Pride and Prejudice Essay

Elizabeth seems to represent something of a departure form the conventional image of women of her time By Comparing Jane Austen’s characterisation of Elizabeth with that of the other female characters in the novel, and by examining it’s social context, discuss this verdict in the heroine of Pride and Prejudice. The novel â€Å"Pride and Prejudice† is about a fascinating love between Elizabeth and Mr. Darcy who have to overcome a lot of difficulties and social prejudices to be together. Some readers may be amazed by the way Jane Austen builds her female characters, especially the main heroine Elizabeth Bennet who is an energetic, quick-witted, sharp- tongued, bold and intelligent girl. Everyone soon realizes that she is the most distinguished and unique character in the novel because of her strong-willed and eager mind. Jane Austen lived in a historical time of social and political changes all over the world but she focused on the middle-class, narrow-minded life in England in which women’s social status was established by marrying a prosperous man who would be able to provide them and their family with good security for life, very similar to Mrs. Bennet’s desires. However a majority of central female characters in Austen’s works are strong-natured and they promote women’s freedom on marriage. Elizabeth is a highly unconventional woman of her time. Her mannerisms and thoughts seem to be different to other characters in the novel. Elizabeth is the second of five daughters in the Bennet family. However, unlike her mother and her siblings whose childishness and narrow-mindedness always showed themselves poorly in public, Elizabeth is quite smart and has a fast tongue. This is the reason for her being the most favourite daughter of her father and the least one of her mother. Mr. Bennet, an intelligent man with a cynical sense of humour, has made an unwise marriage with a simple minded and ill-mannered woman, Mrs. Bennet, and when he realizes this, he has a tendency to hide in his study rather than take part in the social and family activities with his wife. Being her father’s confidante almost portrays Elizabeth as the son of the family. Throughout the novel, it is recognizable that Mr. Bennet always gives Elizabeth a unique interest as he sees in her in a different way from her sisters and other girls. While Mrs. Bennet has little value for Elizabeth’s intelligence and wit: â€Å"Lizzy is not a bit better than the others; and I am sure she is not half so handsome as Jane, nor half so good humoured as Lydia†, Mr. Bennet has a high regard for these qualities: â€Å"They have none of them much to recommend them, they are all silly and ignorant like other girls; but Lizzy has something more of quickness than her sisters.† (Chapter 1) Mr. B. believes that his Elizabeth is more sensible and shrewd than her sisters so he frequently offers her advice, supports her and trusts her in all that she does. For example when Elizabeth rejects Mr. Collins’s proposal due to the fact that she does not want to marry such a pompous man, Mrs Bennet is outraged however Mr. Bennet is not livid about her decision at all and instead he supports her. â€Å"Your mother will never see you again if you do not marry Mr. Collins, and I will never see you again if you do.† (Chapter 20). This shows that Mr Bennet is humouring his wife and is joking with Elizabeth. Refusing this marriage with Mr. Collins, which would highly benefit the Bennet family, seems unusual in Elizabeth’s time. Any other women would be delighted to marry a man of Mr. Collins standard. In addition to the â€Å"quickness† of her mind, Elizabeth also shares good humour with her father. She likes taking ironic enjoyment at others’ silliness and hypocrisies and is quick to mock them exclusive of her mother and her younger sisters though she is sometimes humiliated by their ludicrous behaviour. In the novel, she is portrayed as having â€Å"a lively, playful disposition, which delighted in anything ridiculous.† (Chapter 3). Elizabeth does not care to join her family in the balls and finds her family’s behaviour unusual. In fact she finds humour in the way her family conducts themselves. She is completely in contrast to Lydia one of her younger sisters. This is uncommon in females in that society, partaking in balls and getting excited about them was one of the many things women were expected to do. Again this shows Elizabeth’s uniqueness. At the first encounter between Elizabeth and Mr. Darcy at the Meryton ball, Darcy callously turns down the offer to dance with Elizabeth and insults her by saying â€Å"†¦she is tolerable; but not handsome enough to tempt me†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (Chapter3). Such a remark on a girl, particularly in a dance party is very impolite and offensive and it makes Elizabeth slightly annoyed. However, rather than being humiliated and hiding her embarrassment, she retells this incident to her friends in a teasing and sardonic way. I think that her reaction is wise and rare as not often can a woman behave as calmly as her in a situation like this. She laughs at what Mr. Darcy says about her appearance and changes the fact of being insulted from her to Mr. Darcy. Furthermore, in her discussions with Miss. Bingley and Mr. Darcy at Netherfield Park, Elizabeth herself admits that â€Å"I dearly love a laugh but †¦ I never ridicule what is wise or good. Follies and nonsense, whims and inconsistencies do divert me, I own, and I laugh at them whenever I can.† (Chapter11). Being a person who has an exceptional mind, Elizabeth knows what she should or shouldn’t make a joke about and she states this point of view clearly and frankly. In other words, only follies and vanities of others can delight her and she is good at creating laughter from these enough to make her conversation become attracting and amusing. Everybody is drawn towards her because of her quick mind and excellent sense of humour. Finding humour in things that would seem rude at the time seems eccentric of women of that time. Elizabeth should be insulted and angry at Mr. Darcy, yet she seems to laugh at how ridiculous his thoughts. This shows that Elizabeth does not care about her appearance to people in society and she is content with being herself. Elizabeth shows that she is unconventional, when she meets Lady Catherine De Bough. During the conversation, Lady Catherine puts a series of questions to Elizabeth concerning the upbringing of her sisters and expects to receive the normative and easy on the ear answers from her. Yet, Elizabeth’s responses cannot make the Lady satisfied as she thinks. â€Å"Why did not you all learn?† (Chapter 29 )Elizabeth is open in expressing her own ideas and her replies to the impolite and rude questions of Lady Catherine are quite cold and frank. For example, when being asked about personal information, Elizabeth does not hesitate to hold back the answer regardless of the old woman’s feelings. In other words, it is a signal of rebellion against the social principals that an inferior such as herself should challenge a very wealthy and important woman like Lady Catherine. Her brave and admirable reaction to this situation impresses me and I respect her for being able to do that. It is irregular for someone of Elizabeth’s position to talk and conduct herself in the way she did to someone like Lady Catherine who was inferior to her in both age and wealth. She should have respected her and agreed with everything she said. She should have said very little as Mrs Jenkinson and Sir William said. Others such as Mr. Collins, who had been much acquainted with Lady Catherine De Bourgh, behaved in a more appropriate way, as it would have been expected. When playing Cards with Lady Catherine he would â€Å"agreeing to everything her Ladyship said, thanking her for every fish he won, and apologising if he thought he won too many.† Unlike most of the other characters in the novel and the conventional women of her time, Elizabeth is a strong woman who is capable of harmoniously balancing reason and emotion in dealing with every incident. She does and says whatever she believes to be right without paying attention to the external forces. The determination in her character really makes her become the most admired and praiseworthy woman. For example when Jane becomes ill, Elizabeth is determined to go meet her. She is also stubborn about walking there rather than taking horse and carriage. Mrs. Bennet is afraid that Elizabeth’s visiting to Netherfield would make Jane recover from illness quickly and she would not stay there as long as her mother wants. Moreover, the appearance of a girl as the result of walking three miles through the mud is surely not expected to see and the girl’s social image may be affected. Nevertheless, Elizabeth pays attention to nothing of it. Her only concern is Jane and her health so she does not have intention of changing her initial decision. Her answers to her parents are full of willpower and resolution. Her look â€Å"with weary ankles, dirty stockings, and a face glowing with the warmth of exercise† when arriving at Netherfield is a great surprise to the people here but she appears unworried about their comments and views on her. Nothing can make her flinch from difficulties. In a society like Elizabeth’s appearance is everything and by arriving to Netherfield as she did would ruin her family’s social image. However Elizabeth paid no attention to this and this shows that she is an unconventional woman of her time. She was more concerned for her sister Jane than her family’s reputation. Moreover, Elizabeth is really a woman of action who once decides to do something will do it no matter how hard it is. She is very unwavering, particularly shown by her treatment of Darcy when she believes him to have done wrong. As we know, at their first meeting, Darcy was impolite and insulted words on Elizabeth’s beauty making her think so badly of him. At the evening at Longbourn, Sir William Lucas intends to introduce Elizabeth to Mr. Darcy as â€Å"a very desirable partner† to dance. However, she immediately refuses this offer and does not change her mind no matter how Sir William tries to persuade her. Even though when Mr. Darcy himself elegantly asks for her hand, she only smiles and turns away. Later on, when she hears about the fake story that Wickham makes up to leave a stain on Mr. Darcy’s reputation she increasingly believes he is a terrible and cruel man. That is the reason for her indifferent and harsh attitudes to Mr. Darcy whenever they meet (but this changes after Elizabeth knows the truth of the two men). I can say that it actually takes a great strength of character and resolution to confront such a power man as Mr. Darcy who should be treated with respect and courtesy because of his wealth and social status. However, it is a part of Elizabeth’s personality that attracts Mr. Darcy as well as the readers of Pride and Prejudice. Rejecting to dance with a man of such high standard as Mr. Darcy takes a lot of strength and this strength was uncommon in women of Elizabeth’s time. Elizabeth should have disregarded what Mr. Darcy had said before and quietly and obediently dance with him, and do as she was told. She should have conducted herself in a respectable manner. The opening line of â€Å"Pride and Prejudice† is â€Å"It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single man in possession of a good fortune must be in want of a wife† implies that the only way for women to ensure themselves a stable life is through marriage. Marriage to some certain extent is like a business transaction. In the novel, Jane Austen uses the character Charlotte Lucas to illustrate this point and contrast with Elizabeth’s views on love and marriage. Charlotte is also a smart and well-educated woman like Elizabeth so it really makes Elizabeth surprised when hearing her friend’s decision to wed Mr. Collins. However, in a society where women are expected to marry a well-off man even though they are not in love with him was common. Their main reason was gaining financial security, or else facing homelessness and poverty. Therefore Charlotte’s actions were understandable. Compared with Elizabeth, Charlotte is older, plainer and more desperate to find a husband so Mr. Collin’s proposal is the rare opportunity to save her from the unpleasant reality, â€Å"I am not romantic, you know. I never was. I ask only a comfortable home; and considering Mr. Collins’s character, connections, and situation in life, I am convinced that my chance of happiness with him is as fair as most people can boast on entering the marriage state.† (Chapter 22). Charlotte is constrained by the fact that all she desires is wealth and stability and it can be achieved just through marrying to Mr. Collins. In her thought, love is not a real concern in marriage. To her closest friend’s choice, Elizabeth exclaims: â€Å"Engaged to Mr. Collins! My dear Charlotte — impossible!† She completely astonished at seeing Charlotte marrying without affection and it is their opposite points of view on this matter that makes them never be close as before. In Elizabeth’s time marriage was like a business transaction. All that was necessary was for the man to have money. Love had no importance. This meant that Elizabeth’s views on marriage were highly unusual and were irregular of her time. However Elizabeth also shows conventional features of women of her time. Firstly she marries someone of a higher status, and has more wealth than herself. This was typical of women in her time. In fact Mrs Bennet was happy declaring â€Å"Ten thousand a year! Oh Lord what will become of me.† (Chapter 59). She was delighted in knowing that her daughter has married an accomplished, rich man. Elizabeth Bennet marries Mr. Darcy, providing her family and herself financial security, as a woman of her time desired and aimed for. Her story ends very similar to Jane, a typically conventional woman, showing her regularity. Another conventional aspect of Elizabeth Bennet is that she plays the piano forte â€Å"She has a very good notion of fingering† (Chapter 31). Elizabeth also partakes in dancing in the Meryton balls. So much so that she is said to be an excellent dancer. â€Å"You excel so much in the dance Miss Eliza† (Chapter6). When Mr. Darcy talks of accomplished women he says that an accomplished women is one who â€Å"add something more substantial, in the improvement of her mind by extensive reading† (Chapter 8). Elizabeth Bennet also reads regularly showing she is an accomplished and conventional woman. Traditionally a woman of Elizabeth’s time would be experienced in reading, playing the pianoforte, partaking in local balls, all aspects which Elizabeth Bennet has. In conclusion Elizabeth Bennet is not entirely an unconventional woman. She possesses mainly conventional aspects such as playing the piano. However I believe that it is her mind and thoughts that are unconventional. Elizabeth has been blessed with wit and intelligence. This comes through in her mannerisms and this is what forces her to seem unconventional. Through her thoughts, words and actions, no one can deny the fact that Elizabeth is an intelligent girl who possesses a humorous sense as well as a keen capability of observation. In the novel, she is described as a beauty and has especially expressive eyes, but what everybody notices about her is her spirited wit and quick responses. Elizabeth is not only smart but she also has a strong character. She is very brave to confront with the people who are far more powerful and superior than herself like Lady Catherine and Mr. Darcy. Elizabeth is quite determined and independent in her actions and opinions. She is ready to refuse the marriages that could provide her with a comfortable life and a high standing in the society just because she finds that man does not suit her in terms of intellect and personality. In â€Å"Pride and Prejudice†, Jane Austen uses Elizabeth Bennet as a literary device to represent her values and attitudes on the importance of marrying for love. The heroine dares to go against the social conventions that women should marry for their economic benefits. She only weds the man she really loves and respects. This makes the young free-spirited woman differ substantially from the other female characters of the novel. Although the novel was written a vast amount of time ago and Jane Austen is no longer with us, the distance of time could not fade away the image of Elizabeth as a complex young woman with sparkling intelligence and a strong personality. Although Elizabeth makes some mistakes, for example she has been driven by her pride and prejudice for a long time leading to the misjudgements between Wickham and Mr. Mr. Darcy, the striking features she possesses still overweigh these weaknesses. She is not perfect but is an idealized woman. That is possibly the message Jane Austen was trying to get across, that there is no perfect woman, but then who is. In modern times, Elizabeth would be the opposite of unconventional. Now women are free to express their opinions and are encourage speaking their minds. In this way I think Jane Austen has predicted the future of women through Elizabeth. I believe Jane Austen has been accurate in her prediction and she has succeeded in producing more Elizabeth’s’ throughout the world. I admire Elizabeth Bennet and I believe that she is an ideal women. Particularly when it comes to her strength of mind and her courage.

