Skewed Moralities

â€Å"Money for Morality,† she presumes to state her thesis which details that in today's society we have lost the need to be self-motivated and otherwise rely on other people to bargain with us with tokens of success thus sullying our dignified good deeds. This is expressed best in Mary Regardless' first example of a boy whom goes out of his way to return a large sum of cash to its rightful owner whilst not intending upon receiving a reward and yet however is pursued by another group of adults wishing to reimburse him for his troubles and finding that the reward is deserved of a large sum of money.Mary Regardless' goes on to explain that through actions like these, not only are our efforts being diminished but also we are being trained to expect rewards for deeds that supersede the plane of what is Just. To give her argument strength she includes personal ties to her own relationship with her son and his personal account of his friends and their parents. In this story they de scribe the teacher's and parent's effort to set up a bargaining system with their youthful counterparts thus giving the students a bribe of sorts to achieve to a higher standard.To which of course Mary Regardless states, â€Å"Doing well is its own reward. The A Just confirms that. † To conclude Mary Regardless sums up with a knowledgeable remark about being a good example; that parents, or rather Just people in general, should make it their objective to provide good means of raising their kids through the power of suggestion. Rather than making their way to the couch or wasting time and money at some mall, spent that time instead to read a book, do some basic chores. At a developing age it only provides positive reinforcement to a child that will carry them through the rest of life In order to achieve.

Case Study Maths And Society Education Essay

AbstractionMathematicss consists of many words such as ‘whole ‘ , ‘differentiate ‘ , ‘limit ‘ and many more. It has been observed that mathematical nomenclature has a contextual significance for pupils in mundane life. This causes issues with the reading of Mathematical footings in the context of the topic and accordingly hinders the apprehension of definitions and constructs. This assignment analyses the issues with the linguistic communication used in the instruction and acquisition of Mathematicss and suggests attacks to relieve these issues. It besides explores how the issue of linguistic communication competence can favor certain pupils compared to others based on their societal background.IntroductionLanguage used in Mathematics causes deductions in the instruction and acquisition of the topic. From reflecting on my experience, I have personally found the vocabulary used in both Mathematics and mundane life difficult to grok in a Mathematical context and besides observed issues that other equals were holding with understanding the nomenclature. Additionally, I have observed in school that linguistic communication is an issue but did n't gain the extent that it could impede the acquisition of Mathematics, even for those that are able to entree written and verbal instructions. Whilst instruction, I have farther observed how linguistic communication used in Mathematics causes issues for even those that can talk English, as there are many words used in relation to the topic which are besides mundane words, that causes confusion in understanding in a Mathematics context. This assignment explores the issues of linguistic communication in the instruction and acquisition of Mathematicss and how these can favor some societal groups over others. It besides suggests how these issues can be attempted to be resolved. In my sentiment this issue is a major influence in the apprehension of Mathematics which determines overall sequence in the topic ; hence I want to research this country in more item.Literature ReviewThis reappraisal explores and discusses the issues raised by the usage of linguistic communication in the instruction and acquisition of Mathematics, and focuses particularly upon the jobs encountered by scholars, and the stairss which practicians may take t o relieve them. As Durkin points out, much of kids ‘s Mathematical instruction ‘takes place in linguistic communication ‘ ( Durkin, 1991, pg.4 ) , and even mental or intuitive dialogue of mathematical jobs by the person is necessarily embedded in mathematical semiologies. It is argued here that the troubles raised by linguistic communication in Mathematicss are multi-dimensional and can forestall scholars from understanding what is said to them, or what is given to them in the signifier of written instructions by the instructor. These troubles can impede scholars ‘ attempts in working independently, by forestalling them from accessing written instructional or text books. Since scholars are largely assessed through end product orientated signifiers of appraisal, those with linguistic communication troubles are at a disadvantage, particularly if they can non grok the inquiries. These troubles can hinder their public presentation and sabotage their assurance in trial state of affairss. Consequently, this can hold immense deductions, both for the person by harming their self-pride and the establishment, as it means that the school concerned will hold poorer overall consequences, damaging their league-table place. Additionally, nomenclature used in the course of study is invariably being altered, so practicians have to accommodate their pattern and proctor scholars ‘ demands to guarantee that pupils understand the new footings and methods.Literacy and Numeracy StandardsOn assorted degrees, underperformance in literacy can even hold an enervating consequence on rather able mathematicians at cardinal points in their educational calling. As Clarkson indicates, the inability to read texts at the velocity required in trial scenarios provides a cardinal illustration of this ( Clarkson, 1991, pg.240 ) . Students that find it difficult to construe the inquiry or take clip to work out what is required, may cognize how to calculate the reply to the job but are restricted from replying all inquiries and completing the paper due to clip restraint. Alternatively, they may cognize a mathematical construct but can non reply the inquiry because it is phrased otherwise. For illustration, a pupil may be able to reply ‘multiply 4 and 6 ‘ but non ‘what is the merchandise of 4 and 6 ‘ as they may non cognize that ‘multiply ‘ and ‘product ‘ mean the same thing. Clearly, the added force per unit area of ‘exam emphasis ‘ does non assist, even though scholars are normally given sufficient pattern before the existent event under timed conditions. The of import point here is that no sum of readying on similar jobs can take the barriers inherent in a particular or unfamiliar job. It is axiomatic that written or spoken mathematical jobs will normally show the most complex challenges for those whose literacy and numeracy accomplishments are ill aligned, or have developed unevenly. Ho wever, the troubles experienced by such scholars are non confined merely to these countries. In primary and secondary instruction, many jobs which are written about wholly in numerical signifier necessitate some signifier of presentation in non-mathematical linguistic communication, in order for the reply to be right construed. Even where no text is present within the inquiry, the scholar may still visualize either the job or reply in prose signifier. It has to be conceded nevertheless, that it is in inquiries that are wholly written or verbalised that the scholar may be unable to entree the job, hence will be incapable of using the needed operations. However, in order to assist scholars run into these challenges, practicians themselves must understand the acquisition processes which each person undergoes. It is likely that the most of import component within this is the careful monitoring and appraisal of the scholar ‘s advancement on a frequent, possibly a day-to-day or hebdomadal footing. Practitioners should be attentive of those pupils who are non lending to inqui ry and reply Sessionss, or are by and large loath to offer replies to jobs put on the board. These cases need to be addressed quickly, before the scholar falls into a regular form of behavior which is difficult to extinguish. As De Corte and Verschaffel have argued, there are five phases to be in turn implemented when work outing written jobs. First, a complex ‘text processing ‘ activity occurs, affecting the analysis of the job. Second, the topic considers the appropriate operations in order to happen the ‘unknown component ‘ in the representation, which is performed in the 3rd phase. The formulated reply is so located in the original representation, whilst in the fifth and last phase, the brooding scholar ‘verifies ‘ their solution by reexamining its feasibleness ( De Corte, E. , and Verschaffel, 1991, pg.118 ) . The overall success of this procedure is dependent upon two mutualist factors, viz. that, †¢ ‘Word jobs that are solvable utilizing the same arithmetic operation, can be described in footings of different webs of constructs and relationships†¦ ‘ †¢ Constructing an appropriate internal representation of such a conceptual web is a important facet of expertness in word job work outing. ( De Corte and Verschaffel, 1991, pg.119 ) The persons ‘ execution of these phases besides depends on whether the inquiry was constructed around a ‘change ‘ , ‘comparison ‘ , or ‘combination ‘ job. Change jobs involve altering the value of a measure due to an event or state of affairs, combination jobs relate to measures that are considered either individually or together and comparing jobs are the comparings or differences between sums ( De Corte and Verschaffel, 1991, pg.119 ) . The of import point here is that the scholar negotiates the job intellectually, and the more complex it is, or the more phases it involves, the more hard it is for pupils to make so successfully. In other words, no affair what written or calculator operations are required, the scholar will first effort to set the assorted elements of the job together into some sort of logical sequence in order to visualize the eventual end product, i.e. the reply. As an illustration of this, reckoner based oppugning allows t he usage of digital reckoners in job resolution and in scrutiny contexts relieves the scholar of set abouting the needed operations. However, ab initio they must evidently find what those operations should be. There are plentifulness of cases where the scholar ‘s consideration of the job has proved inaccurate and has been misunderstood, taking to incorrect replies, even obtained on a reckoner as the incorrect operations were carried out. The overall point is that scholars think about jobs by visualizing footings like ‘add ‘ , ‘divide ‘ etc, in order to assist them make up one's mind on the right account. In semiotic footings, the direction is the mark, which in-turn symbolises the ‘signifier ‘ or significance. If the scholar ‘s lingual capablenesss are non sufficiently developed, even the absence of text can non truly assist them and they will happen it hard to even construe symbols.Spoken and Heard MathematicsSimilar sorts of jobs can go to the apprehension of spoken Mathematics inquiries or instructions, and, as Orton and Frobisher indicate, some schoolroom patterns may worsen this. They specifically suggest that scholars who have trouble in construing expressed constructs are often offered more pattern at written versions of them, efficaciously maneuvering them off into an epistemic tangent, which causes them to take the incorrect way in footings of the methods required. This is unbeneficial to scholars as more written illustrations can non needfully assist to work out the jobs built-in in aural or verbal Mathematics comprehension. There are different sorts of jobs involved, which need to be addressed in specific ways. As Orton and Frobisher explain, the act of jointing our ideas non merely offers a greater opportunity of pass oning our understanding to others, but ‘allows us to better understand what we are stating. ‘ ( Orton and Frobisher, 2002, pg.59 ) . The corollary to this is that scholar â⠂¬Ëœs require ample chance to talk about Mathematicss in a structured environment, something which an accent on pencil and paper methods, and end product orientated appraisal can deny them and can impact the acquisition of the topic. There are many benefits for talking about Mathematicss in the schoolroom, specifically so that pupils can pass on their ideas and thoughts which would give practicians an penetration into the thought procedures of pupils, accordingly assisting them to understand their pupils. Harmonizing to the research of Zack and Graves, positive results have been demonstrated where the pattern is encouraged ( Zack, V. and Graves, B. , 2001, pg.229 ) . In other words, the more scholars are allowed to talk about Mathematicss, the more chance they have to rectify their ain mistakes and reflect on their thought. The other dimension which needs to be considered here is that of the societal context. Learners have to develop the assurance to prosecute in schoolroom duologues with their equals and the instructor. Arguably, those pupils who experience the greatest troubles in spoken and heard Mathematicss will be the most reserved about making this. Consequently, it will be apparent for practicians themsel ves to quickly go cognizant of those scholars who are least likely to volunteer replies and become involved in job resolution activities and treatments. It is so their duty to back up the person in visualizing engagement as a mark, and invent the appropriate scheme. However, this job is evidently exacerbated when the implicit in issues are embedded in literacy instead numeracy comprehension. As primary practicians will be peculiarly cognizant, the literacy and numeracy course of study run parallel to each other, instead than meeting in a structural manner ; they have their ain developmental phases, and these do non take history of cross-curricular demands. In other words, a scholar who is holding troubles with mathematical text will non needfully happen any straight relevant support in their literacy work. This implies that the practician must maintain up-to-date in the context of numeracy instruction, whilst guaranting that the scholar is besides on path with their staged mathemati cal development.Staged Development in Literacy and NumeracyMeanings and values are non merely acquired through the course of study or in the schoolroom, and each person will hold a pre-formed aggregation of perceptual experiences, nevertheless, non all may be accurate. The sum of exposure and comprehension of Mathematical linguistic communication varies highly between scholars, depending upon their cultural, societal and household background, which causes differences in larning behavior. Despite these fluctuations, as Clarkson indicates, scholars need to be secure in the option uses which frequently surround indistinguishable operations ( Clarkson, 1991, pg.241 ) . This job may hold cultural beginnings for some groups of scholars, or as Orton and Frobisher point out, may stem from the fact that much Mathematical nomenclature has alternate significances in mundane linguistic communication, examples include ; ‘chord ‘ , ‘relation ‘ and ‘segment ‘ ( Orton and Frobisher, 2002, pg.55 ) . It is of import that the instructor understands whether the scholar has jobs with literacy or numeracy, or both. However, it can be hard for the practician to state whether mathematical or literacy jobs are forestalling scholars from come oning. As Clarkson points out, ‘reading and comprehension are two distinguishable abilities which must be mastered. ‘ ( Clarkson, 1991, pg.241 ) . There is surely no simple correlativity between ability in literacy or standard written/spoken English and accomplishment in Mathematics.Language CompetenceLanguage competence is an issue for pupils who speak English as a foreign linguistic communication, doing them to underperform in Mathematics. In order to read text books and understand verbal instructions, pupils must work within the linguistic communication of direction. Educational advancement is enhanced depending on whether a pupil ‘s first linguistic communication is that of their direction or non and this clearly affects those from lower societal backgrounds. Mathematicss has many words peculiar to the topic, for illustration, ‘integral, differentiate, matrix, volume and mass ‘ . This can be confounding for non-native English pupils, as they have to larn new significances in the context of Mathematics ( Zevenbergen, 2001, pg.15-16 ) . The same word can be interpreted in different ways by non-native pupils, doing misinterpretations which affects acquisition. For illustration, the word ‘times ‘ is by and large related to the clip on a clock, non to generation and the words ‘hole ‘ and ‘whole ‘ sound the same but have different significances, intending a whole figure in Mathematics ( Gates, 2002, pg. 44 ) . Practitioners may happen this deficiency of linguistic communication background can do a Mathematics category hard to learn. Conversely, accomplished immature mathematicians with hapless English accomplishments can entree the cosmopolitan linguistic communications of figure and operations with comparative easiness so the inquiry to be asked is ; what sort of Mathematicss jobs are at issue? Harmonizing to Pimm, logograph, pictograms, punctuation symbols and alphabetic symbols can ease extended, but non entire mathematical communicating ( Pimm, 1987, pg.180 ) . As Orton and Frobisher indicate, it is up to the practician to find the extent to which mathematical jobs need to be graduated for single scholars and it can non be assumed that their experiences and demands will be indistinguishable ( Orton and Frobisher, 2002, pg.54 ) . For illustration, understanding that the difference between two Numberss is something produced when one is subtracted from another may be hard to understand fo r scholars who have non encountered that manner of job before.Puting by abilityIn Mathematics, scene is used to group pupils harmonizing to their ability and pupils take tests depending on what set they are in, which determines the maximal class they can accomplish. This seems unjust for lower setted pupils, whose full potency may non hold been realised and who certainly deserve the opportunity to accomplish a higher class. Students with linguistic communication issues may work more easy or misconstrue inquiries and hence, be setted in a lower-level group, which is clearly unjust. Therefore, those kids with the linguistic communication competence and extra external aid are in favor of larning Mathematics more successfully. However, even these pupils struggle with certain nomenclature. Harmonizing to Watson, it is a affair of ‘social justness ‘ to learn Mathematicss to all kids as their accomplishment in the topic is judged throughout their life and participates in finding future chances. Grades achieved in Mathematics affect hereafter surveies and calling waies ; for illustration, to come in university, normally a lower limit of GCSE class C is required, and this demand varies depending on the class ( Watson, 2006 ) . Therefore, as a consequence of scene, ‘those in lower sets are less likely to be entered for higher grades ‘ ( Day, Sammons and Stobart, 2007, pg. 165 ) , accordingly harming their hereafter survey and occupation chances. Besides, some kids have an advanced appreciation of Mathematicss due to an advantaged background, parents ‘ aid or private tuition so puting is unjust as it is biased towards early developing kids or those who have been given excess aid outside of the schoolroom. In schools, the scene system is supposed to be strictly based on ability degree. However, in world, streaming could be decided upon for other grounds. For illustration, two countries of bias encountered can be societal category and cultural dimensions ( Capel and Leask, 2005, pg. 155 ) . Bartlett, Burton and Peim point out that frequently ‘lower category pupils were deemed to hold a lower rational ability than in-between category equals strictly due to unrelated societal issues such as speech pattern or parents ‘ occupations. ‘ ( Bartlett, Burton and Peim, 2002, pg. 182 ) Sukhnandan and Lee ( 1998 ) remark on the fact that lower-ability sets consist of high figure from low social-class backgrounds, cultural minorities, male childs and kids born in the summer, who are at a younger age for their school twelvemonth. Sukhnandan and Lee believe that puting in this manner causes ‘social divisions ‘ . ( hypertext transfer protocol: //www.tes.co.uk/article.aspx? storycode=81217 ) . Therefore, it appears that linguistic communication competence is being used as a major factor in finding which set pupils are placed in and accordingly impacts accomplishment in Mathematics.DecisionIn decision, it may be argued that there is an ongoing demand to re-assess how scholars internalise the mathematical constructs conveyed in linguistic communication. Practitioners have acknowledged that semiologies, or the relationship between linguistic communication, symbolism and idea, impacts the manner in which learners interpret information. For illustration, as Pimm indicates, sing the construct of negative Numberss, ‘involves a metaphoric widening of the impression of figure itself†¦among mathematicians, the freshness becomes lost with clip, and with it the metaphoric content of the original penetration of utile extension. It becomes a platitude comment – the actual significance. ‘ ( Pimm, 1987, pg.107 ) . Although Mathematics tends to prosecute rationalist or absolute results, it involves much that is abstract ; measures, frequences, chances etc, are all events or values that occur independently of the demand to visualize them, or calculate and enter them. The demand to make so is normally derived from the demand to understand or command events which have happened in the yesteryear, are go oning now, or predict what will go on in the hereafter. As discussed, persons must fit their ain internal apprehension of a peculiar job with its catching value, either in linguistic communication, text, or Numberss, nevertheless, foremost they must do the appropriate nexus. As Lee indicates, there are distinguishable societal and communicative advantages when scholars are allowed to joint their apprehension of these constructs ( Lee, 2006, pg.4 ) . Furthermore, as Morgan observes, the disempowerment of persons who lack the necessary control over linguistic communication continues to do concern and registers the demand for farther research ( Morgan , 1998, pg.5 ) . One of the chief issues arguably lays in pulling the differentiation between lingual and conceptual troubles, and infering the relationship between the two. As De Corte and Verschaffel have argued, scholar ‘s mistakes in word jobs are frequently ‘remarkably systematic ‘ , ensuing from ‘misconceptions of the problem†¦due to an deficient command of the semantic strategies underlying the jobs. ‘ ( De Corte and Verschaffel, 1991, pg.129 ) . Therefore, farther research into the beginnings of such jobs and the agencies of turn toing them is required. As many practicians will cognize from experience, the worst scenario is ‘global ‘ failure of apprehension, where the scholar can non even articulate why they do non understand. In other words, they can non get down to work out the job because they have non understood the inquiry. In these instances, the instructor needs to pass clip with the person concerned, which is non ever easy or executable in a schoolroom scenario. It is of import to observe that ; the earlier jobs are diagnosed, and the appropriate support put in topographic point, the better it is. Unfortunately, there is no cosmopolitan solution which can be applied here ; it is merely good appraisal pattern, effectual planning and the sensitive framing of jobs which can bit by bit interrupt down the jobs involved. Having explored this country in-depth, linguistic communication competence does pose deductions in understanding Mathematicss, accordingly favoring certain societal groups. In my sentiment, practicians should on a regular basis supervise scholars to find whether the person is come oning or requires extra demands. Language competence is non a significant adequate ground for curtailing how high a pupil can accomplish and by utilizing this as a factor in scene is clearly unjust. Sets should be formed and amended on a regular basis, based upon pupil advancement and mathematical ability to guarantee there is no prejudice on societal background. More single support should be made available through an enlargement of the appropriate budgets, so that the necessary action is non compressed into normal lesson timetabling and pupils can have the maximal support possible of their demands, to heighten their sequence in Mathematics.

