Comparison of the Great Gatsby, Leisure Class, and Teaching in Tehran Essay

Class differences in society are a major impact on the lifestyle of people. Even today we can see how it effects how a person experiences their life. In The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald, we can clearly see how Gatsby’s social status changes while in Reading Lolita in Tehran by Azar Nafisi we can see how class differences effect the opinions of the people in the class. The Theory of the Leisure Class by Thorstein Veblen also demonstrates the philosophy and the dynamics of the differences between the rich and the poor. In these three works, status is portrayed as a dominant force in shaping one’s educational and/or social experience. In The Great Gatsby we can see how one’s status effects a person’s educational and/or social experience. Gatsby was born into a poor family and so he wasn’t able to get a proper education. Instead he worked as a clam-digger and a salmon-fisher, unlike Tom and Nick who had the best education due to their higher status and abundance of money. Gatsby had a different social experiece from Nick who was raised as a wealthy young boy who knew of his status. This acted as a confidence booster, one that assured him of his identity. Nick’s father once said to him â€Å"‘Whenever you feel like criticizing anyone†¦ just remember that all the people in this world haven’t had the advantages that you’ve had† (1). Gatsby, on the other hand, had a different social experience. Gatsby wasn’t spoiled and became mature at a younger age. However, when Gatsby moves to West Egg, his educational and social experiences now differ from his past due to him being a higher status. Gatsby, now a wealthy man, is able to pursue an education with more confidence. He is also able to experience a new social standing. An example of him excercising his new wealth and position in society is his hosting of popular parties in which he is able to observe how higher class people interact. Despite this he is always uncomfortable with the rest of the higher class and is only a spectator of his parties. He never really fits in because although he is now a higher class, he grew up poor with different ideals. Growing up in a different environment made Gatsby think that with money he can achieve anything – even his goal of attaining Daisy’s love. His naivety with money shows distinct class division between poor and rich. Interaction between men and women in Tehran make women dependent on men. Gender plays a role in determining staus in Tehran. No matter how poor a man is he is seen as having more status than most women. In the excerpt Reading Lolita in Tehran, we can see the different educational and social values between men and women. Since men are raised thinking they have the superior status and their outlook on women are all similar. Unlike men, women are forced to be dependent on the male because of Tehran laws. This restricts women to do what men want to. Educationally both men and women were taught in this excerpt ,but how they perceived education was different. For a very religous man like Mr Nyazi, The Great Gastby as a book goes against eveything he believed in. Religon and his beliefs made him more narrow-minded and unable to look at the whole picture, making his argument biased. Mr. Nyazi argued, â€Å"West is our great enemy, it is the Great Satan, not because of its military might, not because of its economic power, but because of its sinister assault† (126). For a woman in Tehran to be able to argue back to a man was a big deal. Zarrin had a less biased view than Mr. Nyazi arguing how he wasn’t reading critically enough. Zarrin said, â€Å"An inablility to read a novel on its own terms. All he knows is judgement, crude, and simplistic exaltation of right and wrong† (128). In this particular society, gender is a status that is even more difficult to break through than wealth. Being born into a wealthy family meant that you have many advantages. In The Theory of the Leisure Class we can see how the standards of the wealthy are very different from the poor. Being born into a higher class also comes with social pressure to be like everyone else and be different from the poor. Thorstein speaks of some guidelines wealthy people follow to show off their wealth to say I’m not poor ,but rich. At this tage of wealth consists chiefly of slaves benefits accruing from the possesions of the riches and personal service and the immediate products of personal service†(1). What the wealthy experience is very different from the poor. The wealthy has more freedom of choice, having more leisure time to do what they please, while the poor must work everyday to survive. Whether through status or gender ,these roles in society inevitably effect the experiences and oppurtunities that are offered. Gatsby being how he changed from the lower class to the higher class or even how Zarrin viewed The Great Gatsby versus Mr. Nyazi’s view.

Individualism in “Harrison Bergeron” by Kurt Vonnegut Essay

Individualism is a very important thing in everyone’s life, its part of our personality as portrayed in the story called, â€Å"Harrison Bergeron† by Kurt Vonnegut, Jr. Taking away that individualism is taking apart some of that person. The book in many ways shows what would happen if no one was different and all the people in the world were the same, or basically how disastrous. One example is when the Bergeron’s were watching TV and the announcer came on to announce. He started out enthusiastically and with fire, but automatically got a shock. He tried to act out and be the announcer man with energy, but since everyone was the same he just gave up and let the ballerina read the announcements in monotone voice. Now I for one would never want to hear n announcer that talked in one tone the whole entire time. I addition Vonnegut shows another example is how all the smart and beautiful people have to wear mental and physical handicaps. They wear those handicaps because the government wanted to make everyone equal. So basically if you were even a little bit smart, you would get a handicap and that went with physical attributes too. Finally, the author uses the character Harrison as how most people should act, but being someone different. He acted out and rebelled against the government when they were forcing everyone to be the same. Instead of going with the flow he chose to be himself, and literally broke the chains that the government was using to handicap him. Overall, being you is the best thing to do in life, but society today is portraying the perfect kid that everyone is trying to be.

Prenatal care and testing persuasive speech outline Essay

Introduction Attention: I. Attention: Imagine that you or a close loved one of yours is in the hospital about to give birth when suddenly, before you can even set eyes on the little one or hold them, the nurses rush them out of the room and your lives are turned upside down in a matter of seconds. II. Connect: Unfortunately this is something that happens to many unsuspecting families every day and could happen to you or someone that you know. Opposition: Some argue that prenatal care and testing is immoral and wrong because of the concern of women using it to prevent and abort babies with disabilities, but this is not the case at all. Prenatal testing is done to allow doctors to treat them early. Another argument is that the cost of prenatal care is just too much, but that is why there are many foundations to help mothers as well as health departments that offer free or no costs at all care. Preview: As a witness to one of these traumatic events I would like to show you why it is so important that women receive prenatal care and testing and encourage you and your loved ones to receive it. Body Main Point One-Need I. Sadly about one third of the women who give birth will have some kind of pregnancy related complication which is most of the reason why prenatal care is extremely important.  A. Receiving prenatal care reduces the risk of pregnancy-related complications such as anemia, preterm birth, preeclampsia, complications of diabetes, or poor growth of the baby in utero. B. Unfortunately one million women in the U.S. deliver babies without receiving prenatal care C. According to childtrends.org, mothers who receive late or no prenatal care are three times more likely to give birth to a low-weight baby. D. Babies whose mothers don’t receive prenatal care are five times more likely to die. Main Point Two-Satisfaction II. With prenatal care and testing doctors can spot health problems early when they see mothers regularly. A. The tests done for the mother are  generally done in the first trimester to determine things such as her blood type, whether she has diabetes, anemia, or other health conditions such as and STD. B. In a developing child testing can identify treatable health problems, characteristics of the baby, and the chance that the baby has certain birth defects, or genetic or developmental problems. Main Point Three-Visualization III. There are many benefits with receiving prenatal care. It can save lives if not better the chance at a great one. A. Everyday doctors are helping expectant mothers provide their developing child to get a great head start at a healthy life. B. There are many health problems that healthcare professionals have been able to take care of before the child is born or the problem gets worse. C. The chance of a child developing a birth defect is significantly lessoned when the mother receives prenatal care. Conclusion-Action I. So, I encourage you to please receive prenatal care or make sure your loved ones do so. II. If you or your loved one receives prenatal care your child will have the best chance possible to be born healthy.

What recommendations do you have for Amberly as potential avenues for consideration?

The conflict with B&N and McGraw-Hill is a business issue that needs thorough analysis as well as the accurate identification of the key players in the conflict. It is readily identifiable that B&N is trying to weasel out of the situation with the book publisher. On the other hand, the book publisher also blames the college bookstore for poor sales of their books. The university professors play a significant role in the whole process because they are the ones who identify which books should be ordered and used by students.Amberly should also consider that some book publishers provide incentives to university professors when they choose which textbooks to use in their classes. If for example, a significant number of professors choose a McGraw-Hill textbook, then the publishers would have a fairly good idea of how many books they would sell and the profits they would make. However, the college bookstore had not been performing with their expectations so they now are charging a restocki ng fee which would make up for their targeted sales (Walter, Ritter & Gemunden, 2001).Amberly should also factor in the used book market which has significantly affected the selling of new books. Since most college textbooks are already very expensive, students generally would prefer to buy used books and B&N College bookstore actually operates its own used-book division. Since the bookstore makes more profit in selling used books than new books then it would be in their interest to sell more of the used books than the new books.McGraw-Hill is actually forcing B&N to increase their sales of new books. Amberly should make it a point to provide an alternative solution to the predicament. Such as making it clear how the university should deal with the issue, whether to review the terms of their agreement with B&N College, whether to ask B&N to submit a detailed sales inventory and make it clear what their priorities are; selling used books or selling new ones.And since the university g ets something from the sales of new textbooks, it should also look into whether they need to ask professors to requires students to use the latest edition or the new textbooks. Reference Walter, A. , Ritter, T. & Gemunden, H. (2001). Value creation in buyer-seller relationships, theoretical considerations and empirical results from a supplier’s perspective. Industrial Marketing Management, 30, 365-377.

Intrinsic Motivation and Team Communication Essay

The greatest concern of the companies after recession is how to bring out the best in the employees with less funds and poor market response. Since the market is demanding more for less, companies are now forced to sell products at reduced margins. This state of affairs shows that the proverbial employee engagement policy through extrinsic rewards cannot be implemented under such situation. Moreover, the sales graph is getting down on one hand, while the competition is getting stiffer. Therefore, the best (and perhaps only) option lying before the companies is to adopt the intrinsic motivation policy, which does not involve monetary reward. However, it is always tough to break away from the convention, since the application of extrinsic rewards to engage the employees has become commonplace. Yet there is hope, if the findings of the researchers regarding the mechanism of motivation have anything to go by. The Guiding Light Even in 1985, researchers like Deci and Ryan (1985) used attribution theory and suggested that humans constantly reassess the reasons for their behavior besides others. Before that, Lepper et al. (1973) had observed that extrinsic reward (money) acts as a tool for reinforcement, which actually generates two effects for the management, like gaining control over activity or fastening the process, and two, the backlash effect in absence of reinforcement. The example below would explain it better: A group or an individual gets a reward of x amount of money for a period y, where x+y=m, m being the increased rate of production. Before that, the situation was y=z where production was z. Now in the absence of reinforcement and with the influence of attribution theory, the situation would stand like y-x = n, where n < z. This clearly goes against the basic reason for motivating the employees, i. e. , to enhance the profit of the organization. This also shows that something is missing, which could have played catalyst in between, and that something is ‘love for work’. The modern researchers have picked up the issue right from here. â€Å"Engagement occurs when an employee connects emotionally with his work,† says Paul Glen (2007), thereby underpinning the efficacy of intrinsic reward in employee engagement, since it aims to emotionally engage the workers. The Solution Yet it is tough to overtly implement intrinsic reward policy by issuing heaps of â€Å"well-done† certificates, as the employees may not adapt to this sudden shift of reward policy, especially when even a penny counts after recession. It is where the strategy of fostering team communication can come in handy, which is also backed by â€Å"Expectancy Value Theory† of Martin Fishbein (Expectancy, 2004), where he observed that â€Å"people mold themselves to the world in accordance with their expectations/beliefs and evaluations. † An effective team communication does that much-needed job – it converts the employee expectation from personal gain to team-gain, and team-gain becomes possible only when the individual worker meets the expectation of other team-members. This process manifests through both intra-team communication and inter-team communication, which generates high-degree of intrinsic motivation among team members that automatically creates an emotional bondage with their work. Consequently, members of the team become aware of the roles of each member and try to finish individual assignments in time to meet the expectation of the team members. Upon doing so, they enjoy job satisfaction on many accounts – as fulfilling a team of colleagues’ expectation raises the level of mutual trust, self-confidence and individual relationship. These are the elements of intrinsic motivation, which rules over money. And what comes out as the by-product? Company benefit, of course! References Expectancy Value Theory. (2004). Web document. Retrieved July 7, 2009, from http://www. tcw. utwente. nl/theorieenoverzicht/Theory%20clusters/Public%20Rela tions%2C%20Advertising%2C%20Marketing%20and%20Consumer%20Behavio r/Expectancy_Value_Theory. doc/ Glen, P. (2007). You can’t outsource retention. Computerworld, July 16, 2007.

