Saturday, August 31, 2019

Today’s Society That Effect Teenagers

There are many things in today's society that effect teenagers. Throughout high schools students mindset are not very stable and they are willingly to follow the crowd. These messages can come from not only other students but from music videos,magazine advertisement television commercials, talk shows and sports. When you were a little kid, your parents usually chose your friends, putting you in playgroups or arranging playdates with certain children they knew and liked. Now that you're older, you decide who your friends are and what groups you spend time with. It's natural for people to identify with and compare themselves to their peers as they consider how they wish to be (or think they should be), or what they want to achieve. People are influenced by peers because they want to fit in, be like peers they admire, do what others are doing, or have what others have. Teenagers face many acts that pressure them to act or try to look a certain way. Peers are a powerful force in the life of a teenager. Negative peer pressure can persuade a teenager or child to shoplift, drink alcohol, take drugs, smoke cigarettes, cheat at school, vandalize property, bully other students, skip school and participate in racist and discriminatory behavior. When it seems like everyone else is doing something-dressing a certain way or acting a certain way-teens feel a tremendous pressure to go along with the crowd and be like everyone else. Most teenagers don't want to stand out as being different. Everyone wants to fit in. No one has to say anything to a student but just observing their peers will create peer pressure to be like them. Teen magazines have a high impact on the mindset of the teens and they seem to be very influenced by the information that is provided. For example,a magazine that is personally one of my favorites seventeen a world wide magazine has a section thats dedicated for tips on teen dating. They no longer give the right message of how you should wait for the right person to come along to take the plunge but instead they teach you how to attract the â€Å"hottest† guy and how to keep him. All this talk puts a lot of pressure on the teen girls to have a guy who's in which leads to other problems such as disease,pregnancy, and even rape. Although their are many things that pressure teenagers in negative ways,there are also positive things that are being held and can be done in the world today. So many things such as girls/boys convention, clubs, and Internet logs can be formed to help shape teenagers mindset in positive ways so they can grow into young adults that are needed in the future. the person they need to be. All teenagers face some kind of peer pressure whether it's something extreme as doing drugs to fit in or as little as picking on the class dork. Either way the outcome of peer pressure is never good and a small helping hand can change not only a single person's entire life but a society. † we are the future,so why not start preparing for tomorrow. â€Å"

Friday, August 30, 2019

Mediating Morality Essay

This case has lots of different goals by each person and different feelings about what needs to be done. Syl priority is to get the project completed while Daniel is more focused on his belief that he is being discriminated against. Robert also wants to get the project completed but does not want to work with Daniel the same way his was before he discovered Daniel is in a homo-sexual relationship. Syl did a good thing having separate conversations with both Daniel and Robert on a way to still complete the project but when she brought them together to discuss how they would precede it fell apart. I believe when things became heated she should have ended the meeting. Allowing the guys to argue back and forth created more tension in the situation. I also believe that she should have been more commanding of here statements and not allow Robert to spread his bias to other employees. Daniel is worried about Robert spreading rumors and dislike for him to other employees. This is especially true because Robert is bringing two other employees into the project to replace Daniel because of he doesn’t like Daniel’s lifestyle. I also agree with Syl about Daniel not having a discrimination lawsuit because this situation is not hurting Daniel’s work life unless they do not complete the project. He may become uncomfortable with certain co-workers because of them listening to Robert but his work position and being able to advance it will not be affected. Robert’s priority is to also complete the project but he does not want to complete it with Daniel. He believes moral standards should be upheld in the workplace and this is important. The only thing I have against this is that this company already has a benefits process in place for same sex spouses. Knowing the company has this if Robert does not believe in same sex marriage and does not want to be around it he should consider finding a new job. This is a hard case to digest and deal with but well placed mediation and goal setting can help the process. Robert should consider a new job or counseling to help deal with his dislike of same sex marriage. Daniel should not let this affect his priorities of completing the project.

