Poland Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3250 words

Poland - Essay Example ech Walesa and the ascendancy of Mikhail Gorbachev to the leadership of the USSR paved the way for the disintegration of the communistic hold on the country. Today, Poland has become a democratic, market-oriented country with membership in many international organizations. It is considered one of the success stories in the transition economies. In the 4th century, the Slav people who originally occupied the area between the Carpathian and the Middle Vistula in Eastern Europe, began drifting eastwards to Russia, southwards into the Balkans, and westwards towards the Order and Elbe Rivers. The pressures of a growing population resulted in the expansion of the areas originally inhabited by the Slavs. A written account of the country appeared only in the 14th century although a historical highlight of the country started when its ruler Mieszko I of the Piast Dynasty personally embraced Latin Christianity and imposed it on his people in 966. In the early medieval state, expeditions for plundering purposes were vital to the country’s existence but the reigns of Mieszko II (1025-34), Boleslaw II (1058-81), and Boleslaw III (1102-38) were marked by internal revolts and foreign invasions. It was believed that the country had no leader between the years of 1034 and 1039 when paganism and Bohemian invasion threatened to pull t he country apart. It was Casimir â€Å"The Restorer† (son of Mieszko) who restored the territorial integrity of the country and established Kraskow as its capital (Lukowski & Zawadzki p 7). Before 1157, not all of Poland accepted Christianity. However, the 12th century witnessed invasions, in the name of the religion, one after another. A deeper Christianity was established in the 12th and 13th centuries when more friars came and monasteries were established. The coming of the new bishops presented a new form of political authority in Poland, limiting the ruler’s monopoly to it. During these times, the rulers tried to attract settlers to augment

Nature and Nurture Influences Essay Example for Free

Nature and Nurture Influences Essay We were asked to write a paper on Nature and Nurture influences on a child development. There has been a debate for years about this topic. Some phycologist believe that it is just nature that you are born with the genes from you parents to make you the way you are through evolution. Then there are those that it is just the nurturing we receive as babies or even in the womb through our child hood. That both Nature and Nurture go together in some way. The difference between Nature and Nurture will be described and the relationship between the two. I will explain the biological, environmental, societal, and cultural influences on child development in relation to nature versus nurture. This debate has gone one since 1970’s, when some studies showed the social behaviors of primates like chimpanzees and gorillas that this was humans closest relatives genetically speaking (Garcà ­a, J. 2014). The increased social significance of gay and lesbian rights in recent years has sparked interest among some researchers as to the causes of homosexuality. Supporters of gay rights claim that homosexuality is natural and innate, while many opponents of gay rights often claim that homosexuality is a lifestyle choice (Garcà ­a, J. 2014). These are big debatable topics that they say is all nature. I disagree I am a Christian and go by the bible not scientist sorry that’s my belief. Whether you are gay or believe we come from monkeys that’s fine. I believe it is a choice you choose to be the way you are it’s your life style that’s fine. We are nurtures from the time we are conceived parents talk to their babies will in the womb. The fetus does respond to noise we say the ABC’s to them when they are born we hold them feed them. When our children get older or fall as a child we kiss their wounds to make them feel better. We teach them to ride bikes some grasp it faster than others we  encourage our children to do their best in everything they do. I have four children they are all different the pregnancies was different. My pregnancies with my sons I was not sick with either. First child sleep great hardly sick. The second pregnancy my son was sick for the first year had colic ear infe ctions was rough. The pregnancies with my girls I was sick had acid reflux in the beginning of the third pregnancy fourth was a girl acid reflux during my whole pregnancy. They both had it in the beginning as well, but my youngest daughter still have attacks of acid reflux. Not everything is genetic we get our looks from our parents some are great musicians, but their child doesn’t follow their footsteps and can play any instrument. I peck a piano my daughter taught herself other children do not know how to play. Factor, in the study of development, nature refers to the inherited (genetic) characteristics and tendencies that influence development. Nurture affects children’s development through multiple channels: physically through nutrition, activity, and stress; intellectually through informal experiences and formal instruction; and socially through adult role models and peer relationships. In contrast, abilities in traditional school subject areas (e.g., reading, geography) and advanced artistic and physical skills (e.g., playing the piano, playing competitive soccer) rest heavily on instruction and practice (Gardner, Torff, Hatch, 1996; Olson, 1994; R. Watson, 1996). So in conclusion you will always have those that will say we still come from monkeys and those are the facts. I still do not believe that never will. Then there will be those that say that its nature that we are the way we are. I believe that nature is apart , but mostly nurture started in the beginning of life’s creation from the seed to the implantation thru adult hood. References http://www.education.com/reference/article/nature-nurture/ http://www.howcast.com/videos/513307-nature-vs-nurture-child-development Garcà ­a, J. (2014). Nature versus nurture debate. Research Starter Topics, http://video.about.com/genealogy/What-Is-Nature-VsNurture-.htm

Comparing the Puritan Setting in Scarlet Letter and Ministers Black Veil :: comparison compare contrast essays

Impact of the Puritan Setting Upon the Characters in The Scarlet Letter and The Minister's Black Veil This essay will examine the thematic relevance to the Puritan setting and its impact upon the characters and their development in both "The Scarlet Letter" and the short story, "The Minister's Black Veil." These two texts detail an accurate portrayal of what I assume the Puritan community to represent. This is partly because of the Puritan background within the works, but also considering that the main characters of these are deeply rooted within the Puritan faith and are, in different ways, in the public eye and are under separate scrutiny as a result of such. Mr. Hooper, being a minister, is considered a beacon and an exemplar of faith and righteousness in his community. One bright Sunday morning, Reverend Hooper dons a black veil to his congregation and lectures on sin and its appearance, or lack thereof. His congregation is outraged but intrigued by his use of the symbolic sheath. Since his sermon focuses on the "secret sin" of his parishoners and the entire community, they are d rawn to assume that Mr. Hooper, himself, carries with his a "secret sin" which he is hiding from underneath his veil. Now Hawthorne titles this short story as a parable which leads one to conclude that the veil is used a not only a symbol of "secret sin" but a paradox. His congregation is so concerned and obsessed with his personal sins that they forget about their own; this was the intent of Mr. Hooper's veil: to cause them to reflect upon their own spiritual status and to confess their sins. But the Puritans, notorious for their pride within practice and fallacy within faith, ignore this allegorical costume and sensationalize his message. Because, after all, Mr. Hooper must be hiding SOMETHING underneath that veil of his... The second character under scrutiny by their community and this English major is Hester Prynne, a young woman forced to don a scarlet letter "A" to signify to herself and to her community that she is a marked sinner. The letter, much like the veil, is an exterior symbol of appearance which is a popular device of Hawthorne; the outward appearance is an important aspect of the P uritan faith in that it reflects upon the interior climate. Interestingly, these symbols and their stewards are instituted for the benefit of the community.

Hip-Hop/Real Rap

Nayeli Munoz 01/15/13 Rap Most people are unfortunately misled as to what is rap music. Many people seem to have only heard commercial rap; commercial rap is â€Å"gangster rap†. Most of the commercial rap songs talk about getting money, gang banging, and some kind of explicit love or sex. Two examples of commercial rappers are â€Å"50 Cent† and â€Å"Soulja Boy†. True rappers have some kind of poetic flow. Real rap has a deep and meaningful topic, it is like poetry but with more emotion. â€Å"Tupac† and â€Å"Snoop Dogg† are two great examples of real rappers.A positive influence that rap has on today's youth is that it shows us what is going on in the real world; however, rap music can influence youth to be very violent. Another negative about rap is that it is very degrading towards young women. Through their music rap artist show a realistic picture of what is going on around them and how hard it was growing up in poverty. An example of this i s when â€Å"Tupac†, a famous rapper, in his song â€Å"Thug Mansion† says â€Å"picture me inside the misery of poverty, no man alive has ever witness struggles I survived†.Later on in the same song he continues with â€Å"seen the politicians ban us, they'd rather see us locked in chains, please explain why they cant stand us†. This song is reflects the issues of discrimination toward African American by the government. Rap has opened our eyes to show us the circumstances of poverty, drug use, violence, and how easy they can access guns. Rapper â€Å"Too Short† raps about the importance of staying in school and getting a good job.Rap influences youth to be very violent; in â€Å"Big Pun† song â€Å"Brave in the heart† he says, † I'm from where the guns love to introduce they self. Reduce your health little bulletproofs get felt. The street's a trip; either you deep or you sleep with the fish†. This song tries to tell us that we need to use violence in order to survive, this influences youth to believing that they do have to use violence and therefore they start being violent. Some rappers include new drugs that have not been very popular in their lyrics and when youth listen to it they get urious about the drug and want to learn about it and try it. Violent lyrics can influence youth to start fights or even kill people for what they want. Women in rap videos are usually degraded. Very often young women are laid out as sex tools or sex slaves. They are displayed with not much clothes on and they use their bodies to acquire material objects. Young women are exposed to these abominable videos and it can affect their health, their self-esteem can lower and they may think of themselves as useless and worthless.Research shows that many of the young women who listen and watch rap think that they cannot be successful without using their bodies. It is clear that rap can extremely influence today's youth bot h positive and negative ways; however, the negative effects are much larger than the positive effects. It is up to us to decide if rap is going to affect us in a positive or in a negative way. Bibliography: Sid Kirchheimer,(March 3, 2010). Does rap put teens at risk. WebMD. (Online)

