IN THE DREAMSCAPE OF NIGHTMARES, CLUES TO WHY WE DREAM AT ALL

Link: www.nytimes.com

Oustrageously bad dreams are a universal human experience. Although few of us suffer from nightmares crippling and persistent enough to demand treatment, we all know how bad a nightmare feels. Nightmares and dreadful dreams offer potentially telling clues into the larger mystery of why we dream in the first place, how our dreaming and waking lives may intersect and cross-infect each other and how we manage to construct a virtual reality in our skull.
A big reason bad dreams offer insight into the architecture of dreams generally is that most of our dreams are bad. Studies have shown that three-quarters of the emotions described by subjects periodically awoken out of rapid eye movement sleep, were negative. We spend 60% to 70% of somnolence dreaming, which works out to three hours nightly spent in a state of anxiety or frustation.
Nightmare frequency varies by age and sex, content also shifts over time and across cultures. Roughly 25% of children ages 5 to 12 being awakened by had bad dreams at least once a week. Nightmares rates climb through adolescence, peak in young adulthood, and then begin to drop. At nearly every age, girls and women report having significantly more nightmares than do boys and men. A fact that some researchers say may be related to women’s comparatively higher rates of anxiety and mood disorders.
In conclusion, although when asked some people say they do not dream at all and some others do not remember what they dreamed about, it has been scientifically proved that all of us always dream while we sleep. Some of these dreams are just bad dreams and some others are nightmares and their frequence and content will depend on many factors such as age, gender and culture and even more, the persistence of repetitive nightmares can demand psychological treatment.

Name: Cristina Soledad Guzmán review n 4
Source: www.nytimes.com

UNDIAGNOSED BRAIN INJURY- THE HIDDEN LEGACY OF IRAK

Link: www.guardian.uk.com

Irak and Afghanistan wars had resulted in an extremely worrying legacy, thousands of US and UK troops have suffered mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI) as a consequence of the exposure to high-velocity explosions.
The number of soldiers and marines affected by this condition are estimated in more than 20% of the US army, 15% of those never recovering, and as many as 20,000 UK troops could be at risk.
This injury can be made when a soldier gets a blow on the head or is in close proximity to an explosion and even the most advanced helmets cannot protect the brain from the shock waves. The condition can lead to memory loss, depression and anxiety. Advances in brain scanning have revealed that soldiers can sustain bruising and blood clots on the brain, even if there is no visible injury.
Although the British Ministry of Defence had drawn up a list of measures to help deal with mTBI, the US troops seem to be getting better care.
I think that in the same way that the government encourages young people to join in the military forces and to “defend their country with their lives during war time”, it is a governmental obligation and a social duty, to them and their families, to provide the best treatments possible to all the troops affected by war.



Name: Cristina Soledad Guzmán- review nº 3

Source: http://www.guardian.uk.com/

The healthiest food

According to a research held by Unicef UK baby friendly initiative, spoon babies pureed food can cause them health problems. Constipation, delay of development of chewing skills and dilution of nutritional values of milk are just some of the health impairments a child could face in the future.

A child care expert has warned that babies should be fed with breast milk for six months and after that period; they could be fed with solid food. Introducing solid food in the baby’s diet would prevent them from becoming picky about food.

I think that breast milk is the best food a baby must consume at his early age. It contains all the proteins and minerals a baby needs to grow healthier. Even more, doctors say it is the best medicine babies can be given when they feel ill. Moreover, it has been proved that milking is also favourable to emotional health. Finally, not only is milking beneficial for babies but also for mothers; doctors believed that milking would reduce the risks of develop diabetes type two.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/6173645.stm

Gay allege

Court battles referring to gay marriage were lost in two of the most populous US states, New York and Georgia. Although the Court of Appeals of New York did not grant the right to gay marriage, it opened the alternative for a change in the law.

Despite the fact that the Supreme Court rejected the argument that the state ban on gay matrimony; pro-gay groups succeeded with court battles in Massachusetts. Moreover, a judge concluded that “it may be the time for the Legislature to address the needs of same-sex couples and their families.

On the other hand, a leading candidate to be the next governor claimed the law makers could rationally accept as true that marriage must be limited to one man and one woman.

A lesbian couple claimed that they have been in the fight for a long time, “If we can not get it for us, we will do it for our partners”.

All in all, no one can deny the fact that homosexuality has caused controversial opinions all over the world. Gay and lesbian groups are claiming for their acceptance in society. However, people are unready to understand such relationships. But what rally should be discussed is the fact that homosexuals are fighting for what they consider their rights.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/7003969.stm

REVIEW 4(HENRY)

NAME:ENRIQUE GONZALEZ

DATE:26 NOVEMBER 2007

TITLE:Free and Uneasy
Vindicated by DNA, but a Lost Man on the Outside

SOURCE:
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/11/25/us/25jeffrey.html?_r=1&oref=slogin

DATE OF PUBLICATION: 25 NOVEMBER 2007

Jeffrey Deskovic, left, on a subway to Greenwich Village. He was freed last year after 16 years in prison.
What an unpleasant and disagreeable experience Mr. Descokovic had all these years.
suffering.
There is no apology for this poor man.It does not exist,how is he going to recover the wasted time?.Of course he cannot ,no one can.
Mr Deskovic's horrible fate is just one single example of how justice is put into effect in The United States Of America.There are at least 205 men and one woman that suffered the very same torture,and agony.
Extreme anguish of body and mind.
As a matter of fact,I met a person who told me about a similar case in Tafí Viejo my city.It is said that a young boy in his 20's was convicted for sexual abuse over young girl.That was in 2002,and now in September the boy blamed for that was released after 5 years of unfair improsonment.How do you call this ? fate?,bad luck?wrong moment,wrong place?.Whatever you dare to callit ,no one can return the time he spent in prison.No one can.
Scarred life.
Sad life.
I know he went through hell in there,like Mr Deskovic himself.
He told me once,that he was tired, confused,scared,hungry.He wanted to get out of there.He told the policewhat they wnted to hear,but he never got to go home.
They lied to him.

