Trusts Law Coursework Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Trusts Law - Coursework Example The rest of his property, which includes the North Tawton, would go the Parish Council of Devon. This is to happen if only the wife is not alive otherwise the property should go to the parish council, but the interests that the property gains go to the wife. In his statement, Endacott said that the reason he made that decision is on the bases of providing some memorial to him and his family, which was useful. The basic law indicates that all trusts whether charitable or non charitable should have people who have the benefit of the property and thus its application. According to the law, I totally agree and arguing in accordance to the ruling by the court of appeal made through Lord Evershed, that there is a failure in trying to create a trust that is beneficial to a person1. There are exceptions to the statement and to the law that purpose trusts have no validity. It is rather obvious that prohibition does not apply to powers for the purpose, but it applies only to purpose trusts. Fr om the actual law, it is clear that when there is some level of surety that the person to settle the trust has the intentions to do so, and it is certain in relation to the estate as well as the purpose for the trust, then the trust may fail. According to the current law, there is no trust in the exercise that the court of appeal can control. ... In this case, there is consideration of trustees’ duties and rights towards the property by the court. Thus, there is consideration as whether the trustees’ can utilize the property without interference from other parties. This is in line to the ruling made by the court of appeal in the case of Morice v. the bishop of Durham. Where the court indicates it does not control the property in the case. The court of appeal also may take control of the trust to ensure that there is respect to the intentions of the settler. Where the settler is the initial owner of the property as seen in the case of Roxburgh in Re Astor, I agree to the statement further due to the current law clause on express trust. According to the court of appeal definition for express trust, there must be certainty, formality and the making of the trust must be constitutional. For the trust to be biding, the settler must have the ability to create trust, that is. The settler must own property and hold the p roperty he should be able to speak as well as show the intention to create the trust. The settler can then name the beneficiary as it is the requirement of the court for non-charity trusts. Thus, the trust cannot be binding if there are no beneficiaries as this is against the law for the creation of direct trusts3. The statement may not apply where the trust is discretional following a ruling by the court of appeal in the case of McPhail v. Doulton. Where the trust may have many beneficiaries rather than a few who the settler provides in his list of beneficiaries during the making of the trust, Furthermore, the trustee must be able to say for certain who the beneficiary is when

Dissertation on Teamwork and Customer Service Quality Essay Example for Free

Dissertation on Teamwork and Customer Service Quality Essay 1.0 INTRODUCTION This chapter includes the background of the study, statement of the problem, purpose of the study, objectives of the study, research questions, and scope of the study, significance of the study, limitations of the study and operational definition of terms. 1.1 BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY Phil (2002) team working is a group of people who work together towards a shared and meaningful outcomes in ways that combine their individual skills and abilities and for which they are all responsible. He added that a real team does not just happen but an organization has to work at it, create it, maintain and sustain it for the development and provision of quality standards and expectations to the customers. Organizations need teamwork in order to promote innovation and synergy, improve their goal achievement, promote professional development of team members, achieve time reduction targets and get cross-boundary ownership of tasks and problems. Ronald (2004) argues that customer service depends on the expectations of the individual customer. However, all attempts to define customer service tend to focus on the relationships at the buyer/seller interface. He further added that to achieve the customer service levels expected, an organization need to ensure that for each of these two categories: the systems, measurements and the people are in place to respond to each customer group or market. Juran (2000) says that quality is the degree of excellence that is fitness for the purpose. It can also mean the degree in which customer requirements are met. Quality is built at every stage and teams solve problems where everyone is responsible for the quality of the product. A customer is a person or an organization that buys goods or services from the shop, business, etc on a regular basis. Woods et al (2001) assert that customer service quality as the satisfaction of the agreed customer requirements. This means that the total customer service quality is the mobilization of the whole organization to achieve quality, continuously and economically. National curriculum Development Centre is an arm of the Ministry of Education and sports responsible for the Inter-alia development of curricula and related materials for various levels of education. The National curriculum Development Centre was established by NCDC act chapter 135, laws of Uganda Revised Edition 2000 whose history is decree No 7 of 1973. Baale(2010) a curriculum specialist in math for secondary at NCDC, team working is very crucial in the development and review of curriculum that result into the satisfaction of parents, stakeholders, learners, teachers and the general public. He emphasized that team work cannot be avoided when developing curriculum as it includes a panel composed of members from different areas such as subject specialists, practicing teachers, teachers associations, UNEB representative, ESA representative, teacher trainers especially from some Universities and employers or parents. Team work comes when a subject curriculum is being developed. In this case a panel of 18 members from various institutions sits and develops the curriculum. Baseline survey is conducted from parents, teachers and sometimes from learners which result into child based curriculum. Then pilot study of selected teachers from few schools is done and cluster meetings held by teachers who carried out pilot study. The education system preparation trains all teachers about the developed curriculum and NCDC specifies instructional materials to the ministry of education that are purchased and sent to schools where implementation starts. In a period of 5- 10 years the developed curriculum is supposed to be reviewed. Enyutu (2005) stated that available test results from a wide variety of sources had demonstrated prior to the curriculum review that a majority of Ugandan children entering primary school were failing to achieve adequate literacy and numeric standards. Dropout rates were high with only 22% of the 1997 P1 cohort progressing through to P7 in 2003. NAPE test results in 2003 indicated that only approximately 20% of P6 students achieved basic standards of literacy. The combination of these two pieces of information suggested that of the 1997 P1 entry cohort, only 4-5% achieved basic literacy. NAPE testing also revealed very large and unacceptable regional differentials particularly between Kampala and the north of Uganda. Bearing in mind the enormous efforts and the substantial investments in primary education made by the government of Uganda with strong support from its development partners over the past 10 -15 years, these outcomes were disappointing. In all cases the proposals in these related areas have been discussed with senior staff in the Ministry of education and sports departments concerned and with the agencies and development partners directly involved in primary education in Uganda and there has been a very large measure of agreement on the way ahead. Nevertheless, the primary review team did conclude that there were significant flaws in the current primary curriculum and a failure to provide both sufficient time and an adequate syllabus concentration on the achievement of early literacy and numeracy in lower primary grades was by far the most important problem that needed to be addressed. Failure to achieve basic literacy and numeracy in any language in lower primary grades inevitably has a devastating impact on educational quality and student performance in all other subjects. Failure to achieve early literacy was clearly the issue of greatest concern to parents and the wider community that emerged from the primary curriculum review research. It was also perceived to be one of the major causes of drop- outs. National Curriculum Development Centre seems to be using teamwork when executing its functions. It is against this ground that the researcher will investigate how teamwork at NCDC meets customer requirements. 1.2 STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM Many organizations are focusing on teamwork as a measure to improve the quality of their services delivered through brainstorming, innovation and creativity. Amidst these efforts results are not achieved due to poor coordination, lack of commitment by top management and limited funds. To address these short comings of teamwork visa-a-vie customer service quality in non profit making institutions one needs to access the level of involvement of all stakeholders in order to achieve overall performance levels (Tony 2005). NAPE (2003) report shows poor performance of children in literacy and numeracy skills in either local languages or in English due to insufficient orientation, training and support provided to teachers before the implementation of the curriculum. School supervision by the district inspectorate outside urban areas was almost everywhere insufficient to ensure good school management, the effective delivery of curriculum and regular teacher attendance. Therefore it is the interest of the researcher to know whether customer service quality is achieved through teamwork. 1.3 PURPOSE OF THE STUDY: The purpose of the study will be to examine the impact of team work on customer service quality using National Curriculum Development Centre located at Kyambogo as a case study. 1.4 OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY: The research objectives will be: i. To find out the benefits of using team work in organizations ii. To examine the appropriate team work techniques used in organizations to achieve customer service quality iii. To establish the level of customer service quality at National curriculum Development Centre 1.5 RESEARCH QUESTIONS i. Are there benefits of team work gained by National curriculum Development Centre? ii. What team work techniques does National curriculum Development Centre use to achieve customer service quality? iii. What is the level of customer service quality at National curriculum Development Centre? 1.6 SCOPE OF THE STUDY The scope of the study will cover the subject, time, geographical and sample scope. 1.6.1 The subject Scope: The research will be limited to the impact of team work on one hand as the independent variable and customer service quality as the dependent variable. It will also focus on the achievements of team work at NCDC towards the development of curriculum for educational institutions in the country. 1.6.2 The Geographical Scope: The study will be carried out at National Curriculum Development Centre which is located at Kyambogo near Banda Trading centre off Kampala-Jinja road. NCDC will be an ideal case study because its core values include Respect and Team work, availability of well documented data, commitment to quality and Excellence. 1.6.3 The Time Scope The study will consider an operational time frame of a period of 2 years i.e. from the year 2010 to date. 1.7 SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY: The study is expected to be beneficial in the following ways: i. The study guides planners and policy makers in making factual decisions on serving customers which ensures that all the customers, shareholders and management needs are met satisfactorily. ii. To the academicians, this research gives recommendations for future research and may act as a reference for the entire world regarding contributions of team work on performance of organizations. iii. The study helps the government and customers to identify how team working at NCDC develop curriculum that is relevant to the future career of the learners. 1.8 OPERATIONAL DEFINITION OF TERMS: Team work is working together towards a shared and meaningful out come in ways that combine their individual skills and abilities and for which they are all responsible. Customer service is the satisfaction of agreed customer requirements. Quality is the degree of excellence that is the extent to which something is fit for its purpose. CHAPTER TWO: LITERATURE REVIEW 2.0 INTRODUCTION This chapter consists of what other people have said about the researched problem. The researcher therefore reviews some of the related literature for the better insight of the problem. The chapter includes definition of key terms, impact of team work on customer service quality, benefits of team work in organizations, team work techniques and the level of customer service quality. 2.1 DEFINITION OF KEY TERMS Team work is a group of people who work together towards a shared and meaningful out come in ways that combine their individual skills and abilities and for which they are all responsible Phil (2002) .He added that real team does not just happen but an organization has to work at it, create it, maintain and sustain it for the development and provision of quality standards and expectations to customers. Ronald (2004) argues that customer service depends on the expectations of each individual customer. However, all attempts to define customer service tend to focus on the relationships at the buyer/seller interface. He further added that to achieve customer service levels expected an organization need to ensure that for each of these categories; the systems, measurement and people are in place to respond to each customer group or market. Michael (1999) stated quality as satisfying customers’ and stakeholders’ needs by means of sufficient mutually agreed deliverables that ,meet all the agreed requirements and specifications every time, on time and in affordable manner. It can also mean meeting the requirements of the deliverables that satisfy the needs which have been identified and agreed upon by customers, stakeholders and contractors. 2.2 IMPACT OF TEAM WORK ON CUSTOMER SERVICE QUALITY According to Baguley (2002), team work has a great impact on customer service quality. He raised the following points; Efficiency: Team working is important if people are to continue to be efficient members of the organization. Efficiency is whereby employee’s performance is improved up to the standards of the organizational goals. Team working helps employees to achieve maximum efficiency in their current jobs. It also helps the organization to meet its targets for developing and keeping people with the right skills to meet future needs. It applies to all levels of employees in an organization that is the strategic level, tactical level and operational level. Improved customer service: Team working involves different members of the organization working together and combining their individual skills and abilities to come up with something that is either a product or a service that will be highly accepted by the customers (Baguley, 2002). Innovation and Creativity: Sometimes teams of employees work together to develop new products or services through contributing and combining their different ideas and skills. This helps organizations to have new services for customers that eventually improve on its performance and create and sustain customers (Baguley, 2002). Allan Woods et al (2001) stated that team working requires meetings of teams, sections or departments to understand clearly who does what and ensure reliability which is the single most important aspect of delivering outstanding customer service. The teams organize themselves to take the advantage of the individual skills team members bring with them, work together as a group in ways that bring out the best results and every member of the team must be accountable to each other for the success of the whole team. Team working makes it possible to define and insist upon the maintenance of the standards on behalf of the customers and clients as most of the times customers do not specify their needs by referring to the teams’ attitudes or reliability standards but complain bitterly when the team falls below their perceived standards. Michiel and Harold (1997) observed that cross functional teams are used in new product development to shorten development cycle times, improve quality and reduce development costs. These goals are attained because the functional areas perform their tasks in groups rather than each functional area performing its task and passing the project off to the next functional area and the key functional groups usually design engineering, manufacturing, quality assurance, purchasing and marketing work on the new product and development simultaneously. Baguley (2002) said that team working involves integrating individual skills like problem solving, communication, inter personal skills, decision-making and functional skills for the desired out comes. He further added that a good executive team provides a model for everybody in the organization that encourages cooperation and commonality of purpose at all levels of the organization. An assembly team, erection team, machine shop team add value by creating tangible out comes or products which are specific and clearly defined by others and such products meet the expectations of customers. Bradfield et al (1998) are of the view that direct competition is one of the factors that make companies form development teams. They further stated that to be effective, production has to provide a means by which an organization can focus its resources to meet the needs of their chosen customers efficiently. First it is important to know where you are starting from, second is the decision on where you wish to go in future and the outcome should be a commitment by the organization to a deliberate policy on which customers to serve with products or offerings. Woods et al (2001) further observed that the essence of team working skills lies in good communication and open approach to people and ideas and that all communication skills should be used in promoting good customer service. They also noted that for any organization to meet the needs of customers there is need for team work to obtain feedback from customers and colleagues (both within and outside the organization) as well as about the need to establish planning cycles. Each cycle of planning and doing should therefore reduce the amount of uncertainties being faced and obtain feedback not simply from planning but by doing. Adair (1990) argues that innovation calls for a special form of creativity which he called team creativity. He said that all organizations are teams or at least they are potentially so. For effective production and marketing of goods and services these days, delivery on time, at the required quality and at a competitive price calls for a high performance team work. But to improve these existing products or to develop new products and services requires a different order of teamwork (team creativity). Organizations that practice team creativity will survive and prosper while those that do not will decline and disappear. All employees need to participate as each person at work has approximately 10,000 million brain cells, together with a full range of mental faculties, analyzing, synthesizing and valuing abilities. In all of us these processes can take place intentionally on a conscious plane of thought and also less intentionally in our un conscious minds, giving us insights, intuitions, brain waves, gut feelings, intimations and the occasional pear of a genuinely new idea. As a general principle people with a â€Å"hands- on† involvement in any product or service providing they have a modicum of interest in their work will tend to have new ideas for doing it better. The important thing from the motivational perspective is the feeling of being really part of the enterprise with a full share of responsibility in developing the quality of the product or service. Developing a quality team takes hard work because development of team skills, time and patience is not something you can decide to have one day, then achieve overnight. The entire organization is part of the same team working toward meeting the requirements of its customers. Whether management, front line or behind the scenes employees, everyones work contributes to the end result. There are also specific work unit teams (departmental) with specific goals and assignments. Teams working together can and should be responsible for identifying problems not previously recognized; finding the root causes of problems; suggesting who should work on problems; solving manpower assignments and scheduling improvements; and providing communication throughout the organization. To be effective, teams in the workplace must develop standards and skills, and then implement ongoing training and coaching to ensure they are put into practice (Anand, 1997).

