Thursday, October 31, 2019

Classroom Behavior Management Plan Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Classroom Behavior Management Plan - Essay Example Disruptive behavior in this context refers to defiant behavior and disregard of the rules that have been put in place (Wang, Haertel, & Walberg, 2003). Examples of the Targeted Behavior Disruptive behavior is usually a violation of the rules that have been put in place to govern the behavior of the students in the classroom. It is important that, in addition to being subject to the rules, the students participate in their creation. An example of rules assisting in managing the classroom behavior is ensuring that the students do not speak without raising their hands. The student should also ensure that all materials necessary for the lesson are brought into the classroom. This is to ensure that movement during class session is minimized. The students must also seek the teacher’s permission to leave their desks or to address the others. In the classroom, both the students and the teacher should make sure that official school language is used. The student must do as asked by the teacher without the teacher having to repeat the instructions that have been given in the class. In instances when group discussions are required, the groups will be assigned to the students by the teacher to ensure that the students stick to the discussion that is expected of them as opposed to straying from the topic as is likely to happen if the students pick the groups themselves. When the rules are established, it is important for a teacher to explain why each of the rules is important. The students will be required to own the rules; it will be easier for the students to follow the rules if they participate in making them. Rationale Disruptive behavior has a very discouraging outcome in students and school performances. Disruptive behavior that is often observed in the classroom includes aggressive behavior, when a student pushes others around and engages them in physical altercations. A student who shows aggressive behavior may also damage property in the classroom. Disruptive behavior of the student can also be of a social nature when the student tries to divert the attention of the teacher and the classmates by engaging in topics that are not relevant to what is being discussed. The disruptive student may also pass notes or whisper to others while the teacher continues with the lesson. Method of Collecting Baseline Data The classroom management plan is important, as without it, learning is likely to be disrupted and the learning goals that have been established will not be achieved. The plan is important to the achievement of the learning goals and the maintenance of order in the classroom setting. The data will be collected through classroom observation. This is because most of the disruptive behaviors that have been identified can be observed in the classroom setting. For example, it is easy to observe a student who is passing notes or trying to divert the attention of the class as well as engaging in other forms of disruptive behavior. Hypothetical Baseline Data Behavioral level 250 200 150 100 50 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 days (Marzano & Marzano, 2009) With the help of the hypothetical baseline data above, it is verifiable that the identified classroom behaviors are deteriorating with time. This calls for instant measures to counter the over increasing unbearable classroom behaviors. Behavioral Goal The core aim of the plan is to ensure transformation of the

Tuesday, October 29, 2019

Unit 10 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Unit 10 - Essay Example It is also possible for women to make it to the professional level of the game thus breaking the stereotype that being a woman you can only be a spectator. Through a broader focus as well as access to quality education, these stereotypes are being broken. Thus through focusing on higher education, significant stereotypes can be done away with. Stereotypes are not mutable and therefore stereotypes applied to particular groups do not alter over time. This therefore means that we rarely change our stereotypes frequently. This is so even in the wake of disconfirming information; people often tend to cling to their obviously-wrong convictions If at all people can change their stereotypes, then they do so in 3 ways; Bookkeeping model-as people learn more contradictory information, they incrementally change the stereotype to align with the new information. Thus individuals usually need a lot of information for every incremental change. Secondly is the conversion model whereby individuals throw away old stereotypes and start all over again, frequently used when there is important disconfirming evidence. Thirdly is sub typing model which creates a stereotype that is new, mostly a sub-classification of the current stereotype (Rupert, 2010). Yes I have had an experience where someone applied a stereotype due to their interpretation of my skin color. I was on a tour in Africa and someone thought I am a Mexican and therefore asked much about Mexico. I had to kindly explain myself before they finally understood me and apologized profusely. Some of the authors discuss areas of misconception such as being mistaken for a waitress or a whore, for instance, in The Myth of the Latin Woman/Just Met a Girl Named Maria by Judith Ortiz Cofer gives several instances where she has been taken to be a waitress simply because she is Puerto Rican. She recounts another incident where a man blocked their way

Sunday, October 27, 2019

Issues of Adverse and Moral Selection

Issues of Adverse and Moral Selection MUKHTAR MUHAMMAD AHMAD DISTINGUISH BETWEEN ADVERSE AND MORAL SELECTION, AND HOW A FIRM MIGHT OVERCOME EACH PROBLEM Adverse selection can be said as the process that occurs when seller valued goods more highly than the buyer does, because the seller has the full information and understanding about the good. Due to this information known by the seller, the seller is unwilling to part with the goods for any price lower than the value the seller knowns it has. On the other hand, the buyer who has no any information about how good the product is, is unwilling to pay more than expected of the good, which take into account the possibility of getting a bad piece. It is the Asymmetry information prior to the transaction that prevent the transaction from happening. If both the seller and the buyer were not sure of the quality, they would be willing to trade based on its actual value. Moral hazard, is usually seen as services such as insurance and warranties. In this case, when the deal is done, one of the party involved in the deal (in this case, the person purchasing the insurance) may be less careful because he/she has the insurance, thus is not expected to the full cost the losses insured. Example, a person with an insurance against theft may not border about closing all what is necessary when leaving the house, here, it is not the prior information that either party has ,but due to lack of information that the insurance company has in providing and controlling the risk taking behavior that can leads to the market failure. Lets look into adverse selection in details especially in the case of insurance. Adverse selection; can also be said as the selection originally used in insurance. Its describe a situation where in an individuals demand for insurance (The propensity to insurance and quantity purchased) is possibly the individuals risk of loss (higher risk buy more insurance), and the insurer is unable to allow for this correlation in the price of insurance. This may be because of an information known only to the individuals. (Information Asymmetry), or because of regulation or social Norms which prevent the insurer from using certain categories of known information to set price (For example, gender, genetic, test or pre existing medical conditions. The last of which amount to a 100% risk of losses associated with the treatment of the condition).The letter scenario is sometimes referred to as regulatory adverse selection. The potential adverse nature of the phenomenon can be described as the link between the smoking status and mortality of those not smoking, on the average, are more likely to live longer, while smokers on average are more likely to die younger. If the insurer did not distinguish the prices for life insurance according to the smoking status, life insurance would be better buy for smokers than does not smoking. In this case, the smokers may be more willingly to buy insurance or may tent to buy larger amount of the insurance than the does not smoking, there by raising the average mortality of the combined policy holder group above that of the general population. From the insurers view point, the higher mortality of the group which select to buy insurance is adverse. The insurer raises the prices the insurance accordingly and as a consequences, does not smoking may be less likely to buy insurance (Or may buy smaller amounts) than they would buy at a lower prices reflectively to their lowe r risk. The reduction in the insurance purchases by does not smoking is also adverse from the insurers view point, and may be also from public policy view points. Furthermore, if there is a range of increasing risk categories in the population, the raise in the insurance prices because of adverse selection may leads to the lowest remaining risk to cancel or not renew their insurance. This promote a further raise in price, and so on. Eventually this adverse selection death spiral might in theory leads to the collapse of the insurance market. SOLUTION TO ADVERSE SELECTION PROBLEM Alternative solution to the effects of adverse selection to the insurers (to the extent that law permit) ask a randomely question requesting medical or other reports on individual who apply to buy insurance so that the price quoted can be varied accordingly, and any unreasonable highly or unpredictable risk rejected. This risk selection method is known underwriting in many nations, insurance law incorperate as utmost good faith doctorine. Which requires potential customers to answer any underwriting question asked by the insurer fully and honesty; if they fail to do so, the insurance may refused to pay the claim. While adverse selection in theory seems a clear and inevitable consequences of economic incentives, empirical is mixed. Several studies investigating correlations between risk and insurance purchased has fail to show the predicted possible correlation of life insurance. On the other hand, positive test result in adverse selection have been reported in health, long term care and annuity market. These possible result tent to be based on demonstrating more subtle relationship between risk and purchasing behavior (such as between mortality and whether the customer chooses a life annuity which is fixed or inflation linked), rather than simple correlations of risk and quantity purchased. MORAL HAZARD Moral Hazard is a situation in which a party is more likely risk because the cost that could be result which not be borne by the party taking the risk. In other words, it is a tendency to be more willing to take the risk, knowing that the potential borden of taking such risk will be born in whole or in potentially by others, A moral Hazard may occur where the actions of one party may changes to Sthe detriment of another after the financial transaction has taken place. Moral Hazard arises because an individual or institution does not take the full consequences and responsibility of its actions, and therefore, has a tendency to act less careful than its otherwise would leaving another party to hold some responsibility for the consequences of those action. Economists explain Moral hazard as a special case of information asymmetry, a situation in which one party has a wider information than the other in particular moral hazard may occur if the one that is been cheated from the risk has more information about the action and intention than the one paying for the negative consequences of the risk, more broadly, moral hazard occurs when the one with more knowledge about its action or intention has a tendency or incentive to behave inappropriately from the perspective of the one with less information. Moral Hazard is also arises in a principal Agents problem, where one party, called an agent acts on behave of another individual called principal. Usually have the knowledge about his action than the principal agents does due to the principal. Usually can not completely monitor the agents. The agents may have incentive to act inappropriate way. (From the view point of the principal) if the interest of the agents are the principal are not alligned. SOLUTION TO MORAL HAZARD Alternative way a firm can solve a problem of Moral hazard is the major aspect of the insurance deals with the effect of the availability of insurance on the level of care exercised by the insured to reduced the probability of loss. When an insured policy is not available like in the case of theft, an economic agent could devoted time to watch his property. At the extreemed, he could insure that the probability of losses was zero, but the cost of such strategy would likely be prohibitive. For example, the optimal action is to be expand on effect less than that require to reduce. The probability of theft to zero and hence, to bear the some risk. If we assumed the economic agents are risk averse, they would be willing to pay for transferred of risk to another Agents thereby enhancing their welfare. This transferred of risk is obtained through the purchase of an insurance policy. In conclusion, Adverse selection is the selection before the deal or transaction is done in which the person with the product or selling, valued and worth the good than the buyer in the sense, the seller has the better understanding and knowledge about the good and buyer who with less information about the good, would just purchase it based on his own assumption of the quality of the goods. and here, to counter such problem, the seller would have to emphasize more of his products and try to study the consumer behavior before getting into any transaction. while Moral hazard on the other hand, is the situation that occurs when the transaction is done that is, when the deal is done. One of the party in the transaction. here, the person taking the risk is more likely to be the one with the full information in the transaction and acted less carefully knowing that he would not bear the full losses alone thereby, affecting the one with less information about the transaction without his cons ents. To solve such problem, the insurer has to have an agreement on the facts that, the one that acted carelessly would likely be the one to bear more losses. That would make the one with more information to be more serious in the deal and avoiding any lapses that would occur after the deal is done.

