Mukcrakers 5.02

1. Define the term â€Å"Muckraker. † Be sure to include the name of the person who created it -Muckrakers were American journalists and novelists of the 20th century who exposed corruption in government and businesses. The term was created by Theodore Roosevelt. 2. Naturalism was a literary movement of the late 19th century that was an extension of Realism. What was the main focus of the Naturalistic writer? -The main focus of the Naturalistic writer was the fringes society, the criminal, the fallen, and the down-and-out 3.American Realists believed that humanity's freedom of choice was limited by the power of outside forces. How would this view differ from the perspective of the Romantic writer (think of someone like Emerson)? -Romantic writers believed that all people were encouraged torward self-development, and that everyone is valued as individuals from birth. They also believed in expressing themselves in ways that they chose, like art, and all kinds of expression. 4. I n  your  opinion, based on what you have read, why would post Civil War, newly industrialized America be attracted to the Realistic movement? It was an age of reform. There was so sugar coating things. The south was destroyed, newly frees blacks were in poverty, and the economy was bad. Change was happening but everything wasn’t lollipops and daises. 5. What is meant by the term â€Å"local color†? -Local color is also called regional literature. It is fictional literature about a certain region, which means the characters; the way they talk and live would all be they way things are in that specific region.

Women Suffrage in the 1920’s

The 1920’s was a huge struggle for women around the U. S. Huge rallies were formed and outrageous furry was spread city to city. All this drama and series of strikes was caused by the women that were eager to have the same rights as everyone else, without and racial or gender profiling against them. But late in that time period, that wasn’t the cause. After numerous protests and the creating of the women’s national party, little did they know but it would soon become a huge success for all women around the globe. The 19th amendment guaranteed women the right to vote, and it went into effect in 1920.It had begun settling rates at levels intended to ensure the industries profits full woman suffrage before 1920, eighth date granted partial woman suffrage before 1920. No woman suffrage until ratification of 19th amendment. Elizabeth caddy staton becomes president of the national women’s suffrage association. Women also began appearing on the political scene an d in elected offices. Winifred mason huck of representatives in 1922 was the first. The woman suffrage movement got off to a slow start. Some people threatened women suffragrates, and sold they were unfeminine and immoral. Many if its supports were abolitionists as well.In the years before the civil war abolishing slavery took priority. Many job opportunities were available for women. One of them being the biggest company at the time. They worked as operators at telephone companies. It was a great and easy job and didn’t involve doing much. It was better than staying home completing the daily tasks taken place at what was called, â€Å"A women’s place†, in the 1920's. Now it was not only at home but also in their workplace. Suffragists march in a 1912 rally in New York City. In 1920, after decades of struggle for the right to vote, the Nineteenth Amendment's ratification granted female suffrage.

Candide Essay

Some might say Voltaire portrays women as objects of desire and is capitalizing on the subject but to get his point across using satire, some people will have to get offended. In Candide, Voltaire is critiquing and satirizing sexism. An example of how sexism and rape were satirized and critiqued in chapter 11 on pg 40 â€Å"I was beauty and grace itself, and I was a virgin. I was not so for long; that flower that had been reserved for the handsome Prince of Massa-Carrara was ravished from me by the pirate captain. Indeed My Lady the Princess of Palastrina and I had to be very strong to endure all we underwent until we arrived in Morocco. But let’s get on; these things are so common that they are not worth speaking of. † Rape is a very sensitive subject. The old woman talked about the incident in a nonchalant tone and said that it was so common that it was not worth talking about. Voltaire did this to satirize what were becoming society’s â€Å"normal† views on such brutal acts. He was letting us know that rape was such a frequent thing in the time period in which he lived, that it was being viewed by society as â€Å"normal â€Å". In order to understand the book properly, it is important to recognize that Voltaire was attempting to portray the problems within society such as sexism, by using satire to help the people this era realize what they were doing was wrong. Candide Essay Some might say Voltaire portrays women as objects of desire and is capitalizing on the subject but to get his point across using satire, some people will have to get offended. In Candide, Voltaire is critiquing and satirizing sexism. An example of how sexism and rape were satirized and critiqued in chapter 11 on pg 40 â€Å"I was beauty and grace itself, and I was a virgin. I was not so for long; that flower that had been reserved for the handsome Prince of Massa-Carrara was ravished from me by the pirate captain. Indeed My Lady the Princess of Palastrina and I had to be very strong to endure all we underwent until we arrived in Morocco. But let’s get on; these things are so common that they are not worth speaking of. † Rape is a very sensitive subject. The old woman talked about the incident in a nonchalant tone and said that it was so common that it was not worth talking about. Voltaire did this to satirize what were becoming society’s â€Å"normal† views on such brutal acts. He was letting us know that rape was such a frequent thing in the time period in which he lived, that it was being viewed by society as â€Å"normal â€Å". In order to understand the book properly, it is important to recognize that Voltaire was attempting to portray the problems within society such as sexism, by using satire to help the people this era realize what they were doing was wrong.

How do concepts of exile and masquerade operate in handmaid's tale, Term Paper

How do concepts of exile and masquerade operate in handmaid's tale, and comfort woman - Term Paper Example The book touches on many themes the most prominent being that of women’s rights, and also those of exile and masquerade. The theme of exile is most prominent in the ‘Unwomen’ segment of society. It also frequently appears in the desire that many characters have for voluntary exile from the Giledean state. The Comfort Women is a painful story woven around the lives of two women. One is the story of Akiko a Korean comfort women1 married to an American missionary. The other protagonist is her daughter struggling to come to terms with her life specially her cultural identity. The theme of exile in this book is present in the book because the characters are in places physically and emotionally in which they feel disconnected from reality. Akiko after the hell that she goes through struggles to survive alone in America and also to maintain a balance between her spiritual life and her external American life. Her daughter on the other hand is embarrassed by her mother’s obsession with the spirit world because it is something that has no connection to her American life. The book also has element of the theme of masquerade in the sense that Akiko hides who she really is from everyone around her including her daughter. In a way she wears a mask to hide the marks of what the past has left on her. The theme of exile is an important one in Handmaid’s tale. Those exiled are victims of the society’s structure, in the sense that they either could not fit into any of the categories assigned by the government or they have been disconnected from mainstream society simply because they serve a function that society does not want to highlight. One category is the ’Unwomen’. This does not include only women but in fact political rebels, homosexuals or anyone who does not fit into any of the categories. They have been exiled from society forced to live in toxic waste dumps in the fringes of society. This category is used as at

Mathematical model of bone remodeling Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Mathematical model of bone remodeling - Essay Example In the humans’ body, some auto-crine and paracrine parameters ruled the bone reconstruction process for the bone’s good. For the regulation of the cell types,according to the theory that whether the cell has the nuclear envelope, which is the boundary of the nucleus, the cell can be divided into prokaryotic and eukaryotic cells (Manolagas et al 1995, page 34). It’s noted that, the prokaryotic cells and eukaryotic can be separated like that. First, it’s the pro-karyotic cells where the cells are smaller, no nuclear envelope, without nucleolus, without form-ing the nucleus; secondly, the eukaryotic cells where the cells are larger, and it have the nuclear envelope, nucleolus, a true nucleus; thirdly, the prokaryotes, which is comprised by prokaryotic cells constitute biological. Fourthly, the eukaryotes, which is from eukaryotic cells constitute biological. Bifurcations math’s theory According to Manologas (1995) bifurcations studies the characteristics of the bifurca-tion fact and its mechanism of the math theory. Bifurcation fact is a math fact which has all kinds of performance in nature. One parameter of the system is the continuity changing to a critical value, and the system’s global state.For instance, the qualitative properties of topological properties, will change suddenly for some full determination of the nonlinear system. This critical value is called the parameter, the bifurcation value or branch value. The reason why the researchers find this intriguing is that their cause is not in a bifurcation but in a change of the inactive-state concentrations in some bones with complications such as their not being firm. (Manolagas, 1995, pages 67). The systems theory has many strong tools to check and analyze the bifurcations. Researchers found a lot of math models for the regulation of bone reconstruction for the bifurcation properties in the presen t practice. These kinds of tools could be used for understanding the reasons for some kind of complications if it is found they have some relationship with it. Hence, the common models can give a broad prospect of the dynamics of the system, and it offers convenience to the specific models. More significantly, the analysis of the common model discovers dynamical instabilities that are very much related to pathologies of bone reconstruction. In summary, they used the common modeling ways and it permits analyzing models in which the kinetics is not constrained to the specific math functions. The assumption being put forward in the present time produces and extends to the 3D models are quiet if that assumption doesn’t exist; we are shown that it is in two-parameter models with the proposed structure, where the firmness of the inactive state demands that the actions of OPG control over those of RANKL.Those results show that osteoblast precursors have a significant effect on the d ynamics and it ought to be taken into consideration in models. For human kind, the bone reconstruction process is influenced by some different parameters to maintain the bone balance. When the balance is broken, it may result into some different kinds of bone complications , for instance osteoporosis and Paget’s sickness of bone(Di Bernard, Feigin, Hogan & Homer,1999, page 1890). Paget’s sickness is common in the nipples of the elderly females and the surrounding skin, malignant tumors,

Decision Making, Decision Levels and Types of Problems Term Paper

Decision Making, Decision Levels and Types of Problems - Term Paper Example There are different levels of decision making and types of problems, different types of problems include semi-structured problem, structured problem, and unstructured problem. For every type of problem, there is a different level of decision to be taken and there is a different solution for each type of problem. Normally structured problem as easily solved as compared to the semi-structured and unstructured problems, the reason for that the problem identification is easy because the problem is well structured. The process through which humans resolve and perceive the distance between a current situation and a decided goal is called the problem-solving process. A person has to first identify the obstacles which he or she will face to reach the desired goal and after analytical thinking, a person can overcome these hurdles. (Hicks, 2004) When humans find a solution to a specific problem, they store this information in their memories to use them for future situations. When we closely analyze then we come to know that the steps involved in both decision making and problem-solving are identical and sometimes we use these terms interchangeably. (Skyttner, 2005) The purpose of the input phase is to have a clear understanding of a particular situation; we first recognize the problem or set of problems so that we have a clear picture in our mind. By identifying a problem means that we know to the distance between a present situation and our desired goal. The identification process of any problem is very important to talk to our selves and others. Normally we face four common types of situations. (Adair, 2007) 1. A situation in which we know that something is wrong and we need to correct it. 2. A situation in which we perceive something to be a real threat and we have to prevent it from happening. 3. A situation in which we simply accept the needs and invitations. 4. A situation in which we see something is really missing and it should be provided.     

