Issues Concerning Optical networking and Equipment Essay

Issues Concerning Optical networking and Equipment - Essay Example Important network topologies and issues like, transparency, protection, routing, switching and wavelength assignment are discussed in detail. The concept of wavelength division multiplexing (WDM) and DWDM has also been introduced. Finally, the latest trends in optical communication and networks are briefly explained. Optical communication system is similar to any kind of communication system, as far as the basics are concerned. The major difference in optical and other communication models is the additional requirement of a source (for conversion of signal from electrical to optical domain), receiver (for conversion from optical to electrical domain) and use of fibre as media in place of conventional copper wire or microwave. The use of glass fibre or optical fibre features a number of advantages that make it a formidable media, in comparison to others. One of the most important assets of optical communication is the availability of enormous potential bandwidth to the tune of hundreds of GHz. The potential cannot be fully harnessed owing to electrical domain limitation. However, technologies like WDM or DWDM are evolving to optimize the available bandwidth usage. Being fabricated from glass, the fibre does no have earth loop or interface problem as are evident in electrical media. The optical communication is immune to interference from radio frequency and electromagnetic radiations or EMP (electromagnetic pulses) as they act as dielectric waveguides. There are practically insignificant radiations from fibre which enhance security of signal in a communication system. Other advantages include low weight, small size, flexible, reliable, easily maintainable, low transmission losses and cost effective. The requirement for capacity is increasing at a fast rate in the present day networks. Growth of worldwide web and Internet are the primary causes for this increase. Every four to six months, the need is almost doubling.

An Analysis Of Pulling Levers Policing

An Analysis Of Pulling Levers Policing Many jurisdictions have been experimenting with comparatively new problem-oriented policing models to halt gun and gang violence among chronic young offenders. Originating in Boston, one approach is the focused deterrence strategy, also known as pulling levers. Its intentions are to affect the demeanor and surroundings of the serious offenders that are known as being at the center of the gun and gang problems. The strategy seeks permanent elimination of the drug dealing with corresponding reduction in crime and improvement in the quality of life within the neighborhood.( Corsaro et al., Oct. 2009, p. 2) The pulling levers plan of attack tries to deter the violence by making potential offenders believe that stern and swift consequences would follow such behavior. A major part of the pulling levers strategy is the delivery of a straightforward message to a small group of offenders, letting them know what behavior will not be tolerated and the consequences of that behavior. There are so me key elements to the implementation of the pulling levers strategy. In addition, the pulling levers strategy has several advantages and disadvantages. When implementing the pulling levers strategy, several key elements have to be in place in order for it to be successful. These key elements give the pulling levers strategy an advantage over traditional policing. The first element is enlisting the help and support of the community. Residents have to feel that the actions of the officers are legitimate and that nonviolent youth are not being put at risk of being caught up in the justice system. The gathering of a multiagency enforcement group with the power to make decisions is the second element. The group should include police, probation, and parole, as well as state and federal prosecutors. Most often offenders are involved in a wide range of other crimes, which leaves them open for law enforcement to pull every lever of criminal justice intervention to crack down. There is an enormous sanctioning power that the enforcement community could bring to bear against particular gangs and gang members.(Kennedy, Spring 1997, p. 461) The t hird element is having an effective way of communicating with offenders. The multiagency group needs to show offenders the cause and effect of the pulling levers intervention. A direct message that violence will not be tolerated and every legal action will be taken to prevent such violence. The message can be delivered in a variety of ways, such as talking directly to the violent offenders on the streets or holding a public forum with a group of invited offenders. The multiagency group assumes that the message will be reverberated to other offenders through an informal communication network. Another key element is getting researchers involved in the process. Researchers can provide the interagency enforcement group with reliable data and performance evaluations of strategys progress. Research has shown that the pulling levers focused deterrence strategy to be useful in decreasing gun violence among young chronic offenders. The most known is the Boston Gun Project/Operation Ceasefire intervention. It was attributable to a significant decrease in homicides among youth, and nonfatal gun violence. Replications of the Boston Gun Project/Operation Ceasefire strategy have also shown reductions in gun violence. There are two more very important advantages to implementing the pulling levers focused deterrence strategy. First, each gain of control applied increases the effectiveness of the pulling levers strategy. As the baseline level of violence begins to diminish, the multiagency working groups response to new violence problems should increase. Second, it divides the general load of these offenses. For example, instead of patrol officers taking on the general load of deterring violent offenses the responsibility is shared with personnel from other agencies, such as probation, parole, and social service. A challenge or disadvantage that the pulling levers strategy faces is its relatively small scientific evidence. It has been demonstrated in several replications that the pulling levers strategy works when dealing with young serious violent offenders, but it has yet to be implemented for other problems. Another problem is establishing trust with the community. One of the main steps toward implementing the pulling levers strategy is having the trust of the community. Distrust corrodes the creative process that criminal justice agencies and community-based organizations are necessarily engaged in.(as cited in Weisburd and Braga, 2007, p. 184) Without community trust and support the program will surely fail. Establishing trust can be very difficult in communities where racial tensions between the residents and the police are present. For example, in Boston a new mechanism of police accountability was necessary in order to create trust that that new programs would be beneficial to the com munity (as cited by Weisburd and Braga, 2007, p. 172) due to the perception of racism that existed. The community has to be able to hold law enforcement accountable for their actions and have to know that any actions taken by law enforcement will keep them safe and not cause further detriment to the community. Safety is only one dimension on which citizens evaluate police actions(Fagan, Summer-Autumn 2002, p. 139). Also, lever-pulling is resource draining. There are many time-consuming aspects, including organizing and attending the meetings, ensuring compliance with the conditions of probation, and responding to a violent act.(Chermack, Jan. 2008, p. 49) In the end the pulling levers focused deterrence strategy depends on two pertinent components: how well the consequences are customized to the targeted offenses, and if the promises made to would-be offenders are kept. Unfulfilled promises and hollow threats from law enforcement can only lead to more problems with the offenders. In order to establish trust with the community and instill fear in the offenders all promises and threats should be carried out. Also, without the political support of the community, the police cannot pursue an innovative enforcement strategy that targets truly dangerous youth at the heart of urban youth violence problems. (as cited in Weisburd and Braga, 2007, p. 185) 2. How would you conduct a study to test whether pulling levers policing works? You must use qualitative, quantitative, or a mixed methods design. Detail the steps from start to finish including the measures you wish to test. The goal of conducting a study to measure the pulling levers strategy is to help facilitate better decisions by law enforcement agencies. The study should help answer two questions: Was there a decrease in the problem and if so was it the result of the response imposed? By answering these questions law enforcement can decide whether to end the pulling levers strategy and focus resources elsewhere or to apply the response to other problems. The type of design used in this study is an experimental quantitative design . By using this type of study, changes can be evaluated mathematically before and after the implementation of the pulling levers strategy. For example, the study being conducted wants to know if there was a decrease in youth homicides after the implementation of the pulling levers strategy. First, the study would take place in a large metropolitan city where youth homicides are above the national average, like Chicago, Illinois. The first set on analyses would be gathered from secondary information sources for demographic, policing, economic, and homicide patterns over a span of 2000-2009. This will be the main database used for the analysis. Official police data would be obtained from the Chicago Police Departments statistical reports. Economical and demographic data would be gathered from the 2000 U.S. Census. Economic data would also be gathered from the U. S Bureau of Labor Statistics. From the information gathered the officers will found out who are the target offenders and areas with the highest youth homicide rates would be the communities used in the study. Much crime-violent, drug, property, and domestic-is concentrated in certain neighborhoods, particularly poor minority neighborhoods.(Kennedy, 1997, p. 459) Two teams of officers would be organized to patrol the beat in these two communities to implement the pulling levers strategy. This would take place over the span of three years. The officers using the pulling levers strategy would deliver a specific deterrence message to the youth offenders. In the case of the Boston Gun Project/Operation Ceasefire the message was delivered in formal meetings with gang members; through individual police and probation contacts with gang members; through meetings with inmates of secure juvenile facilities in the city; and through gang outreach workers.(Braga et al., 2001, p.5) Also, a multiagency law enforcement team would convene several meetings with serious gang offenders where the team would communicate its new standards for conduct, indicating that violence will not be tolerated. Each offender has certain background characteristics.that interact with dynamic characteristics(DeMichele and Paparozzi, Oct. 2008, p. 70). So when there is a violation of these rules, the multiagency law enforcement team would respond by using all available sanctions or levers to punish the offender. Those in which these sanctions were imposed on would become the source of discussion in subsequent meetings with potential would-be offenders. In terms of analysis, one of the most widely adopted statistical procedures in econometrics and criminal justice used to determine the impact of programs and public policies is time series analysis.(Corsaro et al., Oct. 2009, p. 20) During the three years, analysis of the strategys impact would consist of a time-series design. Every month the strategy would be reassessed. A count of youth homicides would be conducted to see if the program is working properly. Also there would be a monthly count of calls for shots fired. Once the three-year implementation of the program has concluded the data for the youth homicides and calls for shots fired would be compared to the data before program implementation. Key outcome variables would be the monthly number of youth homicide victims 21 or younger in the two targeted areas, and a monthly count of shots-fired citizen calls citywide. Also, youth homicide trends in would be compared with the youth homicide trends in other large U.S. cities. The implementation of the program would start in April, 2010 and end April, 2013. If the program was implemented successfully the time series analyses should show a reduction in monthly number of youth homicides from pretest to posttest. There should also be a significant decrease in calls for shots fired. With the successful implementation of the pulling levers strategy there should be an overall decrease in criminal activities with the communities and the city. An important question for policymakers to consider when deciding to implement a lever-pulling strategy is whether a working group is willing to commit the time and resources for effective follow-up.(Chermack, Jan. 2008, p. 152) Communities that suffer loss and injury from gun violence are most often those that are racially segregated and socially disadvantaged. Policing in this social context requires sensitivity to questions of legitimacy and procedural fairness.(Fagan, Autumn-Summer 2002, p. 147)