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Current Ethical Issue Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Current Ethical Issue - Essay Example Abortion has been a touchy topic since the Roe vs. Wade decision in 1973. The Supreme Court ruled that a woman has the sole right to decide whether or not to carry a child to term, once an unwanted pregnancy is discovered. Women find themselves pregnant in many different situations: some of their lovers are unenthusiastic about fathering, some of them are teens whose parents aren’t giving them much of a choice, many are in abusive relationships and see a pregnancy as the final nail in the coffin, a number of them are addicted to drugs and fear that their addiction will harm the fetus, or impair their ability to care for an infant, some women simply don’t desire to become mothers, some are married, but fear that procreation at that point in their lives will adversely affect them career-wise, and, of course, there are victims of rape. Regardless of the circumstances that surround a pregnancy, though, there are better alternatives than abortion. The essay â€Å"Abortion, Killing, and Maternal Moral Authority† takes an impartial look at both sides of the choice to abort. Its author, Soran Reader, asks, â€Å"Does abortion mean evacuating the fetus from the woman’s body? Or does it mean killing the fetus?† (Reader, 2008). It seems clear that abortion is a legal form of murder. Whether early in the embryonic stage, or a late-term abortion, the fact is that a human is developing prior to the abortion. The heart is one of the first things to develop, and can been seen beating on ultrasound at an early gestational age. Fingers and toes develop. The fetus can move. How anyone can consider that it is not a person, just because it can’t yet live outside the body is a mystery. It is living inside a body. When its host decides to terminate it, only then is it dead. Perhaps enough women don’t understand that there are plenty of options that don’t include abortion. Custody of the child can be relinquished to the father, or the

