The Iraq War Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

The Iraq War - Research Paper Example Without a doubt, the Iraq War was one of the more hotly-contested wars—many people arguing that this was the next Vietnam. Some eleven-thousand American lives later, it’s possible that some people would not agree. But the Iraq War, no matter how much precedent the U.S. had to invade, will always remain in the American mindset as a colossal financial drain. Here it will be attempted to: identify and describe the Iraq War; analyze the historical and contemporary causes of the Iraq war; analyze different historical interpretations of the Iraq war; and evaluate the positive and negative outcomes of the Iraq war. II. Identification and Description of the Iraq War The Iraq War was an armed conflict that took place beginning in Iraq in 2003. Although people now state that the Iraq War is technically over, there are still U.S. troops which are occupying Iraq. It was technically supposed to have ended a few years ago, but realistically, there are still American forces there, and there probably will be for some time to come. So, even though the war is technically designated as finished, it is still not finished—if that makes sense. There is no â€Å"over† for this war. The war began when President Bush acted (without Congressional authority) to unilaterally declare war on Iraq. According to Kelly (2001), â€Å"A huge controversy arose when President Bush sent troops into Iraq on March 19, 2003 claiming that the country led by Saddam Hussein was developing weapons of mass destruction and aiding Al Qaeda operatives†¦[however,] time passed and no evidence of those weapons were found in Iraq†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (pgh. 7). It was especially distressing to the American public to find out that there were, indeed, no weapons of mass destruction found in Iraq. This angered much of the public and made many Americans feel like they were tricked into going into an armed conflict without all of the available evidence laid before them first. This was a major faux pas that continues to be rehashed in the media whenever people argue about whether or not the U.S. should have invaded Iraq; it will probably be a sore spot for years to come. III. Analysis of the Historical and Contemporary Causes of the Iraq War Historically speaking, the rationale that President Bush used for going to war with Iraq was the advent of 9/11. According to Hanson (2004), â€Å"[T]here is a direct connection between Iraq and our current war on terror†¦Whether or not one believes Iraq was involved at the planning in 9/11, there is proof that it had something to do with the first World Trade Center bombing, had intelligence meetings with†¦Al Qaeda [members], [and] tried to assassinate a former president of the United States†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (pp. 245). Although 9/11 is traditionally associated with the main reasons for why Bush began his â€Å"war on terror,† another reason that many people feel he went to war with Iraq was to settle an old score with Saddam Hussein for having engaged in conflict with his father (Bush 41) in Operation Desert Storm. Many people feel that one of the sole reasons that Bush went to war with Iraq was so that he could feel vindicated on the behalf of his father. One of the contemporary causes of the Iraq War was also the fact that U.S. companies stood to make millions of dollars off of the war. Vice President Dick Cheney’s construction company Halliburton was called into Iraq for most of the reconstruction of the

Homework Article Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 1

Homework - Article Example ool, and the selected classes are handled by the same teacher and the exercises given to them were also the same, to attain uniformity in the analysis. The study has a rationale relating to the efficacy of homework in cases were family involvement is ensured. This had been studied previously by many researchers, but this particular study interrogates three situations where 1. the students are not prompted to involve their family in homework, 2. the students are prompted to involve their family in homework and 3. the students and teachers are prompted to involve the parents in homework. The research has further significance in the theoretical and application level, as it tackles different issues related to the performance of students with reference to the involvement of their families in their homework. The literature is reviewed extensively, linking the research to Project Head Start, which involves studies related to involving parents in homework. Moreover, sufficient insights are drawn from pioneer researchers like Epstein and Bronfenbrenner. Moreover, the study cortically evaluates previous research and points out the areas where more studies have to emerge. The study justifies the need for studying the problem and elaborates its scope in related fields. The previous studies are incorporated in the analysis, but the study remains original. There are four clearly defined research questions relating to the significance of prompts in the involvement of family members in mathematics homework, the way this affects homework in other subjects, the relationship between family involvement and student achievement and the relationship of all these with regard to the selected family variables including parent education level, family structure and family size. The hypotheses are consistent with theory and known facts, as evidenced by the way they are linked to previous research and established facts. They are testable, and suitable testing methods are applied. They bring

An Introduction To Counselling Psychology Essay

An Introduction To Counselling Psychology Essay Within this essay, the key concepts and principles of the person centred approach to counselling will be evaluated and discussed on how they inform and influence a person centred approach to counselling. Person centred theory or person centred counselling is the theory of counselling which originated from Carl Rogers. Originally this type of counselling was also known as a nondirective approach to therapy or client centred therapy (Gladding, 2011). Zimring and Raskin (1992, cited in Tudor et al, 2004)) did a review on the history of the person centred approach and divided the first fifty years of counselling into four main periods of the approach. However, this essay will consider the first two periods of the history within the Rogers theory of counselling. Zimring and Raskin (1992, cited in Tudor et al, 2004) claim that the first period begins in 1940 with Rogers presenting to a University his thoughts on newer concepts to psychotherapy; this was subsequently published two years later. The two characteristics of the first phase to the approach is the therapists role which would be the responses towards the client and the clients feelings which are distinct from the content, and secondly, the acceptance, recognition and the clarification of feelings whether they were positive, negative or ambivalent (Tudor et al, 2004, p. 21). This would explain and possible influence one of the three core conditions of unconditional positive regard that Rogers developed within the therapeutic relationship, which will be discussed in more depth further on within this piece of work. The second phase began in 1950 where Rogers outlines the framework and structure of the client centred approach and his hypothesis for therapy and therapeutic change. More significant within this decade was Rogers hypothesis of the six necessary and sufficient conditions of a clients personality change and personal growth. Although until recently it was believed that, only the core conditions needed to be present for positive change to occur (reference). However, before this essay discusses the six necessary and sufficient conditions for change to occur, the three key concepts that are the underpinning to the person centred approach need to be addressed in depth. The first of which is the organisms. Although Rogers was a careful writer, he took the idea of the organism for granted that within his written work it is suggested that he saw no need to define the organism when writing about the key theoretical concepts or constructs to the person centred approach (Tudor et al, 2004). Rogers believed that the inner core of a mans personality is the organism itself, which is essentially both self-preserving and social (Tudor et al, 2004, p.25). Rogers also asserted that the characteristic of the organism has a basic tendency and strives to actualise, maintain, and enhance the experience of the organism (Rogers, 2003). According to Tudor et al (2004) the actualising tendency or AT is at times conceptualised as something solid and separate to the organism, therefore, to prevent any misconceptions within this essay it shall refer to the actualising tendency as the organisms tendency to actualise which is perceived as a characteristic of the organism. Rogers has associated the organisms tendency to actualise Incongruence between self-concept and the experience of self is denied and distorted Through the Rogers definition of the organism as mentioned previously, the description of the organism is the individual person or client and is not to be confused with the self. The self is believed to be the personality of the said organism and holds the feelings, opinions and the values of the individual (Tudor et al, 2004) person. These are two completely different aspects of the person centred approach, however, they can arguably be perceived for exactly the same entity, and not two separate entities as Rogers intended. Rogers understood this and described the self as taking shape when the organism or individual acknowledges and accepts that they are who they are and this is their personality. This process according to Rogers clearly observed within the first two years of an infants life, (Tudor et al, 2004) and the conditions of worth that are created at this point in development would be shaped by the parental influence and carried on further into the individuals adult life as a concept of self or the self-concept. Conditions of worth are manifested from the positive regard or conditional regard received by the infant from either a parental influence or significant other, thus the conditions of worth within the self becomes embedded in the child. When referring to a significant other it is meant as someone other than the parent whom providers care for the infant within this time of development (reference). In the event of the self receiving conditions of worth, it embodies the external or internal locus of evaluation. The individuals external or internal locus of evaluation. Frame of reference However, the clients frame of reference can also connote the moment-by-moment awareness that the client experiences (Worsley, 2001). It is apparent that the person centred counsellor does not have a model for child development as the simple phrase conditions of worth which Rogers termed, encompass the entirety of the developing child (McLeod, 2009). The process of counselling has positives, just as equally as every other profession does. The function of counselling is aimed at overcoming any negative qualities, which the client may have, and highlights all the positive qualities a client has. Rogers believed that all people were good and every person has the right to be psychological well-being. Also counselling whatever theoretical approach is used as a basis is to increase a clients responsibility and for them to make positive choices that assist them to feel, think and act effectively within todays society (Colledge, 2002). The counsellors role within the client relationship is to provide emotional warmth where the client can experience a feeling of safety and can see oneself objectively without any emotional complications. The counsellor provides a genuine alter ego that accepts the clients self as he / she has known it to be, and accepts the distorted and denied self with the same depth of warmth and respect, thus, the client can equally accept both aspects of the self (Rogers, 2003). The counsellor provides the client with an empathetic understanding, unconditional positive regard, and congruence. Congruence within the therapeutic relationship is highly important and beneficial to the therapeutic relationship, however, Colledge (2002) argued, that if counsellors congruence within themselves is at a low level the counsellor could not trust their own intuition during the counselling session. However, it is suggested that a therapeutic relationship thats characterised by the core conditions (congruence, empathy and unconditional positive regard) help strengthen the clients self and encourage clients to talk openly about feelings as the counsellor is the active listener and values them and their opinions. Although, very few studies have been conducted to support this, Bachelor (1988 cited in Bozarth Wilkins, 2001, 3rd Edition) conducted a study that supported this hypothesis. The study showed that the clients who felt understood, accepted, non-judged and valued from the counsellor, experienced more self-validation and found it safer to self disclosure and would explore deeper levels of emotions and perceptions within themselves. Within the client counsellor relationship, it is suggested that the counsellors role is to provide amongst various things, for example, a safe environment and unconditional positive regard. This is one of the three core conditions required to provide a positive change within the client, furthermore, unconditional positive regard directly disrupts any conditions of worth by the positive regard of parental or significant others: the counsellor values the client irrespective of the clients conforming to any conditions of worth (Mearns Thorne, 2010) the client may have. The core conditions of unconditional positive regard, empathy, congruence and the six necessary and sufficient conditions the client experiences within the therapeutic relationship between the client and counsellor has proved invaluable and aids the seven stage process to therapeutic movement (Rogers, 2003) within the organism or the organismic self. Furthermore, Rogers emphasised that the six necessary and sufficient conditions are the key to establish the counselling relationship and for therapeutic growth to occur successfully. Rogers published these in 1957 which are that two people need to be in psychological contact, which means that the people would need to be on the same journey together, the second condition would be that the client would be in the state of incongruence between self and the self-concept, and be vulnerable and anxious. Naturally, this would be the case as a person only seeks counselling if they are in any form of conflict. The third condition stated that the therapist has or for a better choice of word, counsellor, is congruent and united within the therapeutic relationship. The fourth and fifth necessary and sufficient condition is the core conditions of unconditional positive regard and an empathic understanding of the clients frame of reference. Lastly the sixth condition Rogers stated that the therapists empathic understanding, unconditional positive regard would be the minimal to be communicated to the client. Although the sixth condition could be argued as it is in conflict with Rogers first statement, that the following six fundamental conditions, which he (Rogers) regarded as both necessary and sufficient à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ in which therapeutic growth and personality change could occur (Rogers, 1957, cited in Casemore, 2011). However, it can be said that the first condition plays a pivotal role, as the other five conditions revolve around psychological contact meaning that the counselling journey is a relationship and not two people being in the same room together. Thus to reiterate, counselling will not be effective if the client does not experience the counsellors empathy or the unconditional positive regard for them. Although the process of therapeutic growth and change seems meek when written down the process is perhaps a painful and courageous journey the client takes and cannot be fully understood. However, Rogers wanted to gain some understanding and developed his theory of the seven stages of process. The seven stages of process Rogers saw as a flowing continuum and not rigid or fixed but rather a process which will develop but can at any stage be relapsed upon. A brief outline of this process is as follows, the first stage the client would go into counselling extremely resistant to change and defensive, which at this stage, and the client would be highly unlikely to enter into counselling. Stage two, the client is perceived as less rigid and would talk about the external events or other people surrounding their lives. Within stage three, the most likely time the client would seek counselling; they would express themselves as an object and avoid any discussions relating to present events. Within stage four, the client will develop a rapport with the counsellor and talk deeply about emotions. Stage five the client expresses present emotions, begins to rely upon their decision-making, and lives their life in the existential way of being. In other words, increasingly accepts more responsibility for their own actions. Stage six the client growth towards congruence is rapid and they begin to develop unconditional positive regard for others. This stage could also be the signal that formal therapy is ending, as there is no need for it to continue. Finally stage seven according to Rogers the client is self-actualising, shows empathy, unconditional positive regard, and is now living phenomenological. As mentioned above, existential and phenomenological is linked to the person centred approach as it could be suggested that this is the root to what Rogers was implying when expressing the development of the client in person centred therapy and to how they would live life (Casemore, 2011). To conclude this piece of work has explained how Rogers theory informs and influences the counselling practice within todays society. It has discussed in detail the organism and the self and referred to the six necessary and sufficient conditions for therapeutic change and where the link is between existential and the phenomenological principles to the person centred approach to counselling. Words 2000 / 2800

