Circadian Rhythms :: Environmental Cues, Scientific Research

Circadian rhythms are endogenous and self sustaining in all animals and plants. These rhythms are present in the absence of environment clues such as light, temperature and social clues. In absence of clues, animals free run in constant darkness due to programmed genetic interactions. Some of the genes involve in this processes are Per, Clock and Cry. The expressions of these genes are tightly regulated at molecular level by proteins which bind to promoters and repressors to create a rhythm throughout the day. For example, bmal and clock bind to ebox region to produce cry and mper proteins (Hong and Chong, 2007). These proteins are concentration dependant which means high level binds to repressor region to avoid further transcription. Such oscillations work on close to 24 hour cycle in animals and plants. These processes occur without any environmental clues. In case the environment clues are introduced to animals, they tend to synchronize internal clock with external signals. One such example of synchronization is shown in dorsophilia which increase Tim protein at night and the presence of external light decrease the production of Tim protein. This results into phase delay in dorsophilia (Leuloup and Goldbeter, 2001). The idea of phase advance and delay were first proposed by Aschoff and Pittendrigh (1960), but subsequent genetic studies have shown exact genes involved in phase delay and advance occurs due to over or under production of proteins as described in dorsophilia studies. Many knock out studies have shown that disruption of genes involve in circadian rhythm have created arrythmicity in animals. Low-Zeddies and Takahashi (2001), created clock mutants which were arrhythmic when exposed to dark condition. The period of clock mutants were greater when compared to wildtype mice. The mutant also showed higher phase-shifts hours and lower circadian amplitude. Although clock expression has been important to understand rhythm, the initial information from retinohypothalamic tract to core or ventro-lateral region of the SCN has been a prime focus of the recent studies. It is widely known that information from ventrolateral region of SCN communicates with other regions of the SCN. Buhr and Yoo (2010), show ventrolateral and dorsomedial neuronal connection exists and this connection has a role in circadian rythm. Their data shows that tetrodoxin can make SCN temperature incompensated due to inhibition of signal from core to shell regions. Similarly, vasoactive intestinal peptide and peptide histidine iso-leucine are expressed in SCN when light information travel from retinohypothalamic tract.

Asiatic Society of Japan Essay

Japanology or the study of the Asiatic Society of Japan from 1853 was actually the records of the Expeditions sent by the American nation to negotiate with Japan to open their economy to international community. Although before the 1853, Perry Expedition, the Americans had attempted several times to establish economic relations with Japan but all the efforts failed as Japan maintained its Close-Door Policy to international community. As the United States earlier Expeditions suffered humiliation due to Japan’s refusal to their intentions, and because of reports about Japanese barbarous attitude heard from survivors of ship wreck in Japanese waters, the United States had gotten a keen interest in Japan sending a large expeditionary force under Commodore Matthew Perry in 1853 to force Japan to open their economy and to demand them kind treatment of the American castaways and shipwreck survivors. Thus, the Perry Expedition was rather business oriented than any other purpose though there were also others who joined for scientific exploration and still others for less noble purpose or for personal advancement. As this paper dig more on the many books about Asiatic Society of Japan, as well as into the Perry Expedition. The writer found out that most of the authors of those books talk about how Japan reacted on the forcible intrusion of United States ships merely to force Japan to open their economy and do business with the Americans and in the international arena. Thus, this paper discussed Japanology and the Asiatic Society of Japan based on the perspective of the majority of authors towards the subject. Though, it also provides information on the activities of the Western men while in Japan during this period, but it is quite brief due to limited sources. The main information would be on the effect of Perry and the American men on the Asiatic society of Japan and how Japan viewed the Western arrogance and intrusion on Japanese soil particularly the Perry