Saturday, August 31, 2019

Fiction and Story

Character Analysis The Story: the Monkey’s Paw * Character: Pamela * Point of View: Third Person Omniscient * Writing Genre: Descriptive * The Monkey’s Paw was a descriptive story because throughout the whole story they were describing the paw and throughout the Afterlife you will see Pamela describing her feelings on what happen to her brother Herbert. * Fiction Genre: Mystery * I picked mystery for the Monkey’s Paw because in the end of the story I wasn’t clear on what happen and in the afterlife things happened that no one knows but me. * Literary Device: Conflict I picked conflict as my literary device because there’s a lot of conflict in this story with Pamela, Herbert, Mrs. White, Mr. White, and the star of the book â€Å"The Paw†. And also in the afterlife there’s a lot of conflict between Mr. White and Pamela * Literary Convention: Dialogue * I chose dialogue as my literary convention device because throughout the entire story there were * I picked comprehension for my blooms taxonomy device because you have to comprehend what happen in the regular Monkey’s Paw before you can understand what’s going on in the afterlife. Rhetorical: Onomatopoeia * I chose Onomatopoeia for the Rhetorical device because in The Money’s Paw afterlife the story has a lot of sound effects. * Sigmund Freud: ID * I chose ID as my Sigmund Freud device because in the afterlife the characters have childish types of behavior. * Writing Mode: Reflection * I picked reflection to be my writing genre device subgenre because throughout the sequel it will be flashbacks on why something happened. * Nonfiction Genre: * Philosophy The Story: Swimming To Antarctica Character: Ms. Cox * Point of View: Third Person Omniscient * Writing Mode: Narrative * Swimming to Antarctica was a Narrative story because Ms. Cox was telling the story and she was the person who was actually swimming to Antarctica. * Fiction Genre: Mystery * I picked mystery as my fiction genre because after the original story Swimming to Antarctica was over they didn’t explain to the reader what happen to Ms. Cox. But, you will find out what happened to her in the afterlife of Swimming to Antarctica. Literary Device: Conflict * I chose conflict as my literary device for â€Å"SA† because in the afterlife there is a lot of conflict between Ms. Cox and her health. * Literary Convention: Dialogue * Dialogue plays a very big role in the afterlife of Swimming to Antarctica. You will see that Ms. Cox and her doctor having multiple conversations. * Blooms Taxonomy: Comprehension * For the afterlife of Swimming to Antarctica you will have to remember what happen in the original story. * Rhetorical: Onomatopoeia Throughout the afterlife of â€Å"SA† there will be sound effects and actions going on. * Sigmund Freud: ID * I chose ID because once again there will be childish decisions that Ms. Cox make in the afterlife of Swimm ing to Antarctica that will classify her as ID. * Writing Mode: Reflection * In Swimming to Antarctica Afterlife you will realize that I will be having flashbacks on what happened in the original story. * Nonfiction Genre: * Philosophy: The Story: Occupation Conductorette * Character: Maya Angelou * Point of View: Third Person Omniscient Writing Genre: Persuasive * Occupation Conductorette was a persuasive story because Ms. Angelou was trying to persuade the people to give her a job at their company. * Fiction Genre: Mystery * I picked mystery for the afterlife of Occupation Conductorette because no one knows what happened in 2019 with Maya Angelou and the job she wanted so bad. * Literary Device: Conflict * Throughout the afterlife of Occupation Conductorette you will figure out that there is a lot of conflict between Maya Angelou and the young lady Paradise. Literary Convention: Dialogue * In the Afterlife of Occupation Conductorette there will be more than enough dialogue between Maya Angelou, Paradise, and the white man. * Blooms Taxonomy: Comprehension * In the afterlife of â€Å"OC† you will see a big change in rolls and you wouldn’t understand what’s going on if you didn’t comprehend the original â€Å"OC†. * Rhetorical: Onomatopoeia * Throughout the afterlife of â€Å"OC† there will be sound effects but not as much as the others stories because â€Å"OC† is a more serious taking story. Sigmund Freud: ID * I chose ID because in the Afterlife Maya Angelou had a few ID behaviors when it came down to her making a decision. * Writing Mode: Reflection * Throughout the afterlife of Occupation Conductorette you will see Maya Angelou have flashbacks on her experience of begging for a job. * Nonfiction Genre: * Philosophy: The Story: The Leap * Character: The Mom * Point of View: Third Person Omniscient * Writing Mode: Expository * The Leap to me is classified as a expository story because

Friday, August 30, 2019

Barn Burning by William Faulkner

The narrative â€Å"Barn burning† seems to be an imperative one as it very evidently illustrates the typical fight between the â€Å"privileged† and the â€Å"deprived† categories plus reveals how an underprivileged man suffers when the law is rooted in taking the well-off man's side.A further important idea of the story is that it looks at a truth-seeking issue that at what stage should an individual make a preference between what his blood relation(s) and / or kin deems and his personal morals or at what occasion should a youngster depart his parents home and limitations and quit, to make his own decisions?I suppose the reason that this fiction is important is because Faulkner inscribes it in such a manner that it fetches the booklover in and makes him/her empathize with Sarty and his honorable dilemma. The hero in this story is a child named Sarty Snopes, kid of Abner Snopes who is an arsonist. He is an unfortunate, forlorn, and bemused little boy who is at th e kindness of his arrogant father Abner.He is demoralized, immature and has a well-built sense of correct and incorrect. Sarty swears in aid of his father’s defense, and albeit he finds the fairness satisfying, he is indicting his father of the felonies he committed; Ab is Snopes opponent as well. Snopes has endured a very itinerant existence with panic and disgrace because of his father’s crimes.This contradicts with his outlook of justice, correct and incorrect. Snopes eventually comes to the decision and alienated himself from the control of another man and capitulated to his own (Loges, 1998). In appreciating that Snopes becomes a rebel icon to the reader. References Loges, M. L. (1998), Faulkner's Barn Burning, Journal Title: The Explicator, Vol. 57 No. 1, pp. 44-45.

Thursday, August 29, 2019

Massive Multiplayer Games Essay

With the rise and popularity of multiplayer games over the last two decades, the industry has created new games that catered to the taste and preferences of game players in different age groups. Likewise, as these games allow players to cooperate and compete against each other from different boundaries, there is now a rising concern of whether the game creates benefits to players or only serves as addiction to those who engage in such activities. Due to this, it is important to determine the scope and challenges surrounding massive multiplayer games to actively decipher appropriate strategies for further development. Understanding the Concept Looking at it, the term multiplayer games denotes from the ability of one player to actively take part in a video game together with patrons around the world in a simultaneous manner. ). These games allow players to cooperate and compete against each other on a large scale, often with other players around the world. It is a natural evolution to gaming with the widespread use of the internet that has opened up a global community. As far as the overall process is concerned, for players to participate in these games, you must first purchase the game and then pay a monthly fee to play to compete in the game. MMORP games that make the most money are those that keep people subscribed or buying new items for several consecutive months. The explosion in popularity and sales has drawn a much closer look into the attraction of gaming and its effect on game players. Consequently, there is a renewed interest in finding out the relevant effect of this activity particularly among gamers themselves. This has sparked the interest of researchers and everyone wanting to know what the craze is all about. Is it an addiction, or are there real benefits that draw the player in to these games? On one hand, we can see that these people to gain experience and recognition for their work. At the same time, it opens up the foundations of reaching out to individuals in different cultures with the game as a medium. However, that is precisely what draws the gamer in; it separates them from the real world. It is easy to understand the allure of MMOG’s on gamers. They take place in a separate universe, and you can create a character for yourself that is exactly the person you want to be. This game universe has it own rules, culture, and society of people with all kinds of interactions taking place. The possibilities for exploration are unlimited and there are no physical consequences to your actions. What do studies say? Relating this to research and studies, a 2007 Harris Interactive poll of 1,187 youths aged 8-18 gathered detailed data on youth opinions about video game play. About 81% of youths stated that they played video games at least once per month. Furthermore, the average playing time varied by age and sex, from 8 hours per week (responses from teen girls) to 14 hours per week (responses by teen boys). Teens (8-12 year olds) fell in the middle, with boys averaging 13 hours per week of reported game-play, and girls averaging 10. Harris concludes that 8. 5% can be classified as pathological or clinically ‘addicted’ to playing video games. (Harris Interactive) Dr. Douglas Gentile, Director of the Media Research Lab at Iowa State University and the director of research for the National Institute on Media and the Family, states, â€Å"It is important that people realize that playing a lot is not the same thing as pathological play. For something to be an addiction, it has to mean more than you do it a lot. It has to mean that you do it in such a way that it damages your life. This is why we based our definition on how pathological gambling is diagnosed in the DSM-IV. Almost one out of every ten youth gamers shows enough symptoms of damage to their school, family, and psychological functioning to merit serious concern. † (Harris Interactive) Lastly, to Dr. Suzanne Martin, Youth and Education Researcher at Harris Interactive, â€Å"The prevalence of video gaming in youth culture in combination with this level of pathological video gaming is great cause for concern and highlights the need for further research in this arena. † Gamers who were surveyed and classified as pathological were receiving lower grades in schools than their peers, were more likely to have video game systems in their bedrooms (65%), were spending much more time playing games each week (averaging 24. 5 hours per week), and were also more likely to have been diagnosed with an attention deficit problem. (Harris Interactive) Analysis The Harris Interactive report seems to indicate a considerable amount of usage among children and tweens; but does not indicate that it is a cause of the games themselves. A deeper look into other factors associated with gamers needs to be considered. Do these children or tweens spend more time at home because of both parents work schedules? Is there a correlation to the household income and the affordability of the games that makes them more accessible and appealing? Is there a correlation to the popularity of a video/media culture so much more accessible to children now that also plays an influence? There is apparently cause for some concern; but a deeper look in the other factors needs to be considered before a judgment can be Evaluation Evaluating these studies, it can be argued that there are indeed positive and negative consequences that can be deciphered as far as massive multiplayer games are concerned. Looking at it in a constructive manner, this process creates opportunities for players to discover and enhance their creativity within the specific game and platform. Moreover, it extracts the necessary skills needed in either to solve a quest or achieve a common goal. This in turn allows them to expand on their capabilities and create outcomes that will enhance their cognitive capabilities. On the other hand, there are also negative consequences of too much exposure in this area. In here, individuals can get addicted in the process and create a world of their own. Seeing this, players alienate themselves towards reality as they become immersed with the game they are involved in. Such idea can generate negative consequences psychologically, physically, and socially. Seeing this, it is then essential that a form of consensus and control be initiated in the process. This means that parents must actively create methods that will allow their children not only to immerse in such activity but also give them other options to consider. Though we may not be able to take away these things to children, having a specific playing time can encourage them to explore other possibilities available for them. By doing this, players can maximize the benefits of the game they play and limiting the possibilities of addiction that may be incurred during the process.

