Biodegradable Polymers: Processes of Degradation

Biodegradable Polymers: Processes of Degradation Introduction The ISO definition of a biodegradable polymer is â€Å"an irreversible process leading to a significant change of the structure of a material, typically characterized by a loss of properties (e.g. integrity, molecular weight, structure or mechanical strength) and/or fragmentation. Degradation is affected by environmental conditions and proceeds over a period of time comprising one or more steps† Biodegradable and compostable processes are essentially the same mechanism of how materials irreversibly breakdown into their fundamental composition, CO2, H2O, CH4 and other low-molecular weight products. The major difference is on how they go about the decomposition, biodegradation occurs naturally where microorganisms metabolise the material, where as composting takes place under strict conditions rate of degradation and the end product is non-toxic. The process of composting will also be affected by the size of the particles, large pieces may not be compostable but shreds of the same material may be compostable. Materials can also be composted at homes and the end product used in gardening, but some materials may not compostable at home and may require an industrial process. Biodegradable and compostable polymers should not be confused with biopolymers, which are naturally occurring polymers that readily degrade in the environment, starch, cellulose, proteins are a few examples of biopolymers, while the former are polymers engineered to degrade in the environment through one or more mechanisms of degradation. The degradation of a polymer should into consideration the other mechanisms of material degradation (oxidation, hydrolysis, photo-degradation, thermal-degradation) which can affect the polymer before or during the biodegradation process, or maybe the only mechanism acting on the polymer [ 41.wang ]. As more people are becoming more eco-conscious and aware of global warming, although not directly responsible, more effort is put into discovering new sustainable plastics and better manufacturability of these degradable polymers. History and why bioplastics? The first polymers, or plastics as it generally known, recorded in history were produced by The Horners Company in London [BPF site] which used horn and tortoiseshell as the predominant early natural plastic in the year 1284. But it is in the early 18th century that the plastic industry started to build up its momentum, it is during the period Alexander Parkes invented the first plastic in the 1850s [makingthemodernworld]. Today polymers are the most widely used material playing in an important role in civil construction to human wellbeing. A pair in Germany were awarded the patent to their invention of Casein Plastic as the first bioplastic derived from milk, but it was in 1990 that ICI Ltd launched the first commercially available biodegradable plastic. With the world consumption of plastics increasing to 100 million tonnes annually , from 5 million tonnes in the 1950s,[M.Avella] and growing at a rate of 4% annually. They can only be recycled or dumped into a landfill, which are becoming scarce [J_H_Song] , and with more governments of the developed world taking advantage of the developing world, where they send their nations waste to be disposed to and where it cannot be dealt efficiently due to the lack of proper facilites. What goes into the landfills cannot be controlled and the mixture of waste releases toxic agents from the more volatile waste, and gases, most notably methane from the other degradable waste, into the atmosphere which would be difficult to capture it everywhere, which is utilised in the U.K. Total solid waste in the EU is 520 Kg/year per person of which 10%-15% is plastics, more than 50 Kg, of which 40% is sent to landfills [mooney brian p] which is about 10 million tonnes, with the EU population at 0.5 billion [eurostat]. Recycling polythene carrier bags rather than producing new plastic has many environmental benefits such as: Reducing energy consumption by almost 67% Produces 33% of sulphur dioxide and 50% of nitrous oxide uses almost 90% less water Emits almost 250% less carbon dioxide One of the most important factors that it saves 1.8 million tonnes of oil for one tonne of polythene recycled. [wasteonline] Not accounting for the total carbon footprint of the process. But recycling is not very efficient process compared to producing new materials, every time plastic is recycled it loses about 10% of it mass, [green plastics] reducing the mass of the material to 73% of its original after only 3 recycles. The current proven world crude oil reserves of about a total of 1,342 billions of barrels[eia.doe.gov, no title], is estimated to run out by 2040[imeche] at current rate of consumption, though there are critics who would oppose these figures, therefore even more urgency in developing sustainable biodegradable polymers by then is required with the population doubling. How they are made? Biodegradable polymers can be based on a variety of environmentally sustainable materials, or a combination of different biomass, and also from bacteria. The most basic material that is used is starch which is abundantly available, large quantities present in corn and potatoes but also all vegetables, and at a low price. Cellulose is another commonly and easily accessible material that is being used to produce bioplastics. Certain oil based polymers have a degree of biodegradability too, polymers such as polycarbonate, polyhydroxybutyrate and poly vinyl alcohol [ BrodyMarsh ] or other biomaterials added to make it biodegradable though it may not be possible for the polymer to degrade 