Validity and Reliability; Which is More Important in Today's High Research Paper

Validity and Reliability; Which is More Important in Today's High Stakes Testing - Research Paper Example While high-stakes testing may return similar outcomes in the tests of different students, which is an element of reliability, one might wonder whether it is reliability that America really needs. In this regard, it is necessary to examine the validity, where this paper proposes that validity is more important as far as this testing approach is concerned. Validity has been defined as the extent to which a test measures what it is meant to measure. If a test is valid, it measures exactly what it is meant to measure as purely as not to, by chance, influence any other factors. With validity, focus is not precisely on the scores measured, but on the inferences that one is able to deduce from the instruments. As such, the inferences made from a valid test are supposed to be â€Å"suitable, meaningful, and useful† (Lang & Wilkerson, 2008). This is the complex link that sheds clean light on the clear distinction between validity and reliability. In other words, as one would infer, it is possible for a testing instrument to measure something apart from the construct that it was supposed to measure, and do it reliably. On the other hand, a measure that is not reliable can never be said to be valid. In this light, reliability is quite necessary a measure, but it is quite inadequate in relation to validity – a valid instrument, therefore, has to be reliable, which a reliable instrument does not have to be valid. In testing, it is a common understanding that based on the aforementioned relationship, violations of validity are expected to have more severe impacts, as compared to reliability. One would, therefore, agree that validity is more complex and important an instrument that reliability and is less understood compared to the latter. In addition, it cannot be substantiated by any one statistic. Having mentioned that, it is important to discuss the important

Greenwich Engineering Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Greenwich Engineering - Essay Example This involves the identification of variances and also the controllability of those variances which are unfavourable. (Horngren et al, 2002) Identifying controllable variances is a complex process as there will be a multiplicity of factors operating on the variance. Variances often interact with each other making the job of the manager in identifying the controllability difficult. For instance a labour efficiency variance may be the result of the problems caused by labour as well as the problems encountered with machinery and equipments. The poor quality of materials used may also lead lesser efficiency in the labour. Apart from this in some cases the mangers tend to trade off variances, purposely incurring an unfavourable variance that is more than offset by favourable variances. (Accounting) The variances being identified under standard costing are too aggregated and setting standards is often a complex process. This makes the standards arrive at a very last stage and hence the standards may not actually be used to control the variances in time. The calculation of variances is often attempted as a post-mortem analysis which is really not useful to the management for planning and control purposes. The variance analysis under the standard costing system focuses on less important items to a large extent. For instance the sta

The Relations Between Islamic Fundementalism and Muslim Democracy Essay

The Relations Between Islamic Fundementalism and Muslim Democracy - Essay Example Since the beginning of 1990s, there have arisen Muslim oriented parties, but which are not fundamental or Islamist in their ideals, and which have successfully vied and won political seats in countries such as Bangladesh, Turkey, Indonesia, Malaysia and Pakistan. Unlike fundamentalists who advocate for the introduction of Sharia or Islamic law, the proponents of Muslim Democracy are seen to be more realistic in their view since they are found to be accommodative of religious and secular ideals in their approach to politics (Kepel, 2003). They are seen to disagree with the notion that a Muslim country must be governed by Sharia law, but are seen to lean towards the creation of electoral processes that are viable and accommodative of different shades of opinion so as to serve interests that are both Islamic and secular, thereby respecting the thus created democratic space whether they win in the elections or lose. They are not seen to have the motive of integrating Islam into politics but are only seen to exploit its potential through the teaching of Islamic values to help them win elections. All the same, democratization processes which are all inclusive seem to be more appealing than the path of religious and ideological change and Islamic democracy hence they are seen to be on the upper hand in shaping the political destinies of many countries in the Islamic world. Fundamentalists on the other hand do not view Democracy as an issue to be taken seriously or legitimately but only as a means to ascend to political power so as to acquire the platform through which to build an Islamic state (Roy 2006). The observers of the changes being experienced in the Muslim world have associated these changes with influence due to interaction locally and globally and the advent of internet technology. The success of Muslim democracy does not seem to have resulted from any theological or ideological process, but for being seen to address issues from a practical perspective that gives assurance to the electorate that its needs are all well taken care of. The two concepts of fundamentalism and Muslim democracy in their various ways have resulted in regime change in their respective countries, including change that was facilitated by fundamentalists in Iran and Morocco, the changes that have been occasioned by the Muslim Democracy proponents in the areas affected by the Arab spring namely Egypt, Tunisia and Libya (Kepel, 2003). The concepts are both at the forefront in struggling for political power in ruling governments even as each espouses its ideals to convince the masses, though Muslim democracy seems to be on the upper hand. There are various factors that have contributed to the rise of Islamic fundamentalism’s openness to democracy. After gauging the preference of masses, the trend has been that Islamist or secular parties are not currently as popular as those with Muslim values and moderate Islamic policies. This latter principle along which M uslim democratic parties are molded, is attracting a large section of voters since they are also more compatible with world politics. Putting a lot of rhetoric and theory aside, Muslim democracy party ideals have similarities with the Christian Democratic Party’s trend of Europe in the past and thus have had appeal as compared to the

War Photographer and Stealingby Carol Anne Duffy Essay Example for Free

War Photographer and Stealingby Carol Anne Duffy Essay In Both the War Photographer and Stealing By Carol Anne Duffy the occupations of the narrator play a leading role even the titles are names of the occupations they both partake in. This is interesting because it seems that their jobs are their life and feeling even so they both share an extent of guiltiness related to their occupations, In War photographer he is guilty that he is at home in comfortable quiet rural England and all the people he photographs are still suffering. But in Stealing the guilt is underlying, less obvious and more of a guilt to himself like he owes himself a life without stealing or boredom. This shows a degree of selfishness which is evident when he takes pleasure in knowing the the children will cry in the morning he then goes on to say lifes tough like he had to harden to the world at a young age and so should they, he shows a bitterness towards the children as they have a childhood and he didnt and this bitterness seems to be aimed at all outsiders in both the poems . The Thief and the writer are issolated form society and therefore resent society as they see it and most of the suffering in the poems is blamed on the people The readers eyeballs prick with tears between the bath and pre lunch beers. Because the people see the suffering and carry on with their on lives the narrator thinks the readers dont care so their portrayed as heartless and cold. Carol Anne Duffy seems to have a flair for writing poems from other peoples point of view this is most evident in Stealing were she tries to understand the narrators motive and attempts to make the reader sympathise and justify what he does when normally he would be portrayed as the bad guy . The thief wallows in self pity throughout and even says he is better of dead and is so lonely even a snowman is good enough to be his friend I wanted him, a mate The snowman is a metaphor for what he has had in his life he steals it then dustructs it like he is destructing himself. The stealing is a ploy for attention he wants to be caught or noticed as he would have a reason to have contact with people eventhough he insults the people or outsiders in the poem sometimes I steal things,I dont need. I joy ride cars to nowhere, break into houses just to have a look. It is hard to establish what the message is in the war photographer at times he is praising the war photographers job And condeming the people he works for at other time he shows compassion to the victims he encounters but in the last line The narrator seems numb to what he witnesses as he works From the aeroplane he stares impassively at where he earns his living and they do not care This line defeats what he has said before when he developed the films the feelings the images conjured up made him remember the suffering he encountered but that was soon forgotten on the way to his next job he is turning in to what he condemns. The use of the word they signifies his view of society, the people that read newspapers he puts them all in the same cattergory and labels them accordingly. The war photographer is set in four regular stanzas which emphasises the pattern of the war photographers day. The poem opens with the Photographer coming home from his job and ends with him flying out to another job this implies his life runs in a cycle. It is also written in present tense which make the events more realistic and shocking to the reader. Stealing is also in equal stanzas this time five . And ocaisionly the end of one line falls into another (enjambment) which help the reader to enact the incidents which occur. A sense of mystery surrounds the narrator in stealing you dont know if he is male or female or his age and background although many assume the narrator is a man due to stereotypical criminal gender.In War Photographer we are told the narrator is male this is the only information surrounding the narrator intrestingly there is no desriptions of the physical attributes of the narrators or outsiders which poems usually include to help the reader relate to the charactors within the poems. In the War photographer photographical launguage is used as metaphors to shocking images the war photographer encountered ; spools of suffering set out in ordered rows conjures images of body bags holding victims of war laying side by side. The only light is red the colour red is used to remind the reader of the blood shed during war. These metophores seem to be effective by shocking the reader I think Carol Anne Duffy has intended the reader to start to think of the effects of the war not only on the victims but on the people who work their such as the War photographer, newsreaders or charity workers who arent necessarilly thought of being affected by war. In stealing the thiefs motive seems to be lonliness and this is explored subtbly but although theres only traces of lonliness it seems to be the main theme in both the poems. Although they resent outsiders it is only because they wish they could be like the outsiders as their not doing a job which issolates them from society this jelousy also seems to be one of the themes which explain how and why the outsiders are portrayed. I cant decide if I like these poems or not I dont really feel anything for the characters Carol Anne Duffy hasnt made them likeable by not describing them and showing the bad traits of their personality which makes the poems seem gritty. There is many hidden messages which seem obvious but effective but the fact that I had to read them both five times before they made sense put me off right away.But maybe thats because im The cat in the hat rhyming poem kind of a girl !

