The Impact of Logistics and Supply Chain Integration on Maritime Research Proposal

The Impact of Logistics and Supply Chain Integration on Maritime Transportation - Research Proposal Example The oceanic containers make sure liveliness of consignments and several ports are bestowed to this expertise and as a result, strengthen their position as a key hub center. There have been a number of convergences of â€Å"Maritime Transportation† with Maritime Logistics, and which can be attributed to the objective integration of the modes of transport obsessed by the packaging and the growing needs of the end-users, which demands the use of logistics concepts (Edgerton, 2013, p. 25). To study and evaluate the contemporary technologies of integrated cargo transportation by sea and land, in combination with the port, maritime and ground transportation technologies, new communication and information technologies, shipment forwarding as well as warehousing techniques. These will be done according to the flows of commodities and shipment itinerary abiding with the basic principles of logistics of timeliness, security and competence, and keeping harmony with national and international maritime law. Demand for uninterrupted freight and â€Å"transportation† methods for the upcoming concept of â€Å"supply chain† and logistics integration is increasingly rapidly (Edgerton, 2013, p. 25). The unending problems of congestion faced by road transport and the limitation of the rail transport networks have resulted in a development of more effective integrated transporting solution. Supply chain integration stands for an assuring but complicated tool, which is still growing as a weapon in the global industry place. To maintain this maturation procedure, more supply chain research is required to expose the critical barriers of the integration procedure. â€Å"Maritime transportation† industry is a vital industry whose significance is being increasingly recognised in the global trading practices (Edgerton, 2013, p. 25). Carbone and DeMartino

Web 2.0 Learning Essay Example for Free

Web 2.0 Learning Essay The original wiki, The Portland Pattern Repository (Portland pattern repository, n. d) was created by Full Name Cunningham in 1995 (c2. com/cgi. wiki? WikiHistory – reference properly – if there is no author use the title of the page The definition of a wiki is a webpage or set of webpages that can be easily edited by anyone who is allowed access (Edersbach et al. ,2006 ). The overriding goal of a wiki is to become a shared repository of knowledge with the knowledge base growing over time (Godwin-Jones, 2003). Chawner and Lewis (2004) noted that a wiki is an example of â€Å"social software†, â€Å"a type of software that makes it easy for groups of people to work in a virtual environment†. However, Viegas , Wattenberg and Dave (2004) indicate that wikis are vulnerable to malicious edits or â€Å"vandalism,† which can be a problem at may levels. However, Cych (2006) argues that acts of vandalism and mistakes are rectified quite quickly by the self-moderation processes at work (a couple of sentences expanding on this issue is needed here – if I were you I’d try and refer to something which discusses the accuracy of wikipedia against the encyclopeadia britannica). As an alternative to the global editing of wiki’s, restricting access to registered users only is often used for professional, work group wikis. One of the great features of a wiki is its capacity to be able easily editable. A wiki has the capacity to be able to be edited collaboratively rather the information presented in wikis have the option to be edited or added utilizing a very rudimentary mark-up computer code that would use a internet explorer or browser. Broken down, one page within a wiki is referred by many as a wiki page as compared to the entire set of wiki pages is called a wiki when taken into consideration (Cunningham Leuf 2001). Thus, it can be generalized that a wiki is a collection of information where contributors can contribute collectively and users can access freely information. This has been proven as one of the most accessible or effective web 2. 0 applications in providing accessible and affordable information to students and researchers. One characteristic of a wiki that has made it so popular in sharing and communicating information to students is its ease of usability. Students need not have a degree in computer science or web applications but rather just the passion of sharing intuition and a little bit of patience in order to learn the scripts involved in the programming. They are free and without any need for registration so that users need not have the need to register or pay any amount (Aigrain 2003). It also offers real-time editing and creation so it provides the opportunity for students, researchers and faculty with much needed time as they acquire, research, and provide information within the educational institution. To summarize, unlike blogs, Wikis tend to be more structured and flexible,and, while blogs can be highly personal, wikis are intensely collaborative (Godwin-Jones, 2003). Wikipedia Wikipedia is full blown example of a Wiki. Wikipedia is the pet-project of Wikimedia Foundation which is a non-profit organization that aims to provide encyclopaedia-type information to internet users. Wikipedia has then turned out to become almost a household name, with more than 8,000,000 online articles that is accessible in the internet and is presented in more than 250 languages (it is noteworthy that almost 2,000,000 of those articles are made in English). These articles are peer-developed, rather they are developed and continually improved by researchers, users and experts of a particular field in order to provide the most accurate and up to date information on a given topic/subject (Hinchcliffe, 2006). Currently, Wikipedia holds just below 610 million words which are approximately 15 times more than what Encyclopaedia Britannica holds in these books (Godwin-Jones, 2003). Because of its nature of being able to be written collaboratively by practically anyone that has something to contribute in the page, its fame and usefulness as a resource for information has steadily increased even from the start of its creation. Currently Wikipedia is within the top ten websites around the world that is being visited daily by users worldwide (Chawner Lewis, 2004). The name â€Å"Wikipedia† that was developed by Wikimedia is a combination of two words – Wiki which points to an online collaborative effort in creating an article or text and Encyclopedia (Godwin-Jones, 2003). But fame is without its critics. Because of Wikipedia’s astronomical rise and open nature, other people critical about these aspects have begun to look closer on wikipedia’s accuracy, precision with respect to how it is able to present information and reliability for users and researchers alike. Wikipedia has been constantly hounded with comments pertaining to high vulnerability of being vandalized and used for spreading wrong information that can be used as reference. However, because of its huge support from users, contributors and sub-programs have begun to address these problems (Chawner Lewis, 2004). In addition to this, there were studies conducted that focused on these two aspects of wikipedia and they showed that in general, Wikipedia’s instances of vandalism is rather short-lived and is as accurate as any other encyclopaedia, online or hard bound. Because of this it has won such prestigious awards as the Time Person of the year that focused on how Web 2. 0 technologies has furthered and practically galvanized online collaboration and collective effort throughout the world in order to produce scholarly articles for free.