Napster - Stare And Live The Nightmare :: essays research papers

For many years the record companies have fixed record prices to avoid competing with each other and to maximize their profits. Currently, the record companies are collaborating in order to force Napster to shut down. The record companies are claiming that Napster is breaking copyright laws. Napster is a peace of software available for free on the Internet, which allows you to download almost any song you can think of. All you need to get Napster is a computer and Internet connection, the faster the better. Should people feel sympathy for the record companies because of the supposed starvation as a result of Napster file sharing? Or should the sympathy lie with the users of Napster? Let us examine who is trying to shut down Napster and for what reasons. Let us also determine the reasons why people want Napster to remain open. The Record Company is strongly opposed to Napster for one reason and one reason only. Apparently, the record companies are losing more and more of the market to Napster file sharing on the Internet. Record companies justify their lawsuits against Napster with the line so often used in press conferences, â€Å"Napster breaks copyright laws.† This phrase seems like a legitimate argument. One could understand the reasons for feeling this way. For simplicity sake, we will use Dave as an example. Dave developed a product and sells it, and, at first, his product does very well. His product is then duplicated again and again by a person who purchased his product. Dave watches his sales plummet and, of course, feels cheated. Should Dave have the right to sue the person who copied his product? Most people would say yes. This is the argument the record companies are making in defense of the lawsuits against Napster. However, let us look deeper into the matters of sales within the record companies. Record companies say they are suffering as a result of Napster. The price of a CD has stayed the same for many years as far as I can remember. Why would the record companies not raise the price of a CD if their profits were dropping? Also, the sales of records from1999 to 2000 have actually increased 2%. Why would there be an increase in sales if, the record companies claim, Napster is hurting their business and taking up some of the market? I am sure if Napster was good for business in the record companies’ eyes, the record companies would not be complaining about copyright infringement laws being broken.

Inflation always bad for an economy

Is inflation always bad for an economy? Inflation is a general Increase in prices and fall In the purchasing value of money measured as percentage; ways of measuring It Include the retail price index and the consumer price Index. One cost of Inflation Is that firms may have to spend money, time and effort moving money around financial Institutions (banks etc. ) so that they can ensure It doesn't lose Its value, It Incurs shoe leather costs as a result of this.However these costs can be offset by advances in technology, less human intervention is needed and costs are lower Another cost is that inflation leads to Geiger prices, these high prices reduce the competitiveness of the countries companies on global markets this reduces exports and leads to a dependency on imports, severely affecting a countries balance of trade. As imports are a leakage from the circular flow of income, it has negative effects on consumers within the country.Reduced exports due to high prices may lead to firm s having to close, this may lead to staff being made redundant and Increasing the unemployment rate. However, these negative effects may be mitigated If the firms with which the source entry Is trading with has a higher level of Inflation, In which case, the firms In the country will still remain price competitive with foreign companies.One positive of inflation Is that If you have a low and stable rate of demand-pull inflation It may lead to companies producing more as they expect more consumption of their goods. This may lead to them hiring more staff or purchasing more technology, either increasing employment rates or increasing turnovers of other businesses that make the technology required, all of which increase economic activity and have positive effects.Companies can reduce redundancies by increasing real wages by less than inflation, cutting costs but without making staff unemployed which would have sever negative effects on consumers and the economy. The economic costs of i nflation are dependent on a variety of factors, such as the degree of Inflation, for example: higher levels of Inflation always have a worse Impact on an economy than low levels, e. G. Hyperinflation reduces the functionality of money and also as low Inflation reduces the effect of shoe leather costs It Is clearly better than high levels of Inflation. Another determinant of the effects of inflation is whether the inflation was correctly anticipated by consumers and producers and whether inflation in one country is higher than the countries it partakes in trade with because if this is the case, measures can be taken to reduce the negative impacts of inflation.For example pensions could be increased to stay in line with inflation. If these factors are all set in a certain way then the effects of inflation can become positive, however generally this is not the case and inflation negatively affects an economy. Inflation always bad for an economy? By Chatterer Inflation is a general incr ease in prices and fall in the purchasing value of money measured as percentage; ways of measuring it include the retail price index and the consumer price index.One cost of inflation is that firms may have to spend money, time and effort moving money around financial institutions (banks etc. ) so that they can ensure it doesn't lose its value, it incurs shoe leather costs as a result of this. May lead to staff being made redundant and increasing the unemployment rate. However, these negative effects may be mitigated if the firms with which the source entry is trading with has a higher level of inflation, in which case, the firms in the country will still remain price competitive with foreign companies.One positive of inflation is that if you have a low and stable rate of demand-pull inflation it may lead dependent on a variety of factors, such as the degree of inflation, for example: higher levels of inflation always have a worse impact on an economy than low levels, e. G. Hyperinf lation reduces the functionality of money and also as low inflation reduces the effect of shoe leather costs it is clearly better than high levels of inflation.

