Role of the Entrepreneur Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Role of the Entrepreneur - Essay Example Managing the business is the next step the business must take and the entrepreneur must ascertain that the incomes the business makes are higher than the expenses incurred while conducting the business. Understanding the drivers in the industry is important in as it makes the entrepreneur innovative which is a chief success attribute of an entrepreneur (Kingsland, 2007). Making the right decisions is paramount for the entrepreneur and he must ensure that resources are directed towards the right channels to ascertain there is no squander of resources, which would lead to losses. The actions of a firm earning profits add the value of resources as the firm is able to procure more resources into the business and operate at economies of scale. When a firm earns profits, the entrepreneur will be able to expand operations because they will have more money to spend to purchase more resources from the profits the organization makes. The organization will also be able to venture more into technology and move with the trends in the market so as to compete favorably with other business because they have enough revenues and this helps the organization to venture into new markets or improve their business operations. When losses are present, the value of resources diminishes, and this is because the business does not have adequate revenue to continue with its operations. Losses will eat into the capital of the business and some resources will be lost because the organization cannot put up with the high operational costs. When losses are present, operational costs will be high and this means that resources of the business will not be put into full potential hence the value of the resources will diminish. Some businesses are even forced to let go of some of the resources so as to maintain operational costs and this means that the value of the resources is diminished. It is not bad if a company making losses goes out of business, and this is because the central

The Clothes Make the Man Essay Example for Free

The Clothes Make the Man Essay The Grangerford family serves as an allegory meant to show Southern readers both the horror and the futility of hatred and violence. TSIn the Grangerford home, the feud with the Shepherdsons is kept alive by the authority of Colonel Grangerford. As the father of a typically male-dominated Southern family, he sets the moral compass for them. CDHuck tells the reader that â€Å"every day of [the colonel’s] life he put on a clean shirt and a full suit from head to foot made out of linen so white it hurt your eyes to look at it. CMColonel Grangerford’s â€Å"clean† shirt projects the idea that he is a person of the highest moral quality, even though he advocates racism, vengeance, violence and ignorance under his own roof. Huck voices the collective opinion of Southern society when he decides that the Colonel â€Å"was a gentleman all over† (p. 140) based almost entirely on the man’s possessions. CSTwain uses the Colonel to show that white Southerners judge the moral quality of a man by his superficial appearance rather than focusing on his character. TSThe oldest two sons, Bob and Tom Grangerford, symbolize the pattern by which the family ideology is passed from generation to generation. CDBoth are described as â€Å"dressed in white linen from head to foot, like the old gentleman. † (p. 141) CMThe Colonel imprints them with his belief system from the outside in. It is his rules and his understanding of the world that â€Å"dresses† the ideas of his children. CSJust as the boys try to emulate their father’s external appearance, they also adopt his worldview and moral guidelines. TSBuck’s limited moral and academic education is highlighted frequently during Huck’s time with him. CM Buck desperately wants to murder Shephersons, even though he doesn’t know the reasons behind his family’s feud. What makes the situation sadder is that he seems to respect his enemies’ courage and unity, two of his family’s core virtues, and defends them to Huck. CDâ€Å"There aint a coward amongst them Shepherdsons,† Buck says, â€Å"not a one. † (p. 145) His father’s corrupt teaching has left Buck unable to recognize when he is acting immorally. When Buck fails to correctly spell the name â€Å"George Jackson†, he also demonstrates his academic shortcomings. CSTwain does this to show that even though Colonel Grangerford has enough money to educate Buck, he shields his son from the classroom to maintain control over what he learns. As a result of his limited education, Buck grows up as an incomplete man. When Huck first sees Buck, he notices that â€Å"he hadnt on anything but a shirt, and he was very frowzy-headed. Buck’s unfinished outfit symbolizes his deficient schooling, and the frowziness of his hair represents his father’s negligence in his moral instruction. Huck tells us that when he goes to Buck’s room, â€Å"[Buck] got me a coarse shirt and a roundabout and pants of his. † (p. 131) The rough texture of the shirt is another metaphor for Buck’s stunted mental growth, and its rigid construction reminds us of the stern control that the Colonel, who bought the shirt, exerts over his son. Twain suggests that the Grangerfords’ demise is directly related to their lack of education, when their inability to foresee the Shepherdsons’ ambush results in Buck’s death. He shows the reader how the family stunted their intellectual and spiritual growth by focusing their time and energy on hatred, racism and cruelty. Any southerners of the time who shared similar values as the Grangerfords were likely given much to think about when they read this family’s story and the price they paid for their crooked moral values.

Comic spirit and Bringing Down the House :: essays research papers

Comedy has existed with the human spirit as far back as humans began writing the first plays and stories. Comedy and laughing at other peoples’ situations has always been a very good way to tell an entertaining story. Yet, at the same time, it can be an effective way to share lessons about life and the human condition. The â€Å"comic spirit† takes many forms throughout human civilization and several classic examples can be seen in Roman and Greek comedies. Greek comedies often create humor from the conflicts created by stereotypes and imbalances. For example, the play Lisistrata has a main character who is a woman who tries to stop the Peloponnesian War by convincing all the women of Athens to stop having sex with their husbands. Taking place during a period when women did not have power in society (compared to men), this Greek comedy used the imbalances of women to create a funny story while at the same time as making a statement against war. A more modern comed y that uses imbalances and stereotypes to create humor is the movie â€Å"Bringing Down the House† starring Steve Martin and Queen Latifah. The humor in this movie is created by the use of multiple stereotypes, imbalances and ultimate role reversals of a white, wealthy male and a black, ex-convict female who first meet each other in an Internet chat room. There are also contrasts between young and old people. Although the imbalances and stereotypes throughout the movie create funny situations, it may have a negative side effect because it takes advantage of racial, gender and age stereotypes, which may be insulting or hurtful to some people, just to get a laugh. The story begins with Steve Martin’s character, Peter Sanderson, chatting online with someone who he thinks is a pretty, blonde lawyer. When he finally arranges to meet her for a â€Å"first date,† he is shocked to find out that the blonde lawyer turns out to be a black ex-convict named Charlene (played by Queen Latifah) who wants Peter to help prove her innocence from being set up in a bank robbery that sent her to prison for four years. The movie uses several elements of imbalance and stereotypes to create humorous situations in the story. For example, there is contrast between Peter and Charlene. On the surface in the beginning of the movie Peter seems to be a regular a white male with a successful, upper middle class lifestyle. Comic spirit and "Bringing Down the House" :: essays research papers Comedy has existed with the human spirit as far back as humans began writing the first plays and stories. Comedy and laughing at other peoples’ situations has always been a very good way to tell an entertaining story. Yet, at the same time, it can be an effective way to share lessons about life and the human condition. The â€Å"comic spirit† takes many forms throughout human civilization and several classic examples can be seen in Roman and Greek comedies. Greek comedies often create humor from the conflicts created by stereotypes and imbalances. For example, the play Lisistrata has a main character who is a woman who tries to stop the Peloponnesian War by convincing all the women of Athens to stop having sex with their husbands. Taking place during a period when women did not have power in society (compared to men), this Greek comedy used the imbalances of women to create a funny story while at the same time as making a statement against war. A more modern comed y that uses imbalances and stereotypes to create humor is the movie â€Å"Bringing Down the House† starring Steve Martin and Queen Latifah. The humor in this movie is created by the use of multiple stereotypes, imbalances and ultimate role reversals of a white, wealthy male and a black, ex-convict female who first meet each other in an Internet chat room. There are also contrasts between young and old people. Although the imbalances and stereotypes throughout the movie create funny situations, it may have a negative side effect because it takes advantage of racial, gender and age stereotypes, which may be insulting or hurtful to some people, just to get a laugh. The story begins with Steve Martin’s character, Peter Sanderson, chatting online with someone who he thinks is a pretty, blonde lawyer. When he finally arranges to meet her for a â€Å"first date,† he is shocked to find out that the blonde lawyer turns out to be a black ex-convict named Charlene (played by Queen Latifah) who wants Peter to help prove her innocence from being set up in a bank robbery that sent her to prison for four years. The movie uses several elements of imbalance and stereotypes to create humorous situations in the story. For example, there is contrast between Peter and Charlene. On the surface in the beginning of the movie Peter seems to be a regular a white male with a successful, upper middle class lifestyle.

Quality of Work Life Essay

In today’s high tech, fast-paced world, the work environment is very different than it was a generation ago. It is now rare for a person to stay with a single company his or her entire working life. There are multiple reasons for this, but mostly because employees are often willing to leave a company for better opportunities, companies need to find ways not only to hire qualified people, but also to retain them. As more companies start to realize that a happy employee is an effective employee, they have started to look for ways to improve the work environment. Many have implemented various work-life programs to help employees, including alternate work arrangements, onsite childcare, exercise facilities, relaxed dress codes, and more. Quality-of-work-life programs go beyond work/life programs by focusing attention less on employee needs outside of work and realizing that job stress and the quality of life at work is even more direct bearing on worker satisfaction. Open communications, mentoring programs, and fostering more amicable relationships among workers are some of the ways employers are improving the quality of work life. Emerging Trends Forces For Change A factor contributing to the problem was that the workers themselves were changing. They became educated, more affluent (partly because of the effectiveness of classical job design), and more independent. They began reaching for higher-order needs, something more than merely earning their bread. Employers now had two reasons for re-designing jobs and organisations for a better QWL: * Classical design originally gave inadequate attention to human needs. * The needs and aspirations of workers themselves were changing. Humanised Work Through QWL One option was to re-design jobs to have the attributes desired by people, and re-design organisations to have the environment desired by the people. This approach seeks to improve QWL. There is a need to give workers more of a challenge, more of a whole task, more opportunity to use their ideas. Close attention to QWL provides a more humanised work environment. It attempts to serve the higher-order needs of workers as well as their more basic needs. It seeks to employ the higher skills of workers and to provide an environment that encourages them to improve their skills. The idea is that human resources should be developed and not simply used. Further, the work should not have excessively negative conditions. It should not put workers under undue stress. It should not damage or degrade their humanness. It should not be threatening or unduly dangerous. Finally, it should contribute to, or at least leave unimpaired, workers’ abilities to perform in other life roles, such as citizen, spouse and parent. That is, work should contribute to general social advancement. Job Enlargement vs. Job Enrichment The modern interest in quality of work life was stimulated through efforts to change the scope of people’s jobs in attempting to motivate them. Job scope has two dimensions – breadth and depth. Job breadth is the number of different tasks an individual is directly responsible for. It ranges from very narrow (one task performed repetitively) to wide (several tasks). Employees with narrow job breadth were sometimes given a wider variety of duties in order to reduce their monotony; this process is called job enlargement. In order to perform these additional duties, employees spend less time on each duty. Another approach to changing job breadth is job rotation, which involves periodic assignment of an employee to completely different sets of job activities. Job rotation is an effective way to develop multiple skills in employees, which benefits the organisation while creating greater job interest and career options for the employee. Job enrichment takes a different approach by adding additional motivators to a job to make it more rewarding. It was developed by Frederick Herzberg on the basis of his studies indicating that the most effective way to motivate workers was by focusing on higher-order needs. Job enrichment seeks to add depth to a job by giving workers more control, responsibility and discretion over hoe their job is performed. The difference between enlargement and enrichment is illustrated in the figure on the next page.