The Role Of Religion In International Relations

The Role Of Religion In International Relations In this book, it is informed that how vital is religion in international relations. The resurgence of religion seen as the driving force behind the clash of civilizations. According to Pavlos Hatzopoulos and Fabio Petito, religion remains as a threat to international relations own existence. In other words, politics with reference of religion became a threat to security, order and civility. PART I INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS THEORY AND RELIGION Resurgence of religion and cultural pluralism in international relations challenged the Western culture of modernity and the institutions of international society. This resurgence is part of the larger crisis of modernity. It reflects a deeper and more widespread disillusionment with a modernity that reduces the world to what can be perceived and controlledthrough reason, science, technology and bureaucratic rationality , and leaves out considerations of the religious, the spiritual, or the sacred. And also, the global resurgence of religion is the failure of the modernizing, secular state to produce both democracy and development in the Third World. Moreover, the global resurgence of religion can be seen as a revolt against the West in developing countries.  [1]   People always want to belong to different faith communities or to none. Now, there is a growing evidence in international relations to what different kind of religious perspectives may have offer to the world. The rejection of the study of religion is more stronger in international relations than in most other social sciences. The common ethical principles among the main world religions on war, peace, the just war, pacifism, human rights and peace building are identified by the scholars in international relations, Christian Ethics, and Religious Studies. These social ethics are also examined by various nongovernmental organizations such as the World Conference on Religion and Peace (Amman, Jordon, 1999) and the Parliament of the Worlds Religions.  [2]   Deep pluralism focuses the approach called virtue-ethics. It focuses on virtues, practisesand community rather than the individual or or a cosmopolitan community of humankind as a whole. The necessary dinstinction between theology(faith) and reason and leaded this question, which is superior faith or reason? A virtue-ethics approach shows how humanitarian practises can help to build up communuties in their faith as well as empower them as part of development. It maybe the case that two should go together if there is to be lasting political stability, democracy and development.  [3]   Theological and religious thinking causes debates about the role of the culture on the international politics. The presumed unity of ethics and politics mostly disappered along with it . The concequences of extinction , and the changes in theoretical perspective entailed other political models or view points . A community is not merely an artificial set of arrangemets between people. An it certainly cannot be a moral community. Humans create the state out of their own self interest means that the state can exist only so long as it appeals to peoples sinful needs rather than to any capacity for virtue tahat e denies most possess in any case. And also people obey law because it is in their self interest to do so, not because they believe it is the morally correct thing to do so. For him does not consider political activity to be natural to people nor does he believe that people engage in politics for y reason except promoting their own self interest. The article analyzes several specif ic theological views on multiculturalism in world politics, including religious pluralism, apologetics and syncretism.  [4]  Each of these perspectives challenge the exclusivist views of religion. Theological pluralism has many similarities with liberalism, yet analyses more deeply and ultimately challenge liberalisms Enlightenment presuppositions. On the other hand, apologetics is a dialogical processes which are designed to overcome the problems associated with alterity apologetics is a dialogical processes which are designed to overcome the problems associated with alterity. Syncretist religious ethics points to the contingency and multiplicity of identity. Taking these approaches seriously may well resonate with the aspects of the English School.  [5]   It shouldnt be ignored that traditional preoccupation with the problem of power in assessing the value of theological ethics. Stressing power similarities and differences, and differences including whether religious practices reinforce or challenge dominant economic and political structures of power is a contribution to the study of religion. PART II WAR, SECURITY, AND RELIGION Often the political resurgence of religious communities is accompanied by violent clashes in and between nations among others. We can give as examples; the bloody conflicts in Algeria, Bosnia, East Timor, Kashmir, Nigeria, Palestine and Sri Lanka. Primordialists argue that differences in religious traditions should be viewed the most important variable to explain violent interactions in and between nations. The resurgence of religion represents a big challenge to the existing status quo. Primordialists argue that differences in religious traditions should be viewed the most important variable to explain violent interactions in and between nations.  [6]  Instrumentalists think that conflicts may be aggravated by divergent religious creeds but they insist that the yare rarely if ever caused by them. According to them, the correlation between violent clashes and resurgence of religion is not surprising but it is necessary.  [7]  By contrast, moderate constructivists argue that a cts of violence requiers legitimization and religion and religious leaders provide such legitimization.  [8]   There is three theorethical perspectives on the impact of faith on political conflict: primordialism, instrumentalism, and moderate constructivism. In this view, cultural similarities and dissimilarities produce converging and diverging state interests. Most religious conflicts in international politics are asymmetric. States which have similar religious traditions and cosmologies will want to form alliances against whom they share little cultural and religious ideas. Violence will be largely confines to interactions that take place between civilizations. Under the conditions of scarcity and value pluralism, conflicts among groups are a universal feature of social life. They can not be avoidedbut must be taken as a result of human nature.  [9]  The sources of conflicts are usually very complex. Religious factors sometimes play a subordinate role as a source of conflicts. There is four determinants of elites strategic choices. The first one is; the degree of mobilization depends on the nature of conflict. The second one is; the degree of mobilization depends on the self-sacrificing attitudes of the groups members. The more commited the more to invest time and resources, the more practicable will be. The other determinant is; the degree of mobilization depends on the relationship between the conflict parties. And lastly, the degree of societal support depends on the public justification for the use of violence. Also there is two conditions for a successful implementation of the dialogue strategy. First, there is a dilemma between the different religious communuties. Before they resist against the violence, they have to be sure about the other communuties do the same. If this does not happen,peace would become the stupid according to conservative scholars. Secondly, all great religious communuties are more or less entangled in violent political clashes. The sources of conflicts are usually very complex. Religious factors sometimes play a subordinate role as a source of conflicts. Since the end of the Cold War, conflicts and wars are less because of political or ideological systems. And also they are not much caused by economic motives or territorial and because of gaining power. The motivations of conflicts are increasingly related to culture and identity. Or in other words, conflicts cause by ethnic or clash of civilizations. The resurgence of religion represents a big challenge to the existing status quo. And also they are not much caused by economic motives or territorial and because of gaining power. Most religious conflicts in international politics are asymmetric. Often secular states are attacked by religious groups. A threat from a religious group known for using terrorist methods. And this situation generally seen as a direct threat to sovereignty of the state. A religious attack on a secular state can be seen as one of the three main ways in which religion can be addressed within the realm of security politics  [10]  : A religious group is considered to be a threat to the survival of the state. Faith is seen as threatened by whoever or whatever nonreligious actor or process (the state, technology, industrialism, modernism, etc.). Faith is seen as threatened by another religious discourse or actor. Especially securitization on behalf of secularization against fundamentalism justifies many violations of democracy and civil liberties around the world. From a secular platform, religion as such can be depicted as a threat to political culture. On this issue international relations theory is not neutral observer as it pretends to be. It is implicated by its own secularist self perception.  [11]   PART III POLITICIZING RELIGION: TOWARD A NEW GLOBAL ETHOS? Inclusivism strives for a religious identitiy that exceed the locus of the sovereign state and the time frame of the present; it alternatively rests on a future fulfillment. Inclusivist religion can help to diminish the obstacles to a needed and desirable reconciliation of science, reason and sprituality.  [12]  Religion can bring clarity and charity to debates about a range of grievances regarding past abuses. Humane global govarnance can only ocur as the outcome of human struggle and to past efforts to overcome colonialism, slavery. The cultural division between East and West was historically neat and rigid. Between Christian and Islamic spirituality we can see familiar themes, but also a kind of sea change. In the Islamic context, intellectual spirituality is not a compact movement and it subscribe to a unified doctrine. Desecularization becomes a very important dimension of the intellectual and historical context. In this context, religion becomes an increasingly important factor in transnational and international relations. Because of the significance of religion in political arena, the Islamic resurgence in twentieth century viewed as the rise of political Islam. As a consequence, while the resurgence involves many dimensions, its political impacts received more attention. Political Islam have many types of movements. There have been movements advocating internal legal reform, the transformation of social institutions through legislation as well as social persuasion, revolutionary change of the political regime or political system. The resurgence of political Islam represents a big challenge to the existing status quo. And also it means that it is a challenge to political systems institutions and their moral and intellectual foundations.  [13]   The context of international relations has been experiencing significant transformations. Many older slogans, paradigms and ideologies that had shaped conceptual frameworks have been discredited or replaced. The collapse of Soviet Union and the end of the Cold War encouraged many to look for and identify new global threats, new enemies and conflicts. For some, political Islam became the next threat and global terrorism. But the realities of Muslim politics reflect a more complex and dynamic reality. The resurgence of religion and ethnicity has been global. Relations between Islam and the West show a process of conflict and change. Islamic jihads and Western clash of civilizations face new realities. Islamically inspired schools, medical clinics,hospitals, social services and financial institutions increased. Islamic parties demonstrated their ability to participate within the system and provide a political alternative to the regimes.Ä ±slamic activists served in cabinets became prime ministers and presidents.  [14]  The terrorism of 11 September highlighted the importance of the struggle within the Muslim world between the violent jihadist vision and the visions of pluralism and dialogue.  [15]  

Problems Mao faced with GLF and GPR :: Chinese China History

Problems Mao faced with GLF and GPR Qtn: What the problems did Mao face in trying to implement his policies in China? [12m] The policies meant in the question are the economic policy, Great leap Forward and the social policy, Great Proletariat Cultural Revolution. Mao undertook these policies in 1958 to 1960 and 1966 to 1976 respectively. Mao faced problems in both policies he undertook. However both policies shared two similar problems - uncareful planning and political problem. In implementing both policies, Mao realised that he now had to face the problem of his uncareful planning that resulted in further unexpected problems. In the Great Leap Forward, for example, his uncareful planning cause the cash crops in the field to rot while farmers were sent to work on the construction of infrastructure facilities. In the proletariat revolution, such a problem gave rise to unintended extremism of the Red Guards and violence in the society. The emphasis for highest regard for the proletariats and a cult of personality of Mao that developed soon caused Red Guards, who were Mao loyals, to commit acts of violence and social disarray. In this revolution, the theme was "Reds are better than experts". The Red Guards soon went around destroying anything associated with tradition or foreign, criticised teachers, intellects and politicians. Another shared problem is the problem of political enemies he faced. This was the biggest problem he faced because these were people who introduced policies that continually reversed his reforms. In this way, Mao's reforms faced huge obstacles for it to succeed the way Mao wanted it to be. This is because, at the same time there were policies that aimed to reverse these reforms. These political enemies were the Rightists who included Deng Xiaoping and Liu Shaoqi. Further problems for the implementation of Great Leap Forward can be classified as unintended and intended. An unintended problem was the natural disaster, a famine, which loomed China in 9159 to 1961. This disrupted Mao's reforms because people were starving and the Great leap Forward was not succeeding was not succeeding. An intended problem was the stop of aid from the Soviet Union in its provision of finance and industrial material, namely steel, to China. It was not that Mao literally intended for such a problem to arise. Rather, it was a problem that could have prevented if Mao maintained important diplomatic ties with communism ally, Soviet Union.

