Global media trends Term Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Global media trends - Term Paper Example Millions of people use Facebook, Orkut and such other forums of social media every day. This trend surfaced only few years ago. There are many causes behind it. The first and foremost reason is the development in technologies and Internet (online) services. This development has helped improve the social media and made it accessible and popular among all people (Nations, 2010). One of the most common and popular social networks in the world is Facebook. It is widely used by people of different nations, genders and ages. Facebook is a social service that aims at connecting people with one another. There are various networking tools, technologies and applications built into Facebook. These applications and technologies are advanced and useful. For example, the application of sharing photo in Facebook is interesting and widely used. Facebook is able to enhance the social relationships with friends, relatives, and family members. It has positive effects as it strengthens the relationships. Through sharing photos and videos, it can make the relations more interesting, lovely, friendly and intimate. Facebook networking has many advantages. It is very useful in terms of marketing business as it gives people the chance of creating special pages for their businesses and trademarks. Facebook advertisements are advantageous and useful. (Findlay, 2010). Facebook also has many negative impacts on the society in many ways. People get to know too much about one another and may black mail. Therefore, Facebook is blocked in certain countries such as Syria and Iran (Mamun, n.d.). It is also blocked at some workplaces to prevent employees from wasting their time in using Facebook services. Some of Facebook`s disadvantages is the issues and matters of privacy. Facebook faced lawsuits from many persons who said that Facebook had stolen their source code and other academic properties. Facebook is also a potential lure to child marauders and other

Indigenous Perspective Essay Example for Free

Indigenous Perspective Essay I agree with Professor Acuna and his historical statement. Along with Linda Tuhiwai Smith, their interpretations of the colonization of the Americas has long since been scene as the rape of a country for it’s riches, resourced and land is evident. The impact of the Catholic Church (I am catholic) at this time in history was one of the most devastating blows to the indigenous peoples of America, and the beginning an effort to wipe their cultures and history form the global historical record. The pillage of gold and the exploitation of the indigenous people clearly funded the beginning of Europe’s rapid expansion leading up to the Industrial Revolution. Without the vast amount of gold and wealth taken from the continent, Europe would have taken much more time to amass its wealth and the economical ability to pursue colonization around the globe. It is the perspective of the authors from both readings that our history from the perspective of currently accepted research is flawed. They claim, from an ethnocentric focus, any research conducted by a non-indigenous researcher is to re-inscribe a Western view. I agree that to legitimate and be considered â€Å"real† knowledge as they term it, such research should be from the perspective of an indigenous author. In addition, my perspective is that any non-indigenous researcher has to immerse themselves into the culture being studied. Smith especially argues that western research and critiques’ are but the cultural assumptions by a dominant culture, namely non-indigenous Americans. I think that Acunas adamant declarations asserting his self professed socialist views; that there is â€Å"insidious ethnic prejudice woven into the fabric of American culture†, and that minorities with an emphasis on Chicano and African culture are in fact victims of American society seems to be eccentric, but it does have the indication of validity to it. It was interesting to note that Professor Acuna actually had to go to court, in order to in order to obtain a position at an Institute of American Higher Education. Perhaps this is one of the best examples of his view on ethnic prejudice. I does seem to me that our current views on the history of the Americas should be expressed from the view of the ethnic culture that experienced it. What we read in grade school history books, does not tell us the perspective of the people who actually experienced colonization and its effects. The Mesoamerican’s were nearly wiped out and their cultures were devastated. These interpretations are clearly lacking. We are taught our history through rose-colored glasses that obstruct our vision of the destruction, enslavement, and rape of the early Americas through colonization of South and Central America. We are not taught that the cultures were largely wiped out by disease spread be their conquerors, or that the entire history of their culture was put to torch by catholic priests. Very few of the documents written by scribes of those cultures survived and exist today. What does exist is an enigma.

