Paul Van Dyke Concert Critique Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Paul Van Dyke Concert Critique - Essay Example The costumes of the artist are a black shirt and black trouser. The staging of the singer is on a podium. The shooting of the video makes him appear to be moving across the podium from left to right and vice versa. A large part of the song mixes music, light, and motion using electrical control. The musicians were well prepared since the song achieved all the musical elements and styles in an efficient manner. The song is quite entertaining and has a message too. This is evidence that the musicians had a good command to the instruments (Ann 103). The song acted as an informative device to me. It made me feel the different and contrasting situations that humans undergo just because of the existing difference in time (Ann 98). The vocal style of the song is a soft one, which is not easy to understand. The next song is â€Å"the other side.† The song is categorized under the electronic dance music. The song has employed instruments such as guitar, drums, and piano. The vocal style used in the song is a soft one, and is easy to comprehend and interpret, with relevance to the video. Analyzed and interpreted, it is a political song showing the necessity of a good relationship between the top leading politicians in a given society and their subjects within the same society. The rhythm of the song is a complex one since there more than one rhythms in the song. It is easy for a dancer to get lost while listening. The song has a strong beat which changes in pitch and speed throughout the song. The tempo of the song is a medium a fast one. The costumes of the singer is a uniform black, both shirt and trouser. Other characters are in white attire. Considering the song’s choreography, there is no dancing on the performance of the song as the entire song takes place in the house of an old man. It looks like a story, in the making. The song was performed on a concert in New York. The musicians were not well prepared as there were difficulties hearing their voices. The instruments were high in volume submerging the performer’s voices. The lighting was red, in color making the background of the show appear red. The performers had a good command of music. Like other audiences, the song made me feel bad about the political system in our nation, where the top leaders behave like totalitarians towards their poor subjects. â€Å"Crush† is another song done by Dyke. There is the use of guitar, saxophones, trumpet, and drums in the song. It is electronic dance music. It is also classified under classical music. The vocal style is shouted, as there is a rising and falling of tones within the performance. The words or lyrics are difficult to understand. The core message

The Moral Permissibility of Rendition Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

The Moral Permissibility of Rendition - Essay Example Renditions are swifter, more secretive, and more uncomplicated than legally permissible extraditions, which can be prolonged, indecisive, and politically laden (Garcia, 2010). President Bush, at a briefing in April 2005, was grilled about renditions and offered the following response (Garcia, 2010, 5): â€Å"We operate within the law and we send people to countries where they say they’re not going to torture the people.† Nevertheless, the reality is that the United States has repeatedly transported alleged terrorists to countries, such as Syria, Pakistan, Jordan, Egypt, and Saudi Arabia where charges of torture have been widespread. Many intelligence officers are very much knowledgeable of this and are aware of the decadent aspect of renditions but remain steadfast to the belief that these are a major instrument in the fight against terrorism (Olson, 2007). A contributory issue is whether it is moral to allow and to exploit intelligence recognized or thought of having b een extracted by an open state through torture. Or, more importantly, are renditions morally permissible? A legal consultant to the British administration stated that it was â€Å"not illegal to obtain and to use intelligence acquired by torture† (Olson, 2007, 70). ... In truth, it is questionable that it is the presence of an idealistic unconditional prohibition on torture that has pushed torture â€Å"beneath the radar screen of accountability, (Steiner, Alston, & Goodman, 2008, 250),† and that license to perform torture in extremely rare cases would, actually, discourage its use due to the raised degree of accountability. The unconditional ban on torture is undoubtedly one of the reasons that the United States exercises rendition, which comprises arresting, incarcerating, transferring, and interrogating alleged terrorists in countries where they cannot gain themselves the standard ban that work with regard to inhumane practices of interrogation (Steiner et al., 2008). The procedure of rendition is intolerable because it is completely unfettered, not because it is morally reprehensible. The rationale is moral necessity: critical information has to be obtained from offenders themselves. But the unconditional legal ban on torture hampers fre e and well thought-out debate on this issue. Above all, there is no proof that legalizing rendition will result in abuse of other rights where the requirements for the process are precisely defined. Moral arguments against rendition merely acquire some grip where there is proof that a process identical to that being suggested has reached outside its projected range of use after the process was legalized (Rosenbaum, 2005). According to Garcia (2010), the relevant aspects of the moral arguments for rendition are (1) the rationale for the process is benevolence; (2) it requires forfeiting a lesser motive of a particular individual to bestow a higher gain on another; (3) it is practically definite that the suspect holds the critical information; and (4)

Types Of Business Organization In The Private Sector Economics Essay

Types Of Business Organization In The Private Sector Economics Essay Consist of privately owned business firm or organization, which are formed when entrepreneurs decide to form a firm for the purpose of producing goods and services. Although the entrepreneur (assuming one person) is the owner is not the same entity. The firm (i.e. company or business organization) has its own legal identity that is separate from its owner or owners. The firm actually is an artificial person, and can make contracts, sue and sued, besides owning property and hiring employees; this legal identity is acquired when the firm becomes an incorporated association. The firm may have only one owner (sole proprietorship) or many owners (e.g. unlimited number of shareholders owning a public limited/ listed company), Sole Trader or Sole Proprietorship It is a form business organization in which a person simply sets up to provide goods or services at a profit. In a proprietorship, the proprietor, or owner, is the firm. The assets and liabilities of the firm are the owners assets and liabilities without limit. Business is one where a single individual uses his own funds to start and operate the business. As such, he is entitled to all the profits generated by the business, while at the same time is also responsible for all the losses that may occurs. The Sole Trader is often responsible for the day-to-day management of the business. No legal obligation to be made available to the public(i.e. publish) the financial accounts of a sole trading business is not incorporated business entity and as such the owner is liable for all debts of the sole proprietorship. Example: Sole Trader Business are: hairdressers storekeepers plumbers electricians PC technicians News agent Neighborhood and groceries etc. Partnership Partnership is unincorporated associations whose membership may range from two to twenty members. Partnerships do not have a separate legal entity. All partners provide the necessary finances for the business and will enjoy both profits and losses in agreed percentages, depending on the contribution of each individual into the partnership. Partnerships have unlimited liability and each partner is jointly liable with the other members for any debt incurred by the business. A partnership agreement is usually drawn up by a lawyer ( or legal council), which details the contribution of each part( in cash or in kind), the role and responsibilities of each partner, conditions under which the partnership may be terminated, distribution or compensation in the event of withdrawal of one partner ( termination of partnership) and options for handling intra-partner disputes. Personal names or trade names can be used as business names, and the Application of Business Name form must be filled in before a business can be registered. 4.) Private Limited Companies Private Limited Company:  Private limited companies are small- to medium-sized businesses that are often run by a  family or small group of owners. Most unlimited companies range from being small and medium sized. Most of the time they are run by family members and closed friends. Usually refers to privately owned firms and organizations with limited liabilities. Private Limited Companies are those shares (to represent shares/ percentage of ownership) held privately by individuals who are usually family members or a small group of acquaintances. The general public cannot subscribe (buy) shares in private companies through the open market (i.e. Stock Exchange). Private Limited Companies is restricted t by law and by the companys rules. In contrast anyone may buy shares in a public limited company. Can be found in most countries, although the detailed rules governing them vary widely. It is also common for a distinction to be made between the publicly tradable companies. A company that does not have share capital, but is guaranteed by its    members who agree to pay a fixed amount in the event of the companys liquidation. Charitable organizations often incorporate using this form of limited liability. Private Limited Companies is flexible form of enterprises that blends elements of partnership and corporate structures. The firm of organizations must work a legal framework which governs what they can or cannot do. The law requires for any new limited liability company to provide two documents: Articles of Association provide details on the internal rules of the company. Although the nature of association between members may vary, the Articles of Association must always contains information; the nominal capital when / how shareholders meeting are to be conducted. Voting rights of the shareholders. name of directors. how the directors are appointed. extent and nature of directors authority. how profits and losses will be distributed. Memorandum of Association provides details on the external rules and relations of the company by defining the constitution and authority of the company. Memorandum must always contain the: company name (must include the words limited). address of the registered office. statement of companys aims( must be legal proper). scope of its activities. amount of capital the company wants to raise. statement that the shareholders liability is limited. Private Corporations Companies registered under the Companies Act and Incorporation most common method that firms used to establish themselves a s a separate legal entity, i.e. only incorporated companies have a separate legal identity. 5.) Public Limited Companies Public Limited Company:  Most unlimited companies range from being small and medium sized. Most of the time they are run by family members and closed friends .They are only liable for the business up to the amount they have invested in the company, and are not liable for the debts incurred by the company unless signing a personal guarantee. And those that are listed on the Stock Exchange and members of the general public can but and sell shares of such companies. Owners of shares (shareholders) in such companies are true owner of the business. Whose operations involves many different business sectors ( e.g. several sectors health care, construction, property development, plantation, manufacturing, tourism, education,etc.) become a conglomerate and if such operation/subsidiaries are located in many different countries, then they become Multi National Companies. As their names implied means that the personal liability of the owners (shareholders) is restricted to the amount of money the individuals owner has invested into the company. 6.) Unlimited Companies Unlimited Companies Unlimited Company is where there is no limit to the members liabilities. It is a hybrid company incorporated either with or without a share capital (and similar to its limited company counterpart) but where the liability of the members or shareholders is not limited that is, its members or shareholders have a joint, several and unlimited obligation to meet any insufficiency in the assets of the company in the event of the companys formal liquidation. Companies that do not have any restriction on the personal liability of the owner. In the even of company making loss, then the owners will be liable for all debts. This may hence require them to sell off their private property and/ or possessions (house, land, cars, furniture, jewelry, etc.) to repay their portion of the debt. A corporation structure that permits a company to be incorporated and flew all profits and losses to share holders, an unlimited company shelters shareholders from liability in most circumstances except upon liquidation of the company. Shareholders or past shareholders that despots of their shares less than one year before liquidation become liable for the debts of the company. 7.) Multinational Companies Multinational Companies is essentially a holding company that owns shares in many subsidiary companies located in many different countries. Each subsidiary companies within the holding company will be subjected to the company law of the host country in which the subsidiary is located. They are usually connected by share ownership as well as managerial control. Examples of multinational includes: Shell, Citibank, Siemens, Nestle, IBM, Philips, etc. Multinational companies providing overseas subsidiaries, access turnover (Net Sales), produce of world output. Suppliers and the leading company in the wholesale distribution market and service industry. Do bring some benefits to developing countries. They provide jobs and increase the wealth of local people. Country gains some wealth by way taxes. However, there is some problem as well. The jobs all often low- skilled and poorly paid. Much of profit will go out the country, and the company may pull out to relocate in a country, where it can make greater profits. Primarily interested in making profits for their shareholders. Paying wages is an expense that the company will try to reduce to as low a level as possible. 8.) Conglomerates A holding company, which owns substantial shareholding in companies (subsidiaries), involved in different sectors.   Like examples sun way groups: civil engineering construction, building materials, trading manufacturing. Conglomerates are strictly diversified business interest in producing a varied and wide range of different products. And it is a corporation whose multiple business units operate in different, often unrelated, areas, management umbrella. In some, but not all, cases, the formerly independent elements conglomerates retain their brand identities, though they are responsible to the conglomerates management. . In reality, conglomerates are very useful to the public because support for the agricultural, manufacturing, and industrial and or services. For examples, the Rank organization own subsidiary companies trading. Question 1 Economic Growth is an increase of capital gross domestic of per capital product (GDP) other measure of aggregate income, typically reported as the annual rate of change in real G.D.P. Economics Growth driven by improvement in productivity , involve producing more goods and services with the same input of labor, capital, energy and materials. ( Mankiw 2007).Economist draw a distinction between economics stabilization and long term economics growth. Economics Growth is primarily concerned with long-run, short -run variation of economics growth is termed the business cycle. Economics Growth also occurs when a society acquires or when society learns to produce more with existing resources. New resources may mean a larger labor force or increased capital stocks. The production and use of new machinery and equipment (capital) increases the productivity of workers. Improved productivity also comes from technological change and innovation. Inflation is the increase in the general level of prices of product and services over a specified period of time. Inflation rate can be estimated by measuring the percentage change in the consumer price index, which indicates the price on wide variety of consumer products such as grocery product, housing, gasoline, medical services and electricity. Inflation can effect a firms operating expenses from producing products by increasing the cost of supplies and materials, wages can also be affected by inflation. A higher level of inflation will case a higher increase in a firms operating expenses. A firms revenue may also be high during periods of high inflation because may firm change higher price to compensate for higher expenses.( N. Gregory Mankiw 2007) Productivity is a measure of output from production process, per unit of input, like labor productivity typically also measured as a ratio of output an input. And also conserve of as a metric of the technical or engineering efficiency of production. In nations where workers are less productive, most people endure a more meager existence. Similarly, growth rate of a nations productivity determines the growth rate of its of average income. Productivity the average labor or output of a single worker is important to determine the standard of living. Most country facing a slow economics growth is: Former China, Greece and some Eastern Europe countries. Economic problems of every country are: Price Stability One of the key economics growth is to ensure that the price levels within the country is maintained with minimal fluctuations. Fluctuating price levels will create uncertainty, causing a wait- and see attitude among: consumers, who are ensure of buying now or to wait for the price to fall. Instead of falling, price levels may increase and consumers may then be force to forego consumption. firms, who are unsure of investing now since it is possible for the price of capital goods to also fall in the near future. Again, the price level may rise instead of falling thus causing firm to postpone investment since the cost is now higher than expected. Buying or investing at the wrong time may therefore create frustration and dissatisfaction among consumers and firms. On the other hand, continues increase in price levels although more consistent (i.e. everyone is expecting the price to increase) will lead to inflation and its related problems will then surface. Economics Growth faster than Population Growth Economics growth slow needed to spur the people and to improve their standard of living, which is determined by the ratio between economic growth over population growth. If a countrys population grows faster than its economy, then there will be a decline in living standards and this will lead to many social and other economic problems. The same amount of wealth is now distributed over more people, hence everyone gets lesser than before. Standard of living will also decline if the economic growth is slower than the rate of inflation. This means that the people will need to pay more for a similar basket (combination) of goods and services. Therefore, people with fixed incomes can buy lesser (or enjoy a smaller basket of goods and services) as inflation continues. c) Low Unemployment of Resources This is important to ensure that available resources (especially labor) are fully employed to produce more goods and service. When labor, land and capital are fully employed, more income will be earned (i.e. wages, rental and interest) resulting in higher expenditures among the owners of the factors of production (labor, land and capital respectively). Excess production may also be exported to other countries to earn foreign exchange, making a country economically stronger, in relation to the rest of the world. Countries with high unemployment will tend to have more economic and social problems, such as the following: higher crime rates and corruption activities (since people may resort to illegal means to get more money). health problems and malnutrition (since some people will not eat enough to eat or to have proper diets). D) Equitable Distribution of Income and Wealth It is important for a country to have a fair distribution of income and wealth among its people. The gap between the rich and poor must not be too great. The government must therefore practice an equitable resource allocation system deciding: what to produce? how much to product? for whom to product? Disparity in wealth ownership and distribution will also create various and economics problems. This problem results in low demand for products and services which can reduce a firms revenue. Even the firms that provide basic products or services are adversely affected by a slow economic because customers tend to reduce their demand. The potential impact of slow economic growth is reflected some company expect to experience significant fluctuations in future performance due to general economics growth. When economics is negative for two consecutive quarters, the period is referred to as a recession. When Europe is weak. Worker as laid off by firms and therefore have money that they can used to buy product or services. If economics growth slows the impact economic condition can spread quickly across all business. When condition weak some businesses are more affected more other than others. Nevertheless, most business are adversely affected by economic condition because the demand for product in almost all industrial declined( Markin 2007). Conclusion Introduction to Business is a subject in which a little knowledge goes a long way. By now i realize that all countries in the world have a government entrusted with the responsibility to achieve. Economics goals such as attaining price stability, economic growth, low unemployment and equitable distribution of income and wealth. Government today practice mixed economics system as it attempt to solve the economics problem that resulted from their inability to achieve the desire economics goals. Therefore capitalistic in nature with different degree of government intervention. As such, all countries have both a public sector and private sector.