Longboarding

Cameron Campbell English 1010 October 25, 2012 â€Å"Longboarding† Grippy and maneuverable, longboards are safer for street surfin’ and they can give you the most bang for your skateboard buying buck. Many people in this country associate skateboarding with ollies, grinds, and other tricks made famous by icons of the sport such as Tony Hawk. However, there is an entirely different way to utilize a board with wheels attached to it which doesn’t involve any hopping or flipping, just riding it. Longboards are wonderful for those who enjoy being outside and schussing down a smoothly paved hill.Longboarding matches similar feelings and maneuvers associated with surfing and snowboarding. Instead of relying on the ocean or a snowy mountain, most people can find a decent patch of pavement for some exhilarating laid-back fun. Young people around the country purchase longboards for purposes that symmetrical skateboards struggle to perform, such as transportation over long distances and achieving sharper turns. The shape of these boards, their elevation from the ground, and their rubber wheels allow much smoother, faster riding than the characteristics of normal skateboards.Not only is the act of riding a longboard much different than that of a common skateboard, but there is also an entirely different culture for the sport. Instead of starting from scratch, trying to learn tricks that may intimidate new skateboarders, all a budding longboarder needs to succeed is balance and a little confidence. The popularity of longboarding is largely attributed to how fun it is. The rush of cruising at high velocities coupled with the friendly, carefree culture that boarders have established help make longboarding a timeless sport.

Joseph Michael Swango, Serial Killer Profile and Biography

Joseph Michael Swango, Serial Killer Profile and Biography Joseph Michael Swango is a serial killer who, as a trusted doctor, had easy access to his victims. Authorities believe he murdered up to 60 people and poisoned countless others, including co-workers, friends and his wife. Childhood Years Michael Swango was born on October 21, 1954, in Tacoma, Washington, to Muriel and John Virgil Swango. He was the middle son of three boys and the child that Muriel believed was the most gifted. John Swango was an Army officer which meant the family was constantly relocating. It was not until 1968, when the family moved to Quincy, Illinois, that they finally settled down. The atmosphere in the Swango home depended on whether or not John was present. When he was not there, Muriel tried to maintain a peaceful home, and she kept a strong hold on the boys. When John was on leave and at home from his military duties, the home resembled a military facility, with John as the strict disciplinarian. All of the Swango children feared their father as did Muriel.  His struggle with alcoholism was the main contributor to the tension and upheaval that went on in the home. High School Concerned that Michael would be under-challenged in the public school system in Quincy, Muriel decided to ignore her Presbyterian roots and enrolled him in the Christian Brothers High School, a private Catholic school known for its high academic standards. Michaels brothers attended the public schools. At Christian Brothers, Michael excelled academically and became involved in various extracurricular activities. Like his mother, he developed a love of music and learned to read music, sing, play the piano, and mastered the clarinet well enough to become a member of the Quincy Notre Dame band and tour with the Quincy College Wind Ensemble. Millikin University Michael graduated as class valedictorian from Christian Brothers in 1972. His high school achievements were impressive, but his exposure to what was available for him in selecting the best colleges to attend to was limited. He decided on Millikin University in Decatur, Illinois, where he received a full music scholarship. There Swango maintained top grades during his first two years, however, he became an outcast from social activities after his girlfriend ended their relationship. His attitude became reclusive. His outlook changed. He exchanged his collegiate blazers for military fatigues. During the summer after his second year at Millikin, he stopped playing music, quit college and joined the Marines. Swango became a trained  sharpshooter for the Marines, but decided against a military career. He wanted to return to college and become a doctor. In 1976, he received an honorable discharge. Quincy College Swango decided to attend Quincy College to earn a degree in chemistry and biology. For unknown reasons, once accepted into the college, he decided to embellish his permanent records by submitting a form with lies stating that he had earned a Bronze Star and the Purple Heart while in the Marines. In his senior year at Quincy College, he elected to do his chemistry thesis on the bizarre poisoning death of Bulgarian writer  Georgi Markov. Swango developed an obsessive interest in poisons that could be used as silent killers. He graduated  summa cum laude from Quincy College in 1979. With an award for academic excellence from the American Chemical Society tucked under his arm, Swango set out to get accepted into medical school, a task that was not so simple during the early 1980s. At that time, there was fierce competition among a massive number of applicants trying to get into a limited amount of schools throughout the country. Swango managed to beat the odds and he got into Southern Illinois University (SIU). Southern Illinois University Swangos time at SIU received mixed reviews from his professors and fellow classmates. During his first two years, he earned a reputation for being serious about his studies but was also suspected of taking unethical shortcuts when preparing for tests and group projects. Swango had little personal interaction with his classmates after he began working as an ambulance driver. For a first-year medical student struggling with tough academic demands, such a job caused great stress. In his third year at SIU, the one-on-one contact with patients increased. During this time, there were at least five patients that died after they had just received a visit from Swango. The coincidence was so great, that his classmates began to call him Double-O Swango, a reference to the James Bond and the license to kill slogan. They also began to view him as incompetent, lazy and just strange. Obsessed With Violent Death From the age of three, Swango showed an unusual interest in violent deaths. As he got older, he became fixated on stories about the  Holocaust, particularly those that contained pictures of the death camps. His interest was so strong that he began to keep a scrapbook of pictures and articles about fatal car wrecks and macabre crimes. His mother would also contribute to his scrapbooks when she came across such articles. By the time Swango attended SIU, he had put together several scrapbooks. When he took the job as an ambulance driver, not only did his scrapbooks grow, but he was seeing firsthand what he had only read about for so many years. His fixation was so strong that he would rarely turn down the chance to work, even if it meant sacrificing his studies. His classmates felt that Swango showed more dedication to making a career as an ambulance driver than he did for getting his medical degree. His work had become sloppy and he often left unfinished projects because his beeper would go off, signaling him that the ambulance company needed him for an emergency. The Final Eight Weeks In Swangos final year at SIU, he sent off applications for internships and residency programs in neurosurgery to several teaching colleges. With the help of his teacher and mentor, Dr. Wacaser, who was also a neurosurgeon, Swango was able to provide the colleges with a letter of recommendation. Wacaser even took the time to write a handwritten personal note of confidence on each letter. Swango was accepted in neurosurgery at the University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics in Iowa City. Once he nailed down his residency, Swango showed little interest in his remaining eight weeks at SIU. He failed to show up for required rotations and to watch specific surgeries performed. This astounded Dr. Kathleen OConnor who was in charge of overseeing Swangos performance. She called his place of employment to schedule a meeting to discuss the matter. She did not find him, but she did learn that the ambulance company no longer permitted Swango to have direct contact with patients, although the reason why was not disclosed. When she finally did see Swango, she gave him the assignment to perform a complete history and examination on a woman who was going to have a  cesarean delivery. She also observed him entering the womans room and leaving after just 10 minutes. Swango then turned in a very thorough report on the woman, an impossible task given the amount of time he was in her room. OConnor found Swangos actions reprehensible and the decision to fail him was made. It meant that he would not be graduating and his internship in Iowa would be canceled. As the news spread about Swango not graduating, two camps were formedthose  for and those against SIUs decision. Some of Swangos classmates who had long decided that he was not fit to be a doctor used the opportunity to sign off on a letter describing Swangos incompetence and poor character. They recommended that he be expelled. Had Swango not hired a lawyer, it is likely that he would have been expelled from SIU, but shrinking from the fear of being sued and wanting to avoid the costly expense of litigation, the college decided to postpone his graduation by a year and give him another chance, but with a strict set of rules that he had to follow. Swango immediately cleaned up his act and refocused his attention on completing the requirements to graduate. He reapplied to several residency programs, having lost the one in Iowa. Despite having an extremely poor evaluation from the dean of ISU, he was accepted into a surgical internship, followed by a very prestigious residency program in neurosurgery at Ohio State University. This left many who knew Swangos history completely dumbfounded, but he apparently aced his personal interview and was the only student out of sixty accepted into the program. Around the time of his graduation, Swango was fired from the ambulance company after he told a man having a heart attack to walk to his car and have his wife drive him to the hospital. Deadly Compulsion Swango began his internship at Ohio State in 1983. He was assigned to the Rhodes Hall wing of the medical center. Shortly after he began, there was a series of unexplained deaths among several healthy patients being cared for in the wing. One of the patients who survived a severe seizure told the nurses that Swango had injected medicine into her just minutes before she became critically ill. Nurses also reported to the head nurse their concerns about seeing Swango in patients rooms during odd times. There were numerous occasions when patients were found near death or dead just minutes after Swango left the rooms. The administration was alerted and an investigation was launched, however, it seemed as if it was designed to discredit the eyewitness reports from the nurses and patients so that the matter could be closed and any residual damage curbed. Swango was exonerated  of any wrongdoing. He returned to work, but was moved to the Doan Hall wing. Within days, several patients on the Doan Hall wing began to die mysteriously. There was also an incident when several residents became violently ill after Swango offered to go get fried chicken for everyone. Swango also ate the chicken but did not get sick. License to Practice Medicine In March 1984, the Ohio State residency review committee decided that Swango did not have the necessary qualities needed to become a neurosurgeon. He was told he could complete his one-year internship at Ohio State, but he was not invited back to complete his second year of residency. Swango stayed on at Ohio State until July 1984 and then moved home to Quincy. Before moving back he applied to get his license to practice medicine from the Ohio State Medical Board, which was approved in September 1984. Welcome Home Swango did not tell his family about the trouble he encountered while at Ohio State or that his acceptance into his second-year residency had been rejected. Instead, he said he did not like the other doctors in Ohio. In July 1984, he began working for Adams County Ambulance Corp as an emergency medical technician. Apparently, a background check was not done on Swango because he had worked there in the past while attending Quincy College. The fact that he had been fired from another ambulance company never surfaced. What did begin to surface was Swangos weird opinions and behavior. Out came his scrapbooks filled with references to violence and gore, which he doted on regularly. He began making inappropriate and strange comments related to death and people dying. He would become visibly excited over CNN news stories about mass killings and horrific auto accidents. Even to hardened paramedics that had seen it all, Swangos lust for blood and guts was downright creepy. In September the first noticeable incident that Swango was dangerous occurred when he brought doughnuts for his co-workers. Everyone who ate one ended up becoming violently ill and several had to go to the hospital. There were other incidents where co-workers became ill after eating or drinking something Swango had prepared. Suspecting that he was purposely making them ill, some of the workers decided to get tested. When they tested positive for poison, a police investigation was launched. The police obtained a search warrant for his home and inside they found hundreds of drugs and poisons, several containers of ant poison, books on poison, and syringes. Swango was arrested and charged with battery. The Slammer On August 23, 1985, Swango was convicted of aggravated battery and he was sentenced to five years behind bars. He also lost his medical licenses from Ohio and Illinois. While he was in prison, Swango began trying to mend his ruined reputation by doing an interview with John Stossel who was doing a segment about his case on the ABC program,? 