The Law of Connection Essay Example for Free

The Law of Connection Essay It can be said that in order to make other individuals follow a certain person, that person must first be able to touch the hearts of these individuals. By stating that a person must first touch the heart of the individuals, it is assumed that the person must primarily be able to communicate with the emotions of the individuals apart from anything else. That is, in order to be able to make a personal connection with other people, an individual is faced with the task of communicating first with the emotions of these people. In essence, one cannot expect others to follow him or her without first being able to establish an emotional rapport with others. For the most part, one can argue that individuals have a common bond that makes them at least one at heart. Hence, to be able to touch the heart of others and communicate with their emotions is to be able to make them understand how and what one thinks and seeks to do. In Genesis 12:1-7 of the Bible, for instance, it is stated that Abraham has descendants. More precisely, the Bible presents the idea that people are descendants of Abraham as God promised him â€Å"a great nation† where the descendants will receive the Promised Land. Moreover, it is apparent that God did this by communicating with the emotions of Abraham, by fulfilling what he earnestly yearns for in his heart. Another illustration in the Bible can be found in Exodus 1: 8-21. The context of the verses in, specifically in verses 8-11, suggests that an appeal to the emotion of individuals can indeed prove to be a good way of making other follow. For instance, when the new king of Egypt told his people that â€Å"the people and children of Israel are mightier† than them, and by adding that unless they do not begin to quell the Israelites they may soon find the latter joining forces with their enemy which my lead to their downfall, the people of Egypt began to act in accordance to the revelation of their new king. Such passage suggests the idea that, by striking at the emotions of individuals, one can arrive at a situation wherein these individuals will act in accordance o how one wants things to be. Further, from verses 12-21, one can find that, eventually, the Hebrew women disregarded the call of the Pharaoh for the reason that they fear God more than him. Since the â€Å"Hebrew women are not as the Egyptian women,† it can be suggested that the emotions of the Hebrews are closer to their own beliefs than the commands of an Egyptian Pharaoh. It further implies the idea that, although one can be able to communicate with the emotions of others, it is nevertheless not a solid assurance that others will bend in relation to what the individual desires. More importantly, being able to communicate with the emotions of others and make them act according to one’s perception is augmented by an underlying commonality between the individuals and the person. This underlying commonality can come in many different forms such as tradition and religion. Hence, the ties that bind people together, or the connection that they all have, serve as a factor that one must consider in order to effectively communicate with the emotions of others. In Exodus 19:3-13, it is observable that God employs certain forms of warnings such as â€Å"whosoever toucheth the mount shall be surely put to death† in order to fulfill the higher purpose of God to â€Å"come down in the sight of all the people upon Mount Sinai†. In essence, warnings can help substantiate and strengthen the fulfillment of a certain goal inasmuch as it aids in preempting other people from disobeying commands and certain forms of beliefs. Moreover, warnings serve the purpose of reinforcing the task of making other people follow by communicating with their emotions. Lastly, in Deuteronomy 1 verses 1-5, it can be noted that Moses was commanded by God to deliver His message to the people of Israel. Notable in the passage is the thought that the message Moses will deliver are from God which presents the idea that the message of a supreme authority of a common people connected by their belief in the authority of God cannot be easily ignored. In essence, what can be maintained is the idea that being able to communicate with the emotions of other people grants the person the ability to make other people follow one’s plans or courses of actions. Since emotions are innate to humanity and it is what connects people together in one way or another, emotions allow communications between individuals, specifically those who belong to a group connected by traditions and other things. References King James Bible. (1997, February 18, 1997). Retrieved September 12, 2007, from http://quod.lib.umich.edu/k/kjv/browse.html Maxwell, J. C. (1998). The Law of Connection. In The 21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership (pp. 101-107). Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson.