Causal Determinism

Philosophy Mini Paper 1 Causal determinism claims that our past, initial conditions are deterministicly conditioned by natural laws. Causal determinism deals with conditional predictability, which says that if I know all of my past/present material conditions and natural laws, then I can know my future causal path. Since we always base our choices on our highest desire, we can easily predict what choices one is going to make. It seems very plausible for casual determinism to be true. With causal determinism on one end of the spectrum, and existentialism on the opposite end, we have two conflicting philosophies of romance vs logic. It seems only logical for us to assume that indeed, we base our decisions based upon what we deeply, truly desire the most. The notion that we lack the capacity of free will, though, is daunting. To think that we have no control over our lives is really rather terrifying, so it becomes very apparent why someone would want to reject these theories. Causal determinism hasn't necessarily affected my views of life dramatically, but it helps keep everything into a conscious perspective. To live a meaningful life it's important to live consciously, that is to say, to escape the hypnotizing effects of living life monotonously. I believe that in order to accomplish a lucid life, it's important to retain existentialist aspects in daily life. To live life on a path without the sense of freedom seems like it would be similar to those nightmares we have in which we know the horrors that are about to happen, but can do nothing to prevent it. To live a robotic life is too easy. To throw everything into the wind and say that we have no control over our lives is too easy. To say humanity has an inability to control itself is far too pessimistic and a twisted way to live one's life. It's empowering to believe in one's ability to make something of their life, to truly live life spiritually. I don't feel that causal determinism should impacts one's views on moral responsibility drastically. To think that whatever is going to happen will happen anyway, and to avoid morality, is definitely a flawed way of thinking. Because of our desire to live in a morally praiseworthy fashion, we may let moral values influence the decisions we make. We should not simply disregard everything happening in our surroundings because we think we have no control. As far as friendship goes, yes, we typically befriend those that are like-minded in some regard or another. This isn't a new or unusual concept, this notion is widely known. There are countless psychological factors that are at work with the ongoing process of friend-making. Causal determinism doesn't change what is already known about making friends. Love is one of the most confusing of human emotions. To say that there is a soul mate for each person would be agreeing with causal determinism. It seems, in an odd sense, too romantic for the theory, but they're one in the same regardless. Some believe in soul mates, that there is one person each is destined to belong with. It would make sense for a causal determinist to believe in the idea of a soul mate. Causal determinism feels far too depressing to follow religiously in a day-to-day lifestyle. While the theory may be a logically correct way to look at life, it seems to strongly strip away what it means to live as a conscious human. Sure it's important to keep a balance of logic and romance in the way one lives their life, but it seems like following causal determinism may be tipping this scale too far to one side.

Deltic Timber Corporation Credit Analysis Research Paper

Deltic Timber Corporation Credit Analysis - Research Paper Example In line with this, it is recommended for the company to take up proactive strategic management options that will push its fortunes higher, especially when it comes to dealings with competitors. Currently, the company finds itself in a business environment where talks of monopoly are far from the argument. Due to this, the greatest hindrance faced by the company has been found to be that of the creation of a competitive advantage. Using a strategic management option that will make the company the focus of customers is thus the saving path for the company in years to come. Indicative with the ratios of the company given in the paper, it would be realised that the company continue to have high debt financing, which creates a decline for profit utilisation. This means that even though revenues are high, these are hardly translated into profits because of higher debts and other expenses. 1.0 Organizational Overview Listed on the New York Stock Excahnge, Deltic Timber Corporation engages i n forestry industry where its major activities include the ownership and management of timberland. The specialisation that the company gives to this venture has resulted in the useful management of 445,800 acres of timberland over the past years. As a means of gaining diversification in its core business operation, which is the ownership and management of timberland, the company also owns two sawmills and is actively involved in real estate1. This said diversification has been the main source of financial capitalisation for the company because it has always been offered the opportunity of internally funding the running of its parent operations using revenues from diversified business. Currently, the company is headquartered in El Dorado, Arkansas. The market segment of the company has largely been focused on Arkansas and north Louisiana with very limited external and international markets. This situation comes with its own advantages and disadvantages for the company but the company has largely tried to live within its means of operations. This report is thus focused on critiquing the current credit situation of the company and offer recommendations. 2.0 Corporate Segment Deltic Timber Corporation’s corporate segment is reflected in its total asset as represented in the graph below. Generally, there are four segments that the company emphasises on. These are manufacturing segment, which takes 9% of total asset, corporate business, which is responsible for 7% of total asset, real estate, which accounts for 17% of the total asset, and woodlands, which take the highest portion of 68% of total revenue2. It is important to establish that the percentage gain of total assets as given above is not a direct reflection of the percentage of focus or corporate segment that the company gives to the various segment. Rather, the figures given above are a result of the contributions of gains that the various segments make to the company’s total asset. For instan ce in the 2012 Annual Report of the company, it was established that even though manufacturing is responsible for 9% of total assets, the company actually gives higher corporate segmentation focus to that segment than it gives to real estate, which earns the company 17% of its total assets. 3.0 SWOT Analysis 3.1 Strengths The company has an effective internally generated funding policy that is motivated by the fact that there are diversifying businesses that are managed under the franchise of Deltic Timber Corporation. The company has kept a very steady rise in revenues and operating incomes, making it have a very strong competitive engagement with its key competitions. 3.2 Weaknesses The company lacks

Human resource management plays a vitol role in every industry Essay

Human resource management plays a vitol role in every industry - Essay Example If at all there will be a marginal diference but not much. But the cost of human services is the most important cost, which requires an expertise management. It is Human Resource Mangement which manages the Human resources including the payments methods. The growth of industry largely depends up on the Human Resource Management. The cost of human services in an industry means and includes the payments made to the employees of an industry at factory, which is included in manufacturing cost, payments made to the employees in Shops which is included in selling and distribution over heads, payments made to the employees in offices which is included in administrative over heads. To maintain the balance between the quality, quantity and the cost of services the Human Resource Management shall plan and design suitable rewards to the employees by adopting an appropriate payment systems in these three sectors of industry say factory, shop and office. The rewards through payment systems are broadly classified into four major kinds such as 1.Performance related pay, 2.Competency Based Pay 3. Contribution pay, 4.Variable pay. Each system is suitable to the different sectors of the industry according their character. Adoption of ideal payment system enriches the industry. The ideal or appropriate systems of payments and the benefits which the employer to adopt for his employees are discussed below: Piecework Payment system is more appropriate system of p... The labor cost of production is directly related to the workers engaged on the machines. By introducing this method of reward worker motivation will be enhanced. The worker will endeavor to produce more by exerting their skills. The more production will result in reduction of marginal labour cost. This system is based on the principle of more pay for more production, this will lead to variation in wages among the same class of workers, but still they accept the variation since they know that the variation is connected with their rate of production and it will motivate the other idle workers to improve their productivity. This system gives an opportunity to utilize their skills to the optimum level and earn more money there by improving the standard of living. By paying more pay for more production the workers satisfaction on the equity is achieved and the marginal cost of labour is reduced. By this way both worker and the industry is benefited. Some writers argue that this system lea ds to low quality of production. Their argument is based on the fact that workers are inclined to more production and neglect the quality of the products. But the organization can overcome this defect by improving the quality control system and imposing a minor and moderate penalties for the low quality products. PBR method is most approprite for the following reasons:- 1. It provides greater freedom for employees with less supervision. 2. Employees take initiative for high level production. 3. It gives opportunity to the employees to achieve high earnings. 4. It benefits the employees with high level earnings and benefits the Organization/Industry with high level production reducing marginal labour cost, there by increaing

Compare and contrast two Management Theories Term Paper

Compare and contrast two Management Theories - Term Paper Example Theory X This theory is based on traditional conception of control and direction. The theory makes assumptions that average human beings do not like working. Because of this dislike, most people must be punished in order to put forth adequate effort towards the realization of the organization’s goals. Furthermore, theory X assumes that average people prefer to be directed, wish to avoid responsibility, have relatively little ambitions and want securities (Sapru, 2006). Traditionally, this theory was referred to as the carrot and the stick theory and was practically based on mechanistic approach to human relations. Rewards and punishments may be used to induce desired behavior, and this came from the donkey story whereby the best way to make a donkey move was to "put a carrot in front of the donkey or jab him with a stick from behind" (Sapru, 2006). Rewards and punishments are still strong motivators in many organizations. The use of theory X works well under certain circumstances; however, this does not work at all once an employee has attained the highest level and is motivated by higher needs. In other words, this theory does not explain human nature. McGregor states that as long as theory X continues to influence managerial strategy, human potentialities cannot be discovered. Theory Y The inadequacies in theory X led to development of theory Y as integration to replace traditional concepts of direction and control. The human motivations in theory Y may be characterized by the expenditure of physical and mental effort in work. Here, an ordinary person does not dislike work (Miner, 2007).

