Sexual Harassment at Haleron Memorial Hospital - 1331 Words

Sexual Harassment at Haleron Memorial Hospital Don, a purchasing manager and influential person at Haleron Memorial Hospital was promoted very quickly. As he continued to transition through many career outlets, his performance ratings reflected how much his employer appreciated his work ethic. Furthermore, as one of the less qualified, Don was still respected by his peers who were more experienced. (Madsen Fleming, 1991). As in any company, there is always a level of competition. Jane Thompson, an employee of Haleron was on the rise as well. As a material expediter, she quickly rose through the ranks at Haleron. (Madsen Fleming, 1991). Thompson held Bradford in high regards and felt as though he would still be able to respect the many co-workers and subordinates of the hospital that now referred to him as boss. Douglas McGregor, (1906–1964) was a Management professor at the MIT Sloan School of Management and president of Antioch College from 1948 to 1954. He also taught at the Indian Institute of Management Calcutta . His 1960 book, â€Å"The Human Side of Enterprise† had a profound influence on workplace practices. In the book he identified an approach of creating an environment where employees are motivated via authoritative direction, control or integration, and self-control, which he called Theory X and Theory Y, respectively. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Douglas_McGregor) As we continue to review the article, Sexual Harassment at Haleron Memorial Hospital, we

The New Community MMORPGs and Social Networking Essay

Community is changing. As far back as the twentieth century, a social community was a group of real life acquaintances that had a common interest, goal, or career. Back then, to update one’s â€Å"status† might mean to attempt to improve a person’s social standing within a particular community or group of friends. Today, people don’t need to be told what online social networking is. It’s so engrained into the current culture that people almost can’t remember how they interacted before the internet came along. How did people keep in touch? How did they interact and socialize and play? Before social networking sites like Facebook existed, people had to rely on the email, now the cultural norm for written communication. And prior to that,†¦show more content†¦Although not everyone is aware of the MMO subculture, most people are familiar with a related and more commonly used technology called social networking sites, or SNSs. According to Leena Rao, a writer for online technology journal TechCrunch.com, over 600 million people worldwide were using Facebook by December of 2010 (Rao, 2011.) Facebook is one of the most visited SMSs currently on the internet. In the same article, Rao states that as of December 2010, social networks and other blogging sites currently occupy 10% of U.S. internet page views (Rao, 2011.) So naturally, advertisers have identified the growing user base as a prime audience for all new marketing and sales strategies. In fact, SMSs like Facebook exist because of the huge profits from selling advertising space to any company that ca n pony up the cash for a virtual billboard. Even candidates running for office are using these sites as a platform to raise awareness for their campaigns. In fact, the White House formed the Office of New Media â€Å"to reform our government so that it is more efficient, more transparent, and more creative,† according to President Obama (ProCon.org, 2011.) In fact, an online presence is a necessity for any business today that seriously wants to be part of the culture. And why wouldn’t they? People are constantly updating their statuses or their Twitter feeds orShow MoreRelatedMarketing Management130471 Words   |  522 Pagesintroduction Unit structure: 1. Introduction 2. Learning Objectives 3. Marketing Management 3.1. Evolution of marketing management 3.2. The Role of Marketing 3.3. Marketing concepts 3.4. The Marketing Mix (The 4 P s Of Marketing) 3.5. Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) and Ethics in Marketing 4. Have you understood type questions 5. Summary 6. Exercises 7. References 1. INTRODUCTION: The apex body in United States of America for the Marketing functions, American Marketing Association (AMA) defines

Response Connecting”the Outsider” and “The Red Sari” Essay Sample free essay sample

In the short narrative „The Outsiderâ€Å" by Graeme Lay every bit good as in „The Red Sariâ€Å" by Apirana Taylor the writer demonstrates the being of things in life the chief character. but besides the reader might non be cognizant of. Possibly don‘t want to be cognizant of. The consciousness of both things have a great impact on the chief character. In „The Outsiderâ€Å" a immature miss called Justine is confronted with the cirumstance that non all work forces have good purposes. after beeing left pregnant by her fellow Karl. She is really aghast although there were a batch of hints bespeaking towards it. He suggested in the beginning he would merely „stay a bitâ€Å" . it takes till the terminal of the narrative for her to recognize she really means small to him. Surfboarding is a „Life-Forceâ€Å" for him and she merely seems to be a „nice thingâ€Å" in his life. We will write a custom essay sample on Response: Connecting†the Outsider† and â€Å"The Red Sari† Essay Sample or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page This is indirectly revealed in the look: „ And Justine would already be at the Bach. and the fire in the coal scope would be alight ( . . ) â€Å" Merely one time does she believe that he wont remain everlastingly. „It was the lone clip he had of all time mentioned the hereafter ( †¦ ) gave her the feeling that ( †¦ ) he might go forth ( †¦ ) â€Å" In the terminal the writer uses the words: „ ( †¦ ) the sound of the moving ridges. interrupting violently against the distant reef. â€Å" The moving ridges symbolize Justine‘s feelings. twirling emotions like moving ridges. they literally „destroyâ€Å" her programs for the hereafter. Karl loved surfing those moving ridges. go forthing Justine for them. and so the moving ridges destroyed her dream of a hereafter with him. Besides in „The Red Sariâ€Å" the universe of the chief character changed after going aware of the poorness. He isn‘t run intoing a „Bad Boyâ€Å" like Karl who may botch his life. altering his life. but he experiences the barbarian poorness of India. Both Justine and the chief character let them to come into their lives and impact their feelings. However his experience in a traffic jam in New Delhi is merely lasts about one hr. he spends this clip seeking to deflect himself from it. ( „Could we turn the wireless up? â€Å" ) A imploring miss is asks him for some rupees. but he ignores her and justifies his determination by believing that „there are 1000000s of themâ€Å" and that God will look after them. ( „Blessed are the hapless for they shall inherit the earthâ€Å" ) He does hold feelings of compassion and duty. but he is besides disgusted by the sight of the „dirty. foul beggarsâ€Å" . He seems to be dazzled by the great extent of the poorness. In the terminal there is no grounds shown that he will return to assist them. Not merely is Justine enduring in the terminal. non merely is the chief character experiencing uncompfortable. so is the reader. The writer is composing from the point of position of the 3rd individual so we besides get to cognize Karl‘s emotions and ideas. The reader realizes earlier than Justine that Karl won‘t stay. For illustration the sentence: „He knew about topographic points she had barely of all time heard of ( †¦ ) â€Å" shows how different they are. The reader might besides believe of personal experiences. where a friend or the reader himself got „usedâ€Å" by a male child. The reader may see memories and feelings of choler or unhappiness. The reader besides could be upset. because Justine is loving him so blindly and besides. because Karl leaves her without a note. The narratives non merely uncover their messages to the charaters but besides to the reader. Some readers might be like Justine and tend to undervalue work forces. Those readers may larn from these messages. The text is written really realisticly and uses graphic imagary. which make it easy to associate to. It might be a small spot harder to acquire into „The Red Sariâ€Å" . because it is sometimes written like an interiour solil oquy of the chief character. with short sentences and subject alterations. ( e. g. „New Delhi. Traffic Jam. ( †¦ ) Better luck following clip. â€Å" ) The writer likely picked that position. because one of the chief struggles is taking topographic point within the character himself. The poorness is described with great item and is the writer is non afraid to state it like it is. . ( „She‘s got no fingers on one manus and no manus on the other arm. â€Å" ) Not merely the chief character is going cognizant of this facet of life so to is the reader. Apirana Taylor uses many stilistic devices to do the narrative appear more realistic ( e. g. â€Å" ( †¦ ) crunched up concertina auto consuming a traffic visible radiation for a hut ( †¦ ) â€Å" seeing the narrative through the eyes of the chief charater you get to cognize all the feelings he has. Sometimes I felt the impulse to halt reading and flight. I didn‘t want to cognize about „a fleshless old lady in shreds picking bonesâ€Å" or that the mendicants take babes with them to acquire the people‘s attending. But the writer captivates the reader with the narrative besides. because it is someimes mercyless and you want to cognize if the chief character will work out this „dilemmaâ€Å" The writer used sacarsm as a technique that became a shock absorber for the reader. it created distance between and the intense state of affairs and the reader. One of the author‘s intents might besides hold been to make a feeling of desiring to be someplace else. The writers purpose for composing the narratives might hold been amusement and inspiration. but besides as Ive already mentioned to inform people about the difficult striking subjects. Particularly in „The Red Sariâ€Å" This narrative portions the critical positions against Poverty. the place of Women in India and besides the differences within the society. The incentive might besides be a personal 1. possibly Graeme Lay knew person who had a similar relationship or he merely wanted to warn misss from obsessional love. He may hold had similar feelings himself of injury after being „usedâ€Å" or he wanted to do work forces aware of their responsibitly for women‘s feelings. Apirana Taylor might hold visited India and wanted to do people cognizant of what he had experienced. There are no hints in the narratives about whether they have had personal connexion s to any of the characters or topographic points they have written about. but it is most likely the writers have related these narrative to something they have known. Both narratives portion the subject of a deficiency of consciousness about a certain portion in life that the writer want‘s to inform the reader about. To demo contrast „The Outsiderâ€Å" gives no grounds that Justine truly thought about the being of people with bad purposes. But the chief character in „The Red Sariâ€Å" must hold known about and given some idea to the hapless. but didn‘t privation to be cognizant of it. Both chararcters lives changed due to there cicumstances. and the readers perceptual experience and attitude towards these topics may besides alter after reading these narratives. The writer achieved in both narratives the reader‘s attending through a good narrative line and the usage of stylistic devices.

Tennessee V. Reeves Essay Example

Tennessee V. Reeves Paper Tennessee v. Reeves. 917 S. W. 2d 825 (Supreme Court of Tennessee, 1996) On January 5, 1993, Tracie Reeves and Molly Coffman, spoke on the telephone and decided to kill their homeroom teacher, Janice Geiger. Reeves and Coffman were both twelve years old and were students at West Carroll Middle School. They planned that Coffman would bring rat poison to school the following days and it would be put in Geigers drink. After that, the two would steal Geigers vehicle and drive to the Smoky Mountains. On January 6, Coffman placed a packet of rat poison in her purse and got on the school bus. Coffman told another student, Christy Hernandez, of the plan. Coffman showed her the poison in her purse. When Hernandez got to school she went and informed her homeroom teacher, Sherry Cockrill. Cockrill then informed the school principal, Claudia Argo. When Geiger entered her classroom that morning, she observed Reeves and Coffman leaning over her deck; and when the girls noticed her, they giggled and ran back to their seats. Geiger saw a purse lying next to her coffee cup on the top of the desk. Shortly after Argo called Coffman to the principals office, rat poison was found in Coffmans purse. Both Reeves and Coffman gave written statement to the Sheriff investigator concerning their plan to poison Geiger and steal her car. Reeves and Coffman were found to be delinquent by the Carroll County Juvenile Court, and both appealed from that ruling to the Carroll County Circuit Court. We will write a custom essay sample on Tennessee V. Reeves specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now We will write a custom essay sample on Tennessee V. Reeves specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer We will write a custom essay sample on Tennessee V. Reeves specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer After a jury found that the girls attempted to commit second degree murder in violation of Tenn. Code Ann. Section(s) 19-12-101, the criminal attempt statute, the trial court affirmed the juvenile court order and sentenced the girl to the Department of Youth development for an indefinite period. The issue in this case is to determine whether the defendants action in this case constitute a substantial step toward the commission of second degree murder under the new statue.

