Continuum of project Article Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Continuum of project - Article Example In addition to helping stroke survivors improve or regain skills and functions, these healthcare professionals can assist with adaptation and assistive devices. Modified constraint-induced therapy (mCIT) is an intensive motor practice. The therapy involves restricting the use of a less affected part of the body, which forces the patient to use the weakened part of the body. Regular practice can improve nerve function in the central nervous system. The therapy is applied with varying intensity and duration over time depending on the individual’s motor functioning. Electrical stimulation is used in treating hemiparesis to enhance sensory awareness, strengthen a weakened body part (such as the arm, leg, hand or foot) and improve range of motion. This procedure consists of placing small electrical pads on the weakened muscles of the affected body part. An electrical charge helps the muscles contract as the patient works to make it move. Cortical stimulation is a type of electrical stimulation, but instead of directly on the arm or hand, the electrodes stimulate the part of the brain called the cortex. The tiny electrode is placed on the dura, the tough membrane that covers the brain. The electrode sends an electrical current to the brain while the stroke survivor undergoes rehabilitation exercises. This treatment is a safe way to regain mobility. Motor imagery involves imagining the movement of the affected part of the body. This mental practice activates areas of the brain and muscles as if the patient is actually doing an activity. The network of nerves in the brain involved in visualization and physical movement overlap, making this an effective activity when paired with other therapies. Koziol, J.A., Feng, A.C. (2006). "On the analysis and interpretation of outcome measures in stroke clinical trials: lessons from the SAINT I study of NXY-059 for acute

Spiders Research Proposal Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Spiders - Research Proposal Example eight legs (Rollman and Taverna, 2008). It does not have a mouth to chew and it does not have wings which are common to other insects. Spiders produce silk but all spiders do not produce webs to hunt for other insects. Spider silk is also used by the creature for many other purposes such as climbing, building egg sacs, as well as immobilizing other creatures (Australian Museum, 2002). Their magnificent capabilities of adapting to new situations were tested in space as well where it was found that spiders could continue to spin their webs even without gravity once they had adapted to the environment (Wikipedia, 2008). This adaptation and the wide variety of spiders in the world also means that they are found all over the landmass of the planet from the jungles of brazil to the frozen tundra. Spiders have been found in deserts, near rivers, in densely populated cities and in the grasslands. They are found on all continents of the world and their habitat extends the planet (Australian Museum, 2002). The variety of the places they are found in is also reflected in the manner in which they mate since certain female spider species have been known to kill the male before or during the mating session which increases the chances of the male being the only one to mate with the female (Wikipedia, 2008). Beyond this aspect of their existence, certain spiders have also developed special adaptations which let them become better hunters or give them better chances of mating. For example, spiders which hunt near water may use bell shaped webs that are able to trap insects on the surface of the water. Some types of spiders have abandoned making webs altogether and have evolved into creatures that chase down their prey to hunt it (Wikipedia, 2008). Certain species of spiders also exhibit social behaviors such as living in a colony of thousands. In terms of size, depending on the environment they are in, spiders range from