Playing Mind Games In Video Games Media Essay

Playing Mind Games In Video Games Media Essay and Video games and : a bright title in nowadays world of pop culture, yet a very controversial area of it. Simply known as electronic games that interact with the user using video feedback technique, video games are growing ever popular. Ranging from core, casual, serious, to adventurous genres, video games succeed in captivating their users in a total different world of theirs. Are games that good for the coming generations? Is another virtual world necessary besides that they are living in? Well, obviously, as fun as video games are as tricky they actually are. According to researches, video games are growing to be more confusing, addictive, and time demanding. These later problem must and can be solved by many ways such as monitoring, filtering, and timing video games. One of the most common criticisms of video games is that they expose users to immoral themes and provoke violence. The contemporary video game involves a fully realized imaginary world Malcom Gladwell * points out, but is this world safe? New console games are so developed that they are able to simulate the real world we live in, and most players-which are youngsters- can easily fall into the trick. Never forget that as Postman and Powers declares:moving pictures are a kind of language themselves*, we should stand then at what kind of language is this! Many popular games handle serious themes like: war, wrestling, killingà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ and with the complex graphics they provide the game becomes captivating and even influencing. I once saw my cousin making up a street fight after few rounds playing the famous:counter strike, grand theft auto, call of dutyà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦. Actually, Grand Theft Auto: Vice City came under similar criticism, also for implying allegedly racist hate crimes : The game, taking place in and Vice Cityand , involves a gang war between Haitians and Cuban refugees, and the player often plays for either to fight against one another. Haitian and Cuban anti-defamation groups strongly criticized the game for these actions, including using insulting language such as and kill the Haitian [emailprotected] . Does anyone like his children growing ignorantly into such race-based decisive beings? And thats not far away from taking place when games are overused (which happens frequently in the real world). And thats not it, gamers spend hours detecting related ideas like new weapon releases, or learning some dangerous moves that can really be harmful! They tend to be more aggressive and irritated as many studies revealed, when they should be more interested in peace and a more civilized world. Another is that spending time playing video games causes addiction accompanied with serious attention problems. Gladwell states:players have to explore and sort through hypothesis in order to make sense of the games environment, which is why a modern video game takes at least forty hours to complete *. Logically, so much attention and time to waste for fun (whatever sort of games it was)! So we can define video game addiction as the excessive use of console games that interrupt daily life. Cases have been reported in which users play continuously, isolating themselves from social contact and concentrating almost entirely on winning some rounds rather than more important life events. The pleasure and fun that such games provide loosens the users control on the playing time interval and attracts him more and more, so he/she may end up playing, for example, 20 rounds straight without even noticing. During gaming the special sensational treats in the game provide satisfaction that is mor e demanded by the users unawareness, like the sense of being amused or even the rush provided by a race or a battle! Moreover, all the effects contained in these video graphical products are mesmerizing. Malcom Gladwell continues *:players are required to manage a dizzying array of information and options, which keeps all their senses busy and expires their attention span. The more teen sits around playing video games, the more at risk they will be for learning problems and attention problems. Or else how do we expect that a gamer caught with supreme dazzling dimensions to be interested in simple everyday tasks!? How many times do parents have to call their children when playing console games until they first say an empty yes? It usually requires more than calling their name to catch their attention and receive a real meaningful response for their demands! And if observed more carefully, gamers of all ages tend to get bored easily. Children get bored at school when nothing is enough to derive their energy back for class activities and suffer learning problems. Adult players get grumpy frequently at work too; they just do their job with no minimal enthusiasm. Why? Well, who cares for the real world when he has his own virtual but exciting, superb, and wonderful world! In addition, video games include advergaming that victimizes players and urges them to fulfill certain objectives. To make this more clear consider Pepsi man a video game released by PepsiCo. , this game is recorded to make people thrive for Pepsi whenever playing it (at least thats what happened to me)! Advergaming is the practice of using video games to advertise a product, organization or idea. Games for advertising are mostly categorized as a type of serious game, these games are found to have a strong promotional or implied purpose other than pure entertainment. Smart programmers hired by companies put the producers interests in selling their products into video games under the title of entertainment. The product placement in online multiplayer games is done by including the wanted products, services and brands into the game. This entire trick and treat pattern leaves the person exposed to such conspiracy hypnotized. Hypnotized to play more, to consume more, and to be taken adva ntage of more! Dont forget the amount of subliminal messages included in such console games that overcome the right of free choice a human being should enjoy. A hidden message is information that is not immediately recognized, and that must be discovered and analyzed before it can be known, not the case in vigorously played console games. In the computer game Doom II, a message can be played in reverse to hear and you must killand . Does it make sense when children supposedly gaming for innocent entertainment hear stuff not suitable for their age and perform implied tasks not favorable to be handled? Are video games safe then? Such methods silently make products and ideas appealing to our deceived minds. That is definitely improper. Such controversial problems must be solved for the sake of the coming generations and this can be done in different ways. After all theres nothing to stop companies from producing such games (a video game isnt illegal), neither there is a way to take one way to bring joy to the children from them. Yet human beings are still able to control their daily intake of perceived matter, they can supervise the quantity and quality of it as a mean of protective technique. A way to minimize such negative sides of console games is a proper monitoring of the quality of the games introduced to a certain country, area, and house. At the country level, the official departments for social and educational affairs should be assigned the task of trying, analyzing, and authenticating the games and its contents. Thus, the government will limit the entrance of harmful video games according to objective measures. After all, selection then serves as a kind of sieve or screen through which our knowledge passes before it becomes