The legality of lying Research Proposal Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

The legality of lying - Research Proposal Example This is not always the case, and later in this discussion, it will come to light that not all lies are bad and not all lies are good either. Project overview In the efforts to find effective conclusions, the study will be guided by the objective of assessing the legality of lying. In order for the study, to achieve its objectives, a wide range of literatures will be consulted. This will include books, internet search, journals, and relevant researches. In this regard, a clear articulation of concepts related to lying and their legalities will be prioritised. This can be argued to be necessary because the law has been under siege for the allegations of it being selective in its application. For example, when a policemen lies before a court of law by a way of exaggerating the situation in order irritate the accused in bid to pressure him/her tell the truth, this kind of lying could be necessary in helping the court assess the truth. The study finds it necessary to utilise secondary dat a in its methodology because they will give a wide range of information, which will help understand the phenomena at hand. In the analysis of the data, grounded theory will be utilised in order to have a comprehensive analysis. The study will benefit various legal institutions and open up a wider view of how the issue lying is applicable in various legal concepts. Politicians Basing one’s argument on the sensitivity of their positions in society, the question then beckons; is it okay to lie? A politician is always under scrutiny from the public either directly or through intermediaries like the media on all actions that they take whether in their public or private lives. There are at times justifications where lying is acceptable. It is often in cases where politicians cannot really explain their actions, for example, in international affairs that they find solace in lying (Mearsheimer 2011). When British parliamentarians made claims to the exchequer for additional funds thro ugh making false claims, there was an uproar which saw them return the excess funds and apologize for having done so. This is a case where lies were made to benefit the politicians. Looking at this case study, the question that lingers on one’s mind is what are the benefits that accrue to lying? For example, a government can opt to exaggerate the situation at hand in order to obtain grants or monetary assistance from the international community. Nevertheless, some politicians have tendencies of using lies for their own personal gains. This can be viewed as a breach of law. On the other hand, although it can be claimed that some forms of lying can be recognised as being legal, it depends with the gravity of the consequences of that particular lying, and how the party involved can defend their actions legally. The severity of lying coming from a politician will mainly depend on the matter at hand. Every leader’s main goal in life is to ensure that the best interests of h is country are upheld. If a leader finds it necessary to lie about a certain leader who oppresses people and that if those lies help remove the oppressor from power and that this will benefit the greater majority of citizens, in such a case, though unprofessional, the lie will be justified. On the other han

Flexibility Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Flexibility - Essay Example It works in interrelation with different operational and transactional factors like workforce, technological capital, organizational systems and the concern as a whole. Flexibility allowed in the labor force earns due efficiency if it helps to augment the degree of commitment of organizational workforce. (Procter & Ackroyd, 2009, p. 495). Three main themes would be outlined in the paper, which can be given as follows. The concept of flexibility to be successful must be closely tied to high degree of organizational commitment. Present level of increased competition triggers the need of a flexible workforce who would rightly adapt to changes in level of demand and operational process. The function of flexibility earns success if the employees work together in a committed manner to achieve organizational goals (Guest, 1989.p.49). Moreover, flexibility of the labor force tends to identify the Human Resources Management as a strategic initiative, which helps the company to earn a distinct competitive advantage. Human Resource Management as a strategic function encompasses the different policies and end goals behind the proper management of the labor force. The strategic face of human resource management is likely needed in bigger firms with several departments and also in other multinational firms for maintaining a strong binding in the labor force. (Boxar, Peter & Purcell, 2003. p.50) In key connection to the concept of human resources management is the process of recruitment and selection of the right candidate to help achieve the organizational goals. Thus recruitment and selection procedures and methods must be devised keeping in mind the end goals. The modern day organization desires to bring in a lot of flexibility in their organizational procedure and management of human resources in the organization. Modern day companies observe that through a flexible workforce the company can achieve high levels of profit and