REVIEW 3(HENRY)

NAME:ENRIQUE GONZÁLEZ

DATE:26 NOVEMBER 2007

TITLE:'They put a gun to the back of my head. I heard them cock it. It jammed'
http://www.guardian.co.uk/weekend/story/0,,2215522,00.html
SOURCE:http://www.guardian.co.uk/weekend/story/0,,2215522,00.html

DATE OF PUBLICATION:24 NOVEMBER 2007



Very alarming and shocking reality.Our young peple under 18 are doing the very same in our province Tucumán and nobody seems to do anything to prevent this awful way of living.
I believe that the majority of teens crimes are related to their families.I mean lack of love ,affection ,good models to imitate.
Parents should and must be the examples for their children,that ia an indisputable fact here and elsewhere.As many people think,we cannot demonise the teenagers involved.Young people do this because it is what is around them.Adults need to look at what they are doing.It is not young people putting this stuff on tv,it is not young people bringing in the drugs .We all need to take responsibility.
Let us not wait everything from our government,instead why don't we help our teens,let us talk to them,let us guide them,let us provide the love they deserve, and by doing that we will be able to better recognise our role of supporting society.
A society giving love and receiving love.
Is it hard to try?

A right or a crime?

In Mexico City, abortion has been legalized.
The Roman Catholic Church and some conservatives groups claim they will challenge this law in the courts.
While most of Roman Catholic sectors opposed abortion, there are non-government organizations that defend women rights to decide in case of an unwelcome pregnancy.
One of the main reasons why this law was passed in Congress was the fact that illegal abortion was at the increase in that city. Abortion caused the death of numerous women in many countries in Latin America. Many doctors support abortion in cases of rape or poor women who can not afford the costs of a child’s welfare.
I strongly support the doctors’ view. I think that women should have the chance to decide when rape so as to terminate their pregnancy or when their own health is at risk.

REVIEW 2(HENRY)

NAME:ENRIQUE GONZALEZ


DATE:26 NOVEMBER 2007


TITLE:MOBILE WEB:SO CLOSE YET SO FAR


SOURCE:
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/11/25/technology/25proto.html?_r=1&oref=slogin
DATE OF PUBLICATION:25 NOVEMBER 2007

I like mobile phones.They are extremely useful, they all look good.However,the mobile web has been a disaster.While many of them have some form of web access,most are hard to use,just finding a place to type in a web address can be a challenge.And once you find it,most web content doesn´t look very good on cellphone screens.Even the best cellphones in Tucumán can dissappoint you.Their browser doesn't support FLASH, a programming language that enables the user to see the sites properly.In reference to this article,I believe that cellphone carriers are the ones that should invest the millions in order to have a better service.I also think that the mobile web will inexorably open over the next five years,solving many current problems.It will be expensive, of course ,but those who have the chance of enjoying that technology willdo it .People talk about the mobile web ,and it's just assumed that it'll be a replica of the desktop experience,I believe that the experience will be beyond that ,certainly.

REVIEW 1(HENRY)

NAME: ENRIQUE GONZÁLEZ
DATE: 26 NOVEMBER
TITLE:GAY PASTOR IN THE BRONX COULD LOSE HER COLLAR
SOURCE: http://www.nytimes.com/2007/11/25/nyregion/25pastor.html?_r=1&oref=slogin
DATE OF PUBLICATION:25 NOVEMBER


Gay parents,gay marriage,gay jobs.They always give people something to talk about.Nowadays,this issue is generating a burning debate,with plenty of scandals and opinions.
I believe gays have the right to work and the right to be treated as anyone else.However,there exist certain aspects and considerations to think about.Such as the case of Pastor Foster.I do understand those families that stopped going to church.What is more ,I do respect their option.
As pastor Paul Hagen said:Can She honestly say she is a follower of Jesus?Does she teach what Jesus teaches or What she teaches.
Many people think the same.But can we judge Pastor Foster for her sexual choice.
No one can.
Apart from that,many times we believe in things that are apparently correct.I may say that not everything that glitters is gold.
Let us not confuse our views,let usa not get a norrow viewpoint.
Let them live,that is their choice.

Review 4

Name: Constanza Quinteros
Title:The history of the future.
Author:Mark Lewis.
Link: http://www.forbes.com/2007/10/13/history-future-philosophy-tech-future07-cx_ml_1015ages.html

The future is something we all long to know. There are people who even pay to know what the future is going to be about. But who would have imagined that in ancient times the concept of future as such did not exist.
Babilonians thought that future was ciclical so they thought useless to conjure visions that would be destroyed when the cycle ends.
But then the idea of time changed from cyclical to linear.This idea was taken from christians. For them time bagan with the Creation and is due to end on Judment day. Christians prognosticators held the idea that the future would be better. first the improvements they forecast were related to moral progress but then they were extended to technological and scientific ones.
As time went by the key figure that introduced the concept if geologic time was Charles Lyell and with him people had to contend with the idea that the earth was billions of years old and with billions of years still to come. Then Darwin with his theory gave a little glimpse of the future still to come, he was folowed by imaginative seers such as Verne who started creating visions of a fantastic future.
Throghout the time the idea of future fluctuated, from the pesimistics ones to the optimistics. But the future in fact is changing all the time. Nobody knows what it will bring with it. No matter how much we want to pay to know about it, we just can wait to see it..

Nostradamus
Lived: 1503 to 1566Native of: France Michel de Notredame ("Nostradamus" is the Latinized version of his name) was a Renaissance apothecary who made a profitable sideline of prophecy. Modern-day enthusiasts insist he predicted the French Revolution and the nuking of Hiroshima, among many other events. His book Les Propheties, first published in 1555, is still in print. ( picture above)

Review 3

Name: constanza Quinteros

Title: Cheating but everybody's doing it.

Link:http://www.rd.com/content/cheating-in-school/1/

Who has not cheated at least once? But now cheating has become an epidemic. Experts say that cheating is hardly an isolated act. Academic cheating has become an epidemic in America's high schools and colleges.

According to a survey 70 percent of students at 60 colleges admited to have cheated. But cheating is not new what is new and alerming is the fact that it has widespread and that thr majority of students are bold about it. They say that they will do whatever they have to do get ahead.

Josephson Anderson founder of the Josephson institute of ethics says that there are two major factors behind the erosion of ethics. First advances in technology,that have made cheating easier. And a bigger factor is the bad behaviour across society.

People feel pressure to succed, their motto is "if you want to get a better grade, you are going to cheat to get it". Because that is what you will do in real life, if you want to get a better job.

