Consequences of China’s One Child Policy

HIST HP 264-002| Consequences of China’s One-Child Policy| | | In the mid 1950’s, China’s population grew rapidly under Mao Zedong. He felt that the only way for China to get back on its feet was to become industrialized and that China would need manpower for this industrialization. â€Å"Even if China's population multiplies many times, she is fully capable of finding a solution; the solution is production,† Mao Zedong proclaimed in 1949. â€Å"Of all things in the world, people are the most precious. † The population grew so dramatically that the country’s resources were becoming scarce. In 1979, just three years after Mao’s death, the â€Å"One-Child Policy† took effect. This law was implemented by Deng Xiaoping to curb the population growth. The original intent for this policy was economically based. There had been a great famine, in which many people lost their lives, and China wanted to prevent this from happening again. There was not enough suitable farmland to provide food for the entire population nor was there enough water. They wanted to reduce the demand for natural resources, maintain a steady labor rate, and reduce unemployment caused by surplus labor. China’s justification for this policy was based on their support of the Marxist theory of population growth. This policy has been called the largest population control effort in history. The policy is very controversial mainly due to the way enforcement has been carried out. While the policy itself has achieved its main goal, by preventing over 400 million births from 1979-2010, the long-term consequences for China will be great. The one-child policy has many regulations. China maintains that this a voluntary policy but the enforcement of the policy has proven otherwise. I will touch briefly on a few of the most important points of the policy. The policy states that both the husband and wife must both practice birth planning. Birth outside of marriage is not allowed. Couples are permitted to have one child. Late marriage and late births are encouraged. Couples who follow the policy and have only one child will be given a certificate to receive rewards and preferential treatment. Those who refuse to follow the policy and give birth to a second child will be fined from the month that the child is born. The wages or annual income of both husband and wife will be decreased by ten to twenty percent for seven years. Regarding pregnancy not adherent to the plan, both husband and wife will be imposed a fine monthly during the period of pregnancy. If the pregnancy is terminated, the fine imposed will be returned. China’s system in caring for the elderly after retirement is simple. The eldest son is generally responsible. In earlier days, this was not such a terrible burden. However, with China’s one-child policy, many families find themselves in quite a predicament when their one child is a girl. A girl is traditionally groomed to be married. When the time comes for her to marry, she leaves her family and becomes a part of her husband’s family. She then becomes responsible for helping her husband care for his aging parents. Thus, her own family will be left without support and care. Even in cases where the family’s only child is a son, the â€Å"4-2-1 Problem† is often created. There is an increased burden on the one child to provide for his aging parents and grandparents, in addition to his immediate family. (The 4-2-1 policy refers to 4 grandparents, 2 parents, and 1 child. If personal savings, pensions or state welfare fail and the single child cannot care for the older adult relatives, the older generations would face a lack of resources and necessities. This is just one possible consequence to China’s one-child policy. When mothers become pregnant for the first time, some manage to have an ultrasound to determine the sex of the baby. This is i llegal in China but still happen none-the-less. If the parents learn that this first child is a girl, it is sometimes aborted. This is due to China’s preference of boys. There are many reasons that Chinese families prefer boys. One reason is an old religious link to Confucianism that prefers sons over daughters. Another reason is that a son is believed to be stronger and better able to help the family with farm work. Also, as I stated earlier, a son will support his parents in retirement and take care of them. A daughter would leave her family and become a part of her husband’s family. Sex-selective abortions are leading to a decline in the female population, which will also have long-term consequences as well. In China, boys are considered to be so important culturally, that a family is looked down on if they do not produce a boy. Therefore, having a boy is a source of great pride for a family. As if they can control their baby’s gender, wives are often threatened to be sent back home to their own families if they cannot produce a boy. When a woman is sent back to her own family, it is considered to be very shameful for both she and her family. Also, she would now be seen as a burden to her own family. They would have another mouth to feed and would have to support her as well. This would create further hardships for her family. Another consequence is the danger associated with enforcing the policy. In the early years of the policy, there were drastic measures taken to ensure that the policy was enforced. Population control workers were hired to enforce the policy strictly. Forced abortions were common amongst these enforcement procedures. Portable ultrasound devices were used to identify candidates who were carrying second children in remote villages. Some mothers who were eight and a half months pregnant were forced to abort their babies. This was often carried out by injecting a saline solution directly into the mother’s stomach. If mothers did not go to the clinic willingly to have the abortions, they were dragged there by force. There have even been reports of mothers who were already nine months pregnant, and in labor, having their babies killed while they were still in the birth canal. This not only harms the unborn child but also puts the mother’s health at risk with the possibility of hemorrhaging, infection, or even death. After these forced abortions, these mothers were subjected to forced sterilization as well. This means that if the government ever changes their mind and retracts the policy, these mothers will have no chance of having another child. Often, a mother becomes pregnant with a second child and manages to keep it a secret from the authorities for fear of forced abortions. If the family is wealthy, they are sometimes allowed to keep the baby if they pay large monetary fines to the government. The amounts of the fines are based on the statistics of the particular area where they are located. They can also have their houses and land taken away as a penalty. They can be denied bonuses at work or may lose their jobs altogether. Parents with more than one child are not given the same benefits as parents of only one child. They must pay for both children to go to school and pay for the entire family’s healthcare. Most families are not able to pay these fines nor are they able to survive without the significant benefits that are normally provided. This leads to families living in poverty and even death due to starvation or lack of proper healthcare. Another consequence of China’s one-child policy is the rate of female infanticide. Parents often panic when their baby is a girl and either kill the baby themselves or abandon the baby. Babies are abandoned in many ways. Sometimes they are taken to remote places and left to die. Other times they are left in public places, with or without notes, so that they can be found and taken to an orphanage. If the child is not found immediately, they can often be malnourished or in poor health when arriving at an orphanage. When this is the case, and a baby is beyond help, some Chinese orphanages have what are called â€Å"dying rooms†. These rooms are horrific. Babies are strapped to a chair with a hole in the seat that collects the baby’s waste. The babies in these rooms are left there, with no nourishment or care, to die. In the cases where the babies are abandoned and someone finds them rather quickly, they are taken to an orphanage to be cared for or are sent to a foster family. The lucky children are adopted internationally. Others can spend their whole lives in the orphanage. In China there are around 1,000 orphanages. Only 250 of those will send children out of the country to be adopted. Officially registered adoptions increased from 2,000 in 1992 to 55,000 in 2001. Many more were adopted informally without registration. In 2005, around 7,900 children were adopted into the United States. In reality, only about 5% of children in Chinese orphanages are adopted at all. Many babies put up for adoption have not been abandoned by their parents but confiscated by family planning officials. The one-child policy has also had a negative effect on the children legally born to couples. Parents tend to over indulge these children. This epidemic has created the name â€Å"little emperors† for these children and the condition created is being called â€Å"little emperor syndrome†. These children are spoiled. Because there was once a great famine in China, the parents want to give these children what they were deprived of. They want to ensure that they have plenty to eat and overindulge them. The children have become fat. There is now an initiative in China to stop obesity in children. There are clinics where parents and children are educated about healthy eating and exercise. Some children are even receiving acupuncture to curb their appetites. The fact that children are becoming overweight is not the only problem with the â€Å"little emperors†. They