12 Cause Effect Essay Topics on #8220;Living Downstream#8221; by Sandra Steingraber

12 Cause Effect Essay Topics on #8220;Living Downstream#8221; by Sandra Steingraber If you are tasked with writing a cause or effect essay on the book Living Downstream there are many potential topics from which to choose. Of course, no matter the topic you have selected, it is imperative that you back up any statement or claim you make with facts. In order to help you in that regard, below you will find a handful of facts which might prove useful in the course of your writing. In the book, agricultural and industrial pollution are mixed together with anecdotes in order to provide readers with medical literature assessments, scientific assessments, and the conclusions therein about the relationship between rising rates of cancers and environmental influences. There remains a serious imbalance between studies of which environmental factors influence or contribute to cancers and those studies which focus instead of genetic predispositions for cancers. This remains a serious concern given that many cancers are not genetically transferrable and the source must be derived from an outside factor, such as an environmental factor. The reason this need should be filled is that the cancers caused by genetics, meaning those which are inherited, cannot really be altered at present and nothing can be done to improve upon the situation. However, those cancers caused by various environmental factors can be changed immediately and all influences mitigated, especially carcinogens. Carcinogens are substances which are known to cause cancer inside of living tissue, and these carcinogens exist in a variety of environmental substances to which people are exposed regularly. Chemical pesticides are one striking example of carcinogens which make their way into the human body. Those workers who are exposed to high levels of many chemicals regularly face contamination that goes unchecked by local healthcare, and only with blood and urine samples can the changes to the body be tracked. In the state of Illinois alone 54 million pounds of synthetic pesticides had been used on farms, many of which were poison. In 1950 less than 10% of all fields were sprayed with any pesticides but by 1993 99% had been treated with chemicals. Americans today between the ages of 35 and 64 are likely to die from cancer above all other ailments. In fact, by 1950 only 25% of adults could expect to get cancer while today that rate is almost 50% for men and 40% for women. The rise in cancer has increased steadily with processed foods, changing production habits, and changes in manufacturing. The qualifying link between all of these changes is the introduction of different chemical contaminants to the environment. Tazewell County located in the state of Illinois has shown many cases of a rare bladder cancer, a cancer which was contracted by the author when she was only 20 years of age. The high rates of said cancer has been linked scientifically to the carcinogenic chemicals in the region. The evidence presented in the book revealed that there was a six fold increase in the rates of bladder cancer among the workers who were exposed to particular chemicals related to rubber before legal workplace limits were put into place. In addition, immigrants who came to the area started to exhibit signs of the cancers adopted in the new area, and not the cancers which were prevalent in the place where they had been born. The maps presented by the author indicate that there are more cancers prevalent in urban areas compared to rural areas. In these maps, there are more cancers in the rural counties where the use of pesticides took place heavily, compared to those rural areas where the use of pesticides was minimal. The various studies presented in the book indicate that cancer clusters are prevalent near polluted dump sites, polluted valleys, polluted rivers, and near chemical factories. The same studies revealed that the rate of cancer in children has increased. The lifestyles of children have remained much the same over the last fifty years, without changes to alcohol consumption, smoking, or stress-related work, and yet the rate of cancer among children has risen at steady rates. Research indicates that the rate of shellfish and fish living within polluted waters has directly influenced the increase in cancer rates. Today, North Americans are seeing an increase in liver tumors among 16 fish species located throughout 25 different locations both fresh water and salt water. Each of these locations has become chemically polluted over the last sixty years. This was contrasted to the fact that the rates of liver cancer among members of those same fish species which inhabit waters not polluted by chemicals is almost non-existent. The studies conducted and presented by the author have indicated that chemicals contained in polluted areas are damaging to the immune system as well as to the endocrine system. The damage which is done to these areas results in the promotion of cancers. Regardless of whether the carcinogens have been introduced into the environment deliberately or accidentally, many scientists are afraid to speak out toward improvement unless they can be 100% sure there is a serious link and no other possible influencers. However, the existence of such high chemicals, even with the near one hundred percent studies which have been published, now render these areas seriously dangerous to the people who live there with very little legislation being done to help or hinder. There remains a serious cancer epidemic brought about by the chemical residues and the pesticides which have been used among the environment. This first claim has only been substantiated by studies covered within the book, and few and far between beyond that scope. With these facts in mind, you can find a unique cause or effect on which to focus for your writing (we prepared for you 20 sample topics on â€Å"Living Downstream† by S. Steingraber as well). Remember, there are many more facts out there within the span of the book and this list is by no means comprehensive. However, it should serve as a useful guide when you are starting off your work. Along with this information feel free to read our writing tips on cause effects essays. References: Reus, J. AN ENVIRONMENTAL YARDSTICK FOR PESTICIDES: AN INSTRUMENT TO MEASURE THE ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT OF PESTICIDES.  Acta Hortic.  347 (1993): 215-224. Web. Searle, Charles E.  Chemical Carcinogens. Washington: American Chemical Society, 1976. Print. Steingraber, Sandra.  Living Downstream. Reading, Mass.: Addison-Wesley Publishing, 1997. Print. Stich, H. F.  Carcinogens And Mutagens In The Environment. Boca Raton, Fla.: CRC Press, 1982. Print. Viroj Wiwanitkit.,.  Melamine And Other Problematic Food Carcinogens. New York: Nova Science Publishers, 2009. Print. Zahm, Shelia Hoar, and Susan S. Devesa. Childhood Cancer: Overview Of Incidence Trends And Environmental Carcinogens.  Environmental Health Perspectives  103 (1995): 177. Web.