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Care management - Essay Example Here you are dealing with human beings, not furniture! Veronica arranged to have the referral documentation completed and waited for a place for Mrs. James in good faith. But what happened? It is quite surprising that Veronica Gibbs, the Ward Manager was not aware of a particular procedural aspect that affected her and her patient. The age difference and the merit of the case is a later issue. The prime question is, why Veronica Gibbs was not taken into confidence, at least informed in advance, about the impending admission of a patient, on out-of -turn basis, superceding the ‘seniority’ of Veronica Gibbs! Veronica arranged to have the referral documentation completed and waited for a place for her patient. Coffee house is not the place for Veronica to know, how she has been overruled. That too it is a matter of chance that she came to know about it! This lapse on the part of the authority that took decision to admit a junior patient without the knowledge of Veronica Gibbs is regrettable and difficult to condone! Assuming for a while that the young patient required the treatment for a short duration (as compared to the assumed treatment of Mrs. Violet James for a longer duration) yet, the clandestine admission of the junior patient can not be justified. Mrs. James is bound to know about this development. Won’t she feel betrayed by Veronica Gibbs? Even she too should have been taken into confidence, as to why a junior patient was considered for admission and the special reasons about it. All concerned would have been happy. Trust betrayed takes time to heal, at times, it may never heal at all. With this wrong advertisement, the good will of the Care Management will suffer much. Without doubt, the practice adopted by the Care Management, is wrong. I know a case where a rich patient admitted to the hospital for kidney transplantation, getting preference in the matter related to operation. The specialist

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Individual politics assignment - Essay Example Department also considers the financial needs of every policy (A.H.C. S.A, 2004). In her budget of 2014, the Australian government made certain policies directed towards bringing new changes to the health sector. The Minister of Health mentioned three policies in the Dutton conference. The paper analyses these policies to identify their strengths and weaknesses. The paper also identifies the perspectives of the claims presented. It will also make some comparison between the stated plans with those of foreign countries. Australia has a high percentage of ageing people (Australian Bureau of Statistics, 2013). Unlike in the 1970 and 1971, a youthful generation has dropped to 22% from 31% in the early 1970s (M.H.C.C. A.C.T., & C.S S., 2007). The government through its various departments projects that in the coming 40 years, 25% of the Australian population will be people with over 65 years of age (Australia, 2011). In the health sector, the country is facing the problems associated with old age. The government understands this and is planning to offer more support for the sector so that it can improve its services to serve more people. Currently, the public health system is only able to serve, on a weekly basis, 170 people diagnosed with dementia. However, the country has to prepare for the future. The government projects that in 2050; there would be 7,500 cases of dementia per week (W.A.C.O.S.H, 2007). The country thus has to get ready to face such an issue in the future. Therefore, in the 2014 budg et, the government allocated more money for the expansion of services like genomics testing in MRI and MBS screening. The argument of the government is valid considering the real situation in Australia. There is a sociological problem. Australian population is aging at high rate. The health sector has to prepare to face this

Short paper-Communication Skills in the Practice of Medicine Essay

Short paper-Communication Skills in the Practice of Medicine - Essay Example The ability to communicate effectively has an implication in patient care. Some medical organizations has determined that the most frequent reason for complaints among patients against physicians is poor communication. Thereby, certain community groups have identified communication skills as essential component in medical practice and medical training. In order to provide a systematic approach and continuity to effective communication. The following information are recommended: 2. Case Models through Independent Community Based Inputs: Case presentations and teaching models should be critically examined to rule our unrecognized personal, cultural and professional biases and barriers. There are so many factors and skills that a medical professional and a patient can use to communicate with each other. One thing that a patient is looking at to most doctors is the trust they can acquire through effective explanation of all procedures and the trust they could get from the nurses on how effective they could deliver the health care services necessary for them to feel good from any diseases. Effective communication involves continuous process between doctors and doctors; doctors and nurses; doctors and patients; patients and nurses. Set skills are essential in order to implement it with confidence. Normally, the process starts with interviewing the patient by introducing self (doctor) and by simply doing an interactive line of questioning to the patient and assessment of the nature of complaint. At times, doctors can depend on facilitation movements specially for patients whos language is not the doctors language but the danger of merely relying on facilitation could be detrimental as this may cause incorrect diagnosis. Facilitations are done through eye contact, posture, gesture or even silence. Doctor to doctor communication varies from one another depending on the nature of the patients disease.

The Connection of The Metabolist Movement With Traditional Japanese Essay

The Connection of The Metabolist Movement With Traditional Japanese Architecture and Urban Design - Essay Example This was accomplished through defying the traditions of space, creating new forms and functional features within the structures. In the pamphlet Metabolism 1960: The Proposals for a New Urbanism, the proponants of the movement presented through the philosophies that defined the thoughts of the architects who were discussing the concepts. The philosophy of Metabolism are founded in the ideas of Buddhist worship, combined with thoughts about impermanence and change as they related to the losses in space that the population explosion was revealing for the future (Kurokawa 6). The ideas behind the development of the design are sometimes considered to be technocratic as much as they are still entrenched in the movement of the avant-garde. The technocrat is someone who lends expertise without the influences of politics in order to solve problems for a society. Crowther and Vunsche write that â€Å"the heterogeneous Japanese Metabolism Movement is significant for its incorporation of moder n science and mathematics into a philosophical exegesis of nature† (173). They go on to explain that the structures with their mass and density for their function were intended to reflect the technological advancements through a technology dominated habitat (Crowther and Vunsche 173). Metabolism is also concerned with nature. ... One of the things that Kurokawa wanted to avoid was repeating the aesthetics and structures found in the West. In the aftermath of the war Japan had been torn apart with much of its original architecture lost to the bombs and destruction of war. Kurokawa wanted to see a Japanese reinvention of building, placing the works in harmony with both the modern and the surroundings in which it would exist. The Description Internal The Nakagin Capsule Tower was built by Kisho Kurokawa in 1972 in order to solve a problem of too many traveling business men without enough economical space to house them when they visited Tokyo (Figure 1). The work looks like a pegged game, something like Jenga that has been slotted together in the best possible configuration. For the Metabolism Movement, the work is small having only 144 modules that can be stacked and rotated around a 14 story core. The building can be changed by removing or adding modules that are connected by four tension bolts to the core buil ding. The pieces were built and pre-made in a manufacturing plant in Shiga, making the units replaceable. The space is small, but efficient allowing for the perfected small space for an individual to live (Svievan). Figure 2 Nakagin Capsule Tower (Svievan) Description External The period of time when the Metabolism Movement was active was one in which social issues and the increases in the population were of high interest. The aftermath of World War II on the Japanese was to shift their ideas from military conquest to technological conquest. The Nakagin Capsule Tower reflects this idea through economy and efficiency. The inside of the building in relationship with its economy is reflected on the exterior through its modular and changeable

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Dieting makes people fat - Essay Example Regulations create and establish rules that should be observed and respected by individuals, organisations or firms that operate within a particular industry or business. In a pro-regulation scenario, anyone or any entity that does not act in accordance to the preset rules is in direct contravention of the law and is thus subject to punishment by law. The punishment to be handed down can either be in terms of fines, imprisonment or repossession of the respective business. However, in the free market, the allocation of market resources is solely on the foundation of supply and demand forces, this happens in the absolute absence of any form of government intervention. The question now becomes whether free market approach or pro-regulation approach is the best avenue to take in the Australian economy. When it is all said and done, regulation is the appropriate approach to take. This paper will endeavour to illustrate, with logical backing, why this approach is the most suitable one in t he Australian perspective. This paper will evaluate twelve articles, which are either for or against, the introduction of legislation to the Australian environment. ... The work by MJR Gaffikin (2005) strongly illuminates on this situation. Gaffikin notes that change in legislation might result in either an increase or decrease in the total expenses, to be incurred by the affected firms. He additionally cites the example of waste management. He explores this issue and ends up asserting that if firms are made to account for their waste management systems, many firms will have to invest more in their waste disposal mechanisms. This leads to a substantial increase in their overall operations cost. Thus, judging on this fact, then the free market approach is favoured. However, Michael gives a biased assertion that regulation aids in the creation of wealth, this is the view adopted by economists. This literal work is prejudiced in a manner that it does not back its assertions with hard facts. Nonetheless, the author has targeted the whole subject of regulation. In a situation whereby this article is the only information available on the projected impact of legislation, then the measure to be adopted would be to campaign for free market approach. However, this article does not take into consideration the general environmental effect of careless disposing of waste. Such events would and are characteristic in a free market approach. Once legislation has been passed, the parties affected must institute modifications in order to be in, a situation to comply with the new law. In most cases, this entails the whole or partial restructuring of business operations, which is sometimes an expensive feat. Thus, it is expected that a number of parties will not comply with the new legislation. According to Jason Mitchell and Majella Percy,

Outsourcing in America Essay Example for Free

Outsourcing in America Essay 1. Introduction In business, in order to provide services or sell products at competitive rate, corporations are to cut unnecessary costs or to focus on core competences in order to reduce the number of human resources and associated costs. Concerning the need to reduce costs coupled with the fierce competition in business, currently, enterprises are striving for finding the best solutions to increase revenue while keeping costs as low as possible. While the matured technology can help enterprises to reach economy of scale, outsourcing of employees (human resources) can be the savior for companies to keep their fixed costs that incurred from employment and research to reach minimum level. Fortunately, in the Internet era where any documentations process can be sent out over the internet and job can be conducted via e-mail or instant messaging, outsourcing-typed employment model have proved to promote significant savings. Concerning the issue, this paper discusses benefits and impacts of outsourcing in the U.S. 2. Outsourcing Government Accountability Office (GAO) says that â€Å"Outsourcing† of services refers to an organization’s purchase from other countries of services that it previously produced or purchased domestically, such as software programming or telephone call center (US Embassy, 2004). Just like other business schemes, outsourcing also gives us advantages and disadvantages as following: 2.1. Advantages of Outsourcing to U.S. Economy In the U.S., the cost of labor has increased significantly. The situation has driven American enterprises, especially ones in information technology segments, to outsource the software development to a developing country like India. The reasons are obvious that the labor cost in India is much cheaper. It makes sense since in today’s economy, companies need to maintain a cost structure that is globally competitive; given that requirement, we can easily guess how businesses will react. Ultimately, free market competition is the ruler of the day, and, while governments may introduce barriers that influence individual situations, there will be no stopping the offshore outsourcing trend. Moreover, McKinsey Co predicts that the Internet-enabled services (ITES) market is likely to touch $142 billion in 2009. There would be a net saving accounting for $390 billion from current cost of $532 billion for these services (Kurian, 2003). U.S. can fulfill the net saving through off shoring to other country like India. 3. Impacts of Outsourcing While such incredible saving might be the concerns of American enterprises, Nasscom quoted Michel Janssen, founder and President, Everest Group, that there is possibility that outsourcing have closed relation to the loss of jobs in the US. Some private researchers predict that outsourcing may eliminate 100,000 to 500,000 IT (information technology) jobs within the next few years, while others note that outsourcing can also generate benefits, such as lower prices, productivity improvements, and overall economic growth. Concerning the situation, Jackson (2005) sees that the outsourcing may lead to increasing import to the U.S. This makes sense while foreign investment is displacing jobs and domestic production, there are possibilities that foreign affiliates increase imports to U.S. parent company. In addition, media and the public reveal that outsourcing leads to worse services or products. With the increasing trend to use outsourcing in some of the core functions of a company (like customer service and hospital staffs), reports about inferior quality caused by outsourcing agreement are growing in number (Dookril, 2004).

