Today it is difficult to overestimate the importance and role of ecology both in the life of the whole society and separately in the life of each person. So the state of the planet depends both on commercial companies that produce tons of waste every year, and on an individual who enjoys the benefits of civilization.

A bit of history

Throughout known history Humanity has evolved and with it, its concepts of the surrounding world have developed. Very early, people realized that natural gifts should be used wisely, without destroying the natural balance between man and the planet.

This is confirmed by rock paintings that speak of a person's interest in the environment.

From later data it is known that nature conservation was actively practiced in Ancient Greece where the inhabitants protected the beauty of natural forests.

Modern look

Now ecology is interpreted as a science that studies the interaction of living organisms with each other, as well as with the environment.

Any organism living on the planet is influenced by many factors: favorable and unfavorable. All these factors can be conditionally divided into two groups: biotic and abiotic. Biotic include those that come from living nature; to abiotic - those that carry inanimate nature. For example, an orchid growing on the bark of a tree is an example of symbiosis, that is biotic factor, but the direction of the wind and weather affecting these two organisms is already an abiotic factor. All this creates conditions for the natural evolution of living organisms on the planet.

But here comes another one important aspect, significantly affecting the state environment- This anthropogenic factor or the human factor. Deforestation, diversion of rivers, mining and development of minerals, release of various toxins and other wastes - all this affects the environment where such impacts are made. As a result, biotic and abiotic factors in this area undergo changes, and some of them even disappear altogether.

In order to regulate environmental changes, scientists have deduced the main tasks that ecology must solve, namely: the development of laws for the rational use of natural resources, based on general principles organization of life, as well as timely decision environmental issues.

For this, environmental scientists have identified four basic laws:

1. everything is connected with everything;
2. nothing disappears into nowhere;
3. nature knows best;
4. nothing comes easy.

It would seem that compliance with all these rules should have led to a reasonable and harmonious use of natural gifts, but, unfortunately, we are seeing a different trend in the development of this area.

Why is this happening? Why does the role of ecology in the lives of many people still remain in the background? Any external problem is just a reflection human consciousness. Most do not even suspect what is hidden behind the result of their daily life.

Aspects of nature affected by the anthropogenic factor

The sharp increase in consumer lifestyle has led to the unreasonable use of natural resources. Rapid development scientific and technological progress, the large-scale growth of human agricultural activities - all this aggravated the negative impact on nature, which led to serious violation environmental situation on the entire planet. Consider the main natural aspects most prone to environmental crisis.

Air

Once upon a time there was a different atmosphere on Earth, then it happened that oxygen appeared on the planet, and after it aerobic organisms formed, that is, those that feed on this gas.

Absolutely all aerobic creatures depend on oxygen, that is, on air, and our life depends on its quality. Everyone knows from school that oxygen is produced by plants, therefore, given current trend deforestation and an active increase in the population of people, it is not difficult to guess what the destruction of the fauna leads to. But this is only one of the aspects that affect the state of the atmosphere of our planet. In reality, everything is more complicated, especially in large cities, where, according to medical standards, the concentration of toxic substances is exceeded dozens of times.

Water

The next equally important aspect of our life is water. Human body consists of 60-80% water. 2/3 of the whole earth's surface is made up of water. Oceans, seas, rivers are constantly polluted by man. Every day we "kill" the world's oceans by extracting oil from offshore fields. Oil slicks threaten the lives of marine life. Not to mention the garbage islands, continuously drifting on the surface of the oceans and seas.

Fresh water most vulnerable to human ignorance. Wastewater, various toxins such as mercury, lead, pesticides, arsenic and many other "heavy" chemicals daily poison rivers and lakes.

Earth

The main foundation of life on earth is soil. It is known that in order for the Earth to be able to create one centimeter of black soil, it will take about 300 years. Today, one centimeter of such fertile soil, on average, dies in three years.

Climate

The totality of all environmental problems leads to climate deterioration. The climate can be compared to the health of the planet. When individual "organs" of the Earth suffer, then this has direct influence on the climate. For many years we have been observing various anomalies due to climate change, the causes of which are the anthropogenic factor. Human intervention in the activities of nature has led to a sharp warming or cooling in certain areas, rising sea levels due to rapid glacier melt, abnormal or no precipitation, and strong natural disasters and much more.

The main thing is not focusing on the list of problems, but the very understanding of the causes of their occurrence, as well as focusing on effective ways and methods for solving them.

