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Monday, September 30, 2019

Economics and External Audit

As mentioned in the case study above, Kellogg is going through a challenging time. Perform an external audit on Kellogg. Discuss the opportunities and threats facing the company. Answer Perform an external audit on Kellogg, will gain the team with better understanding of the firm industry, competitors and markets. It should involve as many managers and employees as possible. Before perform the audit, Kellogg must try to gather as much as possible on competitive intelligence and information about the products range, scale of economic, social, cultural, local political situation, legal, and technological trends.External audit staffs or manager should get strategic information update periodically by various sources such as such as internet, business magazine, and trade journals from stock exchange markets, newspaper, university and corporate publication. Suppliers, distributors, customers, salespersons and competitors represent also good references information. Once Kellogg collected al l these information, a detail study and evaluation should immediate carry out by involving a group of key staffs and management to identify the key threads and opportunities may occurs.Every key factor should list down and put with priority with rank from 1 for most important to 20 with least important. This ranking should conduct for both threat and opportunity. These external key factors may change from time to time which very much depending on the situation. Relationships with supplier or distributors are often a critical success factor. Other important variables use are include market share value, world economic environment, and technology, price competitiveness, load interest rate, competing of same range of products and sales force advantage and so on.Key external factors should be (a) Important for Kellogg to achieving annual and long-term objectives (b) applicable to all competing organization or company (c) quantitative and must be measureable (d) hierarchical which mean it may able apply across the organization but some are only for certain department only. The finalize list must publish and well explain among the organization in order to maximize the result when execute the action items. The key impact on external factors should include both threats and opportunities. Opportunities and Threats facing by the company:The external opportunities and threats facing by Kellogg may refer to social, economic, government, political, legal, demographic, environmental, technological, and competitive trends and events that impact the future of Kellogg. Opportunities and threats are usually difficult to control by an organization. A few opportunities and threads that face are listed here: ?Cash flow and company capital may impact or affected by the credit term or bad debt by their customer or cash spend on the acquisition. ?Price competition will largely impact organization profits margin since organization may offer price discount to maintain the market share. Change of consumer expectation on the products. It can be technology advancement, green product, simples operation with more users friendly and so on. ?Security of information technology will be a major concern since it may be hack by hacker with more and more transactions go on-line. ?With the increase of labor cost and processing cost, this will direct impact the commodity food prices and eventually these cost will factor in into the selling price. ?Political uncertainty in Africa and Middle East causing oil prices raise which may direct impact to the manufacturing and logistic cost. Both European and United State having high underemployment and unemployment rates will direct impact the spending power. Both European and United State encounter slow in economic growth. ?Short product life cycles is become a trend and organization much continuous to invent on new products by spending huge amount of capital on research and development to fulfill market need. ?Uncertain on global weath er with winters are colder and summers hotter than usual which impact the growth of agriculture’s products. This factor will impact to the supply demand which will directly impact to the raw material price.

Sunday, September 29, 2019

Economics Essay

Economics is regarded as one of the earliest and arguably most essential of the social sciences. While not exactly a science as the term science is widely known as today, there are similarities that allow for its classification as a social science. One of these similarities lies in the roles that economists play as social advisors vis-a-vis the role of scientists. As a policy advisor, an economist is expected to make reliable predictions and forecasts with regard to the policies to be instituted. Since the expectation is that of reliability, there is a large amount of precision required which is similar to that of the scientific method employed by scientists. The use of the null and test hypothesis as a scientists has an application for policy advisors in coming up with these forecasts. No policy advisor can make any suggestion without any empirical data or figures in the same way that no scientist will present a dissertation without any evidence. While these may make the roles as policy advisors and scientists similar to a certain extent, there are also differences depending on the situation the economist is placed in. As a policy advisor, an economist is expected to present reliable information in order to aid in the formulation and implementation of policies, while these may have a certain amount of scientific evidence (so to speak), there is a certain reality check which takes place that demands that the economist take the most viable option. The most scientifically correct approach may not always be the most viable option and this is what an economist must deal with when taking on the role of a policy advisor as opposed to when an economist takes on the role of a scientist in policy making, which more often than not entails that only the facts be presented in a scholarly manner without particular attention to its viability under different constraints.

