Biography of Ben Franklyn

Biography of Ben Franklyn Free Online Research Papers I think that Benjamin Franklin was a very important person. He was born on January 17, 1706, in Boston. Through out his life he has been a printer, author, diplomat, philosopher, and scientist. As a scientist he made many major inventions such as electricity. Back in Ben Franklin’s day people ranked him among the country’s greatest statesmen. His father was named Josiah Franklin. He was a tallow chandler which is a person that makes candles and soap. Josiah had 17 children; Benjamin was the 15th child and the 10th son. His mothers name was Abiah Folger, she was his father’s second wife. The Franklin family was very poor, like most New England families. Ben went to grammer school form age eight to ten when he was taken into his fathers buisness. Ben didn’t like the work as a tallow chandler so he became a cutler. At age 13 he helped out his brother James, who had just returned from England with a new printing press. Benjamin learned the printing trade. In his spare time he extended his education. In 1721 his brother James Franklin established the New England Courant, and when Ben was 15 he was busily occupied by delivering the newspaper in the day and in writing articles for it at night. When he wrote his articles they were signed anonymous. Because of its content, the New England Courant frequently got the conlonial authorities mad. In 1722 James Franklin was put in jail for a month and was not allowed to write it anymore so Ben had to write it under his name. As Ben continued to work for James they faught a lot so Ben left Boston and went to live in Philadelphia in October 1723. While he was there he traded with numerous people and made lots of friends, one of his friends was Sir William Keith who was the provincial governor of Pennsylvania. He told Franklin to go to London to complete his training as a printer and to purchase the equipment needed to start his own printing establishment in Philadelphia. Franklin was young and took this advice, arriving in London in December 1724. When he arrived Ben didn’t receive promised letters of introduction and credit from Keith. Franklin was in a strange town with out any money or credit at age 18. Ben was very resourceful and get a job at two of the best printing houses in London. They were Palmer’s and Watt’s. In October 1726, Franklin returned to Philadelphia and continued his trade. The following year he got a bunch of friends together and formed a group known as the Junto. Which later became the American Philosophical Society. In September 1729, he bought the Pennsylvania Gazette that was a boring, poorly edited weekly newspaper. He made this newspaper entertaining and informative with his witty style and knowledge of news. In 1730 he married Deborah Read she was a Philadelphia woman whom he had known before his trip to England. Franklin had many public projects. In 1731 he set up what was probably the first public library in America. Named in 1742 the Philadelphia Library. He first published Poor Richard’s Almanac in 1732, under the pen name, which was Richard Saunders. This book was a big success. In 1736 Franklin became clerk of the Pennsylvania General Assembly and the next year was picked for deputy postmaster of Philadelphia. About this time, he got together the first fire company in that city and introduced methods for the improvement of street paving and lighting. Ben also invented the Franklin stove that got rid of excess smoke from normal chimneys and also heated the houses better. In 1747 Franklin began to do electric experiments that started with a simple apparatus that he received from Peter Collinson in England. He advanced a theory of the Leyden jar, which was the idea that lightning is an electrical phenomenon, and made an effective method of demonstrating this fact. His plan was published in London and carried out in England and France before he himself performed his famous experiment with the kite in 1752. He invented the lightning rod and offered what is called the â€Å"one-fluid† theory in which it explains that there are two kinds of electricity, positive and negative. When the people of the University of St. Andrews and the University of Oxford found out about his scientific experiments and he got honorary degrees. In 1753 Ben was awarded a Copley Medal for his science experiments. In 1748 Franklin sold his printing business and, in 1750, was elected to the Pennsylvania Assembly, in which he served until 1764. He was made deputy postmaster general for the colonies in 1753, and in 1754 he was the representative from Pennsylvania to the Intercolonial Congress that met in Albany to dicuss methods of dealing with the French and Indian War (1754-1763). In March 1785, Franklin, at his own request, left his duties in France and returned to Philadelphia, where he was immediately chosen president of the Pennsylvania executive council (1785-87). In 1787 he was elected a delegate to the congress that drew up the U.S. Constitution. Franklin was deeply interested in interesting projects, and one of his last public acts was to sign a petition to the U.S. Congress, on February 12, 1790, as president of the Pennsylvania Abolition Society, telling people to get rid of slavery and the suppression of the slave trade. Two months later, on April 17, Franklin died in his Philadelphia home at 84 years of age. This concludes my report on Ben Franklin and shows why I think Ben Franklin was an interesting and smart person. Research Papers on Biography of Ben FranklynBook Review on The Autobiography of Malcolm XQuebec and CanadaPersonal Experience with Teen PregnancyAnalysis Of A Cosmetics AdvertisementMarketing of Lifeboy Soap A Unilever ProductTrailblazing by Eric AndersonComparison: Letter from Birmingham and CritoStandardized TestingHip-Hop is ArtHonest Iagos Truth through Deception

Satire in Oranges Arent the Only Fruit and Picka Pocketoni Essays

Satire in Oranges Arent the Only Fruit and Picka Pocketoni Essays Satire in Oranges Arent the Only Fruit and Picka Pocketoni Paper Satire in Oranges Arent the Only Fruit and Picka Pocketoni Paper Essay Topic: The Book Thief In Oranges Arent The Only Fruit and Picka Pocketoni, the authors Jeanette Winterson and David Sedaris created the idea of satire to mock a stereotype. The stereotype being mocked was that same sexes couldnt be together and how certain people, in this case the French, smelled or acted a certain way. They used examples of diction and hyperboles cto compare and contrast similar and different tones between the two. Throughout both the stories that were told, they tried to make it so the audience could find humor of some sort. In other words, Sedaris and Winterson both set two different types of tones in their writing. To start it off, Sedaris was using hyperbole,which is not to be taken literally,to exemplify to the readers that people assume things and are stereotypical people. They are stereotypical because they are following based off what society sets the expectations for people. In Picka Pocketoni, an American, Martin, was on the train with his wife in Paris and noticed an odor. Based off of poor judgement, Martin assumed that due to David not having a pleasurable scent that he was French. It is known to society that French people dont bathe. Although David was not French, Martin was being ignorant and assumed it; David was American as well. Since Martin was American, a stereotype was set for him in addition. American tourists are arrogant, ignorant, and unconcerned of other cultures. It was noticeable that Martin didnt know what he was talking about and was judging a book by its cover. Martins wife said, Do they all smell this bad?. In other words, the author is conveying that people act st ereotypical. As a result, David Sedaris created his idea of satire mocking a stereotype. For Picka Pocketoni, David states, I was a stinkpot and a thief, then later says, another few minutes and he might decide I was a crack dealer and white slaver. The author was not being literal and seriously meant that he was those things

Health Service Provision for Older Patients Essay

Health Service Provision for Older Patients - Essay Example The current rise in elderly population due to improvements in health care systems (WHO, 2006) has caused an increase in the number of patients suffering from dementia and hence more research, education, understanding and training with regard to management of dementia patients in hospital setting is warranted. In this essay, the most common cause of dementia in the elderly, Alzheimer's disease, will be discussed through review of literature. The signs and symptoms of the disease, the pathophysiology and various aspects of nursing intervention will be elaborated. Alzheimer's disease Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a common degenerative disease of the brain that leads to dementia (Anderson, 2010). Infact, it is the most common cause of dementia and is incurable. The disease is an acquired condition in which there is impairment of cognition and behavior of the individual that is severe enough to disrupt normal occupational and social functioning of the individual. AD is a major public health problem associated with significant morbidity, impairment and economic consequences (Anderson, 2010). More often than not, the disease is mainly diagnosed after 65 years of age, although, an early-onset variety of AD does exists which presents much early. According to Brookmeyer et al (2007), 1 in 85 people in the world are likely to suffer from AD by 2050. The course of the disease is different for different individuals and thus is the prognosis. The most common early symptom, which is often ignored as an aging feature or stress consequence is the lack of ability to acquire new memories. Other symptoms include changes in cognition