The pyramid Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

The pyramid - Essay Example raftsmen talent on exemplary basis having a perfect architectural structure and several theories exist with regard to its constructional methodology and purpose. The pyramid was built around 4500 years ago by the Egyptians for Pharaoh Khufu as his tomb. If looked at from an engineers perspective, the design, accuracy and crafting of its structure matches the modern day structures that exist in todays world. The placement of rocks that give it a triangular design are within tiny fractions of degree and so the largest structure not only reflects history but past society engineering methods2. The structure of the pyramid consists of approximately 2-3 million blocks of granite, which weigh two and a half tons. The total weight of the entire set of graphite rocks used would be approximately six million tons. The Great Pyramid is an epitome of a mixture of different branches of science that include geometry, the value of pi and astronomy. This makes it one of the highlighted wonders of the world. The slides are so aligned and precise that they give the entire structure a relationship with the moon, sun and the stars in the sky. The pyramid over th is period of time has seen disturbances geologically that have made an impact on its structural accuracy. If these are excluded, it is believed that the entire structure would have been more accurate in its integrity 3. There are several theories that revolve around the construction of the Great Pyramid. Science is still figuring out how huge heavy stones were taken to the top and placed with such precision to make the great structure. It is believed that the rocks were aligned in the structure with the help of a series of wooden staves in a parallel fashion that were placed at right angles and moved in the motion. More rocks were taken to the top with the help of placing them on wooden sledges4. The labor force used in building the Great Pyramid is also a mystery. One theory highlights that the slaves were made to work until

Capstone to Business Management Final Project Essay Example for Free

Capstone to Business Management Final Project Essay Executive Summary Tim’s Coffee Shoppe is located in Sunnydale, Illinois. Sunnydale is a mid-sized city with a busy business district and a large university and Tim’s is located smack dab in the middle of all the traffic. Tim’s Coffee Shoppe is in need of some much needed improvements and needs things to run more smoothly. Some of Tim’s problems were customer satisfaction, employee loyalty and marketing. The following pages have a detailed review of what Tim needs to become more successful. One of the most important things Tim needs to accomplish is a makeover of his human resource program to address employee training, thus creating better customer service as well as expanding the types of marketing he utilizes. If he follows suggestions he would have the opportunity to obtain his long term goals such as * To double revenue by the end of the current fiscal year. * To receive at least 95 percent positive customer feedback regarding the service we provide. Regulations and Management Summary The attempt is to suggest to Tim’s Coffee Shoppe’s areas of weaknesses where subtle improvement to business strategies which can bring in the much desired and needed revenues and increase customer traffic. It is also an attempt to provide cost effective products through a change in supply and logistics for Tim’s Coffee Shoppe. The market segmentation is also to be altered to expand his customer base. Action Items The vision statement chosen is: â€Å"To ensure that each guest receives prompt, professional, friendly and courteous service. To maintain a clean, comfortable and well maintained premises for our guests and staff. To provide at a fair price nutritional, well-prepared beverages and foods-  using only quality ingredients. To ensure that all guests and staff are treated with the dignity and respect they deserve. To thank each guest for the opportunity to serve them. By maintaining these goals we shall be guaranteed a fair profit that will allow us to contribute to the community we serve† (Missionstatements.com, 2013). There are various things Tim could do to help achieve living up to this vision for his business. The following are Short Term Goals which would be actions that should ideally be completed within the next three months. * Spend the next month analyzing the competition and brainstorm on what they don’t offer that we do or can offer. * Choose one or two high-profile local charity events to sponsor * Redesign the customer service research process to include new questionnaires and incentives, such as monthly drawings for free products or discounts on future purchases for customers who take the time to respond. (Williams, 2013) The next few items are actions that would be Long Term Goals which should be completed by the end of the business’ fiscal year. * To build the companys name recognition within the community through community outreach projects (Williams, 2013) What else could Tim do to help achieve these very important goals? * Create actionable steps within committees to break down workload * Be positive and energetic * Decide how you are going to measure your success and keep track of it at regular intervals. * If your company is achieving its goals, be sure to recognize employees that helped. (Slutsky, 2013) HR Analysis Summary Human resources help the business in many ways. However, Tim has not been taking full advantage of this valuable tool. â€Å"While human resources handle many of the matters pertaining to the employees of a company, such as recruiting and benefits management, they also work with management to help develop long-term strategies for the growth and development of a company. HR departments often act as a middleman between employees and management and should be where employees go for basic company information† (Christensen, 2013). According to the files in Tim’s office most of his employees are  valuable assets. Employees are a critical component of any business. Successfully managing the human resource aspect of business can be important, even for very small businesses such as Tim’s Coffee Shoppe. After all, in a service economy, employees are part of the delivery of the product and service. Their performance, commitment and loyalty to the job are critical and can be boosted through successful HR management. However, there are a few that need coaching to achieve higher customer service and company loyalty standards, such as Darryl. The files also need to be better organized to achieve higher efficiency. It can become the single largest consumer of your time and energy if you dont know how to handle things well. And, its still a big consumer of your time and energy, even if youre adept at handling such things. Action Items There are numerous actions Tim should take to help this area of his business run more smoothly and effectively. These include; to have a staffing plan, find good employees, how to screen potential candidates, conduct personal interviews and the actual hiring process and most important of all, retaining the valuable employees and evaluating their performance as well as maintaining high standards. There are several steps to follow to help stay organized and achieve a highly valuable staff. The following are actions to take to maintain and educate the staff Tim already has. * Put together a human resource guideline handbook that states what policies and procedures you will and expect the employees to follow. This handbook should address issues such as: * at will employment * compensation * perquisites and bonuses * performance reviews * lay offs * terminations * conflicts of interest * disciplinary process * vacation time * sick time * family time * leave of absence * employee behavior * â€Å"To retain employees, your human resource management philosophy should be to eliminate things that push employees out. It should also, within reason, provide a number of things that keep pulling employees into the organization. Both approaches should be successful in retaining good employees as they both counteract the pulls from outside organizations† (Sensible Small Business Ideas, 2013). Some employees will