Japan During Us Occupation History Essay

Japan During Us Occupation History Essay In any nation of the world, there come such incidents and historic events which result in changing or altering the dimensions and policies of the nation. These events or happenings sometimes work as a blessing for a nation and sometimes as a curse. When a nation faces the challenges occurring from those incidents with a great deal of courage and nerves, they prove out to be a blessing for the nation as the people of that specific nation get a new dimension which leads to the success of the nation whereas if a nation doesnt manage to face those challenges valiantly and confidently, then they may lead to the collapse of the nation. Talking about those incidents and historic events, lets mention US occupation of Japan after the World War II which initially seemed like a catastrophe and devastation for the Japanese nation but due to the huge moral and patriotism of Japanese people, it led to such dimensions of success through which the Japanese nation moved towards the heights of success in the next decades. To be accurate, Japan changed during the US occupation due to the fact that representation of the Japanese emperor as a character with all the state powers in his hands was changed by the American General, Douglas MacArthur. This lead to the way towards various political, economic and civil value changes occurred due to American governments impact on not only the public but also on all sectors during the US occupation. American occupation of Japan Before probing into the issue of discussing the reasons of why Japan changed to a large extent during the US occupation, lets first get to know a brief history of American occupation of Japan. When the World War II ended in 1945, it became a common mission and intent of the allied powers to demilitarize Japan. Molasky (1999) found that America wanted to demilitarize Japan for the purpose of rendering Japan incapable and powerless to come back to the field of war ever again. Molasky and Rabson (200) found that for the purpose of demilitarizing Japan and promoting democracy, United States and the allied powers moved towards the occupation of Japan. Policy of allied forces This policy of demilitarization was applied by the allied forces and the steps which were taken in order to achieve this objective were abolishment of Japanese armed forces, dismantling the military industry so that it cant become able to assist the forces of Japan and the next step was elimination or exclusion of the sense of patriotism and devotion from the mind of the public of Japan. Allied forces thought that in this way, they would be able to not only occupy Japan for a long duration abut also it would be really workable for the mission of demilitarization of Japan. So, these steps were seen as the primary objectives for the accomplishment of that mission because they thought that if the emotion of patriotism gets excluded from the mind of the Japanese people, it would become very easy for the allied forces to occupy Japan and establish their rule in the country. American governments view regarding policy Apart from the decided policy of the allied forces, the government of the United States thought differently from the allied forces perspective. United States, who was commanding the allied forces, felt that this policy would not be workable and justifiable for the people of Japan. Moore and Robinson (2002) found that General Douglas MacArthur, who was appointed as the supreme commander of the allied forces, considered bringing Japan to a democratic state from an emperors state. He thought that rather than having the mission of occupying Japan for a long time, it would be better if the dimension of governance is changed from the one man show to a democratic form of governance because it would not only help in maintaining peace of the world but also would be an appropriate decision for the public of Japan. General MacArthur had a view that aggression and dictatorship should be discouraged all over the world. He had a view that the United States and Great Britain are peaceful countries because they have a democratic form of government rather than the countries like Germany and Japan where dictatorship was at extreme at that time and there was just no democracy in any field of life in those countries. He thought that if democracy is prevailed throughout the world, specifically Japan, then it would be a great effort in promoting and maintaining peace in the world. American governments view regarding democracy in Japan McCormack (2001) found that in order to bring democracy in Japan, American government didnt think that bringing democracy in just the government would be enough. There were certain reasons for such thinking by the American government. They thought that democracy should be brought in all institutions regarding every field of life in Japan. We all know that bringing democracy in just political institutions doesnt make any sense because the right of free elections and the right to vote just dont mean democracy. Schaller (1997) found that democracy is something which should be applied in all sectors in order to strengthen the basis of the nation. No political institution can be able to survive when the economic and financial matters are in few hands. Its necessary to promote democracy all over the nation to enjoy real peace and outcomes of democracy. That is the reason why it was assumed by the American government that democracy should be applied to all institutions including political, social, educational, economic and religious institutions of Japan. American government believed that bringing democracy in Japan means bringing democracy in all field of life, not just in political institutions. For this purpose, General MacArthur worked in collaboration with the Japanese people and in just few years, tremendous and incredible changes took place in Japan which not only changed the dimensions of Japanese government style but also made Japan progress in all fields of life in the next decades. Schonberger (1989) found that democracy and other related changes not only enabled Japan to progress significantly but also restricted Japan from any sort of battle in the future. Now Japan is also an ally of the United States and despite of the fact that Japan is no more under occupation of the United States, It hasnt changed many policies regarding various political and economic affairs because Japanese know that it is due to those reforms and changes that Japan has gained so much success and development in the present era. Affect of occupation The occupation of Japan by the United States of America and the allied forced totally changed the future of Japan. Japan not only got demilitarized but also various reforms took place which enabled the Japanese nation in getting visible success in all fields of life. The occupation altered the face and also the fate of Japan completely. A peaceful and very responsible government was formed by the United States during occupation. It was also like an opportunity for the government of America to form a new government because the existing political government was totally defeated both physically and psychologically. All those industries like military industry were closed for the purpose of promoting peace. The general policies regarding Japan were the far eastern commission and an allied council in Tokyo. But due to the tensions between the USSR and some of the western countries, this commission could work up to the level of expectations. That was the reason which brought in the forces o f the United States for the purpose of controlling Japan. But it was not an easy task for the United States to control such a state which is totally different in all aspects of life from the other countries. This was also the first time in history of Japan that a foreign government was ready to take control as Japan had never lost any war before that. Judging all these circumstances, General MacArthur went on to control the complexities of Japanese form of government and with his wise and astute mindset, he was able to not only control Japan but also enabled it to change the current style of government. General rationale of MacArthurs mission While talking about US occupation of Japan and changes that were made on Japan due to that occupation, lets also get to know the actual purposes of the General MacArthurs mission in Japan. As we have discussed earlier that one of the main purposes of that occupation was to establish such type of government with such people given the charge who want democracy in their country. To establish a democratic government was one of the major tasks of the United States government. Next purpose was to make sure that Japan would not ever again become a threat for the peace of the world. Not only this, it was also to be made sure that Japan would not be able to become a threat for the United States and the allied countries again in the future. For that reason, demilitarization of Japan was carried out as the main task by the General MacArthurs mission. Next purpose was to create individual liberty among the Japanese people and to develop a sense related to the rights of the humans. This was of crucial importance for the Japanese people because the American government thought that once that sense is injected in the minds and hearts of the Japanese people, they would never want to become a trouble for the peace of the world and would like harmony everywhere. The next purpose was to create such a legal or judicial system in Japan which would be able to protect the individuals rights and be able to maintain peace and security regarding every single individual living in Japan. It was a great purpose because we all know that when there is not justice, crimes prevail and security of individuals vanishes away from the country. So, it was a real challenge for the American government to develop a proper legal system in Japan for the protection of rights of the civilians. The most important step which the American government took during US oc cupation of Japan was that they formed the government in Japan according to the will of the Japanese people. They didnt want to impose any government on the people of Japan and wanted to work according to the will of the civilians. We can say that General MacArthur was a very responsible person. He didnt take this occasion as an opportunity to occupy Japan forever by establishing his own government. Rather he went on to develop such policy which was really beneficial not only for the peace of the world but also for the people of Japan. Political balance in Japan If we talk about those measures which were taken by General MacArthur for the purpose of establishing political balance in Japan, we can say that his strategy regarding political balance was exceptionally remarkable. The main steps regarding his strategy were: To establish and give confidence to left wing movement in Japan which could be led by labor unionists and social coalitions. Educational reform also took place according to the strategy To introduce industrial and land reforms in Japan, and Representation of all sectors in the newly formed government of Japan This strategy of the American government worked exceptionally for the people of Japan because communist movements were discouraged through the strategy. In educational reforms, all text books which were being taught in the schools were rewritten and whole educational system was reformed from the level of schools to the university level for the betterment of the education sector of Japan. And also the phenomenon of land lordism was discouraged and free working rights were given to the farmers for the purpose of developing a new rural world for the farmers of Japan. This strategy not only influenced major pillars of power of Japan but also had a very positive impact on the rights of civilians of Japan. Changes which occurred due to occupation If we talk about the changes and developments which took place during the United States occupation of Japan, we can say that a lot of significant changes occurred which resulted inn a heavy influence on all sectors of Japanese life. Pyle (1996) found that the affects of changes ranged from a single civilian to whole political scenario of Japan. But here it should also be mentioned that these affects were not at all negative for the people of Japan. Rather they had a very positive and beneficial impact on the future of Japan as it resulted in huge level of progress and development in all sectors including technological, educational, political, and economic and human rights sectors. Lets now discuss all those changes which occurred during the United States occupation of Japan. Concept of sovereignty We can say that the biggest and the most valuable changes that occurred during the United States occupation of Japan was related to concept of sovereignty. America became able to make such improvements in this regard, the affects of which were seen in all other sectors. The concept of power was shifted from just one persons government to the people of Japan. Emperor was only left to the indirect influence and he had no much to do with the government activities. The older generation of Japanese people earlier rejected this proposal that powers will be shifted to the people instead of the emperor. But after all they recognized that this would be in their own favor when they will be able to make decisions for themselves rather than giving this right to just one person who would then be the king of all peoples fates. So when they recognized this, shift of powers took place and emperor was just left as a symbol of the state instead of being head of the state. Assembly consisting of the representatives of Japanese people from all fields of life was formed in order to run the government activities. This form of government consisting of peoples representatives replaced the military government which had been the block of power during the past. Formation of constitution Another major change was that of formation of a constitution for the government of Japan. Before that, there was no such clear constitution because all powers were restricted to just an emperor whose words were taken as the last words by everyone and whatever he said was the constitution for the public of Japan. Inoue (1991) found that in order to regularize the governing activities, a proper constitution was developed by the United States in collaboration with the Japanese people. And the main objective was to clearly show the dimensions and regularities regarding each and every branch of the government. This was a continuation of democratic process in Japan because when the government was being formed, it was essential for the United States to give them a way to operate all activities regarding the government. Hook and McCormack (2001) found that roles of each branch and the responsibilities were set to make it sure that none of the government branches could do anything other than the defined roles and responsibilities. Foreign policy Hook (2001) found that setting a suitable foreign policy was also one of the main tasks of the American government in the reformation of Japan. For this purpose, American government worked with full collaboration with the Japanese people in order to create such a foreign policy which should not only be beneficial for the relationships between Japan and the American government but also should prove to be helpful in strengthening relations of Japan with all other countries. Almost all issues had similar American and Japanese viewpoints and even in the present era, American and Japanese foreign policies go side by side. Land reforms Another major issue which was given much importance during the United States occupation was regarding setting up the land reforms. It was also one of the main steps in democratization of Japan because land was distributed to all people of Japan from just a few land lords. Farmers were subjected to pay the rent to the land lords before the land reforms but after that, they were given equal rights to cultivate their own land and earn for themselves. The credit of reallocation of lands goes to the American government because it was the American government who took initiatives to allocate the land to the deserving people of Japan and not restricting it to just a few hands. Social liberalization Social liberalization was also a very important task which was done by the American government during Japans occupation. Politics of Japan and other social ideas were influenced by the social liberalization because the American government made efforts to inject social values, human rights sense and social liberties in to the mind of the people of Japan. American government was able to inject the right of self freedom and speech in people from all fields of the Japanese life. Americans took over the control of radio and the newspapers inn order to educate Japanese people regarding civil rights and political freedom rights. Educational reforms One of the major changes was regarding educational reforms in Japan which produced long lasting affects on the mindset of the Japanese people. The main objective of educational reforms was to deconstruct the value of an emperor in the minds of people. Giving social and economic opportunities to the average class of the Japanese people was also an objective of the educational reforms. The concept of nationalist mythology was eliminated from the syllabus of the Japanese schools and universities. This concept was also eliminated from the books that emperor is the only source of power in a nation. This was done in order to educate people regarding their rights. The new educational system was a remarkable one and in that equal rights to study were given to all Japanese people regardless of financial or social stability of any family. Reconstruction of power relationships Both politically and economically, reconstruction of power relationships took place during the United States occupation of Japan. Bureaucracy was tried to be broken and labor movements were established in order to distribute the powers to all sectors of Japan. Local politics were promoted which worked as the roots for the development of a perfect democracy. It was thought that when the democracy would be at the grass root level, only then the people of Japan would become able to enjoy the real outcomes of a democratic state. Conclusion Summing it up, it can be said that American government, during the occupation of Japan, really tried to promote democracy in all fields of the Japanese life. It was the American occupation which resulted in a progressive Japan. A perfect relationship was developed between the United States and Japan during and after the occupation which reveals the success of the American occupation. Enabling Japan in becoming a real democratic state, the American occupation should be given credit in this regard.

