Ethics of care Essay

Introduction †¢ Care ethics [The ethics of care] originated among feminists who maintained, on the basis of Carol Gilligan’s work, A Different Voice , that women and girls approach moral issues with a strong concern for empathy and caring in interpersonal relationships. Care and Virtues †¢ Care ethics focuses on virtues associated with care as a moral sentiment and response in the context of particular relationships. †¢ The emphasis is on such traits as empathy, sympathy, compassion, loyalty, discernment and love in intimate relationships, rather than the abstract principles and rights of deontological and libertarian ethics. †¢ Like communitarian ethics, care ethics stresses the interdependence of persons and the importance of particular relationships, especially within the family and other communities Care Ethics †¢ Care ethics encourages altruism, which entails concern for others, their feelings and needs, but does not neglect care for oneself. †¢ Care ethics requires the moral agent to balance care of the self with care for others. Photo by Katerha Gilligan’s Ethics of Care †¢ Gilligan identifies levels and transition periods in the development of the ethics of care. †¢ (1) â€Å"From Selfishness to Responsibility† the conflict between what one would do vs. what one ought to do within their attachments and connections to others. Photo by Derek Bruff Ethics of Care †¢ (2) â€Å"Goodness as Self-Sacrifice† – concern for others, their feelings and the need to not inflict harm are major concerns. †¢ (3) â€Å"From Goodness to Truth† – the morality of care must include a care of the self as well as others, to be honest and real with oneself, an increased responsibility to one’s responsibility to the self, as well as others. †¢ Gilligan defines this as â€Å"mature care†. Photo by Ed Yourdon Ethics of Care †¢ (4) â€Å"The Morality of Nonviolence† – a moral equality between the self and others is achieved by applying an injunction against hurting; care becomes a universal obligation[1]. Harvard Educational Review: 481-517 Repr. 1986 as â€Å"A Different Voice†, In Pearsall, Women and Values: 309-339 [1] Gilligan, Carol 1977, â€Å"Concepts of the Self and of Morality† †¢ â€Å"Care ethics is based on [or â€Å"justified by† ] â€Å"lived experience,† especially that of women with intimate relations, trust and commitment. †¢ â€Å"Lived experience† is the accumulated subjective experience of individuals (2). Care Ethics Photo by Mary Ellen Mark †¢ (2) Pettersen, T. 2008. Comprehending Care . United Kingdom: Lexington Books:23 Care Ethics †¢ Care ethics appears most appropriate to intimate relations, but its advocates seek to extend it to communities, institutions and nation states Care ethics is intended to guide conduct and to provide an aspirational ideal of the virtuous life Photo by geek2nurse Affective and Cognitive Care Caring has both affective and cognitive dimensions. †¢ Cognition is necessary to understand the other’s needs, feelings and circumstances. But caring also involves a range of feelings associated with empathy, sympathy, compassion, and love. Care Ethics and Normative Ethics †¢ Care ethics provides normative guidance, but it does not prescribe specific actions by applying a set of abstract principles, rights and rules (found in normative ethics). †¢ With universalizing principles (normative ethics), the public domain has superiority over private-personal domains. . Emotion and Understanding †¢ In caring, moral thoughts are not separated from feelings as they are in many Western ethical philosophies from Plato to Kant. †¢ Gilligan challenges the idea that moral reasoning should be divorced from feelings and contexts. Emotion and Understanding †¢ Knowledge is gained through human connection to others when we try to take the perspectives of others in deciding morality and justice. Photo by rexquisite Co-Feeling and Empathy †¢ Caring involves understanding another’s feelings that seeks to go beyond mere understanding (empathy) to actually feeling what others experience. †¢ Petersen defines this as co-feeling which is more than empathy. †¢ Caring originates from the experience of caring for others. †¢ In caring for particular individuals, we learn to recognize the needs and vulnerabilities of human others everywhere; and to avoid harming them. Co-feeling and Empathy Co-feeling in care ethics comes from experiencing the complexities of a particular individual’s situation. A deep, detailed appreciation for the lives of others enriches our own self-understanding. Photo by Neys †¢ Co-feeling is one ability in mature care; how one should act and what actions constitute care. †¢ Caring involves participating in another’s feelings on his/her terms with an attitude of engagement, not of disinterested observation or judgment. †¢ It is an act of affective imagination. Photo by Quinn Anya Care Ethics and Moral Autonomy †¢ For care ethics, moral autonomy is construed as relational autonomy. †¢ In contrast with Kant’s isolated individual who rationally formulates universal principles by himself or herself, the relational autonomous agent takes account of her interdependence with others. †¢ Gilligan promotes a more nuanced and complex concept of moral autonomy with space for holding self-determination with consideration, reason with emotion, and independency with connectedness. Friend Wheel by Unlisted Sightings †¢ Care ethics replaces the detached respect for the autonomous decisions of others that is the legacy of principle-based ethics with attentiveness to the plight, special needs, and vulnerabilities of individuals, who might need help is deciding what to do †¢ Tensions continue to exist within care ethics between contextual sensitivity in moral decisionmaking and respect for principles that direct us to treat people equally, with justice and respect for autonomous choices. Justice and Moral Conflicts – Care Ethics †¢ Moral conflicts are still those that involve individuals with differing philosophies. They involve loyalty conflicts or divergent responsibilities and interests for individual professionals. Agents have different ideas of what is ethically relevant. Photo by xeeliz Steps to Convergence on Ethics of Care and Principle-based Ethics †¢ What actions are right or wrong according to some relevant norms or principles, fairness in particular. What is the effect of these principles on those involved – will they hurt individuals? †¢ Care ethics questions the over-reliance on principles and rules in ethics. †¢ Are we choosing to be detached and numb to feeling the impacts of the principle of justice on individuals and our relationship to them? Photo by Svenska Cellulosa Aktibolaget A THIRD WAY †¢ Care ethics encourages the moral agent to balance respect for individual autonomy with caring for individuals in relationships. †¢ A balance between relations and autonomy, between connection and integrity would create convergence of principles with care. †¢ An intermediate position between too much and too little would be needed. A THIRD WAY †¢ Care ethics requires morally mature agents to weight and balance principles with caring for individuals. †¢ In these moral conflicts, â€Å"listening† to others, is essential to decision-making. †¢ Interdependent leadership and communication may open up new possibilities – a third way. . References Beauchamp T. and J. Childress. 2009. Principles of Biomedical Ethics, New York: Oxford University Press, 6th ed Gilligan, Carol 1977, â€Å"Concepts of the Self and of Morality† Harvard Educational Review: 481-517 Repr. 1986 as â€Å"A Different Voice†, In Pearsall, Women and Values: 309-339 Munson, R. 2004. Intervention and Reflection: Basic Issues in Medical Ethics, 8th Ed Australia ; Belmont, CA : Thomson/Wadsworth, Pettersen’s T. 2008. , Comprehending Care . United Kingdom: Lexington Books:

Analysis of God Sees the Truth but Fail- Leo Tolstoy Essay

The story is spread over a period of 26 years, where the main character Aksionov changes over time. He becomes a person whom everyone in the prison, including the guards, trust. He was liked for his meekness and his fellow prison mates respected him. He was called’ grandfather’ and ‘The saint’. He became the spokesman for petitions and was the person to whom people came to when they had quarrels or any kind of problem. He is interpreted as a person who stuck to his values and his identity even after all the years in prison. He had no news of his family and was hurt by this fact alot. He had aged over the years and looked older than his age. His hair was gray, he stooped, walked slowly spoke very little and never laughed. Even then his presence was felt throughout the prison because of his kind nature and he was loved by everyone. The other character in the story, Makar Semyonich is a stark contrast to Aksionov. Semyonich is was tall, with a closely cropped gray beard. They were both of the same age but Aksionov had aged over the years in the prison, while Semyionich was strong and well built. Because of his appearance, Semyonich called Aksionov â€Å"gran’dad†. They way Semyonich spoke to the others was in a very casual tone, as if it was nothing great that he had landed in prison and that the crime he had committed was not that a heinous one. Even after he found out who Aksionov was, his voice did not show any remorse or guilt, which showed that he wasn’t guilty that someone else had been convicted of a crime that he had committed. When the murder of the merchant was discussed, Semyonich uttered the words â€Å" how could anyone put a knife into your bag while it was under your head?† When he said these words, Aksionov understand he was the real murderer as he had not said that the bag was under his pillow. When he found out who the real killer was,he longed for vengeance even if he himself should perish for it . there was a change in his attitude, in his thoughts. He was no longer in peace and had a sense of uneasiness in him. Even when the guards were asking Aksionov if he knew who had dug a hole in the prison, Semyonich stood as if he was innocent, as if he had no care in the world. But Aksionov did not give up semyonichs name even though he had seen him do it, because he was good at heart and wasn’t too sure if he was the one who had killed the merchant. Seeing that Aksionov hadn’t given his name up, Semyonich went to him and confessed his crime of murdering the merchant, for which Aksionov had spent  26 years in jail. He begged for forgiveness and even said that he would confess to the guatds. But it did not ake a difference to Aksionov as his entire life had been spent in prison and there was nobody outside waiting for him- his wife was dead and his children did not remember him anymore. Semyonich felt the pain Aksionov was suffering , and begged for his forgiveness, for he wanted to change as a person and wouldnot be in peace with himself until Aksionov had forgiven him. The story is about forgiveness and how forgiveness can bring a change in a person. There is a change in Semyonich when he realises his mistake and sees the suffering of Aksionov in prison, which drives him to beg for forgiveness from Aksionov. He even confesses in court of his previous crime, though it did not make a difference in Aksionov’s life as he passed away before his order for release came. There always was a sense of acceptance in Aksionov’s mind and heart, acceptance of his condition in prison and he was at peace with himself. But when he realised who the real murderer was, his peace was overtaken by anger, revenge and hatred towards Semyonich. He wanted him to suffer ah he had for the past 26 years. But when Semyonich came to ask him for forgiveness, a sense of relief overcame him, his heart grew light and and the longing for home left him. He knew that god would forgive Semyonich for his mistake. Forgivinh Semyonich did change Aksionov in a way, it removed the hatred and anger within him towards Semyonich. When Aksionov did not give up semyonichs name, Semyonich realised what pain and suffering he had put an innocent man through and felt remorseful about it. There is a contrast in the presentation of the two main characters. Aksionov’s thoughts, his change as a person, his character is potrayed from his thoughts and actions. Alot of his thoughts are written in the story and with that we get to know more about his nature, his attitude towards life. Semyonich’s character can be gathered from his dialogue and speech. His inner thoughts have not been mentioned and with the help of his speech we find out that he has no care in the world, doesn’t feel guilty about his crimes as mentioned above. The focus of this is also on the morals and values that people hold. The story has dramatic representation as well narrative representation. There are dialogues and conversations in the story, which helps the reader understand the characters better, as well as understand the moral of the story and the theme which the author has tried  to convey. The story also has a character focus, where the change in the attitude and nature of both characters is emphasized on, especially Semyonich. The story also raises the question of punishment, by imprisonment, being a correct measure. AND OF CLAY ARE WE CREATED-ISABEL ALLENDE The story is spread over a time span of 3 days. The main characters are Rolf Carle, a journalist who specialises in disasters and Azucena, a girl who is stuck under the earth because of a landslide caused by the volcanic eruption. The story is narrated by a third person, Rolf Carles’s girlfriend, but is in the first person narrative form. She is seeing the whole episode between Carle and Azucena through the television and comments upon what she sees and understands. She knows Carle’s past, understands his pain and suffering and comments about it in parts of the story. The narrator empathises with him. She also comments on the media, similar to the comments in the poem’ Adam from New Zealand’ by Imtiaz Dharkar. The narrator comments about the extent media goes to get their stories, how they make innocent people media fodder and exploit them for their own benefit, about how they try to capture reality, the true stories by not being fully involved. The problem with the narrator being a peripheral character is that she truly doesn’t know what the main characters are thinking, what their emotions are. She cant go into their minds and write, so she writes what she thinks the characters are thinking and feeling, which is cheating as she might be making up some of the thoughts and emotions. She also emphasizes how far away she is from him during the disaster. It was as if the television screen separated both of them from each other. Rolf Carle is a journalist, who is very passionate about his job. He is a very well known figure on television, reporting live at scenes of battle and disasters. He had a calm voice in the midst of all the chaos of the disaster he was covering. He was focused, calm, had a sense of equanimity and it seemed like fear never seemed to touch or affect him. It was as if he saw all the action through the lens of the camera, through a distance and never got emotionally involved with the action. This protected him from his own emotions. He got involved, in a way obsessed with trying to protect and save Azucena. He talked to her, told her stories, got all the possible resources available to save her. his voice  broke down when he promised her she would get saved. He had forgotten his camera, he now did not look at the girl through the camera lens, but with his own eyes. He had shed his protection, he was now flooded by his emotions. The emotions he had been bottling up for years, memories of his past began overcoming him, his deepest secrets now starting flooding his mind. He could not tell Azucena all this for she would not understand. The memories of the Russians taking them to the concentration camps, his father locking him up, his mother being forced to perform for the troops, his sister, all the horrors of his past. He was now buried in the memories of those horrors of the past. He realised that all that he had achieved as a reporter was just to bury his past deeper wi thin. He was hurt again by the memory of it. He then realised that Azucena had indeed consoled him, made him accept his past and move on from it. The girl had touched a part of him which even his girlfriend had never had been able to understand, be a part of. Azucena was a young girl of thirteen, who had ever left her village and did not know about life outside hers. Even though she was neck deep in quick sand, she did not seem desperate to be rescued. She was calm and composed, as if resignation had made her accept her fate. This was a difference in attitude between her and Rolf. She was humble, and at times her tone was as if she was apologising for all the fuss she was creating. She learnt a lot about the world through the stories he told her, she had a premature optimism about being saved in the beginning. But as time passed by, she started giving up hope and completely broke down, knowing her fate. She and Rolf had an emotional connection, which helped them both accept her fate, her death and be at peace. She , unknowingly, had made Rolf confront his past. Seeing her suffering, his memories had flood back and he was finally able to make peace with what had happened all those years back. With her help he had confronted it and finally put it all away. She had become media fodder through her suffering. She was asked the same questions by the reporters; she was used as an object to show the world the horror that had taken place in that area. She could no longer answer their questions as she was too tired and sick to, as well as because she no longer wanted to. She was literally drowned in mud, and her face was showing signs of exhaustion and giving up hope. She did not understand life beyond her village, the seven seas and the rest of Europe. The main focus of the story is Rolf  Carle, his change as a character. how the encounter with Azucena affects him psychologically and how he fights the demons of his past within him. The second focus is on the media, the narrator brings out the desperation the media has to get their story and how they use people to get their stories. How they don’t understand the sentiments of the people involved, which shows the insensitivity of the media. The title is in a way symbolic to the story, it refers to how we are made from the mud and how at the end the little girl dies and sinks into the mud. It emphasizes the fact that its a circle of life- we end up at the place where we started. The story is written very metaphorically, with the use of situational and dramatic irony in some places. It goes deep into the emotions of the main character and sometimes even brings out a poetic touch. The story is set within a very short time frame of 3 days, with the conclusion bringing out a sense of change in the main characters depression in the future. It brings out two fights(metaphorically)- Rolf fighting to save Azucena by trying everything possible, and the fight with himself to prevent his past memories from coming forward and haunting him. WHAT IS A SHORT STORY? A short story is a work of fiction which is written in prose and often in narrative form, as seen in ‘And Of Clay Are We Made’. The length of a short story may vary from author to author, sometimes ranging from a page to 20 pages. It generally combines matter of fact descriptions with a poetic atmosphere. There is often little action and less character development, as compared to a novel. The plot of the story is simple, not complicated, but leaves the reader with a vivid impression which makes it easier to remember the facts. Very often short stories have abrupt or open endings, leaving an opportunity to the reader to think and form opinions about the ending. They generally tend to stick to one incident, rather than a mix of a no of incidents like in novels, and is usually restricted to only one setting. A short story is usually concerned with a single effect conveyed in only one or few significant scenes. This form encourages economy of setting, concise narrative and the omission of a complex plot. The character is disclosed in action and dramatic encounter but is seldom fully developed. A short story is usually judged by its ability to provide a complete or satisfying  treatment of its characters and subjects. There is a close connection between a short story and a poem as there is a unique union of idea and structure in both. The evolution of the short story began even before man could write. To aid himself in constructing and memorising tales, the early storyteller often relied on stock phrases, fixed rhythms and rhyme. Most of the ancient short story are in verse form and the stories from the middle east were also in verse form. They were inscribed in cuneiform on clay during 2nd millennium BC. Some writers believe that the shoert story is the most greatest and the most challenging form of literature to write, and the most infuriating too. Even though it looks very easy to pen, it sometimes takes a very long time for the writers to finish a short story. A good short story is always about a moment of profound realisation, or a hint of it. A classic length of a short story is that one should be able to finish in one sitting. The elements of a short story are: 1.Setting: the time and location in which the story takes place is called the setting. For some stories the setting is important while for others it isn’t. 2.Plot: the plot is how the author arranges the events to develop his basic idea. It is the sequence of events . the plot is planned, logical series of events having a beginning, middle and end. The story has usually has only one plot. 3.Conflict: conflict is an essential plot for without it , the plot makes no sense. It is the opposition of forces that ties one incident to another and makes the plot move. It is not merely limited to open arguments; rather it is any form of opposition that faces the main character. 4.Character: short stories use few characters. One character is central to the story with all major events revolving around the main character and is known as the protagonist. The opposite of the main character or the secondary character is known as the antagonist. 5.Point of view: point of view is defined as the angle from which the story is told. For eg: from the point of view of an adult, or a child and sometimes even from the narrators point of view, as in ‘And of Clay Are We Created’. 6.Theme: the theme is the controlling idea or its central insight. It is the authors underlying meaning or the main idea that he is trying to convey. The theme may be the author’s thoughts on a certain social, political issue. The title of the story usually point to what the writer is saying and uses  various figures of speech to convey the theme to the readers. The stories ‘GOD SEES THE TRUTH BUT WAITS’ and ‘ AND OF CLAY ARE WE CREATED’ are short stories that are in the narrative form, yet are quite different from each other, as will be seen in the following pages. The morals, the themes, time span as well as characterisat ion and style of narration are very different from each other.

Propose and Justify Research Method and Design Proposal

Propose and Justify Method and Design - Research Proposal Example 2. Available Research Methods There are two methods available to the researchers when it comes to developing an appropriate research design. As the design of the research work is the basic pillar of the reliability of results retrieved, it becomes of pivotal importance for researchers to carefully select a research design and methodology keeping in view the nature of the study. The two types of methodologies identified by the researcher are qualitative research and quantitative research. Qualitative research methods are primarily the personal interpretation of the researcher’s idea about the subject on which research work is carried out. The outcomes retrieved from qualitative researches vary mainly because each member of the sample has its own opinion and perceptions about different phenomena. The most popular characteristic of qualitative research work is that the data on which the results are tested is also descriptive and qualitative in nature. Qualitative research methods are appropriate for studies that aim at identifying prevailing trends, social practices or different phenomena. In this manner, qualitative research is more suitable for environmental studies. ... These research designs help researchers to test the reliability of the outcomes from primary research by applying statistical and mathematical formulas. The outcome of these calculations helps the researchers to monitor the reaction of sample members towards a number of questions, multiple choice questions, stimulators and case studies. The best aspect of the quantitative research method is that it allows researchers to adopt scientific approach to find the answers to research questions and validate or reject hypothesis. Another factor which makes quantitative research methods more reliable and accurate is that it depends upon the cause and effect to validate or reject the hypothesis, thus facilitating to conclude the research work efficiently. 3. Selected Research Method Considering the research problem, which is aimed to identify the impact of monetary and non-monetary motivators on employees’ motivation, the researcher has selected the quantitative research method and desig n. For this reason, the researcher has selected two companies, i.e. ABC Corporation and XYZ Associates. The reason behind selecting the quantitative research methodology is that it allows the researcher to manipulate the statistical data pertaining to employees’ perception of motivators into useful information and answer the research questions. This data contains employees’ responses to a survey questionnaire which represents employees’ degree of agreement and disagreement with particular statements. These statements measure the respondents’ idea about different motivators, and then help to rank the motivators from top to bottom, according the employees’ preference for each motivator. The research methodology adopted