This might be true in a great majority but it isn't so. "Succes at any cost" is not what education is aimed to.

Not only the education system is failling but also parents. In many cases the lack of integrity children show is a reflection of parents behaviour. Parents show no concern about their children cheating at school. As a consecuense they keep on doing it.

Where are the rules, where is the respect and the moral of our future?

Review 2

Name: Constanza Quintero


Title:Shock anorexia billboard annoys fashion designers











Link:http://lifeandhealth.guardian.co.uk/fashion/story/0,,2176923,00.html

Potograph link:http://www.watch-trend.com/watches-and-fashion/no-anorexia-nolita.html

Author: Jess Cartner


Milan fahion week is one of the most important events in the world of fashion. The most prestigious designers prestigious designers present their creations and top models appear to themselves and their bodies. On the catwalk the female stereotype, skinny women, with pale faces, looking almost as if they were dead, walk along showing themselves to the world.

Every year these sterotypes are under the spotlight. But this time what is causin furore is a diturbing billboard that shows a naked anorexic woman, the billboard bears the legend "No anorexia".The billboard is part of a campaign of " Nolita" a womeswear brand.

The owners of "Nolita" said that this campaign is aimed to raise awareness of an illness caused in many of the cases by the stereotypes imposed by the world of fashion.

However representatives of the fashion industry that anorexia is a psyciatric problem with nothing to do with fashion.

The world of fashion is not the only one to be blamed for this desease. There are several factors that can contribute to make a healthy person suffer from this desease but the fact that skinny models are presented as "the female stereotype" is not helpful in a world where image consumption is so important.

I think that to release this campaign in the place and time they did is one important step towards make people aware of the terrible consecuences.

Review 4: Human Therapeutic Cloning

Cloned embryos have been created from an adult monkey for the first time, leading scientists to speculate that cloning human embryos using stem-cell therapies is a significant possibility. The success in the US proves that viable cloned embryos can be produced from primates.
Though further work is required before the technique can be applied to human cells, it suggests that it will be feasible to clone embryos from the DNA of living patients, and derive working stem cells from them. These embryonic stem-cells could then be transplanted to treat diseases such as Parkinson’s and Diabetes. Such therapeutic cloning has been a goal for medical research since the birth of Dolly the sheep in 1997.
Some monkeys’ embryos have been cloned before, but they have always died before reaching the stage at which stem-cells can be extracted. And the only human embryo to have been cloned so far, by a British team, died almost immediately. This lead scientist to speculate that primate cloning was so difficult that therapeutic cloning would always remain unpractical.
The research has been peer-reviewed and a group of scientists confirmed beyond doubt that the embryonic stem-cells are true clones of an adult male macaque monkey called Semos. The success is due to a new technique for handing the eggs during the nuclear transfer process of removing and placing stem-cell from the monkey into eggs of female primates. The achievement has a low success rate (0,7 %) which means that it is still too early to use the new technique to attempt to clone human embryos for reproductive purposes, but it does suggest that human therapeutic cloning is a possibility.
Scientists are in the position to assure the world that the ability to produce embryos stem-cells from cloned human embryos would create entirely new opportunities to study serious inherited diseases, possible therapies and drug discovery. These are enough reasons to keep on studying human cloning but as closer we are to that goal it is also likely to strengthen calls from an international ban on reproductive cloning. This has been recently done by the United Nations and should also be supported as well as therapeutic human cloning is.

Gabriela Garcia Fernandez.

Article’s Title: First cloning of monkey embryos rises hope of a great leap on medical science.
Author: Mark Henderson, Science Editor.
Date of Publication: November 15, 2007.
Source:http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/uk/science/article2870675.ece

Review 3: Real Or Imagined Discrimination?

Some of the black and Asian workers across the BBC, from journalists to support staff, are fearful that in an inminent mass sacking, they would be the first ones to be cast out. In a still hideously white BBC, the management had better not throw out their few streaks of colour. Morale at the corporation is in tatters from top to bottom regardless of race an ethnicity. There is still no genuine and uncontested equivalence between white Britons and those who are unfourtunate enough not to be. However, old forms of overt racism are said to have been vanished from the landsacape. The main political parties, for example have tacitly agreed a red line on racist statements by influential insiders and several chosen black and Asian citizens now get to powerful positions. Besides this, race, religion and ethnicity compound the existing vulnerability, sometimes becasue of real discrimination sometimes because discrimination is imagined or assumed.

New internal fissures and violent hatreds within black and Asians hearts and minds sometimes make white racism appear tame and polite. There is no genuine parity between whites and non-whites. This is why furies arise against the nobel prize winner James Watson and why people campign against the next punitive Bush war on mostly innocent Muslims this time in Iran. Let's remember that Watson claimed black peolpe have inherently low intelligence an by doing so, he authorized inequality in perpetuity between whites and blacks. Another example of discrimination that deserves to be mention is what occurs in Youtube.com. In that web site you can appreciate how young black children are asked to choose between white and balck dolls. 80 percent choose the white because they think black is "bad". In what regards the situation related with the BBC, one of the black workers from the corporation said: "Maybe we could never be as good as whites. They let us in as a favour, but they are very ahead...". A similar type of racisms occurs in the National Black Police Association, which president asserts that more young black men need to be stopped and searched in the fight against gun crime.

All these examples mentioned, show situations in which the racist component cannot be hiden. The problem is that in some of those cases, the discrimination does not come from part of the opposite side but from within the same group of peolpe who tends to be discriminated. In other words, they show how sometimes, black people auto-dicrimate themselves. Besides this , the only relevant and undeniable conclusion that arises, is that when there is no equivalence between the races, anything goes in both sides.

Gabriela Garcia Fernandez.

Article's Title: If blacks are fearful for their job, they are right to be.
Author: Yasmin Alibhai-Brown

Date of Publication: 22 october 2007

Source: http://comment.independent.co.uk/commentators

http://www.theindependent.co.uk/

Get over your fears by facing them

Review of: Get over your fears by facing them
Ducking what scares you only aggravates your anxiety

Student: Jesica Suparo, English Language IV

Author: By Maureen Farrell

Published: Oct. 26, 2007

Source: Forbes.