Free Essays - Religious Motifs in Mary Shelleys Frankenstein :: Frankenstein essays

Religious Motifs in Frankenstein Upon completion of this novel, a clearly prevalent and outstanding motif is that of religion and biblical reference. The frequent references to religion come in varied forms from that of biblical role-playing, to that of the fate of our current society. Another related argument that occurs can be the relationship of biblical role-playing and character domination. When all are combined appropriately, a very strong and prominent key motif in this novel is produced. Mary Shelley might have used religion reference as a method of showing us how something that happened during the creation of the earth can be related and brought to us via modern day fantasy creations. It is important for us to realize this connection because it will help us to understand an important deeper meaning of this work. The most important religious comparison in Frankenstein, are the outstanding similarities between Victor as God and the monster as Lucifer. This idea is proven by the monster in the quote where he states, " I am thy creature; I ought to be thy Adam, but I am rather the fallen angel, whom thou drivest from joy for no misdeed." Broken down, this quote shows us that the monster feels that he is the neglected creation and that he has been created to be unhappy, although he has committed no wrongdoing, and he doesn't deserve to be mistreated by society. As it goes in the bible, God created Lucifer as the most brilliant and beautiful angel in the sky with good intentions, but Lucifer turned his back on his creator and began a notorious streak of evil as the "malignant devil." Now if the role of God is switched with that of Victor, and the role of Lucifer is switched with that of the monster, the story is retold in almost the same context. Now to prove that this is not just farf etched speculation, the monster even says in his quote that he ought to be Adam, God's successful creation, rather than the fallen angel (Lucifer). Among other quotes in which the monster deigns Victor as [his] creator, this is a powerful novel reference and this quote beautifully shows the direct motif of religious role-playing in Frankenstein. Free Essays - Religious Motifs in Mary Shelley's Frankenstein :: Frankenstein essays Religious Motifs in Frankenstein Upon completion of this novel, a clearly prevalent and outstanding motif is that of religion and biblical reference. The frequent references to religion come in varied forms from that of biblical role-playing, to that of the fate of our current society. Another related argument that occurs can be the relationship of biblical role-playing and character domination. When all are combined appropriately, a very strong and prominent key motif in this novel is produced. Mary Shelley might have used religion reference as a method of showing us how something that happened during the creation of the earth can be related and brought to us via modern day fantasy creations. It is important for us to realize this connection because it will help us to understand an important deeper meaning of this work. The most important religious comparison in Frankenstein, are the outstanding similarities between Victor as God and the monster as Lucifer. This idea is proven by the monster in the quote where he states, " I am thy creature; I ought to be thy Adam, but I am rather the fallen angel, whom thou drivest from joy for no misdeed." Broken down, this quote shows us that the monster feels that he is the neglected creation and that he has been created to be unhappy, although he has committed no wrongdoing, and he doesn't deserve to be mistreated by society. As it goes in the bible, God created Lucifer as the most brilliant and beautiful angel in the sky with good intentions, but Lucifer turned his back on his creator and began a notorious streak of evil as the "malignant devil." Now if the role of God is switched with that of Victor, and the role of Lucifer is switched with that of the monster, the story is retold in almost the same context. Now to prove that this is not just farf etched speculation, the monster even says in his quote that he ought to be Adam, God's successful creation, rather than the fallen angel (Lucifer). Among other quotes in which the monster deigns Victor as [his] creator, this is a powerful novel reference and this quote beautifully shows the direct motif of religious role-playing in Frankenstein.

GMS Contract :: essays research papers

The new GMS contract PCTs should consider how community pharmacists can be better engaged to help general practice meet the targets in the GMS quality framework and as an alternative provider of enhanced GMS services. In some cases, the core services proposed as part of the new pharmacy contract will actually ensure GP practices meet certain quality standards. The National Pharmaceutical Association (NPA) resource pack ‘A quick reference guide to the Quality Indicators in the new GMS contract’ describes the key quality indicators, what services community pharmacy can offer to support GP practices and examples of the published evidence base. This is available in the NPA section of DrugInfoZone at . The new pharmacy contractThe DH, the NHS Confederation and the Pharmaceutical Services Negotiating Committee (PSNC) are currently negotiating a new pharmacy contract which will be implemented during 2004 .The proposed framework for the new pharmacy contract is as follows:Essen tial servicesEssential services will form the core of the pharmacy contract and be provided by all pharmacies. These services include:DispensingFind out morewww.druginfozone.nhs.uk/ -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Page 3 Vision’ contains clear signposts on the future direction of community pharmacy service development. For example it states that â€Å"Pharmacy is an integral part of the NHS family. We want to see pharmacists strengthening their contribution to the provision of high quality, patient centred NHS services.† ‘The Vision’particularly emphasises the role for community pharmacists in the public health agenda and medicines management, and stresses the importance of having a pharmacist on the PEC.‘A Vision for Pharmacy in the new NHS’ is available at . Full responses from the national pharmacy bodies are available at their respective websites atand A summary of responses to ‘The Vision’ is available at Proposals to reform and modernise the NHS (pharmaceutical services) regulations 1992 The Government is currently developing proposals for changes in the control of entry regulations.The key changes that PCTs need to be aware of (within the cu rrent DH consultation) are:Secondary legislation may introduce the concepts of â€Å"consumer choice and competition† within the definitions of necessary and desirable, which are used to judge pharmacy contract applications.Exemptions for pharmacies in shopping developments of over 15,000 square metres, those planning to open 100 hours per week and those who are â€Å"part of consortium to develop new one stop centres† may be given. However in relation to exemptions, an exemption may only be given if the pharmacy is going to provide a â€Å"full and prescribed range of services, appropriate to local needs, as determined by the PCT†.

Binge Drinking On Americas Campuses Essay -- Binge Drinking College A

Binge Drinking on America's Campuses On any Friday or Saturday night, the average college student is usually drinking, dancing and out having fun. They typically party with friends at fraternity parties, bars, and clubs; and unfortunately most of these students are underage, consuming excessive amounts of alcohol or 'Binge Drinking'. Binge drinking results in several detrimental outcomes, some are even fatal. Today this type of drinking is rampant on educational campuses everywhere. Large and small, urban and rural educational institutions are not left unaffected by this growing trend to binge drink.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Binge drinking is defined as "the consumption of five or more drinks, in a row, on at least one occasion" (NCADI). Several surveys announce that about 1/3rd of high school seniors and 42 percent of college students binge drink on a regular basis(NCADI). Figures such as these are extremely upsetting because one expects institutions of higher learning to be the breeding ground for new leaders and innovative thinkers. Unfortunately, these statistics only make educational campuses appear, as if, everything is a party, much like National Lampoon's Animal House. Animal House is a 1980's movie dedicated to displaying college life and the experience in a college fraternity; it constantly depicted students binge drinking. Harvard University's School of Public Health conducted a College Alcohol study, surveying students at more than 119 colleges. Of those surveyed, 44 percent admitted to having engaged in binge drinking at least once in the two weeks prior to the survey (Booze News). Researchers discovered that white students, age 23 or younger, and members of a fraternity or sorority, on average are more likely to binge drink (Booze News). They also noted that students who were binge drinkers in high school, were three times more likely to binge drink in college (Booze News). "The percentage of students who are binge drinkers is nearly uniform from freshman year to senior year, and over half of the binge drinkers were frequent binge drinkers" (Booze News). Binge drinking has been associated with several alcohol-related problems. The Harvard survey also notes that "a higher percentage of binge drinkers than non-binge drinkers reported having experienced alcohol-related problems, since the beginning of the school year" (Booze News). Frequent bing... .... http://www.health.org/govpubs/phd627/binge.htm ?Booze News Fact Sheet: BINGE DRINKING ON COLLEGE CAMPUSES.? Booze News Newsletter. February 2,1999.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  http://www.cspinet.org/booze/collfact.htm Bormann, Carol A. and Stone, Michael H. ?The Effects of Eliminating Alcohol in a College Stadium: The Folsom Field Beer Ban(University of Colorado at Boulder).? Journal of American College Health, Sept 2001 v50 i2 p81. Brick, John. ?Alcohol Poisoning.? A publication of Intoxikon International. AOL Online. http://members.aol.com/intoxikon/alcohol.poisoning.html Buurma, Christine. ?U. Michigan student's death shows risk of binge drinking.? The Cavalier Daily Online Edition. November 16, 2000. http://www.cavalierdaily.com/Cvarticle.asp?ID=6604&Date=11/16/2000&Keyword=binge+drinking   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Durand, Maria F. ?A Major Turning Point: MIT Case Causes Repercussions Throughout Nation.? ABC News Online. September 18, 2000. http://abcnews.go.com/sections/us/DailyNews/mit000915.html ?Media Project Launched to Combat College Binge Drinking.? Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI). November 20, 1997. http://www.cspinet.org/new/aluncorn.htm

