The Ring Finger
Posted inWriting

The Ring Finger

The finger is a part of our hands and our hands are a component of our body. Usually, there are five fingers on a hand. If we were to name them, it would be Thumb, Index finger, Middle finger, Ring finger, and Pinky. Today, we will explore the Ring finger and why it is so special. The name of the Ring finger dates back to the 2nd century. Egyptians…
Posted inWriting
Forests
Posted inCreative writing Writing

Forests

Image source: https://www.flickr.com/photos/67407148@N02/25526356158 The forest whispers.  It will whisper to anyone who hears it, which is, in truth, very few. Its branches will bend down, and the leaves will move, and you will learn things for which there are no words, secrets that you can never use. Still, it is worth a peek, these twisting woods, with their oddly yielding ground and the tremors left in your wake.  The…
Posted inCreative writing, Writing
The Constitution vs. The Articles of Confederation
Posted inOpinion Politics

The Constitution vs. The Articles of Confederation

To what extent was the United States Constitution a radical departure from the Articles of Confederation? In 1781, during the late stages of the Revolutionary War, the Articles of Confederation were officially approved by all states as the first governmental structure of the new nation. However, created as a wartime document, the Articles proved insufficient in addressing the economic and political concerns arising during peacetime. In 1787, state delegates…
Posted inOpinion, Politics
A Historical Overview of Human Enhancement and Its Societal Impacts
Posted inHealth Social Justice World Issues

A Historical Overview of Human Enhancement and Its Societal Impacts

The Rise of Genetic Technologies  In the modern era, improvements in genetic knowledge and technology have brought novel methods of human enhancement - prenatal screening, embryo selection, and genetic engineering.  The first prenatal screening was developed in the 1950s with ultrasound, and in the 1970s, implementation of real-time gray-scale imaging allowed earlier detection. Prenatal screening technology allows the identification of birth defects and chromosomal abnormalities before birth that may…
Posted inHealth, Social Justice, World Issues
A Historical Overview of Human Enhancement and Its Societal Impacts [Part II]
Posted inHealth World Issues

A Historical Overview of Human Enhancement and Its Societal Impacts [Part II]

Plato’s Eugenics  The term ‘eugenics’ was first coined in 1883 by a British natural scientist named Francis Galton and was defined as a “science” for the betterment of society through selective breeding of individuals with desirable traits (F. Galton, 1978; Proctor, 1988, p. 29). Despite the term’s origin, the roots of eugenics stretch long before Galton’s time.  The earliest known inception of eugenics comes from Plato, a Greek philosopher,…
Posted inHealth, World Issues
A Historical Overview of Human Enhancement and Its Societal Impacts [Part I]
Posted inHealth World Issues

A Historical Overview of Human Enhancement and Its Societal Impacts [Part I]

Human enhancement methods of prenatal screening, embryo selection, and genetic engineering are currently in the limelight, but there are debates over their ethical and societal implications. This paper aims to explore past human enhancement attempts and their parallels to modern treatments to determine possible societal impacts and applications of latest treatments. To do so, this paper focuses on the earliest known inception of human enhancement advocated for by Plato…
Posted inHealth, World Issues
Blackout
Posted inCreative writing Writing

Blackout

My eyes snapped open. It was dead silent, and I could hear only my heart racing. Darkness loomed outside. A hint of moonlight peeked through my window, a hint of the light landing on my pale face. The darkness all around me was engulfing, suffocating, and I couldn't breathe.  I knew I had been through another one of my blackouts, the ones which happen at the queerest of times,…
Posted inCreative writing, Writing
Civil Disobedience
Posted inPolitics Social Justice

Civil Disobedience

“Cast your whole vote, not a strip of paper merely, but your whole influence.” Thoreau’s piece on Civil Disobedience has inspired many great activists around the world. From Gandhi to Martin Luther King Junior, they casted their whole influence on issues of inequality and, in turn, inspired other individuals to continue their work of improving the government. A recent issue that many activists have been concerned about is the…
Posted inPolitics, Social Justice