Friday, October 25, 2019

Sara Lee Essay -- essays research papers

Businessman Nathan Cummings bought the C.D. Kenny Co., a Baltimore coffee, tea, and sugar wholesaler, in 1939. Cummings soon purchased several grocery firms and later changed the company’s name to Consolidated Grocers—1945. The operation went public in 1946 and was renamed Consolidated Foods Corporation in 1954. Two years later CFC bought the Kitchens of Sara Lee, a Chicago bakery founded by Charles Lubin 1951. Introduced in 1949 and named after Lubin’s daughter, Sara Lee cheesecake had become his most popular product. Soon after, CFC began building its international markets with its first European acquisition in 1962. Subsequent to that purchase, it expanded its global presence with the purchases of Douwe Egberts (coffee, tea, and tobacco; the Netherlands; 1978), Nicholas Kiwi (shoe care and pharmaceuticals, Australia, 1984), and Dim (hosiery and underwear, France, 1989). Using one of its most respected brand names to enhance the public’s awareness of the company, CFC changed its name to Sara Lee in 1985.1 While cheesecake might have brought the company fame, it’s the underwear and hot dogs that bring in more than half of Sara Lee’s sales. The company operates five separate business units in the U.S. and abroad, these include: Sara Lee Foods--a major U.S. packaged-meat processor with brands such as Ball Park and Jimmy Dean, Sara Lee Bakery Group--the number two bakery company in the U.S. (behind Interstate Bakeries) and responsible for fresh bread as well as frozen cheesecakes, The Branded Apparel group—which tops in U.S. intimate apparel and hosiery (Hanes L’eggs, Playtex, and Wonderbra), its Coffee & Tea Worldwide group—that creates beverage sales worldwide, while the Household & Body Care group sells Endust furniture cleaner, Kiwi shoe polish, and body care products in non-U.S. markets. Chicago-based Sara Lee Corporation is a global manufacturer and marketer of high-quality, brand-name products for consumers throughout the world. They have three lines of businesses: Food and Beverage, Branded Apparel, and Household Products. Sara Lee has operations in 58 countries, with products in nearly 200 nations and has 150,400 employees worldwide. Some may wonder how one company, with thousands of employees in numerous locations, makes sure everyone is basing his or her decisions on the corporation’s values. These are questions Sara Lee executives and em... ...Lee’s decentralized structure, for this problem. Although COO McMillan has worked to change this, by centralizing 10 separate meat companies into one, they still have remnants of these decentralized firms. This is why the corporation is currently depending on their newest addition to the firm, Brenda Barnes. Sara Lee is banking on Barnes to bring her operational and branding skills to her new position. Barnes’ resume is filled with successes at well-known consumer product companies, which include Pepsi-Cola North American division. Although Barnes will be starting from behind when she takes over Sara Lee’s day-to-day operations and segmentation strategy, the corporation remains optimistic in her attempt to get Sara Lee cooking.6   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚     Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Sara Lee's mission is to feed, clothe and care for consumers and their families the world over. Keeping this in perspective is what Sara Lee will need to remain focused, and reclaim their throne as one of the most successful retailers in the industry. Though this accomplishment may not come easy, with hard work and strategic planning, Sara Lee has the ability to become number one in its class.

Thursday, October 24, 2019

Overcoming the Odds

Overcoming the Odds In life there will always be obstacles that are placed before us. Some will be easy and others will be difficult. I could remember a few incidents that made me think I would not be able to overcome certain roadblocks to achieve my goals. It was the summer of 2009; we had just got back home from Antigua & Barbuda of the sixth CVC Basketball Classic tournament. My high school coach had received a letter of acceptance to Word of Life Traditional School in Wichita, Kansas awarding me a full scholarship to play basketball for their school.At that time my mother was unemployed and we were not receiving help from other family members. The only thing that was going through my mind was saying, â€Å"Yes, I’ve got a school abroad to better myself and make my mother proud. † When I was looking at my mother’s face as she read the letter; it was full of happiness and stress at the same time. The ticket to Kansas was around eight hundred to one thousand dol lars, school was opening in less than three weeks, and we did not have a dollar for my ticket or living expenses.My mother and I had asked family members, friends, and private companies. It has been three weeks and we only had received five hundred dollars. All I could do is cry realizing I can’t go. As my mom witnessed my pain and frustration, she held me and said â€Å"God knows best and everything happens on his time, not ours. He wouldn’t bring us this far to fail. † The first week of school had passed and things was still looking bleak. That Friday morning I was shooting on the basketball court trying to clear my head.This guy saw me and asked me why I was not in school I told him about my situation. The man pulled out his wallet and gave me his card and told me to stop by his office that afternoon. Later that day I went to his office and he handed me a check for one thousand dollars. He said, â€Å"always work hard and follow your dreams and you will alwa ys have support,† I got up and thanked him for giving me an opportunity to pursue my dreams, believing in me, and how I will forever be grateful for his kindness.Once I left the office, I ran all the way home with tears in my eyes and out of breath to show my mom the check. She dropped to her knees and said, â€Å"Thank you Lord I know you would make it come through for my baby. † That weekend I spent packing my bags to leave on Tuesday morning. My mother sat down with me and told me that she wasn’t going to take this journey with me, she was frighten because I was only fifteen, and I have never been anywhere out of the country without her. The thought of now having to go to a strange state where I do not know anyone.She had second thoughts about me going. I said to her it cannot be that hard to do this and I am covered in the blood of Jesus. When Tuesday came it was that time to say goodbye, my mother started crying I held her and told her it will be ok even tho ugh I was scared yet I had to embrace it also trying to hold back the tears. All in all some things might seem impossible for you; as long as you stick with it, you will be successful. Going through this has truly made me stronger person physically, mentally, and it also has helped me grow to be more mature.

Wednesday, October 23, 2019

Hiroshima Cause and Effect Essay

Alexa Gombert English-Kiernan 10/28/12 Period 1 On August 6, 1945, America was responsible for the death of over 100,000 innocent souls. On this day, an American aircraft dropped an atomic bomb on the city of Hiroshima, Japan. This was the first atomic bomb ever used in the history of warfare. In the non-fiction book Hiroshima by John Hersey, first hand six survivors of this horrific event describe accounts of the bombing and its effects in vivid detail.The atomic bomb affected civilians of Hiroshima and the city’s environment in that people began acting irrationally, suffered from injuries and deaths, and it led to erratic environmental occurrences. The atomic bomb affected civilians of Hiroshima in that they began acting irrationally in the hours after the explosion. This irrational behavior can be seen through the actions of Mr. Fukai and Mrs. Kamai. Mr. Fukai was a secretary of the diocese who lived in a mission house with many priests and religious men.When the bomb went off, all of the survivors from the mission house abandoned the pile of rubble that was once their home, and set out for their designated safe area. Father Kleinsorge went to get Mr. Fukai, but irrationally Mr. Fukai refused to leave and said, â€Å"Leave me here to die† (44). Mr. Fukai foolishly said he wanted to die in the burning city. He wasn’t in the right state of mind and therefore was unable to a reasonable decision. Mrs. Kamai, who was found cradling her dead baby, exhibits another example of irrational behavior as a result of the atomic bomb. Hersey relays Mr.Tanimoto’s odd account when he wrote, â€Å"She was crouching on the ground with the body of her infant daughter in her arms. The baby had evidently been dead all day† (60). Holding the dead corpse for four days, Mr. Tanimoto ‘tried to cremate the baby, but Mrs. Kamai only held it tighter’ (81). During this time Mrs. Kamai was unstable and unable to make rational decisions becau se she was in shock as a result of the bombing and the chaos that came with it. Through her desperation to keep her dead baby, Mrs. Kamai demonstrates how the inhuman bombing of Hiroshima led to irrational ehavior. While some Japanese citizens were affected psychologically, others were affected physically. Civilians of Hiroshima were affected by the atomic bomb in that they suffered from severe injuries and burns. Being that this was the first atomic bomb ever used, its physical impact on people was uncertain. However, Father Kleinsorge and Mr. Tanimoto were able to witness the bomb’s physical impact when they were trying to assist the weak and feeble. While on a walk, Father Kleinsorge came across a number of desperate and wounded military men.He described them as â€Å"all in the same nightmarish state: their faces were wholly burned, their eye sockets were hollow, the fluid from their melted eyes had run down their cheeks† (73). Father Kleinsorge’s descriptio n portrays the severity of people’s injuries as a result of the bomb. The immense heat that radiated from the bomb caused these soldiers’ eyes to melt and faces to burn. Another physical effect of the bombing on Hiroshima is portrayed by Mr. Tanimoto. Mr. Tanimoto was trying to assist critically injured victims when he experienced a gruesome event.The bombs affect was apparent when Mr. Tanimoto ‘reached down and took a women by the hands, but her skin slipped off in huge, glove-like pieces’ (65). Mr. Tanimoto was taken back when he pulled off the skin, which indicates that the injuries caused by the bomb were fatal and agonizing. The heat from the bomb caused this victims skin to burn and come off with excruciating pain. However, the bomb didn’t effect just people. When the bomb was dropped on Hiroshima it resulted in an erratic reaction by the environment.Father Kleinsorge noticed these odd environmental patterns while on a walk he noted, â€Å"th rough the wreckage of the city†¦was a blanket of fresh, vivid, lush, optimistic green† (93-94) The town was in ruins, however, now there were flowers blossoming everywhere over the ruble and ashes. The bomb’s purpose was to wipe out all living things, but ironically it unintendedally catalyzed the sporadic growth of flowers and plants. On August 6, 1945 the first ever atomic bomb was dropped on Hiroshima, Japan. It’s power and abilities were unknown being that it was the first of ts kind. In the book Hiroshima, the bombs affects were seen through the eyes of its survivors. The bomb affected Hiroshima’s citizens in that they exhibited absurd and illogical actions. The environment was also affected in that the bomb triggered natural events that were very uncommon. The inhumane nature of the atomic bomb proves that humans will do anything to get their way despite the consequences. Their desire for power will never change and their methods of warfare are only going to get more and more deadly.

