Monday, September 30, 2019

Sources and Forms of Entertainment and Their Impact on Society Essay

In Life the Movie: How Entertainment Conquered Reality, Neal Gabler describes entertainment as having no moral, physical, or mental benefits to the success of society other than bringing temporary happiness. Through forms of entertainment, especially ones created in the last century, this viewpoint is strongly evident. However many forms of entertainment stimulate and progress society. Entertainment brings a greater feeling of happiness and relaxation to individuals of society thus having a positive effect. However the source and form of entertainment chosen to fulfill happiness and relaxation in most instances, determines the positive or negative effect on society. Physical activities create possible the largest source of entertainment for society. From Ice climbing to soccer matches all entertainment of this form has a positive effect on society. From a scientific viewpoint physical activity brings more flow of blood to the brain, thus supplying it with the maximum amount of nutrie nts and oxygen needed for brains growth and health. This process of extra blood flow creates an outstanding separation between student athletes’ and regular students’ high school GPAs. In most schools student athletes average GPAs average almost a full grade point higher than other students’ average. Though, this is not the only advantage to this source of entertainment. Entertainment such as this builds personal characteristics, characteristics such as teamwork, perseverance, effort, and even leadership. From my personal experiences in soccer I have learned how to become a leader while still doing my part on the field, qualities that can help me and any groups I work with in the future. Varies forms of storytelling have been a source for entertainment for as long as human populations have been able to communicate with each other. Sources of entertainment such as fireside stories, performances, and reading are just some examples of this form of entertainment. However, in the past few decades, new technologies especially the television have altered the art of storytelling to mindless, visual and emotional appeal. Before television this form of visual and imaginative entertainment, would usually include life lessons about morals and history or even provide guidance for one’s life. With television being the most common source of entertainment it holds a huge part on the  influences on the people of society today. However shows such as Fear Factor and real world have no positive effect on society. These types of shows have no lessons to be learned and force no physical or mental exercise of the viewer. Entertainment keeps society driving and pushing further. Not only can it offer happiness and a better state of mind, but it can also offer learning opportunities to society. However, source and form of entertainment determines the positive or negative effects of its use. With technology growing at exponential rates concerns arise because of the correlated increases in negative impact entertainment. The idea being, the more we really on technology for everyday tasks, the less capable we become of being a positive part of society. Entertainment needs to stimulate both the mental and physical capabilities of society, it shouldn’t only bring happiness and visual appeals otherwise we will live in a world much like the one in Mikes Judge’s film Idiocracy.

Sunday, September 29, 2019

Similarities That the Friday the 13th and Halloween Movie

This essay will focus on the similarities that the Friday the 13th and Halloween franchises share. First, I will compare the movies and the years they came out. Second, I will touch on the characters and the actors who played them. Third, I will compare the revenue of both franchises. And Finally, I will critique both of the franchises, and hopefully something will be learned about these popular culture and cult horror icons. The Friday the 13th series consists of eleven brutal slasher films; the first one simply titled Friday the 13th( 1980), Friday the 13th part 2(1981), Friday the 13th part 3(1982), Friday the 13th: The Final Chapter(1984) in 3D,Friday the 13th: A new Beginning(1985), Friday the 13th part 6: Jason Lives(1986), Friday the 13th part 7: A New Blood(1988), Friday the 13th part 8:Jason Takes Manhattan(1989), Jason Goes To Hell: The Final Friday(1993), Jason X(2002), Freddy vs. Jason(2003), Friday the 13th(2009). The Halloween series started out two years prior to the Friday the 13th series, and has ten films; Halloween(1978), Halloween 2(1981), Halloween: Season of the Witch(1982), Halloween 4:The Return of Michael Myers(1988), Halloween 5: The Revenge of Michael Myers(1989), Halloween 6: The Curse of Michael Myers(1993), Halloween H20: Twenty Years Later(1998), Halloween Resurrection(2003), Halloween(2007), and Halloween 2(2009). On seven occasions both franchises put out a movie the same years (1981, 1982, 1988, 1989, 1993, 2003, and 2009). Both franchises did relatively well at the box office and over all revenue. Both of the franchises have a slasher character that has stood the tests of time. The Villain in the Halloween movies is a druid cursed psychotic killer named Michael Myers who has 94 confirmed kills. Jason Vorhees is the undead hockey masked being in the Friday the 13th movie series. He holds the record for confirmed kills in the movies with an outstanding amount of 141. Both characters wear a work suit and a mask. Jason Vorhees started out with a pillow case in part 2, and then he found a hockey mask in part 3 which solidified his character. Michael Myers started the killings wearing a William Shatner prototype mask he got from the Halloween store. Both franchises included reoccurring characters played by the same actors. Donald Pleasence was in five of the original six Halloween films, and really did well with his character Doctor Samuel Loomis. Donald Pleasence in fact died in the middle of filming Halloween part 6, and they had to alter the outcome of the movie. I was a fan of Donald Pleasence due to the Halloween movies, and even his black and white films from the fifties and sixties. Kane Hodder played Jason Vorhees in four of the Friday the 13th films (IMDbPRO, 2010). Jaime Lee Curtis played the character name Laurie Strode who was Michael Myers niece, which was not good for her, because he wanted to kill her. The Friday the 13th and Halloween franchises are both in the top five highest grossing horror films of all time; Friday the 13th being number one, and Halloween being number four. The total box office revenue for the Friday the 13th series is $465,239,523, and Halloweens total box office revenue is $366,893,444 (IGN, 2006). Both of the franchises also do well with merchandise sales as well. There is an extended amount of products each franchise has to offer including; masks, costumes, DVDs, t-shirts, video games, toys, dolls, comic books, novels, and bobble heads. The Jason Goes to Hell toy in the Mcfarlane toys Movie Maniacs Collection is a top seller (IGN 2010). It seems that each franchise wants to keep striving; they both have new movies, masks, toys, and comic books coming out this year. Both of the franchises do a lot with their DVD marketing and sales; they have DVD box sets, VHS box sets, extra scenes, digitally re-mastered versions, blue ray, and more. I know this because I have some of that stuff, because I am a collector. I am an all around fan of slasher movies, so I already knew most of what I was going to include. I personally like the Halloween series a little bit better, due to the in depth character origins, and extra creative story lines. There is also a certain amount of creepiness I love about the Halloween films; they are still made very scary and original. I will not take anything away from the Friday the 13th franchise; I think it is almost as good. Friday the 13th is not as storyline oriented as Halloween, but makes up with that in sheer brutality. Friday the 13th placed number seven on IGNs top twenty five franchises of all time. â€Å"One of the most influential franchises of the 1980s† (IGN 2010). I discussed the similarities of the two franchises, in the amount of movies, the characters, and the revenues of both franchises. The Friday the 13th franchise has made a little bit more money than Halloween, but they are both worth watching on a Friday night in October.

Saturday, September 28, 2019

Home remedy Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Home remedy - Essay Example In this essay some ingredients commonly available will be described with reference to their medicinal value. Honey is a natural sweet material that is produced by honey bees from the secretions of various parts of living plants. It is defined as "the nectar and saccharine exudation of plants, gathered, modified and stored as honey in the honeycomb by honeybees, Apis melifera" (Olaitan, Adeleke, Oha, 2007). Many published studies have proved that honey application to wounds clears the infection of the wounds rapidly without any prolongation in wound healing. Infact, there are some reports that honey promotes active wound healing. Research in the antimicrobial action of honey has shown that the substance has many antimicrobial properties against various bacteria like pseudomonas aeruginosa which is resistant to antibiotics (Olaitan et al, 2007). Researchers are often perplexed by the beneficial effects of honey because it is the medium for many organisms like bacteria and yeast. The material is made up of mainly water and sugar. Other than these compounds, honey also has minerals, enzymes wh ich have their origin from the saliva of the bees, and multivitamins. Honey has a characteristic taste and composition. It is highly viscous, acidic, hygroscopic and hyperosmolar (Olaitan et al, 2007). Thus the microorganisms which are present in honey are those which survive the physical and chemical properties of honey. They are mainly bacteria like Bacillus and Micrococcus and yeast like saccharomyces which come from bees, nectar and comb material (Olaitan et al, 2007). Research has shown that most of these microorganisms are in the dormant stage in the material and cannot grow or reproduce in that medium (Olaitan et al, 2007). Majority of these bacteria lose viability within 1-4 weeks (Olaitan et al, 2007). Those who continue to survive are spore forming organisms like clostridium species and bacillus cereus which can

Friday, September 27, 2019

Curriculum History of the United States Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Curriculum History of the United States - Essay Example tes formal education system experienced a relative period of stabilization that allowed institutions to come together under a common ideal (Zais 1976). Even as curriculum development began to gain structured form, initial developments occurred through the gradual accumulation of diverse subjects: mathematics was followed by an array of sciences, including botany, anatomy, physics, astronomy, and geology. Soon after this subjects for non-college bounds students were added, such as typewriting, woodworking, and metallurgy. However, the ultimate array of subjects remained haphazard, unlike the well-structured form it progressively attained. Recognizing the haphazard curriculum, in 1892 a famous committee was formed to help add structure to the loosely formed curriculum. The group was termed the Committee of Ten and was headed by the President of Harvard at the time – Charles Eliot. The committee understood that the unstructured format of the current education system was pernicious to societal development, so they set out to bring order to the chaos (Zais 1976). Eliot and the committee determined that the greatest means to accomplish this would be to have the curriculum adhere to the already established college structure and function solely to prepare students for higher education. As a result, the core courses that had come together immediately after the Civil War were kept and substantiated, yet the elements of the curriculum designed for students not college-bound was discarded as unnecessary. Historians and educational theorists regard this last point as especially relevant to the changing view of learners ov er time, as its underlining assumption was that these core courses, even if they didn’t target specific vocational aspects of the learner’s development, would have the ultimate benefit in preparing them intellectually for whatever task they undertook. Even as these earlier curriculum formulations considered the development of the human, it wasn’t

