Reflection on a Critical Incident Essay -- Critical Analysis of an Inc

The objective of this assignment is to explore and reflect upon a situation from a clinical placement. Reflective techniques will be used to reveal how well or badly the situation was handled. And how the incident, and the reflection has influenced personal learning and professional practice in relation to nursing care. According to Hogston and Simpson (2002, p398) reflection is "a process of reviewing an experience of practice in order to better describe, analyse and evaluate, and so inform learning about practice". Wolverson (2000, p24) includes this is an important process for all nurses wishing to improve their practice. This will be investigated using a reflective nursing model. In accordance with the 2002 Nursing and Midwifery Council, the clients' details and placement setting has not been disclosed in order to maintain confidentiality. The incident occurred during the first week of the placement. The writer was then asked to perform an electrocardiogram (ECG) on a sixty six year old lady in the minors department. Hinchliff, Montague and Watson (2000, p398) states that an ECG is a graphic recording of the electrical processes that initiate the contraction of the cardiac muscle, performed by attaching electrodes to the body that are then connected to an electrocardiograph. On completion, the ECG was checked by a doctor and instructions were given to rush the patient to the resuscitation department of the Emergency department. This incident was chosen for discussion as the consequences could have been great if not dealt with correctly. The reflective model chosen is the John's model. This is an appropriate model for a students level, being described by Burns and Bulman (2001, p11) as providing support ... ...ober, J. (1998). Nursing Practice and Health Care. (3rd ed). London: Arnold Publishers Hogston, R. & Simpson, P. (2002). Foundations of Nursing Practice. (2nd ed). Basingstoke: Palgrave Marks, C. (2001). 'Reflective practice in thermoregulatory nursing care'. Nursing Standard. 15, (43), p38 - 41 Nicholls, C. & Sani, M. (2003). 'The treatment of cardiovascular disease in older people'. Nursing Older People. 15, (7), p30 - 32 Perry, A. (1997). Nursing, a knowledge base for practice. (2nd ed). London: Arnold Publishers Powell, H. (2002). 'A time to reflect'. Learning Disability Practice. 5, (7), p16 - 18 Taylor, B. (2001). Reflective Practice. Buckingham: Open University Press Wilkinson, J. (1999). 'Implementing reflective practice'. Nursing Standard. 13, (21), p36 - 40 Wolverson, M. (2000). 'On reflection'. Professional Practice. 3, (2), p31-34

The Cask of Amontillado Essays -- essays research papers

The Cask of Amontillado "I must not only punish, but punish with impunity. A wrong is unredressed when retribution overtakes its redresser. It is equally unredressed when the avenger fails to make himself felt as such to him who has done the wrong." With these ferverous words from the introductory paragraph of Edgar Allan Poe's Cask of Amontillado, the story of Montresor's revenge begins. Poe repeatedly stresses the need for revenge due to bitterness and resentment in Montresor's character towards Fortunato, but more importantly, stress is placed on revenge by which the victim realizes their injustice towards the redresser. Unfortunately, it seems that Montresor is denied this pure and encompassing revenge when his victim, Fortunato, during his last few minutes with Montresor, believes that his actions are a huge charade, and not the actions of a man scorned and seeking revenge. Although in burying Fortunato alive, Montresor is able to physically accomplish what he ultimately desired, he is left w ith an air of insatisfaction judging by his own definition of true and justified revenge. Poe shows the resentment Montresor feels towards Fortunato from the very first sentence of the story with, "The thousand injuries of Fortunato I had borne as best I could; but when he ventured upon insult, I vowed revenge." It is never specified what this injury was to Montresor, but it was so obviously so heinous that Fortunato was not to be spared. Later in the story, M...

