Perceived stress and coping mechanism of middle and high school Research Paper

Perceived stress and coping mechanism of middle and high school principals - Research Paper Example In addition to these long hours, there is a constantly increasing demand from administrative bodies that are placed upon school principals which causes even more exhaustion. This often results in declining physical and mental health (Brock & Grady, 2002). Principals are responsible for the well-being of hundreds of students, taking into consideration the special abilities and needs of some students. The role of the principal is not an easy task. They lead what amounts to small businesses or corporations that are rated based on their productivity, of in the case of educational institutions, test scores. Today, even more more mades are being added to this already lengthy list of expectations for principals. Add to that a mountain of paperwork and meetings, queries and complaints from parents, playground and lunchtime duties, and there is certainly the potential for for even more stress than one can handle. In a recent study conducted by Tomizan & Waldon (2004), it was discovered that m any school principals were so stressed by the pressure of their jobs that nearly half have work-related medical problems. This study revealed that eight out of ten principals experienced high levels of stress, with the ‘unnecessary paperwork’ and managerial nature of their job being the biggest concerns. The survey that was conducted found a conflict between the way principals see their role as educators and the reality of having to be a manager. They have to contend with high levels of internal conflict between what they consider to be their primary responsibility - creating a quality educational environment for students - and the demands placed on them by the department. The study also uncovered that nearly half the principals surveyed had a medical problem linked to work, with the most common being weight control, heart disorders and headaches. Most principals, however, tend to ignore their health problems and often returning to work without having fully recovered fr om various illnesses. Some said the job robbed them of time with their families, and some admitted they often found it difficult to maintain a fully satisfying relationship. This particular study also pointed out the reality that nearly half of all principals are some type of medication directly related to the stress of this career (Tomizan & Waldon, 2004). All of this information makes it plausible to assume that the stress levels endured by principals is at an all-time high and is only going to increase in the near term. Background Study Related to Stress Stress has become a part of the job description for most school principals. According to Selye (1974) who coined the term, stress is â€Å"the nonspecific response of the body to any demand placed upon it, whether it is caused by, or results in, pleasant or unpleasant conditions.† (p. 74). The theories present by Selye have garnered much discussion through the years. Some use the word stress to talk about heartache or loss , or some other less than desirable situation or task that they are forced to encounter. For others, stress is the physical reaction manifested in the form of heartburn, chest pain, or other types of palpitations. Still other consider stress to be what they perceive to be the end result to these physical problems, such as the occurrence of an ulcer or heart attack (Roesch, 1979). In the end, Selye created a new word to better describe

Chinese Revolution Essay Example for Free

Chinese Revolution Essay The Chinese Civil War was one of the most turbulent, chaotic, and effective series of events during the Cold War Era. It is difficult to conceive of any fashion in which the under-equipped CPC forces would be able to match and eventually overcome a powerful political regime with support vast support from the United States. However, even with limited aid from their Soviet allies, Mao was able to pull the marginalized, the poor, and the oppressed together to strengthen the communist cause. Although many of the issues from which the war stemmed were presented well before any real violence took place between Chinese Nationalists and Mao’s Communist Party the strategies employed by the communists and the emotional vigor with which they clung to their hopes of progress remain the center points Mao’s eventual victory. When carefully assessed; it is evident the CCP victory in the Chinese Civil War was due to the ability of Mao to mobilize the peasantry and institute land reform, the mismanagement of the Guomindang by Chiang Kai-Shek during the Japanese invasion of China and the Chinese Civil War, and the proclivity to violence (inspired by intense hatred of the enemy) that was deemed necessary in order to bring power to the CCP. It is arguable that the KMD should have been at its strongest during the decade preceding the Chinese Civil War. Chiang Kai-Shek had been quite successful in his campaign against the independent warlords and had recaptured many key areas of Chinese territory. However, June Grasso argues that Chiang made a key mistake in his treatment of his defeated opponents. She details this folly, writing â€Å"†¦Chiang absorbed, rather than eliminated, many warlords and their armies, in effect swallowing but not digesting them,† (Grasso, 90). Chiang’s army was growing at a rapid pace and the KMD was claiming large territorial victories. To an outsider, the party may have seemed at its strongest. However, the KMD â€Å"†¦remained faction-ridden into the 1930’s,† (Grasso, 91) and party unity began a major concern. Grasso continues to explain that the eventual oppression of the communist base in China would be a monumental mistake from which the party would never fully recover. At first glance, the expulsion of radical communists to the fringes of China seemed almost necessary in order to secure political control for the KMD. In reality the communist purge concentrated most of the Nationalist power in major urban areas and disallowed the spread of KMD support. Eventually Mao would make the most of his wide-spread supporters which allowed for a larger base of communism in the country. Considering his small numbers and the rural beginnings of his revolution, Mao worked incredibly well with what he had. Mao evidently knew that he had little choice in the matter of battle strategy. As Maurice Meisner reports in Mao’s China and After, â€Å"†¦the Maoist forces learned to employ the tactics of guerilla warfare upon which their survival was dependent.† (Meisner, 31) Mao also presented the peasantry of Jiangxi with a reform to the oppressive feudal system which granted redistribution of land to tenants. Through the implementation of revolutionary agrarian policies, Mao was able to secure the beginnings of a unified opposition to the Nanjing regime. Policies that were deemed too radical by the middle peasantry were thought to be â€Å"†¦politically and economically counterproductive in a situation that demanded a broad base of popular support in a rural society†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (Meisner, 32) Although Mao seemed to have many of the necessary ingredients to effect change among his countrymen, the Guomindang armies were too strong to be defeated this early in the development communist response to Chinese nationalism. Mao would lead the First Front Army, out of necessity, from their now obsolete home of Jiangxi to mountainous Northwest regions of China. The Long March devastated the numbers of Chinese Communism and left the party disbanded and broken. Amazingly, the march also birthed profound changes in party leadership and revolutionary spirit. First and foremost the disbandment of other party leaders in the early 1930’s and during the 6,000 mile march allowed Mao to pursue his own ideas for communist overhaul, particula rly in opposition to Stalin’s form of communism. His ideas would eventually be accepted by the CCP. Meisner also contends that the Long March had enduring psychological effects on the communist contingent that were undoubtedly the most important feature of this new communism. He writes, â€Å"For Mao, at least, the experience served to reinforce his voluntaristic faith that the people with the proper will, spirit, and revolutionary consciousness could conquer all material obstacles and mold historical reality in accordance with their ideas and ideals.† (Meisner, 34) This so-called revolutionary consciousness combined with the passionate will to overcome great adversity, as displayed by Mao’s marchers, served as the greatest engine of communist success during the Chinese Civil War. However, a preceding war with the Japanese would create a rare opportunity for Mao and the Red Army to seize power in China. One of the most important pieces of the intricate puzzle of Chinese political struggle was the invasion of the neighboring Japanese which continued through World War II. Although the Guomigdang harbored superior weapons and were concentrated in some of the most important strategic positions, their leadership and numbers would be forever weakened by their invading neighbors. Although the Japanese were unable to hold large territories in China due to its enormous mass, they captured major cities and ports formerly under Chiang’s rule. The Guomindang could do little to stop the advances of the Japanese Imperial Army. Chiang was aware that he needed Western military aid in order to reclaim the cities he had lost in the East. However, his retreat to the center left Chiang with a single option for military success: implementing a strategy of guerilla warfare. In reality this was not a viable option for the Guomindang. In his article Origins of the Chinese Revolution, Lucien Bianco contends â€Å"Mobilizing the rural masses would have required transforming the Chinese countryside and limiting the power of large landowners; hence Chiang’s aversion to the idea,† (Bianco, 149) displaying Chiang’s lack of attractive options. If he were to unite and mobilize the peasantry he would risk the overthrow of large landowners—a consequence that played directly into the communist strategy. In other words Chiang would have to sacrifice his dominance over the Red Army in order to pacify the invaders from Japan. This turn of events seems almost too perfect for a Red Army that was poised to attack behind Japanese lines using guerilla warfare. The Red Army continued to chip away at the Imperial Army and eventually amassed a force over 3 million (two-thirds of which were militia) and the communists eventually ruled over 90 million peasants. The peasantry, as well as women and other previously excluded groups, would now be able to partake in the newly forming democracy. However, the majority of peasants joined the Red Army cause because it was necessary for survival. (Bianco, 150) Japanese soldiers were terrorizing the Chinese countryside and committing large scale atrocities that forced the peasantry into action. As Bianco puts it, â€Å"The thing to remember is that the peasant was often safer if he joined a guerilla detachment: since his life was in constant danger anyway, he was better off if he at least had a weapon.† (Bianco, 152) Their antipathy towards their enemies, both present and future, gave them strength of spirit that could not be matched by the Japanese or the Guomindang. Further atrocities committed by the Guomindang against the peasantry, including theft of food and murder, only furthered the peasantry’s love of the communist movement. As one patriotic war ended, another was looming over t he Chinese country. Among the most important factors in the Chinese Civil War were the failures in Chiang’s leadership and military strategy as well as the advancement of the people’s revolution. Chiang did not have the numbers to defend his holdings while attacking the Red Army. With his numbers greatly spread throughout the massive country, Chiang had great difficulty stopping the communist advance. The Red Army eradicated the Guomindag presence in the North and moved swiftly into Chiang’s territory. As hyperinflation due to poor economic policies afflicted Chiang’s regime, Mao was eventually able to finish off his opponent and reclaim Beijing by 1949. (Grasso, 124-129) The aforementioned people’s revolution was a way of uniting the peasants against the common enemy. Everyone was expected to contribute to the war effort, not simply to preach its necessity. Grasso contends â€Å"Alone, the peasantry lacked the insights, what Marxists call ‘consciousness,’ to make a genuinely socialist revolution,† (Grasso, 121) highlighting the mutual necessity that the people and the party shared in each other. In his speech entitled How to Be a Good Communist, Liu Shao-Ch’I reiterates the necessity of party unity and revolutionary consciousness stating, â€Å"†¦we must modestly listen to the opinions and criticisms of our comrades and of the masses, carefully study the practical problems in our lives and in our work and carefully sum up our experiences and the lessons we have learned so as to find an orientation for our work.† (Liu Shao-Ch’I, How To Be A Good Communist, 251) In other words, the partnership of the peasantry and the party were one of the strongest tools in the successful victory of the CCP. The peasant ry’s hatred of their oppressors became a major motivation for the overthrow of the Guomindang. Gold Flower’s Story, a chapter of Jack Belden’s book China Shakes the World, presents an insightful and useful microcosm of the agrarian communist viewpoint in Northern China. The specific instances presented in her story are quite particular to women, evident in Belden’s assessment â€Å"And there was a Gold Flower, more or less, beaten and bruised, saddened and soured, in every farm of North China.† (Belden, 288) However, the emotional hardships and overall struggle of Gold Flower and the countless other members of the abused female gender share common themes with the whole of the revolution and the Communist and Maoist supporters. The mistreated women of China also provided an effective and powerful outlet from which Party leaders could find support. As Belden continues, â€Å"The Communist Party saw her and schemed to serve her and themselves through her. She was that spirit that forgets nothing and forgives nothing. There she stood at the gate, slow burning revenge incarnate, waiting a better time, waiting an opportunity,† (Belden, 288) one is immediately taken by the spirit of revenge personified in Gold Flower. This need for revenge in the form of vigorous and frequently violent action acts as fuel to the flame that was the revolution. Here, one can see an obvious divide between the two parties. The violence perpetrated by Mao’s supporters heeds immediate results in the form of social change and freedom from oppression. Of course, there was a plethora of mistreatment in all forms perpetrated against the marginalized masses of rural China. Gold Flower’s struggle represents a shift in economic and social precepts that provide the basis for revolution. Under the regime of Chiang Kai-Shek and his Kuomintang predecessors, these marginalized groups stood little chance of peacefully and diplomatically obtaining equality of social standing and political prowess. Gold Flower echoes this sentiment of hopelessness. Early in Belden’s account he writes, â€Å"She felt as if a great weight were pressing down on her. Not able to marry the man she loved, not able even to kill herself so that she could remain loyal to her lover, completely done in and drained of all strength, she at last fell into a deep stupor,† (Belden, 284) highlighting the depressing nature of Golden Flower’s life. If the young girls inability to freely choose her destiny stands as a metaphor for the frustrations of t he people of her region, her husband’s cruelty and overall attitude is most certainly akin to the landowners’ perspective. Blind to the injustices that those in power had maintained, Chang aggressively remarks â€Å"As for the poor, if they have not enough to eat, let them go. As for the rich, do you think their property was stolen from others?† (Belden, 305). Unwilling to sacrifice personal standing for the greater good of all, men such as Chang soon became an easy target for the coming backlash. Simply because it was the most accessible and immediately effective tool afforded to communist revolutionaries, violence became the most important means by which the marginalized would repel their oppressors. Violence seems to satiate (at least temporarily) the anger and helplessness felt by the poor of China. The roles of victim and perpetrator could be instantly reversed. The power of action was now in the hands of the oppressed. As Dark Jade put it, â€Å"This is our day. This means the end of our suffering. The beginning of our hope.† (Belden, 289) Although the fact of the matter is that war inherently brings a multitude of violent acts, it is evident that the motives behind communist violence among the peasantry were significantly more powerful than those of their opponents. It was their only chance of evading the â€Å"black society† (Belden, 284) into which they had been thrust. The feats that the CCP accomplished are astounding considering their humble beginnings. Though much of their success is owed to events preceding the civil war, Mao’s management of his party as well as the fervor with which the communists united and mobilized cannot be discounted. Again, it is my contention that the success of the CCP was due to multiple factors. The first of which was the ability of Mao to strategize the mobilization and unification of the countryside. Secondly, Chiang was unable to effectively manage his political and economic as well as military policies during the Japanese invasion. Finally, the emotional and violent response to Nationalist and feudal repression was of overt importance to the war efforts of the Red Army as well as the advancement of the CCP. When put in perspective the accomplishments of Mao; whether social, political, or military; are nearly unfathomable.

