The Effects of Horror Movies on Children Essay

The implicit, and often explicit, intention of horror movies is to scare people. The fright engendered by horror movies can have residual psychological effects for years. Two studies, â€Å"Tales from the Screen: Enduring Fright Reactions to Scary Media† and another, funded by the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH), both concluded that exposure horror movies may have long-lasting adverse effects on children. 1. Anxiety The NIMH study reveals direct evidence that in children 5 and younger, especially toddlers, scary movies can produce acute cases of anxiety. The symptoms of this anxiety include sleeping disorders, aggressiveness and self-endangerment. Avoidance Both studies indicated that children exposed to horror films avoided real life situations shown in a fictional manner on screen. The subjects exhibited dread of facing those situations. Some children not only avoided real life situations, but also come to avoid seeing other movies or TV shows dealing with the same situations that instilled the original fear. Obsession A common effect among older children and even tweens and pre-teens, upon viewing horror movies is to obsessively talk about the stimulus that produces the fear. The subject of the obsessive talk may be expressed in either a morbid fascination or a a need to alienate themselves from what they have seen through discourse. Nightmares Probably the most common effect that horror movies have on children is the production of nightmares. Many children as well as adults can be expected to have a nightmare after seeing a horror film, especially one that may be troublesome emotional or features particularly repulsive and upsetting gore. Gore The stimuli found to produce an adverse effect in children most often in  horror films was the representation of blood or physical injury. Almost two-third of respondents report being affected emotionally more by the presence of blood and injury over stimuli such as disturbing images, environmental disasters, scary animals, monsters and aliens. Most Common Symptoms Many symptoms are associated with a reaction to viewing horror films. Among the most common symptoms include crying or screaming, trembling or shaking, upset stomach, clinginess, paralysis, sweating, fever, chills and loss of appetite. The Short-Term Effects of Scary Movies on Children By Brooke Williams, How Contributor Because many children have trouble distinguishing fantasy from reality, parents should not allow their youngsters to watch scary movies or television shows, according to Science Daily, an online science news resource. Although young children aren’t able to understand scary movies, that doesn’t mean they won’t have short-term effects because of the violent scenes. 1. Nightmares It’s typical for children to get nightmares from time to time, but watching scary movies can inspire bad dreams, according to Kids Health. Bad dreams can reflect the plot of a scary dream, and the typical horror movie characters, such as monsters, ghosts and aliens, can play roles in a little one’s dreams. In addition to getting nightmares, scary movies may cause children to have trouble getting to sleep. 2. Anxious Feelings Children who watch horror movies have a tendency to feel anxious and fearful, according to the University of Michigan Health Services. Because many children younger than 8 have a hard time understanding the difference between what is real and what is fake, scary scenes from movies seem realistic. Being nervous or paranoid that a character or situation in the movie can become reality is common after viewing a horror movie. Aggressive Behavior Young children who watch high-action, violent or scary movies are likely to act more aggressively than normal shortly after seeing the film, according to Media Awareness Network, a media education resource. Children imitate characters in violent movies by physically provoking their peers, using negative words and being more active. Because some children may find violent movie characters interesting and â€Å"cool,† imitating these characters may be a short-term effect of watching a scary movie. Intensified Fears It’s common for many children to be scared of the dark, loud noises and creepy-crawly bugs. While these fears typically dissipate with age, they tend to linger or intensify when children watch scary and violent movies. For example, watching a movie about ghosts may make a little one more scared of open closet doors in a dark bedroom. Fears are real to little ones, and if a child does watch a scary movie, it’s important for parents to talk to him about how scary monsters and other characters aren’t real. Remind him multiple times to soothe his fears. Reference http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2006/10/061031113446.htm Effect of horror movies on student aggressive behavior

The Silver Linings Playbook Chapter 45

Break Free of a Nimbostratus A week after my cast has been removed, I stand alone on the footbridge in Knight's Park, leaning my weight on the railing, gazing down at a pond I could walk around in less than five minutes. The water underneath me has a thin layer of ice on top, and I think about dropping rocks through it, but I do not know why, especially since I have no rocks. Even still, I want to drop rocks through the ice so badly, to puncture it, proving that it is weak and temporary, to see the black water below rise up and out of the hole I alone will have created. I think about the hidden fish – mostly those big goldfish people stock the pond with so old men will have something to feed in spring and little boys will have something to catch in the summer – fish now burrowed in the mud at the bottom of the pond. Or are these fish burrowing just yet? Will they wait until the pond freezes completely? Here's a thought: I'm like Holden Caulfield thinking about ducks, only I'm thirty-five years old and Holden was a teenager. Maybe the accident knocked my brain back into teenager mode? Part of me wants to climb up onto the railing and jump off the bridge, which is only ten yards long, only three feet above the pond; part of me wants to break through the ice with my feet, to plunge down, down, down into the mud, where I can sleep for months and forget about all I now remember and know. Part of me wishes I never regained my memory, that I still had that false hope to cling to – that I still had at least the idea of Nikki to keep me moving forward. When I finally look up from the ice and toward the soccer fields, I see that Tiffany has accepted my invitation to meet, just like Cliff said she would. She is only two inches tall in the distance, wearing a yellow ski cap and a white coat that covers most of her thighs, making her look like a wingless angel growing and growing – and I watch her pass the swing sets and the large pavilion with picnic tables inside. I watch her walk along the water's edge until she finally reaches her usual height, which is five feet and a few inches tall. When she steps onto the footbridge, I immediately look down at the thin layer of ice again. Tiffany walks over to me and stands so her arm is almost touching mine, but not quite. Using my peripheral vision, I see that she too is now looking down at the thin layer of ice, and I wonder if she also wishes she could drop some rocks. We stand like this for what seems like an hour, neither of us saying anything. My face gets very cold, until I can no longer feel my nose or ears. Finally, without looking at Tiffany, I say, â€Å"Why didn't you come to my birthday party?† which is a stupid question to pose at this time, I realize, but I can't think of anything else to say, especially since I haven't seen Tiffany for many weeks – not since I screamed at her on Christmas Day. â€Å"My mom said she invited you. So why didn't you come?† After a long pause, Tiffany says, â€Å"Well, like I said in my letter, your brother threatened to kill me if I made contact with you. Also, Ronnie came to my house the day before your party and forbade me to go. He said they never should have introduced us in the first place.† I had already talked to Jake about his threat, but I have a hard time imagining Ronnie saying such a thing to Tiffany. And yet I know Tiffany is telling the truth. She seems really hurt and vulnerable right now, especially because she is sort of chewing on her bottom lip as if it were a piece of gum. Surely Ronnie said these words against Veronica's wishes. His wife would never let him say something so potentially ego-damaging to Tiffany, and the thought of Ronnie keeping Tiffany from attending my party makes me a little proud of my best friend, especially since he went against his wife's wishes to protect me. â€Å"Bros B4 Hos† is what Danny said to me every time I would lament Nikki, back when we were both in the bad place – before he had that second operation. In art therapy class, Danny even made me a little poster with the words written in stylish gold letters, which I hung on the wall space between my bed and my roommate Jackie's – back in the bad place – but one of the evil nurses took Danny's artwork down when I was not in the room, a fact Jackie confirmed by blinking and banging his head against his shoulder. Even though I realize the phrase is sort of sexist (because men should not refer to women as hos), saying â€Å"Bros B4 Hos† in my mind now sort of makes me smile, especially since Ronnie is my best bro in New Jersey, now that Jake and Danny live in PA. â€Å"I'm sorry, Pat. Is that what you want to hear? Well, I'll say it again, I'm really, really fucking sorry.† Even though Tiffany uses the f-word, her voice sort of quivers like Mom's when she says something she truly means, and it makes me think that Tiffany might actually start crying right here on the bridge. â€Å"I'm a screwed-up person who no longer knows how to communicate with the people I love. But I meant everything I told you in my letter. If I were your Nikki, I would have come back to you on Christmas Day, but I'm not Nikki. I know. And I'm sorry.† I don't know what to say in response, so we stand there for many minutes, saying nothing. Suddenly – for some crazy reason – I want to tell Tiffany the ending of the movie, the one that was my old life. I figure she should know the ending, especially since she had a starring role. And then the words are spilling out of me. â€Å"I decided to confront Nikki, just to let her know I remember what happened between us but do not hold any grudges. My brother drove me to my old house in Maryland, and it turns out that Nikki is still living there, which I thought was sort of strange, especially since she has a new me – this guy Phillip who works with Nikki as a fellow English teacher and always used to call me an illiterate buffoon because I never used to read literary books,† I say, leaving out the part about my strangling and punching naked Phillip when I caught him in the shower with Nikki, â€Å"and if I were Phillip, I probably would not want to live in my wife's ex-husband's house, because that is just sort of weird, right?† Tiffany doesn't say anything when I pause, so I just keep on talking. â€Å"When we drove down my old street, it was snowing, which is a little more rare in Maryland and therefore a big deal to little kids. There was only maybe a half inch on the ground – a dusting – but enough to scoop up in your hands. I saw Nikki outside with Phillip, and they were playing with two children – by the colors each was dressed in, I figured the one in navy blue was a little boy and the one mostly in peach was an even littler girl. After we rolled by, I told Jake to circle the block and park the car half a block away so we could watch Nikki's new family play in the snow. My old house is on a busy street, so we weren't likely to draw Nikki's attention. Jake did as I asked and then killed the engine but left the windshield wipers on so he could see. I rolled down my window, as I was in the backseat because of my cast, and we watched the family play for a long time – so long that Jake finally started the car back up and turned on the heat becaus e he was too cold. Nikki was wearing the long green-and-white-striped scarf I used to wear to Eagles games, a brown barn coat, and red mittens. Her strawberry blond hair hung freely from under her green hat, so many curls. They were having a snowball fight; Nikki's new family was having a beautiful snowball fight. You could tell the kids loved their father and mother, and the father loved the mother, and the mother loved the father, and the parents loved the children – as they all tossed the snow at each other so lovingly, taking turns chasing each other, laughing and falling into one another's heavily bundled bodies, and †¦Ã¢â‚¬  I pause here because I am having trouble getting the words out of my throat. â€Å"And I squinted hard trying to see Nikki's face, and even from a block away I could tell she was smiling the whole time and was so very happy, and somehow that was enough for me to officially end apart time and roll the credits of my movie without even confronting Nikki, so I just asked Jake to drive me back to New Jersey, which he did, because he is probably the best brother in the entire world. So I guess I just want Nikki to be happy, even if her happy life doesn't include me, because I had my chance and I wasn't a very good husband and Nikki was a great wife, and †¦Ã¢â‚¬  I have to pause again. I swallow several times. â€Å"And I'm just going to remember that scene as the happy ending of my old life's movie. Nikki having a snowball fight with her new family. She looked so happy – and her new husband, and her two children †¦Ã¢â‚¬  I stop talking because no more words will come out. It's as if the cold air has already frozen my tongue and throat – as if the cold is spreading down into my lungs and is freezing my chest from the inside out. Tiffany and I stand on the bridge for a long time. Even though my face is numb, I begin to feel a warmth in my eyes, and suddenly I realize I am sort of crying again. I wipe my eyes and nose with my coat sleeve, and then I am sobbing. Only when I finish crying does Tiffany finally speak, although she doesn't talk about Nikki. â€Å"I got you a birthday present, but it's nothing much. And I didn't wrap it or get you a card or anything, because, well †¦ because I'm your fucked-up friend who does not buy cards or wrap presents. And I know it's more than a month late, but anyway †¦Ã¢â‚¬  She takes off her gloves, undoes a few buttons, and pulls my present from the inside pocket of her coat. I take it from her hands, a collection of ten or so heavily laminated pages – maybe four by eight inches each and held together by a silver bolt in the top left corner. The cover reads: SKYWATCHER'S CLOUD CHART An easy to use, durable identifying chart for all outdoor enthusiasts â€Å"You were always looking up at clouds when we used to run,† Tiffany says, â€Å"so I thought you might like to be able to tell the difference between the shapes.† With excitement, I rotate the cover upward so I can read the first heavily laminated page. After reading all about the four basic cloud shapes – stratus, nimbus, cumulus, and cirrus – after looking at all the beautiful pictures documenting the different variations of the four groups, somehow Tiffany and I end up lying on our backs in the middle of the exact soccer field I used to play on when I was a kid. We look up at the sky, and it's a sheet of winter gray, but Tiffany says maybe if we wait long enough, a shape will break free, and we will be able to identify the single cloud using my new Skywatcher's Cloud Chart. We lie there on the frozen ground for a very long time, waiting, but all we see up in the sky is the solid gray blanket, which my new cloud chart identifies as a nimbostratus – â€Å"a gray cloud mass from which widespread and continuous rain or snow falls.† After a time, Tiffany's head ends up on my chest, and my arm ends up around her shoulders so that I am pulling her body close to mine. We shiver together alone on the field for what seems like hours. When it begins to snow, the flakes fall huge and fast. Almost immediately the field turns white, and this is when Tiffany whispers the strangest thing. She says, â€Å"I need you, Pat Peoples; I need you so fucking bad,† and then she begins to cry hot tears onto my skin as she kisses my neck softly and sniffles. It is a strange thing for her to say, so far removed from a regular woman's â€Å"I love you,† and yet probably more true. It feels good to hold Tiffany close to me, and I remember what my mother said back when I tried to get rid of my friend by asking her to go to the diner with me. Mom said, â€Å"You need friends, Pat. Everybody does.† I also remember that Tiffany lied to me for many weeks; I remember the awful story Ronnie told me about Tiffany's dismissal from work and what she admitted to in her most recent letter; I remember just how bizarre my friendship with Tiffany has been – but then I remember that no one else but Tiffany could really even come close to understanding how I feel after losing Nikki forever. I remember that apart time is finally over, and while Nikki is gone for good, I still have a woman in my arms who has suffered greatly and desperately needs to believe once again that she is beautiful. In my arms is a woman who has given me a Skywatcher's Cloud Chart, a woman who knows all my secrets, a woman who knows just how messed up my mind is, how many pills I'm on, and yet she allows me to hold her anyway. There's something honest about all of this, and I cannot imagine any other woman lying in the middle of a frozen soccer field with me – in the middle of a snowstorm even – im possibly hoping to see a single cloud break free of a nimbostratus. Nikki would not have done this for me, not even on her best day. So I pull Tiffany a little closer, kiss the hard spot between her perfectly plucked eyebrows, and after a deep breath, I say, â€Å"I think I need you too.†