Computer Engineering - A Carrer as a Computer Software Engineer :: Computer Software Engineering

Computer Engineering - A Carrer as a Computer Software Engineer Introduction The explosive impact of computers and information technology on our everyday lives has generated a need to design and develop new computer software systems and to incorporate new technologies in a rapidly growing range of applications. The tasks performed by workers known as computer software engineers evolve quickly, reflecting new areas of specialization or changes in technology, as well as the preferences and practices of employers. Computer software engineers apply the principles and techniques of computer science, engineering, and mathematical analysis to the design, development, testing, and evaluation of the software and systems that enable computers to perform their many applications. (1) Background Software engineers working in applications or systems development analyze users ¡Ã‚ ¦ needs and design, construct, test, and maintain computer applications software or systems. Software engineers can be involved in the design and development of many types of software, including software for operating systems and network distribution, and compilers, which convert programs for execution on a computer. In programming, or coding, software engineers instruct a computer, line by line, how to perform a function. They also solve technical problems that arise. Software engineers must possess strong programming skills, but are more concerned with developing algorithms and analyzing and solving programming problems than with actually writing code. (2) Computer applications software engineers analyze users ¡Ã‚ ¦ needs and design, construct, and maintain general computer applications software or specialized utility programs. These workers use different programming languages, depending on the purpose of the program. The programming languages most often used are C, C++, and Java, with Fortran and COBOL used less commonly. Some software engineers develop both packaged systems and systems software or create customized applications. (4) Computer systems software engineers coordinate the construction and maintenance of a company ¡Ã‚ ¦s computer systems and plan their future growth. Working with a company, they coordinate each department ¡Ã‚ ¦s computer needs ¡Xordering, inventory, billing, and payroll record keeping, for example ¡Xand make suggestions about its technical direction. They also might set up the company ¡Ã‚ ¦s intranets ¡Xnetworks that link computers within the organization and ease communication among the various departments. (3) Systems software engineers work for companies that configure, implement, and install complete computer systems. They may be members of the marketing or sales staff, serving as the primary technical resource for sales workers and customers. They also may be involved in product sales and in providing their customers with continuing technical support. Computer software engineers often work as part of a team that designs new hardware, software, and systems.

