Relationship amalysis paper Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Relationship amalysis paper - Essay Example Perhaps the constant communication that we have nurtured over the months could be responsible for the harmonious relationship that we have had. Essentially, H and I have been good friends since we first stepped into the same room. This actually means that even though we have had difficulties in our relationship at given occasions, we have always injected concerted efforts to make the relationship successful. Since H and I share the same room but not the same course, we rarely spend time together unless it is a weekend or in occasions where both of us are free at the same time. With this in mind, it is worthy to note that our relationship had had its successes in the same measures it has had its failures. Speaking of failures, it is important to note that H and I have had our fair share of communication problems in our relationship. Essentially, H is an international student meaning that he studies English as a second language. In this respect, there is always communication breakdown due to some elements of language barrier. Since H is very fluent in Chinese and not eloquent in the English language, we had had to seek a third party for interpretation of certain phrases and concepts. In the spirit of improving on this, H and I have resolved to incorporate more of sign language in addition to him registering for English classes that would lead to improvement in his spoken and written English. Besides the challenge of language barrier, I have to confess that my friend H is high-tempered and had poor listening skills. This has really hampered our relationship in the sense that sometimes he misconstrues what I say to him and this has particularly led to great confrontations in the past es pecially considering his bad temper. His poor listening skill has always landed my relationship with him into the murky waters in the sense that we almost broke up our relationship in the last two months. I have tried to improve on this challenge by minimizing the level

Union Victory of the Civil War Essay Example for Free

Union Victory of the Civil War Essay Even before the Civil War actually started, the North had already enjoyed two distinct advantages over the South. Although it also benefited from some excellent strategic decisions as the war progressed, those two pre-war factors ultimately spelled defeat for the army of the secessionists from the south. The first of these advantages was the North’s edge in population. While the southern states only had a combined population of 9 million people (including their slaves), the population of the north was 22 million (including some emancipated slaves). That ratio of 2. 44:1 later proved decisive since the North possessed the capacity of raising and fielding more fighting men to sustain its war effort (Murphy, 2008). The second factor was the difference in their economic thrusts. Whereas the North concentrated on industry and commerce to boost its economy, the South relied on an agricultural economy. In other words, the North had industrial plants while the South could only boast of its farms. The superiority of the North’s economic development became apparent when the war dragged on. It was able to convert its factories to war materials production to support its army in the field while the South had to rely on its foreign trading partners for the replenishment of its war chest. Now, since the North had a stronger navy than the South, it was able to rule the seas and managed to organize an effective blockade, thereby preventing the South from procuring war supplies from other countries. The effect was a weakened southern army due to a depleted supply. These were the two primary reasons that gave rise to the observation that the South was doomed from the start (Murphy, 2008). Some observers believed that these advantages which the North enjoyed at the outset were initially offset by two factors which worked in favor of the South. The first was the fact that the Confederate Army was commanded by better military leaders. Before the Civil War broke out, majority of the finest and more senior commanders in the United States military came from the South. This was because of a southern culture which prized a military career for their men. Because of this culture, it had been customary for rich families to send their sons to the West Point Military Academy which was located in the North and start their career in the military. As soon as the secession was announced by the southern states, many of them resigned from their posts to serve with the Confederate Army. Some of these officers were Generals Robert E. Lee, Thomas â€Å"Stonewall† Jackson, Albert Sidney Johnston, James Longstreet, P. G. T. Beauregard, and Joseph E. Johnston. Most of them held more senior ranks in the United States Army compared to majority of the officers who remained with the Union Army of the North (EDSITEment, n. d. ). The second advantage of the South, according to observers, was the theater of operations and the character of the war itself. Since the Union Army invaded the South, the war was fought on southern territory. This means that the Confederate soldiers had the advantage of knowing the terrain better than the enemy who had to fight in unknown territory. It follows, therefore, that the soldiers of the Confederacy were more mobile and flexible. There was also the fact that for the Southerners, the war was defensive in character. War strategists believe that victory is easily achieved in a defensive war since the defenders have only to defend their ground and wear the invaders down. The North had the more difficult task of occupying the South and forcing them to surrender (EDSITEment, n. d. ). In addition, the Confederate soldiers were more passionate and more desperate for victory. They were defending their soil, their institutions, and most of all, their families. Someone said that When you believe that you are defending your wife and children from invaders, you care more about your cause than those who are simply being paid a wage to go fight for a cause that does not influence their lives as directly. This made a significant difference on the battlefield (Murphy, 2008). The soldiers of the Confederate Army, therefore, enjoyed a higher morale on top of their superiority as far as mastery of the topography of the areas where the war was fought was concerned. Unfortunately, these were not enough for them to win a protracted war. In fact their â€Å"home court† advantage was believed to have worked against them as the war progressed. For every successful thrust on the part of the Union soldiers which resulted to the capture of a piece of Southern territory, the adverse effect on the morale of Confederate soldiers had been substantial. This was particularly apparent when the Union Army succeeded in capturing an area situated between the Mississippi River and the Appalachian Mountains and when the Confederate Army was effectively cut off from their important industrial and agricultural resources as a result of successful campaigns waged by the Union Army in the central and western regions of Tennessee (EDSITEment, n. d. ). The South was likewise believed to have acted based on a false assumption which contributed greatly to their defeat. This false assumption was echoed by South Carolina Senator James Henry Hammond in 1858 when he said that the South was in such a valued station that no country would even think of declaring war against it. Specifically, he declared that â€Å"The world was so dependent on cotton that Southerners could coerce any foreign country into coming to their aid merely by threatening not to sell it† (EDSITEment, n. d. ). Indeed, if Great Britain, who was a major consumer of the South’s cotton, sided with the Confederacy, the war could have ended differently. The South was so confident in their hold of the world cotton market that when the blockade was declared by Abraham Lincoln, Jefferson Davis, who was then acting as President of the Confederacy, did not do anything about it. He was certain that when the countries in Europe would be starved of cotton, they would voluntarily send their navies to destroy the blockade set up by the North, declaring war against the Union in the process. Unfortunately, this was not what happened. Instead, the European countries merely turned to Egypt and India for their cotton requirements, dealing a hard blow to the economy of the South (Newton, Poulter, Simon, Symonds, and Woodworth, 2005). In the end, the great military commanders of the Confederate Army could not do anything with a depleted army and were forced to surrender. The destruction of the economy of the South proved to be the most decisive factor in the Civil War (Murphy, 2008). References EDSITEment. (n. d. ). On the Eve of War: North vs. South. Retrieved April 28, 2008 from http://edsitement. neh. gov/printable_lesson_plan. asp? id=745 Murphy, A. (2008). Strengths Weaknesses of the North and South During the Civil War. Retrieved April 28, 2008 from http://www. associatedcontent. com/article/532303/strengths_weaknesses_of_the_north and. html Newton, S. H. , Poulter, K. , Simon, J. Y. , Symonds, C. L. , and Woodworth, S. E. (2005).

The Morality of Abortions Essay examples -- Abortion Moral Ethics Preg

The Morality of Abortions Abortion’s legalization through Supreme Court’s Roe v. Wade, has allowed for one in three pregnancies to end in abortion. This means that 1.5 million abortions are performed in the United States each year (Flanders 3). It ranks among the most complex and controversial issues, arousing heated legal, political, and ethical debates. The modern debate over abortion is a conflict of competing moral ideas and of fundamental human rights: to life, to privacy, to control over one's own body. Trying to come to a compromise has proven that it one cannot please all of the people on each side of the debate. Many people describe the abortion debate in America as bitter and uncompromising, usually represented on both sides by people with an intense devotion to their cause, and usually with irreconcilable positions. Many of those who are pro-choice insist that a woman's right to abortion should never be restricted, while those who are pro-life maintain that a fetus has a right to life that is violated at any stage of its development if abortion is performed. Discussions between both sides are usually very competitive, and sometimes violent, so any attempt at coming to a mutual agreement is drowned out. How can anyone hear if they refuse to acknowledge the other side, except to argue? Since the Roe v. Wade decision legalized abortion, compromises that limit or allow abortion have taken two forms: those based on the reasons for abortion, and those based on fetal development at different stages of pregnancy. The first compromise would allow abortion for extreme, or â€Å"hard† cases, w hich include rape, incest, or risk of the life or health of the pregnant woman, but not for the soft cases like financial hardship, inconvenience, possible birth defects, or failure of birth control. Compromises of the second type would allow abortions, but only until a given stage of pregnancy, which is usually much earlier than the medically accepted definition of viability- when the fetus can survive outside the womb (Flanders 8). Although compromises based on reasons for abortion have been incorporated in laws such as the Hyde Amendment, which restricts Medicaid funding for abortion to so-called â€Å"hard† cases, many people now focus on time-based restrictions. This idea is more realistic and practical than banning abortion all together since there would still ... ... who are not ready to take on the challenges and responsibilities of raising children. To have millions of poor, homeless and unhappy children in the world to cope with life’s injustices would be far more heartbreaking than extracting an embryo from a uterus. Abortion is a very complex issue that should remain a personal decision. The bottom line is that each woman should make her own decision based on her own morals and beliefs. Works Cited Alcorn, Randy. Prolife Answers to Prochoice Arguments. Portland, Oregon: Multnomah, 2001. Bender, David L. Abortion: Opposing Views. St. Paul, Minnesota: Greenhaven Press, 1997. Carlin, David R., Jr. â€Å"Going, Going, Gone.† Commonwealth 10 Sept. 1993: 6-7. Cunningham, Amy. â€Å"Who Are The Women Who Are Pro-Life?† Glamour Feb. 1994: 154-157. Driefus, Claudia., Seizing Our Bodies: The Politics of Women's Health. New York: Vintage Books, 1977. Flanders, Carl N., Abortion: Library In a Book, New York: Facts on Life, 1991. Points, Dana. â€Å"The Truth About The Abortion Pill.† Mademoiselle Oct. 1994: 106. Rubin, Rita and Headden, Susan. â€Å"Physicians Under Fire.† U.S. News & World Report 16 Jan. 1995: 52-53.

Indigenous Societies

â€Å"Whale Rider† Extra Credit Questions Name ________________________________________ Class Start Time ___________ 1. What object does the grandfather throw overboard a boat (and expects will be retrieved)? a. his father’s brass heirloom pistol b. his traditional chief’s necklace c. his sacred black harpoon d. his sacred smoking pipe e. his radio 2. What is the central conflict in â€Å"Whale Rider†? a. How do indigenous societies keep their traditions and yet accept change? b. How indigenous societies must fight through the legal system to gain title to their land. . How can indigenous societies reverse language loss? d. How do indigenous societies gain control over rising blood pressure? 3. What item has not been finished, but finally is (and is then used) at the end of the film? a. a chief’s house b. a traditional canoe c. a woman’s hut d. a ritual club 4. What (or who) is the grandfather trying to find? a. the sacred carved steering pad dle for his carved war canoe. b. a leader who will lead his people into the next generation. c. a new husband for his spinster granddaughter. d. all of the above 5.What does the grandfather do when the object is not retrieved? a. leaves it there and sinks into a depression. b. retrieves it himself and then breaks it in half with his bare hands. c. forces his son to retrieve it. d. leaves it there and it is never retrieved again. e. calls up a supernatural whale ancestor who swallows it up and spits it onto the beach. 6. This film†¦ a. captures the confusion of a traditional culture in transition to a modern one. b. graphically depicts the abuse of native peoples at the hands of more technologically advanced white colonists. . focuses on what might be called â€Å"slave labor† conditions in Third World sweatshops. d. portrays how one man is able to overcome his drug addiction to become the next chief of the tribe. e. all of the above 7. How does ‘Whale Rider’ conclude? a. the grandfather drowns, killed as he tries to ride a whale. b. the girl is allowed to become a leader. c. the girl’s mother is brought back to life by the supernatural whale spirit. d. the girl helps win the court battle, and gains ocean fishing rights for her people.