100%. Not all biodegradable polymers are derived from biomaterials or oil some can be synthesised, Aliphatic polyesters [ mulch films ]. Starch Starch molecules are polymers of Glucose molecules, where all the sugars are oriented in the same direction, as shown in the diagram below. Starch is made up of two types of molecules amylose and amylopectin, depending on the type of the plant starch can contain upto 25% amylose and 80% amylopectin [Poon, introduction to organic]. Starch granules diameter are averagely in the range 5-40  µm, depending on the source, they are not suitable in the plastic industry as they are difficult to process during extrusion and injection moulding. Starch therefore has to be processed, physically and chemically, before it can be used as thermoplastic starch, TPS, which usually includes heating it up in the presence of water to form a gelatinous material, but may require further treatment as this type of TPS is not moisture resistant [ 36/41.wang ]. To ensure that polymers were degraded in the environment after their service life starch was mixed with a range of polymers, such as polyethylene [ 50 Ke.Ty ], but because these class of polymers contain non-degradable polymers which will not be degraded, and cannot be seen, they cannot be called biodegradable polymers. Thermoplastics starch are therefore mixed with vinyl alcohol to create composites that tend to be more stable, but reducing the starch content in the thermoplastic polymer composite will reduce the biodegradability of the polymer[37]. TPS mixed with other biodegradable polymers ensure a 100% rate of degradation, which is not the case as mentioned when mixed with other polymers. TPS are mixed with synthetic polymers such as poly-(lactic acids) (PLA), poly(glycolic acids) (PGA) etc. [50,ke.ty] PLA blended with starch can reduce the costs of the polymer in addition to greatly reducing its rate of degradation, the raw materials of PLA is produced by fermenting carbohydrates from renewable sources, such as corn [50]. Cellulose Cellulose is a type of polysaccharide, a carbohydrate, found in plant cell walls and the most abundant organic material on earth, 40% of all organic matter [ green plastics ], it is produced by plants by natural photosynthesis from CO2 and water, at an annual rate of 200 billion tonnes, of which 6 billion tonnes are used [ 45.simon.J ] . Cellulose is similar to starch with the main difference being the molecular arrangement, in starch the molecules are highly branched and in cellulose the molecules are linear. Due to the arrangement molecular structure of cellulose, it cannot be processed into a thermoplastic but has to be converted to derivatives e.g esters and ethers to reduce the intermolecular forces for molecular flow to occur under heat and shearing conditions, unlike processing starch it does not require moisture [ thermoplastic starch ]. Attempts to produce polymers from cellulose, like polymers from starch, during past half a century were discouraged by textbooks expressing that because cellulose has a rigid backbone it cannot be converted to a polymeric material [ 54.yoshioka]. The figure shows various polymer derivatives from starch and cellulose, with the hydrogen in the starch molecules replaced by the R groups to form different polymers [ 14.second grn rev ]. Nitrocellulose, a highly explosive material, for instance is produced by reacting cellulose with a nitrating acid, mixture of nitric and sulphuric acids, and with alcohol or a plasticizer, such as camphor to make it more flexible and mouldable, added to stabilise the process [ 40.azom ]. Cellulose acetate is one of the more important and used cellulose derived biodegradable polymers, usually prepared from high grade cellulose, obtained from fast growing tress or cotton linters [ 53.alexander ]. It is commonly prepared by synthesising raw cellulose acetic acid followed by acetic anhydride in the presence of sulphuric acid, which acts as a catalyst, producing primary cellulose acetate, known as cellulose triacetate. The triacetate can then be formed into a solution, using methylene chloride as a solvent, which can then be dry-spun to form fibres, to produce cellulose diacetate. Finally cellulose diacetate can be dissolved, acetone as a solvent, to form fibres known as cellulose acetate [ britannica ]. All three groups of cellulose acetate are similar, what differentiates them is the percentage of hydroxyl groups that are acetylated, according to the Federal Trade Commission, of America, 92% of hydroxyl groups must have acetylated to refer it as a cellulose acetate, els e the generally referred to it as cellulose triacetate [ 52.rulesreg] . To produce a process-able polymer the cellulose acetate particles is mixed with a liquid additive, mixing thoroughly using a high speed mixer resulting into fine grained powder and extruded to form granules. Processing parameters that apply are 20-30D screw-type mixer, temperature range 160-190  °C and pre-drying for 2 hours at 70 °C. These granules can then be subjected to standard thermoplastic processing techniques [ 53.alexander ]. Lignin is another second most abundant component of woody plants, 20% of all organic material [green plastics], which is not yet used to its full potential, small amount used in various industries. There are new methods being developed to produce lignocellulosic biomass. Proteins There is not a huge amount of information available on biodegradable polymers derived from proteins. One reason may be that plants do not contain a high amount of proteins to be efficient enough to produce polymers, such as 100 grams of corn contains only 3.22 grams of proteins but 19.02 grams of carbohydrates, almost 6 times as