Expedition. In the book ‘With Perry to Japan,’ William Heine disclosed that the purpose of the USS Columbus and the USS Vensennes of sailing half way around the world was to find answer whether Japan would end â€Å"two hundred years of isolation and become friends and begin trade† (p. 1). But these American sailors were pushed back with remarked from the authorities to â€Å"depart as quickly as possible, and not come anymore in Japan† (p. 1). But the stubborn Americans made more attempts to do business with Japan but Japan seemed to be determined to close its door to foreign relations. Heines puts it â€Å"Japan seemed determined to remain as it had been since 1638: shut† (p. 1). With much of rejection and humiliation, the United States sent a large force under Commodore Matthew Perry as a show of force to force them to open their economy in international community. Heine pointed out that the Americans â€Å"wanted exploration, surveys and charts, and protection for castaways and trade† (p. 2). But Perry’s show of force was quite a show of arrogance of the American nation as they would bring such armada of ships merely to compel Japan to open their economy. Heines noted that â€Å"Perry’s order was assertive and could be taken as pugnacious† (p. 3). Heines further said that Perry was instructed â€Å"to shoot his way out if it is needed† (p. 3). Because of such a large force comprising of eight ships, over two hundred cannon and heavy gun, and more than two thousand men, Japan was forced to comply and Perry’s expedition broke into Japanese Island forcing them into international arena (p. 4). In the eyes of Western countries, Japan’s attitude towards the West’s attempt to penetrated Japan with their social, cultural and religious and industrial influence was tyranny. Japan was accused of mistreating Americans and other foreigner and of insulting Christianity and so forth. Heines pointed out that the prevailing Western opinion that Japan halted â€Å"the advancement of science and hindered navigation by blocking exploration, preventing survey and refusing to exchange information† (p. 5). Japanese internal policies and actions were viewed as â€Å"unjust, as wrongs to right prima facie, and their own as right to be asserted de facto† (p. 5). Indeed, Japan was merely protecting itself from Western influence under the banner of nationalism. In the words of Heines, â€Å"a country sought to be left alone and bothered nobody unless bothered by somebody† (p. 5), was suddenly intruded by foreigner. Japan was dragged into international arena mainly because of one sided interest, that of America. Japan had to choose either to accept the American terms or risk their country of losing in battle. In the words of Heines, Japan carefully studied the terms and decided to â€Å"grant the request of those people to trade and communicate with them, learn their drills and tactics, and go abroad to prepare [themselves]† (p. 5). According to an article entitled ‘Transaction of the Asiatic Society of Japan’ revealed the American’s coming in Japan was through the invitation of a Japanese named Neriaki. The article said that Neriaki was able to send letter to a Japanese who managed to get away to American inviting Americans to come to Japan (p. 111). It was this letter that became the prelude to Commodore Dewey to make assertion to Japanese authorities of his coming in 1853. The letter indeed was in arrogant tune. William Gerald Beasley stated that although the American intention was to establish â€Å"friendship and intercourse between the people of two respective countries, yet it was a one-sided transaction. Beasley pointed out that the United States’ statement in the letter, â€Å"we desire to explain to you how great is the United States, and if you refuse to enter into an arrangement, we shall commence hostilities† (Beasley, p. 3). During this time Japan was living in peace and had no internal troubles as Beasley puts it, the â€Å"military class enjoyed a long peace and neglected military arts; they had given themselves up to luxury and pleasure, and there were very few who had put on armor for many years† (p. 3). Thus, the visit of the American ships intended to make peace and friendship brought troubles and confusion on a country living in peace and their citizens living in prosperity. The visit was indeed a little of short to be described as an aggression, because as Beasley described the nature of how the Americans made their entry. Beasley writes, â€Å"In the autumn of the year 1864, during the reign of the 122nd sovereign of the human dynasty, a disturbance took place at Kyto the like of which had not accord since the first origin of Japan. Arms were resorted to and bullets flew