Critical Discussion Papers 6088 Dissertation Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Critical Discussion Papers 6088 - Dissertation Example Second, this type of learning approach is also modifiable, as it can be augmented by both sophisticated (photonic wands) and simple (drawings and pictures) communicative supports, allowing a differentiated learning experience based on the initial individual abilities of the students. In addition, this approach is apt for heterogeneous classes, which is usually the case, because they provide high quantity and quality communicative interactions. In the study of Arthur-Kelly et al. (2008) observing classes with disabled students, spontaneous interactive communication in heterogeneous classes occurred 17% of the time, as opposed to 4% in special classes composed of disabled students only. It was likewise observed that communication among disabled students and peers without disability is the best social forum for simple communication tasks such as turn-taking, greeting and requesting. However, as Arthur-Kelly et al. (2010) as well as Maheady and Gard (2010) suggested, the downside of coop erative learning and peer tutoring is that it relies heavily on the response of the students on the interactive set-up of learning. In teaching disabled students, for example, the partner without disabilities should be sensitive to the needs of their more-challenged counterpart. The understanding and acceptance of what is given communicatively is central to the effectiveness of the teaching approach. Thus, cooperative learning and peer tutoring, as they are currently used, are impossible to standardize. Students may thus receive different levels of information, depending on how much they can process. In the future, studies may look into means of standardizing the information received by all the students. One way this can be done is alternating between big class discussions and small group or paired discussions so that the information shared in between partners are also shared to the whole class. Developing teacher intuition, reflection and responsiveness may be one of the ways by wh ich standardization can be achieved. In addition, The extensive use of augmentative and alternative communication resources may also be looked into for the improvement of the quantity of knowledge and skills built up through this learning approach. Title: The Impractical Research-Based Teaching Practices There are reasons already recognized why implementation of research practices in real-life setting cannot be done over long periods of time (Mastropieri and Scroogs, 1998). One of the most common causes pointed at is that the methods used by research studies do not reflect the true classroom setting. In addition, researchers use curriculum-based measurements to draw their conclusions regarding the effectiveness of their approach, when in fact teachers observe attitudinal and behavioral changes in students to assess the effectiveness of their teaching method. Previous studies have also suggested that teacher individualism is compromised by these research-based practices. As such, tea chers are reluctant in adapting them for effective teaching. In addition, researchers do not properly train the teachers of the methods they deem beneficial for teaching. They also fail to communicate with the teachers in developing novel teaching approaches. Thus, problems such as the narrow or overly broad scope of some of the most common research-based teaching approache

Sixth Amendment Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 1

Sixth Amendment - Essay Example Following a verdict, the guilty person can file for a plea in the federal courts. This happens in situations where the accused is dissatisfied by the verdict. However, the court of appeal can accept or decline the case depending on the facts presented by the appellate (Smith, 2008). In following the right procedures, the court accords the guilty an appeal. The person has to prove the violation of his rights and his innocence in an appeal. The Sixth Amendment right to trial by a jury enhances fairness by focusing on the inequities in application of law. It prevents impartial jurisdiction. As such, its enactment has decreased cases of violation of privileges associated with the accused. According to Smith (2008), a jury trial ensures that the judges are impartial when delivering their verdict. Consequently, the nature of the case dictates to the judges their powers in trail. For example, judges with cases of corruption cannot sentence criminals. The judge does not have the autonomy to make decisions in a case. The jury safeguards the privileges of the accused regardless of the crime committed. Before trail, the accused should know the person who is accusing them. The law gives the accused an opportunity to face complainant in a court. To some extent, the accuser cross-examines the person he/she is accusing. Historically statements outside courts influenced decision in English courts. Therefore, the enactment of the right to confront witness ensured that the judge is not lead by the sentiments made outside courts. The 12-member jury was constituted because of its benefits to the judiciary and the public. It also safeguarded the constitution of the United States. It was an impartial body because it enhanced fairness during the reign of Charlemagne. Consequently, I agree with the privilege to a trial because it enhances fairness. It allows

What is social justice Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

What is social justice - Essay Example These states, events and processes include our actions, beliefs and thinking (Gao, 96). The relation between an event A and another event B poses a philosophical problem when there is something between A and B that makes the relationship between them problematic. The mind and body have many features that are said to be responsible for our sense of problem because they interact causally. Rene Descartes held a long tradition in philosophy that the mind is a non-bodily entity (Gao 98). He described the mind as a soul or mental substance. When the mind is said to be a mental substance, it is not implied to be made up of a non-physical material. The term substance, in a traditional philosophical use, refers to a substance as an entity. The mental substances in the mind and body are non-material or non-physical objects that exist independently of a physical object like the body of a person (Cahn, 117). But how do such objects relate to physical objects? Determinism is the philosophical view that all events have a cause. It posits that all mental and physical states of affairs are the result of their causes and in a way have a scientific law. Determinism comes with various implications. For example, it does not believe in free will, miracles or chance about the occurrence of various phenomena. Determinists argue that the future event or past event can be calculated (Gao 106). A special form of determinism believes that some mental processes might not be caused even though physical processes are caused. According to them, choices involve mental processes, thus have no actual effects in the extreme world. For example, when one watches a movie twice, he/she doe not hope for a different outcome, but do so in the interest in the event. One of the scholars that held the determinist view was Isaac Newton. Newton challenged the phenomenon around him when he ventured into discovering the cause a fruit from the top of a tree. His determination to question the its