How To Fix A Social Security Number Essay

The fastest growing crimes in America are Identity theft. Identity thieves are dishonest people that’s steals ones information or identity through ones Social Security number. Most of the time identity thieves use your number and your credit to apply for more credit in your name. Then, they use the credit cards and do not pay the bills. It’s a cankerworm that is eating deep into the American economy. This essay however looks at ways by which a social security number can be fixed. Social security number as a form of identity is a confidential and private number given to every citizen of United States. However, thieves get social security numbers through stealing wallets, purses, personal information provided to an unsecured site on the Internet, among others. When a social security number is stolen, there are some specific steps to take in order to get it fixed. In the first instance, a call would be made to the creditors who approved the credit (follow up with a letter). Also, a report would be filed with the police. After that, a contact would be made with the fraud department of the major credit bureaus in the country in order to make some rectifications. Finally, if all have been done to fix the problems resulting from misuse of the social security number but nevertheless someone is still using the number, then a new number may be assigned by the Federal Trade Commission subject to some stringent conditions and restrictions. REFERENCES 1. Advisory Council on Social Security. 1997. Report of the 1994- 1996 Advisory Council on Social Security (Washington: Government Printing Office). 2. Boice Dunham Group, Inc. 1993. â€Å"The Nature and Scale of Economically-Targeted Investments by the 104 Largest U. S. Public Pension Plans,† Prepared for Goldman Sachs. 3. Diamond, Peter A. 1997. â€Å"Macroeconomic Aspects of Social Security Reform,† Brookings Papers on Economic Activity, 2.

American Red Cross Society

American Red Cross Society Introduction Hopkins (2009, p. 6) defines nonprofit organization as â€Å"an entity that is not permitted to engage in forms of private benefit (increment).† Nonprofit organizations are organizations that often offer service or charities. They are non-compulsory and involve some degree of voluntary participation.Advertising We will write a custom thesis sample on American Red Cross Society specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More A mission statement is a clear and concise statement that summarizes who the agency is what it does, to whom it does it and region of operation (Roberts, 1996). This paper reviews the mission statements of two nonprofit organizations. These are the American Red cross society, a humanitarian organization and the Japanese cultural and community centre of Northern California (JCCCNC). Discussion American Red Cross Society The current mission of the American Red Cross society states: â€Å"The American Red Cross, a humanitarian organization led by volunteers and guided by its Congressional Charter and the Fundamental Principles of the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement, will provide relief to victims of disaster and help people prevent, prepare for, and respond to emergencies† (American Red Cross, 2011). This mission statement includes the purpose, which is the provision of assistance to disaster victims, support people in initiating preventive measures and responding to their needs when emergencies arise. Inherent in the purpose are the services provided by the organization. In addition, the beneficiaries are indicated as the victims of disaster. This statement however fails to capture the values of the organization that include helping other people in need, unity, an organization with a charitable character and learning that is continuous. The revised American Red Cross Mission statement could be read as â€Å"†¦ our mission is to work through voluntary spirit, in a united manner to provide relief to victims of disaster, help Americans prevent, prepare for, and respond to emergencies, while learning from these experiences.† Japanese Cultural and Community Centre of Northern California The company’s current mission statement states, â€Å"The JCCCNC strives to meet the evolving needs of the Japanese American community through offering programs, affordable services and facility usage† (JCCCNC, 2011).Advertising Looking for thesis on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More The mission statement only highlights the purpose and the beneficiaries, yet even the services offered are not specific since the firm offers programs, affordable services and facility usage. It ignores other components of a mission statement that include a specific purpose, values and services. Japanese cultural and community centre of Northern California mission statement c ould be revised to become: â€Å"Through dedication and dream for the future, JCCCNC tries to meet the educational, cultural and social needs of the Japanese American community by preserving their cultural and historical heritage.† References American Red Cross. (2011). The American Red Cross Society. Retrieved from: https://www.redcross.org./ Hopkins, R. (2009). Starting and managing a non-profit organization. (5th Ed.). New York, NY: Wiley JCCCNC, (2011). Japanese cultural and community centre of Northern California. Web. Roberts, S. (1996). The business of personal training. Illinois: Human Kinetics.

Socio Economic Problems in India Research Paper Example

Socio Economic Problems in India Research Paper Example Socio Economic Problems in India Paper Socio Economic Problems in India Paper The socio economic problem in india is over population, economic issue (poverty, sanitation, corruption, Education and violence (naxalism, religious, caste related and terrorism). Socioeconomic factors are the social and economic experiences and realities that help mold ones personality, attitudes, and lifestyle. The factors can also define regions and neighborhoods. Law-enforcement agencies throughout the country, for example, often cite the socioeconomic factor of poverty as being related to areas with high crime rates.Definition of Social Economics Problems Socio Economics Problems focuses on the relationship between social behavior and economics. Social economics examines how social norms, ethics and other social philosophies that influence consumer behavior shape an economy, and uses history, politics and other social sciences to examine potential results from changes to society or the economy. At present time India faced many types of Socio Economic Problems : 1.Religious viole nce : Constitutionally India is a secular state, but large-scale violence have periodically occurred in India since independence. In recent decades, communal tensions and religion-based politics have become more prominent. 2. Terrorism : Terrorism in India has often been alleged to be sponsored by Pakistan. After most acts of terrorism in India, many journalists and politicians accuse Pakistans intelligence agency, the Inter-Services Intelligence of playing a role.Recently, both the US and Afghanistan have accused Pakistan of carrying out terrorist acts in Afghanistan. 3. Naxalism : Naxalism have spread into less developed areas of rural central and eastern India, such as Chattisgarh and Andhra Pradeshthrough the activities of underground groups like the Communist Party of India (Maoist). 4. Caste related violence : Caste-related violence and hate crimes in India have occurred despite the gradual reduction of casteism in the country. Independent India has witnessed considerable amou nt of violence and hate crimes motivated by caste.Ranvir Sena, a caste-supremacist fringe paramilitary group based in Bihar, has committed violent acts against Dalits and other members of the scheduled caste community. 5. Overpopulation : India suffers from the problem of overpopulation. Though India ranks second in population, it ranks 33 in terms of population density below countries such as The Netherlands, South Korea and Japan. To cure this problem, Indira Gandhi, Prime Minister of India, had implemented a forced sterilization programme in the early 1970s but failed.Officially, men with two children or more had to submit to sterilization, but many unmarried young men, political opponents and ignorant, poor men were also believed to have been sterilized. This program is still remembered and criticized in India, and is blamed for creating a wrong public aversion to family planning, which hampered Government programmes for decades. 6. Poverty : One-third of Indias population (roug hly equivalent to the entire population of the United States) lives below the poverty line and India is home to one-third of the worlds poor people. 7.Corruption : Corruption is widespread in India. India is ranked 72 out of a 179 countries in Transparency Internationals Corruption Perceptions Index, although its score has improved consistently from 2. 7 in 2002 to 3. 5 in 2012. Corruption has taken the role of a pervasive aspect of Indian politics and bureaucracy. 8. White Collar Crime : white collar crime as a â€Å"crime committed by persons of respectability and high social status in course of their occupation†. A white-collar criminal belongs to upper socio-economic class who violates the criminal law while conducting his professional qualities.Thus misrepresentation through fraudulent advertisements, infringement of patents, copyrights and trademarks etc. The complexity of tax laws in India has provided sufficient scope forth tax-payers to evade taxes. The evasion is mo re common with influential categories of persons such as traders, businessmen, lawyers, doctors, engineers, contractors etc. White Collar Crime in certain Professions as Medical Profession, Engineering, Legal Profession, Educational Institutions and also White collar crime in business deals, Fake Employment Placement Rackets.At present time India faces all types of problems which described above, in spite of this problems India is emerging as a possible great power in Asia. The end of the Cold War combined with the dissolution of the Soviet Union have had remarkable implications for Asia, and India is showing ambitions towards becoming a great power and is already able to project its influence beyond its own neighborhood. But, All the politicians in India right now are corrupt people with no aim of helping the Indian economy to stand on its feet. It is very sad that after all these years of hard labour, India remains a poor third world country.

How to Write You in Chinese Characters

How to Write You in Chinese Characters From a simple greeting to forming complex sentences, learning the Chinese character for you is integral to conversing in Chinese. Here is a quick explanation on which type of you to use depending on the situation, what the character symbolizes, and how to pronounce it.   Informal, Formal, and Plural   The informal way to say you in Chinese is ä ½   (nÇ ). This form of you is casually used to address friends, peers, anyone you have a close relationship with, and typically people who are younger than you.   The formal version of you is æ‚ ¨Ã‚  (nà ­n). æ‚ ¨ should be used when addressing elders, respected figures, and persons of higher rank or status. If you are addressing multiple people at once, you in the plural is ä ½   ä » ¬ (nÇ  men).   Radicals The Chinese character ä ½   is composed of a crown or cover (å†â€") that goes over Ã¥ ° , which on its own is the word for â€Å"small. The left half of the character consists of the radical: ä º ». This radical derives from the character ä º º (rà ©n) which translates to person or people. Thus,  Ã¤ º »is the person radical which implies that the meaning of the character relates to people. Pronunciation ä ½   (nÇ ) is in the third tone, which takes on a falling then rising tone. When uttering the syllable, start from a high pitch, go down, and come back up.   æ‚ ¨ (nà ­n) is in the second tone. This is a rising tone, which means you start from a low pitch then go upwards.   Character Evolution An earlier form of you in Chinese was a pictograph of a balanced load. This symbol was later simplified to the character Ã¥ °â€. Eventually, the person radical was added. In its current form, ä ½   could be read as â€Å"someone who is balanced, or of equal stature,† meaning â€Å"you.† Mandarin Vocabulary With NÇ  Now that you know how to write and say you in Chinese, its time to apply your knowledge! Here are a few examples of common Chinese words and phrases that include  Ã¤ ½  . ä ½  Ã¥ ¥ ½ (nÇ Ã‚  hÇŽo): Helloä ½  Ã¨â€¡ ªÃ¥ · ± (nÇ  zà ¬ jÇ ): Yourself我çˆ ±Ã¤ ½   (wÇ’ i  nÇ ): I love youè ¿ ·Ã¤ ½   (mà ­ nÇ ): Mini (a phonetic translation)ç ¥ Ã¤ ½  Ã§â€Å¸Ã¦â€" ¥Ã¥ ¿ «Ã¤ ¹  (zhà ¹ nÇ  shÄ“ngrà ¬ kuilà ¨): Happy birthday

Offsite manufacturing in the construction industry Essay

Offsite manufacturing in the construction industry - Essay Example Introduction and Context Too often construction projects conducted on site have exhibited inefficient project processes, low integration among team members, poor productivity levels, and poor performance in safety and health. In comparison the manufacturing sector does not normally experience these repercussions which has led some innovative mind in the industry to consider a better way. This turned out to be off site building, which has been noted to have many advantages over traditional construction (Ogden, 2007). In the light of the need for Zenith PM to develop a new strategy to improve its revenues and retain its skilled personnel, the company has identified off-site construction as its most viable option. Current thinking on offsite manufacturing New developments The off-site construction trend grew significantly in 2006 in various countries worldwide, partly because clients and contracts have come to realise its benefits in terms of lower cost, better quality, predictability o f outcome, sustainability, and better compliance with health and safety standards. The off-site industry is still in its infancy despite the rise in the demand for its products; at this point, the industry is still a diverse and fragmented group of technologies and off-site producers. There is certainly room for further development which, as the sector matures, will enhance standardisation and regulation so that clients and contractors could benefit from more reliable products and also more options per product. There are currently four off-site construction techniques where the manufacturing or fabrication is performed away from the project site and before the installation. Na and Bausman (2008) identified these as: (1) Offsite preassembly, referring to the process wherein different building materials, equipment, and prefabricated components are assembled at a remote location for later installation. It is focused on a system instead of a product. One example is roof trusses, or prea ssembled vessels complete with installations, platforms piping and ladders. (2) Hybrid systems are prefabricated building facilities, i.e. they are building units that are fully factory finished, complete with internal furnishes and building services. An example is a factory finished bathroom with interior finishing, plumbing, electrical service, and factory completed office rooms. (3) Panelized Building Systems are comprised of the structural frame, or building envelop, employing factory manufactured building panels. These consist more of factory-built components rather than completed modules – usually including the factory based fabrication like finished wall panels with cladding insulation, internal finishes, doors and windows. They are brought to the site and are there assembled and permanently secured (4) Modular buildings are popularly known as the factory-built homes of one or more units completely assembled or fabricated in a manufacturing plant far from the jobsite. They consist typically of multi-rooms with three-dimensional units, that are constructed and pre-assembled and already include installed trim work, electrical, mechanical, and plumbing. After fabrication, they are transported and assembled on site. Benefits and core challenges There are a host of benefits brought about by off-site construction that have been long-recognized by the HSE and other monitoring agencies. These include ‘predictability, quality assurance, faster construction times, less waste,