I Believe Essay

Traveling to â€Å"land of opportunities† for future studies is a dream of many people as standards and quality of education is the best in the world. I am one of those lucky people who wished to study in America and finally landed in United States for this purpose. But it was not an easy task as rules and regulation for obtaining a student’s visa is hard. But troubles do not end with getting a student visa as after coming to United States, one finds himself entangled in other difficult rules. I myself experienced all these difficulties and hardships before arrival and after arrival in United States. When I applied at the United States consulate in my native country, I had to produce certain security documents in addition to my I-20 Form (Admission letter from my institute), funding document and passport. Although these security documents were necessary to clear the security conditions but it took me many days to get these from local authorities. Additionally, I wanted to come to America thirty days prior to the start of my course date in order to accommodate myself in the American environment and learn the culture and values of Americans. But again it was not a simple thing as I have to get a visitor visa first and it was also required to register with Department of Homeland Security office upon my arrival in United States. After one month, before beginning any studies, I must obtain a change of classification through Form I-539 (application for Change of Nonimmigrant Status). As these rules were hard to understand and were harder to follw, so I decided to end this venture. I believe that these procedures are cumbersome and forces one not to apply for a visa thirty days prior to the corse start date. I also believe that student must come earlier (more than thirty days) to United States to get an acquintance with the local customs, traditions and environment. There is another condition for F-1 visa that students must be enrolled as a full-time student at the institution. But sometime Institute does offer long duration courses in Language Proficiency but does not give it full time course status to these courses. This creates a lot of problem in getting student visa and students in this case only gets visit visa. I think that Language courses must also be included in the category of full time courses or the Visa rule about these courses should be relaxed and a student visa should be issued for these. There is another part of the visa application process; an interview at the embassy consular section is required for visa applicants. I believe that this interview process is an extra thing as students waits a lot to be called for interview. Again a communication barrier is another problem because students can not convey the real information due to language inability. He can not understand the questions of the Visa Clearance Office in the right context. This results in the failure of getting a visa. The immigration rules related to medical check-up and vaccinations is another problem that students face. I myself have to undergo a lot of difficult procedures. I believe that vaccination is necessary and United States has the right to allow only the healthy person to enter in its territory but these procedures must be simplified. Another hard rule is related to employment. According to the F-1 rules, maximum of 20 hours/week is allowed while the studies are in progress whereas during annual break periods one can work up to 40 hours a week. I believe that students must be given more time so that they can earn enough to partially support their non-curricular activities. It does not mean that their studies should be sacrificed but they should be allowed according heir spare time. Students should use this money to visit various parts of America and to get knowledge of American culture and geography. Another employment rule is related to on-campus job. One can not take jobs outside the college or institute premises. I think that this regulation is unfair as only few jobs are available on the campus. Furthermore, every international student tries to get job on the premises. This makes the situation difficult. So it is not possible for every student to get a job on his/her own campus. I think that this rule should be relaxed and students should b allowed to work in the surroundings of the university or institute. Again after one year, students are allowed to work off-campus bit it needs the approval of the institute. I believe that this procedure again creates difficulties for the students. Although jobs in the local surroundings are not rare but they are processed so quickly that after getting an approval from institute, they remain no more available. Although I suffered from only a few of these hard rules but most of the prospective students become a victim of one or more of these rules. So I think that these rules should be altered in order to take care of the students’ needs. Government must take initiative to accommodate the students and their genuine requirements.