Separation of Photosynthetic Pigments: Paper Chromatography

Separation of Photosynthetic Pigments: Paper Chromatography Plant pigments have the ability to absorb visible light, which can be used in order to harvest energy for photochemical reactions. There are a variety of pigments present in plants, and for this experiment, these pigments were separated using paper chromatography. Absorbance spectrophotometry was also used in order to obtain the different absorbances of the pigments. The data was then used to compare relative chlorophyll content in both old and young leaves, and to identify the pigments present in the leaves. It was seen that chlorophyll a and b were present, and young leaves yielded more chlorophyll than old leaves as reflected by the high absorbance of the young leaf extract as compared to the old leaf extract. The performance of this experiment can be deemed successful in separating pigments, however identification of the pigment concentration could also be done to better quantify the amount of pigment in the leaves. INTRODUCTION Chromatography is a technique used to separate complex mixtures between a stationary phase and a mobile phase. (Craig) There are several types of chromatography, namely: gas chromatography, liquid chromatography, ion exchange chromatography, affinity chromatography, adsorption chromatography, partition chromatography, and molecular exclusion chromatography. (Carrier, Bordonaro and Yip) The concept behind this process is that the smaller the affinity a molecule has for the stationary phase, the faster it migrates. The stationary phase varies depending on the type of chromatography used (Carrier, Bordonaro and Yip). Most of the time, chromatography is used for purification techniques. The process is also used in separation of substances, an example of which is plant pigments. The result of chromatography is a chromatogram. From the chromatogram, different information about the test sample can be attained. By counting the number of peaks in the chromatogram, one can deduce the complexity of the mixture. The more peaks there are, the more complex the mixture is. Also, qualitative information about the composition of the mixture can be deduced by comparing the peak positions with a standard. Quantitative assessment of the relative concentration of the components can also be attained by comparing the peak areas (Carrier, Bordonaro and Yip). In this experiment, chromatography was used to separate pigments extracted from old and young leaves. The pigments were further identified using absorbance spectrophotometry. MATERIALS AND METHODS For this experiment, photosynthetic pigments were separated through paper chromatography and the absorption spectra of these were measured through absorbance spectrophotometry. Pigment Extraction Old and young leaf samples were obtained around the UP campus. Each set of samples was shredded into smaller pieces and weighed to twenty grams. Using mortar and pestle, each sample was immersed in 50 ml acetone and ground thoroughly to fully extract the chloroplast pigments. After this, the extracts were filtered by using filter paper and Buchner funnel. The eluted extracts were collected in separate beakers and transferred into separate test tubes, and labelled accordingly as OLD and YOUNG. Paper Chromatography The extract from young leaves was subjected to paper chromatography. Three pieces of 3cm x 11cm Whatman no. 42 filter paper were cut out. The sheets of paper were marked 3 cm from one end, and 2 cm from the other. The 3cm-point served as the point where the extract would be loaded, while the 2cm-point dictates the point of termination of the chromatogram. This end was tied with a string so that it could easily be suspended on a Gatorade bottle cap. With a Pasteur pipette, one drop of extract was loaded on each sheet of the filter paper. To further saturate the loading, the filter paper sheets were loaded ten times. However, for each loading, the previous spot was allowed to dry before an additional drop of extract was added. Developing solvent of petroleum ether was prepared. The solvent was then poured into three Gatorade bottles, filling only up to two centimetres of the bottle. The paper strips were then secured on the bottle caps with tape and hung, with its end touching the developing solvent, but not the loaded extract. The development of the chromatogram was terminated after the pigments or the developing solvent has reached the 2cm-line. Of the three chromatograms, only one was presented for the results because it has the clearest separation. Absorbance Spectrophotometry Absorbance spectrophotometry was also done to obtain absorbance spectra of the different pigments present in leaves. Both the old and young leaf extracts were used and the absorbances of extracts were obtained for the following wavelengths (nm): 400, 450, 470, 500, 550, 600, 647, 650, 663, 700. Two trials were done per leaf sample. The absorbances obtained were then plotted against wavelength. RESULTS AND DISCUSSION Pigments are defined as substances in plants that are able to absorb visible light. These can be classified into three basic groups. (University of California Berkeley, 2006) The first are the chlorophylls which are greenish pigments containing a porphyrin ring. The ring contains several double bonds which makes it stable, and at the same time allows free migration of electrons. In this way, when sunlight strikes the plant surface, electrons in the pigment molecules of the chloroplast thylakoid become excited which in turn pass on this excitation to the photosystems that begins the series of cellular events that generate oxygen and sugar. Four species of chlorophyll a, b, c, and d are known. Chlorophyll a is the primary photosynthetic pigment in all higher plants, algae, and the cyanobacteria. Chlorophyll b is found virtually in all higher plants and green algae, differing from the former only in that a formyl group substitutes for the methyl group in ring II. Chlorophyll c is meanwhile found in the diatoms, dinoflagellates, and brown algae and lacks the phytol tail of chlorophyll a. Lastly, chlorophyll d is found only in the red algae and has an (-O-CHO) group in place of the (-CH=CH2) group on ring I of chlorophyll a. (Taiz and Zeiger, 2008) The second class of pigments are the carotenoids. They are usually red, orange, or yellow pigments composed of two small six-carbon rings connected by a chain of carbon atoms. Their high carbon content prevents them from dissolving in water and as such they must be attached to membranes within the cell. They have several functions, including the broadening of the spectrum of colors able to drive photosynthesis (especially in seasons with shortened days such as fall and winter), and in photoprotection; they are able to absorb and dissipate excessive light energy that can otherwise damage chlorophyll or interact with oxygen to produce reactive oxidative molecules that can damage the cell. (Cain, et. Al, 2011) The third class of pigments are the phycobilins. They are water-soluble pigments found in the chloroplast stroma or the cell cytoplasm. Occurring only in the Cyanobacteria and Rhodophyta, they are efficient in absorbing light wavelengths that are not well absorbed by chlorophyll a. These pigments are bound to phycobiliproteins which pass on the absorbed light energy to chloroplasts for photosynthesis. Knowledge of which types of pigments are present in a plant is useful in the field of agriculture. Using this information, lights that promoting the optimal growth of plants having certain pigments can be developed, increasing their yield. Additionally, pigments extracted from plants can be used as dyes in scientific research. One way of determining the pigments present in a plant sample is through paper chromatography. Paper chromatography separates pigments present in the plant sample based on their solubilities in the solvent; compounds which are very soluble move along with the advancing solvent front, while less soluble compounds travel slowly through the paper, well behind the solvent front. Chlorophyll a is slightly soluble in a 3:1:1 mixture of petroleum ether, acetone, and water (which was the resulting mixture used in the study), while carotenoids are very soluble in this system. This difference in solubility should allow the separation of chlorophyll a from the carotenoids and chlorophyll b, which is less soluble than chlorophyll a. (Bowen and Baxter, 1980) The following chromatogram was obtained from the chromatography done in the study. chlorophyll B chlorophyll A carotenoid Figure 1. Obtained chromatogram from the paper chromatography of (young or old?) leaf extracts. Only one trial was used in the identification of pigments, with the topmost band determined to be a carotenoid, followed by chlorophyll A and chlorophyll B. The first pigment band was identified as a carotenoid due to its yellow-orange color, the second band identified as chlorophyll A due to its darker green color, and the third band identified as chlorophyll B due to its yellow-green color. The study is said to be a success in this respect as the results obtained matched the theoretical results. Additionally, pigments can also be identified based on the value of their retention factor; the retention factor (Rf) is calculated as the distance the pigment travels (in centimeters) divided by the distance the solvent travels (in centimeters). Standard values of the Rf are compared to the calculated values and the closest standard value that matches the calculated value is used to identify the pigment. This step however, was no longer done in the study. Figure 2. A graph showing the absorbance obtained from the old and young leaf extracts through absorptive spectrophotometry. Spectrophotometry can be utilized for measuring the chlorophyll content of a leaf by measuring the absorbances of the plant extract at red and far red regions of the visible light spectrum. The absorbance of the extract is directly proportional to its chlorophyll content. The experiment measured the absorbances of old and young leaves coming from the same plant in order to compare their chlorophyll content. In the experiment, the pigments from old and young plants were subjected to spectrophotometry to identify which wavelength would yield the highest absorption therefore identifying the pigments present, and also compare at which level of maturity plants would yield more chlorophyll. The former is possible because plant pigments participate in photosynthesis by absorbing light, and there is the optimal wavelength wherein they can absorb the most amount of light and can therefore enhance the process of photosynthesis. Pigments in seed plants may be present as chlorophyll a, b, and carotenoids, all with varying abundance. For the old and leaf samples, it can be seen that the measured absorbances peaked at two wavelengths (Figure 2). The first peak is around 450-470 nm while the second peak is around 663 nm. This data implies that most of the pigment extracted must be from chlorophyll a and b, since theoretically, these pigments peak at 430-450 nm and 640-660 nm. It should also be remembered that peaks in an absorbance vs. wavelength pigment spectra means that these pigments absorb and utilize light best in these wavelengths. In Figure 3 below, the other pigments and corresponding peak wavelengths can be seen. Figure 3. Absorption spectra of pigments found in seed plants Aside from knowing the pigments present in the leaves, the graph could also show the relative amount of chlorophyll present in the leaves. Theoretically, older leaves contain much more chlorophyll than younger leaves; this is contrary to the results as depicted by Fig. 2. These results can only make sense if the plant from which the extract was taken from has a magnesium deficiency, assuming that no methodological error was committed. Plant with Mg deficiency tend to sequester Mg from old leaves by degrading chlorophyll and then transporting the retrieved Mg to the younger leaves which have higher photosynthetic needs. Other methods of measuring the pigment content of leaves include using chlorophyll content meters, which do not require an extract to be prepared, and the more superior technique known as chlorophyll fluorescence where the ratio of chlorophyll fluorescence at certain wavelengths give a linearly proportional estimation of the chlorophyll content. Literature Cited Hopkins, W.G. HÃ ¼ner, N.P.A. (2009). Introduction to plant physiology (4th ed). Ontario, Canada: John Wiley Sons. Cain, M. L, Jackson, R.B., Minorsky, P.V., Reece, J.B., Urry, L.A., Wasserman, S.A. (2011). Campbell biology (9th ed). San Francisco, USA: Benjamin/Cummings. University of California Berkeley. (2006). Photosynthetic pigments. Retrieved from http://www.ucmp.berkeley.edu/g lossary/gloss3/pigments.html on August 23, 2012. Bowen, W. R., Baxter, W. D. (1980). Experimental cell biology: an integrated laboratory guide and text. New York, USA: Macmillan Publishing Co. Taiz L and Zeiger E. (2008). Plant Physiology. 3rd ed. Sinauer Associates, Inc. Hermans C.; Vuylsteke F.; Coppens F.. 2009. Systems Analysis of the responses to long-term magnesium deficiency and restoration in Arabidopsis thaliana.ÂÂ  New PhytologistÂÂ  187: 132-144. Carrier, Rebecca, Julie Bordonaro and Kevin Yip. Chromatography. 1997. 23 August 2012 Retrieved from:http://www.rpi.edu/dept/ chem-eng/Biotech Environ/CHROMO/chromintro. html. Craig, Paul A. Chromatography. 2007. 23 August 2012 Retrieved from: http://people.rit.edu/pac8612/ webionex/website/html/ione8h o9.html. Domestic violence: Prevention and treatment Domestic violence: Prevention and treatment Introduction Domestic violence is a universal phenomenon and more and more governments play importance on it. There are three major types of domestic violence including violent against women, child abuse and elder abuse. Since domestic violence includes primarily of violence against women, we will going to review the situation of violent against women in Hong Kong in this paper. In this study, the term of violence against women will be used instead of wife abuse because violence against women consists not only women who are married legally with the abuser, but also the co-habitees or separated partners, since violence could be continued even the relationship ended. Definitions of violence against women Although the United Nations found violence against women as the major obstacle to the achievement of equality, development and peace for women in 1985 (1), the nations didnt seem to emphasis it. Research showed that every one of three women in the global had ever experienced violence in an intimate relationship. (World Health Organization, 1997)(12) Generally speaking, violence against women refers to those acts totally committed violent against women. In the United Nations General Assembly 1994, violence against women had been defined as any act of gender-based violence that results in, or is likely to result in, physical, sexual or mental harm or suffering to women, including threats of such acts, coercion or arbitrary deprivation of liberty, whether occurring in public or in private life. UN had a rather feminist view that violence against women is an expression of sex inequality and is used to uphold the domination over women and to keep discrimination against women by men. (UN, 1995) The severity of violence against women According to the data of Social Welfare Department of HK, there is an increase in the number of spouse battering from 1,906 in 1998 up to 6,483 in 2008. (SWD, HK. 2008) Over 80% of them are women abuse. The researches related to violence against women in Hong Kong were very rare, they asserted that the situation is getting worse and the government should take it seriously, however. It is about two-third of Tangs survey respondents had at least one time of verbal abuse, (Tang, 1999) Researches showed that around 10% of the survey respondents had experienced at least one time of physical abuse by their male partners. (Tang, 1999; Chan, 2005) Chan (2000, 2005) also noticed that a rather high proportion of victims were having little schooling as well as homemakers. Studies revealed the fact that over 50% of battered women were at the age range of 31 to 40 (Harmony House Report 2007; Chan, 2000) and over 80% were new migrants from Mainland China. (Harmony House Report 2007) Majority of women who experience intimate violence do not report it to the police. (Backman and Coker, 1995) Outline of this paper In the following, we will first go through the forms of violence against women including physical abuse, emotional abuse and sexual abuse. Then, the theories related to violence against women Family perspective and Feminist perspective will be discussed, and the idea of Patriarchal ideology and Confucianism will be addressed. After that, we will look deep into the existing situation in Hong Kong which consist the services provided for the victims and the abusers, the difficulties the victims face, and how Hong Kong government handle domestic violence. In the last part, the intervention strategies like resource allocation, legislation and education that combating this violence issue will be encountered. Forms of violence against women There are three forms of abuse: Physical abuse, psychological abuse and sexual abuse, in which physical abuse is the most common form that abuse men give to their female partners. Physical abuse Physical abuse refers to a physical assault or violent act that attacks the victims physical integrity, like pushes, slaps, pinches, punches, spits, kicks, burns, fractures, locked women in the house, put women in an unsafe places or murder. (Chan, 2000) Dobash et al., (1985) stated that only 3% of assaults are low in physical severity the rest are medium or high. (as cited in Mullender, 1996) Physical abuse usually accompanied by emotional abuse. Psychological or emotional abuse Psychological abuse, also referred to as emotional abuse, is a kind of emotional or psychological attacks or the neglect of psychological or emotional needs, described a person subjecting or exposing another to behavior that is psychologically harmful. (en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Emotional_abuse) Actually, there is no universal accepted definition for emotional abuse. Here I adopted the definition from U.S. Department of Justice that emotional abuse is causing fear by intimidation, verbal or non-verbal, threatening physical harm to self, partner, children, or partners family or friends, destruction of pets and property, forcing isolation from family, friends, or school or work.(U.S. Department of Justice, Edleson, 1984) Emotional abuse, differ from physical abuse and sexual abuse, is a continued and repetitive behavior, used to harden fear to reinforce the control of the abuser so as to strengthen the obedience and passive acceptance to the abuser. Sexual abuse Sexual abuse is a dissented and pressurized sexual behavior or acts, forced by one person upon another. Sometimes the abuser compels unwanted sexual activity without physical force by using their position of trust but mostly physical abuse comes with sexual abuse. According to Chan (2000), those behaviors includes rape or sexual assault, incest coerced by force, inappropriate touching, exposure of genitalia, force the partner to have sexy dressing or ignoring ones sexual character. Russell (1990) reminded us that spousal sexual abuse is one kind of domestic violence which may sometimes constitute marital rape or an assault. Causes of the problem Theories related to Violence against women The universality of domestic violence caused many scholars to explore the reasons for violence against women. Family perspective Family perspective is one of the perspectives the scholars like to adopt. This approach believed that the behavior of a family member is influenced by the responses or feedback of other members. It seemed violence as a symmetrical between both sexes, and viewed individual and family relation as the core for the explanation for domestic violence, suggested a reduction in structural stresses and work on individual pathologies in dealing with the problem. Obviously the Hong Kong government had adapted this perspective in explaining the causes of domestic violence as it stressed on maintaining the function of the family or improving marital relationships. (Leung, 2008) Feminist perspective On the other hand, some scholars explained violence against women abuse from the view of feminist theory which locates the root of violence against women in a social-structural context rather than a private or family problem. (United Nation, 1989; Adam, 1998) This approach believed that women do not have equal rights and do not have institutional power, instead, women are considered as inferior and subordinate, and more serious, the properties to men. (United Nation, 1989) As the tolerance for violence act against women are vary across culture, the feminist give explanation that it is due to different levels of patriarchal values across cultures. (Bui Morash, 1999; Nayak et al.2003) The endorsement of the beliefs regarding rape and spousal physical violence and the tendency of blaming the victim showed that both gender and sociocultural factors had great impact on the attitudes toward violence against women. (Nayak et al. 2003) Tang (1999) recommended patriarchy theory in explaining violence against women in Chinese societies. Patriarchal ideology Patriarchy Patriarchy is a system of society in which men holding the determination power over women and children of the household. (en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Patriarchy) Feminists believed that violence against women is rooted in a patriarchal system which men keep women in a subordinate position through the use of control, usually enhanced through existing economics, social, and political, and legal dimensions. Socialization process help strengthen men to subordinate women. (Sugarmen and Frankel, 1996) Many scholars agreed that the social structure created and maintained under the patriarchy keep on justified the male dominant beliefs of womens inferior status. (Tang, 1999; Anderson, 1988; Sugarmen and Frankel, 1996) Patriarchal ideology and Confucianism Confucianism which strengthens patriarchal system had great impact in Chinese society. Women lived under the ethical norms of Confucianism were suppressed into inferior, dependent, and submissive