Liberal Media Gone Too Far

Liberal Media Gone Too Far This article GOP Convention Exposes Bigotry and Hatred on Left, on investors. com posted on August 29, 2012, shows the ignorant statements of the media to stir the American people. Written by a Republican point of view, they are sick of all the media bashing they get from liberals. The Democrats use fear to get their fellow Democrats to follow them. There are more destructive ads on Facebook and news sites against Republicans than I have ever seen.The Democrats want everyone to focus on the negative ads and statements and scare people, so they won’t think about what bad shape this country is in today. The GOP wants us to know that they have the experience to run this country. The Democrats always pull the race and religious card whenever they don’t want the true facts to be known. The race card plays a significant role in the 2012 Democrat campaign. The race card was used excessively during the 2008 presidential election. Bill Clinton played t he race card in an attack on voter ID laws in his September 6th speech at the Democratic convention.He wants Democrats to believe the GOP doesn’t want any minorities, young, poor, and disable voters to vote. That couldn’t be farther from the truth. There have been so many democrats prosecuted over voters’ fraud from the 2011 elections, it just wasn’t believable. ACORN showed us all how easy it was to manipulate the system. Voters ID are important to maintain the integrity of our voter’s registration laws. When 74% of Americans favor having people an ID when they vote, including 65% of African Americans and 64% of Hispanics.Most voters believe showing ID, a necessity in our daily lives, is common sense. As long as the democrats continue to stir up racial fears and tensions, this problem of using the race card will continued. I hope the Americans people can see how reckless and irresponsible this practice is to our voter’s confidence in our el ection process. Mia Love was unfairly judged by the liberals in this article. For the liberals to label Mia Love as a â€Å"house nigger†, â€Å"dirty worthless whore† and an Aunt Tom, is very cruel and uneducated.She is a highly educated woman from Haitian immigrants, who is a Mormon running for Congress in Utah’s fourth district. If she wins, she would be the first black woman that Republicans have ever elected to Congress. Mia Love stands for physical discipline, limited government and personal responsibility. Liberals likes to bash the person and not the politics. Politicians use the religious card all the time. Liberals judge people by their appearance and what their background is, they will make an ugly comment about it instead of sticking with the issues.Mitt Romney believes in Mormonism and the liberals think he shouldn’t be running for president. Chris Matthews called Mormons â€Å"cultist†, and New York Times columnist Charles Blow tweete d that Mitt Romney should â€Å"stick that in our magic underwear† a remark referring to a Mormon religious practice. Again why don’t liberals worry about the issues instead of someone’s background? In the early 1960s, people thought that John F. Kennedy shouldn’t be running for president because he was a catholic and it turned out that he was elected president of the United States of America.Your faith is important no matter what party the candidate is with; his or her faith is a personal choice. This article opened by eyes to the importance of doing my own research on the candidates and issues instead of believing everything that I read. I believe that liberals think that all republicans are white men in the corporate world. That is a stereotypical view point of a liberal. People need to stop focusing on badmouthing each other and start thinking what it is going to take to make this country a stronger and safer country.

Gaskell North and South Essay

Gaskell’s ‘North and South’, set in Victorian England, is the story of Margaret Hale, a young woman whose life is completely turned on its head when her family moves to northern England. As an outsider from the agricultural south, Margaret is initially shocked by the aggressive northerners of the dirty, smoky industrial town of Milton, but as she adapts to her new home, she defies social conventions with her ready sympathy and defense of the working poor. Her passionate advocacy of the lower classes leads her to repeatedly clash with charismatic mill owner John Thornton over his treatment of his workers. While Margaret denies her growing attraction to him, Thornton agonizes over his foolish passion for her, in spite of their heated disagreements. As tensions mount between them, a violent unionization strike explodes in Milton, leaving everyone to deal with the aftermath in the town and in their personal lives. Gaskell’s novel could certainly be described as a social commentary; England at the time was extremely class-conscious, yet In almost all cases, Margaret does not so much choose sides as acknowledge mutually dependent and beneficial relationships. Though her family has very little in the way of money or assets, her family roots are in the gentry, yet when the family is moved up North to Milton, Margaret befriends and socializes with both ends of the social spectrum, mill owners and workers. Margaret is even capable of initiating a friendship of sorts between worker and owner, Higgins and Thornton even come up with a plan together to provide a canteen for the workers to get hot food. Differences in life in the South and life in the North are compared and contrasted often in a very subtle fashion, as are the differences in values and class structure. It is also very interesting to note