Polonius in Shakespeares Hamlet and John Updikes Gertrude and Claudiu

Polonius in Shakespeares Hamlet and John Updikes Gertrude and Claudius In every royal court throughout history, there has been the man who knows everything active everyone, and generally has the ear of the king Shakespeares court of Denmark is no exception. Polonius, adviser and Lord Chamberlain to King Hamlet and Claudius, seems to know every intrigue, every alliance do in the interwoven royal court. In Shakespeares play Hamlet, Polonius is firmly seated at the Kings right hand and he leave go to any lengths to facilitate the union of young Hamlet and Ophelia. Similarly, in John Updikes prequel Gertrude and Claudius, Polonius acts as the liaison between Claudius and Gertrude, even going so far as to permit adultery to take place and knowingly to allow the royal bed of Denmark to be besmirched by incest. Throughout both the legend by Updike and the play by Shakespeare, Polonius interests are obviously his own, but at certain times in Gertrude and Claudius, he does indeed serve ot hers. Polonius represents a riddle of ideals on the surface, the loyal, if somewhat senile, counselor to the King below this servile exterior, however, lurks the mind of a schemer unable to achieve the throne itself and, therefore, determined to undermine and to pull strings it in order to retain his own power. Although sometimes his machinations do not go as undetected as he may have aforethought(ip) Polonius achieves these goals of power through his interactions with several of the characters in Hamlet and Gertrude and Claudius. Shakespeare does not expound greatly on the personalities of his characters rather he lets them do it for themselves. Through Poloniuss actions and lyric towards Gertrude in the play, it seems that he is much mor... ...th King Claudius do eventually bring about his downfall, and he has only himself to blame for this. In his insistence that he be involved with everyones affairs and due to his faith that human affairs could all be managed, manipula ted with cogs and ratchets like millwheels and clocks, by a clever enough puppeteer, Polonius is caught in his own trap (189). For a while he is able enough to run the puppet show but as the intrigues in Claudius court increase, he continues to get farther out of his depth, out of his realm of experience. He never considers having to deal with Hamlets madness, his obsession to either sanctify or to chasten his mother. He never concerns himself with the possibility of an accident or changing loyalties. When the puppeteer becomes the puppet unbeknownst to himself a swift reckoning is exacted, caused only by Polonius own manipulations.

Is Xenotransplantation an Ethical Solution or Disaster? Essay -- essay

Is Xenotransplantation an ethical solution or disaster? The audience for this study is comprised of those readers looking to gain knowledge on the issue of xenotransplantation. This group of people is unaware of the dynamics of the ethical arguments surrounding this current issue. This audience does not retain a specific age or belief, reflecting the varied positions of the argument. Due to this hunger for factual information, they do not wish to have someone elses views compel on them. Instead, they wish to define and establish a view of their own. Ethical debates frequently occur today because of advances in society, technology, science, and more other areas. These arguments are comprised of many people due to the diversity of their interpretations of ethics in these areas. Ethics can be defined as a system of moral, scruples, principles or values that in itself defines what is right or good behavior (Shankarkumar, 317). The issue involving xenotransplantation, the sharing of organs between different species, has become a controversial subject with disagreements focusing on the ethical perspectives of the surgery. In order to comprehend the numerous ethical arguments surrounding xenotransplantation, the following three parties must be viewed physicians, both for and against the surgery, and society. Xenotransplantation is defined as transplanting cells, tissues or whole organs from one species into another (Baker, 643). These transplantations involve organs such as the heart, kidneys, and many others. Today, pigs have quickly become the donor species due to their anatomical and economical advantages. Pigs grow and reproduce very rapidly, creating a large litter, increasing the number of subjects for donation. Also, their organs and blood vessels are similar in size to those of humans, making their use more practical than that of an anatomically larger species (Baker, 643). The concept of xenotransplantation has been attempted many times throughout histo ry. In 1682, doctors repaired the skull of an wound Ru... ...y). The Ethics of Xenotransplantation. The Ethical Spectacle. Oct. 2004. http//www.spectacle.org/0201/xeno.html. Shankarkumar, U. Xenotransplantation- Ethics and Immunological Hurdles. Indian Journal of Medical Sciences 57. 7(200) 311-318.Society, Religion & Technology Project. (2004). The Ethics of Xenotransplantation. Church of Scotland. http//www.srtp.org.uk/xennuf03.shtml. Trzepacz, Paula T., DiMartini, Andrea F. The Transplant Patient. Cambridge, United Kingdom Cambridge University Press, 2000. working ConsultedShelton, Wayne. The Ethics of Organ Transplantation. 1st ed. Amsterdam New York Elsevier Science, 2001. Wolstenholme, G.E.W., OConnor Maeve. Ethics in Medical Progress with special reference to transplantation. Boston, MA Little, Brown and Company, 19