and behavior of the individual like irritability, confusion, aggression, mood swings, breakdown in language, withdrawal and long-term loss of memory. As the age advances, various functions of the body are gradually lost, terminating in death. AD imposes severe burden on the caregivers and can influence various aspects of the life of the caregiver detrime ntally. Diagnosis of AD is mainly established through tests for cognition and assessment of behavior. Brain scan is often used as an adjunct to establish the diagnosis. The mean life expectancy of the individual following the diagnosis is about 7 years (Molsa et al, 1995). Pathophysiology The exact cause of AD is still not understood well and there is no treatment which can either cure the disease or prevent the progression of the disease. Even the prevention of the disease is unknown although some researchers are of the opinion that regular exercise, balanced diet and mental stimulation prevent AD (Anderson, 2010). There is some evidence to tell that AD is associated with tangles and plagues in the brain (Ding et al, 2007). Previously, it was hypothesized that decrease in the synthesis of acetylcholine causes the disease. Infact, several treatments for AD were based on that. However, since patients did not respond well to those treatments, the hypothesis could not be maintained. Su bsequently, the amyloid hypothesis was developed, according to which, deposits of amyloid beta were the cause for development of the disease.

The Securities and Exchange Commission Assignment

The Securities and Exchange Commission - Assignment Example The role of the division of investment management is to regulate investment companies. The SEC protects investors by providing a regulatory framework that oversees the activity of public corporations. The SEC creates laws that are geared towards ensuring public corporations report accurate information in a timely manner. An example of a law enforced by the SEC that raised investor confidence in 21st century after a series of corporate scandals is the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002. The work performed by the SEC enforcement division ensures corrupt companies face penalties for their actions. A fair, orderly, and efficient market means that investors have access to a reliable marketplace that is able to handle all the consumer orders during trading hours. The trading and markets division accomplishes this task by regulating the major securities market participants which includes the brokers, dealers, transfer agents, and self-regulatory organizations. The superb electronic information system of the SEC is essential to run the market in a fair, orderly, and efficient manner. Capital formation occurs when the money saved by the government and the individuals of a society is transferred to the business sector. The SEC is an institution whose objective and mission is to promote capital formation. The SEC promotes capital formation by ensuring corporation disclose all financial information through mechanisms such as the Annual Report. The investigations performed by the SEC help stop illegal activities such as insider trading that are detrimental to

Macbeth was one of the first plays written during the reign of James I Essay Example for Free

Macbeth was one of the first plays written during the reign of James I Essay Macbeth was one of the first plays written during the reign of James I. Shakespeare intended to honour the King by glorifying Banquo, the legendary founder of the Stuart line. Hence the play also serves as a mirror for magistrates, a dramatization of the theme of kingship. James I strongly believed in the Divine Right of kings. He believed that the lord of the heavens had placed kings to rule over people in the world, thus Kings had a god-given right to rule and treachery was like turning away from God and not only the king. In actually fact, if you went against your own king, you were indeed challenging God. James I had ruled the Scottish Parliament more or less how he liked using the concept of Divine Right but when he came to rule over England, he found the English parliament far less easy to handle, insisting that the king could only rule by its consent. In Macbeth the common theme is based on the natural order of things. Macbeths lawless act destroys all law: it occasions confusion and disorder in the world of men and animals as well as in the heavens above. Everywhere there is upheaval: on the night when the murder is done, chimneys are blown down, lamentations and strange screams of death are heard in the air, and some say the earth was feverous and did shake (2,3,53-59). All this confirms the interdependency of man and nature. The natural elements, following the death of Duncan, are in strange disorder and there is the further recounting of other amazing violations of nature, the unnatural behaviour of animals no longer acting according to their ways. A