Wednesday, July 31, 2019

Absurdity of a “Sivilized” Society-an Analysis of Huckleberry Finn Essay

The Absurdity of a â€Å"Sivilized† Society Authors often express their views on any given subject through their works, and Mark Twain is no exception. One may read The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn and believe it is simply a novel about a young boys childhood; however, a deeper analysis of the text reveals many of Mark Twain’s expressions about important moral and social issues. Perhaps one of the most prominent being the frailty of human justice and the hypocrisy we as a people foster in our societies. Throughout the novel, Huck meets people who appear to be good, civilized people, but always end up having a hypocritical fault about them. Though not every instance is a grave matter, Twain’s writing shows that societies in Huck’s world are based upon corrupted laws and principles that defy basic logic. Twain’s writing leaves the reader with an understanding that cowardice, illogical choices, and selfish as well as hypocritical people mark these societies. Twain begins weaving hypocrisies and cants early into the story; one of the most appalling being the issue of Huck’s custody. This flawed system of thought is first shown when the new judge in St. Petersburg rules that Pap has rightful custody of Huck. Although this would be bad for Huck if his father became his legal guardian, the judge asserts Pap’s rights to Huck as his biological son, despite the fact that this is placing Huck’s welfare below the so-called rights of his father. Ironically, this system would put Huck under his dad’s custody, leaving him worse off, whereas Jim is separated from his family despite being a far better father and person. However, the welfare of the individual isn’t highly valued in society, and thus they are placed in uncomfortable, often dangerous situations. The judge tries to put Huck back in contact with his horrid father and therefore abuse, but Jim, a loving parent, never receives help to be with his children and help rescue them from slavery and separation. This decision defies all logic one would find in a normal society, and yet this kind of thinking was commonplace. The values and welfare of a black person were nowhere near as important as those of a white man, and even though Jim is a grown man with the most in tune moral compass of any character in the book, Huck still has power over him simply because he is white. By comparing the situation of Pap and Huck with slaves and their masters, Twain hints that it is impossible for a society to be civilized so long as it practices slavery. Though not quite as harmful, another example of a hypocritical character can be found in the Widow Douglas and Miss Watson. In an attempt to â€Å"sivilize† Huckleberry, Miss Watson reprimands him for smoking a cigarette and yet she snuffs tobacco. â€Å"Pretty soon I wanted to smoke, and asked the widow to let me. But she wouldn’t. She said it was a mean practice and wasn’t clean, and I must try to not do it any more†¦ And she took snuff, too; of course that was all right, because she done it herself† (Twain 2). She prevents Huck from doing what she believes is uncivilized and detrimental to his health, yet doesn’t think twice about proceeding to do something very similar simply because she herself enjoys it. This example of hypocrisy is not particularly malicious, but yet another example of how all the characters Huck is involved with has some form of a hypocritical flaw. Furthermore, Miss Watson is quite religious and, in efforts to teach Huck, tells him that all he must do is pray for something and he will have it. However, when Huck needs fishhooks and asks her to help pray for them, she calls him a fool. â€Å"Then Miss Watson she took me in the closet and prayed, but nothing come of it. She told me to pray every day, and whatever I asked for I would get it. But it warn’t so. I tried it. Once I got a fish- line, but no hooks. It warn’t any good to me without hooks. I tried for the hooks three or four times, but somehow I couldn’t make it make it work. By-and-by, one day, I asked Miss Watson to try for me, but she said I was a fool. † (Twain 8). Miss Watson tells Huck that if he does something, he can expect a certain result but when things don’t work, he asks for her help and she chides him for it! The widow Douglas and Miss Watson are religious, educated, and yet, they are slave owners. They educate Huck, and teach him religion but find it perfectly acceptable to do things contrary to their teachings, such as snuff and practice slavery. The latter, being a more insidious humbug of St. Petersburg, is shown over and over again throughout Huck’s journey. As Huck begins to stray from his backwards, insincere town, he reaches different places with different people, all different in their own way and yet, very similar to those in St. Petersburg. The Duke and Dauphin are two despicable con men who join Huck and Jim as they continue to drift on the river. The Duke and Dauphin cause trouble for Huck and Jim, as well as the towns they visit. The fault here is that, the Duke and Dauphin are able to scam entire communities by lying, pretending to be someone they’re not, and cheating their guests. Though they spend most of the novel doing awful things or planning awful things, they both are hardly punished. After the first showing of The Royal Nonesuch, the first group of attendees realizes they have been cheated. However, instead of chastising the Duke and Dauphin, the audience that night chooses to lie about the performance in order to cheat a second group of attendees. Hold on! Just a word, gentlemen. † They stopped to listen. â€Å"We are sold—mighty badly sold. But we don’t want to be the laughing stock of this whole town, I reckon, and never hear the last of this thing as long as we live. NO. What we want is to go out of here quiet, and talk this show up, and sell the REST of the town! Then we’ll al l be in the same boat. Ain’t that sensible? † (â€Å"You bet it is! —the jedge is right! † everybody sings out. ) â€Å"All right, then—not a word about any sell. Go along home, and advise everybody to come and see the tragedy. † (Twain 114). Most hypocritical, however, is the fact that the Judge of the town conceived this plan. He who stands as a pillar of justice and truth in the town decides to cheat the others in order to save face. By the third night, everyone in town has seen the play and the Duke and Dauphin make a large profit from their misconduct. Immoral acts committed by the Duke and Dauphin never yielded punishments, but brazen, drunk insults led to execution. Boggs, described as the â€Å"most easy going old fool in Arkansas†, began shouting insults and anathemas at Sherburn, the man who had cheated him. He [Sherburn] was standing perfectly still in the street, and had a pistol raised in his right hand—not aiming it, but holding it out with the barrel tilted up towards the sky†¦ Boggs throws up both of his hands and says, â€Å"O Lord, don’t shoot! † Bang! goes the first shot, and he staggers back, clawing at the air—bang! goes the second one, and he tumbles backwards on to the ground, heavy and solid, with his arms spread out. † (Twain 108). The Duke and Dauphin cheat entire communities and remain unpunished by their terrible acts; however, peccadilloes like shouting drunken insults result in execution. Twain’s writing exposes the issue of faulty justice and duplicitous nature of men. Furthermore, Sherburn’s speech to the angry mob around his house in relation to a lack of logic and cowardice capitulates Twain’s societal views. Twain’s use of hypocrisy helps express his views on societal issues. Though not every instance is harmful, such as Miss Watson’s snuff usage, other notable examples such as the execution of Boggs and the custody of Huck highlight his belief that cowardice, lack of logic, and selfishness are at the core of society, not the communal welfare that it should be. The repeated instances of insecure, logic defying justice are the root of the problem, as thoughtless crimes are punished severely whereas serious crimes go scot-free. Throughout the novel, Huck meets characters that appear good, yet Twain makes a conscious effort to prove they are prejudiced slave owners. The illogical choices and hypocritical people presented throughout the novel show the hypocrisy and ludicrousness of the â€Å"sivilized† society.

Tuesday, July 30, 2019

Certified Nursing Assistant Essay

Many people say it takes a special person to go into the health field especially into nursing. There’s so many skills and values nurses have to use on a daily basis to maintain their roles and keep a smile on the patients faces. There are many different areas CNA’s are needed like the nursing homes, assisted living facilites, hospice centers, hospitals and many more. Being a Nursing Assistant you kind of get the dirty work, but we all have to start somewhere. You must be very compassionate and have the desire to help people. Its definitely not a easy job but its very rewarding. To become a Nursing Assistant, it takes a lot of hard undivided time put into studying and knowing how to act on the spot in certain situations. New and different things happen each day with the patients and knowing how to react properly is one of the most important things to know. I have encountered in a lot of situations when I have prevented residents from falling by being attentive to them while passing by their rooms, or just simply checking on them frequently. Sometimes they are halfway out of the bed even though I make sure their beds are down to the floor. I simply ask, â€Å"Do you have to use the bathroom?† If so, I assist them to use the bathroom and stay with them until they are finished. Also, I ask, â€Å"Would you like to take a little walk around the building to look at the flowers and get some fresh air?† Some patients have no reason for trying to get out of bed they’re just bored and want to do it themselves knowing they can’t. After help ing them, I have to remind them if they need help or want to move some place new to just press their button and I’ll be there in a jiffy! As a dedicated long term care and hospice Certified Nursing Assistant, I have to be very loving caring and respectful to all my patients. I try very hard each day to provide them with the care that I would want to receive of one of my own relatives. There is no other way to do a good job as a CNA  without love and understanding, patience, kindness, spiritual values, listening skills, alertness, communication, observation, respect, and privacy. While I was doing my long 12 hour shift clinicals to become a CNA, I had a specific patient in the nursing home that I will never forget. In room 112 my patients name was Rusty. Rusty could not remember his name, where he was, or why he was even there. I noticed he had the Nazi symbol tattooed on his butt because I had to change his depends every time he used the bathroom. I just kind of chuckled every time I saw it. Every 5 minutes he would push his button for me to come in there and he would ask â€Å"can I call my mom?† I would always say â€Å"of course Rusty, let me help you into the wheel chair and ill take you to the nurses station† with a simple sad reply of â€Å"ohhhhkay.† Rusty would call his mom about 20 times a day hoping she would call him back but she never did. A fellow nurse told me she passed away about 6 months ago and he doesn’t ever remember when we tell him. The head nurse copied her voice mail from her old cell phone and now when he wants to call his mom all we had to do was press #35790. Seeing him go through that pain on a day to day basis hurt so much, but knowing that us nurses were the only ones there for him, and he relied on us to do everything made it very rewarding to know we can help some one out when there is no one else. I learned building a relationship with each patient individually helps them feel more comfortable where they are and for them to know they’re not alone. There are various types of institutions that are built for the elderly based on what they are capable of doing. Hospice is a center for the elderly that are on their death bed, or for patient that are expected not to make it much longer due to fast coming disease. Currently I am working in a hospice center as a PRN position. The position basically means that I can accept or turn down the offer of a certain job during that day for specific hours. I jump back and forth between patients houses as an in home care nurse, assisted living facilites and nursing homes. Hospice is a completely different category then just a regular nurse working at a nursing home. Each day you go to work you are expecting a patient to die, or close to it. Of course its hard on the family because they’re by their side for their  last couple of days but its also hard on the nurse for a couple of different reasons. For one, seeing a traumatic experience is hard on yourself because death is always a touch y and hard subject for most people to go through. Seeing the patients family suffer because of their loved one is hard on you and you just feed off their vibes. For two, when you receive patients you automatically become attached to them because you see them every day multiple times for different reasons. Nurses get to know the patient for who they are, and just get to have that one on one time and listen to them. Building a relationship with the elderly and then losing them gets tough on a day to day basis. Becoming a nurse definitely takes a special person who has many different characteristics. Nurses have to be able to multitask, and accomplish different tasks at the same time. Sometimes when a tragic accident happens or something you weren’t expecting does, nurses have to be able to think quickly and be able to move on their toes. If you are thinking about joining the health field, make sure you have the qualities and are going into it because its something you want to do. Not because of the money of benefits certain jobs have to offer. Having different areas CNA’s are able to work helps people have a variety of fields they can join. If the elderly is not for you, maybe working with newborn babies is. Becoming a CNA takes a lot of hard work and dedication to knowing what you are trying to achieve for your final goal. Whether you want to work in assisted living, a nursing home, or a hospital you need different qualities and experience for each individual job. Learning a lternative ways in nursing doesn’t only benefit you in the work place but also you living daily. I would not change my career choice for anything. I love being a CNA, even though it is the ‘dirty work.’ You have to start somewhere and this is where I chose to start.