Overpopulation and the Environment :: essays research papers

OVERPOPULATION & THE ENVIRONMENTI believe that the number of benignants that live on this planet is the problem. We should develop new processes for stabilizing the current population. Overpopulation is becoming one of the most preeminent problems facing human civilization. This complicated, pervasive issue is a problem of the utmost grandeur for people of all races, religions, and nationalities. With our endless need of new information, we should be able to develop unique process to end these problems. Our planet now provides for approximately 5.8 one million million million people, with projections of around 10 billion by the year 2050. Two billion of these are extremely poor, the poorest of which live in absolute poverty and misery. The affects of overpopulation on human society are numerous. Suffering from a lack of resources, people are often driven to war when they become too populated for their available resources. increase amounts of food, energy, water, and shelter are required to fulfill the needs of todays society. The amount of land required for food production will grow increasingly larger, while the amount of available land will grow increasingly smaller. The resources required to maintain this rapid development is putting a strain on ourcurrent supplies of energy.Much of our energy is derived from the burning of fossil fuels releasing millions of tons of toxins into the atmosphere. All of the toxins released into the atmosphere cause harm to the environment as well as those who live around these locations. Currently there are groups with the sole purpose of saving the environment.

Content Teaching - Research Paper :: essays research papers

Section A Survey Results &61664 multiple choiceBy asking students almost their situation in crop, linked to the t for each oneing-style of their teachers, I found out in which way students are influenced by the way their teachers try to submit the knowledge to them.The keep an eye on was supposed to indirectly find out how effective the current teaching-style of the teachers is. For that, the following statements were evaluated by the students (The numbers in parentheses display how much the surveyed students agreed with the statements &61664 Counting instrument on page 3)-Teachers should base teaching more on contents (5 points)-The way teachers teach is keeping the students attention (1.5 points)-Teachers stay focused in the topic (-1 point)-Teachers boast a way of teaching that is the right way of learning for me as an individual (-2 points)-If I would be a teacher I would give less time in class to work on cooking (-18 points)As we can see, the only point where the surve yed students agree is, that they would not reduce the homework in class, even though I think most students just handled the statement as Students should have less time for homework in class. In my opinion they didnt really think about a situation where they would be teachers but only amount the situation they insufficiency to be in as students. All other results vary so much that the difference between the surveyed students is so big that they almost even each other out which shows us they all have different needs.Counting mechanism25 points for strong agreement17 points for agreement0 points for tangle witht care-17 points for disagreement-25 for strong disagreementAccordingly, the highest score for each question can be 25 if all 17 surveyed people indicated a strong agreement and -25 if all 17 surveyed people indicated a strong disagreement.Section B Survey Results &61664 open-endedThe answers to the open-ended questions show that most students tangle witht really focus on the actual teaching but more on the material environment they are in, like Air-Conditioning or the school building. Most of the questions were answered that way so that Im just going to consider a couple questions and answers which apply to the topic.The most important thing teachers have to do different islesson plansexplaining assignmentsThe way that makes me understand the content the best isinteraction with the lesson plansclear visual aidsTeachers focus too much ontests and lecturedisciplineTeachers neglectinteraction with kids who are struggling

student :: essays research papers

The outset people that came upon the Ice Man were Helmut and Erika Simon that also meant that they were the first two to compromise the integrity of the order. When they got there they moved a birch bark bundle out of the way when they got (Page 8). The next person that came to the site was Markus Pirpamer, the manger of the Weisskugel Lodge. The way he affected the site was when he moved the axe from the jounce next to the body to another rock that was close by, in addition to that he did some other general scavenging (Page 13). Anton Koler also came in and looked around the site, he rase moved the axe in order to take a better picture of it (17 Page). Markus was the first to remove an item from the site, the axe (Page 17). Hans Kammerlander disturbed the site by taking the stick off the ledge near the string and fur and using it to hack away the ice around the body (Page 23). at that place are m whatever thing that the could have been done better as far as the excavating of the Ice Man, the biggest being how they did it. Because every showed up at first with the thought of it being a recant accident all(prenominal)y death of a climber, show because of that they took less care of the scene than they would have if the new it was an archeological find. Koler utilise a mini jackhammer to turn out and unbury the Ice Man and while doing so he struck the body itself. All the moving around of all the things makes it impossible to know exactly were everything was in relation to Otzi. I has prevented us from learning for sure f this was the original place of death, meaning has the ice molten and moved this whole group half way down the mountain. This is brought up by the fact that the body was found with the blue ski clip, obviously not something from the time of the Otzi. Another thing that went wrong with the excavation is the way he molded because of the way he was left in the ice over night, even though covered. When dealing with the Ice Man the archaeolo gists had to apply different methods at different parts in time. At the very beginning before any of the real excavating had been started there was some relative dating done with the axe, using knowledge of previously found axes of this same type or style to try and put the Otzi in a time period.

