Drugs Essays (470 words) - Drug Control Law, Drug Culture

Drugs Would one want to have pale skin, bags underneath their eyes, be poor in their academics, and forget about having fun? I think the most common answer to this question among kids would be Of course not. Well if you dont want to be found with these attractive featuresI would suggest KEEPING OFF OF DRUGS! Personally, I think that drugs are the number 1 issue right now here in the United States concerning parents with teens besides driving. Out of all the teenagers in the U.S. about 67% have tried illegal drugs and about 33% are recreational users. I dont even see the need for anyone, an adult or especially a teen, to be hooked on drugs. Through a little time and research I was able to locate information that may prevent some students from trying drugs. From the Partnership for a Drug-Free America, there are 4 main reasons as to why teens get hooked on drugs: ? Respect-To feel more like an adult (If children are given the wrong messages, they might feel that using drugs is a way of being more adult) ? Social Acceptance- To fit in (As part of a teenagers struggle for popularity and accepted into the social class, they are always looking for ways to fit in) ? Independence- Its a method of rebellion (As they grow older, children want to me more independent from their parents and often involves behavior or habits that parents dislike) ? Curiosity- To find out what its like (When wondering who they are or what they want to become, teens tend to explore things normally that have strict warnings) These are some pretty stupid reasons for trying out drugs, right? We, as teenagers, can fix all these facts and statistics to make them sound good. We can produce an extremely large drop in the percentage of drug use by teaching this generation and the future generations the wrongs of doing drugs. While overall drug use in America has fallen by half in the last 15 years, drug users continue to be at unacceptably high levels. If people have to do drugs, alcohol, or harm themselves in anyway to be popular or to fit in with a group, they are too good for that group of people. True friends are people you can trust, have a good time with, and have faith in to do the right thing; they are the people that wouldnt want to see you hurt yourself. Think about the entire harm you can do to yourself, your family, your education, and most importantlythe rest of your life. Drug abuse kills over 14,000 Americans each year; do you want to be one of those 14,000? Health Care

Coraline, by Neil Gaiman - Summary and Review

Coraline, by Neil Gaiman - Summary and Review Coraline by Neil Gaiman is a weird and delightfully scary fairy tale/ghost story. I call it delightfully scary because while it grips the readers attention with creepy happenings that may cause a case of the shivers, it is not the kind of scary book that leads to nightmares of the it could happen to me kind. The story revolves around the very strange experiences Coraline has when she and her parents move into an apartment in an old house. Coraline must save herself and her parents from the evil forces that threaten them. Coraline by Neil Gaiman is recommended for ages 8-12. The Story of Coraline The idea behind Coraline can be found in the quotation by C.K. Chesterton that precedes the beginning of the story: Fairy tales are more than true: not because they tell us that dragons exist, but because they tell us dragons can be beaten. This short novel tells the amazing, and creepy, tale of what happens when a girl named Coraline and her parents move into an apartment on the second floor of a very old house. Two elderly retired actresses live on the ground floor and an old, and quite strange, man who says he is training a mouse circus, lives in the flat above Coralines family. Coralines parents are frequently distracted and dont pay a lot of attention to her, the neighbors keep pronouncing her name incorrectly, and Coraline is bored. In the course of exploring the house, Coraline discovers a door that opens onto a brick wall. Her mother explains that when the house was divided into apartments, the doorway was bricked up between their apartment and the empty flat on the other side of the house, the one thats still for sale. Strange sounds, shadowy creatures in the night, cryptic warnings from her neighbors, a scary reading of tea leaves and the gift of a stone with a hole in it because its good for bad things, sometimes, are all rather unsettling. However, its when Coraline opens the door to the brick wall, finds the wall gone, and walks into the supposedly empty apartment that things get really strange and frightening. The apartment is furnished. Living in it is a woman who sounds much like Carlines mother and introduces herself as Coralines other mother and Coralines other father. Both have button eyes, big and black and shiny. While initially enjoying the good food and attention, Coraline finds more and more to worry her. Her other mother insists they want her to stay forever, her real parents disappear, and Coraline quickly realizes that it will be up to her to save herself and her real parents. The story of how she copes with her other mother and the strange versions of her real neighbors, how she helps and gets helped by three young ghosts and a talking cat, and how she frees herself and rescues her real parents by being brave and resourceful is dramatic and exciting. While the pen and ink illustrations by Dave McKean are appropriately creepy, they are not really necessary. Neil Gaiman does a superb job of painting pictures with words, making it easy for readers to visualize each scene. Neil Gaiman In 2009, author Neil Gaiman won the John Newbery Medal for excellence in young peoples literature for his middle-grade fantasy novel The Graveyard Book. Our Recommendation We recommend Coraline for 8 to 12-year-olds. Although the main character is a girl, this tale will appeal to both boys and girls who enjoy weird and scary (but not too scary) tales. Because of all of the dramatic happenings, Coraline is also a good read-aloud for 8- to 12-year-olds. Even if your child is not frightened by the book, the movie version may be a different story.