Comparing Eastern and Western Management Styles

Comparing Eastern and Western Management Styles Nowadays, organizations exist in the competitive business environment where theres rapid development which lead to high failure rate and difficult to stand up among the strong competitive environment. Turbulent business environment caused lots of organizations to face bankruptcy; however, there are still many successful organizations which have great success through their hard work. For those successful organizations, the main objectives are to maximum their competitive advantage and increase their market shares in the market place. However, such aim cannot be accomplish without the combination of instrumental and conceptual knowledge in their management practices. In fact, every successful organization needs competent people who have the all- around knowledge of leadership. Every business has a person to lead the organization to achieve success. The ability of this person to lead is essential to sustain the performance and growth of any businesses. Such person is sometimes seen as a charismatic leader, or even a competent manager can help to growth a business by manage the employees and operation effectively. In fact, the person who was seen as a leader of the organization is mostly the CEO of that organization, the decision and every single action that the CEO take will have massive impact on every single employee within the organization. The ability of a CEO to become a leader is essential in today competitive environment since CEO which has the ability to lead and create follower can create a vision for the organization and every people in that organization will be unite to achieve that vision. Mullins (2005) and Huczynski Buchanan (2007) also pointed out the important of leadership existing in the organizations. Hence, this essay will focus on the instrumental and conceptual knowledge of leadership by comparing two leaders from different culture and situation. 1.0 Introduction to Leadership Leaders are perceived as the heart of a business which inspire the whole organization and create vision for that particular business. Leadership is no longer a new word in the organization, but it is still a controversial word that many scholars concern with, because of the role we assume it plays in the organization is crucial. And there is always lack of the competent leadership in the society. In that case, lots of authors and scholars define the term of leadership through their understanding. In 1950, through long times study, Stogdill defined the term of leadership as the process of influencing the activities of an organized group in its efforts towards goal- setting and goal achievement (cited in Huczynski Buchanan, 2007: p. 716). According to Robbins Decenzo (2005: p. 240), leader may be defined as persons with managerial and personal power who can influence others to perform actions beyond those that could be dictated by those persons formal (position) authority alone. Moreover, as leader in the recent year, their responsibility is coordinating the others and followers at most of the time. From goal focus to human behaviour focus, or from autocratic leaders to democratic leaders, they all demonstrated that leadership is more and more important for any organizations. Leaders versus Managers However, there are distinguishing between leaders and managers which we should realize before analysing the leadership within the organization. Some argue that manager is not a leader, but the roles of a manager require them to become a leader (Huczynski Buchanan, 2007). As Robbins Decenzo (2005: p. 244) suggest not all leaders are managers, nor are all managers leaders. There are differences between a manager and a leader, manager manage but a leader lead. Robbins Decenzo (2005: p. 239) defined manager as persons whose influence on others is limited to the appointed managerial authority of their positions to reward and punish. Manager manage the rules, follow the procedures and manage everything according to the system and structure establish by the company, they manage the people by the power and authority they have, people are managed not because of the manager, it is because the authority and power that the manager have. However, some argue that leader can create follower and make people to believe without any power or authority, people are willing to follow the leader on their own behalf and will (Huczynski Buchanan, 2007). Thus, there are no clear line that separate a manager and a leader, a CEO can have the characteristic of both which make them more competences to manage and lead the company to a greater success. It is undeniable that in today competitive environment, both leading and managing role are critical success factor for a CEO to have in order to achieve greater achievement (Kyle, 2004; Kotter, 2001). As De Wit Meyer (2004: p. 497) argue, Every leader must perform some managerial functions, even though every manager cannot take a leadership role. Wit Meyer (2010) argues that: the leader controls the allocation of the attention focus of the participants in the organization in any organization where managers dominate, structured rules tend to influence the allocation of attention, but the leader will try to capture the attention focus of the participants so that their attention is allocated to the areas that the leader considers important. Leaders to Discuss and Compare This paper will discover two successful leaders Jeff Bezos from the west and Akio Toyoda from the east by comparing their leadership style and other aspects related to leadership in order to discover the differences of leadership in different culture and background. Jeff Bezos from the West Jeff Bezos is the founder, president, chief executive officer and chairman of the board of Amazon.com (New York Daily News, 2008). He founded Amazon.com in 1994, and launched in 1995. As a founder and CEO of Amazon.com, Jeff Bezos is a pioneer in e-commerce (Spiro, 2009). As shown in Fair (2002): At the end of 1999, Amazon had raked in over a billion dollars in sales à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ in 2001, Amazon reported a fiscal loss of $1.4 billion, and had laid off over 200 workers in the last year à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ Instead of giving up, Bezos had an idea: recruit other companies to sell their products online through Amazon as well. The idea worked. Companies such as Target, Toys R Us, Old Navy, and many others have agreed to sell their items through Amazon. Although Amazon is not directly responsible for inventory through these companies, they do get part of the sales, creating a profit for all involved. Since the inception of the idea, Amazon is now back on its feet and remains one of the most popular online vendors in the world today. Akio Toyoda from the East According to Los Angeles Times, 2009: Toyota tapped Akio Toyoda, grandson of the Japanese automakers founder, as president of Toyota à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ The U.S.-educated Toyoda, 52, is the first founding family member to take the helm at Japans No. 1 automaker in 14 years. He promised a reaffirmation of the companys core principles, such as valuing ideas from the ranks a management approach called kaizen, [also known as Toyota Production System] that has made Toyotas production methods famous in industry circles around the world. 2.0 Comparison of Leadership Style and Culture 2.1 Participative Leadership Style and Charismatic Theory Jeff Bezos is more like a charismatic leader that practiced participative leadership style. Although he faced some obstacle in the early years, he managed to overcome the entire problem and bring Amazon to become one of the most innovative companies in the e-commerce industry. He launched Amazon.com and being persistent in persuading his aspiration, one of the characteristic of leader as describe by Mullins (2005). Jeff Bezos has the criteria as a charismatic leader as he has the ability to create a vision for the future and make everyone within Amazon believe in his visions that make him a charismatic leader. A vision should create enthusiasm, bringing energy and commitment to the organization (Robbins Decenzo, 2005: p. 246), while Ingbretsen (n. d.) argues that a charismatic leader has the ability to articulate a vision that touches an emotional chord with an audience. Jeff Bezos manages to lead people by making them believe that his innovative idea of online bookstore will be a s uccess. He had prove his vision are achievable and people believe in him since he lead everyone in the company to work hard and achieve the goal and objective to become the innovative player within the e-commerce industry, and people believe in him since he managed to turn the situation of Amazon around. As Robbins Decenzo (2005: p. 247) suggest, Charisma leadership appears to be most appropriate when the followers task has an ideological component or when the environment involves a high degree of stress and uncertainty. However, based on the other perspective that goes against charismatic theory, Raelin (2003) suggest that follower will follow the charismatic leader is just because the publicity make the leader look so powerful and great. The fancy packaging with the help from media had made the charismatic leader look like a legend, a myth that everyone believe is true. Levesque McNeil (2003, p. 215) strongly argue that as followers interact, they begin to define a social reality of leadership representing special mythical qualities endowed only by very special people. Raelin believes that followers are predisposed to look for a cause and a leader for whom they can become true believers (2003, p. 66). The critics for charismatic leader are that without massive publicity, there will be no charismatic leader; people will not recognize that leader at all. If Jeff Bezos is not good at making himself high profile by attending conferences, posting his own comment or opinions on the web, attending public events, accept a lot of interview and so on which make him highly expose to the media and make publicity for himself and the company as well, there will be no quoted as a charismatic leader for him. He was being quoted as a charismatic leader as people know what he done through the media and all the fancy publicity which make him look as great as a hero. There are many leaders around the world, even if we do not know their names or what great things that they have done, it didnt make them less an effective or great leader. Charismatic is not the only recognition for a great leader, people recognize the leader that they respect within their heart, even without the media spreading that lea der legend, people will still respect that leader, even he or she is not a charismatic leader. Indeed, some of the most significant CEO in the history of the visionary companies did not have the personality traits of the archetypal high-profile, charismatic leader (Forster, 2005, p. 30). 2.2 Autocratic and Collaborative Leadership Style On the other hand, Akio Toyoda practiced the autocratic leadership style and until now, the belief of autocratic leadership style still remain within the organization and most managerial level personnel practiced the same autocratic leadership style to manage their people. The main reason autocratic is effective at Toyota mostly based on the power-cultural that Japan always have. Akio Toyoda as president of Toyota is reaffirming its commitment to collaborative culture and methods (Rosen, 2009). Although being autocratic, Akio Toyoda practiced Genchi genbutsu or see it for yourself fits squarely into collaborative culture and methods of Toyota (Liker, 2004). As leaders, Akio Toyoda suggests that manager needed to hold themselves accountable for all their decisions, which they required their people to execute very quickly. Collaborative leadership and autocratic style of Akio Toyoda doesnt make him stay away from their unique kaizen production method, but to collaborate more with the implementation of lean production plant which was known as the Toyota Production System (Liker, 2004). Toyota Production System distinguished from its competitors and hard to duplicate since it is underpinned by just-in-time delivery (JIT); product quality; employee flexibility and the elimination of waste. This unique lean production system was buttressed by principle such as teamwork, continuous improvement, quality circles and employee development. 2.3 Traits Theory Although both leaders practiced different leadership style, they have their own personality traits that made them a great leader. First of all, based on the instrumental knowledge, the traits theory also call traits- spotting is argued even in recent years, for the reason of that leader is nature born or make. Although, there are thousands of successful leaders existing in the world, all of them have their own traits which can be summarize as six leadership traits including ambition and energy, desire to lead, honesty and integrity, self- confidence, intelligence and job- relevant knowledge. Hence, instrumental knowledge indicated that the traits are the distinguishing personal characteristics of a leader through six leadership traits (Robbins Decenzo, 2005: p. 256). However, not every leader has all of the personal traits instead of maybe some of them. And lots of examples tell us that leader with different traits also can obtain successful in every area. For instance, Jeff Bezos a nd Akio Toyoda have total different characteristics and personal traits, but both of them acquired big successful in the business world. However, in contrast with the instrumental knowledge, the conceptual knowledge holds that it is difficult to identify whether any people is naturally born with trait, or they might just gain those ability through their life experience and learn from it. Besides, different countries which have different culture will need leader with different characteristic. Thus, every leader which is required in different country will need to have different trait. For example, people from the Western countries and people from the Eastern country will have different culture or ways of doing things (Hofstede, n. d.). Thus, different leadership style need to be implement in different countries, if that particular countries are afraid of uncertainty and have a high level of avoidance for confusion, such as China, Japan and others, the Autocratic style might be more appropriate. Therefore, there is no one universally accepted set of traits for all leaders. Every single individual are different, their abi lity and skills, knowledge and experience will be different as well and they will be accepted in the mind of different people which appreciate their traits. 2.4 Behavioural Theory The most popular behavior style theory should be Blake and Moutons Grid which is based on the idea that different in leadership approach are a function of concern for people and concern for production emerged during the 1960s (Doyle Smith, 2001). According to behavioral theory, it is easy to find out which style the leaders are belonging to by identifying the behavior. For example, leadership styles are another important aspect from the management process where different country will have different management style. Huczynski Buchanan (2007) suggest that leader cannot use the same leadership style in their various locations around the world due to the cultural and behavior differences. Japanese leadership style differs from those in the U.S and the most common is that Japanese (Akio Toyoda) and U.S (Jeff Bezos) leader have a basically different philosophy of managing people. For example, Jeff Bezos is heavily individual-orientated and will praised individual with great performance in front of everyone. However, a Japanese saying is, the nail that sticks out gets hammered down which mean that no individual should stand out from the group. Giving out individual reward system in Japan could embarrass a Japanese worker and is not accepted at Japan. Western motivation models are culturally individualistic, applying them to a collectivistic culture is probably inappropriate. As Fujisawa, co-founder of Honda Motor Company stated, Japanese and American management is 95% the same and differs in all important aspects (Keeley, 2001, p. 18; Erez Gati, 2004). U.S leadership style is not appropriate at Japan where the Japanese employees are unable to accept or tolerate participative and individual orientated leadership style. Mintzberg Westly (2001) suggest that Japanese worker dislike emphasize on individual performance and more toward group-orientation, and will felt appreciate if their leader can pay some attention to them at work and also concern a little bit about their personal life, like what Akio Toyoda did as a leader at Toyota. Akio Toyoda was more willing to allow poor performance to continue for a time so that those who were involved would learn from their mistake and to harvest loyalty among employees. The example above clearly showed that there are clearly different ways to work in different culture and it is important for leader to understand such differences and manage the employees based on their own culture. Huczynski Buchanan (2007) argues that leadership styles vary from company to company. There are many different styles of leadership that can bring success to an organization but organization has to make sure that their leadership style is right for the business. Which leadership styles to practice depend on many factors, but the most determine factors that has the biggest influence on management style will definitely be culture and behavior. 2.5 Contingency Theory and Hofstedes Five Cultural Dimensions Fiedler and his associates bring out the contingency theory which combines leadership style and situation during 1960s. In Fielders model, the good performance of the group depends on the interaction of the leadership style and the favorable situation, and a good leadership must be flexible and adaptable in order to appropriate different situation within the organization no matter how hard or soft situation (Huczynski Buchanan, 2007). Thus, there is no single style of leadership which can match to all situations; even the most effective leadership behavior should depend on the situational factors. Hofstede (n. d.) commented that: Western countries have characteristics of high individualism, medium uncertainty avoidance, high masculinity, low to medium power distance, and low long-term orientation. [Thus, based on the situation, it is best for Jeff Bezos to practiced participative leadership style in USA. On the other hand, eastern countries such as Japan] was found to have characteristics of low individualism, high uncertainty avoidance, high masculinity, high power distance, and high long-term orientation Hence, it is more appropriate for Akio Toyoda to practiced autocratic leadership style to suit the cultural and situation at Japan. In order to compare the different culture of USA and Japan, Hofstedes Cultural Dimensions of USA and Japan will be as the following (Hofstede, n. d.): Source: Geert Hofstede, Cultural Dimensions, www.geert-hofstede.com 3.0 Conclusion In conclusion, it is undeniable that Jeff Bezos is a great CEO which made Amazon a famous and innovative online company globally. However, it is too narrow to believe that charismatic leader is everything since Akio Toyoda is still a great leader without being a charismatic leader. Jeff Bezos is a charismatic leader, it might be his style to be one, but charismatic leader style is not suitable for everyone or in different culture, background and country, it might not be essential. Therefore, there is no one universal accepted leadership style that is the most effective one. Great leader are not only charismatic leader, anyone who was seen as a great leader, no matter what his leadership style was, is nothing less an effective leader if they were not quoted as one. Thus, culture differences play a significant role whereby leaders must consistently aware of the cultural change and react to the situation in order to lead their staff with the most appropriate type of leadership. Without acknowledging to the aforesaid, one will never be a good leader.

The African Trilogy - ‘writing back’ to Mister Johnson :: Essays Papers

The African Trilogy - ‘writing back’ to Mister Johnson The African Trilogy has been the subject of much critical discussion since the publication of Things Fall Apart forty years ago. Some of this critical work has focused on the trilogy as a postcolonial work, ‘writing back’ to the previous colonial works on Africa, such as those produced by Joseph Conrad and Joyce Cary. Achebe has himself alluded to these works as part of his motivation for becoming a writer, calling them â€Å"appalling novels† about Africa. More specifically he has said: â€Å"I know around ‘51, ‘52, I was quite certain that I was going to try my hand at writing, and one of the things that set me thinking was Joyce Cary’s novel, set in Nigeria, Mister Johnson, which was praised so much, and it was clear to me that it was a mostsuperficial picture of - not only of the country - but even of the Nigerian character, and so I thought if this was famous, then perhaps someone ought to look at this from the inside† ( Duerden Dennis, and Cosmo Pieterse, eds. African Writers Talking: A Collection of Radio Interviews. London: Heinemann, 1972.) Looking at this ‘from the inside’, involved drawing on the model of his own Igbo society and its oral traditions. By reconstructing a picture and narrative of Africa, and using Cary’s fiction as a point of departure, Achebe set out to challenge the colonialist depiction of Africans and their society. Although both Mister Johnson and The African Trilogy are concerned with similar issues, the ways in which these issues are confronted are strikingly different. In contrast to the simple, baby-like natives of Cary’s novel, Achebe’s characters are complex, multi-dimensional figures in their own right. While the African society of Mister Johnson is portrayed as uncivilized, simple, corrupt, the Igbo society of Things Fall Apart is shown as having grown from a long tradition of careful decision-making and a carefully system of religious, social and political beliefs. A rebuttal to the African world portrayed by Cary takes the form of an intelligent portrayal of the character of Okonkwo and the society of Umuofia. As opposed to Cary, Achebe explores, in depth, the relationship between the individual and the social context in which his emotional and psychological make-up has developed. In addition, he gives us in Okonkwo a protagonist we can identify with rather than laugh at : â€Å"Perhaps down in his heart Okonkwo was not a cruel man.