Distributive Justice (M4C) Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Distributive Justice (M4C) - Essay Example However reasonable this might appear in the light of economic yardsticks, it will always remain a futile attempt in achieving medical ethics, if profit takes the center stage. Quality of healthcare may necessitate medical plans that require certain medical plans in the modern age. The sustainability of integrated health care plans designed in the modern era attracts a lot of complications that go far beyond cost issues (Frangenberg, 2011). Medical management will increasingly find it invaluable to rely on the provisions of medical ethics if the core responsibility of ensuring patients’ health is not to be compromised. Future medical systems will only veer off the controversy of inappropriate practices by conducting prior considerations of the underlying ethical issues before celebrating when it is too early. Distributive justice criteria is applied in the determination of where and how to allocate resources and is entirely guided by fairness principles (Maddox, 1998). Ach of the criteria must be thoroughly and critically dissected to determine implications on the basic ethics expected. It is therefore illogical to implement a blanket policy where the uninsured patients pay higher charges for the same procedure given to the insured. Maddox, P.J. (1998) â€Å"Administrative Ethics and the Allocation of Scarce Resources.† Online Journal of Issues in Nursing, 3(3) Retrieved from:

The hockey stick controversy and the legitimacy of IPCC's research Paper

The hockey stick controversy and the legitimacy of IPCC's about the human impact on climate change - Research Paper Example The controversy also looks at the question of the sturdiness of the impost offered by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). These arguments have been taken up by the fossil fuel industry and have been funded by lobby groups that attempt to cast doubt on climate science. The controversy became prominent in the 1990s when a group of scientists who used proxy indicators to indicate temperature records in the previous centuries found different reasons that caused global warming and argued them differently (Jolis, 2012). A group of scientists such as Michael E. Mann, Raymond S. Bradley, and Malcolm K. raised some of those controversies by using statistical analysis of an assortment of proxies to come up with the first quantifiable hemispheric-scale reconstruction presenting global configurations of annual surface temperature. The graph shows temperatures that dates back to 1400 whereby they shaded the areas to show emphasis of uncertainties whereby the two standard error l imits were larger than in earlier centuries. The above group of scientists published a paper in 1999 that traced back climatic changes for the previous 1000 years using extended graph that showed a descending tendency in proxy temperatures from a medieval warm period trailed by a 20th century escalation and a steep upsurge in measured temperatures since the 1950s. According to United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) and Third Assessment Report (TAR), the year 1998, was the warmest year in the northern hemisphere for the last 1000 years. The above organizations used the controversial hockey stick graphs to publicize the featured information. The information became a focus for dispute for the people who were contrasting to the strengthening scientific agreement that late 20th century warmness was unique. Some of the scientists who were opposed to these changes were Willie Soon and Sallie Baliunas. However, scientists later dismissed their publication as deeply flawed (McKitrick, 2010). I also disagree with the legitimacy of the previous research used by the United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) since their research shows less dramatic results if techniques that are more reliable had been used to analyze the data. Later researches have shown that an increase in greenhouse gases due to human activity is a prime cause global warming. However, arguments in favor for global warming were already accepted widely as a prime cause for increased temperatures in the world. Conclusions made from other scientists shows that making the world warmer undoubtedly is not determined by reconstructions of temperature aforementioned to direct records. Most error pieces fall inside the stated hockey stick pieces created by Mann and his team of scientists but can be collected to indicate the late temperatures. There are major doubts about the correctness of all previous temperature re-establishments, and these qualms have sometimes to be glossed over by scientists who presented the hockey stick as suggestion for global warming (Regalado, 2005). Michael E. Mann, Raymond S., Bradley, and Malcolm K., have remodeled northern hemisphere temperatures for the previous 2000 years to incorporate a wider set of proxies than what was accessible for the original study and updated measurements from the late years. I the new reconstruction, different methods am used as compared to the previous methods used in the original case. It shows

Parental involvement in 'homework' does it help children achieve their Essay

Parental involvement in 'homework' does it help children achieve their school based targets - Essay Example vidence shows that different elements of parents’ involvement provide a cognitively stimulating home environment which reinforces parental beliefs and aspirations (Feinstein et al. 2006: 301). The proposed project aims at producing a comprehensive and reliable research on the relationship between parental involvement in homework and its impact on pupil achievement. The investigation looks into the parent-child relationship in terms of parental support, family learning, parental involvement and parents’ level of education and pupil achievement. Parental involvement in early intervention programmes has been found to equate with better outcomes for the child. Most effective interventions involve parents in pre-school children’s cognitive development. Play and fun and scope for physical activity seem to produce most effective outcomes. Parents’ self esteem is very important in determining long term outcomes for both themselves and their children. The objective of this research project is to identify if parents that are involved in their children’s homework will promote the achievement of their school based targets. This will be accomplished by identifying the current guidelines on homework and why do parents get involved. A portion of this research will be my own analysis of my practice as a parent in the contribution of homework. A plan will be devised on how best to support a child with their homework by considering a number of strategies as suggested by Hoover-Dempsey et al (2004). To conclude the study there will be examination of literature with a personal opinion. Homework, especially for primary age pupils, has become the subject of an increasingly heated debate. There are opinions in favour as well against the practice of homework. Despite government guidelines that primary school pupils should do at least 30 minutes of homework a day, some unions and academics doubt its efficacy, and protest that the home lives of pupils are becoming increasingly

The physical access control security Research Paper

The physical access control security - Research Paper Example Acumen Legal service is a firm that deals with consultancy of issues of family and divorce, which are private and confidential As such, information should only be accessed by authorized personnel. The organization has instilled various security measures that restrict physical access to the information, which can be used to harm the clients. The aim of this essay is to describe the physical security measures at the workplace and their weaknesses. The door at the entrance of the building or an office is the key access point. The operator controls the main door and opens it after the guard and the electronic system have checked the entrants to the building. The offices at the workplace have an electronic access control door, which has a standalone electric lock and a reader unlocks it. The readers; a keypad where a code is entered transmits the number of the card to the control panel of access that validates the number against the access list (Fenelly, 2001). The exit door is not controlled but only the entry of the door. The company did away with the closed circuit television (CCTV) and employed the use of automated systems using video to monitor the movement of individuals within and twenty yards around the work area. Review occurs in case an attack occurs and proper action is taken. The shots taken by the camera are usually transmitted on the computer networks (Fenelly, 2001). The shots taken are digitalized and become data, which is easier to store, manage and restrict access, than in the previous format. The people who have authority to access the area in which computers are kept should be restricted. This is because of theft, vandalism and unauthorized access of the workplace and systems. The control access system handles different categories of personnel, each who have different conditions of success in the workplace. They include operators and system users who work in the secure area regularly, engineers and support staffs that need access on occasions and

MARKETING Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

MARKETING - Essay Example Discussion Political: there are heavy regulations that have to be followed in order to contribute the operations. These regulations could be in relation to pensions and the change equal opportunities to employees regarding the age of cabin crew and pilots. Compliance to Political regulations would be needed in order to function. These regulations monitor the expansion of businesses operations and its impacts. Political factors also encompass the increased security due to the international security conditions. The terrorist attacks of the past have an impact over the way Airlines functions. British airways would need to have more security in order to comply with the political safety measures and to ensure customer satisfaction. Economical: there is a global economic crisis and most countries of the world are going through recession in the economy. This economic crisis can lead to reduction in sales. When expanding the business, this could be a consideration as during recession it is m ost feasible for companies to try and cut costs to keep up with the declining economy. Moreover, due to the condition of the economy, many people may be switching to cheaper modes of travel. When there is economic downfall, the currency rates are affected. Pound weaken especially against the euro, this decline in the exchange rates makes UK airlines vulnerable. There is a rise in the oil prices due to the middle ease unrest, these fluctuation in the price of oil and petrol affect the exchange rates and consequently the cost base of British Airways. Also, as fuel prices increase, the costs rise and this makes it hard to deliver competitive advantage. Moreover, there has been a considerable decline in the spending of average UK population. This makes the airlines vulnerable to competition. (Milmo, 2011) Social: According to the national statistics, the UK has an aging population, this is an advantage for British Airways as the older generation seems to indulge more in leisure activiti es and has more time to travel. The unemployment rate is increasing in the UK which means that there is more workers supply than the demand. This increase in the rate of unemployment gives the company bargaining power over the employees. Technological: with the passage of time and the advancement of information technology, the use of internet for buying and selling has been on a constant rise. Online presence is necessary for every business especially airlines and travel agencies. Recent studies reveal that there would be an increase in the use of price comparison sites by the consumers which means that the bargaining power of the consumer would increase as they would be comparing the prices of the airlines and competition would also increase. The internet usage and purchases have increased online bookings and ticket reservations. The trend of purchasing airline tickets over the internet has become widespread. With these trends it is imperative for British Airways to expand its virt ual presence and keep up tp date with the advancements in technology, whilst maintaining a physical presence for the consumers that do not use the internet. As majority of the consumers are now moving to buying tickets over the internet, due to this change, market research could be conducted through email questionnaires and online reviews. With concise and straightforward questionnaires, a sample from the target market can be analyzed. Surveys can also be conducted thro

Sister Callista Roys Adaptation Model Assignment - 1

Sister Callista Roys Adaptation Model - Assignment Example With this exponential increase in the numbers of the aged, there also arises the dire need to age relevant physical activities that will assist them age well and in good health. This is where the Roy’s adaptation model can come in swiftly and handy too. Nursing theories are useful in framing, explaining or defining the provision of nursing care (Kelly, 2011, 24). The Roy’s adaptation model of nursing, a useful nursing theory, was developed in 1976 by Sister Callista Roy after she was challenged as a graduate student by Dorothy E. Johnson (a member of the faculty) to come up with a conceptual model for nursing practice. Basically regarded a system’s model, the Roy’s adaptation model regards the person as a set of intertwined biological, social and psychological functions in which the person in question endears to achieve a healthy balance between these systems and the environment (Kelly, 2011, 67). The model however reckons that there will never be an absolute level of balance but rather the person is to try and live in a way that allows him/ her to adequately cope/ adapt (Kelly, 2011, 72). The Roy’s adaptation model which involves a six-step nursing procedure basically entails four domain concepts of person, health, environment and nursing. In the model, person may be used to refer to people as individuals or in groups such as families, organizations, communities and the larger society. The person, functioning as a unity for some purpose, is an adaptive system described as a whole entailing entities and a bio-psycho-social being in incessant interaction with the varying environment. The person, as enshrined in the model, uses innate and acquired methods to adapt to the environment. The person is the adaptive system (Willis, Grace & Roy, 2008, 31). Adaptation is described under the Roy’s model as a positive response to environmental changes. Adaptation is the goal of nursing in the model and

