Persuasive Speech Essay - 1278 Words

Joseph Froehle Public Speaking Class Persuasive Speech Outline Topic: Organ Donation Specific Purpose: To persuade my audience to donate their organs and tissues when they die and to act upon their decision to donate. Thesis Statement: The need is constantly growing for organ donors and it is very simple to be an organ donor when you die. I. INTRODUCTION A. Attention material/Credibility Material: How do you feel when you have to wait for something you really, really want? What if it was something you couldn’t live without? Well, my cousin was five years old when he found out he needed a new kidney. He went on the organ waiting list right away. He was called twice during a six month span that they had a kidney available only to†¦show more content†¦2) The reason is that there are only on the average 6,000 donors nationally per year (Life Source: Statistics). c. You can choose to donate any needed organs or you can specify which organs or tissues you wish to donate. 2. Organ donation is very important. a. The following poem by Robert Test entitled, To Remember Me, shows the importance of organ donation. Give my sight to the man who has never seen a sunrise, a baby’s face or love in the eyes of a woman. Give my heart to a person whose heart has caused nothing but endless days of pain†¦ Take my bones, every muscle, every fiber and nerve in my body and find a way to make a crippled child walk†¦Take my cells, if necessary, and let them grow so that, someday, a speechless boy will shout at the crack of a bat and a deaf girl will hear the sound of rain against her window b. Not only is this a problem nationally but also it is a big problem right here at home in Colorado. 1) Nationally, there are over 120,000 people waiting as of November 1, 2011. As of November 7, 2011, there are 1,142 people from Colorado that are on the organ waiting list (Life Source: Statistics). 2) The sad part is that there have only been 137 donors in Colorado so far from January 2011 through November 2011 (Life Source: Newsnotes). [Transition: I’m sure that you can see the need for people like you to donate your organs. But you might be asking, well, how can I make sure my organs are donated after I die? Let me tell you.] B. ThisShow MoreRelatedEssay on Persuasive Speech822 Words   |  4 PagesAshley Buckner Persuasive Speech COMM210D 4/20/12 Why should you smile? I. Imagine: you wake up in the morning. You get ready and grab a cup of coffee. Then, you walk out the door, seeing many faces as you make your way to work, and walk up to your building. When you walk inside expecting to be greeted by many more positive faces, you see none, and so you walk over and sit down at your desk. While thinking back on your morning to work you were realizing that there was not a moment ofRead MorePersuasive Speech Essay1263 Words   |  6 PagesLike most Americans and members of the global community, I ve had the luxury to process the recent events of Charlottesville from a distance. Saturday s peaceful march by demonstrators against white racist and supremacist groups, who gathered to march against the removal of Confederate monuments, turned deadly. I ve been asked to share my thoughts of the tragic outcome we ve seen, as well as to offer steps that people of influence, especially those in leadership, can take to advance our nationRead MorePersuasive Sp eech Essay1059 Words   |  5 Pagesâ€Å"I don’t belong here.† Lucy cried. â€Å"What is my purpose?† A few months earlier, Lucy is a very gifted girl. She has red rough hair, light blue eyes, and a big beautiful smile. Lucy is always sent from home to home because her parents died in a car crash when she was 5. She’s always getting bullied for how she dresses. Lucy has one thing to keep her calm, and that is art. Lucy loves art. She feels that it helps her express her emotions. The only person she can go to is Mrs.Ronald (the art teacher)Read MorePersuasive Speech Essays1052 Words   |  5 PagesPersuasive Speech Introduction a. Attention Getter : When people ask me why I joined the military I think of all the reason that I did it for, but I think Toby Keith sums it up the best : â€Å" cause freedom don’t come free.† b. Topic : Freedoms come with a great cost but yet we still do not care for our veterans well enough c. Preview: Today I will tell you how veterans suffer from Post traumatic stress disorder or PTSD and cant get help, how veterans are homeless and why they areRead MorePersuasive Speech Essay875 Words   |  4 PagesPERSUASIVE SPEECH GENERAL PURPOSE: To persuade the audience that pit bulls are nice loving dogs. 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Relevance: It is importanceRead MorePersuasive Speech Essay870 Words   |  4 Pagesâ€Å"beautiful,† â€Å"pretty,† â€Å"beat.† To be honest with you, these words still make me feel weird every now and then, but they help me heal. They work because they come from the kindness of others. Transition: By this time, you probably figure the topic of my speech. It is kindness. I believe kindness is such a simple quality which sharps a leader and what the world needs know. C. Thesis: Kindness is important because it makes the world become healthier and guides a leader how to take action in this world.Read MorePersuasive Speech Essay1187 Words   |  5 Pagesmudslinging between the two opponents. Williams impassioned speech breathed new life into his campaign team. Loud cheers and claps erupt from his apartment prompting his neighbors to look outside their doors to see what was causing the commotion. Five minutes later the meeting is adjourned, and everyone leaves to go home. 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Genie the Wild Child Essay - 941 Words

Genie, the second case of wild child was found in a room tied to a potty chair. Genie was kept in a room locked away because her father thought she was retarded at birth until the age of 13, when she was rescued by a social worker. She was locked away from normal civilization and any type of socialization, and she was beaten for making noises. Genie was an infant trapped in a 13 year old body, because she could only make infant like sounds and no words or sentences. Genies brain waves were adnormal, but doctors believed that she could learn. They began teaching and trying to develop her brain through forming relationships. Genie begin to speak and say words; but they were difficult to understand. Genie progress gave doctors hope that she†¦show more content†¦The hospital was against her becoming Genies foster parent and the language doctor was denied. They found another doctor to Genies foster parent. The doctors family believed she needed alot of help and that she could lea rn. They taught her how to express her anger in fits and then verbally, instead