The Problem And Proposed Solutions

The Digital Divide debate encompasses issues that are of social, economic and political import. Meaning to say, the issues regarding the digital divide, as a phenomenon and as a current concern that needs to be addressed, is not merely limited to the issue of the existing disparity in terms of access to technology which transverses different sectors of society. This paper attempts to explicate the digital divide, the debate and the foundational issues concerning the phenomenon/problem.In line with the main task of this paper is the identification of the two most important obstacles that need to be overcome and the two important things that the government needs to create in dealing with the digital divide. In meeting the demands of a global economy, technological advancements especially in the field of telecommunications and information technology are key factors in making possible various transactions faster, cheaper, more reliable and convenient. Needless to say, these technological advances are important tools if companies and other business ventures are to survive in the digital economy.These technological advancements however, are evolving far too fast which consequently generate pressing problems that ought to be considered. On a preliminary note, the aforementioned rapid technological evolution poses serious questions if our societal structures can rapidly adapt to these changes and more importantly, if we, ourselves can rapidly adapt and be able to integrate for ourselves these changes. A good example is the Internet and the online community and it is to this topic that we shall now turn.A fuller understanding of the digital divide phenomenon necessitates an understanding of its underpinnings. As Pippa Norris contends, â€Å"the digital divide is understood as a multidimensional phenomenon encompassing three distinct aspects† (Norris). These three distinct aspects according to Norris are the global divide, social divide and democratic divide, resp ectively. Norris elucidates further, â€Å"The global divide refers to divergence of Internet access between industrialized and developing societies.The social divide concerns the gap between the information rich and poor in each nation. And lastly, within the online community, the democratic divide signifies the difference between those who do, and do not, use the panoply of digital resources to engage, mobilize and participate in public life† (Norris). One may thus infer that these three aspects related to the issue of ‘access’ to the Internet involve not mere social, but also economic and political considerations.In an article entitled, What is the Digital Divide, Harouna Ba makes a similar point as Norris. Ba writes, â€Å"lack of access to networked technology will result in a substantial segment of society having neither the skills nor the means to participate in the progressively more knowledge-based U. S. economy† (Ba). As Ba contends, there is a f elt need to address the issue of access along with the social, economic and political considerations that it entails. At this point, the emphasis is on what Norris calls disadvantaged communities.As mentioned earlier, these communities lack not merely access but also and more importantly, the necessary skills and the means to participate in the digital world. Ba identifies a number of obstacles in dealing with the digital divide phenomenon/problem. But, as I reckon it, in relation to the issue of access, the two most important obstacles in dealing with the digital divide are the issues of the disadvantaged communities’ not having the skills that are necessary and their lack of the means that are necessary.These two are barriers to technological access. One may thus infer that the issue of access only becomes a legitimate issue because of these two obstacles. Again, it is not merely a matter of providing the communities with a greater access to computers and the Internet by lo wering the cost of the hardware and software that hardware and software companies manufacture and sell in the market nor is it merely a matter of increasing the ratio of computers to students in our schools and other institutions of learning.This will not solve the digital divide. The solution to the problem lies on our capability to the address the needs of the disadvantaged communities. There is a need for intervention, so to speak. The government has a significant role in addressing these needs. However, the government’s intervention will not suffice. There is a need for a multi-sectoral cooperation in addressing the needs of disadvantaged communities. A crucial question comes into the scenario. What needs to be done?As Ba sees it, what is needed is to develop community-based technology programs that will support the needs of disadvantaged communities. Ba writes, â€Å"Community technology access models are often grounded on community needs and encompass multiple goals to strengthen neighborhoods, educate youth, promote economic development, connect individuals to the social and economic life of the community, and increase participation in civil society† (Ba). It is of utmost importance that we first assess the needs of the community so that we may provide the appropriate solutions.Furthermore, it is important that technology programs be based on the needs of disadvantaged communities so that these communities themselves may have the opportunity to identify and thereby, integrate what the vital functions of technology are to them and the opportunities that it can provide for them. Such an integration entails that a disadvantaged community sees the relevance of technology in their lives. It may thus be inferred that for Ba, the digital divide may be addressed by people empowerment.Our concerted efforts must be directed to empowering the disadvantaged sectors of society. How can this be done? People empowerment is made possible through community education. As Ba contends, there is a lot of work to be done especially in â€Å"the areas of learning and teaching with and/or about advanced technologies in informal settings for under-served communities† (Ba). This is one of the main reason why government initiatives and interventions in the past only had a limited success in dealing with the digital divide phenomenon.There indeed are initiatives and interventions but they do not address the problem. They miss the point, so to speak. As Ba notes, state governments attempt to address the digital divide via two government agencies; the Public Utility Commission (PUC) and the Department of Education. The PUC by appealing to telecommunication companies and the likes for universal service and the Department of Education by making provisions for computers in school for those students that do not have access to a computer and the Internet at home.These attempts miss the point because they have been made on the unfounded assumpti on that the digital divide issue is merely an issue of ‘access’ and thus, can be solved by making computers and the Internet more accessible to individuals. But what can these initiatives and interventions accomplish if in the first place, the problem is that individuals from disadvantaged sectors of society lack the necessary skills and the means to be able to access and thereby, utilize technology? The plain truth of the matter is that technology evolves much faster than society can adapt to it.Furthermore, why limit the provisions with the students? Why not youth in general? Why exclude out-of-school youth? This merely shows that the limited success of state initiatives and interventions may be explained by the fact that their assumption is unfounded and that their digital divide programs are not grounded on community needs and thus, ineffective. The digital divide phenomenon/problem is not merely a problem of access. The preceding discussion makes it clear that it i s not a mere matter of identifying â€Å"the have from the have not†.Even this distinction is grounded on further distinctions in terms of the social, economic and the political. These further distinctions albeit different from each other, are very closely interrelated that they all affect changes in the others. Human society is complex. It is not simply a social system. It is also a political system and every political system is also an economic system. The human mind too is complex. There are countless possibilities in terms of scientific and technological advancements. Science and technology evolves too fast.In contrast to science and technology, our societal structures and institutions do not. They do not because there are many other significant things to consider. Perhaps, this is the predicament of our time. Works Cited Ba, Harouna. â€Å"What Is Digital Divide†. August 20 2007. . Norris, Pippa. Digital Divide: Civic Engagement, Information Poverty, and the Inter net Worldwide (Communication, Society and Politics). Cambridge Cambridge University Press, 2001.

College is Worth it in the End Essay

Right now in our century, a college education is no longer an option, but a necessity. Many college students at universities around the world all have one big question when entering into their next step of education. A college student’s biggest problem when entering school is whether or not their college degree is worth going into debt and how they will afford tuition, books, activity fees, etc. There are different opinions from both sides that contain a valid argument. I believe college is definitely worth possibly going into debt. Here are some statistics from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The BLS announced in 2011 that the unemployment rate for people with college credits but no degree was eight point seven percent. That number plummeted to four point nine percent for people who earned a bachelor’s degree and three point six percent for those with a master’s degree. There are salary benefits as well. In that same year, those who did not finish college earned seven hundred nineteen dollars per week, while college graduates earned approximately one thousand fifty-three dollars per week and those with graduate degrees earned one thousand two hundred and sixty-three dollars per week. A growing number of students suffer soaring college debt, many questions are being raised about the value of higher education and the job offerings in a struggling economy (BLS.) The main reason why people go to college is not because they want to but because they have to. Nowadays it is hard to get a decent paying job without a college degree. Going to college and getting a degree does not necessarily guarantee that a student is going to get a job right after graduation. A student needs to get a job as soon as possible after graduating to pay back all student loans and debts. The main question asked today is, â€Å"Is College really worth going into debt?† Kaycie Sonnier a freshman says, â€Å"It really depends on if you are going to college for a high paying career choice.† It is not that some majors are worthless, but that students have to face the reality of how they are going to pay back the money they have borrowed for their education. Many students enter college without knowing what degree they want to major in. Sonnier believes college is worth the debt you may possibly fall under. She believes there are rewards for going to college and finishing with a degree. Being able to get a high paying job right out of college will help pay off any loans taken out (Sonnier.) Student loans have helped many students be able to experience the college life without having to pay up front for tuition. To a large extent, debt is unavoidable, and some students graduate with some amount of it. Students like Joshua Sonnier who only completed two semesters of college says, â€Å"Hell no college is not worth going into debt.† Sonnier had the opportunity to get on at a job that did not require a college degree. â€Å"I work as a train conductor making more money than most people who do go to college. I got hired on and immediately started taking classes that my company paid for, passed my entire test and became a certified conductor. This did not cost me any money out of my pocket, and I do not have to worry about paying back any type of student loans† (Sonnier.) Some individuals feel like college is just a waste of money and time. There are definitely pros and cons when it comes to college. I think college can either be some of the best years of one’s life or it can be an absolute nightmare. College is all about how you make it. In the end having a diploma will absolutely be worth the debt that may come along throughout your journey through college. Works Cited Home page. U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2012. Web. 14 February 2013. Sonnier, Joshua. Personal Interview. 6 February 2013. Sonnier, Kaycie. Personal Interview. 6 February 2013.

Jazz Essay

Raised in a home where melodies are often played in the instruments we have or even just hummed by a family member while doing chores, I have grown to love pieces of music especially opera, orchestra and the classics. So when my friends, who are musicians themselves, invited me to one of the performances of a jazz band during the celebration of the University’s anniversary last July 9 at The Technopark, I was feeling rather apprehensive. It is not as what you would expect my genre of choice. I have always typified this particular field as an African-American influenced rhythmic and instrumental form of music. My ears were almost involuntarily programmed to have an distaste to these tunes. But since they started to play, I forgot my earlier impression because I was already enjoying the concert. Savoring the pleasure of listening to the upbeat of jazz music, I was jazzed up and entirely enthralled with the soulful performance of the Jazz Ensemble. In the hands of trumpeter Roy Barja, trombonist Marko Geron, bassist Jeff Flores and saxophonist Brad Cruz, the contrivances took on a unique character, and one whose ebullience can hardly be contained. The ensemble started with a bang of Jazz Story playing different types of jazz music that evolved within the through time until the modern jazz of today. Then, the members of Jazz Ensemble played classics like Victor Young’s â€Å"When I Fall in Love†, George Gershwin’s â€Å"Someone to Watch Over Me† and â€Å"Pink Panther†. With the variety of instruments involved, lush harmonies and textures satiated my ears’ desire for excellent sounds. Each artist had a chance for a nippy glare of publicity. He would play short melodic fragments meant to be repeated by a section of the band with growing passion. They masterfully serenaded and entertained the audience through vocalist Mara Duran who did vocals on â€Å"Orange-colored Sky† and â€Å"It had to be You†. The group kept the crowd swaying and crooning on our seats in time with the beat. Jazz took my heart out from the first notes that had drifted from the instruments up until the faintest tune that was whispered by the wind. That night, I closed my eyes with a trace of smile upon my lips as I hum a segment from the song Love is Here to Stay.

Strategic Supply Chain Management in United Arab Emirates Research Paper

Strategic Supply Chain Management in United Arab Emirates - Research Paper Example Strategic supply chain management is a new concept that majority of companies with strategic objectives of growth and future continuity and sustainability cannot ignore or under-value. Likewise, companies in UAE are actively being influenced by forces of globalization and as a result, there is increased attention to operate within frameworks of reduced costs, enhanced customer satisfaction, productive cooperation, and collaboration among suppliers, and short lead-time together with decreased inventories. Adoption and implementation of Collaborative Planning Forecasting and Replenishment (CPFR) as supply chain practice in other parts of the world has proved successful and as a result, it is deemed that such an endeavor in Gulf Extrusions Company Ltd will yield numerous benefits as far as supply chain needs of the company are involved. Major objective of this research report is to assess and elaborate on the most effective way adoption and implementation of Collaborative Planning Forec asting and Replenishment (CPFR) supply practice can be achieved at Gulf Extrusions Company Ltd. As a result, detailed analysis of CPFR will be carried out with regard to Strategic supply chain goals of the company.Overview of Gulf Extrusion Company Ltd  Gulf Extrusion is located in the hub-business center of Dubai, in the United Arab Emirates. It was established in 1978 and remains part of the Al Ghurair Group of Companies (Gulf Extrusion n.d). Over the years, the company has evolved.