Democratic National Convention Essay

Standing in front of thousands of audience who are motivated to involve into the election, the former President Bill Clinton delivered his speech to support Democratic nominee Barack Obama as the American President. He successfully conveyed his support to the listeners with his organized statements, and persuaded people to vote for Obama by explicating his understanding of election and the quality Obama possesses to lead the country. The speech positively offers Obama a strong helping hand on his final lap of running for the president. Behind Bill’s speech is a peculiar way in which he convinced the audience Obama is the right choice for president. Through the whole speech, Bill’s tone flew soft and slow, speaking like a gentle old man telling beautiful stories to his lovely grand children; he showed his great sense of humor via saying â€Å"the campaign generates so much heat, it increases global warming. †, creating a pleasant atmosphere among the enormous crowd; he thrilled the Obama’s fellows by making praised comments on Obama’s contributions and his running for election, that is, to tell people that he come here first to support Obama, and then develop it into his detailed reasons. Apparently he thought Obama’s policy will benefit American families and restore American leadership in the world. At the same time, he attacked McCain’s extreme political philosophy and asserted that it would let Americans endure even more financial burdens. During the process, Bill credited Hillary’s great effort she made on her road for American president, though at last she did not win. This laid the foundation for Bill to express a strong, supportive voice from Clinton family, adding that he and Hillary will be on the side of Obama with certainty. The solid clarification sparked cheers and applause from the audience. Since Bill has been a great president in the American history, he earned reputation around the world. People admired him as a guide to prosperity and a man with wisdom. Inarguably, a fair portion of people regard his notions and remarks on campaign as reasonable and convincing. Besides, as Hillary also boasts her own reputation in American political field, voices from Clinton family do mean something. Specifically, Bill based his support on the concept of strengthening America both domestically and internationally. He exclaimed that during the 8-year regulation of Republic, various issues rise and the country falls in great trouble for failing to promote American dream and for the loss of leadership in the world. Considerable, he defined the next president as â€Å"a man with two most important jobs†, that is, â€Å"to rebuild the American dream and to restore American leadership in the world. † Let’s refer to the history and make abroad comments on Bill’s contribution as president and then we may figure out why he concerned about these two jobs so much. As the forty-second president, he channeled his energy into establishing and rebuilding after the Cold War, attempting to improve people’s living standard and American financial conditions. He signed North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), making endeavors to solve labor problems not only in America but also other countries(1). Facing the challenge of international relationships, his eyes focused on how to eliminate multiple misunderstandings deterring the wheel of goodwill from being in motion. It may suffice to mention Tibet-China’s discussion on human rights, a formal meeting with Chairman Jiang. During the meeting Bill advised a deeper communication with Dalai Lama, trying to help solve China’s long-term human rights conflict, which unfortunately did not end successfully(2). However, this case fully illustrates Bill as a leader insisting the idea of peace and cooperation. And when he is looking for a person who puts development and cooperation first, he find Obama. When talking about America international policy in the past 8 years, Bill described it as â€Å"our position in the world has been weakened by too much unilateralism and too little cooperation. † He conveyed the situations most Americans know and complain about: a perilous dependence on imported oil, a refusal to lead on global warming, a severely burdened military and so forth. All these failed policies, according to Bill, are contrary to the road of hope and happiness which Americans yield for. So here is the thing: why does Bill believe Obama is the one for president? The short answer is he can make America a better country. The long answer is, as Bill explained:†He has a remarkable ability to inspire people, to raise our hopes and rally us to high purpose†¦He has shown a clear grasp of foreign policy and national security challenges and a firm commitment to rebuild our badly strained military. † Therefore Obama stands in front of the public as a leader of change, as a politician looking for development based on people’s life expectations rather than individual interest. He was described as a man fighting all the way to achieve his success, and it inspired people who are willing to get rid of life troubles through hard work. In terms of national policies and security, Bill convinced the audience that Obama would increase job opportunity and cut taxes for hard-working people and Mid-class families. And Obama would never allow terrorists to obscure their opportunities to make tragic damages like â€Å"911†. All these positive and powerful statements help Obama gain reputations from the public and to some extent eliminate suspicion remained among US citizens. As a rhetoric expert, Bill intelligently utilizes tropes to funnel his ideas into audiences’ heads. He received a great respondent when he said:† People the world over have always been more impressed by the power of our example than by the example of our power. † The sentence is concise and strong, explicitly indicating that to be on the top of the world’s power, America should serve as a leader to create global prosperity, not just illustrating in front of other nations how strong America is. It creates a pattern of â€Å"example† and â€Å"power†, and the comparison in the sentence makes it even easier to remember, thus reinforcing the theme of supporting Obama’s policies. In the speech, Bill also specified his speech perfectly by his vivid expression and body movements, making the whole speech memorable. In his speech, Bill said:† What about the military families pushed to the breaking point by multiple, multiple deployments? What about the assault on science and the defense of torture? What about the war on unions and the unlimited favors for the well-connected? What about Katrina and cronyism? † Through series of questions, Bill reminds the failed policies the Republicans have set and judged them as big mistakes. In turn, it successfully generated against emotions, raising voices calling for change and Obama as the leader to change. After roughly 20 minutes, the speech ended. Overall, Bill Clinton’s speech to support Obama conveyed Bill’s ideas about the current challenges America is facing and the reasons to support Obama as the president. The speech speaks highly of Obama’s ability and his policies intending to better develop this country and also points out the wrong direction in which Republicans keep going for eight years. The purpose of his delivering the speech is clear— to support Obama and convince people to join him. And to some degree Bill succeeded to do so in this speech. (1):Bill Clinton—Wikipedia, the Free encyclopedia Wikipedia 14 September 2008, at 05:50 http://en. wikipedia. org/wiki/Bill_Clinton (2):On the issue: Bill Clinton’s foreign policy Ontheissues. org 11 September 2008 http://www. ontheissues. org/Celeb/Bill_Clinton_Foreign_Policy. htm