status, and are expected to obey the men. In the past thousand years, Chinese women followed womanhood decencies like san cong si de (three obedience and four virtues) and xian qi liang mu, (a virtuous wife and a good mother) (Tang, 1999) see contributing male offsprings to their husbands lineage and serving her husband as her responsibilities. The social norms in Chinese society accept using physical force to discipline female family members, for those fail to live up their prescribed roles will result in patraiarchal brutality under the rules of the family. Therefore, it is legal for a man to afford all forms of violence against women, usually physical abuse. On the other hand, the Chinese culture of interpersonal harmony forced wives to keep on tolerating the inequality so as to protect the reputation and stability of their families. Research showed that around half of the surveyed women mentioned cultural reasons for staying with their partner. (Adam, 1998) Therefore, the extent of violence against women has been largely hidden and widely denied by our society. Though Chinese women had greater opportunities for education in recent decades, and there is an increase in the acceptance of a greater flexibility of gender norms, decision making power in the household matter still holding in the mens hand. More and more female go out to work, yet they have to do most of the housework. (Choi and Lee, 1997) Chan and Lee believed that traditional patriarchal values are deeply permeated into Chinese family system. Therefore, when wives ask for more gender equality, the husbands may understand as their domination and superiority in the family had been defied, and may react with use of violence. Tang (1999) As the society tolerate towards domestic violence, and the experience of being discrimination when seeking for help, the abused women remained in the relationship. The existing situation in Hong Kong Violence against women in Hong Kong In the past 10 years, there was a rapid increase in spousal abuse. Importantly, more than 80% of victims of spousal abuse in 2008 were female, 60% of the female victims were suffering from physical abuse (SWD, HK, 2008) Harmony House reported that 71% of women had been subjected to violence for over three years. (Harmony House Annual Report 2008-2009) Pahl(1985a) and Binneyet al. (1988) got similar findings. (As cited in Mullender, 1996) Harmony House (Harmony House, 1996/1997 Annual Report) pointed out 41.7% of female victims suffered from both physical and sex abuse, and 24.1% suffered physical, psychological and sexual abuse at the same time. Chan (2000) found that 63.6% of his survey respondents viewed male chauvinism as the major cause of domestic violence which request obedience of the women. It is concluded as influenced by the traditional culture of patriarchal ideology in which female were in an inferior status. It is rather problematic that the mass as well as the front-line professionals such as police officers and social workers were likely to endorse that wife abuse is a private matter or family issue. (Tang, 2005; Leung, 2008) Leung (2008) stated that the occurrence of domestic violence, in the current view of Hong Kong society, is due to lack of communication between family members or because of individuals under pressure. The mainstream believed that both men and women have equal chance of spousal abuse. Therefore, the government did not consider the hidden gender power imbalances in domestic violence during the policy formulating process. Under such ideologies, the services related to domestic violence focus on how to maintain the unity of the family rather the safety of the victims; the police officers view domestic violence as low priority to handle, and discouraged abused women to file their complaints (Leung, 2008), and legal system continue to treat battering as an individual problem rather than criminal behavior (Ferraro, 1989; Leung, 2008) In result, the victims who are in the subordinate status would rather keep quite, while the abusers violent act was intensified. (Leung, 2006)(Tam and Tang, 2005) Service provided for the victims and the abusers There are certain NGOs in Hong Kong care and pay effort in the fighting against domestic violence, providing shelters and services for victims and male batterers, arranging prevention programmes and community education. Due to limited resources, their services are unable to handle the needs. Leung (2009) explained the Hong Kong government has increase the budget on family service in the past years in order to recruit more staff to carry out the family support projects, nevertheless, the fund did not specifically designate to the use of handling cases of domestic violence. SWD had increase resources on the accommodation beds in the shelter from 180 in 2007-2008 to 260 in 2008-2009, and to prolong the working hour of the shelters so as to provide better service for the victims. But it is regrettable that there are too little resources for measures to combat gender-based violence in the home. The difficulties the victims face Researchers found that the abused women in Hong Kong had great difficulties in seeking help from neither police officers nor social workers. (Leung, 2008; Hong Kong Womens Coalition on Equal Opportunities, 2005; Tam and Tang, 2005) It is very common for the front-line professionals to endorse that wife abuse is a private matter or family issue. (Tang, 2005; Leung, 2008) Leung (2008) pointed out that abused women always had bad experience when they seek help from the police. Most of the police perceive violence against women as a family issue and pay less attention to it, they usually persuade the victims to close the files. Even though the police are willing to handle the case, for domestic violence usually seems as family disputes which may not involved in criminal act that the police could take action, the case would most be disregarded. On the other hand, some front-line social workers paid inadequate support and empathy to the victims. It is largely because of the common bias att itudes towards the abused women especially those came from Mainland China. Some other social workers use family therapy that emphasis unity of the family to handle domestic violence cases that force the abused woman to go back to the abuser. It is inevitable that rare of legislator, social worker or police may suggest the abused women to apply injunction order. It revealed that the front-line professionals were lack of gender sensitivity in dealing the cases. The abused women often found housing problem. Compassionate rehousing could only offer by the social workers of SWD which relied on strong social ground defined by the social workers themselves. However, most social workers had bias that those women were taking advantage during the process. The policies of CSSA restrict the application for those new arrivals that were lived in Hong Kong for less than seven years even those they suffered from abuse. How Hong Kong government handle Domestic Violence There was a great reaction in the society after Tin Sui Wai Family Tragedy happened in 2004 and the government was forced to deal with it. According to the Report of Review Panel on Family Services in Tin Shui Wai (2004), 25 suggestions were addressed, including the measures of three-tiered structure established by the police provide a graded response to investigating domestic violence. Relevant information is input into the Central Domestic Violence Database, district supervisory officers will look into those repeated cases occurring within 12 months. However, the prosecution rate of spouse battering remains low. In 2005, the police recorded 1,274 cases of spouse battering, in which 1,159 cases were arrested due to their criminal act, but only 10% were finally convicted. (Hong Kong Amnesty International, 2006) The Domestic Violence Ordinance (DVO) was enacted in 1986 in Hong Kong. At that time, the scope of definition of domestic violence is narrow to those live in matrimonial home, but excludes some other intimate relationships like co-habitees, separated partners or same sex partners. And the domestic violence is seemed as molest in this ordinance that restricted domestic violence to civil act. The limited scope of definition of domestic violence led to low utilization rate of DVO and low application of injunction order. Amendments of DVO came after more and more criticism in recent years in 2008 and 2009. Amendments includes the scope of definition of domestic violence extend to co-habitees, separated partners and same sex cohabitants and the Batterer Intervention Programme was enforced. The Womens Commission, a central mechanism plays a strategic role in advising Hong Kong Government on policy direction on women issues, addressed a policy paper in 2006 to outline a strategy to address victims empowerment, prevention of violence, timely and effective intervention, community education and support. The paper provided a lot of suggestions related to various aspects, including legislation reform, services, promotion, database, training for professionals, training on gender mainstream, early identification and intervention and community networks. The paper is comprehensive, yet the Commission has not legal authorities to implement the suggestions. In response to the rapid increase of domestic violence in past decades, Working Group on Combating Violence (WGCV), coordinated by the SWD, comprises representatives from related bureaux, government departments and non-governmental organizations, is formed for mapping out strategies to address the problem of spouse battering and sexual violence. (www.swd.gov.hk) Due to limited authority, the WGCV seems unable to coordinate the cooperation among different sectors of the government departments that no body function in policy making, coordination, and supervising (Leung, 2008) Leung (2008) criticized that the work done by the Hong Kong government in the fighting against domestic violence was unsatisfactory, the most critical problem is that the Hong Kong government and most of the policy makers did not view violence against women at home as a gender issue or human right issue but only family issue. For this reason, no comprehensive policy base on the gender mainstream was set to handle the domestic violence. (Leung, 2006; Hong Kong Womens Coalition on Equal Opportunities) The SWD report (2005) confirmed that domestic violence is a family matter by mentioned that family violence amongst those who used violence, such as low self-esteem, lack of empathy, alcohol or drug addiction, a history of abuse and neglect as a child, social isolation etc.. Such viewpoint makes people ignore how serious women abuse is in Hong Kong, and force the abused women to remain in the relationship. Actually domestic violence rooted in patriarchal ideology that is widespread over t he community that the violent act of the abuser is literally an offense of manipulation of male against women. Leung (2008) found that there are two main obstacles in putting the concept of gender mainstream into the domestic violence policies. The first one is that both the front-line professional and the policy makers were lack of gender sensitivity; secondly, inadequate resource and service coordination is put and insufficient staff and authority of coordinating framework to organize, and to coordinate and supervise the policies of domestic violence and its implementation. (Leung, 2008, P70) Besides, the government has not made any specific action plan on how to carry out the gender mainstreaming policy. Intervention strategies to combat the violence issue Legislation and judicial procedures It is necessary to review the current measures on domestic violence if we want to resolve the issue of violence against women in the long-run. In the aspect of legislation and judicial procedures, the government should take a deep review the law on domestic violence so that violence against women could be classified as criminal act. Simplify and improve the judicial protection orders like lengthen the duration of injunction order would be helpful. Also, improvement to the measures of support for victims of domestic violence would reinforce the prosecution. It is rather difficult for the victims to testify against their husbands face to face in the court. The Hong Kong Council of Social Service (2007) thus suggested providing supporting worker for the victims who would accompany with victims during the hearing, provide relevant legal information actively, and contact with the prosecutors and the court to keep updated the process of the case. Comprehensive information for victims is vi tal. For most of the victims do not know their right, it is rather helpful if the front-line professional would provide appropriate information and service such as shelters and application for injunction order. Resources It is certainly that government should enhance the availability and accessibility of the shelters at the same time. For the perpetrators, compulsory batterer intervention program (BIP) seems to be effective and should be enforced. On the other hand, Tin Sui Wai Family Tragedy revealed that professional training for handling domestic violence must be strengthened. As a matter of fact, social welfare agencies are lack of resources and support from the government to combat gender-based violence in the home. Therefore, it is unable for them to deepen the intervention and therapies on domestic violence. The government should add the specific matching grants of domestic violence. Although extra HKD 22 million has budgeted to recruit additional staff to implement family support projects, no designation for the fund to handle cases of domestic violence, in result, no advancement to the service on domestic violence. The change of ideology Other than resource and legislation and judicial procedures, the change of ideology is most significant. In recent years, governments in many western countries agreed that domestic violence is a gender issue and bring it to the criminal level. Similar arguments also found in Hong Kong (The Womens Commission, 2006; Leung, 2006, 2008) Leung (2008) stressed that the best way to protect women from abuse is to take the concept of gender mainstream into account when handling the issue of domestic violence. The concept of gender mainstreaming having been developed after the 1985 3rd World Conference on Women in Nairobi and was formally featured in the Platform for Action of the 4th World Conference on Women in Beijing in 1995. (centers.law.nyu.edu) Gender mainstreaming is defined as the public policy concept of the process of assessing the implications for women and men of any planned action, including legislation, policies or programmes, in all areas and at all levels. It is a strategy for making womens as well as mens concerns and experiences an integral dimension of the design, implementation, monitoring and evaluation of policies and programmes in all political, economic and societal spheres so that women and men benefit equally and inequality is not perpetuated. The ultimate goal is to achieve gender equality. (Un ited Nations, 1997) In response to the ineffective of WGCV, Leungs suggestions are worthy to mention. Leung (2008) suggested the government should adopt the definition of gender mainstreaming and its practice guidelines offered by international organizations; to develop a comprehensive policy of domestic violence and strategy execution according to gender mainstream; and to establish a high ranking coordinating body to work out an action plan for combating and preventing domestic violence; to improve the central data collection and the information dissemination systems; to consolidate the collaboration system between government and NGOs to ensure the resources had been used in combating against violence, to set up crisis intervention team with the collaboration of police and social workers; to meliorate the service coordination within different social service organizations; to strengthen the education on gender sensitivity for the frontline professionals. Reference Chan, K.L. (2000) The Impact of Family Violence to Women and their Children, Hong Kong: Hong Kong Christian Family Service and Hong Kong University, Department of Social Work and Social Administration. Leung, L.C. (2008) The possibilities of Gender Mainstreaming Domestic Violence Policy in Hong Kong. Hong Kong: City University of Hong Kong, Department of Applied Social Science. (centers.law.nyu.edu/jeanmonnet/papers/00/000201) United Nations. Report of the Economic and Social Council for 1997. A/52/3.18 September 1997. Backman, R., Coker, A. (1995). Police involvement in domestic violence: The interactive effects of victim injury, offenders history of violence, and race. Violence and Victims, 10(2), 91- 106. Other information Definitions of domestic violence Intimate partner violence (IPV), also termed domestic violence, is the most common form of violence against women. (Watt and Zimmerman, 2002) Wesley defined domestic violence as any behavior which is intended to cause unwanted harm, either physical (e.g., sexual or physical assault, and murder) or nonphysical (e.g., intimidation malicious insults) to a romantic partner. (Wesley et al, 2006) Adams gave a rather completed definition, the repeated, habitual or random use of aggression, whether physical, verbal, social, sexual, emotional, psychological or economic, by an individual on a partner or ex-partner in an existing or previous domestic relationship to force submission to that persons demands, thus depriving the partner of personal liberty and basic human rights. (Adam, 1998) Continuums of abuse Apart from the forms of abuse, we should consider the level of severity of abuse when we look into a case whether it is an abuse or not. The following table showed different levels of abuse from least to most severe. Assumed relationship between Patriarchal ideology and Attitude towards violence against women Sugarman and Frankel (1996) in their study examining how wide the patriarchy ideology molds the individuals experiences in terms of domestic violence, showed that previous researches on wife abuse done by Dobash and Dobash (1979), Kurz (1989) and Schechter (1982) conjectured that acceptance of traditional gender ideals and expectations about women serves to maintain subordination of women and is a primary source of violence against women (Sugarman and Frankel, 1996) Pagelow (1984) even suggested that traditional gender belief system could be retain since the assaultive husbands adopt the patriarchal conception of family. (Sugarman and Frankel, 1996) Findings verified that assaultive husbands showed more positive attitudes toward marital violence than nonassaultive husbands (Sugarman and Frankel, 1996) However, until 2005, the United Nations still found that women subjected to violence, including physical violence, psychological violence or sexual violence is a very common phenomenon. Research report Health Canada (1996) tended to believe that emotional abuse is based on power and control and characterized it into six forms: rejecting, degrading, terrorizing, isolating, corrupting/exploiting and denying emotional responsiveness Tomison and Tucci (1997) mentioned that emotional abuse is characterised by a climate or pattern of behaviour(s) occurring over time. Physical abuse always accompany with emotional abuse contains words and actions to break the womans spirit and destroy her self-image and self-esteem. (Mullender, 1996) It also includes imposing any kind of intimacy while the woman is still hurting from the violence, and physical or verbal harassment. (Gale Encyclopedia of Psychology, 2001, Alic, Margaret; Burstow; Mullender, 1996; Wikipedia) Most of the scholars explained violence against women from mainly two different views of theories, one is from the view of individual or family ground, and another is from the view of society or social structure. Psychological theories emphasis on assertively uncontrollable anger which is seen as rooted in unresolved family conflicts, primitive aggressive reactions, the submerged fear of the bully, insecure dependence on women, or any other form of internal stress (Mullender, 1996, summarized by Dobash and Dobash, 1992, p237) Feminists view that violence against women as a typical behavior and brooked by the society with the approval of social rules supporting male domination. (Adam, 1998) United Nation (1989) believed the interconnection of economic, social and political factors creating a structure placed the women with low economic status in a weakness position to violence within the household. Adam stressed that the masculine values in capitalist system apt to value women as mother, housewives or sexual objects Nayak et al. (2003) examined the attitudes of undergraduates from four countries toward violence against women, and discovered that groups with different values or attitudes also differ in violence acts, and would have different level of acceptance of violence. It refers not only the power of male in the household, but also refers to the dominance of men in social or cultural systems. Feminist theory stresses that the structure of modern cultural and political systems under patriarchy are totally ruled by men. (Wikipedia) (Castro, Ginette. American Feminism: a contemporary history, p. 31.) Obviously, violence against women seemed as normal under the development of dominant-submissive power relations. such that they have little or no independent status and transgressions outside the family and male authority expose them to swift retributions and confirm their vulnerability. Adams (1998) Researches demonstrated that patriarchy involves concepts of feminism and male domination in society and within the family. (Tang, 1999; Adam, 1998; Sugarmen and Frankel, 1996) The violence against women is the product of the interrelated and complex values wherein women are considered as inferior and subordinate to men, in result male is allowed to view female partners as his properties, and handling it within the privacy and autonomy of the family. (United Nation, 1989) Adams (1998) agreed with Mama that women are strongly fixed into the familial structure and hierarchic gender relations in the socialization process. Yllo also found that there is a positive correlation between more patriarchal social structure and higher level of women abuse. (Yllo, 1983, 1984) Research also found that traditional gender role soc

