CAPM Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

CAPM - Essay Example The CAPM presents partial equilibrium model where agents consider the risk free returns and the probability distributions of the future returns on risky assets as being exogenous. In this paper, I seek to give an in-depth understanding of this model by delving into the logic behind it, exploring critiques levelled against it, and explaining why it is still the model of choice in financial analysis. Finally, I give practical examples of its practical application that show evidence of its usefulness and continued use to date. The CAPM is built on the portfolio model that Harry Markowitz (1959) developed. In the model, a portfolio is selected by an investor at time t-1 which at t produces a stochastic return. Investors are assumed to be risk averse and, in their choosing among portfolios, care is only taken on the mean and the variance of their single-period investment return. This results in investors choosing â€Å"mean-variance-efficient† portfolios, the portfolios in this case 1) given variance, maximizes returns and 2) given expected returns, minimize portfolio return variance. For this, the approach is referred to as mean-variance model. An algebraic condition is provided by the model on asset weights in portfolios that are mean-variant-efficient. This algebraic statement is turned by the CAPM into a prediction that is testable about the connection between expected returns and risk through identification of an efficient portfolio if asset prices should clear all the assets off the market. To identify a mean-variant-efficient portfolio, Sharpe and Lintner added two crucial assumptions. The first one is complete agreement: taking asset prices to clear the market at t-1, it is agreed by investors that asset joint distribution returns from t-1 to t. This distribution is taken to be the true distribution, i.e. it provides the distribution giving returns that we employ in testing the model. Secondly, there is risk-free rate

The society and community Essay Example for Free

The society and community Essay Once again, this reason leads the two characters to artificial creation and problems for society. The need for perfection shown by both Frankenstein and Swinton in the books is another reason that drives them to create artificial life. Frankenstein wants to rid the world of disease, and Swinton wishes to continue the illusion of a perfect world in order for his products to continue to sell. This need for perfection backfires considerably. For example, the creature in Frankenstein is far from physically perfect, therefore he gets shunned by society, which is one of the contributing factors to his murders: Am I to be thought the only criminal when all human kind sinned against me? Why do you not hate Felix who drove his friend from his door with contumely? Why do you not execrate the rustic who sought to destroy the saviour of his child? Nay, these are virtuous and immaculate beings! I, the miserable and the abandoned, am an abortion, to be spurned at, and kicked and trampled on. Says the creature when considering his position. This shunning leads to the creature feeling jealous and angry, not to mention self-critical: accursed creator! Why did you form a monster so hideous that even you turned from me in disgust? God, in pity made man beautiful and alluring, after his own image; but my form is a filthy type of yours. Which in turn provokes him into the murders: when I became fully convinced that I was in reality the monster that I am, I was filled with the bitterest sensations of despondence and mortification. Therefore, the need for perfection is a way in which science has negative affects on individuals in society. However, Frankensteins need for perfection is lost at some stages during the novel. For example, Frankensteins shunning of his creation is far from perfect. This is another way in which science has a negative effect on society. For example, the shunning of the creation leads the creation to the murders of Frankensteins nearest and dearest in order for retribution of his abandonment. For example: and what was I? Of my creation and creator I was absolutely ignorant; but I knew that I possessed no money, no friends, no kind of property. This point is also apparent in Supertoys by the rejection of malfunctioning units. For example, the butler in the Swinton household breaks down and David says Throw it away, and well get a new one. This shows the need for perfection in the world and the throwaway attitude that is apparent. This has consequences in that it takes away peoples bare humanity. For example, David is thrown to the reject world ultimately although he was a person who could have been loved. A contributing factor that provokes the characters into furthering science is the families behind the characters. Frankensteins family encourages him to further his knowledge of alchemy, which is linked to artificial creation. Frankenstein also creates the monster because he wants a companion: No father could claim the gratitude of his child so completely as I should deserve theirs. which is linked into the loneliness of the world in Supertoys. In Supertoys, David, has no real family after his creation, this is another problem that is caused by science, and directly relevant to the creation of artificial intelligence that is not loved as though flesh and blood would be. This aspect is linked to the need for love shown by many characters in both stories. Frankenstein, his monster, David, Henry and certainly Monica all show how much they need love. For example: He loves you says Teddy regarding Davids affection for Monica. This need for love drives certain characters to create artificial life, to fill a void. This may be because of unfelt love from their families. For example, Frankenstein begins to feel disjointed from his family after moving to university. The consequence of the need for love is the creation of artificial life, which then in turn needs to be loved. However, in both novels, the artificial life form is not loved. This is what creates the negative affects on society. Another way in which science has a negative effect on individuals in society is the effect the creations have on the creators. For example, throughout Frankenstein, Frankenstein is afraid of his creation and what he might do. Frankenstein cannot care for his creation and spends his whole life in fear. For a large part of his life Frankenstein is forced to follow his creation, in a vain attempt to banish him from society due to the problems he is causing. This pursuit eventually kills him. This can be blamed on himself easily, for he is the one who used science irresponsibly and the consequences backfired upon him. However, this is still a negative effect on society caused by science. Similarly, Henry, eventually, labours to reacquaint himself with David. This comes about after his sense of guilt after abandoning his child. However, these psychological problems are not as important as the prejudices that the new technology brings forward, particularly in Supertoys. This can be explained further by saying that the humans in the artificial world are prejudiced towards the perfect world, and perfect people. What would happen if somebody came along who wasnt perfect? For example, David. David was imperfect in that he was an android and technically he was malfunctioning. Because of this, he was thrown on the scrap heap. This is a problem caused by technology, because it created the prejudices by creating a world where everything is perfect and seamless, nothing is real. Overall, the main scourges of the societies in both books are the artificial creatures and therefore, the creators of these monsters. The creation in Frankenstein shows how science can be used irresponsibly to have negative effects on individuals in society through tactical murder and destruction. The creations in Supertoys show how science can have a negative effect on society by creating social divides, a superficial, prejudiced, fake, lonely, ignorant, arrogant, selfish, inconsiderate, narrow-minded and insecure world in which nothing is solid. The books can be linked to Genesis and Paradise Lost in that they all involve creation, that was well intended but did not turn out as expected. In all four novels the creation was given a world, or habitat, but either they abused it, or inadvertently caused suffering for other members of the community. The authors use the characters of Frankensteins monster and David accompanied by the society and community by the two worlds of the two novels to show how science can be used irresponsibly to have negative effects on society and the individuals within it.

Exemplification Essay: Cruising Should be Banned -- Exemplification Ess

Most of us have enjoyed "cruising" sometime in our lives. For many, it was one of our favorite pastimes. If you lived in the "American Graffiti" era, it was the in thing of to do. I remember when cruising was a popular activity on Main Street in Mesa for many years, until it was banned a few years ago. Now the controversy is over whether to ban cruising on Central Avenue in Phoenix. City officials are trying to reroute the weekend riders to Washington and Jefferson streets. Although cruising may be enjoyable to quite a few teenagers, there is no positive purpose for it. The negative effects of cruising outweigh the reasons for it by far. Cruising should be banned altogether because cruisers have proven to be very loud, dangerous, and a contributor to our pollution problem. I have sympathy for those who live near Central Avenue. The weekends are very noisy in this vicinity. For example, some of the stereos blasting away could accommodate a rock concert. The base volume coming out of these speakers is felt in your heart as you drive along Central...

Snakes, Facts and Falsehoods :: essays research papers fc

  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Hesson, 2   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  With its long slender body the snake is probably the funniest shaped creature you will ever encounter. There are many benefits regarding this wonderful reptile that make it a high asset to the world. It has been said that people are always afraid of what is different, afraid of what they do not know. Many of the rumored questions can be easily dispelled. From questions like what is a Thamnophis sirtalis, to where the extracting organs are located. First, let us dispel any of the rumors that are around about these guys. Despite popular belief, the snake does not swallow there young to protect them from harm; the stomach would immediately start to digest them. This myth came around from fear and adrenaline, but snakes cannot crawl faster than a human can run. The tongue of the snake is not a stinger, but actually a sensory organ. In addition, snakes are not slimy, because they do not secrete any kind of oil. Now that we have started uncovering the truth about these reptiles, we can start with some facts.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚     Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  In the world today, there are about 2,500 known species of snakes belonging to more than ten families. In the U.S., there are about 127 species, with thirty-eight species found within the U.S. (including five venomous Hesson, 3 ones). Most people wonder what will happen to them if they do happen to encounter a snake. Will I get bitten, is it venomous, will I die, is someone going to have to suck the poison out of the wound, is it trying to kill me, should I try to kill him? A lot of things are happening at this point, more than likely the snake is just trying to defend itself. In addition, it has all the right to do so. First, you disrupted the snake, it did not disrupt you. How would you feel if A five to six foot thing with two legs and hair growing on it almost stepped on you and you were a only a half foot off the ground, you would be pretty shocked. More than likely, the snake is harmless. If by chance the snake is a venomous or dangerous snake just simply stop, and walk slowly away from it. Do not threaten it or try to kill it, just back away. With all this talk about confrontation and how to avoid the snake, it would make sense to mention what to stay on the look out for.

Advances in technology Essay

This world goes through a lot of changes as time goes on. Changes in technology can make a brighter future for individuals. Because of advances in technology, this world is becoming more efficient and saving us money in the long-run with fuel, electricity, communication, etc. The social lifestyle of an individual involves technology in some way. Technology has become a necessity in these modern days and it is going to become more advanced as time goes on. With these advances in technology, the social lifestyles of individuals can be simpler. Technology moves our world forward into a new and advanced era. Without technology, we would all be stuck in the same time as our ancestors. Technology is a very good thing for people anywhere and everywhere, no matter how old, it helps us in every aspect of our daily lives, and it is a thing that cannot be lived without. Technology has many branches and levels, from cell phones to the internet and even for medical purposes. However, cell phones and the internet have taken the main role in changing our society. I find it truly amazing that a person from China is able to talk to a person from the United States, all through the internet. Programs such as facebook make finding an old childhood friend extremely easy, all that is to be done is type in their name. The advantages of technology include better health facilities due to increased disease diagnosis using technology and faster as well as more accurate business results and solutions through technology. Technology has also enabled the automation of manual work thus saving time and money. It has boosted the entertainment through games and computer programs as well as increase in economy growth due to faster and easier business. Without technology in our lives, our world we be a very different place. Not only does technology provide us with a new and improved way to communicate, is gives us new and exciting ways to research and get ideas out to the world faster. Technology is only going to get better and better as each day progresses and with the appropriate efforts and integrating it into the classroom will enhance education forever. Our advance in technology has and always will be a good thing that will always benefit our world. People’s lives are becoming simpler.