The OJ Simpson Trial Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

The OJ Simpson Trial - Essay Example Simpson â€Å"not guilty†. The Evidence The DNA evidence against O.J. Simpson was the most powerful evidence presented against him. The prosecution presented DNA samples on the alleged blood drops and footprints of Simpson that was positive for DNA match. The blood drops was said to be collected at Nicole Brown’s home, in Simpson’s car and his home. Another important evidence was the bloody glove found at Simpson’s home that tested positive for the DNA of Simpson and the victims Brown and Goldman. Although a surprising amount of DNA evidence was produced by the prosecution, as author John M. Butler believed â€Å"DNA evidence is not always understood and can be quite complex to explain to the general public†.1 The defense team took this complexity as an opportunity to debase prosecution’s DNA evidence and attacked on the validity of the collection and the preservation of the evidence. They argued that the evidence was mishandled and violated the â€Å"chain of custody† as provided in the Rules of Evidence. A systematic argument was created by the defense panel in invalidating the evidence, including the possible contamination of the blood drops collected, and the alleged planting of evidence by police officers on the samples found in Simpson’s car, footprints, and the bloody glove that was found in the murder scene by Detective Mark Fuhrman. The handling of the samples openly, created the â€Å"reasonable doub†t of possible contamination in the DNA testing. Although the DNA test resulted positive, the doubt of its validity gave more credibility to the jury. But perhaps, the most positive result that failed to convict Simpson of guilt beyond reasonable doubt was the presentation of the bloody glove as object evidence. The defense team demonstrated their argument by asking Simpson to fit the questioned glove. As demonstrated, the glove was small and could not fit Simpson’s athletic hands, which lead Johnnie Cochran, Simpson’s lawyer to say the infamous line â€Å"if the glove doesn’t fit, you must acquit†. Another prosecution weakness was the presentation of Detective Mark Fuhrman as a witness. The defense team took note of Fuhrman’s history of racism, by attacking his character based on beating up suspects and prior statements recorded using the word â€Å"nigger† repeatedly in an interview made by a screenwriter in 1986.2 The prosecution attempted to present character evidence against Simpson that was in general rule, not allowed by the Rules of Evidence. But Judge Ito accepted the character evidence presented by applying the same on the angle of a possible motive by Simpson to allegedly perform the murders. Arrest records were found indicating that Simpson was charged with domestic violence. A picture of the beaten and bruised ex-wife Brown was presented in court. But the images were not enough to convict Simpson and remove the doubt that the planted evidence has created. THE JURY The Sixth Amendment of the US Constitution provides for the right to elect a trial by jury. Unlike other judicial procedure in most part of the world that follows an inquisitorial system (where a judge makes a decision based on witnesses and evidence in an investigative form), a trial by jury is an adversarial process. Janet Coterril explained that an â€Å"adversarial trial process attempt to persuade the jury that one constructed version of reality is more plausible than the other†, giving more focus on â€Å"

Opposing review Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Opposing review - Essay Example With the turn of the generation, PES failed to make the next-gen jump while FIFA showed it was ready to up its game.† (FIFA 12 Vs PES 12) The opening paragraph which has been quoted above is itself very debatable, PES has been getting better with every single game but the writer fails to acknowledge the same. PES has also been improving with each game, why would the same game be bought over and over again by the fans is something the writer must answer. The article goes on to say that the last game brought out by Konami the makers of PES was very different from its other games but in all fairness there were quite a few similarities between the last one and the earlier editions but significant changes were surely made. To conclude it is very fair to say that the writer has failed to analyze the strengths and weaknesses of the two games. A better analysis should have been written and the two games should have been better

Cause and effect vietnam war Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Cause and effect vietnam war - Essay Example The Vietnam War was a clash between the communist North Vietnam and the government of South Vietnam. Both of the sides were backed by external forces like the Korean War. As a result of this war, the communist part of Vietnam, Northern part became victorious (Moyar 112). The most describable feature of the Vietnam War is the usage of chemical warfare, which was backed by US. The chemicals that were employed by the agents were highly disadvantageous because they caused many defects such as birth defects, illnesses and poisoning of the food chain as a whole (Herring 68). There were many causes behind the initiation of Vietnam War. The Vietnamese War can be traced back to World War II in which, Vietnam, which was one of the Indochina colonies of France, was occupied by Japan (Summers 157). Later on, Vietnam gained independence from Japan and France again showed interest in invading Vietnam and got involved in an Indochina war, in which it was defeated (Moyar 123). Vietnam was divided into two parts, South and North. South part was non-communist while north was communist. The Americans were against communism as they regarded it against their values and theories. Communism was regarded against democracy and human rights (Herring 57). It supported military invasion and aggression. Due to these facts, US did not want any communist establishment in Asia. When communists started gaining control in Vietnam, US went against them and provided South Vietnam with extensive military and financial aid. US started aiding South Vietnam on the basis of its theories of containment and domino (Herring 72). According to them, communism can be spread widely if it exists in one state of a region. Therefore, US took a step to halt communism in Vietnam so that it cannot affect other states and regions of the world. There was employment of aircrafts, helicopters, boats, chemical poisoning and other tactics for harming the people of

Research for nursing practice - Pre operative fasting Literature review

Research for nursing practice - Pre operative fasting - Literature review Example The pathophysiological basis of the aspiration pneumonia was the aspiration of acidic stomach contents into the lungs and the consequent harmful damage to the lung tissues known as chemical pneumonia. As the years went by, the innovative techniques of anaesthesia including the endotracheal intubation led to rethinking on the duration of fasting times. Frequent discussion and research led to the Guidelines from the Royal College of Anaesthetists, the Royal College of Nurses and the Anaesthetists of the US: they stipulated specific periods for fasting for worldwide use (AAGBI, 2001; RCN, 2005; ASA Practice guidelines, 1999). The guidelines sanctioned the shortening of the pre-operative fasting durations but the message was not taken in the right spirit by the nurses and the patients did not enjoy the benefit. The nurses were the ones who instructed the patients about the fasting. Promotion of evidence-based fasting times was to be enforced by them (Crenshaw, 2008). They also had to mon itor the patient’s compliance. The scientific evidence related to the liberalized fasting times were to be initially understood by the nurses themselves before efficacious implementation. Research indicated many fallacies in the system whereby fasting practices were still not conforming to the guidelines. Medication instructions also were not accurately transferred to patients (Crenshaw, 2008). Recent researches were moving away from the strict fasting regimen to a partial fasting method whereby a carbohydrate drink or oral carbohydrate nutrients were administered to improve the outcomes of surgery. The nurses were the ones who actually conveyed the right information about the fasting to the patients. The role of the nurses also involved the promoting of evidenced-based guidelines apart from monitoring the patients to check for compliance and untoward effects (Crenshaw and Winslow, 2006).This paper will be written with the intention of unearthing evidence suitable to provide more alterations in the implementation of pre-operative fasting or partial fasting to conform to the evidence-based guidelines. The aim of this research will be to search for methods that could ensure that the elective surgery patients had the benefit of shorter pre-operative fasting times as per guidelines and the improved outcomes of having the pre-carbohydrate drink and how the nurses were to be encouraged to conscientiously perform their work where the pre-operative fasting was concerned. Review of RCTs Brady et al (2003) studied 22 randomised control trials or quasi RCTs. Healthy patients were included as the controls. Permitted intake of food was a small breakfast in the morning before surgery posted for the afternoon. Liquid intake was limited to not more than 30 ml. to help swallow medicine. Methodological quality was maintained by the randomisation method. â€Å"Allocation concealment, blinding, a prior sample size calculation, and whether analysis was by intention to trea t† were additional methods of maintaining quality (Brady et al, 2003). Regurgitation and aspiration were complications just after the surgery and death was a possibility in many trials. The review of the research articles revealed some limitations. The RCTs were mostly small sampled trials with less than 100 patients. The quality of methodology was inadequate in some trials. The variety in the populations too was minimal and the samples were

Evaluate the evidence that regulatory T cells maybe be successfully Research Paper

Evaluate the evidence that regulatory T cells maybe be successfully used to prevent graft versus host disease - Research Paper Example A main immunological technique that is used to measure regulatory T cell frequency is flow cytometry; other methods used are immunohistochemistry staining involving studying skin biopsies and ELISAs. All evidence proved strong in correlation with the hypothesis and suggests that CD4 CD25 FOXP3 Tregs could provide a future for the treatment of GvHD. Transplantation is the process of obtaining tissues or organs or cells and placing them in the same or different individual. The organs, tissues and cells that are transferred from one individual to another are called grafts. The person who donates the graft is called donor and the one who recieves the graft is called recipient. Heart, kidney, cornea, liver, pancreas, lungs and bone marrow are transplanted from one person to another. There are two types of transplantation: autograft (transplant from one region to another of the same indivudual and Syngraft or Isograft (Transfer of graft between individuals of same species). ( Khan, 2009). Graft versus host disease is the series of events that occurs after the transplantation of the donor T –cells with the stem cell graft. This is a donor T-cell mediated syndrome where the T cells in the graft shows their immune response. This response creates tissue damage. ( Beres and Drobyski, 2013). This is the major difficulty after the stem cell transplantation. The T-cells can recognise the minor and major histocompatibility antigens that are expressed at the host antigen presenting cells. The T-cells gets activated and expands and finally infiltrates and destroys the Graft versus host disease target tissues. The major tissues targeted are liver, gut and skin. This graft versus host hematopoiesis effect is the target for the allogenic stem cell transplantation. (Edinger, 2009). The rejection of the host may occur in first 100 days, where the donor immune cells recognize and attack the host tissues. As

Research for nursing practice - Pre operative fasting Literature review

Research for nursing practice - Pre operative fasting - Literature review Example The pathophysiological basis of the aspiration pneumonia was the aspiration of acidic stomach contents into the lungs and the consequent harmful damage to the lung tissues known as chemical pneumonia. As the years went by, the innovative techniques of anaesthesia including the endotracheal intubation led to rethinking on the duration of fasting times. Frequent discussion and research led to the Guidelines from the Royal College of Anaesthetists, the Royal College of Nurses and the Anaesthetists of the US: they stipulated specific periods for fasting for worldwide use (AAGBI, 2001; RCN, 2005; ASA Practice guidelines, 1999). The guidelines sanctioned the shortening of the pre-operative fasting durations but the message was not taken in the right spirit by the nurses and the patients did not enjoy the benefit. The nurses were the ones who instructed the patients about the fasting. Promotion of evidence-based fasting times was to be enforced by them (Crenshaw, 2008). They also had to mon itor the patient’s compliance. The scientific evidence related to the liberalized fasting times were to be initially understood by the nurses themselves before efficacious implementation. Research indicated many fallacies in the system whereby fasting practices were still not conforming to the guidelines. Medication instructions also were not accurately transferred to patients (Crenshaw, 2008). Recent researches were moving away from the strict fasting regimen to a partial fasting method whereby a carbohydrate drink or oral carbohydrate nutrients were administered to improve the outcomes of surgery. The nurses were the ones who actually conveyed the right information about the fasting to the patients. The role of the nurses also involved the promoting of evidenced-based guidelines apart from monitoring the patients to check for compliance and untoward effects (Crenshaw and Winslow, 2006).This paper will be written with the intention of unearthing evidence suitable to provide more alterations in the implementation of pre-operative fasting or partial fasting to conform to the evidence-based guidelines. The aim of this research will be to search for methods that could ensure that the elective surgery patients had the benefit of shorter pre-operative fasting times as per guidelines and the improved outcomes of having the pre-carbohydrate drink and how the nurses were to be encouraged to conscientiously perform their work where the pre-operative fasting was concerned. Review of RCTs Brady et al (2003) studied 22 randomised control trials or quasi RCTs. Healthy patients were included as the controls. Permitted intake of food was a small breakfast in the morning before surgery posted for the afternoon. Liquid intake was limited to not more than 30 ml. to help swallow medicine. Methodological quality was maintained by the randomisation method. â€Å"Allocation concealment, blinding, a prior sample size calculation, and whether analysis was by intention to trea t† were additional methods of maintaining quality (Brady et al, 2003). Regurgitation and aspiration were complications just after the surgery and death was a possibility in many trials. The review of the research articles revealed some limitations. The RCTs were mostly small sampled trials with less than 100 patients. The quality of methodology was inadequate in some trials. The variety in the populations too was minimal and the samples were