Antibiotic Sensitivity In Microorganisms Biology Essay Essay Example

Antibiotic Sensitivity In Microorganisms Biology Essay Essay Example Antibiotic Sensitivity In Microorganisms Biology Essay Essay Antibiotic Sensitivity In Microorganisms Biology Essay Essay Antibiotics are compounds that putting to death or inhibit micro-organisms from turning. Antibiotics can be made from natural merchandises, such as bacteriums and Fungis, or man-made chemicals. Individual antibiotics are effectual against specific bacteriums by selectively aiming or modulating some important procedure in the microbic cells. Bacterias that produce antibiotics to modulate the growing of their neighbours need to develop opposition for self-defense. Antibiotics work by suppressing the needed synthesis and tracts, such as cell wall synthesis, production of proteins required for reproduction, written text, and interlingual rendition, and disrupting phospholipid bilayers to increase cell permeableness ( Walsh, 2003 ) . Their short coevals times may take to the development of mutants that would perchance give them resistance to different antibiotics. Once a cistron has been found to let a bacteria to go immune to an antibiotic, the bacteria will be selected for survival adva ntage. Antibiotic opposition can be obtained through geting an R ( opposition ) plasmid, an excess chromosomal Deoxyribonucleic acid that carries an antibiotic opposition cistron ( Woolfolk et al. , 2004 ) . Some bacteriums are even immune to multiple antibiotics. The impairment in societal conditions has besides shown to increase the spread of infective diseases ( Walsh, 2003 ) . As medical specialty progresss, antibiotic opposition additions because over clip bacteriums can germinate and develop opposition. Antibiotics have been overprescribed and used falsely, such as non following the dose instructions given by the physician. Antibiotics are besides unsuitably prescribed for virus infections, which would non hold any consequence. Continuous over-dosage of antibiotics can besides kill the normal vegetations that protects us from some pathogens and toxins. Even with all the antibiotics and vaccinums that have been discovered up until today, there will neer be adequate antibiotics. There will ever be an antibiotic opposition job. New antibiotics are needed to battle new strains of bacteriums that arise from antimicrobic opposition. The Kirby-Bauer method is one of the common techniques used in clinical research labs to prove susceptibleness of different strains of bacteriums to an array of antibiotics ( Woolfolk et al. , 2004 ) . This technique allows us to detect the minimal repressive concentration ( MIC ) of antimicrobic activity. The MIC is the smallest concentration of the antibiotic that will halt the growing of bacteriums. The process works by insulating a pure strain of bacteriums from a beginning and is uniformly dispersed onto Mueller-Hinton agar. Small filter paper phonograph record that contain different antibiotics are suspended onto the surface of the agar home base. The antibiotic will spread into the Mueller-Hinton agar home base and this will bring forth a glade around the phonograph record that will suppress bacterial growing if the bacteriums do non hold a opposition cistron for the antibiotic. Susceptibility can be determined by mensurating the diameter of the zone of growing suppression tha t is produced around the antibiotic paper phonograph record. The aim of the antimicrobic susceptibleness testing is to compare the antimicrobic capablenesss of Gram-negative bacteriums and Gram-positive bacteriums from Enterobacter spp. and Staphylococcus aureus, severally. The consequences from the Kirby-Bauer method are so compared to the standard consequences in the CLSI Document M100-S17 ( M2 ) : Disk Diffusion Supplemental Tables, Performance Standards for Antimicrobial Susceptibility Testing ( Woolfolk et al. , 2004 ) . Consequences Genus name: Gram positive isolate Gram negative isolate Staphylococcus aureus Enterobacter spp. Antibiotic Zone of suppression ( millimeter ) Recorded sensitiveness Expected sensitiveness Zone of suppression ( millimeter ) Recorded sensitiveness AMOXICILLIN/ Clavulanic Acid 38 Susceptible Susceptible 40 Susceptible Azithromycin 30 Susceptible Susceptible 31 Susceptible Cephalothin 40 Susceptible Susceptible 34 Susceptible Ciprofloxacin 40 Susceptible Susceptible 39 Susceptible Gentamicin 30 Susceptible Susceptible 24 Susceptible PENICILLIN G 27 Intermediate Susceptible 21 Immune Piperacillin 28 Susceptible Susceptible 24 Susceptible POLYMYXIN B 18 Susceptible Immune 9 Intermediate Rifampin 44 Susceptible Susceptible 35 Susceptible Sulfadiazine 0 Immune Susceptible 0 Immune Tetracycline 35 Susceptible Susceptible 30 Susceptible Vancomycin 22 Susceptible Susceptible 14 Immune The above chart includes the diameter ( zone of suppression ) that was measured for each ascertained round glade of each antibiotic for S. aureus and Enterobacter spp. From the zone of suppression, the sensitiveness of the bacterium was determined and compared to the expected sensitiveness. The S. aureus isolate is immune to sulfadiazine, intercede to penicillin G, and susceptible to all of the other antibiotics. The Enterobacter spp. isolate is immune to penicillin G, sulfadiazine, intermediate to polymyxin B, and susceptible to all of the other antibiotics. Discussion The interpretative criterions for the Kirby-Bauer technique was used to find whether the bacteriums are susceptible, intermediate, or resistant to the antibiotic ( Woolfolk et al. , 2004 ) . After 48 hours in incubation at 37 A ; deg ; C, each home base is examined. If the bacterium run was done decently, there should be a lawn of bacteriums growing. Improper streaking ( e.g. extremely diluted sample, light streaking ) will take to the presence of single settlements. If bacterial growing is inhibited by the MIC at the site of infection, the being is considered to be susceptible. The intermediate class means that bacterial growing is still observed within the expected perimeter of the expected handbill glade, but non every bit much as susceptible bacteriums. If bacterial growing is still observed in the presence of the antibiotic, the being is considered to be immune to the antibiotic. Not all of the isolates conform to the form of antibiotic opposition sensitiveness. The unexpected opposition of these bacteriums may be due to the fact that I was antecedently exposed to ampicillin and kanamycin in a research lab. The Enterobacter spp. isolate was out of the blue susceptible to azithromycin and rifampin. Azithromycin and Rifadin are non supposed to suppress the growing of Gram-negative bacteriums. In an agar dilution method carried out by Chayani et Al. ( 2009 ) , Enterobacter spp. isolates were found to hold a 0 % susceptibleness to azithromycin with an MIC A ; lt ; 8Â µg/mL and 100 % opposition to azithromycin with an MIC A ; gt ; 8Â µg/mL, and 33.33 % susceptibleness to azithromycin by the usage of the disc diffusion method. Azithromycin is a broad-spectrum antibiotic that inhibits protein synthesis by adhering to the 50S rRNA. The 50S fractional monetary unit is common in all procaryotes ; therefore it is possible that Zithromax can aim the 50S fractional mo netary unit in the Enterobacter spp. isolate. Rifampin is a broad-spectrum antibiotic and is chiefly active against Gram-positive bacteriums and can hold minimum consequence on Gram-negative bacteriums. The antibiotic specifically acts on DNA-dependent RNA polymerase, which blocks messenger RNA synthesis and interferes with nucleic acerb metamorphosis. In Kerry et Al. s survey ( 1975 ) , Rifadin was shown to hold an consequence against all strains of Enterobacter spp. Enterobacter spp. s opposition to penicillin G was expected, but its opposition towards sulfadiazine does non conform to the criterion of antibiotic opposition sensitiveness. Sulfadiazine is portion of the household of sulfonamide antibiotics. Bacterial opposition to one sulfa drug antibiotic can take to resistance to all antibiotics within the sulfonamide household ( Rosenkranz et al. , 1974 ) . Sulfadiazine has a broad spectrum that works on both Gram-negative and Gram-positive bacteriums, which could explicate why Enterobacter spp. and S. aureus isolates were both immune to sulfadiazine. Sulfadiazine interferes with the production of folic acid, which is required for bacterial growing. Sulfadiazine inhibits p-aminobenzoic acid ( PABA ) , which interferes with the folic acerb metamorphosis rhythm because PABA is usually converted to folic acid by the bacteriums ( Rosenkranz et al. , 1974 ) . A possible ground to how both Enterobacter spp. and S. aureus became immune to sulfadiazine is because both isolates were taken after exposure to the Kantrex antibiotic. In a survey done by Rosenkranz et Al. ( 1974 ) , they noticed that isolates of Enterobacter cloa cae that were immune to sulfadiazine are besides immune to carbenicillin and kanamycin. The opposition to carbenicillin and kanamycin suggested the possibility that there is a presence of an R plasmid which would transport the determiners for carbenicillin and Kantrex opposition. Strains with an R plasmid displayed an enhanced opposition to sulfadiazine. R plasmids carry the opposition cistron that encodes proteins to undergo assorted mechanisms to short-circuit the antibiotic, such as demobilizing antibiotics via chemical alteration, barricading the antibiotic from acquiring into the cell and taking the antibiotic if it does acquire into the cell, making a replacement mark for the antibiotic, or have alternate tracts that are non sensitive to the antibiotic ( Woolfolk et al. , 2004 ) . The S. aureus isolate was out of the blue susceptible to polymyxin B and resistant to sulfadiazine. Polymyxin B inhibits the growing of Gram-negative bacteriums by interfering with the phospholipids, hence increasing cell permeableness. This antibiotic does non hold much consequence on Gram-positive bacteriums because the cell wall is excessively thick for the antibiotic to acquire entree to the membrane. It is possible that the concentration of the polymyxin B was much greater than the S. aureus isolate denseness, leting the antibiotic to be more effectual and efficient to killing Gram-positive bacteriums. Polymyxin B was found to hold small consequence on different strains of S. aureus, but however there was still some consequence against Gram-positive bacteriums ( Scott et al. , 1999 ) . Lipoteichoic acid ( LPA ) is a big constituent of the cell wall of Gram-positive bacteriums. Polymyxin B contains a cationic construction that would interact with the LPA of Gram-positive bacteriu ms because the construction of LPA contains an overall negative charge. Some attacks, such as new trial methods, different micro-organisms, and fluctuation of civilization conditions, have been used to better the opportunities of happening new substances. Microbiologists are now analyzing conserved unfastened reading frames that are alone to procaryotes and non eucaryotes. Old marks, such as cell wall biogenesis, protein biogenesis, and DNA reproduction and fix, are being studied more exhaustively to develop new and more effectual antibiotics. There have besides been new marks, such as bacterial fatty acid, isoprenoid, isocitrate lyase, and lipid A in Gram-negative bacteriums, which are speculated to be susceptible to new antibiotics ( Walsh, 2003 ) . New antibiotics are being developed as we increase our cognition of bacterial mechanisms and physiology, but in order for antibiotics to stay effectual against bacterial infections antibiotics must be prescribed and taken in right dose and in relevant infections.