Tuesday, October 22, 2019

Preparing for a Skype Grad School Interview

Preparing for a Skype Grad School Interview For many graduate programs submitting your application is just the first step in seeking admission. Graduate school admissions interviews are common in many fields. Interviews offer an important opportunity let faculty and members of the admissions committee get to know you, beyond your application materials. Interviews, however, are expensive and time-consuming, especially if you are applying to graduate programs that are far from home. Many, if not most, graduate programs expect applicants to pay their own travel expenses.   Because of this, grad school interviews are often described as â€Å"optional.† However, optional or not, it’s in your best interest to make the trip and interview in person. Fortunately, many graduate programs are moving towards conducting interviews by video conferencing via platforms like Skype. Skype interviews permit graduate programs to interview students cheaply and efficiently – and perhaps even squeeze even more applicant intervi ews in than they would in real life. Skype interviews pose special challenges. An interview for admission to graduate study, regardless of whether its on campus or by Skype, means that the admissions committee is interested in you and is your opportunity to demonstrate your fit to the faculty and graduate program. The standard advice about interviews applies, but a Skype interview entails unique challenges. Here are 9 tips to avoid some of the technological and environmental problems that arise during Skype interviews. Share Phone Numbers Share your phone number and have the number for the graduate department or someone on the admissions committee on hand.   Should you have difficulties logging in or other technical problems, such as a malfunctioning computer, you’ll want to be able to contact the admissions committee to let them know that you haven’t forgotten about the interview. Otherwise, they may assume that you are no longer interested in admission or that you are unreliable and therefore not a good fit for the graduate program. Consider Your Background What will the committee see behind you? Pay attention to your background. Posters, signs, photos and art can detract from your professional demeanor. Don’t give professors an opportunity to judge you on anything other than your words and persona. Lighting Choose a well-lighted space. Do not sit with your back to a window or light because only your silhouette will be visible. Avoid harsh overhead light. Place a light in front of you, several feet away. Consider using an additional shade or placing a cloth over the lamp to dilute the light. Camera Placement Sit at a desk.   The camera should be level with your face. Position your laptop atop a stack of books, if needed, but be sure that it is secure. Do not look down into the camera. Sit far enough away that your interviewer can see your shoulders. Look into the camera, not at the image on the screen – and certainly not at yourself. If you look at the image of your interviewers, you’ll appear to be looking away. Challenging as it may seem, try to look at the camera to simulate eye contact. Sound Be sure that the interviewers can hear you. Know where the microphone is located and direct your speech towards it. Speak slowly and pause after the interviewer finishes speaking.   Sometimes video lag can interfere with communication, making it harder to interviewers to understand you or making it appear as if you are interrupting them. Dress Dress for your Skype interview just as you would for an in-person interview. Don’t be tempted to just dress â€Å"on top.† That is, don’t wear sweatpants or pajama pants. Don’t assume that your interviewers will see only the top half of your body. You never know. You might have to stand up to retrieve something and then suffer in embarrassment (and make a poor impression). Reduce Environmental Distractions Keep pets in another room. Leave children with a babysitter or family member – or don’t interview at home. Eliminate any potential sources of background noise, such as barking dogs, crying children, or insensitive roommates. Technological Interruptions Charge your laptop. Preferably, plug it in.   Turn off your cell ringer and any other phone in the vicinity.   Log out of messaging programs, Facebook, and other apps with sound notifications. Mute notifications in Skype. Make sure that you will not be interrupted by any sounds on your computer.   Whatever you hear, your interviewers hear.    Practice Do a practice run with a friend.   How do you look? Sound? Are there any distractions? Are your clothes appropriate and professional? Skype interviews share the same purpose as old fashioned in-person interviews: An opportunity for the graduate admissions committee to get to know you. Preparing for the technological aspects of video interviews can sometimes overshadow the basic interview preparation that will help you learn about the program and put your best foot forward. As you prep, don’t forget to focus on the content of the interview. Prepare responses to common questions that you might be asked as well as questions to ask.   Don’t forget that your interview is also your chance to learn more about the program.   If you’re accepted you’ll spend the next 2 to 6 or more years in graduate school. Be sure that it’s the program for you. Ask questions that are meaningful to you and make the interview work for you.

Monday, October 21, 2019

3 Examples of Erroneous Case Style

3 Examples of Erroneous Case Style 3 Examples of Erroneous Case Style 3 Examples of Erroneous Case Style By Mark Nichol In each of the following examples, a phrase employs incorrect treatment as to whether one or more words begin with uppercase or lowercase letters. An explanation, followed by a revision, points out each error. 1. Three of the children developed Hemolytic Uremic Syndrome, a potentially life-threatening condition with anemia and kidney complications. Names of medical conditions are not capitalized: â€Å"Three of the children developed hemolytic uremic syndrome, a potentially life-threatening condition with anemia and kidney complications.† (Exceptions include surnames, as in â€Å"Crohn’s disease,† or geographical terms, as in â€Å"Asian flu.†) 2. Smith didn’t endear himself to the Beehive state when he refused to participate in a debate scheduled for Monday. All key words in epithets such as state nicknames are capitalized: â€Å"Smith didn’t endear himself to the Beehive State when he refused to participate in a debate scheduled for Monday.† (The article the should be lowercased in such appellations; otherwise, the only state nickname that includes a lowercase word is that of New Mexico: â€Å"the Land of Enchantment.†) 3. Harvard University Accounting Professor John Smith was struck by the growing number of studies showing that most such transactions fail to deliver their intended value over the long term. Usually, when professor (or â€Å"associate professor† or â€Å"assistant professor†) immediately precedes a person’s name, it is treated as a specific job title and is capitalized; an exception, however, occurs when the title is preceded by modifying terms. Here, though â€Å"Harvard University† retains capitalization because of its status as an entity, accounting is also lowercased because the reference is to an academic discipline, not an academic department: â€Å"Harvard University accounting professor John Smith was struck by the growing number of studies showing that most such transactions fail to deliver their intended value over the long term.† (Many writers would also choose to unstack the unwieldy identifying phrase: â€Å"John Smith, a professor of accounting at Harvard University, was struck by the growing number of studies showing that most such transactions fail to deliver their intended value over the long term.†) Want to improve your English in five minutes a day? Get a subscription and start receiving our writing tips and exercises daily! Keep learning! Browse the Style category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:How to Format a US Business LetterHow to Punctuate with â€Å"However†Artist vs. Artisan

Sunday, October 20, 2019

Analysis of Fuzzy Logic

Analysis of Fuzzy Logic This was a paper on Fuzzy Logic I wrote for my Programming in C++ Intro class, I dont think it is very good myself. You could probably use it in a intro to computers class, or some kind of high school programming class. I have no idea what I got on the paper, I dont have the graded copy any more. This would be a great paper to use as a starting point. Hope this saves you some time and effort. Fuzzy Logic What is fuzzy logic? How does it differ from conventional logic? Who discovered fuzzy logic? How can it be used today? How is it being used, and by whom? These questions are questions I will attempt to answer in this brief discussion of fuzzy logic, so let us begin. The first and most important question is What is fuzzy logic? Fuzzy logic the logic people use in day to day decisions. Instead of all items falling into one set, as in conventional logic, items can fall into multiple sets. A good example would be the big cat question. There are two sets in this problem The cat is golden, and The cat is black. A lion clearly fits into the first set The cat is golden. A Black Panther clearly fits into the second set The cat is black. But what about a jaguar, it has a golden coat with black spots, it does not clearly fit into any one of the sets, so it a part of both. The main difference between fuzzy logic, and conventional logic is this. Conventional logic holds that something cannot be a mender of two sets. Fuzzy logic holds that things can be a part of multiple sets. The term fuzzy logic was brought forth in 1965 by a professor at the University of Berkeley, named Lofti A. Zadeh. Zadeh wondered why it was that people can base decisions on imprecise, non-numerical information, yet they are better at making complex decisions that machines. These ideas were presented to the world in 1973, in his paper titles Transactions on Systems, Man and Cybernetics. In this paper Zadeh introduced the idea of a linguistic variable, and a fuzzy IF-THEN rule. The concepts introduced in this paper paved the way for real world applications. Now a days fuzzy logic is being used in many different fields, and in many different ways. Some fuzzy-based consumer products include camcorders, washing machines, color TVs, and fuzzy computer chips. Unfortunately the US has been very slow to use this new type of logic. All of the products listed above were created by Japanese companies. Part of the reason US companies were so slow to utilize this new type of logic my stem from cultural differences between the eastern, and western ways of thinking. In conclusion fuzzy logic has many applications that havent even been explored yet, and in some applications it is better than conventional logic.

Friday, October 18, 2019

Discuss the History and Philosophy oh how the First Immortal Cell Line Term Paper

Discuss the History and Philosophy oh how the First Immortal Cell Line was Created from Cervical Cancel Cell - Term Paper Example Henrietta’s cells were the first ever immortal human cells which later proved to be essential in the development of polio vaccinations. They went up in the first ever spaceship sent out of the earth’s atmosphere to determine what happened when human tissue was exposed to zero gravity. Her cells live on, and since 1951 her cells have been used for in vitro fertilization, gene mapping and cloning. Henrietta’s cells, when first put in a petri dish produced a new generation every twenty four hours. HeLa cells, as Lacks cells have come to be known were initially a part of the research into the genes that are cancer causing and the ones that can suppress it. They have so far been used in development drugs for the treatment of leukemia, herpes, hemophilia, influenza and Parkinson’s disease. They have also provided the basis to study and learn more about sexually transmitted diseases (STD’s), lactose digestion, the bacteria that causes appendicitis, human l ongevity, mosquito mating, along with the negative cellular effects of working in sewers. Scientists have studied her cells for her DNA and chromosomes in such detail that they are now familiar with every niche and corner of the spiral that keeps replicating to keep the cells alive.(Skloot, R. 2010 )A high school biology teacher quoted that HeLa’s cell were the most important thing to happen to medical science in the past century. The interesting facts about Henrietta Lacks cells are not widely known but it was discovered that her chromosomes were incompatible with humans. Does this mean that the cells belong to a whole different species? Also, how do HeLa cells replicate and contaminate other cells in laboratory, almost like how weeds in the garden push their way through plants. No other human cells have so far ever been able to behave in this way. The ecological niche of those cells in not just limited to the human body but they have survived for many years outside showing us their ability to expand beyond human cultivation. Carcinoma in situ describes an abnormal growth of cells. Abnormal growth occurs when the stop button in cell growth is broken down and mitosis occurs repeatedly. Since it all started with cancer cells of a woman, we should take a look at the disease that caused scientists to spend so much effort on research. Uncontrolled growth of abnormal body cell is known as malignant cells are known as cancer. Cells in our body form tissues, which later on come together to build organs, so cells are known as the building blocks of life. Even the smallest living microbes have cells. ("History, Travel, Arts, Science, People, Places | Smithsonian Magazine." History, Travel, Arts, Science, People, Places | Smithsonian Magazine. N.p., n.d. Web. 22 Apr. 2012). The cells in the body have a life cycle, they die and new cells are made in order to replace the previous dead cells until death. Cancer occurs when normal healthy cells suddenly start reprodu cing without stopping. Sometimes the shape of the cells also starts to change, for example in leukemia, also known as blood cancer, the shape of the red blood cells changes from concave to lunar thus making it inefficient to carry out respiration. This is exactly what happened to Lacks. Her cells in the cervical started reproducing at a very fast rate. This is how doctors were able to do research on them. Definition: ‘