While historically the courts have sought to carry out the will of Essay

While historically the courts have sought to carry out the will of Parliament, in the field of human rights Parliament will carry out the will of the courts (Lord Borrie). Discuss - Essay Example There is asymmetry and inequality can be seen in the relations of public law, that is the rights of the individuals are decided by the government bodies – both local and central. However, as per the law of doctrine the authorities too need to act within the boundaries of law. It is the government’s duty as well to obey and respect the law. For example a general public, who is unhappy with any decision of the government authority, can seek judicial review. Apart from judicial review general public can challenge the legality of decision made by the government bodies through two other methods. Those are: complaints procedures and ombudsman schemes. In this essay the discussion will revolve around the Parliament and the human rights. The main base of the discussion is upon the famous statement made by Lord Borrie, which says that "...while historically the courts have sought to carry out the will of Parliament, in the field of human rights Parliament will carry out the will of the courts". With this statement Lord Borrie tried to say that though Parliament is the supreme law-making body in the country, it also can legislate on any kind of subject matter (Elliot & Thomas, 2011). The carry out of legislation is solely on the grounds of human rights. The statement also says that like how the court carries out the will of Parliament that is the law made by the Parliament, the Parliament also has to carry out the order of the court is there is any. There is no rule that no Parliament can get restricted by the predecessor or can restrict the power of future parliament. Though there is rule no one, including the court of law, has the right to question the Act of Parliament there are certain constraints that need to be followed so that Parliament also act within the boundaries of law. This act comes under the parliament sovereignty. However, the exercising of unauthorized and oppressive power can be tried under the constitutional

Short Answer Questions Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 2

Short Answer Questions - Essay Example The model acknowledges that the judges’ decisions are controlled by certain constraints. In this regard, judges must act in accordance with the outlined constraints to ensure that justice and fairness are maintained. The legal model acknowledges that the judges submit to the provisions of law. The model recognizes that the judges operate under the provisions of the constitution. The model that best describes the behavior of Supreme Court justices is the legal model. The model highlights the importance of the rule of law in search of justice. In addition, the model outlines the various functions of the constitution in regulating decision-making by judges. In essence, the model provides the structure of the judiciary and the appropriate process to be followed. There exist many differences between courts and public opinion. For instance, the courts are formed in accordance with the constitution and the rule of law. On the other hand, public opinion develops out of people’s view. In addition, the court follows certain procedures in solving disputes while public opinion has no outlined procedure for addressing issues. The phrase that the courts need legitimacy and support from the public to get their policies implemented means that the judicial system must win the public faith to be effective. In essence, the courts require public support in order to make the rulings acceptable and effective. It is worth noting that the courts rely on the members of public for support since the law largely focuses on the well-being of the common people. Apparently, public opinion has a great influence on the decisions made in court (Geer et al. 177) For instance, the court has to seek public views in deciding some cases since they affect the entire society. It is crucial to identify that the court cannot make or decisions on their own. In essence, the members of the public have to be involved at some point. The courts should embrace the public opinion

Who were the anasazi Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 1

Who were the anasazi - Essay Example This ancient Pueblo civilization remains mysterious. Their economic activity was farming, gathering and hunting, especially during famine occasioned by drought and cold weather. The Anasazi people sheltered in clay made pueblos. The pueblos mostly housed many families at a time as expanding an existent pueblo was more convenient compared to erecting a new one. They spoke different languages, including Tiwa, Tewa, Zuni, Keresan, and Hopi. They adorned clothing woven expansive frame looms and always made bracelets, earrings, necklaces, wood, turquoise and armbands. Their footwear included Moccasins, snowshoes and sandals (Hillerman pp25-27). Their religion was based on the belief in the significance of nature and its harmony with the universe. Vital religious practices involved observing the moon, stars, and sun. The Anasazi performed rituals and prayers to appreciate successful harvest and hunting. Clan classification was determined by female bloodline. Conventionally, Pueblo societies were matriclocal and matrilineal. They appreciated unity and rarely went into

Econ 212 G sangkeun Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Econ 212 G sangkeun - Essay Example But Brooks is of the opinion that the haphazard growth of suburban outskirts is now becoming the kind of 'improvement' with people from different nationalities residing there. On the other hand, Katz finds that the suburban growth is a compulsion for the people of mainland as well as the immigrant population. Comparing the views of both the writers, I feel that the views expressed by Katz reflect the situation more realistically the Brooks. Katz calls upon the respective governments to become more responsive towards the growth of suburban areas. He terms the apparent practice of viewing it as the concentration of poorer people in the suburbs not a good policy on the part of the government. While sympathizing with the people settling in the outskirts, Katz finds out that the state laws are also responsible for compounding the problems. Katz states that if the suburbs will continue to be ignored by the governments, then the patterns of metropolitan growth would not only become fiscally, socially, and environmentally unsustainable, but it will also become damaging for our society as well. ii. As we are moving in the 21st century, we are indeed way ahead of the industrial revolution set off by our ancestors in the early 18th century. The world has indeed reaped rich benefits from this industrialization.

In what ways do you anticipate our education system changing at the Assignment

In what ways do you anticipate our education system changing at the national, state, and local levels as a result of global society emphasis - Assignment Example At the state level, many schools are attempting to meet with more advanced international standards in order to keep America competitive. By aligning state-level curriculum with global standards, such as those in the highly-sophisticated United Kingdom learning programs, the U.S. can maintain more globalized focus in training education to ensure transferability of imported or exported expatriate workers. By ensuring all developed countries meet the highest standards of learning, it creates a more unified global curriculum that has multiple benefits to corporations that need human capital. At the local level, the educational system will improve by establishing course content such as team function, building a positive and diverse culture in the classroom, and training for community leadership roles (e.g. local politics or urban engineering) so that local-level city management is able to recruit well-educated talent for these jobs. Local city leaders must coordinate with state-level and national level talents, such as when new development projects have federal funding, thus this team concept must be established for sustaining local community management

Huffman Trucking Essay Example for Free

Huffman Trucking Essay Huffman Trucking is a large organization that provides transportation of goods and services to its customers. In order to better serve these customers and to compete and stay at a high level above other suppliers, Huffman Trucking management enlisted the assistance of Team B to upgrade their companies systems to be able to create, maintain, and report on a database, which tracks the servicing of Huffman Trucking vehicles. Huffman Trucking has a number of business needs that should be met. The system should not require more than a few days of supervision to learn. It should be usable on modestly priced computer systems. Most of all, it should be simple and convenient for the users. The current system is not meeting business objectives because they are not able to tracks the servicing of the vehicles at Huffman Trucking. Huffman employees usually scan alphabeticly for vehicles . This is a fairly simple procedure if the exact name of the vechilce is available. However, many new employes may only know the few words of the vechile type. A tracked vehicle could possibly be misfiled, which requires a full stock review to find it. With the new shipment of vechicles need maintanes every month, it is close to impossible for a counter employee memorize Project Requirements There are two different types of requirements for this project. One is the technical requirements of the chosen database system and another is the business requirements of the Huffman Trucking. The business requirements  define the boundaries. Starting college can be like entering an entirely new world. You have more freedom than youve ever had before and you are in total control over your own life. This increased responsibility however can make you susceptible to some serous pitfalls. Read the following article to learn what habits to avoid in order to have a successful college career. Business Accounting Project Overview Huffman Trucking is a large organization that provides transportation of goods and services to its customers. In order to better serve these customers and to compete and stay at a high level above other suppliers, Huffman Trucking management enlisted the assistance of Team B to upgrade their companies systems to be able to create, maintain, and report on a database, which tracks the servicing of Huffman Trucking vehicles. Huffman Trucking has a number of business needs that should be met. The system should not require more than a few days of supervision to learn. It should be usable on modestly priced computer systems. Most of all, it should be simple and convenient for the users. The current system is not meeting business objectives because they are not able to tracks the servicing of the vehicles at Huffman Trucking. Huffman employees usually scan alphabeticly for vehicles . This is a fairly simple procedure if the exact name of the vechilce is available. However, many new employes may only know the few words of the vechile type. A tracked vehicle could possibly be misfiled, which requires a full stock review to find it. With the new shipment of vechicles need maintanes every month, it is close to impossible for a counter employee memorize Project Requirements There are two different types of requirements for this project. One is the technical requirements of the chosen database system and another is the  business requirements of the Huffman Trucking. The business requirements define the boundaries in which the project team has room to operate in. Huffman requires that the new system be relatively inexpensive with little ongoing maintenance required. The new system should not require many hours of training in order to use. The new system should also be usable  gout of the box. h Given these business requirements.