Why the Greeks Won the Greco-Persian War Essay -- Greco-Persian War Gr

Why the Greeks Won the Greco-Persian War There are times in history that something will happen and it will defy all logic. It was one of those times when a few Greek city/states joined together and defeated the invasion force of the massive Persian Empire. The Greeks were able to win the Greco-Persian War because of their naval victories over the Persians, a few key strategic victories on land, as well as the cause for which they were fighting. The naval victories were the most important contribution to the overall success against the Persians. The Persian fleet was protecting the land forces from being outflanked and after they were defeated the longer had that protection. While the Greeks had very few overall victories in battle they did have some strategic victories. The Battle of Thermopylae is an example of a strategic success for the Greeks. The morale of the Persian army was extremely affected by the stout resistance put up by King Leonidas and his fellow Spartans. The Greeks fought so hard against overwhelming odds because of what they were fighting for. They were fighting for their country and their freedom. They fought so hard because they did not want to let down the man next to them in the formation. Several things contributed to the Greeks success against the Persian invasion that happened during the Second Greco-Persian War. The main reason that the Greeks were able to win the Second Greco-Persian War was the fact that their victory on the sea dealt a crippling blow to the land army. The Greeks owe their naval success to a man named Themistocles. If it had not been for him then Athens would have not used some newly found silver to build 200 new ships for their navy. These ships were later used in the war against the Persians. The two forces were working in unison and they were dependent upon each other for victory. The Persian naval forces were there in order to protect the flank of the army's advance. If the Persian navy were not present then the Greeks would have been able to get on ships and sail to a spot behind the Persian lines and outflank them. They also delivered supplies to the armies that were necessary for its survival. The deathblow was dealt at the Battle of Salamis. It was a culmination of misfortune for the Persian navy. The Persians lost many ships to bad weather conditions. That is the only thing that allowed the G... ... This would put added pressure on the other man to make sure he doesn't look like a coward. The phalanx depended on every single individual in order to work right. The Greeks were able to repel the overwhelming and seemly unstoppable Persian Empire. They were able to do so because of the victories won thanks to the Athenian navy in the Aegean Sea, the hard fought and strategically important battles that the Spartans just would not give up during and they were able to put aside their differences in order to face the greater threat for the good or their culture. Each major city/state contributed what it was good at. It was a nice display of teamwork. Works Cited Herodotus. â€Å"Greece Saved from Persian Conquest.† Readings in Ancient History. Eds. Nels M. Bailkey and Richard Lim. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company, 2002. Herodotus. The History of Herodus. MIT. December 10, 2004 . Herodotus. â€Å"Greece Saved from Persiam Conquest.† Reading in Ancient History. Eds. Nels. Bailkey and Richard Lim. Boston : Houghton Mifflin Company, 2002. Nagle, D. Brendan. â€Å"The Second Persian Invasion† The Ancient World; A social and Cultural History. New Jersey: Prentice Hall, 2002.

Opening a fast-food franchise Essay

Opening a fast-food franchise can be a very rewarding venture. Consumers ate as much as US$110 billion worth of fast-food in the United States in year 2000 alone, a dramatic increase from only US$6 billion in 1970. According to The National Restaurant Association, this trend continues to be observed as fast-food sales grow at a rate of 5% per annum to an estimated US$163 billion by the end of 2007 (Maxwell, 2003). This gives us the idea that a fast-food franchise is potentially a very profitable business option. However despite this implication, an average of three out of twenty-five franchises of major fast-food corporations close down at the end of every fiscal year (Maxwell, 2003), which tells us that merely opening a fast-food franchise does not guarantee success in the business. Therefore there is a need to follow certain guidelines in order to increases the chances of succeeding in the fast-food business venture. The first step is selecting an appropriate fast-food site. This could be a piece of property that you own or intend to lease. It is of prime importance that you first evaluate whether or not your intended site is fit for a fast-food franchise. Some franchisors require you to follow specific guidelines in selecting a site while others may even require you to merely choose from a list of sites that they offer. Sound evaluation of a prospective site involves a scrutiny of 1. ) sanitation, 2. ) consumer base, and 3. ) competition (Hogan, 1997). A fast-food site must be in an area that is relatively sanitized. You should never choose a site that is next to a junkyard or other similar structures. The best sites are located in places that have obvious potential consumer bases such as near a school where the school’s students and faculty members might comprise a commanding consumer base. Unfortunately, there are usually other fast-food outlets already installed in the best of fast-food site areas, which makes it important for you to first analyze the level of competition in the immediate area and whether you would be able to stand up to it. The second step is to select an appropriate franchisor (Hogan, 1997). The fast-food that you will choose should be in demand to your prospective consumer base. You can conduct a survey on the food preferences of people in your prospective site in order to have a better idea of which franchisor to select. It is also important to select a franchisor that has a well popularized trademark and a proven formula for good business. This is the main advantage to buying a franchise as opposed to starting a new fast food joint from scratch. Aspects of a fast-food franchisor such as advertising, good will, and favorable sanitation reports all trickle down to individual franchises. Furthermore, a well run franchise should be able to assist a franchisee on everything, from site selection and even lease negotiation to staff training, ingredients advisory and operations monitoring. The last step is to make the proper arrangements with your selected franchisor (Hogan, 1997). This involves settling a number of fees including those for initial franchise, royalties, and other miscellaneous fees for advertising and promotions. This step also includes hiring and training required staff and setting up the selected site. With all those taken cared of, what remains to be done is to procure stock for the food to be served and then you are good to go. Franchising is a potentially profitable business option. Anyone who is thinking about making such a venture should first look for an appropriate site and select a reliable franchisor before going into the detail of making final arrangements of setting up a franchise.

