Effect of Stem Cell Treatment on Blood Cancer Patients

Effect of Stem Cell Treatment on Blood Cancer Patients Stephen T. Smith II Abstract Stem cell transplantation, which most of the time is alluded to as peripheral blood, bone marrow, and umbilical cord transplant, is a system that replaces undesirable blood-shaping cells with solid normal cells. Stem cell transplantation permits specialists to give high substantial measurements of chemotherapy or radiation treatment to build the possibility of disposing of blood cancer growth in the marrow and after that reestablishing ordinary cell generation.   As researchers continue to improve with stem cell transplantation, the possibility for more patients to receive this treatment for Leukemia lymphoma, myeloma and Hodgkins disease could increases. In spite of the fact that stem cell transplants can help many patients, notwithstanding giving a few people a possibility for a cure, the choice to have a transplant isnt simple. Noteworthy worthy foundational concerns about stem cell treatment are that by introducing stem cells into an infected body may cause more harm, uncontrolled development, worsen the disease or damage injuries as opposed to treating them.   The transplants have been utilized to cure a large number of individuals with generally savage diseases. Still, the conceivable dangers and confusions can debilitate life, as well. The normal dangers and advantages must be weighed painstakingly before considering a transplant.   The possible risks and complications can be life threatening. Introduction Blood or bone marrow cancer in known as leukemia. There are diverse sorts of leukemia, however, they all begin when something turns out badly with blood-developing cells in bone marrow, the springy tissue inside bones. In leukemia, a portion of the cells are made when these blood-developing cells partition are irregular and they continue isolating wildly, swarming out typical blood and invulnerable cells we have to survive.   Leukemia is normally found in youngsters; more often than it is in grown-ups. Without treatment, leukemia can be deadly. The uplifting news is that doctors have found ways to treat leukemia through stem cells transplants. There are three fundamental types of blood cells, white, red, and platelets, which are created by stem cells. Our bodies require a combination of all three blood cells to keep us alive, for the cells to carry out their employments, every living individual needs a proper balance of each cell in their blood. There are three different types of stem cell transplants, the most well-known type of stem cell transplant is peripheral blood, which is the blood that streams through every living individuals arteries and veins. Bone marrow typically discharges a small amount of peripheral blood stem cells (PBSCs) into the circulation system. To get enough peripheral blood stem cells (PBSCs) for a transplant, the contributor takes a white cell development, for example, granulocyte-state fortifying variable (G-CSF) medication, which builds the number of stem cells by coaxing them out of the marrow and into the blood system. At the point when a patients own particular foundational stems cells are utilized, both granulocyte-state fortifying (G-CSF) and the chemotherapy, which are used to treat cancer usually increase peripheral blood stem cells (PBSCs). In patients who have myeloma and non-Hodgkin lymphoma, the medication plerixafor (Mozobil) can be utilized to assemble their own foundational stem cells. Studies and Treatment Findings Studies have shown that patients with leukemia who have gone through a stem cell transplants using the umbilical cord blood infants are typically helpless against life-threating diseases for no less than a month as their immune system recovers. Umbilical cord blood transplants have been performed in many patients with leukemia and other blood tumors to help the body make fresh recruit cells after its own particular cells, in the body, which have been wrecked by cancer treatment and disease.   The reason why stem cell cord blood transplant are having so much success is because they do not have to be a perfect matched with a patient, unlike bone marrow transplants.   Even though the stem cell cord blood is very versatile and doesnt always need a perfect match only one of three patient and 95% of non-whites who could possibly benefit from a transplant never locate an appropriate match.   Scientists are searching for an approach to expand and speed up the production of white blood cells from the stem cell cord blood with an end goal to fight infections. In any case, stem cell cord blood of newborns contains just around one-tenth of the undeveloped cells found in bone marrow, and this is the reason cord blood transplants, takes such a great amount of time longer to engraft. The reason why stem cell cord blood transplant are having so much success is because they do not have to be a perfect matched with a patient, unlike bone marrow transplants.   