Race and Religion in American Culture Essay - 1790 Words

Race and Religion in American Culture Race and religion are two concepts in American culture that can really tie people together, or clearly separate them apart. A group forged by strong common roots in both race and religion can be a powerful societal force, if it wants to be. The Nation of Islam is a small but growing religion in America that has become somewhat of a social movement because of its strong and radical ideas on race. In this paper, I will try to explore the beliefs of the Nation of Islam, and the ramifications it could and has had on racial relations in America. The Nation of Islam, or NOI, is a relatively new religion. The first temple of Islam was established in Detroit by Master Fard Muhammed in 1930. Much†¦show more content†¦Although the majority of black people in America do not consider themselves members of the NOI, the group still attempts to represent all black people. And, because of the strong messages of strength, unity, and betterment of the black race, the NOI reaches the hearts an d minds of many blacks as a driving social force, even if they don ¹t consider it their religion. Another major way the NOI impacts race relations is through the strong seemingly racist beliefs that are inherent to its theology. The NOI has always been open about its views. Not only have they always taught that the white man is the devil, but they believe that the battle of Armageddon will consist of a holy war between Islam and Christianity of which Islam will be the victors, representing the victory of black people over white people. (1) Jews are referred to as great enemies for no particular reason. The NOI has been viewed as a strongly anti-Semitic organization since the early eighties. (4) I think the NOI theology can best be understood as an example of power-conflict theory. First of all, the NOI is strongly against cultural assimilation for American blacks. They believe that black people should exist entirely apart from American (white) culture. Elijah Muhammed, an early an d extremely powerful leader who is now viewed as a deified human clearly taught against assimilation. (1) Since whites were inherently created as an evil andShow MoreRelatedRacial And Ethnic Identity : Racial Prejudice, Racism, And The Harsh Human Nature1306 Words   |  6 Pagesthe future. It will never change. Race, in a way, reinforces people’s identity. Most have manifested race as their own and as a unified group. This does not need to be a bad thing. If people can acknowledge their race as an opportunity to learn, think, and grow, they will realize and understand that having a post-racial word would be, in fact, a provocation to their cultural knowledge. The world will never reach a post-racial society because of culture, religion, and the harsh human nature. 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The Security Of The United States Security - 2131 Words

After the terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001, people in the United States knew that absolutely anything could happen without even thinking about it. This event made the government realize that the United States security was not the best it could be. There always has been security everywhere, but today everything is taken to another level and is being controlled with a great amount of precautions. Now there is a lot more airport security, which will help prevent any more hijacking of planes or bombings. There has also been a lot more security in New York City because of the terrorist attack. There are also new technologies and programs that help with the security of this country. After the attack in 2001, the United States government†¦show more content†¦The Department of Homeland Security had also formed a division to analyze intelligence gathered by the FBI, CIA, and many other police agencies and military agencies (Swanson, Charles R., Territo, Leonard, Taylor, Robert W., 90). Barack Obama appointed Janet Napolitano as the third secretary of the department and is also the governor in the area of terrorism and immigration reform. Napolitano has played an important role in strengthening border security by increasing forces along the border, and increasing resources and technology to aid in the fight against terrorism (Swanson, Charles R., Territo, Leonard, Taylor, Robert W., 90). The DHS has become an important role to the security of the public in the United States. Within this department, there was a color-coded threat system known as the Homeland Security Advisory System. There was red for severe risk of terrorist attacks, orange for high risk of terrorist attacks, yellow for significant risk of terrorist attacks, blue for general risk of terrorist attacks, and green for low risk of terrorist attacks (Homeland Security News, 2011). This system is being replaced by the National Terrorism Advisory System, which will more effectively communicate information about terrorist threats by providing timely, detailed