Economy figures of Australia Essay

The background is about the Electric Bicycles that we take from China, import them, and sell the products in Perth (Australia). We also have our own website that we can sell online to people and ship our bicycles to any where in Australia. In CIA Factbook, Australia is regarded as an example of a prosperous Western-style capitalist economy, with a per capita GDP at the level of the four dominant West European economies. Since Australia has many natural resources, the country becomes a major exporter of agricultural products, minerals, metals, and fossil fuels. Commodities account for 57% of the value of total exports, so that a downturn in world commodity prices can have a big impact on the country’s economy. In addition, the report from CIA also notes that Australian government is pushing for increased exports of manufactured goods, but competition in international markets continues to be severe. While Australia has suffered from the low growth and high unemployment characterizing the OECD countries in the early 1990s and during the recent financial problems in East Asia, the economy has expanded at a solid 4% annual growth pace in the last five years. Below is economy figure of Australia. Table 1 Economy Figures of Australia Population: 21,007,310 (July 2008 est. ) Age Structure: 0-14 years: 18. 8% 15-64 years: 67. 9% 65 years and over: 13. 3% (2008 est. ) Literacy: definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 99% male: 99% Female: 99% (2003 est. ) GDP: Purchasing power parity – $773 billion (2007 est. ) GDP – real growth rate: 4. 3% (2007 est. ) GDP – per capita: $37,300 (2007 est. ) GDP – composition by sector: agriculture: 3% industry: 26. 4% Services: 70. 6% (2007 est. ) Inflation rate (consumer prices): 2. 3% (2007 est. ) Industries: mining, industrial and transportation equipment, food processing, chemicals, steel Industrial production growth rate: 4. 1% (2007 est. ) Exports: coal, iron ore, gold, meat, wool, alumina, wheat, machinery and transport equipment Exports – commodities: coal, gold, meat, wool, alumina, iron ore, wheat, machinery and transport equipment Exports – partners: Japan 18. 1%, US 8. 7%, China 8. 4%, South Korea 7. 4%, New Zealand 7. 4%, UK 6. 7% (2003 est. ) Imports: $160 billion (2007 est. ) Imports – commodities: machinery and transport equipment, computers and office machines, telecommunication equipment and parts; crude oil and petroleum products Imports – partners: China 14. 3%, US 12. 9%, Japan 9. 6%, Singapore 6. 1%, Germany 5. 2%, UK 4. 4%, Thailand 4% (2007) Source: Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), 2008 The above statistics show that selling bicycle in Australia is attractive since Australia rate China as main import partners. In addition, the market for electric bicycle is quite enormous considering that the number of people at age 15-64 year accounts 67. 9% of total Australian population. 1. Technology The development of technology in Australia is extensive as Australian university encourages the innovation and invention in all aspects. In addition, the country also consider the intellectual property, which help Australian business to establish and maintain international markets for new technology (IDC, 2008). 2. Legal and Political The International trade laws and regulations assembled by a country emerged from various national backgrounds. Countries possessing different geographical structure for example, would produce different export commodities, thus results a different ‘tone’ of trade laws. Other factors such as the culture of citizens and national politic tendencies have also significant contributions in making a country’s international trade laws. The trade between Australia and China is also based on the free trade agreement commencing in 2005 in which a study conclude that there would be significant economic benefits for both Australia and China through the negotiation of an FTA. Australia’s export and quarantine laws are design to meet certain standard of quality exports goods. It emphasizes on protection towards Australia’s animals, plants, human health and the overall environment. It also emphasizes strict standard regarding certain quality requirements to meet foreign countries’ satisfaction. They believe that export trade is vital to Australia’s prosperity and high standard of living. The commitment to ensure export goods and services quality goes all the way, as Australia implement their steps of ensuring quality, which are: a. In cooperation with the industry involved AQIS makes standard requirements on export goods and services and state them in the legislation. b. Industry are guided to implement management systems to achieve compliance with the stated laws c. AQIS systems are obligated to verify the compliance between the goods/service and the laws by investigations. d. AQIS takes a final action of allowing exports activities or not allowing, in case of non compliance. 3. Culture The Australian culture is considered as the most diverse culture in the world due to the people of Australian historically comes from English People; thus the main culture in Australia is â€Å"Anglo Celtic†. However, as the globalization occurs in Australia, the country’s culture tends to be more Americanized. It suggests that product offering in Australia would in some level follow the trends in the U. S. (Mapsofworld. com, 2008). 4. Ethical Considerations and their management The last mentioned issue in international trade that will be mentioned in this paper is ethics. Business ethics refers various moral and ethical problems that can arise in business activities. The study focuses on how each individual involved within trade activities are burdened with special duties and obligations that must be performed. It emphasizes the importance of ethical guidelines in making business decisions. Some might even say that ethics form the very foundation of international economic activities. What we have been surely witness is the increasing attention on business ethics and its applications in line with the more complicated nature of business and business activities. The importance of ethical guidelines has been increasingly popular lately because of several reasons. First, there is s growing public awareness that societies have the right to expect business to function within ethical boundaries. A company is a part of its community that must live in harmony with the surrounding environment like all individuals and organizations. Furthermore, companies take their resources from their environment, which implies that these companies give something back to their community. For the least, there is an invisible social contract between business and its societies that all business activities will honor and accord with the limitations of justice (England, 2008). In the light of this growing awareness of corporate positions in the community, most companies generate and implement a code of conduct that guides their behavior to internal as well as external parties. The code of conduct represents corporate assessment of what behavior is expected out of employees and managers. Furthermore, the latest development in international business revealed the consensus upon the necessity of an international code of ethical practice to survive the global economy. These global ethical guidelines consist of the following principles: a. Integration, which means all business activities must never be out of the ethical context b. Implementation, which means changing all existing activities to match the ethical standards c. Internationalization, which demands integrity throughout the entire chain of global partnership, frees from cultural sentiments and directed toward the global context (England, 2008). Reference A Successfull Global Trader. Retrieved October 29, 2008 from http://www. dfat. gov. au/facts/search Central Intelligence Agency (CIA).(2008). World Fact book 2004: Australia. Retrieved October 29, 2008 from http://www. cia. gov/cia/publications/factbook/geos/as. html England, Lizabeth. Principles of Business Ethics. Retrieved October 29, 2008 from http://exchanges. state. gov/forum/journal/bus1background. htm IDC. (2008). Innovation & Technology Australia. Retrieved October 29, 2008 from http://www. innovation. org. au/ Mapsofworld. com. (2008). Australia Culture. Retrieved October 29, 2008 from http://www. mapsofworld. com/australia/australia-culture/.

development of fusion reactor essays

development of fusion reactor essays Many of scientists have spent abundant amount of years trying to figure out a way to access infinite, clean, accessible energy. Thats why the development of the fusion reactor is a very important invention in the world of science. Some people may ask what exactly is a fusion reactor, and how does it work? The large amount of energy let go by the sun and the stars is the result of the changing of matter into energy. This occurs when the lightest atom, hydrogen, is heated to very high temperatures forming a special gas called plasma. In this plasma, hydrogen atoms combine, or "fuse", to form a heavier atom, helium. In the process of fusing, some of the hydrogen involved is converted directly into large amounts of energy. In order for fusion reactions to occur, the particles must be hot enough temperature, in sufficient number of density and well limited confinement time. These simultaneous conditions are represented by a fourth state of matter known as plasma. In a plasma, electrons are uncovered from their nuclei. A plasma, as a result, consists of charged particles, ions and electrons. There are three main mechanisms for confining these hot plasmas - magnetic, inertial and gravitational. Magnetic confinement takes w hold of strong magnetic fields, usually 100,000 times the earth's magnetic field, set in a pattern to prevent the charged particles from leaking out. Inertial confinement uses powerful lasers or high energy particle beams to press the fusion fuel together. The enormous force of gravity confines the fuel in the sun and stars. There are two main reasons for pursuing fusion research, the furthering of our understanding of the actions of plasmas that make up most of the known universe, and the creation of a new energy source. Fusion energy would be a renewable energy technology that offers a significant mix of potential advantages. Fusion fuels are abundant and readily available to all nations. Using fusion ener...

The Characters in All My Sons by Arthur Miller

The Characters in All My Sons by Arthur Miller Arthur Millers drama All My Sons asks a tough question: How far should a man go to secure his familys well-being? The play delves into deeply moral issues regarding our obligations to our fellow man. Divided into three acts, the story unfolds in the following manner: Act One: The friendly Keller household is introduced.Act Two: The truth about Joe Keller is revealed.Act Three: After facing the truth, the characters make final choices. Like other works by Arthur Miller, All My Sons is a critique of an overzealously capitalistic society. It shows what happens when humans are ruled by greed. It demonstrates how self-denial cannot last forever. And it is Arthur Millers characters who bring these themes to life. Joe Keller Joe seems like the traditional, amiable 1940s father figure. Throughout the play, Joe presents himself as a man who deeply loves his family but also has great pride in his business. Joe Keller has been running a successful factory for decades. During World War II, his business partner and neighbor, Steve Deever noticed some faulty airplane parts about to be shipped for use by the U.S. military. Steve says that he contacted Joe who ordered that shipment, but Joe denies this, saying that he was home sick that day. By the plays end, the audience discovers the dark secret Joe has been concealing: Joe decided to send the parts through because he was afraid that admitting the companys mistake would destroy his business and his familys financial stability. He allowed the sale of faulty airplane parts to be shipped to the frontline, resulting in the death of twenty-one pilots. After the cause of the deaths was discovered, both Steve and Joe were arrested. Claiming his innocence, Joe was exon erated and released and the entire blame shifted to Steve who remains in jail. Like many other characters within the play, Joe is capable of living in denial. It is not until the plays conclusion that he ultimately faces his own guilty conscience - and then he chooses to destroy himself rather than deal with the consequences of his actions. Larry Keller Larry was Joes oldest son. The audience does not learn too many details about Larry; the character dies during the war, and the audience never meets him - no flashbacks, no dream sequences. However, we do hear his final letter to his girlfriend. In the letter, he reveals his feeling of disgust and disappointment towards his father. The content and tone of the letter suggest that perhaps Larrys death was due to combat. Perhaps life was no longer worth living because of the shame and anger he felt. Kate Keller A devoted mother, Kate still holds on to the possibility that her son Larry is alive. She believes that one day they will receive word that Larry was only wounded, perhaps in a coma, unidentified. Basically, she is waiting for a miracle to arrive. But theres something else about her character. She holds onto the belief that her son lives because if he perished during the war, then (she believes) her husband is responsible for her sons death. Chris Keller In many ways, Chris is the most admirable character in the play. He is a former World War II soldier, so he knows firsthand what it was like to face death. Unlike his brother, and the many men who died (some of them because of Joe Kellers faulty airplane parts), he managed to survive. He plans to marry his late brothers former girlfriend, Ann Deever. Yet, he is very respectful about his brothers memory, as well as the conflicting feelings of his fiancà ©. He also has come to terms with the death of his brother and hopes that his mother will soon be able to peacefully accept the sad truth. Finally, Chris, like so many other young men, idealizes his father. His strong love for his father makes the revelation of Joes guilt all the more heart-wrenching. Ann Deever As mentioned above, Ann is in an emotionally fragile situation. Her boyfriend Larry was missing in action during the war. For months she hoped that he had survived. Gradually, she came to terms with Larrys death, eventually finding renewal and love in Larrys younger brother, Chris. However, since Kate (Larrys seriously-in-denial Mom) believes that her eldest son is still alive, she is mortified when she discovers that Ann and Chris plan to marry. On top of all this tragedy/romance material, Ann also laments the disgrace of her father (Steve Deever), whom she believes is the sole criminal, guilty of selling faulty parts to the military. (Thus, theres great dramatic tension, as the audience waits to see how Ann will react when she discovers the truth: Steve isnt the only guilty one. Joe Keller is guilty too!) George Deever Like many of the other characters, George (brother of Ann, son of Steve) believed that his father was guilty. However, after finally visiting in father in prison, he now believes that Keller was in fact primarily responsible for the death of the pilots and that his father Steve Deever should not be the only one in jail. George also served during World War II, thus giving him a greater stake in the drama, for he is not only seeking justice for his family, but for his fellow soldiers.