Even though the stem cell cord blood is very versatile and doesnt always need a perfect match only one of three patient and 95% of non-whites who could possibly benefit from a transplant never locate an appropriate match. A European Group for Blood and Marrow Transplantation conducted a study of 513 patients with chronic myelomonocytic leukaemia (CMML), and treated them with allogeneic stem cell transplantation (allo-SCT) the two are usually reported together.   The results were complete remission of the disease in 122 patients, 344 did not have any remission, and 47 the results were unknown. The study results determined that allogeneic stem cell transplantation (allo-SCT) should continue to be a curative treatment option for patients with chronic myelomonocytic leukaemia CMML and should be performed preferably early after diagnosis or after establishing the best possible remission status. An individual case study about a 52-yearà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬Ëœold woman with erythematous skin nodules on her trunk, arms, face, also with bilateral pleural effusion and hepatosplenomegaly who was treated at a Turkish hospital was reported in October 2012. Doctors found Tà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬Ëœcell acute lymphoblastic leukemia were consistent with precursors in her skin and bone marrow from the biopsy. The woman was started on induction chemotherapy, and remission was achieved. However, in December of 2013 the womans bone marrow examination was clean, but skin lesions started to reappeared.   In January of 2014 the disease reappeared, so doctors started radiation treatment.   The radiation treatment caused the skin lesions progress, but relapse was evident in the bone marrow. In March of 2014 a chemotherapy regimen was started in response to the continued progression of the nodular skin lesions. The chemo treatment was unsuccessful, so May of 2014 the patient was treated with a highà ¢Ã¢ ‚ ¬Ã¢â‚¬Ëœdose of cytosine arabinoside.   The doctors finally decided to try allogeneic bone marrow transplantation, but a donor match could not be identified.  Ã‚   The woman was sent to Istanbul were she underwent un-manipulated peripheral blood stem cell transplant.   The transplant was preform without any extreme difficulties.   The womans body reacted positively to the stem cell treatment the leukemia stay in remission and the nodular skin lesions start to relapse. Conclusion Stem cell research has proven to have success for treatment in leukemia patients, but researcher still have their challenges with stem cells and controlling them, so that they will form the desired type of tissue without causing cancer.  Ã‚   Cancer patients should beware of con artist and pseudoscientific claims, there is a physician in China who runs a clinic where he injects stem cells derived from olfactory sheath cells taken from aborted fetuses into the spines of those suffering from spinal cord injury or motor nerve cell disease.   He claims that this treatment has amazing results curing his patients for their injuries.   His clinic has persuaded many desperate people from around the world, to pay a fee of $20,000 plus all related expenses.   His clinic has all the red flags of not applying basics of the scientific method.   This physician failed to conduct even the most basic observational controls in assessing his treatments. There is no hypothesis to explain his o bservations, no objective tests of function, no imaging or other anatomical or physiological testing to see what has happened to the patients during the experiment and no analyzed data of patients. Most patients accomplish a reduction (a nonappearance of signs and side effects) after starting treatment for intense myeloid leukemia (AML). Notwithstanding, a few patients have lingering leukemic cells in their marrow even after concentrated treatment. This is alluded to as unmanageable leukemia.   The treatment alternatives may incorporate medications not officially utilized amid the primary course of treatment. Foundational stem cell transplantation might be utilized when a reduction is accomplished, which may bring about a more durable remission. A few patients achieve reduction and afterward have an arrival of leukemia cells in the marrow and a lessening in typical platelets. This is called backslid leukemia. In patients who backslide, the length of the abatement, the patients age and the cytogenetic discoveries in the leukemia cells impact the way to deal with treatment. Drugs like those controlled at first, extraordinary medications or undifferentiated organism transplantation might be utilized to treat the leukemia.