20/20. Dressed in a suit and tie, Swango insisted that he was innocent and said that the evidence that was used to convict him lacked integrity. A Cover Up Exposed As part of the investigation, a look into Swangos past was conducted and the incidents of patients dying under suspicious circumstances at Ohio State resurfaced. The hospital was reluctant to allow the police access to their records. However, once the global news agencies got wind of the story, the university president, Edward Jennings, assigned the dean of Ohio State University Law School, James Meeks, to conduct a full investigation to determine if the situation surrounding Swango had been handled properly. This also meant investigating the conduct of some of the most prestigious people in the university. Offering an unbiased assessment of the events that had occurred, Meeks concluded that legally, the hospital should have reported the suspicious incidents to the police because it was their job to decide if any criminal activity had occurred. He also referred to the initial investigations performed by the hospital as superficial. Meeks also pointed out that he found it astounding that the hospital administrators had not kept a permanent record detailing what had occurred. Once full disclosure was obtained by police, the prosecutors from Franklin County, Ohio, toyed with the idea of charging Swango with murder and attempted murder, but due to a lack of evidence, they decided against it. Back on the Streets Swango served two years of his five-year sentence and was released on August 21, 1987. His girlfriend, Rita Dumas, had fully supported Swango throughout his trial and during his time in prison. When he got out the two of them moved to Hampton, Virginia. Swango applied for his medical license in Virginia, but because of his criminal record, his application was denied. He then found employment with the state as a career counselor, but it was not long before weird things began to happen. Just like what happened in Quincy, three of his co-workers suddenly experienced severe nausea and headaches. He was caught gluing gory articles into his scrapbook when he should have been working. It was also discovered that he had turned a room in the office building basement into a kind of bedroom where he often stayed for the night. He was asked to leave in May 1989. Swango then went to work as a lab technician for Aticoal Services in Newport News, Virginia. In July 1989, he and Rita got married, but almost immediately after exchanging vows, their relationship began to unravel. Swango began ignoring Rita and they stopped sharing a bedroom. Financially he refused to contribute to the bills and took money out of Ritas account without asking. Rita decided to end the marriage when she suspected that Swango was seeing another woman. The two separated in January 1991. Meanwhile, at Aticoal Services several employees, including the president of the company, began suffering from sudden bouts of severe stomach cramping, nausea, dizziness, and muscle weakness. Some of them were hospitalized and one of the executives of the company was nearly comatose. Unphased by the wave of illnesses going around the office, Swango had more important issues to work out. He wanted to get his medical license back and start working as a doctor again. He decided to quit the job at Aticoal and started applying at residency programs. Its All in the Name At the same time, Swango decided that, if he was going to get back into the medicine, he would need a new name. On January 18, 1990, Swango had his name legally changed to David Jackson Adams. In May 1991, Swango applied for the residency program at Ohio Valley Medical Center in Wheeling, West Virginia. Dr. Jeffrey Schultz, who was the chief of medicine at the hospital, had several communications with Swango, mainly centering on the events surrounding the suspension of his medical license. Swango lied about what had happened, downplaying the battery by poisoning conviction, and said instead that he was convicted for an altercation he was involved in at a restaurant. Dr. Schultz opinion was that such a punishment was far too severe so he continued to try to verify Swangos account of what happened. In return, Swango forged several documents, including a prison fact sheet which stated that he had been convicted of hitting someone with his fists. He also forged a letter from the Governor of Virginia stating that his application for Restoration of Civil Rights had been approved. Dr. Schultz continued to try to verify the information that Swango had provided to him and forwarded a copy of the documents to the Quincy authorities. The correct documents were forwarded back to Dr. Schultz who then made the decision to reject Swangos application. The rejection did little to slow down Swango who was determined to get back into medicine. Next, he sent an application to the residency program at the University of South Dakota. Impressed by his credentials, the director of the internal medicine residency program, Dr. Anthony Salem, opened up communications with Swango. This time Swango said the battery charge involved poison, but that coworkers who were jealous that he was a doctor had framed him. After several exchanges, Dr. Salem invited Swango to come for a series of personal interviews. Swango managed to charm his way through most of the interviews and on March 18, 1992, he was accepted into the internal medicine residency program. Kristen Kinney While he was employed at Aticoal, Michael had spent time taking medical courses at the Newport News Riverside Hospital. It was there that he met Kristen Kinney, to whom he was immediately attracted to and aggressively pursued. Kristen, who was a nurse at the hospital, was quite beautiful and had an easy smile. Although she was already engaged when she met Swango, she found him attractive and very likable. She ended up calling off her engagement and the two began dating regularly. Some of her friends felt it was important that Kristen know about some of the dark rumors they had heard about Swango, but she did not take any of it seriously. The man she knew was nothing like the man they were describing. When it came time for Swango to move to South Dakota to begin his residency program, Kristen immediately agreed that they would move there together. Sioux Falls At the end of May, Kristen and Swango moved to Sioux Falls, South Dakota. They quickly established themselves in their new home and Kristen got a job in the intensive care unit at the Royal C. Johnson Veterans Memorial Hospital. This was the same hospital where Swango began his residency, although no one was aware that the two knew each other. Swangos work was exemplary and he was well liked by his peers and the nurses. He no longer discussed the thrill of seeing a violent accident nor did he exhibit the other oddities in his character that had caused problems at other jobs. Skeletons in the Closet Things were going great for the couple until October when Swango decided to join the American Medical Association. The AMA did a thorough background check and because of his convictions, they decided to turn it over to the council on ethical and judicial affairs. Someone from AMA then contacted their friend, the dean of the University of South Dakota medical school, and informed him of all of the skeletons in Swangos closet, including the suspicions surrounding the death of several patients. Then on the same evening, The Justice Files television program aired the 20/20 interview that Swango had given while he was in prison. Swangos dream of working as a doctor again was over. He was asked to resign. As for Kristen, she was in shock. She was completely ignorant of Swangos true past until she watched a tape of the 20/20 interview in Dr. Schultz office on the day Swango was being questioned. In the following months, Kristen began to suffer from violent headaches. She no longer smiled and began to withdraw from her friends at work. At one point, she was placed in a psychiatric hospital after the police found her wandering in the street, nude and confused. Finally, in April 1993, unable to take it anymore, she left Swango and returned to Virginia. Soon after leaving, her migraines went away. However, just a few weeks later, Swango showed up on her doorstep in Virginia and the two were back together. With his confidence restored, Swango began sending out new applications to medical schools. Stony Brook School of Medicine Incredibly, Swango lied his way into the psychiatric residency program at the State University of New York at Stony Brook School of Medicine. He relocated, leaving Kristen in Virginia, and began his first rotation in the internal medicine department at the VA Medical Center in Northport, New York. Again, patients began to mysteriously die wherever Swango worked. Suicide Kristen and Swango had been apart for four months, although they continued to talk on the phone. During the last conversation that they had, Kristen learned that Swango had emptied out her checking account. The next day, July 15, 1993, Kristen committed suicide by shooting herself in the chest. A Mothers Revenge Kristens mother, Sharon Cooper, hated Swango and blamed him for her daughters suicide. She found it inconceivable that he was working at a hospital again. She knew the only way he got in was by lying and she decided to do something about it. She contacted a friend of Kristens who was a nurse in South Dakota and included his full address in the letter stating that she was glad that he could not hurt Kristen anymore, but she was afraid of where he was working now. Kristens friend clearly understood the message and immediately passed along the information to the right person who contacted the dean of the medical school at Stony Brook, Jordan Cohen. Almost immediately Swango was fired. To try to prevent another medical facility from being duped by Swango, Cohen sent letters to all the medical schools and over 1,000 teaching hospitals in the country, warning them about Swangos past and his sneaky tactics to gain admission. Here Come the Feds After being fired from the VA hospital, Swango seemingly went underground. The FBI was on the hunt for him for falsifying his credentials in order to get a job in a VA facility. It was not until July 1994 that he resurfaced. This time he was working as Jack Kirk for a company in Atlanta called Photocircuits. It was a wastewater treatment facility and frighteningly, Swango had direct access to Atlantas water supply. Fearing Swangos obsession over mass killings, the FBI contacted Photocircuits and Swango was immediately fired for lying on his job application. At that point, Swango seemed to vanish, leaving behind a warrant for his arrest issued by the FBI. Africa Swango was smart enough to realize that his best move was to get out of the country. He sent his application and altered references to an agency called Options, which helps American doctors find work in foreign countries. In November 1994, the Lutheran church hired Swango after obtaining his application and falsified recommendations through Options. He was to go to a remote area of Zimbabwe. The hospital director, Dr. Christopher Zshiri, was thrilled to have an American doctor join the hospital, but once Swango began working it became apparent that he was untrained to perform some very basic procedures. It was decided that he would go to one of the sister hospitals and train for five months, and then return to Mnene Hospital to work. For the first five months in Zimbabwe, Swango received glowing reviews and almost everyone on the medical staff admired his dedication and hard work. But when he returned to Mnene after his training, his attitude was different. He no longer seemed interested in the hospital or his patients. People whispered about how lazy and rude he had become. Once again, patients began mysteriously dying. Some of the patients that survived had a clear recall about Swango coming to their rooms and giving them injections right before they went into convulsions. A handful of nurses also admitted to seeing Swango near patients just minutes before they died. Dr. Zshiri contacted the police and a search of Swangos cottage turned up hundreds of various drugs and poisons. On October 13, 1995, he was handed a termination letter and he had a week to vacate hospital property. For the next year and a half, Swango continued his stay in Zimbabwe while his lawyer worked to have his position at the Mnene hospital restored and his license to practice medicine in Zimbabwe reinstated. He eventually fled Zimbabwe to Zambia when evidence of his guilt began to surface. Busted On June 27, 1997, Swango entered the U.S. at the Chicago-OHare airport while in route to the Royal Hospital in Dhahran in Saudi Arabia. He was promptly arrested by immigration officials and held in prison in New York to await his trial. A year later Swango pleaded guilty to defrauding the government and he was sentenced to three years and six months in prison. In July 2000, just days before he was to be released, federal authorities charged Swango with one count of assault, three counts of murder, three counts of making false statements, one count of defrauding by use of wires, and mail fraud. In the meantime, Zimbabwe was fighting to have Swango extradited to Africa to face five counts of murder. Swango pleaded not guilty, but fearing that he could be facing the death penalty on being handed over to the Zimbabwe authorities, he decided to change his plea to guilty of murder and fraud. Michael Swango received three consecutive life sentences. He is currently serving his time at the supermax U.S. Penitentiary, Florence ADX.