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

Presidential - Research Paper Example He was instilled with a sense of charity and the importance of giving to others (Morris, 1979). Throughout his childhood, he struggled with many illnesses that he had to overcome (Miller, 1994). That spirit of conquering whatever he was faced with would stick with him throughout his life, making him an exceptional leader and a person of great accomplishment. Theodore Roosevelt would have been known for his many accomplishments, even if he hadn’t become President. In terms of government office, Mr. Roosevelt held many public offices prior to being elected President. He was an assemblyman for the state of New York and governor of New York as well. He was also the Police Commissioner of New York City, a U.S. Civil Service Commissioner, a sheriff in the Dakota Territory, Assistant Secretary of the Navy and Colonel of the Rough Riders and Vice President of the United States (Roosevelt, 2012). This was all accomplished before he became President when he was 42. During his career, he also ran for Mayor of New York, but was not elected. Teddy Roosevelt was the nation’s first environmental President. Those before him did not have any type of effort towards the environment. President Roosevelt protected 230 million acres of land while he was in office (Roosevelt, 2012). This 230 million acres included 150 National Forests, 51 bird reservations, 5 National Parks, 18 National Monuments and four game preserves (Roosevelt, 2012). The fact that in the early 1900’s he thought to preserve land is impressive considering that those dedicated lands still exist today. He also made land preservation and conservation a topic for consideration which had not previously been of interest to the people and to the government. Now, in 2012, political campaigns always include opinions about the environment and conservation. It is

Wednesday, August 28, 2019

JP Morgan Chase and Bank One Merger Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

JP Morgan Chase and Bank One Merger - Essay Example Bank One Corporation had been created through mergers with many other banks like Banc One of Columbus, First Chicago NBD, and Ohio but the mergers were considered a failure until Jamie Dimon who had been chosen as the president and CEO took over the leadership of the company and reformed the new firm’s practices (American Bar Association, 2007). Dimon improved the firm by changing the disastrous technology jumble inherited from the prior mergers done by Bank One Corporation and ensured that the bank was more than sufficient to be a viable merger for JPMorgan Chase. Bank One Corporation had spread its roots in many States with the beginning of interstate banking and acquired many banks and with this successful process, they resisted combining into one bank. According to the writings by Truitt (2006), Bank One Corporation, had to be merged with JPMorgan after the departure of their CEO John B. McCoy, whose father and grandfather had headed Bank One. McCoy left because after the First Chicago NBD merger, Banc One Corporation started having financial issues and there was no other option other than accepting help from others. Dimon was brought in as the head of the company and this is when the JPMorgan completed the acquisition of Bank One. The mega-merger was a success because JPMorgan Chase & Co. is one of the largest and best-known financial institutions in the world. Skeel (2011) stated that J.P. Morgan Chase & Co. is a leading global financial services firm with valuable assets and operations in more than 50 countries. The firm provides good services to people in the society and many of the world’s most prominent government, institutional and corporate clients. The mega-merger was a success because Bank One would have failed running on its own due financial difficulties. Griffin and Moorehead (2010) stated that JPMorgan Chase & Co is

Tuesday, August 27, 2019

Corporate Social Responsibility - example of a specific organization Essay

Corporate Social Responsibility - example of a specific organization that is building the future urban configuration of cities - Essay Example In Australia, air pollution costs are already very high. Human costs of health are estimated are approximately A$3 billion to A$5.3 billion each year with annual damages to materials, buildings, and property at between 3 and 5 billion Australian dollars, which is 1% of GDP (Ercoskun, 2012: p33). The biggest cause of pollution in the country is cars. Since most people in Australia do not use public transport and are reliant on their cars for transport, the country is among the highest polluter, per capita, in the world. Urban designs have a powerful impact on the quality of air, as well as exposing the population to pollutants. This results in most cities becoming unsustainable, both environmentally and economically. As pollution increases, living in these cities become worse. Most people in Australia have accepted driving to work over long distances and urban sprawl as a way of life. However, this may change because of the threat to supply of oil and increase in its price, enhancemen t of the greenhouse effect, and threat to their health because of poor quality of air (Gibson, 2011: p51). CSIRO has examined various alternatives in the evaluation of their capacity to reduce atmospheric pollution like emissions of greenhouse gases and energy consumption. In the past, similar inquiries have had their basis on subjective assessments concerning city planning and its impact on energy consumption and air quality. However, the magnitude order between various types of city structure has not undergone evaluation in many places, in the world. Integrated air-shed models, transport emissions, and land use that use advanced urban design software and spatial planning assisted researchers in the exploration of the effects that alternative transport, workplace, and residential structures could have on consumption of energy and urban air quality to 2011 (Gibson, 2011: p52). CSIRO examined six alternative future urban scenarios. The first was business as usual with extrapolation o f the current patterns to the future, which are dispersed, low density, and laissez faire. The second alternative was edge city with increased housing densities, population, and employment at elected nodes in the city, as well as increased investment that link edge cities via orbital freeways (Gibson, 2011: p55). The third alternative was corridor cities that focus on linear corridor growth that start from the CBD with support from upgraded public infrastructure. Fringe cities are the fourth alternative that involves additional growth that predominates on the city fringes. Finally, ultra cities involve additional growth that is predominant in provincial cities that lie within 100 km of the capital and are linked via high-speed trains. These urban configurations were applied by CSIRO to Melbourne City based on increased populations from 2.5 to 3.0 million by the year 2013 (Gibson, 2011: p56). Key assumptions in this included increment of residential density, a full uptake of controls of vehicle emissions, a varying ratio concerning private and public transport, and an increase in telecommuting, in specific industries. The results were dramatic in how they impact on quality of urban air. There are several worst-case scenarios identified by CSIRO. Photochemical smog can possibly decrease by 55%

Monday, August 26, 2019

European human rights law Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

European human rights law - Essay Example It is an individual's most essential political right and the essence of democracy. Freedom of expression is what makes it possible for even the most ordinary of citizens to make a political expression, even if that expression is against the state itself. It is this right that makes it possible for such an individual to hold an opinion that is different from the opinion of the majority. It is this freedom that gives people the power to protest inequality and oppression. From this freedom emanate all the other freedoms. In a democracy, probably the most important consequence of the freedom of expression is to compel governments to the dialogue table, and it is because of this that governments are forced to consider the opinions of people in its decision making. This works to the advantage of both people and the government - if indeed one can make a distinction between the two. People have the advantage of ensuring that all or most governmental decisions consider their opinion. In Europe freedom of expression is protected by article 10 (1) of the European Convention of Human Rights (ECHR). "Everyone has the right to freedom of expression. This right shall include freedom to hold opinions and to receive and impart information and ideas without interference by public authority and regardless of frontiers" ("The European Convention on Human Rights"). Contrary to what some... And this freedom relates to the freedom of opinion, freedom of information, and the freedom to criticize. Freedom of Opinion and Information The first paragraph of Article 10 of the ECHR elucidates that freedom of expression shall include the "freedom to hold opinions and to receive information" ("The European Convention on Human Rights"). There is more to this freedom than one initially realizes. The freedom to hold opinions, among other things, also means spiritual freedom. This freedom includes the freedom to hold and report a belief. This belief can be critical or appreciative or merely judgmental. These beliefs or opinions can relate to philosophy, science, literature, politics, ethics and several such other aspects. This freedom applies as much to giving an opinion, as to receiving one. 3 Freedom of expression includes the freedom to information. This freedom applies to receiving information, as it does to the dissemination of information. This freedom is an offshoot of the freedom to opinion. Yet another off-shoot of the freedom to express opinions is the freedom of criticism. This is a significant aspect of the freedom of expression as it gives even people in the minority the right to hold and express views that are not in consonance with the majority. This Freedom is Not Unconditional The freedom of expression is however not a platform for unfettered individual and institutional will. There are conditions. The freedoms guaranteed under Article 10 of the ECHR carry with them "certain duties and responsibilities". Exercise of this freedom must be within the parameters of certain procedures, conditions, controls and rules of infraction. These parameters are laid down by law in the wider interests of the