Saturday, September 28, 2019

Psychological persperctive in health and social care Essay

The behaviourist perspective The behaviourist perspective is an idea that we can understand any type of behaviour by looking at what the person has learned. This includes personality traits such as shyness, confidence, optimism or pessimism. Behaviourist psychologists explain all human behaviour as resulting from experience. Two key psychologists are Pavlov and skinner, although these two theorists believed that different processes were involved, they both explained all types of behaviour as being the result of learning. This is everything from shyness to aggression and happiness to depression. Classical conditioning Classical conditioning was a theory developed by a Russian psychologist called Ivan Pavlov (1849-1936). He was working with dogs to investigate their digestive systems. The dogs were attached to a harness and Pavlov attached monitors to their stomachs and mouths so he could measure the rate of salivation. He noticed that the dog began to salivate when someone entered the room with a bowl of food, but before the dog had eaten the food. Since salivation is a reflex response, this seemed unusual. Pavlov decided that the dog was salivating because it had learned to associate the person with food. He then developed a theory. Food automatically led to the salivation response, since this response had not been learned, he called this an unconditioned response, which is a response that regularly occurs when an unconditioned stimulus is presented. As food automatically leads to this response, he called this unconditioned stimulus, which is a stimulus that regularly and consistently leads to an automatic response. Pavlov then presented food at the same time as ringing a bell (neutral stimulus), to see if the dog would learn to associate the bell with food. After several trials, the dog learned that the bell was associated with food and eventually it began to salivate only when the bell was rung and no food was presented. It therefore has learned the conditioned response (CR) of salivation to the conditioned stimulus (CS) of the bell. Operant conditioning This sort of learning is associated with the theories of Burrhus Frederic Skinner (1904 – 1990). Skinner was an American psychologist who worked  mostly with rats and pigeons, to learn some of the key principles of learning new behaviours. He used a very famous device, called a skinner box. Skinner famous device was a box which contained a lever which, when pressed, releases a food pellet into the box, thus reinforcing lever-pressing behaviour. When the rat is first placed in the box it will run around and sniff the various items in the box and at some point it will press the lever, releasing a food pellet. After a while of the repeated performed action the rat will learn this behaviour (pressing the lever) is automatically followed by the release of a food pellet (the consequence). Because the pellet is experienced as reinforcing (something the rat would like to have more of), this consequence increases the probability of the behaviour being repeated. There are two types of reinforcement: positive reinforcement and negative reinforcement. Skinner investigated negative reinforcement by running a very low electrical current throughout the floor of the Skinner box. The current can be de-activated if the rat pressed the lever. The behaviour of lever pressing was thus negatively reinforcing. For humans, this can be demonstrated by the example of using pain relief. For example, if you have aches and pains and you take a painkiller, which results in the aches and pains going away, you are negatively reinforced for taking a painkiller. Punishment occurs only when behaviour is followed by a consequence that is experienced as unpleasant. Skinner investigated this by giving the rat a small electric shock when the rat pressed the lever. The consequence of the lever pressing (the electric shock) was experienced as unpleasant, so the rat learned to stop pressing the lever. Social learning theory The effects of other individuals on behaviour There are many influences on our behaviour, for example peers, siblings, parents, television, media, sports personalities and other celebrities. Well according to social learning theory, role models are very important. While we may learn new behaviours from anyone, the likelihood of imitating behaviours is strongly influenced by the way we perceive the person performing the behaviour (the model). If we observe someone we admire behaving in a particular way, we may be more likely to imitate such behaviour. If, for example The effects of groups on behaviour Our behaviour is strongly influenced by the presence of others, however much we believe ourselves to be truly individuals in our beliefs and behaviour. Nowhere is this more clearly demonstrated than in the experiments conducted in the 1950’s by social psychologist Solomon Asch. He was interested in a concept called majority influence. This is when the presence of other people causes us to change our public behaviour or opinions because we do not want to stand out from the crowd (be different). We have a powerful desire to belong and will ‘go along’ with what others in our group say, think and do in order to FIT IN. This is what he did to test this idea. A group of six of the experimenter (people who were play-acting according to instructions) were joined by a naive participant (a genuine participant who knew nothing about the nature of the experiment) in a task that supposedly tested visual perception. The experimenter explained that the task involved stating whet her a target line. The effects of culture and society on behaviour The term culture refers to the shared values, norms, language, customs and practices of a group. Most of us tend to think of culture as being specific to different countries. It is important to understand how culture affects our behaviour in order to gain a full understanding of people we come across and those we work with. The self-fulfilling prophecy This part is an important concept in psychology that plays a big role on the way we behave towards others and expect them to behave towards us. If we believe ourselves to be worthy, pleasant and likeable then we will most definitely be polite and cheerful towards those we meet and this will create a favourable impression. In response to those who may come into contact with us view us favourably and behave in a positive way towards us, with the result that our own positive self-beliefs are confirmed. To put it another way, we are angry, full of resentment, believe the world is against us and more, then we are likely to behave in a more aggressive, confrontational or argumentative way, in which case that is how we will be viewed, which will confirm our views of ourselves and the world. Role theory Between role theory and the self-fulfilling prophecy there is a similarity, in that role theory comments that because we live within a particular culture, society and social group, we are influenced by other people. This influence helps lead us to taking up certain roles and trying to live up to the expectations that go with that role. Albert Bandura Social learning theory explains behaviour as the result of learning from people we are exposed to in our environment. We can also learn new behaviours from people we observe, either in real life or in the media. This is known as observational learning and this theory was developed by the American psychologist, Albert Bandura. The person we learn from is known as a role model, and the process of imitating is called modelling. However, we do not imitate all behaviour we observe and remember. Whether or not it is in our interests to imitate particular behaviour is influenced by characteristics of the model. If we see a model being punished for certain behaviour, we are less likely to imitate it than if we see him or her being positively reinforced. The psychodynamic approach The importance of the unconscious mind: Sigmund Freud Freud was one of the earliest thinkers to bring to public attention the idea that we are not always aware of all aspects of ourselves. He suggested that what we are aware of is represented in our conscious mind but many of our memories, feelings and past experiences are locked up in a part of our mind he called ‘unconscious’. We cannot access the contents of our unconscious, but they often ‘leak out’ in dreams and slips of the tongue. Freud believed that the conscious mind was like the tip of an iceberg – only a small part being available to awareness. Part of the unconscious that we can easily access he called the pre-conscious. This contains information not yet in consciousness but that can easily be retrieved (e.g. the name of your friends dog). The rest, well under the surface, consisted of the unconscious. Importance of early experiences The importance of early experience in determining later behaviours is clearly  illustrated by Freud’s developmental theory of psychosexual stages. He believed that we all go through several stages of psychosexual development. At every stage, the individual’s libido (energy) is focused on a part of the body that is particularly relevant at that stage. If the needs of the developing child are met at each stage, it moves on to the next developmental stage. If however, there is struggle or conflict or some unsatisfactory experience, the individual becomes ‘fixated’ (stuck) at this stage. This results in certain ways of being, or personality traits, which are carried through into adulthood and which can explain behaviour later in life. The earliest stage is the ‘oral stage’. The focus here is on the mouth and activities such as sucking, biting and licking. (You will probably have noticed that young babies seem to put everything in their mouths.) Freud believed that there could be two reasons for fixation. If the infant was weaned too early, it would feel forever under-gratified and unsatisfied and would develop into a pessimistic, sarcastic person. If, on the other hand, it was over- gratified (weaned too late) the individual would develop a gullible personality, naively trusting in others and with a tendency to ‘swallow anything’. This stage lasts from birth to roughly 18 months. If the infant successfully passes through the oral stage without becoming fixated, the next stage is the ‘anal stage’, which lasts from approximately one to three years. Here the libido is focused on aspects to do with potty training. If there is a battle with parents about potty training with the child feeling forced to use the potty before they are r eady, or feeling over – controlled in various areas, they may rebel by retaining their faeces: the child refuses to ‘go’, thus holding on to control and withholding satisfaction from the parent. This type of fixation is called ‘anally retentive’ and is associated with later personality characteristics such as obstinacy, miserliness and obsessive traits. The alternative scenario is that the child is not given enough boundaries over potty training so they take excessive pleasure in excretion and become a messy, creative, disorganised sort of person. During the ages of four to five the child passes through the ‘phallic stage’. Fixation at this stage is associated with anxiety and guilty feelings about sex and fear of castration for males. If this stage is not resolved, the theory suggests that a boy may become homosexual and a girl may become a lesbian. Freud thought these were  abnormal fixations; however most people today would not view them in this way. Between the ages of five to seven and the onset of puberty, the child enters the ‘latency stage’, which is not strictly speaking a developmental phase but a time when the focus is on s ocial pursuits such as sport, academic excellence and the development of friendships. The final psychosexual stage is the ‘genital stage’, which begins at puberty. Freud believed that the less fixated the individual has become during the earlier stages, the more easily this stage will be negotiated, resulting in the ability to form strong heterosexual relationships with an ability to be warm and loving as well as to receive love in a new, mature fashion. A second important feature of early experience is the development of ego defence mechanisms. The use of a defence mechanism allows us to block out events that threaten to overwhelm us. A final influence is that of the mind. Freud suggested that the mind (which he called the psyche) is divided into three dynamic parts. The id is a part of the mind which is totally unconscious and which exists at birth. It is focused on getting what it wants and consists of aggressive, sexual and loving instincts. It is the part of us that says ‘i want it now!’ The superego is formed as a result of socialisation and consists of all instructions, morals and values that are repeatedly enforced as we ar e growing up. It takes on the form of a conscience and also represents our view of our ideal self. The main role of the superego is to try to subdue the activity of the id. The ego tries to balance the demands of the id and the superego. It is the rational part of the mind, always seeking to do what is most helpful to the individual. Different behaviours can be understood by trying to infer which part of the psyche is dominant at any time. A person who is very submissive, guilty and always wanting to please may have a very strong superego. A person who is impulsive, careless of other people’s feelings, doesn’t think through the consequences of their actions and is perhaps inclined to aggression, either verbal or physical, probably has a dominant id. A person who can be submissive and assertive when necessary, who is bale to think about other people’s feelings but also consider and value their own needs, has probably got a strong enough ego to balance the demands of the id and the superego. They are likely to have quite a rational and realistic outlook on life. Erik Erikson Erik Erikson was a psychologist who agreed with much of Freud’s theory in so far as he thought that we developed through a series of stages. However, he thought that these continued throughout our lifetime and were essentially social in nature. He also believed that Freud put too much emphasis on our desire for individual gratification and not enough on our need to be accepted by society and lead a meaningful life. Erikson suggested that we move through a series of psychosocial crises with a different social focus at each stage. For example between birth and the age of one, the life crisis concerns developing trust or mistrust in self and others. The social focus at this stage is the mother. The humanistic perspective Human psychology looks at human experience from the viewpoint of the individual. It focuses on the idea of free will and the belief that we are all capable of making choices for ourselves. Two psychologists associated with this approach are Abraham Maslow and Carl Rogers. Abraham Maslow Maslow (1908-1970) was an American psychologist who believed that we are all seeking to become the best that we can possibly can- spiritually, physically, emotionally and intellectually. He called this Self-actualisation. He constructed a theory known as the hierarchy of needs, in which he explained that every human being requires certain basic needs to be met before they can approach the next level. Maslow believed that until our basic psychological needs are met, we will focus all our energies on getting them met and not be able to progress further. When people are well-housed, well-fed and comfortable physically, we begin to focus on our emotional needs, like the need to belong and be loved and to feel self-esteem. When our lives are such that these needs are also met, we strive to self-actualise. As Maslow said ‘A musician must make music, an artist must paint, a poet must write, if that person is to be ultimately at peace with their self’. What a person can be, they must be. This need we call self-actualisation. Carl Rogers Rogers (1902-1987) was particularly interested in the concept of self. There are many aspects of the self but two are especially important here. Self-concept refers to the way in which we view ourselves. This includes  physical, biological attributes like being male or female, blonde or brunette, short or tall, as well as personality traits like being kind, humble, assertive and hard working. The self -concept is formed from an early age and young children internalise other people’s judgements of them, which then become a part of their self –concept. If a child is told their silly, naughty apart of self-concept will contain these aspects. Another way of looking at it is a child is praised, encouraged to succeed and told they are valued; they will have a positive self-concept and see themselves as someone who is worthwhile and competent. Rogers believed that we also hold a concept of self, called the ideal self. This holds a view of ourselves as we feel we should be an d as we would like to be. When there is a mismatch between our actual self and our ideal self we become troubled and unhappy. The cognitive/information processing perspective This psychological perspective has gained enormous ground since the 1960’s, when the influence of behaviourism began to happen. With the development of computers came the idea that brain activity was like the operation of a computer. A great deal of research had been devoted to understanding cognitive processes such as attention, memory, perception, information processing, problem solving, thought language and other aspects of cognition. A way to understand this perspective is it relates to health and social care, we are going to concentrate on just two theorists: Jean Piaget and George Kelly. Jean Piaget Jean Piaget (1896-1980) was a Swiss psychologist who initially worked on measuring intelligence. During his research he noticed children of the same age made the same mistakes in logic, however bright they were. He came to the conclusion that cognition develops through a series of stages, each new stage building on the previous one. George Kelly George Kelly (1905-1966) developed a unique psychological theory known as the psychology of Personal Constructs. He saw the individual as a scientist, making predictions about the future, testing them and, if necessary, revising them according to new evidence. A construct is a way of construing (interpreting and making sense of) reality and the environment. For example if an individual develops The biological perspective Maturational theory The theory of maturation holds that the effects of the environment are minimal. The child is born with a set of genetic instructions passed down from its parents, and its cognitive, physical and other developmental processes merely unfold over time, rather than being dependent upon the environment to mature. It is, in effect, a theory which states that development is due to nature not nurture. This is quite a contrast to the learning theory or humanistic theory, where the effects of nurture are paramount. Gesell’s theory of maturation Arnold Gesell (1880-1961) believed that development occurred according to a sequence of maturational processes. For example, development in the womb follows a fixed set of stages: the heart begins to form first, along with the rudimentary nervous system. Bones and muscles develop next and over time the organism develops into a fully functioning human being, ready to be born. As the child develops from birth onwards, its genes allow it to flower gradually into the person he or she is meant to be. The environment should provide support for this unfolding of talents, skills, personality and interests but the main thing driving this development is the maturational process. Genetic influences on behaviour Genes can affect behaviour in many ways. Some disorders, like Huntington’s disease, are caused by a single dominant gene, which either parent can pass on to their child. Others, like cystic fibrosis and sickle cell anaemia, are caused when both parents pass on the gene for the disorder. Disorders that occur regardless of the environmental influences, such as those listed above, are genetically determined disorders. This means that the individual who inherits the gene or genes is certain to develop the disorder, regardless of the environmental factors. An example of this is Huntington’s disease. This disorder usually begins to show when the individual is aged between 30 and 50 years. Symptoms of dementia appear and the individual is likely to die about 15 years after the onset. Some of the changes in  behaviour are listed below, though this list is not comprehensive: Hallucinations and delusions Severe confusion Progressive memory less Inappropriate speech; use of jargon or wrong words Personality changes including anxiety and depression, withdrawal from social interaction, decreased ability to care for oneself and inability to maintain employment. Disorders that are not genetically determined, but where an individual’s genes may leave them with a vulnerability to developing the disorder, are far more common. A classic way of measuring the contribution of genes to any type of behaviour is through twin studies. There are two types of twins. Monozygotic or identical, twins share 100 percent of their genetic material since they are formed from only one fertilised egg, which has divided into two. Dizygotic or (fraternal) twins share only 50 per cent of genetic material since they occur when two eggs are fertilised by different sperm at the same time. If, the reasoning goes, one of a pair of monozygotic twins has a disorder, it would be expected that, if genes are the only influence, the second twin must also have the disorder. The influence of the nervous and endocrine systems on behaviour The autonomic nervous system produces its effects through activation of nerve fibres throughout the nervous system, brain and body or by stimulating the release of hormones from the endocrine glands (such as the adrenal and pineal glands). Hormones are biochemical substances that are released into the bloodstream and have a profound effect on target organs and on behaviour. They are present in very small quantities and individual molecules have a very short life, so their effects quickly disappear if they are not secreted continuously. There are a large number of hormones including: Melatonin, which is released by the pineal gland and acts on the brainstem sleep mechanisms to help synchronise the phases of sleep and activity. Testosterone, which is released in the testicles and may influence aggressiveness. Oxytocin, which is released by the pituitary gland and stimulates milk production and female orgasms. Some hormones are released as a response to external stimuli. For example, the pineal gland responds to  reduced daylight by increasing production of melatonin. Other hormones follow a circadian rhythm, with one peak and one trough every 24 hours. (Circadian means ‘about a day’ and refers to a 24 hour rhythm). For instance, levels of cortisol rise about an hour before you wake up and contribute to your feelings of wakefulness or arousal.