Thursday, September 26, 2019

Evaluating Circle Time as a tool for developing self-esteem in primary Essay

Evaluating Circle Time as a tool for developing self-esteem in primary aged children who suffer with reduced esteem - Essay Example A special thank you goes out to the school administrators and the parents/guardians of the children selected for this important research project. For your professionalism, support, and encouragement, your contribution to this project is what made this study possible to administer. You know who you are. Primary-aged children in todays classroom environment require a significant investment on behalf of the educator in relation to providing a quality-learning environment geared toward satisfying the mandated curriculum demands of the school. However, far beyond the concepts of mathematics, reading literacy or any other rather generic lesson lies the necessity in fostering productive socialisation, both between peers and the educator. In a typical educational facility, moulding and stimulating these relationships can be relatively simple as positive socialisation tends to occur as a natural evolution of children interaction. However, when instructing children with special educational needs, both in the form of physical and mental disabilities, the process of engaging quality social interaction can be a significant undertaking. Children dealing with frustrations stemming from physical or emotional insecurities, especially when paired with children of more advanced developmental capabil ities are often plagued with diminished self-esteem and increased anxiety due to poor (or false) self-assessments of their own inadequacies. As such, developing a positive self-image in these primary-aged children with special educational needs (SEN) must be a primary goal of the contemporary educator As an experienced primary educator, the problems, I have personally encountered within a learning environment in which primary-aged children of various disabilities are paired with children who maintain (at least) average ability, are that some of these

Wednesday, September 25, 2019

In your study team you are required to analyse the UK Brewing Essay

In your study team you are required to analyse the UK Brewing industry. You have been provided with a report prepared by the Bri - Essay Example Further, governments are levying more and more taxes on this industry to regulate the monetary crisis. UK BEER INDUSTRY Beer is called the national drink of UK. However, the present statistics have reported that beer consumption has decreased in UK by 3.1% in last 12 months (BBPA, 2008, p. 3). This reduction in the consumption of beer is causing UK brewing industries to downsize and even close their breweries. There are a number of key factors that are causing the decrease in the rate of consumption of beer. Major factors causing the shift in consumption patterns can be categorized into change in trends, financial, political and economic issues. FACTORS AFFECTING UK BEER INDUSTRY CHANGE OF TRENDS The rate of beer consumption in UK has been affected hugely by the shift in trends that has resulted into a change of preferences. According to BBPA’s report, â€Å"Since 1979, per capita consumption of beer has fallen by 33 per cent.† (BBPA, 2008, p. 3) It further stated that â€Å"men fell from 17.2 units a week in 1998 to 14.9 in 2006. By women, it fell from 6.5 units to 6.3, having been at 7.6 in 2002† (BBPA, 2008, p. 8). ... Beer used to be a popular drink a century ago, but today the introduction of sodas, various juices and drinks have lessened its charm and popularity despite being UK’s national drink. 2. Demographic Shift The migration and settlement of the people from all over the world in UK can also be regarded as an important factor in lowering the rate of consumption of beer. The ever increasing population of Muslims in UK has also resulted in the reduction of alcohol consumption as Muslims refrain from drinking beer and other alcoholic products. 3. Ban The ban on alcohol consumption within workplaces is also affecting the sale of beer. A restriction on drinking alcoholic products while travelling has also led to a reduction in the sales of beer as a lesser number of people want to go against the law. Though there are toasts raised and wines served in social gatherings and business parties, the average decrease is quite prominent. 4. Health Consciousness The increase in the health conscio usness is also causing people to avoid drinking alcohol. It is further promoted by anti drug agencies and nutritionists who regard alcohol as an additional burden on the wallet, a threat to lives of drinkers and the people around them, and a ticket to one’s journey to prison cells. FINANCIAL ISSUES Along with the changing trends, financial issues are affecting the brewing industry badly. People have found things more important to buy than a pint of beer. Beer is now considered as a luxury since it has become extremely expensive due to the imposition of new government regulations. Major factors contributing to the financial issues causing lesser consumption of beer include the ever increasing prices of beer, lesser affordability due to unemployment and

Tuesday, September 24, 2019

Symbolic interactions on homosexuality-a sociological perspective Research Paper

Symbolic interactions on homosexuality-a sociological perspective - Research Paper Example From the US General Social Record, Smelser (2002) indicates that the debate of homosexuality is not likely to be solved any time soon. An analysis of the questionnaires filled and records of interviews, it is evident, that many people have begun embracing homosexuality as a form of living. The blatant question of whether people of the same sex should marry recorded a tremendous 78% out of the 2000 respondents interviewed by Smelser (2002). These results were categorized on the degree of acceptance, and out of the 78%, majority were those that strongly agreed on homosexuality and legalization. Though Smelser (2002) did not find out the exact reasons why the majority agree to homosexuality, he argues that majority of the respondents were completely sure of their answers. He recommends the use of theoretical approach in an attempt to investigate the reasons behind the rising cases of homosexuality marriages. This case study will undertake a survey of the theoretical approach in an attempt to understand why so many people, especially the youth are violating the rule relating to violation on homosexuality. Among the theories that will put under study are the symbolic interaction theory on social deviance in regard to homosexuality, Kenneth’s labeling theory and the sexual stigma on homosexuality as well as Blumer, Cooley, Mead, and Kinsey’s theories. Survey on the contributions of these theories to homosexuality will be scrutinized at all points of view in an endeavor to find answers on the homosexuality issue. The symbolic interaction theory According to Benard and Mahood (2006), symbolic interaction theory is one of the best approaches in the study of marriages and relationships, especially controversial ones like homosexuality, its causes and effects in the society. A simple description of symbolic interaction theory may be explained as, beliefs that are created in relation to the symbols attached to them. These symbols may range from forms of language, objects, people, and perceptions of people amongst others. The symbolic interaction theory makes an initiative of defining how people shape realities in life and the effect of these symbols in their subsequent life. Ellis (1988) argues that the symbolic interaction theory renders people to attaching various connotations to symbols in the society, ultimately, majority end up acting in accordance to their own prejudiced interpretation of what the symbols mean in their lives. Other people will not undertake research to verify their course of action rather acts on what they think and feel is right. This is evident from the verbal discussions, whereby the uttered words play the role of symbols. Spoken words have specific meanings that are sent to the receivers of the message; the sender hopes that the message that he or she intended to send is received in its totality despite the various barriers to communication. This theory, however, intends to bring to light the fact that human beings are not static and that thy have innate feelings

Monday, September 23, 2019

What is political ideology, and why do you subscribe to it Essay

What is political ideology, and why do you subscribe to it - Essay Example e classic works of Althusser, Mannheim, Freeden and Bell are clarifying this term in terms of its connection to real practices, morphologic structure, and internal classification. So, in a given essay the definition of political ideology is stated and its internal power to influence minds in analyzed. To start with, the very appearance of ideology is caused by human nature. As Althusser (1969) assumed, the fact that human beings use their mental abilities in order to comprehend the world around them creates the very appearance of ideology. As the author summarizes it, â€Å"ideology is a ‘representation’ of the imaginary relationship of individuals to their real conditions of existence† (Althusser, 1969, p. 162). In other words, it is a specific way to imagine reality in general and political conditions in particular. Moreover, materialistic dimension is crucial for Althusser as he refers to the theory of Karl Marx in his determination of ideological thinking. In this case, ideology as a part of certain ideological state apparatus â€Å"always exists in [†¦] its practice, or practices† (Althusser, 1969, p. 162). So, each behavior in society is regulated by the way people appreciate and interpret the world around them. Consequently, their mental con structs impact the reality they live in. Finally, the continuous existence of ideological thinking evokes the fact that some people have more authority than the others. Hence, the phenomenon of ruling ideology appears. In this context, individual can be easily transformed into the agent of ideology by approving certain procedures of interpretation. Actually, each member of society has prescribed identity or â€Å"appointed as a subject in and by specific familial ideological configuration† (Althusser, 1969, p. 176). And so, the horizon of senses which is created by the human thinking on social unequal background enables the very appearance of ideology. Similarly, in the field of political struggle the way of