lose interest and need something new to keep their interest in your company. It might be necessary to provide challenges, opportunities for advancement and other rewards. * It is important to remember that everyone including yourself, the owner, is a team. Everyone needs to be quietly evaluated on their performance and their pay should reflect that. Make sure to recognize high performing employees to upkeep their motivation to better your company and take the time to coach your lower performing employees. Also make sure they all know you are there to support and help them with any issues that they come across. Marketing Analysis Summary The competitive environment, also known as the market structure, is the dynamic system in which your business competes (Mack, 2013). It is the part a company’s external environment that consists of other organizations trying to secure clientele in the same market. It is the part of the trade that includes all immediate rivals. Tim has not effectively advertised his coffee shop. He has signage in the office that is not being put to use and the only sign that is noticed in the coffee shop is the Buy 10, Get 1 Free. Also, I believe that Tim heavily relies on his location of being near the university, bus stop and business district to attract customers. It may work well but there is always more that he could do to take his business from being good to booming. Some possibly effective marketing ideas to promote Tim’s Coffee Shoppe might be: * To create a website- Even if it  is just 1-3 pages of general information, it’s better than nothing. Blog sites are best because Tim would be able to easily update. * Neighborhood Marketing- Take advantage of areas that are outdoors like billboards, bus-stops, park benches†¦ anywhere that potential customers might frequent. Also, partner up with other small businesses and exchange flyers to pass out to customers. * Social Sites- Facebook and Twitter * Use Guerilla Marketing tactics- Go pass out coupons at malls, pass out fliers at the college, etc. Take samples of coffee and pastries to churches or community centers. Get reviewers to come in and write an article about the coffee shop. * Celebrate holidays or create a family day with free drinks for kids under a certain age. * Educate your customers- Host a seminar on the use of coffee or on different brewing methods. Have a â€Å"Coffee of the Month† where you can educate on the origin country of the coffee. (Reynolds, 2013) The majority of Tim’s Coffee Shoppe’s customers are the university’s students and also business professionals stopping by on their lunch breaks. A lot of the customers have filled out satisfaction surveys. This is a great tool and lets Tim know what they are doing right or wrong and what they need to improve on to make their business more successful and profitable. Especially when there is space for the consumer to fill in their own suggestion or comment, such as the survey at Tim’s which stated â€Å"I just love Tim’s. I love the special attention, atmosphere and a coffee shop that isn’t a chain for once.† This shows Tim that the customer is extremely pleased and he should be proud of his product and staff. However, the surveys can also show Tim where his business needs to improve to keep people coming back, such as the comment â€Å"The morning staff is RUDE† or â€Å"The coffee always tastes burnt. Don’t know why I come back†. This shows the Tim where there is opportunity for improvement. By making customer satisfaction surveys available, this is another tool they can utilize by taking suggestions to make their company better than the competition. Taking these suggestions and considering them an opportunity to improve will attract more customers to come back as well as giving Tim and his employees a goal to work towards and achieve. Action Items Creating a SWOT analysis identifying the good, bad and potential ugly for your business is essential before moving forward. Strengths: Tim needs to stand out from the rest of his competition. One strong strength would be his location. Being close to the university, Business Park and bus stop is a prime location to attract business. Weaknesses: Weaknesses noted on the marketing surveys are rude staff, old cash registers which make customers order incorrect, cramped seating, slow service, not taking debit cards and so on. Opportunities: Some opportunities for Tim’s might include a coffee of the month club, or adding more items to the menu. Threats: Some of the threats might be, of course, Queequeg’s and even the campus coffee machine. Economic Environment/Finance and Accounting/Financial Statements Summary Looking at the economic situation at Tim’s Coffee Shoppe it is decent but could definitely be better. To have a strong and successful business, you need to have a clear understanding of the financial impact that your most business decisions may have. Tim is expecting an increase in sales volume due to several large businesses moving into the area around the coffee shop. With more traffic going by the coffee shop, one would expect an increase in customers which would mean an increase in income for Tim. Virtually all of your businesss costs will fall, more or less neatly, into one of two categories: variable costs and fixed costs. Variable costs are costs which increase directly in proportion to the level of sales in dollars or units sold† (BizFilings, 2012). Variable expenses for the coffee shop would be some examples would be cost of goods sold, costs of supplies, and salaries of the employees. Action Items The total expenses will increase if the sales volume will increase due the variable expenses increasing. The companys total costs are a combination of the fixed and variable costs. â€Å"Assuming your sales exceed your variable costs, each additional unit of sales volume increases your gross profits and  your net income. If you can lower your costs without impacting revenue and maintain the same sales volume, your profits will go up† (Kokemuller, 2013). This means if Tim’s profits increase so does his net income. â€Å"It is very important for small business owners to understand how their various costs respond to changes in the volume of goods or services produced. The breakdown of a companys underlying expenses determines the profitable price level for its products or services, as well as many aspects of its overall business strategy† (Inc.com, 2013). The salaries of the employees will increase due to the fact Tim will have to hire more employees or increase the hours of existing employees to accommodate the additional customer base. The cost of supplies and goods sold will increase with the more customers and products sold. Fixed cost will remain the same regardless of the level of sales. These expenses would include Tim’s rent, depreciation, the lease on the refrigerator, taxes and insurance. Problem Solving/Recommendations Summary There are several things Tim could do to improve his coffee shop, especially to get it to become more marketable for him to sell. The following are good recommendations to start with: * Redesign the customer service research process to include new questionnaires and incentives, such as monthly drawings for free products or discounts on future purchases for customers who take the time to respond. * Create actionable steps within committees to break down workload * Put together a human resource guideline handbook that states what policies and procedures you will and expect the employees to follow * Expand advertising to other venues * More employee training and recognition References Associates Capstone in Management. (2012). Retrieved from Tims Coffee Shoppe simulation: http://extmedia.kaplan.edu.edgesuite.net/buness/AB299/Tims_Coffee_Shop/index.html BizFilings. (2012). Business Decisions and Finances: Cost-Volume-Profit Analysis. Retrieved June 24, 2013, from

Non Hodgkins Lymphoma: Types, Causes and Symptoms

