Thursday, October 31, 2019
The Basic Function Of Strategic Management Accounting Essay
The Basic Function Of Strategic Management Accounting - Essay Example In terms of capital investment decisions, Tesco Plc should set up more grocery outlets in other communities. Based on prior feasibility studies done on a prospective new location, Tesco will use both investor funds (retained earnings reserved for branch expansions), and long-term borrowings to finance another big Tesco grocery outlet. In terms of the evaluation of multidivisional companies, Tesco Plc should conduct classify each multi-divisional company as cost and revenue centers. Each company will generate its own financial statements. Thus, the financial statements will indicate the number of a multi-divisional company under Tesco Plc that generates profits. Likewise, the same financial statements will vividly indicate the number of multi-divisional companies generating net losses (Garrison, 2003). The strategic management accounting system of Tesco Plc focuses on ascertaining if the company’s final reports conform to international accounting standards.The strategic managem ent accountant of Tesco is a driving force to develop a global accounting system is the desire to underwrite securities in any, or all, of the world's capital markets using a single set of financial statements. Currently, the Tesco Stocks are listed in the stock exchanges. A positive incentive for a capital market to support a global accounting system is the enhancement of its volume of business by being able to participate in underwritings in other capital markets. Reinforcing the positive incentive is the realization that a capital market, which ignores the development of a global accounting system, may find itself with a unique set of accounting standards while the rest of the world relies on a common set of accounting standards. This would lead to an irretrievable loss of business (Brigham & Houston, 2002). Heely (1993;25) emphasized â€Å"the globalization of corporate activity, coupled with
Tuesday, October 29, 2019
Statement of purpose biotechnology Essay Example for Free
Statement of purpose biotechnology Essay There was a time when the average awareness of man did not extend beyond the immediate. But over the centuries and especially over the past decade the average intellectual and knowledge levels of people have -undergone an exponential increase. And keeping in with the laws of evolution and survival it has become imperative for every individual to strive a lot harder even to maintain a status quo. I do not wish to exist and strive merely for survival, for though human beings being a creature of this earth are subject to the same laws of nature and survival, I believe that there should be a cause which extends beyond mere survival to justify ones existence and the gift of a superior intellect. That I believe is the true essence of civilization. My Bachelors degree in Engineering will definitely ensure my survival, but to justify my existence I feel I should give back more to this world and leave it a better place. It is this philosophy and put myself in a position to do so that I wish to pursue my Masters and later my Doctoral studies. Background I have displayed a natural aptitude for biology ever since my school years. And have even won quite a few awards for the same. So upon passing out of high school it was but natural I seek a career in the same field. Microbiology and Biotechnology were the two options I was faced with. Microbiology though being the more glamorous cousin lost out. Because since Biotechnology is where my interest lay, it is what I felt I would excel at. For it is definitely â€Å"better to be the best in a mediocre field, than be mediocre in the best field †. My grades to date have vindicated my decision. Ever since the beginning of my third year I had decided to pursue Masters and later my PhD from an institute of international renown. It remained for me to zero in on the area of specialization. I studied up on the various options available, and the application of ______________ and its contribution to ____________________ fascinated me. In my pre final year I read a special article in a magazine called Global Educator about the application of ______________, after reading the article I got a clear insight as to what was ________________________ about and as expected, appealed to me. I was totally impressed with how _____________________. However my knowledge in the subject could at best be termed less than superficial. One of the major reasons for applying to your university is the highly impressive research work in progress in areas pertaining to the ______________________. I chose to present a paper on the topic of â€Å"_________________________†. I immersed myself in researching up the topic and presented the paper. My third year project â€Å" _________________†helped me get a better idea to the field of ___________________. I have tried to get a perspective of the industrial constraints and aspects of the subject by undergoing Industrial trainings and certifications at some of the premiere institutes in India like __________________, _____________ and _________________. I have also had exposure to various other fields like _____________, ___________ and _________________. In fact, I intend to use my masters as a testing ground for further narrowing down my area of interest so as to zero in on a topic that I could make a passion and of course also continue my research in the same! Why USA and your institute Lucre has never had much lure for me. It is a necessity, but only just that. It is to leave an indelible mark in my chosen field that is my â€Å"raison d’etre†. Unfortunately very few institutes in the world can boast of an extensive research set up and infrastructure, in my area of interest. And it is precisely this reason why I have chosen US of A, and your institute in particular to pursue my masters. I am especially impressed with research work being carried out by Dr. ______________ and Dr. ____________ in the field of _______________ and _________________. I am also keen on being a part of the research centers and laboratories like __________________ and __________________. For I believe your institute will provide me with the ideal ambience to pursue my masters and later my Doctorate. My life my philosophy and my possible contribution to your institute I know I am not perfect, and I am always willing to make myself a better human being. It is a process I will continue till the day I die. Life with its endless lessons is a class in itself. I have vowed never to become a cynic, no matter how many setbacks I have, for I have realized that life is too short to be spent over things that did not happen or could have. Because such a lot else is happening, and a lot more is yet to happen. Though in terms of knowledge I stand to gain more than I can contribute, but it is my abilities as a person and my attitude towards life in general which I believe will help enriching the already rich texture of your university. I realize everything we do is directly or indirectly an endeavor to make the world a better place, and therefore I always feel it is more important to be good human beings, than just good professionals. On a micro level, it applies to ones immediate surroundings. I also come from a land of immense diversity, where tolerance has been an accepted way of life. But unfortunately in the modern world it is often misconstrued as a weakness. I believe it is in the best interest of humanity that people with a broad global outlook, like mine, interact on an international stage. My Short and long term Goals I wish to be considered an authority in my field and leave a legacy that will live on beyond me. I am well aware that age changes ones priorities. I know it is my youthful optimism and exuberance that speaks. Probably 20 years down the line tempered with the wisdom of age, I will be doing a rethink on my priorities but as of now I want to be involved in path breaking research work in my field and later pursue my doctorate along similar lines. Like mentioned earlier it is my desire to make a big difference in every possible way to humanity.
Sunday, October 27, 2019
Voiced And Voiceless Sounds Of English English Language Essay
Voiced And Voiceless Sounds Of English English Language Essay There are 26 letters in the English alphabet, but there are 39 sounds (15 vowel sounds and 24 consonant sounds) prooduced by these letters. A vowel is a sound where air coming from the lungs is not bloecked by the mouth or throat. All normal English words contain at least one vowel.        The vowels are:        A, E, I, O, U, and sometimes Y.          Y can also behave as aa consonant when it is at the beginning of a word. A consonant is a sound formed by stopping the air flowing through the mouth.        The consonants are:        B, C, D, F, G, H, J, K, L, M, N, P, Q, R, S, T, V, W, X, Y, Z Alll the sounds produced in the English are either voiced or voiceless. Voiced sounds occur when the vocal cords vibrate when the sound is produced. There is no vocal cord vibration when producing voiceless sounds. To test thise, place your finger tips hand on your throat as you say the sounds. When saying the voiced sounds, you should be able to feel a vibration. When saying the voiceless sounds you sound not be able to feel a vibration. Sometimes it is very difficult to feel the difference between a voiced and voiceless sound. Another test may help. Put a piece of paper in front of your mouth when saying the sounds- the paper will should move when saying the unvoiced sounds. All vowels in English are voiced. Some of the consonant sounds are voiced and some are voiceless. Some of the consonanat sounds produced in English are very similar. Many times the difference between them is because one is voiced and the other is voiceless. Two examples are z, which is voiced and s, which is voiceless. See the chart below for a listing of the voiced and voicelless consonants.            Voiced consonants           Voiceless consonant          Sounds                                 Sounds             b                                              p             d                                              t             g                                              k             v                                              f             z                                              s             th                                            th             sz                                            sh             j                                               ch             l                                                h             m             n             ng             r             w             y any consonant sounds come in pairs. For example, P and B are produced in the same place in the mouth with the tongue in the same position. The only difference is that P is an unvoiceds sound (no vibration of the vocal cords) while B is a voiced sound (vocal cords vibrate). Put your hand on your throat as you say the pairs below to feel the difference. Note tht the first pair of consonants in the table (p, b) is produced at the front of the mouth. Each pair shifts further back with the last pair (k, g) being produced at the back of the mouth. The following consonant sounds are represented using the International Phonetic Alphabet(IPA). The words in parentheses represent phonetic transcriptions. we can clearly distinguish (b, d, g) from (p, t, k) spoken by native US/UK English speakers. People can clearly distinguish my (b, d, g) from (p, t, k) too. the only perceivable difference between the two groups is that a puff of air comes out when we say (p, t, k). Certain pairs of consonants can be problematic for some learners. In some cases, the main difference between the pair is whether the consonant is voiced or unvoiced, that is, whether or not the vocal chords vibrate when making this sound. This discovery activity can be used to help learners notice the difference between voiced and unvoiced consonants. Begin by asking learners what noise a bee makes. As they make a buzzing noise, do the same and purt your fingers on your throat, indicating that they should do likeewise. This will allow them to feel the vibrations of the vocal chords that occur with voiced consonant sounds. Ask them if they can feel the vibrations. Then focus on a voiced / unvoiced pair such as s and z. Make the sounds with your fingers on your throaet, indicating that the learners should do the same. You can help learners with this by getting them to make the bee sounds for z, and the sound a snake is supposed to make for s. Ask them when they feel the vocal chords vibrate with s or z? (The answer should be z). Tell them that this is the main difference between the two sounds, and that z is voiced while s is unvoiced. You could then give them a list of words and ask them to categorise the underlined consonant sound into these two categories. With /s/ and /z/, you might choose to include some third person singular verb and plural endings. Inn this list the sound being focused on is the final sound in each case. /s/ /z/ cupss pens speaks reads gets goes puts lives tents cars plants sees baggs hears looks learns stops rise rice rose place plays Learners then use the chart to deside which of the other consonant sounds are voiced and which are unvoiced. In a computer lab, learners could do this in pairs. They listen to a sound and repeat it, with their fingers on their throat to check ifz it is voiced or unvoiced. In class with the IWB, or a computer and a projector, the teacher or a learner could click on sounds while the rest of the class repeat them and categorize them into voiced or unvoiced. As a follow up, you could do a minimal pairs activity using some voiced / unvoiced pairs, focusing on initial consonannt sounds. Display this list or something similar on the board and say a word from each pair. After each word learners have to say voiced or unvoiced, depending on which of the pair they hear. They can then test each other in pairs. Voiced Unvoiced Ben pen do to gone con van fan gin chin zoo Sue This activity has the advantage of establishing the voiced / unvoiced distinction, and a shared gesture that learners and the teacher can use in class to indicate that a sound is voiced or unvoiced, i.e. the fingers on the throat. It also helps learners to become conscious of the muscle movements involved in voicing a consonant. All of this will be useful in future classes if problem arise in the discrimination or production of voiced / unvoiced consonant pairs. what is Voiced? A simple explanation of voiced consonants is that they use the voice. This is easy to test by putting your finger on your throat. If you feel a vibration the consonant is voiced. Here is a list of some voiced consonants. Pronounce each consonant sound (not the letter) and feel the vibration of your vocal chords. b d th (as in then) v l r z j (as in Jane) What is Voiceless? Voiceless consonants do not use the voice. They are percussive and use hard sounds. Once again, you can test if a consonant is voiceless by putting your finger on your throats. You will feel no vibration in your throat, just a short explosion of air as you pronounce. Pronounce each of these consonant sounds and feel NO vibration in your throat. p t k s sh ch th (as in thing) Careful! Some Consonants Voiced, but are Voiceless When consonants are put in groups they can change the voiced or voiceless quality of the consonant that follows. A great example of this is the past simple form of regular verbs. As you know, regular verbs add -ed to the end of the verb in the past simple. play played wash washed live lived etc. These past simple verbs all end in -ed. However, some of the verbs are pronounced with a voiceless t sound and some are pronounced with the voiced d sound. Why? Here are the rules: If -ed is preceded by a voiceless consonant sound (p, k, sh, etc.) -ed sounds as a voiceless t. Remember that the e is silent. If -ed is preceded by a voiced consonant sound (d, b, v, etc.) -ed sounds as a voiced d. Remember that the e is silent. If -ed is preceded by a vowel sound (often ay) -ed sounds as a voiced d because vowels are always voiced. Remember that the e is silent. Exception: If -ed is preceded by t pronounce a voiced -id. In this case, the e is pronounced. This pattern can also be found with plural forms. If the consonant preceding the s is voiced, s will sound as voiced z: chairs machines bags If the consonant preceding the s is voiceless, s will sound as voiceless s: bats parks pipes Connected Speech Finally, when speaking in sentences the ending consonant sounds can change based on the following words. This is often referred to as connected speech. Here is an example of a change from a voiced b in the word club to a voiceless p because of the voiced t of to of the following word: We went to the club to meet some friends. Here is an example of a change from a voiced d past simple verb changed to voiceless t: We played tennis yesterday afternoon. All sounds in the English language have a sound associated with it. The voiced noise that you hear if you say sounds individually, originates from the vibration of the vocal cords and the way in which you shape your tongue and lips and palate to create the consonant. When you use your vocal cords to make a consonant, you are producing a voiced consonant or vowel. But there are a handful of voiceless consonants that are produced without vibrating the vocal cords at all. The noise that you hear, originates somewhere in the mouth or at the lips. It is easier to memorize which consonants are voiceless since there are fewer of them-only nine: /p, t, k, s, sh, ch, h, f, th/ Try to make each of these sounds individually. You should not be voicing at all. The /p/ sound will have its noise made at the lips. The /t/ is made by placing the tongue behind the upper teeth and pushing/stopping air rapidly. The /k/ is made in the back of the throat with the tongue pushing against the palate. Of these sounds (except for /h/) there are partner sounds or minimal pairs that are made exactly the same except voicing is added. Compare the following pairs of sounds: /p/ vs. /b/ /t/ vs. /d/ /k/ vs. /g/ To feel vibration, place your fingers on your larynx, the bony structure of the front part of your neck, and say, ah. Do you feel some vibration? Now make the first sound in each of the above pairs. Again, place your fingers on your larynx. You should not feel vibration. If you feel vibration you are not pronouncing the sound correctly. Only the second sound in each pair should have a vocal cord vibration. When sounds that are voiced are produced without voice, word meaning changes drastically. For example, pill sounds like bill, tan sounds like Dan, Kate sounds like gate. Miscommunications are inevitable! Why is this important? You will need to understand the voicing aspect of final consonants on words to help you understand past tense endings and plurals endings. A voiced sound is one in which the vocal cords vibrate, and a voiceless sound is one in which they do not. Voicing is the difference between pairs of sounds such as [s] and [z] in English. If one places the fingers on the voice box (ie the location of the Adams apple in the upper throat), one can feel a vibration when one pronounces zzzz, but not when one pronounces ssss. (For a more detailed, technical explanation, see modal voice and phonation.) In European languages such as English, vowels and other sonorants (consonants such as m, n, l, and r) are modally voiced. In most European languages, other consonants contrast between voiced and unvoiced sounds such as [s] and [z], though in English many of these are at least partially devoiced in most environments.
Friday, October 25, 2019
thomas paine :: essays research papers
Thomas Paine was more than just a writer. He did many things in his life. He wrote pamphlets and books like the Common Sense, or African Slavery on America. He is still recognized for his writings today.      Thomas Paine was born on January 29, 1737 in Thetford, England. He was the son of a farmer and corsetmaker. He went to a local school until the age of thirteen. We was forced to leave school so he could help his father at work. He went through many jobs, and felt unhappy at everyone he tried.      He went to sea at the age of nineteen. He traveled from place to place meeting many different people. He got married, but unfortunately she died a year later in 1760. He remarried in 1771. But again he was separated from her three years later. His appointment as excise collector in 1762 was lost in 1765 because of an improper entry report. ( Encyclopedia of World Biography, 66)      Paine moved to America because of a London meeting with Benjamin Franklin. He got a job writing for a magazine called the Pennsylvania Magazine, and eventually became the editor. He wrote the Common Sense in 1776, about independence. It was a instantaneous success. It was even translated into German and printed in England, Scotland, Holland, and France. It sold 120,000 in just three months, and over six million today. It was said to get the people ready for the Declaration of Independence soon after.      For the remainder of the Revolution he was with Washington’s soldiers. He wrote The Crisis which appeared between December 1776 and April 1783. Again he was Paine was know for his phrasemaking. In his later papers Paine attacked Tories, profiteers, inflationists, and counterfeiters. (Encyclopedia of World Biography, 66) On April 19, 1783, he concluded his Crisis series on a note of expectations.      He lived quietly after the Revolution. He worked on several inventions, like a pierless iron bridge to cross the Schuylkill River. He wrote the Age of Reason, in 1794, which was a direct attack on the irrationality of religion and a defense of deism. Despite Paine’s belief in the Creator, it was suppressed in England.
Thursday, October 24, 2019
Airasia: Low Cost Carriers in Asia Pacific Essay
The use of information technology plays an important role in the strategic and operation management of airlines,and facilitates the successful airlines in the future. This paper will look at the awarding-winning low cost carriers (LCC) in Asia Pacific region – AirAsia, analyzes the current business environment, competitive advantages, value chain, current implementation of information technology, and the recommended future implementation of technology in customer relationship management (CRM) implementation to pursue competitive differentiation and profitability effectively in the future. COMPANY BACKGROUND AirAsia is one of the award winning and largest low fare airlines in the Asia expanding rapidly since 2001. With a fleet of 72 aircrafts, AirAsia flies to over 61 domestic and international destinations with 108 routes, and operates over 400 flights daily from hubs located in Malaysia, Thailand, and Indonesia. Today, AirAsia has flown over 55 million guests across the region and continues to create more extensive route network through its associate companies. AirAsia believes in the no-frills, hassle-free, low fare business concept and feels that keeping costs low requires high efficiency in every part of the business. Through the corporate philosophy of â€Å"Now Everyone Can Fly†, AirAsia has sparked a revolution in air travel with more and more people around the region choosing AirAsia as their preferred choice of transport. AirAsia creates values through the following vision and mission: Vision Mission To be the largest low cost airline in Asia and serving the 3 billion people who are currently underserved with poor connectivity and high fares.To be the best company to work for whereby employees are treated as part of a big family Create a globally recognized ASEAN brand To attain the lowest cost so that everyone can fly with AirAsia Maintain the highest quality product, embracing technology to reduce cost and enhance service levels AirAsia makes the low fare model possible and create values through the implementation of the following key strategies: Strategies Safety First Partnering with the world’s most renowned maintenance providers and complying with the world airline operations. High Aircraft Utilization Implementing the regions fastest turnaround time at only 25 minutes, assuring lower costs and higher productivity. Low Fare, No Frills Providing guests with the choice of customizing services without compromising on quality and services. Streamline Operations Making sure that processes are as simple as possible. Lean Distribution System Offering a wide and innovative range of distribution channels to make booking and travelling easier. Point to Point Network Applying the point-to-point network keeps operation simple and lower costs.