Friday, September 27, 2019

Case study discussion Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 2

Case study discussion - Essay Example Administrators face quite a number of moral challenges such as having to use the same curriculum as that set for regular students to teach the disabled who do have a small functioning level. From these it is clear that the decision of whether a disabled student should take the regular statewide test or the alternative assessment tests should be left to the administrator but not to the IEP team who do not consider the capability of disabled students. Judging from the case study Jamaica was severed in his least restrictive environment. It is clear since he could not change to better behaviors when he was offered a chance to prove himself. He was not gifted to surmount his emotional disturbance, but he was rather controlled by it leading to his state of special education. The fact that his relation with other students was not real disqualifies him from been in a typical high school to avoid him from harassing other students repeatedly. Jamaicas act of quitting school only proves that he was not ready to go to an ordinary high school since if he could not improve compared to when in a well-monitored situation. He would even perform desperately under no close supervision. Thus, it would only fasten his act of quitting

Thursday, September 26, 2019

The Progressive Value System Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words - 1

The Progressive Value System - Essay Example The Enlightenment Value System was limited to the fact that humans are good, not evil-beings, and their conscience is a major determinant of their actions. The effective functioning of the individual within the society should be assisted by the government, which was viewed not merely as an autocratic power, but as facilitator of social progress. establishment the accompanying belief in technology has become a value of its own† (Waldo, 1978, p.43). The major contemporary principles of this system are following: 1) sustainable progress; 2) shared responsibility; 3) effective government; 4) constant prosperity. Effective government is an important component of just society, and the government should create effective infrastructures and services, which cannot be provided by private sector of services. Moreover, government provides a judicial system that determines effective functioning of our society in terms of equitability and righteousness. †Government provides coordinated planning and incentives that help businesses adjust to changing circumstances.   Government provides the means of coordinating actions with other countries† (Hays, 1959, p.139).   Prosperity and shared responsibility are important contributors to individual and social happiness, since they provide high quality of life as well as social conscience and identity. In order to succeed, people should take the responsibility at least for their own lives and behaviors, which helps them rely on themselves without blaming others in their own faults and shortcomings. In addition, I would like to mention the results of my research, related to the implementation of Progressive Value System inmanagement and governing. First of all , I would like to refer to several writers, who explored this area and to my own methods, which combined content- and context-analysis of those writings and the researches that were conducted in

Management Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 30

Management - Essay Example Charles Investments, Molson Coors Brewing Company, and UCD’s Institute for International Business. Undeniably, globalisation has changed the nature of 21st century businesses all over the world. The world is becoming smaller by day with favourable tariffs encouraging cross-border businesses. Surprisingly, developing countries have followed suit in cross border businesses accounting for a significant percentage. Arguably, IMF predicts that in the coming few years’ developing countries will account for half of the global businesses. Advancement in technology has resulted to high-speed internet that has reduced the barriers of time and distance. Additionally, they have worked on their work environment to accommodate other cultures, other languages, and geographies. After reading the book the coming job war by Jim Clifton that describe a metric based economic model that links human nature in the work place, customer engagement, and business outcomes, IBM is considering adopting the approach. In addition, the talent masters by bill Conaty and Ram Charam has played an important role in shaping IBM. Marriott explains that IBM is working towards aligning its workforce to global opportunities a thing that will improve its productivity through development of creative leaders. In addition, this move will develop workforce skills with greater capabilities, collaboration skills, and with capacity to share knowledge. A great opportunity arises in creation of a workforce that mirrors the shift of an organisation form one level to another. IBM targets improved services to its customers, most of whom will be form outside the US. Arguably, today, 35% of IBM’s revenue comes from the US, with the balance coming from non-US countries. Projected target pr edicts that by 2017, the revenue coming from the US will go down to 23% and the one from the non-US increase to 77%, which encourages them to invest in other countries other than the

Wednesday, September 25, 2019

Economic Indicators Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Economic Indicators - Essay Example The major pro cyclic economic indicators are GDP, Interest rates, Investment, Inflation, Labor etc. While the main counter cyclic economic indicators are Unemployment, International Trade, and Federal Finances etc. The Gross Domestic Product is one of the most significant direct indicators in the economy. It is vital to monitor the growth rate of the GDP. Any deviation from the range tends to have a significant impact on the economy. An increase in the growth rate above the general level may lead to high inflation and poor performance in the rate of growth leads to a recession. Interest Rate is a pro cyclic or direct economic indicator. They are used to manage the booms and slumps in the business cycle and finely tune it. The interest rates fall in recessions and they rise in inflationary periods. International trade is the swapping of goods and services between countries, which tends to have countercyclical nature. When an economy is prospering and experiencing an economic boom then people choose to spend a bigger part of their income on imported and local goods and services, however, exports donà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢t have such alterations. This in turn upsets the balance of trade, as net exports are negative, which results in more being imported and less being exported. Whereas, when an economy is in a slump, people tend to spend less on imported goods and services and just focus on the basic necessities. This encourages more goods and services to be exported and has a favorable impact on the balance of trade as less is being imported.

Tuesday, September 24, 2019

How the internet or internet technology has helped me during the Essay

How the internet or internet technology has helped me during the course of my studies - Essay Example Before, we are not at all aware of what is happening in another country unless it is reported in television. And the news will only be reported if the reporters were there while the incident is happening, like during war. We will only know of news through the newspaper. And only a few of them make the newspaper. But now even if we don’t see it in the newspaper, just Google today’s news for the tiniest city of China or Zimbabwe, and we’ll see it! We also have a larger access to learning and knowledge. Google has actually revolutionized the whole Internet browsing experience. We can just type in certain keywords, and voila! we have the information we need. All we have to do is to discriminate the information, which are reliable and those which are made up. The Internet has been my best friend during college. It gave me the opportunity to get a better understanding of my classes. I don’t just look up information in the Internet, I take it a step further. I enroll in online classes to get ahead of my class. With this, I don’t only get additional information but I can also see different perspectives regarding a certain topic. This allows me to have a better understanding of the lesson or the issue at hand. It is not only gives me a headstart it also pushes me to become better as it allows me to get the picture of different views of people about the lesson. Also, as I’ve said the Internet allows you to find different kinds of resources that will aid you in research studies. I can get the information I need in less than second. How convenient is that! It cuts my time compared to manually checking the pages of a book where I can find the information I need. I believe that the Internet will go a long way. And it will even become better in future years. Humans love to invent and innovate. We have that creative gift. And we always want to make things easier for us. I believe that even if get out of