Identifying Non-traditional Gifted Students

Identifying Non-traditional Gifted Students Gifted students are defined as those who excel in academic subjects such as reading, science, or math. Some students do exceptionally well in visual art or playing musical instruments, while others exhibit strong leadership qualities. All of these are defined in the Americas School Act of 1994. The term gifted and talented when used in respect to students, children or youth means students, children or youth who give evidence of high performance capability in areas such as intellectual, creative, artistic, or leadership capacity, or in specific academic fields, and who require services or activities not ordinarily provided by the school in order to fully develop such capabilities (Ryser, McConnell, 2004). Gifted children are sometimes called asynchronous due to their physical/emotional growth not corresponding to their intellectual growth. Traditionally, gifted students have been under-served or go unidentified due to schools being unable to provide advanced placement or the lack of curriculum for these students. If a student shows signs of boredom, lack of interest or diagnosed with attention deficit disorder, the score of such student may not have reflected their true potential. Times have not changed in regard to this type of students. Many of these students are still in regular classrooms without the opportunity of advanced placement, specific gifted classrooms or additional discovery classes to service their needs. The Federal No Child Left Behind Act has left little room for helping these students attain their full academic and/or talent goals. Combining these factors with the gifted children who are not identified due to not being able to perform well on standardized tests, or a low socioeconomic culture and those with learning disabilities that accompany their giftedness presents a dilemma for most school districts (Lardner, 2004). However, the first step for developing curriculum for schools is the identification process. 1. Problem statement This paper is meant to examine the problems and research that has been done in the area of identifying the students that may show extreme giftedness in one subject and perform low in another, those who may be overlooked due to cultural, linguistic or ethically diverse backgrounds and those students who may not score well on standardized tests; to include twice exceptional students. Identification and low representation of culturally, linguistically, and ethnically diverse (CLED) students have been a concern with researchers and educators in our country: (Lohman, 2005), (Pierce et al., 2007). Considering the changing demographics within schools and pressure from the government and funding issues, educators must examine how to change identification procedures and services to adequately recognize and develop these students talents (Briggs, 2008). Even though cultural diversity has become more prominent in in education, CLED students are more identified in the remedial classes and underrepresented in gifted and talented programs (Briggs, 2008). National surveys show that only 10% of those students performing at their highest level are CLED students even though they represent 33% of the school population (Gallagher, 2002). The issues of identifying and assessing such students are highly important due to various reasons, but first of all because the absence of proper educational approach and environment hinder the development and future success of a great number of people, which undermines the very mission of education. Researching methods and approaching for identification and assessment of nontraditional gifted students will help to address this deficiency of our educational system. 2. Literature review on identification and assessment of nontraditional gifted students Assessing the nontraditional gifted student has become a growing problem in school districts across America. While doing a review of existing literature on the problem of identification of gifted students, one can outline 3 major types of nontraditional gifted students. Each type of such students, its identification and relevant research will be described below. 2.1. Gifted students missed by testing Various identification methods are used to identify gifted learners. There are those who still believe that IQ tests can be the way to measure intelligence; Schroth and Helfer (2008) refer to Gottfredson who states that proponents of traditional instruments for measuring IQ believe that such tests are not biased against blacks, other ethnic minority groups who are English speaking, or other native born people in the United States predicting well for all subgroups. Schroth and Helfer (2008) reference Ford (2003) who believes that the same groups along with low-SES students are discriminated against by standard tests because such tests are biased against process that is color blind or culture blind, Eurocentric, monolithic and narrow (Schroth Helfer, 2008). The authors go on to support the models referenced in Renzulli Reis (2007), and Sternberg (2002,2003), regarding those who believe in utilizing multiple measures for identifying gifted students. Such measures include portfolios, observations, teacher, parent or peer nominations and test scores and may be used to identify gifted students as well as to identify those students who may be missed using only traditional tools (Schroth Helfer, 2008). There are many factors that influence identification and availability of gifted programming to CLED students. The assessment tools that are used, educator bias, the perception of cultural behaviors, quantity and quality of teacher preparation for working with CLED students, and degree of variety of instruction strategies influence the identification and services provided for CLED students (Briggs, 2008). Language barriers, non-stimulating environments, fear of not teaching to the test and the belief that few gifted students can be found in CLED students also influence under-identification of these groups (Briggs, 2008). Unfortunately, tests play a major role in identification, referral, and placement of gifted students. Due to students not scoring well on standardized tests, teachers need to create and use tests and assessments that are culturally responsive (Ford, 2010). 2.2. Gifted students with a learning disability Other learners that are not identified or serviced properly nationwide are gifted learners with a learning disability. Gifted/learning disabled students are students with high intellect (superior intellectual ability) who have low performance in a specific academic area such as math, reading or written expression. This is not due to the absence of educational opportunity or a health problem (McCoach, 2001). McCoach describes three types of gifted/learning disabled students. The first student does well in elementary school when the learning disabilities are less distinct and they still participate in gifted programs. As the work progresses within that students disability, he/she may begin to experience learning difficulties which leads to underachievement. These students are not normally identified as learning disabled due to the high achievement in elementary school. The second type is described as learning disabled but also gifted. Since such students have severe learning disabilities, they are seldom identified as gifted. The third type is the student that is not identified as either gifted or disabled. This students disabilities hide their gifts and the gifts conceal their disability, creating a smokescreen which is referred to as masking within the definition of gifted/learning disabled students (McCoach, 2001). Masking refers to the principle that many gifted students with learning disabilities have patterns of strengths and weaknesses that make them appear to have average abilities and achievement (McCoach,2001). So therefore, these students do not get identified as gifted or learning disabled. Some advocates believe that intelligence scores will be lower for these students, thereby hindering their identification as either gifted or learning disabled (McCoach, 2001). McCoach goes on to quote Waldren and Saphire (1990): the primary problem with the use of intelligence test to identify gifted students with LD is that the disability may lower their IQ score so dramatically that the students do not qualify for inclusion in the school districts criteria for gifted, even though they demonstrate strong abilities in some areas. 2.3. Twice-exceptional students The term twice-exceptional is used to describe students who are gifted and identified with a disability (Baum Owen, 2003). There has been extensive research identifying twice exceptional students. Identification is a problem due to a misdiagnosis of the student (Webb, et al., 2005). The challenge is still the under representation of students with disabilities in gifted programs. The question is not whether these students exist but how to serve them when they need two sets of services (Rizza Morrison, 2007). There is evidence to show that there is a large amount of students who are gifted with behavioral disabilities (Baum Olenchak, 2002, Neihart, 2000). One example of twice exceptional would be a student identified as gifted with attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). This particular disorder when combined with giftedness is difficult to diagnose due to the many similarities between ADHD and gifted characteristics. The difficulty differentiating between characteristics of giftedness and those of ADHD, and recognizing when they coexist, can easily lead to inaccurate identification. Gifted and ADHD children often exhibit similar behaviors: hyperactivity, disruptive behavior, challenges to authority, and social/emotional development (Leroux Levitt-Perlman, 2000). Leroux Levitt-Perlman referenced Clark (1992) regarding hyperactivity, which can occur in both gifted children and children with ADHD and is often the first characteristic a diagnostician will see. However, hyperactiv ity may manifest itself in different ways. The gifted child may show focused energy, whereas the child with ADHD is largely unfocused (Leroux Levitt-Perlman, 2000). In addition, both gifted children and children with ADHD may challenge authority. The challenging authority characteristic in gifted children compared to children with ADHD may be exhibited differently. According to Clark, gifted children are curious and want to ask questions, this is part of their nature. The challenge from ADHD children has been observed to be more hostile and aggressive in manner. Even though both types of children can disrupt the daily school environment, the causes are different (Clark, 2008). The disruptive behavior is presented in both gifted and ADHD children. For the gifted child, disruptive behavior is associated with boredom in response to unchallenging activities, curriculum, and learning style . Disruptive behavior in the ADHD child is the result of any or all of the ADHD core symptoms: inattention, impulsivity, and hyperactivity (Clark, 2008). The ADHD child can easily become distracted by outside environment and/or stimuli, or even by own thoughts. ADHD students have weak organizational skills which makes staying on task a challenge. Too strict of an environment can lead to a disruption in the classroom as well. In the gifted/ADHD child the frustrations of impulsivity, inattention, and hyperactivity, combined with under stimulation can lead to oppositional behaviors (Leroux Levitt-Perlman, 2000). When the social/emotional development aspects are considered, there are similarities for both gifted and ADHD children as well. The gifted student might interact maturely with adults but be less competent with his peers, unable to read the social cues that tell him his behavior is not within social norms for children his age. The gifted childs intellectual and/or creative ability is more advanced than the emotional level, along with the sense of self (being different than other students), which can cause social isolation. The ADHD child shows immaturity and does not pick up on social clues, leading to rejection from peers. Both of these can cause emotional outbursts and inappropriate behaviors (Leroux Levitt-Perlman, 2000). Clark references Mendaglio when stating that when the two of these are combined in one child, there is a heightened sense of of alienation, sensitivity, and overreaction ( Clark, 2008). 3. Synthesis of relevant research and findings There are important issues that need to be considered when developing a method for identifying gifted or talented students: gifted students will exhibit their talents not only in a certain domain but also within a specific area of interest. A student may perform well on classroom activities but with independent study, may show a deeper level of theoretical understanding within the same subject. Giftedness is a dynamic concept. A test score may not represent how a childs gifts may be developed into talents, especially for students who do not have the opportunity for out-of-school activities. Talents are shown by students who have disabilities, or who come from different ethnic, cultural, and economic backgrounds and finally, early identification has proven important in developing gifts into talents (Johnsen 2009). In order to avoid the scantiness of test assessments, Ford suggests that assessment should include answers to the following questions (Ford, 2010): Are the measures valid and reliable for the specific culturally different students and group? How can educators remove the bias in the measurements they use or must adopt for evaluation and gifted education decisions? Have the students had the opportunity to be assessed in ways that are compatible with how they learn and communicate? Finally, do the students have the opportunity to be evaluated via more authentic assessments; skits, presentations, speeches, research, and other models of their learning? . Moreover, concerning broadening the spectrum oh approaches to students, Ford (2010) suggests in her article, Culturally Responsive Classrooms: Affirming Culturally Different Gifted Students the use of the culturally responsive classroom which is characterized by five components. The five components include; teachers philosophy, learning environment, curriculum, instruction, and assessment. Ford believes that when teachers become more self-reflective, are able to recognize cultural differences amongst students and themselves, and create classrooms that are more culturally responsive, they can decrease cultural misunderstandings and miscommunication with CLED students (Ford, 2010). For gifted students with learning disabilities, the masking concept creates problems for school psychologists, they can not possibly test all students who are performing at an average level to look for disguised learning disabilities. Until these students exhibit underachievement, there are not clear suggestions or empirical research to help identify these students. Teachers and specialists focus on the students disabilities, so therefore the strengths and talents of the student go ignored. The teachers and/or specialists attention is focused on the disability so little or no attention is given to the students gifts or talents (Baum, 2001). The techniques that are used for the disability may very well lack the characteristics gifted students require for successful learning and thus inhibit the attempt of that technique. Baum suggests that using instructional strategies that provide balance between the strengths and weaknesses of the gifted/learning disabled will contribute to an auth entic, challenging curriculum (Baum, 2001). The pragmatic problem concerning twice-exceptional learners is identifying these children like those that are gifted/ LD. This agrees with the case that many children who are gifted go unidentified by the use of standard IQ tests, and currently, many of the current diagnostic measures are less than perfect form many ADHD children (Leroux Levitt-Perlman, 2000). Leroux Levitt-Perlman (2000) promote that the skills and talents within individuals must be expanded to include and acknowledge the strengths of the gifted/ADHD child and go on to comment on Maker, Neilson, and Rogers (1994) approach that combines Gardners theory of multiple intelligences and a matrix of problem types to design ways to identify and serve the diversity and skills in students (Leroux Levitt-Perlman, 2000). They surmise that students who were identified through this method made equal or greater gains in enrichment programs as those identified by traditional methods (Leroux Levitt-Perlman, 2000). McCoach suggests that identification of students with learning disabilities should parallel the identification of all other students with learning disabilities (McCoach, 2001). According to McCoach, the process must comply with both federal and state special education regulations while utilizing both ability and achievement testing. McCoach (2001) suggests that authentic assessment (portfolio with works of the student, written works, informal reading inventories) should be used in correlation with standardized methods of achievement. Conclusion The problem of identification and assessment of nontraditional gifted student is one of the important educational issues. Review and analysis of relevant research have shown that the so-called nontraditional gifted students may be divided into three groups: gifted students missed due to imperfection and limited nature of current testing system, gifted learners with learning disabilities and twice-exceptional learners. Methods of identification and assessment for the three groups differ from each other. Major finding and suggestions for the problem are: developing authentic assessments aimed at addressing various types of skills and eligible for discovering different talents, creating a culturally responsive classroom and providing necessary background to the teachers, using instructional strategies in order to provide balance between the strengths and weaknesses of the gifted and learning disabled learners and addressing multiple types of intelligence via creating different problem t ypes to design ways to identify and serve the diversity and skills in students. Sources Baum, Susan. (2001). Dual Differentiation: An Approach for Meeting the Curricular Needs of Gifted Students with Learning Disabilities. Psychology in the Schools, 38(5), 477-490. Baum, S., Olenchak, F. (2002). The alphabet children: GT, ADHD and more. ! Exceptionality, 10, 77-91. Baum, S., Owen, S. (2003). To be gifted and learning disabled: Strategies for helping bright students with LD, ADHD, and more. Mansfield Center, CT: Creative Learning Press. Clark, Barbara. (2008). Growing up gifted: developing the potential of children at home and at school. Pearson/Merrill Prentice Hall. Briggs, Christine. (2008). A National View of Promising Programs and Practices for Culturally, Linguistically, and Ethnically Diverse Gifted and Talented Students. Gifted Child Quarterly, 52 (2), 131-145. Flint, Lori J. (2001). Challenges of Identifying and Serving Gifted Children with ADHD. Teaching Exceptional Children, 33 (4), 62-69. Ford, Donna Y. (2010). Culturally Responsive Classrooms: Affirming Culturally Different Gifted Students. Gifted Child Today, 33 (1), 50-53. Gallagher, J.J. (2002). Societys Role in Educating Gifted Students: The Role of Public Policy. Storrs, CT: The National Research Center on the Gifted and Talented. Johnsen, Susan K. (2009). Practices for Identifying Gifted Students. Principal, 88 (5), 8-14 Lardner, Cynthia M. M. (2004). Helping Gifted Children Reach Their Potential. Michigan Bar Journal, 18-20. Leroux, Janice A. Levitt-Perlman, Marla. (2000). The Gifted Child with Attention Deficit Disorder: An Identification and Intervention Challenge. Roeper Review, 22(3), 171-177 Lohman, David F. (2005). Identifying Academically Gifted Students: An Aptitude Perspective. Gifted Child Quarterly, 49 (2), 111-138 McCoach, Betsy D. Kehle, Thomas J. Bray, Melissa A. et al. (2001). Best Practices in the Identification of Gifted Students with Learning Disabilities. Psychology in the Schools, 38 (5), 403-411. Pierce, R. L. et al. (2007) Development of an Identification Procedure for a Large Urban School Corporation: Identifying Culturally Diverse and Academically Gifted Elementary Students. Roeper Review, 29 (2), 113-118. Pfeiffer, Stephen I. (2003). Challenges and Opportunities for Students Who Are Gifted: What the Experts Say. Gifted Child Quarterly, 47 (2), 161-169. Renzulli, Joseph S. Reis, Sally M. (2007). A Technology Based Resource for Challenging Gifted and Talented Students. Gifted Education Press Quarterly, 21(4), 2-3 Rizza, Mary J. Morrison, William F. (2007). Identifying Twice Exceptional Children: A Toolkit for Success. Teaching Exceptional Children Plus, 3(3) Article 3. Retrieved 6 April 2010 from http://escholarship.bc.edu/education/tecplus/vol3/iss3/art3. Ryser, G.R. McConnell, K. (2004). Scales for Identifying Gifted Students. Waco TX: Proofrock Press. Smith-Collins, Searetha. (2007). The Unserved, Under-Served, and Inappropriately Served: Educating Gifted and Talented Minority Students. Gifted Education Press Quarterly, 21(4), 4-9 Sternberg, R.J. (2002). A Reflective Conversation with Robert J. Sternberg about Giftedness, Gifted Education, and Intelligence. Gifted Education International, 16 (3), 201-207 Schrorth, Stephen Helfer, Jason A. (2008). Identifying Gifted Students: Educator Beliefs Regarding Various Policies, Processes, and Procedures. Journal for the Education of the Gifted, 32 (2). 155-179. Van Tassel-Baska, Joyce Brown, Elissa F. (2007). An Analysis of the Efficacy of Curriculum Models in Gifted Education. Gifted Child Quarterly, 51(4), 342-358. Webb, J. T. Amend, E. R. Webb, N. E. Goerrs, J. Beljan, P., Olenchak, F. R. (2005). Misdiagnosis and dual diagnosis of gifted children and adults. Scottsdale, AZ: Great Potential Press.

