Death of a Salesman Essay AP English III

Death of a Salesman Essay Wily Loan is a symbolic icon of the failing America. He is representing a typical chaser of the American dream in the sass's. He experiences a tragedy in his life where he was trying to find his place in his own life with his sons leaving, growing old, and an escalating sense of stubbornness. Wily was Just one of many Americans that experienced a great tragedy during this time which was a reason that led up to the great depression in 1929. This makes a symbolic icon of the failing America during this time.Wily Loan had a life most people admired while his sons were still in high school. He had a Job and was very happy at that time. His son Biff was the high school quarterback and was very good at his position. This made Wily extremely proud and hoped he would see his son go off to play football at the college level. He was very content with his life at this point and this symbolizes the booming American economy before the Great Depression. Wily soon got too caught up in the idea of the American Dream, to be hard working and honest among other things.He soon began to get greedy in the idea of the American Dream along with other things that went wrong. His pride soon escalated and prevailed in the worst way. Biff reveals to Wily that he has failed his senior math class and will not have enough credits to graduate high school. This incident highlights and really reveals Willis stubbornness for he Just thinks Biff could just go to summer school and get the credits he needed to graduate. It was not that simple as Wily soon learned. Biff then tells his father he is going to go to an interview or an important high paying Job and Wily is very excited for him to get the Job.Biff ends up not going to the interview because he felt he was not able to get the Job. As he tries to tell his father what happened, Willis stubbornness again shows as he would not even let Biff explain what had happened. Wily keeps talking and interrupting his son saying t hings as if he got the Job. This causes very high tension between the two and leads to a huge argument at the end of the play that indirectly leads to Wily killing himself. Another incident that escalates to the tragedy that occurs in the play is when Biff catches Wily cheating on his wife.Biff is heartbroken, in shock, and angry all at once and leaves the scene leaving Wily questioning what has become of him and started to realize his life was not what it used to be, but his stubbornness still prevailed. At the end of the play the whole family meets together at their house. A significant argument breaks out mostly between Biff and Wily about how stubborn and blind he really is. Wily ends up telling Biff to get out of his house and Biff says he never wants to come back. The argument was the deciding factor hat led up to Wily getting in his car and killing himself.In the end, Willis stubbornness and pride led to things such as the arguments between him and Biff, him getting fired and refusing to take another Job out of pride, and lack of realization that he was slowly setting the stage for his own demise. Wily was Just another lower middle class American stuck in the idea of the American Dream. Along with many other Americans during the time, he symbolized the failing America of the Great Depression of the sass's and even the digressing American economy of today.

Analyze The Anatomical Structure Of Ten Essay

Distinguish among the four tissue types found in the human body. Provide an example of each type with its function and location. Epithelial tissue covers the body surface and forms the lining for most internal cavities. The major function of epithelial tissue includes protection, secretion, absorption, and filtration. The skin is an organ made up of epithelial tissue which protects the body from dirt, dust, bacteria and other microbes that may be harmful. Cells of the epithelial tissue have different shapes as shown on the student’s worksheet. Cells can be thin, flat to cubic to elongate. Connective tissue is the most abundant and the most widely distributed of the tissues. Connective tissues perform a variety of functions including support and protection. The following tissues are found in the human body, ordinary loose connective tissue, fat tissue, dense fibrous tissue, cartilage, bone, blood, and lymph, which are all considered connective tissue. There are three types of muscle tissue: skeletal, smooth, and cardiac. Skeletal muscle is a voluntary type of muscle tissue that is used in the contraction of skeletal parts. Smooth muscle is found in the walls of internal organs and blood vessels. It is an involuntary type. The cardiac muscle is found only in the walls of the heart and is involuntary in nature. Nerve tissue is composed of specialized cells which not only receive stimuli but also conduct impulses to and from all parts of the body. Nerve cells or neurons are long and string-like. Distinguish among five different types of connective tissue with examples of functions and location within the body. Adipose fatty tissue; type of loose connective tissue that stores energy, insulates and cushions the body Fibrous Tissue composed of bundles of collagenous white fibers between which are rows of connective tissue cells. Bone tissue Most rigid connective tissue, internally supports body structures, very active tissue, heals much more rapidly than cartilage cartilage tissue Dense, flexible tissue similar to bone tissue blood tissue Consists of blood cells surrounded by nonliving fluid matrix called plasma.  Funcion: transport vehicle for cardiovascular system, carrying nutrients, wastes, respiratory gases, and many other subs thru body hemopoietic tissue Produces blood cells that are added to the circulating blood, removes worn out blood cells from the blood stream, red bone marrow, lymphatic tissue, yellow bone marrow Analyze five different types of epithelial tissue with examples of functions and location within the body. Simple squamous-single layer of thin, flat, many-sided cells each with a central nucleus. It lines internal cavities, the heart and all the blood vessels. Also lines parts of the urinary, respiratory, and male reproductive tracts. Stratified squamous-consists of many layers of cells. Innermost layer produces cells that are first cuboidal or columnar in shape, but as cells push toward the surface, they become flattened and begin to accumulate a protein called keratin and eventually die. Keratin makes the outer layer of epidermis tough, protective, and able to repel water. The linings of the mouth, throat, anal canal, and vagina are examples of stratified epithelium. The outermost layer of cells surrounding the cavity remains soft, moist, and alive. Simple cuboidal-single layer of cube-shaped cells, each with a central nucleus. Found in tubules of the kidney and in the ducts of many glands, where it has a protective function. It also occurs in the secretory portions of some glands, where the tissue produces and releases secretions. Simple columnar-single layer of tall, cylindrical cells, each with a nucleus near the base. This tissue, which lines the digestive tract from the stomach to the anus, protects, secretes, and allows absorption of nutrients. Pseudo stratified ciliated columnar-appears to be layered, though actually all cells touch the basement membrane. Many cilia are located on the free end of each cell. In the human trachea, the cilia wave back and forth, moving mucus and debris up toward the throat so that it cannot enter the lungs. Smoking destroys these cilia, but they will grow back if smoking is discontinued.

National Historic Preservation Act of 1966

The National Historic Preservation Act is a law that serves to create the â€Å"National Register of Historic Places, the list of â€Å"National Historic Landmarks and the posts of â€Å"State Historic Preservation Officers† of the United States which aims of preserving the entire national and archeological site in the said country (nps.gov, 2007). Enacted in 1966, it has already been to a lot of amendments since then, this law mandates government agencies to determine the effects of various government funded construction projects (fema.gov, 2002). In other words, this act encourages the government agencies to safeguard their preservations programs alongside with the advisory council on Historic preservation. The reason of the existence of this act is due to the fact that year after year, historical sites and other national heritage places has been experiencing degrading concern and of less priority as a government sponsored public works projects. There have been a lot of national heritage sites and historical places that needs major attention, and only the government could help them to be preserved and maintained. Currently, National Historic Preservation Act serves as the basis of most of the government policies concerning on historical preservation in America. With the aid of this act, the role of the Federal preservations was expanded which gives way for the birth of the â€Å"National Antiquities Act† which gives the president the power to restrict the use of any public land owned by the government through executive order. With this, the government authorities would now have the authority and the means of further protecting and preserving the historical site in the United States. Moreover, the federal power could now also be distributed to various states and from the state going to the localities to ensure the effectiveness of the said act. In addition to this, the Historical preservations already widened its coverage by including even the places with no significant historical value. The Effects With the implementation of this act, the definition of a â€Å"Historical value† was broadened. Before the said law was enacted in 1966, only the historical places are being valued by the government or the only one who’s having attention to most of the government officials. But after the birth of the National Historic Preservation Act, it is already being included in the lists of National Register of Historic Places the sites, buildings, objects and all the structures that has of great significance and value to American history, architecture, archeology and culture may it be of a national, state or local significance. In addition to that, the word â€Å"district† is also already being included in the scope of this act. This only means that neighborhoods can already be now included in the preservation program of the government as mandated by law. With the inclusion of the word â€Å"district† in the scope of this law would rationalize any endowment that the secretary of the interior for rehabilitation and exterior restoration in historic districts gives to individuals from various sectors which have identified any neighborhood that is of great importance to them (Murtagh). Moreover, the confusion between the grants for house rehabilitation and the current programs of the secretary of the Department of Housing and Urban Development can now be clarified. The said law is also the one responsible for making the Department of Interior takes the responsibility of planning and rehabilitating historic districts which was being handled by the Department of Housing and Urban Development. With this, there would be more efficient implementation of the said law since it is not the forte of the Department of Housing and Urban Development the said responsibility. Furthermore, it is through the aid of this law that most of the citizens now understands that there are still other means of ensuring the quality of housing projects in the state and local levels aside from the destruction of urban renewal. Government officials could now get funds for the replacement of the existing housing stock not only from the secretary of the Department of Housing and Urban Development but also to the secretary of the Department of Interiors. This means that there are already more government agencies that could serve as a source of funds to finance the rehabilitation activities of various agencies and groups. The said act also give way for the establishment of the Advisory Council on Historic Preservation made by people from the cabinet of the president and a selected number of private citizens which would serve as the group of people responsible in determining the effects of the federal tax to the cultural properties of the country as well as on the proper treatment of the cultural properties existing in the United States. Case Study Back in the 1990’s, Texans had some hard time in convincing the Texas government to make the Washington-on-the Brazos, the site where the Texas Declaration of Independence had been signed, to be considered as a historical site. What the Texan government tried to consider was the Alamo and San Jacinto battlefield. There were three reasons why the government chose the said two places as a historical site and not the Washington-on-the-Brazos. First was that Washington-on-the-Brazos has little a number of ruined houses that are far from major roads and towns whereas Alamo was situated in downtown San Antonio and San Jacinto battlefield was near from Houston. Secondly, the signing of the declaration of independence was not a concrete physical place or even related not to mention that the document was not in Washington but already placed in the State Archives at Austin. The last but not he least would be that only the local people are the one who is considering the said town site a place valuable of preservation (Trujillo, 2000). This clearly gives us the idea that there is a big discrepancy between what is to be preserved and what is important to the community. Before, as stated above, only those places that are within reach and accessible are only being granted with preservation like Alamo and San Jacinto and not considering those places that has of significant value to the locals as well as the community as a whole. REFERENCES fema.gov. (2002). National Historic Preservation Act (NHPA), 1966 As Amended (2000) [Electronic Version], 1. Retrieved 10-06-07 from http://www.fema.gov/plan/ehp/ehplaws/nhpa.shtm. Murtagh, W. Keeping Times nps.gov. (2007). National Historic Preservation Act of 1966-as amended through 1992 [Electronic Version], 65. Retrieved 10-06-07 from http://www.nps.gov/history/local-law/FHPL_HistPrsrvt.pdf. Trujillo, M. à . L. (2000). Lights and Shadows in Texas Preservation: The Case of Washington-on-the-Brazos State National Park [Electronic Version], 20. Retrieved 10-06-07.      