Health Promotion in the UK

Health Promotion in the UK Introduction Health promotion is a vast and complex subject, encompassing aspects of definitions of health, practical and political approaches to promoting health, education, social policy and particular notions related to preventative approaches to lifestyle management. As such, it requires careful examination and consideration in terms of the current UK socio-political culture and in terms of the evolution of health promotion into its current state (Scriven and Orme, 2001). Health promotion involves a great variety of people, professions and players, including politicians, doctors, nurses, social care professionals, teachers and educators, the legal profession, and of course, the general public. It touches everyone in our society in one form or another, from the advertising on cigarette packets to the nutritional information displayed on supermarket foods. Therefore, it is of concern to everyone in society, because it considers health, however it is defined, as being to a certain degree manageable, in that the manipulation of lifestyle and environmental factors can support people in achieving optimum health and wellbeing. However, its very complexity, partly due to its historical evolution, partly due to the complex social and political interactions which define the sphere of health in society, can mean that simplistic notions of health, health promotion and associated concepts are difficult to define and to achieve. This essay will address some of the complexities of the issues of health promotion. It will attempt to define what health promotion is, what ideas, ideals and concepts it includes, and how health promotion is realised in a practical sense. It will also address the need for exploration of the outcomes and interactions of health promotion activities, and their social and institutional context. It will, of necessity, discuss aspects of the healthcare systems within the United Kingdom which pertain to the subject, and of the socio-political systems and histories which underpin the current climate. It will then examine vital aspects of health promotion, such as health education and communication, participative approaches to health promotion, and evaluation of health promotion initiatives. The author will also attempt to debate ethical, political and professional dilemmas that arise in new practices and policies for promoting health and explore the development of ways of promoting health t hat tackle social and economic inequalities and that are holistic and culturally sensitive. What is Health Promotion? Tones (2001) describes health promotion as a contested concept, raising immediately the notion of differing definitions of health promotion, perhaps based on different conceptualisations of health or different social or political imperatives. Health promotion has often been viewed as synonymous with health education, while health education conversely is often believed to be a fundamental component of health promotion (Tones, 2001). It is also linked with and perhaps interchangeable with definitions of public health (Tones, 2001). This relationship with public health immediately takes the notion of health promotion away from the individual sphere and places it firmly in the public sphere, within the context of the social and political systems of the nation in question, or within a global perspective, both of which are applicable to this essay and discussion. Tones (2001) suggests a formula for health promotion where healthy public policy is multiplied with health education, establishi ng their relationship as the basis for our definitions of the concept. The World Health Organisation defines health promotion as the process of enabling people to increase control over, and to improve, their health. This generic definition suggests that health itself is an individual state over which individuals can have some measure of control. Jones et al (2002, p.xi) also suggest that for many people, health promotion means targeting behaviour, but view it as something imposed upon them which does not necessarily work for them. However, given that promoting heath is a diverse, complex and multi-faceted activity (Jones et al, 2002, p5), these definitions do not address the range of activities and ideologies associated with the process. Health promotion policy appears to combine diverse approaches which include legislation, financial measures, taxation and organizational change. Tones (2001) simplistic suggestion of a formula of the interdependence of health education and healthy public policy as a definition of health promotion does not focus on the role of the individual. Both are equally important in our understanding of this issue. Tones (2001 p4) however further goes on to discuss a model of health promotion which focuses on the purpose of healthy public policy and health education, which is argued to be the empowerment of individuals and communities to reduce or remove the various barrier spreventing the attainnment of health for all. This is a more useful definition, but rather idealistic, as it sugges ts that such a goal is achievable, and there may be vast differences in individuals’ notions of ‘health’ and their abilities to achieve this. Health promotion and health education are often also seen as synonymous. Health education can be as complex an issue as health promotion to define. Education implies somebody ‘teaching’ or educating, and somebody learning new information. Tones (2001) p 15) describes emancipatory education, a dialectical process which involves critical consciousness raising which leads to the translation of critical thinking about social issues into action. Health education involves communication and the transmission or sharing of information, but also implies that such information must be assimilated by the recipient and then utilised in order to bring about change in the self or in aspects of behaviour, lifestyle or environment. There are great benefits in adopting the curent collective approach to promoting health, which aims to involve people not only in their own health and well-being but in acting together upon theirf physical, social, political and economic environment for the sake of health (Sidell et al, 2002, p 1). Such approaches allow for the incorporation, validation and promotion of individual and group needs based on diversity in race, ethnic or religious identity, social or lifestyle identity, social status and social and geographical inequality. Historical Milestones in Health Promotion Webster and French (2003 p9) suggest that while the immediate sources of health promotion and current approaches to public health lie in the political history of the 1970s, there are roots which go much further back, arguing that all communities have had some interest in co-ordinated community action to ensure a better life. The historical link between health promotion and public health is well established, with one of the most significant milestones being the formation of the National Health Service in 1948, whose medicalised approach initially hindered public health and health promotion initiatives as we see them today in favour of a treatment-oriented approach to illness (Webster and French 2003 p 10). Webster and French (2003 p11) suggest that the three seminal documents which launched what we know perceive as the health promotion movement were: the Lalonde Report New Perspectives on the Health of Canadians (1974); the World Health Organisation’s Global Strategy for Health for All by the Year 2000 (1981) and the Ottawa Charter for Health Promotion 1986). It was these documents which, collectively, set out a vision for health improvement which exceeded the traditional approaches of sanitation engineering, lifestyle health education and preventing and caring health services which characterised health promotion to that point. Instead, health promotion became concerned principally with empowering citizens that that they could take control of their health an in so doing attain the best possible chance of a full and enjoyable life (Webster and French, 2003, p 15). This notion of empowerment appears fundamental to current perspectives on health promotion and to its influences on the National Health Service, including on such concepts as patient participation and collaboration, service user involvement and patient rights. This heralds a move away from the medicalisation of health towards a more social definition of health where power is apparently distributed more equally among those who experience and those who purport to affect health, illness and wellness. This is something that the World Health Organisation appears to have consistently advocated, a positive and holistic view of health which comprises mental, physical and social elements (Tones, 2001 p6). The Ottawa treaty, which encompasses the key principles of equity, empowerment and the reorientation of the health services, reflects this notion of demedicalisation, where collaborative working by the many agencies concerned with health promotion is believed to maximise the potential of any strategy or policy in this arena (Tones, 2001, p7). Within the UK, policy drivers which have driven health promotion initiatives are too numerous and complex to fully explore within the context of this essay. However, governmental initiatives, changes in health and social services, changes in approaches to public health and changes in statutory control and responsibility for public services have all formed part of the UK health promotion focus (Jones et al, 2002 p 9-13). However, there appears to be a counter culture of bottom up drivers as well, with empowerment leading to the enabling of the activities of community and voluntary groups to bring about change at local and even national levels. This reflects the overall picture of holistic health promotion as a community development activity rather than a policy founded in political rhetoric. Contextual and Practical Issues in Health Promotion The setting of health promotion is also of some concern, with the role of the media, community development and critical consciousness raising (Tones, 2001, p14-15) still areas of some debate. This author would argue that the media may have some merit in health promotion, but that there are likely to be many who do not trust the ‘messages’ given out given that so much advertising is false, suggestive and manipulative, and based on the need to sell products rather than truly promote health. Health and community services appear to be the most impactful arenas for health promotion to take place within. The National Health Service has already established a policy context for the promotion of health within public services (Adams, 2001 p35). Therefore, a primary and important leader for health promotion is the health authority, with its twin roles of service improvement and strategic leadership for improving health and tackling health inequalities (Adams, 2001, p38). Activities such as health needs assessments and community planning can be carried out in a collaborative and participative way with local organisations and community groups in order to target and focus health promotion activities at a policy level (Adams, 2001, p 39). Primary healthcare services and Primary Care Groups can also be a vehicle for health promotion (Velleman and Williams, 2001, p43), and given their location within communities should be ideally suited to this role. Such groups can focus on practical initiatives to reduce inequalities in health and to target issues such as heart disease, cancer, teenage pregnancies and accidents, on the back of governmental initiatives, alongside emergent and self-defined local issues (Velleman and Williams, 2001, p43). An example of an activity by a primary care group is of a stop smoking initiative, whereby health professionals were trained and located in GP practices to provide one to one support to smokers who want to quit, and practices were supported in developing systems that deliver stop smoking interventions effectively (Velleman and Williams, 2001 p 44). Such practices can have multiple benefits, both to the individuals whose health is improved by the intervention, and to their communities. The wider impact is also that such practices can serve as examples and provide evidence for other groups wishing to develop similar interventions. So it would seem that local initiatives can be of much wider importance. GPs have, following changes in contracts, been charged with the responsibility of improving the public’s health (Jones et al, 2002). But the limitations of their services, their training and their scope are still apparent (Jones et al, 2002). The National Health Service also has an already established professional context which is ideally suited to taking forward notions of true, holistic health promotion whereby communities and individuals become empowered as agents of their own wellbeing. Community nursing services, again on the frontline of NHS care and which function fully within the communities they serve, can be a vehicle for such activities (Wright, 2001, p58). These work alongside specialist health promotion services who act as catalysts and facilitators at local levels (Learmonth, 2001 p 66). Such professionals and services can be active in organisation development, through leadership, partnership, development, training, education and support and policy and strategy development (Learmonth, 2001, p66). They can also engage in evidence based practice, market research, communication and publicity, and programme management (Learmonth, 2001, p67). The benefits of having such professionals are obvious, particularly wit hin the already overstretched and under-funded health and social services sector. Such activities appear vitally important to achieving health promotion goals, and in particular to ensuring collaborative working and full community engagement. Therefore, specialist services can also support community development through advocacy, needs assessment, community participation, information for health, and evaluation of services (Learmonth, 2001, p 67). However, there are challenges, particularly in the capacity and recognition of such services and their location, which may fall between traditional services and serve to hinder their function (Learmonth, 2001, p75). Hospital nursing practice also provides vast scope for health promotion (Latter, 2001, p77). Among other potentialities, the role of the hospital nurse as the primary caregiver for individual patients equates to a significant scope for health education (Latter, 2001, p78). However, there is also the need to further develop this role, and support its expression in the beleaguered health service (Latter, 2001, p 79). Despite the challenges of this, it could be argued that nurses have a strong role to play in creating environments that are supportive of health, encouraging community participation in health and helping to generate healthy policies (Latter, 2001). It should be remembered, however, that nurses are themselves individuals, whose own health needs support and input, and so any drive towards increasing their functions within health promotion may also need to address their working conditions, and the demands which place a strain on their own health. Environment is another contextual issue in health promotion. The role of Local Authorities in supporting healthier environments and communities is described by Allen (2001, p 91), who argues that such authorities can act as role models, and through the work of environmental health services, can promote the health of communities through: food inspection and maintenance of food safety; housing standards; health and safety at work and during recreation; environmental protection; communicable disease prevention and control; licensing; drinking water surveillance; refuse collection and street cleaning; and pest control. These are statutory functions, but if effective and efficient, have obvious public health benefits and therefore health promotion benefits. In addition, the discretionary powers of local authorities can affect issues of HIV and AIDS, alcohol and drug addiction, nutrition, women and men’s health, heating and energy advice, occupational health, environmental enhanceme nt and poverty issues (Allen, 2001 p 91). Their limitations are apparent, but this is where the voluntary sector comes in, and often voluntary groups and agencies fill some of the gaps where statutory services cannot stretch to cover all areas. Social services address the social aspects of health, by engaging in preventive work with children and families, by involvement in the care of older people, and by engagement with the health and wellbeing of people with special needs (Jones and Rose, 2001 p 95-102.) Diversity issues can be addressed by some aspects of social services (Jones and Rose, 2001 p 95-102), but again, there are gaps, where in some areas voluntary agencies can fulfil identified needs that cannot be met by health and social care services. Another arena for health promotion is that of health education in schools (Scriven, 2001 p 115). This is another growth area, supported by a range of policy drivers (Scriven, 2001, p121; Beattie 2001 p 133). School nurses have always had a role in health promotion for specific age groups, and this is another area where health promotion opportunities can be maximised (Farrow, 2001 p 151). Similarly, there is some evidence that Universities can be effective loci of health promo tion activities, with the integration of visions of health within plans and policies and promotion of sustainable health within the wider community (Dooris and Thompson, 2001 p 160). For those who perhaps cannot be reached through these contexts, there is also the Youth Work setting, which also provides considerable scope for health information and advice, though this too is not without its challenges (Robertson, 2001 p 173-176). Where services fail to meet need, as already suggested, the voluntary sector may cover the shortfall. The greatest value of the voluntary sector lies in its diversity and its motivation, which stems from free will, moral purpose and individual personal engagement (Anderson, 2001 p 181). Voluntary agencies are non-profit-making and occupy a singular position within society. Conversely, profit-making agencies can also contribute to health promotion through health working policies and health promotion in the workplace (Daykin, 2001 p 204). Good occupational he alth services, for example, can also play a vital role in health promotion, both generally and in specific issues related to the type of employment and activities concerned (Lisle, 2001). What all of these point to is this notion of collaborative, interagency working, where health promotion becomes the common goal of diverse populations, agencies, services, professions and of course individuals. Some believe that effective interagency working lies at the heart of improving health outcomes for vulnerable populations (Jones and Rose, 2001, p 95). However, such a standard of working is difficult to achieve (Jones and Rose, 2001, p 95), perhaps because of the boundaries and restrictions within which such groups work, and the historical context which makes them protective of their own ‘territory’. It is obvious that such limitations must be overcome if health promotion goals are to be met. It we are to achieve the goal of a holistic, socio-ecological model of health fully applied to our societies, then new ways of working and communicating must be developed, building on current evidence from innovations and practice. Debates and Dilemmas in Health Promotion It would be reasonable to raise the question, in the light of all these services, policies and drivers which promote health in our arguably well-endowed nation, why indeed is health promotion still such a challenge? Why are so many still suffering from ill health, social injustice, health inequalities and supposedly eminently preventable diseases? There may be many possible answers to this. Health is believed to be ultimately determined by the existence of equity and social justice, which is in turn rooted in people’s material, social, economic and cultural circumstances (Tones, 2001 p7). It is also believed that community action for health is based on the premise that health chances and health choices are shaped, to a great extent, by the social, political and economic conditions in which people live, and that ability of individuals to shape and control these structures is limited (Jones et al, 2002 p 25). It has been argued that the creation of healthy public policy is the prerequisite for changing adverse environments in order to facilitate the development of health (Tones, 2001 p8), but this author would also argue that adverse environments must be ‘ owned’ by those who live within them, and no amount of policy, imposed ‘top-down’ will improve environments if those who live within them do not equally invest in their amelioration and long-term development. Tones (2001 p 9) does argue that individual empowerment and community empowerment are linked, and that these are partly dependant on a sense of community where individuals have some notion of membership of some kind of community or group. The term community implies a common bond between individuals (Jones et al, 2002 p 25). Therefore we see the individual in a different context, a context comprised of various relationships and connections with other individuals. These must surely affect health and health p romotion behaviours, positively and negatively. But what of the individuals who fall outside such communities? Is it the remit of government, at any level, to force or coerce individuals into a state of ‘belonging’? Definitions of communities and group identities may serve to alienate those who do not feel associated with them, but in this case it might be necessary to focus on the good of the many, and to address the larger issues before addressing individual differences of this kind. If self-empowerment is attainable (Tones, 2001 p 11) then such individuals may take control of their own health. Activities such as community campaign groups, self-help groups and even more politicised groups related to notions of women’s or men’s health may all engage in action for health (Jones et al, 2002), and therefore it could be argued that any one individual should find a group or action which ‘concerns’ them or some aspect of their life or lifestyle. This may be particularly important in terms of dive rsity, where so-called ‘minority’ groups can both campaign for issues pertaining to their own identities and needs, and develop services which meet those needs. This returns us to the work of the voluntary sector, which is where such activities tend to find expression. But surely it is the role of government, and the services provided, at a locally devolved level, through central funding, to provide such sensitivity in the services and policies it underwrites? Some would argue that such sensitivity exists, but we have yet to see it fully realised in action, and have yet to see evidence of the efficacy of these great policy drivers in real practical terms. Jones et al (2002 p 47) suggest that community groups may find it useful to develop partnerships with local authorities, the education sector, other groups, NHS services, employers and even the media in order to ensure a fully participative, collaborative and comprehensive approach to locally-suited health promotion activities. This author would argue that with the best will in the world, there will always be a divergence between the goals of different groups, and an imbalance of power betw een these different agencies. The agendas of central government may end up dominating those of the community, and while such collaborative working is the ideal, it may need to be undertaken with awareness and caution. Farrant (2003 p 230) argues that the recent moves towards community development may simply mirror or reinforce the existing power inequalities within social systems, and such activities simply serve as another vehicle for governmental control. It is therefore important to be aware of the policy context within social action on health promotion, and to engage in true community or communal activities rather than those made possible by the current political and funding context. The paternalism of our current political system is evident in the media and the governmental policy drivers which shape public services. Such paternalism may be of some benefit in highlighting health promotion issues which need to be addressed, but the media reports demonstrate an over-generalisation of the issues. It is at the community level that the real needs can be identified (Jones et al, 2002 p 100). Part of this process is the evaluation of health promotion initiatives and actions, particularly participatory evaluation of community action with dissemination of findings (Jones et al, 2002 p 100). This serves two purposes. It allows communities themselves to build on evidence and continue to grow and develop such initiatives in a reflexive manner, and it establishes their work within the fields of health and social care on a more critical, intellectual level as an evidence-base which can educate and empower others. This essay has touched on the notion of public health and policy drivers, and has equated health promotion, to a certain degree, with the notion of public health. It is important, therefore, to consider the public health debate and the politics of health promotion. The context of public health within the UK is very much concerned with the notion of health inequalities, again, as mentioned in the above discussion. The evidence from the UK still points to considerable inequalities in health depending on region, and on individual occupation, and suggests that these inequalities are widening, despite significant improvements in aspects of social and economic wellbeing (Graham, 2003 p 20). Changing distributions of work and income, changing access to housing (such as increases in owner-occupation), changing patterns of working and domestic lives are all affecting social determinants of health (Graham, 2003 p 24-25). It has long been believed that income inequality is an important determin ant of health in richer societies, but research suggests that population health is related less to how wealthy a society is, and more to how equally or unequally this wealth is distributed (Graham, 2003 p 25). But individual factors must be taken into consideration, particularly in terms of health and illness. It is no surprise that an individual’s health is a determinant a well as an outcome of socio-economic circumstances, where those in better health are more likely to move up the occupational and economic ladder, while those in poorer health will not (Graham, 2003 p 26-27). Factors on the individual level include material factors, such and the physical environment of the home, the neighbourhood and workplace, and living standards; behavioural factors, such as health-related routines and habits, leisure activities and diet; and psychosocial factors in particular increased stress and risk-taking behaviours (Graham, 2003 p 27-28). Public health therefore has a dual remit – to address the socio-economic factors which affect health, and to address the individual factors which influence health. There is evidence of addressing individual lifestyle factors in governmental paternalism in such campaigns as the no-smoking campaigns and legislation, and the current debate on obesity. However, the notion of the evidence which underpins these drivers is debatable. There has been in recent years, a strong trend towards evidence-based practice in all aspects of health care, and this includes health promotion and public health (McQueen and Anderson, 2003 p 165). Ideally the theory informing practice should arise from multiple disciplines and represent diverse research (McQueen and Anderson, 2003 p 167). However, there is a divergence between empirical evidence and so called qualitative evidence, the latter of which does not enjoy the validity or acceptance of the former in terms of evidence. While health promotion is widely assumed to be based on science and a scientific basis for human behaviour, a scientific paradigm does not underlie our notions of health, public health and health promotion (McQueen and Anderson, 2003 p 168). The whole concept of public health and health promotion stems from an holistic and almost communalist paradigm, rejecting the view that human behaviour is simply a response to physiological and neural processes (MqQueen and Anderson, 2003 p 168). Therefore, simplistic, reductionist and scientific principles of evidence derived from statistics and experimental research will of necessity be woefully inadequate in addressing the very real complexities of health promotion in the practical and real community context. Therefore there is a need to identify news way s of seeking and defining appropriate evidence, in a developmental process which mirrors that of the health promotion activities themselves. Conclusion It is evident that health promotion, particularly within the UK context, is a complex concept with a wealth of diverse yet oddly inter-related issues and problems. This essay has attempted to discuss some of the issues raised in the set books for the K301 course, with an exploration of key issues and some debate of current provision. Health promotion is a governmental initiative, but remains also an ideogical and idealistic goal. It is best viewed as an holistic concept with contextual characteristics which must be taken into consideration. Some of these contextual characteristics are national, some are local or locational, and some are individual. It is the relationship between these three that defines both the need and the processes required to meet that need, fundamentally at a local level. The very complexity of the context requires that health promotion activities occur through collaborative, communal and partnership working, which means a change from traditional methods of organising health and social services. If we accept the principle that coordinated action leads to improved health, income and social policies that foster greater equity, then we understand the fact that collaborative action contributes to ensuring safer and healthier goods and services, better and more locally suitable public services, and cleaner, more healthful environments. It also requires that policy-makers, groups and individuals identify barriers and challenges to the adoption of healthier policies and behaviours, throughout society, and develop collaborative approaches to addressing these. However, avoiding paternalism and the mimicking of governmental agendas is also vital. What is most apparent from this discussion is that despite the debates, and there are many, the systems and resources are already in place to foster improved public health and health promotion activties and to engage all sectors of the community in these actions. Such resources include primary healthcare services and groups, nurses working in acute hospitals and within the community, specialist health promotion professionals, social services, schools, voluntary agencies, statutory agencies, youth groups, social and self-help groups, and many more. The potential of these groups in and of themsleves to engage in health promotion, and to evaluate and communicate these activties to others as a form of evidence, is already apparent from the literature. In particular, the literature also suggests that the notion of evidence in this arena should move away from reductionist, scientific principles to mirror the holistic nature of the health promotion context. But the efficacy of these diverse players in the arena is limited until such time as full collaboration, partnership and inter-agency working is realised.