Monday, September 23, 2019

The Lover Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

The Lover - Essay Example The backdrop of the story is set in Indochina during Marguerite’s childhood in the prewar period. The protagonist of this thrilling novel, Marguerite Duras, who also happens to be the author, unfolds in simple yet luminous prose, the tale of life, as lived on the borders of Saigon during the days of France’s colonial empire. The narrative focuses on the intricate and passionate relationship shared between two outcasts and their tumultuous love affair. Marguerite Duras’s scintillating novel is written straight from her heart and this is what makes reading it, all the more worthwhile. The author Brecht's Galileo (1940) uses a very emphatic quote that states – â€Å"Truth is the daughter of time, not authority† and in this essay we are going to examine different incidents in the life of Duras and see how they relate to the above quote. The aging author reminisces about the past and the impoverished life she had led with her mother and her belligerent b rothers when they resided in Saigon. The style used for her narrative is like that of a memoir as she unravels the harsh realities of her colonial existence of the 1930’s in French Indochina. During her childhood and even as a teenager, Duras had to face the harsh realities of life while co-existing with her â€Å"beggar family†. ... The trick works for her and she feels much happier when dressed in this fashion. â€Å"The Lovers† (1984) by Duras is a postmodern dreamy fantasy that helps her escape from the wretchedness of her life. This teenaged French girl tries to make good her escape from her demented mother whose life is steeped in utter despair, depression and jealousy. In a twist of fate, the young girl of fifteen happens to meet a Chinese millionaire, a financier who was 12 years her senior. This chance meeting took place as they happened to cross the Mekong River one day. The girl goes all out to surrender and lose herself in his wealth and passion in the hope that her family would be provided for. The millionaire, who though much older to her has traveled across the world and hence has an impeccable refinement about him. Describing him in her first glimpse she states – â€Å"Inside the limousine there’s a very elegant man looking at me. He’s not a white man. He’s wear ing European clothes – the light tussore suit of Saigon bankers. He’s looking at me†. (Duras, 17) Even though this teenager is surrounded and steeped in all that is cheap and humiliating, yet, her strength of character is poignantly etched by the author to be one of strength and great resilience. The protagonists strength of character is one of the most remarkable and memorable aspects of the novel. The courage she exhibits when dealing with matters relating to her demented mother is highly commendable. One of the clear incidents that portray her amazing capacity to help and love those who are weaker than herself can be seen when she interacts with her own mother. For example, when her daughter dresses in an interesting fashion, the bitterness

Sunday, September 22, 2019

How advertisement effects peoples lives Essay Example for Free

How advertisement effects peoples lives Essay As Americans we are exposed to advertisements everyday. People are pressured from every direction by advertisements which exploit their deepest fears, attractions, needs, and desires, shaping their behaviors, goals, and thoughts. They are led into believing false information and promises that are mostly never kept, all for the simple reason of selling the product and making profit. We see advertisements everywherein magazines and newspapers, on the radio, on TV, online, in the mail, even over the phone. These advertisements use the basic ideas of either providing an elite status with the possession of the product, or giving a sense of belonging to a group or community. Since the recent military activity in Iraq and Afghanistan, another ever present idea has been made prominent and that is using patriotism to evoke peoples desires. Americans are persuaded into buying unnecessary items everyday; however, we need to realize that no matter what advertisements say we should purchase items for their usefulness, not to fill voids in our lives, so we can help eliminate the problem we face today of being a materialistic society. The patriotic theme affecting peoples hearts, minds and senses, is commonly used to manipulate them into buying things. Since everyone has love for their country, using it to sell products is a brilliant idea, but I believe this is a bad practice. It makes people believe they are not ideal Americans, nor are they similar to the people around them if they do not buy that product. The Palmolive advertisement, in Seeing and Writing 2, is a key example, it appeals to the wives of the men at war in World War II (417). On the top of this advertisement there are three medals which contain picture of three different men in their uniforms and the words For Him appear next to each picture. In the lower part of the advertisement there is a woman looking up at these medals and above her head are the words, I pledge myself to guard every bit of Beauty that he cherishes in me, and finally in the background there are several faces of women also looking towards the medals. This advertisement is basically communicating to the wives the idea of guarding their beauty, by using this soap, just like their husbands are guarding their country. The ironic fact is that soap cannot make someone beautiful, nor do people lose their beauty if they do not use the correct brand of soap. This advertisement is connecting a heroic and patriotic act  to one used for mere beauty, in order to sell the soap. The Palmolive advertisement was run in 1943, but a more current advertisement which uses similar attributes is Chevrolet and its slogan for its recent line of cars, An American Revolution. This slogan is always placed on a blue sky background and the writing is in bold white letters, except for the E in Revolution, this letter is written in red ink. So when you come across this slogan, not only does the slogan sound patriotic to you, it also appears to be patriotic because it incorporates the red, the white and the blue. This phrase says to its audience that every American is buying and driving a Chevy car and so should they. Another detail that could be interpreted out of this advertisement is that since the U.S. is currently at war and fighting a revolution against terrorism, a person living in the U.S. can participate in this patriotic revolution by purchasing a Chevrolet. This would be true only if Chevrolet was funding the war, instead of the US government. Along with this, another advertisement that exploits this concept was the Netzero advertisement run during the time before the elections. In this advertisement the spokesman was running for President under the alias of Candidate Zero. His main goal was to provide cheaper and faster internet to every family and household. In order to get peoples attention, this clever idea was used, and it certainly worked on people like me. Viewers could also connect the advertisement with the actual presidential race and that way the product of the advertisement was stuck in their conscious awareness. The whole patriotic theme is strange because the connection between patriotism and the product does not make the product function better, so why do we feel obligated to pay attention to the advertisement and even purchase that product. Along with patriotism another concept used widely is the elitism the product brings to people with its possession. As Jack Solomon wrote in his essay Masters of Desire, We Americans dream of rising about the crowd, of attaining a social summit beyond the reach of ordinary citizens (1). He is basically saying that Americans want to be better then the people around  them and this belief is what marketers feast on, creating status symbols like Rolex, Mercedes, BMW, etc. One advertisement that crosses my mind in terms of using elitism would be the new U2 iPod Special Edition advertisement. This promotes an iPod with a black cover and laser engraved signatures of the U2 band members; everything else is similar to a regular iPod; whereas, the price is $50 more. People are led into believing that the U2 iPod is better than the regular one only because it is endorsed by U2. Another ironic detail is that a normal iPod itself is a product of elitism, because even though it has similar functions to a Sony or any other MP3 player, it costs $100 more only because it comes with the signature white headphones. These headphones, unique only because an iPod come equipped with them, have made themselves and the iPod a status symbol. Most people only buy an iPod because they want the headphones to show the illusion of superiority and uniqueness. Solomon says, The explanation is quite simple: when an object (or puppy!) either costs a lot of money or requires influential connections to possess, anyone who possesses it must also possess the necessary means of influence to acquire it (3). This explains why the white headphones have made the iPod a status symbol, since its shows possession of an expensive item, even though rationally speaking the color of the headphones does not make the iPod function better, they only make it different. Solomon also talks about another part of the American Dream, in which belonging to a group is important. The Chevrolet slogan connects us to the entire American population; the iPod connects us to other owners of an iPod, and so on. We need a sense of connection and belonging, fulfilling our need for attention and affection. Abraham Maslow, a founder of humanistic psychology, created a triangle in which he placed a persons needs in the order they needed to be fulfilled and the need for love and belonging was the third basic need. Disillusioned by the advertisements, people try to fulfill this need by buying the products. This proves that using this theme advertisers are able to affect the person on much deeper levels then recognizable, yet by no means does the product itself become more useful. It is understandable that advertisers need to appeal to people in order to  sell their product and that is why they use these tactics, but what is not understandable is while knowing the truth people believe the hoaxes and let advertisements dictate what they are going to buy. People need to realize that products should not be used to fulfill our weaknesses; they should be consumed based on our needs, because companies will keep manufacturing status symbols until we accept that products and items are only materialistic and we can never attain all the luxury items around us. We are scammed into buying false promises everyday, after we realize that we have a choice against it, we can choose not to let advertisements or minor details about the product like the endorsements, or the color of headphones, or the catchy slogan persuade us into buying a certain item.