E Government Model Of Public Service Social Policy Essay

E Government Model Of Public Service Social Policy Essay E-Government model through ICT of public service delivery was started in South Africa first time, for the preferred as channel for citizen-centered service delivery. It means to provide quality services to the citizens of its country. In this paper we will study the role of E-government within developing country in the South Africa with the help of case study. First of all we will consider what is E-government? E-Government E-Government (short for electronic government, also known as digital government, online government or transformational government) is a diffused neologism used to refer to the use of information and communication technology to provide and improve government services, transactions and interactions with citizens, businesses, and other arms of government. Delivery models and activities of e-Government The primary delivery models of e-Government can be divided into: Government-to-Citizen or Government-to-Customer (G2C) Government-to-Business (G2B) Government-to-Government (G2G) Government-to-Employees (G2E) Within each of these interaction domains, four kinds of activities take place: Pushing information over the Internet, e.g. regulatory services, general holidays, public hearing schedules, issue briefs, notifications, etc. Two-way communications between the agency and the citizen, a business, or another government agency. In this model, users can engage in dialogue with agencies and post problems, comments, or requests to the agency. Conducting transactions, e.g. lodging tax returns, applying for services and grants. These types of activities may be performed but not may be that all activities are performed by all the countries. Some have greater but some have less Primarily purpose of introducing this model is to direct access to the Government. So improve the efficiency of public services delivery in South Africa. This model is based on case study research, focused on one of the governments primary service delivery programmes social grants, as mentioned in case study. South African Social Security Agency (SASSA) was established as an extension of government delivery arm that administers the delivery of social grants to the poorest of the poor in South Africa. SASSAs Vision and mission is aligned with several Batho Pele principles. Batho Pele which literally means people first. Introduction of this Model Batho Pele Public Service Delivery in South Africa. Batho Pele is South Africas constitutionally mandated public service delivery philosophy. This model ensures that all the citizens can hold public servants accountable for the levels of service receive from government. The expected transformation in service delivery is better comprehended on the reflection that South Africa has only been a Democratic country since 1994. Here we look into background of this model. The path of service delivery transformation formally began in 1995 with the release of the White Paper on the Transformation of Public Service. The WPTPS established the institutional framework that could guide the introduction of new policies and the implementation of the new constitutional mandates. It was shortly followed in 1997 by the White Paper on Transforming Public Service Delivery, labeled as the Batho Pele White Paper. The Batho Pele White Paper specifically aimed at promoting integrated and seamless public service delivery. This was on the basis of the Batho Pele philosophy. Batho Pele advocates nine principles to guide public Servants; Consultation with citizens Setting service standards Increasing access to information Ensuring courtesy Providing information openness and Transparency redress and value for money. On the other hand South Africa, through its Center of Public Service Innovation (CPSI), places significant Importance to initiatives to transform governments way of working through ICT a notion commonly known as E-government / e-governance. E-Government E-Governance The terms e-government and e-governance are often used to describe a governments use of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) to render services to its citizens. There is a debate in research community about these two terms of E-government and E-governance. E-governance can be defined as the use of emerging information and communication technologies to facilitate the processes of government and public administration E-government can be defined as the use of Information technology to support government operations, engage citizens, and provide government services. In the definition of e-governance, we see that it focuses on the use of ICT to assist the administration and management of Government. On other hand in the definition of e-government we see that it focuses on the use of ICT to provide the services in the support of government operations for the public service delivery of people of that country. The dominant models for e-government find their roots in public management models and e-business models. While researchers of e government differ on the rights, privileges and obligations of clients, customers and Citizens. They generally concur that e-government move through stages to reach maturity. Notwithstanding, the successful initiatives are hard to come by. This realization led to the very important and underlying concern: are government ICT technological innovations adhering to the principles of people first, so to say, are the government ICT technological innovations enabling the improvement of service delivery in South Africa? This case study also tells us about the understanding by focusing on the government agency responsibilities for one of the key service delivery programs the South African Social Security Agency, SASSA. A case study of a government department, the South African Social Security Agency (SASSA), was adopted investigate the phenomenon of e-government will be studied in the context of Batho Pele. Since the each government service is measured against the same principles that are defined in Batho Pele. Applicability of this model can be drawn to other government units. In this case study the data was collected by different ways, through structured face-to-face and telephonic interviews with people involved in delivering an ICT system to the business units of the South African Social Security Agency (SASSA). Pros/Advantages/Merits of this Model Any thing is not perfect in this universe except God. So every model is having both characteristics of merits and demerits. Similarly here we are using the E-government model which was used in South Africa for public service delivery. We know that it is very poor country and not so developed. So many South Africans do not have direct approach to public services which are supplied by the Government as stated in the case study. Following may be the major advantages of this model. Equally distribution of services Batho Pele aims to distribute the services equally among the public. Not any differentiation on the basis of race, gender, citizen, distance etc. its mean that every one has right equally of public services . Access to information This model also explains that the citizen has easily access to the information about the Government performance and other activities so there may be accountability in such a manner. Quality services Access to information services empowers citizens and creates value for money, quality services. Reduction of Unnecessary expenditure. When there will be e-government so easily information available about every thing of government and government institution. It reduces unnecessary expenditure for the citizens. Questions that can generally be answered during the interview can revolve around what ICT initiatives are being used to increase the accessibility of the service or product and how accessible these initiatives are to communities who dont have the required ICT infrastructure. Providing information Availability of information with regards to products and services should Not only be at the service point, but should also strive to increase the availability of products and services to the public who are far away from those service points The main area of focus would be to increase the Availability of information to the public who are far away From service points. ICT is used as a business support tool, and since the business of government is to deliver a public Service, ICT supports public service. The implementers of these ICT services will thus be measured against the benchmarks of how well the public service was delivered. Thus we should have to carefully analyze the support of use of ICT within the government department or agency. This sensitivity would greatly influence the interpretation of the text collected during the interviews. Cost effective It is convenient and cost-effective for businesses, and the public benefits by getting easy access to the most current information available without having to spend time, energy and money to get it. E-government helps simplify processes and makes access to government information more easily accessible for public sector agencies and citizens. The anticipated benefits of e-government include efficiency, improved services, better accessibility of public services, and Transparency We see that due to use of this model transparency occurred. Due to the whole connected system through internet technology, every information is available for all. Accountability Study approved that due to E-government, there is greater accountability on each and every thing because all the information is available to every one. So public knows the activities of government. So there is a accountability on government by public and other institutions and citizens. Democratization Through e-government the greater citizen can participation upon political issues. They can connect themselves to politicians through internet. This model gives the more transparent government, allowing the voters to see the effect of their representatives. What they are doing and what they are not doing in right manner. Public can become more aware about the government activities and they can make best decision about their future. Speed, efficiency, and convenience E-government allows citizens to interact with computers to achieve objectives at any time and any location, and eliminates the necessity for physical travel to government agents sitting behind desks and windows. Improved accounting and record keeping can be noted through computerization, and information and forms can be easily accessed, equaling quicker processing time. Individuals with disabilities or conditions no longer have to be mobile to be active in government and can be in the comfort of their own homes. This model was accepted warmly, the young people who were not participating in political issues before but now they are too participating is national level issues due to e-government. Risks There are many considerations and potential implications of implementing and designing e-government, including disintermediation of the government and its citizens, impacts on economic, social, and political factors, vulnerability to cyber attacks, and disturbances to the status quo in these areas. Hyper-surveillance Increased contact between government and its citizens goes both ways. Once e-government begins to develop and become more sophisticated, citizens will be forced to interact electronically with the government on a larger scale. This could potentially lead to a lack of privacy for civilians as their government obtains more and more information on them. In a worse case scenario, with so much information being passed electronically between government and civilians, a totalitarian-like system could develop. When the government has easy access to countless information on its citizens, personal privacy is lost. Cost Although a prodigious amount of money has been spent on the development and implementation of e-government, some say it has yielded only a mediocre product. The outcomes and effects of trial Internet-based governments are often difficult to gauge or unsatisfactory. Lack of secrecy Although internet-based governmental programs have been criticized for lack of reliable privacy policies, studies have shown that people value prosecution of offenders over personal confidentiality. Ninety percent of United States adults approve of Internet tracking systems of criminals, and fifty-seven percent are willing to forgo some of their personal internet privacy if it leads to the prosecution of criminals or terrorists. Inaccessibility An e-government site that provides web access and support often does not offer the potential to reach many users including those who live in remote areas, are homebound, have low literacy levels, exist on poverty line incomes, suffer from chronic illness, and are single parents or older adults. False sense of transparency and accountability Opponents of e-government argue that online governmental transparency is dubious because it is maintained by the governments themselves. Information can be added or removed from the public eye (i.e. the Internet) with or without public notice. For example, after the World Trade Center in New York City was attacked on September 11, 2001, United States federal officials removed a large amount of government information from its websites in the name of national security. This act went relatively unnoticed by United States citizens. To this day, very few Conclusion In conclusion we see that this E-Government model of public service delivery is very important, adopted by government of South Africa. This model has advantages as well as disadvantages. This model has advantages of equally information provision, quality services, efficiency in public services delivery etc. but it has also some drawbacks such lack of secrecy, and so many other factors which may harmful for government through this system. The use of e-government as a service delivery enabler will definitely support governments service improvement philosophy of Batho Pele, thus putting people first. Now a days technology has become the every thing very easier, more informative, efficiency and cost effective. Through this model of ICT can put people first, but only if the use of ICT is supported by the underlying business processes. For e government to be effective, all e-government initiatives in South Africa should be integrated. E-government will only truly be effective if it is managed from a single portfolio in government, and not from silos within each government department. Many other countries have adopted this model such as United States. But level of applying this model may vary. It means some are applying higher level and some countries are applying less level of E-Government. In United States E-government model was used The United States Government under the Bush Administration has created a separate portfolio that manages the implementation of e-government. The Office of Management and Budget (OMB) is developing what it calls the Federal Enterprise Architecture that will manage the way in which the United States Government does business and particularly through the use of e-government (US Office of Management and Budget, 2007) slow progress in implementing a single portal for Government services. It is clear from the case study that South Africa needs a portfolio within its government that drives the implementation of e-government. This will include policy, legislation and implementation standards. This is where the Office of the Government Chief Information Officer (OGCIO) also plays a role to smooth the progress of the use of ICT in Government. Components It consists of three components, namely: ICT Programme Management Government Chief Operations Officer and E-Government Architecture and Integration. The case study was focused on only one area of e-government within the public service of South Africa, namely the Department of Social Development and its service delivery component, the South African Social Security Agency. Similarly there is need to done this in the other departments of Government of public service delivery. Which are inefficient as compared to others? And ensure that the use of ICT is effective at all government departments. It is proposed that there is need to be studied at departments that come under the lack of service delivery similar studies should be done with Other departments to ensure that the use of ICT is effective at all government departments, such as the Department of Home Affairs (ID book and passport applications) Department of Transport (license applications and vehicle registrations) South African Revenue services (tax returns) References:- E-Government Public Service Delivery: Enabling ICT to put People First A Case Study from South Africa. By Wikus VISSER and Hossana TWINOMURINZI

Free Terrorism Essays: We Need the United Nations :: September 11 Terrorism Essays