Advantages And Disadvantages Of A Multinational Corporation Finance Essay

Advantages And Disadvantages Of A Multinational Corporation Finance Essay The entities which are operating in more than one country are called Multinational Corporations. The typical Multinational Corporation functions with a headquarter in one country while other facilities are based in other countries. Multinational Corporation is also referred to transnational corporation. The model of the Multinational Corporation may vary but its simplest form is one that is headquarter in one country and its working units in other countries. Its main reason is that companies take advantage of reducing cost for the production of goods and also for the services. Its another form is that all main functions are performed in the origin country of parent company and subsidiaries are less function independently. The start of such kind of business is traced is very old near about 17th century but in the 21st century. Multinational Corporation also comes in existence due to merger of different companies in different countries. Advantages of Multinational Corporation: There are many different reasons why a company practices as a Multinational Corporation. These reasons are given below: Multinational companies can avoid or reduce their transportation cost. Economies of scale also can be achieved. Multinational companies have less chance of bankruptcy than small or non-multinational companies. Research and development process is also more in practice. Wage level in different countries is different, which is a major advantage. Due to globalization, different markets are available. Currency Fluctuations: Currency fluctuation is referred to the changes of a relative value in one currency when compared to other country. The process of currency fluctuation is occurring every day which brings changes in rate of exchange of different currencies of different countries. It is the currency fluctuation which attracts is investors to invest in different currencies for gaining the profit. There are upward or downward movement in the currencies that refers to appreciate or depreciate of currencies. If an investor invests in a currency if that currency depreciates in accordance to investors own currency then there is a profit while if that currency appreciates in accordance of the investors own currency then there is a loss. Political issues may cause the currency fluctuation. If there are political issues of currency fluctuation there will be short term impact also it may be long term. What is FOREX (Foreign Exchange)? Foreign exchange is trading of one type of currency for another. Foreign exchange has no physical location and no central exchange like other financial markets. It operates through a global network of banks, corporations and individuals trading one currency for another. The foreign exchange market is the worlds largest financial market which works 24 hours in a day which trades a huge amount of currencies of different countries. Not like any other financial market, investors can counter to currency fluctuations caused by economic, political and social events at the time when they occur, without having to wait for exchanges to open. The currency markets are not new that they have been around for as long as banks have been established for the dealing and transactions of money. What is relatively new is the openness of these markets to the individual investor, mainly the small- to medium-sized trader. A Short History of the Foreign Exchange Trading Market: Foreign exchange markets mainly established to make easy cross border trade in which there is involvement of different currencies by governments, companies and individual investors. More ever these markets generally existed to supply for the international movement of capital and money, even the initial markets had speculators. Today, a great part of Foreign Exchange market working is being determined by assumption, arbitrage and professional dealing, in which currencies are traded like any other commodity. The Retail Investors only means of gaining contact to the foreign exchange market was through banks that transacted in a huge amount of currencies for commercial and speculation purposes. After exchange rates were allowed to float freely in 1971, the volume of trade has been increased over the time. Most of the worlds major currencies were pegged to the US dollar due to an agreement that is called the Britton Woods Agreement. The participating countries try to maintain the value of their currencies against US Dollar also with the rate of the gold. These countries are bounded to devalue their currencies for the purpose of gaining advantage. Types of markets and transactions: There are two types of markets or transaction which are very common. Spot market / spot transaction Forward market / forward transactions In spot transactions, buying and selling certain amount of foreign currency are based on current market rate and settlement are made and paid for without more ado. On the other hand, Forward transactions, are deals arranged for future settlement, to be paid for on decided dates on or after delivery. Characteristics of Foreign Exchange Market: There are some characteristics of Foreign Exchange Markets such as: Volume of trading is very huge. By the use of technologies like internet the foreign exchange trading centers are linked together to get updated information and for the trading. Due to the integration of trading centers there is no significant arbitrage. Functions of Foreign Exchange Markets: What kind of functions of Foreign Exchange Market performs are give below: Transfer of purchasing power. Financing of inventory in transit. Hedging. Conversion of currencies. Reducing of foreign exchange risks. Participants of the Foreign Exchange Market: There are the participants of the Foreign Exchange Markets those participates in dealing and transactions. Banks Foreign Exchange Dealers. Individuals Firms. Speculators Arbitrageurs. Central Banks Treasuries. Foreign Exchange Brokers. Foreign Exchange Transactions Advantages: The advantages of the foreign exchange transactions are such as: Commission Free Transaction Direct Transactions Round the Clock Market Leverage (huge investment refers to huge profit) Highly Liquid Free online information Foreign Exchange Transactions Disadvantages: There are some disadvantages of foreign exchange transactions such as: Leverage (huge investment refers to great loss) Brokers (inexperienced, unfaithful) Spreads (broker generally quote a fixed spread) Role of Foreign Exchange Markets in the Global Market Place: Exchange rate Foreign currency denominated financial instrument Exchange rate is referred to that how much units of one currency are required to purchase the one unit of other currency and foreign exchange denominated financial instrument is referred to bond, stock or a bank deposit whose value is denominated in the currency of another country. When you carry out business in a foreign country, you will have to exchange currencies involved at some existing exchange rate. The price of one countrys currency in terms of another country is called the exchange rate. When the currency of one country drops in value there will be an equivalent appreciation of value in another countrys currency. Depreciation (devalue of currency) occurs when it takes more currency to purchase the currency of another country. Appreciation (increase in value of currency) is just the opposite; the currency is able to purchase more units of the other countrys currency. Since most currencies are esteemed according to the market, usually there are constant changes to exchange ra tes. Foreign Exchange Risks: Foreign exchange risk is usually defined as Multinational Corporation faces variability in their currency values of assets, liabilities and operating income due to the unexpected currency fluctuation. That variability can be reduce or eliminate partially or fully. Classification of Exposures: There we can classify the Foreign Exchange Exposures in three types such as: Transaction exposures Translation exposures Economic exposures All these exposures severally affect the outcome of the business. How these exposures affect a business now we see individually all these exposures. Transaction Exposure: Transaction risk occur when any company makes trade, borrows, lend and sell the fixed assets of its subsidiaries company; all these operations takes lot of time so during that time when times come for the payment then there is real change of exchange rate so it refers to the Transaction Exposure. Let see an example, a Pakistani importer make a deal for the some kind of commodity with United States suppliers after the delivery when time comes for payment if the importer pays in local currency (PKR) then the United States supplies is at risk, if the payment is in foreign currency (USD) then the importer is at risk. Usually in this case exporter is at risk of exchange rate risk because supplier quotes the price in buyers currency. Translation Exposure: Translation risk have to face when a parent company making its financial statements in its local currency. Because when consolidating the earnings, liabilities and assets of the subsidiaries company to the local currency then the exchange rate has changed, due to this exchange rate change the value of that asset when acquired has changed same to liability and earnings. Financial statements have to make in a single local currency for the stakeholders. Subsidiaries companies value (assets, liabilities, earnings) is shown in financial statements in local currencies at current exchange rate. Translation exposure depends upon the translation method. There are two common methods are used for the translation such as: Current / non-current method Monetary / non-monetary method In current / non-current method current assets and liabilities are translated at current rate (closing rate at the time of making balance sheet), while non-current assets and liabilities are translated at the historical rates (the rate when asset was acquired and the liability incurred). According to this method only current assets and liabilities are exposed to currency fluctuation. In monetary / non-monetary method the monetary assets and liabilities are translated at the current rate while the non-monetary assets an liabilities are translated at the historical rate. In this method monetary assets and liabilities are exposed to currency fluctuation. Economic Exposure: The change in the present value of a company due to change in future cash flows which caused by the fluctuation of the exchange rates. Cash flows can be classified in to two types like cash flows due to contractual commitment and the cash flows due to anticipated future transactions. Every transaction exposure is included in the economic exposure. Let see an example, when the cost of a Multinational Company incurs in one currency and its sales generated in other currency so, the competitive advantage of the Multinational Company is affected by the change in exchange rate. Simply profit of the Multinational Company can decrease if the cost currency appreciates and

Jean Genet’s The Balcony Essay -- Literature Writing Papers

Jean Genet’s The Balcony The Methods of Cultural Appropriation in Jean Genet’s â€Å"The Balcony† The now-famous story of Jean Genet’s ascension to literary sainthood begins with an accusation. The young Genet, an orphan and an outcast in the rural Morvan, was subject to suspicion and, due to his dubious origins, finally accused of thievery. However, instead of shaking the label, Genet decided to embrace it to fulfill all the mordant potential that it promised. From this inaugurating act sprang the literary Genet. As Sartre says in his monumental study Saint Genet: â€Å"For him, to compose is to recreate himself†(584). As a result, Genet’s persona is as famous (or notorious) as his works are. Genet’s early initiation into a mental, if not physical, sort of underworld predicates his awareness of the problems of subcultural existence in a society ruled by signs, symbols, and rituals. His writing often focuses on the detailed qualities of inanimate objects, attributing meaning to them and in the process forging almost personal relationships with them. This is important because Genet is highly aware of the effects of the proliferation of images in the media and their uses for various interests. In his literary career, Genet moves from a consciousness of the importance of symbols and images in identifying and defining a particular subcultural milieu to an awareness of the ways in which these symbols can be appropriated by dominant culture, thus losing their subversive edge. It is in this way that dominant culture disarms potentially dangerous subversive or criminal elements. â€Å"The Balcony† illustrates to a superlative degree his awareness of image and symbol for subcultural elements and the danger of approp... ...ame time casts a leery eye towards the use of images to facilitate this process. However, by exposing the means of appropriation Genet allows leeway for re-appropriation, a way for subcultures to assert their own self-representation. This leads to a kind of cultural barter or negotiation between subculture and dominant culture; the methods of this barter must therefore become the primary concern of subcultures. Works Cited Genet, Jean. â€Å"The Balcony†. New York: Grove Press. 1966. Sartre, Jean-Paul. Saint Genet. New York: Mentor Books. 1963. Hebdige, Dick. Subculture: The Meaning of Style. London: Routledge. 1979. Plotz, John. â€Å"Objects of Abjection: The Animation of Difference in Jean Genet’s Novels†. Twentieth Century Literature, Vol. 44, No. 1. (Spring, 1998). 100-118. White, Edmund. Genet: A Biography. New York: Alfred A. Knopf, Inc. 1993.

