Federal Reserve Chair Game

Using the concepts you've been studying, describe how the game shows the use of monetary policy?Based on the monetary policy, the authority controls the supply of money through targeting the interest rate to promote economic growth and stability. Having relatively low price level and less unemployment rate are the main goals. Therefore, this game also adjusts the federal interest rate in order to retain the lowest unemployment rate and improving the economic stability by maintaining low inflation rate that increase the economic stability. So, we can say that this game controls the monetary policy.How can unforeseen circumstances effect the economy? Give examples.If the supply of money is not controlled by the monetary authority, there would be some chances that would affect the economic stability such as high inflation rate and unemployment rate may cause the issue to the current financial need and finally cause the high risk to the country.How does the Fed react to these circumstanc es? Did you get re-appointed? Why or why not?To keep the inflation rate low and stable around 2 percent and unemployment rate account 5 percent are recommended. In this case, it is necessary to have fed rate around 4.5 and also it needs to be revised every 3 months for next four years. If the rate will increase by 7.5 percent, unemployment rate would be around 4.69 percent, inflation rate as 2.26 percent. Therefore, the inflation will be higher as well as the unemployment rate. No, I was dismissed from the high inflation rate because I cannot control the monetary polity even form two times opportunity

Adulterated Food: A Serious Public Health Problem in Bangladesh Essay

Adulteration of food with toxic chemicals harmful to health has reached an epidemic proportion in Bangladesh. The newspapers have dubbed it as the ‘silent killer’. It is very difficult to find a sector of food industry which is free of adulteration. From raw vegetable and fruits to milk and milk products to fish, meat and processed food–every food item is contaminated. Almost every day in the news papers, newer and newer methods of adulterating newer and newer types of foods are reported. Carbide, formalin, textile colours, artificial sweeteners, DDT, urea etc. are used rampantly for this purpose. Contamination of foods with toxic chemicals pose a serious threat to public health, especially in a country like Bangladesh where due to poor health literacy, level of awareness is very low. Immediate effect of ingestion of such foods may be severe forms of diarrhoea (food poisoning), threatening life. In the long run, these chemicals in food adversely affect vital organs such as the liver and kidney resulting in organ failure and/or cancer and thus, untimely loss of life. There is no database in the country for these, but the recent surge in liver and kidney failure patients in the hospitals is indicative of the deteriorating situation. Ironically, people from all walks of life is aware of the hazards of taking foods adulterated with toxic chemicals, but this knowledge is not translated into practice. In a recent study, it has been found that though people are aware about the health hazards, they are nevertheless buying and consuming these adulterated foods. Several explanations are made for this paradox; absence or unavailability of non-adulterated food, failure of the regulatory agency to test and screen out adulterated food, adulterated foods are attractive in appearance and costs less, cultural factors and food habits etc. There is no paucity of laws and regulations to contain adulteration of food in Bangladesh such as Bangladesh Standard Testing Institute (BSTI) Ordinance of 1985, and the Pure Food Ordinance of 2005. Under the purview of these rules come the following offences: fake licenses, poor quality of food, substandard infrastructure and lack of maintaining hygiene, food adulteration, food impurity, incorrect information on food packages, selling products whose date have expired etc. However, the problem lies in its sustained and appropriate implementation by credible authority. Occasionally, the regulatory authorities will be suddenly in an active mode, and conduct mobile courts to penalize sellers/producers for selling contaminated products/foods. Then, there will be a lull for a few days and after few weeks, business becomes as usual. So what is to be done? First and foremost, commitment from the political establishment to wage a sustained campaign against these perpetrators of heinous crime, and establish our fundamental right to have safe and nutritious food! For this to achieve, relentless enforcement of existing laws with the execution of highest penalty possible, awareness-building campaign among consumers, promotion of ethical practices among the business community with active involvement of the business leaders, and capacity development of public health labs to test food items for adulteration on the spot are needed. The consumer rights groups should be more vocal and play active role in developing a mass campaign/movement in the country Safe and unadulterated food is out human right!†¦ Let’s work together to achieve this. Food adulteration detection  Food Tea Leaves Adulterant Iron Flakes Detection Spread a small quantity (2 tea-spoon) of the sample on a piece of paper. Draw a magnet over it. Iron flakes, if present, cling to the magnet. The same test may be carried out to trace iron flakes from tea half-dust and iron filings from tea dust. Food Tea Leaves Adulterant Leather Flakes Detection Prepare a paper-ball. Fire the ball and drop a little amount of the sample on it. The presence of leather flakes emits an odour of burnt leather. Food Tea Leaves Adulterant Coal Tar Dye Detection Scatter a little amount (1 tea-spoon) of the sample n a moistened white blotting paper. After 5 minutes, remove the sample and examine the paper. A revelation of coloured spots indicates the use of the dye. Food Coriander powder and Cumin Powder Adulterant Saw Dust Detection Take a little amount (a half of tea-spoon) of the sample. Sprinkle it on water in a bowl. Spice powder gets sedimented at the bottom and saw-dust floats on the surface. Food Green vegetables like Bitter Gourd, Green Chilli and others Adulterant Malachite Green Detection Take a small part of the sample and place it on a piece of moistened white blotting paper. The impression of colour on the paper indicates the use of malachite green, or any other low priced artificial colour. Food Arhar Pulse Adulterant Kesarri Pulse Detection Kesari Pulse has a characteristic wedge shape. Larger Kesari resembles Arhar (Tur). It can be separated by visual examination. Food Black Pepper Adulterant Papaya Seeds Detection Papaya seeds do not have any smell and are relatively smaller in size. Adulteration of papaya seed with Black Pepper may be detected by way of visual examination as also by way of smelling. Food Rice Adulterant Earth, sand, grit, unhusked paddy, rice bran, talc, etc. Detection These adulterants may be detected visually and removed by way of sorting, picking, and washing. Food Wheat Adulterant Earth, sand, grit, chopped straw, bran, unhusked grain, and seeds of weeds. Detection These adulterants may be detected visually and removed by way of sorting, picking, and washing. CHEMICAL TEST Food Coffee powder Adulterant Cereal starch Detection Take a small quantity (one-fourth of a tea-spoon) of the sample in a test tube and add 3 ml of distilled water in it. Light a spirit lamp and heat the contents to colourize. Add 33 ml of a solution of potassium permanganate and muratic acid (1:1) to decolourize the mixture. The formation of blue colour in mixture by addition of a drop of 1% aqueous solution of iodine indicated adulteration with starch. Food Coffee powder Adulterant Powder of scorched persimmon stones Detection Take a small quantity (1 tea-spoon) of the sample and spread it on a moistened blotting paper. Pour on it, with much care, 3 ml of 2% aqueous solution of sodium carbonate. A red colouration indicates the presence of powder of scorched persimmon stones in coffee powder. Food Jaggery Adulterant Sodium bicarbonate Detection Take a little amount (one-fourth of a tea-spoon) of the sample in a test tube. Add 3 ml of muratic acid. The presence of sodium carbonate or sodium bicarbonate effects effervescence. Food Jaggery Adulterant Metanil yellow colour Detection Take a little amount (one-fourth of a tea-spoon) of the sample in a test tube. Add 3 ml of alcohol and shake the tube vigorously to mix up the contents. Pour 10 drops of hydrochloric acid in it. A pink colouration indicates the presence of metanil yellow colour in jaggery. Food Asafoetida Adulterant Resin and colour Detection Take a little amount of small parts of the sample in test tube. Add 3 ml of distilled water and shake the tube gently. Pure asafoetida dissolves in water very quickly and produces a milky white colour, but in case of adulteration with a chemical colour the mixture turns to be coloured. The purity of asafoetida may also be examined by taking a little amount of it on the tip of a force and placing the same on the flame of a spirit lamp. Asafoetida burns quickly, producing bright flame and leaving the impurities behind. Food Gram powder Adulterant Kesari powder Detection Take a little amount (a half of a tea-spoon) of the sample in a test tube with 3 ml of distilled water. Add 3 ml of muratic acid. Immerse the tube in warm water. Check the tube after 15 minutes. A violet colouration indicates the presence of Kesari powder in Gram powder. Food Gram powder Adulterant Metanil yellow colour Detection Take a small quantity (a half of a tea-spoon) of the sample in a test tube. Add 3 ml of alcohol. Shake the tube to mix up the contents thoroughly. Add 10 drops of hydrochloric acid in it. A pink colouration indicates adulteration of gram powder with metanil yellow. Food Processed food, sweetmeat or syrup Adulterant Rhodamine B colour Detection The presence of this chemical colour in food is very easy to detect as it shines very brightly under sun. A more precise methods of detection is also there. Take a little amount (a half of a tea-spoon) of the sample in a test tube. Add 3 ml of carbon tetrachloride and shake the tube to mix up the contents thoroughly. The mixture becomes colourless and an addition of a drop of hydrochloric acid brings the colour back when food contains Rhodamine B colour. Food Processed food, sweetmeat or syrup Adulterant Metanil Yellow Detection Take little amount (a half of a tea-spoon) of the sample in a test tube. Add 10 drops of muratic acid or hydrochloric acid in it. The appearance of rosy colour indicates adulteration of food with metanil yellow. Food Parched rice Adulterant Urea Detection Take 30 pieces of parched rice in a test tube. Add 5 ml of distilled water. Shake the tube to mix up the contents thoroughly. After 5 minutes, filter water contents and add to it a little amount (a half of a tea-spoon) of powder of arhar or soyabean. Wait for another 5 minutes and then dip a red litmus paper in the mixture. Lift the paper after 30 seconds and examine it. A blue colouration indicates the use of urea in parched rice. Food Turmeric powder Adulterant Metanil Yellow colour Detection Take a little amount (one-fourth of a tea-spoon) of the sample in a test tube. Add 3 ml of alcohol. Shake the tube to mix up the contents thoroughly. Add 10 drops of muratic acid or hydrochloric acid in it. A pink colouration indicates the use of metanil yellow colour in turmeric powder. Food Green vegetable like green chilli etc. Adulterant Malachite Green Detection Rub the outer green surface of a small part of the sample with a liquid paraffin soaked cotton. The sample is adulterated when the white cotton turns green. Food Dry red chilli Adulterant Rhodamine B colour Detection Take a red chilli from the sample and rub the outer surface with a piece of cotton soaked in liquid paraffin. The sample is adulterated if the cotton becomes red. Food Dry turmeric root Adulterant Metanil yellow colour Detection Take a piece of dry turmeric root and rub the outer surface with a piece of cotton soaked in liquid paraffin. A yellow colouration of cotton indicates adulteration of turmeric root with metanil yellow colour. Food Sweet potato Adulterant Rhodamine B colour Detection Take a small part of the sample and rub the red outer surface with a piece of cotton soaked in liquid paraffin. The cotton adhering colour indicates the use of Rhodamine B colour on outer surface of the sweet potato.