Wednesday, October 23, 2019
Chapter Study Questions 1 & 2 Essay
1.What percentage of Texans live in urban areas (cities & suburbs)?  90% of the population now lives in crowed cities and suburbs. 2.Name the three cities in Texas that are three of the largest in US?  Houston, San Antonio and Dallas 3.What are the three diverse economic businesses in Texas? 4 Oil and gas producer now work alongside high-tech companies, telecommunications giants, and other important business sectors. 4.In what areas does Texas consistently rank at the bottom in state spending compared to other states? 4 Texas consistently ranks near the bottom of the states in spending on education, welfare, and healthcare for poor. 5.Is Texas a high-tax, high-business regulatory state or is it low-tax, low-regulatory?  Texas is low-tax and low-regulatory climate. 6.Are Texas well informed about government and elected officials? Do they trust government? 4 Texans are woefully ignorant of their state and local government and the public officials who make important decisions affecting their daily lives. 7.Does Texas have a regressive or progressive tax system and what do these mean?  Texas has a regressive tax system, which means a tax that imposes a disproportionately heavier burden on low-income people than on the more affluent. 8.What is meant by economic diversification and has Texas done this? 6 Economic diversification is the development of new and varied business activities. New business were encouraged to relocated to or expand in Texas after the oil and gas industry, which had been the base of the state’s economy, suffered a major recession in the 1980’s. 9.What is meant by ‘cowboy rugged individualism’ and how has this impacted Texans’ views of government as a solution to problems?  The cowboy rugged individualism, with strong connotations of self-help and independence, symbolizes a political culture in Texas that does not like to look to government as a solution to many of its problems. It is the kind of individualism that continues to be exploited by political candidates in campaign ads. 10. What impact did having a frontier have on Texans? On might argue that the â€Å"wide-open spaces†of the frontier shaped Texan’s view of their autonomy, independence, and vulnerability. It has clearly shaped attitudes toward land and the legal right to use land as one sees fit. 11. What three combined groups now make up the majority of Texans and how does their historical experiences differ from that of Anglos? What celebration are part of their political culture?  African American, Hispanic, and Asian Americans. The white population have limited relevance to the relevance to the cultural and historical experiences of many African American and Hispanic Texans. For African American is Martin Luther King Jr’s birthday as state holiday in 1991. And for Hispanics is the Cinco de Mayo. 12.Just what does political culture mean and describe the individualistic subculture in terms of government size, assistance, politics, and primary goals? 9 Political culture a widely shared set of views, attitudes, beliefs and customs of a people as to how their government should be organized and run. Individualistic subculture holds that politics and government function as a marketplace. Government does not have to be concerned with creating a good or moral society but exists for strictly. Government should be limited, and its intervention in the private activities of its citizens should be kept to a minimum. The Government primary function is to ensure the stability of a society so that individuals can pursue their own interests. 13. Describe the moralistic subculture in terms of government size, assistance, politics, and primary goals? 9-10 Moralistic subculture is a view that government’s primary reasonability is to promote the public welfare and should actively use its authority and power to improve the social and economic well-being of its citizens. The Moralistic subculture regards politics as one of the great activities of a man in his search for the good society. 14.Describe the traditionalistic subculture in terms of government size, assistance, politics, and primary goals? 10 a view that political power should e concentrated in the hands of a few elite citizens who belong to established families or influential social groups. Public policy basically serves the interests of this small group. The traditionalistic subculture holds the view that there is a hierarchical arrangement to the political order. This hierarchy serves to limit the power and influence of general public, while allocating authority to few individuals who comprise self-perpetuating elites. 15. In what states or colonies did you originally find these three subcultures and what two best describe Texas? 16. How big is the Native American population in Texas and of the three remaining groups, do they have the right to have casinos? 11 Alabama-Coushatta, Tigua and Kickappo are the three small Native American groups that live on reservations in Texas. And the Native American population is less than one-half of 1 percent of the States total population. They have been denied the right to run casinos on their reservation. Even thought, their leader consider casinos a major potential source of revenue, jobs and economic development for their people, but recent efforts to change state law have been unsuccessful. 17. Were there ever a great many Hispanics in Texas prior to 1830 and what was it down to by 1887? How much had this increased by 1930, 1990, and 2012? 12 Prior 1830 the Hispanic population were a small minority of the population. By 1887 the Hispanic population had declined to approximately 4 percent of state’s population. In 1930 it was 12 percent and was concentrated in the border counties from Brownsville to el Paso. By 1990s, it had reached 25 percent, spurred by immigration from Mexico and other Latin American countries. By 2012 the Hispanics comprised 37.6 percent of the state’s population. 18.What two ethnic or racial groups are growing the fastest in Texas and by 2030-what group will be the largest? How have Hispanics done in terms of elected officials compared to other states?12 The two ethnic will be Asian and Hispanics. However the Hispanics are likely to exceed 50 percent of the state’s total. 19. Compare the %s of Anglos, African Americans, Hispanics, and Asians found in Texas in 1860 and those found in 2010? Chart 13 In 1860 it was a percent of 63.2% of Anglo. The 30.3 % are African American and 6.5% were Hispanic. However in 2010, 45.3% were Anglo, 11.5% were African American, 37.6% were Hispanic and 5.6% were other. 20.Where do African Americans tend to live in Texas?  African American settled in large numbers in the urban areas of Dallas, Fort Worth, Houston and Austin. 21. In 2010, how many Texans were there and what was the growth rate of the state compared to the national growth rate and where did people move from and to in the US? 16 According to the 2010 census, the state’s population was 25,145,561, an increase of approximately 4.3 million people in ten years. This growth rate of 20.6 percent was significantly higher than the national growth rate of growth rate of 9.7 percent.
Tuesday, October 22, 2019
Islam, Women and Overcoming Adversity Essays
Islam, Women and Overcoming Adversity Essays Islam, Women and Overcoming Adversity Paper Islam, Women and Overcoming Adversity Paper Rida is a veil/covering from head to toe of Muslim women belonging to the dawoodi bohra, Shia sect of Islam. At adolescence, men and women have the opportunity to enter faith by giving an oath- also known as misaq- to the community’s spiritual head. Misaq is formally considered as religious birth. In simpler terms, it is a passage from childhood to adulthood. Agreeing to the covenants of misaq means that one will sincerely uphold the tenets of Islam, follow the community’s guidelines, as well as understand the duties as a Muslim. During the ceremony of misaq, both men and women vow to endorse the expectations of cover. Men must keep an untrimmed beard, and women must wear rida. At the age of thirteen, I was caught puffing on tobacco. My actions were considered impure, and since I hadn’t reached puberty all the sins were to be burdened by my parents. Being the youngest, yet most spoiled of four children, my parents and close relatives had lost all expectations of my decency. In the year of my fourteenth birthday, I decided to participate in oath taking ceremony. Although I didn’t give much affirmation to the ritual, I part-took only to fulfil the formality. My parents were already distressed bearing my unorthodox way of life, and now the move to America came closer. The idea of move brought a lot of responsibilities to my parents. They had to wrap-up decades-old business, and leave two older children. Relatives that I didn’t even know the relationship of, came in to urge caution to my parents on the exotic young adults’ culture of America. It seemed as though clouds of gloom had descended upon them. Stepping on the soil of United States, I literally felt a cool breeze through my face. Thinking now, it was probably the effect of breeze that made me question my actions and a way of life. I had left behind the past. It was now time to re-write the story from the beginning, a crisp page for a new life. After two years of resid
Sunday, October 20, 2019
Miller Surname Meaning and Origin
Miller Surname Meaning and Origin The common Miller surname is usually occupational, but there are also other possibilities. Miller is usually an occupational surname referring to a person who owned or worked in a grain mill.The Miller surname also possibly be derived in some instances from the Gaelic words meillear, meaning having large lips; malair, or merchant; or maillor, a man wearing armor or a soldier.In ancient times the Miller surname originated from the Molindinar (mo-lynn-dine-are), a Scottish burn (rivulet) that still flows under the streets of modern Glasgow. Surname Origin: English, Scottish, German, French, Italian Alternate Surname Spellings: MILLAR, MILLS, MULLAR, MAHLER, MUELLER, MOELLER Fun Facts About the Miller Surname: The popular Miller surname has absorbed many cognate surnames from other European languages, for example, the German Mueller; the French Meunier, Dumoulin, Demoulins, and Moulin; the Dutch Molenaar; the Italian Molinaro; the Spanish Molinero, etc. This means that the surname alone doesnt really tell you anything about your distant family origins. Famous People with the Surname MILLER: Arthur Miller (1915-2005) - American playwright best-known for his Pulitzer Prize-winning play Death of a Salesman.Shannon Miller - American gymnast and Olympic gold medalistAlice Duer Miller - American womans suffrage activist, journalist, and writerWilliam Miller - author of Wee Willy Winkie and other nursery rhymes (1810-1872)Reggie Miller - American basketball player Genealogy Resources for the Surname MILLER: 100 Most Common U.S. Surnames Their Meanings: Smith, Johnson, Williams, Jones, Brown... Are you one of the millions of Americans sporting one of these top 100 common last names from the 2000 census?Miller Family History: Gary Miller offers information on his Miller families of Chester and Columbia counties in Pennsylvania, along with some transcribed Miller records from Ohio, Pennsylvania, and New York.Miller Genealogy of Western North Carolina: Marty Grant has provided a huge amount of information on his three Miller lines in Western North Carolina, along with links and information on other Miller families around the world.Miller DNA Study: This large DNA surname study includes over 300 tested members of the Miller family with the goal of untangling 5,000 distinct Miller lines in the world today.Miller Family Genealogy Forum: Search this popular genealogy forum for the Miller surname to find others who might be researching your ancestors, or post your own Miller query.FamilySearch - MILLER Genealogy: Explore over 22 million historical records, digital images and lineage-linked family trees posted for the Miller surname and its variations on this free website of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. MILLER Surname Family Mailing Lists: RootsWeb hosts several free mailing lists for researchers of the Miller surname.DistantCousin.com - MILLER Genealogy Family History: Free databases and genealogy links for the last name Miller.- References: Surname Meanings Origins Cottle, Basil. Penguin Dictionary of Surnames. Baltimore, MD: Penguin Books, 1967. Menk, Lars. A Dictionary of German Jewish Surnames. Avotaynu, 2005. Beider, Alexander. A Dictionary of Jewish Surnames from Galicia. Avotaynu, 2004. Hanks, Patrick and Flavia Hodges. A Dictionary of Surnames. Oxford University Press, 1989. Hanks, Patrick. Dictionary of American Family Names. Oxford University Press, 2003. Smith, Elsdon C. American Surnames. Genealogical Publishing Company, 1997.