Saturday, September 21, 2019

Outsourcing and Total Quality Standard Comparison

Outsourcing and Total Quality Standard Comparison 1.0 INTRODUCTION Human resource strategies are taking the is very vital for an organization, different type strategies may produce different type of result. There are two strategic issues facing human resource management which may critically influence operation of an organization. Outsourcing can be defines as a subcontracting work to a related organization or a company that specializes in and is more efficient to produce the output rather than completing in internally. Outsourcing also commonly are one of the organization provide sources or service for another organization, involving an agreement to exchange payment or other services. Besides the outsourcing strategic, total quality standards also are the best strategic that being used by human resources management. Total Quality Standards are best known as an organization effort to continually improving their business and product in the way to increasing business and reduce unnecessary practices. Total quality management is also aim to improve the quality into a service, produce or knowledge in order to continue meets the customer satisfaction. 2.0 Advantages of the strategies 2.1 Outsourcing Outsourcings are benefits to most of the business activities, one of the benefits are common being known by the company are its cost low and perform high quality product. Outsourcing meaning that organizations may not have to worry about the labor problem, wages problem and quality problem from the product due to different in lower price source are able to be found in different countries. The company may except that an external expert may do it more better quality output and more cheaply than company do it internally. Therefore, company can reduce their cost fee thought the outsourcing strategies in order the company can streamline its cash flow problem. In addition, an organization can have high quality output and lower cost in same time. Companies get advantage in kill two birds with one stones. 2.2 Total Quality Standard The core benefit of total quality standard is helpful in meeting the competition. Total quality standard are extremely helpful in understanding the competition of the environment today. Nowadays, there is increasing importance to organization in this full of the competitive environment which quality improvement is important to ensure consumer satisfaction. This management can prevent and detect more effectively in what kind of error-prone is occurring in the product or service. For instance, organizations able make a better vision to reach their future goal and able keep up with the times changing. Furthermore, an organization able to identify and eliminate the weakness in the business in order to provide high quality services and produce to their customers. It’s can be done through the decision making process in order to measure what are the necessary thing are need to be proceed to make the company produce a high quality output. 3.0 Challenge of the strategic issue 3.1 Outsourcing Although there is numerous of benefits are toward to outsourcing strategic, however one of the biggest challenge that outsourcing facing is hard to synchronizing the deliverable. It can be arise if the companies do not proper select a right partner for outsourcing, in case stretched delivery time frame will be occurred. Furthermore, this may lead more problem approaches including time-consuming and quality of output may influences into substandard quality output, organization may confronting more operational challenges and cost pressure. If the outsource company does not supplying on time, it may deal a great damage to the organization reputation. Due to these problems, organizations are more likely to regulate these internally rather than an outsourcing partner. 3.2 Total Quality Standard Total quality standard sometimes may face the employee resistance issue. In carrying out the total quality standard strategic, some company may require adapt new mindset, new goal, new attitude, and new method for perform their jobs. For instance, managements does not reflect well or not effectively communicate with team, it may occurs when employee are confuse to new idea and conflict among each of the teammate which lead to employee resistance. In addition, when employees are refuses to program it may become unproductive for the business and may lower the morale of an organization. It will critically influence the operation of an organization and may form a serious trauma that may affect an organization for need some time to fix it. 4.0 Evaluation and Recommendation 4.1 Outsourcing Organizations need to ensure that the business objective should able to fit appropriate collaborative outsourcing company. As an organizations that need to understand what can accommodate and need from the outsourcing company that you choosing. It’s the role for organization to do essential research before starting outsourcing relationship to the company. Organization should get more information from the outsourcing company and interview the company in order to understand more details regarding how flexible and reliable their service is supply to the organizations. Apart from that, an organization should arrange for constant communication. An organization should periodically to ensure the outsourcing provider is functioning regularly, hence organization should regular contact with their outsourcing company as well as able to control situation and guide decision when problem is occurred. When organization is staying awareness, they may prevent physical problem and able to solving it immediately. In addition, it builds up strong relationship among the organization and provider. Organizations should define their service in the agreement very precisely. Sometimes, an organization with the outsourcing conflict among their service and souring relationship occur into trouble when the objective of the service is too narrowly, broadly or ambiguously (suggested by Alexandra P. Woolcott, 2014). Hence, it very vital that organization should make sure the Service Agreement on what should the outsourcing company need to provided. Service Agreement should state crystal clear and objectively in order avoid loophole among each of the party. 4.2 Total Quality Standard An organization should make sure quality improvement is measurable. Organization should establish the degree into how process is implemented and the result is able to meet the main objective and company strategy. This is helpful for organization to set a goal for future and ensure where all departments in organization are willing work as one to reach the high quality standard. Therefore, an organization should do the research and analyze through market data in order to predict decision making more accuracy and allow to prediction the threat on past history (based on the suggestion by Philip B. Croaby, 2014). In term to make sure the quality improvement is measurable and comparable, organization should compare on the benchmark on the market for the sake of organizations able adopt innovative concept into quality management to perform the better output. It’s important for every employee in the organizations involve in quality improvement. Regardless of the bottom line or top management in company they are all playing an important part in providing high perform of quality in their service and produce. All employees should take part of their responsibility to ensure customer satisfaction. For instance, organization should do the communication within their all departments to allow each of the employee get a better knowledge and skill on how should the total quality processes are needed to be done in order to achieve the high quality output. Moreover, there’s a core benefits to thrust the total quality management more effectively is continuously improvement. There’s many reason why the organization should continuously improvement, it’s due to today market are become pressure of competition. Continually improvement in total quality management drives an organization to boosts to be creative in looking of the ways to become competitive edge in the market and more effective in meeting on customer requirement (based on the suggestion on Chartered Quality Institute CQI, 2015). It’s make an organization more competitive to growth successful in the market. 5. Conclusion These two strategies are being commonly used by many organizations today. It’s no matter how huge of the organization is and how small of the cooperation is, it also will beneficial and useful to each of the organization to fulfil their demand. Human resource management should acquire these strategies to organization in order to make organization growth rapidly to keep up with the time.

Friday, September 20, 2019

Class and Social structure :: essays research papers

This week in class we dealt with the subject of varying types of social structures. To start there are open and closed systems. An open systems allows for an individual to move up or down in society where as the closed system allows for no mobility. The only closed system I am familiar with is the caste system in India. In a closed social system you are born into your class and that is the same one you will grow up in. While discussing this subject it would be helpful to define class in the manner we did as a group: class, in this context, is unequal access to economic resources, power, and prestige. In contrast to a class system an egalitarian system has equal access to these aspects of living. A rank system only has unequal access to prestige and, as discussed in class, is seen in Pacific Islanders, and some Native Americans in the North and Southwest. Although the US social system is open we tend to stay in the same class. It is said that the head of the household dictates the cl ass. Many problems in this country circulate around the problem that there is very little mobility in class in the United States however, in Japan, Italy, and Germany there is even less mobility. At first one may feel it is less of a problem in the United States yet, I disagree. In the sense of social structure I do not think you can really compare two separate nations and draw conclusions about one based on the other because there are too many factors that make up a society. Social history, dispersion of race as well as religion, and the difference between the classes all need to be taken into great consideration. Even though I am not very familiar with the European social structure I do know that in America there is an enormous gap between upper, middle and lower classes. The top 1% of our economic bracket controls a little under 50% of the money in America. That fact is amazing to me and I found it in a document named â€Å"People like us: Social class in America† by, Paul Fussel. Another reason this inequality in America is such a big deal is because The United States of America is an institution based on ideals. A culmination of these ideals is commonly represented in the faà §ade of the American Dream: A person can determine his or her own destiny and with a little bit of know how and determination they can rise from rags to riches.

Thursday, September 19, 2019

A Child Called It, The Lost Boy and A Man Named Dave Essay -- Dave Pel

For this report, I have read all three of Dave Pelzer's books about his life: A Child Called â€Å"It†, The Lost Boy and A Man Named Dave. A Child Called â€Å"It† chronicles Dave's life as a child, and is told from that viewpoint. From his earliest recollections of a relatively happy life with "the Mommy" to his life and death struggle with "The Mother", this book details the horror of Dave’s dehumanizing existence. Going far beyond â€Å"typical† physical, emotional and psychological abuses, Dave’s story tells of intentional starvation, forced coprophagia, poisoning and much more. This volume covers his life from his earliest memories at age 4 until his rescue at age 12. The Lost Boy picks up the story where the first book leaves off, following Dave through the foster care system until the age of 18. Dave’s navigation through the foster care system is an arduous journey. His sense of survival is strong, but being a foster child is not easy. A Man Named Dave is the final book in the trilogy, covering Dave's life from his enlistment in the Air Force through the present day. From his resolve to be accepted by the Air Force to his almost desperate determination to be a good father to his son, Dave shares with the reader his difficulty adjusting to a â€Å"normal† life. Diversity The Pelzer family was white and middle class. Dave’s father, Stephen, was a firefighter, and his mother, Catherine, was a homemaker. Both parents were alcoholics. They lived in a â€Å"good† neighborhood in a modest home. Until the abuse began, Dave’s life with his parents and brothers was good. In his words, â€Å"Our every whim was fulfilled with love and care† (Pelzer, 1995). The two areas of diversity I recognized in these books are economic status and disability. Because... ...tainable: his mother’s love. Bibliography: Erikson, E. H., (1950). Childhood and Society. New York: Norton. Erikson, E. H., (1968). Identity: Youth and Crisis. New York: Norton. Maslow, A. H. (1954). Motivation and Personality. New York: Harper & Row. Pelzer, D. (1995). A Child Called â€Å"It†. Deerfield Beach, FL: Health Communications, Inc. Pelzer, D. (1997). The Lost Boy. Deerfield Beach, FL: Health Communications, Inc. Pelzer, D. (1999) A Man Named Dave. NY: Penguin Putnam, Inc. Schultz, D. P., & Schultz, S. E. (1987). A History of Modern Psychology. Orlando, FL: Harcourt-Brace. U.S. Department of Health, Education and Welfare. (1979). [Brochure]. Washington, DC: U.S. Government Printing office. Zastrow, C., & Kirst-Ashman, K. K. (1997). Understanding Human Behavior and the Social Environment. (4th ed.) Chicago: Nelson-Hall Publishers, Inc.