Essential Trace Metals in Seaweed

Essential Trace Metals in Seaweed 0 Introduction Seaweeds are marine macro-algae that are one of the living renewable resources of the marine environment and well known for its potential food and therapeutic applications (Tseng, 2004). According to Awang et al. (2008), Sabah and Sarawak have a great potential for the cultivation of seaweed. The seaweeds found in Sabah such as Kappaphycus alvarezii, Ulva reticulate, Gracilaria changgi, Caulerpa lentillifera and Sargassum polycystum species. Seaweeds are one of the best sources of essential trace metals. Essential trace metals are metals needed by human body in little quantity. These metals can be determined by using atomic spectroscopy techniques. Consumption of seaweeds can increase the amount of dietary fiber and lower the development of some chronic illnesses (Southgate, 1990). The followings are some essential trace metals found in seaweeds and their benefits to human (Alexander, 2014): However, some researchers reported that some seaweed are contaminated and contained high amount of essential trace metals more than the amount needed to human body. These are due to the area and conditions of seawater. According to Noda (1993) the chemical composition of seaweed may vary due to the species, geographic area, seasons of the year and temperature of water. This study focused on the essential trace metals found in different type of seaweeds. The results of the concentration of the essential trace metals are compared to dietary reference intakes (DRI). This study is significant to show the role of essential trace metals and enhance the awareness on the importance of essential trace metals to human health. Problem Statement Seaweeds can be classified into three main groups which are Phaeophycae, Rhodophyceae and Chlorophyceae. The compositions of essential trace metals in these groups are differed. Some groups contain high amount of certain essential trace metals and vice versa. These essential trace metals are important for maintaining health. These metals take part in enzymes, hormones and cells in the human body. Inadequate intake of essential trace metals can cause symptoms of nutritional deficiency. There are many researches that have been done on seaweeds. Most of them discussed more on the composition of macronutrients in seaweeds. Therefore, this research focused on essential trace metals. There is necessity to know the composition of essential trace metals in these seaweeds because they supply nutrition and give benefit to human’s health. 3.0 Objectives of study To determine the concentration of essential trace metals like vanadium, zinc, iron, copper, manganese, chromium and molybdenum in seaweed by using inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS). To compare the concentration of essential trace metals found in seaweed with the dietary reference intakes (DRI). To compare the concentration of essential trace metals in different types of seaweeds and determine which seaweed has the highest value of essential trace metals. 4.0 Literature Review 4.1 Introduction Many researches have been made to determine the composition of seaweeds. In the previous researches, they discussed more on the composition of macronutrients in seaweeds and lack of micronutrients. This research focused on essential trace metals found in seaweeds. This research is significant as these metals provide and supply nutrition values to human. This research is carried out in order to determine the concentration of essential trace metals like vanadium, zinc, iron, copper, manganese, chromium and molybdenum in seaweed, compare the concentration of essential trace metals found in seaweed with the dietary reference intakes (DRI), compare the concentration of essential trace metals in different types of seaweeds and determine which seaweed has the highest value of essential trace metals. 4.2 Definition of essential trace metals Essential trace metals are metals that are required for human body in small amounts generally less than 100 milligrams per day (Cesar, 2005; Araya et al., 2006). These trace elements are minerals which human body cannot produce by itself but can be found in diet. Essential trace metals include vanadium, chromium, manganese, iron, cobalt, copper, zinc and molybdenum (Gadd, 1992). Figure 1 shows the position of essential trace metals in the periodic table. These metals are transition metals and majority of them are located in period 4, showing the relationship between the size of nuclei and the availability of electron of the element to interact with organic molecules present in biological systems (Cesar, 2005). Each essential trace metal has their own specific functions depend on their chemical structures and is important for life. Although these metals are needed for only 0.02% of the total body weight, they are vital as trace bioactive substances and active centers of enzymes (Osamu, 2004). A man required essential trace metals about 50 micrograms to 18 milligrams per day and these metals function as catalytic or structural components of larger molecules (Mertz, 1981). Essential trace metals do not exist by themselves but exist with each other. Excess of one trace metal can cause imbalances in other elements and lead to diseases. To be well-absorbed in the intestine, most trace metals need to be in ionic form. Diet, concentrations of trace element in water, interactions of drug-nutrient are crucial to stabilize the concentration of essential trace elements in the body (Alexander, 2014). Figure 1: Periodic Table with white background indicating elements essential for human and bold characters representing the essential trace metals and non-metals (Cesar, 2005). 4.3 Recommended daily intake of essential trace metals A certain daily intake of food supplements is needed by humans. The essential trace metals are important as enzymes, hormones and cells in the body. Inadequate intake and excessive consumption of essential trace metals can cause symptoms to human body. Table 2 summarizes recommended daily intakes of essential trace metals and its effects of excessive consumption. Table 2: Recommended dietary allowances of essential trace metals (Dietary Reference Intakes, 2001). 4.4 Classification of seaweed Seaweeds can be classified into three main groups based on their brown, red and green pigmentations. The groups of seaweed are Phaeophycae, Rhodophyceae and Chlorophyceae respectively. Sargassum polycystum species is in Phaeophycae group whereas Kappaphycus alvarezii and Gracilaria changgi species are in Rhodophyceae group and Ulva reticulate and Caulerpa lentillifera species are in Chlorophyceae group (Awang et al., 2014). The sizes of seaweeds are different according to their group. Brown seaweeds are often large. They are usually having length about 20 meters long and the thickness is about 2 to 4 meters, whereby the smaller species is about 30 to 60 centimeters. Red seaweeds are usually smaller in size, generally ranging from a few centimeters to about one meter in length. The colors of red seaweeds are not always red. They might be purple, brownish red, but botanists classified them as Rhodophyceae because of other factors. Green seaweeds are small, with a similar size to the red seaweeds (Fisheries and Aquaculture Department, 29 October 2014). 4.5 The study of essential trace metal in different type of seaweeds Seaweeds rich in about 8% to 40% of essential trace metals required for human body (Indegaard Ostgaard, 1991). Some reports said that the metal contents in seaweeds were higher than edible land plants (Ortega et al., 1993). Concentration of essential trace metals may differed with each other because of several factors includes genetic species, sea conditions, seasons, habitats, maturity, geographical locations and environmental parameters of the seaweed (Ito Hori 1989; Fleurence, 1999; Krishnaiah et al., 2008). According to past researches, the commonly essential trace metals found in seaweeds were copper, cobalt, iron, manganese and zinc. Copper plays an important role in metabolism by allowing enzymes to function properly (Harris, 2001). Copper is vital for maintaining the strength of the skin, blood vessel, epithelial and connective tissue throughout the body. Cobalt is essential for the production of vitamin B12 that is necessary to ensure an adequate number of red blood cells are produced in the body (MedlinePlus 2014, 23 October 2014). Zinc is important for growth, cell division, immune system, vision and also helps to accelerate the renewal of the skin cells (Vallee Falchuk, 1993). Iron is essential as oxygen and electron transport forhemoglobin synthesis of erythrocytes, oxidation–reduction reactions, and cellular proliferation (Yutaka et al., 2008). Manganese is important for the formation of bones, connective tissues, brain and nerve functions (Barbara, 2013). 4.5.1 Kappaphycus alvarezii species The trace amount of manganese, iron, zinc, cobalt, chromium and copper were determined in this species that was collected from Palk Bay Mandapam, Tamilnadu in South India region. The concentrations of these metals were 10.6 ppm, 438.7 ppm, 25.5 ppm, 3.9 ppm, 52 ppm and 31.9 ppm respectively (Nageswara, 2013). Another sample was taken from Semporna in Sabah, showed that zinc, iron and copper were present in this species. The concentrations of these three metals were below 3.5 g/100g (Mansoor et al., 2012). From the study, it can be concludes that sea conditions and environments affect the concentration of essential metals in seaweed. In other research, to determine the composition of seaweed by using different types of seedling production, the micropropagated Kappaphycus alvarezii yielded significantly higher concentration of cobalt, copper, manganese and zinc compared to farm-propagated Kappaphycus alvarezii (Suhaimi et al., 2014). Fayaz et al., (2005) stated that Kappaphycus alvarez ii species is a good source of essential metals, containing 0.033% of iron and 0.016% of zinc. The molybdenum is also present in Kappaphycus alvarezii about 0.04 milligrams (Suresh, 2014) and about 1.56 ppm of cobalt found in this species (Rajasulochana et al., 2012). 