Volunteers and Decision Making Essay Example for Free

Volunteers and Decision Making Essay The purpose of this study is to explore and converse about the role of volunteers within the for-profit and non-profit organizations and examine their influence on organizational decision making. According to Lawrence and Weber, (2011), a volunteer is a person who donates his/her time or efforts for a cause or organization without being paid. Volunteering is about giving your time to a good cause. You dont get paid, but you do get the chance to use your gifts, abilities, talents, cultivate new skills, and experience the pleasure that comes from making a real difference to other peoples lives, as well as your own. Hansen, (2014), argue that it is a pretty common mistake to think of volunteering as just something nice that people can do. Sure, it may make them feel great about helping, but what impact does it really have? Volunteers have a huge impact on the health and well-being of organizations and communities worldwide. According to Ellis, (2003), from the perspective of the recipient of service, a volunteer is someone who gives time, effort and talent to meet a need or further a mission, without going on the payroll. Volunteers donate their time, expertise, talents, abilities, skills, and get-up-and-go energy to assistance the organization because they have faith and confidence in the organization’s operations, mission, ideas, and vision. According to Bruce and Martin, (1992), a non-profit organization is a group organized for purposes other than generating profit and in which no part of the organizations income is distributed to its members, directors, or officers. They can take the form of a corporation, an individual enterprise (for example, individual charitable contributions), unincorporated association, partnership, foundation (distinguished by its endowment by a founder, it takes the form of a trusteeship), or condominium (joint ownership of common areas by owners of adjacent individual units incorporated under state condominium acts). Non-profit organizations must be titled as not-for-profit when formed and may only employ measures acceptable by laws for non-profit businesses. Non-profit organizations include churches, public schools, public charities,  public clinics and hospitals, political organizations, legal aid societies, volunteer services organizations, labor unions, professional associations, resear ch institutes, museums, and some governmental agencies. Any funds earned by a non-profit organization must be reserved by the organization, and used for its own disbursements, disbursements, processes, and programs. Many non-profit organizations also pursue tax exempt status, and may also be exempted from local sales taxes or property taxes. These for-profit and not-for-profit organizations are distinguished from each other in the areas of interest, events, and actions, and whosesoever field of interest is well-defined by their organizational mission and vision statements. The for-profit and non-profit organizations have much in common, but there are significant differences between the two. According to Ingram, (2009), the most fundamental difference between non-profit and for-profit organizations is the reason they exist. For-profit companies are usually established to produce income for directors and their workers, while non-profits are usually established to help a charitable, philanthropic, humanitarian, or conservational and environmental need. In contrast, non-profit organizations distribute all of their profits into programs and services designed at meeting individuals unmet needs, such as food, water, shelter and education, or towards other issues such as endangered species. For-profit companies offer products an d services that are appreciated in the open market, electing to allocate returns among proprietors, workforces, stockholders, owners, investors, and the organization or business itself. Additionally, according Ingram, (2009), sales revenue, in the form of cash and receivables, is the life-blood of for-profit organizations. These companies depend on earned income and credit arrangements with lenders and suppliers to finance their operations. Ingram, (2009), goes on by suggesting non-profits, on the other hand, rely almost entirely on donations and grants from individuals, government entities and organizations. Non-profit and for-profit organizations income basis are regulated, to a large extent, on how the company can use its currency. Since non-profit income comes from donors, non-profits are expected to utilize their funding in a way that maximizes benefits to their targeted recipients. Since for-profits produce  their own revenue and pay their own bills, they have much more ethical latitude as to how they spend. Another different Ingram, (2009), suggests is for-profit organizations are taxed in a number of ways, depending on their form of organization. Small bus inesses, for example, are usually sole proprietorships and partnerships. Ingram, (2009), goes on to state â€Å"the IRS treats the income from proprietorships and partnerships as personal income, and the owners are held personally liable for all business debts†. Nonprofit organizations can register for income-tax exemption under section 501(c) 3 of the tax code, Ingram, (2009). Contributors to non-profit organizations are offered tax incentives for their donations as well. According to the Service Corps of Retired Executives (SCORE), (n.d.), non-profit organizations are treated as legal entities for tax purposes, leaving company forefathers not liable for organizational debts. Lastly, Ingram, (2009), provides a human resource differences between the two. The workforces look quite different between for-profit and nonprofit organizations. For-profit companies are staffed with salaried and hourly employees, while non-profits, on the other hand, usually hire a small workforce, but employ a large corps of volunteers. The processes for employing and dism issal, as well as worker inspiration, motivation, communication and direction techniques vary considerably between salaried employees and volunteers. The role of volunteers in non-profit organizations Volunteers are of huge value to nonprofit organizations. Non-profit organizations frequently depend on the service and commitment of volunteers. The skills and talents of volunteers workers bring nonprofit missions to life. Volunteers perform valuable services for the non-profit organizations. According to HR Specialist, (2002), recent studies estimate that about a hundred million people volunteer each year with an annual value in the range of $150 billion, Not only do volunteers help to save money, but they can provide better service to clients, increase contact with the greater community, make available better expertise, and reduce costs of services. From the early days of America, according to Dreger, (1996). volunteers have pitched in to treat community maladies and needs. Hospitals, orphanages, schools and local fire companies (to name a very few) were the result of a civic rallying around a cause. That civic concern and community  merger continues today in religious charities , Habitat for Humanities, hospitals, libraries, schools and colleges, Hospices, and YMCAs (to name just a very few). While we are sometimes suspicious of volunteers, the truth is that nonprofit organizations would not exist if it were not for the volunteers. Specifically, governance, programming and fund development are three areas of activity in which volunteers assist non-profit organizations, Dreger, (1996). When speaking of governance, volunteers who serve on boards of directors and their committees are the lifeblood of nonprofit organizations, Dreger, (1996). While the Executive Director takes care of day to day matters, volunteer directors take responsibility for policy making, for assuring that the organization has adequate funding, and for meeting any legal challenges that might arise. We often talk about the attributes of a good board member such as a combination of several of the following: wealth, wisdom, work, and the influence factor. With an appropriate mix of these attributes, boards will be in a position of strength to act on their strategic plans. If an organization is preparing fo r a capital campaign, then adding more wealth or wow to the board makes sense. If instituting new programming is in the future, then leaning the board toward wisdom and work would be productive. A board that polishes its composition will be motivated and strengthened. In the area of programming, Dreger, (1996), recommend that trained volunteers can be invaluable in helping to deliver services to clients. They reduce costs through their work and can often provide better services to clients since they serve because of their passion for the organization’s mission. Many volunteers also bring expertise or experience to the organization that is free, such as legal or accounting services, for instance. Other volunteers provide contact with parts of the community that an organization generally doesn’t interact with volunteers will talk about your organization with their friends and colleagues—the good and the bad), and chief among them would be the volunteer who coordinates volunteers! For each volunteer there is the reward of helping others, of serving the cause. When properly directed, volunteers are a treasured asset, real gems in delivering services to those in need, Dreger, (1996). Finally, in the Fund Development area, while fundraising is a chief responsibility of the board, Dreger, (1996), argue there are other ways that volunteers can help to advance the organiz ation. As part of a  development committee, volunteers can serve as prospectors, mining their networks for nuggets you want to pan out. They also can be the go-getters who will put on special events such as auctions, galas, or raffles. Others can seek to get better media coverage. For the best results, it’s important to think through a recruitment strategy to get the right volunteers serving with you, similar to massaging the board’s composition. With a clear idea of what needs to be accomplished and with direction from staff, volunteers can expand your horizons, help you to meet people of influence and affluence that you wouldn’t otherwise, bring skills and expertise that will increase revenues, and become new and dear friends. This is particularly helpful when making plans for a capital campaign. As a leader in an organization, you make the difference between mere success and great success. John Maxwell, author of many books on leadership, says â€Å"Leadership†¦has to do with casting vision and motivating people.