Asoka of India :: essays research papers

Asoka was one of the greatest rulers of ancient India. He was the grandson of Chandragupta Maurya of Magadha who established the first Indian empire. Chandragupta reigned for twenty-four years before relinquishing his throne in favor of his son, Bundusara (Asoka’s father), who left no noticeable mark upon the empire. Asoka was born in 304 B.C. and was known in his youth as Canda Asoka (the fierce Asoka) because of his aggressive nature. Asoka came to the throne in 270 B.C. after a power struggle that ended in the death of one of his brothers. He was at first disposed to follow the example of his father and grandfather and complete the conquest of the Indian peninsula. In about 256 B.C. Asoka attacked Kalinga, a country on the east coast of Madras, in order to expand his empire, which he ruled as a tyrant at the time. Asoka succeeded in conquering Kalinga in the bloody war in which 100,000 men were killed, 150,000 injured, and thousands were captured and retained as slaves. The sight of the slaughter involved in his conquest deeply distressed Asoka and deeply affected his mind. Overwhelmed by the carnage, he changed his way of life. Asoka, who practiced Brahmanism, renounced war forever and sought peace in Buddha’s preachings of love and ahimsa. The war developed in him a hatred of all kinds of violence so he gave up hunting and the slaughtering of animals. He became a strict vegetarian. His son, Mahinda, became a Theraveda monk and was sent to introduce Buddhism to Sri Lanka. Asoka spent time piously retracing the steps of the Buddha and raising stupas inscribed with moral injunctions and imperatives at holy places of pilgrimage, and for some two years he became a member of a Buddhist order without relinquishing his role as Emperor. Asoka’s conversion to Buddhism, affected with the help of his own teacher, Upragupta, was gradual. Even though he did little to change the system of government he inherited, he introduced a novel and powerful moral idealism, which was a moral rule or way of life in the Buddhist sense, as he understood it. He called this the â€Å"Law of Piety.† This law, though following the tenets of the Buddha, was distinct from them and peculiar to Asoka. It was to become one of the great turning points of the civilization of the East, having profound effects throughout the neighboring kingdoms, not least in

Still a Threat to the United States

The tenth anniversary of the 9/1 1 attacks prompted reflections on the current status of the terrorism threat to the United States. One aspect of an assessment†the threat posed by biological weapons†is especially challenging because of the unique character of these weapons. A prime distinction is the fact that exposure to minute quantities of a biological agent may go unnoticed, yet ultimately be the cause of disease and death.The Incubation period of a microbial agent can be days or weeks; unlike a bombing, knifing, or chemical dispersion, a bioattack might not be ecognized until long after the agent's release. Accordingly, bioterrorism poses distinctive challenges for preparedness, protection, and response. The use of a pathogen for hostile purposes became a consuming concern to the American people soon after 9/1 1 . About a half-dozen letters containing anthrax spores were mailed to Journalists and polltlclans beginning one week after the jetliner attacks.Four letters with spores and threat messages eventually were recovered. All were postmarked Trenton, New Jersey, which meant that they had been processed at the postal distribution center in nearby Hamilton. Two letters were postmarked September 18, one addressed to Tom Brokaw at NBC-TV and another to the editor of the New York Post. The other two letters were stamped October 9 and addressed to Senators Thomas Daschle and Patrick Leahy. As people became infected in September, October and November, local responses revealed gaps in preparedness for a biological attack.For example, the first confirmation of an anthrax case was on October 4, more than two weeks after the initial letters were mailed. Retrospective assessments later indicated that by then nine people had already contracted the disease. Their illness previously had been misidentified because of faulty diagnoses or erroneous laboratory In the end, at least 22 people had become infected, five of whom died. Meanwhile, scores of buildings were belatedly found to be contaminated with spores that had leaked from the letters.At least 30,000 people who were deemed at risk required prophylactic antibiotics. [2] Millions more were fearful, many of them anxious about opening their own mail. Since the anthrax attacks, the U. S. government has spent about $60 billion on biodefense. A large portion of those dollars has gone to biodefense research under he auspices of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID). The NIAID budget for biodefense research has grown from $200 million in 2001 to an annual average of $1. 6 billion since 2004.United States safer from a bioattack now than at the time of the anthrax attacks? Has the spending been worth it? Key Questions, Discrepant Answers Opinions on these questions differ. While concerned about the danger of backsliding, the authors of an article in Politico now felt â€Å"reassured about our preparedness† for a biological attack. [3] At the same time, an opposing assessment was emblazoned in he title of a New York Times Magazine cover story: â€Å"Ten Years After the Anthrax Attacks, We Are Still Not Ready. [4] A review of biodefense efforts during the past 10 years in Science magazine blandly acknowledged the obvious: â€Å"debate continues over how much safer the country The congressionally chartered Commission on the Prevention of Weapons of Mass Destruction Proliferation and Terrorism (WMD Commission) issued a report card in 2010 on efforts to address several of its previous recommendations. The administration's failure to â€Å"enhance the nation's capabilities for rapid response to revent biological attacks from inflicting mass casualties† merited a grade of â€Å"F† (meaning that no action was taken on this recommendation).Almost as bad was the â€Å"D*† given for continuing inadequate oversight of high-containment laboratories. Reasonable arguments can be made to support varied views about these issues , and all conclusions bear a degree of subjectivity. Yet an assessment of several broad critical contentions can offer clarification. The criticisms are largely expressed in the form of five contentions. Contention #1 : Funding for biodefense has meant fewer dollars for other deserving reas such as public health infrastructure and basic science research.In 2005, 758 microbiologists signed a letter to Elias Zerhouni, then director of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), objecting to the diversion of funds from public health research to biodefense projects. Zerhouni, Joined by NIAID Director Anthony Fauci, rejected the letter's premise of â€Å"diversion. † An assessment of disputed interpretations suggested that spending on biodefense benefited non-biodefense research as well, but the numbers were so â€Å"convoluted† that a clear determination was elusive. [7] An analysis of the biodefense budget for fiscal year 2012 indicates that only 10% of the proposed $6. bill ion is dedicated exclusively to civilian biodefense. The other 90% is for projects with both biodefense and non-biodefense implications. The non- biodefense goals, according to analysts Crystal Franco and Tara Kirk Sell, include â€Å"advancing other areas of science, public health, healthcare, national security, or international security. â€Å"[8] This tilt toward dual-track benefits has been reflected in past budgets as well. A report in Nature magazine indicated that of the $60 billion pent on biodefense in the past decade, only about $12 billion went for programs have benefited substantially from biodefense projects.Fiscal woes in recent years have in fact resulted in reduced resources for public health and related programs. Economic pressure threatens to shrink biodefense funding as it does funding for much else in the federal budget; however, it is not clear now, nor was it in the past, if fewer dollars for biodefense would necessarily translate into more for public health, basic research, or any other health-related programs. Contention #2: The growing number of facilities for research on select agents specified pathogens and toxins) has heightened chances of an accidental release. Statistics alone make this assertion unassailable.The chances of something going wrong in any enterprise, assuming no change in operational security, increase with the size of the enterprise. As the number of research facilities increases, so does the chance of an accident. A continuing weakness is the lack of clarity about the number of high security laboratories. In 1983, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) designated four levels of safety for laboratory work with biological agents. A Biosafety Level-I (BSL-I) laboratory allows for work on relatively innocuous agents and a BSL-4 laboratory on the most dangerous.The two highest containment facilities, BSL-3 and BSL-4, require special security measures including restricted access, negative pressure to prev ent air from flowing out of the room, and protective outerwear for operators. BSL-4 laboratories require additional safeguards such as entry through multiple air-locked rooms and positive pressure outerwear with a segregated air supply. A BSL-4 laboratory is required for work on agents that cause lethal disease for which here is little or no treatment (for example, smallpox and hemorrhagic fevers such as Ebola and Marburg).At present, there are 15 such U. S. facilities planned or in operation, triple the number operating in 2001. [10] Other dangerous agents, including the bacteria that cause anthrax and plague, are worked on in BSL-3 laboratories. The number of these laboratories has skyrocketed since 2001, although the actual figures are uncertain. While an estimated 20 BSL-3 facilities were operating before the anthrax attacks, in the decade since the number has grown to between 200 and an astonishing 1,400 or ore. [11] The huge discrepancy is attributable in part to varied method s of calculation.Some assessments have counted all BSL-3 laboratories in an institution as a single BSL-3 facility, while others have designated each laboratory as a separate entity. Furthermore, some laboratories with a BSL-3 designation may lack safety features found in others, such as double doors and a requirement that two persons must be present. No national authority is now empowered to mandate a single system of counting or that even the lowest estimated number of BSL-3 laboratories (200) represents a 10- old increase in the past 10 years, and that safety precautions at some BSL-3 facilities are less rigorous than at others.Contention #3: The growing number of investigators with knowledge about select agents has increased the chances that an unsavory scientist could launch a bioattack. Along with more high containment facilities has come more scientists who handle select agents. Concern about dangerous individuals among them was heightened in 2008 when the FBI named Bruce Ivi ns as the perpetrator of the 2001 anthrax attacks. Ivins was a veteran scientist who for decades had worked on anthrax at the U. S.Army Medical Research Institute for Infectious Diseases (USAMRIID) in Fort Detrick, Maryland. Before charges could be brought he committed suicide, so his guilt or innocence could never be established in a court of law. Still, evidence of his aberrational behavior, including alcoholism, depression, and self-described bouts of paranoia, evidently went unnoticed by his superiors. The Ivins case highlighted questions about the screening of workers with ready access to select agents. The number of those workers Just prior to the anthrax attacks has been estimated at about 700.By 2008, however, the figure had climbed to more han As some have suggested, the greater numbers mean that â€Å"the odds of one of them turning out to be a bad apple has increased. â€Å"[13] Ironically, Ivins was not a newly minted investigator, but a long-respected fgure in the arm y's biodefense program. Days after Ivins' death, a USAMRIID spokesperson acknowledged that officials may have been unaware of his problems because they relied in part on self-reporting. [14] In 2011, a mental health review panel concluded that â€Å"Dr.Ivins had a significant and lengthy history of psychological disturbance and diagnosable mental illness at the time he began working for USAMRIID in The Ivins case has raised concerns that other troubled or nefarious individuals might be working in U. S. laboratories. A recent government-sponsored forum on biosecurity called for periodic behavioral evaluations of personnel with access to select agents that include drug testing, searches for criminal history, and completion by selectees of a security questionnaire. 16] Even while acknowledging the necessity of security measures, the right to privacy and freedom of scientific inquiry must be respected to the extent possible. In any case, behavioral monitoring can never provide absolute protection against the acts of a lever miscreant. Contention #4: Money for biodefense has been misapplied or otherwise failed to produce desired results. Project BioShield was established by congress in 2004 to acquire medical countermeasures against biological, chemical, and radiological vaccines and other drugs that have not necessarily been tested for efficacy on humans.Beyond the loss of time and money, the VaxGen failure was a public embarrassment. It became a symbol of ineptness early in the new program. Other biosecurity programs have also drawn criticism, including a $534 million surveillance project called BioWatch. This program included the placement of air amplers for detection of anthrax spores and other agents in more than 30 major U. S. cities. A committee convened by the National Academy of Sciences concluded in 2010 that the program was faced with â€Å"serious technical and operational challenges. † Others flatly criticized its funding as wasted.

