Perceptions of African American Women Essay Example for Free

Perceptions of African American Women Essay I am taking some classes that will eventually qualify me to major in Astro Physics, or Chemical engineering, I also want to work with NASA and train as an astronaut. It was amazing to know that Dr. Mae C. Jemison who happens to be the youngest of three children born to a middle class African American family, Charlie Jemison, a maintenance worker and his wife, Dorothy, a teacher. Dr. Mae C. Jemison was the first black woman astronaut to be in space in an era filled with segregation and racism, she is a Chemical engineer, scientist, physician, teacher and astronaut, she has a wide range of experience in technology, engineering, and medical research. In addition to her extensive background in science, she is well-versed in African and African-American Studies, speaks fluent Russian, Japanese, and Swahili, as well as English and is trained in dance and choreography. Dr. Mae C. Jamison was an inspiration to me, and probably to many African American women. She was full of resilience and determination especially to have reached and achieved success in an unusual field of endeavor for many African American women, I applaud her determination to make a difference among the African American women and blacks in Diaspora. After graduating from Morgan Park High School in 1973 at the age of 16, Dr. Mae Jemison earned a BS in Chemical Engineering from Stanford University, while also fulfilling the requirements for a BA in African-American Studies. After earning these degrees in 1977, she attended Cornell University and received a Doctor of Medicine degree in 1981. During medical school she traveled to Cuba, Kenya and Thailand, providing primary medical care to people living there. This is an indication of her humanitarian efforts and eagerness to reach out to the less privileged population. Having a desire to do more with her life, she enrolled in graduate classes in engineering and applied to NASA for admission to the astronaut program. She was turned down on her first application, maybe because she is a black woman, but she persevered and in 1987 was accepted on her second application. She became one of the fifteen candidates accepted from over 2,000 applicants. When Dr. Mae Jemison successfully completed her astronaut training program in August 1988, she became the fifth black astronaut and the first black female astronaut in NASA history. In completing her first space flight, Dr. Mae Jemison logged 190 hours, 30 minutes, 23 seconds in space, making her the first African-American woman in space. She says, â€Å"I had to learn very early not to limit myself due to others’ limited imaginations. I have learned these days never to limit anyone else due to my limited imagination. † This is an inspiration to other blacks in general who normally assume a second class citizen and believe that they will never do well or will be appreciated in whatever they do. This is a wake-up call, and manifestation of the saying â€Å"Determination is the mother of invention†. In 1993, Dr. Mae Jemison resigned from NASA and founded the Jemison Group, Inc. to research, develop and implement advanced technologies suited to the social, political, cultural and economic context of the individual, especially for the developing world. Current projects include: Alpha, (TM) a satellite based telecommunication system to improve health care in West Africa; and The Earth We Share, (TM) an international science camp for students ages 12 to 16, that utilizes an experiential curriculum. Among her current projects are several that focus on improving healthcare in Africa. She is also a professor of environmental studies at Dartmouth College. Dr. Mae Jamison made a name for herself and name for blacks in general; Her entrepreneurial spirit put her in the limelight and acts as a boost to determined black men and women in Diaspora. Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf. It was quite surprising to read about Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf, I know almost nothing about this â€Å"giant and queen of modern Africa† who is presently the current president of Liberia. According to what I have read so far about this â€Å"queen of Africa† she was born In Monrovia, the capital of Liberia on October 29, 1938. During this period, Liberians had no clue that the First female president of an African country had been born into their mist. Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf is a daughter to descendents of original colonists of Liberia (ex-African slaves from America, who promptly on arrival set about enslaving the indigenous people using the social system of their old American masters as a basis for their new society). These descendents are known in Liberia as Americo-Liberians. From what I read, I noticed that Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf was truly an intellectual power house, a charismatic leader and destined to make a change in Liberia and contribute her quota in Africa. From 1948 to 1955 Ellen Johnson studied accounts and economics at the College of West Africa in Monrovia. After marriage at the age of 17 to James Sirleaf, she travelled to America (in 1961) and continued her studies, achieving a degree from the University of Colorado. From 1969 to 1971 she read economics at Harvard, gaining a masters degree in public administration. Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf then returned to Liberia and began working in William Tolberts (True Whig Party) government. Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf also served as Minister of Finance from 1972 to 73, but left after a disagreement over public spending, this is an indication of her prudence and will power. As the 70s progressed, life under Liberias one-party state became more polarized to the benefit of the Americo-Liberian elite. On 12 April 1980 Master Sergeant Samuel Kayon Doe, a member of the indigenous Krahn ethnic group, seized power in a military coup. With the Peoples Redemption Council now in power, Samuel Doe began a purge of government. Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf narrowly escaped choosing exile in Kenya. From 1983 to 1985 she served as Director of Citibank in Nairobi. I will say that Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf had a lot of courage, because it was quite unusual for a woman to challenge a dictatorial incumbent president in Africa without being kidnapped, tortured or killed in the process, although She was later sentenced to ten years in prison. Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf spent just a short time incarcerated, before being allowed to leave the country once again as an exile. During the 1980s she served as Vice President of both the African Regional Office of Citibank, in Nairobi, and of (HSCB) Equator Bank, in Washington. Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf played an active role in the transitional government as the country prepared for the 2005 elections, and eventually stood for president against her rival the ex-international footballer, George Manneh Weah. Despite the elections being called fair and orderly, Weah repudiated the result, which gave a majority to Johnson-Sirleaf, Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf eventually became Liberias first elected female president, as well as the first elected female president in the continent Africa. . In 2005 She established a Truth and Reconciliation Commission with a mandate to promote national peace, security, unity and reconciliation by investigating more than 20 years of civil conflict in the country and in November 2007, she received the United States Presidential Medal of Freedom, the U. S. governments highest civilian award. She is truly a giant and â€Å"queen of modern Africa†. References: 1. http://space. about. com/cs/formerastronauts/a/jemisonbio. htm 2. http://www. k-grayengineeringeducation. com/blog/index. php/2008/09/12/first-african-american-women-in-space. 3. http://www. joinafrica. com/africa_of_the_week/ellenjohnsonliberia. htm.