The Death of an Idol Essay -- Personal Narrative

When I was young, my mom took me along everywhere. At least once a month, we would travel to Oregon to visit my Aunt Kathy. I would go to the dark and creepy basement to play with my cousins, Carly and Marni. Together, we usually played with little Carebear figurines. I started to grow close to my cousins, especially Carly, even though she was seven years older than me. Her kindness made me feel warm and welcome. Though she got older, it seemed that I never grew. I always looked up to her and her dedication to everything. My mom used to take me to all of Carly's sporting events in high school. I just loved cheering her on. Whenever she was on the basketball court, she always found time to wink at me in the crowd. I even made big posters to take with me when she made it all the way to state for the three-point contest. After high school, Carly decided that she didn't want to stay around anymore. She wanted to go to college away from home. Since she was such a great student, she figured she'd be fine. Carly decided to attend Hofstra University in New York. We promised to be pen pals. Well, that lasted about a year. I was finally growing up, getting busy, and we were losing touch. When we did write, all that I heard of were the boys she dated, and that her A's were dropping to C's. Every once in a while, I would ask my aunt how Carly was doing. The only answer I ever got was "She's fine." A couple of years later, we ... ...at was the day a letter came in the mail for Carly. She had passed her CPA exam. My Uncle Don was the fire chief of the town, so the funeral was full of firemen and police officers. The procession was even led by a fire truck. I look back now and wish that I could have spent more time with Carly. What exactly was so important that the two of us didn't have time for each other? Even though we had some bad times, I'll always remember the good. I think that we all live a life that is already planned. She skipped her time to go, and got another chance. I'm grateful that in that period I got to reunite with her. I hope that I can live her dreams through my life. After all, she is my idol.

Caribbean Business Environment

Firstly, here are some of the consequences of regional trade arrangements: Accumulation or growth effects. If closer integration improves the efficiency with which factors are combined it is also likely to induce rater investment. While this additional investment is taking place, countries may experience a medium-term growth effect. If such investment is associated with faster technical progress or accumulation of human capital as identified in the long-run growth rates may also be improved.Investment effects. More emphasis is now given to the impact of regional Integration on production via the effect on foreign direct investment and investment creation and diversion. Transactions costs and regulatory barriers. The traditional theory of customs unions was developed in the context of riff reductions but, as noticed above, the welfare effects of Integration can be quite different If the barriers removed are cost-increasing barriers.Following the SUE experience with Implementing its Si ngle Market program, there Is now greater awareness of the importance of barriers which raise transactions costs in inhibiting trade, and of the value of removing them. Importance of credibility. Many of the effects identified in the modern theory, especially those related to or requiring investment, assume that the integration effort is credible and will not be reversed. If credibility is lacking, and there is uncertainty among investors, their behavior is unlikely to be influenced.The emphasis on credibility assumes the existence of enforcement mechanisms which will ensure the implementation of commitments entered Into when a country Joins a regional Integration scheme. Regional trade agreements reduce the tariffs between the countries which are part of the trade agreement. Regional trade agreements reduce tariffs between countries, but does not allow these countries to Increase tariffs on countries which do not participate. Tariff reductions allow people to purchase goods from ot her countries at lower prices.The gains from learning valuable skills from foreign markets that can subsequently be transferred back to the home country. Integration also has many benefits such as: gains in trade, economies of scale, limited fiscal capabilities and cultural centralization. With deeper levels of integration foreign investment will increase. The lack of resources in the Caribbean will increased more integration and also the people will get to learn other trades from the different countries. Also will adopt and enhance strategies which will help the efficiency and improve competition in the region and the US.