Masters in Public Administration Personal Statement - 1

Masters in Public Administration - Personal Statement Example It was, and still is, a source of great joy to inspire these youths to give back to the community by working in homeless shelters and assist in goodwill. Aside from my work with the youth, I also served with the United States Military in different bases, including Fort Irwin, Fort Riley, and 29 Palms, for two years, prior to getting deployed to Afghanistan at the beginning of 2009. My experience in the war zone was such a life changing experience that when I came back, my immediate impulse was to return to school with a strong sense of determination to get my life back on track. Full of resolve, I transferred in a year in spring and graduated the following year after spring semester. I took a lot of units and still managed to get good grades and showed great improvement after my transfer. I have some background in the public service, including volunteer work in non-profit agencies. My work for a non-profit organization was in the juvenile hall of the City of San Rafael. I was a case manager for the youth court, and I participated in the rehabilitation of first-time misdemeanor offenders. My work with youth offenders has made me realize that there is much I could do that could make a difference in their future, although many of them are unaware of this. I felt that these young people may grow into adult offenders if people like myself did not intervene at this particular time to point them down a different path. Aside from my work with the youth, I also did community service for the Tri City Homeless Shelter, and on a separate occasion I also performed community service for Goodwill. Among the different areas of public administration, I am particularly interested in Public Management and I hope to concentrate in this field. I became interested in the administration of government and non-profit institutions because I had seen both positive and negative aspects

Accountancy and Finance, Designing a Balanced Scorecard Essay

Accountancy and Finance, Designing a Balanced Scorecard - Essay Example ns are not for profit making, it is important that appropriate good practices of financial management are maintained so as to ensure that there are adequate resources aimed at meeting the objectives of the organization and ensuring that they remain solvent while at the same time continuing to support the community. A scorecard is a combination of the four common measures (quadrants) that are directly associated with a company’s objective strategies (Pearson & Robinson, 2009). The Otago Museum in New Zealand was founded on the 15th day of September 1968, initially being located in the post office building in Denedin’s Exchange, a building which also accommodates the University of Otago. The 1877 saw the responsibility for managing the museum become vested with the University of Otago, an arrangement that lasted nearly 80 years and letter the transfer of the ownership to a trust board which was authorized to attract funding from various local authorities in the Otago region. Among the principle funders continue to be Dunedin City Council, Clutha District, Central Otago Districy Council and Waitaki District Council. This report will be designing a comprehensive balance scorecard (BSC) for the museum indicating clearly the strategic objectives of the museum, the strategic business themes supporting the objectives and the cause and effect relationship linking Balanced Scorecard (BSC)dimensions with strategic themes and the objectives. More often than not, an organization’s mission statement guides on how an organization needs to maintain a balance of the needs and the various expectations as appertains to the various stakeholders (Harel, & Boaz, 2008). However, most non-profit organizations like Otago museum do not operate in extreme circumstances hence can do for both the donors and their employees/volunteers despite the fact of the existence another restricting factor which can be done for the different groups, that one which falls generally within the purview

Role as a Community Leader in Homestead 1892 Essay

Role as a Community Leader in Homestead 1892 - Essay Example Our community also includes a number of such workers who have been participating in this strike to demonstrate their demands. I would like to enlighten our community workers as their leader to select an appropriate path in this critical scenario which will be beneficial for them in the long run. At the outset, I would like to point out the significant reasons which have forced to transpire the present unfavorable scenario at Homestead Steel Works. One of the prime reasons for the grievance among our community workers along with the other workers is that the unskilled workers approximately are earning fifteen or sixteen cents per hour which is unbearable to support a family decently. But still in order to get this bare minimum wage, the unskilled labors have to work for long hours and at times additional working hours as compared to skilled workers. Moreover, the living conditions are hazardous with poor house, smoky air and fouled water. The unskilled labors are treated just as hunki es. This clearly revels the catastrophic working and living situations of the unskilled immigrant workers of Europe of whom a number of are residing in the community (Country Studies US, â€Å"The Struggles of Labor†; Sage, â€Å"The Progressive Era: The Great Age of Reform†). ...Therefore, I can urge the workers to not to continue with their ongoing strike and to keep on working. As continuing with the strike will not be beneficial for both the management as well as the workers. Continuing with the strike will not be helpful for the workers as the management will probably not give in the workers demand which might lead to stagnation in the entire scenario. The situation can be resolved by undergoing a discussion with the management. The latter half of this 19th century can be considered as the stage of technological revolution or industrial revolution. This industrialization is mainly rooted in heavy industries like factories, railroads, and  coal mining with the ob jective of creating more products in a cheaper way. This includes rise of industrialization and has resulted in the rush for immigration in the  United States. This period has marked hasty economic growth and high prosperity within the US and has turned the nation into the world’s most leading economic, industrial and agricultural power. As a result, the real wages, Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and capital formation has increased and this has followed the augmentation of the average annual income of the workers as well. But the wages of the immigrants, a number of such workers who are from our community has remained barely low as they are untrained as well as unskilled to correspond with the advanced technology. At the same time, the wages of the skilled workers and engineers have increased at a constant rate along with other benefits. Thus, it can be stated that inspite of the rapid progress of the economy, the standard of living of the unskilled labors have remained uncha nged.

Ohio Sentate Bill Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Ohio Sentate Bill - Essay Example Having said this, it is not as though the nation has no responsibilities to play in ensuring that the citizen is well protected and provided for to give back to the nation. It is for this reason that bills and laws that are made in the nation must take a human face and consider the welfare of the citizen as the most important conditions. To this effect, it is absolutely necessary, right and appropriate that citizens are airing their views on the Senate Bill 5 and how it might affect them. The debates and discussion are therefore highly encouraged and no side of the argument can immediately be judged as invalid, out of place or unnecessary. Especially as voting is yet to be done, it is important that debates continue to clarify issues so that the voting public would have better reasons why they should make a particular choice on the day of voting. The Issues No body can deny the fact that the mere mention or thought of the fact that a person’s earning would be reduced directly or indirectly is unpleasant news to hear. In fact, monies are earned through labor and labor is a difficult phenomenon. It is for this reason that everyone would want his or her earning secured. But what about cases where the deductions would bring about an eventual and long term benefit. Like in the payment of life insurances and fixed deposits, so would the long term benefit of the Senate Bill 5 be. Vardon and Siegel (2011) note that â€Å"Senate Bill 5 also would save $191 million at the state level by eliminating employee longevity and step pay increases.† In the wake of times when America is trumpeting for rapid economic take after the recession, such an amount pumped into the economy would in no small way raise the economic fortunes of the nation. Having made this point, it is important to reiterate the need to ensure accountability at the hands of higher governmental officials so that the professed economic benefits would be achieved. There is also an urgent need for c ritics’ cry on the implementation process to be considered. This is because there seem to be a kind of disparity that creates the impression that someone is robbing Peter to pay Paul. This point is strongly supported by Kasich who decries how there exists â€Å"imbalance between the costs of health insurance for the private and public sectors† such that one group wound eventually be making losses for another person’s gains. There is the much talked deprivation of employees to air their views and bargain on their entitlements. Some say that the Senate Bill 5 will be â€Å"taking away the power to negotiate deductibles and co-pays that contribute to the overall cost of health insurance† (Vardon and Siegel, 2011). However, that is not all what the Senate Bill 5 presents as far as employee bargaining power is concerned. As a matter of fact, public service workers such as teachers, firefighters and law enforcers â€Å"will be able to negotiate with local and state officials for important contract provisions including wages and some working conditions, including those related to safety† (The Intelligencer, 2011). The fears continue to rage on but citizens are encouraged to consider the full impulse of the bill deeply. If for nothing at all, it is known that the little restrictions on bargaining power would go a long way to restrict excessive spending to help Ohio maintain a balanced budget. It should however be noted with caution that this does not become an avenue for killing the

American Education is Failing (High School) Research Paper

American Education is Failing (High School) - Research Paper Example This is having a negative affect on students. They listen to too much music and much of it sends them the wrong message about how they should live their lives. Some of the most famous and popular musical artists today use excessive swearing, glorify drugs and promiscious sex, and, in their personal lives, set a bad example for young people. These are serious concerns that policymakers do not pay enough attention to. Students sometimes listen to their iPods when they should be listening to their teacher. Their money and savings are being wasted on music that is offensive and setting a bad example for them. Another serious media problem in our world today is cyber bullying. It is one that is becoming increasingly difficult to handle. It occurs in hundreds of different formats in the Internet world via – Skype, email, photograph, video, YouTube, MSN, Facebook, chat rooms, MySpace, etc. With all of these different transportation modes for online bullying it is extremely hard to mo nitor. There have been several suicides that have been directly linked to cyber bullying via social networking sites such as Facebook. In these social networking sites individuals have the ability to victimize their subjects in dozens of ways (Campbell, 70). They can set up group bullying sites that target an individual, post rude comments on their walls, and tag them in incriminating photographs. The act can spread from one person to hundreds of people in a matter of seconds. There is often a divide between in-person bullying and cyber bullying. Many subjects that partake in cyber-bullying would never do it in person. They are aware of the etiquette that goes along with interacting in the real world yet fail to recognize the same etiquette in the cyber world. In the Internet world individuals face a disconnect. They do not see their victim nor do they have the opportunity to see their emotions. Individuals often forget that they are dealing with a real live human being