Areas of our lives affected by the environment

What is the role of ecology in human life? As for absolutely everyone, with which we all deal every day, every second of our lives; without which life, as it is now, could not exist?

Health

Health as a constructor, from separate parts which depends on his condition as a whole. There are many such factors, the main ones are known to everyone - this is the way of life, nutrition, human activities, the people around him, as well as the environment where he lives. Ecology and human health are closely interconnected. If there are violations on one side, the other reacts accordingly.

A person living in a city is many times more likely to get any serious illness than a person living in the suburbs.

Nutrition

When a person eats improperly, his metabolism is disturbed, which in turn leads to more serious problems with health. It is worth remembering that these violations can also affect future generations.

The main problem for human health is chemical substances, mineral fertilizers, pesticides used on agricultural fields, as well as the use of additives and dyes to improve appearance products, preservatives to increase the shelf life of products and much more.

Known cases of adding connections heavy metals and other elements unfavorable for the human body, such as mercury, arsenic, lead, cadmium, manganese, tin and others.

Poultry and cattle feed contains many toxins that can cause cancer, metabolic failure, blindness and other serious diseases.

To protect yourself and your loved ones, you need to be careful about the products you buy. Study the composition and symbols printed on the packaging. Do not support manufacturers who are indifferent to your fate and the state of our planet. Special attention give E-additives with three-digit numbers, the value of which can be easily found on the Internet and thereby live a longer and happier life.

Vitality and mood

The state of health and the quality of nutrition are the determining factors of human activity and vitality. As we can see, all these factors can be associated with the state of ecology on our planet, on which we directly depend. Leading a healthy lifestyle, doing yoga and self-knowledge, it is simply impossible to be indifferent to the environment. When we are in nature, breathe fresh air, eat clean, hand-grown products - our life changes its quality. The state of mind is also transformed, from which the mood and attitude to life in general are harmonized.

Karma

Everything in this world is natural; everything that we do, one way or another, comes back to us, immediately or later - it does not matter. If we take care of ourselves and the world where we live now, save resources, thinking about nature, live in good conscience, then ecological situation the planet will improve - and we will not have to pay for our own recklessness and inattention.

Live consciously, eat healthy - only natural products - take care of the disposal and recycling of waste, use the essentials - then your life and the life of our entire planet will improve! Great things start small!

How to take your free time? Among the options for filling your leisure time are walking, gatherings in cafes, visiting the theater, concerts, as well as the option often chosen by young people - going to the cinema, or just watching in home environment good movie. People very often go to cinemas, so to speak, “hang out” while watching a many-hour movie at home or at a party, on the road. In general, to what extent does watching videos affect a person? And is there any benefit in this type of pastime? Dmitry Chebotarev, a 2nd year KDA student, tried to find the answer to these questions.

Of all the art forms, cinema occupies unique place in the modern world and, accordingly, in human life. Cinema is a whole social institution. It affects the life of society, shaping the consciousness of the viewer. In turn, society demands new achievements from cinematography: improvements techniques and creativity of ideas. Thus, there is a constant connection between society and the world of cinema. And this connection is capable of transmitting our feelings, habits, customs and traditions, even immersing a person in the world of his illusions. Moreover, it can be said that the film industry is able to cover almost all areas public consciousness. Cinema enables a person to perceive life from a slightly different angle than he perceived it before. But we must understand and remember that cinema cannot replace real life, but turns it into an illusion. Therefore, the film in some way frees the viewer from the tensions of real time, from all sorts of negative feelings: longing, guilt, fear... Cinema unites people - this is one of the most important qualities of cinema.

We, that is, the audience, admire the watched film: the unsurpassed play of actors and stuntmen, the skill of directors, directors and other members of the film crew. But the most important highlight of the film is its emotionality. When we watch a movie, we get a lot of emotions. Together with the heroes of the film, we begin to experience, rejoice, be surprised, and in general, as if we are living another life. Even in this or that film, we can get an answer to a question that has been troubling us before. Although, on the other hand, this may be a pitfall, because emotions are far from always positive. For example, emotions after watching a horror movie.

Frame from the movie "World War Z"

Thus, a movie forms a person's worldview, enriches or robs him spiritually, saturates him emotionally. From this emerges another highlight of cinema - the psychological impact on a person. Indeed, under its influence, a diverse range of unique feelings can arise. A feature film or an entire television series can bring a smile or tears, joy or sadness, excitement or a sense of peace. Cinema can change internal state person, his character, behavior and even habits. And here we can find another feature of cinema, namely, the transfer of the creator's intention. If the director's intent was for the person to think about some of the ideas and issues that the filmmaker put into their work and draw their own conclusion from it, that's usually what will happen. A film is a world of ideas that a person realizes in his mind.