Advancement of Technology and Science and its Influence on Science Fiction Novels :: Technology Science Literature Essays

Advancement of Technology and Science and its Influence on Science Fiction Novels The rapid pace of technology and the advancement of scientific understanding in the past one hundred years are at the backbone for the distinctly twentieth century genre -- science fiction. Such rapid advancement in these fields of technology have opened up literally worlds of possibilities for the future. One hundred years ago the possibility of simply flying from city to city may have seemed nothing more than a distant futuristic dream to most. While a mere sixty years later the impossible was achieved -- a human being on the moon. Since technology has brought as much change as it has in the past one hundred years the next hundred should be entirely incomprehendable to us. Who knows what to expect? "The modern discoveries and applications of Science throw deeply into the shade the old romances and fanciful legends of our boyhood" (James 8) observes James. Technology has made what was once thought impossible, plausible and weather or not technology is directly incorporated into a science fi ction story as an obvious vehicle, the author knows that it is always present in the mind of the reader. It is this plausablilty of what conventionally should not be acceptable that has led to science fiction's increasing popularity over the years. As James explains, "much sf is concerned with the future and with the possibilities presented by scientific and technological change" (James 3). Truly, humans exploring and even colonizing other worlds, the plot of many a science fiction novel, has to many become inevitable. The successful series of Apollo moon landings in the 1960's and the knowledge that we already possess the technology to send humans to other worlds leads many to believe that it is only a matter of time. Even such a notably respectable news source as Newsweek has detailed the future maned missions to Mars (September, 23 1996). When I look forward to the future I can hardly imagine the changes that will occur as a result of new discoveries in science and new technologies. With so m any possibilities for the future, science fiction is able to capitalizes on this by showing the audience entirely new worlds and alternatives to our own. Technology presented in science fiction stories most commonly serves a very important role in the stories plausablilty to the audience. While this does not mean that technology is necessarily the focus of such stories it is often used as the vehicle for which such alternative and wonderous events occur. Without the advanced spaceship how could the Segnauts have gotten to the planet Advancement of Technology and Science and its Influence on Science Fiction Novels :: Technology Science Literature Essays Advancement of Technology and Science and its Influence on Science Fiction Novels The rapid pace of technology and the advancement of scientific understanding in the past one hundred years are at the backbone for the distinctly twentieth century genre -- science fiction. Such rapid advancement in these fields of technology have opened up literally worlds of possibilities for the future. One hundred years ago the possibility of simply flying from city to city may have seemed nothing more than a distant futuristic dream to most. While a mere sixty years later the impossible was achieved -- a human being on the moon. Since technology has brought as much change as it has in the past one hundred years the next hundred should be entirely incomprehendable to us. Who knows what to expect? "The modern discoveries and applications of Science throw deeply into the shade the old romances and fanciful legends of our boyhood" (James 8) observes James. Technology has made what was once thought impossible, plausible and weather or not technology is directly incorporated into a science fi ction story as an obvious vehicle, the author knows that it is always present in the mind of the reader. It is this plausablilty of what conventionally should not be acceptable that has led to science fiction's increasing popularity over the years. As James explains, "much sf is concerned with the future and with the possibilities presented by scientific and technological change" (James 3). Truly, humans exploring and even colonizing other worlds, the plot of many a science fiction novel, has to many become inevitable. The successful series of Apollo moon landings in the 1960's and the knowledge that we already possess the technology to send humans to other worlds leads many to believe that it is only a matter of time. Even such a notably respectable news source as Newsweek has detailed the future maned missions to Mars (September, 23 1996). When I look forward to the future I can hardly imagine the changes that will occur as a result of new discoveries in science and new technologies. With so m any possibilities for the future, science fiction is able to capitalizes on this by showing the audience entirely new worlds and alternatives to our own. Technology presented in science fiction stories most commonly serves a very important role in the stories plausablilty to the audience. While this does not mean that technology is necessarily the focus of such stories it is often used as the vehicle for which such alternative and wonderous events occur. Without the advanced spaceship how could the Segnauts have gotten to the planet

Generational Conflict in the Workplace Essay

Abstract Conflict in the workplace is not a new problem. Having many generations working towards the same goal will almost always cause some friction. It becomes the responsibility of administrators/managers in the workplace to not only understand the source of this conflict, but also diffuse it before it becomes counterproductive. Conflict can be a very powerful tool in the workplace if not allowed to get out of hand. Each generation in the workplace has much to learn from the others. They also have much to teach. Using â€Å"The Wheel of Conflict† to understand this conflict will allow for a more productive, and less hostile workplace. Factors Leading to Conflict With the recent downturn in the economy and the increased number of individuals entering the workplace after formal education; there has been an increasing number of conflicts within the workplace among individuals from different generations. My generation, generation Y or the millennial generation is generally involved with this conflict. I would like to include a little background on each of the two main generations involved. Generation X consists of approximately 55 million workers in North America. They were born between 1965 and 1980. It is generally accepted that Gen Xers are called the â€Å"latchkey children.† They are self-reliant and independent. They generally enjoy a casual and friendly work environment. They separate friends from family, and seek a balance between work life and family. Generation Y consists of approximately 80 million workers in North America. They were born between 1981 and 1999. These are the newest individuals to enter the workforce. They generally celebrate diversity; they’re optimistic, inventive and individualistic. They like to rewrite the rules, and generally enjoy a pleasurable lifestyle. Gen Yers do not see the relevance of most institutions. They are masters of technology, mainly because they have grown up in a world with the Internet and gadgets. Unlike the â€Å"latchkey children,† they were nurtured by their parents and see friends as family. They have high expectations and demands, and wish to work for socially responsible companies. Gen Yers are also more involved with politics. Emotions Through examining the differences in the Generation Y and Generation X individuals in the workplace; it can easily be determined that emotions play a very large role in the conflict on both sides. Generation Y seems to have a very high opinion of themselves. They do not like authoritarian leadership styles because they grew up able to question their parents. Unlike previous generations Gen Yers like to make their job accommodate their personal life, not the other way around. They place a high value on self-fulfillment and do not expect to stay in a particular job long because they view career change as â€Å"normal.† They are also accustomed to receiving constant feedback and recognition from parents and other figures of authority. They continue to expect this in the workplace. Generation X and before resent this type of self-important behavior and are generally dismissive of the Gen Yers. In a Lee Hecht Harrison Company survey 70% of older employees were dismissive of younger workers’ abilities, and 50% of younger workers were dismissive of older workers’ abilities. This shows that both groups are equally dismissive of the other. Generation Y employees come from the period of â€Å"instant gratification.† As a member of this generation I must say that I cannot recall a time that I wasn’t able to get an answer that I want for a question on any topic. The Internet is a huge resource and has always been at my fingertips. This has played a large role in creating the attitudes of Generation Y workers. They haven’t had to learn patience. Most Generation Y workers come out of college, with a high self-worth, and expect to make a six-figure salary. That is just not reasonable. Considering that the Gen Yers have been â€Å"pampered† by their families, they react like an insolent child when they do not get what they feel they are â€Å"owed.† This emotional reaction does not help their case within the workplace. Communication Another common factor that leads to this conflict has to be communication. As stated before, the younger generation has grown up in a world of technology. They are perfectly confortable communicating through email, sums, or social networking sites. These modes of communication are well within their comfort zones. This comfort with impersonal communications has one major drawback. Many Gen Yers do not possess the ability to speak face to face, and express their ideas. Inability to communicate will cause great problems in the workplace. Gen Yers may misinterpret constructive criticism from older colleagues, and older colleagues may feel that younger individuals are disrespectful within the workplace. The fact is that neither group is right, and neither is wrong. Most Gen Yers are not intentionally disrespectful; they simply need to learn how to properly communicate in the workplace. The comfort level they possessed at home is not appropriate at the office. At the same time the older generations need not write off the younger generations because of some communication miscues. Values/Relationships Values and relationships also play a large role in this conflict. First off Gen Yers consist of nearly 50% of non-native North Americans. Most Gen Yers have liberal attitudes towards gay marriage and interracial dating. They are critical of the ethics and morality of business. They maintain close ties with their families, and are much more active in politics then their counterparts. Either way you look at it they are socially different than their elders. Generation X consisted of the 1960’s and 1970’s. There were racial struggles in the not so distant past. Old stereotypes die hard, and there may be some subconscious issues between the older guard and the newcomers. These issues may not be as blatant as outright racism, but may be subtler. Gen Yers wouldn’t think twice about seeing a burka in the workplace, whereas Gen X and before may do a double take. Relationships with family also play a large role in this conflict. Firstly Gen Yers are not afraid to live with their parents until they find the right job. This can often be viewed unfavorably by older generations who see this unwillingness to head off on their own as a weakness. Needs In order to properly address the conflict within the workplace, one must understand the various needs of all parties involved. There are three basic types of issues to consider. The first of these are Substantive Issues. This includes things like money or salary, resources needed for a job, or time. Second is Procedural Issues. These include means that we use to address the conflict. This could be communications or other means that are used to address conflict. Finally Psychological Needs comes into play. These are things that all people generally hold sacred. This includes things like trust, fairness, or respect. These general needs or issues are the same for all people. They only differ in the perception of them. Managers must understand that 99% of individuals go to work for a paycheck. In a job their substantive needs must be met. For Gen Xers this is pretty easy to handle. With Gen Yers it appears to be a little more complicated. As mentioned earlier, Gen Yers have a very high self-worth. They often feel that they deserve a higher salary that they receive. This will cause morale to drop among them, and open up the opportunity for conflict. Similarly, procedural issues present a problem with Gen Yers. They resent much about the current structure of business, and expect constant feedback. A little give and take on both sides of the issue will be needed to effectively resolve this problem. Finally the psychological needs are the most difficult thing to address. Because of the cultural differences in the generations, both parties must be open to what each other can bring to the table. Both the Gen Xers and Gen Yers want respect, and each party shows respect in different ways. Therefore, an understanding must be reached to achieve the desired result. If parties feel respected they will be more willing to participate, and trust each other. Conclusion This is an ongoing circle of conflict. People are creatures of habit and are not generally open to change. Throughout time, each generation has had contempt of some form for the generation that follows. The incoming generation has always felt that they know more than the ones they are replacing. The important thing to remember is that open communication channels will benefit the workplace. Each generation will better understand each other, and will be able to learn from one another. Generation Y must understand that the business world is very different from their childhood. Generation X must understand that not all change is bad. The humorous side of this is that in 20 years. The generation Y will have the same issues with Generation Z as Generation X had with them. Works Cited Mayer, B. (2000). The Dynamics of Conflict Resolution: A Practitioner’s Guide. San Francisco, CA, USA: Jossey-Bass. Williams, R. (2009, September 8). Why Are You Not Like Me? The Generational Gap In The Workplace. Retrieved February 2, 2012, from Psychology Today: http://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/wired-success/200909/why-are-you-not-me-the-generational-gap-in-the-workplace