also suffer from poor social communication, poor cooperation skills and lack of self-discipline. They often struggle with strong personality disorders. In March 2007, the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) called on the Chinese government to abolish the one-child rule. Ye Tingfang, a sponsor of the proposal, argues that â€Å"It is not healthy for children to play only with their parents and be spoiled by them. The one-child limit is too extreme. Children in our country may not even be blessed to have cousins which is a serious handicap to their nature and may lead to personality flaws. It violates nature’s law and in the long run, this will lead to Mother Nature’s revenge. Because of the one-child policy, families who desperately want to have a second child often take on a foster child. This can temporarily fill a void of desire for more children. These families become very attached to the babies that they care for and love them just as if they were their own. When these babies are adopted, the foster parents are devastated and become deeply depressed and are forced to cope with the los s. This emotional strain is equally felt by the birth parents, who were forced to either abandon the baby or surrender it by force, as well as the foster parents who have cared for the infant. The one-child policy has affected the population significantly. In some areas, there has been a negative population growth. This means that the deaths of a region have outweighed the births. Also, the Chinese population is aging. This is when the median age of a country or region rises. The elders are now becoming greater than the younger generation. This will surely pose a tough strain on the younger generation to care for their older family members with no help from siblings. Another potential problem will arise as the preferred boys reach the age to marry and procreate. There will be a major shortage of women to fulfill the need. In recent studies, the ratio of men to women is 117:100. It is estimated that in the year 2020, there will be 40 million more men than women. This will have extreme consequences. These consequences include social instability, courtship motivated emigration, and forced marriages. Another tragic consequence is prostitution which can also lead to a rise in human immunodeficiency virus infection and other sexually transmitted diseases. Already there has been a problem with abduction of women. Women are being kidnapped and sold to men in other provinces. They are being raped and treated badly. If they try to scape, they are beaten severely. This are all consequences of the gender imbalance created as a result of China’s one-child policy. There have been a few exceptions made to the policy over the years. In rural areas, parents can apply to have a second child if the first is a girl. Other circumstances that would allow consideration for a second child would be if the first child s uffers from a physical disability, mental illness or mental retardation. When this special permission is granted, the parents are subject to birth spacing. This means that the parents must wait a specific amount of time before having the second child. This time period is generally from three to five years. Exceptions have also been made if both parents are only children. This would relieve the burden of the â€Å"4-2-1 problem† on just one child. Special considerations have also been made when the father is a disabled serviceman who will not be able to care for his own aging parents. Official permission is sometimes granted in cases such as the 2008 Sichuan earthquake, where children perished and in other cases where the child is deceased. Finally, there are exceptions made in affirmative action cases such as with Han Chinese who are considered to be minorities. Although the one child policy seems like an extremely harsh and controversial method of controlling the population, it isn’t as harsh as it may seem at first. It depends on which area of the country you live in as to how much it affects you. In some areas which have a low population, the policy is somewhat lenient, whereas in Sichuan, the policy is strictly adhered to in both rural and urban areas because it is overpopulated. As nearly 50% of China’s population live in the countryside, many are permitted to have two children because for the majority of places, the policy is more strictly enforced in urban areas. Typically, the power of enforcement is given at the provincial level. In March of 2011, the policy was reviewed by the Chinese government. Some officials expressed the need for consideration to allow couples to have a second child. The government announced that the policy will remain unchanged through at least 2015. China’s one-child policy has had many benefits. It has greatly reduced the severity of some major problems that come with overpopulation such as epidemics and slums. It has also helped out the issues with overwhelmed social services such as healthcare, education and law enforcement. The policy has helped reduce China’s ecological footprint by decreasing the abuse of fertile land and reduced the production of high volumes of waste. It has, in recent years, provided better health service for women. There has been a reduction in the risks of death and injury in pregnancy and women receive free contraception and prenatal classes. China in recent years, for the most part, has maintained a steady labor rate with reduced unemployment. With families having to spend less money on multiple children, they have more to invest for retirement. Finally, with fewer children, women can invest more time in their careers, increasing their personal income. With all of the benefits that have come from the policy, sometimes all the money and material possessions in the world cannot compare to the love of a child and the freedom to choose how large your family can be. In conclusion, China’s one-child policy was a drastic measure taken over thirty years ago to control a growing population problem. While it has succeeded in lowering the population and improving the economic situation, the long-term emotional and physical effects felt by families will continue to be unbearable for generations. Losing a child due to natural causes is hard enough but being forced into abortion, sterilization and abandonment has to be so much worse. BIBLIOGRAPHY Fitzpatrick, Laura. â€Å"China’s One-Child Policy,† Time, posted July 27, 2009, http://www. time. com/time/world/article (accessed April 9, 2011). Buckley Ebrey, Patricia. Chinese Civilization: A Sourcebook. 2nd ed. (New York: The Free Press, 1993), 478-481. Hesketh, Therese, Ph. D. â€Å"The Effect of China’s One-Child Policy after 25 Years,† The New England Journal of Medicine 353, no. 11 (2005): 1171-1176. Lost Girls. DVD, directed by David Royle (2005; Washington, DC: National Geographic, 2005). Phillips, Michelle. â€Å"Women forced to abort under China’s one-child policy,† The Washington Times, posted June 2, 2010, http://www. washingtontimes. com/news/2010/jun/2 (accessed April 9, 2011). Mosher, Steven W. â€Å"A Mother’s Ordeal: One Woman’s Fight Against China’s One Child Policy,† (MN: Park Press, Inc. , 1993), 56-60. Hays, Jeffrey. â€Å"One-Child Policy in China,† http://factsanddetails. com/china. php (accessed April 9, 2011). Scott, Joan. â€Å"Child Adoption in Contemporary Rural China,† Journal of Family Issues, March 27, 2006: 301-340. Consultative Conference: â€Å"The government must end the one-child rule,† AsiaNewsit. com, March 16, 2007 (accessed April 9, 2011). Sina English, â€Å"Advisors say it’s time to change one-child policy,† Shanghai Daily, March 15, 2007. http://english. sina. com/china/1/2007/0315/ (accessed April 9, 2011). ——————————————– [ 1 ]. Laura Fitzpatrick, â€Å"China’s One-Child Policy,† Time, posted July 27, 2009, http://www. time. com/time/world/article (accessed April 9, 2011). [ 2 ]. Patricia Buckley Ebrey, Chinese Civilization: A Sourcebook. 2nd ed. (New York: The Free Press, 1993), 478-481. 3 ]. Therese Hesketh, Ph. D, â€Å"The Effect of China’s One-Child Policy after 25 Years,† The New England Journal of Medicine 353, no. 11 (2005): 1171-1176. [ 4 ]. Steven W. Mosher, â€Å"A Mother’s Ordeal: One Woman’s Fight Agains t China’s One Child Policy,† (MN: Park Press, Inc. , 1993), 56-60. [ 5 ]. Lost Girls. DVD, directed by David Royle (2005; Washington, DC: National Geographic, 2005). [ 6 ]. Michelle Phillips, â€Å"Women forced to abort under China’s one-child policy,† The Washington Times, posted June 2, 2010, http://www. washingtontimes. com/news/2010/jun/2 (accessed April 9, 2011). 7 ]. Jeffrey Hays, â€Å"One-Child Policy in China,† http://factsanddetails. com/china. php (accessed April 9, 2011). [ 8 ]. Patricia Buckley Ebrey, Chinese Civilization: A Sourcebook. 2nd ed. (New York: The Free Press, 1993), 478-481. [ 9 ]. Lost Girls. DVD, directed by David Royle (2005; Washington, DC: National Geographic, 2005). [ 10 ]. Joan Scott, â€Å"Child Adoption in Contemporary Rural China,† Journal of Family Issues, March 27, 2006: 301-340. [ 11 ]. Consultative Conference: â€Å"The government must end the one-child rule,† AsiaNewsit. com, March 16, 2007 (acce ssed April 9, 2011). [ 12 ]. Sina English, â€Å"Advisors say it’s time to change one-child policy,† Shanghai Daily, March 15, 2007. http://english. sina. com/china/1/2007/0315/ (accessed April 9, 2011). [ 13 ]. Lost Girls. DVD, directed by David Royle (2005; Washington, DC: National Geographic, 2005). [ 14 ]. Therese Hesketh, Ph. D, â€Å"The Effect of China’s One-Child Policy after 25 Years,† The New England Journal of Medicine 353, no. 11 (2005): 1171-1176. [ 15 ]. Lost Girls. DVD, directed by David Royle (2005; Washington, DC: National Geographic, 2005). [ 16 ]. Patricia Buckley Ebrey, Chinese Civilization: A Sourcebook. 2nd ed. (New York: The Free Press, 1993), 478-481.