Semiotic analysis of how reality television affects our society Research Paper

Semiotic analysis of how reality television affects our society - Research Paper Example Like any other form of media exposure, the reality television also has certain effects on the society. However, the positive effects of these shows is limited to entertainment for viewers, benefits for the producers, higher returns for the sponsors and fame for the starring characters. Hence, this paper aims to analyze the impact of reality shows on the society and focuses more on the negative effects it has on people. Television exposure has a great impact on people’s perceptions and views. The impact of, reality television, is crucial as the reality shows portray the real life experiences of certain people. O’ Guinn and Shrum (1997) shed the light on this issue by asserting that people believe in what is being exposed on the television and perceive it to be true. Regardless of the over-representations and extreme exposure of changing attitudes, emotions and behaviours added to grab the attention of the viewers. This over-represented picture of reality, hence, is adopted by a large viewership. A number of studies have been conducted to affirm this claim that the whole society is affected by television exposure. An American individual spends approximately 4 hours in a day watching television (O’Guinn, Shrum & Wyer, 1998). The effects of reality Television are more severe and long lasting than other shows. The reason to this fact is the finding of research studies that people w ho watch TV are affected by the exposure in one way or the other. They often try to fit their own life and existing circumstances to the ones they watched on the TV. Reality shows, which repeatedly emphasize that the characters and the incidents are all real, affect people even more. There is, however, a camera effect on the behaviours of the characters starring in the reality television which is, most of the times, ignored by the viewer. To understand the possible effects of reality television on the society, let us consider an

Finding something that will make it easier to plan your holiday Essay Example for Free

Finding something that will make it easier to plan your holiday Essay Finding something that will make it easier to plan your holiday It is not as easy as it looks to find a concept that you believe in and you think is going to make it easier or more convenient for people to travel. First I was trying too hard, finding something that would do amazing things, something that would be so new. Nothing came to my head, then I thought, why not just try something simple that I would like to have to help me planning my travels or for my friends. I had to stop trying to think something big as the small things are just as important when you are for example planning your trip. So after going through the thoughts that I was not going to find anything, something came into my head. Why not make a website that will help people travel around Iceland and maybe have an application that goes with it. I did some research before my presentation and found out what technology I could use. Then I went to class with the idea. Getting feedback and to work more with the concept After the presentation, the concept was more clear what it could have and what was needed to be done to get it going, as well as what more research needed. There were some new ideas from the class that in a way changed the purpose for the website and for the application. The research that had to been done was to look how many people could use it, maybe it would be a good idea to narrow it down in the beginning, so it would only be accessible for people that live in Iceland, to get the domestic tourism stronger, help people to travel in the own country before taking it further. So the concept was coming together and the next step was to do the research that had to be done to be sure that this would be possible for the travellers. Planning your dream holiday It is everyone’s dream to plan a dream holiday, it is not as easy as someone would think, there are so many information about different transport, activities, attractions, tours, accommodation and dinning. Putting all the information form each category into a database, each area would have its own database so it could work on its own as well as together. It is going to be a website as well as a application for I phone. The technology that Trip Sketch application is using with Green Traveller is similar as what is in this concept for the I phone, The focus going to be Iceland and not the USA or UK. For example for the website the customer will first have the opportunity to choose for how long the holiday is going to last and then what area of Iceland is interested for the customer. With that out of the way the customer can have the choice between the categories that were mention before, click on accommodation and there will be all the places in that area and if the customers click on for example a hotel they will get information about the hotel, where it is, how to get there, website, opening times and other important information. The customer can also save that hotel in his folder and later on compare different accommodations before booking the right one. This goes for all the things in the database. The application for the I phone is more for the customer on the road, following the technology as mention before with the opportunity to plan a day out. This is going to focus on domestic traveller at the beginning, if that is successful then it will be look at taking futher. What this concept idea will consist of The need to be able to make our own holiday in the comfort of your home is an increasing demand, this concept will help travellers build the dream holiday by going on a website, which will have multi choice questions so the person will answer questions related to what that the person would like to do on that holiday. It will look like questioners for the consumer and in the end the person will have all the information to plan and book the dream holiday. This site will only be available in Iceland for the start, if that goes well, then by time it will be open for international tourist that have Iceland on the list and there will be the opportunity to open a site for other countries if there is interest for it. The welcome page will consist of basic information about Iceland as well as safety tips for travelling in the country. There will be a demonstration on how the site works, similar to what is done on the website Just-Eat (Just-Eat 2010). On the page will be a sign in part, where the consumer will sign in and fill out basic information, like contact, age, gender, address and interests, this will create a username that will allow the consumer to log in anytime and will also store the searches that are conducted. There will be a â€Å"start your trip button† on the page that will take the consumer to the start of the exclusions process, the consumer will then be taken to a page where there will be a start of point choices. Like Region: the different region of the country – West, South, East, North and the West fjords. Adventure: for example; horseback riding, river rafting, hiking, sailing and more. Time: how long the trip can last, couple of hours, half a day, a day, week, month. Attractions: Culture and history: where the Icelandic culture and history are, like art galleries, museum, heritage