Reaction time Essay Example for Free

Reaction time Essay Back crawl is different to most strokes because you cannot see where you are going. I know that the skill backstroke is a weakness of my performance because my coach informs me that I have a weak leg kick action. If your leg kick is weak it can make your body position fall slightly diagonally into the water. He tells me I need to bend my knees more and flex my ankles when kicking. My arm action provides most of the power, as my arms make circling actions as they move in and out of the water. Overall the arm action is good but I need to reach and stretch more into every stroke. Also I drop my head forwards into the water and dont hold it back enough. This can make my body position sink, therefore I need to lift my hips up and make sure my head is looking up instead of down, consequently the overall efficiency would be improved. Also as a part of my backstroke technique, my backstroke tumble turns are a weakness in my performance. I know this because I have had video analysis and it shows that sometimes I do to many arm pulls into the turn on my front, where as your only supposed to do one. Therefore my arm action is too soon, and I need to do less front arm pulls. In the somersault part of the tumble turn, the overall rotation is not fast enough, because my body position isnt in a tight enough tuck shape. I need to kick harder with my legs so that I rotate and flip faster. When I glide off the wall in a streamline position my butterfly leg action is weak, therefore I dont get enough distance underwater and sometimes I dont even reach the flags. The overall efficiency of the tumble turn is slow and not fluent. Strategy/Tactic Weaknesses: Building up through out a 800m/ Long-distance race. When I swim long distance races I find it hard to increase my pace through out the race therefore a maintain the same speed. I know this tactic is a weakness in my performance because I know am more of a sprint/middle distance swimmer, and also I prefer to take part in these events.  Components of Fitness Weaknesses:  The component of fitness speed is a weakness in my performance because it is proven that in fitness testing I have scored only average. In swimming speed is the ability to exert maximum muscular contraction instantly in an explosive burst of movements, example a sprint start of the diving blocks. You need speed more when your swimming sprint races example 50m ,100m races. There is a significant degree of technique when trying to build up speed. Its all about a mix of breathing, arm and feet movements, but you must have good muscle force behind before you can increase your speed. There is the fact that some people are just born with an ability to go faster than others. Whilst you can train faster you might never be as fast as your training partner, as they may have a different muscle composition that theyve inherited. This will in itself help them go faster. So speed is most important in sprint races and starts. Another weakness in my performance is the fitness component, reaction time. Reaction time is being able to respond quickly to a stimulus. It important in many sports though it can be measured. Simple reaction time is the time taken between a stimulus and movement e.g., sprint start off a diving block. For example at the start of a swimming race the official signals a gun or a type of noise that indicates you to start the race, you have to respond quickly to this. Therefore reaction time is essential at the start of a race. I know that reaction time is a weakness in my performance because it is proven that in fitness testing a have scored below average. So when I combine my reaction time in swimming to the start of a race, I am slower at reacting to the starters gun. Therefore this is something I need to improve on.