Link: http://www.forbes.com/home/index.html?partner=msnbc

We all suffer from some kind of fear: fear of being on stage, fear of certain animals or fear of overcrowded places. But sometimes, these mere fears which seem natural become a paralyzing state of phobia. Feeling paralyzed from a simple thought is not normal at all; and our body responds to these fears in several ways: sweat, palpitations, dizziness and even heart attacks. In the last years, these consequences exist under a new label: Anxiety Disorders. AD is provoked by specific phobias, obsessive-compulsive disorder and post-traumatic stress disorders. With this explanation, we can think that only a small amount of the world’s population may suffer from this; but in fact, everyone experiences some kind of anxiety in some level.
The article explains how the most common fears -fear of flying, giving a speech or even going to a party- are treated through Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), a form of psychotherapy that involves changing behaviors and thoughts to overcome depression, self-loathing and fear. It is valuable to highlight to characteristics of CBT: first; this therapy is not based on the notion that fear bubbles up from repressed childhood memories; CBT focuses on treating fears in the here and now by rewiring our perceptions of them. Second, CBT do not administrate pills to its patients. The trouble with taking pills is that, while they may mitigate anxiety for a short time, they don't really address the fear long term; worst case, they lead to dependency. The other problem, says Greenberger: “Anti-anxiety medicines can limit the effectiveness of exposure-therapy (such as CBT) by altering the "phobic conditions."
We should think about the origin of our anxieties: are they provoked by real, tangible episodes and inconveniences or are they the dramatic result of our thoughts? We should be able to separate the real from the unreal. If we are afraid of something real, for example, the fear of being trapped in an elevator, you should start by staying in a closed room for a while, and then, little by little, you may come to the point of taking as many elevators as possible; always bearing in mind why you do it and that the purpose of it is to overcome a fear by facing it. On the other hand, if the fear is unreal and has no real motive, we should be more careful; because the only thought of a situation which is not likely to happen but symbolizes a potential risk for us, produces anxiety. Of this, Dr. Greenberger says: "Catastrophic thoughts lead to fear, which leads to avoidance, which leads to more catastrophic thoughts,"…"It's a vicious cycle that exacerbates the fear over time." The most effective way to get over your fears is by facing them.

Review 2: The Genome Project

Looking for the genetic reasons of the different intellectual capacities of human beings will lead us to answer many of the the big and difficult questions that have troubled people for hundred of years. But those answers may not be easy to understand and accept. Many new moral dilemas would arise as a consequence and would help to establish the ethical, legal and social components of the Genome Project.
The reknown Genome Project, will soon make possible to read individual genetic messages at a cost which will not bankrupt our health systems. In so doing, we will see wether changes in the DNA sequences from peolpe to people result in our behaviour and capacity differences. One of the main reasons why scientists are willing to answer that, is in order to understand certain patterns of human attitudes. As example, a research mentioned that one in three people looking for a job in temporary employment in LA is a psychopath or a sociopath. And in finding out the extent in which genes influence behaviour, scientists shall also be able to understand how them also influence intellectual capacities. By these days, the Genome Project is working around gene-caused failures in the brain development that frequently leads to Autism and Schizophrenia. Scientists want to find out if differences registered in brain development genes also lead to differences in our abilities to carry out different mental tasks. In some cases, how these genes function may help us to understand variation in IQ, or why some people excel at poetry but are terible at maths. The same genes that give people great mathematical abilities may also cause them to have autistic behaviour. This is why, in studing Autism and Schisophrenia, scientist believe that they shall come very close to a better understanding of inteligence and , therefore, differences in human capacities.
We do not yet adequatly understand the way in which nature have selected over time, the genes which determine our capacity to do different thinghs. The overwelming desire of society nowadays, is to assume that equal power of reason is an universal heritage of humanity. But simply wanting this to be the case is not enough. It is necessary to seek for individual differences, about why some of us are great musicians and others great ingenieers. It is very likely that at least some 10 to 15 years will pass, before we get an adequate understanding for the relative importance of nature in the achievement of human objectives.

Gabriela Garcia Fernandez

Article's Title: To question genetic intelligence is not racism
Author: James Watson
Date of Publication: 19 October 2007
Source: http:/comment.independent.co.uk/commentators/article3075642.ece
www.independent.co.uk

Are you TANOREXIC?

Name: Aldana Vercellone

Article: Are you tanorexic?

Source: Times Online

Link: http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/newspapers/sunday_times/style/article1076671.ece

Have you ever seen the new tv show "Sunset Tan" or the "orange" actors and actresses walking along the famous "red carpet"

Well, even though they look radiant and beautiful wearing the newest "accesorie" - Sunbed tan - their skin might not be as healthy as we, ordinary people, think.

The wish of being tanned in the middle of winter, for a special event or just because we do not have time to sunbathe, can lead us to take the example from many famous people, like Paris Hilton, to get a sunbed tan.

If you have ever experienced this way of tanning, you probably want to repeat the session one more than and so on until you get hooked on the bright-and-brownie look of your skin.

But this desire to get tanned permanently could be the result of a new syndrome, nicknamed TANOREXIA.

Tanorexia applies to people who have a compulsion to get tanned in sunbeds several times a week. In fact, in a study published by the British Journal of Dermatology, 17% of sunbed users admitted to having more than 100 sessions a year, which increases their risk of suffering from skin cancer: The prercentage sums up to 20% of risk per decade of using sunbeds.

Getting tanned in sunbeds, appart from producing the wanted "brownie" look, make the users feel happier and with a better mood. But this state of mind is addictive due to the fact that they are part of the effects of the exposition of the body to UV rays.

Unlike sunlight, which contains a mix of UVA and UVB, sunbeds produce mainly UVA radiation, the rays that penetrate more deeply into the skin. Since radiation levels in sunbeds can be up to 12 times more powerful than sunlight, when you go on a sunbed you get a much more intense shot of UV light. These UV rays cause endorphins, the body’s natural feel-good chemicals, to be released into the bloodstream, creating a similar effect to a post-exercise high.

Uv light also activates SOLITROL, a skin hormone that works together with MELATONIN to produce changes in mood and regulate the body clock.

But, although these effect may seem to be good for people, the addicitve potential of intense UV exposure may affect people with SAD (seasonal affective disorder) produced by the suppression of serotonin from sunlight, specially during winter.

