International Cross Cultural Management Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

International Cross Cultural Management - Essay Example Culture refers to the way of living of a people basically referring to the way people carry on in their daily life. Each and every group of people has its own culture and this is what creates a difference between various groups of people. National culture is commonly used to refer to or is described as the shared programming of the mind of the people nationally. This makes one country unique from another. Individual countries have various cultural rituals as well as cultural activities. This includes the way that these people understand and think about the world, the values and beliefs they hold. The differences in national culture are more often reflected in the basic solutions given to the organisational issues and problems in various countries. The various national cultures normally have differences in the preferred ways towards the organizational structure as well as different modes of motivating the employees. For instance, some organizations minimise on the options appraising employee performance, managing the organization by objectives, and the use of strategic management. National culture is not an individual affair but rather a function of a group. The boundaries between countries usually put boundaries for national culture. This form of culture is usually instilled in individual's right from birth. The national culture has everything in regard to what is perceived as proper, polite behaviour in that particular country. This includes for example how to behave in front of the family, colleague's strangers, family. Germany's National culture Germany is a culturally diverse state. German is the language spoken by almost every citizen. Other cultural groups found in Germany include the Frisians, Danes, Sorbs, and Gypsies; these are the people who are non-Germany minorities. The religious beliefs observed in Germany include Protestants which has the largest percentage of approximately 38%, the Catholics who form a proportion of 34% and a small portion of Jews. Islam has also become common from immigrants. The culture of this country has been influenced by the middle ages. The philosophers from Germany have assisted in shaping the culture of this nation. There is a lot of influence by the guild system of the medieval times. This system has today seen Germany attain an apprenticeship system. The people have a pride in their occupations and the organizational managers need not work too hard on their motivation. The country is rated as having very productive personnel but does not have good leadership skills. Magala, S. (2005). The united Kingdom The UK is made up of North Ireland and the Great Britain. The United Kingdom is culturally diverse wit a total population of close to 58,587,194 people. Majority of these people live in the suburban and urban areas. The UK is home to different cultures especially due to immigration. The people have their origins in China, the Caribbean, Africa, India, South Asia, Pakistan and continental Europe. The indigenous people include the Celtic, Anglo-Saxon, Roman, and the Pre-Celtic. The dominant language spoken here is English. Other languages include Scots aw well as the insular Celtic Languages. The religious beliefs are also diverse with reports of having Hinduism, Christianity, Islam, and

Taj Mahal Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Taj Mahal - Essay Example The picture depicts the beautiful monument made of white marble, on the blue backdrop of the sky and the river, below! The Taj Mahal was built over a period ranging sixteen years, from 1632 to 1648, by the Mughal Emperor Shah Jahan, in the sweet remembrance of his wife, Mumtaz Mahal. It is essentially a mausoleum, built by the emperor, with love for his wife. Ever since, it has been the cynosure of tourists, architects and historians, alike. The first striking feature of this picture is the magnanimity of this mausoleum of love, contrasted against the miniature structure of humanity! We can see the huge graceful structure, against which the tourists and visitors look inconspicuous. This is what the monument delivers, with its beauty, which is a visual treat. The visitors and tourists possess expressions of awe and wonder, on viewing this magnificent building, which refuses not to cast a spell on anyone who visits or views it. Another striking feature of this monument is that the pure white marble used to build this monument is reflective of t

A Study on Kolbs Learning Cycle (1984)

A Study on Kolbs Learning Cycle (1984) David A. Kolb with Roger Fry created this famous model out of four elements: concrete experience, observation and reflection, the formation of abstract concepts and testing in new situations. The principle of Kolbs learning cycle is that we all follow the following four stages of learning as we acquire knowledge, experience and skill. He represented these in the famous experiential learning circle that involves (1) concrete experience followed by (2) observation and experience followed by (3) forming abstract concepts followed by (4) testing in new situations. All this may happen in a flash, or over days, weeks or months, depending on the topic, and there may be a wheels within wheels process at the same time. Forms of Knowledge and the Learning Cycle The four quadrants of the cycle are associated with four different forms of knowledge, in Kolbs view. Each of these forms is paired with its diagonal opposite. Four kinds of knowledge located in Kolbs scheme Kolbs model therefore works on two levels a four-stage cycle: Concrete Experience (doing/having an experience) The Concrete Experience is the doing component which derives from the content and process of the programme through attending the workshops or, in the case of the on-line module, your reading of the on-line learning materials together with your actual experience of teaching in the classroom plus your other teaching duties and practices. It may also derive from own experience of being a student. Reflective Observation (reviewing/reflecting on the experience) The Reflective Observation element stems from your analysis and judgements of events and the discussion about the learning and teaching that you engage in with your mentor and colleagues. This might be termed common-sense reflection. For example this might be through your own self-reflections or evaluations after the event through keeping a log or journal. It may also include student feedback, peer observation of teaching (e.g. comments made by your mentor or colleague), moderation of assessments, external examiner comments, and discussions with your mentor. All of these can be brought together to give an overall reflection on your practice. Reflection in itself, though, is insufficient to promote learning and professional development. Abstract Conceptualisation (concluding/learning from the experience) In order to plan what we would do differently next time, we need in addition to our reflections on our experience to be informed by educational theory e.g. through readings of relevant literature on teaching and learning or by attending staff development or other activities. Reflection is therefore a middle ground that brings together theories and the analysis of past action. It allows us to come to conclusions about our practice Abstract Conceptualism. Active Experimentation (planning/trying out what you have learned) The conclusions we formed from our Abstract Conceptualisation stage then form the basis by which we can plan changes Active Experimentation. Active Experimentation then starts the cycle again when we implement those changes in our teaching practice to generate another concrete experience which is then followed by reflection and review to form conclusions about the effectiveness of those changes. Four-type definition of learning styles, (each representing the combination of two preferred styles, rather like a two-by-two matrix of the four-stage cycle styles, as illustrated below), for which Kolb used the terms: Diverging (CE/RO) Combination of Concrete Experience and Reflective Observation Feeling and Watching Like to gather information, good at brainstorming, interested in people, see different perspectives, prefer group work, open minded. Assimilating (AC/RO) Combination of Abstract Conceptualization and Reflective Observation Watching and Thinking Concise logical approach, ideas and concepts more important than people, prefer lectures, reading, time to think Converging (AC/AE) Combination of Abstract Conceptualization and Active Experimentation Doing and Thinking Solve practical problems; prefer technical tasks, like experimenting and simulation, less interested in interpersonal issues. Accommodating (CE/AE) Combination of Concrete Experience and Active Experimentation Doing and Feeling Hands on, attracted to new challenges and experiences, rely on others instead of doing own analysis, action oriented, set targets work hard in teams to achieve tasks. Kolbs learning styles matrix view Its often easier to see the construction of Kolbs learning styles in terms of a two-by-two matrix. The diagram also highlights Kolbs terminology for the four learning styles; diverging, assimilating, and converging, accommodating: Doing (Active Experimentation AE) Watching (Reflective Observation RO) Feeling (Concrete Experience CE) Accommodating (CE/AE) Diverging (CE/RO) Thinking (Abstract Conceptualization AC) Converging (AC/AE) Assimilating (AC/RO) Thus, for example, a person with a dominant learning style of doing rather than watching the task, and feeling rather than thinking about the experience, will have a learning style which combines and represents those processes, namely an Accommodating learning style, in Kolbs terminology. The Kolb Model and Subject Disciplines Broadly speaking, David Kolb suggests that practitioners of creative disciplines, such as the arts, are found in the Divergent quadrant. Pure scientists and mathematicians are in the Assimilative quadrant. Applied scientists and lawyers are in the Convergent quadrant. Professionals who have to operate more intuitively, such as teachers, are in the Accommodative quadrant.ÂÂ  There are also differences in the location of specialists within the more general disciplines This would suggest that different subject areas call for different learning styles, and raises the usual chicken and egg question as to whether the discipline promotes a particular learning style, or whether preferred learning style leads to adoption of a discipline, or of course, both. (All of the above assumes that there is some validity in this conceptualisation of learning styles.) Simply, people who have a clear learning style preference, for whatever reason, will tend to learn more effectively if learning is orientated according to their preference. My learning style is the converging and accommodating one. I think I have the ability to find solution to practical issues. I can solve problems and make decisions by finding solutions to questions and problems. I like challenges and carry out plans. I like experiment with new ideas and work with practical application. Studying is not just gaining greater knowledge and understanding of subjects but also more confidence, broader interests and more purpose in life. Well Im studying because I do have an objective in life which I want to achieve at any cost. It is very hard to study and to work at the same time which unfortunately I have to do, no choice! Kolb learning cycle is actually very effective way to study which just need to be followed. I like groups works, when discussing with other people I get different point of view for the topic discussed. One of the main problems I have is how to manage my study time. In fact I have two kinds of problems with time: finding enough of it and using it effectively. I do make plan about my time but its hard to stick to it, almost impossible. The only thing I need is to improve my time management skill and should take it serious now. Conclusion Kolbs learning cycle is a key model in current use relating to adult learning and development. Knowing your own and your teams learning style allows you to grow and develop more effectively, building skills and experience which allow you to meet your life goals. Thus the learning cycle can begin at any one of the four points and that it should really be approached as a continuous spiral. However the learning process depends on how the person is carrying out a particular action and then seeing the effect of the action in this situation.

The Purpose of Vegetarianism :: Healthy Lifestyle Essay

Being a strict vegetarian means making the choice to eat absolutely no meat, poultry, or fish. The health risks of being a vegetarian was a major concern, but it has been proven that non-meat foods can provide all the nutrients necessary for a healthy, complete diet. Jeanne Peters, R.D., the former nutrition specialist to Pritikin Systems, argues that Ascience has proved that a plant-based diet is the healthiest@ (Finn 1). Many scientific studies have also proven that meat dramatically raises blood pressure and increases health risks such as heart attacks and cancers. Also, growing concerns over environmental protection, personal health, and moral and ethical beliefs often lead to vegetarianism. According to national polls, in the U.S. alone Athere are 12.5 million vegetariansB 7 percent of the population@ (Finn 1). Concerns are rising about the relationship between meat production and our environment. Beef production is a very inefficient way to produce protein. The amount of grain which is needed to Aprovide four people with one serving of hamburgers could feed one person for over a week@ (R.F.B.V. 1). In Alberta Amore than 50% of the grain grown is fed to livestock@ (R.F.B.V. 3). This 50% of grain could definitely be put to much better uses in a world where people starve to death every day. In fact, Aproduction of the least energy-efficient plant foods are nearly ten times more efficient as the production of the most energy-efficient animal foods@ (Finn 2). For example, one acre of land planted with legumes yields ten times more available protein than if that same acre was used for meat production. Furthermore, the production of meat wastes massive amounts of water: AIt takes an average of 10 tons of waterBthe amount a small town uses for all purposes in a month. An average chicken processing plant uses 100 million gallons of water in just one day; enough to provide a community of 25,000 people for one day@ (R.F.B.V. 3). Not only is meat production wasting valuable production means, but it is also polluting our air. Cattle are a main source of methane gas, which is rapidly destroying our ozone layer. Vegetarians often replace meat and dairy foods with soy products. These foods are highly nutritional and contain disease-fighting properties. The National Cancer Institute has Aidentified specific substances in soy products called phytochemical that have anticancer properties@ (Finn 7). In 1994, the British Medical Journal announced that:   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   researchers have examined 12-year mortality rates of non-meat eaters and meat-eating control groups and found that cancer deaths were 40 percent less common among vegetarians then meat eaters.