How far had Mussolini achieved his aims in domestic policy by 1939? Essay

In order to assess how Mussolini achieved his objective in domestic policy, one must traced back to the moment when he first became the prime minister in 1922. While the timeline is important to know, the central role of World War 1 must also be considered. The aftermath of World War 1 had ravaged Italy’s political situation the most, paving the way for Mussolini to appear and create a Fascism state as Italy was desperate for a saviour to rescue her, combined with Mussolini’s opportunistic and charismatic personalities, he had a high chance in achieving his domestic policies successfully. In his first year as prime minister, Musollini hold very limited power and not to say, he was leading a coalition government which the Fascist party represented the least membership in the parliament. Coalition government can be seen as undesirable and most of the parties would want to avoid it since it was an obstacle to achieve its aim. He therefore needed to alter this unfavourable circumstance decisively and carefully to take control of the parliament as a means to establish a totalitarian state which was the core in his domestic policy. In the totalitarian ideology basis, the supremacy over the individual rights of its citizens shouldn’t be questioned as the popular Fascism slogan stated, â€Å"Everything within the State, nothing against the State, nothing outside the State.†. This means liberalism was seen as the national enemy. In his domestic view, Mussolini saw that by having a liberal mind, people would soon voiced out their opinions and soon, his dictatorship would be in the stage of shattering. Moreover, this point serves as the basic foundation in the early years of totalitarianism in Italy as he needed to constraint the citizens’ mind before enforcing his totalitarianism rule. Mussolini also rekindled his relationship with the Roman Catholic Church as religion plays a significant role in the Italians’ daily life and also the world as the Vatican was the nucleus of the Christian world. Hence, he won major supports from the citizens and was able to prevent revolution for the time being. This successful domestic policy of his preceded his fascism dream state. In addition, we must consider the fact that the establishment Acerbo Law of 1923 by Mussolini provides as a tool to make way for the Fascist to control the parliament. Appropriately, Mussolini hold an election in 1924 to make his government more legal and also to ensure Fascist Party control in the parliament. Two thirds of the seats in parliament will be given to the party who won in the election and consequently, there was a sense of unfairness and discrimination in this case. The opposition party had every reason to be concerned as this will made the administration even more corrupted than before and illegitimate, however, Mussolini cleverly manipulated the whole situation for his own good. Mateotti crisis was a clear illustration of it that he managed to kill two birds in one stone. Besides crushing his main political opponent, he also used this incident to send as a warning to the other opposition parties if they went against the Fascist. This may explained why Aventine Secession soon followed. Even though Mussolini kept saying that he was not involved in the crime, most of the historians agreed that he actually was part of it. Since he wanted to create a fascism state, mostly his domestic policy may derived from his wish. Historians may see his domestic policy as harsh and unjust but it is effective in ceasing absolute power in the Italy’s parliament. Another significant piece of evidence to show how far did Mussolini achieved his domestic policy is the fact that Mussolini had intruded into the Italians’ daily life considerably. The press censorship stands as one of the key principle of totalitarian ideology and so, the Fascist implemented the complete monopoly of all means of communications. Again, this is to ensure the citizens won’t have the freedom of speech and have the chance to exercise their liberal mind. If the press media were to air, the materials must be related about the glory of Fascism. Not to say, Mussolini’s cult of personality was promoted even further as children in schools were taught to think that â€Å"Mussolini is always right† and his pictures were everywhere in Italy. People were also instructed to stand and salute at the mere moment of hearing Mussolini’s name. Ethically, Mussolini had changed people’s usual life especially the younger generation because their minds are easy to be brainwashed and they also held a massive influence in the Italy’s society that can shape Italy in the future. That is exactly what Mussolini was thinking about by implementing his unethical domestic policy. In some circumstances, it can be said as a success but only for a short period of time as Mussolini was overthrown in 1943. Thereby his domestic policy is successful, only to a certain extent in which he was able to manipulate the Italians’ life. In conclusion, to a large extent, Mussolini was successful in carrying out his domestic policy and he had carved his name as one of the most formidable politicians in Italy’s history. While Italy’s messy condition enables Mussolini to execute his domestic policy smoothly, his military background should also be considered. As he was a veteran of World War I, he knew how to appeal to the people as they just survived from the great war, strengthening their nationalism even more. Thereby, it is because of his pragmatic and manipulative approach as well as his personal life experience that enabled Mussolini to achieve his domestic policy successfully.