Sunday, September 22, 2019

Internet Censorship Essay Example for Free

Internet Censorship Essay Introduction Censorship had always been a subject of debate among those who want media to be censored and those who feel that censorship is a violation of the freedom of speech. The internet has not escaped the issue of censorship. The internet is an information highway and no other form of media is as pervasive and far reaching. Those who favor censoring the internet feels that there should be some form of protection for minors and all people from viewing offensive materials on the internet while those who are against it believes that people should be given the right to choose what to view or not as stated in the first amendment. This paper discusses the arguments for the need to censor the internet and why it should not be censored. Background With the observed prevalence of indecent language and obscene pictures in the internet, groups and organizations have called on for the censorship of the internet. The government’s response to this call was the Communications Decency Act of 1996 which was passed into law by the United States Congress; the act would regulate the forms of speech in the internet (Wallace Mangan, 1996). The law was seen by pro-censorship groups as a way of minimizing immoral content in the internet which might have contributed to the moral degeneration of our society (Qazi, 1996). A year after, the Supreme Court ruled that the CDA was unconstitutional and in turn protected the first amendment (EPIC, 2002). The victory of the free speech proponents over the CDA was short lived, in 1998; the Child Online Protection Act was signed into law by President Clinton which in essence took after the CDA. The COPA mandated criminal penalties for commercially distributing materials harmful to minors including indecent speech (EPIC, 2004). The enactment of COPA again resulted to heated debates and protests over the unconstitutionality of the law, and the free speech protesters were not disappointed. In 2004, after a series of Supreme Court ruling against the COPA, it maintained the injunction on the enforcement of the law. Communications Decency Act of 1996 The President signed the Communications Decency Act into law in January 1996; the act criminalizes indecent speech on the internet. The act identifies that speech depicting sexual organs and acts, excretory organs and acts in a patently offensive fashion under contemporary community standards as indecent speech (Wallace Mangan, 1996). The dubious and vague definition of indecency and the standards by which a word (pure text) is judged to be obscene have made the act questionable. In fact, the CDA was met with violent reactions because it proved to be too restrictive and did not account for situations wherein sexually explicit words have to be used but has scientific, literary, artistic or political values. The act also stated that indecency will be judged based on it being patently offensive, which in practice allows a jury to judge the material as indecent based on how they feel about it, regardless of its scientific, literary or artistic value. Moreover, it also permitted the community to determine the standards by which indecency can be measured. This is unrealistic, for every community or state has its own cultural standards and asking people to use words or materials that are acceptable to each community means restricting speech to the most conservative standards. On the other hand, the Morality in Media, the National Law Center for Children and Families, the National Coalition for the Protection of Children and Families and the Family Research Council, who are pro-CDA argue that the CDA does not infringe upon the first amendment. The act accordingly updates and amends Federal obscenity statutes and dial-a-porn laws and that it requires adults who use patently offensive sexual expression to place blinders on their pornography. Further, they point out that what is indecent is well known to the general public and the mass media and that the court should re-interpret the law to be applied only to prurient pornography (McCullagh, 1996). The Supreme Court easily ruled that the CDA was unconstitutional due to the fact that the act tries to restrict content and this is in direct violation of the first amendment. Child Online Protection Act of 1998 The Child Online Protection Act is another effort to censor the content of the internet. It is different from the CDA in that it specifies that children should be protected from harmful language and materials made available in the internet. Thus violators will be subjected to steep fines and prison terms. As with the case with the CDA the COPA also is judged to be too restrictive. It mandates that all material or written text in the internet be acceptable to children, thus it would mean that the content of the internet is limited to children only. In this respect the act states that identifying data should be provided by adults like credit cards to determine their age, but is also discriminatory to those adults who do not have credit cards. Thus the act again is a threat to the freedom of speech that is a fundamental and basic right to each human being. The Supreme Court also finds the act unconstitutional and even after a series of appeals and injunctions; it has maintained that the act cannot be enforced into law. Meanwhile, those who endorse the COPA articulate that the act is dissimilar from the CDA because it applies to commercial pornographic sites. In an attempt to refute the arguments of those against the COPA, the pro groups reiterate that it is economically and technically feasible for the identified sites to check for the age of the surfers and that defining what is harmful to minors is not vague and complicated and can easily be implemented by the states (Macavinta, 1999). They feel that the COPA is needed at this time and age because of the necessity of protecting our children from being corrupted by harmful materials in the internet that may be a cause for abuse and exploitation (Macavinta, 1998). Conclusions Efforts to censor the internet have failed because as an interactive medium it is a vehicle for the expression of man’s freedom of speech. Any attempt by the government to restrict it is a violation of the fundamental human rights of each individual in this democratic country. But the justification for the need of a law to protect children from pornography and violent materials in any form is undeniably valid and should be also be respected. The Supreme Court has also supported the free speech groups in their fight against censorship and is undeniably a champion of the first amendment, but it does not mean that the SC do not give due importance to children’s welfare and safety but striking a balance between the freedom of speech and censorship is a difficult battle to win. Bibliography Communications Decency Act (February 2, 2002). Electronic Privacy Information Center, Retrieved April 20, 2006 from http://www. epic. org/free_speech/cda/ Internet Censorship (February 1, 2002). Electronic Privacy Information Center, RetrievedApril 20, 2006 from http://www. epic. org/free_speech/censorship/ Macavinta, C. (1998). Suit filed against CDA II, CNET News. com, Retrieved April 21, 2006 from http://news. com. com/Suit+filed+against+CDA+II/2100-1023_3-217005. html? tag=st. rn Macavinta, C. (1999). DOJ to wrap up pro-COPA testimony, CNET News. com, Retrieved April 21, 2006 from http://news. com. com/DOJ+to+wrap+up+pro-COPA+testimony/2100-1023_3-220574. html McCullagh, D. (1996). The CDA challenge: The battle of the briefs. Retrieved April 21, 2006 from http://www. xent. com/spring96/0582. html Qazi, U. (1996). The internet censorship controversy, Retrieved April 21, 2006 from http://courses. cs. vt. edu/~cs3604/lib/Censorship/notes. html#6 The Legal Challenge to the Child Online Protection Act (June 29, 2004). Electronic Privacy Information Center, Retrieved April 20, 2006 from http://www. epic. org/free_speech/copa/ Wallace, J. Mangan, M. (1996). The Internet Censorship FAQ, Retrieved April 20, 2006 from http://www. spectacle. org/freespch/faq. htm Notes: Actual Materials Cited †¢ Wallace, J. Mangan, M. (1996). The Internet Censorship FAQ, Retrieved April 20, 2006 from http://www.spectacle. org/freespch/faq. htm What threats of censorship exist for the Internet? The principal threat of Internet censorship today is the Communications Decency Act, a law passed by Congress and signed by the President in January, 1996 which would apply quite radical regulations to speech on the Internet. What is the Communications Decency Act (CDA)? The CDA criminalizes indecent speech on the Internet. One section of the CDA defines indecency as speech depicting or describing sexual or excretory acts or organs in a patently offensive fashion under contemporary community standards. Each of these clausesindecent, depicting or describing, patently offensive, and contemporary community standardshides a landmine threatening the future of freedom of speech in this country. †¢ Communications Decency Act (February 2, 2002). Electronic Privacy Information Center, Retrieved April 20, 2006 from http://www. epic. org/free_speech/cda/ In a landmark decision issued on June 26,1997, the Supreme Court held that the Communications Decency Act violated the First Amendments guarantee of freedom of speech. †¢ The Legal Challenge to the Child Online Protection Act (June 29, 2004). Electronic Privacy Information Center, Retrieved April 20, 2006 from http://www. epic. org/free_speech/copa/ In October 1998, Congress passed and President Clinton signed into law the Child Online Protection Act (COPA), the sequel to CDA. COPA establishes criminal penalties for any commercial distribution of material harmful to minors. †¢ McCullagh, D. (1996). The CDA challenge: The battle of the briefs. Retrieved April 21, 2006 from http://www. xent. com/spring96/0582. html. The arguments advanced in the brief a joint venture of Morality in Media, the National Law Center for Children and Families, the Family Research Council, Enough is Enough! , and the National Coalition for the Protection of Children and Families center around one concept: indecency means pornography. That idea stinks like, well, a rotten egg. Their argument, which mirrors the DoJs, goes as follows: 1. The CDA merely updates and amends Federal obscenity statutes and dial-a-porn laws. 2. All the CDA does is require adults who use patently offensive sexual expression to put electronic blinder racks in front of their pornography. 3. The test for indecency is not vague or overbroad and does not apply to serious works of literature, art, science, and politics. 4. What is indecent is well known to the public and the operators of mass communications media facilities. (If indecency is too vague, the CDA is unconstitutional. ) 5. The court has an obligation to interpret these sections narrowly. That is, the three-judge panel should *reinterpret* the CDA to affect only prurient pornography. Taylor calls this judicial narrowing, and when I spoke with him he insisted that it was what the court will do. †¢ Macavinta, C. (1998). Suit filed against CDA II, CNET News. com, Retrieved April 21, 2006 from http://news. com. com/Suit+filed+against+CDA+II/2100-1023_3-217005. html? tag=st. rn The law simply extends into cyberspace laws that protect children from pornography off the Net, Shyla Welch, director of communication for Enough is Enough, which lobbied for the legislation, said today. †¢ Macavinta, C. (1999). DOJ to wrap up pro-COPA testimony, CNET News. com, Retrieved April 21, 2006 from http://news.com. com/DOJ+to+wrap+up+pro-COPA+testimony/2100-1023_3-220574. html Proponents of COPA say it is different from the CDA in that it only applies to sites selling pornography. Witnesses will testify today that it is economically and technically feasible for these sites to check surfers IDs through credit cards, adult PINs, or digital signatures. Justice Department witnesses will testify that Web sites will not be harmed financially by the lawand that defining harmful to minors is not as complicated as the ACLU makes it out to be. After all, 48 states have harmful to minors laws on the books, they will argue. †¢ Qazi, U. (1996). The internet censorship controversy, Retrieved April 21, 2006 from http://courses. cs. vt. edu/~cs3604/lib/Censorship/notes. html#6 Both public and private interest groups have shown great concern for the content of material available via the Internet. They are driven by deeply rooted religious and ethical beliefs. They feel that the Internet is a medium that is being abused to allow extremists, unethical, and immoral individuals to corrupt society.