We Need the United Nations in Our War Against Terror The United Nations has often been criticized, but events after the terrorist attack of September 11 show how essential it is to international peace and security. The United Nations Security Council, in particular, has proved its value in the present crisis. To combat terrorism, and specifically Osama bin Laden's network and the governments of Iran, Iraq, North Korea and other countries, a broad and diverse coalition is necessary. President Bush quickly realized that the active cooperation of other countries, including Muslim countries, was essential to the intelligence and policy work needed to find terrorists and destroy their networks. The support of these countries was also important to avoid a severe political backlash against the use of military force in Afghanistan. To secure such cooperation and support, country-by-country negotiations were necessary, but they were not sufficient. The campaign against terrorism needed to be rendered legitimate in the eyes of the world - particularly in countries whose governments and people are suspicious of the United States. Unilateral American action could have too easily been portrayed as lashing-out by the powerful "hegemon" at the expense of the poor and the weak. To be legitimate, action had to be authorized collectively, in a public forum representing the whole world. No such forum exists except the Security Council of the United Nations. Its fifteen members currently include three Muslim countries - Bangladesh, Mali, and Tunisia. Hence unanimous resolutions by the Security Council belie the claim that efforts against terrorism are "anti-Muslim." The Security Council has passed two unanimous resolutions on terrorism since September 11. Meeting in New York the very next day, it adopted Resolution 1368, which unequivocally condemned the terrorist attacks on the United States, and called on the international community to redouble its "efforts to prevent and suppress terrorist acts." Resolution 1368 also referred to the "inherent right of individual or collective self-defense," in accordance with Article 51 of the United Nations Charter. In effect, it declared that military action by the United States against those responsible for the attacks would be lawful. Last Friday, September 28, the Security Council passed a more specific and equally far-reaching resolution, Resolution 1373. In this resolution it acted under Chapter VII of the UN Charter, which gives the Security Council authority to order states to carry out "the measures decided upon by the Security Council.

Soft Corals :: Ecology Great Barrier Reef Essays

Soft Corals Organisms of the order Alcyonacea, more commonly referred to as soft corals, are fascinating and poorly-understood animals. Although they are Cnidarians, and thus among the simplest of all animals, they have developed remarkable ways of thriving in the Great Barrier Reef and all over the world. They possess symbiotic relationships, special toxins, and several different methods of reproduction, each helping to ensure the survival of the various soft coral species. The purpose of this paper is to investigate physiological and ecological aspects of soft corals, especially the purposes and benefits behind their many reproductive strategies. Taxonomy: What is a soft coral? Soft corals are members of the phylum Cnidaria, meaning they have stinging cells, a gastrovascular cavity, and are radially symmetrical. They belong to the class Anthozoa, which also includes hard corals, sea fans, and anemones. Soft corals, sea fans, and sea pens are sometimes referred to as octocorals, as they have eight tentacles on each polyp. All soft corals belong to the order Alcyonacea, which is composed of several families (Order Alcyonacea 1995-2005.) The most common families on the Great Barrier Reef are Alcyoniidae, Nephtheidae, and Xeniidae. Corals in the family Alcyoniidae are often large and fleshy with medium-sized polyps, but can have many different forms. Xeniid corals have large polyps, usually in pale colors, and some of them pulsate. Corals that belong to Nephtheidae have small polyps, and are often branched and tree-like. Less common families on the Great Barrier Reef include Nidaliidae and Astrospiculariidae (Fabricius and De’ath 2002. ) Life Cycle Soft corals begin their lives as small, featureless free-swimming larvae called planulae (Alderslade and Fabricius 2002.) Planulae generally drift in a planktonic state for several days before finding an acceptable substrate. This allows soft corals to spread throughout large reefs like the GBR (Bastidas et al. 2001,) and also lets them colonize reefs around the world if the planulae are picked up by large ocean currents. The main element that qualifies a substrate as acceptable for a soft coral is the amount of light it receives, although water temperature and the strength of the current are also important factors. Soft Corals :: Ecology Great Barrier Reef Essays Soft Corals Organisms of the order Alcyonacea, more commonly referred to as soft corals, are fascinating and poorly-understood animals. Although they are Cnidarians, and thus among the simplest of all animals, they have developed remarkable ways of thriving in the Great Barrier Reef and all over the world. They possess symbiotic relationships, special toxins, and several different methods of reproduction, each helping to ensure the survival of the various soft coral species. The purpose of this paper is to investigate physiological and ecological aspects of soft corals, especially the purposes and benefits behind their many reproductive strategies. Taxonomy: What is a soft coral? Soft corals are members of the phylum Cnidaria, meaning they have stinging cells, a gastrovascular cavity, and are radially symmetrical. They belong to the class Anthozoa, which also includes hard corals, sea fans, and anemones. Soft corals, sea fans, and sea pens are sometimes referred to as octocorals, as they have eight tentacles on each polyp. All soft corals belong to the order Alcyonacea, which is composed of several families (Order Alcyonacea 1995-2005.) The most common families on the Great Barrier Reef are Alcyoniidae, Nephtheidae, and Xeniidae. Corals in the family Alcyoniidae are often large and fleshy with medium-sized polyps, but can have many different forms. Xeniid corals have large polyps, usually in pale colors, and some of them pulsate. Corals that belong to Nephtheidae have small polyps, and are often branched and tree-like. Less common families on the Great Barrier Reef include Nidaliidae and Astrospiculariidae (Fabricius and De’ath 2002. ) Life Cycle Soft corals begin their lives as small, featureless free-swimming larvae called planulae (Alderslade and Fabricius 2002.) Planulae generally drift in a planktonic state for several days before finding an acceptable substrate. This allows soft corals to spread throughout large reefs like the GBR (Bastidas et al. 2001,) and also lets them colonize reefs around the world if the planulae are picked up by large ocean currents. The main element that qualifies a substrate as acceptable for a soft coral is the amount of light it receives, although water temperature and the strength of the current are also important factors.

Berkeleys Water Experiment :: Science Illusions Argument Papers

Berkeley introduces his water experiment in order to demonstrate that in perception the perceiver does not reach the world itself but is confined to a realm of representations or sense data. We will attempt to demonstrate that Berkeley's description of our experience at the end of the water experiment is inauthentic, that it is not so much a description of an experience as a reconstruction of what we would experience if the receptor organs (the left and right hands) were objects existing in a space partes extra partes. Our argument is that there is nothing in our experience of the illusion to suggest that under normal conditions perception does not reach the world itself. Traditionally Empiricists claim that all knowledge and all basic concepts are derived from experience. At the same time they argue that all experience is reducible to private entities, the so-called 'sense data'. Phenomenologists claim that there is nothing in experience itself to suggest that it is reducible to sense data, and that this doctrine is derived from metaphysical prejudices, the so-called 'assumptions of the natural attitude'. They argue that if we could in some way 'bracket' these assumptions and reflect only on our experience of perceiving and on the results of scientific measurements of our perceptual powers, we would discover that perception, rather than presenting us with private entities or 'data', 'opens up' to the world itself. (1) In A New Theory of Vision, Berkeley attempts to show that all experience is reducible to sense data by exploiting two types of argument. At times he exploits a scientific account of perception and of the functioning of the perceptual organs, while at other times he uses the argument from illusions. For example, he argues, that the experience of temperature can be understood with the analogy of the experience of pain, and just as the pain is not 'in the needle', so the warmth I feel is not in the fire. (2) He then argues in a similar vein that visual experience is reducible to collections of colour sensations because light passes into the eye ball and strikes the retina, in much the same way that a sharp object striking the skin produces a sensation of pain, such as a sensation of blue or red. (3) The sensation being the effect of the physical and chemical properties of the world on the sense organs and is as distinct from the world as photographic images are from the objects which cause them.

An Introduction to Qualitative Analysis Essay

Procedure Part I – Qualitative Analysis of Group 2 Elements Mix 0.02M K2CrO4 with each Mg(NO3)2, Ca(NO3)2, Sr(NO3)2 and Ba(NO3)2 together. Secondly, mix 0.1M (NH4)2C2O4 instead of 0.02M K2CrO4 together with the same reactants used before. Thirdly, mix 0.1M Na2SO4 with those reactants. Then, mix 0.1M NaOH with the same reactants used before again. Some precipitates should forms ,record the observations in Table 1. At last, identify those two unknown solution. Part II- Qualitative Analysis of Selected Anions First mix 1M HNO3 with each Na2CO3, Na2SO4, NaCl and NaI together. Repeat these steps by placing 0.1M Ba(NO3)2 instead of 1M HNO3. Then mix 1M HNO3 for the reactants that formed precipitates. Repeat the first step by placing 0.1M AgNO3 instead of 1M HNO3. Then add 6M NH3 to those mixtures that contains precipitates in, and 1M HNO3 the mixtures contains precipitates . Using these observation, identify an unknown union. Recording all the observations in Table 2. 3. State the identity of your unknown (along with its sample number). Give the reasoning you used to arrive at this conclusion. The Unknown Z should be SO42- because it has a same property as SO42- does. When SO42- is added to Ba(No3)2, and AgNo3, it forms a ppt; for the unknown anion, when it is added to Ba(No3)2, and AgNo3, it forms a ppt as well. When HNO3 is added to BaSO4, the ppt disappeared; for the unknown anion, when HNO3 is added to unknown, the ppt disappeared too, therefore we can conclude that the unknown is SO42-. Follow-Up Questions: 1. Devise a sequence of reactions to follow (using filtering or centrifuging where necessary to remove precipitates) to identify an unknown containing two or more cations of Group 2 elements. The Group 2 elements are Mg, Ca, Sr, and Ba. To identify an unknown containing two or more cations of Group 2 elements, first add CrO4 into the solution. Then we could identify them with their colour. Next we add C2O4, if the ppt is formed, then we know Ca2+ is involved in the solution. Next we add OH into the solution, if a ppt formed, that means Mg2+ is involved in the solution. 2.Devise a sequence of reaction to follow (using filtering or centrifuging where necessary to remove precipitates)to identify an unknown consisting of two or more of two or more of the anions tested in Part 2. The anions are CO32-,SO42-,Cl-,I-.To identify an unknown consisting of two or more anions in Part 2.First add HNO3 into solution. Then we could identify them with the observations. Then we add Ba(NO3)2,if ppt formed, then we know that CO32-is involved in the solution. Next we add HNO3 into the solution, if ppt formed, that means SO42- is involved I the solution. 3. Why are the reagents used to test for cations usually alkali metal salts or ammonium salts rather than salts of other metals? The reagents used to test for cations usually alkali metal salt or ammonium salts rather than salts of other metals because the alkali metal is soluble with most anions. It won’t form a ppt with other anions. These reagents will prevent any side reaction from occurring in the solution. 4. Why are the reagents used to test for anions usually a nitrate of the  cation that is reacting rather than other salts of that cation? The reagents used to test for anions usually a nitrate of the cation that is reacting rather than other salts of that cation because the nitrate is soluble with almost every cation. 5.For fast and accurate identification of substances, major research or testing laboratories now use very sophisticated (and expensive )equipment. Find out the name of one of the instruments now used for analysis, and briefly describe its method of operation. Use glass pane. When we do the lab, we make a table on the paper, then put the glass pane on the paper sheet. After that, we only drop one or two drops of each chemical. On the glass pane. It’s easier to observe the color of ppt because the glass is transparent and it’s also a economic way. Conclusion: In this lab, we carry out precipitation test of four cations and four anions, and use the observations to identify two unknowns. First we mix Mg2+, Ca2+, Sr2+, Ba2+ with K2CrO4, and observed that Sr2+ and Ba2+ forms a ppt. Then when we mix (NH4)2C2O4 instead of K2CrO4, we observed that all of the cations forms a ppt except for Mg2+. Next, we did the same thing by using Na2SO4 and NaOH instead of (NH4)2C2O4 . Lastly, we examined unknown B and found that it has the same chemical properties with Ca2+. So we conclude that the unknown substance should be Ca2+. In part II, we mix CO32-, SO42-, Cl-, and I- with HNO3 to each of the test tube and notice no ppt formed. Secondly, we mix Ba(NO3)2 instead of HNO3 with the anions, and we observed that CO32- and SO42- forms a ppt. Then we add HNO3 to the ones that formed ppt, and the ppt disappeared. Next, we mix AgNO3 instead of Ba(NO3)2 with the anions, and observed ppt formed with all of the anions except for SO42-. After that, we added HNO3 and NH3 separately to the anions and we observed no change in SO42-, but the precipitates that formed in CO32-, Cl-, and I- disappeared. And there is a ppt formed when NH3 is added to SO42-, and the other ones’ precipitates turns to a lighter ppt. By  using these observations, we found out the unknown ion contains the same chemical properties as SO42-. And if two ions are soluble to each other, there will be no ppt formed. If two ions are not soluble to each other, there will be a ppt formed.