that the difficulties of the lives of the impoverished factory workers are highlighted, however the difficulties faced by the factory owners are also presented. Through Margaret, Gaskell is able to transcend social class and at the same time create a hero amongst the industrial poverty of Milton, she acts in a way that would have been unconventional and frowned upon at the time for the good of such people as the Higgins family. When she is seen bringing a basket of food to the house during the workers strike, her peers condemn her at a dinner at the Thornton’s. Highlighting both the differences between northern and southern culture and the clashes between social conscientiousness. It could be said that ‘North and South’ is a novel defined by the resolution of binary conflicts; Margaret Hale is presented with a number of divisions of sympathy, between industrialists and the working class, between conflicting views of Mr.  Thornton, and even between her conflicting views of her own intelligence. Nancy Mann, in her essay â€Å"Intelligence and Self-Awareness in ‘North and South’: a Matter of Sex and Class† stipulates that the novel â€Å"concentrates on a crucial problem of the development of the novel in the nineteenth century, the relationship between abstract intelligence and self-awareness, and the ways in which this relationship may be affected by factors of sex and class†(1). What Mann is saying is that Gaskell is successful in throwing off the conventional boundaries of the classic romantic Victorian with all its feminist connotations and persuasions and has created a character that transcends the constraints of class and what is proper to actually do some good in her new environment. Gaskell’s most prominent social explorations however come in the form of contrasts. For example Margaret’s relationship with the Higgins family, especially Bessie, both nineteen years old when they meet, one healthy and the other gravely ill can be seen as a dramatic comment on class iniquity. Gaskell uses Bessie as a dramatic device in the novel to draw Margaret and her father closer, a task some literary critics consider to be so well done that Bessie is often discounted from the actual story. She is also a device to show the plight of the working class woman, Bessie is even described by one critic as ‘the most extensive portrait of a factory girl in the mainstream industrial novels, and as such, she reveals the political and economic tensions surrounding working class women'(2). Even Margaret says â€Å"Bessie’s comments address the specific problems of working-class women, problems that both unions and the middle class have an interest in ignoring†. Even when Bessie’s religious beliefs and her questioning of unionism are considered she is very revealing, Margaret sees her as having â€Å"a politics of her own† which both reveals her sense of disenfranchisement from the ongoing struggle between ‘masters and men’ and presents the most telling evidence in the novel of the iniquities of the class system. Something else that has to be considered in this scenario with Bessie as a dramatic tool towards Gaskell’s social commentary Elizabeth Gaskell’s ‘North and south’: A National Bildungsroman. † Victorian Newsletter 85 (1994) Briefly traces the emergence of and critical debate on the industrial novel, noting â€Å"the industrial novels have been read largely in relation to male working-class history, not in relation to female working-class history or to the emerging nineteenth-century women’s movement. The critic also goes on to stipulate that the comments on the patriarchal foundations of both Chartism and the union movement makes a case for the need to consider Marxist and feminist issues when considering the issues raised in north and south. He goes on to suggest that â€Å"by placing her heroine, Margaret Hale, between North and South, Gaskell attempts to bring to the surface the unconscious bifurcations that produce class and gender ideologies† and that because the novel is both a Bildungsroman as well as an industrial novel it acquires â€Å"unusual dimensions in both categories†(3). Feminism also plays a big part in Gaskell’s novel, through her three main characters, Margaret, Thornton and Higgins Gaskell shows a struggle for growth and indicates what the future of society may hold for people in similar situations and how society can grow as a whole. When the novel is examined as a debate on class and gender issues, the amount of time the characters spend â€Å"arguing about word choices, definitions and analogies† it is clear that almost all interactions in the novel are affected in some way by gender or class, even in language, â€Å"every term that comes under debate is changed with class or gender import†(4). With this much importance forced upon the character’s class and gender by their social environment a reader is certainly inclined to read the novel as an exploration into the Victorian class system rather than a conventional love story of the time. Even in Margaret’s romantic capacity as a woman, her gradual sexual awareness of John Thornton and their Marriage at the end of the novel is more understandable to read in a more feminist light than a romantic one. In marrying Thornton Margaret enters into a mutually equal relationship, one where her influence and goals will be felt as well as his, â€Å"through Margaret, Gaskell subtly reveals the new directions women are taking toward independent action and freedom†(5). However at the same time recognizing that the changes she undergoes are in no way revolutionary and that though the conflicting ideas of obedience and freedom are not completely settled by the end of the novel, â€Å"at