of tearing at herself and hurting herself. Genie could put together small sentences like a child around the age of 1 or 2. She could now read simple sentences and express things about her past in sentences. Genie was learning her first language and began attending a nursery school. Victor progress slowed down and he never really learned to talk. Victor died in his 40s in 1828, Victor died without a happy ending. The doctors wanted Genie to have a better ending then Victor. They begin to teach Genie sign language, because they thought this was where doctors had fell with Victor. They could never determine if Genie was retarded at birth, but it was found that Genie was growing mentally after she was found. When the government stoped the funding for Genie the foster family gave her up and Genie reunited with her mother in 1975. Genie still could not put together sentences like a normal person of her age. Af ter a while Genies mother could not handle taking care of Genie, so back in foster care she went. While in foster care Genie endured mental and pyhsical abuse.Show MoreRelatedGenie : A Special Individual1636 Words   |  7 Pagesnamed Genie in Los Angeles in 1970. Genie, as Susan Curtiss explains it, is an individual put into the world with no prior engagement beforehand. This means that Genie has had little to no contact with other people. This also means that Genie has never learned a specific language. Genie is a special individual put under a predicament that has altered her ability to learn and be social. As the video progresses, it says that she was tied to a potty chair for the first ten years of her life. Genie s parentsRead MoreThe Secret of the Wild Child Essay687 Words   |  3 PagesTaylor Tai Sociology 101 Tabetha Mowrey 22/Feb/2012 Film analyses: â€Å"Genie: The secret of the Wild Children† Genie is a wild child who found in LA on 1970, she is a very extreme case of neglected the caretaking from adult. Her father believed she is retarder She spent her first thirteen years on tiding at the potty chair and still wearing diaper, she had never see, listen, being taught of anything in her life. For the past many years she had been isolation and lack of adult care makeRead MoreGenie Wiley1498 Words   |  6 PagesSusan Wiley (‘Genie’) * Genie was discovered on 4th November 1970 in Los Angeles. * The thirteen year old girl had been confined to a small room and spent most of her life often tied to a potty chair. * The girl was given the name Genie to protect her identity and privacy. The case name is Genie. This is not the persons real name, but when we think about what a genie is, a genie is a creature that comes out of a bottle or whatever, but emerges into human society past childhood. We assumeRead MoreAnalysis Of Mary Shelley s Frankenstein 1062 Words   |  5 Pagesdestruction is the 1970 case of Genie also known as Susan Wiley. â€Å"Officials in the Los Angeles suburb of Arcadia have taken custody of a thirteen-year-old girl they say was kept in such isolation by her parents that she never even learned to out talk. Her elderly parents have been charged with child abuse.† (walter cronkite secret of the wild child). This is an exact example of what happens if society does not accept someone and therefor they are forced into isolation. Genie s father believed her toRead MoreA Feral Child With A History Of Near Total Social Isolation1556 Words   |  7 PagesAbstract This paper explores the introduction of a feral child with a history of near total social isolation into a society that was as unprepared to receive her as she was to understand it. The discussions and thoughts regarding this child s treatment and care on both the medical and personal front did answer some questions while bringing to light even more. Additionally, there were a great number of scientific opportunities that were overlooked and missed due to the research staff s decisionRead MoreIsolation And Isolation Of Frankenstein By Mary Shelley1656 Words   |  7 Pagesname of Genie. She was known as a â€Å"wild† child for being locked up in her room and being isolated by her parents until she was thirteen years old. Genie was tied to a potty chair for much of her life, only able to move her hand and her feet. When she would make any type of noise, her father would beat her until she would become silent, and he would refuse to speak to her; He would only bark or grow l. Other than the beatings and times when her parents would come in to check on her, Genie was deprivedRead MoreThe Child Of The Wild Child1256 Words   |  6 PagesSusan Wiley, or most commonly known as Genie the Wild Child was born on the 18th of April 1957. She was the fourth child of Clark and Irene Wiley and was one of two children that survived childhood. Her parents were married in 1944 Clark was 20 years his wife’s senior and their marriage was riddled with domestic violence. Their first two children were both suspiciously killed before their first birthday. It was reported that Clark Wiley extremely disliked children and was very mentally unstable.Read MoreLanguage Acquisition Essay1724 Words   |  7 Pagesparticular field. Language acquisition is an interesting subject to study and discuss on. Every normal child acquires his or first language – usually the mother tongue successfully in their first few years. The matter that most psychologists concern on i s the critical age in first language acquisition. Is there a limit in the aspect of age for first language acquisition? Is it true that once a child passes the critical age, he will not be able to learn a language properly? Noam Chomsky proposed thatRead MoreThe consensus belief is that the capacity for language is innate, while others believe its800 Words   |  4 Pagesgenetics’ play a larger role? Savage Girls and Wild Boys by Michael Newton studies children that grew up in the wilderness with animals or who were cut-off from the civilized world as we know it. Multiple ‘wild child’s’ were examined from the early 1700’s to the late 1900’s (Ivan Mishukov). The children Newton went into depth with were Peter the Wild Boy (1725), Memmie Le Blanc (1731), Victor of Aveyron (1797), Kaspar Hauser (early 1800s), and Genie (1970). Newton engulfs the reader into the psychologicalRead MoreStudy Of Humanity : Feral And Neglected Children1636 Words   |  7 Pageschildren, defined as â€Å"†¦a human child who has lived isolated from human contact from a very young age†, have always struck the world as intriguing (â€Å"Feral Children†). Writers have crafted various stories about feral children, including Edgar Rice Burroughs’ book Tarzan and the story of Mowgli in Rudyard Kipling’s The Jungle Book. Both of these beloved characters know language, have strong morals, and act in a civilized manner – even though they live and were raised in the wild by animals. Authors portray