4.5.2 Ulva reticulate species Ulva reticulata species from Pattani was reported to contain high level in manganese and iron and also small amount of zinc and copper. The concentration of manganese, iron, zinc and copper are 48.1 mg/100g, 174.8 mg/100g, 3.3 mg/100g and 600 ÃŽ ¼g/100g respectively (Pattama Anong, 2006). Awang et al. (2008) reported the range amount of iron is 6.5 mg to 11 mg per 100g, 2 mg to 7 mg per 100g of zinc, less than 0.55 mg/100g of copper and less than 3 mg/100g of chromium present in this species. 4.5.3 Gracilaria changgi species Gracilaria changgi species was reported to contain high level of zinc, iron, and copper with the concentration of 13.8 mg/100g, 95.6 mg/100g and 0.8 mg/100g respectively (Norziah Chio, 2000). The result showed that this species has high amount of iron when compared to other vegetables reported by Tee et al. (1988). The comparison of iron content in Gracilaria changgi species and other vegetables are shown in table 3. Table 3: Concentration of elements (mg/100 g wet weight) present in G. Changgi (Norziah Chio, 2000) and in some vegetables (Tee et al.,1988). From the study, it shows that seaweed is the best source of iron compared to other land vegetables due to its metabolic system which it can absorb elements directly from the seawater. 4.5.4 Caulerpa lentillifera species Iron, zinc and copper were present in Caulerpa lentillifera species which is taken from Semporna in Sabah with the concentration of 21.37 mg/100g, 3.51 mg/100g and 0.11 mg/100g respectively (Suhaila et al., 2009). Duduku et al. (2008) determined the amount of 6.45 mg/100g of iron, 3.53 mg/100g of zinc, and less than 1mg/100g of copper and chromium found in this species. The sample was also taken from Sabah. The study about the composition in Caulerpa lentillifera species showed that iron, manganese, copper and zinc were present with concentration of 9.3 mg/100g, 7.9 mg/100g, 2200 ÃŽ ¼g/100g and 2.6 mg/100g respectively (Pattama Anong, 2006). 4.5.5 Sargassum polycystum species A research has been made that used sample of Sargassum polycystum species from Seribu Island in Jakarta showed the concentration of 0.002 mg/g of copper, 0.004 mg/g of zinc, 0.277 of iron and 0.010 of chromium were present (Joko, 2006). In other research that used sample from Kota Kinabalu, the present of iron, zinc and copper were also reported in small amounts with the concentration of 68.2 mg/100g, 2.15 mg/100 g, and 0.03 mg/100g respectively whereas other essential trace metals were not determined (Suhaila et al., 2009). 4.6 Methods used to analyze the essential trace metals in seaweed Atomic spectroscopy techniques viz., flame atomic absorption spectroscopy (FAAS), graphite furnace atomic absorption spectroscopy (GFAAS), inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectroscopy (ICP-OES) and inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS) are widely used to analyze trace element. Nageswara (2013) used FAAS method to determine the trace element in seaweed, the instrument was calibrated with standard solutions and a hollow cathode lamp was used for detection of lead, cadmium, copper, nickel, iron, cobalt, chromium, manganese, zinc, platinum and palladium. In other research, Awang et al. (2008) used GFAAS method whereas Rodenas et al. (2009) used ICP-MS method and Suhaimi et al. (2014) and Suresh et al. (2014) used ICP-OES method. This research uses ICP-MS method. Inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometer is suitable for the determination of trace metals with pretreatment and laser ablation device. This method has high sample throughput and the sensitivity is extremely high. It has lower detection limits and the ionization is efficient. In order to get the concentration of essential trace metals in seaweed, the elements are placed in solution by acid digestion. This solution is then nebulized into spray chamber and then carried by argon gas into a torch. ICP is argon plasma and can reach temperatures of 10,000 Kelvin. This allows the atomization of the trace metals in seaweed to complete and reduced the interferences of potential chemical (PerkinElmer, 23 October 2014). The positive ions in the plasma are focused down a quadrupole mass spectrometer. This quadrupole mass spectrometer rapidly detects the mass range. By getting the mass spectrum of the plasma, information about the trace metals can be obtained .

Free College Admissions Essays: What Motivates You? :: College Admissions Essays

College Admissions: What motivates you to seek a college education Why is Berea College a good choice for you What motivates me to seek a college education? In addition, why Berea College is a good choice for me. December 16, 2000 The last couple of years have been a long bumpy ride for me, as they have for everyone my age. No matter what, everyone has experienced many of the same "teenage" circumstances as I have and has dealt with them in their own way. As a personal participant in this "game", we call life, I would say I worked hard for and earned first place. That is just my creative view on things. Too bad, not everyone sees it in the same light as I do. As a student, I am an active participant in my academic and extracurricular activities. My first priority has always been to make good grades and learn in school. Although this is important to me, I also know that by participating in clubs, sports, and after school activities, I will become a well-rounded student. During the past years of my high school career I have participated and received awards in the following: Cheerleading (eight years), twice as captain, '97 -'98 Varsity Letter in Cheerleading, '98 AIM scholar, Who's Who Among American Cheerleaders, and '98 Academic Excellence Award while participating in Virginia High School League Interscholastic Activities. I also belonged to the following clubs: S.A.D.D. club (two years), second year as secretary, Pep Club, Varsity Club, Choir Club, and Computer Club. In the year '99 -'00 I received awards in the following classes: Computer Applications, Spanish I, World Geography, and Advanced Algebra/Trigonometry. I also received an awa rd for Most Encouraging Student. I currently belong to the Hiking and Outdoor Club, Ski Club, Pep Club, and Environmental Awareness Club. In addition, this year I participate in a program called Read With A Friend. In this program I, along with a group of other students, go to the near by elementary school to read to a class of students from kindergarten to fifth grade. In order to gain an understanding of independence and responsibility, I have held summer jobs in the preceding three years. I also worked to help myself financially in boarding school, insurance, a car, everyday necessities, and soon in college. My first summer job was at the Moonlite Drive In Theater. Free College Admissions Essays: What Motivates You? :: College Admissions Essays College Admissions: What motivates you to seek a college education Why is Berea College a good choice for you What motivates me to seek a college education? In addition, why Berea College is a good choice for me. December 16, 2000 The last couple of years have been a long bumpy ride for me, as they have for everyone my age. No matter what, everyone has experienced many of the same "teenage" circumstances as I have and has dealt with them in their own way. As a personal participant in this "game", we call life, I would say I worked hard for and earned first place. That is just my creative view on things. Too bad, not everyone sees it in the same light as I do. As a student, I am an active participant in my academic and extracurricular activities. My first priority has always been to make good grades and learn in school. Although this is important to me, I also know that by participating in clubs, sports, and after school activities, I will become a well-rounded student. During the past years of my high school career I have participated and received awards in the following: Cheerleading (eight years), twice as captain, '97 -'98 Varsity Letter in Cheerleading, '98 AIM scholar, Who's Who Among American Cheerleaders, and '98 Academic Excellence Award while participating in Virginia High School League Interscholastic Activities. I also belonged to the following clubs: S.A.D.D. club (two years), second year as secretary, Pep Club, Varsity Club, Choir Club, and Computer Club. In the year '99 -'00 I received awards in the following classes: Computer Applications, Spanish I, World Geography, and Advanced Algebra/Trigonometry. I also received an awa rd for Most Encouraging Student. I currently belong to the Hiking and Outdoor Club, Ski Club, Pep Club, and Environmental Awareness Club. In addition, this year I participate in a program called Read With A Friend. In this program I, along with a group of other students, go to the near by elementary school to read to a class of students from kindergarten to fifth grade. In order to gain an understanding of independence and responsibility, I have held summer jobs in the preceding three years. I also worked to help myself financially in boarding school, insurance, a car, everyday necessities, and soon in college. My first summer job was at the Moonlite Drive In Theater.

Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps

The movie response that will be covered in this essay will be on the film â€Å"Wall Street Money Never Sleeps †. It was directed by Oliver Stone, released during 2010 and is the sequel to the 1987 film â€Å"Wall Street†. The film starts with the release from jail of Michael Douglas' Gordon Gekko before cutting to a rather elaborate plot involving Shia LaBeouf as the young trader with (some) scruples, who's rising in a world that just happens to be collapsing at the same time, as investment banks run by the likes of Frank Langella and Josh Brolin teeter under the weight of the 2008 financial crisis. The story then carefully weaves in more and more to Gekko (who, conveniently, also happens to be LaBeouf's future father-in-law, a dad to LaBeouf's on-screen fiancee, Carey Mulligan) (Zeitchik, 2010). Greed seems to be Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps theme, reckless and over the top risky behaviour has lead to the bubble in the housing prices to burst due to the actions of Wall Street firms. Shia Labouf played by Jake Moore works for the Lehman Brothers-esque Keller Zabel and is mentored by managing director Lewis Zabel. He receives a bonus of $1,450,000, before a late-night treasury meeting, which reveals that Keller Zabel is on the verge of collapse. This brings up an important ethical issue on how much bankers and traders receive in bonuses, irrelevant of the financial climate. After the collapse of several large banks during the financial crises of 2008, many are still paying their employees substantial bonuses. Many argue that the UK government have pumped billions of pounds into the banking sector, and has bailed out both Royal Bank of Scotland and Loyds Banking Group. As a result they should have greater say in how much the banks pay out in bonuses, however the banks argue that they cannot dramatically reduce bonuses without the risk of losing top staff to banks based overseas, which are under less pressure to cut payments. Even if bonuses are cut, salaries have risen significantly to compensate, by up to 40% in some cases. This is one of the many flaws, which has been allowed to occur within the banking industry, to the point where it has become the norm (Peston, 2011). One of the most prominent ethical issues presented in this movie is the idea of insider trading, which is the trading of stock with hidden information that the general publics is not informed about. It began with rumours being spread on â€Å"Zabel† by Bretton James who runs the rival bank Churchill Schwartz, which caused the rumours to become true, and Keller Zabel to be on the verge of collapse. Bretton James then insults Lewis Zabel by offering him $3/share when the firm was trading the previous week at $75/share. Zabel claims that this was revenge for letting Jame’s company go under eight years ago. These series of events causes Zabel to commit suicide by throwing himself under a subway. To avenge his mentor Shia Labouf releases rumours on Churchil Shwartz, which caused their shares to drop down 8% in pre market trading costing them $120million. Insider trading can be a very powerful tool within the financial sector; it can be used to make large profits as well as destroying others. As illustrated in the movie, Lewis Zabel took his life due to the results of Insider trading. It’s a criminal offence in most countries, however as Shia Labouf said it’s â€Å"hard to prove†, this is due to the difficulty of trying to prove what a person has heard via word of mouth. Because Insider trading is illegal, insiders who wish to exploit price sensitive information collaborate with other traders to make it harder to trace the trades back to the person who is known to have access to the information. This is called an Insider Ring. The term â€Å"moral hazard† is mentioned several times throughout Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps. It’s first mentioned during the treasury meeting, when they are deciding whether to bail out Keller Zabel, if they bail them out what’s to say it wont occur again. Moral hazard is the idea that an individual can alter their behaviour if they know they are insured against some of the outcomes, for example if a car is not insured you would take more care than if it was. The reason moral hazard comes up several times throughout the movie is because it’s often used within the context of banks and sub prime mortgages. This is due to the fact that before the 2008 financial crises sub prime mortgage lenders were making reckless lending decisions, they lent many mortgages to people who were unlikely to be able to pay them back. This led to large-scale mortgage defaulting, which caused many banks to go under and cause the economy to suffer. However many banks were bailed out by governments in order to reduce the economy suffering further, which is effectively rewarding them for bad economic decisions (What is Moral Hazard, 2007). The issue of lack of corporate governance is apparent in the movie, its connected to the reasons why Keller Zabel and the other banks began to fail. A definition of Corporate Governance is a â€Å"set of relationships between a company’s directors, its shareholders and other stakeholders. It also provides a structure through which the objectives of a company are set, and the means of achieving those objectives and monitoring performance, are determined† (OECD). Events such as soaring pay packages for top bank executives which are often driven by extraordinary risk taking rather than real sustainable profits, weaknesses in risk management, board oversight, understatement of bad loans can all be linked to poor corporate governance (Corporate Governance failure to blame for banking crises, 2009). Money laundering is another un-ethical issue, which Wall Street brings about. Gordon Gekko reveals to Shia LaBeouf that he has $100million in a Swiss account under his daughter’s name, which she will be entitled to when she turns 25. Gordon suggests that him and his daughter travel to Switzerland sign the account over to LaBeouf’s name and he in return gives Gordon the money so that he brings it to the States in order to avoid the RAS getting involved, which is Money Laundering. To conclude there are many ethical layers within Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps, such as unjustified salaries, poor corporate governance, insider trading, moral hazard and money laundering. These issues are very real, and still go on in our daily lives. We continue to inflate these â€Å"bubbles† until eventually they will burst, and repeat the process. Albert Einstein said, â€Å"The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results†. This seems to be very true of the banking industry and the lack of thought of the consequences to their actions. Gordon Gekko presented us with a question, â€Å"Is Greed Good? † I believe Greed can never be good.Bibliography †¢ Corporate Governance failure to blame for banking crises. (2009, 02 24). Retrieved 05 2011 from Professional Pensions: http://www.professionalpensions.com/professional-pensions/news/1441283/corporate-governance-failure-blame-banking-crisis †¢ DREA. (2010, 10 30). Movie Review of Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps. Retrieved 05 2011 from Businesspundit: http://www.businesspundit.com/movie-review-of-wall-street-money-never-sleeps/ †¢ Insider Trading. (n.d.). Retrieved 05 2011 from Moneyterms: http://moneyterms.co.uk/insider-trading/ †¢ Kenny, J. (2009, 02 25). Corporate governance failure driving banking crises. Retrieved 05 2011 from FTadviser: http://www.ftadviser.com/InvestmentAdviser/Investments/AssetClass/Equities/News/article/20090225/2d2a7d74-034c-11de-a6db-00144f2af8e8/Corporate-governance-failure-driving-banking-crisis.jsp †¢ Peston, R. (2011, 01 07). Bank bonuses ‘to run to billions in 2011†². Retrieved 05 2011 from BBC NEWS: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-12131092 †¢ What is Moral Hazard. (2007, 12 11). Retrieved 05 2011 from Economicshelp: http://www.economicshelp.org/blog/economics/what-is-moral-hazard/ †¢ Zeitchik, S. (2010, 05 14). Cannes 2010: â€Å"Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps' issues its wake-up call. Retrieved 05 2011 from Los Angelese Times: http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/movies/2010/05/wall-street-money-never-sleeps-cannes-oliver-stone.html

Smoking Effects essays

Smoking Effects essays There are multiple repercussions from choosing to smoke a tobacco substance. One major repercussion is the formation of lung cancer, an uncontrollable spread of irregular cells throughout the body. This disease is now the most common form of cancer diagnosed in the United States and a major cause of death as it accounts for 14% of all cancers and 28% of all cancer death (American Lung Association of Hudson Valley, www.alahv.org/bookfiles4/lung_cancer.html). Out of these deaths, cigarette smoking is responsible for an estimated 87% of lung cancer deaths (American Lung Association of Hudson Valley, www.alahv.org/bookfiles4/lung_cancer.html). Lung cancer produces a large quantity of pain, coughing, difficulty breathing, and many more symptoms that slow down the body. There is no good whatsoever involved with smoking of any kind, which is evident in the side affects and ending results. In addition to lung cancer, cardiovascular diseases, emphysema, and many other internal organ corruptions, smoking will simply cause real life to stop. Smokers generally do not go out much or do cardiovascular activities because their system cannot handle it. Their body becomes tired quickly and the individual must slow down. It becomes harder for the smoker to breathe when he or she participates in vigorous activities because the lungs are so corrupt and warn out. Smoking also causes tar to stick to the inside of the lungs making it harder to breathe. Appearance is affected by teeth and finger nails turning yellow. A typical smoker will also suffer from bad breath and will have a smoke smell on their clothing and belongings as well. Later stages of smoking include symptoms such as coughing, illness, due to a weaker immune system, and possible asthma. ...