Cinema of Attractions

The cinema of attraction. ‘A matter of making images seen. ’ This is what Fernand Leger was writing in 1902 about the new art, trying to describe the possible changes in cinema, by emphasizing the fact that imitating the movements of nature is not necessarily the best way of defining cinema’s essence. This is only one of the writings concerning this topic which influenced Tom Gunning in characterizing the cinematic period before 1906 as that of the ‘cinema of attractions’.In this essay I am going to talk about the cinema of attractions and its main characteristics with examples from several early films, with an emphasis on ‘Un homme de tetes’ (Georges Melies, 1898) and L'arrivee d'un train a la Ciotat (Auguste and Louis Lumiere,1895). History of the cinema of attractionsThe term of ‘cinema of attractions’ was introduced into the study of film by Tom Gunning and Andre Gaudreault in 1985, describing a filmmaking technique used for early films, until 1906, in which the main interest is in the spectacle and the audience’s visual experience rather than in the narrative side. The cinema of attractions employed delights like colors, costumes, commentary, sometimes even grotesque features, like freaks or indigenous people. In the simplest terms, it was a cinema based on entertainment, shock and sensations, the ability of showing something.The main difference between this style and the cinema in later years is the focus: the cinema of attractions is trying to take the spectators on an unique trip to an extraordinary place, by inviting them to look, get involved and be amazed by these perfect illusions, rather than telling a story, while the narrative cinema focuses on human psychology, continuity of the plot and characters. The term ‘attract’ is defined by the english dictionary as ‘to draw by appealing to the emotions or senses, by stimulating interest, or by exciting admiration; allur e; invite’.In cinema, Eisenstein was one of the first people to use ‘attraction’ as a way of describing his techniques, which had either a physical or psychological unexpected impact on the audience, due to its direct address towards it, sometimes causing an emotional shock, through aggressivity and due to the unpredictability of the moment. Attractions of the early cinema. The first film that I am going to analyze is directed by the Lumiere brothers, which interpret cinema as the transcription of real unstaged life, opposing to Melies who saw cinema as invention, artifice, illusion, fantasy.Around this 50 seconds film there are different myths, some of which say that in the first showing of the movie, a lot of the spectators screamed, thinking that the train is going to hit them, and some of them even left the room, because of the illusion of the train moving towards them. This myth is why nowadays people tend to think of the early audience as naive, but at the same time, they forget to take in consideration other aspects, like the transformation which is occurring in front of their eyes, the idea of change and also the historical and social background.The primary object of most early films seems to be the personal space, which is invaded on a certain level. By triggering stress or fear, or choosing real-life danger objects like trains and other vehicles, the personal space is invaded and bodily reactions are being triggered, which is the main purpose of the cinema of attractions, by engaging the viewer in the exhibition. In 1986, Maxim Gorky writes a review of the Lumiere programme, and he uses words like ‘straight at you’, ‘shield’, ‘will reach you’, which, once again, shows the physical reaction that people had. Nevertheless, one must not confuse this with a complete illusion.People did not actually believe that the train will physically hurt them, but they were allowing themselves to enjoy the thr ill of the cinematic magic. If we were to take a clear example of the details which change this perspective of a credulous audience, the exhibition of The Black Diamond Express is one of the strongest ones, as the movie had a presenter, described as a ‘terrorist mood setter’ which introduced the audience in a dramatic atmosphere, by describing the images of a locomotive rushing into the camera as an unique moment in history, in which it will come towards them with its dreadful ‘iron throat’.This puts the danger that people believed to be in, in a new light, showing that their emotions and anxiety were influenced by the atmosphere created, together with the novelty of this type of entertainment. This type of delay, the suspension, the wait for an already announced unusual thing to be happening accentuate its impact over the image perceived by the crowd. Locomotives, trains and generally moving objects were preferred by directors, as they easily created a sen sation of fear, which could also represent a sensual reaction, as we saw earlier, viewers running out of the movie theater.This experience could nowadays be compared to that of a roller coaster, described by Gunning as ‘sensations of acceleration and falling with a security guaranteed by the modern industrial technology’, which in my opinion precisely describes people’s experience from 100 years ago as well, as they were well aware of the fact that it was just an illusion, but that didn’t mean they were refusing to be drawn in the experience, especially considering its innovation.Another aspect of the cinema of attraction is confrontation, which holds the viewer and makes it impossible for him to lose himself into absorption, like before in other arts like painting or sculpture: ‘attractions address the viewer directly, soliciting attention and curiosity through acts of display’. [1] This type of art ask for an immediate response from the audi ence, as the images are moving, evolving- a living screen. ‘Unlike psychological narrative, the cinema of attractions does not allow for elaborate development, only a limited amount of delay is really possible’. TG, p122) It is exactly this newness that makes it exciting, as it instantly produces a show with a high impact, offering sensational thrills through powerful images in motion, without the traditional narrative structure. In this type of cinema, the spectator identifies himself with the camera more than a character and his confrontation with the film is rather unmediated by the story. Hence, seeing this exhibitionist style as a precursor for the later narrative structures would show a misunderstanding of its value. Another iconic film for the cinema of attractions is Un homme de tetes, 1895.I have chosen to discuss this film because of its director, which most of the time is put in contrast with the Lumiere brothers, because of their different styles. The first one uses editing and multi shots, while the Lumiere brothers show nature caught on camera, in a single shot. Still, both styles have the same essence, that of the act of display, the pleasure of the spectacle. One aspect that one can definitely notice in Melies’ film is the presence of a showman/monstrator whose role is to present the film to the audience, a mediator between the crowd and the experience itself.As Gunning states, ‘The showman rather than the film themselves gives the program an overarching structure, and the key role of the exhibition showman underscores the act of monstration than founds the cinema of attractions. ’( TG, p. 122) As an example, Melies, who was a performer himself, during the movie which lasts less than two minutes, gesticulates with his hands towards himself and the heads, in a way directing the public’s attention to the main points, the heads, which are part of his magic trick. This, once again, puts the spectator in an ex ternal position, making him aware of the act of looking.This does not distance him, but, on the contrary, makes him part of the whole show, emphasizing the realism and the interactivity of the cinema. The tricks found in his films represent the typical burst of attraction, when there is a transformation of an object into something else: ‘In its double nature, its transformation of still image into moving illusions, it expresses an attitude in which astonishment and knowledge perform a vertiginous dance, and pleasure derives from the energy released by the play between the shock caused by this illusion of danger and delight in its pure illusion’. (TG, p. 29) One more time, it is emphasized that the audience knew how to make the difference between reality and illusion, and that movement is what cinematography promised, while still experiencing sensational thrills and feeding their hunger of consuming the world through images. From the examples above, we can see Tom Gunnin g’s idea of cinema of attraction come to life, and the way in which it dominated the first decade of early cinema, through the first silent movies and their exhibitionist characteristics. Their ability to show something without a narrative structure has fulfilled the audience’s visual curiosity of thrills, danger nd magic, while drawing them in the film, creating strong bodily sensation. Therefore, cinema of attractions is a primary response to people’s wish of seeing a spectacle apart than storytelling, in which their body is engaged rather than the mind through a succession of instants. Claudia Mangeac 1623 words Bibliography: 1. Tom Gunning: An Aesthetics of Astonishment: Early Film and the (In)Credulous Spectator 2. The Cinema of Attractions Reloaded, edited by Wanda Strauven, Amsterdam University Press, Amsterdam 2006 3. Tom Gunning -Attractions: How They Came into the world . Encyclopedia of early cinema, edited by Richard Abel, Routledge 270 Madison Avenu e, New York, USA 5. http://scan. net. au/scan/journal/display. php? journal_id=109 6. http://www. scribd. com/doc/65086032/Tom-Gunning-Primitive-Cinema 7. Tom Gunning, The Cinema of Attraction(s): early Film, Its Spectator and the Avant-Garde 8. Un homme de tetes’ (Georges Melies, 1898) 9. L'arrivee d'un train a la Ciotat (Auguste and Louis Lumiere,1895). ———————– [1] Tom Gunning, ‘An Aesthetic of Astonishment: Early Film and the (ln)Credulous Spectator’ (pg. 121)

Easter Symbols and Celebration Traditions

Easter Symbols and Celebration Traditions Symbols and Characteristics of Easter Since ancient times, Easter has been observed as one of the most long-expected and sacred holidays. Though its celebration is considered to be tightly connected with missioners spreading the traditions of observance of Christs Resurrection, the feast of Eostre existed in a far pre-Christianity era. The pagans were commemorating the goodness of spring Easter at the beginning of this season of the year, which coincided with commemorating Christs Resurrection by Christians. Gradually, two different holidays assimilated and were celebrated as one, called Easter, with its unique traditions and symbols. To emphasize victory of life over death, faith over disbelief, fertility, and purity, people started to use various symbols associated with the mentioned notions. Read More About Easter Symbols Cross The all-pervading symbol of different festivals is the cross. During Easter holiday, it is used to mourn for Christs death on Good Friday and to glorify the Jesus resurrection. On the Easter Sunday, the cross is decorated with Easter flowers, which are lilies, and bright strips of different colors. Lily The icon, which symbolizes the purity, beauty, and innocence, is the Easter lily. According to the legend, lilies were the flowers which grew at the places where the sweat of Jesus in his hours of sorrow had fallen. Butterfly Another vivid symbol of Easter is the butterfly, whose stages of life remind us Christs path as a human. The first cycle, when a butterfly is a caterpillar, is associated with the life of Jesus; the cocoon cycle is compared with the crucifixion of the Christ; while the final stage, when the cocoon becomes a butterfly, represents Christs Resurrection. Lamb In countries of central and eastern Europe, Eastern lamb, from the religious point, personifies Jesus, and His death is related to the sacrifice of the lamb on the first Passover. In the Bible, Jesus is mentioned as the Lamb of God. Easter Bunny and Eggs The images that have recently become especially popular are the Eater Bunny or Hare bringing colored eggs, nowadays toys and candies, in baskets. Those symbols were brought to the premises of the USA by Germans in the 1770s and got accustomed and preserved till now. Hares, as well as eggs, symbolize the beginning of new life. There are other Easter symbols that are widely used during the celebrations, such as the candle light of the world, baby animals new life and spring, palm branches symbol of hospitality, the empty tomb faith and hope for everlasting life. Easter icons do not end on the represented list of symbols and may differ depending on the country and its specific traditions. Broaden your knowledge and observe Easter holiday according to the traditions with us!

Why act essays

Why act essays Previously, if asked why I wanted to be an actor, Id say I didnt know. I just loved to act. Of course theres the obvious fame and fortune but thats not enough when choosing career, because if you dont attain that fame and fortune, you have to love it enough to keep doing it. What makes an actor want to act? More importantly, what makes someone an actor, and what makes that actor "good". Merriam-Webster defines an actor as, "a-one who represents a character in a dramatic production; b-a theatrical performer; c-one that behaves as if acting a part, " but I think theres more to it than that. Just because you represent a character in a production that doesnt necessarily mean you are an actor. If you want to be called an "actor," I believe you have to master the art of acting. Not simply pretending to be, or behaving like the your character, but becoming your character. A good actor simply does this very well. I dont think anyone knows what makes every actor want to act, but I can tell you my reasons. I love becoming another person on stage and having the power, along with the other cast members, to make my audience laugh or cry. Ever since I can remember Ive engaged in some form of acting, from kindergarten Christmas shows right up to High School. I believe I have always had a subconscious love for acting, beyond what I could explain. I started to understand more about the art, and my interest in it, as I grew older. What enhanced my respect for drama and awakened in me a passion for theatre was a class in theatre critique called the "Young Critics Institute." There, I attended and analyzed performances and got to work with very accomplished people like Ben Brantley and Frank Rich, of the New York Times; Joan Acocella, of The New Yorker; Gordon Cox, of Newsday, and Tony Kushner, Pulitzer Prize-winning author of "Angels in America." Taking that class also helped me as an aspiring pe ...