centres, festivals for the arts and more. Based on the choice made, the consumer is taken to another page where there will be sub options to choose from, with the addition of accommodation. This process continues until the consumer presses finish and is presented with the result from the search that was undertaken. That would be called the travel plan and would give the consumer the insight of what kind of a holiday would be on offer. The opportunity is then available to book any aspect of the holiday right from the website. Like Travel option: booking a car rental, bus tickets or airplane tickets. Accommodation: hotels, country hotels, farmhouses, cottages, camping sites. Restaurants: would be able to make reservations for all the meals the consumer is thinking of having on the trip. Trips: the consumer would be able to book all the trips that would be on the travel plan. Tickets: to museums, festivals, shows and more. The flow chart below demonstrates the concept process of elimination to find the ideal holiday for the consumer. Figure 1.1 Flowchart for design concept The companies that want to take part in the website will need to create a retailer login, where the company will have to fill in an application form with all required information, such as Company name Type of activates: selected from a drop down menu. Location: where the company is based. Activities locations: where the activities are taking place. Dates: fill in a calendar with the upcoming activities. Prices: Range of package prices as well as prices for individual activities. Contact details: phone numbers, homepage, e-mails and contact person. Each company or business will have to fill out predetermined templates for each activity and these will then be available on the website instantly, the responsibility lies with each company to give accurate details. The templates are used so the website information is uniform for display to the consumer. A fixed charge will be taken for each booking that is made on the website, so the company will only pay if it gets business from the website. The website has two main objectives Assist the consumer in finding the ideal holiday. Assist local retailers in finding customers for the holiday activities. This is done by designing the website so that it only requires the input from consumers and retailers to function. Consumer input: search entries, holiday review, holiday request. Retailer input: holiday details, prices, dates. References: Just-Eat. (2010, November 17). Retrieved November 17, 2010, from Just-Eat: http://www.just-eat.co.uk/ What technology will support the concept and how Developing the concept will involve building up a web site that will take all the information that is needed and put it in the right places. Building up the website will go through several stages, taking the storyboard that is the foundation of the site (Sweeney 2008) and getting all the ideas on it is the first step, this gives the layout for the site at the beginning with the opportunity to improve further on. The second stage will be to get the information into the database that will be behind the web site as the storyboard is only the structure of the site but has no full information on it. The layout will have similarity to what TripSketch uses for the application Green traveller for the iphone . Using multi questions templates to plan a domestic holiday. It would be possible to take the website and turn it into an application for iphones or smart phones, which would then have to be in an area where there would be internet connection to be able to interact on the application and get the result straight into your phone. The concept is based around the use of a website as the interface for both the consumer and the retailer. This requires the development of a website interface that is linked to a database in which data is input or output to the interface. The consumers interface in one where the database is searched based on the input from the consumer is taken through a process of elimination. The consumer interface can be set up in many ways such as Search engine interface Single page multiple choice Multi page multiple choice The search engine interface allows the user to input any number of search terms and the n the database is searched and the results displayed. The pros of using this type is that it will make it easier for the consumer to find the activity that is on offer, however the user might not use the right words for the activity that will then resolve in not finding what is on offer. Single page multiple choice allows the user to input all choices on the same page and go straight to result page. This can be convenient if there are few choices in the form and holidays are mostly similar, the more the variety the more inconclusive the result will be. Multi page multiple choices allows the user to eliminate at each page before going to the next set of choices, this then only presents choices to the consumer based on its previous selections. Doing this the consumer will come to concentrated results and from there the user can select the ideal holiday. The retailer interface could have any numbers of styles to bring the data into the database as out of it, such as The website has employee that would take all the data that comes from the retailer and process them into the database that will then be available to the consumer through the website. The retailer would take all the data and put it into the database through the retailer interface on the website. That would then not require a special employee from the website and would then be more cost effective to the website. The site would be able to charge the consumers directly as bookings are made online, using online credit card facilities and possibly Paypal. In doing so the website can update the retailers account with the payment made and show the deducted amount to the website. The retailer is then paid on regular bases. The website could have a review interface for the consumer for a specific holiday that the consumer has undertaken. This would be an option for the user to do, as signed into the website and already gone on the trip, which would go into the database and be linked to the trip that the retailer has on offer as well as linked to the retailer. It would also be a possibility to have an comment box for the website that would give the consumer an opportunity to give comments on what could be improved data wise on the site as well as what has been done well and not so well. This data would then be send to the administrator for further improvement on the site The technology used for the website is widely used and thus easily implemented for this type of website. References: Bibliography Buhalis, D. (2003). eTourism Information technology for strategic tourism management. Harlow: Prentice Hall. Chris Cooper, J. F. (2008). Tourism; principles and practice. Harlow: Pearson Education Limited. Just-Eat. (2010, November 17). Retrieved November 17, 2010, from Just-Eat: http://www.just-eat.co.uk/ Nokia. (2010, November 15). Ovi daily app . Retrieved November 15, 2010, from Ovi store: http://blog.ovi.com/dailyapp/global/2010/08/travel-plans-in-your-future-try-tripsketch-green-traveler-for-nokia/ Page, S. J. (2009). Tourism management man; managing for change. Oxford: Butterworth-Heinemann. Sweeney, S. (2008). 101 Ways ti Promote Your Tourism Business Web Site. Jim Hoskins. Sweeney, S. (2009). 101 Ways to Promote Your Web Site. Jim Hoskins.