Jackson Pollock`s action painting Number 1, 1949

Jackson Pollock`s action painting Number 1, 1949 Jackson Pollock`s action painting Number 1, 1949 reflects a deeply personal experience for the artist. Explore this connection between artist and artistic process.Advertising We will write a custom term paper sample on Jackson Pollock`s action painting Number 1, 1949 specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Introduction Paul Jackson Pollock was an Abstract Expressionist painter whose work became influential among American painters that culminated in the abstract expressionist movement. Jackson Pollock was born in Cody, Wyoming on January 28, 1912, with four older brothers. His early life was influenced by Native American culture until he moved to New York City in 1930. Thomas Hart Benton was a major influence on Pollock since Benton taught him the rhythmic use of paint. Pollock developed a new form of painting called the ‘drip’ technique where he laid out canvases on the studio floor, and painted colorful images using hard brush es. The drip technique required a fluid viscosity paint which led Pollock to create alkyd enamels which he applied on the canvases using hardened brushes, sticks and also basting syringes (Saunders, 2000). Pollock literally poured and dripped paint onto the canvases as a form of artistic expression leading to the term ‘action painting’. After his death on August 11, 1956 Pollock was accorded a memorial display exhibition at the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) in New York City, in December the same year before another more comprehensive exhibition at the same venue in 1967. His work was to later be publicized through another extensive exhibition at MoMA and The Tate in London in 1998 and 1999. Personal experiences Pollock began to formally study painting at the Manual Arts High School in Los Angeles in 1928. However, he had been initially exposed to Native American culture while still young and the Native American art became a form of foundation for his early art and most o f his paintings had innuendos of Native American elements.  Pollock later studied at the Art Students League in New York City in 1929 under the guidance of Thomas Hart Benton (Naifeh Smith, 1989). His tutor Benton taught him how to analyze paintings as well as the fundamentals of drawing and composition and the teacher’s influence was clearly visible in Pollocks early paintings of the realistic portrayal of life in America. Pollock however felt the need to express his true emotions through art which led him to opt for different techniques which were self oriented consequently creating more colorful but abstract paintings (Saunders, 2000).Advertising Looking for term paper on art and design? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More By 1945 Pollock’s paintings were completely abstract with his work evolved from an impressionist into a pure introspective art which portrayed the immediate and insightful expressio ns of the artist’s mentality (Naifeh, 1991). It is at this point that Pollock deviated from conventional techniques to introduce the ‘drip’ method of applying paint to canvas. In Portrait and a Dream of 1953 for instance, he intertwined streams of black paint on the left side of the canvas which are completely abstract (Saunders, 2000). The right side however bears black lines that form a womans head, which Pollock then shaded with the colors red, yellow, pink, and gray. Several critics believe the paintings completed during this period were the best Pollock ever produced.  They were of the opinion that the conventional techniques lacked depth and art needed in the subjective perspective of the artist in order to be fully understood and appreciated (Naifeh, 1991). That is why he stopped naming his paintings in the conventional format and started numbering them instead. He was of the view that titles greatly limited the expression of a painting but through num bering, observers would approach the painting with an open mind (Varnedoe Karmel, 2001). The success of the ‘drip’ technique led him to change his lifestyle which eventually led to a period of profound depression brought upon by marital problems to artist Lee Krasner, crisis and doubt in his life in the early 1950s (Riedman, 1995). He had a major problem of alcoholism which threatened to destroy his career and his marriage. Soon after, he discontinued the ‘drip’ technique to return to traditional brush painting but this time he used black-and-white canvases and the paintings suggesting a turning point in his life after overcoming the depression (Naifeh Smith, 1989). He however did return to using color after his audience started expressing doubt about the success of his newly adopted form of art. The doubt cast upon him by his audience brought back the acute depression he had suffered and he once again receded to alcohol. Alcoholism proved to be a toug h challenge for Pollock to tackle especially after the death of the doctor who had counseled him through withdrawal process and by 1955 he had stopped painting altogether which resulted to heavy drinking. Pollock died in a car crash on August 11, 1956 while driving drunk, after he overturned his convertible, killing himself and a passenger (Cernuschi, 1992).Advertising We will write a custom term paper sample on Jackson Pollock`s action painting Number 1, 1949 specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Painting Number 1, 1949 A visual/analytical description Pollock’s poured patterns on Painting Number 1, 1949 differ from the conventional shapes of the straight lines, triangles and the wide range of other artificial shapes belonging to Euclidean geometry. The poured painting can more accurately be described as organic because the painting in a larger perspective alludes to nature. Euclidean shapes have a smoothness which the painting lac ks, rather it consist of patterns that reappear on finer levels that help build up shapes of enormous intricacy (Varnedoe Karmel, 2001). A similar example is that of Blue Poles: Number 11, 1952 which has the proportions of size as 210.4cm by 486.8cm (Cernuschi, 1992). Painting Number 1, 1949 is an exceptional example of Pollocks style of gesture or action painting. Painting Number 1, 1949 illustrates Pollocks drips, or flung paint, which he painted in a rhythmic, undulating style (Riedman, 1995). By the time Pollock completed Painting Number 1, 1949, he had moved the canvas from the easel onto the floor, allowing him to relate uniformly with all the four sides of the canvas. Pollock had pushed aside the paintbrush a few years earlier and opting to apply paint with non-conventional tools such as sticks and spatulas (Saunders, 2000). The position of the heavily encrusted paint resulting from the movement of Pollocks body through space aptly records his routine (Cernuschi, 1992). It is possible for an observer to follow and copy an individual string of paint through its random twists and turns so as to reconstruct the artist’s movement. The painting as a consequence pulsates with the presence of the artist and echoes with Pollocks movement as the artist transverses over and across the canvas. Completed in the late 1940s, Painting Number 1, 1949 is an example of the work Pollock produced when he was sober. Painting Number 1, 1949 is an early illustration of his drips, technique for it maintains a tentative eminence due to the fact that the technique was still emerging to Pollock (Naifeh Smith, 1989). Painting Number 1, 1949 symbolizes the wholesome abstraction Pollock had achieved by the end of the 1940s. Painting Number 1, 1949 forms an all-over image in which lacks the focal point, thus all parts of the painting bear comparable significance (Saunders, 2000). There is no color which is prioritized; yellow, black, pink, blue and white paints are even ly distributed but the pink and blue paints are more subtle only in the areas that the other colors overlap them. Advertising Looking for term paper on art and design? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More The absence of a focal point also allows the observer to wholly view the entire painting, denying the observer’s effort to remain perceptive on one particular area of the painting and moreover, the eye perceives the painting as a single unit rather than in segments. Theme The theme of Painting Number 1, 1949 as well as other Pollock’s paintings completed in the late 1940s is contemporary self-preoccupations. Pollock used the abstracts to define the way he was thinking at a subconscious level and not his impression of the world (Naifeh Smith, 1989). He intentionally allowed the observers of the painting to understand the perception of the artist rather than let the observers comprehend the social perspective of the artist. Pollock therefore used Painting Number 1, 1949 to express the occurrences in his life and mind unlike conventional artists. Pollock had for a long time been searching for a technique that would defy conventional painting techniques since he felt th at conventional techniques did not represent art. His first painting to attempt to break this barrier was Mural in which he vaguely applied the â€Å"drip† technique. Conclusion Early life experiences with Native Americans can be said to have played a crucial foundational role in the inception of the Paul Jackson Pollock’s ‘drip’ technique. The Going West painting was among the first paintings which illustrated the commencement of Jackson Pollock’s inclination towards abstract paintings. Pollock was still a student of Thomas Hart Benton, but it was already apparent that they differed in terms of perception. She-Wolf, which was completed in 1943, was Jackson Pollock’s first abstract painting. Benton had already influenced him in that Pollock was no longer interested in conventional paintings, rather he needed to venture out like Benton and create art that not only represented people but of life itself (Saunders, 2000). Pollock abandoned the R egionalist style and opted for abstracted images, color contrasts and dense surfaces that were identical to the work of Picasso (Naifeh, 1991). In She-Wolf, Pollock integrated elements that reveal his interest in mythology. The painting was based on the story of the founders of Rome, Romulus and Remus who were suckled by a female wolf and from this painting; Pollock would specialize in the abstract technique (Riedman, 1995). Subsequent paintings were not widely received, for instance Mural of 1943-1944 which is the largest painting that was created by Pollock. This is also the first painting that was taken off the easel and onto the floor (Saunders, 2000). In addition, the Mural painting was the first painting that Pollock used the â€Å"drip† technique on. From Mural, Pollock would only get better at his technique and he followed up mural with Composition (White, Black, Blue and Red on White) in 1948. It is in Composition that Pollock completely discontinued the illustrati on of identifiable images and this painting had no representation of human or animal form. Cernuschi, Claude. Jackson Pollock: meaning and significance. New York: Icon Editions, 1992. Print. Naifeh, Steven. Jackson Pollock: an American saga. New York: HarperPerennial, 1991. Print. Naifeh, Steven and Smith, Gwen. Jackson Pollock: an American saga. New York: Clarkson N. Potter, 1989. Print. Riedman, BH. Jackson Pollock: energy made visible. New York: Da Capo Press, 1995. Print. Saunders, Frances Stoner. The Cultural Cold War: The CIA and the World of Arts and Letters. New York: Free Press, 2000. Print. Varnedoe, Krum. Karmel, Pumes. Jackson Pollock: Essays, Chronology, and Bibliography. New York: Macmillan Press, 2001. Print.

Can a President Pardon Himself - Constitution and Laws

Can a President Pardon Himself - Constitution and Laws The question of whether a president can pardon himself arose during the 2016 presidential campaign when critics of Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton suggested she could face criminal prosecution or impeachment over her use of a private email server as secretary of the Department of State if she were to be elected. The topic also surfaced during the tumultuous presidency of Donald Trump, particularly after it was reported that the erratic businessman and former reality-television star and his lawyers  were discussing the president’s authority to grant pardons and that Trump was asking his advisers about his power to pardon aides, family members and even himself. Trump further stoked speculation that he was considering his power to pardon himself amid the ongoing probes over his campaigns connections with Russia when he tweeted all agree the U.S. President has the complete power to pardon.† Whether a president has the power to pardon himself, though, is unclear and the subject of much debate among constitutional scholars. The first thing you should know is this: No president in the history of the United States has ever pardoned himself. The Power to Pardon in the Constitution Presidents are granted the authority to issue pardons in Article II, Section 2, Clause 1 of the U.S. Constitution.   The clause reads: The President ... shall have Power to grant Reprieves and Pardons for Offences against the United States, except in Cases of Impeachment. Take note of two key phrases in that clause. The first keyphrase limits the use of pardons for offenses against the United States. The second key phrase states that a president cant issue a pardon in cases of impeachment. Those two caveats in the Constitution place some limitations on the presidents power to pardon. The bottom line is that if a president commits a high crime or misdemeanor and is impeached, he cant pardon himself. He also cannot pardon himself in private civil and state criminal cases. His authority extends only to federal charges. Take note of the word grant. Typically, the word means one person gives something to another. Under that meaning, a president can give someone else a pardon, but not himself. Yes, the President Can Pardon Himself Some scholars argue that the president can pardon himself in some circumstances because - and this is a key point - the Constitution does not explicitly prohibit it. That is considered by some to be the strongest argument that a president has the authority to pardon himself. In 1974, as President Richard M. Nixon was facing certain impeachment, he explored the idea of issuing a pardon to himself and then resigning. Nixons lawyers prepared a memo stating such a move would be legal. The president decided against a pardon, which would have been politically disastrous, but resigned anyway. He was later pardoned by President Gerald Ford. Although I respected the tenet that no man should be above the law, public policy demanded that I put Nixon-and Watergate-behind us as quickly as possible, Ford said. In addition, the U.S Supreme Court has ruled that a president can issue pardon even before charges have been filed. The high court stated that pardon power â€Å"extends to every offense known to the law, and may be exercised at any time after its commission, either before legal proceedings are taken or during their pendency, or after conviction and judgment.† No, the President Cant Pardon Himself Most scholars argue, however, that presidents cannot pardon themselves. More to the point, even if they were, such a move would be incredibly risky and likely to ignite a constitutional crisis in the United States. Jonathan Turley,  a professor of public interest law at George Washington University, wrote in The Washington Post: Such an act would make the White House look like the Bada Bing Club. After a self-pardon, Trump could wipe out the Islamic State, trigger an economic golden age and solve global warming with a carbon-eating border wall - and no one would notice. He would simply go down in history as the man who not only pardoned his family members but himself.​ Michigan State University law professor Brian C. Kalt, writing in his 1997 paper Pardon Me: The Constitutional Case Against Presidential Self-Pardons, stated that a presidential self-pardon would not hold up in court. An attempted self-pardon would likely undermine the publics confidence in the presidency and the Constitution. A potential meltdown of such magnitude would be no time to begin legalistic discussion; the political facts of the moment would distort our considered legal judgment. Looking at the question from a cooler vantage point, the intent of the Framers, the words and themes of the Constitution they created, and the wisdom of the judges that have interpreted it all point to the same conclusion: Presidents cannot pardon themselves. The courts would likely follow the principle  stated by James Madison in the Federalist Papers. No man, Madison wrote, is allowed to be a judge in his own cause, because his interest would certainly bias his judgment, and, not improbably, corrupt his integrity.