Integrating Culture and Diversity in Decision Making: The CEO and Organizational Culture Profile Essay

Examine the culture of the selected organization. Explain how you determined that the selected organization showed the signs of the culture that you have identified. Determine the factors that caused the organization to embody this particular culture. Determine what type of leader would be best suited for this organization. Support your position. Imagine that there is a decline in the demand of product or services supplied by the selected organization. Determine what the change in culture would need to be in response to this situation. Zappos, which started as an on-line shoe retailer in 1999, has grown into a multi –million dollar company and expanded past simply selling shoes to selling accessories, handbags and other clothing items carrying over 1,136 brands (Zappos IP, 2013). It was named one of Fortune Magazine’s â€Å"Best Places in America to Work† (Koetsier, 2013) and has extended their organization’s reach by developing Zappos Insights, which allows other companies a deep look into the organization, enabling them to adopt the same culture that has allowed Zappos to achieve immense success. Zappos is an organization committed to delivering happiness, not only among their employees and customers, but to other growing companies as well (Zappos Insights, 2013). Zappos embodies a laid-back service-oriented culture and has fun doing it. This is apparent through their training program which requires all new hires, regardless of position, to complete four weeks of training in the customer call center (Zappos IP, 2013). The culture at Zappos can be immediately felt as CEO, Tony Hsieh, introduces himself as just â€Å"Tony† in a company welcome video on the Zappos Insights website. A virtual tour of the Las Vegas corporate office gives a peak into the laid back culture the company embodies. With decorations hanging from the ceiling and writing on the walls, the open office space blends a fraternity house look with a mood that screams fun. â€Å"Monkey Row† is an area of the work floor that houses Hsieh’s and other executives desks, pushing an open door policy even further since no walls or cubicle barriers separate the leaders of the company from it’s customer call center employees (Zappos Insights, 2013). Hsieh, who strives to spread â€Å"happiness† as a business model, truly understands that company culture affects the performance of an organization and the job satisfaction of its employees (Schermerhorn, Osborn, Uhl-Bien, & Hunt, 2012). At Zappos, â€Å"customer service isn’t just a department—it is the entire company† (Zappos IP, 2013). Organizational leaders set the tone for the culture of a company (Schermerhorn et al., 2012). Hsieh has established a strong culture for the Zappos organization by creating the Zappos Familky Core Values. These ten statements ranging from ‘create fun and a little weirdness’ to ‘be humble’ encourage employees to be themselves, work hard and seek positive change. Hsieh’s favorite core value, be passionate and determined, along with the remaining nine, are heavily referred to during the hiring process (Zappos IP, 2013). Zappos is so committed to maintaining their culture that, after the four week training course, they offer every new hire $2000 to quit if they don’t see themselves fitting in with the culture of the company (Koetsier, 2013), thus eliminating subcultures and countercultures (Schermerhorn et al., 2012). The best type of leader for the Zappos organization is a transformational leader. Transformational leaders, who encourage employees to look out for the good of others (Schermerhorn et al., 2012), strongly align with the Zappos core values of ‘drive change’ and ‘build a family spirit’ (Zappos IP, 2013). The company also values growth and learning, another aspect of transformational leadership (Schermerhorn et al., 2012). Inspiration, another dimension in transformational leadership, lines the walls of the Zappos corporate office. Official signs and quotes hang next to team created posters, revealing that the culture lives deep within the organization and its members. The Zappos organization also benefits from having a servant leader (Schermerhorn et al., 2012). Hsieh creates a positive impact on the community by inviting striving businesses to participate in a program called Zappos Insights which offers opportunities such as free tours, paid two-day seminars and dinner with the CEO (Schermerhorn et al., 2012). This opportunity to share knowledge and learn the culture that has helped Zappos reach success is one way the company serves their business comuunity. Zappos, has expanded its market past internet sales and into the world of information sharing with Zappos Insights. With the program already paying for itself (Schermerhorn et al., 2012), it is doubtful that the organization would need to change their culture dramatically in order to respond to a decline in demand for the products supplied by their internet sales. Hsieh, a visionary, sees Zappos Insights representing ten percent of the company profits in the future (Schermerhorn et al., 2012). In the event of decreased shoe and accessory sales, Zappos, rather than change their culture, can be profitable by diving deeper into their existing culture and creating more opportunities similar to Zappos Insights to capitalize on their successful business plan and company secrets. Dew, J., & Fisher, M. (2013, July 13). Zappos CEO Tony Hsieh Mentors Gamemaster. (T. Hsieh, Interviewer) Koetsier, J. (2013, Feburary 17). Zappos culture coach: how ‘squishy’ stuff like culture took us to a billion dollars in revenue. Retrieved July 20, 2013, from Ventrurebeat.com: http://venturebeat.com/2013/02/17/zappos-culture-coach-how-squishy-stuff-like-culture-took-us-to-a-billion-dollars-in-revenue/ Rosenbaum, S. (2010, June 4). Fastcompany.com. Retrieved July 20, 2013, from The Happiness Culture: Zappos Isn’t a Company- It’s a Mission: http://www.fastcompany.com/1657030/happiness-culture-zappos-isnt-company-its-mission Schermerhorn, J. R., Osborn, R. N., Uhl-Bien, M., & Hunt, J. H. (2012). Organizational Behavior. Hoboken: John Wiley & Sons. Zappos Insights. (2013). Zappos Insights. Retrieved July 20, 2013, from zapposinsights.com: http://www.zapposinsights.com/ Zappos IP. (2013). Zappos.com. Retrieved July 20, 2013, from About: http://about.zappos. com/zappos-story/in-the-beginning-let-there-be-shoes