Non Hodgkins Lymphoma: Types, Causes and Symptoms Lymphoma is a type of cancer that affects the lymphatic system. Lymphoma is divided into two types called Hodgkins lymphoma and non-Hodgkins lymphoma. Non-Hodgkins lymphomas (NHL) are a range of diseases emerging from clonal proliferation of lymphocytes which is a type of white blood cells resulting in cancer or tumour formation of lymphatic system.1 An estimated 8,000 new cases of NHL has been diagnosed annually in the United Kingdom at the end of the 20th century.2 NHL is a common hematologic malignancy and ranked eighth as the most common malignancy.2 Male has 1.5 times likelihood than female from being diagnosed with NHL. From the early seventies, cases of NHL have increased by threefold for both male and female throughout many countries beside United Kingdom.2 In 2007, non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL) caused 4,533 deaths in United Kingdom. Males and females share almost similar number of deaths but males has higher age standardized mortality rate. However, not all patients die from NHL as infections may be one of the causes. Non-Hodgkin lymphoma has 53% overall 5-year relative survival in an analysis3 conducted over 22 European countries with age adjusted figures 48% in men and 54% in womean. In Scotland, the total number of diagnosed non-Hodgkins lymphoma cases from 1990-1994 were 1,598 for men and 1,708 in women. The percentage of age standardized survival rate for patients diagnosed after one year and five years with 95% confidence interval were 63.5 (61.1-66.1) and 41.0 (38.2-44.0) respectively.3 NHL has no established cause factor and people diagnosed with NHL have no known risk factors. However, NHL can be associated with chronic inflammatory diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis, coeliac disease, and Sjà ¶gren syndrome.4 Study by Lens and Newton-Bishop show association between NHL and cutaneous melanoma.5 Besides that, the risk of developing NHL increases with chronic infection from viruses and bacteria such as Epstein-Barr virus, human T-lymphotropic virus 1(HTLV-1) and human immunodeficiency virus (HIV).2 There was a strong link between Burkitt lymphoma and Epstein-Barr virus6 while adult T-cell lymphoma can be caused by HTLV-1.7 It has been noted that prevalence of NHL was higher in people with HIV infections compared to healthy adults.8 One study conducted by Stolte et al9 showed that there was association between Helicobacter pylori infection and mucosa-associated lymphoid tissue (MALT) lymphomas. It has also been noted that primary effusion lymphomas can be associat ed with human herpes virus while ocular adenexal lymphomas can be associated with Chlamydia psittaci.10 Moreover, evidence has shown association between splenic or large cell lymphomas and hepatitis C infections.11 The risk of developing NHL increases when a person was immunocompromised such as undergoing organ transplant12 or patients with AIDS and autoimmune diseases. Certain chemotherapy drugs and radiotherapy may increase the risk of developing NHL within 10 to 15 years after treatment.4 Solvents, pesticides and other chemical factors have also been associated with causes of NHL.2 Diagnosis In this case, a male patient has been recently diagnosed with NHL but the type of NHL and pathology were unconfirmed. Lymphoma can be divided into two types: indolent and aggressive. Indolent lymphomas such as follicular, marginal zone and lymphoplasmacytic lymphoma13 are commonly accompanied by slow, progressing and painless peripheral lymphadenopathy. There might be history of patients with enlarged lymph nodes before regressing without diagnosis made. These spontaneous regressions of lymph nodes may occur, preventing biopsy diagnostic test from being done and patient was treated for an assumed infection. It is uncommon to see primary extranodal lymphoma or systemic symptoms occurring at early stages but can be encountered as disease progresses. Examples of systemic B-symptoms are fever, weight loss, and night sweats. Indolent lymphoma can undergo histologic transformation or changes to a different, more aggressive usually large-cell lymphoma type. Indolent lymphomas are usually sl ow growing and it may respond to treatment but relapse tend to occur frequently.14 Aggressive lymphomas such as diffuse large B-cell lymphoma are different from indolent with most patients presenting with lymphadenopathy or involvement of extranodal sites. Common extranodal sites affliated are gastrointestinal tract, skin, bone marrow, sinuses, thyroid, or central nervous system. It is usual to see presence of systemic B-symptoms in a third of patients with aggressive lymphomas. Aggressive lymphomas are fast growing and are treatable than indolent lymphomas.14 NHL has been hard to diagnose and recognizing people that has high risk of NHL is difficult. Patient can only be identified correctly after development of lymphadenopathy or other symptoms related to NHL. Even though with the advancement in imaging techniques, histology is mandatory to confirm diagnosis of NHL type before progressing to treatment. It is common to use surgical biopsy either by incisional or excisional with latter being recommended to provide biopsy specimens to be reviewed by hematopathologists. The morphologic appearance obtained with additional information from immunophenotype, genetics and clinical features were then used to classify NHL with definite clinical unit. These were the basis for World Health Organization (WHO) (Table 1) classification of neoplastic diseases arising from hematopoietic and lymphoid tissues. Fine-needle aspiration or large bore-needle biopsies can also be used to diagnose NHL but was discourage for initial diagnosis due to difficulty in co nfirming a specific diagnosis.15 Table 1. World Health Organization (WHO) Classification of non-Hodgkins lymphomas.15 B-cell neoplasms Precursor B-cell neoplasm Precursor B-lymphoblastic leukemia/lymphoma (precursor B-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia) Mature (peripheral) B-cell neoplasms B-cell chronic lymphocytic leukemia/small lymphocytic lymphoma B-cell prolymphocytic leukemia Lymphoplasmacytic lymphoma Splenic marginal zone lymphoma Hairy cell leukemia Plasma cell myeloma/plasmacytoma Extranodal marginal zone B-cell lymphoma of MALT Nodal marginal zone lymphoma Follicular lymphoma Mantle cell lymphoma Diffuse large B-cell lymphoma Mediastinal large B-cell lymphoma Primary effusion lymphoma Burkitts lymphoma/Burkitt cell leukemia T-Cell and NK-Cell Neoplasms Precursor T-cell neoplasm Precursor T-lymphoblastic lymphoma/leukemia Mature (peripheral) T-cell neoplasms T-cell prolymphocytic leukemia T-cell granular lymphocytic leukemia Aggressive NK-cell leukemia Adult T-cell lymphoma/leukemia (HTLV-1) Extranodal NK/T-cell lymphoma, nasal type Enteropathy-type T-cell lymphoma Hepatosplenic T-cell lymphoma Subcutaneous panniculitis-like T-cell lymphoma Mycosis fungoides and Sà ©zary syndrome Anaplastic large-cell lymphoma, T/null cell, primary cutaneous type Peripheral T-cell lymphoma, unspecified Angioimmunoblastic T-cell lymphoma Anaplastic large-cell lymphoma, T/null cell, primary systemic type MALT, mucosa-associated lymphoid tissue; NK, natural killer. Source: Data from Zelenetz and Horwitz Lymphoma has been categorized into stages following modified Ann Arbor Staging System (Table 2) originally developed for Hodgkin disease. This system as shown in table 2 was based on area of involvement, presence or absence of extranodal involvement and B symptoms such as weight loss more than 10% of body weight, fever, and drenching night sweats.15 Histology and morphology of lymphoma largely determined the treatment outcome and prognosis. Due to different outcomes of patients with lymphoma and limitation of clinical staging, International Prognostic Index (IPI) (Table 3) was developed from 2,031 patients with 5 independent, easily obtained clinical features such as patient age, Ann Arbor stage, serum lactate dehydrogenase level, number of extranodal sites and performance status to predict survival. The IPI (Table 3) served as a guide for clinical management, clinical trial design and interpretation. However, this IPI was designed for aggressive lymphoma. Thus, the Follicular Lymphoma International Prognostic Index (FLIPI) (Table 4) was developed from 4,167 patients for indolent lymphoma with clinical features such as patients age, Ann Arbor stage, haemoglobin level, number of nodal areas and serum lactacte dehydrogenase level. Examples of nodal areas are cervical, para-aortic, inguinocrural, celiac and other ancillary nodal si tes. FLIPI can help determine significantly different mortality risk of