The Future of Mankind Essay -- Philosophy God Philosophical Essays

The Future of Mankind If we compare the present with the past, if we trace events at all epochs to their causes, if we examine the elements of human growth, we find that Nature has raised us to what we are, not by fixed laws, but by provisional expedients, and that the principle which in one age effected the advancement of a nation, in the next age retarded the mental movement, or even destroyed it altogether. War, despotism, slavery, and superstition are now injurious to the progress of Europe, but they were once the agents by which progress was produced. By means of war the animated life was slowly raised upward in the scale, and quadrupeds passed into man. By means of war the human intelligence was brightened, and the affections were made intense; weapons and tools were invented; foreign wives were captured, and the marriages of blood relations were forbidden; prisoners were tamed, and the women set free; prisoners were exchanged, accompanied with presents; thus commerce was established, and thus, by means of war, men were first brought into amicable relations with one another. By war the tribes were dispersed all over the world, and adopted various pursuits according to the conditions by which they were surrounded. By war the tribes were compressed into the nation. It was war which founded the Chinese Empire. It was war which had locked Babylonia, and Egypt, and India. It was war which developed the genius of Greece. It was war which planted the Greek language in Asia, and so rendered possible the spread of Christianity. It was war which united the world in peace from the Cheviot Hills to the Danube and the Euphrates. It was war which saved Europe from the quietude of China. It was war which made Mecca the centre of the East. It was war which united the barons in the Crusades, and which destroyed the feudal system. Even in recent times the action of war has been useful in condensing scattered elements of nationality, and in liberating subject populations. United Italy was formed directly or indirectly by the war of 1859, 1866, and 187O. The last war realised the dreams of German poets, and united the Teutonic nations more closely than the shrewdest statesmen could have conceived to be possible a few years ago. That same war, so calamitous for France, will yet regenerate that great country, and make her more prosperous than she has ever been. Th... ...n will look upon this star as their fatherland; its progress will be their ambition; the gratitude of others their reward. These bodies which now we: wear belong to the lower animals; our minds have already outgrown them; already we look upon them with contempt. A time will come when Science will transform them by means which we cannot conjecture, and which, even if explained to us, we could not now under stand, just as the savage cannot understand electricity, magnetism, steam. Disease will be extirpated; the causes of decay will be removed; immortality will be invented. And then, the earth being small, mankind will migrate into space, and will cross the airless Saharas which separate planet from planet, and sun from sun. The earth will become a Holy Land which will be visited by pilgrims from all the quarters of the universe. Finally, men will master the forces of Nature; they will become themselves architects of systems, manufacturers of worlds. Man then will be perfect; he will then be a creator; he will therefore be what the vulgar worship as a god. But even then, he will in reality be no nearer than he is at present to the First Cause, the Inscrutable Mystery, the GOD.