John Steinbecks Novel, In Dubious Battle Essay -- John Steinbeck In D

John Steinbeck's Novel, In Dubious Battle We are lucky to have many talented writers who have successfully taught US history through their outstanding pieces of literature. One writer of this kind is John Steinbeck in the novel In Dubious Battle. It takes place in the 1930’s when Franklin Deleanor Roosevelt was President. The story is set in a small, rural, part of California, which is known as the Torgas Valley. The novel occurred before World War II at the late part of the Great Depression. The US was still recovering from the downfall from most of the American Industries that fell during the Great Depression. Due to the Industrial Revolution, there were no longer any large industries to support the overflowing amount of workers. The farms were the only place that needed a large work force. Therefore many of the workers had to move to the rural areas to support their needs and to survive. The farm owners were now able to cut the wages significantly, knowing that the workers would not quit and they would get all the work done.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The main character in In Dubious Battle is Jim Nolan. Throughout the novel his life constantly changes. No day is typical in his life. At first he was a normal working man in the urban parts of California. However, he was not satisfied with his job and wanted to have a completely different life. He then decided to join the Reds, or Radicals, which was a Party that wanted to start strikes and protest against the low wages given to all the w...

Boiling point of water Essay

Over time, numerous applications for the addition of salt in water have been established and the process of adding salt in water has become a regular exercise wherever water has to be boiled around the world (Bradley, 2006). Purpose The purpose of this project is to study the implications of the addition of salt in the reaction of water to heat. Theory & Hypothesis Upon the addition of common salt (NaCl) in distilled water, it causes the boiling point of the water to rise. As a result, water has to be heated for longer intervals of time as the amount of salt in the water is increased. The hypothesis of this study is to validate whether or not the addition of salt in water causes the boiling point of the water to rise. Apparatus used The apparatus that was used for this experiment comprised of table Salt (NaCl), distilled Water, measuring spoon, stirring spoon, thermometer, electric stove, kettle. Experimental procedure implemented In the first step, the kettle is filled with distilled water and is placed on the electric stove. It was filled with approximately two teacups of water. It is allowed to boil continuously and the thermometer was used to measure the temperature of the water after every few minutes. The water was observed to begin boiling at approximately 213 Â °F in normal conditions when no additions had been made to the water. In the second step, the initial sample of water was allowed to cool down until it had returned to room temperature, after which one leveled measuring spoonful of salt was added to the water and the kettle was once more placed on the electric stove to boil. The salt had been mixed into the water using the stirring spoon before it was put to boil. The water was once more allowed to boil continuously and the thermometer was used to measure the temperature of the water after every few minutes. The water was observed to begin boiling at a higher temperature than 213 Â °F after salt had been added to the water. In the third step, the water was once more allowed to cool down until it had returned back to room temperature. Once the water had returned to room temperature, a second addition of salt (NaCl) is made. The measuring spoon was used to add another leveled spoonful of salt to the water and was stirred thoroughly using the stirring spoon. The kettle was then placed on the stove once more and was allowed to begin heating up. The water was once more allowed to boil continuously and the thermometer was used to measure the temperature of the water after every few minutes. The water was observed to begin boiling at a higher temperature than that which had been observed in the readings taken in step two of the experiment. At all times, special care was taken to ensure that the thermometer did not touch the walls or the base of the kettle and that it was not held above the stove for too lon.g in order to prevent the readings from being altered unintentionally. Observations recorded. The readings that were recorded during the three phases of the experiment can be observed in the following table. Phase Phase Attributes Boiling Point Observed 1 Boiling point for control sample 212. 9 Â °F 2 Boiling point after first addition of salt 215. 6 Â °F 3 Boiling point after second addition of salt 218. 3 Â °F Table 1: Observations made during the experiment If a bar chart was to be made of the three stages of the experiment that were taken during the experiment. We would have the following bar chart at hand. Chart 1: Comparison of observations made during the execution of the experiment Conclusions. From the above experiment, we can conclude that when common salt (NaCl) is added to water, it causes the boiling point of the water to increase. As the amount of salt in the water was increased, a proportional increase was also observed in the temperature that the water required to attain its boiling point. The increase in boiling point was therefore established to be directly proportional to the amount of salt in the water. This also explained the fact that before any salt was added to the water, the water boiled at its standard temperature. We can therefore state that the hypothesis of this experiment stands valid. This would also explain why everyday uses of salt in water such as those recommended in the culinary arts perceive the addition of salt in water (McGee, 1984) as a necessity to ensure that the end result is prepared to perfection through continuous heating. References Bradley, D. (2006, December 27). Salt and the Boiling Point of Water. Retrieved April 27, 2009, from Science Base: http://www. sciencebase. com/science-blog/how-does-salt-affect-the-boiling-point-of-water. html McGee, H. (1984). On food and cooking: the science and lore of the kitchen. Scribner’s. List of Tables Table 1: Observations made during the experiment.