Meaning, Origin, and Uses of Gringo

Meaning, Origin, and Uses of 'Gringo' So someone calls you a gringo or gringa. Should you feel insulted? It depends. Nearly always referring to foreigners in a Spanish-speaking country, gringo is one of those words whose precise meaning, and often its emotional quality, can vary with geography and context. Yes, it can be and often is an insult. But it can also be a term of affection or neutral. And the word has been used long enough outside of Spanish-speaking areas that it is listed in English dictionaries, spelled and pronounced essentially the same in both languages. Origin of Gringo The etymology or origin of the Spanish word is uncertain, although it is likely to have come from griego, the word for Greek. In Spanish, as in English, it has long been common to refer to an unintelligible language as Greek. (Think Its Greek to me or ​Habla en griego.) So over time, griegos apparent variant, gringo, came to refer to a foreign language and to foreigners in general. The first known written English use of the word was in 1849 by an explorer. One bit of folk etymology about gringo is that it originated in Mexico during the Mexican-American war because Americans would sing the song Green Grow the Lilies. As the word originated in Spain long before there was a Spanish-speaking Mexico, there is no truth to this urban legend. In fact, at one time, the word in Spain was often used to refer specifically to the Irish. And according to a 1787 dictionary, it often referred to someone who spoke Spanish poorly. Related Words In both English and Spanish, gringa is used to refer to a female (or, in Spanish, as a feminine adjective). In Spanish, the term Gringolandia is sometimes used to refer to the United States. Gringolandia can also refer to the tourist zones of some Spanish-speaking countries, especially those areas where many Americans congregate. Another related word is engringarse, to act like a gringo. Although the word appears in dictionaries, it doesnt appear to have much actual use. How the Meaning of Gringo Varies In English, the term gringo is often used to refer to an American or British person visiting Spain or Latin America. In Spanish-speaking countries, its use is more complex with its meaning, at least its emotional meaning, depending to a great extent on its context. Probably more often than not, gringo is a term of contempt used to refer to foreigners, especially Americans and sometimes the British. However, it can also be used with foreign friends as a term of affection. One translation sometimes given for the term is Yankee, a term that sometimes is neutral but also can be used contemptuously (as in Yankee, go home!). The dictionary of the Real Academia Espaà ±ola offers these definitions, which can vary according to the geography of where the word is used: Foreigner, especially one who speaks English, and in general one who speaks a language that isnt Spanish.As an adjective, to refer to a foreign language.A resident of the United States (definition used in Bolivia, Chile, Colombia, Cuba, Ecuador, Honduras, Nicaragua, Paraguay, Peru, Uruguay, and Venezuela).Native of England (definition used in Uruguay).Native of Russia (definition used in Uruguay).A person with white skin and blond hair (definition used in Bolivia, Honduras, Nicaragua, and Peru).An unintelligible language.

Text-Based Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Text-Based - Research Paper Example The news media is also able to convey the health of the economy to the viewers of its different sections. They thus, perform a very valuable function in the society. This paper shall look at how the news industry has on occasions failed to live up to the expectations that are made of it. The article shall also look at news that focuses on gossip and its effects. Later on, the essay shall look at alternate forms of news. The essay shall also focus on the reporting of wars in the news media. The essay shall also look at the neglect that foreign affairs are made to face by the American public in times of peace. The essay shall then go on to analyze the selective reporting of news and the biases that may be behind such a phenomenon. The essay shall thus, look at various aspects of American news media, focusing on its problems and some of the solutions that have emerged from within the industry itself. The article by the news agency AP, â€Å"AP: We Ignored Paris†, points to a mala ise that affects news media in these times. Almost as a matter of routine, one finds that newspapers and news channels on the television report items that do not concern the daily lives of the common citizens of the world. This is a phenomenon that one finds all over the world. The ironic part of this phenomenon is the fact that this is carried out in the name of the common citizen, who according to the news media, wants them to report such news. The article in question repudiates such a myth, placing the blame for such standards of reportage on the reporters and editors themselves. Such reportage takes attention away from real articles of news at a time when the nation is at war and several internal security issues have been a thorn in the flesh of the government. The responsibility of the media is clearly to convey such issues to all sections of the society. This is not what the media has done and this reflects, according to Jan Wieten, a class-based bias that the media has harbor ed for years. The sections of the media that caters to the elite sections of the society has always reported on problematic areas of governance and the economy. On the other hand, those sections of the media that have been accessible to the lower classes of the society have always resorted to irrelevant pieces of news, under the assumption that such sections ‘want’ such news. Wieten argues that such a view has always taken the shape of gossip and tabloids. Such forms of the news media attempt to classify false articles of news as real in an attempt to sell them. The profusion of reality shows is only the latest form of such news, according to Wieten (1998). Such forms of the media obfuscate the real news, deflecting the attention of the masses, the people who are responsible for the election of the government that has to ultimately, take decisions. There are however, forms of the news media that do believe in entertainment and news value. Rachel Smolkin speaks of one su ch program, The Daily Show with Jon Stewart in her essay, â€Å"What the Mainstream Media Can Learn From Jon Stewart†. She speaks of the fact that the binary between entertaining programs and non-entertaining or informative ones has led to the creation of certain shows that are merely entertaining without being informative and some with no entertainment at all. Her argument is aimed at such shows and reveals the need for

Dwight D. Eisenhower as President Research Paper

Dwight D. Eisenhower as President - Research Paper Example (â€Å"Biography: Dwight David Eisenhower.†). Eisenhower excelled at sports, particularly football, and was an enthusiastic outdoorsman. The skills he nurtured at Abilene included poker, keen powers of observation and personal assessment, and racial integration. A tireless worker, he produced and sold tamales and vegetables, harvested wheat, and served as a fireman every night of the week (â€Å"All About Eisenhower.†). Eisenhower won an appointment to West Point in 1911. He detested hazing, and exhibited natural leadership qualities, graduating in the upper half of his class in 1915. He married Mamie Geneva Doud in July 1916. They had two sons, Doud Dwight, who died at age three, and John Sheldon Doud. Eisenhower’s military career continued until 1948, when he resigned to become the President of Columbia University. In 1950, he was appointed the Supreme Commander of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization. He was elected the thirty-fourth President of the United States on 4 November, 1954 and went on to serve a second term. Eisenhower retired from the Presidency to live on Gettysburg Farm in Pennsylvania. Eisenhower played the role of Elder Statesman, advising the Republican Party and Presidents Kennedy and Johnson. Following a rapid decline in health, he was admitted to the Walter Reed hospital, where he died of heart failure on 28 March, 1969. Eisenhower was buried in his â€Å"beloved Abilene† (â€Å"Biography: Dwight David Eisenhower.†). Eisenhower’s brilliant military career makes for impressive reading. The newly commissioned second lieutenant was posted at   Ft. Sam Houston, Texas in 1915. The following years saw him make the round of military posts in Texas, Georgia, Maryland, Pennsylvania, and New Jersey. His duties included football coaching, and training recruits for World War I. He served in the War Department's First Transcontinental Motor Convoy. He was deeply disappointed in missing active World War I d uty. (â€Å"Biography: Dwight David Eisenhower.†). In 1920, after volunteering to be a Tanks Corps observer, Eisenhower authored a critical article â€Å"advocating that the Army make better use of tanks to prevent a repetition of the static and destructive trench warfare of World War I† (â€Å"American President: Dwight Eisenhower (1890-1969)†). Eisenhower was reprimanded for this. His transfer to the Panama Canal Zone brought him under the mentorship of General Fox Connor, who helped him to enter the elite Command and General Staff School at Ft. Leavenworth, Kansas. Eisenhower graduated first in his class. As an aide to General Pershing, he toured Europe, gaining valuable insights. He went on to serve as military advisor to General MacArthur in the Philippines, helping to develop an effective Philippine army. On his return to America, Eisenhower’s sterling leadership and planning skills in the Louisiana Maneuvers made him a Brigadier General. At the out break of World War II hostilities, Eisenhower’s Pacific war plans impressed Army Chief of Staff George Marshall, and resulted in Eisenhower’s meteoric rise to a five-star General. He ensured cooperation among the allies as Commanding General, US Army, European Theater; he commanded the Allied troops’ invasion of North Africa in Operation Torch; he directed the invasion of Sicily and Italy; he served as the Supreme Commander of the Allied forces in the invasion of Western Europe in Operation

Encourage Healthy Eating Paper Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Encourage Healthy Eating Paper - Essay Example The need is to understand where the line needs to be drawn and how this shall come about in a normal manner. What is quintessential to note here is the fact that healthy eating can only happen when the individuals know what they are looking forward to having within their ranks, and how they shall enact pathways and means through which their health standards would be made better. The individuals who believe in eating well are usually the ones who are fitter than the rest, and hence the basis of success comes about within their folds. If there are taxes in place to make sure that the soft drinks and junk food are not consumed, this shall make the lives of the people better. They would abstain from consuming junk food because they will know it will cost them much at the end of the day. However, this can only come about when encouragement is there for the people who eat healthy and want to spend their lives in a positive and active way. Higher taxes could be contested by certain individu als but one should believe this is the only way out under such problems that come about within the lives of the people. After all, it is always a good omen for any business to understand how the positive change premise needs to be incorporated, especially when the talk goes out loud regarding the healthy eating habits. ... Heavy taxes on such soft drinks and junk food would ensure that the young ones and teenagers do away with such consumption levels, and eat fresh and healthy at all times. Then again, there are moments when they can consume junk food but it must not be made as a habit for them on a consistent basis. Higher taxes would not be appreciated by people of such age groups but this is the only manner under which they can cut down on purchases that they make of the soft drinks and junk food, which they eat time and again. Imposing heavy taxes on soft drinks and junk food purchase would mean that the kids would ask for lesser money from their parents and hence would know that they are saving on the hard-earned cash of their elders (Jones, 2011). Also they would realize that earning money is not an easy task, and saving it is always a good exercise to undertake. When the parents know that their young ones are saving money rather than spending the same on junk food, they are more open to understa nding that the children need to be given more money so that they can utilize it properly. Plus they are well-informed that their young ones know how to deal with money and what their understandings levels have been over a period of time. However, this is always easier said than done because the children find a way to waste money on junk food and soft drinks because when they are out enjoying with friends, colleagues and cousins, they care less about what they are eating and where they are spending their pocket money. Now the need is to have a pep talk session between the parents and their children so that the latter know where they are going wrong and