Prisons and Jails

The government has imposed punishment as a means to control crime. There are four key justifications for punishing criminals: retribution, incapacitation, deterrence, and rehabilitation (Seiter, R. P. , 2005). These four justifications serve as the goals of the United States correctional system. The other side of retribution can be simply stated that when an offender commits a crime, he must be punished for his actions. Retribution serves as a means to keep the general public safe. (Seiter, R. P. , 2005). In so many ways offenders are punished due to the crimes they commit, you are locked up in a cell and you stay there until you go in front of the judge and receive a sentence if found guilty. Now there are fines you must pay for certain crimes, community service is another consequence for a crime you have committed. No matter what the crime you will have to suffer the consequences for them. Incarceration is the most common example of punishment in the correctional system, but the death penalty and lesser penalties such as probation are also designed to be punitive. Perhaps the most obvious goals of the correctional system is to punish those who are found guilty of crimes. In theory this is suppose to serve as a deterrent against one repeating criminal activity and as an example to others of why criminal activity should be avoided. It is unclear how well the modern U. S. correctional system achieves these goals and whether the money invested in the correctional system might be better spent. The main question is does punishment deter crime at all? Retribution is an act of moral vengeance which society makes the offender suffer as much as the suffering caused by the crime committed (Macionis, 2006). People have a choice whether or not to do a crime. How Does Our Correctional System Rehabilitate Offenders? In the early 1900’s rehabilitation had emerged as the primary theory of corrections and shaped every aspect of correctional policy and practice. Then in the 1960’s and 1970’s rehabilitation was attacked for not having evidentiary standing and in the resulting turmoil. Rehabilitation has been shown to help offenders to not re-offend where as the other theories have shown to have little to no effect on the reoccurring crime rate and some in fact have been shown to have the opposite effect in increasing the reoccurring crime rate. On any given day there are more than seven million Americans under the supervision of the correctional system which includes approximately 1. 5 million inmates incarceratedin jail, 4. 2 million on probation and over 828,000 on parole according to the Bureau of Justice Statistics. The statistics are staggering considering according to the U. S. Census the United States population is 307,006,550 (U. S. Census 2010). So, that means that approximately for every one hundred people two are incarcerated. Also according to the Disaster Center in 2009 31,916,949 crimes were committed in the United States. Giving inmates the opportunity to deal with the reason for entering prison and prison life, will promote alternative ways to handle negative behavioral issues (Hagebrook & Zgoba). The added medical and counsel care, in addition to requiring extensive pre-release counseling will help prepare for constructive life outside of prison. Many inmates enter prison with a mental illness and many are unaware of the illness until they are imprisoned (cdcr. ca. gov). It would be very beneficial to treat the illness head on, at that point. Which Method Is More Effective? I feel that rehabilitation would be a more effective way in reducing crime for these reasons. When an inmate has access to options to help themselves change for the better and re-enter the outside world again, then they are willing to make a difference. Now Therapy is another form of rehabilitation needed to help deter individuals from committing future crimes. Some examples of therapy include drug therapy to those offenders addicted to drugs and psychological counseling to those offenders who grew up in an abusive household. Rehabilitation can help to solve the problem of overcrowding in most prisons. The criminal population continues growing, as the death penalty has been abolished, and the state would need to spend more on facilities to house criminals. Education is one of the ways in which this positive change was affected. Education works in two levels to successfully rehabilitate the criminal. I do see that in criminal rehabilitation, prisoners are given opportunities to increase their content knowledge base. This is essential as studies show that many inmates do not have basic grade school education. Is will also impede their success of acquiring jobs, thus many had to turn to a life crime. Rehabilitation also ensures that inmates are socially well adjusted. Psychological assessments are being meted to test for mental or physical disabilities that led to their incarceration in the first place. I personally do know a few ex cons and from what they went through in prison to get help for a better life out here in society was real nice to see, I haven’t seen them even step back to the old ways they had of committing crimes, and I always hear them tell me that they just want to keep their Freedom! So I do what I can to help them stay on the right track, and if they even think that it will make them happier to back track. I just throw up what they will be missing out on in this world, and how hurt their family members will be without them daily. So with that said I for sure think that Rehabilitation is the best for our convicts these days.

Free Essays on Analysis Of Adverts In Various Newpspapers And Magazines

ANALYSIS OF ADVERTS IN VARIOUS NEWSPAPERS AND MAGAZINES The average length of a television commercial is 30 seconds. In this short period of time, one would expect a presentation with a clear, concise or simple message that provides us with enough information to be able to begin forming an opinion of the product. Adverts in newspapers and magazines, however, take a different approach. Everything that the manufac-turer wants to say about the product has to be captured in one image. Press advertising is, however, a more suitable media for providing more detailed information about the vehicle such as the details of dealers and telephone numbers, prices and finance deals. Different newspapers and magazines also have their own particular target audiences, so adverts can be tailored to the expected reader. Broad sheet newspapers and the weekend supplements Looking at the newspapers in their entirety, the articles tend to be based on fact and do not rely on titillation to sell stories. The target audience is a generally more educated and aware sector of the population; those who make time at the weekend to catch up with the news and can ponder over the articles and advertisements in the supplements. The adverts in the glossy weekend supplements to these newspapers are plentiful and prominent, for cars as well as other luxury items including jewellery, perfume and designer clothes. The inside cov-ers of one Telegraph supplement were adverts for cars. A range of cars are advertised includ-ing the Ford Ka and Zetec and the Peugeot 106 at one end of the price spectrum and BMW, Lexus, Jaguar S type and Land Rover at the other end of the spectrum. However, there were no adverts for typical family cars such as Vauxhall and Ford saloons. The signals from most of the adverts are quality, drive and handling. The prices are given for some of the vehicles but it is not used as the primary selling signal. Tabloids Tabloids are mainly direc... Free Essays on Analysis Of Adverts In Various Newpspapers And Magazines Free Essays on Analysis Of Adverts In Various Newpspapers And Magazines ANALYSIS OF ADVERTS IN VARIOUS NEWSPAPERS AND MAGAZINES The average length of a television commercial is 30 seconds. In this short period of time, one would expect a presentation with a clear, concise or simple message that provides us with enough information to be able to begin forming an opinion of the product. Adverts in newspapers and magazines, however, take a different approach. Everything that the manufac-turer wants to say about the product has to be captured in one image. Press advertising is, however, a more suitable media for providing more detailed information about the vehicle such as the details of dealers and telephone numbers, prices and finance deals. Different newspapers and magazines also have their own particular target audiences, so adverts can be tailored to the expected reader. Broad sheet newspapers and the weekend supplements Looking at the newspapers in their entirety, the articles tend to be based on fact and do not rely on titillation to sell stories. The target audience is a generally more educated and aware sector of the population; those who make time at the weekend to catch up with the news and can ponder over the articles and advertisements in the supplements. The adverts in the glossy weekend supplements to these newspapers are plentiful and prominent, for cars as well as other luxury items including jewellery, perfume and designer clothes. The inside cov-ers of one Telegraph supplement were adverts for cars. A range of cars are advertised includ-ing the Ford Ka and Zetec and the Peugeot 106 at one end of the price spectrum and BMW, Lexus, Jaguar S type and Land Rover at the other end of the spectrum. However, there were no adverts for typical family cars such as Vauxhall and Ford saloons. The signals from most of the adverts are quality, drive and handling. The prices are given for some of the vehicles but it is not used as the primary selling signal. Tabloids Tabloids are mainly direc...