Great Gatsby: Weddings and Social Occasions

Ruby DeFelice 11/14/12 Pd. 2 Mr Brennan Lavish parties are abundant all throughout the novel The Great Gatsby. Luxurious bashes thrown by Jay Gatsby attract the â€Å"foul dust† of East and West egg like moths to a lamp. Those in attendance at Gatsby's parties tend to be the elite scum of the earth caring for no one and nothing except their own personal social reputations. Two occasions are particularly relevant to the development of the novel; the consistently present soirees and Gatsby's funeral together illuminate the realities of the attendees values, develop the readers empathy towards Gatsby, and help uncover a deeper moral.Hundreds of wealthy fools show up at Gatsby's mansion prepared for a fun filled night of drinking and inebriated antics. Night after night people come to Gatsby's, their generous host, trash his house, drink his alcohol and have a grand old time. One would think Gatsby is a well liked man with many friends and loved ones, at least thats what his popul ar parties allude. Yet no one in attendance seems to know who Gatsby really is at all. Guests in Gatsby's house, not even knowing who the man is, twitter rumors about him all night never really knowing the truth, never really caring to know.Gatsby's life is full of people who use him, in other words his life is empty, a fact we don't fully understand the severity of until his funeral. At Gatsby's funeral we discover how alone he really was. Of all of the guests floating in and out of Gatsby's parties, taking advantage of his hospitality, only one cares to show up at his funeral. Even Daisy the woman Gatsby had created his illusionary life for is to self absorbed to make an appearance.The lack of company at Gatsby's funeral infer the carelessness and self absorption of the elite East and West egg citizens. One man even has the audacity to call Nick, our protagonist, a day before Gatsby's funeral looking for his tennis shoes! Of course he cant make it to the funeral of his once genero us host because of prior picnic plans! The sad truth of Gatsby's lonesomeness and the leeches that took advantage of him finalize their appearance during his funeral and cause the reader to succumb to a strong empathetic attitude toward the late Jay Gatsby.Through Gatsby's parties and his funeral emerges a deeper meaning of human hope. Gatsby believed in the green light of the future, the light that although you may never reach will always be there beckoning to you. Gatsby is alone from the start and in the end dies alone, even the one person he cares most about, his â€Å"green light†, doesn’t seem to care enough to show at his funeral. Gatsby's dream fails, but even the terribly sad and lonely life he led couldn’t stop him from trying to reach his dream until the bitter end.

Theodore Dwight Weld

Theodore Dwight Weld Theodore Dwight Weld was one of the most effective organizers of the abolitionist movement in the United States, though he was often overshadowed in his own time. And, partly due to his own aversion to publicity, he has often been overlooked by history. For three decades Weld guided many efforts of the abolitionists. And a book he published in 1839, American Slavery As It Is, influenced Harriet Beecher Stowe as she wrote Uncle Toms Cabin. In the early 1830s Weld organized a highly influential series of debates at Lane Seminary in Ohio and trained abolitionist agents who would spread the word throughout the North. He later became involved on Capitol Hill in advising John Quincy Adams and others in promoting anti-slavery agitation in the House of Representatives. Weld married Angelina Grimkà ©, a South Carolina native who had, along with her sister, become a devoted abolitionist. The couple was very well-known in abolitionist circles, yet Weld exhibited an aversion to public notice.  He generally published his writings anonymously and preferred to exert his influence behind the scenes. In the decades after the Civil War Weld avoided discussions of the proper place of the abolitionists in history. He outlived most of his contemporaries, and when he died at the age of 91 in 1895, he was nearly forgotten. Newspapers mentioned his death in passing, noting that he had known and worked with William Lloyd Garrison, John Brown, and other noted abolitionists. Early Life Theodore Dwight Weld was born November 23, 1803, in Hampton, Connecticut. His father was a minister, and the family was descended from a long line of clergymen. During Welds childhood the family moved to western New York State. In the 1820s the traveling evangelist Charles Grandison Finney passed through the countryside, and Weld became a devoted follower of his religious message. Weld entered the Oneida Institute to study to become a minister. He also became very involved in the temperance movement, which at the time was a burgeoning reform movement. A reformist mentor of Weld, Charles Stuart, traveled to England and became involved with the British anti-slavery movement. He wrote back to America, and brought Weld to the anti-slavery cause. Organizing the Abolitionists During this period Weld met Arthur and Lewis Tappan, wealthy New York City merchants who were financing a number of reform movements, including the early abolitionist movement. The Tappans were impressed with Welds intellect and energy, and recruited him to work with them. Weld influenced the Tappan brothers to get involved in the fight against slavery. And in 1831 the philanthropist brothers founded the American Anti-Slavery Society. The Tappan brothers, at Welds urging, also financed the founding a seminary which would train ministers for settlements in the expanding American West. The new institution, Lane Seminary in Cincinnati, Ohio, became the site of a highly influential gathering of anti-slavery activists in February 1834. In two weeks of seminars organized by Weld, activists debated the cause of ending slavery. The meetings would resonate for years, as attendees came away deeply committed to the cause. Weld embarked on a program of training abolitionists who could bring converts to the cause in the style of revivalist preachers. And when a campaign of sending abolitionist pamphlets into the South was thwarted, the Tappan Brothers began to see that Welds idea of educating human agents who would carry the abolitionist message. On Capitol Hill In the early 1840s Weld became involved in the political system, which was not the usual course of action for abolitionists. William Lloyd Garrison, for instance, purposely avoided mainstream politics, as the United States Constitution allowed slavery. The strategy pursued by abolitionists was to use the right to petition in the Constitution to send petitions seeking the end of enslavement to the U.S. Congress. Working with former president John Quincy Adams, who was serving as a congressman from Massachusetts, Weld worked as a critical adviser during the petition campaign.   By the mid-1840s, Weld had essentially withdrawn from an active role in the abolitionist movement, yet he continued to write and advise. He had married Angelina Grimke in 1838, and they had three children. The couple taught at a school they founded in New Jersey. Following the Civil War, when memoirs were written and the rightful place of the abolitionists in history was being debated, Weld chose to remain silent. When he died he was mentioned briefly in newspapers, and was remembered as one of the great abolitionists.

Piano and Drums Essays

Piano and Drums Essays Piano and Drums Paper Piano and Drums Paper Essay Topic: The Piano How is the relationship of the poet to the past explored in Digging and either Our History or Piano and Drums? The relationship of the poet to the past is explored in Digging and Piano and Drums through themes of the poets heritage and the change that has occurred between the past and the present. However, Piano and Drums and Digging differ in the way they describe their connection with the past. For example, in Piano and Drums, Okara draws a parallel between how his life in the African culture was disturbed by Western invasion and how drums reminds him of his African past whereas the piano only makes him feel pain. On the other hand, in Digging, Seamus Heaney uses fewer metaphors and instead uses specific diction, such as single syllable words, to convey his attachment to the past. Heaney portrays his fondness for his father and grandfather in Digging through using affectionate terms and describing how hard they work as well as the way he describes digging potatoes. For example, Heaney calls his father old man in stanza five, which conveys to the reader a sense of affection as well as respect; a theme that is carried through the whole poem. An example of this is when his grandfather was drinking the milk and Heaney said he then fell to right away. This suggests his grandfather was a hard working committed man causing the reader to respect Heaneys grandfather. It is also suggested that Heaney would boast that his grand father would cut more turf in a day than any other man on Toners bog in stanza six. This again suggests admiration and affection from Heaney to his grandfather. Heaney also portrays a strong attachment to digging for potatoes and turf. He did this by using words such as nestled and loving when describing digging and the potatoes. Both of these words suggest that the father is comfortable with digging and he is at home when his foot is on the lug. Also, through out the poem, Heaney uses one syllable words such as lug, gun and sods. This recreates the rhythm of digging which is monosyllabic in its self. It could also be in reference to the fact that digging is a very simple action so simple words can be used to describe it. Throughout Piano and Drums the relationship of the poet to the past is explored through how he feels about African and western music. For example, in stanza two, Okara describes how he feels when he hears the drums. He says, topples the years and at one Im in my mothers lap a suckling. This suggests that hearing African drums takes him back to his childhood. This is similar to Digging in that when Heaney hears the rasping of the spade sinking in to the ground, he remembers his childhood when his grandfather used to dig turf. However, unlike Digging, in the first stanza Okara thinks of the beginning, meaning the beginning of Africa. This suggests to the reader that Okara has a real sense of patriotism and belonging to Africa. Okara also explores the invasion of the Colonies as apart of his past. He uses the analogy that their interruption is like the piano (a western instrument) interrupting the drums. This gives a very modern impression on the reader of something that happened many years ago. Also, while Okara is describing the piano music he uses musical words; however, he uses them in such a way that it does not make sense. This suggests that he can make sense of them in his culture because drumbeats, to him, are simple yet more symbolic. In that same stanza Okara uses the word complex twice suggesting that the past is simpler, like a drumbeat. However, also in that stanza are very forceful words such as coaxing and daggerpoint. This suggests that the poet feels threatened by the invasion. In conclusion, Digging is more like a memory than Piano and Drums. For example the rhyme is very structured at the beginning of digging but becomes more relaxed as the memory takes over and the sounds of the words become more important. Therefore, digging is more like memory; you remember things in as unpredictable way so the structure is unpredictable. Also, Okara uses music to explore his past where as Heaney writes more literally.