Matricaria Chamomilla (Chamomile): A Pharmacognosy Review

Matricaria Chamomilla (Chamomile): A Pharmacognosy Review Abstract Matricaria chamomilla is one of the most ancient and renowned medicinal plant from Asteraceae family. Chamomile is a well-heeled plant of natural stuff having pharmacognostic properties. This plant is natural source of blue oil, prepared by various methods such as hydro-distillation, chromatography techniques, etc. Earlier studies on plant compounds classified have nutritional values and more than one biological activity. Chamomile is thus used in cosmetics, perfumery, in food industry and aromatherapy since thousands of years. It has been suggested as alleviate for numerous diseases. This article briefly reviews the details on chemical constituents of essential oil and plant parts as well as their pharmacological properties, accomplished by QSAR and pharmacophore studies which is an in silico approach that increases the activity of plant by modifying its functional groups. This is an attempt to compile and document information on various aspects of chamomile plant and emphasize its need for research and development. Keywords: Matricaria chamomilla, chemical constituents, pharmacognostic, QSAR Introduction The relationship of plant life and human well-being has been renowned for thousands of years.1,2 Herbs have been vital to both traditional and non-traditional forms of medication dated back to at least 5000 years.3-5The enduring popularity of herbal remedies may be enlightened by the propensity of herbs to graft gradually, typically with minimal toxic side effects. Plants are imperative sources of medication since time immemorial. Studies on natural-products are meant to establish therapeutic values of plants by exploration of existing precise scientific knowledge, conventional uses, and invention of potential chemotherapeutic agents.6 The history of herbal medicine is as old as human civilization. With the promising global concern in adopting and studying customary system of medicine and exploring their potential based on different Medicare systems, the estimation of rich heritage of medicinally active plants is primarily carried out on the basis of morphological, phytochemical, pha rmacological and different techniques such as chromatography, distillation, etc.7 One of the most common herbal plant used for curative purposes is chamomile whose homogeneous tea and herbal mines are primed from dried flowers ofMatricariaspecies.8 Taxonomical classification Kingdom: Plantae, Division: Magnoliophyta (Flowering plant), Class: Magnoliopsida (Dicotyledons), Family: Asteraceae, Genus: Matricaria L., Species: Matricaria chamomilla (German chamomile).9 Morphology of plant Matricaria chamomilla commonly known as German chamomile is one of the most ancient annual herbaceous plant of composite family Asteraceae.10 This composite flower is largely favoured aromatic plant having multi-therapeutic values. Chamomile is highly imperative medicinal herb native to southern and eastern Europe. It is most ancient medicinal plant used in herbal remedies for thousands of years known to mankind. Matricaria Chamomilla is a natural resource of blue oil. Various sections of plant such as aerial parts, root and shoot system contains essential oil that has been recommended for variety of healing ailments and diseases.11 Chamomile is a rich source of natural products. There is an immense demand for chamomile plant world-wide because of its influential medicinal values and pharmacological properties. Chamomile plant has a sweet, verdant, and faintly fruity scent. Its florae are daisy-like flowers, with yellow cores and white petals.12 The color of the Blue oil is due to the terpenoid chamazulene, which has been reported for its anti-inflammatory, anti-allergic, and antispasmodic properties.13 Chamazulene is biosynthesized from sesquiterpene Matricine, which is reported to have solid antioxidant activity and antimicrobial pharmacological actions.14,15 Ethnobotanical Profile Chamomile being a constituent of various traditional, unani, and homeopathic medicinal provisions, it has been used greatly in flatulence, colic, hysteria, and intermittent fever as a drug.16-18 Many scientists have quoted from writings of several doctors of ancient times that chamomile was also used in cardiac diseases and in functioning of liver.19-22 The diverse range of essential oil isolation techniques and analytical procedures have been smeared for studying the volatile components of chamomile by several groups.23 Numerous essential oils are currently in use as aromatherapy agents to ease anxiety, pressure, and depression. Standard anxiolytic oils include lavender oil, rose oil, orange oil, bergamot oil, lemon oil, sandalwood oil, rose-scented geranium oil and chamomile (German and Roman).24 This aromatherapy is the use of concentrated essential oils extracted from herbs, flowers, and other plant parts to heal several diseases. Aromatherapy is becoming increasingly more popula r; however there are only a few apparent indications for its use.25 Aromatherapy massage exerts optimistic effects on anxiety, self-esteem and also highly reduces stress and stress responses in adolescents by taking aroma treatments.26, 27 The international demand for chamomile oil has been steadily growing. Chamomile is internally used as tisane for stomach pain, slow digestion, diarrhoea and nausea; more rarely and very efficiently for inflammation of the urinary tract and for aching menstruation. Chamomile is used chiefly as an anti-inflammatory and antiseptic, also as antispasmodic and mildly sudorific.28 The chamomile extracts was found to have the most effective anti-leishmanial activity.29 The other uses of Matricaria chamomilla are in cosmetics, perfumes, food additives, while the external use includes the powder form of drug that can be applied for healing, skin eruptions, and infections.10,30 A number of chemical constituents have been identified in chamomile as secondary metabolites, including terpenoids, flavonoids, phenyl propanoids and many other additional compounds with potential pharmacological action. Phytochemistry and Pharmacology of Compounds Plants engender primary and secondary metabolites which encompass a wide range of functions. Plants can produce many different types of secondary metabolites that comprise of compounds having multivariate function, exposed by humans