Counselor Role in Special Education Essay

My perception of the school counselor’s role in special education is that it largely mirrors the role embodied for all students, but with some added considerations and collaborations for the special needs student. My understanding is that a school counselor should be available to all students for personal, ethical, academic, career, and social advice; to listen to a student’s point of view; to deal with any mental health issues that may arise for a student; to help a student prepare for transitions; to advocate for a student in a given situation, and to whatever degree possible, teach the student to advocate for himself. A counselor must be committed to helping all students reach their full potential; but for students with disabilities and other special needs, a school counselor needs to accomplish this in the face of extra challenges. These tasks and trials are not limited to those presented by the varying disabilities of a child, but include the demands of satisfying the administrative and legal requirements of a counselor serving students with special needs. Today’s school counselor is likely to be involved in a student’s individualized education program (IEP) when one is warranted. According to the Ohio Department of Education’s Office for Exceptional Children, at least one of the IEP team members needs to be an individual who has knowledge or special expertise regarding the child. This person is in addition to the child’s regular and special education teachers, a principal/assistant principal or other senior staff member, the parents, the school psychologist, and the child (if appropriate) required to participate on the team. The school counselor, at the discretion of the parent or the school district, may be included as a member of the IEP team if they have special insight regarding the child. A school counselor will work as part of a multidisciplinary team within the school and community in aligning and providing services for the special needs student. Without yet having been exposed to a practicum or internship experience as a school counselor, I perceive this piece of the workload to be potentially delicate and complex. A parent may have a viewpoint divergent from that which is covered in the Evaluation Team Report (ETR), resulting in an extended identification process. School staff members may have contrasting opinions as to whether a child is in need of special education and an IEP, or just accommodations covered under a 504 Plan. The bottom line is that the identification team must work collaboratively, with a lack of ego, in assessing and determining what measures are in the best interests of helping the child to be successful in school. It seems that the most difficult aspect of a school counselor’s job is to find a balance in managing so many responsibilities in each given day. Responding to the unique challenges of special needs students can both intensify and complement the workload. I think much can be gained professionally, personally, and emotionally by embracing that responsibility. A good counselor should teach the special education students attending her school about resiliency, inner strength, positive identity, and a sense of purpose. In the general terms of the professional school counselor’s role, I believe that the most valuable services to be provided in the special education realm are: †¢ Individual Student Planning – communicate high expectations and help disabled students establish personal goals for each school year and their future success. Familiarize oneself with the varying learning styles of the students who have disabilities, and work consultatively with teachers to improve their performance behaviorally and academically. Be a staunch advocate for these students and their post-secondary options; help create opportunities for them. †¢ Responsive Services – implement prevention and/or intervention activities like individual and group counseling, provide referrals, facilitate better peer relations, and advocate for them. Conduct needs assessments to identify potential systematic, programmatic, and attitudinal areas for change in order to create positive environments for their learning. Assist teachers in staying on top of 504 and IEP accommodations/interventions, being prepared to troubleshoot if certain measures are not enabling student to perform optimally. †¢ School Guidance Curriculum – developing and delivering a curriculum of structured lessons to help each identified student achieve desired social and academic outcomes. A counselor could implement a student development curriculum aimed to improve typical students’ understanding of and sensitivity to their special needs’ peers.

Monday, July 29, 2019

OBESITY HEALTH PROMTION AND PUBLIC HEALTH Essay

OBESITY HEALTH PROMTION AND PUBLIC HEALTH - Essay Example Another interesting findings about obesity in U.K. is that the rate of increase in obesity was highest among middle aged (55-64) men. In 1994, around 18 percent of total middle aged men were obese, while in 2006 the rate stood at around 36 percent. (Trends in the prevalence of overweight and obesity)     Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Today people irrespective of their ages are less interested in spending time in exercising or other outdoor activities. Along with it the busy families of today’s world have little free time to prepare nutritious, home-cooked meals. Eating out on a daily basis is becoming a part of everyday life of adults as well as adolescent members, particularly in westernized culture. Obesity poses a great problem to society.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Looking at the severity of the issue the present paper seeks to examine several epidemiological issues related to obesity in U.K., different health promotion initiatives taken by the government to tackle this problem, the possible public health care interventions using health promotion theories, and finally make some evaluation of the programs under taken by the U.K. government.      Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Having a few extra pounds in one’s body does not imply obesity. Usually, in medical terms a person is considered to be obese when his weight is at least 10 percent more compared to the recommended weight for his height and frame of the body. For obese people, their excessively heavy weights endanger their health. Obesity is gaining much attention because in the westernized societies including U.K is increasingly being found to be responsible for higher degree of mortality as well as morbidity. The more alarming thing regarding obesity is that initially the problem of obesity have been concentrated among adults only, but over time, increasing problems related to obesity are being diagnosed among children also. According to the Health Survey of England 2002,

Sunday, July 28, 2019

Test the Expert Experiment Using the Sequence Generator Case Study

Test the Expert Experiment Using the Sequence Generator - Case Study Example The use of Random Sequence Generator as a valid randomization method requires maintaining the same conditions like temperature and size when preparing and serving the two samples not to have an effect on the test subject (Sharpe, De Veaux &Velleman, 2014).Independence of Trials Each trial of the experiment must be independent and an outcome of one trial should have no effect on the conclusion of the following trial. This aspect will bring validity to the statistical analysis of the experiment. Measures to influence the legitimacy of the test include running multiple tests with the practice subject to ascertain any faults in the process. The faults may cause poor results or incapacity of the test subject through fatigue or any other way. Rehearsal The rehearsal`s main purpose is to verify, improve or correct the experiment, and provide insight into the research in producing reliable results. The practice subject did not consume any of the samples, and no recommendations were needed to increase the potential of the experiment. The procedures and samples of the experiment were adequate to initiate the test. The critical value of the test statistic is -1.6499, the p-value is 0.005 at an alpha value of 0.05. The experiment has provided sufficient evidence to reject the null hypothesis as it is observed that H0: π < 0.5 (not an expert) indicating that the subject is statistically significantly considered an expert. Lavender is an expert in differentiating Diet Coke from Coke.

Saturday, July 27, 2019

War of the Gods Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

War of the Gods - Essay Example War of the Gods This paper will examine the use of religious ethics to define a just war and the application of such ethics during the Holy Wars of the Crusades. Monotheistic traditions, such as Christianity and Islam, often use their religious doctrines to find a justification for wars. These doctrines, in the Just War Theory, outline in detail when the use of force can be justified to resolve conflicts, from whom they should attain the blessing that such a use of force is recognized as necessary in the eyes of God, and to what extent the force should be employed. The primary focus of the just war tradition is to attain and confirm approval from God. In both religious doctrines, God-referred to as Allah in Islam-has confirmed the ideals that the use of force by His followers is a righteous and just action; this use of force often serves to control aggressions or perpetuate continued growth and spread of the Faith. In the case of the Crusades, justification came to Christians and Muslims alike from their respective Gods for the perceived need to control the Holy Land of Jerusalem. These doctrines and the actions they perpetrated during the Crusades can be seen from both sides of this series of Holy Wars. August (1921) reveals such justification when the Christians sought to recapture Jerusalem. The fact that Christian soldiers were told they would be successful if God willed their victory directly preceding their accomplishment further confirmed that they were fighting a just war. Additionally, even if only by coincidence, the timeline in which these events took place were construed as signs from God that this war was just and approved; and that God would work with these soldiers and secure their success. This acknowledgement served to increase morale amongst the soldiers and justify future acts of aggression in the name of the Christian Crusades. On the other side of this initial victory of the Christians, the Muslims also received blessings and encouraging sign from Allah. Muslims believed so deeply in the signs and the need for Divine approval, that any losses were perceived to be punishment for sins. None, or few, were mindful of the Lord, or of such work as was needed to capture the city; nor did they take heed to beseech the Lord's favor. And thus we not recognize God in the midst of our affliction, nor did He show favor to the ungrateful. (August 9-10) Essentially, while the Christians remained mindful of the signs that appeared to be sent from God, they saw continued, if intermittent, success in their plights during the Crusades. In contrast, the Muslims believed that the early Christian victories were the result not of God favoring the Christians and