our knowledge* says Newman and Genevieve, and in this case we are selecting video games so that their harmful content willnt become a part of our knowledge. The violent games will therefore stay away of the childrens reach and the virtual fighting madness will decrease from the innocent-hood. Also, the players will be protected, so that no greedy business men will get advantage of ignorant citizens. And no more hidden messages will control the minds of fun-seeking users. But this isnt enough to solve the whole issue. Even if the harmful content is removed, the visual and audible effects are still there in the game, the attractive elements are still present, and those are at the essence of games and cant be removed. So another aid is needed, and this is the parental supervision, or any superior authority attention. The playing time is to be monitored so that the child/gamer is having enough fun, but not enough to know his attention off. Another task is a second inspection of the games content to decide its convenience to the age, mental and growth stage, and tolerance of the player. Moreover, campaigns can be held across the country to educate parents and older players about the disadvantages of video gaming. And explain for they why exactly are they to deal carefully with such entertainment method, urges them to inform other players if not present, suggest more useful games to try. Or even talk about more fruitful entertaining methods like hanging over with friends and family or reading books What proceeded reveals the problems caused by video games. So its about time to understand that video games are not always human beings friends. People were not put on the wide planet Earth to waste 40 hours weekly inside their rooms, mesmerized infront of the pc or TV, playing video games. We were made to move around, to go outside and play, to work, to exchange thoughts, talks, and feelings with others, to think. It is time to re-evaluate how every individual, parents, and children live their lives. Dont let more people waste their lives in virtual worlds full of illusions. Resources/reference: * Malcom, Gladwell, Brain Candy: Is Pop Culture Dumbing Us Down Or Smarting Us Up?, paragraph 6, line 9 / paragraph 7, line 8 / paragraph 8, line 1 * Neil, Postman and Steve, powers, Television News: The Language of Pictures paragraph 2 line 8 *Newman, P.Birk and Gneviene, B.Birk, Selection, Slanting, and Charged Language, paragraph 4 line 1

Democratic Development in Dharamsala Essays -- Tibet Government Papers

Democratic Development in Dharamsala The year 1959 brought enormous changes to the life of Tenzin Gyatso, Tibet’s fourteenth Dalai Lama. At the age of fifteen, he was forced to assume political power as Tibet’s supreme temporal ruler. Although the Dalai Lama does not traditionally assume secular power until the age of eighteen, advances made by the Chinese Red Army forced him to ascend to this position prematurely. Needless to say, there was an immense amount of pressure on the teenaged boy: not only was he the religious leader of millions of Tibetans, he was now also their political leader as well. Furthermore, his previous experience with government and international affairs was extremely limited, and he himself did not feel prepared for the position despite the wishes of the people that he become king. When Tibet’s deteriorating situation forced him to furtively escape from Tibet into northern India, the Dalai Lama settled in Dharamsala where he established a government in exile that ruled o ver the Tibetan refugees. Despite countless obstacles and hardships the Dalai Lama has faced, he has handled his difficult situation admirably, developing a form of government new to Tibetans, one based on democratic ideals. Although not all of his ideas and actions have been received enthusiastically by all Tibetans, the past decades have proven that the government as developed by the Dalai Lama best suits the needs of the refugee Tibetans, as democracy best respects their rights and freedoms as individuals. History and Background Until Chinese invasion and occupation, Tibet was what is known as an established religion state, meaning that its government acknowledged and supported the institution and practices of ... ...ral, is up to the Tibetan people, as His Holiness stated in 1969. This statement was an act of true democracy: putting his own desires aside, the Dalai Lama decided to act in accordance with the wishes of the people. He remains encouragingly positive concerning Tibet’s situation; as he has stated, â€Å"Certain of the predictions concerning Tibet’s future make [the] point [that things will turn out well in the end] and I myself have always been convinced of it† (Avedon 359). We can only hope that the wishes of His Holiness concerning Tibet’s future reach fulfillment, and that in the future Tibet will prosper, preserving the rights and freedoms of all individuals, and setting an example for communities around the globe. [1] at least initially – in 1975 the concept of primary elections was introduced for choosing members of the Assembly of Tibetan People’s Deputies. Democratic Development in Dharamsala Essays -- Tibet Government Papers Democratic Development in Dharamsala The year 1959 brought enormous changes to the life of Tenzin Gyatso, Tibet’s fourteenth Dalai Lama. At the age of fifteen, he was forced to assume political power as Tibet’s supreme temporal ruler. Although the Dalai Lama does not traditionally assume secular power until the age of eighteen, advances made by the Chinese Red Army forced him to ascend to this position prematurely. Needless to say, there was an immense amount of pressure on the teenaged boy: not only was he the religious leader of millions of Tibetans, he was now also their political leader as well. Furthermore, his previous experience with government and international affairs was extremely limited, and he himself did not feel prepared for the position despite the wishes of the people that he become king. When Tibet’s deteriorating situation forced him to furtively escape from Tibet into northern India, the Dalai Lama settled in Dharamsala where he established a government in exile that ruled o ver the Tibetan refugees. Despite countless obstacles and hardships the Dalai Lama has faced, he has handled his difficult situation admirably, developing a form of government new to Tibetans, one based on democratic ideals. Although not all of his ideas and actions have been received enthusiastically by all Tibetans, the past decades have proven that the government as developed by the Dalai Lama best suits the needs of the refugee Tibetans, as democracy best respects their rights and freedoms as individuals. History and Background Until Chinese invasion and occupation, Tibet was what is known as an established religion state, meaning that its government acknowledged and supported the institution and practices of ... ...ral, is up to the Tibetan people, as His Holiness stated in 1969. This statement was an act of true democracy: putting his own desires aside, the Dalai Lama decided to act in accordance with the wishes of the people. He remains encouragingly positive concerning Tibet’s situation; as he has stated, â€Å"Certain of the predictions concerning Tibet’s future make [the] point [that things will turn out well in the end] and I myself have always been convinced of it† (Avedon 359). We can only hope that the wishes of His Holiness concerning Tibet’s future reach fulfillment, and that in the future Tibet will prosper, preserving the rights and freedoms of all individuals, and setting an example for communities around the globe. [1] at least initially – in 1975 the concept of primary elections was introduced for choosing members of the Assembly of Tibetan People’s Deputies.