Cinema effectively influences a person and occupies a certain, important place in his life. And in this moment, a certain negative phenomenon can be traced, which we will consider below.

In this context, we can view the "evolution" of cinema.

If you draw a line between the films of the last decade and the present time, you can see the development process both for good and for bad. For example, in Soviet films, police officers were shown as honest, intelligent and worthy people. We are proud of this profession. And now, in all modern Russian films, policemen and police officers are portrayed as vile individuals who do not respect anyone, and they themselves do not obey the law, which, by the way, they are called to observe. And the public has an opinion that the police are violators of law and order, extortionists, in other words - negative characters. Here is one example of the influence of the film industry on public opinion. Interestingly, in American films, their cops are respected people to whom they always go for help, they are asked for advice. In addition, you can see the change of values ​​in the cinema. If in the same Soviet films scenes of an intimate nature are practically absent, then in modern films this aspect is put on display for everyone to see as the norm.

By the level of development of cinema in the country, one can to some extent judge the state of society in general. Any social problem can be seen in the cinema. Propaganda in the film industry exists in all countries, in all societies. It takes the form of fighting against Nazism, fostering feelings of love for the Motherland, a cult of love and pleasure, etc. To some extent, it would be correct to say that the state manipulates the population through cinema. Through film production designed for the mass consumer, it is very convenient, for example, to rewrite history. This can be achieved by distorting the facts of the past in the newsreel, cutting out “unnecessary” places from it, and so on. Emphasis is placed on what is beneficial this moment for certain influential forces of society.

Nowadays, modern society has become very attached to watching movies, especially the youth. Now, for many, this question will not even make a dilemma: read a book or watch a movie? The answer is obvious - a movie! Sometimes a lot of time is spent watching the next film, but does a person receive any benefit for himself in return, apart from pleasure?

How does the Church view this?

The Orthodox Church does not prohibit watching movies, spending time in cinemas, watching them at home. But we are concerned about the quality of this film production, that is, its direct impact on a person, what emotions the film awakens in a person’s soul.

Man today has become so attached to innovative technologies that even without noticing it became their hostage. For example, we stopped reading printed books, because in fact all the information is already in the computer, and this is much faster and more convenient than a book. Read about one or the other historical era or about prominent figure there is no need for art or the state, because the alternative is a film on a similar theme, a series, a TV show, etc. In principle, at first glance, there is nothing wrong here, because all this is done for convenience, saving time. But it is in this aspect that a certain danger is hidden - the gradual departure of mankind from such a phenomenon as, for example, reading books, regardless of their format. But every Orthodox Christian must read daily Holy Bible. In conclusion, I would like to briefly draw attention to one product of the film industry, which not so long ago caused a lot of noise in our society. Today, a huge surge in popularity, both in terms of viewing in cinemas and reading books, has the film "50 Shades of Grey". This film would have been banned for the general public 10-15 years ago. From a Christian point of view, it is immoral, vulgar and meaningless. But what's even more astounding is that as of February 20, 2015, the trailer for this film alone has received nearly 96 million views. In contrast to the “immoral hole” of modern cinema, I would like to cite an absolutely opposite product of the film industry in 2012, which is based on real events, called "The Impossible", or the film "Only You". Unfortunately, today they are practically unknown. Despite this, these films are filled with real Christian values: fidelity in families, sincere love and high moral deeds. But it so happened that in our time it is not profitable to show it and talk about it. Therefore, one should not be surprised at the promiscuity of our society, and in particular, the younger generation. You should not be surprised at how in the recent "dashing 90s", after the show of the TV series "Brigada", most of the young men went with the nicknames "Cosmos", "Phil", "White" and threw various so-called "thieves" words. And what can we say about depraved films like "50 Shades of Grey", which inflame passions and devastate a person from the inside, adversely affecting his actions and thoughts.

In this elementary example, one can clearly see to what extent it is really useful for us to spend so much time on products of the film industry that are unnecessary for us. We need to find out for ourselves how we spend our free time. On this occasion, the words of the holy Apostle Paul should be cited: “Everything is permissible for me, but not everything is useful; everything is permissible for me, but it does not edify everything” (1 Cor. 10:23), a person should act according to this principle, taking up his leisure.

When we have reason in everything, then whatever we do with our free time, everything will benefit us and enrich our souls. Then the interest in anything “bad”, including watching immoral and empty films, will disappear by itself.