Thursday, August 29, 2019

Criminology Coursework †Assessing the riots Essay

Criminology is focused on the attempt to understand the meanings involved in social interaction. Theorists have tried to explain sociological behaviour by looking at the patterns created by individuals that commit crime. The August 2011 riots are pivotal in explaining criminological behaviour since official statistics show that 865 individuals were put in prison by the 9th September 2011 for offences related to the disorder between 6th and 9th August 2011. This is not to say that others were not involved, but that they have simply not been identified to date and may never be identified, however the evidence we do have about the recent riots gives us plenty to talk about. This essay will provide a basis for causes of the 2011 riots by applying the ‘Labelling theory’ and the ‘Anomie theory’ to events that led to such behaviour. Mark Duggan was shot by a police officer from the specialist firearms command team and as life-taking errors were made on behalf of th e police force, such events that led up to the riots suggest that the police service could be to blame. It was on the 6th August that relatives sparked the riots by setting fire to police vehicles as they demanded information about Duggan’s death, however the British Prime Minister David Cameron rejected a causal relationship between the death of Mark Duggan and the subsequent looting. Some say labelling is not a ‘theory’ because it does not give an explanation of law, but questions why we have such rules. For Labelling theorists there is no such thing as crime, as we create the laws and punishments by defining certain acts to be deviant. Deviant means to depart from usual or accepted standards. Leading theorist Kitsuse said â€Å"it is the responses of the conventional and conforming members of society which identify and interpret behaviour as deviant which sociology transforms persons into deviants†. This means that it is not the actions themselves that are crimes but the social response to such actions that the majority of people deem to be unacceptable and so these actions have been made crimes. This is how we label individuals to be criminals as they do not conform to the behaviour of the ideal majority. This can be unfair to minority groups since they may not deem their actions to be criminal but do not have a choice, for example the introduction of the Criminal Justice Act which criminalised previously civil offences such as  section 63 which gives police the powers to remove persons attending or preparing for a rave. The aim of the act was to give greater penalties for anti-social behaviour; however such activities like raves may be anti-social in behaviour from some perspectives but is merely a form of entertainment to others and so this is discriminatory against ravers as their recreational activity has been barred. Commentators have seen the Act as a draconian piece of legislation which was explicitly aimed at suppressing the activities of certain strands of alternative culture. In response to this Bill, the band ‘Dreadzone’ released a single called ‘Fight the Power’ which links into the Anomie theory (see anomie below) as the band were taking action to rebel the change in the law by getting the message across through their music. This also reflects Tannenbaum’s view of labelling; that the process of defining someone as a delinquent is due to conflict over particular activities, which results in tagging in which the person becomes the thing he is described as being and that the only way out is through a refusal to dramatize the evil. This can be applied to the recent riots the people involved were in conflict with the rest of society. Official statistics have shown that 73 per cent of those that appeared before the courts for the disorders involved in the riots had a previous caution or conviction and so this fits in with Tannenbaum’s debate that once a person is labelled to be ‘ bad’ they will continue in that manner. However, this data is only reliable to a certain extent as we do not know what sort of convictions the rioters already had and so they have been labelled as criminals due to deviance. According to Becker deviance is ‘a consequence of the application by others of rules and sanctions to an offender’. Becker came to the conclusion that people are criminalised through the process of negotiation, known to be social constructionism for example the Crown Prosecution Service may drop the charge of murder to manslaughter if there is not enough evidence to convict for murder. By doing this the defendant becomes labelled for the crime of manslaughter even though he may truly be guilty of murder. By introducing what could be regarded as ‘petty’ legislation more people will be labelled criminals, which in turn may lead the offender to act further on this basis. Lemert referred to this as secondary deviance as when a person is labelled criminal they change their view of t hemselves and this then becomes their ‘master status’. On the other  hand primary deviance is when someone violates a social code, but does not get labelled. Therefore a person is only labelled a criminal if he is caught and since ethnic minorities are subject to much more scrutiny than the white population this puts black people at an automatic disadvantage. Following the inquiry into the death of Stephen Lawrence it was uncovered that the police are institutionally racist. Institutional racism can be defined as ‘the collective failure of an organisation to provide an appropriate and professional service to the people because of their colour, culture or ethnic origin’. This can be seen where police failed to identify the attack on Stephen Lawrence as being racially aggravated and presumed it was gang related. This is due to the labels attached to black people that they are all associated with black on black gun crime. Official figures show that black people in England and Wales are six times more likely to be stopped and searched by police in comparison with their white counterparts. The power given to police to stop and search is found under the Criminal Justice Act and requires the police to anticipate violence. For the Mark Duggan case although the officer may have reasonably believed the suspect had a gun this was due to the label attached to him because of the colour of his skin and so such an assumption was not as a result of any proper intelligence. This reflects institutional racism as it is hard to believe that a white person would have been treated in the same way. Despite many black deaths in police custody there has been no conviction of a police officer. This is because of assumptions made that the victim must have been at fault because of the stigma that is attached to black people. This suggests an element of class because the lower class would most likely be punished when caught, w hereas many officials manage to escape minor crimes and so the rich and powerful are protected. The Brixton and Toxteth riots were also in response to such discrimination as at this time the police thought they were ‘the law’ and so used brute force against many individuals for mere suspicion when in matter of fact they had done nothing wrong. Goffman referred to stigma as ‘spoiled identities’ which he defined as ‘an attribute that is deeply discrediting within a particular social interaction’. Referring back to the riots this means that certain people, in particular black people cannot rid themselves of such ‘spoiled identities’ and as a result are much more likely to be subject to assumptions that they are deviant. It was Schur that outlined  that a person employs deviant behaviour as a means of defence. This is relevant to the recent riots since one man declared that he only joined in after being stopped and searched several times while trying to make his way home from the disturbances in the city centre. This suggests th at the riot was escalated by anger towards the police as they inherit discrimination in carrying out their duties. Although racism is rooted in widely shared attitudes, values and beliefs, discrimination can occur irrespective of the intent of the individuals who carry out the activities of the institution. This means that the police may not even be aware that they are being racist, but the labels they attach to certain individuals are present regardless of whether it is intentional. This could be because of the small number of ethnic minority police officers and so the force is not representative, which in turn reflects the ignorance to the modern, multi-cultural society that we live in. So is it fair to say that the police are to blame for the break out of the riots or that they did not carry out their duties efficiently enough to prevent them? The telegraph has cited that Mark Duggan was well known to the police. They had assumed that Duggan had a gun and further misleading information leaked to the public that the victim had actually fired bullets at the police first. Both assumptions made by the police turned out to be false and so this created an outburst of anger since it appeared that such assumptions were based on the fact that Duggan was black. Labelling is a problem that cannot be reversed easily and was acknowledged by Sir Paul Condon where he stated â€Å"I acknowledge the danger of institutionalisation of racism. However, labels can cause more problems than they solve.† Deviancy Amplication, as Leslie Wilkins pointed out is the process where the reaction by agents or agencies of social control may lead to an escalation, rather than a diminution of deviancy. The riots reflect this as the deviant behaviour spirals out of control as more acts are defined as crimes which leads to more restraints against deviants which in turn leaves them feeling as outsiders and so pushes them into the surroundings of other criminals which again leads to more deviant acts. The 1981 Brixton riots produced the Scarman report which emphasised the duty of police to apply the law firmly and sensitively without differing standards and although many measures were introduced to improve trust and understanding between the police and ethnic mi nority communities, the  Macpherson inquiry in 2000 said the Metropolitan police still suffered from institutional racism. Although it is evident that labelling causes many problems that cannot be reverted, it would not have been diplomatic to keep the truth behind the institutional racism a secret from the public and so on its emergence it is fair to say that this caused the beginning of the riots. As a result of this the police have now too been labelled and therefore much trust has been lost in the eyes of the public. The Anomie theory was established in the aftermath of the industrial revolution where society had been subject to a social transformation, which saw a drop in the ability to maintain order. Durkheim said crime is normal in any society and is functional in two ways. The first being an adaptive function that ensures change in society by introducing new ideas and practices and the second type is the boundary maintenance function that reinforces social values and norms through collective action against deviance. He then progressed by outlining two typical social formations; organic solidarit y and mechanical solidarity. Organic solidarity is organised around difference, whereas mechanical solidarity displays identical and shared values and so sanctioning is served here to identify and exclude offenders. The two latter formations were used to understand the rates of suicide. Durkheim said that the suicide rates are down to social solidarity; that is the integration into social groups and the regulation of social norms. His findings showed that anomic suicide occurred where the degree of regulation was insufficient because individuals feel a sense of ‘normlessness’. This can be shown through the amount of suicides within prisons, namely Kilmarnock’s private prison, where six suicides have occurred since the prison opened in 1999 until 2005. In the BBC Panorama programme investigating Kilmarnock Prison a riot within the prison was described, where officers recall witnessing inmates setting fires, flooding and smashing televisions. This can be compared to the riots outside the prisons as the time at which they occur is when individuals are subject to economic and social change. In times of rapid social change, such as that from mechanical to organic solidarity system s of regulations may be insufficient to effectively limit individual desires and so what emerges is a state of anomie. This theory is therefore applicable as the Toxteth outburst, that followed the Brixton riot reflects a civil protest against the social change because during this time Toxteth had one of the highest  unemployment rates in the country. The citizens of Toxteth felt let down by the Government as the city hit a decline and they were given little help to be able to survive and so could not fit in with society. This is also the same for the more recent London riots as society struggles through the recession where high unemployment and high crime is also present. Durkheim also related organic solidarity to the sexual difference between men and women. He outlined that men are much more likely to commit crime due to the higher impact social change has upon males. This can be reflected through the 2011 riots as statistics show that out of all offenders brought before the courts10% were female and 90% were male. Whereas Durkheim’s work related crime to insufficient normative regulation , Merton’s Anomie theory was a result of the absence of alignment between socially-desired aspirations, such as wealth, and the means available to people to achieve such objectives. According to Merton every society has cultural goals in which to strive for throughout one’s lifetime and it was the ‘American Dream’ that this theory derived from. Although Martin Luther King, Jr. strived for racial equality, few will deny that American’s are focused on the ‘almighty dollar’. It was the idea that prosperity and success were available to all those that worked hard, however Merton argued that the cultural demands on persons to achieve wealth brought about the use of illegitimate means, where they are denied effective opportunities to do so institutionally. Although this is based on American culture it can be applied to the UK as our society today aims for material success. This is reflected throughout the looting that transpired out of the 2011 riots as much of the disorder was in aid of stealing goods and electrical products. The BBC referred to this in headlines as ‘greed and criminality’, however others argue that the subsequent looting was due to the lack of help from the Government, which has left many people in a state of desperation. Merton recognised that the majority of society will conform even though they suffer the strain of anomie, however those that do not conform can be categorised into four types of deviants. These four human adaptions are known as the Innovator, the Ritualist, the Retreatist and the Rebellion. In the UK the typical ‘drug dealer’ would be an innovator as they accept the cultural goals, but do not use the standard institutionalised means. This could be for reasons such as previous convictions preventing them from achieving a respected job and  therefore other means are used in order to reach the desired material success. Ritualism in contrast refers to those that still have the attachment to the institutional means, however the cultural goals have been lost. Here could fall the single parent working hard at all costs and not actually achieving the goal. Retreatism is where both the objectives and means have been rejected. Merton says that Retreatism concerns people who ‘are in society but not of it’, for example a typical British tramp. The Rebellion refers to the behaviour of many young individuals in Britain as they replace the cultural goals and the institutional means with their own rules to cope with anomic strain. The recession is a prime example of an economic break down in Britain, which would result in some members of society turning to illegitimate means in order to achieve goals where society has made the end goal much harder to achieve. So, for the offenders involved there is a display of Innovation as they have the goals but not the means to achieve them and so have jumped on the opportunity of crisis in order to gain material success. Merton went on to argue that non-conformity resulted from differential access to opportunities, such as education and employment. From this there is a clear link to labelling as it is societies label that holds back the individual and prevents them from being able to achieve the end goals legitimately. This refers to the majority of the rioters since 73% of the offenders involved had previous convictions, and so although the desired goals are still prominent the label restricts the opportunity of getting a decent job which in turn stops them achieving this ideology of material success. Even without a criminal conviction ethnic minority groups struggle to get the same opportunities in terms of employment. Looking at the UK as a whole, ethnic minorities make up about 7% of the population, yet in police forces across England and Wales, just 2% of their officers are non-white. It is also much harder for a police officer from an ethnic minority background to reach the rank of superintendent and so after much rejection they eventually ‘give up’. Following the Brixton riots the Scarman report recommended efforts to recruit more ethnic minorities into the police force, and changes in training and law enforcement. The Macpherson report somewhat 17 years later showed that nothing has changed. The main problem with this theory is that it looks to assess financial crimes and ignores mindless crimes such as vandalism.  However, as the riots are mainly concerned with burglary and theft (statistics show 13% of disorder was due to theft and 44% was assigned to burglary) this theory is applicable. Looking at the overall causes of the riots it is fair to say that the police have discriminated on the way a person looks and although this may have provoked further crime as deviancy amplication suggests, it is the Anomie theory that best explains the reasoning behind the riots. In order to prevent such mass atrocities occurring again, discrimination in any form must be eliminated from the Criminal Justice System. It was George Orwell that explained how society will become a ‘police state’ and although surveillance programmes and more police powers have been enforced to give greater security to citizens much freedom is subsequently lost. Technology has been put in place in order to secure convictions, however in order for this to work the police must also be subject to the same kind of control. This would prevent discrimination on their part and also regain the public’s trust in the police. The lack of opportunity from the Government has led to a proportion of society to ignore the law, which in turn creates disturbance between the law enforcers i.e. the police and the public. As the recent 2011 riots saw a more ‘stand back’ approach by the police, they argued that they did not have the proper resources to respond due to ‘cut backs’ from the Government, however much of the police fund is spent on the wrong resources and so this must also be addressed for society to be controlled effectively. After the Brixton and Toxteth riots the British public managed to regain police trust, however since the UK returned to an economic state like of that time it was evident that some form of protest would also reoccur. As this has happened, equal opportunities must be available to give everybody in society a chance to succeed, which in turn would lose the resentment that is held towards the Government and police. Bibliography Textbooks: Bowling, B., Violent Racism: Victimisation, Policing and Social Context, 1998, Clarendon Press Gilbert, J., Discographies: Dance Music, Culture, and the Politics of Sound, 1999, Routledge Newburn, T., Criminology, 2009, 1st edition, Willian Publishing Orwell, G., 1984, 1949, 1st edition, London: Secker and Warburg Journals: Bowling, B. and Phillips C., (2007) â€Å"Disproportionate and Discriminatory: Reviewing the Evidence on Police Stop and Search†. Modern Law Review. 70(6) Dicristina, B., (2006), â€Å"Durkheims latent theory of gender and homicide†. British Journal of Criminology. 46(2) Reports: Bell, I., 2011, Statistical bulletin on the public disorder of 6th to 9th August 2011 King, M.L., Jr., (1968) â€Å"The American Dream,† Negro History Bulletin 31 (5) Macpherson, W., 1998, The Stephen Lawrence Enquiry, London: Home Office Scarman, Lord J., 1981, ‘The Brixton disorders 10-12 April 1981’, London: HMSO Legislation: Criminal Justice and Public Order Act 1994 (c.33) Websites: BBC, December 2011, ‘Toxteth riots: Howe proposed managed decline for the city’, http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-merseyside-16355281 BBC, 11th August 2011, ‘riots: David Cameron’s commons statement in full’, http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-14492789 BBC News London, ‘London riots: looting and violence continues’, 8th August 2011, http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-london-14439970 Cached BBC, ‘On this day: 1981 Brixton riots report blames racial tension’, http://www.news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/november/25 Guardian, T., 6th December 2011, ‘Reading the Riots: Humiliating stop and search a key factor in anger towards police’, http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2011/dec/06/stop-and-search Peter Gould, BBC News online home affairs, ‘Changing face of justice’, http://news.bbc.co.uk/hi/english/static/in_depth/uk/2002/race/changing_face_of_justice.stm Kerry Townsend, ‘Frank Tannenbau m: Dramatization of evil’, http://www.criminology.fsu.edu/crimtheory/tannenbaum.htm Cached – Similar CachedOxford Dictionary, ‘definition for deviant’, http://www.oxforddictionaries.com Scottish Government, ‘HM Inspectorate of Prisons Report on HM Prison Kilmarnock: January 2005’, http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Publications/2005/04/14103535 Cached Warshauer, M., Liverpool John Moores University, ‘Who wants to be a millionaire: Changing conceptions of the American Dream’ (2002), http://www.americansc.org.uk/Online/American_Dream.htm Wheatle, A., Evening Standard, 9th August 2011, ‘We need answers about the death of Mark Duggan’ http://www.thisislondon.co.uk/standard/article-23976405 Television Programmes: BBC One, 2005, â€Å"Panorama: Kilmarnock Prison Part 1†, LondonCached ——————————————– [ 1 ]. T. Newburn, Criminology, 2009, 1st edition, Willian Publishing, page 212 [ 2 ]. Ministry of Justice, Statistical bulletin on the public disorder of 6th to 9th August 2011, (15th Sept 2011) page 11 [ 3 ]. BBC, 11th August 2011, ‘riots: David Cameron’s commons statement in full’, http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-14492789 accessed 18/02/2012Cached [ 4 ]. Oxford Dictionary, ‘definition for deviant’, http://www.oxforddictionaries.com accessed 20/02/2012 [ 5 ]. John Itsuro Kitsuse, 1962 [ 6 ]. Criminal Justice and Public Order Act 1994 (c.33) [ 7 ]. Jeremy Gilbert, Discographies: Dance Music, Culture, and the Politics of Sound, 1999, Routledge, page 150 [ 8 ]. 1994 [ 9 ]. Frank Tannenbaum, 1938 [ 10 ]. Kerry Townsend, ‘Frank Tannenbaum: Dramatization of evil’, http://www.criminology.fsu.edu/crimtheory/tannenbaum.htm accessed 19/02/2012Cached – Similar [ 11 ]. Iain Bell, Ministry of Justice, Statistical bulletin on the public disorder of 6th to 9th August 2011, (15th Sept 2011) page 5 [ 12 ]. Howard Becker, 1963 [ 13 ]. T. Newburn, Criminology, 2009, 1st edition, Willian Publishing, page 212 [ 14 ]. Edwin Lemert, 1967 [ 15 ]. ibid [ 16 ]. William Macpherson, 1998, ‘The Stephen Lawrence Enquiry, London: Home Office, chapter 6.25 [ 17 ]. Ben Bowling and Coretta Phillips, (2007) ‘Disproportionate and Discriminatory: Reviewing the Evidence on Police Stop and Search’. Modern Law Review. 70(6) 944 [ 18 ]. Criminal Justice and Public Order Act 1994 (c.33) section 60 [ 19 ]. Alex Wheatle, Evening Standard, 9th August 2011, ‘We need answers about the death of Mark Duggan’ http://www.thisislondon.co.uk/standard/article-23976405 accessed 21/02/2012 [ 20 ]. Erving Goffman, 1963 [ 21 ]. T. Newburn, Criminology, 2009, 1st edition, Willian Publishing, page 217 [ 22 ]. Edwin Schur, 1951 [ 23 ]. The Guardian, 6th December 2011, ‘Reading the Riots: Humiliating stop and search a key factor in anger towards police’, http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2011/dec/06/stop-and-search accessed 20/02/2012 [ 24 ]. Benjamin Bowling, Violent Racism: Victimisation, Policing and Social Context, 1998, Clarendon Press, page 3 [ 25 ]. William Macpherson, 1998, ‘The Stephen Lawrence Enquiry, London: Home Office, chapter 6.25 [ 26 ]. Leslie Wilkins 1964 [ 27 ]. T. Newburn, Criminology, 2009, 1st edition, Willian Publishing, page 218 [ 28 ]. BBC, ‘On this day: 1981 Brixton riots report blames racial tension’, http://www.news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/november/25 accessed 21/02/2012 [ 29 ]. Emile Durkheim, 1972 [ 30 ]. T. Newburn, Criminology, 2009, 1st edition, Willian Publishing, page 170 [ 31 ]. ibid [ 32 ]. The Scottish Government, ‘HM Inspectorate of Prisons Report on HM Prison Kilmarnock: January 2005’, http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Publications/2005/04/14103535 accessed 21/02/2012Cached [ 33 ]. â€Å"Panorama: Kilmarnock Prison Part 1†, London: BBC One, 27/02/05, Retrieved 03/02/2012 [ 34 ]. T. Newburn, Criminology, 2009, 1st edition, Willian Publishing, page 173 [ 35 ]. BBC, December 2011, ‘Toxteth riots: Howe proposed managed decline for the city’, http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-merseyside-16355281 accessed 23/02/2012Cached [ 36 ]. London riots, (6 August 2011) [ 37 ]. B. Dicristina, (2006), â€Å"Durkheims latent theory of gender and homicide†. British Journal of Criminology. 46(2), 212-233 [ 38 ]. Ministry of Justice, Statistical bulletin on the public disorder of 6th to 9th August 2011, (15th Sept 2011) page 3 [ 39 ]. Robert Merton, 1949 [ 40 ]. T. Newburn, Criminology, 2009, 1st edition, Willian Publishing, page 175 [ 41 ]. Martin Luther King, Jr., (1968) â€Å"The American Dream,† Negro History Bulletin 31 (5), 10-15 [ 42 ]. Matthew Warshauer, Liverpool John Moores University, ‘Who wants to be a millionaire: Changing conceptions of the American Dream’ (2002), http://www.americansc.org.uk/Online/American_Dream.htm accessed 21/02/2012 [ 43 ]. T. Newburn, Criminology, 2009, 1st edition, Willian Publishing, page 175-176 [ 44 ]. BBC News London, ‘London riots: looting and violence continues’, 8th August 2011, http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-london-14439970 Cachedaccessed 22/02/2012 [ 45 ]. T. Newburn, Criminology, 2009, 1st edition, Willian Publishing, page 175-177 [ 46 ]. Iain Bell, Ministry of Justice, Statistical bulletin on the public disorder of 6th to 9th August 2011, (15th Sept 2011) page 5 [ 47 ]. Peter Gould, BBC News online home affairs, ‘Changing face of justiceâ₠¬â„¢, http://news.bbc.co.uk/hi/english/static/in_depth/uk/2002/race/changing_face_of_justice.stm accessed 22/02/2012 [ 48 ]. ibid [ 49 ]. 1981 [ 50 ]. Lord Scarman, 25th November 1981, ‘The Brixton Disorders10-12 April 1981’, London: HMSO [ 51 ]. Iain Bell, Ministry of Justice, Statistical bulletin on the public disorder of 6th to 9th August 2011, (15th Sept 2011) page 7 [ 52 ]. George Orwell, 1984, 8th June 1949, 1st edition, London: Secker and Warburg