Ethics Simulation Essay

Ethical dilemmas are a constant in the business world. In order for an individual to be adaptive to the ever changing rolls of their jobs it is in their best interest to research their company’s standard operating procedures as well as being informed on new company policies that are being implemented. In doing this research however, the individual will notice that specific problems are not always documented or covered in these manuals. In the area of ethics, people who are given authority must use various lenses to ensure that the company is meeting the expectations of its employees to guarantee their rights and fair treatment. Developing these virtuous attributes is geared at developing cohesion amongst employees, efficiency, and developing a positive reputation. Although there are many ways to resolve an intercompany dispute, the most ethically sound decision comes from people in positions of power being informed of the issue and setting their sights on ensuring fairness and ruling in favor of the option that creates the greatest overall good. This paper will examine the two Ethics Game examples and follow the worksheet format for answering questions. The issue presented in dilemma number one arises from an employee named Aaron Webb who posted sensitive company information. His posting was not derogatory in nature however the information is considered private. Many companies guard their information and keeping their core competencies sacred in order to remain competitive. Another employee named Jamal Moore sent an anonymous message revealing through hacking into Webb’s computer that Webb has many of these sensitive files loaded on his personal computer. The issue arises of how to respect the personal views of employees outside of the workplace. The primary stakeholders for this issue are the shareholders, the General Counselor, the Director of IT, the VP of HR, Jamal Moore, and Aaron Webb. Some of the duties that the company makes clear are allowing the employee the right to voice their opinion, as guaranteed by the first amendment to the constitution. However, an employer may legally limit this right if the information is considered private and proprietary. Management has the duty to make sure that its information isn’t leaked for the sake of all other stakeholders. There is a duty to address concerns about the company. By allowing this type of communication, problems are clarified and avoided. Employees should be happy when their rights to privacy are protected, their concerns are heard, and important information is guarded. In this dilemma, shareholders have a medium impact. How the company is viewed and evaluated by the public may decrease shareholder confidence and decrease its value. The CLO has a medium impact because his or her judgment may be called into play and reflect their decision making abilities. The VP of HR and the Director of Safety and Security have low impact when it comes to this problem as long as they have both fulfilled their obligations with informing the ultimate decision makers of the problem. Jamal Moore and Aaron Webb have high impact on this decision because this dilemma could potentially end their employment abilities or lead to punishment. My core values of the situation are embodied by recognizing loyalty. Although these employees may be misguided, more information given to them on the issue at hand could serve to make them better employees and avoid litigation. All members of the company must come to a deeper understanding that sensitive materials should be handled with care. As long as the integrity of the department is secured, the company can still benefit. In the second dilemma, there is a need for a security policy that provides for the safety of employees and also accommodates special needs, such as for Aisha Mullah, who is muslim and religiously not allowed to uncover her face in the work environment. The stakeholders in this situation are the company shareholders, the VP of HR, the Associate Director of Operations, other employees, the Training Manager, and Aisha Mullah. As an employee, you should be guaranteed that processes be followed. The right to be informed about security policies and exceptions should also be guaranteed. Arguably the most important, the right to express one’s opinion about policies and their impact should be guaranteed as well. The option that best suits this situation is to implement a photo I. D.  security system and to make accomodations for individuals with special needs. This will have a positive effect on the stakeholders, demonstrating the company’s ability to adapt to the needs of various individuals and be progressive in a diverse world. This decision reflects my core values by not excluding anyone on the basis of religion. Managing diversity means providing the climate for a productive workplace and seeking out qualified employees who should not be the subject of judgment or overlooked due to their race, creed, disability, sex, or place of origin. Other employees see this fairness and view it as attractive. A harsh, less understanding work environment drives employees away. By giving timely feedback to Aisha, treating her fairly, and upholding the company values, the company is strengthened. As a person of power, self development is a continual process and allows an individual to prepare for difficult decisions such as these. On the first simulation, a score of 1 out of 5 was achieved which demonstrates a relatively low risk. On the second simulation a score of 0 out of 5 was achieved which shows virtually no risk. Overall points earned were 25,600 out of 29,000. Important rights to remember for this project are the first amendment to the Constitution, and Title VII of the Civil Rights Act. People of the United States are guaranteed the right to freedom of speech, and expression. People of the United States are also guaranteed that employers will not discriminate on the basis of religious beliefs. By using the ethical lenses which were demonstrated through this simulation, future leaders of America can be more informed on how to best handle intercompany issues while providing for the best option to all the stakeholders involved. We must be aware of the four lenses and know how to identify the key factors. By being informed and choosing the most virtuous choice available, companies will poise themselves to achieve high praises from their communities, their shareholders, and the stakeholders, down to the individual whose liberties and rights were defended.

Character Sketch in Composition

Character Sketch in Composition In composition, a character sketch is a brief description in prose of a particular person or type of person. In writing one, you go into the characters manner, distinct characteristics, nature, and the way that person behaves him or herself. Its also called a profile or character analysis and doesnt necessarily have to be about a fictional character. How to Approach a Character Sketch Even though its an informative type of essay, a character sketch doesnt have to be dry and only descriptive. It can also impress or entertain the reader or praise the subject, notes author R.E. Myers. The facts, traits, idiosyncrasies, and accomplishments of the subject provide the fabric of the character sketch. Anecdotes and quotes are also helpful in portraying the subject. You can stress the subjects personality, appearance, character or accomplishments.  (Figures of Speech: A Study and Practice Guide. Teaching Learning Company, 2008) If analyzing a fictional character, you can also go into the persons conflicts, how the person changes, his or her attitude toward others, and role in the story. You can list the persons likes and dislikes and how you feel about the character. If the character is the narrator, you can discuss whether the person is an unreliable narrator. A character sketch can also be satiric, as in work by authors such as Evelyn Waugh (1903–1966) and Thomas Pynchon (1933–) or modern-day television sit-coms. As a composition, a satiric sketch would likely need to be written in the characters voice and point of view to work. Use of a Character Sketch Besides being an essay type that students write in composition classes, fiction authors can use character sketches in their prewriting or drafting stages of short stories or novels as a means to develop the people wholl inhabit the world theyre creating. Writers who plan series (or even those who just end up writing a sequel to a successful story) can find character sketches useful as a reference  for maintaining consistency of detail or voice, if the character ends up being a narrator in the subsequent work or has a particular vocal tic, slang vocabulary, jargon use, or accent. Often the act of taking on the characters voice in a sketch will assist the author in discovering aspects of the character and fleshing him or her out to be more realistic. Character sketches can also be a task to work on when stuck for a plot point, characters motivation to move the plot forward, or attitude/reaction toward a conflict or event. In nonfiction writing, character sketches can be useful for biographers or feature article writers as a prewriting tool and as descriptive material to mine for the finished work. Examples Annie Dillards Sketch of Her Childhood Friend Judy Schoyer My friend Judy Schoyer was a thin, messy, shy girl whose thick blond curls lapped over her glasses. Her cheeks, chin, nose, and blue eyes were round; the lenses and frames of her glasses were round, and so were her heavy curls. Her long spine was supple; her legs were long and thin so her knee socks fell down. She did not care if her knee socks fell down. When I first knew her, as my classmate at the Ellis School, she sometimes forgot to comb her hair. She was so shy she tended not to move her head, but only let her eyes rove about. If my mother addressed her, or a teacher, she held her long-legged posture lightly, alert, like a fawn ready to bolt but hoping its camouflage will work a little longer. (An American Childhood. Harper Row, 1987.) Bill Barichs Sketch of a Publican The publican, Peter Keith Page, lives with his family in a flat on the second floor. Page is a fiftyish man, slender and well-tailored, whose manner might be described as studiously charming. His mustache and hair are tinged with auburn, and this, along with a sharp nose and chin, makes him look a bit like a fox. He enjoys jokes, subtle conversations,  double entendres. When he takes one of his turns behind the bar, he works at a measured pace, often pausing to ask after his patrons health and well-being. (At the Fountain. In Traveling Light. Viking, 1984.) Sources David F. Venturo, The Satiric Character Sketch. In A Companion to Satire: Ancient and Modern, ed. by Ruben Quintero. Blackwell, 2007.

Earnest Hemingway Essays - Ernest Hemingway, A Clean, Free Essays

Earnest Hemingway Essays - Ernest Hemingway, A Clean, Free Essays Earnest Hemingway In A Clean Well-Lighted Place, Earnest Hemingway focuses on the pain of old age suffered by a man that we meet in a caf late one night. Through the use of dialogue, Hemingway creates three characters that symbolize the stages of life: birth, living, and death. Additionally, the tone of the story is created in three ways. First, he contrasts light and dark to show the difference between the difference between this man and the young people around him. Secondly, he uses the old mans deafness as an image of his separation from the rest of the world. Lastly, Hemingway uses the image of nada or nothing. Hemingways tone and choice of language leaves the reader feeling that they too cannot escape from the doldrums of the dead years of their own life. Through the language of dialogue, three characters emerge creating a symbolic illustration of the progression of life. The young waiter states, I have confidence, I am all confidence(258). He displays his eagerness to conquer the world. When we are young, we live for today, for ourselves, without regard for what the future may hold. Tomorrow is a dream; tomorrow is something left to the old. However, in all his confidence he lacks patience and understanding, which can only come with the experience of life. Because of this lack of experience, he is not capable of compassion for the old man You have youth confidence and a job the older waiter replies (258). The older waiter symbolizes the living stage of life. He is filled with despair, but not yet completely devoid of hope. He is uncertain of what the rest of his life may bring, but a modicum of hope still exists. The old waiter has the omniscient view of the three progressions of life. He has lived beyond his birth stage, is teetering in the living stage, and through the unfolding life of the old man, is painfully aware of the future. Is it fear of growing old, the loneliness, or despair, which delivers the old waiter into his dark, unclean world of nothing? His mockery of the Our Father is the cumulative answer to the question. He has lost his own meaning of life. When hope has waned, despair overwhelms and we see the transition from the living to the time of dying. The old man has journeyed through all the progressions of life. The old mans death wish is further played out through the metaphor of insomnia, an ailment that he apparently shares with the older waiter. Along with the development of three characters, Hemingway creates the overall tone of the story by first contrasting between light and dark. The most obvious image is the caf, A Clean, Well-Lighted Place. It is a refuge from the darkness of the night outside. Darkness is a symbol of fear and loneliness. The light symbolizes comfort and the company of others. There is hopelessness in the dark, while the light calms the nerves. Unfortunately for the old man, the light is an artificial one, and its peace is both temporary and incomplete. the tables were empty except where the old man sat in the shadow of the leaves of the tree that moved slightly in the wind(256). Possibly, the old man hides in the shadows of the leaves because he recognizes the shortcomings of his refuge. Perhaps he is drawn to the shadows so that the darkness of his own age will not be so visible. Unlike the young waiter who is not frighten by the darkness because of his companion that waits for him in the dark, the o ld man has lost his wife. Even his ears bring him a sort of darkness as they hold out the sounds of the world. The old mans deafness is also a powerful image that contributes to the tone of the story. the old man liked to sit late because he was deaf and now at night it was quiet and he could feel the difference(256). Deafness ostracizes the old man form the rest of the world. In the day, everything must be a reminder to him of his disconnection from the world. In the caf so late at night he is

