Natural Language Processing Technology

Natural Language Processing Technology Melchor Abejon Artificial Intelligence (AI) is a branch of computer science devoted to emulating the human mind (Wager, Lee and Glaser, p.305, 2013). Today, one common use of AI is integrated into the Google search engine which can suggest alternative keywords when a user types a misspelled word in a chain of keywords. Another form of AI is the Siri for the iPhone. In the field of healthcare, the rising use of Electronic Health Records (EHRs) in many health care facilities entails the use of innovative technologies that likewise incorporate AI to facilitate the transition from paper-based health records to EHRs. One type of AI technology that can be found in healthcare settings is the Natural Language Processing (NLP) technology. The purpose of this paper is to: Define the Natural Language Processing (NLP) technology. Determine the possible benefits the NLP technology will provide to medical professionals and health organizations. Determine the possible disadvantages that could occur to using the NLP technology. Determine the barriers to using the NLP technology. Definition of NLP Technology Wager, Lee and Glaser (2013) define NLP as a program that takes human language (typed as text or input as voice) and translate it into a standard computer instruction (p.306). It is a fact that majority of the clinical documentations that can be found in healthcare today are unstructured and are buried within EHRs. These unstructured information are faulty and redundant and can obstruct the healthcare industrys goal to establishing an efficient and data- driven clinical decision making. And with the emergence of the NLP technology, the extraction of valuable information can be leveraged to create a more informed clinical decision making to improve the quality of patient care and at the same time reducing the healthcare cost. Benefits of the NLP Technology NLP enables meaningful use. NLP integrated in EHRs can significantly assist health providers to easily capture specified health facts such as vital signs, allergies, smoking status and health problem lists via narrative description or voice. These health facts are difficult and time consuming to capture via the EHR system alone. The capture of specified health facts with the aid of NLP technology enables providers to qualify for incentive payments by the federal government. NLP enables predictive care. A more advanced Clinical Language Understanding (CLU) solution or technology can provide immediate feedback to health providers at the point of dictation whether they are using a mobile phone, digital recorder or PDA.ÂÂ   An example is, when CLU technology is integrated and running in the background of an EHR system, the system can notify a physician for adverse drug reaction during the documentation of prescription for a patient, and it would even recommend an alternative medication treatment for the patient. When NLP is integrated in an EHR system, it can develop opportunities for a more efficient Clinical Documentation Improvement (CDI). NLP can assist CDI specialists to quickly perform a comprehensive data mining. Identification of patients for clinical trial enrollment can be accelerated. NLP can assist organizations to quickly identify patients who maybe qualified for immunotherapies and clinical trials and research. NLP technology can help organizations comply with the core measures. Immediate assessment of documentation upon admission, and close monitoring of a patient is made possible with the use of the NLP technology. It also enables quick review of program notes and problem lists. NLP technology can provide real-time patient data. NLP can be used concurrently to monitor treatment of patients during their stay in the hospital. The alerts and reminders generated by NLP can help the providers to monitor their patients to mitigate the risk of acquiring infections. NLP technology enables effective billing system. NLP can improve the documentation process thus alleviating a lot of pain from the billing process for health providers and coders. Disadvantages of the NLP Technology Generic searching can be very difficult. Problem with synonyms. The abundance of synonymy in the medical field can be a problem in the use of NLP. Problem with homographs. Homograph refers to words that are spelled the same but has different meanings. Problem with polysemy. Polysemy refers to a word or phrase with many possible meanings. Ambiguous. Difficulty in identifying all of the possible meaning of words or combination of words. Non-standardized and not very compact. User needs to think of own search terminology and or synonym. Barriers to Using NLP Technology NLP is not a new technology in the field of healthcare, but so far its programs have met with limited success. Before it can reach the expected reliability performance, computer and NLP experts are expected to perform a tremendous job to address the barriers to integrating NLP tools in the clinical care. Though NLP is already embedded in products for some EHR vendors, the unstructured narrative texts and clinical notes still pose a major challenge for computer experts. According to Townsend (2013), a clinical text which is often ungrammatical and consists of bullet point telegraphic phases with limited context and lacking complete sentences poses a major challenge to using NLP. Other barriers to using the NLP technology are the poor standardization of data elements, inadequate policies on data governance and the never ending variation in the programming and designs of EHR systems. Conclusion As computer experts continue to seek refinement of the NLP technology, NLP will continue to deliver an important role in the management of health population and data analytics by extracting valuable health information and making them into actionable data to improve healthcare outcomes. Unstructured data in healthcare will remain a major challenge, but as efforts continue to build a stronger information governance and better standardization