Humes A Treatise Of Human Nat essays

Humes A Treatise Of Human Nat essays In Humes A Treatise Of Human Nature he makes a distinction between passions and reason. He Points out that reason is a slave to the passions. Reason is what directs our judgment, concerning causes and effects (p.461). These causes and effects are what directs our reason. There are some who object to this theory that Hume presents saying Surely reason is not always the slave of the passions for sometimes I act against my passions just to be reasonable. Though this objection might seem to have validity it can be seen as faulty by paying close attention to Humes section on the influencing motives of the will. The key to this argument is that the person is not acting just to be reasonable. It is that they are acting out of a secondary passion, which can be nature, good, or aversion to evil. It is the passion and not the reason that is causing the way the person chooses to act. Reason cant alone produce an action only desire can move the action of the will. It is important to also distinguish the that there are types of passions or desires, those that are originally implanted in our natures and those which are a result of the general appetite to good and the aversion to evil (p.464). The first is desire is inborn. If someone were offered 100 dollars to jump off of a building, any sane person would say no. This is because they have a natural desire to stay alive also known as the law of self-preservation. This desire is innate and is implanted in us from birth. Other natural desires are those of hunger, thirst, and sleep. The passions, which result from the appetite to good, could be considered as desires of self-advancement for example. This can be anywhere from a person trying to receive a higher salary at their job to someone trying to receive the most recognition in their field. This appetite for good cannot be considered as natural instinct. This is because it is society that exemplifies what is good a...

The Principal Parts of Verbs

The Principal Parts of Verbs In English grammar, the term principal parts  describes the basic forms of a verb including the base or infinite, the past tense or preterite and the past participle. From the base form, one can derive the third-person singular -s form in words like looks and sees and the present participle -ing in words like looking and seeing, with some textbooks regarding the present participle as a fourth principal part of a verb. Irregular verbs may have three, four, or five forms, though, depending on whether or not a form is used for two or three form types. For all except the verb be, which may be unpredictable, the s- and -ing participle are always available and its alteration of the base acts predictably. Understanding Principal Parts of Regular and Irregular Verbs In order for new English learners to best understand how not to make mistake when conjugating irregular verbs, one must first grasp the concept of the principal parts of regular verbs. In most cases, verbs will change uniformly when -ed, -s, and -ing are added, keeping their original form spelling but changing the tense of the verb. However, irregular verbs, which defy the usual pattern, often change spelling entirely depending on tense, especially in the case of forms of the verb be. Roy Peter Clark uses the examples of lie and lay and run in The Glamour of Grammar: A Guide to the Magic and Mystery of Practical English. For run, Clark states, the simple past, we know, is not runned...the principal parts are run, ran, run. In this case, the irregular verb has its own rules. If you are confused about the correct principal part of a verb, its best to consult a dictionary. In the case of regular verbs, only one form will be given, but irregular verbs will give the second and third parts after the verb such as it does for the words go, went, and gone. Primary and Perfect Tenses The principal parts of verbs effectively carry a sense of time with their use, but the manner in which they convey  the action of the verb determines which tense classification linguists and grammarians categorize them as either primary or perfect in either the present, past, or future tenses. In the primary tenses, an action is considered ongoing, even if it occurred in the past or future tense. Take the verb call as an example. For the present tense, one would say today, I call, while in the past primary tense, one would say I called and in future would say I will call. On the other hand, perfect tenses describe actions that have already been completed. As Patricia Osborn puts it in How Grammar Works: A Self-Teaching Guide, verbs in this tense are called perfect because anything perfect is complete, and the perfect tenses stress an action at its completion. In the example of call, one would say Before now, I have called, for present perfect, I had called for past perfect and I will have called in the future perfect tense.

Pulmonary fibrosis Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Pulmonary fibrosis - Research Paper Example Pulmonary fibrosis is a factor that categorizes various forms of acute and chronic interstitial lung disease. The American Thoracic Society and the European Respiratory Society classify Interstitial Pulmonary Diseases into seven distinct categories of Interstitial Lung Disease (ILD), â€Å"idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF), nonspecific interstitial pneumonia (NSIP), acute interstitial pneumonitis (AIP), respiratory bronchiolitis-associated ILD, desquamative interstitial pneumonia, cryptogenic organizing pneumonia (COP) and lymphocyte interstitial pneumonia† (Lovgren, 2007). The history of pulmonary fibrosis is deeply linked with Idiopathic Pulmonary Fibrosis (IPF). IPF is a subset of ILD. IPD is a form of chronic pulmonary fibrosis where the etiology of the disease is unknown. IPF was first described by Hamman and Rich in 1935 at the John Hopkins Hospital. Later this was found to be a case of acute interstitial pneumonia. The Liebow classifications in 1960 marked a new era f or interstitial lung diseases. It was not until 1980 that the importance of growth factors was taken into consideration. This led to understanding of ILD through abnormal wound healing rather than inflammation. Anatomy of the systems involved The foremost system involved and affected by pulmonary fibrosis is the respiratory system. ... The alveoli are sac like structures that are present at the terminal end of the bronchioles. Alveoli are highly vascularized and are responsible for gaseous exchange. The alveolar wall is about 0.5 µm in thickness. It consist of four layers of cells which are the squamous cells of alveoli, basement membrane of alveoli, basement membrane of the capillaries and squamous cells of capillaries. The intersitium is the space between the alveolar epithelium and capillary endothelium. It is found to be thin on one side of the capillary, where it consists of basement membranes of the capillary and alveoli. The mechanical strength of the thin side of the blood gas barrier comes from the type IV collagen present in the interstitium. The opposite side of the capillary has an interstitium that is wider and consists of type I collagen with fibroblasts and pericytes. Pulmonary fibrosis affects the intersitium of the alveoli. The disease involves thickening of this interstitium through collagen. In the initial stages, an increased number of lymphocytes and plasma cells are found within the area. These cells are later accompanied by fibroblasts that lay down thick collagen bundles. The functioning of the heart is closely related to respiratory system. The affects of pulmonary fibrosis are evident on the working of the cardiovascular system. Since the tissue is scarred, the heart muscle works harder to pump the same volume of blood through the lungs. As fibrosis continues the risks of heart failure increase. Causes for the disease Pulmonary fibrosis may be caused by a number of factors, the foremost of which are inhalation of environmental agents and results of auto immune disorders. The more common reasons

Discussion Board Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Discussion Board - Essay Example As the paper declares there is a tendency to ignore this growing social problem and the war on drugs has pushed the distribution of all kinds of drugs used into the hands of criminal elements of society. Decriminalization of drugs attempts to make drugs available through more legitimate channels with a degree of control and thereby remove distribution of drugs through the criminal elements. To understand the working of this measure an examination of its use in Holland would be useful. In Holland drugs have been classified into hard, which includes heroin, cocaine and ecstasy and soft, which is cannabis. In the case of cannabis the possession of small quantities for personal use is seldom held against the person having it, but more importantly it is the fact that cannabis has been made available through cafes and removes the criminal element from the distribution of cannabis. This essay stresses that the problem with this measure is that the use of the soft drug cannabis could lead to the use of hard drugs and hard drugs are still clamped down heavily in Holland. A possible way out of this is to make the hard drugs available at chemists and sold through prescriptions under strict regulations so that the involvement of criminal elements is removed. Still this does not remove the issue of the move from a soft drug like cannabis to a hard drug like heroin or cocaine by a soft drug user.

Nokia Managing problems Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2750 words

Nokia Managing problems - Essay Example Nokia is facing some serious issues regarding its operation management and research & development. This study is designed to determine those issues that are causing the downfall of Nokia in the global market. The main concern of the report is to highlight those issues that are the reasons for declining in the performance of operation management department of Nokia. The analysis declares the main problems and results stated the areas of improvement in the functions of operation management and research & development department. INTRODUCTION In the last few years Nokia has been facing several problems in different areas of the organization in competing in the global market. The global market is changing day by day especially in the line of technological advancement (Chief Supply Chain Of?cer Insights, 2011). New inventions are being discovered by the leading manufacturers regularly. Continuously innovation has been made in the smart phones by some of the rivalry companies like Samsung a nd Apple Inc (Simchi-Levi, Kaminsky, & Simchi-levi, 2007). There are many other competitors all around the globe which give tough competition to Nokia in different markets of different countries. This competition created problems for Nokia in many portions of the business. This study is designed to discuss the issues or problems faces by Nokia in the last few years. These issues brought a great impact over the Nokia’s financial position in the year 2012. According to the report sales of Nokia have dropped by 29% in the international market and net cash has decreased by 24% in one year period (Gassee, 2012). This report analyses the performance of Nokia. After conducting the research the problem faced by Nokia has been identified that has resulted in declining market of Nokia. The consistent decline in the performance of operation managements of Nokia has been one of the major reasons for the decline in sales of the company. As the operations of the company are analyzed then i t can be found that three main departments are responsible for this declining phase and these departments are production department, research and development and supply chain management. The production department has potential and capacity to produce to meet the demand but still the production does not meet the demand. This gap of demand and supply is the main cause of declining market ok Nokia. The second issue is innovations in their phones. Smart phones introduced by Nokia are not completely grabbing the interest of customers as they are not able to fulfill the needs of the consumers. The third issue is regarding the less efficient supply chain management process in some big markets of Nokia. For example, According to the Bloomberg, in China Nokia Lumia 920T was facing serious supply chain management issues. The price of Nokia Lumia in China was 4,599-yuan ($738), the distributors of China claimed that they do not have a stock of Nokia Lumia 920T. For this reason Nokia has droppe d the holiday session of next week because of its delivery issue. According to the statement of China Mobile spokeswoman, they ordered 90000 units of Nokia Lumia 920T but Nokia has just supplied 30000 units which is 1/3 of the whole demand. This situation gives the understanding that Nokia is going through a serious problem in the area operation managem