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Cultural constraints in management theories - Essay Example Despite their popularity, the validity and reliability of many of these models is easily questioned. Hosftede’s and Trompenaars’ dimensions of culture have far-reaching implications for organizations. In China, which has been heavily influenced by a unique combination of collectivism, communism, and Confucianism, these dimensions and their effects on management are extremely pronounced. In China, which has been heavily influenced by a unique combination of collectivism, communism, and Confucianism, these dimensions and their effects on management are extremely pronounced. Motivation exemplifies one of the most challenging aspects of organizational functioning in China. Yet, despite a wealth of literature on the topic, many of these dimensions and established beliefs require future consideration. The goal of this essay is to review the current state of knowledge about culture and motivation in China. The first half of this essay is devoted to the evaluation and criticism of cultural convictions about China through the prism of Hofstede’s and Trompenaars’ models. The second part of the essay talks about motivation within Chinese cultural contexts and the applicability of motivation theories in the Chinese culture. The main finding of this essay is that there is no one universal approach to the study of culture and motivation in cross-cultural contexts: cultures are never static, and it is never possible to predict how future cultural changes will affect organizations and employees in long-term periods. Hofstede, Trompenaars, and China: the culture-management relationship revisited China is rightly considered as one of the most popular objects of contemporary organization research. Much has been written and said about Chinese culture and its implications for business. Nonetheless, numerous aspects of cultural functioning in Chinese organizations remain poorly understood. Therefore, there is a need for reconsidering the role and implicat ions of Chinese national culture for management. It goes without saying that Hofstede’s model has long been the main instrument of management cultural research. This paper is no exception. â€Å"Hofstede’s dimensions of culture will create a foundation for understanding the effects of national culture on Chinese enterprises† (Geert Hofstede 2009). Geert Hofstede explored China along several important dimensions: long-term orientation, individualism and collectivism, power distance and, which was unique for China, Confucianism. China is believed to be a highly long-term oriented culture: the country is ranked the highest among other Asian countries on the long-term orientation dimension. Simply stated, the Chinese are prepared to work hard to achieve their long-term goals (Geert Hofstede 2009). Furthermore, Chinese national culture is characterized by high commitment to collectivist values: on the individualism dimension China is ranked the lowest of all Asian cu ltures (Geert Hofstede 2009). Low individualism in China is usually attributed to the long-standing legacy of communism and the historical values of family and relationships. Not only do the Chinese rely on the collectivist networks, but they tend to assume responsibility for members of their group (Geert Hofstede 2009). Given the role of communism in the Chinese history and culture, it comes as no surprise that the country ranks high on the Power Distance dimension. In other words, China demonstrates a serious gap between those in power and their subordinates (Geert Hofstede 2009). In no way is power distance imposed on the Chinese people; rather, organizations and individuals in China accept this dimension for granted and as part of their culture (Geert Hofstede 2009). Whether or not China is a feminine society Hofstede does not tell. Moreover, there is no universal agreement on this

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Organization Changes - Essay Example The main objective of this paper is to analyze the external and internal forces which are responsible for the changes in the organizations and also a detail discussion about one specific internal and one specific external factor associated with the organization changes. Based on the economy of various nations, several organizations across the globe have incorporated various changes in their organizational structure as well as their way of operation. This paper makes a conclusion that among internal factors one most important factor is the growth of the organization. To ensure steady growth various organization undergone several changes both structurally as well as functionally. In order to ensure continuous growth the top management introduces these changes in the system. there must be similarities and balance between change plan and organizational context- as this coordination plays a substantial role in the accomplishment or failure of organizational change. The main objective of organizational modification is to inaugurate new pattern of thinking and behavior among the employees as well as in day to day operation. If the new design conflicts with the existing ones to develop resistance and if that resistance is more powerful than the change initiated then the process of organization change is bound to be a failure. Therefore, while planning a change, the organizational context must be taken in to attention along with external and internal factors.

Adolescent Identity Development based on Race and Sexuality Essay

Adolescent Identity Development based on Race and Sexuality - Essay Example standing the significance of culture is necessary not only to deliver treatment but also to be able to develop for themselves skills that transcend cultural barriers to treatment. The urgency of these needs has been highlighted in several researches. Sue and Sue (2002) emphasize that one of the primary steps to be taken is the study and recognition of culture in therapy. Counseling methods should reflect this and program methods to help cultural assimilation without sacrificing appreciation for cultural heritage (Vontress et al, 19999). McGuire-Snieckus and associates at the same time have also highlighted that standards for care should reflect these changes: that therapy should have a greater social and personal value to be able to effectively address care needs. The need for intercultural communication and understanding in therapy is an indication of greater social empowerment amongst cultural groups and is critical in developing tolerance and cooperation among various groups (Neuliep, 2006). The selected populations of the study, Hispanics, have a distinct cultural heritage that greatly influences the manner by which the y perceive, acquire and respond to therapy. Johnson (2006) reflects that as a subject group they show how the sensitivity to cultural factors can contribute to the success of programs. Cox and Ephross (1998) cite that ethnicity should be considered not only for their value in the development of identity or perceptions but also in the manner of response that subjects have to new cultures. From the interviews done for the purpose of this research, it is apparent that there are many misconceptions within and outside the Hispanic community that actively influence perceptions regarding therapy. There is great attachment among the population for family and cultural heritage that emphasizes religion and traits that are considered to be trademarks. There are many taboos developed form these beliefs that may deter counseling particularly those related

Destination Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Destination - Essay Example A local tourism destination can be simply defined as a physical space where a visitor spends at least one overnight, and it includes tourism products such as attractions and support services and other tourism resources. The physical and administrative boundaries of the destination define its management whereas images and perceptions define its market competitiveness. In the current context of growing tourism sector contribution to the economic development of a region, an integrated management approach based on collective vision and strong leadership is vital to augment the scope of the destination. Destination management is an integral part of tourism development because this process is inevitable to meet the needs of foreign as well as domestic visitors effectively. According to the World Tourism Organisation, â€Å"destination management is the co-ordinated management of all the elements that make up a destination (attractions, amenities, access, marketing, and pricing.† (WH O, 2007, p. 4). Effective and joined destination management is beneficial to avoid duplication of efforts in relation to promotion, visitor services, training, and business support. In addition, destination management is a potential approach to identify management gaps that are not being addressed (Ibid, p.4). Hager and Sung (2011) claim that the concept of destination management delivers a range of benefits to the community as well as the economy and is particularly vital to respond positively to the growing need for multidisciplinary strategies aimed at local, regional, and national level tourism. In addition, destination management is beneficial to establish a competitive edge and to promote tourism sustainability. Furthermore, this collaborative management concept can assist tourism destinations to build a strong and vibrant identity. However, destination management is not a simple task as it requires extensive and collaborated efforts