Prone vs. Supine

Prone vs. Supine Prone vs. Supine Prone vs. Supine By Mark Nichol It’s easy to confuse the meaning of prone and supine and it’s important to distinguish between them, because they’re antonyms. (I also discuss here some of the synonyms of each word.) Prone, from the Latin term pronus, means â€Å"inclined to,† and it is commonly used in this figurative sense as well as to mean â€Å"lying face down.† Pronate, used both as a verb and as an adjective, means â€Å"to bend forward† or â€Å"bent forward,† respectively. Prostrate, a synonym for prone, means not only â€Å"lying flat†; it has the additional connotation of â€Å"stretched out† and often refers to the adoption of that position to indicate submission, as a subject lying prostrate before a monarch. (Prostrate, not prostate; that’s the name of a gland in male mammals.) Prostrate is also the verb form, and prostration is the noun form. (Prostration is not to be confused with obeisance, which refers to the mere act of bowing.) Procumbent is another synonym; it also describes nonrooting plant stems that trail along the ground. Supine, from the Latin word supinus, means â€Å"thrown or turned backward,† and describes someone who is lying on one’s back; unlike prone, it has no figurative sense. Supinate is also an adjectival form, and supination is a noun meaning â€Å"the act or state of lying on one’s back.† Recumbent is a synonym that also suggests the act of leaning back or resting, as on a bed or couch; in addition, it describes such a pose in visual art. Decumbent, meanwhile, also means lying down and in botany denotes a plant that does that but has vertical parts. (Yes, incumbent, meaning â€Å"one who occupies an office or position,† is related to the other -cumbent terms here.) Prone and supine each have rarely used adverbial and noun forms: pronely (or simply prone) and supinely, and proneness and supineness. Pronation and supination are used in anatomical and medical contexts to refer to the position of limbs, especially, in sports medicine, to the placement of the foot while running; supination (or underpronation) can cause injury. Supine also has a meaning as a noun; it refers to an infinitive phrase starting with to or, in Latin, to a specific type of noun. Two terms similar to prone and supine are dorsal and ventral; dorsal refers to the back, and ventral refers to the abdomen. To help you remember which is which, think of how the first syllable of dorsal rhymes with porpoise, distinguished by its dorsal fin. Ventral, meanwhile, though its first syllable is not etymologically related to vent, can be remembered as the side from which you breathe. Mnemonic clues to help you remember which is which include thinking of the pro- in prone (which actually means â€Å"forward†) to remind you that when you are prone, your face is toward the floor or ground. Supine, meanwhile, can be related to spine, which when you are supine is in contact with the floor or ground. Want to improve your English in five minutes a day? Get a subscription and start receiving our writing tips and exercises daily! Keep learning! Browse the Misused Words category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:20 Types and Forms of HumorTen Yiddish Expressions You Should Know15 Names and Descriptions of Effects

Unites States Current Account Deficit Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Unites States Current Account Deficit - Essay Example Other government funded interests such as education, military and infrastructure will suffer greatly as well. Why these statements are valid along with imparting a general overview of the national debt so as to illuminate the crisis is this paper’s purpose. If Congress does not control its overspending through measures such as passing a balanced budget amendment to the Constitution and adhering to it, the country’s economic future is in deep peril. The President submits a proposed budget to Congress in early February for the coming fiscal year that runs from October 1 to September 30 (Executive Office, 2002). The President’s budget request to Congress accomplishes two main objectives. First, it relays the President’s opinion of how much should be taken in via taxation and how much should be spent. Second, it prioritizes the President’s present and future federal funding desires. â€Å"The budget typically sketches out fiscal policy and budget priorities not only for the coming year but for the next five years or more† (Coven & Kogan, 2006). When Congress receives the President’s budget, it usually conducts hearings to discuss many of the requests before developing a budget resolution. This is the budgetary parameters that Congress will work within when making their determinations regarding taxes and spending. The budget resolution, drafted by both Senate and House Budget Committees includes b oth mandatory and discretionary spending goals (Executive Office, 2002). Following committee approval, the resolution is submitted for a vote and possible amendments by the entire membership of the Senate and House. Afterwards, a joint House-Senate committee is convened to resolve any disparities in the resolution of the two versions passed by each house of congress. The resulting joint report is sent back to

What went wrong in measuring and managing risk associated with Research Paper

What went wrong in measuring and managing risk associated with financial institutions - Research Paper Example est rate risks, credit risks, foreign exchange risks, and liquidity risks that affected the functions of investment bankers, securities – stocks, bonds, derivatives -- mutual funds and insurance rate. A research into the measuring and managing techniques has been made to understand what went wrong and where. Taking the example of HSBC Holdings plc – a global financial institution providing all financial services under its umbrella, it has been attempted to explain how things went wrong. Financial institutions cater to the needs of different types of customers by providing relevant financial services. Financial institutions worldwide have been affected by the adverse market environment created by the US sub prime fiasco. Trouble began when the financial companies started relying too much on the innovation in the blind faith that it will yield returns. In the current context of sub prime melt down, initially the balloon of leveraging the assets’ market went on getting bigger and bigger, creating unrealistic and illusionary hype in market, which in the end shrank the balloon to cause global crisis of liquidity in financial institutions. Selling of financial products and services is a risky business, fraught with internal and external risks associated. Measuring and managing financial risks is crucial to the success of a financial company. There are different types of financial institutions operating at national as well as global scale. Before delving deep into the list of errors committed by financial institutions, it is significant to define the scope of financial institutions like banks, insurance, mutual funds, securities firms, investment banks, and finance companies. A financial institution collects funds from private as well as public investors to use them in financial assets. Financial institutions play the role of mediators in share markets and debt security markets. Financial activities may include bonds, debentures, stocks, loans, risk

Globalization and Industrialized Countries Essay Example for Free

Globalization and Industrialized Countries Essay As globalization ‘can be seen as being a condition resulting from a long history of international exploration, invasion and colonization, fuelled by economic, military, religious and political interests, and enabled through enormous developments in transport and communications technologies’ (Evans 1997:12). The industrialized environment has transformed drastically since the advent of globalization. Industrialized countries have undertaken extreme restructuring by modifying their means of communication and synchronization of work activities. Globalization has made it promise for companies to work on a real-time basis, whereby products and services are conveyed to the right place at the right time. Since then, globalization and information technology has propagated and has undergone significant improvements. Costs have sustained to decline as these new technologies have emerged. A business not supported by a network of computer systems (primary information technology) is more or less destined to fail, since it will be incapable to compete efficiently in todays complex and dynamic environment (Aiki S. 1991). Companies are not the only ones who have gained from advances in modern information technology. Consumers and interest groups have created strategic alliances and now capable to coordinate their activities as well as exchange ideas and thoughts through a number of database and network systems (Collins J. C. , and J. I. Porras. 1991). For instance, owners of personal computers can subscribe to a computer network and without difficulty retrieve information on the products and corporations on line. Such information can also without problems be transmitted to other users. This huge use of technology by both consumers and companies affects, but the way business is run today. These consumer strategic alliances know no geographical limitations; oftentimes, they are global in nature, particularly among the industrialized nations. As companies can get in enormous profits from the better coordination, greater product elasticity, improved quality, leaner production, and more time-based competitiveness that information technology offers, they also facades the threat that can come from these consumers strategic alliances. For instance, corporations can no longer ignore consumer demands for constant product quality, reliability and respect for the environment, or timely delivery of services. As we move toward more and more advanced technologies, the labor force must be retrained. This training must not only expose workers to the technical matters adjoining the new process but also to the new focus of the organization. They have to be made responsive of the importance of advanced technology in improving work methods and in remaining competitive. Employee compulsion to the new process is imperative. Globalization by itself adds little or no value to an organization. There should be organizational as well as employee dedication to exploit the technology to the maximum (Scott, A. 1996). For instance, with ever-increasing use of computer-integrated manufacturing systems, and the stream of technical documentation that accompanies it, employees have to be skilled of recognizing the critical information at the right time. Once that information is recognized and properly interpreted, there must be an organizational dedication to use the information to make better decisions. Without this potential, the organization cannot take advantage from new technologies. Human resources’ management, therefore, will persist to be a critical factor in the survival of any organization (Schlossberg H. 1992). We sum up the influence of globalization on human resources as follows: †¢ Information technology transforms the mode of communication and work processes. †¢ Custom or standardized operations are replaced with skilled and multi-skilled workers. An extremely trained labor force is desired to manage information technology. †¢ Worker motivation and satisfaction might improve since workers are no longer restricted to routine operations, enjoy management powers, and can contribute to developments in their work processes. (Waters, M. 1995) Globalization also has an impact on the organization itself, as follows: †¢ Organizational reformation is required. This reformation makes the organization flat. Decision-making powers are decentralized. †¢ Communications are better and the organization is capable to make timely responses to its environment. †¢ Introduction of new products and services is improved and varieties of products can be efficiently introduced and marketed by the organization. †¢ The organization is competent to improve its efficiency, quality, and competitiveness. (Scott, A. 1997) Todays advanced technology can, conversely, easily become a basic technology. A rapid increase of new technologies also brings rapid obsolescence of earlier technologies. Policies concerning technology must not be static; they must keep evolving. Stalk (1988) points out that competitive advantage is a persistently moving target . . . The best competitors, the most thriving ones, know how to keep moving and always stay on the cutting edge. Competitiveness A company should be able to evaluate potential new technologies quickly. The goal must be to remain competitive, and effective management of technology is a vital step in achieving this. With an increased focus on customer satisfaction, technology is a decisive means for achieving customer satisfaction. Browning (1990) notes that a learning organization uses technology incessantly to refresh its knowledge of its customers’ wants and to work out new ways of satisfying them. This commitment to be a learning organization needs vast resources, however. For example, Browning also points out that building a learning organization necessitates new skills, clever people and capable machines. Noticeably, technology and human resources should be used together for the organization to stay competitive (Cunningham, S. and Jacka, E. 1996). Barabba and Zaltman (1991) note that hearing the accent of the market and making constructive use of it with respect to the voice of the firm is a learning progression. Essentially, the voice of the market has to be interpreted into facts and tasks that will lead to suitable products or services to satisfy customer needs. This is related to the application of quality function deployment, whereby the organization expands its strategic plans to assure customer needs. Thus, a learning organization should also be a caring organization. As a caring organization, its major objective is to please its stock or stakeholders, its customers, and employees, and also to be collectively responsible. The traditional organization, with the focus on satisfying stockholders alone, is varying to this new form, with a sophisticated stakeholder group (Petrella, R. 1999). Thus, globalization and human resources’ management are recognized as key variables that facilitate an organization to improve its productivity, quality, and competitiveness. A critical constituent is the information technology, which offers both opportunities and challenges. The organization should show understanding to its environment via its policies, and be learning and caring organization, as time and reliability influence competitiveness. Finally, organizations should innovate and constantly move to achieve new targets, particularly in view of todays rapidly developing new technologies (Shields, R. 1997).