Superhero and Comic Book Free Essays

string(65) " have to possess skills and abilities that normal humans do not\." Superhero By Numbers – Lisa Watson and Phil Stocks January 29, 2009 by angelan Abstract: This paper reports on results of a statistical analysis correlating superhero characteristics such as powers, motivations, weaknesses, and costumes with commercial viability as represented by comic book sales and number of appearances in new media such as cinema and television. Results indicate that features of a character have little impact in the comic book market, and that new media trends support a move away from god-like, untouchable heroes to heroes displaying more human frailties and highly visual super abilities. Introduction The superhero is an ingrained part of popular culture that has seen resurgence in the last decade through the introduction of prominent characters to new audiences through expanded media. We will write a custom essay sample on Superhero and Comic Book or any similar topic only for you Order Now There was a time when superheroes were entrenched firmly in the comic book medium. However, advances in technology and changes in distribution channels have changed the superhero industry considerably. With comic books barely achieving a fraction of early sales volumes, publishers are trying to revive their comic book heroes by taking them from the â€Å"Silver Age† to the silver screen and other fora. However, with greatly advanced media come great financial risks. In order to secure their investments, the sponsors of these types of ventures must have a solid understanding of the modern superhero audience and what it is looking for in an iconic protagonist. Heroes and villains express cultural values regarding what society reveres as admirable and fears as deviant (Klapp 1962). Bradford Wright’s (2001) book â€Å"Comic Book Nation† outlines the evolution of comic book stories and characters mimicking cultural change; however, this discussion was done retrospectively (as were others). These types of observations tell us that what was popular during the golden age of comic book heroes will surely not be desirable in today’s society. It would be useful if publishers were able to determine what readers are drawn to now so that they might better meet the demands of this generation of reader. Empirically studying the popular appeal of superhero traits can give us insight into our society and trends within its development. What makes a character popular or prominent as we enter the Aquarian age? How important is boundless virtue or courage in the face of insurmountable odds? How relevant is the softer, vulnerable side of a character? Do readers have preferred super powers? Is an Achilles’ heel necessary? Moreover, what characteristics are enduring? Answers to these sorts of questions should provide the insights that will tell companies which avenues should prove the most lucrative and least risky to pursue in bringing superheroes back to the masses. The aim of this study is to analyse trends in superhero characteristics empirically in order to establish current popular superhero traits. Following standard practice for writing academic articles in the applied social science of marketing, study findings are then used to develop a series of managerial implications for businesses. In this instance, findings may be used to reduce risk in choosing existing heroes to introduce to modern audiences, or to create a new breed of hero that is better able to reach the target readers, viewers and players of the future. Literature Review Superheroes made inroads into popular culture in the 1930s at newsstands around America. The â€Å"Golden Age† of comics set a precedent of seemingly indestructible superheroes who held secret identities and were dedicated to upholding truth and justice (Bongco, 2000). After struggling to maintain reader interest through the early 1950? s, the â€Å"Silver Age† of comics saw revamping and reintroduction of characters thought to be buried deep in the archives at the Hall of Justice, this time bringing some more human qualities to the fore. Now, â€Å"when you think of Superman, you most likely think of the Superman that was in vogue when you were a child. There’s been a Superman for every decade since the character was created† (Fingeroth, 2004, p. 20). Even today, one man’s Dark Knight is not necessarily another boy’s Batman. The eighties and nineties saw a bold break from tradition as comic publishers started directly targeting more mature readership by introducing not just human struggles within the characters, but hints of amoral and anti-heroic tendencies as well (Bongco, 2000). Do superhero fans of today prefer the altruistic heroes of yesteryear like Spiderman, the bad-boy good guys like Wolverine, or looking into the darkest depths of the Dark Knight? The comic book companies that own our superheroes have used in-your-face tactics to increase sales figures before. The Justice League of America and The Avengers were, after all, â€Å"the fictional result of the real world commercial desire to gather the company’s most popular heroes into one magazine or animated series† (Fingeroth, 2004, p. 104). However, when companies are betting multi-billion dollar budgets on public interest in particular superheroes, they should be sure they are choosing wisely. Only the most popular of the comic book superheroes can make it to the silver screen or video game monitor. Which character is the right one? Which iteration is the right one? Or should we abandon our superheroes of yesteryear and create new ones, like Buffy the Vampire Slayer, exclusively through new media to show us the way? It is impossible to have a discussion of superheroes without the issue of gender being raised. Superwomen generally are parts of super teams rather than stand alone characters, and often they are in relationships with male counterparts. However, both partners need not be super, and significant others can be used as plot devices in stories. Therefore, it is worth exploring whether being in these sorts of relationships increases a character’s popularity. What do we look for in our superheroes? Kevin Smith (2003) has a simple view: â€Å"altruism and clothes† (p. unknown). On a more serious note, Fingeroth (2004) asserts that strength of character, positive values, and a determination to protect them start the list. So what separates superheroes from our other heroes? Bongco (2000) offers a costumed, secret identity (p. 102). Fingeroth (2004) argues that they have to possess skills and abilities that normal humans do not. You read "Superhero and Comic Book" in category "Papers" Physical, mental and sensory attributes may be heightened. They may have