Chemical Imbalance and Depression

Chemical Imbalance and Depression Melissa Creamer PSYC 3002- Developing a Psychology Perspective Project Draft – Persuasive Paper Capella University [email  protected] edu October 2012 Introduction According to some Psychologists, chemical imbalance can lead to depression and other mental illnesses. It is very unclear that depression is one of the possible symptoms of a chemical imbalance. However, chemical imbalance doesn’t lead to every kind of depression seen in the lives of many people. Admin,2012) Approximately five percent of the United States' population experiences a depressive episode that requires psychopharmacological treatment; in any one year, ten to twelve million Americans are affected by depression, with the condition twice as common in females than in males. (Ho, 2002) We all have chemical signals that are called neurotransmitters and they come in a variety of forms like Serotonin, Dopamine, and Norepinephrine. All three of these neurotransmitters pla y a very important role in maintaining normal mood, motivation and concentration.What is Serotonin? Serotonin acts as a neurotransmitter, a type of chemical that helps relay signals from one area of the brain to another. (Bouchez, 2007) In depressed brains, the Serotonin signal had been somehow weakened because of a chemical imbalance in the neurotransmitters. (Mukherjee, 2012) Low Serotonin levels are often attributed to anxiety, depression, panic attacks, insomnia, obesity, eating disorders, migraines, and alcohol abuse. (Integrative Psychiatry, 2012)Treatment for increasing levels of Serotonin in the brain are medication like Prozac, Zoloft, and Paxil.These medications are known to work by making more serotonin in the brain. (Carver, 2002) If we have too much Serotonin you will have this feeling of bliss and it can also produce a life threatening condition known as Serotonin Syndrome. To date there have been no recorded or documented studies proving that the brain levels of Serot onin or any neurotransmitter are in short supply when depression or any mental illness develops. (Bouchez, 2007) Serotonin can be measured in the blood but they are not sure that blood levels effect the brain’s level of Serotonin.The next neurotransmitter that is part of the brain is Dopamine. What is Dopamine? Dopamine is in the area of the brain that is considered to be the neurotransmitter of focus and attention. Dopamine relays impulses across the microscopic spaces, called synapses, which exist between adjacent nerves, thus allowing the propagation of messages from one nerve to the next. (Christensen, 2011) Low levels of Dopamine make concentration and focus very difficult, this is associated with Attention- Deficit- Hyperactivity- Disorder. Carver, 2002) If patients are found to have low levels of Dopamine, you will be prescribed medication that actually slows down the hyperactive by increasing Dopamine boasting the level into normal range allowing them to focus and pay attention. Researchers say that if a patient is found to have prolonged exposure to Dopamine, patients are more apt to  abuse drugs. Most addictive drugs, such as cocaine and  amphetamines, directly or indirectly raise dopamine levels, and the chemical plays a major role in drug-induced highs. WebMD, 2005) The next neurotransmitter that is part of the brain is Norepinphrine. What is Norepinphrine? Norepinephrine is the neurotransmitter often associated with the flight or fight response to stress. Norepinephrine also functions hormones in the body. Low levels of Norepinephrine are associated with a loss of alertness, poor memory, and depression. (Carver, 2002) It has been found that low levels of norepinephrine are in ADHD and depression patients. If the levels are two high patients may feel fatigue, have muscle cramps and a sense of being on edge.Almost all anxiety disorders involve norepinephrine elevations. (Carver, 2002) Psychiatrists would treat low levels of norepinephrine with newer antidepressants like Effexor and Serzone. Treatment of high levels of norepinephrine the psychologist would prescribe GABA, also known as Gamma-Aminobutyric Acid. Summary and Conclusion As I stated in my debate it is very clear that depression is one of the possible symptoms of chemical imbalance. However, chemical imbalance doesn’t lead to every kind of depression seen in the lives of many people. Admin, 2012) Not all medication has the same dosage. There are many different types of medication that you can have prescribed if your brain is low or has high neurotransmitters such as Serotonin, Dopamine, and Norepinephrine. If you feel like you are depressed go and see a Psychologist, so the correct medication can be prescribed to you. References Admin (2012). Is  depression  caused by chemical imbalance in the brain? Retrieved from http://smartsdepression. com/2012/04/27/is-depression-caused-by-chemical-imbalance-in-the-brain. Bouchez, Colette, (2007).Serotonin: 9 Questions and Answers. Article is a WebMD feature. Retrieved from http://www. webmd. com/depression/features/serotonin. Carver, Joseph MD, (2002). The â€Å"Chemical Imbalance† in mental health problems. Retrieved from http://www. drjoecarver. com/clients/49533/file/chemical%20imbalance. html. Christensen, Stephen, (2011). Depression treatment with dopamine. Retrieved from http://www. livestrong. com/article/362623-depression-treatment-with-dopamine/. Ho, Kathryn, (2002). Serotonin ; Depression. Retrieved from http://serendip. brynmawr. du/bb/neuro/neuro99/web3/ho. html Integrative psychiatry, (2012). Serotonin. Retrieved from http://integrativepsychiatry. net/serotonin. html. Mukherjee, Siddhartha, (2012). Post-Prozac Nation. The Science and History of Treating Depression. Retrieved from http://www. nytimes. com/2012/04/22/magazine/the-science-and-history-of-treating-depression. hmtl. WebMD, (2005). Dopamine  may play new role in  depression. Article is from WebMD new s archive. Retrieved from http://www. webmd/depression/news/20050728/dopamine-may-play-new-role-in-depression. .

The Bell X essays

The Bell X essays Fifty years ago, in 1947, it was common knowledge that there was a "Wall of Air" at the speed of sound. As an airplane neared this critical point, shock waves would pound its wings and tail. The pilot would lose control, a condition then called "compressibility." Often, the airplane would shatter into pieces. Dozens had lost their life trying to break through this "sound barrier." By early 1947, the British had thrown in the towel when their plane, a unique tailless design called "The Swallow," self-destructed at 0.94 Mach. The pilot, Geoffrey De Havilland, Jr., was killed instantly. This left the field to the Americans. Under US Army Air Forces and NACA contract, engineers at Bell Aircraft Corporation designed and built a unique airplane for the task of surmounting the Wall. It was called the X-1. Painted a brilliant orange for better visibility, the X-1 was unlike other aircraft of its day. It was shaped like a bullet with wings sharpened to a razor edge. Its XLR-11 engine, a 4-chamber rocket nicknamed, Black Betsy, was fueled by a dangerously volatile mixture of liquid oxygen and diluted ethyl alcohol. Every time you flicked the switch to fire the rockets, you ran the risk of exploding in mid-air. The airplane was built for one thing to conquer the speed of sound by breaking through the barrier and beyond into supersonic flight. By May of 1947, the Bell X-1 had completed 20 successful flights and reached a speed of 0.80 Mach, or 80 percent the speed of sound. Test Pilot, Chalmers Slick Goodlin tried renegotiating his contract when he realized the risks he would face. Attempting to get $150,000, he put the program on hold. The Air Force knowing that they still needed to go supersonic to compete with Russia decided to use their own test pilots. Air Force test pilots would risk their lives for a regular pay rate and flight pay amounting to a few hundred dollars a week. Flying the X-1 woul...

Using the Spanish Preposition De

Using the Spanish Preposition De De is one of the most common prepositions in Spanish. Although it usually is translated as of and sometimes as from, its use is far more versatile than the translation might suggest. In fact, in certain contexts, de can be translated not only as of or from, but as with, by, or in, among other words, or not translated at all. One reason de is used more often than its equivalents in English is because the rules of English grammar let us use all sorts of nouns and phrases as adjectives. In that way, Spanish isnt quite so flexible. While in English we may say, a nine-year-old girl, in Spanish that becomes una muchacha de nueve aà ±os or, literally, a girl of nine years. Similarly, in English, we may say something like a silver ring, using what is normally a noun, silver, as an adjective. But in Spanish we have to say un anillo de plata, or a ring of silver. De also is used in Spanish to indicate possession. We may talk about Johns shoe in English, but in Spanish its el zapato de Juan, or the shoe of John. Following are some of the most common uses of de: Using De for Possession Possession or belonging, either physical or figurative, as indicated by s in English is almost always translated using de followed by the possessor in Spanish: el carro de Matilda (Matildas car)la clase del Sr. Gà ³mez (Mr. Gomezs class)las esperanzas del pueblo (the peoples hopes) ¿De quià ©n es este lpiz? (Whose pencil is this?) Using De for Causation Following an adjective, de can be used to indicate a cause. Estoy feliz de nuestra amistad. (I am happy with our friendship. The word following de indicates t he reason for happiness.)Est cansada de jugar. (She is tired of playing.) Using De To Indicate Origin Often translated as from, de can be used to indicate the origin of a person or thing. She same construction is used to state that a person is a member of a group. Soy de Arkansas. (Im from Arkansas.)Mi madre es de la India. (My mother is from India.)Es la chica ms inteligente de la clase. (She is the most intelligent girl in the class.) Using De With Characteristics When an object or person has characteristics (including contents or what something is made of) that are stated as a noun or infinitive, de is often used to show the relationship. It generally is not possible in Spanish, as it is in English, to use nouns as adjectives. corazà ³n de oro (heart of gold.)el tranvà ­a de Boston (the Boston streetcar)una casa de huà ©spedes (a guesthouse)una cancià ³n de tres minutos (a three-minute song)una casa de $100,000 (a $100,000 house)una taza de leche (a cup of milk)la mesa de escribir (the writing table)una casa de ladrillo (a brick house)jugo de manzana (apple juice)una mquina de escribir, (a typewriter, literally a writing machine) Using De in Comparisons In some comparisons, de is used where we would use than in English. Tengo menos de cien libros. (I have fewer than 100 books.)Gasta ms dinero de lo que gana. (He spends more money than he earns.) Idioms Using De De is used in many common idiomatic phrases, many of which function as adverbs. de antemano (previously)de cuando en cuando (from time to time)de memoria (by memory)de moda (in style)de nuevo (again)de pronto (immediately)de prisa (hurriedly)de repente, (suddenly)de todas formas (in any case)de veras (truly)de vez en cuando (from time to time) Verbal Expressions Requiring De Many verbs are followed by de and often an infinitive to form expressions. There is no logic to which verbs are followed by de. The verbs need either to be memorized or learned as you come across them. Acabo de salir. (I have just left)Nunca cesa de comer. He never stops eating.Tratarà © de estudiar. (I will try to study.)Me alegro de ganar. (I am happy to win.)Se olvidà ³ de estudiar. (He forgot to study.)Romeo se enamorà ³ de Julieta. (Romeo fell in love with Juliet.) You will also occasionally see other uses of de, although those above are the most common. There are also many expressions and verb combinations using de that were not listed above. Keep in mind also that when de is followed by the article el, meaning the, they form the contraction del. Thus los rboles del bosque is the equivalent of saying los rboles de el bosque (the trees of the forest). But no contraction is used for de à ©l, which means his.