One Ingredient To Make Bread

Have you ever just had a craving for some warm, amazing, homemade banana bread? Well, I have a simple but mouthwatering, taste bud tickling recipe to share. This banana bread recipe is great to bake for a tasty treat or a family get-together. All you have to do is purchase all the right ingredients, mix the correct amounts of ingredients together, bake in the oven and enjoy! The first thing you will need to do when making banana bread is to go to the store to purchase all the ingredients. You can find everything you will need to make this wonderful banana bread at your local grocery store. During your trip to the store you will need to buy sugar, flour, salt, baking soda, white vinegar, vegetable oil, milk, eggs, cooking spray such as Pam, nuts if you’d like, and of course bananas. When buying bananas the riper the better, I would actually recommend using bananas that are starting to turn brown because they are sweeter than when they first ripen. You will also need 2 large mixing bowls and a loaf pan, if you do not have these at home you will need to purchase them. After getting all these items you are ready to head home and make your yummy, homemade banana bread! Once you arrive home and take all your ingredients out you will need to preheat your oven to 350 degrees farenhigt. While the oven is preheating you will need to take out your first large mixing bowl and mix together 1 cup of sugar and ? of a cup of vegetable oil. In the second mixing bowl mash the bananas with a fork and mix in 2 eggs and 3 tablespoons of sour milk. To make sour milk you will need to mix together 1 part white vinegar with 1 part milk in a small dish, and then measure out the 3 tablespoons needed. Add the banana mixture to the sugar and oil and mix together thoroughly. When the ingredients are thoroughly mixed together you will then need to add in 2 cups of flour, ? teaspoon of salt, ? teaspoon of baking soda, and half a cup of chopped nuts and mix together. The best way to do the mixing is for you to use a hand mixer, but you can also use a large cooking spoon to get the job done. Finally when your batter is complete you can pour your finished creation into a loaf pan that has been thoroughly greased and floured to prevent the read from sticking, and place the loaf into the oven. Your banana bread will need to bake for about 50 to 60 minutes before it will be fully cooked and ready to eat. At about 50 minutes you can check to see if the bread is cooked all the way through, to do this you will need to stick a toothpick into the middle of the loaf and pull it out. If the toothpick comes out clean the bread is finished, if there are little pieces of batter stuck to the toothpick it will need to cook for a few more minutes. Don’t worry, just put it back in the oven and it will be perfect shortly. When the toothpick comes out of the banana bread clean you can take the bread out of the oven and let it cool. Banana bread is best served warm, cut into single slices about ? an inch wide, with a bit of butter spread on top. Making amazing banana bread has never been simpler. All you have to do to have amazing, homemade banana bread is buy the ingredients, mix the ingredients together, bake the banana bread, and enjoy. Will you dare to try this simple, yet amazing banana bread recipe?

The advantages and disadvantages of a business plan

Entering the world of business is not that easy. When starting a new venture, one should never come unprepared. If you started a new venture without planning anything first, chances are, you will end up going wherever the wind takes you. That is why a business plan is a necessity for someone who is interested in starting a new venture. In the world of business, a business plan is treated like a bible for it lets investors and lenders know about the business you are trying to put up. It also serves as a manual for suppliers and other stakeholders of the business. A business plan may have its advantages but it also have its disadvantages. In this part of the paper, we shall look at the strong and weak points of developing a business plan for a new venture. However, a business plan is supposed to be an advantage to the business that is why the advantages, as expected, outnumber the disadvantages. Advantages One advantage of developing a business plan for a new venture is that it identifies what the consumer really wants. Of course, a business plan is all about making your target market patronize the product or service you are offering in your new business. Before you can make profits, you must first identify your target market and know what they really need or want. This is one important advantage of a business plan especially for those who are new in the business scenario. Once you identify what your target market really wants, you are most probably headed to indentifying the demand for the service or product you intend to offer. Identifying the demand for the product is also very important in launching a new venture because from this, you will know whether the service or product you are to offer is needed by the people. Of course, you cannot just think about your supplies and your suppliers. Those things will come after you determine the demand for your product. Aside from identifying the target market and the demand for the product or service, the advantages of a business plan also include assistance in designing your product that are appealing to the senses of the consumers. Since your purpose in developing a new venture is to make profit, the consumers’ senses are your main target. Designing your product is very important. It includes the packaging of the product and other advertising tools to make the people buy the product. This is also an important aspect of the business plan for it contributes a lot to the success of the business. Of course, if you are developing a â€Å"for-profit† business, making profit and paying debts will have to be included in your business plan. Aside from paying debts, your plan should also include measures on how to generate daily income. In this aspect, a business plan is very helpful because you already have your plans on how to manage the financial aspects of the business (which is one of the most important aspects). If you know exactly the financial path of what you are venturing, you are most likely to succeed in terms of profit. Another advantage of a business plan is that it makes the proprietor identify his competitors. When you have the knowledge about your competitors, you will be able to identify your competitive advantage over the competitor’s firm. Since you are developing a new business, it is important that you know exactly your edge in the business scenario over the others. If you have planned beforehand about your competitive advantage over the competitors, chances are, there will be product differentiation in the market. That is actually a good thing because it lessens competition within simi8lar firms. By analyzing your competitors, you will be able to create strategies that are effective even if there are many competitors in the market. A business plan is also advantageous because it enables us to indentify new product and service areas, and new or potential customers. In business, it is not only important to find the customers for some of them will not be loyal to your firm. It is hard to find new customers when you are just developing a new venture but it is much harder to retain them. The good thing about a business plan is that it helps the owner of the firm to identify potential customers. If it is hard for the owner to retain his customers, it would be very helpful to identify new or potential customers. In that way, at least, you will have your next resort. Lastly, an advantage of a business plan is that it allows the business owner to evaluate his business strategies and if his strategies are giving the desired results. What is good about a business plan is that it enables the owner to assess whether his strategies are effective or not. If he found out that his strategies are not effective enough to make the business succeed, he can immediately formulate new strategies to make the business succeed. As we all know, business strategies are very important, be it human resource, financial, etc. The business plan serves as a test for the formulated strategies and also serves as way to make room for improvement. If the owner finds out that there is something wrong with his first strategies, he will be able to change it right away and save his business from falling apart or incurring losses. Disadvantages Although we mentioned a lot of advantages in making business plans, it also has its drawbacks. If the owner is new in the world of business, he may not have all the business skills that a new venture requires. If he happens to be the one making his business plans, the business plan can be one way of identifying his weaknesses in dealing with business. If the owner is not used to making business plans, people who will look to it will find out the weaknesses of his business skills. Suppliers, investors, and lenders will most likely not to participate in the business when they find out that the person they are dealing with is not that skilled in business. Also, if the other stakeholders of the business find out that the person they are making arrangements with is not as skilled as they thought, they might not trust him with the success of the business. They might even plan to use his weaknesses or his business plan against him since they know that he is not a skillful businessman. Another disadvantage of a business plan is when it is not properly thought of. If the data in a business plan is not properly analyze, it may result to improper marketing decisions which will eventually have a bad effect on the business itself. Although a business plan helps a lot in making the business successful, it may also make the business fail if not done correctly. What makes it hard for a business to succeed is the impulsiveness of the business owners when it comes to decision making. Sometimes, the data in business plans are not analyzed properly that is why decisions are also made incorrectly. If the one who made the business plan is not a professional business consultant or is not really familiar with making a business plan, information can be interpreted incorrectly. The faulty interpretation of information can result to unrealistic financial projections. In a business, financial matters are very important that is why if financial statements are understated or overstated, it could greatly affect the business. If the information in the business plan is interpreted incorrectly, wrong decisions can be made. The owner can also make unrealistic projections about the financial aspects of the business which can cause further problems. This would greatly affect the future of the business. Since the business plan somewhat includes the mission and vision of the business, it would be a great problem if the business plan fails to make correct projections for the firm. If the business owner is not familiar with making business plans, he may opt to hire a business plan consultant. It is very advantageous actually since they offer quality service and they have been making business plans for many successful businesses. The disadvantage is that the service of these consultants is very expensive. Although they offer good service, it would cost you a lot. The money that can be added to your investment in the business will just go to the payment for the business consultant. If the business owner happens to be saving up for his new venture, he can resort to hiring an inexpensive business consultant which is not always good for the business. Sometimes, inexpensive consultants are not as good as the expensive ones. There are also some which uses software that makes business plans. They will just ask the owner of the business certain questions and then enter the information in the software they use. This will eventually lead to improper analysis of data and information in the business plan which will not do the business any good. Assessment of the Biz Air Plan Just by taking a look at the business plan’s executive summary, we can already have an idea that the financial projections are overstated. With only 6 aircrafts, their projected revenues were  £17.4 million. What I am trying to point out here is that what they are trying to build is an airline company and not just a convenient store or a clothing company. There were statements in the executive summary that seem to understate the losses in the first year. They even projected that there would be a 12% improvement in profits in the company’s second year and a long term 16% of sales in the third, fourth, and fifth year. Aside from wrong financial projections, I find the business plan full of assumptions.   For example, in the part where in they conducted customer analysis, they chose to conduct the study during lunchtime and interviewed people who dress like a business person. In other words, they just assumed that if a person is in corporate attire, he or she could be a potential customer since they assumed that he or she is a businessperson. There is also a part in the paper in which it is stated that â€Å"as long as the flights are not delayed, the post experience evaluation should be favourable.† I find this very assuming because it is not only the delay of the flight that affects on whether the customer will or will not like the new airline company. The satisfaction of the customer does not rest solely on the factor that their flight is on time. Factors such as cleanliness, safety, or the friendliness of the staff also affect the satisfaction of the customer. It is also mentioned in the business plan that through satisfying customers (that is in terms of not delaying their flights), they will serve as salesmen for the airline company who will try to suggest the company’s service to other people. I find this a little idealistic for business does not just go that way. Business does not only succeed through word of mouth. When they said that the customers will serve as the salesmen for the airline company, it gave me the impression that they were already assuming that the delay of the flight solely determines customer satisfaction which would later on result to advertising the company. It is very idealistic since they were sort of assuming that all the satisfied customers will endorse their company. Another thing that I found very disturbing about the paper is its being overconfident about the services it offers. Of course it is very important that you have confidence in the business that you are putting up but not to the point that you will sound boasting about your business that has not even tried by the people. You can see this in the part where in they discuss the advertising of the service. They mentioned that they are just going to advertise through newspapers and billboards near airports. I have nothing against that idea, actually. But you don’t have to say that you do not have to advertise in televisions because you are sure that once the news broke, there would be much television publicity that will come out. I think it will seem very unprofessional for those who will take a look at the business plan. Potential investors will have the impression that they are dealing with unprofessional people. Lastly, there are several faulty analysis and incorrect financial projections which can be the main cause of the failure of the business. Reference: 2004. Creating Your Business Plan. [Online]. Available: http://www.nvbdi.org/howto/biz_plan.php.   [29 July 2007] BELLIS, M. 2007. Creating A Marketing Plan for the Independent Inventor. [Online]. Available: http://inventors.about.com/od/licensingmarketing/a/tutor_marketing.htm. [29 July 2007] 2001. Approaches to Writing A Business Plan. [Online]. Available: http://www.caycon.com/plan_options.php. [28