Friday, July 26, 2019

Strategic Management in the Financial Crisis Essay

Strategic Management in the Financial Crisis - Essay Example The study Strategic Management in the Financial Crisis explores the period of the great credit crisis that first had a toll on the United States’ financial sector before other parts of the globe had its impact. This may have been because of various issues of failure within companies that even made them fail to meet targets before the financial crisis period. With the resource utilization reaching the maximum limits compounded further by a relatively high wage rate, most enterprises were feeling the pinch in the reduction of their rates of return. The widening of international trade and the strengthening of global capital flows have led to a significant rise in cross-border assets and liabilities, as well as to financial linkages across countries and regions. The key implications of such developments have been a wider spread of shocks and stronger co-movements in macroeconomic variables. There are various issues that have been raised and a major one has been that of the failure of corporate governance as shall be discussed in the paper. It is clear that good corporate governance actually operates effectively in two distinct areas which may include measures put in place to guard against opportunistic or conflicted behaviour by financial technocrats with aims of maximizing wealth. According to good management principles, corporate governance best practice is important and essential for the protection of shareholders and other stakeholders against the often conflicting interests of dealers in the financial sector. Blundell-Wignall et al (2009) point out the need to clarify the responsibilities of regulatory institutions and to restore confidence in the integrity of financial institutions. Independent audits of financial statements provide a check against fraud, and a verified overview of financial evolution of the business. Blundell-Wignall et al (2009) also state that considerable flexibility should be envisaged as regards liquidity management. Quantitative measures and indicators should be integrated into the process in proportion to the degree that they are robust and operational. There is an overall bias in many countries' tax systems which work to encourage corporate leverage. The interface between tax, leverage and excess risk taking is complex. Blundell-Wignall et al. note that the US approach shares the risks of buying toxic assets between the taxpayers and investors creates buyer demand and prevents dumping of assets that would prolong the crisis phase, and is an open-market approach. It is important to foster corporate structures that enhance both stability and competition. The complexity of some corporate groups has been identified in both governance and risk control issues. As a

Thursday, July 25, 2019

Mathematics Assignment final Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Mathematics Assignment final - Essay Example (ii). Note that the resultant vector is 145 degrees from the positive x-axis, thus using the Sine Law, After finding the magnitude of the resultant vector, r, then Thus, v = -1.3705i + 0.9596j. (iii). Fore a period of one second, the boat moves 0.9596m upward and 1.3705 westward. Thus, starting from (600, -300). The position of the boat at time t will be (600-1.3705t, -300 + 0.9596t). (iv). When the boat is directly south of the position (200, 100), then its x coordinate must be equal to 200, so Thus, at time 291.8711, the boat is directly south of (200, 100) and its position is (200, -19.92). Therefore it is about (100-(-20)) m away from that position or it is 120m away. Question 2 (a) (i) The length of the arc is equal to rX where X is the radian measure of the angle that intercepted the arc. Hence, the length of the wire can be expressed as Manipulating the equation and solving for l, we will have (ii) Note that the area A can be expressed as the difference between the area of the two sectors with radius 6 and with radius (6-l) both intercepted by angle x. Thus In terms of x only, substituting the value of l, (iv) Notice that the formula for A includes a factor (1-x) in the numerator, if we select a value of x greater than 1, then this factor will become less than 0, so the area becomes less than 0 which is not sensible. Also, if we set x to be less than 0, we are assuming that the angle that intercept the arc PS is less than 0 which also doesn't make sense. (b) The graph of f follows. (ii). Using the trace facility as shown, As seen, the graph of f has its maximum value at (0.62, 5.30). (iii) The solution of the equation f(x)=3 is 0.25 and 0.89. (c) (i) The terms of the recurrence relation are...Also, by this method, at (320, 260), t = 280. Thus, the man can see the boat from time 200 sec to 280 sec or for the duration equal to 80 sec. (i) The graph above shows vb in blue, vc in yellow and the resultant vector v in black. Their magnitudes are given for a one-second span, i.e., vb has magnitude 2, vc has magnitude 0.5. Note that the direction of the line of the boat is N 40 degrees W, or equivalently, it is 130 degrees from the positive x-axis. We want to find the coordinate of the head of the vector, so (iv) Notice that the formula for A includes a factor (1-x) in the numerator, if we select a value of x greater than 1, then this factor will become less than 0, so the area becomes less than 0 which is not sensible. Also, if we set x to be less than 0, we are assuming that the angle that intercept the arc PS is less than 0 which also doesn't make sense. (iv). Note that the maximum of the function is given by the function value when x is --/3, therefore, the maximum value of f is 3.067. However, when x is equal to 2/3, the value of f is not the minimum. If we graph f, we will notice that at x approaches negative infinity, the value of y decreases without bounds, thus f has a minimum when x is equal to -.

Acctg discussion Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Acctg discussion - Case Study Example The ethical issue for Jim is whether the increase that he is calling for is due to a specific and truly justifiable reason(s). Secondly there is the issue that this budget is used in the allocation of bonuses and capital improvements. His calling for the increase in the budget may be so as to unfairly place him at a position to get more money for these two items. This is despite the fact that he might not be rightfully entitled to them. The two factors together bring with them an ethical dilemma seeing that he stands to profit personally by the higher bonuses that would be paid to him by headquarters. Also that he would have a larger budget according him the increased option of taking on additional risk, which may not be possible with the original budget The first point of consideration is if these numbers have been inflated for the wrong reasons. Discovery of this by headquarters may lead to him losing his job. Secondly the headquarters may instigate investigations into the hotel’s books for the period during his tenure to make a determination as to how long this has been going on. This is so as to ensure that all the previous budget numbers were above board. There is also the possibility of budget cuts and allocations from headquarters that may actually affect the hotels operation for the coming year. If these figures are actually justifiable on the other hand, there may be increased scrutiny of the hotel just to ensure that the budgeted items are accounted for in the new financial year. If this directive came from the bank manager then Jim has two options. On the one end being the controller he has the ability to counter check the managers directives so as to make a determination of whether these are true claims or not. Secondly he may engage with the manager to discuss the basic ethical concerns that the issue raises

Wednesday, July 24, 2019

The American War in Viet Nam Term Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

The American War in Viet Nam - Term Paper Example Despite their active involvement, people from Australia were anxious about the country’s involvement in the war. It is noteworthy that various novels and other cultural texts focus on Australia’s involvement in the war and its consequences. An example of a book that talks about Australia’s participation in the war is â€Å"The Things They Carried† by Tim O’Bien. This book contains short stories that talks about the country’s involvement while criticizing the complex political web that led to both America’s and Australia’s participation while featuring O’Brien and his fellow soldiers (O’Brien 18). The author has explained the roles of politics in the war while focusing on the soldiers who participated in the war. The initial chapter in the book talks about soldiers from Australia and American carrying weapons in literary way. The book contains well-researched information with the main source being the experiences of the author during the Vietnam War. Based on the author’s arguments in the book, the book is against the soldier’s participation in the war. The author describes the emotional pains and burdens carried by the soldiers in form of weapons thr oughout the war. It makes the audience identify with the soldiers’ suffering instead of focusing on their positions in the war. According to the author, the country got involved in the war because it lacked enough information and was misled by other countries such as the US and Vietnam. Through the book, the audience realizes how the soldiers were caught up in a complicated political game during the war. The author explains how the Australian soldiers were alienated during the war (O’Brien 18). In the later chapters, the book seems to accuse the country’s governments and the public for betraying the soldiers. The book pictures the real event in the country during the war. For instance, through the book, the audience realized how soldier were being manipulated in

Tuesday, July 23, 2019

Finance assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 1

Finance - Assignment Example "business mandate." This provision would require most firms to offer employees health insurance about $1,680 per worker annually into a new Health Security Trust Fund created to provide the coverage. Even though implementation of the law has been slower than planned, few want to take away health insurance from the more than 76,000 Massachusetts citizens who have gained coverage since its inception. "We wouldnt have insurance otherwise," said one of those enrollees, Mary Robbins, who had repeatedly tried without success to buy coverage for the small Saugus heating and air conditioning firm she owns and operates with her husband. New estimates from the Department of Medical Security, the agency struggling to implement the program, challenge the prevailing assumption that full implementation of universal health insurance will require additional state funding. A decision to fall back on the old mechanism of paying for care of the uninsured, the states Uncompensated Care Pool, would incur major costs and political liabilities. The costs, covered by a surcharge on all insured citizens hospital bills, have hit $405 million this year and will balloon even more rapidly if ways are not found to chip away at the number of uninsured. The question is where the money will come from: the beleaguered state budget, or businesses and their employees already burdened by high health insurance premiums. For these reasons and more, those who understand the intricacies of health-care financing say there is no way for the state simply to walk away from the problem of finding a way to pay the health costs of the uninsured. Although the 1988 universal health care law, now known as Chapter 23, was closely linked with Gov. Dukakis and his shattered presidential ambitions, the concept has a history that transcends parties and ideologies. While the Governor has yet to detail his health policy plans, he has designated the lieutenant governor-elect as his spokesman on those issues. At the