Economic and monetary union

Economic and monetary union Identify and discuss the costs and benefits of joining the Economic and Monetary Union (EMU)? Do the benefits outweigh the costs? Thesis Statement The Economic Monetary Union has been the centre of prolonged debates as to whether a country joining it will either create benefits or drawbacks. During the course of this analytical report, both costs and benefits will be identified and explained in order to judicate the feasibility of joining the EMU and a specific country will be chosen to illustrate this further. Introduction To understand the concept behind the creation of the Economic Monetary Union, the overall objective of the European Union must firstly be understood. Since the end of the World War II, European political forces have been attempting to unite forces in order to escape the extreme forces of nationalism which were seen as unsustainable. Industries were evolving and beginning to compete globally, international trade throughout the globe expanded at an exponential rate and some felt it had to be regulated in order to maximise the gains achievabe. As a result, the European Union was set up in 1993 with X. Its primary principles are of a single market with no barriers to trade in goods and services or to capital and labour movements, competition and social policies, co-ordinated macroeconomic policy and a harmonised fiscal policy. In order to regulate these aspects effectively the EU set up a body named the Economic Monetary Union. This was seen as potentially a contender to the widely trade d and valued US dollar and as the solution to deepening the integration of the European Union. The EMU is characterised by the following policies, policy harmonisation to remove barriers to improve mobility, a common monetary policy which states there is one interest rate and exchange rate policy determined by the Central Bank, fixed exchange rates via the single currency and the pooling of foreign exchange reserves. The evolution of the EMU began in the late 1980s and was characterised by three stages set out by the Delors Report in 1993. The first stage was devoted to ensuring all member states participation in the Exchange Rate Mechanism and improved policy co-ordination and the removal of barriers to capital flows. The second stage consisted of the creation of the European Monetary Institute (EMI) and central banks becoming independent from their national governments (January 1994). Finally the last stage involved fixing the participating currencies and creating the European System of Central Banks which takes over the responsibility for monetary and exchange rate policies and finally the Stability and Growth pact came into force by January of 1999 to ensure member states that do not comply to the EMU principles are fined or sanctioned. During this evolution in 1992 twelve countries signed the Maastricht Treaty, which fundamentally was the root of the introduction of the Euro. During 1992 and 1997 the convergence criteria was set out which stated that in order for a country to join it must have a low and stable inflation, stable exchange rates and stable public finances and by 1999 the countries officially joined the EMU. However as the Euro could not be introduced overnight, there was a transition period in order to allow the member states to adapt to the new currency and after three years, by 2002, the euro was officially the single currency for all European union member states. Initially the transition period was considered a triumph by European Union members, but as individuals (mainly economists) observed the evolution, many critics are still debating whether joining the EMU and endorsing the euro brings success or just adds to the ever amounting issues each member states are already experiencing. This topic will be thoroughly explored throughout the course of this analytical report and a balanced argument will be drawn from the information available as to whether the EMU carries with it primarily, benefits or costs to a member state joining. The Economic Monetary Union is considered to be one of the major steps in integrating a before divided Europe, as people and businesses could begin moving and trading freely as trade barriers were removed, the currency becomes more stable, financial markets are integrated, the cost of exchanging currencies was eliminated, transaction costs reduced and theoretically increased competition between countries which is a driving factor in keeping prices low and productivity high which is both favourable for consumers and businesses. These benefits must be more deeply explored in order to comprehend the extent to which they have aided success or deepened the intricate network in Europe. The success of the EMU has been difficult to quantify as its revolutionary principles have only been recently enforced, however the theoretical benefits are supposed to be more easily identifiable in the long run as more member states join and European integration is extended to particularly the eastern European community. Debra Johnson and Colin Turner state that one of the major benefits, the elimination of transaction costs in intra-EU trade, have only saved 0.5% of the EUs GDP and that SMEs which predominantly serve local markets, will not benefit extensively from this. However as successful SMEs usually have high exports they can expect a favourable return from the introduction of the Euro. The EMU is also responsible for the lowering of interest rates. Various studies suggest that decentralised fiscal policies cause a bias in inflation and public spending (Sibert 1992, Levine 1993, and Levine and Brociner 1994) and therefore are in favour of the co-ordinated fiscal policies in a monetary union. The single European market can bring numerous benefits to a joining country such as the price transparency. It is still considered too early to quantify precisely the degree to which it has helped and many argue that the EMU must speed up the price convergence through enabling consumers to compare prices across member states more easily. This in turn could facilitate a lowering or raising in in labour costs and could change supply patterns resulting in a more stabilised and fair souricng of resources for firms and possibly improve equality throughtout the European union. These benefits are possibly achievable but have not yet been completely achieved as these processes take time and co-operation and some believe these are not present in todays European society as the recession has caused political and financial instability. The EMU has the potential to create extraordinary gains for the member states but these will not be visible or quantifiable in the near future as it is a timely process of evolution, this therefore poses a risk of not only time consumption but also of resources both nationally and individually and along with the few drawbacks of joining the EMU, critics believe the EMU is not the optimum choice for certain countries in Europe. The drawbacks of joining the EMU are considered to not outweigh the benefits by the majority of observers but still must be considered thoroughly before joining a revolutionary body which causes a country to enter a short-term of deflation, the loss of the exchange rate tool which is considered a tool