superhuman powers that can range from magical gifts, to scientifically engineered mutations, to high-tech equipment or weaponry combined with an inexplicable ability to walk away from every battle unscathed. But most importantly, they always have to win in the end. By considering a wide range of these characteristics, we hope to be able to determine which combinations of these characteristics are related to commercial success in a modern market. Method A database of superheroes was constructed incorporating a wide range of superhero characteristics. The purpose of this article is to determine what characteristics are most popular and commercially viable in today’s market. Marvel and DC Comics make up two thirds of the comic book market; thus it was decided that limiting characters to those in these comics would not be detrimental to sampling frame representativeness. An initial breakdown of character attributes and super abilities, including numerical rankings, was derived from information from fantasy role-playing games written for the Marvel and DC universes, specifically Marvel Super Heroes by TSR, Inc. , and DC Heroes by Mayfair Games. Independent variables included attributes and powers listed in the role playing games, as well as variables for their secret identities, weaknesses, motivations, costumes, significant others, and whether they are human, not human or mutant. The Marvel Super Heroes template and numeric scale was used and DC characters were translated from the DC Heroes system into the Marvel one. Both systems relate their numeric rankings to feats accomplishable in real-world terms (e. g. , able to lift 100 tons) and the attributes and powers are similar enough that this translation is formulaic and involves negligible speculation. Costume variables consisted of whether the heroes wear a cape and whether their costumes are primarily spandex. Significant other variables included whether the significant other is aware of their secret identity and whether he or she is used as a plot device; however, because not enough information was readily available about this variable it could not be used in the final analysis. Cape and secret identity were dichotomous (yes/no) variables. Weaknesses, motivation, humanness and spandex were short scales. Weakness scaled from none to debilitating (0-2). An example debilitating weakness is Superman’s vulnerability to Kryptonite. An example intermediate weakness is Iron Man’s alcoholism. Motivation ranged from none-given (0) to vigilante/revenge (1) to sense of duty (2) to desire to serve (3). Humanness extended from not human (0) to mutant (1) to human (2). Spandex ranged from no spandex (0) to sometimes appears in spandex (1) to all spandex all the time (2). Because the majority of superpowers are unique, they were grouped according to common attributes: powers derived from weaponry or equipment, the power to manipulate matter or energy (external to oneself), powers that are inherent to one’s physical body, powers of the mind, and magical powers. The very common powers of being impervious to harm and being able to fly were given separate entries. These variables were regressed on dependent variables representing commercial popularity to see which combinations of characteristics should prove most successful in the current marketplace. Two dependent variables were used to determine characters’ commercial success. The first was the collective number of movies, television programs and video games in which they have featured as main characters. The sampling frame for this data was the Internet Movie Database (http://www. mdb. com, 2005). The second variable was an estimated comic book sales figure for 2004. It used the monthly Top 300 comic sales lists published by ICV2. com (2004) to calculate the total number of Top 100 comic issues sold in 2004 that featured each of the heroes as central characters (based on title characters for individual titles and feature characters in the case of group titles). While these data can n ot be entirely accurate, they should provide reasonable estimates of heroes’ market popularity in popular media. Results There are 75 heroes in our database; some individual data points are missing for some characters. This sample is small for the number of independent variables in our analysis. Therefore, the first step was to conduct a factor analysis to group individual measures together to create a smaller, but still representative, variable list. A principal components analysis with a varimax rotation was used. It yielded 9 factor components. Factor loadings above 0. 400 may be seen in Table 1. The first factor was labelled â€Å"Physical Attributes,† incorporating health, strength, fighting ability, endurance and agility. Wearing a cape also loaded onto this factor, suggesting that particular fashion item is reserved for only the most powerful of superheroes. Apparently the new cape-less trend started by top superhero designer Edna â€Å"E† Mode has not yet caught on with the big boys. The second factor, â€Å"Sensory Attributes,† included karma, intuition and psyche, which may represent such characteristics as â€Å"spidey senses. † The third factor included resources, reasoning ability, popularity and motivation. This combination suggests someone who is smart, rich, resourceful, charming and philanthropic, and was thus labelled â€Å"Appeal. † The fourth factor seemed to consist of the most stereotypical traits of a superhero: being bullet proof or indestructible, the ability to fly, and a desire to help protect mankind. As such, it was decided to call this factor â€Å"Golden Age† attributes. Factor five consisted of powers derived from weapons and/or equipment and the power to manipulate matter and/or energy, and was thus labelled â€Å"External Powers. † The sixth factor was labelled â€Å"Secret Identity. Powers associated with the body loaded negatively with secret identity, suggesting that characters without superhuman defences are more likely to require secret identities to protect themselves. The next factor, labelled â€Å"Mysticism,† included magical powers and powers of the mind. These powers were also associated with capes, which are still used by such modern media magical superheroes as Harry Potter. At first glance, factor eight appeared to be a bit of a mosaic of collected variance; however upon further inspection it is quite enlightening. This factor encompasses a weakness combined with powers related to the character’s body and high endurance. This factor captures the Achilles heel of the character, along with the struggle to overcome it; thus it was assigned the label of â€Å"Tenacity. † The ninth factor demonstrates the humanness of the character. Amusingly, wearing spandex is positively related to being human. It must just fit better under a wider variety of everyday street clothes. [pic] These factors were used as independent variables in two regression models relating the factors first to appearances in movies, TV shows and video games (new media), and then to comic book sales volumes (as outlined in the method section). Neither of the dependent variables was normally distributed, so natural log transformations were conducted on each of them before analyses were conducted. When the superhero factors were regressed on the new media variable, residual analysis uncovered a non-random error distribution that suggested weighted least squares was required. Thus, a weighted least squares regression analysis was conducted using unstandardized residuals as the weighting factor. The model returned an adjusted R? value of 0. 