Two Electronic Products :: Technology Essays

Two Electronic Products It is hard to imagine how an improvement in technology affects the electronic products that you use in daily life. The engineers around the world are working hard to keep up with the pace of technology because consumers have higher demand. As the world becomes digitally technological, every electronic product will function digitally because it is more convenient, time conservative, and money saving. In order to see the differences between old fashioned technology and modern technology, I will be comparing the two types of cameras that I own – a digital camera and a film camera. It is obvious that a digital camera has many more advantages than a film camera. First of all, a digital camera is evaluated. The model that I have is the PowerShot S230 with 3.2 megapixels. You might wonder what the function of megapixels are if you are not familiar with a digital camera. Therefore, it is better to explain the benefits of the digital camera from a block diagram. From the above block diagram, a digital camera will work if you plug in all the necessary items such as a fully charged battery and a CompactFlash card. You will need several cables to view the pictures in different kinds of machines. The above diagram shows that an AV cable is needed to view a picture on a television or a video. Direct interface cables and a USB cable are needed to print the pictures and view the pictures in the computer respectively. The digital camera serves as a filmless camera. However, the CompactFlash card that comes with the camera contains 16 megabytes only, which in turn stores up to only 20 pictures. In order to store hundreds of pictures, the consumers usually purchase another memory card with 256 megabytes or 512 megabytes, which can store up to 500 pictures. If you do not like some pictures, you can always erase them in order to get back some memory. The pictures in the camera can be viewed either in the computer or as a hardcopy. To process the pictures in the hardcopy, we just have to bring the CompactFlash card to the image machine to develop the pictures. However, if you want to store the pictures in the computer, you will have to use a USB Interface Cable to connect the camera to the Central Processing Unit (CPU) of the computer.

On “Education” in “Modern” India Essay

As I was sat down, trying to ‘learn’ chemistry one Friday evening, I began thinking on our education system due to which I had to study in such a poor way; it’s a pity, that I have started hating the subject, or all subjects for that matter, the more the examinations approached. To that end, I wrote a poem later – my debut poem, with which I’d like to introduce the topic; her it goes: â€Å"Education† for Progress You take a pot and fill it with water, the ocean still remains, You make the pot bigger, to douse the house’s flames And you make it even bigger, till you wash all of hell. But as men march on in time’s way, so do the forces grow, That bar the door of wisdom, till it maketh a man (a) crow; And once, but out the feathers come, than you just lo: For cells have formed where ere was Eden, And into the Saharan sands hath Plato been driven; Till now, had man’s asininity been aeon ridden? You look across many a book or any common mind, And surprised you may well be, to find: The fountain remains flowing as ever, waiting for Its very first drinker. But heads of men are now sore, And they allow not the thirsty to have a pour, But Indian crabs as they are, they pull him back onto shore. They set for education a Hammurabi’s code, And state it on an Economist’s ode: not the fountain Whose drink all doth desire, but a mere factory by the road That gives not many the bliss which they hope, but pain; Agony from not just failing to educate the self, But excruciation seeing others that too need help. The birth of a boy sees many a new colour: Businessman, engineer, NRI or a doctor. The scholar of yore is seen no more As machines of the line’s grown stronger than before. The student of the day is not the knowledge seeker, But a piece of iron thrown in the hands of a ‘caster’; That moulds and melts him not into the Being, But a mercantile golem that lives to seek a living. To commend its superiors enjoying the beauteous Nature, Whilst it toils in turmoil on these pans of fire: Institutes that teach not to analyze and wonder, But to gobble, espouse, vomit and then†¦just wander. So, do we just give tests and go on becoming another mechanical product of this degree-machine, or relieve ourselves of this blunder? We find that today, education has reached such a stage, that the difference between the educated and the uneducated, is but a degree (or no degree), however the other may know; which reminds me of what a teacher of mine once said: â€Å"†¦You may wonder at the fact, that I have said Euclid and Aristotle together. You see, in the ancient world, the gift we had got, was the scholar, not the B.Tech, M.A., or B.Sc. (Hons). Thus, you get the same Pythagoras, who devised the theorem, AC2 = BC2 + AB2, giving the theory of transmigration of souls – two very different subjects, philosophy and mathematics, but the very same person.† Indeed, today we do lack such people, for the very fact that, India today is not the divine land where knowledge is respected – the land where the greatest university of the time exists, but a machine designed ages ago, to churn out Indian Civil Service workers, extended beyond into independent India by mistake (rather ignorance and lack of understanding), and united with the pre-ancient Indian processes of rote-learning, to make another machine, completely satisfactory in its ability and purpose of creating doctors and engineers, who work completely like a machine, with no interest in finding new methods or discovering new techniques or findings, but just working as per the age old methods engineered earlier, or today, but certainly by foreigners. The primary cause I believe, which has led to this is the method of education provided by society on him, from day one onwards – the very same day the student sees school that is. But first, let us have a look at the ‘ideal’ student, as society – the Indian society – views him. Is it not a boy, well in attire, i.e. in a neat and clean uniform, sitting in front of the table, with a book in front of him, learning what is written in the book, by-heart, writing down all that he has learnt, and at the end of the year, coming out with flying colours in his report-card? To those who find no problem with this, my question is â€Å"Why the farce?† Why the farce of such a false scene that has been idolized, to kill even the Einstein’s that our country has created? Is it that we have been so much into this claptrap of the rote-learner being the ideal, that we form this leucoma, to fail seeing through this farcical non-sense? Now, let us have a look at the true side of this story – the story that many of us have to go through, especially the ‘hopeless’ and the ‘fools’. As the young mind enters the nursery, he is forced to accept what he is told – a good method to teach language the fast way, but, the real problem occurs, when this process is extended into subjects which require full understanding, like mathematics. The student learns that two plus two is four, rarely because two objects and two objects come in to make a number o objects we call four, but rather because it makes four, be all and end all. And practicing thus, he goes on to learn tables, least understanding, what fives times three actually means. Thus, this process of forced learning create a feeling of boredom and the people who become successful, hence, are those who can accept these facts easily, little realizing the beauty that lies behind of the subject that lies beyond it, or the logic of why they are doing such, and at times, even, what they are actually doing, as an interview I carried out on standard three and four students, indicated – they knew very well, that eight into nine is seventy-two, without even the basic knowledge of why it is not seventy-one or seventy-three for that matter; it was seventy-two because they had learnt it to be seventy two PERIOD! It reminds me of Einstein’s â€Å"Concepts that have proven useful in ordering things easily achieve such authority over us, that we forget their earthly origins and accept them as unalterable givens.†(Translated from German) Worse still happens, when we try to extend this method into higher education, especially in the science and arts streams. Speaking of science, wherein I fit, the last blow on the camel’s back comes, when we are forced to accept theory and practical as two different ‘papers’, rarely finding the link lying between them. The only aim the students form now, is to get marks by properly doing what lay in front of us, finding the ‘correct’ answer, and finally, getting the marks. After that, there is nothing more to discover, and in some experiments, they don’t even figure out what physical quantity they are measuring. Some of us again, like a very good engineer, try understanding the things, from what is written in theory, which we have learnt by reading the book – thus, we tend to believe the book at each stage, even at the cost of manipulating the results of our experiments; little do we thus learn, that the value of ‘g’ which we got as 7.9 – 8.1 is actually the correct one, and not 9.81. Thus, we even fail to realize our foolishness. Computer Science is in fact, the only exception to this rule, as in it, we know why we are doing something, clearly, at least to the level of gates, which is generally considered the base of computing – at least as far as the programmer is concerned; which is perfectly acceptable. But as far as the other subjects are concerned, it is a different story altogether. Thus, this rote-learning that most of us have to go through in many subjects, in many schools, and in many standards is the sole cause of this problem. What intensifies this, are the many competitive examinations that we, the high school students, try to prepare ourselves for. In the process, we blindly accept some facts and play as much as we can with them, to tackle the problems that would be given in the exams. Thus, we slowly and painfully, kill the scientist, which lies within someone. But what truly wait, is not more criticism, but a solution to all this; of course, it is only my thought, which I believe can work, but it is a thought that comes from first0hand experiences and realizations. So, let us begin to address this from day one. The child enters the school, knowing nothing; what he especially does not know, is the beauty of knowledge and to him, school is a dreadful place (courtesy the stories that society teaches him). Hence, this can easily break him; thus, we must first break this breaker, by allowing him to play and interact with the other students and the teachers, as time progresses, to get a firm grip on him. As the bond slowly develops, we can introduce him or her to alphabets first those of his mother-tongue, and then that of English – however, both these languages must be taught simultaneously, or at least in the same class – nursery. Thus, we must teach the child, with a caring attitude, having no concern for teaching him this much or that much, as specified by the syllabus, we can form a proper child, who is ready to learn. And as he progresses to higher subjects like mathematics, science and higher English/Bengali/Hindi, it can be taught slowly and in a manner wherein the child learns by experimentation. For example, tables can be taught, not through the usual boring and strict way of mugging up the tables up to 9, but by making him himself realize, that when two is added five times, it gives ten and making him do the exercise a number of times fully understanding how these follow, as tables. This done, the student formed would be one, who is ready to experiment, loving the subject, fully understanding what he does. At the end of the day, a student who does this, would really want to learn it faster and would do so. Going on to English, comprehension and grammar exercises and short stories can be taught, in a way that makes him realize what the content of the story is, and make him develop a reading habit; reading classes can be organized, so as to develop his reading skills, and full scale discussion of the topics, with debates, speeches, etc. can be taken in order to develop his skills in public speaking, understanding the language, etc. As for science, â€Å"everything around us is science and can be understood if tried to† can be the key to the success in this path. The children can be taught to thus observe the phenomenon around, to learn form what he sees around him and only at this stage, remember (not blindly accept) that something he sees, like wet clothes drying up when it is kept in the sun, etc.; to this note, I remember a personal experience that I cherished: in class two, when we were being taught birds, we were asked to collect feathers of birds that had fallen, in order to study them, match them to find whom they belonged to, and even discuss on them. The experience of that class, as I still remember, was the most entertaining, enthralling and enriching one ever in my life. But sad it is, that few teachers are so innovative enough to draw our full attention, and let our interest in the subject rise to such an extent, where we learn so nicely that we remember those classes for our entire life. Coming back, this process can go on thus, and as for value education, classes should be based on yearly assessment of thoughts, not as in maintaining a diary, but as a class-work. Shifting up to the high school level, children from class six onwards can be allowed to go to the practical labs, to freely experiment with the instruments upon the teachers’ instructions, observing, making systematic recordings, and last but not the least, themselves inferring from the data they find, so as to find patterns in Nature. This can be nicely done in physics, if not chemistry – at least with organic chemicals the students can experiment, as for harsh ones, the teacher can perform the experiment, making the students infer from them. Thus, an ‘experimentative’ approach and curious nature would be instilled into the child’s young mind, as he passes through this elementary level of science, giving rise to the birth of the scientist within him. He should also be given full freedom to talk on the subject in the class, alone with the teacher, in word or in writing, so as to fully clear his/her doubts, and understand the subject deeper than ever. In a line, the student should not learn the laws, but derive them out of his activities. Moving on to class nine, the first six months can be classes of revision of whatever he or she had learnt in the junior classes. Later, new topics can be introduced, and in a very similar manner, he must be taught these. Hence, the final student that would be formed would not be the marks-seeker, but a true knowledge-seeker – thus at least the scientist. As for arts, students can be introduced to philosophy at an elementary level itself, not in the form of boring lectures, but by making them philosophize on everyday happenings, historical events, problems and solutions, etc.; thus he’d not need to learn philosophy, but develop a taste for finding philosophy in everyday life. Hence, when he/she will read texts of great authors, he’d immediately find the essence of it all. The same goes for commercial applications and economics, where he can be made to realize the truth behind all the business policies – through stories, and even experiments in the form of mock business sessions (even on very small imaginary ones, like buying a product of Rs. 2), to make the students understand the principles behind the complex business policies. He should also be given the proper mathematical background required behind this, as in pure statistics and some of pure and applied mathematics, and if a student is found interested more in some subject, which is not in his syllabus, he can well be taught the lesson after school. This method I believe,, will surely create not only a true student, but also a complete human being. As for the so-called ‘boring’ subjects of history and geography, it is the method of teaching alone, that makes all the difference. History can be taught by first drawing the interest of the student. Ancient history is a good place to start this practice, by making history an extension of literature and logic combined. He can be †¦ taught to learn not the whats alone, but taught more importantly the ‘why’s and hence, the deeper ‘how’s!