of data elements, the future of the NLP technology in the healthcare industry looks promising. References Bonney, S. (2015). Practical applications of NLP in healthcare: Enhancing the value of electronic data. Retrieved February 12, 2017 from http://porterresearch.com/practical-applications-of-nlp-in-healthcare-enhancing-the-value-of-electronic-data/ HealthIT Analytics (n.d.). What is the role of natural language processing in healthcare? Retrieved February 12, 2017 from http://healthitanalytics.com/features/what-is-the-role-of-natural-language-processing-in-healthcare Nadkarni, P., Machado, L.O., and Chapman, W.W. (2011). Natural language processing: An introduction. Retrieved February 12, 2017 from https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3168328/#b29 Petro, J. ( 2011). Natural language processing in electronic health records. Retrieved February 12,2017 from http://www.kevinmd.com/blog/2011/09/natural-language-processing-electronic-health-records.html Townsend, H. (2013). Natural language processing and clinical outcomes: The promise and progress of NLP for improved care. Retrieved February 12, 2017 from http://bok.ahima.org/doc?oid=106198#.WKJo100rKUm Wager, K.A., Lee, F.W., Glaser, J.P. (2013). Healthcare information systems: A practical approach for health care management (3rd ed ). San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass

The Personal Digital Assistant (PDA) Essay examples -- essays research

Your Right-hand-man is in your Palm In the 1980s no one who was anyone, went anywhere, without his or her Filofax. The end of the 1990s had replaced it by its digital equivalent - the Personal Digital Assistant (PDA). A PDA is effectively a handheld PC, capable of handling all the normal tasks of its leather-bound ancestor - address book, notepad, appointments diary and phone list. Most PDAs offer many more applications besides, such as spreadsheet, word processor, database, financial management software, clock, calculator and games. PC users have the ability to transfer data between the handheld device and a desktop PC and to convert data to and from existing organizer applications. They also achieve connectivity either via an infrared port or a special docking station. Because of their size, entering data into a PDA requires either a tiny keyboard or some form of handwriting recognition system. They're too small for touch-typing. This relies on a touch-screen display and a simplified alphabet - which takes about 20 minutes to learn - for data entry. Typically, PDAs with the Graffiti system provide the option to write directly onto the display which translates the input into text, or to open up a dedicated writing space which also provides on-line examples and help. I have been contemplating about purchasing a PDA and I’ve been to every store in town and all over the internet, to come up with a Top 5 PDAs & Handhelds according to Microsoft computers, makers of handh...

Buddha Essay -- essays research papers fc

Buddha The word Buddha means "enlightened one." It is used today as a title to the one who has given us more religious beliefs than almost any other human who lived in this world. However, he was not given this name at birth; he had to earn it for himself by undergoing long, hard hours of meditation and contemplation. Buddha has changed the lifestyles of many cultures with new, never-before asked questions that were explained by his search for salvation. He began an entirely new religion that dared to test the boundaries of reality and go beyond common knowledge to find the answers of the mysteries of life. India During the sixth century BC, India was a land of political and religious turmoil. It was an era of great brutality with the domination of Northwest India by Indo-Aryan invaders. Many people, influenced by the Aryan civilization, began to question the value of life and it's true meaning. Schools were opened because of this curiosity where teachers would discuss the significance of existence and the nature of man and held programs to reconstruct one's spiritual self. (Pardue, page 228) Background Near the town of Kapilavastivu, today known as Nepal, lived King Suddhodhana and Queen Maya of the indigenous tribe known as the Shakyas. (Encyclopedia Americana, page 687) Queen Maya soon became pregnant and had a dream shortly before she gave birth. In this dream a beautiful, white elephant with six tusks entered her room and touched her side. This dream was soon interpreted by the wisest Brahmin, or Priest of Brahmanism, that she was to give birth to a son that would, if he were to remain in the castle, become the wisest king in the world, but if he were ever to leave the castle he would then become the wisest prophet far into future generations. (Encyclopedia Americana, page 410) In around the year 563 BC, Siddhartha Gautama was born into a life of pure luxury. (Wangu, page 16) His father wanted to make sure that his son was well taken care of as he grew to prevent him from desiring to leave the palace. Suddhodhana, listening to the prophecy, kept Siddhartha away from the pain of reality so that he could follow in his father's footsteps in becoming a well respected leader. As Siddhartha grew, ... ... his teachings will be remembered for generations. He has sacrificed his total salvation so that mankind could be taught of the path to enlightenment. The Buddha has proven to be one of the wisest and giving men who touched the lives of so many millions of people. Buddhism will live on as a major impact on the cultures of the world and the Buddha will never be forgotten. "Everything that has been created is subject to decay and death. Everything is transitory. Work out your own salvation with diligence." -Buddha (Wangu, page 31) Bibliography "Buddha and Buddhism." Encyclopedia Americana. 1990. Cohen, John Lebold. Buddha. Mary Frank, 1969. Pardue, Peter A. "Buddha." Encyclopedia of World Biography. McGraw Hill, 1973. "The Buddha and Buddhism." The New Encyclopedia Britannica. 1990. Wangu, Madhu Bazaz. Buddhism. New York: Facts On File, 1993.