of national economic policy, the potential problems related to a lack of ‘real convergence and potential policy conflicts and finally the inappropriateness of one monetary policy for many states. These will be analysed and explored in order to conclude whether these outweigh the benefits even considering the majority of parties disagree. The main risk of joining the EMU is the differences in trade cycles between countries, this is one of the core reasons as to why the UK is yet to join. European countries have differing economic statuses and languages, which fundamentally are essential in permitting countries to maximise the gains achievable from a single currency. It is therefore argued that more attention needs to be given to how economies can enhance their factor mobility to balance out the differences found in differing countries. Cohesion funds are the possible solution to the problem but today there are still great differences across the member states in terms of economic performance and labour mobility. This raises the legitimate question whether one monetary policy can fit all member states. The globe today is experiencing an economic recession which is highlighted one of the major issues with joiing the Economic Monetary Union as governments from member states are obliged through the stability and growth pact to keep to the Maastricht criteria meaning they cannot regulate or alter fiscal and monetary policies in order to alleviate the problems arising from a receeding economy. Countries would not be able to devalue to boost exports, to borrow more to boost job creation or to decrease taxes because of the public deficit criterion. The most debated issue with joining the economic monetary union is the loss of national sovereignty. This would result in more established and developed states having to co-operate with the less stable and strong economic countries which are more tolerant to higher infation rates. Finally, the last drawback of joining the EMU is the initial cost of introducing the single currency. This issue is mainly debated in the UK as the British Retailing Consortium estimated that British retailers will have to pay between  £1.7 billion and  £3.5 billion in order for the Euro to be introduced. However it is argued that the one off cost does not outweigh the long-term benefits obtainable from the policies and regulation and that if more countries join the EMU these benefits will be amplified even further. Robert Mundell and Abba Lerner(1960s) believed in a currency area. This is a group of countries that maintain their separate currencies but fix the exchange rates between themselves permanently (Nello, 2009:205). The optimal currency region (OCR) is the idealistic view that an entire region sharing a single currency can benefit extensively the efficiency of the member states economies. It states the optimal characteristics needed for a successful economic integration to occur. These are optimal labour mobility across the region, openness with capital mobility and price and wage flexibility across the region and an automatic fiscal transfer mechanism to redistribute money to areas/sectors which have been negatively affected by the first two characteristics. Supportive Evidence The UK has the worlds fourth largest economy and the EUs second largest and is consequently one of the primary targets of speculation as to whether the benefits outweigh the costs of joining the EMU. In 1999, The Chancellor of the Exchequer, Gordon Brown said that although the government supported the principle of a single currency, Britain would not join. This decision was based on various factors that could have caused rifts in the country. In terms of trade it was seens as unfeasible to join because the UK has the lowest level of intra-EU trade and therefore is more vulnerable to fluctuations in external countries. The UK is vulnerable compared to the rest of the EU counties to potential unfavourable interest rates set by the Central Bank because it has one of the highest percentages of home owners potentially leaving British mortgage holders in a state of crisis. Another characteristic that lead the UK to not favour the joining of the EMU is its position as an oil producer and ex porter meaning it is harshly affected by changes in oil prices, however as the quantity of oil diminuishes at an ever expanding rate and the gradual transition to more sustainable energy resources means that this is not as important as it was when the EMU was introduced a decage ago. These issues are feasible arguments to the absence of the UK in joining the EMU however as the countries that have joined the EMU continue to attract foreign direct investments, the UK has been threatened by foreign investors that the Eurozone is becoming a more attractive zone to trade with because of its increased stability. The United Nations Conference on Trade and Development released information on the World Investment Report in the form of a bar graph clearly illustrating the downward trend of inward FDI of the UK compared to the general upward trend of the countries with the EMU. As clearly illustrated by figure 1.0, the UK continued to attract FDI from 1992 until 2000, where it increased five-fold from 20 billion in 1992-1997 to almost 120 billion U.S dollars in 2000. However by 2003 this figure drastically fell to below 20 billion, which was less that it was almost ten years before. Whilst France, Netherlands, Spain and Ireland all either increased or stabilised by 2000 and resumed until 2003. This is further evidence that the UK should consider joining the EMU, in order to guarantee long-term success. As more countries join, currently 26 today, the EMU is ever closer to achieving an optimal currency area (Mundell, 1973) creating, idealistically speaking, a perfectly harmonized economy and resulting in countries flourishing. Conclusion In a perfect world, the EMUs potential benefits would be endless but due to unforeseeable fluctuations in economies, labour mobility, and personal matters it is difficult to quantify the benefits and costs of joining the EMU. Especially with the recent economic downturn the risk of joining the EMU has been even more re-considered by certain countries especially the U.K. However these drawbacks are limited and do not outweigh the vast benefits achievable from embracing a single currency and single European market as it would guarantee to a certain extent the long-term success of a country as harmonization and stabilisation will cause consumers to be given better prices and businesses to trade more efficiently creating a, arguably, more competent country. Establishment of the Maastricht Treaty which was signed by twelve countries in 1992, which set out the convergence criteria, ultimat The Maastricht Treaty of 1992 established a single currency, the euro, and on January 1st 2002, the EMU began using the euro.The EMU was created in 1992 It has stringent conditions and objectives which countries have to meet via signing the Maastricht Treaty. With joining the EMU, the euro must be endorsed and therefore the monetary policies become the responsibility of the European Central Bank and national central banks of member states. Essentially they are co-ordinating the monetary and fiscal aspects of the member countries. Sovereignty

