The death of the prophet Muhammad Essay Example for Free

The death of the prophet Muhammad Essay Following the death of the prophet Muhammad, Islam rose to superiority in the first part of the 7th century as they expand throughout the lands. This introduced another great religion to the world; a religion that would later shape the history of man. This is a very important part in the history of the world, since this contributed a religion apart from the growing Christianity at that time. The rise and development of Islam made way to the formation of another way of life for the people, which until now is still in existence. However, the 7th century expansion for Islam has led to some events which negatively affected Islamic development at that time. These are internal disputes which lead to civil wars and other internal issues. These things occurred right after Muhammad’s death, where their main point of dispute was about the rightful leader that would be Muhammad’s successor. They are disputing about who will be the rightful Caliph, or the leader of the global Muslim community. These disputes between local Muslim heads became wars between clans and eventually getting blown into bigger proportions, leading to first Islamic civil war. The first four caliphs that emerged right after the death of Muhammad were considered to be the â€Å"rightly guided† successors, since they attained their position through nominations and acknowledgement of the local heads of the Muslim community. In their rule, they were able to expand Muslim territory into vast proportions. These leaders were able to conquer neighboring lands including the Persian and the Byzantine Empires. Some Roman established empires were also crushed by this new Muslim power, gaining more and more lands as they continued with their conquest for expansion. Even though the Muslims were successful in their military conquests, tensions flared between the leaders and those who think they are better than their leaders. Following the assassination of the second of the four â€Å"rightly guided† caliphs, choosing the successor became very controversial and has met much opposition. Even though the successor was competent enough and was able to continue the expansion, he was still assassinated. The last of the four took the position; the first civil war broke out. The opposing side was composed of the relatives of the third caliph, Uthman. They are all fighting to avenge the death of the previous caliph, wherein they blame the fourth, Ali, of plotting the assassination. Even though the fourth caliph was able to pacify the uprising, the events that followed favored the opposition. He was eventually fatally stabbed, where afterwards, Muawiyah, an opposition was ordained as the new caliph. This opens a new chapter in the Muslim history, which is the hereditary Umayyad Caliphate. The Umayyad caliphate can be considered as the first ever dynasty established in the history of Muslim Caliphates, all thanks to Muawiyah I, the first Umayyad caliph. The name Umayyad came from Muawiyah I’s great grandfather, Umayya ibn Abd Shams. It was a traditional belief saying that the Prophet Muhammad and the Umayyad family are related. It is because they both came from the same ancestor which is Abd Munaf. The Umayyads came from a son of Abd Munaf, which are Abd-Shams. Muhammad descended from another son, which is Hashim. These two branches formed different clans which eventually turned into great rivalries. However, when Muhammad established Islam, the other tribe succumbed to the new religion and was focused on becoming its leaders. This goal was attained by none other than Muawiyah I. He rose to power and started the great Umayyad dynasty. Muawiyah I excised his power by creating his personal dynasty, which is the Sufyanids, which has ruled from 661 to 684. During this time, Muawiyah’s reign was prosperous, being able to keep internal peace and security, as well as managing to expand its rule over other lands. Muawiyah was also able to establish a peaceful relation with its Christian neighbors in Syria, wherein they were peacefully coexisting despite the difference in religion. Muawiyah concentrated his wars on the Byzantine Empire. They are able to overwhelm and conquer Rhodes and Crete, as well as launched attacks on the newly established Constantinople. He also had his share on efforts to expand further to North Africa and towards Central Asia. When Muawiyah finally died, Yazid I succeeded his position. Yazid was Muawiyah’s son, and this hereditary passing of power was greatly contradicted by other well known Muslim personalities that time. This includes Abd-Allah ibn al-Zubayr, son of one of the close people to the Prophet Muhammad, and Husayn ibn Ali, Muhammad’s grandson. Conflict again rose in the Muslim community, which eventually led to the coming of the Second Civil War. Several war encounters followed, and the caliph Yazid was killed. His son Muawiyah II became caliph but he was not recognized by most of the Muslim community. Anothr Umayya descendent came into the scene. He is Marwan, related to Umayya through Wail ibn Umayyah. Marwan became caliph by winning important battles at that time. However, Marwan’s reign was short lived, when he died just after nine months of becoming the caliph. He was then succeeded by his son, Abd al-Malik. Abd al-Malik’s sons then became the next line of caliphs, wherein the prosperity was kept at bay. The position of caliph has been passed from brother to brother, until it was passed to Hisham, the final son of Abd al-Malik to become caliph. Hisham reign for a very long time, however, there was no significant gain from his efforts of military expansion. He has suffered major defeats from attacks to conquer other lands. One of his main problems has been the difficulty of converting non-Muslims to Islam. The Arab army lost some of its most important battles, signaling the end of its western expansion. Further losses were experienced when non-Arab Muslims added problems regarding their rights. The one who succeeded the position of Hisham was Al-Wahid II, which is Yazid II’s son. However, the problem with the heir was that he was more focused on earthly pleasures than the expansion of their religion. This raised a lot of oppositions which was translated to another set of civil disputes. This led to successive changes in caliphs which has induced more was and the further destruction of the system of government of the Umayyad caliphate. The Umayyad caliphate was then overthrown by the Hashimiyya movement, which was spearheaded by that of the Abbasid family. The Umayyad caliphate is such an interesting aspect of Muslim history, since it is characterized by a lot of changes in its rulers, as well as disputes by relatives and clan rivals. Despite all the negative points it drew, it still marks the great expansion if has given the Muslim world. Despite its administrative and cultural problems, it was able to show the world that Muslims can stand up to its rivals and opponents, in terms of military capabilities and its rulers abilities. The Umayyads contributed so much to the early Islamic formation, and has literally introduced it to the world. The caliphate was not only for the aspect of religion, but it can also be a means of governance. Dynasties like the Umayyad caliphate are some of its manifestations.

