Just as a fair warning, this blog and my paper contain detailed sexual content that might offend the faint of heart. If you think you may be offended or uncomfortable reading this blog, you are welcome to stop reading at this point. Otherwise, your comments and suggestions are more than welcome, as this paper represents 40% of my grade for the class.
My audience is going to be married BYU students who want to save money on expensive birth control pills, condoms, IUDs and other pre- and post-sexual contraceptives. One highly popular method (up to 56% of American women reported using this method in the last year) is coitus interruptus. This is when the man pulls out before ejaculating, thus saving his wife from unwanted pregnancy. This is one of the methods that is very common at BYU by Mormon students who either believe it is wrong to use artificial birth control, or who just don't want to spend the money to not have children.
What are the consequences of coitus interruptus on your family health?
Coitus interruptus can destroy a marriage because it doesn't always successfully prevent pregnancy AND it can lead to an inferior quality of sexual relations, which leads to marital and sexual frustration.
Coitus interruptus is only successful most of the time, but there are some ways that the sperm still find their way to the egg. The penis releases a fluid prior to ejaculation that can carry some sperm far enough into the woman's reproductive system to impregnate her. There is also a risk that he will not be able to control his ejaculation or withdraw in time to avoid pregnancy. Also, the man's semen is pleasurable to the woman, and if he withdraws before she has reached her orgasm, there is no way for the man to satisfy her sex drive after pulling out. When one or both partners fail to reach orgasmic climax, marital sex is considered less satisfying, and sexual frustration becomes common. Both unwanted pregnancy and failure to please one's partner are unhealthy for a family, particularly to the relationship between husband and wife. Spending a small amount of money on over-the-counter or prescription contraceptives will make your happier and will be more effective at delaying pregnancy.
Monday, April 7, 2008
Friday, April 4, 2008
FW: A tree in a forest
There's the classic question of "If a tree falls in a forest and no one is around to hear it, does it still make a noise?" But I think that a better question is "Does it even exist if no one can see it?"
A person is both the subject and object. "I" observe "me". As long as I am aware of my existence, I am an object. I am looking at myself. When I think, I'm talking to myself. And the things that I do depend on how I see myself. When I make decisions I have to think of myself as someone else might think of me. When I go to a job interview, I have to think about what my boss might expect me to look like or act like, or how my boss might be expecting me to talk. I have to think of all those things, and when I do that, I am observing myself. I become some imagined "other" that is watching me get ready and making judgments about me. I develop a dual personality that no other living thing has. I am two people, one subject, and one object. So if I somehow stop observing myself, I lose the ability to make decisions based on society. But I can't do that because humans are inherently social animals. Therefore, my existence depends on my ability to step outside of myself and control my actions from an external point of view. Consciousness can't exist unless there is an observable object. Reciprocally, no object can exist without some agent that can observe it. A human is the only living thing capable of filling both roles at once. That is why we are the superior life form on the earth. Nothing else exists independent of exterior forces. So if there is nothing in a forest that is capable of observing a tree, then the tree cannot exist. The idea of a tree can exist in the head of some animal, but the tree itself is no longer real, because nothing gives it reality through consciousness.
A person is both the subject and object. "I" observe "me". As long as I am aware of my existence, I am an object. I am looking at myself. When I think, I'm talking to myself. And the things that I do depend on how I see myself. When I make decisions I have to think of myself as someone else might think of me. When I go to a job interview, I have to think about what my boss might expect me to look like or act like, or how my boss might be expecting me to talk. I have to think of all those things, and when I do that, I am observing myself. I become some imagined "other" that is watching me get ready and making judgments about me. I develop a dual personality that no other living thing has. I am two people, one subject, and one object. So if I somehow stop observing myself, I lose the ability to make decisions based on society. But I can't do that because humans are inherently social animals. Therefore, my existence depends on my ability to step outside of myself and control my actions from an external point of view. Consciousness can't exist unless there is an observable object. Reciprocally, no object can exist without some agent that can observe it. A human is the only living thing capable of filling both roles at once. That is why we are the superior life form on the earth. Nothing else exists independent of exterior forces. So if there is nothing in a forest that is capable of observing a tree, then the tree cannot exist. The idea of a tree can exist in the head of some animal, but the tree itself is no longer real, because nothing gives it reality through consciousness.
