A World Without Love Is A Deadly Place - 1629 Words

â€Å"A world without love is a deadly place† serves as a warning to the doomed society of the World State in this new world (Fisher 1). In Aldous Huxley’s Brave New World, â€Å"pain, suffering, and unhappiness are virtually unknown because basic needs are provided for all, and soma tablets are readily available should anyone feel anxious or sad† (Morgan, Shanahan, Welsh 130). The civilization is equipped with a drug called soma. Soma is used to destroy any feeling of sadness or negative feelings; it is part of the society’s method to pursue happiness. The pursuit of happiness is brought to a degree of such extremity that the citizens are â€Å"conceived in test tubes and socialized for specific societal roles† that they are genetically engineered to enjoy (Morgan, Shanahan, Welsh 130). Not only are the citizens programmed to be content with their roles in the society, but their minds are formed by sleep training to believe that their only purposes in life are sexual pleasure and enjoying activities. The government raises them to have sexual interactions with whoever they want, whenever they want. A portion of their sleep training is â€Å"every one belongs to every one† (Huxley 205). The citizens do not experience the pleasure of love, nor do they experience friendship or family. After all, â€Å"without committed partners there is no pain associated with relationship breakup; but neither is there committed love. Without family ties there are no burdens of care but no joy of giving† (Morgan,Show MoreRelatedThe Nature Of Love As Described By Helen Fischer1255 Words   |  6 Pagesâ€Å"The evolution of love is ever changing. Its biochemical foundations and its vital importance to human society are informing and transforming the way we understand ourselves†. 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Life itself doesn’t have a planned setting, the creation process was supposed to be made easy conception, child development, adolescenceRead MoreNuclear Weapons Be Banned1117 Words   |  5 Pagesâ€Å"There is only one way to get rid of nuclear weapons†¦Use them!† (Rush Limbaugh). The world has over 14,900 nuclear weapons 93% of them are owned by The United States of America and Russia. Nuclear weapons were first used in world war two. When they were first used they were very destructive and really put an impact on the world. Nuclear weapons are very deadly and are constantly getting redesigned to be more and more powerful. Not only do nuclear weapon s affect people, they also affect the earthRead More The Contradiction of Chivalry and Courtly Love Essays899 Words   |  4 PagesThe Contradiction of Chivalry and Courtly Love Two conflicting disciplines are prevalent throughout Arthurian Legend; that of chivalry and that of courtly love. The ideal of each clash throughout the medieval tales, and it is impossible to interfuse the two models for society. Chivalry is a masculine code, an aggressive discipline, whereas courtly love is based upon women - their needs, wants, and desires. The consistent problem if Lancelot and Guinevere’s adulterous relationship in differentRead MoreThe World Of Love Where Everything Is Like Willy Wonka s Chocolate Factory950 Words   |  4 PagesMany are drawn into the world of love where everything is like Willy Wonka’s Chocolate Factory, a place filled with sweet and wonderful things. Due to obsession and greed, most of those who enter ultimately suffer an unpleasant ending. Like when Augustus falls into the Chocolate River and is sucked up a pipe to the Fudge Room. Love addicts, however, will be sucked up a pipe to the Misery Room instead. Their poor, miserabl e souls will be crushed and disposed of like trash. 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How Different Lung Diseases Affect The Lung - 1480 Words

An analysis of how different lung diseases affect the lung’s functions The lungs are essential respiratory organs in humans which enable us to breathe. Our lungs are specialised structures that allow us to exchange gases. We require oxygen from the air to enter our blood, as all cells need it to function. We also need to get rid of carbon dioxide which is a product of many metabolic reactions within our cells. Our lungs allow this gas exchange so we can get rid of carbon dioxide and acquire oxygen. Each person has two lungs that are connected by our trachea (windpipe). The trachea separates into two bronchi, one of each leads to a lung. These bronchi then branch off into smaller bronchioles. The bronchioles are then connected to small air†¦show more content†¦The infected tissue within the tubercles die, leaving the gas exchange surface damaged. This then reduces lung function as tidal volume is reduced. Occasionally the immune cells cannot kill the bacterium but prevent it from spreading to the rest of the body, meaning the individual will not present any symptoms. This condition is known as latent TB. However common symptoms of active TB include, a persistent cough that usually includes coughing up of blood and mucus, chest pains, shortness of breath, high temperature, tiredness and fatigue and even weight loss as many people lose their appetite. People with the inactive form of TB (latent TB) are asymptomatic. These people cannot pass on the infection to others, however if they become destabilized for example by contracting another disease, then their TB infection could become active and so could be passed on. TB can be prevented beforehand by taking the BCG vaccine. However if TB is already present in an individual, they can be treated with antibiotics. This course of antibiotics usually lasts 6 months. However some forms of TB are resistant to certain antibiotics which means treatment take much longer. Fibrosis Fibrosis is a condition in which scar tissue is formed within the lungs. The cause of this condition is not fully known, however it is thought to be a result of an infection or when an individual is exposed to substances such as asbestos or dust.

Walmart’s Key HR Functions Underperforming Free Essays

string(29) " those in the US and the UK\." Introduction The success of any organization depends on its strategic asset, the human capital. As pointed out by Lawler (1996), organization’s competitive advantage comes from its human capital. Efficient management of this resource can bring significant benefits to the company. We will write a custom essay sample on Walmart’s Key HR Functions Underperforming or any similar topic only for you Order Now It should be remembered that motivation is the epicenter of performance and an important factor ensuring the success of a company. Improving workplace productivity however remains a major challenge in most companies. In this regard, this study explores the human resource management approach at Wal-Mart. It identifies the ways in which two HR functions (employee motivation and employee performance practices) are underperforming. This includes a brief account of how the functions operate within the organization, how they are applied and what the outcomes for the business are given that they are underperforming. The paper evaluates why these particular functions are considered to be underperforming using Herzberg’s motivator Hygiene Theory. Further the paper makes some recommendations for improvement of these HRM practices and the benefits to the company. What is human resource management? Human resource management encompasses all activities associated with management of the human capital and in ways towards achieving the corporate goal or objective. In any organization, the human resource department plays a crucial role. Not only are HR managers required to recruit and train employees, but they also have the obligation of motivating and engaging the workforce. Understanding what motivates the employee and ensuring good employee employment practices is key for talent retention and performance (Lockwood et al. 2010). Regardless of the economic environment, it is imperative for companies to create an engaged and motivated workforce. Underperformance in the workplace has recently been a major concern in Wal-Mart stores. According to a new research report by Wolfe research, an equities research firm, Wal-Mart has been underperforming over the past years. The firm lowered Wal-Mart from a â€Å"market perform† rating to an â€Å"underperform† rating (Covert, 2014). Failure by Wal-Mart has been attributed to their poor employment practices especially low wages and lack of rewards. Whereas Wal-Mart may not be the only big store chain criticized for its poor employment practices and policies, it has come to the spotlight owing to its aggressive policies and low cost strategy which undermines the effort made by employees. Just last year, a lawsuit was filed against Wal-Mart by the international Labour Rights Fund for requiring overtime, denying minimum wage and punishing union activity (Covert 2012). This is clearly a violation of worker’s rights. Wal-Mart which was initially a corporate fortress seems to be headed to a downfall. Even its operations in the US indicate the possibility of a failure in the giant retailer. More recently, Wal-Mart warned its investors that its comparable store sales may be slightly negative after the third quarter. This is also evident in the huge layoff of 2300 workers at Sam’s club, one of its stores. The layoff was attributed to their poor performance. Whereas Wal-Mart still remains the corporate fortress in the retail sector due to its massive size, its underperformance in the US and emerging markets indicate the possibility of a failure in the near future. Walmart’s bad business practices Wal-Mart has on several accounts been criticized for poor wages. Why should employees suffer in one of the giant retail stores that make billions of profit annuallyWal-Mart is ranked among the best 100 corporations by Forbes magazine yet most of its employees take on average less than $250 a week. Full-time employees are paid between $6 and $7.50 an hour. A further a third of the employees who are part-time are limited to working up to 28 hours a week and are not eligible for benefits. Such pay scale places them and their families below the poverty line. The lack of rewards demotivates and discourages them from performing well. Perhaps Wal-Marts bad business practices are more evident with the Rana Plaza tragedy which led to the loss of over 1000 lives. The tragedy exposed some of the profound flaws in the industry. Rana Plaza produced private garments for some of the giant retailers including Wal-Mart. Evidence provided by the Bangladesh center for Worker Solidarity showed that Wal-Mart had been producing its garments in Ether Tex factory situated on the 5th floor of the building (Steven 2013). Some documents were found in the rubble detailing purchase orders for certain garments which were to be delivered to Wal-Mart. Further, at the time of the tragedy, Wal-Mart was already listed in Ether Tex’s website as one of the main customer. Although Wal-Mart denied knowledge of their operations at the factory building, it announced its plans to put in place new safety measures at some of their factories in Bangladesh. The corporate fortress, however, promised to stop production if urgent safety problems were uncovered at some of its factories. The company further assured the Bangladeshi government of their support and commitment towards improving workplace safety. But the company stopped short of committing to these improvements and distanced itself from the Rana Plaza tragedy. This is a clear example of bad business practice. Why these particular functions are considered to be underperforming Last year, Wal-Mart reported $11 billion in net income yet it has not been able to remedy some of its questionable workplace practices. Wal-Mart has been filed in over 5,000 lawsuits for poor employment practices such as inadequate health care, wage law violations, worker exploitation and their anti-union retailer stance. Wal-Mart anti-union stance can be seen in their recent threat to close one of its stores in Quebec after workers successfully unionized. Citing ‘economic reasons’; Wal-Mart announced their plans on shutting the store. However, this argument was rejected by Quebec’s labor relations and Wal-Mart’s firings found illegal. Further, the move to extend operations to overseas markets including setting up factories in emerging markets such as Bangladesh and China was driven by the desire to take advantage of cheap labour. For example, Wal-Mart pays much less its employees in China compared to those in the US and the UK. You read "Walmart’s Key HR Functions Underperforming" in category "Essay examples" A further criticism has been the lack of employment benefits. Part-time employees are limited to working up to 28 hours a week and are not eligible for benefits. While, workers who are eligible for benefits pay way over the odds to get health insurance and other benefits. The company has often come under criticism for not providing employees with affordable access to health care and employees are overburdened. For example, in 1999, 36% of the total costs were paid by the employees. In 2001, there was a 42% rise in employee burden. The health of its employees has been deteriorating at a faster rate. According to the company’s internal memo discovered by New York Times, Wal-Mart workers were sicker compared to the national population. This begs the question: Why can’t such a giant corporation provide its workers medical retirement benefits given the huge profits that they makeThis question was once raised by one of Wal-Mart’s managers only to be fired by the CEO and reasons of disloyalty cited as the reason for being quitted. (Jordan 2008). As Michael Porter (1980) once pointed out that a company would rely on three basic competitive strategies to maintain their edge in the market: differentiation, cost leadership, and focus strategy. Wal-Mart has obviously taken the cost-leadership strategy by reducing the cost of recruitment, providing low pay, no rewards, requiring overtime, and cheap children labors. It currently faces a barrage of lawsuits for extensive violations of labour laws. Wal-Mart also faces law suits for extensive violations of state regulations that require time for breaks and meals. In some instances, minors are forced to work late for the performance appraising. Outcomes for business Wal-Mart may be headed for a downfall. Its customer service is already low and their low-cost strategy has led to many cut offs of employees. Since recession, Wal-Mart has been cutting down on their staff. Without enough manpower for their retail operations and with workers on site underpaid, its merchandize remains stacked on pallets in warehouses instead of the shelves where customers can reach them. What then is the value of offering lower prices if the products are not accessible to the customers? Further, the check-out lines are painfully long and there seems to be a decline in the overall customer shopping experience. Customer shopping experience has been deteriorating due to the longer checkout lines, disorganization and less staff help. Last year, the giant retailer was placed last among in the American Customer Satisfaction Index, a six year in a row in which Wal-Mart has taken the last spot (Ungar 2013). Lessons must be learnt from the experience of the other low end retailers. McDonald’s earnings have fallen significantly due to their poor terms of employment. Similarly, Wal-Mart needs to consider the potential upside of their aggressive policies. Despite the poor employment practices, Wal-Mart still remains among the leading retail giants. Its remains ahead of its competitors such as Target and JC penny. However, Wal-Mart faces a threat from Costco, its primary competitor. Costco has been experiencing a fairly healthy 8% growth in annual sales (Ungar 2013). In fact, a significant number of customers are moving to this retailer for their shopping experience. Could this be attributed to the good employment practices at CostcoUnlike Wal-Mart, employees at Costco get a decent living and are paid in excess of the minimum wage. Given the aggressive HR policies employed by Wal-Mart, it begs the question: what then is the role of HR managers in this companySince, as HR professionals, they are required to put in place strategies oriented towards the employees. To some point, however, employees seem to be encouraged to think of themselves as ‘servant leaders’. For example, employees are called â€Å"associates† showing that the company values their contribution. Such kinds of HR policies are employed in most of the best performing companies. These policies and practices serve to motivate employees to increase their performance and can aid in developing good corporate culture. However, employees may not feel appreciated if they are paid less than minimum wages and denied rewards and opportunities for professional growth. There seem to be no opportunities for enhancement and professional growth. Wal-Mart does very little training and developments of its human resources and as such, opportunities for enhancement of professions especially for women are limited. In fact, several claims have been filed against Wal-Mart for discriminating against women in terms of employment positions and the lack of opportunities for advancement. Improving employee motivation and employment practices at Wal-Mart As HR professionals continue to seek bright, talented and highly engaged workforce, motivational theories can provide insights on how Wal-Mart can improve employee motivation and engagement. Several motivational theories have been suggested including the Expectancy Theory, Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs theory, Herzberg’s motivator Hygiene Theory, Goal Setting Theory, and Equity theory (Lockwood et al. 2010) Herzberg’s motivator Hygiene Theory is perhaps more applicable to the case of Wal-Mart. The theory suggests that two main factors must be met for employees to become satisfied with work. These are: the hygiene factors and motivator factors. The hygiene factors include meeting the basic needs such as adequate pay, comfortable working environment, effective supervision and good relationships with the core workers. On the other hand, motivation factors include advancement and professional growth, and rewards or opportunities for recognition (lockwood et al. 2010) Wal-Mart needs to consider applying the two-factor theory of motivation if they are to improve on the performance of their employees. They need to revamp their policies, increase the salary of their employees, and the safety and security of the employees. Further, they need to consider motivators that are intrinsic to the job which include providing rewards for achievement and increasing their growth opportunities. Pundits, policymakers and activists outraged by the company’s low wages have been calling for protests. According to Robert Reich, a professor at U.C. Berkeley, Walmart’s net income is estimated at $17 billion meaning that they can easily afford to give its workers a small pay-rise (Atner 2013). The Chancellor professor of public policy has in fact urged shoppers to boycott Wal-Mart since they do not want to share even a little bit of their income with their employees (Atner 2013). Conclusion In today’s highly competitive marketplace, motivation of employees and employing the best employment practices is key to success. Underperformance in the workplace has recently been a major concern in Wal-Mart stores. Several lawsuits have been filed against Wal-Mart for violation of worker’s rights including low wages, lack of employment benefits, being required to work overtime and denied to participate in union activity. Bad employment practices are clearly evident in Wal-Mart. This has affects employee productivity as it demoralizes and demotivates them. Wal-Mart needs to consider applying the two-factor theory of motivation if they are to improve on the performance of their employees. Incentives are key to maintaining a motivated workforce and ensuring business success. Appraising and offering hardworking employee with incentives will motivate them to go the extra mile of putting the company first. Employee valuations need to be implemented and growth opportunities made plenty. HR managers at walmart need to understand the benefits of employee motivation and engagement. By sharing their profit, employees will feel appreciated and more passionate about their work. Ultimately, this will result in improved performance and greater customer satisfaction Reference Ciura, B., 2014. Is Wal-Mart’s empire about to failViewed on 29th March 2014. Available from http://www.fool.com/investing/general/2014/02/01/is-wal-marts-empire-about-to-fall.aspx Covert, B., 2014. Walmart’s labor practices backfire. Viewed on 29th March 2014. Available from http://thinkprogress.org/economy/2014/02/10/3271221/walmart-downgraded-understaffing/ Gusdorf, M.L. and Reed, S.M., 2009. The role of mission and values in strategic human resource management. Society for Human Resource Management. Jordan, T., 2014. The good, the bad and Wal-Mart. Workplacefairness Lockwood, N., Anderson, C., Fiester, M. and Samers, K., 2010. ‘Motivation in today’s workplace: the link to performance’. Research Quarterly. The Society for Human Resource Management Rasouli, R., 2013. ‘Modelling the impact of HRM practices on knowledge workers’ job satisfaction and intention to stay: re-examining the Herzberg’s two-factor theory of motivation’. World of Sciences Journal Steven, G., 2013. As firms line up on factories, Wal-Mart plans solo effort. Viewed on 29th March 2013. available from http://www.nytimes.com/2013/05/15/business/six-retailers-join-bangladesh-factory-pact.html?pagewanted=all_r=0 Thomasson, E., 2014. Bangladesh factory inspections highlight safety risks as anniversary of Rana Plaza tragedy looms. Retail Marketing. Ungar, R., 2013. Wal-Mart pays workers poorly and sinks while Costco pays workers well and sails-proof that you get what you pay for. {Viewed on 30th March 2014} available fromhttp://www.forbes.com/sites/rickungar/2013/04/17/walmart-pays-workers-poorly-and-sinks-while-costco-pays-workers-well-and-sails-proof-that-you-get-what-you-pay-for/ How to cite Walmart’s Key HR Functions Underperforming, Essay examples

