The Golden Gate Bridge

In October of 2008, a suicide barrier was finally approved for the Golden Gate Bridge. We have all seen the beauty of this bridge, and seen wonderful pictures of it with the bay fog on an early morning in San Francisco. But this beautifully crafted bridge has a dark side: it is the most common place in the country to commit suicide. Now this fact would seem to get the attention of someone; one would think after decades of people calling for some sort of a barrier, some sort of protection, something would have been done by now.Well, not exactly. More then probably thousands of deaths (we will never know how many people have died since some were not witnessed or their bodies were never found) and 70 years after it was finished, the bridge is finally going to have a suicide barrier. But wait, there's more! The district does not have enough funds to pay for the net, and it will probably take at least two MORE years for the proper studies, funding, and permits to be completed. That is about 60 more people who will jump added to the already too long list. It is very sad to see that precautions were not taken sooner; it should not have taken this long to even consider something that allows someone to so easily toss their life away. Even with other rules in place to lower the number of people who jump (no pedestrians at night, phones that lead to a crisis line, etc.), they can still jump. This issue should not have taken so long to come up and the government needs to step in soon so that more important lives are not lost in such a quick and fatal decision.

Personality Tests

Jung Typology Test: I am an ESFJ. I am slightly expressed extravert(22%), moderately expressed sensing personality(25%), distinctively expressed feeling personality(62%), and moderately expressed judging personality(44%). This seems to sound about right for me, but some of the questions could have been both or neither for me. Overall, it feels accurate though.

My Life Goals: I tend to prioritize intrinsic goals over extrinsic goals more than the typical study participant. That means that I put more into relationships and experience positive growth rather than hear how beautiful I am from other people. This is also fairly right, since I do care somewhat about how beautiful or rich I am, but not as much as I am concerned with the people I most care about.

Well-Being Test: It said that I was mostly more than statisfied with life, and that I had a good self-esteem. For the most part this is true, but I felt that the test was not as accuarate as it could have been. I felt like the questions were loaded.

Religion Test: My average was a 5.83 out of 7. This makes sense because my faith means a lot to me. It also seemed to be accurate due to the results of other religions.

Hogwarts House: I am mostly a Hufflepuff (80%). Hufflepuff students are friendly, fair-minded, modest, and hard-working. That sounds like me. I felt like it was mostly accurate, since it asked a lot of questions and enough different numbers.

Dear Caroline

Dear Caroline,
I hope all is well with you and I hope you are adjusting to college life. I don't know about you, but I've found it quite difficult. On all the homework I've had to ask for help, and even though I ask a lot of people, no one ever wants to study with me. I call my parents about 3 times a day and they tell me how much they miss me. I hate being in a different city than Mark, because we are too far apart! We text each other about 150 times a day. I just can't seem to stop thinking about him. I also HATE when my roommate isn't there, especially at night. I normally go across the hall when the happens and talk to Maggie, who is always there for me when I need her. It is nice. We talk a lot too. So how are things going for you?
Amanda

Case Study 8

Case Study 8: A 26 year old man is very concerned about cleanliness and hygiene. He spends a significant amount of time each day washing his hands or showering, especially after touch a toilet seat, doorknob, or any other item he thinks may be dirty or contaminated. The patient explains that he is concerned about becoming infected or sick from touching these objects. He periodically acknowledges that the washing is excessive but explains that he becomes very anxious when he tries to avoid washing and eventually feels compelled to wash even more to make up for the omission.

The man in this case study is suffering from a case of Obsessive Compulsive Disorder. His excessive washing, especially after touching "dirty" objects, leads one to believe this. When he realizes this and tries to stop, he becomes even more obsessed with cleanliness, and goes back to his old way of life. Due to this, it is quite easy to diagnose him with obsessive compulsive disorder. While easy to diagnose, it is not as easy to get over. He will have to go through therapy, and will need to be given some form of medication. Before jumping into either of these, however, the doctors will need to look at his life (both past and present), to see what type of treatment will be best for him(what medications will have the least side-effects, what type of therapy will best help the individual, etc). Also, the family will need to be aware of the disorder and all that it entails, as well as the risk of it being genetic. Most importantly, the patient needs to be willing to try and change their attitude. While these fears may never go away completely, they can be reduced. The final goal of treatment would be for him to be able to not obsess as much about cleanliness and for his disorder to make little to no impact on his daily life.

Ludwig Von Beethoven was a genius of his time. His music has stood the test of time and is still popular in today's society. Even with this renowned fame, Beethoven still suffered from manic depression, mostly due to his deafness. The only thing that kept him going was his music.


Beethoven was nervous that he would day become deaf, since he would get a strange buzzing sensation in his ears at times. As his hearing decreased, he continued to write his music and became the great composer that he is today. He continued to write more musical pieces, like his concertos, sonatas, an opera, and much more. He, however, could not face many people towards the end of his life. He was ashamed that a composer and musician could be deaf, and that he, in fact, was. He spent most of his times with his closest friends and family. He even considered committing suicide, as stated in his Heiligenstadt Testament.

Even though he was deaf, Beethoven was still a great composer. His legacy has lived on, even as he lost his hearing and eventually passed away. One cannot help but to admire this great leader of classical music, even though he would not himself believe that.




http://www.lvbeethoven.com/Bio/BiographyLudwig.html


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