Logistics Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Logistics - Essay Example In the management of erection logistics suitability and adaptability of the carriers are very important. Some of the functions relating to logistics, such as chartering arrangement for barges, supply vessels, helicopters, etc., are outsourced through the external agencies for customized sea freight and air freight services. Other important factors that need to be considered include waste disposal, material handling equipments, inventory management and clearance of goods in airports and seaport. Human resources management involves recruitment of qualified, experienced and certified professionals for employment in various levels of the management structure. Strategic planning and coordination is essential for storage and movement of the materials in cost effective management. Based on the risk parameters established for storage and handling of various types of materials and machineries, special arrangements for movement of materials with care should be made. The procedures for this pur pose should be incorporated into the system for effective management. Planning and Coordination Field logistics vary from project to project, consequently, so does the planning process. Somuyiwa, and Adewoye (2010) stated: IT in supply chain has enabled the gathering, storing and analysis of unprecedented amounts of data. It equally facilitates planning at all levels through data analysis and sharing, which enable planning to occur at the strategic, tactical, and operational levels. Similarly, IT gathers, integrates, and analyzes logistical data to streamline local and global supply chain. (p.43) The distance between the project to the sea and airports and the traffic level are the important factors which govern the planning process. Storage and transshipment of the materials at the port or airport depends upon the frequency in schedules for arrival and departure of the careers. Online location of the careers is important for monitoring status of the shipments in relation to the sch edule of operations. This will enable timely clearance of the goods, making arrangements for storing in offshore supply bases or moving them to the respective offshore platforms. Offshore mooring or establishing floating warehouses near the offshore oilfields should be considered based on the cost factors involved. This should be balanced with the increased efficiency achievable in logistics management in terms of time or deadlines. Cost-benefit analysis will enable the management to firm up the plans in line with the overall strategic logistics management decisions. Advance checking of the documents related to the goods such as pro forma invoice, packing list, inspection certificate, insurance and test certificate is essential to avoid problems in the last minute. Also, the transport documents such as Shipping Order, Bill of Lading and Sea/Air Waybill, other financial documents like letters of credit or insurance documents and the government documents such as licenses and declarati ons should be checked in advance. This will be useful in identifying the inconsistencies. Rectification of the defects on time will avoid delays in clearance. Documentation is very important, especially in the case of port or airport with heavy traffic. Here, officers at various levels may have to be coordinated in case there is any discrepancy in documentation.

Analysis of the function of Hedging in the Futures Market Dissertation

Analysis of the function of Hedging in the Futures Market - Dissertation Example The author of the dissertation "Analysis of the function of Hedging in the Futures Market" begins with the introduction where shows her concern that Individual investors, business establishments and portfolio managers are all exposed to price risks, which they counter or minimize by hedging in the futures market. Though not meant for making money, hedging has proved to be a good option for reducing price risks consequently minimizing losses. Besides guarding against price risks, hedging, when executed prudently, can bring in multiple benefits like stabilizing market volatility, absorbing unexpected market pressures and even providing competitive edge during depressed market conditions and when price wars intensify. The futures market acts as the platform, which the investors use for minimizing risks and following exponential growth in hedging, the futures markets have become increasingly popular in recent years. However, hedging is not so simple as it appears and there are no sure sh ot formulas to always win at it either. Today, hedging can make or break an organization or an individual investor and as such adequate knowledge of the roles and technicalities of hedging in the futures market is of paramount importance. As a result of globalization today’s enterprises are increasingly facing various risks over time like risks in prices and productions. These risks not only affect the enterprises but also extend to the individual investors and portfolio managers who put money in the stocks of the companies (5).

Parents Involvement in Their Children Education Research Paper

Parents Involvement in Their Children Education - Research Paper Example As children attend school, parents should participate in the education process using several approaches. These include buying uniforms, paying schools fees, assisting with homework, taking them to school and picking them. Sciarra (2004) indicates that parents should create an appropriate environment for their children by removing distractions such as excessive TV or films, too much movement or regular friends. DEEWR (2011) indicates that the home and learning environment should be favorable for children in order to boost their learning process. Parents’ contribution in their children erudition whose objective was to explain enhances their performance in school. Parents should teach their children songs, drawings as well as paintings or allow them to visit the library. As a result, parents know their children’s talents and preferred co-curricular activities. Additionally, parents get to know their children’s friends and keep a record of their progress in school. A ccording to a recent research whose objective was to explain the relationship between parents’ involvement in their children education and results, it was discovered that help with schoolwork is directly proportional to a child’s enhanced reading, understanding of numbers and improved scores. Another importance is that parents get to know their children capabilities and weakness. Additionally, parents get to know their children’s friends and keep a record of their progress in school.... of Education, claimed that parents’ participation in their children education is critical than socio-economic status of the family. This simply means that a child’s economic background does not influence their academic capabilities rather than their parents’ involvement (Sciarra, 2004). According to Sciarra (2004) parents are involved in their children’s education and social life in order to manage issues such as drug and alcohol abuse, peer influence and bullying. Financial constrain is a challenge that parents face, limiting them from taking their children to best schools, provide them with good books and educational trips (Sciarra, 2004). Sciarra claims that children who come from families whose parents suffer from sickness, mental disorders or abuse drugs are likely to perform poorly in school. These parents do not take a centre role in order to ensure children meet their academic objectives. Furthermore, children from such families do not engage in sp orts, go out on academic trips or buy books so that they do not burden their families. Additionally, such children avoid good careers such as medicine, law and engineering because parents cannot pay the required fees (Sciarra, 2004). In as much there is a broad agreement that parents influence their children education, researchers are still investigating an appropriate form of parenting that would lead to academic success of children. Theories on how parents can pass reading culture, skills and good attitudes to their children are being debated on. A significant proportion of scholars argue that some children are inherently intelligent while others are not academically talented. These scholars further claim that environmental influence or parental guiding cannot change academic capabilities. There

Logistics Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Logistics - Essay Example In the management of erection logistics suitability and adaptability of the carriers are very important. Some of the functions relating to logistics, such as chartering arrangement for barges, supply vessels, helicopters, etc., are outsourced through the external agencies for customized sea freight and air freight services. Other important factors that need to be considered include waste disposal, material handling equipments, inventory management and clearance of goods in airports and seaport. Human resources management involves recruitment of qualified, experienced and certified professionals for employment in various levels of the management structure. Strategic planning and coordination is essential for storage and movement of the materials in cost effective management. Based on the risk parameters established for storage and handling of various types of materials and machineries, special arrangements for movement of materials with care should be made. The procedures for this pur pose should be incorporated into the system for effective management. Planning and Coordination Field logistics vary from project to project, consequently, so does the planning process. Somuyiwa, and Adewoye (2010) stated: IT in supply chain has enabled the gathering, storing and analysis of unprecedented amounts of data. It equally facilitates planning at all levels through data analysis and sharing, which enable planning to occur at the strategic, tactical, and operational levels. Similarly, IT gathers, integrates, and analyzes logistical data to streamline local and global supply chain. (p.43) The distance between the project to the sea and airports and the traffic level are the important factors which govern the planning process. Storage and transshipment of the materials at the port or airport depends upon the frequency in schedules for arrival and departure of the careers. Online location of the careers is important for monitoring status of the shipments in relation to the sch edule of operations. This will enable timely clearance of the goods, making arrangements for storing in offshore supply bases or moving them to the respective offshore platforms. Offshore mooring or establishing floating warehouses near the offshore oilfields should be considered based on the cost factors involved. This should be balanced with the increased efficiency achievable in logistics management in terms of time or deadlines. Cost-benefit analysis will enable the management to firm up the plans in line with the overall strategic logistics management decisions. Advance checking of the documents related to the goods such as pro forma invoice, packing list, inspection certificate, insurance and test certificate is essential to avoid problems in the last minute. Also, the transport documents such as Shipping Order, Bill of Lading and Sea/Air Waybill, other financial documents like letters of credit or insurance documents and the government documents such as licenses and declarati ons should be checked in advance. This will be useful in identifying the inconsistencies. Rectification of the defects on time will avoid delays in clearance. Documentation is very important, especially in the case of port or airport with heavy traffic. Here, officers at various levels may have to be coordinated in case there is any discrepancy in documentation.