Beauty in Nature Essay

The world has come to a point where there is no turning back; where we can’t undo what is already done. We have forgotten the importance of the use of natural resources we need to survive. We have also forgotten our responsibility to the world, so that it can remain healthy and alive. I fear if we continue polluting our environment and not help it improve itself, we are going to have nothing towards the end. The world needs a better place for everyone to enjoy, no matter what living situation you are in. Everything relates to one another, water, air, energy, sun light, humans, and specially animals; we are all useful to one another. However, I believe that it is possible for us to improve our living situation, and make our world healthier to live in. It is not impossible to do, but if everyone is willing to work together and start making changes there will be a positive effect towards the world. We live and breathe toxic and factory pollution in our everyday lives without even realizing the damage that we have caused. Every year the atmosphere thickens with air pollution and lakes are becoming more toxic with the waste that we dump. Not realizing what we have done to the world and what we are taking advantage of, should be the red flag for us, telling us that we need to change our living situations now. However, being asked to cut down on some of our resources that we use in our everyday life would be difficult to do because some wouldn’t know how to survive without them. We need the supplies that we are used to because it is what we know and what we are used too. On the other hand, what is the harm on trying something new; taking shorter showers, picking up trash that is around you in public areas, buying recyclable pencils, or plastic bottles? Humans are not the only ones who live on the world; animals are very much involved too. Animals need to feel safe; they need a home to live in, and cutting down trees destroying their homes are not the ans wers. Animals suffer every day to find a home. For example Polar bears are going extinct because there is it too much heat in the atmosphere, heat is beginning to melt off the remaining ice that is left for them. Forest animals are being forced to live in different habitats because trees are being cut down for shelter and living supplies for the humans. If the world  continues to cut down trees and make more land for people to live on, there are going to be no trees left. Animals are defenseless against humans; they don’t have a voice as humans do. Someone needs to speak up for the animals, and protect their homes. Nature can be seen as a beautiful thing, yet we are killing off those beautiful things in the world. We do not do it intentionally, but we are killing off our natural resources just by living our daily lives. We are killing off our trees, so we can have paper and money so we can spend more on paper, houses, and fire. When one tree falls, another should be planted. This can help and we wouldn’t run out of trees. Cows, chicken, pigs, animals are getting killed off so we can have food on our plate, and have clothes on our backs so we won’t freeze during the winter nights. Even though we need nature to survive there is always a negative effect using it. There are many ways that we can improve our world. Although it might be difficult to fix the damage that was already caused there is still hope for improvement. If we start off small and work ourselves to the top improving the environment would become easier each year. We should turn off the lights after exiting the room, and install sensor lights in every house making sure that energy is not being wasted. We can cut back on our water supply when we are in the shower or washing the dishes and watering the grass, by setting a timer on when to stop. We can create new technologies, so we are able to manage the amount of smoke that comes out in factories. We can also help the environment by getting others to join beach cleanups. Having more people picking up trash can help in many ways. Cleaning up the beach made me think about the other things that can help this world to survive a bit longer. It is not impossible to do because humans are the main source; we are the ones that need little something from everything and from everyone. It is not hard to pick up unwanted trash around you at the park or the streets, it is rare when people do that but little things like that can change a lot. Picking up a broken glass from the beach might have saved someone’s foot from running into it; picking up the burned rubber from the fire pit might have saved a bird from shocking to death. One thing leads to another, everything matters in life weather if it is the smallest thing in the world. Picking up trash in the beach made it look cleaner and made it look like a beach that people would enjoy going to. Going to the beach has encouraged me to go back and enjoy  the sound the waves do when they hit the surface. The beach clean was a fun experience to have because it can make you love nature even more by the smell or the sound that it makes. One can enjoy the view of the dolphins when they pass by in little groups, going up and down as if they are saying hi and goodbye each time their head pops out. Protecting and enjoying the beach is important because it is something that was created for us to enjoy the fresh air, and ignore the ugly in the world. In conclusion, if we make small changes now in the way we live, we can avoid huge changes in the future. Scientists, governments and individuals must work together to overcome this threat. Keeping the environment clean and healthy can save many lives infants, teens, and the elderly. Cleaning earth and making it a better place is not in overnight process, it will probably take years to fix, but it is possible.