Placement Portfolio and Interview Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Placement Portfolio and Interview - Essay Example The company’s focus on e-Learning is interesting, e-Learning is a diverse form of learning and teaching, whether it be via CD, the Internet, or shared files on a network (Educational Resources, Apr 2006). It may be because the training curricula will be available to Saudi Aramco’s international employees or it may be because the position is a flexible one, applicable even for someone living outside of Saudi Arabia. If this is the case, the position will be highly sought after. If not, my nationality and education will make me an attractive applicant. I am a Saudi who is fluent in both Arabic and English. I have a diploma in Information Technology and I have studied databases and SQL language at the Community College as well as administrative Sciences and multimedia. I have experience in management and communication, gained at an education company I worked at in Saudi Arabia. After I finished high school in 2004, I went on to study computing network at the Communication College. I then followed a computer Major linked to management. To do this I moved to Abha City and completed a Diploma in Information Technology at the King Khalid University. Here, I obtained general knowledge about comparisons between computing and management through modules such as introduction to database, visual basic and programming. After graduation, the University sent me to an education company that was associated with the ministry of higher education, in Saudi Arabia. I worked there for three months and gained some key management and communication skills. I then moved to Brighton, England in August 2009 and completed a 10-month intensive English course before being awarded a position at the University of Derby to begin a fulltime Bachelor of Science Degree. History: Saudi Aramco, formally known as Aramco [Arabian American Oil Company], was founded in 1933, when the

Manhattan Project Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Manhattan Project - Research Paper Example The success of this project advanced both scientific concepts but changed the potential nature of warfare for the rest of time. Still, today, the threat of such bombs, along with any other Weapons of Mass Destruction, remains a terrifying apocalyptic fear shared by people all over the world. In order to understand how we moved into the â€Å"Atomic Age† it is best to discuss how it all began; the answer might be surprising to some people. It all began with a letter to President Roosevelt from Albert Einstein in August of 1939. He, along with other European scientists, feared that Nazi Germany was exploring atomic technology; in fact, they were already working to purify uranium-235. This is one of the potential radioactive components necessary to create an atomic weapon (Bellis 1-2). Einstein and the other scientists were opposed to Nazi Fascism and were afraid of Nazi Germany developing this technology, primarily because they believed a tyrant like Hitler would not hesitate to use it. At first, Roosevelt’s reaction was not one of great concern and he worried about expending resources and finding the budget necessary might be an issue. However, after some deliberation he wrote back to Einstein. He explained that they could not risk Nazi forces gaining such a dangerous advantage and that America would be exploring atomic technology. The endeavor to accomplish this in totality makes up the Manhattan Project (Gosling 1-120). Unlike previous top secret military or government projects that used covert and misleading code-names like â€Å"Magic,† which was the covert information gained concerning Japanese ciphers and â€Å"Overlord,† which was the secret intentions of the Allied forces to invade Europe; the Manhattan project was much more literal (Broad ). It earned its name because of much of the earliest experimentation and planning began in 1941-1942 in New York at, at least, 10 different locations within the city. Robert Oppenheimer ove rsaw and participated in the project from its beginnings to its completion. Together, along with the research of some of the greatest scientific minds in history, like Einstein, Walter Bothe, Neils Bohr, and Marie Curie, they worked quickly to accomplish the completion of a functioning atomic bomb (Bellis 1-2). An atomic bomb ultimately derives its power from the release of nuclear energy at high speeds. Through the process of fission of the heavier atomic nuclei, the damage it causes results from, not only, the heat of the blast, but, also, from the radioactive elements of its design. In December of 1942 laboratory scientists were finally able to produce the controlled nuclear chain reaction. With this success, the research and the funding began to move rather quickly from there. ( Independence Hall Association in Philadelphia). Nuclear facilities were constructed in Hanford, Washington and Oak Ridge, Tennessee, while the main plant, dedicated to assembly was constructed in Los Ala mos, New Mexico (Gao 9-11). By the summer of 1945 Oppenheimer was prepared to test the first atomic bomb detonation; the hard work of, more than 100,000 people and at the cost of, more than 2 billion dollars of government supports brought them to this day ( Independence Hall Association in Philadelphia).On July 16, just before dawn, at the Trinity site, not

Government is a Trust Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Government is a Trust - Essay Example These needs can be very different. People depend on the government to provide a good infrastructure such as roads, bridges, and utilities. They also depend on the government to provide a good and stable economy that can provide jobs and housing. Education is an important need that the government helps to fulfill, and the judicial system establishes laws to protect the people. These things are provided for the whole of the people, not just groups or individuals. But the government also provides needs to groups and individuals. Elderly people in the United States depend on the government for Social Security and Medicare to help them survive their senior years. The poor rely on the government to assist them with money, food, and housing when needed so that they too can live. The trustees of the government are those who are elected by the people. They are endowed with a very important responsibility because their mission is to take the money and services that the Trust contains and be sure that it is distributed properly so that it does indeed benefit all the people who need it. These trustees also have the responsibility of appointing people in the judicial branch of the government, who will make decisions that affect the lives of the people. But beyond providing tangible needs for the people, the government and its trustees must also provide intangible elements such as tru

Economics of Global Money Markets Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2750 words

Economics of Global Money Markets - Essay Example owered the discount rates and extended term loans and in the following month by decreasing the set targets for the rates of federal reserve by 50 points. As economic indications weaknesses advanced over successive months, the rates of federal funds target was lowered by 325 points by the committee, leaving it at 2% by the end of 2008 (Oulette, 2014). During the summer, the rates were held constant by the committee as it watched financial and economic conditions. As the crisis grew worse at the fall of summer, finance committee responded through lowering rates of federal funds target by 100 points, with this coming unparalleled cut of interest rate by central banks. In December, evidenced by dramatic slowdown, the committee lowered its target at a range of 0-25 points. Up to date the range as remained with no interference. In spite of monetary policy easing, under performance in credit markets worsened off. Towards the end of 2008 and at the start of 2009, the Fed took astonishing mea sures to give support and liquidity to functioning of credit markets inclusive of establishment of various emergencies loaning facilities and extension or creation of currency exchange agreements with fourteen central banks globally. As a regulator of all banks, the Fed led the largest America bank holding firms’ stress test, creating stage for firms to increase their capital (working mother, pp.66).The actions with interventions from policy makers in America and globally assisted to stabilize financial world markets, which later checked on the weakening of real economy with deflationary pressure emergence.Though it is probable that worse results had been stopped, the destruction to the economy was already severe. The rate of unemployment in the U.S rose from 6% in 2008 to 9% by 2009 as inflation decreased sharply. With the increase of the crisis, and rate of federal funds on the lower bound, the committee resorted to non-traditional boundaries approaches to counter the crisis. When

Change Management Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 2

Change Management - Essay Example Qatar Airways seeks to increase Qatar Airway’s profit through the initiation of changes and practising effective leadership. It has the most identifiable brands globally with over 80% of the present market share in the aviation industry (O’Connell, 2011). It also offers quality training to its employees globally. In analysing the Qatar Airways, the primary focus will be on McKinsey’s 7S model. The 7S are structure, strategy, style, shared values, system, skills and staff. A strategy is a plan developed to build and sustain competitive advantage. The structure of a firm determines the efficiency in communication. An organisation’s system is the daily activities that members of staff undertake (Rahul & Kainth, 2014). Shared values are the core values of a company present in the general work ethics and corporate culture. The leadership style adopted plus the employees with their general capabilities make up style and staff. Workers’ skills that a company possesses to keep it successful also forms the most crucial part of McKinsey’s 7S model analysis (Kedia & Lahiri, 2007). The model works on the basis of the theory that the seven elements must be united and mutually supporting to realise positive performance in the firm. It can also be used to assist in identifying wh at should be realigned to increase performance. As a strategy, Qatar Airways uses its achievement as the â€Å"Airline of the Year† to advertise itself to the travelers all over the world. It received this title after the voting that took place at the respected Skytrax industry audit (Kedia & Lahiri, 2007). Qatar Airways Inc. has a complex structure. The airline presently operates 110 aircraft and has over 250 aircraft on order.

The Shawshank Redemption Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

The Shawshank Redemption - Essay Example Since the movie is an adaptation of the book, it has certain dissimilarities and differences from the book. Some of the major differences are discussed. These cinematic changes did not really change the flavour of the story and probably the adaptation was necessary to bring out the real essence of the story in the movie. The first difference was the arrival of new prisoners. In the movie, the old prisoners bet with each other on which of the new prisoners would be the one to break down and cry. This is not mentioned in the story though there is a short reference towards the end about "cry baby" inmates, and how Andy was not one of them. The second point of difference was regarding the warden. In the story, the money Andy has in Mexico is his own, which had been invested under a fictional name by Andy’s friend as Andy was being taken into custody, tried, and convicted. The story also does not talk about how he dressed up after climbing through the sewage pipe. Additionally in t he story Warden Norton resigns, rather than committing suicide in his office as the police are standing outside his door. While in the movie, it is shown that Andy kept a second set of books for the warden, in a locker in the wall, and he channelled all the money into another account under an assumed name. When he ran away from the prison (wearing a set of the Warden Norton’s clothes) this is the capital he used to finance his new life in Mexico. Also in the novella, at the time Andy was in the prison, three wardens were at Shawshank, while in the movie only one warden is shown. The third disparity was with respect to the oldest inmate, Brookes. In the story, the oldest inmate Brooks dies in an old peoples’ home. And the crow which is shown as Brooks’s pet in the movie is actually a pigeon. It is a pet of another inmate and not Brooks. In the movie Jake who is a pet crow belongs to Brooks who sets it free once he is paroled. After just a short span of time out o f Shawshank, Brooks commits suicide by hanging himself in his room. The movie does not show give any future reference about the bird but in the story the bird is found dead in the yard one week later it was set free. Continuing the discussion on difference in the literary, Andy initially uses Rita Hayworth’s poster to hide his increasing get away tunnel. He then uses Raquel Welch’s poster, and by the time he finally flees from Shawshank, he has Linda Ronstadt’s poster to cover the mouth of the tunnel. Additionally there were three other posters were also mentioned in the story, Marilyn Monroe, Jayne Mansfield and Hazel Court. In comparison, in the celluloid version of the story, Andy first poster is of Rita Hayworth and when he flees, the mouth of the tunnel is covered by Raquel Welch’s poster. In the novella Warden Norton rips down the poster without realizing there is a gap there while in the cinema, he pelts rocks and one of them tears through the post er, and that is how the getaway excavation is revealed. Further in the cinema the mean and nasty prison guard Byron Hadley is arrested in the same sweep that causes the warden's suicide; in the story, he has a heart attack and retires much before the escape of Andy. The last scene of the movie shows Red walking towards Andy who is working on a boat on a beach. The book ends after Red finds the message and cash from Andy, and is on his way to Mexico. In the story he hopes, "that Andy is down there" and he also hopes that he can cross the border

Change Management Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 2

Change Management - Essay Example Qatar Airways seeks to increase Qatar Airway’s profit through the initiation of changes and practising effective leadership. It has the most identifiable brands globally with over 80% of the present market share in the aviation industry (O’Connell, 2011). It also offers quality training to its employees globally. In analysing the Qatar Airways, the primary focus will be on McKinsey’s 7S model. The 7S are structure, strategy, style, shared values, system, skills and staff. A strategy is a plan developed to build and sustain competitive advantage. The structure of a firm determines the efficiency in communication. An organisation’s system is the daily activities that members of staff undertake (Rahul & Kainth, 2014). Shared values are the core values of a company present in the general work ethics and corporate culture. The leadership style adopted plus the employees with their general capabilities make up style and staff. Workers’ skills that a company possesses to keep it successful also forms the most crucial part of McKinsey’s 7S model analysis (Kedia & Lahiri, 2007). The model works on the basis of the theory that the seven elements must be united and mutually supporting to realise positive performance in the firm. It can also be used to assist in identifying wh at should be realigned to increase performance. As a strategy, Qatar Airways uses its achievement as the â€Å"Airline of the Year† to advertise itself to the travelers all over the world. It received this title after the voting that took place at the respected Skytrax industry audit (Kedia & Lahiri, 2007). Qatar Airways Inc. has a complex structure. The airline presently operates 110 aircraft and has over 250 aircraft on order.