Mary Catherine Batesons Improvisation In a Persian Garden, Annie Dilla

Mary Catherine Bateson's Improvisation In a Persian Garden, Annie Dillard's Seeing and Leslie Marmon Silko's Landscape, History, and the Pueblo Imagination This paper will analyze Improvisation In a Persian Garden (Mary Catherine Bateson), Seeing (Annie Dillard), and Landscape, History, and the Pueblo Imagination (Leslie Marmon Silko). Going through the Purpose, audience, context, ethics, and stance of each author’s piece. All three stories show the reader what each author sees. All three authors write of an event that took place in their individual lives. Both Dillard and Bateson go back and forth between the past and the present, while Silko talks of events that took place only in the past. In Seeing, Annie Dillard writes about the things people do not see, and the things people choose to see. Dillard does this to make the reader aware of what is around them. People have the attitude of â€Å"what you see is what you get.† (Dillard pg. 13) Dillard believes that people do not actually want to see what is really there. That people only want to see what makes them happy. Dillard goes on to discuss all the things we see and do not see, ending by stating â€Å"if we are blinded by darkness, we are also blinded by light†. (Dillard Pg.17) Dillard is saying that if you look hard enough there is always something to see. Improvisation in a Persian Garden Bateson wants the reader to see, how adults do not always see things better than children. The author (Bateson) is trying to explain the sacrifice of a sheep to her two-year-old daughter. The author wants other parents to have an idea, as to how to educate a young child in this sort of situation. Bateson begins to notice that she too is learning something for the first time â€Å"beca... ...ose to see, and start seeing what you are afraid to see. In Improvisation in a Persian Garden Bateson writes as herself twenty years earlier. Dillard takes a different view writing not as herself but as a child. Silko writes in the present state with memories of what was heard as a child. Each story is dealing with how people see different things and why. Bateson and Dillard are the most alike with Silko being the most different. The first two both describe everything around them. Silko describes what she hears not sees through his own eyes. Works Cited Anne Dillard, Seeing, A Sense of Place, Forbes Custom Publishing 1999 Leslie Marmon Silko, Landscape, History, and the Pueblo Imagination, A Sense of Place, Forbes Custom Publishing 1999 Mary Catherine Bateson, Improvisation in a Persian Garden, A Sense of Place, Forbes Custom Publishing 1999

Convention and Realism in Henry James’ Washington Square Essay

Convention and Realism in Henry James’ Washington Square Realism, as described by William Dean Howells in the late nineteenth century, replaces the high art and style of the literature of the preceding decades by permitting such characters as Howells' Silas Lapham to have a distinct place in the pantheon of American literary characters. Fervently, Howells invoked the "truth" of the realist genre, writing, "ŒLet it portray men and women as they are, actuated by the motives and the passions in the measure we all know...let it speak the dialect, the language, that most Americans know - the language of unaffected people everywhere'" (Fictions of the Real, 188). This impassioned phrase, apparently invoking the importance of characters such as Silas Lapham, indicates the emergence of a gritty language, an "unaffected" dialect. Such a marker for realism connotes not the stories of Howell or James, but rather the coarse, common language of the masses as found in the pages of Twain's Huckleberry Finn. Howells' call for realism encompasses such literary giants as Henry James, but does not necessarily describe them. Both Howells and James, though utterly invested in "the motives and passions" of the human race, still rely and stylistic and social conventions in their novels. James, most especially, combines high art and society with a new conception of realism - one that removes the mask from the self-proclaimed moralism of the upper classes and demonstrates their hopes and failures in the very light of truth-telling fiction. While Howells' realism was "romantic" in that he permitted "respectability to censor his observations and insights" (Trachtenberg, 191) and allowed his characters to fall into the miasma of what he believed to ... ...mes, 39). James, rather than resorting to the later bitter, gritty realist tactics of Drieser, stays enmeshed in the conventions of society while experimenting with realist conceptions of character. Though the novel caters to the "good taste of the gentlefolk" (Trachtenberg, 182) through its nod to societal norms and customs, James' characters, most especially Catherine Sloper, indicate the emergence of a new reality of "an authentic and original being" (Bell, 38) - a being of lost hopes with the ragged edges of "truth uncompromisingly told." Works Cited Millicent Bell, "Style as Subject Washington Square," in Sewanee Review (vol. 83, 1985). Henry James, Washington Square (London: Penguin Classics, 1986). Alan Trachtenberg, "Fictions of the Real," in The Incorporation of America: Culture & Society in the Gilded Age (New York: Hill and Wang, 1982).