College Uneducation Essay

I wish to speak on â€Å"College Uneducation. † Is it possible that our college educationmay â€Å"uneducate† rather than educate? I answer â€Å"Yes. † It is a paradox but nonetheless the truth—the grim, unmerciful truth. We all believe in higher education; else we should not be in the University. At the same time, college education—like all other human devices for human betterment—may build or destroy, lead, or mislead. My ten years’ humble service in the University of the Philippines has afforded me an opportunity to watch the current of ideals and practices of our student body. In some aspects of higher education, most of our students have measured up to their high responsibilities. But in other features—alas, vital ones! —the thoughts and actions of many of them tend to stunt the mind, dry up the heart, and quench the soul. These students are being uneducated in college. I shall briefly discussthree ways in which many of our students are getting college uneducation, for which they pay tuition fees and make unnumbered sacrifices. Book Worship In the first place, there is the all but delirious worship of the printed page. â€Å"What does the book say? † is, by all odds, the most important question in the student’s mind whenever he is faced with any problem calling for his own reasoning. By the same token, may students feel a sort of frenzy for facts till these become as huge as the mountains and the mind is crushed under them. Those students think of nothing but how to accumulate data; hence, their capacity for clear and powerful thinking is paralyzed. How pathetic to hear them argue and discuss! Because they lack the native vitality of unhampered reason, their discourse smacks of cant and sophistry rather than of healthy reasoning and straight thinking. It is thus that many of our students surrender their individuality to the textbook and lose their birthright—which is to think for themselves. And when they attempt to form their own judgment, they become pedantic. Unless a student develops the habit of independent and sound reasoning, his college education is a solemn sham. Compare these hair-splitting college students with Juan de la Cruz in the barrios. Now, Juan de la Cruz has read very little: no undigested mass of learning dulls the edge of his inborn logic, his mind is free from the overwhelming, stultifying weight of unassimilated book knowledge. How penetrating his perception, how unerring his judgment, how solid his common sense! He contemptuously refers to the learned sophists, thus: †Lumabis ang karunungan mo,† which means, â€Å"Your learning is too much. † Professional Philistinism The second manner of college uneducation that I want to speak of is this: most students make professional efficiency the be-all and end-all of college education. They have set their hearts upon becoming highly trained lawyers, doctors, engineers, teachers, and agriculturists. I shall not stop to inquire into the question of how much blame should be laid at the door of the faculties of the University for this pernicious drift toward undue and excessive specialization. That such a tendency exists is undeniable, but we never pause to count, the cost! We are all of one mind: I believe that college education is nothing unless it widens a man’s vision, broadens his sympathies, and leads him to higher thinking and deep feeling. Yet how can we expect a; this result from a state of affairs which reduces a law student to a code, a prospective doctor to a prescription, and a would-be engineer to a mathematical formula? How many students in our professional colleges are doing any systematic reading in literature? May we not, indeed, seriously ask whether this fetish of specialization does not smother the inspiring sense of beauty and the ennobling love of finer things that our students have it in them to unfold into full-blown magnificence. The Jading Dullness of Modern Life â€Å"A thing of beauty is a joy forever,†Ã¢â‚¬ says Keats. But we know that beauty us a matter of taste; and, unless we develop in us a proper appreciation of what is beautiful and sublime, everything around us is tedious and commonplace. We rise early and go out into, but our spirit is responsive to the hopeful quietude and the dew-chastened sweetness of dawn. At night we behold the myriad stars, but they are just so many bright specks—their soft fires do not soothe our troubled hearts, and we do not experience that awesome, soul stirring fascination of theimmense ties of God’s universe. We are bathed in the silver sheen of the moon and yet feel not the beatitude of the moment. We gaze upon a vista of high mountains, but their silent strength has no appeal for us. We read some undying verses; still, their vibrant cadence does not thrill us, and their transcendent though is to us like a vision that vanishes. We look at a masterpiece of the chisel with its eternal gracefulness of lines and properties, yet to us it is no more than a mere human likeness. Tell me, is such a life worth coming to college for? Yet, my friends, the overspecialization which many students pursue with zeal and devotion is bound to result in such an unfeeling, dry-as-dust existence. I may say in passing that the education of the older generation is in this respect far superior to ours. Our older countrymen say, with reason, that the new education does not lawfully cultivate the heart as the old education did. Misguided Zeal Lastly, this selfsame rage for highly specialized training, with a view to distinguished professional success, beclouds our vision of the broader perspectives of life. Our philosophy of life is in danger of becoming narrow and mean because we are habituated to think almost wholly in terms of material wellbeing. Of course we must be practical. We cannot adequately answer this tremendous question unless we thoughtfully develop a proper sense of values and thus learn to separate the dross from the gold, the chaff from the grain of life. The time to do this task is not after but before college graduation; for, when all is said and done, the sum and substance of higher education is the individualformulation of what life is for, with special training in some advanced line of human learning in order that such a life formula may be executed with the utmost effectiveness. But how can we lay down the terms of our philosophy of life if every one of our thoughts is absorbed by the daily assignment, the outside reading, and the laboratory experiment, and when we continuously devour lectures and notes? â€Å"Uneducated† Juan de la Cruz as Teacher Here, again, many of our students should sit at the feet of meagrely educated Juan de la Cruz and learn wisdom. Ah! He is often called ignorant, but he is the wisest of the wise, for he has unravelled the mysteries of life. His is the happiness of the man who knows the whys of human existence. Unassuming Juan de la Cruz cherishes no â€Å"Vaulting ambition which o’erleaps itself. † His simple and hardy virtues put to shame the studied and complex rules of conduct of highly educated men and women. In adversity, his stoicism is beyond encomium. His love of home, so guilelessly faithful, is the firm foundation of our social structure. And his patriotism has been tested and found true. Can our students learn from Juan de la Cruz, or does their college education unfit them to become his pupils? In conclusion, I shall say that I have observed among many of our students certain alarming signs of college uneducation, and some of these are: (1) lack of independent judgment as well as love of pedantry, because of the worship of the printed page and the feverish accumulation of undigested data; (2) the deadening of the delicate sense of the beautiful and the sublime, on account of overspecialization; and (3) neglect of the formulation of a sound philosophy of life as a result of excessive emphasis on professional training.