Wednesday, September 18, 2019

Power of Uncle Toms Cabin by Harriet Beecher Stowe :: Uncle Toms Cabin

The Effective Story in Uncle Tom’s Cabin  Ã‚         Harriet Beecher Stowe, a northern abolitionist, published her best-selling novel Uncle Tom’s Cabin in 1852. Uncle Tom’s Cabin contracts the many different attitudes that southerners as well as northerners shared towards slavery. Generally, it shows the evils of slavery and the cruelty and inhumanity of the peculiar institution, in particular how masters treat their slaves and how families are torn apart because of slavery.    The novel centers around a pious slave, Uncle Tom, and how he is sold over and over again. It shows the different attitudes that Tom’s masters share about slavery, and how their slaves should be treat. It also teaches Christian values as well as family values. At the time of its publication, Uncle Tom’s Cabin was an immediate success and one of biggest sellers of all time. Despite the fact that Stowe induces her own personal opinions, with the very little experience she has had with slaves, she delivers a magnificent novel which is still enjoyed by many modern readers today. The time of her novel’s publication was very important. It was published at the peak of the abolitionist movement, in the 1850’s. It proved to be very effective propaganda for the abolitionist cause, which Stowe openly supported.    Stowe is trying to prove to the reader that slavery is wrong and nothing short of evil and cruel. She does an effective job at proving her point, while delivering a superb novel at the same time. Stowe is constantly tying to prove that slavery is evil. She opens the novel, by showing two slave owners, making a business deal. Mr. Shelby is in debt to Haley, so he must sell Uncle Tom and Harry, tearing them apart from their families. Stowe shows a young slave woman, Eliza and her affection for her son Harry, when she decides to take her son and run away. This disputes the common belief of the time that slaves mothers has less affection for their youth than white women. Uncle Tom is sold again to the carefree Augustine St. Clare whos philosophy is â€Å"Why save time or money, when there's plenty of both?† Uncle Tom receives good treatment at the St. Clare’s, which proves that the novel is not one-sided, showing that their where kind slave owners. However Uncle Tom is sold again, this time up the Red River to the â€Å"devil† Simon Legree.

Tuesday, September 17, 2019

Principles That Define the Culutral Level of Analysis Essay

Explain how principles that define CLOA may be demonstrated in research. ’ The first Principle states that Humans are information processors. Cognition refers to the mental tasks or thinking involved in human behavior. Thinking may involve memory, attention, perception, language and decision making at any one time. Cognitive psychologists see these cognitions are active systems; In between taking in and responding to information a number of processes are at work. Information can be transformed; reduced, elaborated, filtered, manipulated, selected, organized, stored and retrieved Therefore the human mind is seen as active system processing information, and cognitive psychologist’s aim to study these processes. Central to this information processing approach is the computer metaphor. One of the difficulties facing cognitive psychologists is that they were trying to study processes that are not directly observable. Consequently the computer revolution of the 1950 provided the terminology and metaphor they needed. People, like computers, acquire information from the environment (input). Both people and computers store information and retrieve it when applicable to current tasks; both are limited in the amount of information they can process at a given time; both transform information to produce new information; both return information to the environment (output). This information processing approach was adopted by Atkinson and Shiffrin in their Multistore Model of memory (1968). This model sees memory as an active process. Information flows in through the sensory stage (input). It then flows to the short-term memory before it is transferred to long term memory where it can be stored and later retrieved. A further example of information processing is the organization of information into schemas in the LTM. Schemas are mental models of the world. Information in LTM is stored in interrelated networks of these schemas and these schemas can affect retrieval. Simply put, schema theory states that all knowledge is organized into units. Within these units of knowledge, or schemata, is stored information. A schema, then, is a generalized description or a conceptual system for understanding knowledge-how knowledge is represented and how it is used. According to this theory, schemata represent knowledge about concepts: objects and the relationships they have with other objects, situations, events, sequences of events, actions, and sequences of actions. A simple example is to think of your schema for dog. Within that schema you most likely have knowledge about dogs in general (bark, four legs, teeth, hair, and tails) and probably information about specific dogs, such as collies (long hair, large, Lassie) or springer spaniels (English, docked tails, liver and white or black and white, Millie). You may also think of dogs within the greater context of animals and other living things; that is, dogs breathe, need food, and reproduce. Your knowledge of dogs might also include the fact that they are mammals and thus are warm-blooded and bear their young as opposed to laying eggs. Depending upon your personal experience, the knowledge of a dog as a pet (domesticated and loyal) or as an animal to fear (likely to bite or attack) may be a part of your schema. And so it goes with the development of a schema. Each new experience incorporates more information into one’s schema. The second principle of CLOA states that the mind can be studied scientifically. Cognitive processes are difficult to study. They often occur rapidly, and inside the mind so they cannot be observed directly. It is only the responses that participants make when given some cognitive task to perform that can tell us about cognitive processes. These tasks usually take place under tightly controlled lab experiments where the main aim is to isolate a particular component of the cognitive process for the study. One of the earliest and most famous experiments into cognitive processes is the Stroop Effect. The Stroop effect is a phenomena involved in attentional processes. Although we will actually focus on the process of memory this is a good study to look at. People are often introduced to the Stroop Effect in beginning psychology classes as they learn about how their brains process information. It demonstrates the effects of interference, processing speed (reaction time) and automaticity in divided attention. The effect is named after John Ridley Stroop who first published the effect in English in 1935. In his experiments, J. R. Stroop administered several variations of the same test for which three different kinds of stimuli were created. In the first one, names of colors appeared in black ink. In the second, names of colors appeared in a different ink than the color named. Finally in the third one, there were squares of a given color. In the first experiment, 1 and 2 were used. The task required the participants to read the written color names of the words independently of the color of the ink (for example, they would have to read â€Å"purple† no matter what the color of its ink was). In the second experiment, stimulus 2 and 3 were used, and participants were required to say the color of the letters independently of the written word with the second kind of stimulus and also name the color of the dot squares. If the word â€Å"purple† was written in red, they would have to say â€Å"red†, but not â€Å"purple†; when the squares were shown, the participant would have to say its color. Stroop, in the third experiment, tested his participants at different stages of practice at the tasks and stimulus used in the first and second experiments, to account for the effects of association. Stroop noted that participants took much longer to complete the color reading in the second task than they had taken to name the colors of the squares in Experiment 2. This delay had not appeared in the first experiment. Such interference was explained by the automation of reading, where the mind automatically determines the semantic meaning of the word (it reads the word â€Å"red† and thinks of the color â€Å"red†), and then must intentionally check itself and identify instead the color of the word (the ink is a color other than red), a process that is not automatized. This is a classic laboratory experiment that involves the manipulation of an independent variable (colour or name of word) to see what effect it has on the dependent variable (reaction time). It attempts to control the influence of all other extraneous variables – such as other cognitive processes or skills. It also allows us to establish a cause and effect relationship between task and mental process. The strengths of the experiment are that it got valid results but however was still very unethical which not usuall in psychology is. One more strength is that it is an easy experiment which does not need a lot of input to carry out. The study can be considered cross cultural as any human would act the same in this situation. Obviously the reaction times would be different but in the end anyone would take longer to read the words writte in a different colour. Cognitive processes are influenced by social and cultural factors, is the statement which forms the third principle. Although cognitive tasks such as memory and attention are universal, there are cross cultural variations in processing mechanisms. Bartlett’s study demonstrates how memory can be distorted by cultural schemas. Schemas are representations of knowledge based on experience. In his study in which British participants were asked to recall a native American folktale. He found that the story of ‘The War of the Ghosts’ was difficult for Western people to reproduce exactly because of its cultural content which was unfamiliar to them so in fact they encoded the meaning of the story adapted to their existing cultural schemas. As a result Bartlett concluded that interpretation plays a large role in remembering events or stories. We reconstruct the past and try to make it fit into our schemata, the more difficult this is to do, the more likely it is that elements are forgotten or distorted so that it fits and remembering is integrally related to the social and cultural context in which it is practiced. Cole and Scribner (1974) studied memory skills in both American and Liberian children. They argued that cognitive processes are universal but not cognitive skills. Cognitive skills are dependent on the environment – education, social interaction, culture and technologies make up the environment they observed the effects formal schooling / education (culture) had on memory they compared recall of a series of words in the US and amongst the Kpelle people using word lists that were culturally specific. They found that in general educated Kpelle children performed better in the recall of list than no educated Kpelle children and those overall American children performed better than Kpelle children. Although this could be interpreted as memory skills being better amongst Americans children than Kpelle (African) children such an interpretation would overlook the influence of culture. Western schooling emphasizes certain cognitive strategies such as clustering / categorizing. It is unlikely such parallels exist in traditional societies like the Kpelle People learn to remember in ways that are relevant for their everyday lives, and these do not always mirror the activities that cognitive psychologists use to investigate mental processes The strengths of this lab study are that it was carried out ethically and the with the results we can almost confirm the cross cultural validity but of course we cant confirm it with 100% as exceptions will always be there. The applications of this study are basically already demonstrated within the study as it can be used for memory in schools or even at a working place.