Sunday, August 25, 2019

Art and psychoanalysis Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Art and psychoanalysis - Essay Example Upon hearing about the bombing of Guernica, Picasso started sketching a mural. â€Å"He drew screaming women and children, perhaps inspired by his fear that harm might come to his own baby daughter. He seemed haunted by the many faces of anguish.†1 Although the woman holding a wounded child is in Guernica, she is also in many other works of Picasso. This woman is of different color and shape, but can be identified throughout Picasso’s other works. One source reports: Characters that typically appear in these paintings reappear in Picassos paintings as well. Theres usually quite clearly a suffering woman, someone whos screaming, a woman with a child whos been injured, or may even be dead.2 As suggested above, maybe Picasso was thinking of his daughter. However if this is true, why did Picasso distort the images? The distorted images seem to speak of an underlying emotion in his subconscious. It must be noted that Picasso had an art background. His father was a painter as well. Picasso could have drawn and painted in more realistic terms. One source reports, "Picasso was very properly trained in the grand tradition of painting, allegorical painting about universal themes: the horrors of war, the massacres of the innocents.†3 Picasso could have used photos from Guernica to make a more realistic picture. Instead â€Å"Picasso was able to take that traditional academic motif and actually rework it and make it relevant again to this particular time and this particular circumstance, I think is really one of his great achievements in this painting."4 Picasso did not make a realistic picture due to a deep unconscious need inside. Picasso had a subliminal problem that was deeply rooted in his psyche. It might be the death of his sister. Picasso’s mother might have shut down with grief after the death of her daughter. This could have made Picasso have deeply buried animosity toward his mother for the

Saturday, August 24, 2019

Child Soldiers Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Child Soldiers - Essay Example A growing phenomenon around the world is respect for international law. These are principle that nations agree to abide by. One growth area in this part of law and one issue that is highly contentious is the use of child soldiers in conflicts. This has been especially happening over the last twenty years. Some suggest there are nearly half a million child soldiers active in the majority of the world’s continuing conflicts. Using children to fight wars is not only morally abhorrent, but very bad very the physical and mental health of the children in question. That is in part why a series of international laws and treaties have come into effect to try to deal with this scourge. But the issue is more complicated than that. While child soldiers are victims of war crimes, they too can also perpetrate serious breaches of the law of armed conflict. Under normal circumstances, individuals who commit such acts, be they combatants or not, would be vulnerable to prosecution. However, bec ause children in such situations are victims as well as perpetrators and because of the special protections afforded to children under international law, many have questioned whether or not children can be prosecuted for these egregious violations of the law of armed conflict. But a larger question is are states being prevented from using child soldiers by international law? Are the laws robust enough to prevent this situation from occurring in the future? The answer must sadly be no. Countries in Africa remain the worst offenders in terms of employing girls and boys to do fighting. Often they are drugged and abused. They live for the rest of their lives with the knowledge of their crimes. The world is changing. International law is increasing its purview. But the scourge of child soldiers remains. We must take more steps to combat this.

Friday, August 23, 2019

History of Drug Testing Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

History of Drug Testing - Essay Example To start with, the war against use of illicit drugs began in the ancient times of civilization and passed on from one generation to another. According to the Drug Policy Alliance, the first anti-opium laws formulated in the 1870s showing that even in the early days, governments were concerned on the welfare of citizens (1). The regulatory authorities took the responsibility of ensuring that the prevalence and use of illicit drugs was minimized among the citizens. However, it is during the reign of President Nixon that war against illicit drugs in the U.S. heightened. President Nixon increased the war against drugs by increasing and expanding the federal drug control agencies (The Drug Policy Alliance [DPA] 1). Subsequent American presidents also advocated for the war against drugs. For example, President George W. Bush allocated more money than ever to the war against drugs and further introduced drug testing to students (DPA 1). Because of government efforts in the fight against illicit drugs, drug testing became popular and various testing techniques introduced to facilitate the work of anti-drug agencies. One of the significant drug test technique introduced is the Marquis test. Marquis test is a simple and cost effective technique used to test for the presence of psychoactive drugs and further determine the chemical content (Erowid 1). The technique is effective because it distinguishes between â€Å"amphetamine and its ring substituted analogues† (United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime 18). The Marquis test is used by the law enforcement agencies to detect the presence of drugs on suspected criminals easily because it offers immediate results through color changes. Considering the mechanism of operation, Marquis Test utilizes the Marquis Reagent which is a chemical mixture made up of sulfuric acid and formaldehyde (Erowid 1). The Marquis Reagent, used to make ecstasy-testing kits, produces the results through

Thursday, August 22, 2019

Steroids in the World of Sports Essay Example for Free

Steroids in the World of Sports Essay During the 1930s, scientists discovered that anabolic steroids could help the growth of muscle in laboratory animals, which led to abuse of these drugs by bodybuilders and weightlifters and then by athletes in other sports. Ever since the beginning of sports there has been different techniques used in order to gain an edge over opponents. The question that has been most frequently asked is, which of these techniques is considered cheating, and which ones are fair game. The use of steroids is now the most well known form of cheating in recent sports history, and has drove many sports commissioners into a full investigation, that has lead to unique unprecedented punishments. Professional stars must realize that they are huge role models in today’s society, and are influencing young athletes all over the world. Any player in today’s society knows that there is a major punishment for using any kind of performance enhancing drugs. Not only do they get suspended immediately but if and when they return are often booed by fans, and are basically embarrassed in front of the entire league. Since steroids has been such a major subject of late, and such closely watched, I think anyone who tries is just asking for trouble. If an athlete in one of the major sports is caught using performance enhancing drugs there is immediate media frenzy. Many people believe that if your caught using performance enhancing drugs, any accomplishments you made during your career should be erased. You then might ask yourself, what would drive an athlete to risk their playing career by using steroids? Steroids are manufactured to enhance testosterone and are usually taken to build muscle, boost performance, and improve appearance. Often older players use steroids when they are injured because they do not recover as fast as they usually would when they were younger. In sports, size is extremely important, and that extra thirty or forty poun ds will have a major factor in how an athlete will play. One of the biggest problems with performance enhancing drugs is that scientist keep coming up with new drugs that the public doesn’t know about. All of the major sports now drug test their athletes, but since these newly developed drugs aren’t well known there is no way they can regulate the test. We have seen baseball players like Mark McGwire and Jose Conseco admit to the use of a drug called Andro. Andro is now one of the performance enhancing drugs being tested by the league. During the time that Mark McGuire and Jose Conseco were playing not to many people knew about the drug, and was considered to be legal. As the major sports try to put an end to this steroid era, we see some of the biggest stars being linked to steroid use. It is very easy to link this to the amount of teenagers in high school and college that are now using performance enhancing drugs. Over the past decade the percentage of young adults that have admitted to using steroid has almost tripled. Since most of the players being caught are major stars, it is easy for young adults to think all they need to do is take steroids and they’ll have that extra edge. The sport that has been affected most by this steroid era has been Major League Baseball. Ninety-five percent of the people who vote on the Baseball Hall of Fame agree that if a player has been associated with the use of steroids, they would never vote that athlete into the Hall of Fame. This is a very important subject because there have recently been a number of baseball players that would be a lock for the Hall of Fame if they were not linked to steroid use. It is very hard to determine the penalty for these players because nothing like this has ever happened before. Some fans believe that the use of steroids have very little effect in certain sports, and do not understand the big deal. Some have actually suggested making steroids legal, and the athletes can take them at there own risk. Although I think this idea is fascinating, I do not believe I could ever happen. The pressure for players to use steroids would be almost impossible to resist, and would lead to everyone to take them. The style of play in most sports would change from skill and technique to power and strength, which would take away from the beauty of the game. The most important reason they could never legalize steroids in sports is because of the health reasons involved with taking steroids. Steroid use is one of the most controversial subjects in today’s society because of many different reasons. There are so many supplements that are considered to be legal, but there is just as many that are considered to be illegal. Athletes must ask themselves if it is worth it to risk their careers on trying to just get an edge. The problem with this is that most people do not think of the consequences until after they get caught. The most important thing most major league players don’t think about when they use steroids is how it affects young athletes in today’s society.

Wednesday, August 21, 2019

Disregard of Moral Values Lead to Unethical Deeds Essay Example for Free

Disregard of Moral Values Lead to Unethical Deeds Essay This greed for money has crossed the limits of all ethical standards, regard and consideration for fellow men, or sympathy and compassion. All these things seem to have gone with the wind and are among the major casualties of the post-independence period. This development can be considered quite a new one, probably an accompaniment of the modern technological development which is . taking place rapidly in this country, as the malaise has especially afflicted the young and the middle aged people. The increasing attraction towards the modern glamorous lifestyles, big cars and bungalows, gorgeous dresses and jewellery has such effect on people that they would not hesitate to resort tovalues all means, unfair to acquire wealth and all luxuries of life. This mad obsession for reaching the top is the dream of everybody, and as such the moral and ethical values do not seem to have any place. Morality is often defined as the doctrine of actions right or wrong it is synonymous with ethics. Moralists are selfless and preach justice in every sphere of life. If people tend to observe morals, they will constitute a healthy and sound society. Morality knows nothing of the geographical boundaries or distinctions of race or color in modern age, the traditional values which are in themselves moral and symbols of rectitude, have been radically transformed. Most of the principles are in a flux and human convictions based a rich human experience are in the melting pot. Obsessions with circumstances and the peculiar conditions prevailing in a region have proved so overpowering that everything else is thrown overboard. Excessive wealth does not necessarily promote culture and intelligence. In fact, the ostentatious and luxurious living that wealth promotes, causes a notable deterioration in character and conception of values. Rarely do highly intelligent people, famous writers or artiest belong to rich families. Since wealth itself has the habit of diminishing fast, most of those who possess it go to any extent, even to the adoption of unethical practices and dishonesty to acquire more wealth. This leads to further decay and deterioration of character. India’s Poet Laureate, Rabindra Nath Tagore warned. â€Å"Greed of wealth and power can never have a limit; a compromise on self-control can never attain the final spirit of reconciliation.