Nature of Philosophy Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Nature of Philosophy - Essay Example According to Nash (2010), the nature of philosophy is the way people live and view the world. It points out clearly how people live a life without a god. Nash (2010) argues further that philosophy is a way of comprehending the world around us. This implies that its nature includes the ability to view something and interpret it into realities that make sense to us. Philosophy has a vital purpose to us. It helps us apprehend what world view is. We are able to attain a good understanding of our own world views. It guides us to improve our own ways of viewing the world. Philosophy makes us become familiar with world view of others. We are able to know that world views are different. For instance, our world view as students differs with those of Plato and Socrates (Nash 2010). Philosophy has a great response to the ultimate questions in the world. It provides possible solutions to the ultimate causes in the world. It also explains the purpose of existence of human beings. This implies that the study of philosophy will help us comprehend who we are. Finally, it assists us to adapt to our world. Finally, Philosophy plays a major in recognizing people’s values in the world. It does not take sides. Instead, it provides a space for all manner of thinking. It serves the purpose like that of the chief judge in a government. This means that it listens, comprehends and analyzes all circumstances in a given situation. Discussion of the World Views World view contains people’s answers to key questions in life. It is a systematic roadmap with an individual’s beliefs. It has factual views of life and the globe. Many views of the world lack consistency. Therefore, few of them are complete with a systematic steadiness. It is a vital thing to attain a high awareness of world view. World view helps others to understand their own world views. We can also aid them accomplish a systematic and consistent world view. This implies that a world view is a scheme consisting of our fundamental beliefs. Through it, we are able to judge and interpret our realities. It is fundamen tal to note that world view operates in a similar way the eyeglasses work. For instance, the right eyeglass has the capability to put the planet into a clear focal point. Therefore, the world view can also perform the same duty of eyeglass. This also implies that when people view the world imperfectly, reality does not make sense to them. This means that it is of essence to view the world with the right world view framework. It will impact positive consequences on people’s way of thinking and acting (Nash 2010). Components of World View Beliefs about God Any world view has a vital element. A world view differs greatly over basic questions about God. For instance, is there God? What is His nature? Is God a human being? And who created God? These conflicting views result to inconsistent world views. This is because different world view systems have diversified world views concerning God. For instance, the Hinduism and Buddhism differ from the Judaism and Christianity about the beliefs of God. Therefore, the view of God is an important component of World view. Ultimate Reality World view entails of solutions to questions about the universe. For instance, the world view responds to questions like: Who created the world? What is the main purpose of the world? Will the universe be destroyed finally? Is the universe spiritual, material or something different? These questions do not take place in most people. But anyone reading Ronald’s book of ultimate Questions of life will think about them. They will hold beliefs about some of them (2010). Theory of Knowledge People in the world strongly hold to this belief of epistemology. They have different opinions once they are asked about the possibility of the knowledge about the world. They will always provide no and yes answers. Some of the key questions in relation to epistemology are: Can we really trust our own senses? What are the main

PETROLEUM POLLUTION IN INTERNATIONAL WATERS -(THE ROLE OF Literature review

PETROLEUM POLLUTION IN INTERNATIONAL WATERS -(THE ROLE OF INTERNATIONAL LAW AND TREATIES) - Literature review Example To achieve this end, reviewer will concisely and critically discuss the literature’s structure, contents and evaluate if international laws are appreciated in resolving petroleum pollution cases in high seas. Content: Preventing Oil Spill thru Standards Authors of this literature are Nicholas P. Chereminisinoff and Paul Rosenfeld. They are chemical engineer and environmental chemist respectively with expertise on environmental pollution prevention and ecological restoration programs. Chereminisinoff and Rosenfeld aimed to share high impact contribution on pollution control processes by probing into petroleum industry to document best management practices and models, cleaner production of technologies and pollution prevention practices. This is clearly depicted in the title of the journal Pollution Prevention and Cleaner Industry: Best Practices in Petroleum Industry. Structurally, the literatures have no Abstract section but concise topic and themes where explicated in the Pre face Section. Authors detailed prevention of oil spill in six chapters, all of which had separate introduction, body and conclusion. Each chapter has proper author referencing to corroborate studies and they prescribed other references for further reading too. The document is sufficient of originality for journals, logically concluded with illustration and can be summarized without sacrifice to content. Authors indicated in introduction their serious concern on petroleum pollution in both land, air and high seas citing impact to industries, corporation and vessel owners that are supposedly boxed by policies on standard quality control (applied to oil extraction industry), corporation laws, maritime laws, insurance and environmental policies. Petroleum pollution’s devastating impact to ecosystem were all pointed in the introduction citing issues on protection, compliance to regulations, toxic management, performance audit, and the like. Thus, authors at the outset asserted tha t corporations engaged in the extraction and distribution of petroleum across continents should have transparent Environmental Aspects in accordance to internationally ISO standards for standard quality control to prevent disasters and environmental destructions. They urged corporate entities to strictly adhere to regulations by exercising strategic corporate planning, standard operational system, environmental protection standards, risk management, regular performance appraisal and thorough environmental impact assessments. As hypothetical assertion, they argued that corporation should not just generate revenue but must include pollution prevention for cost –efficiency, especially that oil extraction and distribution is a capital intensive venture. Authors manifested that they disfavored extractive industry’s productivity at the expense of environment and public safety. On methodology, authors did not expressly stated how data collection was done but their handbook cl early depicted the use of mixed qualitative and quantitative research studies that absorbed empirical facts which covered (a) comprehensive narration about petroleum industry, quality standards required in its facilities and operations and about quality

HYPOTHETICAL Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

HYPOTHETICAL - Essay Example The partnership act of 1891, section five, defines partnership as a business organization formed by two or more people for the purposes of making a profit. According to the act, there must be involved, for the purposes of conducting the business as a joint venture. There must be obligations between the partners and sharing of profits among them determines partnership. In the case of Canny Gabriel Castle Jackson Advertising (pty) ltd vs. Volume Sales Finance (pty), (1974) 131 CLR 321, the high court ruled that for there to be a partnership, sharing of profits and loses must occur, and an organized structure of operation must be proved (Higgins and Victoria, 1970). In the above scenario, there is partnership between Henry and Angus. This is because the two agreed to form the business as a joint venture and they share profits together. This satisfies the requirements of the partnership act, section 6(c) and section 5 (1). In section 6, sub section c, it states that a partner is considered in a partnership if he has a stake in the earnings and section 5 subsection 1, identifies a partnership as a relationship between two consenting parties aimed at making profits. Under the law, Lorenzo cannot be considered a partner of the business entity. This is outlined in the partnership act, section 6 subsection c (v1). The law states that a person receiving annuity from the business by selling the persons goodwill is not by reason a partner in the business. This section disqualifies Lorenzo from being a partner of the firm since he does not share in the profits of the business. Even though his name is on the business, it acts as goodwill and it does not necessarily make him a partner. From the above analysis, the partners of the business are Henry and Angus, and FRSPL should look at various legal mechanisms of recovering their debts from the

PETROLEUM POLLUTION IN INTERNATIONAL WATERS -(THE ROLE OF Literature review

PETROLEUM POLLUTION IN INTERNATIONAL WATERS -(THE ROLE OF INTERNATIONAL LAW AND TREATIES) - Literature review Example To achieve this end, reviewer will concisely and critically discuss the literature’s structure, contents and evaluate if international laws are appreciated in resolving petroleum pollution cases in high seas. Content: Preventing Oil Spill thru Standards Authors of this literature are Nicholas P. Chereminisinoff and Paul Rosenfeld. They are chemical engineer and environmental chemist respectively with expertise on environmental pollution prevention and ecological restoration programs. Chereminisinoff and Rosenfeld aimed to share high impact contribution on pollution control processes by probing into petroleum industry to document best management practices and models, cleaner production of technologies and pollution prevention practices. This is clearly depicted in the title of the journal Pollution Prevention and Cleaner Industry: Best Practices in Petroleum Industry. Structurally, the literatures have no Abstract section but concise topic and themes where explicated in the Pre face Section. Authors detailed prevention of oil spill in six chapters, all of which had separate introduction, body and conclusion. Each chapter has proper author referencing to corroborate studies and they prescribed other references for further reading too. The document is sufficient of originality for journals, logically concluded with illustration and can be summarized without sacrifice to content. Authors indicated in introduction their serious concern on petroleum pollution in both land, air and high seas citing impact to industries, corporation and vessel owners that are supposedly boxed by policies on standard quality control (applied to oil extraction industry), corporation laws, maritime laws, insurance and environmental policies. Petroleum pollution’s devastating impact to ecosystem were all pointed in the introduction citing issues on protection, compliance to regulations, toxic management, performance audit, and the like. Thus, authors at the outset asserted tha t corporations engaged in the extraction and distribution of petroleum across continents should have transparent Environmental Aspects in accordance to internationally ISO standards for standard quality control to prevent disasters and environmental destructions. They urged corporate entities to strictly adhere to regulations by exercising strategic corporate planning, standard operational system, environmental protection standards, risk management, regular performance appraisal and thorough environmental impact assessments. As hypothetical assertion, they argued that corporation should not just generate revenue but must include pollution prevention for cost –efficiency, especially that oil extraction and distribution is a capital intensive venture. Authors manifested that they disfavored extractive industry’s productivity at the expense of environment and public safety. On methodology, authors did not expressly stated how data collection was done but their handbook cl early depicted the use of mixed qualitative and quantitative research studies that absorbed empirical facts which covered (a) comprehensive narration about petroleum industry, quality standards required in its facilities and operations and about quality

The Virgin and Child with Saint Anne by Da Vinci and the Virgin by Term Paper

The Virgin and Child with Saint Anne by Da Vinci and the Virgin by Roger van der Weyden - Term Paper Example The paper "The Virgin and Child with Saint Anne by Da Vinci and the Virgin by Roger van der Weyden" compares two paintings, The Virgin and Child with Saint Anne by Leonardo da Vinci and St. Luke Drawing the Virgin by Roger van der Weyden. The compare and contrast study of the works The Virgin and Child with Saint Anne by Leonardo da Vinci and St. Luke Drawing the Virgin by Roger van der Weyden prove that Leonardo da Vinci’s work is symbolic of the origin of Renaissance art and Roger van der Weyden’s work is symbolic of the growth and development of art. In this essay, the subject under discussion is divided into two: compare and contrast study (visual effect, content) and discussion (significant influences on the artists’ painting styles). One can easily identify that the work The Virgin and Child with Saint Anne is visually rich because the same deals with life. Joanne Mattern pointed out that, â€Å"The painting depicts the Virgin Mary, the baby Jesus, and Sai nt Anne†. The work is visually attractive because the same is interconnected with the events that can be seen in daily life. Comparing with Leonardo da Vinci’s work, the visual effect of the work St. Luke Drawing the Virgin by Roger van der Weyden is not much attractive, but the same deals with a Biblical theme. For instance, St. Luke’s presence in the painting is symbolic of religious significance, not motherly love. But in the painting The Virgin and Child with Saint Anne, St. Anne enjoys her grandchild’s playful attitude. ... On the other side, Roger van der Weyden selected religious iconography as the theme of his work and it influenced the visual effect of the same. Fred S. Kleiner stated that, â€Å"The panel depicts the patron saint of painters drawing the Virgin Mary using a silver point (a sharp stylus that creates a fine line)† (406). In the painting St. Luke Drawing the Virgin, both St. Anne and the Virgin Mary symbolize motherly love and affection toward humanity in general. In Leonardo da Vinci’s work, infant Jesus’ attitude towards the lamb is symbolic of the hardships to be suffered by him in future. So, Leonardo da Vinci’s work’s content is interconnected with the Holy Bible. Similar to Leonardo da Vinci’s work, Roger van der Weyden made use of Christianity as the theme, but he altered the content to a different level. For instance, Saint Luke’s presence in the work is symbolic of artistic creativity. On the other side, Virgin Mary and infant J esus are symbolic of Christian faith. So, one can easily identify that Roger van der Weyden’s work is an amalgamation of artistic creativity and Christian faith. B. Discussion: Leonardo da Vinci’s painting style is deeply influenced by his master Verrocchio. At the same time, his interest in sculpture and architecture influenced his painting style. Besides, his paintings are symbolic of the relationship between human beings and Mother Nature. Frank Zollner stated that, â€Å"Besides studies of the models usually found in artist’s workshops, Leonardo also made equally important studies from nature† (8). For instance, Leonardo da Vinci made use of the background of his works to portray nature. At the same time, the influence of science can be seen in his artworks. His works are