The Debt-for-Nature Swap Essay -- Environment, Environmental, Costa Ri

The Debt-for-Nature Swap In recent decades, the issue of biodiversity loss in developing nations has captured the attention of many environmental groups in the global North. Since the vast majority of the Earth's plant and animal life lies within the borders of developing nations, efforts to protect global biodiversity through the promotion of environmental conservation have largely been focused in the global South. Because of this regional focus, financial mechanisms have been seen as an effective way for groups in the industrialized North to promote their environmental interests in the developing world. Debt-for-nature swaps, which became popular in the early 1990's, are one such mechanism in which an indebted developing nation agrees to invest in conservation projects or environmentally friendly actions in exchange for the cancellation of a portion of its foreign debt by a creditor. (Patterson, 4) "The location of much of the world's most diverse biota often forces agreements to trade-off conservation and conventional development goals." (Moran, 63) Debt-for-nature swaps take this into account and attempt to balance out the economic costs that an LDC (less developed nation) incurs when investing in environmental conservation. Debt-for-nature swaps can be implemented through either bilateral or commercial swap mechanisms. A bilateral debt swap may be assisted by an NGO but is primarily an agreement made between a creditor government and a debtor government. The creditor government forgives the debt owed to it, and in exchange the debtor government agrees to set aside a pre-determined amount of money to fund conservation programs within its borders. A commercial debt swap occurs when a transnational NGO purchases debt at ... ...." Conservation Biology 7 (1993): 140-147. Isla, Ana. "Women and 'Sustainable Development' in the Costa Rican Rainforest: Questioning the Politics of Corporate Environmentalism." Women & Environments International Magazine (Fall 2001): 30. Moran, Dominic. "Debt-swaps for hot-spots: more needed." Biodiversity Letters 2 (1994): 63-66. "National Biodiversity Institute, Costa Rica." World Resources Institute. 25 April 2004. http://www.wri.org/wri/biodiv/b34-gbs.html Patterson, Alan. "Debt for Nature Swaps and the Need for Alternatives." Environment 32 (1990): 4-12. Redford, Kent H. & Stearman, Allyn Maclean. "Forest-Dwelling Native Amazonians And the Conservation of Biodiversity: Interests in Common or in Collision?" Conservation Biology 7 (1993): 248-255. "The Structure of an Environmental Transaction: The Debt-for-Nature Swap." Land Economics

Giuseppe Garibaldi Essay -- essays research papers fc

Giuseppe Garibaldi â€Å"The Sword† of Italian Unification †My goal, which was, I believe, shared by most italians at that time, was to unite the country and rid it of foreign powers. Those who gave Italy her freedom would earn her people’s gratitude† (Garibaldi, page 6). During the age of Italian unification, there were three men who fought for her (Italy’s) freedom. Those men were Cavour the brains, Mazzini the soul, and Garibaldi the sword (Chastain). Giuseppe Garibaldi was born in Nice in 1807 (Garibaldi, page 173). He spent his life working towards not only Italian unification, but that of France and South America. He is considered by many to be the â€Å"Hero of two worlds† (Chastain). He spent most of his complex life on the run from political zealots fighting battles anywhere and everywhere volunteers supported his cause. His is a great leader in all aspects of the framework provided by Kouzes and Posner. With his deep passion for freedom, Garibaldi was a selfless man devoted for the cause, who fought with his soldiers on the field, and met with kings in his spare time. His life is filled with much tragedy including illness and wounds, death, jail, exile, and much, much mutiny and betrayal. A sentence of death was put on his life, but never carried out. The following paper presents a critical analysis of the leadership qualities of Giuseppe Garibaldi following the framework provided in The Leader Challenge, by Kouzes and Posner. The outline for analysis is presented below: Model the way Find your voice by clarifying your personal values Set the example by aligning actions with shared values Inspire a shared vision Envision the future by imagining exiting and ennobling possibilities Enlist others in a common vision