Alien Hand Syndrome: Causes and Effects

Alien Hand Syndrome: Causes and Effects Nia Helyar What is Alien Hand Syndrome and why does it occur? Discuss in relation to one or more case studies. Alien hand syndrome is an intermittent involuntary disorder whereby the hand acts of its ‘own free will’. However, alien hand syndrome is not consistently or precisely defined. Alien hand syndrome describes complex, goal-directed activity in one hand that is not voluntarily initiated by the individual but is well executed (Mark, 2007). This syndrome is an extremely puzzling phenomenon experienced by brain-damaged patients whereby their limb performs purposeful actions without the intention of the patient (Biran, et al., 2006). The patient is unable to explain the exact source of movement from the hand and may actually consider the hand to have a mind of its own (Mark, 2007). It is caused by lesions to the frontal lobes and corpus callosum (Banks et al., 1989) and generally follows acute focal cerebral injury. The most common causes are cerebral hemispheric stroke, severe brain damage or damage to the corpus callosum such as in surgery, which is used to treat severe epilepsy. The corpus callosum connects the two hemispheres, therefore surgery to this area of the brain can lead there to be less or no communication between the hemispheres which can lead to limbs acting of their own accord. Alien hand syndrome can also be seen in patients who suffer from a variety of degenerative, dementing cerebral disorders such as Alzheimer’s (Mark, 2007). Due to the numerous different causes of alien hand syndrome there are many variations of the condition. Therefore, it has been that alien hand syndrome is an umbrella term for a heterogeneous set of symptoms (Chokar et al., 2014). There have been reports of patients who were unable to stop their alien hand from grabbing and seizing nearby objects without any willing from their body (Kumral, 2001). This can be seen by the study of patient JC, a 56 year old man who had suffered from a left hemispheric stroke, with damage extending to the corpus callosum. Four weeks after his stroke he complained of peculiar uncontrolled movements of his hand. His hand would do things â€Å"as though it has a mind of its own† such as playing with light switches, grasping and holding things. In many situations the patient found themselves in the situation where the right hand opposed the left hand without the patient choosing to do so. Furthermore, the alien hand caused the patient difficulty in eating because of the opposing behaviour of the right and left hand (Biran, Giovannetti, Buxbaum, Chatterjee 2006). Often, a patient has to use their other willing hand to prise open their fingers and release the object which the alien hand has grasped (Kumral, 2001). Patients observe and experience their own limbs carrying out purposeful behaviours over which they have no or very little control. In one case it was noted that a patient had picked up a pencil and begun scribbling with the right hand. She indicated she had not initiated the action with the right arm, she experienced a feeling of dissociation from the actions of the right arm, stating that `it will not do what I want it to do’ (Goldberg et al.1981). This alien limb may disrupt movements of the other limb that is actually responding to the intentions of the patient (Akelaitis, 1944-45). Patients can experience their limbs acting without being guided by their own will (Bogen, 1993, fisher, 2000). Bogen, J. E. (1993) found his alien hand undoing the buttons of his shirt even as his â€Å"healthy† limb tried to button the shirt. The errant limb is known to not even rest during sleep in some cases and patients with alien hand syndrome have woken up to find their alien limbs choking them (Banks et al, 1989). In one case the patient’s `left hand would tenaciously grope for and grasp any nearby object, pick and pull at her clothes, and even grasp her throat during sleep . . . . She slept with the arm tied to prevent nocturnal misbehaviour.’ However, she never denied that her hand belonged to her (Banks et al. 1989). This is an important part of this syndrome; that the patient does not deny responsibility for the han d or the behaviour that it carries out. Two types of behaviour are displayed with this syndrome, repetitive involuntary grasping and unilateral goal-directed limb behaviour. Patients clearly recognize that there is a discrepancy between what the hand is doing and their desired actions. The patients are upset by the actions of the hand and will often try to prevent it from moving by grasping it firmly with the other hand (Frith, 2000). MP was a patient who had an operation to repair a ruptured aneurysm of the anterior communication artery. Within two years she was unable to live independently with her family due to the way in which the alien hand syndrome was affecting her life (Sala, 1998). An alien hand sufferer can feel normal sensation in the hand, but believes that the hand, while still part of their body, behaves in a manner that is totally distinct from them. They feel that they have no control over the movements of their alien hand but that, instead, the hand has the capability of acting independent of their conscious control. Alien hands can perform complex acts such as removing clothing which can be seen from examples above. Sometimes the sufferer will not be aware of what the hand is doing until it is brought to his or her attention. Patients frequently report astonishment and frustration at these errant limbs. Overall, alien hand syndrome is difficult to explain as there are many different causes and symptoms that can be described as this condition. However, one symptom that is apparent throughout the many case studies is that the alien hand acts against the willing of the patient. The condition is extremely complex and even though many causes are symptoms are known there is still a lot to learn about it. Further research is therefore required. Word Count: 987 References Akelaitis, A. (1944–1945). Studies on the corpus callosum. IV. Diagonistic dyspraxia in epileptics following partial and complete section of the corpus callosum. American Journal of Psychiatry, 101, 594–599. Biran, I., Giovannetti, T., Buxbaum, L., Chatterjee, A. (2006). The alien hand syndrome: What makes the alien hand alien?.Cognitive Neuropsychology,23(4), 563-582. Chokar, G., Cerase, A., Gough, A., Hasan, S., Scullion, D., El-Sayeh, H., Buccoliero, R. (2014). A case of Parry–Romberg syndrome and alien hand.Journal of the neurological sciences,341(1), 153-157. Farrage, A. D. Alien hand syndrome. http://the-medical-dictionary.com/alien_hand_syndrome_article_5.htm Fisher, C. M. (2000). Alien hand phenomena: A review with the addition of six personal cases. The Canadian Journal of Neurological Sciences, 27, 192–203. Frith, C. D., Wolpert, D. M. (2000). Abnormalities in the awareness and control of action.Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences,355(1404), 1771-1788. Goldberg, G., Mayer, N. H. Toglia, J. U. 1981 Medial frontal cortex and the alien hand sign. Arch. Neurol. 38, 683-686. Kumral, E. (2001). Compulsive grasping hand syndrome: A variant of anarchic hand. Neurology, 57, 2143–2144. Mark, V. W. (2007). Alien hand syndrome. InMedLink neurology(pp. 418-421). MedLink Corporation San Diego. Parkin, A. J. (1996). The alien hand.Methods in madness: case studies in cognitive neuropsychiatry, 173-183. Sala, C. M. S. D. (1998). Disentangling the alien and anarchic hand.Cognitive neuropsychiatry,3(3), 191-207. 1

Cicero’s Oratory and Rhetoric Influence on Roman Politics Essay

The establishment of Rome as a Republic in 509 BC was initiated by the overthrow of the Tarquin monarchy by Junius Brutus. From the remains of the fallen monarchy, the Senate assumed full powers in governing Rome with the Senate as its highest governing body. There were no written constitutions but laws and traditions guided the Republic . From that point forward, the Senate had the power to wage war, impose taxes and run the bureaucracy of the expanding Republic with officials delegated to every post under the supreme authority of the Senate. The Republic thus evolved from a simplistic method of governance inherited from the previous institutions. New offices were invented in order to respond to the needs of the time. Hence, from consuls rose the ranks of the proconsul then the qauestors, praetors, censors and so on. These offices had specific tasks and delegations with powers that varied in length of effect and severity. However, all these powers were concentrated in the hands of the patricians which the plebeian section resented until political currents soon swept and shook the foundations of the republican institutions controlled