Alzheimer’s disease Essay Example for Free

Alzheimer’s disease Essay #1 Make Observation What causes Alzheimer’s disease neurologically? This question came to my mind when I was watching the movie ‘The Notebook’ for the fifth time. Unusual for a guy, I love romantic genre movies and I was wondering why Alzheimer causes short and long term memory loss. I also had an interest on the Alzheimer’s disease after watching the movie ‘Rise of the Planet of the Apes’ where the protagonist tries to fix the neurology nerve system to heal his father’s Alzheimer. #2 Ask Question What causes Alzheimer’s disease neurologically? #3 Create possible explanation I think the core reason of the Alzheimer’s disease lie on the nerve pathway signal transmission. I think the nerve pathway signal transmission system is same as all of the body functional system and as it grows older and older, the functioning of the specific nerve pathway signal transmission for memories weakens and decreases. #4 Making predictions based on this model If the problem of the Alzheimer’s disease is in the nerve pathway signal transmission, then the Alzheimer’s disease is indeed a neurological problem. If we can find out the way to re-ignite the signal or heal the receiving or sending parts of the neurological nerve signal system, then we will be able to delay the process of the disease or even fix it permanently. #5 Test with controls I do not know the system of the central neurological nerve system of the human nor the treatment of the Alzheimer’s disease. However, to find out numerous people with and without the disease should complete the cause of the Alzheimer’s disease. Run a MRI test on brain of the participants and compare the MRI results with the people with and without the Alzheimer’s disease. If it shows some difference showing the weakening or decreasing of the nerve pathway signal transmission then we can conclude that the neurological nerve pathway signal transmission is the cause of the Alzheimer’s disease. However, we can’t be sure that that is the only causes of the Alzheimer’s disease so we will have to create more experiments. #6 Exploration Alzheimer disease is a neurological disease and it is one of the many forms of dementia. The researches says that the Alzheimer’s disease is the most common form of dementia since its percentage is over half of the total dementia cases. My question was ‘what causes the Alzheimer’s disease neurologically?’ so I decided to first go research about the neuroscience of the human body since the Alzheimer’s disease is primarily the degenerating of the signal pathway system in the brain. The human have a special cell called the neurons in the nervous system and these cells communicate with other cells by synapses. This is the most basic difference between a normal cell and a neuron. Synapses signal can be either chemical or electrical and they are just membrane-to-membrane junctions with such molecular machinery that produces rapid transmission of signals. There isn’t just one neuron in human. In fact, there are hundreds of different types with differ ent functions and shapes. So all these information led me to an another question of ‘what kind of neurons are related to the Alzheimer’s disease?’ I found out that Alzheimer’s kills neurons due to the accumulation of proteins in the brain. That is why the Alzheimer’s diseases are called the neurodegenerative diseases. I couldn’t specifically find the exact neurons that are related to the Alzheimer’s disease but I found out that the Alzheimer’s kills these neurons in the brain by proteinaceous plaques. An article by ‘Journal of Neuroscience’ did a research on A-beta, a peptide that surrounds the dying neurons in certain regions of the brain. The research said they weren’t sure if the A-Beta is the protein that kills the neurons. A-Beta becomes toxic when it forms an oligomer. Oligomer means a molecule that consists of a few monomer units. A-Beta oligomers are bad for neurons because it causes the neurons to re-enter the cell cycle. This is bad because once the brain neurons become adult cells, these are not supposed to divide. This is why neuronal cancers are very rare because the neurons cells don’t divide once it reaches adulthood. Then the articles went into deeper matters with mouse models so I stopped my research of A-Beta here. It says that the cause for the Alzheimer’s disease is essentially unknown and all of these researches are part of the hypotheses. There are many hypotheses including the cholinergic and the amyloid hypotheses. But the A-Beta is the most recent hypotheses in the field of  science since the A-Beta theory was updated in 2009. Then, I took my TA’s advice and went to find the biology behind the transmission of nerve impulses. Neurons have a part called the dendrites and this is where the neuron fires a correct impulse to another neuron through the axon. Axon is a long projection that connects nerve cells. Just like a normal cell, the neurons have cell membranes as well. When the neuron is not transmitting impulse, the reason is in its cell membrane. When the neuron cell is polarized, that is when the neuron is inactive. The outside of the cell contains excess sodium ions and the inside of the cell contains excess potassium ions. However, the inside of the cell is negative due to other negatively charged protein and nucleic acid molecules inside the cell. There are Na+/K+ pumps on the membranes and it is permeable! When the neuron gets stimulated, the sodium ions flow in to the cell and the neuron gets depolarized. When the neuron reaches the complete depolarization, impulse is transmitted through the axon and thus makes the cell active. When the impulse fires from a neuron, the other neuron at the end of the axon depolarizes and calcium ions are allowed to enter the cell. Then a chemical called a neurotransmitter is released into the synapse. The neurotransmitter then binds to proteins on the neuron membrane to receive the impulse. The proteins are the receptors of the many different neurotransmitter and the neurotransmitters does have specific receptor proteins. It is logical that when the neurons die from proteins of the Alzheimer’s disease, the synapses and impulse decreases and decreases. Therefore, I began to have questions about the effect and the symptoms of the Alzheimer’s disease due to the death of many neurons. Alzheimer’s disease equals the loss of neurons and synapses in the cerebral cortex. The most common effect and symptom of the Alzheimer’s disease is the loss of memory and mental skills. The chance of getting an Alzheimer’s disease is higher for older populations. The symptoms advance as the time passes. The speed of the progress of the disorder differs from person to person but most of them start with forgetfulness. It is probably the neuron transmission failure. As the brain neuron dies, the mental state of the human weakens and decreases. When the Alzheimer’s disease attacks the frontal lobe of the brain, the person’s mood swing can be dangerously unstable. It is because the frontal lobe controls the feeling and the behavior of a person. The person can also have problems  with washing and cleaning him/herself because another function of the frontal lobe of the brain is to plan things based on what is wrong and what is right. Also 40% of the Alzheimer’s patients have low appetite in food and have significant weight loss because as the neuron dies, the olfactory and taste nerves fails. All of these symptoms are all directly connected to the problems with the brain neurons. So my first starting question of ‘what causes Alzheimer’s disease neurologically?’ was answered. A simple but sophisticated disruption of a tiny neuron cells in the brain causes the Alzheimer’s disease. Then I began to think if there are any treatment researches going on in the field of biology. I found one research that caught my eyes and it was stem cells. Professor Kim of the Chung-Ang University in South Korea successfully restored a mouse’s brain function by transplanting a human nerve stem cell. He was able to transplant a stem cell containing acetylcholine, a neurotransmitter, and the articles said that the mouse restored its brain function to a normal state. Professor Kim’s work is also announced in an international journal called ‘Cell Transplantation.’ #7 Repeat (Modify, extend or reject) ‘What is the specific molecule (possibly a protein) that affects the neuron of the brains so it causes the Alzheimer’s disease neurologically?’ and ‘How will transplanting stem cell containing a neurotransmitter called ‘Acetycholine’ affect the human Alzheimer’s disease?’ These are my two refined questions after my exploration of the Alzheimer’s disease.   Reference and Citation http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nervous_system#Neurons http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alzheimers_disease http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/understanding-the-transmission-of-nerve-impulses.html http://scienceblogs.com/purepedantry/2009/02/12/how-does-alzheimers-kill-neuro/ (Authors: N.H. Varvel, K. Bhaskar, A.R. Patil, S.W. Pimplikar, K. Herrup, B.T. Lamb) http://voices.yahoo.com/the-dreadful-effects-alzheimers-disease-116725.html?cat=70 (Publisher: Carl Kolchack, freelance article writer) http://blog.naver.com/vitaminmd?Redirect=LoglogNo=110133967592 (Publisher: Vitamin MD) http://www.medworld.co.kr/news/articleView.html?idxno=63612 (Youn Sang Yong Reporter)