Breakdancing Essay Example For Students

Breakdancing Essay Breakdancing a form of African American dance that emerged from the hip hop culture of the South Bronx, New York, during the mid-1970s. Drawing upon several African American dance forms, break dancing coalesced in the 1970s and reached its peak in popularity during the 1980s. Breakdancing developed out of the Bronx, New York, disco scene. When disco DJs changed records, dancers would fill the resulting musical breaks, or breakbeats, with movements that emphasized the rupture in rhythmic continuity. These highly acrobatic interludes developed into a new genre that mixed Afrodiasporic dance styles, reflecting the influence of the lindy-hop, the Charleston, the cakewalk, and the jitterbug as well as the Afro-Brazilian martial-arts dance Capoeira and the antics of Kung Fu movies. Breakdancing included breaking flipping, spinning, pivoting on the head and hands, up-rock a mock-combat style, often directed against an opponent, and webbo fast footwork between other dance moves. When breakdancing spread to Los Angeles, California, dancers added the electric boogie, automaton-like dance moves that incorporated pantomime. In the beginning, breakdancers adopted a confrontational attitude, as crews met each other in fake rumbles that often turned into real fights. Even peaceful displays resembled the competitive toasting of Bronx musicians in concurrently developing rap music. Like other facets of the hip hop movement, breakdancing met with commercial success and public notoriety in the early 1980s. Paralleling Sohos embrace of Bronx graffiti art, Manhattan dance clubs welcomed breakdancers to their floors. And like rap, breakdancing appeared in a number of popular films, including Wild Style 1982, Breakin 1984, and Beat Street 1984, which featured the Rock Steady Crew, breakdancings most renowned posse. This publicity, which deemphasized breakdancings confrontational aspect, turned the dance into a national sensation among white as well as black youths; suburban schoolchildren donned hip hop fashions, and some white teenagers signed up for breakdancing lessons. Widespread media attention diminished breakdancings power as a unique voice of self-affirmation for inner-city youth. Its influence, however, set the trajectory of subsequent dance trends. Black performers such as Michael Jackson, MC Hammer, and Missy Elliot draw from breakdance styles that never stop evolving. Even such breakdancing originals as Richard Crazy Legs ColÃÆ'Â ³n of the Rock Steady Crew, continue to innovate and perform.

Of Suicide By David Hume, Analysis Essays - David Hume, Economists

Of Suicide By David Hume, Analysis Of Suicide by David Hume Analysis I believe that no man ever threw away life, while it was worth keeping. In David Humes essay Of Suicide, the philosophical argument of justified suicide is pursued. However, the underlying argument focuses on the injustification of the government and society condemning and forbidding such an action and the creation of superstitions and falsehoods of religion and God. Hume argues that the last phases that a person goes through before taking his life is those of disorder, weakness, insensibility, and stupidity, and that those traits, when obvious to the mind, doom him to a death by his own decision. He states that no being in any facet of life can continue life when transferred to a condition of life very different from the original one, in which it was placed. I wish that Hume had argued this point more because I think that he is right, and its probably universal knowledge, that the traits a person acquires before suicide are those described. However, the latter part of the argument suggests that a drastic change in ones life, a change in condition so different in condition from the original, would thereby lead one to the condemned phases, as listed above. This argument holds water to only those who choose suicide from change. Is it not heat that makes that which is cold, hot (Sorry, I had to throw that Socratic argument in there somewhere)? Seriously though, what of a person born into poverty and misery? Are they too doomed to the arms of suicide? One who is born into poverty and misery was originally in a place of comfort, where disorder, stupidity, etc. where not phases nor traits that were known or felt. Isnt this also considered a transfer of condition of life very different from the original? It would follow then that everyone born i nto poverty and misery are destined to choose death by their own hand rather than of involuntary nature. It could be argued then that those in the womb are not able to suffer neither pain nor happiness. Then take for example another opposite of the original argument. How would the rule follow if one were already in the final stages of a tormented life and suddenly won the lottery? If his misfortunes and tragedies in life were attributed to money, wouldnt he then be transferred again into a state of mind so different from the original? Would this cause him to take his own life, beforehand destined to recycle the condemning symptoms before suicide? Another point Hume discusses is the injustice in ruling suicide as criminal. He describes this point reducing all things to their basic nature in reality. two distinct principles of the material and animal world, continually encroach upon each other, and mutually retard or forward each others operations. In essence, what Hume is saying here is that man depends upon the inanimate, in ways of direction and hindrance, and the inanimate consequently is directed by man. Even thought the nature of the two principles is opposite, they are codependent. He applies this to the argument of suicide by showing that it cannot be criminal to disrupt the nature of ones life by taking it if it is not as equally disruptive to alter the nature of other things. The example used is altering the path of a river. It disrupts the original nature of the river but holds to the constant that change is inevitable. I would agree with Hume on that point. We, as humans, take for advantage the codependence of man and the inanimate. Our government decides what parts of the nature of things to disrupt and alter. God did give us free will and the physical ability to take our own lives, regardless of merit. Who is to say what level of disruption to nature any one action has, whether suicide or cutting down trees to make room for a halfway house? How is one action considered to be less disruptive than the other? I think that in reality it is not that one action is considered less disruptive than the other, and therefore justified, but rather that the disruption caused by the latter action is

