Autism in the United States

Autism is a disorder of neural development, it is characterized by impaired social interaction, and sub-par verbal and non-verbal communication. Sometimes these signs will not show until the child is three years old or even older. The disorder effects information processing in the brain, but it is not fully understood how. Autism rates climb in the U.S. but this could be due to better diagnosis than previous years. Below I have some facts that relate to the disorder in the United States.

• 1% of children ages 3-17 have Autism.
• It is estimated 1 out of every 88 births will result with a child that has Autism.
• Fastest growing developmental disability in the U.S.
• Expect to grow 10-17% annually.
• 5 times more common in boys than girls
• Average medical expendatures exceed $4,000 for a person with Autism
• On 56% of students with Autism finish high school

Sources:
"Prevalence of Autism Spectrum Disorders — Autism and Developmental Disabilities Monitoring Network, 14 Sites, United States, 2008." Department of Health and Human Services, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Morbitity and Mortality Weekly Report, 30 March 2012.

Rosenberg RE, Law JK, Yenokyan G, McGready J, Kaufmann WE, Law PA. Characterisitics and concordance of autism spectrum disorders among 277 twin pairs. Arch Pediatr Adolesc Med. 2009; 163(10): 907-914.

Based on the autism prevalence rate of 1 in 110 (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2009) and 2000 U.S. Census figure of 280 million Americans.

Radioactive Waste in the United States

As one can assume radioactive waste is waste that contains radioactive material. This is often a by-product of of nuclear power generation, and of other nuclear technology. Radioactive waste is hazardous to the environment, and regulated by government agencies such as the EPA. The purpose of this blog is to present some of the facts and statistics of radioactive waste in the United States so one can form their own opinion on the topic.

• As of 2005 54,000 tons of radioactive waste was stored in the U.S.
• By 2015 that number is projected to be over 72,000 tons
• 32 states (Including Iowa) have agreed to house radioactive waste
• Over 20,000 have licenses to posses radioactive materials
• Exposure to radiation can change blood chemistry
• Exposure to radiation can cause nausea, and fatigue
• Long term exposure to radiation can cause cancer and other potentially fatal diseases

Sources:
http://www.uvm.edu/~vlrs/Energy/NuclearWaste.pdf
http://www.nrc.gov/waste.html
http://www.nei.org/Knowledge-Center/Nuclear-Statistics/On-Site-Storage-of-Nuclear-Waste
 http://assets.sbnation.com/assets/1148410/yuccamtn_waste_locations.jpg (image)
http://large.stanford.edu/courses/2011/ph241/madres1/
http://www.world-nuclear.org/info/Safety-and-Security/Radiation-and-Health/Nuclear-Radiation-and-Health-Effects/
http://www.epa.gov/radiation/understand/health_effects.html

Racial Profiling Statistics

In the movie My Name is Khan, we see an example of racial profiling. A man with brown skin murmuring words in a foreign language is stopped by security for those 2 reasons alone. When I saw this scene I decided I wanted to know more about racial profiling from a statistical perspective. After a search of some reliable sources I have this information:

A study from the Department of Justice in 2007 reveals:

• Blacks and Hispanics are 3 times more likely to be searched at a traffic stop.
• Blacks are twice as likely to be arrested.
• Blacks are 4 times more likely to experience the threat or use of force when arrested.

Other studies State and Federal studies:

• "A February 2009 study of traffic stops and searches in West Virginia found a similar pattern of racial profiling. The data reveal that African-American motorists were 1.64 times more likely to be stopped than White drivers. Hispanics were 1.48 times more likely to be stopped. After the traffic stop, non-Whites were more likely to be arrested, yet police in West Virginia obtained a significantly higher contraband hit rate for White drivers than minorities.
• In Minnesota, a statewide study of racial profiling during 2002 found that African-American, Hispanic, and Native American drivers were all stopped and searched more often than Whites, yet contraband was found more frequently in searches of White drivers’ cars. Had all drivers been stopped at the same rates in the 65 local jurisdictions reporting data, 22,500 more Whites would have been stopped, while 18,800 fewer African Americans and 5,800 fewer Hispanics would have been stopped.
• In Illinois, data collected after the 2003 passage of the Illinois Traffic Stops Statistics Act, sponsored by then-Illinois State Senator Barack Obama, shows similar patterns of racial profiling by law enforcement authorities. The number of consent searches after traffic stops of African-American and Hispanic motorists was more than double that of Whites. The consent searches found White motorists were twice as likely to have contraband.
• A 2005 study analyzing data gathered statewide in Texas reveals disproportionate traffic stops and searches of African Americans and Hispanics, even though law enforcement authorities were more likely to find contraband on Whites."-http://www.civilrights.org/publications/reports/racial-profiling2011/the-reality-of-racial.html

The question must be raised why is this the case? Is it a case of racism? Or are non-white citizens more likely to be doing illegal activities? The truth is in 2011 69.2% of all arrested people were white, 28.4% were black, and 2.4% were other races.Yet, 72.4% of Americans are white while only 12.6% of Americans are black. By these numbers it is a fact have a higher ratio of arrests to total population than whites. This could be because of the fact they are searched more often as you can tell from the studies above. Or this could be a case of the fact that around 25% percent of blacks are below the poverty line and feel they must do illegal activities to support themselves. .