4th Of the World Lives In The Third World †Economics Essay

3/4th Of the World Lives In The Third World – Economics Essay Free Online Research Papers 3/4th Of the World Lives In The Third World Economics Essay â€Å"More than three fourths of the world’s population live in developing countries but they only enjoy 16% of the world’s income while the richest 20% have 85% of global income.† Despite these startling statistics, concern for the developing countries of the world is a recent phenomenon. The Second World War seems to have been a major turning point in the fight against poverty, with many soldiers returning from the â€Å"backward† countries of the world realising the types of awful living conditions that many people in the developing world still endure today. Indeed the bulk of international bodies encouraging development, such as the World Bank and the United Nations’ development agencies, were only established after World War Two. Furthermore, the successful implementation of the Marshall Plan, a program during which huge quantities of physical capital and technical assistance were donated by the US to the war-stricken countries of Europe, sparked new academic interest in development economics as professional economists studied their own development processes. Economists were to a certain degree ignorant to the economic growth processes in largely agrarian developing countries with little modern economic structures. Initial policies to combat underdevelopment focused on rapid capital accumulation, like those put forward in the Marshall Plan, to increase worker productivity and thus increase GNP/Capita (Capital fundamentalism). During the 1950s and 60s many developing countries did achieve what economists at the time believed to be development; this being sustained growth rates of 5-7%. However standards of living in many countries did not change, as growth was unequally distributed. This was largely due to the economic, social, and institutional differences between developed and developing countries. More recently empirical studies by American economist Hollis B Chenery have tried to provide more mathematical and objective tools to combat underdevelopment. Development is not just a measure of the average citizen’s ability to buy goods and services but rather a complex process involving major structural c hanges in the economy, â€Å"redistribution from growth†, higher rates of total factor productivity and the annihilation of poverty, as well as accelerating economic growth. One developing economy that exemplifies many of the experiences, past and present, of many less developed countries today is that of Kenya. The structural changes observed as economies move across the development trajectory, as well as why Kenya’s sectoral shares of GNP accounted for by agriculture, manufacturing and services differ from Chenery’s estimates that will be the focus of this essay. As a developing economy moves along the development trajectory, one of the most important structural changes is the replacement of agriculture as the main component of production by the more profitable manufacturing and service sectors. This change is inherent in the growth process given the differing characteristics between agricultural and manufacturing commodities. Firstly, the majority of agricultural products are inferior goods; they have inelastic income elasticity, whereas some manufacturing goods have income elasticity greater than unity. Therefore as people’s incomes rise there will be a less than proportionate increase in the demand for agricultural products. On the other hand their demand for manufactured goods will increase. This explains a further structural change in the economy. The proportion of consumer demand accounted for by food (and other basic necessities) falls whilst the proportion spent on diverse manufactured goods and on service increases. ENGELS LAW FROM INTERMEDIATE MICRO BOOK Secondly, on the production side, agricultural production often exhibits deceasing returns to scale. Increases in productivity due to technological progress, allow greater income, and are regularly insufficient to provide for a rapidly increasing population, as the value of total product is shared between the workers. These Malthusian pressures encourage workers to seek work in the modern sector in the beginning of the development process. Towards the end of the development trajectory, capital intensive methods may well serve to increase this surplus labour. In contrast the manufacturing sector, where all factors of production are variable, benefits from increasing returns to scale. Therefore firms wish to expand output in order to further cut log run average cost. In the Lewis theory of development this expansion is facilitated by the movement of labour from rural communities to a more urban way of life. The Lewis Model of Modern-Sector Growth in a Two-Sector Surplus-Labour Eco nomy The Lewis model looks at the transfer of this surplus labour. He theorises that a wage differential of 30% between subsistence farm work and work in the modern sector will be enough compensate for the economic and social cost of changing to an urban way of life. To a certain degree the cost will be balanced by the attraction of what we would classify as basic amenities such as sanitation, electricity, education and health services. This mass rural-urban migration is another key structural change as an economy develops. With greater access to health facilities and educational structures the quality of human capital will increase. An able and educated labour force will find it easier to adapt to new technology in the modern sector thus increasing labour productivity. Indeed, along with greater awareness and accessibility to birth control family size and population growth rates will decrease. A key factor contributing to a smaller family size is the quality of human capital that t he family produces as parents rely on their children for economic security in the future. An educated child will hopefully be more employable and earn a higher income in the modern sector either in the developing country or abroad. The trade off between current and future benefits and costs of children can be seen in the diagram below: NOTES FROM DEV ECON One constraint on the structural transformation of a developing country is the leaching of its highly skilled and professional classes to developed countries. This can be seen as an indirect opportunity cost for the developing economy as government expenditure on anything other than creating high income job opportunities may have contributed to a loss in human capital. Another key focal point in the Lewis model is the growth of output and employment in the modern industrial sector. This is achieved by another structural change in the developing economy, the proportions of GNP Saved and invested increasing. This allows a steady accumulation of both human and physical capital. Lewis assumes that all the profits are reinvested into the production process, buying more capital to duplicate the process and thus creating more employment. This assumption seems unrealistic as firms may wish to cut the costs of production, in the interests of competition, by investing in labour saving technologies. An international constraint on this structural transformation is the occurrence of capital flight, where companies invest their profits overseas usually in Western banks instead of reinvesting it in the developing economy. DIAGRAM ON LEWIS MODEL AND MINOR ANNOTATIONS! The composition of exports also shows evidence of the structural change in the proportions of GNP with the share of manufactured exports in GNP as well as in total exports increasing and the share of primary exports in total exports decreasing. These figures may be interrelated in the sense that a larger manufacturing sector will require an increased volume of raw materials that may be efficiently produced domestically. Other contributing factors to the decrease of primary exports include; the price volatility of primary goods in global markets, the relative higher profit margins on finished goods and also the encouragement of private foreign investment through the use of tax incentives etc. The government’s revenue as a proportion of GNP also increases as an economy develops. This hopefully allows the government to formulate more effective policies in the fight against underdevelopment. Expenditure on education increases total factor productivity, with primary giving the highest social return on investment. Similarly expenditure on the physical infrastructure of a country, such as transportation and communication links, also assists in trade opening up new markets and lowering haulage costs. The government’s tax policy also plays an active role in the income distribution within the economy. The composition of income distribution also changes as an economy develops with the proportion of GNP received by the highest 20% of income earners rising at the beginning of the development then falling. Furthermore the proportion of national income earned by the lowest 40% falls then rises. A harsh regressive tax policy may counterbalance this new-found income fo r the poorest people in society. The structural changes presented thus far can be found in American economist Hollis Chenery’s empirical studies into development patterns. Chenery’s research looks at the necessary but not sufficient changes in economic, social, and institutional variables over time that allow a traditional peasant agricultural economy to metamorphose into an economy that relies on more stable manufacturing and service sectors as both the main component and stimulant of GNP. In his research paper â€Å"Development Patterns: Among Countries and Over Time† Chenery splits the countries into smaller subgroups to make the results more credible and useful. This allows policy makers to review the results and hopefully formulate effective development policies. By applying cross sectional and time series data into multiple regression analysis Chenery calculated accurate estimates (given the repeated sampling) of relationships between economic variables. For example the relationship b etween the proportions of GNP accounted for by agriculture, manufacturing, and services with the level of GNP/Capita (PPP) and population would be calculated as follows: When the actual values for the Kenyan sectoral shares of GNP are compared to the Chenery estimates, they show deviations. For instance Chenery’s normal level of manufacturing’s share of output overestimates the actual value for manufacturing’s share of output in Kenya by %. In fact, Chenery’s estimate would have been much more accurate in the first decade after Kenya’s independence from the United Kingdom when state owned manufacturing enterprises were the main engine behind growth rates of 7%. However the oil price shocks during1973-74 coupled with severe drought in 1984 played leading roles in the reduction of growth figures to negative values throughout the 1990’s. Coupled with a declining total GNP is the relative increase in agricultures share of output. Indeed this partly explains Chenery’s underestimation of % in agriculture’s share of output. The following features specific to Kenya inhibit domestic savings and investment that are seen as necessary but not sufficient to development in Chenery’s â€Å"Patterns of Development†. For instance, heavy rainfalls frequently endured by the Kenyan people often destroy vital infrastructure such as roads, bridges and telephone lines. Entrepreneurial activity and foreign direct investment are discouraged as a result due to the increased uncertainty over transportation and communication links. Crops may also be ravaged by extremes of rainfall. For example in 1984 severe drought compromised many manufacturing enterprises involving the processing of crops such as maize, tobacco, and cotton. Kenya’s shortages in basic infrastructure such as hydroelectric power also contribute to the lack of industry. Infrastructure built to facilitate during the colonial period may also not be applicable for internal use. In addition, Kenya suffers from a relatively low endowment of natural resources when compared to other countries of its size. With three fifths of the country being semiarid desert making the land infertile, economic activity is limited. Agricultural production in these areas is mainly nomadic farming, where a person’s wealth is measured in terms of ownership of animals. This is largely X-inefficient as people do not seek to profit-maximise as they are happy with their current standards of living. Domestic savings are largely impossible to many nomadic farmers and thus decrease investment. This pastoral way of life also makes the provision of healthcare and education more difficult. Kenya’s climate also increases the disease burden on the economy with malaria, Cholera and Tuberculosis decreasing worker productivity and increasing healthcare costs. Climatic conditions are more favourable in coastal areas and around Lake Victoria where the greatest concentration of fertile land and population lies. In fact Agriculture is the backbone of the country’s economy employing 85% of the population with tea and coffee being the main cash crops. Unfortunately for Kenya current world demand for these products is lower than supply causing export earnings, helping in the payment of internal loans, to plummet. With lowering incomes for many farmers, tax revenues will fall, thus the acquisition of physical capital by both public and private sectors will decrease. Agricultural production is highly labour intensive as the tools used by workers are very basic and the tstste fly hampers the use of animals in many areas thus lowering productivity. Furthermore institutional constraints exacerbate the insufficient funds needed for the manufacturing sector to increase. Frequently in the past the government would give farmers a set price, often below the world market value, for their cash crops. Thus profits from production would not be invested in domestic banks or back into the production process. With extreme climatic conditions desecrating crop yields and farmers living on subsistence levels of income this has caused rapid rural-urban migration. With a population growth rate of 2.3% and unemployment at 30% this has induced many workers into the informal petty services sector of the economy. This greatly contrasts service sectors in the developed world where the provision of finance, leisure and commerce take precedence. The relative accuracy of the Chenery estimate here with only a overestimation/underestimation can be partly explained by this occurrence. Similarly Kenya’s tourism industry bulks up this figure. However the recent bombing of the United States of America’s embassy building in Nairobi and the increased terror threat have decreased must needed foreign exchange earnings by 40%. Kenya currently has a Transparency Internal Corruption perceptions Index score of 2.1, significantly higher than other large countries used in the calculations. Given the countries heterogeneous ethnicity and religious background, corruption and political upheaval have plagued the Kenyan economy for many years and may be the main reason behind the inaccuracy of Chenery’s estimate of manufacturing’s share of output. Corruption has served to pull the plug on investment with public confidence in financial institutions faltering thus resulting in a Gross National Savings figure of 11% , 2% lower than the Sub-Saharan average. Government intervention in markets and the distribution of import licences along with other regulatory measures have caused allocative and productive inefficiency within the Kenyan economy. Corruption serves the comprador groups that have only self interests in the current share of output; not on the long term growth of the economy. Furthermore, corruption has also become an international constraint on structural change. For example during the summer of 1997 the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank ceased nearly three hundred million dollars of vital investment. Political instability has also served to deter foreign multinational companies locating in Kenya with its neighbours Tanzania and Uganda now receiving greater levels of foreign direct investment. Technological progress suffers as a result as many foreign companies are the providers of new technology. This has perpetuated Kenya’s vicious cycle of poverty: Kenya’s macro economy has suffered major setbacks in the past thirty years. The failure expansionary policies during the 1980’s have left Kenya with a current level of external indebtedness in the region of $5.7billion. This serves to worsen the already troubling budget deficit as an increasing percentage of export earnings outflow to international banks. Expenditure on improving human capital such as education and the provision of healthcare has been cut thus lowering the potential for workers to absorb foreign technology. Kenya’s current Human development index figure of 0.489 indicates this to foreign investors. Kenya’s current indebtedness also restricts access to future external capital funds as many banks see them as too much of a risk. The disbarment of the East African trade agreement also aggravates declining export earnings The correlation between Kenya’s rapid population growth of 2.3% and dismal performance in manufacturing can be seen through Solow’s growth model: diagram on pg 202 Mankiw.Therefore with a population growth rate of 2.3 % the Kenyan economy must grow by %. This enables the structural change within the economy towards Chenery’s estimates. In conclusion, structural changes observed as economies move across the development trajectory are not identical in every country. Deviations originate from different domestic and international constraints facing any economy. Therefore policymakers can hopefully encourage development using a combination of Chenery’s â€Å"Patterns of Analysis† approach and well-informed local information into the constraints faced by the developing country. The deviations may also be partly explained on the empirical methods used by Chenery as much of the data relies on national income accounts which inherently contain imperfections due to factors such as double counting and the shadow economy. Research Papers on 3/4th Of the World Lives In The Third World - Economics EssayPETSTEL analysis of IndiaInfluences of Socio-Economic Status of Married MalesDefinition of Export QuotasAssess the importance of Nationalism 1815-1850 EuropeBringing Democracy to AfricaOpen Architechture a white paperBionic Assembly System: A New Concept of SelfPersonal Experience with Teen PregnancyNever Been Kicked Out of a Place This NiceMarketing of Lifeboy Soap A Unilever Product