The influence of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) on Taiwanese Dissertation

The influence of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) on Taiwanese Consumers' Purchase Intention and Brand Image in the Diamo - Dissertation Example They also reported that compared to 2010, the global diamond sales significantly increased by 18% to $71 billion, close to the 2007 peak of $73 billion before the crisis. IDEX (2013) and Tacy LTD (2013) indicated that the majority of growth contributed to the mounting demand from Chinese and Indian markets. De Beers, which is reviewed in this proposal as an example of the world’s leading diamond companies for more than a century, reached their second highest level of sales ever to $6.5 billion in 2011. In the 1990s an issue of â€Å"conflict diamonds† or â€Å"blood diamonds† was heatedly debated across the globe. The diamond industry encountered the crisis from their diamond sourced countries. In several politically unstable African countries, such as Angola, Sierra Leone, Liberia, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, the diamond mines were under control of the military as a means to finance their military power. With the media‘s widespread coverage and t he movie â€Å"Blood Diamond†, the transactions between diamond buyers and the military, although not all from such illegal channels, were regarded as intensifying violent tribal conflict. Consequently, the reputation of the diamond industry was blackened (The Kimberly Process, 2013; Pauwelyn, 2003; Worldbank.org, 2013). In response to this situation, the Kimberley Process was organized in 2002. Under the auspices of the United Nations, The Kimberley Process Certification Scheme (KPCS) conducted a list of rules that every diamond trading country should obey: certification of rough diamonds is now required before being exported (Pauwelyn, 2003; Schefer, 2005). This is to "guarantee that their trade does not finance rebel activities" (The Kimberly Process, 2013). To establish a positive prestige from the infamous â€Å"blood diamond† image, and to ensure that De Beers’ â€Å"corporate activities contribute significantly to the development and prosperity of the co untries and communities in which they operate† (De Beers Group, 2013), their CSR principles has developed across five sustainability factors – Economics, Ethics, Employees, Communities and Environment, as all well as obeying the KPCS trading system (ibid). The case of De Beers will be explored, because it is a company which has executed its CSR policy since 2006, which provides luxury industry marketers a possible framework for strategic thinking and the effective use of CSR activities. There has been an upward research trend on how a company’s corporate social responsibility policy benefits consumer communication for several decades (Maignan, 2001). Meanwhile, this academic stream has invigorated the potential marketing development of corporate responsibility initiatives, such as the issue of corporate sustainability, environmentalism and corporate citizenship, among the real business world (Menon & Menon, 1997; Drumwright, 1994; Wigley, 2008; Lee, 2009;). Howev er, most of previous research discussed on CSR is more in the context of sustainability management or shareholder theory, rather than consumer aspects of understanding of this notion. Reinforcing this, Sen and

Honoring America's Veterans Personal Statement Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Honoring America's Veterans - Personal Statement Example We have an obligation to honor our Veterans with our hearts. This is accomplished by a public display of support by attending Veterans' ceremonies and events that bestow remembrance on those that have fought to defend our country. One of the simplest things we can do to show our gratitude to our Veterans is by personally saying 'Thank You' to a Veteran. Go to a Veteran's Memorial service or visit a VA hospital, find a veteran and tell them 'Thank You' for laying your life on the line so that our future generations can continue to live with freedom and liberty. It is easy to be thankful for our great nation, and it is our role as Americans to show it and say it from the heart. Showing appreciation for our Veterans needs to be backed-up with a solid belief in our display of respect. We must be big enough to put our political squabbles aside when we talk about our Veterans. Individuals, corporations, and political parties did not send these soldiers to war. America sends them and as Americans we all have the obligation to keep our political opinions in the political arena. Veterans are fighting for our right to free elections, differing opinions, and public dissent. However, these freedoms stop at our borders.

Definition of the Word Family Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Definition of the Word Family - Essay Example The paper tells that family means a number of different things to different individuals- family may cross a number of generations, change, as a result, of certain changes in life events such as remarriage, divorce and children relocating from their parental homes, and might even span several households. In most cases, people find it easier to define a family by not how it looks or how it is structured but by its roles and functions- supporting, loving, caring and protecting those in a family. In defining a family, it is essential to realize that children and marriage are not prerequisites for the formation of a family. In the past few years, there has been a development to a boost in the amount of childless couples and smaller families, as well as, lone- person families or households. It is also critical to remember that extended families might cross or span more than one household, and that individuals living by themselves are not necessarily living without families. More and more i ndividuals are forming more than one family across their lifetime, because of the greater rates of re- partnering and separation. A number of types of families, and families at certain points in the family life- cycle, may have different needs, strength and vulnerabilities. Some of these include one- parent families, jobless families, indigenous families, families from different, diverse linguistic and cultural backgrounds, families with responsibilities in caring, and families in remote and rural societies. It is clear from the points noted here that family is a complex unit that has no one specific definition (Forbes 2-34). The purpose of this article, consequently, is to draw attention to the different kinds of definitions of the family unit in regards to its functions, what it is, what it is not and according to how authorities define it. In addition to this, the paper will benefit exceedingly from examples derived from the book Journey by Sonia Nazario, which is a story about a certain family that will serve as an excellent example of what a family is and of different kinds of families. Family can be defined as the most fundamental unit. It represents individuals living together by ties of blood, marriage or adaption, therefore, representing a single household. According to sociology, the family unit as a key role of reproducing and expanding the society, both socially and biologically. There are numerous different structure of families based on the associations that exist between parents and children. There are different kinds of families present which are determined by who makes up the family. There are those families that only consist of the father and children; others are consisted of the mother and children. Other families consist of a mother, her children and other people who are in most cases derived from the mother’s family. Other families consists one or more mothers living together with their children, with other people and their spouses (Fine 65- 79). In this case, an example is the family described in the book the Journey, which at first was composed of the mother and her two children and member’s of Lourdes’ family. Relationships that exist between a family, and those that determine the type of the family, are those mainly between parents and children and they are different from culture to culture. One of the most common family types is the nuclear family. This family type is composed of the marital couple living with their children separate from other individuals. The joint family usually is the extension of the nuclear family, and exists when children of one sex stay at their parental home. In such a case, the children bring along their spouses to live with them in their parental home even after marriage (Fine 65- 79). These are only handful cases of the numerous types of families. Other kinds of families include only child families, large families, single parent families, blended families, gay an d lesbian parent

Math Tutoring center Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Math Tutoring center - Essay Example Therefore, a Math Tutoring Center in the university would be a welcome idea. Many American universities have a Math Tutoring Center where students go for further assistance in various units in math. Most of the Math Tutoring Centers work in a walk-in walk-out basis whereby, students do not need to book for appointments. This is a great advantage for students since they can get assistance at the convenience of their own time. For instance, it would be necessary to book an appointment with a lecturer and sometimes the appointment may not materialize. Therefore, the Math Tutoring Center becomes the best alternative for students. This is a good motivation factor to the students especially considering the fact that university professors are hard to find. However much mathematics professors and lecturers would want to assist all students, they are limited by availability of time. Additionally, some students are not open to their lecturers. Therefore, students would feel more comfortable being assisted in a Math Tutoring Center. It is important to note that a Math Tutoring center offers math tutoring in a different set up thereby breaking the class monotony. This makes learning mathematics an interesting and enjoyable endeavor for students. Therefore, students will be motivated to put more efforts in learning especially considering that they will not have to wait for specified time to get assistance. More importantly is the fact that math tutoring centers foster faster learning because the assistance is offered instantly. Math tutoring centers are essential in providing teaching options in mathematics. First, mathematics is taught in a different approach than the one used in class set up. Although this may further confuse some students, the different methodological approach makes it possible for the student to understand the math concepts in different perspective. Secondly, the one to one approach in learning mathematics supported in math

Landscape art in Chinese traditional painting Assignment

Landscape art in Chinese traditional painting - Assignment Example The essay "Landscape art in Chinese traditional painting" explores the landscape art of China. The period that was referred to as the Tang Dynasty experienced many landscape paintings. These kinds of paintings were mainly done on mountains. This kind of painting had a style that was called the shuimohua whose main intention was to represent the emotion or the look of the atmosphere that indicated the nature’s â€Å"rhythm†. As time went by towards the end of the Tang dynasty the use of landscape painting slowly started changing and it was now viewed as a way in men would communicate with the world through the paintings. Apart from nature, these paintings also conveyed a number of themes in social, philosophical, or political areas. Thus with the closure of the Tang dynasty period more focus of these paintings and the artists were majorly on the world nature. Poets and painters in the Chinese traditional arts would go into the mountains to find something to represent in their drawings. Another period called the Song Dynasty that happened between 960 and 1267 saw the rise of different expression of landscapes. Long distances would be represented by use of blurred outlines, mountain contours represented as disappearing into the mist, and nature would be treated with certain kind of impression. The concern of the artist was on how to represent the peace in human beings and nature. This is eminent in the Taoist and Buddhist concepts. In the early Song Dynasty the artists would represent.

First Language Acquisition Literature review Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3500 words

First Language Acquisition - Literature review Example s of language acquisition illustrate that imitation is not sufficient to understand first language and use it flawlessly within the short time that children manage to expend while learning it. According to Hauser (2000, p352) imitation is neither applicable in other primates in experimental learning of simple learning following instructions. This illustrates the complexity of language learning, a fact that underscores the structured nature of the process of first language acquisition in early childhood. Another key fact witnessed in the process followed in early childhood during the acquisition of first language involves production of sounds by the baby, despite the fact that they never heard them before. Pardo, Piorkowski, Remez and Rubin (2001, p.25) observe that different qualities of sound require specialized production which cannot simply originate from imitated actions. The authors further enumerate the role of non-speech communication learnt by children as an important reference point that imitation must not take the whole concept of language acquisition, which is complex than that. This fact underscores the high neurological involvement of the human learning process, best done during early stages of development. Involving language in this category of learning processes shows that communication is part of the innate social attributes that human beings possess, with language acting as a highly specialized indicator of high-end species organization (Chomsky, Fitch and Hauser 2 002, p570). A different perspective on the facts of acquisition of language highlights the issue of competence and performance, where children demonstrate impeccable acquisition of understanding before practicing. According to Chomsky (2000, p77) initial language usage does not necessarily correspond with understanding of issues, which could hinder communication. The author bases theories of competence on the principle that language is more of an expression of inner monologue among

Answering 6 questions based on the book All the Shah's Men Essay

Answering 6 questions based on the book All the Shah's Men - Essay Example Mohammed, the prophet of Islam preached his ideas on one and only God, the almighty. Ali Khomeini, an Iranian political leader, had immense influence on religion and Islamic Republic of Iran. He acted the role of a link between politics and religion in Iran. Hussein Khomeini, grandson of the founder of Islamic Republic of Iran, Ayatollah Ruholla Khomeini, played a neutral role between religion and politics in Iran. Religious thought and nationalism can be seen as the common factor which binds these individuals together. The teachings of Zoroaster guided Iran to religious tolerance and integration. But the teachings of Mohammed eventually directed Iran to militant nationalism. The influence of Ali Khomeini insisted the government to stick on to the rules set by the religious leaders in Iran. The religious and political ideology put forth by Hussein Khomeini was against the militant nationalism of the religious leaders and it supported the sense of nationhood among Iranians. Stephen Ki nzer points out that: â€Å"Before great powers take far-reaching decisions that can reshape the world, their leaders normally consider the lessons of history.† (Kinzer xii) the great powers possess the duty to take proper decisions on international affairs. But the overall influence of religion, especially Islam insists Iran to be an Islamic Republic. 2. Stephen Kinzer points out that the role of the Britain in Iran is that of colonial exploitation. They were not in favor of nationalization of oil assets controlled by the British companies. Kinzer points out that: â€Å"The wealth that flowed from beneath Iran’s soil played a decisive role in maintaining Britain† (Kinzer 2) the wealth looted from the oil trade helped the British government to monopoly in oil trade but the exploitation badly affected the people of Iran. The exploitation by Britain made Iran

Marketing Term Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 3

Marketing - Term Paper Example The company’s sales revenue had reached its peak in the year 2012 before the sales started declining. In the year 2013, the sales started increasing again. The sales clearly show product life cycle which involves four distinctive stages. The stages are introduction, growth, maturity, and then decline. Apple may have adopted a reformulation strategy to increase its sales potential and profitability (Niemann, 2009). The Company focuses on satisfying its customers rather than expanding its territory to new markets and promotes continuous improvement of quality product. Apple uses a strategy of creating anxiety amongst customers like it did for iPhone.The company announces almost every year the launch of a new series of the smartphone.The anticipation is not only felt in the headquarters, the US, but also in other nations such as the U.K. The company uses a similar model into in Europe. It also signed an agreement with a telecommunication company in France to be its business partner in the country. The policy of employing strategic alliance has proved effective because it has opened opportunities for the company (Mickalowski, Mickelson&Keltgen, 2014). The company analyzes the political, economic, socio-cultural, and technological environment in the target market. These set of forces are mainly outside the control and influence of the business and have the potential of positively or negatively affect Apple’s operation. In analyzing the political environment, an issue such as taxation is evaluated because it affects the expected revenues and setting prices. The economic environment is carefully scrutinized because it restricts business investment and growth. Socio-cultural environment affects the taste and marketability of the iPhone.The technological environment is very dynamic, and internet accessibility has increased and customers have many expectations.

