... vs. Clive Davis for her album My December to see an example of power the record label has in how successful an album is). No one wants to hear the same song over and over again. Songs are more popular because of who produced the song versus the actual artist. The other reason is because with the digital era, it is no longer necessary to buy a complete album. Consumers ... have the choice of which song they want to download after purchasing it for usually only $1. Consumers ... hits per album. As a result, album sales have been down and single sales have been high. Labels ride high on a...

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• Grade Level: High School

... their recordings. Sound bytes can be found online and manipulated to the artist's liking. Manufacturers of software offer thousands of downloads to get the song to the right level of perfection. With a click of a button, individual sound patches are downloaded, installed to the programs being used and then are used to create the next wave of music. Digital instruments can be fully purchased or leased for a ... . A fee is charged for services and using the Internet, artists digitally send their pictures and album inserts information along with high quality MP3 versions of their songs to th...

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Rap music and all its variations, from gangsta rap to hip-hop, are among the most potent influences of young peoples' perceptions of reality and their resulting behavior. Studies have shown that instead of seeing gangsta rap as a form of entertainment, adolescents perceive the songs to be autobiographical (Miranda, Claes, 113) or in other words, specifically addressing their unique situation and challenges. ... As rap artists often resort to drugs, sex, or violence as the means to resolve the conflicts in their songs and videos, adolescents often model this ... with a woman. There is never a...

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... the events and issues of their lives. In dancehall's infancy, the message was predominantly light-hearted and even humorous, and it was always kept more or less clean. That is not the case anymore. Probably as a way to shake things up and get themselves noticed with fresh eyes and ears, some dancehall artists chose to start using dirty lyrics in their songs. The songs started to glorify the ... underworld, where crime is pastime and women are something to be objectified. Before long, dancehall music was the kind of thing you didn't want your children to listen to, and it was the kind of...

• Word Count: 446
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... people now own a cell phone, and that number is growing larger every day. The impact of cell phones on society has become huge. One reason that the cell phone has made such an impact on society today is because of the advances they have made with them through modern technology. When the cell phone first debuted, its only function was to make calls. That is not ... to watch live television no matter where you are. Some offer a GPS navigational system to help you find driving directions. Of course, many people would be lost without the option to text their friends and family, as well. Cel...

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The trial of Dr. Conrad Murray, the personal physician of the late Michael Jackson, took a turn for the worse after the 911 call was played to jurors on September 29th. Murray chose not to call for an ambulance for nearly thirty minutes after he first realized that Jackson needed medical attention - a ... while Jackson was lying on his mattress, a soft surface. Murray then asked, "Does anybody know CPR?" although he was the doctor on hand. Murray then calmly told Alvarez that the singer had "a bad reaction" and needed to be taken to the hospital. However, instead of calling an ambulance righ...

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... our air. While that is good news for plants since they breathe in carbon dioxide, it's bad news for our children who are being deprived of oxygen. Plants, especially the weedier plants, are thriving and producing pollen out of proportion to their growth. Our children's respiratory systems, already struggling to take in oxygen are being forced to filter pollen heavy air as well ... . Perhaps it's no wonder that 250,000 asthma related deaths are reported to the World Health Organization each year. Urbanization is another culprit of the pollen flood. The baking effect of the concrete used i...

• Word Count: 391
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Argentine President Cristina Kirchner was recently in America this week for the UN General Assembly being held in New York City. The problem with this is, that puts her right in the fire, so to speak. She and her country have defaulted on billions in debt owed to U.S. creditors. President Kirchner has repeatedly ignored the U.S. federal court system and supposedly removed any of her country's assets to outside the U.S. and away from collectors. With her being in New York this week for the UN talks, U.S. bondholders' have become more upset due this obvious slap in the face to the U.S. Justice s...