Human Communication Process in the Small Group Context Essay Example for Free

Human Communication Process in the Small Group Context Essay Question #5 How would you rewrite some of Lam’s comments to show how he could have paraphrased what Kelli, Ryan, and Tamika said? â€Å"Tyler has been late to meetings, because he has been caring for his sick parents. Because he his late and missing meetings, we are missing his part of our assignment. Let’s just go ahead and get started and try to finish tonight. If we need another meeting, we can meet at my place to give us more room, instead of meeting in this old stuffy room. † It’s good to paraphrase because, it lets to previous speaker know if you understood what was said. If incorrect, the message can then be delivered in another way, so that the listener understands the message the speaker it trying to make (Galanes Adams, 2010). This allows for effective communication. Question #6 Which of the eight major categories of nonverbal behaviors are most relevant to this study group? Several of the eight major categories of nonverbal behaviors are expressed in this study group. First of all space and seating play a part because, the group was sitting in a circle, and when Tamika pulled away from the table, it showed that she was upset about Tyler not being present; demonstrating â€Å"kinesics.† In addition, Tamika was using â€Å"time cues† by complaining that Tyler was late and that 20 minutes had gone by. When Kelli began to pack up her things, her movements expressed that she too was unhappy about the situation. â€Å"Paralanguage† was used when the pitch of Tamika’s voice changed as she asked the question â€Å"Man, what time is it.† It is evident that there was no â€Å"transactional process† within the group as a whole. Tamika and Kelli were expressing how they felt about Tyler on being present at the meetings. They were clearly sending a â€Å"message† throughout the group. As Ryan was demonstrating â€Å"paraphrase† by reminding the group the everyone knew that Tyler’s parents was sick and Lam â€Å"action-oriented listening† turned everyone’s attention back to the task of completing the project. It is clear that there was plenty of â€Å"nonverbal behavior† with this group. Nonverbal behaviors can be interpreted by other in ways not intended. Our text states â€Å"nonverbal behaviors can contradict verbal behaviors (Galanes Adams, 2010).† As we speak to another person or a group, our tone of voice and body language are also speaking for us. It’s important to be aware, so that our actions aren’t taking away from what we are trying to speak. By observing nonverbal ques, we are able to recognize if what we are saying is being taken serious, upsetting someone, confusing or if people are in agreement. Question #7 How might computer-mediated communication been used by our student group? What precautions might they take should they choose to use it to compensate for absences from meetings? Computer mediated communication could have been used in the form of video conference where every member can see and hear their team member, or a chat room where all team members can post their work and respond to other members work. They could attach their assigned work to an email and forward the work to all the members of the group; this would have eliminated Tyler missing meets and Tamika being in that stuffy room. The first precaution is making sure each member has a computer or access to one. If the group is going to use the video conference, then the group need to make sure everyone has the proper equipment and software to participate in the group project. Once the group establishes everyone has a computer or access, they need to understand how to upload their work if they decide to use the chat room as a communication channel. Question #8 Given your understanding of communication principals, including nonverbal messages, what advice would you give to this student group? The group in chapter two should have, communicated differently. Communication is the key to an effective group. You must communicate with your fellow team members, be open about what you are feeling so that way tension does not build and explode making thing much worse than they have to be. Lam could have paraphrased the group feeling when he took control, and decided to start. If lam would have paraphrased, it would have let the other member’s know that he was listening to their concerns. The group should be more mindful of their nonverbal behavior. Lam did do a great job displaying â€Å"action-oriented† listening and getting the team back on track. As a group they should have focused on a solution to get Tyler’s part of the assignment, since they know his pattern with the group. Email and video conferencing are a couple of solutions. References Galanes, G. J., Adams, K. (2010). Human Communication Process in the Small Group Context. In Effective Group Discussion (pp. 22-47, Chapter 2, pgs. 39 46, Chapter 3). New York, NY: McGraw-Hill.