Strict Liability Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Strict Liability - Essay Example However both at common law and through Statute there are crimes of strict liability and vicarious liability. Crimes of strict liability are those where intention (be it mens rea and/or negligence) need not be proved in respect of one or more of the elements of the actus reus of an offence. The prosecution only has to prove that the accused committed the actus reus. Crimes of vicarious liability are those whereby the accused neither did the act nor had the intention but is held liable due to his relationship with the actual perpetrator. The development of strict and vicarious liability offences seems to be historical; a reaction to the plethora of regulatory sanctions and poorly drafted legislation which did not mention malice, intent, knowledge or will. It might appear that 'state of affairs' offences, such as crimes of strict liability are exceptions in English law. These are offences where either the legal or the evidential burden of proof falls on the defence. However, Ashworth and Blake claimed in their research that up to 40% of trials in the Crown Court required the defendant to prove either a statutory defence or disprove at least one element of the offence and that over 123 serious criminal offences had an element of strict liability. Most of these offences are regulatory, pertaining to food, drugs, health, alcohol, factories, pollution and other public health matters, and are mala prohibita rather than mal in se. They argued that this has made significant inroads on the presumption of innocence. The prosecution does not always have to establish that the actus reus was voluntary. So for example in Callow v Tillstone [1900] a butcher was held liable for exposing unsound meat for sale even though the carcass had been certified as fit for human consumption by a vet. A crime may have a mixture of strict liability and mens rea/negligence as to the elements of the actus reus. Hence in R v Prince [1875] the accused was convicted of taking an unmarried girl under the age of 16 out of her father's possession as knowledge that the girl was under 16 was not required for conviction. It was sufficient that he knew she was in her father's possession. At common law there is a presumption that mens rea is required to establish guilt. One remaining controversial area is that of the common law offence of Blasphemy where there is still some confusion. Lord Denning had said during a speech in 1949 that the blasphemy laws belonged in the past: [...] it was thought that a denial of Christianity was liable to shake the fabric of society, which was itself founded upon Christian religion. There is no such danger to society now and the offence of blasphemy is a dead letter. In 1979 morality crusader Mary Whitehouse successfully sued Gay News and its editor for publishing a poem which described a purported affair between a male soldier and Jesus Christ and necrophilic acts with his corpse: Whitehouse v Gay News Ltd [1979]. In 1990 it was held that blasphemy laws only applied to

An Open Letter to Black Parents Essay Example for Free

An Open Letter to Black Parents Essay In renowned sports figure, Arthur Ashe’s, â€Å"An Open Letter to Black Parents: Send Your Children to Libraries,† he talks about the fact that a college education is more important than the perks of becoming a professional athlete. While attending UCLA, Ashe came to the conclusion that African Americans were more caught up in the hype of one day becoming a professional athlete, rather than obtaining a lasting college education/diploma. Ashe believes that African Americans should â€Å"re-write† their persona into one of profoundness and professionalism. Arthur Ashe states that the role models of the African American society are primarily composed of athletes. Therefore, the young children in that society tend to model themselves after those people. Instead, Ashe wants to have those role models spread a message that a college education is far more important than being a professional athlete. For example, Ashe has stated many times to high school students that, â€Å"For every hour you spend on the athletic field, spend two in the library.† These words are a very powerful message, especially to young adults still searching for their call in this world. In conclusion, although Arthur Ashe may be recognized as one of the greatest tennis players of his generation, his college diploma from UCLA is his proudest moment in life.   In Richard Rodriguez’s â€Å"Complexion† he talks about the racism he experienced as a child. Rodriguez places a lot of emphasis on rhetorical devices throughout his essay. The rhetorical devices that Rodriguez primarily uses is, description and symbolism. Through using these two rhetorical devices, Rodriguez is able to relate to the reader in a more personal level, in my opinion. Through description, Rodriguez is able to elaborate on certain details. Through using symbolism, he expresses the  emotions and feelings that he feels. Richard Rodriguez writes this essay in order to inform people of the racism that he has experienced. Since Rodriguez was the one experiencing the racism, his essay coincides nicely with the rhetorical devices that he chose. Rodriguez is of the Mexican culture and he recalls times when he was a kid where he was being discriminated. Rodriguez writes that as a young child he was insulted and name called for being of the Mexican culture. He writes how he would never retaliate with another insult back because he would be so embarrassed. The reason as to why Rodriguez was being discriminated was because of his â€Å"complexion.† Through reading this story, it is just another example of how ignorant people are. There are many stories about how people have been discriminated against just due to the fact that they are from a different culture. Richard Rodriguez did the right thing in not retaliating or doing something stupid, in order to not suffer any consequences. Summary: â€Å"Don’t let Stereotypes Warp Your Judgments† In Robert Heilbroner’s, â€Å"Don’t let Stereotypes Warp Your Judgments,† he talks about the affects of stereotyping. Heilbroner discusses that stereotyping is evident in just about everywhere we are. The affects that stereotyping has on a person, as stated by Heilbroner, is it makes us lazy thinkers, and is harmful to those whom we are stereotyping. Heilbroner’s suggests that people who stereotype, do it â€Å"because it helps make sense out of a highly confusing world† (Heilbroner 373). This makes sense because we try to come up with answers to things we do not understand. Another theory that Heilbroner suggests as to why people stereotype, is because we are raised with a certain mindset about people. In his story Heilbroner gives the reader three ways to get rid of stereotyping. His first suggestion is to â€Å"become aware of the standardized pictures in our heads, in other people’s heads, in the world around us† (Heilbroner 374). The second suggestion is that â€Å"we can become suspicious of all judgments that we allow exceptions to prove† (Heilbroner 374). And lastly Heilbroner  suggests that â€Å"we can learn to be chary of generalizations of people† (Heilbroner 375). After reading Robert Heilbroner’s essay, I became more aware to the large amounts of stereotyping that occurs in today’s society. Although I was already aware, stereotyping not only has a negative effect on the person stereotyping, but on the person that is being stereotyped. Through stereotyping, one opens up a path that encourages horrible things such as racism and ignorance.

History Of Baseball In Various Countries Sport Essay

History Of Baseball In Various Countries Sport Essay A Brief History of Baseball and the Dominican Republic Long before David Ortiz and Pedro Martinez were shattering batting and pitching records, or baseball greats like the Alou brothers and Manny Mota were becoming iconic baseball figures, the Dominican Republic was already introducing a distinctive brand of baseball to the world. The Dominican Republic has a long baseball history, which has only become richer in recent years. For over 100 years, baseball has been at the center of cultural life in the Dominican Republic. Though the origins of baseball in the Dominican arent exactly known, historians suggest that baseball first came to the island around the 1880s. Though it is a historical misconception that American Marines brought the game to the island during the 1916 invasion, the United States did play an integral, though indirect, role in bringing baseball here. The United States brought the game of baseball to Cuba in the mid-1860s. It is said that it was Cuban immigrants, fleeing their countrys ten-year war, who spread the game throughout the Caribbean, including the Dominican Republic. The first baseball teams on the island were formed either in the year 1894 or 1895. Eventually four teams were formed, becoming the oldest, and founding organizations of baseball in the country. Los Tigres del Licey (The Tigers) was founded in Santo Domingo (in order to compete with Club Ozama y Club Nuevo) in 1907. Over the next 15 years Licey became so dominant that an agreement was made among the three other competing teams (Los Muchachos, San Carlos, and Delco Light) to form a new team, comprised of their best players, in order to beat Licey. That team was Los Leones del Escogido. Las Estrellas Orientales (Eastern Stars) was founded in San Pedro in the year 1911. And later, as mentioned, in 1921, Los Leones del Escogido (Lions of the Chosen One) was founded in Santo Domingo. Sandino, who would become one of the more dominant teams in the league, was founded in 1921, (Sandino was later renamed Las Aguilas Cibaenas, (The Eagles, in 1936). After its introduction in the late 1880s the sports popularity quickly spread, and by the 1920s and 30s teams from the Dominican Republic were playing other Caribbean nations, as well as teams from North America. As with everything on the island, Dictator Rafael Leonidas Trujillo, who became president of the Republic in 1930, through military action, ultimately controlled all of Dominican baseball. Trujillo oversaw the modernization of the Dominican Republic, and undertook the modernization of baseball as one of these tasks. He built the first major baseball stadium, and provided an avenue for the sport to become the countrys national pastime. With the help of the dictator, and his support of the game, this era became crucial in providing the economic and political foundation for the sport. The inception of the official baseball league, and the eventual completion of â€Å"El Estadio Trujillo† (later renamed Estadio Quisqueya), were landmark events, as they cemented the place of baseball in the Dominican cultural lexicon. During the first phase in the evolution of the countrys baseball history, games were played only during the day. The games second stage began when Estadio Quisqueya w as built in 1955. The stadium was a brilliantly designed and well-built stadium for its time. With the stadium came lights, and what is considered Dominican baseballs Golden Era. To a further extent, players from the United States, especially the Negro Leagues, ventured down to the Caribbean, especially to the Dominican Republic, to play against some of the Caribbeans finest, adding to the level of competition already present. One of the most famous players to participate in the Dominican baseball circuit was Negro League great Satchel Paige. In 1937 Paige was approached by Dr. Jose Enrique Aybar, Dean of the University of Santo Domingo, deputy of the Dominican Republics national congress, and director of Los Dragones. (Los Dragones were the two rival teams from Santo Domingo, Licey and Escogido, who were merged to play in that years 1937 Dominican Baseball league). Los Dragones were a baseball team operated by Rafael Leonidas Trujillo, and Aybar hired Paige to recruit talented Negro League players to play for Trujillo. With $30,000 in hand, the Negro League legend convinced eight other Negro League players to join him for the eight-week long season, including future Negro League legends Josh Gibson, Cool Papa Bell, Leroy Matlock, Sam Bankhead, Harry Williams and Herman Andrews. Paige had a solid season, recording a league best 8-10 record, and Los Dragones finished the season in first place, with an overa ll record of 18-13. After Los Dragones beat San Pedro de Macoris in the championship game, (coming from a 3 games to 0 deficit), all the players, except for Paige returned to the United States, though Paige would eventually return to the States. Having little baseball options after being banned from the Negro National League, the returning players formed Trujillos All-Stars, and barnstormed around the Midwest, playing in exhibition and All-Star games. Eventually Paige would continue to barnstorm around the United States, though he would never return to the island. The 1940s and 50s continued to bring acclaim to the nation, and its baseball league. The biggest baseball moment for the Dominicans, up until that point, came in 1956. This historic event paved the way for the future migration of Dominican talent to the United States. This year saw the debut of infielder Ozzie Virgil with the New York Giants. Virgil, who played nine seasons in the Major Leagues, brought Dominican baseball into the international spotlight. He was the first Dominican baseball player to play in the Majors, and it was the eventual success of Virgil, and fellow countrymen Juan Marichal, the Alou brothers, Manny Mota and others, that consolidated the Dominican Republic as a baseball powerhouse in the hemisphere. With the prospect of a solid talent base so relatively close, teams from the Major Leagues quickly began to send money, players, and scouts to capitalize on the growing demand. This was another great boost for the Dominican baseball league and the countrys aspiring players, as they got to sharpen their skills with some of the worlds best talent. Players like Delmar Crandall, Grady Little, Bob Gibson, Willie Mays, Tommy Lasorda, Mike Piazza, Alex Rodriguez, and many others have taken advantage of the level of competition available here, and helped make the league even stronger. Since the 1960s and 70s baseball schools have set up shop in the Dominican Republic, and these days every team in Major League Baseball has a school or an active representation here. There are currently six teams in the Dominican league. Those previously mentioned, with the addition of Los Toros and Los Azucareros. The teams begin play in October, and the season runs through February, with each team playing 60 games, and the two finalists playing for the championship title. Both finalists also go on to represent the Dominican Republic in the Caribbean Baseball Series against Mexico, Venezuela and Puerto Rico. Of the six teams in the league there have been two great rivalries that have emerged, though this has been to the detriment of the leagues popularity in recent years. In the earlier days of baseball on the island Los Tigres and Los Leones battled continuously for the top, but in more recent years it has been Los Tigres battling with Las Aguilas. Los Tigres have won 19 Dominican titles and 9 Caribbean World Series, while Las Aguilas have won 19 championships. To date, 420 players from the Dominican Republic have played in the Majors (1956-2005), and according to Major League Baseball there are 119 players representing Latin America, which is 24% of major leaguers. Of these 119 players, 90 players come from the Dominican Republic. There are more Dominicans playing in the Majors than from any other country in Latin America, and the Dominican Republic has more players in the Majors than all other countries in Latin America combined. Dominicans have even made strides in other aspects of the game. In 2003 Tony Pena, formerly of the Kansas City Royals, coached against Felipe Alou, of the San Francisco Giants, making it the first time that two Dominicans coached against each other in the Majors. And in 2004 Omar Minaya became the first Dominican General Manager, working the front office for the New York Mets. Though the strength of Dominican baseball is now found in each of the Major Leagues 30 teams, baseball still remains an important part of this countrys history, and an important cultural outlet on the island. Each time the topic of baseball comes up, the names of the legends of yesteryear who helped immortalize the game are remembered and discussed as if those players were still playing today. It is an improbable suggestion that each player, or baseball event will always be remembered, but it is possible to say that this countrys baseball past will always provide the foundation for its rich baseball future. http://dr1.com/articles/baseball.shtml http://www.baseball-reference.com/bpv/index.php?title=History_of_baseball_in_the_Dominican_Republicprintable=yes Puerto Rico The official story of baseball indicates that this game was invented by Abner Doubleday and introduce it in Copperstown, New York, where now is site of the baseball hall of fame, in 1839. The rules of this game was published by Alexander Cartwright in 1845. Mr. Cartwright also organized an amateur team called New York Knickerbockers that lost to to the New York Nine 23-1 in four innings in the first game that scores were taken and celebrated June 19, 1846. And this sport became known as the national pastime and was spreaded all around the world. This sport was brought to Puerto Rico by the sons and nephews of a Spanish official that had been transferred from Cuba. Here in Puerto Rico the sport was played before the Hispanic-American war. And the first official game played in the island was between Almendares y Boriquen.But the game really developed after the war, in that moment everything was in calm and people in mass started to play it. It used to be played only Sundays and on holi days. This spreaded around the island and almost all the towns had a baseball team.This sport became to be taught in school. People would write songs for their team.One of the most important team was Escuela Superior de Ponce. To play baseball from one town to another they would go in train and lot of fan would go with their team. One of the most important player was Amos Iglesia born in Brooklyn in that time. In the time of the real boom of the sport in the island the most important teams were All American, Cuban Stars, Royals Giants and Lincoln Giants. The first puertorican that receive a test for a team in major league was William Guzman but his parents would not let him go so he could finish being a lawyer. Jose Pepe Santana was one of the most important puertorican to play in black league in the United States due to his power hitting. Hiram Gabriel Bithorn was the first puertorican to play in the major league. His debut was April 15, 1942 with the Chicago Cubs. In 1943 he won 18 games and a era of 2.60. After