by appealing to shared aspirations Challenge the process Search for opportunities by seeking innovating ways to change and grow, and improve. Experiment and take risk by constantly generating small wins and learning from mistakes. Enable other to act Foster collaboration by promoting cooperative goals and building trust. Strengthen others by sharing power and discretion. Encourage the heart Recognize contribution by showing appreciation for individual excellence. Celebrate the values and victories by creating a spirit of community. Using the above analysis we will attempt to put in perspective the qualities of Giuseppe which make him an exemplar... ...ndations for the establishment of Italy as one, unified country. His values spoke out to hundreds of thousands, and his words rallied volunteers to fight towards a common goal, the unification of Italy. His selfless acts allowed the proper figures to replace him once battle was done, whereby creating the chain of events. His radical risk-taking caused many retreated battles, but showed his commitment to the main organizational value of Italy, unification. He was trusted in revered by many, and then hated for some. He was hated and feared from the foreign governments for his evolutionism. They, his opponents, saw him as threat their ‘resort place’, and He saw Italy has having the potential for being a great european power. Giuseppe is an exemplary leader. Bibliography  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Garibaldi, Giuseppe. 2004 (1932). My life. London: Hesperus Classics. Translated by Stephan Parkin, Foreword by Tim Parks. The History Place. Giuseppe Garibaldi Speech - Encouraging His Soldiers from http://historyplace.com/speeches/garibaldi.htm Chastian, James. Encyclopedia of 1848 revolutions. Garibaldi, Giuseppe (1807-1882). 9/27/2004. From http://www.ohiou.edu/~chastain/dh/gari.htm

Turn of the century Vermont literature :: essays research papers

The later half of the nineteenth century and early half of the twentieth century marked a period of great change in the United States. The demography was drastically affected by the influx of immigrants who left their homelands in search of a new life. People off all nationalities, languages, and colors came together as a newfound community to live work amongst one another, regardless of differences. Men sacrificed their homeland at the expense of providing for their families, their ultimate mission. With this new life brought hopes of freedom, opportunity, and work.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  In modern society, money and material wealth are always at the center of life. The American dream is no longer characterized by a Leave it to Beaver lifestyle, but rather much larger in scale. The world we live in today is a capitalistic society that targets itself at making enormous profits off the funds of consumers. Americans want to be rich so that they can gain more for themselves to fulfill their greed, which never can be fully satisfied. The majority of people in today’s society can be characterized as the â€Å"Takers† of the world.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  This situation that has grown to be the common way of life has blossomed over time into the mess that we observe today. Greed did not always rule society the way it does today. Literature and memoirs from a by-gone era prove this to be especially true. In reviewing such works, much emphasis is placed upon community and family. The man was conventionally the head of the household and would labor intensely to earn the needed resources to supply for his family. None the less, families tended to be larger in those days with the mother at the forefront of household and child duties. Given this, these early people can be easily characterized as â€Å"Givers.†   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Marie Tomasi’s Like Lesser Gods illustrates this way of life through the men that came to Granitetown Vermont from lands far away in search of work at the granite quarries. The infinite amount of work was immeasurable which gave security to the people who came to work in this new land of Vermont. In turn, this brought self-fulfillment to the people who worked there. Mr. Tiff recalled a letter he had received from Pietro while in Italy that characterizes his feelings: â€Å"It is beautiful, this Vermont granite we work, and its lifetime is that of the pyramids†¦You ask me if here I am content?