Mind Control The Media Aims To Influence People Media Essay

Mind Control The Media Aims To Influence People Media Essay In our era, almost all advertisement and information tools contain images. Since most images appeal to our emotions rather than to our reasoning, they can hide the truth and divert our attention by arousing our feelings towards a certain cause. They can manipulate the public opinion, mold our attitudes and transform our vision of reality. They are teaching us how to be, more than our own parents and teachers do: they tell us how to observe and instruct our vision in what a flaw is and whats normal (Bordo 2006). Because they require less effort and concentration, the idea that reside behind the images is easily transmitted to our thoughts. Thus, they permit an instantaneous acquisition of divulged information, dissuade others and confuse their perception of what is right and wrong. And since nearly everyone rely on the media to inform them, it can easily mislead us. By simply switching on the television, an endless collection of images is set before your eyes and glide through your neurons to implant a standardization of what true beauty is (Lemayian, 2005). Nowadays, body image is becoming very important in our society, and it is particularly amplified by the media. How to interpret your body 101 is becoming a global requirement (Bordo, 2006). Furthermore, among the many methods used by the media to transform the image into an ideal one, the most common is the edited photo. On the billboards publicity and press, retouched photos are almost everywhere, imposed by a company that makes the body image an ultimate reference. With software such as Photoshop, body image can be completely changed. The commercial of the Dove Evolution video translates well these practices. Dove Evolution is a one minute clip directed by Tim Piper where we see an ordinary woman accompanied by a makeup artist sitting on a chair. A fixed plane then comes closer to her face and film the process of her transformation. This womans hair and make up are done, and her picture is retouched digitally. Then the background turns into a billboard ad where the face of this woman that was made perfect, catches the eye of many group of girls passing by. Most of the time, the image of beauty promoted by womens magazines is that of the thinness and youth. Similarly, cinema and television are promoters of unattainable beauty. For instance, many actresses are obliged to loose weight in order for them to be allowed to participate in the film. Moreover, in the movie The Devil Wears Prada which is directed by David Frankel, the star Anne Hathaway as Andy Sachs, a talented writer who has recently graduated, was admitted as a co-assistant in one of the most superb fashion magazine firm, and was compelled to loose a lot of weight. In addition, the other co-assistant (Emily Blunt) was dieting because she was supposed to accompany the editor of the magazine (Meryl Streep) to a fashion show in Paris. And after being complemented on her thin looking figure by the new co-assistant (Anne Hathaway), she claims that the effective diet that got her into this skinny looking figure is to eat nothing at all, but a tiny chunk of cheese only if she felt li ke she was going to faint. Therefore, the audio-visual media is constantly imposing the compulsion of being thin which could cause several health problems (such as anorexia and bulimia) for the brain-washed girls during their pursue of the perfect body. For instance, three years after the media was introduced in Fiji, 11 percent of the girls were forcing themselves to vomit in order to stay thin (Bordo, 2006). Conversely, media can also lead to obesity. And that is because advertising is constantly promoting unhealthy consumption, and encouraging food products that are not recommended in a balanced diet. A company named Ofcom carried out a research in 2004 into television commercials concluding that they have a reasonable direct influence on childrens choice of food (Boyce 2006). Additionally to the fast food, most of the ads market for drinks that are very minimal in nutrients such as coffee, soda and energy drinks, and snacks that are very high in saturated fat and carbohydrates, but very low in proteins and vitamins (such as chips and chocolates). Moreover, the ABC health news states that, according to a research concerning the