Wednesday, August 28, 2019

Ford to Cut New-Car Greenhouse Emissions 30% by 2020 Research Paper

Ford to Cut New-Car Greenhouse Emissions 30% by 2020 - Research Paper Example The company has failed to meet its goals that were to improve the mileage on sport-utility vehicles by the year 2005 to 25%. According to the views of Susan Cischke, although the company has failed to meet its commitments, its SUV (Sports-Utility Vehicle) mileage goals has been a blueprint demonstrating where the company wants to go and thus stated that she is confident that this time the company will be able to achieve the goal. However, Alan Mulley (Chief Executive Officer) stated that the company will try to focus upon the environmental friendly issues. According to Friends of the Earth, which is an environmental group stated that the announcements that has been made by the Ford Motors has been quite unimpressive since the stated targets of 30% reduction meets the regulatory requirements (Koenig, â€Å"Ford to Cut New-Car Greenhouse Emissions 30% by 2020 (Update4)†).   The most important point in the article that has been agreed with is the Vice President’s stateme nt that stated, the difficulties Ford Motors might face while implementing the policies of greenhouse gas emissions, however, it is not impossible task at all. The statement makes it evident that the company seems to perceive the social responsibility as an opportunity to serve the society and other participants rather than a damage control initiative. If the leader is of such views then the company as a whole can be prepared to work with the similar enthusiasm and mindset as that of the Vice  President, Susan Chischke.  

What are the problem with the Aral sea Research Paper

What are the problem with the Aral sea - Research Paper Example Aral is translated in Kazakh to mean â€Å"island†. These islands form one important highway referred as the Silk Road, which lead all the way from Asia to Europe (STONE, 1999). In the recent years, Aral has attracted the world attention following its great degradation, a factor that has been termed one of the worst man-made disasters of this age. Currently, this sea is ranked the eighth largest after dropping four steps down from its previous fourth position. The problems experienced today are traced back to moves made in the past that saw water from rivers Syrdarya and Amudarya diverted for use in irrigation. Consequently, the sea underwent serious shrinkage that altered the climate and thus livelihood of many people whom once dependent on these sea. General Problem Background The period marking 1960s experience a robust increase in irrigation activities, this in turn posed serious implications on Aral ecosystem. Such is the case that the Amudarya delta that is situated on t he southern side of the sea formed a significant irrigation area approximated to cover about 28,000 sq. km. This area was used in the production of cotton and rice considered the most lucrative crops in the region. Following the onset of cold war, this region was set apart by former U.S.S.R to serve as a land that would offer freedom from the west. Although considered less productive, the planners never considered the possible desertification occurrence. Today, the Aral Sea faces a risk of vanishing after it retreated more than 100 km from its initial boundaries. People visiting this place will come across fishing boats abandoned and other marine equipment scattered all over the place. In addition, the area is marked by dusty plains that were once covered with water (Pala, 2005). The area began experiencing the negative effects after the water quantity diminished significantly to cause a rise in salinity. Consequently, the highly saline environment proved toxic to fishes and other w ildlife living in the sea. The first case of this drastic rise in salinity was reported between 1970 and 1974, when it was insinuated to have risen from 12 – 14 percent. By early 1980s, the salinity level stroked a 23 percent mark, a factor that left close to 60, 0000 people jobless due to reduction in fish. This period marked the end of commercial fishing and many other related businesses. Further reports insinuate that 200 species of the known 500 species of birds existing in the region have perished in the last four decades. As it is now, waters from Syrdarya in the north and Amudarya in the south hardly reach the sea, thanks to the heavy diversions to cater for the many irrigation activities in the region. The period between 1960 and 1995 realized a great decrease in the sea’s surface area following a loss of about three quarters of the total water volume (Pala, 2006).This also marked a significant reduction in the water depth which is placed at 19 meters. Another significant damage relates to NE winds that are said to blow off salty dust from the sea to area close and far. This process has been linked to transfer of millions of tons of salt dust every year. Such is the case that aerosols are blown into higher layers forming the atmosphere, which later spread across the globe (Glantz, 1999).This is true, as evidence gathered from Antarctic penguin showed traces of pesticides used in the Aral region. This dust forms from mixtures of agricultural chemicals and the frequently used fertilizer considered toxic to both humans and animals. In this region, the salt and pesticide used find its way deep into the ground water, a

Tuesday, August 27, 2019

Final Analysis and Personal Reflection Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Final Analysis and Personal Reflection - Essay Example Community health assessment is significantly imperative in assisting health practitioners, policy makers, and government to identify and analyze community’s health needs. Additionally, community health assessment is an incredibly vital tool in the identification of resources necessary in addressing emerging health issues as well as in the detection of health needs that demands for immediate action. The essay below intends to analyze the maternal, infant, and child health need in Montclair, New Jersey community in response to the healthy people 2020 objectives Table of Contents Table of Contents 2 Introduction and Literature Review 3 Assessment Phase 4 Goals and Objectives 5 Intervention 5 Primary Intervention 5 Secondary Prevention 6 Tertiary Intervention 6 Action phase 6 Evaluation 7 Appendix 7 References 8 Introduction and Literature Review According to Healthy People 2020 objectives, the improvement of health care among infants, children, and mothers should be the main long term objective of the Montclair, New Jersey health system (Healthy People 2020, 2012). The health care of mothers, children, and infants section of the population is exceptionally essential in shaping up the future generation as it helps in the prediction of health needs and challenges in future families, communities, and health care system. To understand the maternal, infant, and child health needs in Montclair, New Jersey, it is imperative for Montclair community nurses to evaluate and analyze the community’s health behaviors, the quality of life in Montclair Families, children, and women and the nature and capabilities of the Montclair health systems (Baron, 2005). In most cases, a pregnancy plays an extremely indispensable role in the identification of health needs among pregnant women. Knowledge on pregnancy tests helps in the identification of the most effective means of preventing future health problem among pregnant women and their children. Health risks among Montcl air community’s pregnant women include: depression, unhealthy weight, inadequate nutrition, genetic conditions, diabetes, sexually transmitted diseases, and side effects of excessive use of alcohol and tobacco. The risks that are related to pregnancy related complications can be reduced by availing quality pre-conception and inter-conception care. Additionally, mortality and morbidity rate can also be reduced through early identification and treatment of unpleasing health conditions among pregnant women (Center for Disease Control and Prevention, 2003). Some of the universally known factors that interfere with child birth among the Montclair women include: preconceptions, poverty, limited access to inter-conceptions and pre-conceptions as well as age. Child health is as well influenced by socio-demographic factors that include: mental and physical health among parents as well as limited family’s income. Social maternal health determinants among Montclair community enta il: pregnancy health status and behaviors brought about by social and environmental factors. Physical factors that affect healthy pregnancy in Montclair community comprises of lack of prenatal care and environmental factors that directly interferes with the mother’s health as well as the ability to employ quality health behaviors. Nursing Process in Montclair Community Assessment Phase The Montclair communi