Great expectations Essay

Dickens engages his audience by creating vivid images of people and places. Comment on this with close references to two parts in ‘Great Expectations. ‘ The two sections I will be referring to are chapter 1 and chapter 8. In these chapters Dickens describes two different settings; the church yard and Satis house. He also introduces us to Philip Pirrip known as Pip. Pip’s ambition is to become a blacksmith. Magwich is an escaped convict. Estella is Mrs Havisham’s ward. Mrs Havisham is a rich but heartbroken woman who despises men due to her own marriage breakdown. In the opening chapter, Dickens describes the marshland and the graveyard. The impression I get of the setting is unwelcoming and desolate. He describes the marshland as a damp swamp with unfriendly plants such as stingy nettles. He also describes graveyard as a dark gloomy surrounding with little warmth and hospitality ‘a man soaked in water, covered in mud†¦.. as he seized me by the chin. ‘ Charles Dickens describes the atmosphere as a raw afternoon with the help of the weather. He achieves this with the help of creative weather descriptions throughout the fist chapter ‘†¦ which the wind was rushing†¦.. and that small bundle of shivers growing afraid of it all†¦. ‘ Although the scene is serious, Dickens still manages to bring humour into it. For example: when pip was tilted upside and robbed off a stale piece bread. ‘The man, after looking me for a moment, turned me upside down and emptied my pockets. ‘ I think dickens added humour to dilute the tension and to give us a laugh. He also introduces us to pip and Magwitch, the convict. Pip feels intimidated by the convict, due to the way the convict enrols power over pip as he tilts him down on top of the grave. ‘†¦ so that his eyes looked most powerfully down into mine, and mine looked most helplessly up into his. ‘ We feel pathos for pip as Magwitch verbally threatens pip with no regrets. Magwitch is describe as a fearful man, a man with no hat, soaked in water and smothered in mud. The impression we get from the description of Magwitch is that he wasn’t gentlemen due to no hat. We feel empathy for the convict as we get a strong description of what he has been through. ‘A man soaked in water, and smothered in mud, and lamed by stones, and cut by flints, and stung by nettles†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ seized me by the chin. ‘ In chapter 8 Pip, again, feels uneasy when he visits Satis house. It is described as a dark, uninviting resident with old bricks, iron barred windows and a courtyard that is also barred. The atmosphere portrayed to us is that Satis house is an unappealing place to visit. Dickens creates this atmosphere detailed information and through the characters thoughts and feelings. Pip meets Estella and Miss Havisham at Satis house. He is surprised by Miss Havisham’s appearance. She is dressed in an outfit that can only be worn only on one particular day and that was her wedding dress. We learn as we read on, she is dressed in her wedding gown as she believes her husband, who fled on the wedding day, would come back and wed. We assume that pip is having second doubts of the arrangements and is cautious of behaviour. The impression we get of Miss Havisham is she is an aged but rich woman who despises men due to her marriage failure. Nevertheless she puts her misfortunes a side and treats pip kindly. Estella, by contrast, is a young, vibrant girl but has a bad attitude. She treats pip as an inferior with no respect at all. One major example was when she referred to him as ‘boy’. †¦ ‘but do not loiter, boy. ‘ Pip reacted in polite way no matter what she said. We see Estella as a rude and spiteful child. Dickens is successful in creating different settings by giving the readers detailed description of the setting and through the characters thoughts and feelings. Dickens has drawn on his own experiences and this is why he is successful.