adolescents of age ranging from 12 to 17, the obesity was growing by 2% for each hour of TV watching. In addition, Kuribyashi et al., 2001 conducted a study in which the types of food that are commercialized were compared during two period of time: between the ph ase of peak viewing by children and the phase of peak viewing by adults. It was learned that there were more food advertisements screening throughout the morning childrens program with increased recurrence and larger consumption of the total program duration than food commercials shown during prime-time adult programs in the evening (Kuribyashi et al., 2001). This demonstrates how the televised media is exploiting the minds of young innocent children who can be easily manipulated by attracting images of any product. For instance, the Great School organization declares that the food and beverage industry spends more than ten billion dollars targeting children and youth through television advertisements, special promotions and attractive packaging. Not surprisingly, the Kaiser institution in Calif, reported through a research from Europe and the U.S., that the childrens obesity was significantly reduced when the duration spent on television was decreased, since they will become more e ngaged in physical activities and less exposed to the scheming food commercials. The media also aims to influence people in order to make them behave and react in a given direction. We can therefore say that the media is commanding our opinions in order to pilot our way of life; an aspect of stereotyping is employed in the media. Additionally, the use of stereotypes facilitates the goal of the producers because it allows the audience to easily remember and identify a certain character in the motion picture industry. The facet of media stereotyping is also reflected on our lifestyles. For example, in a movie or a series, a family is often represented by a father, a mother, two children and a dog. The mother cleans, takes care of the children and makes sure that the dinner is prepared when the father comes back from work. Stereotypes are used in cartoons as well, such as the amiable grandfather of Pinocchio, the wicked stepmother in Cinderella, and Dexter who is a smart kid featured as a nerd with no social life. All these characters represent, among many others, t he familiar stereotypes assimilated by the children. Moreover, by shaping hostile stereotypes, the media can help maintain or develop the rejection of a social group by another. For instance, William Drummond, an academic journalist professor in the University of California at Berkeley and co-author of a current study on the situation of the African-American male in California states that the negative stereotype that many people have of African-American men is caused to a significant degree by the media: broadcasting media convey the lead in relating young African-American males with aggressiveness, lawlessness and violence. The most widespread stereotype about African-American men is that they engage in drug abuse in disproportionate numbers. In the report, Drummond reported statistics from a U.S. Justice Department survey that show only 6 percent of African-Americans had used cocaine in their lifetime, and that the great majority of respondents 65.5 percent had used it fewer than 11 times. Among white respondents, 10.6 percent had used cocaine in their lifetimes, with 62.3 percent of those respondents saying they had used it fewer than 11 times. Conclusively, the media possess a certain type of control over our minds; they play an imperative role in the public opinion. Its ubiquity and diversity therefore affects the entire population, and is fostered by globalization in todays society. The danger is that we are in a society that is governed by images and economy: the information is increasingly being diffused under the hidden purpose of financial profit and not for the simple function to share and inform. The information is then manipulated to become more prejudiced, and ends up by losing all its meaning. Therefore, it is crucial to try to withdraw ourselves from the subjective impact that is implanted in the media, and think about its veracity before considering it. In order to fight against the self-control by the media, the audio-visual apparatus should be utilized to broadcast and elucidate the deceits and hazards that are promoted by media.