Assessing The Strategic Human Resource Management Preferences Business Essay

Assessing The Strategic Human Resource Management Preferences Business Essay Number of growing organizations believes that Human Resource (HR) provides them competitive advantage. It was understood by many organizations that competitive advantage can be obtained by quality work force/employees and culture. Approach of linking Human Resource Management to Strategic objectives of an organization is called as Strategic Human Resource Management (SHRM) (Bratton and Gold, 2001). It was cited by Bratton and Gold (2001, p39) strategic management is defined as that set of managerial decisions and actions that determines the long-run performance of a corporation. Strategic HR ensures that employees/human capital of an organization contributes to its achievements with their skills and performance. Traditional HR is concerned with implementation of policies and techniques like recruitment, staffing, remuneration, assessment etc (Klabbers, University of Bergen). But linking the general HRM and the organizations strategy gives HR department more scope to enhance the abili ties of their workforce and concentrate on the vision and mission. This connection is made to improve the organization performance and develop organizational culture which in turn facilitates innovation and flexibility. Overall the key principle of Strategic HRM is to achieve organizations vision and mission. Bratton (2001) describes SHRM as a continuous process that requires constant adjustment in three major areas namely Value of Senior management, the environment and the resources available. Fig 1: Three major poles in strategic planning (Adapted from Bratton and Gold, 2001) Some authors believe that Strategic HRM is an Outcome and some believe that its a process. It was cited by Bratton and Gold (2004) that authors like Ulrich (1997) and Snell et al had different opinion on Strategic HRM. Snell et al believed that its an outcome designed to achieve sustained competitive edge through quality workforce. Ulrich (1997) also stated SHRM as an outcome of mission, vision and priorities of HR department. HR strategies are more concerned about matching the Five Ps that stimulates the employee roles for competitive strategy (Bratton and Gold, 2004, p46 and Cerdin and Ashok Som, 2003). It was cited by Cerdin and Ashok Som (2003) that Strategic HRM is identified in three levels namely Strategic, Managerial and operational level. Strategic level looks to the long term future, Managerial level looks at the mid term and the operation level looks at the short term focus. Different models and approaches were discussed in this assignment to understand the functionality o f strategic HRM and how far the organization able to implement it. Models and Approaches There are several approaches and models by which Strategic HRM can be applied but basic strategic HRM model is widely accepted by many authors, researchers and even critics as well (Kane and Palmer, 1995). This basic model is based on the external and internal environment and basic organization strategies. Fig 2 Basic Model of Strategic Human resource Management (Adapted from Kane and Palmer, 1995) Strategic HRM models demonstrate how an organization links its business strategies and HR function to achieve it goals. Though SHRM adopts resource based philosophy, there are three different models defined by authors (Bratton and Gold, 2004, p49). These models are Control based, Resource based and Integrative model. Control based approach generally deals with control of work place and direct monitoring of employee performance. According to this approach, HR strategies and management structure are used as instruments and techniques to enhance labour productivity and there by increasing profitability. Resource based approach satisfies the human capital requirements of the organization (Armstrong, 2006, p117).It was observed by Bratton and Gold (2004) that sustained competitive advantage is not achieved by external market position but careful assessment of their own skills and capabilities that competitors cannot copy. Main objective of this approach is improving resource capability and effective utilization of resources to achieve the goals set by the organization. Within this model there are three different approaches by which organization can implement strategic HRM practices (Armstrong, 2006, p117) High Performance management approach High commitment management model and High involvement management model High Performance model helps in developing several processes by which employee performance is improved and impacted. This in turn directly effects the organization growth. This model believes enhancing the employee skills and encouraging them to learn continuously. This model involves rigorous recruitment and selection procedures, learning development activities and performance management system. Kemin nutritional technologies in India adopted similar model in implementing their strategies human resource. Kemin is a manufacturer of animal feed ingredients and human food ingredients. Their head quarter is located in Des Moines, US and having operations in over eight countries. Kemin have more than 4000 employees world wide. Kemins vision is to improve quality of Life by touching half the people of the world every day with its products and services. In order to achieve this vision Kemin strategically aligned all its divisions to contribute to the vision. HR division developed strategies to improve workforce capabilities and bring quality workforce into the organization. They have made certain changes in their recruiting process that will indirectly lead them to the vision of the organization. Now their selection process is complex and specifically looks for individuals who are matching to their core values. The recruiting process involves three stages with the initial screening is made to identify the ability of the individual to adapt to the situations and show high levels of resilience. Individuals integrity is also tested during this process. This process is fallowed by the technical assessment of an individual by the concerned department and finally personal interview is done by the HR to speak about his growth in this organization, performance analysis, incentives and learning prospective. Once the strategic planning is done for the year, senior management roles out the goals and responsibilities to the concerned departments. They constantly monitor the proceedings of their departments and analyse how far they have come. For example, Customer Lab Services (CLS) come under the marketing department. This department is evolved to support the marketing department technically. All the employees in the CLS have clear job responsibilities which will contribute the organizations strategic goals. If the organizations (Kemins) strategic plan is to improve one particular product group in this year, all the employees in CLS will have their SMART (Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Realistic and Time bound) goals related to that product category. This SMART goals system is implemented by Kemin to align organizational strategy to the HR practices so that they have a competitive edge to their competitors. These goals are set during the beginning of the year and monitored regularly by the senior management/supervisors. These goals are agreed mutually with the concerned supervisor regularly and employees are committed to deliver them. Kemin in 2005 introduced 360 degree appraisal system to analyse the employee performance in the place of regular one to one appraisal system. In 360 degree feedback system, employees are asked to select colleagues, peers or supervisors to rate them in the aspects of adoptability, development, learning, team work and technical etc. Again selection of the ratters should be discussed with the employee and his/her supervisor. All the employees are encouraged to participate in team meetings, ask questions regarding the approach of the organization to achieve certain task. Employees are also encouraged to submit ideas which will lead to a new product or a new business opportunity. Employees are provided with career ladders to understand about the hierarchies and their future growth. This will enable employee to focus more and contribute to the organizational growth and there by obtaining personal benefit. Kemin also identified few employees interested in taking new job roles and provided them with horizontal promotions (Lima and Pereira, 2003). For example an employee who was found efficient in serving customers was identified and offered to serve in marketing department where the employee originally belongs to CLS (Technical). Kemins HR department also incorporated developmental goals in their regular SMART goals so that employees make an effort to develop some personal capabilities which in turn help organization or help the individual to perform the job better. Kemin regularly conduct strategic meetings with the HR personals to understand their core capabilities and competencies. Some of the key points are listed below. Finally all the employees who are leaving Kemin are interviewed in process called Exit interview (Arnold, 1995) to find out their experience with Kemin and know possible areas of improvement. A clear vision and mission Clear job description and SMART Goals Rigorous recruitment/interview process 360 degree appraisal system Developmental trainings Horizontal promotions Encouraged to learn and develop continuously Exit interviews One of the main strategic plans of Kemin is to maximise utilization of resources without increasing the cost structure. Kemin HR had built a strategy to cope up with this task. HR hired few internship students to conduct market surveys and research in different locations so that they avoid cost bared by regular employees and their time and travel expenses. These small things contributed in a big way to companys performance. All the departments worked parallel to each other to achieve the same objective saving time and money. Overall by implementing these strategies Kemins Strategic HRM function aligns with the companys objectives, vision and mission. These strategies deliver high performance environment for the employees and for the management. Kemin also provided opportunities for its employees to work globally and allowed them to participate in seminars, conferences etc where ever they were held. Kemin also made a strategy to retain employees by giving them benefits for staying lon g years. Once the employee of Kemin stays longer than 15 years he/she will join the presidents elite committee which plays a major role in taking key business decisions. The High commitment approach is defines as a focused approach which concentrates on development of career goals and trainability and commitment of employees (Armstrong, 2006, p119). Key points of this strategic approach are developing ownership where employees are given opportunity to speak and involved in decision making. The second aspect is providing clear communication to the employees about the goal they are committed to achieve (Armstrong, 2006, p279). And the initiative of this approach is to develop leadership skills. Commitment can be increased or enhanced by making leaders inside the organization. From this theory it is understood that Kemin also practiced such type of strategies to improve the commitment of the employees. Kemin provide employees with useful trainings like SALT (Strategic accounts and leadership Program) and Project Management (e.g. Stage Gate process).So it seems Kemin strategic HRM is a mix of the two approaches discussed above. The High involvement approach involves treating employees as partners in the organization. In this approach employees are given opportunity to communicate with the managers continuously about the organizations mission, vision, values and objectives. Integrative model characterized by two dimensions namely acquisition and development and the locus of control (Bratton and Gold, 2004, p53). Bratton and Gold explained that Bamberger and Meshoulam (2000) integrate two main models of SHRM. Whatever strategy or approach fallowed by organization it is the aim of the SHRM to obtain competitive advantage and achieve organization objectives. TASK TWO HRM Practices , horizontal and vertical integration Introduction Organization now concerned about their human capital and their competitive advantage. Human resource management (HRM) largely replaced the term Personnel management. Personnel management deals with managing people in the organization who contributes to the organizations performance. Human resource management can be defined as a strategic and coherent approach to the management of people. HRM operates in a coherent way to help organization perform better and achieve target. HR philosophies, strategies, policies, processes, practices and programs are the processes by which Human resource function works. Values and guidelines of principles of people management (Armstrong, 2006, p4) are described in the HR philosophies. HR strategies define the path of the HR function in achieving organizations vision. Key functions of HR department are Improve organizations effectiveness Human capital management Knowledge management Rewarding and employee relationship management All the goals and policies are made by the HR department are finally helps to improve stakeholder value by putting the customer in the