A systematic process Essays

A systematic process Essays A systematic process Essay A systematic process Essay Definitions of research vary from person to person and hence almost every generalized definition has faced criticism from some or the other quarters. The exact definition does not have any consensus among the various theorists (Owojori, 2005). However, a basic definition of research can be as follows: â€Å"a systematic process of discovery and advancement of human knowledge† (Gratton, Jones, 2003, pp. 4). According to Leedy (1985) and Walliman (2001), there are many characteristics of research which help to make the term more clear, such as: it is generated by a specific hypothesis or question, it follows a specific plan or procedure, it requires arguments to support conclusions, it is reiterative etc (as cited in Gratton, Jones, 2003, pp. 5). This chapter describes the notions of the research methodology ensuring that the research is planned and executed systematically. The research philosophy, research design, data collection, sampling group selection and limitation and bias of the research method are pinpointed as the core issues. The chapter also details the research strategies used for ascertaining the research questions and served as a prelude to the analysis chapter of the research.

Deceitful Relationships in the Secret Agent Essay Example

Deceitful Relationships in the Secret Agent Essay Example Deceitful Relationships in the Secret Agent Paper Deceitful Relationships in the Secret Agent Paper The Secret Agent was written by Joseph Conrad and published in 1908. It’s a classic novel based on actual events: the attempt to blow up the Greenwich Observatory in 1984. This fictionalized tale revolves around Mr. Verloc, a spy for his home country of France while living and working in London, Mr. Verloc’s wife, Winnie, a devoted wife and lives her life caring for her young brother, and Stevie, Winnie’s simple-minded brother who manages to get involved with Mr. Verloc’s dangerous politics. The family relationships in this novel, particularly Winnies devotion to her brother Stevie, are quite strong and relevant to the events of the story. The novel seems to be mostly about Winnie, though she appears to only be a minor character throughout the majority of the story. Winnie is the injured party when the scheme to blow up the Greenwich Observatory goes disastrously wrong, though the plan was engineered to save Mr. Verloc from the possibility of death. In a way, Mr. Verloc and Winnie are almost paralleled to one another in the story, both living behind secrets. While reading the novel, Winnie and Mr. Verloc’s relationship seemed odd and unfamiliar. Chapter VIII in The Secret Agent reveals a passage that makes the reader consider Winnie and Mr. Verloc to be strangers to one another: [t]his head arranged for the night, those ample shoulders, had an aspect of familiar sacredness- the sacredness of domestic peace. She moved not, massive and shapeless like a recumbent statue in the rough; he remembered her wide-open eyes looking into the empty room. She was mysterious, with the mysteriousness of living beings. (Conrad 148) The imagery in the passage seems cold, and lacking the passion that a man would use to describe his wife laying in bed next to him. By calling Winnie sacred, Conrad does add a little warmth, because unlike Winnie, Mr. Verloc does love her, but she is also described as mysterious. Winnie and Mr. Verloc have been married for seven years and the fact that she can still be described as mysterious is unusual. Lying in bed together at night is a very intimate moment between two people, and the passage portrays Winnie as being a statue, not moving at all. When in a comfortable marriage, the husband and wife should be able to move freely and talk because it is their time to be alone with one another, but instead Winnie is compared to a statue that is lying down, the imagery in the passage compares Winnie to a figure made of stone. There are other images in the novel where Winnie is completely still, and maybe not directly being called a statue, she acts as one, â€Å"[s]he remained mysteriously still† (Conrad 215) or: a white-hot iron drawn across her eyes; at the same time her heart, hardened and chilled into a lump of ice, kept her body in an inward shudder, set her features into a frozen, contemplative immobility addressed to a whitewashed wall with no writing on it. (Conrad 199) The passage shows that Mr. Verloc and Winnie have not completely opened themselves up to one another, hiding behind secrets. Mr. Verloc hides from Winnie that he is a secret agent working for the French Embassy, and Winnie puts on a front for her husband as a devoted wife so she and her brother, Stevie, can live with financial security. The passage shows the reader just how little Winnie is emotionally invested in her marriage. Winnie appears to an outsider, such as Comrade Ossipon, to be a devoted wife to Mr. Verloc, but in reality she has devoted her entire life to her brother, first protecting the poor boy from his own abusive father, then caring for him when their mother became disabled, and finally marrying Mr. Verloc with the intention that Stevie would always be cared for and not have to work. Winnie has given up freedom and love for her brother and thrown all her trust on to this man, who has a secret life that he has refused to disclose to her. Winnie and Mr. Verloc each hide behind a big secret, which stands in the way of their marriage. They are parallel to one another through their deceit. Both characters are morally corrupt, Mr. Verloc is in many ways self-deceived, since he does not admit to himself how grimy his methods of making a living are, and it seems that he even wanted to be rid of the mentally deficient Stevie with his lack of sympathy for Winnie, and Winnie allows herself to be sexually exploited by marrying Mr. Verloc, whom she does not love, but does it for the sake of Stevie and her mother, and by so carelessly throwing herself at the feet of Comrade Ossipon near the end of the novel. The excerpt shows the reader that Mr. Verloc and Winnie are almost strangers in this story by calling her mysterious, but then the narrator takes it a step further by saying she is mysterious, â€Å"with the mysteriousness of living beings† (Conrad 148). The description of Winnie from Mr. Verloc’s point of view seems very general and vague, not a loving, meaningful, or even familiar depiction of Winnie. But it is not the only time that Winnie is thought of as being mysterious, â€Å"Mrs. Verloc sat still under her black veil, in her own house, like a masked and mysterious visitor of impenetrable intentions† (Conrad 211). Even in her own house, Winnie is somewhat of a mysterious visitor, and Mr. Verloc is not able to relate to his wife, especially after she finds out the truth of Stevie’s death. It is obvious Mr. Verloc does not know Winnie’s true self by the sheer fact that he thinks he’s doing Winnie a favor by sparing his own life and letting Stevie be in control of the bomb, and this shows through Mr. Verloc’s persistent defense of his actions to his wife Winnie, â€Å"‘[d]o be reasonable, Winnie. What would it have been if you had lost me? ’† (Conrad 193). When Mr. Verloc asks Winnie that question, he must be assuming that Winnie would be more sorrowful had he died instead of Stevie. Mr. Verloc is clearly unaware of Winnie’s intentions for their marriage and just how much she truly cared about Stevie. Mr. Verloc and Winnie’s deceit ultimately brought them to their deaths at the end of the novel. Both suffering from moral corruption and a loveless marriage, Mr. Verloc and Winnie were paralleled through their secrets from one another. Conrad, Joseph. The Secret Agent. New York: Signet Classics, 2007.

Class and Its Derivatives

Class and Its Derivatives Class and Its Derivatives Class and Its Derivatives By Mark Nichol The Latin noun classis, meaning â€Å"category† or â€Å"fleet† or referring to a group of citizens called up for military duty, is the source of the word class and others derived from it, which are listed and defined in this post. In educational contexts, class pertains to a group of students (whether those enrolled in a particular course or in the same grade level), a course of instruction, or a meeting of such a course. In a socioeconomic sense, it refers to a stratum of social standing, in science it denotes a level of organization of living things, and in general it refers to a category. The verb class, meaning â€Å"categorize,† is used in the scientific and general senses, and the word serves as an adjective, including in the idiom â€Å"class act,† which offers an additional meaning equivalent to the adjective classy, meaning â€Å"elegant,† â€Å"refined,† â€Å"skillful,† or â€Å"well mannered.† The adjectives first-class and second-class literally pertain to a high and a moderate quality of accommodations during travel, respectively, and figuratively denote superiority and inferiority, respectively. (High-class and low-class are equivalent to the latter meanings.) The nouns â€Å"upper class† (pertaining to the affluent), â€Å"middle class† (those living a moderate lifestyle), and â€Å"lower class† (those with low incomes or none at all) also serve as adjectives. â€Å"Leisure class† refers to people wealthy enough that they are not required to work for a living. â€Å"Working class† describes people employed in jobs that do not necessarily require higher education as an employment qualification. (Underclass is similar in meaning.) The pejorative, condescending expression â€Å"chattering classes† alludes to political opponents who utter what are considered meaningless opinions. Terms related to education with the root class include classmate, referring to one enrolled in the same course or grade level, and classroom, denoting a room used for instruction. An upperclassman is a student in one of the two higher grade levels in secondary or postsecondary education (often identified as a junior or senior), and an underclassman has a standing in one of the two lower levels (a freshman or a sophomore.) (The female equivalents upperclasswoman and underclasswoman are rare.) Several terms based on class allude to a high quality of artistic achievement. Classic, as a noun or an adjective, alludes to something authoritative or typical, or long considered an exemplar of great achievement or high quality, though by extension it now describes anything memorable, even if merely because it is highly amusing or ironic. (â€Å"Did you see her trip and fall into her wedding cake? That was classic!†) â€Å"The classics† describes either the extant works of celebrated Greek and Roman writers or a nebulous body of more recent literature that those who claim to be erudite should be acquainted with. A style of architecture or art, including literature, that calls to mind the characteristics of corollary Greek or Roman achievements is referred to as classicism. Neoclassicism is an esthetic form influenced by classicism, and postclassicism denotes one that follows a period understood to be one of classicism. (The adjectival forms are classical, neoclassical, and postclassical.) Classical music is a form of sophisticated musical expression as distinct from simpler music such as folk or jazz. In terms of quality or social strata, other words derived from class include classism, meaning â€Å"discrimination based on class,† as well as classless, which can refer either to a lack of sophistication thought to be the result of being raised in an inferior class (dà ©classà © is a synonym for this sense adopted directly from French) or to someone who lives outside of class-based strictures or to freedom from class distinctions. Words pertaining to categorization include the verb classify and the adjective classified, which simply means â€Å"arrange into classes† but is also part of the standing phrase â€Å"classified ads† (sometimes truncated to â€Å"classifieds), which refers to advertisements divided into categories; the adjective also describes something categorized as being of restricted to a certain audience, such as a government document. Something that can be classified is classifiable, and classificatory describes something pertaining to classification. To outclass is to outperform someone considered to be in the same class, and a subclass is a further division of a category. Want to improve your English in five minutes a day? Get a subscription and start receiving our writing tips and exercises daily! Keep learning! Browse the Vocabulary category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:Creative Writing 101Top 11 Writing Apps for iOS (iPhone and iPad)â€Å"Least,† â€Å"Less,† â€Å"More,† and â€Å"Most†