that year he went to the war and when he came back the speed that took him to the major league was gone. In total, his career in major league in 4 season he had pitched in 105 games won 34 games and lost 31 with an era of 3.16. After Bithorm the next puertorican was Luis Rodriguez Olmo who played with the Brooklyn Dodgers when he started playing in June 22, 1945. He was the first to play in a World Series.His numbers after 6 years in the major league was .281 batting average with 29 homeruns and 458 hits in 462 games. After these two the following were Luis Canena Marquez, Carlos Bernier, Jose Pantalones Santiago, Jose Enrique Montalvo, Ruben Gomez. After those a great number of puertoricans started to play in the major league. In most recent history some of the puertoricans has been worthy to be considered i n a small group of great players in the history of the game. The most important player to come out of Puerto Rico was Roberto Clemente Walker from Carolina. He started playing in April 17, 1955 with the Pittsburgh Pirates but was first signed by the Brooklyn Dodgers. He was selected in 1973, in a special voting due to his death in December 31 of 1972 why delivering help to the victim of an earthquake in Nicaragua, to become the first Latin player to be in the baseball hall of fame. What he did for the game is without end. Some of his awards were National League MVP in 1966, 1971 World Series MVP, won 4 N.L. batting titles, 12 time all-star, won 12 Gold Gloves, lead League in outfield assists 5 times, had a hit in every game of the 1960 1971 World Series, hit 3,000 hit on September 30, 1972, all-time pirate leader in games, at bats, hits, singles, and total bases, second baseball player to appear on a U.S. Postage Stamp (Jackie Robinson was the first). His total for 18 years in majo r league is 2433 games, 3000 hits, 240 homeruns, .317 batting average. Another of great player to come from Puerto Rico is Orlando Peruchin Cepeda. He enter the major league in April 15, 1958 with San Francisco Giants. A lifetime .297 hitter with 379 home runs and 1,364 RBIs during his 17-year playing career with the Giants, Cardinals, Braves, As, Red Sox and Royals, Cepeda hit the first Major League home run ever on the West Coast when he clubbed a homer against the Dodgers in his very first Major League game April 15, 1958. He went on to win 1958 Rookie of the Year honors, the 1966 Comeback Player of the Year award, the 1967 NL Most Valuable Player trophy and 1973 Designated Hitter of the Year laurels. He appeared in three World Series, was an 11-time All-Star and hit over .300 nine times in his career. If we continue to talk about puertorican that had played in the major league we will not finish due that there has been hundreds of players. Some of themare the followings. In 1984 another puertorican was the top story for the major league and that was Willie Hernandez for the Detroit Tigers. In that season he had was the American League MVP and also the Cy Young winner. Another puertorican that been in front line has been Benito Santiago that in 1987 made a record of 34 consecutive games batting a least a hit for a rookie and that same year won the rookie of the year award. Now has a handful of golden glove awards. Some of the records that current players have will be told in their respective page. As you can see we have come a great way to the status we have earned as some of the top players of today baseball. Some of them you hear day to day as the following: Ivan Pudge Rodriguez, Bernie Williams, Carlos Delgado, Edgar Martinez, Roberto and Santos Alomar, Juan Igor Gonzalez, Wilfr edo Cordero, Jaime Navarro, Carlos Baerga, Bobby Bonilla, Javier Lopez, Roberto Hernandez and others. Cuba History of Baseball in Cuba Baseball came to Cuba in the 1860s. Brought by Cubans who studied in the United States and American sailors in Cuban ports. It quickly spread through the island and took heart with the Cuban people who were fighting for their independence from Spain. We will follow Cuban Baseball from its social club beginnings and through its Golden age. Follow the rise of the Amateur Leagues and the resurgence of the Professional Leagues in the 1940s. The influence of American organized ball in the 50s and the end of professionalism in 1961. Also a look at how Baseball survives in Cuba today, with hope of a return to its splendid glory in the future. A Tribute to Cuban Baseball A great number of Cubans played on baseball Teams in the Professional, Semi-pro, Amateur and Sugar Mill Leagues in Cuba. Cubans have played abroad in just about all the baseball playing nations. In the United States, Cubans played proudly and with distinction in the Major Leagues, Minor Leagues, and Negro Leagues. Ballplayers like Esteban Bellà ¡n, Josà © Mà ©ndez, Martà ­n Dihigo, Adolfo Luque, Miguel Gonzà ¡lez, Minnie Mià ±oso, Camilo Pascual, Tony Pà ©rez, and Jose Contreras have had stellar careers in baseball. Several Cubans are listed among the greatest players in baseball History . Also, many of the greatest American ballplayers have played in Cuba. Americans like Ty Cobb, Babe Ruth, Josh Gibson, and Satchel Paige have graced the ballfields of the island nation. Many have appeared on Cuban Baseball Card sets and Collectibles. This Web Site is dedicated to all the ballplayers of Cuban Heritage, either born in Cuba or children of Cubans, and all ballplayers from other na tions who have played in Cuba. http://www.cubanball.com/ A great number of Cubans have played in the major leagues. The first was Esteban Bellan , who played in the 1870s. Then in 1911 the Cincinnati Reds brought in Rafael Almeida and Armando Marsans, who were followed by a steady stream of players from the Island. Adolfo Luque became the first Latin star when he led all pitchers with an outstanding 27-8 record and a 1.93 ERA in 1923. In the 1950s Minnie Mià ±oso and other black Cubans helped integrate the Major Leagues. The 60s and 70s brought many players who left the now Communist country like Camilo Pascual, Luis Tiant, Tony Perezand Tony Oliva. More recently Jose Contreras and Rafael Palmeiro have reached stardom. Lately defections from Cuba by their star ballplayers has highlighted the Cuban baseball news. Cuban greats like Livan and Orlando Hernandez have risked their lives to play the highest level of baseball, which is found here in the United States. Cubans and the Negro Leagues A great number of Cubans played in the Negro Leagues. Men like Jose Mendez, Cristobal Torriente, Martin Dihigo and Minnie Mià ±oso played with distinction in Negro League squads. Cubans played in the Negro League World Series. Cubans also played in the East West All-Star games and are listed on All Time Negro League All-Star lists. Several Cuban teams were also part of the established Negro Leagues or barnstormed as independants. Teams like the Cuban Stars and New York Cubans were made up of mostly Cuban ballplayers. Many of the greatest American Negro League ballplayers played in Cuba. Pop Lloyd, Oscar Charleston, Cool Papa Bell, Josh Gibson, Satchel Paige and Buck Oneil have graced the ballfields of Cuba. They made the rosters of some of best teams in Cuban baseball history. Many of the only examples of contemporary Baseball Cards of Negro League players are found in Cuban Baseball Card sets. Mexico Mexicos baseball roots are believed to be traced back to approximately 1847. American soldiers in the Mexican War introduced Mexicans to the game of baseball in various regions. The laying of track for the railroad, specifically the Monterrey-Tampico railway, played a large part in the spreading of baseball throughout the country, specifically northern Mexico. Colonel Joseph Robertson, who was from Tennessee and once served under General Robert E. Lee, introduced the game in Nuevo Leon when he granted his railroad workers a holiday on the fourth of July in 1889. Robertson and his workers celebrated by playing baseball. The first organized Mexican League was formed in 1925 by Jorge Pasquel. Pasquel had major league ambitions and stocked his teams with Negro League stars. Furthermore he raided MLB players following World War II when there became a player surplus and accompanying pay cuts. Most of these defector players (23) joined the Quebec Provincial League soon after and Pasquel had to fold the league due to financial ruin in 1953. In 1955 the league resurfaced as a Class-AA minor league, then reorganized yet again in 1967 as a Class-AAA league and continues to this day as a summer league. (Mexicos other baseball league is the â€Å"Liga Mexicana del Paci ­fico† or Mexican Pacific League. It is a â€Å"high level† winter league where the winner of the league moves on to represent Mexico in the Caribbean League World Series. The winter league has a total of eight clubs that play a 68 game regular season schedule starting the second week of October and ending in December.) The Mexican League is composed of 16 teams, divided equally among 2 divisions: the North Zone and the South Zone. The Mexican League is facing tough times as the popularity of baseball is waning in the country. Unlike other Caribbean countries such as the Dominican, Cuba, Venezuela et. al., it seems Mexicans have found a cure for the Beisbol fever that they once had and its name is Futbol. Attendance at professional baseball games has been flat, with about 2.3 million tickets sold each year between 1998 and 2003, the latest year of data, according to Mexicos National Institute of Statistics, Geography and Information Processing. Meanwhile, soccer