Indoor Tanning and Cancer Essay -- Cancerous Tan Tanning Bed Salon Ess

Indoor Tanning and Cancer Guaranteed brown, beautiful and golden skin in only a few tans! Indoor tanning promises and creates a beautiful tan in only a few sessions. The result from this tan is dark and clear skin that makes a person feel and look better. No wonder this craze is so popular. Who wouldn’t want to look like they just came back from the Caribbean with beautiful skin? I mean having tan skin does make a person look better right? This question is obviously a personal opinion, but this new habit of tanning indoors has become a growing concern. There are many long term effects to indoor tanning that are harmful to a person. But most people do not understand this because the short-term effects are the most satisfying. In order to understand the process of indoor tanning one must see how the human skin tans, what UV radiation does to DNA, and the positive and negative effects of tanning. In order to understand this tanning craze, we must look at the history of the beginning of this â€Å"need† for tan skin. In the 1920s-1930s, â€Å"Sun Therapy" became very popular and was prescribed as a cure for everything from simple fatigue to tuberculosis. Hollywood movies began to use colored films that emphasized the importance of rosy cheeks and colored skin. In the 1940s-1950s, Baby oil was used for sun-worshipers everywhere as a tan accelerator. Coppertone created their first sun- screen in order to help people not burn from the sun. In the 1960s-1970s, Cocoa butter was used in tanning lotions and the first tanning beds appeared. In the 1980s-1990s, indoor tanning salons became widespread, California Tan was formed (a popular tanning product), and models and famous people started promoting being tan all year round. ... ..., however, is that skin is resilient; it can and does repair most of the damage done to cells. Indoor tanning is all based on personal opinion. Having the experience of working at a tanning salon offers much important information about tanning lamps that most people do not know. Therefore it is a choice to tan indoors or not. But it is very important to understand that all tanning, whether it be indoors or outdoors will damage the skin. And there is much more to just lying in the bed and coming out with a tan. The tanning process is a complicated process and affects more than your skin; it affects your DNA also. So if being exposed to ultraviolet light is not an option than there are many safe alternatives to having that beautiful dark skin. Bronzing powder, self-tanning creams and sprays offer a golden glow with out the harmful UV waves from indoor tanning. Indoor Tanning and Cancer Essay -- Cancerous Tan Tanning Bed Salon Ess Indoor Tanning and Cancer Guaranteed brown, beautiful and golden skin in only a few tans! Indoor tanning promises and creates a beautiful tan in only a few sessions. The result from this tan is dark and clear skin that makes a person feel and look better. No wonder this craze is so popular. Who wouldn’t want to look like they just came back from the Caribbean with beautiful skin? I mean having tan skin does make a person look better right? This question is obviously a personal opinion, but this new habit of tanning indoors has become a growing concern. There are many long term effects to indoor tanning that are harmful to a person. But most people do not understand this because the short-term effects are the most satisfying. In order to understand the process of indoor tanning one must see how the human skin tans, what UV radiation does to DNA, and the positive and negative effects of tanning. In order to understand this tanning craze, we must look at the history of the beginning of this â€Å"need† for tan skin. In the 1920s-1930s, â€Å"Sun Therapy" became very popular and was prescribed as a cure for everything from simple fatigue to tuberculosis. Hollywood movies began to use colored films that emphasized the importance of rosy cheeks and colored skin. In the 1940s-1950s, Baby oil was used for sun-worshipers everywhere as a tan accelerator. Coppertone created their first sun- screen in order to help people not burn from the sun. In the 1960s-1970s, Cocoa butter was used in tanning lotions and the first tanning beds appeared. In the 1980s-1990s, indoor tanning salons became widespread, California Tan was formed (a popular tanning product), and models and famous people started promoting being tan all year round. ... ..., however, is that skin is resilient; it can and does repair most of the damage done to cells. Indoor tanning is all based on personal opinion. Having the experience of working at a tanning salon offers much important information about tanning lamps that most people do not know. Therefore it is a choice to tan indoors or not. But it is very important to understand that all tanning, whether it be indoors or outdoors will damage the skin. And there is much more to just lying in the bed and coming out with a tan. The tanning process is a complicated process and affects more than your skin; it affects your DNA also. So if being exposed to ultraviolet light is not an option than there are many safe alternatives to having that beautiful dark skin. Bronzing powder, self-tanning creams and sprays offer a golden glow with out the harmful UV waves from indoor tanning.