Friday, September 20, 2019

Reproductive Health Among Adolescent Girls Health And Social Care Essay

Reproductive Health Among Adolescent Girls Health And Social Care Essay Review of literature is a systemic search of a published work to gain information about a research topic (Polit and Hungler, 2011). Conducting a review of literature is challenging and an enlightening experience. The review of literature was based on extensive survey of books, journals, and international nursing indicates. A review of literature relevant to the study was under taken which helped the investigator to develop deep into the problem and gain information on what has been in the past. An extensive review of literature was done by the investigator to lay a broad foundation for the study. For the purpose of logical sequence the chapter was divided in two parts. 2.1 PART I: Reviews related to reproductive health among adolescent girls. 2.2 PART II: Reviews related to effectiveness of adolescent to adolescent approach on reproductive health. 2.1 PART I : Reviews related to reproductive health among adolescent girls. Mc Call-hosenfeld JS et al., (2012) conducted an experimental study in Pennsylvania; they investigated the impact of individual on womens are receipt of a comprehensive panel of preventive services in a region that includes both urban and rural communities. Outcome variables were a screening and vaccination index blood pressure , lipid panel, sexually transmitted infections or individual level variables includes predisposing factors, enabling and need based measures. The investigator found that overall use of preventive services, were low individual variability in womens receipt of counseling services is largely explained by psychological factors and seeing an gynecologist. . Fengy et al., (2012) conducted a cross sectional survey of 17,016 adolescent girls and young aged 15-24 yrs old in both rural and urban Asian cites, China, through interview and computer assisted self interview for sensitive questions. To identify the predictors perception of homosexuality. The 40% of adolescent and young adults who hold a positive view of homosexuality for both males and females. Preferred origin of movies, videos, self identified sexual orientation, sexual and reproductive health knowledge, family values, gender role and attitude towards premarital sex. The most common and important predictors for a respondents perception of homosexuality were his/her knowledge of sexual and reproductive health. Shelia G et al., (2012) conducted a experimental study regarding features of physical and sexual development of reproductive behavior among adolescent girls at Russia. In this assessment the adolescent reproductive behavior identification and the factors affecting was made in female adolescents age 14-19yr [randomly formed via continuous selection] information of the state of their health their attitudes towards child bearing and their risky habits have been evaluated. High frequency of menstrual irregularities, 24.7% delayed formation of the bone pelvis, 25.2% the prevalence of chronic external genital diseases were found. Iliyasuz et al., (2012) conducted a qualitative study regarding sexual and reproductive health communication between mothers and their adolescent daughters in North India Assam. The investigator employed structured interviews and groups to investigate reproductive health communication practices among 108 mothers and daughters transcript were analyzed using the grounded theory approach .A total of 136 mother reported discussing reproductive issues with their daughters. The majority of daughters acquire reproductive health education from their mothers; parents were more likely to discuss marriage, menstruation, premarital sex, STI infections and sex education need to be empowered with knowledge and skills to improve the scope and quality of home -based reproductive health education. Palke VD et al., (2011) conducted a study regarding impact of sex education on knowledge and attitude of adolescent school children in Bihar. Reproductive capability is now in earlier age, but the subject of adolescent sexuality in most societies, there is a wide spread ignorance about risks are unprotected sex problems among adolescent girls. Unfortunately need of sex education is not perceived and fulfilled in India especially in rural areas. The present study was conducted to assess the need and demonstrate the impact of sex education among adolescent school children, by analyzing pre and post intervention questionnaire and there was a significant increase in knowledge about sexuality , menstrual hygiene. Sexually transmitted disease, it has significant impact on knowledge of adolescent school children. Ezekwere et al., (2011) conducted a study regarding sex education, sex information, sex practices, among adolescent girls in Nigeria. A total 304 girls selected by multi-stage sampling technique studied primary and subsequent sources of sexuality information, mainly the by the media, peers, families and schools, found that mostly they were not involved in provision of early sexual initiation and un protected sex was common among them. The study highlights the need to create a awareness at earlier stage of adolescent period sexual education of adolescent girls through parents and teachers had to be initiated. Wong LP et al., (2011) conducted a large cross sectional study regarding attitude towards dysmenorrheal impact and treatment seeking, among 1,295 adolescent girls (13-19 yrs) from 16 public secondary schools in rural districts of Malaysia. Dysmenorrhea was reported in 76.0% of the participants multivariate analysis shows that being in upper secondary levels was the strongest predictor for poor concentration, absenteeism and poor school grade due to dysmenorrheal is a normal cycle and only 14.8% sought medical treatment , education should be extended to parents and school peer leaders to address the reproductive health needs of adolescents. Lazarus JV et al., (2011) conducted a quasi experimental study regarding reproductive health awareness programme to assess the knowledge, attitude and behavior. Reproductive health data was collected from the students aged (11 16 yrs) by using a picture and group discussion. In total 313 questionnaire has distributed, and the mean score in the pretest knowledge was 5.9 and 6.8 in post test score was p (0.003), which increased significantly t=4.5, p=0.000. The attitude mean score in pre test was 4.3 in post test was 6.8 which shows the increased significant. The mean behavior pretest score which showed a significant p =0.019. Hence the intervention significantly improved the adolescent reproductive health knowledge attitude. BiscoFreudenthal J et al., (2011) conducted a study regarding creating community awareness of reproductive tract infections including STD infections. The aim of this study was thus to explore people perception treatment seeking behavior and understanding of information about RTI/STD. Qualitative contact analysis was employed for the data analysis. The major findings was that the most common treatment seeking behavior was taking self medication. Shyness of genital examination, negative attitudes towards dirty diseases. The main media sources of RTI/STI information were radio, TV and other access to health information was more difficult. Health education messages should be more accessible in rural areas. Van Rossem et al., (2011) conducted the survey to evaluate the reach and impact of social marketing and reproductive health communication campaigns (selected radio and television programs) regarding family planning and HIV/AIDS in Zambia. The results evidenced that the reproductive health and social marketing Campaigns in Zambia reached a large portion of the population and had a significant impact. The results suggested that future reproductive health communication campaigns that invest in radio programming may be more effective than those investing in television programming and future campaigns should seek to increase their impact among women. Portillo et al., (2011) conducted a cross sectional study regarding sexual and reproductive health among adolescent girls at High school in Spanish. The study focused to determine the extent of information about preventing sexually transmitted diseases, knowledge and use of contraceptive methods. It includes 641 students who agreed to complete the questionnaire by school. 84.5% students know at least one contraceptive method 84%, It is necessary to establish or strengthen information programme on sexual health for adolescent. Fehr KR et al., (2011) conducted a study to assess the knowledge and use of Folic acid in women of reproductive age Folic acid reduces the risk of neural tube defects 50%, women of reproductive age group should be aware of the importance of the folic acid and neural tube defects. They used terms such as Folic acid knowledge and Folic acid awareness to search articles published, women were although knowledge levels were associated with education and health care professionals magazines and news papers, radio, TV, as common sources of information, and this knowledge will allow them to make informed decisions about Folic acid among women. Mc Call JS et al., (2011) conducted a study regarding preventive counseling among reproductive aged women. Preventive health intervention often occur less frequently among rural women compared to urban is an important feature of comprehensive preventive health care provisions .Data were collected by telephone survey during 2004-2005 participants aged 18-45 yrs in the central Pennsylvanias. The study assessed the independent contribution of counseling for smoking ,alcohol, drug use, birth control ,nutrition, physical activity. Most women do not receive recommended preventive counseling, while rural women are less likely than urban women to receive counseling educating rural health care providers about the need for preventive counseling. Jousha et al., (2011) narrated on condom negotiation and experience among sexually active young women in New south wales, Austraila by using feminist narrative approach. Ten womens stories were collected via online interviews. The findings revealed that none of the women initiated or negotiated use of the male condom promotion relies on the r4coginition of the gender factors that impede young womens condom negotiation and use. Strategies that overcome gender dynamics and empower women to negotiate condom use have the ability to promote condom use among this group. Lawan et al., (2010) conducted a study regarding menstruation and menstrual hygiene among adolescent girls in Gujarat .This study examined the knowledge and practices of adolescent school in around menstruation and menstrual hygiene .Data was collected quantitatively and analyzed using pre experimental study, the study findings showed that majority had fair knowledge of menstruation, although deficient in specific knowledge areas, most of them used sanitary pads as absorbent during their last menses, changed menstrual dressings about 1-5 times per day and improving access of the adolescent to reproductive health needs. Sivagami, et al., (2010) conducted a qualitative study on community perception and treatment seeking behaviour regarding reproductive tract infections including sexually transmitted infections in Lao by using fourteen focus group discussion and 20 in depth interviews. It held among 76 women and 56 men. The major finding was that both male and female participants had a variety of misconceptions about the causes and symptoms of RTI/STIs and their cure and a reluctance to seek health care. The main reasons for not going to health facilities were fear of social discrimination or shyness. They suggested strengthening health education and promotion through interventions at the community level to improve the quality of RTI/STI management. Minto et al., (2010) reviewed the efficacy of HIV/STI behavioral intervention and identified factors associated with intervention efficacy for American African females in the United states by using meta- analysis from 37 relevant studies. The results showed that behavioral intervention had a significant impact on reduction in HIV/STI risk sex behavioral. They concluded as behavioral interventions were efficacious in preventing HIV and STIs among African American females. They suggested that conducting more research to examine the potential contribution of prevention strategies that attend to community level and to improve communication between RTI/STI patients and clinicians. Thakor HG et al., (2010) conducted a STIs prevalence study on knowledge and practices related to STIs and HIV among 125 sex workers in an urban area of Gujarat, India. 85-90% were aware about various symptoms / diseases transmitted by unsafe sexual practice in male and female. 23.4% took treatment from health worker for such problems; 87.9% were aware that consistent use of condom could protect them from HIV infections and 2.6% reported for non treatment of STD.58% were not aware about behavoural changes needed to reduce the risk. 2.2 PART II: Review related to effectiveness of adolescent to adolescent approach on reproductive health. Denison JA et al.,(2012) conducted a quasi experimental study on peer education make a difference an evaluation of HIV prevention in youth-led model trained volunteer peer educators age (18-25 yrs) in school, to teach HIV prevention and Reproductive health. This evaluation programme effects on students HIV knowledge, attitude and behaviors of adolescent girls by using a non randomized quasi experimental design among 2133 students had significantly higher levels of knowledge regarding HIV p 0kanlawon FA et al., (2011) conducted a study to assess the effectiveness of peer education in a secondary school regarding reproductive health among adolescent girls in Karnataka. The study employed pre and post test intervention quasi experimental design, The experimental group was the adolescence girls to give peer education programme for 6 months pre and post test data in the experimental and control groups were compared and analyzed. The knowledge of reproductive health issues was p Drummond P et al., (2011) conducted a study by using peer education to increase the sexual health knowledge among West African refugees in Western Australia. Ten bilingual west African peer educators conducted a 3 hours workshop on sexual health for small groups of western African refugees (n = 58) who recently settled in Perth , western Australia .There were significant increases in the participants knowledge on sexually transmitted infections and HIV , their spread and the measures to protect against infection. They Concluded that the peer education approach was successful in assisting new and emerging community to work effectively on sexual health topics generally considered as taboos or too sensitive to discuss. Stephenson. J et al., (2010) assessed the effectiveness of school-based peer-led sex education among 9,000 pupils aged 13-14 years at England. Schools were randomized to either peer-led sex education (intervention) or to continue their usual teacher-led sex education (control). Peer educators, aged 16-17 years, were trained to deliver three 1-hour classroom sessions of sex education to 13- to 14 years old pupils from the same schools. The study findings concluded that compared with conventional school sex education at age 13-14 years, this form of peer-led sex education was very effective associated with change in teenage STDs, it merits consideration within broader teenage STDs prevention strategies.