† Those people in many cases are the volunteers who have sought you out and you have sought out. The degree to which they add value to your work and mission is dependent on how they are assigned tasks, trained, supervised, evaluated, and loved. Celebrate with your volunteers in all areas of activity! You’ll have lots of fun doing it.. The service volunteers provide to non-profit organizations is of immense value; they take any job, big or small and commit to its completion. They represent the organization before the community and take on the governance responsibility over the organization; they care for the organization as if it was a business of their own. The role of volunteers in for-profit organizations Volunteering at for-profit organizations is generally frowned upon under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). Under the FLSA, employees may not volunteer services to for-profit private sector employers. On the other hand, in the vast majority of circumstances, individuals can volunteer services to public sector employers. When Congress amended the FLSA in 1985, it made clear that people are allowed to volunteer their services to public agencies and their community with but one exception; public sector employers may not allow their employees to volunteer, without compensation, additional time to do the same work for which they are employed. There is no prohibition on anyone employed in the private sector from volunteering in any capacity or line of  work in the public sector. Tuschman, R., (2012). A shaky economy and poor job market can tempt employers to use free labor; volunteers who are willing (at least initially) to give up compensation to obtain on-the-job skill or to help a d esired social cause or a struggling company. While this exercise may seem like a win-win situation, it is overloaded with legal danger for employers. Under the federal Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) and many state and local wage and hour laws, the use of volunteers is strictly regulated. A court or the U.S. Department of Labor will consider misclassified individuals as employees who must be paid at least the minimum wage, and overtime pay if applicable. Penalties and attorneys’ fees may also be assessed. Under the FLSA, a volunteer will not be considered an employee if the individual volunteers for public service, religious or humanitarian objectives, and without contemplation or receipt of compensation. Typically, volunteers will serve on a part-time basis and will not displace employees or perform work that would otherwise be performed by employees. In addition, to avoid the possibility of coercion, the Department of Labor (DOL) takes the position that paid employees may not volunteer to perform the same type of services for their employer that they are normally employed to perform. These principles are strictly construed against employers. For example, the DOL has opined that there is no employment relationship between a for-profit hospice and individuals who volunteer their services to perform activities of a charitable nature, such as running errands, sitting with patients so that a family may have a break, and going to funerals. However, individuals may not donate their service s to hospices to do activities such as general office or administrative work that are not charitable in nature. Moreover, with respect to those individuals already employed by a hospice, the DOL has stated that they may not volunteer their services to the hospice. In the public sector, an individual who volunteers to perform services for a public agency is not an employee if the individual receives no compensation or is paid expenses, reasonable benefits or a nominal fee. In addition, the FLSA provides that the volunteer services cannot be the same type of services that the individual is employed to perform for the agency. Individuals can qualify as volunteers if they either volunteer to perform services for a different agency or perform different services than they are employed to perform for the same public agency, Tuschman, (2012). According to the Fair Labor Standard Act (FLSA), the difference between an employee and a volunteer in the for-profit sector is a very thin line which can lead an employer to misclassifying employees as volunteers, Bertagna, (2012). According to the same source, employers can use volunteers as long as they adhere to the minimum wage and overtime requirements of the Fair Labor Standard Act. â€Å"If employers misclassify employees as volunteers, the employer’s perceived opportunity to save on money may become a liability† (Bertagna, 2012). Volunteers’ roles in for -profit organizations face several limitations since the volunteer-employer relationship is subject to meeting certain conditions in order to not be considered an employee. In light to fully understand the legal interpretation of the volunteer in a for-profit organization it’s convenient to visit the U. S. Supreme Court (1947) observation about evaluating the relationship in today’s volunteer context: †The determination of the relationship does not depend on isolated factors but rather upon the circumstances of the whole activity.† Volunteers actively participate in activities where they usually have a personal interest in the for-profit sector, like the case of parents volunteering at their children private schools, or personalities giving presentations or lectures at private Universities, not to mention volunteers at private hospitals and their work to alleviate the suffering of the patients. Another category were volunteers participate in for-profit organizations is the case of retires senior managers or directors whom continue to collaborate for their former employers in an emeritus role, sharing their knowledge and experience with the new generations. The influence volunteers exert on organizational decision-making In the early 1980’s, changes in the American society started to call the attention of the scholars. Pearce (1982) described what he anticipated would result in volunteers looking for leadership roles and advance from their affiliations with organizations. In order to responsibly participate in the decision-making process, volunteers need to understand the role and social responsibility the organization has before the public, its customers and the community (Edwards, 2008). Volunteers in leadership positions within both non-profit and for-profit organizations exert a great influence in the decision-making process since their specific role positions them in an authority level where their experience and cognizance serves as a foundation for their capacity. Being as board members, advisory council members, or partner emeritus if firms and corporations, volunteers will always serve with the only goal in mind to do the most good for the organization and/or community they serve. Their willingness to share their expertise and knowledge with the organization, will serve as a way to give back some of what they have received through their lives. Sir Winston Churchill is credited with the quote: â€Å"We make a living by what we get; we make a life by what we give.† He was able to put volunteerism is its correct perspective. Conclusion â€Å"Our Nation has been profoundly shaped by ordinary Americans who have volunteered their time and energy to overcome extraordinary challenges. From the American Revolution and the Seneca Falls Convention to the everyday acts of compassion and purpose that move millions to make change in their communities, our Nation has always been at its best when individuals have come together to realize a common vision. As we continue to pursue progress, service and social innovation will play an essential role in achieving our highest ambitions from a world-class education for every child to an economy built to last. During National Volunteer Week, we pay tribute to all who give of themselves to keep America strong, and we renew the spirit of service that has enriched our country for generations.† (Obama, 2012) Alexis de Tocqueville was profoundly move d by America’s spirit of volunteerism when he toured the United States in 1831, he recognized the way Americans were prompt to assist one another and to sacrifice part of their time to for the welfare of the state (Bertagna, 2012). This is the true spirit of volunteerism, when people devote their time and energy to assist in pursuing and obtaining a greater good. The role volunteers play in modern organizations is of paramount importance, they donate their time, their talent, and their knowledge to support and assist with causes they believe in and where they have placed their hopes and their hearts. Those individuals who perform hours of service without compensation do it for  civic, charitable, or humanitarian reasons deserve to be recognized and respected, deserve to be honored for what they do. References Bertagna, B.R., (2012). For-profit volunteers: The fair labor standards a CT’s limits on volunteering in the private sector. Daily Labor Report. The Bureau of National Affairs. 179 DLR I-.Retrieved from http://www.paulhastings.com/Resources/Upload/Publications/2262.pdf. Edwards, H.C., (2008). Volunteers in leadership roles: Successfully engaging advisory councils. International Journal of Volunteer Administration. 25(2). Retrieved from:http://www.ijova.org/PDF/IJOVA%20Sample%201%20Manuscript%20May%2014.pdf. Ellis, S., (2003). Do volunteers deserve the board’s attention? Nonprofit World. 21 (1) 19-21.January/February 2003.ICNL (2013) FAQ. International Center for Not-For-Profit Law. Washington, DC. Retrieved from http://www.icnl.org/contact/faq/index.html. Lawrence, A. and Weber, J., (2011) Business and society: Stakeholders, ethics, public policy (13th Ed). New York, NY: McGraw-Hill/Irwin. Lewis, L.K., Hamel, S. A., and Richardson, B.K., (2001). Communicating change to nonprofit stakeholders: Models and predictors of implementers’ approaches. Management Communication Quarterly. 15 (1). Pp.15-41 Kipp, M.F,. (2009). Rethinking the nonprofit board. Nonprofit World. 27(6), pp. 20-21. Pearce, J.L., (1982). Leading and following volunteers: Implications for a changing society. Journal of Applied Behavioral Science. 18 (3), pp. 385-394. Reiss, A.H. (1990) Bottom line: A working board of directors. Management Review. 79(5), pp. 37-38. Retrieved from http://ehis.ebscohost.com.library.gcu.edu:2048/eds/pdfviewer/pdfviewer?sid=1e928abd-3175-4cd5-9afe-c348a044c8a3%40sessionmgr15vid=8hid=5. Hansen, C., (2014). Why is volunteering important? Volunteer Resource Center. (VRC). Retrieved from http://www.idealist.org/info/Volunteer/Why. Bruce, T. R. and Martin, P. W., (1992). Legal Information Institute. Retrieved from http://www.law.cornell.edu/wex/non-profit_organizations. Dreger, D.C., (1996). Importance of Volunteers for Non Profit Organizations Retrieved from http://www.cdsfunds.com/volunteers_what_can_they_do_for_you.html. Ingram, D., (2009). Non-Profit Organization vs. Profit Organization. Demand Media. Retrieved from http://smallbusiness.chron.com/non-profit-organization-vs-profit-organization-4150.html. Service Corps of Retired Executives (SCORE). (n.d). Non-profit vs. For-Profit. Retrieved from http://scoreknox.org/library/versus.htm. The HR Specialist, (2002). Employment Law. Volunteers’ at for-profit companies: Should they be paid? Compensation and Benefits, Human Resources http://www.businessmanagementdaily.com/775/volunteers-at-for-profit-companies-should-they-be-paid. Tuschman, R., (2012). Using Volunteers and Interns: Is It Legal? Retrieved from http://www.forbes.com/sites/richardtuschman/2012/08/24/using-volunteers-and-interns-is-it-legal/.