Wednesday, April 2, 2008
TA: Ideas for Paper C
I have to admit that I have no interest at all in health care. I don't have any strong opinions about the subject, and I don't really keep up with what is going on in the news when it comes to health. So I'm starting from scratch on these ideas and none of them are likely to be very refined.
1. I'd like to study rabies. I wrote one free write blog post on it, and I think it's fascinating.
2. Childhood obesity has risen to about 19% of white boys under age 18 years. I've read a little bit about the causes and effects of obesity.
3. Folic acid deficiency can cause spina bifida, a horrible-looking disease. Maybe I could talk to pregnant women about taking folate supplements, or I could extend that challenge to all women of child-bearing age to help avoid that problem in children that they may not be expecting.
4. Someone once told me that AIDS is a rich man's disease. He was referring to the fact that malaria is far more serious, but because AIDS is something that exists in the US and UK and other "civilized" countries, we tend to focus more on AIDS than malaria. I read in the National Geographic that experts estimate that almost 50% of the world's total population from prehistoric times until now has died of malaria. That's a huge proportion of humanity. That might be fun to argue, that malaria is a more urgent problem than AIDS.
5. Discovery.com features an article that talks about the study of squid beaks as a way to learn more about creating good artificial limbs for human patients.
6. I heard on NPR one day that there is a group of scientists that has created a prosthetic limb that is connected somehow to the brain of a chimpanzee. Their own arms are tied behind their backs, but with enough concentration, they can control a robotic arm next to them for simple tasks like grabbing and eating small foods. Maybe I could talk about that.
If any of these sound more intriguing than others, please let me know. I'm really in a pickle, and I don't want to have to talk about doctors or insurance or prescriptions, or politics, or government or anything like that.
Also, I don't know if there is any way to use this article in my research. I think it would be fantastic to write 2000 words about bike safety.
Also, is torture a health care issue?
1. I'd like to study rabies. I wrote one free write blog post on it, and I think it's fascinating.
2. Childhood obesity has risen to about 19% of white boys under age 18 years. I've read a little bit about the causes and effects of obesity.
3. Folic acid deficiency can cause spina bifida, a horrible-looking disease. Maybe I could talk to pregnant women about taking folate supplements, or I could extend that challenge to all women of child-bearing age to help avoid that problem in children that they may not be expecting.
4. Someone once told me that AIDS is a rich man's disease. He was referring to the fact that malaria is far more serious, but because AIDS is something that exists in the US and UK and other "civilized" countries, we tend to focus more on AIDS than malaria. I read in the National Geographic that experts estimate that almost 50% of the world's total population from prehistoric times until now has died of malaria. That's a huge proportion of humanity. That might be fun to argue, that malaria is a more urgent problem than AIDS.
5. Discovery.com features an article that talks about the study of squid beaks as a way to learn more about creating good artificial limbs for human patients.
6. I heard on NPR one day that there is a group of scientists that has created a prosthetic limb that is connected somehow to the brain of a chimpanzee. Their own arms are tied behind their backs, but with enough concentration, they can control a robotic arm next to them for simple tasks like grabbing and eating small foods. Maybe I could talk about that.
If any of these sound more intriguing than others, please let me know. I'm really in a pickle, and I don't want to have to talk about doctors or insurance or prescriptions, or politics, or government or anything like that.
Also, I don't know if there is any way to use this article in my research. I think it would be fantastic to write 2000 words about bike safety.
Also, is torture a health care issue?
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