Barangay Community Record Essay Essays

Barangay Community Record Essay Essays Barangay Community Record Essay Essay Barangay Community Record Essay Essay Introduction Information engineering refers to the aggregation of tools that make it easier to utilize. create. manage and exchange information. One of the exciting ways in which the computing machine serve as a general service tool is in the field of information retrieval and operation. the hunt for facts which. together with the operations done on it. are stored in a cardinal storage. Computer-based information retrieval operates through the usage of package that can offer information services for an establishment. An information service provides a manner to electronically entree. retrieve. and transmit that information. As for the minute. the barangay workers ( Barangay Caramutan. La Paz. Tarlac ) are utilizing the manual procedure in most services the barangay is giving to its occupants. For illustration. in maintaining records and publishing the barangay clearance. The chief job refering the barangay is that they do non hold a centralized and accurate system for hive awaying records they have for these are really of import to them. How they will hold a file care system and will decrease the job of plants they normally do in acquiring. maintaining and updating the files. To work out these jobs. we proposed a system which is called BARANGAY COMMUNITY RECORD. which will be the file care system of the barangay to be used in maintaining their records. The proposed system will besides be a census-like system of each occupant of the barangay for each and every occupant will now hold an designation figure incorporating their personal records. Undertaking Context The proposed system will hold an of import consequence on both the occupants of the barangay and barangay employees who manages the system every bit good as the barangay itself. The execution of the system will alter the methods and procedure that the barangay is being used for maintaining their files. This will besides guarantee that all the records will be in piece of land and updated. The system will besides make a nose count based environment to supervise the population of the venue. The barangay will besides be guaranteed that the file will be protected and safe for it will necessitate mandate before person can entree the system. The survey will besides profit its employees who manage the files and information of the barangay for it will convey easy entree of the information they need. This will besides extinguish dozenss of documents they normally keep and let the system to hive away it in such a manner that can be easy entree. The survey besides benefits its abode for they will be accommodated easy for they will hold an designation that can be used to entree their histories if there are some alterations to be done in their portion. It will besides be easy for them to easy demand some information and services because of the information that barangay have about them. This will besides guarantee the occupants that their information is right secured and maintain through the usage of the proposed system. Purpose and descriptionFor the user to hold a system that can assist them Aim 1. To turn manual system into modern system to the said barangay 2. To convey easiness in accessing the records needed for there will be an option for seeking with the usage of designation figure issued by the barangay. 3. To guarantee that the file will firmly hive away in the system and do a backup of the files if accident occurs. 4. To publish enfranchisement: * Barangay Clearance* Barangay Business Permit* Certificate of Indigency* BARC ( Barangay Agrarian Reform Committee ) Certification Scope and restriction The survey lone trades with the information the barangay. This includes all the indispensable information of all the occupants of the barangay. This information includes personal information and character mention of the individual. Assetss and medical record of each occupant is non included every bit good as the usage of biometries in acquiring the barangay clearance. The proposed system can bring forth studies as the barangay normally done. The information stored can be edited if there are alterations to be done and saves the alterations being done. It can besides cancel information that is no longer needed to maintain.

Zara and Ready Meals Case Study Individual Report Essay

Zara and Ready Meals Case Study Individual Report - Essay Example The problem arose mainly because of centralized stock ordering system, which was being practiced by Strutt. There is a change in the stock ordering and delivery system, which sees the losses tremendously reduced, and a significant improvement in customer satisfaction. Before and after Status of Ready Meals Case The initial system is flawed with extensive variations of the orders demanded. Strutt provided a provision all week long order and a final order the day before the intended deliveries. These two orders varied a lot at times even by over 50% and this resulted in an inconvenience to Ready Meals. There were also penalties associated with lateness of delivering the orders by Ready Meals. The Strutt demand of the food was also very uncertain. Ready Meals could not plan itself on what it would deliver more than a day before. This coupled with the fact that Ready Meals had to make small packaging led to an extended lead-time and this in turn led to creation of wastage. Ready Meals se t up stock buffering mechanisms to counter this effect of fluctuation of orders by Strutt. Buffering mechanisms was used in the supply of the sauces. This helped in mainstreaming the supply; however, the sauces have a life span of only five days and the keeping of excess stock led to wastage losses. Another buffer mechanism used by ready Meals to counter the uncertainty in supplying Strutt with food was the buffering of employee working hours. Employees could work for an extra 2 hours without notice and this led to an increased discontentment in the employee fraternity leading to turnovers. Wastage losses were also contributed to by Ready Meals computer system. On reception of provisional orders, Ready Meal would feed this information into their system. When this information was already in the system and the final order comes along, if the final order was less, the computer could not reduce the provisional order to meet the required order. If the final order was more than the provis ional order, the computer could not requisition for the excess rather it requisitioned for the final order in addition to the provisional order. This led to a great variation on the ordered quantity and the produced order. If Ready Meals also failed to deliver a day’s order, the computer would assume that the order was lost and make another order, which it would compensate for, by a lower order the following day. In the new system, a weekly schedule was set on Fridays with fixed daily deliveries for the following week. This was also found to not need changing from week to week apart from gradual seasonal adjustments. Threat of penalties was also removed and Strutt’s shelf life was increased by RM promising to dispatch on the day of production and supply the early rather than late delivery into the depots. Finally, the depot location was specified on the same day rather than 2 days before delivery, thereby enabling the packaging quantities to be in line with store requi rements and, therefore, avoiding depot delays in trans-shipment. This new system removed the variation in the quantities ordered and those delivered thereby reducing wastage for Ready Meals to zero. The uncertainty, which had earlier been created by the two orders placed by Strutt, was also removed. This is

Jacksonian era Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Jacksonian era - Essay Example This societal approach evolved into a misogynistic approach that has carried over in some small social groupings to this day. Initially the idea was not meant to see the women as unfit for other roles or as less than men. It simply meant that because they bore the children and were the nursemaids naturally they were assumed to be better in that role, and as a result the idea became tradition which made it difficult to break when technology changed and made physical labor a part of industry and not the entire industry. Wage differences for women and men when working were generally drastic with very few exceptions to this. As a result of the poor conditions and rate of pay several successful labor unions for women were formed. One in 1863 was called the Collar Laundry Union; as a result of going on strike they won an increase in wages. Another was called the Daughters of St. Crispin and was formed in 1869; it was a group of women shoestitchers and was recognized as the first national w omen’s union. (Lewis 1) The advent of women’s unions helped shed light on the deplorable conditions and low pay suffered. The Lowell System was a brilliant system implemented by the mill owners in Lowell Massachusetts.

Contemporary International Relations Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3750 words

Contemporary International Relations - Essay Example It is then an attempt to the resolution of such disputes, the experts and philosophers presented different possible theories that can explain the said case. The most prevalent of such theories are the theory of the clash of civilization and the theory of the clash of fundamentalism. These theories pointed out the possible reasons for the conflicts that had been occulting in relation to the contemporary International Relations. Upon the determination of the said theories, it can be considered that the problems, conflicts and disputes that are being faced by the international community can be resolved. To be able to determine the feasibility of the two theories, it is important to determine the issues that are covered by the two theories. Upon determination of the background information regarding the said concepts, a comparative analysis can be undertaken. There are different views that can be related to the Clash of Civilization. The most common and dominant of which are the views of Samuel Huntington and Bernard Lewis. Generally, the theory of the Clash of Civilization is aimed to explain and analyse the different conflicts that can be observed in the contemporary era specifically in the international community and the relationship among nations. Samuel Huntington presented the Clash of Civilization as a view on the International Relatio... Specifically there factors are considered as the main reasons for conflict in the international community according to the theory of Huntington which is founded on the different events and scenarios in the political and economic world. In addition, the said theory is a presentation in relation to the work of Francis Fukuyama's work (Huntington 1). On the basis of his view then, differences can arise on the basis of cultural backgrounds. The differences and the individuality along with other sources of differences that can be related to the culture and traditions of the people can considered covered even the different philosophies, language, history and religion. In general, he referred to civilizations as the highest form of the said grouping. The civilizations divide the world into different groups. The Western civilization though is one of the most evident, thus, in terms of the view with regards to conflict, the nations that are included in the West are commonly included and often seeking allies from different regions (Huntington 1). Such view then can explain the division of the contemporary era, the west and the eastern civilization. Although there are other civilizations, the clash in the present era commonly involves the Western civilization and the area wherein the Muslim religion had originated. This can be related to the other theory which is the Clash of Fundamentalism. Bernard Lewis' View The view of presented by Bernard Lewis can be considered as the earlier one, basically due to the fact that the term can be traced from the study that he had undertaken and presented that was entitled The Roots of