Researchweek2 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Researchweek2 - Essay Example ance of nurses; where hospital personnel do not set the bed-exit alarm and the cases where a patient is under the influence of high-risk medication (Oliver, Healey, & Haines, 2010). Other situations that could lead to patient falls include where patient assessment is inadequate and where there are delays in responding to call alerts or care delivery. More than 1 million patient falls occur every year. Among US hospitals, falls rates range between 3.1 and 11.5 cases/1,000 patient-days (Quigley et al., 2009). Rates of patient falls differ, depending on the type of hospital unit; the highest rates of falls are reported in the medical and the neuroscience units. Fall rates are 3.48 and 6.12/ 1000 and 6.12 and 8.83/1000 respectively (Quigley et al., 2009). About 30 percent of the total number of patient fall cases cause some form of injury; 10 percent cause the patients serious injury, including the fracture or the trauma of the head. Among aged patients, these falls are extremely dangerous, including that they can cause death or further illness (Oliver, Healey, & Haines, 2010). The statistics reporting the incidence of patient falls and their effects among older patients are very critical and disturbing. Presently, older people of 75 years and above comprise about 22 percent of the patients admitted into hospitals (Wier, Pluntner, & Steiner, 2010). Further, major areas of hospital costs are related to patient falls: these include liability, length-of-stay and care services. The patients that suffered serious injuries, due to falls, while under the care of hospitals remained under care for 6.3 to 12 days more than their counterparts, and also registered higher healthcare costs by an average of USD 13,316 (Brand & Sundarajan, 2010). Additionally, starting 2008 the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services revised their policies – directing that they will not compensate hospitals for the costs incurred on the treatment of these types of injuries (Inouye, Brown, &

North Korea Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

North Korea - Research Paper Example The researcher of rhis paper focuses mostly on describing of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK), commonly known as North Korea is an Eastern Asian country and located between China and South Korea. Pyongyang that is the capital of North Korea was described as a political and cultural center of the countr. It is also the largest city in the country by area and population. The Amnok River and the Tumen River constitute the border between China and North Korea whereas the Korean Demilitarized Zone that represents the boundary between North Korea and South Korea. Korea has been an independent kingdom throughout much of its long history and this territory was occupied by Japan following the Russo-Japanese war in 1905. The World War II ended up in the split of Korea with the northern half falling under the control of Soviet Union and the southern half under the influence of United States. The election conducted in 1948 resulted in the creation of two separate governmen ts for North Korea and South Korea. However, conflicting sovereignty claim led to the Korean War. The DPRK could not defeat the US-backed Republic of Korea. North Korea considered US as the ultimate threat to its sovereignty and framed economic and military policies to accomplish the eventual unification of Korea under the control of Pyongyang. This research paper will explore and analyze several aspects of North Korea modern life, including its geography, citizens, government, military, international issues, terrorism, and crime issues. Geography As mentioned already, North Korea is situated between China and South Korea and it also borders with Korea Bay (west) and Sea of Japan (east). As described in CIA website, North Korea lies between latitudes 37o and 43oN, and longitudes 124o and 131oE. The country covers an area of 120,540 square kilometers. The highest point in the region is Baekdu Mountain (2,744 meters) and longest river is Amnok River (790 kilometers). The lowest point in the country is the Sea of Japan (0 ft). Some major cities of North Korea include Kaesong, Sinuiju, Wonsan, and Chongjin. In addition to China and South Korea, the DPRK also shares a little part of its border with Russia (17.5 km) (CIA). The country’s major natural resources include coal, lead, graphite, iron ore, gold, hydropower, zinc, tungsten, and magnesite. Occasional typhoons, droughts, and severe flooding constitute common natural hazards challenging the country. Currently, this territory faces a number of environmental issues such as water pollution, waterborne diseases, inadequate portable water supply, soil erosion and degradation, and deforestation. Nearly 80% of the North Korea comprises mountains and uplands that are separated by narrow and deep valleys. According to some early European visitors to this region, North Korea resembles ‘a sea in a heavy gale’ (Asian Studies Center). An array of hills, valleys, and mountains make this region one of the attractive tourist destinations in the world. This region has a continental climate and experiences four distinct seasons including winter, summer, spring, and autumn. Long winter characterized with snow storms brings bitter cold to this territory while summer appears to be short and humid. The country experiences the most pleasant weather during spring and autumn as a result of mild temperatures and variable winds. According to the Koppen climate classification, most of the North Korea falls under the type Dwa (Peregrine). Although the United Nations Command

Counseling and Methadone in Treatment of Substance Abuse Essay

Counseling and Methadone in Treatment of Substance Abuse - Essay Example Substance abuse, including tobacco use and nicotine addiction, is associated with a wide range of serious health and social problems. Recent epidemiological evidence demonstrates that 72 conditions requiring inpatient treatment are wholly or partially attributable to substance abuse. Consequently, the estimated annual cost for health care, law enforcement, motor vehicle crashes, crime, and lost productivity due to substance abuse is nearly 1 thousand dollars for every American citizen, including children (Austin, 2005). Such disturbing situation with substance abuse can not but appeal for immediate and effective actions from the government and local authorities. Although the problem is not new, the search for the most effective methods of coping with substance abuse is far from being over. Many different prevention and treatment options have been proposed up to date, but none of them can be addressed as the most effective. Partially this is due to the fact that substance abuse is a condition with extremely complex and often controversial etiology; partially due to lack of serious scientific research exploring specific mechanisms of recovery. The increasing use of psychotherapeutic interventions in both prevention and treatment of substance abuse suggests that modern researchers and practitioners are taking efforts to deal with the problem more effectively than before. This paper provides an overview of the most widely used type of interventions in treatment of substance abuse, namely psychological counseling. Counseling Despite the long history of use a lot of issues related to psychological counseling in treatment of substance abuse still remain poorly explored or unknown. There is one major reason for such situation listed in the substance abuse literature: counseling research projects have often been denied funding due to inability of the researchers to convince the funding authorities that their research standards for scientific investigation meet the conventional standards. Unfortunately, specifics of psychological research makes this task extremely complex: even the most fundamental traditional standard of experimental investigation, the double-blind method, is a "virtual impossibility in comparative psychotherapy research" (Onken & Blaine, 1990: 1). Instead, most of the research in the field has focused on medication treatments for substance abuse even despite the fact though non-pharmacological interventions (such as psychotherapy) are used more frequently, either alone or in combination wit h other methods of treatment (Carroll, 1998). However, the lack of funding have not prevented the researchers and practitioners from designing a number of psychological and psychosocial intervention strategies for treatment of substance abuse. Although the philosophies underlying various kinds of treatment are vastly different, almost all of them include, in some or other form, psychological counseling that has been used in substance abuse recovery and prevention programs since long ago. Thus, already in the early 1980s individual psychotherapy or psychological counseling were available in a stunning 99 % of the drug-free, methadone-maintenance, and multiple-modality drug abuse treatment units and almost 97 percent of the detoxification units in this United States (National Drug and