Organizational Transformation Q&A Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Organizational Transformation Q&A - Essay Example â€Å"The human capability for creative thinking, creative behaviour, and innovation is a major source of organizational change† (Levy and Merry, 1986, p.221). This reinforces that the people are integral to the development of any organization. This is an on-going process that requires the participation of the members of the organization for its efficiency and must be for the common benefit of all. These innovations are illustrative that the organization places individual growth as a part of its policy. Leadership is an important characteristic which guides the direction of the organization and is oftentimes the make or break catalyst which could either propel success, keep the status quo or lead to its demise. Many great leaders have become the cornerstone of their organization and have often been simultaneously the face which identifies the company. The leader is the one who is in the forefront of creating, managing and sustaining innovation. In the same light, he fosters th e kind of culture that is adopted by each member of the organization. Adair outlines the duty of a good leader which is necessary in implementing innovation, â€Å"It is your job as a leader at any level in the organization to facilitate desirable change and to encourage that attitude throughout the management team† (2007, p.17). ... Even ethical standards may at times differ in such a way that what is acceptable to one may be utterly deplorable to another. But this also is imperative in the continuing growth of an organization because it is important to stimulate creativity and hard work, and this could only be positively done through a reward system. The individual reward system gives the best sense of fulfilment to an employee and this may not be dispensed with. Schein proposes a logical ascertainment of this system, â€Å"Every group must develop a system of sanctions for obeying or disobeying its norms and rules. There must evolve some consensus on what symbolically and actually is defined as a reward or punishment and on the manner in which it is to be administered† (2010, p.107). This responds to the ethical implications that will necessarily exhibit because of the reward system. By creating clear-cut rules supported by an innovative and unyielding leader, the conflicts will be mitigated or at the v ery least they will be amenable to such rules. I will describe my organization as innovative because it incorporates the necessary tools that would define one to be adoptive to change and open to creativity. Admittedly, there are times when people may be butting heads and there are those who are not wholeheartedly supportive of the decisions and the policies of the management but I deem these to be necessary to the growth of the organization. Not everyone can be in good terms all the time because the company is essentially composed of people with different backgrounds and education that differences are inevitable. The policies of the company promote individual rewards which can be immensely gratifying not only on a

FROM MODERNISM TO POSTMODERNISM IN ARTS EDUCATION Essay

FROM MODERNISM TO POSTMODERNISM IN ARTS EDUCATION - Essay Example Many modernist artists have mentioned that since 1980 they have been taught, with huge compromising problems and acute tensions, more and more inside a new paradigm based on a different set of premises, practices and expectations, related to but different from the parallel shift into postmodernism. Abbs (2003) has referred this paradigm to the shift that is related to thinking in the Education Institutes of British universities and is not to be identified with the atomistic and politically constructed National Curriculum, though many of the elements dislocated from their original meaning are reflected there (Abbs, 2003, p. 46). Modernist arts provides us reasons to believe that while something of value has been achieved under the shaping energies of the new paradigm, the literal and mechanical way it was instituted betrayed the broad sweep of the philosophy, ignored vital principles of creative pedagogy and maimed the holistic perception which lay at the heart of the thinking (Abbs, 2003, p. 46). Among major modernists names like Theodor Adorno, a major figure in the Frankfurt School of Critical Theorists, tells us that art and literature, and particularly Modernist art, could function as a kind of negative or contradictory criticism of society, in thought-provoking experimental texts. Adorno argued that difficult texts provoked new, unfamiliar, estranged conceptions of life that the dissonances and fractures of Modernist art expressed the individual's loss of control, centeredness and harmony in the contemporary world. For Walter Benjamin, modernist education has created a world of printing, duplication and photography, where artistic works have lost the 'aura' that their uniqueness once gave (Childs, 2000, p. 34). The rising technologies of artistic reproduction dispensed with the idea of a work's authenticity; for example, the idea of an authentic photographic or film print makes no sense. Benjamin thought this moved art's function from the realm of ritual, where it is magical and revered, into that of politics, where it is mass produced for purposes of marketing and propaganda, with dire consequences for a politically polarised Europe after World War I. To understand the paradigm which defines art in context with postmodernist education, it is first necessary to know what formalist modernism was not. It was not connective, inclusive, transactional, associative, referential, interactive, changeable, discontinuous, multilayered, impure, and ambiguous ignoring the autobiographical data and questions of personality. Postmodernist art, when encompass these qualities, presents a connective paradigm, which in turn demands a connective criticism to which we call "postmodern" recognizes time and periodicity, but, rather than being tied to one-way time series, it can move back and forth in time and can be associated in its reversibility with the new physics (Ascott & Shanken, 2003, p. 178). Walling (2001) while criticising postmodernism suggests that the way postmodernist education have abused and altered art curriculum is absurd. It does not make any sense for the national standards to be imaginative with reference to some particular standard. Postmodernist reforms in education at every level and field of interest has damped the curriculum rather than reform (Walling, 2001). Postmodern art when merged with the capabilities of visual art presents before us natural art, which

Applications of Environmental Valuation for Determining Externalit Article

Applications of Environmental Valuation for Determining Externalit Cost - Article Example However the regulators and the companies alike have difficulties in converting the physical consequences of such abating into monetary terms. This becomes necessary to guide the regulators and the companies to fix the priorities in adapting various technologies on the basis of the costs and benefits of the individual processes involved. In the case of goods and services that are being traded in a competitive market it becomes easier to value the externalities. The 'externalities' denote the external effects caused by positive or negative spillovers from the production of a product or service. The agency involved in such production of the product or service may be asked to provide additional technology or processes to reduce the negative impact of such externalities. In this case the cost of such externality will be shifted to the producer. Alternatively the consumer may be charged more to discourage the use of the particular product which has a negative externality and in that case the social cost of the externality is borne by the consumer. But problems may arise when the product or service is not traded in the market. ... In a process of evaluation of the benefits of abatement the first step is to estimate the effect of the emissions on the health, visibility, deterioration of materials and depletion of natural resources and damages to the natural environment. The logical next step is to convert the effect into dollar terms. For instance the deterioration on the steel structures caused by the emission of Sulphur dioxide can be arrived as a percentage on the weight of the structures over a period of year and later on this percentage can be converted dollars. This way the cost of replacing the deterioration of steel structures can be calculated. Thus damage functions can be established for all effects of environmental pollution including the health hazard to human beings caused by air pollution. It thus becomes possible to model all the physical effects which in turn help to arrive at the quantitative effects of changes in various levels of pollution. The final step in assessing the monetary value of th e environment impact can be calculated by ascribing a dollar value to the physical changes. However in spite of spending more time and efforts on the research on the qualitative and quantitative effects of environmental pollution no certain models could be developed. This has made the damage function models somewhat ineffective in estimating the value of environmental impact precisely. Willingness to Pay (WTP) Studies: In the example of steel structures the cost of replacing can be ascertained by taking into account the market value of the replacement or repairs to the structures. This may turn out to be a good estimate of the monetary value of damages. But in those cases where it is difficult to monetize the physical changes like in the case of a health hazard due to pollutions of