Workplace Violence in Health Institutions Term Paper

Workplace Violence in Health Institutions - Term Paper Example These guidelines include recommendations for recognizing risk factors, management commitment and employee involvement, work site analysis, hazard prevention and control, and safety and health training. Violence against Health Workers The levels of violence against healthcare staff have become a concern in recent years. More and more healthcare staffs face the prospect of violence and aggression in the workplace, not only from the people they care for, but from strangers and families. Although there is a high risk of work place violence across all healthcare occupations, most indicators suggest that it is the nursing profession that is most at risk, followed closely by ambulance and medical staff. (Linsley, 2006, pgs. 7-8) nurses are especially vulnerable to violence in high risk areas of practice such as the emergency department and psychatric settings (Dempski & Westrick, 2008, pg. 237) This paper seeks to addreses the spectrum of violent behaviors in health care, including violence directed horizontally or vertically between healthcare providers or violence focused on nurses from patients, families, and visitors. In addition, it will give a brief explanation of the types of violence experienced by nurses at their place of work, the risk factors, the various ways through which workplace violence affects the workers as well as the steps and measures which can be undertaken to reduce the impact and effects of workplace violence or minimize their chances of occurence and reoccurance. Types of Violence in Healthcare Settings Healthcare and social service workers for many years have confronted significant risks of job-related violence. Assaults in particular represent serious safety threats and health hazards for this field, and violence against... Healthcare and social service workers for many years have confronted significant risks of job-related violence. Assaults in particular represent serious safety threats and health hazards for this field, and violence against their workers increasingly continues to manifest. Healthcare settings are at risk for a variety of violent behaviours. Violence may be manifested as verbal abuse, sexual harassment, racial harassment, bullying, property damage, threats, murder, and physical assault. In 2000, almost half of all nonfatal injuries from violent acts against workers occurred in the healthcare sector. These injuries include, bruises, lacerations, broken bones, and head injuries. There are also other forms of violence such as lateral and horizontal violence which frequently occur in healthcare agencies. Lateral violence is a form of bullying, nurse to nurse, and is usually directed toward nursing staff perceived as less powerful. This includes bullying which encompasses barrage behaviour s which include being harassed, tormented, ignored, sabotaged, put down, and insulted among others. This form of violence is tolerated because many nurses experience it as a rite of passage and regard it as normal.Risk Factors. Health care providers, especially so, nurses deal with a greater than before risk of work-related physical attack. A number of factors have been identified as causal factors, while they do not cause violence directly, they have an impact on it and can enhance its effects.  

Professional Development Plan Essay Example for Free

Professional Development Plan Essay In order to develop a plan that will address the characteristics of my group and me as a leader; a thorough review of the completed DISC assessments much be completed on an individual basis and an overall plan can be derived thereafter. The individual analyses are as follows: Individual Assessments Jeremy Conner, Jessica Mills, and Brian Tuck are all predominately categorized as cautious in style. Their tendencies include: being tense with themselves and others when under pressure, having a natural curiosity about people, being concerned about what people think, feel, and expect, having strong attachments to their personal interests, underestimating the time required to complete tasks, being intuitive and observant about situations and people, associating their self-worth with their work, and being intrigued by concepts, ideas and processes. They are known as the assessors and tend to have strong opinions about people and groups with whom you do not identify or agree. Robert Mills was predominately categorized as interactive in style. This style’s strengths include: enthusiasm, charm, persuasiveness, and warmth. The cautious style is gifted in people skills and communication skills with individuals as well as groups. They are great influencer’s. They are idea-people and dreamers who excel at getting others excited about their vision. They are optimist with an abundance of charisma. All of these qualities help them influence people and build alliances to accomplish their goals. I was predominately categorized as a dominance style. My primary motivation is accomplishing bigger and better goals according to an internal timetable. I prefer to be involved in my chosen activities from start to finish, and I  resist people who are obstacles to my achievements. My tendencies include: disliking being told what to do, or when and how to do something, being reluctant to change what I think or how I feel, delegating tasks only if absolutely necessary, acting competitively, especially when pushing myself to new levels or in new directions, making sure that production is completed on schedule, depending on plans for action and follow-up routines, and becoming tenacious and focused when under pressure. Team Development Plan Based on the analysis of the DISC assessments, I would put myself in a leadership role on the team with Robert as my supervisor, and Jeremy, Jessica, and Brian as subordinates. My style is more fit to a leadership role due to my desire to accomplish bigger and better goals. This desire allows me to look bigger picture which must be done from an upper management perspective in order to keep the company ahead of the curve in all aspects of business to avoid pitfalls. Robert’s natural charisma and persuasiveness would make him great at motivating the rest of the team. This does not mean that Jeremy, Jessica, and Bryan aren’t just as important to the team success. All workers from top to bottom are needed for a business to be successful. I strongly believe in the phrase â€Å"you are only as good as your weakest member†. For this reason, I would make sure that they were given a chance to air their grievances and make suggestions on changes that should be made. I must make sure to allow every team member to have a say in the business processes because this is a weak point of my particular style. Flexibility on my part must be a focal point to ensure that all team members feel heard and feel like they hold value in the company. Conclusion All of the information in the above plan will be closely monitored and periodic meetings will take place to allow time for all employees to voice their grievances or concerns to ensure that full compliance is being achieved. It is very important that regular monitoring is performed to ensure that the company stays on track and will help ensure the long-term success of the company. Realizing each individual’s style as well as their strengths and weaknesses will allow a more personal and individualized  approach to be taken in regards to team dynamics and goal attainment. References University of Phoenix. (2014). DISC Assessments [Multimedia]. Retrieved from University of Phoenix, LDR531 website. DISC Test and DISC Assessment: Explained. (2013). Retrieved from https://www.discinsights.com/whatisdisc#.VBMXGGOEzSg

moralhf Comparing Moral Strength in Huckleberry Finn and On The Rainy River :: comparison compare contrast essays

Moral Strength in Adventures of Huckleberry Finn and On The Rainy River  Ã‚   In both The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, by Mark Twain, and â€Å"On The Rainy River† by Tim O’Brien, the main characters are faced with situations where they must do either what they think is right or what the rest of the world they know thinks they should do.   Huck must choose either to save Jim and help him escape to freedom, and maintain loyalty to his friend, or do as society would dictate and let the runaway slave remain in captivity.   Tim O’Brien must either flee a war he thinks is wrong or obey his country’s call to arms.   While the morals of both Huck Finn and Tim O’Brien are put to the test, only Huck is strong enough to stand up for his beliefs. Together, Huckleberry Finn and a runaway slave named Jim head south along the Mississippi during one summer.   During their adventures, Huck has trouble with his conscience—he knows Jim is a runaway, and that the socially correct thing to do would be to turn him in and get him sent back to his owner.   However, whenever the opportunity to do so arises, Huck finds it impossible to do.   Near the end of the book, when Huck is out meandering and Jim is still on the raft in the river, Jim is captured by an old man as a runaway and gets sold for $40.   It is here, at this point, that Huck has his largest moral dilemma.   Should he let Jim remain captured, as he is legally the property of Miss Watson, or should he rescue the true friend who has stayed steadfastly and unwaveringly by his side?   Huck does not want to remain â€Å"wicked,† as he himself calls it, so he writes a letter to Miss Watson informing her that her slave is being held by a Mr. Phelps down sou th of Pikesville.   He cannot, though, bring himself to send the letter.   He winds up ripping the letter to shreds, with the comment, â€Å"All right, then, I’ll go to hell† (p. 207).   He is willing to sacrifice his soul, and do a deed he believes he will be damned for, to save Jim, the runaway slave.   It takes a character of great moral strength to do what he did. Tim O’Brien, on the other hand, has a somewhat different story.

Symbols and Symbolism - A Comparison of Nicknames in A Dolls House and Major Barbara :: comparison compare contrast essays

Symbolism of Nicknames in A Doll's House and Major Barbara    The use of nicknames in literature is an important tool in which the author can provide insight into the attitudes of the characters toward each other and to provide illumination as to the nature of specific characters. Two such pieces of literature in which these attitudes and illumination can be evidenced are A Doll's House by Henrik Ibsen and Major Barbara by Bernard Shaw. The attitudes of the characters in A Doll's House, more specifically Torvald Helmer and the maid Anne-Marie, toward Nora can be evidenced with the names by which she is referred. In Major Barbara, the names by which the characters call each other not only show their personal attitudes toward each other, but also provide classical reference by which we can better understand the characters.    In A Doll's House, Torvald Helmer's attitude toward his wife Nora can be seen in the ways in which he refers to her. In line 11 of the first act, we come across the first instance of Torvald's bird references to Nora with "Is that my little lark twittering out there?" This reference is the first of many in which Torvald refers to Nora as a lark. Often this referencing is preceded by diminutive terms such as "little" and "sweet, little." Torvald also refers to Nora as a squirrel, a spendthrift, a songbird, and a goose, these terms also preceded with a diminutive. The significance of this nicknaming is to show Torvald's attitude toward Nora. Torvald sees Nora as small, sweet, unobtrusive and therefore easily controlled. This position is one he would like Nora to continue to occupy. In line 257, Torvald refers to Nora as "my richest treasure" denoting his attitude toward her as his possession.    Nora's nurse, and the nurse of her children as well, Anne-Marie, shows her attitude of Nora as well. In the beginning of the second act, we find Nora in a conversation with Anne-Marie in which Anne-Marie refers to Nora as "Miss Nora," "little Nora," and "poor little Nora." It seems to everyone that Nora not only acts as a child, but is seen as one as well. It is here we realize it is not only the man being overbearing and keeping the woman in what he sees as her rightful position, but the maid also contributes to the indoctrination.