Gift of Knowledge free essay sample

I was staring into the eyes of defeat, and hated it. It had been almost six months since three friends united in the belief that their lives could become more wholesomely fulfilled by a tangible touch on society. To my friends and me, the promise of 500 high-quality second-hand English books to a secondary school in India. They represented our most resolute commitment yet to society, and failure was hardly an option. Invigorated by the prospects of a self-initiated project, we set out with fierce vigor, searching for sponsors, and planning donation drives. Perhaps it was the naivety of a determined mind, but I believed nothing could stand in my way. Reality is the devil to an idealistic mind, and once again, it pitted its wits against mine. It appeared that I had grossly overestimated the need for companies to invest their capital in an initiative started by middle-school students, and their reluctance to participate dampened spirits. We will write a custom essay sample on Gift of Knowledge or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page The donation drive posed problems as well; a constrained budget and network meant that the reach of our awareness campaign was sorely compromised. That was when doubt crept stealthily into my mind; it seemed far easier to give up and go on with our comfortable, routine lives. As I was jostling with demons of self-pity, a call from the headmaster jolted me to my senses. I realized I lacked the heart to mention my failures to a man who had made immense contributions to his nation’s education system. More importantly, I knew I was not a deserter. I still felt strongly for the impoverished children in a distant land, and suddenly I detested myself for ever entertaining the notion that I could leave them in a lurch with an unfulfilled promise. Belief and purpose renewed, I rallied my two disillusioned friends and set out on our project anew. Acknowledging our limited resources, we utilized them to the fullest, contacting potential sponsors and refusing to take no for an answer. Recognizing time constraints, we pressed on fearlessly, enduring many a sleepless night. Soon, the seeds we planted began to bear fruit. We obtained a sponsorship from a supportive non-profit organization and five charity events were held nationwide. Donations flowed in from all directions. 1150 books! I stared in disbelief at the mountain of books in my room. We had doubled our initial target! Three young men shamelessly cried, hugged and cried again. The taste of success was particularly sweet after we had so nearly given in to the bitterness of defeat. We tired up loose ends, and before long, were our way to deliver our goods to our beneficiary in India. Funnily enough, as you indulge in the joy of success, the months of exhausting preparation fade, vanishing into the past. As the smiles of hundreds of grateful children beamed up at me, I realized how terribly mistaken I had been. The thousand books were, in my mind, a major contribution to the Indian school; they were, in reality, a small repayment for a priceless life experience and lessons on compassion, determination and belief. These lessons accompanied me as I initiated a similar project to Vietnam the following year; they encouraged me when I entered my school’s students’ council to advocate change my more direct community; they guided me as I cultivated a keen interest in development economics and poverty in today’s society. I had hoped to change society; never did I expect to emerge from the encounter a changed man

