Wednesday, November 27, 2019

Tax Cuts essays

Tax Cuts essays Dominic Shafer James Bang A09 The article I chose to comment on, The Double Benefit of Tax Cuts is from The Wall Street Journal. It was published on Tuesday October 7, 2003 and was written by Gary Becker, Edward Lazear, and Kevin Murphy. My article covers the current issue of presidential candidates and their plans to make tax cuts. In a debate on economics in September 2003, every Democratic candidate talked about rolling back President Bushs tax cuts. The candidates tried to show that in a time of economic recovery it would be the perfect time to introduce tax reductions, which would help stimulate economic activity over the next year or more. The idea of whether or not a tax cut would help out over a long period of time was not an important issue in this discussion. There were two main ideas behind cutting takes that the candidates talked about. The first reason they talked about is that a tax cut would make sense is because government spending responds to tax revenues, so that lower revenues imply lower government spending. Just as in a business, the spending by the government is limited by its revenue. It was also pointed out that the government budget equation plays a factor on the revenue. Normally, government spending has to do with societys needs and takes taxes to balance the government budget equation, but there is some evidence that shows spending often adjusts to the tax revenue. In the past, tax cuts have shown the dependence of spending on tax revenue. In the 1980s President Reagan proposed a tax cut that helped promote long-term growth. President Bush hoped his tax cuts would stimulate the economy and help future growth. In the late 1980s and early 90s there was a decline in federal spending, which was linked to the need to adjust spending to growin...

Saturday, November 23, 2019

Art Evaluation Essays

Art Evaluation Essays Art Evaluation Essay Art Evaluation Essay Explore-at the start of this project I looked at the artists Karl Blosfeldt and Peter Randall Page. Karl Blosfeldt was a German photographer who took photographs of natural forms. Peter Randall Page is a British artist who takes natural forms and uses the textures and colours to make interesting sculptures. I think I presented my work which included my botanical drawing of kiwi, my flower observation drawing and other pieces in an eye-catching and interesting way. Create. I experimented with my collages by using low relief and by using materials which have the colours of natural forms like brown tape. With my drawing I used tried to show the texture of the object I was focusing on.The materials I used were brown tape, cardboard (thick and thin) and tissue paper. The techniques I used were slotting, using low and high relief. Evaluate. At the start I think I did not really annotate my work but now i think I have fully annotated my work at have improve the pages at the start of my book. I think I have planned my work well because I put thought into how I am going to organise a page and my ideas. My drawings show that I have reflected the styles of the artists work because I have taken their work at incorporated several ideas into my own work. I have reviewed my work my putting a footnote at the bottom of the page. The footnote includes my opinion of how well I did something or what I liked about something. I presented my work in a way so that the people looking at my work can read my writing but the way it was put on the page is bold and visually good. Understand. I think that my work does show a link to the artists work, like I said before in the evaluate section, I have incorporated their styles and put it into my work. My final piece of work did turn out as expected because it had different shapes to show the textures on a real life form. I am particularly pleased with my leave structure as it was one of three parts which look like a part on a real life form. I like the colours I used for the leave structure and I like how the tissue paper gives more natural texture. The changes I would make on my overall structure would be to have a more brighter area because most of structure it pretty dark, so that is how I would improve it. The best bits of making this structure was the painting because it was quite relaxing and you take your time. The worst bit would have to be putting together the structure in the first place because cutting out shapes from the cardboard was really hard and took ages. Feedback. No, I dont think there was anything in the project that I did not understand. I liked the theme and the project because it involved different techniques like painting, drawing and making collages. If I designed the project the work that I would like to do more botanical drawing because I would like to improve on my shading. I think that the project is good as it already is.

Thursday, November 21, 2019

Racism in Science Fiction Movies Research Paper

Racism in Science Fiction Movies - Research Paper Example The main thesis behind District 9 is that it is basic human nature to be racist. If we know that we are dominant or can dominate, we tend to exploit the weak. The movie shows the danger of this nature through its main character, story, slums, etc. The thesis behind Brother from another Planet is that as a result of racism precious human talented and skills are being wasted. This is shown in them movie through the main protagonist who has special talents but they go unutilized as a result of racism. Finally, the thesis behind Starship Troopers is that racism only leads to destruction. Racism is depicted in an entirely different form in the movie that we do not notice easily. It is the practice of racism by a state on its citizens. Each of the three movies try to depict that racism inevitably leads to loss. Brother from another Planet revolves around an alien who crash lands on earth. The alien ends up in New York City. The alien is a slave who is trying to escape from intergalactic bounty hunters whose job is to recapture slaves who have escaped. The alien resembles an African American male and is mute. The alien has some extraterrestrial powers such as telekinetic powers. The alien has extremely large feet which he hides. The alien discovers that his color tone is a major disadvantage here. The movie is a social commentary on life in the society of the time. The movie shows how the racial divide still exists in a city like New York. It addresses issues such as differences between social classes and racism. One of the main criticisms about the movie is that main protagonist who is an alien slave is shown as an African American and the bounty hunters are whites. To some extent it might be trying to reflect the hard realities of the society. It shows that whites are considered superior even in the context of extra-terrestrials and blacks are treated as inferior.