World cup history Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

World cup history - Essay Example I. The world cup is organized every four years and countries context to host the world cup with the 2014 world cup being held in Brazil, the 2018 world cup will be hosted by Russia while the 2022 world cup is to be hosted by Qatar. The world cup presents a global stage for countries to present their best footballers in the most competitive tournament in soccer globally leading to the generation of the best football icons. III. I have researched, did document analysis and made enquiries and from stakeholders in the course of the preparation of this speech increasing the accuracy and credibility of the information therein. IV. The ideas presented include the reason for the start of the world cup, the top scorers, the winners, and the procedure for the selection of the participating teams and number in the world cup in different continents. There was a need for an international football event owing to restrictions by Olympics on professional athletes that led to the first world cup hosted by Uruguay in July 18, 1930 (Lisi, 2). The restrictions limited the ability of professional athletes to make an impact in the Olympics and lead to the development of the best footballers leading to the need for the creation of a tournament that will translate to global cohesion, develop teams, and lead to augmented football professionalism. In 1934 and 1938, the world cup was staged in Italy and France respectively but due to the word war, it was next held in 1950 and every four years thereafter to the current world cup in Brazil (FIFA, 2014). There have been 20 world cup editions and the most successful country in the world cup is Brazil with five world cup trophies. The other world cup winners are Italy with four titles, three titles for Germany, Argentina and Uruguay have to titles, and one title for France, England and 2010 winners Spain making 8 different winners of the world cup. The world cup has had different world cup scorers but it is the

One Step Home Brewing Kit Essay Example for Free

One Step Home Brewing Kit Essay There are a lot of home brewing kits available in market but all have a typical problem associated with it. We have come with a new â€Å"One Step Home Brewing Kit† based on our patented technology. Soon we plan to launch it in market. We did a market research for such product and gained a lot of valuable information. Based on all those observations we have come with the following plan. We would be operating through internet instead of setting up a shop for it, at least for the initial phase. Not only it reaches to more people but also is more convenient to operate. We won’t run the website ourselves but would outsource to a separate company. Our research shows that outsourcing would be cheaper. We have finalized our hosting company and hosting plans. The initial one time cost comes to be around $10,000/-. Regarding our financials For the first month our primary target is set our infrastructure right. We need to get comfortable with the setup, optimize our settings. So, for the first month we won’t be spending much on advertising but would mainly focus on our acquaintance and word-of-mouth publicity to get our customers. We have kept a modest sales target of 100 units. Each kits selling price would be $30/-. Cost of revenue is assumed to be 45% of revenue. Biggest expense during this time would be of setting up the website which includes one time cost of website hosting, web designing and taking photographs of our product. The setting up process will take around 20 -25 days. From the last few days of the month we would increase our advertisements and also would put user experiences of our product on the website. Rough estimate shows a loss for the first month which is very well expected at the beginning of a business firm. In the second month we expect sales of around 500 units. This increase is expected due to increase in our advertising and the positive feedback given by our customers for our product. We ourselves have no doubt that our product is best and hence expect strong positive atmosphere for our product in the market. To cater to this increasing need we would need to purchase a new computer and hire an operator for that. The New system’s cost is put in office equipment expenses field. This would increase our staff from 1 to 2. We also would have to work in those positions to curtail our staff requirements For the 3rd month we expect sales of around 800 units and hope to induce a new staff and a new computer to keep up with our increasing customer visits and their database. We hope to reach our break even point by the end of 3rd month. For the next quarter we hope to keep a calm speed and again check our system and get the work boundaries of everyone more finer. We would take one more employee at non technical position. For 3rd quarter we again expect a rapid increase in our sales due to the previous quarter’s corrective steps. We will introduce a new staff in our team to concentrate specifically on our advertising. So our advertising cost reaches an all time high. For final quarter we hope to keep up this good trend. For 2nd year we will try to outsource some of our processes like dispatching, packing etc. so that we focus more on our core competence i. e. our product. We will also try to start RD around our product. This will help us bring out some new product. We will first be looking to bring some product that would complement our product. Also we may venture out in new areas if they seem perfect for our conditions. Our Rent is going to increase by 20% In 3rd year we will double our infrastructure. This may be for our new product or to keep the increased volume of sales of our existing product. This year we will definitely setup our RD if they are not setup to the full extent in the second year. As the world is progressing fast in technology fields and future would hold golden days for technology products. We will surely bring some product in this domain. Our core product would of course be always our focus and we will always try to better it. As we move past the expected milestones we would surely be getting more experienced and will fine tune our expenses, Mobilize our staff to specific positions. This is our plan till now and we hope to surpass it every month, quarte

Notes on How to Write a Good Essay Example for Free

Notes on How to Write a Good Essay Robert Cormier’s book ‘Heroes’ opens by introducing us to the main character Francis Cassavant, a ex-military soldier, wounded by a grenade from when he fought in World War Two. There are three main characters in this book; Francis, Larry and Nicole. Throughout this book Cormier gives an insight into how all these characters interlock, with Francis’ mission, to kill Larry LaSalle. In the first chapter of this book Cormier introduces us to the main character of Francis Cassavant, and how he is presented as a hero; this chapter is based entirely on his appearance after a grenade attack from when he fought in the war. Francis’ appearance has obviously changed dramatically as he refers to his face as a ‘gargoyle’ and that he has ‘no face’. Francis also refers to himself as the ‘hunchback of Notre Dame’ and that he is ugly with ‘no ears to speak of’ and ‘the absence of my nose’. This suggests that that he has been in a terrible accident and instantly makes you empathise, and feel sorry for him, but as you further progress through the book you see that maybe that Francis isn’t the hero and as innocent as he seems at first glance. To add further detail Cormier describes his nostrils as ‘two small caves’. This portrays his face as almost like a monster or a mutant. We can infer from the text that Francis has low self esteem and has little or no confidence in himself and when his doctor says ‘don’t expect anyone to pick you for a dance’ doesn’t really help with the fact when he knows he’s ‘not normal’. Francis hides his face with scarves, a hat and a bandage fastened with safety pins, hiding his face tell us that he does not want to be recognised or perhaps to be seen by anyone he knows in Frenchtown. People glance at me in surprise’ and ‘I don’t blame them’ shows that Francis is obviously repulsed and disgusted by the way he looks but isn’t afraid to say so, and also if he looks terrifying and repulsive, he isn’t going to be thought of as a hero. After in depth of describing the physical description of Francis, Cormier then moves on to the main plot, Francis’ mission to kill Larry LaSalle, dropping in little hints and sending up an ‘our father’ and ‘ ail Mary’ and ‘glory be’ for Larry LaSalle, and sending up prayers for Nicole Renard, instantly bringing all the three main characters together but still keeping them separate and not knowing why they are interlocked and how everything is more complicated then it seems behind the eyes of Francis, Larry and Nicole, and how Francis and possibly Larry could either be heroes or cowards. Making Francis seem like an innocent war hero is an interesting and unusual move to make because it makes you feel sorry for Francis at the beginning but as the story unfolds you see that there is more than meets the eye about Francis and how his ‘heroic status’ isn’t as heroic as it seems. One of the ways Cormier presents the concept of heroes is in chapter nine, the chapter when Larry LaSalle reveals he is going off to the ‘fight the japs’ in the Second World War. So when the news first broke that Japan had bombed Pearl Harbour in an attack, a wave of frenzy and fear washed over America. People had ‘patriotic fever’ meaning that they weren’t just feeling patriotic about their country; it was as though a fever had taken over and had plagued through everyone. That day Larry LaSalle stood before everyone in the wreck centre, his ‘movie-star smile gone replace with grim faced determination’ he was ready to go and ‘fight the japs’ he announced that he was going to war, he had ‘anger that we had never seen before flashing in his eyes’. From the quote we realise that Larry is passionate about fighting for his country, but from the way he displays and announces that he is leaving and going to war and when he says ‘none of that kids’ (referring to when the kids clap when he announces he’s going to war) ‘I’m just doing what millions of others are doing’ he almost says it in a way that he wants to be recognised even more as a hero, and he also tries to make it seem as though it’s not important about what he’s doing, but by the way he flaunts it he makes it seem like he’s doing some great and powerful favour for America and the people of Frenchtown. This shows the concept of heroes because as soon as the opportunity comes along to be a hero, Larry will grab it in an instant and makes sure that everyone knows about it and about how it’s making him a hero. This chapter explains the events from Larry returning home, to the episode that happens at the end of the chapter and that is when we come to realise Francis’ hatred for Larry LaSalle. When the crowd are waiting for Larry’s arrival, we see that he is described as ‘Lt. Lawrence LaSalle, US Marines Corps, holder of the silver star’ from this quote we can immediately see that he is being shown as a hero. He is also the star of ‘newsreels’ and ‘radiobroadcasts’ making his seem very important; like a vip – almost a god as far as the town are concerned. They describe him as ‘a bright pied piper’ saying that he can get the towns children to follow him. It shows that he is quite a powerful and a big role model in the children of Frenchtown and maybe not only with children, the adults also seem to love, worship and adore him. In Larry’s actual arrival those there to greet him add the heroic atmosphere. The town goes to greet him at the station, adults, old people and children from the wreck centre are all there to meet this so called hero. When he arrives you instantly remember his ‘movie star smile’ revealing his popularity and confidence. ‘We cheered’ this shows that he is loved and respected by his fellow people and people look up to him as a ‘hero’. You could still see ‘a touch of Fred Astaire in his walk’ implying that he still is the same old Larry, but now ‘lethal’. Him being described as lethal implies that he has changed from coming back from the war; he’s thinner, sleeker. My war hero’ people shout from the crowd. People are proud of him for fighting for their country, they really respect him. ‘Ribbons and medals on his chest’ are a visible representation of him being a hero. Physically the descriptions of Larry show how much he has changed from being a cool dancer to a ‘slen der, knife like killing machine’ he has now changed into a ‘knife-like’ and ‘lethal’ with sharper details, the hero that we saw before has now become a ‘superhero’ in the town’s eyes. ‘You are our celebration’ the mayor proclaims to Larry, emphasising Larry’s heroic status. He is now the town’s hero when he is given ‘the silver key to the city’ people would immediately think that he is of high heroic status is the mayor gives him something so important to the city. When he gives his big speech he says ‘we need to keep the world safe for these young people’ saying this he is almost trying to cover up for what he does later. At the celebration, towards the end Larry tries to get Francis to leave the wreck centre, so he can have ‘one last dance’ with Nicole, he says that ‘this is important’ and he manipulates Francis. Just me and her alone’ makes it feel like something terrible is going to happen. So Francis leaves, ‘I’ve got to go, you and Larry stay. One last dance’ his words sounding false as though Larry placed them in his mouth. She wants him to ‘stay and watch’ but he leaves, to his and Nicole’s misfortune. When the attack happens, it shows just how unheroic and cowardly both Larry and Francis are. ‘In the shadows of the hallway’ Francis lurks waiting for Nicole to leave the Wreck centre, but then Larry does the most inexplicable, disgusting thing, he sexually assaulted her. A sound that could have been a moan and a rustle of clothing’ even though Francis knew something was going on in there, he still couldn’t pluck the courage to go see if his girlfriend was alright. When she ‘stumbles out of the hallway’ she sees Francis, and he saw ‘the betrayal of her in her eyes’ as she runs away, Francis hears Larry, this now shows how wrong people were about Larry and about how he is not a hero but something of the complete opposite ‘whistling the tune-‘dancing in the dark’ as though he had done nothing wrong, that this was no rmal. It’s amazing that the heart makes no noise when it cracks’ Francis is truly heartbroken, and it shows just how cowardly Francis and Larry can both be. In chapter 14, we see how much of a hero Francis could be when we finally get to the part where he goes to kill Larry LaSalle, Larry is no longer a hero. When he sees Larry you can see that Larry’s physical appearance has changed drastically as he’s ‘yellowed with age’, a bit ‘feeble now’, and ‘fragile now’, with ‘white hands’. Larry is not innocent’ and no longer a hero. Francis explains his unannounced visit, with a gun in his hands. Larry ‘rises slowly’ from his chair as Francis begins to question him. ‘You were our hero’ Larry was their hero, he did everything for the people of Frenchtown and now his heroic status had just fallen through the roof, ‘ no more sweet young things’ Larry says, saying as though its normal to sexually assault someone who’s young. Even there heat is sweet’ he says giving Francis even more of a reason to kill him, but he falters when Larry says ‘does that on sin wipe away all the good things. ’ He falters because he’s probably thinking about what he did for him, with the Table tennis and if it wasn’t for Larry renewing the Wreck Centre, Francis would never had been with Nicole, with all these mixed emotions and feelings Francis walks away. But when Francis walks away ‘the sound of a pistol shot cracks in the air’ Larry LaSalle had shot himself. Cormier presents the idea of heroes in his novel, one by setting it in the time of World War Two, which has lots of potential for heroes because theirs the concept of being a soldier. He also presents the idea of heroes by making two characters seem like heroes at first glance but then stripping them of their heroic status by things that come to haunt them from the past that had never been dealt with. Also with Nicole Renard and how she is the innocent victim in this and how one incident made both Francis and Larry cowards and very un-heroic.