by the aristocracy . In 1st century BC these events culminated into a dictatorship by a former proconsul, Julius Caesar and soon the Roman Republic was on the verge of dissolution. A conflict between two social classes ensued and finally the Roman Republic that was ruled by the Senate was no more than a puppet of a tyrant. During the final years of the Roman Republic, a brilliant orator emerged from the ranks of the aristocracy, Marcus Tullius Cicero, whose life was intertwined with the republic’s collapse. Though originally, Cicero was not born from a wealthy family such that he would be, by virtue of birth, destined to be a part of the ruling aristocracy in the Senate. His was a political ambition which he gained through a career in law. He eyed for a seat in the Senate and with that he studied philosophy, jurisprudence and rhetoric. With the gift of words he made it into the Roman bureaucracy by being elected into the succeeding offices of the qauestor, aedile, praetor and finally consul in 63 BC . Cicero’s ascension to the highest office was attributed to Lucius Sergius Catalina who was vying for the post. To prevent Catalina (Catiline) from being elected, Cicero’s party nominated him. His speech during the election was quite essential in the exceptional rise to power by a non-patrician. In his First Oration against Catiline, D’Ooge translates Cicero’s speech before the Roman Senate: â€Å"†¦Before what youth, whom you had ensnared by the charm of your enticements, have you not carried a sword to encourage for his audacity or a torch to fire for his lust†¦Ã¢â‚¬  this, Cicero said in the presence of Catalina who tried to defend himself but the senators hauled at him a barrage of questions and interruptions that made Catalina flee from the Forum. Further engaging hatred against Catalina among the upper class senators, Cicero even invented that Catalina murdered his wife . He likewise included in his speech the senators were either fearful of nothing or fearful of everything that they declined at first to act against Catalina . Such was Cicero’s powerful speech that the tables were turned against Catalina. In Catalina’s desperate attempt to attain the consulship, he hatched conspiracies which were passed to Cicero who immediately reported back to the Senate. With such virtuosity, Cicero acquired emergency powers from the Senate. He later obtained messages Catalina sent to the Allobroges in lieu of his plans to raid the city. All these events were articulated by Cicero in a series of speeches in the Senate asserting that a threat had been extinguished. Following his presentation of evidence to the Senate, arrests were immediately carried out and the conspirators were executed without trial . Cicero’s revelations received frenzied applauses from the Senate as the rebellion was quelled before it touched the streets of Rome. Hence, the Cataline conspiracy gave way for Cicero and his oratory the popularity among the citizens and earned his consulship all at the same time . It was not the first time that Cicero made use of his oratorical skills but it was the very last of his outstanding accomplishments as a senator for the winds of the civil war upon Rome, and it was just a little time that Julius Caesar had tolerated the whimpering of the useless Senate . It was inevitable that Cicero eventually fell for the complexities of the military mind of Julius Caesar. He was eventually exiled for rallying behind the loser’s side. His exile was based on the allegations that he executed the Catilinarian conspirators without trial made by his archenemy Publius Claudius, but in reality, it was caused by his defense of Rome’s republican structure and the maintenance of the Senate which Caesar held powerless through the Triumvirate, with Crassus and Pompey . His exile gave him time to reflect his republican principles. His three major works worth to be discussed here in length was â€Å"On the Orator†, â€Å"On the Republic† and â€Å"On the Laws. † These documents in the form of dialogue were his manifesto of the republican principle he adhered to and believed to be the best for Rome. These treatises were interconnected with each other as each one was a prerequisite to the next. â€Å"On the Orator† discussed the characteristics of an ideal orator. Here he ascribed that a good orator must likewise be well acquainted with philosophy and law as a rhetorician