Mike Pence Bio - Vice President Under Donald Trump

Mike Pence Bio - Vice President Under Donald Trump Mike Pence is a  former congressman  and  governor of Indiana  who was chosen by Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump to be his running mate in the 2016 election. Both Trump and Pence were elected. Pence is described as a conservatives conservative and was seen as a safe pick for the often erratic and mercurial reality-television star.   Trump announced his choice of a running mate in typical Trump fashion, by posting the news on Twitter. He tweeted: I am pleased to announce that I have chosen Governor Mike Pence as my Vice Presidential running mate.   Pence later tweeted:  Honored to join realDonaldTrump and work to make America great again. In announcing Pence as his running make, Trump sought to cast the Republican ticket as the law and order candidates. Trump and Pence sought to contrast themselves with Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton, whose use of a personal email server drew fire from the FBI and involvement in numerous other scandals earned her the nickname crooked Hillary. Trump made the announcement on July 15, 2016, just three days before the start of that years  Republican National Convention in Cleveland, Ohio. Trumps timing was typical in modern presidential politics. The  party nominees often announce their choice of running mates in the days and weeks leading up to the nominating conventions. Only twice have they  waited until the conventions. What a difference  between crooked Hillary Clinton and Mike Pence ... Hes a  solid, solid person, Trump said in introducing Pence. Trump described Pence as my partner in this campaign. Reaction to  Trumps Choice of Running Mate Trumps selection of Pence as a running mate was seen as both a safe pick and one that could come with potential pitfalls. Trump will benefit from Pences solid conservative credentials, particularly when it comes to social issues such as abortion and gay rights. Pence is an outspoken opponent of abortion rights and fierce defender of religious freedom. He came under fire in 2015 for signing a law that many believed would have allowed Indiana business owners to deny service to gays and lesbians on religious grounds. Having Pence on the Republican ticket could win votes from religious conservatives who are not convinced Trump has the same convictions. Trump, who was registered as a Democrat for more than eight years in the 2000s, has remained relatively silent on social issues such as abortion and gay rights. Pences aversion to the in-your-face style politicking  could also complement Trumps more abrasive style of campaigning. Trump is unpredictable, forceful and, at times, impolite. Pence is predictable, some might say to a fault. Pence does not shy from a fight, but forceful is not a word that is used often to describe him. Pence is Midwestern polite,  Andrew Downs, director of the Mike Downs Center for Indiana Politics at Indiana University-Purdue University Fort Wayne, wrote in The Washington Post. On the downside: Pence is seen as somewhat ... bland. Boring. Too conventional. Hes also  - again  - socially conservative. Very socially conservative. And that, some pundits believe, could turn off moderate Republicans and independent voters. â€Å"Mike sees himself as a champion of a very culturally conservative set of values that represent small-town Middle America,†Ã‚  Leslie Lenkowsky, a former professor at Indiana University, told The New York Times.  Ã¢â‚¬Å"He sees his role as protecting them.† Other Potential Running Mates Pence was among three people Trump was seriously considering for the vice presidency. The other two were New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie and former House Speaker Newt Gingrich.  Pence, Christie and Gingrich were on Trumps final short list of potential running mates.   Trump claimed Pence was his first choice all during the vetting process. At least one published report indicated, however, indicated that Trump had sought to reverse course after the news media began reporting he had chosen the Indiana governor. Trump denied those reports. Indiana Gov. Mike Pence was my first choice, Trump said. The Clinton campaign, however, seized on claims Trump was waffling over his running mate. It released an ad with the line:  Donald Trump. Always divisive. Not so decisive. Pences Political Career Pence served 12 years in the House of Representatives as the congressman from Indianas 2nd and 6th Congressional Districts. He was later elected governor of Indiana and was serving his first four-year term when Trump asked him to join the 2016 presidential ticket. Heres a summary of Pences political career: 1986: Ran unsuccessfully for the House of Representatives.1988:  Ran unsuccessfully for the House of Representatives.2000: Won election to Indianas 2nd Congressional District seat.2002: Won re-election to the seat, which was renumbered the 6th Congressional District. He also won re-election to two-year terms in 2004, 2006, 2008 and 2010.  2012: Won the Indiana governor election and took office in January 2013.2016: Chosen as Trumps vice presidential nominee. Pence held two prominent leadership posts in the House: chairman of the Republican Study Committee and chairman of the House Republican Conference.   3 Major Pence  Controversies One of the most high-profile controversies surrounding Pence came during his tenure as governor of Indiana. The Periods for Pence movement was launched after Pence signed a strict anti-abortion law that banned women from getting the procedure if their motivation was to prevent the birth of a disabled child. â€Å"I believe that a society can be judged by how it deals with its most vulnerable- the aged, the infirm, the disabled and the unborn, Pence said after signing the law in March 2016.  The law, he said, will ensure the dignified final treatment of the unborn and prohibits abortions that are based only on the unborn childs sex, race, color, national origin, ancestry, or disability, including Down syndrome.   The Periods for Pence movement protest the law, saying it treats women like children and is too intrusive. One provision of the law requires any  miscarried fetus to be  interred or cremated by a facility having possession of the remains. On Facebook, the Periods for Pence movement mocked the provision  and urged women to flood the governors office with calls. Fertilized eggs can be expelled during a womans period without a woman even knowing that she might have had the potential blastocyst in her. Therefore, any period could potentially be a miscarriage without knowledge. I would certainly hate for any of my fellow Hoosier women to be at risk of penalty if they do not properly dispose of this or report it. Just to cover our bases, perhaps we should make sure to contact Governor Pences office to report our periods. We wouldnt want him thinking that THOUSANDS OF HOOSIER WOMEN A DAY are trying to hide anything, would we?Lets make our bodies Mikes business for real, if this is how he wants it. Another major controversy was Pences signing of the  Religious Freedom Restoration Act in 2015, which came under fire across the United States from critics who contended it allowed business owners to refuse service to gays and lesbians based on their religious beliefs. Pence later signed a revised version of the law  that stripped out the controversial provisions and said there had been misunderstanding about the original versions.  This law has become a subject of great misunderstanding and controversy across our state and nation. However we got here, we are where we are, and it is important that our state take action to address the concerns that have been raised and move forward.†Ã‚   Early in Pences political career, he was embarrassed when it was discovered he used nearly $13,000 in  donations to his 1990 congressional campaign to pay the mortgage on his house, as well as cover other personal expenses including his credit card bill, car payments and groceries. While not illegal at the time, Pences personal use of political donations cost him the election that year. He apologized to voters and described his behavior as  Ã¢â‚¬Å"an exercise in naivete.† Professional Career Pence, like many members of Congress and governors, is an attorney by trade.  He also hosted a conservative talk radio show in the 1990s called the  The Mike Pence Show, once  describing himself as Rush Limbaugh on decaf.   Faith Pence once considered entering the priesthood, according to The New York Times.  He has described himself as an evangelical Catholic. He has also said he is â€Å"a Christian, a conservative and a Republican, in that order.† Education Pence graduated with a bachelors degree in history  from  Hanover College in  Hanover, Indiana, in 1981. A college profile of Pence says he  served as president of United Campus Ministries Board and on the staff of the student newspaper, The Triangle. He would be the second Hanover College graduate to be vice president. The first was 1841 graduate  Thomas Hendricks, who was vice president  under Grover Cleveland. Pence earned a law degree from Indiana Universitys  Robert H. McKinney School of Law in  Indianapolis in 1986. He graduated from  Columbus North High School in Columbus, Indiana. Personal Life Pence was born  in Columbus, Bartholomew County, Indiana, on June 7, 1959. His father was the manager of a gas station in town.   He is married to Karen Pence. The couple got married in 1985 and have three children:  Michael, Charlotte and Audrey.

What Factors Contribute to a Successful Computer-Based After-School Dissertation

What Factors Contribute to a Successful Computer-Based After-School Programm for At-Risk Children in an Urban Middle School - Dissertation Example The scope of this work is focused on whether the participation in an after-school program is beneficial to at-risk middle school students. This topic is important because there is a need for increasing the amount of time in which students are involved in educational activities beyond the regular school day. In these days of increased budget constraints any program that is competing for funding will have to be able to prove its efficacy. Having data to support the impact on academics of at-risk students will be beneficial to the program which requires funding, the entity which will supply the funding, and the students themselves as they will be able to determine if their time and/or money will be well-spent. This was a research project using interviews and reviews of academic progress reports/report cards. These methods allowed the researcher to not only establish a baseline as far as the students’ grades are concerned but allowed for a look at the students’ points-of-vi ew of the program. The interviews took place at a middle school. The findings show that participation in the after-school program led to improvements in academic performance in math. However, there were also several additional benefits as a result of the participation in terms of feelings, attitudes and behavior. ... I would like to dedicate this dissertation to my parents, Theodore and Patricia Wilson for their encouragement and support in what has turned out to be one of my greatest journeys. Without the additional support and understanding of my family and friends, this dissertation would not be in existence. Acknowledgements I would like to express my appreciativeness to my committee chair and mentor, Dr. E. Alana James, for her constant inspiration, feedback, and reinforcement. Thank you to Dr. Camilla Ferebee and Dr. Thea Williams for serving stupendously as my dissertation committee members. Their valued suggestions and knowledge have guided me through this wonderful three year journey. Table of Contents Abstract II Dedication III Acknowledgements IV Table of Contents IV Chapter I: Introduction of the Study 1 Background of the Study 1 Problem Statement 2 Purpose of the Study 3 Research Questions 3 Early Signs of Need of Extended Day Learning 4 Key Terms 4 Assumptions, Limitations, Scope, a nd Delimitations 5 Assumptions of the Study 5 Limitations of the Study 5 Scope of the Study 5 Delimitations of the Study 6 Significance of the Study 6 Summary 6 Chapter II: Review of the Literature 7 Introduction 7 History of After-school Programs 7 No Child Left Behind 10 Federal Role of Out-of-School Learning 12 At-Risk Students 14 Computer Usage in After-school Programs 15 Attendance and Academic Success 17 Benefits of Math After-School Programs 18 Summary 18 Chapter III: Methodology 20 Introduction 20 Research Questions and Hypotheses 20 Research Questions 20 Hypotheses 21 Background and Purpose 21 Methodological Design 22 Participants 24 Data Collection and Analysis 24 Consent and Confidentiality 26 Assumptions and Limitations 26 Summary 27 Chapter IV: Results 27

High Performance Computers (HPC) Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