Aerobic Bacteria Associated with Septic Abortion

Aerobic Bacteria Associated with Septic Abortion Aerobic bacteria associated with septic abortion among Sudanese women Yagoub Hamadt Allah Elhaj Abd Elseed1*, Mohamed, A E.M. Ibrahim2 Waled Amen Mohammed Ahmed3 Abstract Background: Septic abortion is a common health problem with short- and long-term complications that affect the quality of life of those fortunate enough to avoid mortality. Both spontaneous and induced abortion may result in septic complications. Objective: This study aimed to isolate and identify aerobic bacterial causative agents of septic abortion in Sudan. Method: A descriptive study was conducted in the period from March 2013 till June 2013 in Gynecological Unit in Khartoum Teaching Hospital, Sudan. Thirty women with vaginal bleeding in the unit were included in the study. Thirty high vaginal swabs and cervical swabs were collected from the selected ladies admitted to the hospital with bleeding. Results: The prevalence of abortion was as fallows, in age group(20-25) abortion cases were (13.3%), in group(26-30) abortion cases were (33.3%), in group(31-35) cases were (20%), in group(36-40) cases were (33.3%) (P > 0.05). Isolated bacteria from those cases were; Staphylococcus epidermidis (86.2%), Klebsiella ozaenae (6.9%), Proteus mirabilis (3.4%), Escherichia coli (3.4%) and Staphylococcus aureus (3.4%). The present study showed that induced abortion (73.3%) was insignificantly more than habitual abortion (26.3%), (P=0.07). Conclusion: The major isolated organism was Staphylococcus epidermidis (86.2%), which was isolated from both complete and initial cases. But aerobic pathogenic bacteria isolated were Klebseilla ozaenae, Proteus mirabilis, Staphylococcus aureus and Escherichia coli. Keywords: Septic abortion, vaginal swab, pregnant women, Stahpylococcus epidermidis. Introduction: Septic abortions contribute significantly to maternal morbidity and mortality. Improving literacy rate in the female population and effective family planning should reduce its incidence [1]. In 1900, the rationale of therapy of the incomplete septic abortion was divided into a medical or surgical approach. Medical therapy comprising oxytocic, bed rest and supportive measures theoretically decreased the incidence of sepsis, while increasing the problem of blood loss and prolonged hospitalization. The surgical approach classified by some as controlled blood loss but theoretically increased the incidence of sepsis [1]. In 1973, a report described an adolescent admitted to a large Boston Teaching Hospital with what proved to be incomplete septic abortion [2]. Deaths from illegal abortion are mainly due to infection[2,3].Additional to that At 1990 a review of deaths due to abortion in the united states noted that 62 percent of the deaths from illegal abortion and 51 percent of deaths from spontaneous abortion were due to infection, as compared which only 21 percent of death from legal abortion [4] . Mccormick (I944) estimated that 3,500 women died annually in America from this complication of pregnancy and a recent estimate in Turkey suggested that 10,000 women a year died from this cause in that country[5]. A recent publication by Sedgh et al. (2007) estimated that a total of 42 million abortions were performed in 2003, down from 46 million estimated for 1995 using the same methods. The same study showed that 20% of all pregnancies, including miscarriages and stillbirths, terminate in abortion each year. This means that one out of every five pregnancies worldwide is voluntarily terminated annually, a statistic that illustrates its enormous dimensions. Expressed another way, the worldwide rate of induced abortion was approximately 29 per 1000 women between ages 15 and 44 years in 2003, down from 35 per 1000 in 1995. This means that globally one out of every 34 women within that age range has an abortion each year [6]. On the basis of verbal autopsy data and hospital records it is estimated that approximately 25% of maternal deaths are caused by hemorrhage, 15% by infection,12% by pregnancy-induced hypertension, and 8% by obstructed labor[7]. At the last years it has been observed that there is an increase in the prevalence of septic abortion among pregnant women, and its complication upon community. Septic abortion is considered nowadays one of the most important issues concerning Maternal health .There are not much studies traced in Sudan investigating the septic abortion prevalence and its causative agent. Therefore, this study aimed to isolate and identify aerobic bacterial causative agents of septic abortion in Khartoum, Sudan. Material and Method This is a descriptive study. It had been conducted among pregnant women in age of (20 – 40 ) years, who are being admitted to the Gynecology bleeding emergency room of Khartoum Teaching Hospital, Sudan, in the period from March 2013 till June 2013. High vaginal swabs: After the introduction of the speculum, the swab should be rolled firmly over the surface of the vaginal vault. The swab should then be placed in Amies transport medium with charcoal or/and Stuarts transport medium. Cervical swabs: After introduction of the speculum to the vagina, the swab should be rotated inside the endocervix. The swab should then be placed in Amies transport medium with charcoal or Stuarts transport medium. Then all collected specimens were inoculated on Blood agar (aerobic 370c), chocolate agar (aerobic 370c and 5-10% co2) and Macconkey agar (aerobic 370c). Incubated for overnight based on report done by Fawad A. et al 2008[8], when puerperal sepsis or septic abortion is suspected inoculate the specimen on two plates of blood agar and incubate aerobically at 35–370C overnight. Inoculate the specimen on Macconkey agar and incubate the plate aerobically at 35–370c overnight [8]. Examine the colonies for Gram stained smear: It is done to examine the smear for pus cells and bacteria (8). Identification tests: done to identify the pathogenic bacteria include Catalase test, Coagulase test, Deoxyriboneuclease test, Kligler iron agar, Citrate utilization test, Simmons citrate agar, Urease test, Indole test, Sugar fermentation test and Methyl Red test. Results: The total number of 30 samples were collected from pregnant women suffering from bleeding, out of these 11 specimens (36.67%) were collected after complete abortion, whilst 19 (63.33%) samples were collected at initial time of bleeding, as indicated in Table (1) . Table (1): The collected specimens time from women with bleeding in Khartoum Teaching Hospital. Parameter Number Percentage Specimens collected after complete abortion 11 36.67% Specimens collected at initial time of bleeding 19 63.33% Total cases 30 100% According to demographic characters, septic abortion appearing more frequently at the age of 26-30 and 36-40 and most cases were induced abortion (73.3%) as shown in Table (2). Table (2): Demographic characteristics of women attending with bleeding Khartoum Teaching Hospital: Demographic character Frequency Percentage Age categories 20-25 4 13.34% 26-30 10 33.33% 31-35 6 20% 36 40 10 33.33% Total 30 100% Type of abortion Habitual 8 26.67% Induced 22 73.33% Total 30 100% Types of aerobic bacteria isolated from specimens collected at complete stage of abortion were Staphylococcus epidermidis, Klebseilla ozaenae, Staphylococcus aureus, Escherichia coli and Proteus mirabilis. Staphylococcus epidermidis was isolated from both initial stage and complete stage of abortion. It was isolated from 14 specimens out of 19 specimens, Table (3). Table (3): Number of different bacteria isolate from septic abortion cases from women attending to Khartoum Teaching Hospital. Parameter Organism isolated Frequency Percentage Organism isolated from complete stage of abortion Staphylococcus epidermidis 6 54.5% Klebsiella ozaenae 2 18.2% Staph. aureus 1 9.1% Escherichia coli 1 9.1% Proteus mirabilis 1 9.1% Total 11 100% Organism isolated from initial stage of abortion Staphylococcus epidermidis 14 73.68% No growth 5 26.32% Total 19 100% Table(4): Relationship between the age of women, and type of abortion and the time of specimens in Khartoum Teaching Hospital Demographic character Complete abortion n(%) Initial abortion n(%) p-value Age categories 20-25 1 (9.1%) 3 (15.8%) 0.08 26-30 4 (36.3%) 6 (31.6%) 31-35 2 (18.2%) 4 (21.1%) 36 40 5 (45.4%) 5 (26.3%) Type of abortion Habitual 3 (27.27%) 5 (26.32%) 0.07 Induced 8 (72.73) 14(73.68%) Discussion: Out of 30 cases involved in this study 11 (36.67%) cases were caused by aerobic bacteria which may indicate that abortion may be caused by other causative agents than aerobic bacteria. The Percentage of septic abortion have been notably decreased , this is mostly because health care provider contribute significantly to reduce the expose of woman to septic complication by providing surfaces in a safe environment, this is un consistent with other published reviews[9]. The highest incidence were in age group 26-30 also in group36-40 (P > 0.05) the incidence were high , which is in inconsistent with other published reviews in other countries [9] ,but its consistent with the research of (Fawad, et al 2008) who found that the majority of patient were of middle age[8]. Also habitual abortion occupied about (27.3%) (P > 0.05) and induced abortion about (72.7%) (P > 0.05). Earlier published review showed that most isolated organism was Escherichia coli (20%) ,either alone or in combination with other bacteria ,which is inconsistent with our study (9.1%). Also the reviewer isolate Proteus mirabilis in combination with Escherichia coli (6%), in our study we found Proteus mirabilis (9.1%) [5]. The percentage of Klebsiella ozaenae isolate was (18.2%) which is higher than pervious study (Isibor, et.al 2011) with percentage of (4.4%) among pregnant woman [10] Staphylococcus aureus isolate percentage was (9.1%) in disagree with study done by (Isibor, et al 2011), which found that Staphylococcus aureus occupies about (26.7%). this may be attributed to immune status of the individual, personal hygiene and the proximity of the vagina to urethra [11]. References Atrash H.K., Lawson H.W., Smith J.C., Legal abortion in the US : trends and mortality . Contemp Ob/Gyn, 1990;p35(2);58-69. jewett J.F., septic induce abortion . N Engl J Med,1973,p289:9-748. Cates W .Jr. , Rochat R.W. , Smith J.C. , Taylor C.W. Jr., Trends and national abortion mortality ,United State,1940-1974:implification for prevention of future abortion deaths .Adv Plann Parent 1976,11:106-13. Cates W.Jr. , rochat R.W., Ilegal abortion in the united states:1972-1974.Fam Plann perspect1976;8:86-92. Botes M., The Parameters of Septic Abortion, S.A. Journal of obstetrics and gynecology, 11 September 1971, p4 ;37-41. Sedgh G., Henshaw S., Singh S., Ahman E., and Shah I.H.,Induced abortion: estimated rates and trends worldwide. Lancet ,2007 ,p370: 1338–1345. Sedgh G., Henshaw S., Singh S., Ahman E., and Shah I.H.,Induced abortion: estimated rates and trends worldwide. Lancet ,2007 ,p370: 1338–1345. Fawad A., Nazk H., K. Anisa , Septic induced abortion , J. Ayub Med. Coll. Abbottabad ,2008,20. Osazuwa H., Aziken M., Septic abortion: a review of social and demographic characteristics , Arch. Gynecol. Obstet. ,2007,p 275:117–119. Isibor J. O., Samuel S. O., Nwaham C. I., Amanre I. N., Igbinovia O., and Akhile A. O., Prevalence of bacterial and Candida albicans infection amongst women attending Irrua Specialist Teaching Hospital, Irrua, Nigeria, African Journal of Microbiology Research, Vol.30 ,September, 2011, p 5(20),. 3126-3130 Rosenow E. C., Studies in Elective Localization, Jour. Dent. Research, vol. 1, No. 3, September, 1919,52.

Depictions of gender roles in Nathaniel Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter

In Nathaniel Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter, Hester Prynne is virtually banished from the Puritan society because of her crime. She was guilty for adultery with the town’s minister, Arthur Dimmesdale. However, the reader is kept in the dark that Dimmesdale is the child’s father until latter part of the novel. Although Hawthorne’s novel accurately depicts the consequences that Hester and Dimmesdale suffer from their sin, the novel does not accomplish the task of reflecting upon the 17th century Puritan gender roles in Hester and Dimmesdale. For one, the mental and physical states of Hester and Dimmesdale are switched. Hester takes on the more courageous role throughout the novel whereas Dimmesdale takes on the more sensitive role. In addition, Hester is examined in accordance to the gender roles set for today’s American women. Nathaniel Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter is written in a manner that accurately depicts 17th century Puritan so ciety, but does not accurately show gender roles. To begin, typical Puritan society during the 17th century was â€Å"painfully stern and somber; it was founded on the strictest, unmollified Calvinism,† (Puritan†¦). In other words, their society was very restricted and confined to religion. Civil law also played a role in the citizens’ business and social relations. Law impacted how they dressed, their religious affairs, and even their family relations. In terms of education, Puritans prospered. In fact, in Massachusetts, they required every township of fifty families to employ a teacher to educate the children. Their government was also structured upon religion because religion served as their only method of life. In terms of gender roles, the men were responsible for earning bread for... ... Letter." Ghent University Faculty of Arts and Philosophy. Ghent University, July 2008. Web. 12 Jan. 2012. . Hawthorne, Nathaniel. The Scarlet Letter. New York: Tom Doherty Associates, LLC, 1989. Print. Gannon, Andres. "The Puritan Influence in Contemporary American Society." The Puritan Influence in Contemporary American Society. Damien High School, 2008. Web. 12 Jan. 2012. . Tyson, Lois. "Feminist Criticism." Critical Theory Today: a User-friendly Guide. New York: Routledge, 2006. Print. "Puritan Laws and Character." History of the USA. Web. 17 Jan. 2011. .

Lost in the Digital World

Lost in the Digital World Technology is everywhere in today’s society. It is how we communicate with others, sense of communication and even how we turn in our essays for an English class. It is beneficial to the world in so many ways but at the same time it also has many negative effects. In the article â€Å"Can You Hear Me Now? † by Sherry Turkle, she explores how technology is affecting our daily lives, especially communication. Before the article even begins there is a quote â€Å"Thanks to technology, people have never been more connected—or more alienated† (270).The author explains that through technology our bond with communication is getting weaker and more people rely on technology to control their lives, rather than having control of their own lives. First gives the example of her being at a conference and not a single person can get off technology to even pay attention to what they even came to the conference for. In my personal opinion it show s that we have lost respect for people and have gained more respect for technology and what is going on with the digital world more than the real world. Every once in a while audience members give the speaker some attention, lowering their laptop screens in a kind of digital curtsy† (270). How can we expect someone to listen to us if we cannot even pay attention to them in person? Technology is often the easy way out and it shows through business meetings, families, and how kids are being raised in society in this time. A business meeting is a very personal thing. It is not just what you talk about but it is also how the person looks, communicates in person, and just that vibe you get when you know how to handle people. Consultants used to talk to one another as they wanted to give presentations; now they spend that time doing email† (271). Technology is so impersonal that it makes people unconnected personally. I agree with the author as she criticizes the technology wo rld. â€Å"We are connected, tethered, so important that our physical presence is no longer required† (272). The fact that we do not communicate with people on a deeper level can cause makes trusting people too easy.Texting and emailing a coworker is so convenient for the life of a business person, but are you really going to get the same response or conversation when you could just do it in person? Not only are our careers getting taken over by technology, but our entire lives. The first thing I do whenever I wake up every morning is to check my cell phone to see who had texted me last night while I was sleeping. It never was brought to my attention on how horrible this habit is until I read this article by Turkle. â€Å"I look at my watch to see the time. I look at my BlackBerry to get a sense of my life† (273).A sense of life should not be a hand-held-size of internet and the people that consume your life. A sense of life is how you live it and the decisions and cho ices that you make. The personal connections that you have with the people you love and respect and most of all trust. I am also guilty of texting my mom when we are in the same house. Even though these ways of communication are so easy and most of the time effective; we lose a personal connection and reflect on just pure laziness. A cellphone gives someone a source of protection because they know someone is just a click away. Kids get cell phones from their parents. In return they are expected to answer their parents’ calls. On the one hand this arrangement gives teenagers new freedoms. On the other they do not have the experience of being alone and having to count on themselves; there is always a parent on speed dial. † (275). There are so many reasons why kids would need cell phones but if the world got by without them before, can they do it again? Technology with adolescents is such a touchy subject just because of how easy it is to abuse that power of connecting wi th the entire world.With being so impersonal in the world we have less fear of what we are showing to the public. Even though we are not communicating with people, they can simply get on a website to see what you have been doing for the past twenty-four hours of your life because of how little privacy is online. â€Å"If you have nothing to hide, you have nothing to fear† (277) this quote is so impersonal because you are â€Å"hiding† something or simply do not want other people to know your personal life should not mean that you have anything to fear.In the past ten years technology has advances tremendously at a rapid rate and it will be crazy to see where it takes us in the next ten years. I am one to hope that it can become more personal and things more like Skype come into play. Reliance on technology has come too far out of hand and society would be a much better place if more people focused on how to run their lives versus who texted us. We need to focus on buil ding stronger connections with the people around us instead of the connection with the devices in our hands. ?