Besides, sunbed tanning causes an accelerated skin-ageing. The skin goes sallow, blotchy and wrinkles appear making people believe that the solution to this state is getting tanned again.

Links to the pictures: http://images.google.com.ar/imgres?imgurl=http://images-cdn01.associatedcontent.com/150_0000037089_0000087740.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/237304/addicted_to_tanning_tanorexia_may_be.html&h=199&w=150&sz=7&hl=es&start=5&um=1&tbnid=P49V6iCDo0HopM:&tbnh=104&tbnw=78&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dtanorexia%26svnum%3D10%26um%3D1%26hl%3Des

http://images.google.com.ar/imgres?imgurl=http://www.beautyandthedirt.co.uk/files/articles/652/652_mainimage4.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.beautyandthedirt.co.uk/show.asp%3FID%3D652&h=277&w=252&sz=28&hl=es&start=30&um=1&tbnid=ETwNKNezt4p9LM:&tbnh=114&tbnw=104&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dtanorexic%2B%26start%3D20%26ndsp%3D20%26svnum%3D10%26um%3D1%26hl%3Des%26sa%3DN

http://www.cartoonstock.com/newscartoons/cartoonists/gri/lowres/grin254l.jpg

In the Dreamscape of Nightmares, Clues to Why We Dream at All

Student: Jesica Suparo -English Language IV

Review of: In the Dreamscape of Nightmares, Clues to Why We Dream at All.

Source: New York Times.

Author: By NATALIE ANGIER
Published: October 23, 2007.

Link:http://www.nytimes.com/2007/10/23/science/23angi.html?em&ex=1193976000&en=13afc1dbae85aae1&ei=5087%0A

The original definition of Nightmare was codified by Dr Johnson in his A Dictionary of the English Language (1755) and was thus understood to include a "morbid oppression in the night, resembling the pressure of weight upon the breast." This is a beautiful definition to illustrate the mental daily activities which we can not express; but which in sleep time becomes real in perception. Day by day and through our experiences most of our thoughts stay hidden and unknown to us. This intersects with our dreams, taking the lead of our consciousness. We dream whether we remember it or not. We have what we considered good dreams and bad dreams, and also we have nightmares; but the truth behind sleep research is that most of our dreams are bad. Dreams show the worst of our fears; nightmares which make our repressed fears and phobias real. Not all of us remember every dream that we have but we can always recall a nightmare.

According to Dr. Nielsen who is a sleep researcher there are two kinds of nightmares, the ones which leads us to an extreme unpleasant situation but from which we can wake up, and the ones from which we can not wake up when we want. The second type sounds traumatic, and actually it works in that way, while we fight and suffer the nightmare itself takes the leadership of our mind, and when we think it is over, it begins again. People who have suffered from physical abuse and mistreating tend to have persistent nightmares and demand professional treatment. But these kinds of dreams are not restricted only to them. Nightmares are universal and they change according to age, gender – women have more nightmares owed to their higher rates of anxiety and mood disorders- even according to social and cultural backgrounds. Behaviors which are not allowed in certain cultures become terrible nightmares for the members of that particular community. The concept of nightmare extends to social conventions too -for a priest to dream about sex is considered a nightmare that threatens his particular viewpoint of life and clerical principles-. There are nightmares of every shape and color; children may have nightmares related to their daily life, whether if they have been reprimanded by their parents, as a result of a fight with a classmate, or after watching a movie which scared them. In adolescents, nightmares have the shape of insecurity of growing up, and sometimes have the remains of a late childhood. As we become young adults, nightmares and fears may become recurrent; like dreaming of falling or running without going anywhere, or being chased. The answer to the question of why we construct nightmares at all is simple and yet disturbing: “The brain learns quickly what to be afraid of” Dr. Nielsen said. “But if there isn’t a check on the process, we’d fear things in adulthood we feared in childhood.”

See Me

Student: Jesica Suparo -English Language IV

Review of: See Me,
Yours for the Peeping.
Author: PENELOPE GREEN
Published: November 4, 2007
Source: NEY WORK TIMES
Link: http://www.nytimes.com/2007/11/04/weekinreview/04green.html?_r=1&ref=technology&oref=slogin

JEREMY FLETCHER and Alejandra Lillo, designers of an architecture and design firm based in Berlin, Beijing and Los Angeles, were working out a dialogue between voyeurism, solitude and exhibitionism, when they designed the shiny white interiors of the W Downtown, a glass-walled condominium tower to be built in Manhattan’s financial district. This architectural trend is another brick on the wall that keep on building the solitude among crowded places; but, ironically, these types of buildings do not only allow the residents to see out but also to be seen by passers-by. The designers say that they are creating stages for people which actually become displays for the others. We are having the need to be seen and too see every aspect of people’s lives; we can check YouTube where we will find thousands of home-made videos where people of all ages and social status videotape themselves just talking or showing themselves to the world. Websites such as Facebook where friends virtually meet; and the now so-called Twitters – a variation of a blog that works through mobile phones, so the posts get to every phone instantly- are proofs that the need for connection is so strong that we use any device to achieve it. There is nothing wrong with self-expression and the exhibition of our inner thoughts. But we should be able to notice when we are trespassing the limits of exhibitionism at one point, and, on the extreme point of the spectrum, the deliberate isolation. Why do we need to be seen all the time? And why the constant need of approval that carries this self-exposure? For many psychologists and professionals this has to do with a global sense of anxiety. We look carefully around us; everything is tainted with some kind of anxiety.

Sherry Turkle, a psychologist of the M.I.T. Program in Science, Technology and Society, explains this phenomenon of the glass towers and expands it: “There is real confusion about intimacy and solitude,” says Professor Turkle, who for more than two decades has been studying computers and the people who love them. “Are we alone in these buildings, facing the anonymity of the city, or are we connected to the city? What do we show and what do we hide?”

Accurately, he states:

“…That (intimacy and solitude) mirrors what happens when we’re on the computer, on our networks in Facebook. We are no longer able to distinguish when we are together and nurtured and when we are alone and isolated. I can be in intimate contact with 300 people on e-mail, but when I look up from my computer I feel bereft. I haven’t heard a voice, touched a hand, for hours or days. I think people are no longer certain where the self resides.”