student :: essays research papers

The branch people that came upon the Ice Man were Helmut and Erika Simon that also meant that they were the first two to compromise the integrity of the come out. When they got there they moved a birch mouth bundle out of the way when they got (Page 8). The next person that came to the site was Markus Pirpamer, the manger of the Weisskugel Lodge. The way he affected the site was when he moved the axe from the wave next to the body to another rock that was close by, in addition to that he did some other general scavenging (Page 13). Anton Koler also came in and looked around the site, he flat moved the axe in order to take a better picture of it (17 Page). Markus was the first to remove an item from the site, the axe (Page 17). Hans Kammerlander disturbed the site by taking the stick off the ledge near the string and fur and using it to hack away the ice around the body (Page 23). in that location are m each thing that the could have been done better as far as the excavating of the Ice Man, the biggest being how they did it. Because every showed up at first with the thought of it being a recant accident bothy death of a climber, show because of that they took less care of the scene than they would have if the new it was an archeological find. Koler utilise a mini jackhammer to turn in and unbury the Ice Man and while doing so he struck the body itself. All the moving around of all the things makes it impossible to know exactly were everything was in relation to Otzi. I has prevented us from learning for sure f this was the original place of death, meaning has the ice dissolve and moved this whole group half way down the mountain. This is brought up by the fact that the body was found with the blue ski clip, obviously not something from the time of the Otzi. Another thing that went wrong with the excavation is the way he molded because of the way he was left in the ice over night, even though covered. When dealing with the Ice Man the archaeologists had to apply different methods at different parts in time. At the very beginning before any of the real excavating had been started there was some relative dating done with the axe, using knowledge of previously found axes of this same type or style to try and put the Otzi in a time period.

Faith and Hope in Business Essay

Faith in disdain is having trust and confidence in whatever you circumscribe out to do, regardless of circumstances or condition, such as economic recession or an entitys ability to continue as a exit concern. Faith in business line is some fixed points of reference for business leaders to stay ethically and professionally. Faith in business is like a compass for many CEOs. For Ford Motor Company, Episcopalian is the compass for Henry Ford. For Whole Food, Buddhism is the compass for John Mackey.Hope in business is the belief that things impart get better, whether the financial data or evidence indicates it will or not. Hope in business is like a road in the realness there was never a road, but when many people walk on it, the road comes into existence. The difference between faith and hope in business is that hope of all time looks to the future, while faith is now. Moreover, hope is a subset of faith. Entrepreneurs must call for hope to have faith, but they dont have to have faith to have hope.Faith always inspired entrepreneurs to do fearless action, but hope doesnt do that. Faithful business does not always aim at profit one of the most typical congressmans of this is Chick-fil-A, a company that has been well known for operating on Christian principles and values. To honor the scriptural teaching to rest on the Sabbath, Chick-fil-A always closes on Sundays, thus forgoing one of the highest revenue days of the week for the restaurant industry.Another typical example of faith in business is the operation of the Grameen Bank Project, which object was to extend banking facilities to poor locals in rural Bangladesh. On the other hand, hope in business can be just simply that entrepreneurs hope their entities could make an acquisition in the future, such as Google hope to acquire Linux and replace Chrome OS to have their own official OS exclusively for PCs and combine it with all the Features and Design of Chrome OS to become more powerful than ever.