The mechanisms that underlay the repairs of DNA damages Thesis

The mechanisms that underlay the repairs of DNA damages - Thesis Example Cytarabine is used in the treatment of acute cases of lymphomas and leukemia. The key mutants to be acted upon are deoxyribonucleoside kinase and deoxycytidine kinase. Using S. pombe provides a greater advantage as it can be easily manipulated both physically and genetically. It also helps to understand the DNA repair mechanism in higher eukaryotes. In its natural form, yeasts do not contain a particular transporter and the particular kinase used to phosphorylate nucleoside analogues. Therefore, in this project, the S. pombe in use is adapted in that it contains deoxynucleotide kinase (dmdHK) which is found in Drosophila melanogaster (fruit fly) and is important for their phosphorylation (the addition of a phosphate molecule on to a protein molecule or any other organic molecule). It also contains the human membrane transporter (hENTI) which allows the nucleoside analogue to directly interfere with the processes taking place within the cell. 2.1.0 Material used in the practical 2.1.1 S. pombe strains The S.pombe strains used in this practical are listed below: WT: h+ ura4-D18::adhdmdNK-NAT-adhhENT1 URA4aim Swi10: (h+ ura4-D18::adhdmdNK-NAT-adhhENT1 swi10::KanMX URA4aim) Removal of damage in nucleotide excision repair. exo1: (h+ ura4-D18::adhdmdNK-NAT-adhhENT1 exo1::URA) Removal of damage in mismatch repair. rhp14: (h+ ura4-D18::adhdmdNK-NAT-adhhENT1 rhp14:: KanMX URA4aim). Recognition of damage in the process of nucleotide excision repair. rad50: (h+ ura4-D18::adhdmdNK-NAT-adhhENT1 rad50:: KanMX URA4aim) of the MRN(Mre11,Rad50,Nbs1) complex, for repair of double strand breaks. rad32D65N: (h+ ura4-D18::adhdmdNK-NAT-adhhENT1 rad32D65N URA4aim). Mre11 nuclease dead, lacks the activity of Mre11 in double strand breaks repair. 2.1.2 Medias Liquid 2.1.2.1 EMM+Glut {(EMM broth without nitrogen 109.2 g + Glutamic acid 15g) liquid + Granulated agar 10g} solid . 2.1.3: Preparing Agarose gel: first PCR Procedure: 1. With the use tape, seal all the borders of a dry and cle an glass plate. This is important for forming mold. 2. Prepare 50ml 10X TBE (Tris-boric acid-EDTA) buffer for the preparation of the gel. 3. Add 0.8% of powdered Agarose to the TBE (Tris-boric acid-EDTA) buffer in an Erlenmeyer flask. The buffer should occupy less than 50% of the total flask volume. 4. Heat the solution in a water bath or a microwave oven to facilitate the dissolving of all the Agarose grains. During the heating process, part of the buffer will evaporate. As such it is important to add more buffer solution in order to return the solution to the original volume. 5. After heating, cool the solution to 60Â °C and immerse the solution in an ethidium bromide solution once the gel solidifies. Ethidium bromide helps to intercalate DNA thus making it visible under ultra violet light. 6. Place the comb 1.0 mm above the place consequently allowing for the formation of a complete well once the Agarose solidifies. It is important to avoid air bubbles that may form between or u nder the teeth of the comb. Seal the plate with small quantities of the Agarose solution through a Pasteur pipette. Once the plate is sealed, transfer the gel in to the glass plate. It is important to swirl the gel in the flask to ensure uniformity in the temperature before pouring it out into the plate to prevent the gel for hardening unevenly. 7. The gel is expected to have

Bob Marley Essay Example for Free

Bob Marley Essay In a time of political, economic, and social unrest, a new way of protest was beginning to emerge from Jamaica in the form of reggae music. It was 1963 when a young man from Jamaica by the name of Robert Nesta Marley, better known as â€Å"Bob Marley†, formed a band called The Wailers, who would undoubtedly become one of the only reggae bands to rise up from the oppression of the third world country. The country of Jamaica had just gained independence from the U. K. in 1962, but was anything but a free nation. Those in power chose to exploit the country’s few main exports, primarily bauxite, a mineral used in the process of manufacturing aluminum. The first ten years of Jamaican independence saw considerable economic growth, but these gains were held back from the country’s urban poor. From his book, Reggae, Rastafari, and the Rhetoric of Social Control, Stephen A. King writes, â€Å"After independence, the Jamaican Labor Party’s â€Å"Five Year Plan† did not produce economic prosperity but, instead, even greater inequity of living conditions† (47). King quotes Adam Kuper, â€Å"As the Jamaican Labor Party encouraged foreign countries to invest in and expand Jamaica’s manufacturing and bauxite industries, the traditional pursuits of agriculture, forestry, and fishing dropped to a low of 10 percent of Jamaica’s gross domestic product in 1968 (47). Marley chose to join the Rastafarian movement, a religious program that was a prominent group in Jamaica. The Rastafarian faith helped to fuel Marley’s purpose in music, which was to empower and inspire those who were being kept down by the nation’s wealthier class. A small rural village called Nine Miles located in the parish of Sainte Ann is where Bob Marley was born. Marley lived with his grandparents in the community of Sainte Anne, people who followed traditions they had learned from their early African ancestors. These customs included storytelling which would be one of Marley’s signature qualities during his songwriting career. When Marley was a teenager, his mother decided to take him away from Sainte Anne, and moved him to Jamaica’s capital Kingston in the vicinity of Trench Town. This would be where Marley would begin to embark on his musical journey. Like most urban Jamaican cities, Trench Town was poor and all of its inhabitants including the teenage Marley lived in poverty. During this time Marley learned how to defend himself against the rough town locals, and instead of following them Marley decided to pay closer attention to music. As one author writes,  Ã¢â‚¬Å"Despite the poverty, despair and various unsavory activities that sustained some ghetto dwellers, Trench Town was also a culturally rich community where Bob Marleys abundant musical talents were nurtured. A lifelong source of inspiration, Bob immortalized Trench Town in his songs No Woman No Cry (1974), Trench Town Rock (1975) and Trench Town, the latter released posthumously in 1983† (Ruff, â€Å"Bob’s Early Life†). Marley’s beginnings in the music industry were with a form of music known as ska. Ska came about in Jamaica during the late 1950’s and early 60’s. Ska was inspired by American RB music that could be heard through U.S. radio airways on the transistor radio. Ska was a blending of America’s RB and Jamaica’s island beat, a mixture of calypso and mento. Author Stephen A. King writes, â€Å"Perhaps ska can best be characterized as a product of creolization, borrowing heavily from black American music (jazz, gospel, and RB), while also incorporating indigenous (mento) and African elements into its sound† (24). Many citizens of Jamaica could not afford radios to listen to music or keep up on any news reports coming from the island. So the Jamaican sound systems, mobile devices such as vans or musical equipment on wheels, would be used to host dances, and the deejays would also use their sound systems to inform his listeners on political happeni ngs. King states that, â€Å"As one of the few affordable social activities for the poor, the sound system brought music to places where the voice of the poor could be heard without interference by local authorities† (16). Like most of the world during this time, the black population was not allowed any political power, and many began to seek ways to resist. One of the methods used as a means to passively fight back against the imbalance was the Rastafarian religion. The Rastafarian religion was born early in the twentieth century, but its roots date back as far as the late 1800’s when slaves felt compelled to revolt against the plantation owners on the belief that God was calling them to fight for freedom. In 1927, a man named Marcus Garvey brought forth to Jamaicans the basis of the Rastafarian religion, which was to look to Africa for the crowning of a king. This would be a sign for Jamaica that freedom is near. From Africana, the Encyclopedia of the African and the African-American Experience, author Roanne Edwards quotes Garvey: â€Å"Look to Africa for the crowning of a king to know that your redemption is nigh† (Edwards 1592). In 1930 Ras Tafari was crowned emperor of Ethiopia and  baptized with the name Haile Selassie. From that moment on the Rastafarians of Jamaica would recognize the king of Ethiopia as the livi ng messiah. The religion of Rastafarianism was meant to empower Jamaica’s black population by reflecting heavily on African heritage and believed that the western society was today’s kingdom of Babylon, a corrupt city that profited from the oppressed. Part of the Rastafarian faith was to grow dreadlocks, this would become one of Marley’s signature features, but Marley was not following any trends, his purpose for wearing his hair in dreadlocks had deeper meaning than mere fashion. As quoted from Rolling Stone, â€Å"Until Babylon fell, according to one legend; the Rastas would not cut their hair. They grew it long in a fearsome appearance called dreadlocks† (Gilmore 5). Another element from the Rastafarian Movement was the use of marijuana to create a deeper connection with Selassie. Marley used marijuana as a creative outlet in songwriting and Marley, along with many Rasta musicians, followed the ritual of smoking marijuana or â€Å"ganja† for thi s spiritual experience. Marley’s songs came from a deep spiritual determination, to spread the message of the Rastafarian faith and to fight against those who sought to put down the poor and less fortunate of the world. According to author Rex Ruff, â€Å"Bob Marley reaffirms his adherence to Rastafari on Forever Loving Jah from Uprising the final album released during his lifetime. Uprising features the acoustic Redemption Song which implores the listener: emancipate yourselves from mental slavery none but ourselves can free our mind, reiterating the self-empowering convictions that Rastafarian tenets have sought to establish (Bob and Rastafarian Beliefs). The poor of Jamaica were subject to deprivation because of the decisions that were being made by the political parties put in place after Jamaica had become a free nation. On one hand, there was the Peoples National Party, led by Michael Manley, who fought for constitutional rights, and on the other hand, there was the Jamaican Labor Party, led b y Edward Seaga, who desired to put Jamaica’s capital interests abroad before the welfare of the nation. Both the People’s National Party and the Jamaican Labor Party were primarily run by white members and Marley took neither side, but was said to have small favor towards Michael Manley’s People’s National Party. In 1976 the December elections were drawing near and violent protests were taking over the streets of Kingston. Marley had become such a prominent idol for  Jamaican citizens and the People’s National Party thought a concert performed by Marley would help calm the city during the election. Marley agreed to perform with his band The Wailers at the Smile Jamaica concert. Although Marley had expressed political neutrality, some believed that Marley had favor for Michael Manley’s side. During rehearsal, just two days before the concert, Marley and some members of his band were shot at. No one involved in the shooting were killed, but both Marley and his manager at the time suffered injuries. Marley went on to perform at the Smile Jamaica concert to keep the peace, but fled the country immediately after the show ended. After the Smile Jamaica concert Marley performed again at the One Love Peace concert where he persuaded Michael Manley and Edward Seaga up on the stage to shake hands. This concert symbolized Marley’s true desire for peace and harmony between the political parties of Jamaica’s new government. As Gilmore writes, â€Å"On April 22nd, at the One Love Peace Concert, Marley managed to coax both Michael Manley and Edward Saga onstage with him and held their hands together with his in a gesture of coexistence† (Gilmor e 9). Marley died of cancer at the young age of 36, but his music is still alive and reaches hundreds of people every single day. One of the things that made Marley’s music so effective was his ability to speak an intense message through a creative melody. From Rolling Stone, â€Å"He was a superb melody writer, and his songs’ insinuating pop hooks pull the listener into the realities Marley was describing† (Gillmore 12). Although much of the Marley legacy lives on in America as a mere trend, one who chooses to look deeper into his message will feel the power Marley had intended through his poetry that was meant for an oppressed nation.