least one woman has emerged into responsible adulthood and has claimed her part in deciding the terms of that settlement†(6). What is most interesting about this novel is that all the elements of a romantic novel are there, but it is written in a way that turns the readers head from the sentimental pride and prejudice Esq. prose and makes them focus on the environment and its social deficiencies â€Å"through this story of social rejection and Christian compassion, Gaskell charges her culture to replace what she sees as a rigid and reductive old testament ethic of charity†(7). This idea of a old to new change in a religious sense is also backed by Gaskell’s own Unitarian background, her father was a Unitarian minister, as was her husband, Margaret’s father in the novel itself is also a minister it could even be suggested that â€Å"Gaskell’s beliefs provided her with an alternative vision of society and code of behavior†(8) the importance of Gaskell’s religious beliefs and Unitarianism can be found in many aspects of the novel, not least that Unitarianism believed in the cultivation of the intellect regardless of sex, she found the religious authority to challenge the patriarchal subjugation of women, especially those who failed to fulfill their designated role in society. It is ironic to think; â€Å"in a period nearly defined by its theological doubt, Gaskell’s spiritual faith authorizes her revolutionary vision†(9). When Mr. Thornton, without further verbal explication, proposes to Margaret in a â€Å"strange and presumptuous way† at the end of the novel, we see the proper structure of an intimate relationship, both sides respect each other’s power while Thornton refuses to impose a political hierarchy. This is emphasized by the exchange over the flowers, which he bought as a token of her independent self, which is a revolutionary idea in itself at this point in history and conversely, gives rise to his second comment referring to marriage as possession, saying he had â€Å"no hope of ever calling her mine†, and the second refutation of such terms. Although the novel does not strive at any point to be romantic at the expense of the real issues that Gaskell tackles in the way people lived at the time, their unspoken resolution to marry signifies the resolution of the novel the binding of two genders, halves of England, social classes, and individuals, into one. In conclusion Gaskell is very successful in going further than any of her peers in actually exploring deficiencies in Victorian culture and society, although the main components of a classic love story are there, Margaret opts for the conscientious, religious option at every turn making the novel more a serious social commentary than anything else. Gaskell’s religious persuasion adds to this in that it allows her to transcend the class system and her constraints as a woman in Victorian England to address these problems under the banner of religion.

Education in the United States Essay

Education in the United States of America is governed by the Department of Education. There are three different levels of control and funding for public education: federal, state, and local. In the United States school is mandatory from Kindergarten through High School, consisting of thirteen different grade levels. Students can obtain an education by attending a public school, a private school, or a home school. In order to ensure that all students obtain the academic knowledge needed to progress through the grade levels, standardized tests are given regardless of where a student obtains an education (United States Department of Education, 2005). Education in the United States is governed and funded mainly by local jurisdictions, with the state and federal governments supervising educational activities and ensuring that all local jurisdictions are administering standardized tests and obtaining the funding needed to operate adequate educational facilities. The Tenth Amendment to the United States Constitution states that all powers that are not assigned to the federal government by the United States Constitution are reserved to the people or the individual states. As per the Tenth Amendment, the individual states control public education. Most states are divided into local jurisdictions that have elected school boards that oversee the individual school districts within its jurisdiction. The local school districts own and operate the public schools within its boundaries and are responsible for obtaining funding for each of the public schools they control (United States Constitution, Tenth Amendment, 1787). The majority of the funding for public education in the United States is obtained from local taxes and state governments. The federal government only provides 8. 5% of the funds for public education (National Center for Education Statistics, 2008). There has been some controversy over the No Child Left Behind Act passed in 2001 which allows the federal government to withhold funding if a state or local school district is not complying with the standards set forth in the No Child Left Behind Act. However, the funding withheld for non-compliance is not a significant amount (No Child Left Behind Act, 2001). There is a larger controversy over the local school districts obtaining funding primarily from local taxes. Local jurisdictions can impose many different types of taxes on its citizens. In the commonwealth of Massachusetts there has been controversy over the imposition of excise taxes and corporate taxes. Excise taxes are taxes that are not property taxes or taxes that are imposed based on statutory law. Corporate taxes are imposed on corporations within a certain