Paper VS Electronic Media Essay

Paper vs. Electronic Media: Work Efficiency and Environmental Impact Hirohito Shibata; Fuji Xerox Co., Ltd., 6-1 Minatomirai, Nishi-ku, Yokohama, Kanagawa, 220-8668, Japan Abstract Table 1. CO2 emissions per unit quantity for each product This presentation quantitatively compares paper and  electronic media from the perspectives of CO2 emissions and work efficiency. Should we reject paper out of hand based on  environmental considerations? Can electronic reading devices replace paper books for leisure and work? I discuss these issues based on various analyses and experiments. Product Introduction Although the paperless office has been repeatedly dismissed  as a myth [1], since 2008, the consumption of office paper in Japan has actually declined. With the advent of electronic reading devices such as Apple’s iPad and the Amazon Kindle, the idea of the paperless office is back in the spotlight. How seriously should we take this second coming of the paperless office? What will happen to paper? What are the relative merits of paper and electronic media? My colleagues and I at Fuji Xerox are currently at work on a research project that seeks to answer these questions. This presentation consists of two parts. The first part  compares paper to electronic media from an environmental  perspective, comparing CO2 emissions generated by paper vs. electronic media (e.g., computer displays, projectors) for reading or reference work. I also compare work efficiency for paper vs. computer displays. The second part compares paper books and  electronic reading devices (e.g., iPad, Kindle) and discusses whether  electronic books might actually take the place of paper books. This paper is a brief report and addresses only the results of these specific analyses and experiments. Standard PC Specifications Desktop High-Performance Desktop PC 17-inch Display 19-inch Display Notebook PC Projector Printer CPU: Intel Core Memory: Less than 4GB CPU: Intel Core Memory: More than 4GB TFT TFT Resolution: More than 1290Ãâ€"800 Electro Photo A3 Printers CO2 emissions per unit quantity 49.60 g/hour 98.42 g/hour 23.36 g/hour 26.34 g/hour 27.59 g/hour 163.58 g/hour 2.58 g/sheet Environmental Impact: Paper vs. Computer Displays CO2 Emissions Table 1 presents CO2 emissions per unit quantity for each  product. This data is based on figures for life cycle CO2 emissions for each product obtained in November 2010 from the website of the Japan Environmental Management Association for Industry [2]. Figure 1 compares CO2 emissions associated with each medium when reading an eight-page document. Reading from  paper generates CO2 emissions only at the time the document is printed. In this case, the hours spent reading do not affect CO2 emissions. On the other hand, when we read from displays, CO2 emissions increase in proportion to the time spent reading. For extended reading sessions, CO2 emissions tend to be lower for paper; for reading many short documents, CO2 emissions tend to be lower with computer displays. NIP 27 and Digital Fabrication 2011 Figure 1. CO2 emissions associated with reading Figure 2 compares CO2 emissions for each medium for the case of a ten-page document shared in a meeting. If we deliver this document on paper, CO2 emissions increase in proportion to the number of individuals attending. If we use a projector and a single notebook PC, the number of participants doesn’t affect CO2 emissions. In general, if we are sharing documents for a large meeting, CO2 emissions are lower when we use  projectors than when we distribute on paper. When we share short documents in small groups of two or three, CO2 emissions tend to be lower when we distribute documents on paper. Technical Program and Proceedings 7 of key words in text when using paper and when using computer displays. Reading from paper was 6.8% faster than reading from displays. There was no significant difference between the media in the recognition test of key words. Paper allows faster reading without loss of understanding. Figure 2. CO2 emissions associated with meeting documents Work Efficiency The analyses of the previous section assume equal work efficiency for all media. However, efficiency may actually vary with different media. Lower work efficiency means longer  working hours, which in turn can mean higher CO2 emissions,  since elements of the workplace infrastructure (e.g., ventilation and lighting) need to run longer. I’ll describe three experiments that compare reading performance for each medium. The first experiment examines how different media affect  proofreading when the goal is to detect contextual errors. Figure 3 presents reading speed and percentage of errors detected when using paper vs. computer displays. Reading from paper was 11.9% faster than reading from the displays. There was no significant difference between media in percentage of errors detected. Figure 3. Reading speed and the percentage of errors detected in proofreading to detect contextual errors (N = 20) Figure 4. Reading speed and scores for a recognition test of key words when reading with frequent page turning (N = 18) The third experiment involved cross-reference reading for  multiple documents [4]. Figure 5 compares reading speed and  percentage of errors detected when using paper vs. computer  displays. Reading from the paper was 23.2% faster than reading from displays. Moreover, more errors were detected (a difference of 11.5%) with paper than with computer displays. In both speed and accuracy, paper was superior to displays in cross-reference reading. Figure 5. Reading speed and the percentage of errors detected in crossreference reading for multiple documents (N = 24) The second experiment looked at reading when the task  required frequent switching back and forth between pages [3]. Figure 4 compares reading speed and scores for a recognition test 8  ©2011 Society for Imaging Science and Technology Discussion Comparisons of CO2 emissions from paper and electronic  media indicate that the nature of a task determines which is more eco-friendly. The three experiments here point to the superiority of paper for different reading tasks: proofreading, reading with frequent movement back and forth between pages, and crossreference reading for multiple documents. Clearly, this is hardly an exhaustive listing of all tasks that involve reading. Still, the results suggest paperless work is not always the most eco-friendly work style. Paper should not be rejected out of hand on environmental grounds. Rather, we should select paper or electronic media depending on the specific task. Figure 7 compares task completion times and accuracy  (percentage of correct answers) for each medium in an experiment involving  scanning a manual to find answers. Subjects performed this task 38.6% faster with the paper book than with the iPad and 60.2% faster than with the Kindle. Of the five media, paper books were fastest for scanning text for answers. Work Efficiency: Paper vs. Electronic Reading Devices Reading fiction As a typical example of reading for leisure, I evaluated  electronic reading devices such as iPad and Kindle for reading fiction. Figure 6 shows reading speed with a paper book, an iPad, a Kindle, and a notebook PC. For reading that did not involve  moving from one page to the next, I found no significant  difference in reading speed among the four media. For reading that required page turns, I found that reading from the iPad was as fast as reading from paper books, but that reading from the Kindle was slower than reading from paper books. This suggests that the iPad is just as suited as paper books for tasks like reading fiction. Figure 7. Completion time and percentage of correct answers when scanning text to locate answers to questions (N = 20) Discussion Figure 6. Reading speed: Paper book vs. electronic media (N = 26) For reading fiction, our experiment showed iPads and paper  books offered equal reading speed for reading with and without page turns. This suggests that the current generation of electronic reading devices is perfectly suitable for reading for leisure, at least from the perspective of efficiency. Clearly, other factors such as cost, weight, and design will also determine whether such devices gain widespread acceptance for this purpose. Paper books proved the fastest of all five media in the  experiment involving scanning text to find answers to questions, the reading task ranked as the second most common in the study by Adler et al. Moreover, as discussed above, the current  generation of electronic reading devices remains poorly suited for cross-reference reading, the reading task ranked as the most common. These results suggest that the electronic reading devices currently available do not adequately cover the wide range of reading tasks required for knowledge work. Reading to answer questions Trademarks Adler et al. [5] observed various work-related reading tasks in actual work situations and assigned each instance to one of ten categories. Among the most frequently observed tasks was crossreference reading using multiple documents. Clearly, the current generation of electronic reading devices does not permit crossreference reading. These devices do not allow us to view multiple documents at the same time, and their form factors are too cumbersome to overlap or otherwise move frequently. For this reason, I evaluated these devices for the second-most common task in the study by Adler et al.: scanning text to answer questions. Microsoft and Windows are trademarks or registered  trademarks of Microsoft Corporation Adobe Reader is trademark or registered trademark of Adobe Systems Inc. iPad is trademark or registered trademark of Apple Inc. Kindle is trademark or registered trademark of Amazon.com Inc. NIP 27 and Digital Fabrication 2011 References [1] Abigail J. Sellen and Richard H. Harper, â€Å"The myth of the paperless office,† The MIT Press, (2001). Technical Program and Proceedings 9 [2] [3] [4] [5] 10 Web site of Japan Environmental Management Association for  Industry, http://www.jemai.or.jp/ecoleaf/index.cfm. [in Japanese] Hirohito Shibata and Kengo Omura, Effects of paper on page turning: Comparison of paper and electronic media in reading documents with endnotes, Proc. HCI International ’11, (2011). Hirohito Shibata and Kengo Omura, Effects of paper in moving and arranging documents: A comparison between paper and electronic media in cross-reference reading for multiple documents, Journal of the Human Interface Society, 12, 3, pg.301, (2010). [in Japanese] A. Adler, A. Gujar, B. Harrison, K. O’Hara, and A. J. Sellen, A diary study of work-related reading: Design implications for digital reading devices, Proc. CHI ’98, pg.241, (1998). Author Biography Hirohito Shibata received his MS in mathematics from Osaka  University (1994) and his PhD in engineering from the University of Tokyo  (2003). He is currently a research scientist at the Research and Technology Group, Fuji Xerox Co., Ltd. Research interests include cognitive science and human-computer interactions. His current research involves investigations of the strengths and weaknesses of presentation media from cognitive perspectives. He is a member of Association for Computing Machinery (ACM), The Information Processing Society of Japan (IPSJ), The Japanese Society for Artificial Intelligence (JSAI), and Human Interface Society (HIS).  ©2011 Society for Imaging Science and Technology