about the imperial palace; nay more than half of it was burnt in a conflagration which arose out of the fight. The fierce flames lighted up the heavens, and huge waves overwhelmed the earth† (p. 1). No wonder, the Japanese viewed both the Americans and the British Barbarians. Beasley noted the Japanese authorities were aware of the plunder made by the English Barbarians during the Opium War and the incursion of the US ships a warning and to avoid war, they hard better grant though Japan gave into American demand but in their mind â€Å"the Americans were watching their country with greedy eye for many years† (Beasley, p. 5). As Japan was drag into the international arena Japan was forced to abandon policies of seclusion. Marius B. Jansen noted that Japan was compelled to â€Å"enter the international order on terms defined by the West† (Jansen, p.294). Jansen pointed out that Japan struggled to regain its sovereignty and was forced to â€Å"embarked on policies of centralization and institutional innovation in order to build a modern nation-state and the basic restructuring of domestic society† (Jansen, p. 294). Jensen further said that as Japan moved on further in their new order of domestic reconstruction, what has began as defensive steps to head a perceived Western threat was soon followed by membership in that military and economic order that had first challenged them (Jansen, p. 294). Jansen also pointed out that in the course of Perry and Harry’s negation with the Shogunate of Japan to open their economy to the international community Tokugawa Nariaki which previously sent the letter to America inviting them to come to Japan, â€Å"played a prominent role in opposition to the way Japan responded to the demands of Perry and of Harries (Jansen, p. 295). As more developments taking place in Japan with the presence of the Western forces on the shore of Japan, the foreigners made more contributions to the demolition of Japan’s social and cultural values in the areas where they were to be found. Jansen said â€Å"Japanese entrepreneurs were not slow to set up places of amusements for sailors. And the prints Sadahide provide colorful documentation of partying in the Yokohama Genkiro and other brothels† (Jansen, p. 317). The Wild Wild West behavior of these foreigners not only puzzled ordinary Japanese by these self-confident outsiders but also disrupted moral order of the Japanese life. Jansen puts it, â€Å"no one can question the advisability of men’s providing themselves with pistols, but picnic excursions to islets in Edo Bay that ended with target shooting (p. 317), that even the bravest Samurai for all their courage were helpless to do anything and forced to accept the reality and humiliation that unconscionable behavior was an infuriating reminder of inferiority (Jansen, p. 317). Japanese thought that Westerners will destroy Japanese political structure through the â€Å"diffusion of Christianity, while others felt that these are desecrating sacred soil by their presence and they feared that tolerating their entry invited a form of colonialism. † Thus, during the Western’s first attempts, Japan treated them indifferently which was a normal and ordinary reaction but the US viewed it as tyranny.

Hemingway and Fitzgerald Essay - 1423 Words

Hemingway and Fitzgerald Ernest Hemingway and F. Scott Fitzgerald, the parties of one of the most famously infamous relationships in literary history met for the first time in late April 1925 at The Dingo Bar, a Paris hangout for the bohemian set. In his novel A Moveable Feast (published posthumously) Hemingway describes his first impressions of Fitzgerald: â€Å"The first time I ever met Scott Fitzgerald a very strange thing happened. Many strange things happened with Scott, but this one I was never able to forget. He had come into the Dingo bar in the rue Delambre where I was sitting with some completely worthless characters, had introduced himself and introduced a tall, pleasant man who was with him as Dunc Chaplin, the†¦show more content†¦In doing so scholars have also been able to develop some hypotheses about why these two very different men were drawn to each other. Scott first discovered Hemingway through his Princeton friend Edmund â€Å"Bunny† Wilson, who was an up-and-coming literary critic for Dial magazine in 1924.(Donaldson, 54) Fitzgerald was greatly impressed by the copies of in our time and Three Stories and Ten Poems, which Wilson had sent to him in October. He immediately wrote Maxwell Perkins, his editor at Scribners, a letter telling him about â€Å"a young man named Ernest Hemmingway who lives in Paris (an American) writes for transatlantic Review has a brilliant future.