College football vs Nfl Essay

Many compare the National Football League (NFL) with college football but the two are not extremely similar and should never be compared. Yes, besides a few minor rule changes the NFL and college football are the same game; but there is much more to football then the rules. College football is better than the NFL for a wide variety of reasons. First, there exists more passion in college football all around the sport. Passion cannot be measured in anyway but can be observed and understood by the fans, coaches, and sports community. Players care more about the game and less about money, while the fans have great passion for the university they attend or attended. The lack of an influence money has on the game is admirable. Also, tradition is so vast in college football a game day experience cannot be compared with those of the NFL. The special rivalry games and in stadium events makes college football great. Rivalries, passion, playing rules, and timing are few of the reasons why college football is better than the NFL. Along with great activities like tailgating, the wonderful scheduling, the entertainment, and the comeback friendly rules college football has the best case for why it is levels above the NFL. Passion is sought after in all sports, and is the most apparent in college athletics. Money determines everything in pro football and the large impact it has is just too obvious. The same cannot be said for college football. The great passion and emotion seen in players and coaches, and their loyalty to their team helps make college football a lovable game. The football team at a university represents the town, the state, and what the community stands for. College football players are said to be passionate, play hard, hard workers, and fearless. NFL players are most known for complaining and not wanting to be hit hard. There is passion in every play and intensity like no other in college football. It is just a drag watching the NFL because most of the time there is no passion, it’s just guys playing for that next paycheck (Fisher). The fact that the student athletes play for opportunity and the love of the game is invigorating to all sport fans. College football has been said to be more pure of a game. This means they play for the chance to make the league, and are about the game. Another reason passion is more reflected in college football is the lack of salary related hold outs. This refers to the many major star athletes who have large contract disputes and skip on camp and all team activities until they are paid more money. Players risk team success for selfish personal reasons. Prime examples of a player negatively affecting a team with a hold out are Albert Haynesworth, Terrell Owens, Michael Crabtree, Maurice Jones-Drew, Chris Johnson, and many more. These players put personal motives over team goals; it is inferred that the star athletes prefer money over team success. There has never been one single hold out in college football. Historically players in contract years have shown just a little more effort to ensure they make a few extra dollars when their pay days come around (Eliesen). Stats go up and so does the amount of work put in. This shows that players give more effort when money is on the line. The impact money has on the NFL makes college football that much better. Another issue with the money influence of the NFL is players will switch teams for more money, wins, or a bigger market. Not just some players, all players. In college you can transfer for academic or personal reasons but there are consequences. In 2010-11, 6. 4 percent of Division I student-athletes transferred from one four-year school to another four-year school. Included in that figure are 969 football student-athletes. All of those student-athletes were required to sit out a year of competition (NCAA). In the NFL it is expected that a player would turn their back on their team and city for more money or a better personal opportunity. In college it is discouraged, frowned upon, and penalized against. The players passion for the game, loyalty to their teams, and absents of holdouts and other money related issues are the start of a long list of reasons why college football is better than the NFL. The passion shows the college players are about the game, not the money. The tradition of college football is unlike that of any sport. The significance of it is immeasurable. To start college football has outstanding rivalry games. They are better than the NFL rivalry games simply because they have existed longer, are closer games, in a larger variety, and the fans and schools hate each other more. Classic examples include Army versus Navy, the iron bowl, Ohio State versus Michigan, USC versus Notre Dame, Miami versus FSU, The red river rivalry, the civil war, the dual in the dessert, the world’s largest cocktail party, LSU versus Alabama, and several others. Compare that with Dallas against Washington; the best rivalry in the NFL. Not a comparison. Every team in college football has a rival. Iowa State has Kansas State. Indiana has Illinois. Baylor has Texas Tech. Cincinnati has Louisville. It’s not what you think of when you think Auburn/Alabama, Ohio State/Michigan and Texas/Oklahoma, but even the lesser-known powers have rivals that riles up the fan bases. The NFL? I challenge you to name the Carolina Panthers’ top rival (Wilson). The atmosphere surrounding the towns and the great rivalry games out perform the NFL’s weak rivalry match ups. Next, fans have more to route for in college. The fact that the students and alumni get to support the