Debt and Equity Financing - Advantages and Disadvantages Research Paper

Debt and Equity Financing - Advantages and Disadvantages - Research Paper Example It is of great significance that the ratios must be benchmarked against a standard in order for them to possess a meaning. Keeping that into account, the comparison is usually conducted between companies portraying same business and financial risks, between industries and different time periods of the same company. The company under consideration is Marvel Toys, and in this report the analysis of the financial performance of the company over the last seven years has been conducted in order to draw attention to various financial trends and significant changes over the period. The analysis is divided into three main categories: namely Profitability, Liquidity and Gearing. Profitability ratios identify how efficiently and effectively a company is utilizing its resources and how successful it has been in generating a desired rate of return for its shareholders and investors. Liquidity ratios measure the ability of the company to quickly convert its asset into liquid cash to settle its sh ort term liabilities. Whereas, the Gearing ratios identifies the extent to which the company is financed through debt and to what degree the operations are being conducted from the finance raised through raising equity capital or otherwise2. Following ratios have been used in order to evaluate the financial outlook of the company: Current ratio Acid-test (quick) ratio Collection period Inventory turnover Debt to total asset ratio Times interest earned Return on assets Return on Equity Fixed Asset turnover Total Asset turnover Gross Profit margin Net Profit Margin The profitability ratios of the company appear to be stable, but the company is facing liquidity problem as apparent from the ratios. Also, the company has more than 50% of its assets financed through debt. But the company has great earning potential based on which it has been decided to sanction the long term loan facility to the company. Answer to part A Financial Analysis Profitability Ratios    2011 2010 2009    Pro fitability Ratios Gross profit margin 20.18% 19.23% 20.14% Net profit margin 6.88% 6.15% 7.50% ROE 11.68% 12.20% 35.71% ROA 4.50% 4.36% 7.03% Fixed Asset Turnover (times) 2.04 2.27 2.53 Total Asset Turnover (times) 1.27 1.35 1.57 Gross profit margin is an analyzing tool which assists in identifying how effectively and efficiently the company is utilizing its raw materials, variable cost related to labor and fixed costs, such as rent and depreciation of property plant and equipment3. The ratio is calculated by dividing the sales revenue by the gross profit. The gross profit margin of the company was quite stable in the financial year 2009, but moving forward in the financial year 2010, the ratio has seemed to decline a bit. The decline in the ratio was primarily due to the decrease in the net sales of the company by 9% which caused the gross profit margin to decrease by around 0.91%. But the ratio appeared to show an inclining trend again the financial year 2011 as the company was ab le to curtail and manage its cost of sales although the quantum of its sales

Stop the Bullying Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Stop the Bullying - Essay Example Although there is no universal definition of bullying it is widely thought to be a negative behavior which reflects aggressiveness through which the person intends to harm and hurt the victim. Farrington (1993), an English criminologist, defined bullying as: â€Å"Repeated oppression, psychological or physical, of a less powerful person by a more powerful person.† This, however, is the definition of when the bully is an individual although it is very often seen that bullying is also done in groups. Thus, for that purpose a more fitted and revised definition could be: Bullying is repeated oppression, psychological or physical, of a less powerful person by a more powerful or group of persons (Rigby, 2007, p. 15). The bully keeps on acting that way and the victim is helpless in that that he cannot defend himself from the bully (Olweus, 1999). Concisely, bullying can be referred to as the â€Å"systematic abuse of power†. And here power does not necessarily refer to physica l strength, but it could also be emotional or mental. For instance, a bully may have a more powerful personality, might be mentally tougher, have ambition and be insensitive. Bullying may happen in several contexts, such as childhood as well as adulthood. Nevertheless, bullying has been, and still is, most associated with schools. Bullying could be conducted by a group or by one person alone. Normally it is supposed that bullying occurs between students; however, it is possible for there to be a teacher-pupil and pupil-teacher bullying too. The general idea of bullying is also that it involves beating and physical violence – the larger and older child hurting the weaker one – but again, there also exists verbal bullying, wherein the bully teases and hurls verbal abuses at his victim; indirect bullying in which the bully socially manipulates the victim and uses him for attacks within the class; and relational bullying which refers to disrupting peace between peers and h arming their relationship. This could be done by talking bad about others, spreading rumors, and socially excluding people. A more recent form has been cyberbullying – bullying others over the internet (Smith, 2013). It is about time that bullying is addressed and reduced. It is an intolerable behavior due to the way the powerless victim is physically, verbally or psychologically oppressed by the bully and for no rhyme or reason. Bullying among adults is not tolerated – we also raise voice against domestic abuse between a husband and his wife, and between the parents and their children. However, school bullying has not been addressed to the same extent (Rigby, 2007). How children become bullies â€Å"When you really take a close look at bullying, it's happening with kids who feel the need to be aggressive after being treated in an aggressive manner themselves†¦ They're the kids who may be suffering from abuse or from just not having their needs met at school or a t home† - Paul Quinlan (Hopson, 2002). According to Quinlan 2-16% of the below-18 age group bullies each other. Here a very important factor to probe into is how a child becomes a bully. That is the root cause of the problem and therefore it needs to be understood in order to solve the issue. More often than not, children dealing with difficult situations at home end up bullying others to regain the lost self-esteem and feel important and worthy. Such situations could be fights between their parents, financial problems, a drunkard parent who abuses them, and so on. Many times the bully

Controlling Noise Pollution Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2750 words

Controlling Noise Pollution - Case Study Example However, the most common means of controlling noise is the nuisance law. Section 58 of CoPA74 as well as the Environmental Protection Act 1990 offer specific requirements, and if a developer creates a nuisance, the local authority is obliged to serve a notice requiring that the noise be abated. If, however, the developer feels the notice was wrongly served, an appeal can be entered. Sections 60 and 61 of CoPA74 give powers to the local authority to control noise and vibration from construction sites. The City of London presents on their website a Department of Environmental Services Code of Practice for Deconstruction and Construction Sites following CoPA74 and EPA 1990 guidelines (Code, 2004). This Code offers information and gives an overall view of what a company must do to follow these regulations in order to prevent a situation prejudicial to health or a nuisance. Normal work hours are 08:00 - 18:00 hours (Monday to Friday; 08:00 - 13:00 hours (Saturday) with certain noise sensitive areas 09:00 - 14:00 hours on Saturdays. No working is permitted on Sundays or Bank Holidays (6.0). Quiet working hours are periods when noisy site operations are not allowed. These hours are generally 10:00 - 12:00 (Monday to Friday) and 14:00 - 16:00 (Monday to Friday) in order to allow neighbours at least four quiet hours a day through duration of construction. Essentially, during these hours, there should be no noise audible at the boundary of the site (6.5, 6.6). Noise limits depend on the individual situation and the facts are: (1) Characteristics of noise and effect on neighbours; (2) baseline ambient noise levels; (3) nature and duration of works (14.13). Health and Noise Pollution Persistent exposure to noise, especially at night, is apt to cause psychological distress. The London Health Organization (LHO) defines "noise" as unwanted sound which is perceived as "noise pollution" (Determinants, 2006). Noise constitutes a problem in more than construction sites. Aircraft, trains and road vehicles might well contribute to unwanted noise, and if measured at high levels can effect whole neighborhoods. Another area that can create problems in noise levels is in the work place. People exposed to noise over a long period might have loss of hearing and even 'tinnitus" (ringing in the ears). Noise levels in decibel units (dB(A) are factors in determining excessive noise. There are three 'action' levels; the first two are values of 'daily personal noise exposure' expressed as L EP,d with the first level at 85 dB(A) and the second 90 dB(A). The third is a peak action level of 200 pascals (where loud impulsive sources such as cartridge operated tools are used). The LHO of fers the following guide to noise levels under the Health and Safety Executive: Normal conversation 50 - 60 dB(A) A loud radio 65 - 75 dB(A) A busy street 78 - 85 dB(A) A heavy lorry about 7 metres away 95 - 100 dB(A) A pighouse at feeding time 110 dB(A) A chain

GDM Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 1

GDM - Assignment Example Factors to be considered before the screening is done include age, Body Mass Index as well as the race of the woman. There has been growing debate on whether to adopt a universal screening or selective screening. ADA argues that selective screening will help in reducing the costs associated with screening, elimination of inconveniences associated with the process as well as lowering anxiety connected with diabetes. Selective screening is to be based on family history of diabetes, age, obesity and racial alignment as such factors can easily establish the prevalence of diabetes. A number of ethical issues that must be taken into consideration before or during the screening process include how comfortable the patient is during the process, the laboratory costs associated with the screening and other risks factors such as missing the diagnosis after the process has been initiated. The cost implications of universal screening are very high and may limit the number of women who are able to undergo such tests. Universal adoption of GDM will assist in the development of a database of various people in the world who have shown symptoms of the disease which will further help in the development of international initiatives and approaches aimed at controlling the condition. Professional nurses are charged with the responsibility of advocating for women to undergo screening. They encourage as well as support the adoption of International Association of Diabetes and Pregnancy (IADPSG) that have been recommended by the ADA in their various health institutions. They further undergo adequate preparation so as take good care of women with GDM. The nurses offer prenatal care for women with diabetes so as to assist them to come up with thorough diabetes programs so as to facilitate provision of better services (Ross, 2005). They approve referral of high-risk cases among women

Reviews and reaction on a film Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Reviews and reaction on a film - Essay Example ocumentary’s primary focus is Sally Mann; however, the documentary takes the viewer through Mann’s personal life with her children, husband, mother, and friends. In effect, the documentary reveals Mann’s personality to the viewer, which makes the viewer understand her photography work. The documentary provides the viewer with an understanding of the factors behind the personal nature of Mann’s photographs. In this case, her preoccupation and strong relationship with her family are instrumental in Mann’s photography since some of work may appear provocative, which underlines her open-mindedness. As earlier indicated, Mann uses old equipment in the contemporary technological era. In this regard, her large format camera requires exposure times of a number of minutes before use. In effect, this shows her patience and calmness, which provides her with the impulse to capture beautiful photographs. In addition, Mann produces her photos in a fragile and old process that makes her lose some photographs in the process. In this case, this is a depiction of a strong sense of idiosyncrasy, which implies her remarkable willingness to pursue unconventional ideas. In conclusion, the documentary depicts Mann as a remarkable individual intent on pursuing her goals. Although she uses old procedures and equipment, Mann’s work is humbling to photographers and all artists since she exploits the flaws of old procedures to produce unintended patterns that enhance her concept and aesthetic values in