Woman Education in India

Pre-IndependenceThe history of female education in India has its roots in the British Regime. Women's employment and education was acknowledged in 1854 by the East India Company's Programme: Wood's Dispatch. Slowly, after that, there was progress in female education, but it initially tended to be focused on the primary school level and was related to the richer sections of society. The overall literacy rate for women increased from 0.2% in 1882 to 6% in 1947.[56]In 1878, the University of Calcutta became one of the first universities to admit female graduates to its degree programmes, before any of the British universities had later done the same. This point was raised during the Ilbert Bill controversy in 1883, when it was being considered whether Indian judges should be given the right to judge British offenders. The role of women featured prominently in the controversy, where English women who opposed the bill argued that Bengali women, whom they stereotyped as â€Å"ignorantâ₠¬  and neglected by their men and that Indian men should therefore not be given the right to judge cases involving English women.Bengali women who supported the bill responded by claiming that they were more educated than the English women opposed to the bill and pointed out that more Indian women had degrees than British women did at the time.[57]Post-IndependenceAfter India attained independence in 1947, the University Education Commission was created to recommend suggestions to improve the quality of education. However, their report spoke against female education, referring to it as: â€Å"Women's present education is entirely irrelevant to the life they have to lead. It is not only a waste but often a definite disability.†[58]However, the fact that the female literacy rate was at 8.9% post-Independence could not be ignored. Thus, in 1958, a national committee on women's education was appointed by the government, and most of its recommendations were accepted. The crux of its recommendations were to bring female education on the same footing as offered for boys.[59]Soon afterward, committees were created that talked about equality between men and women in the field of education. For example, one committee on differentiation of curricula for boys and girls (1959) recommended equality and a common curricula at various stages of their learning. Further efforts were made to expand the education system, and the Education Commission was set up in 1964, which largely talked about female education, which recommended a national policy to be developed by the government. This occurred in 1968, providing increased emphasis on female education.

Review of “Decision Threshold Control Method for the Optical Receiver of a WDM-PON”

Review of â€Å" Decision Threshold Control Method for the Optical Receiver of a WDM-PON † Introduction In order to get by with theexplosive growing of informations communications, the wavelength division multiplexing inactive optical web ( WDM-PON ) has been extensively investigated as one of the cardinal engineerings for next-generation entree web. This critical reappraisal examines an article that proposes a simple method to better the receiving system public presentation for the WDM-PON based on a wavelength-locked Fabry–Perot optical maser rectifying tube ( F-P LD ) with an injected spectrum-sliced amplified self-generated emanation ( ASE ) visible radiation. The article, â€Å"Decision Threshold Control Method for the Optical Receiver of a WDM-PON, † foremost proposed and demonstrated a simple determination control method to set the determination threshold linearly harmonizing to the detected mean power. The writers successfully demonstrated the receiving system public presentation betterment at 1.25 Gb/s transmittal in back-to-back system with the proposed method. Drumhead First, the writers illustrated the noise features of the wavelength-locked F-P LD with simulation consequences. Since the spectrum-sliced injected ASE induces an ASE-ASE whipping noise, the ‘1 ‘ degree noise is much larger than the noise in ‘0 ‘ degree. Therefore, the optimal determination threshold degree lessenings with increasing norm received power and seting the determination threshold linearly with standard power could better the receiving system public presentation. Then the writers demonstrated the determination threshold control circuit, which consists of a conventional receiving system portion, a power monitoring portion and a determination threshold control portion. Harmonizing to the simulation consequences, the determination threshold of the proposed method is a liner estimate of the optimum determination threshold for the worst instance. Third, the writers compared the receiving system public presentation with the optimum determination threshold for the worst-case, the determination threshold with the proposed determination control circuit and the determination threshold in the centre of ‘1’ degree and ‘0’ degree without determination control through simulation and experiment. As seen in the simulation and experimental consequences, the determination control circuit could better the receiving system public presentation dramatically and eliminated the mistake floor in the conventional receiving system. Furthermore, the writers simulated the optimum determination threshold as a map of extinction ratio ( ER ) relative strength noise ( RIN ) . The consequences shows that the ( 1 ) with fixed RIN ( -111 dB/Hz ) optimum determination threshold addition as the ER lessenings due to the decreased ‘1’ degree and ( 2 ) with the fixed ER ( 10 dubnium ) optimum determination threshold decreases with the increasing RIN due to the increased whipping noise. Furthermore, the writers measured the power punishment as a map of the signal conditions ( ER and RIN ) compared with the mention signal status ( 10-dB ER and -111dB/Hz RIN ) at 10-10BER by simulation and experiment. The consequences indicates that with a power punishment less than 1 dubnium, the proposed receiving system could run when the RIN & A ; lt ; -109 dB/Hz and ER & A ; gt ; 8.7 dubnium for 1.25-Gb/s transmittal. Then the writers demonstrated the proposed method in WDM-PON application through the transmittal of five channels over 20-km standard single-mode fibre ( SSMF ) . Unlike the conventional receiving system, with the determination threshold control circuit all of these five channels exhibit error-free transmittal. And the sensitiveness difference between five channels is less than 0.8 dubnium. Finally, the writers besides simulated the optimum determination threshold and the power punishment as a map of ER/RIN for 10-Gb/s transmittal with the premise that the RIN could be reduced every bit low as -120 dB/Hz through noise suppression. Reviews Strengths: ( 1 ) Compared with the old determination control method [ 1 ] – [ 2 ] , the proposed determination control method is more simple and cost-efficient for WDM-PON applications. In the proposed method, the receiving system merely consists of three parts: a conventional receiving system, a power proctor and a determination threshold accountant. The conventional receiving system is composed of a PIN photodiode, a transimpedance amplifier ( TIA ) , a restricting amplifier ( LA ) , and clock and informations recovery ( CDR ) . A opposition ( R ) is operated as the power proctor. And the determination threshold accountant comprises an adder, a dc electromotive force control circuit ( VC ) , an electrical linear amplifier ( K ) , and a low-pass filter ( LPF ) . On the contrary, the old determination control methods [ 1 ] – [ 2 ] based monitoring oculus gap or information correlativity. Thus the old methods require digital processing faculty, precise addition and stage matching, which increases the receiving system complexness and cost. Based on the merely receiving system, the writers successfully eliminated the mistake floor in conventional receiving system for 1.25-Gb/s transmittal over 20-km SSMF. ( 2 ) This proposed determination control method is robust to temperature discrepancy. The writers measured the BER curves of 1.25-Gb/s transmittal over 20-km SSMF for the worst instance ( the injection wavelength aligned at the centre of two neighborhood F-P LD lasing wavelength, highest RIN ) at 45 oC and the best instance ( the injection wavelength aligned to an F-P LD lasing wavelength, lowest RIN ) at 48OC. Fig. 5 in this paper shows that with the proposed determination method the sensitiveness difference between the worst instance and best instance is less than 0.6 dubnium for BER & A ; gt ; 10-13. Since temperature could bring on wavelength impetus of the F-P LD and changes the whipping noise distribution [ 3 ] , this proposed determination control method could extenuate the temperature induced power punishment [ 4 ] . ( 3 ) Since proposed method is executable for a broad signal conditions, the proposed determination control method is practical. The writers demonstrated the power punishment as a map of ER and RIN for BER bing 10-10in Fig. 7. With a power punishment less than 1 dubnium, the proposed receiving system could run when the RIN & A ; lt ; -109 dB/Hz and ER & A ; gt ; 8.7 dubnium for 1.25-Gb/s transmittal. After 20-km transmittal the RIN and ER of signal merely changes to -110.8 and 9.7 dubnium, severally. Therefore after 20-km transmittal, the power punishment is less than 0.3 dubniums compared with the back-to-back system. In practical execution, the proposed determination threshold method is working under a fixed electromotive force mention ( VReferee) of expected power degree to foretell the threshold degree and the input power depends on variable length SSMF. However, due to the border of signal conditions as confirmed in this paper, the proposed determination threshold control method could run in practical applications. ( 4 ) The writers confirmed the feasibleness of proposed determination threshold control circuit in WDM-PON applications through the 51.25-Gb/s transmittal, which has 100-GHz channel spacing, over 20-km SSMF. In the conventional receiving system there exists an mistake floor ( BER & A ; gt ; 10-7) ; on the contrary, these five channels with proposed receiving system could convey with BER lower than 10-14. The sensitiveness difference of these five channels is less than 0.8 dubnium. Failing: ( 1 ) The writers illustrated the feasibleness of the proposed method in high informations rate ( 10 Gb/s ) transmittal through simulation in Fig. 9 and 10. In this simulation, the writers assume the RIN could be suppressed every bit low as -120 dB/Hz by infixing an extra F-P LD [ 5 ] . In [ 5 ] , the suppression of the strength noise achieved by an extra concentrated F-P-LD [ 5 ] is similar as the noise suppression through the nonlinearities of a concentrated SOA [ 6 ] . The concentrated F-P LD induced a correlativity between different frequence constituents and the strength is good suppressed [ 6 ] .Therefore, the optical filtering and scattering could deteriorate this noise suppression due to the stage decorrelation [ 5 ] [ 6 ] [ 7 ] . Although utilizing the saturated F-P LD the RIN could be suppressed lower than -117.5 dB/Hz over 10-km SSMF [ 5 ] , the RIN would be deteriorated and be higher than -117 dB/Hz with the increasing transmittal distance. Furthermore, in [ 5 ] as the F- P LD operates in impregnation part, the ER of signal could be reduced from 12 dubnium to 8 dubnium for 2.5-Gb/s transmittal while the F-P LD injection power is -18 dBm. Therefore even after this noise suppression, the signal status of the 10-Gb/s transmittal is still a challenge for the determination threshold control method. Therefore in order to show the feasibleness of proposed determination control method, it is necessary to look into the 10-Gb/s transmittal public presentation by experiment. As the noise stamp downing method in [ 5 ] are sensitive to optical filtering and scattering and decreases the signal ER, we could seek to use other noise suppression method such as optical pre-filter [ 8 ] , reciprocally injected F-P LDs [ 9 ] or ultra-narrow injected ASE [ 10 ] . ( 2 ) In Fig. 8 the channel spacing of channels is 100 GHz. In the system utilizing spectrum-sliced light beginning, the signal–crosstalk round noise is dramatically reduced compared with the conventional optical maser beginning due the broad set of spectrum-sliced light beginning [ 11 ] . Thus it is possible to convey 2.5-Gb/s informations in multiple channels with 50-GHz channel spacing. 50-GHz channel spacing could duplicate the system capacity. Furthermore, as the transmittal distance additions, the increasing scattering non merely induces the inter-symbol intervention but deteriorates the noise suppression dramatically every bit good. Thus narrower spectrum-sliced visible radiation beginning could has a stronger robust to dispersion [ 10 ] . Although narrower channel spacing would deteriorate the system public presentation with intra-channel XT, we could unite with the determination threshold control circuit with the forward mistake rectification ( FEC ) codification whic h could loosen up the BER threshold to[ 12 ] . Decision This paper proposed a practical and effectual determination control method to better the receiving system public presentation. The writers demonstrated that this determination control circuit has a strong robust to temperature fluctuation and signal status devolution ( including ER decrease and RIN increasing ) . In add-on to these virtues, we could widen this undertaking by ( 1 ) Uniting the proposed threshold control method with appropriate noise-suppression method for 10-Gb/s transmittal in experiment ( 2 ) combing proposed method with FEC to convey 2.5-Gb/s signals in channels with 50-GH/z channel spacing. Mention: [ 1 ] Y. Matsumoto, T. Kuriyama, D. Inami, and M. Ohta, â€Å" An adaptative determination threshold control of the optical receiving system for multigigabit tellurian DWDM transmittal system s, † inOpticalFiber Communication Conf. and the Nat. Fiber Ocular Engineers Conf. , Anaheim, CA, 2001, paper TuR2. [ 2 ] M. Kawai, H. Watanabe, T. Ohtsuka, and K. Yamaguchi, â€Å"Smart optical receiving system with automatic determination threshold scene and retiming stage alliance, †IEEEJ. Lightwave Technol. , vol. 7, no. 11, pp. 1634–1640, Nov. 1989. [ 3 ] H.-D. Kim, S.-G. Kang, and C.-H. Lee, â€Å"A low-cost WDM beginning with an ASE injected Fabry-Perot semiconducting material optical maser, †IEEEPhoton. Technol. Lett. , vol. 12, no. 8, pp. 1067–1069, Aug. 2000. [ 4 ] A. A. Al-Orainy and J. J. O’Reilly, â€Å"Optimized threshold scene for public presentation sweetening of spectrum sliced WDM systems, † in LEOS ’95.IEEE Lasers Electro-Optics Soc. 1995 Annu. Meeting. 8th Annu. Meeting. Conf. Proc. , San Francisco, CA, USA, 1995, vol. 2, pp. 63–64. [ 5 ] J.-S. Jeong and C.-H. Lee, â€Å"Optical noise suppression techniques for wavelength-locked Fabry-Perot optical maser rectifying tube, † in Proc. of the fifteenth Asia-Pacific Conf. on Communications, Shanghai, China, 2009, paper 142. [ 6 ] H. Kim, S. Kim, S. Hwang, and Y. Oh, â€Å"Impact of scattering, PMD, and PDL on the public presentation of spectrum-sliced incoherent visible radiation beginnings utilizing gain-saturated semiconducting material optical amplifiers, †IEEE J. Lightwave Technol. , vol. 24, no.2, pp: 775-784, 2006. [ 7 ] S. Kim, J. Han, J. Lee, and C. Park, â€Å"Intensity noise suppression in spectrum-sliced incoherent light communications systems utilizing a addition concentrated semiconducting material optical amplifier, †I [ EEE Photon. Technol. Lett. , vol. 11, no. 8, pp. 1042–1044, Aug. 1999. [ 8 ] K.-Y. Park, J.-S. Baik, T.-W. Oh, and C.-H. Lee, â€Å" Intensity noise suppression and 1.25 Gb/s transmittal utilizing a wave-length locked Fabry-Perot optical maser rectifying tube with filtered ASE injection, †Optoelectronics and Communication Conferencepp.200-201, 2004. [ 9 ] S.-H. Yoo, J.-Y. Kim, B.-Il Seo, and C.-H. Lee, â€Å" Noise-suppressed reciprocally injected Fabry-Perot optical maser rectifying tubes for 10-Gb/s broadcast signal transmittal in WDM inactive optical webs, † Optics Express, Vol. 21, Issue 5, pp. 6538-6546, 2013. [ 10 ] Z. Al-Qazwini and H. Kim, â€Å"Ultra-narrow spectrum-sliced incoherent visible radiation beginning for 10-Gb/s WDM PON, †IEEE J. Lightwave Technol. , vol. 30, no. 19, pp: 3157–3163, 2012. [ 11 ] Y. S. Jang, C. H. Lee, and Y. C. Chung, â€Å"Effects of XT in WDM systems utilizing spectrum-sliced visible radiation beginnings, † IEEE Photon. Technol. Lett. , vol. 11, no. 6, pp.715–717, Jun. 1999. [ 12 ] 2004ITU-T G.975.1, Forward mistake rectification for high bit-rate DWDM pigboat systems, 2004.