much. Soybean the highest protein containing 36 grams of protein and almost as much carbohydrates, but yielding only 50% of the crop per unit area when compared to maize [ 61.lobell ]. Protein just like starch and cellulose can be regarded as a polymer made up of chains of various amino acids. Proteins from various crops have been used to produce polymers, especially zein and gluten, produced in maize and wheat respectively. Zein-gluten composite polymer can be produced by having wheat gluten coated with zein, [ 62.kim,sanghoon ] . The process does not require extrusion processes or high temperature, but only requires of zein to be purified. Kim Sanghoon describes a relatively simple method of producing a protein based biodegradable polymer, from gluten, zein, ethanol and distilled water, and compressed in an aluminium mould. Other methods of producing protein based polymers include using wood fibres mixed with gluten is plasticized using glycerol, water and ethanol, and extrusion moulded,[ 65.Wu.Qiangxian ] unlike the Sanghoon method. Sources of proteins used to produce biodegradable polymers include feather-meal, waste animal proteins [60.feathermeal], soy bean [ 58.nanda], egg white [ 39. Egg white ]. Synthetic Biodegradable Polymers Biodegradable polymers can be synthesised in lab, but because the costs involved the materials are further mixed with a natural polymer, usually starch, as it is abundant and cheaply available or a cellulose derived polymer. A few of the synthetic biodegradable polymers to name are polyglycolide (PGA), polylactides (PLA) (also known as Poly (lactic acid)), polyhydroxyalkanoate (PHA). Synthetic polymers can generally offer greater advantages compared to naturally derived polymer, as they can be engineered to have the desirable properties, and have more consistency, unlike naturally derived polymers they do not depend on the source of the raw material which can influence the properties and quality of the final polymer. Aliphatic polyesters are the most widely and commercially used synthetic polymers available, a few are named above, other polymers that have emerged in the market are polyester containing aromatic moieties. The synthetic biodegradable polymers may be classified into three groups, but the literature will only review polyesters Polyesters Polymers containing both esters and other heteroatom-containing linkages in the main chains Polymers with heteroatom-containing linkages other than ester linkages in the main chain Biodegradable polyesters can be synthesised in a number of ways Polycondensation reaction diols and dicarboxylic acids Self-polycondensation of hydroxyacids Ring opening polymerisation Of the above three processes polycondensation, also known as step-growth polymerisation, and ring opening polymerisation are more widely. Some polyesters synthesised by polycondensation are Poly (lactic acid), Poly (glycolic acid), Polycaprolactone. The process involves the monomers of the two raw material reacting to progressively form long chain polymers, as the secondary name suggests. One disadvantage of the process is that the water production from the reaction must be continuously removed, leading to lengthy reaction times and producing varying chain length polymers. [ reviewed by 75.RaySmith/ 73. Okada ] Poly (lactic acid), a linear aliphatic polyester, based on lactic acid, which can be produced by fermenting carbohydrates or by chemical method. Lactic acid contains both the hydroxyl and carboxyl groups needed for polycondensation, but requires removal of water, by azeotropic distillation, as mentioned, to avoid poor yield, further production methods of various aliphatic polyesters is provided M. Bhattacharya.[ by Bhattacharya p337 in 75.RaySmith ] Ring opening polymerisation is a form of addition polymerisation, where cyclic monomers join a reactive centre (terminal end of a polymer),a range of anionic, cationic and coordinative initiators/catalyst are mentioned in scientific literature, to form long chain polymers though ionic propagation. [R Jerome p77 reviewed by 75.RaySmith]. Ring opening polymerisation is advantageous than polycondensation such that it takes place in milder reaction conditions and there are no side reactions, giving a more controlled end product [ 73.okada ], one of the most used polymers in the market Nylon 6 is produced using this process. The ring-opening polymerisation can be initiated by many organometallic derivatives of metals such as Al, Sn, Y, Nd, Yb, Sm etc, which have d-orbitals of favourable energy, metal alkoxides, e.g. aluminium alkoxides, tin alkoxides, may acts as typical initiators. Polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHA) are a class of biodegradable polymer, polyesters , produced by using bacteria, e.g. Pseudomonas, Bacillus, Ralstonia etc, especially members of the Halobactereicae, as the production centre. The PHA is synthesised within the bacteria that functions as an energy storing water-insoluble compound in the cytoplasm of the bacteria cell[80.anderson]. Bacteria that do not produce PHA can be modified to produce them, e.g. cloning PHA operon, nucleotide sequences of DNA that control the production of PHA, into E. Coli bacteria allows the production of PHA by the bacteria. PHA are then produced by the bacteria when it supplied with source of high carbon content, like glucose under nutrient-limiting conditions. The described way producing is considerably more expensive than oil based polymers there have been suggestions of using products from the food industry as a feedstock for the bacteria to produce PHA, malt waste from a brewery is one of the suggestions, where b acteria produced upto 70% polymer, of dry cell weight (DCW). [82. Yu.Peter] Recent