Question and answer Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 2

Question and answer - Assignment Example I think the writer should have tried to explain briefly what Incoterm is in order for the readers who are not well versed to this subject to understand it. As it is, the answer is evasive and does not directly answer the question that has been asked.  Ã‚   I would have to agree that depending where one falls on the spectrum of the chart (EXW (higher risk to buyer) – DDP (higher risk to seller)), how the transaction is negotiated via contract, decides on the risk one inherits.   With that said, as we have discussed this week regarding documents used in export financing and the terms and conditions expressed in them, some of the risks associated with Incoterms 2010, may be mitigated through the use of these documents and as well as wording added to the sales contracts containing these commercial terms/definitions.   One needs to keep in mind that Incoterms doesn’t specify or involve questions as to title or ownership or deal with breach of contract†¦these questions/details need to be resolved in specific provisions in the contract. This part of the answer is vague since it does not directly answer the question. The writer is repeatedly saying â€Å"documents† used for exporting. What are these documents? This leaves us with many questions than answers. Using instruments such as a letter of credit or documentary collection, requirements and stipulations may be added by the banks so that their clients and they are covered barring circumstances when it comes to payment.   It makes sense to me that buyers and sellers would opt for something whereas they meet in the middle.   The seller takes care of costs incurred up to loading goods on method of transportation to import country with the buyer picking up responsibility from there or once loaded on transportation in the exporting country.   Using CIF or CFR rules would make sense as costs and risks are closely split.   Granted as a seller, I have something the

Jet Blue Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Jet Blue - Essay Example The resources are many in the JetBlue atmosphere, including the opportunities brought on by the shareholders invested in JetBlue, JP Morgan or LiveTv, the wholly owned JetBlue Subsidiary. It seems as though JetBlue has access to many perks based on affiliated companies and partnerships, and work hard to make new partnerships available to learn about and for those who own a company, to participate in. This directly reflects the internal environment of JetBlue, which is based on the strengths of the business being interconnected and in touch with the consumer and corporate strata. At the same time, the website isn’t wholly specific about what resources are directly used in forming the company or its core values, but JetBlue places a lot of emphasis on confidentiality, so it isn’t a huge surprise that this information isn’t readily volunteered. The Capabilities of JetBlue seem staggering, as the company has only been around ten years and already they’ve become a leading provider of commercial aviation services. Along with being capable of making more corporate alliances and to grow as a business, JetBlue also has the capability to serve as an example of a progressive company environment, as shown in the company’s â€Å"Code of Ethics,† community relations and â€Å"Code of Business Conduct.† These points of reference on the website emphasize diversity, company loyalty and a charitableness to the human condition that goes far beyond expectation. For example, there is a specific page on the JetBlue website where you can apply to be a part of the â€Å"we care† program, an opportunity for charities to submit to be on the website and to have customers donate to their causes, if the causes are in alignment with JetBlue’s core values. The core competencies of JetBlue seem to be in order, as well. The JetBlue Airways â€Å"Customer Bill of Rights† outlines the

Table for OneOn Eating Alone Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Table for OneOn Eating Alone - Essay Example The Americans apparently got bored of the practice of eating alone and they devised a plan that required everyone to pay their own bill whereas, the group can have a meal together and in this way, the requirement of socialization is fulfilled without overburdening anyone. The practice of joint meals with disjointed payments got popular in all parts of the world because it allows individuals to enjoy the socialization. According to Maslow’s hierarchy of needs, humans have profound and notable urge to socialize (Kingkade, 1). The modern psychology is of the view that people need to cool off in a friendly setting (Trobst, 51). The professionals remain under quite a bit of pressure and they require sharing their problems with others and the ideal place to do that is an eating table. In quite a few cases, the dining table is a place where each one of the family member can share his or her entire day’s story. In the light of presented argument, the dining table can be taken as a place where participants can share their problems and express their emotions in a friendly environment. The practice of eating together offers the opportunity to discuss great ideas and plans as it offers humans the chance to relax. The creativity comes to a relaxed mind and therefore, many great ideas had been famous for being put together on a dining table. Secondly, the featured events offer the people to exercise out of the box thinking. The routinely office environment locks one’s mind and therefore, he or she becomes slave to the already known and established ways of doing things. The great Steve Jobs made his friend Steve Wozniak to work on difficult engineering projects by offering him something to eat. The quoted instance is the evidence of dietary bribery’s effectiveness in terms of stimulating human creativity. Conclusively, it can be argued that eating together gives people an opportunity to socialize with each other. The dining table can be a perfect avenue

Avoiding Taxes Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Avoiding Taxes - Essay Example The US tax returns process requires the US citizens to pay tax on the incomes they earn all over the world. The US citizens are required to pay income taxes on their world-wide income irrespective of the fact whether they visited the US land in recent times or in the recent decades. This led to the renouncing of US citizenship by the US people which has increased from 231 in 2008 to 1781 in 2011. By giving up US citizenship, the people of US or people residing abroad are able to reduce their tax liability as they are not required to follow the lengthy process of US tax returns (Yoshov, 2007). The tax liability is also reduced as the taxes on worldwide income are reduced as an effect of renouncing the US citizenship. Thus the overall tax liability is reduced as a result of renouncing of US citizenship by people especially in US and also by people holding US citizenship and residing abroad. Tax liability: Effects of dual citizenship Many people having US citizenship have migrated to other countries where they also hold a citizenship of that country. England and Wales constitutes the highest number of US citizens all over the world. These people have dual citizenship in both the US as well as in another country like England. The effect of dual citizenship is, however, complicated as the people are required to pay taxes to both the US government as well to the Inland Revenue System of the country of residence. Thus the effect of dual citizenship does not help the people in reducing their tax liability. Because of the US citizenship, the people are required to pay taxes for the worldwide income. Apart from this, the US citizens are also required to pay taxes to the host country where they have migrated and are earning their income (Patterson, 2006). Apart from this, the dual citizenship would also enforce the US citizens to pay capital gains tax to the US government if they sell their properties in another country which is their main residence. Thus dual citizenship would make the tax liability more complicated. Comparison: Effects of renouncing US citizenship to establishing dual citizenship The effect on tax liability of the income earned by the people having US citizenship could be compared to the people having dual citizenship. The act of renouncing the US citizenship is a much more acceptable option as the people would not be required to pay taxes for more than once for only one income. By giving up the US citizenship, the people would not be required to pay taxes on their worldwide income. They would only be required to pay taxes to the host government for the income that they have earned on their land. The renouncing of US citizenship, however, involves a one time cost as the US citizens should complete a US tax return for five years. There are also legal costs involved for the process of immigration. On the other hand, dual citizenship would make the tax liability much more complicate d (CCH Incorporated, 2007). The citizen would have to pay income taxes to the US government irrespective of where they have earned their income. The sale of properties in the country of residence would require the citizens to pay capital gains tax to the US government. Apart from this, the citizen would also require to pay taxes to the host government for the income earned in the host country which is their actual residence. Thus from the perspective of reduction of tax liability, dual citizenship would be more complicated as compared to renouncing of US citizenship. Decision on renouncing citizenship versus dual citizenship From an individual perspective, renouncing US citizenship would be much easier as compared to taking up dual citizenship. From the view point of reduction of t

Global Market Entry Strategies Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Global Market Entry Strategies - Case Study Example 1. What is the amount of equity being invested by Volvo in the joint venture in China? 45% stake 2. What will be the benefits of the alliance to the Swedish Volvo? a) help the Volvo group to enter the Chinese market, which is the world's largest market for trucks, with a total market for heavy trucks equivalent to the European and North American markets combined 3. What will be the benefits of the alliance to the Chinese Dong Feng? a) The Dongfeng brand will become a global brand 4. What has been the strategy of the Chinese government for entry of foreign firms into the country? Passenger cars, in which it allows foreign companies access to China's fast-growing consumer and commercial markets only if they create joint ventures with domestic companies and share technology in return. Why? foreign companies give potential rivals a leg up in terms of marketing and technical know-how 5. How large is Dongfeng in China's heavy duty trucks market? Dongfeng already is China's largest maker of heavy-duty trucks. What is its market share of heavy duty trucks in China? 20% market share 6. What problems is the joint venture facing in China? The heavy-truck market has been hit by Beijing's efforts to tamp down on mining and property development. What is the strategy of Volvo to cope with the challenge? reducing vehicle emissions

Lafarge Company Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Lafarge Company - Essay Example One major advantage with e-learning is the universal nature of this approach. With the firm’s multinational presence, it goes without saying that the various managers in the countries where the firm’s branches are located can be incorporated into the system. Lafarge Company is one that deals with lime and cement in France. It is quite important to note that the company has been in operations for close to one and a half centuries. Actually around the 1930s the company was one of France’s largest cement producers. The success of the company was rather too much to be accommodated in the French locality so much so that in the present day the company has a presence in up to 76 countries all over the world. It has further diversified in the products it deals with and in the present time it has specialized in the production of concrete, aggregates, cement and gypsum. The company is of the opinion that for the achievement of its success there has to be adequate training of the staff that is there. In this connection it actually set up its learning base, the Lafarge University which was established back in the year 2003. The University aims at inculcating in managers the work values which are so much upheld by the company. The firm wants the managers of the firm to be the best in their particular fields in a bid to transforming the company even further. In the pursuit of the perfect solution to the issue at hand, Lafarge opted to get more involved with the internet. Actually the company stressed more on the development of e-learning and familiarizing the staff with what it entails. In accordance with the missions which the university upheld, there had to be a way through which the people involved in the company get a way of learning about how to achieve the objectives stipulated. The diverse nature of the firm at that particular time could not allow the centralization or rather the localization of the

International Business Questions Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