Quantum Numbers and Electron Orbitals

Quantum Numbers and Electron Orbitals Chemistry is mostly the study of electron interactions between atoms and molecules. Understanding the behavior of the electrons in an atom is an important part of understanding chemical reactions. Early atomic theories used the idea that an atoms electron followed the same rules as a mini solar system where the planets were electrons orbiting a center proton sun. Electric attractive forces are much stronger than gravitational forces, but follow the same basic inverse square rules for distance. Early observations showed the electrons were moving more like a cloud surrounding the nucleus rather than an individual planet. The shape of the cloud, or orbital, depended on the amount of energy, angular momentum and magnetic moment of the individual electron. The properties of an atoms electron configuration are described by four quantum numbers: n, â„“, m, and s. First Quantum Number The first is the energy level quantum number, n. In an orbit, lower energy orbits are close to the source of attraction. The more energy you give a body in orbit, the further out it goes. If you give the body enough energy, it will leave the system entirely. The same is true for an electron orbital. Higher values of n mean more energy for the electron and the corresponding radius of the electron cloud or orbital is further away from the nucleus. Values of n start at 1 and go up by integer amounts. The higher the value of n, the closer the corresponding energy levels are to each other. If enough energy is added to the electron, it will leave the atom and leave a positive ion behind. Second Quantum Number The second quantum number is the angular quantum number, â„“. Each value of n has multiple values of â„“ ranging in values from 0 to (n-1).This quantum number determines the shape of the electron cloud. In chemistry, there are names for each value of â„“. The first value, â„“ 0 called an s orbital. s orbitals are spherical, centered on the nucleus. The second, â„“ 1 is called a p orbital. p orbitals are usually polar and form a teardrop petal shape with the point towards the nucleus. â„“ 2 orbital is called a d orbital. These orbitals are similar to the p orbital shape, but with more petals like a cloverleaf. They can also have ring shapes around the base of the petals. The next orbital, â„“3 is called an f orbital. These orbitals tend to look similar to d orbitals, but with even more petals. Higher values of â„“ have names that follow in alphabetical order. Third Quantum Number The third quantum number is the magnetic quantum number, m. These numbers were first discovered in spectroscopy when the gaseous elements were exposed to a magnetic field. The spectral line corresponding to a particular orbit would split into multiple lines when a magnetic field would be introduced across the gas. The number of split lines would be related to the angular quantum number. This relationship shows for every value of â„“, a corresponding set of values of m ranging from -â„“ to â„“ is found. This number determines the orbitals orientation in space. For example, p orbitals correspond to â„“1, can have m values of -1,0,1. This would represent three different orientations in space for the twin petals of the p orbital shape. They are usually defined to be px, py, pz to represent the axes they align with. Fourth Quantum Number The fourth quantum number is the spin quantum number, s. There are only two values for s,  ½ and - ½. These are also referred to as spin up and spin down. This number is used to explain the behavior of individual electrons as if they were spinning in a clockwise or counterclockwise. The important part to orbitals is the fact that each value of m has two electrons and needed a way to distinguish them from one another. Relating Quantum Numbers to Electron Orbitals These four numbers, n, â„“, m, and s can be used to describe an electron in a stable atom. Each electrons quantum numbers are unique and cannot be shared by another electron in that atom. This property is called the Pauli Exclusion Principle. A stable atom has as many electrons as it does protons. The rules the electrons follow to orient themselves around their atom are simple once the rules governing the quantum numbers are understood. For Review n can have whole number values: 1, 2, 3, ...For every value of n, â„“ can have integer values from 0 to (n-1)m can have any whole number value, including zero, from -â„“ to â„“s can be either  ½ or - ½

HUMAN AGENCY AND COMMUNITY IN A GLOBALIZING WORLD Term Paper

HUMAN AGENCY AND COMMUNITY IN A GLOBALIZING WORLD - Term Paper Example The human individual has to face different social events that are continuously influencing many aspects of his or her community. Humans, as agents of social modification and development, face the challenges of world events. Through the presence of globalization, people become more aware of different views and ways of life while being vulnerable to being engulfed by such new ideas. They are susceptible to incorporating new perspective in their practice. Thus, the human individual as social agent has a big role in restructuring or maintaining the norms and traditions of his or her society. In this paper, an exploration will be presented about how a human individual in a globalized world setting is acting upon the events and changes happening in his or her society. In light to the discussion, narratives from Ha Jin’s book will be studied focusing on the issues of changing societies and human individuality. Two instances of globalization from Ha Jin’s book will be discussed and will be examined using Amartya Sen’s and Kwame Anthony Appiah’s comments and discussions in connection with globalization and the status of human individual in the global community. ... One instance of globalization that is illustrated in the book is that of the situation of the narrator in the ‘An Entrepreneur Story’ where he experienced how money and capitalism influences many things in the world (Ha 116-126), if not all. In this example, capitalism as used by international community as political and economic strategy is being projected in the narrator’s thoughts and intention. Generally, capitalism becomes central to the theme of the story. The implicit and explicit conditions of people in a nearly capitalist community as influenced by world economic politics are depicted. Another event in the book where implications of globalization can be found is that of the story of a man in the title story. The story narrating about a man named Baowen, a husband, (Ha 91) arrested because of the ‘crimes’ of homosexuality is quite surprising. In the story, homosexuality is viewed to be like an illness that needs clinical cure. In here, we see h ow myths about the matter are being shown implying the deep-rooted political and social factors influencing it. This instance is also related to the outside phenomenon happening outside the setting’s local community. In the global society, certain views and modifications about the issue of gender and homosexuality have circulated and startled people from different parts of the world. This matter is just one of the prominent issues talked about in the international communities. Thus, it is apparent that the characters in the story, representing ‘the human individuals’ in the community, are affected by the circulating views and perspectives introduced by globalization. In reading Ha Jin’s stories, particularly those instances

In what ways is a non state actor different from a nation state Essay

In what ways is a non state actor different from a nation state - Essay Example A nation state is a legal entity that has come into existence through the approval and recognition of the global entities. It enjoys the privileges and other accreditations of the global community. A nation state comes into existence through the fulfillment of number of factors. These factors are essential in terms of becoming an independent state. The first and foremost factor that is essential towards the nation state’s existence is its occupation over a defined territory. This territory must not be in conflict with other nations. The other factor that makes up for a nation state includes a nation’s ability of a state to engage itself in the international intercourse and international relationship building with the other states. The third factor is that of recognition by the global community. Without the recognition, the nation state cannot come into force. Politically, economically, socially complete and self reliant entities can make up for a nation state. This has been formally defined for the first time after the First World War when League of Nations gave shape to the concept of nations, legal entities and illegal entities. A nation that has no major conflict over the land or resources can earn nationhood through the consent and approval of the United Nations.Java earned its independence from Indonesia through the approval of United Nations. The Nongovernmental organizations and entities are also termed as the non state actors, however their domain of work, their existential concept and working nature is different.

Defining the Word Hot Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 6

Defining the Word Hot - Essay Example Perhaps the primary reference of the word hot is a high temperature. During the summer, weather temperatures could go as high as a hundred degrees Fahrenheit or even higher. In Dubai, it has recorded 122 degrees Fahrenheit high. This is an extremely high temperature for humans and animals so that they need to stay indoors more often and have relied on air-conditioners to lower the temperature. When people need to go out, they should have something to block them from the sun such as an umbrella and they should also carry water to quench their thirst brought about by the high temperature. Obviously, the heat of the sun is a big factor affecting this hot temperature during summer. With no clouds to block the sun, the earth’s direct exposure to it elevates the temperature and therefore makes people perspire as a result of the hotness of the atmosphere. Similarly, hot is often associated with fire which is used to cook food or to make the house warm during winter.  Secondly, the word hot can also refer to a person’s hot-headedness. This association is most probably based on the fact that an angry person has an elevated blood pressure that causes his face to become red especially with white men. When a person is angry, his heart beats faster and pumps blood more rapidly which explains the increased blood pressure. Consequently, the temperature of the man also rises like a person suffering from the fever so that, in relation to the discussion above, an angry person is called hot. The process allows more blood on the head and changes the color of one’s face. Therefore, this could also be associated with the blood. Blood and the heart are identified with the color red. Moreover, a fire which emits some reddish glow or the color of ember or glowing coal is red. Blood, heart, and anger are all interconnected and this is the reason why an angry person is also referred to as hot-tempered. The term is the opposite of the slang word â€Å"cool†.

Last Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Last - Assignment Example This type of media is one where by the audience actively participate in gathering, passing and analyzing information. Their source and power derived from many people participating by contributing towards the media. Some examples of participatory media are YouTube, wiki, blogs, social sites and music or photos sharing Medias (Burgess & Harley, 2013). 3. Is peer to peer sharing of digital material illegal? Why or why not? Peer to peer sharing becomes illegal when copyrighted information shared without consent of the owner. Risks in sharing these materials may include, if you share protected materials by laws, one might download a virus or enhance a security breach. Violation of these rules has their consequences (University of Washington, 2010). 4. Name three societal impacts resulting from increase of digital media. Increase of digital media have changed the way people converse, study, and spend their free time. There has been increase in internet obsessions and many other cybercrimes through the internet. Digital media has also enhanced interconnectivity between people within various regions through social media and mobile phones easily (Healey, 2011). 5. What is the difference between usability and accessibility? Give an example of each. Usability refers to the friendliness, efficiency, and satisfaction of the user and how easy for one to remember how to use something. Example of a website, it should have visible navigations, which users are familiar with and followed with ease. Accessibility is an attribute in which everyone including the disabled can use, understand, and perceive the media with ease. Example is the use of audio, speech recognition, visual to cater for all types of people (Mifsud, 2011). Part 2: ESSAY ITEMS Answer ALL QUESTIONS in this section. Each response must be at least 200 words in length and must follow APA guidelines. Type your responses immediately below the questions. All responses must be supported by reference to the literature an d references must be APA formatted. 1. What is Web Technology? Define and provide two examples of web technology and where it has been implemented. Web technologies used in the web to create an interface for the interaction between servers and clients in through the internet. Some of these technologies include HTML, CSS, JavaScript, and XML. Many other emerging technologies that ease the way clients interact with information and other clients through the internet. HTML is an abbreviation for hypertext mark-up language, which is a language that enhances the production of material on the internet. Browsers interpret these HTML codes to visible information when viewed through the web. Cascading style sheets (CSS) is a styling language that defines layout of HTML documents. CSS covers all layout attributes in a website that HTML does. CSS provides web designers with all layout styles in the web and supported by most web browsers. Use of both CSS and HTML makes the content separate from the styling and this makes maintenance of websites easy and faster. Benefits of CSS that HTML are that, with CSS one can many documents layout is controllable from one style sheet and a more detailed layout control. In addition, different designs of materials are different with many advanced techniques. CSS and HTML are the basics of any website in that; all websites designed use these two web technologies (Bangia, 2006). 2. How has digitization changed the manner in which society consumes information? Digitization has brought about many changes