research groups have been forced to find alternate methods of producing PHA, due to the costs involved in the conventional method, and have been experimenting successfully with transgenic plants, where the only raw materials required would be CO2, for carbon, and sunlight. Other areas that have attracted research to produce polymers of the PHA family are the cyanobacteria, that produce the P(3HB) by oxygenic photosynthesis, but their yield rates are very small compared to the conventional method.Synechococcus MA19, a unicellular thermopile, can store upto 55% DCW. [reviewed by 78. philip] Rubber Rubber is an elastomer and a polymer of isoprene, it can be synthesised or be derived from the Brazilian rubber tree, Hervea Brasiliensis, from which most natural rubber is derived, but unlike the name suggest, over 95% of natural rubber in 2008 was produced in Asia, mostly south Asia, but synthetic rubber still makes a greater portion of the market, 56% of the world supplied with synthetic rubber. Rubber like material was developed based on thermal polymerization epoxidized soybean oil (ESO) with triethlyene glycol diamine (TGD), which produce a polymer behaving as a rubber-like elastomer [reviewd in 107.soybean]. Another method to produce natural rubber is by using PHA, which is obtained from bacteria as described, which will therefore be completely biodegradable. The PHA surface is however hydrophobic making it difficult for the microorganisms to inhabit on the surface an degrade, hence its increasing its shelf life significantly, but still be degradable in a composting environment. [109.rubber bacteria] Properties and Enhancements The most important property for all biodegradable polymers, or degradable polymers, is that are completely degradable into basic components, CO2 CH4 and H2O , including any other organic compound, by the means of microbial attack, or any other naturally occurring process for the polymers that classified as degradable by other means. Properties of biodegradable material should be separated into three categories, the naturally derived polymers, synthetic polymers and the composite of these polymers. Naturally Derived polymers TPS shows excellent degradability and composting ability in the soil, partly due to the water solubility of starch. It also has a good oxygen barrier and is not electrostatically chargeable [ 7.Lorcks ]. Unmodified starch polymer have poor processability and mechanical properties, compared to the other polymers available, but plasticising the starch, by addition of water, can assist in processing of the starch, and treating it at a certain temperature would transform the starch into TPS, which show thermoplastic behaviour and properties. As seen in Figure the pure form of TPS has the least period of degradation, but treating it with other biodegradable polymer to enhance its properties increases the time it takes to completely degrade. Cellulose in water-insoluble and like starch fully degradable, and composed of D-gylcopyranoside units, but unlike starch, linked by ÃŽ ±-(1-4) bonds, it is linked by ÃŽ ²-(1-4) bonds. The molecular arrangement of cellulose, explained previously, and the bond type contributes to the longer periods it takes to degrade, which is transferred to the polymer it is based on. Cellulose will readily decompose on heating, therefore cannot be heated to process, but is synthesised into cellulose acetate which like starch shows properties and characteristics of a thermoplastic, but the time it takes to degrade is reduced as the cellulose content of the polymer is reduced. Cellulose and starch the two of most used and abundant organic compounds having similar properties, except the time to full degradation, both have the characteristic of their glass transition temperature and melting temperature being close to their decomposition temperature. M. Gaspar [83.reduce water absoption] conducted experiments to examine and improve water absorption in starch based polymers. The experiment contains four specimens of TPS, TPS w/Cellulose, TPS w/hemicelluloses, TPS/polycaprolactone and TPS w/zein each composite having the same proportion, by weight, of the additive. The results showed that TPS w/zein had the highest tensile strength Youngs modulus and TPS w/cellulose the lowest tensile strength and TPS w/polycaprolactone the lowest Youngs modulus. The table shows a few of the mechanical properties of the polymers described above, noting that the 2 different types of starch have significantly differently poreprties. Film type Test condition Tensile strength (MPa) Elongation at break (%) Water vapor permeability (gmm/m2daykPa) Reference Cassava starch 25 °C 75% RH 9.0-17.0 9.0-28.0 [86] Corn starch 25 °C 75% RH 3.8-4.3 4.0-10.0 [86] Low density polyethylene 38 °C 90% RH 7.6-17.3 500.0 0.08 [88] High density polyethylene 38 °C 90% RH 17.3-34.6 300.0 0.02 [88] Cellulose acetate 38 °C 90% RH 48.5-82.7 15.0-45.0 [88] Polyester 38 °C 90% RH 178.0 70.0-100.0 [88] Cellophane 38 °C 90/0% RH 7.27 [89] PLA is a synthetic biodegradable polymer, that is brittle and has poor impact strength, leading to failure of the material by cracking and tearing, and therefore preventing a more widespread use of the polymer in the packaging industry. Another PLA property is its natural yellow tint, which again is a factor that prevents it uses in the packaging industry, which leads to poor presentation of a consumer product. PLA is therefore blended with other biodegradable polymers (to keep it 100% biodegradable) to improve the properties that are most desirable. Usually is PLA mixed with plasticizers such as pole-ÃŽ µ-caprolactone, poly (vinyl acetate), starch, poly(hydroxyl butyrate), providing the PLA with more ductility, but having a negative effect on the tensile strength[91 to 99]. The brittleness of PLA can be counter acted by mixing it with a plasticiser, which also reduces the already low glass transition temperature further reducing its end product applications.