Statutory Interpretation - The Process of a Bill to an Act of Essay

Statutory Interpretation - The Process of a Bill to an Act of Parliament - Essay Example The defendant was, on May 11, 1963, actually within the boundaries of the station, and when within the boundaries of the station, obstructed a member of Her Majesty’s Royal Air Force who was engaged, at the material time, on security duty at and in relation to the station. It was contended by the defendant that because the charge referred to obstruction at Marham in the vicinity of a prohibited place, namely, Marham Royal Air Force station, and the evidence for the prosecution dealt with obstruction which took place when he was actually in the prohibited place, there was no evidence to support the charge. It was contended by the prosecutor that the defendant, being actually within the boundaries of the station at the material time, was in the vicinity of a prohibited place within the meaning of the Act. ... They gave the defendant three months in which to pay the fine and in default of payment sentenced him to two months’ imprisonment†. BBC News, 1998. Reform of assault law, [online] Available at: [Accessed on 22 October 2011]: â€Å"Deliberately infecting someone with a disease is not a specific offence at the moment, although it may be possible to charge an offender under section 18 of the Offences Against the Person Act, 1861. This section says that anyone who causes grievous bodily harm with intent to do so is guilty of an offence punishable with life imprisonment. Nearly 10 years ago, the government's law reform advisers put forward proposals for updating the 1861 Act. The government is now planning to go ahead with most of those reforms†. Caledonian Railway Co. v. North British Railway Co. (1881), 6 App.Cas. 114. – See in: http://www.archive.org/stream/cu31924017175864/cu31924017175864_djvu.txt . Citation on page 114, in Cownie, Bradney, and Burton 2007) . Paragraph 3 (from above). Cownie, F., Bradney, A., and Burton, M., 2007. English legal system in context. 4th ed. Oxford: Oxford University Press. - http://books.google.com/books?id=gs-HvA2DO60C&pg=PA335&dq=Cownie,+F.,+Bradney,+A.,+and+Burton,+M.,+2007.+English+legal+system+in+context.+4th+ed.&hl=ru&ei=ake8TtTJLbDS4QTp56iSBA&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=3&ved=0CDUQ6AEwAg#v=onepage&q&f=false . Here the discussion on p.117 of the book is summarized, without any direct appropriation. Gifford, D.J., and Salter, J.R., 1996. How to understand an act of Parliament. London: Cavendish Publishing. -

Controversial topic Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 1

Controversial topic - Essay Example Several possible negative effects have been listed that risks the environment, human health and socio-economic concerns. The Food and Agricultural Organization of the United Nations discussed the possibility of genes introduced in GMOs escaping or transferring to other members of the same species and perhaps other species that are the non-target. These transgenes or foreign DNA sequence interaction in the cell, plant or ecosystem level, once released will be impossible to recall. Furthermore, there are no conclusive tests to affirm that artificial insertion of genes will not destabilize an organism, encourage mutations or whether the inserted gene itself will be stable in the organism over generations (Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations). There is also a well-placed concern on the possibility of introducing foreign genes would negatively impact the health of humans. Author Doris Lin cited studies conducted on rats on a GMO diet that showed problems in their liver and kidneys (Lin). A point to also consider with GMOs is it might result to the birth of a different allergen that can develop life-threatening allergies in people. Socio-economically, the biotechnology research which is the precursor of GMOs is actually lengthy and costly process spearheaded by the private sector. It is big business, with the wish to ensure the return of investment. Advocates have raised their concerns that the market dominance in the agricultural sector would cause the famers’ loss of access to plant material. These would deeply impact small-scale farmers by making them pay for crop varieties bred from genetic material that originally came from their own fields but whose specific genetic modification strains have been patented by big agro-biotech companies (Whitman). If these companies would raise the price of the seeds for their own profit and advancement, small

Thursday, October 17, 2019

HRM Responses to a Changing Environment Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 4250 words

HRM Responses to a Changing Environment - Essay Example In the UK, the company also has a stake in Pret A Manger (www.McDonalds.co.uk). The UK is unusual in having only a relatively small proportion of restaurants as franchise operations. The first English restaurant was built in Woolwich in 1974 and was a product of a joint venture between Bob Rhea (a franchisee from Ohio) and McDonald's. In 1977, this had increased to thirty restaurants, and by 1982 this had reached 200 restaurants. In 1986, McDonald's bought out Rhea's 45% share for $38 million. Since that time, however, McDonald's UK has only slowly franchised parts of the operation. In 1993, this stood at only 11%, but by 1996 over 20% were franchise operations. McDonald's UK management state that they expect to have closer to 30% being franchises by early in 2001 (Royle, 2000, p. 32). According to the Euromonitor report, the company was operating 1,250 McDonald's restaurants throughout the country. 2003 saw the company introduce a revitalisation strategy, operating on both a global and local level. For McDonald's in the UK, the issue is no longer simply opening the right type of restaurant in the right location, but also engaging with real issues concerning the local community. The McDonald's business model is slightly different from that of most other fast food chains. In addition to ordinary franchise fees, supplies and percentage of sales, McDonald's also collects rent. As a condition of the franchise agreement, McDonald's owns most properties. Since rent is a fee that is not linked to sales, this practice allows McDonald's more control over its franchisees (Rumbelow, 1 February 2001). As the world's largest fast food company, McDonald's was the target of criticism on many grounds over the review period. It has been accused of the

Cost of Poor Quality Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Cost of Poor Quality - Essay Example Theoretically there are two costs of quality related with the production and R&D. Firstly, the cost of the good quality and the cost of poor quality. The cost of poor quality affects the internal and external costs resulting from failing to meet the requirements whereas the cost of good quality affects the cost of investing in the prevention of non-performance to requirements and cost of appraising a product for conformance to the requirements. The costs related with the internal failure are the costs that are caused by non conformance to what the customer wants and these costs are found before the delivery of the product or service. This would off course lead to the customer dissatisfaction and demotivation of R&D staff. These internal costs will result in re-works, delays, re-designing etc. External failure costs are costs that are caused by deficiencies found after delivery of products and services to external customers, these costs will result into complaints, repairing and re-do ing services, warranty claims as well as losses due to sales reduction and which lead to customer dissatisfaction. By launching the product before the complete testing of the product, our company has made a tradeoff between generating sales and compromising on the quality. It was a gore mistake on the part of Mr. George Chadwick to start the production before the complete testing of the material for its fine-tuning. Backed by more of ambitions and less of reality, this decision has now seems to backfire as the company is facing strong quality costs. One of the important quality control tools is called Pareto Analysis.  

Wednesday, October 16, 2019

The factors responsible for Mexican debt crisis in the 1980s Essay

The factors responsible for Mexican debt crisis in the 1980s - Essay Example This problem soon spread to other developing countries in the world hence becoming a global debt crisis. It led to long term accumulation of commercial bank debts in the public sector. The factors responsible for the Mexico debt crisis of the 1980s can be broadly categorized into demand factors and supply factors. The demand factors are those that contributed to Mexico’s decision to seek for external financial aid hence contracting of many loans from commercial banks. The supply factors are those factors that enabled or encouraged commercial banks to lend money to Mexico and other developing countries. These factors contributed directly or indirectly to Mexico’s contracting loans or more loans and incapacity to repay these loans. In the 1960s and 1970s, Mexico borrowed lots of money from international creditors. The money was to be used for purposes of industrialization especially development of infrastructure. At this time, Mexico’s economy was good. This motivated the creditors to continue providing loans. This increased Mexico’s rate of debt to commercial banks and consequently to increased debt service, that is, repayment of the principal and interests. Later on, most of these loans were given on short term basis. This imposed a pressure of meeting loan maturation dates. External debt grew till it was 50% of its gross domestic product (GDP) in 1983 (Sebastian, 1996). According to (Rudiger, 1985), there was a general recession in the world economy in the 1970s and 1980s. This was caused by a sharp increase in the prices of oil which started in the year 1971. Oil prices increased because the fixed exchange rates system which the Bretton Woods innovated had failed. This innovation had helped governments to free themselves from limitations presented to them by a fixed parity. Its role was to ensure that domestic demand was managed well so as to safeguard against haphazard increase in imports. As a result of

Cost of Poor Quality Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Cost of Poor Quality - Essay Example Theoretically there are two costs of quality related with the production and R&D. Firstly, the cost of the good quality and the cost of poor quality. The cost of poor quality affects the internal and external costs resulting from failing to meet the requirements whereas the cost of good quality affects the cost of investing in the prevention of non-performance to requirements and cost of appraising a product for conformance to the requirements. The costs related with the internal failure are the costs that are caused by non conformance to what the customer wants and these costs are found before the delivery of the product or service. This would off course lead to the customer dissatisfaction and demotivation of R&D staff. These internal costs will result in re-works, delays, re-designing etc. External failure costs are costs that are caused by deficiencies found after delivery of products and services to external customers, these costs will result into complaints, repairing and re-do ing services, warranty claims as well as losses due to sales reduction and which lead to customer dissatisfaction. By launching the product before the complete testing of the product, our company has made a tradeoff between generating sales and compromising on the quality. It was a gore mistake on the part of Mr. George Chadwick to start the production before the complete testing of the material for its fine-tuning. Backed by more of ambitions and less of reality, this decision has now seems to backfire as the company is facing strong quality costs. One of the important quality control tools is called Pareto Analysis.  