place they graduated from cannot be matched. For NFL fans most of them root for the city’s team you were born in. For college football fans the team you cheer for could be across the nation because you had a family member go there or your family has always cheered for them. For college football fans it doesn’t matter what city you live in (Fisher). Good examples of great tradition are Oregon’s uniforms, dotting the I in Ohio, Chief Osceola, war eagle, Howards rock, the dog UGA, and the play like a champion today sign in South Bend. Literally, 100 more traditions could be named. Traditions such as those just don’t exist in the NFL. There isn’t the same level of tradition in the pro game (Killoren). Stadiums, fight songs, bands, and the college campus on game day, pep rallies, are all things that are just not seen in professional football. The tradition in college football is evident and changes the game completely. Most importantly the strong and vast group of rivalry games in college makes the NFL division games appear as friendly competition. A main reason why college football is better than the NFL is because in college the timing in all around better. By the timing, I mean the rules that influence the time and the scheduling. College football starts a week earlier which means over 120 division one college games have been played before the NFL starts. College football has more games in general and starts off football season right. Next, is Saturdays are better for watching and playing football than Sundays. Nobody wants to go to work the day after a crazy game. People need Sunday to relax after a crazy tailgating and game experience. To me, there’s nothing better than going to bed on Friday night knowing that you have nothing to do on Saturday except watch college football. Even if you find a few hours to watch your favorite NFL team, you still have it hanging over your head that it’s back to work in the morning. That feeling always tends to take the wind out of my sails (FanNation). Who wants to be out late on a Sunday night at a prime time game? How about Saturday? There is a big difference between the two. During bowl season we get to see 35 prestigious match ups of team with winning records in solid football games over a 23 day period. Right over the holidays when everyone has school and work off there is football on every day. This is set up nicely for viewers. Seniors get a last chance to represent themselves and their school in the bowl game that they have worked so hard to earn. Lastly, college has comeback friendly rules that the NFL do not have. Stopping of the clock on a first down, one foot in bounds for a catch, chains must be set before clock starts, and clock stopping all game when you get out of bounds keep college games entertaining and help you see more action. According to a Wall Street Journal study of four games from week 16, the average NFL game features just 10 minutes 43 seconds of action (Chase). The comebacks that have determined champions and the outcome of high profile games are because of the comeback friendly rule book of college football. College football is more entertaining than the NFL for many reasons but bowl season, the comeback friendly rules, Saturdays over Sundays, and the extra week of football are just some vital examples. The pregame activities, tailgating, the more logical football rules such as overtime standards, and ESPNs outstanding coverage give college an extra edge on professional football. College game day travels to the biggest game of the week and perform a 3 hour special on campus live in front of an audience with different guest stars, storylines, and gimmicks each week. Hands down NFL Countdown can’t compete with College Gameday (Fisher). Also, college goal line which updates all the score nationwide is very popular around the country. In college football the sport is played the right way. If a player hits the ground he is down, in the NFL he can get back up and run if not touched. This leads to many missed calls and slows down play. The overtime rules are better in college because you can’t tie. Yes, in the NFL there is the terrible possibility of a tie. Also, each time gets a chance and the better team is awarded the victory. In the NFL it’s more about the coin flip than the play. Parties on campus, pep rallies, and fun halftime events like the famous Dr. Pepper challenge are great add ons to college football. The college life sparks parties and pep rallies. Some schools even cancel classes the day before a big game. Students camp out to get tickets and great scenes like that are noticed all around the country. The weekend gives students a break. What more would students want to do than party and route on their schools football team. Lastly, tailgating is bigger in college football. Fans have all of the next day to relax so they enjoy their tailgating. Only 30 percent of the tailgaters actually make it inside the stadium. People do not tailgate a week before for an NFL game. College students start tailgating that Sunday or Monday after that last game they just went too (Fisher). College fans take tailgating very serious and make a 3 hour game into a week event in which they can relax, watch football, eat good food, and reunite with friends and family. The activities around college football separate it from the old boring games on Sunday. College football has passion, traditions, entertainment, and an incredible environment that the NFL lacks. These reasons were choose from a list of 200 reasons college football is better. Upsets, unpredictability, cheer leaders, the Heisman, coaching