Introduction, review of accounting process and financial statement Essay

Part 1 General acceptable accounting principle General accounting principles are set of rules generated by accounting board to guide accountant in preparation and reporting of financial statements. General acceptable accounting principles are accounting guidelines (GAAP) used in United States and are issued by financial accounting standard board (FASB). Other countries uses the guideline issued by international accounting standard board (IASB) supplemented by their own local laws. GAAP guide selection of events to be accounted for, the measurement of these events, and the mean of summarizing and communicating them to interested parties. In recording transactions GAAP make use of the following principles a) historical cost principle b) revenue recognition c) marching principle d) full disclosure GAAP facilitate comparability of financial statement for various firms. Information that has been measured and reported in a similar manner for different enterprise is considered comparable. Comparability enables users to identify the real similarities and differences in economic phenomenon. Comparability is achieved when companies use similar accounting procedures (e.g. use of same inventory method, depreciation) to account for similar economic circumstance (Porwal, 2008). Double entry accounting This is the method of recording accounting transaction where every debit entry must be accompanied by a credit entry and vice versa. If this method of accounting is not enforced then the basic accounting equation i.e. ASSETS = LIABILITIES + EQUITY will not balance. Therefore double entry accounting is used to ensure that financial record are complete and thus ensures that final statements give a true and fair view of financial performance at a given date otherwise if an accounting transaction is recorded on one side i.e. a debit or credit the balance sheet will not balance which indicate an error in preparation of financial statement (Fridson & Alvarez, 2002). Historical cost Historical cost is the original cost incurred in acquisition of assets. All assets and liability are recorded in financial statement under historical cost principle.   Under this principle the exchange price established or cost incurred at the time a transaction occurs is the basis for initially recording assets and liability. Cost is usually the best estimates of an asset or liability i.e. cost and fair value of an asset are equal at acquisition date. Historical cost principle ensures that there is consistency in recording asset and liability where assets are recorded at historical cost and subsequent loose of value is shown as depreciation and adjusted from historical cost to show the book value of an asset at a given date. Accrual basis vs. cash basis accounting Measurement of revenue can either be through accrual method or cash accounting basis. The two accounting method consists of rules that determines how and when expenses and revenue are reported. With accrual basis of accounting, revenue is recorded in the period in which it is earned and not necessarily when cash is received while expenses are recorded when they have been incurred. This method of accounting is used by all publicly traded company and large businesses. With cash basis of accounting revenue is recognized when cash is received while expenses are recorded when cash is paid (Fridson & Alvarez, 2002). The major difference between the two methods is that 1). In using the cash basis of accounting there are no any payables or receivable recorded in the balance sheet while in using the accrual basis both receivables and payables are recognized in the balance sheet. While reporting revenue using accrual basis both collected and uncollected revenue are recorded while for cash basis only the cash amount collected from sales and other activities are recorded. For instance if a customers pay $ 100,000 for goods which he has not yet received by the end of accounting period, using the cash basis this will be shown as revenue in the income statement but while using the accrual basis $100,000 is described as deferred revenue and   will appear in balance sheet as current liability. On the other hand when the firm deliver goods or offers a service but such amount remain outstanding at the end of the period using cash basis such a transaction will not be recorded but while using the accrual basis such amount will be described as accrued  revenue and will be recognized as revenue in the income statement and recorded in balance sheet as current asset (Siegel, 2007). 2) In a cash basis report, only the cash paid to vendors are shown as expenses while in accrual reports both paid and unpaid amount are included as expenses. For instance if a company pay rent amounting to $120,000 for 12 month but by the end of accounting period only rent for six month have been utilized using the accrual method $60,000 will be recorded as rent expense in the income statement while the remaining $ 60,000 are described as prepaid expense and are recorded as current asset in the balance sheet. For cash basis the whole amount of $120,000 will be recorded as rent expense during the current period. In preparation of financial statement the accrual basis of accounting is used where revenue is recorded in the accounting period it is earned irrespective of whether cash is received and associated cost used in generation of this revenue are also recorded in the same period. This is used in order to show the correct profit generated by an enterprise during a certain period. Current assets and liability vs. non-current items Assets include anything of value that is owned or due to the business. Current asset are those that mature in less than one year e.g. inventory, debtors, prepayment and note receivables. Liabilities represent a company’s obligation to creditors. Obligations that have to be paid within one year are called current liabilities. In preparation of financial statement asset are recorded as either current or non-current while liabilities are dividend  into current and non-current liability and companies have to adhere to this rule of financial reporting. Part 2 Bp group BP group present it final statement in term of income statement, balance sheet and cash flow statement. All the statement are presented in vertical format and each item is shown together with the corresponding item in the previous year. The income statement shows the income generated and division of this profit to various stakeholders i.e. among the total profit generated in year 2008 which amounted to $ 35,239 million the providers of finance received $1,547 million, government received $12,617 million and the shareholders received $ 21,666. The group balance sheet is dividend into five categories namely current assets, non-current assets, current liabilities, non-current liabilities and equity. The cash flow statement is dividend into three category i.e. the operating activities the investing activities and the financing activities. It financial statement are prepare in accordance with applicable UK law and international financial reporting standard. Quicksilver Inc The company also presents it final account in term of income statement, balance sheet and cash flow statement. The income statement show the profit generated and distribution to various stakeholders i.e. shareholders, government and minority interest. For each item in year 2008 the corresponding item in year 2007 and 2006 is also shown. The balance sheet is also presented in a vertical format where items are categorized into non-current assets, current assets, current liability, non-current liability and equity.  The cash flow statement is dividend in to operating, investing and financing activities. It financial statement has been prepared in accordance with the general acceptable accounting principles. RTL group It general presentation of financial statement is like in above two companies with the balance sheet dividend in to current asset and liabilities vs. non-current item and equity. The balance sheet and income statement are prepared in vertical format and show corresponding figures of previous year. Cash from operating activities is the best measure of company performance since it indicates whether or not the company will be able to meet it financing and investing need. Even if the company may have generated sufficient profit it may be in financial difficulty and may even be declared bankrupt for failure to meet obligation of creditor. Higher profit may be as a result of a change in accounting policy and not improvement in performance. More detail relating to each companies associate and subsidiaries can be collected from the filing they make in the respective country in which they are incorporated and their final report. Predicting company’s future trend Quick silver The company net income increased by 19% in 2007 compared to 2006. In 2008 the net income increased by 11% and in the year 2009 income is expected to grow by between  5%-8%. The company management also expect a hard time ahead due to current financial crisis which has led to a decline in household income and lower demand. RTL group In year 2008 revenue grew by 0.01% compared to and in year 2009 revenue are expected to decline by 2-5%. The company management and directors expect a drop in revenue in key market due to global economic crisis which has heightened the intensity of competition. Bp group The net revenue in year 2007 grew by 7% compared to 2006. In 2008 income grew by 27%. In 2009 revenue is expected to grow between 30-35%. Despite the harsh economic condition the management expects to increase it revenue earnings through higher fuel price.

The French Expression A La Fois

The French Expression A La Fois Expression:   la foisPronunciation: [ah lah fwah]Meaning: at the same time, at onceLiteral translation: at the timeRegister: normalThe French expression la fois means at the same time, even though the seemingly essential word mà ªme is not - indeed, cannot be - included. (See synonyms, below.) Examples   Ã‚  Ã‚  Je ne peux pas lire et à ©couter de la musique la fois.I cant read and listen to music at the same time.Ce film est amusant et à ©ducatif la fois.This movie is (both) funny and educational at the same time.Ne parlez pas tous la fois, chacun son tour.Dont all speak at once, everyone (will) speak in turn. Synonyms and Related Expressions avoir le don dubiquità © - to be everywhere at once.se dà ©doubler - to be in two places at once.en mà ªme temps - at the same time.ensemble - together.mà ªner ___ de front - to ___ at the same time, e.g.mener deux affaires de front - to run two businesses at the same time.mà ªner plusieurs tà ¢ches de front - to perform two tasks at the same time. Expressions with ​La Fois chasser/courir deux lià ¨vres la foisto try to do two things at once(literally, to chase/run after two hares at the same time)On ne peut pas à ªtre la fois au four et au moulin. (proverb)You cant be in two places at once.(literally, You cant be at the oven and the mill at the same time.)Nul ne peut servir deux maà ®tres la fois. (proverb)You cant serve two masters.(literally, No one can serve two masters at the same time.)

The Railways in the Industrial Revolution

The Railways in the Industrial Revolution If the steam engine is the icon of the industrial revolution, it’s most famous incarnation is the steam driven locomotive. The union of steam and iron rails produced the railways, a new form of transport which boomed in the later nineteenth century, affecting industry and social life. The Development of the Railways In 1767 Richard Reynolds created a set of rails for moving coal at Coalbrookdale; these were initially wood  but became iron rails. In 1801 the first Act of Parliament was passed for the creation of a ‘railway’, although at this point it was a horse pulled carts on rails. Small, scattered railway development continued, but at the same time, the steam engine was evolving. In 1801 Trevithic invented a steam driven locomotive which ran on roads, and 1813 William Hedly built Puffing Billy for use in mines, followed a year later by George Stephenson’s engine. In 1821 Stephenson built the Stockton to Darlington railway using iron rails and steam power with the aim of breaking the local monopoly of the canal owners. The initial plan had been for horses to provide the energy, but Stephenson pushed for steam. The importance of this has been exaggerated, as it still remained as â€Å"fast† as a canal (i.e. slow). The first time a railway used a true steam locomotive running on rails was the Liverpool to Manchester railway in 1830. This is probably the true landmark in rail and mirrored the route of the groundbreaking Bridgewater Canal. Indeed, the owner of the canal had opposed the railway to protect his investment. The Liverpool to Manchester railway provided the management blueprint for later development, creating a permanent staff and recognizing the potential of passenger travel. Indeed, until the 1850s railways made more from passengers than freight. In the 1830s canal companies, challenged by new railways, cut prices and largely kept their business. As railways were rarely connected they were generally used for local freight and passengers. However, industrialists soon realized that railways could make a clear profit, and in 1835-37, and 1844-48 there was such a boom in the creation of railways that ‘railway mania’ was said to have swept the country. In this later period, there were 10,000 acts creating railways. Of course, this mania encouraged the creation of lines which were unviable and in competition with each other. The government largely adopted a laissez-faire attitude  but did intervene to try and stop accidents and dangerous competition. They also passed a law in 1844 ordering third class travel to be on at least one train a day, and the Gauge Act of 1846 to make sure the trains ran on the same sort of rails. Railways and Economic Development Railways had a major impact on farming, as perishable goods such as dairy products could now be moved long distances before they were inedible. The standard of living rose as a result. New companies formed to both run railways and take advantage of the possibilities, and a major new employer was created. At the height of the railway boom, massive amounts of Britain’s industrial output were funneled into the construction, boosting industry, and when the British boom subsided these materials were exported to build railways abroad. Social Impact of Railways In order for trains to be timetabled, a standardized time was introduced across Britain, making it a more uniform place. Suburbs began to form as white collar workers moved out from the inner cities, and some working-class districts were demolished for new rail buildings. Opportunities for travel broadened as the working class could now travel further and more freely, although some conservatives worried this would cause a revolt. Communications were vastly sped up, and regionalization began to break down. Importance of the Railways The effect of railways in the Industrial Revolution is often exaggerated. They did not cause industrialization  and had no impact on the changing locations of industries as they only developed after 1830 and were initially slow to catch on. What they did do was allow the revolution to continue, provide further stimulus, and help to transform the mobility and diets of the population.

Analysis Case Studies

Analysis Case Studies Analysis Case Studies Analysis Case Studies: You Will Find Some Help Here! Probably, a lot of case studies could be considered as the reflection of business deals: the reader imagines he/she is a manager and he/she is able to find the solution of some current issue. Actually, the most of case studies imply the presence of clear decision, however sometimes situation requires almost absolute inaction. Before you are going to be occupied with a case study analysis, first, try to figure out the purpose and structure of the case study. First, you should look through the case carefully, single out the key factors and then you may follow our guideline. Do not neglect the possibility to read the text several times: it will help you to understand the organizations issue better. Analysis Case Studies: Main Steps When you have processed the information thoroughly, you could start your writing with the following manual that will ease your work under case study analysis:Examine and Take a Deep Analysis of the C ompany, Its History and Development. Definitely, a companys presence and future could be reflected in the past. So, make a critical review of organizations history, its origins, path of development, possible ascend and descent, inner structure before your case study analysis; Define Advantages and Disadvantages of Investigated Company. Now, when you have collected the necessary information about the organizations historical path, keep on writing your case study analysis by searching the weak and strong sides of the company. It means you can identify that the company has a lack of big funds, however, it always stand against the hard competitiveness in the climate of constantly changed market; Describe External Environment and Companys Position. This kind of sub-analysis let us to find threats and opportunities from the outside. There are the threats of sudden competitors appearance, change in the exchange rate, economical instability and import of more qualitative pr oducts; Provide a Wide Analysis of Gathered Information. In other words, provide the comparison between your finding from point 2 and conclusions from point 3. Try to figure out the companys potential on the market, its position in the competitive field, and think about the possible changes and improvements for this organization; Determine Corporate Policy. It means you identify and find the companys mission, corporate strategy, intentions and purposes. Define, what type of business does the company occupied in? Describe Companys Business Strategy. It will help you to understand and analyze the business potential of every organization, find out the main weapons in the competitive wars, and identify the management, marketing setting and so on; Think, How Does the Company Realize the Goals? It some kind of inner structure and controlling systems examination, and identification of companys business tools; it also includes the hierarchical working structure, ethical culture, staff policy, system of rewards and other factors; Provide Conclusions. Each part of your analysis is finalized by your personal recommendations for the organization. Every recommendation you give should be directly connected with your case study analysis; Thereby, the aim of any case study is to demonstrate your own views, based on the researches and personal experience, on the actual problems that the selected company is facing.