Japan Civilization Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Japan Civilization - Essay Example rpretation of culture and history, the Tokugawa period was unique with regards to the way in which Edo-art, theater developed, and government sponsored and supported arts flourished during this time. Firstly, with regards to art during this particular period, it is something of a deviation from traditional Japanese art; yet, at the same time, it was a movement that sought to re-integrate an understanding and appreciation for the most traditional aspects of Japanese culture. Whereas the arts were not officially supported by the government prior to this period, the Tokugawa period saw a time in Japanese history in which landholders were the ones that were ultimately the pinnacle of society. Within such an interpretation, these landholders had to shoulder the majority of the tax burden. As such, once these taxes were received by the government, artists were supported, at least in small part by the proceeds of these taxes. In such a way, it comes as little surprise that the portraits and etchings that they engaged invariably were concentric upon the subject matter of harvesting, planting, and the manual labor that is oftentimes evidenced in fields or on farms. As a result of the growth of wealth derived from a thriving merchant culture, a desire for amusement was born within Tokugawa society. One of the most prominent outgrowths of this desire for amusement is with regards to the theater that came to such a level of prominence during this period of Japanese history known as the Kabuki (Nenzy 12). Within this theater, lavish displays of passion, costumes, and intrigue were represented directly to a new class of people who had grown as a direct result of the policies and constraints that the shogun had encouraged by the development and evolution of this â€Å"new† society. Many have argued that no other aspect of culture represents the Tokugawa era better than the Edo woodblock images that were churned out in such volume during these times. These images would,

Their Eyes Were Watching God Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Their Eyes Were Watching God - Essay Example ingless and theme less, and further added, â€Å"Miss Hurston voluntarily continues in her role the tradition which was forced upon the negro in the theater, that is, the minstrel technique that makes the ‘white folks’ laugh† (cited in Lester, 3). It was regarded by many that Hurston had exploited the cause of her own people by not correctly portraying the picture of the injustice and sufferings meted out to the blacks by their white owners. It was only in the 1970’s after another African-American writer Alice Walker of ‘The Color Purple’ fame, took an interest in Hurston and championed her cause, did the literary world of that age sit up and take notice. After Walker published an essay in Ms. Magazine â€Å"In Search of Zora Neale Hurston,† it pushed Hurston’s works back into the limelight, and soon there were many prints and reprints of her writings. This article will review the book ‘Their Eyes Were Watching God’ b y Hurston and will present a critical analysis on it by discussing her writing style and her manner of representing the novel’s chief protagonist. It will also review other authors’ reviews and analysis on Hurston and her novel ‘Their Eyes Were Watching God’. Analysis of Zora Neale Hurston and her writing style: Zora Neale Hurston was born on 7th January 1891 in Notasulga, Alabama. Her father, John Hurston was a preacher and a carpenter, while her mother Lucy Hurston, was a schoolteacher. Soon, the family moved to Eatonville in Florida, a town famous for having the first black incorporated Municipality. Hurston completed her graduation from Harvard University and it is from here that she embarked on her writing career in 1921. Soon she moved to New York and became a prominent figure in the then famous ‘Harlem Renaissance’ writing group. Hurston was also an anthropologist, and in fact, her experiences in Eatonville and her researches into old folktales of the black population which influenced much of her writings.

Discussion Board Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 4

Discussion Board - Essay Example A political process precedes any unanimous decisions. It explains why certain decisions have to be taken. This creates mutual understanding among members of a social forum. Successful decisions are discussed and agreed upon before ratification and implementation. The experience taught that concessions must be made while engaging in open deliberations. In future, a family engagement political process can achieve much if the members of the forum are open minded. My vision for future participation in the political process shall be to maximize on what all the members of the forum share in common. The future plan shall demand a strong follow up on the decisions and discussions of successful subsequent family engagement. In the first five years, my vision would be to establish a credible and consistent family engagement and discussion forum. In the next five years, I would build upon the gains of the deliberations from the previous forum. Political processes can be emotive be without a clear sense of purpose, they fail miserably (Constantino, 2008). Therefore, the visions would gradually build on consistent gains. Some of the anticipated gains would be sharing of resources, taking time bound targets and supporting the needy members of the

Economy of New York Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Economy of New York - Essay Example The personal income per capita (how much the average worker earns per year) in 2005 was an average of $40,072. In 2007, the minimum wage rate in the New York state is $7.15, $2 more than the federal wage rate ($5.15). Within the US, New York state’s economy grew 3.3%, while the value for the US is 3.5%. Thus, this places the New York state in fifth position just after Maryland. New York is a very rich state with a growing economy: it would rank as the 16th largest economy in the world if it were to be considered as an independent nation. New Yorks most popular products are: 1) in agriculture, dairy products, livestock and vegetables; 2) in industry, printing and publishing, scientific instruments, electric equipment and machinery, chemical products; and 3) tourism. The largest export markets for the state’s products are Canada, the UK, Japan, Israel and Switzerland, which imported products for a value of 30.2, 3.3, 2.6, 2.4 and 1.8 billion dollars, respectively. In fact, Canada is a very important partner since it receives approximately 23% of the exports of the state1. Also, Canadian tourism is very beneficial economically for New York. Canadians are believed to spend $500 million every year during their visits to the state. New York’s most popular exports are: foodstuffs, commodities, diamonds and other minerals, manufactured goods and automobile parts. New Yorks largest imports are: oil, gold, aluminum, natural gas, electricity and lumber. Inflation, an index that compares prices with spending power, rose 3.1% at the end of February 2007with respect to the previous year. The Consumer Price Index, which is a measure of the price of a selection of items purchased by a typical consumer, increased 3.3% with respect to the same period (News–Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2007). Overall, this means that life in the state of New York is 3% more expensive in 2007 than in 2006. Similarly to the increases observed in house prices in

CONTEMPORARY ISSUES IN EDUCATION and TRAINING Essay

CONTEMPORARY ISSUES IN EDUCATION and TRAINING - Essay Example On the other hand, people from the supposed low class may not be able to get all the constructive things. Although, they may be interested to access all the constructive things particularly education, because of their economic and social drawbacks, they may not be able to do that. In those cases, the role of government and other governing bodies assumes so much importance. From earlier times, government has been coming up with various policies and steps, to give them a platform or backup to aid them in their endeavours. This is particularly visible in the educational sector. Education plays an important part in the intellectual and mental development of any individual. Education is an imperative part of human life as it directs person particularly young children towards his/her progress. Thus, lack of education could take the lives of people in the negative direction. Although, this is not a norm, as many people without education are shining in various fields, however, the fact is, e ducation provides them the platform to learn a lot of things, and importantly gives them the confidence to go for various optimum targets. To fulfil this motive only, government has been giving free or subsidized education to the needy target group. Although, this government policy and social initiative is aiding a lot of children and providing positive results, some scepticism has arisen due to the new studies, which show that social background determines pupils' success. That is, even if the economically and thereby socially disadvantaged people are given free education in the form of Free Schools and City Academies, it does not guarantee their success. This implies that the children’s social status is the reason for their lack of success, and the government should reconsider or even stop its free or subsidized education, as it does not lead to success. However, the fact is, various other factors plays a role in the academic success of the children, and their social status is not a major reason. So, this paper will discuss the above assumptions regarding the class differences, and will point out how there are many more factors that play a role in a child’s academic success, than the class differences. â€Å"Class in Classrooms† For a child to become educationally equipped various factors come into play and all these factors have to be fulfilled. Among these, the two key factors are the parents and the school, its teachers. As the child will spent maximum of their childhood years and time in their household and in their schools, these two factors or environments will only play a key role in their development and in their future. Among these two environments, it is always said and assumed that the school environment only play the major role as far as academic success is concerned. With the children spending more productive time in their schools only, than their homes, in their crucial formative years, it is logical to say that the schools and their teachers mainly play the influencing role in the academic success of the children. Although, the role of parents and home environment cannot be totally ignored, the schools are said to decide the pupil’s success. However, recent studies have stated that the children’s parents and their home environment, thereby their social background maximally influences the academic succ

Economy of New York Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Economy of New York - Essay Example The personal income per capita (how much the average worker earns per year) in 2005 was an average of $40,072. In 2007, the minimum wage rate in the New York state is $7.15, $2 more than the federal wage rate ($5.15). Within the US, New York state’s economy grew 3.3%, while the value for the US is 3.5%. Thus, this places the New York state in fifth position just after Maryland. New York is a very rich state with a growing economy: it would rank as the 16th largest economy in the world if it were to be considered as an independent nation. New Yorks most popular products are: 1) in agriculture, dairy products, livestock and vegetables; 2) in industry, printing and publishing, scientific instruments, electric equipment and machinery, chemical products; and 3) tourism. The largest export markets for the state’s products are Canada, the UK, Japan, Israel and Switzerland, which imported products for a value of 30.2, 3.3, 2.6, 2.4 and 1.8 billion dollars, respectively. In fact, Canada is a very important partner since it receives approximately 23% of the exports of the state1. Also, Canadian tourism is very beneficial economically for New York. Canadians are believed to spend $500 million every year during their visits to the state. New York’s most popular exports are: foodstuffs, commodities, diamonds and other minerals, manufactured goods and automobile parts. New Yorks largest imports are: oil, gold, aluminum, natural gas, electricity and lumber. Inflation, an index that compares prices with spending power, rose 3.1% at the end of February 2007with respect to the previous year. The Consumer Price Index, which is a measure of the price of a selection of items purchased by a typical consumer, increased 3.3% with respect to the same period (News–Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2007). Overall, this means that life in the state of New York is 3% more expensive in 2007 than in 2006. Similarly to the increases observed in house prices in

Habitat Conservation Plan Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Habitat Conservation Plan - Essay Example Habitat conservation plans work for the betterment of endangered species. These plans serve as a lifeline for the species which are extinct or are on the verge of extinction. Endangerment of species is a rising problem due to which many habitat conservation plans have surfaced in the past few years. These plans work in accordance with the scientific data available which the scientists bring to their full use. When the plans for conservation of habitat are made ground rules are set. These include assessing the status of a species which is endangered, predicting the project effects and outcomes, mitigating for those effected, and monitoring the final results (Harding, 2001).The plans that are made make full use of the scientific data available on the species of animals or plants that are at the risk of extinction. The basic rule that these plans follow are initiation of mitigation measures against the local threats that the species face. The main problem that these plans face is that t he number of endangered species is high but the budget the government puts aside for these conservation plans is less. The article brings reflects upon the fact that due to urbanization, industrialization and commercialization various species of animals and plants are on the verge of extinction. Their habitats are being exchanged for the use of humans. Due to these problems ecologists and scientists have accelerated their collaborations on making plans for the conservation of habitats.