should always have the solid foundations of factual basis for his arguments. Seemingly possible that the rhetorical abilities were reciprocally beneficial so that philosophical and political ideas could be well articulated hence better understood and subsequently agreed upon by a target audience. An ideal orator, he said, had to be at the fore of political decisions, create the necessary laws and be in himself an example of the correct way of living. These necessary traits of the orator were essential for the formation of an ideal commonwealth which he detailed in the treatise â€Å"On the Republic. † It was deliberated there that the Roman institutions were undermined at the onset of the Triumvirate. He further evaluated that the Roman Republic was a concoction of the components of a monarchy, aristocracy and democracy. In this paper his despise for the aristocracy which had marginalized him in the beginning of his career became evident. The moral decay of the aristocracy had been pointed out to be a possible cause of the government’s destruction. In order to avert such destruction, virtue must be actively exercised and the essence of the foundations of community had to be considered at all times. Therefore, the statesman who ran the affairs of the republic had to be accustomed to the concept of natural law. These laws he asserted on the last treatise, â€Å"On the Laws,† were to be based on the natural order of things such that man should perform his duties as what was determined of him to do even before his birth. He asserted that only through reason justice could be discovered that would subsequently provide the commonwealth with the laws that would govern its affairs . These discourses on the republican principles however, were deemed useless since Julius Caesar was just waiting for the right moment to strike. When Cicero was finally permitted to return to Rome, he was accepted by the citizens with somewhat unchanged enthusiasm. Feeling indebted to Pompey, he again took the center stage of the Forum to persuade the Senate to give Pompey dictatorial powers which Pompey took advantage while Caesar was on a military campaign in Gaul . While having these especial dictatorial powers, Pompey moved against Caesar’s advantage. The strokes of history went against Cicero as Julius Caesar ultimately defeated Pompey and became the sole dictator of the Roman Empire. Thus along with Pompey’s vanquish from the city, senators who also went to Pompey’s side fled in hope that they would be able to remove Caesar from his tyranny through Pompey’s legions in Africa and Spain. When Cicero was granted clemency by Julius Caesar in 47 B. C. , a condition was set that he would not be engaged in politics but when Caesar was assassinated in March 44 B. C. , Cicero again meddled with the affairs of the struggling factions who were eyeing Caesar’s former position. He was after all, hopeful that Octavian, the heir apparent to Caesar’s throne, would be influenced and manipulated to bring the Senate back to its former glory. In order to ensure Octavian’s victory over Mark Anthony, he engaged into the battle of persuading the senators, though they only held ceremonial powers, to aid Octavian. This series of speeches were called the Philippics. The Philippics had shown the greatest orator and rhetoric in Cicero and come scholars say that it was the finest moment in his political career but those speeches only spelled his death. Clearly, the Philippics were aimed to crush Mark Anthony. Unfortunately, Octavian had already come up with agreements with other contending parties. Cicero met his death quite sardonically too deviated from the eloquence of his oratory and the refinement of rhetoric. It was a brutal end for a man who lived by the word. His head was displayed at the Forum to convey a clear message to the Romans that the Roman Republic was extinct and that the new age had commenced . References Boatwright, M. T. , Gargola, D. J. , & Talbert, R. J. A. (2006). A Brief History of the Romans. New York: Oxford University Press, Inc. Clayton, E. (Ed. ) (2006) The Internet Encyclopaedia of Philosophy. Michigan. D’Ooge, B. L. (1915). Cicero Select Orations. New York: Benj. H. Sanborn & Co. Holland, T. (2003). Rubicon: The Triumph and Tragedy of the Roman Republic. London: Little Brown. Suetonius. (2003). The Twelve Caesars (R. Graves, Trans. ). London: Penguin Group.