INJURY PREVENTION Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

INJURY PREVENTION - Research Paper Example Statement of the problem and significance of the problem According to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention, health workers face various injuries in the course of their work. These injuries include needlestick injuries, back injuries, latex allergies, violence, and stress. The rates of these work-related injuries have been increasing throughout the years and â€Å"by contrast, two of the most hazardous industries, agriculture and construction, are safer today than they were a decade ago† (CDC, 2011). According to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (n.d) healthcare workers face potential sources of injuries in the clinical areas through bloodborne pathogens, airborne pathogens, ergonomic injuries, slips, trips, falls, and through sharps; in the surgical suites through anesthetic gases, bloodborne pathogens, compressed gases, lasers, and latex; in radiology through radiation, airborne pathogens, and bloodborne pathogens as well; in physical therapy through ergonomics, slips, trips, and falls, through equipment hazards, and bloodborne pathogens; in the pharmacy through latex, drug absorption, and through slips and falls; and in central supply through compressed gases, anesthetic agents, chemical agents, ergonomics, and through burns and cuts. These injuries are sources of significant concern within and outside the health care practice because the appropriate safety precautions must be laid out in order to protect the welfare of all health care workers. Based on the above scenario, this paper now seeks to answer: What are the appropriate programs which need to be implemented to prevent and control the occurrence of the above health care injuries? Monitoring, Detection, Diagnosis of the injury problem In monitoring, detecting, and diagnosing of injuries in the workplace, it is important to observe the activities of healthcare workers. The monitoring of activities can be carried out by observing how the healthcare workers carry out their activities. In observing their activities, it is possible to observe how well these workers comply with the standard precautions of safety. By observing the workers, it is possible to see if they are practicing ergonomics while carrying, transferring and moving patients or while implementing interventions for the patient. The use of gloves, masks, gowns, and other personal protective equipment must be assessed. Evaluating whether or not workers use this protective equipment would determine the presence or absence of risks on the worker’s life. Regular tests of chemical levels and other toxic elements on a worker’s system would also help establish the extent of injury posed on the worker’s life. Radiation strips worn by workers would also help monitor the radiation exposure levels for the workers exposed to radiation and other toxic chemicals. Past and existing studies Various studies have been carried out on the subject matter. These studies have expressed that each year about 385,000 health care workers in hospitals are exposed to bloodborne pathogens, caused mostly by inadvertent needlestick and sharps injuries (National Public Health, 2011). In assessing the risk for injuries, determinants include: overuse of injections and unnecessary sharps, lack of supplies; lack of access to sharps containers; inadequate staffing; recapping of needles after use; lack of engineering controls; lack of awareness

Managing Change Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3750 words

Managing Change - Case Study Example The company that refuses to face up to the challenge of change will be swept away by the flood tide of this very change, the literature on change management implies. It follows that the company that manages change well could reap enormous benefits. Organizational change is a challenge, which may be imposed or initiated. It could be the outcome of a merger, the setting of a new organizational direction, or a newly installed information technology system (Concept Systems Online). In this paper's discussion of change, it relates to a plan of a progressive furniture manufacturer in the US to expand its operations into cyberspace, a process that follows the just mentioned concept except for the part about the merger. For one, it sets a new direction for the organization and it calls for the installation of an unfamiliar IT system. It can also be said that the change is initiated by top management and imposed by circumstance. Management initiated the move following assessment by the firm's finance and accounting department that profits do not reflect the rising manufacturing costs and that raw material inventories waste expensive rental space in public warehouses. The website option is then set to be imposed by suggestions that tran sferring part of the firm's business online can take care of this sort of production problems and ensure its continued profitability. This is where change management is called into play because e-commerce is strange territory to a small-town company run on paternalism by an outdoors type of man who involves himself in the design and technical work and shares lunch with employees, most of whom have been with the company from the start and thus strong on loyalty. Although without formal training in business and management, the hands-on company president reads and attends business seminars, which gave him an open mind about change. However, the reaction of employees to the online plan was frosty, indicating their lack of enthusiasm on this idea of change. This represents a big challenge to change management, which this essay precisely seeks to address, in a way that would illumine how to meet the challenges and how to carry out the appropriate change management methods and models set forth on the subject. Chad's Creative Concepts Chad Thomas, founder and president of the company called Chad's Creative Concepts, started entertaining the idea of going online when a conflict arose over the firm's production of standardized line of furniture on top of the custom-design products. The company was catapulted to prominence by custom-made wooden furniture that brought "a bit of the outdoors" into homes. As the market for this innovative and unique product boomed, Chad's decided to add standard-design furniture to its product line. Lately, the standard-design furniture accounts for 40 percent of the firm's sales turnover but only 25 percent of the dollar value of sales. The customized furniture makes up 60 percent of sales and 75 percent of the sales' dollar value, which means this product line remains the company's bread and butter. For this reason,

CLOUD COMPUTING Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words - 1

CLOUD COMPUTING - Essay Example However, the issue of cloud security is the main focus for the various cloud computing potential customers and it is also considered the major barrier to most of its widespread applications (Patrick, 2013). This research paper will focus on current research done on cloud security. The main focus of the paper will be to survey the popular cloud computing security models as well as the diverse parameters of cloud security which will involve virtualization, compliance, framework, risk management, dynamic access security, internet access security and access management. Introduction The biggest problem facing network computing and distributed systems is security. Cloud computing refers to internet computing and it is the latest concept that has the capability to increase an organization’s service delivery efficiency. The security models of cloud computing that are cloud multiple tenancy model of NIST, cloud risk accumulation model of CSA, Jerico forum’s cloud cube model and the mapping model of cloud, compliance and security are supported by the three cloud services models. Resources for cloud computing are scalable and dynamic .The representation of cloud computing is elaborated through three cloud computing service models which are platform as a service (PaaS), Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS) and Software as a Service (SaaS) (Patrick, 2013). The main aim of these cloud computing service models is to be able to provide the IT departments with focus on the various strategic projects as well as cutting down on the operational costs (Ritesh, Anant war& Swati, 2012). The cloud computing models are considered to have a variety of dimensions that are used to further worsen the security problem. The cloud computing model comprises of two main features which are elasticity and multi-tenancy. Elasticity depends on the presence of secure placement strategies andsecures service migration while multi-tenancy feature results to virtualization and thus the boundaries among different host services need to be improved. At present the available security strategies are only for the single cloud user and single cloud provider but if cloud computing in the future moves to a multiple provider environment security there will be a greater challenge in addressing the issue of security (Patrick, 2013). Users of cloud computing are able to access their database resources from the internet regardless of their location. It is quite clear that the use of cloud services is important and offers a lot of benefits to the user or the enterprise that has ad apted the new technology. Cloud computing can thus be regarded as a model that enables convenience on the demand network access to the shared computing resources. As stated by Amarnath et. al.2010 virtualization technology is used to optimize the performance of the application in a cost effective way but this technology can introduce some security risks. Therefore, cloud computing security plays a major role because the customers outsource computation tasks and data on cloud computing servers which are managed by cloud providers who cannot be trusted (Amarnath, 2010). Cloud computing has become popular as a result of many enterprise applications moving to the cloud platforms. However, the issue of security has become a major barrier point for cloud computing adoption. Based on a recent survey research conducted by the International Data Corporation almost 87.5% of the IT executives stated that security is a major challenge that must be dealt with in each cloud service. Therefore, th ere is need to come up with applications that will be used to curb the threats brought about by security by using some security

Charles Booth Essay Example for Free

Charles Booth Essay The social history of 19th century London can only be deduced through the remaining surveys and various documents left from that time period. Charles Booth was an innovative surveyor and social investigator in the late 1800s and formed surveys of the life and labor of the 19th century London population. Charles Booth took initiative to look into the various areas of poverty, but also examined the possible reasons for poverty. Past surveyors did not use accurate methods to create statistics or charts. Most social investigators used observation for their respective purpose. Booth used scientific methods and created better detailed censuses and surveys of London. Booth was the first to make connections and implications of poverty from the areas in which the people lived, living conditions, religious life, and occupation. His methodologies were complex and his conclusions were based upon empirical data. Charles Booth used innovated research methods such as: detailed questionnaires, personal interviews, and visual observations to investigate the cause of poverty. Certain areas in London, for example the East End, were infamously known for its poverty and unfortunate crimes. Many knew only of the conditions in the East End because of authors such as Charles Dickens and George Moore that â€Å"often set their works in poorer parts of town. † The conditions were overly exaggerated and were only representative of a small section of the East End. Inwood describes the situation accurately with his statement, â€Å"how many people lived in squalor and malnutrition was not known, although some writers tried to quantify London poverty, on the basis of inadequate evidence. Mayhew produced many pages of statistics, but most of them referred to the ‘street folk’, beggars, hawkers, scavengers, and entertainers, a tiny proportion of the London poor. † There were other social surveys conducted before Charles Booth started his social investigation, however none were as detailed and representative of the entire London population as Booth. â€Å"Investigative journalist, Henry Mayhew, reported on their interviews with the poor, while a few intrepid social explorers dressed as tramps and experienced at first-hand a night in the casual ward of a workhouse. Nonetheless, there were still no in-depth and comprehensive surveys conducted until Charles Booth. Charles Booth was commissioned by the Lord Mayor of London’s Relief Fund in 1885 to analyze the census responses. Booth felt that the census was disorganized and not an adequate indication of the social problems in London. Therefore, he took it upon himself to fix and reorganize the cen sus. The first meeting was held on April 17, 1886 for the reconstruction of the census. From 1886-1903, Booth continued to use his methodologies to gather data and research the cause of the social problems in London, specifically poverty. Charles Booth studied the integral parts of the city by examining the background information of the citizens of every street in London. He focused his efforts into three main areas: the exploration of poverty, the occupations of Londoners, and the religious influence. Poverty was a major social concern during the Victorian era, as well as a continual struggle with even the most sophisticated societies in the 21st century. Booth found the social problem of poverty an important issue to explore. Poverty maps of Charles Booth were the first color-coded maps during the late 19th century. Booth created a map that encompassed the levels of poverty and wealth with different colors ranging from black to yellow to indicate a specific level of poverty that was placed directly to the London address of the household. There were eight poverty levels labeled A-H; with the lowest class labeled with the letter A and increasing in wealth with the wealthiest class labeled with the letter H. The hierarchal poverty classification system starts at the bottom with letter A and color black, which includes the criminals, street sellers, occasional laborers, and loafers. Letter B is the color dark blue and includes the very poor, casual earners that work no more than 3 days a week, and the persons that are â€Å"mentally, morally, or physically incapable of work. † Letter C includes the persons of â€Å"intermittent earnings† and an income of â€Å"18-21s for a moderate household,† laborers with irregular work,† and the â€Å"poor artisans. Letter D includes the â€Å"small regular earners,† poor, and â€Å"struggle to make ends meet† but are â€Å"decent steady men, paying their way and bringing up their children respectably. Letter C and D are represented by a light blue color and sometimes as purple if grouped with Letter E. Letter E includes the â€Å"regular earners earning 22-30s a week,† wives normally do not take trade, and boys and girls who normally do work. Letter F includes the â€Å"highest paid artisans,† â€Å"high class labor† that makes more than 30s a week. Letter E and F are represented by the color pink. Letter G includes the â€Å"lower middle class† described as â€Å"hardworking sober energetic men. † Letter G is signified by the color red. The wealthiest class, Letter H includes the â€Å"upper middle class† that keep servants. Letter H is represented by the color yellow. All of these poverty levels are placed onto the corresponding street on the map of the household described. In order to make the poverty map, Booth enlists others to help him gather his research. Booth instructed the â€Å"School Board visitors† to visit each individual home with children that were registered with the school district and collect information. The â€Å"School Board visitors† were to collect detailed information on the house address, number of rooms that the family inhabited, rent, occupations’ of the head of the household and the wife, and number of children in the household. Then the â€Å"School Board visitors† were to categorize the household into the poverty level according to the eight levels and then to assign the household to the corresponding color for the map. Due to the number of households in London, it became evident that taking a survey of every household would be too time-consuming. Therefore, a general survey of the street was also taken in addition to a small number of households on the street. The â€Å"School Board visitors† were instructed to write down notes on the street name, surveyed houses and the color associated, street condition, number of children between the ages of 3-13, and the color the street is associated with the poverty map. The end result is a color coded map of the levels of poverty specific from street to street. To inspect the social reasons for poverty, Charles Booth looked into the occupations that various household members held. Charles Booth saw industry as a major contributor to the level of poverty associated with a household. For that reason, he requested surveys and interviewed persons with particular occupations about their personal experiences to gain insight into the possible associations with poverty. Booth broke down the occupations into 18 categories and 89 subcategories with each industry given an occupation survey.