Chebotarev Dmitry, 2nd year student of KDA

According to the materials of the journal "Academic Chronicle"

In the course of many years of research into the impact of sports on society, the fact was revealed that playing sports has a huge impact on the physical and spiritual state of the individual. The influence of sport on the relationship of people, the level of sociability, the ability to self-determination and the realization of one's potential has been established. Sport is a tool for shaping the culture of mankind.

The place of sport among human values ​​is noticeably increasing, because. sports activities are universal tool self-development, creative expression and self-realization. Sport is a reflection of the socio-cultural system in which it develops. AT Russian society recent decades there have been significant changes that have affected the transformation value orientations and attitudes towards physical culture and sports.

In the Soviet period, society was characterized by collectivism, responsibility to the group and individuals. It was replaced by a post-industrial one based on a market economy. The actions of people began to be based, first of all, on personal interests, the resulting individualistic orientation is reinforced by the right to privacy of a lifestyle. Increased personal responsibility for their actions, for their destiny and life path.

During the reforms of the last decades, the Soviet system of physical culture was destroyed, the mass physical culture and sports movement practically lost significant state support. Sports and physical development have become a private matter, due to the commercialization of a significant share of sports and recreation services. This has led to a noticeable decrease in the number of people involved in sports, to a decrease in the importance of sports in common system values ​​of Russians and, as a result, to the deterioration public level life.

Market relations that dominate society, as well as the release of the state from social obligations, affect the value system of individual segments of the population. On the value of sports and healthy lifestyle life is oriented, to a greater extent, to representatives of the upper strata of society, for whom sports activities become part of fashion and prestigious consumption. Representatives of low social groups On the contrary, they consider sports activities unnecessary and meaningless.

In the course of many years of research into the impact of sports on society, the fact was revealed that playing sports has a huge impact on the physical and spiritual state of the individual. The influence of sport on the relationship of people, the level of sociability, the ability to self-determination and the realization of one's potential has been established. Sport is a tool for shaping the culture of mankind

The phenomenon of sports is a multifaceted phenomenon of our time. According to the structure, the classification of sports in two directions is acceptable - sports highest achievements and mass sports. The first is the sport of the highest achievements, which means the struggle for first place in sports competitions. The second, opposite, is mass sport, which performs the function of improving people's health through self-expression and self-realization of the individual, satisfying the need for physical development and leisure. Mass sport is a universal tool for eliminating asocial phenomena.

Sport is one of the components of the physical culture of society, which has developed historically in the form of activities that prepare a person for competitions and the competitions themselves. It is the competitive element that distinguishes sports from physical education. Training in both sports and physical education includes similar actions and exercises, but the goal of the athlete is to evaluate, through competitive activity, his physical abilities in individual disciplines and comparing their results with the successes of others. While the athlete is interested in the development of physical qualities for healing and personal improvement.

Mass sport allows you to improve physical qualities and expand opportunities, strengthen health and prolong longevity, resist the undesirable effects on the body of modern production and conditions Everyday life, while using a large number of members of the society.

The purpose of the classes various types sports - improve health, improve physical development, fitness and actively relax. This is due to the solution of a number of particular problems: to increase functionality individual systems body, correct physical development and physique, increase overall performance, master necessary skills and skills, it is useful to spend leisure time, to achieve physical perfection.

The tasks of mass sports are largely identical to the tasks of physical education, but differ in the component of the implementation of the sports orientation of the training process.

Schoolchildren are already being introduced to the elements of mass sports in Russia, and in some sports even preschoolers. It is mass sports that are most widespread in student groups. As practice shows, in non-physical education universities of the country in the field of mass sports, regular training during after hours conducted by 10 to 25% of students. Modern program on academic discipline"Physical culture" for students of higher educational institutions allows almost every healthy student of any orientation to join one or another type of mass sports. The type of sport, the system of training, as well as the time of their conduct is chosen by the student himself, based on his desires, needs and opportunities.

Mass sports include all those types of physical culture sports activities various groups and segments of the population that are not aimed at achieving the highest sports results and material benefits, but to develop in accordance with one's own needs and to solve various social tasks. It should be noted that sports activities complement professional ones and are not the key determining factor in a person's life.

Sport involves not only physical development. Great importance is given to sport in the formation of numerous mental qualities and human properties, acting as a kind of "school of will", "school of emotions", "school of character". It's connected with high demands imposed by sports competitions and all sports activities for the manifestation volitional qualities and to self-regulation.

