ShantanuT01/DACTYL-Pretraining huggingface dataset:
Introduction The concept of America’s consumer culture builds upon the belief of many Americans that the buyer defines herself through the things that she buys while the things that she buys helps to shape and determine what will be made available in the future. This leads to the idea that the perceived built world that we live in has become more real to us as consumers than the actual real world that exists outside of our created spaces. Essentially, the term consumerism is used to refer to a general belief that the purchase of products will lead inevitably to a sense of happiness and fulfillment in life. According to Kanner, “It’s the meta-message that you can solve all of life’s problems by purchasing the right products” (Kersting, 2004). It is a concept that remains ingrained in society based on individual needs for belonging combined with deliberate reinforcement on the part of advertisers and designers. Because purchases are made on perceived correctness for the prescribed “perfect” life displayed in the media, which has replaced individual social circles as the measure by which one is judged, individual identities are subjugated to the common ideal and little thought is given to what is required to fit the likes and dislikes of the individual’s actual personality and interests. When these products don’t serve to satisfy their cravings for fulfillment, those subscribing to the consumer culture run out to purchase more items they’ve seen on television rather than searching their personalities for what is important to them. “’Objects are now carrying the status weight that blood and religion and pigment used to carry.’ Which is to say that Americans not only ‘buy up’ but wear their wealth on their sleeve — or chest … labels no longer hid discreetly inside the collar. Today, Tommy Hilfiger’s prized name can take up most of the shirt” (Kulman, 2004). When a consumer begins to perceive this failing and starts falling out of the perceived ‘norm’, they are brought back into the fold with carefully contrived media blitzes targeted to their variant group. The purpose of this paper is to examine the various elements of America’s consumer culture, including how it affects the way we work, play and view the world around us. The problem of time Whether it occurs in the world of shopping or in the world of maintaining all the systems that make shopping possible, a necessary evil is the concept of work. Someone must be there to man the store, someone else to ship the products, someone available to produce those products and someone to purchase them. Without work, the enti
The central point of Barry Truax’s acoustic study is the “acoustic community”. Truax defines it as “any soundscape in which acoustic information plays a pervasive role in the lives of the inhabitants…it is any system within which acoustic information is exchanged.” (Truax, 65 – 66) Drawing from this expanded and specific definition, acoustic communities can be groups of people working together in one office, students that study in a classroom or live in a dormitory or even whole villages and towns where the acoustic environment is the same for all their inhabitants. On the basis of the above-presented definition of the acoustic community, I can state that I have also been a member of such a community. Once, I had an opportunity to rent a flat in a multi-story house where I had many neighbors. I am convinced that this experience of mine can be called living in an acoustic community because, according to Truax (2000), acoustic information played a pervasive role in the lives of all inhabitants and participated in the information exchange. The sounds that were typical of that acoustic community ranged from the quarrels of neighboring families to announcements made for all the inhabitants regarding the need to pay the rent or carry out some repair works in the house’s gas supply system, etc. The keynotes, signals and sound marks were essential for creating the community, as acoustic information present in it was not always relevant for all its members and was considered to be noise by those who did not relate to it directly. Thus, the acoustic community was functional because all its members could obtain useful information from the acoustic environment; at the same time, it was unbalanced as acoustic information was not always relevant to the needs of all the community members. Works Cited Truax, Barry. Acoustic Communication (Second Edition). Ablex Publishing, 2000.