Wednesday, November 20, 2019

Animal Experimentation Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Animal Experimentation - Research Paper Example As a result, The use of animals in scientific experiments increased dramatically especially after the discovery of anesthetics in mid-nineteenth century; the number of non-human animals used in scientific investigations in UK alone increased from one million per year in early nineteenth century to exceed five millions per year in the 1970s. This huge increase in the use of animals for research purposes was paralleled with an increase in the resistance and oppositions to animal testing. The animal testing controversy involves three sides; a group that is in favor of using animals for medical research debating that human superiority to animals justifies the use of animals in experiments. On the other hand, there is group of people who opposes the use of animals in experiments for ethical concerns. Obviously, both of these two sides are extreme; we cannot allow animals to suffer just based on the proponent’s claim nor can we stop animal tests due to the fact that it would stop hu mans from advancing in medical fields. This controversy resulted in new laws and regulations such as, the Animal Welfare Act (AWA) that limits the number of animals that should be tested and the level of pain an animal can endure. Although, of course, experimenting on animals should be regulated, discontinuing this practice must never happen since it would negatively impact the advancement in the medical fields which will affect both humans’ race and non-human animals. The anti- animal testing movement argues that animals have the same rights as humans and therefore we should not be carrying out experiments on them. Tom Regan, a professor at the North Carolina University, argues that animals have similar emotions to our emotional beings, and considering them inferior species is similar to racism. According to Charles Darwin, best known as the father of evolution, humans are different from other species in â€Å"degree† not in â€Å"kind†. Thus Regan believes tha t â€Å"speciesism† which points to the view that the specie that we belong to is superior to other species is the same as racism and sexism. Furthermore, the response that we would get if we ask ourselves what gives us the right to carry experiments on animal for our benefits would be that we humans are more intelligent than other animals. But what about the case of infants or some mentally disabled patients, wouldn’t there be some animals that are more intelligent in comparison to these two examples? So, animals that are less intelligent than humans shall not be tested for human benefits unless we are ready to scarify some of our specie members. Similar to the philosophy of human rights which state that all people should be treated equally, animal rights as well demand that all animals should be equally treated, which prevent the harm of individuals to benefits other(). Humans as well as other animals experience life, and their rights to live and treated equally shou ld not be ignored. Why should animals be the victims of enduring harmful and procedural experiments that would yield benefits that are mostly useful for humans? The answer to this question is the fact there is not many alternative, and only animals are qualified for carrying out medical experiments. The limitation of sources to gain essential information is the reason why animals are used in experiments; there are no computers