patients with indolent lymphomas and improve decision on different aggressive therapy options that may benefit certain patient groups.15 Treatment Non-Hodgkins lymphoma can be treated by a range of treatments available such as radiation therapy / radiotherapy, surgery, stem cell transplant, single-agent or combination chemotherapy, immunotherapy or radioimmunconjugate therapy. Treatments can consist of one or a combination of the options available with different treatments having different duration and doses. In this case scenario, the patient was recently diagnosed with NHL. Due to the lack of information, NHL diagnosed can be assumed to be either indolent lymphoma or aggressive lymphoma. Being 28 year old, patient was eligible for more aggressive treatment compared to patients aged 60 and above.16 Indolent Lymphoma Indolent lymphomas such as follicular lymphoma and MALT lymphoma were not treated at early stages if there were no symptoms present with doctors adopting watch-and-wait approach. In a study conducted by Division of Oncology, Stanford University Medical Center, 43 patients with follicular lymphoma stage I or stage II were observed after deferment of radiation due to a variety of reasons. After a median of 86 months of follow-up, 63% had not been treated and survival was almost the same to the patients that has undergo radiation.17 In this situation, toxic side effects of treatments should be considered against the advantages of undergoing treatments. Patients with low grade, stage I-II NHL lymphoma with localized disease can be treated either with surgery18 or radiation therapy. Radiation therapy as shown in a study conducted by Stanford University can be used to treat limited stage, low grade lymphomas of 177 patients with good remission rate.19 Another study conducted on 103 patient s with stage I and II MALT lymphoma showed 77% disease-free survival rate with radiotherapy.20 Surgery can be done in situations where low grade MALT lymphoma is localized and there is a risk of perforation but if the lymphoma progresses to a more advance stage, then surgery no longer present as first line treatment.21 As lymphoma mainly affects systemic system, surgery is normally used to establish diagnosis. Besides that, stem cell transplant can be used to treat NHL but was limited to younger patients and difficulty in determination of the time to treat patients. A study on autologous stem cell transplant after high dose therapy showed higher response rate compared to immunochemotherapy.22 Chemotherapy options for indolent lymphomas ranged from single-agents such as cyclophosphamide, chlorambucil or doxorubicin to combinations such as cyclophosphamide, vincristine and prednisone (CVP)23 chemotherapy. More aggressive combination of chemotherapy that combines cyclophosphamide, doxorubicin, vincristine, and prednisone (CHOP) can also be use. In a study conducted in 228 stage III or IV follicular lymphoma patients that were treated randomly either with cyclophosphamide, a less toxic single agent or combination of cyclophosphamide, doxorubicin, vincristine, prednisone and bleomycin (CHOP-B) showed no initial advantage to combination treatment eventhough in an unplanned subgroup analysis showed improved disease control and survival.24 Cyclophosphamide is a nitrogen mustard alkylating agent that acts by causing DNA damage and interfere with cell replication. Besides fatigue, nausea, vomiting, bone marrow suppression and alopecia that were normally associated with anticancer treatment, prolonged use of cyclophosphamide might result in severely affected gametogenesis.25 Chlorambucil has similar mechanism of action to cyclophosphamide with lesser side effects but development of widespread rashes may occur.25 Doxorubicin is a cytotoxic, anthracyclines antibiotic that acts by intercalating DNA. Common side effects are present with additional potential cardiomyopathy and severe tissue necrosis due to extravasation when administering doxorubicin. Vincristine is a vinca alkaloids and act by depolymerising microtubules and thus inhibiting mitosis. It may not have significant myelosuppression along with other common side effects but may cause neurotoxicity and severe tissue necrosis due to extravasation.25 Prednisone is a pr odrug that is converted in liver to prednisolone that has a marked antitumour effect in NHL. However, it may cause immunosuppression, adrenal suppression, mood and behaviour changes, gastro-intestinal effects with mineralocorticoid and glucocorticoid side effects. Bleomycin is a cytotoxic antibiotic that is metabolized to produce superoxide and hydroxyl free radicals which results in DNA damage. However it can cause skin pigmentation and dose related pulmonary fibrosis.26 In addition to chemotherapy, immunotherapy is becoming a standard treatment for indolent lymphoma. Rituximab is a recombinant chimeric monoclonal antibody that targets protein CD20 which is primarily found on the surface of malignant and normal human B cells involved with B-cell proliferation and differentiation. It is said to induce apoptosis of CD20 cells.25,26 Rituximab was generally well tolerated when used compared to other conventional chemotherapy with distinct reduction of haemotological events like severe neutropenia and associated infections.27 Studies28,29,30 conducted on the usage of rituximab for recently diagnosed follicular NHL as single first line therapy showed good response rates around 52% to 73% and a 12-month progression free survival. Rituximab can be combined with chemotherapy such as CHOP as CHOP-R to treat indolent B-cell lymphoma. The trial of CHOP vs CHOP-R31 conducted in 1999 showed 95% overall response rate for CHOP-R with 55% achieving complete remission and 40% in partial remission. Addition of cytokines such as interferon ÃŽÂ ±32, interleukin 233, and interleukin 1234 to rituximab therapy conducted in studies shown that good efficacy profile can be obtained but further studies need to be conducted to confirm. Interferon ÃŽÂ ± has antitumour therapeutic effect but is not side effect free with additional myelosuppression, ocular side effects, cardiovascular problems, hypersensitivity on top of common anticancer side effects. Interferon-ÃŽÂ ± can be incorporated into chemotherapy as a new approach in treating NHL. Incorporation of interferon-ÃŽÂ ± into anthracycline-containing has been demonstrated to increase the remission rate and remission duration. However the data has not been conclusive and further information must be obtained before making it as standard treatment. German Low Grade Lymphoma Study Group has been conducting trial with continuous higher dose interferon maintenance therapy yield 45% relapse-free patie nts.35 Besides rituximab, Food Drug Administration in United States has approved two anti-CD20 radioimmunotherapy agents: iodine I 131 tositumomab36 and yttrium Y 90 ibritumomab tiuxetan37 for treatment of lymphoma. Both agents contain murine antibodies that target CD20 with ÃŽÂ ²-emitting radioisotopes but iodine I 131 tositumomab can also emit gamma radiation. Both still cause side effects although milder with significant one being myelosuppression. University of Michigan conducted a phase II trial where 76 patients were given treatment of iodine I 131 tositumomab as initial treatment for follicular lymphoma and resulted in 75% of complete response and 95% of overall response.38 Yttrium Y 90 ibritumomab tiuxetan has been shown to be effective when used in consolidation therapy after rituximab39 or in relapsed/refractory B-cell NHL.40 Radioimmunotherapy was deemed better than radiotherapy due to prevention of normal tissues from being exposed to radiation and systemic radiation can be a chieved to known and unknown tumour cells. There is another emerging strategy to counter low-grade NHL by administering vaccine to boost patients immune system which leads to tumour rejection by patients body. Trials conducted showed promising results among relapsed patients following chemotherapy with prolonged disease free progression and overall survival. This strategy has not been approved by FDA but personalized vaccine therapy has been received positively in its effectiveness as first line in countering slow progressing NHL. Vaccine therapy was deemed too slow for aggressive NHL but trials were ongoing to