Principles and Characteristics of Good Governance

Principles and Characteristics of Good Governance Introduction In general, good governance is perceived as a normative principle of administrative law, which obliges the State to perform its functions in a manner that promotes the values of efficiency, no corruptibility, and responsiveness to civil society. It is therefore a principle that is largely associated with statecraft. While the government is not obliged to substantively deliver any public goods, it must ensure that the processes for the identification and delivery of such goods are concrete in terms of i) being responsive to public demands; ii) being transparent in the allocation of resources and; iii) being equitable in the distribution of goods. The principle of good governance has also been espoused in the context of the internal operations of private sector organizations. In this way, corporate decision-making strategies integrate the principle of good governance and ensure that shareholder interests (i.e. public limited companies) and employees are taken into account. The legal meaning of the principle of good governance The concept of good governance as developed by the World Bank is essentially a touchstone upon which the prevailing administrative structure of a given country can be measured. Consequently, it provides ample evidence of the robustness of the structural suitability of donors as efficient vehicles of multilateral aid investment to developing countries. Good governance is therefore chiefly envisaged as a set of procedural tools to guarantee the efficacious improvement of the donor identified subject. Politically, however, the principle of good governance has not been very well received. For instance, governments may be reluctant to be held accountable to donor agencies, and they may sometimes display widespread hostility against such agencies (or other bodies) that is construed to be interfering in their (sovereign) domestic affairs. The real or imagined fears have stemmed mainly from the fact that the term good governance has largely been identified with liberalism and laissez-faire p olicies common in most developed countries. Further, the usage of the term good derives primarily from subjective interpretations especially in the context of large multicultural and diverse economies that characterize the developing world. The characteristics of good governance Good governance has 8 major characteristics. It is participatory, consensus oriented, accountable, transparent, responsive, effective and efficient, equitable and inclusive and follows the rule of law. It assures that corruption is minimized, the views of minorities are taken into account and that the voices of the most vulnerable in society are heard in decision-making. It is also responsive to the present and future needs of society. 1. Participation Participation by both men and women is a key cornerstone of good governance. Participation could be either direct or through legitimate intermediate institutions or representatives. It is important to point out that representative democracy does not necessarily mean that the concerns of the most vulnerable in society would be taken into consideration in decision making. Participation needs to be informed and organized. This means freedom of association and expression on the one hand and an organized civil society on the other hand. 2. Rule of law Good governance requires fair legal frameworks that are enforced impartially. It also requires full protection of human rights, particularly those of minorities. Impartial enforcement of laws requires an independent judiciary and an impartial and incorruptible police force. 3. Transparency Transparency means that decisions taken and their enforcement are done in a manner that follows rules and regulations. It also means that information is freely available and directly accessible to those who will be affected by such decisions and their enforcement. It also means that enough information is provided and that it is provided in easily understandable forms and media. 4. Responsiveness Good governance requires that institutions and processes try to serve all stakeholders within a reasonable timeframe. 5. Consensus oriented There are several actors and as many view points in a given society. Good governance requires mediation of the different interests in society to reach a broad consensus in society on what is in the best interest of the whole community and how this can be achieved. It also requires a broad and long-term perspective on what is needed for sustainable human development and how to achieve the goals of such development. This can only result from an understanding of the historical, cultural and social contexts of a given society or community. 6. Equity and inclusiveness A societys well being depends on ensuring that all its members feel that they have a stake in it and do not feel excluded from the mainstream of society. This requires all groups, but particularly the most vulnerable, have opportunities to improve or maintain their well being. 7. Effectiveness and efficiency Good governance means that processes and institutions produce results that meet the needs of society while making the best use of resources at their disposal. The concept of efficiency in the context of good governance also covers the sustainable use of natural resources and the protection of the environment. 8. Accountability Accountability is a key requirement of good governance. Not only governmental institutions but also the private sector and civil society organizations must be accountable to the public and to their institutional stakeholders. Who is accountable to whom varies depending on whether decisions or actions taken are internal or external to an organization or institution. In general an organization or an institution is accountable to those who will be affected by its decisions or actions. Accountability cannot be enforced without transparency and the rule of law. How to achieve good governance Good governance, to be effective and sustainable, must be anchored in a vigorous working democracy which respects the rule of law, a free press, energetic civil society organizations and effective and independent public bodies such as the Commission for Human Rights and Good Governance, Prevention of Corruption Bureau and the Fair Trade Commission. The Commission is important in ensuring the promotion and protection of human rights, but also in ensuring both transparency and accountability on the part of the government. Good governance requires transparency and efficiency also in different government agencies. At the political level democratic practices, including transparency in policy making and administration, are important aspects of good governance. This is signified by a pluralistic political system that allows the existence of diversity in political and ideological opinions. No wonder that good governance is said to be more easily achieved and guaranteed in a multi-party system than in a mono-party system. It also means the holding of regular elections applying the principle of universal franchise. In order to qualify as democratic, elections must be free and fair. Good governance deals with the nature and limits of state power. The doctrine of the separation of powers is therefore relevant in the establishment of whether or not a country has a political system that is responsive to good governance. The doctrine of the separation of powers is based on the acceptance that there are three main categories of government functions: legislative, executive, and judicial. Corresponding to these are the three main organs of government in a state the Legislature, the Executive and the Judiciary. The doctrine insists that these three powers and functions of government in a free democracy must be kept separate and exercised by separate organs of the state. Conclusion From the above discussion it should be clear that good governance is an ideal which is difficult to achieve in its totality. Very few countries and societies have come close to achieving good governance in its totality. However, to ensure sustainable human development, actions must be taken to work towards this ideal with the aim of making it a reality. References Macdonald, B. (1998), Good governance and Pacific island states, in Larmour, P. (Ed.), Governance and Reform in the South Pacific, National Centre for Development Studies Australian National University, Canberra, pp. 21-53. Woods, N. (1999) Good Governance in International Organizations, Global Governance 5, 39-61. Burnell, Peter. Good Government and Democratization: A Sideways Look at Aid and Political Conditionality, Democratization, vol.1, no.3, pp.485-503.