Monday, July 22, 2019

New England and Chesapeake Essay Example for Free

New England and Chesapeake Essay During the 1610, the New England and Chesapeake region were both settled largely by people of English origin, but by 1700 the regions developed into two distinct societies. The distinctions of development arose due to differences in economy and political structure. The economy and political structure of New England and Chesapeake differed based on the geography, needs and the different values or purposes that the regions served, causing two distinct societies to emerge by 1700. In terms of economics, early distinctions occurred in that the economy of the Chesapeake colonies was based on large plantations whereas the economy of New England was based on subsistence farming and mercantilism. In early 17th century Virginia, tobacco became Virginia’s biggest profits. By 1700, 40 million pounds of tobacco was produced and large plantations were dedicated to just growing tobacco, producing a single crop economy. The large plantations provided landowners or tobacco growers with cheap and plentiful labor through the use of slaves and indentured servants. In document C, the passengers aboard the ship bound for Virginia are all mostly made up of single men well below the age of 40, showing that many are probably indentured servants who are going to work in the large plantations. By the 1660s the overproduction of tobacco dramatically decreased tobacco prices causing indigo and rice to become greater commodities. Still large plantations dominated the economy by producing indigo and rice as well. However New England colonies were based on subsistence farming and a barter economy in the early 17th century. Only enough food would be grown to support the community. Fishing oysters, whaling and homespun industry (artisans) dominated the economy. In document B, many craftsmen ventured to New England, showing that artisans were an important part of the economy. There were a few number of farmers aboard the ship as well indicating that farming was not a large part of the economy. After the Restoration and the Navigation Acts in the 1660s which restricted colonial trade to England, New England became a mercantile based economy. Trade dominated the economy. The Chesapeake colonies depended more one agriculture in their economy whereas the New England colonies depended more on trade due to the geography of the two regions. Chesapeake was located further south than New England, therefore having longer warmth periods and flat lands. These geographical  advantages allowed the Chesapeake colonies to have a longer growing season and to be able to create large plantations. The geography of the New England colonies restricted the growing season due to the high ground with many rocks and the cooler climate. New England was located along the coast giving it access to many deep harbors to foster trade. Chesapeake and New England were able to develop in to distinct societies due to their different economies where Chesapeake relied on agriculture while New England relied on mercantilism. In terms of economics, the economy of the regions differed in that Chesapeake was based on slave labor and indentured servitude whereas New England was based on reciprocity. Document A shows how New England is based on reciprocity. John Winthrop, claims that in order for the Massachusetts Bay Colony to succeed, everyone in the colony must work together productively and fend for one another. â€Å"We must be knit together in this work as one man. We must entertain each other in brotherly affection, we must be willing to abridge ourselves of our superfluities, for the supply of other’s necessities.† This shows that the colonists of New England not only work as a group by helping each other achieve success, but also treat each other with respect. Document B shows that most of the passengers heading to New England are heading there with their entire family, indicating there must be a cooperation system in New England where people cooperate with each other to meet their needs and gain profits. Many families are also traveling with their own servants therefore it can be seen that indentured servants or slave labor was not the foundation of the New England economy. In contrast document C shows that the p eople heading towards Virginia (Chesapeake colony) are mostly young single men who are probably indentured servants thereby showing that the economy of the Chesapeake colonies are based on slave labor and indentured servants. During the early 1600s, the Chesapeake colonies mostly depended on indentured servants and some slave labor since a large and cheap labor source was needed for the tobacco plantations. Since many people did not come in families, families formed slowly and could not provide a strong and abundant labor force. Natives in the colonies died quickly, causing a need for a more reliable labor force. Therefore the colonists of the Chesapeake colonies turned to indentured servants, displaced farmers in England who wanted to venture to the colonies, but did not have enough money to pay for the voyages by themselves. A plantation owner would pay for the indentured servants’ voyage and the indentured servant would have to work off the debt by working on the plantations with the promise that they would get land and shelter once they were freed. However, in the 1660s indentured servants became scarce and many of them were freed from service causing plantation owners to turn to slave labor to maintain their plantations. The economy of the Chesapeake colonies depended on slave labor and indentured servitude while New England depended on reciprocity due to Chesapeake’s dependence on agriculture for wealth and New England’s dependence on trade and crafts for wealth. Plantations worked most effectively through the use of cheap and abundant labor while trade and mercantilism worked most effectively through cooperation. In terms of political structure, differences in government can be seen in that the Chesapeake colonies were based more on the landed aristocracy whereas the New England colonies were based more on religion and the church. In the Chesapeake colonies the plantation owners of the landed aristocracy had most control over the government. Many landowners and the landed aristocracy made up the government including the council and the House of Burgess in Virginia. These officials made up the laws and collected taxes, giving them control over the government. William Berkeley, the governor of Virginia during the mid-1600s adopted many policies favoring the plantation owners and used his powers to benefit the landowners, giving large planters economic and political control in the colony. Many freemen who worked off their debts did not have land. The favoring of the landowners by the government soon erupted into a rebellion led by Nathaniel Bacon. In Document F, Bacon’s Manifesto claims that the government is corrupt and only concerned for their own estates, collecting all the money from the taxes to better develop their estates, showing how the planters dominated the political life of New England. The government failed to protect the frontier settlements where most yeoman farmers were from Indian attacks and instead only concerned themselves with the large plantations. In contrast the government of the New England colonies were centered on religion. In the Plymouth settlement, the church became the civil and social institution of the colony. People who did not conform to the religious values or ideals of the Puritans were executed as seen in the Salem Witch Trials, where the government ordered and allowed the execution of â€Å"witches† or social outcasts  in 1692. In Massachusetts, communities of pure Christians were made. The government did not tolerate any religious views besides Puritan views. Even educati on and literacy centered on religious values. Land in the New England colonies were maintained and controlled by the Elders of the church and the amount of land given to each family would depend on their usefulness to the church as well as the size of the family. Every family should have enough to sustain themselves. The church also dominated political authority. Only male church member could vote, pass taxes, settle disputed, hold town meetings and appoint government officials. The government of the New England colonies was centered on religion whereas the government of the Chesapeake colonies was centered on planters. The differences are due to the original purpose of each region/colony. Virginia and Maryland were founded primarily for commercial venture causing land and commodities to become most important, thereby having land equated power. Massachusetts and Plymouth were founded primarily for refuge for English separatists or puritans causing religion to become the most important aspect of colonial life and thereby giving power to the church. All in all the New England and Chesapeake settlements evolved into two distinct societies despite their English origin due to their economic and political differences. The economy of New England was based on mercantilism and reciprocity/cooperation whereas the economy of Chesapeake was based on agriculture and slave labor. The political system also differed in that New England was based on religion whereas Chesapeake was based on the landed aristocracy and the planters. The differences caused the different regions to develop distinctive needs in order for the regions to prosper, leading to two distinctive societies.