Parents Involvement in Their Children Education Research Paper

Parents Involvement in Their Children Education - Research Paper Example As children attend school, parents should participate in the education process using several approaches. These include buying uniforms, paying schools fees, assisting with homework, taking them to school and picking them. Sciarra (2004) indicates that parents should create an appropriate environment for their children by removing distractions such as excessive TV or films, too much movement or regular friends. DEEWR (2011) indicates that the home and learning environment should be favorable for children in order to boost their learning process. Parents’ contribution in their children erudition whose objective was to explain enhances their performance in school. Parents should teach their children songs, drawings as well as paintings or allow them to visit the library. As a result, parents know their children’s talents and preferred co-curricular activities. Additionally, parents get to know their children’s friends and keep a record of their progress in school. A ccording to a recent research whose objective was to explain the relationship between parents’ involvement in their children education and results, it was discovered that help with schoolwork is directly proportional to a child’s enhanced reading, understanding of numbers and improved scores. Another importance is that parents get to know their children capabilities and weakness. Additionally, parents get to know their children’s friends and keep a record of their progress in school.... of Education, claimed that parents’ participation in their children education is critical than socio-economic status of the family. This simply means that a child’s economic background does not influence their academic capabilities rather than their parents’ involvement (Sciarra, 2004). According to Sciarra (2004) parents are involved in their children’s education and social life in order to manage issues such as drug and alcohol abuse, peer influence and bullying. Financial constrain is a challenge that parents face, limiting them from taking their children to best schools, provide them with good books and educational trips (Sciarra, 2004). Sciarra claims that children who come from families whose parents suffer from sickness, mental disorders or abuse drugs are likely to perform poorly in school. These parents do not take a centre role in order to ensure children meet their academic objectives. Furthermore, children from such families do not engage in sp orts, go out on academic trips or buy books so that they do not burden their families. Additionally, such children avoid good careers such as medicine, law and engineering because parents cannot pay the required fees (Sciarra, 2004). In as much there is a broad agreement that parents influence their children education, researchers are still investigating an appropriate form of parenting that would lead to academic success of children. Theories on how parents can pass reading culture, skills and good attitudes to their children are being debated on. A significant proportion of scholars argue that some children are inherently intelligent while others are not academically talented. These scholars further claim that environmental influence or parental guiding cannot change academic capabilities. There

The Birthmark by Nathaniel Hawthorn Essay Example for Free

The Birthmark by Nathaniel Hawthorn Essay Essay Thesis: This essay is generally about how the author of the short story, Hawthorne, wants to show the world that perfection is not beauty and that science should not alter the way that nature set man on this world to be. He was a major asset to the transcendental movement, and this short story is a perfect example why. In Nathaniel HawthornesThe Birthmark, the main character, Aylmer, wants to have a perfect wife. His wife, Georgiana, is a very beautiful woman with just one flaw, the Birthmark on her face. As a scientist, Aylmer tries to create an elixir that will rid Georgiana of her birthmark, thus making her perfect. According to Hawthorne, however, this is not possible. During the transcendental phase of American life, which included literature from Hawthorne, transcendental writers would promote Nature and its importance. In The Birthmark, Nathaniel Hawthorne tries to show the people that nature does not make anything flawless, and that this is the beauty of it. Nature, in one shape or another, stamps ineffaceably on all her productions. (Hawthorne) Nathaniel Hawthorne tries to pass a message to the world that science should not interfere with natures way of having people live. Hawthorne portrays Aylmer as being stupid for trying to create formulas that would extend life. Aylmer appeared to believe that, by the plainest scientific logic, it was altogether within the limits of possibility to discover this long-sought medium. (Hawthorne) Unlike Aylmer, Georgiana is signified as an image of both physical and intellectual beauty. Hawthorne shows physical beauty in her by showing her beautiful attributes, while adding that flaws can make somebody even more perfect, as this shows natures effect on this person. Hawthorne also shows a great amount of faith and transcendentalism in Georgiana. He does this by showing Georgiana to love the mistakes and flaws of her husband, as she looks through all of the failures in Aylmers scientific books. It seems as though Hawthorne almost wants to make Georgiana the protagonist, as he wants readers to take attributes from her and let her set good examples, while Aylmer is the bad one. Hawthorne does this well by showing in the end that man who wants perfection will kill nature once he brings science to try to  alter it. Aylmers pursuit to happiness leads nature and her beauty to die. Aylmer, the selfish enemy, knows the risks of having Georgiana drink the elixir, yet, nonetheless, he has her drink it because he finds flawlessness to be more important. The beautiful Georgiana is further portrayed as the perfect being of nature, adding on to her flaws, because she is dominated by the love for her husband, and even risks giving up her own life (and loses it) just to make him happy. Aminadab, Aylmers servant, is another example of a good being that Hawthorne puts into the short story. According to Hawthorne, Aminadab is earthly, and represents man who understands physical and mental nature. Throughout the story, Aminadab says just one thing; If she were my wife, Id never part with that birthmark. (Hawthorne) This shows that he would rather behold the beauty of natures work, than attempt to modify it in any way, unlike the evil Aylmer. Aylmer is blind and will stay this way for the rest of his life. He will never realize that nature places imperfections for a purpose, and as long as he lives, he will continue to try to improve nature and prolong the life it has given its people. He will completely miss the fact that the reason Georgiana died was not because he had the wrong formula, but it is because nature can not have anything that is faultless.

Relationship Between Stress and Parenting Quality

Relationship Between Stress and Parenting Quality Coping as a Moderator Between Parents’ Stress and Parenting Quality Elizabeth K. Wilson Previous literature has shown that the quality of parenting is vulnerable to stressors such as daily hassles, financial hardship, and work-related stress, to name a few (Leinonen et al., 2002). Longer workdays for parents have been shown to create stress and decrease family interaction time (Lerner Galambos, 1991). Fathers’ work stress translates into negative feelings and more disciplinary parenting (Galambos et al., 1995) while mothers’ work stress causes them to withdraw from their children (Repetti Wood, 1997). Both parents have less closeness and are accepting of children when affected by stress (Galambos et al., 1995). Parents who are forced to work longer hours or multiple jobs because of financial situations face even more added stress. When experiencing financial hardship, parents make adjustments to living such as canceling family trips or postponing important family purchases, which makes them feel like a failure at providing for their family and creates wo rry (Conger Elder, 1994). This reflects on their parenting skills in the form of more hostile, punitive parenting behavior (Conger et al., 1992). There has been evidence of more disruptive family functioning when parents report having more daily difficulties (Repetti Wood, 1997). According to the Family Systems Perspective, matters at the individual level, such as parenting behavior or the impact of stress, fully understood only by considering the larger network of interdependent relationships within the family (Minuchin, 1985). The spillover hypothesis posits that behavior and affect of the same valence transfer directly from one situation or relationship within the family to another, such that negative interactions in one situation spillover as negative interactions in another (Nelson et al., 2009). Marital distress is related to disruptions in parenting and quality of parent-child relationship – both mothers and fathers were more likely to engage in hostile rather than authoritative parenting when under stress in the marriage (Conger Elder, 1994; Conger et al., 1992). Stress on parents in the workplace, in their relationships, and even inconveniences throughout the day will undoubtedly spillover into other aspects of their lives, especially parenting, but how do coping strategies modify this effect differentially for mothers and fathers? Coping is an attempt to alter our circumstances, or the way we perceive them, to make them seem more favorable so that we are able to make it through the situation with a more positive outlook (Lazarus, 1993). Coping is a resource that has been shown to buffer the negative effects of a stressful event (Gayman et al., 2014). Using active coping strategies, which involve facing the problem head-on, is thought to be a more adaptive way of dealing with stress, while avoidance coping is less adaptive. Emotion-focused coping is a type of coping that could be classified as active coping if one is changing his or her appraisal of a situation to a positive appraisal. This type of coping is seen more commonly in women than in men (Holohan Moos, 1987). Social withdrawal has been regarded as a type of coping mechanism in response to short-term stress. Social withdrawal could be something as simple as watching television and avoiding interactions with family members. Fathers have been shown to physically position themselves away from family members after a hard day at work. This type of coping mechanism is not recognizable as a type of coping strategy by the person using it, so it may not show up in self-report measures, but has been shown in previous studies that observed family interactions (Campos et al., 2009). Two main types of coping are approach and avoidant coping, also known as active and passive coping. Approach coping strategies are an attempt to alter or decrease the stressor and engage and control the stressful situation, whereas avoidant coping strategies are an attempt to avoid the stressor by emotionally and sometimes physically disengaging from the problem. Avoidant coping strategies can be manifested in the form of actually leaving the stressful situation or emotionally denying the situation and sometimes â€Å"emotionally escaping† the situation by distracting the mind with a television show or abusing substances (Shin et al., 2014). We posit that parents who utilize active, approach coping strategies will have less negative interactions with their children after a stressful event because of the buffer that this positive coping strategy provides. These parents will face their problems head-on and will be better able to separate these stressful events from a stressful event involving their children. On the other hand, parents who utilize passive, avoidant coping strategies will not have this buffer between stressful events and the interactions with their children. The negative coping strategy will actually perpetuate the spillover of stress onto parent-child interactions. Parents who use avoidant strategies, such as social withdrawal, do not deal with their stressors appropriately and instead avoid them. This negatively affects later interactions with their children because they still have stress built up that they have not dealt with. This stress â€Å"spills over† into their ability to parent effectively and positively. The ability to cope with stress and subsequently provide good quality parenting leads to positive outcomes for children. Parenting quality has important implications for children’s school involvement and language development. Parents who utilize avoidant coping strategies or social withdrawal coping strategies do not use the time they have to give quality parenting to their children, such as reading with them or getting involved in school activities. Instead, they psychically isolate themselves from the family, using what little time they have to be alone (Katz, 2002). As mentioned previously, when faced with stressors, parents tend to use more hostile than authoritative parenting, and more coercive than constructive parenting (Conger Elder, 1994; Conger et al., 1992), which could have serious implications for the child’s wellbeing. Hostile and aggressive parenting practices have been associated with attention and hyperactivity problems, conduct and aggression problems, and less prosocial behavior in children. On the other hand, constructive parenting has been associated with improved adjustment and lower level of antisocial behavior in children (Hadzic et al., 2013). The current study will examine the relationship between parents’ stress and parenting quality and the possible role of coping strategies as a moderator of this relationship. We hypothesize that coping will significantly moderate this link, with positive coping strategies buffering the negative effects of stress on parenting and negative coping strategies perpetuating these negative effects. The role of parent gender in coping strategies will also be examined. We expect that there will be significant gender differences, such that males will utilize more negative and avoidant strategies thus having a greater negative effect on their quality of parenting than females, whom we expect to utilize more positive and active coping strategies. If coping is shown to be a significant moderator of the relationship between stress and parenting quality, this finding could have serious clinical implications. Clinicians would benefit from focusing on improving coping strategies to help parents deal with stressors that spillover into parenting practices. Parents would benefit from utilizing positive rather than coping strategies.