Essay on Picture of Dorian Gray: Art Cannot Substitute Life :: Picture Dorian Gray Essays

The Picture of Dorian Gray: Art Cannot Substitute Life      Ã‚  Ã‚   The Picture of Dorian Gray, by Oscar Wilde, is the story of moral corruption by the means of aestheticism. In the novel, the well meaning artist Basil Hallward presets young Dorian Gray with a portrait of himself. After conversing with cynical Lord Henry Wotton, Dorian makes a wish that dreadfully affects his life forever. "If it were I who was to be always young, and the picture that was to grow old! For that I would give everything! Yes, there is nothing in the whole world I would not give! I would give my soul for that" (Wilde 109). As it turns out, the devil that Dorian sells his soul to is Lord Henry Wotton, who exists not only as something external to Dorian, but also as a voice within him (Bloom 107). Dorian continues to lead a life of sensuality which he learns about in a book given to him by Lord Henry. Dorian's unethical devotion to pleasure becomes his way of life.    The novel underscores its disapproval of aestheticism which negatively impacts the main characters. Each of the three primary characters is an aesthete and meets some form of terrible personal doom. Basil Hallward's aestheticism is manifested in his dedication to his artistic creations. He searches in the outside world for the perfect manifestation of his own soul, when he finds this object, he can create masterpieces by painting it (Bloom 109). He refuses to display the portrait of Dorian Gray with the explanation that, "I have put too much of myself into it" (Wilde 106). He further demonstrates the extent to which he holds this philosophy by later stating that, "only the artist is truly reveled" (109). Lord Henry Wotton criticizes Basil Hallward that, "An artist should create beautiful things but should put nothing of his own life into them" (Wilde 25). Ironically, the purpose of Basil Hallward's existence is that he is an aesthete striving to become one with his art (Eriksen 105). It is this very work of art which Basil refuses to display that provides Dorian Gray with the idea that there are no consequences to his actions. Dorian has this belief in mind when he murders Basil. Here we see that the artist is killed for his excessive love of physical beauty; the same art that he wished to merge with is the cause of his mortal downfall (Juan 64).

Mrs Birling in An Inspector Calls Essay -- J.B. Priestley

"I've done nothing wrong - and you know it!" Mrs Birling exclaims, refusing to take responsibility for her actions, which is just one of the reasons why the audience may not see Mrs Birling as a very likable character. This essay is going to explore how J.B. Priestley creates such a disagreeable character and why the audience feels this way about her. Priestley represents Mrs Birling, as a very posh and high class woman. She, like her husband, can be very self-important, for example, when the Inspector says, "You're not telling me the truth" and she replies, "I beg your pardon!" She seems horrified that somebody could speak like that to a lady of her class. This is not only an example of how she is portrayed as self-important but also how class-conscious she is. Another example of this is in the stage directions at the beginning of the play when Mrs Birling is described as ?her husband?s social superior? meaning she is probably more aware of what the class boundaries are than perhaps Mr Birling would. She is also presented as rather cold and severe, ?If the girl?s death is due to anybody, then it?s due to him? Mrs Birling says as she criticises the father of Eva Smith?s baby. Here she shows she has little or no real regard towards other people?s feelings, especially people of a lower class. She says that the man responsible should be ?dealt with very severely?, assuming that he, like Eva, is lower class, therefore implying that upper class people never do anything like that. This links with the theme of stereotypes which is seen a lot in the play. Mrs Birling does not react well to questioning from the Inspector. She is not present for the majority of the inquiry, so therefore she is unfamiliar to the Inspector?s abruptness.... ...class conscious, ?I don?t suppose for a moment that we can understand why the girl committed suicide. Girls of that class?? Mrs Birling says, being so overly class conscious that she is automatically judging everybody by their class status. This is again making us compare her with people of all different classes and members of the family, such as Sheila. When the Inspector leaves, unlike Sheila, Mrs Birling tries to carry on as if nothing has happened, ?you?re just beginning to pretend all over again,? says Sheila, showing she has been influenced by the Inspector when her mother has not. In the context of this play, Mrs Birling is not a very amiable character. Although she does what she believes is right, she is also judgemental of everyone and is too aware of the divisions in the social class system to be liked by both the audience and members of her own family. Mrs Birling in An Inspector Calls Essay -- J.B. Priestley "I've done nothing wrong - and you know it!" Mrs Birling exclaims, refusing to take responsibility for her actions, which is just one of the reasons why the audience may not see Mrs Birling as a very likable character. This essay is going to explore how J.B. Priestley creates such a disagreeable character and why the audience feels this way about her. Priestley represents Mrs Birling, as a very posh and high class woman. She, like her husband, can be very self-important, for example, when the Inspector says, "You're not telling me the truth" and she replies, "I beg your pardon!" She seems horrified that somebody could speak like that to a lady of her class. This is not only an example of how she is portrayed as self-important but also how class-conscious she is. Another example of this is in the stage directions at the beginning of the play when Mrs Birling is described as ?her husband?s social superior? meaning she is probably more aware of what the class boundaries are than perhaps Mr Birling would. She is also presented as rather cold and severe, ?If the girl?s death is due to anybody, then it?s due to him? Mrs Birling says as she criticises the father of Eva Smith?s baby. Here she shows she has little or no real regard towards other people?s feelings, especially people of a lower class. She says that the man responsible should be ?dealt with very severely?, assuming that he, like Eva, is lower class, therefore implying that upper class people never do anything like that. This links with the theme of stereotypes which is seen a lot in the play. Mrs Birling does not react well to questioning from the Inspector. She is not present for the majority of the inquiry, so therefore she is unfamiliar to the Inspector?s abruptness.... ...class conscious, ?I don?t suppose for a moment that we can understand why the girl committed suicide. Girls of that class?? Mrs Birling says, being so overly class conscious that she is automatically judging everybody by their class status. This is again making us compare her with people of all different classes and members of the family, such as Sheila. When the Inspector leaves, unlike Sheila, Mrs Birling tries to carry on as if nothing has happened, ?you?re just beginning to pretend all over again,? says Sheila, showing she has been influenced by the Inspector when her mother has not. In the context of this play, Mrs Birling is not a very amiable character. Although she does what she believes is right, she is also judgemental of everyone and is too aware of the divisions in the social class system to be liked by both the audience and members of her own family.