Sunday, July 21, 2019

Sustainable Public Procurement vs Green Public Procurement

Sustainable Public Procurement vs Green Public Procurement This section provides the background to the research and overview or outlines the overall framework of the dissertation. It describe the research process that include research problem, problem statement, aim, and objectives of the research, the scope of research being investigated, methodology adopted and finally the summary of the overall research structure undertaken. 1.0.2 Background Sustainability have become a widespread issue in developing countries as the effort to develop the country and conserving the Mother Nature at the same time increased. This effort is also due to the commitment agreed after United Nation Conference on Environment and Development in 1992 established Agenda 21. The Agenda 21 which contains blueprints on sustainability in 21st century was agreed by most of the governments to incorporate the sustainability concept in developments and economic area but still preserving the environment and natural resources. The construction industry is in no exception. Construction industry contributes 3.5 per cent to the countrys gross domestic product in 2011 (Jabatan Statistik Malaysia,2011) . These consist mainly of public sector projects under governments development programme. This indicates that the government have a big role to encourage the sustainability concept since they are the client with the biggest purchasing power. The sustainability developments by the Malaysian Green Technology Policy 2009 are the development of products, equipment and systems used to conserve the natural environment and resources, which minimizes and reduces the negative impact of human activities. While procurement is defined as a process that produces, manages and fulfils contract relating to various works such as construction, leasing properties, discarding properties or give permission for a project (Watermeyer,2004). The local government have the power to incorporate sustainability in its project through sustainable procurement. Sustainable procurement ensures that the project tendered by contractor have the element of sustainability incorporated inside the documents. By using their leverage to opt for goods and services that also respects the environment they can influence the contractor to include more energy efficient building system (Walker H., Brammer, 2009). This give a clear signal to the procurement parties to use environmental efficient technologies in the buildings as stated in the contract. Among the local government in other country that used sustainable procurement system is the Dutch Ministry for Economic Affairs. Their agency, Senter Novem defined sustainable procurement as applying environmental and social aspects in all stages of the procurement process to ensure that it results in the actual delivery of product, service or work in line with such environmental and social aspects. It is also defined as construction that brings about the required performance with the least unfavourable ecological impacts while encouraging economic, social and cultural improvement at local, regional and global level. (Taipale, 2010) 1.1 PROBLEM STATEMENT Sustainability is one of the five main areas of the Government Transformation Programme. Therefore, in order to achieve this, the policies need to be enforced. This is to ensure the implementation will take place and change can be seen. However, sustainable procurement is also important which are not well known in Malaysian construction industry. There is a need to know the level of awareness of this procurement so that it can help policy makers to do policies that are applicable to Malaysian environment. This is because Malaysia have a strong foundation in the sustainability issue but still lacking in implementation level. As stated by Perera et. al (2007), law and policies are not enough to change the usual traditional procurement system which are based on value for money rather than the whole life of value of the project. According to CIMP 2006-2015, road to sustainability is expected to come by 2015. However, 2015 is getting near and the changes are still yet to be seen. 1.2 AIMS AND OBJECTIVES 1.2.1 AIMS This paper aims to discover the awareness of construction industry players of the sustainable procurement. It is can be used to discover the problems that hinder or cause the industry players hesitant to incorporate sustainability in procurement even though there are various policies available nowadays. By using natural materials in the design does not mean the building is sustainable. Everything that came from the Mother Nature does not necessarily sustainable to begin with. For example, tyres which made out of 100% natural ingredient which is rubber. Therefore, it is hoped that the understanding of sustainability itself and the ability to incorporate sustainable into procurement can be done. 1.2.2 RESEARCH OBJECTIVES a. To identify the awareness of the construction industry players about sustainable procurement. b. To identify the problems in implementation level. c. To find appropriate recommendation to encourage the use of sustainable public procurement in public projects. 1.3 SCOPE OF RESEARCH The scope of this paper will limit on the procurements for public projects as the projects in Malaysia are mostly from the Government development programmes. The scope will limit for government projects in Sarawak only. 1.4 RESEARCH METHODOLOGY The research methodology will explain how the objectives of this study can be achieved. This chapter will show the flow and the method used to gather the data and information to achieve the objective of study. The data and information will be adopted by specific approach depend on the nature of the investigation. It can be categorized into two stages: Data collection methods are an integral part of research design in any research. Data can be collected in variety of ways and in different setting. Data can be obtained from primary and secondary data. The primary data refer to information which gathered from first hand experiences in the specific of studies. Then, the secondary data is the data which are collected from the publish data or the data collected which are already existed. Primary Data Questionnaires Questionnaires will be given out to Quantity Surveyors, Engineers and other construction industry related job such as contract administrators and others. The questionnaires are intended to assemble all the information that needed to prove the objective of the research paper. Secondary Data The Literature Review was carried out to establish some general knowledge of the research topic. A clearer framework of the research was established for secondary data. These are all obtained from: Journals Articles Information from internet Dissertation Publisher research work Books 7.0 TENTATIVE CHAPTER HEADINGS Chapter 1: Introduction The introduction will discuss on issues relating to sustainable construction and sustainability in procurements. Other items included under this heading are problem statements, aim and objectives and scope of the study. This chapter will also line out the research methodology of the research paper and its significant to the construction industry. Chapter 2: Literature Review Chapter 2 will review on the sustainable procurement principles, the distinction between sustainable and green procurement. The chapter will also review the other countries that have taken steps to implement sustainable procurement in the public projects. The characteristics, benefits and the procurement practices in Malaysia will also be reviewed under this heading. Chapter 3: Sustainable Procurement This heading will further discuss on the integration of the sustainability into procurement. The chapter will also discuss the application of sustainable procurement in other countries such as United Kingdom. The National policies on sustainability issues will also be discussed in this chapter. This is to show that Malaysia have strong foundation on policy but lack in implementation. The roles of Government in implementing sustainable procurement will also be discussed. Chapter 4: Data Analysis And Findings This chapter will discuss on the data obtained and findings on the research. Chapter 5: Conclusion and Recommendations This chapter will conclude on the overall issues and recommend the suitable solution. CHAPTER 2:Â  LITERATURE REVIEW 2.0 INTRODUCTION Nowadays, the consumption of goods and services causes the emission of chemical substances, mass use of natural resources and other activity generates waste and pollution. Sustainable procurement ensure the environmental, social and economic objective is achieved. The construction industry uses a lot of natural resources, waste and pollution. In order to control these problems, the solution must start from the procurement itself. Malaysian construction industry has no problem in adopting and implementing the sustainable practices however, due to lack of knowledge and due to financial constraints the progress are slow (Othman R., 2008). 2.1 SUSTAINABLE PROCUREMENT: AN OVERVIEW 2.1.1 Principle According to United Nation, sustainable principle is based on environmental, social and economic consideration. These three objective must be combined together to produce a sustainable procurement. The procurement strategy must consider the life cycle value of the project, social impact and the economic benefits. The life cycle value of the project does not means the value in terms of financial value only. The life cycle value of the project in sustainable procurement also means the project have lower environmental impact. This ensures that the building is not only green initially, but also after end of use. The building components must consist of materials that are Eco labelled. Among the energy rating label on product is Energy Star. Energy Star is an international recognized standard for electrical product. A procurement officer can check whether the product such as air conditioner have an Energy Star label. Other than that, the procurement officer can refer to the specification i n Energy Stars website. This is to ensure the product is energy efficient and have lower environmental impact. Sustainable procurement gives impact socially by supporting the local businesses. Supporting businesses by single mother is also considered helping the social level to progress. When support is given to these local businesses, their business will eventually grow and job opportunity created. Economically, if there is a demand for green innovative product the market will try to supply more of the similar products and probably more competitive price can be obtained from the market. This opens up a bigger market for sustainable products. More variety of products with reasonable price will be available. The assessment of economic sustainability considers not only the initial investment in land and construction, but also questions such as the cost of maintaining and operating a building over a longer period of time. Social and societal sustainability covers issues which are often closely linked with economic and environmental ones, such as access to basic services, upgrading poor housing conditions, creating decent jobs, fair trade of construction materials, transparency. of tenders for contracts., cultural values embedded in old buildings, and accessibility to buildings. (Taipale, 2010). 2.1.2 Sustainable VS. Green Although the term green and sustainability used interchangeably, there is a difference of green and sustainable construction. For green buildings (the middle-size box), common phases of the life cycle for the building are incorporated into construction. Indoor environmental quality is a variable added into the green building model compared to the conventional building model. In green building, the stage of incorporating green character of a building only started during design stage. While for sustainable, the concept are incorporated since the pre-design stage. During pre-design stage, all the design team, owners and all other parties involved need to establish and understand the objectives on sustainability. They also need to share their opinions on sustainability and agree on common priorities including the potential challenges on reusing and refurbishing the building. They need to learn lessons from best practices on other projects to examine possible changes or innovations for th e proposed building. (Taipale, 2010) In sustainable buildings (the bigger box), the numbers of variables and stages of the building life-cycle considered are even larger. Based on the figure 2.1, the concept of sustainability comprises of whole building life cycle value. Variable such as site selection, project planning and urban design, service quality, social and economic aspect and cultural and perceptual aspect are added to this model. In pre design stage, site selection is considered important. Selection of site must not give negative impacts to the surrounding environment. Impacts on groundwater, natural resources, decrease in accessibility, pollution to soil and orientation of sun and wind are several items that need to be considered for site selection. 2.1.2 Why sustainability need to be integrated with procurement? Through procurement that requires sustainability to be incorporated in the construction, the market will see a signal to supply more sustainable products to meet the criteria. This is because where there is demand, there will be supply. Laymans checklist shows that procurement is one of the issues that need to be taken account during construction of sustainable buildings. 2.1.3 Sustainable Procurement: A Global Issue Sustainable procurement is already enforced in New Zealand, United Kingdom..