Cognitive Development

Abstract This report looks at cognitive development of an adolescent through the use of Piaget’s pendulum task, and aims to assess the level of cognitive development with comparison to literature in the field and furthermore provide suggestions of how a teacher could enhance the subjects learning in one key learning area. Pieget’s studies have been based around cognitive development. The development has 4 major stages. Each stage enables the person to develop ways of knowing. This report concentrates on the fourth stage, the formal operational stage. Critics of Piaget’s work are looked at and ideas such as learning, mentors and structures are looked at. It was found that while the results of previous Piaget’s tests were replicated, the observations suggest that the results can not be assessed through Piaget’s work alone. Furthermore, to enhance the learning of the subject it was found that the NSW geography curriculum has the potential with appropriate teacher stimulus to adequately provide for the student, although literacy could be focused upon. Introduction This report looks at cognitive development through the use of Piaget’s pendulum task. The pendulum task asks a person to figure out the variable that makes the pendulum swing faster, that is, increase the frequency. The way in which someone goes about the task is supposed to give an insight into the person’s level of cognitive development. Fundamental to Piaget’s work is that the brain and the environment interact in producing cognitive development, and that this development can be broken up into four major stages (Gleitman, 1995). Berger (1998) in review of Pieget (1952, 1970) states that these stages are age related, in that children generally reach each stage within a particular age range in sequence. As a child enters into each stage they develop new ways of knowing and understanding (new ways of gathering intelligence) as defined by the boundaries of that stage. In respect to the age of the student that undertook the pendulum task it is the fourth stage (the last stage) of Piaget’s cognitive development (Inhelder, B. Piaget, J 1958) that will be looked at. Berger (1998) summarises the fourth stage, the ‘formal operational stage’, as developing from 11-12 years old through to adulthood and is ‘characterised by hypothetical, logical, and abstract thought’ (Berger, 1998, p. 1). Piaget’s studies by focusing on mental processors and structures of thought has led to a large body of work which has provided insight into the way that we understand certain aspects of human behaviour, for ‘we now have a greater appreciation of the capacities and limitations of the types of thinking that are possible at various ages’ (Berger, 1998, p. 41) . As such this has greatly influenced educators in seeking â€Å"explanations for the difficulties encountered by the students in learning and as a basis for the design of more effective instruction’ (Adey, Shayer, 1993, p. 1). For example, a major research topic was whether or not the development of cognition could be accelerated. Adey and Shayer, (1993) found that cognitive development could be accelerated and that the effects could be long term (Adey and Shayer, 1993, pp. 26-27). Furthermore, Adey and Shayer (1993) cite work by Hallam, (1967) and Jurd (1973) who found the notion of concrete (the third stage) and formal operations can be applied to history, and that Fusco (1983) found that it could be fully applied in the context of English comprehension and social studies (Adey, Shayer, 1993, pp. 26-27). Thus, while Piaget’s studies on cognitive development have made a major contribution to knowledge in the field, his work has also led to a large body of criticism. Berger (1998, p. 45) suggests that many people think Piaget ‘underestimated the importance of external motivation and instruction†¦the role of society and home in fostering cognitive development (Berger, 1998, p. 45). Whereas socio-cultural theory ‘seeks to explain the growth of individual knowledge and competencies in terms of guidance, support, and structure provided by the broader cultural context’ (Berger, 1998, p. 6). For instance, Vygotsky, (1978) (cited in Bergman, 1998) thought that the development of cognitive competencies was from ‘the interaction between novices and more skilled members of the society, acting as tutors or mentors, in a process called an (Berger, 1998, p. 47) â€Å"apprenticeship in thinking† (Rogoff, 1990 cited in Berger, 1998). In addition, Flavell (1 985 cited in Gleitman, 1995, p. 521) suggests that evidence shows a child’s mental growth is more a sequence rather then proceeding in simple stages. Thus, this report through the use of the pendulum task will aim to: †¢ identify one students level of cognitive development who is 11-14 years old †¢ to compare and contrast the results with existing theory and research †¢ suggest how a teacher can best meet this child’s developmental needs in one key learning area. Method Participant There was only one person studied for the purpose of this report. The subject was male. He was 12 years and 4 months old. The subject was born in China in moved to Australia when he was 2. The subject speaks a Chinese language at home and English would be classed as the subjects second language. The subject is in year 7 at school and attends a school in the Sydney metropolitan area. He is not from a disadvantaged background. The subject was nervous before the task but settled down reasonably quickly. Procedure The study was carried out in the subject’s parent’s home. Informed consent was asked from the mother of the subject, a consent form was signed. At this stage confidentiality was ensured to both the mother and the subject and the reasons for the research were explained. A pendulum was made out of varying lengths of string and different weights. A frame supported the pendulum. There were 3 different sizes and lengths of weights and strings. The height and the force at which the pendulum could be released could also be varied by the subject. A pen, paper and stop-watch was provided to the subject. A video camera was placed a few meters away from the pendulum to record the procedure. The subject was asked to use the pendulum to find out what makes it swing faster, that is swing more times in a shorter space of time. The subject was told that they could use the different lengths of string or different weights and could use the pen, paper and watch. The subject then proceeds to go on with the experiment until they are happy with their results. A transcript of the recording is in appendix A Results To assess the subjects level of cognitive development the subjects actions were observed and analysised to see if they correspond with any of Piaget’s stages of development. Perhaps the most fundamental aspect of the analysis was that the subject already knew the answer to the problem, for example: Researcher: â€Å"Your job is to figure out what makes it swing faster† Subject: â€Å"The length of the string† Researcher: â€Å"How do you know that? † Subject: â€Å"I don’t really know, don’t know† Researcher: â€Å"Do you want to test it anyway† Subject: â€Å"Yes† Thus, the subject started with the longest string, heaviest weight and recorded the findings on a piece of paper. Then proceeded to use the same weight but the middle length string and then the shortest string, recording the results and time each swing (see table below). Longest 0. 86 Middle 0. 54 Shortest 0. 16 The subject was asked if he wanted to try different weights and the subject said â€Å"no, because it is the same, it is the same with any weight†. The subject was asked if he had learnt that at school and he was not sure. From analysis of these results it can be seen that the subject had some prior knowledge. Due to this he used logically experimentation through the use of isolating the variable to the length of string to determine whether he was right or not. The subject did not want to check the other variable of weight or height as he was sure it was length of string. As such hypothetical reasoning was also shown in the subject’s assurance that it was the string and not the weights that affected the frequency of the string. Discussion and Conclusion The aim of this report was to determine the level of cognitive development of a child between the ages of 11 and 14 years using Piaget’s pendulum task and then suggest how a teacher can best meet this child’s developmental needs in one key learning area. It was found that the subject displayed signs of hypothetical and logical thinking, both are attributes of a person of his age and at the fourth stage of cognitive development, the ‘formal operations stage’. Thus, the results of Inhelder and Piaget’s (1958) studies and later studies were replicated. In relation to whether the development was in sequence as Flavell (1985 cited in Gleitman, 1995, p. 521) suggests, the fact that there was prior knowledge could cast doubt on the stages theory as it would suggest that performance in these tasks are made up of more then the ability to logically reason. Furthermore, the experiment being greatly influenced by the fact that the subject already thought he new the answer to the problem when the task was initiated opens up ideas on accelerated cognitive development and the debate between Piaget and his theories and the social and instructional theorists. For example, Siegler, Liebert and Liebert (1973) found that concrete operational attributes could be taught to younger adolescences. Thus, the subject being of boarder-line age could have had his cognitive development accelerated during primary school either intentionally or unintentionally, this would be unknown. This raises the question of whether the curriculum today has been developed with these issues in mind. As such, further studies with the same task with a larger sample could answer these issues. In addition, the subject’s sister questioned whether it was all the time spent on the computer, internet or watching the ABC that the subject gained the prior knowledge, sense of logic and hypothetical reasoning. Perkins, Jay and Tishman (1983) cited in Adey (1997) put it down to psychological disposition, the tendency to behave in a certain way, that what matters is a person tendency invest themselves energetically in areas that cause development, that question the person. This psychological disposition could be inherited or could be developed through ways described in Vygotsky theories. That is through mentors, guidance and structure. In today’s technologically advanced society Vygotsky’s (1978) (cited in Bergman, 1998) theories may include the television and internet as providing instruction and guidance and basic learning. As Adey (2002) puts it ‘simple learning is relatively independent of maturation. Learning has no sense of direction’ (Adey, 2002, p. 19). Thus, it could be seen that the level of cognitive development obtained could be said to have been obtained through a process of development as described by Piaget in combination with a social process as described by Vygotsky (1978) and a simple learning process as described by Adey (2002). In suggesting how a teacher could best meet the subject’s educational needs in one key learning area, geography, the analysis of the subject was examined in reference to current junior geography curriculum. The NSW junior geography curriculum contains specified geography skills, tools and values that enable the teacher to integrate a range of teaching strategies that would enhance all areas of cognitive development, whether it be restrained to areas focused on by Piaget (1952, 1970) that Berger (1997) discusses or a broader range of areas as discussed by Vygotsky. As such, in suggesting that the subject is well catered for in these areas, the one area in which the subject may need help is literacy, in voicing his opinions. The NSW geography curriculum does specify an oral component, it is just that this could be emphasised. In addition, in relation to the study it has been found that acceleration programs in science have contributed to gains that are long lasting in English tests (Adey, Shayer, 1993). Consequently, continued tasks to develop the formal operations stage such as orally describing variable orientated tasks may have long lasting improvements. References Adey, P. Robertson, A & Venville, G. (2002). Effects of a cognitive acceleration program on Year 1 pupils. British Journal of Educational Psychology. 72, pp. 1-25. Adey, P. (1997). It All Depends on the context, Doesn’t It? Searching for General Educable Dragons. Studies in Science Education. (29), pp. 45-92. Adey, P. Shayer, M. (1993). An Exploration of Long-Term Far-Transfer Effects Following an Extended Intervention Program in High School Science Curriculum. Cognition and Instruction. 11(1), pp. 1-29. Berger, K. S. (1998). The Developing Person Through the Life Span. New York, NY: Worth Publishers. Gleitman, H. (1995). Psychology. 4th ed. New York, London: W. W. Norton & Company. Hallam, R. N. (1967). Logical thinking in history. Educational Review, 119, pp. 182-202. Inhelder , B. & Piaget, J. (1958). The growth of logical thinking from childhood to adolenscence: An essay on the construction of formal operational structures. New York: Basic books. Siegler, R. Liebert, D. & Liebert, R (1973). Inhelder and Piaget’s Pendulum Problem: Teaching Preadolescents to Act as Scientists. Developmental Pschology. 