determine its efficacy.41 The management of indolent NHL have to depend on considerations such as symptoms, age, comorbidities, extent of disease, prior therapy and others. Most decisions on management of indolent NHL depend on physicians trying to optimize the treatment options to treat this chronic illness.15 Aggressive Lymphoma Aggressive NHL consist mainly of diffuse large B cells demands almost similar treatments to indolent lymphoma. As explained above, radiotherapy is one of the options available. The early treatment for early stage aggressive NHL was radiotherapy alone with relative cure rates of 50% for stage I and decreases to 20% for stage II. Therefore, combination of radiotherapy and a chemotherapy regimen were used to improve the chances of survival for aggressive NHL patients. A study conducted among 400 patients with localized immediate or high grade NHL compared the results of one group receiving 8 cycles of CHOP alone and another receiving 3 cycles of CHOP and radiotherapy. The study showed patients under combined CHOP and radiotherapy has statistically significant overall survival rate than patients receiving CHOP alone. Life-threatening side effects that were encountered by both groups were statistically significant in comparison with fewer patients under combined CHOP and radiotherapy suff ering from adverse effects. Therefore, combination of CHOP and radiotherapy are better for treatment of localized NHL compared to CHOP alone.42 There was another alternative treatment available for patients with aggressive NHL called high-dose therapy with autologous stem cell transplant (HDT ASCT). A number of trials among intermediate and high risk patients have been conducted to determine its efficacy following initial chemotherapy but there were conflicting results resulting in this treatment for not being first-line.43 Combination therapy has been known to be better than single therapy and used to increase the percentage of patients entering complete remission. In 1976 and 1980, CHOP regimen44 as explained above and COMLA regimen45 which includes cyclophosphamide, vincristine, methotrexate with leucovorin rescue, and cytarabine were published respectively. Both regimens have been shown to present a possible cure rate of approximately 30% for patients with aggressive lymphoma achieving long-term remission. In the ensuing years, new second and third generation of aggressive NHL regimens showed 55% to 65% patients being cured. An example of second regimen treatment was m-BACOD consisting of methotrexate, bleomycin, doxorubicin, cyclophosphasmide, vincristine, and dexamethasone.46 Third generation regimens were such as MACOP-B made up of methotrexate, doxorubicin, cyclophosphamide, vincristine, prednisone and bleomycin47 and ProMACE-CytaBOM compromising prednisone, methotrexate, cyclophosphamide, etopo side, cytarabine, bleomycin, vincristine and methotrexate.48 The effectiveness of all these regimens were not known as many of these studies were conducted with relatively small number of patients until 1993, a trial called national high priority intergroup Phase III was held to do a comparison between CHOP, MACOP-B, ProMACE-CytaBOM and m-BACOD regarding effectiveness and side effects.49 The four regimens demonstrate equivalent outcomes but CHOP showed the lowest side effects. Based on this trial, CHOP regimen became the standard treatment for NHL in the United States. Another regimen called ACVBP consisting of doxorubicin, cyclophosphamide, vindesine, bleomycin, and prednisone has been developed by Groupe dEtude des Lymphomes de LAdulte (GELA) in Europe which were compared in poor risk patients against CHOP and results favour ACVBP.50 In another trial, etoposide and CHOP termed CHOEP was shown to increase complete remission rate and survival rate in 18 to 60 year-old patient in a t rial that compared 3 week CHOP-21, 2 week CHOP-14 with CHOEP-21, CHOEP-14. CHOEP was recommended in the conclusion of this trial if the patient is young with good prognostic feature of aggressive lymphoma.51 Etoposide is a synthetic analogue to vinca alkaloids and binds to DNA and topoisomerase II complex in phase G2 to prevent DNA replication and causes strand to break.26 Etoposide is still associated with toxic effects such as alopecia, myelosuppression, nausea and vomiting.25 Immunotherapy also played a part in treatment of aggressive lymphoma with rituximab as a single agent. GELA has shown that the overall response of rituximab as a single agent was 37% with patients suffering from relapsed and refractory diffuse large B-cell lymphoma.52 A randomized controlled trial has been conducted by Mab Thera International Trial (MInT) Group to investigate CHOP-like chemotherapy against CHOP-like chemotherapy with rituximab. The result showed that rituximab combined with cheomotherapy increased overall survival and with no significant increase in side effects.53 Rituximab and CHOP regimen is the most common chemotherapy regimen for diffuse large B-cell NHL. British Columbia Cancer Agency (BCCA) implemented a new policy on 1 March 2001 recommending all patients newly diagnosed with advanced stage diffuse large B-cell lymphoma to be treated with CHOP and rituximab based on evidences from trials conducted by GELA and MInT Group.54 Treatment recommendation. As stated earlier, limited information was available for this case scenario. Patient is only known as 28 year old male recently diagnosed with NHL. An appropriate treatment that could be given as first line is CHOP regimen with addition of rituximab (CHOP-R) based on evidences given above. CHOP-R has significant better results compared to CHOP alone and addition of rituximab does not increase side effects. CHOP-R can also be used for both indolent and aggressive lymphoma with positive outcomes as stated above although symptomless indolent lymphoma may require watch-and wait strategy. However in terms of cost-effectiveness, CHOP-R is more expensive than CHOP alone but CHOP-R is preferred due to its increased efficacy profile and similar side effects. In conclusion, CHOP-R can be given every 14 or 21 days with the course of treatment ranging from 3 to 8 cycles. CHOP-R cycle started with the first day drug administration consisting of rituximab, cyclophosphamide, vincristine and doxorub icin through injection into a vein or through drip and prednisone was taken orally from day 1 to day 5. Conflict: Newton Vs Leibniz Conflict: Newton Vs Leibniz Mathematicians everywhere contributed to the development of Calculus. However, the two most known founders of calculus are Isaac Newton and Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz. Nowadays, the credit is handed over to both men. Nevertheless, a controversy took place over which of them deserved the recognition. The controversy was both intense and widespread. Isaac Newton: Isaac Newton is known as one of the greatest scientists who have ever lived; in addition, he is recognized as one of the most accomplished mathematicians that England has ever seen. Newton became fascinated in mathematics at an early age. Later in life, he created Calculus. However, he did not publish it until later. This was an enormous mistake. His life: In 1643, Newton was born. Later, in 1655, Newton began the discovery of calculus with the general binomial series which led to him discovering integration, differentiation, and infinite processes. Thirty two years later, 1687, Newton published his work in a book called The Mathematical Principles of Natural Philosophy. At the age of eighty four, in 1727, Newton died. Gottfried Leibniz: Gottfried Leibniz is known as a worldwide scientist. He became a leading international philosopher as well as, a worldwide known comprehensive thinker. He studied forces and weight. He wrote about economics, theology, biology, geology, law, politics, metaphysics, and mathematics. He claims that he invented Calculus independently from Newton, but is it true? His life: In 1646, Leibniz was born in Germany. When Leibniz was 27 years old, in 1673, he moved to England. In 1675, Leibniz began using the integral symbol, which no one ever used before. In 1676, Leibniz developed the Leibniz Calculus. 