Tuesday, October 15, 2019

The relationship between physicians and the pharmaceutical industry Essay Example for Free

The relationship between physicians and the pharmaceutical industry Essay There are many issues involved with the relationship between physicians and the pharmaceutical industry. According to David Goldbloom, he proposed that gifts that the pharmaceutical industry wanted to give physicians should not be gifts, but instead should be materials that are sold to the physician at cost. This not only would avoid the appearance of impropriety, but would lower the overall cost of the drug to consumers. This position was picked up by the American Medical Students Association, who stated that there should be a complete ban on industry involvement in education. 2) Ethical and policy issues in research involving human participants. When a pharmaceutical company decides that they are going to conduct a human clinical trial, there are issues of the morality and ethics of conducting clinical trials. One of the first things is that the research subject must have full informed consent about the topic and the implications of the research that they are going to be involved in. Second, the government has in place in protecting the clinical research subject to assure that they are treated in an ethical way and are not subject to abuse or maltreatment in the clinical research process. In these regulations, the physical and emotional effects on the subject are minimized, additionally, the psychological and physical effects are reasonable, given the medical subject matter involved. Finally, all research involving human subjects must be analyzed and approved by the FDA in order to assure that the FDA’s guidelines are being met and that the research is indeed safe for human subjects. 3) Research involving persons with mental disorders that may affect decision-making capacity. Many of the same ethical considerations that involve research on human participants also apply to research trials on participants with mental disorders that may affect their decision making capacity. The only additional consideration is that there is an advocate for the person that should be in a position to assure that the medical and mental issues of the participant is indeed taken care of. Pharmaceutical companies should assure that all ethical guidelines and laws are followed to assure that those individuals with mental disorders are not taken advantage of in the clinical research process. 4) Bias in pharmaceutical sponsored (funded) clinical trials. There is a natural bias inherent in a pharmaceutical company conducting the clinical research on a drug. First, the pharmaceutical company has invested years and millions of dollars in developing and refining a drug. If that drug is not approved, they are out all that time and money. The individuals that work for the company and that are conducting the testing may feel pressured to manipulate the results to come out a certain way to assure that the company does not lose the money and time they have invested in the drug development process. 5) Relationship between clinical investigators and the pharmaceutical industry. When clinical investigators are investigating the efficacy of a drug, they should avoid the appearance of impropriety by working to maintain their independence. The investigator should not have any relationship with the industry in which they work. This helps them to maintain their independence and they are better able to accomplish their job in an efficient and professional manner. Investigators should also avoid paid consultancies as they give the appearance of a conflict of interest. Investigators are there to investigate the efficacy of the drug in question, and they should be left to do their job without being pressured to achieve a certain result for the pharmaceutical company. 6) Corporate hand in clinical trials and their contracts with academia. The corporate hand in academia should be one that is very light. There should be a full disclosure of all fiduciary obligations that academia has with the corporate world, and it should be up to an independent panel to determine if that financial relationship is affecting the academic independence of the researcher. Contracts with academia should be ones that do not have any implicit or explicit strings attached, and should not be contingent on a certain performance level. Works Cited (1999, March 11). Research Involving Individuals with Questionable Capacity to Consent: . Retrieved June 20, 2009, from U. S. Department of Health and Human Services Web site: http://grants. nih. gov/grants/policy/questionablecapacity. htm Bero, L. (2003, June 11). Corporate and Economic Pressures on Academic Freedom. Retrieved June 20, 2009, from University of California Web site: http://www. universityofcalifornia. edu/senate/committees/ucaf/afforum/bero. pdf Chopra, S. (2003, July 2). Industry Funding of Clinical Trials: Benefit or Bias?. Retrieved June 20, 2009, from www. jama. ama-assn. org Web site: http://jama. ama-assn. org/cgi/reprint/290/1/113. pdf Goldbloom, D. S. Physicians and the Pharmaceutical Industry . Retrieved June 20, 2009, from Canadian Psychiatric Association Web site: http://ww1. cpa- apc. org:8080/publications/archives/bulletin/2003/october/editorialEn. asp Kapp, M. B. (2006). Ethical and legal issues in research involving human subjects: do you want a piece of me?. Retrieved June 20, 2009, from Journal of Clinical Pathology Web site: http://jcp. bmjjournals. com/cgi/content/full/59/4/335 Panacek, E Guidelines for Clinical Investigator Involvement in Industry-sponsored Clinical Trials. Retrieved June 20, 2009, from www. saem. org Web site: http://www. saem. org/download/edward. pdf

Monday, October 14, 2019

Power Through Propaganda in Animal Farm

Power Through Propaganda in Animal Farm From the song Beasts of England to the commandments and their gradual changes, the main source of power throughout Animal Farm results from language and propaganda. Propaganda is information, especially of a biased or misleading nature, used to promote or publicize a particular political cause or point of view Because of Squealers use of this mechanism, and the manipulation of other characters, the reality for Animal Farm is shaped by the words of the powerful. Although one could say that visuals are the strongest type of propaganda, Words are much more powerful. By demonstrating how easily convinced the animals of the farm are by powerful speech or strong words, Orwell shows how people can fall victim and believe lies because of strong persuasive language or the power of words, without understanding the true intentions behind the propaganda they are fed. One could say that the power of words is not the most influential type of propaganda. One could argue that pictures are more influential than words, because of imagery and visuals. But that is not the case. One example of the way that words are the most influential type of propaganda is the song, Beasts of England. Beasts of England Unifies the animals at the beginning of the story. The animals are drawn to words that give them a common enemy and unite them. The song Beasts of England Uses the power of speech to make the animals feel as if they are all united. Even if theyve never gotten along before. Tyrant Man shall be oerthrown, And the fruitful fields of England shall be trod by beasts aloneBright will shine the fields of England, Purrer shall its waters be (Orwell, George). These lyrics make the animals feel as if they are united, and better off without man. Calling men tyrants and evil, while saying that the world will be a better place when men are gone, definitely affects how the animals singing this song will think. Another example of how strong words can be is Old Majors speech. Old Major uses a Hobbesian figure when he declares: Let us face it, our lives are miserable, laborious, and short. And he also speaks in Marxist terms when he declares that Man is the problem. Only get rid of Man, and the produce of our labor would be our own. Almost overnight we could be rich and free. What then must we do? Why, work night and day, body and soul, for the overthrow of the human race! That is my message to you, comrades. Rebellion!'(Robb, Paul H.) Old Major uses propaganda when convincing animals that they should all be against man. This type of propaganda is called pinpointing the enemy. This type of propaganda is used extremely often during wartime, and also in political campaigns and debates. This is an attempt to simplify a complex situation by presenting one specific group or person as the enemy. Old Majors words This type of propaganda is shown in the commandments of animalism. Another way the animals are persuaded by words are the commandments and their changes. The Commandments were made with the intention to unite all animals in mutual equality while identifying the human race as the only significant enemy. The rules made were meant to make the animals feel as if they were in a new, organized political Utopia. However, the words used to sway the animals were not going to stay equal for all. Eventually, the pigs establish themselves as leaders over the other animals. These masses are cleverly displayed through Squealers doubletalk and kept content, initially, by their share in the benefits that follow from increased labor (Laurie Lanzen Harris). Squealer is a pig on Animal Farm. Squealer spins stories into showing how great napoleon is and showing everyone how he can do nothing wrong, or how everything he does is for the greater good of the animals, when its really for his personal gain or just for the pigs. One example is when Squealer commented on The w ar between the three farms. .Russia entered the European war on the side of the Allies (culminating in victory for the Soviet Union, as Squealer claims for Animal Farm, though the only victory was in gaining back what they had before), increasing attempts were made by Stalin to achieve some level of entente, or agreement, with the other Allied nations. A series of meetings were held between the leaders of the various nations, and one particular conference resulted in the protracted Cold War. This conference is represented in the novel by the meeting between the pigs and the humans at the end, at which a quarrel breaks out over cheating at cards (Fitzpatrick, Kathleen). Squealer tells the animals that they had won the war. However, they had not really won anything. The animals do not get mad, however, because squealer strayed them from the truth. He made the animals believe that they had won a war that was unnecessary and unhelpful. One story that squealer drastically changes is boxe rs death. All the animals were working on a windmill. However, while working, boxer gets injured. , and all the animals believe Squealers lies. Especially at Boxers betrayal and tragic death, as well as soon after each event Squealer appears, making the animals feel as if the death was excusable, constructing his versions of events, and explaining that what happened was justified, or what they just say was not what really occurred. Out of context the idea that a pig on hind legs, wiping hot tears from his eyes in memory of a departed friend, is absurd. Butit assumes a very sinister note. Orwells very silence would seem to carry much weight here, it is in such marked contrast to the agitation in the novel (Elbarbary, Samir). However, although the speech is now negative toward the rest of the animals, (representing the common people), the way Squealer adapts the stories of Boxers death so the animals are persuaded to think that its ok. This has been done with the power of words, therefore it is the strongest type of propaganda. In conclusion, The animals in Animal Farm are persuaded by the most influential type of propaganda, the power of words. This is because of squealers persuasion of the animals, the changing of the commandments, and the song Beasts of England. Some may say that imagery is the most influential type of propaganda, but that is not true. The animals in Animal Farm are the most persuaded by the power of words. Works Cited Robb, Paul H. Animal Farm: Overview. Reference Guide to English Literature, edited by D. L. Kirkpatrick, 2nd ed., St. James Press, 1991. Literature Resource Center Fitzpatrick, Kathleen. An overview of Animal Farm. Literature Resource Center, Gale, 2016. Literature Resource Center Elbarbary, Samir. Language as Theme in Animal Farm. Short Story Criticism, edited by Joseph Palmisano, vol. 68, Gale, 2004. Literature Resource Center

Sunday, October 13, 2019

Federalist #10 :: essays research papers

Madison begins perhaps the most famous of the Federalist papers by stating that one of the strongest arguments in favor of the Constitution is the fact that it establishes a government capable of controlling the violence and damage caused by factions. Madison defines that factions are groups of people who gather together to protect and promote their special economic interests and political opinions. Although these factions are at odds with each other, they frequently work against the public interests, and infringe upon the rights of others. Both supporters and opponents of the plan are concerned with the political instability produced by rival factions. The state governments have not succeeded in solving this problem; in fact the situation is so problematic that people are disillusioned with all politicians and blame government for their problems. Consequently, a form of popular government that can deal successfully with this problem has a great deal to recommend it. Given the nature of man, factions are inevitable. As long as men hold different opinions, have different amounts of wealth, and own different amount of property, they will continue to fraternize with people who are most similar to them. Both serious and trivial reasons account for the formation of factions but the most important source of faction is the unequal distribution of property. Men of greater ability and talent tend to possess more property than those of lesser ability, and since the first object of government is to protect and encourage ability, it follows that the rights of property owners must be protected. Property is divided unequally, and, in addition, there are many different kinds of property; men have different interests depending upon the kind of property they own. For example, the interests of landowners differ from those who own businesses. Government must not only protect the conflicting interests of property owners, it must, at the same time, successfully regul ate the conflicts that result from those who own, and those who do not own, property. To Madison, there are only two ways to control a faction: one, to remove its causes and the second to control its effects. The first is impossible. There are only two ways to remove the causes of a faction: destroy liberty or give every citizen the same opinions, passions, and interests. Destroying liberty is a "cure worse then the disease itself," and the second is impracticable. The causes of factions are thus part of the nature of man and we must deal with their effects and accept their existence.