Smartie Lab Research

Smartie Lab Analysis The total argona of my ecosystem was six feet, but the area we sampled was four feet. We had six types of each smartie 4 green, 5 orange, 10 purple, 7 red, 5 white, and 14 yellow. In our sampled area we had 3 green, 0 orange, 5 purple, 2 red, 0 white, and 7 yellow. We had 4. 25 organisms per total area that was the density. Our relative density was 8. 88% green, 11. 11% orange, 22. 22% purple, 15. 55% red, 11. 11% white, and 3. 45% yellow. The frequency of each organism was 75% green, 0% orange, 50% purple, 25% red, 0% white, and 75% yellow.The relative frequency of each organism was 33% green, 0% orange, 22% purple, 11% red, 0% white, and 33% green. The coverage of each type of organism was 18. 83%. The importance value of each organism was 34. 24 for green, 9. 98 for orange, 30. 35 for purple, 19. 79 for red, 9. 98 for white, and 32. 43 for yellow. The cast of my organisms importance from highest to lowest is green, yellow, purple, red, then white and orange . My population bringing close together for part II is 11. 66 yellow smarties. My % error for population estimate is 16. 71%.We used a line transect for this lab, and I think most of these calculations could be more applied to plants, since they are stationary and do not move, resembling smarties, which do not move. This is more difficult to compare to animals since animals move, and may react to organism captured and recaptured. Conclusion The results of my simulation show that around 12 yellow smarties break to my population of smarties. However, we actu every(prenominal)y had 14. The results were pretty close, and this demonstrates that the capture and recapture system is a pretty decent system in obtaining population estimates.However it is important to keep in mind that smarties are not stationary and cannot react to being captured in ways that animals and some plants can. The importance values between my transect and my actual data are pretty close, however in actuality yel low was the most important, not green. A quadrat would be more advantageous over a transect in situations where there are more types of organisms, or the organism can move. I think there can be issues with marking organisms after capture, since the organism may react to being capture and seriously make a difference on the population estimate, leading observers to obtaining incorrect data.Suggestions for further investigations I would change this lab to including more convey numbers for smarties, so that percentages could come out more clean and would be easier to add and divide and such. I would also use multiple trials, with unalike bags of smarties, and with different transects to have more broad data. I would use different kinds of transects, as well as a quadrat to see what kinds of results those give me too. Finally, I would compare all the results from each kind of trial and average them out.

How Are the Themes of Loneliness and Isolation Explored in “of Mice and Men”? Essay

How ar the themes of bareness and isolation explored in Of Mice and Men? Born in 1902, tin can Steinbeck, author of Of Mice and Men, nonplus his bulk in the 1930s. The novel revolves slightly two hard-working men dependant on one and only(a) another during the Great Depression, a time when most were alone. some themes are explored in the novel such as racism, bareness, disability, isolation and friendship. This essay will be jawing about how the themes of loneliness and isolation are explored in Of Mice and Men. Gender is one way in which Steinbeck illustrates loneliness and isolation.The character of Curleys hook up with woman is used to portray this. Throughout the book Curleys wife is never referred to her name which is unknown. This suggests that she is a possession belonging to Curley. By not having her name mentioned Curleys wife remains distant even though she tells Lennie her demeanor story as without a name she remains mysterious. Her marriage to Curley causes fo r her to be rejected by the paste workers when she seeks out their attention and friendship. Therefore she is not only when lone(prenominal) but also stranded as there are only men on the ranch who turn away from her.Critics may reason that Steinbeck was too harsh in not giving a name to Curleys wife but in my opinion John Steinbeck was only delineation the reality of that particular time period. Steinbeck also uses age to explore the themes of loneliness and isolation. dulcorate, an old ranch worker, is used to display these themes. As the oldest man on the ranch Candy is the most insecure of the men as he knows that if he was to be fired from his job he would have no other exercise out to go to, what with having no family or friends. This knowledge isolates him from the others as theres no one whom he can relate to this about.Critics may say that John Steinbeck is stereotyping old people as useless. Another way in which the two themes are explored is through racism. For t his John Steinbeck uses Crooks. As a stable buck and a black person, Crooks is obscure from the other characters. He has his own room which may be fortunate but