Aluminum Essay -- Elements Natural Resources Science Essays

Aluminum Hello buddy! How is the weather in Paris? It is extremely cold in New York and there is snow all over the place. The reason I am writing is to give you the information you wanted on aluminum. I have everything you would possibly want to know about everything from mining to recycling, but I will begin with a little background on the element first. Aluminum is the third most abundant element in the Earth's crust and was probably formed during the birth of our solar system through collisions of hydrogen atoms under intense heat and pressure. Aluminum never occurs as a metal in nature and is only found in the form of its compounds, such as alumina, because of its strong affinity with oxygen. It is this special bond for oxygen that explains why it withstood all attempts to prepare it in its elemental form until well into the nineteenth century. The aluminum industry was founded in 1854, but it was not until the late 1880's that a method was found to bring down the prices and permit aluminum to be used in a wide variety of ways. Most of the aluminum in the world today is made from Bauxite. It was first discovered in 1821 near Les Baux, France. It was formed by the weathering of aluminous rocks such as feldspar, nepheline, and clays. During the weathering, these rocks are decomposed and leached out, leaving behind a residue of ore rich in alumina, iron oxide, and silica. Most of these large Bauxite deposits are found in the tropical and the subtropical climates, where heavy rainfall, warm temperatures, and good drainage combine to encourage the weathering process. Because Bauxite is usually found near the surface, it is mined by open-pit methods. After the extraction of the Bauxite, it must be converted to A... ...dditional information, you could get in touch with the Reynolds Aluminum Recycling Company of America for tips to construct your program. Lorin Industries could also help since they are the worlds largest job shop anodizer of aluminum. As for myself, I could just call any of my references that I leave on the bottom of this letter if I need any additional information. Take care pal and I will see you very soon. References 1. Altenpohl, D. G., Aluminum Viewed from Within, (1981). 2. Ammen, C. W., Casting Aluminum, (1985). 3. Bakker, M., Encyclopedia of Packaging Technology, (1986). 4. Burkin, R. R. Production of Aluminum and Alumina, (1987). 5. King, F., Aluminum and its Alloys, (1987). 6. Pampillo, C. And Biloni, H., Aluminum Transformation Technology and Applications, (1980). 7. Peck, M. J., ed., World Aluminum Industry in a Changing Era, (1988).

The Taming of the Shrew by William Shakespeare :: The Taming of the Shrew Essays

In the late twentieth century, it is not unusual for audience members to come away from productions of The Taming of the Shrew with the impression that they have just witnessed the story of a dynamic woman turned into a Stepford wife.1 There are also Shakespearean critics who hold such views. G. I. Duthie, for instance, describes Katherina as a "spirited woman who is cowed into abject submission by the violence of an egregious bully" (147). John Fletcher's 1611 play The Woman's Prize, or the Tamer Tamed, in which Petruchio's second wife treats him as he had treated Kate,2 suggests that even during Shakespeare's lifetime the battle of the sexes within the play had become a battle of the critics outside it.3 Shakespearean scholars on the other side argue, as Charles Boyce does, that far from being a tale of domination, "the play's main plot concerns the development of character and of love in a particular sort of personality" (626). Boyce goes on to say that "The violence in The Shrew--except for the beatings of servants ... is limited to Katherina's own assaults on Bianca and Petruchio" (626). Nor is Boyce alone in his belief that Petruchio is physically kind to Kate; as Robert Speaight writes, "It is only to others that he is rough" (59). Much of the confusion comes from a simultaneous idealization of the twentieth century4 and denigration of the sixteenth, a glorification of the sensibilities of modern critics, directors, and audiences coupled with a condemnation of the "medieval" insensitivity of the playwright. For example, Jonathan Miller, director of the 1980 BBC Shrew, says, "Shakespeare is extolling the virtues of the obedient wife ... in accordance with the sixteenth-century belief that for the orderly running of society, some sort of sacrifice of personal freedom is necessary." He defends his position with an attack, arguing that "If we wish to make all plays from the past conform to our ideals ... we're simply rewriting all plays and turning them into modern ones," a practice he calls "historical suburbanism" (140). However, he is himself engaging in a procedure which might be called historical blurring, allowing certain historical trends to obscure individuals and their divergent opinions.5 No period can be correctly characterized as homogeneous, certainly not a time as tendentious as the Renaissance. To maintain that women's rights were not hotly debated by Shakespeare and his contemporaries is ignorance coupled with arrogance, and to fit the creator of Portia, Rosalind, and Viola into the company of male supremacists requires an adept mental contortionist.