Name:Constanza Quinteros

Article:Spending on computwers is finally paying off-with young children

Source:The Economist

Link:

http://www.economist.com/research/articlesBySubject/displayStory.cfm?story_id=9954516&subjectID=348909&fsrc=nwl&emailauth=%2527%252A%2520Z2H%255EO%255DR0%25224%250A



Spending on new technology to be used in educatiom is something not all countries can do. But for those countries that can do it, it has bring remarkable results.

In different European countries where teachers use computers in class, for example "the interactive whiteboard" (IWB), A device that consists on a screen on the wall that talks wirelessly to a laptop tucked away to one side, the resulsts obtained by teachers have been very interesting. Among the good results obtained, the facts that students paid more attention, paricipated more, behaved better, are the most remarkable. However all the good results could only be found with younger children. In secondary schools, mot so good results could be found, because there technology is consigned to the odd power- point presentation passively received.

Teachers of young children afirm that they incredibly moyivated by being ablr to show what they know. A tipical activity would consist on giving a student a coin or any object, so they would thry to work out what is it by making and answering questions using a voting pod. In this way they are in contact with the real world element and at the same time they use the computer. What results to be very important for teachers is the fact that it is easier for them to manitor students progress and it is also an advantage for them not waste so much time planning lessons or marking papers.

It seems that computers in the future will replace much more than we think. Their use is benefitial for both, teacher and student, but i think that during this process the interaction between children and students will be lost and for me this interaction is very important.

Perhaps in the future we will have to say good bye board and chalk, goodbye folder and pencil, but good bye teacher?

Energy Drinks + Alcohol = Danger!

Name: Aldana Vercellone

Article: Drinkers who mix Red Bull with alcohol ‘twice as likely to suffer harm’

Source: Times Online

Date: November 5, 2007

Link: http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/life_and_style/health/article2806253.ece

A recent study shows that drinking Energy Drinks with alcohol doubles the risks of getting injured or harming someone else than those who only drink alcohol.

The study suggests that products such as Red Bull, which contain Caffeine and Taurine, allow drinkers to consume more alcohol without noticing they are getting drunk. As there is no acknowledgment of the drunkenness a person is undergoing, the danger of suffering a car crash or being sexually abused increases.

Appart from that, the effects in the drinker's body can be as harmful as deadly. In fact, this year a young woman died in a nightclub in Dublin after drinking several cocktails of Red Bull with Vodka. That is why, the beverage has been banned in France and Denmark while the The National Swedish Food Administration has warned people to avoid drinking the energy drink.

What does the energy drink mixed with alcohol cause in a person's body?
Caffeine is a stimulant and alcohol is a deppresant. The stimulant effects can mask how intoxicated you are and prevent you from realizing how much alcohol you have consumed. Also, the caffeine in energy drinks is dehydrating which slows down the metabolism of alcohol in the body.

As a result, the symptoms of drunkenness are reduced, but not the drunkennes putting drinkers' lives in danger.

In my opinion, Energy Drinks makers should take actions in what regards harmful effects of the beverage they are producing. And I think that drinkers should take responsability of their own acts as well: If you read carefully in the cans you would be able to see a warning sign saying "Do not drink more than 4 cans" that is why I can not understand why a person consumes more than the advised amount. It may be because they are drunk, but I consider that nobody obliges them to drink what they drink to enters into a state of drunkennes.

I would advise them "Be responsible of your acts, and do not blame others for the harm you are causing to yourself."

Spiked! Kids and Energy Drinks.

Name: Aldana Vercellone

Article: Spiked!

Source: Reader's Digest Online

Date: July, 2007

Link: http://www.rd.com/content/spiked-/

As the fashion of taking Energy Drinks is setting in kids and adolescents, worried parents and doctors are asking themselves: How bad can they be?

Energy drinks are loaded with high amounts of CAFFEINE plus high doses of SUGAR and CALORIES. Besides, they also contain ingredients that accelerate caffeine's effect, such as TAURINE and GUARANA. This mixing can have serious consequences on children's bodies, which are in the process of growing up.

The after effect of consuming high amounts of energy drinks include heart palpitations, seizures, high blood pressure, nervousness, anxiety, insomnia, shaking, nausea, diarrhea and Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorders. It is claimed that, as opposed to adolescents' beliefs, the overdoing of caffeine restricts the ability to concentrate while studying.

Appart from that doctors refer to energy drinks as a way of drinking empty calories due to the fact that the fashionable drinks double and even triple the doses of sugar and calories raising the fear of obesity as a national epidemic in the US.

The most worrying aspect of this new fashion is that Energy Drinks are obtaining great marketing in kids. You will see posters encouraging the ingest of the beverage in concerts, fashion shows and sports events dedicated to teenagers.

But, there are good news for parents: Energy drinks are not addictive and adolescents can quit drinking them easily.

Source: http://images.google.com.ar/imgres?imgurl=http://desourcesure.com/upload/Red-Bull-Comp---Bull-Power.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.becomenatural.com/blog/2007/08/energy-drinks-dont-be-fooled-by-misleading-advetices/&h=370&w=400&sz=13&hl=es&start=1&tbnid=pUiD-vVnewKp1M:&tbnh=115&tbnw=124&prev=/images%3Fq%3Denergy%2Bdrinks%2Bchildren%26gbv%3D2%26svnum%3D10%26hl%3Des%26sa%3DG

Why men and women argue differently.

Name: Aldana Vercellone

Article: Why men and women argue differently.

Source: Times Online

Date: October 30, 2007

Link: http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/life_and_style/men/article2764731.ecece

It is a fact that men and women argue differently: A recent study showed that in almost all the cases, while women tend to quarrel about an issue, men tend to bottle up their feelings, and then the argument finishes not being solved.



But, why do we behave differently? US research published in Psychosomatic Medicine, found that more men than women tend to "self-silence" themselves during confrontations when they feel they are loosing control, while women bring up and pursue issues to be talked and analysed because they are usually the ones in charge of the relationship.



Besides, it has been shown that, on average, men are afraid of confrontations and they would rather avoid talking about any topics that may cause an argument, as opposed to women, who would keep on looking for solving any problem.



But despite any kind of generalisation, women also are capable of withdrawing from an argument, and the most popular technique is crying. Men, on the other hand, can become aggresive as the confrontations pent up.