EBays Growth Strategies: An Analysis

EBays Growth Strategies: An Analysis To gain market in India, eBay has to change the way it operates. eBay.in has to develop and implement new strategies for the change management. Using the following table the best theory to use is Lippitts Phases of Change Theory. This theory consists of 7 steps and it mainly focuses on change agents roles and responsibilities compared to evolution of change in the organization. Implementing Lippitts phases of change theory on eBay.in The problem: eBay failed to make its impression in India, one main reason is the countrys internet and technology is still developing unlike in USA, where internet and technology growth reached its maturity level. People in India consider eBay as a virtual market, and so they dont believe in it, when compared to retail and wholesale markets. eBay is unable to adapt the different languages and cultures in the country so it is unknown to most of the people. Motivation and capacity for change: eBay has enough capacity for the change, and to localize itself in various states/cultures it needs to appoint local business people/change agents, who are familiar with local markets and the technology. Increase in fuel price, inflation, and recession are forcing people to choose other methods to purchase products they need, so eBay is the choice people have, and the change agent if able to inspire them the organization will grow strong in the market within few months. Change Agent and Resources: Recruiting those individuals who know the local market as well as have good knowledge about the internet and technology can be helpful. To check the motivation and commitment of the agent, he/she will be assessed through few interviews and other psychological tests. As the organization depends mainly on internet and technology, the required resources are available in India, like manpower, transportation, etc. Progressive change objects: Developing action plans and strategies with respect to different cultures and languages needs those language and culture experts, organization should employee those people before they build their strategies. The main goal here is to gain the customers belief and get close to them so they know the organization. Aims of this process are to decrease complexity and achieve operational excellence. Role of Change Agent: organization should define what they are expecting from the change agent, and change should be clear about what his/her duties are and should make it clear for the organization and other employees, and customers, by which no one gets confused in the process of change. Maintaining the Change: developing new strategies for marketing, like campaigns, advertisements about the organization and how the organization operates is very important for the organization. Taking feedbacks and review helps organization to understand how people are reacting and what are the other changes the organization needs to make, to increase belief on the organization? Change Agent: once organization reached a stage where people are believing in the organization and are able to communicate properly without any problem, the role of change agent should be lessened and the change process should be terminated slowly. What would you do differently if undertaking a project of this nature in the future? Following above steps can increase the belief of the people on the organization, but I would like to concentrate on one specific point i.e. existence of the organization in the virtual environment. The main reason, why people dont believe the eBay.in is because of its virtual existence, and I would like to change that in to physical existence. Both buyers and sellers are customers of the organization and they can do it online, but I would like to provide a small place/ business centre where people can come and meet directly and exchange goods or products. By this process people will be more attracted towards the organization and customers belief towards the organization increases. However, this contradicts with the idea of online marketing but, this process should be and will be followed only for few days, until and up to the organization gains the belief of its customers. And we use this business centre only for those customers who are willing to come and for complex situations to reduce complexity. Factors which can influence the change management process Power: many organizations follow hierarchical power i.e. managers take decisions, sometimes with the support of employees and sometimes without the support of employees, about the process and strategies that organization is going to follow. Here management of eBay considers buyers and sellers are equally powerful to make their own decisions. Culture: eBay is a massive community with unique culture. In the site individuals can find articles offering wider information than just auction listing or price lists or web site tools. eBay creates opportunities for people, it cares its customers, and making a difference in the world. It explains us the unique psychology, attitudes, and beliefs and values of the management and founders of eBay. Communication: organizational communication and interpersonal communication plays a vital role in effective change management. Organization communication is leader communicating with the employees through meeting, conferences, or electronic mails. This information in general is for everyone in the organization to explain new strategies or action plans to its employees. Interpersonal communication is communication between management and employees, in general to provide information on what they are expecting from the employees and what organization aims at. It is also useful in taking feedbacks as not all the employees work and learns at same-pace. Interpersonal communication increases relationship between employees and management which is very important for an organization to sustaining change. Conclusion: eBay was able to make a strong impact on the market in USA, UK, etc. because the growth of technology in these countries was too high. eBay inc primarily depend on the internet for its existence and without internet and technology it cannot exists. In countries like India, where internet and technology is still growing and didnt reach its maturity level, it is hard for the organization to grow and make an impact on the market. Education level of the customers also plays an important role in online business, developing new software to make selling and buying process simple also plays a role in the development of the organization. Technology is a macro environmental factor, meaning organizations like eBay cannot control or increase the growth of technology in markets like India. So, developing new strategies like building physical existence rather than virtual existence can make a difference, it is not necessary to start a retail market but proving a business centre, where people can come in case of necessary and delivery issues can increase belief of customers on the organization. Providing local language call centres and customers support centres also helps organization to grow in the developing markets. Change is necessary in the present world, increase in globalization and internationalization is forcing organization to change and develop new strategies to gain the markets and customers. Because of increase in competition organizations are changing their products and markets to gain competitive advantage. In one way or another change is coming into the organizations, and managing change is very important as improper manage of change can destroy organization. An American Born Chinese by Gene Luen Yang | Analysis An American Born Chinese by Gene Luen Yang | Analysis According to Chun, who has studied the typical Asian American stereotypes and the myth of their success, Asian American descendants have been pressured into assimilating within an inflexible mold of Americanization to avoid the anti-Oriental stereotypes and prejudices of American society (The Myth). Chuns observation indicates that minority youth in the United States are constantly hard pressed by the biased and unequal educational system that is majorly dominated by those who enjoy white privileges. Shim argues in his article, which introduces the history of yellow stereotypes in America since 1800s, that the entertainment industry plays a critical role to enforce and expand racist practices through the false presentation of Asian stereotypes (From Yellow). Based on the strong influence of the media to young generations, stereotypes are extensively imitated and exercised at schools. In American Born Chinese, a graphic novel written by an Asian American immigrant Gene Luen Yang, the author successfully communicates to the audience of unjustified stereotypes faced by Asian American youth that equally share his cultural background at schools (American). Themes Yangs primary message of the novel is to persuade students to overcome racial adversities and accept their true identities. He effectively utilizes pathos in the scenes where everyone dislikes Chin-Kees abnormal behavior and where Jin constantly has to fight against Asian stereotypes to highlight the hardships of acculturation of young generation in America. On the other hand, the implicit message of the novel is to allow educators to notice and seek for solutions on racial discrimination against non-white groups students that discourage their academic motivation and cultural preservation. In light of Yangs primary and secondary messages, the audience can learn that culture is not static or inherent for anyone. Instead, it is reproduced and learned by young generation as an account of evolving and complex progress through educational experience. Yang appeals to the greatest level of audience with three different genres and demonstrate to them the idea that minority youth culture is s haped and distorted in academic environment through the use of stereotyped behaviors, provocative language and ironic caricatures of Chin-Kee in the novel. Yang adopts three genres to targets audience from the general category of those who endeavor to identify their cultural heritage to the non-white minority groups in the American society. He expresses in an interview that, My Chinese heritage informs the way that I am an American (Youtube). These words indicate that Yang wants to draw the attention of Asian American immigrant specifically through the novel because of his academic experience. Nonetheless, the books increasing popularity successfully brought the attention of educators and critics of American power structures. He is able to reach different levels of audience for the reason that multi-culture education reflects the interaction of each individual pupil with the institutional system as well as the more complex economic-political society. Furthermore, Yang uses the comic book as the main genre, for that he regards comics as an individualistic pursuit that is intimate and reflective (Youtube). He also adopts sub-genres of sup erhero fiction and coming-of-age story in the novel to incorporate two different styles of stories that interrelate to each other. Three characters are portrayed by Yang in each story. All of them similarly feel the age to become Americanized with the expense of their original identity. The central characters include the Monkey King, who represents a superhero from the famous Chinese tale and Jin, who transforms himself into a typical white guy Danny to assimilate into American society. Yangs technique to adapt the old tale of Monkey King with some Catholic Elements proves that he successfully attracts not only Chinese American immigrants but also the audience from the dominant white culture. In addition, his own experience is reflected through the coming-of-age story, which persuades the wide range of audience of the novels credibility under the backdrop. In light of these methods, he inspires audience from various minority groups to discover and respect their cultural heritage. Stereotyped behaviors of Chin-Kee and Jin are depicted in the novel to present the distorted minority youth culture. Such students constantly face the hardships to accommodate and acculturate into American society. In anthropological terms, incommensurability refers to the fact that there are certain aspects of one culture that are hard for people from another culture to comprehend. According to American Born Chinese, Yang exaggerates scenes where Chin-Kee and Jin are constantly teased or excluded for the stereotyped behaviors by their white counterparts at school in order to reflect the incommensurable groups from the dominant culture. For instance, all the white students around Chin-Kee widely discuss about the fact that he eats crispy fried cat gizzards with noodle. Furthermore, the little white boy looks down upon Jin, who is introduced by the teacher on the first day of class. His expression very serious and disdainful, the boy insists that, My momma says Chinese people eat dogs . Yang goes on further to make the teacher respond that she thinks Jins family probably abandoned their old habit because they are eager to become like Americans (American Born Chinese).This two scenes indicates that the white students are unconsciously distinguishing between what we eat and what he eats. They fail to understand that this type of food, which they critically comment on, should not contribute to the reason why they regard their culture as more superior. As I have observed, Germans are frenzied about roasted pork feet. Also, Americans eat spam, a type of canned pork regularly. However, people from Islamic culture developed their eating habits that regard pork as dirty and inedible. Thus, the selection of food by people from different cultural backgrounds is idiosyncratic, and it should not be disrespected by anyone, for that otherwise the person automatically denies a part of his or her own culture. In the second scene, Yang intends to emphasize that educators should c ircumvent inequality and stereotypes while using their cultural power to teach students knowledge and the political structure. He arouses the audiences sympathy by presenting the critical stereotypes that the little boy Jin, who barely started his first day at an elementary school, has to experience. Jin not only encountered biased opinions from the teacher, but also the fellow classmates who spread rumors about his unusual relationship with a Japanese girl, Suzy Nakamura. At this point, the fact that white students concluded that Jin would marry Suzy once again implicates the students inability to notice that there are remarkable distinction between Chinese and Japanese culture although they both share the same Asian root. To a larger extent, the dominant groups falsely regard themselves as the mainstream culture and marked off a line between white society and the rest of others. This belief results in a subtraction process of minority youth culture that causes them to question the value of their original culture. Yang depicts the stereotyped opinions of Jins teachers and classmates to infer how academic environment influences Asian American immigrants like Jin to build their cultural identity. They need to constantly struggle between their original Asian blood and new Asian American citizenship. Also, through creating stereotypes from different angles of students and teachers toward Jin and Chin-Kee, Yang is able to persuade the audience that culture is a process that maintains the larger stratified system in American society. For instance, Jin assumes that he is not accepted by the dominant culture because of his racial identity. As a result of the cultural tension, he goes so far in the story as to transform himself into a white guy, Danny. Ironically, he ends up at a Chinese cafà © drinking Boba tea with Wei-Chen, the monkey, in a similar vein, who symbolically transforms into a human being. Jin abandons the American identity that he dreamed about. In this circumstance, the academic envir onment forced Jin to fight against his Chinese background to assimilate into the American society where white people rule the dominant culture. Yang deliberately set up the ending in which Jin ultimately recognizes that he should learn to appreciate his part of Chinese origin. This allows the minority immigrants under the similar context to understand that each culture encompasses unique practices and knowledge. The incommensurability is the product of students engagement in school activates. As a result, Yang shows