Pearl Harbor - The United States Should Have Anticipated the Attack :: World War II History

Pearl Harbor - The United States Should Have Anticipated the Attack Many have compared the terrorist attack on the World Trade Center on September 11, 2001 to the attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941. They argue that both attacks were just as astonishing, unwarranted and unpredictable. The World Trade Center buildings in New York City still lie in ruin, an icy reminder of the terrorist attack. Both the U.S.S. Arizona and the U.S.S Utah remain on the floor of Pearl Harbor, each a ghostly, decaying tomb reminding all of the thousands that gave their life on that fateful day, also, they are both reminders of seemingly how easily the attack was carried out and of how America, the world's big brother and perhaps the most powerful nation in the history of the world, was caught with 'its guard down.' The attacks are also similar in that, generally, those who lived through them divide time: time before the attack and time after. After Pearl Harbor, the United States declared war on Japan, and thus Germany and Italy with the signing of the Anti-Cominter n Pact and latter the Tripartite Pact, and after was slingshot into the Cold War, and after the September 11 attack, concepts that may have been unthinkable before the attack are being considered such as torturing detainees and racial profiling and, arguably, security has been further fortified in airports and other public places. Both attacks were turning points in American history; they had and will have profound effects on life after them. The details of the September 11 attack are still buried in distant lands while the on Pearl Harbor happened over 60 years ago; therefore most of the documents and information concerning the attack have been released. When analyzing the documents and accounts of the Pearl Harbor attack, historians are not able to avoid the fact that many warning signs of the approaching attack existed. The neglect of these signs can, in most cases, be attributed to some sort of human error in dealing with those signs. Although human error played a large part in the reason that those in power did not take further advantage of those signs, it was not the only reason. Most of the signs were neither tangible nor very specific of the location, date or degree of ferocity at which Japanese would attack. Another reason is that for years before the attack, a feeling of isolation and thoughts that the United States need not interfere in European matters presided over the minds of many Americans.

Resources and Development in an economy :: Economics

Resources and Development in an economy Resources and Development a) Resources influence the structure and progress of an economy. If something is considered a resource it is potentially of economic benefit. However there are three differing types of resources, and it is the relative abundance of all these that dictates the economic structure. It is debatable whether the presence of one resource, e.g. Coal (a natural resource), leads in itself to economic sustainability and strength. There are human, capital and natural resources. Human resources represent the quality and quantity of the workforce and is influenced by factors such as education and demographics. Capital resources come in the form of accumulated wealth in assets such as industry or infrastructure. Natural resources, such as oil, coal or timber, are primary materials which are of utility to man, which man has the willingness (i.e. it will either be of use in other industrial processes or will gain a profit), and ability to exploit. These three factors combine to provide the backbone to an economy, although they often rely on one another, especially the industries on the workforce, to function properly. Natural resources are arguably the 'kick off' necessity of the other two, and is more complex as there are many types of natural resource, both infinite such as timber, and finite such as crude oil. There is therefore the issue of decision-making regarding sustainability, and the appropriateness of using a particular resource for a particular purpose, when a suitable replacement is available, and this often alters which natural materials are regarded as resources. b) Logic would suggest that the presence of natural resources in a country has a positive relationship with its economic development. There are many examples that support this theory, such as with the most developed countries of Western Europe, and renowned anthropologists such as Rostow assume it to be true. However there is well supported evidence that natural resources are not at all essential for economic development, and with the global political structure having evolved the way it has, anthropologists such a Gunder-Frank suggest that natural resources can be more of a hindrance than an advantage regarding the improvement of an economy. In his model for economic development Rostow assumes that natural resources are necessary for economic progression through the 'preconditions for takeoff' and 'takeoff' stages of development. This was originally true in the case of the first industrialised countries in the 18th century. The development of the UK's wool, and later coal industries, directly triggered the processes that have led to the UK's developed economy today. However Gunder-Frank would argue that as soon as the first industrialised nations became rich and began looking to exploit wealth

Richard Miller

Brittany Scott February 22, 2013 Prof. Brittany Scott February 22, 2013 Prof. â€Å"The Stereotypes of Freire, Miller, Rodriguez, and Bordo† Having to read four stories from four well educated authors can leave you puzzled, but it can also open your mind to other forms of learning. The stories â€Å"The ‘Banking’ Concept of Education by Paulo Freire, â€Å"The Dark Knight of the Soul† by Richard Miller, â€Å"The Achievement of Desire† by Richard Rodriguez, and â€Å"Beauty (Re)Discovers the Males Body† by Susan Bordo all take on different aspects of learning. But while analyzing my readings I noticed that each author made a stereotype for their view of learning.Paulo Freire’s, said to be one of the most influential radical educators of our world viewings of literature were based on students and teachers. Freire created a system for teachers and students to have an equal power, but while doing his research him began to compare student teacher learning relations. Freire stereotyped students as takers (depositories) and teacher’s givers (depositors), but he also made it known that at times a student can be the giver. By students getting their education from a higher power, Freire feels as if it is depriving students of their creativity.In a passage from Freire states â€Å"Oppression – overwhelming control – is necrophilic; it is nourished by love of death, not life. The banking concept of education, which serves the interest of oppression, is also necrophilic. Based on a mechanistic, static, naturalistic, spatialized, view of consciousness, it transforms students into receiving objects. It attempts to control thinking and action, leads women and men to adjust to the world, and inhibits their creative powers. † I believe that Freire use his concepts as examples. From the quote from the book, he made it known that we as students are oppressed by the higher authority, the teacher.Through h is explanations he made it known that we receive and the more that we just receive, we are only going to regurgitate. Which leave you to having no creativity. In Richard E. Miller†s â€Å"The Dark Knight of the Soul† he compared literature to massacres. In Millers first story He used the events that happened at Columbine High School. Stating that the two young fellas Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold were all these things such as middle class, follower and leader, smart kid and a loser, and the even had alcohol fueled dreams but yet Miller felt as if more education and religion would have kept the two in line.The young ma Harris was said to have applied to numerous of colleges but was rejected and he was also rejected from the Marine Corps from having some drug in his system, all of this being weeks before the big massacre. They were bright students and brilliant when it came to computers and math but only one of them had something going for themself and that was Klebold. K lebold was well known in school, had a date for prom and even visited a college wee we was going to be attending in the upcoming semester, but soon both boys worlds would meet and collide.Miller basically said that if we read, write, and talk more that we are less likely to commit to deviance acts of violence. Richard Rodriguez used himself as a personal image but used his family as reflective image for the upcoming success he was striving for in â€Å"The Achievement of Desire. † Although Rodriguez is Latino and his family is considered to be middle class, as he got older and his knowledge began to expand he began to look down on of those little or less knowledge of what he knew.He was very distant from his family because of the love he ad from his books and the little interaction he would give them because he felt different; he felt like he could/should be better than them. As he got older his family laughed at him and called him names because he somewhat considered himself better than them. As he got older he began to critique himself for the distance, looking down on his family, and wanting to be so much of a scholar that he finally realized he was basically by himself.Being in a school in another country, watching others and how they socialize made realize that he was by himself and that instead of investing so much time into books, trying to be like that teacher he should have invested his time into a family ad even having friends. In Susan Bordo’s â€Å"Beauty (Re) discovers the Male Body† she takes the pressure off of us woman and finally puts it on the man by comparing the judgment of the males’ picture and the females’ picture.Bordo took the fire off of us females and finally put it of the male by comparing the likelihood of a female dressed a certain way in a photo on a billboard or in a magazine somewhere to a male dressed with more or less clothing. I can recall Bordo saying â€Å"Woman may dread being surveyed harshly†¦ men are not supposed to enjoy being surveyed period. † She feels that men are getting more comfortable wearing little to no clothing, being looked at as meat, or maybe even a sex symbol. In a commercial advertisement that Bordo seen read â€Å"men act and woman appear. A man can sit around and do work but not pay attention to any attention that is coming his way while a woman will show off her legs and her cleavage just to get that attention she is looking for. As time changes men are becoming more self-conscious of their appearance and what others may think of them. They are more willing to pose naked and take on certain roles in movies that they would not have in once upon a time. Whether it is their size, their looks, their shape, or even their masculinity both mean and woman are creatures of appearances and actions.Each author has their own perception of imaging. Whether it is visual, hands on, or something that they actually may have been a part of. During their phases of teaching they all began to hypothesize or stereotype a human been in some shape or form of an object. They still stick to their idea and they go on to describe how and why they feel that we as people are what they are characterizing. Freire, Miller, Rodrigues, and Bordo were all well educated in their area of works. They also made it easy for me as a student to understand learning through their eyes.