Red Rock West by John Dahl Essays

Red Rock West by John Dahl Essays Red Rock West by John Dahl Essay Red Rock West by John Dahl Essay Red Rock West by John Dahl begins with an opening musical soundtrack which creates a western atmosphere and this is further introduced by a twanging guitar refrain which adds a melancholy texture. It immediately casts a traditional feel about the film enhancing the western culture. The early shots that are exposed of the dusty road introduces isolation and an atmospheric effect. Additionally the landscape that is publicized is desert like and also dusty which then signifies the western theme and the sensation of desolation and barrenness. It then later exhibit’s the plate of the white Cadillac to expose that it had been travelling from Texas. The use of clever establishing shots reveals that no one else is around and the sign which is revealed reads ’Wyoming’. This sets the location perfectly. As the character steps out of his Cadillac he does press-ups in the road which gives the impression that he is very keen on fitness and being in shape but furthermore he ta kes very deep pride in his appearance as a person. This is uncovered aswell when he takes a shave and using the car as a mirror. The character seems to have a support cast on his knee which uncovers an injury. Additional evidence for this is the tattoo on his upper arm which is the symbol of being in the Military Marines. This strongly plays a key part of narrative and portrays a lot more about his past. The injury that was introduced could play an important part to revealing more about him as a person and his past experiences. He later on takes a freshly white pressed shirt out of the back of his white Cadillac which introduces Binary opposition. The same colour from both of those items could indicate the good of the character and this could be significant. He then later goes to the oil works for a job as he doesn’t have much money to carry on his journey in his Cadillac. As it was revealed from before he has travelled from Texas so this job could mean a fresh start ,a chance to start again and he maybe wanted to get away from his past from the marines which could bring back memories of the events that took place. He introduces himself as Michael at his job interview. During the interview Michael proves to be very honest and exposes about his injury on his leg. Later on as the firm doesn’t want him because of his injury he is sent away and his friend offers him money. Michael refuses the money from his friend which indicates him to be a very independent man which is too proud to show a sign of weakness. The sequence at the gas station following after the job interview we learn a lot more about Michael as a person and the location. Again the location created is dusty and shabby which provides the evidence of an deserted loc ation which firmly indicates powerful isolation. Michael looks around the gas station as no one is there and he sees money which is just lying around and also the gas unattended. He indicates at one point as thought he might just take the money and some gas and just take off but instead he doesn’t. We now know that Michael as a character is very honest even though his appearance and actions may not suggest this. Shortly after he travels through the location of Red Rock West Michael ends up at a local bar which seems to be very vacant. The mood that is present has a sense of uneasiness about the place. Another character is introduced which is the owner of the bar called Wayne. The impression of Wayne is that he’s a person that to be messed with. He is highlighted in dark shadows which could suggest the sense of evil in this character. As an audience we get a feeling as though something isn’t right and further more we have evidence which indicates this. Michael gets mistaken for ‘Lyal’. A man that was sent for him to murder his wife. As he keeps getting eluded of jobs because of his injury he then decides to take up Wayne on his offer and takes the money. Here we see the good use of power play between the interaction of these two feisty characters. But also a sign from Michael could portray that he is desperate and will do anything for money which could lead to another side of his character. Overall I thought this film was very creative and that the plot of the film kept you guessing. It was very fast moving and suspenseful also the humour was very nicely understated. I thought that Nicholas Cage who played Michael as the character who bumbles into a murderous plot by accident only wanting to earn a buck and leave but never being able to get away from the town was played brilliantly.

buy custom Single-Sex Schools essay

buy custom Single-Sex Schools essay Whether to uphold or do away with single-sex education is a matter of concern that has attracted a lot of attention by parents and the public at large. Single-sex education involves a case where male and female students are taught in different classrooms. This education system has been running in many private schools for a very long time. The public schools are now considering adopting this because most of them are co-ed schools. Statistics show that more than four hundred public schools have adopted a structure of single-sex education (Barry, 2002). Although most of them are taking into this, it is not without objection by researchers and other scholars. The major reason why many public schools are trying to set different schools for each sex-student is learning differences between male and female students. These differences have been debated for quite a long time and have stretched to factors outside academics. This has improved peoples understanding on the political, civil, legal, and socio-economic perspective of single-sex education (New York Times, 2011). The major reason why this issue has raised a big debate is the need to have proper learning and good performance for the students. Therefore, before embarking on the advantages and disadvantages of banning or upholding single-sex education, it is prudent to consider how nurture and nature affects the learning of students. First, the ability of a student to comfortably learn in any set up depends on natural aspects like gender, disabilities and abilities, intelligence, and temperament. These factors are inborn and chances of adjusting or changing are negligible. The other influential factor is how the child is natured by both the society and the parents. This comprises of the culture, social and economic status of the family and the society as a whole. Every parent should take into consideration the family priorities in terms of cultural values and traditions (Phillips, 2010). Although not proven, it is said that the behavior of boys and girls when brought together is a clear reflecti on of the society they come from. A disciplined and obedient girl reflects the ethics, which the family and the society she comes from uphold. Discussion Arguments have been brought up on whether to ban or maintain single-sex schools. There are many points, which researchers provided to support the reason as to why single-sex education should be embraced. First, it is important to have single-sex education, because at puberty or adolescent stage many students get attracted to stuents of opposite sex and this can cause a great distraction on students concentration in their studies. This is a normal behavior that both sexes exhibit. It is, however, not efficient to have separate classrooms for boys and girls within the same compound. This does not eliminate the aspect of distraction, because during the break sessions they will still have time to interact (Barry, 2002). Having single-sex education provides ample time to students to concentrate on their studies rather than combining social life with academics. These students get their social time when they are out of school, and this is enough to make them get enough friends if needed, Furthermore, there is need to have this education system because of the differences in the optimum concentration temperatures for the two parties. Girls are known to concentrate well in warm classroom temperatures and vice versa for their male counterparts. Some researchers have also supported this and showed that education prospects are easily broadened in single-sex education. In mix-sex schools gender stereotypes are being enforced, but they are broken in single-sex schools. The best example of this is the pressure exerted on girls, when they are made to compete equally in those subjects that are known to be male-dominated. This undermines the girls efforts because boys can easily take part in feminine activities li ke poetry among others. Single-sex education will help boost a students confidence, which could be suppressed in mixed schools. On the other hand, there are reasons why single-sex education should be banned. When undergoing training as an educator most colleges do not offer special education for different genders. Although this is true, it is easy for an experienced educator to understand the differences between male and female student (The New York Times, 2011). Due to this fact, they can easily accommodate them and successfully apply different styles of learning within a single classroom where there are both boys and girls. This shows that having separate schools for boys and girls is an extra expense on employing a different educator, when it can be done in the same classroom. Another reason is the assumption that there is a similarity in gender learning difference. These differences are not constant in normal conditions but are rather diverse. Teaching styles applied by educators in single-sex schools can be ineffective and detrimental to an assertive girl or a sensitive boy. There has been an assumption that boys prefer an educator who shouts. This may be a nuisance to severall students, and therefore there is a need to have mixed schools to ensure moderate teaching styles, which will accommodate both boys and girls (Stanberry, 2010). Education is not a permanent source for any student. At one point in time these students will have an opportunity to work in an office, where there are people of both genders. A student who attended a single-sex school will tend to shy away from those of opposite sex and associate himself with same sex workers. This will destroy a persons co-operation with other members and may look unsocial. Earlier studies showed that a co-education classroom with a higher number of girls showed a better performance for both boys and girls. A study carried out by professor Analia in an elementary co-ed school showed that there was an increased performance for both genders in all classrooms with more girls compared to boys. The same trend exists in high school. This is attributed to the fact that a class dominated by girls experiences a low classroom disruption and promotes a good relationship among students and with their teachers. The American Council dealing with education gave a report, which said that the academic discrepancy between female and male students is small. He also said that there is a large gap in terms of academic achievement for students who are in different ethnic, racial and socio-economic factions. The representatives of minorities and the poor students show bad performance regardless of the schools they attend. They therefore argue that to bridge this academic gap requires more attention on this factors rather than dividing the genders. Furthermore, it is illegal and discriminatory to have single-sex education. This has become a crucial issue, and in 2008 ACLU led this and filed a case in the court. This was because middle schools in Kentucky had practiced and offered single-sex education in public schools. This was considered discriminatory and illegal. Offering single-sex education violates federal and state laws as well as denying students of education opportunities as stated in the Educational Opportunities Act (New York Times, 2011). Conclusion In conclusion, a parent has an option of deciding whether to enroll his child is a single-sex school or not. One should consider the pros and cons of both types of systems and the childs natural capabilities. The public view on the idea of single-sex education shows that many of them would prefer banning these schools. Buy custom Single-Sex Schools essay