Communicating Using Social Media Essay

Technology has developed tremendously the past decade, more so than it has in the past, and a variety of businesses are being challenged in this area. People from all over the world are constantly innovating new ideas, brainstorming on how to interact more efficiently, than and as fast as they or it possibly can. In order to do this, individuals must communicate with one another, using resources and updated tools to drive out the competition. Technology has changed business in many ways, but its affect on communication is arguably the most significant (Morley, 2013). Also, the skill to speak plainly and supportive is one of the talents that businesses look for in employees. The use of technology can assist students, companies, and computer gurus with communicating, which will lessen the time it takes. The use of social media in the workplace has elevated concerns about loss of time and productivity. However, our study reveals that at the workplace, social media is being increasingly used by professionals for multitasking and for better time management. (Revathy, 2012) Technology can also have penalties that diminish relationships without the tool as a mediator. There are positive, negative, and gray areas when discussing social networking, social media, and how it has affected businesses or the populace in general. Technology and communication are what make up social networking, which has become a â€Å"norm† for Generation X & Y. The findings came just a few months after the Kaiser Family Foundation reported that Americans between the ages of 8 and 18 spend on average 7 1/2 hours a day using some sort of electronic device, from smart phones to MP3 players to computers — a number that startled many adults, even those who keep their Blackberry’s within arm’s reach during most waking hours..(Stout, 2010) These generations are leading our country globally, internationally, and locally. Because it has been more recent that Smartphone’s and Apple products have flooded the market, there have not been a lot of comprehensive studies done on the impact it is having and I will alleviate on my findings. Social networking can lessen costs, make communication better, and is beginning to assist greatly with marketing departments all over the world. Digital technologies swiftly transform our communication style, the way we purchase and industry interactions in several departments. Compared to older technologies, new technologies have been adopted and implemented more quickly by individuals and businesses. Organizations that use social media are able to reach their consumers promptly, effortlessly, and receive quick responses. The ability to have questions answered immediately allows customer support staff to work faster without irritating the customer. The downside is that employees are less likely to engage in social activities away from their computers (Webster, 2010). While information and communication technologies influence brand loyalty and brand awareness, there is a secure relationship between demanding market-oriented configurations and improving customer loyalty, recognition, and satisfaction. When the influence of social media-focused information & communication technologies on the costs was determined, it was revealed that these technologies reduce administrative costs, supplier/partner costs, internal communication costs, and customer management costs, which in turn positively influences the business performance (Gecti & Dasan, 2013). It is a lot cheaper to do business in a social media environment when regarding promotions, expenses, and revenue made. Marketing, sales, and promotional activities done in social media environments provide businesses an opportunity to act independently of their physical environments (Gecti & Dasan, 2013). This article also spoke of employees having better relationships with one another, being able to conne ct online has helped their line of communication drastically; so their attitudes and work environment has improved as well. It was enlightening to see that these technologies definitely affect brand recognition of the corporation and customer devotion to services and products. Large and small companies seek to form a connection between their customers, products or services; particularly through advertisement and other creative activities. When sudden transfer of information, instant feedback, and broad areas of influence are considered especially in social media environments, businesses execute marketing-focused activities in these environments (Gecti & Dasan, 2013). The latest technologies guide the way; facilitate a new perspective, and guarantee positive and negatives for the nations’ wealth and businesses’. This brings to mind the surfacing of new applications for many telecommunications, companies, and individuals. Social media is exceptionally significant in viral marketing and in the encouragement of new products. Consciousness and successful use of social media has produced ample solutions in these areas and has generated a novel line of work for the information technology industry. As information travels faster and faster and more reliably, barriers of distance disappear, and businesses are realizing how easy it is to outsource jobs overseas (Mcgrath, 2013). There are additional positions being implemented daily into social networking and the people that are already in place in this segment are constantly growing. Someone is responsible for collecting the responses made by consumers and interpreting them so that they can pr omote â€Å"liked† items. By using Face Book and Twitter, generally you can determine whether a product is going places or not. Comments, news, or shares about products or companies in social networks, blogs, and news sites so on are constantly monitored through specially developed software to collect information and to provide instant response. In this way, businesses have a chance to store and manage the unstructured information (Kietzman, 2011). Traditionally, consumers used the Internet to simply expend content: they read it, they watched it, and they used it to buy products and services. Increasingly, however, consumers are utilizing platforms—such as content sharing sites, blogs, social networking, and wikis—to create, modify, share, and discuss Internet content. This represents the social media phenomenon, which can now significantly impact a firm’s reputation, sales, and even survival. Yet, many executives eschew or ignore this form of media because they don’t understand what it is, the various forms it can take, and how to engage with it and learn (Keitzmann, 2011). As all these positive aspects of social media can and is changing the way we think and buy. The major concern is that is moving so fast that the leaders making huge decisions that can affect our daily lives are reluctant in catching up with the new ways. This hesitance will cause a negative influence on communication in business and technology. Hopefully, eventually these two extremes will coincide and all generations can find a way to join together in moving forward at the same pace. Until then, future leaders of America will have to step up and find innovative ways to implement training in these areas. I believe that the more important thing to remember through all of the â€Å"change† is that we are doing it together and to be open minded to the idea that there may be a more efficient way to do something. Whether it is gain feedback or to simply get a shift covered, technology is changing fast and if he/she does not get on the fast train with the rest of the world, then companies may suffer extraneously. The negative sides to social media and technology in business communications consists of the obvious: misunderstood messages, misinterpreted texts, email, IM, etc., isolation, no actual social life, too public, and simply too difficult to comprehend. It’s worth noting, however, that today only 5 percent of communications occur on social networks. Moreover, almost all digital human interactions can ultimately become â€Å"social,† and jobs involving physical labor and the processing of transactions are giving way, across the globe, to work requiring complex interactions with other people, independent judgment, and the analysis of information. As a result, we believe social technologies are destined to play a much larger role not only in individual interactions but also in how companies are organized and managed. While the adoption of social technologies is growing rapidly, a huge untapped potential for them to create value remains (Bughin, Michael, James, 2012). That statistic was from last year and it was only five percent that companies actually engage in social media. I am positive the numbers have grown significantly, but I am also sure that there is a large percentage that does not want anything to do with this world. Some employers may feel social is inappropriate for the office because its name implies socializing rather than working (Poluck, 2012). There are many different ways that people can misunderstand emails or texts, especially when you cannot see the person. There are a lot of emoticons and symbols used to replace emotions, but without being able to look into someone’s eyes or see their body language, it is almost impossible to tell if they meant what they said the way that you think you should have interpreted it. People could waste valuable time trying to encrypt these messages when they could have picked up the phone. Having a pleasurable conversation with our family, friends or significant others, we lock our eyes to our computer and mobile device screens instead of listening and giving feedback. Technology has its advantages, but we should take a footstep back and grasp what it is doing to our skills, talents, and relationships. The question on researchers’ minds is whether all that texting, instant messaging and online social networking allows children to become more connected and supportive of their friends — or whether the quality of their interactions is being diminished without the intimacy and emotional give and take of regular, extended face-to-face time (Stout, 2010). Our children will be educated in a completely different era than we were, than our parents, and their parents which can be intimidating when you look carefully at how fast all of this happening. Also, another disadvantage that Morley says, â€Å"Instant communication can make it harder for workers to deal with one task at a time when their work is constantly being interrupted by comments and questions that relate to other projects or even personal issues. In fact, some employees must make an effort to turn off communication devices while they work to meet deadlines (Morley). Maybe companies are strategically planning ways to welcome new technologies or implementing training programs so that employees are aware of how to communicate effectively online. In my experience, I have not been in an organization that implemented a training program for communication, let alone a training of how to â€Å"tweet† professionally. If a company already has policies on misconduct, then mostly they could enforce the same rules when applying to social networking in the workplace. I did work for one hotel that took one of its sales persons and gave her the title of coordinator over social engagement. As I was leaving last summer, she was handling all trip advisor comments and applied them to the employees when it was good or bad. If there were good comments on particular employees, she would recognize and reward, which did motivate them. Through my research, I found limitless articles, journals, CDs, books, etc. that offered training on communication individually, group settings, and in the workplace. If I were to choose, I would definitely choose one that focuses on communicating respectively, but that also starts with the basics so that all ages and cultures can catch up to speed. Start with different departments and treat it as any training session, make it fun and interactive. If people are not given the knowledge, we cannot expect them to act any differently. People are representing their companies when they are working and when they are not. If those individuals are â€Å"connected† to people at work and you put your entire personal life online, then you can expect co-workers at your job to know the details of your weekend. Human resource department can also use these open networking sites to look up your page and see if you will be a good candidate or not. Whether it is positive or negative, the use of social media with technology in business communications is happening, regardless who likes it or who is not â€Å"ready† for it. References Bughin, J., Chui, M., & manyika, J. (2012). Capturing business value with social technologies. McKinsey Quarterly (4), 72-80. Geà §ti, F., & Dastan, I. (2013). The impact of social media-focused information & technologies on business performance via mediating mechanisms: An exploratory study on communication and advertising agencies in Turkey. International Journal of Business and Management, 8(7), 106-115. Retrieved from http://search.proquest.com/docview/1357565373?accountid=32521 Jan H. Kietzmann, Kristopher Hermkens, Ian P. McCarthy, Bruno S. Silvestre, Social media? Get serious! Understanding the functional building blocks of social media, Business Horizons, Volume 54, Issue 3, May–June 2011, Pages 241-251, ISSN 0007-6813, http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.bushor.2011.01.005. (http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0007681311000061) McGrath, Jane. (2008). How has technology changed the way we conduct business? HowStuffWorks.com. Retrieved from http://money.howstuffworks.com/technology-changed-business.htm Morley, Amanda. (n.d). Effects on Technology in Business Communications. Chron. Demand Media. Retrieved June 16, 2013 from http://smallbusiness.chron.com/effects-technology-business-communications-23045.html Pollack, J. (2009, May 23). ‘Something’s got to change’; social media the internet’s moving too fast for companies to not keep up with it – old traditions, such as memos, don’t work in the age of mass and immediate communication, tech executive says. Telegraph-Journal. Retrieved from http://search.proquest.com/docview/423358594?accountid=32521 Revathy, L. N. (2012, Mar 26). Business communication shifting to social media. Businessline. Retrieved from http://search.proquest.com/docview/1321923181?accountid=32521 Stout, Hillary. (2010, April 10). Antisocial Networking? New York Times. Retrieved from http://www.nytimes.com/2010/05/02/fashion/02BEST.html?pagewanted=all&_r=0 Webster, Shannon. (n.d.). What are the positive and negative effects of using technology to communicate? Chron. Demand Media. Retrieved June 16, 2013 from http://smallbusiness.chron.com/positive-negative-effects-using-technology-communicate-21241.html