Does Music Influence Human Thoughts and Actions essays

Does Music Influence Human Thoughts and Actions essays Although I believe music is very powerful, I do not believe its words or tone influence peoples thoughts or behavior. I was raised to believe that a person is responsible for their own actions, regardless of possible influences. As an example I will use the rapper Eminem. For those not familiar with Eminem, his lyrics have been referred to as violent, full of hatred, and pure craziness. One of his songs, 97 Bonnie and Clyde, was very controversial. This was a song about a man killing his wife, putting her body in a lake, and him explaining to their young daughter that mommy was okay, she just wanted to float. Although the lyrics were vulgar, the beat and tempo of the song were very mellow, not a combination one would expect. Many people were upset that this song was released on his cd, but there were others who thought that if someone did not care for the song, then they could chose not to listen to it. Eminems 97 Bonnie and Clyde was a very violent song, I do agree. However, I do not believe that someone listening to this song would decide to do something like the song mentioned just because he was in to Eminems music. I believe that artists and musicians are free to produce whatever lyrics or music they choose. I do not think they should have to worry about the effect their lyrics or music might have on people. I believe it is their right and their freedom to produce what they choose. I certainly have never heard of a movie director decide against a movie just because they think it might to too violent. Like movies, many rap cds now have ratings and warnings for violent and vulgar lyrics, therefore if you dislike this use of lyrics you would know before you purchased the cd. If movies are too violent or not appropriate for some viewers, the rating will let us know that, just as rap cds will. Although, under aged children can get access to violent movies as well as vio...

Marketing Research Paper

Marketing Research Paper Marketing Research Paper | | |How to Market an After-Hours STS Service | |MGT 5019 Summer 2011 | | | | | |8/8/2011 | | | Marketing Need In most communities nationwide, access to public transit during late-night or early-morning hours is limited at best. Many transit providers, especially those operating in smaller communities, only provide services through the early evening hours. In other communities, transportation services end at or before 1:00 a.m. Among the 11 large metropolitan transit systems that offer both heavy-rail and bus services,(Atlanta, Ga.; Baltimore, Md.; Boston, Mass.; Chicago, Ill.; Cleveland, Ohio; Los Angeles and San Francisco, Calif.; Miami Fla.; New York, N.Y.; Philadelphia, Pa.; and Washington, D.C), 9 provide after-midnight services on weeknights and weekends on at least some routes. Yet how are service needs met in other communities? In many communities, transit agencies have implemented late-night services designed to meet the transportation needs of night-time bar goers and socialites. Late-night service will aim to meet the needs of people who wish to go out and have a good time and not have to worry about drinking and driving. Right now, the only options for people who visit a bar are that they have to drink and drive, ride with a friend or call a cab. Calling a cab in our area is not difficult but can be costly and you may have to wait quite a while before actually getting home. Riding with a friend is fine but still more than likely the person driving will have a drink or two and end up driving under the influence. This leads us to the need for a public transportation service that caters to the socialites and bar goers. The proposal is not for a new business, but rather to extend the St. Mary’s County bus service already being provided through St. Mary’s Transit System (STS). Current Product The STS is the public transportation system in St. Mary’s County, it is a division of the County Department of Public Works. The mission statement of STS is â€Å" To provide safe, dependable and cost effective transportation to our customers and mobility for all residents†. The STS provides fixed route, ADA paratransit, and agency contract service throughout the county. The fixed route service is a system of providing public transportation on which a vehicle is a long set route according to a fixed schedule. Paratransit is a more flexible mode of public of public transportation that does not follow fixed routes or schedules. STS uses this form of service to provide transportation to disabled people who are unable to use fixed route transportation. Agencies such as the Health Department, the Department of Aging, and the Department of Social services will often contract for STS services. STS runs eight fixed routes on weekdays generally from 6:00am to 6:00pm. The eight fixed routes on the weekdays are the following: 1. Lexington Park/Leonardtown, 2. Charlotte Hall, 3. Great Mills, 4. Leonardtown Loop, 5. Route 5 Express, 6. Calvert Connection, 7. Northern Route, and 8. Southern Route. The primary

Executive Summary Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words - 4

Executive Summary - Essay Example The whole Kaiser establishment has an approximate of 160,000 staff, about 35 branches and close to 14,600 doctors. The hospital however, experiences problems while handling records for inpatients and outpatients, supply records for hospital equipment and schedules for programs in the hospital (Yoder, 2014). This proposal therefore seeks to ask for funding that will be used to buy equipment that will help store all records in the hospital (Computing and Intelligent Systems, 2011). The services at the hospital will be delivered in a quicker way, and will possibly be cheaper since the workload will reduce. The finances that will be utilized to make available the hospital equipment will require close to fifty million dollars. The research conducted on the Kaiser Permanente centre used online interviews to collect information. Previous records from the hospital were also used to collect patient’s attendance in the past years (Yoder, 2014). The interviews took one week to conduct. The same number of males and females was used. We targeted patients that accessed services from the hospital online, and did one personal interview with a frequent patient at Kaiser Permanente. Accessing hospital records took two days. On the first day, we had to ask for permission from the hospital authorities an on the second week after appealing to access the records we were granted access to them (Computing and Intelligent Systems, 2011). Kaiser Permanente, is a hospital that has hospitalized several patients, probably in tens of millions in the inpatient wards (Yoder, 2014). The hospital is not badly off in the hospital equipment, but is short of computing systems that will enhance the record keeping processes. Its Intensive Unit Care department is also short of around two life- supporting machines. The failure of this crucial equipment has led to the loss of lives, and the saddest part is that the losses are

Preservation of Organs for Transplant Research Paper

Preservation of Organs for Transplant - Research Paper Example This paper seeks to analyze history of organ transplant, what happens to blood flow and metabolism; the length of time the tissue is available for transplant, size of the tissue in relation to efficacy of the methods of preservation, energy balance at the tissue/organ surface and how this may appropriate particular method, and the methods that are used in conjunction with hypothermia. Introduction Organ transplant is the effective therapy for end-state organ failure which primarily depends on the supply of organs of high quality and efficacy. It was developed in 1960’s based on the functional knowledge by anatomists and physiologists on the requirements of to keep body organs viable and functioning outside the body. Organ preservation on the other hand acts as a logistic aspect to enable conducting of laboratory tests and organization of other clinical activities before the actual transplant (Toledo-Pereyra, 3). Organ preservation simply calls for slowing biological deteriorat ion in organs removed from their normal physiological environment necessitating advancement of methods and approaches to achieve the process. Methods Cooling: This involves reduction of temperatures to inhibit cellular metabolism and requirements for oxygen in a bid to prevent tissue injury. The organs are preserved in a specific solution which in most cases prevent the molecular, cell and tissue changes in a bid to prevent oxidative stress and inflammation/cytokine production which would affect the conditions of the tissue. Hypothermic Machine Perfusion [HMP]: this method depends on activating residual metabolism which greatly relies on energy generation synonymous with the mammalian need for oxygen supply for aerobic metabolism through vascular perfusion. Simple Static cold storage [SCS]: It is associated with preservation for livers, lungs, pancreas or heart with a basic concept of cooling supplemented with use of special preservation solutions aimed at modifying inevitable cellu lar molecular changes. Discussion In cooling, blood flow and metabolism are suppressed so as to inhibit uncontrolled cellular/ molecular growth before the transplant. This elongates viability of the tissue/organ with respect to time by â€Å"chilling of organs† making it the widely used approach in the preservation history. The efficacy of this method depends on the size of the tissue/organ which dictates the maximum time that it can be preserved before the transplant. The energy balance is based on the mitochondrial dysfunction by disrupting its membrane permeability allowing accumulation of calcium, sodium and water within the cell which in turn inhibits uncontrolled growth/destruction of the tissue. HMP on the other hand involves a non-pulsatile blood flow coupled with low/minimal oxygen supply and low temperatures to inhibit metabolic changes of energetic substrates. Uniform myocardium cooling and constant supply of needed metabolic substances, facilitates early post-stor age capacity a method that necessitates HMP in the liver transplant. Energy balance on this method relies on the balance of oxygen supply and the aeration of perfusates and the preservation solutions (Hornick and Marlene, 3). SCS involves much of the HMP procedures but differs with the concentration of chilled solutions and

The Marketing Concept and Marketing Communications Essay - 1

The Marketing Concept and Marketing Communications - Essay Example developed an online resume databank so job-hunters and employers can find each other more efficiently; or CarMax which invented a new way to sell used cars because people want more certainly when buying such vehicles, all illustrate a drive to turn a private or social need into a profitable business opportunity (Hansell, 2002; Healey, 2002). Companies must carefully monitor their customers and competitors, continuously improve their value offerings, carefully define the target market and value proposition, and take a long term view to satisfy customers, stockholders, employees, suppliers and channel partners. As a managerial definition marketing has often been described as the â€Å"art of selling products†. But Peter Drucker (1973) a leading management theorist says, â€Å"the aim of marketing is to make selling superfluous. The aim of marketing is to know and understand the customer so well that the product or service fits him and sell itself. Ideally, marketing should result is a customer who is ready to buy.† The American Marketing Association offers this managerial definition: Marketing (Management) is the process of planning and executing the conception, pricing, promotion and distribution of ideas, goods and services to create exchanges that satisfying individual and organizational goals. The success enjoyed by many firms like General Motors has been a strong influence on the strategic school of management thinking. Not surprisingly, therefore as marketing emerged as a distinct management discipline in the second half of the twentieth century, many academics drew upon strategic management concepts to create the first ever-theoretical models of marketing process. Coca-Cola, McDonalds and Levi Strauss performance could be linked to the adoption of a marketing oriented business philosophy. This approach to management is based on the concept that financial goals can best be achieved by first determining the needs of the customer and then satisfying these by