Charles Dickens Essays - Charles Dickens, The Pickwick Papers

Charles Dickens Charles John Huffam Dickens was born February 7, 1812, in Ports Mouth, Hampshire. In his infancy his family moved to Chatham, where he spent his happiest years and often refers to this time in his novels (1817-1822). From 1822 to 1860 he lived in London, after which he permanently moved to a quiet country cottage in Glads Hill, on the outskirts of Chatham. He grew up in a middle class family. His father was a clerk in the navy pay office and was well paid, but his extravagant living style often brought the family to financial disaster. The family reached financial "rock bottom" in 1824. Charles was taken out of school and sent to work in a factory doing manual labour, while his father went to prison for his debt. These internal disasters shocked Charles greatly. He refers to his working experiences in his writings. Although he hated doing labour, he gained a sympathetic knowledge into the life of the labour class. He also brings forth the images of prison and of the lost and oppressed child in many novels. His schooling ended at 15, and he became a clerk in a solicitor's office, then a short hand reporter in the lawcourts (where he gained much knowledge of legalities which he used in his novels), and finally like other members of his family, a newspaper reporter. Here, he got his first taste of journalism and fell in love with it immediately. Drawn to the theatre, Charles Dickens almost pursued the career of an actor In 1833, he began sending short stories and descriptive essays to small magazines and newspapers. These writings attracted attention and were published in 1836 under the name, Sketches by "Boz". At the same time, he was offered a small job of writing the text for a small comic strip, where he worked with a well know artist. Seven weeks later, the first instalment of The Pickwick Papers appeared. Within a few months Pickwick was the rage and Dickens was the most popular author of the day. During 1836, he also wrote two plays and a pamphlet, he then resigned from his newspaper job, and undertook the editing job of a monthly magazine, Bentley's Miscellany, in which he serialized Oliver Twist (1837-1839). By this time, the first of his nine surviving children had been born, He had married Catherine, eldest daughter of a respected journalist George Hogorth (April 1836). Novels His first major success was with The Pickwick Papers. They were high spirited and contained many conventional comic butts and jokes. Pickwick displayed, many of the features that were to be blended in to his future fiction works; attacks on social evils and the delight in the joys of Christmas. Rapidly thought up and written in mere weeks or even days before its publication date, Pickwick contained weak style and was unsatisfactory in all, partly because Dickens was rapidly developing his craft as a novelist while doing it. This style of writing in a first novel, made his name know literally overnight, but created a new tradition of literature and was made one of the best know novel's of the world. After The Pickwick Papers were published in 1837, he put together another novel, Oliver Twist. Though his artistic talent is very much evident, he refrained from using the successful formula used in The Pickwick Papers. Instead, Oliver Twist is more concerned with social and more evil, though it did still contain much comedy. The long last of his fiction is partly due to its being so easy to adapt into effective stage plays. Sometimes 20 London theatres simultaneously were producing adaptations of his latest story; so even non- readers became acquainted with simplified versions of his works. In the novel Barnaby Grudge he attempted another type of writing, a historical novel. It was set in the late 18th century and graphically explored the spectacle of large scale mob violence. The task of keeping unity throughout his novels (which often included a wide range of moods and materials and several complicated plots involving scores of characters) was made even more difficult because he was forced to write and publish them, while also doing on going serials. His next major work, and probably his most famous was published in 1843, and was called A Christmas Carol. Suddenly conceived and written in mere weeks, while he was preoccupied in writing another serial, it was an unmatched achievement. His view of life was described as "Christmas Philosophy," and he spoke of "Carol philosophy" as the basis of his work. He

(not deciding) Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

(not deciding) - Essay Example These paintings all belong to high Renaissance style because they demonstrate unity in pictorial representation. These paintings represent religious characters and themes in naturalistic landscapes, vibrant colors, strong contour lines, contrapposto posing, realistic figures in stable composition with an implicit triangular format, and combined linear and aerial perspectives, although Madonna and Child with Saints and Angels and Madonna and Child with St. Jerome look flatter due to the use of tempera, Madonna and Child with Saints and Angels is less realistic with the addition of angels and halos, and The Flight into Egypt has a stronger three-dimensional form, with soft, glowing colors and shadows that create chiaroscuro effect. These paintings represent religious characters and themes, although Madonna and Child with Saints and Angels is less realistic with the addition of angels and halos. In Madonna and Child with St. Jerome, the three religious characters are Mary, the child Jesus, and St. Jerome. It appears that St. Jerome has visited the mother and child with some solemn or sad news because of the serious, somewhat sad, mood of the latter. In Madonna and Child with Saints and Angels, the religious characters are more numerous, which include Mary, child Jesus, Mary Magdalene, John the Baptist, Jerome, Francis, and Christopher, and two angels. The scene is naturalistic in how the main front characters are doing realistic actions, although the religious theme is apparent in how they all show adoration to the child Jesus, while Francis is experiencing stigmata at the back. The Flight into Egypt features Mary, Joseph, and the child Jesus. The biblical event is their travel to Egypt. These paintings employ religious characters and themes that were prominent subjects of the painters’ times. Apart from the portrayal of religious characters and themes, these paintings are all set in naturalistic landscapes. None of the

Compare and contrast salvation and the self Essay

Compare and contrast salvation and the self - Essay Example While Buddhism denies the existence of a soul or a distinct self, Hinduism affirms its existence in its most sacred texts like the Bhagavad Gita. According to Theravada Buddhism, there is no soul or consciousness that is separate from matter. The world's sufferings are caused by the attachment to our ego. According to Buddhism, even the notion of an immortal soul or that of a loving God are delusions. According to Teravada, one who gains insight passes through four stages .The fourth and final stage is that of the Arhat., "who has attained complete freedom ..The Arhat is free from all bonds including the desire for existence in formed or formless worlds, as well as ignorance, excitability and ambition"(Encyclopedia Britannica) The Sthitaprajna of the Bhagavad Gita exhibits similar traits. Salvation, whether it is the Nirvana of the Buddhist, or Moksha of the Hindu, is the highest goal one can aspire for. According to Theravada Buddhism, Nirvana is " beyond death,not caused, not born, not produced; it is beyond all becoming and devoid of all that makes up a human person"(Encyclopedia) It is the abode of supreme happiness, which is attained by one who has realized the Four Noble Truths. The four Noble Truths were told by the Buddha in his first sermon after his enlightenment.

Assessment of English Language Learners Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Assessment of English Language Learners - Essay Example This is done to improve the ability of a test to achieve the required outcomes with little or no drawbacks. Introduction Spanish speaking students in the United States have varying English language proficiency. This might limit their learning ability when undertaking educational programs administered in English. To determine the level of English proficiency on these students, English language learners assessment is crucial. The assessment is currently undertaken in schools using English language proficiency test that is a combination of both summative and formative assessments. This currently used test has both benefits and drawbacks. Hence, there is a need for review of this test to make it much better. The benefits make it unnecessary to replace the test with other tests. However, the drawbacks call for a review of the test in order to make it more effective. Review of English language proficiency test English language proficiency test currently used in most schools, including ours , is a combination of formative and summative assessments. The summative tests are undertaken at the end of an English language instruction to determine the students English proficiency developed during the learning period. Formative tests that are used to guide instructions are taken at the beginning or in the middle of instruction. In this kind of a test, an educator designs an assessment activity to detect an aspect of a student’s language proficiency that could guide him in his decisions. However, in this English language proficiency test an educator rarely involve students in the designing of the test. According to Spodek & Saracho (2006), this test is effective in promoting accountability for students’ progress as well as monitoring this progress. The formative part of this test has been effective in monitoring the progress of the students. Summative part on the other hand has been promoting the accountability for students’ learning among the educators. Mo reover, this English language proficiency test has been effective in categorizing students according to their levels of English language proficiency. However, according to Stiggins (2007), this English language proficiency test has been categorizing students into two categories, which are those on the winning streak and those on the losing streak. Those on the losing streak have become de-motivated and thus failing to succeed in education thus the requires a review in order to reverse the trend. Several reviews applicable to the test that can avoid drawbacks exist. One review is through inviting students in the creating and interpreting the results of the test. This could enable the students to monitor their learning and levels of achievements, as a result, all of them would be more motivated to learn. Another crucial review is involving students in keeping records concerned with the test. This would enable the student to know and understand his changes in performance levels. As a r esult, students would be able to monitor their improvements. The other important review is improvement in the test development. English language test could be reviewed to become purpose driven and effective in results delivery (Abedi, 2007). This could be achieved through a collaborative effort between the educators, students, and other stakeholders. Undertaking these reviews would make the test more effective, thus giving it an ability to overcome most of its drawbacks. Alternative assessment formats Five

Envisioning America & What Caused the Pueblo Revolt Essay - 8

Envisioning America & What Caused the Pueblo Revolt - Essay Example I myself have been witness to some of those distressing racial atrocities and have seen murderous intent of few white who had applied Jim Crow Rules against the blacks. I still feel ashamed of the stunted mentality of those people who reveled in the killings of another human being! America was discovered by Spanish explorer, Columbus in the 16th century, who had developed good relations with the native Indian population. But the early 17th century saw the process of colonization by the British settlers who had brought shipload of African slaves as bonded labors to work on plantation and elsewhere. Jamestown in Virginia became the first place for British settlement followed by colonies in Massachusetts and eastern seaboard in the later part of the century. They also tried to exploit the Native Americans with respect to labor and sea faring activities. The indentured labor consisting of European workers, worked as bonded laborers who were freed after several years so as to pay-off their passage to a new country. The slaves worked in labor intensive tobacco plantations along with Native Americans who later refused to work because they were afflicted with diseased like tuberculosis etc. which were brought by the settlers. Turn of the century saw the raced based slavery becoming a full fledged tradition with Africans and non whites becoming slaves for life. Control over the blacks became the main concern of the white because of the rebellion from the natives. The British Crown delegated the power to the companies who administered in their behalf with rules and regulations. The natives, on the other hand, did not believe in subjugation and rebelled against any revenue imposed by the settlers. I had a fat black lady as my governess who was not only very loving and funny but she was also ferociously protective of me. I remember that once when my parents had to leave in emergency, my Joan, my governess took me to her place for