Narcotics Anonymous (NA) meeting Reaction Paper Essay

The Narcotics Anonymous meeting which I attended was named 7 Days of NA which was located on 1212 North Wolfe Street at an organization called Dee’s Place. Just as the Alcoholic Anonymous meeting previously attended, the location appeared to be in a covert and quiet place to hold a support group. We entered through the rear entrance, which seemed to be staged that way to secure participants identity. As before at the last support group I attended, I searched around the room to see again, a 12 steps guide posted on the wall, a relatively thick NA ‘Basic Text’ textbook on the desk of the facilitator and this time there were more participants in attendance. There were approximately 20 woman and men in attendance, predominantly African Americans and two Caucasian women, however a majority of the attendees were women. All of which we either their due to being court ordered or there for the regular daily attendance. Before I was able to sit in my chair I was approached by a group of women, who appeared to be regular attendees, who greeted me with hugs and welcomed me to the meeting. After attending the AA support group, I felt as though I already knew what to expect and how to effectively receive the stories of how some of the individuals overcame substance abuse addiction. The meeting began with the facilitator reciting the Serenity Prayer, then she asked if anyone was new to the meeting. Again I was nervous and uncertain how to respond so I looked around but did not stand up because I did not want to be acknowledged. They then made announcements, where I then witnessed three people receive key chains for being 1 week clean. Though to some being one week clean may not pose much significance, however to the individual who sustained their sobriety for that period of time, it was proven that it was an enormous step for the individual. To me I believe the use of the key chain is a great aspect in motivating the individual to continue making progress towards their goals.  I observed that when each person who had the floor recounted their stories of addiction, ever yone appeared to have much admiration for the person sharing their story. I observed that before sharing their story they started with an introductory statement saying â€Å"Hi, my name is Janet, and I am an addict† and much like AA after each individual recounted their stories they thanked the group for having them while the grouped responded â€Å"Thanks for sharing†. This group, like AA appeared as though they were a unified family. Everyone listened to what each other had to say with no interruptions, no biases, and all appeared to be in support of one another. After listening to several stories of individuals suffering from addiction of various illicit substances to include mainly heroin, crack-cocaine and benzodiazepines, I was in awe as to how early some individuals began abusing drugs. Some of the participants started using drugs as young as 12 years old while some have been abusing drugs for as long as 20 years. However many participants identified as being clean for several years to include one woman who was clean for 15 + years, wh ich made me reflect on how strong these individuals must be to overcome such a powerful disease such as addiction. I noticed that though they have been clean for so long, they still dedicate themselves to attend NA meetings to assist in maintaining their sobriety. According to Gossop, Steward and Marsden (2007), it has been proven that attendance in 12 step self help groups including AA and NA meetings shows increased abstinence, improved psychological health outcomes and improved substance use outcomes. Expressing their stories of addiction to the group, for myself may appear to be seemingly hard and embarrassing but with a group of such empathetic and supportive members, recanting their stories came with ease. Once again I was asked if I would like to share my story, however this time I was more prepared and quickly and respectfully declined the opportunity to share a story with the group. Many participants engaged the group with stories of overcoming addiction or being sexually molested by family members as reasons behind their addiction. However all of their stories were compelling and empowering to the group of individuals who have seemed to endure some of the same sentiments as their fellow group mate. It appeared as if the individuals in the group even though that were court ordered appeared to be extremely engaged and very involved during the meetings. It seemed as though most who attended found peace and solice from  the group during the NA meetings. As it stated by Krentzman, Robinson, Moore, et.al (2010), client’s state that their top two reasons for attending NA meetings were to promote recovery/ sobriety and to find support acceptance and friendships. One thing that I learned from the NA group that just as in AA, family support deems to be an important function on the perseverance of an addict and that the participation and involvement of family is detrimental in the treatment process for the addicts. In several of our readings many of the passages discussed the effects of family systems support as it pertains to substance abusers chemical addiction. The passages described the family system as being a detrimental part of the treatment process as well as for the trea tment of the family as well. According to past studies, family involvement has aided clients in sustaining abstinence from drugs/alcohol and studies also show that those individuals with extensive family involvement in therapy reported higher numbers of clients being abstinent after six months as well as a much better family relationship (Crnkovic & Delcampo, 1998). After listening to all the stories of both feelings of defeat and success, the environment felt so warm and opened. Everyone made each other feel like no matter how long someone has been addicted or whether someone has fallen victim to relapse, they were still a part of the family and they were there to aid that individual in getting through their demise. Everyone motivated and supported each other to succeed. At the close of the meeting, everyone stood in a circle while everyone embraced and recited the Serenity prayer again. I believe that NA is an extremely important aspect of the treatment and intervention process of addiction, because it allows the individual to open up to those who have similar issues and who can emphathize and relate to what that person may be going through because they have or are in the same predicament. Longitudinal studies has proven that having an affiliation with NA has a greater likelihood of sustaining abstinence, improved social functioning and self efficiacy (Humphreys, Wings, McCarty , et al., 2004). As it relates to social work, advocating for self help groups such as Narcotics Anonymous are detrimental to the treatment process of addiction. These groups provide, advocacy, support and education to their clients which are all essential in supporting addicts in their treatment recovery. Working with these individuals requires empathy, understanding and comprehension of the disease  model of addiction, to be an advocate for not only clients facing addiction, but for the surrounding urban communities which are consumed with the drug abuse epidemic daily. References Crnkovic, A., & DelCampo, R.L. (1998). A systems approach to the treatment of chemical addiction. Contemporary Family Therapy: An International Journal, 20(1), 25-36. Gossop, M., Stewart, D., & Marsden, J. (2008). Attendance at Narcotics Anonymous and Alcoholics Anonymous meetings, frequency of attendance and substance use outcomes after residential treatment for drug dependence: a 5†year follow†up study. Addiction, 103(1), 119-125. Humphreys, K., Wing, S., McCarty, D., Chappel, J., Gallant, L., Haberle, B., †¦ & Weiss, R. (2004). Self- help organizations for alcohol and drug problems: Toward evidence-based practice and policy. Journal of Substance Abuse Treatment, 26(3), 151-158. Krentzman, A. R., Robinson, E. A., Moore, B. C., Kelly, J. F., Laudet, A. B., White, W. L., †¦ & Strobbe, S. (2011). How alcoholics anonymous (AA) and narcotics anonymous (NA) work: Cross- disciplinary perspectives. Alcoholism treatment quarterly, 29(1), 75-84.