Development of a Perception System for Indoor Environments

Development of a Perception System for Indoor Environments Autonomous navigation is a well-known task in robotic research. It is associated to get the environmental information such as visual images or distance or proximity measurements from external sensors and to detect obstacles and measure the distance to objects close to the robot path[10, 35]. Most robots are equipped to distance sensors like ultrasonic, laser or infrared to be able to move through corridors and to follow walls in indoor environments. A[A1] control algorithm based on odometric sensorial information and distance measurements supplied by sonar sensors was developed to guide a mobile robot moving along a corridor or following a wall in [3]. The[A2] Probabilistic Neural Network (PNN) structure was evaluated for wall following task using ultrasound sensors in [17]. a mobile robot control law for corridor navigation and wall-following, based on sonar and odometric sensorial information is proposed. The control law allows for stable navigation avoiding actuator saturation. The posture information of the robot travelling through the corridor is estimated by using odometric and sonar sensing. The[A3] ultrasonic sensors were also used to measure and obtain the distance and orientation of a robot utilizing a Fuzzy Incremental Controller (FIC) for controlling a wall follower robot [10]. Trajectory tracking task is an especial task of wall following which is no obstacle like walls to detect. So, distance sensors like sonar or infrared could not help the robot to follow the trajectory. Control[A4] algorithms based on vision sensors have also been introduced for indoor navigation. For example, a robot utilized a vanishing point of lines extracted from the corridor structure in order to identify the heading direction. But, a complex mathematical calculation is needed to capture the vanishing point [37]. A[A5] CCD color camera was used to control the position of a robot while it navigated towards a target position [15]. The images of this camera were processed and the visual features of environment were fed through a neural network to enable a mobile robot to identify its own position. The task of orientation recognition was applied in order to follow a path in environment, too. The[A6] 3D trajectory estimation for unknown outdoor environments was investigated in [31]. This estimation was based on vision information captured by a trinocular stereo camera that is mounted on the robot. No prior map was used and the trajectory is found by tracking and detecting relative changes in the position of features extracted from images. Most techniques used complex mathematical equations and models of the operating environment to achieve the ability to move through corridors, to follow walls, to turn corners and to enter open areas of the rooms for an indoor navigation task [7]. Researchers[A7] used vision sensors to detect trajectory and to design their steering control law using the kinematic equations of motion[13, 34]. In these works which were considered in an off-road environment, the robot used both laser range finder and stereo vision. The laser was used to scan the close front ground for analyzing its roughness, and stereo vision apperceived drivable situation of far front ground. The path planning was performed using the data acquired from these sensors. Among three processes applied in outdoor navigation, including perception, planner, and motion control module, these works were focused on the decision of control laws of the robot, i.e. the longitudinal velocity, the lateral velocity, and the angles of sensor pan-tilts. The controller uses the information prepared by the planner. The characteristics of terrain like coefficient of longitudinal rolling resistance and the coefficient of lateral friction are known, and a description of trajectory space is presented according to the robots dynamic analysis. The[A8] Reinforcement Learning (RL) was applied to control a wall follower robot for learning reactive behaviors[30]. The environment is perceived in 3D using a stereo and mono vision. In this work, the images are processed to reduce the amount of relevant information and a small occupancy grid with 9 cells is created to discretize the state space. The controller utilized Q-learning technique and the action space was discrete, too. The most considerable works which have yet been done in outdoor robot navigation have constructed a grid map to determine the traversability of the terrains. The classical methods focus on a binary representation of the terrain from an obstacle occupancy point of view. Another approach is to characterize the presence of an obstacle in a grid cell by giving a continuous value. This value represents the probability distribution for occupancy of the grid cell by an obstacle. The more comprehensive methods evaluate terrain characteristics, too[9, 33]. For example, traversability is defined as a non-binary mathematical function of the slope and roughness of the terrain for each cell [18]. This traversability degree has not been interfered to robot local control directly and it has just been used in the path planner. They use some systems like GPS to find their locations and measure the distance they moved through. Kinect[A9] sensor was used to capture 3D point cloud data of outdoor environment in [28]. This data were fed to a 3D Simultaneous Localization and Mapping (SLAM) algorithm to localize the robot in the environment. This point cloud was projected into a 2D plane to make a 2D SLAM algorithm applicable, too. According to this research, the advantages of Kinect sensor are a considerably lower price, and the inclusion of color into the maps in compared to conventional laser scanners. A[A10] system with two main parts was applied on surveillance mobile robot and enable it to have an autonomous navigation [4]. One part is a reactive navigation system. It used Kinect data to avoid obstacles. In this part, the depth map with one row and 5 columns was created using each depth image and pixel intensity of three cells (left, front and right) are analyzed to compute the absolute minimum and maximum distances between sensor and obstacles. Eight different situations and their relevant action commands are determined. A classifying system trained possible situations of an indoor environment using Kinect data in second part of the system. [A1]a mobile robot control law for corridor navigation and wall-following, based on sonar and odometric sensorial information is proposed. The control law allows for stable navigation avoiding actuator saturation. The posture information of the robot travelling through the corridor is estimated by using odometric and sonar sensing. [A2]In particular we deal with the well-known strategy of navigating by wall-following. In this study, probabilistic neural network (PNN) structure was used for robot navigation tasks. The provided files comprise three different data sets. The first one contains the raw values of the measurements of all 24 ultrasound sensors and the corresponding class label Sensor readings are sampled at a rate of 9 samples per second. [A3]The robot navigation is based on wall following algorithm. The robot is controlled using fuzzy incremental controller (FIC) and embedded in PIC18F4550 microcontroller. FIC guides the robot to move along a wall in a desired direction by maintaining a constant distance to the wall. Two ultrasonic sensors are installed in the left side of the robot to sense the wall distance. The wall following control of the autonomous robot has been presented using ultrasonic sensors. The sensor data are used to measure and obtain the distance and orienta- tion of the robot [A4]Some control algorithms based on artificial vision have been introduced, where the robot is allowed to move by following the wall in the corridor like the one introduced by Durrant-Whyte et al. In other research work, Zhou et al. [20] let the robot in their work to identify the heading direction through a vanishing point of lines extracted from the corridor structure. The lines look like they are scattering from one point in the image of the corridor. This one point is the vanishing point. Although it looks easy to extract the lines, but capturing the vanishing point require a complex mathematical calculation. [A5]The problem of controlling the pose of a mobile robot with respect to a target position by means of visual feedback is investigated mainly. The proposed method enables a mobile robot to identify its own position using visual features of environment. At the same time, the robot performs an orientation recognition using the same recognition method of position identification in order to follow a path in environment We developed a visual perception navigation algorithm where the robot is able to recognize its own position and orientation through robust distinguishing operation using a single vision sensor. [A6]This paper describes ongoing research at the University of British Columbia on the problem of real-time purely vision based 3D trajectory estimation for outdoor and unknown environments. The system includes an inexpensive trinocular stereo camera that can be mounted anywhere on the robot. It employs existing scene information and requires no prior map, nor any modifi cation to be made in the scene. [A7] Autonomous mobile robot achieves outdoor navigation by three processes, including the environment information acquired by the perception module, the control decision made by the planner module, and the motion plan performed by the motion control module[8]. Consequently, for safe and accurate outdoor navigation it is vital to harmonize the three modules performance. In this paper, the emphasis is focused on the decision of control laws of the robot, and objects include the longitudinal velocity, the lateral velocity, and the angles of sensor pan-tilts. In an off-road environment, the robot uses laser range finder (LRF) with one degree of freedom (DOF) pan-tilt (only tilt) to scan bumpy situation of the close front ground, on which the robot is moving, and employs stereo vision with two DOF pan-tilt to perceive drivable situation of far front ground. With the data accessed from laser and vision sensors, the passable path can be planned, and the velocities of left side and right side of the robot can be controlled to track the path, consequently, the robot off-road running is completed In this paper, a description of trajectory space[7] is presented according to the robots dynamic analysis, which is defined as the two-dimensional space of the robots turning angular speed and longitude velocity. [A8]This article describes the development of a wall following behaviour using a methodology for the learning of visual and reactive behaviours with reinforcement learning. With the use of artifi cial vision the environment is perceived in 3D, and it is possible to avoid obstacles that are invisible to other sensors that are more common in mobile robotics. the image is divided into a grid made up of 3 rows and 3 columns (Fig. 2(c)) for codifi cation. Each cell will have either free or ocuppied label, depending on the number of edge pixels it contains. Thus defi ned, the state space is 29, and in order to reduce it, it is supposed that if a cell in one of the columns is occupied, all those cells above it are also occupied. [A9]In this paper we investigate the suitability of the Xbox Kinect optical sensor for navigation and simultaneous localisation and mapping. We present a prototype which uses the Kinect to capture 3D point cloud data of the external environment. The data is used in a 3D SLAM to create 3D models of the environment and localise the robot in the environment. By projecting the 3D point cloud into a 2D plane, we then use the Kinect sensor data for a 2D SLAM algorithm. We compare the performance of Kinectbased 2D and 3D SLAM algorithm with traditional solutions and show that the use of the Kinect sensor is viable. Our research indicates that the Kinect is a viable option for use as a sensor for mobile robotic navigation and SLAM. It ofiâ‚ ¬ers signifi cant advantages over conventional laser scanners, such as 3D model building, pure visual SLAM, a considerably lower price, and the inclusion of colour into the maps. [A10]This paper presents the development of a perception system for indoor environments to allow autonomous navigation for surveillance mobile robots. The system is composed by two parts. The first part is a reactive navigation system in which a mobile robot moves avoiding obstacles in environment, using the distance sensor Kinect. The second part of this system uses a artificial neural network (ANN) to recognize different configurations of the environment, for example, path ahead, left path, right path and intersections. The ANN is trained using data captured by the Kinect sensor in indoor environments. This way, the robot becomes able to perform a topological navigation combining internal reactive behavior to avoid obstacles and the ANN to locate the robot in the environment, in a deliberative behavior

Protein Synthesis Essay -- Protein Synthesis Biology DNA Essays

Protein Synthesis Protein synthesis is one of the most fundamental biological processes. To start off, a protein is made in a ribosome. There are many cellular mechanisms involved with protein synthesis. Before the process of protein synthesis can be described, a person must know what proteins are made out of. There are four basic levels of protein organization. The first is primary structure, followed by secondary structure, then tertiary structure, and the last level is quaternary structure. Once someone understands the makeup of a protein, they can then begin to learn how elements can combine and go from genes to protein. There are two main processes that occur during protein synthesis, or peptide formation. One is transcription and the other is translation. Although these biological processes slightly differ for eukaryotes and prokaryotes, they are the basic mechanisms for which proteins are formed in all living organisms. There are four main levels of a protein, which make up its native conformation. The first level, primary structure, is just the basic order of all the amino acids. The amino acids are held together by strong peptide bonds. The next level of protein organization is the secondary structure. This is where the primary structure is repeated folded so that it takes up less space. There are two types of folding, the first of which is beta-pleated sheets, where the primary structure would resemble continuous spikes forming a horizontal strip. The seco...

Wordsworth and Vaughan Essay -- Poetry Wordsworth Vaughan Essays

Wordsworth and Vaughan When reading T.S. Eliot’s critical comment, â€Å"It is to be observed that the language of these poets is as a rule simple and pure,† one might assume that he was referring to the Romantics (Eliot 2328). Specifically, we could apply this statement to poets the ilk of Wordsworth, who eschewed poetic affectations and â€Å"tricked out† language for sentiments that originated and flowed naturally (Wordsworth 270). Yet Eliot hadn’t focused his critical eye there, this time. Rather, he squinted a century back to a lesser-referenced literary group, the Metaphysical poets (Eliot 2328). That the Metaphysical poets and the Romantics share a characteristically simple/natural diction is important. While they are undoubtedly distinct schools, if we can show that they are even remotely stylistically similar, then we might have grounds to acknowledge similarities between a poet from each, respectively. Thus, I propose considering Wordsworth in relation to an earl ier man, Henry Vaughan. I am not the first to do so; much has been said of the link between these men regarding their analogous poems â€Å"The Retreat† and â€Å"Ode: Intimations of Immortality†Ã¢â‚¬â€by comparing them I cannot claim any original insight. However, there is more common to these two men than two poems, and in analyzing what Wordsworth desires from poetry and the poet in his â€Å"Preface to the Lyrical Ballads† we see that Vaughan had many of the poetic qualities Wordsworth demanded of himself. Even more interesting, Wordsworth's shifted perspective from â€Å"Lines Composed a Few Miles Above Tintern Abbey† to the "Elegiac Stanza" replicates Vaughan's shift from "To Amoret" to "The Night." Where Vaughan’s verse originally addressed worldly love and natural ... ...h happiness, wherever it be known, / Is to be pitied; for ‘tis surely blind† (lines 53-56). In these lines, Wordsworth finally counsels that the human world is actually not so near-sighted. Rather, when a man assumes himself separate from mankind—when he reinforces that separation—he actually blinds himself. So finally, the comparison between Vaughan and Wordsworth is not absolute. However, sorting through the words of men who’ve been dead for centuries for evidence of a literary association beyond mere coincidence is never and easy undertaking. But let us assume that, if Wordsworth was right, both he and Vaughan shared universal human experiences. Perhaps, upon reaching a certain middle age, they also shared fear and awe of the conditions of their mortality—and if one may have looked to the other’s words for poetic guidance, the poetic genre is better for it.