Monday, August 26, 2019

Literature Review on two topics (2000 words) Essay

Literature Review on two topics (2000 words) - Essay Example Therefore, this literature review discusses approaches pertaining to risks assessments in projects. Numerous scholars have examined various methods of assessing risks in projects. As such, the topic of methods of risk assessment is well presented. The authors selected by this study present imperative publication that can help one explain the subject of risk assessment comprehensively. Risk virtually refers to the possibility of loss, disadvantage, destruction or injury that may accompany a project. Risk assessment entails identifying a qualitative and quantitative cost of risks associated with the situation. The quantitative aspect examines the magnitude of the probable loss and the chances that the risk will occur. Risk assessment should be an evolving and learning practice, capable of adjusting to novel and dynamic demands of the project. According to McManus (2004), an ideal risk management plan should employ tactical procedures, methodologies and tools effective for predicting all probable risks accurately. Ideally, studies argue that the risk management refers to a concept of identifying risk, examining the risk and outline policies or approaches for lightening the risk. Ammar, Kayis and Amornsawadwatana (2012) state that risk assessments approach should involve analyzing the experiences of successful projects and engaging reliable professionals and analysts in the field. Methods of analyzing risks vary with the industries and the purpose of the assessment. An analysis may have a financial purpose, environmental or healthy impacts purpose. Studies have identified numerous methods of assessing risks. Risk assessment methods can be grouped into three broad categories: the qualitative, semi-quantitative, and quantitative (McManus 2004, p. 23). According to Wysocki (2012), qualitative assessments enable one to identify assents of priority and classify one that demands simple and rapid evaluation. The method is applicable often in situations

Sunday, August 25, 2019

Should abortions be legal Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Should abortions be legal - Essay Example Many people justify abortion on the basis of the fact that the choice of abortion lies in the hands of the mother but many ethical groups argue against this issue. They present with the fact that abortion is basically the killing of a living being and hence it is morally unjustified. Abortion is an important subject and it may be considered to be legally justified in cases where the life of the mother is at stake and in other extreme cases but abortion with no strong grounds should not be permitted legally. The rise in the population of the world has resulted in the utilization of different methods of contraception. The usage of these methods is to prevent unwanted pregnancies and childbirths. Abortion is also a technique utilized for the avoidance of an unwanted pregnancy. Abortion is defined as the ending of the pregnancy by choice which results in the death of the products of conception (Merriam-Webster Dictionary). The procedure of abortion is utilized for different reasons which include family planning, contraception as well as putting a control on the population. A more important purpose of abortion is for saving the pregnant woman from life threatening emergencies that may result if the pregnancy is continued. There are different techniques utilized for carrying out the procedure of abortion. These include the administration of drugs which result in the expulsion of the fetus. The second technique is the surgical intervention whereby abdominal surgery is performed to remove the fetus. The last method is the insertion of surgical instruments through the cervix for removal of the fetus (Willke, 1985). The procedure of abortion is legalized in the United States. Despite of this legalization, the procedure is losing its popularity. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in the United States, there was a subsequent reduction of a percentage of 3.8 in the ratio of abortion between the years 1999 and 2000 (Elam-Evans et al 2003). Furthermor e, the younger generation has also shown its support for the anti-abortion laws and youths in the United States have expressed of the fact that the procedure of abortion should be legally unjustified until and unless the pregnancy becomes life threatening for the mother. Abortion has been viewed as a negative procedure which tends to lead to the death of a potential life and it is argued to be equivalent to a murder (Hayt, 2003). Thus, the subject of abortion has become an important subject and though it has been legalized, there have been many arguments to reconsider this decision owing to the fact that it yields no good to the society. References Top of Form Elam-Evans, L. D., Strauss, L. T., Herndon, J., Parker, W. Y., Bowens, S. V., Zane, S., Berg, C. J., ... Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (January 01, 2003). Abortion surveillance--United States, 2000.Mmwr. Surveillance Summaries : Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report. Surveillance Summaries / Cdc,  52,  12, 1- 32. Hayt, Elizabeth.(2003, March 30). Surprise, Mom: I'm Against Abortion. The New York Times. Retrieved from: http://www.nytimes.com/2003/03/30/style/surprise-mom-i-m-against-abortion.html Bottom of Form Part II: Anti-Thesis Abortion is an issue that arose and became a subject central to debates in the United States in the second half of the twentieth century. The Supreme Court of the United States took a final stand on the issue and the procedure of abortion was legalized in the year 1973 following the legal case of Roe v Wade.

Saturday, August 24, 2019

Sacred Lands in Wyoming Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Sacred Lands in Wyoming - Essay Example It is wrong to just appropriate someone's culture without understanding the traditions and history behind it. Moreover, it is unjust to seek to profit from the Lakota spirituality without giving back to the community. The people who dabble in such acts do not usually care that they are offending the owners of the cultural practices. The declaration was quite serious as the Lakota have gone to court to preserve the integrity of their religious beliefs1 and have gone to such lengths as banning non-natives from attending Sun Dances.2 The worst offenders are usually the people who are guided by the profit motive. People who are not Lakota appropriate the ceremonies when in fact they are not entitled. Taking Jews as an example: if the people who do not understand Judaism at all adopt a half -understood calendar of ceremonies and elect a Rabbi who cannot even read Hebrew, the Jews would be deeply offended. These profit-oriented people prey on the need for human beings to find acceptance an d to belong somewhere. As the declaration states, most of the new age religions are led by hucksters and commercial profiteers who are not entitled to take their ceremonies and earn a living off their cultural theft (Mesteth, Elk and Hawk). ... nnabes) are aping the practices of the Lakota without any respect or consideration for the First Nations Peoples’ feelings (â€Å"Responses to War against Exploiters of Lakota Spirituality†). Their interest might be genuine, but then they go too far at times. This has engendered mistrust among the native tribes of America. It is indeed a mockery of the peoples’ traditions when the intent is to become one of them by buying tokens of their religious practices. Tribal members view these people as problematic because they will try to pass themselves off as one of them. This leads to confusion among the rest of the Americans who understand very little about the Indian tribes. The issue of confusion is further exacerbated by the fact that most Indians are not forthcoming about themselves since they are a very proud people. As Lynnette put it, it is all about a way of life and not a fad to be followed when one fancies it. Since the wannabes are following a fad, it becom es disrespectful to the tribes as they do not bother to learn about the First Nations Peoples. These people who are described as wannabes would be best served if they visited the reservations and actually tried to do some good for the tribes and communities. There are serious problems bedeviling the tribes and they would learn about the tribes’ culture as they were doing good works in the communities. 3) Do: Find some responses from individuals who belong to one of the categories you described in #2. Answer: Do you think that these individuals should be able to continue using Native American religious symbols, beliefs and experiences in the manner they have been? Why or why not? Do their responses to the Declaration present a convincing argument to let them continue their activities? Why or why not? The

Friday, August 23, 2019

My strengths and weakness Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

My strengths and weakness - Essay Example I also responded to critical questions about financial products such as procedures for money transfer, steps of opening electronic banking and password configurations. I have utilized my good communications to enhance the communities through; resolving differences and integrating different communities with a view to satisfying their needs thus, solving their problems. Creativity has greatly expounded my mind to think beyond the world of imagination. In my business experiences at Citibank, I thought and recommended: "Money Management Sumer Camp" which was accepted by the company and also inquired fascinating in-depth questions about work. Through my creative mind, I have been able to divide spaces and encounters in public places so as to minimize social barriers and impact relationships between people and communities. Enthusiasm has been the core pillar of my social development.In my trainee duties at Citibank, China I was ever passionate about my job and people, passionate about help ing individual clients open and close banking accounts. In my community, I have carried out extensive social responsibilities such as the provision of food, clothing, and mentorship to poor, afflicted and needy in the society. However, my greatest weakness has been due to poor time management. This has been as a result of numerous tasks running simultaneously thus making me difficult to choose the right activity to be completed first. I am working on this through the formulation of diaries to guiding me in the right procedures.

Thursday, August 22, 2019

Students Report on Family Values Reduced Essay Example for Free

Students Report on Family Values Reduced Essay Slide 1: Good morning teacher. My name is †¦..I’m come from Viet Nam. I am studying Advance D. My FIN No. is G1139539L. Today I’m going to talk about the decline of family values in society today. Slide 2: Before I start I will show you the outline of my presentation. For the introduction, i will say in general about the decline of family values. After that I will show main points and explain the greed and other reasons which led to family values decrese. Lastly, I will sum up my presentation with summary, prediction and recommendation. Slide 3: Due to globalisation with the growth of materialism, people have high standard of living, the decline of family values become a usual topic these days. Materialism can be defined as a dominating sense of desire to pursue wealth and other tangible things that can provide physical comforts that ignores the importance of spiritual values. Many mourn the loss of joy, the warmth, unity and togetherness in households today. Someone said that this is the period of greed that responsible for this decline but in my opinion, it’s still exist some reasons which make family values decrease. So I will discuss both of it in this presentation. Slide 4: Now moving onto the first part of my presentation which is talk about the impacts of greed to family values include competition within family members, pressure from society to be rich and marriage base on money. Slide 5: Firstly, let me start by an undisputable fact that greed can make intensive competition within family members. For example, we can look at relationship between sibling. Sometimes, second or third children feel inadequate by comparison to a first sibling. They think they work never enough good when compare to their sisters or brothers are exhibit unusual talent. If children are labeled best in a domain, they often do their best to prevent another sibling from encroaching on their domain and gradually become selfish, jealous. Moreover, because of it can make some children have less confident and try to run away from their family. Slide 6: Secondly, I want to mention about pressure from society to be materialistic. To make it clear we can see the characteristics of such materialistic people are greed for money, tendency to become rich quickly even if it involves a lot of risk. It also involves the desire to live in plush houses, wearing highly expensive clothes and jewelry and driving flashy cars. It’s express oneself have high position under look of society and have respect from others. Besides, because of materialism become more popular in society today, the behavior between rich people and poor people also have big diffirence, with this thinking like that, people gradually forget about simple things in a family. Slide 7: In addition, greed in society can led to marriage exist base on money. There is an increase in marital discord and divorces. Nowadays, a lot of people marry for money not for love. That’s why relationship in the family always have conflicts, the greed promotes many other negative feelings as well like lust, selfishness, jealousy, sense of hopelessness. People are forgetting their moral values and often fail to understand the distinction between right choices and the wrong ones. The only thing that matters is good quality life and false comforts. All of this made a family only focus at money and without basic factor to keep a happy family. Slide 8: Now let me turn to the other reasons that are dedication to work, the influence from mass media and social pressure on children to succeed. Slide 9: First of all, dedication to works can become one of the reasons make family values decline. To give an example, busy lives make family member hardly spends time together. Everybody is busy with their own thing. Careers and professions are given priority. Home lives are neglected. Children are lonely and immersed with the computer, T.V. They do not have time to take care of their family even themselves, without discuss problems, holidays together and share difficulties in life. A family without support can not stable. Slide 10: Interestingly, the influence of mass media. With the development of mass media such as: radio, internet, movie, television, newspaper†¦ children who still sensitive are easy to get misconception about family values. Also, now we are living in a open and complex society. Information is get easily with variety of opinions and some of this can take negetive meaning and influence to people surrouding even about family values today. Slide 11: Finally, we look at social pressure on children to succeed. For instance, some parents always put high expectation for their child but they don’t know they are making more stress for children. Pressure to win and be the best. Attending tuition classes. Intense training schedules. In a world of super achievers, children often find themselves at the burnt end of the rope. Parents require their child must to have outstanding results in exam and forget feeling of their child. Some children grow up with lost innocent childhood. Well, that’s all I want to say about reasons whichs led to decline of family values. Slide 12: To sum up, todays lifestyle has changed everything. Many old values are being replaced. Slide 13: Families have never been ideal and flawless nor may they ever be. Ups and downs are part of family lives.spouses should make extra efforts to listen, love and respect each other * INFORMATION: We can still mend our ways and move towards a beautiful world. For this, we have to look for a purpose in our life. Each individual has to make some changes in his outlook. We have to separate ourselves from material world. This will make us happy both with or without the material things that we desire. It will make us feel that if I get that thing its good but if I do not get that its fine with me. Its not very easy for us to get this kind of mental set up but it is not an impossible task too. The rough phase of economy has given us some valuable lessons. That, all the tangible things of the world that we acquire may go some day but still we have the strength within us to survive in tough condition. We are happy that we have not lost ourselves and the support of our family. These things matter more than any other material things of life. We have to give top priority to hard work and not to any shortcut route to achieve success. There is a sense of truth and honesty associated with h ard work which can give us immense satisfaction. We have to increase our knowledge of reality that are non-physical. Lack of knowledge of the non-physical aspects of our life is a major cause of downfall not only of an individual but collectively as a society. Spirituality help us to know our real identity. If we lose our wealth it can be replaced but if we lose our own self then we cannot replace that. The actual solution of the problems, be it economic or otherwise, can be obtained through introspection. We can identify what has caused us face this kind of problem that we are in today. Set yourself free from the material world, recognize the real self that lies within you in dormant condition. In this way you can prevent the influence of materialism from blocking your inner growth. that greed, selfishness and individualism have a negative effect on children families and children need to receive a basic education on the subjects of love and moral responsibility. It is only natural for crime rates to rise and human relations to be impaired in such a society in which affection, compassion and brotherhood are replaced by anger, conflict and feelings of hostility.

