Super Size Me critique Essay Example for Free

Super Size Me critique Essay â€Å"Everything’s bigger in America the biggest people, America has become the fattest nation in the world nearly 100 million Americans are overweight or obese.† Melvin Spurlock announces in his opening scene of the documentary Super Size Me. (youtube.com) Morgan Spurlock’s documentary focuses on the premise that Americans are addicted to fast food, and this is proven by the excess amount of fast food restaurants present in the US, especially by McDonalds in New York City. His goal was to eat fast food three times a day at McDonald’s for thirty days. And during these thirty days his only rule is that he only drinks and eats food from McDonald’s restaurant. He had to eat everything on the menu at least once. During that time, McDonald’s promoted â€Å"Supersize† your meal for a couple cents. Spurlock would only â€Å"Supersize† his meal if the cashier asked him. Spurlock was curious about what where the effects to the body if one ate McDonalds for thirty days and the recommended three meals a day. His rule was to try everything at least once, ranging from Big Mac’s to yogurt parfaits, salads, and fish filets. Spurlock uses extreme measures in order to make his argument. Eating at a restaurant should not be unhealthy; however, it has become an epidemic in our culture to eat food that is processed, injected with hormones, and cheap which is the main ingredient used at fast food restaurants. Before he took the challenge he was in very good shape, according to three doctors he visited, including a registered dietician. According to the Body Mass Index (BMI), the standard system used by doctors in the US to determine a person’s health, Spurlock ranked as â€Å"normal† and not obese and unhealthy. â€Å"Normal† of course depends on your body and height it is not always what BMI specifies, but nevertheless, it is the common standard. Before the challenge, Spurlock ate the recommended 2500 calories and more than the average (80 grams a day). According to his doctor, his saturated fat is supposed to be less than 25 grams a day. In addition to seeing his doctors he also saw a specialist, an exercise physiologist to be exact and assessed his cardiovascular health only to give him the good news that his heart was in good shape. At only 11% body fat, he is in above average fitness for his age group, but nothing to be alarmed about. More than 60% of Americans do not exercise regularly, only walking 2000 steps a day or an equivalent to a mile a day. However, this is not the average for certain cities, in New York the average New Yorker walks approximately four to five miles a day. As a New Yorker, Morgan walks that average and during his walks he passes three McDonald’s restaurants on his way to work on a regular basis. He resides in Manhattan, New York, in which 83 McDonald’s restaurants also reside. According to Morgan, there are more McDonald’s in that island than anywhere else in the world. Manhattan is an island which is 13 miles long, two miles wide, and 22.4 square miles, there are nearly four McDonald’s restaurants per square mile. (vivavegie.org) That number is extremely high and ranks as the most saturated with fast food in the world. During the documentary, his girlfriend, who is a vegan chef and eats organic and fresh vegetables daily, calls his food genetically modified. She compares McDonald’s food to hockey pucks. His first day began with an Egg McMuffin value meal which includes an egg muffin with ham, hash brown, and a choice of coffee or milk. Morgan discovers that McDonald’s restaurant also delivers for free, only solidifying his argument about fast food, the power of advertising, and convenience in the United States. He walked 1272 steps to the first restaurant from his apartment. In order to walk his average 2000 steps a day challenge he is forced to take a cab in order to stay under the national average. As a side note, this is not the average for other countries both the amount one walks and the type of food that is served in McDonald’s. Morgan talked to tourists from other countries, such as a woman from France to use as his comparison in the documentary on how people view fast food and demonstrate how McDonald’s operates in these countries. While he interviewed the woman from France, she said our small size soft drink is an equivalent to a large soft drink in France, and she added, that she cannot finish the small size soda. â€Å"McDonald’s in the U.S. accounts for 43% of the entire fast food market. They’re everywhere, even in hospitals.† Morgan interviewed a lawyer, Samuel Hersh, who represented two women who were suing McDonald’s, and says in terms of being the big guns McDonald’s is the worst corporation to sue. How can one go after the happy meals, the Playplace areas for parties and children, and the â€Å"family atmosphere.† Their main advertising targets children. They make them avid consumers of fast food. At the end of the thirty days, Spurlock gained 18 pounds, and during that time he suffered from depression. During his three visits to his doctor, he complained about constant headaches, and even mood swings, something he never experienced before in a frequent manner. In addition to these pains, he experienced acute chest palpitations. After the thirty days, Spurlock visited his doctor for the final diagnosis only to find out that he tested for liver failure. The doctor recommended him to stop his project or else he would die. He made the comparison to an alcoholic binge drinking for thirty days. Food should not be equivalent to a person suffering from alcoholism. Food should be considered to be wholesome and healthy, today it is filled with chemicals that hurt our bodies. Other companies that are known for these tactics are tobacco companies they use â€Å"brand implanting† from a young age to make believe that they are â€Å"healthy.† One of the most well-known â€Å"brand-implanting† tactics was to sell gum cigarettes to children from the ice cream man. The theory behind this â€Å"brand-implanting,† is not to realize you are bombarded with advertising that says and implants statements like â€Å"it is cool to smoke,† â€Å"it is sexy to smoke,† and â€Å"you are a man if you smoke†. The theory specifies that when you are a child you will not realize the tobacco companies are targeting you in a capitalist society. The child only sees the gum cigarette that when you inhale it simulates real cigarettes, it is cool and â€Å"adult like†. Of course the parents are burdened with having to pay the price both from a young and mature age. The parents only think it is a â€Å"toy†, but in reality they are being programmed to smoke when they are the legal age. The feelings the young adult will feel when smoking real cigarettes is that experience the warm feeling of getting the toy and being with mom and dad. McDonald’s aggressively advertises this way, and gets kids to buy their food as adults by â€Å"brand implanting† them with a clown (Ronald McDonald), giving them toys in Happy Meals, etc. The most disappointing statistic is that one out of three children born in 2000 will develop diabetes in their lifetime, and about one out of twenty people today have diabetes, according to Spurlock. (cdc.gov) This documentary demonstrated, in an extreme manner that eating fast food is unhealthy but it also looked at the effects of aggressive advertising. Supersize came out in 2004, and it still resonates in 2013. To the point that the First Lady of the United States of America, Michelle Obama, has taken an approach to decrease diabetes, high blood pressure, and obesity among young children in her â€Å"Get Up and Move† campaign. Unhealthy eating is a serious problem and Americans are leading in the polls. We have to recognize that fast food does not equate to healthy eating. We are so caught up in our way of life that we do not make time to eat healthy and exercise, and McDonald’s figured this out with their million dollar advertising accounts. Spurlock’s points were extreme, yet poignant about where we stand in our fight with food, and overall advertising. Works Cited Diabetes. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 01 Aug. 2011. Web. 08 Oct. 2013. . Spurlock, Morgan. Super Size Me. YouTube. YouTube, 29 July 2013. Web. 08 Oct. 2013. . Fast Food Facts from the Super Size Me Web Site. Fast Food Facts from the Super Size Me Web Site. N.p., n.d. Web. 08 Oct. 2013. .