8 years later, 1684, Leibniz published a superior system of calculus about notation which was easier to use. At the age of 70, 1716, Leibniz died in his home country, Germany. What is Calculus? Calculus is the branch of mathematics that deals with limits, functions, derivatives, integrals, and infinite series. Calculus has two branches: Differential Calculus: Differential calculus is the study of the derivative of a function. It is the study of how a function changes when its input changes. Differentiation is the process of finding the derivative. The derivative at any point equals to the slope of the tangent line of the functions graph. Basically, the derivative of a function determines the best linear approximation. Integral Calculus: Integral Calculus is the study of the properties, definitions, and applications of both, the indefinite integral and the definite integral. Integration is the method of finding the value of an integral. Integral Calculus is related to two linear operations. Indefinite Integral: The anti-derivative, inverse of derivative Definite integral: When you input a function in the definite integral, it outputs a number. This gives you the area between the graph and the x-axis. The Calculus Controversy: The conflict was an argument between Isaac Newton and Gottfried Leibniz over who first invented calculus. Newton claims that he began working on a form of calculus in 1666, but he did not publish. Gottfried Leibniz began to work on his calculus in 1674, and he published his work in a paper in 1684. Newton created his clumsy method of fluxions, in 1655. However, he feared condemnation. Therefore, he did not publish his work until 1704. The fact that he fought with Leibniz before publishing anything raises the question: Was it Newton who invented Calculus? Leibniz developed his calculus in 1673; he used many symbols that we still use today- derivatives as dy/dx and many more. Leibniz published his work in 1684, 20 years before Newton. The last years of Leibnizs life were poisoned by a controversy with Newton over whether he discovered calculus separately, or whether he had invented another form of ideas that were Newtons. Newton influenced the quarrel. In 1673, Leibniz travelled to England. He met some of the leading scientists, like Robert Hookes and showed them his unfinished calculating machine. He did not meet Newton, but he was shown Newtons unpublished work. After Leibniz came back from England his two miraculous yeasr began. After these two years he was considered a creative genius. One of his inventions was calculus. Leibniz needed to contact a broader scientific community, so he became in contact with Christian Huygens, a Danish scientist, and Collins and Henry Oldenburg, secretary of the Royal Society. Leibniz sent his ideas to Collin. In return, Collin sent Leibniz the latest ideas circulating the Royal Society. In Leibnizs defense, however, some documents sent did not reach Leibniz until after he developed his own way. It was clear that he had developed his own ideas on differentiation and integration. Both Newton and Leibniz had partners who helped them develop calculus. Johann Bernoulli, who used Leibniz calculus to maximize function, motivated Leibniz to fight with Newton. Newton was surrounded by people who Leibniz called enfants perdus, the lost children. Newton led the attack, and they continued to carry the battle. Leibniz was accused of plagiarism, a charge that doesnt carry on when you look at the evidence: 1. He published his method years before Newton published anything on Fluxions. 2. He always referred to his discovery as his own invention. 3. The way he developed his ideas of calculus were different than the way Newton developed his ideas. 4. Leibniz came up with ideas of differential and integral calculus before and of Newtons work was published. In June 1676, Newton wrote to Oldenburg, describing the binomial theory. He also stated that all curves can be reduced to infinite series. Moreover, he stated that areas, lengths of curves, and volumes can be obtained through series. Afterwards, Leibniz sent Newton a letter to clarify series. Newton replied by talking about finding the maxima and minima, differentials, and many other topics. However, he did not mention anything about fluxions. Later, Leibniz published his calculus in 1684. When Newton published his work, Newton found out that Leibnizs calculus was very similar to his. Newton also came to know later on that Leibniz has learnt ideas from Collins and Oldenburg; these ideas came from Newton and Gregory. In 1672, Leibniz learnt mathematics and got letters from Collins. What was unusual was that Newton sent Collins similar letters at the same time describing fluxions. Newton then accused Leibniz of copying his work. However, the case leaned towards Leibniz. In defense to the accusation, Leibniz said that when he was shown the works of Newton, but he did not learn anything useful because he did not know much mathematics at the time. Leibniz also said that Collins notes were irrelevant to the subject of calculus. Leibniz died dishonored; on the other hand, Newton was given a state funeral. However, History does authenticate Leibniz. As time goes on, the strength of the controversy decreases. And, Leibniz slowly finds his place as one of the best scientists of all time. All in all, Newton was known to be the first inventor of calculus because there is proof that he developed his theory of fluxions first. He also created differentials, and they were later explained by Leibniz. On the other hand, Leibniz also created calculus independently from Newton. Leibniz described his calculus in a different way than Newton. I personally think that Newton made a mistake by not publishing his work as soon as he created it. This is what led to the controversy. I also think that both men deserve the title of calculus inventors just as equally.

huck finn :: essays research papers

-As a coming of age character in the late nineteenth century, Huck views his surroundings with a practical and logical lens. -His observations are not filled with judgments; instead, Huck observes his environment and gives realistic descriptions of the Mississippi River and the culture that dominates the towns that dot its shoreline from Missouri south. It is his literal, pragmatic approach to his surroundings and his inner struggle with his conscience that make him one of the most important and recognizable figures in American literature. -Abstractly, he does not recognize the contradiction of "loving thy neighbor" and enforcing slavery at the same time. He observes the racist and anti-government rants of his ignorant father but does not condemn him because it is the "accepted" view in his world. Huck simply reports what he sees, and the deadpan narration allows Twain to depict a realistic view of common ignorance, slavery, and the inhumanity that follows. Huck possesses the ability to adapt to almost any situation through deceit. He is playful but practical, inventive but logical, compassionate but realistic, and these traits allow him to survive the abuse of Pap, the violence of a feud, and the wiles of river con men. To persevere in these situations, Huck lies, cheats, steals, and defrauds his way down the river. These traits are part of the reason that Huck Finn was viewed as a book not acceptable for children, yet they are also traits that allow Huck to survive his surroundings and, in the conclusion, make the right decision. -Because Huck believes that the laws of society are just, he condemns himself as a traitor and a villain for acting against them and aiding Jim. More important, Huck believes that he will lose his chance at Providence by helping a slave. When Huck declares, "All right, then, I'll go to hell," he refuses his place in society and heaven, and the magnitude of his decision is what solidifies his role as a heroic figure. Quote 1) "All right, then, I'll go to hell el." [Huck, as he reaches a decision about his responsibility toward Jim. This passage symbolizes Huck's gesture of sacrifice for Jim.] Quote 2) "But I reckon I got to light out for the territory ahead of the rest, because Aunt Sally she's going to adopt me and sivilize me, and I can't stand it. I been there before." Aunt Sally's intentions for Huck center around the upbringing that society thinks every boy should have: religion, clean clothes, education, and an indoctrination in right and wrong.