International Business Questions - Essay Example This means that the marketing and management, amongst various others, strategies they deploy address regional and local markets and not the global one per se. Within the context of the stated, and as affirmed by Stevens and Bird (2004) multinational firms perceive of the global market as a series of interconnected local and regional markets and, hence, pursue strategies which are consistent with this perspective. Hence, despite their popularly being referred to as multinational, global firms justifiably pursue inherently regional strategies. The pursuit of regional vs. global strategies is partially determined by the imperatives of balancing between globalisation and localisation. There are intense, contradictory pressures on multinational enterprises to integrate across borders as well as to respond to local pressures; that means, to pursue local strategies which address the domestic/local market and global strategies which target the international market. Indeed, were multinational firms to eschew the imperatives of adaptation to the local market and the design of strategies which address its characteristics, they would probably be perceived of as an alien entrant into the market, thereby arousing consumer resistance (Reed, 1997; Rugman, 2001). Were they, however, to pursue local/domestic or regional strategies, they would be perceived of as part of the market in question, thereby offsetting the potential for consumer resistance. In other words, and as Rugman (2001) emphasises, the success of multinational firms is pa rtially predicated on market perceptions of them as belonging to and understanding of the market in question, entailing the design of strategies which are consistent with the micro-environment. International strategies are inconsistent with the very notion of the micro-environment while regional strategies are (Roth and Morrison, 1990; Rugman, 2001). It is for this reason that multinational firms adhere to regional, as opposed to international strategies. It is important to emphasise that corporations are embracing the basic principles of globalization, as evidenced by ever increasing cross-border trade and the widening grip of MNEs on international business. It is doing so, however, within the context of regionalization. Trade laws and enthusiasm for globalisation aside, the fact is that while markets are interconnected, there is no international homogeneity of consumer tastes and market characteristics. Safarian (2003), arguing for market interconnectedness but against homogeneity, maintains that the reality of globalisation is pockets of globalisation. This means that globalisation, as in market homogeneity and interconnectedness, is only valid and present on the regional level. There is no such homogeneity, although there is interconnectedness, on the global/international level. The implication here is, as may be inferred from several scholars, is that there is simply no basis for the formulation and implementation of global marke t and marketing strategies. The global market, as in the homogeneous and interconnected one, simply does not exist (Sheth, 2001; Safarian, 2003; Rugman, 2005; Dicken, 2007). From this perspective, therefore, firms cannot pursue international/global strategies and, indeed, have no choice but to adhere to regional ones within the contex

Ethical Consumption of Cell Phones Essay Example for Free

Ethical Consumption of Cell Phones Essay 1. INTRODUCTION In just 30 years, mobile telephony has grown into a major global industry, with an estimated 5 billion users around the world, compared with a total world population of around 7 billion people. While new subscriber growth has slowed somewhat in recent years, product turnover remains high, with over 1 billion new mobile phones shipped in 2009 alone. This paper firstly examines the life cycle of a cell phone, describing its stages from the extraction of the materials to its disposal or re-usage possibilities. It also discussed the ethical issues that impact the environment and society. Lastly, two cell phone manufactures (Apple and Nokia) are being compared in terms of how they deal with environmental impacts. 2. LIFE CYCLE OF A CELL PHONE Stage One: Extraction of Materials Mobile phones generally comprise approximately 40% metals and 40% plastics, with the remainder made up of glass, ceramic and other miscellaneous materials. The parts of a cell phone include the circuit board, the liquid crystal display (LCD) and the rechargeable battery. The circuit board, which controls all of the phones functions, consists of copper, gold, silver, lead, nickel, tin, coltan, and zinc. The LCD, which is a flat-panel display where all the information and images appear, is made of glass or plastic. Batteries power the cell phone and, depending on the type of battery, may contain nickel, cobalt, zinc, cadmium and copper. Many of these materials are so called persistent toxins† that remain in the environment for a long period of time, even after disposal. Furthermore, an important life cycle consideration is the energy required to extract metals from their respective ores. From an energy perspective, precious metals gold and silve r and exceed the impact of copper. In addition, the energy content of glass also has a significant energy footprint, due to the high melt temperatures that are required during manufacturing. Stage Two: Materials Processing Raw materials that go into making cell phones must first be processed before manufacturers can use them. For example, to make the plastic casing, crude oil needs to be combined with natural gas and chemicals. The copper used to make the circuit board and batteries has to be mined from the ground, heated and treated with chemicals and electricity before it can be formed into wires and sheets. Stage Three: Manufacturing The individual parts of a cell phone each go through a manufacturing process. The circuit board is shaped using plastics and fibreglass and then coated with gold plating. The circuits and wires of the circuit board are soldered, glued and coated. The LCD is made with liquid crystals layered between glass or plastic. These layers include two polarized panels, with a liquid crystal solution between them. Light is projected through the layer of liquid crystals and is colorized, which produces the visible image. Batteries have two electrodes (both made from a different metal) and each electrode is touched by a liquid material called electrolytes. When an outlet or another outside electrical source is applied, a chemical reaction between the electrodes and the electrolytes causes an electric current to flow and powers the battery. Stage Four: Packaging and Transportation The transportation process and packaging of cell phones is seen as harmful to the environment. Transporting cell phones for distribution requires the use of fossil fuels for energy, which can contribute to global climate change. While packaging protects products from damage, identifies contents, and provides information, excessive or decorative packaging contributes to the waste that we produce. Packaging consumes valuable natural resources, such as paper (from trees), plastic (from crude oil in the earth), aluminium (from ore), or other materials, all of which use energy to produce and can result in waste. Some packaging, however, can be made from recycled materials. Stage Five: Useful Life You can extend the use of your cell phone by taking good care of it as in protecting it from damage by storing it in a case, avoiding dropping it, and keeping it out of extreme heat and cold and away from water and other liquids. However, the materials that are used to make cell phones can potentially damage the environment and harm people. Therefore, it is important to reuse, recycle or properly dispose cell phones. Reuse: Many organizations, including recyclers, charities, and electronics manufacturers, accept working cell phones and offer them to schools, community organizations, and individuals in need. Reuse gives people, who could not otherwise afford them, free or reduced cost access to new phones and this also extends the useful lifetime of a phone. Recycle: Nowadays, many stores, manufacturers, and recycling centres accept cell phones for recycling. Some cell phones can be fixed and sold as refurbished phones, or parts can be used to fix phones. Some rechargeable batteries can also be recycled, as this way the recovered materials can be used to make new batteries and stainless steel products. Disposal: However, about 40% of cell phones cant be sold as refurbished cell phones. These cell phones are shredded as well as smelted at a copper refiner. Many metals actually go back to their natural state. This process helps replenish some natural resources and it is called above ground mining. Still, many cell phones are simply thrown in the trash and end up in landfills (buried in the ground) or incinerators (burned). Because cell phones contain metals, plastics, chemicals, and other potentially hazardous substances, they should always be recycled or properly disposed. Phones that are thrown away waste energy and result in the loss of valuable resources. This figure shows the cell phone recycling rate from 2007 to 2010 in the United Stated. Even though sales were the highest in 2010, the recycling rate did not correspond to the sales. 3. ETHICAL ISSUES 1. Energy Conservation The quantity of mobile phone usage increases any environmental impact of this product. Life-cycle analysis conducted by the European Commission shows that energy consumption is the greatest impact, both during manufacture of components and during their usage. Nokia estimated that if 10% of worldwide subscribers would unplug their chargers once their phone is fully charged, the energy saved could to supply 60,000 European homes for one year. Issues like wastage of energy due to overcharging and or mobiles left unplugged even after being fully charged needs to be addressed more. 2. Exploitation Illegal Trading The material used in the manufacturing of the mobile phones is coltan, a heat resistant material found in the Republic of Congo. In the Coltan, mines there are children that have to work instead of going to school and many reputable companies buy this mineral. Companies have to resort to material provided by controversial circumstances. What is Coltan? Coltan, short for columbite-tantalite is a metallic ore comprising niobium and tantalum. The niobium-dominant mineral in coltan is columbite, and the tantalum-dominant mineral is tantalite. Niobium, whose leading producer in Brazil, is mostly found in the mineral pyrochlore whereas tantalum is extracted from the ore, tantalite and is created by smelting and tin mining in some places. Tantalum mineral is mainly mined in Australia, Brazil, Canada, Democratic Republic of Congo, China, Ethiopia, Mozambique and other central African countries. Coltan is important for manufacturing cell phones because it is in the capacitors that control current flow in the cell phones circuit board. When refined, coltan becomes a heat resistant powder, metallic tantalum which has unique properties for storing electrical charge. Mining Coltan In the Coltan is mined by hand in the Congo by groups of men digging basins in streams by scrapping off the surface mud. They then slosh the water around the crater, which causes the Coltan ore to settle at the bottom of the crater where it is retrieved by the miners. A team can mine one kilo of Coltan per day. Most of these miners are children which are subjected to extreme conditions. Therefore, awareness has to be brought to these terrible working conditions by which these child workers are affected. Coltan financing war A recent report by the UN has claimed that all the parties involved in the local civil war have been involved in the mining and sale of Coltan. One report suggested that the neighbouring Rwandan army made US$250 million from selling Coltan in less than 18 months, despite there being no Coltan in Rwanda to mine. The military forces of Uganda and Burundi are also implicated in smuggling Coltan out of Congo for resale in Belgium. A report to the United Nations Security Council has called for a moratorium on purchase and import of resources from the Democratic Republic of Congo, due to the ongoing civil war that has dragged in the surrounding countries. 3. Toxics Waste disposal Environmental Impact Persistent Bio accumulative toxins Persistent Bio accumulative toxins (PBTs) PBTs are particularly dangerous because they do not degrade over long periods of time, and can easily spread and move between air, water, and soil, resulting in the accumulation of toxins far from the original point source of pollution. Because PBTs accumulate in fatty issue of humans and animals, the toxins are gradually concentrated and are of great risk. Cell phone batteries Rechargeable batteries are rapidly changing as technological advances improve new power sources. Already 60% of rechargeable Batteries sold worldwide are used in cell phones. However, rechargeable currently have toxic constituents such as cadmium, as well as brominated flame-retardants. The total environmental impact from cell phone batteries depends on a batteries material composition as well as on the time cell phones are used before they are discarded. Therefore, many cell phone users replace their batteries at least once before retiring their phones Lead Lead is a highly poisonous metal affecting almost every organ and system in the body. It has been widely used in electronics as the primary method of attaching components to the printed wiring boards. Lead is a toxin to both humans and the environment. It is a common contaminant and can impact entire ecosystems. In humans, it affects the central nervous system, immune and vascular systems, kidneys, and the endocrine system, with serious effects on the development of children’s brains. Lead is also a possible carcinogen. It accumulates in the environment and has very high chronic and acute effects on microorganisms, plants, and animals. 4. Society In past few years, the boom in the usage of mobile phones has tremendously increased, a large percentage of which are children. With the advancement of technology with faster data rate and streaming videos, the youth has been given unlimited access to any contents on web. Restrictions should be established to prohibit children from accessing adult content. Also, mobile phones have been restricted to be used during driving as it has been one of the factors of road accidents. 4. COMPANY COMPARISON: APLLE vs. NOKIA How do these companies deal with environmental impacts? This part of the paper compared two companies in the cellular industry, Apple and Nokia, and how these firms deal with environmental impacts. Although Apple is not entirely a mobile devices producer, its only mobile phone, the iPhone, is very popular and widely sold. Nokia is a well known mobile devices producer, which was dominating the industry for a very long time. However, in past couple years they have faced tremendous difficulties catching up with the technological changes, and did not produce a smart phone in time. Despite their rapid losses in revenues, they still operate in this market, and one of their latest smart phones, the LUMIA 800, is very similar to the iPhone 4S. Both phones have similar hardware preferences and are comprised of similar materials. Now lets take a look at which company is better off when it comes to sustainable business. Apple iPhone 4S Apple generally says that their products are brominated flame retardant free, PVC free, mercury free, and that the glass they use is arsenic free. All of these factors conclude in a positive result for Apple. Also, the iPhone releases a minimum of CO2 -gases. In fact, it releases only 1.2g of CO2-gases per hour, whereas a light bulb produces 48.4g per hour. This performance is due to the LED screen, as LED produces the least CO2 of all light sources. Furthermore, Apple has reduced the size of their packages of iPhones by 42%, which not only rapidly reduces the amount of materials necessary, but they can also ship 80% more boxes in each airline shipping container. That saves one 747 flight for every 371,250 units they ship. If you count in the amounts of fuel that is saved and add every aspect of this change together, it is clear that Apples Environmental Management is doing incredibly well. Their whole portfolio regarding environment is a perfect marketing strategy. They claim that all of their products are fully recyclable. This also includes the power conservation, which in this case is a Lithium-Ion battery. This battery is efficient and long lasting, which eliminated the necessity to replace the battery often. Despite this, there is no way the battery can be removed from the phone without unscrewing the body of the phone, for which you need ultra thin screw drivers. Therefore, nobody can actually recycle these batteries themselves, unless they return it to Apple or give their phones to a recycling company. Despite all of these positive factors, Apple still operates this business using very irrational sales policies. They replace their products with twice as strong hardware every year and adapt the software to the new hardware, which makes the old products very slow and ultimately unable to use. This forces the customers to always buy the newest models, which eventually produces a lot of waste. Nokia LUMIA 800 Although Nokia now has very strong environmental reporting, this whole process started only after the crisis the company went through. Despite this, the LUMIA 800 proves to be a very sustainable product. In Nokias reports, it is stated that the phone is BFR-free and PVC-free. The company also states that this phone produces 16kg of CO2 emissions per constant 3 years of usage. Equally divided this yields 0.6g per hour of use, however this is not very reliable because it depends on the way these emissions are measured. When it comes to packaging, Nokia still uses the big boxes. After almost 15 years, they still use the same size of the boxes loaded with papers which contribute to a large amount of material waste. All in all, both companies provide very detailed information about their business ethics, and both rank positively. Apple as well as Nokia lay a great emphasis on improving the environmental aspects of their products and processes in each phase of the product life cycle, from raw material acquisition till the end of the product’s useful life. Both companies state to have reduced their carbon footprint, while introducing new features and constantly improving their products. To conclude, it cannot be said which company performs better as each of them has its advantages and disadvantages. Taking all the above mentioned points into consideration, this paper aims to highlight the ethical issues of mobile phones. When buying a cell phone, most consumers do not even think about what impacts their choice can have on the environment; the same applies to the disposal after the end of life. There are estimated 5 billion cell phone users which should be made more aware of the potential hazards of mobiles. They can cause environmental and health issues, causing CO2-emissions which increase the carbon footprint. Therefore, in conclusion, the choice which cell phone to buy should not only be based on cost and technical factors but also include environmental aspects.