Healing Hospital: A Daring Paradigm Essay

Components of Healing Hospitals Faith and hope are the greatest assets for the patient. Listening is the greatest asset of the caregivers. Addressing spiritual issues can make a difference in the patients’ experience of illness, and may even affect the outcome. Ministering to the patients’ spiritual needs and providing appropriate interventions has been identified as a professional nursing role. († Philosophical Foundation for Integrative Medicine,† 2012) Healing hospitals need to contribute to the physical needs and spiritual needs as well. Holistic nursing is becoming more prominent of caring for patients’, paying attention to the mind, body, and spirit. These are components of a healing hospital. According to Diana Vance (Vance, 2004), Patients’ religious faith and prayers were significantly correlated and reduced post-op pain and complications and mortality rates. Additionally prayer, spiritual perspective, and religious influence were positively correlated with enhanced coping skills for dealing with the stress of surgery and illness and an overall feeling of well-being during terminal illness. Regardless of whether spiritually is described as prayer, religious faith, or spiritual perspective, numerous studies have demonstrated the positive affects spiritually plays on physical and psychosocial health. (Vance, 2004) Prayer and medicine have been shown to decrease blood pressure as a result decreases the effects of heart disease. Studies also show meditation lowers blood sugar as well. Healing hospitals need to provide patients’ with staff educated in spiritualty and more holistic medicine. Massage therapy increases the oxygen and blood flow to the areas being massaged, the only exception is areas over bony prominences where pressure ulcers may develop. Biofeedback can be used to promote relaxation, heart rate. Guided imagery focuses and directs imagination. This can decrease blood pressure, respiratory rate, and can decrease pain. Healing touch consist of balancing physical, mental, emotional and spiritual well-being. Healing touch works with the body’s energy field to support its natural ability to heal. Healing Music therapy is being used to decrease stress, and can help patient manage  post-op pain. Healing gardens provide a place for patients can pray, meditate, and can use other therapies to aid in healing. Some hospital and nursing homes also participate in pet therapy. Florence Nightin gale promoted small pets as a companion for the sick. Pastoral care with representatives from the different faiths so that patients’ receive the pastoral care needed. Healing environments are not just for the patients. In order to effectively and therapeutically for other we must first know how to care for ourselves. Healing environments are an essentially prerequisites patients as well as staff members. Creating a Healing Environment Healing environments have had difficulties taking hold. Hospitals are known for cure and not healing. Until the past couple of years medical students were not instructed how spiritually can make a difference. One of the difficulties studies have found is that hospitals are noisy with overhead paging, bright lights and this increases patient stress, anxiety causing blood pressure, blood sugar, heart rate elevated, while also increases muscle tension. This situation decreases the bodies’ ability to heal. Overall nurses believe that some spiritual connection does increase the bodies’ ability to heal, gives patients inner-peace and contributes to overall well-being. Nurses need to develop a strong therapeutic relationship with the patient this increases the patients ability to discuss these sensitive issues. Acute care nurses are less equipped to deal with spiritual needs of this patient population. Hospice nurses, oncology, and rehabilitation nurses apply spiritual comfort , and have more education to deal with these issues. In some studies nurses’ claim reasons that keep them from discussing spiritual matters is lack of time, lack of confidence, and knowledge regarding the particular religion the patients’ practice. Despite attempt to present nurses’ spiritual care in a more positive light. Studies show that nurses’ treatment is incomplete only participating in more traditional therapies like prayer. (Grant, 2004) With cutbacks in hospital funding, and short stays spiritual care is considered a low priority. Nurses need to be educated in more modern therapies. Interventions should be developed and evaluated that utilize the best mix of hospital staff physicians, nurses, chaplains, social workers. Questionaries’ need to be  developed that ask if their spiritual needs were met while hospitalized in the acute care setting. Hospitals need to make spiritual care a higher priority in the acute care settings. (Vance, 2004) According to one article I read our spirituality is the foundation of our being rather than an aspect our being. Attention to spirituality and spiritual values is an important yet most-often neglected components in organizations. (Thornton, 2005) Hospitals need to create educational programs for patients’ and visitors to incorporate the idea of mind, body, and soul to foster the idea that all of these concepts are tied together as one. Keeping mind, body, and spirit health has shown to actually lower over health care cost. The healing environment is not just important to the patients and visitors. The staff needs this environment as well; hospitals need to make changes for staff. Keeping the staff energized and able to provide the best care possible. In the book of Matthew 4:23-25 NIV Describes the story of Jesus making his way through the synagogues spreading the gospel, healing the sick, healing every disease and illness. News spread all over Syria people came to him with all kinds of various diseases, those suffering in pain, the demon-possessed, those having seizures and the paralyzed. Christ healed them all. This best describes how healing hospitals should be. This scripture describes Christ healing physical issues it also describes Christ healing the spirit as well, by healing the demon possessed. Hospitals are in the business of healing, curing, and promoting over well-being. References Geimer-Flanders, J. (2014). Creating a healing environment: Rationale and research overview. Retrieved from http://www.ccjm.org/content/76/Suppl_2/S66.full Grant, D. (2004, Jan-Feb). Spiritual Interventions: How, When, and Why Nurses Use Them. Holistic Nursing Practice, 1(), 36-41. Retrieved from ebscohost.com.library.gcu.edu Spirituality and Religion in Health Care. (2012). Retrieved from http://www.bravewell.org/integrative_medicine/philosophical_foundation/spirituality_and_healthcare/ The Power of Beliefs and the Importance of Culture. (2014). Retrieved from http://www.bravewell.org/integrative_medicine/philosophical_foundation/beliefs_and_culture/ Thornton, L. (2005). The Model of Whole-Person Caring Creating