only advance alienates him from the other workers. Crooks shows that he is lonely while talking to Lennie, he says, I tell ya a guy gets too lonely an he gets sick. He talks of how he wakes up in the night and sees something but doesnt know if he was just dreaming, if had a friend he would have asked him.Because of his race Crooks has many disadvantages one of them being that he is not allowed to enter the bunkhouse. Another being that he is abused by the other workers. Crooks is not given a chance to befriend anyone and is therefore twain physically and mentally isolated. Lennie shows how disability can lead to loneliness and isolation. His child-like mentality distances him from the other workers. Though he talks to and is talked to by other characters he is isolated in his mind because there is still a separation. His disability causes the other characters on the ranch to treat him as inferior.Lennie was told both Crooks and Curleys wifes life story but it doesnt mention in the book whether or not he was really listening when the two confided in him. This makes you enquiry whether or not Lennie is actually as he is described. Critics may say that Lennies character was too unrealistic and overdrawn. Euthanasia is used to explore the themes of loneliness and isolation. Again Lennie is used to display this along with Candys dog. Both of them were in a similar situation where their death was what was best for them. Throughout the book Lennie is described as animalistic which further connects him to Candys dog.Lennie was killed by someone who cared about him, George, while Candy had wished to have been the one who had killed his dog. Without his dog Candy was left as lonely because though he still had the others, his dog was the one who was always by his side. It shows that Lennie was truly lonely b ecause when he died though George was move he had Slim as a friend to replace Lennie. John Steinbeck uses dreams to show loneliness and isolation. Georges character is used to show this. Although most of the ranch workers like George, he is mentally isolated. This is because of his dream which distances him from the other characters.His dream acts as a burden because in the end he knows that it will never come true. His awareness causes for him to be isolated, lonely and unreachable. Financial status also displays loneliness and isolation. For this the character of Curley is used. Curley can be viewed as the villain in the novel because of the inglorious way he treats the other workers. He uses his small size as an advantage. The main difference though between him and the workers is money. Curley is married and yet because he is the stumps son he doesnt have to work like the others characters do.He uses the feature that he has authority and dominates the ranch workers. But being the gaffer son only further alienates him from the other characters and causes him to be lonely. Curleys wife would constantly flirt with the other ranch-hands. This made him a subject of ridicule and further isolated him. Another way in which John Steinbeck uses to explore the themes of loneliness and isolation is through marriage. Curley and his wife are used to depict this. Both of them are stuck in a loveless marriage. Curleys wife revealed to Lennie that she didnt like Curley.Ways that you can tell Curley doesnt love his wife is like the fact that he went to a cat house with the other men. In addition, when his wife was killed he set out to punish Lennie instead of mourning her this shows that he was more(prenominal) interested in getting back at Lennie for personal reasons instead of losing his wife. Curley and his wife are therefore viewed as lonely. Their title as a married couple also isolates them from others on the ranch as there are expectations of how they should act and who they should talk to. Friendship is used by John Steinbeck to display loneliness and isolation.There are many forms of friendship in Of Mice and Men, the main one being George and Lennies friendship. The two of them are dependent on one another for different reasons. Lennie needs George to help him because of his mental disability. While George needs Lennie for company. Critics may argue that Steinbeck showed their friendship as abusive and forced. Another friendship brought unneurotic by loneliness is Curleys wife and Lennie. This shows that they were all lonely as they settled for each other purely because they wanted companionship and someone to talk to. John Steinbeck also used other features to display loneliness and isolation.The novel began with a lonely atmosphere as he described the setting. This indicated that there was no-one around to describe or mention which gave you the feeling of isolation. Also the name of the city, Soledad, means solitude and loneliness in Spanish. In conclusion, John Steinbeck explored the themes of loneliness and isolation in many ways, using other themes and features. Although Steinbeck doesnt allow you to clearly see his characters so you are unable to discern whether they are really lonely and isolated or if they are just portrayed and viewed as lonely and isolated.