Wednesday, August 21, 2019

The New Testament Essay Example for Free

The New Testament Essay The New Testament is deeply rooted in what Friedrich Nietzsche called slave morality. Its sense of ethics and the social values it expounds can be described as a downward pull towards a constant affirmation of a shameful human. One can see the New Testament as copying the ideals of the Old Testament, for the entire Judeo-Christian message is simply, echoing Mikhail Bakunin: God is everything, humanity is nothing; God is the master, humanity its slaves. As such, ethics, values and virtues that sprang from the New Testament is and will always be that of a slave race. Knowing that Jesus himself was highly influenced by Judaic tradition, one can say that the New Testament is merely a continuation of the Old Testament. The ethical atmosphere of the classical civilizations of Greece and Rome were different from that of the Judeo-Christian one. The Greeks and the Romans were far more positive in their outlook of life and their civilizations were a mish-mash of what Nietzsche referred to as Apollonian and Dionysian elements. Whereas the Judeo-Christian God rules and controls all, the Greeks and Romans were able to construct a system where Fate controls all including the gods and goddesses themselves. Unlike the Hebrew and Christian â€Å"slave†, the Greek â€Å"human† is not a product of his God but of his passion, his capacity to reason, and his past. There may be gods and goddesses, but they exist as part of a hierarchy in nature. When a man fears a god, it was because of that god’s power (and there were many a variants of such powers). A man therefore fears god because he saw god as a superior; but this does not mean that he saw god as a master. On the contrary, a Greek or a Roman may imagine himself powerful enough to challenge the gods. The gods were feared because of their powers and not in the Christian sense when people fear God in fear of a brutal punishment in the afterlife. Thus, the Greco-Roman ethical atmosphere promotes what Nietzsche called master morality. What was valued more was the capacity of human beings to rise up towards the level of a god (like Homer’s Achilles) and not how much one has knelt before a God. There may be a noble acceptance that the actions of the gods were considered fate (as in Virgil’s Aenied), human actions still determine whether this or that human becomes a master or a god. What is similar between the Greco-Roman and Judeo-Christian the sense of ethics and sets of values and virtues is their obsession for what is ideal. Greco-Roman values are based on the philosophy of a form and substance, where the form may suffer changes but its substance remain permanent. Changes may extinguish the form but the substance never perishes. Plato’s cave demonstrates this duality in reality. In the Judeo-Christian sense too resides this duality: body and soul. The body may perish but the soul does not. Taking care of the soul is therefore first priority of Judeo-Christian morality while deciphering and understanding the substance is the first priority of Greco-Roman philosophy. This difference is highlighted by the fact that Jesus’s taught his wisdom through verbal parables concentrating on morality, Homer and Virgil through their written vulgar display of the human senses in its struggle against godly intuitions, while Plato in his philosophical tracts that promoted a certain degree of idealism. This difference between Jesus and the classical writers can also be attributed to their audiences: slave morality for Jesus, master morality for the classical writers. Thus, Jesus himself was continuing a tradition deep into the world of the Old Testament â€Å"slaves† and in fashioning himself as the Jewish messiah his teachings were meant to salvage his world the same way as Moses salvaged his. The decadence of Jewish society during the time of Jesus was reminiscent of the Hebrew society before Moses came down with the two tablets in his hands. Jewish society had become a corruption of its former radiance and the teachings of the Christ was supposed to clean away such corruptions. Whereas Homer, Plato and Virgil wrote in attempt to expose the human spirit in its pure and real substance, Jesus spoke of that spirit’s final destination. The New Testament, in this sense, failed to realize that most of the time the journey of the human spirit is more important than its destination.