Journey Essay

English Speech- Journeys â€Å"To travel hopefully is a better thing than to arrive. † In other words a journey and the experiences you have are better than the actual destination. The novel â€Å"The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn† by Mark Twain and the poem â€Å"The Road Not Taken† by Robert Frost have taught me that journeys may involves barriers and hardships, they can lead to significant personal change and more importantly journeys facilitate reflection about how you see yourself, others and the world. Journeys are very important in personal change and growth.They can also help us in comparing and contrasting new and old experiences. Journeys may involve many barriers and hardships and overcoming them can lead to personal change and growth. â€Å"The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn† is an episodic novel that involves the physical and emotional journey Huck and Jim Take down the Mississippi River. Jim is an African American slave who escapes and joins Huck on his adventure. The river symbolises the physical journey they both take and along this journey they discover many barriers and hardships. These barriers and hardships are both emotional and physical.This is evident when Huck is torn between following society’s rules (turning Jim in) or following his heart (helping Jim escape). Huck has come to an obstacle on the journey and has to try and overcome it. He has to make a decision on which ‘path’ he will take. Huck constantly battles with trying to decide what’s wrong from right and asking himself is he doing the right thing. Even though Huck see’s Jim as a friend he still carries on society’s values of racism and prejudice. Twain uses irony and satire to show how society is stupid, racist and oblivious to how they treat others.This is seen when the reward for the capture of Jim is higher than the reward for pap. Society sees that the escape of a slave is far worse than murder. Likewise, â€Å"The Road Not Taken† also demonstrates that journeys may have barriers and hardships. The poem represents how sometimes people who are on life journeys come to a fork in the road or a decision that they have to make. The traveller wants to take both paths but he can’t. He has to weigh up his decision and go with it. Robert Frost uses the path to symbolise the journey the traveller goes on and to create and image for the reader.Repetition and punctuation is also used to create emphasis and to reinforce what has been said. As Robert Frost states ‘Oh I kept the first for another day! Adding and exclamation mark at the end of the sentence. The repetition of the word ‘and’ in the first stanza also adds emphasis. Journeys facilitate reflection about how you see yourself, others and the world. I believe that a journey gives you the opportunity to really see everything in a different light. Journeys may involve obstacles and with these difficulties peo ple experience new situations and therefore change.Whether that be physically, emotionally or psychologically. A journey also assists with the comparison of yourself, others and society. In â€Å"The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn† Huck gets to experience life on a whole new level. He learns how wrong and prejudiced his society Is and how life on the raft is far better in comparison to life on shore. This is shown when Huck is so infatuated with the freedom and care-free nature of life on a raft compared to the cruel, racist and unjust way of life on shore. As Huck states ‘you feel mighty free and easy and comfortable on a raft’.Mark Twain uses juxtaposition and again symbolism to compare and contrast the difference between life on shore vs life on the raft. Twain describes the town life as harsh, dirty and confined in comparison to the life on the shore as care-free, relaxed and independent. This highlights how good life on the raft is. The journey Huck and Jim take allows for both of them to reflect and compare life on shore in comparison to life on the raft. Huck and Jim don't have to follow society’s rules they are free and with freedom comes opportunity to explore and experience many things they normally wouldn’t get to do.In addition, â€Å"The Road Not Taken† also shows us how journeys allow for our reflection on many things. In the poem the traveller experiences an obstacle or fork in the road. This allows the traveller to take in his surroundings whether that be the path ahead or the people around him. This is shown when he states ‘two roads diverged in a yellow wood’. The traveller has two options and to make a decision he has to really explore both of them. Robert Frost uses this poem to express his belief in not always following the crowd and being an individual.Robert Frost uses conversational language to create a sense of communication between the traveller and the reader and to enlighten the reflection that the traveller has made. After comparing both paths and seeing every option his reflection about his journey changes. The traveller decides to go with the path less travelled. He decides to be different. Journeys can lead to significant personal change. The experiences you have on a journey can shape and change your perception of yourself and the people around you. In ‘The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn’ this is shown when Huck’s beliefs change and he becomes more mature.Huck and Jim’s relationship also develops throughout the journey. Huck’s perception of Jim at the beginning of the journey is very different compared to the end. At the start Huck doesn’t take Jim very seriously and has no compassion or respect for him. The influences of society have taught him that Negro’s are useless and unintelligent. Jim still has feelings and emotions and throughout the journey Huck still feels he has to lower himself to talk to Jim . Huck learns from the experiences they have encountered that Jim is exactly the same as himself.Huck’s beliefs and values change and this is shown when Huck states ‘I do believe he cared just as much for his people as white folks does for their’n. It don’t seem natural, but I reckon it’s so’ Huck eventually notices that Jim is in fact just the same as him. Journeys are very important in shaping, changing and discovering the world around you. â€Å"The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn† and â€Å"The Road Not Taken† have taught me that a journey maybe involve barriers or hardships, a journey can facilitate reflection about yourself, others and the world and lastly a journey can lead to significant personal change.