Thursday, September 19, 2019

Professional Wrestling Proposal :: essays papers

Professional Wrestling Proposal Part I:Interest and Motivation The topic I have chosen to write about is the world of professional wrestling. There are many reasons as to why this subject has interested me. One major reason is that I grew up watching pro-wrestling on television. As a child, I was fascinated with the spectacle of the wrestling matches and wondered at the wrestlers themselves. At that age, I took wrestling for what it was. It was a full-contact gladiator sport filled with exaggerated and extravagant wrestlers, cocky commentators, and interesting "one-of-a kind" personalities which added up to a high entertainment value. As I got older and more aware of the sport, I did not just see it as another part of sports entertainment but also as a multi-million dollar business which catered to a wide audience. I began to wonder what was it that made this popular genere work and how it was able to attract the crowds of people, young and old. I also wanted to know the history of pro-wrestling. How did it get started and how it became a part of the American culture? As a fan for several of my childhood years, I now wanted to know the real deal behind wrestling. The professional wrestling sport is a very secretive business. It is on a "what you see is what you get" basis. Many of the fans take the sport for face value and enjoy it for what it is, even if many of them are uninformed on the inside workings of it all. Although many books have been published about wrestling, a high number of them are as cryptic and secretive as the business itself. That is why I am motivated to go into an in-depth research to answer and unravel the questions of the professional wrestling world. Professional Wrestling. Part II: Knowledge and Preconceptions. After being exposed to professional wrestling for quite sometime, I became somewhat knowledgeable of the sport. I became familiar with most of the wrestling superstars it produced, notably Hulk Hogan which many consider the icon of pro- wrestling. I was also mindful of the wrestling maneuvers and techniques that were used. Although I knew all this, it was all common knowledge. Through personal experience, the people I know who are fans of the sport only know this basic ideology of its premise. I feel that one major reason for the scarce information on pro- wrestling is due to the lack of media coverage. Wrestling is infamous for blurring the lines between true sport and pure entertainment. Many major news, magazines, and articles rarely cover the wrestling world because of

Wednesday, September 18, 2019

Legalize Drugs :: essays research papers

The question of whether to legalize drugs or not is a very controversial and important issue. Drugs affect so many areas of society. "The U.S. population has an extremely high rate of alcohol and drug abuse" (Grolier). Several groups have formed and spoken out regarding their position. "Speaking Out Against Drug Legalization is the first step in helping to deliver the credible, consistent message about the risks and costs of the legalization of drugs to people in terms that make sense to them. The anti-legalization message is effective when communicated by representatives of the Federal Government, but takes on even more credibility when it comes from those in the community who can put the legalization debate in local perspective" (Internet). After learning about the issues regarding both sides of the argument, I would choose to support those who oppose legalization of any drugs. Drugs simply create problems which effect society in several ways. The government has made several efforts to control drugs and their users, however, to most the problem appears too out of hand. "Others see potential profit in legalizing drugs and still others simply believe that individual rights to take drugs should be protected. The group also acknowledged that the legalization concept appeals to people who are looking for simple solutions to the devastating problem of drug abuse" (Internet). Society’s answer to the problem is to trick the drug user by giving him what he wants. People believe that making drugs legal will take away the temptation to use them. This idea is wrong and far from logical. If drugs are legalized then they will be more accessible to the young, addicted, and ignorant. "As a result the ready availability of addicting drugs, and as a result of their heavy use for medical problems, many individuals became addicted to the narcotics contained in these potent medicines. In fact, in 1900, there were more narcotics addicts, proportionate to the population, than there are today. At that time, most of the users who became addicts were medical addicts. Very few abusers took drugs for "recreational" purposes. In 1914, in an effort to curb the indiscriminate use of narcotics, the federal government passed the Harrison Act, making it illegal to obtain a narcotic drug without a prescription. During the 1920’s the Supreme Court ruled that maintaining addicts on narcotic drugs, even by prescription, was in violation of the Harrison Act.

Tuesday, September 17, 2019

Huck Finn: Appearance Versus Reality

Many people in this world will believe in the first impression they get. The appearance people see will usually satisfy them without further investigating into the reality of a situation. The difference between appearance and reality can be quite different. This also applies to literature. There are many instances where an author will describes a character as kind, but is actually deceptive and mean. In the novel The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, there are characters and situations that show how appearances can differ from reality.The three main instances are the Grangerford and Shepherdson feud, through the Duke and the Dauphin, and Miss Watson. The difference between appearance and reality is easily seen through the Grangerford and Shepherdson feud. They are two families who appear to be very classy. Huck believes them to be noble families. Huck shows that he believes this when he says, â€Å"There was another clan of aristocracy around there – five or six families â€⠀œ mostly by the name of Shepherdson. They was as high-toned and well born and rich and grand as the tribe of Grangerfords† (142).The two families show that this is not how they really are when they shoot at each other and try to kill one another. Col. Grangerford is also a man who is not who he appears to be. He is the head of the Grangerford family and in Huck’s eyes, is the perfect man. Huck says, â€Å"COL. Grangerford was a gentleman, you see. He was a gentleman all over; and so was his family† (140). Huck sees a man who is kind and perfect. The reality is that Col. Grangerford allows for the continuing slaughter of two families over a feud they don’t even remember how it started. Col. Grangerford is actually the exact opposite of the person he appears to be.The Grangerford faTmily is overall not who they seem to be. They appear to be kind and thoughtful, yet they partake in the owning of slaves. Huck finds out that the Grangerford family owns many fa rms with over a hundred slaves. The Grangerford’s could not possibly be good people and treat hundreds of people with disdain. The Grangerford and Shepherdson families are perfect examples of people are not who are not who they appear to be. The Duke and the Dauphin are two men who fake their appearance for a living. As con-men, they rely on people to believe in their appearance.The episode of the Royal Nonesuch illustrates how the Duke and the Dauphin swindle people. They put up posters around the town stating that there would be a performance of the Royal Nonesuch for three nights. The tricksters’ plan was to charge the villagers to get in to the performance, and then the Dauphin would cut the performance extremely short. They achieved this and made a large sum of money. They also use their ability to fake their appearance to gain special treatment from people. This was seen when the Duke said, â€Å"I will reveal it to you, for I feel I may have confidence in you. By rights I am a duke† (163)!The Dauphin quickly followed the Duke’s lead and said, â€Å"You ain’t the only person that’s ben snaked down wrongfully out’n a high place/ Bilgewater (the duke), I am the late Dauphin† (164/165)! By claiming that they are people of high stature Huck and Jim believe that they should be treated like royalty. However, Huck was smart enough to be able to identify the men as fakes and see past their appearance. That prevented Huck from completely following the men as a servant. The Duke and the Dauphin also show that if we just accept people for whom they appear to be, we could get hurt. The episode with the inheritance claim is an example of this.The family believed the Duke and Dauphin to be the uncles of the Wilks nieces and therefore claim the six thousand dollars. People such as the Duke and the Dauphin use people’s compellation to believe in appearances to survive. Not everyone takes advantage of peopleà ¢â‚¬â„¢s awareness toward others; some, like Miss Watson, are actually better people than their appearance dictates. In the beginning of the book Huck talks about Miss Watson in a quick description. Huck said, â€Å"The Widow’s sister, Miss Watson, a tolerable slim old maid, with goggles on, had just come to live with her, and took a set at me now with a spelling-book.She worked me middling hard for about an hour, and then the widow made her ease up† (3). Miss Watson appears tough and severe to Huck, employing harsher methods than necessary at times. From Huck’s point of view she does appear like a mean old women, but she most likely had her reasons for using the methods she did. Huck was most likely not the best student and his behavior skills were sub-par. It is easy to see how Miss Watson became frustrated with Huck’s struggle to be civilized. The underlying concept behind her strictness is that she cares for Huck.There has to be a reason for her to us e up so much energy to try and teach a boy without any previous knowledge. Huck does not realize that Miss Watson actually cared for him until his conscience starts bothering him about Jim. His conscience was theoretically incorrect because he was upset that he had taken Jim from Miss Watson, but he understood why Miss Watson acted the way she did in the beginning of the novel. Huck realized this when he said, â€Å"Why, she tried to learn you your book, she tried to learn you your manners, she tried to be good to you every way she knowed how.That’s what she done† (118). Miss Watson is an example of someone who is better in reality than who she appeared to be. The appearance of something whether it is an object or a person, is not always what is true. The true reality behind something or someone may be completely different than what seemed. Some people take advantage of people who commit to a first impression. Others are actually better people than what their appearanc e dictates. Looking into this topic, I realized that applying the concept used in understanding literature can also be used in life.The skill of being able to understand who a character is and why they do the things they do instead of just accepting how they appear can translate into real situations. We can do this by looking at situations through another’s point of view; or commonly said, putting yourself into another’s shoes. Gaining a deeper understanding of someone’s actions and beliefs can help us rise above the level of just tolerance. When we gain this understanding, we reach a level of acceptance. You can always have facts bolstered by imagination, but you can never imagine facts.