Saturday, October 12, 2019

Small Pox History Essay -- Biology Medical Biomedical Disease

Small Pox History Smallpox has been believed to be a prominent killer for thousands of years. Before 900 AD smallpox and measles were easily interchangeable to many physicians. These two diseases possessed similar symptoms, such as fevers and rashes, making it very difficult to distinguish between them. It was not until the Persian physician, Rhazes Ar-Raz Abmiz, that measles and smallpox were able to be clinically distinguished in 900 AD. Much later in 1751, Thomas Sydenham found further differentiating characteristics between the two diseases(Aufderheide, 202). Through the years, with its many outbreaks in varying areas across the planet, smallpox claimed millions of victims. Many rulers and soldiers were killed by this incredibly infectious disease. To prevent and hopefully stop the increasing numbers of deaths due to smallpox, many physicians slaved away to invent and find a cure for this disease. The first effective method of prevention was called variolation. Variolation was later modified and i mproved with vaccinations(Hopkins, 15). Today wild smallpox is no longer a risk. The last natural case of smallpox was reported in Somalia in 1977. While the last reported death due to smallpox was reported to be a year later in the UK(McNeil, 165). Smallpox is not completely out of the picture. After the 2001 attacks with anthrax, a strong paranoia of smallpox being used as another possible mean of bioterrorism has arisen(Oldstone, 32). Smallpox was once a major killer. In the 20th century more than 400 million deaths by smallpox were recorded. In 1967, the World Health Organization reported that 15 million people became infected that one year(Hopkins, 16). After many soldiers, the disease claimed rulers, and regular civilians, ... ...an attack against the US. Today the vaccinia virus is used for vaccinations because it more closely resembles smallpox than cowpox does(McNeil, 165). Even though natural smallpox is no longer an everyday threat as it was in the past, we cannot ignore its potential as a lethal weapon against any country. Works Cited Aufderheide AC, Rodriguez-Martin C. Smallpox. The Cambridge encyclopedia of human paleopathology Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1998. Christie AB. Smallpox. Infectious diseases: epidemiology and clinical practice New York: Churchill Livingstone, 1987. Hopkins DR. the greatest killer: smallpox in history. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2002. McNeil WH. Plagues and peoples: a natural history of infectious diseases. New York: Anchor Press,1976. Oldstone MBA. Smallpox. Viruses, plagues and history. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1998.

Friday, October 11, 2019

Childhood Development and Sexual Behavior

Childhood Development and Sexual Behavior Frank Sehi PSY/265 January 24th, 2013 Nicole Pansey Childhood Development and Sexual Behavior Sexual behavior begins to develop as early as the â€Å"Infancy (0 to 2 Years) stage† (Rathus, Nevid, & Fichner-Rathus, â€Å"CHAPTER 13 ? Sexuality in Childhood and Adolescence,† 2011). Male fetuses have erections while in the mother’s womb, and both male and female fetus suck on their fingers, which gives pleasure in the mouth (Rathus, Nevid, & Fichner-Rathus, â€Å"CHAPTER 13 ? Sexuality in Childhood and Adolescence,† 2011).Between 6 months to 12 months a child may begin to masturbate, such as male boys may run up against something or play with their gentiles (Rathus, Nevid, & Fichner-Rathus, â€Å"CHAPTER 13 ? Sexuality in Childhood and Adolescence,† 2011). From 3 to 8 years old children begin to show curiosity some when it comes to sexual development behavior, just because the begin to notice the difference in boy and girl gentiles (Rathus, Nevid, & Fichner-Rathus, â€Å"CHAPTER 13 ? Sexuality in Childhood and Adolescence,† 2011).This stage they may play house, doctor, or even with doll to play out their sexual behavior, and in most cases it is innocent behavior (Rathus, Nevid, & Fichner-Rathus, â€Å"CHAPTER 13 ? Sexuality in Childhood and Adolescence,† 2011). Children may play out same sex sexuality, but has no effect on sexual preference at this age (Rathus, Nevid, & Fichner-Rathus, â€Å"CHAPTER 13 ? Sexuality in Childhood and Adolescence,† 2011). During the Preadolescent stage is when a child really discovers masturbation; they discover how to pleasure themselves and the feel of the sensation.Also at this stage Preadolescents may experience same sex behavior as way of exploring their sexuality, but in most cases a short phases (Rathus, Nevid, & Fichner-Rathus, â€Å"CHAPTER 13 ? Sexuality in Childhood and Adolescence,† 2011). The adolescent stage happens r ight after puberty, this stage is masturbation is the big part sexual pleasure. Adolescents for most part will masturbate, and still can keep their virginity and avoid pregnancy (Rathus, Nevid, & Fichner-Rathus, â€Å"CHAPTER 13 ?Sexuality in Childhood and Adolescence,† 2011). During adolescents a few have experienced same sex sexual experiences among g their peers, and in most cases it’s just during the transition period from adolescent to adult sexual behavior (Rathus, Nevid, & Fichner-Rathus, â€Å"CHAPTER 13 ? Sexuality in Childhood and Adolescence,† 2011). Adolescences who are gay or lesbian tend to struggle more during this stage, than those who are heterosexual, because of judgment of peers (Rathus, Nevid, & Fichner-Rathus, â€Å"CHAPTER 13 ?Sexuality in Childhood and Adolescence,† 2011) In conclusion Sexual development begins from the fetus to adolescent stage, and most of the child’s sexual behavior is more of discovering one’s self . The adolescent stage is where one discovers more on what they like sexual wise, and usually orientation as well. References: Rathus, S. A. , Nevid, J. S. , & Fichner-Rathus, l. (2011). Human Sexuality in a World of Diversity (8th ed. ). Retrieved from The University of Phoenix.

Thursday, October 10, 2019

Family Means

When asked â€Å"what does family mean? † I automatically think of the legal definition. The legal definition of family is a group of individuals consisting of parents, siblings, children, and other relatives, who have ties of blood, marriage, or adoption. Now that the legal definition is out of the way, we can get to my definition. Family also known as kin, folk, clan, relatives, or dynasty, to me is a little bit different from the legal definition. Family to me is a group of people who love you unknowingly but still unconditionally.Family is where you can be yourself and for me that is probably one of the turning points between family and close friendship. To others family might be the group of people that you tell boring stories to just because you know that regardless of anything they are still your family. There are times I find it hard to sleep at night and I text my cousin Lindsey and no matter what happens, I can tell her about it and she doesn't say anything to anybod y. There was one time when I thought I was failing a class because, this year especially, I feel like i'm slacking a little bit.So I told Lindsey about it and she said â€Å"stop playing games and study because I know your grandma does not play. † Just that one line kind of put everything in perspective because my grandma, no matter how nice she may seem, she really doesn't play when it comes to grades and her family. Family in short can make someone a part of something bigger than themselves. Family is the one word that can make someone go back somewhere they really didn't want to ever go back to. Some family members make you mad, angry, upset, frustrated.Some make you want to call them every name in the book, and by book I don't mean the Bible. But, at the same time your  family is the only thing you can find yourself confiding in, and crying to, and loving more than ever. So when it comes to family no one should feel like they have to have some type of guard up because t hese are the people that are supposed to care the most. Everyone's definition of family or kin is different but, to me that is what it should be. What's your definition?

Wednesday, October 9, 2019

Reactions to Extreme Danger

Reactions to danger vary greatly in different types of situations and different types of people. A few known reactions to grave danger are actually in pairs of completely opposite reactions. What I mean by that is that is that in a moment of distress, one can act in ways that are completely different from each other. For example, one can either freak out or stay calm,, freeze or keep going, run or stay, ect. These actions, of course, depend on the person, place, and situation. There are dozens, probably hundreds, of different situations in which danger is present.Some usual situations are things such as kidnappings, fires, assaults, shootings, and being held hostage. Although some people may react calmly to a given dilemma, others may completely freak out in the spur of the moment and go to extreme measures in order to get out. Some of these extreme measures include doing things you may regret for the rest of your life. An example of these extreme choices is killing. Suppose you†™re being held hostage. The only way to survive is to kill your holder and run away.If you’re desperate, you’ll probably do it. Another example of these extreme measures is cannibalism. People usually resort to this when they are stranded and desperate for food. If a person dies, the best thing to feed the rest is to eat the body of the deceased. Psychosis can sometimes set in after such events. But as they say, desperate times call for desperate measures. All in all, different reactions to different types of danger vary depending on the person and situation. Usually, saving your life will be the ultimate goal.You’ll do anything in order to get out of the situation quickly and safely. One can even resort to the extreme measures mentioned previously. Killing and cannibalism are also usual choices people make to save their or a loved ones life. We as humans sometimes feel the need to protect not only ourselves, but others as well. The human mind and body can do great things when distressed. For example, a mother can lift a car under which her infant child is lying. In that case, saving her child’s life is the ultimate goal.

Tuesday, October 8, 2019

Premarital screening Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Premarital screening - Essay Example Most of the technologies applied to provide these challenges are usually applied in; screening, diagnosis as well as information control and management. Cervical cancer is one of the current reproductive health challenge faced by the current generation; science has shown that it a condition caused by tissues that develops around the cervix. Characteristically, this form of cancer develops slowly and may take a longer time to be detected. Other causes of cervical cancer has been identified to occur from the essence of having multiple sexual partners among women, Human papillomavirus (HPV), early age sexual inter course and smoking of cigarettes (cervicalcancer.about.com). To begin with, science has played a major role in provision of solution to this current reproductive system by providing a platform for the scientists to conduct scientific researches geared towards proving solution through; acquisition of imperative information concerning new methodologies of treatment (cervicalcancer.about.com). Additionally, science had played a major role in the context of technology by facilitating the development of screening and treatment methods. The treatment methods are; radiotherapy, chemotherapy together with surgery. These methods may sometimes be used through a combination of one or two of them; however, in most cases, a single treatment method is usually applied to the patients (Yarbro et al 2005, pg.37). Surgical treatment of cancer can be conducted in various ways; the first method applied in the surgical treatment is the removal of the lymph nodes which is scientifically known as lymphadenectomy. The other surgical treatment method is the complete removal of the cervix and the organs around it; the method is scientifically known as radical trachelectomy (World Health Organization 123). The functionality of chemotherapy, involves the killing of cancerous cells by utilization of radiation rays. Chemotherapy drugs are also imperatively used to kill the

