Abstract
This paper discusses the ritual of bloodletting which was prevalent in the Mayan civilization, an ancient native American culture that dates back to AD 300 to 900. It examines how each major event in the lives of the Mayan people was sanctified by their self-mutilation. Bloodletting was used to commemorate temples being dedicated, crops being planted, babies being born and marriages being consecrated. It shows how through its beginning, its peak, and its ruin, bloodletting was something done in reverence for their gods and done out of respect for their religious beliefs and how it was not a savage, destructive ritual, but a meaningful one.

From the Paper
"Maya communities exist today, and they still believe their lives and destinies are tied directly into their family, kin, community and to the supernatural world of their gods (Sharer 128-130). Each important step in their lives is still marked by elaborate and sacred rituals, as they were in ancient times (Sharer 129). While the nuclear family is still the heart of their foundation " that is the man, his wife, and their children " Mayan families have always included the more extended version of family. Their social groupings are based on their lineage depending on what male has been born into what family. While government has changed now, in the past, political offices were passed from father to son, brother to brother, and so forth."

Tags:Mexico, Indians, bloodletting

Abstract
The aim of this paper is to determine if the age-old medicinal use of leeches can be used to assist in saving skin flap failure. The paper reviews and discusses the medicinal practice of bloodletting, a practice that has been used since the Stone Age. The objective of this paper is to perform a critical, qualitative review of literature on quantitative research regarding skin flap procedures, the use of leeches in the medical field, and specifically the use of leeches used in conjunction with skin flap procedures. In this way, the paper hopes to prove that leeches can indeed be a valuable tool in saving skin flap failure.

Table of Contents:
Abstract
Introduction
Preliminary Literature Review
Medicinal Leeches Overview
Skin Flap Overview
Medicinal Leeches Used in Skin Flap Procedures
Methodology
Method
Results
Analysis
Discussion
Conclusion
Recommendations
Figures and Tables
Figure 1: Depiction of leeching, by Willem van den Bossche in, Historia Medica (Bruxellae, 1639).
Figure 2: Medicinal Leech Passive Bleeding vs. Mechanical Device
Figure 3: LDF data for the control, outlet and leech groups over the course of Cottler et al.'s research.
Figure 4: Leech treatment
Figure 5: Average Surviving Area of Flaps
Figure 6: Mind Map
Table 1: Identification of Themes for Research Regarding the Use of Leeches in Skin Flap Survival
Table 2a: Summary Grid
Table 2b: Summary Grid
Table 2b: Summary Grid
Table 2c: Summary Grid

From the Paper
"The research included the qualitative review of relevant literature. Identification of relevant literature was conducted through the use of electronic and hand searches, for published articles or reports concerning the use of leeches and skin flap procedures. In addition, the author also reviewed table of contents of scholarly medical journals. Scholarly journals as well as Internet sites run by medical organizations or offering articles written by medical professionals were searched. The author used a list of Boolean conditional keyword phrases to perform the literature search. These search terms allowed the author to quickly and easily identify the literature that was most likely to be relevant to the topic at hand. The first portion of the literature review identified all literature regarding these topics, while the second portion focused on research studies that employed quantitative methods in their results. Bibliographies from these identified literature pieces were then hand searched for additional references to appropriate pieces of literature."

Tags:evil, spirits, physicians, technology, blood, wound, capillary, hydraulic, conductivity, Edema

Abstract
This paper summarizes the main points of McPherson's book on the American Civil War and explains the book's thesis, which asserts that, contrary to commonly held beliefs, it was the two-day bloodletting at Antietam, near the town of Sharpsburg in rural Maryland, that served as the turning point in the Civil War and not the Battle of Gettysburg.

From the Paper
"Civil War is so deeply ingrained in the American consciousness that despite numerous books, analysis, articles and reports on the most momentous event in American history, people sit up and take notice every time a new book on the subject appears. And that book becomes a rage if it challenges some fixed notions about the war and the leaders and generals of the time. James McPherson's "Crossroads of Freedom: Antietam, the Battle that Changed the Course of the Civil War" can be seen as one such book that manages to question that integrity and motives of some war heroes including Lincoln and McClellan but does it so subtlety that it hardly sparks a controversy."

Tags:tragedy, bloodiest, day, history, village, casualties, confederacy, main, battle, union