High Performance Computers (HPC) - Research Paper Example Power efficiency has not been a focus of most HPC systems till now. Power consumed during the operating of High Performance Linpack (HPL) benchmark is, contrary to the conventionally prevailing concept, near the power used by a subset of scientific workload that is typically computer intensive. This makes the HPL suitable for use in power measurement, though it is not recommendable for performance measurement in most cases (Kamil, Shalf, and Strohmaier, n.d.). The efficiency and performance of HPCs can be assessed from their composition, HPCs have all the essential elements found in the regular desktop computers including memory, operating system, disk, and processors, and more. HPCs can be understood as clusters of computers. Each computer in each cluster has anywhere from one to four processors, with each processor having between two and four cores. Individual computers forming part of a cluster are called as nodes. A small business may have a cluster of four or more nodes, with the number of cores being at least 16. Businesses commonly have cluster sizes ranging from 16 to 64 nodes and the number of cores ranges from 64 to 256 (inside HPC, 2014). HPCs show their efficiency with the mutual functioning of the individual nodes in the clusters. Such efficiency can easily solve problems of much complex nature than what can be solved by ordinary desktop computers. The nodes are able to work together meaningfully by interacting with each othe r. Computers talk over networks to each other and business clusters have a variety of options of computer network. In terms of software, two that are employed in most HPCs are Windows and Linux. Currently, HPCs installations are dominated by Linux which can partly be attributed to the legacy of HPC in large scale machines, Unix, and supercomputing. The kind of operating system suitable for use in HPC depends upon the kinds of applications run over them. HPCs in the future will be more efficient. Petaflop

Soul Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Soul - Essay Example One is religious, and the other is scientific. Aristotle’s theory presents the idea that mind and body are interlinked and have no means of existence alone. As a biologist, Aristotle thinks that the soul is not an eviction from a better world to another world, but the soul’s essence is linked with its relationship to an organic structure. Aristotle considered the fundamentals of reality in the twelve books of Metaphysics. Aristotle also argued against some aspects of Plato’s forms. He rejected the concept of independent existence. Aristotle represented a theory about experience of what happens, and why things happen that way. The theory explains that our body and mind are connected to each other and they cannot be separated or treated so. ‘Body is a matter of a person,’ according to Aristotle, and our psyche or soul is a form of a person, the structure and characteristics. The theory of Aristotle based upon the argument that the nature of the soul we have depends upon the type of our organism. He tried to explain the hierarchy of souls. For example, plants have a soul concerning powers of nutrition, growth and reproduction, which is according to their kinds. Similarly, animals have appetites and they have desires and feelings, which make them move and survive. Talking about human souls, the human soul stands at the top of the soul’s hierarchy. This can be explained as an eye with sight. If the sight is taken away there is no means of an eye. It is no longer a real eye. A bird without its wings is no longer a bird as it is unable to fly. The reason of existence, a reason to be alive is what makes a creature what it is (Zalta). Death of a man makes him no longer a man; it has lost its capabilities to do the things he used to. It is nothing but only a ‘matter’ after death. Therefore, the body and soul cannot be separated they are one thing. Aristotle also says that the soul is not immortal, it is merely a form of a

How Does Music Function As A Social Commentary Research Paper

How Does Music Function As A Social Commentary - Research Paper Example American cultural history, ethnic studies, folklore, and even musicology have increasingly placed music in American social and cultural context. American culture describes how race and ethnicity, gender, and class have influenced the performance and production of music. It has illuminated issues as diverse as ethnic and regional identity, the degree of agency among artists, and Cold War politics. Despite some shortcomings in its application, such music continues to offer Americans much material regarding the many connections between music and American culture. On the one hand, the ruling elites use music to communicate their political values to the general population and to legitimize their rule. In this sense, music is used to encourage politically acceptable behavior. At the same time, music is also a medium for encouraging certain modes of socially acceptable behavior. On the other hand, music is used by people in structurally subordinate positions to comment on social problems; t o express their dissatisfaction with the state of society and resistance to hegemony and the ruling order. Music as a cultural form is thus appropriated for different ends by two different groups in society (Ibid, 283-285).

Creative writing Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Creative writing - Essay Example I tried to muff my laughter but the sound was already obvious to him, He continued his hobby while turning his back on me. "Sixteen seventeen eighteen nineteen twenty." I already knew he was through with his play. "So, there were only twenty stars tonight" I said sarcastically. "No," came the mechanical remark. "There are more than twenty. There are millions out there, my mother told me so," he said. This would have been the end of our repetitious nightly conversation, being irritated I chose to say something more. "Why then did you stop" I retorted. "I can only count up to twenty you know, my mother died before she could teach me the next number," the boy said in a sad way. I was taken aback by his frankness. I had been sitting with this boy for the past ten sunsets on the aged breakwater, all I knew before was he enjoyed counting stars, just that guilt laden, I tried to make up for my rude attitude by being kinder. "Why are you here every night, don't you have a family or someone to take care of you" He kept silent for a while. "Hey, Are you mad at me" I said with further guilt. "No, I am used to being laughed at by people when I count stars, about a family, my mother was my only family." He looked up and pretended to count the stars again just as he did this a tear rolled down his cheek, which he quickly wiped with his shirt. I wanted to say something but my tongue got numb a t the sight of the little boy. "Bit your tongue, Mister" the boy asked. I could not answer him for a couple of minutes. "You seem to enjoy yourself when you count stars here in the breakwater." I heard myself mutter. The boy spoke in a sadder tone, "They're the only one's I've got and I have no other place to go." I knew then that I had been a trespasser to his home starting the night I comfortably took a big portion of his spot. "Don't you have a family of your own" the boy asked me eagerly. I felt awkward and refused to answer. "Hey! Are you mad at me" the boy said chuckling. I felt my lips grin at his action, the first smile in a week's time. "I have no use for one," I lied. "I wish you have one because it really feels good to have people who care for you," I heard him say this as he got close to my side. " When my mother was alive we were a happy family, just the two of us," he added, as he threw a stone at the calm ocean. "Why do count stars" I asked him, trying to think of a better way to change the subject about families. He replied, "Because they're beautiful." He pointed at a star with the most lustrous ray, "That star is my mother!" he said happily. "How did you know" I said puzzled. "Because my heart says so, " he answered in utmost certainty. "Why count the others then" I said in a further puzzlement. He sighed, "For them not to be lonely." I looked at the sky and told him, "How can they be lonely There are a million of them out there!" The boy earnestly looked at my face and studied it carefully. He stood up, took a heavy breath and said, "Stars do not know each other, a star can only see the light of another. The distance between them is too great to let their lights warm each other's loneliness." "Do you think you can make them all happy You cannot count all of them, you know," I said truthfully. He

How Does Music Function As A Social Commentary Research Paper

How Does Music Function As A Social Commentary - Research Paper Example American cultural history, ethnic studies, folklore, and even musicology have increasingly placed music in American social and cultural context. American culture describes how race and ethnicity, gender, and class have influenced the performance and production of music. It has illuminated issues as diverse as ethnic and regional identity, the degree of agency among artists, and Cold War politics. Despite some shortcomings in its application, such music continues to offer Americans much material regarding the many connections between music and American culture. On the one hand, the ruling elites use music to communicate their political values to the general population and to legitimize their rule. In this sense, music is used to encourage politically acceptable behavior. At the same time, music is also a medium for encouraging certain modes of socially acceptable behavior. On the other hand, music is used by people in structurally subordinate positions to comment on social problems; t o express their dissatisfaction with the state of society and resistance to hegemony and the ruling order. Music as a cultural form is thus appropriated for different ends by two different groups in society (Ibid, 283-285).

SPECIAL EVENT PART 2 Coursework Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

SPECIAL EVENT PART 2 - Coursework Example Even though the police had a right to maintain law and order in Miami Beach during the festive season, they have no right to arrest people who are trying to find out why their friends have been arrested. The police also needed to be sensitive to the fact that the visitors to the city had come from different States with different cultures. These visitors were therefore inclined to engage in behaviors that were weird and strange to other people. Such should not attract arrests but only a warning. I think that the police had directives from the Police chief to make a certain number of arrests to show that they were really working hard. This is the reason why they ended up arresting anyone whom they thought was breaking the law, which in some circumstances did not exist. An example is there was not law outlawing arguing with friends after having a drink. But the police interpreted this as a sign of misdemeanors. What the police department does is to come up with stringent laws that they do not expect to be followed by hundreds of become who have come down the beach to have fun. Someone would not expect that laws such as drinking, loud music, or even prohibiting littering will be adhered to people especially the youth who are coming down to lay their stress. â€Å"Increasing the number of arrests is yet another way they have tried to control the rowdy people that come down for the weekend. They enforce laws such as open containers, illegal parking, and loud music†. This seems to be their motto. I think what the Miami Beach police does is to deliberately come up with laws that they know very well that it is difficult to adhere to especially with a crowded and excited