jurisdiction that are paid to the local government. These taxes are in addition to any federal or state taxes that the corporation is responsible for. Businesses in the commonwealth of Massachusetts are required to pay quarterly excise taxes on an accelerated basis due 15 days prior to the end of each quarter. The first quarter payment is 40% of the required annual excise tax, the second and third payments are 25% each, and the fourth payment is 10% of the excise tax. The minimum amount of corporate excise tax required of all corporations operating within the commonwealth of Massachusetts is $456 per year regardless of whether or not the corporation made a profit that year (The National Federation of Independent Business, 2007). Chapter 70 Part 1, Title XII, Chapter 70 of the General Laws of Massachusetts regulates the financial disbursements awarded to each public school district throughout the commonwealth. The legislative intent of Chapter 70 is to assure fair and adequate minimum per student funding for public schools in the commonwealth by defining a foundation budget and a standard of local funding effort applicable to every city and town in the commonwealth (Chapter 70). Chapter 70 sets up rules on how to allocate the money. These rules set standards on how the money will be distributed if it is below a base amount or higher than a base amount. For example, in Section 13, Part B, the law states that â€Å"if the amount appropriated is more than the base amount, funds shall first be allocated to ensure that the state school aid for each municipality equals the base amount† (Chapter 70). This part tries to ensure that an equal distribution is set to each school. Although this is only occurs when more money is available, it still sets the standard that each school will at least get its base amount before other funds are distributed. In the event that there are not enough funds to cover the base, a formula has been established to attempt to make the distribution fair. The amount is reduced by a constant amount per student. The rate is found by the difference between the base amount and the actual amount divided by the total enrollment of the state (Chapter 70). Cambridge, Massachusetts Cambridge, Massachusetts is a city right outside Boston, Massachusetts. Cambridge is famous for its two prominent universities: Harvard University and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. The public school system in Cambridge is controlled by the Cambridge Public School District which consists of twelve elementary schools, of which eleven extend through eighth grade. There is only one high school in the Cambridge Public School District, Cambridge Rindge and Latin School. The Cambridge Public School District educates over 5,500 students every year with a project enrollment of 5,790 students for the 2008-2009 school year. The Cambridge Public School District has a proposed budget of $130,704,170. 00 for the 2008-2009 school year. This proposed budget has increased 2. 36% from the previous year. 75% of this proposed budget will be allocated to the individual schools within the district. The remaining 25% of this budget will be spent on administrative costs such as maintenance and security. The Cambridge Public School District is funded through a variety of sources in addition to local taxes. The Cambridge Public School District receives funds from thirteen federal grants awarded by the commonwealth of Massachusetts, eleven private grants, eleven revolving funds, ten state grants, two district federal grants, and one state-circuit breaker reimbursement. These grants account for $13,714,499 of the total funds needed to operate the schools within the Cambridge Public School District. The Cambridge Public School District also receives an average of $1,076 per student from Chapter 70 financial aid each year (Action Public Schools, 2006). Newton, Massachusetts Newton, Massachusetts is a suburb of Boston that consists of thirteen small villages. The Newton Public School District controls the fifteen elementary schools, four middle schools, and two high schools that are located in Newton, Massachusetts. The Newton Public School District educates an average of over 11,000 students each year throughout its twenty two public schools (Newton Public School District, 2008). The Newton Public School District has a proposed budget of $171,377,580 for the 2008-2009 school year. This proposed budget has increased 10. 5% from the previous year. According to this budget, the Newton Public School District spends $14,743 per student every year (Newton Public School District, 2008). The Newton Public School District is funded through a variety of sources in addition to local taxes. The Newton Public School District receives 55% of the revenue generated by the City of Newton. The Newton Public School District also receives over $8. 