Qualnet

QualNet 5. 0 Tutorial (ELEC 6851) Part 1: Installation TODO: I would recommend getting AITS to provide the installation instructions as I’m sure the license restrictions will determine how/where QualNet gets installed. Part 2: The QualNet 5. 0 Developer The QualNet Developer IDE is a GUI program for developing network scenarios that comes with QualNet 5. 0. It can be used to visually design network scenarios and then run simulations of these networks. Although networks can be designed and simulated in a command-line fashion as well, we will focus on the Developer IDE package. The first step is to open the Developer IDE program.Depending on the installation procedure, it can be opened via the start menu or by opening the directory where QualNet was installed. Double-click on the â€Å"QualNet Developer 5. 0. 1† icon on the desktop (this option is available only if you chose to install desktop shortcuts during installation). Part 3: Setting Up a Network – Basics Th e first task is to create a new network scenario. To do this, go to the File Menu ->New. Save it in your local folder: File Menu ->Save. Choose the local directory where you want to save the scenario. Enter a name for the new scenario (for example, â€Å"Example1†). Click Save.A grid should appear in the right hand window (see Fig 1). This is where we will deploy the nodes and create network connections. The left hand window has four panels: File System, Toolset, Visualization Control and Runtime Analysis (Toolset panel open). 1 Figure 1: A new scenario has just been created. To setup our first network, we will proceed by a simple example of a 15 node wireless network that accesses the channel using the CSMA/CA scheme defined by the 802. 11 protocol. The first step in creating a network is to deploy the nodes. This is done in the right hand window, the so-called Canvas Area.Nodes can be deployed manually according to an arbitrary topology by selecting Toolset -> Device -> Def ault (just a generic node), then clicking anywhere on the canvas area. In adhoc networking scenarios it is often assumed that the nodes are deployed randomly on the terrain and we will assume random deployment in this example. To randomly deploy the nodes we go to the Tool menu -> Node Placement. The Automatic Node Placement Wizard will open (see Fig. 2). Figure 2: Node placement 2 We then enter the desired number of nodes we would like in our network. Node Placement Strategy: Random.It then asks for a seed value for the random number generator (leave it blank). Click OK. The Placement Wizard will close and the nodes will be deployed randomly on the grid in the Scenario Designer window (see Fig. 3). Location of a node may be changed by left clicking the mouse on the arrow button then left clicking it on the node and dragging it to the desired location. Figure 3: Random node deployment We now want to add these nodes to a wireless network. The first step is to select the nodes we wish to add to the wireless network. To do this we can use the selection tools (arrow or lasso in the View Toolbar).Select all of the nodes by using either of the selection tools and left clicking and dragging the mouse around the nodes. To connect these nodes to a wireless network, select Toolset -> Network Components -> Wireless Network. Now click anywhere on the area you selected earlier. A cloud should appear on the canvas area representing this wireless network and the nodes should be joined to this cloud with blue lines representing the newly formed wireless connections (see Fig. 4). 3 Figure 4: The nodes connected to the wireless network. Part 3a: Creation of Application Layer ConnectionsAfter setting up the network, the next step is creation of application layer connections between the nodes. At any time, there may be several connections active simultaneously in the network. Each connection will have a source and a destination node. The source node generates traffic and transmit s to a destination node. Let us create a connection between nodes 3 (source) and 4 (destination), Selection of the source node: Left click the mouse over the arrow selection tool and then left click it over the device symbol for node 3, the color of number 3 should turn to red.Next select a traffic source, the available pre-defined applications such as CBR (Constant Bit Rate), VBR (Variable Bit Rate), FTP Generic, VOIP, and Traffic-Gen are listed in the left window under the heading -Applications. We note that Traffic-Gen generates UDP traffic while FTP Generic generates TCP traffic. Let us select the Traffic Generator button mouse over it. by left clicking the – Creation of the connection: Now left click the mouse over node 3, hold, and drag it to node 4. When the mouse is released over node 4, a green arrow pointing from node 3 to node 4 will appear.This creates a basic Traffic Generation application between the nodes 3 and 4 as source and destination respectively. The next step is to choose the parameter values of this connection: Let us create a Poisson process of data packets at the source and make the packet length exponentially distributed. To do this, click Table View on the bottom of the right window, and select the Application tab. You should see the connection Traffic-Gen 3->4 listed. Double click the connection. A window of Traffic Generator Properties will show up (Fig. 5). Click on the 4 – Packet Size.Recall, we want the packet lengths to be exponentially distributed with mean packet length 2048 bytes. The default size is deterministically set to 512 bytes. Change the Data Size from Deterministic to Exponential. Then change the Mean Size to 2048 bytes. To make the source generate traffic according to a Poisson process, click on Interval from the Traffic Type menu for this connection. By default traffic is generated deterministically every 1 second. Change the distribution of the interval between successive packets to Exponential and change the Mean Interval to 0. seconds (recall that the inter-arrival times for a Poisson process are exponentially distributed). As well, set the Start Time of the connection to Exponential with mean 0. 