The problem of the human value of sport and its role in the modern world has been and remains debatable in the research of scientists. The concept of "humanization of sport" is closely related to the concept of humanism, in which everything that contributes to the full development of a person, strengthening his health, and meeting his needs is recognized as humane. However, the most highly organized and perfect activity will be considered as inhumane if it is directed against health, happiness, self-realization and the very existence of a person.

Modern researchers positively evaluate sports in terms of humanistic values ​​and ideals. Scientists note the important role of sport as a tool for maintaining and strengthening people's health, as well as the development of their physical and personal. sport is an important element in the value system of modern culture.

However, there are supporters negative assessment sports from the standpoint of humanism, who argue that modern sport harms cooperation, forms a vicious division of people into winners and losers; develops negative qualities personality, such as selfishness, aggressiveness, envy, gives rise to the desire to win at any cost, even at the expense of health, violation of moral standards.

The existence of opposing assessments of the humanistic values ​​of sports is due to the fact that a certain abstract, unchanging essence is assigned to sports, while researchers rely on separate, isolated facts and do not take into account the distinguishing points between the two main areas in modern sports: sports of the highest achievements and mass sports, which obviously have different value and humanistic potential.

The value of sport today is high, it occupies one of the highest positions among the types of human activity. However, elite sports have not gone far ahead of the development of physical culture and mass sports, their socio-cultural significance is not lower.

The professionalization of sports is impossible without the development of physical culture and mass sports. With some convention, we can consider sport as a symbol, a concentrated expression of the principles and problems of our time, as an area in which this society the principles of equality of opportunity, achievement of high results and competition are manifested and applied especially clearly and purposefully.

It should be noted that modern civilization focuses on material values. Competition is growing, commercialization of all areas is increasing social activities. At the same time, with the help of industrial civilization, the essence of human passion, which is also sport, is realized not only in its entirety, but in all its humanity. The spirit of competitiveness models the situation of human self-determination, which is carried out in the system "I-Other" or "I-Others". Self-determination is possible if "I" compare my indicators with those of the "Other".

This comparison is a necessary attribute of sports activity, evaluated from the outside. But there are difficulties here too. A person's attitude to his abilities (in particular, the ability to show his activity above the norm) is not like the indifference shown with might and main in relation to incidents that can happen to them. “Man,” writes E. Levinas, “from now on is thrown into the environment of opportunities, in relation to which he is now engaged, with which he is now involved, from now on he either took advantage of them or missed them. They are not added to his existence from without, like accidents.

Opportunities do not appear before a person in the form of ready-made images that he can evaluate from different angles. Opportunities, rather, are the main ways of a person's existence, since for a person to exist means precisely to take advantage of one's own opportunities, or else to miss them. The possibility of excessive activity is a danger, it must be regulated and backed up by some positive result. Nevertheless, excess activity is beneficial for the survival of the human race as a whole, despite the danger to the individual. A person develops, revealing himself, using his abilities. The possibilities inherent in the individual in the process of his activity gradually "exhaust" themselves; and if the individual does not possess the fundamental potentiality of returning to himself, this original position taken in relation to his own existence, then the very basic being of human existence is called into question.

In Russia, the trend of mass sports began its development in the 30s of the 20th century. The revolution, civil wars states, negatively inclined towards the country - all these factors set the task for the leadership - to raise the level physical training citizens, in the event of an outbreak of popular discontent or foreign attacks. Shooting ranges, shooting galleries, flying clubs, military sports clubs were created throughout the country, in which young people mastered various specialties that were in demand in war time- telegraph operator, pilot, nurse, orderly and many others. The main organizer of the new movement was the Komsomol, on whose initiative the first All-Union sports complex "Ready for Labor and Defense" was opened. The purpose of the organization of which was the introduction of a single set of principles and standards of sports education and physical education. Compulsory classes were introduced in the country, all conditions were organized for the possibility self-study sports as a leisure activity. Active promotion of a healthy lifestyle, physical education and sports was carried out. For decades Soviet citizens actively participated in the sports life of the country, girls and boys were proud of the badges received for high score passing the GTO standards.

The complex had such an attractive force that millions of young people Soviet Union with the highest enthusiasm went into sports and achieved such results that they were the best athletes in the world in different areas. The TRP system was a powerful incentive. Preparation for the implementation of the standards developed all muscle groups, increased the level of endurance and health. Thanks to this system, our country raised the world's best cosmonauts, which naturally had a positive effect on the international position of the USSR.