Bacteria and Human Health and Viruses and Humna Health Research Paper

Bacteria and Human Health and Viruses and Humna Health - Research Paper Example A single E-Coli bacteria organism can replicate itself to the extent equaling the mass of earth within 24 hours if left unchecked. The bacteria come in various sizes and shapes. The shapes range from coccal (spherical), bacilli (rods), vibrio (curved rods) and spirochetes (spirals) (Richard Robinson Ed. Biology: 4 Volume Set). The role of bacteria in human health has been both positive and negative. A bacteria organism can be infections and beneficial as well. Although bacteria are mostly known for the harm that they bring to human body, there are only some bacteria that really put a bad effect on the human body (Sheela Srivastava. Understanding bacteria). There are two situations through which the bacteria can put an affect on the human body; one is through infection and second as disease. Most of the times these both are considered synonymous, which in reality is not correct. Infection is caused when a microorganism makes the human body is its host for growth and nourishment. In most cases, the infection leads to disease but not always. An infected person may not necessarily be diseased. On the other hand, in a diseased state, the human body suffers (Paul Singleton. Bacteria in biology, biotechnology, and medicine). Primarily it was not believed that bacteria can be a cause of a disease in the human bod y because of already presence of many bacterial organisms in the human body working for the benefit of human being. There are more than 500 species of bacteria in the human body and most of them are useful for many functions that take place in the human body. There are chances that due to some conditions, the growth of bacteria becomes harmful to the body, it is the when a bacteria is said to be transformed into a pathogen. A pathogen is a microorganism that causes the diseases in the human body (Stuart Hogg. Essential microbiology). There quite a few bacteria which are pathogenic in nature and one of the most

Terrorist Attacks and Risk Assessment Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Terrorist Attacks and Risk Assessment - Essay Example According to the research findings, it can, therefore, be said that as much as terror attacks instill fear, the terrorist does so to get the target government to respond to their demands. Over the last decade, this strategy has worked in favor of the terrorist regardless the efforts by most governments in eradicating terrorism, elevating the risk and probabilities of terror attacks in future. The uncertainty surrounding risks of terror attacks is indisputable, making risk assessment very difficult. In the U.S., Homeland Security is the body tasked with the responsibility of assessing the risk of terror attacks. Homeland Security has formulated a model that analyses the risk of attack from three perspectives; the threat posed, vulnerability to attacks and the consequences of an attack. It has also categorized the risk into either asset-based or geographically based attacks. These developments by Homeland Security have helped in enhancing preparedness, ability to protect or respond to terror attacks. In conclusion, the current risk assessment is not good enough for any government to assure its people protection from terror attacks.

The United States Air Force Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

The United States Air Force - Case Study Example Enlisted members are the â€Å"backbone† of the Air Force. They perform the primary jobs that need to be done. Enlisted members are â€Å"specialists†, trained to perform specific specialties in the military. As enlisted personnel progress up the ranks, they assume more responsibility, and provide direct supervision to their subordinates. Commissioned officers primary function is to provide overall management and leadership in their area of responsibility. Commissioned officers do not specialize as much (with certain exceptions such as pilots, doctors, nurses, and lawyers). Commission officers are commissioned through specific commissioning programs, such as one of the military academies. There are ten commissioned officer grades and commissioned officers outrank all enlisted personnel. In the process of making decisions, there are at least two acceptable processes; (1) rational, and (2) political. By definition and by practice the made a concerted effort to base its de cision-making on the rational process, which rests heavily on a analytic process. An analytic process can be defined as one which there are agreed upon methods for generating alternative solutions to problems, and for assigning values to the 2 benefits and costs expected from each of the alternatives. The USAF has computational methods readily available for calculating benefits and costs ratios once these values are assigned. assigned. The critical point here being, given the structure, size, importance and power influence, there is a strategic need to continually be in sync with the DOD, the President, Congress, and fellow military personnel. The essence of the rational process is the belief that, "all good persons, given the same information, will come to the same conclusion". USAF History According to the National Security Act of 1947 which created the Air Force, "In general the United States Air Force shall include aviation forces both combat and service not otherwise assigned. It shall be organized, trained, and equipped primarily for prompt and sustained offensive and defensive operations. The Air Force shall be responsible for the preparation of the air forces necessary for the effective prosecution of war except as otherwise assigned and, in accordance with integrated joint mobilization plans, for the expansion of the peace time components of the Air Force to meet the needs of war"( Act of 1947) The Air Force came into being after more than 30 years of debate on how best to incorporate an airpower presence into the nations demanding national defense program. The Air force approached the defense scene with the awesome ability to make a formidable presence known, seen,and felt across the globe, and provided the US with an immediate presence in the geopolitical arena. Melinger makes a salient point on the impact of the Air Force into the theatre of war, he says, "the USAF history is more than

Globalization on territory Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Globalization on territory - Research Paper Example Thus, globalization involves a reconfiguration of the society with increased growth and trans-planetary connections between people, territory, states and nations. Economic Globalization affects the territoriality of the nation-state, i.e. the territorial jurisdiction. Two notions can be used to explain this concept critically. The notions are based on the concept of sovereignty, and the impact of both governmental and non-governmental institutions on the national state. The notions are- Global cities are sites for carrying out specialized functions so as to run and co-ordinate the global economy. These cities located in national territories are locations for performing the major dynamics and processes in relation to financial and investment aspects, and irrespective of their geographical locations. These functions affect the growth and development of the territory. The global economy materializes in national territories to a large extent. Many national states have become deeply involved in the implementation of global economic system, and in the implementation of this process have experienced large transformation in their institutional structure, in both the aspects of economic and political. Economic Globalization has helped to strengthen certain segments of the national states, i.e. the banking functions, which have been developed as per with the development of technology. But certain segments in a territory have also been weakened under the effect of economic globalization, such as, the decline small industries as they are losing their existence under the effects of globalization. In the recent decades, although the major interstate conflicts has declined, yet territorial conflicts still persists which is difficult to resolve. Conflicts are generally created within the borders of states which determine territoriality or the territorial stakes. Globalization affects territorial

Smoking Should Be Banned Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Smoking Should Be Banned - Research Paper Example But is it about making money or ensuring good health for everyone in the society? Human beings should be able to choose life and health than unnecessarily expensive addictions like smoking and that’s why smoking should be globally banned. The human population is categorized into smokers and non smokers. Smokers are known to infringe on the rights of non smokers in the society (Cunningham 14). Their open smoking in public places like playgrounds, parks and beaches triggers coughing or asthma attacks from the passive smoking by in non smokers. The stench that comes out of the lit cigarettes also makes the open air ridiculously unbearable. Smoking increases the chances of sudden infant death syndrome (Hanson, Venturelli and Fleckenstein 42).Sudden infant death is when there is an explained death of an infant usually between two and four months. Smokers however forget that smoke is in gaseous form and therefore easily reaches children whose lungs have not properly developed. Smoki ng leads to lung, mouth, larynx, ladder, liver and other common cancers. It is also known to be largest cause of cancer deaths. For these reasons, there should be a decree that prohibits smoking. Banning of smoking is the basic move to make to show respect for every human beings right to free movement, association and right to admission to public places (Hudson 19).with this they are easily able to move freely without being scared of inhaling smoke that have adverse effects on their health. Air pollution is one the effects of smoking globally, it is the governments initiative to ensure that smoking is banned to ensure a balanced ecosystem for every living organism, including the smokers themselves. â€Å"The release of dangerous chemicals into the environment by smokers is the best definition of a selfish move† (Hudson 27). If the government is able to bar smoking, it will prompt the smokers to slow down, cut back and probably quit smoking because it will be harder to smoke o n the rise of a smoking urge. It makes sense for people to stop smoking all together because it a financial and health benefit to them. Smoking evidently is an expensive addiction. The most addicted smokers use up to two packets of cigarette daily, which will round up to an average of forty cigarettes in a day. Clearly this is not a cheap addiction to venture in. Smoking helps you save the money and spend on vacation with your family or live larger. In any case, a Wisconsin-based study carried out in 2002, 16%of the light smokers do it for recreational reasons. This will be the first to bail out in case of a ban. In as much as smokers think banning smoking is an infringement on their liberty as citizens, and that the government should not dictate how they live especially with the hefty amount of taxes they pay, it still stands that making laws that disallow smoking is beneficial to the society in that it protects patron and staff at a work place. Most employees have picked up smoke related diseases from their work places, sometimes because their workmates smoke. There is no law that [protects such people and that is why smoking should be banned. Usually in such cases, the employer sucks the employee in question and hires a â€Å"smoke tolerant person† leading to unemployment and one more addition to baseless decision ever mad because nobody is smoke- effects –proof (Hanson et al 20). As vague is sometimes sounds to most smokers, the bother of ones hair and

Saving the Manatees case study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Saving the Manatees - Case Study Example Moreover, Tom had to look for sponsors to fund the advertising and campaigning costs. The national environmental protection agency donated 300,000 United States dollars to assist in creating public awareness about the bill and urge more people to vote for it (Ragsdale 137-138). A linear programming (LP) spreadsheet model would play a significant role in designing how to allocate the provided funds to different advertising agents. The spreadsheet model assists in determining the total impact of using various advertising agents, the total constraints, and the optimal solution. Description of the data The data from the spreadsheet consists of 3 columns. The first column C shows the cost per unit of the advertising medium used in U.S. dollars. The following data represents the objective variables. The objective variables work in maximizing or minimizing numerical values. The value presented on the objective cell is the expected net budget value of the project. The product of C and decisi on units I give the total cost of advertisement. The second set of data is represented by E showing per unit impact rate. This column represents the constraints. Constraints define any possible variable that a linear programming problem takes. In the data E provided, constraints represent percentage impact of using a certain medium for advertising. The next data is represented by G showing the minimum value of decisions made with the smallest advertising medium. On the other hand, column K presents data of the maximum decision a product of using large advertising mediums. Discuss the results After constructing the spreadsheet and doing calculations, the following results were arrived at. What is the optimal solution? The total impact rate was $23,515. The values for impact rate were arrived at by multiplying E with I. The total impact rate was used to calculate the optimal solution in order to decide which advertising medium would be more effective. From the model, the optimal solut ion was arrived at by the following calculation. X = 300,000/A (1+2+3+4+†¦.n) + B (1+2+3+4†¦n) =300,000/ (299,800 + 23,515) = 0.927 The following results indicate that 92.7% of the total budget would be well utilized by the advertising mediums proposed by Tom. The following turn out is very pleasing and Tom was likely to receive many votes towards the policy. Of the constraints tom placed on this problem, which are preventing the objective function from being improved further? On the other hand, Tom placed some constraints that prevented further improvement the objective function. The objective function on full-page Sunday paper and 30-second radio spot are in significant because they cost a lot and serve the same purposes as the half-page Sunday magazine and 15-second radio spot respectively. In addition, long magazine advertisements are sometimes boring and time consuming and most people by pass them. The absence of such constraints would give Tom an opportunity to incor porate other advertising mediums like online ads. The marketing consultant provided short TV ads during the evening prime-time hours as the most effective medium of advertising. Suppose Tom was willing to increase the allowable number of evening TV ads. How much would this improve the solution? Improving the number of evening TV ads would cause a positive effect on the advertisement and increase the value of $23,515 into a higher level. Increased evening TV ads increases the impact rate since a high number of