Automobile and Swot Analysis Essay Example for Free

Automobile and Swot Analysis Essay 1. Introduction This report is based on the company Mercedes Benz, and the chosen country is Singapore. The purpose of the report is to conduct an environmental and marketing analysis of Mercedes Benz in Singapore. Firstly, this report will state the company background. Next, it will state the country background. Thirdly, it will state the SWOT analysis. Fourthly, it will state the PEST analysis. After that, it will state the marketing strategy, new product development, and lastly the conclusion. Company background Mercedes-Benz is a German car company, some sort of multinational department from the German company Daimler AG. The company is used intended for high-class motor vehicles, buses, motor coachs, as well as vehicles. The particular brand made an appearance in 1926 within Daimler-Benz yet history the sources to Daimler-Motoren-Gesellschafts 1901 Mercedes and to Karl Benzs 1886 Benz Patent Motorwagen, which is commonly viewed as the first car. Mercedes-Benzs slogan is Das Beste oder nichts (English: The best or nothing). Mercedes-Benz is just about the most commonly known as well as set up car makes in the world, which is on the list of the worlds oldest car company nevertheless around the world today in 2014,possessing the first petrol-powered vehicle. Country background Singapore is an affluent island nation, positioned in Southeast Asia within the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula. The occupants of Singapore delight in one of the maximum standards associated on earth, with each capita GDP adequate to in which from the top international locations within American The european union. The particular economy would depend intensely upon exports, and the nation houses one of the busiest ports on earth. 2. SWOT analysis SWOT analysis is part of strategic planning. The SWOT analysis helps organizations assess issues within and outside the organization. The SWOT analysis, made up of an assessment of strengths, weaknesses, external opportunities and threats from competition, provides an outline for strategic decision-making Table 1 From the table above it is seen that strong brand value measures that Mercedes is considered as a premium brand, such as BMW, Porsche, Audi and etc. There is no exception that Mercedes will stay in premium segment for a very long time. Almost all the rich and old people prefer this particular car brand. Also, this company has an advantage over their competitors as increasing production hybrid cars because of environmental friendly and Ð µÃ'€Ã'Æ' exact number of miles driven. To produce high quality cars and hire well – educated employees makes production expensive. That is why Mercedes is interested in upper class people who are able to buy such a car. It makes the brand attractive investment for people with high income (upper class). PEST analysis Originally known as PEST Analysis, this is a macro environmental framework used to understand the impact of the external factors on the organization and is used as strategic analytical technique. Strengths Weakness Opportunities Threats Strong brand value High price cost Fast – growing company Government policy Leader in innovation Expensive service New products and services Increasing in competition High level safety of cars High fuel consumption Developing hybrid cars Decrease in demand Investment. Stereotype that this car is for the rich people Fuel price rises Rising price of raw material High quality It is hard to find manual transmission in such a car Positive attitude towards â€Å"green† vehicles Unexpected problems A PEST analysis is looks at how those external factors can affect a businesss activities and performance, and it can be used in combination with other tools. It helps to determine an organizations overall outlook for success. Political Economic Socio – Cultural Technological Bureaucratic Interest rates Fast – growing society Modern technology Stable government law system High income level Diversity of cultures WI-FI zones Taxation system. High power of the local currency Variety of language cultures Automation of work Law level of corruption Low level of economic freedom (-2) Most of the people are in advanced age Production of high quality medical equipment Foreigners investment Trade freedom Prevalence of upper class Investment in technology Table 2 From the table above let us take 3 characteristics for discussion. Firstly, high income of Singapore measures that Mercedes – Benz is one of the most suitable brands for upper class. It is considered, that Mercedes – Benz is a car which is suitable for old population, especially for men. Therefore, this car brand has a priority to take Singapore as a sales leader in the adult audience because of the prevalence of old population. Diversity of cultures of the populations shows that every single nation has different understanding of car design. That is why this brand can offers cars such as â€Å"family car† like Sedan (C – class) to â€Å"celebrity car† as Crossovers (G – class) with the newest and technology to their customers. 1) Franki Colbert (n. d). Definition of a SWOT Analysis. Retrieved from: http://smallbusiness. chron. com/definition-swot-analysis-43274. html 2) Russ Heaps (n. d) 10 most expensive cars to own and drive. Retrieved from: http://www. bankrate. com/finance/auto/10-most-expensive-cars-to- own-and-drive-1. aspx 3) Chad Brooks (2013, November 22). PEST Analysis: Definition, Examples Templates. Retrieved from http://www. businessnewsdaily. com/5512-pest-analysis-definition- examples-templates. html 4) Abha Pandey (2011, 26 September). What is PESTLE Analysis? Retrieved from: http://bpmgeek. com/blog/what-pestle-analysis 5) Leading through innovation (n. d/ n. a) http://www. mbusa. com/mercedes/benz/innovation.