Aggression & Biological explanations

The demand to understand aggression over the years has continued to intensify as it remains the central cause for broken families and relationships, societal conflicts and most importantly the major cause of incarceration for people in all age groups.Though some scholars have concluded that biological causes of aggression, the ability to address it by changing things in the environment at different levels of growth and development makes it to be more psychological.However, it is the findings from many scholars that men are more aggressive than women which that has resulted to a more heated debate.   Joel et al (2010) found that women suffered about 65% of the total domestic violence.Aggression is any action or behavior by members of the same community that is intended to instill pain or cause harm to a specified target; for instance murder, domestic violence, manslaughter, and aggravated assault.   It from this consideration that this evaluation intrinsically analyzes aggression and why men are more aggressive compared to women.Biological explanations(a)  Ã‚     Variation in libido levelsAccording to Yvonne et al (2010), an individual’s actions can be traced from his respective genetic constitutions of chemicals that command them.   In this case, aggression arises from stimulation of these chemicals and their relation to respective environments.Biologically, men’s higher levels of aggression can be understood from two different perspectives. First the psychodynamic theory by Sigmund Freud considers behavior as a derivative and motivated by sexual and libido energies.Aggression is therefore a libido representation as exemplified by the Oedipus complex.   With men’s libido being relatively higher compared to women as Rhiannon ands Crisp (2010) explain, their aggressiveness is equally higher.   At childhood level, a boy of about five years develops strong sexual desires to his mother after realization that she is the provider of food.Notably, this innate desire to associate with the mother makes the boy to develop and display aggressive behavior towards the father who is considered an immediate rival. For the girls, they seek to associate more with their fathers from penis envy before they are able to resolve the conflict.   Though Yvonne et al (2010) differ with Society for Neuroscience (2007) on libido extent in causing aggressive behavior, they emphasize that boys often take longer and their aggression is evident from a broader perspective (in school and community) compared to girls.Report by Sigelman and Rider (2008) indicate that boys and girls exhibit aggression in about 10% and 6% of their varied social behaviors respectively.(b)  Ã‚   Evolutionary explanationsBuss (2005) consideration presents aggression as a factor of an individual’s chemical constitution and heredity effects.   Over the years different genes are passed down through generations to facilitate their survival in the commu nity.   Similar to non-human organisms where males fight for mating preferences and food, men equally seek to control their dominance in the community and institutions.Following the male dominance in most of the top executive positions, their aggression is projected at protecting themselves, their progenies and even relatives; an aspect that soon turns into a cycle with only one family or region being in   leadership or management.   Notably, this consideration has however received major criticism as emerging scholars cite environmental factors as the main cause of aggression.Neurotransmitter chemicals differences in men and women determine the levels of aggression in them.   Society for Neuroscience (2007) indicates that serotonin, a major neurotransmitter messenger, in ordinary levels as it mostly happens with women, have a calming effect.   However, men generally have a major deficiency of serotonin which has been linked to greater aggression levels.However, these resul ts appear to contradict previous findings by Garandeau and Cillessen (2006) which indicated that serotonin causes aggression when in higher levels.   . Yvonne et al (2010) findings are further supported by Buss (2005) who indicates that serotonin is used in treating aggressive behavior.Unlike other causes of aggression which appear to be controversial in causing aggression in people, high levels of the testosterone (male sex hormone) in men compared to women is a major cause of their aggressive behavior.Rhiannon ands Crisp (2010) explain that in a jail with males of violent crimes, their levels of testosterone was found to be higher compared to those without criminal record.   Unlike women, men’s testosterone levels easily rise at slightest provocation to make them easily get involved in different crimes.Therefore, though testosterone among men is generally high compared to women, it requires an effective precursor situation for one to be involved in aggression activity.P sychological underpinnings(a)  Ã‚   Social learningIn his view which appears to partially support biological causes of aggression, South and Georgina (2007) postulate that psychological considerations have more weight.   Naturally, people are subjected to differing environments which mould how they react to various situations.According to Albert Bandura’s social learning theory, when people are subjected to aggressive environments, they internalize and latter practice related actions (Hines and Saudino, 2003).   In his experiment with children on aggressive and non-aggressive dolls, Bandura found that related aggression and non-aggressiveness was effectively replicated.   However, why are men more aggressive than women?From a cultural perspective, South and Georgina (2007) argues that men are expected to be handy and therefore often subject themselves to key aggressive events.   For instance, more boys often prefer hostile computer games as girls prefer working with dolls. South and Georgina (2007) adds that as men grow up, they often seek to relate with more aggressive systems as they consider them to be useful in defending themselves and their families.For instance, men will always seek to build up their boy muscles, train in defense skills and also watch hostile media which could easily result to aggression.   As indicated earlier, internalization of these violent actions creates a series of constant feedbacks reflected in their behavior as aggression.