Advanced Technologies in Ancient China and Egypt

Egypt is raining hardly and it has a dry, hot weather. Most of Egypt is covered in the desert. However, the Egyptians can cultivate crops to surplace food as the Nile River across Egypt is hit by the flood every year. Meanwhile, China has deserts, forests and mountains, and many Chinese people adapt to the environment through the establishment of irrigation systems, fishery, and cultivation of crops. Ancient Egypt and Ancient China were in two different places, but their industries, agriculture and weapons technology have similarities and differences. Ancient civilization of children - Mesopotamia, Ancient Egypt, Ancient India, Ancient porcelain. Comparison of Ancient Mesopotamia and Ancient Egyptian Civilization: Ancient Comparison and Control of Mesopotamia and Egypt: Comparison of West Hill University Mesopotamia, Egypt, India, China and Early Central American Civilization Development 20. The difference between ancient Egypt and ancient China, they ate something similar to the arc hitecture of Greek and Roman in ancient India. Similarities between ancient civilizations of ancient Egyptian civilizations such as China, Egypt, Mesopotamia, Rome are progress Between Mesopotamia, Egypt, India and China, I need three political similarities or differences between ancient Egypt and Mesopotamia. Mesopotamia and Ancient Egypt: The similarities and differences lie in the early civilization of China, agriculture related research of ancient Egypt and Mesopotamia. Do you think there is somewhat similarity between the two documents you read about early civilization in the prehistoric times of India, China, Egypt? There are many similarities between China and India, but Egypt and Mesopotamia grew when comparing the politics of ancient India and Egypt. There are many similarities in the differences between the Egyptian and Mesopotamian ancient religions in the Near East, but there are many similarities. India and Egypt compare facts, figures, measurements, and indicators side -by-side to quickly review similarities and differences. How this technology is spreading in ancient Egypt, Mesopotamia, Egypt, Cambodia building, 10 important similarities between ancient civilizations There are four major civilizations in the Furukawa Valley: the fertile New Moon in Mesopotamia, the Nile River in Egypt, the Indus River in India, and the Yellow River in China. These civilizations show specific similarities and contrast differences. Many of these differences and similarities occur in three categories: technology progress, government type, civilization. In-depth research and research on China and Egypt contrast the two very interesting civilizations in society. As China and Egypt are isolated from the outside world, their development is very concentrated in technology and learning, and with a powerful government to unite the country. Similarity ... Read more

Social Performance of Organizations Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Social Performance of Organizations - Assignment Example When Iran nationalized the company’s assets in 1951, the company ventured into conducting explorations in other Middle Eastern countries such as Iraq, Libya and Kuwait and in 1954, it was eventually renamed as the British Petroleum Company. In 1987, the British government sold its last shares in the company at a time when BP’s lackluster performance had caused it to start languishing at the bottom of its sector. However, by 1996, the company had been able to effect a turn around that saw it start performing within the oil and gas top quartile. Currently, BP is considered to be the world’s number 3 public traded integrated oil concern (Juhasz, 2011). It explores for gas and oil in over 30 countries and has an proven reserves that are estimated to stand at 17 billion of barrels of oil. Within the United States, it is regarded as the largest gas and oil producer and a top refiner with its 15 plants that are continuously processing an estimated more than 2 million barrels of crude oil per day. Some of the external factors that can possibly affect the success of the company include political and economic factors. Political factors such as government policy such as the overall degree of intervention in the economy can affect the performance of BP. This might include trading policies and lobbying actives that can serve to either improve the company performance or make it difficult for it to trade within a given country. Economic factors can affect the performance of BP include the national economies of the environment in which company is running its business operations. When a country’s economy is not doing too well, the buying power of its citizens is reduced and this will have the effect of reducing the total sales of BP’s products in the country. Conversely, the company performance in countries with good economies is relatively good due to the fact that the company is able to achieve high levels

History Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words - 5

History - Essay Example The Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo was the foregone solution to their conflicts. However, with the advent of a new century, the Mexicans were still confronted with issues and conflicts. To understand this situation of what has become of the ethnic Mexicans in the latter half of the nineteenth century and into the advent of another hundred years, it is necessary to consider the circumstances of the times and survey the events that make their late history. On the second day of February 1848, in the small village of Guadalupe Hidalgo close to the present day Mexico City, the treaty that ended the war between Mexico and the United States was signed. Mexico was obligated to turn over the regions of California, Rio Grande, and New Mexico, in exchange for $15,000,000 from the United States. The agreement could have been beneficial for both countries, if not for the violations committed by the United States several years after the ratification of the treaty. The treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo has not lived up to the peace negotiation that it was signed for. If there was good that was achieved through the treaty it would be that of for the United States’ expansion of territory. As stated in the first article of the treaty, â€Å"There shall be firm and universal peace between the United States of America and the Mexican Republic†¦Ã¢â‚¬  However, like any other war, the Mexican-American war was violent. And the aftermath of the war was as much suffering for the part of the Mexicans. The war was about territory; nonetheless, it was a war about racism, wealth, and labor as well. At this point, the war had not ended with the signing of the treaty. The gunfire and the military violence my have ended, but the sociological, economic, and political issues continued to affect the Mexicans. The aftermath was another war that confronted the ethnic Mexicans. The root of the conflicts in the aftermath of the war was attributed not to the essence of the

Rousseau's view on language Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Rousseau's view on language - Essay Example This means that at first the worlds did not have meaning per se and acquired stable meaning only later in history when speech lost its original characteristics. Furthermore, Rousseau suggests that the theories which argue that the origin of language might be easily explained by the necessity of the people to communicate about future actions and coordinate them are mistaken. He points out the fact that when a person is crying, the situation is understandable without any words as the person feels compassion and might comfort the other person without even knowing the language. As has been mentioned before, one would make no mistake pointing out that speech and song originate for a common source: the desire to convey inner feelings. While they were developing together, there are several factors that accelerated evolution of the former, such as the invention of writing. Indeed, people started to record what they say much earlier than they invented ways to record

Chinese History and Political Science Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Chinese History and Political Science - Essay Example Throughout the world of art, this piece of painting is symbolic and has symbolism that relates to the Chinese culture in various ways. In terms of nature and art, the paintings’ name; landscape, is a combination of two characters namely; water and mountains (Sullivan, 140). With such imprinted in the painting, it is safe to say that nature and art go hand in hand. They have a connection in that both can be represented as one. Water and mountains are natures’ products; they appear naturally and as such certain mountains and rivers are only present in specific places. When this is incorporated into art, then an exquisite piece is generated; one which combines both nature and art to bring out the desired effect onto the art lovers (Sullivan, 165). In terms of tradition, paintings in the Chinese tradition are painted by artists with creative minds in that they imagine what to draw. What they imagine is idealized into landscapes, and this includes mountains (Sullivan, 182). In the Chinese culture, mountains are a blessing, and they are considered good to a persons’ soul. It is this belief that makes the Chinese people love mountains since they are viewed to reach up to the heavens. Colors used also signify something, especially that of water. When green is used, it signifies spring time while jade is summer, blue is autumn and black means winter. Chinese landscape paintings are painted with consideration and significance to the village, seasons, event, age, relationships and taste (Sullivan, 203). The Japanese court painting is a painting that symbolizes the tradition and culture of the Japanese people also in a number of ways (Mason and Donald, 124). The painting dates back to when Buddhism and Taoism had influence over certain denominations. It came to be known as the Heian period, where art signified art and its courts.

CSR- the impact of organizational goals and design Essay

CSR- the impact of organizational goals and design - Essay Example A newer concept but still very similar to social responsibility is social responsiveness, which in simple terms means â€Å"the ability of cooperation to relate its operations and policies to the social environment in ways that are mutually beneficial to the company and to the society (Fredrick, Davis and Post, 1988). Both definitions focus on corporations but these concepts should be expanded: The main differences between social responsibility and social responsiveness is that the latter implies actions and the ‘how’ of enterprise responses. It is not enough to be philanthropic and not think in terms of consumers and other relevant stakeholders. It is not enough to be law abiding and leave matter at that for a business rival round the corner can raise the stakes by introducing commodities and services, as well as conditions of production that are much higher than those required by law. Consumers today are alive to these changes and react to them in a fashion that tells on the bottom line of a firm. Therefore, the fact of corporate social responsibility has to be carefully devised keeping in mind the specifics of the organization and the kinds of demands that can be made upon it as a corporate citizen by all its relevant stakeholders. At the same time, no company can afford to let its profits fall. In fact if that were to happen then it would be letting down i ts stockholders and employees, who are two of its very important stakeholders. The question then is how to devise a system of CSR that is related to business so that both can be sustained in synergy. Defining corporate social responsibility (CSR): In an influential essay entitled ‘social responsibility of business’ Nobel Laureate Milton Friedman argued that the espousal of ‘social responsibilities’ by the corporate sector was not just bad for business, but was tantamount

African American Cultures Research Proposal Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

African American Cultures - Research Proposal Example Through the nuance of the Black culture, the African Americans are reminded of their past especially during slavery. The bifurcations in the trajectory remind the black American persons of their past and the conditions that unite them (Anderson, 1977, p.4). The aura of the Black spirituals is also credited for uniting the Blacks. The church also boosted the culture, creativity of the African American Music, in relation to Huggins (2007, p.xiv –xx) and the depictions in African American poems (Graham & Vard, 2011, p.535). Anderson, E. (1977). The Use of the Black Folk Oral Tradition and Other Black Rhetorical and Verbal Strategies in the Teaching of Composition. Retrieved on 2 August, 2012. From: http://www.eric.ed.gov/PDFS/ED145425.pdf Hamlet, J. (2011).Word! The African American Oral Tradition and its Rhetorical Impact on American Popular Culture, 74 (1), p27-31. Retrieved on 2 August, 2012.