Management Of Pressure Ulcers In Elderly Patients

Management Of Pressure Ulcers In Elderly Patients Pressure ulcers are an injury that damages skin and the layer(s) of tissue beneath, which have been exposed to pressure (NHS, 2014). They can occur in patients of varied ages; however, the most vulnerable age group who are at risk of developing pressure ulcers are patients aged 75 and above (Hope, 2014). Elderly patients tend to have co-morbidities due to the ageing process, which can sometimes leave them with limited mobility or bedridden and this then can put them at further risk of developing pressure ulcers (Jaul, 2010). Due to having a growing elderly population, it is extremely important to address the risks of pressure ulcers. There is no particular environment in which pressure ulcers occur, as they are a concern in all settings where social care is being provided, medical treatments are carried out including private homes. This paper will review the evidence regarding the risks and management of pressure ulcers. The focus of this paper will be elderly patients and the follo wing topics will be discussed; risk assessment, patient assessment, pressure recognition and removal, non-surgical treatments/advice, complications of pressure ulcers and surgery. On recognition of a pressure ulcer or the possibility of one developing on a patient, a suitably trained health or medical professional should do a documented risk assessment (NICE, 2014). This risk assessment should cover two interlinking areas, risk factors and signs/symptoms. It is important to assess an elderly patients current health status and not just the status of their health as documented previously on records or on admittance to see a professional, as a variety of factors can affect the development of a pressure ulcer some factors more rapidly than others. Questioning into previous medical history and also looking at previous medical notes is often very informative and usually allows the professional to know of any co-morbidity which could present a further risk or act as an indirect cause of the development of a pressure ulcer. Diabetes and musculoskeletal disorders are often flagged up on assessments as a factor which can impact a pressure ulcer (Benbow, 2012). Sometime s due to the elderly patient suffering from a type of dementia, their ability to communicate or remember life events deteriorates and therefore they cannot provide the professional assessing the ulcer with key medical information. Also, some patients may be in trauma or are not conscious; this, again, makes the information gathering stage of the patients current health status difficult for the assessing professional. In such complex cases, the patients wider network such as relations or the multi-disciplinary team of health and social care professionals who have previously supported the patient may have more knowledge on the patients life history. Nursing home staff are required by the Care Quality Commission to keep records of their residents care plans and more specialist homes have routine logs written about their residents; these often can act as a good indicator of physical, mental and behavioural status and changes which have occurred with the elderly patient (CQC, 2015). Determining any other condition which an elderly patient may suffer from is important, because this needs to be considered in the patients care plan and management of the Pressure ulcer as it could have direct impact on the healing of a pressure ulcer. For example, if the elderly patient has diabetes, their wound healing process maybe prolonged (Leik, 2013). Furthermore, as elderly individuals have thinner skin; this already puts them at greater risk of skin damage due to pressure. Musculoskeletal disease such as osteoarthritis is usually diagnosed in elderly individuals and it can limit the mobility of the patient or their ability to do specific activities (NHS, 2014). This may result in patients being in the same position for long periods of time, which may then put pressure on that area of the body, putting them at greater risk of developing a pressure ulcer. Also, elderly individuals who are less mobile are more likely to have poor circulation, which can impact on the time taken for a pressure ulcer to heal. Therefore, blood flow should also be taken into consideration when doing the risk assessment. Above are some examples of how the management of Pressure ulcers can become complex; there are more diseases such as terminal diseases and other medical conditions that need to be taken into consideration when planning the care or prevention of a pressure ulcer. Often both the lack of nutritional intake and loss of weight are two interrelated common concerns in elderly patients, unless the cause is due to a different factor such as underlying pathology of disease. Therefore, in addition to including these factors in the risk assessment, health education to encourage the patient to eat needs to be provided to the patient, their relations and health and social care staff supporting the patient. Health advice/education/guidance is important because an underweight elderly individual is more likely to have less tissue around their bones and possibly poorer blood vessel quality, hence making them more at risk of damage from pressure and also poorer healing (MNT, 2014). Also, a lack of protein in an elderly patients diet, which supports tissue growth and repair, can also cause greater damage to their skin from pressure. Low nutritional intake can also cause fatigue and frailty in elderly individuals and this can impact an elderly individuals engage ment and ability to do daily activities (Morelli and Sidani, 2011), hence impacting their psycho-social status, which may disengage them from supporting their own health, whether it be by following the guidance of a medical practitioner or by being active in their healthcare decisions generally (Morelli and Sidani, 2011). This then can make patient centred care difficult for those providing care for the elderly patient, as patient choice/preference is compromised and indication of pain, which is usually expressed verbally via description or recommended pain scales such as Braden or Waterlow, may not also be provided by the patient (Nice, 2014 and Benbow, 2012). Therefore, the patients involvement in managing the pressure ulcer is vital. Pain management is difficult in Pressure ulcer management if the elderly individual has an altered perception of pain due to a spinal cord injury or other related nerve damage injuries. This may prevent the patient from recognizing that they have an ulcer developing, hence delaying the treatment of the ulcer (MNT, 2014). Therefore, it is good practice if the elderly individual is a patient in hospital to routinely ask the patient if they have seen any abnormalities on their skin and also recommend them to change positions regularly. Alongside the detailed risk assessment, a pressure ulcer assessment/skin assessment should be done on recognition of a pressure ulcer developing. This is not only to manage the Pressure ulcer but also to be aware of those individuals who may have difficulty, as mentioned above, in detecting changes in their skin or possibly even possess a disability. Complaints of pain from the patient should be considered in the skin assessment, followed by a categorization of the ulcer as a stage 1,2,3 or 4 Pressure ulcer (NICE, 2014). This will include assessing discolouration, variations in heat, firmness and skin moisture. The categorization of the Pressure ulcer is extremely important because it allows suitable preventative measures to be put within the individuals care planning, to try to maintain the skins integrity and to support healing (NHS, 2014). The overall patient assessment will directly impact decisions on the frequency of positioning for the patient and the suitability of the support surface on which the patient is sitting or lying (Benbow, 2012). These changes are vital to pressure removal and hence, managing the development of the Pressure ulcer better because they will be included in a repositioning timetable that health and social care professionals will work to as part of the care plan. The frequency of positioning varies based on the risk, patients physical ability/state and also their acceptance to be regularly repositioned; for example, a patient in a wheelchair may need to be repositioned every 15 minutes due to the pressure of sitting in the same position for long periods of time. Elderly patients who are bedridden should be repositioned every couple of hours, depending on the need determined in the risk assessment (NICE, 2014). A physiotherapist can often advise on repositioning that will be safe and that will also allow pressure release. Equipment can also support pressure removal. Cushions on wheelchairs not only provide comfort but they can also lessen the pressure on the hip and upper leg area of the body. However, some specialists advise that air, water or foam filled support devices are better than traditional cushions (Benbow, 2012). Small pillows/foam pads can also support areas of the body from touching each other, such as between the knees or ankles. These can also be used for comfort and support when laying in different angled positions; for example, when a patient is lying on their side, their legs may need further support (Benbow, 2012). Reclining chairs/automated chairs can also be set at different positions to support pressure removal. Patients, relatives and supporting professionals need to ensure that the skin of the patient is regularly checked, as repositioning regularly can also cause skin damage due to the skin of an elderly individual being thinner. Specialised mattresses can also reduce pressure in comparison to standard mattresses. Furthermore, some specialist mattresses can be connected to an air flow system which can automatically regulate the pressure, hence making the care and management of pressure ulcers in bedridden patients easier for health professionals or carers/relatives. This may be a change that medical/health professionals recommend to elderly patients at home or even for patients in long term care/rehabilitation; however, research is still lacking on how much contribution mattress change actually has on directly lessening the risk of pressure ulcer development (Vanderwee et al, 2008 and UCSF, 2011) in comparison to other cost effective changes. Depending on the wound of the ulcer and the skin damage, often dressings and ointments are used to manage the pressure ulcer and to manage infection. Antibiotics may be prescribed, but not often, as usually antiseptic creams can be applied directly on the wound to prevent the spread of infection to connecting tissues. Ointments and creams may also be used to prevent or treat skin damage such as incontinence-associated dermatitis. The skin assessment should be able to identify those at risk of developing such dermatitis, as these patients often have one or more of the following conditions: incontinence, oedema or dry skin (NICE, 2014). Dressings which have been specially designed to promote wound healing and cell regrowth should be used on a pressure ulcer wound. Examples of suitable dressings include hydrocolloid dressings and aliginate dressings (NHS, 2014). These dressings also can support the regulation of skin moisture, which is important to manage the Pressure ulcer. Research an d development into wound repair technology is advancing and specially designed dressings give less trauma to the patient upon removal. Therefore, the correct dressing is vital as unsuitable dressings may cause further skin breakdown. As briefly mentioned earlier in this paper, the patients diet may need altering to ensure that the elderly patient is taking nutrients which will support wound healing. Hydration is also important to maintain skin moisture and avoid flaky skin (Convatec, 2012). Hydrotherapy can also be used to keep skin clean, with possible natural removal of dead cells. In some cases, the wound healing process may be compromised due to necrotic tissue and this dead tissue will need to be removed via a debridement method. Debridement methods vary depending on the clinical situation. Larvae therapy can be used as an alternative method to debridement; this therapy consists of putting maggots on the wound for a few days via a dressing and gauze. Maggots can also promote healing due to the release of a substance that kills bacteria. Sometimes when grade 3 or 4 Pressure Ulcer wounds do not heal or they become complicated cases, surgery is needed. This is usually either surgery which directly closes the wound or flap reconstruction. To conclude, this paper has attempted to cover the overall management of pressure ulcers in elderly patients. Despite, the treatments and clinical practice carried out by medical/health professionals being similar to younger patients, the risks of pressure ulcer development and healing due to the ageing process are different. Also, co-morbidity is more identifiable in elderly patients and skin structure/composition differs due to the thinning of the skin. There are clear guidelines on managing pressure ulcers by NICE; however, further research needs to be done to optimize the management of pressure ulcers in elderly patients (Cullum, 2013). Bibliography Benbow, M. (2012) Management of Pressure ulcers. [Online] Available from:Â  http://www.nursinginpractice.com/article/management-pressure-ulcers Care Quality Commission. (2015) Regulation 17 – good governance. [Online] Available from:Â  http://www.cqc.org.uk/content/regulation-17-good-governance Convatec. (2012) The Role of Modern Wound Dressings in Stage I Pressure Ulcers and Patients at Risk of Pressure Ulcer Formation. [Online] Available from:Â  http://www.convatec.co.uk/media/9572137/aquacel-foam-dressing-shown-to-protect-against-ski-11546.pdf Cullum, N. (2013) Study reveals pressure ulcer research uncertainties. [Online] Available from:Â  http://www.manchester.ac.uk/discover/news/article/?id=10016 Jaul, E. (2010) Assessment and management of pressure ulcers in the elderly: current strategies. Journal of Drugs and Aging. 27 (4). p. 311-325. Leik, M.T.C. (2013) Adult-Gerontology Nurse Practitioner Certification Intensive Review: Fast Facts and Practice Questions. 2nd ed. Springer Publishing Company: New York. Medical News Today. (2014) What are bedsores (pressure ulcers)? What causes bed sores? [Online] Available from:Â  http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/173972.php Morelli, V and Sidani, M. (2011) Fatigue and Chronic Fatigue in the Elderly: Definitions, Diagnoses, and treatments. Clinics in Geriatric Medicine. 27 (4). p. 673 – 686. National Health Institute. (2014) Osteoarthritis. [Online] Available from:Â  http://www.nhs.uk/Conditions/osteoarthritis/Pages/Introduction.aspx National Health Service. (2014) Pressure ulcers – Treatment. [Online] Available from:Â  http://www.nhs.uk/Conditions/Pressure-ulcers/Pages/Treatment.aspx National Institute for Health and Care Excellence. (2014) Pressure ulcers: prevention and management of pressure ulcers. [Online] Available from:Â  https://www.nice.org.uk/guidance/cg179/resources/guidance-pressure-ulcers-prevention-and-management-of-pressure-ulcers-pdf University of California at San Francisco. (2011) A critical analysis of Patient Safety Practices – evidence report no.43. [Online] Available from:Â  http://archive.ahrq.gov/clinic/ptsafety Vanderwee, K, Grypdonck, M, Defloor, T. (2008) Alternating pressure air mattresses as prevention for pressure ulcers: A literature review. International Journal of Nursing Studies. 45 (5). p. 784-801

Tuesday, August 20, 2019

Leaders vs. Managers: Who would I hire? Essay example -- Business Mana

One of my favorite management quotes says â€Å"Management is efficiency in climbing the ladder of success, leadership determines whether the ladder is leaning against the right wall.† My ideas about leadership and management have been shaped by personal experiences in both the military and private sectors. While there are good and bad leaders in both worlds, the military adds an interesting twist in the requirement to follow the orders of your chain of command and that facets of management are performed at varying steps in that chain. In the military, â€Å"leadership† is imposed as rank is earned. Conversely, in the private sector, leadership is earned or demonstrated in order to achieve â€Å"rank†. I find myself torn between these alternate views of leadership and management as I think of answers to the assigned questions. If I were the CEO of a company, would I hire managers or leaders for my supervisory positions? My answer to this question depends on my company. As the CEO of a start-up company on the cutting edge of my market segment, I would ensure that the majority of my supervisors have the vision and skills necessary to ensure success and future growth opportunities. However, not all functions of the business would require a high level of forward thinking so having managers would also be important. As the book states, having leaders with an entrepreneurial view of the world would be an asset during the development phase of the business but they could become overwhelmed by bureaucracy as the business matures. I think it is important to note that â€Å"leading† is listed as one of the 8 identifiable functions of managers. From a military perspective, as an admiral, I would expect my senior officers to be leaders with an eye on t... ... also results in higher efficiency. Works Cited Babcock-Roberson, M., & Strickland, O. (2010). The Relationship Between Charismatic Leadership, Work Engagement, and Organizational Citizenship Behaviors. Journal of Psychology, 144(3), 313-326. Retrieved from Academic Search Complete database. Covey, S. (1990). The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People. New York: Fireside. Kreitner R. (2009). Management. Canada: Houghton Mifflin Hardcourt. Sterry, T., Reiter-Purtill, J., Gartstein, M., Gerhardt, C., Vannatta, K., & Noll, R. (2010). Temperament and Peer Acceptance: The Mediating Role of Social Behavior. Merrill-Palmer Quarterly, 56(2), 189-219. Retrieved from Academic Search Complete database. Zweig, D. (2010). The Board That Couldn’t Think Straight. Conference Board Review v. 47 no. 1 (Winter 2010) p. 40-7. Retrieved from Academic Search Complete database.

Monday, August 19, 2019

Informed Consent, Refusal, and Competence Essay -- the patients’ right

In the medical field today, whenever a procedure is going to be done on a patient, informed consent must be given to the doctor from the patient prior the procedure taking place. Informed consent is the approval given by the patient to the doctor for treatment. In the case being discussed today, an 80 year old patient, with a history of congestive heart failure, is in the doctor's office complaining of chest pains. After an examination, the doctor believes the best course of treatment would be to have a surgical procedure, in an attempt to save the patients life. During the examination however, the patient expresses the wish to just be able to die. There is no Living will or Do Not Resuscitate (DNR) on file. The patient’s wife is afraid of the surgery, while the daughter is for anything that could save her dads life. The first thing that needs to take place in this situation is the determination of the competency of the patient. By using the Understand-and-Appreciate method of determining competency, if the patient understands the situation and all the options that are available to him; but also appreciates the options and understand the side effect of treatment or lack there of treatment , the patient is deemed confident. On the flip side, if the patient’s requests fall too far outside the realm of what would be considered normal, that could help in determining whether or not to override the patient’s wishes due to no longer being considered competent. It is the belief that â€Å"it is ethically justified to overrule the seriously irrational decision of a competent patient.† (Fredrick Adolf Paola, 2010) Under the assumption that during the last five years of treating Patient X for congestive heart failure, he never men... ...rd battle to fight at times. The reasoning behind the refusal may not make sense to everyone, but as long as the patient has been deemed competent, the patients’ right to choose their own medical care becomes number one priority. If, on the other hand, circumstances have found the patient not competent, moving forward to acquire consent from the next of kin of the court appointed surrogate of care is a must to ensure the patient receives the best medical care possible and results in an improved quality care of life for the patient. Works Cited Competency to make medical decisons. (n.d.). Retrieved 07 03, 2011, from Stanford. Edu: http://www.stanford.edu/group/psylawseminar/Competency.htm Fredrick Adolf Paola, R. W. (2010). medical Ethics and Humanities. Juonesd and Bartlett Publiushers. Lecture notes for HLT-305. (2011, 07 03). State University .