International Accounting Standards: UK Financial Reporting

International Accounting Standards: UK Financial Reporting APC311 INTERNATIONAL FINANCIAL REPORTING ASSIGNMENT (Word count: 3, 080) Introduction The growth of international activities has been rapid over time. These activities include areas of international trade, international investment, international bond and equity offerings, capital movements between countries and the number of multinational firms. Countries, entities and bodies who carry out these activities continuously seek to achieve growth and higher returns at lower cost of financing. This implies that there is often the need to consider international rather than national or internal alternatives of raising finance. The differences in accounting systems and principles that exist in different countries are a barrier to towards the comparability of financial information that is published by companies using different sets of accounting standards (Alexander, 2007). This led to ‘the pressure for international harmonization to regulate, prepare and use financial statements which are reliable, comparable and transparent (Nobes and Parker, 2000). This can only be achieved if countries employ the same accounting standards through the harmonization of accounting principles. International harmonization may be defined as a political process aimed at reducing the differences in accounting practices across the world in order to achieve comparability and compatibility (Hoarau, 1996). To achieve this feat, accounting regulators such as the IASB have attempted to advance harmonization projects in an attempt to minimize differences between different national accounting standards (O’Regan, 2006). As argued by Choi et al (2002), harmonization will make it more likely for users of financial statements to interpret the information correctly and make better decisions based on that information. It will also reduce drastically the information asymmetry between stakeholders and companies and hence save manpower, money and resources. The International Accounting Standards Board (IASB), issuers of International Accounting Standards (IASs) was established in 2001 and is the independent standard-setting body of the International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRSs) Foundation, an independent, private sector whose principal objectives are to develop in the public interest, a set of high quality, understandable, enforceable and globally accepted international financial reporting standards (IFRSs) based on clearly articulated accounting principles. IFRSs are a set of high quality, understandable, enforceable and globally accepted Standards based on clearly articulated accounting principles. The need for International Accounting Standards The international investor The information age and the advent of high-tech computers makes possible the availability of massive amounts of international financial information. Institutional and individuals who are interested in making international investments can therefore benefit from the global harmonization of accounting standards. International Accounting firms The role of international accounting firms include providing auditing and consulting services in many countries. The absence of international accounting principles implies that they have to gain expertise in areas of domestic financial accounting principles and related laws. Gaining this expertise can substantially increase their operational costs. International intergovernmental organisations International intergovernmental organizations including the United Nation (UN), the European Union (EU) and the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) extend credits for projects to other countries. They are therefore interested in obtaining comparable financial information in order to evaluate the projects they carry out in the various countries.as the organization. This can be achieved only if there is harmonization of international accounting principles. Developing countries Developing countries often seek international financing sources for their development. It is important for their governments and accounting regulating bodies to adopt international accounting standards in order to make it easier for them to access international financing sources. Stock exchanges The use of international accounting principles can enable the internationalization of Stock exchanges which can in turn increase international financing activity. This essay will make particular reference to the UK equivalent of accounting standards i.e., the  Financial Reporting Standards (FRSs) to examine the different accounting treatments in the individual accounting standards of interest in this assignment. IAS 38 Accounting for intangible assets Definition: An intangible asset is an identifiable monetary asset without physical substance. An asset is a resource that that is controlled by the enterprise as a result of past events and from which future economic benefits are expected [IAS 38.8]. The objective of IAS 38 is to prescribe the accounting treatment for intangible assets that are not dealt with specifically in another IAS. The standard deals with: the criteria to be met before an enterprise can recognise an intangible asset; how to measure the carrying amount of intangible assets and the disclosures that needs to be made. Examples of assets that may qualify as intangible assets under IAS 38 are: computer software, copyrights, customer and supplier relationships, franchises, licenses, rights patents. The three critical attributes of intangible assets are: Identifiability: In order for an intangible asset to be identifiable, it must be separable and it arises from contractual or other legal rights, regardless of whether those rights are transferable or separable from the entity or from other rights and obligations. (IAS 38.12) Control (power to obtain benefits from the asset) An intangible asset must be under the control of the enterprise in order for it to have the power to obtain future economic benefits from the asset. Control will usually but not necessarily emanate from legally enforceable rights, in the absence of which it is more difficult to prove the existence of an asset. For example, control over technical know-how is deemed to exist only if it is protected by legal right such as a copyright or patent. Recognition and measurement: IAS 38 stipulates that an intangible asset should be recognised only if both of the following occur: It is possible that the future economic benefits that are attributable to the asset will flow to the entity, and The cost can be reliably measured. The cost of an asset must be reliably measured if the asset is acquired in a normal transaction. Also, the fact that a price has been paid for the asset, is a reflection of the expectation that future economic benefits will flow to the entity. Goodwill and brand image In order for goodwill and brand image to be classified as intangible assets and included as assets of the enterprise, they need to be identified separately. If goodwill and brands have been acquired externally, then their cost and existence can be identified and capitalised. As regards internally generated goodwill, it cannot be recognised as an asset because: it is not separable from the business it has not arisen form contractual or other legal rights, and its cost cannot be reliably measured (IAS 38). A reconciliation of the carrying amount at the beginning and the end of the period. FRS10, accounting for goodwill and intangible assets is the equivalent UK Financial Accounting standard to the IAS 38. The standard views goodwill arising on acquisition as not constituting an asset or an immediate loss in value. But it relates to the cost of an investment in the financial statements of the acquirer, hence the values are attributed to the acquired asset and liabilities in the consolidated financial statements. The standard is of the view that even though purchased goodwill is not in itself an asset, including it in the assets of the reporting entity rather than deducting it from shareholder’s equity recognises that goodwill is part of a larger asset whose investment the entity’s management remains accountable. Thus, the objective of the FRS10 is that it ensures that purchased goodwill and intangible assets are charged to the income statement in the periods they are depleted. A comparison of the different accounting treatment of intangible assets by the IFRS and UK GAAP can be seen in Appendix 1. Discussion The IAS definition for intangible assets has its limitations as many intangibles such as patents and related drawings do have a physical substance (Tiffin, 2005 p.67). However the real issue with intangible assets is that intangibles are difficult to value and as such, attempting to measure their impairment is plagued with problems Godfrey Koh, 2001). The uncertainty about