Network Based Grading System

Such systems do not relate expectations, outcomes and performance. As each students desires to desire a good score for each assignment , exam, project and/or report, the whole Network Based Grading System Network Based Grading System is vital in this generation, specially to teachers and students. This is a seem that could Nag network based grading system system ay sis as MGM Gilligan as pantheon Nagoya Lola an as MGM student at as MGM guru.Dahl mass anabolism zeugma Eng MGM grades Eng student gambit nag sang system gay intoning network based grading system. Gambit nag computer pawed gaming tong system. 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NC' Skip to main content Skip to navigation Resources How To About INCUBI Accesses Sign in to INCUBI MAC US National Library of Medicine National Institutes of Health Top of Form Search terminates database Search Limits Advanced Journal list Help Bottom of Form Journal List v. 23(7308); 2001 Gag 11 MIMIC 120936 BMW. 2001 Gag 11; 323(7308): 334-336. MIMIC: MIMIC 120936 A new system for grading recommendations in evidence based guidelines Robin Harbor, information manager and Juliet Miller, director for the Scottish Intercollegiate Guidelines Network Grading Review Group Author information Article notes Copyright and License information This article has been cited by other articles in MAC.The Scottish Intercollegiate Guidelines Network (SIGN) develops evidence based clinical guidelines for the NASH in Scotland. The key elements of the methodology are (a) that guidelines are developed by multidisciplinary groups; (b) they are based on a systematic review of the scientific evidence; and (c) recommendations are explicitly linked to the supporting evidence and graded according to the strength of that evidence. Until recently, the System or grading guideline recommendations was based on the work of the IIS Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (formerly the Agency for Health Care Policy and Research). 1,2 However, experience over more than five years of guideline developm ent led to a growing awareness of this systemic weaknesses. Firstly, the grading system was designed largely for application to questions of effectiveness, where randomized controlled trials are accepted as the most robust study design with the least risk of bias in the results.However, in many areas of medical practice randomized trials may to be practical or ethical to undertake; and for many questions other types of study design may provide the best evidence. Secondly, guideline development groups often fail to take adequate account of the methodological quail ¶y' of individual studies and the overall picture presented by a body of evidence rather than individual studies or they fail to apply sufficient judgment to the overall strength of the evidence base and its applicant ability to the target population of the guideline.Thirdly, guideline users are often not clear about the implications of the grading system. They misinterpret the grade of recommendation as relating to its i mportance, rather than to the strength of the supporting evidence, and may therefore fail to give due weight to low grade recommendations.Summary points A revised system of determining levels of evidence and grades of recommendation for evidence based clinical guidelines has been developed Levels of evidence are based on study design and the methodological quality of individual studies All studies related to a specific question are summarized in an evidence table Guideline developers must make a considered judgment bout the generalizations, applicability, consistency, and clinical impact of the evidence to create a clear link between the evidence and recommendation Grades of recommendation are based on the strength of supporting evidence, taking into account its overall level and the considered judgment of the guideline developers In 1 998, SIGN undertook to review and, where appropriate, to refine the system for evaluating guideline evidence and grading recommendations. The review had three main objectives.Firstly, the group aimed to develop a system that would maintain the link between the trench of the available evidence and the grade of the recommendation, while allowing recommendations to be based on the best available evidence and be weighted accordingly. Secondly, it planned to ensure that the grading system incorporated formal assessment of the methodological quality, quantity, consistency, and applicability of the evidence base. Thirdly, the group hoped to present the grading system in a clear and unambiguous way that would allow guideline developers and users to understand the link between the strength of the evidence and the grade of recommendation. Go to: MethodsThe review group decided that a more explicit and structured approach (figure) to the process of developing recommendations was required to address the weaknesses identified in the existing grading system. The four key stages in the process identified by the group are shown in the box. The strength of the evidence provided by an individual study depends on the ability of the study design to minimize the possibility of bias and to maximize attribution. The hierarchy of study types adopted by the Agency for Health Care Policy and Research is widely accepted as reliable in this regard and is even in box boxier. 1 Box 1 Hierarchy of study types The strength of evidence provided by a study is also influenced by how well the study was designed and carried out.Failure to give due attention to key aspects of study methods increases the risk of bias or confounding and thus reduces the stud's reliability. 3 The critical appraisal of the evidence base undertaken for SIGN guidelines therefore focuses on those aspects of study design which research has shown to have a significant influence on the validity of the results and conclusions. These key questions differ between hypes of studies, and the use of checklists is recommended to ensure that all relevant aspects are considered a nd that a consistent approach is used in the methodological assessment of the evidence. We carried out an extensive search to identify existing checklists. These were then reviewed in order to identify a validated model on which SIGN checklists could be based.The checklists developed by the New South Wales Department of Health were selected because of the rigorous development and validation procedures they had undergone. 4 These checklists were further evaluated and adapted y the grading review group in order to meet SIGN's requirements for a balance between methodological rigor and practicality of use. New checklists were developed for systematic reviews, randomized trials, and cohort and case control studies, and these were tested with a number of SIGN development groups to ensure that the wording was clear and the checklists produced consistent results. As a result of these tests, some of the wording of the checklists was amended to improve clarity. A supplementary checklist cove rs issues specific to the evaluation of diagnostic tests.This was eased on the New South Wales checklist,4 adapted with reference to the work of the Cochrane Methods Working Group on Systematic Review of Screening and Diagnostic Tests and Caruthers et al. 5,6 The checklists use written responses to the individual questions, with users then assigning studies an overall rating according to specified criteria (see box boxer). The full set of checklists and detailed notes on their use are available from SIGN. 7 Box 2 Key stages in developing recommendations Synthesis of the evidence The next step is to extract the relevant data from each study that was rated as avian a low or moderate risk of bias and to compile a summary of the individual studies and the overall direction of the evidence.A single, well conducted, systematic review or a very large randomized trial with clear outcomes could support a recommendation independently. Smaller, less well conducted studies require a body of evi dence displaying a degree of consistency to support a recommendation. In these circumstances an evidence table presenting summaries of all the relevant studies should be compiled. Considered judgment Having completed a rigorous and objective synthesis of the evidence base, he guideline development group must then make what is essentially a subjective judgment on the recommendations-?one that can validly be made on the basis of this evidence. This requires the exercise of judgment based on clinical experience as well as knowledge of the evidence and the methods used to generate it.Although it is not practical to lay out â€Å"rules† for exercising judgment, guideline development groups are asked to consider the evidence in terms of quantity, quality, and consistency; applicability; generalizations; and clinical impact. Increasing the role of subjective judgment in this way risks he reintroduction of bias into the process. It must be emphasized that this is not the judgment of an individual but of a carefully composed multidisciplinary group. An additional safeguard is the requirement for the guideline development group to present clearly the evidence on which the recommendation is based, making the link between evidence and recommendation explicit and explaining how they interpreted that evidence.Grading system The revised grading system (box (box)BE) is intended to strike an appropriate balance between incorporating the complexity Of type and laity of the evidence and maintaining clarity for guideline users. The key changes from the Agency for Health Care Policy and Research system are that the study type and quality rating are combined in the evidence level; the grading of recommendations extrapolated from the available evidence is clarified; and the grades of recommendation are extended from three to four categories, effectively by splitting the previous grade B which was seen as covering too broad a range of evidence type and quality.