Sunday, November 17, 2019

Illegal Immigration Essay Example for Free

Illegal Immigration Essay One of the reasons of implementing the US immigration policy is to control and protect America’s national borders. The US border patrol controls and protects international state lines in the effort to arrest any individuals making attempts to enter the US illegally. Illegal immigration attempts are predominant on the border between the US and Mexico. In the past 20 years, economic recession in Mexico has contributed to increase illegal entries or attempts to the same by the Mexicans. Consequently, political sensitivity about illegal immigration that has been brought by Mexico’s poor economic performance has made the US government to dramatically improve the efforts aimed at increasing security at the US- Mexico border. Most illegal immigrants are seen to move from Mexican border cities to US Border States as their final destination. According to Hanson, Robertson and Spilimbergo, border patrol officers have had to spend more hours policing the Mexican border with an increase of up to 5. million hours in 1997 from 1. 8 million hours in 1977 (2002). Border regions are mostly affected by situations caused by illegal immigration. For example, illegal immigration has the likelihood of affecting border markets. Such markets include Southern California, Mexican cities on the US-Mexico borders and South Western Texas (Hanson, Robertson and Spilimbergo, 2002). Illegal immigration has both negative and positive results to the socio-economic status of the US. Effects of Illegal Immigration Hanson, Robertson and Spilimbergo claim that immigration leads to the reduction of wages of US workers. The rise in immigration cases has resulted in low skilled immigrants and low skilled US workers competing for jobs. Moreover, immigrants are ready to take up any jobs leaving the low skilled US workers to settle for the remaining jobs (Hanson, Robertson and Spilimbergo, 2002). Findings by Hanson, Robertson and Spilimbergo indicate that border enforcement deters illegal immigrants whose entry has impacts on the labor markets in the US border areas. According to these findings, border regions can minimize illegal immigration without necessarily changing the native wages or even moving the natives from border regions or discouraging them to move to the border areas (Hanson, Robertson and Spilimbergo, 2002). Border economies may also be forced to shift to industries that are dependent on the skills of arriving immigrants so that low skilled labor can be secured for both US natives and immigrants (2002). Illegal immigrants are seen to add to the problem of public health that is already an issue that needs attention and review in the US. Attention is focused on the recent developments that allow immigrants to use public programs such as heath insurance. As per the 2000 census, 1 in every 5 children is an immigrant family member in the largely dispersed immigrant families in America. The immigration statuses of parents and children may also differ with up to 10% of immigrant children living in families of mixed status hence creating complexity. There are non-citizen parents who live with citizen children as their main caregivers. The citizen children may be denied health insurance due to their parents’ citizenship and this may affect the health of both parents and children despite them being Americans (Paiti and Danagoulian, 2008). It is important to note that poor health of immigrants’ children will eventually have a significant effect on the socio-economic future of every American. According to Paiti and Danagoulian, foreign born children in the US do not depend on public health insurance schemes compared to those born in the US despite the reverse of the rule on public charge. The increased likelihood of foreign born children to be uninsured, to live in poverty and to have parents who have less than high school formal education is a contributing factor to the poor living conditions. The parents’ poor economic abilities create future projections of low abilities of immigrant children to be economically productive members of the labor force in America (Paiti Danagoulian, 2008). Today, USA claims that about 7 million illegal immigrants do not have medical insurance due to legal restrictions. In addition, 366,000 of the immigrants buy insurance policies from private companies. A publication on USA today named â€Å"Everyone Benefits if Illegal Immigrants are insured† claimed that just as in automobile insurance, the US public would benefit from premiums paid by illegal immigrants by collecting the surplus using it to provide better health care to the US citizens (USA Today, 2009). Illegal immigration is wrong and it should be stopped, but in the meantime, the country should benefit from having illegal aliens around before inventing ways of stopping the practice in order to create a win-win in the situation. In addition to border patrols and the deportation of captured aliens, the introduction of an Immigration and Control Act in 1986 helped in controlling illegal immigration (Pearce and Hill, 1990). According to Pearce Hill, â€Å"immigration law will reduce employment of illegal aliens in some parts of the economy but not in others†. However, limitations in the US budget will force authorities â€Å"to focus their enforcement efforts on industries with a large concentration of illegals at an individual business establishment† (1990, pp. 43). Prior to the act, employers hired illegal immigrants knowingly as they would face no penalty. Since this law, there has been a registered decline in border crossings in most entry points and more illegal immigrants finding it hard to get jobs. Although the reform process is done by high skilled professionals, sanctions will improve the standard of living of low skill laborers even though to a small extent. Pearce and Hill suggest that substantial improvement in the real wages of legal and less skilled laborers will occur if sanctions are fully executed. In addition, legal and illegal low skill labor should be subject to substitution. The law must also be accurately applied to achieve benefits of sanctions (Pearce Hill, 1990). The Economist reports that critics fear the influx of Hispanic immigrants, who enter the US illegally, take up jobs and move into different parts of the country, are able to create two nations (2005). The illegal Latino immigrants take up common jobs in construction, distribution and food industry that is well needed for economic growth of the cities they occupy. Immigrants are seen to be assimilated into the US by almost becoming like everyone else in the US. They now become citizens, pay taxes, enlist in the army, participate in politics and even speak English (The Economist, 2005). Despite fears of critiques of the negative effects of immigration, positive outcomes have also been observed from the same which is an important input to America. Conclusion Immigrants to the US have been seen to continue gaining access illegally despite the introduction of more sophisticated patrols at entry points. The introduction of labor laws that protect legal workforce in the US continues to protect low skilled laborers. However, better laws ought to be formulated to ensure that workers do not receive wages that are beneath their ability to sustain a comfortable life. In addition, illegal immigrant families should be assisted to take care of their offspring who are American citizens by acquiring medical insurance and other facilities as it has proven to be beneficial to the American populace. Socio-economic benefits accrued from the inclusion of immigrants in the social programs of America should also be observed as a positive contribution to the society.