Imagining My Future Essay Example for Free

Imagining My Future Essay My hand flies to my heart, the other to Matthew’s hand. I startle awake from an endless nightmare. Luckily, I haven’t awakened my sleeping husband, who I must say sleeps like a rock. I stretch out and sit up, the covers pooling around my waist. The moonlight continues to shine into our room from the balcony. I give Matthew a quick kiss on his hand and slowly crawl out of bed into the depths of our house. I wander the empty hallways of this home Matthew and I have built. Pictures line the wall from our wedding, to the birth of our three wonderful children, Braden, Katarina and Adam. I couldn’t imagine any better life. As my hand skims the wall, my feet sink into the plush purple carpet that lines the hall. I touch the cold metal of my first son’s door knob and hesitantly open the door. Braden is twelve-years-old, and as athletic as his father. The first thing he learned to say was â€Å"Dada† and knew how to skate before he could walk. Hockey must be in his genes – he’s the captain of his Pee Wee B hockey team. He has a great future set in front of him. I tip-toe over to his queen size bed covered with blue sheets. Braden takes after his father in looks as well. His eyes are the rich color of the sky and grass combined; his hair a dark chestnut brown; a smile that is so perfect, he didn’t need braces. As I stroke his hair and pull the covers up, I remember the first time I dropped him off at school and I imagine how he’ll deal with going to a new school next year since its seventh grade. I turn off the music he plays every night to help him fall asleep, and exit his room as quiet as I entered. Katarina is only a year younger than her brother. She’s only eleven and is as independent as a teenager. She’s sprawled out on her queen size bed covered with bright colors that swirl around. I watch her breathing, a slow rhythm of ease as she dreams ever so peacefully. She takes after me, which I’m thankful for. Her eyes are a rich green, her hair a bright blonde, but Kat was born with teeth like her great-grandmother. She’s almost to the ripe age to get braces. I hope she won’t get teased when she gets them; it’s a grave fear of mine. Kat is always striving to be her unique self, and doesn’t exactly care what others think of her. Her fearlessness is something most other girls her age crave for. She’s a bookworm, just like her mother as well. Matthew and I brought her skating multiple times, but she didn’t really get the same sensation her momma felt as a figure skater. Instead, she’s a dancer – hip-hop and ballet – and she’s extremely gifted. Where she received her gracefulness on feet is something I question myself with everyday. She’s my angel, her father’s little girl, and her brothers’ best friend. I glance over to her window which is right above her bed. The moonlight casts a light upon her drooling face and I manage to hold back a giggle. I wonder how many hearts Kat will break when she enters the scary and dreaded place of high school. My littlest boy, Adam, sleeps the farthest away from his parents. He has the intelligence of Einstein and is constantly questioning everything. He isn’t big into the high-contact sport as his older brother, but is enjoying music quite much as well as tennis. Adam is eight, and loves his guitar. He plucks the strings night and day. His looks are that of mine and Matthew’s. As he sleeps, he snores a bit and fidgets, but the stuffed tiger his grandmother gave him is tucked safely away in his arms. Right now, Adam wants to be a rock star. I only hope he achieves the dream he decides on. His clothes are scatter around his floor and being as restless as I am, I can’t help but not pick them up. CD’s of oldies line shelf after shelf. I watch him move and he silently calls out for â€Å"Grandma.† Grandma Fern passed away few months ago and little Adam was her absolute favorite. When Adam found out about her death, he was devastated. He took up a vow of silence and wouldn’t come out of his room. Finally, Matthew and I were able to soothe him out to talk to us. He’s been back to his talkative self ever since. I close the door and hear the â€Å"click† of the door. I wander back up to my room, and dance to the balcony. I flop into the overstuffed red love seat Matthew and I placed outside. In the distance, I can see a glimmer of the soft lake that is only minutes away from my home. I cross my legs and sigh to myself. â€Å"Well hello there. Didn’t you ever learn to close the door?† a deep, rough voice says. I quickly whip my head around to see the man I call my husband. â€Å"Oh, dear I’m so sorry! I was caught up in how beautiful the night sky looked. I didn’t even think about the door.† I say hastily. â€Å"Well, I’m glad you forgot. You can’t keep this to yourself, you know.† Matthew says as he joins me. I’ve known him since I was a junior in high school and I’ve been infatuated with him ever since. His face is turned toward the night sky, and I can’t help but wonder how this fascinating creature is with me. Matthew has been playing hockey ever since the age of five, and has a knack at it. He played for the Fighting Sioux in college, and was moved up to the professional league when the Washington Capitals signed him to their roster. He was ecstatic about the offer. My children and I can’t go and stay with him i n Washington State, but we go to every game we can. He’s my children’s hero, and my own to love. I place a single hand on his cheek, an act I’ve always done towards him. â€Å"It’s almost morning wife. What are you going to make for breakfast?† he teasingly asks me. He knows whatever I cook, he has to help with. â€Å"Well, I was thinking some bacon, maybe an omelet. Unless you prefer something more five star.† I instantly challenge him. He picks me up and throws me over his shoulder as if I was as light as a feather. He lays me on the bed and suddenly we are in a game of chasing each other around the bedroom. He never ceases to amaze me. Of course, Matthew lets me win and we stroll downstairs to the kitchen, starting up the coffee, and planning out what to feed our children.