In 2013, on the eve of the Olympics in Russia, the country's leadership put forward a proposal to revive the TRP complex. As a result of painstaking preparation, in March 2014, a decree was issued “On the All-Russian Physical Culture and Sports Complex “Ready for Labor and Defense” (TRP)”, which decreed the commissioning of the complex from September 1, 2014.

The organizers of the modern TRP project call the revival of the “Ready for Labor and Defense” complex in schools and universities fundamentally important for the formation of such qualities in the younger generation as determination and self-confidence and their capabilities.

Thus, the return of the TRP to Russia is undoubtedly in demand by the new time and existing social factors. Most Russians positively met the new, or rather the well-forgotten old trend. The health of the people, unfortunately, declined in recent years under the influence of stress, the deterioration of the standard of living in the post-Soviet period, is priceless, and its foundation is laid, among other things (and, perhaps, mainly) by similar national events of a regular nature. The mechanism of the basis of the system developed over decades physical education is viable, and one can hope that its implementation will soon initiate progress in the development of Russian sports.

The meaning of life is a person's desire for something that goes beyond the scope of his life, i.e. does not give immediate returns and often does not correspond to the concept of "selfish interest". Usually the meaning of life is either related to the assessment of a person’s entire life, or to what will happen after his death. At the same time, the goal to which a person aspires should be perceived by him as something overvalued, which fills his life with meaning.

Many argue that "there is no meaning to life." It means that there is no single meaning of life for all, given from above. However, it is certain that almost every person has goals that go beyond his own "use" and even beyond his own life. For example, we wish our children happiness and prosperity, and we make great efforts to develop them by limiting our own needs. Moreover, all these efforts will bring the main result not to us at all and, in many respects, even after our death.

Speaking about the fact that everyone has their own meaning of life, nevertheless, it should be borne in mind that there are certain objective limitations on the choice of the meaning of life. These restrictions are related to natural selection both the “carriers of the meaning of life” themselves (concrete people), and societies where this or that meaning of life prevails. For example, if the meaning of a person's life is suicide, then very quickly there will be no carriers of such a meaning of life. Similarly, if the meanings of life for the majority of members of a society are "suicidal" for society, then such a society will cease to exist. In particular, if the meaning of people's lives is aimed exclusively at solving short-term problems, for example, at maximizing pleasure, then such a society cannot exist for a long time.

As the well-known philosopher Pitirim Sorokin showed, a society achieves its goals when the meaning of life of the majority of members of society corresponds to these goals. A society where people are excessively carried away by purely selfish interests becomes vulnerable, responds poorly to external threats, and tends to self-disintegrate. On the other hand, if the meaning of life is rigidly imposed, then people cannot be flexible enough to change their mentality in response to changing circumstances. It can also lead to the death of a society or a lag in development from other societies.

Therefore, the meaning of the life of members of viable societies is directed, as a rule, to the achievement of constructive goals. For example, in traditional societies, the meaning of life was determined by religion: although the reality of the goal (a place in paradise) seems doubtful, following religious guidelines made it possible to obtain constructive social results. After all, religious attitudes reflected the realities of traditional society, and it was precisely those religions that survived in natural selection that the best way maintained the viability of traditional society.

However, the traditional society is becoming a thing of the past and the traditional meanings of life have ceased to correspond to reality. As a result, a psychological crisis arises, “the loss of the meaning of life”, which is perceived by some as a kind of catastrophe and the spiritual decline of society. In fact, such phenomena always accompany the transition of society from one state to another. But Modern society offers a new meaning to life, capable of moving society forward and enriching each of its members.

The meaning of modern life

Modern society, of course, does not impose the meaning of life on its members, and this is the individual choice of each person. At the same time, Modern society offers an attractive goal that can fill a person's life with meaning and give him strength.

The meaning of the life of a modern person is self-improvement, the upbringing of worthy children who must surpass their parents, the development of this world as a whole. The goal is to turn a person from a "cog", an application object external forces into a creator, demiurge, builder of the world.

Any person who is built into Modern society is the creator of the future, a participant in the development of our world, in the future - a participant in the creation new universe(After all, in just a few hundred years we have transformed the planet Earth, which means that we will transform the Universe in millions of years). And it doesn't matter where and by whom we work - we move the economy forward in a private company or teach children at school - our work and contribution are needed for development.

Consciousness of this fills life with meaning and makes you do your job well and conscientiously - for the benefit of yourself, other people and society. This allows you to realize your own significance and the single goal that modern people set for themselves, to feel involved in the highest achievements humanity. And just to feel like a bearer of a progressive Future is already important.