The Eye of the World :: essays research papers

The Eye of the World is the first book of the â€Å"The Wheel of Time† series which is already on its tenth book. Robert Jordan has followed the footsteps of J.R.R. Tolkien. Here he dominated the magical world that Tolkien had revealed in his â€Å"Lord of the Rings†.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  For us to understand this book clearly, an introduction is needed. It says that the so-called wheel of time is a wheel that rotates as time passes. Because of this wheel, ages come and go, leaving memories that become legend. Sometimes legends fades into myth which is long forgotten when the age that left it returns again. But the Aes Sedai remember what men forget. The Aes Sedai are those chosen individuals that can channel to the True Source. This True Source is the source of power. The male Sedai channel to the Saidin form of the source while the women channel to the Saidir form of the source. But due to a war very long ago, Saidin was tainted by the dark forces resulting for the men to go crazy or die if they channel. This is why only female Sedai are in the book. A champion of the war, Lews Therin Telamon ( the Dragon), trapped the Forsaken (Aes Sedai who went to the dark side) and Shaitan (Drak One) but became crazy. After his death, it was prophesized that a Dragon Reborn would be born and lead the forces of light. The first book narrates the adventure of three boys, namely Rand Al’Thor, Matrim Cauthon, and Perrin Aybara. Strangers have come to the Two Rivers during the Bel Tine holiday, and the three boys are all happy to live in peace with their families. With the mysterious travelers come strange stories of war and of a man named Logain, who claims to be the Dragon Reborn, the one prophesized to save the world, and also to destroy it in his madness. On the night before Bel Tine, Trollocs come and ransack the village where the young men live. Together with the mysterious Moiraine, an Aes Sedai, and Lan, a warder, the young men escape with a few other companions into the night and make their way toward Tar Valon, the city of the Aes Sedai. Dangers, such as Darkfriends, appear from many corners. Because of this, it becomes difficult to know who to trust. The boys can't escape the Dark One easily, for not only do his minions relentlessly pursue them, the Dark One even invades their dreams .

Substantiality of Low Carbohydrate Diets :: Health Nutrition Diet Exercise Essays

Substantiality of Low Carbohydrate Diets Being able to eat as much butter, cheese and meat as you want but not be allowed even a single slice of whole grain bread just doesn’t make sense. But, it is backed up in scientific fact. There are four types of molecules that the body processes for energy – alcohol, sugar, boy fat, and protein, in that order. Alcohol from hard liquor, wine, and beer is processed first and very quickly. To successfully be on a low carbohydrate diet, it is best to avoid alcohol. Sugar is a class of molecules that includes, but is not limited to, table sugar and are derived from carbohydrates. As long as there is very little alcohol and next to no carbohydrates in your system, your body will preferentially process body fat for energy. It is important to note that body fat and the fat in food are two different entities. Body fat is stored energy. Fat from food is not processed for energy – the body uses it for other things. Body fat is made up of a type of molecule called a lipid. When lipids are broken down to make carbohydrates, an energy molecule and a type of molecule called a ketone is released. The name of this ketone is ?-hydroxybutyrate. Other instances of fat being broken down and releasing this ketone are during fasting, starvation, and during certain eating disorders such as anorexia. The presence of this ketone causes the body to think that it is starving even though it is getting plenty of food. Glycogen, the body’s natural fuel, is stored all bound up in water. Glycogen is made up of carbohydrates. When the body does not consume carbohydrates, it dips into its reserve supply as a survival mechanism. But, in accessing reserve glycogen, all the water that it is stored in is also released. And, as the reserves don’t get restocked, the excess water stays gone. Water is reasonably heavy. So, what appears to be fat loss is actually just water weight being lost. There are a limited number of food options on a low carbohydrate diet. The dullness and lack of variety tends to reduce appetite and intake.

Landscape, Spirit, and Music Essay

Anne Boyd’s â€Å"Landscape, Spirit, and Music: An Australian Story† is a substantive view on the integration of the landscape of a distinct culture represented by aboriginal beliefs and traditions to Australia’s inimitable non-Indigenous music industry. Boyd said, â€Å"it is possible to see something of the significance of music in constructing an ‘inspirited’ relationship with landscape as part of a possible process of ‘aboriginalization’ which is slowly affecting all of Australia’s non-indigenous inhabitants. † Boyd sought to prove her assumptions by presenting various evidences in the works of famous Australian composers such as Ross Edwards, Peter Sculthorpe, and David Lumsdaine, including the artistry of Tommy Barrtjap as a musician. The landscape that Boyd was referring to with regards to the influences of some non-Indigenous Australian composers encompasses the history of Australia, the culture of its indigenous people, as well as the physical landscape or environment that makes the country matchless in beauty and whereiwthal. The history of Australia serves as the backdrop or milieu from which the composers were able to structure their unique, meaningful, and poignant music. Furthermore, the culture of Australia’s indigenous peoples becomes the inspiration for musicians or composers to create something exclusive and distinctive. Thus, the musicians and composers that Boyd mentioned in her discussions were able to create a kind of music that channels mysticism, spirituality, and the metaphysical, representative of Australia’s indigenous culture. Boyd said that â€Å"All three composers [Ross, Edwards & Schulthorpe] have drawn upon birdsong, not literally, but in a mythical and ritual sense; birds thus become spiritual messengers linking human music and landscape. † The great influence of Australia’s history and the indigenous culture of its native inhabitants is expected, as argued by Schultz . Schultz said that the emergence of a unique and distinctive music is most likely, particularly in Australia because â€Å"the existence of diverse immigrant population, a sense of real or imagined isolation, insecurity about the presence of a national character†¦ unique natural features such as climate, geography and flora and fauna, a pre-existing and extant culture with a strong and individual civilization, high standards of education with concomitant levels of artistic self-awareness, and substantial government subsidization of artistic activity† are dynamic and influential factors that would encourage such devotion and revolution in making and producing music for the sake of art. Furthermore, Lim believes that the growing interest of non-Indigenous Australian musicians to the history of Australia and culture of its Indigenous peoples as landscapes to developing music has something to do with the stipulation of these composers to develop a unique kind of music and a pe rsonal identity as a musician or composer. Lim said â€Å"Aboriginal cultures continue to be used by artists as a marker of authenticity in the construction of an Australian identity of sense of nationality. † By and large, Boyd’s discussions as supported by the narratives and arguments presented by Schultz and Lim explicate the great weight or importance of Indigenous culture in Australia as well as its history in helping musicians and composers create music that represents nationalism and establish a unique and inimitable identity. Works Cited Boyd, Anne. 2007. â€Å"Landscape, Spirit and Music,† in The Soundscapes of Australia: Music, Place and Spiritually. Richards, Fiona (Burlington, VT: Ashgate), pp. 11-18. Lim, Liza. â€Å"Crossing Cultural Boundaries and Ecstatic Transformation,† Sounds Australian 26 (2006), 10-11. Schultz, Andrew. â€Å"Other Places, Whose Music? : Some Introductory Comments on Appropriation and Tradition,† Sounds Australian 20 (1991): 8-9.

Effect of Video Games Essay

A video game is an electronic game that involves human interaction with a user interface to generate visual feedback on a video device. The word videoin video game traditionally referred to cathode ray tube (CRT) display device, but it now implies any type of display device that can produce two or three dimensional images. The electronic systems used to play video games are known as platforms; examples of these are personal computers and video game consoles .These platforms range from large mainframe computers to small handheld devices. Specialized video games such as arcade games, while previously common, have gradually declined in use. Video games have gone on to become an art form and industry. The input device used to manipulate video games is called a game controller, and varies across platforms. For example, a controller might consist of only a button and a joystick, while another may feature a dozen buttons and one or more joysticks. Early personal computer games often needed a keyboard for game play, or more commonly, required the user to buy a separate joystick with at least one button. Many modern computer games allow or require the player to use a keyboard and a mouse simultaneously. A few of the most common game controllers are gamepads, mouse’s, keyboards, and joysticks. Video games typically use additional means of providing interactivity and information to the player. Audio is almost universal, using sound reproduction devices, such as speakers and headphones. Other feedback may come via haptic peripherals, such as vibration or force feedback, with vibration sometimes used to simulate force feedback. In the early days of cartridge consoles, they were sometimes called TV games. Early games used interactive electronic devices with various display formats. The earliest example is from 1947—a † Cathode ray tube Amusement Device† was filed for a patent on 25 January 1947, by Thomas T. Goldsmith and Estle Ray Mann, and issued on 14 December 1948, as U.S. Patent 2455992. Inspired by radar display tech, it consisted of an analog device that allowed a user to control a vector-drawn dot on the screen to simulate a missile being fired at targets, which were drawings fixed to the screen. Other early examples include: * The NIMROD computer at the 1951 Festival of Britain * * OXO a tic-tac-toe Computer game by Alexander S. Douglas for the EDSAC * in 1952 * Tennis for Two, an interactive game engineered by William Higinbotham in 1958 The term â€Å"platform† refers to the specific combination of electronic components or computer hardware which, in conjunction with software, allows a video game to operate. The term â€Å"system† is also commonly used. In common use a â€Å"PC game† refers to a form of media that involves a player interacting with a IBM PC compatible personal computer connected to a video monitor. A â€Å"console game† is played on a specialized electronic device that connects to a common television setor composite video monitor. A â€Å"handheld† gaming device is a self-contained electronic device that is portable and can be held in a user’s hands. â€Å"Arcade game† generally refers to a game played on an even more specialized type of electronic device that is typically designed to play only one game and is encased in a special cabinet. These distinctions are not always clear and there may be games that bridge one or more platforms. In addition to personal computers, there are multiple other devices which have the ability to play games but are not dedicated video game machines, such as mobile phones, PDAs and graphing calculators. With the advent of social networking and other online applications hubs, the term â€Å"platform† started being used to refer to the online service within which the game is played, regardless of the actual hardware on which it is executed. A game’s platform could simply be â€Å"Facebook†, whether it is played on a Windows PC, Mac, Smart TV, or smartphone. Statement of the problem : 1.) What is the negative effects of video games to teenager? 2.) What is the positive effects of video games to teenager? 3.) Does game violence make teens aggressive? Scope and limitation Development in technology brings many things that people don’t have many years back. One of these things is online gaming that is provided by the internet. Online gaming is one of the widely used leisure activities by many people. Teenagers who are playing these online games said that they are playing these games just for fun, to keep away from the heat of the sun, without knowing that there are a lot of effects of playing these games that are more than what they think. Playing online games, according to some research is beneficial. It enables the mind of the players to be more active , especially those puzzle-based games. It helps the player to come up with decisions in tight situations, especially those adventure games that keep the players to be alert, active and strategic. Playing these types of games makes the player experienced different feelings because it is as if the player is really the one taking the challenges. Despite those benefits, playing these games also bring negative effects. CHAPTER II REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE RELATED LITERATURE â€Å"Computer Gaming Effects to the Academic Performance among High school students† – The internet and online gaming industry has grown considerably over the past decade. As the advent of internet occurs, online gaming is undisputedly popular to the students and that online gaming has become high school students’ favorite leisure choice. Most of the High school students in these times are seen on internet sites and spending their money for them to be ready on their battle online. Because of this widespread, parents and educators are concerned about the doable effects on the academic performance among high school students. The most common question discusses about how it affects the academic performance of the gamer. Not surprisingly, gaming culture has become a polarizing force in our society, as well. â€Å"The Effects of Computer Games to the Academic Performance of Aims Students† – Computer addiction is a relatively new term used to describe a d ependency on one’s computer. Computer addiction is not limited to personal computers (PCs). It covers video games and the Internet and has already been given a label by psychologists, namely Internet addiction disorder (IAD). People can grow addicted to a variety of substances, and there is usually a substantial amount of help available to treat them. Alcohol, drugs and sex have all been known to bring out the addictive personality trait in some people, but other forms of addictive behavior, such as exercise, watching television or spending too much time on a computer, have only recently been recognized. Computer addiction, like any addiction, can creep up on a person without one being aware of it. Talk shows are full of people whose relationships have been torn apart by one partner’s computer addiction. Spending hours chatting online, surfing the web or playing computer games can cause relationships to deteriorate as other parts of a person’s life are neglected.