Smoking Should Be Banned Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Smoking Should Be Banned - Research Paper Example But is it about making money or ensuring good health for everyone in the society? Human beings should be able to choose life and health than unnecessarily expensive addictions like smoking and that’s why smoking should be globally banned. The human population is categorized into smokers and non smokers. Smokers are known to infringe on the rights of non smokers in the society (Cunningham 14). Their open smoking in public places like playgrounds, parks and beaches triggers coughing or asthma attacks from the passive smoking by in non smokers. The stench that comes out of the lit cigarettes also makes the open air ridiculously unbearable. Smoking increases the chances of sudden infant death syndrome (Hanson, Venturelli and Fleckenstein 42).Sudden infant death is when there is an explained death of an infant usually between two and four months. Smokers however forget that smoke is in gaseous form and therefore easily reaches children whose lungs have not properly developed. Smoki ng leads to lung, mouth, larynx, ladder, liver and other common cancers. It is also known to be largest cause of cancer deaths. For these reasons, there should be a decree that prohibits smoking. Banning of smoking is the basic move to make to show respect for every human beings right to free movement, association and right to admission to public places (Hudson 19).with this they are easily able to move freely without being scared of inhaling smoke that have adverse effects on their health. Air pollution is one the effects of smoking globally, it is the governments initiative to ensure that smoking is banned to ensure a balanced ecosystem for every living organism, including the smokers themselves. â€Å"The release of dangerous chemicals into the environment by smokers is the best definition of a selfish move† (Hudson 27). If the government is able to bar smoking, it will prompt the smokers to slow down, cut back and probably quit smoking because it will be harder to smoke o n the rise of a smoking urge. It makes sense for people to stop smoking all together because it a financial and health benefit to them. Smoking evidently is an expensive addiction. The most addicted smokers use up to two packets of cigarette daily, which will round up to an average of forty cigarettes in a day. Clearly this is not a cheap addiction to venture in. Smoking helps you save the money and spend on vacation with your family or live larger. In any case, a Wisconsin-based study carried out in 2002, 16%of the light smokers do it for recreational reasons. This will be the first to bail out in case of a ban. In as much as smokers think banning smoking is an infringement on their liberty as citizens, and that the government should not dictate how they live especially with the hefty amount of taxes they pay, it still stands that making laws that disallow smoking is beneficial to the society in that it protects patron and staff at a work place. Most employees have picked up smoke related diseases from their work places, sometimes because their workmates smoke. There is no law that [protects such people and that is why smoking should be banned. Usually in such cases, the employer sucks the employee in question and hires a â€Å"smoke tolerant person† leading to unemployment and one more addition to baseless decision ever mad because nobody is smoke- effects –proof (Hanson et al 20). As vague is sometimes sounds to most smokers, the bother of ones hair and

Examine and comment on Islamic and Hindu beliefs about life after death Essay Example for Free