Reflection of the Film’s Every Child Is Special Essay

We all know that there’s a difference between special children and normal children but both have similarities. For instance, they both have talents and perspective towards life. They can play and have fun in their own. Both need attention and discipline from their parents to avoid any misconception while they are growing and guide them from learning. Special children need more attention and extra help to develop their social skills. Parents must be extra careful with their special children because they have special needs to be attended. Also, they need to be understood by their family and everyone around them to gain more confidence about themselves and can interact well. On the other hand, normal children can develop their social skills on their own and can gain friends. They can play with another child and gradually learning to share and take turns. They can join in groups and enjoy group experiences. Their needs are easily observe and directly accommodated but still need gu idance. These children are part of the society, whether they have disabilities or just normal ones and they must be respected. see more:every child is special reflection Every one of us has rights in the society we are in and that includes them. They have the right to choose whoever they want to become and whatever they want to do but with a proper given guidance and attention. The happiness and joy they brought will never be unmatchable especially to their parents. The story of the film Every Child is Special is a kid suffering from dyslexia and with the help of an understanding teacher he overcomes it against all odd. There’s a scene when the protagonist runs away from school and loiters on the road for the whole day for the fear of being punished for not having done his homework. It never happened to me and I never did a thing like that in school but I didn’t say that I’m not lazy rather than I’m not like the protagonist of the story who runs away and would not do anything. The comparison might not be warranted but this is just one of those scenes which made me realize the importance of guidance and understanding of parents. Unlike the protagonist who suffered from learning disabilities such as reading because for him the letters are dancing, his writing don’t match the right spelling of words and dealing with numbers with difficulty, I learned quite fast and I also helped myself from learning the things that must be learned while in starting years in school. In spite of his learning disabilities, there’s a person who willingly teaches him and knows best for him because of his illness. His new art teacher, also a teacher of a child school with disabilities found out the reasons why he’s not active and always down.

Individual Project

I was the youngest of my two brothers and one sister, growing up in a small city on the Eastern shore of Maryland. Salisbury is the city name of my hometown. Our father died when I was at the young age of four. My mother who was very strong willed and independent raised all of us on her own after daddy died. She raised us and taught us to do well in school and to make good grades. She instilled in all of us to be very loving and presentable children that respect our elders. We were brought up in the church and taught to say our daily prayers before going to bed at night. Hygiene was a must and cleanliness was a daily routine. My grandson is nine years of age and he also lost his father(my son) at a early age, as we did. He use to come visit me during the summer and on holidays. He is a lovable child that had no will to do his best in anything. His mother is a deaf mute and very uncaring to her children. My grandson and his siblings have been removed from their homes by the State Dept. of Social Services over seven times since he has been born. They were taken away because the mother wouldn’t send them to school, would not keep appointments for their dental work or health checkups and leaving them unattended for more than 24 hours. Because of her neglect my grandson lost all hope of being anybody in his world. He has been placed in foster homes, unknowingly to me over the past three years of his life. The mother is in and out of jail. During her absence from their home has caused so many terrible events. The kids were attacked by a dog that they brought in the house off the streets of Baltimore. His two sisters were raped by friends of their mother. They have gone to bed without anything to eat or drink. I went to Baltimore and rescued my grandson from his mother and that terrible city of Baltimore. My daughter and I have taught him so much since he’s been living with me for the past two years. He now knows how to bathe daily, brush his teeth, match his clothes and shoes and most of all has been on the honor roll for the past two years in school. I’ve filed for custody of him. I’m still waiting for the custody courts to grant me a decision. I’m strongly leaning toward being granted sole custody of him. My children are grown and one of them is deceased. I raised them in the footsteps of my mom raising me. This venture has been very stressful for me at times, but I’m not going to give up on him. I’m at the age of 55 and starting all over again raising a child. I’m overjoyed because my grandson is safe and well taken care of and very much loved. Neglect is one of the main reasons for early age deaths of many children who are raised in the inner cities. Evidence and witnesses are needed to win a custody case. Even though the decision that the courts and custody hearings, I feel that I should be awarded sole custody of my grandson.