Education and Its Affects Around the World Essay Example for Free

Education and Its Affects Around the World Essay Education is something that affects all of us as a whole gender, race, and poverty plays a role in education. As a citizen of the United States of America it is important for us to appreciate a good education that some of us take for granite. Gender is crucial in how people view education in the text:† Philippine Women’s College corrects gender miseducation†. Professors and education enthusiast are breaking down the barriers and bias that is associated with gender. Text books in the Philippines show women playing the â€Å"stay at home† role and the father portraying the â€Å" bread winner† role this a form a of bias. Scholars at the Miriam College are working to correct this matter by teaching all female students about stereotypes relating to gender. Students often are shown at a young age to approach matters in a biased free manner, through this approach both male and female can share duties in the household that were once delegated to one based on gender. Trained teachers are able to spot the gender difference and compensate with materials that are fair for all. Miriam College and its faculty also discuss sexual harassment and a list of other things as well. What was happening in the†Women’s Movement â€Å"and what was being taught in the classroom were two totally different things. In 1986 Corazon Aquino became the first female president of the Philippines this was in stark contrast of what was being taught. As far as equality for women the Philippines are ranked ninth in the world, with that being said advocates of gender feel that it is best suited to teach and educate when the students are young. Patricia Licuanan president of Miriam College implemented in 2001 gender courses to the curriculum that focuses on equality and quality education for women. Also in 2001 several colleges in the Philippines have shown interest in providing studies for women as well. Due to the work that has been taken place in the Philippines young women are questioning and taking up professions that were once generally associated with men. In the text â€Å"Lost Generation Fears as boys reject education† Professor Reynolds of Plymouth University states that: â€Å"the gender gap is a worldwide phenomenon, not just in the UK or a Welsh one†. Research has shown that boys are neglecting school, while girls are less likely to drop out of school after 16. A survey showed more girls than boys seek a higher education. Studies also show that vocational programs also play a role in why boys choose not to seek college versus girls. Boys are also not performing on the same level as girls this factor leads to fewer boys in college. Poverty is a component to lack of education as well in the article:† Escaping Poverty is possible when there are local opportunities for people with initiative†. This article shows the stereotypes that are associated with poverty 60,000 people that spread over 15 countries worldwide were surveyed; there are a lot of hurdles we must overcome for this to work. People are likely to fall into poverty the study will take preventive measures to ensure people will not make these mistakes. The stereotypes that haunt poverty stricken places is that people are lazy, shiftless, and have no ambition this is not the case. In fact these people surveyed accept responsibility for there actions, and want to better themselves. All of us need local opportunities and social networks to ensure that this will not happen on a global front, even if someone works hard to get there selves out of poverty with out help from the community and economic woes this process will be pains taking to say the least. Education is factor when combating poverty, we as Americans need to take advantage of our educational system though it may not be the best we are still a free country and should utilize any and every opportunity we have. Race also plays a vital role in education the text:† Officials try to improve black males’ academic performance: The achievement† Ginger Littleton has been a teacher in Northern California for more that twenty years. She has been stumped by the numbers of black males that scored drastically lower than other races in test of achievement. A look at last years test results from grades 1-10 math scores and FCAT were sorted by race. The results showed that 89 percent of white third graders were a the appropriate level, while Hispanics represented 66 percent, and blacks 69 percent but only one out of that percentile was a male. 59 percent of Anglos, compared to 33 percent of Hispanics were at the appropriate level. African Americans represent only 30 percent. This trend increased more by there sophomore year, Caucasians represent 38 percent, Hispanics 32 percent, and 13 percent of African Americans sustained this level of reading. By this point many African Americans have stopped going to school by then. The FCAT test of reading shows that only 1 percent of males were reading at the 10th grade level, white males scored 7 percent on the same level. African American males results were 0 percent, white males were 8 to 7 percent at levels 4 and 5 of reading. A study was conducted in 2004-2005† Focus on Blacks† by The National Education Association labeled the poor standings as â€Å"the achievement gap† and a national crisis. The study showed that African American 17 year old students performed in comparison to 13 year old whites in science. In the math part of the study blacks scored 61 percent below the standards, versus 20 percent of whites in the 4th grade. The results show that African Americans face challenges before they start school. Some of the findings show that it is less father figures and mentors in the African American community, lack of after school programs, and cohesiveness in the family all plays roles in the significant decline in education in the black community. There is a saying† it takes a village to raise a child† the African American community needs to rebuild it village from the foundation up to eliminate this disparity that runs rampant among so many. As you can have just read there are several factors in ones education it may be a gender problem, a socioeconomic problem, or ones ethnicity may all play a role in the type of education we receive as well as our chances of making it in today’s society. We still live in one of the greatest countries in the world in the end it is up to us to utilize what avenues are available and make the most out of it.