Strange Fruit Music and Social Consciousness

Strange Fruit Music and Social Consciousness The movie under consideration is the Strange Fruit directed by Kyle Schickner which aims to show people the social problems and their arousal by means of the appearance of one song, from the day of its creation up to the day of its release in public which has managed to make an outburst of public opinion and antiracial movement.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Strange Fruit’ Music and Social Consciousness specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Watching the movie from the first up to the last scene, you understand that the song has managed to raise social opinion and the historic facts cannot be changed, but the movie is directed in such a way that each time one is worried about the outcome. The movie is psychological as well as historic and the struggle against discrimination has always been a priority for some people, but n0o one believed that a simple song can impact the society in the way it did. As for me, it wa s difficult to watch the movie as being psychological drama it made me worry about each of the characters, especially those who were subjected to lynching and discrimination. At the same time, I was impressed with the history of the song creation and how one single performance can change the attitude of the whole society to the problem. Even though the movie shows the history of the son and its creation, the main idea is deeper. The movie is devoted to the social illness and points at one of the solutions which may be taken for solving the issue which is in the air, but people are afraid of talking about it referencing to the fear and social prejudices. The main idea of the Angela Davis’ essay â€Å"‘Strange Fruit’ Music and Social Consciousness† is to show the society how one particular song may become the icon for the whole nation, how one particular idea may help people understand that it is important to resist lynching, racial discrimination and other specific biased attitude in relation to some particular classes of people. â€Å"She could not have predicted that â€Å"Strange Fruit† would impel people to discover within themselves a previously unawakened calling to political activism, but it did, and it does. She could not have foreseen the catalytic role her song would play in rejuvenating the tradition of protest and resistance in African-American and American traditions of popular music and culture† (Davis 196) is the quote which shows that the singer song this song to entertain people and could not even expect that others would feel the same as she did, the desire to act against those who believe that lynching and discrimination are the normal actions in the society;Advertising Looking for essay on art and design? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More it describes the meaning of the song and perfectly summarizes the main idea of the Angela Davis†™ essay â€Å"‘Strange Fruit’ Music and Social Consciousness† as it points at the problems which the quote arises and at the same time considers the relation of the singer to the song, particularly the unexpected success of the song in the context is appeared; it is obvious that the song raises the problems of discrimination and it is important to remember that the presence of such films inspire other people for creating something new, such as the movie Strange Fruit also aimed at increasing the social concern about the problems of lynching, cultural and racial discrimination and the attitude of the society to the problems. Davis, Angela. â€Å"‘Strange Fruit’ Music and Social Consciousness.† Blues Legacies and Black Feminism. Ed. Angela Davis. New York: Pantheon Books, 1998. Print.

Art history term paper - Comparing two portrait modes Essay

Art history term paper - Comparing two portrait modes - Essay Example During the era of the roman republic, they considered it a character sign not to cover or manipulate any physical imperfections and the depiction of men particularly as unconcerned and rugged, especially unconcerned with any form of vanity. Statues with more idealism of Emperors of the Roman Empire got ubiquitous over the imperial era, especially with connection to Rome’s state religion. Tombstones, even those of the modestly well off middle class, exhibited the portraits of unknown dead relatives which were carved in relief. This paper aims to compare the bust of a man and the bust of Emperor Commodus while paying attention to the bust’s formal features, and it further, considers how and why each portrait works to idealize the sitter. The bust of Emperor Commodus and that of man are practically two contradictory artefacts. The two artefacts have distinctly varied characteristics with both possessing different styles. The bust of a man is of a veristic style while the bust of Emperor Commodus is of the Augustus style from prima porta. With each of these styles come different characteristics and representations. The bust of a man has a relation to old fashioned morality, which is a virtuous Roman concept (Fejfer, 2009 p243). Generally, the veristic style consists entirely of later life portraits of men, who more often than not are toothless and balding and consists of faces with poor aging qualities and wrinkles. The bust of a man is a perfect example of this style. The bust seems to be representative of men who are or are aging. In the Veristic style, age is taken quite seriously as it signifies and shows endurance and courage, which man has had to endure through out his life. The portraits physical qualities, whi ch follow veristic styles, are reflective of society and class, which they belong to. The pained and twisted expression on the bust of man are testimony of the similar fashion with which the civil war tore apart the society