Violent Video Games and Aggression in Children Essay -- Argumentative,

Over the past 30 years, playing video games has become one of the most popular hobbies worldwide. Not only has the video game industry become a multi-billion dollar industry, but it has attracted people from all age types. While video games today are played by both kids and adults, there are many issues being raised regarding the effects of video games. More particular, is the effect that violent video games may be having on children. Some critics argue that video games are direct indicators of child aggression while video game supporters argue that there is no direct link between child aggression and violent video games. While many people have their own personal stances, this issue is unique because it is unfolding everyday. Scientists and researchers all over the world are continuously doing research regarding the effects of video games on children. Even though this remains a field of uncertainty for researchers, parents should definitely be involved in being aware of what it is th at they’re children are playing when they play video games. While many different case studies have been done all over the world, scientists have yet to prove that there is a direct correlation between violent video games and child aggression. Since the start of this quarter, this has been an issue that I have been doing extensive research on. Despite looking into several scholarly sources, I was surprised to see that many of my findings were pretty consistent with one another. For the mort part, what I found through my research was a bunch of statistics from case studies and the interpretation of those statistics from renowned scientists. In many cases, statistics and studies showed slight indications that violent video games have an effect on c... ...Lincoln. , Retrieved from http://www.psychology.iastate.edu/faculty/caa/Multimedia/EyeOnPsiChiInterview.pdf Paton, G. (2012, April 03). Violent video games are fueling rise in aggressive behavior. The Telegraph. Retrieved from http://www.telegraph.co.uk/education/educationnews/9183385/Violent-video-games-are- fuelling-rise-in-aggressive-behaviour.html Kravets, D. (2011, June 27). States may not ban sale, rental of violent video games to minors. Retrieved from http://www.wired.com/threatlevel/2011/06/violent-video-games-scotus/ Tang, W. (2009, December 13). Abstract realism in video games and aggression. Retrieved from http://vgresearcher.wordpress.com/2009/12/13/abstract-realism-in-video-games-and-aggression-barlett-rodeheffer-2009/ Leung, R. (2009, February 11). Can a video game lead to murder?. Retrieved from http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-18560_162-702599.html