Monday, September 16, 2019

Racism and ethnicity Essay

Joseph Addison once said that, â€Å"If men would consider not so much where they differ, as wherein they agree, there would be far less of uncharitableness and angry feeling in the world. † This holds true to the sentiments I have when it comes to the numerous injustices people incur due to their skin color, ethnicity, and the like. I have seen and witnessed first hand the harm people can cause to one another due to petty differences between them; and I have also often pondered why such acts occur in our world. I used to think that this may be an isolated case; a freak phenomenon that has occurred solely in the confines of my home land. A social phenomenon that has existed in my home land due to the history our people have gone through. Yet, I have seen that such injustices and anger occur in other lands such as the United States of America and knowing of this makes me wonder if racism can be found in all societies regardless of geographic location and history. To get a better understanding of this social phenomenon I have decided to look into the cases of racism I have seen in my home country of Serbia and compare that to those acts I have seen here in America. Before I do proceed, I think it is necessary to take into consideration what racism really is. Many scholars have given various definitions to this phenomenon and the differences in the definitions can be attributed to the fact that the term covers a broad spectrum of implications of race-based bigotry, prejudice, violence, oppression, stereotyping or discrimination. Since it covers such a wide array of topics and takes into account various social issues we can take into account 2 general definitions of racism; the sociological and the legal. Racism is broadly defined as a form of discrimination based on characteristics of race and existing either as individual racism, which originates in the racist beliefs of a single person, or institutional racism, which occurs when racist ideas and practices are embodied in the folkways, mores and norms (Leeder. 2003). On the other hand, sociologists Noel Cazenave and Darlene Alvarez Maddern define racism as â€Å"†¦ a highly organized system of ‘race’-based group privilege that operates at every level of society and is held together by a sophisticated ideology of color/’race’ supremacy. Racist systems include, but cannot be reduced to, racial bigotry,† (Cazenave and Maddern 1999: 42). Based on these definitions we can see two dominant themes when we speak about racism. The first among the two is the fact that racism takes into account the psyche of an individual. To be more precise, we deal with the construct of beliefs a person or group may hold against others as embodied by the mores and norms they have. The second aspect that we find is the fact that racism is a highly organized group structure as pointed out by Noel Cazenave and Darlene Alvarez Maddern. With regard to the second aspect, we find that racism is a social construct, a privilege of certain groups within a society. Hence, we are led to conclude that the social phenomenon can very well exist in any society. After all, there is no true homogenous society and the fact remain that differences abound between groups. Take the United States of America, though it is a single country the social structure can still clearly delineated between the different races that occupy its geography. As for my home country of Serbia, we also see that racism cuts across groups as I have seen people display acts of racial discrimination on gypsies; a group who since their unexplained appearance in Europe over nine centuries ago, the gypsies have refused to fall in with conventional settled life. They remain a people whose culture and customs are beset with misunderstanding, and who cling to their distinct identity in the teeth of persistent rejection and pressure to conform. This social group has been long been ridiculed and persecuted in Serbia. I have also personally seen people who look like neo-Nazis with their shaved heads launching verbal assaults and beating up gypsies. It is a saddening truth that things like this happen. What’s worse is the fact that gypsies are actually persecuted all around Europe. Other shocking instances of racial acts can also be seen in soccer games in Serbia. An example of this is even cited on a blog/news commentary on the Fox Sports website.

Sunday, September 15, 2019

Gobi Fund Essay

Why is it difficult to establish a new fund? Why is track record so important in fund raising? The main concern is to convince the investors to invest their money in Gobi. Therefore, it is necessary to raise a rational-sized fund. To raise a new fund is not an easy thing to do as everything including the fund structure, team, approach, LP base, and amount of capital have to be defined appropriately. The general partners also need to contribute their own money in order to convince the investors to invest together with them. The track record is very important in fund raising because if Gobi has a good track record, more investors will be interested to invest in it. Q2. Prepare a SWOT analysis for Gobi Fund II proposal in the context of venture capital fundraising. Gobi operates in an area where there is a lot of pent up demand (IT and digital media). * Gobi can acts like a bridge for western LPs to invest in Chinese companies. It is difficult to raise a new fund and if Gobi do not really have a good track record, it will become harder to gain the investors trust in order to raise the new funds. May have the advantage in acquiring a higher return from investment in the IT and media market since they already invest in that industry during the early stage. Meaning that they already have the experiences in investing in IT industry, therefore, may not become a problem to earn a high return. What are the keys to raising the second fund and how large should it be? There is no definite answer in this question as they could be changing depends on the situations. The planning horizons may take between 7 to 10 years or maybe longer than that because of a lack of infrastructure and development in the industry. The fund size may be between $100 million to $200 million allowing around $2 million to $5 million for each company. The subsequent funds should be of similar size or larger as the industry grows. Gobi wants the first close at $75 million. The key is whether to include more financial LPs or not. Q4. From the perspective of a potential LP, what are your choices when funding international focused VC funds? Would you fund Gobi? Gobi has never exited from an investment before, and there is high level of risks involved in the development of early stage IT companies as well as huge risks that may impede company development and growth. However, Gobi operates in an area where there is a lot of pent up demand (IT and digital media) and Gobi can acts like a bridge for western LPs to invest in Chinese companies. It may be a good choice to invest in it if it offers a rational return considerate with the level of high risks involved.

Saturday, September 14, 2019

To Spank, or Not to Spank

To Spank, Or Not To Spank COM/156 October 30, 2011 Parents have different ways of punishing their child. Anything from grounding them from things, making them do extra chores, time outs and spanking them. The most effective of these, is spanking. In a research project by Marjorie Gunnoe, â€Å"children who were spanked between the ages of 2 and 6 grew up to be happier and well-adjusted as teenagers. † Spanking a child is not abuse. It is a means of punishment. You should only use your hand to spank your child. Showing your child they have done wrong, by spanking, will teach them to not do what it is that they did, again. You should never use a belt, shoe, switch, or any other foreign object. Those would be considered weapons, and that would be child abuse. Spanking is not a hateful means of punishment. It shows the child they have done wrong and need to be punished. It is an effective means of punishment. Children learn not to do the same wrong again. A child will grow up â€Å"happier and well-adjusted† by spanking them. The controversy of spanking is worldwide. Opinions differ on pro-corporal punishment and anti-corporal punishment. People who are against corporal punishment believe that spanking is child abuse. They say there are better ways of punishing a child. People who are for corporal punishment believe that spanking is a good form of punishment, yet they also know there are different ways of punishing a child. Parents who spank their children find it is more effective as a punishment. A research done by Marjorie Gunnoe, psychology professor at Calvin College in Grand Rapids, Michigan, states that â€Å"spanking is more effective on children ages 2 to 6 years old. It has also been said you should not spank a child under 18 months old or a child over the age of 10. Spanking a child over the age of 10 can have a negative effect and make a child more aggressive growing up. The American College of Pediatricians, or ACP, reviewed the research on corporal punishment and concluded that spanking, as discipline, can be effective on children when it is used properly, but should not be solely relied on to keep your children in line. Spanking your child out of anger, or with anything other than your hand, leaving welts and/or bruises, is considered to be child abuse. Spanking should not be impulsive, spank only with your hand once or twice, and the child should be forewarned of the spanking and reason for the spanking in order for it to be successful. The saying, â€Å"Spare the rod, spoil the child† comes from a biblical proverb (Proverbs 13:24) â€Å"He who withholds the rod hates his son, but he who loves him disciplines him diligently. † What this means is, if you don’t punish a child when they do wrong, you will spoil them. This goes way back. You want to punish your child for their wrong, and make sure it is effective enough to get the point across. If you don’t effectively punish your child, they will think it is okay to keep doing the wrong. Kosciusko County (Indiana) Department of Child Services sees hundreds of cases per year involving child abuse and/or neglect. Of those cases, there is physical abuse such as punching, hitting, kicking, and biting. Yet there are only a â€Å"handful† of cases involving an out of control parent spanking their child. Tiffany Malone, a caseworker for the DCS, has seen many cases of abuse and neglect. She stated, â€Å"You can spank your child as long as you do not leave any marks, and you do not spank them with anything except an open hand on the buttocks. It has also been said you can spank your child’s feet. been charged with Battery on a minor for leaving excessive marks on their child. In the Indiana Supreme Court case Willis vs. State, Sophia Willis is raising an unruly child and spanked him several times with a belt or extension cord, which lead to marks on the chil d’s arm (from missing the buttocks. ) She ended up receiving 365 days in jail, and had to do 357 of those suspended to probation. The judge stated, â€Å"This is a tough area of the law. Because you know that a person’s intent was not to do a wrong thing. It has also been said, â€Å"The law is well settled that a parent has a right to administer proper and reasonable chastisement to his child without being guilty of an assault and battery. † By knowing our boundaries and limitations, we can successfully correct our children in a positive way. By spanking them. The mixed reaction by so many is just misunderstanding. No one has to spank a child. When nothing else works, spanking is a last ditch effort. It may be a controversial form of punishment, but it does work. Older children that look back on their younger years are happy they were spanked. They grew up happier, did well in school, and did well as they grew up. There are different laws in different states. Some condone corporal punishment, some do not. Some countries have banned corporal punishment all together. As long as there is no anger or foreign objects involved in spanking a child, it is not considered child abuse. Some psychologists, DCS workers, parents, and courts condone spanking. There are court cases stating it is a parent’s right to decide whether or not a spanking should be administered. It is also the parent’s responsibility to react, without vengeance, appropriately while administering a spanking to a child. A parent should not be found guilty of punishing their child no matter. Unless there is a sinister demeanor involved, a parent is completely capable of punishing their own child without chastisement from others. Children are our future and we want nothing but the best for them. By spanking our children, we are teaching them right from wrong and making their future that much brighter and worth looking for. Citations/References http://www. lifesitenews. om/news/archive/ldn/2010/jan/10010507 http://www. mlive. com/news/grand-rapids/index. http://www. cerm. info/bible_studies/Topical/spanking. htmssf/2010/01/is_spanking_children_ok_calvin. html http://www. tldm. org/News11/AmericanCollegeOfPediatriciansSpanking. htm Tiffany Malone- Kosciusko County Child Protective Services, Warsaw, Indiana http://www. in. gov/judiciary/opinions/pdf/08290801mgr. pdf http://w ww. in. gov/judiciary/opinions/pdf/06100801rdr. pdf http://www. in. gov/judiciary/opinions/pdf/05311101msm. pdf http://www. in. gov/legislative/ic/code/title35/ar41/ch3. html To Spank, or Not to Spank To Spank, Or Not To Spank COM/156 October 30, 2011 Parents have different ways of punishing their child. Anything from grounding them from things, making them do extra chores, time outs and spanking them. The most effective of these, is spanking. In a research project by Marjorie Gunnoe, â€Å"children who were spanked between the ages of 2 and 6 grew up to be happier and well-adjusted as teenagers. † Spanking a child is not abuse. It is a means of punishment. You should only use your hand to spank your child. Showing your child they have done wrong, by spanking, will teach them to not do what it is that they did, again. You should never use a belt, shoe, switch, or any other foreign object. Those would be considered weapons, and that would be child abuse. Spanking is not a hateful means of punishment. It shows the child they have done wrong and need to be punished. It is an effective means of punishment. Children learn not to do the same wrong again. A child will grow up â€Å"happier and well-adjusted† by spanking them. The controversy of spanking is worldwide. Opinions differ on pro-corporal punishment and anti-corporal punishment. People who are against corporal punishment believe that spanking is child abuse. They say there are better ways of punishing a child. People who are for corporal punishment believe that spanking is a good form of punishment, yet they also know there are different ways of punishing a child. Parents who spank their children find it is more effective as a punishment. A research done by Marjorie Gunnoe, psychology professor at Calvin College in Grand Rapids, Michigan, states that â€Å"spanking is more effective on children ages 2 to 6 years old. It has also been said you should not spank a child under 18 months old or a child over the age of 10. Spanking a child over the age of 10 can have a negative effect and make a child more aggressive growing up. The American College of Pediatricians, or ACP, reviewed the research on corporal punishment and concluded that spanking, as discipline, can be effective on children when it is used properly, but should not be solely relied on to keep your children in line. Spanking your child out of anger, or with anything other than your hand, leaving welts and/or bruises, is considered to be child abuse. Spanking should not be impulsive, spank only with your hand once or twice, and the child should be forewarned of the spanking and reason for the spanking in order for it to be successful. The saying, â€Å"Spare the rod, spoil the child† comes from a biblical proverb (Proverbs 13:24) â€Å"He who withholds the rod hates his son, but he who loves him disciplines him diligently. † What this means is, if you don’t punish a child when they do wrong, you will spoil them. This goes way back. You want to punish your child for their wrong, and make sure it is effective enough to get the point across. If you don’t effectively punish your child, they will think it is okay to keep doing the wrong. Kosciusko County (Indiana) Department of Child Services sees hundreds of cases per year involving child abuse and/or neglect. Of those cases, there is physical abuse such as punching, hitting, kicking, and biting. Yet there are only a â€Å"handful† of cases involving an out of control parent spanking their child. Tiffany Malone, a caseworker for the DCS, has seen many cases of abuse and neglect. She stated, â€Å"You can spank your child as long as you do not leave any marks, and you do not spank them with anything except an open hand on the buttocks. It has also been said you can spank your child’s feet. been charged with Battery on a minor for leaving excessive marks on their child. In the Indiana Supreme Court case Willis vs. State, Sophia Willis is raising an unruly child and spanked him several times with a belt or extension cord, which lead to marks on the chil d’s arm (from missing the buttocks. ) She ended up receiving 365 days in jail, and had to do 357 of those suspended to probation. The judge stated, â€Å"This is a tough area of the law. Because you know that a person’s intent was not to do a wrong thing. It has also been said, â€Å"The law is well settled that a parent has a right to administer proper and reasonable chastisement to his child without being guilty of an assault and battery. † By knowing our boundaries and limitations, we can successfully correct our children in a positive way. By spanking them. The mixed reaction by so many is just misunderstanding. No one has to spank a child. When nothing else works, spanking is a last ditch effort. It may be a controversial form of punishment, but it does work. Older children that look back on their younger years are happy they were spanked. They grew up happier, did well in school, and did well as they grew up. There are different laws in different states. Some condone corporal punishment, some do not. Some countries have banned corporal punishment all together. As long as there is no anger or foreign objects involved in spanking a child, it is not considered child abuse. Some psychologists, DCS workers, parents, and courts condone spanking. There are court cases stating it is a parent’s right to decide whether or not a spanking should be administered. It is also the parent’s responsibility to react, without vengeance, appropriately while administering a spanking to a child. A parent should not be found guilty of punishing their child no matter. Unless there is a sinister demeanor involved, a parent is completely capable of punishing their own child without chastisement from others. Children are our future and we want nothing but the best for them. By spanking our children, we are teaching them right from wrong and making their future that much brighter and worth looking for. Citations/References http://www. lifesitenews. om/news/archive/ldn/2010/jan/10010507 http://www. mlive. com/news/grand-rapids/index. http://www. cerm. info/bible_studies/Topical/spanking. htmssf/2010/01/is_spanking_children_ok_calvin. html http://www. tldm. org/News11/AmericanCollegeOfPediatriciansSpanking. htm Tiffany Malone- Kosciusko County Child Protective Services, Warsaw, Indiana http://www. in. gov/judiciary/opinions/pdf/08290801mgr. pdf http://w ww. in. gov/judiciary/opinions/pdf/06100801rdr. pdf http://www. in. gov/judiciary/opinions/pdf/05311101msm. pdf http://www. in. gov/legislative/ic/code/title35/ar41/ch3. html