falcon towering in her pride of place was by a mousing owl hawked at and killed (2,4,13). As you can probably guess the owl is supposed to represent King Duncan, on top of the chain, and mousing owl is supposed to be Macbeth, the person who broke this chain and disordered everything, to the tiniest atom. Macbeth, at the time would have been exceptionally, politically advantageous to James because it would have greatly increased the publics view that James I was Gods so-called Sergeant on earth, and so had the right to do or change whatever he pleased. The easiest way to attack a political rival was to accuse him of treachery and the easiest way to prove his treachery was to link him with one of the proscribed religious groups. In 1605 James dealt with some troublesome rivals by claiming to have detected a Catholic plot to blow up the parliament. In Scotland, even more than in England at the time, political troublemakers were accused of witchcraft and heresy. James himself was an authority on witchcraft and the London edition of his Demonology was published in 1603, the year of his accession to the throne of Great Britain. Certainly most people believed in the existence and power of witches, devils and ghosts and the religiously orthodox stressed that the devil could take many shapes. According to the teaching of the Church, Heaven and Hell were actual places and the central teaching of Christianity was the sinful (fallen) nature of man and the necessity of a sense of guilt to bring the sinner to accept the salvation from sinfulness offered by Christ. The reason of man was not foolproof and the Church urged the faithful to be on their guard against any suggestion of communication with the Devil. In Act I, Scene 3 of Macbeth Baquo expresses similar fears concerning the witches: Were such things here as we do speak about? Or have we eaten on the insane root That takes the reason prisoner? (Lines 82-84) And And oftentimes, to win us to our harm, The instruments of darkness tell us truths; Win us with honest trifles, to betrays In deepest consequence (Lines 122-125 At the start of the play there surrounds two conflicting views of the hero, Macbeth. In scene 1, when the audience have already found out that the witches have met in order to meet Macbeth, a big question mark surrounds Macbeth. The audience is forced to ask themselves who is this Macbeth and what business does he have with these foul witches. In scene 2 the audience finds out the true identity of Macbeth. He is indeed a Hero! We learn that a battle between King Duncans army and the rebels is raging nearby. The scene starts of with King Duncan being given the latest news of the rebellion by the sergeant. The sergeant reports, with great enthusiasm, how the battle was at first, in balance. That is until, gallant and brave Macbeth, ignoring all the odds, slashing in and out with his bloody sword reached the traitor Macdowald and with no pity, ripped the traitor from head to toe. After hearing how the battle went, King Duncan has nothing but praise for the heroic deed of Macbeth and announces that Macbeth is to be given the title of Thane of Cawdor and the treacherous Cawdor is to be executed immediately. The battle is given a size and importance that magnify the qualities of Macbeth and our curiosity and anticipation are aroused to meet this might champion so praised by all who have seen him. But our memories still hold the mention of his name by the witches and the finale line of the scene (What he hath lost noble Macbeth hath won) reminds us of line 4 in scene 1 (When the battles lost and one) and this connexion is consolidated in Scene 3. Macbeths first words echo the witches so foul is fair a day I have not seen. This suggests Macbeth is already in tune with the way the witches think. Banquo believes that these witches are in league with the devil and thus should not be trusted, Can the devil speak truth? However Macbeth wants to hear more of this strange intelligence, upon this blasted heath you stop our way with such prophetic greeting? Speak, I charge you. The witches predict two things:- that Macbeth will become the thane of Cawdor, and the king hereafter. They also predict two things for Banquo that he will be lesser than Macbeth, and his children will be the kings after Macbeth. The witches second prediction of Macbeth (All hail Macbeth, that shalt be king hereafter) is exactly what Macbeth wants to hear because it is his greatest ambition to be king, the ultimate prize is his for grabs. The soliloquy beginning Two truths are told which shows that the witches second prediction has come true about Mabeth earning the title of Thane of Cawdor. Macbeth then begins thinking about the witches third prophecy the greatest is behind and what he needs to do now to become king. It is at this point that he starts to consider murder but he feels very uneasy about the word even though he is renown around Scotland as a