Biology Essay -- essays research papers

Lab Report 1  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Principles of Biology 1(BIOL 100) Fall 2001  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Gerard Chretien  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Living cells perform a multitude of chemical reactions very rapidly because of the participation of enzymes. Enzymes are biological catalysts, compounds that speed up a chemical reaction without being used up or altered in the reaction. The material with which the catalysts reacts, called the substrate, is modified during the reaction to form a new product. But because the enzyme itself emerges from the reaction unchanged and ready to bind with another substrate molecule, a small amount of enzyme can alter a relatively enormous amount of substrate. This report will illustrate the enzymatic action of the enzyme catecholase, which is common in plants. To study this particular enzyme in a laboratory, the natural substrate catechol is oxidized by the removal of two hydrogen atoms. The substrates of the enzyme are catechol and oxygen. These substates react with one another within the active site of the enzyme. The products formed by this reaction are benzoquinone has a brown color, you can see that the reaction has taken place. This is called the fruit browning reaction. Benzoquinone inhibits the growth of microorganisms and prevents damaged fruit from rotting. In undamaged cells catecholase is stored in vesicles and does not interact with catechol.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   In the presence of the enzyme catecholase:  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Catechol+1/2O2 benzoquinone+H2O The structure of the enzyme is mainly dependent on the active site and variable groups. Extreme temperatures or extreme pHs can alter the structure of an enzyme. Enzymes function to lower the activation energy to break the bonds. They achieve this by putting stress and pressure on the bonds or creating a microenvironment for the substrate. A change in the temperature or a fluctuation in pH can alter... ... questions and test answers. The method has five stages: 1. Making observation. 2. Asking questions. 3. Forming hypotheses, or tentative answers to the questions. 4. Making predictions based on the hypotheses. 5. Testing the predictions by making additional observations or conducting experiments. The information gained may support or yield opposite results based on predictions being tested. My independent variable would be time and the dependent one would be the enzyme pectinase. I believe the key feature of my experimentation is the control of most factors so that the influence of a single factor can be seen clearly. The setting would take place within a laboratory, equipped with various components such as tubes, microscope and other related equipment. I would try to investigate the physical properties of pectin such as molecular weight, molecular conformation and aggregation of pectin molecules in the solution. In regards to the pulpiness of the applesauce, I would use the pectin as a emulsifier and stabilizer. This procedure would reduce the pulp of the applesauce considerably without making the solution too watery.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  

Knowledge Development in Nursing Essay

A philosophy of nursing should be all encompassing, with its foundation based upon core values and beliefs, while building upon experience. Medicine is often comprised of controversial ethical dilemmas where we must be advocates. In a study that examined the relationship between nurses and physicians it was determined that â€Å"Differences in values, communication, trust, and responsibilities can precipitate conflict between nurses and physicians over ethical components of care. (Corley MC 1998) Developing ones theoretical knowledge and learning how to apply it successfully into their clinical practice is part of the evolving process. The evolution that occurs over the course of a career can be empowering. Hence, it is important to develop positive nurse-physician relationships to bolster confidence and grow from those interactions. The importance of positive nurse-physician relationships has been widely acknowledged (Baggs, 1989; Baggs & Schmitt, 1988; Eubanks, 1991; Fagin, 1992; Mechanic & Aiken, 1982; Prescott & Bowen 1985). Therefore, it is our obligation as professionals to mentor our peers, not only for ourselves, but our patients and families, as well. In an interesting illustration of self disclosure (Kim, H.S., 1999) a practitioner was able to identify the needs of a patient, but clearly had difficulty communicating the needs of the patient to the physician, although some of the difficulties appeared to be cultural in nature. The way we communicate with one another as practitioners, in addition to, how we collaborate and communicate with physicians has a direct impact on patient outcomes. As practitioners we are restricted in performing our jobs if we can not effectively collaborate with the physician. It is herein that the problem lies. The inexperienced or less assertive practitioner will often find it difficult to approach a physician when faced with perhaps the â€Å"Do Not Resuscitate† order that has yet to be signed. With that being said, approaching a family that needs to be educated on the implications of G-tube placement on their family member with prolonged intubatation and no signs of improvement can be daunting without interdisciplinary support. The more experienced practitioner’s clinical judgment is more easily verbalized  because he/she is comfortable in interdisciplinary collaboration, therefore the physician is more likely to involve them in the decision making process. For example in an ICU setting where often times the physician does not involve the practitioner in the decision making process or inform them when a decision has been made it generally creates one of three things. A. the nurse will continue to aggressively pursue the physician until an order is received B. resort to â€Å"slow codes†, or C. resuscitate all patients until told otherwise by the physician (Michael I Rauchman, BA). All of these things lead to negative outcomes for both the families and patients, and we as practitioners. â€Å"Future directions of the discipline are revealed when these linkages between philosophy, disciplinary goals, theory, and practice are strengthened† (McCurry, et al). It is for these reasons, we as practitioners must continually grow and develop through our experiences, always expanding our knowledge in the ever-changing profession we have chosen. Corley MC (1998). Ethical dimensions of nurse-physician relations in critical-care (The Nursing Clinics of North America) 1998 Jun; Vol. 33 (2), pp. 325-37. http://ehis.ebscohost.com.proxy.library.maryville.edu/ehost/detail?vid=19&sid=78745a3b-d950-4ea0-890c-4ee4ab4c4b46%40sessionmgr112&hid=101&bdata=JnNpdGU9ZWhvc3QtbGl2ZQ%3d%3d#db=cmedm&AN=9624207 ISSN#0029-6465 MICHAEL I. RAUCHMAN, BA Medical student McGill University Montreal, PQ RABKIN MT. GILLERMAN G, RICE NR: Orders not to resuscitate. N Engi J Med I 976; 295: 364-366 http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov.proxy.library.maryville.edu/pmc/articles/PMC1875656/pdf/canmedaj01406-0055.pdf Expertise in Nursing Practice Caring, Clinical Judgment, and Ethics

Duty vs. Desire

The road to self-actualization is one filled with forks. One must constantly make decisions that affect character and one’s ultimate destination in life. Some travel this road very consciously, making informed and well thought out decisions that they hope will lead them in the right direction. Others live haphazardly, not taking into account the possible consequences of poor decisions. Often times one of the most major forks is a decision between moral obligation and private passion.Pressing matters of family or work may call one to put personal aspirations on hold for the sake of the whole. But does one necessitate abandonment of the other? Which way will lead to a happier life? Tom Wingfield, the disillusioned narrator of Tennessee Williams’ Depression-era play, â€Å"The Glass Menagerie,† must battle through this specific plight. He struggles to find the answer to the question of when desire overrides duty. All humans are blessed with a plethora of gifts, but all have one in common: life.This being said, there is one common humanistic duty: the obligation to live that life in the most satisfying manner in the hopes of reaching fulfillment. However, the individual decides which manner is most pleasing to himself or herself, and one person’s idea of a life well lived is wholly different from another’s. This fact should not be disdained, but embraced. Diversity is what allows for unique and inspirational perspectives that can create new ideas and changes in society and culture.Nevertheless, there are those that do not share this view, which leads to an all-too-common clash of wishes – between parents and children, subordinates and superiors, students and elders, etc. Tom Wingfield conflicts with his mother, Amanda, in this way. Her only wish is that her children, Tom and Laura, fulfill the classic American Dream of hard work and success. However, Tom has dreams of being a writer, and Laura is too painfully shy to even l eave the house. Clearly there will be at least one person displeased at the end of the day.The Wingfields live lives of short fuses hidden under good intentions – Tom and Laura do not wish to disregard their mother entirely, but they have their own wishes that she does not respect. There are daily battles over who has the right to decide the lives of the family. Tom rightfully uncovers the truth that in order to achieve true happiness in self-actualization, one must choose the paths one takes alone. As stated above, some people truly put thought into their decisions, while others do not.This done not imply that the thought-out choice is the superior one. One can reflect upon an important decision for weeks, months, or years, and still make the wrong choice. If this is true, how is one supposed to make the proper choice? How does one settle on the fork leading to the happier life? The answer is blunt and cruel. Sometimes there is no â€Å"happier life. † Many situations present themselves with no clear better choice. Tom debates his ever-growing desire to desert Amanda and Laura and live the life he feels he would enjoy infinitely more.He convinces himself that this would be his happier life, and does leave in the end, but not without some unwanted baggage. Wherever he goes, he is haunted by guilt of leaving Laura behind. It is evident that even when one does all the right things, when one takes into account outcome and consequences, and still makes the decision alone, it is very possible that there is no silver lining. One must simply do one’s best to make the decisions one feels good about and live with them.

Whap Chapter 15

Chapter 15 1. The economy of the Song Dynasty was one of the most prosperous and advanced economies in the medieval world. Monetary gain was assured from the vigorous overseas trade and indigenous trade along the Grand Canal and Yangzi River 2. The Tang Dynasty focused on education and foreign policy while the Song Dynasty focused on economic growth and the arts. 3. Under Emperor Taizong Li Shimin's wise governing, the national strength and social development of the Tang Dynasty reached an unparalleled prosperity – economy and commerce flourished, the social order was stable,corruption never existed. . Zhngguo translates traditionally as the â€Å"Middle Kingdom. † Only in the nineteenth century, Zhongguo became the common name for the country. During this time China expelled and Christians and outlawed the religion. They also started to become more internal and did not try to expand. 5. The Song eventually fell to the Mongols in 1279, who moved against the Southern Son g years after the forces of Genghis Khan had defeated the Jin.The Mongols had superior military organization and a better grasp of the advances in military technology 6. During the Sung dynasty the monumental detail began to emerge. A single bamboo shoot, flower,or bird provided the subject for a painting. Among those who excelled in flower painting was the Emperor Hui-tsung,who founded the imperial academy. 7. The most important technological innovation of the Ancient Period was the creation of the wheel. The wheel allowed humans to transport goods over long distances.People could also travel longer. 8. From the fifth century AD Confucian orthodoxy retreated before the popularity of Buddhism and Daoism. But a renaissance came during the Song dynasty when Confucianism responded to the challenge and developed its own metaphysics. This new trend is known as Neo-confucianism, and its main exponent was Zhu Xi (1130-1200). It subsequently became the main orthodoxy of the scholar official s until the demise of the imperial system in 1912. 9.Because of the remarkable durability of Chinese civilization as well as its marvelous technological and economic innovations, other cultures began to imitate China. Japan, Korea, and Vietnam were all drawn into China's cultural and political orbit in the post classical period. Each country interacted with China differently 10. It indicated that this person was of such high social status that she didn't have to do any work – that she could be carried from place to place by servants, that her every need would be catered to by others.