Even though arguments will be always be present in a relationship, there is a thesis in which it is claimed that the differences and disagreements between men and women are not as harmful as the way in which they are communicated.



If a point is winded up agressively, the other person will need to withdraw from the confrontation, and then pattern of pushing-withdrawing-pushing again-and-silencing will keep on occuring and the problems will never be solved.



In my opinion, the key for a healthy relationship relies on communication. If a person does not speak their minds, a feeling of resentment will arise damaging any kind of relationship among the peope involved.

Marital spats, Taken to heart

Name: Fernanda Martín
Article: Marital Spats, Taken to Heart
Source: New York Times
Author: Tara Parker-Pope
Date of Publication: October 2, 2007
Links:
Article: http://www.nytimes.com/2007/10/02/health/02well.html?ref=research

Photo: http://search.msn.com/images/results.aspx?q=husband+and+wife+quarrel&form=QBIR#focal=f4c4a6c22323e2d68b5f923e502d0687&furl=http%3A%2F%2Fvideo.google.com%2FThumbnailServer2%3Fapp%3Dvss%26contentid%3D132bda12aca1f88f%26offsetms%3D5000%26itag%3Dw160%26lang%3Den%26sigh%3DJKPTe0h0cAczAvSQdpEC6bsPYxY

Arguing forms part everyday life especially among married couples. They try to defend their respective opinions. Yet, couples do not know how unhealthy these conflicts can turn out on the couple’s health.
While many of them bottle up their feelings, others do not and thus speak their minds as open and fiercely as possible. In a recent study by the American psychosomatic Society, it was proved that self-silencing and hostile arguments can do something negative to both, men and women’s physiology.
Both extremes are unhealthy and the results can result in wild variations in our health ranging from depression through eating disorders to heart diseases. Dr Smith, psychologist, asked couples to express their opinions but without harming the other.
I agree that psychological pressure against a person can cause an unbalanced resentment against the other such a terrific feeling when both had swore love till death tears them apart. Isn’t it ironic?

Organic food are efficient as it is said?

Name: Fernanda Martín
Article: Natural, Organic Beauty
Source: New York Times
Author: NATASHA SINGER
Date of Publication: November 1, 2007
Links:
Article: http://www.nytimes.com/2007/11/01/fashion/01skin.html?_r=1&8dpc&oref=slogin

Photo: http://leahy.senate.gov/images/organicfood.jpg


There is no such certainty about the safety natural ingredients have in food and cosmetics. According to some experts, organic does not necessarily means good. It is widely known that preservatives, pesticides and syntactic materials are some of the most well-known derivatives that form part of the diversity of products any person can buy in a store. These multi-syllabic industrial ingredients can cause diseases raging from skin allergies to severe ones like Alzheimer.
Some naturists pass judgements on preservatives because they consider that buying natural products means health benefit. While in fact, it has never been proved. Moreover, consumers should bear in mind that cosmetics, or food without preservatives may easily decay in a shorter period. Government and some agencies suggest that consumers should read the ingredient levels so as to know what they are consuming.
I must confess I belong to the massive belief nowadays that biological products mean a healthy life style. After reading the article, I realize how ignorant I am. I am convinced by the advertisements! It is good enough that articles like this one may open the consumers’ eyes and ask the government and accredited certifiers to test products and prove the efficacy or health benefits of our investments.

Talk therapy Pivotal for Depressed Youth

Name: Fernanda Martín
Article: Talk Therapy Pivotal for Depressed Youth
Source: New York Times
Author: Benedict Carey
Date of Publication: October 2, 2007
Links:
Article: http://www.nytimes.com/2007/10/02/health/research/02depress.html

Photo: http://profile.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=user.viewprofile&friendid=51510629


Adolescents seems to follow a fashion but not of clothes or hair cuts. No. The use of antidepressants like Prozac in minors without needed treatment has increased since 2004.
These adolescents who go through depression for diverse and varied reasons (sexual abuse, rejection in society, etc) experiment the wish to be dead. Suicidal thinking emerges as a ghost and parents do not know what to do.
In a recent study, psychiatrists offer a new hope to these youngsters’ parents: a talking therapy. This alternative seems safer than just medication and more pills. This therapy promotes social interaction and build up their self-esteem.
In my opinion, recognizing the warning signs of suicidal thinking is one thing; knowing what to do is another. Suicide was a taboo subject for a very long time. Even talking about it is still difficult for most people. Imagine those poor parents who suffer seeing their sons and daughters going through such an horror. I think this therapy can be a good alternative enabling the teenager to talk about his thoughts. May be, it can help save a life

WHAT WOMEN ARE BECOMING!

It has been proved that the image of a leader is still associated with men. But this trend is started to lose its credibility. Thirty years ago, women had a different position in society. They were not allowed to work, to vote, and they had to stay at home to look after their children.
Nowadays this has change overnight. Women are no longer at home. They are part of big corporations, factories, shops, aor they have even set up their own enterprise. Nonetheless, there is a still a beleif that did not change at all: How do women have to behave to please others? Should they be charming? or Should they behave in a tough way?
According to a reaserch, women who act in ways that are consistent with gender stereotypes — defined as focusing “on work relationships” and expressing “concern for other people’s perspectives” — are considered less competent. But if they act in ways that are seen as more “male” — like “act assertively, focus on work task, display ambition” — they are seen as “too tough” and “unfeminine.”
In the United States and in England, people said that "inspiring others" was the most important skill in an employee and women are less skilfull in this than men.
In my opinion, the oppossitte happens in our country. Women are employed not aonly because they have certain qualities or NOT but also because they look nice. It is true that certain types of jobs imply being pretty but, in some cases, this becomes priority.
On the other hand, there are positions which requiere a lot of preparation whether you are the beauty or the beast.
Women and men have the same capacities and gifts. It is true that there are many activities and roles that women cannot undergo. But we are not so weak as we are thought to be.
In Argentina, there is a new president and this time, it is a woman in charge of the nation. Some are in favour and some are against of her being female. Only time will tell.


Review Nº 4.
Source: http://www.nytimes.com/2007/11/01/fashion/01WORK.html?pagewanted=1&ei=5087&em&en=a17ca146f001412f&ex=1194148800
Article's title: The Feminine Critique
Date: November 1st, 2007.

http://www.universia.com.ar/materia/materia.jsp?materia=25542
Article's title: Cómo se percibe a las mujeres candidatas.