Learn About the History of Polyester

Learn About the History of Polyester Polyester is a synthetic fiber derived from coal, air, water and petroleum. Developed in a 20th-century laboratory, polyester fibers are formed from a chemical reaction between an acid and alcohol. In this reaction, two or more molecules combine to make a large molecule whose structure repeats throughout its length. Polyester fibers can form very long molecules that are very stable and strong. Whinfield and Dickson Patent the Basis of Polyester British  chemists John Rex Whinfield and James Tennant Dickson, employees of the Calico Printers Association of Manchester, patented polyethylene terephthalate (also called PET or PETE) in 1941, after advancing the early research of  Wallace Carothers. Whinfield and Dickson saw that Carotherss research had not investigated the polyester formed from ethylene glycol and terephthalic acid. Polyethylene terephthalate is the basis of synthetic fibers such as polyester, dacron and terylene. Whinfield and Dickson along with inventors W.K. Birtwhistle and C.G. Ritchiethey also created the first polyester fiber called Terylene in 1941 (first manufactured by Imperial Chemical Industries or ICI). The second polyester fiber was Duponts Dacron. Dupont According to  Dupont, In the late 1920s, DuPont was in direct competition with Britain’s recently formed Imperial Chemical Industries. DuPont and ICI agreed in October 1929 to share information about patents and research developments. In 1952, the companies’ alliance was dissolved... The polymer that became polyester has roots in the 1929 writings of Wallace Carothers. However, DuPont chose to concentrate on the more promising nylon research. When DuPont resumed its polyester research, ICI had patented Terylene polyester, to which DuPont purchased the U.S. rights in 1945 for further development. In 1950, a pilot plant at the Seaford, Delaware, facility produced Dacron [polyester] fiber with modified nylon technology. Duponts polyester research lead to a whole range of trademarked products, one example is Mylar (1952), an extraordinarily strong polyester (PET) film that grew out of the development of Dacron in the early 1950s. Polyesters are made from chemical substances found mainly in petroleum and are manufactured in fibers, films, and plastics. DuPont Teijin Films According to Dupont Teijin Films, Plain polyethylene terephthalate (PET) or polyester is most commonly associated with a material from which cloth and high-performance clothing are produced (e.g., DuPont Dacron ® polyester fiber). Increasingly over the last 10 years, PET has gained acceptance as a material of choice for beverage bottles. PETG, also known as glycolised polyester, is used in the production of cards. Polyester film (PETF) is a semi-crystalline film used in many applications such as videotape,   high-quality packaging, professional photographic printing, X-ray film, floppy disks, etc.    DuPont Teijin Films (founded January 1, 2000) is a leading supplier of PET and PEN polyester films whose brand names incude: Mylar  ®, Melinex  ®, and Teijin  ® Tetoron  ® PET polyester film, Teonex  ® PEN polyester film, and Cronar  ® polyester photographic base film. Naming an invention actually involves developing at least two names. One name is the generic name. The other name is the brand name or trademark. For example, Mylar  ® and Teijin  ® are brand names; polyester film or polyethylene terephthalate are the generic or product names.

How To Write a Diversity Essay

How To Write a Diversity Essay How to write a diversity essay and show your uniqueness We all have something special about us which distinguishes our personalities from others. It is no wonder that often students are given an assignment of writing a diversity essay in order to figure out what makes them stand out in a social environment. Here are some reflections on how to convey your message successfully. How to write a diversity essay and show your uniqueness What is a diversity essay? A diversity essay is aimed to show what is special about you and what value you can bring to the society. Writing a diversity essay, you can tell about yourself and share your personal experience. You can also tell what other person had to deal with when he or she did not fit into the surrounding. Think of how diverse you are We all have something to share with the world which surrounds us. On the one hand, we can be proud of some of our achievements. On the other hand, we can be quite uncomfortable with revealing something that might seem to be unacceptable for our social environment. Perhaps, you moved to another country which has rules that are different from those which you got used to in your previous surrounding. You can simply have unique skills and talents which make you stand out among other students. If you struggle to find something that is special about you, consider the following factors: Race Religion Culture Work experience Socio-economic status Health issues or disability Sexual orientation Hobbies Talents Life and work experience The above factors are just a very limited list of things which make us different from other people, so choose the one which is the most applicable to you. Make sure you remain respectful of other people’s feelings though, especially if your topic concerns political or religious points of view. Questions to ask yourself Here are some questions which you can ask yourself in order to start writing a diversity essay: How your ethnical background enriched you? Did you get a valuable perspective on what happened to you? How a certain illness changed your life? What makes you stand out from the crowd? How you dealt with moving to a different country? What important event changed your life outlook for the better? From the first sight, writing a diversity essay might seem to be a complicated task because you might need to share your fears with others. However, working on this task gives you a unique opportunity to reflect on your background, your personality, your gained skills and natural talents. You do not have to write about things which are too uncomfortable for you. However, showing how you overcome your struggles can demonstrate how capable you are to get over difficulties which, in the end, we all face, regardless of the society dogmas. If you are not sure what to write about, contact us now in order to get advice from our professional essay writer.