General Electric Essay

General Electric is an American conglomerate currently ranked #9 on the Fortune 500 list. The firm operates in four primary business segments; Energy, Technology Infrastructure, Capital Finance and Consumer / Industrial. Headquartered in Fairfield, CT, General Electric has grown over the past 122 years into a financial behemoth realizing revenue in excess of $146 billion in 2013. Throughout its existence, General Electric has demonstrated an inconsistent record in terms of ethical governance and responsible business practices. Like many of its peers, the firm endured a number of scandals, particularly in the late 1990’s and into the 2000’s. In response to these issues and in accordance with the Sarbanes-Oxley Act passed in 2002, General Electric has transformed its business practices and is now recognized as one of the more respected players in the world of corporate governance and honorable business practices. Contemporary business practices exercised by the firm have earned numerous accolades including: – #6 Best Global Brand (Interbrand) – #10 Most Admired Company (Fortune) – #180 Greenest Company (Newsweek) To understand how this corporate evolution occurred, we need to understand the organizational structure and managerial best practices utilized by General Electric and the nature of the legislation that necessitated this institutional change. What is Sarbanes-Oxley? The Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 (SOX) is a federal law that mandated new or enhanced standards for all U.S. public company boards, management and public accounting firms. Drafted in response to a number of high-profile corporate scandals that occurred in the late 1990’s and early 2000’s by U.S. Senator Paul Sarbanes and U.S. Representative Michael Oxley; the legislation imposed several powerful mechanisms designed to curb corporate malfeasance and to protect investors. The most significant of these mechanisms included individual certification of corporate financial statements by top management, increased penalties for fraudulent activity and the separation of auditing and consulting functions in outside business agencies. (www.soxlaw.com) The overarching effect of this legislation was the increased scrutiny of financial statements submitted by publicly traded  companies and growing corporate auditing expenditures. (Sidime, 2007) Board Composition: structure and governa nce General Electric has been a progressive company in terms of Board composition and governance. (see composition matrix – attached)For decades, the company has demonstrated a desire to promote diversity in governance from three primary perspectives: gender, race and age. In addition, General Electric had historically satisfied many of the obligations outlined in the Sarbanes Oxley legislation well in advance of its passage including listing the definition of individual committees and the number of committee meetings. (General Electric Annual Report – 2000) One potential conflict that exists with the General Electric governance strategy is the combination of President / CEO and Chairman roles. This is a practice that the company has exercised since Ralph Cordiner combined these responsibilities in 1958 and continues today with Jeffrey Immelt serving in the role since 2001. An additional challenge that exists within the Board structure of General Electric is the lack of ter m limits. Nominated individuals are approved annually through a majority of votes present and may continue to serve indefinitely. This issue was debated recently when shareholders proposed a 15 year term limit of Board service along with separation of the CEO / Board Chair role. The measure was defeated in a lopsided vote held during the company’s April 2013 Board meeting. (Catts, 2013) Audit Committee Consisted of outside directors. Held 5 meetings in 2000. Reviewed the activities and independence of GE’s independent auditors as well as the firm’s financial reporting processes. Composed of independent directors. Held 11 meetings in 2003. â€Å"to review the activities and independence of GE’s external auditorsand the activities of GE’s internal audit staff†¦also reviewed GE’s system of disclosure controls and procedures.† Composed of independent directors. Held 12 meetings in 2013. Primary responsibilities include: selection of independent auditor, review the independent audit, oversee the firm’s financial reporting activities and accounting standards. Tenure Combination of cash & stock. $75,000 annual base plus $2,000 per meeting. Combination of cash & stock. $250,000 base, 10% premium for service on auditing or compensation committee. Removed contingent service reward of 5,000 shares. Combination of cash, stock & other. $250,000 base. Average compensation = $302,457 The moral of the story as it relates to Board structure and Governance within General Electric is that while the firm did work to shore up its regulatory and oversight positions post SOX; the company had exercised the basic principles outlined in the legislation for some time. Performance Metrics & Executive Compensation General Electric has functioned for decades under the philosophy of hiring, motivating, rewarding and retaining its executive leaders through compensation. The company has maintained an executive compensation model that includes salary, bonuses and stock options as the vehicle to achieve this goal for decades. While the total compensation packages at the highest levels of leadership are not as lucrative as they once were – General Electric has adapted its compensation policies in order to remain competitive and compliant in an evolving business environment. 2000 – Jack Welch In the year 2000, Jack Welch stood without peer in the world of American business. Recently named â€Å"Manager of the Century† by Fortune Magazine, (Colvin, 1999) General Electric increased revenues to nearly $130 billion. During this year Mr. Welch earned $16,700,000 in salary and bonus. In addition, Mr. Welch was granted 3,000,000 stock options which became exercisable upon retirement as well as 850,000 restricted stock options. The later options were granted by the board in appreciation of 20 years of service to GE. Furthermore, Mr. Welch was granted a split-dollar life insurance policy contingent upon execution of a personal consulting contract (up to 30 days annually) at the discretion of the acting CEO. Final terms of the consulting contract and retirement package are not listed, but the value is estimated to be north of $420 million. 2003 – Jeffrey Immelt Jeffrey Immelt emerged as the new CEO of General Electric following a highly publicized succession process in 2001. Perhaps due to his relatively short tenure to this point, but more likely due to the passage of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act; overall executive compensation was revised at General Electric in 2003. In addition to a more responsible base salary, executive bonuses and stock options were much more clearly outlined and defined in the 2003 proxy statement. While the Board Compensation Committee does state: â€Å"We  rely upon judgement and not rigid guidelines or formulas or short-term changes in our stock price in determining the amount and mix of compensation elements for each executive officer† official documents include an element of specificity not previously available to investors. Mr. Immelt was paid a $3,000,000 base salary and bonuses totaling $4,325,000 – a 10% increase from the previous year. In addition, Mr. Immelt was granted 250,000 performance share units in lieu of stock options. This is the most significant change related to executive compensation policies that occurred at General Electric post SOX. From the 2003 GE Proxy Statement: â€Å"These performance share units are intended to recognize the unique position of the GE CEO. The committee believes that the CEO of GE needs no retention compensation, and that his equity compensation should be focused entirely on performance and alignment with investors.† This change in policy effectively linked 50% of the CEO’s equity compensation directly to the company’s cash generation performance; the remaining 50% would only convert to shares if specific shareholder return metrics were met. In short; the better the performance of the firm – the better the compensation for Mr. Immelt. Finally, select executives at GE (including Mr. Immelt) were granted 3-year performance incentive awards. These award s would be paid only upon achievement of unlisted specified goals related to: earnings per share, revenue growth, return on total capital and cumulative cash generated. 2013 – Jeffrey Immelt Today, the evolution of executive compensation continues at General Electric. The 2013 Proxy Report provides a thorough and defined description of all elements and metrics used to determine final executive compensation. Following essentially the same compensation model initiated in 2003, Jeffrey Immelt realized total compensation (including projected pension value) of $20,592,769. Leadership, Ethics & Firm Values General Electric is a perfect case study in the evolution of an American business. Formed in 1892 primarily as an electric company, the firm has grown into a global dynamo. Today the company operates in several areas including finance, appliances and power systems. This type of evolution and growth does not happen by accident, it is the result of visionary leadership  Ã¢â‚¬â€œ a quality that has existed within GE for a century. Founded by one of this country’s greatest innovators, General Electric has embodied the vision of Thomas Edison since its inception. The company has dabbled, innovated and revolutionized a number of industries throughout its existence. This truth is a testament to the men that have lead the organization throughout the years. (see past leaders – attached) More recently, present-day General Electric has been molded primarily by two individuals who utilized their personal skill to direct the company through a challenging time. Jack Welch (1980 â⠂¬â€œ 2001) Jack Welch joined GE in 1960 as a junior chemical engineer. Early in his tenure, Welch considered leaving the organization citing a frustration with an overwhelming bureaucracy that existed within the firm. Welch was convinced to stay and worked his way up the ranks becoming Chairman and CEO in 1980. Welch became one of the most successful executives in the history of the United States during his tenure, growing the value of the company by 4000%. He accomplished this by imposing leadership efficiency practices throughout the company. Welch promoted strong businesses by limiting bureaucratic inefficiencies, trimming inventory and closing factories. His governing philosophy at GE was that a company should either be number 1 or number 2 in a particular industry or it should get out of that business. Welch adopted Motorola’s Six Sigma quality program in 1995 to further streamline operating efficiencies. In addition, Welch instituted a rigorous method of assessing organizational performance and leadership termed Session C. The goal of this program is to provide feedback and identify talent to managers within the organization. During Jack Welch’s tenure, General Electric became wildly profitable and became recognized as the preeminent organization in terms of operating efficiency and profitability. Mr. Welch’s methods, while successful were generally autocratic and focused on two specific issues: profitability and legal compliance. Jeffrey Immelt (2001 – present) Jeff Immelt was groomed to lead General Electric from a young age. Immelt’s father worked for GE in the Aircraft Engines Division. After receiving his A.B. in Applied Mathematics from Dartmouth College, Immelt earned an M.B.A.  from Harvard. Jeffrey Immelt formally joined General Electric in 1982 and began his professional ascent. Following a public and high-profile transition; Immelt was challenged with the difficult task of replacing legendary GE CEO Jack Welch in 2001. Immelt was immediately dealt two unparalleled challenges upon assuming the position – the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001 and to a lesser extent the public backlash attached to the prominent accounting scandals that occurred at the turn of the century. Immelt began to create an impact immediately, adopting a more people-oriented approach to management than the efficiency-minded approach that had governed GE for the preceding two decades. Immelt launched a series of effectiveness-oriented meas ures that encouraged innovation and risk-taking. Immelt also began to look to developing markets in search of opportunity. Finally, Jeffrey Immelt moved GE’s operational focus to areas not previously considered: concentration on long-term growth over short-term gains, infrastructure development with an emphasis on green energy and increased marketing efforts focused on social responsibility. The contrast between these two vastly different yet extremely effective leaders provides an interesting snapshot of the effects of the evolution in American business following the corporate scandals of the late 1990’s and early 2000’s. While General Electric was not directly attached to a major scandal during that era, the timing of GE’s leadership transition was fortuitous. While there is certainly room for a chicken vs. egg debate regarding the change in managerial philosophy at GE; the change in leadership at the top of the company definitely provided an opportunity to shift course in the post-SOX business world. Corporate Sustainability & Social Responsibility Similar to many traditional American manufacturing powers, General Electric did not exercise sustainable business practices for the bulk of its existence. This, of course, was not uncommon in American industry. However, at the turn of the century, the first mention of social responsibility appeared in a GE company document. â€Å"Integrity: the Spirit and the Letter of Our Commitment† was a comprehensive document outlining the company’s policies related to privacy, supplier relationships, working with governments, environment, health and safety. The initial draft of this document was essentially a rule book seeking to achieve legal compliance in  the various nations where General Electric conducted business. The following year, (2001) two share owner proposals sought to amend and bolster the â€Å"Integrity† statement – Share Owner Proposal No. 2; which attempted to â€Å"improve the quality of life for employees and their communities† by allowing collective bargaining, eliminating discrimination & intimidation and promoting free labor, as well as Share Owner Proposal No. 3 which called for the Board to discontinue and renounce a PR campaign initiated by the General Electric Company that downplayed the dangerous effects of PCB’s dumped in the Hudson river by the company. The GE Board of Directors voted against both proposals. The reality of the Board’s actions demonstrates that the early years of General Electric’s sustainability and social responsibility programs were based in superficial statements only. In 2003, General Electric launched an interactive, electronic version of its Annual Report. This new medium included a section devoted to the â€Å"Citizenship† initiatives active within the company. The two paragraph overview acknowledged the need for a modern corporation to practice environmental compliance, leadership in corporate governance and high ethical standards. The document lists various social programs supported by the organization and its employees including nebulous philanthropic and volunteer efforts. While a step in the right direction, an outside observer may still question the level of commitment GE expressed to its sustainable programming. The strategy did not contain the measurable, quantifiable objectives r equired to effectively execute a large-scale sustainability program. (Epstein, 2003) Today, General Electric has created and maintains a robust, independent website dedicated to corporate sustainability. www.gesustainability.com outlines GE’s commitment to long-term sustainable business practices including: internal processes, (people, governance, compliance and health & safety) sustainability initiatives (health, energy & climate, water and natural resources) and progress (public policy, grassroots activism, lobbying, human rights and research). Most importantly, the site lists and outlines performance metrics used to govern their processes including the GRI G3 Sustainability Reporting Guidelines. The end result of the GE sustainability program has been a complete remake of the GE brand identity. Today; General Electric is recognized as a leader in corporate and social responsibility, receiving accolades from: The Human  Rights Campaign, (Corporate Equality) CR Magazine, (100 Best Corporate Citizens) Dow Jones Sustainability Index (Sustainable Business Prac tices) and the US President’s Volunteer Service Award amongst many others. In summary, General Electric is not a company without fault. Issues with comingling of responsibility at the top, lack of diversity in executives, and a series of accounting scandals in the early 2000’s are a few of the complications that the organization has witnessed. However; in terms of the ability of a large corporation to evolve in order to remain relevant throughout time, GE has fared better than most. Resources – Catts, T. (2013, April 24). GE investors reject 15-year term limits for board members. Bloomberg. Retrieved from www.bloomberg.com/news /2013-04-24/ge-investors-reject-15-year-term-limits-for-board-members.html – Colvin, G (1999, November 22). The ultimate manager in time of hidebound, formulaic thinking, General Electric’s Jack Welch gave power to the worker and the shareholder. He built one hell of a company in the process. Fortune. Retrieved from www.archive.fortune.com/magazines/fortune/fortune_archive/1999/11/22/269126/index.htm – Epstein, M. & Roy, M. (2003). Improving sustainability performance: specifying, implementing and measuring key principals. Journal of General Management. Vol.29, No. 1 2003. – Sidime, A. (2007, February 18). The good and bad of Sarbanes-oxley. San Antonio Express-News. Retrieved from http://search.proquest.com/docview/262392306?accountid=12381 – Rachel, E.S. (2002, October 29). GE adds 2 outside directors in move to boost governance. Wall Street Journal. Retrieved from http://search.proquest.com/docview/398860308?accountid=12381 – Watson, I. (2002, June 30). GE caught up in US accounting scandal. Knight Ridder Tribune Business News. Retrieved from http://search.proquest.com/docview/462671234?accountid=12381 – General Electric Corporation. Wikipedia. Retrieved from www.en.wikipedia.org/wiki/general_electric – Jack Welch. Wikipedia. Retrieved from www.en.wikipedia.org/wiki/jack_welch – Jeffrey Immelt. Wikipedia. Retrieved from www.en.wikipedia.org/wiki/jeffrey_immelt – General Electric Proxy Statements. (2000,2003,2013). SEC. Retrieved from www.sec.gov/archives/edgar/data – The Spirit & The Letter (.pdf). GE.com. Retrieved from www.ge.com/files/usa/commitment – www.soxlaw.com