The Painted Door Outline English Literature Essay

The Painted Door Outline English Literature Essay The beginning of the story is written as an omniscient narrative; the narrator has knowledge of the thoughts and feelings of both John and Ann. As the story progresses the point of view changes slightly and becomes limited omniscient/third person. The story is told as if the narrator can tell what Ann is thinking, feeling and saying, but not what Steven and John are feeling or thinking, except for what is perceived by Anns interpretations of their actions. The suspense of the story builds gradually through the duration of the rising action . John gets ready to brave the oncoming storm to go to his fathers house; Ann does not want him to go and leave her alone all day. Against Anns protests he leaves anyway, but not before telling her that he will stop by their neighbor Steves house and ask if he will come over to help Ann with chores and keep her company. Throughout the day Ann fights off loneliness and despair and tries to distract herself from dwelling on negative aspects of her life. After Ann has a terrifying experience with the snowstorm Steve arrives. For a short story to be effective, it must be able to produce high levels of intensity, emotion and drama. To do this, it must convey a great deal of information in a short space of time. As a result, the short story usually leaves a great deal of its content open to interpretation and examination by the reader. Also, the denouements of short stories frequently remain inconclusive and unfulfilled. Together, these attributes add to the action and intriguing character of this genre of literature. An essential element of the short story is to make the personal events experienced by the characters universally understood by the reader. The story must present themes which are relevant to the reader, in order for it to make an impression. For this reason, short stories tend to be based on some type of controversy or debatable issue. In Sinclair Ross highly metaphorical short story The Painted Door, the explicit theme is centered on adultery. However, there are other, more subtle, motifs in the story that play a very significant a role in its success. The themes essential in making the protagonists adultery understandable are the landscape, her isolation, and the feelings of betrayal and guilt that she experiences following the central act of the story. A great deal of this story is spent describing Anns environment, both inside and outside her house. The story takes place in the past, before automobiles or telephones. Ann and her husband are settlers in a largely uninhabited and desolate area of North America (perhaps Saskatchewan). The starkness of the land is described early in the story: Scattered across the face of so vast and bleak a wilderness it was difficult to conceive [the distant farmsteads] as a testimony of human hardihood and endurance. (246). Page Two The barrenness of the surroundings in which the characters live produces an impression of extreme, almost unbearable, isolation and loneliness. This theme, perhaps the most vividly expressed theme of the story, pervades throughout the entire duration of the narrative. At one level, it serves to explain how the circumstances of Anns adultery arise, but, on another level, the description of the terrain serves a metaphor for the spirit itself. In other words, the emptiness of her surroundings point to the feelings of emptiness and loneliness she experiences. In this way, we can empathise with Ann through the descriptive passages of her bleak surroundings. Her attempts to keep herself occupied during the absence of her husband by carrying on with the household chores further emphasises the sense of tedium in her life. The almost exaggerated meticulousness in the way she proceeds with her chores illustrates her attempts at detaching herself from the reality of her isolation (does the hou se really need to be painted in the middle of winter?). -The weather outside deteriorates as her concern for her husband increases. She ventures outside the safety and warmth of the house to feed the horses in the stables. The blizzard is so ferocious that by the time she returns to the house, she realises that if her husband had ventured home in the storm, he has little chance of surviving the journey. The storm thus serves as a metaphor both for Anns anxiety about her present life, and also for regrets about past decisions. The physical separation from her husband signifies the isolation Ann is experiencing in her marital relationship. Together, these emotions make it possible for Ann to engage in an act that under normal conditions, would be out of character for her. Page Three At this point, Steven, their neighbour, arrives. We learn that Ann considers Steven attractive, perhaps even more attractive than her husband. The sexual tension between them soon becomes apparent: Something was at hand that hitherto had always eluded her, even in the early days with John, something vital, beckoning, meaningful. She didnt understand, but she knew. The texture of the moment was satisfyingly dreamlike. . . (254). Eventually, she accedes to Stevens persuasions that John, her husband, will not be returning home, either because he is stranded at his fathers house (where he had gone that morning, before the blizzard), or he has lost his way and perished in the cold. She surrenders herself to her loneliness and temptation, and her relationship with Steven is consummated. The storm is thus a metaphor for passion, emotion, and crisis. After having sex, she visualises moving shadows and flickering light from the bed she is sharing with Steven. It is unclear whether she is awake or dreaming. The spectre of John then appears. At first, Ann attributes this to a dream, because she knows that the house is completely isolated. Then, she is profoundly struck by the act of betrayal she has just committed: She knew now. She had not let herself understand or acknowledge it as guilt before, but gradually through the wind-torn silence of the night his face compelled her. (259). The abatement of the storm signifies Anns return to rationality and moral conscience. This reality is reflected in Steven, whom Ann sees from a different perspective at this point. Page Four Instead of sharing her emotions of angst and shame, he remains calm and displays no feelings of guilt. As a result, he is now substantially less attractive to Ann than he had been the previous night. This adds to her sense of betrayal as she recalls the admirable q ualities of her husband: she understood that thus he was revealed in his entirety all there ever was or ever could be. John was the man. He was the future. (261). -The conclusion of The Painted Door is shocking and ironic, which is what makes the story so effective. The reader is left with a definite, yet somewhat inconclusive ending. It is the only instance in the story in which we are not a party to the protagonists emotions. The conclusion serves to produce almost as many questions as it answers, because we are not completely certain what the implications are for Ann. The sudden termination of the story fails to reveal both what Johns motivations were, and what Anns future holds. This Twilight-Zone-esque formula is what makes a short story like The Painted Door so effective. The open-ended and disturbing culmination, coupled with the abundant use of symbolism and metaphor, compel the reader to ruminate on the implications long after the reader has finished reading the story. Works Cited

Effects of Overpopulation and Industrialization on the Environment Essa

Effects of Overpopulation and Industrialization on the Environment Throughout history, the world’s population has expanded in an extremely exponential fashion-- taking over three million years to achieve a one billion person benchmark, it then only took 130, 30, 15, 12, and 11 years to reach subsequent billions, respectively. (Southwick, 159) Such a massive and still increasing population, combined with the environmentally detrimental repercussions of industrialization (as a result of the need to sustain such a large population), namely pollution from fossil fuels, has begun to take a serious toll on our planet’s ecosystem. Moreover, â€Å"some scientists have calculated that an optimal human population on earth in terms of reasonable living standards is no more than 2 billion people.† (Southwick, 161) Already, we are well over this â€Å"optimal† population level at more than 6 billion people with projections of growing by another 2 to 4 billion in this century. Still, with the advent of modern technologies, primarily in the areas of medicine and agriculture, humans â€Å"have effectively increased the size of the globe over the last two centuries, in terms of the maximum population which it will support.† (Dolan, 58) Nonetheless, in spite of such stark improvements in technological efficiency and capability, the fact remains that one in five people worldwide lives malnourished and without adequate housing. Equally important, and especially pertaining to the topic at hand, is the notion that such overpopulation, in conjunction with industrialization on a global scale, has led to increased emissions of harmful pollutants, some of which can cause ozone depletion and global warming. Global warming, which will be examined shortly, is the phen... ...nmental salvation and continuity. This transition, led by developed nations, must include a commitment to the efficient research, development, and production of alternate fuel sources—those that are renewable, clean, and cost efficient (ie, hydrogen fuel). Otherwise, the uncertain long run implications of our current excessive consumption patterns may bring about the end of existence, as we know it. Sources: Dolan, Edwin G., "TANSTAAFL: The Economic Strategy for Environmental Crisis" 1974, pp. 55-72. Ponting, Clive. Chapter 13, "The Second Great Transition," St. Martins Press, NYC, 1991, pp. 288 Southwick, Charles H., "Global Ecology in Human Perspective" Oxford Univ. Press, 1996, pp. 159-182. Stanitski, C. et al (eds.), Chemistry in Context, Applying Chemistry to Society, Mcgraw-Hill, 2003 Internet 1 (http://cop5.unfccc.int/convkp/begconkp.html)

The Teacher Who Changed My Life :: College Admissions Essays

Mr. Geis- the tall, bike-riding Calculus teacher who truly made me realize the value of education. As far as academics were concerned, I believed I had always tried my best in reaching my full potential. That is, until I met Mr. "G." He made me understand that I was not going as far as I was capable of Mr. Geis offered to help me out on a couple of problems I had been experiencing with Pre-Calculus, and after a short while he became not only a tutor, but a true friend. I cannot even begin to imagine how many hours I spent in his classroom after the last school bell had rung. Posters of music legends and helpful math mnemonics covered his walls. It was a very spirited room for the lively man he stood to be. He went over the math in great detail while also informing me of how eminently important it was for academics to be my top priority. As an avid swimmer and loyal friend, I was greatly dedicated to the sport and my social surroundings, but Mr. Geis would always be there to tell me to slow down and repeat his key phrase, "Studying always comes first." Although Mr. Geis's main purpose was to perfect my Pre-Cal, he did so much more that he was unaware of doing. He convinced me into believing that anything was possible if I put my mind to it and had a brain-full of determination. If I wanted to be the first woman President, he would say "Hey, the sky's the limit." After the year ended, my goals had unconsciously changed for the better. I believed in myself, my capability, and accomplishing anything as though the world was an open door to endless possibilities. I did not just want to be a newspaper reporter, my desire was to be sports editor of the

Essay --

Topic: Thalassemia disorder Thalassemia is an inherited co-dominant blood disease. It is characterized by reduced synthesis of the hemoglobin and less red blood in children affected by this disorder. Hemoglobin is the means through which red blood cells carry oxygen in our body. We need two forms of globin genes to make beta globin chains in our body, one from each globin gene. If one or two of these genes are defective, it produces beta thalassemia which is the less severe form of this disease. This disorder is a very common genetic disorder facing millions of people worldwide. People with mild Thalassemia usually do not need treatment. On the contrary, people who are severely affected will need regular blood transfusion. This form of the disease is common among people in the Mediterranean. This form can also be seen in North America and parts of Asia. This disorder is caused by changes in the DNA of cells that make hemoglobin, the substance in human red blood cells that carries oxygen throughout your entire body. This disease is a inheritance disorder passed from parents to children. When parents have low count of hemoglobin and high could of red blood cell it is then transferred to their new born child. There are various types of this disorder. It depends on gene factor relating to the child’s parents. The more altered genes, the more severe your condition. Hemoglobin particles are made of alpha and beta parts that can be affected by mutations. There are three major forms of this disorder that are categorized based on the severity of symptoms. They are minor, intermediate and major. Children with the minor or trait of the disorder do not experience any symptoms and may not require treatment. Children with the intermediate f... ... spleen. When the patient spleen cell is removed, their bodies become susceptible to bacterial infections. Some patients with this disorder also experience bone deformities where the bone of the face and other parts of the body are affected. Treatment option for the disorder includes; blood transfusion, which is done to replace the affected hemoglobin, Excess iron removal from the blood stream by administering folic acid to the patient, bone mirror transplant and sometime a surgery may be required In a research conducted by the American Academy of Family Physicians, patients with this disorder trait have a normal life expectancy provided to live a health live style – health eating regular exercises. However, those with the more severe form of the disease (beta thalassemia major), on average live 17 years and generally die before their thirtieth birthday. Dabah Bono

Fundamental Difference between Judaism and Christianity Essay

Judaism and Christianity are closely related religions that can trace their origins back to Abraham and are considered in the studies of comparative religion as Abrahamic religion or Judeo-Abrahamic Faith. While there are those who argue that Christianity is a religion that began independently from Judaism, interpretations of biblical texts from the Old Testament reveal that it started out as Jewish sect during the late Second Temple period of the 1st century. The origins of Judaism on the other hand are still unclear as there are debates regarding the source of this religion. Most scholars however agree that the Genesis book of the Hebrew Bible is the canonical that bears on that question. Whatever the origins of these religions maybe, it is clear that they are currently considered as two (2) separate religions that differ on many fundamental issues. The first fundamental issue upon which Christianity and Judaism differ is with regard to the existence of God. Christianity believes that the existence of God is manifested in the Holy Trinity. God, according to the Christians, exists as three (3) distinct persons who share a single essence, God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit. God is indivisible but the persons who form the trinity are distinct from each other. This notion of God existing as the Holy Trinity runs contrary to the tenets of Judaism as they believe that God exists solely as a single indivisible divine being. The idea of the Holy Trinity is incomprehensible to the followers of Judaism because of the rejection of the notion that Jesus or any other object or living being could be â€Å"God†, that God could have a literal â€Å"son† in physical form or is divisible in any way, or that God could be joined to the material world in such fashion. While Judaism has two (2) different words used to label God (transcendence = Ein Sof and immanence = Shekhinah), these refer only to ways of experiencing God and still maintain the indivisibility of God. The other fundamental difference between Christianity and Judaism is with regard to the idea of Original Sin. The concept of Original Sin is found only in Christianity and it makes the assumption that all human beings are born with the original sin which is derived from the sin of Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden. This basically theorizes that everyone is born a sinner and nobody is born a saint. The only exception to this rule however is Jesus Christ who is regarded as the only person born without original sin. The concept if Original Sin does not exist in Judaism. Instead, Judaism holds that people have free will and have the ability to affect the course of their lives even if they be born naturally with a good inclination or bad inclination. Judaism holds that humans are born with either yetzer hatov or good inclination, or yetzer hara or bad inclination but can change because of free will. According to the teachings in some sects of Judaism, there can be no original sin because Adam and Eve cannot be blamed for eating the forbidden fruit because the notion of evil or of sin did not arise until after the fruit was eaten. Judaism and Christianity also differ with regard to the concept of love. According to certain scholars, love, as understood in the Christian sense, is equivalent to charity and that love in the Judaic context means justice. This is seen in this bible passage: â€Å"Whereas Jews believe that law is the ultimate fulfillment of love, Christians believe that love is â€Å"the fulfillment of the Law. † An examination of the core commandments of Judaism reveals that love as justice means that God commands the love of his people or Israel but never professes his love for his people (Israel). The Christian concept of love is manifested by the numerous acts of charity that Jesus Christ was said to perform during his lifetime including the ultimate act of love which was sacrificing himself to atone for the sins of man. These fundamental differences between Judaism and Christianity have given rise to the existence of two (2) separate religions who may arguably be worshipping the same God. Whatever the justifications are for having such fundamental differences, there is one common ground that not only Judaism and Christianity but also other religions can agree upon, that is that one should always seek to do good for others and learn to respect the beliefs of others.