The Functions Of Organizational Culture Commerce Essay

The Functions Of Organizational Culture Commerce Essay Culture is the soul to an enterprise, it is the essence of a successful business. So far, as the organizational culture develops, everyone has been universally recognized that its way of thinking and behaving shared by all members of the organization. Successful experience tells us, organizational culture is immortal pillars for the development of the organization, cultural development also has the potential force of cohesion, it brought not only a spirit to employees, but also inspire them a sense of pride and responsibility, cultivating the team work spirit of the organization, thus, to improve the overall effectiveness of the enterprise.(Pumpin, 1987) What is organizational culture Organizational culture is the sum of reflects that gradually formed in the production and management practices, agreed and complied with all staff, with the characteristics of the Organizations mission, vision, purpose, spirit, values and business philosophy, and the ideas in the production and management practices, management system, the behavior of employees with the external image. (Pumpin, 1987) In essence, organizational culture is a cultural phenomenon among the enterprises, its appearance is inseparable from the development of the theory and practice of modern enterprise, from the management perspective, organizational culture are the application management tools to achieve management objectives, therefore, organizational culture are not only a cultural phenomenon, but also has a connotation as a management tool. First, the organizational culture is led by a sense of enterprise management, the cultural patterns of pursuit and realization in a certain corporate purposes, from a certain sense, the organizational culture is a culture of enterprise management. Second, the organizational culture is a culture that have a common goal, group consciousness, and the suitable organizations and institutions. Third, the organizational culture is an economic culture. It is gradually formed in the operation of the production process and management activities by the enterprises and enterprise employees, leaving the economic activities of enterprises, it is impossible to have a organizational culture formation, not to mention a good one.(Miles and Snow, 1978) 2. The functions of organizational culture 2.1 The guiding function. Organizational culture can play a guiding role of value orientation and behavior orientation in enterprises and each member of them. This orientation is different from a traditional management which simply focus on the rigid discipline or system, it emphasizes to guide the behavior of members of the enterprise from the shaping organizational culture, to make people accept the common values in a cultural imperceptibly.(Barney, 1986) 2.2 The incentive function. Positive ideas and code of conduct can form a strong sense of mission and a sustained driving force. Positive organizational culture is a ruler of self-motivation to the employees, the ruler that they can contrast their own behavior, identify gaps, can generate the driving force for improving. In the same time, enterprises with shared values, beliefs and codes of conduct which can be a powerful spiritual pillar, can make a person generate a sense of identity, a sense of belonging and a sense of security, until play the role of mutual encouragement.(Deal and Kennedy, 1982) 2.3 The cohesion function The collective strength depends on the cohesion of the organization, the coordination of the organizations internal condition and ability to control. The cohesion of the organization, coordination and control can be generated by rigid connections like the system of discipline, but not as good as more effective by internal binder like shared values, beliefs, and codes of conduct.(Schwartz, and Davis, 1981) 2.4 The constraint function Excellent organizational culture have the binding effect on the thinking and behavior of each employee. After a long period of construction of organizational culture, formed written or convention rules and regulations, ethics and codes of conduct to regulate the behavior of employees, by this measure, it achieve the controling of thinking and behave of workers.(Cooke, 1987) Take the McDonald for example, McDonalds Quality, Service, Cleanliness, Value, it formed from the top to bottom of a company-wide to a high-spirited, energetic and promising enterprises mental outlook, the concept of health inspire and guide workers keep making progress. McDonald focus on meticulous management, cultivate awareness of staff to establish the details determine success or failure , to improve management efficiency through good detail, to build a strong team through good detail, use good details to regulate employee behavior, good restraints of organizational culture in the system can be fully demonstrated. McDonald also enhance their employees sense of belonging through methods such as uniform dress; strengthen employees collaborate awareness; care for each other, help each other; actively promote flexible management to encourages employees to breakthrough program of the work to form a flexible internal strengthen collaboration between employees. scientific management be ing taken to improve the sense of community of employees. The functions of organizational culture impact on management 3.1 The organizational culture is the basis of the Strategic Management, Strategic management is to determine its mission, according to the external environment and internal conditions to set the strategic objectives of the enterprise, in order to ensure the correct implementation of the goals and progress plan, and rely on internal capabilities implemented this kind of planning and decision-making, constraints in the implementation process of a dynamic management process. The organizational culture is the value orientation of the enterprise for a variety of internal and external affairs and resources, enterprises in the long-term organizational values, under the guidance of shared values, guiding principles and select corporate behavior. Excellent organizational culture is an important condition for business strategy development and success. It can highlight the characteristics of enterprises, the formation of the common values of the members of the enterprise, also because of its d istinctive personality, more conducive to enterprise to develop a distinctive strategy of defeating the enemy. Strategy formulation process of collective behavior, establish above the values and beliefs of the organization members.(Hampden-Turner, 1990) Based on the wishes of the members of organization, the guidance from particular culture, to develop corporate strategy around the organizational culture. Therefore, the organizational culture is the basis of corporate strategic planning, development and implementation. 3.2 The relevance of the organizational culture and strategic management In order to maintain the organizational culture and strategic management of mutual synergy, the need for a comprehensive understanding of the positive and negative effect on the strategic management of cultural enterprises to analysis out how to change the organizational strategy culture. (Islam and Zyphur, 2009) 3.2.1 The positive role of the organizational culture on strategic management 3.2.1.1Corporate mission and values are important factors for an enterprise culture, so that employees can identify with the organizations business philosophy and creed. The formulation of corporate strategy is bound to affected by a mission. The corporate mission defines the scope and level of the enterprises operating in the field of socio-economic activities, represents the corporate identity and role in the socio-economic activities. The core corporate values of the organizational culture guide the enterprises own strategy development to built on the basis of the values required of following the market and the enterprises own progress. When employees were able to agree with the companys values, you would think that the efforts they made for the enterprise role, valuable sense of collective identity value will give employees greater satisfaction, and this sense of satisfaction in turn will more promote the dedication of the staff of the enterprise.(Halpin Croft, 1963) 3.2.1.2 Culture played a stable role of organization in corporate strategy design, implementation. It guides and shapes the attitude and behavior of employees, make the employees to accept corporate norms and canonical role of restraint mechanisms, and the guidance play the role of restraint mechanisms to encourage their employees to achieve the behavior that enterprises expect. In the perspective of time corporate strategic constraints can be divided into prior constraints, afterwards constraints and any time constraints. Prior constraints requires to design a good valid strategic plan before the implementation of the it, however, it must be designed harmony with the organizational culture, if there is the deviation between the two, the organizational culture will play its regulatory role for the prior constraints goes smoothly. Organizational culture play its strategic constraintsis more significantly embodied in the adjustment of afterwards constraints. It is based on the spirit o f enterprise, to fully exploit the employees of self-restraint and self-regulation, use of a humane way to adjust, thus it can greatly reducing friction and communication costs of personnel in the process of implementation of the strategy, in order to promote the implementation of the strategy within the enterprise. 3.2.1.3 Organizational culture as a driving force of the strategy and continuously improve business performance, profitability and productivity, it become a powerful internal driving force. Culture enables members to understand the historical tradition and the present approach to business, provided to the staff a reasonable explanation for the events of the past of the enterprise, thus to facilitate the employees to understand their proper representation in the future in the similar incidents. This kind of non-institutional factors will enable more humane management to constrain the opportunistic behavior of managers and employees, thus promoting the effective implementation of the corporate strategy.(Hofstede, 1991) 3.2.2 The negative role of the organizational culture on strategic management 3.2.2.1 Due to cultural difference between the various levels of the organization, when the overall strategy reached out the various departments, they have varying degrees of conflict and contradiction, the contradiction of this conflict will reduce the degree of integration of the entire department and hinder the corporate strategy implementation. However, due to the enterprise implement this kind of division of work, it will lead to a split and the formation of the sub-culture of organizational culture. Strategic management of the enterprise is to unify to form a unified concept of progress of the internal culture, it needs to coordinate the various departments grading, but this requires enterprises to pay the considerable cost, but also need to do ideological adjustment for the department have a propensity of conflict.(Kotter, 1992) 3.2.2.2 The existing organizational culture has been difficult to adapt to the progress of modern society and the enterprise. In order to adapt better to the external environment, to implement the new strategy, many enterprises began to change the organizational culture that are existing. The original culture has been deeply rooted within the enterprise, with the sudden shift, there will be great progress resistance.(Kotter, 1992) 3.2.2.3 People employed in the enterprise have the different cultural background, there is a significant difference between them. The companies believe that this can boost the organization to achieve enterprise multifaceted progress. Employees bear a strong organizational culture will naturally accept this culture, behavior consistent with its own characteristics will not be reflected in order to lead to the formation of a single environmental systems, lack of constructive sounds and opinion, the employees will not spend more time to update and improve the internal management of the enterprise, no innovative force at all.(RSA 1995) Take Apple Inc. as the example, first, the business guiding ideology inadaptability lead to strategic mistakes. Apple does not like to hear someone accusations that he is wrong, and hope that regardless of their own employees, or the hot suitors of the outside world can stand together with his firmly. With the culture of to go it alone will inevitably lead to the companys operating guiding ideology to a product-oriented, which leads the direction of the company and the market demand is difficult to coordinate. Secondly, Lack of coordination within the organization, and inconsistent. Leadership is one thing to develop workflow and truthfully feedback process of the team is another matter entirely. Former Apple designer Andrew Poirot Minkowski, (Andrew Borovsky) said: from the design, each of the underlying designers is extremely difficult to get direct feedback from the executives. Typically, if you are not receiving a positive reply, then it is told you to stop doing stupid things. Third, over-reliance on individual heroes, serious personality cult. Apple has a unique program, that is to cultivate a person whether he is competent, supervisor, or a common staff on behalf of Steve Jobs eligibility. Steve Jobs is a dictator of the company, all of the key decision-making as well as a lot of seemingly inconsequential decisions are made by him. These decisions include how to design the route of shuttle for employees in San Francisco city, what kind of food served in cafeteria. However, as Jobs can insight into the companys all move, he has not see if he is not sitting in the CEOchair, the situation will be very different. 3.3 Changes of organizational culture in the strategic management Re-examine and make appropriate modifications and adjustment to the original values of the organization. Because strategic change and implementation will eventually be implemented into every employees action, so to promote the people of organization to have the idea of change, innovation to the current values, in order to match the new framework for the implementation of the strategy is the value basis whether strategy can be implemented. Second, the culture of innovation concept, allow employees to take the initiative to participate in the innovation. And discuss with the staff of the strategic implementation plan, establish them a clear understanding of the external and internal environment changes, inform the role of that can be brought with the concept of change to the employees, and strengthen the implementation of the identity of the employees on the strategic management. Lastly, establish feedback and timely adjustment mechanism in the organization to allowed full communicatio n of the cultural contradictions.(Schein, 1985) If there is no fast and efficient information system to accept and feedback, no effective coordination and monitoring system for the overall situation, then the implementation of strategic management of the enterprise is bound have actual deviation because of lack of timely and correct information feedback, making the entire implementation process cannot be constrained effectively, then, affect the final implementation, failed to achieve the established strategic objectives. Correctly understand and grasp the the complementary dialectical contact between corporate strategy and organizational culture can help to improve the overall quality and competitiveness of enterprises, promote enterprise taking quality, rapidly, sustained and healthy progress. Conclusion The role of the organizational culture in the corporate management is to manage strictly, focusing on the incentive to cultivate employees sense of responsibility and solidarity, like the physical form of the product, as it is perceivable, organizational culture cohesive people internally, improve operations externally, also strengthen the management, make the vitality of enterprises to develop and create a strong competitive. Ancient and modern history shows that the closed culture inevitably lead to stagnation and degradation of the society, open culture will inevitably lead to the prosperity of society and evolution, it is the same for companies, so to strengthen the integration of the organizational culture is the right choice for corporate survival and sustainable development. In the management applications of the organizational culture, people-oriented is most able to attract talent, now, many businesses and entrepreneurs advertised himself as a people-oriented. However, in the enterprise management system, the leadership style of the business owners in the allocation of the enterprise, the basic living and working conditions of the workers, and so on are not the slightest reflects of the attitude of true respect to talents, to employees, then people-oriented is illusory. In the market economy, if the businesses want to be invincible, business leaders must fully understand and know the advantages and shortcomings of the enterprise. To prevent and overcome their own shortcomings in order to cope in a market economy. Operations are art , management are science, and the system is the guarantee, talent is fundamental. Grasp a good business operation, management, system, talent, then the company could hopely have a healthy development, also could truly establish their own organizational culture.

computers in education :: essays research papers

It is now about fifteen years since microcomputers and therefore educational computing began to appear in schools. Since that time there has been much excitement with regard to the role that these machines would have on education in our schools. During that fifteen years, we have seen many examples of uses of computers in school. Teachers experimented with this technology in their teaching. These teachers spent many hours of their own time coming to grips with this technology and setting up activities. As time has progessed, so has the emphasis placed on educational computing. These changes of emphasis are the result of many changes in computers like, increased power and capabilities of hardware and software, increased availability of the technology in schools, advances in other technologies such as communications technologies. The introduction of computers into schools has not significantly changed the way teachers teach. Some possible reasons for this would include: High school students using computers as part of their studies began in the early - mid 1970's. In most cases this took the form of students and teachers accessing remotely and centrally located mainframe computers indirectly (through specially marked cards sent in via post). The students took elementary computer programming exercises in a language like Fortran to run on the machine.. Generally there was no direct access to a computer in their school. The role of the traditional teacher in these circumstances was hardly affected. At the same time teachers in at least one state could request printouts of randomly generated sets of arithmetic problems, together with answers. These were then duplicated for the class to work through. Other types of activities like mazes and spelling games such as jumbled words and wordmazes were also available. Teachers from both primary and secondary schools availed themselves of this service. The role of the teacher continued to be one of selecting the resources required for use within their teaching just as it would have been had computers not been around. Towards the end of the 1970's, microcomputers began to appear on the market. Machines like the Apple II, Tandy TRS-80 and Commodore PET and BBC Model B began to gain popularity. Education Department had purchased some computers which were loaned to schools for short periods of time. The beginning of the 1980's saw the first awakenings that computers may well have a place within schools themselves. Suddenly there was available a relatively low cost, small, yet powerful computer which did not need the progamming skills of the computers of earlier.

Relationships in Good Country People, by Flannery OConnor Essay

   Flannery O'Connor's "Good Country People" is a story told through the examination of the relationships between the four main characters. All of the characters have distinct feelings about the others, from misunderstanding to contempt. Both Joy-Hulga, the protagonist, and Manley Pointer, the antagonist, are multi-faceted characters. While all of the characters have different levels of complexity, Joy-Hulga and Manley Pointer are the deepest and the ones with the most obvious facades. The first character we encounter is Mrs. Freeman. She is the wife of Mrs. Hopewell's tenant farmer. She is a very outspoken woman, and "she [can] never be brought to admit herself wrong on any point" (O'Connor 180). Mrs. Freeman is a gossip; she is nosy and she "ha[s] a special fondness for the details of secret infections, hidden deformities, assaults upon children" (O'Connor 183). Mrs. Freeman wants to be an authority on everyone else's personal business. She is never shy of sharing the details of her daughters' lives with Mrs. Hopewell. I get the impression that she tells anyone that she meets the intimate details of the lives of Glynese, Carramae, Mrs. Hopewell, and Joy-Hulga. Being a poor tenant farmer's wife, her only weapon is her speech (Enjoiras 36). In order to compete with Mrs. Hopewell, she must be constantly on the look-out for ways to subtly one-up her in the course of their conversations. Asals describes their conversations as "hackneyed one-upmanship" (99). For example, the way they speak to each other one rnorning goes like this: "Everybody is different," Mrs. Hopewell said. "Yes, most people is," Mrs. Freeman said. "It takes all kinds to make the world." "I always said it did myself.... ...f the story proves it. The facades they put on are as essential to "Good Country People" as the mindless conversations between Mrs. Freeman and Mrs. Hopewell. The relationships between these four characters are what make "Good Country People" such a literary success.       Works Cited Asals, Frederick. Flannery O'Connor : The Imagination of Extremity. University of Georgia Press; Reissue edition. Athens, Georgia, 2007. Enjolras, Laurence. Flannery O'Connor's Characters. New York: University Press of America, Inc., 1998. Feeley, Kathleen, S.S.N.D. Flannery O'Connor: Voice of the Peacock. New York: Fordham University Press; 2 edition, 2010. O'Connor, Flannery. The Complete Stories. Thirty-seventh printing. New York: Noonday Press, 1994. Whitt, Margaret Earley. Understanding Flannery O'Connor. University of South Carolina Press, 1997.