ruthless soldier, why do I yield to that suggestion whose horrid image doth unfix my hair and make my seated heart knock at my ribs (1,3,134-136). Macbeth is confused but still very ambitious. Macbeth shows signs of having a good heart and good intentions, but he also shows that he has a weak mind that ignores and disobeys what he knows is right. You can straight away see that Macbeth has got a powerful conscious when Lady Macbeth has a torrid time trying to convince him to kill King Duncan. At first he absolutely refuses to do such a horrible deed to such a noble person. He knows in his heart that to kill Duncan is wrong and deceitful. The reader can tell that Macbeth is trying is utmost best to resist the misgivings of his wife. We will proceed no further. He hath honoured me of late, and I have bought Golden opinions from all sorts of people, Which would be worn now in their newest gloss, Not cast aside so soon (1,7,31-35). Although he knows that this deed will have profound consequences he allows Lady Macbeth to persuade him into doing what he knows is wrong. Macbeth knows he has chosen the wrong path when he says, Ill go no more. I am afraid to think what I have done; Look ont again, I dare not (2,3,46-48). Therefore Macbeth is disobeying what his own heart is telling him. In fact, Macbeth speaks of the distrust he has for his own heart when he says False face must hide what the false heart doth know. Lady Macbeth persuades her husband to do the murder by telling him that, all he is doing, is fulfilling his own lofty ambition and that surely he is not a coward. If he is a man, he should act like one. The fact that Macbeth is so easily persuaded to kill a man, proves that he must have considered murder before. It is also the sign of a person who has a weak mind and who does not stand up for himself. Lady Macbeth feeds on this weakness. Macbeth is tempted to do evil and Lady Macbeth is the key human agent the one Macbeth trusts and loves- who ensures his temptation is through and complete. Lady Macbeth, when we first encounter her is, dominant, determined, powerful, and even perhaps frightening in the intensity of her uncompromising desire for her husband to ascend the throne. Be it, the price of murder. We understand that Macbeth has his own deep desires, but this seems tame compared with Lady Macbeths unquenchable aspirations (she summons evil itself into her body and soul to unsex her and remove any doubts she might have). Further, we see in her actions, a cool, self-assured person, unlike her husband. When Macbeth falters, she is there and she also has the courage to return the daggers and to faint at the news of King Duncans murder, and so distract any attention from her husband. She plans the details of the murder; she has the future worked out. She is also pre-eminently cunning and shows no fear of the supernatural and death itself. That is why she can say, a little water clears us of this deed (2,2,67), because there is nothing to fear from God and old-fashioned ideas of retribution. She can happily envisage hypocrisy and falsehood. Lady Macbeth and Macbeth fates are inextricably joined, but her role and character support Macbeths destiny. However like Macbeth, Lady Macbeth shows moments of humanity she would have killed Duncan herself only he reminded her of her own father. It is these small details that perhaps indicate that she is not as cold and inhuman as she makes herself to be. It could actual, all be an act just to persuade Macbeth to do the final deed. This of course makes her breakdown seem the more inevitable as she is bound to blame herself in some way for the murder. Ultimately she finds out that water will not wash away the stain of blood. It is then ironic that Macduff on first meeting Lady Macbeth refers to her as gentle lady and one too sensitive to even hear the word murder. By the end of the play she is recognized for what she is, a fiend-like queen (5,6,108). Macbeth, in the final analysis, is too preoccupied with his own role to give support to her. Once he has done his first major murder he needs no help from her to do the others. Macbeth is a man of action: the play proves this in more ways then others. He is a fearless warrior and an important lord who defends his king against treachery. However, ambition is his finale weakness. He allows, first the witches prophesy and then his wifes ambition for him, to undermine his integrity. It is clear that he is not easily won over to evil. His conscience is strong and throws up many objections to his doing the deed. However, he is also too easily influenced in the direction that he secretly desires to go. Once he has decided, he does not deviate, and each step subsequently reaffirms his initial choice. Macbeth, then, is determined, and with this determination turns to a violent and ruthless path, full of chaos. So how does Macbeth a peerless kinsman, develops into King Duncans murderer? Is Macbeths