Sunday, August 18, 2019

Exploring the Digital Age Essay -- GCSE Business Marketing Coursework

Exploring the Digital Age On January 10, 2000, the largest merger in history was conducted between Time Warner and American Online. On a surface level, this merger could be seen in light of its combined resources, or even its large market value. However, the merger between these two companies has repercussions in the life of every person who uses the Internet. Undoubtedly, the Internet has emerged as a leading technology poised to change the way the world will revolve. The Internet has ushered in the Digital Age where information is king and mass customization is possible. Even the current economy, investors have recognized this and are heavily investing in companies that are a part of this Information Technology Industry. The logic of any merger is that with its combined resources, the new company would be able to exploit opportunities that by itself it would not be able to. Many companies in history have missed these opportunities and have paid dearly for it. IBM, for instance, lost its position as a market leader when it failed to understand the potential of the personal computer. Xerox did not recognize the potential of a graphical user interface. Both these companies are examples of successful firms that missed the imminent arrival of a technology, and the prospect of taking advantage of the opportunities created by it. However, AOL made significant steps to acquire Time Warner, and through its strategic moves, it has shown clearly that it understands the significance of the emerging Internet technology. The merger of AOL Time Warner is still currently in the process of being fulfilled. Through the analysis done of the merger, and of the individual organization and their past mergers, it is lik ely that the AOL Time Warner merger will, in time, prove to be a successful move by both companies. America Online—Context, Structure, Performance In order to predict the outcome of the merger, it is important to look at each organization separately. America Online incorporated under its original founding name, Quantum Computer Services, in May of 1985. After its first online service, "Q-Link" was launched on Commodore business machines, AOL went on to launch America Online for DOS, Macintosh, Apple II, and Windows. Over the next decade, it went on to acquire many Internet-related companies, from developers of Internet applications to Interne... ...ong cultural element, and an aggressive management team will have great opportunities. Bibliography: America Online, Inc. Cha, Ariana Eunjung and Walsh, Sharon. (January 12, 2000) "Merged Firm To Have New Look Restructuring Called ‘Significant’." The Washington Post (E1). Davis, Stan and Meyer, Christopher. (January 24, 2000) "Inventing the digital future." U.S. News and World Report Pg. 34-40. Henry, Shannon. (March 25, 2000) "AOL to Lay Off 700 to 1,000, Reorganize Into 4 Units." The Washington Post (E1). Hofmeister, Sallie. (September 26,1995) "Better the 2nd Time Around? Will Time Warner’s rocky Marriage Affect New Spouse?" Los Angeles Times (D1) Holstein, William J. and Vogelstein, Fred. (January 24, 2000) "You’ve Got a Deal!" U.S. News and World Report Pg. 34-40. Maney, Kevin. (November 30, 1995) "Is Time Warner impossible to manage? CEO Levin grapples with a house divided?" USA Today (1B) Okren, Daniel (January 24, 2000) "Happily Ever After?" Time Pg.38-43 Time Warner. Time Warner 2000. Zaret, Elliot. (March 8, 2000). "The Rise and Fall of Netscape." MSNBC.com. Retrieved April 19, 2000 from http://www.msnbc.com/news/379409.asp

Saturday, August 17, 2019

For Academic Purpose †Ceo Speech to Prospective Investors Essay

It is my utmost pleasure to be able to welcome you here today in Tek Comfort Zone (ITZ) General Investors and Prospective Investors Quarterly meeting. Tek Comfort Zone is the Caribbean premier producer of ostentatious â€Å"State of the Art Furniture† with electronic built-in and plug-ins accessories that provides superior comfort and quality solutions through custom design, manufacturing, installation and support. Our fast growing clients include Five Stars Hotels, business tycoons, celebrities and a host of others in the SHOW BIZZ. TCZ does not only strive to maintain its leading position as Caribbean â€Å"N ° 1† State of the Art Furniture† Producer, but also to expand in novelty and quality that steers a higher level of customer satisfaction alongside profit maximization. This whole process has involved an integration of mission, objectives, implementation and evaluation; a proper time, cost, quality and human resources management: and a critical maintenance of all forms of motivations. The company is made up of 45 staff members. Briefly, it is headed by a CEO, with two Directors (Director of Production and Director of Budget) answerable to him. They direct the two sectors of the company (Production and Budget). The Budget sector has two managers (Purchase Manager and Sales Manager) answerable to the Director of Budget. Immediately under the Purchase Manager is the Accounting Supervisor, and directly under the Sales Manager is the Sales Supervisor. The Sales Supervisor oversees six employers while the Account Supervisor has five employees under his control. Meanwhile in the Production Sector only one manager (Manufacturing Manager) is answerable to the Director of Productions. Directly under the Manufacturing Manager are the Inventory Supervisor and Operations Supervisor. The Inventory Supervisor oversees 10 employees while the Operations Supervisor supervises 14 employees. This well structured organizational flow is mindful of effective communications, job duplications, conflict and other factors that can affect a team spirit and job dexterity. Dear investors as a result of this strategy, TCZ has grown substantially faster than the global â€Å"State Of The Arts Furniture† market. While the global market as a whole grew just 5%, ours increased by 13%. An important source of revenue, the delivery of unrivalled bed, mattress and electronics charges, increased 18%, although the market saw a 1% decrease. Our pro-forma operating margin improved to 28. 3%, an increase of half a percentage point. We took additional market share away from our direct competitors in the ‘State of Arts Furniture’ market, gaining one percentage point year-on-year, which takes us to a market share of approximately 21%. We thus sell approximately two and a half times more unrivaled electronic beds and, mattress than our nearest competitor, who had been the leading producer for 18 years, before we ever dominated the market Our main competitor is the ABC State of Arts Furniture Ltd. They are the longest in the market and have dominated the premier role for 18 years. They are known for quantity and timely delivery. Unlike our competitors we added other important ingredients such as quality, novelty and frequent customer satisfaction research. This accounted for why we have emerged as the leading company in the market for the past five years. Our few years of existence in the market would have attracted fear and false judgements from prospective investors against our maturity, stability and long-term success and survival. Without any doubt I can assure you that we are on the right path. How? Before our company could even kick off, we had carefully learned from the errors of others who have been in business many years before us. We carefully analysed their strengths and weaknesses. For example we learned never to preach what we cannot live by (meaning our quality must match our propaganda). This is the root of loss of public confidence. We also learned that a strategy should not be considered only because of its promises in the short-term goals, but also because of its sustainability and expansions in the long-term. Importantly, we quickly learned the art of satisfying the consumer with quality and quantity goods and services with a maximisation of profit. And finally we also learned to provide investors with a consistent report of accountability and transparency on every level of attainment of the business. This gives our investors a true sense of ownership in the business. Dear prospective investor, without your investment, ICZ would have just been another brilliant idea. Your choice to invest in into this company is what has made the idea a reality. We not encourage you to maintain your investments, but also to expand them. To our prospective investors, TCZ is the fertile ground for your investment. Grab this opportunity heartily. Your fears should not ponder about the success of the company. Rather the fear should be whether the investment recruiting conditions presently would be stricter since many investors show interest to our company’s philosophy and operations. The investors screening process may become more critical as many investors would Finally to the entire TCZ, may we together applaud our selfless and one-minded efforts that have brought us thus far.

Friday, August 16, 2019

Assesing Company’s finance Essay

SALES GROWTH †¨During the four-year period ended December 31, 2008, SciTronics’ sales grew at a 20.69 % ($244,000/$115,000) = (1+r) ^4 compound rate. There were no acquisition or divestitures.†¨Ã¢â‚¬ ¨PROFITABILITY RATIO: How Profitable is the Company? 1. SciTronics’ profit as a percentage of sales in 2008 was 5.73% (14000/244000) 2. This represented an increase from 3.4% (5000/147000) in 2005. 3. SciTronics had a total of $112, 000 (75,000+20,000+7,000+10,000) of capital at year-end 2008 and earned before interest but after taxes (EBIAT) $16,000 (26,000-10,000) in 2008. Its return on capital was 14.29% (16,000/112,000) which represents an increase from the 8.11% (6,000/74,000) earned in 2005. †¨ 4. SciTronics had $75,000 of owner’s equity and earned $14,000 after taxes in 2008. Its return on equity was 18.66% ($75,000/$14,000), which represents an improvement from the 8.19% ($5,000/$61,000) earned in 2005. ACTIVITY RATIO: How Well Does the Company Employs Its Assets? 1. Total Assets turnover for SciTronics in 2008 can be calculated by dividing $244,000 (net sales) into $159,000 (total assets). The turnover deteriorated from 1.58 times in 2005 to 1.53 in 2008. 2. SciTronics had $66,000 in accounts receivables at year end 2008. Its average sales per day were $668.49 ($244,000/365) during 2008 and its average collection period was 98.73 days. ($66,000/668.49). This represents an improvement from the average collection period of104.29 ($42,000/402.73) days in 2005. 3. SciTronics apparently needed $29,000 of inventory at year-end 2008 to support its operations during 2008. Its activity during 2008 as measured by the cost of goods sold was $74,000. (COGS). It therefore had an inventory of turnover of 2.55 (74,000/29,000) times. This represents an improvement from  2.04 (43,000/21,000) times in 2005. 4. SciTronics had net fix assets of $18,000 (net fix assets) and sales of $244,000 in 2008. Its fixed asset turnover ratio in 2008 was 13.56 (244,000/18,000), a deterioration from 16.33 (147,000/9,000) in 2005. LEVERAGE RATIOS: How Soundly Is the Company Financed? 1. SciTronics’ ratio of total assets divided by owners’ equity increased from 1.52 (93,000/61,000) at year end 2005 to 2.12 (159,000/75,000) at year-end 2008. 2. At year-end 2008, SciTronics’ total liabilities were of its total assets was 52.83% (48,000+7000+20000+9000/159000), which compares with 34.4% (21,000+11,000)/93,000). 3. The market value of SciTronics equity was $175,000,000 at December 31, 2008. The total debt ratio at market was 32.4% (84,000/84,000+175,000). 4. SciTronic’s earnings before interest and taxes (operating income) were $26,000 in 2008 and its interest charge were $2,000. Its times interest earned were 13 times. This represents an improvement from the 2005 level of 10 times. 5. SciTronics owed its supplies $6,000 at year end 2008. This represents 8.1%(6,000/74,000) of cost of goods sold and was a decrease from 11.63% (5,000/43,000) at year end 2005. The company appears to be more prompt in paying its suppliers in 2008 than it was in 2005. 6. The financial riskiness of SciTronics decreased between 2005 and 2008. LIQUIDITY RATIOS: How Liquid Is the Company? 1. SciTronics held $133,000 of current assets at year-end 2008 and owed $48,000 to creditors due to be paid within one year. Its current ratio was 2.77 ( 133000/48000 ), a decrease from the ratio of 3.90 (82000/21000) at year-end 2005. 2. The quick ratio for SciTronics at year end 2008 was 2.16 (133,000-29,000)/48,000), a decrease from the ratio of 2.90 (82,000-21,000/21,000) at year-end 2005.