Life After Business Argumentative Essay Topics

Life After Business Argumentative Essay Topics Argumentative arguments are merely arguments that are written back on paper. An argumentative essay is a sort of thesis or composition in which you have to present your view and try to convince others your facts and arguments are correct. An argumentative essays aim is to convince your reader to strengthen your side of the argument. Any great task finishes with an amazing conclusion and the very best examples of the argumentative essay will arrive in with a conclusion which has an overview of all of the points together with a gist of the evidences provided. An argumentative essay is a sort of essay that presents arguments about each side of a problem. It presents both sides of an issue. Usually, it has the same outline as the majority of traditional papers. Every argumentative essay ought to be based on a topic that may be debated. The upcoming few paragraphs will constitute most of your essay. Quite simply, if you don't compose an excellent introduction, you won't have the ability to devise a flawless essay. Before concluding the essay, it is vital to summarise with a strong emphasis on the subject. The very first sentence of the essay has to be interesting enough to produce the reader read on. The Hidden Gem of Business Argumentative Essay Topics The argumentative essay has a certain format that has to be followed to blow the mind of the reader, and it's especially helpful for students along with the corporate when making strategic proposals. Therefore, for your coursework, you will want to have the very best ideas. Well, grading papers can be rather dull. Using Business Argumentative Essay Topics The first thing you're likely to have to do is to pick a topic that has more than one clear side. Without a great evidence, nobody is likely to believe my words. If you become lost on your way, refer back to our guide, and we'll be pleased to aid you with anything that you demand. Selecting a question that everybody has agreed on the response to is not a great idea and, thus, not advisable by many experts. You can't control anybody's opinion, and everyone is eligible to make their own choices, even if it has to do with smoking. A lot of people find writing as an effective approach to share their suggestions and opinions. Various folks need different approaches. When picking a topic make sure you like it, as you will have to devote days or even weeks on it, so it's important to stay motivated in regards to the matter you discuss. The Tried and True Method for Business Argumentative Essay Topics in Step by Step Detail Many of you might be knowing an outline gives a hint about the characteristic of an essay. When you get to the conclusion, you need to make a synthesis of the human body of your paper. If you've got more information to share, you might include as many as five body paragraphs. You first have to pick a good topic with an argument, credible information to back up your viewpoint, a good stance on your side, and a superb counter-argument that will help you sound less bias ed. Finding the Best Business Argumentative Essay Topics You cannot merely begin trying to find sources and inspiration as soon as you have begun writing. An argumentative essay example will reveal the should possess some crucial components which make it better in the practice of convincing. With the aid of such samples and templates, students may find a general idea about the undertaking, understand its structure and get fresh ideas on this issue. Writing has existed for quite a very long moment. The amazing argumentative Scholarship Essay Samples formats and samples are just world-class, and they're going to inspire individuals to write argumentative essays in various competitions. You are able to also see Writing Template. Before writing an argumentative essay, there's one important thing you should know. Before you turn in your assignment, you will want to check over it one final moment. It is very important to check reviews about essay writing services in order to be confident they can deliver your task before the deadline. The Argument About Business Argumentative Essay Topics The simple truth is, marijuana is not anywhere near as dangerous as other drugs like cocaine. Even in case you don't like to argue with the points of different people, it's still true that you have to be prepared to compose an argumentative essay at any moment! The matter is there are so many individuals that are still smoking. Look through the list of topics with care and get started making a mental collection of the evidence you are able to use on topics you prefer.

A Description of the Theme of Kingship Found in Corpus...

Description of the Theme of Kingship Found Within the Corpus Genesis to Joshua Objective The objective of this study is to describe the theme of Kingship as it is found within the corpus of the Genesis to Joshua and to briefly examine its inclusion in the development of the New Testament. Introduction Joshua calls to faithfulness (23024) and is pivotal to the theology and literature of the Old Testament. In Joshua Israel the land of Canaan (1-12) is allotted as an inheritance (13-19) that fulfills Gods promises to Abraham (Gen 12:7; 15-12-16) Joshua frames the entire prophetic corpus with injunctions to obey the teachings of Moses. (1:7-8) The question has arisen as to whether Joshua is history or indeed what type of writing the book of Joshua actually is. History is reported to never be the simple recording of bare uninterrupted facts about the past. (Creach, 2003) In fact Creach (2003) states that this type of writing, or that of Joshua certainly must have been classified as the kind of history that was written in the ancient world to trace national origins and to support nationalistic goals. The reading of Joshua has been stated to be such that should be read primarily and theological literature, not as history in the modern sense. (Creach, 2003, p.5) The story told in Joshua a nd specifically in verses 2-7, the Israelites are spying on Jerichos King who seeks out the spies and is misled by Rahab resulting in the king and army going on a wild gooseShow MoreRelatedContemporary Issues in Management Accounting211377 Words   |  846 Pagesinsights from modern-day practice, research, and thought. This approach makes the book particularly suitable for students in academic as well as executive-oriented courses in management accounting. It also provides viii PREFACE an extensive corpus of discussions that will inform those in practice. Readers interested in gaining direct insights into specialized management accounting areas will Wnd this book to be an especially valuable reference source. Established Welds cannot grow in the absence