CSR- the impact of organizational goals and design Essay

CSR- the impact of organizational goals and design - Essay Example A newer concept but still very similar to social responsibility is social responsiveness, which in simple terms means â€Å"the ability of cooperation to relate its operations and policies to the social environment in ways that are mutually beneficial to the company and to the society (Fredrick, Davis and Post, 1988). Both definitions focus on corporations but these concepts should be expanded: The main differences between social responsibility and social responsiveness is that the latter implies actions and the ‘how’ of enterprise responses. It is not enough to be philanthropic and not think in terms of consumers and other relevant stakeholders. It is not enough to be law abiding and leave matter at that for a business rival round the corner can raise the stakes by introducing commodities and services, as well as conditions of production that are much higher than those required by law. Consumers today are alive to these changes and react to them in a fashion that tells on the bottom line of a firm. Therefore, the fact of corporate social responsibility has to be carefully devised keeping in mind the specifics of the organization and the kinds of demands that can be made upon it as a corporate citizen by all its relevant stakeholders. At the same time, no company can afford to let its profits fall. In fact if that were to happen then it would be letting down i ts stockholders and employees, who are two of its very important stakeholders. The question then is how to devise a system of CSR that is related to business so that both can be sustained in synergy. Defining corporate social responsibility (CSR): In an influential essay entitled ‘social responsibility of business’ Nobel Laureate Milton Friedman argued that the espousal of ‘social responsibilities’ by the corporate sector was not just bad for business, but was tantamount

National Cranberry Cooperative Essay Example for Free

National Cranberry Cooperative Essay As one of the largest cooperatives for cranberry growers in North America, the National Cranberry Cooperative (NCC) encompasses operations in five states as well as two locations in Canada. Last year, sales from the United States alone reached upwards of $138 million, making 1995 NCC’s most productive season to date. The development and increased use of cranberry bogs in particular—commonly known as â€Å"wet harvesting† as opposed to the more traditional practice of â€Å"dry harvesting† by hand ­Ã¢â‚¬â€has brought higher yields to the NCC while creating new challenges for its receiving plants to keep pace. One such site, Receiving Plant No. 1 (RP1), experienced unprecedented levels of overtime costs during the 1995 season due to delivery backups at the plant’s loading docks. These additional costs have caused significant frustration among the cooperative members, and growers have demanded that RP1 identify the cause for these delays within the plant and implement a solution before the new season begins.

Video game industry

Video game industry Sony Computer Entertainment Ltd. Versus Nintendo Ltd. For many years, video game industry has played a key role in the growth of economics of some counties. Both Sony Computer Entertainment (SCE) and Nintendo are two representatives of this industry and they also are the main competitors in this fierce market. Previous research has shown that SCE had dominated the video game console market since Playstation2 launched with 138 million unit sales (Plunkett, 2009). Nintendo however occupy much marketing share after their new generation game console Wii and Nintendo Dual Screen (NDS) succeeded in this industry. This essay will compare and contrast SCE and Nintendo in several aspects and this paper which based on secondary resources without exclusive information. Therefore, it will begin via discussing the characteristics of product produced by these two companies, subsequently a discussion concerning price factors between the products of two corporations, for examples the development cost and price of software. Finally, this essay will focu s on the marketing share and sales. Nintendo is a multinational corporation founded on 23 September, 1889 by Fusajiro Yamauchi which producing handmade hanafuda cards. Then the company had tried several small businesses before they developed into a video game company, for example as a cab company and love hotel (Nintendo, 2009a). Consequently, Takenaka (2007) points out Nintendo became Japans third most valuable listed company by developing game console and software, with a market value of over 85 billion USD. Nintendo on the other hand is the majority owner of the Seattle Mariners, a Major League Baseball team. Unlike Nintendo, SCE is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Sony which was established on 16 November, 1993 for handling the Research and Development, production and sales of both hardware and software for Playstation (SCE, 2009). SCE currently has three main headquarters around the world: Japan which controls operations in Asia; USA and UK response to control operation in North America and Europe respectively. SCE and Nintendo have their own way to innovating for making their product attractive in order to surviving in the competitive market. Therefore, according to the announcements about new consoles of SCE in 2004 and 2006, Playstation Portable (PSP) and Playstation3 has launched in 12 December 2004 and 11 November 2006 respectively. People were amazed about the high technology in the hardware of the two consoles, for instance, PS3 has built-in Blu-Ray Disc (BD) player and cell processor, and PSP has UMD disc player and 3D image processor. BD is the new standard of disc which has enough space to save the high definition media files. As a result, the software launched for PS3 and PSP, particularly video games evolved by fantastic screen. Unlike SCE, Nintendo did not invest much to develop disruptive technology in order to improving the hardware but creating new game style. The product features of Wii are the motion sensitive remote and NDS with touch screen and internal microphone. There fore, most of software launched on Nintendo console has bring the features in full play. For instance, the Wii Fit is the education program about Yoga and it is suitable for people who want learn yoga at home, especially ladies. Furthermore, My Word Coach DS and SekainoGohan Shaberu DS are the software for teaching user language and cooking respectively. While, Nintendos product no matter consoles and software are considerably cheaper than SCEs. The significant brand image of SONY and the costly latest technology for consoles determine SCEs product is expensive. There were two hardware configurations announced for PS3 in E3 2006: a 20GB model and a 60GB model, initially priced at 499 USD and 599 USD respectively (IGN, 2006). Furthermore, PSP is the first venture of SCE in the pocket game console market with price skimming strategy too. The price of the base model in first announcement of it was 19800 yen about 181 USD in 2004 (IGN, 2004). Then, in accordance with appendix 1(Curmudgeon Gamer, 2007), the table reveals the comparison of the average game price between DS and PSP in Mid-Nov 2006 and Mid-Apr 2007 respectively. The trends of average game price for PSP and DS both were experienced a decreased during that period of time. Besides, the average game price of PSP is more expensive than DS by 2-3 USD per game. However the price of Nintendos consoles wii and NDS are much lower than PS3 and PSP. Compared with PS3, the Wii launched in United States in November 2006 at 249.99 USD nearly half of PS3 (Sanders and Casamassina, 2006). Moreover, according to Harris (2004) Nintendo announced the NDS would be released in North America in November, 2004 for 149.99 USD. Nintendo already had occupied much more marketing share than SCE with the successful strategy and the attractive features of consoles. Although SCE had invested significant mount of money for developing their new generation game console. Sony released its life-to-date sales for the PS3 and PSP. As of June 30, 2009, the high-powered and relatively high-priced console had sold 23.8 million units worldwide since its November 2006 launce. (Thorsen, 2009: no page) Thorsen (2009), also cited in the Game Spot, The PSP, which launched in 2004 (Japan) and 2005 (all other territories), had sold 55.9 million units as of the end of Sonys last fiscal quarter. On the contrary, Nintendo (2009b, pp9) reported NDS and Wii had sold 107.75 million units and 52.62.million units since it launched to the June, 09 respectively. Moreover, appendix 2 illustrates the sales of the four game consoles in the three main markets (Japan, United Kingdom and United States). To sum up, the purpose of this essay is to highlight some main differences and similarities between SCE and Nintendo, it has been seen that even though SCE and Nintendo produce the same types of products, they have the different way on designing their products and expanding their business. In terms of evaluating the circumstance of the two corporations it has emerged from the discussion above that Nintendo occupied much more market share and it is in a stronger financial position than SCE. Given the current economic climate, Nintendo therefore is the video game development company which would suffer the least economic loss. References Brightman.J (2008) Wii U.S. installed base now leads Xbox 360 by almost 2 million (Online) Retrieved from http://www.gamedaily.com/articles/news/wii-us-installed-base-now-leads-xbox-360-by-almost-2-million [Assessed 24 October 2009] Curmudgeon Gamer (2007) Nintendo DS vs. Sony PSP: game pricing update (Online) Retrieved from http://curmudgeongamer.com/2007/04/nintendo-ds-vs-sony-psp-game-pricing.html [Assessed 22 October 2009] Famistu (2009) Revenue of Japan video game industry was almost 582.61 billion yens (In Japanese) (Online) Retrieved from http://www.famitsu.com/game/news/1221045_1124.html [Assessed 24 October 2009] Harris.C (2004) Official Nintendo DS launch details (Online) Retrieved from http://uk.ds.ign.com/articles/549/549919p1.html [Assessed 23 October 2009] IGN (2004) Japanese price and date set (Online) Retrieved from http://uk.psp.ign.com/articles/560/560947p1.html [Assessed 22 October 2009] IGN (2006) E3 2006: The final word on playstation (Online) Retrieved from http://uk.ps3.ign.com/articles/709/709973p1.html [Assessed 22 October 2009] Kiyoshi Takenaka (2007) UPDATE 2-Nintendo sets $85 bln high score, thanks to Wii, DS (Online) Retrieved from http://www.reuters.com/article/companyNewsAndPR/idUST30751820071015 [Assessed 10 November 2009] Martin, M (2009) Console installed base reaches 22m in UK (Online) Retrieved from http://www.gamesindustry.biz/articles/console-installed-base-reaches-22m-in-uk [Assessed 24 October 2009] Nintendo (2009a) Company History (In Japanese) (Online) Retrieved from: http://www.nintendo.co.jp/corporate/outline/index.html [Assessed 21 October 2009] Nintendo (2009b) Consolidated Financial Highlights pp9 (Online) Retrieved from http://www.nintendo.co.jp/ir/pdf/2009/090730e.pdf#page=23 [Assessed 24 October 2009] Plunkett, L (2009) Sony talks Playstation lifetime sales, PSN revenue (Online) Retrieved from: http://kotaku.com/5340392/sony-talk-playstation-lifetime-sales-psn-revenue [Assessed 21 October 2009] Sanders, K and Casamassina, M (2006) US Wii price, launch date revealed (Online) Retrieved from http://uk.wii.ign.com/articles/732/732669p1.html [Assessed 23 October 2009] SCE (2009) Company Profile (Online) Retrieve from: http://www.scei.co.jp/corporate/index_e.html [Assessed 21 October 2009] SCE (2004) PSP enters the market on December 12, 2004 at 19,800 Yen in Japan (Online) Retrieved from http://www.scei.co.jp/corporate/release/pdf/041027ae.pdf [Assessed 22 October 2009] SCE (2006) Playstation3 Launches on November 11, 2006 in Japan (Online) Retrieved from http://www.scei.co.jp/corporate/release/pdf/060509ae.pdf [Assessed 22 October 2009] Thorsen.T (2009) PS3 sales almost 24 million, PSP near 56 million (Online) Retrieved from: http://uk.gamespot.com/news/6214693.html?om_act=convertom_clk=newstoptag=newstop;title;5 [Assessed 24 October 2009]