Effects of computer games to students

The widespread belief that dopamine regulates pleasure could go down in history with the latest research results on the role of this neurotransmitter. Researchers have proved that it regulates motivation, causing individuals to initiate and persevere to obtain something either positive or negative. The neuroscience journal Neuron publishes an article by researchers at the Universitat Jaume I of Castellon that reviews the prevailing theory on dopamine and poses a major paradigm shift with applications in diseases related to lack of motivation and mental fatigue and depression, Parkinson's, multiple sclerosis, fibromyalgia, etc.  and diseases where there is excessive motivation and persistence as in the case of addictions.â€Å"It was believed that dopamine regulated pleasure and reward and that we release it when we obtain something that satisfies us, but in fact the latest scientific evidence shows that this neurotransmitter acts before that, it actually encourages us to act. In o ther words, dopamine is released in order to achieve something good or to avoid something evil,† explains Merce Correa. Studies had shown that dopamine is released by pleasurable sensations but also by stress, pain or loss.These research results however had been skewed to only highlight the positive influence, according to Correa. The new article is a review of the paradigm based on the data from several investigations, including those conducted over the past two decades by the Castellon group in collaboration with the John Salamone of the University of Connecticut (USA), on the role of dopamine in the motivated behaviour in animals. The level of dopamine depends on individuals, so some people are more persistent than others to achieve a goal.â€Å"Dopamine leads to maintain the level of activity to achieve what is intended. This in principle is positive, however, it will always depend on the stimuli that are sought: whether the goal is to be a good student or to abuse of dru gs† says Correa. High levels of dopamine could also explain the behaviour of the so-called sensation seekers as they are more motivated to act. Application for depression and addiction To know the neurobiological parameters that make people be motivated by something is important to many areas such as work, education or health.Dopamine is now seen as a core neurotransmitter to address symptoms such as the lack of energy that occurs in diseases such as depression. â€Å"Depressed people do not feel like doing anything and that's because of low dopamine levels,† explains Correa. Lack of energy and motivation is also related to other syndromes with mental fatigue such as Parkinson's, multiple sclerosis or fibromyalgia, among others. In the opposite case, dopamine may be involved in addictive behaviour problems, leading to an attitude of compulsive perseverance.In this sense, Correa indicates that dopamine antagonists which have been applied so far in addiction problems prob ably have not worked because of inadequate treatments based on a misunderstanding of the function of dopamine (http://www. sciencedaily. com/releases/2013/01/130110094415. htm) The effect of a dopamine agonist on dysarthric speech production: a case study.AbstractThe effect of Permax (pergolide mesylate), a dopamine agonist, was assessed in an individual with traumatic brain injury. The participant evidenced symptoms of hypokinetic dysarthria. His performance on and off Permax was evaluated in a BABA design. Measures were obtained across physiological systems. There were few differences in the on and off conditions. In the on condition, he evidenced an abnormally large velopharyngeal orifice area, dysfluencies in stimulus sentences, and less precise articulation. However, listeners perceived him to be more animated in the on condition. In addition, he reported better performance in the on condition.The study highlights potential discrepancies among participant report, listener perce ption, and objective measures. Learning outcomes: As a result of this activity, the participant will be able (1) to recognize the effect of dopamine agonists as an adjunct to other pharmacological interventions and (2) to determine potential discrepancies among participant report, listener perception and objective physiological and acoustic measures. (Transitional Learning Center, Department of Communication Disorders, University of Houston, TX 77204-6018, USA. [email  protected] edu/ http://www. ncbi. nlm. nih. gov/pubmed/11565961)

Hope Focused Marriage Counseling Essay

Unlike other explorations insinuated in the context of research, marriage counseling has been one of the unspecialized fields emerged with theoretical assumptions and practice (Stuckert, 2003). This however, has been the challenge to psychologists and practitioners in defying the thought that marriage cannot be taken into research since its hypotheses and results of practice have been acclimated, nevertheless the volume available for study is accumulated. Everett L. Worthington Jr. , a psychology professor and the proponent of over 150 articles tackling issues on marriage, forgiveness and reconciliation was able to find standard procedures on how to keep marriages anchored on Christianity based marital therapy. More specifically, through the light of his year 1999 published book, Hope-Focused Marriage Counseling, couples are to be taken to a self rehabilitation which will give hope to individuals who are living in a room full of skeptic viewpoints about marriage and eventually open a realization that his substantial research shall lead them to a path where â€Å"miracles do happen in the real world. † (Worthington, 1999) Overview Marriage is a shadow of the relationship that we are expected to have with Jesus—permanent, loving, committed. (Eph 5:32) Everett L. Worthington begins his book with a verse in the bible which depicts the meaning of marriage in the most moral and Christian way thus giving a connotation that helping troubled couples is not an easy task. However, she points out the fact that the extent of healing relationships is through developing a character of Christ embodied in every individual’s personality and manifest such with one’s relationships to his or her social network as well (Worthington, 1999). Further, he stresses that when a relationship has Christ as vanguard, life will be inhabited with the verity of love, faith and hope and that then is the start of a bright thing. Strengths What makes his book amazing falls on the grounds of analytic and realistic situations as the core of the gist of the whole scenario. Initially introducing theories then later putting the theories into practice makes readers able to divulge their selves in the dimension that the author intends them to live with. His strategies (advices, so to speak) draws out a hysteria which will make readers know their respective state in life at first, hence, for having been given the momentum to realize what is happening in their lives, they will seek for answers on how to save them from their presumed agony. Further, his approaches through exercises which are efficient to exhibit (Worthington, 1999)—drawing fundamental values, the promotion of confession and forgiveness, communication intensification, aiding conflict resolution, alterations of the pattern of thinking, intimacy development, and the cementing of commitment—gives grandeur to the book as readers can implement these exercises with their partners or core groups. Realistically crafted, he gives marriage counseling a twist by inculcating his own experiences which gives conviction to the statements and recommendations written in his book. One fascinating fact on the book is its distinctiveness in course, since unlike other books on marriage counseling, typically establishing manuals which synonymously suggest divorce or annulment so as not to complicate the situation, this book thinks otherwise. Though the author admitted that is hard and rarely possible in the contemporary society—divorce is legal and other forms of law that allow couples to â€Å"live† without the need of marital rites—still, he fervently believes that the sacred matrimony must be preserved even if others no longer accept as true the tradition and the essence of spiritual intimacy. These ideas represented in the book will coin back the integrity, accountability, prudence and proper teaching among couples. Weaknesses â€Å"Hope-focused rather than problem-focused† (Worthington, 1999) this is the toweringly hopeful campaign of the author. Thus, because of globalization, cultural diversity and the differences of every individual, there may be some who may not appreciate the book for reasons that inhibit the issue on dissimilarity of character, viewpoint in life, tradition and environmental influences. It is evident that the target audiences of the book are Christians—although optimistic individuals would also be interested in reading the book—hence this leads us to a remorseful realization that it will not drive â€Å"naysayer† or a pessimist to read it. Still, fingers are crossed on the intent of the book, and that is to spread the thought that â€Å"change is possible† and in the long run, every couple will be given a new outlook on their marriage for the benefit of their family. Conclusions and further remarks The functions of the husband and the wife bear a multifaceted blueprint of expectations of the responses which are to come from one another. Hence as humans, challenges and trials are inevitable aspects in life and must therefore be taken with full accountability after having vowed under the sacred matrimony and under the blessing of the church. However, in the present era, where several factors influence every person’s character and personality, asking for help and intervention from one who truly understands the quintessence of love and marriage is a an ideal act to do (Stuckert, 2003). Communication mostly is the main problem of couples and Worthington is able to help by producing a masterpiece which, with confidence, he believes will save troubled marriages. Forgive. Reconcile. Change can happen if one will listen while the other speaks. References Stuckert, R. P. (2003). Role Perception and Marital Satisfaction. A Configurational Approach. Marriage and Family Living, 25(4), 415-419. Worthington, E. L. (1999). Hope-Focused Marriage Counseling: A Guide to Brief Therapy. Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press.