What affects the bounce of a squash ball Essay Example

What affects the bounce of a squash ball Essay I hypothesize that the hotter the squash ball the more it will bounce.A squash ball is made up of a rubber sphere containing air. The air molecules in the ball will increase in speed as you heat it. Heat energy is then converted to kinetic energy. The speed the molecules hit the side with increase, which means the momentum of the molecules is increased. Newtons 2nd Law stated that the force is proportional to the rate of change of momentum.Greater rate of change of momentum means greater force. So it bounces more.But Force = PressureAreaAnd the surface area of the ball will remain constant. So the pressure inside the ball increases and if the pressure inside the ball is higher it will bounce higher.WILL BE KEPT CONSTANT* Mass Of ballMass of ball is made of a particular type of mass as given by the world governing bodies* Input ForceThis will be constant as simply dropping the ball will mean no force is being used.* Surface Bounced onDifficult to measure so lab floor will be used cons tantly.* HeightDropped from 1 metre* MaterialMaterial of ball is made of a particular type of mass as given by the world governing bodiesMethodHeat ball up then place it in a beaker of boiling water. Then measure the temperature and drop the ball in at 1m. Measure temperature of water to find out the temperature of squash ball.To get the ball at an accurate temperature the entire ball must be submerged. The ball will be taken out of the water as quickly as possible so heat loss would be about 20 seconds each time.Rubber isnt a good heat conductor so the ball will be kept submerged for a period of 2 minutes.The ball will be held at the 1 metre mark and then dropped. The height bounced will be recorded. Results will be recorded for each bounce. I will take 9 temperature readings and do each test 3 times and then average them.EquipmentSquash ballBunsen BurnerThermometerWater1 Metre rulerStopwatchTongsBeakerGauzeTripodStopwatchSafetyGoggles must be worn because of mercury in the thermom eter and the bunsen burner.Tongs will be used to handle squash balls because of high temperatures.Preliminary ReadingsBounced from 1 metreTemperatureBounce HeightAverageReading 1Reading 2Reading 320242832384045511113211521212627121418142122242810151772023273011.014.018.712.020.722.025.728.3ObservationFrom looking at my preliminary readings I have decided to do the experiment at 10 degree intervals.ProcedureI heated up the ball by placing it in a beaker of boiling water. I measured the temperature each time. I measured temperature of water to determine the temperature of squash ball.To get the ball at an accurate temperature I submerged the entire ball. The ball was taken out of the water as quickly as possible. I assumed heat loss each time was approximately 30 seconds.Rubber isnt a good heat conductor so the ball was kept submerged for a period of 2 minutes.The ball was held at the 1-metre mark and then dropped. This was because from the preliminary readings I found that I couldnt get adequate readings by dropping the ball from 1 metre. The height bounced was recorded by the naked eye. Although the ruler was accurate to 1mm I wasnt confident enough to read it to 1mm so I read it to 1 cm.Results were recorded for each bounce. I took 8 temperature readings so that I could get a better average and a better graph. I did each test 3 times and then averaged them.ResultsTempoC1st2nd3rdAverage2014181515.73025263027.04033333734.35042404542.36058605959.07066626965.78084858183.090.593909693.310010299104101.7AnalysisThe graph climbs up when the higher the temperature but it doesnt bounce as much, at higher temperatures. Below 0 degrees it doesnt bounce that much.The graph shows that the higher the temperature the higher it bounces which proves Newtons 2nd Law that the force is proportional to the rate of change of momentum. As the change of momentum inside the squash ball is caused by the heat.ConclusionI have found from my results that as the temperature of the ball get s hotter the height of the bounce gets higher. This proves Newtons second law of motion, which states that as the ball gets hotter the atoms get more energy and vibrate more.When the ball hits the surface then the atoms are pushed together and because they are vibrating more they push each other further away causing the ball to bounce higher.In this experiment the kinetic theory only lasted up to a certain temperature as temperature started to reach temperatures above 60 degrees the material started to melt.At 0 degrees Celsius the ball will still bounce as the atoms are still vibrating. The graph proves that the theory works for this experiment, as it is a slight curve to start with.However as the ball gets nearer the critical temperature the extra height it bounces becomes less and less. This is shown as the graph shows it is about to levels off.The sketch graph I drew in my prediction matched the real graph showing that the scientific understanding I used to explain my prediction was correct.EvaluationLooking at my results I can say that they were quite reliable and accurate. I had two anomalous results after an average of 9 measurements.I think that I did the experiment quite well although I found it hard to spot where the ball bounced up to. I have taken this into account as human error in accurately reading the where the ball bounced up to. It would have been better to record the bounce so I could zoom in and more accurately then I had done, however as I assume the human error was consistent and didnt affect my results too badly.To improve the experiment I would need to use specialist equipment like lasers so I could be sure where the ball bounced too as the surface I bounced it on, the lab floor, was in some places and I couldnt accurately control where it bounced as I made sure no input force was used to drop the ball.Another better way would have been if I used a squash ball made of a special material which could withstand higher temperatures so I cou ld have been able to carry on my experiment to see when the graph actually levels off.Also I would like to see what happened when the ball was at 0 degrees Celsius. However that would have meant using ice, which is a variable, I dont think I could have accurately kept at a suitable level to measure.I would like to do this to see whether the atoms still vibrated causing the ball to bounce. If it did I would like to carry on getting lower and lower to see whether there was a temperature where the atoms no longer vibrated (Which in theory is Absolute Zero which has never been reached).