A History of Total quality management

A History of Total quality management Total quality management is the integration of all functions and processes within an organization in order to achieve continuous improvement of the quality of products and service. Deming defined quality as a never ending cycle of continuous improvement(Allotey, 2003, p.7), Juran defined it as fitness for use (purpose) (Estafanous, Barash, Reves, 2001, p.951). Bearing in mind that TQM is a long term improvement process which requires significant resources. It is also important to realize that TQM is a dynamic process not a static process that is based upon continuous efforts to improve quality. Since there are no deadlines or targets to be met then TQM can never be considered complete which makes it to become a way of life. (Mehra Ranganathan, 2008) During the early years of manufacturing, inspection was used as a tool to decide if a workers job or a product met its requirements. In fact, at that time inspection was not done in a systematic way, yet it worked well when the volume of production was low. However, as organizations became larger and more complicated the need for more effective operations became obvious. (Montogomery, 2001, p.9) In the early 1900s, The Father of Scientific Management Frederick W. Taylor helped to satisfy this need. He proposed a framework for the effective use of people in industrial organizations through his book The Principles of Scientific Management which was republished yet again in 2008. One of his concepts was clearly defined tasks performed under standard conditions. Inspection was one of these tasks and was intended to ensure that no faulty product left the workshop or the factory, it also focuses on the product and detection of problem in the product, and testing every item to ensure that the product match as the requirements or specifications. This process is carried out at the end of the production process and requires specially trained inspectors. The need to performing this process was the reason that led to the emergence of a separate inspection department which resulted in the emergence of defect prevention concept which led to quality control. (Webb Gorman, 2006, P.32) (M ontogomery, 2001) The roots of Total Quality Management can be traced back to the 1920s when Dr W. Shewhart developed the application of statistical methods for the management of quality. He demonstrated that variation in the production process leads to the variation in the product, thus by eliminating the variation of the process a good standard of end product can be achieved. The theory of Statistical Quality Control focuses on the product and detection and control of quality problems that involves testing samples and statistically inferring compliance of all products. This process is carried out throughout the production process and requires trained production people as well as quality control professionals. Towards the end of 1920s the theory was further developed by Dodge, and Romig who developed statistically based acceptance sampling as an alternative to 100% inspection (Webb Gorman, 2006, P.32) (Montogomery, 2001). In 1940s, the quality guru Deming with his peer co-workers Juran and Feigenbaum continued with the improvement of the theory. However, instead of focusing just on quality of products the concept rapidly widened to evolve quality of all issues within an organization i.e. Total Quality Management. (Webb Gorman, 2006, P.32) During the 1950s, many Japanese products were low quality and viewed by the world as junk products. Industrial leaders in Japan recognized this problem and decided to produce high quality products. In fact, Japanese might have not been able to achieve the aim of high quality products unless they had had the help of quality gurus such as Deming, Juran, and Feigenbaum (Soin, 1999, p.1). Deming suggested that this aim could be achieved within just five years. As a matter of fact not many Japanese believed what Deming claimed. However, they followed his suggestion in order not to lose face and because they respected him (Deming, 1995, p.139). In the late 1950s, quality control management developed rapidly and became the main theme of Japanese management. Interestingly, the idea did not stop at the management level. In the early 60s the concept of the quality control circle was first introduced in Japan by K. Ishikawa (Montogomery, 2001, p.10). A quality circle is a group of workers who meet and discuss issues to improve all aspects of workplace and make presentations to management with their ideas for improvement. In this way workers were motivated because they felt that they were involved and listened to (Cole, 1979, p.135). Another advantage was the idea of improving not only the quality of product but also all aspects of organizational issues, which probably was the start of Total Quality. The term Total Quality was first used by Feigenbaum at the first international quality control conference in Tokyo in 1969. (Stephens Juran, 2004, p.77) During the 80s and 90s a new phase of management and quality control began, which became known as Total Quality Management (TQM). Zairi et al (1994) defined TQM as a license to practise. Although there are many other different definitions for TQM yet the concept is still the same. Nowadays, TQM may be called Business Excellence and has a more clearly defined approach (Montogomery, 2001, p.10). Quality movement in Saudi Arabia: Total Quality Management has caught the attention of organizations worldwide ever since its tremendous success in Japan. The term TQM (Total Quality Management) is a management technique in which customer satisfaction is given the prime importance, and the deliverables are made highly acceptable not just through Quality Control techniques but by focussing on the process, encouraging employees to pursue quality and reducing the cost of production. And just like other countries who wish to be world class, organizations in Saudi Arabia are also trying hard to keep up to pace by implementing TQM widely throughout the country. (Al-Sulimani, 1995) In 1973 Saudi Arabia established the Saudi Arabian Standards Organization (SASO), an independent organization concerned with implementation of standards, on the local and international levels. It is also responsible for overseeing quality aspects of locally produced products. SASO developed over time and became the most important Saudi organization concerned with formulating and approving national standards for all commodities and products as well as standards for other quality aspects such as metrology, calibration, marking and identification, methods of sampling, inspection and testing. In addition to this it is also responsible for setting the rules for granting certificates of conformity and quality marks and regulation of their issuance and use. During the early 90s the growth of the quality movement in Saudi enlarged and the first non-profit organization (NPO) in the form of Saudi Arabian Quality Council in the Eastern Province was established and was sponsored by Saudi Aramco. In 1994, with the increasing awareness of the importance of Total Quality Management as a powerful tool for improving the work culture Saudi Quality Council (SQC) established its branch in the Western Region of the country with only 4 members however this organization was later transformed into an independent organization that is operating under the sponsorship of Engineering Committee. In the year 2000, this society was renamed to become known as SQC (WR). The mission of this non-profit, nongovernmental society which has operated in the Western Region of Saudi Arabia over 15 years so far is to advance individual and organizational performance excellence through providing opportunities for learning, quality improvement, and knowledge sharing. SQC (WR) started its actions by executing a SWOT (Strength, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats) analysis of the status of quality in the kingdom of Saudi Arabia. The results of the analysis were then utilized to set up long term goals such as making quality a part of Saudi corporate Culture as well as setting short term goals for SQC (WR). King Abdulaziz Quality Award (KAQA): Since its establishment SQC (WR) has managed to organize 150 meetings with a quality theme and has had the participation of over than 7000 quality experts and more than 1700 members from different walks of life in its activities with Healthcare, Education, Construction and Engineering and Business Excellence Interest Groups. SQC (WR) also contributed in establishing and formulating the King Abdulaziz Quality Award (KAQA), a prestigious National Quality Award in Saudi Arabia that intends to maximize quality, efficiency and productivity in different sectors within the kingdom (Al-Amri, 2010). The award was approved in the year 2000 and has the objectives of: Increasing awareness of quality and the importance of its application. Motivating and gently pushing public as well as private sectors to adopt and apply the principles of (TQM). Increasing the quality in the production and services sectors to enhance their competitiveness in the global markets Improving organizational leadership to achieve the total quality management objectives and fulfil their responsibilities Ensuring Continuous improvement in the performance of all production and services processes Encouraging organizations commitments to national and international standards Awarding organizations which achieve the highest level of quality Increasing organizations participation in building and serving the society Building strong relationships with customers, employees, suppliers, and investors to satisfy them and gain their loyalty by applying the best methodology that help determine and deliver their requirements needs and expectations. Establishing a database for the King Abdul Aziz Quality Award Adopting quality strategic planning in order to set business plans and objectives and methods for implementation Training and developing the national workforce and creating a better work environment and improving the efficiency and technical skills of employees to enhance quality Making use of all available national resources to support operational and economic performance on the organizational level and on the national level Measuring performance level in different business areas and comparing it with the performance level of competitors and measuring results improvement Communicating the leading Saudi experiences in regards to quality and to make use of these experiences, and increasing the number of quality experts. (KAQA, no date supplied) According to Al-Amri (2010) the year 2008-2009 will always be remembered as a Year of Quality in the kingdom of Saudi Arabia for the great achievements that were achieved by the quality movement starting with the introduction and administration of (KAQA). However, without sustainability TQM initiatives usually fail because the main idea behind TQM is continuity over time and integration of quality management initiatives into daily organizational operations (Curry Kadasah, 2002).In support of this further Al-Turki Andijani, (1997) insist on the need for more programmes to be adopted in order to increase awareness of the importance of continuous improvement in Saudi organizations. Work Culture There has been an increasing awareness in Saudi on the importance of Total Quality management as a powerful tool for improving the work culture (Najeh Kara-Zairi, 2007) (Al-Turki Andijani, 1997). Lack of understanding about the concept of TQM by employees, limitation of information available on TQM, lack of support from senior management, focus on quick profit, and lack of documented policies and procedures appear to the author to be factors that hinder the implementation of TQM in Saudi organizations. In support of this (Ahmed Tannock, 2008) have highlighted the limited progress which has been made in quality management development in Arabic-speaking countries. People from different countries often do things differently according to their culture. Furthermore, the culture of the same country differs from one region to another and that individuals of the same culture have different beliefs and behaviours. One way to express these variations in behaviour is the idea of culture (Treven, Mulej, Lynn, 2008), referring to this Al-Sulimani (1995) mentions the difficulties and challenges of implementing the concept of Total quality management in Saudi because of the multinational workforce which is estimated to represent 60 per cent of the total labour force of Saudi Arabia (Woodworth Said, 1996). On the other hand he also argues that a workforce with experienced foreigners should improve the knowledge of the Saudi workforce. Hofstedes five Cultural Dimensions: According to Hofstede (2009) Culture is more often a source of conflict than of synergy. Cultural differences are a nuisance at best and often a disaster. (To be completed) Power distance index (PDI): This dimension represents the extent to which the less powerful member of organizations accepts and expects unequal distribution of power and wealth. The Geert Hofstede analysis of this dimension for the Arab word including Saudi Arabia suggests a large power distance in that region, a score of 80 was recorded for this dimension see figure (1). This is according to Hofstede due to the fact that Arab societies follow a caste system that disables any significant upward mobility of its citizens. Uncertainty Avoidance Index (UAI): This dimension indicates to what extent a culture programs its members to feel either comfortable or uncomfortable in unstructured situations. The Hofstede analysis of this dimension for the Arab word including Saudi Arabia suggests that Arab societies are highly rule-oriented with laws, rules, regulations, and controls to increase the amount of certainty. Individualism (IDV): This dimension represents the degree to which individuals are integrated into groups. The Hofstede analysis of this dimension for the Arab word including Saudi Arabia suggests that the Arab society tends to be collectivist society. The score recorded for this dimension is 38, which is considerably less than the world average ranking of 64. Masculinity (MAS): This dimension represents the distribution of roles between the genders. The Hofstede analysis of this dimension for the Arab word including Saudi Arabia suggests that women in the Arab countries are limited in their rights due to Muslim religion not due to cultural paradigm see figure (1). Long-Term Orientation (LTO): This dimension is said to deal with Virtue regardless of Truth. This dimension has not been applied to the Arab word. Hofstede does not report any results for Arab countries in relation to long and verses short term orientation.