asset values and their impairment renders them susceptible to creative accounting. Intangible assets can be generated internally by firms. But it is difficult to accurately identify and cost such assets. IAS38 states that ‘internally generated goodwill shall not be recognised as an asset’. Research and development are therefore considered to be different parts of creating an internally generated intangible asset. The research phase is defined by IAS 38 as ‘original and planned investigation undertaken with the prospect of gaining new scientific or technical knowledge and understanding’. This implies that research costs incurred are expensed when they occur. There is consistency in classifying what constitutes an intangible asset by the standard. Of course, this treatment of research is appealing as there is a probability that an initial research may not actually lead to any economic benefit. Accounting for leases (IAS 17) Definition: A lease is an agreement whereby the lessor conveys to the lessee in return for a payment or series of payments the right to use an asset for an agreed period of time. A lease falls under two main categories; a finance lease and an operating lease. A lease is classified as a finance lease if it transfers substantially all the risks and rewards incident to ownership. All other leases are classified as operating leases. Classification is made at the inception of the lease. [IAS 17. Thus, in order to accurately classify the type of lease, it is important to determine whether the risks and rewards associated with owing the asset are with the lessee or the lessor. An asset will be classified as a as a finance lease if the if the risks and rewards lie with the lessee. However, it will be classified as an operating lease if the risk and rewards lie with the lessor. As regards a finance lease, the concept of substance over form is applied. The substance is that even though the legal owner of the asset is not the lessee, the commercial reality is that the lessee has acquired an asset by obtaining finance from the lessor, this implies the recognition of an asset and liability. Other distinguishing factors of a finance lease include: The present value (PV) of the minimum lease payments at the beginning of the lease amounts to substantially all of the fair value of the asset. By the end of the lease, the lease agreement transfers ownership of the asset to the lessee. The option rests with the lessee to purchase the asset at a price expected to be substantially lower than the fair value when the option becomes exercisable. The leases asset must be of a specialised nature. A comparison of the different accounting treatment of intangible assets by the IFRS and UK GAAP can be seen in Appendix 2. Discussion Operating leases appear to be more popular as both the leased asset and liabilities can be effectively kept off the balance sheet with future lease obligations disclosed as footnotes. However, a finance lease, often treated as an ‘in substance’ purchase by the lessee and a sale by the lessor, is less popular as it requires both leased assets and liabilities to be recognized on the balance sheet. But the finance lease does produce a tax benefit because of a larger expense, interest plus depreciation, compared to an operating lease which only reports the lease payments as an expense. IAS 17 (IASB, 2008) allows managers to structure a lease in such a way as to avoid the reporting of lease assets and liabilities. In order to ensure a complete and transparent recognition of assets and liabilities arising from lease contracts on financial statements, the IASB decided to make no distinction between finance leases and operating leases and employ the ‘right-to-use assets’ and its lease obligations that is based on the present values of future lease payments using the incremental borrowing rate of the lessee at the inception of a lease. Capitalization of lease can impact negatively on earnings because of the increased cost due to the depreciation of the asset and interest expense. This will in turn affect expected profit margin, return on earnings (ROE) and return on assets (ROA) (Bradbury, 2003). IAS 37 Accounting for provisions, contingent liabilities, and contingent assets Definition A provision is a liability of uncertain timing or amount. IAS 37 ensures that a provision should be recognised only when there is a liability i.e. a present obligation resulting from past events. Contingent liabilities: Definition: A contingent liability is: a possible obligation that arises from past events and whose existence will be confirmed only by the occurrence of events not wholly within the control of the entity; or A present obligation that arises from past events but is not recognised because it is not probable that an outflow of economic benefits will be required to settle the obligation; or A present obligation that arises from past events but is not recognised because the amount of the obligation cannot be measured with sufficient reliability. Disclosure An entity should disclose a contingent liability in a note, unless the possibility of an outflow of economic benefits is remote. Contingent assets A contingent asset is a possible asset that arises from past events and whose existence will be confirmed only by the occurrence or non-occurrence of one or more uncertain future events not wholly within the control of the entity. An entity shall not recognise a contingent asset. When the realisation of income is virtually certain, then the related asset is not a contingent asset and its recognition as revenue is appropriate. A comparison of the different accounting treatment of intangible assets by the IFRS and UK GAAP can be seen in Appendix 3. Discussion IAS 137 aims at ensuring that only genuine obligations are dealt with in the financial statements i.e. planned future expenditure even when authorised by the board of directors or equivalent governing body, is excluded from recognition. Appropriate recognition criteria and measurement bases are applied to provision, contingent liabilities and contingent assets and that sufficient information is disclosed in the notes to enable users to understand their nature, timing and amount. The standard seeks to ensure that for example assets are not overvalued. Accounts receivables may be overvalued if reasonable provision for bad debts is not made. This has the tendency to inflate earnings and in such instances the provision for bad debts will prove to be inadequate in future, whilst in the short term account receivables and earnings receive a temporary boost. Also, contingent liabilities which are obligations that are dependent on future events for the confirmation of the existence of an obligation. If companies fail to record a contingent liability that is likely to be incurred and subjected to reasonable estimation, it has the effect of understating their liabilities and overstating their net income or shareholders equity. The above examples are indications of how companies use creative accounting to manipulate their financial statements especially their balance sheets. Conclusion Accounting for intangible assets, accounting for leases and accounting for provisions, contingent liabilities, and contingent assets are all complex areas which are prone to manipulation in the form of creative accounting which is defined as â€Å" the transformation of financial accounting figures from what they actually are to what preparer desires by taking advantage of the existing rules and/or ignoring some or all of them† (Kamal Naser, 1992). Creative accounting in whatever form it takes is usually meant to overstate assets or understate liabilities. The collapse of a number of corporate giants such as Enron Corporation, Tyco International, World Com, Global Crossing, Arthur Anderson, Parlmalat etc. have not only destroyed investor confidence and shareholder values but it has also damaged the accounting profession. The situation is even made worse when there are different accounting standards that are used in preparing financial statements. This is made even worse when there are different accounting standards used in preparing financial statements. The adoption of one set of global financial reporting standard such as the international financial reporting standard (IFRS) that confers with investors, stock markets, accounting professionals and accounting standards setters will go a long way to reduce the practice. Arguably, accounting standards whether in the US, UK, Australia or the IAS will not have all the answers to accounting and financial reporting problems but it is hoped that it will largely reduce its occurrence. APPENDICES APPENDIX 1 Comparison of IFRSs with UK GAAP treatment of intangible assets Appendix 2: Comparison of IFRSs with UK GAAP treatment of Lease APPENDIX 3 Comparison of IFRSs with UK GAAP treatment of provisions, contingent liabilities, and contingent assets