[100 101] F.Byrne [90] tested PLA mixed various available masterbatches, commercially available polymer additives, to check the enhancements, and the results are as in table, of them all PLA dcS511-Ice clear appears to be the best option for an additive as it removes the tint from the material. Table Thermal, mechanical, optical and surface properties of PLA and PLA/masterbatch blends Properties determined Units PLA Biomax Strong PLA dcS511 PLA dcS515-N PLA dcS511-Ice clear Glass transition temperature oC 59 59 59 58 58 Melting temperature oC 150 150 151 150 151 Crystallinity % 9 0 5 7 4 Tensile strength MPa 68 66 67 66 64 Tensile modulus MPa 2.3 2.0 1.9 2.0 2.1 Impact strength N 90 390 90 90 90 Shore D hardness 69D 59D 64D 69D 64D Haze % 19.5 67.9 20.6 13.5 10.9 Yellowness index 7.2 10.0 5.8 10.8 0 Another method of improving the properties of polymers is by producing polymers, an example can be of PLA matrix with natural fibres which may include plasticizers, but still remain completely biodegradable. An experiment included using polypropylene (PP) and PLA matrix, including PLA with plasticizer, with flax fibres. The pure PLA had better mechanical properties than the pure PP, and reduced tensile strength as composites. The results showed the PLA with 30 wt.% flax fibre are a 50% stronger than similar composites made from PP, another study [104 sisal] used sisal fibre in a PLA/Starch composite but resulted in poor mechanical properties. PLA/triacetin, plasticizer, composite with flax fibre reduced the strength of the composite but made it more ductile, effect of the plastizer. PP/flax fibre of 30 wt.% are commonly used in industrial applications that has an elongation to break of 2.7% with a tensile strength of 29MPa, even though fibres greatly increased the PLA strength its ductility was reduced to successfully replace the PP composite a suitable fibre could be researched or PLA/15wt.%Triacetin with elongation to break 2.6% and tensile strength 37.2MPa could be used. When using natural fibres in a polymer matrix composite the inconsistency of natural fibres length and properties must be considered, therefore using synthetic biodegradable fibres, cellulosic origins, an even quality can be obtained[105.herrmann]. Degradation Oil based plastics are resistant to biodegradation, and most other forms of degradation, as the micro organisms responsible for the degradation of these polymers are unable to consume it, mainly due the impenetrable oil based matrix which are they are made from and the surface in contact with the soil is smooth [reviewed in 113 p,p,future] . Another class of polymers are the partially degradable are oil based polymers composites with a easily degradable fibre, e.g. starch, which breakdown as the microorganisms attack the starch and leave the oil based polymer particles behind, which degrade at a much slower rate, but unnoticeable because of the size. Complete degradation of a material occurs through various mechanisms, by microorganisms, light, water etc. Biodegradation can be generally be classified into two categories aerobic and anaerobic biodegradation, where the final products of each of the degradation are CO2, H20 and biomass of aerobic and CO2, CH4 and biomass of anaerobic. CPolymer + O2 à   CO2 + H2O + CResidue + C Based biomass Generally in plastics the amorphous region is more vulnerable to degradation by hydrolysis, as water is easily penetrated into this region. The degradation can be classified into surface degradation and bulk degradation, where surface degradation occurs when the degrading agents are not able to penetrate into the bulk layer of the material and act only on the material surface. Spherulites may be visible on the material undergoing surface degradation. It must be noted that materials in the environment may not be degraded by one specific mode of degradation but a combination of different mechanisms, so it would be sensible to consider degradation of a polymer in the soil to have two mechanisms of degradation acting on it, biodegradation and hydrolytic degradation, and photo-degradation if it is exposed to sunlight. Degradation can be considered to occur in two phases, disintegration and mineralization. The disintegration of polymers may occur through hydrolytic degradation, photo-degradation or thermal-degradation by exoenzymes, mediated or not [114. scott]. The hydrolytic degradation is most likely to occur and have a greater role in the process of the biodegradation of the polymer, the figure below shows the subdivisions of hydrolysis. The mineralization takes place when the microorganisms start to metabolize the disintegrated polymer particles and convert them to common inherent digestion products [6 Krzan]. Natural rubber exists in the environment the various microorganisms required to metabolise the polymer are already widely distributed in the environment. The process starts by the oxidation at the double bond of the polymer chain, leading to the formation of carbonyl, peroxide or epoxide groups. The microorganisms secrete a rubber degrading extracellular enzyme, which in a sense start a chain reaction, as lower-molecular weight fractions are further metabolised by the microorganisms. An industrial scale degradation

Prison Treatments Laws in New York State Essay