Saturday, October 19, 2019
Autonomy in Death Essay Example for Free
Autonomy in Death Essay Physician-assisted suicide is a controversial topic with only a few states having legalized it; however, many groups are advocating for its approval. Physician-assisted suicide has ethical limitations that only allow a doctor to prescribe, not administer, a lethal dose of medication for a patient who has been deemed terminally ill with less than six months to live by two physicians. The prescription allows the patient to choose both the timing and setting of death and the physician’s only role is provision of medication. This gifts patients with autonomy in their death and relieves the doctor of any moral burden in participation with death keeping this action an ethical practice. Oregon was the first of few states to have legalized physician-assisted suicide but I would like to argue its potential advantages to the entire United States. Ball (2010) said, â€Å"In Oregon  the one state in the U.S. where assisted suicide is legal – doctors are allowed to help only state residents who are expected to die within six months†(p.1). Giving terminally ill patients the power to choose a peaceful death demonstrates empathy toward the ill patients and their families. Terminally ill patients without this empowerment face the difficult choice of using limited resources to end their lives if not given the legal freedom to choose how and when they die. The Code of Ethics for Nurses provision 1.4 is the right to self-determination and it states that Respect for human dignity requires the recognition of specific patient rights, particularly, the right to self-determination. Self-determination, also known as autonomy, is the philosophical basis for informed consent in health care. Patients have the moral and legal right to determine what will be done with their own person; to be given accurate, complete, and understandable information in a manner that facilitates an informed judgment; to be assisted with weighing the benefits, burdens, and available options in their treatment; to accept, refuse, or terminate treatment without deceit, undue influence, duress, coercion, or penalty; and to be given necessary support throughout the decision-making and treat ment process. Such support would include the opportunity to make decisions with family and significant others and the provision of advice and support from knowledgeable nurses and other health professionals. Patient should be involved in planning their own health care to the extent they are able to choose to participate (American nurses association, 2001, p.148). Giving this added right to chose physician assisted suicide allows patients the autonomy described in the Nursing Code of Ethics. The purpose of this paper is to argue that physician-assisted suicide is ethical and beneficial because it allows for patient autonomy. â€Å"I would argue that by denying terminally ill people recourse to death with dignity via physician prescribed medication, they are inflicting their own brand of coercion and abuse. The concept of a â€Å"merciful death†needs to be part of this discussion. It is a sad commentary that our society responds to our pets’ terminal suffering more humanely than to our fellow human beings’ end-of-life struggles†(â€Å"Death is best approached†, 2012, p. 1). Many feel that denying patients the right to choose is not advocating for their b est interest and is a form of abuse. We wouldn’t leave our ill family pet alive to suffer so why wouldn’t we consider letting our loved ones put themselves out of their misery in a peaceful way? The entire point is to give the public a choice. It would still be up to each individual to decide whether or not to exercise that right if their physician deemed their situation appropriate. The Code of Ethics for Nurses says that â€Å"Respect for human dignity requires the recognition of specific patient rights, particularly, the right of self-determination†(American nurses association, 2001, p.148). This statement implies that the patient should have the right to make end of life decisions on their own. When terminal patients are in pain and suffering, they may not have the strength or will to fight any longer. It is cruel to prolong a patient’s pain and suffering and deny their autonomy to make the decision of having a peaceful death. Also, it can be argued that when patients have their mind set on ending their lives, they tend to follow through on their own even if their physician cannot assist them. This may lead to a more traumatic death and a scene that can be quite traumatizing for the family member or friend who finds their loved one’s remains. The alternative is a prescribed medicine that the patient may take home, choosing the preferred place to die, to allow the patient to die peacefully without sustaining disfiguring injuries thus allowing them a more dignified burial if the family chooses to view the body one last time. However, in most of the United States, physician-assisted suicide is still illegal so very few Americans are afforded the right to choose to end their life when they are terminally ill. Because physician assisted suicide was brought to the public’s attention as an option by the unconventional tactics of Dr. Jack Kevorkian, the idea of legalizing this was tainted from the beginning, making many states hesitant to allow assisted suicide. Miller (2011) notes that â€Å"Jack Kevorkian rose to national prominence as â€Å"Dr. Death,†a physician who insisted that sometimes a doctor’s first duty to his patient was to help him die. The retired pathologist, who became an assisted suicide advocate claiming to have had a hand in 130 deaths in the 1990s, helped spark a national debate over euthanasia†(p. A5). Jack Kevorkian’s tactics were questionable because he publicized the deaths of elderly, disabled, and terminally-ill patients using inhaled carbon dioxi de or using his self-made suicide machine. Although the patients had asked for Dr. Kevorkian’s assistance to end their suffering by assisting in their suicide, he received a lot of negative attention because he publicized his assistance in this process by encouraging CBS to broadcast a video of himself injecting a cocktail of lethal drugs into a patient suffering from Lou Gehrig’s disease (Miller, 2011). After much backlash from the public over the fact that he actually injected patients with lethal drugs, he developed a suicide machine which allowed the patient to press a button that caused the machine to administer a mixture of sodium pentothal and potassium chloride which was first used on Janet Adkins, a 54 year old sufferer of Alzheimer’s disease (Miller, 2011). â€Å"The last thing Janet Adkins said was, ‘You just make my case known,'†Dr. Kevorkian told the Associated Press†(Miller, 2011, p. A5). Although his tactics were extreme and caused a lot of public controversy, his patie nts wanted to end their suffering and his actions caused others to advocate for ethical standards to be put into place for legal physician assisted suicide while at the same time completely turning others away from the concept of legalizing euthanasia. Dr. Goodwin, a general practitioner, said he began advocating for the right to help terminally ill people die after listening to his patients (Miller, 2012). â€Å"They want autonomy at this time, to be allowed to die at home with the comfort and support of their families,†Dr. Goodwin said in a 2001 interview (Miller, 2012, p. 1). Because of the extreme tactics used by Jack Kevorkian, who initiated the debate on legalizing euthanasia, many people view those who advocate for the client’s right of physician assisted suicide as cruel or lacking in empathy for patient and families. However, â€Å"Peter Goodwin, a family physician who wrote and campaigned for Oregon’s right-to-die law in the 1990s, died after taking a cocktail of lethal drugs prescribed by his doctor, as allowed under the legislation he championed. Dr. Goodwin, 83 years old, had been diagnosed with a degenerative brain disorder similar to Parkinson’s disease and had been given less than six m onths to live.†(Miller, 2012, p. 1). Dr. Goodwin believed in a patient’s autonomy in death so much that he chose to exercise his own rights in the same fashion in order to end his own suffering. In an interview with the Oregonian, the local newspaper in Oregon, Dr. Goodwin said that his health was deteriorating and he would soon end his life. â€Å"His family gathered to bid him farewell. ‘The situation needs thought, it doesn’t need hope,’ he said. ‘Hope is too ephemeral at that time’†(Miller, 2012, p. 1). This clearly articulates the feelings of a terminally ill man towards the importance of autonomy in concern of his own death. â€Å"End-of-life decisions are not arbitrary or impulsive. Why shouldn’t a person choose to end his or her life with dignity if it is obvious that all options for leading any kind of meaningful life are non-existent? I would think any modicum of compassion would respect such a momentous, personal decision. Suffering, physical and mental, and the anguish it causes should produce empathy for the patient’s wishes and desires, even if they run counter to our own sense of rectitude. It is not about us. It’s about the patient’s right of autonomy. We need to understand that it is ultimately his or her decision to make, not ours†(Death is best approached, 2012, p. 1). In this statement, an unknown author expressed the utmost sympathy for those suffering from terminal illness. Physician assisted suicide is ethical as it demonstrates compassion and empathy towards someone else’s pain, suffering, and rights. There is nothing cruel about autonomy over the decision to die. These kinds of laws need to be considered using a deep emotional understanding of the terminally ill’s feelings and problems. Other countries have legalized euthanasia and have less restrictive laws which allow them to provide services for foreigners. Because of this, if all United States citizens aren’t granted the autonomy they desire in their own country they will still be able to get the results they so desperately want but the outcome may be more painful to family members whose loved ones would end up dying in other countries and in less desirable conditions. Mr. Minelli, who is head of Dignitas, a Swiss company that provides euthanasia services only to foreigners, said that â€Å"a memory of his seriously ill grandmother’s pleading in vain with her doctor to help her die left him with a particular interest in Switzerland’s growing right-to-die movement, and he joined one of the main groups. In 1998, he quit to found Dignitas†(Ball, 2010, p. 2). In 2008, his neighbors’ complaints forced Dignitas out of his rented apartment that he had been using to conduct the assisted suicides and Zurich city officials refused permission for a new venue. In response to this Mr. Minelli organized suicides in cars, a hotel room, industrial sites, and his own home which drew the attention of local officials. â€Å"Someone who is used to a five-star hotel can’t come to Dignitas and expect the same,†says Mr. Minelli†(Ball, 2010, p. 2). Is it really beneficial to force terminally ill patients into a foreign country to a harsh environment to grant them the freedom to end their own lives? If terminally ill patients really want a physician assisted suicide, they will find another setting in which they can achieve one but allowing patients to have one in their own country optimizes the setting and allows for more family support near the time of death. It also saves the family the trouble of getting the body of a loved one from a foreign country after the time of death and allows the family to begin funeral arrangements sooner so that they can go through the stages of grieving that they need to in order to move forward with their own lives. This act of ending the life sooner also spares the family the pain of watching their loved one suffer longer than they want to. Another benefit to approving physician assisted suicide is that just know that the option is available can be therapeutic for terminal patients. â€Å"Mr. Minelli argues that making assisted suicide available removes a taboo around suicide, helping people who want to kill themselves open a dialogue and seek help. About 70% of people who get the green light from Dignitas for an assisted suicide never contact the group again, proving the palliative effect of knowing help is available, he says†(Ball, 2010, p. 2). This clearly proves that just knowing that euthanasia is an option is enough to help patients carry on with terminal illness. Even if a patient chooses never to exercise the right to a physician assisted suicide, the knowledge that they have an option for a way out of their suffering is comforting in itself. Craig Ewert was a retired university professor who suffered from Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS) or Lou Gehrig’s disease. He decided to end his life because he wanted to make this decision before he lost the ability to decide his own fate, overcoming the resistance of his doctors (Ball, 2010). â€Å"When you’re completely paralyzed and can’t talk, how do you let someone know you are suffering?