how interactions among individuals empower the meaning of culture. He intends to emphasize that educators are responsible to inform the significance of culture and clarify the power structures beyond academic competence. Yang enhances the effect of Asian American stereotypes by applying rhetorical skills such as provocative language and ironic caricatures. Readers and Yang himself consider the language in American Born Chinese as unnecessarily crass (Yang, Kartika Review). Yang utilizes this style of language to transfer the idea that biased interrelationship of different cultures is unhealthy and uncivilized in a similar token. Furthermore, the categorized power structure influences younger generation to shape their notions toward a diversity of experience at school. For instance, Timmy, the white boy from Jins elementary school refers to Jin as bucktooth without any hesitation. He does not care what harm he causes Jin. On the other hand, Timmy changes his tone when he calls the other white friend Pansy Boy to a whisper due to his serious demand. Yangs use of transitional language here reflects Timmys perception of his position in the society. He visions white culture as more powerful and privileged , so that he verbally bullying the inferior races and compromise with the kid from his superior group. Lastly, Yang draws caricatures in the novel to symbolically refer to the exaggerated stereotypes that are placed on Asian American immigrants. For instance, Chin-Kee wears outdated clothing and has a physical appearance that looks like underdeveloped human beings. Also, Chin-Kee never changes his outfit throughout the novel and has long hair that only past ancestors do in China. Thus, through combining the Asian American stereotypes throughout the book with rhetorical devices such as language and caricatures, Yang successfully delivers the message that culture is not inherited but instead a process that is learned and shaped by power structures in the society through educational means. It is also described in the article Culture as Disability, written by McDermott and Varenne, that culture reveals not broken person but identifications neatly tuned to the workings of institutions serving political and economic ends. Yang intends to persuade educators that they should start to notice that it is their responsibility to respect each cultural practice and value. Although racial discrimination is hard to extinguish in the society, it is possible to educate young generation to appreciate their cultural heritage while assimilating into the American society. Most importantly, instructors should clarify the opportunity structure under the socio-economic context and ne atly tuned to explain the process of cultural construction. In this fashion, young generation may obtain different perspectives from It is because we are minority groups to We can make a difference because we are no different than people from the dominant culture. Electrical Stimulus in a Frog Muscle: Experiment Electrical Stimulus in a Frog Muscle: Experiment Frogs are keystone species, an essential organism to aquatic ecosystems. They have both terrestrial and aquatic niches as predators and prey and serve as indicator species to assess the response of ecosystems to environmental change. To execute daily locomotion patterns, frogs use skeletal muscles. We wanted to determine the relationship between the strength of the stimulus and the response of the muscle. We also wanted to measure the amplitude of contraction produced in a muscle that is stimulated with repeated pulses delivered at progressively higher frequencies. We hypothesized that increasing stimulus voltage in the gastrocnemius muscle of a frog will result in an increase in stimulation amplitude and that an increase in stimulation frequency at a constant voltage will result in an increase in force generated by the muscle up until a point where it plateaus. We found that our hypotheses were supported and that muscle regulation was via temporal and spatial recruitment. This study is important because it serves as a model for understanding skeletal muscle mechanisms in other organisms including humans. Frogs are widely distributed terrestrial amphibians that inhabit upland and wetland regions, found on all continents of the world except Antarctica. Many frog species, in both larval and adult stages serve as important prey for larger predators including fish, raccoons, snakes and birds of prey (Chalcraft and Resetarits 2003; Auniola and Kauhala 2001). Additionally frogs serve an important role as indicators of environmental stress (King 2010). A review of complex systems in temporary ponds by Wilbur (1997) makes the argument that frogs have two distinct niches, one terrestrial and one aquatic. Wilbur states all frogs with free-living larvae change at metamorphosis from aquatic omnivorous tadpoles to amphibious carnivorous adults. The role of such connections among food webs is a fruitful area for both theoretical and empirical research because the foraging of animals across ectones may be an important biological mechanism linking elements of the mosaics of habitats that form landsca pes. One trait frogs are most known for is locomotion. Frogs typically display two type of locomotion: jumping and swimming. Though frogs are traditionally presented as jump specialists most species also swim (Navas et al. 1999). Frogs exhibit these locomotive behaviors for a variety of reasons including escaping predators, often times by a short set of quick and powerful jumps (Carvalho, Gomes and Navas 2007). Frog locomotion is dependent on muscles, particularly skeletal muscles, which are muscles connected to the skeleton (Marsh and Olson 1998). Skeletal muscles are organized beginning with units called sarcomeres. A sarcomere consists of two opposing vertical Z-line discs each with actin filaments attached. A myosin filament floats between each horizontal actin section. Sarcomeres are connected to each other by Z-lines. One mechanism of muscle contraction begins with the sliding of the actin and myosin filaments. Parts of the myosin, known as myosin heads, bind to the free end of the actin, the end not attached to the Z-line, and pull it one way toward the center of the mysosin, in an accordian-like mechanism. The muscle shortens or contracts because the sarcomeres shorten. The process by which the myosin binds to the actin is called the Cross-Bridge cycle. The binding of the myosin to actin is the trigger for the myosin head to tilt and release an ADP and a P as well as a powerstroke. ATP binds to the myosin head and the myosin releases the actin, in a softening effect. The ATP is hydrolyzed and delivers energy to moved the mysosin head back and it is ready for the next powerstroke. The sarcomeres move closer together by many of these powerstrokes occurring one after the other. In the Cross-Bridge cycle myosin is normally prevented from binding to the actin. Another protein called tropomyosin, which is wrapped around the actin, is in the way to block the actin-myosin binding site. Another protein, troponin, is attached to the tropomyosin and when triggered, moves the troponin away to allow the binding to occur. But what triggers the tropomyosin to move the troponin? The simple answer is calcium and this occurs in a process called excitation-contraction coupling. In excitation-contraction coupling an action potential or electrical stimulus, runs down a T-tubule in the muscle fiber. The stimulus reaches a ryanodyne receptor which opens ion channels in the sarcoplasmic reticulum, a storage space for calcium in the muscle fibers. Once the ion channels are opened, calcium runs out into the cell. For the muscle to relax or return to its original resting position, calcium must be moved back into the sarcoplasmic reticulum by a SERCA pump. Because calcium is being moved against a concentration gradient, this relaxation requires ATP. The SERCA pump lowers calcium levels in the cytosol or cell and when the calcium is taken up again the muscle relaxes. Since muscles are not contracting all the time muscle contraction must be regulated. Regulating the muscles allows frogs to change aspects of locomotive behavior, such as how far a frog is able to jump. Muscle contraction force can be regulated by calcium in three mechanisms: temporal recruitment, in which the firing rate at which individual motor neurons fire is changed; spatial recruitment, in which the number of active motor units is changed; and the length-tension relationship, in which the sarcomere length is changed to generate tension. This study focuses on the force of muscle contraction via temporal and spatial recruitment. In temporal recruitment, the frequency of the action potential is changed, usually increased, so that more calcium is released into the muscle cell. More calcium in the cell results in more tension generated. Another mechanism for the regulation of muscle contraction force is motor unit recruitment, also known as spatial recruitment. A motor unit is comprised of muscle fibers and a motor neuron. There are different amounts of fibers per motor unit. In spatial recruitment the number of active motor units is increased to increase the strength of muscle contraction. More motor units means that more muscle fibers can be stimulated. If only half of the muscle fibers are stimulated, only half the amount of force will be generated. If all of the muscle fibers are stimulated, the maximum amount of force will be generated. We hypothesized that if we increase voltage of an electrical stimulus in a frog muscle we will see an increase in stimulation amplitude and if we increase stimulation frequency at a constant voltage, we will see an increase in force generated by the muscle up until a point where it plateaus. Materials Methods: We used the gastrocnemius muscle of a frog in two experiments. In the first experiment we used a single stimulus, changing the voltage of the stimulus from 0 volts to 2.0 volts. The force of the muscle was recorded. In the second experiment we stimulated the muscle in series of ten using a constant voltage identified in the first experiment. The frequency of the stimuli was progressively increased starting at 0.5 and ending at 30 Hz. Results: Our results showed that as the stimulus increases the amplitude of the muscle twitches increases up until a point where it plateaus. Our results also showed that as the stimulation frequency increases the passive tension of the muscle increase up until a point where it plateaus. Figure 1 shows a normalized graph for the effects of increasing stimulus on the amplitude of muscle twitches in the gastrocnemius muscle of a frog. The x-axis is the recorded stimulus in volts and the y-axis is the amplitude of the twitches (displayed as a percentage of the maximum). The graph shows that as the stimulus increases the amplitude of the muscle twitches increases up until a point where it plateaus. Table 1 shows a set of group data from the first experiment, in which amplitude and times of muscle twitches were generated by stimulus pulses of different amplitudes. As in Figure 1, Table 1 shows that as the stimulus increases the amplitude of the muscle twitches increases up until a point where it plateaus. The contraction time and latency period remains largely unchanged with changing stimulus amplitude. Figure 2 shows a normalized graph for the effects of increasing stimulation frequency on the passive tension in the gastrocnemius muscle of a frog. The x-axis is the stimulus frequency in hertz and the y-axis is the passive tension in the muscle (displayed as a percentage of the maximum). The graph shows that as the stimulation frequency increases the passive tension of the muscle increase up until a point where it plateaus. Table 2 shows a set of group data from the second experiment, in which the strength of muscle contraction was examined during mechanical summation and tetanus. As in Figure 2, Table 2 shows that as the stimulus increases the amplitude of the muscle twitches increases up until a point where it plateaus. The amplitude of the first twitch remains largely unchanged with changing stimulus amplitude. Discussion: The data shows that the direct electrical stimulation produces contraction of the muscle via motor units. A little bit of force is generated when a few of these motor units are being used and a lot of force is generated when lots of motor units are being used. The muscle does not respond to the low stimulus voltages because the electrical stimulus is not directly touching the muscle, it is touching the surrounding connective tissue. The low stimulus voltages are not strong enough to penetrate the tissue. As noted in Figure 1 and Table 1 the amplitude of the muscle response increases with increasing stimulus voltages. This is so because more and more of the muscle mass is stimulated as the voltages increase. At high stimulus voltages, the muscle response reaches maximum amplitude. The muscle response does not continue to increase with increasing stimulus voltages because the muscle is already functioning at the best of its ability. The muscle cells have reached the point where all the troponins are activated by calcium. Releasing more calcium into the cell will not result in any more tension generated, as the system is already working at its maximum capacity. Latency is the interval between stimulus and a response to the stimulus, here meaning muscle contraction. Over this period, the action potential sweeps across the cell membrane of the muscle cell and the sarcoplasmic reticulum releases calcium ions. The muscle fiber does not produce tension during the latent period, because the contraction cycle has yet to begin. The latency period in this study was constant at 0.025 seconds.This result been found by anyone else and it seems does not vary among other species, since it is roughly the same for humans (Hamilton and Osborn 1977). Since contraction amplitude is dependent upon the increases in concentration and persistence of intracellular calcium, the question of why the contraction amplitudes of single twitches are the same is raised. This can be explained because the same amount of calcium is being put in for the same repeated event. As noted in Table 2, the amplitude of the first twitch seems to be constant (value). This can be explained because the muscle is utilizing the same amount of calcium and is thus generating the same amount of force. Tetanus is the complete contraction of a muscle. Tetanus requires high stimulus frequencies. This tells us that the calcium re-uptake by the sarcoplasmic reticulum is slower than the original release. The rate of muscle relaxation is much slower after tetanus than after a single twitch because more calcium needs to be re-taken up and it takes longer to get all the extra added calcium back into the sarcoplasmic reticulum. A study on jumping bullfrogs by Marsh and Roberts reveals two points of interest: first, frogs jump farther than they should, considering only the force their muscles are able to generate. Second, muscles are able to do the most work when they contract slowly, however frog jumping involves a very rapid movement. They explain that by separating the performance of muscular work from the application of mechanical work to the body, a catapult-like mechanism, which works by loading elastic elements into the limbs prior to initiating a jump, overcomes the constraints of skeletal muscle function (Marsh and Roberts 2003). Another study by Aerts and Nauwelaerts (2006) indicates that by taking more small jumps as opposed to fewer larger jumps, frogs can increase their flexibility in movement because they would be able to change direction during the forward movement part jumping. Theoretically this means they would spend less time in the same spot during landing and recovery of the jumping cycle, which makes them more likely to be snatched by a predator. Frogs have physiological mechanisms that have enabled their muscles to generate enough force for jumping and swimming locomotion including changing the frequency of the action potential and increasing the number of active motor units. As mentioned before, frogs are a keystone species, meaning other organisms rely on it and not always directly in a predator-prey relationship. Without frogs, food webs would collapse and lead to the demise of many other species and potentially entire ecosystems. This study is important because it serves as a model for understanding skeletal muscle mechanisms in other organisms including humans.