Sources for Rrl

Fajnzylber, Lederman and Loaysa (2002) – (Fajnzylber, P. , Lederman, D. and N. Loayza (2000). â€Å"Crime and Victimization: An Economic Perspective†, mimeo) â€Å"In fact the economics of crime interacts with different and heterogeneous fields (i. e. sociology, criminology, psychiatry and geography). It is closely related to poverty, social exclusion, wage and income inequality, cultural and family background, level of education and other economic and social factors that may affect individual’s propensity to commit crimes such as cultural characteristics, age and sex. â€Å" A spatial analysis of neighborhood crime in omaha, Nebraska using alternative measures of crime rates. By haifeng zhang and Michael p. peterson. internet journal of criminology 2007 Many researchers – (Ackerman (1998), Anselin (2000), Kershaw and Tseloni (2005), Nagle (1995), Osborn et al (1992). ) Substantial neighborhood crime research has documented that urban crime occurs most frequently in stressful and disadvantaged areas with disproportional concentration of poverty, unemployment and minority populations. The social disorganization theory argues that socio-economic stress (e. g. poverty, racial/ethnic issues, etc) undermines social control level and strikes the foundations of social cohesion, which results in occurrence of crime. The routine activity approach/theory claims that criminal activities are related to social environment and the behavior patterns of people who live in the neighborhood or community. Unfavorable environment settings (poverty, low education or li teracy and unemployment) are frequently used to evaluate the effects of crime correlates. (CRIME AND POVERTY) Fleisher (1963-1966) – (Fleisher, B. , (1966), â€Å"The Effects of Income Delinquency†, American Economic Review, 56 (1/2). Pp. 118-137) â€Å"The principal theoretical reason for believing that low income increases the tendency to commit crime is that it raises the relative cost of engaging in legitimate activity and that the probable cost of getting caught is relatively low, since they (low-income individuals) view their legitimate lifetime earnings prospects dismally they may expect to lose relatively little earning potential by acquiring criminal records, furthermore, if legitimate earnings are low, the opportunity of lifetime actually spent in delinquent activity, or in jail is also low (Fleisher 1966, p. 20)† Marc Hooghe, Bram Vanhoutte, Vim Hardyns and Tuba Bircan. Unemployment, Inequality, Poverty and Crime. Spatial Distribution Patterns of Criminal Acts in Belgium 2001-2006. British Journal of Criminology, 51 (1), pp. 1-20. Oxford University Press, Oxford 2011. A concentration of poverty, a lack of resources and various indicators for social disorganization have all been invoked to explain a concentration of crime. Pg1 Kelly (2000) – (Kelly, M. , (2000). â€Å"Inequality and Crime†. The Review of Economics and Statitics, 82 (4), pp. 30-539) â€Å"in the economics theory of crime, areas of high inequality place poor individuals who have low returns from market activity next to high-income individuals who have goods worth taking, thereby increasing the returns to time allocated to criminal activity† â€Å"strain theory argues that, when faced with the relative success of others around them, unsuccessful individuals feel frustration at their situation. The greater the inequality, the higher this strain and the greater the inducement for low0status individuals to commit crime† Machin and Meghir (2004) (Machin, Stephen and Costas Meghir. â€Å"Crime and Economic Incentives. † National Bureau of Economic Research. 9 Feb 2009 ) When there are larger numbers of people with low wage rates, the crime rate usually goes up. Handbook of crime correlates. Lee Ellis, Kevin Beaver, John Wright. Academic Press, Oxford, UK Many of the most popular theories of criminal behavior have focused on poverty as a major causal factor (Mesnner and South 1986:977) pg 36 Deteriorated neighborhood conditions in an urban area were almost always associated with higher rates of official crime. Pg 237 (CRIME AND EDUCATION) (the socioeconomic determinants of crime. A review of literature. Paolo buonanno. Univerita degli studi di Milano-bicocca. p18) Crime appears to be strictly related to the level of education attained and to individual’s economic and social background. Freeman (1991,1996), Grogger (1995,1998) and more recently Lochner and Moretti (2001) attempt to clearly identify the relationships between crime and education. – Usher (1997) (Usher, D. , (1997). â€Å"Education as Deterrent to Crime†. Canadian Journal of Economics, 30 (2), pp. 367-84. ) â€Å"Education promotes good citizenship. Education does more than teach skills to enhance one’s capacity to earn income. It perpetuates the values of society, enculturates people to serve their communities and promotes virtues of hard work and honesty. † Education may also have a â€Å"civilization effect,† tending to reduce the incidence of criminal activity. Ehrlich (1975, p. 333) (Elrich,I. , (1975). â€Å"On the Relation between Education and Crime†. In Juster, F. T. (Ed. ), Education, Income and Human Behavior. New York: McGraw-Hill, pp. 313-337. ) Positive relationship between the average number of school years completed by the adult population (over 25 years) and particularly property crimes committed across the U. S. in 1960 Wilson and Herrnstein (1985) (Wilson, J. Q. and R. Herrnstein (1985). Crime and Human Nature. New York: Simon and Schuster) Several studies have shown that criminals tend to be less educated and from poorer economic backgrounds than non-criminals. Lochner (1999) (Lochner, L. , (1999). Education, Work and Crime: Theory and Evidence†, Working Paper No 465, Center for Economic Research (RCER) – University of Rchester) â€Å"crime is primarily a problem among young educated men. Individuals with low skill level are more likely to participate in criminal activities because the returns they can earn from work or school are low. Both high school graduation and ability directly lower criminal propen sities† p. 34 Lochner and Moretti- (Lochner, L. and E. Moretti (2001). â€Å"The effect of education on crime: evidence from prison inmates, arrests and self-reports†, NBER Working-Paper no. 605) â€Å"Schooling increases the returns to legitimate work, raising the opportunity costs of illegal behavior. † P. 1 â€Å"Schooling significantly reduces criminal activity† p. 30 Education and Crime. Lancer Lochner. University of Western Ontario. December 13, 2007. Empirically there is a strong negative correlation between educational attainment and various measures of crime. Using OLS, Lochner and Morretti (2004) estimate that one-year increase in average education levels in a state reduces state-level arrest rates by 11 percent. pg9 Handbook of crime correlates. Lee Ellis, Kevin Beaver, John Wright. Academic Press, Oxford, UK The vast majority of studies have concluded that as an individual’s years of education increase, his or her probability of criminal behavior decreases. Two studies of the relationship between years of education and antisocial behavior both concluded that a significant negative correlation existed. Pg 36 The crime reducing effect of education. Stephen machin, Olivier marie. Suncica vujic. Institute for the Study of Labor discussion paper no. 5000. June 2010. IZA Bonn Germany Pg 2-4 There are a number of theoretical reasons why education may have an effect on crime. From the existing socio-economic literature there are (at least) three main channels through which schooling might affect criminal participation: income effects (education increases the returns to legitimate work raising the opportunity costs of illegal behavior therefore, those who can earn more are less likely to engage in crime), time availability (time spent in education may also be important in terms of limiting the time available for participating in criminal activity. The time spent at school during the year is negatively correlated to the probability of arrest that year. It was found that property crime increases significantly in areas where youths have days off school) and patience or risk aversion. For most crimes, one would expect that these factors induce a negative effect of schooling on crime. CRIME AND UNEMPLOYMENT Arvantes and Delfina 2006 High unemployment rates also provide incentives to perform all kinds of criminal acts. John P. Allison (1972) (Allison, John P. Economic Factors and the rate of Crime. † Land Economics 48 (1972): 193-96. JSTOR. 9 Feb 2009 ) Allison finds that unemployment rate is one of the biggest factors that contribute toward crime rates. Both unemployment and poverty rates have significant and positive effects on crime rate. Handbook of crime correlates. Lee Ellis, Kevin Beaver, John Wright. Academic Press, Oxford, UK Pg 107 Regarding the frequency of unemployment, numerous studies have been conducted with res pect to criminality. The majority of these studies have indicated that frequently unemployed persons are more likely to have a criminal record In Ehrlich model, individuals divide their time between legal activates and risky illegal activities. If legal income opportunites become scare relative to potential gains in crime, the model predicts that crime will become more frequent. Increased unemployment could be one such factor. Identifying the effect of unemployment and crime. Steven Raphael and Rudolf winter-ebmer. Journal of law and economics. Vol. xliv. April 2001. The university of chicago Pg 260 Declines in crime rates may be due in part to the current absence of legal employment opportunities. To the extent that increase legitimate employment opportunities deter potential offender from committing crimes, a decline in the unemployment rate such as that observed during the 1990s may be said to cause the declines in crime rate. CRIME AND LITERACY Handbook of crime correlates. Lee Ellis, Kevin Beaver, John Wright. Academic Press, Oxford, UK Pg 150 The vast majority of studies have found that individuals who receive high grades tend to be less criminal than those with low grades. The academic performance of delinquents and criminals tends to be especially poor in those subject areas requiring reading and other linguistic skills rather than in areas where the primary demands are on mathematical and scientific reasoning skills. Pg241 – 243 There is a strong evidence that academic performance as measured by grade point average was inversely associated with both official and self-reported criminality in nearly all investigations. Slow reading development was positively correlated with involvement in crime and delinquency. Theories the Criminological theories past to present. Essential Readings. Third edition. Francis T. Cullen and Robert Agnew. Roxbury Publishing Company LA California, Pg 5-8 Classical theory by Beccaria Central Thesis: Crime occur when the benefits outweigh the costs – when people pursue self-interest in the absence of effective punishments. Crime is a free-willed choice Positivist theory Crime is caused or determined by sociological factors Social Disorganization/Chicago School – Shaw an McKay, Sampson and Wilson, Raudenbush and Earls Disorganized communities cause crime because informal social controls break down and criminal cultures emerge. They lack the â€Å"collective efficacy† to fight crime and disorder. Strain/General Strain by Cohen, Cloward and Ohlin, Agnew When individuals cannot obtain success goals (e. g. , money, status in school), they experience strain or pressure. Under certain conditions, they are likely to respond to this strain through crime. The strains leading to crime, however, may not only be linked to goal blockage (or deprivation of valued stimuli0 but also to the presentation of noxious stimuli and the taking away of valued stimuli. Critical Theory by Bonger, Quinney, Currie and Colvin Inequality in material well-being creates conditions that lead to street crime and corporate crime.