dynasties, the spread offense, uniforms, new programs, and other reason were not even discussed because college football has such a huge variety of great attributes. This makes college football more appealing to the fans and viewers. Understand that all these reasons build on the case of why college football beats the NFL. Yes, the players are less talented when they are younger. It should have been made clear that the game is about more than this though. The college players do not only care about money. Love of the game, the tradition, the entertainment, and the rules are a few of the prominent reasons college football is better. However, Most of these reasons cannot be based of scientific facts or stats. The reasons listed are based on what is the best game to watch and support. A personal opinion and judgment is what makes this argument worth demonstrating. It cannot be proven through facts and data but there are numerous reasons that help show the point that is trying to be made. All the evidence is there and all that is left to do is choose what reasons makes college football better than the NFL. There are many to choose from.

How children development is influenced by many factors Essay

A childs development can be affected by both personal and external factors. Personal factors are those that are sepcific to an individual child and external factors are those that could theoretically affect each and every child. Personal factors include the following: Health Some children’s development may be affected by a pre-existing health condition. For example a baby’s development can be affected during the pregnancy, if a mother smokes, takes drugs, drinks alcohol or contracts certain infections such as rubella. Foetal Alcohol Syndrome occurs when a mother drinks large amounts of alcohol during her pregnancy. This condition will usually affect a child’s cognitive and physical development. The amount of alcohol consumed, as well as, when during the pregnancy it was drunk and whether it involved binge drinking or large amounts being drunk on a regular basis, will affect the level of disability caused. FAS can also cause delays in physical development as the child maybe underweight, problems with feeding and speech due to facial abnormalites and neurological problems such as alcohol withdrawal, problems with memory and communication and a low IQ. A range of developmental areas can be affected by a health issue not just the physica l development. For example: †¢Their ability to make friends. A child who is repeatedly away from school may not be able to get to know the other children. †¢Their education. Days maybe missed due to hospital or doctor’s appointments or long periods of time missed because of hospitilisation or just not feeling well enough to go to school. †¢A lack of confidence and low self esteem. They may have to rely heavily on adults in some areas of their lives and have little or no sense of self-reliance. Many doctors are now encouraging children to be partially responsible to their condition, for example children with diabetes are often encouraged to inject themselves. †¢Missed opportunities. Some children may not be able to take part in certain activities on offer. Running or playing outside may trigger their condition. There are other health issues that may affect development. This could be as simple as a bout of toncilitis resulting in a couple of  weeks off school at an important point of the child’s education or a chronic health condition like diabetes that may mean missing lessons due to regular hospital appointments while the condition is being monitored. Disability Cerebal palsy is a neurological condition that affects the brain and nervous system. It is a general term that covers a range of conditions that affect a child’s morvement and co-ordination and is caused by damage to the brain before, during or just after the birth. Again the symptoms and severity vary greatly from child to child and also by the type of Cerebral palsy suffered for example spastic hemiplegia or ataxic cerebral palsy. Some children have the ability to walk but the age at which they can do this will be affected by either hypotonia (decreased) or hypertonia (increased muscle tone). Spina Bifida is another condition that is present from birth. Generally it does not affect a child’s cognitive development but, depending on the type a child has, may affect their physical development. In severe cases the child’s legs may be partially or even fully paralysed and there may also be urinary and bowel incontinence issues. The number of children born with spina bifida is now low, due to the recommendation that women take folic acid whilst trying for a baby and in the early stages of pregnancy. Spina Bifida may not only affect a child’s physical development. It may also affect the following areas:- †¢Intellectual development as the child may have to have lots of time off of school. †¢Emotional development as they may feel different to those children around them. †¢Social development as they are not able to socialise with others. Sensory Impairment A visual or hearing impairment can have a big effect on many areas of development. A hearing impairment can mean that speech is unclear and words pronuounced incorrectly. This can lead to a child avoiding social interaction, affecting emotional and social development, if they feel unable to express themselves properly. One of the main areas of physical development is hand-eye co-ordination and for a child with a visual impairment this take a lot longer to master. Learning Disabilities A child’s cognitive development will be affected by