5 seconds, and the Duration to Deterministic with fixed duration of 30 seconds. These steps have been summarized below, 1. Click on Packet Size Distribution. (The packet lengths are exponentially distributed with mean packet length 2048 bytes. ) Change the Data Size from Deterministic to Exponential. Then change the Mean Size to 2048 bytes. 2. Click on Packet Interval Distribution. The source generates traffic according to a Poisson process. ) Change the distribution of the interval between successive packets to Exponential and change the Mean Interval to 0. 5 seconds. 3. Click on Start Time Distribution Change the distribution to Exponential with mean 0. 5 seconds. 4. Click on Duration Distribution to Deterministic with fixed duration of 30 seconds. – – – Figu re 5 Traffic Generator Properties 5 A wireless network with multiple connections is shown in Fig. 6. Figure 6 A wireless network with multiple connections Part 3b: MAC ProtocolThe default settings of the MAC protocol can be viewed by clicking on Table View in the bottom panel below the canvas. Click the network tab and double click Wireless Subnet (see Fig. 7). MAC 6 protocol determines how the nodes access to the physical channel to transmit their packets. We note that the default MAC protocol is 802. 11 standard. This standard has two modes of operations known as Distributed Coordination Function (DCF) and Point Coordination Function (PCF). The DCF is more popular in practice and based on the random access mechanism.Briefly, DCF function as follows, (see section 6. 10. 3 in the textbook for the description of this MAC protocol), DCF uses the CSMA protocol, thus a node, with a packet to transmit, first has to sense the channel. If the channel is busy the node backs off for a random amount of time. We note that the channel may be idle at the source but not at the destination node. If the source node senses the channel idle, it transmits a short request to send (RTS) packet. If the channel is also idle at the destination node and it receives the RTS packet then replies with clear to send (CTS) packet.After that the source transmits the data packet and destination node replies with an ACK packet if the packet is received error free which completes the transmission of the packet. If the source node does not receive the CTS packet or an ACK following the transmission of the data packet then it backs off for a random amount of time. A source node may retransmit an unsuccessful packet upto a transmission limit, when that limit is passed then the packet is discarded ( for values of these limits see Fig. 7). – The routing protocol is Bellman-Ford (a Distance Vector routing algorithm).The default settings of the OSI layers can be modified here according to the r equirements of the network. As well, the default settings of an individual node can be viewed by clicking the Nodes tab and double clicking each node. The nodes update their routing tables regularly by exchanging routing packets. We not that in a single wireless subnetwork all the nodes are one hop away from each other, thus there is no routing, but nevertheless nodes will send routing packets regularly. It is worthwhile to spend a few minutes navigating through the menus to learn where to go in order to view or modify parameters in our network scenario.We can right-click the nodes or wireless network in the canvas area. 7 Figure 7 Properties of the MAC Protocol . Part 3c. Wireless channel with Fading We may include fading in the wireless channel by choosing the Scenario Properties button on the left side of the window and then selecting the Channel Properties tab in the new window. (see Fig. 9). In the Channel Properties window go to the row which says Fading Model [0] and click on where it says None. From the drop out menu choose Fading. Then go to the row which says Specify Gaussian Component File, click where it says No and change it to Yes.After this step is taken, a new menu item is open with the name Gaussian Component File, then fill that tab with the following entry, C:/snt/qualnet/5. 0/scenarios/default/default. fading Failure to provide this link will give the following error. â€Å"Error: Error in file .. librarieswirelesssrcpropagation. cpp:3933 PROPAGATION-FADING-GAUSSIAN-COMPONENTS-FILE is missing† 8 Figure 8. Incorporation of fading to the simulation Part 4: Running Simulation The next step is to run simulation of our network. One useful feature of the QualNet Developer package is the ability to trace packets.To enable packet tracing, go to Scenario Properties in the left hand window, select Statistics and Tracing tab, click Packet Tracing in the left window, select Enabled Packet Tracing, click where it says No and change it to Yes. See Fig. 9. 9 Figure 9 Enabling packet tracing. On the Run Toolbar, there are a set of icons related to simulation which include an Open Current Scenario in File Editor, a Run Settings, a Run Simulation and Record Animation Trace. To initialize the scenario, click on the Run Simulation icon . The mode of the Architect will be changed from Design Mode to Visualize Mode.To switch back to Design Mode, click Switch to Design Mode . The Visualization Controls panel opens in the left window. You should see the coordinates icon of the nodes and the current simulation time (which is 0. 