Medical ethics | An analysis

Medical ethics | An analysis Introduction: Medical ethics became one of the most important teaching modules in most of the medical schools especially in the last three decades particularly in US7 . Ethics defined as the study of morality, careful and systematic reflection on and analysis of moral decision and behavior4. Hence the medical ethics is the study of ethics related to medical practice. There are four primary principals for medical ethics where all basic medical teaching teaches to medical students. These are non-malfeasance, beneficence, justice and autonomy with sub sectional principals like truth telling and confidentiality.12 Now a days doctors are facing more ethical questions and dilemmas in day to day clinical practice, this can be partly   attributed to the increase in the knowledge of patients about their health from the media and internet . Studies showed that there is a strong relation between resolving ethical issues and medical errors especially in the area of informed consent and end of life care8. In addition, the court compensation for medico legal cases opened the door for public to find faults for doctors or the health systems to earn some wealth from it! All these made the teaching of how to handle an ethical issue and resolve it very essential to produce a competent skillful physician. Medical schools adopted different styles and methods for teaching medical ethics, it included didactic lecturing, small group seminars, case based discussion and simulated patient but without uniformity or consensus as to method or content7. This could be as a result of lack of agreement about what shall we teach in medical ethics7. At sultan Qaboose University, medical students have a one interdisciplinary  Ã‚   activity (IDA) week for medical ethics during their mid of fifth year. During this week speakers from different medical and surgical specialties present to the students a common ethical issues encounter. This week is also attended by Islamic scholar (Professor Albar) to comment on Islamic perspective in selective cases like abortion and end of life care . As co-organizer of the course I introduced the presentation of clinical cases by the student to the entire group. I asked each subgroup of the students to select a case where there is an ethical issue and reflect on what was done and how can we improve it. I found the reflect practice theory is very suitable for teaching of medical ethics because it stimulates the thinking and give the students the opportunity to analyze the ethical dilemma and how to resolve it. The Theory: The theory of reflective practice is attributed primarily to Donald Schà ¶n3, 5. In life and based on our knowledge and experience we take decision easily to events that we are expecting and used to experience. However when surprise or unexpected event take place, based on Schà ¶n theory, people develop two types of reflection to that event. The first one is Reflection in action and it occurs immediately.It is the ability to learn and develop continually by creatively applying current and past experiences and reasoning to unfamiliar events while they are occurring5. The second, reflection on action, occurs later. It is a process of thinking back on what happened in a past situation, what may have contributed to the unexpected event, whether the actions taken were appropriate, and how this situation may affect future practice 5. The reflection in action can be considered as an emergency decision in which the physician should take the risk of being mistaken, however, this type of d ecision should be appreciated by people in authority if later turned to be not the perfect way of handling it and that is because it was taken based on the inputs of that situation and surrounding circumstances unless it is clearly odd approach. In contrast, the reflection on action comes later when the physician finished all duties and started re-calling cases seen and decisions taken. At this point s/he will start to bring other options and thoughts that could serve the situation better than the ones taken. This extremely important because it enables us to spend time exploring why we acted as we did, what was happening in a group and so on13. In addition if this type of reflection done in group (Peer) will lead to even more reasonable and appropriate reaction to the surprise14. Since this paper discusses the teaching of medical ethics, the following example will illustrate this approach. A 32 years old pregnant lady in her 3rd trimester involved in car accident and sustained severe head injury , brought to the casualty and treating physician confirmed her death but noticed that the baby still kicking !. Limited experience and lack of awareness about the regulation of such the situation made it a surprise for the physician. He used his basic knowledge of saving life and decided to perform postmortem caesarian section (PMCS) and a second surprise came when the husband arrived to refused PMCS!! . Reflection on action for such case is extremely crucial to reach to an approach which is ethical, legal and satisfy the patient. It is usually reached when the case is presented to the peer and each one is discussing different perspective of the case. In the previous example the reflection on action could be asking a senior physician on duty be a good option for the c ase. Application: At college of medicine in sultan Qaboose University, medical students are divided in group each composed of about 10 to 15 students (Boys and Girls). Each group will be asked to prepare a clinical case seen in practice where there was an ethical issue (e.g. breaching confidentiality) and one or two of the group members will present the case to whole group during the medical ethics week forum. Students will be informed in advance about the objectives and strategies of this approach and each group will linked to a facilitator who is usually senior medical/paramedical faculty with experience of making difficult medical decisions6. The group will keep in touch with facilitator either in person or online (e.g. email) to show the contents, structure and suitability of the case for presentation and discussion. The facilitator will guide the students in selecting the case and how to formulate the ethical issue and its resolution and use steps in table-1 adopted from Catherine Myser.9, 11 S/he will also teach them some basic ethical principal like doctors should refrain from being judgmental, patronizing or minipulative2. S/he will direct them to the appropriate resources and personals whenever required. In Oman, many decisions of ethical dilemma are driven by Islamic teaching and this is very prevalent in medical field, hence students will be directed to Islamic scholars who have some medical background in order to help them understanding Islamic teaching in medical field. During the medical ethics IDA week forum, each group will present their case to the entire group in the presence of the facilitators. The presentation will be briefing about the case, the ethical issue, what was done, and how can we do better? More time will be given for discussion and comments by other students who are not member of the presenting group. The discussion will be regulated and guided by the facilitator supervising the presenting group. At the end of discussion the facilitator will re solve any argument and give the final comment summarizing the ethical issue and the best way to deal with it. Discussion: Medical schools around the world used different models in teaching medical ethics; the variation in selection of teaching model could rise from the availability of resources, number of students and curriculum design. For example, both university of Pennsylvania and university of Washington used small group facilitation and peer interaction while uniformed services university introduced a novel model called SCOOP which stand for Students Clinical Observation Of Preceptors11 . A SCOOP reverses the process of evaluation by giving the students evaluation form and ask them to evaluate the teachers. This gives them the opportunity to identify the teaching skills and methods reflect on them and hence acquire the appropriate one and avoid the other one. Shaheen and his group wrote in commentary about time to unified approach to medical ethics where he advocated for unified framework of ethics education justifying that it will   ensures measurable and accountable basis for the complex o f far-reaching ethical issues present in the medical field7 . However, it is difficult and impractical to unify the contents and materials of medical ethics for different parts of the world where there is a diversity of culture, believe and traditional values. That is because most of the ethical decisions are driven by these factors. For example, In Oman (and other Muslims countries) it is forbidden to drink any amount of alcohol as per the Islamic teaching, hence it is unethical to advice patient to drink alcohol as part of heart protection advice while the same advice can be carried out normally in non-Muslim country. However, I support the statement of Rameshkumar in his paper Ethics in medical curriculum when he said The structure of ethics education has to be closely monitored and the curriculum goals have to be well defined.10 The strength of this proposal is that there is national and international move toward teaching of medical ethics to both pre and post graduates students. Most of the senior physicians who did not have training in medical ethics realized that it made a gap in their qualification and they urge the new generation in order not to miss the chance. In Oman the support of the current and previous deans of college of medicine at sultan Qaboose University along with other many medical faculties will make this proposal overcome any obstacles. In addition, there interest of health care providers from different medical disciplines in any activities in medical ethics (workshop, seminars and lectures) will prepare the ground and the environment for the proposal to grow up at the university. This interest always clears during our annual medical ethics week where we get several requests from different institutes and departments asking for registration to the event although the week primarily designe d for medical students. The challenges that this proposal might face is the limited resources that include trained personals and teaching material. The later is easier to overcome since it merely financial and the college is ready to provide any recommended teaching material as long as there is a clear vision and mission of its utilization. In term of training personals, there are already two faculties sent abroad for master in bioethics. In addition, there are several faculties who has special interest in teaching of ethics, all these will make the overcome of human resources obstacles more feasible.  Ã‚   Recommendation: In order to implement this theory in teaching medical ethics to medical students I recommend the college to consider the following points: Identify and train people interested in teaching of medical ethics. The training should be for high degree ( Master , PhD ) and it is preferred to be in a center where culture and value of people are close to Oman. Provide teaching resources and materials to students. It should include textbooks, journals, video etc. Instruct the clinicians to integrate teaching of issues related to medical ethics in their daily patient care. Include assessment of medical ethics in the standard summative and formative methods of assessment in the college. Regular evaluation and audit of the program in order be developed farther .