Monday, September 16, 2019

Knarles & Barkley Essay

There are several things that have gone wrong in the case we were given to examine. Knarles had left his 17-year-old son Barkley to look after the Maryland based facilities maintenance business while Knarles attended a convention in Hawaii. The exact scope of the duties to be performed in Knarles’ absence was not given to the reader. Knarles and Barkley’s company had a roster of satisfied clients who they maintained a working relationship without the benefit of a signed renewal contract. Knarles had a professional relationship with his clients for a number of years, an express contract would not be considered unusual under these circumstances. Part of the services Knarles and Barkley (referred to hereafter as K & B) provided was a paid replacement of outdated and broken equipment that were part of a building heating system as well as the cosmetic maintenance required. In addition to his other duties, Barkley was responsible for renewing an employee’s license, whi ch was a feature of the plumber’s employment contract. His failure to do so resulted in having an unlicensed plumber on staff, which can affect future dealings with clients that require plumbing services for their buildings. Although Barkley was instructed by Knarles to take care of the licensing and gain experience in this area of building maintenance operations, I blame the plumber for not looking after his own interest and putting something as valuable as having a working license be the responsibility of someone else. A sensible employee would have negotiated the renewal fee to be reimbursed upon receiving an updated license. The state of Maryland, K & B’s home state, offers online renewal of application, which does seem complicated or time consuming. 1 Even though the plumber was licensed out of the District of Columbia, the WSSC will reciprocate a plumber’s license from D.C, Maryland and Virginia. During Knarles’ absence, Barkley was approached by Ian Chetum owner of a business in Virginia, to perform the facili ties maintenance on his establishment. K&Bs’ service had clients in the DC/Maryland/Virginia area and therefore Barkley sent Ian a standard agreement to which Ian signed and sent the appropriate fee to begin to receive services. A contract creates an agency that was implied from facts and circumstances. In this case Barkley was operating the business with his father. The problem here that although Barkley was acting as an agent for the maintenance company he was seventeen years old and both â€Å"parties to a contract must be legally capable of  entering into a contract. A minor, a lunatic, or the principal of an agent, not authorized to act in such a capacity is not responsible for debts contracted, therefore none of them could be parties to a contract.†2 No doubt Barkley grew up in the industry and appeared to Chetum to be a reasonable person giving the impression that he was capable of offering and accepting the contract. â€Å"In some cases, if the minor had purposely misrepresented his or her age, the minor may not be permitted to avoid the contract.†3 Our scenario seems to imply that offer and acceptance (although under doubtful terms) was met. The buyer (Chetum) promised to purchase all products (in this case a mixed sale of goods and services) it requires from the seller (K & B) and fulfilled his financial obligation by sending in an initial payment. A short time after the contract was signed; Chetum contacts K & B regarding one of his properties without heat. Barkley who is still in charge of the operations sends over his lapsed license plumber to look into the situation. The plumber immediately finds a House Warmer Boiler that was recalled due to a carbon monoxide venting failure. â€Å"..a product maybe defectively designed if it is found that it fails to perform safely according to ordinary consumer expectations.†4 While House Warmer is guilty of a defect in either manufacture or design, they did discover the defect and followed proper procedure for notifying purchasers and users. We are not told what steps House Warmer followed from there; but it was obvious to a trained plumber that the item was not in operat ing condition. At this point, the issue of who sold the boiler comes into play. The Restatement (Second) of Torts Section 402A indicates that a seller is ultimately responsible for a defective condition. The Restatement (Third) of Torts loosely translates to that when the boiler was sold with the manufacturing defect the strict liability falls on House Warmer. â€Å"An important component of product liability is that there occurred a sale of the defective product. As set forth in the UCC (2-106(i), a sale is defined as the passing of title from the seller to the buyer for a price.† 5 The case study indicates that the boiler was purchased at a salvage yard. The salvage yard â€Å"..who engages in buying or selling used products is generally not susceptible to strict liability because the chain of distribution has been broken.†6 In addition to the boiler being recalled, the plumber notices that the boiler was improperly installed, adding another potential hazard released by the  boiler. â€Å"However, where the product was already in a defective s tate before it reached the hands of the assembler or installer, courts differ as to their imposition of strict liability. Liability may turn on their ability to detect the defect during the assembly or installation.†7 What we have been told about Chetum’s penny-pinching habits, he may have had a non-licensed operator install this boiler to save a few dollars. The plumber immediately notifies Barkley of the situation who in turn notifies Chetum, who does not want to pay for a new working boiler and tells Barkley to have his plumber fix it no matter what. Obviously the contract between Chetum and K & B does not have an exculpatory clause that would relieve K & B from the continuation of negligence (carbon monoxide exposure in an apartment building). Barkley is showing his inexperience in this matter and could have easily sited UCC 2 – Sale of Services, claiming this situation is â€Å"†¦so one sided and detrimental to the interest of one of the parties that it operates to render the contract unenforceable.†8 The interest in this case refers to the excellent service K & B ha ve offered their clients over the years. Barkely, operating on the theory that the customer is always right, tells the plumber to continue to fix the boiler since that’s what the customer wants at this point in time. Barkley and the plumber (acting as his agent) are as guilty (negligent) of exposing those people to carbon monoxide poisoning as Chetum is. Even though Barkley is a minor, and isn’t well versed in every aspect of the maintenance building field, he should have trusted his plumber’s opinion and not ordered the plumber to complete the job. Barkley, acting as an agent to K& B and not standing behind his plumber’s opinion and ordering the plumber to put in a defective item, has put the company in a precarious position. A toxic tort is a tort caused by an individual’s contact with a toxic substance, which due to Chetum’s order and Barkley and his agent, the plumber are all responsible for continuing to expose the tenants to. Our poor plumber, following orders has repaired the boiler so it can continue for the rest of the winter, given to him by an underage boss. Nothing is indicated what the plumber had completed a work order form. A completion of work certificate would have a portion of the plumber’s opinion written down, claiming that the client was notified of the defective recalled boiler and completed the job to client’s wishes against his professional opinion. A completion certificate, â€Å"†¦is often relied on to  counter arguments raised later that, in fact, the job was not finished as promised or that the consumer was not satisfied with the work performed..†9 A signed completion of work certificate, although will not get K & B off the negligence charge, would possibly help a case further down the road, should Chetum claim he never knew about the condition of the boiler. At this point, I need to add my own diversity of citizenship issue to this case. I am not aware of the lease violation that occurred in this Virginia apartment complex, but in New Jersey, all leased apartments must have a carbon monoxide detector in them. The tenant is not allowed to remove the batteries unl ess to replace the batteries, but not allowed to disengage the working alarm, this is to allow the tenants to know that they are being exposed to a serious invisible chemical and seek not only medical attention but I am responsible for remedying the situation. I am not sure what Virginia’s position is on notifying tenants when a leak has been found, but I’m sure that they would consider the three parties (Chetum, K&B, and the plumber) all negligent. Knarles returns from Hawaii and at a business luncheon discussed with colleagues finds out about the Chetum incident that was reported in the local paper. Knarles and his colleagues Knarles makes a slanderous comment about Chetum during the luncheon, which is followed by other colleagues coming up with similar comments. Unfortunately, as this case begins to unravel, a seemingly immature comment may â€Å"†¦tend to harm the reputation of another as to lower him in the estimation of the community, or deter third persons from associating or dealing with him.†10 Knarles’ colleague Joe Stucko made a vapid comment that he could not validate about a HVAC system but shed some light on Chetum’s overall business dealings. After leaving the luncheon Barkley informs Knarles about the contract and the boiler. Knarles contacts Chetum tells him he wants to void the contract and refunds the initial payment minus work done by the plumber. Chetum at this point sues K& B; therefore mutual rescission was not met. Breaking the contract involves several issues in this case. As previously mentioned the contract was negotiated with an underage minor, who we are not sure if he had contractual powers while his father was away, could be one way to legally dissolve the contract. Chetum may claim that he was duped into believing the contract was valid since the external appearance of Barkley led him to believe that Barkley was a legitimate agent for the firm. Second,  the fact that Chetum, K & B, and the plumber are all negligent of carbon monoxide poisoning and that K & B wants to distance themselves from Chetum, might be a reason for breaking the contract, it should be noted that parties to an illegal contract (keeping the flow of carbon monoxide going in the apartment complex) are responsible for their actions and their actions during the contract may have no standing in court. Not having complete knowledge of Virginia’s public policy on carbon monoxide exposure in apartment complexes, a b reach of ethics is a concern. K & B’s actions, with the boiler repair/carbon monoxide poisoning, will no doubt hurt their fine reputation in the region for providing building maintenance that Knarles’ worked years to attain. It is possible that K & B may feel that continuing to service Chetum may require them to perform a future illegal act and they feel uncomfortable about doing future business with them based on the recent events. The last in the series of arguments on valid reasons K & B could present for breaking the contract is that Chetum prevented them from fulfilling their end of the bargain, which is to provide safe and reliable maintenance service. There are several courses of remedy that the courts may decide upon. If the courts decide to honor the contract then they have the option of choosing specific performance, if this is the case it would be based on the unique benefit Chetum receives and K & B need to fulfill the contract until it expires, however, it is doubtful that the courts wa nt to be involved in monitoring the decisions made by K & B and Chetum, given the original situation. A form of reformation, where perhaps it could be negotiated that K & B performs cosmetic maintenance on the properties and not handles the commercial maintenance. It is doubtful based on the personalities and the situation involved that either mediation or arbitration would conclude the problem. Some form of compensatory damages may have to be paid by K & B to have another service maintain the buildings until Chetum finds another service that would fulfill his requirements. Monetary damages based on the position breaking the contract put Chetum in might be considered. Naturally attorney fees will have to be paid until this situation is resolved if this was in the original contract.