Use Office Equipment

There are many different variations of equipment in my work area. One of these include the fax machine, this is mainly used for sending documents instantly to another fax machine through a standard telephone line. Most fax machines can also be used to make copies of documents and some can also be used as a computer, printer and scanner. Within my office the other types of office equipment are, telephone, printer, computer, laminator and photocopier. The features of the fax machine include speed; fax machines can transit a documents data at various rates of speed.This ranges from 4,800 bps to 28,800 bps. It takes a 9,600 bps machine about 10 to 20 seconds to send one page. It also includes a printer. Early fax machines generally used direct thermal printers, but over the past ten years inkjet printers have also become popular. Colour fax machines can only transmit to machines that are made by the same manufacturer. If the fax machine uses rolls of thermal paper it should come with a p aper cutter. Most models come with some form of paper feed so you can transmit multiple page documents without having to feed each page into the machine one by one.Also most fax machines come with a wide variety of dialling features. Some of them let you send the fax at a specific time of the day when the telephone rates are lower. There are many other time saving and easy to use features on fax machines such as redialling, caller ID, speed dial, contrast settings, distinctive ringing, fax forwarding, size reduction and resolution settings. I just use this to fax patient’s information to their local doctors and just do a copy of something that doesn’t need to be copied by a big industrial photocopier. The computers have lots of important features.A lot of confidential information and documents are kept safe in protected electronic files on the computer such as PAS (patient attendance system). We also have intranet, which I mostly use to access email and employee online . The computers have a mouse and a keyboard; they also have a card slot, which you can use to put a Smartcard in. In my line of work I do not use this, it is generally used by admin staff that need to access patient information. We also have an electronic time sheet on the intranet on which I can request annual leave and put my hours a day in.Microsoft Word is also on the computers, which I use to type up references/application forms usually but I also use Microsoft word in training for my NVQ course work. There is also a printer, which I just use to print off application letters and reference forms mostly. The printer is in the office where I work, me and my supervisor have a printer each so we can both print different documents at the same time. One of the features includes picking up the telephone when it rings, or my supervisor isn’t available usually on the phone it is a voluntary enquiry or a present volunteer phoning to let us know if they can’t make a shift etc .Also other members of staff ring. To make an external call I press 9 then I dial the number, internal calls are simpler all I need to do is dial the number. A scanner is an input device that scans documents such as photographs and pages of text. When a document is scanned, it is converted into digital format. This creates an electronic version of the document that can be viewed and edited on a computer. In my job I don’t use a scanner, I use a photocopier instead because I find them much easier to use and it is closer to the voluntary services office.Different types of equipment are chosen for different tasks to make tasks easier and more efficient. For example, the big industrial photocopier is an essential piece of equipment and very practical. This is located in the photo copying room on the first floor next to the general office. If the photocopier breaks down I get a member of staff from the general office to come and see if they can fix it. If not they ring the photoco pying company and someone comes to fix it. It is important to follow manufacturers instructions for your own safety and protect your product or purchase.Some instructions are in warning form while others are on how to use the product. Warning instructions are like ‘do not place in contact with fire’ this is because the product is flammable and not following this instruction can cause an explosion resulting to injuries. Manufacturers include instructions in their products having consumer safety in mind. Not following instructions can have devastating consequences. An individual may also lose valid information especially if dealing with complex products such as computers.For example, if I was to use the photocopier and it had black smears all over the page, I would follow the photocopiers instructions step by step. After doing this, if the problem still occurred I would go to the general office and explain to them the problem I am having. If a member of staff in the gener al office cannot solve the problem, then they would contact someone who could fix the problem. The purpose of following organisational instructions when using equipment can be to give a good and positive image.For example, the organisational instruction when answering a telephone is to say ‘Voluntary Services’ in a kind manner, it is important to make the caller feel comfortable. It is also important to use organisational procedures such as the photocopier as it ensures me that I won’t damage or cause any faults with the equipment. If a fault does occur, I know that it is something to do with the equipment and it isn’t anything that I’ve done. Also, by following the basic guidance I will not do anything that may harm me or others around and the equipment will last longer.There are many different types of procedures for different kinds of equipment. You must learn the procedures of your specific location and equipment by reading instructions, attendi ng a training class if needed, or receiving instructions from your supervisor or another designated person. Some health and safety procedures when using equipment include things such as do not have ant liquids near any electrical equipment as this could cause people to be electrocuted and this could cause the equipment to blow up.Other health and safety procedures include turning off all the equipment off at the main switch so that the equipment doesn’t overheat over night. In the coffee shops, we have to make sure we all do this to reduce the risk of fires. The purpose of following health and safety procedures when using equipment is to avoid injury or in some cases death, it is necessary to follow all applicable health and safety procedures when using any sort of equipment. Some of the points when you follow the correct procedures include; To stay healthy and safe To prevent or at least limit harm to humansTo protect equipment and facilities To get the most accurate results from the equipment To extend the life of the researches and the equipment. When using equipment it is important to maintain it and keep it clean to prolong the life of the machine and for you to get the most out of it. Cleaning your equipment after use can lead to less problems and increased efficiency. It is also courteous to clean something after you have used it to make it ready for the next user. Regularly cleaning the equipment can mean that it will last longer and save you money as well as producing a higher quality result.For example, if you did not clean a photocopier glass then you could end up with smear marks all over your work. An example of waste when using equipment in the office is when most employees will leave the computer on standby all night. However, even though it is on standby it is still using electricity and this is waste and they can easily just shut it down. Other examples of waste when using equipment include; Pieces of paper being printed incorrectly Bit s of paper that have been cut with the guillotine Old documents that are not needed anymore Ink cartridges and tonersOne of the best ways to reduce waste in the workplace is to reduce the amount of waste that is generated to begin with. The paper that has incorrect printings on them should always be recycled, we also photocopy double sided which doesn’t use as much paper which means if something is copied incorrectly not as much waste is produced. Waste in the workplace implies that something is discarded that has a cost to it, for example, office supplied, food etc. Because these items cost money, by minimizing waste, you are minimizing expenses. We reuse folders and envelopes if we can so then we won’t have to buy them as often which would save money.Some examples of office equipment problems include; Paper jams Electrical faults Ink cartridge/ toner failure Computer lead fault Faulty telephone line Button jam These may occur with photocopiers, printers, fax machines , computers, telephones and scanners. The purpose of following manufacturer’s instructions and organisational procedures when dealing with problems with equipment is so that I ensure that I am not making the problem worse and to make sure that I also don’t damage the equipment by trying to fix the problem myself. I also follow manufacturer’s instructions to make sure that I don’t create any further problems in the future.By making sure that I follow instructions and procedures correctly, I know that the equipment should perform at its best when I have finished dealing with the problem and the equipment is working again. If I have a problem with any piece of equipment such as the computer when I’ve switched it on as normal the most common problem is when it tells me to strike ‘F1’ which as happened to me many of times before windows loads up correctly and still happens, when I do strike F1 the computer loads fine though. The purpose of meeting work standards and deadlines when using equipment saves money, cuts cost and saves time.Also it is to ensure that I don’t waste or delay other peoples working time by taking a large amount of time with equipment. The importance of meeting deadlines has far reaching consequences in organisations; it also shows that I am competent and reliable when using office equipment. When I know that I will be using the photocopier for a long time I let my supervisor know so he can see if there is anything else needed copying, doing this will save making two trips and will not waste any time. If someone needed to photocopy something urgently, then I would let them go in front of me before I start to do my task that I have been set to do.The purpose of leaving equipment and the work area for the next user is to make sure that the documents do not get mixed up as they could be confidential information written in the documents. An example of this would be if I accidently left some doc uments around the photocopier that no one should have access to and one of my colleagues prints a lot of documents off too, they may get mixed up and picked up by mistake. It is also really unfair to leave working areas and equipment untidy on other colleagues as I would be leaving them to tidy up my mess that wasn’t mine, which could result in wasting other people’s time.For example, if the photocopier had ran out of paper after I’d finished with it and I opened a new bag of paper and left the empty bag, someone else would have to dispose of this. The purpose of leaving work areas tidy is also for the health and safety of me and others; leaving things on the floor or not placing things back in their correct places may result in injury if someone slips or trips and falls on someone etc. Depending on what the task is to be done, I would choose the equipment appropriate for the task.If I was asked to organise the rotas out for the following week I would need to us e the telephone to get in contact with volunteers to see who would be available and willing to come in to do a shift. If you don’t follow manufacture’s and organisational guidelines while using equipment, whatever guarantees or warranties will become null and void, and if you damage the equipment you will have to replace it out of your own pocket. Following organisational guidelines when using equipment is for the employees health and safety and to know what to do in certain situations.One of the best ways to reduce waste in the workplace is to reduce the waste generated in the first place. Regular maintenance of equipment helps minimise wastes since it makes the machine last for long. Preventive maintenance keeps the machines in good working order and eliminates the chances of throwing a way parts every now and then. When it comes to using and printing paper, use scrap pieces of paper rather than post it notes and print double sided to save more paper when printing. I t is important to maintain your equipment and keep it clean to prolong the life of the machine and for you to get the most use out of it.Cleaning your equipment after use can lead to less problems and increased efficiency. It is also courteous to clean something after you have used it to make it ready for the next user. Regularly cleaning equipment can mean that it will last you longer and save you money as well as producing a higher quality result. For example if you did not clean a photocopier glass then you could end up with smear marks on your work. When dealing with equipment problems, you need to take the correct action to fix the problem as quickly and safely as possible.If you follow manufacturer’s instructions then this will show you the best way to solve a problem and when the problem should be dealt with by a technician. If you do not follow these then you could cause more harm than good and further damage to the equipment. If you have been found to do this then it might invalidate your warranty and you will have to pay for a replacement. Organisational procedures are there to protect the health and safety of all workers and make sure that the problems are dealt with by the appropriate person.If you do not follow these then you could hurt yourself or others and get into trouble at work. Both these procedures are put in place to keep you safe and to solve problems quickly and effectively. If there were any problems required that i couldn’t solve myself, I would go to my supervisor for help. You would also then phone IT on the 4 digit extension number if it was something to do with the computer or fax machine. If it was the telephone or any other equipment then you would phone Estates on the 4 digit extension number and they would come out as soon as they could to deal with the problem.I make sure that all the final products meets and agreed requirements as it shows I am to follow all instructions properly and that I listen to what I am being asked to do to ensure that I complete my work tasks to the very best of my ability. I make sure that product is delivered to the agreed timescale because if I don’t complete a task in the time I have been given by my colleague or supervisor then this could result in my colleague or supervisor not being able to complete the rest of the task that they asked me to do part of.It also shows that I am reliable and my colleagues may then be confident that they then can give me more tasks to do for them and complete the task in time for them to carry it on. I always make sure that all equipment resources and work areas are clean and tidy ready for the next user so that it makes their time more efficient and so that it doesn't cause them to run behind with certain tasks they are set to