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

Unemployment - Research Paper Example Extensive research over multiple aspects of unemployment has revealed that the past unemployment results in change of preferences such as prices and constraints, affecting the levels of future unemployment as well. Individuals differ in certain unmeasured variables that, if not properly controlled, have influential impact on levels of unemployment. There exists, however, no universally acceptable definition of unemployment so far because both employed and unemployed people worldwide are measured quite differently.Over the last few decades, the progressive world economies have, though slowly, recognized the complexity and seriousness of growing unemployment issues at last. However, various scholars and economic organizations have provided with more generalized definitions of unemployment. The most widely referred definition from the International Labor Organization states that unemployment â€Å"occurs when people are without jobs and they have actively looked for work within the pas t four weeks. The unemployment rate is a measure of the prevalence of unemployment and it is calculated as a percentage by dividing the number of unemployed individuals by all individuals currently in the labor force.† According to the Census Bureau, â€Å"unemployed persons include those who did not work at all during the survey week, and who were looking for work. Also included are persons who would have been looking for work except that (a) they were temporary ill, (b) they expected to return to a job from which they had been laid off for an indefinite period, or (c) they believed no work was available in their line of work or in the community.† Unemployment can also be defined as, â€Å"An economic condition marked by the fact that individuals actively seeking jobs remain un-hired. Unemployment is expressed as a percentage of the total available work force. The level of unemployment varies with economic conditions and other circumstances.† (Investor words, 20 09). Students, children, retired personnel or people not interested in a paid job are not inclusive, however. Categorized on basis of causes and consequences, there are four major types of unemployment in macroeconomics. Frictional unemployment - People who are re-entering (are between jobs) or entering for the first time or after absence from work usually experience short-term unemployment called frictional unemployment. This kind of unemployment is sometimes considered beneficial as it provides time to individuals, organizations and societies to find better jobs build suitable workforce and improve services respectively. Structural unemployment – Unemployment also occurs if there are both jobs and workers available but the skills required for a job are not matching workers’ experience. This situation often results due to changes in structural economies and lasts for several years (long-term). For example, jobs are available in oil and gas industry and workers have sk ills with textile industry, there is a mismatch of skills leading to Structural unemployment. Seasonal unemployment – Sometimes, changes in weather, tourist activities or other seasonal factors results in short-term unemployment of related people called Seasonal unemployment. For example, some people experience joblessness as the construction activity slows down during extreme winters. Cyclic unemployment – Due to prolonged periods of recession, production outputs are reduced causing joblessness. Previous employees lose jobs and entrants have fewer openings to search. As business cycle is actively involved, this type of unemployment is called Cyclic unemployment. This is long-term and considered as the most severe kind of unemployment. When joblessness due business cycle is minimized to zero, economists say that we have reached full employment. Rise in level of unemployment is considered among the most worrisome economic problems. Due to gradual adjustments according t o the market equilibrium price and quantity over time, there exists no

Nike Case Study Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Nike Case Study - Research Paper Example Ballinger was passionate that a company should have a responsibility for its workers even if they are the lowest paid workforce of the company (Spar, 2002). Ballinger was assigned to monitor labor conditions in an Indonesian plant by overseas American companies because he considered that the reason for international companies to prepare a setup in poor countries is to exploit the low-wage labors. This has been true over years that big multinational companies have been shifting their operations to lower wage countries in order to reduce their production cost and collect more profits. The cost of production in America is double the cost of a product which is being manufactured in other countries (Locke, 2002). He claims that Nike has a policy that in order to produce cost effective products, they mistreat their workers and make them work longer hours than required. He believed that even though there were laws for protecting the labor rights, Nike continuously fed the Indonesian governm ent with bribe to overlook their part of misdeed. Ballinger accused Nike that they knew people were dependent on the company and would rarely leave the company, so they mistreated them to get more production with fewer necessities and food provided to the people. Ballinger had strength in his arguments because workers were in a bad situation and when they were interviewed by Ballinger, they agreed with the same (Connor, 2001). Nike’s Response to Ballinger’s Allegations The first response from Nike was clear that their manager said Nike’s not responsible for the actions of their independent contractors. Nike considered that they are not involved in any kind of activity in Indonesia and most likely they would not be responsible for their act. However, Nike asked its public relation officer to draft a code of conduct for its independent contractors (Stoner, 2006). This code of conduct would then be sent to their new contractors in which all aspects of working condi tions of labors, environment regulation and insurance of their workers were addressed. Nike wanted all of their suppliers and independent contractors to agree with all terms that were specified before making any further deal. It was made mandatory that these suppliers would have to give their written consent of their honesty and non-discrimination (Spar, 2002). Nike hired an accounting firm Ernst & Young to conduct an audit of its overseas factories. Auditing would inform Nike with activities of their overseas factories and would identify their problems. But the problem started to mount and criticism had started to rise again with a greater force. Nike denied any act of direct involvement in child labor activity and of worker exploitation. In Washington, Nike was the first company to join Apparel Industry Partnership (AIP) which was aimed to develop reformed labor standards in foreign factories. Nike also included a new department in its company which was known as Labor Practices De partment which role was to monitor labor practices in premises of the factory (Spar, 2002). Recommendations Firstly, Nike should focus on improving its processes in their overseas factories by making strict guidelines and norms for their factories to follow. The company shall motivate their independent

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

Unemployment - Research Paper Example Extensive research over multiple aspects of unemployment has revealed that the past unemployment results in change of preferences such as prices and constraints, affecting the levels of future unemployment as well. Individuals differ in certain unmeasured variables that, if not properly controlled, have influential impact on levels of unemployment. There exists, however, no universally acceptable definition of unemployment so far because both employed and unemployed people worldwide are measured quite differently.Over the last few decades, the progressive world economies have, though slowly, recognized the complexity and seriousness of growing unemployment issues at last. However, various scholars and economic organizations have provided with more generalized definitions of unemployment. The most widely referred definition from the International Labor Organization states that unemployment â€Å"occurs when people are without jobs and they have actively looked for work within the pas t four weeks. The unemployment rate is a measure of the prevalence of unemployment and it is calculated as a percentage by dividing the number of unemployed individuals by all individuals currently in the labor force.† According to the Census Bureau, â€Å"unemployed persons include those who did not work at all during the survey week, and who were looking for work. Also included are persons who would have been looking for work except that (a) they were temporary ill, (b) they expected to return to a job from which they had been laid off for an indefinite period, or (c) they believed no work was available in their line of work or in the community.† Unemployment can also be defined as, â€Å"An economic condition marked by the fact that individuals actively seeking jobs remain un-hired. Unemployment is expressed as a percentage of the total available work force. The level of unemployment varies with economic conditions and other circumstances.† (Investor words, 20 09). Students, children, retired personnel or people not interested in a paid job are not inclusive, however. Categorized on basis of causes and consequences, there are four major types of unemployment in macroeconomics. Frictional unemployment - People who are re-entering (are between jobs) or entering for the first time or after absence from work usually experience short-term unemployment called frictional unemployment. This kind of unemployment is sometimes considered beneficial as it provides time to individuals, organizations and societies to find better jobs build suitable workforce and improve services respectively. Structural unemployment – Unemployment also occurs if there are both jobs and workers available but the skills required for a job are not matching workers’ experience. This situation often results due to changes in structural economies and lasts for several years (long-term). For example, jobs are available in oil and gas industry and workers have sk ills with textile industry, there is a mismatch of skills leading to Structural unemployment. Seasonal unemployment – Sometimes, changes in weather, tourist activities or other seasonal factors results in short-term unemployment of related people called Seasonal unemployment. For example, some people experience joblessness as the construction activity slows down during extreme winters. Cyclic unemployment – Due to prolonged periods of recession, production outputs are reduced causing joblessness. Previous employees lose jobs and entrants have fewer openings to search. As business cycle is actively involved, this type of unemployment is called Cyclic unemployment. This is long-term and considered as the most severe kind of unemployment. When joblessness due business cycle is minimized to zero, economists say that we have reached full employment. Rise in level of unemployment is considered among the most worrisome economic problems. Due to gradual adjustments according t o the market equilibrium price and quantity over time, there exists no

Health care workforce and health care delivery Essay Example for Free

Health care workforce and health care delivery Essay How are the health care workforce and health care delivery affected by generational differences? Millions of generations have worked so hard to contribute to some of the challenges within the workforce. Every generation has inner deep values formulated by the era in which they were born and some life experiences. The work ethics, perceptions of others and communication styles are the inner deep values that affect experiences at work. According to research, the workforce transitioned from a two generation workforce (Matures and Boomers) to three generations (Matures, Boomers and Generation X). The mature generation’s characteristics developed from experiences in the Great Depression. Responsibility and quality are key expectations of the Matures, as well as structure and respect. The Boomer generation, a larger part of the workforce who experienced an era of growth and prosperity requires praise and recognition, putting company needs before personal needs, while juggling multiple responsibilities with competence. Some nursing leaders have experienced some challenges in generational diversity as well as differences in perceptions, values, attitudes, work ethics and beliefs. It is important to develop the skills to look at generational differences through different perspective to allow the leaders to extend their leadership qualities and productivity, decrease conflicts and increase the contributions of every staff. It is important to resolve conflicts within the nursing team, otherwise if unresolved it can lead to a loss of productive time, errors, staff turnover, and decreased patient satisfaction. References Swenson.C.Human Resource Solutions. NURSING ECONOMIC$/January-February 2008/Vol. 26/No. 1.Retrieved on June 25, 2014 from https://www.nursingeconomics.net/necfiles/hrsolutions/hrs_JF08.pdfMorrison, J.L. (2007). Ideas to consider when Discuss the shortage of health care staff, aside from doctors and nurses. The health care system has been experiencing a shortage of health care workers for a number of years. This is difficult to understand because a number of people struggle to understand how the organization could suffer from worker shortages in the time of economic recession, when many Americans does not have a job and the unemployment rate is high. This is an explanation that points to the different employees that the healthcare organizations need, for the organization to work in an efficient manner. The health care workers at a professional level who provide direct health services such as doctors, nurses, pharmacists and laboratory technicians or those who offer support services such as financial officers, cooks, drivers and cleaners are integral to the organization. According to a World Health Organization (WHO) report, a shortage in just one part of that complex web of workers can stop other parts from functioning at their best. A perfect example is at the hospital where I work, there has been a few times when there has been no house keeper to cover the floor because they felt sick and had to leave. On few occasions it has created some problems whereby there was no one to do their work, because housekeeping supervisor could not find any one to cover that shift and it became a problem in a number of ways you could imagine. There was no house keeper to throw the trash that was filled up, no one to mop the dirty floors and clean the toilets. All the nurses and the doctors were busy with the patients and it was difficult to find time to start doing the house keeping work. I believe every job is very important whether professional of or unprofessional, we all do different tasks in the health care field to reach one common goal of impressing our consumers or patients. The World Health Organization (WHO) observed that developed countries, such as America are going through a shortage due to an increasing number of baby boomers in the population and increasingly high-tech healthcare. Research shows that the government and university leaders have underinvested in education for health care workers, with not many new health workers to replace their retiring colleagues. Reference: Internet Article-Why Healthcare is Experiencing Work Shortages. Miracle Workers Retrieved on June 25, 2014 from: http://www.careerbuilder.com/Article/CB-1806-Healthcare-Why-Healthcare-is-Experiencing-Work-Shortages