Math Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words - 1

Math - Essay Example help students have good economic life in future, that is, be employed and deal with life issues such as handling money, interacting with other people, and be well conversant with spiritual life (Peter, 2001). The other aspect of education is to produce a person who is physically, morally, and spiritually upright. All these should be instilled through teaching of mathematics. This paper therefore emphasizes on how mathematics leads to spiritual development. Mathematics as a subject is normally used by people to give a better understanding of very great things including description of natural phenomena normally use mathematics as a subject, how they occur in the world. For instance, knowledge of probability may make a person tell whether it would rain the next day or not (winter, 2000). Even explanation on the depths of ocean waters, heights of mountains and calendar of the days. All these descriptions require the knowledge of mathematics. Mathematicians are philosophers on their own since they can sit and think how great things came into existence there giving an insight to occurrence of infinite things of the world (Downes, 1997). As a matter of understanding wonders and infinite things, mathematics teachers apply the methods of using surprises in order to make complicated things become real. For example, Movshovits Hadar (1988) argues that using the concept of Pythagoras theorem in bringing ideas of squaring sides of a right-angled triangle is a surprise to students. Mathematics has been used to promote spiritual development in learners. This can be clearly explained in terms of religion, philosophy and science that attempt to explain how Christians are linked with charity and social justice through mathematics. The origin of mathematics can be traced back from great philosophers such as Pythagoras and Plato who through rational thinking did a lot in the field of mathematics. According to Morshovits (1988) mathematics play a spiritual function by providing a

Critique Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 9

Critique - Essay Example rrupt practices act which was formed with an intention of stopping bribery of foreign official ad prohibit Us citizens and firm from making improper payments to foreign officials. The National Free trade agreements were designed between three countries to remove taxes on products traded and also helped protect copyrights, patents and trademarks. Another similarity is that all this organizations have some sort of controversies and criticisms. At some point it has failed to achieve its goals, interest and objectives. At some point each of this organizations have impacted negatively on the welfare of people in terms of equity, cost – benefits analysis such increasing the rate of crimes, unemployment, increase in social crimes. For example, the removal of taxes on product makes the local industries lose a substantial market share due to foreign stiff competition from superior products. The United Nations Security Council at some time enacts sanctions meant to benefit only its members at the expense of other non-members. The IMF on then other hand offers credit in an unfair manner such as imposing heavy and unfair terms and conditions on the funds to be lent. The member states in all these papers that both members have voting rights and take part in decision making process that affects the operations of each of the organi zations. However, there are different between paper one and paper two. First countries formed in paper one are from Europe for example, the European union which is formed in Europe while in paper two the organizations formed are from America notably the United states of America. It can also be pointed out that the formation of those organization in paper one is signed and ratified by the member states unlike in paper two where the only the head of states are endowed with authority of signing of the agreement. Another notable difference is that those organizations in paper two have been formed to indentify and promote the rights of consumers of

Budgeting Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Budgeting - Essay Example Forecasting should not be mistaken with budgeting. Forecasting is a management tool used for planning and setting a goal. Forecasting makes use of past and present data, and trend analysis to estimate sales, or to estimate demands for a product. It uses statistical data in estimation and uses management expertise, knowledge and judgment (GeminiGeek, n.d. ) An operating budget is a projection of estimated income and expenses that is based on the forecasted sales which is usually done for a short term period, normally for one year while a cash budget is a way of monitoring the cash flow of a business. Cash budget makes it easy to see how much money comes in and out for the period, thus, it becomes a simple way to monitor the financial condition of the business or household. A cash budget can be done either on a weekly or monthly period for an accurate monitoring (Business Directory, n.d.) Zero budgeting departs from the traditional budgeting wherein all expenses must be justified for every new budgeting period and every function within the organization is analyzed. Zero budgeting starts from zero and does not take into account prior year’s budget (Cronin, Tom). For instance, if you have a budget of $20,000 for a campaign in 2011 and it did not produce good result, the manager must justify why he needs the same budget for 2012. The manager must develop a plan from zero-base and justify why, where and how he will spend the money of the company. In other words, if the manager proposes a campaign for a product, he would pinpoint the projected expenses and profit to show its feasibility so that the company could assign a particular budget for that. All budget proposals are then analyzed and ranked according to importance. The system lets the management identify priorities, allows management to compare and analyze the needs of every unit in the organization and make funding allocation. In zero based, budgets are built

Environment, soil survey and land suitability assessment for Coursework

Environment, soil survey and land suitability assessment for conservation management - Coursework Example Center of discussion in this paper is a land-use as a kind of land use which is described in terms of its products as well as management practices. For efficient reconnaissance surveys being conducted at the national levels, highly generalized descriptions may be adequate i.e. â€Å"wildlife habitat†, â€Å"forestry conservation†. At district as well as lower levels, it is vital to specify the use in more details. Such descriptions usually serve two purposes. First they are the basis of determining the requirements for use. Secondly, the management specifications can be used as the basis for the extension services as well as the planning for the necessary inputs. The particular land use requirements are usually illustrated by the land qualities required for the sustained production. A land quality is a very complex attribute of land which usually has a direct effect on the land use. The various examples are the availability of water, nutrients, rooting conditions and er osion hazards. Most of the given lands qualities are determined by the interaction of the several land characteristics as well as measurable attributes of a land. For example, the quality â€Å"availability of water† is usually determined by the potential balance between the water demand as well as the water supply. The water demand is the potential evaporation from the surface of the crop as well as the soil whereas the water supply is determined by the rainfall, infiltration, water storage in the soil and the ability of the grassland to extract the stored water. After selection of the relevant land qualities, it is vital to decide which particular land characteristics are to be used for measuring them. For instance, the quality â€Å"erosion hazard† demands information on rainfall intensity, slope angle as well as soil properties. A compromise is then reached between the characteristics that most define the given land quality with those that are less precise. Land evaluation can also at times be conducted directly in terms of the land characteristics i.e. by using rainfall as opposed to water availability, slope angle instead of erosion hazards. Despite the above, the following are the land suitability constraints that are imposed by the interaction of the soil, climate, topographic, hydrological as well as the geological factors. Mapping of land units and their characteristics The land is first identified as a basis for diagnosis of problems. The given units are then mapped into more details i.e. by dividing the land

Pick five of your favorite fallacies. Find advertisements, short news Essay

Pick five of your favorite fallacies. Find advertisements, short news stories, political arguments, etc (not all of the same - Essay Example One prominent area such logical fallacies occur is in arguments surrounding gay marriage. Increasingly gay marriage has assumed a prominent place in the lexicon of American civil rights challenges. Significant objections have been raised to gay marriage by conservative groups who wish to, as they indicate, preserve the sanctity of marriage. In reality these groups implement a variety of fallacious arguments. One prominent argument is that, â€Å"Marriage, the defenders contend, cannot possibly be treated as a â€Å"fundamental right† open to gays and lesbians because such a right must have a foundation in American history, legal traditions, and practices† (Denniston). The above argument clearly implements the appeal to traditional fallacy. The appeal to tradition fallacy argues that since for a long period of time something has been one way, in the future it will continue to be that way. As the argument is that gay marriage should continue to be illegal because it was h istorically prohibited America, it is implementing an appeal to tradition. It seems that rather than truly believing this argument, the intention of people making the argument is to support their position on gay marriage by bringing people’s attention to such precedent. ... For instance, a recent story about the upcoming National Football League draft implemented the fallacy of confusing cause and effect. Essentially, this fallacy operates by examining the relations between occurrences, and then erroneously arguing for a linkage between cause and effect. In terms the National Football League draft one article has speculated that the Kansas City Chiefs should pick a quarterback – Geno Smith – with the first pick (Kardar). While quarterbacks are frequently chosen with this pick, Geno Smith can arguably be said to not be worth the pick and that instead the franchise should go with a different position. The article is implementing cause and effect because it has considered that since many rookie quarterbacks were successful this year in the National Football League, they will necessarily be good next year. Rather, it is highly possible that the quarterbacks that were successful this year were so because they were all exceptionally talented and their success will not influence the success of future quarterbacks. Ultimately, it appears that the writer’s intention was out of a genuine belief that the National Football League has changed considerably, such that rookie quarterbacks are now able to succeed in ways they previously were not able to. Another prominent area of investigation in contemporary society is drug use. With the advent of designer drugs in the late 20th century, an increasing division emerged between casual drugs and those that were considered exceptionally dangerous. Because of this division many politicians and anti-drug activists have implemented the logical fallacy of the slippery slope. The slippery slope argument considers that if one thing is allowed then it will