___. The Marrakech Project is a task force formed to do the framework on sustainable procurement as a result from Agenda 21. According to Marrakech Force, Japan According to Shohei Yamada from Ministry of Environment Japan, the key Japans success in green purchasing is due to the law in green purchasing that are strictly enforced and implemented in by Japans government. Switzerland Marrakech Task Force United Kingdom Sustainable Procurement Action Plan 2.2 National Policy On Sustainability Issue Malaysia had taken a step towards sustainability after Rio Summit in 1992. The summit requires various countries to commit on the sustainable development issue. There were 27 principles of sustainable development identified during the conference. During Rio Summit, there is also a guideline on sustainable development which is known as Agenda 21. After Rio Summit in 1992, Malaysian government introduced the Malaysian National Environment Policy. (elaborate) The development of various initiatives and policy of sustainable development in Malaysia started since the Kyoto Declaration in 2002 is signed by various countries. Benefits of Sustainable Procurement There are several benefits listed by Kennard (2006) for sustainable procurements. Among them are: Control costs by adopting a wider approach to whole life costing. When wider approach to whole life costing is adopted, the once considered expensive item will be seen as cost saving in long term. This is through the efficient use of the sustainable material and products. Several research and best practices proved that by evaluating the life cycle value of the building, positive social and environmental impact can be achieved. For example in choosing the type of bulb to be used in a building. The energy saving bulb initial cost is expensive. But it uses less energy which brings to less electricity current. The bulb also long lasting therefore it does not require change regularly. This reduces the maintenance cost of the building operation. Comply with environmental and social legislation. There are various tools implemented by the Government in environmental and social legislation to improve sustainability such as transforming Ministry of Communication, Water and Energy to Ministry of KETTHA. There are also guidelines in developing a sustainable development in National Urbanization Policy. Incentives are also given such as exemption from tax if a developer achieves the Green Building Index certificate. There is also a Green Technology Funding Scheme (GTFS) where the construction fulfils the criteria in Table 2.0. No. Criteria Elaboration Requirement 1 Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy By using the building orientation as a method to optimise the consumption of energy. For example to get good natural lighting, the orientation of the building must be towards the sunlight. The building also need to use building services that use renewable energy, ensure proper testing made to the services and do regular maintenance. Minimum Energy Efficient Performance Compliance to minimum requirement of MS1525:2007 Renewable Energy 2 Indoor Environmental Quality Good indoor air quality, acoustics, visual and thermal comfort. This includes using a low volatile organic compound materials, use a quality air filtration system, proper control of air temperature, movement and humidity. Minimum IAQ Performance Minimum indoor air quality (IAQ) performance to enhance indoor air quality in building, thus contributing to the comfort and well-being of the occupants. Low indoor air pollutants, mould prevention 3 Sustainable Site Planning and Management Selecting appropriate sites with planned access to public transportation, community services, open spaces and landscaping. Avoiding and conserving environmentally sensitive areas through the redevelopment of existing sites and brownfields. Implementing proper construction management, storm water management and reducing the strain on existing infrastructure capacity. Environment Management Conserve existing natural area Restore damaged area to provide habitat Promote biodiversity Maximize open space by providing a high ratio of open space to development footprint to promote biodiversity. Earthworks Construction activity pollution control and Reduce social impact to surrounding. Public transportation access Reduce pollution and land development impacts from automobile use. Storm water design to limit the disruption of natural hydrology Reduce heat island effect. 4 Materials and Resources Use products that are from environmental friendly and recyclable source. Implement a proper waste management system, with storage, collection and reuse of recyclables and construction waste and formworks. Materials reuse and recycle content materials and construction waste management. Use of environmentally-friendly Refrigerants and Clean Agents. 5 Water Efficiency Practices rainwater harvesting, water recycling and water saving fittings Rainwater Harvesting to reduce potable water consumption. Water Recycling to reduce potable water consumption. Water Efficient Irrigation/ Landscaping Encourage the design of system that does not require the use of potable water supply from the local water reticulation. Water Efficient Fittings Encourage reduction in potable water consumption through use of efficient devices. Metering Leak Detection System Encourage the design of systems that monitors and manages water consumption. 6 Innovation Use an innovative design and initiatives in promoting energy efficiency that meets the goal of Green Building Index Innovation in design environmental design initiatives that contribute to reduce impact to the environment. Green building accredited facilitator To support and encourage the design integration required for green / sustainable building rated buildings and to streamline the application and certification process. Table 2.0 : Criteria and Requirements for obtaining Green Technology Funding Scheme (GTFS) (Source : http://www.gtfs.my/page/criteria-building-and-township-sector) There are also rebates for those who procure the air conditioning, refrigerator or chiller which are rated 5-star by Suruhanjaya Tenaga. The Government are encouraging the consumers to use energy efficient appliances by listing the 5-star rated products in the website. They also provide a savings calculator to show how much saving the consumer can get if they use an energy efficient electrical appliances. This is to help create a culture of efficient use of energy into consumers and business entities. Manage risk and reputation. In order to implement the sustainable procurement, an organization needs to fully change its policies and procedures. It is vital that the sustainability criteria are integrated into the management itself before it is applied to other areas such as procurement. The existing procurement practice and policies need to be evaluated to clarify what the organization really needed to purchase. The procurement policies need to adopt sustainable strategies in order to manage unnecessary consumption and demand thus reducing the impact of energy use to environment. By producing a guideline of the procurement policy, the performance of sustainable procurement can be measured in future. Thus sustainable procurement goals can be developed from time to time. This process will provide a measurement for re-evaluating the sustainability of the supply chain and build a reputation for the organization as an organization that practices good ethical value of sustainable in procurement. (Kennard, 2006) CHAPTER 3 3.0 INTRODUCTION According to Kallet (2004), a studys validity is judged based on the method section of a research paper which provides all of the information in a study. Therefore, a solid research methodology planning precise description of each action must be prepared prior to the commencement of a particular research study. The credibility of the outcome of the research and how the research can be applied in a general population interest is referred as validity (Kallet, 2004). Therefore, the authenticity of content in a research paper are depending on the degree of the validity of its outcome to the overall population and ability of the research paper to be used as future reference. Hulley et.al (1988) as cited by Kallet (2004), stated that the credibility of a study is solely determined by the degree to which conclusion drawn from a research correctly what actually transpired during a study, known as Internal Validity. Moreover, Kallets 2004 study (Hulley et.al, 1988) stated that as for External validity refers to whether the result of a study depending on the degree of the study can be generalized to a larger population. Planning a research methodology before the execution of a research study is essential in ensuring that the outcome of the study which was based on its objectives can be reached and its degree of validity is credible for future reference. 3.1 RESEARCH METHODOLOGY OF THE TOPIC 3.1.1 Objectives of the Study The research on the has three most important goals or objective which comprises of the following: To identify the awareness of the construction industry players about sustainable procurement. To identify the problems in implementation level of sustainable procurement in construction industry. To find appropriate recommendation to encourage the use of sustainable public procurement in public projects. These three main objectives were set out as a guideline in executing the research study on the topic. The methodologies used in order to obtain valuable information for this research study are based on sources from both Primary and Secondary Data. Primary Data for this research study was obtained by means of interviews with numerous individual and site visits. Among the barriers in obtaining the primary data was the restriction due to governmental policies, availability of the person in- charge, communication barriers, bureaucracy hassle, public transportation breakdown, financial limit, time constraint, and weather condition. As for the Secondary Data, the information was obtained from journals, articles, electronic information, dissertations, publisher research work, and book of related topic. 3.1.2 Summary of Research Methodology 3.1.2.1 Primary Data Due to the effect of degree of validity of a research study to the credibility of the outcome of the study, the data obtained for executing the study is scrutinized and filtered in order to obtain only the worthy information. Primary data can be defined as the first hand data that was obtain by the researcher prior to the commencement of the research, it is the foremost sources of information which was obtained from both interviews and site visits. Prior to the these data gathering can commence, a letter of consent for request of approval for using the project as a case study was submitted to the responsible being for approval and official notification. The interviews were carried out largely at the mentioned public department. Among the individual interviewed was the Head of the Developers, Quantity Surveyors, Civil Engineers, Architects, and Contractor and also other parties that involved and understand the procurement content. 3.2.2.2 Secondary Data According to Stacks (2002), secondary data can be defined as report on the outcome of the primary data. It is not as authoritative as the primary data as it often provides broad background and readily improves ones learning curve. Therefore, obviously the secondary data is not as reliable as the primary data. The secondary data used in this research is obtained from books related to the research topic, articles, journals, electronic information, dissertations, and public works research. 3.2 SOURCE OF RESEARCH DATA 3.2.3 Primary data Primary data obtained for the purpose of the study consist of interviews and site visits. Interviews The interviews carried out for the purpose of this study can be divided into two, namely : Semi structured interviews. Informal interviews. 3.2.3.1.1 Semi Structured Interviews Rashid (1998) suggested that it is more desirable to conduct a semi-structured interview which is closer to the qualitative research method in order to be balanced and attempt to obtain additional information that would enrich the quantitative data obtained through questionnaire survey. As the nature of the investigation is a combination of qualitative and quantitative that seek for the answer for open-ended and close-ended questions of why and how therefore, it is more appropriate to conduct semi-structured interview in which it provides opportunities to researcher to capture both data. To ensure the smoothness and to facilitate the respondents in answering the questions, the following guides and procedures were followed: The main instructions were clearly explained during the beginning of interview sessions. Each respondents were requested to discuss on one or more specific projects that has been selected during content analysis prior to the interview in which they were directly involved in the strategic briefing process. The respondents were allowed to express their opinion freely in the future outlook of sustainable procurement in construction industry, in order to explore potential variables and concepts that may have been overlooking during literature review. The questions were design to be short and simple, which developed from objectives of the research. A five-point rating scale were used for close-ended questions with choices of responses of : 1 Not at all aware 2 Slightly aware 3 Somewhat aware 4 Moderately aware 5 Extremely aware 3.2.3.1.2 Informal Interviews Informal interviews were carried out by means of telecommunication such as telephone calls, emails, and Short Messaging System or better known as SMS. This type of interview were conducted in order to acquire basic information such as the availability of the person in charge, hardcopy information for appendix purposes, and other related references. 3.2.3.1.3 Questionnaires The final stage of data collection is a postal questionnaire survey. The primary objective of postal questionnaire survey is to measure the level of clients practices during briefing. It also carried out to measure the level of project success based on perception of the architects in-charged for the selected project. Responses and variables on clients practices during briefing and level of project success obtained from the survey were used to validate findings on semi-structured interview on the previous stage of data collection, in order to have reliable, unbiased and meaningful data. Given that the location of the respondents were relatively remote, financial limitation and constrained by timeline of the study, a postal questionnaire survey was observed as the most appropriate method to collecting data from the respondents. According to Sekaran (2003), the main advantage of mail questionnaire is that a wide geographical area can be covered in the survey. Naoum (1998) added it is more suited to assembling a mass of information at a minimum expense in terms of finance, human and other resources. A set of question was developed for the purpose of the survey in which divided into several sections that covered background of the respondents, level of knowledge and concept of sustainable development and construction, application of sustainability in procurement, barriers to implement sustainable procurement in construction industry and future outlook of the sustainable procurement in construction. To encourage high response rate and to ensure the required information were obtained, the following guides and procedures were followed: The questions were design to be short and simple, and were formatted on A4 sizes paper. The main instructions were clearly printed in the front page of the questionnaire form. The questionnaire was divided into several sections, according to research objectives and category of information required. Refer to Appendix 1 for copy of questionnaire used in the postal questionnaire survey. Secondary Data According to Ober (2008), secondary data is not as good as the primary data , however, it is not the worst kind of data that can be used in completing a research study. Moreover, there are many advantageous in applying the secondary data as a method in completing a research study, this is due to the facts that it is low in term of cost and less time consuming than gathering primary data, therefore, secondary data will help save money, energy, and time. However, it also holds its own disadvantages in terms of the quality of the available data and its availability for a particular topic of a research study. Most of the secondary data gathered in this study was obtained from construction journals and articles. The secondary data for this research was also gathered from the electronic