Friday, November 15, 2019

Dinner With Bill Gates :: essays research papers

Dinner With Bill Gates [The time is the late 1990's and the setting is an unidentified city in the northwest United States, in Washington. Three employees of Microsoft, the narrator, Encolpius, and his co-workers Giton and Ascyltus, have been invited to the illustrious mansion of billionaire Bill Gates, for a banquet.] It was slightly drizzling as we approached the house. We were simply amazed at it's size, it was a good quarter mile in length and equally long in width. As we approached the enormous wooden door, lights flicked on and a computer generated voice greeted us. Not knowing what to do, we waited, letting the rain soak our dinner suits. When the door was opened, we were prompted to enter by a servant. Stepping into the entrance way, our coats were taken by a different servant than the one who had opened the door. We were ushered into a nearby room, an enormous lounge of some kind furnished with an indoor volleyball court, arcade and a pool. Giton and I were simply amazed. This guy had an amusement park in his living room. There were some young boys on the volleyball court, playing a game. I couldn't help but notice a middle-ages guy, dressed in a pair of worn jeans and a sports coat, watching the game with furious intensity. I turned to the servant, our guide, I suppose, and asked him who this man was. "Oh that's Master Gates, the proprietor of this house. You'll be dining with him shortly." The servant led us through this room, past the pool and into a narrow corridor. This hallway was adorned with pictures of Bill Gates, in various characters and positions. The only one I recognized was the cover from the recent issue of Time Magazine featuring him on the cover. From here, we were led into the dining room and seated at the large dinner table. The table occupied a majority of the room, however, there was an enormous hole in the middle, obviously for a dinner show of some kind. Immediately, our glasses were filled with wine and our hands were scrubbed with rose water. I looked at Ascyltus, and he was simply amazing at the luxurious nature of the dinner. I suddenly felt underdressed but I was relieved when Bill Gates entered, wearing a different, much darker shade of jeans and a simple, red pullover. Once Bill Gates seated himself, the dozen or so people in the room all silenced themselves, waiting for this legendary man to speak. "Welcome to my home," he began, "I hope you will have an enjoyable evening. Dinner With Bill Gates :: essays research papers Dinner With Bill Gates [The time is the late 1990's and the setting is an unidentified city in the northwest United States, in Washington. Three employees of Microsoft, the narrator, Encolpius, and his co-workers Giton and Ascyltus, have been invited to the illustrious mansion of billionaire Bill Gates, for a banquet.] It was slightly drizzling as we approached the house. We were simply amazed at it's size, it was a good quarter mile in length and equally long in width. As we approached the enormous wooden door, lights flicked on and a computer generated voice greeted us. Not knowing what to do, we waited, letting the rain soak our dinner suits. When the door was opened, we were prompted to enter by a servant. Stepping into the entrance way, our coats were taken by a different servant than the one who had opened the door. We were ushered into a nearby room, an enormous lounge of some kind furnished with an indoor volleyball court, arcade and a pool. Giton and I were simply amazed. This guy had an amusement park in his living room. There were some young boys on the volleyball court, playing a game. I couldn't help but notice a middle-ages guy, dressed in a pair of worn jeans and a sports coat, watching the game with furious intensity. I turned to the servant, our guide, I suppose, and asked him who this man was. "Oh that's Master Gates, the proprietor of this house. You'll be dining with him shortly." The servant led us through this room, past the pool and into a narrow corridor. This hallway was adorned with pictures of Bill Gates, in various characters and positions. The only one I recognized was the cover from the recent issue of Time Magazine featuring him on the cover. From here, we were led into the dining room and seated at the large dinner table. The table occupied a majority of the room, however, there was an enormous hole in the middle, obviously for a dinner show of some kind. Immediately, our glasses were filled with wine and our hands were scrubbed with rose water. I looked at Ascyltus, and he was simply amazing at the luxurious nature of the dinner. I suddenly felt underdressed but I was relieved when Bill Gates entered, wearing a different, much darker shade of jeans and a simple, red pullover. Once Bill Gates seated himself, the dozen or so people in the room all silenced themselves, waiting for this legendary man to speak. "Welcome to my home," he began, "I hope you will have an enjoyable evening.