Business case study on Bell Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Business case study on Bell - Assignment Example Moreover, prior knowledge of these factors facilitates development of effective strategies for sustainable success, especially in the era of highly competitive global business environment. It was important for Ron Close to have in-depth understanding of these five forces for Bell Canada Enterprise before accepting the position of President, consumer VoIP for Bell Canada. The examination of these forces would enable him to assess the viability of VoIP (voice over internet protocol) within the operation of Bell or as a new venture, independent of the influence of Bell, in Canada. Bell Canada was a leadership company in the field of telecommunication. It provided fixed line telephones and internet services to approximately 13 million customers in its core territory of Quebec and Ontario. It was also 14th largest company as per 2004 survey with major stake in Aliant, which operated in Eastern provinces. Through acquisition of fiber cable network and merger with other different media inte rests like print, television, IT etc., Bell not only provided fixed line, mobile services and internet, it also was in possession of huge network of fiber cable used for high speed internet which could hugely contribute to the success of VoIP. Hence, evaluating the five forces would significantly influence the decision of Ron Close to accept or not to accept the challenge of being the president of VoIP division, Bell Canada. Answer 2 Competitive Rivalry Industry rivalry is an important element for developing distinct competencies and differentiating products to gain leverage in the market. Bell was pioneer in the telecommunication field in Canada with near monopoly. Bell’s main rivals in telephony were: Telus, which operated in British Columbia and Alberta; SaskTel in Sasketchewan; and 50 small telephone companies. In the cable network, Roger, Cogeco and Shaw were key opponents in Ontario; and Videotron and Cogeco in Quebec. In 2005, all these firms had launched VoIP through high speed internet or HIS. While Cogeco and Videotron did not have nationwide network, Roger, Shaw and Bell had the advantage. But Bell had the leverage in the sense that it owned a satellite operator, Teleglobe and its vast network of cable spread across Western Canada that also extended to America which would significantly reduce the cost of infrastructure which may run in billions. Most importantly, its market credibility and huge database of customers were crucial factors that could be turned into VoIP customers. VoIP is barrier free and therefore small players like Primus and Vonage become important as with relatively small investment they can offer continent wide internet telephony. Messenger from Microsoft and Skype have also emerged as popular VoIP service provider attracting huge numbers of customers from the globe. Answer 3 Supplier power Bell does not have suppliers except for the government from which it buys bandwidth for HIS. But so far as customers are concerned, Bel l is part of various other suppliers of VoIP services. This is important element that indicates the bargaining power of suppliers vis-a-vis provision of goods and service. When there are lots of suppliers, they have less bargaining power and operate within highly competitive environment. In the case of Bell, especially related to VoIP, there are some major suppliers who have good database of custo

Pick five of your favorite fallacies. Find advertisements, short news Essay

Pick five of your favorite fallacies. Find advertisements, short news stories, political arguments, etc (not all of the same - Essay Example One prominent area such logical fallacies occur is in arguments surrounding gay marriage. Increasingly gay marriage has assumed a prominent place in the lexicon of American civil rights challenges. Significant objections have been raised to gay marriage by conservative groups who wish to, as they indicate, preserve the sanctity of marriage. In reality these groups implement a variety of fallacious arguments. One prominent argument is that, â€Å"Marriage, the defenders contend, cannot possibly be treated as a â€Å"fundamental right† open to gays and lesbians because such a right must have a foundation in American history, legal traditions, and practices† (Denniston). The above argument clearly implements the appeal to traditional fallacy. The appeal to tradition fallacy argues that since for a long period of time something has been one way, in the future it will continue to be that way. As the argument is that gay marriage should continue to be illegal because it was h istorically prohibited America, it is implementing an appeal to tradition. It seems that rather than truly believing this argument, the intention of people making the argument is to support their position on gay marriage by bringing people’s attention to such precedent. ... For instance, a recent story about the upcoming National Football League draft implemented the fallacy of confusing cause and effect. Essentially, this fallacy operates by examining the relations between occurrences, and then erroneously arguing for a linkage between cause and effect. In terms the National Football League draft one article has speculated that the Kansas City Chiefs should pick a quarterback – Geno Smith – with the first pick (Kardar). While quarterbacks are frequently chosen with this pick, Geno Smith can arguably be said to not be worth the pick and that instead the franchise should go with a different position. The article is implementing cause and effect because it has considered that since many rookie quarterbacks were successful this year in the National Football League, they will necessarily be good next year. Rather, it is highly possible that the quarterbacks that were successful this year were so because they were all exceptionally talented and their success will not influence the success of future quarterbacks. Ultimately, it appears that the writer’s intention was out of a genuine belief that the National Football League has changed considerably, such that rookie quarterbacks are now able to succeed in ways they previously were not able to. Another prominent area of investigation in contemporary society is drug use. With the advent of designer drugs in the late 20th century, an increasing division emerged between casual drugs and those that were considered exceptionally dangerous. Because of this division many politicians and anti-drug activists have implemented the logical fallacy of the slippery slope. The slippery slope argument considers that if one thing is allowed then it will

See the description Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

See the description - Essay Example As a start, it is important to define what is meant by stereotyping. A stereotype is the creation of a biased view or assumption about a certain ethnic, religious, or social group. In other words, an individual will take the behavior of one person and state that all people belonging to that particular group behave in the same manner.  The problem with stereotyping is that it encourages people to react and behave in a manner that is both judgmental and biased. The first common stereotyping inference people have about Moslems is that they are "extremists" and "terrorists". Moslems are seen as the most common source of terrorism and senseless violence. Besides, Moslems are also viewed as worshippers of an alien deity, who are intolerant of other religions and eager to use physical force to expand Islam. In addition, another negative assumption that people have about Islam is related to the Moslems view towards women. Most of the western world unjustly believes that Islam subjects women to harsh and demeaning discrimination and puts them in a status inferior to men. On the other hand, many western countries identify Moslems as persons who have many physical traits in common, concerning shape and dress. For instance, many people view Moslems as grim bearded men who wear robes and turbans. The negative image the West has about Moslems affect the way they treat Moslem residents in their lands. In many cases, Moslems in foreign countries suffer from extreme cases of discrimination and suppression. One of the Islamic practices that is fought and suppressed by the West is the veil of Moslem women. The veil or "Hijab" is the Islamic dress for females, which requires women to cover all their bodies, except their faces and hands. Moslem women are ordered by God to wear this kind of dress whenever they get out from their homes. So, the majority of Moslem women abides by this rule, and