Genetic Roots for Homosexuality?

Name: Aldana Vercellone




Article: Gay brothers may hold genetic clues.




Source: Msnbc.com




Link: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/21309724/
















In the search of an explanation for homosexuality, about one thousand pairs of gay brothes are taking part in the largest study in order to look for clues for their sexual orientation in genes.




The majority of families in which two or more members are homosexual are considered to build a gene which affects the sexuality of its members, and homosexuality may be viewed as a genetic trait like height or hair colour.




In a study published in 1993, it was found that gay brothers shared genetic markers in a region of the X-chromosome, which men inherit from their mothers. The location of such markers in that region imply the influence of genes on sexual orientation. That is why, the study being held nowadays rely on blood and saliva samples in the search for clues of the "gay gene".




On the one hand, there is a strong belief in homosexuality due to genetic roots, but on the other hand, some scientists suspect that there isn't a gene causing it, but they believe that there may be several genes, which, in interaction with non-genetic factors like social and psychological influence, determine a person's sexual orientation.




The results of this study are feared by the majority of gays due to the fact that the identification of such a gene, can lead to discrimation, prenatal testing and even abortions to eliminate homosexuals.

Teens and Pills.

Name: Aldana Vercellone.

Article: Teens seek "safer" high, get hooked on pain pills.

Source: msnbc.com

Link: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/12803776/

A recent survey showed that even though there's a drop in alcohol use and smoking in teenagers, the use and subsequent abuse of pain pills is putting boys and girls into a higher risk.

It is considered that about 1 in 5 teens have tried "getting high" with prescription drug painkillers, such as Vicodin, which, to make things worse, it is easily found in any ordinary person's medicine cabinet.

Regarding teens' opinions, they allegue that experimenting with prescription drugs is "much safer" than illegal ones. Besides, there are no "dealers" involved, making it easier for them to get drugs almost everywhere and with a cheaper cost.

As the source of drugs is now the family medicine cabinet, the emphasis is put on parents, who should be educated so as to note any kind of strange behaviour in their children, mainly because, when they were teens, prescription drug abuse did not exist.

Apart from that, teenagers should be educated as well due to the fact that there are too many myths regarding prescribed drugs, making them believe they are dealing with safer stuff, but the after effects could be damaging their bodies too.

In our society, the abuse of painkillers has not been "discovered" by teenagers yet , but there is an increase in the ingest of anti-depressants, which, together with teens lack of information, is causing several deaths at an early age.

The most popular case occured some months ago in Buenos Aires, when a fifteen-year-old girl took four Rivotril pills plus an Ecstasy pill. The determinant factor for her death was, in my opinion, her lack of information regarding drug use, because, instead of drinking water (which is a premise when taking ecstasy or anti-deppresants) the girl drank alcohol, which made her body collapse causing her death.

In my opinion, Education is the key to fight against addictions, and as a society, all of us have to take charge in changing deadly habits.

DNA PINPOINTS 1975 KILLER, BRADFORD COURT HEARS

Castree waiting for being tried

Name: Fernanda Martín
Article: DNA pinpoints 1975 child killer, Bradford court hears
Source: Guardian Unlimited
Author: James Orr and agenciesDate of publication: Tuesday October 23, 2007
Links:
Articlehttp://www.guardian.co.uk/crime/article/0,,2197526,00.html#top
Photo: http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/uk/crime/article2726748.ece?CMP=KNC-LBN&HBX_PK=ronald+castree&HBX_OU=50


A man, Ronald Castree is on trial accused of rapping and subsequent murder. He was 23 when he sexually abused and then stabbed an 11-year-old-girl in the moors near Manchester in 1975.
Samples of semen were left on the child’s body and clothes. Unfortunately the DNA analysis was not possible and available at that time as it is today. In a misunderstanding Stefan Kiszka was convicted of the killing he had never committed spending 16 years in prison. The proof against Castree cam about when the police took a DNA sample from him by chance when Castree got involved in unrelated incident.
It is really horrific that a person like Castree can go on living without any sense of guilt or remorse. Even worse than paedophiles like him go on with their unnamed acts, it is the problem of how Judges impart the so-called Justice and also it has to be mention the thirst of revenge society has. They wanted someone to pay the high price of Lesley’s life. And they got it. An innocent was condemned and punished with the deprivation of his freedom and the burden of amorality in front of a blind society. I only hope that the trial goes on the right track. Intolerable characters like Castree must not walk around freely in the streets.

Grading Parents

Review n 4
Name: Mauricio Catena
Article: Connecticut School District Wants Report Cards For Parents
Source: www.foxnews.com
Author:Catherine Donaldson-EvansLink: http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,306003,00.html

A member of the Manchester Board of Education in Connecticut wants parents to be evaluated in some tasks, as feed their children properly and make them do the homework. "I tried to design something modest [measuring] things that virtually everybody would agree parents should do to help their kids," Steve Edwards says, and he also claims that he doesn´t want people to think that they are going to do a subjective evaluation.

In spite of his explanations, the idea has offended parents, and they are trying to fight the plan. As Jackie Madore, president of the Manchester Parent Teacher Association Town Council(PTA) said, the introduction of this plan will offend the whole educational community and will make parents be against the Board of Education.

Edwards plans to give parents a check with a positive or negative grade depending on how well they fulfill the needs of their children, and he wants to hand them out in the biannual parent-teacher conferences. People form the Connecticut Association of Boards of Educations say that they would prefer parents work with the boards of education on what is their role and to help them to assist their children rather than grading them. They are also against Edwards´s idea because according to their opinion it is intrusive and intimidating for parents if it is not applied in a sensible way.

This district is not the only one to consider using report cars for parents: Chicago district also implemented it but failed. Edwards is aware that this is a controversial issue, and that he doesn´t want people to consider it as something punitive for parents; according to him ,it is just a tool to identify people who need extra help to bring up their children.
One important percentage of childen who attend elementary school in this district are from lower socio-economic area and they are from single-parent homes or homes where both parents work long hours to earn money, according to Madore. She thinks that implementing this plan would be unfair for these people, because their economical restrictions will affect their good scores on the report cards. She is devising a plan of action to oppose to this idea.