Psycotropic Drugs Used in Children

A report on the use of Psychotropic drugs used to control active children Lauren L. Dewar April 20, 2010 Introduction At eleven years of age, Thomas Edison was taken out of school because his teachers considered him difficult and he â€Å"could not be taught. † While in school Edison’s mind often wandered and his teacher was overheard calling him â€Å"addled. † Another labeled him as retarded. This ended his three months of official schooling. Because of this Thomas’s mother home schooled him and taught him math, reading, and writing. He then went on to become one of the greatest inventors of all times.In today’s â€Å"find a cure† society Thomas Edison would have most definitely been put on the now very popular medications Ritalin, Adderall, or Prozac. These are mind-altering psychotropic drugs used to treat Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder. Taking that into consideration, one might ask themselves that if Thomas had indeed been put on these medications, would he have ever been capable of experimenting and discovering his great inventions? After analyzing the data, this report will make it clear that children should not be prescribed such mind altering medications to control their activeness.It will be clear that these drugs have serious short and long-term side effects, sometimes even death. Through research it will also be clear that there is no diagnosis for ADHD and that the checklist doctors go by to diagnose ADHD is not enough proof of a disease that needs to be medicated. This report includes four sections: background information, my methodology, results of the study, and conclusion and recommendations. Background Information For starters, there is no scientific basis for diagnosing ADHD.Often times it is the school counselor or social workers who are simply not equipped to make mental health assessments making the ADHD diagnoses (Williams). Simply, if a child is observed to be acting bored, distracted a nd/or boisterous in the classroom , he or she is often believed to be suffering from ADHD, as opposed to suffering from, say, childhood (Williams). Recent reports suggest a trend of increasing prevalence of psychotropic drug prescriptions among children with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD); however, reasons for increased use of medications is unclear (Guevara).Through my research I also found that children as young as the age of two are being placed on these medications. So now the â€Å"terrible two’s† is being replaced with â€Å"children with behavioral problems. † The rest of my report will focus on statistics, short and long-term effects, and alternatives. I will also go over the history of the use of drugs to control children’s behavior. A Brief History â€Å"Werry (1999) noted that the use of drugs to control children’s behavior is an old practice.From the use of brandy to soothe infants to other sedating drugs such as barbi turates and opiates, children have been administered psychotropic agents as long as such agents have existed; however, research on such practices dates only to the early 20th century† (Ingersoll). Methodology My methodology was mostly research though Academic Search Complete. I researched articles on statistics, procedures, diagnoses, and individual stories of real life people who have dealt with these drugs and ADHD. I also researched drug free alternatives to controlling ADHD or Hyperactivity in children. Results of Study 1.Studies show that it is estimated that between 6 million and 8 million children have been prescribed Ritalin to treat the still scientifically unproven â€Å"mental illness† called ADHD. â€Å"This widespread doping in turn has increased concern that that school age children are being drugged to control their behavior† (O'Meara, Hyper-Drugging of Active Kids). I also found in my research that in 1985, there was an astonishing 500,000 cases. Not even five years later that number jumped to 7,000,000. â€Å"According to The Times, in the year 2000 close to 20 million prescriptions were written for ADD medicines like Ritalin† (Null, 2001).Today, one in every thirty between the ages of 5 and 19 has a prescription of Ritalin. Believe it or not, the number of prescribed toddlers between ages 2 and 4 has doubled or even tripled since 1991. They have now replaced the â€Å"terrible two’s† with â€Å"children with behavioral problems. † It is between the ages of 2 through 4 that the human brain goes through major maturing and developing stages. To have these children this young on these psychotropic drugs should bother any rational thinking parents, teachers, and doctors. 2. Unfortunately, if you think the statistics are bad, the side effects are catastrophic.Through my studies I found that these side effects include decreased appetit, insomnia, anxiousness or fearfulness, irritability, decreased spon taneity, depression, headaches, stomach aches, tics (e. g. , twitches, jerks, blinks, and squints), skin rash, embarrassment, psychosis, and even fatal overdoses. They are also an early training into drug addiction. Looking then at the risk of abuse potential for stimulants later in life, Fone and Nutt state that â€Å"†¦the oral, rather than the intravenous, route of administration of methylphenidate limits abuse potential owing to lower bioavailability and increased (first-pass) metabolism† (Leonard).So the question posed is why parents would and schools want to take the risks of these medications with their children? 3. Studies show that there is no actual diagnosis for ADHD. Fred Baughman, a child neurologist, researcher and staunch critic of ADHD diagnoses, tells Insight, â€Å"It is my duty as a doctor to know whether patients have a disease and whether previously rendered diagnoses, such as ADHD, are proven diseases. I have been unable to validate or demonstrate a disease or objective physical abnormality in children said to have ADHD.Finding no objective physical abnormality, including a chemical one, means they have no disease; they are physically, medically and neurologically normal† (O'Meara, Hyper-Drugging of Active Kids) Fig 1: Percentage of children who did and did not have ADHD and received pharmacy fills for nonstimulant psychotropic medications. All categories of medications between children who did and did not have ADHD were statistically significant (P < . 001) by ? [sup2] test. The probability of nonstimulant use by category of neurobehavioral disorder was estimated (Table 3).Among children of the same category of age, gender, mental health service use, and non-ADHD disorder, children who were identified as having ADHD were more likely to receive TCAs (adjusted OR: 12. 4; 95% CI: 7. 6-20. 3), SSRIs (adjusted OR: 4. 3; 95% CI: 2. 7-6. 9), and [alpha] adrenergic agonists (adjusted OR: 32. 0; 95% CI: 17. 3-59. 4) than wer e children who did not have ADHD. Similarly, children who had internalizing disorders were more likely to receive TCAs (adjusted OR: 25. 3; 95% CI: 6. 1-104. ) and SSRIs (adjusted OR: 75. 2; 95% CI: 26. 7-211. 7) than were children who did not have internalizing disorders. Children who had tic disorders were more likely to receive [alpha] adrenergic agonists (adjusted OR: 215. 2; 95% CI: 21. 5-2157. 9) [ (Guevara) ]. Implications of Results After researching the use of the psychotropic drugs in children, it is clear that it is not safe. Parents, counselors, and social workers need to research and come together to find safe alternatives to dealing with their â€Å"active† children.The studies have proven the dangers of these medications and the guidelines for the ability to prescribe such medications. Conclusion & Recommendations * I would recommend that the Child Advocacy Center and social workers take more time figuring out the real psychological problems of these childr en and deal with them more through counseling and mentoring. A lot of these children’s problems or neediness comes from unstable homes and busy parents who don’t take the time to spend extra time with their children. These children are just simply reaching out for attention and love.They act out as a way to get attention not realizing that the attention they are receiving because of it is bad attention. This is not their fault; after all they are just children. It is us parents, teachers, counselors and social workers who must teach them the differences between good attention and bad attention. And them as children should not have to fight, beg, or act out for attention. I would also recommend that the parents get their children more involved in extra-curricular activities so that they can release some the energy naturally and gain confidence.A change in diet could also work, less sugar and more health foods. I also believe that the parents should spend more time with their children so that their children can gain the feeling of self worthiness and respect. One last recommendation I would like to point out is that the courts and higher authority get more involved in such cases and put a limitation to the prescribing of these harmful drugs and to the ages to which they are prescribed. * This study clearly shows how unhealthy it can be to put your child on these psychotropic drugs.With a little more effort as a society we can raise our children to be national leaders and teach them how to thrive for success. Sedating active children is absolutely not the answer. This study also clearly shows that there needs to be a more legit FDA approved way to diagnose ADHD and to prescribe medications is there is such a disease. With technology today it should be easy for scientists to come up with some sort of brain scan or blood check to determine such cases.We as adults must take into consideration that these children who are being highly medicated at such y oung ages, are going to be the children who take care of us as elders. What will the future be to us and to them once they become our doctors, nurses, bankers, etc? What will our future hold for us if we don’t fix the problems at hand now and stop drugging our children? We must let them be children and stop sedating them because we are too busy or too lazy to let them be children. Appendix:Works Cited Guevara, James. Psychotropic Medication Use in a Population of Children Who Have Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder. † (2002): 1. Leonard, Henrietta L. , M. D. â€Å"Child & Adolescent Psychopharmacology UPDATE. † Stimulants, Development and Substance Abuse 7. 5 (2005): 3. Null, Gary. â€Å"The Drugging of Our Children. † (2001). O'Meara, Kelly Patricia. â€Å"Hyper-Drugging of Active Kids. † Insight on the News (2001): 1-3. Plasker, Eric H. â€Å"Today's Chiropractic. † (1997): 1-5. Williams, Armstrong. â€Å"The Drugging of America. † New York Amsterdam News (2004): 1-2.