first place. HR function will play a major role in creation of an environment for the employees that enable them to utilize their capabilities maximum and benefit the organization (Armstrong, 2006, p54). HR function also supports the management to achieve its vision through the people. HR function also aligns with organizations strategies to achieve vision and it can also be described as vertical integration. Concept of coherence can be described as Horizontal integration which defines developing HR employment and development policies and practices. Different theorists defined several models Human resource management. Some of the models include Matching model, Harvard frame work model and conceptual model. Matching model include four generic processes namely selection, appraisal, rewarding and development. The Harvard frame work model was developed by Beer et al of Harvard University, hence called as Harvard model. s Kemins HR function employed effective policies to serve employees and the organization with benefits. By providing benefits to the employees it is eminent that organizations performance is improved. HR function in Kemin operated in organized way by both horizontal and vertical integration. To integrate HRM successfully its is observed that people in that department should have a good idea about how HRM is different from personnel management (Cathy, 2005). Kemins vision states that Improve the quality of life and touching people, and their mission states that they provide nutritional solution to the customers by continuous improvement in their people, process and products. Every department in the company has been provided with a quality policy for which the department is committed to achieve certain tasks. Kemin HR quality policy is to provide best man power, improve organizational culture, reduce cost to the company, provide healthy and safe environment to the employees and provide c ompetitive edge to the company. Some of the key HR policies and practices adopted by Kemin are listed below. Code of Conduct Appraisal and promotions Internet and email policies Selection of employee and referral program Dress code and corporate clothing Salary increase, increments and incentives Leave and transfer policies Equal opportunities These policies make sure that HR function deliver best value to the employees. Horizontal integration of HR policies in Kemin was done with precision so that employees feel satisfied about the efforts of organization in treating them. Selection of employee was done with great importance. The interview process includes analysing the persons ability to adjust to the culture, capability to deliver job and respect the vision of the company. Salary negotiations were done in the HR interview to meet the organizations requirements. Important HR policies regarding transfer, promotions, transfers, relocation were circulated to the employees to make them aware of the organization policies and avoid any kind of confusion. It is important for the HR function in Kemin to protect and preserve companys valuable information within. The code of conduct and internet email policies serves as the protective strategies for Kemin. All the Kemin employees were asked to maintain professional relationship w ith internal and external customers and maintain the organization culture. One more basic function which was employed by Kemin was providing trainings to the employees for defined hours in a year. All the employees are eligible for the trainings and the trainings were selected based on the department and job roles. These training are provided to employees for their personal development and to make employee take care of his own career instead of looking for promotions (Ben, 1998) Employee referral system was found to be effective in Kemin. Every employee can refer a friend, past colleague or any he knows for any available position in Kemin and when the referred persons is successful and joins the company, employee will get a monitory benefit. This will encourage employees to bring new talent to the organization. Kemins HR department takes good care of the new employee in a way that he/she will get familiar with the organizations flow, roles and responsibilities of the job. An induction program will be provided for the new employee and mentor for the new empl oyee also assigned to monitor the progress. All the employees were provided with career ladder so that employee knows where he stands and understand the organizations hierarchies. Employees performance was measured twice in a year. Performance was measured in terms of SMART goals. Every goal set was given with some weightage and employees bound to achieve those goals. Performance will be measured in ratings/marks gained on the scale of 5. For example if an employees performance was analysed as meets the requirement, it means he/she achieved 3 on the scale. If the employee exceeds expectation it is measured as 5 on the scale. If the employee attains 5 on the scale, he/she will be eligible to climb up the career ladder. Increment and incentive schemes were rolled out to all the departments to reward the employees according to their performance. Vertical integration of HRM deals with the alignment of HR strategies with business strategies. This kind of integration encourages everyone in the organization to take responsibility of HRM, not just the HR department (Cathy, 2005). It was cited by Cathy (2005) that HR role also requires a business partner role along with the HR manager. Kemins HR manager was effective in delivering tasks related to people and controlling business process as well. Kemins HR manager was involved in many operation meetings and board meetings and developed ideas to achieve the strategic goals. This can be explained by an example by which HR manager made a difference in reducing cost to company and helping the strategic goal achievement. Kemin wanted increase the customer retention and satisfaction by 5 percent, increase the product sales by 25 percent during the year 2005. To achieve the task all the product managers had to work collectively in mobilizing the sales force. But achieving 25 sales growth was something difficult without the help of HR manager or department. It was difficult for the sales people to travel all over India as it consumes lot of time money. HR manger then employed internship students from different backgrounds to serve different departments in different location. This saved enormous amount of time and money for the company. The other concept of HRM vertical integration is to provide organizational learning/work based learning. Every employee has been provided with 40 hours training. It was cited by Bratton and Gold (2001) that formal and informal trainings can act as lever for the organization in terms of sustained core competencies. Trainings such as SALT (strategic account and leadership trainings) and Project management trainings make the difference in the employees in terms of competency and leadership which are most important for the organization. Kemins strategy is to produce innovative products with best processes. One of the Kemins HR policies includes Idea generation by which employees can submit an idea to improve, develop a product or a process. Each Idea will be considered after a careful investigation and analysing the feasibility. If the idea is unsuccessful initially, it is recorded for future use or reference. Once any idea is successful, idea generator is recognized and rewarded so that it motivates the other employees to contribute in the same way. Retaining the quality staff always been a difficult task for organizations. Reducing employee attrition rate/ worker turnover ( Ing-chung Haung et al, 2006) was one of the important goals for Kemin. Kemins HR employed a new strategy to retain the skilled employees. Kemin offered overseas assignments to the employments where they can work for sometime out side the country of origin. This lead to belief and trust of the employees on Kemin and lot of employees anticipated and shown positive approach to it. To improve the performance analysis of employees Kemin incorporated 360 degree feed back mechanism by which employees are rated based on their performance and behaviour. One of the main functions of the HR is to manage change in the organization. Change management is the process of continuous renewal of organization structure, direction and capabilities (Moran and Brightman, 2001). To improve the working condition Kemin even changed its office location to Chennai (India) city from a r ural area. HR played a major role in facilitating the change. He handled the people resistance (Waddel and Amrik, 1998) to the change in way that it had a very little impact on the organization performance. This change was anticipated by Kemin to achieve corporate goals and improve working conditions for the employees. Kemin seemed to effectively integrating its HR strategies to its business strategies. Recommendation Although Kemin appeared to be functioning well in the area of HR management, there are some areas of concern for the Kemin. Its is suggested that Kemin could use best fit model or the mix of culture fit and best fit models to manage the strategic HR function. Kemins employees had a dissatisfaction regarding the company salary policy and employee welfare. Though Kemin appear to be well function strategically, its bit neglected the Horizontal integration part. Kemins employees were unsure about the increment and incentive packages. In their policies it was mention that how and who are eligible for incentive and increments but it was not clearly mentioned that what is the percentage of raise they will get if their performance is above expectation. Few of the recommendations are listed below. It is suggested to document and communicate the reward and incentive policies accurately. Conduct regular audits to improve HR function and performance. It is suggested to Kemin that it employs strategies to improve employee satisfaction in terms of salary and compensation policies. Kemin should continue its practices in analysing the performance of employee and look for continuous improvement of the process. Kemins recognition system also needs improvements as they does not involve lower level employees. Often people from those levels hesitate to come forward and submit an idea. Kemin is suggested to have some strategies to motivate the lower level employees and come forward to participate in developmental programs. Kemin also should engage employees in some cultural activities that enhance team building and group working culture. Kemin also should employ job rotation (Huang, 1999) policy to enhance the learning capabilities and change to routine job responsibilities. These recommendation might help Kemin in improving the quality of life of their employees and help organization to perform better. Overall Kemin seem to be in good condition in employing HR policies and practices both in horizontal and in vertical integration. REFERENCES Armstrong Michael (2006), A hand book of Human resource management practices, 10th edition, Cambridge University Press, London. Arnold Kransdorff (1995) Exit interviews as an induction tool, Management Development Review, Volume 8  · Number 2  · pp. 37-40,  © MCB University Press Ben Ball (1998), Career management competences the individual perspective Librarian Career Development, Vol. 6 No. 7, pp. 3-11,  © MCB University Press Bob Kane and Ian Palmer (1995), Strategic HRM or managing the employment relationship, International Journal of Manpower 16,5/6, pp. 6-21, © MCB University Press. Bratton J, Gold J, (2001), Human Resource Management: Theory and Practice, Routledge, Publications. 2nd edition. Cathy Sheehan (2005), A model for HRM strategic Integration, Personnel Review Vol. 34 No. 2, pp. 192-209 q Emerald Group Publishing Limited Cerdin Jean-Luc Ashok SOM (2003),Strategic Human Resource Management Practices: An Exploratory Survey of French Organisations, Strategic human resource management practices: exploratory surveys on French organization, Groupe ESSEC CERNTRE DE RECHERCHE / RESEARCH CENTER, ESSEC Working Papers DR 03024 Huang, H. J. (1999). Job Rotation from the Employees Point of View, Research and Practice in Human Resource Management, 7(1), 75-85. see at http://rphrm.curtin.edu.au/1999/issue1/rotation.html, accessed electronically on 14th May 2008. Ing-chung Haung, Hao-chien Lin, Chih-Hsun Chuang, (2006) Constructing factors related to worker retention, International Journal of Manpower, Vol. 27 No. 5, pp. 491-508 q Emerald Group Publishing Limited Klabber Jan H.G, Enhancing corporate change: The case of strategic human resource management, University of Bergen, Norway, KMPC Netherlands, See at   http://www.ifm.eng.cam.ac.uk/mcn/pdf_files/part9_1.pdf, accessed electronically on 8th May 2008. Lima F and Pereira P T (2003), Careers and wages within large firms: evidence from a matched employer-employee data set International Journal of Manpower, Vol. 24 No. 7, pp. 812-835 q MCB UP Limited Moran J.W and Brightman B.K (2001), Leading organizational change, career development international, vol.6 No.2, pp 111-118, MCB University press. Ulrich, D. (1997), Human Resource Champions: The Next Agenda for Adding Value and Delivering Results, Harvard Business School Press, Boston, MA, . Waddell Dianne and Amrik S. Sohal (1998), Resistance: a constructive tool for change management Decision, Management decision, 36/8, MCB University Press, pp 543-548