Sources:

https://www.aclu.org/racial-justice/department-justice-statistics-show-clear-pattern-racial-profiling

http://www.civilrights.org/publications/reports/racial-profiling2011/the-reality-of-racial.html

http://www.fbi.gov/about-us/cjis/ucr/crime-in-the-u.s/2011/crime-in-the-u.s.-2011/overviews/tab43overview_final.pdf

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Demographics_of_the_United_States

http://www.census.gov/prod/2013pubs/acsbr11-17.pdf

The Hunger Games and the United States

The Hunger Games is a series that I enjoy and personally do not think that the author was trying to make a specific correlation to the United States. I can see where some might get some of these ideas and I will explain why some think so.

One reason that a relationship between the Hunger Games and the U.S. is the aspect of the Capitol. In the Hunger Games the Capitol is the top 1% who have massive amounts of wealth mostly coming from poorer people in the other districts. Some could take this and put it into modern society and relate the U.S. to the Capitol. The United States has a lot of wealth and power. With this wealth and power the U.S. benefits from buying from poorer countries that have workers being paid cents on the dollar. Not to mention that, but the

U.S. even treats some countries such as Ghana as a garbage can.
Another correlation is the fact that the U.S. government is becoming a form of who is the highest bidder and not necessarily who is best for our country. In the 2012 election over 5.8 billion dollars was spent on campaigning, and since 1998 over 8 billion dollars was spent by lobbyists. It's almost to the point (if it isn't already) that if you have the money you can make sure what you want to happen will happen.

There are more analogies people can make. These are the 2 most prevalent I have found by search of the web and using more sources to find numbers that could support these inferences.

http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2013-03-11/who-spends-most-dollars-lobbying-washington-dc
http://www.opensecrets.org/news/2012/10/2012-election-spending-will-reach-6.htmlhttp://www.americanthinker.com/2012/03/the_unseen_message_of_the_hunger_games.html
http://tsl.pomona.edu/articles/2012/4/6/lifeandstyle/2755-the-hunger-games-provides-commentary-on-american-society
http://abcnews.go.com/GMA/Weekend/story?id=8215714

A Brief History of Gypsies

The orgin of Gypsies have been argued and debated since their arrival in the Middle East around 1000AD. From reasearch into their language the best bet is that Gypsies orginanted in Northern India, yet the reason why they left their home remains a mystery. 

The Romani (Gypsies) moved into North Africa and Europe shortly after their arrival in the Middle East. They were a rather intelligent group, using their intellect to impress the uneducated locals by giving themselves false titles. They claimed they were ejected from their homeland "Little Egypt" and even gained succor from the Pope.

After having about 400 years of having protection from the Church, the European countries grew fearful of the Romani. The first country to do so was Spain in 1490, many Gypsies were accused of false crimes and no longer allowed to roam around Spanish territory. This created a dominio effect that spread throughout Europe. Rumors continued to spread of child theft, and cannibalism which gave the word "Gypsie" its bad reputation.

The peak of this Romani hatred was in Nazi Germany in World War 2. The Nazi's decieded to attempt to exterminate the Gypsies all together. Over two million Romani perished, 500,000 of the deaths were directly from Nazi death camps.

Fortunately, the outlook for the Romani is good. The U.N., European Commission, and other international organizations are putting pressure on countries to accept the resilient Romani into society. In addition European Romani have formed the Roma National Congress to represent their interests, and their hope for change.

Here's a link to a 2 minitue quick animated video of Romani History:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q6wSLfGBVGY


http://channel.nationalgeographic.com/channel/american-gypsies/articles/a-history-of-the-romani-people/

http://www.opensocietyfoundations.org/voices/gypsies-roma-travellers-animated-history

http://www.scottishgypsies.co.uk/early.html

Is Unneeded Cosmetic Surgery Just?

In our world today we are convinced that you need to look a certain way. There has been so much pressure that 14.6 million plastic surgeries were completed in the United States in 2012. Only 2% of that was needed reconstructive surgery. The 14.3 million operations were done by people who are not happy with their body image. Women accounted for 9.1 million of these procedures, and the men accounted for the other 5.2 million of the operations that were not reconstructive. Clearly by these numbers women feel more pressure to look "beautiful" in the eyes of society. Men also have this pressure, but even though unrealistic doesn't take plastic surgery to obtain good results.