Entrepreneur Reflection Paper

Entrepreneur Reflection Paper Section 1.0 Introduction This portfolio releases findings of an analysis carried out on my personal abilities, skills, capability and experience to set up a business and also an analysis of the various tests that I undertook and the lessons learnt from the review. Furthermore an identification of strengths and weaknesses identified in (1.1) and (1.2) will be release along with how I address these and what actions I took and what information I needed together. Finally a reflection on the skills, experience and information, gained from carrying out this assignment will be explained. Section 1.1 Analysis of personal abilities, skills, capability and experience to set up a business Entrepreneurship is the drive of the economies in the world today. Most innovations are made and implemented by entrepreneurs. The role of entrepreneurs today is not just for self fulfilment but for contributing to the economies and helping to solve many of the problems in society. I consider myself an entrepreneur. I have entrepreneurial thoughts and am moved by successful entrepreneurs. The role of Bill Gates to information revolution is one of the contributions of entrepreneurial that inspire me. I try to figure out how the world would be without the contribution made by him and am perplexed (Birley S and Muzyka D, 1997). In the past, I have had entrepreneurial thoughts. I have thought of innovations that would make changes to the world. I thought of innovations that would make life easier for people while adding opportunities for jobs and livelihood of people. There are various reasons that make me to consider myself as an entrepreneur. The best indicator is that most of my role models are entrepreneurs. On top of the role model is Bill Gates. I consider him as a role model for his innovativeness and courage. Although a student, Bill Gates was innovative enough to see how software development could solve peoples problems (Bridge S, ONeill K, Martin F, 2009). He did not stop at the academia level but pursued his discovery and implemented the knowledge. Bill Gates courage is manifested by how he is able to pursue the discovery even though they are limited by resources and skills. Richard Branson of Virgin Empire is another role model. Richardsons self beliefs inspire me. He is able to see problems and does not run away from the problem but bravely confronts the problem and comes up with solutions. As an entrepreneur, I am innovative. I am able to come up with solutions by using innovative ways. From my lower grades in school, other students relied on me to give solutions when they were met with challenges. I have been able to use my innovativeness and interest in information technology in various ways. I have prepared and implemented software applications that can solve various problems. At my home, I prepared a software application that helps me remember to prepare for everyday. Together with my colleagues, we were able to present software applications that helps manages students welfare at our former High school. My self believe adds to my qualities of entrepreneurships. I believed in my capacity to bring changes to the society and take it as a duty to bring the positive changes. Although some other people are not comfortable with my assertiveness, I take it as a gift that should be exploited for the good of the people. My inner drive helps me to overcome negative reactions and pessimistic opinions of other people. The business idea that I have in mind is online marketing and sales. This idea came in my mind as a result of development in information technology that has changed the culture and ways of life of people (Burns P, 2008). The conventional ways of doing business would not be successful in this information era. The information era calls for restructuring of the business to conform to new technologies. The other motivation to online marketing and sales is philosophy of lean (Entrepreneur, 2009). Most of the products that are sold to the end are sold at a very high price as compared to the production cost of the product. The additional costs to the products result from the many middlemen. Online sales and marketing enables the products to be sold directly to the end ensuring that the end used gets the value of the money used. Online sales and marketing requires and entails the use of information technology in sales and marketing. As an entrepreneur, I wish to apply the skills to assist business and corporate market their products though the internet. In addition to market, I wish to assist businesses implement direct online sales to their customers. My broad experience in information technology, application programming and marketing will be useful. My ability to foresee details of complex things will enable me to overcome the challenges of setting up the sales and marketing. Sales and marketing is an old role in business. Although other roles are equally important, I find sales and marketing to be the most important. Sales and marketing is the activity that presents the product to the used and ensures that the products are bought. Without sales and marketing, the role of production and other roles may be inessential. Inspired by this, I feel that the use of information technology in this role would be very fruitful. Online sales and marketing in not new. Many companies run their own website through which potential customers can peruse the products before they can arrange to make purchases. A good example of model online direct sales is EBags. This company sells different kind of bags to their customers through the internet. However, the online sales and marketing are made by individual companies. My vision is to establish a virtual online supermarket though which people can access products from different companies and buy the products directly through th e internet. The education system has opened my mind in various areas. The skills that I have acquired would be very helpful to the business. The analytical, communication, and problem solving skills in academia are essential to the business. These skills coupled with my innovativeness and self drive will enable me to achieve the vision of online sales and marketing. To evaluate the business and my entrepreneurial skills, I undertook various tests. Section 1.2 Analysis of the various tests undertaken and the lessons learnt from the review To evaluate my entrepreneurial capability, I took several independent entrepreneurial tests. The test helped me to unfold my personality and other things related to entrepreneurship. On personality, I took different independent entrepreneurial tests. Personality is very important to the success of entrepreneur. Most of the entrepreneurs are observed to have related personality that contributes to their success. Most successful entrepreneurs are observed to have personal inner drive that sustain their innovations and quest for success. Most of them strongly believe in themselves and have confidence in their personal capacity to bring change. Their innovativeness and problem solving is very vital to their success. Being in business means that a person will be prone to competition. Most entrepreneurs have personalities that ensure them to be competitive without fear of failure. In addition, almost all entrepreneurs are highly motivated and have high energy. Their energy enables them to overcome the difficult task of entrepreneurships and motivate other individuals to the goal of the business. Despite of these, most entrepreneurs are open for advice and criticism. In stead of taking criticism negatively, entrepreneurs learn from the criticism and implement the necessary changes to their businesses. Personality tests were; Type T personality test, DaVinci type personality test and Bill Wagners Personality test. The tests presented questions that aimed at analyzing the personality. Completion of the entrepreneurial personality test gave a report that included a score on different personality categories (Personality 100, 2009). The result from the test suggested whether a person was fit for being an entrepreneur. From all the entrepreneurial personality tests I scored a score sufficient for entrepreneur. The other personality test made was the HBDI personality test. This test measures the tendency of a person to have left-brain or right-brain thinking. This tendency tells whether a person is more likely to have conceptual and experimental tendency in thinking (Jolly A, 2004). This tendency is different in different professions and helps an individual to discover the right profession. For an entrepreneur, the test analyses the major issues that are necessary to the entrepreneur. The test has different quadrants. The first quadrant takes into consideration of the capacity to solve problems. An entrepreneur has to be able to think logically and analyse facts before making a decision. The second quadrant evaluates the ability of the person to implement the decision made. The third quadrant evaluates the ability of the entrepreneurs to communicate. Communication is very essential for businesses. The ability of the entrepreneur to communicate ensures the entrepreneur to coordinate other st ake holders in the business (Wickham P, 2006). The fourth quadrant of the test evaluates the capability of the entrepreneurs to take risks. Risk taking is very important to entrepreneurs and determines how they would handle challenges and respond to setbacks. The other test made was the marketing test. Marketing is very essential to a business. This test analyses how an entrepreneur is aware of the potential market and marketing strategies. Also, I took a market research test. This tests how an individual understands market research. The questions presented help the individual to evaluate market research needed for the business. The other test taken was a leadership test. The leadership test helps to evaluate the leadership qualities of the person taking the test. Entrepreneurs are leaders in their respective businesses. To be a successful entrepreneur, a person has to be a good leader. Section 1.3 Strengths and Weaknesses Evaluation of personal abilities and the use of the entrepreneurial tests enabled me to discover my strengths and weakness as an entrepreneur. The evaluation was made in relation to the online sales and marketing business that I have in mind. Online sales marketing is information based business. It takes the form of business outsourcing. The business entails taking other businesses trouble of sales and marketing and doing it for them. My creativity and innovativeness is my strength (Williams S, 2002). The innovativeness will enable me to be able to come up with solutions to individual businesss sales and marketing challenges. My strong base in information technology is vital to the business (Chapman N and Chapman J, 2006). This experience will enable me to be at ease in coming up with online solution sales and marketing. The education base is also strength. Online sales and marketing businesses will entail ability to deal with complexities. The analytical skill obtained from the education system will enable me to come up with logical solutions to the problems. From the personality test, I was able to identify my strengths and weaknesses. From the test, I am outgoing and assertive. This quality is essential for entrepreneurs. The quality will enable me to deal with other people. The assertiveness is strength with what I would be able to sell the business idea to potential clients. This will enable the business to gain customers and have fast growth. The assertiveness will also help me to negotiate for the business with potential business partners. Problem solving is a key element to entrepreneur success (Rae, 2007). From the HBDI test, it was shown that I have good problem solving capabilities. Online sales and marketing, as an outsourcing business will entail solving other peoples problems. The capability will enable me to be able to handle clients problems with ease. The weaknesses identified from the test include communication challenges and leadership. The assertiveness was identified to impede interpersonal communication by intimidating the other party. On leadership, my leadership quality was identified and self- centred. To overcome the challengers posed by my personality in leadership and communication, I will invest in the area to ensure improvement. Personal reflection will enable me to be sensitive of other people in communication and react appropriately to their personal psychological needs. This will enable me to overcome the intoxicative charisma. On leadership, I would register for leadership course. The course will help me in managing and leading people. Section 1.4 Reflection on the skills, experience and information, gained from carrying out the assignment The reflection of the business was very important to me as an entrepreneur. The assessment enables me to go through the details of the business. From this, I was able to unfold the hidden challenges that would be posed by the business. This assessment enabled me to go step by step through the different steps that would be followed when establishing the business. It gave me the opportunity to relate the theoretical base of the business with the practical implementation of the problem. Through the business idea can be reviewed to fit the practical environment. The entrepreneurial tests were very important to discovery of self in relation to entrepreneurship. From the test, I was able to identify my strengths and weakness and an entrepreneur. From the strengths and weakness identified, I would be able to make the right measure to overcome the challenges. Entrepreneurship is very important to the economies of the world (Rae, 2007). The freedoms and innovativeness of the entrepreneurs leads to solutions of major world challenges. From the assessment, entrepreneurship is the right way for me. It will enable me to implement the online sales and marketing business idea.