do. Use Office Equipment There are many different variations of equipment in my work area. One of these include the fax machine, this is mainly used for sending documents instantly to another fax machine through a standard telephone line. Most fax machines can also be used to make copies of documents and some can also be used as a computer, printer and scanner. Within my office the other types of office equipment are, telephone, printer, computer, laminator and photocopier.The features of the fax machine include speed; fax machines can transit a documents data at various rates of speed. This ranges from 4,800 bps to 28,800 bps. It takes a 9,600 bps machine about 10 to 20 seconds to send one page. It also includes a printer. Early fax machines generally used direct thermal printers, but over the past ten years inkjet printers have also become popular. Colour fax machines can only transmit to machines that are made by the same manufacturer. If the fax machine uses rolls of thermal paper it should come with a p aper cutter.Most models come with some form of paper feed so you can transmit multiple page documents without having to feed each page into the machine one by one. Also most fax machines come with a wide variety of dialling features. Some of them let you send the fax at a specific time of the day when the telephone rates are lower. There are many other time saving and easy to use features on fax machines such as redialling, caller ID, speed dial, contrast settings, distinctive ringing, fax forwarding, size reduction and resolution settings. I just use this to fax patient’s information to their local doctors and just do a copy of something that doesn’t need to be copied by a big industrial photocopier.The computers have lots of important features. A lot of confidential information and documents are kept safe in protected electronic files on the computer such as PAS (patient attendance system). We also have intranet, which I mostly use to access email and employee online . The computers have a mouse and a keyboard; they also have a card slot, which you can use to put a Smartcard in. In my line of work I do not use this, it is generally used by admin staff that need to access patient information. We also have an  electronic time sheet on the intranet on which I can request annual leave and put my hours a day in. Microsoft Word is also on the computers, which I use to type up references/application forms usually but I also use Microsoft word in training for my NVQ course work.There is also a printer, which I just use to print off application letters and reference forms mostly. The printer is in the office where I work, me and my supervisor have a printer each so we can both print different documents at the same time.One of the features includes picking up the telephone when it rings, or my supervisor isn’t available usually on the phone it is a voluntary enquiry or a present volunteer phoning to let us know if they can’t make a shift e tc. Also other members of staff ring. To make an external call I press 9 then I dial the number, internal calls are simpler all I need to do is dial the number.A scanner is an input device that scans documents such as photographs and pages of text. When a document is scanned, it is converted into digital format. This creates an electronic version of the document that can be viewed and edited on a computer. In my job I don’t use a scanner, I use a photocopier instead because I find them much easier to use and it is closer to the voluntary services office.Different types of equipment are chosen for different tasks to make tasks easier and more efficient. For example, the big industrial photocopier is an essential piece of equipment and very practical. This is located in the photo copying room on the first floor next to the general office. If the photocopier breaks down I get a member of staff from the general office to come and see if they can fix it. If not they ring the photo copying company and someone comes to fix it.It is important to follow manufacturers instructions for your own safety and protect your product or purchase. Some instructions are in warning form while others are on how to use the product. Warning instructions are like  Ã¢â‚¬Ëœdo not place in contact with fire’ this is because the product is flammable and not following this instruction can cause an explosion resulting to injuries. Manufacturers include instructions in their products having consumer safety in mind. Not following instructions can have devastating consequences.An individual may also lose valid information especially if dealing with complex products such as computers. For example, if I was to use the photocopier and it had black smears all over the page, I would follow the photocopiers instructions step by step. After doing this, if the problem still occurred I would go to the general office and explain to them the problem I am having. If a member of staff in the general office cannot solve the problem, then they would contact someone who could fix the problem. The purpose of following organisational instructions when using equipment can be to give a good and positive image.For example, the organisational instruction when answering a telephone is to say ‘Voluntary Services’ in a kind manner, it is important to make the caller feel comfortable. It is also important to use organisational procedures such as the photocopier as it ensures me that I won’t damage or cause any faults with the equipment. If a fault does occur, I know that it is something to do with the equipment and it isn’t anything that I’ve done. Also, by following the basic guidance I will not do anything that may harm me or others around and the equipment will last longer.There are many different types of procedures for different kinds of equipment. You must learn the procedures of your specific location and equipment by reading instructions, at tending a training class if needed, or receiving instructions from your supervisor or another designated person. Some health and safety procedures when using equipment include things such as do not have ant liquids near any electrical equipment as this could cause people to be electrocuted and this could cause the equipment to blow up. Other health and safety procedures include turning off all the equipment off at the main switch so that the equipment doesn’t overheat over night. In the coffee shops, we have to make sure we all do this to reduce the risk of fires.The purpose of following health and safety procedures when using equipment is  to avoid injury or in some cases death, it is necessary to follow all applicable health and safety procedures when using any sort of equipment. Some of the points when you follow the correct procedures include;To stay healthy and safe To prevent or at least limit harm to humans To protect equipment and facilities To get the most accurate results from the equipment To extend the life of the researches and the equipment.When using equipment it is important to maintain it and keep it clean to prolong the life of the machine and for you to get the most out of it. Cleaning your equipment after use can lead to less problems and increased efficiency. It is also courteous to clean something after you have used it to make it ready for the next user. Regularly cleaning the equipment can mean that it will last longer and save you money as well as producing a higher quality result. For example, if you did not clean a photocopier glass then you could end up with smear marks all over your work.An example of waste when using equipment in the office is when most employees will leave the computer on standby all night. However, even though it is on standby it is still using electricity and this is waste and they can easily just shut it down. Other examples of waste when using equipment include; Pieces of paper being printed incorrec tlyBits of paper that have been cut with the guillotine Old documents that are not needed anymore Ink cartridges and tonersOne of the best ways to reduce waste in the workplace is to reduce the amount of waste that is generated to begin with. The paper that has incorrect printings on them should always be recycled, we also photocopy double sided which doesn’t use as much paper which means if something is copied incorrectly not as much waste is produced.Waste in the workplace implies that something is discarded that has a cost to it, for example, office supplied, food etc. Because these items cost money, by minimizing waste, you are minimizing expenses. We reuse folders and envelopes if we can so then we won’t have to buy them as often which would save money.Some examples of office equipment problems include; Paper jams Electrical faults Ink cartridge/ toner failure Computer lead fault Faulty telephone line Button jamThese may occur with photocopiers, printers, fax mach ines, computers, telephones and scanners.The purpose of following manufacturer’s instructions and organisational procedures when dealing with problems with equipment is so that I ensure that I am not making the problem worse and to make sure that I also don’t damage the equipment by trying to fix the problem myself. I also follow manufacturer’s instructions to make sure that I don’t create any further problems in the future. By making sure that I follow instructions and procedures correctly, I know that the equipment should perform at its best when I have finished dealing with the problem and the equipment is working again.If I have a problem with any piece of equipment such as the computer when I’ve switched it on as normal the most common problem is when it tells me to strike ‘F1’ which as happened to me many of times before windows loads up correctly and still happens, when I do strike F1 the computer loads fine though.The purpose o f meeting work standards and deadlines when using equipment saves money, cuts cost and saves time. Also it is to ensure that I don’t  waste or delay other peoples working time by taking a large amount of time with equipment. The importance of meeting deadlines has far reaching consequences in organisations; it also shows that I am competent and reliable when using office equipment. When I know that I will be using the photocopier for a long time I let my supervisor know so he can see if there is anything else needed copying, doing this will save making two trips and will not waste any time. If someone needed to photocopy something urgently, then I would let them go in front of me before I start to do my task that I have been set to do.The purpose of leaving equipment and the work area for the next user is to make sure that the documents do not get mixed up as they could be confidential information written in the documents. An example of this would be if I accidently left so me documents around the photocopier that no one should have access to and one of my colleagues prints a lot of documents off too, they may get mixed up and picked up by mistake.It is also really unfair to leave working areas and equipment untidy on other colleagues as I would be leaving them to tidy up my mess that wasn’t mine, which could result in wasting other people’s time. For example, if the photocopier had ran out of paper after I’d finished with it and I opened a new bag of paper and left the empty bag, someone else would have to dispose of this. The purpose of leaving work areas tidy is also for the health and safety of me and others; leaving things on the floor or not placing things back in their correct places may result in injury if someone slips or trips and falls on someone etc.Depending on what the task is to be done, I would choose the equipment appropriate for the task. If I was asked to organise the rotas out for the following week I would need to use the telephone to get in contact with volunteers to see who would be available and willing to come in to do a shift.If you don’t follow manufacture’s and organisational guidelines while using equipment, whatever guarantees or warranties will become null and void, and if you damage the equipment you will have to replace it out of your own  pocket. Following organisational guidelines when using equipment is for the employees health and safety and to know what to do in certain situations.One of the best ways to reduce waste in the workplace is to reduce the waste generated in the first place. Regular maintenance of equipment helps minimise wastes since it makes the machine last for long. Preventive maintenance keeps the machines in good working order and eliminates the chances of throwing a way parts every now and then. When it comes to using and printing paper, use scrap pieces of paper rather than post it notes and print double sided to save more paper when pri nting.It is important to maintain your equipment and keep it clean to prolong the life of the machine and for you to get the most use out of it. Cleaning your equipment after use can lead to less problems and increased efficiency. It is also courteous to clean something after you have used it to make it ready for the next user. Regularly cleaning equipment can mean that it will last you longer and save you money as well as producing a higher quality result. For example if you did not clean a photocopier glass then you could end up with smear marks on your work.When dealing with equipment problems, you need to take the correct action to fix the problem as quickly and safely as possible. If you follow manufacturer’s instructions then this will show you the best way to solve a problem and when the problem should be dealt with by a technician. If you do not follow these then you could cause more harm than good and further damage to the equipment. If you have been found to do this then it might invalidate your warranty and you will have to pay for a replacement.Organisational procedures are there to protect the health and safety of all workers and make sure that the problems are dealt with by the appropriate person. If you do not follow these then you could hurt yourself or others and get into trouble at work. Both these procedures are put in place to keep you safe and to solve problems quickly and effectively.If there were any problems required that i couldn’t solve myself, I would go to my supervisor for help. You would also then phone IT on the 4 digit extension number if it was something to do with the computer or fax machine. If it was the telephone or any other equipment then you would phone Estates on the 4 digit extension number and they would come out as soon as they could to deal with the problem.I make sure that all the final products meets and agreed requirements as it shows I am to follow all instructions properly and that I listen to wha t I am being asked to do to ensure that I complete my work tasks to the very best of my ability.I make sure that product is delivered to the agreed timescale because if I don’t complete a task in the time I have been given by my colleague or supervisor then this could result in my colleague or supervisor not being able to complete the rest of the task that they asked me to do part of. It also shows that I am reliable and my colleagues may then be confident that they then can give me more tasks to do for them and complete the task in time for them to carry it on.I always make sure that all equipment resources and work areas are clean and tidy ready for the next user so that it makes their time more efficient and so that it doesn't cause them to run behind with certain tasks they are set to do.