for their beneficial role in a varied array of applications.31 Phytochemicals have been the single most fruitful source of leads for the expansion of new drug entities from the dawn of drug discovery. They cover up a wide array of therapeutic indications with a huge assortment of chemical structures.32 The Phytochemicals isolated from Matricaria chamomilla have been classified into different classes of compounds (see table no. 1). The detailed information for each class of compounds can be accessible from supplementary table no. S1-S10. Alkanes Alkanes are acyclic branched or unbranched hydrocarbons having the general formula CnH2n+2 , and therefore comprises completely of hydrogen atoms and saturated carbon atoms.33 Drugs are increasingly being developed from natural products and several alkane compounds such as hexane have already been reported, offering a very promising approach to identify novel anti-angiogenic and anti-cancer agents.34 A considerable number of alkanes derived from chamomile have been identified mostly as antimicrobial and anti-inflammatory agents. A list of alkanes along with its structure and biological activity has been documented in a table (see supplementary table no. S1). Flavonoids Flavonoids are low molecular weight bioactive compounds of enormous biological importance. Flavonoids are secondary metabolites outlined by flavan nucleus and its carbon framework refers to C6-C8-C6.35 These compounds can be classified as polyphenols or phenolics. Flavonoids can be further grouped into subclasses such as flavones, flavonols, flavanones, chalcones, aurones, isoflavones, anthocyanins, and proanthocyanidins. Flavonoid displays several biological properties like antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, anticancer, antiobesity, cardio protective, and neuroprotective activities.36 A huge number of flavonoid compounds such as rutin, quercetin hesperidin and many others have been reported as drugs that tend to possess anticancer, antioxidant and even senescence effects.37,38 A list of flavonoids along with its structure and biological activity has been listed in a table (see supplementary table no. S2). Terpenoids Terpenoids, encompasses the most abundant and morphologically diverse group of plant secondary metabolites. Terpenoids are more frequently present in plants and around 23,000 compounds have been isolated in all. Terpenoids being a rich reservoir of candidate compounds have been characterized as monoterpenes, diterpenes, hemiterpenes and sesquiterpenes.39 Terpenoid production from plants has various defensive and protective functions that holds potential therapeutic properties such as anticancer (mostly leukemic), analgesic, antioxidant, antimicrobial and others. The terpenoid, eucalyptol which is a fragrant chemical has been propagated as nutraceutical having analgesic, anticancer and anti-inflammatory properties.40,41 A list of terpenoids along with its structure and biological activity has been revealed in a table (see supplementary table no. S3). Coumarins Coumarin, which was isolated in 1820 for the first time is classified as an element of benzopyrone family of compounds.42 Coumarins are the well-known phytochemicals that are comprehensively used as a natural active compound. The synthesis of coumarins and their derivatives have noteworthy significance from organic and medicinal chemists for several years. They have been generally used in food, perfumes, cosmetics, pharmaceuticals and as optical brighteners.43 Several coumarins and their derivatives have been reported for its antimicrobial and anticancer effects, some of which act as drugs. Dicumarol, cyclocoumarol, coumarin and its derivatives are used as an anticoagulants.44 A list of coumarins along with its structure and biological activity has been listed out in a table (see supplementary table no. S4). Phenyl propanoids Phenyl propanoids are the varied family of organic compounds synthesized from amino acid phenyl alanine.45 Phenyl propanoids are the plant polyketides that tend to possess multiple biological functions such as anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, anti-depressant and anticancer.46 Phenyl alanine which is an essential amino acid is sold as nutritional supplement for its reputed analgesic and antidepressant effects.47,48 Phenyl alanine first gets converted to cinnamic acid by deamination which is than followed by hydroxylation and frequent methylation to produce coumaric acid and others with phenyl propane.49 A list of phenyl propanoids along with its structure and biological activity has been recorded in a table (see supplementary table no. S5). Spiroethers Spiroether isomers isolated from chamomile showed antispasmodic and anti-inflammatory activities.50 A list of spiroethers along with its structure and biological activity has been mentioned in a table (see supplementary table no. S6). Fatty acids Fatty acids are carboxylic acids with a long aliphatic hydrocarbon tail produced by hydrolysis of triglycerides. These are either saturated or unsaturated naturally occurring fatty acids. 51 More interestingly, isoamly acetate released from honey bee’s sting act as pheromone.52 Isoamyl acetate is also found to be isolated from wine.53 Fatty acids possesses anticancer, antioxidant and other pharmacological actions which has been depicted in a table (see supplementary table no. S7). Fatty acid esters Fatty acid esters can be obtained by esterification of fatty acids. They are the product of combination of fatty acid with an alcohol.54 Fatty acids acts against microbes, as an analgesic and also as melanogenesis inhibitor. A list of fatty acid esters along with its structure and above mentioned biological activity with its references has been reported in a table(see supplementary table no. S8). Pthalic acid Phthalic acid is an aromatic dicarboxylic acid which is formed by catalytic oxidation of naphthalene directly to phthalic anhydride.55 The significant pharmacological properties of phthalic acid involves anti-androgenic, antimutagenic and anti-leukemic activity. Phthalic acid along with its structure and biological activity has been depicted in a table (see supplementary table no. S9). Fatty alcohol Fatty alcohols are the aliphatic alcohols which are naturally found as waxes produced by plants, bacteria and animals having various biological properties.56 The metabolism of fatty alcohol compounds in fibroblasts