Business Entrepreneurial Rhetoric

Apple Inc is considered as the most popular technological panies globally. The iPhone is one of the primary products of the pany which has over 42 million users globally (Bonk, Celine). There is huge demand for this product and the brand has a dedicated base of loyal customers. The phenomenal success of this brand is dependent on several factors including the business model. A parison is being done with the existing market research and the article presented by Yuan and Langesen named â€Å"What factors contributed to the success of Apple iPhone?† This report would discuss the various factors that have led Apple iPhone to be one of the market leaders. It describes the innovative approaches adopted by the pany. The article by Yufei Yuan and John Laugesen gives an in-depth analysis of the success factors of iPhone (Laugesen, John and Yufei Yuan). It has focused on the â€Å"user acceptance† aspect of the success factors. This implies that the pany is able to understand the customer preferences. Apple has successfully identified the needs of the target market and fulfilled their expectations based on culture, demographics and behavioral aspects (Laugesen, John and Yufei Yuan). It has also paid attention to the environmental factors such as â€Å"mobile data services† that are essential for iPhone (Laugesen, John and Yufei Yuan). The article has proposed an innovative success model and almost all the factors are being tapped by Apple. The first group of factors deals with consumer factors such as demographics, user preferences and culture. The brand targeted the young population who are technology savvy and demonstrated high dependency on smartphones (Laugesen, John and Yufei Yua n). The brand also focuses on the user preferences such as entertainment services and designed its products accordingly. The pany tries to satisfy the cultural niches through the utilization of content as well as software (Laugesen, John and Yufei Yuan). The second group of factors deals with the corporate factors such as business model, technology, marketing, branding, content providers and network operators. Apple has business models which are based on its core petence (Laugesen, John and Yufei Yuan). It has adopted the â€Å"device centric† business approach which is considered as one of the most important factor for the brand’s success (Laugesen, John and Yufei Yuan). The pany also engages in extensive marketing tactics and provides customization of their products based on the customer needs. It maintains control through distribution and content access (Laugesen, John and Yufei Yuan). The pany depends on the third parties for the development of application and their content. It aims to increase the value chain by improving the core petencies of the firm. The third group of factors prises of the environmental factors such as regulatory norms and the infrastructure. The pany has focused on the regulatory aspects required during the launch of the services as well as products (Laugesen, John and Yufei Yuan). The pany believes that it is important to coordinate well with the regulatory authorities so that there is smooth launch of the iPhone. Apple has focused on the improvement of the infrastructure of the different countries. It has focused on enhancing the user experience and has tapped the current technologies available in the mobile industry. According to Davila et al., Apple has focused heavily on the innovative aspects of their products. It has created innovative product lines such as iPod, iTunes, iPhone, Apple Stores and App Exchange. The innovative product has helped the pany to retain its topmost position in the market. This is the primary reason behind the extreme popularity of the brand. The second important reason for the success of iPhone can be attributed to the advertising and the differentiation aspects of the brand (De Mooij, Marieke). It has created innovative advertisements that capture the target markets well. The campaigns involving the â€Å"Super Bowl mercials 1984† and â€Å"iPod People† were popular among the masses (De Mooij, Marieke). The third most important reason is the extensive distribution and retail networks of the pany. It has been established that Apple has one of the largest distribution network in the United States (Homburg et al.). The distribution of the products of the p any is done through retail stores, online stores, direct sales channels and third party resellers (De Mooij, Marieke). This makes the product readily available at all times and the customers can choose their convenient distribution channels. The fourth important factor deals with the customer service (Bone et al.). Apple strives to provide excellent in store experiences as well as after sales service. It strives to enhance the customer satisfaction level of the consumers (Bone et al.). The problem underlined in the report prises of the wide variety of alternatives available to the target audiences. This is determined by the market research. The problem was quantified by consulting with several journal articles (Bone et al.). The iPhone has satisfied the requirements of the target market and this is one of the primary solutions to the problem (Bone et al.). The iPhone has fulfilled the customer requirements and this has been proved by the parative analysis. The economic model showcases that iPhone has benefitted the target market which has increased the sale of the products. It has led to increased revenue for the pany which has resulted in the greater profit generation (Bone et al.). It is clear that Apple Inc. receives high benefit from the greater purchase of iPhones. The roadmap is concerned with the distribution channels that are used by the pany in order to make sure that its products reach the target audience. The storyboard presents the events undertaken by Apple Inc. which is related to the conception, launch, promotion and marketing of iPhone. It prises of several rubrics such as problem rubric, solution rubric, economic rubric and roadmap rubric. The problem rubric identifies the target market and the various alternatives they are looking for in order to satisfy their preferences. The solution rubric shows the launch of iPhone which solves the worry of the customer. The economic rubric shows the increase in sales of the pany due to the launch of iPhone. The roadmap rubric shows the marketing approach that should be adopted in the pany for the future. The article has strong impacts on the issue and enumerates the reasons for strong foothold of Apple. It discusses the appropriate reasons that drive Apple for achieving more success. The parative analysis method is used for the purpose of paring the current market research along with the provided article. This parison is useful in understanding the factors contributing to the success of iPhone. This report would broaden the understanding of the topic and would also facilitate further research on this topic. Bone, Sterling A., et al. "How customer participation in B2B peer-to-peer problem-solving munities influences the need for traditional customer service."  Journal of Service Research  18.1 (2015): 23-38. Bonk, Celine. "The impact of Apple's munication and French and Finnish consumers' product perceptions: case of the iPhone product." (2015). Davila, Tony, Marc Epstein, and Robert Shelton.  Making innovation work: How to manage it, measure it, and profit from it. FT press, 2012. De Mooij, Marieke.  Global marketing and advertising: Understanding cultural paradoxes. Sage Publications, 2013. Homburg, Christian, Josef Vollmayr, and Alexander Hahn. "Firm value creation through major channel expansions: evidence from an event study in the United States, Germany, and China."  Journal of Marketing  78.3 (2014): 38-61. Laugesen, John, and Yufei Yuan. "What factors contributed to the success of Apple's iPhone?."  Mobile Business and 2010 Ninth Global Mobility Roundtable (ICMB-GMR), 2010 Ninth International Conference on. IEEE, 2010.

Food insecurity and hunger Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Food insecurity and hunger - Essay Example In other words over 43% of the population is living on less than $75 a month. These poverty figures are directly correlated with the rise of food insecurity across the world. Throughout the world there is a growing disparity between the rich and the poor. A majority of the global wealth is controlled by the private corporate world. Multinational corporations such as McDonald’s and Microsoft are worth billions of dollars. The accumulated wealth of the private sector surpasses the wealth held by the combined governments of the over 200 countries around the globe. Governmental institutions benefit from the efforts of the private sector by charging them taxes. Taxes are the primary source of income of most governments. Due to the corruption of governmental institutions in developing countries the financial resources of governmental institutions are not being effectively utilized to fight hunger. In countries such as Lybia which is in the middle of a civil war and is currently at w ar with the United States, the government is spending more on military expenses than in resources to fight hunger. In the United States the military spending is also astronomical. Hunger and food insecurity is not limited to developing nations. In the United States in 2005 approximately 37 million people were living with incomes that were lower than the federal poverty line (Rector & Johnson). The troubles of worldwide hunger and food insecurity have troubled governmental institutions due to the fact that for decades the initiatives associated with development aid, agricultural improvements, and market expansion failed to eradicate hunger. None of these solutions has been effective at battling hunger in the long term. A major issue associated with world hunger is that the prices of food items have been going up. There were major inflationary forces in the prices of food during 2007 and 2008. Food security occurs when all people have physical, social and economic forces sufficient fo od to meet their dietary needs. A factor that can turn a society instantly into a food insecurity condition is a natural event such as an earthquake. In Japan there are over 500,000 people that are homeless and living through condition of food insecurity. It is important for people in the develop world to donate when these types of events occur. The online giant Yahoo Corporation has been able to raise over $6 million in donations for the victim’s of Japan’s 9.0 magnitude earthquake. Three core elements associated with food insecurity are food availability, access to food, and food utilization. There are different reasons or motivators of why one government donates to another. The three key motivators are political, economic, and humanitarian. The United States contributes 60% of the global food aid. The US makes donation at times to improve its political relations with a particular country. The humanitarian efforts are spurred by the media, while the economic variable is a motivator because the country giving food will obtain some sort of economic remuneration for its food products. According to Barrett and Marwell (2005) food aid serves three purposes: a) short term solution when food availability is declining; b) long-term safety net; c) build assets among poor and food insecure groups when no other forms of aid are open. There are three kinds of food aids. The first option is for the government to give the food supplies to another

New uclan Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

New uclan - Essay Example A wrong post or comment could trigger a negative reaction towards the company leading to economic, social and legal implications. While social networking today provides many opportunities it is advisable to understand the risks posed in order to take necessary steps to use social media responsibly (McNamara 2011, p.14). Every department needs to have a safeguard list to understand the safety aspects of social media. Before posting anything online consider what is termed acceptable and unacceptable behaviour on media terms. Every social site has a term of service that gives a clear terms and conditions, including safety tools and privacy (McNamara 2011, p.14). When engaging in publicity you need to have an understanding of your target audience. To optimize your brand’s publicity collect enough information of online audience’s behaviour. To sell online t is advisable to choose the advertisement carefully that way your target audience is clear (Kent 2008, p.21). Social sites give guidelines online on internet advertising to avoid instances such as cyber bullying, underage sexual exposure, illegal schemes and dangerous masquerades. It is wise for the organization to assign a moderator who can interact with the users and manage content online. Choosing to use sites that adhere to social networking legislations could also lead to good practice. Sites such as Bebo, MySpace and Face book stress are keen on safety use and guidelines and adhere strictly to the land’s laws. Carrying a risk assessment on data protection as advised by Kent (2008, p.24) will act as a good guide while choosing which sites to use. If the site has several administrators always ensure that the managers are clear about what is required of them when interacting with users and responding to posts. The administrators should refrain from inappropriate content, personating, racist or hate material, exploitation and glorifying of dangerous activities.