0000 seconds) in the output window. Before running the simulation, we note that the Developer package will by default animate various aspects of the simulation such as packet receptions, packet drops and collisions, and unicast and multicast transmissions. Others aspects such as packet queue animation can be enabled by clicking on the button in the Animation Filters which should appear in the left hand window.En able the radio range animation. Simulation will tend to run very fast so if we wish to see the animation it will help to slow down the speed of the animation. This is done by sliding the speed bar to about half way in the Animator window. See Fig10. 10 Figure 10 Initialization and animation settings for simulation The total simulation time can be changed by switching back to the Design Mode, click the Scenario Properties button on the left window, and select the General tab. The Simulation Time is set to 30 seconds by default. We will leave this at its default value for now.We run the simulator by clicking the Play button (Fig. 11). on the menu bar. You should see the simulation animations as the simulator runs Figure 11 Simulation animation during a run. 11 You can enable or disable the different animations while the simulation runs. Wait until the simulation completes. Part 5. Routing of the traffic between subnetworks. We need to have a router for to be able to route the traffic from one wireless subnetwork to another. The router will have two network interfaces each one being member of a one subnetwork.We can create a router as an ordinary node which belongs to both subnetworks. Thus the router node is selected among the nodes belonging to that subnetwork when each subnetwork is created ( see Fig. 12). 12 Figure 12 The two subnetworks communicate through the router node [2] Next we will configure node 2 as a router. For this click on the Table view, then on the Node button, then double click on the row for node 2 and click on the Node Configuration button in the window that opens. Then click on the router properties on the left hand window which displays Fig. 13. Fig. 3 Node configuration window In the Node Configuration window in the row for Type of Router click on the arrow for the value User Specified and from the opening menu choose Predefined. Then in the row for Router Type choose the value Generic. Finally choosing Apply button at the bottom of the window configures node 2 as a router ( see Fig. 14) 13 Fig. 14 Node 2 has been configured as a router Part 6. Simulation Statistics 14 After the simulation has been completed, we can view the data collected during the simulation. To view the statistics of the simulation, click on he Analyze Statistics icon toolbar. in the Components 1- Statistics File If you click on the Statistics File button at the bottom of the window, you will see large amount of per node simulation data. Among the collected statistics we see, – The packets generated by the source nodes and received by the destination nodes are listed as unicast packets. In a connection not all the generated packets may be successfully delivered to the destination. As explained, in Part 3b. a packet will be discarded by the source as a result of reaching the number of retransmissions’ limit.Transmissions may not be successful because of destination node not sending a CTS packet or as a result of the bit errors in t he received packet. We note that the bit errors will depend on the distance between source and destination nodes, fading and shadowing. The strength of the received signal which will decrease as the distance between the source and destination nodes increases. As a result of packet discarding, the throughput of the source and destination nodes in a connection may not be same. – If the distance between two nodes is higher than the node’s transmission range, then, these nodes are not aware of each other.They can not communicate with each other and they will not know each other’s IP addresses. Therefore, if two such nodes will exchange data traffic with each other, the packets will be generated by the Application layer of the source node but they will not be passed to the transport and then to the network layers because the IP address of the destination node is unknown. – In addition to unicast traffic packets, as may be seen there are other packets being tra nsmitted in the network , RTS, CTS, ACK and Broadcasting packets for routing. For each successfully received unicast packet there will be a corresponding ACK path.The number of RTS and CTS packets will correspond to the total number of transmissions of a packet until it is successfully transmitted. 2- Graph Analyzer Window If you click on the Overview button at the bottom of the window, then we can navigate through the Physical, MAC, Network, Transport, and Application layers shown on left hand window. We can access to each layer data by clicking on the button for that layer at the bottom of left hand window. This results in opening of a menu for that layer in the left hand window. Then clicking on any of the menu items displays a submenu.Clicking on any submenu item displays a bar chart for the data collected for that item during the simulation. In Fig. 15 we are ready to view the data collected in the application layer. 15 Fig. 15 Viewing the data collected during the simulation. In Fig. 15, when we click on the Traffic-Gen Client button on the left hand window, then from the drop out menu we click on the data units sent. This results in Fig. 16 which shows the bart charts for the total number of packets generated at the application layer of each node. 16 Fig. 16 Traffic generated at the application layer of each node 17