Michael E. Deutsch, Dennis Cunningham and Elizabeth M. Fink †Twenty Years Later — Attica Civil Rights Case Finally Cleared for Trial† Social Justice, Vol. 18, No. 3 (45), Attica: 1971—1991 A Commemorative Issue (Fall 1991), pp. 13-25 This is a journal uses the commissioner, the director of the correctional, Russel Osward as a center role to recall the Attica Riot, condemning his failure of management of the prison regime and the inhumane assault he had set to end up the uprising. The government had covered the facts of violent assault of the riot for years, but it had been dug out by the protest of the riot survivors 20 years after the riot, and they finally won the negotiations and gained their civil rights. Quotations can be cited for discussing how the negotiation had gone through. It also provides me some background information of the riot. It also gives a sense of what kind of civil rights had been violated and what had been brought back. I can use thes e rights as reference to seek changes of the State laws. Vicky Munro-Bjorklund â€Å"Popular Cultural Images of Criminals and Prisoners since Attica† Social Justice, Vol. 18, No. 3 (45), Attica: 1971—1991 A Commemorative Issue (Fall 1991), pp. 48-70 This journal focuses on the popular culture images that been shaped after the Attica Riot. It argues that the misunderstanding of the prisoner had been changed since the uprising, and media is also a force that pushes the prisons into reform. Because of stereotype, or the popular cultural images of the prisoners, no one had paid that much attention to the prisoners before the increasing exposure of the real â€Å"prisoners’ life† after the Attica Riot. The description of the popular cultural images of the prisoners in Attica is really a good resource to use. This resource is mainly a statement of the prisoners’ image. I do not need to describe the change of the images because I am focusing on the law changes, so nothing will be quoted, but it makes me think in a new way: The affection of exposure from the public or social media. George Edwards, â€Å"Foreword: Penitentiaries Produce No Penitents† forward-penitentiaries produce no penitents, 63 J. Crim. L. Criminology& Police Scl. 159(1972): 154-161   This journal focused on how the social media have done to help the colored people inside the US penal system by using the example of the media affection of the Attica Riot. It focuses on and the cultural images that shape the stereotype of the black people so that they are isolated from â€Å"us†. The prisoners’ lives in the prisons have become more transparent through the social media after the Attica Riot when the social media have paid attention to them and cover more about them. Social media is condemning the brutal treatment to the prisoners and the injustice of the sentence through different ways. This paper is searched after the previous one, it is a good resource for seeing how the social media had pushed the State to change their correctional method and give back prisoners’ civil rights. Willi The Naturalization Act of 1790 am L. Wilbanks The report of the commission on Attica, 37 Fed. Probation 3 (1973): 3-5 This is a prime summery of the national commission report of the Attica Riot published on September 13,1972. It briefly summarized and explained what is the Attica Riot, recorded the cause of it, reported the negotiation of it, and analyzed the assault and the aftermath of it. The main highlight of the riot from the report is that it happened at a time when the prison was about to reform for better, and the violent assault was because the prison inmate was asking for general pardon, but the government refused so, yet the result was still inhumane. This report is brief and comprehensive; it is providing background information for the public to get the general idea of the riot. Part of it can be quoted for a prof of inhumane treatment after the uprising. Gerald Benjamin and Stephen P. Rappaport, Attica and Prison Reform, Proceedings of the Academy of Political Science, Vol. 31, No. 3, Governing New York State: The Rockefeller Years (May, 1974), pp. 200-213 This journal focuses on reporting the details of the negotiation and the assault of the Attica Riot. Informing us assault is because of the failure of the negotiation. This journal also mentioned that the riot happened when the reform was just about to be taken into practice. After the riot, the reform began, including the facilities change and the treatment changes. Changes are based on the fund from federal and the State, though something still needs to be change, it was already a big step. It is also showing some significant changes such as the change in the employment of the facilities from all whites to Latinos, the shortened time of locking. Though this journal is really detail, I need to quote the changes of laws rather than just physical changes in this piece. Angela Y. Davis: Are Prisons Obsolete? Seven Stories Press New York, 2003: 10-19, 84-104 Chapter 1 introduces us with an idea of prison reform, which gains the majority supports of the public and it is also the reason for the Attica Riot. It also reveals the idea that not many people outside the prison are willing to think about the life inside the prison, which is going to be a support of why I said that there is not that much attention had been paid for prison treatment. Chapter 5 tells us how a mass of private companies and industries are gaining a lot of profit from the prisoners so that prisoners are not gaining what they are supposed to be gained. Both chapters are supporting the idea of why prisons should be paid attention and be reformed. Thought the industrial complex of the prison is written recently rather than the immediate fact, I would use them as reference of things that haven’t been improved after the riot. Bruce Burgett and Glenn Hendler, Keywords for American Cultural Studies, New York University