77, meaning that 77% of the variance in new media appearances for superheroes could be explained by the nine superhero factors (Table 2). Four factors had significant effects on how often a character appeared in new media. Sensory abilities, external powers and humanness had positive relationships with new media appearances. It is easy to see why external powers would be desired in today’s visually focused media. Interestingly, the Golden Age factor had a negative relationship with new media appearances, with Golden Age characteristics making a character 35% less likely to appear on screen. Some of our favourite superheroes have been recreated and revamped over the years. An example of a Golden Age character shedding these stereotypical powers in new media would be the television program Smallville, in which Superman can’t fly and has not yet devoted his life to saving mankind. This example is also an apt one for demonstrating the appeal of the other two factors, humanness and sensory attributes. Directional results indicate that audiences want characters to be less untouchable and more human and to have an innate ability to understand their fellow man. They want to empathize in some way with the protagonist in the story. These results could describe the hardened street smart Batman or the gentler Tobey Maguire version of Spiderman, both of whom are due to make reappearances at the box office, and both of whom will be sporting spandex. Alternatively, these results could be used as a skeleton around which to build new characters to debut in video format. [pic] A second regression analysis was conducted using comic book sales figures estimates as the dependent variable. The mass audience for movies is a much broader one than the comic book niche market, and as such is looking for more sophisticated superhero stories. Thus, what these two audiences are looking for in superhero characteristics may also be very different. As in the first analysis, the 9 superhero factors were regressed on the transformed dependent variable, in this case Top 100 comic book sales. Linear regression results did not require weighting. Results can be seen in Table 3. Only one of the measured superhero factors, tenacity, played a significant role in determining comic book sales. The ability to overcome weakness in the face of insurmountable odds is something that comic book fans have come to expect from their superheroes over the decades. When writers gave their characters flaws in the Silver Age it was meant to make them look even better when they beat the bad guy (Lang and Trimble, 1988). Apparently the formula still works. These results indicate that changing superhero characters, or developing new ones, will have little effect on sales. pic] This stagnancy with respect to characters may be caused by a general shift among comic book fans away from emphasizing characters and more towards purchasing issues based on their artists (Brown, 1997). Alternatively, this is a small market that is steeped in tradition. Fans involve themselves heavily in these products and are quick to point out inconsistencies. They may simply not be open to change, meani ng that the superheroes themselves are hardly considered at this point, so long as they are consistent. In short, this small market is not where growth will happen and is not representative of a broader audience so pursuing alternative characters in this medium could prove to be a waste of resources. Managerial Implications Apart from shedding light on current cultural values, these findings can be applied commercially. While results suggested that the comic book market is not strongly character driven, results indicated that characters have a major impact on on-screen popularity. Television and movie audiences seem to want to see heroes that are intuitive human beings that have powers that are external to themselves, whether they stem from equipment or the ability to manipulate matter or energy outside of themselves. They are no longer interested in god-like characters that can fly and can’t be killed. This combination includes mutant characters. Results can be applied to choosing existing characters to introduce into these media, developing new characters specifically for those media, or altering existing characters to better suit the wants of the audiences viewing those media. For example, Iron Man fits these criteria, making him a perfect choice for an upcoming silver screen venture. Findings also suggest that Professor X would be a more popular character if he were to develop the ability to move things with his mind. Alternatively, an entirely new breed of superhero could be introduced to the world. A league of new and improved, culturally customized superheroes to rise from the wake of Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Harry Potter, never having been restricted by the walls of a comic book panel. Limitations There are several issues that require the reader to interpret these results with caution. First, for reasons of practicality, we use quite a small sample of the most well established characters created by the two biggest comic book publishers for our analysis. Therefore, innumerable other superheroes developed by them, smaller companies and independents, as well as those that did not originate in comics, but in some other medium such as television or movies, are not accounted for. Next, much of our analysis was based on comic book sales figures, the overwhelming majority of which were published by Marvel and DC; however, these sales figures were used as a surrogate measure of character popularity. It must be recognized that collectors now often consider the comic book artists rather than the characters that they create when purchasing issues, as well as purchasing multiple copies of those they believe will be valuable (Brown, 1997). Thus, character popularity may not be as highly correlated with comic book sales figures as we assume in our