Types of Innovation Fetchr represents a disruptive innovation for both merchants and consumers in the transport and logistics industry. The company’s objective is to serve the demands of last-mile delivery services in the United Arab Emirates market while enhancing the growth of e-commerce through the improvement of service delivery. Fetchr is a disruptive technology since it has moved steadily to deliver performance that satisfies the needs of both low- and high-end customers, hence threatning the existence of established firms. Gemici and Alpkan (2015) hold that disruptive technology focuses on neglected markets and strives to create, deliver, and offer value for marginalized consumer segments. Fetchr is a disruptive business because it exploits the market neglected by traditional industry merchants by effectively addressing the errand needs of the low-end consumers. The company disrupted the established traditional forms of logistic processes, which utilized physical addresses in serving high-end consumers by focusing indoor and customized location package-delivery services. Christenson (2015) describes the characteristics of disruptive innovations that support Fetchr performance metrics, which include a venture into non-attractive market areas, adoption of technological advancement, and exploitation of lower margin business opportunities to destabilize incumbents. Fetchr focused on exploiting non-attractive markets to satisfy the needs of the low-end consumers with a focus on low pricing policy. This mark
Summary of the Article The article under consideration is called The Organization of everyday living space and is written by Thomas Sieverts. In the paper, the author reveals the problems of the rapid development of the globalization process where cities are acquiring the status of conurbations that are connected by a number of routes. In other words, city networks represent current cities with the communities that are attached to their towns and with individuals searching for their own goals having no interest in their cities. Hence, Sievert gives his own interpretation of Zwischenstadt, the co-called “the in-between city”. At the beginning of the article, the author considers the main trait of this phenomenon diving Zwishenstadt into opposite definitions: a city with a well-organized system and as an intermediary between the cities are a kind of living space of “agora” (Sieverts, 69). The researcher accentuates that both notions are the results of constant changes in society and its evolution. Thus, the former concept refers to the process of globalization whereas the latter means the cultural space for living where people often witness the confrontation of minds and traditions. Here, Sieverts identifies the Zwishenstadt with Touraine, an area in France that could be referred to as neither a city nor a certain region since it does not have a cultural and social entity. Regarding that, it is better to consider it as a spatial organization of societal structure since such regions lack centrality (Sieverts, 71). Analyzing such c
Abstract Life sciences are an essential part of the Montessori classroom. It is important to develop children’s connection to nature and understanding of the world around them. Botany and zoology areas are useful for this development. They represent living objects and their connection to each other and to humans. Such activities as repetition, sequencing, sensorial experience, and others could enhance children’s knowledge and inclination to the learning of nature. The role of adults is especially important in areas of preparation and material presentation. The teacher should increase kids’ interest in botany and zoology and prevent possible mistakes in the process of learning. How Do the Botany and Zoology Areas Relate to the Other Curriculum Areas? Please Give Examples Typically, a Montessori classroom consists of five main learning areas: practical life, sensorial activities, languages, math, and culture. The area of culture is especially important for natural world discovery (Lillard, 2016). On Earth, all living and non-living objects create a global ecosystem. Therefore, it is impossible to study botany and zoology with no relation to other Natural Science areas, in particular, to geography, chemistry, physics, and astronomy. On the one hand, plants and animals change their surroundings and have an impact on the relief and available sources. On the other hand, the environment determines the conditions in which organisms live. It is the connection to Geography. Life itself depends on chemical reactions within living cells. Therefore, without knowledge of chemistry, it is impossible to learn the physiology of plants and animals. Living organisms also depend on physical characteristics of the environment such as temperature, light intensity, mechanical pressure, radiation level, and others. Finally, no life is possible without the Sun. Understanding the relationship between our planet, the Sun, and other sky objects are important. All life sciences require math calculations to provide studies and to find and prove regularities. Therefore, math is highly essential for understanding the laws of botany and zoology. Please Define the Sensorial Experience in the Botany and Zoology Areas and Give Examples. Sensorial experience in botany and zoology areas is the process of gathering information about living objects using humans’ senses. According to Rathunde (2013), a sensorial experience is a basis for abstract thinking development. Natural sciences are an especially important resource of children’s sensorial experience. Botany and zoology areas provid