HRM Consultancy Report †BancRoyale Amsterdam Essay

In a survey undertaken by PWC of customers and outsourcing service providers cut across different advanced countries, over 80% customers noted that outsourcing activities delivered targeted gains provided for in the original business case. By implication therefore, it can be said that outsourcing and offshoring in the case of Bancroyale is a basic part of organizational strategy in a bid to maintain competitive advantage and staying ahead of other organizations. The need to outsource certain business processes by organizations over the years have been attributed to the recession that hit hard on world economies and businesses, it is also borne out of the need to reduce and contain costs while maximizing benefits and increased efficiency. As we speak and in coming years, process enhancement and productivity as well as governance, risk and security are other needs to be met by business process outsourcing. It is a trend that continues to emerge over time. Business processes such as IT and payroll management is of the essence to be outsourced due to their dynamic nature for the former and better efficiency in management by 3rd parties for the latter. Studies have shown that about 50% of clients are discouraged from outsourcing due to a lack of experience by service providers and their inability to justify the costs against benefits and therefore provided a justification for preference for in-house employees over 3rd parties while some companies do not have the skills to manage outsourcing activities and the service providers. Some are of the opinion that they require to put their house in order before outsourcing certain business processes. Banc Royale Amsterdam known and popular for superior and friendly customer service has taken steps to outsource its online customer service unit to a small South American company to handle due to increasing costs of maintaining this department. It is pertinent to take note of issues that may arise due to this change and its effect on the bank and also its customers. Majority of organizational change management systems fails as proven by research because employees who are at the core of these programs are not carried along and feel left out, this leads to low morale which results in demotivation and its consequences. Dawson and Jones (n.d), said that it is the people/employees that are subject to change and must adapt to change as against the organization adapting to change therefore human capital is the most important and critical element when instituting any form of change. People/employee and customer issues would arise and worthy of note is the language barriers already raised by the firm saddled with the responsibility of handling this unit. It is expected that most customers of Banroyale would speak Dutch or French and this should have been put into consideration while contracting this unit out to a South American firm. From the onset, management ought to have determined if this firm has Dutch speaking customer service consultants that would be able to communicate with their customers and also keep up with the standard of superior customer service set by the bank. The entire reason to outsource this unit is completed defeated if the bank cannot maximize benefits from this exercise as customers that are not pleased with services via the online customer service window are either completely lost or aggrieved thereby making the bank lose more money than it planned to save. The decision to outsource a key unit of the bank by the management is also likely to cause collective distrust amongst employees in spite of the fact that the decision is a strategic performance management decision that is expected to make the bank cut down on its increasing costs. According to Shawn 2008, the decision to outsource creates uncertainty for existing employees and it could make them to look elsewhere for employment, in cases where they do not leave, they most times do not cooperate with the new service providers to provide them with adequate information that would make the task easier to handle thereby causing also decreased efficiency in service delivery and bring in operational risk. Another major people management issue of outsourcing of this unit has to do with the customers to be attended to. In most cases, the service provider, that is the South American firm even though based on recommendation are highly professional most often than not would not be able to provide 100% banking services customers have always enjoyed because they have limited access to the bank’s customer database and hence, all they would be able to do while trying to serve the bank customers is to only take down messages and tell the customers someone would get back to them, these are customers that probably want to know their bank balance, ask questions regarding interest rates, cancel standing orders immediately etc. Only staff of the bank that has access to specific customer data base would be able to provide services to these customers. There is a very high likelihood that there would be a wide gap between management goals and eventual performance. One of the bank’s strategic capabilities and strengths is embedded in this unit that is customer service which is a major selling point for the organization; therefore it ought not be toyed or experimented with. In its quest to maintain a competitive advantage other areas should be looked at to reduce costs and expenses. HRM should seek to look at better ways to maximize the performance of this unit by determining unnecessary overheads are proposing to bank management to reduce, it could also develop more work challenges and deliverables to the managers of this unit in order to justify the increasing costs. Increasing costs accruable from this unit should provide increasing bottom lines for the entire bank, therefore performance management systems should be adopted to determine if these increasing expenses are justifiable and are actually increasing the bank’s bottom line. HRM could also propose to the service provider to hire some of the laid off bank customer service consultants and have them on their payroll on their own terms, this would ensure that these people are not so aggrieved for being laid off but also be able to still provide their services to the bank indirectly through the service provider. Lastly, if it is of great necessity that management outsource this unit then it is advised that it be done gradually and strategically in order to integrate the service providers into the system instead of a sudden transfer of this function thereby causing avoidable people management issues. SECTION 2- Organisational Solutions OB-HR Matrix Relationships The study of organizational behavior covers basically how knowledge about people, individuals, and groups are applied within an organization; and covers topics bordering on leadership behavior and power & politics, communication, group structure and process, learning & attitude development and perception, change process, conflict, negotiation and resolution, job design and motivation etc. Organizational behavior (OB) is a field of study devoted to understanding, explaining and ultimately improving the attitudes and behaviors of individual and groups in organizations. Therefore, the findings of this report are meant to be applied by managers to see how relevant they are to real world practical organizational challenges. The managers or HR professionals apply these organizational behavior theories and principles in solving problems that relate to human capital. For instance, while OB would explore the relationship between social recognition or employee motivation and job performance, human resource management would be examining the best ways to structure a perfect rewards system and performance management. In other words, the study of organizational behavior provides significant insights to human resource management when the principle and theories are effectively applied by HR professionals. Motivation and Diversity being very key and relevant organizational behavior concepts relevant to the change process being embarked upon by the organization would be the subject of analysis in this section. MOTIVATION – By making reference to the book ‘’Good to Great’’ by Jim Collins where he analyzed how Fortune 500 companies such as Wells Fargo, Walgreens etc transformed from just good companies to great companies. These companies were reported to have transformed into great companies basically by their commitment to hire the right people with emphasis on character, work ethics, intelligence, values and commitment and refusing to hire when such people were unavailable. This model was also adopted by Apple when they embarked on opening retail stores to serve their customers, they focused on hiring only very highly passionate individuals for their products i.e. highly enthusiastic about Apple products and this would only mean that, employees are first hand self motivated because they are passionate about what they are doing and so whether they are rewarded using the traditional reward systems or not, they are still happy doing what they are doing. However, Apple did not just stop at hiring passionate people, they created very unusual reward systems worthy of note is by not placing sales people on commission so as to ensure tension is completely eroded and employees maintain a very calm mien in dealing with customers. These hired sales people also go through rigorous trainings to acquaint them with the skills and knowledge to succeed in the Retail stores. Career growth opportunities for these sets of employees to grow through different opportunities are provided within the organization. Motivation in this context is therefore defined as an employee’s willingness to put in his maximum effort into his job to achieve organizational objectives while also being able to meet his personal needs and objectives. Motivation was defined by Baron, 1983 as a set of processes concerned with the force that energizes behavior and directs it towards attaining some goals. Simply put, motivation is the reasons why individuals behave the way they behave or do what they do, which implies in a workplace that an employee is said to be motivated on the job when he enjoys doing what he is doing and totally involved in it as against doing it for the sake of only remuneration to be received. A self-motivated employee implies that personal goals align with organizational goals most often than not therefore, employee satisfaction & retention, customer satisfaction & retention and accomplishment of organizational goals are guaranteed even in the long run. Human behavior is goal directed and it is motivation that drives an individual to behave in a particular way he does. Motivated employees are more self driven and autonomy-oriented than those who are less motivated ( Ryan and Deci, 2000), they also show interest in colleagues work more than less motivated employees which makes them more open to challenges and developmental opportunities. Motivation and HRM approaches for BancRoyale. Research and studies have shown and proven that motivation is positively related to employee performance and therefore HRM has a major role in this regard by implementing the concept of performance and reward management. Gungor, 2011 conducted a research on the relationship between reward management systems and employee performance with a major focus on motivation as a critical and intervening factor, he concluded that reward management systems application is significantly and positively related to motivation and employee performance which implies that financial rewards have great impact on employee performance and motivation (be it intrinsic and extrinsic). HRM has the duty to identify employee needs and goals through employee audit and other means that target employees’ individuality. The implementation of performance management systems by BancRoyale would make it benefit greatly from all its positive outcomes such as customer and employee satisfaction and retention and other additional benefits. Individuals have different needs as analyzed by Abraham Maslow in his ‘Hierarchy of Needs’ and theory of motivation where he stated that individual needs are arranged in a hierarchy of importance, he also added that all these needs are insatiable, however as one level of need is satisfied it no longer motivates behavior and therefore the next level is activated. HRM must be able to determine the level on which each employee is on to be able to strategically position the organization to meet such needs. It is important that HRM understands that unmet needs and expectations of employees over time leads to certain behavioral patterns that manifest in absenteeism, frustration, work stress and conflicts with its attendant effect on performance. DIVERSITY – Meanings According to the US Department of Interior, diversity refers to many demographic variables including but not limited to race, religion, color, gender, national origin, disability, sexual orientation, age, education, geographic origin and skill characteristics. The Law Society of Scotland says that diversity is about recognizing that everyone is different in a variety of visible and non visible ways; and about creating a culture that respects and value uniqueness and difference in people in order to harness their potential in creating a more productive working environment. Diversity encompasses acceptance and respect of individual uniqueness and differences, exploration of these differences in a safe, positive and nurturing work environment, moving beyond mere tolerance to embracing and celebrating the rich dimensions of diversity within each individual (University of Oregon, www.gladstone.uoregon.edu/) Diversity and HRM approaches for BancRoyale HRM is saddled with the responsibility of managing diversity, ensuring the organization conforms to the legal requirements related to equal opportunity. This process is managed with HR functions ranging from recruitment, selection,evaluation, job design, training, people management to workforce management in terms of placing the right people in the right location and position. Due to seeming economic and business realities in addition to demographic changes taking place within the organization, diversity management is an all-new challenge for HR and the entire bank. If HR performs its functions related in this context, it would save the organization from avoidable litigation, reduced employee costs and better bottomlines. In order to make diversity a strong point of the bank, the following HR processes should be considered: Recruitment and selection: HR must look to assembling teams of diverse backgrounds that would stimulate creativity and innovation with skill sets that complement each other. Technology: diverse workforce often includes virtual teams therefore the need for technological support. HR policy: need to take into cognizance cultural and ethical aspects in addressing equality standards prevalent in each location they are present. Training: Managers and employees need to be trained on leadership and teamwork as it applies in a diverse workplace. KEY HRM ISSUES WITH GREAT IMPACT ON THE TRANSITION FROM IN-HOUSE ONLINE CUSTOMER SERVICE TO 3RD PARTY SERVICE MANAGEMENT IN BANCROYALE Diversity Management Diversity Management – â€Å"Diversity management is the ability of an organization to maximize the advantages of organizational employee diversity and minimize the inherent problems. I.e maximize the benefits and minimize the costs of implementing diversity policy in the workplace† Benefits to Banc Royale Creating a competitive advantage (the business case for diversity) Better understanding of diverse customers. Increased productivity on complex tasks. Better problem solving as a result of inputs of diverse members. Increased innovation Potential issues that may arise in diversity management (Knouse 2008) Diversity members may show loyalty to background groups rather than the team. Potential for increased conflicts amongst employees with diverse background. Potential for exclusion of people different and more cohesion amongst similar groups within networks. Potential for non-cooperation when group members have different values. High potential for miscommunication among diverse organizations Proposed solutions HRM practices must be fair and equitable and take responsibility for the effective delivery of the policy Work groups and teams must be allowed to