mistake in killing gracious king Duncan, his entire fault? Is he to blame for his own doing or were they any other factors that bade him to do this terrible deed? Is Macbeth still the hero at the end of this play and does he deserve what he gets? For these Questions to be answered we need to look at the fundamental theme of the play, Ambition. Partly because it is the driving force of Macbeths life. Macbeth is a deep sentimental tragedy. Tragedy, in Shakespeare usually concerns a great person, the hero, who through some weakness of his character falls from grace, endures intense sufferings (which fascinate the audience), and who inevitable dies a tragic death. In fact, who must die as a consequence of their weakness. Thus if you look at The Tragedy of Macbeth, we find all these ingredients; and if we consider what is the heros weakness, it must and can only be ambition. Macbeth says this specifically when he is attempting to resist the murder of Duncan: I have no spur.but only/Vaulting ambition which oerleaps itself (1,7,25-7).This acknowledgement comes after he has considered all the good reasons for not murdering Duncan. Only ambition is left to overrule his troubled conscience. Furthermore, whilst the influence of both Lady Macbeth and the witches is strong, their power over Macbeth is only possible because the ambition is already there. Macbeth ,then, is a hero but one who is fatally undermined by his ambition, that are the fabric of the play. Put in another way: it is his ambition that leads Macbeth to murder, treason, hypocrisy, corruption and deepest evil.

The Uncertainty Of Perception :: essays research papers

The Uncertainty of Perception "Seeing conditions what we believe†¦believing conditions what we see." This observation is the core of society and the substratum of human behavior. Psychological studies have reinforced and proven theories involving the conditioning of humans. However, failure lies in the attempt to assign the causes to a single concept. Among the vast influences for human behavior is our tendency to see what our beliefs would have us to, and hence, believe only what we happen to see. Obviously, my previous statement only obfuscates our attempt to comprehend the intended notion. In order to attain total understanding of the profound thought the quotation develops, I will attempt to analyze and apply it to my experience and knowledge of conditioning. Primarily, I need a concise interpretation of the idea. The contextual definition of see is "to perceive by the eye." Unfortunately, sight, is only one of five senses. Even worse, the images we see through our eyes are s tatistically only one-millionth of our actual reality. Therefore, anything we see is not the entire being or actuality of the world around us but instead a finite perception (by means of vision) of the universe. The technical definition of the other key term, belief, is "a state or habit of mind in which trust or confidence is placed in some person or thing." In context, I will use the typical philosopher's definition and define belief as "the unthinking acceptance of an idea or system of ideas." Philosophically, belief is "blind" and is described as "the process of making a commitment to an idea in order to make that idea work for you." In a selfish sense, it is the process of making ideas true. Transitionally, the quotation can be interpreted as "Our finite perception of reality determines what we will accept as the truth, and what we view as the truth will alter our already limited perceptions of life." Although wordy, a better co nnotation is produced and the coherence of the concept is increased. "Well, now that we have seen each other," said the Unicorn, "if you believe in me, I'll believe in you. Is that a bargain?" writes Lewis Carroll in his piece, Through the Looking-Glass. The situation of the Unicorn and Man appears to be that neither believed in the other because they had never seen the other species, thus illustrating the age-old slogan "Seeing is believing." In today's modern society that maxim is evident. The Uncertainty Of Perception :: essays research papers The Uncertainty of Perception "Seeing conditions what we believe†¦believing conditions what we see." This observation is the core of society and the substratum of human behavior. Psychological studies have reinforced and proven theories involving the conditioning of humans. However, failure lies in the attempt to assign the causes to a single concept. Among the vast influences for human behavior is our tendency to see what our beliefs would have us to, and hence, believe only what we happen to see. Obviously, my previous statement only obfuscates our attempt to comprehend the intended notion. In order to attain total understanding of the profound thought the quotation develops, I will attempt to analyze and apply it to my experience and knowledge of conditioning. Primarily, I need a concise interpretation of the