Essential Facts You Need to Know About Planet Earth

Essential Facts You Need to Know About Planet Earth Earth is unique among the planets of our solar system; its particular conditions have given rise to all sorts of life, including millions of plant and animal species. The planet is incredibly diverse- it has tall mountains and deep valleys, humid forests and arid deserts, warm climates and cold. Its 195 countries are home to over 7.5 billion people. Key Takeaways: Planet Earth The third planet from the Sun, Earth has a unique physical and chemical composition that allows it to support a huge range of plant and animal life. Earth takes about 24 hours to complete one full rotation and about 365 days to complete one full revolution around the Sun. Earths highest recorded temperature is 134 degrees Fahrenheit, and its lowest is minus 128.5 degrees Fahrenheit. Circumference Measured at the equator, the circumference of the Earth is 24,901.55 miles. However, the Earth is not quite a perfect circle, and if you measure through the poles, the circumference is a bit shorter- 24,859.82 miles. The Earth is a bit wider than it is tall, giving it a slight bulge at the equator; this shape is known as an ellipsoid, or, more properly, a geoid. The Earths diameter at the equator is 7,926.28 miles, and its diameter at the poles is 7,899.80 miles. Rotation on Axis It takes the Earth 23 hours, 56 minutes, and 04.09053 seconds to complete a full rotation on its axis. However, it takes an additional four minutes for the Earth to revolve to the same position as the day before, relative to the sun (i.e. 24 hours). Revolution Around the Sun The Earth takes 365.2425 days to complete a full revolution around the Sun. A standard calendar year, however, is only 365 days. To correct for the drift, an additional day, known as a leap day, is added to the calendar every four years, thereby ensuring that the calendar year remains in sync with the astronomical year. Distance to the Sun and Moon Because the Moon follows an elliptical orbit around the Earth, and because the Earth follows an elliptical orbit around the Sun, the distance between Earth and these two bodies varies over time. The average distance between the Earth and the Moon is 238,857 miles. The average distance between Earth and the Sun is 93,020,000 miles. Water vs. Land Earth is 70.8 percent water and 29.2 percent land. Of this water, 96.5 percent is found within the Earths oceans, and the other 3.5 percent is found within freshwater lakes, glaciers, and polar ice caps. Chemical Composition The Earth is composed of 34.6 percent iron, 29.5 percent oxygen, 15.2 percent silicon, 12.7 percent magnesium, 2.4 percent nickel, 1.9 percent sulfur, and 0.05 percent titanium. Earths mass is about 5.97 x 1024 kilograms. Atmospheric Content Earths atmosphere is composed of 77 percent nitrogen, 21 percent oxygen, and traces of argon, carbon dioxide, and water. The five main layers of the atmosphere, from lowest to highest, are the troposphere, stratosphere, mesosphere, thermosphere, and exosphere. Highest Elevation The highest point on Earth is Mount Everest, a Himalayan peak that reaches 29,035 feet above sea level. The first confirmed ascent of the mountain took place in 1953. Tallest Mountain From Base to Peak Earths tallest mountain as measured from base to peak is Mauna Kea in Hawaii, which measures 33,480 feet. The mountain reaches 13,796 feet above sea level. Lowest Elevation on Land Earths lowest point on land is Israels Dead Sea, which reaches 1,369 feet below sea level. The sea is known for its high salt content, which allows swimmers to practically float in the water. Deepest Point in the Ocean Earths lowest point in the ocean is a section of the Mariana Trench known as Challenger Deep. It reaches 36,070 feet below sea level. High water pressure in this area makes exploring it very difficult. Highest Temperature The highest recorded temperature on Earth is 134 degrees Fahrenheit. It was recorded at Greenland Ranch in Death Valley, California, on July 10, 1913. Lowest Temperature The lowest recorded temperature on Earth is minus 128.5 degrees Fahrenheit. It was recorded at Vostok, Antarctica, on July 21, 1983. Population As of December 2018, the world population is estimated to be 7,537,000,0000. The most populous countries are China, India, the United States, Indonesia, and Brazil. Annual global population growth as of 2018 is estimated to be about 1.09 percent, which means that the population is increasing by 83 million people per year. Countries There are 195 countries in the world including the Holy See (the city-state of the Vatican) and the State of Palestine, both of which are recognized by the United Nations as non-member observer states. The worlds newest country is South Sudan, which was founded in 2011 after breaking away from the Republic of Sudan.

Civil War Reconstruction essays

Civil War Reconstruction essays It was 1865, the Civil War had ended and President Abraham Lincoln has been assassinated. Lincoln had been the moderator between the extreme beliefs of the Republican majority in Congress and the liberal ideas of the Democrats or Confederate sympathizers. None the less Reconstruction needed to begin as soon as possible. The South needed to be rebuilt, economically as well as geographically; the Union would have to readmit all former Confederate states in order for the reconstruction to begin. Lincolns point of view had been that the South deserved to be readmitted. Others, such as Congress, felt like the South should pay for their rebellious behavior. They felt this way because they were afraid that the South would rebel again. There were many different ideas on how the Reconstruction for the South was to be dealt with, but the most important were Lincolns Plan, Johnson Plans of Reconstruction, and the Radical Republican Reconstruction. Lincolns Plan consisted of two major points: the Proclamation of Amnesty and Reconstruction, which included the Ten Percent Plan and the acceptance of the Thirteenth Amendment. The Proclamation of Amnesty stated that before returning to the Union, the Confederates would take an oath to support the Constitution of the United States of America and the Union of the states there under. Lincoln's plan for Reconstruction was to readmit Southern States on liberal terms, and offered a 10% plan. This plan allowed southern states to reenter the union and develop a state government as soon as 10% of the state's population signed a loyalty pledge however Congress wished to be more severe. Lincoln might have been able to carry his plan through but he was killed shortly after the beginning of his second term in office. Andrew Johnson, the successor to Lincoln, initially showed views on Reconstruction similar to those that Lincoln had ...

Company's Performance Management System Assignment

Company's Performance Management System - Assignment Example The major objective of the Beverage brand is a global recognition as an organization believing and nurturing ethical and responsible business. The organization wants to achieve a sustainable growth with the objective of operating in the future. The goals of the organization’s performance management are to enable highest level performance. The objective of the global performance system of Coca-Cola is to create an environment where workers and employees and develop and excel skills for improving themselves as well as move forward in their career goals (The Coca–Cola Company, 2013a). The most recognized performance management system of Coca-Cola is known as peak performance process. This system is implemented all around the global offices of Coca-Cola. The peak performance process invites all the employees’ to participate in its multifaceted program, round the year. The process includes development, performance and elements of career planning that are recorded in t he online tool of the organization (Jonhson and Scholes, 2002). Bonuses and compensations are linked to this system and are calculated on the basis of this process every year. BENEFITS AND SHORTFALL The performance management system at coca-cola is achieved through four different stages of the annual business cycle. The management system is composed of multiple objectives. The first stage is the annual performance review which is held to access the previous year results. The objective of this stage is to appreciate the top performers of the previous tear. Other objective during this stage is to prepare feedback and coaching for the key performance indicators, key performance objectives and competencies of last year (The Coca–Cola Company, 2013b). Apart from reviewing last year performance, the annual review also sets the development plan of current year. The key performance indicators and the key performance areas and the competencies for current year are identifies. The seco nd stage is planning for the performance of the year. In this stage, the key performance areas and competencies are finalized and delegated throughput the organization. The third stage of performance management is the reward and recognition phase. In this stage, the pay linked to performance is indicated and top performers are recognized. The last stage is the mid-term review, where coaching and feedback is provided. A 360 degree feedback on competencies is provided and well as competency development plan is formalized. Figure 1 Performance Management System at Coca-Cola Source: The Coca–Cola Company (2013c) The key benefits of using this performance management system can be described as follows; 1. Development of skills for improvement 2. Excellence in performance 3. Advancement in career goals. By providing the right resources, training and performance measurement programs, the organization makes sure that employees are sufficiently equipped with skills and capabilities whi ch will help them in building their career (Sahoo and Mishra, 2012). By providing appropriate authority and job responsibilities to the job holders, the managers makes sure that the functions of Coca-cola are focused on activities such as coordination, division, task control and proper flow of information. The performance at coca-cola focuses on acquisition and retention of highly skilled and knowledgeable employees and

Lazard US Mid Cap Equity Portfolio Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2250 words

Lazard US Mid Cap Equity Portfolio - Case Study Example These kind of invest in stocks of companies with solid financial base are return patterns Income equity funds: invest in a mix of bonds and dividend paying stocks as they also target current income and capital growth Balanced funds: have long term objectives and emphasize on capital growth, and current income. Invest in bonds, stocks, and short term securities, and always ensure the right hedging against huge fluctuations in short term investment options. Bond funds: designed to meet the current income requirements of shareholder, and they invest primarily in corporate and government bonds and T-bills Money market funds: invest in securities such as commercial papers, T-bills, certificates of deposit and other stable but monetary related securities. These are currency related investments and no guarantees are made on such funds. Target date funds: These include retirement and pension funds as they are the major types in this category with the date of maturity of the fund known. These kinds of funds are made for strictly long term investments. Lazard US Mid Cap Equity Portfolio Background LZMIX, ticker for the Lazard US mid cap portfolio for institutional shares, is a fund under the hazard investment fund. The fund is a balanced fund for institutional investors that were created in 1997 for this primary reason. The fund as at the 4/30/2012, the net assets of Lazard mid cap Equity portfolio was approximately values at $105.7 million, including $58.2 million worth of shares held institutionally. Recent performance The fund has a yield rate of 0.28% with no loadings applicable to the investment. Expenses incurred in transactions are given at the rate of 0.92%. Morningstar rates the management fee as average level, showing it in line with industry charges. LZMIX turnover is quoted at 83%, while the minimum investment an investment can make is $100000. The fund performance ranges as other in the institutional investment portfolio; weighted against the Russell midcap index is just 0.57 point shy in the period of it has traded. However, in the short run, the observation is not as quite. The funds 5 year valuation gives a negative posting making against its benchmark. The one year measure is also a less value compared to the Russell index. There company funds performance is more of a cycle with high peaks and low troughs, just as the options it invests in. The year to date (2012 to date) gives a strong index value, but not the month- end value, that oscillates back to the negative, showing signs of high volatility in the investment options and maybe weakness in the fund management. Mutual Fund The Lazard US Mid cap equity portfolio is one of the funds in the Hazardnet group that hope to generate strong returns and outshine peers in the market of institutional investment and set the benchmark for the complete market cycle. The fund has a bottom-up loom to stock selection, as is shown by all portfolios held by HazardNet. They conduct the fundamental analysis before investing, with emphasis on sustainability of returns. This is ensured by though analysis of the accounting employed by the companies and the historical statistics of benefits offered, that is, high P/E, dividend yield and stability of stock. Quantitative research is done to ensure that the target company’