Consequences of colonialism in India Essay

Colonialism of Britain in India impacted heavily on different levels of life and culture. The indigenous languages of the natives in India were being wiped out and the English language began spreading very quickly. The Europeans aimed at altering the Indian culture to more a European style. India depended so much on Great Britain for technological advances and manufactured goods because Britain used India as its market. India provides raw materials for the factories in Britain during industrial revolution. The goods manufactured in Britain were transported to India for marketing; therefore India’s technological advance was at purr with Britain’s technological on gaining independence. India’s economy deteriorated very rapidly because now it had to learn to depend on itself rather than on the other nations. Developments in India have been so slow and as a result India is still undergoing industrial revolution. Indians were treated as second-class citizens in their own nation because they were not granted their human rights in their own nation and were not allowed to hold government positions. They were paid very minimal wages than their European counterparts who they worked with on the same kind of jobs. They were used as slaves to construct railways, build roads and harbors and were paid very little wages. Colonialism in India led to mass economic bitterness and social- cultural cleavage. These led to creation of anti colonial rational liberation movements. These movements were aimed at attaining independence from the colonialists. Cultural and religious movements that aimed at emphasizing on a national identity based on traditions and cultural values were formed they fought so hard to retain their cultural beliefs and values. Great Britain assimilated the Indian culture making Britain a nation of diverse cultures because most Indians migrated to Britain. Britain is still home to many Indians. Colonial systems had a tendency of financing one ethnic, racial or cultural group by giving them a higher status in the society. As a result this led to inter group and tribal rivalries. This also created unequal distribution of resources. Favored groups were given the privilege of assessing important resources that allowed them to develop themselves at the expense of those outside the cultural group. This has led to the dominant groups enforcing political economical, governmental and social policies that led to unequal distribution of resources among their nations. The colonizers often violated the human rights of those people living in the colonized areas. This was affected when they enacted unjust policies that deprived the colonized subjects of their lands, resources, cultural and religious belief. They even committed murder against their colonies. These unjust policies were seen in the form of slavery, mass murder and apartheid. The colonial empires controlled and operated their colonized governments from abroad or through the use of a selected domestic privileged group . As a result when these nations gained independence they lacked the internal structure and institutions to create good governance systems. During the British Empire, there was an increase of population in the rural areas and reduced employment, which weakened the traditional status of peasants in rural settings . The loss of lands degraded the peasants to the status of squatters. This led them to become agricultural laborers in their own lands. The living conditions of the peasants were degraded when the prices of the basic necessities other than food increased. Economic development depends on available resources, cultural changes, transformation of political systems and ways in which society adapts to the requirements of technological process. Countries that embraced their colonizers culture and political systems adapted to a rapidly growing economic systems. China and Singapore were fast to adapt and learn the technological advances from Britain and this has put them on an economical fore front in the world. The legacy of colonialism left African leaders with a fear of any form of political opposition. These leaders sacrificed political unity among tribes for their own good. These political leaders made accumulation of power and political survival their priority at the expense of economic development. These political leaders sought to develop and increase national wealth rather than the people’s welfare. This has led to the dependence on the colonies and west countries for technology and development. As a result their economies declined at very elevated rates, they argued that western knowledge and development was superior their native knowledge and therefore they should do anything possible to adopt the western lifestyle. Colonization transfers wealth from the colonized countries to the colonizers leading to inhibition of successful development of economies of the colonized countries. Colonialists have used neo-colonialism to cause political psychological and moral damages to the colonized countries. Colonialism opened up East Asia to the agricultural worlds market and all the instabilities associated with the world market forces. Peasant farmers lost access to resources that had been an important element in making ends meet. The colonial system turned everything into private property pushing many people into dependence on wage labor. In Korea, Japan colonization destroyed the education system that had been improving positively. Most of the missionary schools in Korea were replaced by private schools that did not offer quality education. The education that Koreans received was based on educating them to become better citizens of the Japanese empire of a lower level. The education given only provided the basics needed for the work that they were to perform. Korean economy grew very well under the Japanese rule between 1910 and 1945. Both the mining and manufacturing industries grew more than the period before the rule, but despite this the Japanese held higher skilled and highly paid jobs. All the riches gained from the growth of the economy were distributed among the Japanese who owned most of the companies, while the Koreans remained poor in their own countries. Koreans played a very small part in the modernization of their economy. With the end of Japanese colonialism, the economy of Korea decreased and collapsed. Total industrial outputs decreased at very high rates when the Japanese managers and workers left, they also left the financial agricultural and banking systems in destruction. The Japanese colonial systems only favoured a few Koreans allowing them into government and financial systems that made them grow and prosper. However majority of the companies that did not find favor suffered and collapsed. Colonialism had a bad influence on the cultural identity of the colonized counties. This detached many people from their heritage and their identity colonizers have done first by oppression where they force the colonized regions to adapt foreign languages and foreign religions. Conclusion Colonialism had both negative and positive effects on the political, economical and social systems of the colonized regions. They eroded the cultural and traditional beliefs of the communities but still impacted positively on their economic growth. They introduced technological advances that assisted in developing countries economies. However I would say that the effects of colonialism in general were negative since they left scars in those countries that were hard to heal. Bibliography Atiyah Jeremy. The rough Guide South East. Asia. Rough Guides, 2002 pg. 230 Castle Gregory.Post – colonial discourses. Blackwell publishing, 2001p. 330. Christine J. Clive. Ideology and Revolution in South East Asia 1900 – 1980. Routledge, 2001 p. 39. Everett – Heath Tom. Central Asia aspects of transition. Routledge, 2003 p. 80 Goodwin Jeff. No other way out: states and revolutionary movements 1945 – 1991. London, 2001 pg. 200. Hack Karl. Rettig Tobias. Colonial Armies in South East Asia. Routledge 2006, pg. 195 Kiratoska H. Paul. South East Asia colonial History. South East Asia, 2001. p. 150. Lazarus Neil. National and cultural practice in the post – colonial world. Cambridge 1999 p. 45. Mendl wolf. Japan and south East Asia. Routedge. 2001 p. 55. Milton – Edwards. Contemporary politics in the Middle East. Polity, 2006 p. 46. Milton – Edwards Beverly. Conflicts in the Middle East since 1945. Routledge. 2001 p. 70. Pappe ilan. The modern Middle East. Routledge, 2005. p. 38. Schwarz Henry & Ray Sangeeta. A companion to Postcolonial studies Blackwell publishing 2000. p. 150. White Stephen. Communism and its collapse. Routledge 2001. p. 28. Young C & Robert J. Post colonialism: An historical introduction. Black well publishing 2001, p. 94.

How has CMOS memory changed over the years? Essay

How has CMOS memory changed over the years? CMOS really hasn’t changed very much from what I could find on the internet†¦ Mainly the speeds have increased and the noise has been reduced it also went from analog to digital. Originally, the IBM PC only used of a small portion of CMOS memory and the balance of the 64 bytes were left undefined. Once other manufacturers cloned the AT form factor it wasn’t long that other areas of the CMOS was used by various BIOS manufacturers for such user-selectable options as memory wait states, memory type, initial boot drive selection, boot-up clock speed, hard drive interface type, green options, shadow RAM options, cache options, and password protection of the CMOS contents. It still uses a small battery in case there is a power outage and still uses volatile RAM. Has the size of the CMOS memory increased, decreased, or stayed the same? The size of the CMOS memory has also pretty much stayed the same because there is no need to increase the size. There was never any need to store more than 512 bytes in the memory as it holds the absolute basic boot settings for the system. The typical size is still 512 bytes currently. All it comes down to is â€Å"If it ain’t broke don’t fix it.†, so it’s been that way since almost the very beginning. It does its job which is to just get the computer started and make sure everything is in place and then hands it all over to the computers OS. Determine if CMOS still utilizes RAM, requiring a battery on the motherboard, or has it evolved into using EEPROM? The CMOS still utilizes RAM but it is being rapidly replaced with EEPROM in today’s time. EEPROM is a small chip that data can be written and re-written to with codes. As we all know RAM losses data every time you loss power to your system, well EEPROM does not require a power source to maintain its data. Although EEPROM is relatively slower than RAM it is fine for applications, such as storing saved BIOS settings?

Expectation as a Malaysia Living in a Multi-Cultured Society Essay

Malaysia with a population of 28.3 millions (Department of Statistics Malaysia, 2010) is pluralistic and multicultural. The three main ethnic groups constituting the Malays and Bumiputera (67.4%), Chinese (24.6%), Indians (7.3%) have their own unique culture and heritage, such as language, belief system, tradition and religion. The lifestyle patterns of the different groups have direct links to the differences in their values and expectations(Syed Serajul Islam, 2008). Since achieving independence fifty-five years ago, Malaysia has undergone economic transformation in terms of diversification of its agriculturein the 1960s to manufacturing in the 1970s-1980s, and then to technology-based development since the 1990s. These achievements came as a result of the ability of Malaysians, diverse in their culture, to tolerate, and to live and work together in realising the country’s overall goals of growth and prosperity. But then as pointed out by Musa Hitam (2007), nation-building is not just about providing highways, byways and hospitals. It is also about weaving together national values for the citizenry to live by and devising greater missions to galvanize their camaraderie and spirit. Such a vision of weaving together national values is still far from the set goal. For Malaysia up to the present day, except for the 1969 race riot between the Malays and the Chinese, and the 2001 clashes between the Malays and the Indians, race relations have been peaceful unlike what had been experienced in countries with mixed populations such as Nigeria, Rwanda, Bosnia, Thailand, Sudan, and India (Zaid, 2007).The basis for conflict between the ethnic groups stems from identity contestation in the form of language and culture (Shamsul, 2006). In the 1970s, the Malays advocated that the core of the national culture should be that of the Malay. This assimilative approach was unkindly viewed by the Chinese and the Indians. Relationships between the ethnic groups are rather complex, intricate and sensitive, especially when dealing with matters of religion, culture and language. These features are important in identity contestation, a phenomenon created by the British in the context of colonial knowledge and its investigative modalities (Shamsul, 2006). According to Shamsul, it is through the colonial practice of codifying, documenting and representing the social, cultural, economic  and political state in history that modern identities in Malaysia like Malay/Malayness, Chinese/Chineseness and Indian/Indianess have emerged, consolidated and fortified. Realizing the danger of creating distrust among the ethnic groups the government had rescinded the assimilation strategy and sought the policy based on the multicultural model. My expectation as a Malaysian living in the multi-cultured society is every Malaysia residents respect, unite and tolerance with each other although we are different ethnic and having a different cultural background. To push Malaysia and Malaysians to success, we must collaborate in every aspect like education, economic , politics and others. This can be a great advantage for development of Malaysia in global competition as we have different ethnic with different cultural background that we collaborate and creating a better way to work, hence improving our efficiency and productivity compared to other nation that only dominated by single race. In education, my expectation is to have Multicultural Education in every level of school, which mean we have Multicultural Education from kinder garden to university. The crux of having Multicultural Education is achieve its purposes for students, teachers, parents, and administrators of the school system : a) a learning environment that support positive interracial contact; b) a multicultural curriculum; c) positive teacher expectations; d) administrative support; and, e) teacher training workshops (Bennett, 1995). If one of the features is absent, frustration and heightened resentment may occur as backlash behaviors multiply. Besides that, a multicultural curriculum should be considered for several reasons: a) provides alternative points of view relative to information already taught in most educational systems; b) provides ethnic minorities with a sense of being inclusive in history, science etc.; and, c) decreases stereotypes, prejudice, bigotry, and racism in Malaysia and the wo rld. Educational institutions have been dictated too long by attitudes, values, beliefs, and value systems of one race and class of people. The future of our universe is demanding a positive change for all. In Politics, race plays a large role in Malaysian politics, and many Malaysian political parties are ethnically based. The Government’s New Economic Policy (NEP) and the National Development  Policy(NDP) which superseded it, were implemented to advance the standing of Bumiputera Malaysians. The policies provide preferential treatment to Malays over non-Malays in employment, education, scholarships, business, and access to cheaper housing and assisted savings. While improving in the economic position of Malays, it is a source of resentment amongst non-Malays. Prime Minister Dato Sri Mohd Najib Tun Razak has claimed to attempt to close racial divides through the 1Malaysia initiative. The origin of race based politics can be traced back to independence of Malaysia from United Kin gdom, who wanted all citizens of Malaysia to be equal upon independence, instead of dominance by Malays. This caused the political parties of the three major races at the time, the UMNO (representing Malays), the MCA (representing Chinese), and the MIC (representing Indians), to join and form the Alliance Party. My expectation for politics is that we should not dividing ourselves into parts based on our race. We should unite as one to make a better Malaysia and provide everyone a fair chance and right to fight for a higher achievement for our country without any discrimination or preferential treatment. For multi-cultured society in economic sector, the economic consequences of ethnic heterogeneity and ethnic diversity have been topics discussed world widely. The relationship between ethnicity and economic development seems to be one of the key topics to an ideal sustainable developing nation. According to Easterly and Levine (1997), high ethnic diversity has a direct negative effect on economic growth. Furthermore, increase of ethnic diversity associated with more corruption(Mauro, 1995), reduces contribution to local public goods(Alesina et al., 1999), diminishing participation in groups and association (Alesina and La Ferraa, 2000) and higher propensity to from jurisdictions to sort into homogenous groups (Alesina et al., 2004). Moreover, greater ethnic heterogeneity decreases both the probability and the amount an individual contributes to a charitable organization (Okten and Osili, 2005). Although these studies showed the bad effect of ethnic diversity in economic sectors, i still expecting for a successful achievement in Malaysia Economy by uniting the three major races, Malay, Chinese and Indian through collaboration, respecting each other and tolerance. Therefore, a leader and a good plan is necessary for us to unite as one to create a better multi-cultured Malaysia! Reference -Abu Bakar Nordin , Norlidah Alias & Saedah Sira (January 2013). The Malaysia Online Journal of Educational Science. National Integration in Multicultural School Setting In Malaysia, volume 1, issue 1. Retrieved April 20th 2013, from http://moj-es.net/volume01-i01.php -Politics of Malaysia. Participation. Retrieved 23rd April 2013, from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Politics_of_Malaysia -Albert, C. (February 2011). The Impact of Ethnicity on the Regional Economic Development in Malaysia. Retrieved 23rd April 2013, from http://www.academia.edu/745998/The_Impact_of_Ethnicity_on_Regional_Economic_Development_in_Malaysia Photos that showing the results of multi-cultural society in Malaysia