is impaired in several inherited humanperoxisomaldisorders, includingadrenoleukodystrophyandSjogren-Larsson syndrome.57 Fatty alcohol along with its structure and biological activity has been documented in a table (see supplementary table no. S10). Catalogue of Bioinformatics and Cheminformatics repositories The large amount of Chamomile phytochemical information is highly discrete and can be easily procurable by a number of web-accessible bioinformatics and cheminformatics databases like PubChem,58,59 Chemspider,60 Human Metabolome Database(HMDB),61 ChemBank,62 NAPRALERT,63 SuperNatural database,64 NPACT65 and many more. PubChem is an open repository for chemical structures and their biological activities, maintained by NCBI, a division of NLM under NIH. PubChem is becoming a valued reserve for drug development fascinating noteworthy interest from researchers in academe and diligence.66 PubChem includes substance information, compound structures, and BioActivity information from three principal databases, Pcsubstance, Pccompound, and PCBioAssay, respectively. Pcsubstance contains descriptions of small molecules, PcBioassay contains biological screening results of substances provided by depositors and Pccompound database contains the unique chemical structures. The aim of PubChem is to make this information easily available.67 Pcsubstance contains about 93 million records, Pccompound contains nearly 33 million unique structures and PCBioAssay contains more than 621,000 BioAssays.68 ChemSpider is a free chemical structure database providing rapid text search and structure search access to more than 28 million structures from hundreds of data sources.69 ChemSpider is a very valued web-based database that facilitates access to various chemical structures, nomenclature, chemical properties and other systematic information. ChemSpider is integrated with RSC (Royal Society of Chemistry).60 The Human Metabolome Database is an opulently annotated resource that is devoted to provide researchers with most recent and comprehensive coverage of human metabolome.70 The latest version of HMDB release is HMDB 3.0 that contains 40278 metabolite entries. The database is intended to contain three kinds of entries: chemical data, clinical data and molecular biology/biochemistry data.61 ChemBank is a public web-based database cheminformatics database established by Broad Institutes Chemical Biology Programand funded by National Cancer Institute’s (NCI) Initiative for Chemical Genetics (ICG). ChemBank, a unique among small molecule database houses all the chemical molecular information such as names and identifier of the compounds, their calculated molecular descriptors as well as human curated biological information.62 NAPRALERT (NAtural PRoduct ALERT), an largest ethnobotanical database on pharmacology, pharmacokinetics, toxicology and phytochemistry of plants. NAPRALERT, a relational database was initiated in 1975 by Norman Fransworth and is housed within the Program for Collaborative Research at College of Pharmacy, UIC. It includes biochemical information of extracts of organism, in vivo, in situ, in vitro in humans and clinical studies.63 SuperNatural database is the first public database containing 3D structures, their conformers, derivatives and analogues. It consists of ~ 50,000 natural compounds from different sources. Natural products compounds are classified based on different classes of compounds.64 NPACT is Naturally Occurring Plant-based Anti-cancer Compound-Activity-Target database. It presently comprises of 1574 compound entries with detailed information on the structure, and activity of compound. This database gathers experimentally validated plant derived natural compounds exhibiting anti-cancerous property, both in vitro and in vivo. It also provides inhibitory values of compounds (IC50, ED50, EC50, GI50), their molecular targets and drug-likeliness.65 Conclusion Chamomile is extensively in use in world market because of its wide and varied appliance in medical science. Moreover, natural substances are preferred more, rather than synthesized one due to its minimal side effects and easy extraction of its compounds. Chamomile is a natural source for plenty of bioactive substances that cure numerous diseases. Cheminformatics, an in silico approach is a way out for ample of problems in field of medicinal chemistry. This avenue can be used in drug discovery processes. In silico has gained a considerable thrust over last few years. Due to increased availability of computational power, in silico simulations have reward over in vitro methods. In silico methods are time and cost effective, tumbling lots of biological confirmations and offers the possibility of replacing some animal tests with suitable insilicomodels. QSAR and Pharmacophore studies can be carried out at primary level to increase the activity of the compounds which further leads to drug discovery processes.

Cultural Background Knowledge And English Teaching Cultural Studies Essay

Cultural Background Knowledge And English Teaching Cultural Studies Essay Language is a mirror which reflects the entire culture, and every nation has its own culture. Language learning is inseparable from the understanding of cultural background knowledge. Cultural background knowledge is very important in language teaching. Here I want to talk about the relationship between them and how to teach. I. Introduction Language is a product of society, cultural differences led to many difficulties language learning, if you want to learn English as well, you must grasp cultural knowledge. Language learning is inseparable from the understanding of cultural background knowledge. It is necessary for teachers to pass on cultural background knowledge to students. II. Cultural  background  knowledge  and  English  teaching 1. Problems aroused by different cultural backgrounds Cultural plays an important role in language. They are linked closely. Different countries have different languages and cultures. Because of cultural differences, misunderstandings may arise, although the language used in communication may be faultless. The same words or expressions may not mean the same thing to different peoples. Because of cultural differences, a serious question may cause amusement or laughter ¼Ã¢â‚¬ ºA harmless statement may cause displeasure or anger. On the one hand, without language, culture would not be possible. On