Press, 2007: 37-42 This piece gives readers a brief history from the ancient Greek to now of how Citizenship has come to its status in the United State. The civil rights have been violated by the sovereignty, but finally came to equality through the push of institutions, religions, as well as civil movements. This piece also introduces us that how the technology and transportations are important to a new understanding of citizenship. This piece is important for analyzing the prison rights because I am writing through the prospect that prison inmates are also citizens, that they should have the same rights as those normal citizens, but prisoners’ rights are somehow always been valid or even ignored by the U.S. penal system. This article helps to define the citizen in my paper. Jael Silliman and Anannya Bhattacharjee, Policing the National Body Sex, Race, and Criminalization, South End Press Cambridge, Massachusetts, 2002: 1-48 Chapter one gives us a general idea on how the US penal apparatus has been enforced by the participation of multiple â€Å"relevant† institutions. It is showing audiences how those institutional officers themselves are offending the laws but still act as a law executive, and how they use the name of immigration law to violate the rights, especially the rights of the women with colors, they offence their bodies, and use them to incarcerate colored men. This helps to analysis the female prison treatments in recent time. Though it is a good example to show the violation of the civil rights but it might be a little different from the topic that I am writing about because it is mainly focused on the recent time and the immigration laws. Dylan Rodriguez, Forced Passages, Imprisoned Radical Intellectuals and the U.S. Prison Regime, University of Minnesota Press, Minneapolis, London, 2006 This chapter focuses on the formation of the key word: The War. Though the war is supposedly be the conflict between states, the writer tells readers that the U.S. government is using the war zone as a way to control the citizens. It talks about how the power is contributed through the use of the prison regime. I would like to quote the history of the prison regime to inform that the prison today has a slavery background and that is what makes the rights of prisoners been blurred so reasonably. U.S. Naturalization Act of 1790, The Transcript of 13th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution: Abolition of Slavery (1865) The naturalization act is the fundamental act to the U.S. citizens. It indicated that free white of good moral character that had lived in the U.S. for two years and swore allegiance. It can be used as a historical accordant to the descriptions of the history of the prison regime. The 13th amendment establishes birthright of citizenship due process and equal protection, formally extends citizenship to newly freed, black men. Both of these laws can be use as track of the citizenship as proves of the inequality of the civil laws roots. Abstract Citizenship refers to the link between state and person who lives in. Citizens by broad should be within the link and should be someone who lives in the sate. Prisoners as a special type of citizen are supposed to have the same civil rights and be protected by the same laws, yet their circumstances put them into a situation where their rights are violated constantly with or without justice. Prison treatments in the US, can been seen as a significant example of the violation of the prisoners’ civil rights. It has never been paid attentions until the four-day uprising in the Attica Correctional Facility burst out in 1971. Attica Riot was the most violent riot in the entire U.S. history. Through out the uprising, many inhumane treatments of the prisoners have been revealed through the exposure of the social media. As a curiosity on the affects of prison uprisings on the New York State government, this paper is going to discover some significant changes that had been made by the New York State immediately after the riot through the aftermath negotiation of the Attica riot to indicate that the prisoner rights are still not have been treated rightly.

Fidel Castro Was Recognized As The Frontrunner Of The Cuban

Fidel Castro was recognized as the frontrunner of the Cuban Revolution. Fidel Alejandro Castro Ruz was born on August 13, 1926 in Biran Cuba. His father owned a pretty large sugar plantation, which at the time seemed to be fairly prosperous. Due to owning such a large plantation, his family did not seem to suffer as much as other families did. The money that Fidel’s father obtained provided him with broad education opportunities. After a few years had passed by, in 1945, Fidel Alejandro Castro Ruz got his degree in law in where he attended at the University of Havana. He started out by dedicating his personal time and himself as well to the poor. Through his dictatorship in Cuba, he seemed to have done a few significant things as well as†¦show more content†¦Cuba’s new establishment which was sanctioned by Fidel Castro in 1976 meritoriously acknowledged Communism to be the only genuine party in Cuba since democracy no longer existed. This particular type of gov ernment is made up of a dominant operational group of 225 representatives that have to be elected by the Party Congress. Standing at the very tip of this political configuration is Fidel Alejandro Castro Ruz, in which he was the role of the First Secretary of the Communist Party. As a matter of fact, Castro has formed many Committees for the Defense of Revolution in which they function on almost every block throughout Cuba which spys on fellow citizens and they report back to the government of their founding’s. Undesirable reports will end up in jail. By having loyalty to the Party, you cannot talk to non-nationals of the country. A good amount of people are enslaved in Fidel Castro’s prisons for crimes that involve political engagements and them trying to escape from the island as well as speaking against the government. A meeting between numerous members of various communist organizations and Castro happened in June 1991. This happened because it was settled to inaugurate Rapid Response Brigades. Their whole motto was to â€Å"Defend the country, the Revolution, and Socialism in all circumstances by confronting any sign of counter-revolution or crime.† What this is really trying to say is that leaving the country without