ticket sales rose 27 percent in the same period, to more than 4.9 million annually. As Mexicans become more affluent, theyre spending more on soccer than ever before. Mexico City, a metropolis of 18 million people, has four pro soccer teams but only one baseball team, the Diablos Rojos (Red Devils). It plays in the Foro Sol, a stadium wedged into a corner of the Hermanos Rodriguez race car track. A second team, the Tigers, moved to Puebla soon after the Social Security Stadium closed in 2001. Mexicos second-biggest city, Guadalajara, doesnt have a baseball team, but sports three top division soccer teams. Mexican soccer jerseys can be bought on any street corner, but baseball paraphernalia is practically nonexistent. Much like Canada, Mexicos media mostly ignore baseball. When the Pittsburgh Steelers a popular team among Mexicans won the Super Bowl it dominated front pages across the country. The other big game on that Sunday, the Mazatlan Bucks 4-3 loss to a Venezuelan team at the Caribbean World Series, was relegated to the last pages of sports sections. (Sounds like what happens when a curling tournament is on or the Maple Leafs open training camp doesnt matter if the Jays are winning the World Series in Toronto) While the Mexican Soccer Federation has cultivated its sport nationwide, baseball remains a regional game. Twenty-seven percent of the Mexican Baseball Leagues 445 players come from one state, Sinaloa, with another 20 percent coming from neighbouringSonora. Another problem is that Mexicans never get to see homegrown MLB stars play except on TV. Hopefully Mexicos moderate success in the 2006 and 2009 World Baseball Classic will do wonders for the sports popularity, but one can only hope http://mopupduty.com/index.php/mexican-baseball/ The Liga Mexicana de Bà ©isbol was founded in 1925 with six teams playing all their games in Mexico City. In the 1930s and 1940s, African-Americans from the United States—who were still barred from Major League Baseball until Jackie Robinson broke the color barrier in 1947played alongside Mexicans and Cubans in the Mexican League. This arrangement benefited the African-American players through higher salaries and better conditions than in the Negro Leagues in the United States, and helped the Mexican League gain status and revenue from increasing the caliber of their ballplayers. In 1937, legendary Negro Leagues stars Satchel Paige and James â€Å"Cool Papa Bell† left the Pittsburgh Crawfords to play in Latin America. After playing a year in Santa Domingo, Dominican Republic, Paige and Bell joined the Mexican League. In 1940, Bell won the Triple Crown, hitting .437, with 12 home runs, and 79 RBIs. The next year, fellow Negro Leaguer Josh Gibson hit .374, and set Mexica n League records with 33 home runs and 124 RBIs in only 103 games. His home run mark almost tripled the existing Mexican record and stood until 1960 when the Mexican League had a longer season. In the 1940s, multi-millionaire Jorge Pasquel attempted to turn the Mexican League into a first-rate rival to the Major Leagues in the United States. In 1946, Pasquel traveled north of the border to pursue the top players in the Negro and Major Leagues. Although he was reportedly turned down by Ted Williams and Joe DiMaggio, Pasquel signed up close to twenty white major leaguers, including such well known names as Mickey Owen and Sal Maglie, and a number of Negro League players. Ultimately, Pasquels dream faded, as financial realities led to decreased salaries and his high-priced foreign stars returned home. Currently, 16 teams divided into North and South Divisions play in the Liga Mexicana in a summer season, which ends in a 7-game championship series between the winners of the two divisions. Since 1967, the league has been sanctioned as an â€Å"AAA† minor league. In the winter, eight teams play in the Liga Mexicana de Pacifico, whose winner advances to the Caribbean Series against other Latin American winners. In 1957, baseball in Mexico got a big boost when a little league team in Mexico won the Little League World Series in Williamsport. 12-year old Angel Macias won the championship for the Mexicans by throwing a perfect game against a team from La Mesa, California. The El Sà ¡lon de la Fama, the Mexican Professional Baseball Hall of Fame, has enshrined 167 into its Hall of Immortals, consisting of 138 Mexicans, 16 Cubans, 12 from the United States, and one Puerto Rican. Distinguished players include Major League Baseball stars Roy Campanella and Monte Irvin, who played in the Mexican League in the 1940s. Nicknamed â€Å"El Bambino Mexicano,† or the Mexican Babe Ruth, Hector Espino was inducted in the Mexican Hall of Fame in 1988, after playing with San Luis Potosi, Monterrey, and Tampico from 1962 to 1984. His 453 home runs remained the record until Nelson Barrera surpassed him in 2001. Espino still holds the all-time records in many offensive categories. In international competition, the Mexican national team failed to advance beyond the second round of the World Baseball Classic in 2006. But its second-round 2-1 victory over the United States before a heavy pro-USA crowd of 38,284 in Angel Stadium in Anaheim, California, proved to be a big highlight to Mexicans as the win prevented its bigger rival from moving on to the semi-finals. Mexican teams have won the Caribbean Series against other Latin countries six times, most recently in 2005 when Venados de Mazatlà ¡n won in its home town. Venezuela: Origins There is not an exact and recognized version about how and when the game of Baseball was introduced to Venezuelans. What is accepted by most historians is that some Venezuelan students in American universities, began to practice the new sport when they went back home after finishing their studies and started to teach the game to their friends among the social high-class clubs in Caracas, around the early years of the 1890 decade. By May 1895, Amenodoro Franklin and his brothers Emilio, Gustavo, and Augusto established the first organized Baseball Club, â€Å"Caracas BBC†. They had been gathering people for the last 3 months to practice the game every Sunday. The youngsters were concerned in those days in spreading the fever of the new game in the city, they practiced in an open land in front of the train station in Quebrada Honda, further, the field was named Caracas Baseball Club Exercise Field. Caracas BBC organized the first official game in Venezuela as a big event to gain publicity. On May 22, 1895, they sent an open invitation and placed an ad in El Tiempo, a local newspaper. The game was so new and unrecognized that the reporter invited the people thru the ad to a new kind of Chess game, the Base Bale. The next day at 3:30 p.m., jumped out on the field the two teams of Caracas BBC, The Red and The Blue, the latter, managed by Amenodoro Franklin, won with a score of 28 to 19. Some of the players were the Franklin brothers, Emilio, Gustavo and Augusto, Adolfo Inchausti, Alfredo Mosquera, the Todd Brothers, Jaime and Roberto and Mariano Becerra. All of them, former students in the United States, are considered the pioneers of the game in Venezuela. Among the other players involved were the Gonzalez Brothers, Manuel and Joaquin and Emilio Gramer, they were Cubans living in Caracas. El Tiempo did not know much about baseball after the first game; even many people believed that they were going to watch a chess game, because of the reporters mistake. A note appeared on the paper the next day describing more the environment than the game itself: it looked like a carnival Sunday, without disguises or flowers or candies or reddish things. The delight of the people was so high that it was not even one complain about the poverty on the Republic was heard during the afternoon. And as in other times, people had fun, at least the part of the population who has more elements to do it.† Venezuela, filled with internal revolutions all over the country, was leaded by rural or military leaders, who tried to take control of the government. By 1895, General Joaquin Crespo was the president and the country was impoverished after many years of civil war. El Pregonero, another newspaper also covered the game, and in their note about it, they mocked El Tiempos Chess Ad: You see! El Tiempo? the match was a Ball Game, not Bale. El Tiempo is always wrong. They also published: â€Å"But this game of Base Ball provides health and strength to the body and happiness to the spirit. Three months later, on August 15, El Cojo Ilustrado a kind of magazine, published the first pictures of Base Ball in the country sent by Mariano Becerra. Days later, everybody was talking around the city about the new sport, and Alfredo Mosqueras father, the owner of Caracas Beer Co., built the first official stadium in the country with stands and official measures according to the American rules. It was the Stand del Este, near the Petare train station, a Caracas suburb. http://iml.jou.ufl.edu/projects/Fall02/Landino/thepast.html The history of Baseball in Panama: In Panama, baseballs heritage dates back to the late 19th Century with the arrival of North Americans working to construct the Panama Canal. This is the time when baseball became a popular sport in Panama. The growth of baseball in Panama brought about the development of Panamanian players in Major League Baseball. The most famous player being Rod Carew, who was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1991. http://www.ebeisbol.com/category/panama/

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.