Encryption - How Sensitive Information Is Protected on the Internet :: Exploratory Essays Research Papers

Encryption - How Sensitive Information Is Protected on the Internet Have you ever visited a web site and seen something that you wanted to purchase? Were you apprehensive about making that purchase, because you were unsure of who would see your personal information? Well, for an e-business to be successful, the leaders of that business must take special security measures to protect their customer’s sensitive information. The most reliable method to protect sensitive information that is transmitted via the web, is encryption. Encryption is the coding and scrambling of messages to prevent any unauthorized access to data that is being transmitted. Applying a secret numerical code called an encryption key encrypts a message. This allows the message to be sent as a scrambled set of characters. If the message is to be unscrambled, it must be decrypted with a matching key. These keys consist of groups of letters, numbers, and symbols. If a website is secured by encryption, you will see a small lock on the lower right hand side of your screen on the status bar. There are two basic standards of encryption. They are, Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) and Secure Hypertext Transport Protocol (S-HTTP). Both of these allow the client and the server computers to manage encryption and decryption as they communicate with each other during a secure Internet session. Public key is a widely used type of encryption. However, there are several different types. This type of encryption uses two different keys. One key is private while the other key is public. First, a private and public key must be created. The private key, of course, is kept secret. The public key is kept in a directory. The sender sends a message with the receiver’s public key, and the receiver uses the private key to decrypt it. Another type of internet security device is called a digital signature. This is a digital code attached to a message that is electronically transmitted and used to identify the origins and contents of that message. The digital signature is then used by the receiver to verify that the message was not tampered with after being sent. A digital signature is similar to a real signature, in that it is a way to be sure that the person sending the message is indeed that person.

Execution of the Mentally Retarded Essay -- Argumentative Persuasive E

Execution of the Mentally Retarded Stories regarding terrorism and war plaster every news broadcast, newspaper, and television show in the country; however, there has recently been a story that has become just as important, and is being focused upon by almost every state in our nation. The story regards the issue of execution and if it is wrong to execute those who are considered mentally retarded, due to the Constitution’s Eighth Amendment. The amendment states that â€Å"Excessive bail shall not be required, nor excessive fines imposed, nor cruel and unusual punishments inflicted† (â€Å"Eighth Amendment†). Due to this amendment, I believe it is not only constitutionally wrong, but also morally wrong as well to execute those who are mentally retarded. According to an article written by Linda Greenhouse of The New York Times, entitled, â€Å"Top Court Hears Argument of Execution of Retarded†, Daryl Atkins was convicted for the 1996 shooting death of Eric Nesbitt, an airman at Langley Air Force Base who was kidnapped from a Virginia 7-11 store by Akins and another man, William Jones. This case has brought about one of the most perplexing and intriguing questions to the U.S. Supreme court regarding criminal punishment; should Daryl Atkins, who was convicted of murder and who has been sentenced to death, be executed even though he is mentally retarded? I believe that he should not be executed, due to the fact that it would be considered cruel and unusual punishment killing someone who is mentally retarded, which is against the Eighth Amendment to our Constitution. Atkins has an IQ of 59, which is equivalent to that of a 10-year-old child (Curriden). He made C’s and D’s in middle school and flunked out of high school. He has neve... ...2002. http://caselaw.lp.findlaw.com/data/constitution/amendment08/. Greenburg, Jan Crawford. â€Å"Justices Give Little Clue to Leaning on Death Penalty for Mentally Retarded.† Chicago Tribune 20 February 2002 pK0362. 2 March 2002. Greenhouse, Linda. Top Court Argument on Execution of Retarded. 21 February 2002. The New York Times. 26 February 2002 http://www.nytimes.com/2002/02/21/national/21SCOT.html. Myers, Jennifer. â€Å"Death Penalty for Mentally Retarded May Slide off High Court’s Docket Again.† Daily Business Review v76 i160. 28 January 2002 pA12. 2 March 2002. Stout, David. Execution of Retarded to Be Reviewed by Supreme Court. 20 February 2002. The New York Times. 26 February 2002 http://www.nytimes.com/2002/02/20/national/20CND-SCOTUS.html. â€Å"U.S. Supreme Court.† FindLaw.com. 10 March 2002. http://laws.findlaw.com/us/217/349.html.

Christian View of the Natives in the New World Essay -- American Ameri

Christian View of the Natives in the New World Some would say that Christopher Columbus was a devout Christian. He believed that "his was a mission that would put Christian civilization on the offensive after centuries of Muslim ascendancy" (Dor-Ner 45). Columbus' original mission was to find a western route to the Indies. But when that failed, his mission became clear: convert these new people to Christianity. Throughout this paper I will show the view of the natives by Columbus and Christendom and how these views changed over a span of fifty years. Columbus made it very clear that he was doing this not only for Ferdinand and Isabella, but also for the faith that he was subject to (Dor-Ner 150). He may not have always had the backing of the Papacy, but he always claimed to be doing, whatever it was that he was doing, for the Church. In 1492, when Columbus first arrived, the first thing he saw were a bunch of naked people. I guess to someone who is used to "civilization" this would be somewhat shocking. His first impression of them was recorded in his log. He says that all he saw were young people, handsome and well built, and they seemed to be friendly and well-dispositioned (Dor-Ner 152). So first contact was not a hostile thing. This friendly attitude towards the natives did not last long. There was a settlement left on the island of Hispaniola, after the first voyage, called Navidad. The settlers were supposed to be cementing relations and trading with the natives. On the night of November 27, 1493, when Columbus was on his second voyage back to visit this colony, he was met with only silence. All that was found were the ashes of the town and the remains of the settlers bodies (Dor-Ner 206-207). From this ... ...es or even killing them, but it was a start. It took fifty years for people to even declare that the beasts that they were killing were indeed human and capable of understanding religion. They went from being looked at as a friendly people, to slaves and evil abominations, to truly innocent men who need and want to receive the Word of God. It took five hundred years for people to truly realize that what we did was just plain wrong. Bibliography Davies, Nigel. Voyagers to the New World. New York: William Morrow and Company, Inc., 1979. Dor-Ner, Zvi. Columbus and the Age of Discovery. New York: William Morrow and Company, Inc., 1991. Dyson, John. Columbus: for Gold, God, and Glory. New York: Simon and Schuster, 1991. Kung, Hans. Christianity: Essence, History, and Future. New York: Continuum, 1995. Sublimus Dei. http://www.listserv.american.edu.

Ecuadorian Rose Industry

The Ecuadorian Rose Industry 1. What is the basis of Ecuador’s comparative advantage in the production of roses? Ecuador’s rose farms are located in the just about perfect position for growing long and straight roses or at least most of the farms. They are positioned at about 10,000 feet elevation in the Andes Mountains. This provides the roses with high altitude, volcanic soil that is very rich in ingredients, and located on the equator. This gives the roses about 12 hours of daylight every day. Graham) This provides an intense amount of sunlight, so farmers use plastic sheeting to create a greenhouse effect. I believe this helps keep the roses from burning up, being so close to the sun, and from freezing on the cold nights. (Hamilton) It creates a sense of perfect temperatures. (Thompson) 2. Most Ecuadorean roses are sold in the United States or Europe. Who in these countries benefit from the importation of Ecuadorean roses, and how do they benefit? Who loses? Do you think the benefits outweigh the costs?In 2006, the United States accounted for 61% of the Ecuadorean roses’ total sales. This made us the largest market in this rose industry. Europe accounted for 20% of the exports of Ecuadorean flowers, while these flowers accounted for 31% of the United States flower imports. (Alvaro) Both countries benefit overall because they can imports the roses at such a low price and most of the profits stay in the imported country. (Graham) I believe local growers are the ones who lose in this situation. If buyers can find them for a lower price, most will take it so they can keep more profits.This isn’t necessarily the best option for our country, but some companies do not care about the greater good of helping our own country. 3. How does the rose export industry benefit Ecuador? Do these benefits have any implications for the United States and Europe? With the increase of rose and other flower exportation from Ecuador, the country’s export revenue has increases and is increasing the stability of its economy. (Halberstadt) This is one of the effects of the fair trade agreement between them and the United States. Another effect is the extra money the people are getting.They are able to take classes to learn how to manage the extra money. (Hamilton) Ecuador has also been able to pave more roads, build sophisticated irrigation systems, and some schools with the taxes and revenues from growing roses. (Thompson) Developed countries, like the United States and Europe, have to understand that as developing nations, like Ecuador, become more developed they have to adhere to global standards and it is up to developed countries to help with this. 4. How should developed nations respond to reports of poor working conditions in this industry?Should importers in some way certify Ecuadorean producers, or only importing from those who adhere to strict labor and environmental standards? I believe the developed nations should h elp to encourage making the working conditions better. Although the average flower worker does earn more than the minimum wage of $120 per month, but it does not make up for the horrible conditions. I also believe importers should certify Ecuadorean producers for those following the labor and environmental standards and those who are trying to improve their operations. Plantations, like RosaPrima, have done this.Ross Johnson, a general manager of the plantation, said that they had made a lot of improvements over the years, from protective wear and equipment to cracking down of child labor. (Thompson) Works Cited 1. ) Alvaro, Mercedes. â€Å"Ecuador Flower Exports Require U. S. Trade Deal to Keep Growing. † Dow Jones Newswires Feb. 2006. 3 March 2013 . 2. ) Graham, Grace. â€Å"Five Reasons who you shouldn’t Buy her Roses† North by Northwestern Feb. 2010. 3 March 2013 < http://northbynorthwestern. om/story/five-more-reasons-why-you-didnt-buy-your-girlfrien/>. 3. ) Halberstadt, Jason. â€Å"Ecuador Foreign Trade. † Ecuador Trade Copyright 1997-2013. 3 March 2013 4. ) Hamilton, Cortney and Deb Tullmann. â€Å"Rough Cut. † Ecuador Flower Power Feb. 2008. 3 March 2013 . 5. ) Thompson, Ginger. â€Å"Behind Roses’ Beauty, Poor and Ill Workers† NY Times Feb, 2003. 3 March 2013 .