†he told a television interviewer before his death in September 2006. â€Å"This could be a complete and utter hell†(Ball, 2010, p. 3). Mr and Mrs. Ewerts were from the U.K. but they traveled to Switzerland and chose Mr. Minelli’s group, Dignitas, because it accepts foreigners. Mrs. Ewert said that had she not been able to travel to get her husband the assisted suicide services that he desired she may have been forced to help her husband die and she worried that she wouldn’t have known exactly what to do (Ball, 2010). She defended Mr. Minelli saying â€Å"Sure, there have to be some protections for people, but I think we’re going way beyond what there needs to be, I admire Minelli for being willing to take the heat†(Ball, 2010, p. 3). Because Craig Ewert was allowed to make his own decision to die, his wife was spared the pressure that he may have put on her to help him end his life. Furthermore, had he been denied the right to make his own decision and his wife Mary had been coerced to help him commit suicide, there would have been extreme emotional and possibly even legal consequences to her action despite the fact that it was her husband’s wish. This is a situation that may Americans are also threatened with because physician assisted suicide is illegal in most of the country. All United States citizens should be afforded the right to choose a physician assisted suicide if they have been deemed terminally ill because this freedom shows compassion and empathy towards the patient’s suffering. If patients aren’t allowed to legally choose death here, they may travel to another country to receive services or chose to carry out suicide on their own. If patients chose to take matters into their own hands this would be harder on the patient as the death would probably not be as peaceful as the lethal injection that the physician would prescribe and if would also be harder on the patient’s loved ones. If patients decide to go to another country to achieve the death they desire they would lose the privilege of dying in their own comfort zone and the distance would make the death harder on the family to make funeral arrangements and move on with their own lives. The Code of Ethics for Nurses stated that â€Å"Respect not just for the specific decision but also for the patient’s method of decision-making is consistent with the principle of autonomy†(American nurses association, 2001, p.149). Regardless of whether or not we understand an individuals motivation for seeking a physician assisted suicide, nurses should support the autonomy that patients needs to make this choice on their own. Giving terminally ill patients autonomy in their death, by making physician assisted legal for every United States citizen, is only giving patients additional rights that they may or may not chose to exercise and is the most compassionate way to show empathy for those who are dying. Autonomy in Death. (2017, Feb 13).
Friday, October 18, 2019
Installation project Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words
Installation project - Assignment Example The main purpose for this installation will be to ease the service delivery in the airport making it more comfortable for the travelers departing and those arriving. This will not be just limited to the passengers but all the activities that take place at the airport in general. The project will be meant to monitor movement of air traffic, movement of road traffic to and from the airport, movement of goods within the airport and to an extent the weather conditions at the airport. This information will be crucial in reducing the intensity of travelers while at the airport. While undertaking this project, it is important to understand that the area in question is a normal 2D earth surface that will have to be transformed into a 4D Euclidean surface using the transformation mathematical formula. The surface will further be embedded into maps and metrics using the same concepts as those used in 4D Euclidean space transformations. 2. A general survey will have to be conducted across the airport to determine the general layout and nature of the airport. This will involve picking of data about feature s such as buildings and other structure s available at the airport. This task can be carried out by a surveyor or a GIS technician. 3. After analyzing the layout of the airport, the site engineer will choose a point at which the giant bear will be installed taking into consideration the movement of air traffic and passengers and also its proximity to the main travelers’
How do Game Technologies affect the living world nowadays in different Essay
How do Game Technologies affect the living world nowadays in different category compared to the past and the near future - Essay Example Just like other computer technologies, this field also keeps on improving year after year in terms of speed, graphics, logical and skills requirements. Games have great effects on their users and these factors have been impacting the societies since their invention. Some of the effects of gaming technologies in the past, as well as predicted effects in the future will be discussed in the paper. The current trends and effects of the gaming technologies will also be discussed. 2. Gaming Technologies in the Past The gaming technology initiated in the 1970s and has seen remarkable response from the customers ever since. Kooijmans provided the information that Nintendo was one of the pioneers in the gaming industry; they were known to sell 3 games every second from the year 1983 to 1995. This figure meant that every teenager in the world possessed one of their games. The first generation of computers was based on geometrical shapes, slower motion of objects and limited quality of sound ef fects, for example PONG and Pacman. The technologies were limited in those days since gaming technologies have always made use of the prevailing technologies in the market. Only one or more objects screen could be controlled by the player. 2.1 Impact on Health Gaming technologies were considered to be a occasional source of entertainment, whereas other activities included outdoor activities and sports. Media and gadgets had not taken over the society; rather they were used as means to get work done. Gaming technologies had limited features, controls and possibilities that were soon conquered by the user. The limited nature of entertainment played a role in the technology staying as a source of entertainment, and not becoming a addiction. The situations and graphics were not very close to reality. The sound effects also did not participate in making the whole experience addictive. Due to the lack of addiction, individuals spent less number of hours in playing games, thus no health is sues became evident among the users in those times. 2.2 Impact on Social Skills Gaming technologies in the past were not available on a variety of gadgets which limited its usage and impact on the user’s lifestyle. The immobility of the gaming technologies helped the individual to maintain his personal relations and outdoor activities. People were still socially active and would participate productively in discussions. 2.3 Impact on Aggression Level The aggression level in gaming technologies was not a matter of concern till the 1980s and 1990s when Nintendo and Sony PlayStation launched new generations of games, respectively. Earlier, the games mainly involved the journey of a character to a certain place, coupled with minor barriers. The games were not known to have any element of aggression in them. On the contrary, Gardner used classic games, like Mario Bros, to help in the psychotherapy of children in activities like motor coordination, foresee and handle matters on the basis of past experiences etc. These games would not be chosen for clinical purposes if they had high levels of aggression in them. 2.4 Impact on Education There is no significant role of the gaming technologies in the field of education in the early years of the invention. 3. Impact of Gaming Technologies in the Current Times The advent of innovative technologies has improved games to a great extent as the game developers can incorporate greater
Case study Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words - 16
Case study - Essay Example On the other hand, the legitimacy theory studies the reactions of stakeholders in terms of their social obligations and requirements as imposed by the society and other forces. These two theories will provide insights into the reactions of BP following the oil spill. The stakeholder and legitimacy theories remain some of the most relied upon theories that explain the nature of reaction and approaches that companies, firms, and businesses undertake when faced with various perspectives (Friedman & Miles, 2006). These theories attempt to expose the driving motives and the determining interests that help companies to develop various choices and alternatives as understood together with the policy framework of the companies. The choice of an approach is often determined by the long-term and short-term objectives of the company. These objectives may relate to matters of performance, public image, brand protection, strategic considerations, and the costs involved. The long-term considerations of a company’s interests are largely conditioned by multiple factors that make it necessary for companies to adopt approaches that can safeguard them against the perils of the market and the unpredictable nature of the business environment (Solomon, 2011). The stakeholder theory spells out terms for the survival and the sustainability of any company. According to this theory, firms should seek to create, sustain, and increase value for all its stakeholders for the purposes of performance and survival (Philips, 2011; Philips, 2003). The theory begins from the point that the existence, performance, and progress of a firm is significantly dependent on the harmony that must exist among the stakeholders. Any adverse effect on one or some of the stakeholders will invariably spill over to the other stakeholders. As such, the work of the management is to harmonize, streamline, and regulate the actions, policies, strategies, and
Thursday, October 17, 2019
People in Organizations Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words