the other hand, language is influenced and shaped by culture; it reflects culture. Each culture is unique. Learning a foreign language means more than merely mastering the pronunciation, grammar, words and idioms. It means learning the ways in which their language reflects the ideas, customs, and behavior of their society, learning to understand their language of the mind. Learning a language, in fact, is inseparable from learning its culture. In china, dragon means lucky, but in the foreigners eyes dragon is the embodiment of evil. In China, we can free to ask a persons age, salary, or an items price, in the West, this is very impolite. A foreign teacher see a female student wearing a beautiful dress, she looks very nice. The teacher said happily, You look very beautiful today! The girl said shyly, No, no. This is an ordinary dress. The teacher praise a students English is pretty well, Your English is quite fluent. The student at once modestly said, No, no, my English is quite poor. The two Students answer is that the teacher never thought; and the teacher doesnt understand is that obviously female student wears the dress which looks pretty, the second students English is very good, but why both of them say, No. They make the teacher feel that they dont have their own opinions and dont know how to distinguish what is good, what is bad. A student, he met a foreigner in the park, he would like to practice his own spoken language, he said, Whats your name? What are you doing here? Follow me! The foreigner confused and thought that he did something wrong, and he had to be arrested and inquired. At last, let us see the following dialogues in many textbooks: 1. A: Whats your name? B: My name is Xiao Hong. A: How old are you? B: Im eleven. 2. A: Where are you going? B: Im going to the zoo. In china, when people meet each other, they always say, Where are you going? Are you out? although people do not want to know where you go. All the above dialogues, although forms are correct, they are not appropriate. So in language teaching, we should not only pass on knowledge of language and train learners competence of utilizing language, but also enhance teaching of relative cultural background knowledge. 2. Importance of cultural background knowledge in language teaching As we all know, Language is a part of the culture, they can not be separated each other. Therefore its necessary to understand the cultural background knowledge. In Modern high schools, the teachers mainly cultivate ability in listening, speaking, reading and writing, the ultimate aim is to train students to use English communicate with each other, the four aspects are inseparable from the cultural background knowledge. Without language, culture would not be possible. Language is influenced and shaped by culture; it reflects culture. Some people say that listening is an important aspect of communicative competence. Listening ability, reading ability, the listeners language skill, cultural background knowledge, thinking skill are closely related. If the language capability of the listener is relatively strong, but he knows a little cultural background knowledge, it is difficult to understand the meaning of the listening materials, even he makes a mistake in understanding. From this, culture plays an important role in English teaching. Speaking is not merely concerned with pronunciation and intonation. Students can only improve their oral English and reach the aim of communication by means of enormous reading, mastering rich language material and acquaintance of western culture. Therefore, in oral training, teachers should lay stress on factuality of language and adopt some material approaching to daily life, such as daily dialogues with tape, magazines, newspapers and report etc., because the material is from real life, and it helps students to be well acquainted with standard pronunciation and intonation, to speak English appropriate to the occasion, to understand western way of life and customs etc. Otherwise, misunderstanding and displeasure are inevitably aroused. In English, there are so many euphemisms that sometimes its hard to know the other ones actual mood. So we should pay attention to our answer. Reading English articles requires a certain language basis, but the competence of reading comprehension is not entirely related to ones language level. Knowledge of cultural background is also important. You can guess the meaning according to available language material, cultural background and logical reasoning. However, when we read English articles, differences between Chinese and western cultures often bring us many difficulties. People always recognize which kind of articles wrote by foreigners, which kind of articles wrote by Chinese. There are three main reasons, first, the writers English level is not so high, second, Chinese and western have different thinking ways, third, the articles style is very different because of different cultural. These three aspects show cultural play an important role in writing. In writing, we often use some modifiers to enhance the color of the article, and the articles are so vivid. Western thinks the magpie is not a sign of good luck, but Chinese think magpie is a symbol of celebration. People always say: Magpie call, something good will be happened. Therefore, cultural difference is the key that makes the articles be natural or not. If you want to achieve the level of writing of foreigners, you must grasp cultural background knowledge. Every aspects of language always reflects cultural, It means language learning and cultural background knowledge learning are not separate d. The content of cultural is very abundant, in the teaching process, the teachers shall explain cultural background knowledge in any time, make the students take language and cultural knowledge into listening, speaking, reading, writing skills, so as to the students can easily communicate with foreigners and read foreign materials. Translating and writing cant be separated from cultural background knowledge. We shall take the word dog as an example. To English-speaking people and Chinese, there are very different meanings. Lai Pi Gou and Sang JiaZhiquan are often used to describe disgusting people. But dog in English, especially in proverbs, is a commendatory term. If we translate dog into Chinese dog without exception, we may make jokes. For example: 1. Every dog has his day. 2. You are, indeed, a lucky dog., 3. Last night my father came home dog-tired. Because some learners are not well aware of the cultural differences, they take it for granted that the three sentences should be translated into the following: 1.