†(54) Fitzgerald was finishing work on the final draft of The Great Gatsby, and was living in St. Raphael, France at the time. He and Zelda moved towards Paris in late April of 1925, coinciding with the first printing of Gatsby and Fitzgerald and Hemingway’s first meeting at the Dingo.(54) It is important to note that although Fitzgerald was the much more successful and well-known of the two at the time they met (he had already published the highly popular This Side of Paradise in 1920, as well as The Beautiful and the Damned in 1922) from the start it was he who adopted a â€Å"younger brother† role in relationship toShow MoreRelatedHemingway vs. Fitzgerald1518 Words   |  7 Pagestwo of the greatest writers of the 20th century, F. Scott Fitzgerald and Ernest Hemingway. Although both authors use alcohol as a â€Å"mask† or an escape to try and fill the void of hopelessness, Hemingway has a stronger emphasis on alcohol than Fitzgerald and also uses it as a means of communion. The life of Ernest Hemingway is a perfect example of turning to alcohol to escape the hopelessness and aimlessness of the â€Å"Lost Generation.† Hemingway had a very disturbing and but adventurous childhood in AmericaRead More Ernest Hemingway and Fitzgerald on the Expatriate Experiance1402 Words   |  6 PagesHemingway and Fitzgerald on the Expatriate Experiance Youre an expatriate. Youve lost touch with the soil. You get precious. Fake European standards have ruined you. You drink yourself to death. You become obsessed with sex. You spend all your time talking, not working. You are an expatriate, see? (Sun Also Rises, 115)1 Paris in the 1920s was a place that seemed to embody dynamic artistic achievement. Many of the great artists of modernist movements were either there or had passedRead More Comparing F. Scott Fitzgerald and Ernest Hemingway Essay1214 Words   |  5 PagesComparing F. Scott Fitzgerald and Ernest Hemingway F. 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Scott Fitzgerald1562 Words   |  7 PagesComparing Hills Like White Elephans by Ernest Hemingway and Babylon Revisited by F. Scott Fitzgerald At first glance it seems that the two short stories â€Å"Hills Like White Elephants† by Ernest Hemingway and â€Å"Babylon Revisited† by F. Scott Fitzgerald have absolutely nothing in common other than beingRead MoreAmerican Writers Like Zora Nealle Hurston, F. Scott Fitzgerald, William Faulkner, And Ernest Hemingway947 Words   |  4 Pagesand cultural consequences were huge. One of the most interesting developments is the changing relationship betwe en intellectuals and the broader public in those years. Many American writers like Zora Nealle Hurston, F. Scott Fitzgerald, William Faulkner, and Ernest Hemingway grew skeptical and weary of the general public during the 1920s, but during the Great Depression, were moved by the hardship they witnessed, the nation began to empathize with and work through the struggles of ordinary AmericansRead MoreHow Hemingway Has Too Strong Opinions On Homosexuality1087 Words   |  5 PagesHemingway has extremely strong opinions on homosexuality, which Gertrude Stein attempts to dissuade by convincing him that those who attempt to assault young boys are not well in their heads. While Stein attempts this, Hemingway proclaims that because homosexuality exists, â€Å"you [carry] a knife and would use it when you were in the company of tramps when you were a boy in the days when wolves was not a slang term for men obsessed by the pursuit of women† (Hemingway 16). It seems that Hemingway doesR ead MoreReview Of The Snows Of Kilimanjaro And Fitzgerald Winter Dreams 1678 Words   |  7 Pagespresented by Hemingway in The Snows of Kilimanjaro and Fitzgerald in Winter Dreams both represent the struggle of two men each dealing with their place in society as it relates to being male and the economic class each occupies. The driving force behind each man, both positive and negative, is represented in the relationship each has with the story’s female character. The analysis of the two stories begins with the autobiographical approach both writers have used to tell the stories. Fitzgerald and HemingwayRead More The Crack-Up Critical Reception History1103 Words   |  5 Pagesfrom the magazine (Bitonti), Fitzgerald did just that and â€Å"The Crack-Up,† â€Å"Pasting it Together,† and â€Å"Handle with Care† appeared in the magazine in February, March, and April of 1936, respectively. The essays dealt with the â€Å"lesion of confidence† (Bruccoli 405) and the crippling sense of spiritual, authorial, and personal emptiness from which Fitzgerald was suffering during this period of his life. Their brutal honesty and the radical departure they meant for Fitzgerald as a literary figure elicited