Body image plays a huge roll in the decision of a cosmetic surgery. Many men can feel inadequate if they aren't a mass of toned muscle. The men you see in magazines that are shirtless are toned, but not as much as you would think. Usually really good lighting can make almost any man look appealing. Especially if the man is already somewhat fit. Men have it a lot easier because men can get the results that they want from some discipline and making time to work out frequently.

With women they can feel inadequate with not only how toned they are but also with their breasts. 3 million breast augmentations were done in 2012. That's more than any other single cosmetic surgery that has been performed. It is a lot easier to say that girls just need to learn to accept their body, when it's clear that society looks for certain traits.

I don't think personally I would ever get plastic surgery and it saddens me that people put so much emphasis on looks. Plastic surgery is an escape for people who struggle to accept themselves and who God made them to be. I do not think plastic surgery is just for many reasons but one that I will bring up is the fact it only makes one person better. By that I mean when you get plastic surgery that doesn't mean that your DNA changes. Your kids can still have your old big nose, small breasts, or a lot of stomach fat. With having plastic surgery you mess with natural selection by an illusion of you having traits you may not actually have.


Sources:
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2890136/
http://www.plasticsurgery.org/news-and-resources/press-release-archives/2013/14-million-cosmetic-plastic-surgery-procedures-performed-in-2012.html
http://www.surgery.org/media/news-releases/cosmetic-procedures-increase-in-2012

How difficult is it to gain asylum in the United States?

As our discussion on Monday lead to asylum more particularly asylum to the United States; it was brought up how difficult it must be to gain asylum to the U.S. In this blog I would like to address the facts of asylum to the United States.

According the the Department of Homeland Security the 2010 facts for asylum go like this:

• Total number of refugee arrivals were 73,293. 71.8% of those refugees were from Asia.
• The US granted 21,113 of refugees were granted asylum in 2010
• US can grant travel loans to asylum seekers and their families
• Must complete the Assurance process handled by the U.S. Government
• The refugee must be medically screened by a health care professional working for the U.S.  government
• A security clearance is also needed to gain access to the U.S.
• The average time it takes the U.S. to process all the forms and clearances is 180 days.

With those facts a refugee only has a 29% chance of being granted asylum from the U.S. If a person who needs asylum doesn't have access to the proper forms, a health care professional working for the U.S., or is in risk of dying with in 6 months they are out of luck. As anyone can tell this is ridiculous, but sadly the U.S. grants the 2nd most out of all other countries. This means all of our regulations are actually easier to deal with than most. 

The system needs to be reformed and that is going to take years; but as reference of a Chinese proverb "The best time to plant a tree was 20 years ago, the second best time is today."  

Sources:

http://www.shautsova.com/law-publications/usa-asylum-facts-statistics.html

http://www.refugees.org/about-us/faqs.html

http://www.uscis.gov/humanitarian/refugees-asylum/asylum/faq/how-long-does-process-take

http://www.cnn.com/2012/07/05/world/asia/refugees-asylum-statistics

How Prevalent is Voter Fraud?

As a part of discussion today the prevalence of voter fraud came up. We had some numbers that were only counting certain type of fraud such as that of felons, to others that had numbers of 180,000+ accounts of fraud in just one state. If every vote counts that means every vote that is fraudulent can also swing an election. Here are the facts I found about voter fraud:

• To date, 46 states have been prosecuted or convicted of voter fraud.
• More than 24 MILLION registration are invalid, yet remain on the count nation-wide.
• Affiliates of True The Vote voters who were registered after their deaths.
• More than 384,00 dead people have been found on voter registration rolls in 27 states.
• The Ohio Secretary of State admitted that multiple Ohio counties have more registered voters than residents. 

This is only some of the facts that I found after a very brief search on the internet. Voting is your right as American citizen. Seeing that right being taken advantage of by others is illegal and is a problem large enough to be addressed. Based off of these facts, I do think some system of voter identification needs to be put into place. 

The my sources are listed below:

http://marylandreporter.com/2012/09/30/dead-people-voted-and-registered-to-vote-watchdog-group-finds-hundreds-of-deceased-still-on-the-rolls/

Kazanjian, Glynis O. "MarylandReporter.com." Dead People Voted and Registered to Vote, Watchdog Group Finds; Hundreds of Deceased Still on Rolls –. Maryland Reporter, 30 Sept. 2012. Web. 14 Oct. 2013.

http://www.pewtrusts.org/our_work_report_detail.aspx?id=85899370677

"Inaccurate, Costly, and Inefficient: Evidence That America's Voter Registration System Needs an Upgrade - The Pew Charitable Trusts." Pew Charitable Trusts. Ed. Rebecca W. Rimel. The Pew, 14 Feb. 2012. Web. 14 Oct. 2013.

http://www.truethevote.org/news/how-widespread-is-voter-fraud-2012-facts-figures

A School Where Students Teach Themselves.