6 million dollars from federal, state, and private grants. Over $3 million dollars of the Newton Public School District budget is received from a program called Circuit Breaker which allocates special funds to school districts for additional special education courses. Federal, state, and private grants and the Circuit Breaker program account for almost $12 million dollars of the annual budget (Newton Public School District, 2006). The Newton Public School District also receives an average of $846 per student from Chapter 70 financial aid each year (Action Public Schools, 2006). Conclusions Allocating funds for public education in the United States is a complex process. Wealth and more funds do not necessarily lead to greater achievement by the students enrolled in the school district. Federal, state, and local jurisdictions must determine the most beneficial methods for allocating the educational funds available. These allocations are not equal and usually result in the more industrious neighborhoods receiving less funding from these sources, and incurring higher corporate taxes. The Newton Public School District receives less funding from external sources, and its businesses pay more corporate taxes. The allocated budget in the Newton Public School District is higher than the budget in Cambridge due to the fact that although the populations are similar, Newton operates twice as many educational facilities. . The Newton Public School District does not need the extra funds from external sources in order to reach its budget. Although the dollar amounts indicate an unfair advantage for the residents of Cambridge, both school districts are able to meet their budgets and educate their students adequately. Although the corporate tax system and excise tax system in Massachusetts may seem unfair to its businesses and residents, the public school districts within Massachusetts (including Newton and Cambridge) are able to meet the budget requirements due to the Chapter 70 allocations. The purpose of Chapter 70 is to create equality amongst the school districts and ensure that the cities that receive less corporate and excise tax are still able to operate successful public school districts so that every child within the commonwealth of Massachusetts has the opportunity to receive a quality education. REFERENCES The United States Census Bureau (2006). American FactFinder. Retrieved April 1, 2008 from http://factfinder. census. gov/ Action Public Schools (2006). Chapter 70 Aid Per Student High to Low. Retrieved April 1, 2008 from http://ab. mec. edu/about/Chapter70Aid/CH70PerStudentFY06. pdf Newton, Massachusetts (2008). 2008 Property Tax Rates. Retrieved April 1, 2008 from http://www. ci. newton. ma. us/Assessor/taxrate. htm Cambridge Massachusetts (2008). 2008 Property tax Rates. Retrieved April 1, 2008 from http://www. cambridgema. gov/CityOfCambridge_Content/documents/FY2008_Property_Tax_Update_Newsletter. pdf Newton Public School District (2008). General Information. Retrieved April 1, 2008 from http://www. newton. k12. ma. us Cambridge Public School District (2008). General Information. Retrieved April 1, 2008 from http://www. cpsd. us/index. cfm

History of graphic design Essay

To understand the nature and characteristics of visual communication, first it is important to define visual communication. Well, as the name suggests, it is communication of ideas and information through visual representation and display. Basically, it involves photography, signs, art and typography. However, recent studies and research on the subject have revealed that now visual communication is a more focused term, involving mainly web and graphic designs used for advertising. Earlier, visual communication was not a commercialised phenomenon. The first time an outdoor public space was rented for advertising purpose was in USA in the late 1860’s. However, until the early 20th century, advertising was unregulated in the United States. Ranging from products such as drugs, oils and ointments, any thing could be sold without proper verification. For instance, the advertisement of the of Merchant’s Gargling Oil, 1894, shows the oil to be ‘A Liniment for Man and Beast’ and below it is inscribed that yellow wrapper was for animal and white for beast. Companies selling such products could easily deceive people by selling of a same potion, wrapped differently. The rise of graphic designing and advertising, as complimentary to each other, was seen in the late 19th century as business directories started using different type sizes for the names of various companies, so as to identify each company and the products that it sold. Then advertisements promising job opportunities and a high standard of living and attracting people to come and settle in particular states, became popular. Here again, a very good example is the sunset magazine cover, published din 1904. The cover image displayed California, the ‘Golden State’ as a paradise with fruit orchards and 2 History of graphic design 3 pleasure for the youth. to change its image. The 19th century was however, characteristic of a stale and stagnant designing strategy. But, in the early 20th century, the graphic designers started to use the sans-serif font. Although the change was not significant, it was a slow evolution of graphic designing. They did not have the advantage of computer use and software products like Adobe InDesign, Adobe Photoshop, QuarkXPress and Corel Graphics Suite, just to name a few. Creating designs with the use of technology was a very challenging and arduous task. However, in 1890s, Frederic Goudy’s ‘The Inland Press, 1898, and Printer’s Ink, were among the first publications designed to serve the graphic designing world with technical knowledge. There are great names that had emerged and gained popularity in the early 20th century itself. One such designer was Eric Gill, a well known British typographer, sculptor and engraver. His first successful work was ‘Mother and Child’ created in 1912. Gill invented the Perpetua typescript on the foundation of Classical Roman letters for Morison in 1925. Herbert Bayer born in 1900 was another famous designer of this period. He invented a vivid visual style of designing and believed in clear simplification. Herbert Bayer became the art director of the Berlin affiliate of Vogue magazine in 1928. With graphics designing gaining ground as a coveted profession and increased use of technology in the industry, there has been no looking back.