Alvin Ailey History Leading Up to ‘Cry’

Alvin Ailey – ‘Cry’ Give a chronological account of Ailey’s background, training and influences up to the time he made ‘Cry’. Discuss how this may have informed the narrative of the dance in the work ‘Cry’ Alvin Ailey used his culture and countless childhood memories to base his choreography. His background, training and influences have informed and influenced the narrative of his work ‘Cry. The concept of cry was devised by Alvin Ailey. ‘Cry’ took its inspiration and stimulus from the suffering and hardship faced by African American Women.It portrays a woman dealing with slavery, adversity and segregation, who overcomes extraordinary situations and misfortunes, and rises up to triumph. Alvin Ailey Jr. was born on the 5th of January, 1931 to Lula Elizabeth Ailey, in Rogers, Texas. His experiences of life being brought up in the rural South would later inspire some of his most notable works. Ailey was an only chil d, and his father left the family when Ailey was the mere age of 1. Ailey soon later moved to Navasota, Texas with his mother. â€Å"There was the white school up on the hill, and the Black Baptist Church† said Ailey in a Times interview.Ailey grew up in this world feeling like an outsider. In 1942 he moved to Los Angeles, where he was introduced to dance by performances by the Ballet Russe de Monte Carlo and the Katherine Dunham Dance Company. It was at this time that Ailey became interested in athletics and along with this joined his high schools gymnastic and football teams. He also began taking tap lessons as he had a strong admiration for Gene Kelly and Fred Astaire. Ailey’s passion for dance further grew when he visited a modern dance school which was run by Lester Horton at the time.This dance school was the first company to accept dancers of all races. He attended Lester Horton’s dance school for one year before leaving. As Ailey had just recently gradua ted from high school in 1948 he went onto to attend the University of California where he studied languages. However, in 1949, Horton offered Ailey a scholarship, which he accepted, and it became effective immediately. Ailey continued on at the Company for again, one year, before this time leaving to attend San Francisco State College. With Ailey travelling a fair amount it gave him little connection and a lack of belonging which later in life would ontribute to the love and dedication he had towards his mother as she was the only real connection he had. Alongside this Ailey grew up with a strong sense of his African American Culture. While Ailey was living in San Francisco he began to dance in various night-clubs as a source of money. Very soon later, once again, Ailey returned to Los Angeles in order to complete his dance training with Lester Horton. It was in 1953 that Ailey ventured to New York alongside Horton and the company to perform. During this trip to New York Lester Hort on had a sudden death, leaving Ailey as Director of the Company.From here Ailey followed Horton’s technique and style himself as it thoroughly influenced on his dance genre, and he, himself produced 2 works. Unfortunately, for Ailey these pieces received very little praise and poor reviews which resulted in the troupe parting ways. Regardless of this minor setback, Ailey’s career truly began to blossom and he successfully moved on in the dance industry. Ailey was cast for numerous productions both on and off Broadway! Among these were the likes off: Sing, Man, Sing; Jamaica; Carefree tree; and Call me by my right name.In 1958 Ailey and another choreographer set out to recruit dancers which would perform several concerts throughout New York City. These new and modern works received successful reviews and high amounts of praise, which led Ailey to schedule concert after concert for the works to be viewed. Ailey’s first major work â€Å"Blues Suite† inspired by blues music was performed at these recitals. It was during this time, that his now most grasping piece â€Å"Revelations† was created and brought to life on the stage. â€Å"Revelations† was accompanied by the clutching music of Duke Ellington.It was this work that introduced the African American Religious Life to the United States, and pulled the audience in leaving them wanting more. It was from here on out that Alvin Ailey realized the impact he had on audiences through the African American context, and he further used this to his advantages to express the hardships that people of this culture faced through dance and art. In 1958 Alvin Ailey established his own company, the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theatre, to carry out his vision of a company devoted to inspiring the American modern dance heritage and preserving the style and traditions of the African-American culture.A short one year after its creation the company became the resident dance theatre at the Cla rke Centre for Performing Arts in New York City. The Alvin Ailey American Dance Theatre was lucky enough to house the leading African American Soloist being Judith Jamison. Not only was Judith Jamison a part of the company, Ailey also employed Asian and white dancers, making his company tremendously culturally diverse. It during the mid-1960’s when Ailey officially gave up dance, due to personal issues.Although quite recently after this, Ailey alongside his company relocated to Brooklyn, New York. From here on the Alvin Ailey Dance Theatre went on to be one of the most renowned dance troupes, touring internationally. It was on May 4th, 1971 at the New York City Centre, where Ailey’s signature work ‘Cry’ was first performed. Ailey dedicated this piece to â€Å"all black women everywhere–especially our mothers. † Alvin Ailey choreographed his memorable solo  Ã¢â‚¬ËœCry’  as a birthday present for his honorable mother, and choreograph ed the dance on his principal dancer, Judith Jamison.Jamison demonstrated Ailey’s mother’s struggles as well as all other African American woman’s struggles at the time of slavery as they fought for freedom. Mrs. Cooper (Alvin Ailey's mother) and Ms. Jamison are considered as the model of an Ailey woman. The role in ‘Cry’ has been passed on to all the Principal Dancers in the company being taught from the original soloist, Judith Jamison. In her autobiography, Jamison wrote â€Å"Exactly where the woman is going through the ballet's three sections was never explained to me by Alvin.In my interpretation, she represented those women before her who came from the hardships of slavery, through the pain of losing loved ones, through overcoming extraordinary depressions and tribulations. Coming out of a world of pain and trouble, she has found her way-and triumphed. † The piece ‘Cry’ very much so illustrates these altered generations of African American women. The work begins with the unraveling of a long white cloth that is personified during the work and takes on many figures; from a cleaning cloth which depicts the slavery the women faced to a physical barrier on the floor preventing escape.Ailey said â€Å"I am trying to express something that I feel about people, life, the human spirit, the beauty of things. † This three female solo, takes the audience on a journey of bitter sadness, ruthless hardship and blissful joy. It is through these factors that we are able to see the narrative of the work cry Ultimately, Ailey strongly used themes and concepts that he experienced from his past training, influences and background knowledge, to create and choreograph his most renowned work ‘Cry’

The American Immigration Law Foundation

The American Immigration Law Foundation Free Online Research Papers The reason why I choice the NGO to be The American Immigration Law Foundation that was established in 1987.It is an IRS- designated, nonprofit, educational, charitable organization dedicated to increase public understanding of Immigration law and policy and the immigration to American society. It works to expand the knowledge of public service and excellence while clarifying immigration law. This NGO relies on tax deductible voluntary donations and grants to support our mission. One of the supporting groups is the Network for Good. This group focuses on anti-immigrant groups that close the American doors to future immigrants, making the point that America is a nation of immigrants. They are working closely with leading immigration experts through the country and with Congress and the Administration to help change our immigration system so that it can be more proactive to the needs of our economy and society. They have four main program centers: The legal action center it was create d in 1990 to promote fundamental fairness for immigrants, their families and their employers. They do work among the Immigration law advocates and it’s run by immigration practitioners and litigators. They have filed a suit against the INS and also hold briefings in the federal courts. The Immigration Policy Center dedicated to research and analysis about the contributions made to America by immigrants, The Public Education Program develops resources for teachers and students in the classroom who are exploring our nations immigrant heritage; and The Exchange Visitor Program allows small to midsize businesses to understand and participate in the global economy, training exchanges, designated by the U.S. State Department. Section 2: Introduction of Issue One major issue that keeps increasing is that for almost a decade now, there has been an increase in the number of deaths each year among unauthorized border-crossers in the deserts and mountains of southern Arizona. The official statistics compiled by the U.S. Border Patrol undercount the actual number of deaths in Arizona and elsewhere along the U.S.-Mexico border. But various academic and government studies estimate that the bodies of between 2,000 and 3,000 men, women, and children have been found along the entire southwest border since 1995, including at least 1,000 that end up in the hospital of southern Arizona. Experts, including the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO), now explain this crisis as a direct consequence of U.S. immigration-control policies instituted in the mid- 1990’s. The results of the BMI study, which are confirmed by comparable research, show that there has been a dramatic increase in the number of UBC recovered bodies in the Tucson Sector from 1990 to 2005, thereby creating a major public health and humanitarian crisis in the deserts of Arizona. Instead of controlling migration we are seeing a growing human rights crisis which raises questions of equality, equity, fairness and justice in a globalized world. Studies show that immigrants pay more in taxes than what they cost in medical expenses and in education. Two different categories of debate exist. People say that they take advantage of welfare and public services, Other’s state that they are the ones filling the gaps in the labor market pertaining to the low skilled sector. My NGO explores these issues; we introduce policies and help immigrants gain the experience they need to make a better home when they go back to their country. We also help by teaching about immigrants to US citizens so they can learn and help make a difference, to lower the death of these people who are just seeking a better life. Some US citizens are against immigrants rights. In recent years, there has been controversy over the efforts of some banks to offer financial services to individuals without Social Security numbers, many whom are undocumented immigrants. More and more banks now allow people to open checking and savings accounts and to apply for credit cards and home mortgages using an Individual Taxpayer Identification Number issued by the Internal Revenue Service or an identification card issued by a foreign consulate in the United States, The public viewed it as a giveaway to undocumented immigrants and viewed the mortgage program as criminal, stating they are applauding the undocumented migration. Section 3: Position statement The important fact that we seem to forget is that we are all human beings and that as human beings, we have rights. Yet we seem to be ignoring those rights. This is a very important issue that is going to be a great debate in the upcoming elections. If we get together to put The American Immigration Foundation: policy to work I believe we have a chance to save many lives and give the opportunity of a better live to others who want to live in a place where they can make a better life for them selves an they children. The American Immigration Foundation proposes that we give the opportunity to the immigrants who are already in the U.S to apply for a visa and have it renewed one time until they have achieved the years they need to become a permanent US citizen. This would allow immigrants to receive the same treatment and opportunities the US citizens now hold. This could be done with the condition that we keep track of their behaviors and contributions to society. If they are productive and can maintain a healthy living style, we would grant them US citizenship and allow them to go back to their home town to expand their knowledge and help to eliminate poverty. The people who are not in the United States should also be granted the opportunity to come to the U.S with the condition that they are going to be there to make a difference and come back to their home land with the opportunity to help out and make a difference. If this policy is put into practice it will help more people expand their educ ation and allow them to make a difference to eliminate the migration caused by their economic status. The American Immigration Law foundation has many programs that already put this into practice. We take professional, educated people or people who want to be educated, give them the opportunity to learn how the companies in the us work and take the knowledge they learn back to there home town. There they can help Eliminate poverty. We wish we could do more and that’s where this policy comes into place. Currently we mainly work with Hispanics, but we open our arms to all immigrants who qualify for our exchange program, and hope that tomorrow we can expand the criteria for the exchange program. Our accomplishments for the ending year of 2002 include publication of four major reports which was quoted in the Wall Street Journal. Fought Justice Department usage in deportation procedure and sponsored over 200n international trainees as part of an exchange visitor program. And these are some of many accomplishments and I know that if this policy is put to practice we will be able to accomplish a lot more. Bibliography Bellamy, C (2007) Serving the Under Served Banking for Undocumented Immigrants. Retrieved on 3/20/2007 from www.ailf.org/ipc/2007 .shtml. Tienda, M (2006).Unraveling a public health enigma. Why do immigrants experience superior prenatal health outcomes? (335-388) Retrieved on 3/20/2007. Duarte, M (1990). The Funnel Effect and Recovered Bodies of Unauthorized Migrants. Binational Immigration (1-97) retrieved on 3/21/2007. Bacon,D(2007) Colecion de Derechos Humanos. The Real Political purpose of Ice raids, retrieved on 3/20/2007 from www.derechoshumanosaz.net/ Sapkota,E(2006).Unauthorized border crossing and immigration death. Arizona N. Mexico, and El Paso Texas, (2002-2003) retrieved on 3/32/2007 from American Journal of Public Heatlth96 (1-7). Stangold, J(2001)Rights Groups urge change in border policy, â€Å" The New York Times (5/26/2007)retrieved on 3/20/2007 Neto,B(2006) CRS report for congress border security: Barnes along the U.S International Border(1-45) retrieved 3/16.2007 from spotlight CRS web. Schneider, W( 2006). Political Pulse- Spotlight on Center Stage. National Journal Group, Inc. Retrieved November 8, 2006. (http://nationaljournal.com.floyd.lib.umn.edu/pubs/nj/extra/search.htm) Massey,D(2005) Five Myth About Immigration: Common Misconceptions underlying U.S Border-enforcement Policy. Immigration Policy Focus. retrieved Presentation migrationinformation.org/Feature/display.cfm?ID=136 Research Papers on The American Immigration Law FoundationThe Effects of Illegal ImmigrationNever Been Kicked Out of a Place This NicePETSTEL analysis of India19 Century Society: A Deeply Divided EraQuebec and CanadaInfluences of Socio-Economic Status of Married MalesStandardized TestingThe Relationship Between Delinquency and Drug UseTwilight of the UAWEffects of Television Violence on Children