Tuesday, August 20, 2019

Essay --

To the farmer, soil is where crops grow. To the engineer, soil is a foundation upon which to build. To the ecologist, soil supports communities of living things. To the archaeologist, soil holds clues to past cultures. To the city dweller, soil nurtures grass and gardens. To the scientist, soil is all of these things. Soil has been called â€Å"the skin of the earth† because it is the thin outermost layer of the Earth’s crust. Like our own skin, we can’t live without soil (â€Å"Story of Soil†). No matter where we go or what we do, soil is important to all of us. We walk all over it, take it for granted, and treat it like dirt, but SOIL is what our lives depend on. Every single thing we do is rooted in soil in at least one way, if not more. If we dig deep enough, we may even find our future careers and life passions. There are countless career opportunities that rely on soil in one way or another. What soil means to each career pathway varies greatly, much like the diversity within the career options themselves. No matter how different our lives and careers may be, one thing is for certain: we absolutely cannot survive without soil. To the farmer, soil is vital to his very existence. Soil is the home of over 400 million acres of crops that the farmer grows and nurtures to feed his family and yours. According to the 2007 USDA Census, there are almost 1 billion acres of farmland being utilized for crops and livestock (â€Å"American Farms†). Without the soil, these farmers would not be able to raise the products that we rely on for basic survival. United States agriculture must produce enough food to help feed the world’s ever growing population. At 7 billion people and rising, our soil must remain as productive as ever (â€Å"World Population Clock... ...bringing wetland habitats back and creating better soil management practices. Even if ones’ career is not directly related to soil, we all rely on it every day. To urban dwellers and rural route residents, soil supplies everything needed for their survival. Soil supplies the antibiotics that fight disease, the food on our plates, the clothes on our backs and acts as a holding facility for solid waste and wastewater. Soil also provides the foundation for our homes, stores, schools, and jobs. This is just the tip of the iceberg describing how our existence and possibly even our careers rely on soil. As we can see, a variety of diverse jobs include working with and understanding soil. Soil is vital to the farmer, to the archaeologist, to the scientist, to the ecologist, to the architect, to the engineer, to you and to me. Like our own skin, we can’t live without soil. Essay -- To the farmer, soil is where crops grow. To the engineer, soil is a foundation upon which to build. To the ecologist, soil supports communities of living things. To the archaeologist, soil holds clues to past cultures. To the city dweller, soil nurtures grass and gardens. To the scientist, soil is all of these things. Soil has been called â€Å"the skin of the earth† because it is the thin outermost layer of the Earth’s crust. Like our own skin, we can’t live without soil (â€Å"Story of Soil†). No matter where we go or what we do, soil is important to all of us. We walk all over it, take it for granted, and treat it like dirt, but SOIL is what our lives depend on. Every single thing we do is rooted in soil in at least one way, if not more. If we dig deep enough, we may even find our future careers and life passions. There are countless career opportunities that rely on soil in one way or another. What soil means to each career pathway varies greatly, much like the diversity within the career options themselves. No matter how different our lives and careers may be, one thing is for certain: we absolutely cannot survive without soil. To the farmer, soil is vital to his very existence. Soil is the home of over 400 million acres of crops that the farmer grows and nurtures to feed his family and yours. According to the 2007 USDA Census, there are almost 1 billion acres of farmland being utilized for crops and livestock (â€Å"American Farms†). Without the soil, these farmers would not be able to raise the products that we rely on for basic survival. United States agriculture must produce enough food to help feed the world’s ever growing population. At 7 billion people and rising, our soil must remain as productive as ever (â€Å"World Population Clock... ...bringing wetland habitats back and creating better soil management practices. Even if ones’ career is not directly related to soil, we all rely on it every day. To urban dwellers and rural route residents, soil supplies everything needed for their survival. Soil supplies the antibiotics that fight disease, the food on our plates, the clothes on our backs and acts as a holding facility for solid waste and wastewater. Soil also provides the foundation for our homes, stores, schools, and jobs. This is just the tip of the iceberg describing how our existence and possibly even our careers rely on soil. As we can see, a variety of diverse jobs include working with and understanding soil. Soil is vital to the farmer, to the archaeologist, to the scientist, to the ecologist, to the architect, to the engineer, to you and to me. Like our own skin, we can’t live without soil.

Monday, August 19, 2019

The Mozart Effect Essay -- Biology Essays Research Papers

The Mozart Effect Ever since human intelligence has been a factor for survival, people have been trying to think of new, innovative ways to increase their mental capabilities. In the past, people have taken pills, prepared home-made concoctions, and have even shaven their heads to clear their minds. Even now, new ideas, such as magnetic mattresses for better blood circulation to the brain, are patented and sold promising mental wellness and stability – and making money for the inventor. When scientists find something that enhances intelligence the general public is interested. This is perhaps why a small study out of the University of California, Irvine procured so much attention. In 1993 Gordon Shaw, a physicist, and Frances Rauscher, a former concert cellist and an expert on cognitive development, studied the effects the Mozart Sonata for Two Pianos in D Major had on a few dozen college students. They performed this study to see whether "brief exposure to certain music could increase a cognitive ability" (3). They study took thirty-six college students and divided them up into three groups. Each group spent ten minutes listening to different sounds: the first group listened to the afore mentioned Mozart sonata, the second group listened to a tape of relaxation instructions and the third group sat in silence. Directly following these ten minutes the students were tested on spatial/temporal reasoning (more specifically the Stanford-Binet Test). Simply put, the "subject has to imagine that a single sheet of paper has been folded several times and then vario us cut-outs are made with scissors" (3). The object for the students is to correctly guess the pattern of cut-outs if the paper were unfolded. In the end, the scores o... ... widely shared by the media and the general pubic. The new inventions centered around Mozart's music are becoming more scarce, and it's much harder to find "Mozart for the LSATs" at an average CD retailer. After spending almost a decade in the spot light, The Mozart Effect is beginning to loose ground, and will soon be replaced by a new study proving that skittles stimulate the right-frontal lobe and every parent will be happy to give their kids some candy. References 1) http://www.cnn.com/HEALTH/9908/25/mozart.iq 2) http://parenting-baby.com/Parenting-Baby-Music-Research/index1.html 3) http://www.musica.uci.edu/mrn/V7I1W00.html 4) http://www.nature.com/cgi-taf/DynaPage.taf? file=/nature/journal/v400/n6747/full/400826a0_r.html&filetype=&dynoptions= 5) http://skepdic.com/mozart.html 6) http://www.usatoday.com/life/2003-08-19-mozart_x.htm

Sunday, August 18, 2019

Identity in Tayeb Salih’s Season of Migration to the North :: Season Migration North

Identity in Tayeb Salih’s Season of Migration to the North Season of Migration to the North by Tayeb Salih tells the story of a man searching for an identity he was unaware he had lost. Through his growing understanding of Mustafa Sa'eed's life, the central character eventually reconciles his own identity conflicts. Throughout Salih's novel the main character's identity is unclear. While the reader learns much about his background: educational, familial, and professional, his name is never mentioned. A surname is used in reference to his family, but is never applied to him. In once instance he is referred to by another character as "effendi" (85). This phrase, however, is an Arabic title roughly equivalent to "sir" rather than a name. The central character's namelessness serves to focus attention on another character with whom he develops an uneasy friendship: Mustafa Sa'eed. Mustafa entrusts the main character with his affairs after his death, including the key to a private chamber. When the central character enters the mysterious room and uncovers Mustafa's past, the identity conflict becomes apparent: †¦out of the darkness there emerged a frowning face with pursed lips that I knew but could not place. I moved towards it with hate in my heart. It was my adversary Mustafa Sa'eed. The face grew†¦ and I found myself standing face to face with myself. †¦a picture of me frowning at my face from a mirror. (135) Several parallels are drawn between the central character and Mustafa Sa'eed. Both speak English and had studied in London. Even though the central character had grown up in the village, his education and time abroad had made him as much an outsider as Sa'eed. Upon seeing his own reflection in the darkness, he believes it to be Mustafa, who he had grown to despise. As he moves closer to the object of his hatred, he discovers that he is "standing face to face with" himself. Mustafa represents to him all that he despises in himself.