John Locke Questions Essay

1. John Locke describes the â€Å"state of nature† as a sort of equality between men. No man has any rights over the other, and they can be free in doing what they want. All being able to use the same faculties. Locke also explains that although they are free it does not give them the right to hurt one another because the â€Å"natural law† still exists even through the â€Å"state of nature†. Locke defines the state of nature as political power. This â€Å"state of nature† is basically where humans can exist without a government or social contract. And that people would follow this â€Å"law of nature† and would protect it against anyone who did not follow it. â€Å"The execution of the law of Nature is in that state put into every man’s hands, whereby everyone has a right to punish the transgressors of that law to such a degree as may hinder its violation. † Locke also mentions that eventually people would try to form a government to try to protect their rights further. The â€Å"state of nature† is more of a thought rather than something that actually happened in history. 2. John Locke explains that the reason why people leave this â€Å"state of nature† is because this â€Å"paradise† is uncertain and insecure. There is no guarantee that people will always go along with the â€Å"laws of nature† and everyone will think of others as equals. So it makes it harder for individuals to enjoy this â€Å"paradise† because they fear something might go wrong so they want to quit and become part of a political society where someone can tell them what to do with there freedom. This feeling is because of the â€Å"mutual preservation† of their lives, estates, liberties and a big part, property. Men want to join a government to protect their properties; it says that they would want a known law that is a standard for right and wrong. Also another issue with the â€Å"laws of nature† is the judging system it would cause a lot of anarchy within the people because if everything was so â€Å"equal† then wouldn’t you be equal with the judge and not have to abide by their rules and regulations? In addition Locke also states â€Å" there often wants power to back and support the sentence when right, and to give it due execution. † With this being said, if something were to go wrong they would not know what the consequence would be. Overall the â€Å"state of nature† system has a lot of flaws and would cause many conflicts. 3. The social contract that is laid out by john Locke is a contract between the legislature and the people. The people’s side of the contract Is that they follow the rules and regulations that the legislature creates. In addition the legislatures part of the contract is separated into four different promises. One of the promises they make is to make the laws apply to every class, rich and poor. Another promise that they made was not to raise taxes without having the consent of the people. The people must be fully aware of the tax changes. Thirdly all the laws have to be beneficial to everyone, not just one class or group of people. Lastly the legislature promises that only they can create laws for the good of the people. They decided this because if everyone was allowed to voice there own opinion about what the laws would be nothing would actually get established and there would be nothing but chaos among the people. Above all the contract is just to be for the good of everyone. 4. The government can be dissolved if the social contract is breached in certain scenarios. The basis of the society is the constitution. The constitutions purpose is to protect the ones within the society. When a member of the legislature goes against any of the four agreements that were made the people have a right to protest, peacefully that is. And if its serious enough fight against the legislative, thus â€Å"dissolving† the government. So basically the people have a right to â€Å"cancel ties† and create a new legislative that they feel will be more beneficial for the people, since the legislative before were not doing things that were fair or went out of their rights of being in the legislature. Since the people were the ones who were in control and ultimately chose them to be in power, they have the right to dissolve the government if there choices aren’t for the good of the people. 5. Locke’s philosophy is remarkably similar to the Declaration of Independence. Both articles have the same ideas of everything being for the people, and things being equal. It states â€Å"of the people, for the people, and by the people. † I believe that Thomas Jefferson made what he put in the Declaration with similar viewpoints that’s in â€Å"The Second Treatise of Civil Government. † Both talk about government and the society in the same way. The government was made to â€Å"secure natural rights†. If the government goes against their rights the people have a right to rebel in a certain way. And express how they feel about the matter at hand, to make a difference and change it. You can tell that Locke’s ideas influenced Thomas Jefferson, and that both go hand in hand when the Declaration of Independence was created. One similarity between the two is when Locke’s main ideas were â€Å"life, liberty, and property. † But Jefferson states â€Å"life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness†. These statements are almost identical, with a minor change.

Public Policy Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Public Policy - Research Paper Example NAPWA’S importance discussed in this paper is in regards to the criminalization of those with HIV/AIDS who gives the virus to another individual whether or not that was the individual’s intent. NAPWA argues this point and yet shares the view that those who intentionally infect another individual with the virus should be criminally prosecuted but not those who unintentionally pass the virus on (Lesieur) Matt Lesieur, NAPWA’s vice president of public policy presents NAPWA’s 2011 Public Policy Agenda in regards to HIV Criminalization (Lesieur) Across the country laws are being presented that are designed to criminally prosecute the transmission of HIV infection (Lesieur) NAPWA’s Public Policy department has stood up to address these laws and legislations that are trying to be incorporated. NAPWA argues that carrying out with these laws and legislations designed to criminally prosecute the transmission of HIV infection would cause serious hindrances in the HIV/AIDS community. ... This is where NAPWA argues the point of the unintentional criminalization of the transmission of the virus. NAPWA feels that â€Å"From a public health perspective, applying criminal law to cases not involving intent can actually impede HIV prevention† (Lesieur) Individuals aware of this law who may feel the law is unjust will be less opting to learn their status. Doing this could possibly cause an even greater spread of the virus. The benefits of an individual finding out his/her status is the proper care of that individual as well as keeping that individual’s partner safe. The proper care comes through appropriate medication and thorough education. Every individual with breath in his/her body still has a life to live no matter what they’re living with. Teaching individuals how to live with the HIV/AIDS virus is just as important as teaching or preparing your teenager about to graduate from High school to go out and live in college or just out on their own in ge neral. The generalization of the laws designed to prosecute the transmission of the HIV/AIDS virus is a hindrance to this awareness, education and prevention. NAPWA’s Matt Lesieur also argues that â€Å"The criminalization of HIV transmission also tends to increase the discrimination against people living with HIV, and other stigmatized groups such as migrants, injecting drug users, sex workers and men who have sex with men† NAPWA didn’t just have a difference of opinion in regards to these laws and legislations that are trying to be put into place but more a â€Å"reasonable† solution. NAPWA’s suggestion instead is as follows: -Criminal law should not be used as tool to prevent the transmission of HIV. Rather Governments should expand public health programs grounded in

Digital Radiography Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Digital Radiography - Research Paper Example hich relies on a digital media to capture and present the pictures it takes, rather than the more classic use of photographic film† (McGuigan, n.d.). There is not much difference between the examination styles of digital radiography and screen-film radiography from the patient’s perspective. The presence of a digital receptor and a computer system makes digital radiography different to screen-film radiography. Some of the main components of the digital radiography system include a digital image receptor, a digital image management and processing system, a display device, and data storage device. There are a number of advantages of digital radiography over screen-film radiography. Some of the key advantages of using digital radiography system include improved contrast, immediate observation of images, facility of magnifying the images, facility to transfer the images to other computer systems, real time interpretation of the images, better abnormality detection ability, reduced image processing time, and facility of storing images using computer technology. â€Å"Pulling up specific stored radiographic images from a comput er database is easy because of the highly organized nature of computer file storage† (Christensen, 2004). One of the key advantages of digital radiography is that of its efficacy in contemporary screening practices. A faster and more accurate examination is possible through digital method of radiography, which not only results in the reduction of the test duration but also provides comfort to the patients due to reduced examination time. Denise and Farleigh (2005) states, â€Å"One of the principal advantages of any digital imaging system is the separation of image acquisition, process and display, allowing optimization of each of these steps†. Speed is one of the major advantages of digital radiography system. The radiologists can produce the images very quickly using digital technology as compared to screen-film radiography. Digital

Female Inmates (Corrections) Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Female Inmates (Corrections) - Research Paper Example This statistics are an increase of 10 to 64 female inmates per 100,000 female residents from 1977 to 2004. Even though the female arrest rate in US is less than that of male arrests rate, the growth rate of the female prisoners in US far exceeds that of the male inmates. Since 1985, United States of America has witnessed an average growth of 11.1 %, and this is relatively above the 7.6 % rise in the male inmates’ population. Currently, there are over 200,000 female inmates in the United States; this is a growth of over 800% over the three decades. The male population grew by 416% over the same period of time (CHRLR 14-18). Type of Women in Prison As noted above, the fastest growing segment of the United States prison population comprises of the women. The women held up in the prisons are due to variety of reasons. The offences committed by the females are diverse but a close examination of the women indicate that there are demographic and experiences common among the female offenders. Most of the women inmates are drug addicts who were involved in the drug addiction in order to escape from the life hardships and trauma faced by these women in their past life. The majority of these female inmates were arrested while acting as mules in the drug trade. Half of women in the national and state correction centres attest to have committed the crime they are incarcerated for under the influence of drugs or alcohol. From 1999 to 2008, the arrests of women due to cases rated to drug violation accounted for 19 % increase compared to a mere10 % increase for men. Many women in prison happen to have been involved in domestic violence in th eir lives and a common characteristic is that most of the female inmates are from poor backgrounds. It is worthy to note that nearly half of all women in prison are serving sentences for non violent offence and had been jailed in the past for a non violent offence. Two thirds of the female inmates had two or fewer convictions prior to the one they are serving. This indicates high rates of recidivism among the female inmates. According to Koon (5), the following experiences are common among the female inmates: Most of the female inmates are likely to have had a high school education. It’s also critical to understand that most of the female inmates are single; they have never been married or had a divorce. Most of the female prison inmates were arrested and convicted when they were unemployed. Physical abuse is also a common feature of the women in prisons; the inmates are likely to have experienced domestic violence or sexual abuse in their lives. The trauma could then have le d them to drug and alcohol, which then later led to their offences. As of 2004, the percentage of women in jail due to physical related consequences was 73% compared to 53% of men who had the history of sexual or physical abuse. Historical Treatment of Female Inmates Even though the rate of increase of the female inmates has remained to be higher than that of men, majority of inmates are male. This has led to prison programs being tailored to address the issues related or faced by the male prisoners and tends to overlook those faced by the female inmates. This is despite of various researches that show that female inmates face more stress and hardships in prisons unlike the male counterparts. Emotional stress due to family breakdown from their children often affects female inmates much more compared to the male inmates. The female prisoners have been discriminated and

Management accounting - contemporary approach Essay

Management accounting - contemporary approach - Essay Example The paper starts off with a brief review of literature concerning historical trends in management accounting and then develops understanding into modern issues while introducing recent systems of management accounting, discusses a breakthrough development in performance measures viz. balanced scorecard and identifies various budgetary controls and their relationship with the managerial performance. The management accounting system emerged and developed initially during the 19th century. At first it was solely used by managers for obtaining cost information such as direct labour and direct material etc used in the manufacturing process. Further, the management accounting was developed in the same century to obtain information concerning subordinate activities and impact of specific products on company profits. It was then also utilised for estimating costs (standard cost) and comparing it with actual costs i.e., variance analysis (Johnson & Kaplan, 1987). Atkinson et al. (1997) describe management accounting as a process through which the economic transactions of an organisation are acknowledged, gauged, accounted and examined. This process of management accounting needs to be endogenous to the organisation, which directs the flow of organisational decisions vis--vis operation and investment. Despite the criticality of management accounting in the process of managerial decision-making and performance towards the accomplishment of organisational goals, there remain substantial concerns regarding the bias and malpractice exercised on the part of managers. These concerns lead to the development of various controls enabling the organisations to oversee the conduct of managers and supervisors, and to make them accountable for their activities impacting organisational goals. This is referred to as the management control, and Anthony and Govindarajan (1998, p17) delineate it as, "Management control is the process by which managers influence other members of the organization to implement the organization's strategies. The system used by management to control the activities of an organization is called its management control system." Hopwood (1972) previously figured out various demoralised activities on the part of the managers, such as budgetary slacks and exploitation of performance measures vitiating the role of management accounting. Merchant (1985) describes various controls to be enforced at managerial level so as to set standards and gauge outcomes of managerial activities and decision-making. The most significant control pertinent to management is the result control, which is achieved either through some performance indicators such as profitability etc or through target identification. Holzer and Norreklit (1991) says that financial accountability control could be also exercised at the management level, where the managers could be held responsible for financial results of the company such as net income, losses etc. In this way, decisions taken under the management accoun

Combining Nurse Leader with Advocacy Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 1

Combining Nurse Leader with Advocacy - Essay Example Essentially, in keeping true to my beliefs and values, I aim to ensure that I am clear about the challenges that I can engage in, and the ones that are beyond my capabilities. Regardless of whether I take up a challenge or not, my aim is to make sure that I leave patients and colleagues in better conditions than I found them. Reflecting on my professional accountability, my aim is to always ensure that I carry out the duties that are allocated to me and ensure that I do not interfere with the duties of other medical professionals. Ideally, there are activities that a dialysis nurse is not allowed to engage in, depending on the institution, and I plan to adhere to the rules set by my seniors. Being a dialysis nurse, career planning for me involves deciding whether I would prefer to be administering dialysis in hospitals or in the homes of patients. Most of the times, nurses are not offered the option to choose between the two settings but if I could, I would prefer to be administering the dialysis in the homes of patients. This is because I am a very emphatic person and I like to identify with the personal lives of my patients. Being in their homes administering dialysis will give me the chance to build a good rapport with them and offer them support in the management of their condition. However, I am not very good at organizing things and may leave the patients’ room a bit messy, but that is something I am working on to improve my behavior. In my belief, being disciplined is all about ensuring that I do the things that I know I am supposed to do and not choosing to do only the things that favor me. My journey towards becoming a dialysis nurse will involve a lot of discipline, especially in terms of patience. Learning how to operate the dialysis machine will require a lot of patience so as to ensure that I do not endanger the lives of my patients. In the pre-service and