Cover Letter Personal Statement Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 1

Cover Letter - Personal Statement Example In addition, I have taken a number of courses that prepare me for a career in the industry. For example, I took a diploma in professional jewelry as well as a bachelor’s degree in business management. In addition, course like hotel management have helped me learn about the relevance of hospitality and other interpersonal traits that are important in the luxury industry. In addition to the educational background, I have adequate working experience to fit into any category in the luxury industry. My working experiences include leadership posts, sales executive in luxury cars as well as advertisement internship. In addition, I speak two languages and I have found this to be a useful trait in an international industry. My education, life cultural interactions and work experience have prepared me to work in almost all sectors of the luxury industry. In addition to my dedication and work ethic, they all ensure that I am a valuable addition to your company I welcome the opportunity to discuss my skill set and the position. If you have any questions or want to schedule an interview, please contact me using this number (Insert Phone number) or this email address (insert email address). I look forward to hearing from

The Tell-Tale Heart and A Rose for Emily, gothic but with a twist Essay - 1

The Tell-Tale Heart and A Rose for Emily, gothic but with a twist - Essay Example Miss Emily Grierson of Faulkner’s tale belonged to a once rich family, but her mansion is now old and decayed through time and neglect (perhaps because she is too poor to spend money on it?). Maybe once there were people who came to visit, but now with Miss Grierson, or Miss Emily as she is referred to in the tale, turning into a recluse, there is nobody who goes inside the house, except for her Negro servant Tobe. We see in the beginning of the story how curious everyone is to see what is inside her house when they enter it at her funeral. Poe adds more mystery to his story by telling it through the crazed person, thereby ensuring that we never find out where exactly he lives, though we do get a feel of the house, and since most of the story happens after night has fallen, we are left with a sense of dark and mysterious surroundings. The violent and macabre occurrences in the stories are accompanied by a sense of a similar kind not only through the personalities of the protagonists, but via the ambiance or settings as well. That is to say not only did the stories hold a sense of mystery because of the complex central characters, but the dark and desolate environment of the houses where they took place also added to the Gothic effect that the writers were trying to create. It will not be remiss to say that the settings mirrored the lead characters of the tales. Miss Emily’s house, like her, was an unchanging symbol in changed times. It had been constructed when the family was rich, so it had an allusion to grandeur, albeit there were no riches to keep it in its pristine condition. So with changing times the neighborhood did not remain noble or â€Å"august† anymore and the area was taken over by garages and cotton gins, however, Miss Emily refused to give her house up; it remained, as Faulkner puts it, â€Å"an eyesore among eyesores.† Murky, dusty and decayed, just like

Evolution Lab Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Evolution Lab - Assignment Example One particular animal, which gained Darwin’s attention, was the finches on the island. It was through studying these finches that Darwin came up with one of the most important terms in evolutionary biology which is one of the driving forces for evolution: natural selection. Natural selection plays into the role that nature selects organisms, which are best fit for the environment. Those that have the traits that give them the best advantage in environmental conditions will survive and proliferate while those who have the inferior traits will not thrive and die out (Darwin, 2010). In this particular simulation, we were looking at what the effects of precipitation on two separate islands and how it would affect the size of the beak on a species of finches. We are able to make this hypothesis due to the fact that we know that the amount of precipitation will influence the different types of flora and seeds, which will grow on the island. This can affect size, hardness, and shape of the seeds and this will have a direct effect upon the size of the beak of the finch that inhabits the island. Our hypothesis was that of non-directionality, meaning that we did not know how precipitation was going to affect beak size in any particular direction, but we knew that the precipitation was going to have an effect on how flora grew on the island, thus this would have an effect on beak size. Materials Since this was an interactive simulation, very few materials were needed in order to complete this lab. A computer with an active Internet connection was necessary in order to use the online simulation software in order to collect the data, due to the fact that this observational data would be impossible to be collected over the thousands of years. Methods The first step of being able to run the experiment was to log onto the site in order to carry out the experiment at http://www.biologylabsonline.com/axia/EvolutionLab/. Next, depending on the experiment, the experimenter has the option to set the variables that they are interested in looking at. For the case of our hypothesis, we are looking at beak size in relation to precipitation. The independent variable is the initial size of the beaks. The experiment calls for modifying the precipitation on the islands in order to see if this has an effect on beak size. On one island, move the precipitation to the extreme of there is no precipitation and then on the other island, move the precipitation to the maximum amount of precipitation the island can have. Set the amount of time to look at over the course of three hundred years and run the experiment. Then look at and analyze the data to see if the data matches the proposed hypothesis. Data Parameter DARWIN WALLACE ------------------------------------------- Initial Beak Size: 12.0 mm 12.0 mm Heritability: 0.7 0.7 Variance: 1.0 1.0 Clutch Size: 10.0 eggs 10.0 eggs Precipitation: 35.0 cm 20.0 cm Population: 200.0 birds 200.0 birds Island Size: 0.5 km 0.5 k m Darwin ------ Wallace ------- Discussion and Results As can be seen from the graph, we have an interaction effect at the start and then both populations diverge from each other as time progresses. On Darwin Island, where the precipitation was observed to be 100.0 cm, there was an increase in beak size as time increased. On Wallace Island, where the precipitation was observed to be 0.0 cm, there was a decrease in beak size as time increased. Based on this result, we can conclude that over the 300-year

Genetic Testing Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Genetic Testing - Research Paper Example Indeed, employers are also inclined to conduct these tests, either clandestinely or overtly, of their employees to ensure they could be able to match workplace environment or would develop diseases amid genetic abnormalities. Indeed, employers regard such individuals that could develop diseases from workplace hazardous substances as ‘hypersensitive’ and usually are reluctant to induct them in organizational hierarchy to save future health care and social costs, avoid absenteeism, litigation and productivity losses. It is worthwhile to mention that workers having ‘thalassemia gene, sickle cell’ and other genetic disorders are among sensitive individuals who could develop diseases if they work in environment that contain chemicals such as ‘lead, benzene, carbon monoxide particles, cyanide’ etc (Andre & Velasquez, 1991) and (Miller, 2007). Indeed, the proponents of Genetic Testing have raised many arguments for this strategy because employers may inform workers why business workplace may be deleterious for their health, which may lead to disabilities in the long-run. Hence, in this way, the workers could make rational decisions for personal health security and shun dangerous workplaces whenever they apply for job as well as could avoid untimely deaths because of chronic illnesses. Second, the tests enable employees to hire healthy and dynamic workers thereby increasing internal efficiency, lowering absenteeism and minimizing recruitment costs from reduction in employee turnover rates per annum. Third, the financial burden on government reduces because of low allocation for health budgets and fewer social security disbursements. Fourth, it has been considered the responsibility of an employer to offer safe and secure working environment to its employees. However, it may not be possible for business owners to offer 100% secure environment

Leadership cause and effect Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Leadership cause and effect - Essay Example Most leaders desire to bring many positive and wholesome trends into the world. These could lead to improvement of our social status and even the business enterprises that they head. The most vital step that they need to take in order to achieve this is being wise and visionary leaders in all aspects of life. For their actions to be effective wherever they go, they need to invest in integrity of actions and thoughts. The leaders need to take a position of mindful awareness and should have proper knowledge on how to respond from awareness instead of pure uniformed reaction. This helps to make their sub-ordinates to feel recognized, highly valued and affirmed (Stephen 2001). Mindfulness provides clarity and calmness in all situations enabling one to avoid panic and blaming others. It allows one to tolerate the discomfort of confrontation enabling discovery of one’s creativity and resourcefulness to be able to approach situations differently from how you would have earlier done. On another aspect, leadership refers to getting someone do what they do not want to do in order to achieve what they want to achieve (Tom,L. 2008).It’s characterized by a leader and a follower whereby the leader entices the follower to do something that he would not otherwise do without leadership. The effect mostly requires the cause. This is because people do things that they would otherwise not do because it is their job, they’re paid for doing it or they are not afraid to do it. Other times they will do it because they want to annoy and disappoint their leaders, mentors or relatives, because others are doing it or if it’s their area of interest. It’s not possible to equate all these to leadership since everyone who is in control of the cause can use it at will. There are many reasons as to why people do things that they might otherwise not do therefore looking at leadership as the sole cause is irrational. In reality,

Product Analysis On a Portable Electronic Scale Essay

Product Analysis On a Portable Electronic Scale - Essay Example Balances are used to measure the mass of a body which means the gravitational pull on the body whereas the scale measure the weight which is the tension of the compression force provided by the scale used. In order to measure the mass of very small objects we cannot use ordinary scales or balances. For this purpose a microbalance is used which can measure mass of the order of million parts of a gram. Portable electronic scales can be used for a variety of purposes. One such purpose is to check your own luggage before entering the airport so that you do not have to pay any extra luggage money at the airport. These scales are also used by traders and businessmen who are always on the move. Diamond traders usually carry their own portable scales in order to ensure that they are not ripped off during transactions. One example of a portable electronic scales the xinyu digital luggage scale. These scales are usually very light weight and easy to use. (Best Micro-controller Projects, 2007) They also show weight correctly in kgs, pounds and other units. They can also be programmed to save the last few readings, work on easily available batteries and can be switched off when not in use. Thus the scales are quite handy and useful. A picture of the scale is shown below – Electronic portable scales measure weight with the help of a strain gauge. The strain gauge is a length sensitive electrical resistance and is used to measure the deflection of the beam once the weight is suspended from it. As the object is suspended the electrical resistance of the gauge changes. (Window, 1992)The resistance of the beam to deflection determines the capacity of the strain gauge and in turn the capacity of the scale. In order to measure smaller objects only a single strain gauge may be required but to measure very heavy objects like trucks rail wagons etc, the results which arrive from different supporting locations are added up electronically in order

Why drugs should remain illegal in America Essay Example for Free

Why drugs should remain illegal in America Essay Why drugs should remain illegal in America Introduction            Over the years, there has been a raging debate on whether drugs should be legalized in the United States or not. There are those who believe that drugs should be made legal and accessible to all Americans and those who argue that they should not be legalized. Proponents of drug realization argue that the current drug laws are harmful to the society and violate the personal freedoms. Moreover, they argue that enforcing drug laws is a wastage of public resources that could be used in more meaningful public projects. Despite these seemingly convincing arguments, I believe that drugs should remain illegal in the United States (David Edward,2013 ).            To begin with, research has established that there is link between drugs and increased crime rates. Many of the crimes that happen in America are related to drug abuse. This means that drug legalization in America will result in increased crime rates in the country. Secondly, drugs should remain illegal in the United States because they have very negative effects on the health of the users. As people continue to abuse drugs, their bodies become over dependent on them resulting in health complications. Other than health, drugs also have a negative effect on the economy and the general quality of life of Americans. Currently, the American health care industry is already overburdened and would be brought to its knees if drugs were legalized (David Edward,2013 ). Although proponents of drug legalization argue that public money spent on enforcing drug would be saved through legalization, this money would be spent on treating drug related matters. The money from drugs w ould not compensate for things like for fetal defects, loss of jobs, industrial accidents, road accidents and high rates of domestic violence. Reference David Simon, Edward Burns. (2013). The Corner: A Year in the Life of an Inner-City Neighborhood.Crown Publishing Group Source document