Arab Israeli Conflict Essay -- Israel v Palestine, Jew v Arab

The Arab-Israeli conflict is a struggle between the Jewish state of Israel and the Arabs of the Middle East concerning the area known as Palestine. The term Palestine has been associated variously and sometimes controversially with this small region. Both the geographic area designated by and the political status of the name have changed over the course of some three millennia. The region, or a part of it, is also known as the Holy Land and is held sacred among Jews, Christians, and Muslims. In the twentieth century it has been the object of conflicting claims of Jewish and Arab national movements, and the conflict has led to prolonged violence and in several instances open warfare opposing Israel's existence. These wars, which occurred during the years of nineteen forty-eight to nineteen forty-nine, nineteen fifty-six, nineteen sixty-seven, nineteen seventy-three to nineteen seventy-four, and nineteen eighty-two were complicated and heightened by the political, strategic, and econo mic interests in the area of the great powers. This fight is the continuation of an Arab-Jewish struggle that began in the early 1900's for control of Palestine. The historic and desirable region, which has varied greatly since ancient times, is situated on the eastern coast of the Mediterranean in southwestern Asia. The strategic importance of the area is immense. Through it pass the main roads from Egypt to Syria and from the Mediterranean to the hills beyond the Jordan River. Palestine is now largely divided between Israel and the Israeli-occupied territories, parts of which are self-administered by Palestinians. The ongoing feud is and was based around competing land claims and the two opposing viewpoints are that the Palestinians lived in the region long before Jews began moving there in large numbers in the late 1800's and that Jews believed they were justified by Zionism. â€Å"Chiefly, today’s Palestine question has to do with Jews and Arabs. Over the centuries, both groups have developed deep historical roots in a place both regard as a Holy Land. Both have strong emotional ties to it.† (Carrol, 3) This paper will discuss how discrimination against Arab-Palestinians is justified by Zionism and the results of these actions, the origins, purposes, and effects of the Arab â€Å"Intifada,† and what the future holds for the Arabs and Jews living in a race/religion biased land.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  In... ...ng violated and it must terminate. From this paper, it is clear to see that discrimination against Arab-Palestinians is harmfully justified by Jewish Zionism, the Intifada is not a meaningless attack on the Jews, however, Arabs are quite hypocritical by reciprocating violence, and that the future may or may not hold peace in divided Israel because it, more or less, depends on Arab-Israeli compromises. As it is known, these compromises always tend to include conflicting agendas. Peace, surely, can be reached. It is merely decision regarding which side will initiate and negotiate first. Taking a look at peace talks today, this does not appear to be happening in the near future. It is amazing to bear witness to the incredible amount of violence and hate in a so-called â€Å"Holy Land.†   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚     Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Works Cited Binur, Yoram. My Enemy, Myself. London: Doubleday, 1989. Carroll, Raymond. The Palestine Question. New York: Franklin Watts, 1983. Cheshin, Amir S. Separate and Unequal, the Inside Story of Israel Rule in East Jerusalem. Cambridge, Massachusetts: Harvard University Press, 1999. Ya’ari, Ehud. Intifada. New York: Simon and Schuster, 1989.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  

Sun Imagery in Shakespeares Richard III Essay example -- Richard II R

Sun Imagery in Shakespeare's Richard III      Ã‚   Shakespeare's Richard III is a play pervasive in figurative language, one of the most notable being the symbolic image of the sun and the shadow it casts. In an examination of a short passage from the text, it will be argued that Richard is compared to a shadow in relation to the sun, which has traditionally been held as a symbol of the king. The passage is significant not only because it speaks volumes about the plots of Richard, but also because it is relevant in understanding the overall plot of the play, which in the first few acts is almost indistinguishable from the plot of the scheming Duke of Gloucester.    The comparison of Richard to a shadow is especially clear in an exchange between Richard and Queen Margaret: Richard Gloucester: Our eyrie buildeth in the cedar's top, And dallies with the wind, and scorns the sun. Queen Margaret: And turns the sun to shade. Alas, alas! Witness my son, now in the shade of death, Whose bright outshining beams thy cloudy wrath Hath in eternal darkn...