Example Essay On Interprofessional Collaberation In Practice Nursing Essay

Example Essay On Interprofessional Collaberation In Practice Nursing Essay Section 1 According to Cullen et al (2003), in order to meet the demands of a modern National Health Service (NHS) professionals are encouraged to work collaboratively and form partnerships to ensure seamless delivery of care. Interprofessional Education (IPE) is advocated as a means to enable professionals to understand one another and break down boundaries between them. (p.427). The nature of nursing care is predicated on an idea of working within a team, and a premium is almost always placed on communication, not just as a means of caring for patients and ultimately saving lives, but also to alleviate the stresses and strains associated with frontline care. Whilst the idea of communication being important is not new, the formation of IP teams, particularly within the realm of nursing, is. Cullen et al set out in order to try and better understand what positive lessons could be learnt from such a process. This essay will seek to try and understand the thinking that went into this study, base d on the real life experiences of the author. Cullen et al conclude their study with the point that The development of IPE aided communication and collaboration between the academics and health professionals and helped to break down professional boundaries. Testing out new methods through action research has enhanced our understanding of the implications for students and teachers. (p.432). Whilst I ultimately found this to be the case, I would like to go into a bit of detail as to why exactly I came to these conclusions. Having met the group for the first time, we were all introduced and began to mingle. Given how short we had all known each other, it was difficult to establish any common points of reference. One imagines that within the workplace, where relationships are formed and cultivated over a longer period of time, always within a professional context, such relationships would be less artificial or constructed. Nonetheless, our different perspectives were in no way artificial, and it was useful to try and understand ever yones reasons for choosing to study what they do, even if few of us had had the chance to put those studies to consistent, long-term effect under the professionals rigours of frontline care. As such, many of the early discussions were very much more theoretical, idealistic even, than they might possibly be after a few years of experience within frontline care. There was however, a certain amount of agreement too. All of the students were aware of the positive benefits of IPE and felt that by virtue of being medical students, they were in some way isolated from the larger university student body as a whole. This had both positive and negative effects. Whilst some argued that it brought the students closer together, others admitted that they felt isolated at times. Either way, it is clear that stereotyping is not a positive factor in IPE. As Fraser et al (2005) acknowledge, Professional stereotyping is considered to cause barriers to effective working relationships and team approaches to care. Learning together at undergraduate level can promote different professional groups understanding and respect for one another and an appreciation of the importance of team working in the health sector. (p.271) This collaborative way of thinking helped us formulate our first group sentence, Poor communication is the lack of ability to articulate to and interpret information from other Health Care Professionals (HCPs), which then tied in closely with our second sentence: Negative attitudes towards other HCPs leads to a  breakdown in communication. As Koubel and Bungay (2010) showed, this is key for any multidisciplinary approach to have any sort of success. Taking an interdisciplinary approach to the question in hand, social work provides some useful analogues. Social workers form partnerships with people: helping them to assess and interpret the problems they face, and supporting them in finding solutions. They have to know how the law works and be fully up to speed with the social welfare system. They will liaise regularly with other professionals teachers, doctors, nurses, police, lawyers acting on behalf of the people they are working with. (http://www.socialworkandcare.co.uk) Furthe rmore, as Brayne and Carr (1999) point out,social workers are the creation of government; government is therefore accountable to the public for their work and obliged to regulate their activities. Second, social workers as caring professionals are themselves accountable to their users and to the public at large. (p.6) The same is very much true of healthcare professionals, and interprofessional relationships need to be understood in this context. There is a duty not only to provide the patient with the best care possible, but also to deliver value for money for the taxpayer. Accordingly, interprofessional relationships need to be fostered to deliver the most efficient and effective care possible. What exactly does this involve? Of course, in the professional arena, job roles are to a certain extent prescribed by job titles. However, within the stress of the workplace, roles can become muddled and confused. Accordingly, one of our major tasks involved role definition. It is not simply enough to be clear with one another: practitioners need to define their roles and act accordingly. As Skott (2001) notes, Professional nursing care is formed and carried out in a social cultural process. The discipline of nursing should study narrative communication to understand how individual and collective levels are connected in experiences of sickness and cure. (p.249) Nonetheless, Brereton (1995) has shown that there are still a great deal of holes in the critical thinking towards communication in nursing care: The theory-practice relationship and the use of communication and interpersonal skills in nursing have been recurrently identified as issues causing concernà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦there appea rs to be a reliance on mentors to assess student progress and determine whether they have knowledge underpinning practice. Classroom teaching was recognized as idealistic but the divisions in participants opinions led to difficulty in determining whether a theory-practice gap actually exists. (p.314). As a group, we all came to the conclusion that one of the key aspects of IPE is avoiding stereotypes. This was viewed as a fundamental basis for the following points: It is important to value each professions individual contribution to overall patient welfare. Varying perspectives exist, but any barriers must be overcome in order to promote holistic care. Pre conceived notions of any member of the Multi disciplinary team need to be challenged. Hierarchical states of mind have no place when a multi disciplinary team is working towards service user goals. Whilst communication and stereotyping avoidance may seem like natural bedfellows, it was interesting to be exposed to a group which arrived with preconceived notions of how the nursing profession worked. Whilst my experience of frontline care is limited, my brief experiences have shown that stereotyping is endemic. This may range from physicians making certain judgements about the role or usefulness of nurses, or even vice versa, but throughout the conference, it became clear that attitudes such as these had no place within the professional world of HCPs. Not only do they create a negative, hostile atmosphere, but they also prevent HCPs from doing their job properly, and ultimately, pose a threat to the treatment of patients. Word count 1195. Section 2: In many ways, learning about IPE has been a natural development from the direction my studies were already taking. Anyone interested in nursing is, almost by definition a communicator, as it is a profession in which discussion, listening, and mutual understanding are key. Nonetheless, the things I have learnt from IPE have helped me to understand previous experiences better. Reeves (2001) looked into the 15-month project which evaluated the effectiveness of interprofessional education (IPE) for first and second year medical, nursing and dental students on a community-based placement, using a process-based approach which tracked the education and social processes connected to IPE. Such an approach has helped overcome some of the problems of using before-and-after designs. (p. 269) He found that community-based IPE placements were deeply beneficial in aiding students development, as the on-the-job nature of the tasks they faced forced them to adapt on the spot, often needing to adapt with the help of other HCPs. In my experience this was also the case. When I was helping geriatric patients who were acutely ill, I found that IPE skills became increasingly important. Leff et al (2005) note that Acutely ill older persons often experience adverse events when cared for in the acute care hospital (p.798) Given the anxiety caused to elderly acutely ill patients, any efforts that could be made to accommodate them should be encouraged, and accordingly, the research is both worthwhile and timely. Whilst much literature exists regarding home nursing for end of life care, it is relatively sparse for elderly, acutely ill patients. Zarit (2004) in particular, using the case of disabled patients facing end of life care, note that family members provide a considerable amount of the care for people with terminal illnessesà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦and family caregivers must be recognized as an essential part of the treatment team. By clearly recognizing this role, physicians and other health care providers encourage caregivers to be more confident about their abilities to care for their loved ones. (p.170). Zarit goes on to argue that the role of family carer is not only beneficial to the part played by the healthcare professionals, it can also be a cost-effective way of giving patients the best palliative care that they need. He even argues that patient surviva l rates can be affected by paying close attention to family members at the front-line of care. Thus, he recommends that a psychologist or other health care professional familiar with end-of-life care included as part of the treatment team. Although time and effort are required, these strategies may help caregivers provide the care they want to and provide better home care at a reduced risk to their own health. (p.170). Furthermore, as Leff et al go on to point out, Patients, but not caregivers, had increased satisfaction with hospital-at-home care, and there was some evidence that substitutive models may be cost- effective. However, with some exceptions, most of these models would be difficult to distinguish from augmented skilled nursing services, community-based long-term care, or home-based primary care services in the United States. (p.798) As we can see, there are clearly a number of benefits associated with care at home. However, for the caregiver, such situations can also create a raft of potential problems. Whilst most academics agree that the influence of the family is generally a positive one, not much critical thinking has been devoted to what role the family play in allowing HCPs to perform their job as they should. Outside of the hospital environment, the familys role is much greater, and often, in my experience at least, they feel that this entitles them to a greater degree of say in the patients care. Whilst I would generally agree with this, I had one experience in particular which made me question this. Because of the increased role of the family in this case, they felt that they knew best about how to care for their acutely ill family member. However, there was evidence to suggest that they were not delivering the right level of care. Since returning home, the patients condition had deteriorated, and there was a strong argument to be made for readmission into hospital, something the family were completely against. Whilst the physician in charge was willing to watch and see how the situation developed, the critical care nurse was pressing for readmission, the difference in opinions shows the power dynamics between the physician and nurse and has been noted without in-depth discussion between the two, created a barrier to effective collaboration (Manias Street 2000). However, the family was a low-income family, and as such, used to receive visits from social workers. Accordingly, there was a great deal of IPE needed to deal with the situation. For example, whilst the social worker was not responsible for the health of the patient, and were visiting the family on other grounds, they were consulted on what they thought was occurring under the familys supervision. This involved the nurse in charge communicating with the social worker, an interdisciplinary approach that necessitated diffe rent public sector workers working alongside each other. The interaction between the nurse and social worker showed a co-ordinated effective collaboration between HCPs to provide a service to improve the quality and decision making process of patient care (Spry 2006). However, there were also certain problems at our end. The physician in charge of the patient seemed unwilling to get actively involved. He was well-known to be a poor communicator, and seemed more involved in other aspects of his work than dealing with the patients, particularly when they were no longer in the hospital. However, since nothing could be done without his authority, it was frustrating for myself and the nurse to get anything done with him dragging his feet. Likewise, although the social worker was very willing and able to perform their job, they felt put upon when discussing any problems that fell without their remit. As such, it was left to myself and the nurse in charge to orchestrate managing the problem. Cheek and Rudge (1994) look closely at the socio-aspects of nursing to deconstruct the power relations implicit within the socio-political context of the health care arena in which nursing operates. (p.583) They found that womens health and nursing practice were exem plars of the limiting effects of such discourses. (p.583) Seeing the reaction the female nurses inquiries, it certainly felt that her sex was a limiting factor on how she could get stuff done. The conference was very clear in that one of the major points of IPE was to avoid stereotypes. One of the largest stereotypes is that all nurses are women, and it felt like, the physician in particular, was labouring under some outdated view of nurses that was close to the era of Florence Nightingale than the present day. Of course, gender stereotyping works both ways. McDonald and Bridge (1991) found that Nurses planned significantly more ambulation, analgesic administration, and emotional support time for the male patient, despite the presence of individuating information. More accurate, effective nursing care is possible when nurses are aware of the effect of gender stereotyping on nursing care. (p.373) However, in this instant, it very much felt like the opinion of the nurse in charge was being undermined due to her sex. Although the patient was eventually readmitted, it wasnt done without much bureaucratic leg-dragging, and I was left feeling that this was a poor example of interdisciplinary care. It could have been improved by more willingness of those in charge to define roles clearly, avoid stereotypes, and place the care of the patient at the forefront of their concerns. I hope that in my future career I am able to learn from this, and apply the things I have learnt to an array of challenging real-life situations. Word count 1293.

Millenium Bug :: essays research papers

The year 2000 is practically around the corner, promising a new era of greatness and wonder . . . as long as you don't own a computer or work with one. The year 2000 is bringing a Pandora's Box of gifts to the computer world, and the latch is slowly coming undone. The year 2000 bug is not really a "bug" or "virus," but is more a computer industry mistake. Many of the PC's, mainframes, and software out there are not designed or programmed to compute a future year ending in double zeros. This is going to be a costly "fix" for the industry to absorb. In fact, Mike Elgan who is the editor of Windows Magazine, says " . . . the problem could cost businesses a total of $600 billion to remedy." (p. 1)The fallacy that mainframes were the only machines to be affected was short lived as industry realized that 60 to 80 million home and small business users doing math or accounting etc. on Windows 3.1 or older software, are just as susceptible to this "bug." Can this be repaired in time? For some, it is already too late. A system that is devised to cut an annual federal deficit to 0 by the year 2002 is already in "hot water." Data will become erroneous as the numbers "just don't add up" anymore. Some PC owners can upgrade their computer's BIOS (or complete operating system) and upgrade the OS (operating system) to Windows 95, this will set them up for another 99 years. Older software however, may very well have to be replaced or at the very least, upgraded.The year 2000 has become a two-fold problem. One is the inability of the computer to adapt to the MM/DD/YY issue, while the second problem is the reluctance to which we seem to be willing to address the impact it will have. Most IS (information system) people are either unconcerned or unprepared. Let me give you a "short take" on the problem we all are facing. To save storage space and perhaps reduce the amount of keystrokes necessary in order to enter the year to date-most IS groups have allocated two digits to represent the year. For example, "1996" is stored as "96" in data files and "2000" will be stored as "00." These two-digit dates will be on millions of files used as input for millions of applications.