 30. The following table gives the distribution of the life time of 400 neon lamps: Life time ( in hours ) |Number of lamps | |1500 – 2000 |14 | |2000- 2500 |56 | |2500 – 3000 |60 | |3000 – 3500 |86 | |3500 – 4000 |74 | |4000 – 4500 |62 | |4500 – 5000 |48 | Find the median life time of a lamp. OR Find the mean marks from the following data: |Marks |Number of students | |Below 10 |4 | |Below 20 |10 | |Below 30 |18 |Below 40 |28 | |Below 50 |40 | |Below 60 |70 | M . P . S U R E S H B A B U Mob: 9 4 4 7 1 4 2 9 3 4 E-mail:suresh_ [email  protected] co. in ANSWERS |1. 150 |11. 0 |21. †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.. or †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ | |2. 3, 1 |12. 5/26, 21/26 |22. †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦. | |3. k = 3 |13. 3 |23. ( 19/2, 13/2 ),(-9/2, -15/2) | |4. 5 |14. †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ |24. †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦. | |5. p = 270 |15. -6, -5 |25. 64 1/4cm2 or 36 4/7cm2 | | |or q (x ) = x2 + x – 3, r = 8 | | |6. 25 2/3cm2 |16. 16 |26. †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦. | |7. 00 |17. †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.. |27. Re 1, Rs 3 | |8. 30m |18. 9, -7 |28. 10 v3m, 40m | |9. 4 |19. †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.. |29. 1584cm3, 602. 88cm2 | | | |or 1:2 | |10. ? /24 |20. †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦. Or 2 |30. 3406. 98 hours | | | |or 40. 7 |

Symbolism and Allusion in Maya Angelous My Arkansas Essay

Symbolism and Allusion in Maya Angelous My Arkansasnbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp; nbsp; nbsp;There is a deep brooding/ in Arkansas. Arkansas is stuck in the past, its memories of hatred and crime from ante-bellum days hindering the progression towards Civil Rights. Maya Angelous poem of the struggle to a new wave of equality uses both general symbolism and historical allusion to make its theme clear to the reader. The poem uses general symbolism in nature, in time, and historical allusion to make the theme clear in a concise but vibrant poem. nbsp; The general symbolism relating to nature assumes a common base of knowledge from which symbolism can be built. The poem opens with a description†¦show more content†¦Secondly, the red earth can be associated with the desert, a place where no vegetation can grow. The red earth, whether stained with the blood of the past or a place where life cannot be sustained, continues to paint the picture of an unending struggle toward the future for the new and growing poplar tree. nbsp; The theme of new beginnings and the harness of the past in another natural setting is discussed again in the second stanza, but now with a focus on time. The visual image presented my the passage as the sun hesitating and losing its direction show allow the reader to observe the symbolism of the sun. The sun universally represents time, the rise and set of sun symbolizing the beginning and ending of each day, days leading into months, years, and lifetimes. The rise of the sun is a new beginning, but it seems to hesitate, and lose its/ incandescent aim. The new beginning brought on by the rising of the sun was held back and lost in that second. Hope and the fresh start were halted by the sun, who was not ready to let time pass and continue. The passage concludes with an affirmation of the symbolism, that the past is brighter yet than the sun who could not pull the new start cleanly into the future. nbsp; The poem is put into a clear context at the end by way of historical allusion. The phrase ante-bellum is a buzzword for