Drug Literature Evaluation Saw Palmetto Health And Social Care Essay

Clinical Question # 1: Is saw palmetto proven to be every bit effectual as Finasteride in shriveling or halting the growing of the prostate secretory organ in work forces diagnosed with benign prostate hyperplasia ( BPH ) ? Phosphorus: male patients diagnosed with benign prostate hyperplasia I: proverb palmetto Degree centigrades: Finasteride ( Proscar ) Oxygen: To shrivel or halt the growing of the prostate secretory organ in work forces Thymine: Therapy/ Intervention Search Engines used ( 2 ) : OVID, Pubmed Search footings ab initio used ( based on PICO ) : Ovidi? Saw palmetto AND Finasteride AND BPH Pubmedi? Saw palmetto, finasteride, BPH Consequence: OVID ( 24 ) , PubMed ( 24 ) Search footings really used: Ovidi? Saw palmetto AND Finasteride Pubmedi? Finasteride, Saw Palmetto. LIMITS: English linguistic communication, worlds, work forces Consequence: Ovid ( 58 ) , PubMed ( 35 )Suggested Articles:1: Ovid # 28 Title: A prospective, 1-year test utilizing saw palmetto versus finasteride in the intervention of class III prostatitis/chronic pelvic hurting syndrome. Abstraction: Purpose: This survey was designed to measure the safety and efficaciousness of proverb palmetto or finasteride in work forces with class III prostatitis/chronic pelvic hurting syndrome ( CP/CPPS ) . Materials and Methods: A prospective, randomized, unfastened label, 1-year survey was designed to measure the safety and efficaciousness of proverb palmetto and finasteride in the intervention of work forces diagnosed with CP/CPPS. Patients were randomized to finasteride ( 5 milligram one time day-to-day ) or saw palmetto ( 325 milligrams daily ) for 1 twelvemonth. Patients were evaluated utilizing the National Institutes of Health Chronic Prostatitis Symptom Index, single spheres ( hurting, urinary symptoms, quality of life and intend hurting mark ) and the American Urological Association Symptom Score at baseline, 3, 6 and 12 months. Consequences: A sum of 64 back-to-back work forces 24 to 58 old ages old ( average age 43.2 ) with a diagnosing of CP/CPPS were every bit rand omized to the 2 intervention weaponries. All 64 work forces had antecedently received antibiotics ( continuance of 3 to 93 hebdomads ) , 52 ( 82 % ) had been on alpha-blockade. There were 61, 57 and 56 patients evaluable at 3, 6 and 12 months, severally. At 1 twelvemonth mean entire National Institutes of Health Chronic Prostatitis Symptom Index score decreased from 23.9 to 18.1 in the finasteride group ( P & lt ; 0.003 ) , and from 24.7 to 24.6 in the proverb palmetto arm ( p = 0.41 ) . In the finasteride arm the quality of life and hurting spheres were significantly improved at 1 twelvemonth ; nevertheless, micturition was non. Adverse events included concern ( 3 instances ) in the proverb palmetto group and decreased libido ( 2 instances ) in the finasteride group. At the terminal of the test 13 of 32 ( 41 % ) and 21 of 32 ( 66 % ) opted to go on saw palmetto and finasteride, severally. Decisions: CP/CPPS treated with proverb palmetto had no appreciable long-run betterment. In co ntrast, patients treated with finasteride had important and lasting betterment in all assorted parametric quantities except invalidating. Further surveies are warranted to determine the mechanism and duplicability of these effects in a placebo controlled test. Citation: Kaplan S.A. , Volpe M.A. , Te A.E. EMBASE Journal of Urology. 171 ( 1 ) ( pp 284-288 ) , 2004. Date of Publication: Jan 2004. [ Journal: Article ] Associate in nursing: 2003516940 2. PubMed # 4 Title: Saw palmetto and finasteride in the intervention of category-III prostatitis/chronic pelvic hurting syndrome. Abstraction: Chronic nonbacterial prostatitis/chronic pelvic hurting syndrome is a common entity for which a standardised direction has non been established. Patients frequently have a important symptom composite and impact on quality of life, but really small is known about the efficaciousness of second- and third-line interventions, such as the usage of herbal addendums. Many interventions studied in recent literature include antibiotics, alpha-blockade, anti-inflammatory agents, and cognitive behavioural intercessions such as biofeedback and psychotherapeutics. Citation: Yang J, Te AE. Department of Urology, Weill Medical College of Cornell University, New York, NY 10021, USA. Curr Urol Rep. 2005 Jul ; 6 ( 4 ) :290-5. Review.PMID: 15978232 [ PubMed – indexed for MEDLINE ] Clinical Question # 2: In corpulent patients enduring from schizophrenic disorder, is Clozapine more likely to do weight addition than other untypical major tranquilizers? Phosphorus: corpulent patients enduring from schizophrenic disorder I: Clozapine Degree centigrades: other untypical major tranquilizers Oxygen: control of corpulent patient ‘s schizophrenic disorder with untypical major tranquilizers while non doing an addition in weight Thymine: Therapy/ Intervention Search Engines used ( 2 ) : Trip Database, PubMed Search footings ab initio used ( based on PICO ) : Trip Databasei? Clozapine, weight addition, corpulent, schizophrenic disorder PubMedi? corpulent, Clozaril, weight addition, schizophrenic disorder Consequence: Trip Database ( 32 ) , PubMed ( 37 ) Search footings really used: Trip Databasei? Clozapine, weight addition, corpulent, schizophrenic disorder PubMedi? Clozaril, weight addition, corpulent, schizophrenic disorder, untypical major tranquilizers. Limits: worlds, English linguistic communication Consequence: Trip Database ( 32 ) , PubMed ( 28 )Suggested Articles:1.Trip Database # 4 ( nexus to PubMed ) Title: Weight addition during a double-blind multidosage Clozaril survey. Abstraction: Possible variables associated with weight addition during clozapine intervention include dosing, intervention continuance, baseline organic structure mass index ( BMI ) , sex, and plasma norclozapine concentrations. Weight additions during a double-blind, randomized Clozaril survey utilizing 100- , 300- , and 600-mg/d doses were analyzed. It was hypothesized that weight addition was associated with baseline BMI, Clozaril dosing, and demographic factors. The possible part of plasma Clozaril and norclozapine concentrations was explored. Fifty treatment-refractory schizophrenic disorder patients were randomized to 100- , 300- , or 600-mg/d doses of Clozaril for a 16-week, double-blind intervention in a research ward. Nonresponsive patients went onto a 2nd and/or a 3rd 16-week, double-blind intervention at the other doses. Weights of patients were measured every hebdomad. During the first Clozaril intervention, weight addition varied across 3 baseline BMI classs ( normal-wei ght patients [ 4.1 kilogram, P & lt ; 0.001 ] , fleshy patients [ 2.6 kilogram, P = 0.05 ] , and corpulent patients [ 0.36 kilograms, non important ] ) and harmonizing to dosing ( 600 mg/d [ 4.4 kilogram ] , 300 mg/d [ 2.6 kilogram ] , and 100 mg/d [ 1.3 kilograms ] ) . Sexual activity had no consequence after commanding for baseline BMI and dose, but the Afro-american race had a strong important consequence despite the little figure of African Americans ( n = 6 ) . At the terminal of the first Clozaril intervention, plasma norclozapine concentration was non significantly correlated with weight addition in the entire sample ( r = 0.16, P = 0.32, n = 43 ) , but seems to be strongly correlated in nonsmokers. Despite its restrictions, this survey indicates that baseline BMI, dosing, and, perchance, the Afro-american race may be major determiners of clozapine-induced weight addition. Citation: de Leon J, Diaz FJ, Josiassen RC, Cooper TB, Simpson GM. Journal of Clinical Psychopharmacology. Mental Health Research Center, Eastern State Hospital, Lexington, KY 40508, USA. 2. PubMed # 12504074 Title: A reappraisal of the consequence of untypical major tranquilizers on weight Abstraction: Controlled research tests have shown that untypical major tranquilizers have of import advantages over standard major tranquilizers, including a broader spectrum of efficaciousness and improved tolerability profile, peculiarly with respect to neurological inauspicious events such as extrapyramidal symptoms ( EPS ) . Some untypical major tranquilizers, nevertheless, tend to do important weight addition, which may take to hapless conformity and other inauspicious wellness effects. The mechanisms involved in antipsychotic drug-related weight addition are as yet unsure, although serotoninergic, histaminic, and sympathomimetic affinities have been implicated along with other metabolic mechanisms. The untypical major tranquilizers vary in their leaning to do weight alteration with long-run intervention. Follow-up surveies show that the largest weight additions are associated with Clozaril and olanzapine, and the smallest with quetiapine and ziprasidone. Risperidone is associat ed with modest weight alterations that are non dose related. Given the tantamount efficaciousness of untypical major tranquilizers, weight-gain profile is a legitimate factor to see when building an algorithm for intervention due to the serious medical effects of fleshiness. Citation: Nasrallah H. Psychoneuroendocrinology. 2003 Jan ; 28 Suppl 1:83-96. Department of Psychiatry, University of Cincinnati Medical Center, 231 Albert Sabin Way, PO Box 670559, Cincinnati, OH 45267-0559, USA. Mesh Footings: Antipsychotic Agents/adverse effects* Clinical Tests as Subject Worlds Monitoring, Physiologic Obesity/chemically induced* Obesity/epidemiology Obesity/therapy* Overweight/chemically induced* Overweight/epidemiology Overweight/therapy* Schizophrenia/complications* Schizophrenia/epidemiology Weight Loss Clinical Question # 3: Is Crestor ‘s new indicant for the primary bar of cardiovascular disease, considered unique to the drug, or a category consequence of all lipid-lowering medicine drugs? Phosphorus: patients at high hazard of cardiovascular disease I: Crestor Degree centigrades: the â€Å" statin † drug therapy category Oxygen: bar of cardiovascular disease Thymine: Therapy/prevention Search Engines used ( 2 ) : OVID, PubMed Search footings ab initio used ( based on PICO ) : OVIDi? Crestor AND cardiovascular disease AND new indicant PubMedi? rosuvastatin, cardiovascular disease. Limits: worlds, English linguistic communication. Consequence: OVID ( 0 ) , PubMed ( 431 ) Search footings really used: OVIDi? rosuvastatin AND cardiovascular disease AND bar PubMedi? rosuvastatin, Cardiovascular disease bar. Limits: worlds, English linguistic communication. Consequence: Ovid ( 505 ) , PubMed ( 253 )Suggested Articles:1.From OVID- Lipid-lowering medicines for primary bar in older grownups: who is high hazard, who is old, and what denotes primary bar? Abstraction: Whether to handle older grownups with statin medicines for primary bar of cardiovascular events remains a clinical riddle. A figure of observations with respect to increasing age stoke this quandary: The association between elevated cholesterin degrees and cardiovascular hazard diminishes ( 1 ) , risk-prediction tools ( such as the Framingham hazard mark ) become less accurate ( 2, 3 ) , back uping clinical test informations become limited, and the decreasing life anticipation versus clip to medication benefit invariably displacements. Additional downsides of lipid-lowering medicines for older grownups include medicine cost, polypharmacy, and possible side effects. Conversely, age entirely makes older grownups inherently high hazard and lipid-lowering medicines cut down cardiovascular events and decease and may hold other good effects. Clinical test informations support secondary bar of cardiovascular events with lipid-lowering medicines for individuals 80 old ages or younger, but informations are light thenceforth. As the figure of individuals 65 old ages or older quickly additions, and more so the figure of individuals 85 old ages or older, this clinical inquiry demands to be addressedaˆÂ ¦ . Citation: Zieman S.J. , Ouyang P. EMBASE Annals of internal medical specialty. 152 ( 8 ) ( pp 528-530, W183 ) , 2010. Date of Publication: 20 Apr 2010. [ Journal: Note ] AN: 20404384 2. PMID: 20026779 Title: Rosuvastatin in the bar of shot among work forces and adult females with elevated degrees of C-reactive protein: justification for the Use of Statins in Prevention: an Intervention Trial Evaluating Rosuvastatin ( JUPITER ) . Abstraction: Background: Anterior primary bar tests of lipid-lowering medicine therapy that used cholesterin standards for registration have non reported important lessenings in shot hazard. We evaluated whether lipid-lowering medicine therapy might cut down shot rates among persons with low degrees of cholesterin but elevated degrees of high-sensitivity C-reactive protein. METHODS AND RESULTS: In Justification for the Use of lipid-lowering medicines in Prevention: an Intervention Trial Evaluating Rosuvastatin ( JUPITER ) , 17 802 seemingly healthy work forces and adult females with low-density lipoprotein cholesterin degrees & lt ; 130 mg/dL and high-sensitivity C-reactive protein degrees & gt ; or = 2.0 mg/L were indiscriminately allocated to rosuvastatin 20 mg day-to-day or placebo and so followed up for the happening of a first shot. After a average followup of 1.9 old ages ( maximal, 5.0 old ages ) , rosuvastatin resulted in a 48 % decrease in the jeopardy of fatal and nonfatal shot as compared with placebo ( incidence rate, 0.18 and 0.34 per 100 person-years of observation, severally ; guess ratio 0.52 ; 95 % assurance interval, 0.34 to 0.79 ; P=0.002 ) , a determination that was consistent across all examined subgroups. This determination was due to a 51 % decrease in the rate of ischaemic shot ( hazard ratio, 0.49 ; 95 % assurance interval, 0.30 to 0.81 ; P=0.004 ) , with no difference in the rates of haemorrhagic shot between the active and placebo weaponries ( jeopardy ratio, 0.67 ; 95 % assurance interval, 0.24 to 1.88 ; P=0.44 ) . Decision: Rosuvastatin reduces by more than half the incidence of ischaemic shot among work forces and adult females with low degrees of low-density lipoprotein cholesterin degrees who are at hazard because of elevated degrees of high-sensitivity C-reactive protein. Citation: Everett BM, Glynn RJ, MacFadyen JG, Ridker PM. Circulation. 2010 Jan 5 ; 121 ( 1 ) :143-50. Epub 2009 Dec 21. Center for Cardiovascular Disease Prevention, Brigham and Women ‘s Hospital, 900 Commonwealth Ave, Boston, MA 02215, USA.