How ICT effects a person with special needs Essay

All of these Keystrokes will save Paddy the hassle of going to the icons by using the mouse, which he can hardly see anyway. But, there is a problem the Keystroke commands. That is that they differ between each software package and if you learn one set of Keystrokes for, say Supernova, on computers in one department, and then you will have to learn a completely different one for Zoomtext, a different magnifier and Keystroke package, and it can result in a lot of confusion and frustration. There is also a piece of software that allows Paddy to talk into a microphone connected to the computer and it writes out what he says. A few years ago things like this would have been very unreliable and it would have resulted in him having to repeat a lot of words just to get a sentence complete. But now days they are very reliable once you have ‘worn them in’ and used them enough to get your voice recognised. This can take a long time and will result a lot of mistakes in work at first, but all in all they will become very, very useful in the future. As well as using computers to do work, Paddy also uses it to talk to his friends in the Royal National College for the Blind internally and also talk to people outside the college. To do this he uses Windows Messenger (or MSN Messenger to most), which is favoured by the students at the college because it has the ability to speak to friends directly without having to type. This means he can talk faster and be more precise. Although, the screen for msn is a lot smaller than other screens so it may be hard to read who is online and whom you are talking to. It is also mainly comprises of colour and images, and if the colours are reversed, then it may be too dark and Paddy may be unable to see it on the screen. Computers are not the only technology that has features, which enables blind and partially sighted people to use them. There are many household appliances that Paddy uses such as talking microwave ovens and cookers, which are very useful. As well as it being a fire hazard using a cooking appliance whilst unable to see what is being pressed, it also means that Paddy will be able to cook his own food and not relying on someone else to do things for him. But it is not only the only thing that limits his ability to cook and eat food. Many different foods come in similar or even the same shapes and sizes as one another, so for a blind or partially sighted person it could be almost impossible for them to distinguish between, say, dog food and beans. This is where Paddy would use mini magnifiers, which allow he to magnify the text in a small area, like a packet of food, and he’ll know what he has in his hand. It is compact so it could be taken anywhere with him, such as when he wants to read a bus timetable, or shopping in a supermarket. It is also relatively cheap, as all it really is a piece of magnifying glass and a casing. Not that he would be able to take it home, but there are magnifiers available in a larger size known as a CCTV. These are like the small magnifiers mentioned, but are a lot larger and will enable you to read a much bigger area. This can be used to read letters (as most blind people have to rely on others to read things to them such as confidential letters and even bank statements) and newspapers. They can also be linked up to a computer to magnify a piece of text and show it on screen, and at the Royal National College for the Blind Eye-Tech Exhibition they have CCTV’s where half the screen is what is magnified and the other half is what it being typed. This allows people like Paddy to, if they are copying something from a book, to do so without turning their head or having to go over it with a smaller magnifier. As well as college, Paddy has a social life with both friends and family. So, he bought himself a mobile phone. But he could not get just any mobile phone, because some of the new phones are almost impossible to use if you cannot properly see the key. A lot of the newer mobiles are made to be smaller so because of this the keys are getting flatter. Paddy bought himself a Motorola mobile phone like the one on the right. He chose this phone because of a few features on it that would make it a lot easier to use. He obviously cannot read texts, but that wasn’t a problem because he couldn’t write them easier. It has big keys, which as well as being easy to see, are easier to type with when typing in phone numbers. It also ha a feature a bit like a computer key board called hotkeys, where you simply hold a certain button and it rings a number. The phone has a built in radio so he does not have to get a compact radio which usually has small buttons which are impossible for Paddy to press. And the phone has voice dialling, which is what it says it is; you talk into the phone and it dials the person that you said. Firstly, you have to record the tag for each person, but once you’ve done it, the voice dialling would be very useful to Paddy when dialling his friends and family. There are speaking phones, though, but these can cost at least i 200, so the cost outweighs the benefits of it. Paddy, as some may think, is not just someone who lazes around the home, he is a very fit person. He evens works and trains in the Royal National College for the Blind gymnasium. In the gym, there are many specially adapted pieces of equipment that allows Paddy and others to use the gym as any others would. There are talking watches, talking stopwatches and even talking Blood Pressure and Heart Rate Monitors. These will let the people at the Royal National College for the Blind to use the gym as well, and sometimes better, than people in other gyms. The college even lets people come to the gym where they can be given a health and fitness assessment by a blind person. All of this technology means that a blind or partially sighted person is able to do everything someone with perfect sight. They can, in some circumstances, do it better. All they need is a bit of help to do it, and as technology evolves for you and I, it also evolves for those who have disabilities both physically and mentally.