Psychological and Biochemical Theories of Violent Behavior Essay

Psychological and Biochemical Theories of Violent Behavior - Essay Example Based upon the information from the Ontario Ministry of Children and Youth Services (2010) the psychological theory of violence in relation to criminal behavior is rooted in the relationship of a person's individual character in relation to his environment. To quote the Ontario Ministry study (2010); â€Å"psychologists focus on how mental processes impact individual propensities for violence. Psychologists are often interested in the association between learning, intelligence, and personality and aggressive behavior. â€Å" The psychological theory is that man was not born a violent creature. Rather, he turns to violence when he does not have any choice due to a lack of certain influences in his life that should have made him or her a peace loving person. Further studies in the area by the Ontario Ministry (2010) show that tests such as ; â€Å"The Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI) and the Multidimensional Personality Questionnaire (MPQ) have frequently been used to assess the personality characteristics of young people. The use of these scales has consistently produced a statistically significant relationship between certain personality characteristics and criminal behavior. ... testing also suggests that crime-prone youth are also impulsive, paranoid, aggressive, hostile, and quick to take action against perceived threats...† However, Masters (n.d.) argues that violence that is triggered in certain individuals is based on his exposure to biochemicals in his daily life. It is Masters belief that brain chemistry, environmental toxins, and violent crimes are all linked in a certain manner.  

Case study Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words - 19

Case study - Essay Example Lisa mate with Mr. Anderson the controller of acquired firm. She asked for several financial records from Mr. Anderson. Lisa has found some discrepancies into those records and wanted more details but unfortunately she did not get enough support. Here in this case identified ethical issue is improper way of managing accounting practices from the side of the acquired company. Here in this case Prestige Fragrance Company has intentionally and suspiciously inflated two accounts in their balance sheet. Those two accounts are â€Å"Other Assets† and â€Å"Other accrued liabilities†. Here in this case the acquired company has not given enough documents related with the other assets section. Review conducted by Lisa has categorically indicated that the acquired company has unethically capitalized marketing expenses. The organization has recorded marketing expenses as the asset. It should have been recorded in the expense section. It indicates that to inflate the financial situation Prestige Fragrance Company has intentionally used unethical accounting practices to create more value for the firm. It is a clear cut ethical breach from the side of Prestige Fragrance Company. The company has continued its unethical accoun ting practices in case of â€Å"Other accrued liabilities† also. When Lisa has asked for the all journal entries related with â€Å"Other accrued liabilities†, Mr. Anderson totally declined to give any details to Lisa. It further reinforces the presence of ethical issue. This attitude of Mr. Anderson has clearly indicated that, he wants to cover up something and for that reason only he is not willing to provide all the documents to Lisa. Hiding something from the finance manager of the parent company is also a clear cut ethical issue which is present in the current case. There are several stakeholders are related with the ethical issues. The whole accounting procedure is

Forest Fires Lab Report Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Forest Fires - Lab Report Example Forest fuels at that time grew progressively drier, additionally; the early summer thunderstorms gave lightning without sufficient rain. The fire that was initially assumed to be easily containable began on June of 1988 with storm Creek Fire, Red fire and Fan fire all manifesting. June of the same year become more challenging as Mink & Clover fires and Lava fire began. By August of 1988, a lot of damages had occurred with other fires starting within the same park. Most notably was the fire of August 20, 1988, "Black Saturday" a day that huge amount of land was burned, and many witnessed dense smoke ever. This was a month that many other roads became impassable due to the intensity of the fire. Despite suppression efforts, the 1988 fires ultimately seized only with the coming of the mid-September snowfall. What then followed was the full evacuation of citizens who leave around the park and forest reforestation efforts. There are various actions taken by the forest managers key among them the implementation of a new fire management plan for Yellowstone in 1992. The implemented plan helped address future related fire concern including detailed guidelines for managing or handling natural fires and provision of more resources towards fire management. The other action has been more surveillance to manage future fire incidences quickly. The final management action has been in line with more ecological awareness to ensure polluted free environment. One can argue that these initiatives have been fruitful since no major fire has emerged in the area. My approach to the fire would be to handle the fire immediately before it becomes unmanageable. This is possible through more prompt aerial surveillance. Yellowstone fire of 1988 was majorly accelerated initially by reluctance (Gomez et al., 95). The management was more reluctant initially with the belief that it was a natural fire that

Psychological and Biochemical Theories of Violent Behavior Essay

Psychological and Biochemical Theories of Violent Behavior - Essay Example Based upon the information from the Ontario Ministry of Children and Youth Services (2010) the psychological theory of violence in relation to criminal behavior is rooted in the relationship of a person's individual character in relation to his environment. To quote the Ontario Ministry study (2010); â€Å"psychologists focus on how mental processes impact individual propensities for violence. Psychologists are often interested in the association between learning, intelligence, and personality and aggressive behavior. â€Å" The psychological theory is that man was not born a violent creature. Rather, he turns to violence when he does not have any choice due to a lack of certain influences in his life that should have made him or her a peace loving person. Further studies in the area by the Ontario Ministry (2010) show that tests such as ; â€Å"The Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI) and the Multidimensional Personality Questionnaire (MPQ) have frequently been used to assess the personality characteristics of young people. The use of these scales has consistently produced a statistically significant relationship between certain personality characteristics and criminal behavior. ... testing also suggests that crime-prone youth are also impulsive, paranoid, aggressive, hostile, and quick to take action against perceived threats...† However, Masters (n.d.) argues that violence that is triggered in certain individuals is based on his exposure to biochemicals in his daily life. It is Masters belief that brain chemistry, environmental toxins, and violent crimes are all linked in a certain manner.  

Forest Fires Lab Report Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Forest Fires - Lab Report Example Forest fuels at that time grew progressively drier, additionally; the early summer thunderstorms gave lightning without sufficient rain. The fire that was initially assumed to be easily containable began on June of 1988 with storm Creek Fire, Red fire and Fan fire all manifesting. June of the same year become more challenging as Mink & Clover fires and Lava fire began. By August of 1988, a lot of damages had occurred with other fires starting within the same park. Most notably was the fire of August 20, 1988, "Black Saturday" a day that huge amount of land was burned, and many witnessed dense smoke ever. This was a month that many other roads became impassable due to the intensity of the fire. Despite suppression efforts, the 1988 fires ultimately seized only with the coming of the mid-September snowfall. What then followed was the full evacuation of citizens who leave around the park and forest reforestation efforts. There are various actions taken by the forest managers key among them the implementation of a new fire management plan for Yellowstone in 1992. The implemented plan helped address future related fire concern including detailed guidelines for managing or handling natural fires and provision of more resources towards fire management. The other action has been more surveillance to manage future fire incidences quickly. The final management action has been in line with more ecological awareness to ensure polluted free environment. One can argue that these initiatives have been fruitful since no major fire has emerged in the area. My approach to the fire would be to handle the fire immediately before it becomes unmanageable. This is possible through more prompt aerial surveillance. Yellowstone fire of 1988 was majorly accelerated initially by reluctance (Gomez et al., 95). The management was more reluctant initially with the belief that it was a natural fire that

A Christmas Carol Essay Example for Free

A Christmas Carol Essay I think that the Ghost of Christmas yet to come had the most powerful impact on Scrooge because it showed him his future that he didn’t want to see and how when he died, nobody cared about his death. Scrooge admitted how he feared this spirit the most, â€Å"I feared you more†, because he was scared to see what his future had to hold after he was finally beginning to realise that his actions have consequences after being visited by the Ghost of Christmas Past and the Ghost of Christmas Present. Scrooge assumes that the last spirit is going to show him himself in the future which is why he is willing to learn all that he can and he is firstly eager to find out what the spirit has to show him. When the spirit takes Scrooge into the part of the town that he has never seen before and they listen to the two people who are selling Scrooge’s belongings talk so negatively of him, he is horrified but he doesn’t yet realise that they are speaking about him. The spirit takes Scrooge to the Cratchit house where he learns of the death of Tiny Tim and this has a huge impact on Scrooge because even though he is presented as a cold hearted, selfish character, he grew fond on Tiny Tim which is why it upset Scrooge so much. Scrooge sees how heartbroken the Cratchit family are about Tiny Tim’s death which shows to him the importance of family and he realises that he should have spent more time with his family during his life. This could be a turning point for Scrooge and could be one of the main reasons why he decided to change his ways. Scrooge also knows that it is partly his own fault for the death of Tiny Tim because if he would have paid Bob Cratchit more, they would have had more money to treat Tim. This had a powerful impact on Scrooge because he realised that if he wouldn’t have been so selfish with his money and only cared about himself, the future could have been different. Scrooge begs to know the identity of the dead man that everyone has been talking about but is horrified when the spirit takes him to the graveyard where he sees his name on the gravestone. After this we see a totally different side to Scrooge that we haven’t yet seen as he is presented as a vulnerable, scared man when he is begging the spirit to change the future. Scrooge doesn’t like the idea that he is going to die a lonely man and vows that he is going to change how he is and he â€Å"will honour Christmas in his heart†. This has the most powerful impact of all on Scrooge because this is the main reason why he completely changes and learns to love Christmas. After seeing the Ghost of Christmas yet to come, Scrooge wakes up  as a new man after seeing what his future has to hold and believing that he has the chance to change it.