Crisis Communication Essay

A crisis is any event that triggers a level of public interest and media inquiry that requires a significant increase in staffing and/or resources to make a reasonable media response. Crises include such things as disease outbreaks, disasters and other health matters. Crises also may include fires, breakdowns in communications, disruptions in services and even rumors. A major example in the one focusing on the San Fransisco Bay which was struck by an earthquake. This was referred to as the Loma Prieta earthquake. It was measuring 6. 9 on the moment magnitude scale. It lasted approximately 15 seconds. This quake injured 3,757 people, left more than 12,000 people homeless and killed 67 people throughout northern California (Betteke Van Ruler, Dejan Vercis, 2004). A crisis situation is defined as any situation or event identified that has a major impact on the community. This plan describes the role of the Office of Public Relations (PR) in collecting and conveying information to the public during or immediately following a crisis or emergency situation. Risk communications can be viewed from two major aspects. First, they may be viewed from public relations profession as its subspecialty and are designed to perform various disciplines among them protecting and defending an individual, an organization facing public challenge in regards to its reputation, or even a company at large. Some of these challenges will mainly come from government agencies as investigations, media inquiries and violation of environmental regulations, criminal allegations, or financial, ethical or legal standing of the entity. Reputation of an organization is always held as its most important or rather valuable asset. Incase of any attack that comes as a threat to a company’s reputation, then protection and defense must be valued as the highest priority. In the current world, 21st century, technology has permitted access to a news cycle that will operate 24 hours, and is also full of investigations from the government. Some other sources of information will include parliamentary hearings,†gotcha’journalism and lawsuits. The result of these is that the media might decide to quickly overwhelm the capability of an entity to effectively respond to the demand of a crisis. For an organization to maintain its reputation therefore, it must watch clearly every move and respond effectively and timely with much confidence. Such moves by a company call for more than just the typical skills from the profession of public relations. It requires keen experience from fields such as politics and investigative reporting. Also, crisis communication can be done through research of compelling statements. The capability of a rapid response entails an essential element during crisis communication. Additional tactics applied may include; recruitment of third party allies who are capable and credible, and will give the good side of the company’s story. The company or organization might also decide to create procreative media that will outreach to get message and also context to the media. One of the major tactics of these is the tradition of striking first and not waiting to be hit. It is important to note that there is need for development of a crisis communication plan, need for creation of a crisis management team team and a crisis communication team that inclusive of the spokesperson James (E. Lukaszewski, 2005). The crisis management team may consist of the library leader and the main librarians and its staff the trustee’s representatives as well as the so called volunteers’ representatives. Communication is also important when designing the management team as well as the legal counsel. Ensure that you are ready to get in touch with the key friends and those directly involved with the library. The communication goals should be set in advance. These must be the goal s that is achievable. These goals must greatly contribute to the ending of the crisis at hand, be able to protect the library picture to the public, minimize tension, show commitment and willingness to meet the values and pass a clear message to the public to maintain good flow of information (Alison Asbury, Ros Jay, 2001). The primary objectives that should be kept in mind for an effective crisis communication solution strategy include a quick, effective, and efficient response. The following are the main objectives that I would wish to discuss in my communication crisis plan: 1. To maintain connectivity 2. To streamline communication process 3. To ensure uninterrupted audit trials 4. To allow distributed access Creating awareness to the community about the ongoing crisis has in the modern world grown significantly. Introduced regulations and standards require high levels of resilience through all aspects of operations within an organization. A good organization therefore must seek effective solutions that will allow them to prepare, plan and test their ability in communication when a crisis strikes. For effective communication, the following key drivers should be kept in mind: ? Protection of relationships ? Strengthening competitive advantage ? Reducing the operating risk and potential losses ? Assuring that there is regulatory compliance. ? Meeting community responsibilities. ? Deterring terrorism When preparing the plan, keep in mind that the business at risk may continue normally or may reach a situation where you will not be able to access all the tools that you used to perform your work. Therefore, your risk communication kit should have the capability of giving a picture of normality as much as possible in situations that are abnormal. It should therefore include all the information such as the computer files, the disks, graphics, and photos among others. The kit should include a list of those in the crisis management team, contact information of the spokes persons, main officers, those involved in the management team. It should also have important fact sheets of the organization, the entire physical location, each division and all the products that it deals with. The profiles and biographies for the main managers in camera and on disk should be made available in crisis kit (Mathew W. Seeger, Timothy L. Sellow, Robert R. Ulmer, 2003). The kit should have in formation on the copies o f the organization, product logos, scanned signatures workers on disk and the press format as well. The scripts that have been prewritten answering the main questions that have been gathered through the scenario of the crisis should also be made available in the kit. Finally, the contact information for all the main media both locally and internationally should be availed in the kit and if in position include the major financial press and analysts. Crisis mobile is a feature of communication that provides levels of communication that is unprecedented . It ensures communication is always on and always available. It also allows instant multichanneled communications from any communication device. This feature also simplifies processes to save time, therefore reducing costs and mitigating optional risks. When a situation arises, you not only have to be prepared to act swiftly, you also have to make timely and informed decisions. That’s why beyond email, voice communications and organizer applications, an organized streamline communication process for the Public Sector allow mobile access to case files and associated records, emergency operating procedures, alert notifications and incident reports – all at the point of need (Brent W. Ritchie, Darly Adair, 2004). The secret to an effective risk communication is to be ready before the crisis occurs. That is, be ready for any emergency. Therefore you will have little time to plan for the direction to take rather than thinking then, which might lead to making wrong decisions. There, to handle any crisis, there must be a proper crisis plan to facilitate it. A perfect risk communication relies on the available systems in that particular place. According to Fitzwater, one should tighten a crisis that is available and make it better. This is not the time to design a system that is ne2w since it won’t be of any help. At this time, one should to be forthcoming and trustworthy at the same time work to facilitate stories. In the presence of a crisis, try to put together all the major players into a common place and get the correct information. One should not give information of which he is not sure about or give what he thinks is right. This may be reported as rumors. Before a crisis, ensure that trustworthy is maintained as well as credible relationships with the part concerned that is the media as they will be no suspicion and they will cooperate as you handle the crisis. Those in charge of crisis management should have a chance of collecting information on the issues that are troublesome (Ricardo Tartaglia, 2005). After gathering the information, they should evaluate, get detailed data on them and look for ways of communicating to prevent their course. Train the chosen spokespersons in handling the media and ensure that you have the target, the message and important media outlets that could be used in different crisis plans. During a crisis, make efforts to reach the word of the press lest they find it through different means. Let the entire public be aware that you are dealing with the problem at hand. Avoid speculations and give information that you know instead (Dan Pyle Millar, Robert Lawrence Health, 2003). With up-to-date information right at their fingertips, the appropriate people coercive proactive notification of evolving situations, verify the issues with colleagues and take action quickly before they escalate into more serious problems. At times when making informed decisions has never been more important, you can be assured of streamline communication for the Public Sector features, the same proven technology used by the world’s leading enterprises to improve their responsiveness (W. Timothy Coombs, 2007). In a world that is as fast-paced as it is unpredictable, it’s more important than ever to find ways to keep all branches of the organization on top of the most current and critical information to continue delivering top notch service to public constituents. After all, things can change in an instant. And we’re living in a time when instant just isn’t fast enough. It goes without saying that there’s no higher priority during emergencies than protecting public safety while minimizing loss of life and property damage. The truth is, you have to be innovative if you want to stay ahead. And ideally, that means making sure everyone in the public sector from executives and officials to legislators – are always connected to the information, communications and applications they need (Dan Pyle Millar, Robert Lawrence Health, 2003). Virtual Private Networks (VPNs) have come out as the technology that ensures secure remote access. VPNs is clientless. This type of sourcing gives access to security breaches in a company. When a user connects to the VPN, after valid authentication, he/she gets access to applications and resources for which he/she has access priviledges. Since VPNs work at the application layer hence there is no direct connection to the network, the users will only connect to resources. VPNs also facilitate fionel grained access controls so the entire data stream is encrypted by a security protocol for the internet traffic. With this, remote access for communication continuity achieves the following: Secure connections for employees to corporate data and applications and, importantly, only to approved resources based on policy. Access controls in VPNs let the right people in and keep the wrong ones out, which is critical during a disaster event. Business as usual for customers, suppliers, and partners, even if their own operations are disrupted and they must get access from remote locations. IT departments can handle other problems during a disaster recovery without having to manage an influx of calls from users or troubleshoot an inefficient remote access system. There is compliance to regulatory requirements, as VPNs provides continuous monitoring, auditing, and data privacy under a business continuity scenario. For compliance regulations such as Sarbanes-Oxley, HIPAA or Gramm- Leach-Bliley. Data Protection mandates stiff protection of personal data for companies. Information Protection Act, which applies strict regulations to government or private entities that collect, handle, or use personal information. Block remote connections from untrusted systems that could infect the corporate network with harmful computer viruses or other malicious software. Keep mission-critical applications available such as CRM, ERP, and e-mail applications. Newer applications, such as voice over Internet protocol and Web conferencing, may also become more important during a disaster due to potential telephone service outages and your increased need to stay in touch with customers. Accommodate a spike in network traffic resulting from an emergency. Just as many people call to check on friends or family who may be in harm’s way, a disaster may cause customers, partners, and suppliers to seek assurance that their business will not be disrupted by a disaster event. Scalability matters (Robert R. Ulmer, Timothy L. Sell now, Mathew W. Seeger, 2007). Plan ahead to ensure remote access doesn’t crash due to high demand. After the crisis has been handled, inform all the individuals involved of the lesson learnt making the review of the important steps taken and look for failures to be corrected. Give credit to any good efforts made and ensure that proper documentation is done. Always, be ready to be part of the decision making process as you seek to get a solution. Be honest in whatever that you handle or any informationthatn you deliver or receive (J A. Cappy Surrette, 2003). Be ready always because you never know what is on the way coming. REFERENCES Robert R. Ulmer, Timothy L. Sell now, Mathew W. Seeger (2007) Effective Crisis Communication: Moving fro Crisis to Opportunity. SAGE, ISBN142914183 Dan Pyle Millar, Robert Lawrence Health (2003) Responding to Crisis: A Rhetorical Approach to Crisis Communication. Lawrence Associates, ISBN0805840605 W. Timothy Coombs (2007). Ongoing Crisis Communication: Planning, managing, and Responding. SAGE Publication, ISBN1412949920. Mathew W. Seeger, Timothy L. Sellow, Robert R. Ulmer (2003). Communication and Organizational Crisis. Greenwood Publishers, ISBN0763747769 Ricardo Tartaglia (2005). Healthcare Systems Ergonomics and Patient Safety. Taylor and Francis, ISBN041537782. Brent W. Ritchie, Darly Adair (2004). Interrelationships, Impacts and issues ISBN1873150652 Betteke Van Ruler, Dejan Vercis (2004). Public Relation and Communication Management in Europe. Walter de Gruyter, ISBN3110176114 Alison Asbury, Ros Jay (2001). Quick Answers to Marketing Questions. Prentice Hall, ISBN07273653253. James E. Lukaszewski (2005). Crisis Communication Plan Components and Models: Crisis Communication. Lukaszewski Group, ISBN1883291402. J A Cappy Surrette (2003). The USS Greenville Collision: A discussion of Crisis Communication