idea. The contextual definition of see is "to perceive by the eye." Unfortunately, sight, is only one of five senses. Even worse, the images we see through our eyes are s tatistically only one-millionth of our actual reality. Therefore, anything we see is not the entire being or actuality of the world around us but instead a finite perception (by means of vision) of the universe. The technical definition of the other key term, belief, is "a state or habit of mind in which trust or confidence is placed in some person or thing." In context, I will use the typical philosopher's definition and define belief as "the unthinking acceptance of an idea or system of ideas." Philosophically, belief is "blind" and is described as "the process of making a commitment to an idea in order to make that idea work for you." In a selfish sense, it is the process of making ideas true. Transitionally, the quotation can be interpreted as "Our finite perception of reality determines what we will accept as the truth, and what we view as the truth will alter our already limited perceptions of life." Although wordy, a better co nnotation is produced and the coherence of the concept is increased. "Well, now that we have seen each other," said the Unicorn, "if you believe in me, I'll believe in you. Is that a bargain?" writes Lewis Carroll in his piece, Through the Looking-Glass. The situation of the Unicorn and Man appears to be that neither believed in the other because they had never seen the other species, thus illustrating the age-old slogan "Seeing is believing." In today's modern society that maxim is evident.

Ethnomedicine Essay

Since the beginning of man, there have been ailments that have plagued the human race without concern of who it is inflicting or why they occur. These ailments had to have been combated by some sort of medicine by each culture and their remedies must have been plenty. The plethora of different kinds of medicines and remedies to these ailments among the different kinds of cultures is what we, Team Bloodnut, define as ethnomedicine. Many cultures throughout the world practice some form of ethnomedicine. A field of anthropological research, ethnomedicine seeks to describe the medical systems and practices utilized in different cultures. It examines the origins of what people believe cause illness, as well as examine the ways in which individual cultures treat such maladies. Team Bloodnut wanted to discover the healing beliefs and practices held by Amazonian shamans. Through the use of a life history interview, we sought to understand the traditions held by a people through the experiences of a man working with a former shaman of the tribe. Team Bloodnut formed a hypothesis regarding ethnomedicine in today’s modern world. We hypothesized that the remedies and medicines indigenous cultures use to heal the ill are unorthodox from the stand point of western civilization. Western society will view these remedies as barbarian and a total fallacy. We conducted our research through a life history interview, contacting a filmmaker named Matthew Vincent. Possessing an interest in natural medicines, Vincent spent over half a year living in Peru documenting the experiences of an American Shaman’s journey into the depths of Amazonian Shamanism. Together, they discovered the origins and methods involved in practicing shamanism in relation to this particular cultural group. Matthew trained under the ‘gringo shaman’ Ron Wheelock, learning the techniques and methods required to effectively heal members of the community in which they lived. In order to effectively film his documentary in a realistic manner, Matthew Vincent needed to integrate himself into the rituals, learning their practices and lifestyles. Researching through a life history interview best utilized our information since it enabled us to capture the personal experience of a man submerging himself into such a specific aspect of a community’s life. Our group set out to understand the origins of Amazonian shamanism. We wished to learn about the beliefs of the roots of illnesses as well as the methods used to treat them. Ethnomedicine seeks to understand what illnesses mean within a culture and how to remedy these ailments. According to Vincent, shamans believe people contract illnesses due to a variety of reasons. Culturally, the soul brings balance to the physical body and makes it strong. If presumed damaged or corrupt by devious spirits, souls must undergo ritualistic healing in order to return to a healthy state. Physical illness is thought to be a manifestation of corruption within the soul. In order to correct this corruption, patients go through a mixture of ritualistic songs, plant gnosis, and trances. Shamans utilize trances in order to enter different states of consciousness, allowing them to interact with souls and spirits to perform healing to the soul and bring the spirits back to the sick physical body. One