Causes and Treatments of Pedophilia Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Causes and Treatments of Pedophilia - Essay Example It is a controversial topic, one of both loathing and one of endearment; victims are marred, offenders gratified. The presence of pedophilia causes society to react, to always be on the defensive. Similarly, such a diseasing, injurious obsession is challenging to society for a number of reasons. For one, pedophilia is not easily detected--it is not visible. Even though the act itself is a physical one, the sexual desire that is present inside of an adult for a child is secreted from the world. Secondly, those that are afflicted with pedophilia are reluctant to come clean about their lust for children. Accepting responsibility for their actions is as demanding as acknowledging that their addiction to nonconsenting or even consenting children is unethical. Thirdly, monitoring pedophilia is problematical. The difficulty arises because the majority of pedophiles are not registered as sex offenders and have limitless access to children. In addition, children seem to be just as reluctant t o confess as the offender. Due to its insidiousness, pedophilia, arguably, produces great shame in the individual. Why else would most sex offenders choose to hide what they cherish the most from the rest of the world Pedophilia is onerous to everyone involved, children, parents of the children, the offender, and to psychological clinicians. ... DSM-IV-TR (Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders) describes it as atypical sexual disorders typified by "recurrent, intense sexually arousing fantasies, sexual urges or behaviors generally involvingchildren or other nonconsenting persons that occur over a period of 6 months" (Malin, Paraphilias, 32). But, even with a clear definition of pedophilia, a precise or a specific answer to its cause remains blurred. It then becomes necessary to look beyond definitional answers and lean more towards the psychology of this particular disorder. Malin notes, some individuals that are laden with incontrollable sexual urges have these impulses as "a result of brain trauma, neoplasms, temporal lobe damage, or epilepsy and may manifest as hyposexuality or hypersexuality, particularly in men" (33). Accordingly, other "psychiatric conditions such as feeble mindedness" attribute to a heightened desire for sexual activity, i.e. "masturbation, or nocturnal pollutions" (33). These two part icular acts, masturbation and nocturnal pollution, give psychologists a foundation when attempting to determine certain causes for pedophilia, especially in seemingly normal persons. In a similar vein, masturbation, nocturnal pollutions, and pedophilia are unique. These are phenomena that seem to be associated with males more so than females, which generates another theory. In his study, Malin found that: such excessive stimulation need not always be intentional. For example, one theory enjoying some degree of acceptance in early psychoanalytic circles was that infants born to hereditary tainted mothers were predisposed to develop a fur fetish by coming into contact with their mother's pubic hair during birth (33). This, however, is the least likely cause.

BULE Homework 3 Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

BULE Homework 3 - Assignment Example In matters regarding stock, the S corporation entity would cause the business to enjoy an ability to reach out to latent investors using their stock. Taking this course is beneficial in that expansion becomes a possibility due to the support by money raised from stock issuance. This is an advantage that would be availed in case the cup cake bakery takes the form of Limited Liability Company or sole proprietorship, which lack the capacity to enjoy stock-related benefits. Notably, choosing the S corporation entity would assure the owner of the cup cake bakery of longevity. This is usually the best choice when the owner of the business has in mind long term goals such as creating a perpetual business for subsequent generations. It is a great advantage worth of considering because continuity is assured in case of unexpected incidences such as death unlike in sole proprietorship (Riddle, Butts, and Akiens 5). More importantly, choosing the S corporation entity would be immensely advantage ous because operating within such an entity helps minimize expenses. Summarily, this type of entity excludes owners from paying employment related taxes on a firm’s net revenue. On the other hand, shareholders employed by the cup cake bakery would pay such taxes. What should I name my business? Naming a business can be a stressing ordeal, especially without proper information. For a cup cake bakery, the most suitable name would have to appeal to the customer. In order to ensure that the need for appeal is met, the most suitable name would be ‘Delicious cup cakes’. The use of the word delicious is important in this case, because it appeals to the appetite of individuals who are already like cup cakes. In addition, the word appeals to those who may have never taken cup cakes as well as individuals who take a cup cake occasionally. Additionally, it is a simple name for children. This can work wonders among children because ‘delicious’ is not only appeal ing but also interesting and likely to stick in children’s minds. It is a wonderful name, especially when situating the business in a family neighborhood targeting children and teens. In picking the above name, what made you pick that name and what steps should take when choosing that name? The name ‘delicious cup cakes’ is most preferred because of its simplicity and ability to appeal to appetite. The choice of this name is also based on the basic reason behind customer preference of cup cakes over other baked foodstuffs like bread (Riddle, Butts, and Akiens 11). The bottom line is that people opt for cup cakes because they are deliciously prepared thus the name would trigger unplanned purchasing of the products offered. More importantly, the bakery will offer various types of cup cakes hence using the word delicious helps describe and summarize the varieties on offer. While picking up the name for the bakery, the following steps were necessary. A careful consid eration of other competitive names in the line of business Consideration of the fact that the business captures both shop-related and bakery operations The fact that the business is intended to run for as many years as possible eliminated the use of a personal name A consideration of th

Advance system engineering Coursework Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Advance system engineering - Coursework Example This activity normally connects the technical management effort and the overall acquisition efforts of the system. This is achieved through provision of key events in the development process whereby the design viability can be assessed. The viability of these baselines is a major input for the acquisitions management milestones decisions. It also involves a review of the system design, preliminary design and the critical design of the system. Development usually progresses through three major levels which include the conceptual level, the system level and the subsystem level. The system engineering process is the heart of integrated by Systems Engineering Management. It normally transforms requirements into specifications, architecture and configuration baselines. It is able to provide the control and traceability in order to develop solutions that meet customer needs. During the systems engineering process, the architectures are generated to give a better description and understanding of the system. The third activity involved in integrated by Systems Engineering Management is the lifecycle integration. It is very necessary in order to ensure that the design solution is viable throughout the life of the system it includes the planning associated with product and process development. It normally integrates multiple functional concerns into the process of engineering. The benefits that are realized from the integration of the lifecycle include: Reduction of the product life cycle time and the reduction of the need for redesign. Lifecycle integration is usually achieved through concurrent consideration of all the lifecycle needs during the process of development. An interdisciplinary team is used to enhance concurrent consideration of all the lifecycle needs during the process of integration of Systems Engineering Management. a. Based upon a labor rate of $20,000 a month for a senior engineer

Benefits of Coffee Essay Example for Free

Benefits of Coffee Essay How much coffee have you consumed already this morning? One cup? Or maybe even two? Like most college students I enjoy my cup of Joe in the morning! Coffee is one of the greatest sources of antioxidants in the global diet. Consuming large amounts is not advised, but having reasonable amounts everyday can be very beneficial to your body. Today, I would like to inform you about some of the benefits of drinking coffee. 1. Lower Chances of Death. a. Let’s face it we are all going to die b. Appears to lengthen time for people with heart disease and diabetes c. Kristen Kirkpatrick said that a study in 2012 showed that three or more cups of coffee a day lowers the risk of death regardless of whether participants drank caffeinated or decaffeinated coffee. 2. Makes your reproductive system happy d. Men would you like a drink that could lower your chances for prostate cancer? And ladies wouldn’t you like to lower your risk for endometrial cancer? e. Kirkpatrick also says that a 2011  study  found that men consuming at least six or more cups a day reduced their risk of prostate cancer by 20 percent! Another  study  published in the  Journal Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers and Prevention  found that women who drank more than four cups of coffee a day had a 25 percent lower risk of endometrial cancer. 3. Lower risks of Type 2 diabetes. f. A 2012  study  found that a compound in coffee can actually help block a substance in the body called human islet amyloid polypeptide that may play a role in the development of diabetes. Further  studies  have  demonstrated  that caffeinated coffee consumption is linked to decreased diabetes risk as well. 4. Protects your brain. g. When you wake up to the smell of coffee in the morning do you usually smile? h. Coffee drinkers are less likely to develop dementia and Alzheimers later in life according to a study done in 2009 i. The smell of coffee can help reduce stress that could be associated with loss of sleep 5.   Good for skin. j. Drinking coffee may help you to ward off basal cell carcinoma So, the next time you are wondering whether you should have that second cup of coffee to perk you up, relax. At least now you know how it could help you!