Realism and Henry James Essay -- essays research papers fc

Realism, in the broadest of definitions, is the faithful representation of reality or verisimilitude. The realist is considered to be the â€Å"philosophical extrovert† . Within the scope of American literature, ‘realism’ spans the time period from the Civil War to the turn of the century. Some claim that American realism was the product of a country shaken by war combined with technological advances and increased consciousness of nationhood. Realism, according to Weinberg, â€Å"denies the continuum of time as meaningful dimension of experience because time cannot be seen or touched† . In essence, realism was a solution to the problem of the past. It â€Å"made a religion out of newness and contemporaneity† . However, some critics of realism have criticized it as having been â€Å"exposed as an insidious agent of the capitalistic-imperialistic-bourgeois hegemony† . The advent of realism was much appreciated by writers everywhere for it was a response to the changing cultural needs. William Dean Howells, Mark Twain and Henry James are few of the pioneers of American realism. With time, Howells abandoned the idea of the past and worked solely in the representation of American life. Twain, however, was in a limbo between his bonds with the past and a promise to the present. At this time it was James, who reconciled the ties of history and with an intellectual commitment to the present. James wrote The Art of Fiction in 1884 in a critical response to Walter Besant’s lecture on the same topic. James’s basic aim in this critique was to critically analyze Besant’s thoughts on fiction whilst putting forward what he believed the art and form of fiction to be. James contends that fictional writing is the representation of real life. In The Art of Fiction he claims that a novel â€Å"is a proof of life and curiosity† . At another point in this discourse he writes, â€Å"The only reason for the existence of a novel is that it does attempt to represent life† . This is synonymous with the definition of realism that I have stated above which claims that realism in literature is the representation of life. In the essay, James highlights the basis, which he believes, are essential for a piece of fiction to become art. According to him, a piece of fiction should be informative and should not carry with it the load of moral judgments or analysis. The characters and their psychological process should... ...r, Everett. "William Dean Howells' Theory of Critical Realism." ELH 16 (1949): 151-166. †¢ Crowley, John W. "The Portrait of a Lady and The Rise of Silas Lapham: The Company They Kept." (n.d.): 117-134. †¢ Dicovery of a Genius: William Dean Howells and Henry James. Ed. Albert Monrdell. New York: Twayne, 1961. †¢ James, Henry. "The Art of Fiction." Longman's Magazine (1884). †¢ James, Henry. What Maisie Knew. New York, 1909. †¢ Pizer, Donald. "Late Nineteenth-Century American Realism: An Essay in Definition." Nineteenth-Century Fiction 16 (1961): 263-269. †¢ Rouse, H. Blair. "Charles Dickens and Henry James: Two Approaches to the Art of Fiction." Nineteenth-Century Fiction 5 (1950): 151-157. †¢ Salomon, Roger B. "Realism as Disinheritance: Twain, Howells and James." American Quarterly 16 (1964): 531-544. †¢ Weinberg, Bernard. French Realism: The Critical Reaction, 1830-1870. (Oxford, 1937) pp. 122-123.