What Is Genetic Engineering - Free Essay Example

Sample details Pages: 2 Words: 550 Downloads: 7 Date added: 2019/10/30 Category Science Essay Level High school Tags: Genetic Engineering Essay Did you like this example? What is genetic engineering? Its the ability to recreate or alternate and organism in a duplicative form in a lab. Where is genetic engineering headed? Are we hoping to one day be able to engineer body parts as they slowly start to break down or people getting overly obsessive about having the possibility to change themselves completely to look like a specific person or better yet their favorite celebrity? I think that genetic engineering comes in handy when utilized appropriately such as creating new cells or tissue when trying to cure a specific disease. Its when people take advantage of the engineering mechanisms to create a clone of themselves. Don’t waste time! Our writers will create an original "What Is Genetic Engineering?" essay for you Create order I mean look how far cosmetic surgery has come along and how some get carried away with wanting to change themselves. One of the most widespread but also most controversial uses of genetic engineering is in the creation of genetically modified crops and food. The goal of genetic modification can vary from crop to crop. One example is the Soybeans that have been modified with a DNA segment bringing resistance to herbicides sprayed over fields to kill weeds growing. When you read and hear about how animals are being modified and injected with all sorts of hormones in order to increase the production of milk. Or how farmers fatten up their cattle. The artificial process that they put the cows through is to boost the amount of meat they can sell, which means more money for the farmers and their business. Another good thing that genetic engineering has allowed is the ability to develop faster, cheaper, diagnostic tests for certain diseases to be used both in the laboratory and in the body. These tests are used to identify infectious diseases, hormonal changes, pregnancies, cancer, and other diseases and conditions. Also, the use of genetically modified organisms to produce human hormones, enzymes, vaccines, and medications has revolutionized the pharmaceutical industry. One thing I can relate to this is the fact that Im lactose intolerant and now Im able to buy pills that will allow me to enjoy products that I wasnt able to before. Another great thing about genetic engineering is how its made it possible to develop gene therapy. Genetic diseases are inherited conditions that occur because of one or more genetic changes or mutations that prevent the correct functioning of a particular gene. Most genetic diseases do not have a treatment or cure. But this is where you can look at the bright side of genetic engineering techniques is that scientists hope that they will be able to transform an affected individuals mutated gene into a working gene by replacing it with a functional copy of the gene. Gene therapy has shown some success in helping individuals with severe combined immunodeficiency, hemophilia type B, and several other genetic diseases, and even has been put to use on cancer. Its crazy to even think that birth defects could potentially be eliminated if doctors were able to change that childs genes even before they are born. Maybe even be able to cure dis The process could also be adapted to cure hereditary diseases and prevent them from passing to future generations. Genetic engineering has definitely come a long ways and Im curious to see how much more we could achieve with it.