Sunday, September 15, 2019

Public versus private school education Essay

When it comes to the education systems, parents are usually faced with great tasks in choosing the best place for their children in line with the public and private education systems. Parents will basically look for a setting which will allow their children to thrive in their studies. May I start by affirming that the final decision of the parents is based the advantages that one system has over the other. Both the private and the public education systems have differing merits against one another. Many would prefer private education system due to a number of underlying factors and merits over the public school system. Most of the private schools have outstanding and rigorous academic performance and even though there are public schools that also have a tremendous performance in academics, some of these public schools still perform under the bar. Another prominent factor that we consider is the ability by the school to adequately prepare the child for college. Private schools surpass public schools in terms of college preparation this is because for a child to pass in the public schools will depend greatly on the geographical location of the schools unlike the private schools whose performance is commendable irrespective of the location. Another factor that puts the private schools at the par over the public schools is the number of the children per class or rather the entire school population. Naturally, the population in the private schools are quiet manageable than the population that is in the public schools. The public schools are faced with the challenge of admitting any student within the school vicinity and therefore they end up clogged thus making administration burdensome (Sargent, P, 1914). Unlike the private schools which generally has low admission and thus manageable class sizes. Another added advantage of the private education over public education basing on the class and school size is the individual attention that the students in private schools enjoy unlike their colleagues in public schools. Thirdly, the general school environment and the safety measures also dictates the school one attends or is taken to. Parents are greatly concerned with the security of their children and would prefer where the security is readily guaranteed. Since the private schools choose who they enroll their security level is quiet sure than that of the public schools although a good number of the public schools also have safe environments conducive enough for learning. The fact that most of the public schools are funded by the local property tax, their school budget usually becomes a political business thus most of the school activities are refrained as a result of this. There is limited room to respond to budgetary demands especially in areas where the voters live in poor communities with fixed amount of monthly income. However, the private schools are better placed to raise a substantial amount from the development activities and their strong allegiance with their alumni. They can also easily solicit funds from the founders and the corporations. The private schools are less restricted in their development of curricular because they are not subjects to the budgetary limitations imposed the state unlike the public schools. Both the administrators and the educators of the private and the public schools do work to ensure that they create the best learning environment as possible. Although there are good public schools but the best overall schools are usually the privately sponsored. Administrative support is another factor that draws the difference between the public and the private schools. The private are quiet advantaged in that they have a lean management structure since the expenditures comes from endowment income and the operating income. On the other hand, the public schools are characterized by the larger bureaucracy thus making major decisions is greatly hampered. The private schools rarely have or even need teachers unions unlike the public schools which have union contracts and also need political considerations. The facilities in the public schools are sometime mediocre because of the effects of political support and the economic revenues. They are also affected by the economic realities of the surroundings such the rich areas will have schools with best amenities whereas the poor surroundings will lack them Conversely the private schools have the ability to attract the endowments and other forms of financial support thus may have good amenities and facilities than even the universities (Sargent, P, 1914). In as much as one school may outweigh the other, there are still some other underlying factors that must be considered in choosing the best school. For instance the cost, most of the private are not affordable to all the parents thus is only affordable for the rich. Most of the public schools are located within the vicinity of the homes unlike the private which maybe far from home and some public schools offer transport to and from school whereas the private schools may or may not. Public schools offer general programs which are designed for all whereas the private schools have flexibility to create specialized programs such as outdoor tips after class session. At times the private schools create their own curriculum and assessment systems and thus put their students at the advantaged side when they do the standardized tests. The law requires that all public schools educate all children thus they accept any child regardless of race, economic status, religious affiliation or sex. The private schools are not so, they have no law as regards their admission and they have no required educational program for special needs. The enrollment is earned by merit on the grounds of academic performance. If a child becomes unruly the school decides to expel without any intervention from anywhere so also if a child fails to perform as required by the school he or she easily looses admission. Though not all, many private schools have religious affiliations whereas public schools are not affiliated to any religion. It is quiet clear that there is no overall rule as to which school is right and which one is wrong. For parents who are faced with choice of school, the best advice is to outweigh the factors which one considers as important and the settle for the school that meets those factors. Reference: Sargent, P. (1914). The Handbook of Private Schools: Survey of Independent Education

Saturday, September 14, 2019

How Does Willy Russell Create Mood Essay

In the Summer Sequence Willy Russell’s three main protagonists are shown to grow up from the ages of 15 to 18, thus becoming adults throughout the song. This means that the sequence acts as a watershed in the respect that it marks a major turning point in the play. This is shown through the atmosphere that Russell creates, which goes from fairly positive, hopeful tone to a more cynical and desperate one over the duration of the sequence. Russell uses several techniques to create these atmospheres throughout. In the opening of the Summer Sequence the atmosphere is clearly a happy one, which is shown by Russell by using words like â€Å"young, free and innocent† to describe the characters. In this section, the word â€Å"innocent† is used twice. This repetition emphasises their youth and their naivety. â€Å"You haven’t got a care†, suggests Russell is trying to create an image of the characters as being without concern, completely free of worry so it reinforces the absolute happiness of the characters. Another adjective that occurs later in the song is â€Å"immortal† which at this stage of the play creates an atmosphere of excitement and spontaneity because the children can’t conceive of an end to their current lives. A technique that Russell uses starts to use here is imagery, â€Å"street’s turned to paradise†, the word â€Å"paradise† bring to mind an idea of secure and complete happiness, which is how he describes them in this verse. Another technique is personification, â€Å"radio’s singing dreams†, giving the radio the ability to do something that brings happiness or joy. This line also works the first time the motif of dreams appears, one that recurs throughout the sequence. The next notable part of the sequence is entirely stage directions, and shows the characters at a fairground. In this part of the sequence the most obvious technique is foreshadowing and motifs arising. In it, Linda is just ignored by the narrator, who is running the stall, when giving the gun to them, but the boys both insist Linda fires it, which is reminiscent of the beginning of the play when Linda takes the airgun from Mickey and beats him at firing at cans. Linda also used to control their social situations, â€Å"let’s throw some stones through them windows†. This scene is also very reliant on the gun motif that runs through the entire play which creates a darker and more sinister atmosphere, and that suggests a level of violence. The fairground scene is also reflected in the musical choice, which is fairground-like music that plays to the tune of ‘Tell me it’s not true’, the song Mrs Johnstone sings at the very beginning of the play while her two sons lie dead on the stage. So, again this ties in with the audiences’ awareness of the boys’ tragic fate, thus, creating a foreshadowing atmosphere and suggests impending tragedy. This links with the gun motif, as together these themes create a sense of impending violence and death. The last line of this section of stage directions is â€Å"Linda is caught in the middle, the game freezes†. This creates a dark atmosphere as throughout the play Linda is always seen to be caught in between the two boys, but so far, it has never ended badly. In this instance, however, it foreshadows the fates of all three characters. The use of the word â€Å"game†, referring to a game of piggy-in-the-middle, could suggest that the context of the play when Linda gets caught up in her own happiness which eventually leads to the tragic fate of the twins. Overall, this section is of a darker tone than the last, but this atmosphere is created through the subtext, so the audience may not be fully aware of why they feel this way about the atmosphere. This is featured through the presence of the narrator, who throughout the play appears on stage to signify or prompt something negative to happen. He hands them the gun, and prompts the game of piggy-in-the-middle that Linda gets caught between. The next section uses metaphors to create a dark, impending atmosphere, that is more openly sinister that the previous section. Russell refers to the characters are â€Å"Lambs in spring†, which suggests not only their innocence and naivety, but an inevitable fate, specifically one that is forced upon them, not of their own doing. This explicitly refers to the brothers’ fate in a way in which the last section didn’t, so the tone is far more marred by the eventuality of their deaths. This date is also referenced when Russell extends the metaphor, â€Å"fate the later seasons bring†, which causes the audience to remember the scene at the very beginning of the play, preventing them from being drawn into the initial happiness of the three teenagers in this sequence. Again, it refers to Linda being caught in the middle of the pair, foreshadowing their final argument. It also refers to Linda paying a â€Å"price†, a theme that was initially shown in the song ‘Easy Terms’, sung by Mrs Johnstone, and in both cases foreshadows the price they’ll have to pay for their involvement in the twins’ lives. The music becomes far more serious and sinister, a repetitive tense note with no actual melody. In the next section a recurring theme is shown with the references to time. This creates a sad, melancholic atmosphere, as the audience is aware of the character’s significant lack of time together, but the characters are not, so their happy unawareness and this dramatic irony is slightly poignant. Again, fate is reference by the narrator â€Å"care not for what’s at the end of the day†, again forcing the audience to remember the fate of the boys, this enhances the melancholy mood of the section. â€Å"What is to come, what might have been†, references both the eventualities of the play, whilst also suggesting they could have been happy, that it could have they could have been happier, depressing the mood even further. It is made poignant by the characters’ blissful ignorance, â€Å"life has no ending†¦Talk away the night†, which ties in with the earlier references of immorality. Again, this dramatic irony, where the audience know that the boys’ lives do have endings that are fast approaching, almost makes the audience beg them to not waste their time talking â€Å"away the night†. â€Å"Share your last cigarette† also ties into the earlier scene where Mickey and Eddie share things, such as sweets and later cigarettes, they promise to share things in their blood brothers pact; but they cannot share Linda. Arguably the downfall of both brothers, meaning that this watershed’s atmosphere is wholly dark. In the next section it is all stage directions, but Russell uses foreshadowing and the use of the narrator’s presence to create a seemingly happy atmosphere that still foreshadows tragedy. In it, the trip are taking photos of each other at the beach. In the one between Eddie and Linda, Eddie down on one knee and demonstrating affections by kissing her hand. Throughout the play, Linda has shaped Eddie’s personality and actions, such as coercing him to throw rocks, and Eddie has appeared to like her from the very beginning and so this foreshadows the dynamics of their later relationship. Mickey and Linda’s photo does the same, as Mickey â€Å"pulls a distorted face†, and Linda chastening him for it, which foreshadows Mickey’s later dependency on medication, and Linda’s efforts to help him get off them. This foreshadowing of tragic events, in a way that appears innocent creates an  eerie, disconcerting atmosphere. As there are no words, it can’t openly reference what’s to come, but uses what the characters think is a harmless and happy moment. This is compounded by the musical choice, which is again ‘Tell me it’s not true’, as fairground music. Again, this foreshadows the final scene, creating a foreboding atmosphere without explicit reference as to why it appears that way. In this scene we see the characters taking pictures of them at the beach, these photos are memories of the last time the three of them are all truly happy. Therefore, the photographs signify the end of their childhood and innocence and dreams. This made clearer by the narrator being the one to take the photographs, thus being the one who signifies the end of their childhoods and lives. The children literally become adults at the end of the beach scene in the Summer Sequence, as well as metaphorically. Because the narrator is a sinister figure throughout the play, and usually is there to prompt the occurrence of something tragic, it creates a sense of impending tragedy even more obvious in this scene. The picture that the narrator takes is of them all together, happy, so he not only brings their childhood to a close, but also their happiness and friendship. In a sense, he symbolises reality as he intrudes on their happiness, despite their ignorance and the audience’s desire for him not to do so. He also represents society as it is eventually social constraints of class and wealth that divide the two. This way the audience are forced to see the society that they are part of and this is the factor that brings the story to an end. The fact that he appears to them as a friendly, even helpful, face increases the audience’s wariness of him and therefore the sinister nature of the scene. The overriding atmosphere of the scene is the last section is one of desperation and uncertainty. Russell uses metaphors such as â€Å"broken bottles in the sand† to symbolise a man-made impression on something naive and happy, which symbolises the characters’ friendship and how it is affected by class. The motif of a dream is repeated, as is the theme of innocence. The references to dreams ties in with the song tell me it’s not true, which refers to dreams. The reference to innocence here again makes the trio seem devious to the fact that they will be subject to tragedy.

