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Chооse TWO оf the topics below, аnd respond to eаch in а well-developed and specifically supported essay of at least 300-350 words (about the length of a good initial discussion post). Political, social, and technological changes have dramatic effects on cultures and individuals' lives. Choose TWO important changes that occurred in Western culture from 1700 to now. Discuss how each of these changes affected the people of a particular time. Advances in science, and particularly in medicine, are often double-edged swords, offering great possible benefits but also possible drawbacks--and/or ethical dilemmas. Choose one of the following medical discoveries or innovations, and discuss how it could be seen as potentially helpful yet either potentially harmful or ethically questionable: cloning in-vitro fertilization face transplants gender selection of unborn children genetic testing to identify family inheritance of incurable diseases embryonic stem cell harvesting aborting fetuses with genetic mutations (most commonly done now with Down Syndrome) legalizing euthanasia In another humanities textbook, the author quotes sociologist and media theorist Marshall McLuhan as saying, "All media [this could include TV, radio, movies, and the internet] exist to invest our lives with artificial perception and arbitrary values." The textbook's author then suggests that "They [the media] create a society of desire--the desire to possess and consume what we don't have." To what degree do you think the above sentiments are accurate? How can we escape/control the media's influence on us? In "The Courage to Be," 20th-century theologian Paul Tillich suggests that believers must discard what he refers to as "theism"--ideas and descriptions of God that interfere with human connection with "the God above God." To what extent do you think that doctrine and religious practices of the 21st century might interfere with a person's communication/communion with God? (You might consider the proliferation of "mega-churches," the trend toward non-denominational worship, the overall drop in regular church attendance, etc.) Is the widespread use of virtual communication--email, texting, use of social media, and online gaming--reducing the ability of humans to communicate in person? What are the possible consequences if this is true? Are there remedies for this change in interpersonal communication? Art reflects the values, concerns, desires, and fears of the culture that produces it. In the 20th and 21st centuries, artistic expression has grown increasingly diverse. Using two or three representative artists, explore how their art conveys aspects of modernist or post-modernist consciousness or both.