learning difficulties, such as dyslexia, dyspraxia or ADHD, until it is picked up on. A Special  Educational Needs Co-ordinator (Senco), which all schools have, will ensure that the extra educational support needed by the child is in place by working with the child and their parent/carers. The social and emotional development and wellbeing of a child with learning difficulties may also be affected if they are seen as ‘different’ by those around them and are teased and/or bullied and the effects of this type of treatment can cause issues well into adulthood. Genetics As soon as a child is conceived their development begins. Their genetic information is made up from both the egg and the sperm. This information can sometimes be faulty and will affect the development of the health of the child. Down’s syndrome is an example of a genetic disorder. People with Down’s syndrome have an extra copy of the chromosome 21 in the cells of their body. There are some facial and other physical features that are common with this disorder as well as certain medical problems. For example atrioventricular septal defect (AVSD). This is a condition where there is a hole in the muscle that usually separates the different chambers in the heart. Typically speaking the rate at which most children with Down’s syndrome will develop will be affected because they have some degree of learning difficulty. However, the level of difficulty will vary from one person to another. Generally the usual speech and physical milestones will be reached but at a later s tage than other children. External factors that may affect development include the following: – Poverty Poverty will probably have a major effect on development. Statistics show that children from poor backgrounds are less likely to flourish and achieve well at school. Parents will find it harder to deal with their children’s requirements which will have a bearing on all areas of development. For example:- †¢Intellectual – Limited or no access to books, internet or other resources for studying. †¢Social – May not have the money to be able to take part in activities that their friends are. †¢Physical – Poor diet or not being able to heat house in cold weather may cause health problems. Family background/environment The adults who care for children have an influence on their development.  Parents play an extremely important role in the lives of the their children. Although most parents do a good job at nurturing and providing for their children, there are a number of reasons why some parents are not able to do as good a job. Depression or an addiction to either drink or drugs are a few. Younger children may be neglected, whilst older children may have to take on a caring role within the family. A child’s development is also influenced by what they are born with and by the experiences that they have. For example a child that’s born with the potential to be a great long distance runner may not realise that potential unless they are given the opportunity to practise and the encouragement from adults to do it. A child’s cultural background can also have an effect on a number of their areas of development e.g. social – the primary language spoken at home may be different to the primary language at school. Most families suffer stresses at times, some may be temporary, some more permanent but all may have an effect on a child’s emotional and/or cognitive development and may result in a change in their behaviour or ability to learn. Here are a few examples: – †¢A change of employment. †¢Redundancy or unemployment. †¢Moving home whether locally or further afield. †¢Changes in family structure eg parents seperating, divorcing or finding new partners. †¢The birth of a new baby. †¢The death or illness of a family member. †¢The disability of a family member. Neglect/Abuse There have been a lot of studies carried out on the relationship between the different types of child abuse/neglect and the affect on the different areas of development including physical, health, emotional and behavioural. The extent of the affect varies according to the seriousness, length of time and rate of recurrence of abuse/neglect but can continue to have an impact on the adult lives. The effects of neglect/abuse on a child’s development may include:- †¢Serious brain development issues. A child that is neglected during the  first year of their life can suffer from serious brain development issues. Studies have shown that the brain of a 3 year old child who has suffered global neglect (the experience of several kinds of deprivation) will be notably smaller than a child who hasn’t. †¢Poor physical growth and or medical conditions such as anaemia caused by malnutrition. †¢Problems forming and maintaining friendships/relationships. †¢Lack of confidence/low self-esteem caused by emotional abuse. Care status Although some children in care have no developmental issues, many do. The lack of family stability and moving from one carer to another can have a negative affect on a child’s social, emotional and behaviour development and cause problems with their ability to form attachments or to deal with separations. Children may have been abused or neglected prior to entering care system. This may also affect their social, emotional and behaviour development but may also affect their speech and language development as they are too distressed to talk. They may also suffer with mental health issues that may lead to delays in their cognitive development as time off from school is required. Children in care may also meet similar issues to those with disabilities and learning difficulties.