Tuesday, November 12, 2019

Blood Donation Essay

Abstract Blood donation is dependent on the goodwill of people, to voluntarily donate blood, without financial reward. There is a continuous need for new blood donors, because the demand for donor blood is increasing, whereas the supply of blood is declining. Only 3% of the eligible population members actually donate blood. This leaves an enormous potential blood donor base, which if tapped into and maintained could lead to an adequate reserve of donations to meet the transfusion needs of this country. The focus of this paper will be on how social marketing can be effective in increasing blood supply. Understanding and facilitating the recruitment and retention of blood donors is the major contribution that the social and behavioral sciences can make to transfusion medicine. For the medical profession, the amount of blood a hospital has in stock for immediate or emergent use is a critical issue. Blood is needed for emergencies. It is also needed for people who have cancer, blood disorders, sickle cell anemia and other illnesses. Annually, donating blood saves many lives, both young and old. Communication is the key to success, and we need to communicate the importance of blood donation to the general public. Most people respond to issues that relate to their own lives. (Duffy. 2001) As advertising professionals, we must develop a plan to show the public that one day blood donation could mean life or death. One day blood could be needed to save their life or the life of a loved one. When donation of blood becomes a priority to our society, then able bodied donors will have a greater will to participate. Blood drives should be advertised with depth and weight on an emotional level, emphasizing why it should be important to the individual who takes the time to donate. People will undoubtedly ask, â€Å"How is this going to benefit me†? We need to be able to produce such evidence, and if we can, then people will have a greater will and motivation to give. Some experts estimate that if everyone that is qualified to donate would participate in donation at a blood drive two to three times a year, blood  shortages would be eliminated. Encouraging more Americans to become regular blood donor will ensure that most area hospitals will have a safe and plentiful supply of blood that is available wherever and whenever it’s needed. Blood is without a doubt something special, it cannot be manufactured nor can it be replaced by animal blood. Some reports have shown that each year 4.5 million American lives are saved by blood transfusions. Aside from traumatic events such as a severe automobile accident with serious bodily injuries, there are many different reasons why someone would need to have a blood transfusion. Some people need transfusions on a routine basis as part of their medical treatment for an illness or disease. One of the major groups of people in need of blood transfusions frequently, or for treatment purposes, is those infected with sickle cell anemia. According to the Mayo Clinic, 80,000 people around the country have this disease and these patients â€Å"require frequent blood transfusions throughout their lives† (Mayo Clinic Staff, 2007). Our society has not placed a high priority on blood donation but it is a social responsibility. The donor should be donating it with confidence that it will be used in saving lives of his fellow beings. This should be an important point of conveyance when advertising information about blood donation. People have a desire to do what is morally right. Educating the public is another key element that is needed to increase the public’s general understanding of the need to have a constant and abundant blood supply. Some points that need to be addressed during education is that the average amount of blood present in an adult is 4-5 liters or about 8% of the body weight. And life cycles of the different components are short. The red blood cell lives about 120 days while white cells last about 3-9 days. New blood cells are constantly generated in the body. A person can donate blood 168 times during his 18 to 60 years. Unfortunately, most Americans only donate blood a few times throughout their lifetime, and some people never donate blood at all. (Mayo Clinic, 2007). Unavailability of blood may cost lives. Hence, importance of blood donation is tremendous. This is the greatest gift one can give to the fellow humans. Voluntary Blood Donors are saviors of mankind. If someone really loves  oneself and other fellow beings, the only way to express it is to donate blood voluntarily. The message we send to the public should be clear and urgent. We must change the current mindset from occasional donation, to frequent. Many studies have shown that there needs to be a personal incentive to become a frequent donor (Transfusion 2003). A study done in 1995 and reported by Transfusion concluded with a suggestion that free cholesterol testing or health related discounts at blood drive locations has increased the number of donors over the last 10 years by 65%. The use social networking programs such as facebook and twitter have been successfully used to increase awareness among the young adult generation. (Transfusion. 2010). Some other countries have tried to offer items of limited value or blood credit bonus programs that could be safe and effective strategies for retaining donors. (Asian Journal of Transfusion Science. 2010) Conclusions have shown that discounted or free medical tests had the votes for popular appeal. In America, we have to focus on these incentives for our future supply and demand needs. References Mayo Clinic Staff. (March 28, 2007). Sickle Cell Anemia. Retrieved July 8, 2007. from the world wide web May 14, 2012 http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/sickle-cell-anemia/DS00324 Baluch, Bahman, Gurch Randhawa, Sherryl L. Holmes and Linda J. Duffy (2001). Signing the Organ Donor Card: The Relationship between Expressed Attitude, the Actual Behavior, and Personality Traits. Journal of Social Psychology 141(1): 124-126. Titmuss, Richard Morris (1972). The Gift Relationship: From Human Blood to Social Policy. New York: Vintage Books. Blood donor incentives: A step forward or backward. Asian Journal of Transfusion Science. 2010 Jan; 4(1)9-13 Glynn SA, Williams AE, Nass CC, Bethel J, Kessler D, Scott EP, Fridey J, Kleinman SH, Schreiber GB; Retrovirus Epidemiology Donor Study (2010). Incentives for blood donation in the United States: implications for donor recruitment. Transfusion Jan; 2010 (1):26-40. Attitudes toward blood donation incentives in the United States: implications for donor recruitment. Transfusion. 2003 Jan ;43(1):7-16. Additional Websites: American Association of Blood Banks. 2004 http://www.aabb.org/index.htm American Red Cross Organization. 2003 http://www.redcross.org/home/ Plasma Care. 2003 http://www.plasmacare.com/