Starbucks Alternatives Essay Example for Free

Starbucks Alternatives Essay Alternatives Alternative #1 is to introduce existing products to new markets. Since Starbucks is already an established name, we know for a fact that people like drinking Starbucks coffee. However, cultural attitudes can be different around the world. This is an important fact since Starbucks is set on growing internationally. They will also face different reception to Starbucks image and taste. Statistics show that there is still a lot of opportunity to grow in current markets. These current markets represent significantly less risk than setting up overseas. This alternative takes what Starbucks have so far and push it into unknown markets. This is quite risky. Alternative #2 is to introduce new products to existing markets. To offer new products in existing stores would be less costly than setting up a new store in a new market. Immediately, new products will have the Starbucks brand image and this will help increase revenue because of these new complimentary items. While Starbucks is still in its growth stage, it is questionable about investing time and money into new products in our current markets when people are still finding out about Starbucks. Loyal customers can also be upset at changes to the new offerings. This option is not very risky and will yield a return that is low. Alternative #3 is to introduce new products to new markets. This alternative is more risky than the previous two but is necessary if Starbucks is to expand in the long term. In order to increase revenue and grow as a company, Starbucks will have to reach different consumers. These may include people who drink different kinds of coffee, teas and other hot beverages. Since Starbucks is selling the Starbucks experience, they should seek to introduce new products to make that experience fit that specific culture. They can still keep some of their current menu offerings but have it tailored to the consumers. By having a diversified product offering, they will also spread their risk. For instant, if they started selling coffee beans from another country, these new beans could keep the  cash flow coming in if another countrys beans were not acceptable due to weather conditions. However, the image of Starbucks can go both ways. Consumers may already have a preconceived notion of what Starbucks is about and will purchase or not purchase according to that. There is also risk that the current Starbucks image could be seen as unfavourable to current consumers if they think that the newer product items are of a poorer quality.