Reactions and Reasons Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Reactions and Reasons - Essay Example This piece is quite impressive due to the number of feelings and associations it triggers by its sounding and instrumentation. It is visibly divided into 3 sections, which structure perceptions regarding music. The first and the third parts dwell on the same idea; however, they represent it differently. In this way these two sections are not perceived as identical. The second section of the piece is aimed at opposing the fist and the last sections. A number of binary oppositions characterize the differences between the second and two other sections of the piece. All of them create unforgettable atmosphere of the piece and help to reveal the meaning each part displays. From the very beginning the piece engages listeners by its full and brings sounding. This piece is composed for the orchestra; the music has rich texture and polyphony, which is visible from the first chords. The first impression of the music is that the part 0:00-0:51 has slight oriental tints in its sounding, as they have elements of pentatonic scale in string arpeggios. Such a confident beginning (forte, allegro), reminds of an overture – an introduction to opera or ballet. High contrasts in pitch, switches from major to minor element in music and rich instrumentation associates this piece with parade or celebration where many people are involved. It contains a controversy; reiteration of major arpeggios in minor in this part creates ambiguous and tensed feelings as music is unstable and highly changeable.

Investment recommendatin Coursework Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

SABMiller Plc and Kingfisher Plc - Coursework Example Although regarded as a non-cyclical industry, beer brewing has been affected by reduced overall demand for goods worldwide, including consumer goods, and SABMiller saw its turnover drop, albeit not very significant, in 2009. According to the CBI Economic Forecast published in December 2009, there will be a modest recovery of world economic activity in 2010, but the longer-term trend will not resume until 2011. For the UK, this marginal growth will be driven by continuing strong Government spending, a modest increase in exports, and some recovery of consumer spending. The UK Gross Domestic Product is forecast to grow by 2.2 percent this year, and 2.5 percent the year after that. Consumer spending growth will be hampered by high energy costs, unwillingness to borrow, and the need to save for future needs. The company belongs to the non-cyclical consumer goods and services sector, and the beverages/brewers industry. (Reuters). According to Hoovers, industry demand is driven by consumer preferences for alcohol consumption as well as demographic trends. As is true for most consumer products, success often goes to large companies because of their effective sales operations, broad distribution networks, and economies of scale. The industry is capital intensive. The top competitors of SABMiller plc are, Diageo plc, Heineken NV., and Anheuser-Busch InBev. The latter replaced SABMiller as the worlds biggest brewer after InBev acquired Anheuser-Busch for $52 billion in 2008. The company recorded a revenue level of US$18.7 billion in 2009 and a net income of US$2.16 billion compared to US$2.29 the year before. Sales in 2009 dropped 12.6 percent due to the global recession, but overall revenue has grown by an annual average of 10.5 percent over 5 years and 6.9 percent over three years. Earnings per share average 18.6 percent over five years and 6.13 for the last three years.

Political Science Syria Government Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Political Science Syria Government - Essay Example However, this was not the case because in a rare show of unity between the Republicans and Democrats, there was widespread opposition to any strikes against the Syrian government, or any direct involvement of the United States in the conflict, hence ensuring that the government remains accountable to the American people. The fact that there was widespread opposition to United States involvement in Syria from both parties is a true statement of the sensitivity towards this issue that the American public feels (McDonnell). In a rare instance of unity, the representatives of both parties seem to have, almost unanimously, chosen to set an agenda that represents the true feelings of their constituents, who are for the most part weary of war. In fact, polls showed that the United States should stop concentrating on the solving of external conflicts and instead concentrate on solving the growing number of problems on the domestic scene. Despite the seeming unity of the two parties concernin g Syria, the fact has all along remained that the United States government does not have a clear policy concerning Syria and this is perhaps the reason why the conflict has continued for the last two years. This conflict has, however, also created a situation where it has become difficult for the United States to deal with the diverse consequences such as the development of the refugee problem (Sly). It is more likely than not that the continuation of the Syrian conflict will create a refugee problem, as Syrian refugees seek to settle in the United States. The fact that Syrian refugees will likely seek asylum in the United States has become a worrying subject in both parties and this is likely to be another issue which will unite the Democrats and the Republicans in a bipartisan way. In addition, the Syrian war has caused the allies of the United States in the region, such as Turkey and Jordan to have an influx of refugees which has created a sad situation in these countries (Araabi ). The fact that the Democrats and the Republicans, despite proving that they can work together, have yet to coordinate their efforts to come up with a clear policy concerning Syria, which should involve the ouster of the Syrian government and president, is most disturbing. The United States Congress should put pressure on the government to ensure that it creates a clear policy that will enable the bringing the Syrian conflict to a conclusive end that will provide lasting peace for the Syrian people. Both the Democrats and the Republicans believe that the Assad regime has lost its mandate to rule over the Syrian people and because of this, it must go. This has been a standing position of both of these parties since the beginning of the conflict, but despite this, there has yet to develop a clear means through which the Assad regime can be ousted (Kostyaev 54). In addition, both parties have found that the continued rule of the Assad regime will be detrimental to the refugee situatio n in the country. This is mainly because of the fact that there will be an increase, not

Social Awareness Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Social Awareness - Assignment Example The wife would rest her hand on her husband’s shoulder when she wanted him to stop so they could go inside a store. The husband would always let his wife enter a store first before him. Either of them would shake their head if they did not like the other’s suggestion. The non-verbal signals did not appear to make the interaction between the two of them difficult even without words. 4. Their non-verbal communication made it easy for me to think they are married. I think couples who are married are always close to each other. Couples who are not married do not just hold hands. They have their arms around each other’s waist or on each other’s shoulders. This is why I formed this impression about them very fast. 1. The next interaction I observed was in the grocery store. It was also noisy at this place. There were noises coming from the cash register, public announcement system, music and grocers. I see a lot of families today. It is a Sunday. I chose a family of three. The father was carrying a baby and pushing a grocery cart. The mother was holding a pen and checking off of a list. I heard the baby crying so I chose them to observe. 2. There were many signals for non-verbal communication I saw. The baby was crying and the father was moving the baby up and down his arm. I think this was his way to make the baby quiet. The baby did not stop. The mother was frowning. She got a pacifier from the baby bag and gave it to the father. I watched the father’s mouth form the word â€Å"Sshh†. I think the noise of the mall made the baby uncomfortable. The behavior of the baby affected the mother. She started choosing things faster. 3. The interaction was informal. I decided this because the woman and man stood close to each other. Also, the woman touched the man’s hand or shoulder many times. She passed grocery things to him quietly and he put them in the cart. They looked very comfortable with each other. 4. I quickly

Category Management (CM) And Its Scope In Improving The Performance Of Essay

Category Management (CM) And Its Scope In Improving The Performance Of Retail Organisations - Essay Example Earlier, product manufacturers have assigned the duty of selling a particular product to the product manager. However, the evolution of CM forced the organizations to create a new post; category manager. Earlier organizations give more importance to product managers whereas modern organizations give more importance to category managers. This is because of the fact that marketing of a category of product is easier than marketing a particular product. For example, smartphones are conquering the market at present. It is easy for Samsung or Apple like smartphone manufacturers to market tablets along with smartphones since both smartphones and tablets almost belong to the same category. In short â€Å"CM helps category manager to sets the prices of all brands in the category so as to maximize total category profits† (Basuroy et al., 2001, p.17). ... In short â€Å"CM helps category manager to sets the prices of all brands in the category so as to maximize total category profits† (Basuroy et al., 2001, p.17). Moreover, it enhances the interactions between between retailers and wholesalers and helps them to reap more profit (Kulikova, 2012, p.67). This paper analyses how category management can improve the performances of retail organizations. Scope of category management in improving the performance of retail organisations CM starts from the definition of category and ends in the category implementation. Between these starting and end points, CM travels through other steps such as identification of category role, category assessment, category scorecard, category strategies, and category tactics. The figure given below explains various steps involved in CM. (Basuroy et al., 2001, p.17) After category implementation, organizations review the success and failures of CM. The category review process helps organizations to ident ify the strengths and weakness of existing CM and modify it to restart the CM process in a more efficient manner. In short, CM helps organizations to polish or fine tune the existing business strategies all the time and manages the selling of a particular category of products in an efficient manner. A typical category management framework is described in the following illustration. Category management framework (Effective day-to-day category management, 2011, p.3) From the above illustration, it is evident that market insight elements such as consumers, trends, economy, competitors and suppliers help an organization to formulate company goals related to customers, strategies, finance etc. Identification of goals helps a company to formulate strategies necessary for the promotion of a specific