Monday, October 7, 2019

Security and Domestics Anti-Terrorism Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Security and Domestics Anti-Terrorism - Essay Example However, there are those who have since claimed that the Federal government also surveys and taps into every citizen’s calls, financial records and so on in order to keep up with terrorist trends. This has caused widespread uproar and condemnation from the public. It is held that terrorist related surveillance must not be used as an excuse to violate the privacy of persons both in the United States and in the rest of the world. In my opinion, from the readings, the FBI, composed of several branches, offices and departments (sections) such as Joint Terrorism Task Forces (JTTF), National Joint Terrorism Task Force, Public Internet Tip Line, Strategic Command Center (SIOC), Terrorism Fly Team, Terrorist Explosives Device Analytical Center, Terrorist Financing Operations Section, Directorate of Intelligence (ensures the FBI produces the intelligence necessary to protect the nation), Counter-Intelligence and Spy Departments and so on, is adequately organized and staffed to perform its mission tasks. The training regime is also arguably the highest of standards with different training for different personnel depending on what capacity they will be serving in the FBI. Some of the trainings include international terrorism training, domestic terrorism training, weapons of mass destruction training, legal training, and Muslim-Arab culture training (DAngelo, 2007). In addition, the FBI works in conjunction with a number of other security agencies such as the Department of Homeland (adding to personnel therefore). For combat operations on terrorists, there is at least one special combat unit for each of the 59 FBI departments. This is the SWAT (Special Weapons and Tactics Team) who are trained to shoot from snipers and other heavy artillery weapons and also taught how to fight and survive in harsh (hostile) environments (DAngelo, 2007). Currently, certain provisions of the

Sunday, October 6, 2019

Case study of Union carbide and Bhopal Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Case study of Union carbide and Bhopal - Essay Example Most Americans considering its controversial nature overwhelmingly waited for the verdict on Martha Stewart’s case on 27th, December 2001.However, the question on whether Stewart committed the crime is open to question. Martha Stewart was found at fault for selling her ImClone shares. The US attorneys accused her of obstructing fairness and that she was deceitful to investigators. According to attorneys, Stewart was blameworthy of insider trading. I strongly do not accept as true that Stewart committed an insider trading crime given that she acted on her stockbroker’s knowledge. Sam Waksal, the ImClone CEO did not either clue-up Stewart or her stock brokers the defiance of Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to appraise the untried cancer drug, Erbitux. Fascinatingly, Sam, on selling his shares, was just speculating on the decision that could be taken by FAD. He did not have the packed information and for that, could not reveal any to Stewart. Decisively, Martha did not commit insider-trading crime (Drew 707-708). Tight spot is whether the US Attorneys and the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) used good decision in indicting Martha Stewart. Stewart, having been advised by Bacanovic who was her stockbroker to sell her shares if ImClon shares fall below $60 saved $ 45,673. Banacovic complained that his worksheet had been altered but was considered malice. Although, SEC filed a civil complaint against Stewart, the resolution arrived at in indicting her is doubtful. The issue was supposed to be inside trading but was twisted to conspiracy, obstruction and lying to the investigators. Martha overtly denied accusations against inside trading. Though she got a call that Sam was selling her shares and went ahead to sell her shares too before calling Sam, she was not a victim of inside trade. She just relied on her friend’s trustworthiness. Prosecutors must have had additional motive for pursuing the case. Instead of filling a suit of inside tr ade against Stewart, which was supposed to be a criminal case, the issue of inside trade was left and the suit was certainly turned to a civil case. The prosecutor must have had a motive of proving a point to the public that even celebrities cannot escape the rule of law. There was no enough evidence to rule the case. The government simply wanted to show that it was strict on business crime (Drew 708-710). I certainly do not concur with the jury that Martha was guilty beyond reasonable doubt. How even in a nonprofessional’s language, can failure to provide evidence by an individual’s guilt be termed as obstruction of justice? Surprisingly, no one stood on the courtroom as a casualty of Stewart’s action. The fact that Stewart kept mum was not enough to declare her guilty. Stewart postulates that she acted upon receiving information that Sam was selling his stock. The information that she got was from a competent individual whom she solely depended on for guidance when it comes to stock matters. Upon hearing the information, she decided to sell her stock. Like any other individual, she could have not waited any further but to save her money before loss. In addition, Sam although he was the CEO of ImClone, did not receive any information from the Food and Drug Administration that their drug was going to be rejected. He further did not leak any information to Stewart that could make her gain inside knowledge about the

Saturday, October 5, 2019

Human Management Thesis Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Human Management - Thesis Example It is a UK based organisation, but has focused on engaging a considerable proportion of its entire human resources from the international environment which has perpetually increased the diversity of the workforce engaged and thus increased the risk of conflicts owing to the varied range of individualities (BG Group Plc, 2012). With due consideration to this fact, BG Group can be identified to possess the ability towards implementing effective governance in order to operate its business functions successfully worldwide mitigating the consequences of conflicts (BG Group Plc, 2012). The concept of conflict management is often described as the process of dealing with conflict situations that may occur within the workplace with efficiency mitigating its negative consequences that may have a significant impact on the sustainability of an organisation. The role of conflict management, in this regards, considers the proper identification of the various causes giving rise to conflicts which i nclude scarce resources, adversity as well as faulty communication among others delivering importance not only towards the organisational interests, but also towards the benefits of the employees (Eunson, 2012). It is in this context that various models had been developed in order to frame the notion of conflict management and thus suggest a comprehensive pattern to the organisations for resolving such issues. Blake and Mouton Model can be regarded as such a framework which renders an unambiguous understanding of the conflicts arising within the organisational sphere and also suggests the required measures to resolve the issues (Verma, 1998). The aim of the paper is to develop a comprehensive understanding of the theoretical perspective presented by Blake and Mouton Model of conflicts management. The understanding will further be related with the different conflicts that were faced by BG Group in its current operations. Moreover, the overall discussion will be based on the conflicts that were faced by the BG Group which will further be continued with effective recommendations and strategic action plan referring to the theoretical understanding of the concept. Theoretical Perspective: Blake and Mouton Model of Conflict Management The term ‘conflict’ is characteristically described as a strong competition or struggle between various people or individuals with differing values, objectives, ideas and beliefs. Conflict is often observed to result in terms of non-productive consequences which might have had a long-term impact or can last for only a short period of time. It can also be defined as a condition in which more than one party possesses mismatched objectives and also differs in terms of their behaviour as well as their perceptions. The various sources of conflict generally include structural, role and resources conflict. Structural conflict is observed to fundamentally arise from perplexities in managing the need of the diverse organisational s ub-units. In the similar context, role conflict is generally caused by misinterpretation regarding

Friday, October 4, 2019

Geopolitics as a Field of Knowledge Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Geopolitics as a Field of Knowledge - Essay Example It is at this point that geopolitics meets the requirements of a field of knowledge, being close to geography (Colledge 1). The relationship between geopolitics and geography is made clear through the following example: When choosing a region for establishing their state governors are likely to prefer an area which has â€Å"natural barriers, such as mountains, so that its security costs are low† (Lind 182). The specific phenomenon implies that an individual cannot take effective geopolitical decisions unless he is aware of the characteristics and potentials of a region in terms of geography. The relationship between geopolitics and geography, as explained above, reveals another dimension/ characteristic of geopolitics: the potential of this concept to have the form of a policy practice. In the example presented above, the policymaker has to be based on geographical data, as related to an area, in order to decide which region offers most advantages as a center of social and economic life. At this point, geopolitics interacts with the political theory. Reference is made especially to the â€Å"republican security theory† (Lind 182) which is based on the following perception: â€Å"a democratic republic can survive only if its security costs are low† (Lind 182). However, such target cannot be achieved unless particular methods are employed. Primarily, a military force that is able to protect the republic from its enemies needs to be organized (Lind 182). Such plan can be effectively developed only through the identification of appropriate methods; it is at thi s point that geopolitics shows its characteristic as a set of methods. The use of geopolitics in developing critical state decisions is understood through the example of Britain: British preferred to establish their state in a region that is surrounded by water so that enemies are discouraged from invading in British territory (Lind 182).  