Staff Employment

What I found in my search is that the staff and employment consist of the readiness of employees inside all areas of the world. The availability of the staff is the chief importance of employers everywhere. All areas of employment are touched by economics and it would also include the number of births in every region, and the level of training each person obtains. Another important fact is what the level of development the work opportunity would be. Since more individuals pass the age of 65 are finding themselves still having to work HR specialists find that they're having to formulate additional resolutions to meet the demands pertaining to our elderly citizens having to continue to work. Which means that HR specialists must be able to understand and implement the required laws to govern and track employee's records. Since employees and job types are continuously changing organizations find that they have variety to maintain a viable balance of employees to reach their goals in the global market. 100 years ago, most jobs were industrial in nature, what I mean is that individuals worked in factories or on an assembly lines. These types of positions weren't very challenging because it was a situation where the worker did the same thing over and over. With the new technology today, the work is more demanding, very competitive and more creative. Women are working in position that once was thought â€Å"only men could be productive in. Organizations must form associations with governments and scholarly foundations with the principle goal of guaranteeing that potential workers have the essential abilities that will set them up for the present and for what's to come. HR must start to think diversely and even perceive that the present workforce can't work for delayed hours like that of 100 years back. The nature of work and that of the laborer has experienced massive moves in the recent years. Also, companies have moved to global level with improved technology and communication. besides more women employees entered the workforce which was not the state 100 years ago where women live tended to arrange around their families. During World War I changed who the workforce would use since the men were either volunteering or being drafted to serve in the military which resulted in there was no one to fill the positions. After showing the factories that the women were capable to carry out the duties that the men could do, but they were paid less for the same job. Since then women have demanded rights for equal pay and treatment While the implications on for today's HR manager, there are new laws and rules that must be followed, which adds more responsibility when it come to harassment and the safety of the workforce. In 1938 the minimum wage laws began, and with this the HR manager have more responsibility. Now they had to determine a fair wage for every job and selected individuals for the positions. Then came the federal law that prohibits discrimination that was based on race, sex, and religion. Which meant that there are a certain number of women, no matter race must be hired. This law ensures that HR manager are properly doing the job making sure qualified individuals are hired and promoted without any prejudice. Today the HR Manager has definitely more work with shifts in types of jobs are additional responsibilities, such as hiring candidates beyond borders, and they must be able to efficiently scrutinize candidates and evaluate them. Plus, they are answerable for the organization benefits for example employee turnover, training and productivity. They face the need to develop new and improved techniques to support the organizations pursuit of its mission and values. Per the text here is a list of human resources talent management that are important as best practices in recruiting and retaining individuals to also achieve the organization objectives:Workforce planning – strategizes to ensure all practices support the long-term goals.Recruiting by examining internal talent and identifying and contacting external talent via social media.Applicant tracking – hiring, screening interviewing and background checks.Performance management – this is designed to motivate employees and determine sections that will need future training.Compensation ensure that each position pay is fair.Workforce development means that training is delivered based on performance and personal objectives.Also, HR managers in modern times needs to spend considerable time and money in training in new domain, technology and keep them constantly updated. The future US workforce groups in 2025 would be mostly aged population over 60 years. There will be rise of sm art machines and systems which will replace human workforce.

Ludwig van Beethoven essays

Ludwig van Beethoven essays The film Immortal Beloved shows us the life of Ludwig Van Beethoven one of the greatest or for some people the greatest composer of all times. The movie not only shows us his music but most importantly examines the man there was behind the music. He was a disabled man that protected himself from the not so understanding society of that time, with an edgy personality. The movie focuses on the letters Beethoven wrote. These letters that are still to this day a mystery to whom they were written for. Letters which had no name or address were written to a woman who he referred to as his Immortal beloved, from where the movie gets its name. Probably the biggest flaw the movie had was on making a wild guess to who had the letters be written for. In reality nobody really knows to whom the letters were intended for. But the film points out that Johanna Van Riess(Beethovens sister in law) was the Immortal beloved. Documents show us that there was a total of three letters written to somebody located at K. which most of the people think is Karlsbad although there are many other possibilities as Klosterneuberg and other towns in Czech Republic that can be associated with the letter K. The movie recreates the mysterious love life of the womanizer Ludwig Van Beethoven. As we all know, the film industry main purpose is to entertain its viewers. It would be impossible to recreate in a movie each and every woman that Beethoven was involved with during his life. It would probably be to lengthy to tell in a film. There is always research done when a movie that is based on real life is made, then history is adapted to make the product sellable and that is when fiction appears. Most likely the producer of this film picked these three women among the many that are revealed in history because he thought they were the most important in Beethovens life. And to give the story a surprising ending he picked Johanna Van Riess to be the heroin o ...