Marketing and Pottery Barn Essay Example for Free

Marketing and Pottery Barn Essay 1. If Williams-Sonoma continues with its’ present strategies and objectives, where will it be in 5 years? Given today’s economy, and the bleak economic outlook, I do not believe Williams-Sonoma will continue to exist with its’ current strategies and objectives to serve its’ below target market consumers. Bottom line is many consumers cannot afford the products being sold by the company. Although, the company’s target market is in the 10% of wealthiest consumers, and had total earnings of over 3.5 billion. (2010 shareholders meeting). Other avenues of generating revenue must be explored. I fear that even the 10% will eventually become more cost conscious in the years to come. On the lines of the company improving its’ position in the next five years, I think the company should continue to improve on concepts already in place. An example is the Pottery Barn Teen website. (pbteen.com). Williams-Sonoma had used the concept in moderation starting with WS bridal registry. The idea took flight and as a result, moved the concept to its’ retail operations such as Pottery Barn, resulting in a 500% jump in online sales generating over 1 billion in revenue. (Prophet.com). Still with all these profits and improvements, if WS cannot hold by decreasing its’ prices so that others not in the 10% range can afford their products, the company will fail like the housing market. Over the next five years, the company should consider expanding its’ product line to include bath dà ©cor to complement the already established retail home furnishings. 2. If you were CEO of Williams-Sonoma, what strategies would you recommend? There are so many recommendations. I would first build on the internet base I talked about earlier. If I can improve internet sales over 500% I certainly want to keep that going. I would incorporate interactive websites. Having the ability to talk to, chat with an associate while I’m shopping in my underwear is always helpful. Next I would improve my e-commerce presence by advertising on social media outlets and improve accessibility to shopping by posting web-apps. I would consider lowering price points so I could tap into the more than 10% of consumers without becoming â€Å"Wal-Mart†. Now the company did do something to increase its’ position that I found useful. That was to decrease its’ overall lease space by 2%. (2010 shareholders meeting). This reduction in retail occupancy costs attributed to the 1 billion dollars the company enjoyed last year. I would also consider expanding the company’s customer base by broadening the product line to similar to Home Goods or Bed Bath and beyond who currently double the revenue of Williams-Sonoma. (Redistribute assets earmarked for traditional cataloging to online accesses. Not only will this save money, but will also impact paper usage. I believe advertising in this was has all but outlived its’ usefulness. 3. Describe the competitive strategies used by each of Williams-Sonoma’s competitors. Which of these are most effective? Williams-Sonoma has six major competitors plus one more in their market. The company holds only 7.9% market share (FY10) to main competitor Bed, Bath and Beyond with an astonishing 34.4%. (William-sonoma.com/investors) BBB’s strategy is to offer competitive prices for quality products. Its’ target market is middle to upper middle class and this is the reason it fairs better in the current market. The Bombay Company’s strategy was to increase its’ footprint by increasing outlet store locations so it could offload clearance items and increase sales to the outlet mall customer base. (Homeaccentstoday.com). Crate and Barrel decided to complete a nationwide marketing campaign that targeted catalogs and websites. While Pier 1 Imports, in a bold move consolidated chains, and licensed their name to Sears in Puerto Rico. (turnaround.org). Door to Store decided to convert and market to style-minded customers at low prices capitalizing on web selling and shipping nationwide. (buyfurnitureyoulove.org). Rolling Pin Kitchen Emporium switched most of its locations to upscale malls and targeted marketing thru websites and catalogs. While Restoration Hardware seemed to advertize to its wealthiest customers targeting the top 10%, attempting to expand its base. If I had to choose one of these strategies I would have to go with the one I mentioned first. I am aware that this was not a in the original case study but in researching I found the Bed Bath and Beyond strategy to be most formidable considering the company doubled the revenue of Williams-Sonoma last year. There is a reason why the company commands 35.4% market share in FY 09 while WS was at 7.9%. (Williams-sonoma.com/investors) Williams-Sonoma is only utilizing a portion of marketing power while watching other companies progress thru a tough recession and recover by constant restructuring. 4. How is Williams-Sonoma using the Internet as a distribution channel now, and how would you recommend that they us the Internet in the future? Williams-Sonoma launched a bridal registry as a test bed for furthering the use of the internet. (prophet.net).This shift was so successful it moved the use of the internet to Pottery Barn, and other retail outlets. The result was 500% increase in internet sales and a 1 billion dollar profit. They also used the web to launch PB Teen which focused on the gap in age between Pottery Barn and Pottery Barn Kids. Each website is interactive now but PB Teen was the first with outstanding success. This appealed to dialed in kids wanting something to improve their own piece of sanity, their bedrooms. The interactive site allows the exchange of ideas, instant feedback and the customer has the ability to view products they like. Williams-Sonoma has already completed its’ internet shift. I feel they can rely more on the model by providing 24 hour online support to those consumers that have odd hours. Furthermore I believe the company should limit its’ use of hardcopy catalogs unless specifically requested because this focus had established itself as a business, does nothing for it in the future. Another approach is marketing thru social networking sites. This approach, along with direct marketing does have its’ costs and would show profit after the initial cost blast. If the company wishes to improve its’ position of 7.9% market share, it will need every edge it can possibly have.

Social work as a practice

Social work as a practice Social work as a practice is of recent origin and attempts to meet the needs of people especially those in urban areas. In essence, it is a professional activity of helping individuals or communities enhance or restore their capacities to a social functioning and to create societal conditions favorable to their goals. It aims to improve the quality of human life as well as show commitment towards social justice (Ryan and Hughes, 1998). Individuals, families, communities and organizations are able to attain their full potential by seeking social work related services. The need for such services has been extended to cater for children as they are currently facing challenges that hinder their proper development. This has become the main focal point of this document. First of all, as mentioned above, social work is aimed at improving the livelihoods of people and engaging them constructively to attain their full potential. This cuts across all generations including children. Several reasons have contributed to my desire in working within the Public Child Welfare system. The system is driven by the aim to promote the safety, wellbeing and permanency of children as well as families (Ryan and Hughes, 2006). Most children experience situations such as being deprived of parental care, abuse ranging from physical, sexual, emotional to neglect, marital conflicts, stigma related issues, unfavorable socioeconomic conditions (Weaver et al., 2006) that expose them to scenarios such as opting for prostitution. Qualities Of A Good Child Protection Services Worker For one to be a Child Protection Services worker, one has to meet the basic requirements which include a Bachelors degree in social work or a Masters degree in social work, maintain substantial knowledge of current affairs pertaining to childrens welfare and be able to apply the knowledge acquired into structured settings. One should be aware of the ethics and values which describe in detail the code of conduct. A commitment to the ethics and values of a Child Protection Services worker should be fully adhered to, be able to apply basic helping skills where one is able to respond to individual, group and community needs, engagement skills, observation skills, communication skills, empathy skills, resistance intervention and assessment skills. With these strengths I am able to carry out my duties as Child Welfare Protection Officer effectively and efficiently. Challenges To Effective Child Welfare Service Provision However, even with the above strengths, several challenges exist that compromise service delivery on the part of the child welfare services worker. Ryan and Hughes (1998) expound on these challenges to include; poor public perception of the Child Welfare Social worker. Service delivery is compromised by high staff turnover as well as lack of competent personnel in the social work institutions; vulnerability of families with complex needs thus requiring time bound complex solutions. This cannot be tackled by the few workers available; poor working conditions result in the workers having to bear with increasing caseloads without proper remuneration and flexible routines; increased caseloads with complex needs. These stem in part from the vulnerability of families where breadwinners are unable to provide sufficiently for their dependants. Complexity of these needs requires complex actions in their solutions which further demands time to solve them; reduction in the number of foster care parenting. Increased caseloads face a backlog of foster care parenting as less individuals sign up into foster care systems due to increased expenses and bureaucracies involved. Proposed Changes To Improve The Publics Perception Of Public Child Welfare Services In order to improve the public perception of public child welfare services, adequate training and employment should be done to increase the number of competent personnel in these institutions. This would effectively take into account the need to improve service delivery to cater for increasing cases related to child welfare (Weaver et al., 2006). Secondly, institutional changes that encompass policy development and implementation need to be adequately addressed to ensure systematic co-ordination in securing resources for affected families and children. Further more, compensation should be incorporated to promote foster care parenting o that foster families do not feel overburdened in taking care of the adopted children. Staff should also be compensated in situations where they have incurred extra expenses of both time and money in their quest to address underlying issues brought to them. Permanency Planning Weaver et al., (2006) defines permanency planning as a guiding principle intended to minimize the exit, entry and time spent in home care. It includes both legal and social efforts aimed at securing viable families for children. It further describes where a child will live after foster care. Foster Care System Foster care system refers to a system where a minor is taken up in a caregivers home. Such a caregiver is certified by the state and is referred to as a foster parent. The state and a child welfare institution engage in legal decisions affecting the minor while the foster parent contributes to the daily care of the minor and is compensated for extending such services by the state. This system is mostly short term in nature as the minor awaits permanent adoption or reunification (Ryan and Hughes, 1998) Career Prospects Five years after my graduation, I intend to become a social worker with a bias in child protection services. I will focus my attention mainly in child labor and female genital mutilation cases for the first three years. I will then establish an organization whose main mandate would be to address the above issues. References Ryan, J. and Hughes, R. (1998), Field Guides to Child Welfare (Vol II-XIII). Washington: CWLA Press Weaver, D. et al., (2006), Retention of Public Child Welfare Workers. Berkeley: California University

Where Do You Get Love :: essays research papers

Where Do You Get Love   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  As individuals, we seek a fantastical encounter with â€Å"true love.† Through the plays A Midsummer Nights Dream, As You Like It, and Twelfth Night, Shakespeare’s characters find â€Å"true love† through various tests in which one of the lover’s identity is masked, either physically or subconsciously. While these three plays share different plots, they all portray Shakespeare’s stance that romance exists in human love, and that if the love is pure, it will prevail over the most eccentric circumstances.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  A Midsummer Night’s Dream employs several mythical qualities, such as fairy’s and love potions. The love between Hermia and Lysander is put to an immediate test when Hermia’s father, Egeus says, â€Å"Scornful Lysander, true, he hath my love, And what is mine my love shall render him. And she is mine, and all my right of her I do estate unto Demetrius† (I, I, line 95-98). This causes the young lovers to venture into the forest, so their love can exist without interference. Falling under this spell causes Lysander to ignore, and treat Hermia poorly. Despite the actions of Lysander, Hermia stays true to her feelings of love for Lysander. These examples of faith, conveyed by Hermia, are central to Shakespeare’s position that true love is more powerful than any authoritarian figure or â€Å"love potion.†   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  As You Like It portrays another example of Shakespeare’s vision of â€Å"true love.† The way in which Rosalind and Orlando meet and fall in love is conventional -- Rosalind falls in love with Orlando through his manly labors and good looks at his wrestling match with Charles. â€Å"Sir, you have wrestled well, and overthrown more than your enemies† (I, ii, 234-235). However, a new dimension is added to the play by Rosalind's disguise as Ganymede and her suggestion that Orlando pretend to court her. Rosalind charms the reader with the depth of her true love forOrlando. Shakespeare portrays Rosalind’s love both seriously and comically, through the quickness of her wit and her sense of humor when dealing with Orlando. As You Like It conveys Shakespeare’s belief that â€Å"true love† does exist in human love through a bizarre tale of unconditional love.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Twelfth Night portrays Shakespeare’s notion that â€Å"true love† will overcome all adversity. Shakespeare masks the identity of Viola, but contrary to the character of Rosalind, Viola finds herself caught between being in love, and being the love of Olivia. The concealing of the identity of Viola challenges her to honor her â€Å"true love’s† love for Olivia, a loyalty she even agrees to die for.