Effect of Temperatures on Plant Growth

Effect of Temperatures on Plant Growth Chapter 5 IMPLEMENTATION The plant growth module computes the crop growth and development based on daily values of maximum and minimum temperatures, radiation and daily value of soil stress factors. The values are added together to give an estimate of the amount of seasonal growth your plants have achieved. Plant growth prediction model depends on the plant parameters like, Temperature Relative humidity Rainfall Solar radiation. 5.1 Effect of Temperature: Temperature factors that figure into plant growth potentials include the following: Maximum daily temperature Minimum daily temperature Difference between day and night temperature Average daytime temperature Average nighttime temperature Along with these there are other considerations such as: 5.1.1 Microclimates The microclimate of a garden plays a primary role in actual garden temperature. In mountain communities, changes in elevation, air drainage, exposure and thermal heat mass (surrounding rocks) will make gardens significantly warmer or cooler than the temperatures recorded for the are. In mountain communities, it is important to know where the local weather station is located so gardeners can factor in the difference in their specific locations to forecast temperatures more accurately. 5.1.2 Thermal heat mass (surrounding rocks) In many Colorado communities, the surrounding rock formations can form heat sinks creating wonderful gardening spots for local gardeners. Nestled in among the mountains some gardeners have growing seasons several weeks longer than neighbors only a half a mile away. In cooler locations, rock mulch may give some frost protection and increase temperatures for enhanced crop growth. In warmer locations rock mulch can significantly increase summer temperatures and water requirements of landscape plants. 5.1.3 Influence of heat on Crop Growth Temperature affects the growth and productivity of plants, depending on whether the plant is a warm season or cool season crop. Photosynthesis: within limits, rates of photosynthesis and respiration both rise with increasing temperatures. As temperatures reach the upper growing limits for the crop, the rate of food used by respiration may exceed the rate at which food is manufactured by photosynthesis. For tomatoes, growth peaks at 96F. Temperature influence on growth:seeds of cool season crops germinate at 40 to 80.Warm season crop seeds germinate at 50F to 90F.In the spring, cool soil temperatures may prohibit seed germination. Examples of temperature influence on flowering Tomatoes Pollen does not develop if night temperatures are below 55F Blossoms drop if daytime temperatures rise above 95F before 10 am Tomatoes grown in cool climates will have softer fruit with bland flavors. Spinach (a cool season, short day crop) flowers in warm weather with long days. Christmas cacti and poinsettias flower in response to cool temperatures and short days. Examples of temperature influence on crop quality High temperatures increase respiration rates, reducing sugar content of produce. Fruits and vegetables grown in heat will be less sweet. In heat, crop yields reduce while water demand goes up. In hot weather, flowers colors fade and flowers have a shorter life. The Table 5.1 llustrates temperature differences in warm season and cool season Crops Table 6.1 Temperature comparison of cool season and warm season crops Temperature for Cool season: Broccoli, cabbage Warm season: Tomatoes, peppers Germination 40f to 90f,80f optimum 50f to 100f,80f optimum Growth Daytime 65F to 80F preferred 40F minimum Nighttime >32F,tender transplants >mid-20F,established plants Daytime 86F optimum 60F minimum A week below 55F will stunt plant, reducing yields Nighttime >32F Flowering Temperature extremes lead to boiling and buttoning. Nighttime95F by 10 am, blossoms abort Soil Cool Use organic mulch to cool soil Since seeds germinate best in warm soils, use transplants for spring planting, and direct seeding for mid-summer planting(fall harvest) Warm Use black plastic mulch to warm soil, increasing yields and earliness of crop. 5.1.4 Influence of cold temperatures The temperature variation over karnataka for the years 2008,2009,2010.2011 is shown in the figure 6.2. this also shows a clear annual cycle in the temp rise in feb-may and then falls during monsoon and winter. fig 6.2 TEMPERATURE VARIATION OVER KARNATAKA FROM YEAR 2008-2011 5.2 Effect of Relative humidity Relative humidityis the ratio of the partial pressure of water vapor in an air-water mixture to the saturated vapor pressure of water at a prescribed temperature. The relative humidity of air depends not only on temperature but also on the pressure of the system of interest. 5.2.1 Measurement The humidity of an air-water vapour mixture is determined through the use of psychometric charts if both thedry bulb temperature(T) and thewet bulb temperature(Tw) of the mixture are known. These quantities are readily estimated by using a slingpsychometer. There are several empirical correlations that can be used to estimate the saturated vapour pressure of water vapour as a function of temperature. TheAntoine equationis among the least complex of these formulas, having only three parameters (A, B, and C). Other correlations, such as those presented byGoff-GratchandMagnus Tetens approximation, are more complicated but yield better accuracy. The correlation presented byBuckis commonly encountered in the literature and provides a reasonable balance between complexity and accuracy. whereis the dry bulb temperature expressed in degrees Celsius ( °C),is the absolute pressure expressed in hectopascals (hPa), andis the saturated vapour pressure expressed in hectopascals (hPa). Buck has reported that the maximum relative error is less than 0.20% between -20 °C and +50 °C when this particular form of the generalized formula is used to estimate the saturated vapour pressure of water. 5.2.2 Pressure Dependence The relative humidity of an air-water system is dependent not only on the temperature but also on the absolute pressure of the system of interest. This dependence is demonstrated by considering the air-water system shown below. The system is closed (i.e., no matter enters or leaves the system). The relative humidity over Karnatakafor the years 2008,2009,2010.2011 is shown in the figure 6.4 Fig 6.4 RELATIVE HU MIDITY OVER KARNATAKA 2008-2011 5.3 Effect of Rainfall Fig 6.5 RAIN ANOMALY (top panel) Vs COFFEE AND Rice production over Karnataka 5.4 Effect of Solar Radiation Sunlight is a portionof the electromagnetic radiation given off by the Sun, particularly infrared, visible, and ultraviolet light. On Earth, sunlight is filtered through the Earths atmosphere, and is obvious as daylight when the Sun is above the horizon. When the direct solar radiation is not blocked by clouds, it is experienced as sunshine, a combination of bright light and radiant heat. When it is blocked by the clouds or reflects off other objects, it is experienced as diffused light. The World Meteorological Organization uses the term sunshine duration to mean the cumulative time during which an area receives direct irradiance from the Sun of at least 120 watts per square meter. Sunlight may be recorded using a sunshine recorder, pyranometer or pyrheliometer. Sunlight takes about 8.3 minutes to reach the Earth. On average, it takes energy between 10,000 and 170,000 years to leave the suns interior and then be emitted from the surface as light. Direct sunlight has a luminous efficacy of about 93 lumens per watt of radiant flux. Bright sunlight provides illuminance of approximately 100,000 luxors lumens per square meter at the Earths surface. The total amount of energy received at ground level from the sun at the zenith is 1004 watts per square meter, which is composed of 527 watts of infrared radiation, 445 watts of visible light, and 32 watts of ultraviolet radiation. At the top of the atmosphere sunlight is about 30% more intense, with more than three times the fraction of ultraviolet (UV), with most of the extra UV consisting of biologically-damaging shortwave ultraviolet. Sunlight is a key factor in photosynthesis, the process used by plants and other autotrophic organisms to convert light energy, normally from the sun, into chemical energy that can be used to fuel the organisms act The solar radiation over karnataka for the years 2008,2009,2010.2011 is shown in the figure 6.7, which shows maximum radiation in summer and it decreases in winter. 2008 2009 2010 2011 Fig 6.6 SOLAR RADIATION OVER KODAGU FROM 2008-2011 MODULES OF THE PLANT GROWTH MODEL The plant growth module computes crop growth and development based on daily values of maximum and minimum temperatures radiation and the daily value of two soil water stress factors, SWFAC1 and SWFAC2. This module also simulates leaf area index (LAI), which is used in the soil water module to compute evapotranspiration. 7.1 Initialization Input variables, as listed in table 1, are read from file PLANT.INP. File PLANT.OUT is opened and a header is written to this output file. Table 7.1 input data read for plant module Input data read for plant module Variable name definition Units EMP1 Empirical coefficient for LAI computation ,maximum leaf area expansion per leaf m 2/leaf EMP2 Empirical coefficient for LAI computation Fc Fraction of total crop growth portioned to canopy Intot Duration of reproductive stage Degree-days Lai Leaf area index M2/m2 Lfmax Maximum number of leaves N Leaf number Nb Empirical coefficient for LAI computation P1 Dry matter of leaves removed per plant per unit development after maximum number of leaves is reached G PD Plant density Plants/m2 Rm Maximum rate of leaf appearance Leaf/day Sla Specific leaf area M2/g Tb Base temperature above which reproductive growth occurs  °C W Total plant dry matter g/m2 Wc Canopy dry matter weight g/m2 Wr Root dry matter weight g/m2 7.2 Rate calculations The plant module calls three subroutines: PTS to calculate the effect of temperature on daily plant growth rate and rate of leaf number increase; PGS to calculate daily plant weight increase (g/plant) and LAIS to calculate in leaf area index. In subroutine PTS the growth rate reduction factor (PT) is calculated every day using the following equation: PT=1-0.0025((0.25TMIN + 0.75 TMAX)-26)2 Where TMIN and TMAX are the minimum and maximum daily temperatures. Subroutines PGS calculate PG, the potential daily total dry matter increase (g/plant) :where SRAD is the daily solar radiation and PD is the plant density. SRAD: Y1 is obtained by Y1 =1.5 -0.768. ((ROWASPC .0.01)2 .PD)0.1 Where ROWSPC is the row spacing in cm. The potential plant growth rate is limited by soil water stress through SWFAC and temperature through PT. The plant cycle is divided in vegetative and reproductive phrases. The vegetative phase continues until the plant reaches a genetically determined maximum leaf number. During the vegetative phase, leaf number increase is calculated based on maximum rate and a temperature based limiting factor. During reproductive phase, the difference between daily mean temperature and a base temperature is used to calculate the rate of plant development. Total rate of development towards maturity is accumulated as int. Subroutine LAIS is called for phases to compute the change in leaf area index. During vegetative period, LAI increases as a function of the rate of leaf number increase. The potential rate is limited by soil water stress, through SWFAC and temperature through PT. Its value is given by: dLAI=SWFAC. PT.PD.EMP1. Dn.a/1+a where PD is the plant density , EMP1 is the maximum leaf area expansion per leaf, and a is given by : a= eEMP2.(N-nb) Where EMP2 and nb are coefficients in the expolinear equation and N is the development age of the plant. After plant has reached the maximum number of leaves, LAI starts to decrease as a function of the daily thermal integral, di. The rate of decrease is given by dLAI= -PD.di.p1.SLA Where P1 is the dry matter of leaves removed per plant per unit development after maximum number of leaves is reached and SLA is the specific leaf area. 7.3 Integration Changes to leaf area index, plant weights and leaf number are integrated into the appropriate state variables at the beginning of the integration section. 7.4 Output Daily output is written in PLANT.OUT file. 7.5 Close The PLANT.OUT output file is closed. Fig 7.1 Planning the Concept Of Dynamical Agriculture Model