The Complete Guide on How to Write a Winning Ecology Term Paper

The Complete Guide on How to Write a Winning Ecology Term Paper Before delving into the structure and elements that characterize an ecology term paper, it is important to define what an ecology term paper is, and explore the objectives of writing a term paper on ecology. A term paper in ecology is a research paper that students are required to submit at the end of a semester to evaluate and track acquired knowledge about ecology courses. As opposed to essays on ecology, term papers require significant research and use of technical writing skills. The term paper may focus on a multitude of topics in ecology and must be well-written, organized, logical, and well-researched to reflect the learner’s knowledge of the topic, the area of study, and the term paper requirements, as provided by the professor. The lecturers provide students with term paper topics. On different occasions, it is common for instructors to present students with an opportunity to explore different topics in ecology, depending on the area of ecology studied in the course a nd the course requirements. The Peculiarities of Selecting an Ecology Term Paper Topic When choosing a topic, you should always consider the following: The length of the paper. Term papers in ecology have the varied scope of content implying that some topics may either be narrow or broad. Always consider the required length of the term paper as provided by the professors. You should ask yourself the questions, such as â€Å"Will the paper be long, at least 10 pages, or short, up to 5 pages? or How many words are required for the term paper?. The point is that when you are able to ascertain the required length of paper, it will be easy to choose topics that match the required number of words or pages. In this case, if the required length of the term paper exceeds 10 pages, choose a broad ecology topic. Conversely, select topics that are narrow if the term paper should be less than five pages. The resource availability. Check available resources, such as ecology books, articles, and online sources to not only gather ideas on topics but also ensure that a chosen topic has readily available and sufficient material for reference when writing the term paper. Magazines and news articles are also essential sources that provide different angles concerning factors affecting the ecosystems. The complexity of the topic. Some ecology topics are complex. Notably, the complexity varies depending on the level of study. Ensure that you choose topics that you can handle with ease. When it is impossible to focus on simpler topics, ensure you are able to explain the chosen topic regardless of its complexity. If stuck, seek advice from your lecturer or other experts within the learning institution. In this case, let your instructor explain certain areas of the topic that you find complex. Pre-Writing Stage to Generate and Clarify Ideas Starting the process of writing a term paper can be challenging even when one has clear prompts, materials, and ideas on what should be written. All term paper writers face the dilemma of translating their thoughts into a coherent and carefully articulated paper. Before beginning the writing process, seek clarifications where needed and go through the provided instructions where provided. Planning, brainstorming, and outlining ideas are among the essential pre-writing tips that enable one to write a coherent term paper in ecology. Planning. An ecology term paper requires appropriate articulation of facts without speculating concepts or including unfounded information. Therefore, planning is paramount because it entails determining the paper timeline, allocating time to different parts of the paper writing process, and crafting a resource outline to ensure the availability of enough reference materials. Brainstorming. As soon as you settle on a topic, start taking inventory of the topic ideas as they come to your mind and write them down in no particular order. Brainstorming helps with keeping track of all thoughts and ideas related to the topic and presents the writer with new avenues to explore concerning the term paper topic. Freewriting. Free writing is similar to the brainstorming as it helps you transfer your thoughts onto paper. However, free writing should entail writing ideas about the ecology topic in more formal sentences that only need editing and referencing. As opposed to listing ideas, ensure to transform the standalone concepts into a free flow of coherent information. Outlining. With the ecology topic at hand and ideas on the paper, make an outline of the concepts that should constitute the term paper. List ideas that should be discussed in the introduction section and those that should constitute the body of the paper and the conclusion segment. Below are examples you can choose for your ecology term paper topics: Explain the Importance of Herbivores in Preventing Competitive Exclusion; Describe the Influence of Diversity on the Function of Ecosystems; State the Past and Expected Effects of Climate Change on Vegetation; Carbon Dioxide Has Significant Effects on Plants and Humans. Explore the Direct Effect of Elevated Carbon Dioxide on Vegetation; Explain the Impacts of Ecosystems on The Quality of Water. Concise and Well-Written Thesis Statement Is a Must Our Writers Claim Setting for a topic and crafting a creative and compelling title for the term paper is only a single aspect in writing an ecology term paper. Before learning how and why to draft the thesis statement, let us analyze what a thesis statement is. What Constitutes a Thesis Statement? A thesis statement summarizes the claim or main point of the term paper. It should inform the reader of the significance of the ecology subject matter under discussion and provide a roadmap for the entire paper. If the term paper is about global warming, the thesis statement should provide a claim for or against global warming and offer a way to understand the concept. A thesis statement should: make a disputable claim or interpretation; be written as a single sentence at the end of the instruction segment of the introduction to present the writer’s argument; serve as the organizing principle of the term paper. The body of the term paper should organize information and evidence that convince the reader of the logic of your claim in the thesis statement. If the term paper topic asks you to develop a claim about protecting endangered species, you should convey that claim into the thesis statement. Term papers can require you to compare and contrast, interpret, analyze, or take a position on issues affecting the ecosystem and other elements of ecology. Thus, it is essential to develop a thesis statement and provide persuasive support using appropriate sources. Crafting an appropriate thesis statement is challenging, but it is important to know how to draft one because it is an essential component of every term paper regardless of its length. How Do I Develop a Thesis Statement? Formulating a thesis statement is a lengthy process that occurs after developing a topic for the term paper. The following steps help to develop an appropriate thesis statement. Read, analyze, and compare sources. Collect and organize information found in books, journals, articles, and online sources on the chosen ecology topic. Look for relationships between the ideas and concepts that constitute the topic and analyze the significance of the established relationships. Draft the thesis. Draft a statement that presents the basic argument of ideas that result from the analyzed sources, and which you are sure to support with scholarly evidence. The drafted statement is likely to be adjusted when writing other parts of the term paper; thus, do not be too rigid. Consider the counter-arguments. Since you will take a stand on one side of the chosen argument and ideas, consider the other side of the argument. Notably, considering the counterclaims helps in refining the thesis statement. How Do I Know If My Thesis Is Strong? Where possible, ask your friends or your instructor for feedback on the strength and viability of your thesis statement. If there are no people to provide you with feedback within the appropriate time, evaluate the thesis in person. During the evaluation, ask yourself the following questions: Does my thesis statement answer the term paper question? If the term paper is based on a question prompt, re-read the question and crosscheck it with the developed thesis statement to ensure you do not miss the focus of the question. Does my thesis pose a claim or observation that others might oppose? If the developed thesis statement does not provide room for people to oppose or challenge, then it provides a summary of information on the study topic instead of making a claim or an argument. Is the drafted thesis statement specific? Specific thesis statements present a strong argument while those that are too vague have arguments that may be difficult to challenge, which implies that they are weak. For instance, if your thesis statement reads, ‘protecting endangered species is good,’ try to be more specific by explaining why exactly it is good. Does my thesis pass the ‘so what?’ and ‘why and how’ test? If you read the thesis statement and respond with ‘so what? how? or why?’ then the thesis statement is not clear or is too open-ended. In this case, add appropriate content to satisfy the reader. Ecology Term Paper Outline as a Structure and Guidance for Writers An ecology term paper may focus on different and diverse topics. It may also be persuasive, informative, or argumentative. Regardless of its type and purpose, the structure should be well-organized, logical, and clear. The outline comprises: Cover page. The cover page text contains the name, the course, the date, and the instructor’s name. Abstract. The abstract is usually half a page long or approximately 150 words, and it describes the term paper, its content, and its significance. Introduction. The introduction is the first main part of the term paper and should begin with a hook and a statement about the term paper’s topic. Elements that characterize the introduction include: a short statement of the paper’s objective, thesis, and questions that the term paper will answer; placing the specific ecology topics in a broader context but in a way that represents the paper’s arguments; a description of relevant and current literature on the ecology subject of discussion or analysis; if necessary, a clarification of terms specific to the ecology discourse. Body. The body of your term paper should document a synthesis of the paper’s research and provide information about the paper’s topic to broaden the reader’s understanding of the ecology issue under discussion. The structure of the body segment depends on the goal of your term paper. Notably, no permanent conventions dictate aspects that need to be discussed or the manner in which they should be analyzed. Important Elements of the Body Section: Divide the body text into segments and subsections that represent the main ideas and supporting evidence. Each unique idea or argument should be in its own paragraph. Take note that a single sentence does not constitute a paragraph. Use the paragraphs and topic sentences to develop your paper argument comprehensively and without repetitions. Provide evidence for your arguments by quoting existing literature on selected ecology topics pertinent to the term paper. If the paper is argumentative, quote certain claims and contrast them with your opinion or disapprove the claims. Do not forget to provide reasons for disapproving a claim. Reference all the analogous and literal text and idea quotations. In cases where further clarification and comments are needed, but their inclusion in the text would disrupt the paper’s fluidity, insert the content as footnotes. However, the presence of the footnotes will depend on the term paper’s specified writing convention. The composition of your text should be clear and logically comprehensible, and the structure will depend on aspects unique to the chosen ecology topic. Provide reasons for your idea and criticisms rather than summarizing existing literature and gathering quotations. Moreover, you have to provide only information that is relevant to the understanding of your term paper issue. Post Writing Ecology Term Paper Tips to Get It Finally Done Proofread The term paper is not complete until you have proofread it to correct grammar, sentence structure, and content errors. While all the errors can be corrected at once during the first proofreading attempt, it is important to read through the paper twice or thrice to check for specific issues at each period. For instance, go through the paper to check grammatical errors and sentence structure mistakes. On the second reading attempt, read the paper aloud to identify incoherent content and sentence structures. Finally, assess the term paper for content meaning, coherence, and logical flow of ideas and supporting evidence. Finally, ensure the paper is free of nested sentences, passive constructions, and unreferenced content.