Principles of Democratic Education

Principles of Democratic Education What are the principles of democratic education? How are these principles and values in  tension/contradiction with our social construction of children and youth? For example, what  assumptions do we make about teaching, learning and youth that democratic schools challenge? How  does one size fits all centralized curriculum contribute to what Apple called the de-skilling of  teachers? What is lost when this approach is adapted, especially when it is combined with the  intensification of teaching? Explore the contradictions between what we say we want our students to  be when they are finished their schooling (engaged, critical thinkers, active contributors and problem  solvers) and how we are often educating young people. How does democratic education address this?  What are some of the challenges educators who want to introduce democratic principles into their  schools face? What are some of the potential rewards? How does democratic education address the notion th at all education, even that which claims to be value-centered, is political? Explain the relationship that concepts like voice and agency have to democratic principles in Education. Answer Democratic Education All beings are created as individuals and have different habits and intelligence. Ayers (2009) says that every human being is capable of infinite and incalculable valve. All of us have an exclusive intellectual, emotional, physical, spiritual, moral and creative force. Each person is born free and is equal in dignity and right. Each endows with reason and conscience. Every individual is deserves a community and sense of brotherhood and sisterhood, recognition and respect. This core value must express itself explicitly and implicitly in education as in every other aspect of associative living. Amy Gutmann (1999) defines democratic education  as a worldwide movement towards greater decision-making power for students in the running of their own schools. There is no generally agreed definition of the term, but at the IDEC: International Democratic Education Conference (2010) in 2005 the participants agreed that, in any educational setting, young people have the right: to decide individually how, when, what, where and with whom they learn To have an equal share in the decision-making in the running of their school and determining the rules and sanctions, if any, are necessary. IDEC (2010) supports schools which uphold respect and trust for children. They believe in shared responsibility and freedom of choice of activity. IDEC is open to schools which follow equality of status of children and adult and democratic governance by children and staff together. They do not believe in any superior guide and system. Principles of Democratic Education There are two pillars of democratic education: Self-determined learning A learning community based on equality and mutual respect Apple (1995) discusses that democratic education means that children and teachers engage in collaborative planning, reaching decisions that are in the interest of both their aspirations and desires. Those involved in democratic schools prize diversity. They consider themselves participants of communities of learning. Such communities include people representing a broad spectrum of age, culture, gender, ethnicity, socioeconomic class and abilities. However, these differences do not create stereotype; instead they enrich the community. Democracy means by definition means by the people, for the people. Therefore, it gives the community a shared purpose and allows people to set aside their self-interests and work for the greater good. Common goal is the central idea of democracy. Beane Apple (1995) explain that educators who are committed to democracy know that any inequality at schools will also be found in the community. Hence, they seek not only seek democracy in institutes but also want to extent to the community. If the community does not follow democratic conviction then concentrating on democratic education is pointless, because the young people will be affected by their surroundings and the concept will fail. Democratic education seeks to lessen the harshness of social inequities in school and change the conditions which create them. Challenges by Democratic Schools Democratic school challenge the approach of teaching that follows the belief that young people are to follow the lead of their teachers and not question their ability or knowledge. Democratic approach says that students and teachers should go hand-in-hand. They should participate in not only teaching practice but also the curriculum. Democratic education challenges the conventional way of assembling the curriculum and focus on broadening the horizons. These schools need to be based on the broad definition of we, a commitment to build a community that is of the school and the community in which the school exists. One Size Fit All Today all the focus is on privatization, marketization and decentralization. So, for teachers, going beyond approved material risks administrative consents. Jungck (2000) explains in her article that there is an immense pressure in not only to redefine the methods of teaching but also the purpose of education. if the schools, their teachers and curriculum are closely knitted, more technology oriented, according to the needs of business and industry, then it is expected that the problems of achievement and unemployment will be disappear along with the international economic competitiveness. In most of elementary and high schools, the curriculum is planned by the national or state department of education. It took teachers a lot of time and effort to minimize the total administrative control over the curriculum. Apple (1995) says, that after all, it is the teachers who teach in the class room and thus they should have a say in the matter. In most Western industrialized nations, the phenomenon of de-skilling of teachers is become common. It means that when individuals are unable to control a large portion of their job, they forget the essential skills required to perform the job. Teachers have been alienated from the tasks of setting curricular goals, designing lessons and individualized attention to students according to ability and need. Now, instead of teachers who care about what and why they teach, executioners of someone elses plan are created. The effect of this practice is very hostile for the profession of teaching itself. Quality is sacrificed on quantity as a result of de-skilling of teachers. They now want to cut corner and rely on the experts for their job. Jungck (2000) tells the concept of intensification; she says that collective skills of teachers are list as they concentrate on management skills. Ayers (2009) enforce the importance of education. He says that all children and youth in a democracy deserve full access to richly resourced classrooms led by caring, thoughtfully qualified, and generously compensated teachers. Whereas democratic education I affecting the professional teachers and turning them into managers. Intensification results in lack of enthusiasm and simplistic response to innovation. Educating Young People Every student brings their experiences and skills to school. They represent their community (Ayers, 1994). In another article Ayers (2009) states that, students should be able to make up their own judgment based on evidence, ask fundamental questions and pursue answers wherever they take them. Democratic education is about opening doors of opportunity and opening minds as students make their own pathways into the world. Beane Apple (1995) explain by research that young people are more interested to learn through experience. They do not like to study from tapes because they already know most of the stuff. Teachers also dont interact during this type of sessions and the outcome is not as desired. So, democratic education Challenges, Rewards   Political Belief Ayers (1992) tell that in order to introduce democratic education, people have taken very important steps. Young people have been given space and considered while making policies. A great challenge however was inadequately trained staff. Apple (1995) says that a very challenging task was to broaden the horizon of education from the conventional curriculum. Also, in order to achieve democratic education, the community and school needed to be connected. However, the outcomes of democratic education are vast. The students are grown to be with high thinking ability and contribute to their society. Although no matter what the core value, it is always of political benefit. Ayers conclude that (2009) educators, students, and citizens should press for an education worthy of a democracy, including an end to sorting people into winners and losers through expensive standardized tests that act as pseudo-scientific forms of surveillance. There should be an end to starving schools of needed resources and then blaming teachers and their unions for dismal outcomes. Militarization of schools, zero tolerance policies, gender identity discrimination and end to limited resources due to communities historically isolated, underfunded, and underserved. Question No. 2 Outline the tenets of neoliberalism in relation to education. What are the organizing value sets and  key assumptions to this ideology? How are they aligned with or in conflict with the goals of some of the  other models we have looked at in education (for example, Deweys notion of child-centered  education) where is power and authority located in a neoliberalist model? List a few of the key ideas  of neoconservatives in relation to education. Can a person be both a neoconservative and a neoliberal at  the same time? How does the film Waiting for Superman frame particular neoliberalist ideas about  education? What systemic structures are not being challenged by putting the blame for lagging education on teachers unions, according to Swalwell and Apple? Who benefits by this, and who loses?  Discuss the ways in which charter schools and voucher systems can impact students, teachers and  schools. Why do you think neoliberalism has become the dominant discourse of educati on, despite the  fact that Finland seems to go against most of the tenets of neoliberalist education and yet scores so well  on the PISA tests? Is it the inevitable way that the world is moving and education needs to adapt, or are  there other models that should be considered for teaching and learning? Answer Neoliberalism Wendy Brown (2003) states that neoliberalism equated with a radically free market: maximized competition and free trade achieved through economic de-regulation, elimination of tariffs, and a range of monetary and social policies favourable to business and indifferent toward poverty, social deracination, cultural decimation, long term resource depletion and environmental destruction. So neoliberalism can be summed up in four major types of public policy: Free trade, Deregulation Fiscal austerity Privatization John Deweys Theory of Education Warde (1960) explains this theory; unifying principles of democracy and education will create an American society depicting creative and well-adjusted youth. The three steps are: Free availability of kindergarten to college Children would carry on the educational process, aided and guided by the teacher They would be trained to behave cooperatively, sharing with and caring for one another image. Warde (1960) stated that by following this theory the opposition between the old education and the new conditions of life would be overcome. The progressive influences radiating from the schools would stimulate and fortify the building of a democratic order of free and equal citizens. Since the 1980s the impact of neoliberal and neoconservative ideas on education in the UK and USA has been dramatic. In the UK, protagonists argued that education had been going in the wrong direction and attacked ideological attack resulting in quality of primary education in England. From the 1950s to the early 1980s those teachers were respected due to their professionalism and because they engaged in a variety of national curriculum projects. During this period schools had both greater autonomy and greater local support than thereafter (Hicks, 2004). Hicks (2004) state that money spent on education is seen as a waste of time unless it helps the country compete efficiently and effectively in the international market. The metaphors applied to education became those of the market place: parents as consumers, business as the model for education, internal and external competition in schools to bring out what is the best in both pupils and schools. Neoconservative Neoconservative is a conservative who advocates the assertive promotion of democracy and United States national interest in international affairs including through military means. Neoconservatives are not really conservative and neoliberals are not really liberal. So a person can be both at the same time. Neoconservative policies with respect to education will include; common curriculum, accountability of teachers, responsibility of teachers for education and central control over education (Apple Swalwell, 2011). Waiting for Superman According to Apple Swalwell (2011),Waiting for Superman explores the tragic way of failure of American education system. It is incorporated by neoliberal idea, shows that America had the best public education system dominating internationally. Regardless of systemic and structural social inequities that powerfully shape the lives of the children and their caregivers, the film portrays them all as equally tragic. These are children who want desperately to succeed but who are likely to be crushed by bureaucracies, bad teachers, and unions unless charters with dynamic leaders can save them. Apple Swalwell (2011) blame the teachers Union for lagging education because they themselves are unionized and bad teachers are protected by them at the expense of students. By blaming these unions, oppression of children, racial and social issues are not addressed. It also fails to address the impact of No Child Left Behind and other policies that cut off school funding. This also does not discuss curriculum change towards test preparation, mechanized teaching, and further marginalized children who are predicted to drag down test scores As the documentary points out only one in five charter schools perform better than regular school, the ultimate solution for the students, teachers and parents. Rather, the solution is not to put all children in charter schools, but rather to make all schools more like the charters. That would entail discipline, high expectations for all students, longer school days, and more flexibility to hire (and reward) good teachers and get rid of bad ones. Conclusion Finlands teachers are also fully unionized, teaching there is in a homogeneous and wealthy nation. Their educational system has access to social support system. There are many factors that are to be considered in adapting educational models. The web woven between charter schools, neoliberal venture capitalists, and neoconservative think tanks forms powerful, interconnected force intending to influence votes on policies supporting charter schools and even running candidates. These promoters include most prominent educational leaders and policy makers. Research needs to be done in order to expose this political effect and attempt to protect public institutions. Our schools, teachers and students deserve better. Therefore they need to work together along with the help of state to run a progressing educational system. Competition is the basis of improvement. Therefore, the educational methods have to be competitive with global market. Finland succeeds due to the huge safety net for citizens, whereas everywhere else cutting edges are common. Segregation, property-tax based funding formulas, centralized textbook production, lack of local autonomy and shared governance, de-professionalization, inadequate special education supports, differential discipline patterns, and other such matters need to be addressed in order to improve educational system. However, the need to adapt according to the changing technology and laws is necessary.

A Waste Of Talent :: essays research papers

On his tenth birthday Jim Walker was introduced to the game of basketball by receiving a basketball from his uncle Mark Walker. Jim acted as if he loved the gift to please his uncle but really expected more from him. Jim never really played basketball at this age because he would rather spend his time doing things most other ten year olds did like riding bicycles and playing with G.I. Joes. On the same birthday Jim’s mother, Althea gave him ankle weights. She gave him this because she realized her son had a talent, which was jumping high, hoping this talent would payoff for both of them in the future. Jim and his family were not very wealthy living in the Harlem projects were drugs and constant violence plagued the neighborhood so he didn’t really receive many other gifts.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  With these two gifts in hand he started playing basketball at the local parks developing his game. He would play and practice with the ankle weights on, realizing he like playing and was pretty good at the game. At the age of thirteen he was playing a full court pick up game at a local park with a group of older guys. While coming down the basketball court at the height of five feet four inches Jim dunked on one of the older kids he was playing with. Word got around neighborhood that there was a thirteen year old who could dunk on the standard ten foot basketball rim in the park. People started to respect Jim because of his basketball skills. He also started getting girls because of his skills and off the court began hanging out with a bad crowd doing drugs and not doing his schools work. Sometimes as a bet and to show off exactly how high he could jump he would snatch money that was placed on the top of backboard rims.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Jim was then recruited by a very good New York City preparatory school. Jim and the other members of the basketball team were giving preferential treatment because of their good record. They were allowed to get away with murder. The coach of the basketball team made sure Jim’s work was done and showed him ways to cheat on tests. One day the track coach approached Jim and asked him to join the track team to high and long jump for him.

The Unforgetable A Rose for Emily :: A Rose for Emily, William Faulkner

The Unforgetable A Rose for Emily In "A Rose for Emily" by William Faulkner, we see how past events effect the main character Miss Emily, especially her mental state. She seems to live in a sort of fantasy world where death has no real meaning. Miss Emily refuses to accept or even recognize, the death of her father or that of Colonel Satoris. She does not want to acknowledge the fact that the world around her was changing therefore Miss Emily surrounds herself with death. What Faulkner tries to state in this story is that you should not let death overpower your life. A person should try and let go of their beloved ones after they have passed away. He also tries to state is to always expect the unexpected, like when Miss Emily killed Homer. Faulkner chooses to use third person narration in this particular story for a couple of reasons. He tries to show Emily's world to us as seen through the eyes of a respectable resident, so we can understand the town life as if we lived there. This way we were able to understand how the people of Jefferson thought of her. If the story would have been told in first person we would not have been able to relate to Miss Emily. The reason for that would be, if she would have been the narrator we would have understood the story in a hole different manner. Faulkner used third person narration and from that we were able to find out many things about Miss Emily's past. For instance the death of her father, the love she had for Homer, and how she felt the need for affection. Those ideas she would have kept to herself, if she were to have told the story. The language and dialogue that Faulkner provides Miss Emily with enables the readers to understand how she feels about the town. She is not very pleased with the changes that have occurred therefore she lets everyone that she comes in contact with know how she views those specific changes. For example when the new Mayor tells her that she owes taxes in Jefferson, she just keeps on insisting that she does not owe any money.