Sunday, November 10, 2019

Hawthorne effect Essay

In today’s competitive climate lots of business owners are trying to get more from their workforce at the same time however their employees are trying to get more from their jobs. Reward and recognition programmes are one way that employers can motivate their staff into changing their key behaviors and work habits, thus benefitting the business. At the same time these schemes can also give the employee that little bit extra they are looking for from job. Motivation and reward are closely linked and there have been many credible theories written on the subject. It is widely recognised that human beings have a need to feel valued, both in their home lives and in the work place. To keep people motivated they need to be encouraged, rewarded (where appropriate) or recognised in their endeavors. One of the most valued of the motivation theories was written by Abraham Maslow from the USA back in the 1950’s. As part of his study into motivation Maslow developed a five tiered hierarchy of needs. He argued that the way to motivate individuals in the workplace and indeed in life is to satisfy the need sets one by one and in order. The first of the need sets and the most basic are the biological and physiological needs. These are survival requirements ingrained into us and evolved with mankind for tens of thousands of years, things such as food, shelter, warmth etc. In Maslow’s model it’s these needs that need to be satisfied before anything else, for example there is little point offering status as a motivator, when the individual has not yet satisfied basic requirements such as achieving a livable wage in order to eat, secure shelter etc. Reward Systems Peformance at Mark-it-Down Co Ltd is not what it should be and it has been decided between senior mangement and the Human Resources department that the introduction of a reward scheme is whats required to motivate the workforce and improve performance overall. The team in charge of deciding on the reward system to implement have come up up with the following suggestions: Variable Pay/Bonus Scheme A scheme of variable pay is one possible solution for the supermarket. In this scheme a portion of the employee’s pay would be considered at risk. This portion of the wage will be rewarded according to the performance of the company as a whole, on the basis of personal acheivement or based on the results of a department or team (this would probably be the most effective for this type of commercial business) Targets will be set at the beginning of a specified period (per annum is the common period) at the end of this period depending on the how well the targets have been met, a percentage or full quantity of the â€Å"at risk† part of their pay will be paid to the individual. This payment could take a few different forms, possibly a cash bonus, a quantity of stock or shares in the business. Whilst monetary reward has been proven to be effective and can encourage hard work amongst a team or individually, it has the disadvantage of impacting on profit made by the supermarket, for example if the grocery team meet their target for keeping the produce displays replenished to a defined level, then the whole grocery team will have earnt the bonus which must be paid from the profits. You also may have a situation where part of the workforce become demotivated, if their team or they personally have missed out on a bonus. Bonus and pay based rewards are considered differently depending on which motivation theory you study. For example in Maslows hierachy of needs, financial remuneration is only mentioned within the first tier of the hierachy which covers the most basic and obvious survival needs (physiological needs) Money was not considered by Maslow be a long term motivator. Frederick Herzberg considered financial reward to be amongst his â€Å"hygiene factors† that is that money in itself is not a motivator but actually will only act as a â€Å"dissatisfier† if the individual feels that their financial expectations and requirements of the role are not being met. In contrast to Maslow and Herzberg, John Stacey Adams might have argued that bonus schemes and pay related rewards can indeed be effective motivators. If the individual percieves that they are gettting a fair input to output balance in comparison to their peers eg, works hard (input) for a pay bonus (output) However that motivation through financial reward might not last. If the individual learns that a colleague or peer is benefiting from a better input to output ratio (eg doesn’t work as hard, but gets paid more) then the individual can quickly become dissatisfied. Promotion The introduction of a promotion programme could be a viable option. If the employee’s are aware that there is a realistic opportunity for them to progress within Mark It Down Co then they will likely feel motivated towards improving their standard of work in the hope that they will be one of the employee’s chosen for promotion. Maslow’s heierachy of needs supports promotion as a motivator, however depending on the person promotion/status as a form of motivation might be quite high up on the tiers and as such it would only work if the tiers below have already been satisfied. There could be several downsides to this however; often with promotion comes a rise in salary for the individual, which will of course impact on any profit made by the supermarket. There might also be a risk of a culture developing within the company whereby individuals take the attitude that they are â€Å"out for themselves† Employee of the Month One of the suggested recognition programmes is an employee of the month scheme. The idea is that all employee’s and managers are provided with a brief form to be used to nominate an employee that they believe deserves recognition (they should also explain the reasons behind there nomination) Due to the nominations for employee of the month being business wide not only is the playing field for recognition level, but there is the scope for recognising excellance in all of the different area’s of the organisation. This reward system could be as low or high cost as Mark it Down Co directors see fit. There is support for this type of recognition reward in Elton Mayo’s Hawthorne Effect theory. Following his studies of workplace behaviour at the Hawthorne Plant Chicago in the late 1920’s and early 1930’s Mayo deduced that emotional factors acted as far better motivators than economical ones, as such a reward scheme of this nature could be very effective indeed, not to mention low cost. On the downside employee of the mon th schemes can have a tendancy to be considered a little cheesy and may require a little effort on the part of the programme managers in order to keep all of the staff motivated to particiate by completing the nomination slips. Pass on Praise Something as simple as passing on positive comments you have heard about an employee direct to the individual can have an extremely motivational effect. Again the hawthorne effect supports this belief. The praise could passed on by way of email, copying in managers or even with a visit to a senior managers office in order to receive thanks directly. The main advantage of this idea is that it costs nothing and is extremely easy to implement, however it may not be enough on its own, I would suggest that