Stability and Control of Nonlinear Systems

Stability and Control of Nonlinear Systems The following system was provided to study about passivity, asymptotic stability, and input to state stability properties at conditions. The given system of differential equation for analysis is given below Also, The state space representation of the system is as follows. Let, Similarly Hence Based on the system equation is given by Similarly, based on the state space representation The state of system , where n=4, where m=2 and where p=2. Hence p=m.   A dissipative system with respect to supply rate is said to be passive, if The Lyapunov function for the system is given as Hence with respect to definition of state variables, it can be rewritten as Hence, Also, based on the definition of S, For the given system , hence the lossless system, is passive from u to y. The PD feedback controller of the system with and is represented as Hence the state space representation of the system, is given by The modified Lyapunov function with potential energy is given by It can be observed that V(x) is differentiable (V: R4 → R and a C1 function). Based on the equation of V(x) it can be observed that, The term and all other terms are quadratic in nature.   Hence where Hence V(x) is positive definite. Let V(x) is bounded by V(x)≠¤M, where M à Ã‚ µ R, then it implies that ⇒ ⇒ and ⇒ ⇒ and ⇒ ⇒ and ⇒ ⇒ and ⇒ ⇒ Hence V(x) is radially unbounded. The derivative of V(x) can be obtained as follows Upon substitution and solving the equations, At It can be observed that Based on the above equation, it can be observed that It can be observed that , has only quadratic terms with a negative sign prefixed hence where Hence is negative definite. The equilibrium point of the system at is given by Hence origin is the only equilibrium point of the system. Based on the above observations, it can be concluded that the system is globally asymptotically stable at the origin. The given systems were simulated for different values of   and , modified one at a time with other disturbance set to zero and the initial condition set at origin. The following observations can be found from subplots of and Hence the disturbance in both the coordinates of the system are additive in nature. It can be observed that, whenever initial state of the system set to origin and disturbance is induced in one of the coordinate ( or ), the other coordinate of the system is not disturbed. Figure 1 State of System with disturbance at origin with rd=0 Figure 2 State of System with disturbance at origin with thd=0 The Figure 3 indicates the state of the system, when is modified from -5 to 5 with , with the initial condition as x = {7,3,5,1}.   The settling time of the system varies with the magnitude of disturbance and the initial condition.   Also, it can be observed from the plot of that the system settles to a point which is offset from the origin (equilibrium) by the value of disturbance.   Also, the settling time of the system is more for d=-c, when compared to d=c. Also, disturbance in one of the coordinate (), has its effect in another coordinate. Figure 3 State of System with rd=0 at x = [7,3,5,1] The observations of disturbance induced in when , is applicable for the disturbance induced in with    Also, it can be observed from Figure 4 that the settling time of the system is higher when a disturbance is induced in r-coordinate, when compared to -coordinate. Figure 4 State of System with thd = 0 at x = [7,3,5,1] The effect of having both and was observed by simulating the system response for and . Also, it can be observed that settling time of the system is similar to disturbance induced only in the r-coordinate. Figure 5 State of System with thd = -5, rd=5 at x = [7,3,5,1] In all the above plots, it can be observed from the subplot of that the settling point of state as t→, and , indicating that the state of the system tracks the input in the respective coordinate. It can also be observed from the previous plots for d=0, system exhibits the property of global asymptotic stability to the origin (equilibrium point).   Also, , the state implies the Bounded Input Bounded State property of the system. The input to state stability of the closed loop system with respect to and for the system was validated by adding a destabilizing feedback with and . The function k(x) of the disturbance is selected, such that the power transferred to the system is maximized, which can be performed when   . From the above equation, it can be observed that the power transferred to the system can be maximized by choosing same sign of with c≠¥0.   The nature of system response for different range of c is listed in the Table 1 below. Table 1 System Response for Variation in c at initial condition of [7,3,5,1]] Value of c Observation c ≠¤ 1.99 The energy of the system decreases initially, indicated by the plot of Lyapunov function shown in Figure 6 and the same result can be observed on the plot of r and ÃŽ ¸, where the magnitude decreases initially and oscillates with the bounded magnitude, for the bounded input indicated in plot of theta-d. c>1.99 For c=5, the energy of the system increases, indicated by the plot of Lyapunov function shown in Figure 7 and the plot of r and ÃŽ ¸ indicates that the magnitude continues to increases resulting in unbounded state for the bounded input indicated in plot of theta-d.   Also, it can be observed that the rate of increase in energy of the system, decreases with time. Figure 6 State of System at c=1.75 The system is not Input to state stable (ISS) for c>1.99 and Figure 7 indicates a system which is not ISS for c=5.   The value of transition from bounded state to unbounded state was observed at c=1.93 for an initial point of [1,2,1,2].   Based on the above observation, the transition value of c is dependent of initial condition (energy) of the system. Figure 7 State of System at c=5 The PD control used in the r-coordinate is modified as The simulations were carried out, to identify the properties of ISS satisfied by the system, with respect to and as inputs.   All the simulations were carried out with respect to the initial condition x0 = (7,3,5,1) Condition 1: The system is evaluated with zero disturbance and , the result is indicated in Figure 8. Figure 8 System with Zero Disturbance For the no disturbance conditions, it can be observed that the system is asymptotically stable about the origin (equilibrium), indicating the Global asymptotic stability of the system about the origin.   Also from the plot of Lyapunov function, it can be observed that the energy of the system settles down to zero. Condition 2: The destabilizing feedback input used in question 5 for the system was fed to the system and it its response is indicated in figure Figure 9 State of System at c=5 with modified PD Control The following observations can be made with respect to figure For an input , the state , indicating bounded input bounded state property of the system. It can be observed that, though the energy of the system increases initially, but upper bounded over a period.   The energy and the state of the system gets bounded over period of simulation.   Hence for the bounded input, state of the system is bounded. Also, the system exhibits property of asymptotic gain, since the state of the system is upper bounded by disturbance with gain of the system. Also, it was observed that though the system is ISS for the c=5, as the value of c increases energy of the system increases (example for c=10, v(x) is upper bounded to 10,000).   Hence modifying the PD control, makes the system ISS for a larger range of disturbances, when compared to earlier control. Condition 3: The system was fed with the input Figure 10 State of system rd=0 and theta d=5*exp(t) It can be observed from the plot that d(t)→ 0 as , also aysmptotically.   Hence the system indicates the property of converging input, converging state. The response of the system was evaluated with different possible inputs for , such as , the state of the system x1, x3 was chosen based on observations made in earlier simulations (q5) where predominantly these states grew out of bound Similarly, the above input conditions were simulated with =0 and defined as one of the input, few combinations of the above input disturbances and few possible system interconnections such as positive feedback interconnection, negative feedback interconnection, series interconnection. System response for various types of disturbance Constant Disturbance The disturbance of the system is set to constant values, as indicated in Figure 5 Figure 11 State of system at theta d=-5 rd=5 It can be observed from the plot of Figure 11 and Figure 5 that the settling time of system in r-coordinate has reduced almost by half, when compared to previous control. Positive Feedback Interconnection The disturbance input condition is mentioned below and the system response is shown in Figure 12 Figure 12 System Response for Positive Feedback Interconnection The state of the system indicates the converging nature, also it can be observed that after the transient period system follows the input. Series Interconnection The system is connected in series, with the following disturbance input configuration for each of the subsystem and the plot for the same is shown in Figure 13. Figure 13 System Response for Series Interconnection It can be observed that the behavior of the system is similar with respect to condition 2, but the energy of the system settles down at a higher level when compared to the similar condition with System with different disturbances acting simultaneously The type of disturbance added to the system is given below and the response of the system is shown in figure Figure 14 System response of simultaneous time varying disturbance It can be observed that the system exhibit the property of bounded input bounded state, even if the disturbance is of time varying. In all the above simulation conditions, it was observed that the system exhibits bounded state nature for a wider range of inputs with higher magnitude, when compared to the PD control implemented earlier.   This phenomenon can be attributed to the cubic terms with the negative sign, as it can reduce the rate at which energy of the system increases, before it goes out of bound. APPENDIX Code Used for Generation of Plots Contents Q4 Constant Value of Theta-d and r-d Q5 for ISS Q6 for ISS with new u2 Q4 Constant Value of Theta-d and r-d clc clear all close all global x1d; global x3d; ts=500;   %Duration for solving ip=[7,3,5,1]; options=odeset(AbsTol,1e-7,RelTol,1e-5); thd=[-5]; rd=[5]; for i=1:size(thd,2)   Ã‚  Ã‚   for j=1:size(rd,2)%-29:30:31   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   x1d=thd(i);  Ã‚   %x1d is Theta-d   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   x3d=rd(j);  Ã‚   %x3d is r-d   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   [t,x]=ode23(@deeqn,[0 ts],ip,options);   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   figure(1)   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   subplot(2,2,1)   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   hold on   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   plot(t,x(:,1))   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   title(Plot of Theta)   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   xlabel(Time)   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   ylabel(Theta)   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   grid on   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   grid minor   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   subplot(2,2,2)   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   hold on   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   plot(t,x(:,2))   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   title(Plot of Theta-dot)   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   xlabel(Time)   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   ylabel(Theta-dot)   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   grid on   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   grid minor   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   subplot(2,2,3)   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   hold on   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   plot(t,x(:,3))   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   title(Plot of r)   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   xlabel(Time)   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   ylabel(r)   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   grid on   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   grid minor   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   subplot(2,2,4)   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   hold on   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   plot(t,x(:,4))   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   title(Plot of r-dot)   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   xlabel(Time)   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   ylabel(r-dot)   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   grid on   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   grid minor   Ã‚  Ã‚   end end Q5 for ISS clc close all global x1d; global x3d; ts=10000;   %Duration for solving ip=[7,3,5,1]; options=odeset(AbsTol,1e-7,RelTol,1e-5); x1=ip;    global c;    cval=[1.92]   %1.993 is transition point    for i=1:size(cval,2)    c=cval(i);   %4.0125   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   x1d=0;  Ã‚   %x1d is Theta-d   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   x3d=0;  Ã‚   %x3d is r-d   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   [t,x]=ode23(@deeqnvx,[0 ts],ip,options);   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   figure(2)   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   subplot(2,3,1)   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   hold on   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   plot(t,x(:,1))   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   title(Plot of Theta)   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   xlabel(Time)   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   ylabel(Theta)   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   grid on   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   grid minor   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   subplot(2,3,2)   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   hold on   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   plot(t,x(:,2))   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   title(Plot of Theta-dot)   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   xlabel(Time)   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   ylabel(Theta-dot)   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   grid on   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   grid minor   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   subplot(2,3,4)   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   hold on   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   plot(t,x(:,3))   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   title(Plot of r)   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   xlabel(Time)   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   ylabel(r)   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   grid on   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   grid minor   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   subplot(2,3,5)   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   hold on   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   plot(t,x(:,4))   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   title(Plot of r-dot)   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   xlabel(Time)   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   ylabel(r-dot)   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   grid on   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   grid minor   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   subplot(2,3,3)   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   hold on   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   thdin=c.*sign(x(:,2));   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   plot(t,thdin)   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   title(Plot of theta-d)   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   xlabel(Time)   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   ylabel(theta-dot)   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   grid on   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   grid minor   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   subplot(2,3,6)   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   hold on  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   vxfn=(1/2).*(((x(:,3).^2)+1).*(x(:,2).^2)+(x(:,4).^2)+(x(:,1).^2)+(x(:,3).^2));   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   plot(t,vxfn)   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   title(Plot Lyapunov Function)   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   xlabel(Time)   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   ylabel(v(x))   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   grid on   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   grid minor    end Q6 for ISS with new u2 clc close all global x1d; global x3d; ts=100;   %Duration for solving ip=[7,3,5,1]; options=odeset(AbsTol,1e-7,RelTol,1e-5); x1=ip;    global c;    cval=[5]   %1.993 is transition point    for i=1:size(cval,2)    c=cval(i);   %4.0125   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   x1d=0;  Ã‚   %x1d is Theta-d   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   x3d=0;  Ã‚   %x3d is r-d   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   [t,x]=ode23(@deeqnr,[0 ts],ip,options);   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   figure(3)   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   subplot(2,3,1)   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   hold on   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   plot(t,x(:,1))   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   title(Plot of Theta)   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   xlabel(Time)   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   ylabel(Theta)   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   grid on   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   grid minor   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   subplot(2,3,2)   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   hold on   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   plot(t,x(:,2))   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   title(Plot of Theta-dot)   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   xlabel(Time)   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   ylabel(Theta-dot)   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   grid on   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   grid minor   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   subplot(2,3,4)   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   hold on   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   plot(t,x(:,3))   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   title(Plot of r) Function for constant disturbance function dx = deeqn(t,x) % Function for system model %  Ã‚   Argument function for ODE Solver global x1d; global x3d; dx=[x(2); (-2*x(3)*x(4)*x(2)-x(2)-x(1)+x1d)/((x(3).^2)+1);x(4);x(3)*(x(2).^2)-x(4)-x(3)+x3d]; end System with Destabilizing Feedback function dx = deeqnvx(t,x) % Function for system model %  Ã‚   Argument function for ODE Solver global x1d; global x3d; global c; x1d=c.*sign((+1).*x(2));; dx=[x(2); (-2*x(3)*x(4)*x(2)-x(2)-x(1)+x1d)/((x(3).^2)+1); x(4); x(3)*(x(2).^2)-x(4)-x(3)+x3d]; end Function with new u2 and old u1 function dx = deeqnr(t,x) % Function for system model %  Ã‚   Argument function for ODE Solver global x1d; global x3d; global c; x1d=x(4);%c.*sign((+1).*x(2));; x3d=x(2); dx=[x(2); (-2*x(3)*x(4)*x(2)-x(2)-x(1)+x1d)/((x(3).^2)+1);x(4);x(3)*(x(2).^2)-x(4)-x(3)+x3d-(x(3).^3)+(x3d.^3)]; end Published with MATLAB ® R2016b