Physics of Cross Country Skiing :: physics sport sports ski skiing

Cross Country Skiing has existed since prehistoric times. The oldest pair of skis were found to be over 4500 years old. Skiing was used as a way to travel or hunt during the winter season. The skis were designed not so much for speed but to keep the skier on top of the snow. Traditionally, the skis were made of wood, the poles were made of bamboo with leather hand straps. The boots were also made of tough leather and were fastened to the skis with sinew made from animal hides. Skiing was believed to have originated from the Scandinavian countries and this fact is complimented by active skiing lifestyle that we see today. When a man by the name of Jackrabbit Johansson came to North America in 1900, he introduced skiing to locals. Skiing has evolved into a sport that has been proven to be one of the most physically demanding compared to any other sport. In Scandinavia, it is a way for families to connect with each other on the weekends, and to give the children some way to spend their endless energy during the week. Coming from Canada, I noticed that the American school system incorporates sports such as cross country skiing into the curricular activities. This is a good way to give students the option to explore their physical capabilities which may lead them to an active lifestyle or may even lead them to Olympic success. Just being outside brings about a positive mood, especially if you are out with your friends andjust having a good time.Cross Country Skiing is a lifelong sport that anyone can enjoy because the excitement can bring you up to levels you never thought possible. Wax is used in Cross Country Skiing to reduce the amount of contact between the skis and snow, or to produce the proper friction to help the skier propel him-/herself forward. Glide wax is applied to the base of the skis (but not in the 'kick-wax zone') which is in the most contact with the snow. This enables the skier to travel at faster speeds. This part of the ski is always in contact with the snow.Most glide-waxes contain a substance called paraffin which is insoluble with water (meaning that the was will remain on the skis the entire duration of your excursion!) There are two types of glide wax: hard and soft wax The hard wax is generally used in colder temperatures because it provides a good resistance to the firm cold ice crystals.