People in Organizations - Essay Example We are all amateur psychologists, and the most successful influencers are able to assess accurately their target influencees, and adapt their influencing messages to suit them. Such adjustments lead to the creation of influencer-influencee rapport. The conversation of people who are in rapport flows, and both their body movements and their words become synchronized with each other. The recommendation to match the influencee so as to create rapport is itself based on the even broader notion of liking. This says that we like people like ourselves and, in consequence, will be more willing to comply with their requests (Aguinis, & Henle, 2001),. Not only do we know that people are different, but we also know that they are predictably different. Indeed, we spend a great deal of our time classifying them into broad types, and explaining the differences between the types. Every popular newspaper contains an astrological section which implies that Capricorns behave in one way and that Scorpios act in another. The twelve signs of the Zodiac represent one attempt at classifying people into personality types based on the time of the year in which they were born. How accurate or useful are they Historically, many attempts have been made to classify people according to their personalities. The Greek physician, Hippocrates, offered the temperaments model of personality. He believed that there were four basic personalities or temperaments - melancholic, choleric, sanguine and phlegmatic. In his view, each was determined by the amount and type of bile and phlegm that people possessed in their bodies (Aguinis, & Henle, 2001). Distinguishing Between Personality Types If you are to select a particular influencing approach on the basis of your target influencee's personality, then the personality framework employed has to be both easy to understand and simple to use. You need to be able to divide people into a very limited number of personality types or classes, based on the personality traits that they possess. In modern times, Carl Gustav Jung was the first to observe that people's behavior, rather than being individually unique, fitted into patterns, and that many of the seemingly random differences in human behavior were actually ordered and consistent (Lambert, 1996). It is obvious that any attempt to reduce personality into only four categories inevitably ignores the subtlety of human differences. On the other hand, anything more complex is unusable by an influencer. For this reason, in using these four personality stereotypes, one is inevitably trading accuracy off against ease of use. The framework does allow you to classify the individual whom you may wish to influence in a simple way using your observation of their behavior and the examination of their created work or home environment. Such information can then be immediately put into practice. Personality Testing One obvious way to understand the relationship of individual differences to work-related behavior is to examine the applied literature on personality testing in the workplace. Psychological tests, attempting to measure individual differences related to occupational behaviors, have been used for over 60 years, and there now exist nearly 80,000 occupational-related tests. Both world wars, particularly the second, were
Possible causes of destruction from space (solar storms and possible Essay
Possible causes of destruction from space (solar storms and possible impact from an asteroid or comet) - Essay Example The rise of scientific temperament rather than dispelling further consolidated these fears by extending new knowledge and information about space and the associated phenomenon. In that context, the longevity of earth is to a great extent a matter of coincidence and the spatial phenomenon like solar storms, and collision with asteroids or comets do have the potential to give way to an apocalypse. Solar Storms Before delving on the possible apocalyptic consequences of solar storms, one needs to delve into the scientific basis of these solar phenomenons. Simply speaking, a solar storm may refer to solar flare, Coronal Mass Ejection (CME) or a geomagnetic storm. The solar flares mostly get noticed as an abrupt brightening on the surface of the sun (Shipman, 1987, p. 266). This brightening of the solar surface is often interpreted as a massive release of energy of gargantuan proportions (Shipman, 1987, p. 266). The solar flares result into large scale ejections of atoms, ions and electron s from the sun’s corona into the space (Shipman, 1987, p. 266). These ejections of atomic and subatomic particles resulting from a solar flare do manage to reach the earth’s atmosphere. ... drastically jeopardize the modern life by causing natural disasters, earthquakes, Tsunamis, disrupting communication technologies, giving way to genetic mutations, jamming radio and satellite signals, and a plethora of other scientifically valid possibilities. It is a possibility that the very life nurturing potential of the sun could someday lead to an apocalypse. Coronal Mass Ejection (CME), simply put is a large scale burst of magnetic fields, solar wind and plasma from the sun’s corona into space (Ridpath, 1997, p. 102). CMEs do have the ability to disrupt the life on earth. In case, per chance, a CME is directed towards the earth, it could give way to shock wave of solar particles impacting the earthly life (Ridpath, 1997, p. 102). It is a known fact that there exists a direct correlation between the solar activities and the geological and biological life on earth. In case the sun turns into a cycle marked by massive solar eruptions and flares, shooting high energy partic les into the earth’s atmosphere, it could give way to unprecedented and unheard of apocalyptic possibilities. The consequences may be as innocuous as the disruption of electric grids and communications networks, bringing to knees the contemporary technology driven civilizations, or as threatening as the disruption of earth’s atmosphere resulting in large scale natural disasters, genetic mutations culminating in morbid diseases and food shortages giving way to wars, riots and large scale genocides. While delving on the physical, magnetic, atmospheric and climatic consequences of solar activity, one simply could not ignore its ramifications for the social, political and economic life on earth. It is a known fact that a great many wars are being fought for amassing scarce natural and mineral
Wednesday, October 16, 2019
Case study Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words - 16
Case study - Essay Example On the other hand, the legitimacy theory studies the reactions of stakeholders in terms of their social obligations and requirements as imposed by the society and other forces. These two theories will provide insights into the reactions of BP following the oil spill. The stakeholder and legitimacy theories remain some of the most relied upon theories that explain the nature of reaction and approaches that companies, firms, and businesses undertake when faced with various perspectives (Friedman & Miles, 2006). These theories attempt to expose the driving motives and the determining interests that help companies to develop various choices and alternatives as understood together with the policy framework of the companies. The choice of an approach is often determined by the long-term and short-term objectives of the company. These objectives may relate to matters of performance, public image, brand protection, strategic considerations, and the costs involved. The long-term considerations of a company’s interests are largely conditioned by multiple factors that make it necessary for companies to adopt approaches that can safeguard them against the perils of the market and the unpredictable nature of the business environment (Solomon, 2011). The stakeholder theory spells out terms for the survival and the sustainability of any company. According to this theory, firms should seek to create, sustain, and increase value for all its stakeholders for the purposes of performance and survival (Philips, 2011; Philips, 2003). The theory begins from the point that the existence, performance, and progress of a firm is significantly dependent on the harmony that must exist among the stakeholders. Any adverse effect on one or some of the stakeholders will invariably spill over to the other stakeholders. As such, the work of the management is to harmonize, streamline, and regulate the actions, policies, strategies, and
Tuesday, October 15, 2019
Possible causes of destruction from space (solar storms and possible Essay
Possible causes of destruction from space (solar storms and possible impact from an asteroid or comet) - Essay Example The rise of scientific temperament rather than dispelling further consolidated these fears by extending new knowledge and information about space and the associated phenomenon. In that context, the longevity of earth is to a great extent a matter of coincidence and the spatial phenomenon like solar storms, and collision with asteroids or comets do have the potential to give way to an apocalypse. Solar Storms Before delving on the possible apocalyptic consequences of solar storms, one needs to delve into the scientific basis of these solar phenomenons. Simply speaking, a solar storm may refer to solar flare, Coronal Mass Ejection (CME) or a geomagnetic storm. The solar flares mostly get noticed as an abrupt brightening on the surface of the sun (Shipman, 1987, p. 266). This brightening of the solar surface is often interpreted as a massive release of energy of gargantuan proportions (Shipman, 1987, p. 266). The solar flares result into large scale ejections of atoms, ions and electron s from the sun’s corona into the space (Shipman, 1987, p. 266). These ejections of atomic and subatomic particles resulting from a solar flare do manage to reach the earth’s atmosphere. ... drastically jeopardize the modern life by causing natural disasters, earthquakes, Tsunamis, disrupting communication technologies, giving way to genetic mutations, jamming radio and satellite signals, and a plethora of other scientifically valid possibilities. It is a possibility that the very life nurturing potential of the sun could someday lead to an apocalypse. Coronal Mass Ejection (CME), simply put is a large scale burst of magnetic fields, solar wind and plasma from the sun’s corona into space (Ridpath, 1997, p. 102). CMEs do have the ability to disrupt the life on earth. In case, per chance, a CME is directed towards the earth, it could give way to shock wave of solar particles impacting the earthly life (Ridpath, 1997, p. 102). It is a known fact that there exists a direct correlation between the solar activities and the geological and biological life on earth. In case the sun turns into a cycle marked by massive solar eruptions and flares, shooting high energy partic les into the earth’s atmosphere, it could give way to unprecedented and unheard of apocalyptic possibilities. The consequences may be as innocuous as the disruption of electric grids and communications networks, bringing to knees the contemporary technology driven civilizations, or as threatening as the disruption of earth’s atmosphere resulting in large scale natural disasters, genetic mutations culminating in morbid diseases and food shortages giving way to wars, riots and large scale genocides. While delving on the physical, magnetic, atmospheric and climatic consequences of solar activity, one simply could not ignore its ramifications for the social, political and economic life on earth. It is a known fact that a great many wars are being fought for amassing scarce natural and mineral
Public education vs. home school Essay Example for Free