Financial Statements Essay

2. Review the Financial Statements: Income Statement from the Accounting and Bookkeeping lesson under the Business Finance section of this course. Use the information from the example income statement for Jamie’s Bead Jewelry to answer the questions below. a. What are the two sources of revenue for the company? (0.5 points) b. What is the company’s total revenue? (0.5 points) c. What is the company’s net profit? (0.5 points) d. Is the company experiencing a profit, or a loss? (0.5 points) 3. Review the Financial Statements: Balance Sheet from the Accounting and Bookkeeping lesson under the Business Finance section of this course. Use the information from the example balance sheet for Jamie’s Bead Jewelry to answer the questions below. a. What is the value of the company’s assets? (0.5 points) b. What is the total of the company’s liabilities? (0.5 points) c. What is the total owner equity? (0.5 points) 4. Calculate the following financial ratios. TIP: If you don’t remember how to calculate financial ratios, review the Calculating Financial Ratio pages from the Accounting and Bookkeeping lesson under the Business Finance section of this course. a. A company makes a net profit before tax of $12,000 and has $20,000 in total equity. Calculate the company’s return on equity as a percentage. (0.5 points) b. A company makes a net profit before tax of $5,000 and has total assets with a value of $10,000. Calculate the company’s return on assets as a percentage. (0.5 points) c. A company has $1,400 in liabilities and $1,500 in assets. Calculate the company’s debt ratio as a percentage. (0.5 points) d. A company has $1,400 in liabilities and $1,500 in equity. Calculate the company’s debt to equity ratio as a percentage. (0.5 points) e. A company’s current assets are $30,000 and current liabilities are $19,000. Calculate the company’s current ratio as a percentage. Does the company have enough assets to pay its liabilities? (1.0 points)

Biological Change In The Elder essays

Biological Change In The Elder essays The body goes through a complicated series of physiological changes as it ages. In his book The American Geriatric Societys Complete Guide to Aging Mark E. Williams, M.D., defines aging as a progressive, predictable process that involves the evolution and maturation of living organisms. Aging affects all parts of the body from the obvious such as skin, hair and overall appearance to organ function. The most visible sign of the aging process takes place within the skin. The skin consists of three layers: epidermis, dermis and hypodermis. The outer level is called the epidermis. As this skin level ages the rates of cell loss increase and cell production decrease resulting in a thinning of the skin. This thinning makes the skin more susceptible to creasing and wrinkling. Another visible aspect is the appearance of age spots. These age spots result from the grouping of pigment producing cells. Also the blood vessels near the surface weaken, as they age and this will allow the skin to bruise easily. The middle level is called the dermis. It is at this level where collagen is produced. Collagen helps to strengthen the skin. As an individual ages less collagen is produced resulting in the skin becoming stiffer and less elastic. When the skin becomes less elastic it will then begin to sag. The inner most level of skin is the hypodermis. It is at this level where the fat cells are located. As the body ages fat begins to decrease at a dissimilar rate. This results in a bumpy appearance. It is also at this level that the sebaceous glands are found. These particular glands provide oil lubrication for the skin. As these glands age they produce less oil that results in the skin becoming dry, brittle and more vulnerable to abrasive forces. Another highly visible sign of the aging process takes place in the hair. Hair is lost daily but as the individual ages the rate of rep...

Gustav Kirchhoff and Kirchhoffs Laws for Electrical Circuits

Gustav Kirchhoff and Kirchhoff's Laws for Electrical Circuits Gustav Robert Kirchhoff (March 12, 1824–October 17, 1887) was a German physicist. He is best known for developing Kirchhoff’s laws, which quantify the current and voltage in electrical circuits. In addition to Kirchhoff’s laws, Kirchhoff made a number of other fundamental contributions to physics, including work on spectroscopy and blackbody radiation. Fast Facts: Gustav Kirchhoff Full Name: Gustav Robert KirchhoffOccupation: PhysicistKnown For: Developed Kirchhoffs laws for electrical circuitsBorn: March 12, 1824 in Kà ¶nigsberg, PrussiaDied: October 17, 1887 in Berlin, GermanyParents’ Names: Carl Friedrich Kirchhoff, Juliane Johanna Henriette von WittkeSpouses Names: Clara Richelot (m. 1834-1869), Benovefa Karolina Sopie Luise Brà ¶mmel (m. 1872) Early Years and Education Born in Kà ¶nigsberg, Prussia (now Kaliningrad, Russia), Gustav Kirchhoff was the youngest of three sons. His parents were Carl Friedrich Kirchhoff, a law counselor devoted to the Prussian state, and Juliane Johanna Henriette von Wittke. Kirchhoff’s parents encouraged their children to serve the Prussian state as best as they were able. Kirchoff was an academically strong student, so he planned to become a university professor, which was considered a civil servant role in Prussia at that time. Kirchhoff attended Kneiphofische High School with his brothers and received his diploma in 1842. After graduating high school, Kirchhoff began studying in the Mathematics-Physics department at the Albertus University of Kà ¶nigsberg. There, Kirchhoff attended a mathematics-physics seminar from 1843 to 1846 developed by the mathematicians Franz Neumann and Carl Jacobi. Neumann in particular had a profound impact on Kirchhoff, and encouraged him to pursue mathematical physics – a field which focuses on developing mathematical methods for problems in physics. While studying with Neumann, Kirchhoff published his first paper in 1845 at age 21. This paper contained the two Kirchhoff’s laws, which allow for the calculation of the current and voltage in electrical circuits. Kirchhoff's Laws Kirchhoff’s laws for current and voltage are at the foundation of analyzing electrical circuits, allowing for the quantification of current and voltage within the circuit. Kirchhoff derived these laws by generalizing the results of Ohm’s law, which states that the current between two points is directly proportional to the voltage between those points and inversely proportional to the resistance. Kirchhoff’s first law says that at a given junction in a circuit, the current going into the junction must equal the sum of the currents leaving the junction. Kirchhoff’s second law says that if there is a closed loop in a circuit, the sum of the voltage differences within the loop equals zero. Through his collaboration with Bunsen, Kirchhoff developed three Kirchhoff’s laws for spectroscopy: Incandescent solids, liquids, or dense gases – which light up after they are heated – emit a continuous spectrum of light: they emit light at all wavelengths.A hot, low-density gas produces an emission-line spectrum: the gas emits light at specific, discrete wavelengths, which can be seen as bright lines in an otherwise dark spectrum.A continuous spectrum traversing through a cooler, low-density gas produces an absorption-line spectrum: the gas absorbs light at specific, discrete wavelengths, which can be seen as dark lines in an otherwise continuous spectrum. Because atoms and molecules produce their own unique spectra, these laws allow for the identification of atoms and molecules found in the object being studied. Kirchhoff also performed important work in thermal radiation, and proposed Kirchhoff’s law of thermal radiation in 1859. This law states that the emissivity (ability to emit energy as radiation) and absorbance (ability to absorb radiation) of an object or surface are equal at any wavelength and temperature, if the object or surface is at static thermal equilibrium. While studying thermal radiation, Kirchhoff also coined the term â€Å"black body† to describe a hypothetical object which absorbed all incoming light and thus emitted all of that light when it was maintained at a constant temperature to establish thermal equilibrium. In 1900, the physicist Max Planck would hypothesize that these black bodies absorbed and emitted energy in certain values called â€Å"quanta.† This discovery would serve as one of the key insights for quantum mechanics. Academic Career In 1847, Kirchhoff graduated from Kà ¶nigsberg University, and became an unpaid lecturer at Berlin University in Germany in 1848. In 1850, he became an associate professor at Breslau University and in 1854 a professor of physics at Heidelberg University. At Breslau, Kirchhoff met the German chemist Robert Bunsen, after whom the Bunsen burner was named, and it was Bunsen who arranged for Kirchhoff to come to Heidelberg University. In the 1860s, Kirchhoff and Bunsen showed that each element could be identified with a unique spectral pattern, establishing that spectroscopy could be used to experimentally analyze the elements. The pair would discover the elements cesium and rubidium while investigating the elements in the sun using spectroscopy. In addition to his work in spectroscopy, Kirchhoff would also study blackbody radiation, coining the term in 1862. His work is considered fundamental to the development of quantum mechanics. In 1875, Kirchhoff became the chair of mathematical physics at Berlin. He later retired in 1886. Later Life and Legacy Kirchhoff died on October 17, 1887 in Berlin, Germany at the age of 63. He is remembered for his contributions to the field of physics as well as his influential teaching career. His Kirchhoffs laws for electrical circuits are now taught as part of introductory physics courses on electromagnetism. Sources Hockey, Thomas A., editor. The Biographical Encyclopedia of Astronomers. Springer, 2014.Inan, Aziz S. â€Å"What did Gustav Robert Kirchhoff Stumble Upon 150 Years Ago?† Proceedings of 2010 IEEE International Symposium on Circuits and Systems, pp. 73–76.â€Å"Kirchhoff’s Laws.† Cornell University, http://astrosun2.astro.cornell.edu/academics/courses/astro201/kirchhoff.htm.Kurrer, Karl-Eugen. The History of the Theory of Structures: from Arch Analysis to Computational Mechanics. Ernst Sohn, 2008.â€Å"Gustav Robert Kirchhoff.† Molecular Expressions: Science, Optics, and You, 2015, https://micro.magnet.fsu.edu/optics/timeline/people/kirchhoff.html.O’Connor, J. J., and Robertson, E. F. â€Å"Gustav Robert Kirchhoff.† University of St. Andrews, Scotland, 2002.Palma, Christopher. â€Å"Kirchoff’s Laws and Spectroscopy.† The Pennsylvania State University, https://www.e-education.psu.edu/astro801/content/l3_p6.html.