Part of Your World Essay

The song Part of Your World is from the movie The Little Mermaid and is sung by the main character, Ariel. This song embodies the ultimate goal of Ariel throughout the whole movie, which is to be a part of the world above the sea, land. As the song states, Ariel wishes to be â€Å"where the people are†. The title of this song comes straight from the lyrics themselves, in the chorus. In the song Ariel is singing to her friend, Flounder. She is trying to convey to him why she thinks the world on land is better than under the sea. She says â€Å"Flippin’ your fins, you don’t get too far, Legs are required for jumping, dancing,† this shows us some of what she would be able to do if she had legs instead of fins. She desires to be a human, not a mermaid. Another idea is that this song has a deeper meaning other than being a part of this world above the sea. As much as she is trying to convince Flounder of the beauties of the land, the metaphor of the song is showing us that to follow your dreams can be exciting. There are many other things to experience other than what is right in front of us. In this song there are many end rhymes; one specific example is this line â€Å"Isn’t it neat? Wouldn’t you think my collections complete? † Neat and complete is an example of rhyming. Rhyming happens when there is a repetition of the concluding sounds. Neat and complete both sound like eat. End rhymes occur when the rhyming syllable is at the end of the line in the poem. This is a perfect example of end rhyme. Another poetic sound device in Part of Your World is repetition, which is found throughout this song. For example â€Å"Up where they walk, up where they run, Up where they stay all day in the sun,† the term â€Å"up where they† is repeated several times. Repetition is also found in this line â€Å"I wanna be where the people are, I wanna see, wanna see them dancin’,† I wanna is used throughout creating a beautiful poetic sound. This song makes great use of alliteration. Alliterations happen when a beginning consonant is repeated like in this example â€Å"Flippin’ your fins, you don’t get too far. The repetitive use of the letter f creates a fun and exciting poetic sound device. Rhyming, specifically end rhyming, repetitions, and alliterations are three important poetic devices that are found in this song. These help the song flow along smoothly and make the song more interesting for the listener. Previously I mentioned the use of a metaphor. Metaphor is an example of a figure of speech or figurative device. Another example of this is a hyp erbole. Hyperbole is used in this song to better emphasize just how much Ariel would like to be a part of this new world she describes. â€Å"Bet’cha on land they understand, Bet they don’t reprimand their daughters† is a hyperbole; hyperbole is an over-exaggeration used to better emphasize a point. Metaphor and hyperbole are two figurative devices used in this song. Alan Menken and Howard Ashman, the writers of Part of Your World, use these various poetic and figurative devices beautifully in order to give you a better idea of Ariel’s desires and life goals. Jodi Benson does a beautiful job, as well, of conveying Ariel’s longing to visit this land above. One might believe the goal of this song truly is to allow the listener to look more broadly at his or her own life and decide if all needs are met. The figurative language in this song, hyperbole and metaphor, greater emphasize her goals and the poetic devices used make the song more enticing to the ear. This song gives the listener a hope for a greater future.

Introduction to Ergonomics

Dafpus skripsi Bridger, R. S. 1995. Introduction to Ergonomics. International Editions. Singapore : McGraw- Hill Book Co. European Agency for Safety and Health at Work. 2010. Work-related Musculoskeletal Disorders in the EU-Facts and Figures. http://osha. europa. eu/en/publications/reports/TERO09009ENC (diakses pada tanggal 17 September 2012) Health and Safety Executive Authority. 2004. Getting to Grips with Manual Handling. UK : sss http://www. hse. gov. uk/pubns/indg143. df (diakses pada tanggal 17 September 2012) Health and Safety Authority. 2005. Guidance on the Management of Manual Handling in the Workplace.http://www.hsaeng/Publications_and_Forms/Publications/Retail/Management_Manual_Handling. pdf (diakses pada tanggal 17 September 2012) Kurniawidjaja, L. Meily. 2010. Teori dan Aplikasi Kesehatan Kerja. Jakarta: Penerbit Universitas Indonesia (UI-Press). Nurmianto, Eko. 2004. Ergonomi: Konsep Dasar dan Aplikasinya, 2nd. Ed. Surabaya: Penerbit Guna Widya. Tarwaka, dkk. 2004. Erg onomi untuk Kesehatan, Keselamatan, & Produktivitas. Edisi I, Cetakan I. Surakarta: UNIBA Press. Santoso, Gempur, Dr. , Drs. , M. Kes. 2004. Ergonomi: Manusia, Peralatan, dan Lingkungan. Jakarta: Prestasi Pustaka Publisher. Sastrowinoto, Suyatno, Ir. 1985. Meningkatkan Produktivitas dengan Ergonomi. Jakarta: PT Pustaka Binaman Pressindo. Suma’mur, P. K. , Rd. , MSc. 1989. Ergonomi untuk Produktivitas Kerja. Jakarta: CV. Haji Masagung.Workplace Health, Safety and Compensation Commission of New Brunswick. 2010. Ergonomics Guidelines for Manual Handling, 2nd. Ed. , Australia : Worksafe NB, http://www. worksafenb. ca/docs/MANUALEdist. pdf (diakses pada tanggal 03 Agustus 2012) WorkCover New South Wales Authority. 2012. Manual Handling Black Spots: Manufacturing. Industry Reference Group, http://www. workcover. nsw. gov. au/formspublications/pages/manualhandlingmanufacturing. aspx (diakses pada tanggal 06 November 2012)

Pop Art and modern popular culture Research Paper

Pop Art and modern popular culture - Research Paper Example The new pop art broke taboos which were experienced in the traditional western culture. It is no wonder pop art criticized the traditional art. In that case, the young people were the ones mostly involved with pop art as a new identity, different from the relatively old people. Pop art became popular with the young musicians who had the artistic of the time create covers for their music (Osterwold 8). Robert Rauschenberg's is quoted stating he had never seen a beautiful art as the Marcel Duchamp’s urinal art which the painter named the retina art. The idea was to capture the attention of the people in the Armory Show in New York in 1917. The art captured the attention of many including Robert Rauschenberg who vowed to continue with pop art. Rauschenberg worked very hard with pop art especially in the 1950s contributing to its popularity. Other artists credited for pop art in the 1950s are Andy Warhol, and Jim Dine. These artists used different styles some using modern styles o f the time and others using traditional art styles especially Rauschenberg and Dine who incorporated prints and collage into their styles. Robert Rauschenberg, Andy Warhol and Jim Dine focused a lot on the pop art in the early 1950s and turned the tables round this time. Many people appreciated the pop art as stated above. The number of pop art artifacts grew from just 10,000 to more than 4 million in a span of one decade. These artists worked in the neo-dada times and seemed to know just how to make pop art work. A few years later, other pop artists who focused on modern methods for example camera photographs came up and are known as photorealist. The main objective of this art is to capture realist imagery using art. These artists used two different photographs one with limited depth of field and another with good field depth and combined them to make one painting (Desmond 13). Characteristics of Pop Art Art was not appreciated by the society and many artists were concerned that t he comments that art was ending could hold grounds soon or later. However, Pop art which became popular in the 1950s and the 1960s changed all that (Osterwold 6). Many people appreciated art and its influence became more than it would have been thought (Osterwold 6). Pop art is different from other art in that it is realist but based on the photographs which are used

Deregulation of Electricity Markets Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Deregulation of Electricity Markets - Essay Example The regional markets for electricity generation and distribution typically resemble monopolistic markets with few suppliers. However, they have been under the variety of controls imposed by the concerned state in which they operated. These controls had more of social objectives than the commercial objectives. Such social objectives included ensuring uninterrupted power supply at the affordable price for the general consumer. Take for instance the case of California. In the state of California he three monopolistic power suppliers was regulated by the State commission.Kunnapallil(Centre) describes this scenario as follows, â€Å"California’s electricity industry was vertically integrated and organized around three regulated private monopolies or investor-owned Utilities (IOUs): Pacific Gas & Electric Company (PG&E), Southern California Edison Company (SCE), and San Diego Gas & Electric Company (SDG&E).These companies owned and operated everything from generation, transmission, and distribution and catered to the electricity needs of consumers in their exclusive franchise areas. California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC), an independent state regulatory agency, heavily regulated the prices, costs, and service obligations of these. These three companies together supplied three-fourths of the total consumption†. In the early 1990s, Californian polity came to the realization that its electricity markets were so heavily regulated that the productions process had become inefficient and the producers were passing on merrily the high cost of production to the customers.California cost of electricity was one of the highest in the US at the time. As Beder (2001) states, â€Å"Before deregulation the Californian government set electricity rates and guaranteed the private utilities a set return on their investment. But it was argued that this provided no incentive for the utilities to cut costs. Prices were high compared to some other states, mainly because of cost overruns of billions of dollars on two nuclear power plants.  Ã‚  