Thanks to us - Modern people - the world is developing. And without development, a catastrophe would await him (see the section "Development"). Modern people (i.e. tolerant, inventive, energetic, professional) have always been. It was we who figured out how to make fire, it was we who figured out how to grow the necessary plants, it was we who invented the caravels on which Columbus sailed, it was we who invented the steam and gasoline engines, we made the first computer, thanks to us Gagarin flew into space and man entered the world. moon. Maybe it's too pathetic, but it's true :). The difference between the current era and the previous ones lies only in the fact that for the first time in history we - Modern people - are becoming the majority.

Conversely, people who live in the past and not in the future feel that their lives lose their meaning; that the past they pray for is ending. Hence bursts of despair - religious fanaticism, terrorism, etc. The age of traditional societies is over. However, it should be remembered that fanatics want to destroy our purpose of life, which is aimed at development and prosperity, and we must effectively resist this.

The meaning of modern man's life gives him quite a practical return. Improving ourselves, improving our skills, energetically mastering new things and taking an active life position, we become valuable, highly paid specialists (or prosperous entrepreneurs). As a result, our life becomes comfortable and rich, we can consume more and satisfy our needs. In addition, based on our meaning of life, we strive to make our children smart, to educate them - and as a result, our children become worthy people which also brings us satisfaction.

Thus, a modern person realizes his meaning of life not at the expense of himself, not at the expense of some personal sacrifices, but, on the contrary, for the benefit of himself, his family, including in favor of his material security. After all, Modern society is a society where self-development leads to wealth. The only sacrifice a person has to make is to study hard and be energetic.

The living conditions of modern man are significantly different from those in which his formation as a biosocial being took place. In the early stages of the existence of Homo sapiens, he led a lifestyle close to natural. In particular, he was characterized by a high level physical activity, which in itself corresponded to the neuropsychic tension necessary in the struggle for existence. People lived in small communities, lived in an ecologically clean natural environment, which could be changed (but not changed) by the whole community if it became unsuitable for life.

The development of civilization went in the direction of property stratification and professional specialization of people, necessary for mastering new tools of labor, increasing the duration of training and gradually lengthening the period of specialization of a part of the population. From the point of view of the life of one generation, all these changes occurred rather slowly, against the background of relatively slow changes in the habitat, low population density, and while maintaining high level motor activity. All this did not impose any special requirements on the human psyche that went beyond the limits of the evolutionary requirements.

The situation began to change with the beginning of the development of capitalism and progressive urbanization, and most radically in the second half of the 20th century, when the way of life of a person began to change rapidly. The scientific and technological revolution has led to a decrease in the share of physical labor, that is, to a decrease in the level of physical activity. This circumstance violated the natural biological mechanisms, in which the latter was the final link in life, therefore, the nature of the flow of life processes in the body has changed and, ultimately, the stock of human adaptive capabilities has decreased.

Another important consequence of the progressive development of civilization was the growth of the urban population, which sharply increased the density of human-to-human contacts. From the point of view of the psyche, these contacts are often unpleasant for a person. On the contrary, family relationships are beneficial, if, of course, relations between family members are good. However, unfortunately, favorable family relationships occupy in the family, according to statistics, only 20-30 minutes a day.

Undoubtedly, some factors of a noticeably changed external environment have an undoubted influence on the psyche of modern man. Thus, the noise level has increased significantly, especially in the city, where it significantly exceeds allowable norms. If this is a busy highway, then the impact of noise on the human brain is comparable to the effect of the roar of an airport. Poor sound insulation, including sound-reproducing devices (TV, radio, etc.) in your own apartment or neighbors, make the influence of noise almost constant. Such noises, in contrast to natural ones, which in the process of evolution were integral part the nature surrounding a person (wind noise, the sound of a stream, the singing of birds, etc.), have Negative influence on the whole body and on the psyche in particular: the respiratory rate and blood pressure change, sleep and the nature of dreams are disturbed, insomnia and other adverse symptoms develop. Such unfavorable environmental factors have a particularly strong impact on a growing child's body, and the level of fear in children rises more clearly.

Indirect effect on the state of the brain, mental health and chemical pollution of the atmosphere. Thus, an increase in the content of carbon monoxide in the inhaled air impairs gas exchange in the brain tissue and reduces its functional characteristics. A number of other gases (nitrogen and sulfur oxides) adversely affect the metabolism in the brain.