Friday, September 13, 2019

Midway, Turning Point in World War II Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Midway, Turning Point in World War II - Essay Example At the Battle of the Coral Sea, May 7 and 8, 1942, the American fleet took a terrible beating and appeared on the verge of collapse. Admiral Yamamoto knew when he attacked Pearl Harbor that the only way to wage a successful war against the United States was to completely wipe out his only opposition, the navy of the United States. The fact that Japan was an island nation allowed for the development of a large trading fleet as well as the largest military navy in the world. Without control of the Pacific, Japan could not expect to last long as everything had to be transported to Japan via ships. If the American navy could be eliminated from the Pacific, Japan would be able to control the entirety of its trading sphere. Yamamoto had to get the United States into one last battle where his power could be successful against a weaker enemy. The key to his plan was found to be Midway, the lookout for Hawaii. With Midway captured, and Hawaii neutralized, Japan’s only problem would be forced further east to the United States.

Thursday, September 12, 2019

Creating film script by myself (This is not an essay) Essay

Creating film script by myself (This is not an ) - Essay Example It was the phone ringing. Jessie stands up and walks to the corner of the room where a black phone is kept by the side. She picks up and answers The room is a huge platform which has a lot of seats for the proceedings to be witnessed by people. Brown chairs with windows on all the sides, sunlight is visible all over the room. The magistrate is seated in front of a huge green desk wearing glasses and reading a notepad. Officers in blue dress are seen to be standing in front of two large boxes where people can stand and testify. Two tables are kept in front of the huge desk of the magistrate where the defense attorney and the state attorney would take their seats. Jessie and Jones walk up to the chairs and have a seat so that the proceedings can begin. All the evidence is pointing towards the fact that Mrs Craig was the only one present at the crime scene. Do I have the permission of calling a security guard who is always present outside the home of Mrs Craig your honor? You may leave. Your honor as per my information Mr Craig was working in the real estate business and was involved with a bunch of property dealers who could be wanting his death. May I call upon his real close friend

Wednesday, September 11, 2019

Fundametals of pedagogy assignment Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Fundametals of pedagogy assignment - Essay Example A significant factor concerned in meeting these objectives is motivation. If learners are not motivated in one way or another, then it is most expected that little or no learning will occur, or, if, by any chance, some learning occurs, then it is likely that it will not be retained for future use. Educational theories have great influence on educational structure. In order to capitalise on the success of individual and school-wide, classroom teaching programs, teachers and school administrators should consider students needs, as well as their hierarchical order (Mead, 2009). This should be a top priority in the creation of such programs so that learners can have the ability to reach their most prime level of potential. For instance, if a learner/student does not feel comfortable with the class-room environment, his/her classmates, feels hungry, then the student/learner will not be in a capacity to concentrate well on learning. The student will be preoccupied with these agitations. A number of learning theories (social learning, Behaviorism and Jean Piaget among others) can rectify this as they can help a student understand the best way they can learn in order to make education effective to them (Tough, 2003). Learning is one of the most significant actions in which humans partake. It is the central goal of the educational procedure, even though most of what individuals learn happens outside of school. Comprehending any theory needs a clear thought of what the theory is trying to clarify. When a certain word is applied, individuals normally think everyone has a similar understanding of what the word signifies. Sadly, this is not the case always. In trying to comprehend the numerous theories of learning and their effects to education, it is useful to understand that the phrase â€Å"learning† means diverse things to diverse people and is applied fairly differently in diverse theories (Tough, 2003). As theories of learning developed over the past half-centu ry, descriptions of learning modified from transformations, which happen in the brain or actions of a person to changes in participation in enduring activities with other people to transform in an individual’s identity in a group (for instance, a change to being a leader from being a follower). Even though, a majority of definitions of learning entail a change in a person’s knowledge, capacity to carry out a skill, or take part in an event with other people, there are significant differences among the theories concerning the nature of this amend (Tough, 2003). This paper will apply two educational theories – social learning and behaviorism – to an educational experience that I have associated with and critically examine how well these two theories account for that experience. Social Learning Mary, a 37 year old Nigerian woman living with HIV/AIDs, was acknowledged by From the Ground Up – a group that is involved in building HIV/AIDs programs to hel p both those who are affected, as well as infected with the virus – for her outstanding service who elevate people from the illness. Her story mainly reflects the social learning theory (peer education), which I find extremely significant to associate with as HIV/AIDs is a disease that has affected many in our world today. Mary states that her personal