analysis. Similarly, Marvel, DC and the majority of the new media depicting those superheroes come from North America. As such, our results may not be generalizable across cultures. Finally, audience demographics for Marvel Comics, DC Comics and the various other superhero media discussed here are proprietary, so we are unable to consider how the audiences for these media are similar or how they differ in our analysis. Instead we are making an assumption that there are differences and inferring that comic book producers have been successful in their bids to increase the superhero audience through the use of new media channels. Future Research This study could be expanded to include a more representative sample of heroes from a wider range of publishers and media if a consistent system for quantifying many of the superhero traits could be agreed upon. Findings would be much more robust and reliable if this were achieved. Demographic or cross-cultural comparisons of preferred superhero traits and media could also be introduced. Villains should also be included in any future analyses. These additions would make the findings more inherently interesting because â€Å"comic book evildoers†¦help define the comic book hero† (Fingeroth, 2004, p. 15). Should further sociological analysis be of interest, a longitudinal study of these characters’ traits, their associated artists and their evolutions could be compared empirically to the observations provided to date and used to attempt to predict current popular trends and their changing sociological implications for now and into the future. Little empirical work exists in the realm of superheroes as they relate to popular culture, leaving endless opportunity to test the many sociological theories being advanced about them. References Bongco, M. 2000. Reading Comics: Language, Culture, and the Concept of the Superhero in Comic Books. New York, NY: Garland Publishing. Brown, J. A. 1997. Comic Book Fandom and Cultural Capital. Journal of Popular Culture 30 (4): 13-34. Fingeroth, D. 2004. Superman on the Couch: What Superheroes Really Tell Us about Ourselves and Our Society. New York, NY: Continuum. Grinfeld, M. J. 1997. Superheroes Impart Life’s Lessons. Psychiatric Times 14. Klapp, O. E. 1962. Heroes, Villains, and Fools: The Changing American Character. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice Hall. Lang, J. S. , and Trimble, P. 1988. Whatever Happened to the Man of Tomorrow? An Examination of the American Monomyth and the Comic Book Superhero. Journal of Popular Culture 22 (3): 157-173. Smith, K. 2003. The Superhero. Rolling Stone, May 15. Wright, B. W. 2001. Comic Book Nation: The Transformation of Youth Culture in America. Baltimore, MD: Johns Hopkins University Press. How to cite Superhero and Comic Book, Papers

Dorsolateral Prefrontal Cortex

Question: Discuss about the Dorsolateral Prefrontal Cortex. Answer: Introduction Dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC) performs an important role in the brain and serves as the central site of the cognitive control in both humans and non-human primates. It is a region found in the prefrontal cortex of the human and monkey brain. The DLPFC does not majorly present as an anatomical structure but rather as one that has functional properties. (Baddeley, 2013) It majorly occupies the frontal, middle gyrus in humans while in macaque monkeys, it lies around the principal sulcus. The DLPFC has connections with the basal ganglia, parts of the orbitofrontal cortex, hippocampus, as well as the thalamus. It also serves as the endpoint for the stream of the dorsal pathway. As the DLPFC consist of spatial selective nerve neurons, it encompasses the sub-functions needed to carry out integrated responses through its neural circuitry. These functions include sensory input, signaling of motor nerves and short term memory. (Baddeley, 2013) An essential aspect of the DLPFC is the functional executive roles it provides such as the working memory, planning, abstract reasoning and cognitive flexibility. The value of DLPFC to the working memory was reinforced by studies that used adult macaques. It was shown that lesions that diminished DLPFC disturbed the macaques performance regarding the A-not-B response that was delayed while other brain part lesions did not impair their task performance. (Fuster, 2015) The DLPFC is also implicated in moral and risky decision-making process. An example is when DLPFC is activated when individuals have to make moral decisions for instance when they have to distribute resources that are limited. DLPFC possess clinical significance in conditions that are mental and psychological. An example is in schizophrenia where the condition is attributed to the insufficient or lack of activity in the frontal lobe. It has been seen that the DLPFC is less active if a person has chronic schizophrenia. (Zuffante, 2013) Concerning depression, DLPFC has ties to the ventromedial prefrontal cortex which is involved at the emotional level during the suppression stage. Damage to the DLPFC has been linked to exposure to severe stress. When stress impact on a person, their neural activity is seen to reduce the working memory that is correlated to activity in the DLPFC. These findings suggest that DLPFC not only plays a role to stress but also in psychiatry disorders. Studies and researches supporting and against the statement Studies and researchers have postulated an architectural segregation between components, through the dominant cognitive theory, that is responsible for the maintenance of short-term information and is responsible for coordination and control of the specified information. Strong evidence has been produced by the cognitive neuroscience revealing that prefrontal cortex (PFC) works like a neural substrate of working memory (WM). A theory implemented as connectionist computational model attempts to resolve the conflict as to whether PFC should be regarded as a storage component or a control one. Simulation studies have also been used to demonstrate that the models may show a wide range of behavioral information that can be associated with task paradigms that differentiate the storage and control working memory functions. Neurological studies have been presented that help to examine the predictions of the models concerning the role PFC play in the context processing. This theories and mode ls provide new perspectives on the control and storage relationship in WM and also the function of PFC in the service of these roles. (Uylings, 2012) Much excitement in the study of WM can be followed by the contributions of researchers such as Alan Baddeley, who outlined experimental and theoretical studies concerning this area that had a long last and widespread reputation on the field. A