Odeipus the King Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Odeipus the King - Essay Example Antigone (1500 A.D) Psychology of Characters in Antigone Antigone is one of the Sophocles woven in tyranny and culture. The play contains many characters helping in laying the plot of the story. One of the characters is Antigone, the protagonist of the play. Antigone is determined. This is because she decides laying her brother to rest. She refutes King Creon’s decision that Polinices does not entail to be buried (Anouilh & Sam, 2002). She goes ahead to bury Polinices despite the consequences that may befall her. Her sister Isemne tries convincing Antigone, her sister to refute this decision .This is because she worries that her life may be at threat if she buried Polinices. This is in regard to the King’s order that Polinices deserved no burial. Her determination is a trait that compels readers interested in the play. She is also daring because she undertakes burying Polinices, knowing that her life is at threat. This trait helps build the plot because the king pursues her deeds. She is also sallow. Antigone is shown not to be as stunning as her sister Isemne. The other trait is that she is obstinate. This is true concerning the way she disobeys that kings ruling that no one ought to bury Polinices. Disregarding that her life may be at danger, she still resolves burying Polinices. ... For example concluding that Polinices required no burial, this shows his might and authority of ruling. The other trait is that he is unreasonable. His action of deciding that Polinices burial would not happen is a clear proof. The king is inhuman because he tries scheming for the execution of Antigone after she goes against his rulings. Plotting to kill someone is something that is exceedingly wrong. In addition, Creon is cruel concerning his acts of scheming and ordering for Antigones execution. This is because killing is something that is brutal to a person. Moreover, Creon is timid pertaining to his response to Teresia’s prophecy that he would be struck by fury of the spirits. This makes him stop pursuing to kill Antigone. Isemne Isemne, the sister of Antigone, displays various traits. One of the traits is that she is beautiful as conflicting to her sister. The other trait is that she is calm. This trait has its explanations from remaining unruffled despite demise of Polin ices. When her sister is exceedingly vibrant about burying Polinices, Isemne has no issues to do with his. The other trait is that she is collected. This aspect is well depicted in her ability to stay withdrawn to things surrounding the burial of Polinices. Isemne is also reasonable concerning her act of defying rebellion. This is because she persuades her sister not to defy rulings of King Creon (Anouilh & Sams, 2002). In addition, Isemne is also lovable. This is because of the fact that she plays the role of advising her sister, and the fact that she is not disobedient. Another trait is that she is good-natured. This is following the fact that she undertakes telling her sister to obey the king’s rulings. This is however something that

Juvenile Delinquency and Justice Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Juvenile Delinquency and Justice - Assignment Example Some of the defining movements and legislation in the 20th century were aptly presented in the National Criminal Justice Reference Service (NCJRS) online published report that enumerated the following: firm conformity of the Parens Patriae which claimed that â€Å"the State has both a right and a responsibility to intervene in family life and assume the task of rearing a child if the family is unable to do so. It has roots in English Poor Laws, which empowered the State to separate poor children from their families and place them in apprenticeships†; Parental Delinquency Laws which holds parents liable for apparently being significantly contributory to the delinquency of their children; institution of Due Process; and conditions and stipulations explicitly outlining Exceptions to Due Process. Likewise, also during the 20th century was the Juvenile Delinquency Prevention and Control Act (JDPCA) of 1968 instituted to propose handling on non-criminal juvenile cases out of courts; while the Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention Act of 1974 was designed to deinstitutionalize â€Å"status offenders and nonoffenders as well as the separation of juvenile delinquents from adult offenders''. Likewise, there was the need to create the dependency court to ensure that juveniles are protected from being maltreated. It was likewise emphasized that â€Å"as juvenile court legislation was transformed in the delinquency context to provide procedures to satisfy the Gault requirements, the dependency court was left to continue its parens patriae jurisdiction over children and families†.

Online Assignment 5 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Online Assignment 5 - Essay Example This implies that apart from a professional relationship, a personal relationship develops. 2a. The issue of ethics arises in dual relationship but at times the dual relationship may occur out of sheer coincidence. This is circumstantial multiple role played by the professional and this arises out of misinterpretation. In small rural communities the psychologists often have a holistic view of the clients and this often leads to overlapping of social and business relationship that affects the psychologists’ family (Friedman, 2000). Dual relationship can occur when they are integral to the profession. An individual has to play structured multiple professional roles and is prevalent in counselor education and supervision. The supervisor can hold multiple roles as a mentor or advisor. This implies that the nature of both the roles is professional. In such a situation there is no conflict of interest and the relationship is seen upon as complimentary. However, when dual relationships become necessary, the professional must be conscious of the possible harm it could cause. One role can create conflict in this relationship. In their role as evaluators or in providing therapy service to the students, problems could arise due to shift in professional relationships. This could happen when the supervisor counseling a student develops a personal relationship that could be sexual or romantic in nature. In such a situation there are chances that the professional could exploit the student or the client. A professor (female) during the course of discussion with a female student stated that she missed having a man in her life as she had been widowed some years ago (Gottlieb, 1993). The student called up the professor a week later and offered to introduce her to a man who could be interesting. The professor instantly agreed but upon consultation with another colleague the next day, declined to meet the man. 2b. Circumstantial multiple role, present