Introduction to Meta Tags

Introduction to Meta Tags Meta tags are small bits of text that will describe the page content; the tags do not appear on the web page itself, but only in the page code. They help search engines to determine what a web page is about, which further helps with search engine optimisation. The tags are only visible to search engines and not to the user/client. There are 4 types of Meta tags: Meta Keywords Attribute These keywords are relevant to the information on the page. The pros to this are that they allow to direct traffic that are searching for specific things, towards particular pages. The cons of this is that one, they dont work anymore, and two, it allowed people to put random tags unrelated to their page into the HTML and essential Pirate traffic for other pages. Title Tag This is the title of the page that will appear on the search engine. It is one of the most important tags as this has the most impact on search rankings, and are visible to the users of the search engine. This will be the first thing users will see for themselves that will tell them what the page is about. Pros of this is it tells users what the page is about immediately, however the cons can be that if the wrong title is used or not specific enough, it can effect search engines results massively but showing the titles of the wrong web pages on search engines when the user is searching for a different unrelated web page. Meta Description Attribute This gives a description of the page. It gives a brief description of the page below the title tag in the search engine results. The advantages are it can entice users to click on the webpage after reading the description and being interested. The disadvantages are that this does not affect the search results ranking of the page. Meta Robots Attribute This is an indication to the search engine bots what should happen to the page when opened. These can give two commands: Index/NoIndex: This tells the search engine whether the page should be shown in the search results or not. Follow/NoFollow This tells the search engine whether the links to the page should be followed or not, depending whether or not it is safe. Newsgroup and forums Advantages of newsgroups and forums are that it allows people to express their own opinions freely with other people. It lets people with similar opinions to conjugate and this means information about an organisation can spread fast, whether it is a good or bad point and regardless of whether its true or not. This is a disadvantage of forums as it allows false information to travel fast and rumours spread quickly however forums and newsgroups are commonly monitored by the company or by the site owners to make sure false information is kept to a minimum. Banners and Popups The advantages of banners and popups are they allow for intrusive advertisement, which means it is hard for people to miss the advertising and can sometimes mean people visit an organisations webpage may enjoy the content of the webpage. The disadvantage of this type of promotion is that it can irritate people because it is intrusive so may annoy more customers and cause more trouble than its worth if it is done on mass. Spam The advantages of spam are similar to banners and popups as it is also intrusive, it means people will find it hard to avoid it and because spam is sent via email, it means promoters can send it to hundreds of thousands of emails every minute, every day to maximise the chances of someone clicking on the link to a webpage. The disadvantages of this is that most email providers will filter out spam into separate inbox folders or just delete it all together so only a small percentage of spam sent reaches the target. Site Name The advantages of a site name are that, if named correctly, they can intrigue people to visit a site even if it is not what the client originally wanted, they will allow for subtle advertising that a customer may not even realise which makes it less intrusive to the customer. The disadvantages of a site name are that, if they are not named correctly, they can damage promotion, as the customer may not think that the site is not what they are looking for or will not intrigue people to visit at all. An example of this can be a website which sells both beds and headboards but if the site name only advertises beds and not headboards, a customer may think this site does not sell headboards and move onto another site. Direct Marketing The advantages of direct marketing are customers can get information about the product being offered easily and can place orders for delivery their house or place of work. It also allows customers to ask questions directly to the organisation/company via telephone. Online direct marketing can allow social media sites to increase the amount of exposure people have to direct marketing. The disadvantages of direct marketing are that organisations/companies can send unwanted junk mail to people with no interest in the products. Unwanted calls to people can mean a company will sometimes be trying to convince people to buy products they do want and annoy the customer. Bibliography http://www.wordstream.com/meta-tags

Malcolm X :: biographies, racism

Malcom X All men are created equal. This statement was the basis of the civil right movements of the 1960's. Malcom X is a man that promoted a society in which all human beings were equally respected. He believes that blacks should achieve that goal by any means necessary. In a time when blacks were not allowed to sit in the front of the bus, using the same bathroom, or were not admitted to Universities. Malcom X's cry of justice was believed to be the voice of all blacks behind closed doors. Malcom Little grew up as poor and did not have much parental support. His father was run over by a street car when he was six. Soon after his father's death, his mother was put in a mental hospital. He grew up in East Lansing and Boston. He was a pimp, a hustler, drug user, and a drug dealer. He worked in the Harlem underworld and was almost killed by his boss after he betrayed him. Malcom turned to robbery and was caught by the police and sentenced to 10 years of hard labor. While in jail, he w as introduced to the Nation of Islam, a Black Muslim group, and changed his name to Malcom X. The X replaced the slave name that was given by the white masters and stands for the his real name that he never knew. After his release from prison he started preaching for the Nation of Islam (NOI). His preaching was known for its hatred overtone. He describes America as a house with a "bomb" inside and it is about to explode. Unless the white people want the house to explode and kill everyone inside, they should take the bomb out and give it a house of their own. His speeches were very popular among angry blacks and he was frequently on the front page of the newspaper. It was rumored that other Nation of Islam members were jealous about his popularity and worried about the power he was gaining. After the JFK assassination, Malcom stated: "President Kennedy never foresaw that the chickens would come home to roost so soon... Being an old farm boy myself, chickens coming home to roost never did make me sad; they always made me glad." After many death calls from irritated Whites, The Nation of Islam started to distance themselves from Malcom.

Shakespeares Macbeth - The Tragic Hero :: Macbeth essays

Macbeth: Macbeth The Tragic Hero The most recent meaning of the word Tragic Hero as defined by Microsoft Works dictionary is "A hero of noble stature whose fortunes are reversed as a result of weakness." Many characters in the play were affected by tragedy for a number of reasons, but without argue, Macbeth and his reverse of fortunes are due to his own actions, and the rest of the cast were merely victims of this. Macbeth's action's lead to his very nemises. From the beginning of the play this tragedy of his was manifested through forces beyond human; the supernatural if you will. These forces were that of the witches. The next factor in determining his fate was his own decision's and action's. Lady Macbeth is the second reason for Macbeth's tragedy; without her support in aiding his decision, Macbeth would have never had the strength to lie, scheme, and destroy to such extremes. The last, and most devastating to Macbeth, was his cripled conscious which made him act out of selfeshness and lust. The sequence of these factors were most defenitely provoked by the evilness and twisted nature of the witches, for if it weren't for their influence, then Macbeth would have never turned his desires into reality. At the very beginning of the play Macbeth is nothing but a general fighting for his country. His fellow fighter's admire Macbeth, for in their eyes, and even in the eyes of the highest of authority, his nobility and couragousness is looked up to. His success for his acheivement is rewarded, and his confidence is made stronger because of this. But this is only the beginning, and soon these good fortunes will come to a tragic end. The audience is then introduced to a group of witches. Three witches who appear as wicked and repulsive. They seem to signify all that is wrong and corrupt. Macbeth's over- confident attitude is the first characteristic the witches detect, and they take advantage of this trait to make his life as miserable as they possibly can. He encounters the witches in Act1, scene1, and from this point he is now a step closer to realising what his future holds... so he thinks. The witches first address Macbeth as king, and Banguo as one "Lesser than Macbeth."(1.2.65) Infact, Macbeth isn't king, never the less, the witches insist in prophecising that he is and will be. The witches are already planting seeds of persuation into his head which are made to bloom into tragedy. These destructive and manipulative forces the witches have power over alter his viewpoints about his values and