Public education vs. home school Essay Deciding which is better between public education and home schooling may often cause a debate. There are similarities between them, such as both being a good source of education for students. However, there are a few differences. For instance, home schooled students may graduate earlier than public schooled students while public school has more to offer. Even though home schooling has an advantage, public education is a better educational experience because of the opportunity, social skill development, and the things a student can learn from being in a class size of more than one. While home school may give a student the opportunity to graduate early, public schooling offers many more memories and opportunities that the students will cherish. When attending public school, students are given the opportunity to earn scholarships to help them further their education and continue working on their talents, depending on which way they earn their scholarship. They are given different ways to earn them such as playing sports, getting good grades, and being involved in musical activities. A student attending public school gets a chance to make priceless memories that they cannot get back. The ways that they can earn scholarships also play a part in creating memories. It is going to be a great feeling to be able to look back and tell stories to their loved ones. They will want to share how they got trophies and so much school recognition when they were the starting quarterback or the number one batter on the softball team or even the drum major for the high school band. Students also cannot get letterman jackets being homeschooled while the students in public school is able to get their name and their accomplishment patches on their very own letterman jacket. Each year, students are given a yearbook to look back at pictures they took with their friends and the group activities in which they were involved. There is nothing better than transporting back to the younger days while flipping back through the yearbook as an adult. Also, a certain piece of jewelry can put a smile on the face of an adult as they reminisce. Having a class ring as a souvenir is such a wonderful treasure. Graduating is such a significant accomplishment and students are going to want these memories and something to show for their achievements. Some students do not think having a diploma is not enough. It does not get better than having a class ring to go along with scholarships, letterman jackets, yearbooks, and the cap and gown. When students attend public school, they are learning life lessons, and while they do not realize it, it pays off in the future. Knowing how to be around all kinds of different people on the daily basis is very beneficial to the students as they develop. Students that are home schooled are not around unfamiliar people, such as new students, new teachers, others that are different from them, and substitutes on a daily basis and this can affect them socially. There will be students that do not get along and students that have to work in groups who may not be too fond of each other, but being in public school will help those students learn how to cope with uncomfortable situations. In the outside world and the future workplace, there will be similar situations, and they will be able to apply the skills that they learned in school to these situations. Having social skills is not just about having friends, it is about knowing how to speak to anybody the proper way at any given time. Having good social skills and knowing how to speak is going to follow the students in their futures. For example, when they go apply for a job, and they are offered an interview right on the spot, they need to know what to say and how to say it. Home schooled students are limited while public schooled students are benefiting quite well from this daily, making public school the better place for students to get an education. A lot of people might say that having a class size of one will help the student learn better and more than the students in a classroom of an average of about twenty-eight people. However, there are a few things that the students can learn from being in a class size of more than one. Patience is one of them. In a class size of one, students are only used to being by themselves and being answered right on the spot. In classrooms of more than one, on the other hand, the students learn patience when they have to wait for their turn. They also learn how to be patient with other students. Not knowing how to be patient can create a sense of selfishness which can give them somewhat of a bad image in the real world. The students also learn how to work in groups with different people that carry different attitudes and personalities. Patience and good social skills can help get through a group project. When working in groups, it can be difficult, especially when every student of the group has t heir own ideas and do not know how to handle the situation in a cordial manner. The work has to get done, and them knowing how to work together is going to go a very long way. There may be a time when a student meets someone in public that could give them a big opportunity. A student that knows how to speak in a professional tone instead of being shy will have a good chance of getting the chance to take advantage of that opportunity. Public school will teach more lessons than home school giving the students an advantage when it is time to handle different situations in life. Having a class size of one is okay. However, students need to learn how to work around and with others and still get their work done. Students will appreciate the memories they can create and other opportunities that they can earn from getting a public education. The educational experience is more than just learning the schools curriculum. Being home schooled can teach a student the curriculum along with basic things that they would learn at home while public education can teach more than just that such as life lessons that they will need in the future.
Monday, October 14, 2019
Challanges That Face The Change Management Business Essay
Challanges That Face The Change Management Business Essay Change management is a structured and strategic approach to initiate and manage the change process in the organization structure and culture as well as the individuals/teams behaviour and attitude towards the change transition in the field of the business processes, technology implementation or any other policies of an enterprise. Change management is about modifying or transforming organizations in order to maintain or improve their effectiveness. Change Management Models: There are several change management models that the enterprises follow while undertaking the change management process depending upon the ground realities and the organizational culture of the enterprise seeking the change processes. One of such models popularly known is described by John Kotter, who has set out an eight-step strategy for change management. These are as below 1. To establish a sense of urgency among the people in the organization. 2. To create a guiding coalition which will steer the reformation with the correct focus and aim to achieve the desired outcome. 3. To develop a clear vision and plan the strategy accordingly. 4. To communicate the change in vision to the people of the organization in a clear fashion. 5. To empower employees towards taking broad-based action to benefit the organization. 6. To generate short-term wins which in a whole would give the organization a long term winning result. 7. To consolidate all the gains of different volumes and ultimately produce desired changes. 8. To anchor new approaches in the culture and operation process of the organization. The above described model is designed keeping in focus on specific activities that will impact results. The benefits of using this model include evaluating employee resistance, help employees transition through the process, create employee specific action plans, and develop a change management plan keeping all the employees of the organization in mind and involve them in the entire process. Case Study Details: The Change Leader: In May 1996, K.V. Kamath replaced Narayan Vaghul as CEO of Indias leading financial services company Industrial Credit and Investment Corporation of India (ICICI). Immediately after taking charge, Kamath felt and understood that the organization needs to go through a change to shift its focus from just being a bank to create a difference and stand tall and different from all other competitors to create a brand name in the economic structure of India as well in entire south east Asia and introduced massive changes in the organizational structure and the emphasis of the organization changed ICIC from just a development bank mode to that of a market-driven financial conglomerate. The changes also brought in a lot of confusion among the employees, with media reports frequently carrying quotes from disgruntled ICICI employees. According to analysts, a large section of employees began feeling alienated. The discontentment among employees further increased, when Kamath formed specialist groups within ICICI like the structured projects and infrastructure group. Doubts were soon raised regarding whether Kamath had gone too fast too soon, and more importantly, whether he would be able to steer the employees and the organization through the changes he had initiated. Background: ICICI was established by the Government of India in 1955 as a public limited company to promote industrial development in India. The major institutional shareholders were the Unit Trust of India (UTI), the Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC) and the General Insurance Corporation of India (GIC) and its subsidiaries. The equity of the corporation was supplemented by borrowings from the Government of India, the World Bank, the Development Loan Fund (now merged with the Agency for International Development), Kreditanstalt fur Wiederaufbau (an agency of the Government of Germany), the UK government and the Industrial Development Bank of India (IDBI). The basic objectives of the ICICI were to à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Assist in creation, expansion and modernization of enterprises à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Encourage and promote the participation of private capital, both internal and external à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Take up the ownership of industrial investment; and à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Expand the investment markets. In 1992 ICICI tied up with J P Morgan of the US to form an investment banking company, ICICI Securities Limited. In line with its vision of becoming a universal bank, ICICI restructured its business based on the recommendations of consultants McKinsey Co in 1998. In the late 1990s, ICICI concentrated on building up its retail business through acquisitions and mergers. It took over ITC Classic, Anagram Finance and merged the Shipping Credit Investment Corporation of India (SCICI) with itself. ICICI also entered the insurance business with Prudential plc of UK. ICICI was reported to be one of the few Indian companies known for its quick responsiveness to the changing circumstances. While its development bank counterpart IDBI was reportedly not doing very well in late 2001, ICICI had major plans of expanding on the anvil. This was expected to bring with it further challenges as well as potential change management issues. However, the organization did not seem to much perturbed by this, considering that it had successfully managed to handle the employee unrest following Kamaths appointment. Change Challenges Part I ICICI was a part of the club of 3 developmental finance institutions named ICICI, IDBI and IFCI, who were the sole providers of long-term funds to the Indian industry. When the requirement used to be large in volume, all three used to organize and raise the money for required funding and investment. However, the deregulation beginning in the early 1990s, allowed Indian corporate to raise long-term funds abroad, putting an end to the DFI monopoly. The government also stopped giving DFIs subsidized funds. Eventually in 1997, the practice of consortium lending by DFIs was phased out. It was amidst this newfound independent status that Kamath, who had been away from ICICI for eight years working abroad2, returned to the helm. At this point of time, ICICI had limited expertise, with its key activity being the disbursement of eight-year loans to big clients like Reliance Industries and Telco through its nine zonal offices. The change program was initiated within the organization, the first move being the creation of the Infrastructure Group (IIG), Oil Gas Group (OG), Planning and Treasury Department (PTD) and the Structured Products Group (SPG), as the lending practices were quite different for all of these different segment of industries. Kamath picked up people from various departments, who he was told were good, for these groups. The approach towards creating these new skill sets, however, led to one unintended consequence. As these new groups took on the key tasks, a majority of the work, along with a lot of good talent, shifted to the corporate center. While the zonal offices continued to do the same work disbursing loans to corporates in the same region their importance within the organization seemed to have diminished. An ex-employee remarked, The way to get noticed inside ICICI after 1996 has been to attach yourself to people who were heading these (IIG, PTD, SPG, OG) departments. These groups were seen as the thrust areas and if you worked in the zones it was difficult to be noticed. Refuting this, Kamath remarked, This may be said by people who did not make it and there will always be such people. Some of the people who did not fit in this set-up were quick to leave the organization. However, this was just the beginning of change-resistance at ICICI. In the major client group, a staff of about 30-40 people handled the needs