this tactic be used in conjunction with one of the other employee recognition schemes. All of the afore mentioned reward options have the potential to be effective, however the success of the chosen scheme could have a lot to do with the indviduals in nbeed of motivation. For instance in McGregors theory, the two employee types, X and Y differ greatly. What might motivate a Y employee (someone that is naturally happy to take on repsponsibilty and excepts work as part of life) might have the opposite effect on an employee of the X variety (someone that’s avoids repsonsibility and needs to be heavily supervised. The type of employee’s to be motivated should be considered before a motivation and reward scheme is decided upon. Monitoring Performance There are various ways to monitor the performance of your workforce. In the supermarket setting of Mark it Down Co, these could be; Physical: the number of sales made, the number of employee’s served, punctuality or attendance. There can be no disputing these types of performance indicators they are unambiguous and offer a realistic insight into the performance of a team or individual. Qualiative: these indicators are based on opinions and judgements (the view of a supervisor or the such like). These indicators are just as important as physical ones but managers should be careful to ensure that any measures of performance are considered fair by both the employees and employers. Goals and Targets Performance measurement can also be linked to the companies appraisal system, that is performance can be measured by assessing progress made on targets and goals agreed at the previous review. Appraisals are valuable in this respect. In order to effectively monitor performance in this way it is important to ensure that your employees are aware of the difference between target and goal. Goals: These are long term ambitions that should relate to the individual aims for progressing within the company. Targets: These are the steps taken in order to achieve the goal. There is an acronym that can act as a guide for the criteria that any targets should adhere to. They should be Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic and Time bound. There is little point setting targets outside of these parameters. Monitoring progress towards identified goals and objectives as a way of determining who deserves reward does have its pros and cons though. On the one hand it can be considered an easily measurable method of monitoring performance, but on the other (particularly when the goals and targets have been set for a team or group) it could be argued that the fact that a company/team or individual is achieving its set goals and targets is not a true indication of who has made the most effort towards making that happen and as such is not an effective method for identifying who should qualify for reward. This is an important thing to consider when applying motivation and reward schemes, as an incorrect or ill managed monitoring technique could be costly to a business. For example a company will not want to be handing out cash bonuses to a whole team for reaching a set goal if it transpires that 3 out of 5 team members have made no improvement to their work output and had nothing to do with the team’s progress or achievement! When considering target setting as a way of monitoring progress and establishing where reward, praise or recognition should be given, serious thought should be given to how the company plans on pinpointing exactly who has been responsible for progress, both positive and negative. Benchmarking Another way to monitor company performance is to measure its successes and failures against those of other businesses in the same market. For example Mark it Down Co could measure its sales figures against one of its competitors, Lidl for instance. This method is known as bench marking and it’s all about taking the best practices of the highest achieving businesses in the same market and applying them back in the business in question. Job Evaluation Its has been brought to management attention that one of the employee’s at Mark it Down Co believes that he is receiving less salary for the same work as one of his peers. The following two methods can be used to evaluate the jobs of the individuals in question in order to assess whether theses concerns are justified or not. Job Ranking Job ranking is one of the simplest methods of job evaluation. Its considers the job as a whole and ranks it against another whole job within the organisation. This is usually carried out by the raters comparing the jobs using their general knowledge of the roles themselves. The jobs are ranked in order of the difficulty of the job itself or the importance of the role to the company. The procedure is followed for each department and then a comparison of jobs at all levels is made and jobs are given grade levels which define salary groups. The job ranking method is easily understood by all employees and simple to administer, however it does have its disadvantages, this technique is not really suitable for large organisations with complex structures where its is much harder to gain familiarity with all of the job roles. With this in mind it is probably not the solution that should be used at Mark it Down Co Ltd. Point Factor Method The point factor method establishes job values by assigning points to each area within a group of defined factors, below are some examples but there any many different factors that could be defined further and given points in order to be used for job evaluation; Skill: Within this group there might be points available for, experience or training. Effort: The points available for effort might be divided between mental and physical effort. In this method each job is rated using the defined points system. The points are totaled to form the final score for that particular role. From there jobs are grouped into salary grades (jobs with similar points ratings would be placed together in the same salary grade) This method can be tailored to meet the needs of specific companies and is suitable for use within larger organisations where there are a large number of jobs to evaluate. It’s an easy model to work with once it’s in place but can be very expensive and time consuming to develop in the first instance. In my opinion the point factor method would be a the better job evaluation model to use for Mark it Down Co. Job ranking is just too simplistic to cope with the amount of individuals roles at this organisation. The factors I think should be used to develop the point system are as follows; Skill – Experience, Training, Ability, Education Responsibilities – Monetary, Supervisory, Reporting Effort – Mental, Physical Environment – Job Location, Hazard’s In order to establish if the employee in question has a case for querying the wage he is on in comparison to his colleague. His overall score for the above factors should be calculated in order to establish his pay bracket. If the pay grade is the same as that of his colleague then his concerns are justified and his wage should be brought into line. If it is not and he is in a lower wage group then there is no case for a wage increase. Equally if the individuals wage bracket is determined to be higher than that of his colleagues then his wage should be adjusted to reflect as much.