Texas History. How to Get Rid of Slavery Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 6500 words

Texas History. How to Get Rid of Slavery - Essay Example Texas Secession Convention: †¢ In the month of January and February of the year 1861, a meeting was stages in Austin and voted to succeed from the Union. †¢ The call to secession actually began from October 1860, when it became apparent that Abraham Lincoln would be given the charge of presidency. †¢ The secession of South Carolina and five other states exacerbated the situation even further and added on to the intensified pressure that already existed for the implementation of secession policy. †¢ In Texas, only the governor could summon the legislation to hold a special session, but Governor Sam Houston refused to do so in the light that the secession hype would cool down. †¢ This compelled, Oran M. Roberts, the chief justice of Texas Supreme Court, John S. Ford and other imminent leader to take the situation into their own hands. †¢ They made a call for elections on January 8, 1861 in the press of delegates to a secession convention, which was duly granted by the legislature. †¢ On January 28, 1861, the delegates to the convention elected O. M. Roberts as the presiding offer and on 29th January, John H. Wharton moved "that without determining now the manner in which this result should be effected, it is the deliberate sense of this Convention that the state of Texas should separately secede." †¢ The convention delegates called for a proper referendum to solve the secession issue. †¢ On February 1 the House with the governor sat to give its final vote, which resulted in 166 votes in favor of secession and 8 against it. The Texans ratified the Secession on February 23rd; due to the Convention’s Public Safety Committee’s move to authorize the seizure of federal property in Texas. In March, the Convention organized various meetings, which resulted in taking Texas out of the Union and allied it with the confederacy. Battle of Sabine Pass The battle took place on September 8, 1863, which was an attempt by the Union to invade and occupy regions of Texas during the Civil War. The motivation behind the attack was the need of cotton by northern textile mills and concern about French interference in the Mexican Civil War. In September 1863, the Gen. Nathaniel P. Banks was sent with 4000 soldiers under the command of Gen. William B. Franklin to capture Sabine Pass, where the Sabine River flows to the Gulf of Mexico. The Western Gulf Blockading Squadron of the United States Navy sent forces to protect the piece of land. The Union lost their opportunity to launch a surprise attack when a blockader missed its scheduled meeting with the ships from New Orleans. However, a plan took shape and the Navy Commander scheduled the gunboats to enter the fort through the passes so that the troops could pass without being noticed. Meanwhile the Confederates remained in hiding and gathered reinforcement near the fort Odlum. The Union armed ships began their advancement into the fort, continually firing in the process. The Confederates cannoneers also geared up for the attack when the Union ships came under the 1200 yards radius. The Confederate artillery man shot the cannon with such precision that it destroyed the Union warships Sachem, made Arizona run for its life, grounded Clifton which resulted in ground combat between the two contenders and compelling another ship Granite City to flee the battleground. This led to the conclusion of the war and the Confederate captured 300 Union prisoners and two gunboats. The artillery skills had won the battle for the Confederates Andrew Jackson Hamilton He was born in Huntsville, Alabama on January 28, 1815 and was the son of James and Jane (Bayless) Hamilton. He had the privilege to become the governor of Texas; he was educated and admitted to the bar in Alabama. For three years, he practiced law in La Grange, Fayette Country He tied the marital knot with Mary Bowen and had two sons and four daughters form her. His political career began in 1849, when Gov. Peter Hall. Bell appointed him as his acting attorney general. In 1859 won

Veterans Health Administration NSQIP Program Case Analysis Coursework

Veterans Health Administration NSQIP Program Case Analysis - Coursework Example The benchmark standards were established by understanding and comparing the characteristics of best performers. The major criteria used were health status of patients after medical treatment; The morbidity and mortality rate in 30 post operative days; length of patients’ stay after operation; patients level of satisfaction; surgical and anesthesia techniques used; better supervision of residents in surgical training; and impact of technology and equipment. These benchmark standards were vital issues that reflected health status of patients and thereby, the level of services and impact of technology in surgeries. The program relied on using data comprising of pre-operative patient risk factor; key intra-operative process information; post operative 30 days morbidity and mortality rates; and length of stay. These were critical issues within the surgery that gave vital information about the outcomes of operations. The information collected from the database of surgical outcomes from 123 VAMS greatly helped to improve and improvise operations when the information was used to optimize surgical outcome. The NSQIP or Nation Administration Quality Improvement Program was highly successful that significantly contributed in the improvement of surgical outcome across VAMS. Indeed, while the morbidity and mortality rates were considerably reduced, the length of patients stay was also decreased from 10.2 days to 5 days. The length of stay was deemed important as it illustrated the efficacy of treatment and endorsed patients’ satisfaction. It clearly showed vast improvement in the health status of patients after the surgery, thus reaffirming the importance of new programs in developing an effective healthcare delivery system. Effective communication among the surgeons, nurses, administration and also with the patients was also one of the major factors that contributed to

Texas History. How to Get Rid of Slavery Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 6500 words

Texas History. How to Get Rid of Slavery - Essay Example Texas Secession Convention: †¢ In the month of January and February of the year 1861, a meeting was stages in Austin and voted to succeed from the Union. †¢ The call to secession actually began from October 1860, when it became apparent that Abraham Lincoln would be given the charge of presidency. †¢ The secession of South Carolina and five other states exacerbated the situation even further and added on to the intensified pressure that already existed for the implementation of secession policy. †¢ In Texas, only the governor could summon the legislation to hold a special session, but Governor Sam Houston refused to do so in the light that the secession hype would cool down. †¢ This compelled, Oran M. Roberts, the chief justice of Texas Supreme Court, John S. Ford and other imminent leader to take the situation into their own hands. †¢ They made a call for elections on January 8, 1861 in the press of delegates to a secession convention, which was duly granted by the legislature. †¢ On January 28, 1861, the delegates to the convention elected O. M. Roberts as the presiding offer and on 29th January, John H. Wharton moved "that without determining now the manner in which this result should be effected, it is the deliberate sense of this Convention that the state of Texas should separately secede." †¢ The convention delegates called for a proper referendum to solve the secession issue. †¢ On February 1 the House with the governor sat to give its final vote, which resulted in 166 votes in favor of secession and 8 against it. The Texans ratified the Secession on February 23rd; due to the Convention’s Public Safety Committee’s move to authorize the seizure of federal property in Texas. In March, the Convention organized various meetings, which resulted in taking Texas out of the Union and allied it with the confederacy. Battle of Sabine Pass The battle took place on September 8, 1863, which was an attempt by the Union to invade and occupy regions of Texas during the Civil War. The motivation behind the attack was the need of cotton by northern textile mills and concern about French interference in the Mexican Civil War. In September 1863, the Gen. Nathaniel P. Banks was sent with 4000 soldiers under the command of Gen. William B. Franklin to capture Sabine Pass, where the Sabine River flows to the Gulf of Mexico. The Western Gulf Blockading Squadron of the United States Navy sent forces to protect the piece of land. The Union lost their opportunity to launch a surprise attack when a blockader missed its scheduled meeting with the ships from New Orleans. However, a plan took shape and the Navy Commander scheduled the gunboats to enter the fort through the passes so that the troops could pass without being noticed. Meanwhile the Confederates remained in hiding and gathered reinforcement near the fort Odlum. The Union armed ships began their advancement into the fort, continually firing in the process. The Confederates cannoneers also geared up for the attack when the Union ships came under the 1200 yards radius. The Confederate artillery man shot the cannon with such precision that it destroyed the Union warships Sachem, made Arizona run for its life, grounded Clifton which resulted in ground combat between the two contenders and compelling another ship Granite City to flee the battleground. This led to the conclusion of the war and the Confederate captured 300 Union prisoners and two gunboats. The artillery skills had won the battle for the Confederates Andrew Jackson Hamilton He was born in Huntsville, Alabama on January 28, 1815 and was the son of James and Jane (Bayless) Hamilton. He had the privilege to become the governor of Texas; he was educated and admitted to the bar in Alabama. For three years, he practiced law in La Grange, Fayette Country He tied the marital knot with Mary Bowen and had two sons and four daughters form her. His political career began in 1849, when Gov. Peter Hall. Bell appointed him as his acting attorney general. In 1859 won