History of education Essay

Tamil Nadu is regarded to be one of India’s star performers in the sector of elementary education. The results of the 2001 Census show that Tamil Nadu has attained third position behind Kerala and Maharashtra both in terms of overall and female literacy. It recorded close to 100 per cent gross enrolment ratio (GER) at primary and upper primary levels based on 2007 estimates. A major legislative effort for the universalisation of education in line with the constitutional mandate has been the introduction of the Tamil Nadu Compulsory Education Act, 1994. Under this Act it is the duty of the government to provide the necessary infrastructure (schools and teachers) for ensuring universalisation of elementary education. Parents are also liable to be fined if they do not send their wards to school, though this rule is not very strictly enforced as most of the children not going to school come from poor backgrounds. Tamil Nadu’s high enrolment statistics are also the result of the number of welfare schemes that the State government has introduced in the elementary education sector. The large number of missionary and private schools are also playing a role in the spread of education. The government provides textbooks, uniforms and noon meals to the pupils making it a State where the per child spending is much higher than in educationally backward States such as Bihar, Assam, Andhra Pradesh, Rajasthan and others and is higher than the all-India average. The State is making an endeavor to provide primary schools within a one km radius of human habitations with a population of 300 and above to increase their accessibility. It is also a State that has actually spent most of the funds allocated to it by the Centre under the SSA scheme, in contrast to States like UP, Bihar and Assam that have huge unspent amounts. Tamil Nadu students stood first in the country in mathematics, language and reading comprehension skills according to the national mid-term achievement survey of Class III children commissioned by the NCERT in collaboration with the MHRD and the SCERT and SSA wings of the States recently. But it has come to light that local bodies like corporations and municipalities are not fully utilizing money collected as education tax as a percentage of property tax under the Tamil Nadu Elementary Education Act and this is affecting the quality and quantity of formal education provision at the grassroots level. While the general literacy rate in Tamil Nadu as per 2001 data is 73. 5%, wide disparities exist across districts, gender, and area of residence as well as social grouping. The literacy rate of the SC and ST populations are consistently lower in all the districts. The retention rate within and after the primary school level is also not very impressive and there is a high percentage of repeaters. This is particularly so in the case of the STs and SCs. It is to overcome this discrepancy between education offered in different kinds of schools, between rural and urban schools and to overcome other numerous ills that have crept into the education system—such as arbitrary collection of fees, induction of daily waged, inadequately qualified para teachers, rote learning, examination stress, problems related to the medium of instruction and so on—that the State government constituted the Muthukumaran Committee, which submitted its report in 2007. This committee had the mandate to work out a framework of a uniform pattern of education in Tamil Nadu and to make recommendations for improving its quality. The report of the Committee recommends only one autonomous board, The Tamil Nadu State Secondary School Education Board, instead of the existing four State level boards—Matriculation, Anglo-Indian, Oriental and State Board. Schools coming under this integrated Board would follow a common syllabus ensuring an equitable school education in the State not conferring any undue advantages with regard to admission into higher educational institutions for students completing their school education from one particular Board. Equitable standard education is to be provided by a Common School or Neighbourhood School system, which with uniform syllabi would help to ‘decommercialise’ educational institutions and put an end to many a private management that does not feel sufficiently accountable to society in this crucial sector. The spiraling cost of education starting at the nursery level is cementing caste-class and rural-urban divisions. A common school system using the mother tongue as a medium of instruction would make equal education accessible to all without discrimination. A common school system also means a common examination pattern. The report of the Committee advocates a reasonable teacher-student ratio of not more than 1:30 and doing away with faulty textbooks and a system of rote learning. It emphasizes the promotion of analytical and rational skills that would equip the students to learn by themselves; a testing and evaluation pattern that involves the application of concepts learnt rather than mere reproduction of facts. The school syllabus should not overload students with information but instead kindle their interest in the subject and teach them how to search for more information and conceptualize it. Traditional knowledge should be incorporated and made part of school education. Evaluation should be comprehensive and not just of academic achievements, and that too only marks based. Evaluation should include an assessment of student abilities and performance in academics, the arts, sports and games, values, reading habits, character, conduct and other extra-curricular activities. Schools should not only lay emphasis on academic subjects but also on moral education. Here the Committee suggests that it may be better to have a progress book with entries made from time to time and also periodically sent to the parents so that they may be made aware of their child’s progress. Regular consultation with parents about their wards’ progress and achievements and educational goals is a must. A sheet of paper containing marks obtained in public exams is not enough to understand a student’s development and potential. If the marks obtained in only one exam are going to decide the person’s admission into an institute of higher learning then all stress is on preparing for this exam neglecting other exams and activities. The chance or temptation to indulge in malpractices is also high. Marks obtained in a one-time exam also are no accurate reflection of the student’s actual knowledge and achievement level and potential. Treating exams and marks as more important than life itself has meant the death of many a student. Finally, children belonging to linguistic minorities should be allowed to gain instruction in their respective mother tongue, while all students in standards 5 or 8 ought to have a specific level of knowledge in Tamil and English so that these languages can be used for communication. No student should be dropped and he/she should be allowed to grow in the chosen field of interest and in accordance with their individual capability. A simple pass or fail should certainly not be a deciding factor in a person’s life. While the government has accepted the notion of one board for school education other major recommendations of the Muthukumaran Committee on education reforms are being sidelined by the State government. In fact, some government run schools are changing the medium of instruction to English and not all schools teach Tamil, though this is compulsory as per current State education law. Moreover, schools with an eye on the results in board exams and aiming at future lucrative career possibilities for their students are introducing modern European languages like French (German is waiting to be introduced on a larger scale on the school level) that are supposedly high scoring subjects in comparison to Tamil, which is seen to be difficult even by those whose mother tongue it is. There is almost everywhere an exodus from government run schools to aided or private schools because of the perceived better quality and the lure of an English medium education, which is regarded by parents to be necessary in today’s world. It is to remain viable and not lose out in this competition for students that government run schools are increasingly offering English medium instruction also, although the English medium sections are permitted only on a self-financing basis. The non-acceptance of important recommendations by the Muthukumaran committee is thus in line with the general pro-globalisation trend in the Tamil Nadu economy as a whole. Current education system Why is India still a developing country and what is stopping it from being a developed country? India’s education system as a stumbling block towards its objectives of achieving inclusive growth. India is going to experience a paradox of nearly 90 million people joining the workforce but most of them will lack requiste skills and the mindset for productiveemployment according to a report in DNA. India has about 550 million people under the age of 25 years out of which only 11% are enrolled in tertiary institutions compared to the world average of 23%. . I will be focussing on how the education system’s failure is leading to another social issue of income inequality and hence, suggest certain policies to improve India’s education system and reduce inequality. Problems and drawbacks The really critical aspect of Indian public education system is its low quality. The actual quantity of schooling that children experience and the quality of teaching they receive are extremely insufficient ingovernment schools. A common feature in all government schools is the poor quality of education, with weak infrastructure and inadequate pedagogic attention. What the government is not realising right now is that education which is a source of human capital can create wide income inequalities. It will be surprising to see how income inequalities are created within the same group of educated peopleSo if the government does not improve education system particularly in rural areas the rich will become richer and the poor will get poorer. Hence, it is imperative for the government to correct the blemishes in India’s education system which will also be a step towards reducing income inequality. Another reason for poor quality of education is the poor quality of teachers in government schools . Government schools are unable to attract good quality teachers due to inadequate teaching facilities and low salaries. The government currently spends only 3% of its GDP on education which is inadequate and insufficient. To improve the quality of education , the government needs to spend more money from its coffers on education. Most economists feel that the only panacea to the ills of the public schooling system is the voucher scheme. Under the voucher system, parents are allowed to choose a school for their children and they get full or partial reimbursement for the expenses from the government. But however, the voucher system will further aggravate the problem of poor quality of education in government schools. Such a system will shift resources from government schools to private schools. This will worsen the situation of government schools which are already under-funded. Moreover, if the same amount given as vouchers can be used to build infrastructure in schools then the government can realize economies of scale. For example- The centre for civil society is providing vouchers worth Rs 4000 per annum to 308 girls. This means that the total amount of money given as vouchers is Rs 1232000. If the same amount can be used to construct a school and employ high quality teachers who are paid well then a larger section of the society will enjoy the benefit of education. A school can definitely accommodate a minimum of 1000 students. I hope government takes certain appropriate policy measures to improve the education system otherwise inequalities are going to be widespread and India’s basic capabilities will remain stunted. Let us strengthen the case for a stronger education system. Conclusion Certain policy measures need to be taken by the government. The basic thrust of government education spending today must surely be to ensure that all children have access to government schools and to raise the quality of education in those schools. One of the ways in which the problem of poor quality of education can be tackled is through common schooling. This essentially means sharing of resources between private and public schools. Shift system is one of the ways through which common schooling can be achieved. The private school can use the resources during the first half of the day and the government school can use it during the second half. It is important to remember that the quality of education is directly linked to the resources available and it is important for the government to improve resource allocation to bring about qualitative changes in the field of education. Common schooling is one of the ways in which government can use limited resources in an efficient way and thus improve resource allocation.