Principles of the 1948 National Health Service

Principles of the 1948 National Health Service This assignment will outline the main principles of the 1948 National Health Service and will provide a commentary on the organisation and structure of the NHS. To begin this assignment will provide context by briefly exploring healthcare provision prior to the development and implementation of the NHS. Healthcare Pre-NHS Godber (1988) suggests that prior to the development of the NHS the Poor Law had provided health care support for the indigent in Britain for nearly a century and this included institutions and infirmary wards with a medical officer in charge to provide healthcare with the larger ones gradually taking on the functions of general hospitals for the acutely ill. Voluntary hospitals, which were often run by charitable organisations developed specialist services. Hospitals for patients with communicable diseases, tuberculosis, and mental illness and handicap had long been provided by local authorities; originally for public safety. Hospital surveys carried out during the Second World War revealed not only shortages of beds and buildings in a poor state, but that services were not provided in the areas which most needed them (Powell, 1992). From 1911 personal health care for low income workers was provided through National Health Insurance; however this did not cover hospital care. Other medical care was often delivered by general practitioners and payment for services was a matter for the individual, therefore it was often the rich or affluent that had access to healthcare rather than the lower classes. The Beveridge Report of 1942; which was a very influential report on social insurance and allied services, identified five evils within the society of the day: want, ignorance, disease, squalor and idleness. It was recommended in this report that a compulsory system of state insurance (to which employers, employees and the state would contribute) would be established to cover sickness, unemployment, retirement pensions and support for young families (National Archives, 2011a). The Beveridge Report (1942) pointed to the establishment of a comprehensive national health service as a necessary underpinning to a national social insurance scheme. The Labour Party had a long-standing commitment to a national health service and when they came into office in July 1945, Aneurin Bevan was appointed Minister of Health. Within a matter of weeks, Bevan produced a plan for a fully nationalized and regionalized National Health Service (National Archive, 2011b). At the conclusion of the Second World War Britons wanted a change in how healthcare was delivered particularly as medical care had made big advances in the war, soldiers had been offered higher standards of care than they were likely to encounter after demobilisation (Portillo, 1998). Civil servants and politicians had identified a growing momentum towards change and began looking at opportunities for transformation in how health care was provided. The National Health Service Britains National Health Service came into effect on the 5th of July 1948; it was the first health system to supply free medical care to the whole population and the first healthcare provision that was based not on an insurance principle but on the provision of services available to everyone (Klein, 2006). The transformation from fragmented and inadequate care provision to a structured and accessible body was unique and although planning had taken many years with varying obstacles; such as the outbreak of war and changes in political leadership, the implementation of a progressive and universal way of delivering care to all was finally introduced. As such, the new health service arguably constituted the single biggest organizational change and greatest improvement in health care ever experienced in the nations history (Webster, 1998). The NHS brought together all of the hospitals; regardless of ownership, and also the doctors, nurses, pharmacists, opticians and dentists that were once paid through charity or private funds into one organization. The Main Principles of the NHS Underpinning the NHS is a set of core principles and Bevan (1952) stated that the essence of a satisfactory health service is that the rich and the poor are treated alike, that poverty is not a disability, and wealth is not advantaged. With the development of a national health service the three main core principles cited by Bevan (1948) were that it met the needs of everyone, it should be free at the point of delivery and that it should be based on clinical need, not on the ability to pay. These principles ensured that every member of the British nation from young to old and from rich to poor were able to receive free health care for any medical condition, a phenomena that was unusual to say the least in comparison to how heath care had been delivered previously. The introduction of the National Health Service ensured medical treatment and poor health was not overshadowed by concern regarding finances and payment or that members of society lived in fear of medical expenses they could not afford. Beckett (2004) suggests that within a month of the vesting day of the National Health Service, in 1948, 97 per cent of the general public were signed up for treatment. This was viewed as a triumph for the minister of health, Aneurin Bevan, as it was perceived that he had built a system of care and disease prevention on a set of principles never seen before in any global society. These core principles ensured that everyone would have their healthcare needs met and even today the three principles remain the foundations from which modern health care services are delivered; in essence homeless people requiring care for frostbite or dental pain can receive access to health care as can wealthy property developers who have had a skiing accident or have the need for a wisdom tooth to be removed. The National Health Service may be perceived to be free to those requiring medical care and treatment, however the service requires funding to ensure practitioners employed are pad and that resources such as medicines, equipment and treatment areas are funded. To do this from inception the NHS has been funded by a system of taxation levied by the government, contributions are made through systems of national insurance contributions and income tax with small amounts being made through private practice under the NHS umbrella (Rivett, 1998). From 1948: The structure of the NHS Under the 1946 National Health Service Act, it was recommended that the health minister had the duty to promote in England and Wales a comprehensive health service which was to be developed with the purpose of improving the physical and mental health of the population and to oversee the move towards prevention, diagnosis and treatment of disease and illness. The services to be provided to meet these aims were to be free of charge and for the first time, the Minister of Health was made personally accountable to Parliament for hospital and other specialised services in addition to being indirectly responsible for family practitioner and local health services (Levitt et al., 1999). He was indirectly responsible for family practitioner and local health services. The structure of the newly formed National Health meant that all hospitals were nationalised and they were managed by either regional hospital boards or boards of governors who were accountable directly to the minister for health. Funding was provided directly by the ministry of health to the regional health boards and this in turn was given to the hospital management committees who had the responsibility for the management of budgets and funding for services (Levitt et al., 1999). As family practitioner services had refused to be managed and overseen by the newly formed National Health Service and Ministry of Health, executive councils were formed to ensure services such as general medical, dental and ophthalmic resources were delivered, these were referred to as Primary Care services. Local authority departments were made responsible for community health services, including health visitors and district nurses, vaccinations and immunisations, maternal and child welfare, ambulance services and services for the mentally ill and those with learning disabilities who were not in hospital (Bristol Royal Infirmary Inquiry, 2001). From 1948: The Changing Organisation of the NHS During the early stages of the NHS it is identified that there was a three part structure that had three branches which included; hospitals, primary care and local authority health services. This structure prevailed until 1974 when a more integrated arrangement was introduced which held three distinct levels of management at a regional, area and district level. A change of government to conservative leadership in the 1970 general election meant that the three part structure of the NHS that had been prevalent since the beginning of the service implementation became replaced in favour of new local authority control. General practitioners, hospitals, health centres and nursing services were brought under the control of a single area health authority which reported to regional health authorities (National Archives, 2011c). An American economist in the 1980s produced a highly critical report of the NHS suggesting that it was inefficient, riddled with perverse incentives and also that it had become a culture that was resistant to change (Enthoven, 1985). Due to the damning nature of this report the organisation of the NHS once again changed and it was suggested by Enthoven (1985) that the NHS would be more efficient if it was organized on something more like economic market principles. Enthoven (1985) argued for a split between purchaser and provider, so that Health Authorities could exercise more effective control over costs and production as a result the NHS administration was broken up into trusts from which authorities bought services. The role of Regional Health Authorities was taken over by 8 regional offices of the NHS management executive and this process ensured that the NHS became truly a nationally administered and centralized service (Klein, 2006). With changing governments there has been ongoing change reflected within the organizational structure of the NHS. Within recent years the labour government had attempted to alter the structure of the NHS by introducing strategic health authorities and Primary Care Trusts. In recent months with the election of the coalition conservative and liberal government yet more new organizational changes to the NHS have been identified. Ramesh (2011) has identified that the NHS will undergo a radical pro-market shakeup with hospitals, private healthcare providers and family doctors competing for patients who will be able to choose treatment and care in plans laid out by the government today. These changes will aim to reduce the numbers of management staff that are present within the current labour determined legacy within the NHS and the new approach will also allow NHS hospitals to chase private patients as long as the money is demonstrably ploughed back into the health service (Ramesh, 2011). Andrew Lansley, the health secretary for the current coalition government presented to parliament in July 2010 a white paper which set out ambitious plans for the NHS. These plans had a simple aim: to deliver health outcomes for patients which are among the best in the world, harnessing the knowledge, innovation and creativity of patients, communities and frontline staff in order to do so (Lansley, 2010). The White Paper, Liberating the NHS (Department of Health, 2010) suggests that it will abolish all of Englands 152 primary care trusts, which currently plan services and decide how money should be spent; these radical proposals would save the taxpayer more than  £10bn over the next decade and under the plans, GPs will be responsible for buying in patient care from 2013, with a new NHS commissioning board overseeing the process (Department of Health, 2010). Conclusion The work of Beveridge and Bevan in the 1940s was undoubtedly pioneering and visionary with many members of society being able to access healthcare for the first time regardless of their financial means. The implementation of the NHS ensured that healthcare was available to everybody regardless of means and that it would be free from the point of delivery, principles that remain in essence part of modern day healthcare and National Health Services. The NHS has seen many governmental changes since 1948, it has been re-organized and the structure has altered, however regardless of this it has remained a service that all British people can access and a service that many other countries have been unable to replicate. The foundation of the NHS was challenging and there were many critics, however the foresight of political leaders such as Bevan and Beveridge ensured health care remains free at the point of delivery in this country.