My Hips My Caderas

In the excerpt, â€Å"My Hips, My Caderas† by Alisa Valdes, gives distinctive examples of her life story to develop a meaning for how society perceives women. America strives to fit the perception of beauty because it is the single physical characteristic that makes us matter. Her anecdotes show us how the world shapes our thoughts to brainwash us. Alisa Valdes personal experiences are a service to provide a better explanation of how we perpetrate in order to be welcomed in society. â€Å"Beauty is in the eye of the culture. † This is an essential quote that summarizes the moral of Valdes story.Being a biracial woman, she received perspectives from two cultures about the way she looks. Valdes is white and Cuban. She is a girl with hips and curves. She is seen as voluptuous. White Americans and Cubans have different viewpoints on how women should look and what beauty is considered to be. Valdes body type isn’t accepted in by all of her family because of the type o f the different type of society they live in. As a child it confused her as to what herself image should be. Her mother’s side of the family is white Americans who believed being skinny was the key to beauty.In America, we have several reminders of what we should look like. Our models are size zeros. All our foods are low fat or reduced in calories producing dieting. We also promote surgery to stay skinny. Hips or la caderas are seen as fat which is ugly, ugly being the antonym for beauty. On the contrary her father’s side believed that the thicker you were or the more curves that complimented one’s body made you more of a woman. That notion highlighted a woman’s beauty. Caderas, often referred to in her explanation, simply translated is hips.In Latin cultures caderas are the stomach, waist, and thighs. It’s all that makes a â€Å"real woman†. La caderas are the essence of a woman. Those who don’t posses these caderas are seen as sick . It’s unattractive to the eye. The different cultures that she exemplifies contradict each other. Valdes has significant times in her child hood where she remembers the two cultures impacted the way she thought about herself. Being involved in her father’s culture, being voluptuous was a blessing. When Valdes was 12 she remembers the Chicanos making catcalls at her because she was so curators.She took those signs of beauty for granted and started to diet, taking to the American way of beauty. She also talks about her and her friend going to dance and men lining up to dance with her and her turning them down because she said â€Å"I often say †no†, because I can†. This leads me to infer that she felt beautiful and she knew she was due to her hips. If she didn’t think so she wouldn’t turn the men down. That culture made her appreciate herself and have positive outlooks about how she looked. In America she remembers being in a step aerobi cs class and women making negative statements about how she looks.She sometimes hear the woman in the front row whisper â€Å"My God, would you look at those hips†. Her attributes are looked down upon as if they are a bad thing in America. She has experienced both cultures and have a gotten a different response on her body. Self image is destructive but it’s what makes civilization significant. The world revolves around images that are acceptable and it’s the drive around the world. In the society we live in, civilization is based on appearance. Our world rotates on its axis because of it. It’s deadly to walk outside without makeup on or above a certain weight.American’s have reality television that are designed just for losing weight and to critique the appearance of our celebrities. Everyone is a target in America to bee objectified. There is no discrimination. In middle school I was often picked on for being so skinny and I hated my body. When I got to high school I started to gain weight not in my â€Å"caderas† but my butt. I started to love my body more because everyone else did. Girls would tell me how they would kill for my shape and I would tell them how I would love to have theirs. I wanted breast and hips like those girls but they wanted to be a stick like me, I couldn’t understand.Those girls were envisioning themselves as being the females they see on the television and I was the closest thing to their dreams. Continuously taking my body for granted the next teenage girl was admiring my imperfections perfectly. I learn eventually to embrace my small figure but looking at celebrities like Beyonce’ and other full figured women I get self conscious sometime. It’s as if my body isn’t good enough and I fall back into the depression of why my body can’t look a certain way. It is a struggle in itself because your image is your introduction.