Introduction Over the past fifty years, there has been a dramatic rise in colorectal cancer cases. Several risk factors have thus far been proposed as being responsible for the dramatic rise in colorectal cancer incidences. They include obesity, adoption of a westernized diet, and lack of physical activity. Based on past studies, colorectal cancer is ranked as the third most common type of cancer (Pericleous, Mandair, and Caplin 2013). Studies also indicate that nutrition could be responsible for over a third of all cancer deaths. At the same time, dietary factors are believed to be responsible for between 70 and 90 percent of all colorectal cancer cases. What this appears to suggest is that we could dramatically minimize incidences of colorectal cancer through diet optimization. Dietary approach to colon cancer A meta-analytical assessment to determine the link between sufficient consumption of folate and reduced risk of colorectal cancer revealed a stronger correlation between reduced colorectal cancer and folate consumption (Sanjoaquin, Allen, Couto, Roddam and Key 828). The study conclusion was that sufficient consumption of folate reduced the risk of colorectal cancer. These research findings appear to support the hypothesis that the presence of folate in the diet is linked to the risk factor for colon cancer. Despite the positive relationship, a separate study conducted to explore the link between colorectal cancer and dietary fiber has shown an inverse relationship between colorectal cancer risk and intake of dietary fiber (Dahm, Keogh and Spencer 2010) Many case-control studies have demonstrated an association between increased cases of colorectal cancer and increased consumption of red meat (Pericleous et al. 2013). However, other studies have failed to find such an association in their study. For instance, increased consumption of red meat like pork, lamb, or beef was linked to an enhanced risk of colorectal cancer among women and men (Goldbohm, van den Brandt, van Veer, Dorant, Sturmans and Hermus 1994). Moreover, people who consumed red meat more than five times per week were three times more likely to develop colon cancer. Therefore, there is a direct link between the consumption of red meat and colon cancer (Goldbohm et al. 1994). As the intake of total energy (fat) increases, so does the risk of developing colorectal cancer. This has been documented by several case-control studies that have been carried out to explore the phenomena (Satia-About, Galanko, and Potter 2013). It is important to note that dietary lipids are a rich source of energy and as such, a diet rich in lipids, and more so animal fat, have been shown to increase the risk of developing colorectal cancer (Bandaru 2000). On the other hand, an association between dietary lipids and the development of colon cancer has been discredited by some cohort studies (Sanjoaquin et al. 2005). Oth
No one can even imagine our life without music. For centuries it was an integral part of our everyday life, our traditions and culture. Listening to the charming sounds of nature, man could not help trying to reproduce it in order to enjoy music at any time. That was the reason for the first primitive musical instruments to appear. Since that time music and mankind were never torn apart. With the development of the society the instruments and the whole music changed. The mankind and music were always at the same stage of development. Starting with the mysterious melodies of the ancient cults and ending with the energetic military marches. Music follows humanity step by step, working its magic on it, showing its power. The ability of music to influence human consciousness was known from the earliest stages of development of the society. Relaxing and calming at the beginning, it can become energetic and aggressive just in a moment, causing great changes in your mood. “Without even thinking about it, we use music to create desired moods- to make us happy, to enjoy movement and dance, to energize, to bring back powerful memories, to help us relax and focus. Music is a powerful tool for our personal expression within our daily lives– it helps “set the scene” for many important experiences” (Brewer, n.d., para. 2). Music can even serve as a basis for peoples segregation, dividing them into the different social groups according to their preferences or abilities to understand a certain type of music. Nothing could create the appropriate atmosphere better than music. The church music can serve as an ideal example of it. Religions all over the world use the music in the rituals in order to maximize the influence on people and help them to achieve eupathy and humility. Nowadays, with an unrestricted access to the sources, music has conquered the world, sounding from everywhere, suggesting the great variety o
Introduction Aging is a compulsory process that occurs in all human beings with the progression of time. The process is marked with significant changes in various body structures and functions that diminish the effectiveness of aged people. This essay is an analysis of an interview conducted on an aged woman to assess the changes attributed to aging. The first part analyzes the interview and the responses provided by the woman including the variations in her body functions. The second part is a summary of the information available on the changes that occur in the integumentary system with age. The final part is a conclusion that harmonizes the information in the entire essay, providing a summary. Interview Summary The interviewee was a sixty-six-year-old woman who confirmed that she experienced increased facial hair growth and thinning of the hair on the head. She tried out different varieties of shampoos and hair food recommended to her by friends and hairstylists. About a month after noticing the above changes, the interviewee reported experiencing pains in both knee joints. She described the pain to be sharp, aggravated by movement are relieved by rest. The knee problem prompted her to consult a physician who diagnosed her with osteoarthritis. On mentioning the hair changes to the physician, the interviewee was informed the hair changes and the osteoarthritis was due to declining estrogen levels post-menopause. The physician initiated the interviewee on hormone replacement therapy, a combination of estrogen and progesterone, and diclofenac for knee pain. The interviewee affirmed she had made some diet modifications. She was keen on taking more foods rich in calcium and Vitamin D, such as dairy products and dark green leafy vegetables. In addition, she was exposing herself to sunlight more to promote Vitamin D synthesis. Another modification is consuming a high-fiber diet in the form of salads, fruits, and vegetables. Cognizant of lower caloric requirements at her age, she resolved to cut consumption of calorie-rich foods, foods high in cholesterol such as fries, and all forms of sugar. She advised the younger generation to enjoy their youth as it fades away fast. Aging is an inevitable fate of human existence. She advised the young to embrace aging as it comes. In particular, she advised the young to eat a healthy diet and avoid smoking and alcohol. The interviewee further advised the young th