Engaging Strategy Essay Example for Free

Engaging Strategy Essay Introduction This paper will focus on constructing a strategy to engage and build rapport with a particular client on the provided vignette. The task is to navigate through obstacles that may arise that are unique to his characteristics including lack of information and limited research. To overcome these barriers of building rapport, the clinician must identify the client’s strengths and struggles as well as research scholarly literature on the client’s characteristics that are significantly different than the clinician’s to engage with and benefit the client’s session. Major Obstacles The major obstacles engaging with this particular client is the apparent lack of research on approaching a gay client with cultural competency, especially individuals who are intersected with other minority groups, in this case being Jewish as well as an older adult. According to Eubank-Carter, Curckell, and Goldfried (2005), as of 2003, only 54% of LGB-related articles have been based on empirical research and even less research addressing LGB people of color at a mere 12%. The lack of research on the client’s identity as a gay male poses as an obstacle as the clinician is a straight female, forming a barrier into building rapport on the basis of showing empathy and being relatable. According to Hepworth, Rooney, Rooney, Strom-Gottfried, and Larsen (2013), building rapport with a client enables clients to gain trust in the helpful intent and goodwill of the social worker† and further emphasizes, â€Å"cultural factors and language  differences compound potential barr iers to rapport even further (pg. 47). The multiple cultural differences between the clinician and client acts as a barrier to building rapport as well as connecting the client with connection to resources to fulfill his request. Adding to the lack of research on the client’s sexual orientation, he also identifies as a Jewish American, which may be a sensitive topic in building rapport, because it is unknown if he identifies ethnically, religiously, both or none. According to Faulkner Hecht (2010), for Jewish-American LGBTQ individuals, a significant issue that has been identified relates to the disclosure of their intersectional identity being a â€Å"twin threats of negative attitudes toward LGBTQ individuals and anti-Semitism† in which negative stigma towards LGBTQ identity was reinforced in Judaism, leaving those identifying as gay to conceal their sexual orientation and emphasizing their Jewish identity to avoid threats (Introduction section, pg. 830). This poses the delicate question of where the clien t has a support system, as upon first impression, it will appear blurred. Finally regarding the supervisor’s concern of the client being in an Intimate Partner Violence (IPV) relationship with his partner, the lack of research on same-sex couples, specifically males, issues that may become an obstacle include the clinician subconsciously viewing the issue through a heterocentric lens. Not only is research lacking on LGBTQ in general, especially with IPV, there is lack of training on how to approach cliental for clinicians who were brought up in a heterocentric majority society. This is not surprising as out of a study of 108 clinical and counseling graduate students, the majority stated they felt unprepared to work with LGBTQ clients (Eubank-Carter et al 2005, pg. 2) (check citation). Although resources are available for LGBTQ clients to be self sufficient, because of these issues mentioned above, they are limited. Countertransference With this client, I struggled with countertransference in terms of past experience and projective identification. This is not my first encounter with an older, gay client applying for low-income housing and the past client sadly faced discrimination by those running and living in the facilities. I am also aware although 22 states have passed laws prohibiting  discrimination against sexual orientation in private or public housing, those who hold authority in these areas can refuse services to LGBTQ clients without legal reasoning (Hillman 2014, pg. 272). The past client faced this situation and this knowledge could affect my ability to not give an attitude that Joseph will automatically face the same result, thus affecting my ability to develop a proper relationship as clinician and client. Although this is a secondary concern to suspicion of IPV that takes priority, it is still relevant as it maybe revisited later, thus creating another obstacle to building rapport. Scholarly Liter ature Eubanks-Carter, Burckell Goldfried’s article (2005) worked as a general guidebook for the clinician. It emphasized, â€Å"Our LGB clients are not only gay, lesbian and bisexual men and women; they are members of families, professions, and communities. Our goal is to affirm not only their sexual orientation, but their entire identity† (Eubanks-Carter et al, 2005, pg. 9). This was a reminder to learn to be culturally competent towards the client for more than just his sexual orientation, but as a whole with his other intersectional identities. Hillmans’ article (2014) covered the perspective of working with the client through the lens that he is gay and an older adult in his 70s. One important concept is point out that he grew up in an era where homosexuality in American was highly discriminated. According to Hillman (2014), the 1950s were a time when President Eisenhower issued 1953’s Executive Order #10450 ordering â€Å"homosexuals to be fired from government jobs† and McCarthy in 1954 included homosexuals in the group of â€Å"subversive elements†, (Historical and Cohort Effects, pg. 270). The client may still have negative feelings regarding homophobia from the past, thus it is imperative for the clinician to remain vigilant of her attitude and countertransference. Seelau Seelau’s article (2005) gave insight as to why the client, if involved in an IPV relationship, maybe reluctant to report. According to research, â€Å"police are reportedly less likely to intervene in domestic violence cases that involve gay or lesbian couples, perhaps due to sexual prejudice (i.e., homophobia) or gender role-stereotypes that women cannot be  abusers and men cannot be abused (Seelau et al, 2005, pg. 364). It is important for the clinician to keep note of this fact as the client may have distrust for law enforcement, thus keeping the abuse a secret.