Design Activities and Environments Essay

1. Review the definitions of architectural and detailed design and the brief descriptions of high-level design activities at the beginning of the chapter. Which activities are clearly architectural? Which are clearly detailed? Which can be architectural or detailed? Designing the support services architecture and deployment environment and designing the software architecture are clearly architectural. Designing use case realizations and designing the database are clearly detailed. Designing the system and user interfaces and designing the system security and controls can be architectural or detailed. 2. Discuss the evolution of client-server computing from file server to multilayer applications to Web-based applications. What has been the driving force causing this evolution? Where do you think network computing will be in the next five years? Ten years? Cheaper computers, and networks, ubiquitous networking, and the desire of companies to increase the accessibility of their systems to increase the customer base/satisfaction, gain efficiencies from greater inter- and intraorganization coordination, and greater flexibility to reorganize people, processes, and systems. 3. Assume that the deployment environment for a high-volume payment processing system consists of the following: †¢ DB2 DBMS running under the OS/390 operating system on an IBM S/390 mainframe †¢ WebSphere application server running under the Z/OS operating system on an IBM zSeries 900 mainframe †¢ CORBA-compliant component-based application software written in Java that will be executed by other internal and external systems What are the key architectural design decisions that must be made for the system? When should the decisions be made and who should make them? Outline the subsequent design tasks that should occur after the key architectural design decisions are made. To what extent can the subsequent steps be performed in parallel? Some key architectural decisions to explore include: the key components and subsystems, where each component will execute and how will all of the pieces interoperate (which requires nailing down how the network, CORBA, and database infrastructure will be configured)? Many of the decisions depend on whether the supporting infrastructure is already in place. If it is, then many of the architectural decisions can be delayed until much code has been written and tested. If not, then the required infrastructure and tools will have to be acquired and configured. Developers will have to be trained, and architectural design will need to occur early to ensure that the developers don’t make any â€Å"mistakes† due to lack of fit with the development or deployment environment. Note that an OO development approach is assumed given the nature of the infrastructure and tools 4. Develop a network diagram that supports the architectural design decisions in your answer to number 2. Answers will vary. Some important points that should be included are: File servers just sent the data across the network. They tended to use lots of bandwidth, because the entire file was sent. Also, since the applications that processed the data were on all the different workstations, deployment and maintenance of these applications was expensive. Application servers moved the applications from the workstations (clients) to the server. This made it easier to maintain a consistent set of applications and to upgrade the applications. This movement was influenced by the appearance of â€Å"thin clients† that had very little storage, but good processing capability. However, due to the drastic reduction in storage costs, thin clients have not caught on. Multi-tier networks are where multiple servers and clients work together to provide the complete functionality of a system. Some processing will be on the clients. Servers such as database servers and application servers provide additional capability. The driving force behind much of this is the rapid growth and capability of the Internet and languages such as JAVA with protocols such as J2EE. Microsoft’s .NET also provides capabilities to have distributed systems. Answers for the future will vary.

Personal Identity †Philosophy Essay

It is easy to see oneself as the same person we were ten, twenty, or fifty years ago. We can define identity through our physical presence, life experiences, memories, and mental awareness of self. One can testify our persistence as a person through our existence as a person. But what makes us the same person? In this paper, I will argue for the â€Å"simple† view of the persistence of identity – that it is impossible to determine what single thing that makes us the same person over time. I will support my claim with the refutation of the main complex view claims of the body, brain and psychological continuity criterion. Entrenched in the â€Å"simple† view is the idea that personal identity, and the persistence of personal identity, cannot be measured through philosophical discourse or scientific investigation. There are a number of opposing arguments, known as complex theories of personal identity. In each of these arguments, the central claim is that either the body, the brain, or the psychological continuity of an individual determines how they persist as the same person (Garrett, 1998, p 52). To call them complex is a misnomer – for each is far too narrow to properly define and explain personal identity. Complex argument 1– Psychological continuity John Locke defines a person as a ‘thinking, intelligent being, that has reason and reflection and can consider itself as itself, the same thinking thing, in different times and places’ (Locke, 1689, p 1-6). This statement suggests that, in order to persist as the same person, we must have a mental consciousness which persists through time. We can say that a person is psychologically continuous if they have a mental state that is descendent from their previous mental states. For example, this theory states that a five-year-old will be the same person when they are a 25-year-old, because their mental state in later years is descendent from their earlier years. Counter argument By its very nature, the idea of psychological continuity is flawed. It is not uncommon for an individual’s mental state to be changed so drastically that they could not truly be considered the same person. Several examples have been made by Waller: sufferers of cognitive impairments such as dementia, people who have gone through stressful or traumatic situations, and war eterans that are affected by post-traumatic stress disorder (Waller, 2011, p 198-210). In any of these cases, it would be difficult to argue that the individual has a continuous mental state – more accurate would be to describe them as a â€Å"snap† or â€Å"break† that, effectively, creates a new person. The only conclusion is that these individuals do not persist, as their psychological states become radically different from their previous psychological states. Complex argument 2 – Persistence of the body Another expression of the complex view is the body criterion. Put simply, a person is said to persist if they exist in the same physical body over time. In this case, the previously mentioned dementia or PTSD sufferers would be considered the same people, as their physical body has continued. The theory suggests a â€Å"brute physical relation† between body and identity (Korfmacher, 2006). Without regard for mental state, an individual is considered to have a persistent personal identity as long as their body survives. Counter argument This theory lends itself easily to thought experiments, and they quickly expose some problems. If individual A receives an organ donation from individual B, can it be said that individual A has taken some of B’s identity? Surely not. It would be absurd to suggest that having the kidney or liver of another person would affect one’s persistence as an individual. Similarly, if individual C had their body cloned, it would not make their clone the same person. There is much more to personal identity than can be defined by something so comparatively insignificant as the physical body. Complex argument 3 – Persistence of the brain The brain is the functional centre of the human body; the place where memories are stored, feelings are felt, and environmental signals are processed. It is unsurprising, therefore, that the brain is so often considered to be the â€Å"home† of personal identity. This theory is a staple of many science fiction texts – as a convention, the cognizant â€Å"brain in a jar† or brain transplant recipient is fairly common. Proponents of this â€Å"we are our brains† theory claim that, so long as the brain persists, so does the person. Counter argument This theory seems to refer to consciousness rather than the physicality of the brain, so it is important to make a clarification between the two. Julian Baggini suggests that we should view the relationship between consciousness and identity similarly to the relationship between a musical score and the paper it is written on (Baggini, 2005, pp. 112-114). In other words, the brain is simply a storage space for our memories, thoughts, and self-awareness. Should it not, therefore, be so that an individual could simply persist as a brain in a jar, provided they could be sustained in that state? If the entirety of personal identity is stored in the brain, there must be no need for the rest of the body beyond keeping the brain alive. Such a theory could not possibly be true – life experiences and interactions with the world are such an intrinsic part of identity that we could not persist without them. The theory that consciousness plays a significant role in the persistence of personal identity is appealing, but it can not be said that the brain alone could sustain consciousness. Conclusion  To call the simple view of the persistence of personal identity â€Å"simple† is almost deceptive; deep consideration on the subject quickly turns towards the complex. It is easy to grasp at the categories of body, brain, and mental state, but it would be wrong to say that the persistence of any of those equates to the persistence of an individual. Personal identity is something so much harder to define, and it is harder still to find definitive measures of its continuation. Personal identity is evasive, and fleeting; it is intangible, ever-changing. Its persistence is so much more than can be determined.