(you decide for me) Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

(you decide for me) - Essay Example This type of racism is rampant in white dominated societies. The other form of racism is economic racism; this mainly has historical orientation with regard to economic or social disparity affecting the current generation. Some of these practices include a biased technique of hiring of employees based on race, a biased salary payment procedure, use of inflated requirements with regard to educational qualification or rendering foreign credentials invalid with regard to applying for a position in an organization. It has been argued that, hypothetically, a capitalist economy or profit driven employer reduces racial segregations, in the sense that, capitalists would avoid extra cost by accommodating everyone and minimizing discrimination or any racist hiring policies. However, normally cultural norm or affiliations tend to overwhelm the capitalists ideology in the sense that, hiring an individual of a different race to a managerial position may hamper communication among the other employers, jeopardizing the company’s operations. This tend ency may continue to the outside of the company, as other companies tend to isolate it too. The other form of racism is the institutional racism. This is a form of racism incorporated within the policies of a given institution, its practices and institutional procedures. These policies of which may be lead to deliberately or unconsciously, direct or indirectly promote, support or ingrain differential advantage for individuals belonging to certain races. Generally, institutional racism involves overt racist acts by individuals of which is not adequately responded to by the organization. Institutional racism is not just limited to institutions alone, it extensively covers even governments, co-operations and even religions. For instance, there are governments or branches of government arms that perpetuate racism against individuals with foreign origin by denying them access to basic

Veteran Benefits Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Veteran Benefits - Research Paper Example These problems include excessive use of alcohol and very aggressive behaviors. The research even shows that the problems become worse instead of being better as time passes. The same research states that these army officials experience the issue of post traumatic stress as they try to refit in the normal civilian life. This is because they not have co-soldiers to help them settle in their civilian lives. The research shows that out of 1800 veterans, 23 to 33 percent of them presented signs of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. The activities they presented included very aggressive behaviors such as slamming doors, punching walls and starting fights without any reason ((Paulson, 2007). The research even showed that national guards were experiencing issues with settling in normal civilian life as they did not had the support of other soldiers and the standard of their health coverage was inferior than the health coverage provided to active military personnel. Another problem faced by vete ran soldiers is that they have to wait for a very long period of time to gain medical coverage or attention. The research showed that veterans were getting medical coverage after 110 days of claim have passed and there were a huge number of veterans that needed medical attention. Other health problems experienced by these veterans include muscular pain. Many soldiers have reported pain in their back, neck, shoulders and knees. Environmental elements and exposure to toxic chemicals have left the veterans with life taking diseases such as heart diseases. Veterans have even experienced infections when they returned from war. Although they have been injected with various vaccinations but these vaccinations cannot control all the infections. US military does not have vaccines for various infections. Other health issues faced by veterans include loss of hearing or problems with hearing such as vibration and ringing in the ears. These issues are experienced due to continuous exposure to gu n fire. Many veterans have presented brain injuries also known as Traumatic Brain Injuries (TBI). These have been caused due to any injury to the head. The effects of TBI includes loss of short and long term memory, loss of eye sight, depression, decrease in span of attention, and various other issues. Unemployment – Almost every year more than three hundred thousand military officials return home to start their lives as normal civilians. Almost all of them face various problems and one of the major problems experienced by these Vets is unemployment. The war returnees are experiencing difficulty in getting employment. According to a statistical data released by the Bureau of Labor Statistics states that the rate of unemployment amount those who have returned from Afghanistan and Iraq war is higher than the rate of unemployment faced by the civilians of America. Many military officials have complained that they have failed to find a job that pays well and has good benefits. Th e data produced by the Bureau even states that the younger veterans or returnees of war face a higher rate of unemployment. This includes individuals aging between eighteen and twenty four (Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2011). The question asked by most is the main reason for the unemployment rate of veteran soldiers. These soldiers develop various important skills during war

Pepsi Strategies in 2008 Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Pepsi Strategies in 2008 - Case Study Example There is also emphasis on the use of television advertising that features mainly celebrities. PepsiCo is intending to conduct some major restructuring operation in 2009 by getting its business segments to achieve efficient concentration in the firm's main operations: Pepsi-cola and Frito-Lay. This would support the company in improving its position in the world of consumer packaged products globally and improve its competitiveness in the market of beverages. Pepsi has been in trial to promote it self by attaching its products to some causes of charitable works. In the World water day 2008, for instance, the company was in the front line in trying to help solve the universal crisis of water shortage. This was done mainly to promote the company's products. It achieved more sales through marketing which was intensively ethical and responsible as well as including the products in charitable activities. It has denoted some amount from its sales to support children all over the world to get access to clean and pure drinking water. The firm's slogan states that if the customer decides to take bottled water, then he or she would be making a major difference. The firm intents to move its water brand to out to over 40,000 merchandisers in other parts.

United States industrial relations Research Paper

United States industrial relations - Research Paper Example The government ensures a peaceful coexistence of employers and employees and their representatives for a peaceful society. The management on the other hand, ensures business prosperity by managing labor costs, company profitability as well as productivity. In maintaining such goals, employers often conflict with employees regarding work conditions and it is the duty of worker representatives or trade unions to ensure the rights of workers are not infringed. They therefore fight for; safe work conditions, wages and benefits and against unfair labor practices. Industrial relations have a long history which is the basis of the current labor environment in the United States. Several labor movements or trade unions have developed over time from craftsmen associations to amalgamated unions and international unions and continue to fight for workers rights to date as work environment changes due to globalization. Change in government leadership also affects industrial relations. Various presidents and congressmen have different views regarding labor issues; some are sympathetic to workers plight while others are less concerned hence numerous legislations have been passed which dictate the nature of relationship between employers and employees and their representatives. These legislations have a bearing on the current labor environment in the United States. ... They deal with employees of a certain locality or region. The national unions on the other hand, handle labor issues at a national level. The local unions serve as branches of the national union. The national unions are broader in nature in that they incorporate workers of all regions. The local and national unions fall under the labor federations; they incorporate all the unions. They control the activities of all unions hence give the labor movement direction. Sometimes unions cross the boundaries and unite with unions worldwide due to globalization to deal with international labor issues (Budd, 2006). Fuller (2011) also notes that the number of unionized staff has been declining over the years. He attributes this to; management attitudes towards unions move from manufacturing to service jobs which don’t require skills as well as increase in part-time jobs which make organization of labor difficult. Budd (2006) attributes the decline of union membership to the introduction o f management friendly practices such as the human resource management which emphasize on worker empowerment through participation and involvement in management practices such as decision making and workplace flexibility which is achieved through team work instead of job designations. Unions are also encouraged to work in partnership with management so as to achieve efficiency. The government also restricts union growth by passing labor laws which protect the rights of workers hence reducing the importance of unions. Workers need not to join trade unions to achieve their rights. Labor in early America was characterized by the existence of European immigrants, African slaves, long working days, low wages, control of the industry by craftsmen and journeymen. Skilled

Veteran Benefits Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Veteran Benefits - Research Paper Example These problems include excessive use of alcohol and very aggressive behaviors. The research even shows that the problems become worse instead of being better as time passes. The same research states that these army officials experience the issue of post traumatic stress as they try to refit in the normal civilian life. This is because they not have co-soldiers to help them settle in their civilian lives. The research shows that out of 1800 veterans, 23 to 33 percent of them presented signs of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. The activities they presented included very aggressive behaviors such as slamming doors, punching walls and starting fights without any reason ((Paulson, 2007). The research even showed that national guards were experiencing issues with settling in normal civilian life as they did not had the support of other soldiers and the standard of their health coverage was inferior than the health coverage provided to active military personnel. Another problem faced by vete ran soldiers is that they have to wait for a very long period of time to gain medical coverage or attention. The research showed that veterans were getting medical coverage after 110 days of claim have passed and there were a huge number of veterans that needed medical attention. Other health problems experienced by these veterans include muscular pain. Many soldiers have reported pain in their back, neck, shoulders and knees. Environmental elements and exposure to toxic chemicals have left the veterans with life taking diseases such as heart diseases. Veterans have even experienced infections when they returned from war. Although they have been injected with various vaccinations but these vaccinations cannot control all the infections. US military does not have vaccines for various infections. Other health issues faced by veterans include loss of hearing or problems with hearing such as vibration and ringing in the ears. These issues are experienced due to continuous exposure to gu n fire. Many veterans have presented brain injuries also known as Traumatic Brain Injuries (TBI). These have been caused due to any injury to the head. The effects of TBI includes loss of short and long term memory, loss of eye sight, depression, decrease in span of attention, and various other issues. Unemployment – Almost every year more than three hundred thousand military officials return home to start their lives as normal civilians. Almost all of them face various problems and one of the major problems experienced by these Vets is unemployment. The war returnees are experiencing difficulty in getting employment. According to a statistical data released by the Bureau of Labor Statistics states that the rate of unemployment amount those who have returned from Afghanistan and Iraq war is higher than the rate of unemployment faced by the civilians of America. Many military officials have complained that they have failed to find a job that pays well and has good benefits. Th e data produced by the Bureau even states that the younger veterans or returnees of war face a higher rate of unemployment. This includes individuals aging between eighteen and twenty four (Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2011). The question asked by most is the main reason for the unemployment rate of veteran soldiers. These soldiers develop various important skills during war