Critical Thinking and Ethics Essay

What is the relationship between ethics and critical thinking? Critical thinking and ethics are used in everyday life. I think it best that we define the two terms before we get deep into the discussion. The Merriam-Webster dictionary says ethics is â€Å"the discipline dealing with what are good and bad with moral duty and obligation† and Dictionary Reference say critical thinking is â€Å"disciplined thinking that is clear, rational, open-minded, and informed by evidence†. These could both be further defined by saying they are the ability to make good or bad choices and the act of thoroughly thinking through a decision. Critical thinking and ethics decisions are life skills. Critical Thinking There are six levels in the critical thinking process. They are remembering, understanding, applying, analyzing, evaluating, and creating. The majority of people use the first four levels in day to day life. The final two levels are probably used in more complex problems and more time will be required in devotion to applying these steps. Critical thinking is used in our day to day lives. We make multiple decisions in a day’s time. Some of these decisions are routine and some require more effort and time. We learn to evaluate things at a young age and most likely pick up most of our problem solving skills from our parents. When you hear the term â€Å"critical thinking† your first thought may be negative but critical thinking should not be thought of as â€Å"being critical† but rather â€Å"think critically†. During our life there will be times when we need to make decisions that can be life altering. A few examples might be buying a new car, choosing courses at your university, or deciding between a two jobs. Everyone can relate to the stress of buying a new car. This is a decision that could  affect you for the next five years and it’s a decision that should not be taken lightly. My decision to buy the car may have a different outcome if I start the process with questions as opposed to making a emotional purchase. Those questions might look something like this, â€Å"What type of car do I want?†, â€Å"What amount of payment can I afford?†, and â€Å"What is the best car make?†. All of these questions will determine the outcome. Answering all these questions will allow me to make an informed decision. Ethics We stated earlier that ethics deals with knowing what is right or wrong. We do the right thing because it is the law, because it is what we were taught, or because we listen to our inner voice. I used a personal evaluation tool earlier this week called the ethical inventory list. This was an activity to help me better understand the values that influence my decisions. This tool produced some shocking results which I was surprised to see. My preferred ethical lens was Reputation. I do care what people think and this has motivated me to excel in all things I do. My blind spot was revealed during this exercise and was identified as â€Å"unrealistic role expectation†. I had to read the definition twice to fully understand it and I still need to do more research. In short, I put too much value in the role (position) a person holds and that can cause you to forget that people make mistakes. My father was a law enforcement officer. I was taught what was right and wrong at a young ag e. My father took this to the extreme at times because he saw more bad than good while assuming his daily duties. I have always been known as the guy that will make the right choice even if that choice is the hard choice. Ethics apply to the professional world and well as the social sector. I work for a large heavy equipment manufacture. Ethics is one of our core values. The company makes ethical choices that affect the entire world. A few examples are promoting safety, recycling, emissions, and renewable resources. Do these topics cross your mind when you think of the largest heavy equipment manufacturers in the world? They may not but it is the professional right, the ethically right thing to do. When I first started working for the company I was surprised at how much emphasis was placed on safety. They require wearing PPE (personal protection equipment) and have mandatory monthly safety training. The company recycles everything. They recycle all metal products, cardboard, plastics, wood, and  even personal trash has to be sorted. Professional companies maintain high ethical standards because it is the right thing to do for their employees and customers. Social ethics is doing what is right for the people around you. When I think of social ethics a couple things come to mind. First is the â€Å"adopt a highway† sign that you see along the roadway when you drive home. Groups of people come together for no apparent reason besides keep the world a cleaner place. Is this the right thing to do? Sure it is. Another example is the groups of people that come together at public parks to do maintenance and clean-up work. Chances are they do not live in the neighborhood, nor do they have children that play there. Why do people strangers come together sacrificing their free time to volunteer for activities like these? There is one answer. They are the ethically right thing to do. Conclusion Ethics are a vital part of survival but we need to be reminded ourselves that ethics change as the world changes. Things that used to be considered in a negative manner is now accepted by society. However, we still need ethical decisions in order for us to thrive as a community, a society, and a civilization. References Ethics [Def. 1]. (n.d.). Merriam-Webster Online. In Merriam-Webster. Retrieved October 16, 2014, from http://merriam-webster.com/dictionary/ethics Critical Thinking [Def. 2]. (n.d.). Dictionary Reference Online. In Dictionary Reference Online. Retrieved October 16, 2014, from dictionary.reference.com/browse/critical+thinking

Informative Analysis Essay

The purpose of an informative briefing is to enhance the audience’s knowledge about a specific topic in which the speaker is an expert. The goal of the presenter is to present clear-cut information in an interesting yet enlightening manner. The purpose of my speech was to enhance the audience’s awareness of what marijuana is, as well as to dispel many myths that exist around it that emanate from the fact that it is an illegal substance, causing often untrue information to be spread. The ultimate goal of my presentation was to leave the audience with a better understanding of what the plant actually is and how it may be of use to society. Introducing a topic during a presentation is one of, if not the, most difficult part of any speech. If the speaker does not draw the audience’s attention immediately, then they are, in effect, lost for the duration of the speech. I believe that my introduction was relatively effective because it introduced my topic in a way that most members of the class can most likely relate to. By asking the audience if they recognized the rolling paper, they were forced to focus on me as well as my question, which then introduced a relatively controversial topic. In doing so, I should have captured the attention of the audience. In reviewing my performance, however, it was clearly evident how nervous I was which hindered the eloquence of the introduction, making it less effective than I had planned and ultimately hoped for; it was, nonetheless, still effective in capturing the audience. As with any other presentation, the body of the speech followed the introduction. The body was organized in a manner that would logically suit the presentation. First, there was a brief description of what marijuana really is, which was actually quite important based on the purpose of the speech. Marijuana is most often referred to by one of the multitudes of street names that it has acquired and the purpose of the speech was to enhance the knowledge of the audience by presenting facts, not street information. Following the description was a point counter-point narrative of many of the myths surrounding marijuana usage and the truth behind those  myths. Next, I spoke about many of the federal studies that have occurred whose findings differ greatly with much of the propagandized information that is presented to the general population. The third major topic area that I covered was the potential that marijuana has for the business and financial world, as well as the repercussions tha t would ensue if marijuana was actually made into a legal plant and turned into an industry. Each of the major points was supported by numerous documented facts. In defining what marijuana is, I used the Common Sense for Drug Policy Foundations definition as well as other information that the site provided that enhanced the understanding of the defining characteristics of marijuana. After this, I spoke about the many studies that have occurred, such as the Schaffer Study conducted under the Nixon Administration, which I obtained information about from a book authored by Raymond Schaffer, the man who lead the study (the book was titled A Signal of Misunderstanding). I found that many of the other studies provided statistics that further enhanced the information provided in my speech because it described the ineffective nature of current policing policies as well as introduced the final portion of my presentation, which was the business aspects involved in the marijuana debate. The information provided by the national commission on marijuana and drug abuse was valuable in supporting my statement that there are business repercussions that could emanate from the use of marijuana. First, I stated how many users there are in the United States, followed by the extent of the crimes committed. Then, using information from an Associated press article entitled UN Estimates Drug Business Equal To 8% of World Trade, I described how the business world would most likely benefit from the legal use of marijuana. The basis of any conclusion is to tie up the presentation and basically re-cap what was presented. My conclusion was not as effective as I had hoped. My goal was to create a clincher, a final thought provoking, or at least interesting, point that would regain the audiences attention if it had been lost during the presentation. In attempting to do so, I was not  effective in summarizing the major points, nor was the clincher too effective. It seemed as if I was struggling to come up with an adequate clincher, which could have been avoided with more practice of the conclusion. Because I did not have a speech prepared, my eye contact was relatively effective in viewing the audience. Realistically, I should have looked up at the audience more, and for more sustained periods of time, but the lack of a composed speech forced me to look at the audience throughout the presentation. My vocal variation during the speech was sub-par. It was clearly evident that I was nervous throughout the speech and the voice was a reflection of my anxiety. In practicing the speech, I had used various intonations to emphasize certain points, but during my presentation I was, for the most part, speaking in a monotone. There were points where I did alter my vocal tone, but it was not frequent or effective enough. The speed and enunciation of the speech were adequate, but the volume of my voice and the general variation of tone in general could have been improved upon. Because I did not have any physical examples and no podium was set up, body movement was not necessarily appropriate. If we had been encouraged to walk around the front of the room or if there was a large physical example, then movement would have been appropriate. However, under the given circumstances and time restrictions, body movement was, personally, minimal because it was not overly necessary in the presentation of the information. As many of the other class members discovered, it was difficult to involve the class in the discussion. Few, if any, members of the class actively participated in any presentation, even if solely by asking questions. I believe that most of the class members have been confronted with my topic at some point or another during their lives, so even at an unspoken level most of my classmates must have at least related to the presentation. Again, my class is not overly participatory in any nature, so it is difficult to rate the amount of audience participation because, in general, the class does not participate unless there isn’t an alternative. Informative speeches are an effective method of enhancing an audiences knowledge of a given topic. They are purposeful and necessary, especially in  the upbeat modern world that requires quick and effective transference of information from one individual to another. Through the use of these speeches, a large amount of information can be provided to a room full of individuals in a relatively short amount of time. The information provided can then be used or applied immediately following the presentation. The goal of my informative speech was to enhance the audience’s knowledge about what marijuana really is, and how it can be used today to augment the way of life of our growing economy.

Creating High Performance teams in the workplace Essay

Creating High Performance teams in the workplace - Essay Example A group of six to seven people does not comprise a team. Teams are a group of individuals within a group with a common goal (Griffin &Moorhead, 2011, p.268). Groups and teams are not the same as group is a collection of people who may not have the same goal but in team the goal remains the same for every team member (Griffin &Moorhead, 2011, p.268). In a team, the decisions are taken either by the group together or a single person who may have better skills and expertise (Katzenbach & Smith, 2001, p.8). In a team, there is a continuous and a rigorous assessment of the performance of the team members (Katzenbach & Smith, 2001, p.9). Team activities help a person to inculcate leadership qualities in his personality (Franz, 2012, p.5). Features and benefits of team working Collaboration- In a team, the members work together to fulfill the common goal. Effective team work can produce tangible and intangible benefits for an organization in the form of increase in the quantity of the produ cts and increased customer satisfaction (Parker, 2011, p.5). Communication- In a team work, communication plays a major role. The leader would communicate with his team members on a regular basis as a good team cannot be built unless there is proper orchestration or communication of thoughts (Pritchett, 1992, p.2). Reducing complexity- Any activity that is first sorted out within a team will help to reduce its complicity and chaos in the operation (Willcocks & Morris, 1997, p.8). Balance of individual contribution – In a team, every member contributes his knowledge and expertise. The dominant members also contribute their expertise but they do not suppress the opinion of the others (Clutterbuck, 2007, p.70). The team leader would try to ensure that there is no imbalance in this regard Mutual support- In a team, the members mutually supports each other and help in continuous improvement (Goethals, et al., 2004, p.1533). Mutual trust can help the team to establish a work climat e and a communication process (Barner & Barner, 2012, p.40). Effort- The effectiveness of a team performance is assessed by its efforts. The effort that a team might put in depends on the task which should be motivating for the team members (Parcon, 2006, p.92). Cohesion - Team cohesion describes the way the team comes together in a social work (Kornspan, 2009, p.57). There is a positive relationship between performance level and cohesion in a team (Jowett, 2007, p.95). Effective ways to create high performance teams There can be many ways and tactics to create a high performance teams. a few aspects like bonding pattern in newly hired team, removing low morale in the project team, the team fit , resolving conflicts and increasing participation and creativity in the team can lead to a high performing team. It is often observed that new recruits or people joining an organization in their teams face difficulty and are uncomfortable with the environment. Also, sometimes the people with in a team feel isolated due to the factors like loneliness, new environment etc. This can harm the productivity of the team to a great extent (Roussel, 2011, p.244). So, the manager needs to make the new recruit comfortable with the team. Organizations face problems where there is inconsistency in the fit amongst the workers. In a team, some people can be productive working in a traditional work environment but as the working environment changed, there may be situations where these workers may not be able to work with