extremely common way to remedy an ailment in Amazonian Shamanism is through the use of ayahuasca. Ayahuasca is an extremely hallucinogenic vine used in brews that are consumed by the Shaman along with the patient so the Shaman can conjure the spirits of the plants used in the brew to foresee any future ailments, cure any immediate ones, and try to prevent any others from manifesting themselves within the patient’s body and or soul. The ayahuasca brew can take any time from a couple of hours to brew, all the way to up to two days, being cooked three times. Wheelock told Vincent that he has treated people who have visited a psychiatrist for over a year and with one ayahuasca ceremony, the patient feels more rejuvenated and alive than ever before. Ayahuasca can also be used for other uses as well, depending on the ingredients used in the brew. For example, if brewed with shapishico, moonshine, and rainwater, and left to sit together for about nine days, this brew acts as an extremely potent aphrodisiac. Shamans are not only medicine men, but spiritual guides. Shamans can choose from two different paths when immersing themselves in their practices. They can choose to be curandero or a brujo. A curandero is a healer. He is the medicine man that can heal physical and psychological ailments that one might have. He does this through plant gnosis and conjuring the spirits of the plants to help cure the patient. A brujo, on the other hand, focuses on the dark arts of Shamanism, although he can also heal. In a Shamans training, they are visited by spirits and are given magical darts. These magical darts are a brujo’s weapon of choice when it comes to causing harm or kill another. He can use those towards anybody in the world as long as he has their name, a mental image of the person, a picture, or some sort of memorabilia that depicts who their target is. A curandero will only use these magical darts, usually, to defend himself. When a curandero sends a magical dart to a brujo, it’s usually with the intention to kill him. After conducting our life history interview, Team Bloodnut came to a conclusion on our hypothesis. We concluded that our hypothesis was correct regarding the differences between western medicines and Amazonian Shamanistic medicines. Western medicines include all of the technologies, modern medicines, and commodities that these indigenous cultures do not have access to; therefore we are much more technologically advanced. These countries are at a disadvantage when it comes to the commodities and technologies but that doesn’t mean that the quality is any less. These medicine men spend most of their lives learning how to conjure and interact with these spirits of nature so that they can heal in their favor. The way in which they do so shouldn’t be frowned upon. If these Shamans have found ways to cure, not just treat these illnesses and ailments, then why haven’t we, Western Civilization, adopted these methods? Is it the fear or the skepticism of failure? We think that it’s not so simple. We believe that the reason for these medicines not being accepted into our country is simply so the government won’t lose money and control. Wheelock cured a patient that had been visiting a shrink for over a year. In that time how much money did that psychiatrist earn? From that income how much did the government take from the psychiatrist in taxes? This is only for one person, too. Some people spend half of their lives, if not longer visiting some kind of medical practitioner or some form of psychedelic help. There will never be a shortage of sick people, so if they are simply just cured with a couple of ayahuasca ceremonies, that’s a pretty significant chunk out of the United States’ money supply. Not only is it a monetary issue, but also a control issue. If these practices were administered in the United States, people would gain insight and enlightenment to its effects. There is a chemical in ayahuasca that is an intense psychedelic. Dimethyltryptamine is the psychedelic in the ayahuasca that puts the body in the state in which it can be visited by manifesting spirits of the vine. If this psychedelic were to fall into the wrong hands, it could be very harmful to not only to America’s economy, but also to the ones who abuse it. Ergo, ethnomedicine is a sensitive subject because it is not only a way to treat people within a certain country or tribe, but it is also the way of life and the way generations upon generations have practiced these remedies. Just because different cultures do things differently, it doesn’t mean that one way is right and the other is wrong. If we, as a species and inhabitants of this Earth, all worked together and shared our practices with each other in the field of medicine, maybe we could find cures, not just treatments to malignant diseases such as cancer. Ayahuasca ceremonies are not just a ritual to heal patients that come to Shamans, but also a lifestyle.