Invasive Species Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Invasive Species - Research Paper Example The Asian Tiger Mosquito The Asian tiger mosquito is one of the most highly invasive species from Southeast Asia that has found its way to the Americas, Europe, Africa and the Pacific. The main difference between this species from the other mosquitoes is that it serves as a vector of several species of virus and it does so through its unique genetic make-up as well as its excellent adaptation to the new environment. A discussion of the nature of the Asian tiger mosquito is essential in fostering awareness of a species that has a potential to be one of the most dangerous vectors of viral diseases in this planet. Awareness of a particular dangerous species brings with it the responsibility to help prevent its spread and cooperation with authorities in mitigating its harm. Findings The Asian tiger mosquito, or Aedes albopictus, is known as a vector of several emerging diseases that were once native to Southeast Asia, where the said mosquito originated, and its niche is a parasite. It is mainly an invasive species anywhere in the world except in Southeast Asia, where it is native and original (Roiz et al., 2011). The transportation of eggs mainly through used tires and Lucky Bamboo plants was the only way this insect could have spread to America, the Indo-Pacific regions, Europe and Africa. Since the first record of its presence in Italy in Genoa in 1990 during the late summer, the mosquito is believed to have spread to the rest of Italy and Europe (Roiz et al., 2011). The first discovery of the species in Europe was as early as 1979 in Albania but the country hardest hit by the invasion was Italy with around 200 cases alone in the summer of 2007. In the United States, the discovery of the mosquito was a few years later in Memphis, Tennessee in 1983 and in the next 25 years, 36 U.S. states have been invaded including several countries in Central and South America with Brazil experiencing its first Asian tiger mosquito bite in 1986. The Asian tiger mosquito is an ag gressive daytime biter and is called â€Å"tiger† because of its bright white stripes. As a native of Southeast Asia, it used to be a dominant insect in the natural reservoirs including tree holes, vases, pots, buckets and vegetation. Moreover, the millions of tires shipped each year between Japan and Germany and the United States because of the use of recaps and the strict rules governing wear and tear of these tires may actually contain water that could hold Asian tiger mosquito larvae and more importantly eggs that are drought-resistant and can survive a comfortable, sheltered journey until they reach their destination (Enserink, 2008). One change that the Asian tiger mosquito has brought to the native and invaded ecosystems was disease. The Asian tiger mosquito is responsible for dengue and chikungunya fever. The chikungunya virus was believed to have undergone a single-nucleotide genetic mutation in the Indian mutation outbreak order for it to be able to use the Asian ti ger mosquito as a vector (Enserink, 2008). However, although the species is less invasive than the Aedes aegypti in spreading dengue, the Asian tiger mosquito is becoming increasingly important because its global distribution is rapidly changing. Other outbreaks of diseases caused by the Asian tiger mosquito include the dengue outbreaks in Hawaii from 2001 to 2002, in China in 2004, in Madagascar in 2006, and in Gabon