9(1), pp. 97-101. Appendix Transcript of interview between researcher and subject. Researcher: What we are going to do is called a pendulum task. There is no right or wrong answer, what ever you do is Ok because it is just research. Subject: Ok Researcher: You can use the pen, paper and watch if you like. Subject: Ok Researcher: Do you know what a pendulum is? Subject: Yes! Researcher: So what we are trying to do is find out what makes it swing faster, that is make it swing more times more quickly. Subject: Ok. Researcher: Ok so there are a few things that it could be, it could be the weight, the length of the string, the height you drop it from or how hard you push it. Your job is to figure out what makes it swing faster. Subject: The length of the string. Researcher: Ok, so take this. (handing subject paper, pen and watch). You said that it was the length of the string that made it go faster, why did you say that? Subject: I don’t know, don’t know. Researcher: Do you want to test it anyway? Subject: Yes. Researcher: What do you want to start with? Subject: Longer string and heavy weight. Researcher: ok, so this is your longest string and heaviest weight. Subject: (drops the weight and times the swing and records results). Researcher: Do you want another look? Subject: No, its Ok. Researcher: Which one do you want use now? Subject: Same weight on a smaller string. Researcher: The medium string or the smallest string? Subject: the medium string. (Subject, performs task and records results). Researcher: Which one do you now want to try? Subject: The shortest string. Subject performs task again and records result) The shortest one is the quickest! Researcher: Do you want to try different weights to see if they do anything? Subject: No. Researcher: So you think it is just the length that affects it? Subject: Yes. Researcher: How come you don’t want to try different weights? Subject: because it is the same, the same with any weight. Researcher: did you learn that at school? Subject: I don’t know. Researcher: Ok, well i t was the string that affected it, your too smart, thanks very much for your help. Cognitive Development Abstract This report looks at cognitive development of an adolescent through the use of Piaget’s pendulum task, and aims to assess the level of cognitive development with comparison to literature in the field and furthermore provide suggestions of how a teacher could enhance the subjects learning in one key learning area. Pieget’s studies have been based around cognitive development. The development has 4 major stages. Each stage enables the person to develop ways of knowing. This report concentrates on the fourth stage, the formal operational stage. Critics of Piaget’s work are looked at and ideas such as learning, mentors and structures are looked at. It was found that while the results of previous Piaget’s tests were replicated, the observations suggest that the results can not be assessed through Piaget’s work alone. Furthermore, to enhance the learning of the subject it was found that the NSW geography curriculum has the potential with appropriate teacher stimulus to adequately provide for the student, although literacy could be focused upon. Introduction This report looks at cognitive development through the use of Piaget’s pendulum task. The pendulum task asks a person to figure out the variable that makes the pendulum swing faster, that is, increase the frequency. The way in which someone goes about the task is supposed to give an insight into the person’s level of cognitive development. Fundamental to Piaget’s work is that the brain and the environment interact in producing cognitive development, and that this development can be broken up into four major stages (Gleitman, 1995). Berger (1998) in review of Pieget (1952, 1970) states that these stages are age related, in that children generally reach each stage within a particular age range in sequence. As a child enters into each stage they develop new ways of knowing and understanding (new ways of gathering intelligence) as defined by the boundaries of that stage. In respect to the age of the student that undertook the pendulum task it is the fourth stage (the last stage) of Piaget’s cognitive development (Inhelder, B. Piaget, J 1958) that will be looked at. Berger (1998) summarises the fourth stage, the ‘formal operational stage’, as developing from 11-12 years old through to adulthood and is ‘characterised by hypothetical, logical, and abstract thought’ (Berger, 1998, p. 1). Piaget’s studies by focusing on mental processors and structures of thought has led to a large body of work which has provided insight into the way that we understand certain aspects of human behaviour, for ‘we now have a greater appreciation of the capacities and limitations of the types of thinking that are possible at various ages’ (Berger, 1998, p. 41) . As such this has greatly influenced educators in seeking â€Å"explanations for the difficulties encountered by the students in learning and as a basis for the design of more effective instruction’ (Adey, Shayer, 1993, p. 1). For example, a major research topic was whether or not the development of cognition could be accelerated. Adey and Shayer, (1993) found that cognitive development could be accelerated and that the effects could be long term (Adey and Shayer, 1993, pp. 26-27). Furthermore, Adey and Shayer (1993) cite work by Hallam, (1967) and Jurd (1973) who found the notion of concrete (the third stage) and formal operations can be applied to history, and that Fusco (1983) found that it could be fully applied in the context of English comprehension and social studies (Adey, Shayer, 1993, pp. 26-27). Thus, while Piaget’s studies on cognitive development have made a major contribution to knowledge in the field, his work has also led to a large body of criticism. Berger (1998, p. 45) suggests that many people think Piaget ‘underestimated the importance of external motivation and instruction†¦the role of society and home in fostering cognitive development (Berger, 1998, p. 45). Whereas socio-cultural theory ‘seeks to explain the growth of individual knowledge and competencies in terms of guidance, support, and structure provided by the broader cultural context’ (Berger, 1998, p. 6). For instance, Vygotsky, (1978) (cited in Bergman, 1998) thought that the development of cognitive competencies was from ‘the interaction between novices and more skilled members of the society, acting as tutors or mentors, in a process called an (Berger, 1998, p. 47) â€Å"apprenticeship in thinking† (Rogoff, 1990 cited in Berger, 1998). In addition, Flavell (1 985 cited in Gleitman, 1995, p. 521) suggests that evidence shows a child’s mental growth is more a sequence rather then proceeding in simple stages. Thus, this report through the use of the pendulum task will aim to: †¢ identify one students level of cognitive development who is 11-14 years old †¢ to compare and contrast the results with existing theory and research †¢ suggest how a teacher can best meet this child’s developmental needs in one key learning area. Method Participant There was only one person studied for the purpose of this report. The subject was male. He was 12 years and 4 months old. The subject was born in China in moved to Australia when he was 2. The subject speaks a Chinese language at home and English would be classed as the subjects second language. The subject is in year 7 at school and attends a school in the Sydney metropolitan area. He is not from a disadvantaged background. The subject was nervous before the task but settled down reasonably quickly. Procedure The study was carried out in the subject’s parent’s home. Informed consent was asked from the mother of the subject, a consent form was signed. At this stage confidentiality was ensured to both the mother and the subject and the reasons for the research were explained. A pendulum was made out of varying lengths of string and different weights. A frame supported the pendulum. There were 3 different sizes and lengths of weights and strings. The height and the force at which the pendulum could be released could also be varied by the subject. A pen, paper and stop-watch was provided to the subject. A video camera was placed a few meters away from the pendulum to record the procedure. The subject was asked to use the pendulum to find out what makes it swing faster, that is swing more times in a shorter space of time. The subject was told that they could use the different lengths of string or different weights and could use the pen, paper and watch. The subject then proceeds to go on with the experiment until they are happy with their results. A transcript of the recording is in appendix A Results To assess the subjects level of cognitive development the subjects actions were observed and analysised to see if they correspond with any of Piaget’s stages of development. Perhaps the most fundamental aspect of the analysis was that the subject already knew the answer to the problem, for example: Researcher: â€Å"Your job is to figure out what makes it swing faster† Subject: â€Å"The length of the string† Researcher: â€Å"How do you know that? † Subject: â€Å"I don’t really know, don’t know† Researcher: â€Å"Do you want to test it anyway† Subject: â€Å"Yes† Thus, the subject started with the longest string, heaviest weight and recorded the findings on a piece of paper. Then proceeded to use the same weight but the middle length string and then the shortest string, recording the results and time each swing (see table below). Longest 0. 86 Middle 0. 54 Shortest 0. 16 The subject was asked if he wanted to try different weights and the subject said â€Å"no, because it is the same, it is the same with any weight†. The subject was asked if he had learnt that at school and he was not sure. From analysis of these results it can be seen that the subject had some prior knowledge. Due to this he used logically experimentation through the use of isolating the variable to the length of string to determine whether he was right or not. The subject did not want to check the other variable of weight or height as he was sure it was length of string. As such hypothetical reasoning was also shown in the subject’s assurance that it was the string and not the weights that affected the frequency of the string. Discussion and Conclusion The aim of this report was to determine the level of cognitive development of a child between the ages of 11 and 14 years using Piaget’s pendulum task and then suggest how a teacher can best meet this child’s developmental needs in one key learning area. It was found that the subject displayed signs of hypothetical and logical thinking, both are attributes of a person of his age and at the fourth stage of cognitive development, the ‘formal operations stage’. Thus, the results of Inhelder and Piaget’s (1958) studies and later studies were replicated. In relation to whether the development was in sequence as Flavell (1985 cited in Gleitman, 1995, p. 521) suggests, the fact that there was prior knowledge could cast doubt on the stages theory as it would suggest that performance in these tasks are made up of more then the ability to logically reason. Furthermore, the experiment being greatly influenced by the fact that the subject already thought he new the answer to the problem when the task was initiated opens up ideas on accelerated cognitive development and the debate between Piaget and his theories and the social and instructional theorists. For example, Siegler, Liebert and Liebert (1973) found that concrete operational attributes could be taught to younger adolescences. Thus, the subject being of boarder-line age could have had his cognitive development accelerated during primary school either intentionally or unintentionally, this would be unknown. This raises the question of whether the curriculum today has been developed with these issues in mind. As such, further studies with the same task with a larger sample could answer these issues. In addition, the subject’s sister questioned whether it was all the time spent on the computer, internet or watching the ABC that the subject gained the prior knowledge, sense of logic and hypothetical reasoning. Perkins, Jay and Tishman (1983) cited in Adey (1997) put it down to psychological disposition, the tendency to behave in a certain way, that what matters is a person tendency invest themselves energetically in areas that cause development, that question the person. This psychological disposition could be inherited or could be developed through ways described in Vygotsky theories. That is through mentors, guidance and structure. In today’s technologically advanced society Vygotsky’s (1978) (cited in Bergman, 1998) theories may include the television and internet as providing instruction and guidance and basic learning. As Adey (2002) puts it ‘simple learning is relatively independent of maturation. Learning has no sense of direction’ (Adey, 2002, p. 19). Thus, it could be seen that the level of cognitive development obtained could be said to have been obtained through a process of development as described by Piaget in combination with a social process as described by Vygotsky (1978) and a simple learning process as described by Adey (2002). In suggesting how a teacher could best meet the subject’s educational needs in one key learning area, geography, the analysis of the subject was examined in reference to current junior geography curriculum. The NSW junior geography curriculum contains specified geography skills, tools and values that enable the teacher to integrate a range of teaching strategies that would enhance all areas of cognitive development, whether it be restrained to areas focused on by Piaget (1952, 1970) that Berger (1997) discusses or a broader range of areas as discussed by Vygotsky. As such, in suggesting that the subject is well catered for in these areas, the one area in which the subject may need help is literacy, in voicing his opinions. The NSW geography curriculum does specify an oral component, it is just that this could be emphasised. In addition, in relation to the study it has been found that acceleration programs in science have contributed to gains that are long lasting in English tests (Adey, Shayer, 1993). Consequently, continued tasks to develop the formal operations stage such as orally describing variable orientated tasks may have long lasting improvements. References Adey, P. Robertson, A & Venville, G. (2002). Effects of a cognitive acceleration program on Year 1 pupils. British Journal of Educational Psychology. 72, pp. 1-25. Adey, P. (1997). It All Depends on the context, Doesn’t It? Searching for General Educable Dragons. Studies in Science Education. (29), pp. 45-92. Adey, P. Shayer, M. (1993). An Exploration of Long-Term Far-Transfer Effects Following an Extended Intervention Program in High School Science Curriculum. Cognition and Instruction. 11(1), pp. 1-29. Berger, K. S. (1998). The Developing Person Through the Life Span. New York, NY: Worth Publishers. Gleitman, H. (1995). Psychology. 4th ed. New York, London: W. W. Norton & Company. Hallam, R. N. (1967). Logical thinking in history. Educational Review, 119, pp. 182-202. Inhelder , B. & Piaget, J. (1958). The growth of logical thinking from childhood to adolenscence: An essay on the construction of formal operational structures. New York: Basic books. Siegler, R. Liebert, D. & Liebert, R (1973). Inhelder and Piaget’s Pendulum Problem: Teaching Preadolescents to Act as Scientists. Developmental Pschology. 9(1), pp. 97-101. Appendix Transcript of interview between researcher and subject. Researcher: What we are going to do is called a pendulum task. There is no right or wrong answer, what ever you do is Ok because it is just research. Subject: Ok Researcher: You can use the pen, paper and watch if you like. Subject: Ok Researcher: Do you know what a pendulum is? Subject: Yes! Researcher: So what we are trying to do is find out what makes it swing faster, that is make it swing more times more quickly. Subject: Ok. Researcher: Ok so there are a few things that it could be, it could be the weight, the length of the string, the height you drop it from or how hard you push it. Your job is to figure out what makes it swing faster. Subject: The length of the string. Researcher: Ok, so take this. (handing subject paper, pen and watch). You said that it was the length of the string that made it go faster, why did you say that? Subject: I don’t know, don’t know. Researcher: Do you want to test it anyway? Subject: Yes. Researcher: What do you want to start with? Subject: Longer string and heavy weight. Researcher: ok, so this is your longest string and heaviest weight. Subject: (drops the weight and times the swing and records results). Researcher: Do you want another look? Subject: No, its Ok. Researcher: Which one do you want use now? Subject: Same weight on a smaller string. Researcher: The medium string or the smallest string? Subject: the medium string. (Subject, performs task and records results). Researcher: Which one do you now want to try? Subject: The shortest string. Subject performs task again and records result) The shortest one is the quickest! Researcher: Do you want to try different weights to see if they do anything? Subject: No. Researcher: So you think it is just the length that affects it? Subject: Yes. Researcher: How come you don’t want to try different weights? Subject: because it is the same, the same with any weight. Researcher: did you learn that at school? Subject: I don’t know. Researcher: Ok, well i t was the string that affected it, your too smart, thanks very much for your help.