Book Review on The Autobiography of Malcolm X

Book Review on The Autobiography of Malcolm X Free Online Research Papers America has a very terrible history starting with the slave trade in the 1600’s. From then until the ratification of the thirteenth amendment in 1865 slaves were legal, and even after that until the 1960’s racial discrimination was prevalent in the United States. Malcolm X was an African American and dealt with the trials or racism. After enduring through difficult parts in his life, he found the Nation of Islam and became a devout follower and preacher of the Nation. The Autobiogrophy of Malcolm X was told by Malcolm X to Alex Haley. Haley was an African American born in Ithaca New York, and worked for the United States Coast Guard for twenty years. There, he taught himself to write stories. After his time at the Coast Guard he eventually became senior editor for Reader’s Digest. He also conducted interviews for Playboy and co wrote The Autobiography of Malcolm X. He also wrote Roots: The Saga of an American Family, which was published in 1975. k The Autobiogrophy of Malcolm X is a chronological autobiography telling the story of Malcolm X’s life. It starts with his childhood in Lansing Michigan, where his family was persecuted by the Ku Klux Klan because his father, Reverand Earl Little, was a preaching black power. Eventually, Reverend Little was murdered by the Klan; he was beaten and run over by a train. The life insurance company wouldn’t pay Louise Little, his wife and Malcolm’s mother, because she couldn’t prove that Mr. Little’s death wasn’t suicide. Left impoverished and with five children to feed, Louise slowly lost her sanity as she worked herself to the bone to provide for her family. Growing up in this troubled household, Malcolm was an ill-behaved child and was taken away from his family by the state Welfare. While at school, Malcolm told his teacher, Mr. Ostrowski, that he wanted to be a lawyer. Mr. Ostrowski’s response was this: â€Å"A lawyer- tha’s no realistic goal for a nigger. You need to think about something you can be. You’re good with your hands- making things. Everybody admires your carpentry shop work. Why don’t you plan on carpentry? People like you as a person- you’d get all kinds of work†(38). This was the first time that Malcolm was directly discouraged for doing what he wanted to do because he was black. This led him to notice more and more that people treated him differently because of his skin color, and this angered him. During this time he was writing to his step sister, Ellen, in Boston, and she invited him to live with her. While in Boston, Malcolm became drawn to â€Å"The sharp-dressed young ‘cats’ who hung on the corners and in the poolrooms, bars and restaurants, and who obviously didn’t work anywhere†(45). He later became one of these â€Å"cats† himself, getting his hair â€Å"conked† and becoming a very successful hustler. He moved to Harlem in New York City and became an even bigger hustler. He also became addicted to drugs, alcohol, and hustling. He moved back to Boston and started robbing houses and apartments. Eventually, he was caught by the police and sent to jail. Malcolm X was in jail for eight years. When first go there he was nicknamed â€Å"Satan† because of his anger and hate toward himself, God, and the Bible. The first person in prison that made a positive impact on Malcolm was another inmate named Bimbi. Whenever Bimbi talked everyone would listen, even the white guards; this was what fascinated Malcolm about Bimbi. Malcolm said, â€Å"Out of the blue one day, Bimbi told me flatly, as was his way, that I had some brains, if I’d use them. He told me I should take advantage of the prison correspondence courses and the library† (157). When Malcolm started reading, he learned about topics like history, philosophy, and religion that he never thought about when he was a hustler. Around this time his brother, Reginald went to visit Malcolm in prison. Reginald taught Malcolm about the Nation of Islam. When Malcolm began thinking about what Reginald was telling him, he realized that the teachings of the Nation were right a nd that the â€Å"white devil† caused all the strife in his life. Malcolm then began writing to Mr. Elijah Mohammed, the prophet that started the Nation of Islam. Mr. Mohammed wrote back and they exchanged letters often. Malcolm began his conversion to Islam and when he left jail he became a devout follower of Mr. Mohammed and the Nation of Islam. He worked hard for the Nation for twelve years, until he was suspended and finally exiled. Before he was officially exiled, Malcolm, since conversion Malcolm X, went on his hajj to Mecca. There for the first time he was treated as an equal by other Muslims and came to befriend â€Å"white devils†. When he got back to the United States, he started preaching his new-found knowledge, but people didn’t trust him because of his falling out with the Nation of Islam and his sudden, hypocritical-seeming conversion of faith. This book is important because it describes the views of one of the most important figures during the civil rights movement and in the history of America. It tells Malcolm X’s life story in a very factual and forthright manner; he doesn’t try to justify his time as a hustler, and he expresses his views to the point. This book isn’t an argument to join the Nation of Islam, it is telling how the Islam helped Malcolm and how strongly Malcolm believes in it. Malcolm X does show extreme prejudice against the white man. Despite this, I don’t think it marrs the value of the book, in fact I think it adds to the value of the book. Malcolm X describes to us the things he went through because of white people’s racism, and why he believes so devoutly in the Nation of Islam. He has evidence and facts to support his ideas and beliefs, which is why, as a reader, I didn’t dismiss him as an angry black man; instead I paid attention to what he was saying, even though I might not believe them myself. For example, when Mr. Mohammed is spreading the beliefs of the Nation of Islam, he says: â€Å"The ignorance we of the black race here in America have, and the self-hatred we have, they are fine examples of what the white slavemaster has seen fit to teach to us. Do we show the plain common sense, like every other people on this planet Earth, to unite among ourselves? No! We are humbling ourselves, sitting-in, and begging-in, trying to unite with the slavemaster! I don’t seem to be able to imagine any more ridiculous sight. A thousand ways every day, the white man is telling you ‘you can’t live here, you can’t enter here, you can’t eat here, drink here, walk here, work here, you can’t ride, here you can’t play here, you can’t study here.’ Haven’t we yet seen enough to see that he has no plan to unite with you? â€Å"You have tilled his fields! Cooked his food! Washed his clothes! In many cases, you have been far and away better Christians than this slavemaster who taught you Christianity! â€Å"†¦this Christian American white man has not got it in him to ding the human decency, and enough sense of justice, to recognize us, and accept us, the black people who have done so much for him as fellow human beings!† I think this is a very powerful part of what the Nation of Islam taught. When you think about the history of America and racism from their point of view, they make total sense and are in the right. I think Alex Haley did a very good job putting this book together; I felt like it was really Malcolm X who wrote this book. I think Haley’s story telling abilities really played an important role in writing this book; before I started reading I expected it to be boring, but this book read like a novel instead of an autobiography. This book is valuable to everyone interested in influential people, the history of America, and even religion. I have learned so much about all of these topics by reading The Autobiography of Malcolm X. I have learned that some of the greatest leaders come from the lowliest backgrounds, that the history of this great and free nation has four hundred years of bondage in its history, that Islam isn’t the religion the media is brainwashing America to be afraid of; in fact it is a very loving and brotherly religion that accepts anyone and everyone. This book has current and permanent interest because it tells the story of a very important man in the history of America no more than fifty years ago, and it tells history of America that people will be educated about in generations to come. Bibliography Alex Haley. 19 Jan. 2008. Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. 7 Feb. 2008 . Haley, Alex. Autobiography of Malcolm X. New York: Broadway Books, 1998. Research Papers on Book Review on The Autobiography of Malcolm X19 Century Society: A Deeply Divided EraHip-Hop is ArtWhere Wild and West MeetThe Effects of Illegal ImmigrationTrailblazing by Eric AndersonThe Masque of the Red Death Room meaningsCapital PunishmentEffects of Television Violence on ChildrenComparison: Letter from Birmingham and CritoPersonal Experience with Teen Pregnancy