Autonomy in Death Essay

Physician-assisted suicide is a controversial topic with only a few states having legalized it; however, many groups are advocating for its approval. Physician-assisted suicide has ethical limitations that only allow a doctor to prescribe, not administer, a lethal dose of medication for a patient who has been deemed terminally ill with less than six months to live by two physicians. The prescription allows the patient to choose both the timing and setting of death and the physician’s only role is provision of medication. This gifts patients with autonomy in their death and relieves the doctor of any moral burden in participation with death keeping this action an ethical practice. Oregon was the first of few states to have legalized physician-assisted suicide but I would like to argue its potential advantages to the entire United States. Ball (2010) said, â€Å"In Oregon — the one state in the U.S. where assisted suicide is legal – doctors are allowed to help onl y state residents who are expected to die within six months† (p.1). Giving terminally ill patients the power to choose a peaceful death demonstrates empathy toward the ill patients and their families. Terminally ill patients without this empowerment face the difficult choice of using limited resources to end their lives if not given the legal freedom to choose how and when they die. The Code of Ethics for Nurses provision 1.4 is the right to self-determination and it states that Respect for human dignity requires the recognition of specific patient rights, particularly, the right to self-determination. Self-determination, also known as autonomy, is the philosophical basis for informed consent in health care. Patients have the moral and legal right to determine what will be done with their own person; to be given accurate, complete, and understandable information in a manner that facilitates an informed judgment; to be assisted with weighing the benefits, burdens, and available options in their treatment; to accept, refuse, or terminate treatment without deceit, undue influence, duress, coercion, or penalty; and to be given necessary support throughout the decision-making and treat ment process. Such support would include the opportunity to make decisions with family and significant others and the provision of advice and support from knowledgeable nurses and other health professionals. Patient should be involved in planning their own health care to the extent they are able to choose to participate (American nurses association, 2001, p.148). Giving this added right to chose physician assisted suicide allows patients the autonomy described in the Nursing Code of Ethics. The purpose of this paper is to argue that physician-assisted suicide is ethical and beneficial because it allows for patient autonomy. â€Å"I would argue that by denying terminally ill people recourse to death with dignity via physician prescribed medication, they are inflicting their own brand of coercion and abuse. The concept of a â€Å"merciful death† needs to be part of this discussion. It is a sad commentary that our society responds to our pets’ terminal suffering more humanely than to our fellow human beings’ end-of-life struggles†(â€Å"Death is best approached†, 2012, p. 1). Many feel that denying patients the right to choose is not advocating for their b est interest and is a form of abuse. We wouldn’t leave our ill family pet alive to suffer so why wouldn’t we consider letting our loved ones put themselves out of their misery in a peaceful way? The entire point is to give the public a choice. It would still be up to each individual to decide whether or not to exercise that right if their physician deemed their situation appropriate. The Code of Ethics for Nurses says that â€Å"Respect for human dignity requires the recognition of specific patient rights, particularly, the right of self-determination† (American nurses association, 2001, p.148). This statement implies that the patient should have the right to make end of life decisions on their own. When terminal patients are in pain and suffering, they may not have the strength or will to fight any longer. It is cruel to prolong a patient’s pain and suffering and deny their autonomy to make the decision of having a peaceful death. Also, it can be argued that when patients have their mind set on ending their lives, they tend to follow through on their own even if their physician cannot assist them. This may lead to a more traumatic death and a scene that can be quite traumatizing for the family member or friend who finds their loved one’s remains. The alternative is a prescribed medicine that the patient may take home, choosing the preferred place to die, to allow the patient to die peacefully without sustaining disfiguring injuries thus allowing them a more dignified burial if the family chooses to view the body one last time. However, in most of the United States, physician-assisted suicide is still illegal so very few Americans are afforded the right to choose to end their life when they are terminally ill. Because physician assisted suicide was brought to the public’s attention as an option by the unconventional tactics of Dr. Jack Kevorkian, the idea of legalizing this was tainted from the beginning, making many states hesitant to allow assisted suicide. Miller (2011) notes that â€Å"Jack Kevorkian rose to national prominence as â€Å"Dr. Death,† a physician who insisted that sometimes a doctor’s first duty to his patient was to help him die. The retired pathologist, who became an assisted suicide advocate claiming to have had a hand in 130 deaths in the 1990s, helped spark a national debate over euthanasia† (p. A5). Jack Kevorkian’s tactics were questionable because he publicized the deaths of elderly, disabled, and terminally-ill patients using inhaled carbon dioxi de or using his self-made suicide machine. Although the patients had asked for Dr. Kevorkian’s assistance to end their suffering by assisting in their suicide, he received a lot of negative attention because he publicized his assistance in this process by encouraging CBS to broadcast a video of himself injecting a cocktail of lethal drugs into a patient suffering from Lou Gehrig’s disease (Miller, 2011). After much backlash from the public over the fact that he actually injected patients with lethal drugs, he developed a suicide machine which allowed the patient to press a button that caused the machine to administer a mixture of sodium pentothal and potassium chloride which was first used on Janet Adkins, a 54 year old sufferer of Alzheimer’s disease (Miller, 2011). â€Å"The last thing Janet Adkins said was, ‘You just make my case known,'† Dr. Kevorkian told the Associated Press† (Miller, 2011, p. A5). Although his tactics were extreme and caused a lot of public controversy, his patie nts wanted to end their suffering and his actions caused others to advocate for ethical standards to be put into place for legal physician assisted suicide while at the same time completely turning others away from the concept of legalizing euthanasia. Dr. Goodwin, a general practitioner, said he began advocating for the right to help terminally ill people die after listening to his patients (Miller, 2012). â€Å"They want autonomy at this time, to be allowed to die at home with the comfort and support of their families,† Dr. Goodwin said in a 2001 interview (Miller, 2012, p. 1). Because of the extreme tactics used by Jack Kevorkian, who initiated the debate on legalizing euthanasia, many people view those who advocate for the client’s right of physician assisted suicide as cruel or lacking in empathy for patient and families. However, â€Å"Peter Goodwin, a family physician who wrote and campaigned for Oregon’s right-to-die law in the 1990s, died after taking a cocktail of lethal drugs prescribed by his doctor, as allowed under the legislation he championed. Dr. Goodwin, 83 years old, had been diagnosed with a degenerative brain disorder similar to Parkinson’s disease and had been given less than six m onths to live.†(Miller, 2012, p. 1). Dr. Goodwin believed in a patient’s autonomy in death so much that he chose to exercise his own rights in the same fashion in order to end his own suffering. In an interview with the Oregonian, the local newspaper in Oregon, Dr. Goodwin said that his health was deteriorating and he would soon end his life. â€Å"His family gathered to bid him farewell. ‘The situation needs thought, it doesn’t need hope,’ he said. ‘Hope is too ephemeral at that time’†(Miller, 2012, p. 1). This clearly articulates the feelings of a terminally ill man towards the importance of autonomy in concern of his own death. â€Å"End-of-life decisions are not arbitrary or impulsive. Why shouldn’t a person choose to end his or her life with dignity if it is obvious that all options for leading any kind of meaningful life are non-existent? I would think any modicum of compassion would respect such a momentous, personal decision. Suffering, physical and mental, and the anguish it causes should produce empathy for the patient’s wishes and desires, even if they run counter to our own sense of rectitude. It is not about us. It’s about the patient’s right of autonomy. We need to understand that it is ultimately his or her decision to make, not ours†(Death is best approached, 2012, p. 1). In this statement, an unknown author expressed the utmost sympathy for those suffering from terminal illness. Physician assisted suicide is ethical as it demonstrates compassion and empathy towards someone else’s pain, suffering, and rights. There is nothing cruel about autonomy over the decision to die. These kinds of laws need to be considered using a deep emotional understanding of the terminally ill’s feelings and problems. Other countries have legalized euthanasia and have less restrictive laws which allow them to provide services for foreigners. Because of this, if all United States citizens aren’t granted the autonomy they desire in their own country they will still be able to get the results they so desperately want but the outcome may be more painful to family members whose loved ones would end up dying in other countries and in less desirable conditions. Mr. Minelli, who is head of Dignitas, a Swiss company that provides euthanasia services only to foreigners, said that â€Å"a memory of his seriously ill grandmother’s pleading in vain with her doctor to help her die left him with a particular interest in Switzerland’s growing right-to-die movement, and he joined one of the main groups. In 1998, he quit to found Dignitas†(Ball, 2010, p. 2). In 2008, his neighbors’ complaints forced Dignitas out of his rented apartment that he had been using to conduct the assisted suicides and Zurich city officials refused permission for a new venue. In response to this Mr. Minelli organized suicides in cars, a hotel room, industrial sites, and his own home which drew the attention of local officials. â€Å"Someone who is used to a five-star hotel can’t come to Dignitas and expect the same,† says Mr. Minelli†(Ball, 2010, p. 2). Is it really beneficial to force terminally ill patients into a foreign country to a harsh environment to grant them the freedom to end their own lives? If terminally ill patients really want a physician assisted suicide, they will find another setting in which they can achieve one but allowing patients to have one in their own country optimizes the setting and allows for more family support near the time of death. It also saves the family the trouble of getting the body of a loved one from a foreign country after the time of death and allows the family to begin funeral arrangements sooner so that they can go through the stages of grieving that they need to in order to move forward with their own lives. This act of ending the life sooner also spares the family the pain of watching their loved one suffer longer than they want to. Another benefit to approving physician assisted suicide is that just know that the option is available can be therapeutic for terminal patients. â€Å"Mr. Minelli argues that making assisted suicide available removes a taboo around suicide, helping people who want to kill themselves open a dialogue and seek help. About 70% of people who get the green light from Dignitas for an assisted suicide never contact the group again, proving the palliative effect of knowing help is available, he says†(Ball, 2010, p. 2). This clearly proves that just knowing that euthanasia is an option is enough to help patients carry on with terminal illness. Even if a patient chooses never to exercise the right to a physician assisted suicide, the knowledge that they have an option for a way out of their suffering is comforting in itself. Craig Ewert was a retired university professor who suffered from Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS) or Lou Gehrig’s disease. He decided to end his life because he wanted to make this decision before he lost the ability to decide his own fate, overcoming the resistance of his doctors (Ball, 2010). â€Å"When you’re completely paralyzed and can’t talk, how do you let someone know you are suffering?† he told a television interviewer before his death in September 2006. â€Å"This could be a complete and utter hell† (Ball, 2010, p. 3). Mr and Mrs. Ewerts were from the U.K. but they traveled to Switzerland and chose Mr. Minelli’s group, Dignitas, because it accepts foreigners. Mrs. Ewert said that had she not been able to travel to get her husband the assisted suicide services that he desired she may have been forced to help her husband die and she worried that she wouldn’t have known exactly what to do (Ball, 2010). She defended Mr. Minelli saying â€Å"Sure, there have to be some protections for people, but I think we’re going way beyond what there needs to be, I admire Minelli for being willing to take the heat† (Ball, 2010, p. 3). Because Craig Ewert was allowed to make his own decision to die, his wife was spared the pressure that he may have put on her to help him end his life. Furthermore, had he been denied the right to make his own decision and his wife Mary had been coerced to help him commit suicide, there would have been extreme emotional and possibly even legal consequences to her action despite the fact that it was her husband’s wish. This is a situation that may Americans are also threatened with because physician assisted suicide is illegal in most of the country. All United States citizens should be afforded the right to choose a physician assisted suicide if they have been deemed terminally ill because this freedom shows compassion and empathy towards the patient’s suffering. If patients aren’t allowed to legally choose death here, they may travel to another country to receive services or chose to carry out suicide on their own. If patients chose to take matters into their own hands this would be harder on the patient as the death would probably not be as peaceful as the lethal injection that the physician would prescribe and if would also be harder on the patient’s loved ones. If patients decide to go to another country to achieve the death they desire they would lose the privilege of dying in their own comfort zone and the distance would make the death harder on the family to make funeral arrangements and move on with their own lives. The Code of Ethics for Nurses stated that â€Å"Respect not just for the specific decision but also for the patient’s method of decision-making is consistent with the principle of autonomy† (American nurses association, 2001, p.149). Regardless of whether or not we understand an individuals motivation for seeking a physician assisted suicide, nurses should support the autonomy that patients needs to make this choice on their own. Giving terminally ill patients autonomy in their death, by making physician assisted legal for every United States citizen, is only giving patients additional rights that they may or may not chose to exercise and is the most compassionate way to show empathy for those who are dying.