of the top 100 customers of ICICI. On the other hand, about 60 people manned the growth client group, which looked after the needs of mid-size companies. Obviously, the bigger clients required more diverse kinds of services. So working in MCG offered better exposure and bigger orders. The net effect was that the MCG executive ended up doing more business than the GCG executive. A middle-level manager at ICICI commented, The bosses may call it handling growth clients but the GCG manager is actually chasing non-performing assets (NPA)4 and Board of Industrial and Financial Restructuring (BIFR)5 cases. Kamath was quick to deny this allegation as well, Just because somebody is within the MCG does not guarantee him success. And these assignments are not permanent. Todays MCG man could easily by tomorrows GCG person and vice-versa. Complaints against these changes put in continued and ICICI was blamed for not putting in adequate systems in place to develop the right people. The manner, which ICICI recognized an individuals efforts the feedback process was also questioned. A manager remarked, Last year the bonuses varied from Rs 30,000 to Rs 250,000 depending on the performance. In many cases the appraisal scores were same but the bonus amount was not. And we were not told why. While Kamaths comments in the media seemed to dismiss many of the employee complaints, ICICI was in fact, putting in place a host of measures to check this unrest. One of the first initiatives was regarding imparting new skills to existing employees. Training programmes and seminars were conducted for around 257 officers by external agencies, covering different areas. In addition, in-house training programmes were conducted in Pune and Mumbai. During 1995-96, around 35 officers were nominated for overseas training programmes organized by universities in the US and Europe. ICICI also introduced a two-year Graduates Management Training Programme (GMTP) for officers in the Junior Management grades. Along with the training to the employees, management also took steps to set right the reward system. To avoid the negative impact of profit center approach, wherein pressure to show profits might affect standards of integrity within an organization, management ensured that rewards were related to group performance and not individual performances. To reward individual star performers, the method of selecting a star performer was made transparent. This made it clear, that there would be closer relationship between performance and reward. However, it was reported that pressure on accountability triggered off some levels of anxiety within ICICI which resulted in a lot of stress in human relationships. By 2000, ICICI had emerged as the second largest financial institution in India with assets worth Rs 582 billion. The company had eight subsidiaries providing various financial services and was present in almost all the areas of financial services: medium and long term lending, investment and commercial banking, venture capital financing, consultancy and advisory services, debenture trusteeship and custodial services. Change Challenges Part II ICICI had to face change resistance once again in December 2000, when ICICI Bank was merged with Bank of Madura (BOM). Though ICICI Bank was nearly three times the size of BOM, its staff strength was only 1,400 as against BOMs 2,500. Half of BOMs personnel were clerks and around 350 were subordinate staff. There were large differences in profiles, grades, designations and salaries of personnel in the two entities. It was also reported that there was uneasiness among the staff of BOM as they felt that ICICI would push up the productivity per employee, to match the levels of ICICI7. BOM employees feared that their positions would come in for a closer scrutiny. They were not sure whether the rural branches would continue or not as ICICIs business was largely urban-oriented. The apprehensions of the BOM employees seemed to be justified as the working culture at ICICI and BOM were quite different and the emphasis of the respective management was also different. TABLE I POST-MERGER EMPLOYEE BEHAVIORAL PATTERN PERIOD EMPLOYEE BEHAVIOR Day 1 Denial, fear, no improvement After a month Sadness, slight improvement After a Year Acceptance, significant improvement After 2 Years Relief, liking, enjoyment, business development activities Based on the above findings, ICICI established systems to take care of the employee resistance with action rather than words. The fear of the unknown was tackled with adept communication and the fear of inability to function was addressed by adequate training. The company also formulated a HR blue print to ensure smooth integration of the human resources. (Refer Table II). TABLE II MANAGING HR DURING THE ICICI-BOM MERGER THE HR BLUEPRINT AREAS OF HR INTEGRATION FOCUSSED ON à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ A data base of the entire HR structure à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Road map of career à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Determining the blue print of HR moves à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Communication of milestones à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ IT Integration People Integration -Business Integration. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Employee communication à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Cultural integration à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Organization structuring à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Recruitment Compensation à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Performance management à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Training à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Employee relations ICICI transferred around 450 BOM employees to ICICI Bank, while 300 ICICI employees were shifted to BOM branches. Promotion schemes for BOM employees were initiated and around 800 BOM officers were found to be eligible for the promotions. By the end of the year, ICICI seemed to have successfully handled the HR aspects of the BOM merger. Learnings From the Case Study: 1. Change Identification Awareness of necessity for organizational renewal created in the life cycle of company to preserve local competitive market and being capable to take global market in future. 2. Goal Setting Positive consequences of change process were listed to make better sense about changes. This list components including: a) Better quality of services to client b) Achieve much more income c) Go ahead of rivals d) Prepare and set modern standards in the banking and investing industry e) Better management for referred projects 3. Current State Evaluation In the ICICI there are some potentialities such as skills, knowledge, financial resources and human resources which are elements to support change process, but these were not utilized with management methods. In addition, considering capability of company and its target it was needed to engage some new specialties and also there was not any procedure for communication between employees. 4. Implementation In a change process, the most important points to start up are those which have maximum problems, so in order to solve these problems some improvement projects were defined as below: a) Promotion of human resources Prepare and modify organization structure to modern matrix structure instead of hierarchy structure. Execute evaluation systems based on 360 degree evaluation. Employing centralized experts instead of outsourcing. b) Improving coordination procedures by management information systems. In the Current State Evaluation stage it was recognized that the most problematic thing is method of communication between different departments, so responsibility matrix and information flow diagram prepared for design and build units. After that, by utilizing information systems to integrate activities in each unit, employees could simply share their needs or basic data and also managers could extract reports from reliable and integrated system. c) Managing projects by using project management standards and finally implementing enterprise project management. First of all project charter was created for each project, then responsibilities matrix applied, after it scheduling and checklists prepared for both phases design and construction. This led to control quality by filling out the checklists and clarify inspection points through every process. According to defined information systems, all of the members of project team could use their own required information by online accessible project charter. Finally project book as a document which has characteristic of lessons learned prepared for projects. 5. Oppose to Halted Factors The common problem which occurres during the implementing change process is resistance, so for an organization which wants to prevent problems it is extensively important to response to employees (internal customer). In order to oppose to negative factors and reduce resistance, below activities performed: a) Interior design with suitable work environment ergonomics b) Training self management, appropriate communications and teamwork to employees which lead to increase professional capability of personnel c) Arranging coordination meetings and clarify management strategies to middle managers and also to employees d) Encouraging employees to cooperate in improvement projects e) Exactly making known for employees the whole processes in the field of their own 6. Continues Improvement and Control 6. Continues Improvement and Control By the above study we know the actual performance of the change management process and what the process is capable of doing if it is operated according to established procedures. A system measurement of the performance is actually needed during the all steps of implementation change management in order to being capable to compare achievements and the objectives. This helps leadership to manage change process with systematic well-timed feedbacks. Although the feedbacks might be positive or negative but in the negative cases some efforts will be used to understand what the mistake is. For instance in ICICI there were some evaluation forms which was must to be filled out by clients to modify or complete execution experiments and all of that will be used to improve processes of the project execution team Conclusion: The above study provides us with the conclusion that the actual performance of the change management process and what the process is capable of doing, if it is operated according to established procedures. A system measurement of the performance is actually needed during the all steps of implementation change management in order to being capable to compare achievements and the objectives. This helps leadership to manage change process with systematic well-timed feedbacks. Although the feedbacks might be positive or negative but in the negative cases some efforts will be used to understand what the mistake is. For instance in the ICICI there are some evaluation forms which must fill out by clients to modify or complete execution experiments and all of that will be used to improve processes of the project execution team. The purpose of this paper is to develop a method that will help companies recognize weak points in their change management process and improve it, to measure quantity of success in the change management process, a procedure which was defined in ICICI. ICICI had the well laid planning in effect. They first involved them in leading to predetermined quality and time, including client satisfaction, improving standards and diversifying in business requirements. The last criterias were employees satisfaction and cost reduction. With applying this procedure it helped them to recognize that how much of the objectives were achieved by implementing change management, so a questionnaire had been prepared to evaluate the results of implementing change management. Questions: The below listed questions refer to all phases of the change management process and require answers that are required to be answered for assessment. 1. Client Satisfaction. 2. Employees Satisfaction. 3. Improving Working Standards. 4. Information Systems. 5. Cost Reduction
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