dominant model has come across by the theoretical account concerning the architecture of WM put forth by Baddeley and colleagues. In this model, there exists two domain specific buffer systems which are the visuospatial scratchpad and the phonological loop whose coordinated action is influenced by a primary control structure that is titled as the central executive. The main aspect of the model is that the control and storage processes are architecturally segregated and distinct but are also included under the heading of the WM. These distinctions between working memory within the theoretical aspect of Baddeley model have attracted psychologists who studied the properties of and functional divisions between the cognitive buffer systems. This stu dy was done without the feeling to need to understand the vaguely described characteristics of the central executive. In parallel, the cognitive neurology scientists have had the attraction to discover the neural substrates that are stipulated in each element within the model. (Baddeley, 2013) In cognitive neuroscience, the research and studies of WM concerning the prefrontal cortex (PFC) have been more of a subject of focus. In the studies conducted on neuropsychological clients, the PFC has been pointed out as the brain region that is implicated in behavioral and cognitive regulation. It is therefore not unusual that many researchers have identified the PFC as the principal component in the executive Baddeley's model. (Baddeley, 2013) It is in conjunction to this that a prominent neuropsychological theory has been put forward by Shallice and colleagues describing PFC as a system of supervisory attention that controls roles and functions specifically attached to the central executive. (Shallice, 2015) However, this perspective on the neuropsychological presentation holds in contrast with various studies emerging out of the literature on animals on the function of the PFC. In some report, PFC has been found to be critically connected to the active maintenance of short-term information. Researchers such as Goldman-Rakic have claimed that PFC activity in the neural system may serve as the cellular component of the WM. Thus, considerable controversy has been brought about by the search for the neural substrate of the WM which is within the cognitive neuroscience. (Goodkind, 2012) In recent studies, there has been an attempt to resolve controversies concerning the control or storage functions of PFC in the WM. This attempt has been through newly developed functional neuroimaging techniques. Various investigators arguing from the vast analysis of the WM neuroimaging studies have demonstrated that there exists an anatomical segregation occurring in the lateral PFC. It has therefore been insinuated that ventral regions of PFC are connected directly in functions of active maintenance, ventral and dorsal PFC regions, on the other hand, are involved with the aspects of control and not storage of WM. (Krawczyk, Michelle McClelland, Donovan, 2012) Some researchers have supported the role of PFC in WM from the perspective that it is developed through a mechanistically explicit computational approach that relies on principles of a neural network framework. These principles are those of the neural processing of information and are associated with the connectionist model. The model subserves a computational function in which PFC is involved in the representing and maintaining context data and information. Other studies describe computer simulations that focus on the model to outline a description of the role PFC has in the particular behavioral task which investigates both the control and storage functions of the WM. The task is known as the AX-CPT. (Krawczyk, Michelle McClelland, Donovan, 2012) Functional neuroimaging studies may also be used to test the aspects of the design model. The conclusions of these studies have supported the assertion that dorsolateral PFC is mainly included in the active maintaining of the context data and information in WM, and that the knowledge is critical in the regulation of behavior. Some studies have brought evidence against the view on the function of PFC in the working memory. Some of the first evidence has been seen to originate from the neuroimaging studies in humans. Researchers posit that the lag in period activity in PFC did not decode and encode data that is precise to the stimuli being portrayed in the WM. In addition to the imaging examinations evidence, it has been seen that PFC lesions do not always undermine the storage in WM. This has been evidenced by the case that clients with considerable lesions that were confined in the lateral PFC had revealed fewer deficits in the verbal and memory span or either in the delayed recognition. A result similar to that was observed in monkeys which had lesions and tumors of the ventral PFC. (Coubard, 2015) Until recently, there had no sufficient electrophysiological evidence to support the views until Lebedev trained monkeys on how to maintain a specific spatial location in WM while at the same time served to a different location that would make a saccade to the identified location concerning the go cue. (Monsell, Driver, 2014) They found two neurons population which demonstrated that PFC neurons could play diverse roles in the WM tasks that are not strictly maintained per se. Another evidence comes from current work in which the studies used multivariate patterns in the review of recorded data during a prolonged paired associate performance of a task. This information has therefore shown that PFC does not keep the information stimulus in the WM per se, though it accesses the information and can encode it whether the stimulus in the subsequent data is a target or a distractor. Although the neuron system that is responsible for the WM is shown to include various regions of the brain, there exists ample evidence from the lesion and neurophysiological studies done on primates to prove that the PFC is a critical component. The new studies in brain imaging using positron emission tomography (PET) and functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), have shown to support the implication of the PFC in WM. However, there remains some doubts and questions on the practical organization of the human PFC and its use in the WM. Transient versus sustained activity in the human PFC has shown evidence by the brain imaging studies that differentiate temporary, perception related activities to those that are sustained and memory related. It is also important to take account of the temporal active resolution from the fMRI to establish the functional purposes of prefrontal areas and posterior process activity in the WM. (Monsell, Driver, 2014) The domain specificity in an individual's