Examine and comment on Islamic and Hindu beliefs about life after death Essay Life after death is often a highly charged, debateable topic. Through this essay I will examine the argument that there must be an afterlife to explain morality in this world and refer to The Quran for Islam and Bhagavad Gita for Hinduism. This will allow me to conclude that an afterlife can justify morality, as human beings our lifes conduct is dependant on the belief of a good hereafter. Both religions very foundation rely on the fact that there is an after life, as deeds in this life will be accountable within the next. Although Islam and Hinduism both believe in an after life they teach radically different things about what it is. The Islamic belief is based on a linear time line, meaning that each person will live on this earth once and after that be judged by God. The good and the bad deeds of every person will be weighed. (Quran 7:8). This view differs with the Hindu belief as their belief is that to attain Mokhsa (release from the cycle of life) everyone has to be reborn somewhere or the other to undergo some experience, until the Absolute Being is realised as identical with oneself. by Swami Krishnananda. The individual must continue to transmigrate between souls to diminish all bad karma in the various lives they had been in to attain complete salvation. Belief in al- akhirah (life after death) is so crucial to the Islamic faith that any doubts about it amounts to the denial of Allah (God). This view is shared by the Muslim minority. According to Islamic belief, we have no means of knowing death as a revisiting experience, but Allah (God) has given humanity answers to every question regarding death. The first rhetorical question the Muslim is faced with in the Quran is who will give life to the dead bones? Islam declares that the Lord will. In the Quran, Allah deepens mans way of thinking by asking them to reflect on how the rain revives dead earth. It is Allah Who sends fourth the winds, so that they rise up the clouds, and drive to a land that is dead, and revive the earth therewith after its death (Quran 35:9) According to Islam life on this earth is temporary; it is a preparatory stage for the akhirah (life after death) which will be infinite. Life on this earth is meaningless if good actions are not rewarded and bad conduct not punished. In order for an afterlife to exist, there must be some omnipotent being driving this idea forward. I will now be referring to Kants idea of the universe being satisfied, wrong has to be punished and good rewarded even if this takes place after death .The moral philosopher, Immanuel Kant argued that morality was the categorical imperative. if there is moral law, there must therefore be a law giver. Modern society in alliance with Islamic and Kantian Views state that justice must be served. An example of this would be if a person commits an offence against humanity he/she has to be imprisoned. Were then faced with situations where our justice system has failed to act with fairness and impartiality in accordance with what is morally right, this is when the idea of justice in the afterlife in religion comes into place. The current Laws are passed by parliament. The followers of Islam believe the One who determines the rules in this life and delivers the verdict in the after life is the almighty Lord. If we refer back to Kant, that once we die there is an afterlife for the universe to be morally satisfied that good is rewarded and evil is punished, there must be a God who can bring about some sort of Justice. He is who controls the heavens and the earth (Holy Quran 27:60.) To deny God as the moral law Giver is to deny the only reasonable foundation for the law of morality in both the religions, as in Islam the fundamental belief that the almighty God is the basis of all foundation of all belief within that faith, similarly in the contrasting religion the soul of the individual wishes to have some sort of conclusion in Islam the hereafter and in Hinduism salvation to become one with the creator Brahma. However the factor that differs the two religions is that the concept of the soul, within the religions. In Islam the soul has its own identity of the individual it was given to at the moment of conception it has no relation to its creator other then the fact that the lord was the one who blessed life into it and the soul will be obedient to its creator to the day of judgement. The concept in Hinduism contradicts this idea as it feels the soul is God in itself as it has to go through a process which will enable the spiritual self to become God himself over the process of time. If justice is not done on earth therefore there must be an after life. The concept of free will argues that humanity has been given guidelines by God. It is up to individuals whether they follow them or not. Some may then argue that God does not care about people as He allows suffering to take place. This is where justice in the hereafter is satisfied, and so that is why there is morality in this world. For Muslims not to care about life after death is a serious failing. Muslims are certain that people die. Doubts have been expressed by non Muslims regarding life after death. They question how Allah (God) can raise men and women after death, but Islam teaches that God can make human beings out of nothing so it is not difficult for Him to raise them again. O mankind! If you are in any doubt about the resurrection, then verily, we have created you (i.e. Adam). (Quran 22:5) The Quran goes on further to say that: Does man think that we shall not assemble his bones? Yes, surely we are able to restore the very shape of his fingertips. (Quran 75: 3-4). The Hindu Holy Scriptures such as the Upanishads and the Vedas clearly speak of a God that is associated with classical theism. Although over centuries we have come to know Hinduism as a faith with many gods it primarily has one God. By one supreme Ruler is the universe pervaded. Even every world in the whole circle of nature, He is the True God (- Yajurveda XLI) .Similar ideas are expressed in the Upanishads Know Me alone as the creator of all I am the cause; I am the support of all that exists in the universe. May ye never turn away from me May ye never accept any other God in my place, nor worship Him. What we can analyse from these quotes that for God to bring man to his former self is not an impossible task as he has created us he can kill us and restore our very lives. According to Islam when a person dies on earth he/she will not be restored to life until the day of resurrection. From the time a person dies until resurrection, they remain in a suspended state in Arabic known as Barzakh. The dead could be in this state of waiting for thousands of years before being brought back to life. The prophet Mohammed has said that death is only the beginning of the resurrection. 1 Islam states that time only exists for those living on earth. Once a man dies he leaves the time zone and a thousand years becomes the blinking of an eye. Although Islam rejects the notion of the transmigration of souls through various lives like Hinduism, it does state that the soul of each child came into existence ,before the physical birth from the mothers womb. An example of this is were God made a covenant with Adam and extracted all his descendants from him and God foretold the religion of Islam so that the disbelievers of the faith were left in no doubt that God would resurrect humankind once more on the day of Judgement. 2 Although Muslims are given the day and month of this fateful day they are not however given the year as all the signs leading up to this day must be fulfilled. 3 The sun will only be a mile away from the earth therefore mankind will be standing in its own perspiration according to a companion of the Prophet. This has been taken from the Sahih Bukhari (collections of sayings of the Prophet Muhammad. Then the individual will be punished according to how bad the sin was that they committed. The worse the sin, the more severe the punishment will be. 4 On this day accounting of deeds will begin and each and every person will be given a book that will detail all the good and bad they have done in life. Although certain deeds in life will act as a backup to save you from punishment Muslims over the world go to the pilgrimage of Hajj so that their sins can be purged. Hajj is a purification of the soul from sins and a means to gain the Mercy of Allah. Keep on doing Hajj and Umrah, for they eliminate poverty and sin just as the bellows eliminate impurities from iron and gold and silver. (Sahih Bukhari). In Islam, the foundation for a good afterlife is to have faith in the almighty lord and to try to lead a sin free life. Such is the driving force behind the concept in Hinduism be lovingly devoted to whichever Hindu god you are devoted to and similarly be dedicated to various religious ceremonies and rites. There are different aspects of Hinduism that determine how they lead their lives and what actions they do in order to affect their afterlife. There is also the factor of the burial procedure that could affect your outcome in the afterlife. The reasoning behind Hindu cremation is that they believe that the human personality is made up of five elements; four of which belong to the body which comes from this world, fire, earth, air, water. By cremating the body, the elements are returned to their respective area, while the soul continues in the afterlife. After death Muslims are buried, because even after death the soul can still feel pain so disposing of the body in any other means is a sin. When a Hindu devotee dies their soul leaves the body and goes to another world and returns again after spending some time there. Where a person is reborn is determined by their karma, the effects of a persons actions that determine their destiny in the next incarnation. Hindus try to do virtuous acts of conduct so that they will increase their good karma and be reborn higher up in the caste system. This is done in numerous ways. Their initial aim is to worship Brahman (supreme Lord) by thinking about him and reading his Holy books. The Vedas, Smritis, Ramayan and Bhagavad Gita; Their life should involve praying and making offerings to the various Gods that take form from Brahman originally. There is no specific God that you can worship, whichever you choose is acceptable as it leads to essentially to Brahman. Hinduism believes in the existence of not one hell and heaven but in the existence of many sun filled heavens and many demonic worlds. 5 In the ultimate sense the purpose of these worlds is to neither punish nor reward the souls, but to remind them of the true purpose of their existence to lead an adequate life according to the Hindu Holy scripture The Vedas. The process of being born, to grow, die and be reborn again is known as samsara. It is the aim of every Hindu to be freed from this cycle in order to be in the presence of God, or become one with God. Karma is in itself a system of reward and punishment. The idea of reincarnation is not strictly limited to Hinduism. The idea of reincarnation is also becoming more popular in the West. This concept of reincarnation is summarily described in following verse of the Bhagavad-Gita. Just as a man discards worn out clothes and puts on new clothes, the soul discards worn out bodies and wears new ones. (2:22) The Hindu concept of reincarnation directly challenges the Islamic and western notion of one life, one heaven, one hell and the final day of judgement. According to the following quote Islam contradicts the belief of transmigration there is the belief that once our hearts stop beating this is the end of our worldly life but the argument of the non-believers is that bring back our forefathers. There is not but our worldly life; we die and live (i.e. some people die and others live, replacing them) and nothing destroys us except time. (Quran, 45:24-26) Although Islam does primarily reject the notion of reincarnation in the form of another being, there is an exception to this. Islam is split in to 72 various sets and there is one set that does believe in reincarnation, the Druze. The Druze belong to an eleventh century offshoot of Shia Islam, which originated in Egypt. The similarity with this sect and Hinduism is that it also believes in the transmigration of souls, although this sect calls itself Muslims it denies the Day of Resurrection and the idea of heaven and Hell. Similarly they believe the body is to return to the elements and the universe is eternal and always will be. The physical body of the ones departed and the burial procedure for Muslims is just the earth accepting what was already its own To Allah we belong and to Him is our return. (Chapter 2, verses 153-156.) This then leads to the point that they do not belief in the message of the prophets of Islam. The Druze sect is not accepted by other major sects of Islam, they suffer from isolation of followers of the same religion. Although there are exceptions, Islam predominately feels a strong and solid approach to the one Supreme Lord and the Day of Judgement. After examining both religions and their beliefs it seems that both religions have the belief in life after death but a very different approach. There are several cases where Muslims have turned to other religions for the answer to the afterlife.6 Having examined and commented on beliefs on life after death in Islam and Hinduism, thus relating back to the first point of morality, that must exist and be justified in the first place for us human beings to first rationalise that there must be an afterlife. When this is understood then the ideas of different religious views on the afterlife can be understood. Islams belief ties in with the western notion of the standard hell and heaven and you are judged according to your deeds in your life that you have committed. You are resurrected but in the form you died in. Muslims are then weighed for deeds, dependant on that you either go to hell or heaven. You are faced with many obstacles on the way and even though you have primarily been good all your life you still will be punished for the sin. There are also many large signs before the fateful day. For majority of Muslims the belief in the afterlife determines the way they lead their lives whilst alive. For Hindus however the belief is that you are reincarnated as something else, either in higher caste or lower depending on the good/bad karma. You go through various lives and cycles to balance this karma until you become god (moksha). I am the Self, seated in the hearts of all beings; I am the beginning, the middle and also the end of all beings. (10.20 Gita) The Hindus teachings also lay on the principle of morality as they are to be reunited with Mother Nature. In the Hindu religion, righteousness and to be without sin is of more importance, these are the factors whether one goes to Heaven or Hell. The Hindus teach, As it does and as it acts, so it becomes: The doer of good becomes good, and the doer of evil becomes evil. (Upanishad (4,4,5)) This quote explains that Hinduism has a concept of morality. Previously I have touched on the lifestyles of both religions Hinduism and Islam. Although they both believe in different outcomes, already while alive they develop a moral attitude in the back of their minds. This life will determine heaven/hell or higher /lower caste depending on what your religious belief is. What we can examine from this is that reward is something we all strive for, so the idea of a better life in the hereafter encourages good conduct in both faiths. Ultimately no matter what religion you have faith in it seems we rely in a better life in the hereafter. Hindu and Islamic beliefs about life after death seek to explain morality on this Earth. Our actions in this life will determine our post life existence, whether we go to heaven, hell, or are reincarnated. Both religions agree with Kants theory that the Universe needs to be satisfied. Worshippers are thus encouraged to strive to maintain their good conduct in this life. Without such explanations Kant explains, morality would be irrelevant. 2932 Notes 1) A story is told in the Quran, about a man who doubted Allahs ability to resurrect a village. Allah caused him to die for a hundred years and when he was resurrected, questioned him as to how long he had slept. He replied A day or part of a day. Then God said Look your food has rotted, look at your crops and the dead bones of your animals look how we adjust them and cover them with flesh! (Quran 2:259) 2) When your Lord drew forth from the loins of the children of Adam, their descendants and made them testify concerning them. (Saying): Am I not your Lord they said, Yes, we testify to it. (This) in case you say on the Day of Judgement, We were unaware of this. Or in case you say, It was our ancestors who made partners (with Allah) and we are only their descendants. Will you then destroy us for what those liars did?[8] 3) The length of the day of judgement will be equivalent to fifty thousand years of this world and this quote can be found in verses (70: 4) Holy Quran. The Sunni Islamic belief is that: On Friday the tenth of Muharram Angel Israfeel will blow a trumpet the sound will be so fearful that the entire universe will self-destruct. (The day of judgement by the Sunni foundation) 3) And verily, Hell is the promised abode for them all. It has seven gates: to each of those gates is a specific class of sinners assigned. [al Hijr, 15: 43-44] Murderers: And whoever kills a believer intentionally his recompense is Hell to abide therein forever, and the wrath and the curse of Allah is upon him, and He has prepared for him a great punishment. [an-Nisa, 4: 93] Verily, of the inmates of the Fire, the one with the easiest punishment will be one who will have a pair of sandals and straps of fire. His brain will boil from them as a kettle boils. He does not see that anyone is suffering a punishment more severe than him, while he is the one with the easiest punishment. [Sahih al-Bukhari and Muslim] http://www.shariahprogram.ca/articles/hell-devil-description.shtml 4) Then believers and disbelievers will go to the bridge lying over the fire from hell the bridge will be of one single hair and be sharp as a sword. The journey will be of no difficulty to those who lived their life according to Islam. 5) Indralok is the standard heaven to which those who please the Gods through their activities go. The standard hell is Yamalok. 6One example is the 11-month-old Muslim boy from India. He has now been named Balaji, another name for monkey-faced Lord Hanuman. He is reported to have a 4in tail caused by genetic mutations during the development of the foetus. Iqbal Qureshi, the childs maternal grandfather, is taking Balaji from temple to temple where people offer money to see the boy. Mr Qureshi says the baby has nine spots on his body like Lord Hanuman and showed them to journalists, reports Indian newspaper The Tribune. What this quote shows is that there are differences of opinion within a religion as even genetic mutations such as this one have altered the decision in believing in the Day of Judgement for a Muslim man. (http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/fr/607381/posts)