Effects of Poverty on Children Essay

The nations economic crisis has deeply impact the lives of millions of Americans. Skyrocketing foreclosures and job layoffs acquire pulled the rug out from under galore(postnominal) families, particularly those surviving in low-income communities. Deepening privation is inextricably linked with rising levels of stateless personness and pabulum danger/hunger for many Americans and minorren atomic number 18 particularly affected by these conditions. Find out below a summary of the myriad effects of want, homelessness, and hunger on children and youth. Various volunteer opportunities and resources have also been listed that allow for information and tools on ways to fight meagreness in America.What are the current poverty and unemployment localises for Americans? The ongoing economic crisis has ostracizely affected the livelihoods of millions of Americans. check to the U.S. role of Labor Statistics (2013), the unemployment rate is 7.9 portionage as of January 2013. Despite the data showing an adjoin of only 0.1 percent from December 2012, the unemployment rate is still spirited by all directs, having doubled since the beginning of the recession in December 2007. * U.S. Census Bureau data shows that the U.S. poverty rate rose to 15.1 percent (46.2 million) in 2010, an join on from 14.3 percent (approximately 43.6 million) in 2009 and the highest level since 1993. In 2008, 13.2 percent (39.8 million) Americans lived in relative poverty. * In 2000, the poverty rate for individuals was 12.2 percent and for families was 9.3 percent.* In 2010, the poverty threshold, or poverty line, was $22,314 for a family of four. * Over 15 percent of the population fell below this threshold in 2010. * The percentage of people in deep poverty was 13.5 percent of all dingys and 10.9 percent of all Hispanics, compared to 5.8 percent of Asians and 4.3 percent of Whites. * While non-Hispanic Whites still constitute the largest single group of Americans living in poverty, ethnic nonage groups are overrepresented (27.4 percent African American 28.4 percent American Indian and Alaskan Native 26.6 percent Hispanic, and 12.1 percent Asian and Pacific Islander compared with 9.9 percent non-Hispanic White). * These disparities are associated with the historical marginalization of ethnic minority groups and entrenched barriers to good education and jobs.Where is child poverty concentrated?* U.S. Census data reveals that from 2009 to 2010, the total snatch of children under age 18 living in poverty change magnitude to 16.4 million from 15.5 million. Child poverty rose from 20.7 percent in 2009, to 22 percent in 2010, and this is the highest it has ever been since 1993. * Racial and ethnic disparities in poverty rates persist among children. The poverty rate for Black children was 38.2 percent 32.3 percent for Hispanic children 17 percent for non-Hispanic White children and 13 percent for Asian children. * The National Center for Children in Pover ty reports that 17.2 million children living in the U.S. have a nonnative parent, and 4.2 million children of immigrant parents are poor. It is reported that child poverty in immigrant families is more than closely related to low-wage work and barriers to valuable work declares.* The Population Reference Bureau (2010) reports that 24 percent of the 75 million children under age 18 in the U.S. live in a single-mother family. The poverty rate for children living in female-householder families (no spouse present) was 42.2 percent in 2010 7 in 10 children living with a single mother are poor or low-income, compared to less than a third (32 percent) of children living in other types of families. A staggering 50.9 percent of female-headed Hispanic households with children below 18 y ears of age live in poverty (48.8 percent for Blacks 31.6 percent Asian, and 32.1 percent non-Hispanic White). * Single-mother headed households are more prevalent among African American and Hispanic familie s contributing to ethnic disparities in poverty.What are the effects of child poverty?Psychological research has demonstrated that living in poverty has a wide range of negative effects on the carnal and kind health and wellbeing of our nations children. Poverty impacts children within their various contexts at home, in civilise, and in their neighborhoods and communities. * Poverty is linked with negative conditions such as substandard housing, homelessness, inadequate sustainment and food insecurity, inadequate child care, lack of access to health care, unsafe neighborhoods, and under resourced disciplines which adversely impact our nations children.* Poorer children and teens are also at greater encounter for several negative outcomes such as poor academic achievement, school dropout, abuse and neglect, behavioral and socio- aroused problems, corporal health problems, and develop psychic delays. * These effects are compounded by the barriers children and their families en counter when trying to access physical and mental health care. * Economists estimate that child poverty costs an estimated $500 billion a year to the U.S. economy reduces productivity and economic output by 1.3 percent of GDP raises crime and increases health pulmonary tuberculosis (Holzer et al., 2008).Poverty and academic achievement* Poverty has a particularly adverse effect on the academic outcomes of children, especially during early childhood. * Chronic stress associated with living in poverty has been shown to adversely affect childrens concentration and memory which may impact their ability to learn. * The National Center for Education Statistics reports that in 2008, the dropout rate of students living in low-income families was about four and one-half times greater than the rate of children from high-income families (8.7 percent versus 2.0 percent).* The academic achievement gap for poorer youth is particularly marked for low-income African American and Hispanic childre n compared with their more affluent White peers. * Under resourced schools in poorer communities struggle to meet the learning needs of their students and aid them in fulfilling their potential. * unsatisfactory education contributes to the cycle of poverty by making it more difficult for low-income children to lift themselves and future generations out of poverty.Poverty and psychosocial outcomes* Children living in poverty are at greater risk of behavioral and emotional problems. * several(prenominal) behavioral problems may include impulsiveness, difficulty getting along with peers, aggression, attention-deficit/hyperactivity disquiet (ADHD) and conduct disorder. * Some emotional problems may include smellings of dread, depression, and low self-esteem. * Poverty and economic hardship is particularly difficult for parents who may experience chronic stress, depression, marital distress and evidence harsher parenting behaviors. These are all linked to poor social and emotiona l outcomes for children. * Unsafe neighborhoods may expose low-income children to violence which can cause a number of psychosocial difficulties. furiousness exposure can also predict future violent behavior in youth which places them at greater risk of injury and mortality and access into the juvenile justice system.Poverty and physical healthChildren and teens living in poorer communities are at increased risk for a wide range of physical health problems * Low birth weight * Poor nutrition which is manifested in the following ways 1. Inadequate food which can lead to food insecurity/hunger 2. Lack of access to healthy foods and areas for play or sports which can lead to childhood overweight or obesity * Chronic conditions such as asthma, anemia, and pneumonia * Risky behaviors such as smoking or engaging in early sexual activity * painting to environmental contaminants, e.g., lead paint and nephrotoxic waste dumps * Exposure to violence in their communities which can lead to t rauma, injury, disability, and mortalityWhat is the prevalence of child hunger in America?