How Socio-Economic Classes Contributed to Events in 1800 Europe Essay

Described as â€Å"the divine distribution of men into different ranks, and at the same time uniting them into one society† (Gladstone, 1896), the socio-economic class order formed the structure and foundation of society in Europe. Consisting of three distinct entities and with a strong correspondence between economic prosperity and social standing, it would also serve as the backdrop for which historical phenomena would occur. Europe’s social order was not just the environment in which these events would materialize, but also a fundamental causal factor in three notable events; The French Revolution (1789-1799), The French Revolution of 1848 and Britain’s Industrial Revolution (1750 onwards). However, the origins of these events were also contingent upon other circumstantial factors. The roots of the first French revolution, arguably, are in The Enlightenment; the period of the philosophers. New philosophies advocating human rationality came to form by the mid 1700’s and were propelled into popular thought after the isolated, and highly charged, Jean Callas incident . Philosophers like Voltaire found the perfect vehicle in this incident to question the arbitrary use of power so prevalent in French society. The monarchy and the presence of the Social Order soon came into question. Across Europe, cafes sprung out to host discussion centered on the common theme of reason. Society cleaved toward enlightened ideas of rationality, equality and liberalism, leading to the growing questioning of the existing monarchial power structure. Alternative political ideologies for the state, from personalities like Rousseau and Locke, sprouted and undermined the legitimacy of the monarchy. While The Enlightenment is responsible for creating pressure from society against the monarchy, these ideas would have been impotent without suitable ground. The socio-economic categorizing of European society is a more fundamental cause of the first French Revolution because it provided this ground. The rigidity of the social order in late 17th century France accounts for the origins of the first French revolution. In theory, the social divisions were permeable and promoted mobility (Roberts, 1997). Across Europe, titles and estates could be purchased and so also, the privilege of the nobility. However the reality was often different. In light of booming trade, the demand for titles from the French bourgeoisie and returning nobility outstripped the number permitted by the social order . Furthermore, while the bourgeoisie enjoyed increasing economic power and could live equally, if not exceedingly, extravagant lives as the nobility, the social order shut this community out from the benefits of social privilege . This was exacerbated by the nobility’s stress on privilege in response to the new Bourgeois economic threat. The system’s disregard of merit in place of hereditary, and the fundamentally irrational social construct sowed discontentment within the second and third estate, where the ideals of enlightenment; rationality and equality, would find willing subscribers. Riding on the resentment toward society’s order and fuelled by The Enlightenment’s ideas did the French Revolution tear its way through to the Bastille. While the first French revolution was understandably a social battle, one could argue that the revolution of 1848 was born out of opposition to economic factors than on society’s social construct. The time leading up to 1848 was a time of gradual industrialization for France. Its products; rapid urbanization and changes in economic practices, broke familiar social patterns of the working class. For instance, the commercial system was rewritten by doing away with the cottage industry and previously public lands, privatized. Added to this, a burgeoning population, severe industrial and agricultural depressions in 1846 and Louis-Phillipe’s inaction in alleviating rural and urban poverty culminated to create great peasant discontent. The economic change that accompanied its deterioration galvanized the working class, triggering the third French revolution in 1848; aptly, also known as a Worker’s Revolution. However, it is artificial to separate economics from social class since there is a correspondence between social hierarchy and wealth. They are, after all, aptly named â€Å"socio-economic† classes. In analyzing yet another French revolution, an important observation to make is the persistence of Europe’s social order. Though the 1830 revolution delivered another great blow to the old social order (Magraw, 1987), and promised equality in opportunity and economic liberalism manifest in the abolishment of seigneurial practices for all, much had remained the same. Succinctly captured by Cobban’s argument that ‘it [did] not matter whether we [called] it aristocracy or bourgeoisie† , the cleaving of the aristocracy and bourgeoisie shows an adaption, not an eradication of the social order. The aristocracy kept to their ranks by continuing their distinctive politics and marriage practices (Magraw, 1987). Since most engaged with capitalism, they were mostly able to maintain their privileged lifestyle and control of much of the land . The Bourgeoisie continued to thrive, especially under the â€Å"Bourgeois King† and even went as far as to convert their wealth into land ownership. This neo-feudalism masquerading as the product of laissez faire economic practices, and the continuation of aristocratic dominance came at the expense of the working class. Thus did the working class continue in their economically disadvantaged positions. Their economic dependence on the old order’s aristocracy, had merely been replaced with a dependence on remnants of the same old order and a new Bourgeois one. The social order is a more fundamental account for the workers revolution, since it was responsible for creating the economic grievances of the working class which became the fuel for the 1848 revolution. The European social order again features as a causal factor in Britain’s Industrial Revolution. It is the very hierarchical nature of the class system that functioned as the engine for the Industrial Revolution. The industrial entrepreneurs of Britain, the main thrust for the innovation that characterized the revolution, took hold of Britain’s mineral resource advantage to affect rapid development. The motivations behind entrepreneurship are traced back to the make-up of society. Since social privilege was linked with economic wealth, successful merchants strived to purchase titles and convert their wealth into social status (Briggs, 1979). In this way, the extravagance of noble life, held in high regard, could be emulated. However, it is admittedly reductionistic to exclusively use the quest for noblehood to account for an entire revolution. Coupled with the desire for social advancement were also ideas from The Enlightenment and The Scientific Revolution; laissez faire economic practices and technological advancement respectively. Society as a whole was geared toward revolutionary development, equipped with the necessary ideology and possessing the necessary scientific capability. Nonetheless, the power of science and the power of thought would have remained a means without an end if not for the existence of Europe’s social class as the motivation to individuals for conomic advancement. Furthermore, the narrow elite which feature in Europe’s social order meant that there was a prolific number from the working class available for cheap employment and indeed, were the working class called upon for this. By 1850, more than 50% of the population were living in towns and city to work in factories and city-bound industries. The abundance of cheap labor comes from the old social order’s narrow top and wide base, and it sustained and accelerated industrialization to revolutionary measures. Thus, we trace back the origins of the Industrial revolution to socio-economic classes. Social hierarchical ascension was the motivation, and the demographic make-up, the sustenance. Evidently, the causality of the three historical events covered is not monolithic. Though the contributing factors are layered and many, the role of socio-economic class is central. Its rigid, persistent and hierarchical institution shaped the motivations of humanity and in doing so, account for the origins of major events in History.

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