Time, History, and Belief in Aztec and Colonial Mexico Essay

Aztec culture Introduction   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The history of different people and how they lived in the past is majorly explained through their cultural way of life. People lived in different geographical localities, but due to similar ethic and racial background they shared a common background in terms of cultural, political, social, and religious beliefs. Aztec empire is one of the societies that lived in different geographical localities which included New Mexico, Arizona, Colorado, and Nevada, but shared similar culture. The empire was formed by millions of people who migrated and settled in Mexico with most of them living in Tenochtitlan (Pennock, 2011). The Aztec had a culture that was complicated although rich in religious and mythological beliefs. The people culture encompassed arts (carvings on animals and religious images) music, dressing, dance, drinks, sports, food, games, and rituals that could involve human sacrifice and they were transferred from one generation to the o ther.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The Aztec empire believed that a family was the most important aspect that signified life and new generations. The family was composed of men, women, and children and each member had a specific duty towards the family. Men were responsible for looking for food through hunting and gathering of wild fruits. Women were left to cook food and do the weaving jobs while they took care of children during the day. Children or young boys were trained on how to hunt and gather fruits and foods by their fathers and some went to school. On the other hand, young girls were trained on how to do household chores by their mothers in addition to weaving. A family was started through tradition marriage that was conducted through ceremonies and was between young girls as young as fifteen years and men as young as eighteen years (Pennock, 2011).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Art was one of the ways the Aztec culture recorded information on different beliefs, religion, and war fare. The recordings helped the people to transfer their beliefs and cultiure to other generations so that they would be continuous from one generation to the other. Since in the early Aztec culture few technology on recording and preserving information were available, they recorded their information inform of paintings and writings on the bark of trees. The writings and paintings were then stored in the temple and people could read and use the paintings to learn their history and they warfare encounter (Smith, 2008). The art works was done using various themes such as insects, animals, fish, and plants. Moreover, others reflected religion beliefs and gods that were majorly placed in temples. Hence, art was important in the Aztec culture as it was used to record their activities and events that could be passed from one generation to the o ther.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Religion was evident in Aztec culture. The Aztec people worshipped different gods and goddess that were categorised according to their responsibilities. Since Aztec people were mainly farmers, they conducted rituals in form of ceremonies every year before planting so that they could ensure that they could get a good crop and harvest. The ceremonies involved human sacrifices that were dedicated to gods, Tezcatlipoca (Hassig, 2013). The human sacrifices were obtained from children or prisoners that were captured during war with the neighbouring societies. They believed that human blood and heart was important so as to strengthened the gods and goddesses and bless them with good harvests in addition to their protection and conquering other societies to get more prisoners for human sacrifices. Moreover, they build large temples that were meant for performing the human sacrifices (Smith, 2008).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The Aztec empire also had a unique dress that was used to identify them with their culture that was part of art. The material of the dressing was mainly a beautiful fabric of bright colours that was intertwined and tailored to different designs. The bright colours and design were unique to Aztec people and helped them to identify with their culture. The dressing colours were also used to identify social class as the quality and the design were unique to social class (Dwyer, Stout, & Stout, 2013). The wealthy class were characterised with the best qualities and designs as the commoner material quality was low.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Dance was performed in line with religious and social activities in the society. In some instances, dancing was performed as a religious ritual that was meant to please gods so that they could give blessings to the people and protect them from evil (Dwyer et al, 2013). Moreover, the dance was also done to colour ceremonies that varied from entertainment to ritual ceremonies. The dances were performed in accompaniment with music. The music was sang and played as a form of rituals or players to gods. Different music had different themes. Some music was purely for entertainment while others were purely dedicated to gods. Moreover music was performed based on seasons. Various instruments such as drums, flutes, and rattles were used to play music as well as chanting as a way to worship gods. Therefore, dancing and music were used by the Aztec to preserve their cultures from one generation to the other.