Literature Review On Social Networking Media Essay

Literature Review On Social Networking Media Essay The way people live these days is definitely different than the previous, people now tend to share their daily life events, news and even feelings and emotions with others. Social networks site (SNSs) has provided the facility of enabling them to do so. The Social Data Revolution (SDR) is the shift in human communication patterns towards increased personal information sharing and its related implications, made possible by the rise of social networks in early 2000s. While social networks were used in the early days to privately share photos and private messages, the subsequent trend towards people passively and actively sharing personal information more broadly has resulted in unprecedented amounts of public data. Janet Fouts in her book defines the social media as people engaged in conversation around a topic online. (Fouts, 2009). Her definition is a generalization to the whole topic, so there is another definition by (Boyed and Ellison, 2007) that is Social network sites are defined as wed-based services that allow individuals to three main points the first is to construct a public or semi-public profile within a system, the second is to formulate a list of other users with whom they share a connection, and the third is to view and cutoff their list of connections and those made by others within the system. This definition describes in specific the way people connect through the social network sites, and the nature and classification of these connections may vary from site to site. While we use the term social network site to describe this phenomenon, the term social networking sites also appears in public discourse, and the two terms are often used interchangeably. We chose not to employ the term networking for two reasons: emphasis and scope. Networking emphasizes relationship initiation, often between strangers. While networking is possible on these sites, it is not the primary practice on many of them, nor is it what differentiates them from other forms of computer-mediated communication (CMC). The term social network site is interchangeably used with the term social networking site, but they are not the same. The term networking somehow refers to the Or just remove the whole paragraph!! What makes social network sites unique is not that they allow individuals to meet strangers, but rather that they enable users to articulate and make visible their social networks. This can result in connections between individuals that would not otherwise be made, but that is often not the goal, and these meetings are frequently between latent ties (Haythornthwaite, 2005) who share some offline connection. On many of the large SNSs, participants are not necessarily networking or looking to meet new people; instead, they are primarily communicating with people who are already a part of their extended social network. To emphasize this articulated social network as a critical organizing feature of these sites, we label them social network sites. While SNSs have implemented a wide variety of technical features, their backbone consists of visible profiles that display a clear list of Friends who are also users of the system. Profiles are unique pages where one can type oneself into being (Sundà ©n, 2003, p. 3). After joining an SNS, an individual is asked to fill out forms containing a series of questions. The profile is generated using the answers to these questions, which typically include descriptors such as age, location, interests, and an about me section. Most sites also encourage users to upload a profile photo. Some sites allow users to enhance their profiles by adding multimedia content or modifying their profiles look and feel. Others, such as Facebook and twitter, allow users to add modules (Applications) that enhance their profile. The visibility of a profile varies by site and according to user discretion. By default, profiles on Friendster and Tribe.net are crawled by search engines, making them visible to anyone, regardless of whether or not the viewer has an account. Alternatively, LinkedIn controls what a viewer may see based on whether she or he has a paid account. Sites like MySpace allow users to choose whether they want their profile to be public or Friends only. Facebook takes a different approach-by default, users who are part of the same network can view each others profiles, unless a profile owner has decided to deny permission to those in their network. Structural variations around visibility and access are one of the primary ways that SNSs differentiate themselves from each other. After joining a social network site, users are prompted to identify others in the system with whom they have a relationship. The label for these relationships differs depending on the site-popular terms include Friends, Contacts, and Fans. Most SNSs require bi-directional confirmation for Friendship, but some do not. These one-directional ties are sometimes labeled as Fans or Followers, but many sites call these Friends as well. The term Friends can be misleading, because the connection does not necessarily mean friendship in the everyday vernacular sense, and the reasons people connect are varied (boyd, 2006a). The public display of connections is a crucial component of SNSs. The Friends list contains links to each Friends profile, enabling viewers to navigate the network graph by clicking through the Friends lists. On most sites, the list of Friends is visible to anyone who is permitted to view the profile, although there are exceptions. For instance, some MySpace users have hacked their profiles to hide the Friends display, and LinkedIn allows users to opt out of displaying their network. Most SNSs also provide a mechanism for users to leave messages on their Friends profiles. This feature typically involves leaving comments, although sites employ various labels for this feature. In addition, SNSs often have a private messaging feature similar to webmail. While both private messages and comments are popular on most of the major SNSs, they are not universally available. Not all social network sites began as such. QQ started as a Chinese instant messaging service, LunarStorm as a community site, Cyworld as a Korean discussion forum tool, and Skyrock (formerly Skyblog) was a French blogging service before adding SNS features. Classmates.com, a directory of school affiliates launched in 1995, began supporting articulated lists of Friends after SNSs became popular. AsianAvenue, MiGente, and BlackPlanet were early popular ethnic community sites with limited Friends functionality before re-launching in 2005-2006 with SNS features and structure. Beyond profiles, Friends, comments, and private messaging, SNSs vary greatly in their features and user base. Some have photo-sharing or video-sharing capabilities; others have built-in blogging and instant messaging technology. There are mobile-specific SNSs (e.g., Dodgeball), but some web-based SNSs also support limited mobile interactions (e.g., Facebook, MySpace, and Cyworld). Many SNSs target people from specific geographical regions or linguistic groups, although this does not always determine the sites community. Orkut, for example, was launched in the United States with an English-only interface, but Portuguese-speaking Brazilians quickly became the dominant user group (Kopytoff, 2004). Some sites are designed with specific ethnic, religious, sexual orientation, political, or other identity-driven categories in mind. There are even SNSs for dogs (Dogster) and cats (Catster), although their owners must manage their profiles. While SNSs are often designed to be widely accessible, many attract homogeneous populations initially, so it is not uncommon to find groups using sites to separate themselves out by nationality, age, educational level, or other factors that typically segment society (Hargittai, 2008), even if that was not the intention of the designers. A History of Social Network Sites The Early Years The first recognizable social network site launched in 1997. SixDegrees.com allowed users to create profiles, list their Friends and, beginning in 1998, surf the Friends lists. Each of these features existed in some form before SixDegrees of course. Profiles existed on most major dating sites and many community sites. AIM and ICQ buddy lists supported lists of Friends, although those Friends were not visible to others. Classmates.com allowed people to connect with their high school or college and surf the network for others who were also joined, but users could not create profiles or list Friends until years later. The first to combine these features was SixDegrees. SixDegrees promoted itself as a tool to help people connect with and send messages to others. While SixDegrees attracted millions of users, it failed to continue, the service closed in 2000. Looking back, its founder believes that SixDegrees was simply ahead of its time (A. Weinreich, personal communication, July 11, 2007). While people were already flocking to the Internet, most did not have extended networks of friends who were online. Early adopters complained that there was little to do after accepting Friend requests, and most users were not interested in meeting strangers. From 1997 to 2001, a number of community tools began supporting various combinations of profiles and publicly articulated Friends. AsianAvenue, BlackPlanet, and MiGente allowed users to create personal, professional, and dating profiles, users could identify Friends on their personal profiles without seeking approval for those connections (O. Wasow, personal communication, August 16, 2007). Likewise, shortly after its launch in 1999, LiveJournal listed one-directional connections on user pages. People mark others as Friends to follow their journals and manage privacy settings. The Korean virtual worlds site Cyworld was started in 1999 and added SNS features in 2001, independent of these other sites (see Kim Yun, this issue)*come back to this ref. Likewise, when the Swedish web community LunarStorm refashioned itself as an SNS in 2000, it contained Friends lists, guestbooks, and diary pages (D. Skog, personal communication, September 24, 2007). Ryze.com was the beginning of the next wave of SNSs, it was launched in 2001 to help people control their business networks. Ryzes founder reports that he first introduced the site to his friends, primarily members of the San Francisco business and technology community, including the entrepreneurs and investors behind many future SNSs (A. Scott, personal communication, June 14, 2007)*revise this ref. In particular, the people behind Ryze, Tribe.net, LinkedIn, and Friendster were tightly interrelated personally and professionally. They believed that they could support each other without competing (Festa, 2003). In the end, Ryze never acquired mass popularity, Tribe.net grew to attract a passionate niche user base, LinkedIn became a powerful business service, and Friendster became the most significant, if only as one of the biggest disappointments in Internet history (Chafkin, 2007, p. 1). Figure 1. Distribution of work task interruption Figure 1. Timeline of the launch dates of many major SNSs and dates when community sites re-launched with SNS features That was a brief history of the general SNSs. The following section discusses Friendster, MySpace, and Facebook those are the three key SNSs that has shaped the business, cultural, and research background. The Rise (and Fall) of Friendster Friendster launched in 2002 as a social complement to Ryze. It was designed to compete with Match.com, a profitable online dating site (Cohen, 2003). While most dating sites focused on introducing people to strangers with similar interests, Friendster was designed to help friends-of-friends meet, based on the assumption that friends-of-friends would make better romantic partners than would strangers. Friendster gained trust among three groups of early adopters who shaped the site-bloggers, attendees of the Burning Man arts festival (Who are these?), and gay men (boyd, 2004)-and grew to 300,000 users through word of mouth before traditional press coverage began in May 2003 (OShea, 2003). *find this ref and try to make changes to the prev. paragraph As Friendsters popularity raised, the site encountered technical and social difficulties (boyd, 2006b). Friendsters databases and servers were not well equipped to handle its fast growth, and the site faded out regularly, that caused frustrating users who replaced email with Friendster. ** rephrase this paragraph à ¢Ã¢â‚¬  Ã¢â‚¬Å" Because organic growth had been critical to creating a coherent community, the onslaught of new users who learned about the site from media coverage upset the cultural balance. Furthermore, exponential growth meant a collapse in social contexts: Users had to face their bosses and former classmates alongside their close friends. To complicate matters, Friendster began restricting the activities of its most passionate users. The initial design of Friendster restricted users from viewing profiles of people who were more than four degrees away (friends-of-friends-of-friends-of-friends). In order to view additional profiles, users began adding acquaintances and interesting-looking strangers to expand their reach. Some began massively collecting Friends, an activity that was implicitly encouraged through a most popular feature. The ultimate collectors were fake profiles representing iconic fictional characters: celebrities, concepts, and other such entities. These Fakesters outraged the company, who banished fake profiles and eliminated the most popular feature (boyd, in press-b). While few people actually created Fakesters, many more enjoyed surfing Fakesters for entertainment or using functional Fakesters (e.g., Brown University) to find people they knew. The active deletion of Fakesters (and genuine users who chose non-realistic photos) signaled to some that the company did not share users interests. Many early adopters left because of the combination of technical difficulties, social collisions, and a rupture of trust between users and the site (boyd, 2006b). However, at the same time that it was fading in the U.S., its popularity skyrocketed in the Philippines, Singapore, Malaysia, and Indonesia (Goldberg, 2007). SNSs Hit the Mainstream From 2003 onward, many new SNSs were launched, prompting social software analyst Clay Shirky (2003) to coin the term YASNS: Yet Another Social Networking Service. Most took the form of profile-centric sites, trying to replicate the early success of Friendster or target specific demographics. While socially-organized SNSs solicit broad audiences, professional sites such as LinkedIn, Visible Path, and Xing (formerly openBC) focus on business people. Passion-centric SNSs like Dogster (T. Rheingold, personal communication, August 2, 2007) help strangers connect based on shared interests. Care2 helps activists meet, Couchsurfing connects travelers to people with couches, and MyChurch joins Christian churches and their members. Furthermore, as the social media and user-generated content phenomena grew, websites focused on media sharing began implementing SNS features and becoming SNSs themselves. Examples include Flickr (photo sharing), Last.FM (music listening habits), and YouTube (video sharing). With the plethora of venture-backed startups launching in Silicon Valley, few people paid attention to SNSs that gained popularity elsewhere, even those built by major corporations. For example, Googles Orkut failed to build a sustainable U.S. user base, but a Brazilian invasion (Fragoso, 2006) made Orkut the national SNS of Brazil. Microsofts Windows Live Spaces (a.k.a. MSN Spaces) also launched to lukewarm U.S. reception but became extremely popular elsewhere. Few