human frontal cortex through object segregation versus spatial processing has increased the evidence proving that DLPFC stores memory. Goldman and colleagues showed that that the dorsal prefrontal areas show sustained activity delay that is essentially associated with the spatial information. The distributed neural systems have also revealed the relationship between the posterior visual processing areas to that of the frontal WM. This has been influenced by the advantage of the functional brain imaging which can obtain simultaneous measures of the brain activities hence allowing observations across the whole neural systems. (Diamond, Goldman-Rakic, 2012) What future research should focus on? Although the results from the various studies conducted seem to line up well with the previous imaging studies, the precise mechanisms that are responsible for the increase in effective connectivity remain unknown. The evolution of neural activity in the posterior targets is also not well postulated. Therefore, the future research should the study on the neurophysiological level where evidence on the changes in neural activity when problem-solving tasks are initiated in addition to nonspatial cues. The relationship on how prefrontal and posterior areas in the brain synchronize as behavior changes will be exhibited. (Milham, 2012) Since Goldman-Rakic focused on a spatial task, future research should include a logical continuation to study these processes in non-human primates with the use of different stimuli and different stimulus modalities. These experiments, therefore, provide a building block for such future studies. (Diamond, Goldman-Rakic, 2012) More work is required in future research to shed light on the character of the interaction between PFC and the WM to the sensory areas. Therefore, future use of recent large scale recording and analyzing techniques will prove to be of importance. This method will provide the potential to allow tracing of data and information from the WM to the PFC and goes back again during the manifestations of WM tasks. (Luk, 2012) Conclusion The role of DLPFC has been seen at first to be involved in a wide collection of processes. Varied behaviors are affected by damage, and different tasks seem to initiate it. In the real sense, the solution to a unified role in the cognitive ability of the DLPFC may be due to its connectivity with other regions. The fMRI has importantly revealed its unique capability to image many areas of the brain simultaneously. Therefore, it has demonstrated to have a touted potential which characterizes interactions between networks in neutral nodes and those that support WM. Although different nodes have roles that are different, they together sustain relevant representations that can be used in the selection of behaviors. A good understanding of the neural mechanism involved in WM is vital in gaining insight into the various goal-directed behaviors that are supported by the WM. The perspective on WM that emphasizes the encoding of WM information on the notion of distributed population activity is widely supported. Methodological advances in the past years have highlighted the high dimensional nature of Lateral prefrontal cortex (LPFC) activity and the lighted sensory nature of the manifested WM information. It is suggested that LPFC activity presents as a top-down influence on sensory areas contrary to its imputed storage buffer role. The conceptualization of LPFC supports models explaining the functions of the hippocampus which proposes that it stores pointers that can reactivate than store the cortical memory themselves. Future work should, therefore, prioritize efforts to specify the role lateral prefrontal cortex plays in working memory as well as the functional activities involved in the interactions between the LPFC, regions of the sensory area and other parts involved in WM. In areas for future research, a complete understanding of the implementation of WM in the brain will require new insights on how incoming sensory input affects the sustained representations in the sensory cortex. Therefore, an emphasis on the outlined representations which occurs through the increased mechanisms of neural activities will encourage the inclusion of these officiated mechanisms into the general theory of WM. This emphasis will encourage revisiting and further review of the studies involving the persistent role of the prefrontal cortex during working memory. References Baddeley, A. (2013). Working memory and language: an overview. Journal Of Communication Disorders, 36(3), 189-208.doi.org/10.1016/s0021-9924(03)00019-4 Coubard, O. (2015). Dorsolateral Prefrontal Cortex Prevents Short-latency Saccade and Vergence: a TMS Study. Cerebral Cortex, 16(3), 425-436.doi.org/10.1093/cercor/bhi122 Diamond, A., Goldman-Rakic, P. (2012). Comparison of human infants and rhesus monkeys on Piaget's AB task: evidence for dependence on dorsolateral prefrontal cortex. Experimental Brain Research, 74(1).doi.org/10.1007/bf00248277 Fuster, J. (2015). The prefrontal cortex. Amsterdam [u.a.]: Academic Press. Goodkind, M. (2012). Cognitive Empathy Following Orbitofrontal Cortex and Dorsolateral Prefrontal Cortex Damage (1st ed.). Berkeley, CA. Krawczyk, D., Michelle McClelland, M., Donovan, C. (2012). A hierarchy for relational reasoning in the prefrontal cortex. Cortex, 47(5), 588-597.doi.org/10.1016/j.cortex.2010.04.008 LoGrasso, L., Morretti, G. (2013). Prefrontal cortex. Hauppauge, N.Y.: Nova Science Publishers. Luk, C. (2012). Encoding externally and internally accredited value in prefrontal cortex (1st ed.). Berkeley, CA. Milham, M. (2012). An FMRI analysis of dorsolateral prefrontal cortex's involvement in attentional control (1st ed.). Monsell, S., Driver, J. (2014). Control of cognitive processes. Cambridge, Mass.: MIT Press. Otani, S. (2015). Prefrontal cortex. Boston: Kluwer Academic Publishers. Passingham, R., Wise, S. (2014). The Neurobiology of the Prefrontal Cortex. Oxford: OUP Oxford. Pochon, J. (2012). The Role of Dorsolateral Prefrontal Cortex in the Preparation of Forthcoming Actions: an fMRI Study. Cerebral Cortex, 11(3), 260-266.doi.org/10.1093/cercor/11.3.260 Raos, V., Savaki, H. (2016). The Role of the Prefrontal Cortex in Action Perception. Cerebral Cortex.doi.org/10.1093/cercor/bhw261 Shallice, T. (2015). Cognitive neuropsychology and its vicissitudes: The fate of Caramazza's axioms. Cognitive Neuropsychology, 32(7-8), 385-411.doi.org/10.1080/02643294.2015.1131677 Thierry, A. (2014). Motor and cognitive functions of the prefrontal cortex. Berlin: Springer-Verlag. Uylings, H. (2012). Cognition, emotion, and autonomic responses. Amsterdam: Elsevier Science. Zuffante, P. (2013). Dorsolateral prefrontal cortex and negative symptoms of schizophrenia (1st ed.).