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The culture has various games and sports that were important in their culture. The games provided entertainment to leaders and other people distinguished in the social class. The entertainment was also done during ceremonies in the society. Moreover, the games could also be performed to portray religious meaning. For religious ceremonies, games were performed during human or other sacrifice to appease the gods so that they could accept the sacrifice and do as the people had played.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The Aztec empire had different kinds and unique food that were rich and concentrated with spices. The dishes that were common and popular among the Aztec were tortillas, tacos, and tamales. There were other foods that were gathered by men like seeds of sage plants that were common as cereal, eggs, dogs, turkey, and rabbits (Culture and Arts, 2013). Unlike other cultures, most of Aztec food was made with chilli peppers as the main spice. Delicacies that were common among the Aztec people were green slime. The food was obtained from Lake Texococo and its taste was compared to that of cheese. Most of the time enjoyed water as a form of refreshments and in special occasions or ceremonies beer was the main form of drinks. The Aztecs also enjoyed drinks such as hot sweetened chocolate and sometimes octilli. The latter was common among the noble people and other people of a higher social class.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Aztec people day to day life involved agriculture as a form of socioeconomic practices. Their main type of crop that they cultivated was corn. The people were hard working and dedicated farming to their gods and they were able to have crops in surplus. Few practiced irrigation on the dry lands while the majority ploughed on shallow lakes. Farmers transferred mud and soil from dry land to the shallow lakes thus forming islands, chinampas that they in turn used as land for agriculture (Cohn, 2013). The islands were very fertile and productive, which resulted in food surplus. The surplus food and other crops were sold to the other communities and neighbouring empires through Tlateolco market that united various communities. Although Aztecs lacked monetary system, they used barter trade of exchange of goods and services.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The Aztecs were most of the time involved in wars where they capture prisoners for human sacrifice and slaves for their economic purposes. They used futile weapons to fight other tribes and neighbouring communities (Clendinnen, 2010). Some of the weapons that were common among them were wooden clubs. The clubs were edged with pieces of obsidians that were sharp forming a tool that they commonly referred to as macuahuitl. The weapon was used to demobilize the enemies without killing them so that they could be captured as slaves and prisoners for human sacrifice. Other weapons prevalent among the Aztecs were spears and arrow that could either disable or kill the enemies. Conclusion   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Aztec culture was rich in art works such as carvings of different images. They believed family as unit of life and marriage was between a man and women. In family, men were hunters and gatherers while women cooked food and weaved clothes. The people had different types of foods such as eggs, cereals, meat, and fish. Spicy pepper was common among the community. The people had religious beliefs and worshiped many gods and goddess that were categorised based on events or season. They sacrificed human beings for the gods in order to be protected and their land to be blessed. In addition, they had different games that could be played in times of ceremonies or religious rituals. Dance was common among the people in combination with music. Similarly, dance and music was done as a way of worship or entertainment in ceremonies. The people had a unique dress that identified them with their culture. References Clendinnen, I. (2010). The cost of courage in Aztec society: essays on Mesoamerican society and culture. Cambridge University Press. Cohn, J. (2013). The Aztecs. New York: Gareth Stevens Pub. Culture and Arts. (2013). Mexico Country Review, 178-184. Dwyer, H., Stout, M., & Stout, M. (2013). Aztec history and culture. New York, NY: Gareth Stevens Pub. Hassig, R. (2013). Time, History, and Belief in Aztec and Colonial Mexico. University of Texas Press. Pennock, C. (2011). ‘A Remarkably Patterned Life’: Domestic and Public in the Aztec Household City. Gender & History, 23(3), 528-546. Smith, M. E. (2008). The Aztec Empire. The Aztec World. Ed. Brumfiel, E., M. and Gary M. F. New York: Abrams, 2008. 121-136. Source document