Saturday, August 17, 2019

Is Frankenstein the Modern Day Prometheus? Essay

Dr. Frankenstein and Prometheus both create a male human being, they both sought glory from their creations, and they were both very intelligent beings. In view of these attributes Mary Shelly used to create character Dr. Victor Frankenstein it is obvious to see why she would subtitle her novel â€Å"The modern Prometheus. † Dr. Frankenstein and Prometheus create man Philo Farnsworth creates the modern television we all watch today. Alexander Bell creates the telephone and now by nearly everyone on the planet. And who could forget Percy Spencer who created the microwave oven that is in just about every household in America. These inventions are all great but pale in comparison to creating a â€Å"Man†. After fighting alongside his fellow Titans in the war against the Olympians, Prometheus is given the task of creating humans. Prometheus creates a man out of mud. Dr. Frankenstein collects body parts for creating his man from mud. Dr. Frankenstein being even more obsessed with his diabolic plan to create man he neglected to notice the fact that he was desecrating a grave yard. Darkness had no effect upon my fancy; and a churchyard was to me merely the receptacle of bodies deprived of life, which, from being the seat of beauty and strength, had become food for the worm. † (Chapter 4) Dr. Frankenstein assumes the task of creating a human being â€Å"When I found so astonishing a power placed within my hands, I hesitated a long time concerning the manner in which I should employ i t†¦I began the creation of a human being. † (Chapter 4) Both of the characters created the male form of humanity and appear to neglect creating a female at the time of their creations. Prometheus and Dr. Frankenstein seek glory from their creations In the quest for acknowledged authority and admiration from their creations, both Dr. Frankenstein and Prometheus’ ambition backfires in ways they never expected. According to Greek Mythology Prometheus loved man so much that he came up with a plan to deceive the god Zeus by showing man how to offer less than favorable sacrifices to the gods. He also gave man the secret of fire after it was taken from them by Zeus. Prometheus thought that humans having this knowledge would improve humanity but it had the reverse effect. Man became deceptive not only to the gods but themselves and used the knowledge of fire for destruction and war. Prometheus sought glory and honor from the man he had created by giving them knowledge only the gods possessed. Dr. Frankenstein in turn sought supreme admiration from his creation when he said â€Å"Life and death appeared to me ideal bounds, which I should first break through, and pour a torrent of light into our dark world. A new species would bless me as its creator and source; many happy and excellent natures would owe their being to me. (Chapter 5) He also thought that he could improve on mankind with the knowledge he possessed â€Å"I thought, that if I could bestow animation upon lifeless matter, I might in process of time (although I now found it impossible) renew life where death had apparently devoted the body to corruption. † (Chapter 5) Prometheus and Dr. Frankenstein thought that their creations would give them the glory and honor they both craved but the best made plans don’t always come to pass. Dr. Frankenstein and Prometheus were highly intelligent Highly intelligent people always seem to stand out from the crowd Prometheus and Victor are no exception. Most boys at the age of 13 are more interested in baseball and girls but the young Victor Frankenstein is more captivated by the works of the German Philosopher and Theologian Heinrich Cornelius Agrippa, Paracelsus and Albertus Magnus. â€Å"When I was thirteen years of age, we all went on a party of pleasure to the baths near Thonon: the inclemency of the weather obliged us to remain a day confined to the inn. In this house I chanced to find a volume of the works of Cornelius Agrippa. I opened it with apathy; the theory which he attempts to demonstrate, and the wonderful facts which he relates, soon changed this feeling into enthusiasm. A new light seemed to dawn upon my mind; and, bounding with joy, I communicated my discovery to my father. When I returned home, my first care was to procure the whole works of this author, and afterwards of Paracelsus and Albertus Magnus. I read and studied the wild fancies of these writers with delight; they appeared to me treasures known to few beside myself. (Chapter 2) Victor attends college at an early age and surpasses the knowledge of his classmates and instructor. â€Å"When I had attained the age of seventeen, my parents resolved that I should become a student at the University of Ingolstadt. † (Chapter 3) â€Å"As I applied so closely, it may be easily conceived that my progress was rapid. My ardour was indeed the astonishment of the students, and my proficiency that of the masters. † (Chapter 4) â€Å"I m ade some discoveries in the improvement of some chemical instruments, which procured me great esteem and admiration at the university. I was surprised, that among so many men of genius who had directed their enquiries towards the same science, that I alone should be reserved to discover so astonishing a secret. † (Chapter 5) Prometheus by all accounts was the wisest of all the gods. He had created man to stand upright like the gods. Taught man how to deceive the gods and Prometheus possessed knowledge that even the mighty Zeus didn’t have. Both characters find that being highly intelligent has its cost. Dr. Victor Frankenstein is then modern Prometheus When Mary Shelley created the character of Victor Frankenstein she used an allusion to mythology to describe him. Prometheus and Dr. Frankenstein were both the creators of man, both were highly intelligent compared to their counter parts, and both were punished indirectly from their creations. Prometheus tormented by Zeus for giving man fire and showing man how to outwit the gods with unacceptable sacrifices. And Dr. Frankenstein forever tormented by the death of his brother, best friend and wife. He now must embark on a never ending quest to chase the creature forever. And now my wanderings began, which are to cease but with life. I have traversed a vast portion of the earth, and have endured all the hardships which travelers, in deserts and barbarous countries, are wont to meet. How I have lived I hardly know; many times have I stretched my failing limbs upon the sandy plain, and prayed for death. But revenge kept me alive; I dared not die, and leave my adversary in being. Amidst t he wilds of Tartary and Russia, although he still evaded me, I have ever followed in his track. Never will I give up my search, until he or I perish. (Chapter 24) Mary Shelly’s comparison of Dr. Frankenstein to Prometheus is both accurate and valid. After closely examining the two characters it’s easy to see why Mary Shelly was ahead of her time subtitling her novel â€Å"The Modern Prometheus† which is why it’s a classic novel to this day. References Mary W. Shelley â€Å" Frankenstein or the modern Prometheus† (1818) www. desy. de www. egs. edu www. gutenburg. org www. english-literature-space. blogspot. com www. sparknotes. com www. theeoi. com www. wikipedia. com