* The Federal Interagency assembly on Child and Family Statistics reports that in 2010, 22 percent of children under the age of 18 lived in food-insecure households and one percent in households with very low food security. Food insecure means that at some point during the year, the household had limited access to an adequate supply of food due to lack of capital or other resources. * In 2009 2010, 21 states and the District of Columbia had at least one in four households with children (25 percent or more) facing food hardship, according to the Food Research and action at law Center (FRAC). The District of Columbia had the highest rates of food hardship for households with children, followed by Mississippi, Alabama, Florida, Arkansas, Nevada, Arizona, Louisiana, Kentucky, and Tennessee.FRAC data shows that Metropolitan areas in the due southward and South West, and California were hard hit by food hardships. Use of food stamps increased to 16% (13.6 million households) in 2010, according to U.S. Census Bureau. States with the largest increase (over 30%) in food stamp use included Nevada, Idaho, Colorado, Wisconsin and Florida. * Approximately 1 in 4 Americans utilize at least one of the U.S. department of Agricultures (USDA) nutrition assistance programs each year (USDA, 2011). * The Food and Nutrition Service (FNS) reports that 53% of infants born in the United States receive sign from the Women, Infants & Children (WIC) program. * In 2010, more than 31.7 million children each day got their lunch through the National School Lunch Program. Children from families with incomes at or below 130 percent of the poverty level are eligible for free meals. Approximately, 20 million children received free and reduced price lunch, according to the Food Research and Action Center (2010).What are the effects of hunger and under nutrition on child development? Prenatally* Materna l under nutrition during pregnancy increases the risk of negative birth outcomes, including premature birth, low birth weight, smaller head size, and lower brain weight. * Babies born prematurely are vulnerable to health problems and are at increased risk for developing learning problems when they reach school-age.In infancy and early childhood* The first three years of a childs life are a period of rapid brain development. Too little energy, protein, and nutrients during this sensitive period can lead to lasting deficits in cognitive, social, and emotional development. * Protein-energy malnutrition, iron deficiency anemia, iodine, zinc, and other vitamin deficiencies in early childhood can cause brain impairment. * Failure to thrive, the failure to grow and reach major(ip) developmental milestones as the result of under nutrition, affects 5-10% of American children under the age of three. * crave reduces a childs motor skills, activity level, and motivation to explore the environ ment. action and exploration are important to cognitive development, and more active children elicit more stimulation and attention from their caregivers, which promotes social and emotional development.In childhood* Families ofttimes work to keep their food-insecurity hidden, and some parents may feel shame or embarrassment that they are non able to feed their children adequately. Children may also feel stigmatized, isolated, ashamed, or embarrassed by their lack of food. * A community sample that classified low-income children ages six to twelve as hungry, at-risk for hunger, or not hungry found that hungry children were significantly more likely to receive special education services, to have repeated a grade in school, and to have received mental health counseling than at-risk-for-hunger or not-hungry children. * In this same study, hungry children exhibited 7 to 12 times as many symptoms of conduct disorder (such as fighting, blaming others for problems, having trouble with a teacher, not listening to rules, stealing) than their at-risk or not-hungry peers. * Among low-income children, those classified as hungry show increased anxious, irritable, aggressive, and oppositional behavior in comparison to peers. * Additionally, the nonuple stressors associated with poverty result in significantly increased risk for developing psychiatric and functional problems. School-age children who experience severe hunger are at increased risk for the following negative outcomes* Homelessness* Chronic health conditions* Stressful life conditions* Psychiatric distress* Behavioral problems* Internalizing behavior, including depression, anxiety, withdrawal, and poor self-esteem The effects of under nutrition depend on the length and severity of the period of hunger and may be mediated by other factors. * Improved nutrition, increased environmental stimulation, emotional support, and secure attachment to parents/caregivers can compensate for early under nutrition. * Babies who receive enough nutrition while in the womb appear to show higher cognitive performance in later childhood. * The human brain is flexible and can recover from early deficits, but this also means that brain structures wait vulnerable to further negative experiences throughout childhood. * Breastfeeding, attentive caretaking, and attention to environmental factors, such as sleep cycles and noise, can also promote healthy development.Who are homeless children and youth in America?* In 2009, an estimated 656,129 people experienced homelessness in the United States on a given night, according to the National partnership to End Homelessness. An estimated 2.3 to 3.5 million Americans experience homelessness at least once a year. Homelessness affects people of all ages, geographic areas, occupations, and ethnicities, but occurs disproportionately among people of color. * Access to permanent and adequate shelter is a basic human need however, the ongoing economic downturn (composed of the foreclosure crisis, spiking unemployment, worsening poverty rates, and inadequate low-cost housing) is likely to increase rates of homelessness.