Introduction Whether staying awake or asleep, our consciousness acts as a model of the world created by the brain from the best obtainable resources of data. During waking conditions, this model is gained primarily from sensory contribution, which offers the most current data about present situations, and secondarily from the background and motivational data. While people are sleeping, very little sensory effort as attainable, so the world model we experience is constructed from the associated data from the lives, that is, anticipations obtained from past experience, and incentives. Consequently, the content of our visions is mainly defined by what we fear, hope for, and anticipate. (Dennett, 1979) From this standpoint, dreaming can be regarded as the individual case of awareness without the restrictions of external sensory input. Equally, awareness can be regarded as the special case of dreaming restrained by sensory input. Whichever way it is regarded, understanding dreaming is key to realizing consciousness. Hypotheses of awareness that do not explain dreaming must be considered incomplete, and notions that are opposed by the findings of phenomenological and psychophysiological researches on dreaming must be incorrect. For instance, the behaviorist supposition that the brain is always awakened and only from the external by sense organ procedures cannot define daydreams; likewise, for the statement that consciousness is the straight or restricted product of sensory contribution. Dreaming as a Part of Consciousness Dreaming capability is generally regarded as qualitatively separate from waking experience. Dreams are often suggested to be featured by lack of indication and incapability to act intentionally. Nevertheless, this regard has not been grounded on equivalent dimensions of waking and dreaming state experiences. To attain correspondence, it is significant to evaluate waking knowledge with hindsight, in the same way as dreams are appraised. In one of the recent researches of this type, it was stated that contrasted to waking experiences, dreaming was more likely to enclose public self-realization and emotion, and less likely to entail deliberate selection. But it is distinguished that essential dissimilarities between dreaming and staying awake were not obvious for other cognitive activities, and none of the gauged cognitive actions were characteristically absent or rare in dreams. Especially, nearly equal levels of likeness were accounted for in both states. (Dennett, 1992) Although people are not explicitly aware of the fact to be dreaming while dreaming, sometimes extraordinary exception happens, and people become thoughtful enough to become mindful that people are dreaming. Throughout such “lucid” dreams it is possible to keep in mind the conditions of waking life, to think obviously, and to act intentionally upon indication or according to plans selected upon before sleep, all while practicing a dream world that seems brightly real. A sequence of researches to be abridged demonstrates that lucid visionaries are capable to remember the performance of prede
Patients diagnosed with insulin dependent diabetes need to be informed about the disease to enable them cope with its effects in their lives. For instance, patients require to be advised on possible causes of the disease to make sure that they understand what they might have lacked hence acquiring the disease. Teaching patients is aimed at ensuring that they accept their conditions hence being able to cooperate with medical practitioners throughout the treatment procedure. Cooperation is vital for any progress to be attained when dealing with patients (Bastable, 2003). This means that patients need to be counseled to accept that diseases occur normally, and they should not give up in life but rather focus on defeating the disease. This case is delicate because it involves patients of different genders and different ages. This makes it difficult to teach them at the same time because their understanding and reasoning tend to differ. This means that the ten years old girl should have separate teaching session from the thirty five year old man. This means that nurses should ensure that they handle each case separately in order to attain their set goals. For instance, the young girl may be taught with the aid of toys such as teddy bears to ensure that her attention is kept at maximum. According to jean Piaget’s theories, children should be handled with care due to their maturation nature which influences there understanding. He argues that children are not able to understand things in certain ways at certain points of their lives. Therefore, educators should make use of simplified method to ensure that children understand all what they are subjected to in their teachings. A mature man cannot tolerate scenarios where teddy bears are used to demonstrate to him anything. The man may feel ashamed hence quitting the teaching process. This ends up being un beneficial for both the patient and the nurses because no one achieves the expected goals. On the other hand, the girl can have difficulties in understanding what is written in pamphlet used to teach the old man. This means that age must be considered when designing methods of educating patients. Erikson’s theory of psychosocial development should be used to guide medics on teaching patients. This is because Erickson believed that egos can be developed under all means because even conflicts can act as turning points of events in developments. Medical practitioners should ensure that patients acquire competence as argued in Erickson’s theories that competence motivates people. In order to achieve teaching objectives, nurses must develop proper plans to ensure that they communicate with the patients effectively. This means that they should use strategies similar to those used in schools for the young girl. They can use toys used by girls such as teddy bears to help the girl understand how she should handle herself. In cases where the girl may be required to use insulin injectio