United States industrial relations Research Paper

United States industrial relations - Research Paper Example The government ensures a peaceful coexistence of employers and employees and their representatives for a peaceful society. The management on the other hand, ensures business prosperity by managing labor costs, company profitability as well as productivity. In maintaining such goals, employers often conflict with employees regarding work conditions and it is the duty of worker representatives or trade unions to ensure the rights of workers are not infringed. They therefore fight for; safe work conditions, wages and benefits and against unfair labor practices. Industrial relations have a long history which is the basis of the current labor environment in the United States. Several labor movements or trade unions have developed over time from craftsmen associations to amalgamated unions and international unions and continue to fight for workers rights to date as work environment changes due to globalization. Change in government leadership also affects industrial relations. Various presidents and congressmen have different views regarding labor issues; some are sympathetic to workers plight while others are less concerned hence numerous legislations have been passed which dictate the nature of relationship between employers and employees and their representatives. These legislations have a bearing on the current labor environment in the United States. ... They deal with employees of a certain locality or region. The national unions on the other hand, handle labor issues at a national level. The local unions serve as branches of the national union. The national unions are broader in nature in that they incorporate workers of all regions. The local and national unions fall under the labor federations; they incorporate all the unions. They control the activities of all unions hence give the labor movement direction. Sometimes unions cross the boundaries and unite with unions worldwide due to globalization to deal with international labor issues (Budd, 2006). Fuller (2011) also notes that the number of unionized staff has been declining over the years. He attributes this to; management attitudes towards unions move from manufacturing to service jobs which don’t require skills as well as increase in part-time jobs which make organization of labor difficult. Budd (2006) attributes the decline of union membership to the introduction o f management friendly practices such as the human resource management which emphasize on worker empowerment through participation and involvement in management practices such as decision making and workplace flexibility which is achieved through team work instead of job designations. Unions are also encouraged to work in partnership with management so as to achieve efficiency. The government also restricts union growth by passing labor laws which protect the rights of workers hence reducing the importance of unions. Workers need not to join trade unions to achieve their rights. Labor in early America was characterized by the existence of European immigrants, African slaves, long working days, low wages, control of the industry by craftsmen and journeymen. Skilled

Ampex VTR organization Essay Example for Free

Ampex VTR organization Essay After the second world war, the introduction of televisions opened way for the technological innovation of video recording. In the 1950s, there were major inventions in the video recording industry in the US and Japan. This case study involves the technological advancement in the video cassette recorders (VCRs) manufacturing industries. Six pioneering companies will be considered, namely; RCA and Ampex of USA, Japan Victor Company (JVC) and Sony, Toshiba and Matsushita all of Japan. JVC, Sony and Matsushita had the competitive advantage of management in this industry. They emphasized on opportunities that were more rewarding, productively positioned their technical efforts and executed these efforts in more productively. These companies learnt the market technological demands for videocassette recorders and produced in mass at limited costs. To prove their technological competence, these firms produced equipment with utmost sound clarity and consistently adhered to this. JVC was under pressure to come up with a common standard for its products which led to the advent of VHS system. RCA engineers came up with a video recording machine moving a narrow tape very fast past magnetic heads. At Toshiba, a recording head was made to rotate fast while the tape moved past at relatively slow speed (helical scanner). Despite these efforts, Ampex was the first to come up with a commercial video recorder. This VTR technology was patented but was soon shared out to other companies like RCA. Ampex failed to come up with a manufacturing capability for mass production despite the high performance designs. Ampex engineers opened up the helical scanner technology for broadcast recorder but Sony, JVC and Matsushita overtook them in this technology. RCA suggested the introduction of a television magnetic tape player but this was not considered by the management until later in 1958 in the design of VTR. Sony did not employ the method of market research but instead chose to insist on high technology and innovation. In 1950, Sony introduced the first Japanese magnetic recorder for sound and tape, followed by a TV camera and stereo tape recorder. In 1961, it unveiled the first fully transistorized VTR in the world. Matsushita was a diverse company dealing with a range of electrical appliances. To beat this companys success, the rivals developed cheaper appliances. The diversities in technology led to a need for international standards to govern this. Sony wanting to outdo its foreign rivals collaborated with JVC and Matsushita in the establishment of ? inch tape cassettes. Sony, JVC and Matsushita made strategic management of technology by learning through trials. These companies were persistent and flexible. Ampex and RCA in America lacked consistency in their strategic direction making them fail to sustain technical development. The Japanese companies had stable technical teams which ensured stability in the organization. Top managers were involved in making critical decisions. Ampex VTR organization was however marred with instability (Rosenbloom Cusumano, 1987). The basic VCR technology originated from the US and Europe although the Japanese industries have been successful in the industry. The success attributed to the Japanese industries was achieved by more improvements on the basic technology rather than just copying what the West had to offer. The advent of transistors, semiconductors and microchips greatly boosted the electronic industry in Japan.