Jealousy in Shakespeares Othello Essay -- Othello essays

Jealousy in Othello Shakespeare is well for his ability to compose plays full of deceit, revenge, and jealousy. Othello, one of Shakespeare’s most recognized tragedies, was consistently evolving around the central theme of jealousy. As these lies are unraveled the central theme of his play became distinct, and clearly visible. Furthermore the theme of jealousy goes hand in hand with love, as often is the case in real life. Love consumes all those who take part in it, and in Othello's case his flaws lie in his loving Desdemona so blindly. It is for that single reason that Iago knows that such a naà ¯ve man as Othello, who loves his wife so blindly and unrealistically, can be corrupted. Just as Othello's flaws lie within his inability to see past his jealous feelings, so does many of the other characters, no matter what social ranking they are classified in. Even from the well-developed characters, such as Othello, to the lesser figures, such as Roderigo, envy and lust are feelings all of Shakespeare's characters are accountable for holding at one time or other in the play. Within each of the characters in Othello is a level of jealousy, which Iago creates by testing their pressure points for his benefit. In Act 1 scene 1, Shakespeare opens up to his audience a level of jealousy that goes hand in hand with feelings of greed. This is the moment in which Iago expresses his animosity for Othello. Iago is sub... ... Works Cited and Consulted Bradley, A. C.. Shakespearean Tragedy. New York: Penguin, 1991. Di Yanni, Robert. â€Å"Character Revealed Through Dialogue.† Readings on The Tragedies. Ed. Clarice Swisher. San Diego: Greenhaven Press, 1996. Reprint from Literature. N. p.: Random House, 1986. Mack, Maynard. Everybody’s Shakespeare: Reflections Chiefly on the Tragedies. Lincoln, NB: University of Nebraska Press, 1993. Shakespeare. Othello. The Longman Anthology of British Literature. Ed. Rossi. New York: Longman, 1999. 312-379. Shakespeare, William. Othello. In The Electric Shakespeare. Princeton University. 1996. http://www.eiu.edu/~multilit/studyabroad/othello/othello_all.html No line nos.

The Relationship of Drug-Trafficking and Terrorism in the United States Of America :: Essays Papers

The Relationship of Drug-Trafficking and Terrorism in the United States Of America It’s so Important for Americans to know that the traffic of drugs finances the work of terror, sustaining terrorists, that terrorists use drug profits to fund their cells to commit acts of murder. If you quit drugs you join the fight against terror in America. - President George W. Bush Upon recently watching a movie titled â€Å"Blow,† I found myself asking how something like such could be related to the embassy bombing events and others, like the bombing of the World Trade Centers, and I quickly discovered that there are thousands of ways in which this is possible. In fact it is relevant enough that the past two Presidents (Clinton/Bush Jr.) have drawn up plans to stop it and it appears that America has an opportunity to tackle two rather large problems in one fight, killing two birds with one stone per say. The only question left too answer would be what sacrifices will the citizens of America be forced to make? Where will the line be drawn in the security and privacy of citizens. How much are you willing to give up to lower your chances of being the recipient of a terrorist attack? (Drug Enforcement Agency hosts symposium on topic) â€Å"The links between terrorism and narcotrafficking are real and growing, according to current and former U.S. officials who participated in a special symposium December 4 at the headquarters of the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA). Hosted by the DEA Museum & Visitors Center, ‘Target America: Traffickers, Terrorists and Your Kids’ brought together government officials with the private-sector experts in an effort to educate the American public about what DEA Administrator Asa Hutchingson called the ‘extraordinary link between drugs and terrorism.’ The symposium was part of an effort by the Association of Former federal Narcotics Agents (AFFNA) to develop a museum exhibit and educational program that will explore this theme. In remarks opening the symposium, Hutchinson said there is ‘a strong case to be made that drug trafficking proceeds are being funneled to terrorists organizations,’ such as the Taliban, the FARC group in Colombia and Islamic Jihad. ‘It is clear the bin Laden’s terrorism has been protected by a regime funded by opium trafficking,’ he added. U.S. Representative Mark Souder (Republican, Indiana) told symposium participants that the interrelationship between drugs and terrorism is not new.