A special place in the violation of the mental state of a person plays Nuclear pollution. The nervous system is very sensitive to its effects, but at a low level of radioactivity, apparently, it is more important psychological action of this factor, as it generates fear, which seems especially real after the Chernobyl disaster.

A serious negative impact on the human brain, his psyche is exerted by electromagnetic "pollution" of the environment in the form of radiation from the plexus of wires. The emotional sphere of a person is also extremely adversely affected by some forms of rock music, which are characterized by a monotonous rhythm, emphatically emotionally intense coloring of the soloists' voices, increased volume above the norm and a special spectrum of sound.

One of the main factors negatively affecting the human body and especially his psyche should be considered his increasing isolation from the natural (natural) environment with all the ensuing consequences. In particular, this applies to urban residents who spend the vast majority of their lives in an artificially created world of stone and concrete, isolated spaces, etc. They are infrequently in nature, deprived of the pleasure of breathing. clean air, enjoy sunrises and sunsets, listen to birds and much more. The presence of summer cottages only partly alleviates this problem, since the modern summer cottage is more subordinated to practical, utilitarian purposes. The destruction of the natural environment of a person - particles of nature deforms his psyche, especially the emotional component, disrupts perception, reduces the potential for health. urban environment human habitation, depleted in natural terms, represented mainly by monotonous, monochrome buildings, makes a person more aggressive - this is also the impact of various electrical appliances and other sources of radio and electromagnetic radiation, etc. All of them interact with electrical processes occurring in the brain, complicated way affecting their dynamics. Gain electromagnetic radiation Sun, very small compared to the corresponding characteristics artificial sources, also increases the number of mental and some other diseases. It should be taken into account that the person himself is a source of weak electromagnetic and other physical fields. Maybe, large cluster people (and this is typical for a city, for a room) generates electromagnetic waves various characteristics, which at an unconscious level can have a negative effect on the brain.

Although the human nervous system is quite plastic and able to adapt to different situations, its possibilities are not unlimited.

Apparently, a person is now in a situation where the adaptive capabilities of his psyche lag behind the ever-increasing requirements of modern life. At the same time, the brain tries to protect itself from excessive and unfavorable information, which makes a person emotionally less sensitive, emotionally "stupid". It is not surprising therefore that city ​​dwellers, especially large ones, are less responsive to various problems relatives experience these problems more a short time increasingly isolated from those factors that are not directly related to them. Other some people spends hours at TV screens, empathizing with the lives of the heroes of various series, and by this he tries to get away from his own problems that cause emotional stress.

In some cases, already small children become insensitive to someone else's pain. "Emotional hearing", that is, the ability to recognize the mood or state of the speaker, is well developed only in 32% of school-age children, which is associated with the deformation of communication between people (even members of the same family) towards the predominance of restraint and severity, on the one hand, and irritation and anger on the other. The leading tool also plays a significant role in this. mass media- television filled with scenes of violence and horror and forming an abnormal worldview of a child who gets used to strong sensations and begins to even enjoy scenes of violence and murder. Thus, psychological insensitivity to cruelty is gradually formed, and then to good, aggressiveness develops greater than in adults.

Especially importance existing conditions life is for harmonious development the most sensitive part of the human population - children. The schemes of education and training that dominate today are focused on the development of verbal mechanisms of brain activity that provide abstract-logical thinking. Emotionally sensitive mechanisms, which ensure direct contact with the outside world with the help of the sense organs and require close contact with nature, are not sufficiently stimulated. At the same time, practice shows that communication with nature is the simplest, most natural and effective way of optimizing the effect on the psyche.

All negative impacts on the psyche of a modern person are deployed in our country against the backdrop of complex economic, social and socio-psychological changes taking place in society and directly or indirectly affecting both the individual psyche and the entire community as a whole. The extent of this influence varies greatly, and different people they react to it differently. One of the ways that some people choose to get away from such negative impact, is drug addiction, drunkenness and alcoholism, the growth of which is especially noticeable among children, adolescents and women. In many cases, in this way, in a deformed form, the mechanisms of self-regulation of the brain are manifested, which is protected from deficiency positive emotions, a large flow of information, difficulties in adapting to the outside world and other factors that a person cannot cope with.

In the current conditions, it becomes more and more difficult for a person to protect himself from emotional and informational stresses. Therefore, he is often in a state of strong (or prolonged) mental stress, which gradually undermines his strength, reducing his physical and mental performance, immunity and disrupting the normal functioning of the brain. Fortunately, the brain has an enormous margin of redundancy, and hence functional strength.