A History Of The Netflix Strategy

A History Of The Netflix Strategy In 1997, Reed Hastings, along with partners Marc Randolph and Mitch Lowe, was inspired to develop one of the most successful bricks and mortar businesses to date, when a frustrating situation exposed the need to create a lucrative e-commerce business, requiring many of the same basic components as a traditional business, including a cohesive business model, compelling marketing plan, and strong implementation strategy. It was the video rental late fee that motivated Reed Hastings to develop Netflix.com.  [1]  Advances in technology, adaptation of DVD media over VHS, and an unmet consumer demand is responsible for the successful launch of Hastings vision, which has undergone several strategy shifts similar to other innovative start-up companies that begin with a simple vision. Changes in focus or direction have continued to assure that the company remains dominant in the movie rental industry, using a strong business strategy and a cohesive implementation plan that have increased the odds of their success in the market. Hastings began his business by declaring a simple yet effective mission statement, our appeal and success are built on the most expansive selection of DVDs; an easy way to choose movies; and fast, free delivery.  [2]  The business strategy for Netflix has evolved to satisfy new market opportunities, although the original concept has remained the same, making the companys business model the perfect business model from which all eBusinesses could learn, regardless of the slow adoption by the internet user community. To translate market opportunity to business opportunity, Hastings follows the seven-step framework to create the original company and continued to leverage the individual steps to re-evaluate the companys position in a changing market. . There are four key environments to consider when analyzing a market opportunity-customers, company, technology, and competition.  [3]  The overlapping areas of these key environments would represent the market opportunity area for a business. The first of the seven step process identified the unmet or underserved customer needs by Reed Hastings, being a customer himself. He was able to draw upon his personal experience to establish the opportunity nucleus of the company that stemmed mostly from processes dictated by traditional video rental businesses. The bricks and mortar movie rental companies had generally established methods and policies regarding video rentals, late fees, and membership rules that, according to Hastings, would have no reason to change without external competition. Following the problem recognition step, Netflix identified its target market by grouping customers into segments, referred to as the distinction between must-have and nice-to-have customers.  [4]  For Netflix, this includes identifying customers using geographic, demographic, and behavioural segmentation approaches, with the target audience expanding beyond the regions and primary market areas that typically define traditional brick-and-mortar businesses. In this type of business, the target audience is bound by technology rather than geography, giving Netflix the competitive advantage it needed to begin as a business by utilizing an Internet-based system that allowed a user to find movie titles, making it easier than strolling the aisles of a video rental store. The entire supply-chain of the Netflix mail-order fulfillment system is more desirable than issues surrounding weather, store hours, and drop boxes common to most bricks and mortar movie rental businesses. Step four of the seven-step process involved assessing the resources necessary to deliver the benefits of the product to the consumer for Netflix as a company, and step five required an in-depth assessment of the technology required to deliver the product to the end-user, and the impact of these new technologies externally as the technologies used in 1997 were primitive to present-day technologies. As a positioning strategy for the future, Netflix was able to incorporate Broadband technology as a part of its product delivery system and distribution strategy as it is commonplace today, making the online users experience many times better than before. Step six of the market opportunity framework involved distilling the opportunity into concrete terms, before the final step of justifying the companys position in the market and identifying the overlapping areas of the four key environments mentioned earlier that represent the market opportunity area for Netflix. The online experience that Netflix provides to its consumer rivals the competition and is a part of its differentiation strategy in the market. The Netflix market position boasts an easier way to choose movies, fast and free shipping, and no late fees or due dates  [5]  , unique to the company in terms of its product and delivery. In addition to following the movie rental membership models of other businesses, Netflix expanded the scope of their offering to include several levels of membership and created an online community where member could contribute by offering and sharing reviews as a part of its promotion strategy. Today, this online business model that differentiates the product by creating an experience for the user has become a beacon for other businesses to follow.  [6]   Netflix follows best practices across 7Cs-context, commerce, connection, communication, content, community, and customization as its product, promotion and distribution strategy.  [7]  The context of Netflix site follows basic rules for ease of use and navigation standards for the web, and uses a clean, uncluttered design to present an online movie rental experience that is unique for its users. The color scheme and graphic elements also remain true to the corporate brand image of the company. Its commerce capability is limited only by its business model, where members spend the majority of their time within the areas of the Netflix website that offers movie reviews and search capabilities, as the only transactions are one-time enrolments and subscriptions to the monthly service. Members only revisit the commerce section if a subscription needs to be changed since all other transactions are automatic and recurring. The connection design element is not used on the Netflix member s ite as the Netflix website does not offer any external links. However, in the non-member and public areas within the website, Netflix offers external links to the websites of major publications, well-known critics, and other movie review sites. Netflix banner ads that are found on many popular sites, link each banner ad to the Netflix main page. Netflix has also mastered the challenges associated with integrating their website and other communication channels. As an example, each time a movie is returned, the member receives an email, asking them to review the movie and offer additional comments if desired. Periodically, the member receives an email asking for information regarding the timing and condition of a DVD once it is delivered. This information is then used to monitor the quality of service of the fulfillment centers. The Netflix website content consists mostly of movie imagery, descriptions and storylines, and member posted reviews. A non-member is presented with content d esigned to encourage enrolment, whereas the member community enjoys a user-specific experience, where movie titles are presented to each member that are relevant to his or her likes and dislikes, based on individual movie reviews. The content also includes static information regarding the Netflix organization, its affiliates, career listings, and social networking links. Additionally, Netflix provides a robust community design element to their site, where members are invited to participate in reviews, forums, and blogs. The tell-a-friend option creates a viral element useful in word-of-mouse marketing, but falls short of providing functionality that allows member-to-member communication. Movie ratings provided by the users are real-time, whereas the written reviews are moderated before posting live to the site. Lastly, customization features include allowing every member to manage his or her own personal movie queue. Much like a playlist, the Netflix queue is used to control and man age the titles and order that the movies should be delivered to the member. The site uses this customization element to provide a member-specific experience to the user. Every member also receives an interactive list of movie titles that can be added to their playlist as another customization feature, after analyzing the members previously watched movies and the associated ratings provide enough information to create a suggested playlist. Netflix uses several communication strategies as its promotion strategy for prospecting and acquiring new members. Of the four categories of communication which are direct, personalized, mass marketing, and general approaches, the company relies mostly on the general approach of banner ads, email, and viral marketing. Members opt-in to receive special notices, offers, and incentives.  [8]  Netflix also uses banner advertising to direct traffic from sites with a similar audience demographic as their current target market. As its new pricing strategy, Netflix split its pricing model into two options. The first one continued with the old model where customers get unlimited streaming along with DVD-rentals, and also added a new option where customers get unlimited movie streaming without the option of DVD-rental. The unlimited streaming only option, which is clearly Netflixs preferred method of delivering TV shows and movies, costs $7.99 per month. The unlimited streaming with DVD-rental costs between $9.99 to $41.99 per month, depending on the number of DVDs rented. The old pricing model started at $9.99 per month, so the new streaming only option represents a $2.00 monthly decrease.

Henry Ford :: essays papers

Henry Ford A. Historical Narrative 1.Henry Ford, by far the universe^s most renowned industry man, held a strong grip on American business. The Model t, which was his crown creation and the mass production method he used to produce it, changed the face of the current times and became a temper of the times because it was catchy. He had a blue collar appeal to the majority of Americans, who were just that blue collar, because he succeeded on his own merits. Even with the great wealth he accumulated, he still maintained the support of the common folk. 2. In Helbroner & Singer, Mr. Ford is discussed a great deal in chapter 10 Workers and Work. It is fitting that he be discussed in that chapter, due to the hard workers mentality he maintained and his actions concerning his position on the prices of his cars to fit the wages of his workers. H&S describes one of his greatest contributions as being the creation of the assembly line. This creation as H&S says, ^ deliberately speeded up the pace of work as machinery determined the pace of labor^. It also says, ^ the character of work was changed.^ B. Historical Interpretation 1. The author gives a somewhat normal account of Mr. Ford^s life, by normal I mean similar to other information probably heard in description of his life. What is amusing is chapter 7, which is, entitled Genius Ignoramus. This chapter gives information on some of Mr. Ford^s not-so bright ideas such as; the naval submarine he sought to build, and the three motors each day, and his political aspirations that most people do not know about. All these ventures failed for one reason or another, but did not take away from his overall genius in industry. 2. In chapter 30; Henry Ford: Legend and Legacy the author places Ford on that industrialist pedestal that he belongs on. He concludes that his legacy will go on in the continued production of cars in the mass method, as well as the old car and special interest auto clubs and publications. The author also concludes that if he had died before 1914, after he set sweeping changes in motion he would be even more of an immortal. C. Historical Method 1. The author utilizes several sources such as:

goals :: essays research papers

Goals! How to Get Everything You Want – Faster Than You Ever Thought Possible T[here] they are, the twenty-one most important principles of goal setting and goal achieving ever discovered. Your regular review and practice of these principles will enable you to live an extraordinary life. Nothing can stop you now. Good luck! Chapter 1 – Unlock Your Potential – Always remember that your true potential is unlimited. Whatever you have accomplished in life up to now has only been preparation for the amazing things you can accomplish in the future. 1.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Imagine that you have the inborn ability to achieve any goal you could ever set for yourself. What do you really want to be, have, and do? 2.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  What are the activities that give you your greatest sense of meaning and purpose of life? 3.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Look at your personal and work life today and identify how you own thinking has created your world. What should you or could you change? 4.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  What do you think and talk about most of the time—what you want or what you don’t want? 5.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  What is the price you have to pay to achieve the goals that are most important to you? 6.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  What one action should you take immediately as the result of your answers to the above questions? Chapter 2 – Take Charge of Your Life – You are completely responsible for everything you are today, for everything you think, say, and do, and for everything you become from this moment forward. Refuse to make excuses or to blame others. Instead, make progress toward your goals every day. 1.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Identify your biggest problem or source of negativity in life today. In what ways are you responsible for this situation? 2.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  See yourself as the president of your own company. How would you act differently if you owned 100 percent of the shares? 3.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Resolve today to stop blaming anyone else for anything and instead accept complete responsibility in every area of your life. What actions should you be taking? 4.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Stop making excuses and start making progress. Imagine that your favorite excuses have no basis in fact, and act accordingly. 5.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  See yourself as the primary creative force in your own life. You are where you are and what you are because of your own choices and decisions. What should you change? 6.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Resolve today to forgive anyone who has ever hurt you in any way. Let it go. Refuse to discuss it again. Instead, get so busy working on something that is important to you that you don’t have time to think about it again.