Strategic Operational And Tactical Level Information Technology Essay

Strategic Operational And Tactical Level Information Technology Essay It is the combination of Information Technology and people using it to carry out operations and management. In a large sense it is frequently used with in people to process data and technology. It is also refer to Information and Communication Technology (ICT), which is used in organization, where people work with this to support business processes. There is a clear different between information system, ICT and business process. IT is completely different from information system, information system consist of ICT component. Information system helps to control the performance of business process. Information system is a special type of work system, which produces products or services for customer, where human and machines perform work using ICT and resources. Information system purpose is to process information. Information system is a system which represents data and process as a form of social memory. Information system supports human decision making and action. What is the role of Information Systems in todays competitive business environment on Strategic, Operational and Tactical level? Strategic Level: IS (Information system) supports business processes and operations: IS helps managers to execute their daily activities and functions properly, for example, in bank, creation of accounts, statement generation etc take place; and IS helps managers control such activities with greater accuracy and in a timely manner with the help of software. IS supports decision making for managers and employees: IS takes data as input and then processes it to generate information; simply defined as Input Æ’Â ¨ Process Æ’Â ¨ Information. This information is used by the managers for the improvement of their organizations, for example, existing historical data about customers in bank can be analyzed by IS and important information can be generated like bad customers and good customers, etc. This information can be used by managers while deciding whether to approve loan for new customers or not IS supports in making strategic decision for competitive advantage: By analyzing data collected from different sources, IS can provide valuable information such as which items to launch in which location; so that the company can have advantage over their competitors using this information. IS can also help business houses; in carrying out their business processes differently than their competitors. Operational Level: IS promises Operational excellence: In order to achieve higher profitability, businesses improve their operations efficiency. Managers make use of IS in business operations to achieve higher levels of productivity and efficiency. An excellent example is the use of the RetailLink system at Wal-Mart; this system digitally links every one of the Wal-Marts stores with its suppliers; the supplier is monitoring the items and as soon as an item is purchased, the supplier knows that a replacement must be shipped to the shelf. IS helps create new products, business models and services: In firms, Information system is a crucial tool in creating new services and products and new business models. Business models describe how the companies produce, deliver and sells a product or service to be successful. An example is Apple Inc; it transformed an old business model which was based on its iPod technology platform that included iPod, iPhone and the iTunes music service. IS helps monitor increase Supplier/Customer intimacy: When a customer is served well by a business, he usually responds by returning and purchasing more from the business; this raises the profits and revenues of the business. The more the business engages its suppliers, the better the suppliers are able to provide vital inputs; which in turn lowers costs. An example is the high-end hotel, Manhattans The Mandarin Oriental and other such high-end hotels; they illustrate the use of IS and technology to achieve better customer intimacy. They track guests preferences using computers, such as their preferred television programs, check-in times and room temperatures. Tactical Level: IS helps making better decisions: Many managers operate in an information bank and they never have the relevant information at the right moment to make a learned decision; poor outcomes like these loose customers and raise costs. Managers can use real time data while making decisions; IS allow managers to use real-time data from the marketplace while making decisions. An example is the Verizon Corporation, which uses a Web-based digital dashboard that gives managers accurate real-time information on customer complains and network performances. By using this information, managers can rapidly inform customers of the repair work, assign repair resources to the involved areas, and restore service promptly. Competitive advantage: When the firms achieve the business objectives, for example, customer intimacy, operational excellence, improved decision making, new services, products and business models, than it is most like that they have achieved a competitive advantage already. Accomplishing these things finer than their objects, responding to suppliers and customers in real time, charging less for premium products all add up to higher sales and profits. An example is the Toyota Production System which mainly focuses on organizing work to make continuous improvements, eliminating waste; Toyota Production System is based on what the customers actually ordered. How are Information Systems transforming the functional areas of organizations? Computers are used for almost any task. We check email with it, watch media, bank and more. Information is the life of organization, damaged or lost data can cause financial loss, law suits, etc. Information system contains hardware, software, data, applications, communication and people. It helps an organization to manage and secure its critical corporate, customer and employee data. Information system improves work process and gives lot of other benefits. An example is the Transaction Processing System (TPS) which is used in one functional area of a business; it process routine transactions more accurately and efficiently. TPS has many sub-species which are directly linked to their respective functional areas, for example, there is Finance and Accounting Systems for the functional areas of accounts and finance, Human Resource System for the Human Resource area, etc. Information System is different form other system because its purpose is to monitor and document the operations of other systems, we can also call it target system. For example, production activities would be the target system for a production scheduling information system, human resources would be the target system of a human resource information system. Every reactive system has a sub system called Information system, whose purpose is to monitor and control system. Task 2 There are many, many types of Information systems, but the most common ones are these: Transaction Processing System (TPS); Decision Support System (DSS); Management Information System (MIS); Office Automation System (OAS); Executive Information System (EIS) and Data Warehouses (DW). Transaction Processing System (TPS): TPS is a basic business system and it handles the tracking and processing of transactions. A transaction is simply an event which is of interest to the organization, for example, a railway booking system in which Booking, Cancellation, etc are all transactions; or a sale at a store. TPS is very useful and has many functions and it Serves the most elementary day-to-day activities of an organization. Is very often crucial to the survival of the organization Usually has high volumes of output and input Needs to be fault-tolerant Supports the operational level of the business Supplies data for higher-level management decisions Can have strategic consequences, for example, airline reservation system Deals with well-structured processes. A Transaction processing system has many sub-species, some of which are: Sales and Marketing Systems: These are systems that support the sales and marketing functions by easing the movement of services and goods from producers to customers. For example, a Stores sale system would automatically record and total purchase transactions and print out a packing list; this would improve customer service and maintain customer data. Manufacturing and Production systems: These systems supply data to operate, control and monitor the production processes, such as shipping, receiving, purchasing, scheduling, engineering, resource management, quality control, etc. For example, a system in factory that measures samples of products and gets information from that; then statistically analyses the samples and shows when the operators should take corrective action. Human Resource System: These systems deal with performance evaluation, compensation, placement, career development and recruitment of the firms employees. Examples of HRS include training and skills, applicant tracking, personnel record keeping, positions, benefits. Finance Accounting System: These systems maintain records which concern the flow of funds in the firm and they also produce financial statements, such as income statements and balance sheets. E.g for General Ledger; Budgeting, Billing: Cost Accounting, Accounts Payable/ Receivable; Funds management systems, payroll. These systems were among the earliest to be computerized. Examples of Financial systems are loan management, cash management, securities trading and check processing. Management Information Systems (MIS): They assist lower management in problem solving and making decisions. MIS usually takes data from the transaction processing system and summarizes it into a series of management reports which are to be used by the middle management and operational supervisors. MIS is a set of information processing functions and queries should be handled by it as quickly as they arrive. Database is an important element of MIS. MIS simply provides managers with feedback on daily operations; it also provides information and support for effective decision making. An example of MIS is an annual budgeting system. Decision Support System (DSS): DSS provides information, models or analysis tools to the senior managers and strategic management staff to help them make decisions. DSS are used for support of unstructured decisions and they are for analytical work mainly, for example, creating of what-if models using spreadsheets databases. An example job for a Decision Support System would be a 6 year operating plan. Office Automation Systems (OAS): They are used to improve the productivity of employees who need to process data information for reducing paper warfare. For example, Microsoft Office XP improves the productivity of employees working in an office or system that allow employees to work from home or whilst on the move. OAS software tools are often integrated and are designed for easy operations (for example, a graph from a spreadsheet can be imported in the Word Processor). Executive Information System (EIS): Also known as Executive Support System (ESS) and it provides information to the executives in a readily accessible, interactive format. EIS (or ESS) usually allow summary of the entire organization and also allows drilling down to specific levels of detail. EIS also use data which is produced by ground level Transaction Processing System so the executives can gain an overview of the entire organization. EIS require extensive staff to operate and are very expensive to run and are used by top level (strategic) management. Data Warehouses System: A Data Warehouse is a place where data is stored analysis, security and archival purposes. A data warehouse is usually either a single computer or a giant computer system formed by tying many computers together. Besides storing large amount of data, they must also possess the systems in place that would make it easy to access the data and use in day-to-day operations. It is also sometimes referred to be a major role player in DSS, or Decision Support System. How you identify the major support systems, and relate them to managerial functions? Support systems are Office Automation, Decisions Support Systems, Management Information system and TPS. Management Information system (MIS) generally takes the data from TPS (Transaction processing system) and summarizes it into a series of management reports, which are used by operational supervisors and also by the middle management. Decision-Support Systems are designed to help management make decisions, when there is uncertainty about the possible outcome. DSS gather relevant information with the help of tools and techniques and analyze the options and alternatives. DSS often create what-if models with the use of databases and spreadsheets. Knowledge Management Systems (KMS) helps business create and share information. This helps employees who creates and shares knowledge and expertise, which is shared in organization to create further commercial opportunities. KMS allows efficient categorization and distribution of knowledge. For example knowledge might be in word documents, spreadsheets, power point or internet etc, to share KMS would use collaboration system like intranet. Transaction Processing Systems (TPS) process routine transaction accurately and efficiently; and businesses may have many TPS, for example Invoices are sent to customers using the Billing systems Systems that calculate monthly and weekly payroll and tax payments Calculations of raw materials using Production and purchasing systems Using Stock control systems to process of all movement within the businesses Office Automation Systems (OAP) improves the productivity of the employees that process data information. For example, Microsoft Office XP improves productivity of employees that work in an office or system that enable employees to work on the move or from home. Task 3 Describe the tools and techniques provided by the Information Systems department and its relationship with end-users to solve the specific problems? The Information system department provides many different tools and techniques to solve problems and the main ones are: Data Warehouses: Their main purpose is to establish a data storehouse that makes operational data accessible in a form which is readily acceptable for analytical processing activities like Decision Support or EIS. Data Warehouses have many different characteristics such as Organization (data are organized), Time Variant (data kept for 5-10 years so it can be used for forecasting and comparisons), Non-Volatility (data are not updated once it has been entered in the warehouse), Consistency (data are coded in a consistent manner) and Client/Server (the data warehouse provides the end user an easy access to the data by using the clients/servers). How it solves problems: The Data in the warehouses is organized for less confusion; The Data is stored for a long time, allows for forecasts and comparisons; Takes raw data and codes it in a consistent matter for easy analysis Provides the end user an easy access to its data The data warehouse uses a relational structure The data are located in one place, allows data to be reached quickly Web browsers can be used to allow end users to reach data easily Data Mining: the process of analyzing data from different views and then summarizing it into useful information. Such information could be used to cut costs, raise revenue or both. For years, companies have used very powerful computers to sift through large volumes of supermarket scanner data and analyze market research reports. Data Mining is currently being used in areas like Retailing and Sales, Banking, Insurance, Airlines, Health Care, Computer Software Hardware, etc. How it solves problems: Data mining automates the process of discovering predictive information in very large databases; Data mining tools identify previous hidden patterns in just one step Can operate on unprocessed or even unstructured information. Text Web Mining: Text mining is the application of data mining to less structured text files. Web Mining are mining tools which can be used to analyze large amounts of data on the Web (like what customers are doing on the Internet). How it solves problems: Groups documents by common themes, making them easier to locate sort Finds the hidden content of documents and also additional useful relationships Geographic Information System (GIS): this is a computer-based system which is used for capturing, checking, storing, manipulating, integrating and displaying data using digitalized maps. How it solves problems: Every digital object or record has an identified geographical location Branch performances can be monitored, analyzed and compared Volume and traffic patterns of business activities can be monitored Geographical area served by each Bank branch can be observed, to plan if new banks are needed or not. Data Visualization: This is the presentation of data by technologies like digital images, graphical user interface, 3-d presentations and animations, geographical information systems, virtual reality, multidimensional graphs tables. How it solves problems: Presents many different kinds of data into a common, understandable way for better more accurate analysis; reduces errors too. On-Line Analytic Processing: this is the technology that allows users of multidimensional databases to generate on-line comparative summaries of data and other analytical enquiries; OLAP can also be integrated into corporate databases systems. How it solves problems: OLAP facilities allow managers and analysts to monitor the performance of the business or market. The end-results of OLAP technologies can be very simple (frequency tables, etc) to make the data much easier to understand and analyze. How the Executives may use any alternative data/ information processing techniques to support the decision making This is a crucial step in making an effective decision. The more good options that you consider, the more inclusive your final decision will be. You force yourself to reach deeper and you look at problems via different angles, when you generate alternatives. By using the mindset there must be other solutions out there, you have more chance to make the best possible decision. If you havent got other reasonable alternatives, then theres not much of a decision to make! Below is a summary of some of the important techniques and tools to help teams develop good alternatives. Generating Ideas Brainstorming is possibly the most well known method for generating ideas. Reverse Brainstorming works in the same manner. But, it works by asking people to brainstorm of how to achieve the opposite result from the one required, and then simply reversing those actions. The Charette Procedure is a systematic process and it gathers and develops ideas from many stakeholders. Crawford Slip Writing Technique generates ideas from a large number of people. This method is extremely effective and ensures that ideas from everyone are heard and weighed equally irrespective of the persons power in the organization. Explore the Alternatives You need to evaluate the risks and implications of each choice once you are completely satisfied that you have a good selection of realistic alternatives. Risk Theres almost always some degree of uncertainty in decision making process that may lead to risks, inevitably. You can determine if the risk is manageable of not simply by evaluating the risks involved with the options. Risk Analysis allows you to look at risks impartially. It assess threats and evaluates the probability of events taking place using a structured approach their management costs. Implications You can consider the potential consequences of each of your options Six Thinking Hats, after viewing the alternatives from 6 different perspectives, you can assess the consequences of a decision. Impact Analysis, useful technique for brainstorming the unexpected outcomes that could mount from a decision. Choose the Best Alternative After assessing the different alternatives, the following step is choosing between them. The choice could be very obvious, but if it is not, then the tools below will help: Grid Analysis (or decision matrix), is a very useful tool for this type of evaluation. It helps bring different factors in the process of decision making in a reliable way, therefore this tool is invaluable. Paired Comparison Analysis help decide the importance of differing factors and helps you compare factors that are unlike and decide which ones should influence your decision the most. Decision Trees are useful in deciding between options. These bring the probability of project failure/success in the decision making process and help you lay out the various options available to you. Task 4 Information systems are made out of components that can be assembled in many different con ¬Ã‚ gurations resulting in a variety of information systems and applications, much as construction materials can be assembled to build different homes. The size and cost of a home depend on the purpose of the building, the availability of money, and constraints such as ecological and environmental legal requirements. Just as there are many different types of houses, so there are many different types of information systems. We classify houses as single-family homes, apartments, townhouses, and cottages. Similarly, it is useful to classify information systems into groups that share similar characteristics. A classi ¬Ã‚ cation such as this may help in identifying systems, analyzing them, planning new Information Systems Con ¬Ã‚ gurations Organizations are made up of components such as divisions, departments, and work units, organized in hierarchical levels. For example, most organizations have functional departments, such as production and accounting, which report to plant management, which report to a division head. The divisions report to the corporate headquarters. Although some organizations have restructured themselves in innovative ways, such as those based on cross-functional teams, today the vast majority of organizations still have a traditional hierarchical structure. Thus, we can  ¬Ã‚ nd information systems built for headquarters, for divisions, for the functional departments, for operating units, and even for individual employees. Such systems can stand alone, but usually they are interconnected. Typical information systems that follow the organizational structure are functional (departmental), enterprise-wide, and inter-organizational. These systems are organized in a hierarchy in which each higher-le vel system consists of several (even many) systems from the level below it. A departmental system supports the functional areas in each company. At a higher level, the enterprise-wide system supports the entire company, and inter-organizational systems connect different companies. The major functional information systems are organized around the traditional departments- Finance IS Finance IS Accounting IS Accounting IS Human Resources Human Resources Corporate a System Electronic Market Electronic Market Corporate B System Marketing IS Marketing IS Production IS Production IS Administrative IS Administrative IS Corporate C System