Suggested Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Suggested - Essay Example An educator needs to figure out which category best fits needs of every student. The educator should not try to fit all adult learners into one group as each student has different goals in his mind. Understanding life circumstance of an adult learner may also help educators to anticipate their needs. A student typically returns to school for a better professional image and increased career opportunities. Educators need to be aware of trends while assessing how to address need of each student. Some of these needs are: students who work in occupations generally labeled nonprofessional, professionals who want to change career fields, displaced professionals, workers who are concerned about being displaced and professionals who need a degree to make the next vertical step within their organizations. As listed above, there are many reasons why an adult student feels the need to continue with hiseducation. Educators need to educate themselves so they can better help each student to choose the best career path for what they desire to accomplish. However, understanding the circumstances surrounding return of an adult to school is imperative when providing quality suggestions as how to accomplish each goals of each student. Some students will not have the desire or time for a typical four year college program, so will be looking for shorter programs that offer quicker access to better paying jobs. Short term programs that provide rewarding work and better pay hold a strong appeal to most time-strapped adults. Educators and students need to be aware that students who have been in the workforce for a significant amount of time will have earned substantial school credits from work-time experience. This will help encourage adults to continue with their education. This article also state s â€Å"students with a high number of undergraduate credits can often complete a General Studies

Al Nakheel Blue Community Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Al Nakheel Blue Community - Essay Example The Blue Community intends to create awareness for the need to develop the coastal waterfront involving in the process along with Nakheel's own experience and expertise, NGOs, think tanks and stakeholders encouraging them to be active instruments of their Blue Community initiatives. The question may arise as to why Nakheel is aiming to promote the Blue Community. According to Sultan Ahmed bin Sulayem, Executive Chairman of the company, "Almost two thirds of the world's population lives in coastal communities and a large amount of development is taking place in these locations" (UAE Press Release, January 20, 2008). The company intends to invest significantly to bring about changes in these environments through research and development with the vision of becoming leaders in sustainable development of coastal communities through its Blue Community initiatives. Formed in 2001, Nakheel can be considered pioneer and frontrunner in the domain of construction of innovative and iconic buildings and landmarks. As regards waterfront development, with the launch of the Blue Community, they have become setters of standards and rules in this field for the others to emulate. The Blue Community launch event held on a dome specially constructed for the purpose on the beachfront by the Palm Jumeirah was attended by prominent figures from government, industry and media. It went with the first ever Tourism Development Project & Investment Market (TDIM) event of Dubai held between January 20-22, 2008. The stand that Nakheel put up for the event, the largest in the company's history, featured two massive domes for displaying all the waterfront development projects undertaken by the company. This included a model of Dubai Promenade allowing the visitors a look at this waterfront community. Dubai Promenade created "a virtual peninsula along the emirate's shor eline, anchored by a spectacular wheel-shaped five-star hotel" (www.nakheel.com). At the TDIM exhibition, a 13-meter long scale model was unveiled by Nakheel demonstrating the company's vision of Dubai's growth through development of waterfront with projects under Blue Community. Before we venture further into the "Blue Project", let us look at the characteristics of the construction industry in the UAE. With the transformation from a buyers' market to a sellers' market, over the last decade there has been a boom in the UAE construction industry. This construction boom is most visible at Dubai and Abu Dhabi. Going by per capita expenditure on construction, UAE is the world leader with presence of close to 6000 construction companies. The total value of the UAE construction industry for 2008 has been assessed at USD15.26 bi as per a Business Monitor International Report which is projected to go up to USD22.44bi by 2012. 3 There are various reasons behind this tremendous growth. Not much entry barrier is there to hinder the UAE construction industry. Rather there exist major driving forces in Dubai like a stable political climate, tax-free status and on the whole a liberal business environment to facilitate expansion of the industry. Further impetus to construction indu

Thomas Jefferson and Franklin Delano Roosevelt Research Paper

Thomas Jefferson and Franklin Delano Roosevelt - Research Paper Example Legislative issues are part of the study or practice of the dissemination of force and assets of a given group and additionally the interrelationship(s) between groups. A political framework is Thomas Jefferson was the third president of United States from 1801 to 1809. One of his great accomplishments was laying the foundation of the University of Virginia (Takagi & Gordon-Reed, 1999). He was the principle author of Declaration of Independence. He was a statesman, planter, and lawyer professionally. The father of this well-known president was a planter, and his mother belongs to a Virginia’s most distinguish ancestors. As public official, historian, theorist, and farm owner, he served his state for more than fifteen years. His death was reported on July 4, 1826 (Takagi & Gordon-Reed, 1999). Franklin Delano Roosevelt was the 32nd United States president (January 30, 1882 – April 12, 1945) (Freedman, 1990). He was a well-known democratic political leader and famous statesman. He belonged to one of the oldest and distinguished families of New York. His parents were cousins, and both belong to a wealthy family. As a president, he served his state for twelve years and was the only president to be elected four times. His death was reported at the age of 63 (Freedman, 1990). Jefferson started his academic career as an instructor at Tuckahoe along with the Randolph children (Cogliano, 2008). In his early life, he began to study Latin, Greek, and French; he became skilled to ride horses, and he was also attracted towards nature

Platos The Allegory of the Cave Essay Example for Free

Platos The Allegory of the Cave Essay Even in this abridged version, Platos fable The Allegory of the Cave reflects the vast wisdom of Plato, his teacher and the philosophers of his time. The storys meaning and lessons are as significant today as they were then, and its inclusion in The Republic is well earned. The intentions of Plato in sharing this story seem to be fairly simple. As with all of the works that he included in The Republic, he is attempting to convey a message that relates to government and leadership. I also believe that this story conveys a message to, not just leaders, but people in general. The message that is expressed by this work is that, A lie told often enough becomes the truth.(-Lenin), and when someone is convinced of this lie, the liar can control them. This fable also tells us how, what some people believe to be true may be in fact the exact opposite to truth, and that people must always be open minded, just in case their beliefs are wrong. In the story, the prisoners are convinced that the shadows they see are alive, real and able to speak to them. In fact, however, they are being lied to by puppeteers. Because they have seen this lie so many times, and because it is all that they have seen, for them, it has become the truth. As such, the puppeteers are able to control their lives, by speaking to these prisoners as the shadows. This lesson becomes quite relevant to todays society. It is portrayed in works such as The Matrix and Animal Farm, where the characters are lied to, but because they hear the lie so often, they perceive it as truth. In reality, we find this message to also be evident in the forms of such things as propaganda, in which a message is repeated by so many times, that each person hears a relay from numerous sources. Eventually, because of the numerous sources and repetition of the message, it seems to them to become normal to hear and hence believable. This of course relates to our leaders and government. If such administrations were to use methods like propaganda to convince the public that, for example, the stock market was free trade when in fact it was government controlled, then the government would be able to effectively control the flow of money, and hence peoples lives, without anyone being the wiser. In the end, the ultimate message is that people are able to use lies to exploit others and so we must all be wary. This then relates to the second message conveyed by the work. The piece tells us that the prisoners have extreme difficulty in accepting the reality that the shadows they had seen werent real and how these prisoners would rather return to the shadows over staying in the light. At the end of the story, when a prisoner who has seen the truth returns to tell others, it is implied and can be seen from the reactions of the freed prisoners, that those who still believe in the shadows would prefer to keep doing so. These parts of the story bring to mind two intertwined messages. The first is that, in general, all people have their own views and beliefs on life, and they are happier living under whatever delusions they have convinced themselves of, rather than considering contradictory beliefs. Essentially, for most people ignorance is bliss. Just like the prisoners who are freed from the cave and forced to see the real world, people fear the knowledge of something that might interfere or contradict the beliefs they rely upon. For the most part, they would much rather go on not knowing, and turn from the light and long to return to the shadows. The second seems to be a warning to do the exact opposite of what has been stated above. The fact that the characters in the story, whose views are wrong, are prisoners is very symbolic. Not only are these people prisoners of the puppeteers, they are also prisoners of their own beliefs. Because they do not want to find out about what is real, they are condemned to believe in what is not. The piece warns us that we must not blindly follow our own beliefs, without continually viewing and considering other views that may be true as well. If we do not always consider the ideas of others, we will essentially be trapped by our own adamant conviction in what we think is real. This lesson has become evident in countless cases throughout history, where beliefs about a geocentric universe, a flat earth, etc. were all held to e true and the introduction of the ideas we hold as true today was ridiculed and deemed ludicrous. Today, we believe that the galaxy is heliocentric and that the world is round, but we must always, at some point, question that which believe in. Through this simple story, we are able to see a seldom-realized aspect of human nature, in that many of us blindly follow what we are told, and consequently believe. We can relate deeply to the fable, because, like the prisoners, we as a whole prefer to not know some truths, believe some lies, and have difficulty accepting some realities. By the end of the work, we are left with new thoughts about the reality of our beliefs and faith and are encouraged to re-evaluate our paradigms.