Drivers Of The Recent Wave Of Globalisation Economics Essay

Drivers Of The Recent Wave Of Globalisation Economics Essay Globalisation describes the ongoing process by which regional economies, societies, and cultures become integrated through a global spanning network of communication, cultural diffusion, travel and trade. The phenomenon of globalisation has been present since the start of the nineteenth century and it has nowadays been established as perhaps the most vigorous force shaping contemporary society, business, management and economics. The term is sometimes used to refer specifically to economic globalisation, in other words the reduction and removal of barriers between national borders in order to facilitate the flow of goods, capital, services and labour, (1). The unrestricted flow of information, ideas and cultural values add to the globalisation processes promoting converging market preferences and market-driven open economies. Although a situation of perfect integration (called homogenisation), where ideas and values are characterised by a global commonality does not exist (2), business orientation becomes more global based on the belief that the world is becoming more homogeneous and that distinctions between national markets are not only diminishing but, for some products, will eventually disappear (3). Recently the problem of business globalisation has become more evident worldwide. Even the most successful and well-established companies cannot survive on domestic sales alone, if they are in global industries such as banking, consumer electronics, travel services, entertainment, etc. It is, hence, useful to identify a number of key drivers, which affect the structure of economies and markets. According to George S. Yip, it is possible to define globalization drivers in four areas: Market Drivers Cost Drivers Governmental Drivers Competition Drivers The drivers of globalisation are a combination of many factors which have lead businesses to look outside their domestic markets for growth opportunities (4). It is usually the combined effect of just some of these separate factors that have more of gravity rather than all of the factors separately. In the next section the first three globalisation drivers are further analysed. Further investigation Market Drivers Market drivers refer to global market convergence, in other words, the increasing similarity of consumer tastes and product preferences in certain markets, as evidenced by the popularity of global brands in certain markets. Market globalisation drivers depend on customer behaviour and the structure of distribution networks. These factors are analysed in more detail below: Common customer needs: product and technology are transferred by means of communication throughout countries with similar needs. Some products such as Coca-Cola, McDonalds, KFC, etc. have been palatable to many countries. Global customers: not only consumer needs become more similar but also firms operating in globalised markets become global customers and may search for suppliers who can operate on a global basis. Global market channels: free trade, which was facilitated by regional trade blocks such as the formation of EU and NAFTA, and falling trade barriers have formed globe-spanning channels that enable companies to distribute goods and provide services internationally. For example, Carrefour and Wal-Mart have developed global channels to distribute products. Deloitte and HSBC have expanded their services worldwide. Lead countries: some countries have built up reputation in certain manufacturing industries. For instance, Japan is well known for consumer electronics, Switzerland for watches as well as its banking system, USA for computer software, etc. Transferable marketing and global branding: Adidas, Top Shop, IBM, Toyota, Apple, Samsung, Kodak, Vodafone have become local brands in the global environment. Global market convergence is measured by the percentage of worldwide sales attributed to standardized products. We have the example of NOKIA here, which increased its Indian market share from a mere 300,000 subscribers in 1996 to a whopping 55 million subscribers in 2004 (5). More and more global brands are brought to life, with the percentage of worldwide sales attributed to them continuously increasing. Cost Drivers Globalisation of the productive process allows firms to choose concentrating or dispersing value adding activities around the world according to the location advantages to be obtained. The cost advantage obtained affects activity concentration and depends on the following factors: Global scale and scope economies: national markets cannot be large enough for a domestic business to achieve all economies of scale and scope. A global organisation can expand and coordinate internal production and operations to increase its value through a combination of manufacturing, reduced delivery costs and economies of scale. The aim is to join multiple markets and sell a standardized product in several countries, increase overall sales thereby reducing the cost per unit of development, concentrate selected value activities and shift production in response to exchange rate fluctuations (6). Figure 1 shows the rise of standardized IT serves. Almost 60% out of the 340 companies of the survey admitted a significant benefit of using standardized products due to lower production and services costs of the product, lower operations costs and easier deployment (7). Figure : The Rise of Standardized IT Servers Sourcing efficiencies: centralized purchasing of new materials can significantly reduce the costs. We have two categories of sourcing efficiencies: outsourcing and offshoring. Outsourcing is when a company relocates a whole process, a piece of a process, a function, or a discrete piece of work outside of its own corporate boundaries. India has been the most popular outsourcing destination the last decade. Off-shoring refers to the relocation of a whole process, a piece of a process, a function, or a discrete piece of work outside the geographic boundaries. The work can be done in an offshore location either within the boundaries of the company or outside the boundaries of the company. Favourable logistics: A favorable ratio of sales to transportation costs enhances the ability of the company to concentrate production. Other factors are negligible need of location close to customers, absence of time urgency, even the shape of the product. Favourable logistics is the main reason retailing accounts for 75% of logistics activity in China. The sector is also stretched to the breaking point. The total handling capacity of Chinas coastal ports is already over one billion tons, and capacity is increasing quickly. Not quickly enough though (8). Knowledge and experience: some industries are characterised by an emphasis on creating value from new ideas and concepts, the so called knowledge-based industries. The accumulation of foreign market expertise can be highly beneficial for technology intensive many sectors like software development, engineering services and biotechnology. Other areas include financial services and pharmaceuticals. The steeper the knowledge and experience curve, the higher the benefit. We have the case of increasing workforce being educated in Western countries and returning to their Eastern located home countries. Product development costs: product development costs are rising due to short life of products that require higher return on investment, e.g. airlines, communications, pharmaceuticals, etc. These costs can be reduced by developing a few global or regional products rather than many national products. Differences in country costs and skills: Factor costs vary across country. The availability of particular skills also varies. Concentration of activities in low-cost or high skill countries can increase productivity and decrease costs. Managers, however, have to anticipate the danger of training future offshore competitors. Governmental Drivers The increased globalisation of financial markets, the fading of trade barriers and the formation of global alliances provide firms with the opportunity to take advantage of beneficial national regulations. Unrestrictive trade and investment policies: Reduction of tariff barriers, creation of trading blocks, decline in role of government, reduction in non-tariff barriers, shift in open market economies, increase in level of world trade, increase in foreign acquires of corporation, increased formation of global strategic alliances and globalization of financial markets are all favourable trade policies that promote globalisation of industries and services. Compatible technical standards: differences in technical standards, especially government imposed standards, limit the extent to which products can be standardized. For example Motorola products were withdrawn from the Japanese market because they were operating at a higher frequency than permitted. Common marketing regulations: the marketing environment can also affect the extent to which global marketing policies can be applied. Certain types of media can be prohibited or restricted. For example, it is the case that in many countries advertisements showing children toys are either not allowed or allowed after a particular time of the day. Globalisation drivers are revealed by the increasing percentage of countries that possess uniform or mutually- recognized technical standards, increasing staring from US and Canada, EU to China which recently became an open economy.