Vladimir Ilich Ulyanov Biography

Lenins political finesse, his understanding of the strength of the peasantry and his rewriting of the communist thought are the characteristics which made Lenin one of the greatest leaders of Russia. Vladimir Ilich Ulyanov, was born on April 22, 1870, in Simbirsk, on the bank of the Volga river. Ilya Nikolayevich Ulyanov, a man with high cheek bones, a dark complexion and dark brown eyes, all of which Lenin inherited, was Lenins father, and was the director of schools in Simbirsk province. Lenins mother, Maria Aleksandrovna Blank, was a woman who was very devoted to her six children who all eventually became evolutionaries, except for one who died before she could follow her siblings. Lenin overall had a good childhood. He liked to play chess, swim, hike, and hunt. Although Lenin had no close friends, he did look up to his brother, Alexander, a great deal. When Lenin entered school in 1879, at the age of 9 he became a brilliant student and this was acclaimed to a teacher who came into the Ulyanov home before Lenin could enter school, and taught him to read by the age of five. During Vladimirs young years Russia was quite quiet, although not for him. In 1886 Lenins father died and in 1887 his rother Alexander, whom Lenin looked up to, was involved in an unsuccessful plot to kill the czar and was hanged for doing so. The death of Alexander came as a great blow to Lenin. About his brothers death Lenin simply said â€Å"Ill make them pay for this! I swear it! † The same year his brother was hanged, Lenin finished school at the age of 17 and received a gold medal for excellence in studies. During the fall of that year Lenin was admitted to Kazan University to study law there. Three months after Lenin had settled in Kazan he was expelled from the University for joining in a student meeting protesting the ack of freedom the students were given in the school. Over the next three years Lenin tried many more times to regain admission to the university, but was unsuccessful on all attempts, until 1890 when he tried to gain acceptance to St. Petersburg University. He was admitted as a student but he was not, however, permitted to attend classes, though he would be permitted to take the examinations after studying on his own. In 1891 after studying on his own and taking the final examinations Lenin received a law degree from St. Petersburg University and united with a law firm in Samara. While still in university Lenin was introduced to the works of Karl Marx, Marx being a major contributor to the Communist Philosophy. In early 1893 Lenin became part of the Social Democratic band, a Marxist establishment. In the latter part of that year Lenin reallocated to St. Petersburg and got a start on his revolutionary career. While in St. Petersburg Lenin found that the quality of leadership came to him easily and he quickly became the leader of a Social Democrat group. Lenin came across as a bright intelligent man. All of Lenins written work was very precise, intensely specific, and crystal clear. In 1897 Lenin was banished to Siberia, after being held for questioning for more than a year, after he was caught by the Czars Secret Police while preparing a revolutionary newspaper, The Cause, in December of 1895. During Lenins interval in Siberia he married Nadezhda Konstantinovna Krupskaya. As banishment to Siberia did not mean confinement and Lenin took advantage of his freedom by carrying on his propagandist writings and also wrote one of his more dominant accomplishments, The Development of Capitalism In Russia (1899). During the span of 1898, while Lenin was in expulsion from Russia, a collection of concealed Russian Marxist groups allied to form the Russian Social Democratic Labor Party. In the ensuing period following Lenins Siberian expulsion, January 1900, he received authorization to leave the country and go to Germany to assist with the founding of the parties newspaper, The Spark, of which the first issue appeared on December 24, 1900. In 1902 Lenin wrote a pamphlet called â€Å"What Is To Be Done† and from this pamphlet came the base of what is called Leninism. The following year the Russian Social Democratic Labor Party broke into two separate, equal, collectives over a ontention about party membership. Lenin became the leader of the Bolsheviks, which translates to â€Å"The Majority†, which suggested that his group was larger. The Bolsheviks desired that membership to their party be confined to a small member of full-time revolutionaries. The other group, The Mensheviks, which translates to The Minority, desired that party membership be less restrictive and did not prefer a dictatorship, as the Bolsheviks did, but rather to practice more democratically. Just as all this was taking place a vitality of insurrection was taking place across Russia fronting the Czar Nicholas II. The Russian people wanted land, higher wages, and increased political rights including a legislation. Included in these revolts was an incident called â€Å"Bloody Sunday† which happened when an Orthodox Priest led a march of â€Å"peaceful† peasants to the home of the Czar, on Sunday January 22, 1905. When they reached the palace the Czars head man panicked at the sight of the many people and had his troops fire on the defenseless crowd, slaying and damaging hundreds. By the fall of 1905 a full strike of nearly all workers stupefied the country compelling the Czar to give the people a Duma, which is a ower level Parliament. By the end of 1905 mammoth strikes commenced and was followed by a brimming revolution to which the Czar quickly put a stop to. After this Lenin found it quite arduous to proceed with revolutionary actions in Russia and exhausted most of his time from 1906 until 1908 publishing radical leaflets and attending party congress in England, Germany and Sweden, chiefly with the intentions of keeping the party together, but also to expand the distance between the Bolsheviks and the Mensheviks alleging that the Mensheviks did not want revolution. On August 1, 1914 Germany declared war on Russia and World War I commenced. As Lenin was in Austria at that time, the Austrian government arranged for Lenin to be transported to Switzerland who did not participate in the war. It has been noted that many extremists desired a victory for Russia, but it has also been noted that others wanted peace lacking a victory for any one country, but a victory of peace for all involved. Lenin, however, desired that his country suffer a defeat, and that would bring about revolution in the country. During the war Lenin and his cause were aided financially by the German government, by performing this the Germans felt that they were eroding the Russian war endeavor. By this time most of Lenins supporters had deserted him, indicating as their more popular reasons that Lenin was using assets intended for the assemblage for himself, and that his apparent seizure of power was unwilful by some. This period in Lenins career was suggested by Krupskaya, his wife, as the loneliest point in Lenins career, and as a time when Lenin would transfigure his passions into a surely revolutionary conclusion. It had been three years since the start of the war and the countries were still attling, Russia had lost many of her battles and the country was in annoyance. Food shortages were occurring all across the country, mainly in the cities, but bread was especially shortly yielded. In early February 1917 bread was nowhere to be found in Petrograd and immense lines aside the bread shops collected and the tensions increased. By the end of the first quarter of February approximately two hundred thousand workers were on strike and demonstrating in the capital. On the fifteenth day of March nineteen- seventeen, the Czar Nicholas II, gave up his throne and also gave up the throne or his son. This left the throne to the Nicholass brother who did not want the throne, thus ending three hundred years of autocratic rule. With no one in power of the country a democratic provisional government was formed. For a duration the governing power was shared by the provisional government with the Petrograd Soviet, but before long the Bolsheviks, although very unorganized demanded that all ability be granted to the soviets. At the present time Lenin was still in Switzerland and was pondering a way to return to Russia. The German government was willing to allow Lenin passage through Germany, by way of rail. The only thing the German government was, however, worried about during Lenins trek was of him agitating the German workers. Because of this the German government had Lenin ride in a single sealed train car that was deemed, for the duration of his trip, Russian territory. On the sixteenth day of April nineteen seventeen Vladimir Ilich Ulyanov returned to Russia landing in Petrograd and receiving a welcome fit for a hero. After arriving in Petrograd Lenin abruptly took back control of the Bolsheviks and ordered the overthrow of the provisional government. Lenin was unable to take control of the provisional and upon the reorganization of it, Alexander Kernsky took control and decreed Lenins arrest on the account that he was a German agent, and Lenin quickly fled to Finland. The rest of the Bolsheviks also quickly dispersed or were taken into custody. After living in Finland for about three months, during this time writing The State and Revolution, which was considered to be one of the most important of his labors in which he described how to come about power by way of revolution, Lenin returned to Russia, October 1917, as he felt it was necessary to bring about the revolution. Upon Lenins arrival in Petrograd he strongly recommended to the Bolshevik Central Committee to take advantage of Kerenskys weak government. The Central Committee decided to take action while they had the chance. The Bolshevik president of the Petrograd Soviet, Leon Trotsky, managed to gain control of some government troops and some Naval crews who supported the uprising, and then with minute amount of brutality the Bolsheviks captured Petrograd on October twenty fifth, nineteen seventeen. The Bolsheviks now only had one more thing to do before they were to hold all power of the government, capture Moscow. The capturing of Moscow proved to be more difficult and rougher, but at any rate Moscow was seized and the Bolsheviks had taken power. November 8, 1917 was the day that the Second All-Russian Congress opened with representatives from all across the country in attendance. At the meeting of the congress, which was controlled by the Bolsheviks, Lenin was appointed chairman of The Council of Peoples Commissars, and therefore he became head of the new Russian State. When Lenin ade his first appearance before the congress he asked to be allowed to ask Germany for a three month truce, and for the eradication of private land ownership, both of these requests were authorized. Soon after Lenin took control he found himself in a battle to stay in control, as the Red Army had broken apart, German forces were advancing deeper and deeper into Russia, and also other opposing forces were gathering large groups in parts of Russia. Lenin believed that if the Bolsheviks were to stay in power then the war with Germany would have to come to an end soon and at any cost. It was the third day of March 1918 when the battles between Russia and Germany ended with the signing of the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk. This treaty made it obligatory for Russia to give up a lot of land, which in effect hurt her, until the end of World War I when Germany lost and the treaty became void. In order to put his government further away from German power, in the territory that Russia gave up, Lenin moved the countrys capital to Moscow from Petrograd. In December of 1917 Lenin brought into existence the Cheka, which was a political police force setup to se extreme force to control anyone with an opinion that differed from that of the Bolsheviks. Most of the people that the Cheka arrested were imprisoned, murdered, or sent to the Gulag, which was a system of prison labor camps where most died. In 1918 Lenin suggested to the Bolshevik Central Committee that they change the name of the Russian Social Democratic Labor Party to the Russian Communist Party and this was done. In July 1918, for fear of the former Czar making an uprising, the Bolsheviks had the Czar and his entire family, including servants, slayed. About a month after the Czar was killed, Lenin as at a factory giving a speech to the employees and he was shot twice by Dora Kaplan, who was a member of a Socialist Revolutionary Party. After quickly recovering from the bullets Lenin had Dora Kaplan executed and to set an example for others he had hundreds of others executed, claiming they were hostages. The revolution was like a speeding locomotive in the cites, but was slower to catch on in the more remote parts of the country and in these parts of the country resistance was becoming a major problem and civil war was breaking out. The two enemies in the war ere the Red Army, which Lenin had created in January 1918 and named after the color of the world Communist movement, and opposing them were the whites, who were for the most part democrats, Russian Nationalists and those who opposed change in any form. The Whites had a major problem though, this problem was that they lacked any organization. The Bolsheviks easily won this civil war by 1920, although not untouched. By the end of this war the Russian economy was in shambles and millions of Russians had left to go afar, or died. But yet still the Communist government survived. Although Lenin had successfully taken control of Russia he had not yet accomplished his true goal that he had set out to achieve many years before, which was the goal of a Communist world revolution. In 1921, in a radical attempt to regain control of his country, Lenin instituted a program called the New Economic Policy. This policy replaced a lot of the measures that were put in place when the Bolsheviks took power, it allowed small businesses to continue to operate, peasants to sell food to private customers, free trade was reinstated, and foreign business was invited to invest in Russia. By this time Lenins health had also started to suffer from the stress, among various other things. Although foreign nations were invited to invest in Russia few did and by this time, also, no major country still held diplomatic relations with Russia. In the month of May in 1922 Lenins health took a turn for the worse and he endured a stroke. Lenin then, opposing his doctors advice, kept on working. It was the December of 1922 that Lenin suffered his second stroke and that same month the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics was established by the Bolshevik government. On March 9, 1923 Lenin suffered from a third stoke and his ability to speak clearly was impaired. Less than a year later, on January 21, 1924, Lenin died of a brain hemorrhage, thus ending his rein of power. Lenin used the strength of the peasantry in revolution by appeasing some of their demands, such as implementing the New Economic Policy. The masses supported Lenins beliefs and showed their unrest in ways such as striking. Lenin also utilized his fellow politicians in his bid to accomplish the first part of his goal, to bring communism to Russia, y finessing them into his turn of mind via his personal fervor and his writings. Lenins vision of communism included bringing theories into practice. He also brought widely varied classes of people to his conclusions. Thus by using any and every means possible, Lenin brought communism to Russia, although it took far longer that he expected and he died before reaching his ultimate goal of World Communism. Whether or not communism is or was beneficial to a society, Lenin was a great leader in as much as he reshaped an entire country and its ideals.