Genetic Modification: Methodology, Ethics and Importance

Genetic Modification: Methodology, Ethics and Importance Genetic modification: methodology, ethicality and importance of understanding Sarah Bernadette Dacanay Word Count (excluding references): 1418 words Introduction The 21st century is a time where science is progressing at rapid speed with the development of new methods used to improve the livelihood of human life. Such methods include the controversial genetic modification of organisms and products, in order to produce effective vaccines, food sources, etc. (Glenn, 2013). Australia like many nations genetically modifies some of its food and plants (i.e. cows, chicken, wheat, cotton, etc.) (Office of the Gene Technology Regulator, 2014) and before being accessible to the public, are heavily regulated by the Gene Technology Regulator (GTR). Furthermore, scientists and organizations such CSIRO (CSIRO, 2010) are constantly finding means to improve the efficiency of the methods and its ethicality. As such, scientific evidence regarding genetic modification is constantly being updated. Genetic modification can potentially offer tremendous benefits, but as it is still relatively new, there are many uncertainties regarding its methods and ethicality. Thus, much of the public is still unsure on where they stand. The need for current and credible information about this field is undeniably important for the public, in order to gain a better understanding about its advantages and disadvantages. And once this knowledge is gained, they can make a sound decision on where they want to stand with the progression of this field of research. Source 1: eBook file Source/Author The eBook file, National Framework of Ethical Principles in Gene Technology 2012 Outlines the ‘†¦ethical principles and values relevant to†¦ gene technology†¦Ã¢â‚¬â„¢ and ‘aims to promote well-informed ethical decision making†¦Ã¢â‚¬â„¢ (Gene Technology Ethics and Community Consultative Committee, 2012). The research into the guidelines outlined in the book has been done by the Gene Technology Ethics and Community Consultative Committee (GTECCC) under the guidance and watch of the Office of the Gene Technology Regulator (OGTR). The GTECCC provides advice on the request of the Gene Technology Regulator (GTR), or the Gene Technology Ministerial Council (GTMC) regarding ethical issues and policy principles with relation to genetically modified organisms (GMOs) and products (GM). The 11 appointments for the committee are done by the Hon Catherine King, Parliamentary Secretary for Health and Ageing after consulting the GTR, State/Territory Ministers and organizations relating to science, consumers, heath, environmental and industry (Office of the Gene Technology Regulator, n.d.). The members chosen to be part of this committee are experts who range from community consultation, ethics, genetic research and risk communication just to name a few. For example, Donald Chalmers, the Chair of the GTECCC, is a Distinguished Professor at the University of Tasmania and is the Director of the Centre for Law and Genetics; and Ms Corrinna Lange, another member, has a wealth of knowledge regarding science communication through her various roles within public and private sector organizations. (Office of the Gene Technology Regulator, 2012). The fear of bias by the authors while constructing the framework due to conflict of interests, is easily solved as members are ‘†¦subject to strict disclosure of interest provisions†¦contained in the Gene Technology Regulations 2001†¦Ã¢â‚¬â„¢ in which, it is stated that ‘Before the Minister appoints a person as an expert advisory†¦must obtain†¦a declaration setting out all direct or indirect interests†¦Ã¢â‚¬â„¢ (Expert Advisers – disclosure of interests, 2001). The compiled research is also subject to act in accordance to the Gene Technology Act 2000 (Cwth) in which s.3 states that â€Å"the object of this Act is to protect the health and safety of people†¦protects the environment by identifying risks posed by or as a result of gene technology†¦Ã¢â‚¬â„¢. As such, the information provided by the GTECCC in their eBook publication stating the framework for ethics and decision making regarding genetic research and modification i s highly credible. Publisher The Australian Commonwealth Government is a non-partisan institute regarding genetic modification and is undoubtedly established as being credible and well-respected. The credibility of a book lies not only with the author but, also with the publisher; the organization/institute who funds or supports the research of the author/s. The organization/institute and authors are therefore responsible for the information being published. In this case, the funding and support of this eBook, the National Framework of Ethical Principles in Gene Technology 2012 (Gene Technology Ethics and Community Consultative Committee, 2012) research came from the Australian Commonwealth Government. As the information published inside therefore not only reflects the views and opinions of the author, but is also considered as credible information by the Australian Commonwealth Government. Therefore, as the Australian Commonwealth Government is a credible publisher, the eBooks’ (Gene Technology Ethics an d Community Consultative Committee, 2012) credibility is also reinforced. Source 2: Journal Article Peer-Review Process Peer-review is a commonly used process during the editing phase of scientific journals to distinguish what articles sent to be published in the journal are credible, relevant and publish worthy. The process requires the article to be sent and scrutinised by experts in the same field who are considered as ‘peer-reviewers’. They asses the ‘validity, significance and originality’ (Sense About Science, 2005) and ultimately act as ‘an error detection system’ (Science Media Centre, 2003). In order to asses these criterions, the results and experiments are re-tested by these peer-reviewers to ensure that the findings are accurate. A decision is then made on whether the article should be published or rejected. If the decision is for the article to be published, it will either be sent back to the author/s for the final review or sometimes, may go straight into publishing after gaining the approval of the Chief Editor (Understanding Science, 2014). My chosen journal article (Macdonald et al., 2012) was initially handed into the National Academy of Sciences (NAS) on December 4, 2011 for review before being published in their online journal. One of the many peer-reviewers assigned to the article was R. Michael Roberts, University of Missouri, Columbia. Dr Roberts’ is a member of the National Academy of Science and his research areas include ‘utilizing human embryonic stem cells (hESC)†¦Ã¢â‚¬â„¢ and ‘induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSC)†¦ by reprogramming.’ (Department of Biochemistry University of Missouri, n.d.). The knowledge he holds in the field therefore, indicates his sound ability as a reviewer for the article, proving him capable of making good judgement on whether the claims and conclusions stated are credible. Photographic Evidence Photographic evidence is an effective way to illustrate the processes and results that should be reached during an experiment. It provides the experimenter with an indication on whether the methods are accurately followed. The Materials and Methods section of the journal article (Macdonald et al., 2012), with its various reference images fulfils this purpose. For example, Figure 6, part B in the Materials and Methods section, indicates how the ‘cross-section of a 3 day embryo a day after the injection of GFP-expressing PGCs’ should look like (Macdonald et al., 2012). Furthermore, the results are set out in clear graphs which are annotated. This can be seen in Figure 2, part D of the Results section, which contains a graph comparing the ‘stable transfection rates of piggyBac and Tol2 transposons in PGCs.’ (Macdonald et al., 2012). The annotations also indicate that the collected and graphed data represent a minimum of four independent experiments. The clarity and in-depth expression, through photographic evidence and compiled data, leave little room for error as it indicates what outcomes should be reached by their methods. This not only makes it easy for those trialling the experiment to compare results, but it also expresses their strong belief that their research is credible. Summary The boundless amounts of information, found on the internet and at libraries regarding genetic modification, can overwhelm individuals when they first begin researching to grasp a better understanding about the field. Furthermore, as the field is constantly updating and newer efficient methodologies are being discovered, ‘new’ information can grow ‘old’ relatively fast and thus lose its credibility. The two scholarly sources, the eBook (Gene Technology Ethics and Community Consultative Committee, 2012) and the journal article, (Macdonald et al., 2012) I have chosen, are in my opinion examples of credible information. I assessed their credibility under the following criteria: source/author and publisher for the eBook; the peer-review process and photographic evidence for the journal article, and found that the criteria were fulfilled. Thus, indicating that the information from the two scholarly sources is credible. Therefore, to conclude, the information with in the two sources can be used to either grasp a better understanding about the field of genetic modification, or be used as references in university research assignment tasks. References American Psychological Association. (2013). The Rules for Federal Regulations: I. The Code of Federal Regulations. Retrieved from http://blog.apastyle.org/apastyle/2013/07/the-rules-for-federal-regulations-i-code-of-federal-regulations.html CSIRO. (2010). Gene technology. Retrieved from http://www.csiro.au/Outcomes/Food-and-Agriculture/Gene-technology.aspx Curators of the University of Missouri. (2006). Welcome to the Roberts Lab Website. Retrieved from http://robertslab.missouri.edu/ Department of Biochemistry University of Missouri. (n.d.). R. Michael Roberts. Retrieved from http://biochem.missouri.edu/faculty/faculty-members/robertsm/index.php Expert Advisers – disclosure of interests, 23 Gene Technology Regulations  §1 (2001) Gene Technology Act 2000 (Cwth) s.3 (Austl.) Glenn, L. M. (2013). Ethical Issues in Genetic Engineering and Transgenics. Retrieved from http://www.actionbioscience.org/biotechnology/glenn.html Office of the Gene Technology Regulator. (2012). GTECCC members. Retrieved from http://www.ogtr.gov.au/internet/ogtr/publishing.nsf/content/gteccc-members11-htm Office of the Gene Technology Regulator. (2014). Record of GM Product Dealings. Retrieved from http://www.ogtr.gov.au/internet/ogtr/publishing.nsf/content/gmfoodprod4-htm Office of the Gene Technology Regulator. (n.d.). Genetically Modified Product approvals. Retrieved from http://www.ogtr.gov.au/internet/ogtr/publishing.nsf/content/gmoprod-1 Office of the Gene Technology Regulator. (n.d.). The Gene Technology Ethics and Community Consultative Committee. Retrieved from http://www.ogtr.gov.au/internet/ogtr/publishing.nsf/content/gteccc-2 Science Media Centre (2003) Communicating peer review in a soundbite, p.1. Sense about Science. (2004). Peer Review AND THE ACCEPTANCE OF NEW SCIENTIFIC IDEAS. London, England: Author. Sense about Science. (2005). â€Å"I DON’T KNOW WHAT TO BELIEVE†¦Ã¢â‚¬ Making sense of science stories. London, England: Author. Sense about Science. (2009). MAKING SENSE OF GM. London, England: Author. Understanding Science University of California Museum of Paleontology. (n.d.). Scrutinizing science: Peer Review. Retrieved from: http://undsci.berkeley.edu/article/howscienceworks_16 University Library University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. (n.d.). Is it scholarly? Tips for critically evaluating your information resources. Retrieved from http://www.library.illinois.edu/ugl/howdoi/scholarly.html University of Western Australia Med Library. (n.d.). Vancouver citation style. Retrieved from http://guides.is.uwa.edu.au/content.php?pid=279406sid=2323728 University of Western Australia Science Library. (n.d.). APA citation style. Retrieved from http://guides.is.uwa.edu.au/apa Victoria University. (n.d.). APA REFERENCING: A Brief Guide. Retrieved from http://guides.library.vu.edu.au/content.php?pid=270421sid=2230821 References for two scholarly sources: Peer-Reviewed Journal Article (Primary Source): APA:  Macdonald, J., Taylor, L., Sherman, A., Kawakami, K., Takahashi, Y., Sang, Helen M., McGrew, Michael J. (2012). Efà ¯Ã‚ ¬Ã‚ cient genetic modià ¯Ã‚ ¬Ã‚ cation and germ-line transmission of primordial germ cells using piggyBac and Tol2 transposons.  Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences,109(23), E1466-E1472. doi:10.1073/pnas.1118715109 Vancouver: Macdonald J, Taylor L, Sherman A, Kawakami K, Takahashi Y, Sang HM, McGrew MJ. Efà ¯Ã‚ ¬Ã‚ cient genetic modià ¯Ã‚ ¬Ã‚ cation and germ-line transmission of primordial germ cells using piggyBac and Tol2 transposons. [Internet]. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. 2012. [cited 2014 March 15]; 109(23) [about 7 p.]. Available from:  http://www.pnas.org/content/early/2012/05/10/1118715109.abstract Grey Literature (PDF file): APA: Gene Technology Ethics and Community Consultative Committee. (2012).  National Framework of Ethical Principles in Gene Technology 2012  [PDF]. Retrieved from  http://www.ogtr.gov.au/internet/ogtr/publishing.nsf/Content/gtecccpapers-1/$FILE/gtecccethicalprinciples2012.pdf Vancouver: Gene Technology Ethics and Community Consultative Committee. National Framework of Ethical Principles in Gene Technology 2012 [Internet]. Commonwealth of Australia; 2012 [revised 2014 Feb 2; cited 2014 Mar 15]. Available from:  http://www.ogtr.gov.au/internet/ogtr/publishing.nsf/Content/gtecccpapers-1/$FILE/gtecccethicalprinciples2012.pdf Sarah Bernadette Dacanay