Generational conflicts Presentation

What do our companies do to deal with generational differences? 3. How important is it for organizations to have training and programs on generational conflicts? 4. Please share your experience about generational conflicts in the workplace that you have encountered in the past. How did you deal with it? Summarizing group discussions – Baby boomers – Seers – Years Adviser 1: Ron Also – a freelance writer, editor, and consultant, and a former reporter and editor for the Wall Street Journal. Bosses have to get used to spending more time with their young workers. The investment should pay off in improved morale, productivity, teamwork, and innovation.While Josh might prefer text messaging and e-mail, it is critical that he and Sarah meet face-to-face for more substantive conversations about workplace attitudes and expectations. Managers like Sarah also are finding that they need to show respect for Gene Years and encourage them even if they can't give Gene Yea rs what they want as fast as they want it. Advisor 2: Pamela Nicholson – president and COO of Enterprise Rent-A-Car, based in SST. Louis. As a large employer of college graduates, Enterprise has taken steps to address these kinds of issues, in two important ways: training and feedback. Advisor 3: Jim Miller – the executive vice president of sales and marketing at General Tool & Supply, a distributor based in Portland, Oregon.To work better together, Sarah and Josh both need to recalibrate their expectations. Sarah needs to take extra time to validate Josh's ideas and help him understand what it means to be a team player. For so many Years entering the workforce, the attitude is â€Å"I'll be a full-time freelancer, and work will be fun, fun, fun. Sarah needs to counteract that by being completely transparent with Josh about the level of performance required (a new idea needs to be fully researched) and the level of communication required (formal presentations rather t han hallway chats). For his part, Josh needs to figure out how to pitch his good ideas through established channels, within the established team framework.If he really needs to be a maverick, he can go off and start his own company, where he can follow his own business rules. Or, he can go to a different firm that has a maverick culture. Solutions to close the generation gap – Communicating information in multiple ways (oral and written, formal and informal) to address different generations' learning styles – Collaborative decision making (co-creation) – Training managers to handle generational differences – Recognizing that all generations want to be treated with respect (source: ASCII 2013) Wrap up – represented of each generation will say what they would do to deal with conflicts and improve performance Thank you for your active and constructive participation!

Short Answer Responses

Short-Answer Responses 1. Based on your readings from Ch. 3 of the textbook and your personal experience, would you say that pop culture affects individuality? If so, how? Pop culture absolutely affects individuality. It permeates our society to where it shapes the actions and behaviors of whole communities. We are products of our environment for pop culture subversively guides our decisions, our morals, and influences heavily what we like and dislike.In reading the steps to starting to realize individuality from the book, oftentimes people do not stop to discern what values pop culture instills in society to be of their own true beliefs, and they are just going with what is popularly accepted (Ruggiero, 2009). It is a sort of voluntary conformity because of the desire to fit in, and pop culture’s influences are so subtle that many believe they are being individualistic when in fact they are living their lives per the dictates of pop culture. 2. Think back to your childhood an d the environment in which you were raised.How did those early childhood experiences influence the level of curiosity you have today? Considering that curiosity is an important element of creativity, identify techniques that can help you improve or regain your curiosity. Being raised in a large family meant there was usually someone available to answer questions as a child. If the first person was unavailable, the next was more accommodating. This encouragement of curiosity and the realization that persistence would lead to an answer is helpful in later life as it becomes the norm to question everything rather than accept it at face value.Although curiosity tends to wane as children grow into adulthood, there are several ways that people can regain their curiosity. Ruggiero (2009) stated â€Å"There are six specific techniques: a. Be observant b. Look for the imperfections in things c. Note your own and others dissatisfactions d. Search for causes e. Be sensitive to implications f. Recognize the opportunity in controversy† (p. 116). In other words: being aware of your surroundings and taking note of them, looking for ways that things could be improved, and recognizing that other people’s dissatisfaction probably means that a problem exists that needs a solution.To do this, the cause of the problem needs to be discovered and once a solution has been presented, the possible impact of the solution on the people involved should be taken into account. 3. One of the key controversies in psychology is nature versus nurture. Is this a problem or an issue? Explain. In psychology, nature versus nurture tends to be an issue more than a problem. Ruggiero (2009) declares that â€Å"A problem is a situation that we regard as unacceptable; where an issue is a matter about which intelligent, informed people disagree to some extent. Many psychologists believe that people behave as they do because of hereditary or inborn factors. This is where the â€Å"natureâ €  theory of human behavior comes into play. Other psychologists will argue that people think and behave as they do because of environmental factors, or simply put, because they were taught to do so. Nature versus nurture is clearly an issue because it is a matter that informed people, in this case psychologists, disagree to some extent as to what causes human behavior. 4. Identify three sources of information you may use when investigating a problem or issue.Compare steps you would take to refine the solutions to a problem with steps to refine resolutions of an issue. Three sources of information you may use when investigating a problem or issue include expert opinion, observational study, and research review. Because an issue and a problem are two different things, so are the steps taken to refine them. According to Ruggiero (2009), steps to refine your solution to a problem include: a. Working out the details b. Finding imperfections and complication c. Making improvement Step s to refine resolutions of an issue are: a.Deciding what action should be taken b. Recognizing and overcoming difficulties In both of these methods step one is similar, but it seems like deciding what action should be taken is more aggressive than working out the details. With step two, recognizing and overcoming difficulties seems like it would be more proactive in finding a resolution quicker than with finding imperfections and complications. Another comparative I noticed is that it takes more steps to refine a solution to a problem. Finding a resolution to an issue seems like an easier task than finding a solution to a problem. 5.Sometimes your ego can make it hard for you to receive criticism of your own solutions. Do you think some personality types are naturally better at receiving criticism than are others? What strategies can you use to be more receptive of criticism of your own ideas and solutions? Ego often gets in the way and makes it hard to receive criticism. There are multiple reasons this occurs. Once we have settled on an idea, we tend to take ownership with interest in that idea. The thought of someone finding flaw with it is often hard to swallow. However, criticism is an important part of problem solving because no solution is perfect.Additional, your perspective may be different from that of another person based on personal experiences, your interpretation of something you saw, read, or heard etc. Criticism, regardless of your personality type, is not easy for anyone to receive. What makes the difference is how a person responds to criticism. Perhaps an individual that has a high self-esteem would be more open to other ideas and be able to see the need to step back and review the idea objectively. There are two strategies that can be applied to overcome the natural reaction to defend your idea against criticism vs. ctively looking at it with an open mind. First, remind yourself that the feelings you may have to defend your idea are normal b ut you must disregard the initial reaction and force yourself to examine the idea critically. Second, use your ego to your benefit. When you are ready to give up and stop examining an idea, think about how you would feel if a flaw were to be pointed out. Visualize the situation, would you feel embarrassed. This visualization should provide a sufficient amount of motivation to subdue the ego in the â€Å"ME MONSTER† and continue to accept criticism and continue evaluating your deas. 6. When oversimplifying, a person distorts and misrepresents complex matters. How can you find and overcome oversimplifications in your arguments? To find oversimplifications in an argument, consider what important parts of the issue have not been addressed. Is the argument only focused on one point? To correct an oversimplification, state the argument in a way that considers all aspects of the matter accurately without distorting the facts to reflect a single point of view (Ruggiero, 2009).

Letter vs. Txtn

October 8, 2009 LW 102 9-11 am The Decease of Letter Writing Letter writing has all but disappeared in society today due to technologies such as e-mail and text messaging. Both of these technologies make the process of writing a letter and sending it through the mail much easier. Text messaging refers to messages being sent from one mobile phone to another. E-mail describes a system for sending and receiving messages over a computer network. Texting and E-mail have become part of people’s daily lives. Many people couldn’t imagine living without both. Even though texting and E-mailing are great things they are also making Americans lazy. When writing a letter you have to take the time to sit down and get your thoughts to process on paper. When writing letters you have to worry about correct spelling and vocabulary. Another big part of writing letters is grammar; it takes years sometimes to learn how to properly use the correct grammar and punctuation. Sometimes a major challenge in writing is being able to express an argument or a complete thought on paper. All of these things on top of technology contribute to why people don’t take the time to write letters anymore. E-mail also contributes to letter writing disappearing because even before texting became so popular there was e-mail. E-mail allows not only messages, but documents in little time. E-mail is convenient for PC users who are on the computer 24/7. E-mail allows you to send things like pictures and videos to another computer in less time it takes to mail a letter. E-mail is also cheap because most websites offer free e-mail addresses. Also most people who work in offices or from home rely on their e-mails very much to receive important information from their jobs quickly. Text messaging is another reason why letter writing has disappeared. Some people consider text messaging as their voice or identity. Texting is also one of the least expensive forms of communication and sends messages in less time than it takes to write. People text because it’s convenient and is like an extension of a PC. Unlike writing a letter, in text messaging you don’t have to worry about spelling because you can use short words and not have the correct spelling. Also in texting there is practically no grammar or punctuation. E-mail and text messaging are just two reasons why letter writing has deceased. These two technological advancements are much more convenient and easier to access. People are still communicating and sharing their original and personal thoughts with other people. So even though writing letters has disappeared somewhat people still express themselves in other ways.