The Challenges Of The Twenty First Century Education Essay

The Challenges Of The Twenty First Century Education Essay Introduction This chapter reviews the relevant literature used in this study in a thematic and systematic manner. It begins with reviewing texts related to the contemporary local and global challenges. It then discusses the national goals of education in Kenya relating them to the demands of the 21st century. Teacher education in Kenya is then reviewed and finally the system of education in Kenya is examined. 2.2.0 The challenges of the twenty first century The 21st Century has been conceived as: The age of Globalization, the age of Knowledge Economy, and the Information age. Globalization refers to the contemporary social reality, which is characterized by change, uncertainty, unpredictability, complexity, interdependence and diversity. According to Giddens (1990) and Albrow (1994), it refers to the process by which human relations are increasingly being intensified. As a result, economic, political, cultural and social distinctions are becoming less and less inhibitive. Advancement, especially in the information and telecommunication sectors has compressed time and space and the world is gradually becoming a borderless forum for human interaction popularly known as the global village. The educational challenges in a globalized world include: ensuring that learners acquire the technological skills that enable them to access the global information and telecommunication networks, transforming learner attitudes and dispositions to enable them adapt to change and uncertainty, fostering character traits in learners that make them functional in a cross-cultural and democratic setting. Such traits include open-mindedness, tolerance and intellectual autonomy, enhancing learners capacity and attitude to think critically and creatively. Knowledge has become the most important factor in economic development in a globalized world, hence the use of the term Knowledge economy to refer to the contemporary global economy. Consequently, the ability of a society to produce, select, adapt, commercialise, and use knowledge is critical for sustained economic growth and improved living standards (World Bank, 2002). Education needs to go beyond merely informing learners. Learners have to be enabled to learn on their own, make sense of and apply knowledge innovatively. Learners, therefore, need to take charge of their thinking and direct it towards solving problems as wells as formulating and pursuing desired goals. Information and telecommunication technologies that facilitate and support knowledge-based activities have become extremely useful. Information has become easily accessible with the use of the internet hence the use of the term information age to refer to the 21st century. Merely consuming information uncritically is dangerous in a globalized age. Education should therefore enable learners to select, interrogate, evaluate and utilize information efficiently. 2.2.1 The global challenges According to Haag (1982) education systems in the world have expanded quantitatively rather than qualitatively making them unable to address current social problems. Although a lot of resources have been devoted to education, it appears like the systems of education have been ineffective in addressing social ills like inequality, intolerance, resistance to change, crime and violation of human rights among others. These social ills manifest themselves in rising levels of poverty, ethnic and racial conflicts and violation of human rights in many parts of the world. Ward and McCotter (2004) argue that developing thinking skills in educational institutions, though necessary, is inhibited by inappropriate teaching methods used by teachers, ineffective evaluation procedures and rigorous overload of the curriculum. Other negative factors include ineffective educational policies that emphasize content and structure of education while neglecting quality and process of education. Jelinek (1978 ) refers to the dominant expository methods of instruction as didacticism in which it is assumed that education is an act of depositing knowledge into learners who are mere depositories. The process of instruction is lifeless, petrified, motionless, static and compartmentalised and thus strange to the experience of the learners. The approach is irrelevant to reconstruction of the experience of the learners since they are considered to know nothing. Ultimately the approach tends to turn humans into automatons and therefore negates their dignity and abilities as human beings. Without development of thinking skills, graduates from educational institutions are observed to be limited in analytical, creative and innovative abilities that are essential in the modern knowledge based world of work. Leat (1999) blames inability of education systems to address contemporary challenges on faulty academic cultures and traditions. For instance, attainment of good grades and certificates using whatever means is valued as opposed to transformation of learners into effective agents of change in society. Unhealthy competition among learners is tolerated instead of developing the culture of cooperation and mutual responsibility. Rigid adherence to existing academic cultures inhibits ability to respond to change. Unhealthy competition among learners promotes antagonism and undermines team spirit. According to Perkins (1990) the culture in most educational institutions is characterized by minimal informative feedback and emphasis on traditional ways of doing things. This diminishes the exercise of individual initiative and choice. Consequently learners are denied an opportunity to develop essential characteristic of democratic citizenship. Such characteristics include respect for dialogue, freedom of expression and self-determination through individual choice. Barrow et al. (2006) reports that a study done in India revealed that the main challenges facing teacher education include meeting childrens specific learning needs, respecting students cultural and socio-economic context and involving parents and communities in school activities. The teachers therefore require interpersonal and counseling skills that can enable them to empathetically discern the learning needs of pupils. The teachers also need to be able to deal with diversity of learners and forge school-community collaboration. Douglass (2006) perceives preparation of employable graduates as the main challenge of education in the 21st century. According to him, emphasis on employability has led to other challenges. For instance, there are sharp divisions between scientific-technological academic disciplines on the one hand and social science and humanities on the other. He argues that there is an overemphasis on the value of scientific-technological disciplines leading to bifurcat ion of knowledge. According to NCCPPE(2008), the main challenges that education must confront in the world today include: conservation of the environment and sustainability of natural resources; the provision of health care; renewal of economic vitality; coping with change through learning; promoting core human values like justice, peace and equity and protecting human rights. This study endeavoured to find out the extent to which global challenges mentioned above impact on Kenya. It further sought to establish whether and how the system of PTE in Kenya was responsive to them. The study also designed a framework by which the challenges can be classified for effective examination. For instance, the following categories of challenges among others were be included in the framework: cognitive, cultural, political, social, emotional, economic, ethical, technological, and religious. Cognitive challenges include obstacles that hinder effective thinking. Such obstacles render learners incapable of analytical, evaluative and creative thinking. Such learners merely copy and reproduce the ideas of other people without being sensitive to context. Cultural challenges include stereotypes and prejudices that are embodied in traditions and norms of particular social groups. These traditions are passed on from one generation to another without critical scrutiny. In additio n cultural beliefs and practices tend to be ethnocentric. As such they promote conflicts and misunderstanding among social groups. Political challenges include ideologies and policies that are designed to facilitate acquisition and maintenance of political power. Often such ideologies are propagated in a competitive way without regard to sufficient analysis, evaluation and fair-mindedness. Social challenges include the need to accommodate diversity in the contemporary setting that is increasingly becoming multicultural. There is need for tolerance, open-mindedness and humility in interpersonal interactions. Emotional challenges have to do with inability to understand and deal with ones own feeling as well as the feelings of others. This is especially so in a social context that is dynamic, uncertain and stressful. Economic challenges include scarcity of resources and controversial methods of distributing the resources. These challenges are compounded by the increasing needs and wants characterised by the consumerist lifestyles. Ethical challenges arise from disagreements on principles of right and wrong leading to ethical relativism. Such relativism makes moral values difficult to apply across board leading to ethical confusion. Technological challenges include inability to control and manage the use of technology in a way that benefits society without endangering wellbeing. Such challenges include checking abuse of the internet, regulating the mass media and ensuring that nuclear technology does not get into the hands of terrorists. Religious challenges include animosity among different faiths that sometimes expresses itself in overt violent practices. Religious fanatics often engage in breach of human rights and criminal activities in the name of God. All these challenges cannot be effectively addressed unless education empowers the learners and society at large to think for themselves, analyse and evaluate issues, question beliefs and claims as well as develop the ability to creatively solve problems. 2.2.2 The challenges in Africa Assie-Lumumba (2006) perceives the debt burden, ethnic violence, armed conflicts and the scourge of HIV and AIDS as the most visible challenges that impact education in Africa. What is needed is an education system that can empower Africans to participate in the production and application of knowledge relevant in addressing these challenges and promote broad societal advancement. In Ghana, the need to develop thinking skills among learners has been recognized as a viable way of addressing contemporary challenges facing Africa. However in practice, the development of such skills has not been given adequate attention (Acheampong, 2001; Hill, 2000). There exists a mismatch between the professed value of thinking skills in education and actual efforts to develop such skills in teacher training institutions. According to Owu-Ewie (2007), classroom environment in many educational institutions in Ghana inhibit thinking in students. The teachers have been observed to be autocratic and rigid in imposing their views on students. The opinions of students are disrespected and discarded thus discouraging learner participation, curiosity and creativity. Teachers make poor use of questioning and motivation and use the lecture method predominantly. The education system fosters rote learning, drilling and exam orientation. Such a system does not facilitate a healthy teacher-learner interaction. According to Barrow et al (2006), studies done in Namibia and Nigeria reveal additional challenges facing education in Africa. In Namibia, although educational policies are strongly based on active learning and learner-centered theoretical foundation, in practice, these lofty theories are not effectively implemented. The educational policies are poorly understood, interpreted and executed. The study findings support school-based teacher professional development programs, associated with whole-school improvement programs, as very promising ways of increasing understanding and effective implementation of active-learning policies. In Nigeria, religious tensions and economic empowerment are the challenges that education needs to address. Teachers have therefore to be empowered to facilitate inter-faith harmony, creativity and self-reliance among learners. In Ethiopia, poor quality of education, insufficient financing, lack of equity and poor management are the key challenges facing educa tion (Ethiopian National Agency for UNESCO, 2001). Consequently, the ongoing educational reform encompasses every aspect of the educational system- the curricula, teacher training, educational inputs, educational finance, organization and management, structure of education, career structure of teachers, and evaluation. The reform is aimed at total restructuring of the educational system. This study examined the challenges above and related them to those in Kenya and the rest of the world. It also compared the strategies employed to address the challenges with a view to reconstructing a more responsive approach to the challenges relevant to PTE in Kenya. 2.2.3 The challenges in Kenya In Kenya, some of the 21st century challenges are HIV AIDS, gender awareness, and sensitivity to human rights (K.I.E., 2004a and 2004b). Others include poverty, crime, drug abuse, and unemployment. These challenges require that education empowers the learner to reflect and respond to them pro-actively. While informing the learners about these problems is important, empowerment of the learner demands a transformation that transcends the cognitive dimension to include all other faculties of the human person. This study explored these non-cognitive dimensions such as the creative, cultural, ethical and social among others. According to RCE (2007), sustainable development in Kenya (as in any other country) is complex since it encompasses social issues such as peace and security, human rights, gender equality, cultural diversity and intercultural understanding. Other issues include poor governance, corruption, increased incidences of diseases, erosion of cultural values and morals, among others. The economic issues include corporate social responsibility and accountability, ethical marketing, increasing levels of poverty and the widening gap between rich and poor. The other issues include trends of unsustainable production and consumption leading to inefficiency and wastefulness, poor enforcement of policies and regulations governing production and marketing. Environmental challenges include the energy, nutritional and other domestic needs of an expanding population, unsustainable use of natural resources (water, land), rural/urban migration, climate change, rural development, urbanization, disaster prev ention and mitigation concerns. This study examines the extent to which these concerns are addressed in PTE with specific reference to pedagogical approaches employed. Abagi and Odipo (1997) argue that the operation of primary education system in Kenya faces the problem of inefficiency. Low completion rates and national pupil-teacher ratio make inefficiency evident. In addition, teaching-learning time was found not to be utilized efficiently in primary schools. The factors that may be responsible for inefficiencies include: ineffective education policies and management processes, misallocation of resources to various educational levels; school based factors such as teachers attitudes, time utilization, school environment; and household based factors such as poverty. The inefficiencies identified above lead one to question the quality and relevance of education in Kenya. While Abagi and Odipo (1997) discuss inefficiency from the point of view of mismatch between resource inputs and desired output in terms of qualified graduates able to contribute to national development, this study explored another dimension of inefficiency which involves discrepanc y between pedagogical approaches and the achievement of educational goals and objectives. The focus therefore was on the process of teaching and learning in addition to other material resources employed to pursue the achievement of educational goals and objectives. 2.3.0 Global responsiveness to contemporary issues Shah, (1997) discusses the implications of globalization in the 21st century which include information revolution, dynamic demand of relevant skills, uncertainty of a borderless world economy, and intense competition among others. He suggests that responsiveness to this reality demands a paradigm shift in the management of human relationships in all spheres of life. Although he takes a political perspective and dwells on how a shift in modes of governance needs to be effected, this study adapts Shahs ideas to a globalized educational context. For instance the shift from management to leadership in political governance can be equated to the shift from authoritarian teaching to facilitative teaching in education. In both cases, control (of citizens/learners by politicians/teachers) is discouraged while participation, consultation and involvement by all parties is encouraged. This change is so fundamental that Shah refers to it as a cultural transformation. He describes it as follows: The culture of governance is also slowing changing from a bureaucratic to a participatory mode of operation; from command and control to accountability for results; from being internally dependent to being competitive and innovative; from being closed and slow to being open and quick; and from that of intolerance from risk to allowing freedom to fail or succeed (Shah, 1997) While responsiveness as described above is desirable and even necessary in the world today, it is not easy to accomplish. In developing countries for instance, the reform of the public sector has been attempted in many countries without tangible results. Shah (1997) regards attempts to reform the public sector in many developing countries as an illusion or dream. The command and control orientation is so entrenched that developing a client orientation that emphasizes collaboration and service is difficult to achieve. Consequently human relationships are devoid of a sense of responsibility and mutual respect. Relating these ideas to primary teacher education, responsiveness would mean enabling learners to be self-reliant and self-disciplined as well as actively engaging both teachers and learners as partners in the learning process. Leithwood et al (1994) assert that modern education systems have to address broader and complex goals, use a diversity of forms of instruction and strategies for learning to cater for diverse clientele as opposed to the traditional youthful learners. In addition, educational institutions will need technical resources to facilitate independent decision making and collaboration with other agencies. Future institutions of education will need greater decentralization of authority, empowerment of staff, and increased accountability to the stake holders they serve. Much effort will be employed to review the content of the curriculum and the process of instruction in order to enhance learning as well as forge useful links between the educational institutions and their environment. Specifically the following responses will be needed: provision of higher order thinking skills like analysis, evaluation and creativity. use of flexible client-centred forms of instruction and willingness to collaborate with other educational agencies. Addressing of cultural, religious and ethnic diversity and tensions and Increasing respect for the rights of individual, ability, race, age, sex etc which enhances equity as an education goal as well as equal access to knowledge. Beyer (1997) asserts that the best way to respond to contemporary challenges is to empower learners to learn. This implies facilitation of efficient and effective thinking. Such learning involves careful development of learner inclinations as well as their abilities to think skilfully. Barrow et al. (2006) reports that a research carried out in India suggest that one way of facilitating responsiveness among learners is to create a learning environment in which children are motivated to participate actively and are encouraged to think beyond their own context. This concurs with Beamons (1997) and Beyers (1997) view that the classroom environment should be motivating and provide opportunities for learners to use their cognitive and creative abilities. In order to develop the thinking skills of learners, the teachers need to use cognitive instruction approaches and learner-centred strategies which stimulate thinking. This study explored such approaches and strategies and endeavoured to find out whether they were being used in PTE in Kenya. Kea et al. (2006) recommend multicultural teacher education preparation as a viable way of promoting responsiveness to the challenges of the 21st century. Teachers who have learned culturally responsive pedagogy are believed to be more confident and effective in instructing children from diverse social, cultural, religious and economic backgrounds. Culturally responsive pedagogy involves adapting the content of instruction and teaching styles, curriculum, methodology, and instructional materials responsive to students values and cultural norms. Thus, the ultimate challenge for teacher educators is to prepare reflective practitioners who can connect, commit, and practice an ethos of care with diverse students and their families. According to Douglass (2006), responsiveness to contemporary challenges requires cross-cultural and human rights education. Governments should ensure that their primary and secondary educational systems provide for a balance and integration of national history and identity formation with knowledge of other cultures, religions, and regions. Educational approaches should be suitable for transforming the values of young people, their perceptions and knowledge about other civilizations, cultures and peoples across all regions. Critical thinking should be promoted in order to enhance fair-mindedness and objectivity in a world where information is being generated and disseminated at an amazing rate. Critical thinking is essential for analysing, evaluating and applying information. It is useful in combating misperceptions, prejudices, inaccuracies and outright lies among others. Critical thinking enhances the learners ability to separate fact from opinion, to evaluate information for bias, to construct and deconstruct meaning logically and relevantly. Such skills are important for promoting tolerance, mutual respect and responsible citizenship. This study examines the responsive approaches discussed above in the light of the Kenyan context. It aims at developing and recommending a comprehensive proposal of responsive pedagogies for teacher education that are suitable for addressing contemporary issues in Kenya. According to NCPPHE (2008) the most important educational goal is to facilitate learning by students and the society in general and thus create a learning society. In such a society, learning is a way of life and is therefore life-long. Optimized learning is that which helps strengthen democratic and civic institutions in the nation. This concept of learning extends beyond the education of students in classrooms to include educations impact on societal organizations, businesses, corporations, and cultures. This view is also adopted by Partnership for the 21st century (2004), which is a conglomeration of public and private partnership focusing on improving education in the 21st century. The partnership reached out to hundreds of educators, business leaders and employers to determine a vision for learning in the 21st century, to reach a consensus on the definition of 21st century skills, knowledge and expertise which will enable learners to thrive in contemporary world. This work endea voured to bridge the gap between the knowledge and skills most students learn today in school and the knowledge and skills required in the 21st century communities and workplaces. The critical knowledge and skills identified by Partnership for the 21st century (2004) are learning and innovation skills (creativity and innovation, Critical thinking and problem solving, communication and collaboration), information, media and technology skills (information literacy, media literacy and ICT literacy) as well as life and career skills (flexibility and adaptability, initiative and self-direction, social and cross-cultural skills, productivity and accountability, leadership and responsibility). The partnership also identified interdisciplinary themes which summarises the content that students should learn in the 21st century. These themes include global awareness, civic literacy, health literacy and financial, economic, business and entrepreneurial literacy. This study used these themes, knowledge and skills to evaluate the success of teacher education in Kenya in equipping primary school teachers to prepare pupils for the demands of the 21st century. 2.3.1 Responsiveness to contemporary issues in Africa According to Barrow et al. (2006) research carried out in Nigeria indicated that responsive approaches in education in Africa should aim at fostering moral values such as patience, tolerance, friendliness, compassion, empathy and fair-mindedness. In addition teaching methods and strategies should create and sustain a stimulating learning environment. Teachers need to use a variety of teaching methods to reach students at different levels of ability. In Namibia, the research recommended teachers reflection on their practice in order to seek way of improving teaching and learning. Learner-centred teaching, variation of teaching methods and strategies and positive teacher attributes like kindness and courtesy were also argued to contribute to responsiveness to contemporary issues in education. Ethiopian National Agency for UNESCO (2001) describes responsive education from the Ethiopian perspective as characterized by access to basic education for all, production of responsible citizens who can solve problems and cooperate with others in productive socio-economic activities. Other characteristics of responsive education include equity, community participation in education, and suitability of academic disciplines to the needs of the country. Quality and quantity need to accompany each other in educational matters; for instance, new educational institutions should be established and the existing ones strengthened in order to produce professionals at a quantity and quality levels that match the requirements of the country. 2.3.2 Responsiveness to contemporary issues in Kenya In Kenya, attempts at making education responsive to contemporary issues and challenges is reflected in the various educational reports that have been generated since independence (Republic of Kenya, 1964, 1976, 1981, 1988 and 1999). This is evident in the review of the said reports below. The Ominde Report (Republic of Kenya, 1964) was the first commission of independent Kenya to address matters of education. It made a lasting contribution by articulating, among other issues, the goals of education in Kenya which are reinforced in the commission reports that followed. Among the recommendations that the report gave included that: partnership should be forged between government and regional and local authorities in the planning and administration of education; educational policy should be consciously directed towards promoting national unity; religious instruction should be handled as an academic subject on educational lines dissociated from the sectarian objectives of any religious group; primary education should provide training in the rudiments of citizenship; education should be responsive to contemporary needs and modern educational practice; education should be child-cantered and child study experts should be included as lecturers in teacher training colleges. The Ominde Report (Republic of Kenya, 1964) identified a number of issues of which the following are relevant to this study and remain relevant to the current situation in Kenya: Education in Kenya should foster as sense of nationhood and promote nationhood. The post 2007 election violence revealed the fact that nationhood and national unity have not yet been successfully achieved in Kenya(Republic of Kenya, 2008a) and education, to be relevant must develop among learners and teachers alike patriotism, tolerance and mutual social responsibility. Education should serve the people and the needs of Kenya without discrimination. It should develop in learners the traits of fair-mindedness, empathy and justice. Education should enable learners at all levels to adapt to change. This requires analytical and evaluative skills that enable one to examine ones context, identify and define problems clearly and accurately. It also requires creative skills to enable one to formulate and implement relevant solutions to problems. The teaching methods prevalent in educational institutions after independence were faulted by the Ominde Report (Republic of Kenya, 1964) because they neglected learner participation, imagination and understanding and emphasised drilling and authoritarian teaching. Little attempt was made to adapt instruction to the needs of learners. In teacher training colleges, few lecturers were well grounded on the crucial question of how children learn or fail to learn. The report appealed for a paradigm shift in teaching and learning as indicated in the following: We do not believe that the students will effectively break loose from the old bookish, rote methods until they have themselves shared in the exhilaration of autonomous learning and have discovered how much more complete is their final mastery (Republic of Kenya, 1964, p.116) Gachathi Report (Republic of Kenya, 1976) expounded on the implications of the ideology of African Socialism on education in Kenya. The Report recommended the following issues which remain relevant to the contemporary Kenyan context: Education needs to continue promoting national unity in order to address social and economic challenges facing the country; education should be a tool for removing social and regional inequalities and creating international consciousness; education should enhance adaptability and management of change; education should foster mutual responsibility and cooperation and education should develop positive attitudes and values that motivate people to serve diligently, honestly and efficiently. The Report recommended that all educational institutions should give increasing emphasis on problem-solving teaching methods that have a bearing on the real life situation of the Kenya environment. This study examines the extent to which PTE has addressed the concerns and recommendation of the Gachathi report. The Mackay Report (Republic of Kenya, 1981) was mainly concerned with the establishment of the second university in Kenya. It recommended the establishment of the 8-4-4 system of education. It reiterated the importance of the following objectives of education in Kenya: fostering national unity based on the adaptations of the rich cultural heritage of the Kenyan people; facilitation of the needs of national development; development of skills, knowledge attitudes, talents and personalities of learners; fostering positive international consciousness and promotion of social justice and morality. The Report observed that formal education had tended to concentrate on imparting knowledge for the sake of passing examinations instead of facilitating problem solving. Kamunge Report (Republic of Kenya, 1988) addressed education and manpower training for the rapidly changing Kenyan society. It recommended