Corporate Goverance Concept Worksheet Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Corporate Goverance Concept Worksheet - Essay Example The companies have different expectation that can lead to conflicts because of their interests and gains (Minnow & Monk, 2002). The equity issue involves division of company’s ownership. This helps in the companies gain from the increase in profits and wide market. This means that both companies will gain from the investment (Minnow & Monk, 2002). McBride finance services company has an intention to remain in control of the company even after selling majority shares to Beltway investment company. A clear illustration of this is that the chief executive has influence in the selection of the board of directors. As Beltway gives the company freedom to select the directors, Mc Bride ensures that it influences the selection. The board comprises of the people it can influence to make decisions favoring McBride company. The scenario creates conflict of interest, which was not brought out during negotiations. The conflict of interest will create a hostile working relationship between the two companies. The reason behind this is the win-lose situation created by the company. Beltway wants a fair selection of the board (Tricker, 2009). Control involves running of the company activities and who is in charge. The control of the company should be in the best way possible. The selection of the board should be on merit not on other hidden agendas. Fair selection and freedom to managers will help in running the company affairs to achieving its objectives and goals to the maximum (Tricker, 2009). Beltway company did not identify Mc Bride’s intention in its issue. Mc Bride company does not intend to let Beltway know the real, financial position. The company does this through tampering with financial documents. The company also does not comply with Sarbanes-Oxley act of corporate responsibility of financial reporting (Greene, Silverman & Becker, 2003). The company aims at using internal controls to hide

Reguirements Modeling Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Reguirements Modeling - Assignment Example BPM can also be referred to as Business process management or a holistic management approach. It aligns a company’s business processes with clients’ needs. BPM improves the business’ efficiency and effectiveness through working towards integration with technology, innovation and flexibility. Therefore, BPM can be referred to as a process enhancement process. It is said that BPM helps organizations to be more effective, efficient and also more capable of making changes in an organization compared to a traditional hierarchical management method. These business processes also have a large impact on the costs and revenues of an organization. When Business process management employs a managerial approach, it views processes as strategic assets owned by an organization. According to BPM, these processes must be understood, improved and managed in order to deliver quality services and services to clients (Acharya 127). Data flow diagrams represent the flow of information and data in an information system graphically. This enables a person to denote the processes in an information system from the data’s viewpoint. Data flow diagrams also help a person know how a system operates, the system’s accomplishments and how to implement the accomplishments. Data flow diagrams are also used in designing information-processing systems by system analysts. DFD is also used in commence of a business process modeling so as to lay down the functions which a system has to carry out. It also helps to focus on information exchanges between processes and also show a relationship between those functions. Unified Modeling language is a consistent modeling language in software engineering. UML includes a collection of graphic notation techniques. These strategies help in the making of visual models of software-intensive systems that are object-oriented. Unified Modeling

Social work Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Social work - Essay Example She may not even realize how â€Å"jaded† and judgmental he/she has become. This is clearly someone who has never taken the time to realize and address their own ignorances, assumptions, and embraced stereotypes that could make them less helpful and more of a hindrance. Such people lack the self-awareness that, I think, is so important to the field of social work and the kind of worker that I hope to be. Alice Miller, in Anne Bishop’s Becoming an Ally: Breaking the Cycle of Oppression in People, says that without self awareness and an ability to connect with those you aid can become just part of a routine and that, †Ã¢â‚¬ ¦morality and performance of duty are artificial measures†¦Ã¢â‚¬ (2002) In my mind this is a prime example of this line of thinking. This woman does her job, but she lacks empathy or even sympathy, but can, probably, fake it under the right circumstances. This is why it is essential for social workers to have an understanding of their own h istories, backgrounds, biases, founded or unfounded, before they will ever be truly effective in their position. How effective a social worker will be in helping others is directly related personal beliefs, attitudes and outlooks, and how self aware they are.(Heydt & Sherman, 2005) It would be very easy for someone with discriminatory thinking or unresolved personal issues be inadvertently expressed in ways that cam impede the â€Å"good works† that a social worker is supposed to do. A social worker must take the time to self-evaluate, even if it means discovering things about yourself that you are not necessarily proud of. Knowing your strengths, weaknesses, and flaws make you a more complete person that can actually be beneficial to those with whom they are working. Having the right tools are essential to completing any task. A plumber is of little use without a pipe wrench. Social workers are no different, except the tool that they use to complete their tasks and achieve t heir goals is themselves.(Heydt & Sherman, 2005) â€Å"Self awareness is the core of ethical practices.†(Lipschutz, 2012 ) That said, it may be difficult to genuinely perform their jobs ethically unless they are committed to becoming self-aware. In 2003, Sheafor and Horejsi, listed the eight most common factors that can be an interference in the helping of others and are recommended as part of a social workers self-awareness check-list; personal issues, appearance (clothing and grooming), behaviors that devalue or degrade others, distracting personal habits, difficulties in verbal communication, difficulties in cognitive functioning, problems in written communication, and poor work habits. Having reviewed all of these items, I find that I have no overwhelming or overpowering personal issues that might negatively affect my future works. I, always, attempt to dress and present myself professionally and appropriately for the work environment. I do not participate in intentionall y degrading or insulting behaviors. I have never been told that I have any distracting personal habits. I am a strong communicator, both, verbally and in written endeavors. Lastly, I think I have, both, positive and efficient work habits. That said, I am by no means perfect. There is much that I still need to learn, about my work and the people that I may eventually help. Still I am comfortable with myself and

Microbiological Aspects of Decontamination Essay

Microbiological Aspects of Decontamination - Essay Example Although not recorded by La Duc et al. (2007, p. 2600) as a common member of clean room microflora, Staphylococci can pose serious health risks to patients and must be looked out for when determining clean room biocontamination. They are the main pathogenic microorganisms in medical device-related infections. Much of their success is caused by their strong surface adhesion and biofilm formation. Biofilms are especially important because they impose a resistance to host defense and antibiotics (von Eiff, et al., 2005, pp. 182). If clean room conditions are suddenly compromised, the sterility of devices prepared in it will be compromised as well. Once the contaminants grow significantly large in the body, localized inflammation, sepsis, or even death can occur (von Eiff, et al., 2005, pp. 183). And because antibiotics do not seem to work, removal of prostheses thus becomes inevitable (von Eiff, et al., 2005, p. 186). It is thus imperative that possibilities for contamination in clean room environments for neurological prostheses production are kept to a minimum. This review looked at rooms for improvement on the current procedures used by The Future Technology Company in ensuring pathogen-free production area for active implantable neurological prostheses manufacture. However, this review was limited to suggesting improvements on the current biocontamination control and sampling methods done in the newly-prepared clean room of the company. However, this review did not suggest improvements that will entail reconstruction of the clean room, as it might pose significant financial pressure onto the company. Nonetheless, reconstruction is not discouraged, and its implementation is with the consent of the company. The company was successful in preparing a formal system of biocontamination control.  

Social work Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Social work - Essay Example She may not even realize how â€Å"jaded† and judgmental he/she has become. This is clearly someone who has never taken the time to realize and address their own ignorances, assumptions, and embraced stereotypes that could make them less helpful and more of a hindrance. Such people lack the self-awareness that, I think, is so important to the field of social work and the kind of worker that I hope to be. Alice Miller, in Anne Bishop’s Becoming an Ally: Breaking the Cycle of Oppression in People, says that without self awareness and an ability to connect with those you aid can become just part of a routine and that, †Ã¢â‚¬ ¦morality and performance of duty are artificial measures†¦Ã¢â‚¬ (2002) In my mind this is a prime example of this line of thinking. This woman does her job, but she lacks empathy or even sympathy, but can, probably, fake it under the right circumstances. This is why it is essential for social workers to have an understanding of their own h istories, backgrounds, biases, founded or unfounded, before they will ever be truly effective in their position. How effective a social worker will be in helping others is directly related personal beliefs, attitudes and outlooks, and how self aware they are.(Heydt & Sherman, 2005) It would be very easy for someone with discriminatory thinking or unresolved personal issues be inadvertently expressed in ways that cam impede the â€Å"good works† that a social worker is supposed to do. A social worker must take the time to self-evaluate, even if it means discovering things about yourself that you are not necessarily proud of. Knowing your strengths, weaknesses, and flaws make you a more complete person that can actually be beneficial to those with whom they are working. Having the right tools are essential to completing any task. A plumber is of little use without a pipe wrench. Social workers are no different, except the tool that they use to complete their tasks and achieve t heir goals is themselves.(Heydt & Sherman, 2005) â€Å"Self awareness is the core of ethical practices.†(Lipschutz, 2012 ) That said, it may be difficult to genuinely perform their jobs ethically unless they are committed to becoming self-aware. In 2003, Sheafor and Horejsi, listed the eight most common factors that can be an interference in the helping of others and are recommended as part of a social workers self-awareness check-list; personal issues, appearance (clothing and grooming), behaviors that devalue or degrade others, distracting personal habits, difficulties in verbal communication, difficulties in cognitive functioning, problems in written communication, and poor work habits. Having reviewed all of these items, I find that I have no overwhelming or overpowering personal issues that might negatively affect my future works. I, always, attempt to dress and present myself professionally and appropriately for the work environment. I do not participate in intentionall y degrading or insulting behaviors. I have never been told that I have any distracting personal habits. I am a strong communicator, both, verbally and in written endeavors. Lastly, I think I have, both, positive and efficient work habits. That said, I am by no means perfect. There is much that I still need to learn, about my work and the people that I may eventually help. Still I am comfortable with myself and

The Development of Civilization Essay Example for Free

The Development of Civilization Essay The focal point of this paper is to provide an introduction to The Great Gatsby by the noted American author of the post first world war era F. Scott Fitzgerald. The Great Gatsby can be enumerated as a novel that is a landmark of American literature. This 240 page novel published in April 10, 1925 by the noted publisher of the time Charles Scribners Sons is an epic story set in the background of Long Island and New York City depicts the incidents of 1922 summer. According to Francis Scott Fitzgerald this novel is basically a chronicle of an era that could be enumerated as Jazz Age. (Lamb, 385, 3) The major concern of this paper would be directed towards itemizing the backdrop of the era that the novel is set in. Alongside it would be analyzed how the background and bringing up of the author Francis Scott Fitzgerald influenced the setting and texture of the novel The Great Gatsby. It would also place a well documented approach towards the application of philosophy of the era and the insights of the characters pursuing the ‘American Dream’ with their social and emotional perspectives. The paper would also may attention towards the economic boom of the 1920’s and possible outcome of this fiscal development of the entire nation on the psyche of the novel. Additional attention would also be placed on the Eighteenth Amendment that enforced the provision of alcohol consumption thereby enhancing black market trade and organized crime. It can be enumerated that this paper would result in a comprehensive analysis of the novel The Great Gatsby by the author Francis Scott Fitzgerald and it would yield results of measures taken in a different shades of colors. Reference: Lamb, Davis. Cult to Culture: The Development of Civilization on the Strategic Strata. National Book Trust. 2004.