à ¦Ã‚ ¯Ã‚ Ãƒ ¦Ã‚ Ã‚ ¡Ãƒ §Ã¢â‚¬ ¹-à ©Ã†â€™Ã‚ ½Ãƒ ¦Ã…“†°Ãƒ ¨Ã¢â‚¬ ¡Ã‚ ªÃƒ ¥Ã‚ ·Ã‚ ±Ãƒ §Ã… ¡Ã¢â‚¬Å¾Ãƒ ¨Ã…  Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ãƒ ¦- ¥Ãƒ £Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬Å¡ 2.à ¤Ã‚ ½Ã‚  Ãƒ §Ã…“Å ¸Ãƒ ¦Ã‹Å" ¯Ãƒ ¤Ã‚ ¸Ã¢â€š ¬Ãƒ ¦Ã‚ Ã‚ ¡Ãƒ ¥Ã‚ ¹Ã‚ ¸Ãƒ ¨Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ Ãƒ §Ã… ¡Ã¢â‚¬Å¾Ãƒ §Ã¢â‚¬ ¹-à £Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬Å¡ 3.à ¦Ã‹Å" ¨Ãƒ ¦Ã¢â€ž ¢Ã… ¡Ãƒ ¦Ã‹â€ Ã¢â‚¬ËœÃƒ §Ã‹â€ Ã‚ ¸Ãƒ §Ã‹â€ Ã‚ ¸Ãƒ ¥Ã¢â‚¬ ºÃ… ¾Ãƒ ¥Ã‹â€ Ã‚ °Ãƒ ¥Ã‚ ®Ã‚ ¶Ãƒ ¤Ã‚ ¸Ã‚ ­Ãƒ ¥Ã†â€™Ã‚ Ãƒ §Ã¢â‚¬ ¹-à ¤Ã‚ ¸Ã¢â€š ¬Ãƒ ¦Ã‚  Ã‚ ·Ãƒ ¥Ã‚ ¾-à §Ã‚ ´Ã‚ ¯Ãƒ £Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬Å¡ In fact, the right translations are as follows: 1.à ¤Ã‚ ºÃ‚ ºÃƒ ¤Ã‚ ºÃ‚ ºÃƒ §Ã… ¡Ã¢â‚¬  Ãƒ ¦Ã…“†°Ãƒ ¥Ã‚ ¾-à ¦Ã¢â‚¬Å¾Ã‚ Ãƒ ¦- ¶Ãƒ £Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬Å¡ 2.à ¤Ã‚ ½Ã‚  Ãƒ §Ã…“Å ¸Ãƒ ¦Ã‹Å" ¯Ãƒ ¤Ã‚ ¸Ã‚ ªÃƒ ¥Ã‚ ¹Ã‚ ¸Ãƒ ¨Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ Ãƒ ¥Ã¢â‚¬Å¾Ã‚ ¿Ãƒ £Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬Å¡ 3.à ¦Ã‹Å" ¨Ãƒ ¦Ã¢â€ž ¢Ã… ¡Ãƒ ¦Ã‹â€ Ã¢â‚¬ËœÃƒ §Ã‹â€ Ã‚ ¶Ãƒ ¤Ã‚ ºÃ‚ ²Ãƒ ¥Ã¢â‚¬ ºÃ… ¾Ãƒ ¥Ã‹â€ Ã‚ °Ãƒ ¥Ã‚ ®Ã‚ ¶Ãƒ ¤Ã‚ ¸Ã‚ ­Ãƒ ©Ã‚ Ã… ¾Ãƒ ¥Ã‚ ¸Ã‚ ¸Ãƒ §Ã‚ ´Ã‚ ¯Ãƒ £Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬Å¡ It is clear that cultural background knowledge is necessary in language teaching. Teachers should help students to solve the difficulties in language as well as in culture. Thus, teachers should further improve your quality of teaching. Especially you should teach cultural background knowledge as possible as you can. 3. How to carry out the teaching of cultural background knowledge Firstly teachers should choose proper teaching material. Especially the foreign material should be used, just like dialogues, next, teachers should explain cultural factors involved in the material with purpose. There is an example like this: Helen: Hello, Susan, where are you going? Susan: Im going to get a magazine and some chocolate. Helen: Lets go to that newsagent in the corner. I want some cigarettes. Susan: I want to go the one down the road. Ive got to send off this parcel and there is a post-office in that one. It tells us in England some newsagentà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã… ¡those shops not only sell sweets and cigarettes, but also install post office where people can send off letters and parcels. But in China, there are not such shops. If teachers dont explain for this, students may feel puzzled. Secondly, Teachers should take cultural background knowledge and English teaching into four aspects of language learning, they are listening, speaking, reading, writing skills. Teachers should give some information about cultural background knowledge in listening course. A lot of students listening level is not so high, not only because they do not grasp English words and their grammatical concept is unclear but also they dont have cultural background knowledge. There are two jokes here: à ¢Ã¢â‚¬ËœÃ‚  A: Where are you from? B: Ill ask her (Alaska) A: Why do you ask her? à ¢Ã¢â‚¬ËœÃ‚ ¡A: Where are you from? B: How are you? (Hawaii) In the two jokes, to A, B do not understand question, but if you know the United States has two states: Alaska and Hawaii, then A will not make a mistake. From this, in listening course, teachers give cultural background knowledge to students, not only enhance the listening skill of them, but also enable students to obtain knowledge. In reading course, teachers should explain cultural background knowledge. If you want to read, you must have English basic. Cultural background knowledge is so important. Thirdly, in the classroom, teacher should pay attention to proper language forms as well as suitable use of language. One way of classroom teaching is to ask students to make similar dialogues to the text. A student inevitably needs to play a role and carry on a conversation according to a certain role. Teacher should attract the students attention to his role and point out his expressions which are improper for his character or the occasion. Furthermore, remind students to pay attention to details such as pronunciation, intonation, countenance wording, gesture etc. Fourthly, teachers should use good native English videotapes and films in teaching, and then organize discussions. Teachers should use pictures, movies in teaching, students can easily understand some cultural background knowledge, and Western social and cultural factors. Fifthly, encourage students to communicate with native English speakers. But so far, we havent carried out such activities enough. In contact with native speakers, in such relaxed conversations, students can learn much knowledge, which cannot be learned in the classroom. Sixthly, hold some lectures about cultures and customs, comparing Chinese culture with western culture. In teaching, teachers should pay attention to cultural differences and study these differences. As English teachers, we should not only help students to learn a foreign language, but also to learn social and cultural background knowledge. Only so, students can widen their knowledge and thus further learn English well. III. Conclusion Language is a mirror which reflects the entire culture, and every nation has its own culture. Language learning is inseparable from the understanding of cultural background knowledge. Language is a product of society, cultural differences led to many difficulties language learning, if you want to learn English as well, you must grasp cultural knowledge. It is necessary for teachers to pass on cultural background knowledge to students. In short, there are great differences between Chinese and Western culture, language and culture are inseparable, if you do not understand the foreign language and cultural background, you can not correctly understand and use language. Not only enable students to master the basic knowledge, but should also strengthen cultural Background Knowledge in teaching, so that they learn and come from different social background, cultural practices, political systems of the people live in harmony, so as to really reach in English teaching purposes