Analysing the Marketing strategy of Temenos

Analysing the Marketing strategy of Temenos This report focuses on the marketing strategy of Temenos and its position relative to competitors. It basically falls in the category of Business 2 Business sales. In the beginning it describes major factors affecting the sales of the core banking solution concisely and then includes the environmental analysis of US market for Temenos. Furthermore, current challenges Temenos faces in US market. In addition to that, report also comprises of 4p analysis and segementation, targeting & positioning strategies of Temenos. Company Background According to Temenos website, â€Å"Group AG is the market leading provider of banking software systems to retail, corporate, universal, private, Islamic and microfinance & community banks. Headquartered in Geneva with 56 offices worldwide, Temenos serves over 1,000 financial institutions in more than 125 countries across the world†. Business Buying Decision Process B2B decision process is mostly extracted from the study conducted by Dr. S. S. S atchidananda (2006) and from the book of Soloman(2009). Problem Recognition When technology is out dated and consider as hindrance for the growth of the business. System is unable to align with other modern systems. Maintenance of legacy system becomes too costly. Inability to handle new regulation. Scalability issue Information Search Firstly client needs to identify its current and perceptible future needs and then select the option on the basis of the requirement. Two basic options are available for the banks, advantages and disadvantages are mentioned in Appendix (A) figure (1.1). In case of integrated solution, vendors are selected that matches the requirements and constraints of the client. Vendor’s existence and credibility is considered as the decisive factor in the selection of vendor along with the methodology proposed by the vendor. Evaluation of Options After evaluating above mentioned criteria, one or two vendors are selected and they will be invited to Point of care (POC) and then planned a visit to vendor’s customer for evaluating the POC scenarios on production or real time environment. Post Purchase Evaluation Temenos used to do post purchase evaluation by conducting structured interviews and publishing case studies that are readily available on their web sites. The Environment 3.1 Macro Environment 3.1.1 Political Current financial crises lead to political instability and results in the introduction of new regulations and reforms particularly effecting banking industry. US congress has recently agreed a bill containing biggest overhaul of banking regulations since 1930(BBC News Business, 25th June 2010).Banks have lobbied against the legislation and launch an active campaign against the new regulation. Barack Obama has criticized banks for lobbying and spending huge amount of money on campaigns against the bill (BBC, 2010). Current defeat of democrats in US mid-term elections resulting in losing control over house of representat ive and consequently reducing majority margin in senate (Midterms Show Voters Stillà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦, 2010). 3.1.2 Economical United States economy is in the phase of recovering from one of the most severe financial crises. GDP has grown by 2% mostly due to consumer spending. Additionally, business investment in software and equipment has surged by 12% and government spending increased by 3.4%. Although economy is showing some sign of recovery but still dollars in continuously weakening and unemployment rate increases (Julia Kollewe, 2010).

Friday, September 13, 2019

Household Economics and Class (responses) Assignment

Household Economics and Class (responses) - Assignment Example The working woman can easily do her maternity and baby care with much less struggle and depression. Feminine mystique was one time a big barrier in the improvement of class and income in the sense that many women were convinced to accept their position as it was. Now, most women have little to worry about when worrying about their places in the society. This proves to be a major breakthrough in the household economies since the woman can now serve in the capacity of the husband and can be a major force in the decision making process of the family. Friedan proposes that for the society to erode the feminine mystique even further, women should be exposed to an educational program that benefits the women satisfactorily. (Friedan 271) Women who initially were not free to discuss any issues far from their house, husbands and kids can now freely discuss other issues. The media can advise families on tips of â€Å"How to make your marriage happier† and books have since been published addressing similar issues. In comparison to the early and mid 18th century when any attempts by women to speak out were strongly discouraged by the experts, now, the women are free to dialogue. This proves that they have attracted attention and thus, respect. Respect comes with class. It is therefore true that household economies, income and class have changed with

Thursday, September 12, 2019

Alcan Operates Based on the Case Facts Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Alcan Operates Based on the Case Facts - Essay Example It is one of the world famous cutting-edge enterprises having a remarkable combination of skilled and talented workforce with advanced technology, innovative products, as well as a decidedly focused customer-culture. The enterprise has operating facilities across 61 countries with a work force of about 68,000 employees. The organization takes the leading position in production of raw materials, fabricated products and primary metals. Its four principal business groups include Bauxite and Alumina, Primary Metal, packaging and the engineered products. The four business groups are the main revenue contributors for the organization (Binet, GUALARD, and JACLOT, 2000). The associated products of the business groups include Aluminum sheets for beverage cans, automotive systems, mass transportation markets, personal care industries and the pharmaceutical products. The enterprise is involved in creating and selling of a variety of products, which include bauxite, automobile iron, sheet ingot, aluminium recycling services, forging stock. It is extremely vertically integrated having eight mines and deposits, a transport network with ports and facilities, seven alumina plants, 26 aluminium smelters, 17 laminated products plants, 12 electric power plants, seven alumina refineries, 180 packaging materials plants and 49 engineered products plants. Organizational Structure. ... His services are shared at the bottom of the ladder. The senior management in Alcan Company is made up of a CIO and four associates. These associates include: Strategic IT-Program director, Chief information-security- officer director, performance-management director, and the Enterprise Architectural director. At the bottom of the ladder, two services that are shared exist. One service is for the application, and the next is for infrastructure. All these are directed towards the senior management. In the centre of the ladder, there are different business groups of IT Directors. In this organization, the policy of decentralization ensures that each group is headed by an IT director normally referred to as VP. This director is concerned with the management of the IT in his specific group. He is also accountable for the top management of his group (Dube, Bernier, & Roy, 2009). Normally, the four IT VPs reports 75% of their group to the top management. They also report a 25% of their gro up to the CIO. These directors, therefore, are responsible in attaining the global objectives of the company. On the other hand, the shared services act as the business group internal consultants. Challenges Faced by Alcan Organization. Alcan organization like any other large organization is faced with various environmental, economical, social as well as technological challenges. Environmental challenges. The greatest environmental challenges affecting Alcan Organization are sustainable raw material development, industrial waste, air emissions, and water. These challenges have affected this company since laws requested organizations to change procedures and equipments so as to meet standards imposed to them. This change was to cause any company a substantial amount of money. The