Contract & Procurement - Business outsourcing - Case study 3 Essay

Contract & Procurement - Business outsourcing - Case study 3 - Essay Example We have been considering their revenue and therefore we negotiate with them on the repayment. Our flexibility in terms of interest on loans has also been an admiration to many. Our institution have been offering different interest rate depending on the amount borrowed and the repayment time. The greater the sum borrowed, the less the interest charged. Also, the shorter the repayment time, the less the interest charged. We also offer monetary advice on venturing and savings. These additional services are also important to our customers since some of them may be willing to start a business but lacks the knowledge and how to begin. Our services are, therefore, outstanding, and we are getting new customers every day. We are, therefore, facing some challenges in coping with the ever increasing customers in some areas of operation. The areas include; finance and accounting, investment and management, and procurement (Davis & Heineke, 2009). There are many factors that affect the decision o f a firm to outsource some functions. The table below gives some of these factors. After a careful consideration, the firm management have decided to outsource this sector of operation. Accounting is one of the crucial department in any institution more so a financial institution. We are looking to make sure that our financial operations reach a professional height. The financial companies that are willing to work with us must have a reputable past. The reason is that we want serious company that will take our operations to a notch higher. The following are the requirements for the companies bidding for the post should possess. The company should have a professional human resource department that is approved by the professional accountancy authority in the country. They will, therefore, be a requirement of the approval certificate of the workers in the company. The firm should also be enumerated with the registry of the companies according

Humor Theory of Incongruity and How it is Seen in Improv Term Paper

Humor Theory of Incongruity and How it is Seen in Improv - Term Paper Example When incongruity occurs, it â€Å"violates our normal patterns and normal expectations†. So when something nonsensical or of the ridiculous occurs it contradicts daily norms and perceptions of propriety often causing the observer to respond with laughter. There are many theories for humour, which emerged primarily from philosophical studies and research in psychology. Of these, the incongruity theory comes out in the improv theatre. The incongruity theory suggests that humour is due to the mixing of two disparate interpretation frames in one statement. One of the earliest references to an incongruity theory of humour is perhaps due to Aristotle (350 BC) who found out that the contrast between expectation and actual outcome of often a source of humour. There is a distinction between surprise and incongruity. This occurs where the audience presumes the later to have a resolution that the actions initially hide from the audience. The incongruity theory also has a supporter in sev eral psychologists who emphasize the element of surprise by suggesting that â€Å"the greater and more expected (...) the incongruity is, the more violent will be (the) laughter†. ... Some theorists argue that plays only need incongruity for humour to be present; others argue that there is need for both incongruity and a resolution of that incongruity. This second version is called the configurationally theory. Several theorists point out that another element – intelligence perception- must be present since humour has its basis in intellect. It is therefore important to understand the differences between the inconsistencies in order to appreciate humour better (Beard 45). Incongruity theorists believe that the audience laughs because their line of thought surprisingly switches from one context to another. Although many scholars argue that understanding the nature of humour is extremely difficult, if not impossible, because of the fluid variables in any humour context, some scholars believe that incongruity best defines the fundamental element of humour. For its proponents, incongruity forms the foundation of humour theory, the most universal one, which vali dates all humour contexts, both perceived and created. The greatest weakness of this theory is that its tasting is not significant (Michael et. al. 11). Incongruity in improv closely relates with the developmental theory. These two theories stress the absurd, the inappropriate or out-of-context events as the basis for humour. While these incongruities are necessary, they are not sufficient prerequisites for humour alone. After all, incongruous events or statements can lead to curiosity or anxiety rather than humour; so the perception of humour is dependent upon how the audience understands incongruity in the context in which it occurs. This brings the understanding that not only does the audience have to perceive an