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... already hooked with heroin and their lives are ruined. History of Heroin The heroin comes from morphine which is a natural substance extracted from seedpod of opium poppy. The opium poppy was discovered and cultivated in Mesopotamia about 3400BC. It was until the 19th century that the chemical analysis of opium was revealed. Most of its content could be ascribed to two ingredients, codeine and morphine ... . An English chemist named C.R. Alder Wright was the first person who processed the heroin in 1874. He made an experiment mixing morphine with different acids. However, ... ". Bayer i...

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... no way this was suicide" (Grondahl). Also pointing to the fact that Jones' death could be more than a suicide is the cryptic message he left for his girlfriend. "I love you," he told her. "By the time you get this, I will be gone" (Bailey). The Department of Defense has yet to confirm his death because of a policy of a 72-hour waiting period after notifying family members (Grondahl ... ). Jones' death falls close to the one-year anniversary of the death of Staff Sergeant Amy Seyboth Tirador. Tirador was shot in the back of the head while walking to her evening shift ... on a US military ...

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We are a gadget-loving society. And with the recent launch of the iPhone onto the market, our addiction has only gotten worse. For true believers, the iPhone is much more than "just" a phone, however. This product is changing the way the world - or much of it - lives. The new 3G iPhone even has those non-techies among us are abuzz about this new toy, thanks to its user-friendly platform ... just a little bit smaller, too. In a successful effort to keep pace with the "trend to optimize geographic locations for [its] users", the iPhone features applications that are capable of putting your very...

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... ' mission in Iraq on December 15th - nine years after US forces stepped foot on the foreign ground. US troops initially staged a war to rid Iraq of the weapons of mass destruction that they were thought to possess, but after almost a decade in the hostile country, no such weapons were found. Instead, the nine-year invasion revamped American politics and provided Muslims with a solid foundation for their ... who seek to divide, by economic and social issues, by the demands of democracy itself. Challenges remain, but the US will be there to stand by the Iraqi people as they navigate those ...

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... absolute living hell," Damien Echols, Jessie Misskelley, Jr., and Jason Baldwin were released from prison, where they were currently serving out their sentences for the murder of three second-graders in West Memphis, Arkansas in 1993. Steven Branch, Christopher Byers, and Michael Moore were found dead in a ditch with their bodies mutilated and hog-tied by their ... that they were driven by satanic ritual, regardless of the extreme lack of evidence that they had to indict the boys. Echols and Baldwin entered an Alford plea on three counts of first degree murder, while Misskelley entered...

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... market and mortgage lender meltdowns, two-paycheck families are busting the budget on necessities. Even conservative spenders are growing weary. During a recent small group discussion, a mother of three held back tears as she described the effects of the dollar's weakening buying power. She and her husband both work and have been steadily employed for the last twenty years. Three years ago, they felt financially secure ... her husband looking for part-time work because he drives a daily 60-mile round trip to work. There's no talk of a summer vacation this year. She's not alone. Whether a ...

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... little different was a visit by Brig. General Peter J. Talleri to Camp Taji. Talleri is the commander of the Defense Distribution Center and is stationed in New Cumberland, Pennsylvania. While in the area, he also visited the Iraqi Army's General Truck Regiment. He met with Iraqi Colonel Muhammad and was given updates of their progress and discussed future improvements. "We are working together, in a partnership, to ... "By utilizing our subject matter experts we are able to establish an effective system together with them that is working well." The Iraqi military are gaining good knowle...

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... every opportunity to pursue higher education. He saw us all driving fuel efficient or hybrid cars, or taking the new high speed rails that would be the base of the mass transit system he was in favor of. He saw the rich no longer lining their pockets off of the misery of the middle class. He saw an equitable tax system, and a health care system where no one would ever ... economic plan. Now, when we need the money most of all is the best time to enact these changes. These are ways Obama can raise the needed money. 1. Stick by his plan to end subsidies to the oil companies. Why we are su...

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... a necessity. Wind power is not reliable enough to provide all your electric needs. Still, adding $10 to $30 thousand dollars to the price of building a home is cost prohibitive for most of us. If you know a little bit about electricity, are good at building simple structures, and can follow simple instructions, there are ... . They are good for slow cooking, and larger ones can be used to bake bread. If you live in a place where there is sunshine most of the time, a solar cooker can save you considerable money over using even a crock pot. They are especially good for drying/dehydrating f...