Theories of Counseling Term Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Theories of Counseling - Term Paper Example If he gets demotivated and stops working hard his grades may even drop. The bottom line is that an individual endeavors to achieve success through hard work thereby overcoming the weaknesses. This contributes towards a personal drive to completeness. Hence, my view of the nature of people is closest to Alfred Alder’s Individual Psychology according to which people strive towards achieving success and this is referred to as a personal growth towards perfection. Also, according to Alder social interest was affected by social training and was not inborn. Unlike Freud’s theory, Alder believed that the conscious behavior was the backbone of an individual’s personal development. As a result, this theory makes an individual responsible for their perception and adaptations to the different events. An individual’s own lack of properly adjustment explains their lack of growth. If an individual is discouraged or his or her positive gestures do not result in required outcome, misbehavior occurs (University of Nevada Las Vegas, 2010). Individuals act as the components upon which the structure of family is made up of. An individual is affected by the family system very deeply as the family as a whole is a complex and dynamic collection of these individuals playing their roles (Hammond, 2010). The behavior of an individual in their family is shaped by the expectation of the family. This is the same reason why an individual may behave differently with their family members and their friends. This is because an individual is aware of what is expected of him as a brother, sister, daughter, son, parent, or grandparent. The theory which is closest to me view is the Family Systems theory according to which a family is a group of individuals, components and subparts. Similar to any mechanical system, a family can also be diagnosed by researchers and therapists so as to locate the point of repair by investigating its members (Hammond, 2010).

Case study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 34

Case Study Example Additionally, he works with the government agencies in his attempt to formulate appropriate policies to contain the inhalation of the glue. The case study therefore investigates the effects of this neurotoxin in one of the street children as the author attempts to expose the daunting consequences of an innocent act by the street children. The work environment is an essential factor that affects the productivity of the employees in any given company. The case investigates cases in which employees of a uranium company work in deplorable conditions often exposed to the radioactive radiation of uranium. The case portrays gross disregards of the basic human rights as the management of the uranium company continues to expose its employees to the harmful radiations. Furthermore, the management of the company does this deliberately. Apparently, the management had done an exhaustive survey on the safety of the workplace thereby determining substantial leakages of the radiation. The files of such findings continue remain filed in the archives while the employees continue to labor in hazardous conditions. Sara goes to work in a foreign environment where she faces numerous challenges. In the case, Sara’s plight is one that millions of people working in foreign countries face. Sara faces numerous challenges key among which is sexual harassment owing to unique laws. The different forms of harassments include abusive colleagues who often made reference of her gender. Such inappropriate comments coupled with inappropriate gestures among many other forms of sexual harassment made her stay in the foreign countries difficult. Among the challenges that employees face include cultural differences which affects their ability to fit into the new society. This affects their productivity. The situation is worsened with the rising cases of xenophobia as the locals begin to target foreigners. Such aggressive attacks and acts of discrimination may result in the loss

Registered Nurse Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Registered Nurse - Case Study Example protocols and therefore a bit uncertain and lacking in her communication with the patients, the doctors and Miss Cook. Cook has to help Miss Wolf to shed her complexes and make her an efficient member of the staff. Usually, there are two methods. One is the Chosen leadership style and the other is the Authoritative leadership style. In the former, the leader is a chosen one and therefore has to be pleasant mannered, ever ready to help, interested in staff welfare, and be able to win the goodwill of all concerned. She has to use persuasion than power, instill duty consciousness in the nurses and teach them to find happiness in doing their job well. The other method is the Authoritative leadership style. This is indicated when circumstances call for a new vision. Any unit requires a clear sense of direction in order to achieve progress. If this is the problem, the Authoritative style would be very usefull. Sometimes organizations drift without any sense of direction and on such occasions also the Authoritative style is more appropriate and relevant. This style has a special attitude. It seems to say, "Come on! Come with me! I am with you. We will shatter all problems and go ahead!" Though authoritative, the style allows the workers a lot of freedom to deploy their own methods, skills and diplomacy and even to take calculated risks up to a limit.

Data Collection - Business Research Essay Example for Free

Data Collection Business Research Essay Introduction The experience of focus group and semi-structured interview were gained during my data collection research. I conducted one focus group and one semi-structured interviews, due to participants time limit and busy schedule I was not possible to conduct more interviews. I have designed the interview procedure including questions prepared for each interview to capture different group and individual. I have given participants consent form to sign and ask for their permission to audio tape recorder, simultaneously I was taking note. This type of interview was more suitable for my data collection research because it allowed face to face assurance and explanation of the importance, aim, and necessity of the research. I have enjoyed the interview exercise and my learning reflection about data collection process is addressed below. How well did the research instrument address the research questions and meet the goals of the study? Using focus group and semi-structured interview instruments to collect data helped keeping track of what I observed and how to analyse it. Methods of recording information gathered during focus groups and interview for collecting unbiased information have helped to gain credibility as an accurate and useful source of information collection. Focus group and semi- structured interviews were effective in communicating a desire to obtain meaningful and honest information, both instruments were well designed that helped the conversation develop in line with my research questions. I was able to use technique for collecting data as a combination of an audio tape recorder and note taking which allow me to capture all of the essential information in an unbiased manner, I was also able to capture nonverbal behaviour of group participants, i.e. reactions of other participants after a participant statement may indicate consensus or disagreement. Both instruments are valid and reliable in collecting data, and questions and observations accurately assess what I want to know. What specific advantages and disadvantages can you see from using this particular method? Semi-structured individual interviews are more efficient than focus groups and interviewers are typically able to cover more ground interviewing one person versus a group. While focus groups may actually get less information than one hour individual interview, the dynamic interchange between the group members may result in more in depth and unbiased information concerning a particular topic. A potential weakness of focus groups may occur when members do not express their personal opinions and conform to a popular opinion or agree to a particular group member. In semi-structured interview there is no significant time delay between question and answer, the interviewer and interviewee can directly react on what the other says or does. An advantage of this communication is that the answer of the interviewee is more spontaneous, without an extended reflection. But due to this type of communication, the interviewer must concentrate much more on the questions to be asked and the answers given. Especially when semi-structured interview list is used, and the interviewer has to formulate questions as a result of the interactive nature of communication. Interview also has the advantage that the interviewer can make more use of a standardisation of the situation. On the other hand this type of communication of time and place can bring with it a lot of time and costs. Social interaction in the focus group provides more free and complex answers, interviewer can ask for clarification, problems as to whether the group represents a larger population and difficult to assemble the group. What issues did you face in data collection and compilation? In my situation, I needed to obtain an appropriate permission or approval to collect information from the senior management of the company I have done my research on. I had to allow time to work through the proper channels and it was stressful process to know whether they will provide me with an approval to conduct my interviews and collect data. One of the problems encountered by me was the limited time allocated as the questionnaires were process oriented and it took time to complete some of the questionnaires while each interview was allocated 45 minutes only, in addition, the geographical location of the company was presented a difficulty as I had to travel more than 30 minutes to reach the company’s premises. I had to visit the company twice to conduct a focus group with one team and a semi-structured interview with another team manager. I believe there is no issue in data integrity or accuracy that was provided to me by the team during both interviews. However, compilation of data has been time consuming process due to documenting all notes taking as well as referring to the audio tape recorder to ensure that I haven’t missed anything out. I did not encounter any non-response or outright refusal from the participants. The response from the leaders and officials was also encouraging. How would you change the research instrument based on the data you collected? I believe the answers I have got are as good as the questions I asked, I may need to expand on my research instruments techniques and get the best answers that fit my questions, or follow formative research process that will help me think through which questions I want to ask of which people. For example, asking good questions of the wrong people or asking the right people bad questions will provide me poor and unusable results. Even if focus group and semi-structured interviews are the best method for collecting my data, I will consider changing how to do them, collecting the best data possible is to separate research instruments into smaller rounds instead of trying to get all answer for the questions at once. Later rounds can build on information from earlier rounds. For example, I would use one round of the interview to help me determine a target group, understand their roles, skills and knowledge around using systems and processes and then a second round to investigate more deeply into the groups thoughts and feelings. What lessons have you learned about collecting data? I believe collecting data for this study or MRP research is way more stressful than other data collection I have experienced. First of all, the stakes are higher, if I don’t get it right I will continue to be in purgatory. All what I needed is to hear from my potential participants about whether they are participating in my research study. I got tons of questions from the senior management asking details of the research study and proposal. This, however, does not mean that they are going to participate in my study. So, I had to be very careful about how I answer their questions and how to interact with them. I learned to be always prepared to get tones of questions. I also had to send my participants a reminder about the date and time of the interviews and accommodate them, otherwise they will forget as they are busy people. I learned to keep my spirit high, and I needed to remind myself that things are going to be OK. I needed to continue providing information, checking in, reminding, answering questions, sending e-mails, making phone calls, and running my research study with a smile on my face. Even though I was exhausted, tried to keep my energy high, and didn’t let my participants feel the stress I felt inside. At the end, I was grateful to have each and every participant I had and enjoyed the experience with them. And finally I learned to be patient, collecting data is a slow process and I was focusing on how to achieve the big goal of interviewing participants and collecting data, while I forget to pay attention to what I achieve everyday towards getting my data collection complete. What thoughts do you have about the importance and relevance of your project based on the data collection experience? Data collected during the focus group and interview is adequate to be analysed for my process improvement project purpose and to make decisions about important issues. I will be able to present findings and analysis based on data collected from interviews and that subsequent decisions based on arguments embodied in the findings are valid. Data collection process will help my project identifying area for improvements, analysing and assessing the importance of systems and processes. Quality and type of data play a vital role in supplying objective information for the problems in process improvement project so that some analytical understanding of the problems and hence solutions can be obtained. Making decision on the basis of poor quality data is risky and may lead to disastrous results. My project requires data that is valid and reliable, and in this study data was collected using a variety of research methods, such as interview and focus group were participants debriefed to ensure interpretive validity in order to determine if data was being interpreted correctly.