Analysis and Evaluation of an Argument Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words - 1

Analysis and Evaluation of an Argument - Essay Example Since then, the desire to develop anti-ageing strategies grew in him. He has done several researches and merged them with logic ideas. That is why he says that ageing is rather a curable disease is any other. His reasoning is based on the body tissue that results in metabolism. He said the effects of metabolism are what brings about growing old in human beings. He felt the need to enable people not to lose the ones they love anymore due to health issues, lack of liveliness, and the ability of functioning in ageing process (De Grey, 210). He felt this loss had to stop since the majority of the people that died due to old age always had agonizing and very expensive death. The expense was due to that old people were vulnerable to lots of diseases and there most of the time is spent with medical assistance. Old people are not productive. This is because they can hardly assist in any job. They are therefore seen as valueless in the society. Aubrey De Grey has developed seven biological related steps to help slow the ageing process of human being. These steps help to repair the damaged organs in the body ones the ageing process crops in the body (De Grey, 222). Accumulation of damaged organs in the tissue of the body is what brings about diseases and other problem that result in death in old age. Cellular damages occur seven ways in the ageing process. Therefore, the seven steps are to help clean the junk of the cells both inside and outside. As people age, there tend to be worn out cells that need to be removed and protein cross-linking in the body. The bad cells are the one that causes the diseases of old age and therefore, they need removal and the body needs to be induced to produce new one. Prevention is always said to be better than cure. Dr Grey uses the quote a lot and says that people should not wait until they develop ageing problems to be cured. They should be earlier precautions and preventions to old

The Doctrine of Precedent Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

The Doctrine of Precedent - Essay Example The purpose of this paper is to discuss the Doctrine of Precedent which is considered as both a blessing and a curse. Legal systems within the United Kingdom were established for the most part on judge-made law, the laws developed through decisions by judges on cases brought before them. This is commonly called "common law" or case-law. Every jurisdiction developed its own forms of common law, with special note that Scotland being especially distinct from the rest. Correspondingly, in accordance to the call and tests of times, new laws as well as law reform have increasingly been brought about through Acts of Parliament. These laws are usually inspired by the policies and advocacies of the Government. As such, the progress and enhancement of case-law nevertheless remains an important source of law. The statement of law made by a judge in a case before his or her court, subsequently turn out to be binding on later judges and can in this way develop into the law for everyone to follow. It has been said that the depth and force of English law is that it is developed upon the specific example of case law rather than hypothetical models. In line with this, the lawyers will device a sufficient and effective case management system to be able to argue his or her client's case rationally and logically. The following are good examples to consider in the effective case management to wit: What legal principles are involved Or what is the cause of action Following this, it is advisable to consider as to what is the relevant law regarding the principles in the instant case. There after, sufficient pieces of evidence must be considered to prove or defend the case. And finally, which court has authority to hear and decide the case. At this point, it is important to state that the Doctrine of Precedents usually refer to the cases examined and considered by the Court of Appeal or the House of Lords. A statement of law made by a judge in a case can become binding on later judges and can in this way become the law for everyone to follow. The pronouncement must be made by a court of sufficient seniority. In general, judges at the lowest echelon of decision making, the courts of first instance, are not allowed to issue binding precedents. These judges may not be hearing full legal arguments but are concentrating on factual findings. Accordingly, it is the higher courts which issue binding rulings and the lower courts must follow them. Similarly, the pronouncement must have formed the ratio decidendi of the case. The reasoning must be a matter pertaining to the law rather than the factual decision. In addition, the pronouncement must not be obiter dictum. An obiter dictum refers to something said either about the law or the facts of the case which are not strictly necessary for the legal basis for the decisions. It is only the ratio decidendi which will be binding. It will comprise the legal principles and rules which are necessary to solve the problem before the court. Obiter dicta are not binding, however, they may be dealt with as a persuasive authority, wherein the later judges are entitled to read them and be influenced by them, but they are not obliged to follow these parts of judicial pronouncements. It is important to stress out that the Doctrine of Precedents are not concerned as to who won or lost in the case. The Doctrine speaks of the legal princip

Coaching and mentoring for leadership and Management; Evaluative Essay

Coaching and mentoring for leadership and Management; Evaluative report - The role of coaching and mentoring in organisational development and knowledge management - Essay Example ing those individual who tend to be more experienced in a particular field along with relatively less knowledgeable individuals who do not have much knowledge in the similar field (National College for School Leadership, 2010). The main task of a manager is to get results through people as well as other resources. Since most of the industries are becoming more reliant upon knowledge as well as service, people as well as their skill and performance are a top managerial concern. Companies possess greater interest in the capabilities of their employees that they endeavour to develop by means of formal and on-the-job training and progressive job assignments. They further expect managers as well as supervisors to develop employee capacity by means of coaching and mentoring. The main objective of the report is to identify whether or not the adoption of coaching and mentoring system can be utilised in order to train the staffs required to occupy the highly skilled positions that organisations might find it increasingly difficult to fill in the near future. The report will further attempt at offering numerous definitions regarding what coaching and mentoring are and how they must be utilised as part of the organisations knowledge management system. The costs as well as benefits associated to the organisation in introducing such systems will also be highlighted. Furthermore, the report’s objective will be to outline how organisations can deliver high quality coaching and mentoring to the employees and the key performance indicators that organisations can utilise to judge the ongoing success of such a system. Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD) views mentoring as a development of abilities as well as potentials in the role to be played by an individual rather than developing their performance and skills. It can be comprehended as specific learning along with development interference that can be utilised in a wide way however in a specific situation

Creating an Online Interactive Tutorial to Assist Teachers for Literature review

Creating an Online Interactive Tutorial to Assist Teachers for Tutoring the A-Level computing Curriculum of Database Concepts - Literature review Example Furthermore, the style and strategy of teaching changes by the Professors according to the need of the syllabus of diverse courses and assessment examination transforms as well (Blue Tutors, 2010). Particularly from the different courses of the ‘A’ level, Computer Science is one of the courses that has absolutely diverse syllabus of the other courses, moreover, there are diverse methods of assessment criteria of computer science subjects. The database design concepts are the core part of the computer science subject as they are more commonly used in our professional life. Mainly, the document discuses Database Design, a topic of computer science chosen for development of an Online Interactive Tutorial to assist the teachers for tutoring the A Level computing curriculum of Database concepts. The document discusses the reasons for selection of topics, the strategies that are undertaken by the teachers to teach the computer courses, the syllabus and assessment criteria carr ied out by AQA (past examination paper and reports), the difficulties faced by students and common mistakes by the students in exams. The document presents the reviews on the traditional and existing methods to teach the topic of Database Design, identifies the problems in the existing teaching methods, specific problematic areas for students in database modelling, the requirement specifications for development of Online Tutorial to assist the teachers to educate the students regarding the database concepts. The main objective of the document is to identify a new teaching mechanism that would help the teachers to instruct the learners regarding the computer science topic of the database design subject in an effective manner. So that the students would be able recognize and categorize their mistakes through the use of the tutorial. Topic Selection The Database concepts are a vital part of the computing science curriculum. A database can only be useful if it has been developed on a go od data model. A database model is a graphical representation of the user requirement for the development of the database and mapping the graphical form of a combination of tables employed in a physical database system. In terms of teaching, the database normalisation is one of the difficult and critical topics in the database concepts for the students of ‘A’ level. The most of the problems of poor data quality arise as the result of inappropriate design include redundant data and anomalies. The major goals of a normalized database design include elimination of redundant and inconsistent data, uncomplicated representation of information, elimination of insert, update and delete anomalies. Due to the fact, the topic of database normalisation becomes the most critical topic in the database design because the quality of data is dependent on the quality of database normalisation process (Mannino, 2006). The process of database normalisation is difficult not only for the stu dents of ‘A’ level, but the teachers also face difficulties to instruct the different normalisation forms. The students understand the underlying concepts of the normalisation process including the 1NF, 2NF, 3NF, 4NF and 5NF, however, when they have been given a scenario mostly students mess up with implementing and converting the database tables from one Normal form to another. Usually the students