Domestic and Global Business Environment

BA 7000 Domestic and Global Business Conditions Bradley T. Ewing, Ph. D. Jerry S. Rawls Professor in Operations Management Area of ISQS Office: BA 164A Phone: 742-3939 Email: bradley. [email  protected] edu MBA Summer 2009 COURSE DESCRIPTION BA 7000 – Domestic and Global Business Conditions – This course is intended to help students develop a better understanding of the domestic and global environments in which US businesses compete. Specifically, this course takes a satellite-view of markets in which firms compete, including markets for goods and services; money, bonds and stocks; foreign exchange; and labor.These markets are examined individually and as a system. Particular emphasis is placed on studying the interactions among all markets in order to gain a better understanding of how domestic and global business conditions affect the formulation and implementation of business strategies. COURSE OVERVIEW This course examines the fundamentals of business conditions a nalysis with an emphasis on how domestic and global business conditions affect the formulation and implementation of business strategies. Specifically the primary goals of this course are to enable you to: †¢ †¢ †¢ †¢ †¢Recognize the relevance of domestic and global business conditions to managerial decision-making and firm performance, and to apply business principles to relate to business issues and the marketplace. Understand the mechanisms of the domestic and global business environment within the broad social, political, industrial and economic contexts. Explore the nature of business conditions and the implications for decision-making, research, business and policy. Analyze the firm, organization, or practices and its operations from a domestic and global systems perspective.Acquire a skill set of analytic tools that will increase your human capital. BOOKS & MATERIALS These books are fairly quick and easy to read: The Undercover Economist by Tim Harfor d The Tipping Point: How Little Things Can Make a Big Difference by Malcolm Gladwell Freakonomics: A Rogue Economist Explains the Hidden Side of Everything by Steven Levitt and Stephen Dubner Travels of a T-Shirt in the Global Economy by Pietra Rivoli Articles: â€Å"Who Supplied My Cheese? † Business Economics, October 2005. (will be posted on my web site www3. tltc. ttu. du/ewing) â€Å"Strengthening Globalization’s Invisible Hand,† Business Economics, October 2006. (will be posted on my web site www3. tltc. ttu. edu/ewing) Other: Economics for Dummies (contains background, reference material) Online Lecture Notes – a set of PowerPoint slides (in pdf) available on my web site (http://courses. ttu. edu/bewing). You should use these to supplement the e-delivery lectures You should read â€Å"Economics for Dummies† in its entirety before reading any of the other books or doing the assignments. Additionally, you should view the lectures on DVD concur rently with your reading of â€Å"Economics for Dummies†.Reading â€Å"Economics for Dummies† and viewing the lectures prior to doing the assignments will help you understand the material and it should help you get the best grade possible. LEARNING OBJECTIVES 1. Develop students’ ability to think in business terms and about the conditions surrounding their operating environment. 2. Develop students’ ability to view organizations from a domestic and global business systems perspective. 3. Build students' analytical skills for conducting business analysis. 4. Provide students with the opportunity to develop strategies for real world problems, and to develop decision making skills. . Integrate knowledge gained in other business experiences. Course Topic Guide Material to be covered: Business Conditions Concepts and Analysis Introduction to business conditions, concepts and analysis Operating a firm within the domestic and global environment Global economy an d the Federal Reserve Economics of Risk – risk analysis (perception & communication), risk management & decision making Value Creation, Supply Chain Economics Business model – integrating economics, operations & strategy Note: You may download a set of PowerPoint slides to accompany the lectures.COURSE REQUIREMENTS AND GRADING All assignments need to be emailed to me with the course title and semester (i. e. , â€Å"MBA – BA 7000 Summer 2009†) clearly written in the subject line. I will acknowledge receipt of your assignments – usually within 24 hours. Due to the amount of spam and the use of a junk mail filter, do no assume that I have received your assignment until you have received an acknowledgement from me (Note: please use your official Texas Tech email account so that way your email has a better chance of getting through).General Guidelines for Written Work All written work prepared outside of class should be typewritten and contain a cover page with your name, course number, date, and title. Where page lengths are noted for particular assignments, the page lengths assume 12 point font, 8 1/2 by 11 paper, double spaced type, and one inch margins on all sides. In cases where 12 pitch type is not available, page lengths should be adjusted proportionately. Please include a cover sheet for all work which includes your name along with the date and subject of the project. Written work will be graded for both content and quality.That is, grammar, punctuation, spelling, coherence, style, and organization will be considered. A concise style is essential. Corporate executives repeatedly emphasize the need for business schools to do a better job of preparing MBAs to write in an organizational context. The standards applied to writing quality will approximate those applied to major corporate documents that have been prepared for broad distribution among senior executives. In order to receive a grade of â€Å"B† in the cours e the student will need to do â€Å"B† quality work on each of the above assignments.In addition to the above assignments, students will need to do â€Å"B† quality work on the following assignments (#1-4): Assignment #1 Turn in a 2-3 page critique of The Undercover Economist. In your critique of the book identify key points that you think will be valuable to you (or, in some cases, for a particular industry, the domestic or global economy) in the years to come. Additionally, identify what parts, if any, of the book were a waste of your time to read. I also want you to identify what parts of the book relate to the lectures.Next, discuss how you would/could successfully apply the major points of the book in an organization (of your choosing but presumably in the field of your chosen profession). Discuss potential pitfalls (i. e. , areas that are especially vulnerable to â€Å"success† and thus provide examples of how these major points have been unsuccessfully ap plied in the organization of your choosing). Discuss how you would (e. g. , if you were to be consulted or had been consulted) apply some of these tools and knowledge differently to the organization in the future.Then on a scale of 1 to 10 (ten being the best) give an overall assessment of the book. Assignment #2 Turn in a 2-3 page critique of The Tipping Point. In your critique of the book identify key points that you think will be valuable to you (or, in some cases, for a particular industry, the domestic or global economy) in the years to come. Additionally, identify what parts, if any, of the book were a waste of your time to read. I also want you to identify what parts of the book relate to the lectures.Next, discuss how you would/could successfully apply the major points of the book in an organization (of your choosing but presumably in the field of your chosen profession). Discuss potential pitfalls (i. e. , areas that are especially vulnerable to â€Å"success† and th us provide examples of how these major points have been unsuccessfully applied in the organization of your choosing). Discuss how you would (e. g. , if you were to be consulted or had been consulted) apply some of these tools and knowledge differently to the organization in the future.Then on a scale of 1 to 10 (ten being the best) give an overall assessment of the book. Assignment #3 Turn in a 2-3 page critique of Freakonomics. In your critique of the book identify key points that you think will be valuable to you (or, in some cases, for a particular industry, the domestic or global economy) in the years to come. Additionally, identify what parts, if any, of the book were a waste of your time to read. I also want you to identify what parts of the book relate to the lectures. Next, discuss how you would/could uccessfully apply the major points of the book in an organization (of your choosing but presumably in the field of your chosen profession). Discuss potential pitfalls (i. e. , areas that are especially vulnerable to â€Å"success† and thus provide examples of how these major points have been unsuccessfully applied in the organization of your choosing). Discuss how you would (e. g. , if you were to be consulted or had been consulted) apply some of these tools and knowledge differently to the organization in the future.Then on a scale of 1 to 10 (ten being the best) give an overall assessment of the book. Assignment #4 Turn in a 2-3 page critique of Travels of a T-Shirt in the Global Economy. In your critique of the book identify key points that you think will be valuable to you (or, in some cases, for a particular industry, the domestic or global economy) in the years to come. Additionally, identify what parts, if any, of the book were a waste of your time to read. I also want you to identify what parts of the book relate to the lectures.Next, discuss how you would/could successfully apply the major points of the book in an organization (of your cho osing but presumably in the field of your chosen profession). Discuss potential pitfalls (i. e. , areas that are especially vulnerable to â€Å"success† and thus provide examples of how these major points have been unsuccessfully applied in the organization of your choosing). Discuss how you would (e. g. , if you were to be consulted or had been consulted) apply some of these tools and knowledge differently to the organization in the future. Then on a scale of 1 to 10 (ten being the best) give an overall assessment of the book.In order to receive a grade of â€Å"A† in the course the student will need to do â€Å"A† quality work on each of the above assignments. In addition to the above assignments, students will need to do â€Å"A† quality work on the following two assignments (#5-6): Assignment #5 Turn in a 2-3 page critique of the articles â€Å"Who Supplied My Cheese? † and â€Å"Strengthening Globalization’s Invisible Hand,†. In your critique of the article identify key points that you think will be valuable to you (or, in some cases, for a particular industry, the domestic or global economy) in the years to come.Additionally, identify what parts, if any, of the article were a waste of your time to read. I also want you to identify what parts of the article relate to the lectures. Next, discuss how you would/could successfully apply the major points of the article in an organization (of your choosing but presumably in the field of your chosen profession). Discuss potential pitfalls (i. e. , areas that are especially vulnerable to â€Å"success† and thus provide examples of how these major points have been unsuccessfully applied in the organization of your choosing). Discuss how you would (e. g. if you were to be consulted or had been consulted) apply some of these tools and knowledge differently to the organization in the future. Then on a scale of 1 to 10 (ten being the best) give an overall assessm ent of the article. Assignment #6 – Value Creation Project The Value Creation project consists of a written report. VALUE CREATION DISTANCE LEARNING PROJECT OUTLINE: In this assignment I want you to select an existing company and then select a country (or, if doing a project related to Wind Energy, you may choose a region of the US or the offshore) to which you want the chosen company to expand.Next, I want you to investigate the external environment of the country to which the firm plans to expand and compare it to the domestic environment in the firm’s home country. I then want you to discuss how good of a fit the new country’s environment is for your chosen firm. Specifically discuss: What macro-environmental trends are relevant? What are the contending forces in the industry? What forces are changing the industry over time? Are there key competitors that present opportunities or challenges to the firm?Define opportunities as favorable conditions in the exter nal environment, define threats as unfavorable conditions in the external environment, and conduct an environmental scan. Additional factors about the chosen country that you may want to consider when doing the environmental and competitive analyses. Each sub-section (i. e. , A, B, C, D, E, F) should be about 2-3 pages. Thus, since there are two major parts (i. e. , I and II), the overall length should be around 24-36 pages. Additionally, a cover page and a references section are required (but do NOT count in the page length suggestions).The absolute page limit (not including the cover sheet and references) is 40 pages. A full letter grade will be deducted on any project longer than 40 pages. No exceptions. Please follow this outline carefully. I. General Environmental Analysis A. Economic 1. Overall level of development 2. Economic growth: GDP and industry 3. Role of foreign trade in the economy 4. Currency: inflation rate, currency controls, stability of exchange rate 5. Balance o f payments 6. Per capita income and distribution 7. Disposable income and spending patterns B. Social/Cultural 1.Population size, growth, density, distribution (urban/rural) 2. Literacy rates, education levels 3. Existence of middle class 4. Similarities and differences in relation to company's home market 5. Language and other cultural considerations C. Political 1. System of government 2. Political stability and continuity 3. Ideological orientation 4. Government involvement in business 5. Attitudes toward foreign business 6. National economic and development priorities 7. Membership in regional trade organizations D. Technological E. Physical 1. Physical distribution and communications network (e. . , supply chain) 2. Climate variations 3. Shipping distance F. Major Threats and Opportunities II. Industry/Competitive Environment A. Threat of New Entrants/Barriers to Entry 1. Limitations on trade (e. g. , high tariff levels, quotas) 2. Documentation and import regulations 3. Local standards, practices, and potential non-tariff barriers 4. Patent/trademark availability 5. Preferential treaties with a company's home country 6. Legal considerations for investment, taxation, profit repatriation, employment 7. Availability of intermediaries B. Threat from Competitors 1.Number of international competitors and their market shares 2. Number of local competitors and their market shares 3. Advantages needed to compete effectively relative to competitors C. Threat from Substitutes D. Power of Buyers 1. Customer needs and desires (e. g. , demand behavior and estimation, price elasticity of demand, etc. ) 2. Local production, imports, consumption 3. Exposure to and acceptance of product/service 4. Availability of complementary products/services 5. Industry-specific key indicators of demand 6. Attitudes towards products of foreign originE. Power of Suppliers 1. Number and location of suppliers 2. Market structure (e. g. , competitive, monopoly, or in-between, etc. ) F. Maj or Threats and Opportunities ASSIGNMENT DUE DATES (Recommended) Assignments #1 & #2 are due June 22, 2009 Assignments #3 & #4 are due July 13, 2009 Assignments #5 & #6 (Value Creation Project) are due August 3, 2009 Note: The absolute Final Date to turn in all assignments is Monday, August 3rd at 5:00 PM CLASSROOM POLICY ISSUES WITHDRAWAL POLICY The requirements set by the university for withdrawal will be strictly followed.You should retain all documentation of courses you have dropped. STUDENTS WITH SPECIAL NEEDS The university is committed to the principle that in no aspect of its programs shall there be differences in the treatment of persons because of race, creed, national origin, age, sex, or disability, and that equal opportunity and access to facilities shall be available to all. Any student who because of a disability may require special arrangements in order to meet course requirement should contact the instructor as soon as possible to make any necessary accommodations.S tudents should present appropriate verification from AccessTECH in the Student Counseling Center in West Hall. ACADEMIC INTEGRITY The university catalog states the following: â€Å"It is the aim of the faculty of Texas Tech University to foster a spirit of complete honesty and a high standard of integrity. The attempt of students to present as their own any work that they have not honestly performed is regarded by the faculty and administration as a serious offense and renders the offenders liable to serious consequences, possibly suspension. The catalog defines cheating as â€Å"Dishonesty on examinations and quizzes or on written assignments, illegal possession of examinations, the use of unauthorized notes during an examination or quiz, obtaining information during an examination from the examination paper or otherwise from another student, assisting others to cheat, alteration of grade records, illegal entry to or unauthorized presence in an office are instances of cheating. I n this class, collaboration with others on in class examinations and cases is considered within the definition of cheating. RELIGIOUS HOLIDAYS A student who intends to observe a religious holy day should make that intention known to the instructor prior to the absence. A student who is absent from classes for the observance of a religious holy day shall be allowed to take an examination or complete an assignment scheduled for that day within a reasonable time after the absence.