My personal opinion on our topic Wednesday was that I don't think that this would work if it was the main style of education. This could work in small groups, with self motivated people who have already done years of traditional schooling. If I were in such a program my effort would be enough to pass. I wouldn't be fit for such a program because I have been formed by a school system where grades are more valued than learning. Not only that but I am motivated because I have to get a certain grade, not necessarily to learn the content that is being taught. I feel there are many students like me, but for the few that are motivated and mature enough to handle it, I think it would be great. It would just be difficult deciding who is fit for a program like this. 

Harrison Bergeron

I found this shorty story incredibly interesting. It made me think about how no two people are inherently equal to one another. This makes the world interesting. No one wants to watch a sporting event where the two teams are perfectly equal. No one would want to watch a movie when the actors are just as good as the average Joe sitting on the couch. Just like in the story competition would not exist. If competition didn't exist it would be difficult to have a drive(You wouldn't be able to have that "drive" in the first place) to do better, because there would be no such thing as better. I am still having trouble truly picturing the world Harrison Bergeron was in. As it sounds it is not a world I would like to live in, and to be honest I can't think of a single person who would want to. No matter the person, they all will have at least one thing about them that is above average. One thing that makes them unique, one thing that makes them special. I can't fathom someone wanting to give that up.

Are small college athletics worth it?

Interest in small college athletics has waxed and waned, depending on the school, sport, and number of wins.Students are working year-round not for spending money or because Dad wants them to learn a work ethic with a summer job. They’re working to lessen the load of debt that will be tied to their feet when they leave the commencement stage. And does having “three-year letter winner at Division III university” on a resume have any impact when that former student is looking for a job five years later? Is all of it worth not only the time commitment but the injuries that might bother your for the rest of your life? 

White Man's Burden

Alright to be honest I like this movie about as much as a T-Rex likes push-ups. I think it's redundant, and portrays both races in a bad light. Some people suck, some people don't; regardless of color. I am not looking forward to spending time in a class I have to pay for to act like I'm paying attention to something I'm not.

Living in dorms.

When college began I thought dorm life would be the absolute worst thing. I was wrong, but not entirely. No AC was a pain and 3 flights of stairs isn't the best, but I would rather have the current setup than pay way more for a better one. I am looking forward to getting out of Clinton, but I don't have many qualms with dorm life!

Syria

Syria has never been a pinnacle of excellence but these recent problems began March 2011 when brutal civil war broke out. The UN estimates 100,000 have died from the conflict. The real beginning of the civil war started in the city of Deraa when the government imprisoned and tortured  15 schoolchildren for writing anti-government graffiti.The protests were peaceful to begin with, calling for the kids' release, democracy and greater freedom for people in the country.

The government responded angrily, and on 18 March 2011, the army opened fire on protesters, killing four people.The following day, they shot at mourners at the victims' funerals, killing another person.People were shocked and angry at what had happened and soon the unrest had spread to other parts of the country.At first the protesters just wanted democracy and greater freedom.But once government forces opened fire on peaceful demonstrations, people demanded that the President, Bashar al-Assad, resign. He refused and the civil war has been raging since.

Living on Minimum Wage

Minimum wage is much more complex than it seems. If you increase minimum wage, people get laid-off, companies charge more, and inflation can occur. If you lower minimum wage people can not make a living off of minimum wage. It's very touchy, but the current minimum wage of $7.25 still isn't enough to live with. After watching 30-days with Morgan Spurlock where he tries to live with minimum wage for 1 month. His wife and him barely scrape by. It's extremely tough but when his wife has to go to the hospital and pay hospital bills it puts them over the edge. You can scrape by with minimum wage but if there is any sort of emergency it's nearly impossible to have the money to take care of it.

Environmental Justice On Coral Reefs.

Hidden beneath the ocean's waters, coral reefs teem with life. Fish, corals, lobsters, clams, seahorses, sponges, sharks, and sea turtles are only a few of the hundreds of thousands of creatures that rely on reefs for their survival. Not only that they also control the amount of CO2 in the water. They also feed close to 30 million people a year. Yet, these great organisms are dying. 

The problems facing coral reefs are huge, and increasing. They are being pressured by changes in ocean temperature, pollution, overfishing, sedimentation, acidification, oxidative stress and disease, and the combination of some of these problems may destroy reefs even when one cause by itself would not. Some estimates have suggested 20 percent of the world's coral reefs are already dead and an additional 24 percent are gravely threatened. 

Reefs are immensely complex structures which makes it even harder to find a solution to the decline. It would take a vast effort of cutting down on CO2 emissions, overfising, and polluting the worlds oceans. Just because an individual can't see the pollution in the ocean doesn't mean it isn't there.