Psychological approaches to child development

Psychological approaches to child development Learning theory comes from the Cognitive, Behaviourist and Social approaches in the field of psychology. Each of these approaches has assumptions that can be used to how it applies its approach to understanding human behaviour. The basic assumptions of the Behaviourist approaches are firstly classical conditioning this is learning through the process of association between a particular stimulus and response. Classical conditioning involves conditioned reflexes: all animals have this reflexive behaviour which is not a conscious control but is a response to a specific stimuli for example a kneejerk reflex will only jerk if is tapped in the correct place while your lower leg is freely swinging this reflex is controlled by the spinal cord and not by the brain this is a straightforward response to the stimuli another example is the production of saliva in response to food when hungry. This was studied in great detail by Pavlov, (1911). Pavlov had been studying the digestive process in dog s, in order to do this he placed dogs in harnesses and set a tube up inside their cheek, he did this so he could measure the rate and production of saliva. He observed that the dogs would start to salivate not only when they were given food but when they first caught sight of the food pail. Pavlov set up many studies to investigate whether or not a dog could learn to associate salivation with another response the ringing of a bell, Pavlov found that after associating the sound of the bell with the presentation of food the dogs would salivate when they heard the bell. The reflex of salivation had become conditioned. Pavlov found there to be a tendency to generalise the learning to other stimuli if a different bell was rang the dogs would still salivate and the more similar the sound of bell was to the original one the stronger the response this is known as the generalisation gradient. Although Pavlov studied dogs it became apparent that it was also a form of human learning. (HayesOre ll, 1996) (Pearce, 1987) Menzies (1937) showed how completely unconscious response could be conditioned response to the sound of a buzzer, the response was vasoconstriction which is the process of blood vessels withdrawing from the surface of the skin in the cold. Menzies got his participants to immerse their hands in a bucket of ice cold water when the buzzer was sounded this would cause vasoconstriction in their hands after a while vasoconstriction would take place when the buzzer sounded even though their hands were not immerged in the water meaning their reflex had been conditioned. This study is important as it illustrates that classical conditioning is nothing to do with our conscious decisions. (HayesOrell, 1996) In 1920 Watson and Rayner performed a conditioning experiment on a little boy who became known as little Albert; He was given a white rat and it was observed that Albert was playful with the rodent he had no fear of it and was even comfortable picking it up. The next time the rat was given to Albert he reacted in the same way but then the psychologists made a loud sound it was so sudden it made little Albert cry they did this on numerous occasions and so finally the mere sight of the rat would make Little Albert cry next they introduced a white rabbit and a Santa Claus mask which also made him cry, Little Albert had been conditioned to cry at the sight of the white rat but during the process had made a connection that anything white and furry would make a loud noise. This experiment gives us an insight into the human mind however this experiment would be unethical in todays standards. (HayesOrell, 1996)(Pearce , 1987) Traditionally, psychologists believed that responses that can be classically conditioned are involuntary responses for example: heart rate changes, gastric motility, sweating, eye blinks and sexual arousal. This is in contrast to operant conditioning, in which voluntary responses are molded through their rewarding and punishing consequence Pavlovs studies demonstrated how animals and humans can acquire new behaviors beyond the rather limited repertoire of their innate reflexes. (Davey, G 1981) Pavlov believed that the conditioned response could explain all kinds of learning. For many years, learning theorists believed that virtually any perceivable neutral stimulus could become a Conditioned Stimulus and that just about any response could be conditioned this view of classical conditioning has been modified as a variety of research studies have identified limitations to animals and humans adaptability through classical conditioning .( Davey 1981) Stimulus generalization allows you to respond to similarities between environmental stimuli, while stimulus discrimination allows you to respond differently to stimuli that have some features in common with other stimuli. You generalize first, and then, through additional experience, you learn which stimuli are functionally similar and which stimuli require different responses. (Hayes, 1994)(McFarland, 1999) Another type of learning is Operant Conditioning which involves learning to repeat or totally stop certain behaviours, although is more complex than classical conditioning it is still a simple form of learning. In 1911 Thorndike argued that some responses were learned not simply because they are associated with a stimulus response but because they had unpleasant consequences. This was known as the law of effect which is the investigation of different types of learning it is now known as operant conditioning the psychologist responsible for developing it was Skinner. Like Pavlov, Skinner investigated learning by using animals he did this because he wanted to study simple forms of learning whereas human learning is generally complicated. By using a Skinner box which is a device that contained simple elements that were needed for learning a response, he would place a hungry animal either a rat or a pigeon into the box and observe their behaviour the box would contain three things a leve r a food delivery chute and a light, as the animal began to move around the box it would eventually press the lever and food would be delivered meaning that the behaviour was being rewarded and would have an affect in reinforcing that behaviour which in turn would make it happen again. (HayesOrell, 1996) (Blackwell Skinner, 1951) Skinner introduced the term operant or operant response to distinguish the responses in operant conditioning from those in classical conditioning. In classical conditioning the conditioned response does not affect whether or when the stimulus occurs. Supernanny uses positive reinforcement and rewards and this is most effective in producing good behaviour. Positive rein forcers are events that strengthen a response if they are experienced after that response occurs. They are roughly equivalent to rewards. For children, positive rein forcers can include food, smiles, money, or other desirable outcomes. The presentation of positive re-enforcers after a response is called positive reinforcement. The process of strengthening behavior by following it with the removal of an aversive stimulus is called negative reinforcement and other desirable outcomes. Negative rein forcers are stimuli such as pain, threats, or a disapproving frown that strengthen a response if they are removed after the response occurs. Whether it takes the form of presenting something pleasant or removing something aversive, reinforcement always increases the likelihood of the behavior that precedes it. (supernanny.com). Developmental psychologists are interested in how parents impact upon a childs development, furthermore sourcing actual cause and effect links between the actions of parents and childrens development can be very difficult. Baumrind (1967) conducted a study on more than 100 preschool age children using naturalistic observation and parental interviews she was able to identify four important dimensions of parenting which are disciplinary strategies, warmth and nurturance, communication and expectations of maturity and control. Baumrind (1967) stated that the majority of parents display one of four parenting styles which are: Authoritarian parenting which is where the parent controls, shapes and evaluates the attitude and behaviour of a child using strict rules established by the parents they believe in keeping the child in their place. They also do not encourage verbal give and take, believing that the child should accept their word for what is right. Next is the Authoritative parent th ey attempt to direct the childs activities but in a rational, issue-oriented manner. They encourage verbal give and take and share with the child the reasoning. This type of parenting can result in children being obedient but lack happiness and self esteem. The authoritative parent affirms the childs present qualities, but also sets standards for future conduct. These parents want their children to be assertive as well as socially responsible. This type of parenting can result in children being happy capable and successful. Permissive parents have very few demands to make on their children the parent consults with the child about decisions and gives explanations as to why they have to be implemented. They avoid control and use reason and manipulation not to overt power but to accomplish mature behaviour permissive parents are nurturing and commutative and are more than a friend than a parent to their children. This parenting style can result in children having low happiness and self esteem but also have problems with authority and sometimes can do poor at school. Finally the uninvolved parent has few demands and has very low responsiveness and communication with their child even though these parents may fulfil their childs basic needs they are more likely to be detached from their childs life in extreme cases this can lead to reject r neglect of their children. This parenting style lacks lowest in all life domains and children lack in self esteem and are less competent. (Baumrind, 1967) The BBC news reported on a study Tough Love is good for children It states a balance of warmth and discipline improved social skills more that an authoritarian or disengaged upbringing. It says children aged five with Tough Love parents were twice as likely to show good character capabilities. However according to the report qualities such as application, self regulation and empathy were more likely to be developed in children whose parents were of the Tough Love category, it found that these qualities make a vital contribution to life chances and opportunity. The building character data came from more than 9000 households in the United Kingdom, it found that children from the richest backgrounds were twice as likely to develop key characteristics, additionally children whose parents were married were also twice as likely to show such traits than children from lone parent or step-families., it added that when parental style and confidence were tailored in the difference in child char acter development between richer and poorer families disappeared. They recommended that the governments sure start programme should be refocused for the use as a tool in early intervention and urge for more information and support for families and children with disengaged or low income parents. This report concluded that it indicated that parenting was the most important influence. (BBC News) One could argue that no matter what parenting style is given throughout childhood it reflects on a childs decision making attitude and behaviour, and has a great impact on a childs development. After learning about parenting styles on child development it is apparent that all parents should simply use the authoritative parenting style after all it is more likely to produce happy confident and capable children. The theories that Freud studied stressed the importance of childhood experiences, according to Freud child development is described as a series of psychosexual stages Freud outlined these stages as oral, anal, phallic, latency period, and genital. Each stage involves the satisfaction of a libidinal desire and can later play a role in adult personality. Erickson developed Freuds theories on development throughout human lifespan. Erikson believed that each stage of development is focused on overcoming a conflict. Theorist Jean Piaget suggested that children think differently than adults. Piagets stage theory describes the cognitive development of children. Cognitive development involves changes in cognitive process and abilities. In Piagets view, early cognitive development involves processes based upon actions and later progresses into changes in mental operations. Piagets focus on qualitative development had an important impact on education, although he did not specifically apply his theory to education but has been used in that children should taught at the level for which they are developmentally prepared. A criticism of Piaget is his research methods in he used his own three children for his experiments, other children in Piagets small research sample were all from well-educated professionals of high socio-economic status. Because of this unrepresentative sample, it is difficult to generalise his findings to a larger population and research has shown that Piagets argument that all children will automatically move to the next stage of development as they mature. Some data found shows that environmental factors may play a role in the development of formal operations. (About.com) Social learning theory is occurs within social context and is observational learning, imitation and modelling meaning people observe learning behaviour of others. Behaviourists say that learning has to be represented by a permanent change in behaviour; in contrast social learning theorists say that because people can learn through observation alone. Social learning theory has become increasingly cognitive in its interpretation of human learning. Awareness and expectations of reinforcements or punishments have a major effect on behaviours that people display. There is also a transition between behaviourist learning theories and cognitive learning theories. The environment reinforces and punishes modelling. Much behaviour can be learned through modelling: Aggression can be learned through models. Much research indicates that children become more aggressive when they observed aggressive or violent models. Moral thinking and moral behaviour are influenced by observation and modelling, in cluding moral judgments regarding right and wrong. Bandura (1961) designed a study which he named the Bobo Doll experiment, His study used three groups of children the first being the control group which did not include an adult. The other two groups included adult actors with one group being exposed to an adult displaying verbal and physical aggressive behaviour to an inflatable doll and the other witnessing a passive adult, Bandura (1961) found that the group of children who were exposed to the adult showing aggression were more likely to demonstrate the same behaviour when left alone in a room to play than those whose groups had a passive adult or no adult at all, The three groups were also divided equally between boys and girls and the results also showed that boys were three times more likely to imitate the physical aggressive behaviour than girls, although it was discovered that the level of imitative verbal aggression was about the same for males and females in the group, Bandura (1961) demonstrates that children have a tenden cy to imitate the behaviour of an adult role model so are acting in the same manner that an adult does.(Shuttleworth,2008) However there are extreme examples that show that a human child will imitate the behaviour of whatever it comes into contact with the most, exposure to a model behaving aggressively results in observational learning and aggressive behaviour. Refs http://www.betterlucktomorrow.com/character_sites/steve/Little%20Albert.htm http://psychology.about.com/od/developmentalpsychology/a/childdevtheory.htm Shuttleworth, M. (2008). EXPERIMENT-RECOURCES : Online. Available: http://www.experiment-resources.com/bobo-doll-experiment.html#Hypothesis [Accessed: 15/10/09] Davey, G (1981) Animal Learning and Conditioning MacMillan Press. Hayes, N. (1994) Principles of Comparative Psychology Lawrence Erlbaum. Martin, P. Bateson, P. (1993) Measuring Behaviour (2nd ed.) Cambridge University Press McFarland, D. (1999) Animal Behaviour (3rd ed.) Longman Pearce J.M. (1987) An Introduction to Animal Cognition Lawrence Erlbaum Ridley, M. (1995) Animal Behaviour: a concise introduction (2nd Ed.) Blackwell Skinner, B.F. (1951) How to Teach Animals Scientific American December 1951 pp http://www.supernanny.com/Advice/-/Supernanny-techniques/-/Discipline-and-reward.aspx http://www.devpsy.org/teaching/parent/baumrind_styles.html http://newsvote.bbc.co.uk/mpapps/pagetools/print/news.bbc.co.uk/1/h