John Steinbeck Essay

Steinbeck as an author always seemed to have a niche for writing stories that made you think about the importance of life. Respect for life was highlighted in his stories many times, whether it’s the presence of or the lack of. A few stories that involved this were The Pearl, Of Mice and Men and Travels with Charlie. He knew how to tug on peoples heart strings and make them really think about what life truly means to us even after we close the book. The importance of respecting life is evident. Life is something that is beautiful when it is given and sorrow some when its taken away. The beauty of something alive can easily outweigh the beauty of it dead, to some people. To some people the thrill of the kill is all that matters and showing that they are the dominant species. This disrespect of life itself is portrayed in the story Travels with Charlie. Steinbeck, being an older wise man at this time knew the beauty of life and felt that it was better to keep the two coyotes alive than kill them and take the beauty of them away. He respects life greatly because he sees the beauty in it and wants to see that beauty shine on. Also, in The Pearl, he shows his respect for life through Kino wanting to preserve Coyotito’s innocence and let him live on to be more than he was himself. On the other hand, some people do not respect life. These people, like Curley’s wife in Of Mice and Men, treat people like property, like Crooks. She threatened to lynch him if he ever did anything wrong or got out of place. She does not see the beauty in this mans life and therefore does not treat him with the respect he deserves, instead she puts herself before him metaphorically and treats him like a common slave. In conclusion, Steinbeck shows that the beauty of life can either be respected and appreciated or disrespected and abused. These two viewpoints of life can differ between the person but he shows how respect and admiration can prove the best way to go about a situation. And how hate and disrespect for someone can cause you to think less of them and not see the beauty they possess within.

Policing Paper Essay

There are many different forms of technology used in policing in today society. This technology is very important when it comes to policing and being able to do their jobs proficiently. Some of the technology they use is database and information technology, computer-aid dispatch, records management systems, and mobile computing. All of these forms of technology play a vital role in policing. Without these forms of technology being available to police there could be a higher crime rate, a higher wait time between calls, more deaths or injuries, and so much more. The technology that is available is set in place to keep things running smoothly and ensure that calls get answered in a timely manner. With the technology that we are gaining in the policing field I believe that we have advanced so much and will continue to do so. Database technology is a database that has a large amount of information in it. This information includes names, dates, crimes that people have committed, violations, high crime rate areas, and so much more. This information is gathered from many different areas and stored in a database. They have all of this information in one place to make it easier to research people or areas of interest. This information is gathered from the department’s criminal history records system, the gang unit’s intelligence system, and the state’s department of motor vehicles. The computer-aid dispatch is a method that manages calls for service from the public. The computer-aid dispatch uses the computer to communicate with officers. They are able to receive information on a call and have it on the computer in front of them so they do not get confused or forget any information. The computer-aid dispatch sends the officer the information and location that is in need of services. It also prioritizes the needs of services so that the officer gets to the most important cases first. Another great thing about the computer-aid dispatch is that the officer needs to update their status on the computer after they are done at a call. If their status is not updated after a certain amount of time then the computer-aid dispatch automatically sends another officer out to check on the safety of the initial officer. This computer-aid dispatch is a great tool for policing agents to use. The records management system is used to input and organize information from different types of reports into one easy-to-use format. This program helps officers with the process of paperwork, but all the information is on the computer. It ensures that the officer does not forget to gather information because it has prompts for the officer to ensure they get all of the necessary information for the reports. The records management system allows officers to access all information such as crime r eports, field interview contacts, traffic citations, booking reports, criminal history reports, and investigation reports. All of this information is in one place so that the officer can find the information easier to make their job easier and more efficient. Mobile computing is the main source that officers input and receive their information for calls and to look up information. This is probably the most vital piece of technology. The officer uses their mobile computer to look up information and input information. It makes their jobs easier and the amount of information that is available to them is very helpful when out on calls. The mobile computers that the officers use have access to the computer-aid dispatch and the records management systems at any time or any place. This is a vital tool when policing and doing their job efficiently. There are many types of weapons used in policing. They are not all lethal weapons; some of them are less-than lethal. These weapons are used in today’s society to prevent the use of lethal weapons. The police will try to resolve the crime with these less-than lethal weapons before having to use lethal force, unless the situation calls for lethal force. These weapons include low-velocity rounds which are rubber bullets, wax bullets, or beanbags. These forms of low-velocity rounds are made to stun the criminal. It is not made to hurt them although sometimes this form of weapon does cause bruising or possibly a broken bone depending on the severity of impact. Another form of less-than lethal weapons is sedative darts. Sedative darts are weapons that use a winged hypodermic needle to deliver a potent dose of fast-acting sedatives into a suspect’s bloodstream. The effectiveness depends on the height and weight of the suspect. There is also a chemical weapon. These are things such as pepper spray, tear gas, and other exotic compounds. This form is less often used unless necessary because of the outcomes. This form can’t be contained once used. It also can leak to innocent bystanders. The last weapon is electroshock weapons. This is basically a Taser. A Taser is a weapon that sends 50,000 volts that run through small wires that are attached to needles that can penetrate a suspect up to 25 feet away. The voltage causes involuntary muscle spasms. The Taser has an overall good safety record but has also caused some serious injuries including death. These less-than lethal weapons are used more and more in today’s society. The police are trying to not have to be so lethal in their actions. There are other ways to contain a suspect rather than use lethal force. Officers are now trying these weapons first and if they do not work or the situation calls for more of a lethal weapon choice then they will resort to that. It is good that they have different options depending on the situation. There are many dangers that come with policing. It is not the safest job out there by far. Some of these dangers include but are not limited to accidents while patrolling, murders, homicides, domestic situations, or robberies. Police deal with criminals on a daily basis. It is hard to tell what these criminals and suspects are going to do. This makes the job very dangerous. The only way that police organizations can address the dangers is to ensure that they are properly trained and follow protocol when doing their jobs. There is extensive training associated with policing. Their safety from the dangers is one reason that the training is so extensive. References: Grant, H. B., & Terry, K. J. (2008). Law enforcement in the 21st century (2nd ed). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson/Prentice Hall. Ury, A. (2009, July 08). Everest. Retrieved from http://news.everest.edu/post/2009/07/police-have-non-lethal-weapons Walker, S., & Katz, C. M. (2011). The police in America: An introduction (7th ed.). New York, NY: McGraw-Hill.

Questions on Mutiple Topics Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3500 words

Questions on Mutiple Topics - Essay Example Portfolio matrices have become popular tools due to the various advantages that companies derive from them. First, portfolio matrices are very flexible as they can be applied to products, brands, and strategic business units. It should be noted that the use of portfolio analysis is not limited to products or brands only. Portfolio matrices can be used to ascertain the competitiveness and strengths of brands, product lines, and profit centers. Portfolio matrices are often used as cash management tools as they provide managers an easy and graphical way to assess how much cash the business will be using or generating in putting its products or services in the market. It also tells managers which products or units to invest in according to their attractiveness and competitiveness. The use of portfolio analysis is essentially to help managers focus on their core and profitable businesses. Portfolio matrices are also commonly used among business organizations because of their relative simplicity. The core ideas behind each portfolio matrix can be easily grasped and understood by any manager. Therefore, portfolio matrices are often easier to understand than other business tools. However, the use of portfolio matrices in crafting business strategies also presents some drawbacks. For one, portfolio matrices are often seen as having a â€Å"too simplistic† view of the world that it overlooked other important qualitative factors. For example, the Boston Consulting Group (BCG) matrix considers the relationship between market attractiveness and market growth. It should be noted however, that high growth markets are not necessarily attractive and low growth markets are not necessarily unattractive (Growth-Share Matrix, 2006). Another pitfall of portfolio matrices is that it does not consider the interaction of business units or the entities being considered. It should be noted that in portfolio matrix analyses, products are considered in isolation