grow and develop in stages and be given time to fully develop Diversity plan must be well thought out and communicated to be effectively implemented. Change focus from social cohesion to task cohesion Reinforce a culture of diversity through continued management commitment Institute mentoring systems with bias for the diversity cause. Employing the right people to deliver best quality service based on equality of opportunity. Ensuring employees are able to contribute a diverse range of skills and experience. Ensuring Banc Royale harnesses and realises full potentials and performance of employees. Building and encouraging a culture of intolerance to discrimination. Eliminating barriers leading to discrimination and prejudice. Building a culture that fosters cooperation and respect amongst employees. Board of Directors is overall lead. All directors and line managers are responsible for full implementation of the policy. Employees are responsible for adhering and complying with the policies. Trainings, sensitization seminars and workshops are conducted and organized by HRM for employees to learn about the policy. Emergence of virtual teams Virtual teams came to the fore as evolving organizations saw the increasing need to go global and this was characterized by technological advancement. Organizations whose goals are to maintain a competitive advantage believe that creating effective virtual teams are necessary to achieve this goal. Global brands such as Coca cola, Microsoft, Citigroup, Ford, Toyota and even non-profit organizations have been able to lead the pack of their various industries as they have seen ahead that they require to be present across all parts of the world using people as their major resource. Symons et al (2007) have this to say about virtual teams being teams where its members are geographically dispersed and unified by one project. Which invariably means that there are 2 teams: physical teams and virtual teams unified by one organizational goal. While the physical team adopt face to face communication, the virtual team communicate using technology such as telephones, emails, conference calls, or other computer-mediated communication. The foregoing pre-supposes that in building or creating virtual/global teams, there would be a large involvement of a diverse workforce scattered all over the globe which comes with its attendant challenges and even more benefits if systematically harnessed. MIT Sloan School conducted a study in 2009 and concluded that virtual teams could outperform physical teams and provided a justification for their creation which amongst others include: Productivity day in day out due to time zone differences, Sharing of best practices, Reducing costs, Innovation and increased creativity as a result of highly diversed workforce. Bergiel et al (2008) said that such teams as virtual teams allow organizations to attract and retain top talents because workplace flexibility is seen as a crucial aspect of job satisfaction for many employees; for many companies, the use of virtual teams reduces costs and time of employee travel. However, inspite of all the benefits accruable from virtual teams, without proper structures and strategic planning, these benefits may not be harnessed. Trust is a crucial component required in building a cohesive and effective team and it even becomes more complicated when this trust needs to be built where distance is a barrier. In building trust, it is important for team members to have face to face interactions, this allows them to develop rapport, build friendship and relationships and also have a better understanding of the team goals. Frequent communication electronically between members also has a way of fostering relationships. Team training from time to time on technology that has to do with team interaction would also go a long way to promoting the understanding of team goals and objectives Virtual teams are very much likely to fail when organizations do not make appropriate investment in technology and training of team members. Team leaders must be taught how to provide leadership and direction with giving feedbacks effectively through unconventional methods while members should be trained and given guidelines on how to communicate with other team members to encourage team building. At the helm of all of these is the support and trust of company CEO and other management staff in promoting and deepening the activities of the virtual team without which it is bound to fail. The decision to create virtual teams is usually the idea of management and therefore they must be seen to support it by building the appropriate structures that would ensure goals are achieved. Symons et al (2008) concluded and postulated some key points that should be followed by virtual managers which is hereby recommended to the Customer Service Departmental Head in alliance with the South American company that is in charge of it and they are as follows: Communication is a critical component of virtual teams enhanced by the support and the introduction of technology, therefore virtual teams succeed when value are placed on the people than the technology. It implies that the manager must create a definite purpose in cooperation with his team members and effectively communicate it to them. Leadership style advised for virtual teams is democratic in order to get the best out people and promote creativity and innovation. This is the benefit obtainable from having a diverse workforce and it must be adequately harnessed by the leadership approach used. In this kind of work environment, each team member is able to voice his opinion irrespective of his background, language, status etc. The virtual manager is able to create a very high level of trust when conscious efforts are made from the outset to address trust issues and conflicts that might arise as a result of diversity. He therefore should employ essentially face to face interactions in conflict resolutions and better still create an environment of friendship where conflicts are minimal. In addition to these key points, virtual teams are disadvantaged by problems or challenges characterized by difficulties in communication caused by the absence of face to face interactions, lack of employee engagement to get the best out of team members, major trust and integrity issues etc all caused by inability to go through physical interactions. This is responsible for the slow pace of trust building in virtual teams however all of these disadvantages and more can be mitigated to have our dream ideal virtual team or better put, the ideal Customer Service Department by employing tested strategies. The Banc Royale virtual manager is hereby advised to adopt the following strategies in building a cohesive and effective team: Communication All team members must be kept closely via communication. Effective communication is essential from top to bottom and bottom to top ensuring free flow of information. Communication must also be frequent and the manager’s responsiveness to communication or information is also key to effective communication. Communication does not start or end with passing information, listening and being very attentive is also critical. He must be able to create awareness from time to time so that the team can achieve expected outcomes and results. His ability to make use of the technology resource provided also enhance communication and also train team members on how to optimize the benefits available in the resource. The team leader must seek to understand his members through and through including their cultures and background, this would help him in deepening his relationship and develop trust. Collaboration The virtual manager must be able to create a collaborative mindset in the entire team which harmonises the best of competition and fostering trust and respect amongst team members. Collaboration can only be achieved when divergent views are welcome are analysed to take decisions that would allow for goals to be achieved and eventually create a win-win situation. Defined team objectives The virtual manager must be able to make his team members know the reason for their existence. This reason must be well clarified and communicated, team members must understand the role and contribution of their team to the entire bank, what is expected from each team member, results that are expected from the team etc. This clarity of purpose ensures that employees are properly engaged. Success celebration Milestones and successes must be celebrated to motivate star performers and encourage other team members to do better. Finally, the Customer Service department head could also adopt an account/customer classification approach to structuring the new online customer service just outsourced. The Team lead is advised to divide his team across the types of clients that patronize the unit such as new customers, existing customers broken down into retail, commercial, borrowing and non-borrowing customers. It is also necessary to ensure multi-lingual Customer Service Consultants are hired to avoid complaints as a result of language barriers. Influence of Power and Politics Power is the capacity or ability to influence another and it is drawn from various sources such as formal authority, control of scarce resources, control of decision processes, control of knowledge and information etc Politics is the tactical use of power or practical exercise of power to retain or obtain control of real or symbolic resources† according to Bacharach et al (1980 p. 1). Politics in the workplace or organization is usually driven by personal interests and therefore tantamount to the achievement of organizational goals and objectives. This determines productivity within the organization. The influence of power and politics on Banc Royale Amsterdam as a result of the changes being made can be both positive and negative. Scholars such as Eisendhart et al (1988) believes that politics is linked with poor organizational performance creating inflexibilities, communication barrier, restricting information flow etc. while some scholars are of the opinion that politics is necessary for innovation, creativity and organizational change that are brought about by disagreements and conflicts. This decision as taken by the management has some political undertones to it due to the fact that this unit is a very key unit in the organization, it can be noted that other units also exist within the organization that could also have been outsourced to cut down on expenses. This decision definitely would have caused collective distrust amongst employees not affected by this decision and could lead them to seek for employment in other organizations. According to Shawn 2008, the decision to outsource creates uncertainty for existing employees and it could make them to look elsewhere for employment, in cases where they do not leave, they most times do not cooperate with the new service providers to provide them with adequate information that would make the task easier to handle thereby causing also decreased efficiency in service delivery and bring in operational risk. It would also bring about a situation whereby other existing employees of the entire department would lose confidence in the Manager of the department for allowing such a decision to be taken. They would lose confidence in his ability to provide leadership and therefore bring about a decline the department’s productivity and his ability to be in control. If an individual is perceived by others to have influence then such person holds power and such is arrogated to him. When his employees believe in his ability to control the distribution of rewards valued by others such as promotion, money or even his ability to influence management to retain the â€Å"online customer service unit†, then they believe he has power and influence and would respect his leadership. Power requires one person’s perception of dependence on another person and in this situation, existing employees of this department are beginning to think otherwise. In order to minimize power and politics which is not bad entirely except it is engendering an unethical culture within the organization, it is of necessity that HRM takes a very strong stand to tackle it and I would recommend that they look at HR processes that include Recruitment and Performance Management. In whatever HR process we want to look at, the sole aim is to ensure that negative power and politics is downplayed and HR plays a major role in ensuring that. It is important that structures are built that do align with the objectives of the organization based solely on Corporate Governance policies in order to have management buy in. Section 3: Conclusion ‘Human capital represents one of the last and the best sources of competitive advantage’ (Kaufman, 2010: 292). The strategic objective of Banc Royale is to provide â€Å"helpful banking† to its numerous customers who are mostly retail customers, therefore cannot afford to get customer service wrong so that customers would not lose confidence in the brand. Quick steps need be taken immediately to first address the language barrier issues that are existent between both customers-service providers-bank employees. It is recommended and advised that management should change the focus of this exercise from cost reduction alone to enhanced and improved productivity with greater emphasis on collaboration between the bank officials and the service providers to ensure seamless integration. We all know change is difficult, however, if we consider what we stand to gain as an organization we would be glad to embrace change. Globalization, the need to maintain competitive advantage and churn out good bottom lines at minimal expenses, economic downturn are amongst other justifications for the creation of virtual teams and the need to outsource certain units of an organization. Banc Royale intends to be at the forefront of this, therefore all employees are enjoined to understand the workings and the concept of virtual teams in order to give support as required. Virtual managers have the responsibility to acquaint themselves with the roles required of them which include and are not limited to: Providing strategic direction in alignment with corporate goals Motivating and empowering team members to achieve team goals Identifying and providing required resources to achieve team goals Developing and communicating a clear vision to team members Giving effective employee feedbacks etc. Performance management as it affects human resources is to ensure organizational goals are met by training, motivating and rewarding employees by adopting best practices to achieve competitive advantage. As it applies to Banc Royale at this point in time, there is a need for management to have meetings and round table discussions with existing employees that the organization require to retain and get them to understand the reasons for the decision taken and make them see reason, in addition to this, appraisal could be done for the existing employees so that promotion exercise can be undertaken or probably an increase in compensation so as to win their hearts. The human resource management department of any organization is charged with the responsibility of managing employees, employee welfare and employee performance in alignment to the organizational goals and objectives, it is however in the purview of HRM to direct and guide employees and management to behave in such a manner that would ensure both personal and organizational goals are aligned and delivered. This describes the link between organizational behavior and human resource approaches and concept all described in this report. Human resource management can be used as a tool by management for shaping organizational behavior. The relationship between organizational behavior and human resource management stems from the fact that human resource management can be used as a tool for shaping organizational behavior. The practice of performance management also helps in the integration of other HR practices such as talent management, training and development, reward system management that have been discussed in this report to ensure they are all interrelated and be able to complement each other to achieving overall organizational health goals and objectives. Performance management systems aid the integration and enmeshment of HR policies with overall business organizational goals. REFERENCES Aguinis, H. 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