False Positives In Presumptive Blood Testing Biology Essay

False Positives In Presumptive Blood Testing Biology Essay Blood is a fluid medium that is found within the cardiovascular system-which comprises of the heart and blood vessels (Jackson and Jackson 2008). It consists of 55% blood plasma and 45% cellular material (Jackson and Jackson 2008). Blood plasma consists of dissolved materials such as antibodies, hormones, waste products and nutrients, whereas the cellular material consists of erythrocytes (red blood cells), leucocytes (white blood cells) and thrombocytes (platelets) (Jackson and Jackson 2008). Blood is transported through the body by the pumping action of the heart. It has numerous functions including (Jackson and Jackson 2008): Acting as an internal transport system-including the removal of waste products for excretion and moving nutrients for metabolism. Maintaining body temperature. Defending against infection. Protecting the body from effects of injury. Blood is one of main sources of DNA found at crime scenes, and is crucially important in establishing a link between a suspect and a victim of a crime (Jackson and Jackson, 2008). To detect the presence of blood at a crime scene, a presumptive test is used. These can, however, only detect whether a substance is blood and cannot distinguish between human and animal blood-a serological test is needed to do this. The Erythrocytes (red blood cells) are the most common type of blood cell and contain haemoglobin (Jackson and Jackson 2008). They contain haemoglobin- a protein containing iron. Haemoglobin is responsible for the carriage of oxygen, and it is this property that presumptive blood tests are based on. Most of the presumptive tests rely on the ability of haemoglobin to catalyse the oxidation of a reagent, normally hydrogen peroxide (H2O2 (aq)) (Jackson and Jackson 2008). The result of oxidation normally produces a colour change in the presumptive test. Tiny amounts of blood present as a scene can be detecting using a colour change test. Some old and dried stains look similar in appearance to blood which can lead to a scenes of crime officer conducting a presumptive test. Other substances that could have contaminated suspected blood or other substances on their own at a scene could lead to a presumptive blood test incorrectly showing a positive result for blood. This is known as a false positive. Once a stain has been determined as blood, then two processes must be completed. The first is to interpret any bloodstain patterns, so that a reconstruction of events can be established (Langford et al 2005). Secondly, bloodstains must then be recovered for further analysis (Langford et al 2005). Recovery of bloodstains varies according to whether the stain is wet or dry. Once recovered, the blood can then be sent to a Forensic Science Service laboratory, where it will be initially tested to ascertain whether it is human or animal blood. To do this a serological test will be conducted, which involves identifying the presence of proteins specific to humans and analysing for DNA sequences specific to humans (Jackson and Jackson 2008). The blood will then be used for DNA profiling, which will hopefully establish whether the blood belongs to the suspect or the victim. I.II Aims and Objectives The aim of my project is to create a definitive list of false positives for four different presumptive blood tests. Within this aim I have six objectives to complete: To compare the false positives of four different presumptive tests. To test substances that are known false positives- as reported by other authors. To test unknown substances allied to those already known. To record the time taken for a substance to react with a presumptive test. To photograph the results of from each substance. To create a definitive list of false positives for each presumptive test. I am going to compare four different presumptive tests, as some tests are more practical to use in some situations than others. Consequently, analysing more than one test will allow a wider range of results. I shall also be testing known false positives as reported by other authors, as it is important to show how the presumptive tests react. Unknown substances allied to those that are known will then be tested to see whether similar substances react alike. This will then allow me to establish whether an unknown substance has reacted or not, as I can compare the reaction times and colour changes from both the known and unknown substances. It is important to record the time taken for a substance to react with a presumptive test, as blood should show a result straight away. An unobvious result that takes time to develop could indicate that the substance being tested is a false positive. Photographing results will allow me to document the differences in the colour change in each reaction with each substance. I feel that it is important to create a definitive list of false positives as it can reduce the risk of using valuable resources at a crime scene. For example, if a scenes of crime officer is informed that a possible blood stain has been contaminated with horseradish (a known false positive), then they can use a presumptive test for blood that is not known to produce a false positive with horseradish. If the result is positive for blood, then serological tests for blood can be carried out. Overall, I hope that this project will aid the work of a scenes of crime officer to choose the correct presumptive test to use in different situations-minimising time spent and resources used. Chapter II. Literature Review II.I Background Information The scientific analysis of blood was initially mentioned in 13th century Chinese texts, but it was Karl Landsteiner who discovered the modern science of blood typing, which categorises different types of blood into the ABO blood typing system (White 2010). In 1901 it was reported that blood could be determined in two week old serum stains on linen, and by 1902 the four blood types A, B, O and AB had been discovered (White 2010). This system is based on types of antigen on the red blood cells membrane. An antigen is a protein molecule capable of binding on to an antibody (Erzinà §lioglu 2004). The ABO system uses two antigens which are known as A and B; and the four blood groups are determined according to this system (Erzinà §lioglu 2004). People that have the blood group A have the A antigen, those that are group B have the B antigen; those in the AB category have both antigens and those who belong to the O group have neither antigen (Erzinà §lioglu 2004). A persons blood contai ns the opposite group of corresponding antibodies, so people with blood group A have b antibodies, people with blood group B have a antibodies, those with blood group AB have neither a or b antibodies and those with blood group O have both a and b antibodies (Erzinà §lioglu 2004). If the wrong antibodies are introduced into the wrong blood group then death can be a result due to the red cells clumping together. The first suspect to have been convicted largely on the basis of DNA analysis of blood samples was found guilty at Leicester Crown Court on 22nd January 1988 (White 2010). This case marks an important milestone, and DNA technology has become commonplace in forensic laboratories and is now instrumental in establishing both guilt and innocence in court cases (White 2010). II.II Physical Properties of Blood Blood constitutes about 7.7% of the body weight of a person (White 2010). This equates to 5-6 litres in males and 4-5 litres in females (Tortora and Anagnostakos 1987). Viscosity is resistance to flow, which in fluids is compared to water which has a viscosity of 1. (Bevel and Gardner 2002). Blood viscosity usually ranges between 4.4 and 4.7 (Tortora and Anagnostakos 1987). Blood also has a higher specific gravity (density) than water, which is the weight of a substance relative to the weight of an equal volume of water (James and Nordby 2005). Blood is a fluid that circulates throughout the body by way of the heart, arteries, veins and capillaries-known as the circulatory system (James and Nordby 2005). A primary function of blood is to transport oxygen, electrolytes, nourishment, hormones, vitamins and antibodies to tissues and to transport waste products from tissues to the excretory organs (James and Nordby 2005). Tortora and Anagnostakos (1987) (in Bevel and Gardner 2002) say that when 4-6 litres of blood is present in the circulatory system, it is distributed as follows: Figure 1- Blood Distribution in the Circulatory System (Tortora and Anagnostakos 1987) As a medium, blood is composed of 55% plasma and 45% cells (White 2010). A single drop or large volume of blood is held together by strong cohesive molecular forces that produce a surface tension (James and Nordby 2005). Surface tension is defined as the force that pulls the surface molecules of a liquid toward its interior, decreasing the surface area and causing the liquid to resist penetration (James and Nordby 2005). Bevel and Gardner (2002) state that plasma is the pale yellow fluid component of blood, which is broken down by volume into 91% water, 8% protein, 1% organic acids and 1% salts. Fibrinogen is one of the proteins, and this plays an important role in the clotting of blood (Bevel and Gardner 2002). Blood serum is blood plasma minus its protein content (Jackson and Jackson 2008). The cellular component of blood consists of erythrocytes (red blood cells), leukocytes (white blood cells) and thrombocytes (platelets) (Bevel and Gardner 2002). Red blood cells are heavier than plasma, which can be seen in bodies as lividity-which is where red cells settle to the lowest extremity of a body after death (Chmiel and Walitza 1980). http://people.eku.edu/ritchisong/301images/Red_White_Blood_cells.jpg Figure 2- A red blood cell, platelet and white blood cell (University of Eastern Kentucky 2010). There are roughly 4.8 to 5.4 million red blood cells per cubic millimetre of blood (Tortora and Anagnostakos 1987). They are bioconcaved discs in shape. The main role of the red blood cells is to transport oxygen from the lungs via the arterial system and return carbon dioxide to the lungs for expiration via the venous system (James and Nordby 2005). Red blood cells contain haemoglobin which is a red pigment that gives blood its colour (Bevel and Gardner 2002). Haemoglobin is composed of globin, which is made up of four folded polypeptide chains, and four haem groups that join with iron (University of Eastern Kentucky 2010). http://www.ul.ie/~childsp/CinA/Issue64/Images/TOC36_2.gif Figure 3- Haemoglobin, containing four haem groups (University of Limerick, 2010). As the oxygen content increases in the blood, the bright red pigment of the haemoglobin also increases (Bevel and Gardner 2002). A red blood cell does not contain a nucleus. Red blood cells are expressed as a percentage of the packed (red) cell volume (PCV), also known as the haematocrit (Wonder 2001). Nelson and Rodak (1983) state that the haematocrit in humans is variable between individuals. Haematocrit Possible people with range of haematocrit 15-29% Chronic alcoholics or drug abusers, steroid abusers, women after traumatic child birth or illegal abortion, malnourished homeless, elderly. 30-48% Normal range for nontraumatic venipuncture (blood drawn in a clinic or hospital) samples. 49-75% Dehydrated individuals, people in shock, those living at high altitude, impending and active heart attack victims, newborn babies, people suffering from hypothermia, and people after extreme exercise. Table 1- Table to show the range of haematocrit ratios (Wonder 2001). White blood cells act to fight infections, destroy old cellular material and to destroy other invading microbes (Bevel and Gardner 2002). White blood cells can be further subdivided into phagocytes which are responsible for the capture and ingestion and foreign substances, and lymphocytes- which are responsible for the production of antibodies (Jackson and Jackson 2008). They make up less than 1% of the cellular component of blood, which equates to 5000 to 9000 white blood cells per cubic millimetre (Tortora and Anagnostakos 1987). The nuclei of white blood cells are the source of DNA in the blood (James and Nordby 2005). The other part of the cellular component of blood is the platelets. Like red blood cells, platelets also lack a nucleus (Bevel and Gardner 2002). Bevel and Gardner (2002) say that there are generally about 250,000 to 400,000 platelets per cubic millimetre of blood. Platelets are major components of the clotting mechanism of blood, and this is their primary function (James and Nordby 2005). Platelets have irregular shapes and are normally quite small, however when they encounter a damaged blood vessel they increase their size and their shapes changes (Bevel and Gardner 2002). They also become sticky and adhere to surrounding fibres in the vessel wall, which results in the accumulation of platelets called the platelet plug (Bevel and Gardner 2002). II.III Blood at a Crime Scene Blood is normally found at a crime scene due to a person sustaining an injury either by accident or on purpose. When a breach in the circulatory system occurs- due to an injury- the body reacts in different ways to control the loss of blood (Bevel and Gardner 2002). Initially the vascular spasm occurs, which is which the smooth vessels in the blood vessel wall contract to decrease the size of the vessel, which reduces the flow of blood through it (Bevel and Gardner 2002). Tortora and Anagnostakos (1987) say that this reduces blood loss for up to 30 minutes following injury, which gives time for the other blood loss mechanisms to engage. The platelet plug then follows which reduces, if not stops, the blood loss (Bevel and Gardner 2002). The final step is coagulation, or clotting. This is what is normally seen at crime scenes, where the clotted mass of fibrin fibres and blood cells is surrounded by blood serum (Bevel and Gardner 2002). There are three types of bleeding that can occur from damage to blood vessels (BUPA 2009): Arterial Bleeding Venous Bleeding Capillary Bleeding. Arterial bleeding usually is spurting bright red blood, due to the blood having come from the heart and lungs-so it is oxygen rich (Walter et al 2004). The pumping action of the heart adds rhythmic surges to move blood vessels away from the heart (Wonder 2001). It is the most serious type of bleeding, and the most difficult to control due to the blood in the arteries being under pressure from the heart (Walter et al 2004). Arterial wounds results in volume stains (Wonder 2001). Loss from the carotid artery or the aorta can rapidly lead to death (Wonder 2001). Examples of arterial injuries, and how they may occur are listed in Table 2. Artery Location Probable Occurrence Facial Mouth/lips Beating Temporal Head/temples