Asnani Nandini Essay

The Bitter Truth Polar bears sweating, the Earth reforming Into a volcano. And oxygen artificially supplied to the atmosphere is the future of tomorrow. It is unfortunately a consequence of our activities today. â€Å"The truth† that AH Gore considers to be a potential threat is the trapping of gases within the boundaries of the ozone layer, with the addition of humans deepening the wound with their negligence. The truth is an eye-opener for negligent individuals.Global warming- an extremely adverse word and a great deal of controversy. An Inconvenient Truth is a terrifying and imminent once which awakens us to realize our responsibility we need to have to the earth. Davis Guggenheim presents the film in a form of presentation, showing the upward trend of carbon dioxide levels in the atmosphere. AH Gore connects this data with glances of melting of Ice caps, and shows how dependent people are. In fact, 40% of the people are dependent on the water that these Ice caps provide.De forestation Is reflected with Increasing factories and reduced trees. The Impact of this global carols is unprecedented. Vehicular pollution, burning of fossil fuels and human caused hazards like this are depleting our resources. Myths and misconceptions about the earth were unveiled. For instance, the bitter truth of animals losing their habitat and forest fires is not Just a natural hazard. It is a proved, irresponsible action of the selfish humans, who deforest and for their own greed set up factories.To top that, they pollute the environment with their factory pollutants in the form of smoke and oil spills. If this be the condition furthermore, we all will be walking around with oxygen masks. This truth shows us that global warming Is not a political issue but rather, the biggest moral and ethical challenge facing our civilization due to our own actions. These facts should help to galvanism people, governments, organizations and Individuals to work on a better environment. Some myths exposed transfixed us In stupefaction.Such as, the average American generates about 1 5,000 pounds of carbon dioxide every year from personal transportation, home energy use and from the energy used to produce all of the products and services we consume. Most emissions from homes are from the fossil fuels burned to generate electricity and heat. By using energy more efficiently at home, you can reduce your emissions by more than 30%. Our actions to reduce global warming can extend beyond how we personally reduce our own emissions. We all have influence on our schools, workplaces, businesses, and on society through how we make purchases, invest, take action, and vote.The truth emphasizes how we provoke the environment, such that It backfires to us unknowingly. The population Is dependent on the resources of the environment and do not realize they are depleting It themselves! â€Å"What we take for granted might not be here for our This quote of AH gore should be a repeated ech o and remind us to wake up and realize that we are the only preservers oxide struck me. It was shocking to know that the ten most hot years have occurred in the past fifteen years! More devastating summers indicates greater chances of hurricanes.The heat and warmer air Just adds fuel to on going hurricanes Just like Strain. It seemed pretty simple until it rapidly increased in the degree of its disruption after passing over the Gulf of Mexico. And finally when it reached New Orleans, the consequence of those warm winds caused immense destruction, loss of lives and property. Another important aspect of â€Å"The Inconvenient Truth† which is highlighted is the Kyoto Protocol. It focuses on the measures taken to reduce pollution and bring down the level of carbon-did-oxide in the environment.The alarming visuals stress on facts is an eye-opener and makes us aware of the severity of damage we have done. The truth is, we are facing a crisis bigger than warmer days, overworked air conditions and painful sunburns- the exploitation and depletion of the resources of the Earth. Apparently, all the cycles of the Earth are interrelated. The need of the hour is to make an impact on this planet, reduce the carbon footprint and make your voice be heard. Losing the planet and even the fear about it can be depressing and overwhelming.The title represents how â€Å"inconvenient† this is going to be in the near future and the suffering we are going to go through. Switch off those electric bulbs when not in use, change them to the incandescent lights, car pool, use chimneys, reduce, reuse and recycle. Promote and pass this understanding to others. The film ends as it began with stunning video of a beautiful wilderness stream peacefully flowing to the ocean in the hope that such scenes will remain a part of the future landscape. So step out and make a difference!

Learning by Degrees Essay

I don’t recommend the article â€Å"Learning by Degrees† by Rebecca Mead, which questions the belief that goes against attending college to be successful in the modern society, should be published in the next upcoming issue of The Shorthorn. The article was written for an entirely different audience than The Shorthorn’s daily regular readers. Even though the article has powerful logos and ethos appeals, I would think readers from the Shorthorn wouldn’t find the topic of the article fascinating at all and wouldn’t even put up with reading the article in the first place. Also, another factor that fails to be an article that the Shorthorn’s readers would find interesting is that it lacks a claim that fails to make a case for going towards a career path immediately or obtaining a college degree first. Through my analysis on this article, I’ve provided several reasons and evidence why I don’t find this article should be published since she is trying to convince a hostile audience in this essay, gives a weak claim, and has credibility for a separate view that she is discussing about. The main audience the article â€Å"Learning by Degrees† is trying to convince is average working parents with kids that are about to graduate from high school and preparing them for a higher education or a career that’ll be successful. This article is trying to convince a hostile and resistant audience instead of a friendlier audience. We must remember that the Shorthorn is mainly written and read by college students that are studying for a degree and involve college professors that have already received their degrees. â€Å"Learning By Degrees† gives a pathos appeal to the question of whether going to college to readers who’ve already made a decision on this topic, making it harder for someone to recommend this article to the Shorthorn. If Mead was trying to publish this article for the Shorthorn, she should have considered that the audience doesn’t fit what it’s addressing to which are parents instead of students. Mead’s claim that is shown in â€Å"Learning by Degrees† is easily found throughout the entire article, yet it’s a very weak claim to provide to both convince and especially understand to a hostile and resistant audience that the reader of the Shorthorn are. The claim in the article fails to pick a side in the debate of whether college really is worth the financial debt and yet instead falls in between them. The opinions of this current argument would be if college is necessary to acquire a successful career or if college isn’t needed to obtain one. Mead believes that an individual not wanting to earn and spend thousands of dollars on a college degree has the ability to become successful through several others routes instead of a college degree. She provides evidence of this through giving examples of successful billionaires, Steve Jobs and Bill Gates. One of these examples are found when Mead says â€Å"Within the sphere of business, a certain romance attaches to the figure of the successful college dropout, like Steve Jobs, who was enrolled at Reed for only a semester, or Bill Gates, who started at Harvard in 1973 but didn’t get his degree until it was granted, honorarily, thirty-four years later†(5). However, she contradicts her claim by providing evidence of people with degrees earning higher yearly salaries than those who haven’t earned their college degrees. When Mead says â€Å"Engineers of all stripes have also fared relatively well since the onset of the recession: they dominate a ranking, issued by Payscale.com, of the disciplines that produce the best-earning graduates. Particular congratulations are due to aerospace engineers, who top the list, with a starting salary of just under sixty thousand dollars†(2). She leaves the audience a claim that floats between the two views of whether someone should obtain a college degree. Rebecca Mead joined the New Yorker in 1997 as a staff writer and she attended Oxford and New York University, which gives her creditability of being a respected writer and a well-educated individual (The New Yorker, http://www.newyorker.com/magazine/bios/rebecca_mead/search?contributorName=rebecca%20mead). However, shouldn’t that mean Mead should be recommending college and frown on any lower level of education? This sheds light on whether Mead is a credible writer, well educated, and yet argues against higher education; this is a hypocritical view from a college-educated author. Mead might have only written articles for profitable causes instead of having a true belief of going against college to be successful; There might be a chance that Mead regrets her previous decision on choosing college instead of a different route and wants to give advice to newly coming college students, which might be an unlikely case. Through the analysis I gave, â€Å"Learning by Degrees† by Rebecca Mead is an article I wouldn’t recommend to publish in the upcoming issue of the Shorthorn. Its main audience doesn’t have the same characteristics as the readers of The Shorthorn, the central claim doesn’t have a stable and sturdy base since it lacks whether college is necessary or not, and the writer’s creditability doesn’t fit the side of the argument she is defending. Due to these factors, Shorthorn readers will find this a weak and insubstantial argument that will bore them and find this article a waste of time. If Mead chooses towards favoring the belief of obtaining a college degree, made the main audience similar to the readers of the Shorthorn, and used her credibility towards agreeing with college, â€Å"Learning by Degrees† would be a great article to publish in the next upcoming issue of the Shorthorn.