analysts or journalists noticed when MySpace launched in Santa Monica, California, hundreds of miles from Silicon Valley. MySpace was begun in 2003 to compete with sites like Friendster, Xanga, and AsianAvenue, according to co-founder Tom Anderson (personal communication, August 2, 2007); the founders wanted to attract estranged Friendster users (T. Anderson, personal communication, February 2, 2006). After rumors emerged that Friendster would adopt a fee-based system, users posted Friendster messages encouraging people to join alternate SNSs, including Tribe.net and MySpace (T. Anderson, personal communication, August 2, 2007). Because of this, MySpace was able to grow rapidly by capitalizing on Friendsters alienation of its early adopters. One particularly notable group that encouraged others to switch were indie-rock bands who were expelled from Friendster for failing to comply with profile regulations. While MySpace was not launched with bands in mind, they were welcomed. Indie-rock bands from the Los Angeles region began creating profiles, and local promoters used MySpace to advertise VIP passes for popular clubs. Intrigued, MySpace contacted local musicians to see how they could support them (T. Anderson, personal communication, September 28, 2006). Bands were not the sole source of MySpace growth, but the symbiotic relationship between bands and fans helped MySpace expand beyond former Friendster users. The bands-and-fans dynamic was mutually beneficial: Bands wanted to be able to contact fans, while fans desired attention from their favorite bands and used Friend connections to signal identity and affiliation. Futhermore, MySpace differentiated itself by regularly adding features based on user demand (boyd, 2006b) and by allowing users to personalize their pages. This feature emerged because MySpace did not restrict users from adding HTML into the forms that framed their profiles; a copy/paste code culture emerged on the web to support users in generating unique MySpace backgrounds and layouts (Perkel, in press). Teenagers began joining MySpace en masse in 2004. Unlike older users, most teens were never on Friendster-some joined because they wanted to connect with their favorite bands; others were introduced to the site through older family members. As teens began signing up, they encouraged their friends to join. Rather than rejecting underage users, MySpace changed its user policy to allow minors. As the site grew, three distinct populations began to form: musicians/artists, teenagers, and the post-college urban social crowd. By and large, the latter two groups did not interact with one another except through bands. Because of the lack of mainstream press coverage during 2004, few others noticed the sites growing popularity. Then, in July 2005, News Corporation purchased MySpace for $580 million (BBC, 2005), attracting massive media attention. Afterwards, safety issues plagued MySpace. The site was implicated in a series of sexual interactions between adults and minors, prompting legal action (Consumer Affairs, 2006). A moral panic concerning sexual predators quickly spread (Bahney, 2006), although research suggests that the concerns were exaggerated. A Global Phenomenon While MySpace attracted the majority of media attention in the U.S. and abroad, SNSs were proliferating and growing in popularity worldwide. Friendster gained traction in the Pacific Islands, Orkut became the premier SNS in Brazil before growing rapidly in India (Madhavan, 2007), Mixi attained widespread adoption in Japan, LunarStorm took off in Sweden, Dutch users embraced Hyves, Grono captured Poland, Hi5 was adopted in smaller countries in Latin America, South America, and Europe, and Bebo became very popular in the United Kingdom, New Zealand, and Australia. Additionally, previously popular communication and community services began implementing SNS features. The Chinese QQ instant messaging service instantly became the largest SNS worldwide when it added profiles and made friends visible (McLeod, 2006), while the forum tool Cyworld cornered the Korean market by introducing homepages and buddies (Ewers, 2006). Blogging services with complete SNS features also became popular. In the U.S., blogging tools with SNS features, such as Xanga, LiveJournal, and Vox, attracted broad audiences. Skyrock reigns in France, and Windows Live Spaces dominates numerous markets worldwide, including in Mexico, Italy, and Spain. Although SNSs like QQ, Orkut, and Live Spaces are just as large as, if not larger than, MySpace, they receive little coverage in U.S. and English-speaking media, making it difficult to track their trajectories. Expanding Niche Communities Alongside these open services, other SNSs launched to support niche demographics before expanding to a broader audience. Unlike previous SNSs, Facebook was designed to support distinct college networks only. Facebook began in early 2004 as a Harvard-only SNS (Cassidy, 2006). To join, a user had to have a harvard.edu email address. As Facebook began supporting other schools, those users were also required to have university email addresses associated with those institutions, a requirement that kept the site relatively closed and contributed to users perceptions of the site as an intimate, private community. Beginning in September 2005, Facebook expanded to include high school students, professionals inside corporate networks, and, eventually, everyone. The change to open signup did not mean that new users could easily access users in closed networks-gaining access to corporate networks still required the appropriate .com address, while gaining access to high school networks required administrator approval. (As of this writing, only membership in regional networks requires no permission.) Unlike other SNSs, Facebook users are unable to make their full profiles public to all users. Another feature that differentiates Facebook is the ability for outside developers to build Applications which allow users to personalize their profiles and perform other tasks, such as compare movie preferences and chart travel histories. While most SNSs focus on growing broadly and exponentially, others explicitly seek narrower audiences. Some, like aSmallWorld and BeautifulPeople, intentionally restrict access to appear selective and elite. Others-activity-centered sites like Couchsurfing, identity-driven sites like BlackPlanet, and affiliation-focused sites like MyChurch-are limited by their target demographic and thus tend to be smaller. Finally, anyone who wishes to create a niche social network site can do so on Ning, a platform and hosting service that encourages users to create their own SNSs. Currently, there are no reliable data regarding how many people use SNSs, although marketing research indicates that SNSs are growing in popularity worldwide (comScore, 2007). This growth has prompted many corporations to invest time and money in creating, purchasing, promoting, and advertising SNSs. At the same time, other companies are blocking their employees from accessing the sites. Additionally, the U.S. military banned soldiers from accessing MySpace (Frosch, 2007) and the Canadian government prohibited employees from Facebook (Benzie, 2007), while the U.S. Congress has proposed legislation to ban youth from accessing SNSs in schools and libraries (H.R. 5319, 2006; S. 49, 2007). The rise of SNSs indicates a shift in the organization of online communities. While websites dedicated to communities of interest still exist and prosper, SNSs are primarily organized around people, not interests. Early public online communities such as Usenet and public discussion forums were structured by topics or according to topical hierarchies, but social network sites are structured as personal (or egocentric) networks, with the individual at the center of their own community. This more accurately mirrors unmediated social structures, where the world is composed of networks, not groups (Wellman, 1988, p. 37). The introduction of SNS features has introduced a new organizational framework for online communities, and with it, a vibrant new research context. Previous Scholarship Scholarship concerning SNSs is emerging from diverse disciplinary and methodological traditions, addresses a range of topics, and builds on a large body of CMC research. The goal of this section is to survey research that is directly concerned with social network sites, and in so doing, to set the stage for the articles in this special issue. To date, the bulk of SNS research has focused on impression management and friendship performance, networks and network structure, online/offline connections, and privacy issues. Impression Management and Friendship Performance Like other online contexts in which individuals are consciously able to construct an online representation of self-such as online dating profiles and MUDS-SNSs constitute an important research context for scholars investigating processes of impression management, self-presentation, and friendship performance. In one of the earliest academic articles on SNSs, boyd (2004) examined Friendster as a locus of publicly articulated social networks that allowed users to negotiate presentations of self and connect with others. Donath and boyd (2004) extended this to suggest that public displays of connection serve as important identity signals that help people navigate the networked social world, in that an extended network may serve to validate identity information presented in profiles. While most sites encourage users to construct accurate representations of themselves, participants do this to varying degrees. Marwick (2005) found that users on three different SNSs had complex strategies for negotiating the rigidity of a prescribed authentic profile, while boyd (in press-b) examined the phenomenon of Fakesters and argued that profiles could never be real. The extent to which portraits are authentic or playful varies across sites; both social and technological forces shape user practices. Skog (2005) found that the status feature on LunarStorm strongly influenced how people behaved and what they choose to reveal-profiles there indicate ones status as measured by activity (e.g., sending messages) and indicators of authenticity (e.g., using a real photo instead of a drawing). Another aspect of self-presentation is the articulation of friendship links, which serve as identity markers for the profile owner. Impression management is one of the reasons given by Friendster users for choosing particular friends (Donath boyd, 2004). Recognizing this, Zinman and Donath (2007) noted that MySpace spammers leverage peoples willingness to connect to interesting people to find targets for their spam. In their examination of LiveJournal friendship, Fono and Raynes-Goldie (2006) described users understandings regarding public displays of connections and how the Friending function can operate as a catalyst for social drama. In listing user motivations for Friending, boyd (2006a) points out that Friends on SNSs are not the same as friends in the everyday sense; instead, Friends provide context by offering users an imagined audience to guide behavioral norms. Other work in this area has examined the use of Friendster Testimonials as self-presentational devices (boyd Heer, 2006) and the extent to which the attractiveness of ones Friends (as indicated by Facebooks Wall feature) impacts impression formation (Walther, Van Der Heide, Kim, Westerman, in press). Networks and Network Structure Social network sites also provide rich sources of naturalistic behavioral data. Profile and linkage data from SNSs can be gathered either through the use of automated collection techniques or through datasets provided directly from the company, enabling network analysis researchers to explore large-scale patterns of friending, usage, and other visible indicators (Hogan, in press), and continuing an analysis trend that started with examinations of blogs and other websites. For instance, Golder, Wilkinson, and Huberman (2007) examined an anonymized dataset consisting of 362 million messages exchanged by over four million Facebook users for insight into Friending and messaging activities. Lampe, Ellison, and Steinfield (2007) explored the relationship between profile elements and number of Facebook friends, finding that profile fields that reduce transaction costs and are harder to falsify are most likely to be associated with larger number of friendship links. These kinds of data also lend themselves well to analysis through network visualization (Adamic, Bà ¼yà ¼kkà ¶kten, Adar, 2003; Heer boyd, 2005; Paolillo Wright, 2005). SNS researchers have also studied the network structure of Friendship. Analyzing the roles people played in the growth of Flickr and Yahoo! 360s networks, Kumar, Novak, and Tomkins (2006) argued that there are passive members, inviters, and linkers who fully participate in the social evolution of the network (p. 1). Scholarship concerning LiveJournals network has included a Friendship classification scheme (Hsu, Lancaster, Paradesi, Weniger, 2007), an analysis of the role of language in the topology of Friendship (Herring et al., 2007), research into the importance of geography in Friending (Liben-Nowell, Novak, Kumar, Raghavan, Tomkins, 2005), and studies on what motivates people to join particular communities (Backstrom, Huttenlocher, Kleinberg, Lan, 2006). Based on Orkut data, Spertus, Sahami, and Bà ¼yà ¼kkà ¶kten (2005) identified a topology of users through their membership in certain communities; they suggest that sites can use this to recommend additional communities of interest to users. Finally, Liu, Maes, and Davenport (2006) argued that Friend connections are not the only network structure worth investigating. They examined the ways in which the performance of tastes (favorite music, books, film, etc.) constitutes an alternate network structure, which they call a taste fabric. Bridging Online and Offline Social Networks Although exceptions exist, the available research suggests that most SNSs primarily support pre-existing social relations. Ellison, Steinfield, and Lampe (2007) suggest that Facebook is used to maintain existing offline relationships or solidify offline connections, as opposed to meeting new people. These relationships may be weak ties, but typically there is some common offline element among individuals who friend one another, such as a shared class at school. This is one of the chief dimensions that differentiate SNSs from earlier forms of public CMC such as newsgroups (Ellison et al., 2007). Research in this vein has investigated how online interactions interface with offline ones. For instance, Lampe, Ellison, and Steinfield (2006) found that Facebook users engage in searching for people with whom they have an offline connection more than they browse for complete strangers to meet. Likewise, Pew research found that 91% of U.S. teens who use SNSs do so to connect with friends (Len hart Madden, 2007). Given that SNSs enable individuals to connect with one another, it is not surprising that they have become deeply embedded in users lives. In Korea, Cyworld has become an integral part of everyday life-Choi (2006) found that 85% of that studys respondents listed the maintenance and reinforcement of pre-existing social networks as their main motive for Cyworld use (p. 181). Likewise, boyd (2008) argues that MySpace and Facebook enable U.S. youth to socialize with their friends even when they are unable to gather in unmediated situations; she argues that SNSs are networked publics that support sociability, just as unmediated public spaces do. Privacy Popular press coverage of SNSs has emphasized potential privacy concerns, primarily concerning the safety of younger users (George, 2006; Kornblum Marklein, 2006). Researchers have investigated th