Essay --

Pain is one of the most powerful human motivators. People will say anything to make it stop because it hurts. And when used specifically to derive information our federal government can make it hurt a lot. No one should ever have to be put through the type of pain that is specifically engineered to hit your pain threshold, engineered to cause you to fear your interrogator, engineered to make you talk. The practice of enhanced interrogation should not be used under any circumstances because it is illegal under international law, it’s not always effective, and it’s inhumane. What is enhanced interrogation? In simple terms it’s when an interrogator uses techniques that are specifically designed to cause you a.) either so much pain that you break down and tell the interrogator what they want to know or b.) you fear pain and your interrogator so much that you readily give them the information that they seek. So, what techniques does the American government use to derive information from it’s prisoners? Some techniques that they have used are sexual humiliation, sleep deprivation, sensory deprivation, sensory overload, solitary confinement, mock execution, medical experimentation, learned helplessness, intimidation by dogs, confinement in a box with insects, and waterboarding. â€Å"The United Nations Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhumane, or Degrading Treatment or Punishment’s stance on torture is ‘No exceptional circumstances whatsoever, whether a state of war or a threat of war or an emergency may be invoked as j ustification for torture [or enhanced interrogations], which inflict pain and suffering and most UN scholars consider to qualify as torture under international law.† (Dinan) However under international law it is ... ... they will never be normal again.(Stephens) This is a list of just a few of the techniques and their described effects that our own government and foreign governments use. The effects are cruel and long-lasting and they stick with you for a long time, not to mention the immediate effects of fear and pain from thing such as being waterboarded. It’s cruel and inhumane and illegal. All in all enhanced interrogation doesn’t get you anymore and it’s just plain cruel. There are many better alternatives to torturing the information out of someone. The more peaceful route should always be taken. If we don’t want our own citizens undergoing the same stuff that we put the citizens of foreign countries through than we should never ever do that to them. It goes back to the most basic rule of all time. The Golden Rule â€Å"Do unto others what you would have them do unto you†