Gunshot, Crushing Carotid Neck, front throat Stab wound, Gunshot, Decapitation Subclavian Under collar bone Gunshot, Crushing Aorta Chest Gunshot, Stab wound Brachial Arm/elbow Bone break Radial Wrist Slit wrists, Bone Break, Stab wound Femoral Groin Gunshot, Stab wound Tibial Ankle Bone Break, Crushing Deltoid Upper arm muscle Stab wound Table 2- Areas and actions that may involve arterial damage (Wonder 2001) External venous bleeding is normally as a result of wounding, as veins are closer to the skin than arteries (Walter et al 2004). It results in the steady flow of dark red (almost brown) blood, and is darker than arterial blood as it has released oxygen to the tissues in the body and is flowing back to the heart and lungs for more oxygen (Walter et al 2004). Capillary wounding is common in minor wounds as capillaries are very small vessels that are under very little pressure with a low volume of blood (Walter et al 2004). Capillary bleeding results in the oozing of either bright or dark red blood, which will normally stop on its own (Walter et al 2004). As well as the three main types of bleeding, there is a further category which is traumatic bleeding. There are different types of wounds which can cause traumatic bleeding, and these can be categorised as follows: Abrasion- also known as a graze, where an object brushes on the skin but does not break it. Hematoma- where blood vessels are damaged, causing blood to collect under the skin. Laceration- where a blunt impact to soft tissue causes a deep wound. Incision- where a precise cut is made into the skin. Puncture Wound- where an object penetrates the skin and deeper layers. Contusion- also known as a bruise, where a blunt trauma causes damage under the skin, but does not break it. Crushing injuries- where a great amount of force is applied over a period of time, causing initially internal bleeding. Ballistic trauma- where a projectile weapon has entered and exited the area of the body, causing a wound between the two. Scenes of Crime officers attend many types of crime scene where blood is present. These include: Burglary- When an offender breaks a glass window or door to gain entry to a premises, they risk cutting their hands/arms. This leads to blood being left on fragments of glass in the window and on the floor. Assault/Wounding- Open wounds are normally the result of an attack on a victim. Blood can be left at an assault scene on the weapon that was used in the assault, on the ground, on the offender and on the victim. If the victim is bleeding heavily then blood will be left whenever the victim comes into contact with another surface. Manslaughter/Attempted Murder/Murder- Blood left at these scenes is not only important for swabbing purposes, but the pattern in which the blood is left can determine the order of events at a major scene. Road Traffic Crash- Blood at this scene can be found in the victims car and, if involved, the offenders car. This is important as it can place people in their respective cars- allowing investigators to work out the positions of people at the time of the incident. The collection, packaging and preservation of blood evidence at a crime scene should not take place until the scenes of crime officer has documented the bloodstain patterns (Lee, Palmbach and Miller 2001). Whenever biological fluids are encountered at a crime scene, protective clothing, gloves and masks should be worn due to the biohazard nature of blood (Lee, Palmbach and Miller 2001). To recover dry blood, an area near the blood that is unstained should be swabbed using a sterile swab, as a control sample (Derbyshire Constabulary 2008). Then, the stain should be swabbed using a sterile swab that has been moistened using sterile water (Derbyshire Constabulary 2008). The remains of the stain should then be dry swabbed using a sterile swab (Derbyshire Constabulary 2008). The swabs should be returned to their tubes immediately and stored frozen as soon as possible (Derbyshire Constabulary 2008). A batch control of both the water and swabs should always be made, and should be exhibited separately to the swabbed stain and background control (Derbyshire Constabulary 2008). Items that have areas of dried blood on them should be packaged in paper bags which are sealed securely and clearly marked as biohazard. Blood and bloodstained evidence should never be packaged in airtight containers (Lee, Palmbach and Miller 2001). To recover wet blood, a control swab of the surrounding area of the stain should be taken using a sterile swab (Derbyshire Constabulary 2008). The wet stain should then be swabbed using a dry, sterile swab (Derbyshire Constabulary 2008). The swabs should be returned to their tubes immediately, and should be stored frozen as soon as possible (Derbyshire Constabulary 2008). Again, a batch control of the swab should be exhibited separately (Derbyshire Constabulary 2008). If a removable item has an area of wet blood on it, then the entire object should be exhibited and left to dry in a drying room at the police station. Often at crime scenes, stains that are composed of unknown substances can easily be confused with blood. Identifying whether a substance is blood allows further analysis to confirm species, and the individual (Spalding 2006). II.IV Presumptive Tests for Blood James and Nordby (2005) say that a presumptive test is one which allows the scenes of crime officer to make a qualified conclusion that blood is present in the tested sample, when positive. They also say that when a test is negative, stains that need no further consideration are eliminated. Presumptive tests may be recognised as those that produce a visible colour reaction or those that result in the release of light (James and Nordby 2005). Both of these rely on the catalytic properties of blood to drive the reaction (James and Nordby 2005). Lee, Palmbach and Miller (2001) write this as a chemical reaction: AH2 + H2O2 Æ’Â   A + 2H2O Oxidisable chemical Hydrogen peroxide Haeme Oxidised (colourless) (peroxidise) James and Nordby (2005) state that catalytic tests involve the chemical oxidation of a chromogenic substance by an oxidising agent catalyzed by the presence of blood. They also say that the catalyst of the reaction is the peroxidise-like activity of the haeme group of haemoglobin. Cox (2004) describes the attributes that a good presumptive test for blood should be sensitive, specific, quick, simple and safe. In order for presumptive tests for blood to function properly, they must detect a component of blood (Tobe, Watson and Daà ©id 2007). Most presumptive tests therefore act on the peroxidise activity of haemoglobin. This component is not found in the everyday environment, but other substances found in items such as fruit and vegetables perform a similar function (Tobe, Watson and Daà ©id 2007). A very popular presumptive method is the phenolphthalein test, which is also known as the Kastle- Meyer test (Virkler and Lednev 2009). Lee, Palmbach and Miller (2001) say that the Kastle-Meyer test was introduced in 1901 by Kastle. Phenolphthalein will cause an alkaline solution to turn pink after it has been oxidised by peroxide when blood is present (Spalding 2006). The reagent consists of reduced phenolphthalein in alkaline solution, which is oxidised by peroxide in the presence of haemoglobin (James and Nordby 2005). The test result is normally immediate, and a positive result a minute or more after the test is performed is usually not considered as reliable (James and Nordby 2005). It has a sensitivity of 1:100,000 (Lee, Palmbach and Miller 2001). James and Nordby (2005) say that Adler and Adler in 1904 investigated the reduced or colourless form (leuco) of the dye malachite green, which is also referred to as McPhails reagent. This test involves the Leuco base of malachite green (Lillie 1969). Leucomalachite Green oxidation is catalyzed by haeme to produce a green colour (James and Nordby 2005). The reaction is usually carried out in an acid medium with hydrogen peroxide as the oxidiser (James and Nordby 2005). It has a sensitivity of 1: 20,000 (Lee, Palmbach and Miller 2001). Bluestar is a luminol preparation developed by Professor Loic Blum in France that is extremely sensitive and stable and produces a very bright, long lasting chemiluminescence (James and Nordby 2005). The extreme sensitivity of Bluestar Forensic allows detections of bloodstains down to 1:10,000 dilutions (Bluestar Forensic 2004). It does not require total darkness to be visible, and works well on either fresh blood or old bloodstains (Bluestar Forensic 2004). Bluestar works by mixing the Bluestar Forensic solution with Bluestar Forensic tablets, which is then left to dissolve. This is sprayed onto the area of suspected blood. A positive result will cause a bluish luminescence (Bluestar Forensic 2004). The Hemastix test, created by Miles Laboratories in 1992, is particularly useful when solutions can be hazardous, or inconvenient (James and Nordby 2005). The test consists of a plastic strip with a reagent treated filter tab at one end (James and Nordby 2005). The tab contains TMB, diisopropylbenzene, dihydroperoxide, buffering materials and non reactants (James and Nordby 2005). A bloodstain is tested by moistening a swab with distilled water, sampling the stain, and touching the swab onto the reagent tab on the strip (James and Nordby 2005). The tab is normally yellow, and turns form orange to green or blue when positive. Quality control testing is necessary and should be completed with known blood samples on every new batch of test reagents to verify that the reagents are working as expected (Lee, Palmbach and Miller 2001). II.V False Positives Sutton (1999) points out that a false positive is an apparent positive test result obtained with a substance other than blood. James and Nordby (2005) say that misleading results can be attributed to Chemical oxidants (often producing a reaction before the application of peroxide) Plant materials (vegetable peroxidises are thermolabile) Materials of animal origin (that contain traces of blood). Substances that produce false positives generally take detectably longer to react and, therefore, may be eliminated through observational interpretation (Tobe, Watson and Daà ©id 2007). False positives were initially noted only with copper salts (Glaister 1926). Tobe, Watson and Daà ©id (2007) state that saliva, semen, potato, tomato, tomato sauce, tomato sauce with meat, red onion, red kidney bean, horseradish, 0.1 ascorbic acid, 5% bleach, 10% cupric sulphate, 10% ferric sulphate and 10% nickel chloride are all known false positives. Bluestar False Positives (2008) say that Bluestar has false positives that include oil based paint, alkyd varnish, turnip, banana, leek, green bean, carrot, ginger, manganese sulphate, copper sulphate, iron sulphate and potassium permanganate. Lee, Palmbach and Miller (2001) write that many household cleaning products contain oxidising agents that can produce false positives. Many fruit and vegetables produce false positives including apples, horseradish and broccoli (Lee, Palmbach and Miller 2001). Bleach is a false positive that provides an (immediate and intense reaction) according to Gardner (2005). Hunt et al (1960) say that faeces often gave a false positive depending on the food that had been eaten previously. Ponce and Pascual (1999) state that lemon juice added to a bloodstain can cause a positive result due to its acidity. A false negative is when there is some interference with the oxidation-reduction reaction, normally in the presence of a strong reducing agent, which results in a delay of the oxidation reaction; thus resulting in a coloured formation (Lee, Palmbach and Miller 2001). False negatives are less common but problematic as an actual blood sample may be overlooked or left at the scene (Lee, Palmbach and Miller 2001). Many of the false positive reactions can be identified during the presumptive testing procedure if any changes observed and the exact point in the reaction of these changes is recorded and compared to that of blood (Lee, Palmbach and Miller 2001). Chapter III. Experimental Methodology I will be investigating known substances previously reported by other authors that show a false positive and then analysing other substances similar to those already known to see if these also produce a false positive. III.I Project Design Each of the substances will need to be repeated to ensure a wide enough range of consistent results. Therefore, a grid will be drawn on a piece of Perspex measuring 1.5m2, and a piece of filter paper placed in each of the grid spaces, to allow the even distribution of substances and to allow the easy identification of false positives. Blood Known False Positives Unknowns 1 2 3 1 2 A New technique to detect metabolites from a single drop of blood B New technique to detect metabolites from a single drop of blood C New technique to detect metabolites from a single drop of blood Figure 4- A diagram to illustrate an example of the project layout. For each of the presumptive reagents tested, the filter paper in each grid space will be exposed to a substance to be tested. This will be allowed to dry for a minimum of 1 hour. Each substance will then be tested with a reagent. Each substance will be repeated three times to give a fair indication of performance. The time taken for a substance to register a positive result will be recorded. If a colour change occurs then the test will be classed as positive. If no colour change is noted within 5 minutes of the reagent being added, then the test will be classed as negative. III.II Sample Preparation The substances that I have chosen to analyse are known false positives as reported by other authors and then substances allied to known false positives. Known false positives to be tested: Horseradish. Tomato Sauce. Red Onion. Turnip. Lemon Juice. Bleach Solution (5%). Unknown substances to be tested: Brown Sauce. BBQ Sauce. Radish. Dark Chocolate. Orange Juice. Bleach Solution (less than 5%). III.III Choice of Presumptive Tests I have chosen to use the following presumptive reagents to test substances for false positives: Kastle-Meyer. Hemastix. McPhails. Bluestar. III.IV Control Tests I will test all of the presumptive tests on blank filter paper before proceeding to test with substances. This ensures that there is no reaction from the filter paper to the presumptive tests. I shall also test all of the presumptive tests with horse blood before proceeding to test with substances. This shows that the tests do recognise a sample of blood. I have chosen to use 2.5g of each substance as I feel this is an amount that is representative of a stain at a scene. Blood is reported to have been diluted to 1:10000 in previous tests, and as this dilution has proved the most successful, I have chosen to use this dilution. REARRANGE + FINISH