Sickle Cell Anemia Case Study

Sickle Cell Anemia Case Study A 20-year-old Africa- America woman visits her physical complaining of episodes of extreme pain and discomfort in her legs and lower back. She has been experiencing these recurrent episodes, accompanied by extreme fatigue, since she was a child. On physical examination, she appears jaundiced and has a hematocrit of 23% and a hemoglobin level of 7g/dL. She reports she has family members who experienced the same symptom. Sickle cell anemia (sickle cell disease) is a disorder of the blood caused by an inherited abnormal hemoglobin (an oxygen-carrying protein within the red blood cells). The abnormal hemoglobin causes distorted (sickled) red blood cells. The sickled red blood cells are fragile and prone to rupture. When the number of red blood cells decreases from rupture (hemolysis), anemia is the result. This condition is referred to as sickle cell anemia. The irregular sickled cells can also block blood vessels causing tissue and organ damage and pain. Sickle cell anemia is one of the most common inherited blood anemias. The disease primarily affects Africans and African Americans. It is estimated that in the United States, some 50,000 African Americans are afflicted with the most severe form of sickle cell anemia. Overall, current estimates are that one in 1,875 U.S. African American is affected with sickle cell anemia. Sickle cell anemia is caused by a point mutation in the ÃŽÂ ²-globin chain of haemoglobin, causing the hydrophilic amino acid glutamic acid to be replaced with the hydrophobic amino acid valine at the sixth position. The ÃŽÂ ²-globin gene is found on the short arm of chromosome 11. The association of two wild-type ÃŽÂ ±-globin subunits with two mutant ÃŽÂ ²-globin subunits forms haemoglobin S (HbS). Under low-oxygen conditions (being at high altitude, for example), the absence of a polar amino acid at position six of the ÃŽÂ ²-globin chain promotes the non-covalent polymerisation (aggregation) of hae moglobin, which distorts red blood cells into a sickle shape and decreases their elasticity. The loss of red blood cell elasticity is central to the pathophysiology of sickle-cell disease. Normal red blood cells are quite elastic, which allows the cells to deform to pass through capillaries. In sickle-cell disease, low-oxygen tension promotes red blood cell sickling and repeated episodes of sickling damage the cell membrane and decrease the cells elasticity. These cells fail to return to normal shape when normal oxygen tension is restored. As a consequence, these rigid blood cells are unable to deform as they pass through narrow capillaries, leading to vessel occlusion and ischaemia. The actual anaemia of the illness is caused by haemolysis, the destruction of the red cells inside the spleen, because of their misshape. Although the bone marrow attempts to compensate by creating new red cells, it does not match the rate of destruction.[17] Healthy red blood cells typically live 90-120 days, but sickle cells only survive 10-20 days.[18] Normally, humans have Haemoglobin A, which consists of two alpha and two beta chains, Haemoglobin A2, which consists of two alpha and two delta chains and Haemoglobin F, consisting of two alpha and two gamma chains in their bodies. Of these, Haemoglobin A makes up around 96-97% of the normal haemoglobin in humans. In normal Haemoglobin A, glutamic acid is on the 6th position of the beta chain, while in sickle-cell disease, this glutamic acid is replaced by valine leading to the formation of sickle cells. This happens due to a one point mutation. This leads to polymerization of the two beta chains and therefore their appearance as puzzle pieces (or lock and key); which means they fit into each other forming a longitudinal polymer that would lead to the cell becoming deformed and very rigid leading to vessel occlusion. This process of polymerization can be activated by infections, hypoxia, acidosis, physical exercise, vasoocclusion due to cold as well as hypertonic dehydration. Diagnosis Sickle cell anemia is diagnosed through blood test, testing for hemoglobin S (the defective form of hemoglobin descriptive of the disease), the presence of other abnormal hemoglobin variants, evaluating status and number of erythrocytes, and/or determination of one of more altered hemoglobin gene copies. In the United States, this blood test is part of routine screening for newborns done in the hospital. However, older children and adults can be tested also. In adults, the blood sample is extracted from a vein in the arm. In young children and babies, blood is taken from a finger or heel. The testing itself is typically performed on a smear of blood utilizing a special low-oxygen preparation, known as sickle prep. Other prep tests can be utilized, including but not limited to solubility tests. [4,6] Another screening testing is the Hb S solubility test. In this procedure, a chemical is added to the blood sample which reduces the amount of its oxygen carrying capacity. In individuals carrying even one sickle gene, some hemoglobin S will be present. The reduced amount of oxygen will cause S-related polymers to form and affected erythrocytes will sickle. This test, in essence, detects for the presence of Hb S alone. However, this exam should not be performed on infants until age six months, as babies with sickle cell will not produce significant amounts of Hb S until several months after birth. [6] To confirm the diagnosis, DNA analysis can be utilized. This exam is used to detect alterations and mutations in the genes producing hemoglobin components. DNA analysis reveals one copy or two copies of the hemoglobin S gene, or copies of different hemoglobin variants. DNA analysis can be performed on the developing fetus in fourteen to sixteen weeks gestations via amniocentesis or through chorionic villus sampling.[6] Treatment Treatment of sickle cell anemia is done by blocking the red blood cells from stacking together. the health professional maintenance helps the patients to begin with early diagnosis of the disorder, preferably during the newborn period. Penicillin prophylaxis, vaccination against pneumococcus bacteria, and folic acid supplementation is standard. [2] Treatment of sickle cell complications includes ,vitamin supplementation, intravenous fluids, blood transfusion, supplemental oxygen, surgery (splenectomy) and psychosocial support. Management is best accomplished via multidisciplinary program of care. [2,3,5] Blood transfusions benefit by reducing recurring pain crises, risk of stroke, and other complications. Blood transfusions increase the amount of normocytic erythrocytes in circulation, helping relieve the anemic state. However, since erythrocytes contain iron and the body does not possess a natural process for its elimination, patients can accumulate iron in the blood. Thus, possible iron toxicity must be closely screened and methods to remove excess must be executed. Excess iron is removed artificially through administration of the drug Deferasirox (Exjade ÂÂ ®) orally in patients two years of age and older. If this is not checked, the excessive iron can accumulate in the heart, liver, and various other organs causing organ damage. [3] Other treatments for this disease include finding a substance that prevents erythrocytes from sickling without producing deleterious effects to other body areas. The medication hydroxyurea has been found to reduce the frequency and severity of pain, acute chest syndrome, and decrease the need for blood transfusions in adult patients. Droxia ÂÂ ® (prescription name brand formulation of hydroxyurea) was approved by the Food and Drug Administration in 1998 and is currently available for adult patients. Studies are currently being conducted to determine the proper dosage in pediatric patients. However, there is concern in this medication that chronic usage may facilitate tumor growth or leukemia in certain individuals. [5] Other pharmacological therapies include antibiotics and pain relievers. Regarding antibiotics and aforementioned earlier, children benefit from penicillin at age two months and usually continue medication until age five. Prophylactic antibiotic treatment helps in preventing pneumonia. For adults, prophylactic antibiotic treatment can aide in fighting certain infections that they would normally fight provided they had normal erythrocytes. [2,3,5] Non-pharmacotherapy treatments are bone marrow transplant and supplemental oxygen therapy. Bone marrow transplant procedure offers the only potential cure for sickle cell anemia. Replacing the system with unaffected bone marrow aids the body in producing normocytic erythrocytes. However, finding a donor provides difficult even with the advent of registries. Also, the extraction of bone marrow possesses serious risk, including death. After the procedure, a mandatory lengthy hospital stay is required. In the hospital and upon leaving, the patient will be administered medications to help prevent rejection of the donated marrow. The procedure is currently only used for those possessing serious symptoms and problems with sickle cell anemia. Regarding supplemental oxygen therapy, this proves beneficial by forcefully increasing oxygen content in the blood via oxygen mask. Supplemental oxygen can be helpful in acute chest syndrome or sickle cell crisis.[2,3,5] Surgical treatment involve splenectomy to remove a possible damaged spleen from the sickle cells or eye surgery for vision problems associated with sickled cell damage. New sickle cell treatments on the horizon include gene therapy, the pharmacological treatments of butyric acid, clotrimazole, nitric oxide, and nicosan. [3] Since sickle cell anemia is caused by a defective gene, researchers speculate that insertion of a normal gene into bone marrow of people with sickle cell anemia will result in the production of normal hemoglobin. Another gene therapy possibility is turning off the defective gene, while reactivating another gene responsible for production of fetal hemoglobin (a type of hemoglobin found in newborns) that prevent sickle cells from forming. [3] Butyric acid, normally utilized as a food additive, may increase the amount of fetal hemoglobin in the blood in some patients. [3] Clotrimazole, the over-the-counter antifungal medication may help prevent loss of water from erythrocytes, possibly reducing the number of sickle cells formed. [3] Nitric oxide is decreased in sickle cell anemia, a gas that normal causing vasodilatation. Administration of this agent would prevent the sticking of sickled cells to one another.[3] Nicosan, an herbal treatment in early trials in the United States, is currently being used to prevent sickle crisis in Nigeria (West Africa). [3] Reference section Sickle Cell Anemia: Treatments and Drugs MayoClinic.com. Sickle Cell Anemia. Mayo Clinic, 1 Apr. 2009. Web. 13 July 2010. http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/sickle-cell-anemia/DS00324/DSECTION=treatments-and-drugs Smith WR, Penberthy LT, Bovbjerg VE, et al. (Jan 2008). Daily assessment of pain in adults with sickle cell disease. Ann. Intern. Med. 148 (2): 94-101. ISSNÂÂ  0003-4819. PMID1819533 Sickle Cell Tests. American Association for Clinical Chemistry (2006). Lab Tests Online. American Association for Clinical Chemistry, 20 Aug. 2006. Web. 13 July 2010. The case study was taken from first aid usmile step1 What Is Sickle Cell Disease. About Sickle Cell Disease. Sickle Cell Disease Association of America SCDAA Home, 2005. Web. 13 July 2010. http://www.sicklecelldisease.org/about_scd/