Saturday, July 20, 2019

Nietzsches Revaluation of All Values Essay -- Philosophy Nietzsche Es

In the nineteenth century, popular philosophy - particularly the Hegelian dialectic - professed that mankind was developing in an upward direction, becoming more angelic as it were. Man's moral laws were more advanced, as support for democracy and equal rights were beginning to become popular. However, Friedrich Nietzsche believed that mankind was entering a downward spiral towards complete decadence. Modern man, with its 'advanced' morality, was, in truth, decaying on the inside. Claims of morality merely masked modern man's decay: he is veiled behind moral formulas and concepts of decency?. [not] to mask human malice and villainy?. [but] it is precisely as tame animals that we are a shameful sight?. The European disguises himself with morality because he has become a sick, sickly, crippled animal that has good reasons for being ?tame?. [GS 352] Nietzsche believed this to be a form of nihilism because mankind valued precisely what was halting his advancement. With this in mind, Nietzsche began his bold movement towards the revaluation of all values. We need a critique of moral values, the value of these values should itself, for once, be examined?. [What if] morality itself were to blame if man, as a species, never reached his highest potential power and splendour? [GM P 6] In this essay I will first look at several reasons for the necessity of a revaluation of all values. Then I shall look at Nietzsche?s conception of the ?noble? and how through egoism, they can undertake the revaluation of all values. Nietzsche?s most famous statement is, without a doubt, that ?God is dead? (GS 108/125, Z P 2, etc.). Through many years of being quoted, contemporary society seems to have lost the significance of such a profound statement. Perhaps the most frightening aspect of this statement is that ?we have killed him - you and I. All of us are his murderers? (GS 125). It is important to remember that Nietzsche did not believe this to be a literal event. Instead, he explains ?that the belief in the Christian god has become unbelievable? (GS 343). Such disbelief has begun to cast morality, indeed mankind?s meaning, into doubt. Without God, how can universal moral truths be justified? Where is the meaning of man? What were we doing when we unchained this earth from its sun? Whither is it moving now? Whither are we moving? Away from all suns? Are we not plung... ...ss that of all, all! [GS 335] Nietzsche believed that the ego is very important for the revaluation of values. It provides a person with the proper attitude to look within himself and determine those values that are in accordance with personal well-being. The ego also gives the person the conviction to act upon them. In the end, Nietzsche began to perceive that his ?wicked thoughts? on the revaluation of all values were themselves becoming eternal truths: ?you have already taken off your novelty, and some of you are ready, I fear, to become truths: they already look so immortal, so pathetically decent, so dull!? (BGE 296) Nietzsche implies that his views on issues might not be correct, such as when he claims ?assuming that it is now known at the outset how very much these are after all only - my truths? (BGE 231) before beginning a sad tirade on women. The danger of stating a method of creating truth that is indefinite is that certain aspects will be cast into truths in the future, much against the spirit of Nietzsche. While his elitist views might seem extreme, perhaps he is only offering his truth to creating meaning, and it is our individual duty to come up with our own.

Friday, July 19, 2019

Internet Security Systems :: essays research papers fc

According to a 2002 survey by the FBI, "the threat from computer crime and other information security breaches continues unabated and...the financial toll is mounting." Some disturbing statistics include: * 90 percent of those responding had at least one security problem. * 85 percent had detected viruses on their computers. * 80 percent said that they had lost money due to a security problem. * 75 percent reported frequent online attacks. Financial losses from Internet security problems continue to grow. At least 20% of organizations reported losses from online theft of private information in 2002. The average size of those losses was over $6.5 million, which was seven times as much as in 1997. Some of the increase is attributed to better reporting and more awareness of the problem, but much of the increase is due to increasing sophistication and persistence of online attackers (Kent & Piscitello 49). Threats to Internet security used to take the form of viruses, worms, and malicious code designed to make a system unstable, or delete certain files. These unwelcome intruders even often announced their arrival with an announcement on the screen or some other visual disturbance that signaled a problem to the user. In contrast, security threats today are much more sophisticated, and are often undetectable. Rather than simply wanting to cause trouble and inconvenience for a user, these threats have the purpose of stealing confidential information from the target computer, including things like passwords, keys for reading encrypted messages, or even recording keystrokes (Martin 18). Known commonly as spyware, these programs often are used to track the Web sites that a user visits, so as to gather marketing information. But there is less benign spyware that is able to change browser settings, scan files on a hard drive, or install programs without the user knowing. A user may unwittingly download a spyware program along with games, media players, peer-to-peer programs, or other utilities. In some cases, the user unknowingly agrees to the spyware installation by clicking â€Å"yes† to a user agreement without reading it through first. Spyware consumes memory and processing resources, invades privacy, and can promote system instability. It is often difficult to remove once installed on a computer. Ways to reduce the risk from spyware include updating security policies to allow only trusted software for download, and investigating the source of any program before downloading it, to make sure it is reputable.

Thursday, July 18, 2019

Family and community Essay

Several factors influence student’s learning. These may be enumerated as individual experiences, talents, and prior learning, as well as language, culture, gender, health, family, and community. It is essential to understand and analyze these factors to make successful students from the perspective of the teacher. Individual experiences Individual experiences of students influence student learning as it is only through the use of meaningful information, personal experiences and the student’s thoughts and beliefs that they can develop their knowledge and enhance their learning strategies and cognitive skills. Their experiences and responsibilities make them goal oriented and they contribute to their individual learning. Through their experiences, they will be able to access their preference of learning and its pace. However, as these preferences may not always help them, the educators must help them with their experiences and preferences and modify whenever required. Experiences also create individualism and differences among the students. Thus, the educators must be sensitive to their differences and allow them to adapt in their own ways, building their individual approaches and strategies. As the student learns to relate new information with his or her experience, his knowledge broadens and deepens. As we will learn later on, individual experiences, both academic and personal, builds our prior knowledge, which is very important for the students and effects student learning. (Edelman, 2005) Talents Some individuals are born with and some develop their individual talents and capabilities. The talent of an individual determines the nature of the relation among his new experiences and new information gathered. Thus, his talent can reorganize, modify and even add to his existing knowledge. However, there is some distinction among talent and giftedness. While giftedness requires one to possess and use his spontaneously expressed and completely untrained natural abilities or gifts or aptitudes so that he can be among the best in his age group, on the other hand talent requires the capability to systematically develop knowledge and skills or abilities in one field so that the child can be above others in his age group. Thus, talent influences the learning abilities of a child greatly. As talents are nothing but natural anilities of a child, faster and easier learning processes help to develop greater natural abilities or talents in a student. Talent affects the intelligence of a student, which determines his ability to reason things. A student’s talent also motivates him to perform better than the others helping in his learning process. (Kar, 2006) Prior learning A student’s prior learning affects his capabilities, approaches and strategies thus, influencing his learning abilities. As said earlier new knowledge needs to be integrated with the student’s prior knowledge to increase his learning abilities. Nevertheless, if the student does not have any prior knowledge then this integration will not take place isolating the new knowledge, which the student will not be able to utilize in his new tasks. In addition, those students who have some idea about a certain topic learn faster than others do. They can readily link their prior knowledge to the new one infusing them to increase their knowledge database. Prior knowledge also generates curiosity and interest in the student to learn more thus, helping him in his learning. Students also learn faster and can remember things better if they can link new information to an appropriate prior knowledge. This mainly helps during examinations. The students also listen to their educators and pay better attention increasing their learning. Prior learning definitely influences student learning since it builds up self-esteem in the student and they find themselves in familiar grounds when attending a lecture. In addition, the process of learning begins with prior knowledge and proceeds with newly presented information. In addition, if the students do not have any understanding or knowledge about what they are learning they may become frustrated feeling inadequate and unsuccessful. (Edelman, 2005) Language A student’s language greatly affects his learning abilities. As most of the students are proficient in their native languages, they are more comfortable when taught in the same language. They understand more and thus, are able to learn more. Nevertheless, they also need to learn the universally dominant language, English, even if it may be difficult for some students to learn. All the educators may not be proficient in the student’s native language and thus, if he is not able to understand the language used in the lectures he will be left behind in his studies. Thus, there should be a common language of interaction between the students and educators and among the students themselves so that they can communicate with each other. Thus, the more the student is academically sophisticated in his language skills the easier it will become for him to increase his abilities and knowledge. (Fletcher, 2005) Culture Culture includes religion, ethnicity, socio-economic background and even at times gender. Thus, it is evident that culture definitely affects student learning. Their individual experiences in their early years and values of their cultures affect their process of learning. As students remember and learn things faster when they can relate new information to prior knowledge, if they can link their classroom instructions to their experience and culture they will be able to familiarize with the topic faster. In addition, students having same cultural backgrounds have similar styles of learning and can thus, help each other to learn and perform better. This is also important as sharing information increases ones knowledge database. A child’s roots and cultural values and experiences affect his academics and learning process as it makes them independent in their thinking and open to learning new things. It also affects their accuracy, objectivity, analytical thinking and independence. Their values and cultures transform into their learning experiences increasing their knowledge, aptitude and thinking and improve their learning abilities making them better competitors. A student’s personal and cultural experiences also influence his language, which plays an important role in his learning abilities. (Kar, 2006) Gender Gender is also one of the factors that mildly influence a student’s learning process. Sometimes not only the gender of the students affect their learning process but also the gender of the teacher. This is because most of the times, female educators consider male students inattentive and disruptive and female students are a little hesitant to approach male educators. Also sometimes, the educators prefer only male or female students in their class depriving the other sex valuable instructions. It has also been seen that since female students outscore the male ones, the educators prefer to teach the female students. However, this can have negative affects on the learning process of the male students who deserve equal opportunities. Nevertheless, it has also been seen that most of the boys attend their educational institutions less than the girls attend and thus, sometimes fall behind the girls in their academics. On the other hand, in some communities the girl students are not allowed to attend schools and colleges due to their culture. This affects the learning process of the girl students who, even if they are interested in learning, are not allowed to do so. Sometimes the gender of the educator affects communication between the student and teacher as some students pay more attention and give better performance if taught by a teacher of the same gender. However, the gender of the educator does not matter as long as the educator is able to support and recognize the talent in the students and the students are able to learn from them effectively. (Edelman, 2005)