Friday, August 16, 2019

Blozis Company

Part 1 – Executive Summary My decision, as the supply manager of the Blozis company, is to implement new processes and procedures in the supply department. One of the changes to be made in the processes and procedures will include having the expediter’s role primarily limited to the expedition of materials. An expediter is the person in charge of scheduling purchases, purchasing and scheduling the delivery of materials and services, as well as checking orders and speeding up the arrival of materials needed to meet production schedules. The current expediter, besides undertaking these responsibilities, is also taking on a number of other responsibilities that are taking away from his abilities to properly complete his core job responsibilities. In addition, the process for the receiving of products and materials will be improved so that items received into inventory are properly accounted for, as well as properly accounted for once they leave inventory, so that they are charged to the correct departmental budget and are paid for in a timely manner so that early payment discounts are taken advantage of. A current and accurate inventory is necessary in order to properly manage the supply department. In regards to approval of requisitions, despite the fact the president likes to operate â€Å"informally† it is important to ensure that the required signatures are obtained on all requisitions as this helps to hold people accountable for their purchases and to control costs and remain within budget. Even though purchases over $10,000.00 may have technically been approved by the president in the budget, they are not realized purchases and in order to ensure they do fall within budget requirements, the president still should be required to execute these requisitions. As well to ensure managers are informed and can be held accountable to what items are charged to their departments, it is prudent to include on the requisition the signature of the manager of the department for which the purchase is being made. Finally the engineering department should be required to be as detailed and accurate in their descriptions and specifications on all purchase orders. While the current expeditor has some technical background, all purchase orders should be supplied to the supply department with detailed specifications to ensure the correct materials and parts are purchased and supplied. Even though the main responsibility for this should still fall to the engineering department, there is no reason why the continued process of discussing the details of purchase orders with the expeditor could not continue as well, as this will ensure greater accuracy in the specifications detailed on their purchase orders together with greater accuracy in the fulfillment of the purchase orders. Part 2 – Immediate Issue with Impact Analysis Besides expediting parts and materials throughout the company, the expeditor was also writing purchase requisitions and purchase orders. At times the expeditor would just pick up parts and advise suppliers that they would receive â€Å"confirming orders† that never followed. This resulted in the supply department at times receiving invoices for items that could not be matched to a corresponding purchase order. In order to control costs, remain within budget and to ensure accurate inventory and purchases, this process cannot continue. The Blozis Company needs to have their expeditor doing just that, expediting items throughout the company and not writing purchase requisitions and orders. The writing of purchase requisitions and orders should be limited to the engineering and production personnel. The current inventory and purchasing process within the Blozis Company is allowing for inventory to go missing, payments for materials and items received to be missed, as well as the receiving of invoices for payments to suppliers that are not supported by purchase orders. The current processes or lack of processes are not allowing for the proper tracking and accounting of inventory; the control of cost as purchasing discounts are being missed and invoicing is being received and paid for without proper documentation that the items were in fact ordered and received. This lax in documentation and recording of items is also impacting on the ability of each department to remain within budget. The company, as well, can no longer function without proper processes that are diligently followed in regards to signatures on purchase requisitions. Again this allows for greater control over costs, purchasing accountability and adherence to budget restrictions. As a whole the company needs to completely overhaul their current processes and procedures in their supply department in order to address the issues as detailed above. Part 3 – Environmental and Root Cause Analysis Under the current processes in the supply department the expeditor is spending too much time handling technical orders. While his involvement in technical orders to a degree does assist with greater accuracy in the fulfillment of these purchase orders, it is taking away from his time to expedite materials and items throughout the company. This has resulted in corners being cut which have cost the company money. For example, two special micrometers disappeared within the plant after the Blozis Company had waited six months to receive them. The supplier of these micrometers was able to prove that Blozis did receive these items as evidenced by a signed bill of lading, but it appears the expeditor, in an attempt to get these items to the engineers as quickly as possible, may have just picked up the micrometers on the receiving dock and taken them directly to the engineers. The expeditor on the other hand claims to never have seen the micrometers. Since no documentation was in place to evidence what happened, it became a he said she said situation, but in the end the two special micrometers were still gone at a financial loss to the company. In addition, when the expeditor was pressed for time, instead of completing the necessary purchase order, he would just pick up a desired item from a suppler and advise the supplier that they would be receiving a â€Å"confirming order† for the item or items he picked up. A number of times the expeditor would forget to ask supply for a confirming order and when the invoice arrived from the supplier for payment, the supply department was faced with an invoice for which they had no confirming order documentation to support the payment of. Besides the aforementioned issues relating to the lack of completed receiving reports, there was also the issue of suppliers claiming long overdue payments on materials that have been received by the Blozis Company. The supply department would not pass on a bill for payment until they had received the receiving report, which is a good process as this controlled the possibility of paying for materials that were never received. On the other hand, the lax of completion and/or the timely submission of the receiving reports to the supply department resulted in the delay of bills submitted for payment that included sizable discounts for early payment as well as not meeting the net date on several bills. This lax in the necessity of following process and procedures in order to ensure the correct documentation was in place to record and support purchases, was not only exercised by the supply department. The president of the company liked to operate â€Å"informally† and allowed anyone in the company to initiate requisitions with only the signature of the supply manager for any orders up to a value of $10,000.00. Many managers were complaining they were unaware of what was being charged to their departments until the monthly accounting statement came out. Changes need to be made to include, on each requisition, the signature of the manager of the department to which the requisition is being made. This allows for more managerial accountability in the control of their budgets. Part 4 – Alternatives and/or Options Based on the information that has been provided to the writer, it is their position that the issues are clearly identifiable and that solutions in regards to addressing these issues are contained herein. Despite the fact that specific issues have been identified, as with any process there could be room for more improvement in other areas that are not the subject matter of this report. Bearing this in mind, the supply department may also wish to conduct a process mapping session which will detail the entire process as it exists today and from this be able to indentify other areas of the process that require improvement. I do not believe there are any other viable alternative in regards to the solutions that have been presented herein, but the conducting of a process mapping session will only build upon and possibly lead to the discovery of more issues so that the process can be improved even further. Part 5 – Recommendation and Implementation In regards to the role of the expeditor, it should be mainly limited to the expediting of materials and items throughout the company. His role in the handling of technical orders should be decreased with more responsibility in this regard falling on the engineering department. If purchase requisitions are written with greater specifications without as much reliance on the expeditor to assist in the writing of same, another individual within the supply department could be trained to assist with these technical orders. The implementation of these changes will begin with the manager of the engineering department meeting with his group as well as the manager of the expeditor meeting with him to ascertain what their current involvement is in regard to technical orders. Once this information is obtained, then all managers will meet in order to discuss how these job responsibilities will be allocated between the engineering department and th e expeditor. Once this have been finalized, a further meeting will be held that will include all managers, the engineering department and the expeditor so that everyone can be advised of the changes in their job responsibilities going forward. In regards to inventory control all products received must be documented and signed off on by the receiving clerk and there must be a matching purchase order to go along with the bill of lading and/or packing slip. No items should be received into inventory in the supply department without a corresponding approved purchase order. The supply department at all times is to receive a receiving report so that they can arrange for the timely payment of invoices in order to take advantage of purchasing discounts. The process for this is to be implemented by the supply manager. To provide for further control, no one, including the expediter should be allowed to take a product or item out of inventory without providing a requisition for same. Again the process for this will be implemented by the supply manager. In order to facilitate communication of when products and materials have arrived and are in inventory, the company should purchase inventory software that all interested parties will have access to, so that they can check for themselves when products have arrived. A meeting will be held between all managers of all departments in order to discuss which software will meet their needs and once decided the software will be purchased and put into use. To assist managers being made aware of what materials are being charged to their departments, all purchase requisitions should also require the signature of the manager of the respective department for which the purchase is made in addition to the supply manager’s. The supply manager should never receive and process a purchase requisition unless the signature of the applicable department manager is contained on the requisitions. This process will be implemented by the supply manager. Part 6 – Monitor and Control In regards to monitoring and controlling the success of the changes in the job responsibilities of the expeditor, there will be a follow up meetings between all parties affected, within 2 weeks of the changes taking place just to ensure things are still in place and that no one has slipped back into their old roles. After this for a further 6 month period there will again be mnthly meetings to monitor that everything is still on track in regard to the changes. In regards to the change in the process to bring around greater inventory control, a person outside of the supply department will be assigned various audit responsibilities and will attend in the supply department, initially, on a monthly basis to ensure the controls put in place are being complied with, for example that all necessary documentation has been completed so that all inventory is recorded being received and taken out of inventory. After each audit session the auditor will be required to complete an audit report that will be delivered to the supply manager. The report will detail all areas where they have discovered non-compliance with a time line presented to the area affected to bring the process and department into compliance. It is the expectation of the writer, that if the recommendations as detailed herein are fully and accurately followed, there will be substantial improvement in the operations of the supply department and within Blozis as a whole.

Medicinal Marijuana use in the United States Essay

Although many individuals find medical marijuana illegal, and unnecessary, it is a natural herb used to help symptoms caused by chronic illnesses. Over three million Americans use medical marijuana. Medical marijuana is the most widely used drug used to treat chronic illnesses in seventeen states. The use of medical marijuana has been a controversial issue here in the United States. Although, there are healthcare professionals that do believe that the use of medical marijuana can be very beneficial for patients. Just as there are benefits associated with the use of medical marijuana there are also negative effects. Many American are still unfamiliar with Medical Marijuana, so what is medical marijuana? Medical marijuana also known as â€Å"cannabis sativa†(Harold E Dowieko 2009) is a naturally growing plant that produces tetra-hydrocannabinol and cannabidiol.(Harold E Dowieko 2009) These chemicals are both thought to have possible effects on lessening the bad side effects from chronic diseases. Medical marijuana has been used for health reasons for centuries. Marijuana was a legal herb in the United States until 1937 when the United States passed a law making it illegal to sell. (Kring, Davinson, Naele & Johnson 2007) Marijuana was then made legal for medicinal use in 1995. The state of California was the first state in the United States to make marijuana legal for medical purposes. Medicinal marijuana is now legal in seventeen states. These states include; â€Å"Alaska, Arizona, California, Connecticut, Washington D.C., Delaware, Hawaii, Maine, Michigan, Montana, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont, and Washington state.† (â€Å"Thc.me History†, n.d.) In all of these state a patient can obtain a medical marijuana license, also referred to as a â€Å"green card,† from a licensed physician. Patients must have documentation stating what chronic illnesses they have that may require the need for medicinal marijuana. The physician will then decide if the use of marijuana will be beneficial. Medical marijuana has been proven to benefit patients who have multiple illnesses. The most common uses for medical marijuana are; pain relief, loss of appetite, depression, and diseases such as AIDS and cancer. TCH has been proven to block pain receptors in the brain. The blockage of these pain receptors allows patients dealing with chronic pain to have some relief. Medicinal marijuana also stimulates appetite, and relieves symptoms associated with depression, AIDS and cancer. This enables patients to not have to rely on the use of prescription pain pills such opiods. Meidcal marijuana is also less addictive, and has less physical side effects than other prescription pain relievers. Just as there are positive benefits associated with medical marijuana there are some health risks. First, marijuana is not regulated by the FDA. The FDA is the food and drug administration. They regulate medication and ensure the safety and risk associated with drugs. Without the FDA regulating medical marijuana there is no way for patients to know if they are getting correct information pertaining to the exact marijuana they are smoking, and if there may be additives or chemicals on the marijuana. This can be risky for patients, because marijuana comes in much different strength. The FDA has also found that dosing of medical marijuana is hard due to the effects taking around thirty minutes for patients to feel. The main health risk that medical marijuana has is psychological effects. According to Kring, Davinson, Naele, and Johnson â€Å" rapid shifts of emotion, to dull attention, to fragment thoughts, impair of memory, and sense that time is moving more slowly.† (Chapter 10) Kring, Davinson, Naele, and Johnson also stated â€Å"extremely heavy dosing has been found to induce hallucinations and other effects similar to those of LSD.† (Chapter 10)Another risk associated with medicinal cannabis is the harmful effect done to lungs. There have been many studies done that look at the respiratory risk associated with regular marijuana use. In one study done with the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey it concluded that the risk of respiratory illness does rise. Marijuana damages lungs just as smoke cigarettes. The last major health risk associated with medical marijuana is a lowered immune system. This can be very dangerous for patients that are dealing with cancer and AIDS. Since these patients already have very low immune systems because of their disease. Doctors prescribing medicinal marijuana must ensure that the benefits of marijuana use out ways the risks. Although a controversial issue in the United States medical marijuana does have many potential health benefits for patients with chronic illnesses. Statistics now show that eight out of ten Americans support the use of medicinal marijuana. This is because previously I have stated through studies done; the benefits of medical marijuana outweigh the risks associated with medical marijuana use. With already seventeen states in the United States allowing the legalization of medical marijuana. It is fair to say medical marijuana can be very helpful for patients who need it. Currently there are more states in the process of trying to legalize medical marijuana. Some say eventually marijuana as a whole will be a legal substance in the United States. In years to come as Americans we will see how medical marijuana plays a role in the pharmaceutical and medical fields. References Moore, B., Auguston, E., & Moser, r. (2012, October). Respiratory Effects of Marijuana and Tobacco Use in a U.S. Sample Bostwick, M. (2012, February Day). Blurred Boundaries: The Therapeutics and Politics of Medical Marijuana. , p. . dowieko, h. E. (2009). Concepts of medical dependency (7th ed.). : cengage learning. Kring, A. M., Davinson, G. G., Naele, J. M., &Johnson. S. L. (2007). Abnormal Psychology [University of Phoenix Custom Edition eBook]. : John Wiley and Sons INC.. Retrieved from University of Phoenix, website. THC.me History. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.thc.me