Customer Relationship Management Plan for Hotel

Customer Relationship Management Plan for Hotel The Sao Paulo Case ABSTRACT The paper sets out to produce an outline customer relationship plan for a Brazilian hotel which has recently been taken over by a globally branded hotel chain. It begins with a review of selected literature which contains knowledge, techniques and ideas relevant to a customer relationship plan. Terms are defined within this section. The final section contains the action plan, which derives from ideas in the literature review section. 1. Introduction This report will consist of a concise, integrated customer relationship plan for Sao Paulo senior management with the specific aims of: reducing customer switching maintaining stakeholder relations in the service quality value chain Within this plan there will be: an identification of the gaps in Sao Paulo’s current approach to relationship marketing planning a description of internal and external relationships which impact the hotel proposed marketing objectives to help relaunch and reposition the hotel brand suggested developments of the brand an outline service quality management programme an outline CRM system an outline integrated marketing communications programme an outline internal marketing communications programme Input for the plan will be taken from the case material and the literature review which follows in section 2. 2. Literature Review This section will review the literature in a structured way. The first part will draw on lecture notes, text books and journal articles to clarify and explain aspects of: strategic marketing and branding relationship marketing and customer relationship management service quality management The second part will draw on three cases: The Ritz Carlton case Bergstrom Hotels Sao Paulo Hotel 2.1 Strategic Marketing and Branding Piercy defines strategy as simply being about: Being best at doing those things which matter most to customers Building shareholder value by achieving superior customer value Finding new and better ways of doing things to achieve the first two[1] If one accepts this no-nonsense definition it underscores the need for all companies to: Understand who your customers are and what matters to them Know how they perceive your service levels and what you must do to improve your performance Design and implement communication and management processes which make your strategy work In other words you need a plan. The planning process is described in the lecture notes as beginning with a Mission Statement and ending with implementation and measurement control. Before customer relationship objectives (the focus of the action plan below) can be identified and agreed the mission statement needs to be clearly understood as do the dynamics of the current market place. A SWOT analysis and Marketing Audit are effective tools for clarifying the company’s current position in the market, its performance so far and for suggesting possible changes in strategic and tactical moves. In a services business this will lead to the development of a customer relationship plan, which will be underpinned by a detailed understanding of the various internal and external stakeholders with whom one needs to develop and build relationships.[2] 2.2 Relationship Marketing and Customer Relationship Management â€Å"Relationship marketing concerns the shifting from activities of attracting customers to activities concerned with current customers and how to retain them. †¦At its core is the maintenance of relations between a company and its suppliers, channel intermediaries, public and customers.†[3] Focusing on retention is considered to be significantly more profitable than conversion of non-customers. CRM is a system to make relationship marketing work. The US writer, George Day sees CRM as a customer-responsive strategy, which seeks to give companies competitive advantage by: Delivering superior customer value by personalising the interaction between company and customer, Demonstrating trustworthiness Tightening connections with customers Achieving co-ordination of complex capabilities (functions, resources) within the company[4] Park Plaza International uses its new CRM system and global database to: â€Å"promote the hotels as a group, rather than an individually networked system, with targeted promotions and one-to-one marketing†¦.Through company profiling we will be able to identify who the biggest backers of the group are and who should be given special treatment, so that we can target our promotions accordingly†[5] Hwang and Chi[6] ,in their recent empirical study, highlight the fact that service personnel are the most important resource in the service sector and also the primary marketers. By helping to achieve customer satisfaction service personnel upgrade the entire performance of the organisation. The message to management is that they should engage in aggressive internal marketing to achieve and maintain a synergy of staff satisfaction and improved organisational performance. 2.3 Service Quality Management Customers will be loyal to a hotel, or a branded hotel chain, if they are satisfied with the quality and value offered. It is therefore important for service providers to know what influences these customer perceptions. Johnston suggests two approaches to understanding customers’ perceptions and judgements of service quality: The rational approach The incident-based approach[7] The rational approach suggests that customers consciously or unconsciously use a weighted average, so that a high score on one attribute or factor may offset a low score on another, to arrive at an overall evaluation of personal satisfaction. The SERVQUAL approach is based on the work of Parasuraman, Zeithamel and Berry[8] and sets out to measure customers’ perceptions of quality across 5 dimensions: Tangibles: physical facilities, equipment, appearance of personnel Reliability: abilities to perform the promised service dependably and accurately Responsiveness: willingness to help customers and provide prompt service Assurance: knowledge and courtesy of employees and ability to inspire trust and confidence Empathy: caring, individualistic attention provided by firm to customers A third approach suggests that any single incident, delighting or satisfying, could, whatever the weightings given to the other transactions, result in an overall feeling of dissatisfaction or delight. Another writer argues that â€Å"investment of time and money in quality improvement should concentrate on those areas of your business where the effort will have the greatest benefit†[9] Effort should not necessarily be directed to areas where you are worse than the competition if those factors are not so important to customers. 2.4 The Ritz-Carlton Case R-C has a total quality approach to the business. They fix causes not problems, i.e. they think about processes and systems to prevent problems and to ensure continuous quality. They set up a system to understand the real needs of their customers, to ensure delivery of these needs, to make it work continuously and to communicate all this to the market – not just an image-driven approach, but one which was conscious of the â€Å"experience† which customers were seeking. 2.4 Bergstrom Hotels[10] Bergstrom set up a total quality approach and system which was driven by senior management but acted on and supported by teams across the organisation. Vital components of the system are: training of all staff in internal customer relations, culture, process improvement and problem-solving, setting up and development of a data-base based on customer and employee surveys to drive improvement, open lines of communication and regular performance evaluation. Recognising staff contributions to quality of service was a key final element. The case demonstrates that significant quality improvements can be achieved without significant investment and ongoing cost. 2.5 Sao Paulo Case Sao Paulo is a recently refurbished hotel which is operating in a highly competitive market (with much price cutting) and unstable economy. It has recently been taken over by a hotel chain with a global brand name and a reputation for high service quality and the ability to build long-term relationships with stakeholders. It needs now to reposition itself in the Brazilian market such that it is clearly differentiated in stakeholders minds from the competition. Service must be the main differentiator, so an integrated customer relationship plan needs to be developed. 3. Action Plan for Improving Customer Relationships 3.1 Gaps in current approach Sao Paulo needs both to retain the loyalty of its current customer base and to grow via new customer and intermediary relationships. Growth will probably come via extended use of new services (e.g. restaurants and bars) by current customers and attracting new, more focused customer segments. This needs to be spelt out in its overall mission and made explicit with regard to individual stakeholders. 3.2 External and Internal Stakeholders Apart from the different customer segments important external stakeholders are: tour operators, airlines, travel agents and the many web-based hotel discounters. Local SP-based organisations such as the city hall and tourist office may also be influential in the communication of the hotel brand to intermediaries and potential customers. The current relationship-building approach appears to be re-active and now needs to become focused and pro-active. Important internal stakeholders are hotel employees – front-office staff and sales staff – and franchisees in the restaurants and bars. All need to be aligned with the culture of the refurbished and repositioned hotel. 3.3 Relaunching and Repositioning of the Brand The SP hotel is now part of a global chain. Its service level will need to be aligned with the core brand values of GHG and these values will need to be communicated to all stakeholders and acted upon by internal stakeholders if the communicated brand image is to be consistent with delivery on the ground. Proposed marketing objectives are to: grow the current customer base by 20% by increasing spend per customer and by improving retention by 10%; focus on excellent, caring service at a fair price. 3.4 Service-Quality Programme A customer survey should be carried out to establish which service attributes are important to customers. This should be linked to an assessment of the cost of correcting what goes wrong. The survey should be ongoing and reinforced by regular staff interaction with customers so as to identify any areas of dissatisfaction. Overall customer relationship objective will be to: create in the minds of all customers an experience of being cared for by warm, friendly staff who have your best interests at heart and will do all that they can to offer you speedy and professional assistance. This will be translated into specific CR objectives for the different stakeholders, all of whom will need to participate in service quality training programmes: Franchisees: communicate always in your words, dress and body language that you are a member of the SP team. Front-office staff: make the customer feel welcome, respected, valued and at home. Sales staff: communicate, warm, professional, helpful manner at all times, backed up by prompt follow-up. Service standards: FRONT DESK: Always smile at customers Address by name wherever possible Apologise for even slightest delay Never keep customer waiting without apologising Always do what you promise to do Be sensitive to cultural differences Keep desk and hall area clean at all times Always ask if you can be of further assistance – sincerely Never argue with a customer Try always to exceed expectations Service blueprint: Sales staff to CORPORATES (process service mix): Tangibles Dress smartly, speak warmly and professionally, ensure  that all promotional materials are packaged and presented professionally Reliability Be punctual, deliver what you promise Responsiveness Exceed customer expectations with your response times  and look always for creative solutions to difficult problems Assurance Be confident about the hotel and its qualities but radiate  courtesy at all times. Avoid over-familiarity and use of christian names, unless requested to do so Empathy Avoid any remarks/comments about religion, race,  culture. Be particularly sensitive to cultural differences and help people with language difficulties. Never make fun of anyone. Apologise for even the most minor errors Service guarantee for empowering FRONT-LINE STAFF: If a customer arrives after 19.00 and requests a rate  reduction you may offer him/her a room at a rate 20% below normal rate This service quality approach is in line with the realignment of the brand as a warm and caring hotel which offers fair prices. 3.5 CRM System A CRM system needs to be developed for the global chain. It would aim to profile customers both in order to communicate with them more effectively and to ensure that service features are adapted to meet individual requirements where possible. It should be seen as a support for the warm and caring approach, not a replacement. The communications programme would need to be consistent with, and integrated into, the CRM system. 3.6 Internal Marketing Programme Staff are at the heart of hotel service and underpin customer perception of quality. Training programmes must be run to ensure that all staff are aligned with the culture and attitudes of the hotel, are aware of service guidelines and have the requisite skills and knowledge. An appraisal and suggestions system will be introduced to help staff maintain requisite standards. Incentives will be introduced to encourage maintenance of these standards. BIBLIOGRAPHY Books Barwise P. and Meehan S. (2004), Simply Better, Harvard Business School Press Cerasale M. and Stone M.(2004), Business Solutions on Demand, Kogan Page Johnston R. and Clark C. (2001), Service Operations Management, Prentice Hall Piercy N. (2002), Market-led Strategic Change, Butterworth Heinemann Journal Articles Breiter D., Tyink S. and Corey-Tuckwell S. (1995), Bergstrom Hotels; a case study  in quality†, Journal of Contemporary Hospitality Management, Vol.7 No. 6 Brown T. (1997), â€Å"Using norms to improve the interpretation of service quality  measures†, Journal of Services Marketing, Vol.11, No.1, p.80 Day G. (2000), â€Å"Tying in an Asset†, in Understanding CRM, Financial Times  Editorial article, „CRM in Hotelsâ€Å", in Leisure Hospitality Business, September,  2001 Hwang I. and Chi D. (2005), â€Å"Relationships among Internal Marketing, Employee Job  Satisfaction and International Hotel Performance†, International Journal of  Management, Vol.22 No.2 Parasuraman A., Zeithamel V. and Berry L. (1988), â€Å"SERVQUAL: a Multiple Item  Scale for Measuring Consumer Perceptions of Quality†, Journal of Retailing,  Vol.64, No.1 Spring Footnotes [1] Piercy N. (2002), Market-led Strategic Change, p. 273 [2] Lecture Notes – Key Issues from the Marketing Audit to Prioritise Actions in a Relationship Services  Marketing Plan [3] Jobber D. (2004), Principles and Practice of Marketing, McGraw-Hill, p. 117 [4] Day G. (2000), â€Å"Tying in an Asset†, in Understanding CRM, Financial Times [5] Editorial article, „CRM in Hotelsâ€Å", in Leisure Hospitality Business, September, 2001 [6] Hwang I. and Chi D. (2005), â€Å"Relationships among Internal Marketing, Employee Job Satisfaction  and International Hotel Performance†, International Journal of Management, Vol.22 No.2, p.291 [7] Johnston R. And Clark G. (2001), Service Operations Management, Prentice Hall, p. 102 [8] Parasuraman A., Zeithamel V. and Berry L. (1988), â€Å"SERVQUAL: a Multiple Item scale for  Measuring Consumer Perceptions of Quality†, Journal of Retailing, Vol.64, No.1 Spring [9] Brown T. (1997), â€Å"Using norms to improve the interpretation of service quality measures†, Journal of  Services Marketing, Vol.11, No.1, p.80 [10] Breiter D., Tyink S. and Corey-Tuckwell S. (1995), Bergstrom Hotels; a case study in quality†,  Journal of Contemporary Hospitality Management, Vol.7 No. 6

Euthanasia And The Robert Latimer Case :: Free Euthanasia Essay

Euthanasia and the Robert Latimer Case Euthanasia is undoubtedly an issue that plagues the minds of those living with children or adults who are severely disabled. Rarely is one found to have a ‘ neutral' outlook upon it; that is, a side must be chosen, for or against. It is too delicate a topic to be ‘in the middle' about. Over the years, cases involving euthanasia have caused massive controversies as to whether or not it is feasible to take the life of another human being in order to ‘put them out of their misery'. One of the strong questions raised in my mind is: Does the killer really want to put the victim out of their misery? Or is it the killer who is under the extreme pressures of living with the victim, and is it their own lifestyle that they are truly fed up with? In the Robert Latimer case, as in many other cases of euthanasia, it can never be proven whether or not Latimer killed his young daughter Tracy to ‘save' her, or to save himself. While I have never experienced living with someone who is severely disabled, I have had the chance to discuss the issue with many friends and associates. From what I have learned, it is, indeed, an extremely tough matter to deal with. While no-one I have spoken to has been suicidal over the matter, they have seen the true pain and misery that some severely disabled individuals are forced to deal with every day of their lives. Still, many agree with myself on the point that a human life is just that, a human life; and that everyone alive has the right to live, no matter whether or not it is under tougher circumstances than another person. Nobody has the right to take the life of another person, and technically, the law states that nobody has the right to take their own life as well. A severely disabled person may have to deal with much pain in their lives, but they are entitled to the right of simply enjoying being alive, and denying them that right would be an infringement upon their freedom. Latimer should have taken the law into deeper consideration before taking his daughters life. He may have seen the suffering that she went through, but it is evident that he had some sort of strange love for his daughter. Indeed, he did want ‘what was best' for Tracy, but possibly what he was after was what he thought was best. He valued her rights as his daughter, unfortunately he did not value her rights as