Autism Awareness

Autism Awareness Angi Reid Sisk ESE Instructor Pillar October 24, 2011 Autism Awareness Autism is a disability that affects thousands of children today. The causes are yet to be known but there are many theories floating around as to how children develop this disorder. More importantly than how they have gotten the diagnosis, is what can be done do to help them thrive in their educational environment. Many of these children are staring school and are faced with an entirely new set of challenges other than adjusting to life in a home setting.There are many common characteristics that children with autism exhibit; educators must be aware of these traits and understand the best way to deal with them and other needs required by the students due to this disability. It is vital to be knowledgeable in the best teaching strategies and have access to support services and aids available to give children with this disorder the tools needed to achieve success along with their non-disabled peers. Autism has six distinct characteristics that involve students with the disability, (Turnbull and Wehmeyer, 2009).Several characteristics accompany students with autism that can drastically impact their progression in a general classroom environment. One common characteristic that children on the autism spectrum face is difficulty with speech. Children with autism are likely to develop speech more slowly than other children. In some children they may never start talking and with others they could develop speech and then lose it suddenly or over a period of time. Students with autism may experience the lack of social language skills; they can also exhibit lack of eye contact and unusual facial expressions.These deficiencies are not done intentionally, but because students with autism have an inability to communicate on the same level as their other peers, (Brittish Columbia; Ministry of Education, 2000). For the students who have developed speech it can differ in other ways such as o dd pitch tones or repetitive speech patterns. In the past studies were done and showed that only about fifty percent of individuals with autism would acquire full use of complete accomplished speech, (Turnbull and Wehmeyer, 2009).Today those statistics have drastically increased and show that with appropriate therapy including help from speech pathologists and other trained educators; the number of individuals that increase effective speech has grown to eighty five to ninety percent especially with early intervention. Speech therapists can help children with severe language impairments develop great communication skills and give them the needed skills to better communicate with their peers, (Powers, 2000). Social development is another common characteristic that students with autism share.Many find this characteristic to be the most alarming trait that children with autism share. Social interaction between autistic students and their classmates and teacher can be extremely difficult . This often occurs because these students may not have the ability to socialize well with others and could also exhibit other attributes like poor eye contact and can be resistive to comforting from others including their parents. Autistic students have difficulty understanding the feelings of others and how to distinguish that those feelings are separate from their own.They also have a hard time being empathetic and understanding the needs of their classmates and instructors, (Turnbull and Wehmeyer, 2009). Commonly children with autism can have a hard time establishing relationships in school settings because they tend to interact with others awkwardly and in a rigid manner, British Colombia: Ministry of Education, 2000). Most children with autism do not begin exhibiting the strong lack in social interaction until around the age of two years, (Powers, 2000).The progression that children make socially depends widely on their cognitive development; children who are less cognitively impaired ten to react better in social situations. Repetitive or stereotypical behavior is very common and can range from motor movements to repeated verbalizations. Autistic children can have very powerful interests and preferences that may be quite different from other students in their classroom. Sometimes distress can be caused accidentally by disrupting a student’s routine, (Powers, 2000).Unfortunately these behaviors can have a large impact on students learning process and the way that they handle themselves in a classroom. Situations or happenings that can seem insignificant to us can throw them completely off and impede their quality of learning. One reason for this is because students with autism can be insistent with routines being the same and can have obsessions with certain objects or belongings, (Turnbull and Wehmeyer, 2009). On many occasions autistic students will have a hard time with transition from their house to the school environment because of the urgenc y for the structured routine that they thrive on at home.This characteristic can display stereotyped behaviors such as lining up toys or objects or repetitive flapping of their bodies or toys. Students with autism also have challenges with sensory and movement behavior. Children with these issues can react very differently to their peers and various situations in the classroom. Children facing sensory problems may not respond the same to environmental stimuli. They may not have a reaction to something that is hot in the same way that a child without sensory problems would react.On the other hand they could over respond to the stimulant, (Autism Society of North Carolina, 2009). This characteristic could also cause students to exhibit hypersensitivity to light or certain taste, smells, or how objects feel, (Turnbull and Wehmeyer, 2009). Sensory issues can cause problems with intervention and teachers should always be aware of the risks that therapy can bring to students due to sensor y differences, (Volkmar and Weisner, 2009). Environmental stimuli can be very disturbing and even painful at time for children with autism.This can apply to limited types of sensory input or all forms of it; this can be caused by a disorder with the child’s sensory processing, An individual’s tactile system which includes the skin and brain allows a person to perceive and respond in the right manner to experiences in the environment, for example staying away from fire or snuggling up with pleasure in a cozy throw blanket. When autistic students have problems or disturbances in their tactile systems they may do the opposite. They may withdraw from trying to be comforted or from affection; this is called tactile defensive.These responses are a result of a tactile misconception and can lead to other behavioral problems. (British Colombia: Ministry of Education, 2000). Problem behaviors is a commonly shared by autistic children. This can be aggression toward oneself or oth ers. This happens more often when the student is frustrated or in a situation that cause over stimulation or confusion, (Autism Society of North Carolina, 2009). This can cause major disturbances in a classroom setting if the student shows violence toward the teacher or their other classmates. Even if he child is not aggressive toward others, there is the worry of them hurting themselves by biting, scratching, and in more severe cases head banging. Teachers can help to control these situations by modeling the appropriate behavior and helping the students with the right way to handle stress and positive reinforcers, (Turnbull and Wehmeyer, 2009). Student with autism that are entering the schools system have many needs and all of these factors should be taken into consideration for the optimal success of any child with a disability in a general curriculum classroom.One important need for a student is their physical space and how it is cohesive to their comfort ability. The environment where a child with autism learns is extremely important because students on the spectrum have a hard time regulating their focus and attention especially in complex classroom settings, (Volkmar and Weisner, 2009). The nature of the environment of a child’s classroom when faced with a disability can either help them progress or encumber their educational experience.It is important that the class be appealing for all of the students attending but equally as important that it not be distracting for a student with autism. Organization of the room is key in getting the child to engage with his or her peers and to do this in a manner that is comfortable to them. There should be a special place for the student to remove themselves if needed that has a serene and calming meaning it should be free from clutter and other things that could over stimulate. Obvious distractions such as computer screens should be kept out of eye sight so the focus can remain on the teacher.Predictability is also an important need to address with students with autism. A good way to address these needs is by having set routines where the student knows what to expect next. The teacher could use bells or timers to help the student know when to transition or to signal other daily reminders. Making transitions and moving from one exercise to another can be difficult and cause stress to the student which can be eased by incorporating simple techniques into the classroom which give the student a sense of security.Students with disabilities have a need for more one on one interaction in the classroom because they have hard time processing information as quickly as the other students. This need can be addressed by having a well trained para-professional that can help the student complete school work and other tasks assigned during the day. An aid can help the students to make the right decisions for positive behavior and can provide overall assistance in areas of need. Positive reinforcement is greatly needed on a daily basis and can be very encouraging to student with a disability.Focusing on the students strengths are a great way to motivate and help them excel in other areas. Collaborating with families is a good way to see what kind of methods work at home and then try to incorporate them into the classroom. Encouraging the student to participate in all of the activities along with the rest of their classmates will show that you believe in them and expect the best from them. A huge need for children with autism is help with social interaction. It is not that they do not want to make friend, it is that they do not possess the skills to know how.It is not an easy task to influence a child with autism’s social development. Social settings can cause distress so they need to be handled correctly and it helps to limit their social experiences to shorter time limits so that the experience does not become unpleasant, (Powers, 2000). When children have a good relation ship with their teacher they are shown to have better relationships with their peers, (Turnbull and Wehmeyer, 2009). Environmental stimuli have a large affect on the outcome that a student with autism has in the classroom.Teachers need to be aware of their responses to certain stimuli and learn what bothers the student and try to accommodate these needs whenever possible. Factors such as sound and lighting should be considered into the planning of the classroom and the configuration of the room. A need for extra time is a must for students with any type of disability. The teacher should always give the student extra time to complete assignments and class activities. The student may need extra time to process general information and request that you give them pertaining to instruction. Extra time will allow them to process the information more clearly.When children begin school especially primary grades after they have left preschool, they are faced with new challenges and expectatio ns based on increased â€Å"psychological and physical maturity†, (Volkmar and Wiesmer, 2009). Students are provoked to work more independently and there is much more self directed learning occurring in the classroom. It is possible and is happening more frequently now that students with ASD’S are functioning well in school with the help from all of the options available now. There are fully inclusive classes and programs that supply mainstream teaching along with special education services.When teachers make accommodations for students with autism it helps them to function on a more appropriate level. Students with autism can have a difficult time with various sounds and lights that they hear and see throughout the course of their school day. Ear plugs or noise cancelling headsets can be very beneficial in helping them eliminate some of these disturbing factors, (Stokes, 2011). When students leave the classroom to go to lunch or other activities they are introduced to sounds that they are not familiar with; these components will help in these situations.Another great tool and accommodation for students are visual or graphic schedules. These are good tools to let the students know what activity come when and in what sequential memory order they are to perform them in, (Powers, 2000). These schedules should be composed from left to right or top to bottom so they are not confusing to understand and have very clear graphics. Students with autism can become very involved in computers and it can give them a sense of calmness and really help to educate them on various subjects.Computers like visual charts give a clear and concise message for the activity being focused on. Computers can also be used as a reward and a bonus for good behavior. If the children are exposed to computers at home it gives them a sense of familiarity at school. Another way that educators can accommodate their students is by collaborating with the special education teacher on ti ps and strategies on the best methods to implement in the classroom and positive reinforcers that can help the teacher help the child to put forth their best effort.Special education teachers can also spend time with the paraprofessional or the aid to help them in specific instruction on how to help the students on individual learning skill sets. A crisis plan is a tool that all teachers who have students with disabilities in their classrooms need on file. These are put into place in case a child has an emotional outburst or some other type of emergency during the day that would call for immediate assistance, (Stokes, 2011). This plan should cover everything from sensory issues to obsessive compulsive factors and how to address them in the best possible way.This plan should be collaboration between the parents, administrative staff, the special education teacher, and the general classroom teacher. This plan could coincide with the IEP plan which addresses learning goals and outcomes . Both of these plans in conjunction with each other make a great tool for the teacher. Autism affects so many live today; almost everyone has contact with or knows someone affected with this disability. Education and early intervention is the key to giving students with this disability the best opportunity for success.Understanding all of the characteristics for this disability can greatly help the educator to understand and meet the needs of their students and achieve success. All students deserve the right to an education in the most least restrictive environment with the best services available. If educators use their resources and work in collaboration with the families and other support systems; their students will learn in a positive and stable environment.Reference Page Autism Society of North Carolina, (2011). Common Characteristics of Children with Autism Disorders. British Colombia Ministry of Education. Special Programs Branch, (2000). Teaching Students With Autism: A Re source Guide For Schools. Powers, M. D. (2000). Children With Autism, A Parents Guide. Second edition Stokes, S. , (2011). Interventions and Strategies for Success Turnbull, A. , Turnbull, R. and Wehmeyer, M. (2009). Exceptional Lives: Special Education in Todays Schools. Sixth Edition Volkmar, F. and Wiesnar, L. (2009). A Practical Giude to Autism: What Every Parent, Family member, and Teacher Needs to Know.