McDonald’s Corporation (MCD) Essay

Introduction McDonald’s Corporation (MCD) is the world’s largest chain of fast food restaurants, serving nearly 47 million customers daily. McDonald’s primarily sells hamburgers, cheeseburgers, chicken products, french fries, breakfast items, soft drinks, milkshakes and desserts. More recently, it has begun to offer salads, wraps and fruit. Many McDonald’s restaurants have included a playground for children and advertising geared toward children, and some have been redesigned in a more ‘natural’ style, with a particular emphasis on comfort: introducing lounge areas and fireplaces, and eliminating hard plastic chairs and tables. Each McDonald’s restaurant is operated by a franchisee, an affiliate, or the corporation itself. The corporations’ revenues come from the rent, royalties and fees paid by the franchisees, as well as sales in company operated restaurants. McDonald’s revenues grew 27% over the three years ending in 2007 to $22.8 billion, and 9% growth in operating income to $3.9 billion. McDonalds’s success is the result of superior products, high standards of performance, distinctive competitive strategies and the high integrity of our people. Approximately 85% of McDonald’s restaurant businesses world-wide are owned and operated by franchisees .All franchisees are independent, full-time operators. McDonalds Vision Mission Statement and Values * Vision: To be the best & leading fast food providers around the globe. * Mission: To be the world’s best quick service restaurant experience. Being the best means providing outstanding quality, service, cleanliness, and value, so that we make every customer in every restaurant smile.† * Values: Our values summarized in â€Å"Q.S.C & V†. Provide good quality, services to customer . Have cleanliness environment when customer enjoys their meal .The value of food product makes every customer is smiling. Management structure Managing Director Head of MarketingDirector of FinanceHuman Resource head Accounts Manager Senior marketing executiveFinance managerEmployees Marketing executive Brand ManageResearch & Development officer Assistant Brand Manager Customer service managerProduct Development Sales managerMarket research TeamCompensation officer Branch managerRecruitment & Selection Training & Development Branch employees Porters Five Forces(in reference to McDonalds) Competitive rivalry According to Porter’s Five Forces Model, if entry into a market is easy then rivalry is likely to be high. Considering McDonald’s competitive rivalry, there is intense competition in fast food industry that many small fast food businesses fight with each other to improve their customer base. This makes a competition the major focus between businesses. Although, McDonald’s, with more than 32,000 local restaurants serving more than 60 million people in 117 countries each day, has a number of fast food outlet competitors across the countries such as Burger King, Taco Bell, KFC, Wendy’s, it is currently the leader of the industry in market capitalization with a cap of $39.31 billion. The Threat of new entrants The threat of new entrants in the fast food industry is high because there are no legal barriers which would keep them from entering the industry. The economies of scale and the access of the distribution are the major barriers that firms face in the industry. Firms must spend a large amount of capital on advertising and marketing in order to enjoy successful existence and long life of a fast food outlet. Large established companies with strong brand names such as McDonald’s make it more difficult to enter the market because new entrants are faced with price competition from existing chain restaurants. Thus, it takes a pretty much time for a new business to establish in the fast food industry. Supplier bargaining power The bargaining power of suppliers of McDonald’s is high because McDonald’s restaurants use the same products from the same suppliers and it doesn’t matter if you are in Rochester, MN or Beijing, China you can get the same Big Mac everywhere. This is a feature McDonald’s want to keep going on by encouraging consistency among its restaurants. Supplying these products to McDonald’s across the globe is the whole business for the suppliers and, however, if McDonald’s would lose even one supplier it would have to change one or more of its product lines and perhaps the whole menu what the McDonald’s customers were used to. This gives the suppliers of McDonald’s a high bargaining power. Buyer bargaining power Bargaining power of customers of McDonald’s is low because of low customer switching costs which are nearly zero; however, for example, one-fifth of the USA population eats in a fast food restaurant every day. Thus, fast food industry does not worry about customers’ loyalty. Fast food products industry is differentiated which are usually or almost always promoted by advertising – that is because of a vast competition between fast food firms Furthermore, if the fast food industry does not match the demands of the buyers and the general consumer trends, then the buyers can choose not to buy their product and convince others to do the same. A good example of this is the movie ‘Super Size Me’. It is a movie showing an ordinary consumer trying to live of McDonalds fast food, and the purpose of the movie was to see what the traditional fast food from McDonalds could do to your health if you were to eat their products for every meal. This movie shows what the buyers possible reactions could be if not satisfied or not being pleased. The reactions from the whole market were a large change in consumer preferences and brand preferences. The Threat of Substitutes With so many firms in the fast food industry with low switching costs, vide variety of similar products that people can chose, and healthier alternatives, the threat of substitutes is very high.As there is intense competition between rival sellers in the fast food industry, the competition between firms selling substitute products is intense as well. One very important issue is that the customer always tends to find another product comparable or better in terms of the quality of fast food products. Another thing is that fast food industry is unhealthy to its customers’ health. The majority of the public think that fast food restaurants primarily serve high in fat content foods which are unhealthy and as a consequence they tend to look elsewhere for healthier alternatives. While fast food products are not always associated with health and quality, fast food restaurants keeps a major advantage over other firms selling substitute products through the lower prices of their products and a quick, convenient service. Competitive Profile Matrix The above matrix re-establishes McDonald’s supremacy in the fast food market. * Pricing: McDonalds certainly gets an edge on the pricing front. Its competitors like Wendy’s are rapidly proliferating high-quality burger chains like Five Guys. Wendy’s has more premium products on its menu and therefore is relatively highly priced. The line â€Å"apke zamane mein baap ke zamane kaa daam† reinforces pricing edge enjoyed by McDonalds. They follow the value based pricing strategy * Financial Position: Wendy’s sales as in 2011 was 8.5 billion dollars closely competing with Burger King at 8.4 billion dollars. However McDonalds total sales were 27 billion dollars that is more than three times of its competitors. * Advertisement : McDonalds spends on an average 6 percent of its sales on advertisement. Slogans like â€Å"I am loving it† are really catchy and every McDonalds customer can associate with it. Also McDonalds can be seen using a marketing mixture by being there as a sponsor for Olympics to TV advertisement. However McDonalds generally doesn’t use print media. * Market Share: McDonalds market share is much more than its competitors and all the above factors such as pricing, quality, marketing strategy have played their role in this. * Global Expansion: McDonalds high sales are a result of its global expansion. McDonalds has its presence in 119 countries and serves 68 million customers daily which is way more than any of its competitors. Since its inception, McDonalds has consistently emphasized on restaurant operations procedures, service, quality and cleanliness. Here are a few milestones which the firm accomplished: 1. Hamburger University: It is a training facility which was designed to instruct personnel employed by McDonald’s in the various aspects of restaurant management. More than 80,000 restaurant managers, mid-managers and owner/operators have graduated from this facility. It is also located in Shanghai, China. 2. The Big Mac: The Big Mac was created by Jim Delligatti, who was operating several restaurants in the Pittsburgh area.It was introduced in 1967. The sandwich was so popular that it was added to the menu of all the U.S restaurants by 1968. 3. Happy Meal: A Happy Meal is a form of kids’ meal specifically marketed at childrensince June 1979. A toy is typically included with the food, both of which are usually contained in a box or paper bag with the McDonald’s logo. Frequently, the packaging and toy are part of a marketing tie-in to a popular film, TV show, or toy-line. 4. Drive-Thru: The first McDonald’s drive-through was created in 1975 in Arizona on a military base to serve soldiers who weren’t permitted to get out of their cars while wearing fatigues.McDonald’s drive-through service is called McDrive. 5. McDonaldization: McDonaldization is a term used by a sociologist, George Ritzer. It occurs when a culture possesses the characteristics of a fast-food restaurant. McDonaldization is a reconceptualization of rationalization, or moving from traditional to rational modes of thought, and scientific management. Its five components are Efficiency, Calculability, Predictability, Control and Culture. 6. Plan to Win Strategy This strategy was adopted in 2003 with its strategic focus on being better and not just bigger. The 4 P’s of this strategy were People, Place, Price and Product. SWOT Analysis Strength * McDonalds holds a very strong brand name worldwide.. * It is said that McDonalds was the first food outlet to provide its customers with nutritional facts. Nutrition information is printed on all packaging and more recently added to the McDonald’s Internet site. McDonalds offers salads, fruit, roasted chicken, bottled water and other low fat and calorie conscious alternatives. * McDonald’s uses only 100% pure USDA inspected beef, no fillers or additives. Additionally the produce is farm fresh. McDonald’s serves 100% farm raised chicken no fillers or additives and only grade-A eggs. McDonald’s foods are purchased from only certified and inspected suppliers. McDonalds works closely with ranchers, growers and suppliers to ensure food quality and freshness. * Loyal employees and management and customers is their biggest strength * McDonalds makes sure that cultural and regional barriers are kept in mind while providing food to different countries. * Clean environment and play areas for children where they can enjoy their time. Weakness * The weakness that hits the list is the employee turnover rate. Every year many of their employees are fired out of the restaurant * Health conscious people seldom complain that they do not provide us with the organic and healthy food. This becomes their weakness when they get in the complaints. Opportunities * Discounts given on every food item may help them gain more customers. * In today’s health conscious societies the introduction of a healthy hamburger is a great opportunity. They would be the first QSR (Quick Service Restaurant) to have FDA approval on marketing a low fat low calorie hamburger with low calorie combo alternatives. Currently McDonald’s and its competition health choice items do not include hamburgers. * In order to be environment friendly, they can use packing material which can be recycled later or material that does not create pollution. Threats * Emerging competition of similar outlets is becoming a problem for McDonalds. They have a threat of local food outlets in different countries. * As it is a multinational food outlet, fluctuations in the currency of other countries becomes a problem for such companies * Political factors Political Factors The international operations of McDonald’s are extremely under influence of a policy of the separate state put into practice by each government. For example, there are certain groups in Europe and the United States, which demand the acts of governmental power concerning medical values of meal of fast food. They have specified that harmful elements as cholesterol and negative influences as fatness are concerning consumption of products of fast food. Economic factors The organizations in the fast food industry aren’t excused from any disputes and problems. Definitely, they really have the separate problems involving business factors. Branches and privileges of networks of the enterprises of fast service as McDonald’s has a tendency to experience difficulty in cases where the economy of the corresponding states is amazed by inflation and changes in exchange rates. Clients hence face a survey stalemate through their separate budgets, whether they should spend more on these foreign networks of the enterprises of fast food. Hence, to these chains, possibly, it is necessary to take out problems of effects of economic environment. Especially, their problem depends on the answer of consumers to these main principles and how it could influence their general sales. In an estimation of operations of the company, food chains as McDonald’s tend to import the biggest part of the raw materials to certain territory if there is a delivery lack. Exchange rate fluctuations will also play an essential role in company’s operations. The company’s international supply as well as the existing exchange rates is merely a part of the overall components needed to guarantee success for the foreign operations of McDonald’s. It is besides obligatory, that the company has been informed on the existing tax requirements needed by the separate governments on which they operate. It basically guarantees smooth operations of McDonald’s privileges. In the same relation the company should consider also a state economic situation on which they influence. Level at which the economy of special state grows, defines purchasing capacity of consumers in that country. Hence, if the privilege works in the especially economically weak state, then their products should cost above than other existing products in the market, these privileges should take certain regulators to support economy at the expense of manufacture growth. Social The main reason is the consumers’ worries had greatly increased with health fears so customers now opted for healthier options like subway, which offered more of a variety for health conscious customers. Social Considerations: To ease customers concern about health issues, McDonald’s has made changes to the following; McDonalds changed its image vastly by evaluating the current menu and making changes to it from using organic products to revising the whole menu entirely by offering salads and vegetarian burgers. McDonald’s serves a range of high-quality foods that can fit into a balanced diet. The accurate and accessible nutrition information help guests make informed menu choices. Social Considerations Emphasis on food safety: McDonald’s suppliers have food safety management systems in place, including Good Manufacturing Practices (GMP), a verified Hazard Analysis Critical Control Point (HACCP) plan and crisis management, food security and other applicabl e programs Technology Technological Advantages McDonald’s has taken advantage of technology to streamline their processes and improve efficiency. Through technology enhancements such as FPI’s Help Desk Service, network and application consolidation, and other technology implementations, operations of the company are greatly improved. Technological Advantages: * Technological Advantages Touch Order Allows You To Place Order At McDonald’s Via handset. * T The customers can place their order directly from their tables, dubbed as â€Å"Touch Order†. It’s the first self-ordering system in the world to use RFID* Technology Spotlight. * McDonald’s has also implemented technology to improve supply chain management, and allows customers to access this information to make more informed decisions about what they eat. Supply Chain They strive to ensure that every step of the McDonald’s supply chain contributes positively to the safety, quality and availability of their final products. They also want their product ingredients to be produced in ways that contribute positively to the development of sustainable agricultural and food manufacturing practices. Since McDonald’s does not actually produce any of the food they ultimately serve their customers, it’s essential that they work with suppliers who share our values, and we do. They have a large number of direct suppliers – companies that make or deliver final products for their restaurants as well as an even larger number of indirect suppliers companies and farms that grow or process the ingredients that are eventually delivered to their direct suppliers. They work closely with their direct suppliers to continuously improve the practices that impact their employees, their communities, the environment, their own suppliers and, of course, McDonald’s customers. Profit Pyramid Model The key is to get customers to buy at a low price, low price, entry point and move them upto high price and high margin products where the company makes its profit. For example McDonalds uses products like Mc Aloo Tikki to get the customer inside the restaurant. Once the customer establishes a taste for its products his focus is shifted to products belonging to the higher strung of the ladder such as Mc Paneer Spicy, Chicken Maharaja Wrap etc. This is where it makes it profit. Thus McDonalds follows a Profit Pyramid Model. Corporate strategy Corporate level strategy fundamentally is concerned with the selection of businesses in which the company should compete and with the development and coordination of that portfolio of businesses. McDonald’s is engaged in. Mc Donald’s only deals in the restaurant business, so its corporate strategy is a single business unit strategy, likely of growth. Business strategy: A strategic business unit may be a division, product line, or other profit center that can be planned independently from the other business units of the firm.McDonald’s has pursued two strategies since 2003. To keep up with rapidly changing consumer preferences, demographics, and spending patterns, McDonald’s has introduced new items (Premium Chicken sandwiches and the Angus Beef Burger) and campaigns to create more healthy foods (Premium Salads). The strategy reflects the philosophy that novelty, as opposed to loyalty to traditional products, is the key determinant of sales in the fast food industry. McDonald’s has also focused on increasing sales at existing restaurants instead of opening new ones. To do so, McDonald’s has remodelled many restaurants, kept stores open longer, and increased menu options. Marketing Strategy McDonalds uses marketing mixture by using the different sources of media to reach the consumer: * Medium: Marketing medium of McDonalds ranges from TV advertisement to sponsoring the Olympics.It normally doesn’t use the print media for advertisement. * Branding: When someone says McDonald’s things like the golden arches ,Ronald McDonald Big Mac, etc come automatically comes to our mind. McDonald’s is loaded with brand images that are embedded into our souls from a very early age, and the company’s influence has been profound. * They Speak to the Children: McDonalds has established strong relationships in their brand by marketing directly to children, and giving them the products they want—little meals with lots of color, happy faces, and a toy (hence, Happy Meal). Core Competency The only core competency that Mc Donalds has is developing localized products. We can explain this with the example of the products that were provided to their French customers. They included beer in their menu. All their hamburgers also included a tinge of mustard to it since the French are extremely fond of mustard sauce. To overcome their unhealthy image they also began to include salads in their menu. In Thailand some of their dishes also included rice since all their meals have rice. To cater to the taste buds of Indians they have started dishes like Paneer McSpicy. McDonalds also focuses mostly on children by providing Happy Meals and toys along with it which attract the kids. There no other fast food brand which has customized its product to such an extent and therefore it is a core competency for McDonalds. Distinctive Competency The distinctive competencies of McDonalds are as follows: * Price * Standardized products * Quick service VRIO Analysis * Value: McDonalds provides value to the customer’s because of its competitive pricing. There are not many brands which can match the same prcing, standardized product, quality which McDonalds provides therefore it does provide value to the customer’s. * Rareness: McDonald’s approach towards children is very rare and no other competitor has the same to this extent. Also localizing their products is one more rare feature of this brand. * Imitability: Designing a business model which has been successful in 119 countries with annual sales of 27 billion dollars and with so much brand recognition is definitely not easy to imitate. * Organization: They exploit their resources because they cater to the local customers in an extremely efficient manner.