* The National Association for Education of Homeless Children and Youth reports that during the 2009-2010 school year, 939,903 homeless children and youth were enrolled in public schools, a 38% increase from the 2006-2007 school years. The data is an underestimate since it does not reflect pre-school age children, toddlers and infants. * The United States Conference of Mayors (2009) reports that in 2010 more than 1.6 million children (1 in 45 children) in America were homeless and that approximately 650,000 are below age 6. Families with children are a major segment of the homelessness population. Families with children comprise a third of the homeless population and are typically comprised of a single mother in her late twenties with two young children.* Approximately 47 percent of children in homeless families are Black, although Black children make up just 15 percent of the U.S. child population (Child Trends Databank, 2012). On the other hand, although White children make up 66% of the child population, they account for 38% of homeless children. Hispanic children make up 13%, whereas Native American children make up 2% of the homeless children population. * Homeless single mothers a good deal have histories of violent victimization with over one third having post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and over half experiencing major depression while homeless. An estimated 41 percent develop dependency on alcohol and drugs and are often in poor physical health. Maternal depression and parental substance abuse has a series of negative outcomes for children.* lone(prenominal) youth (sometimes referred to as runaway youth) may number between 575,000 to 1.6 million annually and typically range from ages 16 to 22. The major causes of homelessness for unaccompanied youth are mental illness, substance abuse, and lack of inexpensive housing. * Family conflict is the primary cause of their homelessness with 46% having experienced abuse and an estimated 20-40% identifying as lesbian, gay, bisexual, or transgendered (LGBT). * Homelessness is traumatic for children because they often experience frequent moves, family split-ups, and living in crowded places before using homeless shelters (National Center on Family Homelessness, 2011). * States in the south and south west where poverty is more prevalent have more homeless children than states in the north and northeast. Homelessness affects childrens health and wellbeing, their brain development, causes stress, and hinders readiness for school.What are the risk factors for homelessness in children and youth? * Extreme poverty is the strongest predictor of homelessness for families. These families are often forced to choose between housing and other necessities for their survival. At least 11% of American children living in poverty are homeless. * Female-h eaded households (particularly by women with limited education and job skills) are also particularly vulnerable. The current economic temper has made the labor market even less hospitable as many of them do not have more than a high school diploma or GED. * Teen parents are also particularly at risk of homelessness as they often lack the education and income of adults who become parents. * Lack of affordable housing is also a risk factor for homelessness, particularly for families who devote more than 50% of household income to paying rent or those who experience a foreclosure. Foreclosures affect vulnerable tenants as well as homeowners who are delinquent in their mortgage payments. * Substance abusing or physically violent parents and stepparents are the major drivers of homelessness in runaway youth, particularly for those who identify as GLBT.What are the outcomes of homelessness for children and youth? * Homelessness has particularly adverse effects on children and youth inclu ding hunger, poor physical and mental health, and missed educational opportunities. * Homeless children lack stability in their lives with 97% having moved at least once on an annual basis, which leads to disruptions in nurture and negatively impacts academic achievement. * Schooling for homeless children is often interrupted and delayed, with homeless children twice as likely to have a learning disability, repeat a grade, or to be suspended from school. * Homelessness and hunger are closely intertwined.Homeless children are twice as likely to experience hunger as their non-homeless peers. Hunger has negative effects on the physical, social, emotional and cognitive development of children. * A quarter of homeless children have witnessed violence and 22% have been separated from their families. Exposure to violence can cause a number of psychosocial difficulties for children both emotionally (depression, anxiety, withdrawal) and behaviorally (aggression, acting out). * Half of schoo l age homeless children experience problems with depression and anxiety and one in five homeless preschoolers have emotional problems that require professional care.* Homelessness is linked to poor physical health for children including low birth weight, malnutrition, ear infections, exposure to environmental toxins, and chronic illness (e.g. asthma). Homeless children also are less likely to have adequate access to medical and dental care. * Unaccompanied youth are often more likely to grapple with mental health (depression, anxiety, and PTSD) and substance abuse problems. * Many runaway youth engage in sexually risky behaviors (sometimes for their own survival), which places them at risk of HIV, other STDs, and unintended pregnancies. Also, emerging research has shown that GLBT homeless youth are 7 times more likely to be victims of violent crime.What can you do to help children and families struggling with poverty, hunger, and homelessness? * Volunteer your time with charities an d organizations that provide assistance to low-income and homeless children and families. * Donate money, food, and clothing to homeless shelters and other charities in your community. * Donate school supplies and books to under-resourced schools in your area. * Make your voice heard Support public policy initiatives that seek to i. Improve access to physical, mental, and behavioral health care for low-income ii. Americans by eliminating barriers such as limitations in health care coverage.iii. Create a safety net for children and families that provide real security measure against the harmful effects of economic insecurity. iv. Increase the minimum wage, affordable housing and job skills training for low-income and homeless Americans. v. Intervene in early childhood to support the health and educational development of low-income children. vi. Provide support for low-income and food insecure children such as Head Start, the National School Lunch Program, and the Temporary economic aid for Needy Families (TANF) authorization. vii. Increase resources for public education and access to higher education. viii. Support research on poverty and its relationship to health, education, and well-being.