Thursday, October 3, 2019

Problem Solving and Decision Making Essay Example for Free

Problem Solving and Decision Making Essay Background I work for a company called npower and we are an energy supplier in the UK. Specifically, I work within the Blended Services department and we deal with various types of inbound contact from our customers such as email, letters and telephone calls. I manage a team of 15 people advisors and their role is to effectively deal with customer enquiries that come in via the different methods of contact. Due to the large volumes of correspondence that we have come in, it’s not always practical to respond to customers via a written response and we therefore ask the advisors to call as many customers as possible and resolve their enquiries by phone, this allows the advisors not only deal with the customer’s original enquiry but to also answer any subsequent questions that may arise when they are presented with the answer we give them. Description of the problem When advisors call a customer there are regulations around data protection and also keeping customer contact details up to date that we must adhere to, we refer to these regulations as compliance. This is a very black and white subject, we must be compliant in all we do 100% of the time. The problem that has come to light that in our department, is that our advisors are not 100% compliant 100% of the time. They will fully cover data protection and request up to date contact information on some calls but not others. This presents a problem for the department and me as a manager as well as the advisors in question as these inconsistencies can lead to varying degrees of disciplinary action for the advisors and the company. The impact of this for the advisors is that it can lead to disciplinary action such as informal warnings, up to more formal action such as written warnings and even loss of their job. In extreme cases offending advisors can even face personal fines. As a manager, I then have to consider the potential knock on effects of such action which can include loss of advisor confidence, a reduction in staff morale, and opportunity for progression may be reduced or taken away and all of these in turn may affect an advisors attendance. For me as a manager the concerns are that these actions could affect my time as I am required to carry out investigations in to each case of non-compliance. This is turn could leave other members of my team to feel neglected as my time becomes consumed with investigations and carrying out disciplinary action. Potentially, this could lead to a general loss of morale within my team as a whole and go on to impact their performance. This issue also affects our customers as if we are seen to be breaking such important regulations as data protection, and then this could cause an increase in complaints, damage our customer’s confidence in us as a company, lead to a decrease in customer loyalty and ultimately the loss of their business. From a company point of view the impacts are possibly the greatest. Just a few potential knock on effects from non-compliance are loss of customers, brand damage, legal consequences including large fines and potentially losing out license to trade. Disciplinary action can lead to loss of staff and this brings further impacts such as the time and cost of recruiting and training new staff and all of these could eventually impact our ability to provide a desired service to our customers. Analysis of the problem In trying to identify options to solve the problem of advisors inconsistently adhering to compliance regulations, I first looked at gathering as much information as I could in to how much it was affecting my department and if there were any contributing factors to the problem. I liaised with our quality analysts. The QA team had recently marked a sample of the calls we make within the department and informed me that in the month of September they sampled four calls from each team within the department. This was made up of one inbound call (calls where the customer calls npower) and one outbound call (calls where we call the customer) for two advisors on each team. There are 18 teams so this is 36 advisors that were sampled and scored. The results showed that of the advisors monitored only 69% were fully compliant. This is cause for concern then as the target is 100%. Following on from this, I needed to do further investigation. My time, however, is very valuable and for me to take on such an investigation alone is not feasible. I discussed the problem with my manager and we came up with an idea to help us follow up the results from the QA Teams quality checks. Within our own operations group (5 Teams) we asked each manager to mark two calls for each of their advisor focussing solely on whether or not the advisors were following compliance regulations that we must adhere to. In the first week of October, each manager carried out the quality checks for their teams. The results showed that we were 50% compliant as an operations group. Following these results each manager went out to the advisors that were not following the compliance regulations and gave them a training session as well as an informal warning that this kind of action was not acceptable and that compliance must be adhered to at all times. The managers including myself then left the advisors for a couple of weeks and then went back and completed the same quality checks once more. The second time around we noticed an improvement as we scored 70%. However, we were and still are a long way short of our ultimate goal. Following on from this, I devised what I saw to be a simple yet effective questionnaire that would be completed by a sample group of advisors. The purpose of the questionnaire was to establish possible reasons why the advisors failed to be consistent in regards to meeting compliance when speaking to customers on the telephone. I looked to address such matters as how confident they were that they were personally 100% complaint 100% of the time, were they aware of the tools that npower provide to assist them in being complaint, what barriers they have encountered that make it difficult to be compliant and what do they feel would ensure that they were 100% compliant 100% of the time going forward. The results of the questionnaire showed that the advisors knew what was required of them to be compliant and that they recognised the implications of not being compliant. It also showed that all of the advisors were aware of the various support tools that npower provides them to help with compliance though not all of them used them. This suggests then that the problem of being inconsistent in regards to compliance may be down to advisor attitude or focus but at this point I wanted to avoid making assumptions. With all of this information, I used a simple fishbone to drill down for possible reasons for these inconsistencies. I looked at the following headings and then added the possible reasons: Confidence (lack of) * Inconsistent message * Unclear on what’s expected * Cannot deal with conflict (from customers) * DPA doesn’t feel natural (in call structure) * Situations outside of the norm (3rd party calling on behalf of the customer) Knowledge (lack of) * No or little training (new to business) * Lack of communication (not advised of possible changes) * Inconsistent message (unsure what is correct) Skill * Unsure how to resolve conflict * Not certain how to incorporate data protection in to their call structure * Not able to control a call (allows a customer to drive a conversation, potentially skipping past vital areas for not wanting to interrupt) Attitude/Behaviour * Doesn’t understand potential consequences * Doesn’t like change * Refuses to comply After considering all of the above the potential solutions to my problem could be creating a guide that points out to advisors what they must do to be fully compliant but that isn’t rigid in its delivery so that the advisors can make it their own. Ensuring that the guide and its use is trained out in a clear manner that makes sure there are no questions unanswered. Providing the advisors with additional training to enable them to capably and confidently deal with situations of conflict i.e. if a customer refuses to go through data protection. Finally, making sure that the consequences of non-compliance for both advisors and the company are clearly communicated. Resolution of the problem I went to manager with my findings and stated what I wanted to achieve. I needed the goal to realistic and to be measurable. Remembering that QA Team reported the department to be 69% compliant for the month of September my goal statement was this: * To decrease the compliance fail rate in our department by 15% during the month of November based upon 36 evaluations. In making this statement, I ensured that if would be a fair reflection since it would match the original investigation completed by the QA Team. It’s SMART, because I have a specific goal that can be measured against previous findings. It’s both achievable and realistic as all managers will make numerous quality checks throughout the month and I’m trying to achieve the ultimate goal of 100% compliance but instead make a small but reasonable step towards it and finally, it’s time bound as all steps will be put in place and measured throughout November. Once the goal had been set, my manager and I held a brain storming session to look at possible options to resolve the problem. Further to those I mentioned earlier, we came up with these additional ideas: * Speech Analytics * Scripts for data protection * A specific inbound call team * A specific outbound call team * Feedback, coaching and evaluations * An inbound and outbound call decision making tree * Brief to include what’s expected and what the consequences are for non-compliance * Compliance champs * Compliance tick sheet After we had come up with these various options I went away and decided which would be the best course of action. To help me decide I used a simple Pro’s and Con’s method. I put each of the above options in to a table and then listed what the advantages and disadvantages were. Below, I have just briefly outlined some of the key points for each one. Speech analytics Pros * It saves time (it’s all automated, listening to and identifying key words and phrases in conversations) so managers don’t have to do manual checks. * A large sample is gathered (it pulls data from all recorded calls) therefore the reflection is very accurate. * Reports can easily be pulled, since all data is compiled and exported in excel spread sheet format. Cons * It’s not an immediate solution. Speech analytics for npower is in early testing stages and it’s unlikely to be available for at least another year. * Cost – It’s very expensive to implement and so even to run in a small test environment is currently unlikely. Scripts for data protection Pros * It would clearly set out what needs to be said (no grey area) * Advisors would have something to reference at all times * Can easily be updated when changes occur * Managers could easily cover this in a coaching session Cons * Advisors may not feel it comes across as natural * Advisors may forget to keep it on their desk each day * It would need to be updated with each new change (potentially old ones could be in circulation) * Repeat contact customers would have to go through the exact same process each time and may feel it comes across as robotic Specific inbound/outbound call teams Pros * Advisors would deal with only one call type (one set of compliance regulations, more specialised, less chance of failure) * Becoming specialised may increase confidence Cons * It may not be feasible to have a enough specialised teams to deal with the workload * We would lose multi-skilled advisors, impacting our ability to deal with other work volumes * Specialised teams leave us vulnerable to outside influences such as absence. Compliance Champs Pros * Position of responsibility for trusted advisors * Someone on hand to reference in uncertain situations Cons * Those not chosen may feel disappointed * The cost of taking advisors away from completing work may not be feasible in such a busy time * Having to wait for a ‘Champ’ may impact customer wait times and thus service * Takes ownership and responsibility away from the advisors Compliance Checklist Pros * Advisors already use something similar, so it would be familiar * Advisors could clearly track what they have and haven’t asked * Peace of mind as it states clearly what they must ask * Natural, as it states what they must ask but doesn’t tell them how to do it * Cheap and easy to implement * Easy to amend when changes occur * Advisors can easily keep it with them either paper based or electronically * Puts the responsibility on the advisor * Best use can be coached around Cons * Must be altered with each change (old ones could be left in circulation) * Puts the responsibility on the advisors (must be trusted to use it) After evaluating the options and the pros and cons to each. I decided to go with a compliance checklist. Once I had decided on what I believed to be the best solution I asked myself two important questions, in various decision making models these are also known as Acid Tests 12. Acid Test 1 – If I implement all of my plans for action will my problems be overcome? In considering the answer I thought back to areas that I had identified earlier that linked into the problem of inconsistent compliance. To recap these were things such as: * Advisors were unsure what they should be asking. * They lacked confidence that they were saying all the right things. * They could often miss important information if interrupted by a customer before the compliance checks were complete. * The solution needed to be simple and easy to implement, so that it was clear and simple to train out. The majority of my advisors already use a checklist of sorts to capture the work they complete and how they contacted the customer, by adding compliance prompts to this it creates a visual aid for the advisors reminding them of what they need to ask and it remains in a setting that they find familiar. Also, because the advisors are able to tick off the various requirements as they go along it makes it very clear what must be asked and it’s less likely that they’ll miss things out if they are interrupted as they can simply go back along the list and pick up where they left off. It’s also likely to come across as more natural when the advisors are talking to them customers as well as again it only prompts them with what they need to ask rather than telling them how to say it. Finally, it’s relatively cheap to implement, it isn’t very time consuming to put in place and it’s something that can be done immediately. A copy of the checklist is attached (Appendix A) Acid test 2 – If I get rid of all my problems will I achieve my objectives? Again, the answer should be yes. My solution will give advisors something black and white, that’s clear and easy to understand and familiar to them in their day to day role. This should in turn give them the added confidence when talking to customer’s on the phone. There is, however, a human element. This is that the solution once trained out and implemented, relies upon the advisor taking some ownership and making sure that use it every day even if they feel confident that they are fully compliant. Because this is a personal choice there is no plan that I can implement that will solve this. However, as a company we do have measures already in place to manage this. If an advisor is proven to have the skills and the knowledge to be fully compliant and yet for whatever reason chooses not to, then I or any other manager would need to ensure that this is managed in the proper fashion. Implementation and communication of the solution As previously stated the advisor already usage a data capture sheet in their day to day jobs. I have taken that and added some simple yet clear checklist boxes that prompt the advisors on what they need to be asking when speaking to customers on the telephone. I will start off with a trial in my operations group and then if the desired results are proven then I will discuss with my manager a plan to roll it out to the whole department. I’ll start by holding a small group meeting with my fellow team managers, briefly describing the problem that I’ve been looking in to. I’ll present my solution and tell them how I would like it to be used. The managers including me can then go out to our own teams and deliver the message in a brief team meeting. The compliance checklist will be distributed via email to the managers and advisors alike. This way the advisors can choose to print it off and fill it in manually or they can simply fill in in on their PC’S. This also means that they will always be able to access a copy even if they have to move desks as it will be saved to their email. Following this, I would plan to follow up with some side by side observations. This would be to ensure that the advisors are using the checklist as intended and it also gives me the chance to answer any questions that they may have as well as offer advice and praise where they are doing things well and hopefully begin to build that confidence in their ability back up. As far as monitoring and reviewing of the situation, this should be quite straight forward. I know what the problem is and I have identified a list of causes. I also know clearly what I expect to achieve from the solution. I perform at least one quality check on each of my advisors each week, so these will prove useful when monitoring progress in this area and the results should be clear to see. These quality checks are always given to the advisors as feedback and trends from multiple quality checks are used to build useful coaching sessions. The feedback that I receive from the advisors at this point should also allow me to monitor if they are using my solution as expected and how confident they feel with it. As a department, we also receive daily, weekly and monthly reports. These will enable me to view the progress of the other teams in my operations group to see if they are showing the results that are expected. I will raise the matter for discussion in the weekly operations group meeting and this will allow me to receive feedback from my fellow managers and get their thoughts on what is and potentially isn’t going well. Finally, the QA Team will perform another quality check across a random sample of the department. This will perhaps be the ultimate mark of whether or not my solution has been successful. If so, then there should be a significant increase in the percentage of advisors that pass compliance.