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... 1,500 miles. That travel could be by container ship, by truck or by train. Regardless of the mode of transport, carbon emissions are created to get that food to you. Eating locally reduces those carbon emissions. If a farmer drives 30 miles into the city to sell his turnips at the local farmer's market, less fossil fuels are used than if those turnips were shipped from ... Mexico. There are other reasons why consumers choose to eat local foods. The most important of these is the transparency of the production process. You can see the farmer that grew the tomato or see the cow that ends ...

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... . Often more noble in theory than practical in application, breakthroughs may soon lead to alternative energy sources. Solar energy in particular will become a physical reality instead of just an eco-friendly dream. Amazing Potential The problem with solar energy has often been its practicality or lack thereof. It is expensive and not all that durable in real life conditions. This is a large ... soon it will enjoy widespread use. Peoples" homes will be outfitted with solar paneling that will stand up to the abuse of the elements while drawing in energy for heating and cooling. The solar ...

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... -risk population, such as men who have sex with men and injection drug users. The recommendations sent out by the CDC, for the first time, come with guidelines for managing chronically infected patients of hepatitis B. "Chronic hepatitis B affects the lives of more than one million Americans, many of whom do not even know they are infected. These new recommendations are critical to identifying people who are living ... with the disease without the benefits of medical attention," said John W. Ward, M.D., director of CDC's Division of Viral Hepatitis. "Testing is the first step to identify...

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... crisis with high fuel prices and banking woes, there is something positive that may come out of it. As many have realized, food prices at grocery stores across the country are increasing out of control. This is due to increased shipping costs from the higher fuel prices. Because of this, many have returned to buying certain things locally. Food grown in a person's home town doesn ... not confined to one area, so they incur large shipping fees that they then pass on to their customers, the grocery stores, in the form of higher prices. The grocery stores cannot afford to absorb the higher...

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... , NC seems to be no exception. In the lower part of central North Carolina, Charlotte has grown over the years into a sprawling city. The banking industry has brought in people from all over the country. With the crowds of decent upstanding people that have migrated to the area, another element has moved in as well. The criminal element has grown as the city has grown, and with it has come ... obvious not to see. Reports on the news cover it daily. Gang 'tags' as they are called, or markings, are everywhere. It has gotten out of control. Among the gangs in the Charlotte area are the Bloo...

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... knew full well that thousands were never coming home. What's more is that the men knew it too. Eisenhower was so unsure of his plan that he wrote two letters, one praising the valiant men who stormed the beaches in the event of success, the other taking full blame in case the offensive was defeated. The men knew what they were heading into, and they went anyhow; not for ... fight nor die for men who simply command them. They fight and they die for those who lead them. Leadership is about serving. It's about giving away all of the credit and shouldering all of the blame. It's about makin...

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... to find love, much to their own chagrin and the concern of their family and friends, online dating has today become an enormous part of the dating scene, and indeed has spawned very successful industry in the dating market. The perks of online dating are enormous. Here are just a few: 1) Broader market- Christina H. of Eagle Point Oregon met the love of her life while playing scrabble on Facebook. Stuart who ... those with physical impediments- Christina is an intelligent, funny, well read, educated woman, who everyone agrees has a wonderful personality. She has a pretty face, but she t...

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... people think of the 1950s or the 1980s. When we hear the term "Nehru Jacket" we think of the 60s. The term "Bell Bottoms" conjures up memories of the 1970s. Izod, polo, leg warmers, Ug boots, parachute pants, and short shorts make us think of the 1980s. Flannel shirts, worn out loose fitting jeans induce memories of the 1990s. Low rise jeans, and layered camisoles have been popular over most of the first decade of the new ... millennium, but unlike decades gone by, for the first time in the history of modern ... are as in style as they are out. Fashion has gone cliquey rather than glob...

• Word Count: 394
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• Grade Level: High School