Essay on Beowulf and Matrix - 942 Words

What a heroic journey! Everybody knows who is the protagonist of a story if they read it but how do they know? How do you or I know the heroes are, in fact, heroes in, for example, the Matrix and Beowulf? This is what I will present in this essay. I will be using the Hero’s Journey by Joseph Campbell for both of them by using three stages from it. For the Matrix, I will be using â€Å"Meeting with Mentor†, â€Å"The Ordeal† and â€Å"Return with Elixir† stages. For Beowulf, I will be using â€Å"Call to Adventure†, â€Å"Reward† and â€Å"Return with Elixir† stages. In the Matrix, Neo meets Morpheus, a guy that he was looking for and vice versa. In this stage of â€Å"Meeting with Mentor†, Morpheus is convincing Neo to take the red pill to get out of the Matrix. Now,†¦show more content†¦The hero uses the powers or knowledge to help others and this is what Neo is going to do. This is another proof of him being the hero. Now, the stage of â€Å"Call to Adventure† in Beowulf is when Beowulf heard that Grendel is attacking the Danes, he goes out with his men to take care of this matter. Now, the hero is the person who hears danger or mishap happening to people and goes on to take care of this matter. For example, Spiderman hearing a person crying for help and he goes to save that person. Now, this is what Beowulf does as in this quote â€Å"Heard how Grendel filled nights with horror And quickly commanded a boat fitted out.†(Page 26). As soon as Beowulf heard this, he set sail to the Danish place to take care of Grendel. It shows that Beowulf is confident, brave and willing to take his life for something that hasn’t to do with him which is like how a hero does it. In the â€Å"Reward† stage of Beowulf, Beowulf defeated Grendel and Grendel’s mother and saved the Danes from the horror that brings sadness to their land. Beowulf attained fame for his heroic deeds and po ssibly, people heard of what he had done. Now, when a hero does something heroic or something big that bring joy to the people, the hero gets fame and a reward for his deeds and people talk about him and what he has done. This is, likely, to happen to BeowulfShow MoreRelatedBeowulf Analysis1683 Words   |  7 PagesBeowulf Beowulf is another incredible epic poem that was first written in the Anglo-Saxon era. It is believed that the story is not an original piece by the author. Rather, it was part of oral tradition that the author later committed to inscribe it. The author of Beowulf is still a mystery since the work was not sign the work, although scholars refer to the author as just Beowulf poet. Since much about Beowulf is still unknown to the present generation, various debates have risen especially asRead MoreHero s Journey And Characteristics1650 Words   |  7 Pagescharacteristics as an ancient tale, such as in Beowulf and Grendel. But as we also saw, the hero’s potential is present in everyone with no regard of times. As such, when studying modern stories, we can see that aspects of hero’s journey are still a major theme. In The Matrix, Neo, an average hacker, who might not be seen as a hero in the first place will soon show all characteristics to become one. As a result we woul d study in this paper how The Matrix as a modern tale with aspects of the hero’s journeyRead MoreThe Invention Of Cinema And Film Reel1920 Words   |  8 Pagesboth the direct cinematographic consequences and how these consequences influenced directors in their narrative and stylistic choice. This will be done in relation of The Matrix (1999) and Hugo (2011), as they are two very intriguing examples of the possibilities open by computer graphics. What is truly interesting about The Matrix, one of the Wachowskis most appreciated masterpieces, is its blunt metadiegetic value: the film itself appears to be dealing with the issue of digital against traditionalRead MoreEssay about Desire in Herman Melville’s Moby-Dick2921 Words   |  12 Pagesvariously described as a novel, a romance, and an epic, as a comedy and a tragedy. Indeed, the text is an anatomy of the adventure story in the tradition of world classic accounts of the epic hero from Gilgamesh to the Arabian Nights, from the 0dyssey to Beowulf. Although from a formalist perspective Ishmael is clearly the sole narrator, the tale remains markedly divided in expression; that is, the tone, diction, register, and underlying psychology of the account describe two radically differentRead More My Philosophy and Theory about English Teaching Essay5341 Words   |  22 Pagespeople is necessarily political), but it is important to take stances as a teacher. It is part of being a moral being and a teacher activist, both of which I intend to be. Maxine Greene concurs: To be moral involves taking a position towards that matrix, thinking critically about what is taken for granted. It involves taking a principled position of ones own (choosing certain principles by which to live) and speaking clearly about it, so as to set oneself on the right track. While functional