Highland Tower Collapse and Ramp Construction

Highland Tower Collapse and Ramp Construction Introduction The purpose of this essay is to find out from a field, a building that experienced construction catastrophe, study its short comings and come up with solutions and recommendations of what could be done to ensure the same problem doesn’t happen in the future. The building upon which the research is based in this assignment is called the Highland tower, a building in Selangor Malaysia which collapsed and 48 people died and 12 others were evacuated from the other building. The Highland Towers collapse was an apartment building collapse that occurred on 11 December 1993 in Taman Hillview, Ulu Klang, Selangor, Malaysia. The collapse of Block One of the apartments caused the deaths of 48 people and led to the complete evacuation of the remaining two blocks due to safety concern. It was one of the most tragic building accidents in Malaysian history where residential towers collapsed and killed people. Since then, the government and its subsidiaries sat down in a committee to see a wa y forward for the construction industry especially construction in hilly areas to minimize casualties. The event has been widely publicized, when an American tourist in particular because it is captured in the next ten days and taken to the Tower of photos a dramatic sequence, and crazy rescue operations.       Building professionals with the case of several important influence in Malaysia, which will be the focus of this paper, but also lead to tort law in Malaysia interesting development and clarification. Case study Highland Towers consists of three 12-storey buildings in a steep hill, was later extensively on the terraces in the early 1980s in western base built in stages between 1974 to 1982. Each block is named: Block1 (built in 1977, the most southern) Block2 (built in 1979, north-west block 1, slightly elevated than the other two, the closer to the top of the hill) Block3 (built in 1981, the Northwest block 1, block West 2). Parking behind the mountain rain collapsed building in the swimming pool located on both sides and the rear between Northwest Northeast parking lot after the landslide caused by the failure of the retaining wall behind the building failed, for 10 days. The tower is home to the affluent middle-class families ; considerable proportion of residents are expatriates . Highland Tower was once notorious early 1980s and 1990s for wealthy people to hide their mistress popular place . The water tower is behind a small stream known as the East Creek . Eastern Creek flows into the tower site tower before construction. Later, build a pipeline system to divert flow to bypass the tower in 1991, a new housing development project, called Wu Antarabangsa Development Project , located in the tower Peak behind the start . As a result, the mountain has been cleared of trees and other vegetation and land cover, soil erosion exposed land, which will lead to land slides from the construction site of the w ater diverted into the river to divert the flow of the same East piping systems. eventually, the pipeline system to become over- pressurized water, sand and silt from the Eastern Creek and the construction site. pipe burst at different locations in the mountains, the soil had to absorb excess moisture . December 1993 monsoon rains further worsening the situation . (Block One of the Highland Towers collapsed) Role and responsibilities The Architect (I) there is no defense of this contact is a limited one, at least you must ensure that other aspects of the work of others is competent to complete. Defensive architect, he only retained the design and supervision of three apartment buildings, and denied that his range extends to the drainage, earthworks and retaining walls. It was dismissed by that court. The court held that the architect must take into account the building on which is built in the vicinity of the land, and the land itself, the safety assessment of the building, it must be evaluated. [In addition, the court held that as a matter of fact, the architect concerned about the neighborhood and the building itself, when he submitted the layout plan, the authorities because it includes high tower behind the slope terraces and drainage. Therefore, he must ensure that the work carried out although others in a competent and workmanlike manner] (Ii) there is no difference between the standard care of unqualified doctors Although the architect in reality just a building draftsman, measure their behavior on the court has the ability to architect a standard that if a person is unqualified, but showed himself to have a skill, he will be judged by the standard a competent and qualified staff. (C) there is no excuse to say that compulsory employer does not comply with regulations Finally, the Court seems to have flatly rejected the architects excuse that he can not do anything to stop his boss (employers and engineers in obtaining certificates of fitness in three apartment buildings do not fulfill the conditions stipulated by the local authorities in collusion background, instead of terraces and retaining walls to ensure proper design, provide and sufficient to withstand, even though he knew it would affect the building, he was in charge) slope instability the Court has made clear that, when the law is broken, the architect must report to the authorities after the architect must ensure that the law, even in the risk of being discharged. Engineer Defense engineer, he only retained the design and supervision of three apartment buildings, Highland Towers compound structures within two retaining walls, and submit plans, drainage, and two and denied his range extends to the drainage, earthworks. It was dismissed by that court. The court found that engineers must take into account the building on which is built in the vicinity of the land, and the land itself, the time to assess the safety of buildings, must be evaluated. He should ensure the stability of the slope behind Highland Towers. His duties not by a mere belief that they are built on terraced slopes and retaining walls were discharged by an engineer or other consultant. He should ask the professional is qualified, whether he was doing what impact the safety of cascading tower. [Neglect other aspects of engineers a serious violation of the authorities to take care of his responsibilities to a notification issued by the buyer, and only 10 percent is based on the approved drainage construction] In summary locations near building professionals need to be considered, as well as the safety assessment of the site itself, especially taking into account the adjacent hillside. Building professionals to participate in a limited range can not hide behind, these are the things that they themselves and their employers, but they may be subject to the duties owed to the scope of their service is not limited to this. Building professionals required to ensure that others do the work to engage them in the design may affect / supervisory structure is competent, workmanlike manner to carry out the work. If you think the general building professionals have expertise in a specific area of à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬ ¹Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬ ¹eligibility when they are unqualified, their behavior will be a measure of this expertise qualified doctor. After building professionals must ensure that law and, if necessary to report to the authorities if their clients break the law, even in danger by their client to be discharged. Case application on law of tort Negligence The Highland Towers decision becomes another Malaysian High Court decision which diverges from the approach of the English Courts and adopts the approach taken by other Commonwealth jurisdictions in allowing the recovery of â€Å"pure economic loss†, especially where sufficient proximity can be demonstrated between the negligent act and the loss. Pure economic loss is the loss related to the product itself which is defective by reason of negligence, as opposed to the loss or damage caused to the property of the Plaintiff by this defective product. Nuisance In this cause of action, a Defendant is liable if the Plaintiff can show the Defendant is responsible for a condition or activity which interferes with use or enjoyment of his land, and that condition or activity is not a reasonable user by the Defendant. The Highland Towers decision, requiring the plaintiff must establish an additional requirement that is the type of damage whether the defendant could reasonably foreseeable, the principles adopted from English case law on the extension of the disturbance is limited in Malaysia, Cambridge Water Company leather Co. Ltd. v. Eastern European countries. Cause of structural failure The water tower is behind a small stream known as the East Creek . Eastern Creek flows into the tower site tower before construction, so the establishment of the pipeline system is to divert the flow to bypass the tower. In 1991, a new housing development project, called Bukit Antarabangsa Development Project, located in the tower under construction behind the top of the hill . The mountain is cleared of trees and other vegetation and land cover, land exposed soil erosion is a major factor causing landslides. Construction site of the new water diverted into the existing pipeline systems used to transfer the East river flows. This heavy-duty piping and water, sand and silt from the river and east into the pipeline construction site . Pipes burst, several places in the mountains, and the surrounding soil to absorb excess moisture . December 1993 monsoon rains further deterioration of the situation . The water content in the soil becomes super saturated, so that the soil has become viscous, actually become the degree of clay. October 1992 by the hillside is saturated with water, the water is flowing down the slopes and considered retaining walls . Shortly thereafter, landslides, destroying the construction of a retaining wall. Landslide mud that contains an estimated one hundred thousand square meters a mass equivalent to 200 Boeing 747 aircraft. Rammed earth base to first, gradually pushing it forward. After a month of this constant pressure, foundations snapped and November 1993, the residents began to see cracks forming and expanding the highlands surrounding the tower, on the road warning of collapse. Unfortunately, no further investigation before a collapse December 11, 1993. Safety authorities and Investigation procedures. These were the findings of the investigation that came from the accident. Also indicating who was to blame for the occurrence of the accident. Within the first 24 hours, only two women and an infant were pulled out of the rubble. Indonesian maid Umi Rashidah Khoruman, 22, and her 18-month old daughter Nur Hamidah Najib, survived the ordeal, but the second woman, Japanese national Shizue Nakajima, 50, succumbed to her injuries. Final report from the investigations showed that It was the fault of the property owners not to drain the land that caused the silt to build and thus the massive land slide that led to the collapse of the structure that claimed 48 lives. Liabilities. The following are the court s findings of liability : The first defendant was negligent in assuming responsibility not to engage a qualified architect, building terraces insufficient, inadequate, could reasonably be expected to have caused the collapse of the retaining walls and drains eastward diversion from its natural course and failed to ensure that the slope is adequate water pipe culverts, and hate not maintained drains and retaining walls . The second defendant ( the architect ) is assumed liability for negligence does not ensure adequate drainage and retaining walls built in the adjacent highlands tower site, which he foresaw or should have foreseen that the building would endanger the hillside, he is responsible for, not specified with the authorities on drainage, and the first defendant and the third defendant ( engineers ) collude to get fitness certificate does not fulfill the conditions by the fourth defendant ( local authorities ) are required, in doing so does not comply with his duties, the architect and no investigation retaining walls, even though he knew they would affect the terraced hillsides and construction of buildings, he was responsible for, and hate, because he is an unreasonable land users . The third defendant ( engineer ) is behind the negligence of responsibility without considering the hillside or slope of the tower, there is no basis for the design and construction to accommodate lateral load or alternatively landslide has ensured that the adjacent slope stability, without implementation of the approved drainage plan, and the first and second defendants colluded to get fitness certificate does not fulfill the conditions stipulated by the fourth defendant and a nuisance, because he is irrational use of land. The fourth defendant ( local authorities ) Although the negligence of its construction-related jobs. That is about the building plan approval process to ensure the implementation of the approved construction of drainage systems, and in the Certificate of Fitness problem remains because S95 Street, Drainage and Building Act (2 ) immunity. The fourth defendant, but a maintenance function Eastern stream late in fulfilling its construction can not be spared for its negligence . It also attracted a nuisance liability . The fifth defendant ( Arab Malaysian financial BHD) is liable for the negligence of failure to maintain drains their land, and in the land after the collapse of the measures taken to restore stability . Seventh defendant (Metrolux property ) and its project manager, the eighth defendant, who is the responsibility of negligence and nuisance, to prevent water from flowing into the downhill ( into their website ), but to guide the stream of water into the East, when they knew or ought to have known, this will increase the amount of water injected into the mud and, in particular, have their own extensive land clearing, go east into the stream, it will be deposited, which will in turn ( to prove ) cause or contribute to drainage fault system and a collapse. The ninth and tenth defendant ( basically the state government ), found no liability due to a technical problem on the prosecution of a particular political party. The sixth defendant ( who carried out the work site clean- Arab abortion buyer of land in Malaysia ) found no evidence of responsibility . Remedies About remedies the first this is find a qualified contractors and qualified Designer and construction engineer. In this case causes of building collapse the main reason is to find designer contractor caused by the irrational. So we summary have five points: (i) Nearby locations building professionals need to be considered, as well as the safety assessment of the site itself, especially taking into account the adjacent hillside. (Ii) building professionals to participate in a limited range can not hide behind, these are things that they themselves and their employers, but they may be subject to the duties owed to the scope of their service is not limited to this. (Iii) building professionals required to ensure that others do the work may be engaged to supervise their influence in the design / construction is competent, will carry out their work, a workmanlike manner. (Iv) if the building professionals think they have expertise in specific areas when they are unqualified, their behavior will be a measure of this general qualifications expertise qualified doctor. (V) construction professionals must ensure that the law after a report to the authorities if necessary, if their clients break the law, even in danger by their client to be discharged. The second thing to do is to ensure that the experience and expertise to this project. Next to it is to ensure that all materials and components to be installed and used in order to test its functionality and satisfactory compliance with the required standards. For example; specific laboratory tests should be taken before using compressive strength, stability and durability. Finally, before any part of the project is complete, responsible for the approval before its next regulatory bodies should be. The project is a model for all the items necessary tests, carried out before the actual implementation. Engineers can also use the cause of the weather and other aspects of the model. The third thing is because this situation has occurred for many years, although the court has not yet made the decision, but still want to remind contractors, who together oversee project quality, and how to resolve some of the risk around. Do not let the tragedy happen again. Percentage Frequency of Causes of Building Collapse(Malaysia 1960-2010) So in this table we can see Causes of Building Collapse most reason is Inexperience contractor. Now we need clean know find an experienced contractor is very important, faulty design and due to surrounding building development also account for a large proportion. Recommendations From the above analysis and discussion presented, you can infer that the main reason for the buildings structural failures, design errors and poor workmanship, which may also be applicable to other countries in the world . Also from the results of this study,it is believed that there are three types of claims, can produce any buildings collapsed, that contract claims, tort claims and incidents of both contract and tort claims ; This means that a party can be made in this both his / her request. Therefore, the following recommendations for who had suffered losses in the square building collapse Events so that their requirements: (i) The Government shall endeavor to assist in the investigation of any incidence of building collapse, to allow victims to know the responsible party, and from whom to make a claim . (ii) The Government should assist owners or who have suffered the loss of a building collapse in the event a third party to prosecute their cases in court as they do their other requirements, if they can not, because The expensive nature of the proceedings. (iii) The Government should enact laws that will improve the effectiveness and standards for the construction of buildings. (iv) In addition, the government should monitor, manage and enforce the law, its effectiveness. (v) Every building owner should ensure that qualified professionals and experienced contractors are engaged in carrying out their construction process . (vi) Every professional body should monitor their members and also be ready to penalize any erring member who ISS found liable in building collapse incident. Conclusion Ramp construction led to landslides like we definitely hear a lot of news, and landslides claimed more and more of life events, why is everywhere and felling of trees for the construction of the activities. Otherwise, this tragedy 21 years ago can be avoided! I hope the Government will seriously look at this issue! REFERENCES http://malaysiafactbook.com/Highland_Towers_collapse http://www.nst.com.my/nation/general/i-saw-highland-towers-block-crash-to-