Affordable Care Act Essay

Health care reform has been a budding issue within the United States this past year, and problems continue to surface. At the beginning of this process, Americans wanted the government to ensure that all citizens would be able to have affordable and good health care, no matter what their financial situation. The price for health care was increasing at a rate that people could no longer afford it and a lot of people desperately wanted a universal health care systems like some of their neighboring countries. In a sense, change was needed, but how this change came about is the real issue now. Americans may not get what they bargained for, and it could end up costing more than some individual initially thought. Importance of Research I want to research this economic policy because I hear so much scrutiny from every individual I talk to, while I also see some friends and family benefiting from the Affordable Care Act. I want to learn more about what we truly signed up for and the repercussions for â€Å"pimping out† the health care industry, along with any hidden agendas that might be embedded within this new policy. According to the U.S Department of Health & Human Services, â€Å"The Affordable Care Act was passed by Congress and then signed into law by the President on March 23, 2010. On June 28, 2012 the Supreme Court rendered a final decision to uphold the health care law† (2014). It is not until 2014 that is really coming into effect, to the point where it is mandated to have insurance by April 2014. This policy was implemented to make sure every American has health insurance but little are properly educated on how this new policy will affect us in the years to come. Time to learn the truth fro m both sides of the debate Policy Overview The Affordable Health Care Act, was a policy that has recently been put in place to help citizens receive the health care they need at an affordable price. As wages remain the same, prices continue to climb to the point where minimum wages isn’t enough, health care is last on the list of needs. Many Americans do not have health insurance or receive it from the state because it is not an affordable aspect of our economy and it was not mandated. Now the government as took it upon themselves to make laws and regulations in order to ensure every American citizen has affordable health insurance. For those who can pay more, pay more, and those who can’t, will ultimately pay less. Although that is a great concept for the American people to believe in, but with all of the rules, regulations and underlining laws, it is important to understand what Americans are actually getting from this deal. For this paper, we will focus on individuals, employers and tax credits available to h elp with the cost of insurance. Provisions of the Affordable Health Care Act On March 23, 2010, President Obama signed a comprehensive health reform, the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, into law. The laws and changes mad, focuses on provisions to expand coverage, control care costs, and improve health care delivery system. The first provisions is that all Americans are required to have health insurance by April 2014, or individuals will face penalty charges that can affect them for up to three years. So it is very important for citizens to go to the government market place and apply for insurance that they can afford. According to the Kaiser Foundation; â€Å"Those without coverage pay a tax penalty of the greater of $695 per year up to a maximum of three times that amount ($2,085) per family or 2.5% of household income. The penalty will be phased-in according to the following schedule: $95 in 2014, $325 in 2015, and $695 in 2016 for the flat fee or 1.0% of taxable income in 2014, 2.0% of taxable income in 2015, and 2.5% of taxable income in 2016 † (Kaiser Foundation, 2014). This reason alone is why Americans should not avoid getting insurance. Other provisions that have been taken into effect deal with employers. Now employers are required to offer insurance based on the amount of employees. For smaller businesses this means having to offer health care insurance to their full  time employers and â€Å"Require employers with more than 200 employees to automatically enroll employees into health insurance plans offered by the employer. Employees may opt out of coverage† (Kaiser Foundation, 2014). With employers having to offer health care coverage at an affordable rate to full-time employees, it does cause some to opt for part-time employment to avoid having to give out benefits. A lot of Americans fear they will lose hour’s simple because their employers do not want to pay for them, which is something that could easily happen. Other than individuals and employers being affected, Medicaid is also going under an expansion. More money is being put to those who are in need of insurance and cannot pay for it such as pregnant women, children and parents. With the expansion Medicaid to all non-Medicare eligible individuals under age 65 such as those stated above â€Å"All newly eligible adults will be guaranteed a benchmark benefit package that meets the essential health benefits available through the Exchanges† (Kaiser Foundation, 2014). Another important aspect pertains to those who are predisposed to certain medical conditions. For instance, citizens can no longer be denied health care coverage based on health risks they already possess. Among other things, the government also give tax credit in order to lower the cost of insurance, which is based on income and family size. Analysis of Policy With any policy or new law there will be objections and an unwillingness to accept these changes. Not every new piece of legislation fixes the problems at hand. Some of the issues only get worse, and then the law must be reformed. With the Affordable Health Care Act, there are a number of pros and cons with this policy and below, it will explain how these changes have greatly affected the general public for the better and worse. Pros With the Affordable Health Care Act being implemented, there are a number of great aspects that have now been put into effect. The first and easiest of the changes now allows children under the age of 26 to remain on their parents insurance plans, this means longer coverage for young adults in America, this also means no lifetime limits on health coverage; and new  insurance policies that must provide preventive care without any form of cost-sharing (UPMC, 2013). Among other changes, these are the following benefits of having the Affordable Health Care Act in place; Health care coverage for uninsured Americans. Through a combination of creating the health insurance marketplace and encouraging the states to expand Medicaid, millions of Americans without health insurance now have access to affordable coverage. No matter the situation, people will be covered. Reducing uninsured health events: Americans have always had issues regarding medical bills and costly procedures that many could not afford. Now, because the Affordable Health Care Act requires citizens to have health care coverage, we will dramatically reduce the instances of uninsured health events. No more coverage discrimination due to health issues or gender. The main problem with health insurance companies was the fact that they could, â€Å"charge outrageous prices or even deny coverage to Americans based on particular medical conditions, age, or gender. Just because you are ill, born with a disability, or female and may need pregnancy care, doesn’t mean you shouldn’t have access to affordable coverage† (UPMC, 2013). Changing the laws that govern coverage now helps to end coverage discrimination. Expansion of employer sponsored health coverage. â€Å"Many employers don’t offer any health insurance to employees, even those working full-time. ObamaCare requires all companies with over 50 full-time equivalent employees to offer health insurance to full-time staff by 2016 or they may be subject to a penalty† (UPMC, 2013). This now makes employers responsible for the health care of their employees, which in turn offsets the amount of people on Medicaid, or reduces the amount of people uninsured. These benefits greatly affect the everyday life of an American, no more discrimination due to preexisting conditions, or higher rates to these individuals. Employers now have to offer insurance to their full-time employees, and everyone has the right to affordable health care which will stop them from being forced into debt. Cons With every policy, there are going to issues that come to surface, sometimes a policy fixes nothing at all, while other times it is just what the doctor ordered. The following are some of the negative effects that could cause the  Affordable Health Care Act to backfire or deter Americans from believing in the system. Working Americans will pay more. Most middle-class Americans hold full-time jobs and receive health insurance through their employers. Health care costs were rising before the Affordable Care Act became law, and combined with the effects of the law, employers will likely re-evaluate the insurance they offer. Employers will start to reevaluate their coverage to their employees which could end up increasing their work-based insurance. Some of the required coverage’s are against the moral values of employers. The mandate to offer contraception with no charge to the patient has caused a lot of issues, especially for employers whose moral code dictates that they do n ot support contraception of any type. But this is a manner of personal choice, employers cannot dictate what their employees needs are. Adding additional health care expenses will impact workers. The law will cause some employers to offer lower coverage or perhaps no coverage to their workers, or perhaps increase the amount employees pay for health insurance to offset higher premiums from the insurance company, or reduce hours to avoid having to offer coverage to so many full-time employee. The American Debt. As many are concerned about our debt, as the government subsidizes health care, may only make that debt worse. If the law runs over budget, it will be the taxpayers who wind up at a greater disadvantage than ever before. Below is also a graph that shows how government spending will be effected with the new ACA Many of the oppositions to this new law, all comes down to money. Americans do not want to sign on to anything that may cost or lose them money. (Foster, 2011). Some employers may also try to turn full-time employees into part-time just to avoid having to offer health care coverage. We as a nation end up in debt every year due to unnecessary spending, rather the spending be put in place to help the American people rather than ignore the issue. Unintended Consequences & Alternative Solution When the Affordable Health Care Act was put in place, a lot of Americans did not understand what they were actually getting for their money, while some hated the thought of government controlling yet another aspect of their lives others rejoiced. The health care act had some adverse consequences  when being put into place, the largest problem being the fact that Americans would now be fined if they did not pay for health insurance by the deadline, which is April 1st, 2014. The rate of the fine would increase with each year and end of causing a lot of Americans an unnecessary headache. This also forces people to purchase something they do not necessarily agree with, but unfortunately we cannot pick and choose which laws we decide to follow. Another issue that may affect Americans is the status of being a full-time employee versus being used as a part-time employee. With the new laws, businesses are also affected, some employees may cut employees hours in order to avoid having to off er insurance. Which is another way the Affordable Health Care Act is not benefitting the American citizens. Alternative Method & Recommendation Although the bill is already in place and functioning, I think the United States would have been better off following in the footsteps of other countries that already have nationalized health care. Instead of imposing all of these rules and regulations, the government should impose taxes on our citizens to help with the cost of health insurance. This will take away the need and frustration of having everyone being forced to find new insurance company based off their income, and have to be fined if they do not participate. With people standing strongly against being forced to buy insurance, taxes would take that fuss out. Americans need to realize, although other countries have national health care, it is nowhere as good as our health care, because when other countries were becoming nationalized, their star doctors were seeking citizenship in America because they could make more money. Now, we have all of these great doctors upset they can no longer reap the benefits of charging what they feel is appropriate, and now insurance companies can no longer deny benefits to those who are a risky investment. There are a large number of countries that simply take care of the health care cost through taxes, which is beneficial because less people feel the effect of paying premiums every month, and if it is based off of wages, so are our taxes, so why not take it out all at once? Conclusion With every policy, there will always be good and bad aspects that surround the change. In most cases, as long as the good outweighs the bad, then at the end of the day that is all that really matters. In the large picture, Americans now have the chance at having affordable health care, and cannot be denied over prior history. People can now avoid being put in massive amounts of debt by avoiding the high cost of procedures that they need. No one should ever deny the care they need when it comes to their health. In the long run it may cost companies more money, but if they make money off of their employees, they should be willing to pay for them to remain healthy. Within the next ten years we will truly see if the good outweighs the bad. In my opinion, Obamacare is headed in the right direction, but I do not feel the bill was ready to be passed. With all the opposition to incorporating socialized health care it is understandable why Obama was pushing it through while he is in office, because it may have not went through if it waited much longer. There are also a large number of benefits with the Affordable Health Care Act, people n ow can purchase affordable health care and not be denied due to pre-existing conditions. I also feel the government should have raised taxes to cover the cost, instead of Americans paying monthly for their insurance. We tend to not miss what is already gone, and this is what other countries have done. People have to pay taxes, so no one would ever need to be fined for not paying for health care every month. References Foster, R. (2011). Estimated effect of the Affordable Care Act on total national health spending. Retrieved on March 1st, 2014 from http://www.intellectualtakeout.org/library/chart-graph/estimated-effect-affordable-care-act-total-national-health-spending Kaiser Foundation. (2014). Summary of the affordable care act. Retrieved on February 24, 2014 from http://kaiserfamilyfoundation.files.wordpress.com/2011/04/8061-021.pdf UPMC. (2013). The Pros and Cons of ObamaCare. Retrieved on March 1s, 2014 from http://www.yourhealthcaresimplified.org/news/the-pros-and-cons-of-obamacare/ U.S Department of Health & Human Services. (2014). Read the law. Retrieved on February 12th, 2014 from http://www.hhs.gov/healthcare/rights/law/index.html