Friday, November 8, 2019

Anne Frank Summary Essay Example

Anne Frank Summary Essay Example Anne Frank Summary Paper Anne Frank Summary Paper Anne Frank was born in Frankfurt, Germany, to a Jewish family, on June 12, 1929. Her father, Otto Frank, was a businessman. Anne and her older sister Margot grew up surrounded by loving parents and relatives, and received a good education. One day, Nazi police sent a call-up notice for Anne’s father and for her sister, Margot for their transportation to a concentration camp. They flee to their hiding place, the Secret Annex the following day. Another family, the Van Daans with their son Peter, arrive and later, take in another person, Mr. Dussel. Anne writes about a day in the Annex, describing many of the activities and personalities of the people in the Secret Annex. Anne is so affected by the tension that at times she goes to bed crying. She wants to live a normal life. She needs fresh air, and wishes that the darkness and cruelty of the war would go away so that they can go back to a regular life. Anne hears on the radio that they will be making a collection of diaries and letters after the war, and she wants to publish her diary. She continues writing in her diary and revises it to hopefully get it published after the war. Anne celebrates her fifteenth birthday in the Annex. She wishes she could look at nature more often, and not through a dirty window. Many cities have fallen to the allies, and the mood is positive. Anne’s diary ends on August 4, 1944, for on that day, the Secret Annex was raided and the Frank family was taken away to German and Dutch concentration camps.

Tuesday, November 5, 2019

Founding of the Republican Party

Founding of the Republican Party The Republican Party was founded in the mid-1850s following the fracturing of other political parties over the issue of slavery. The party, which was based on stopping the spread of slavery to new territories and states, arose out of protest meetings which took place in a number of northern states. The catalyst for the founding of the party was the passage of the Kansas-Nebraska Act in the spring of 1854. The law was a major change from the Missouri Compromise of three decades earlier and made it seem possible that new states in the West would come into the Union as slave states. The change splintered both major parties of the era, the Democrats and the Whigs. Each party contained factions that either endorsed or opposed the spread of slavery into western territories. Before the Kansas-Nebraska Act was even signed into law by President Franklin Pierce, protest meetings had been called in a number of locations.   With meetings and conventions happening in a number of northern states, it is impossible to pinpoint one particular place and time where the party was founded.  One meeting, at a schoolhouse  in Ripon, Wisconsin, on March 1, 1854, is often credited as being where the Republican Party was founded. According to a number of accounts published in the 19th century, a convention of disaffected Whigs and members of the fading Free Soil Party assembled at Jackson, Michigan on July 6, 1854. A Michigan congressman, Jacob Merritt Howard, was credited with drawing up the first platform of the party and giving it the name Republican Party. It is often stated that Abraham Lincoln was the founder of the Republican Party. While the passage of the Kansas-Nebraska Act did motivate Lincoln to return to an active role in politics, he was not part of the group which actually founded the new political party. Lincoln did, however, quickly become a member of the Republican Party and in the election of 1860 he would become its second nominee for president. Formation of a New Political Party Forming the new political party was no easy accomplishment. The American political system in the early 1850s was complicated, and members of a number of factions and minor parties had widely varying degrees of enthusiasm about migrating to a new party. In fact, during the congressional elections of 1854, it seemed that most of the opponents to the spread of slavery concluded their most practical approach would be the formation of fusion tickets. For example, members of the Whigs and the Free Soil Party formed tickets in some states to run in local and Congressional elections. The fusion movement was not very successful, and was ridiculed with the slogan Fusion and Confusion. Following the 1854 elections momentum grew to call meetings and begin to seriously organize the new party. Throughout 1855 various state conventions brought together Whigs, Free Soilers, and others. In New York State, the powerful political boss Thurlow Weed joined the Republican Party, as did the states anti-slavery senator William Seward, and the influential newspaper editor Horace Greeley. Early Campaigns of the Republican Party It seemed obvious that the Whig Party was finished, and couldnt run a candidate for the presidency in 1856. As the controversy over Kansas escalated (and would eventually turn into a small-scale conflict dubbed Bleeding Kansas), the Republicans gained traction as they presented a united front against the pro-slavery elements dominating the Democratic Party. As former Whigs and Free Soilers coalesced around the Republican banner, the party held its first national convention in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, from June 17-19, 1856. Approximately 600 delegates gathered, mainly from the northern states but also including the border slave states of Virginia, Maryland, Delaware, Kentucky, and the District of Columbia. The territory of Kansas was treated as a full state, which carried considerable symbolism given the unfolding conflict there. At that first convention, the Republicans nominated explorer and adventurer John C. Frà ©mont as their presidential candidate. A former Whig congressman from Illinois who had come over to the Republicans, Abraham Lincoln, was nearly nominated as the vice presidential candidate but lost to William L. Dayton, a former senator from New Jersey. The first national platform of the Republican Party called for a transcontinental railroad and improvements of harbors and river transportation. But the most pressing issue, of course, was slavery and the platform called for prohibiting the spread of slavery to new states and territories. It also called for the prompt admission of Kansas as a free state. The Election of 1856 James Buchanan, the Democratic candidate, and a man with an uncommonly long record in American politics won the presidency in 1856 in a three-way race with Frà ©mont and former president Millard Fillmore, who ran a disastrous campaign as the candidate of the Know-Nothing Party. Yet the newly formed Republican Party did surprisingly well. Frà ©mont received about a third of the popular vote and carried 11 states in the electoral college. All the Frà ©mont states were in the North and included New York, Ohio, and Massachusetts. Given that Frà ©mont was a novice at politics, and the party had not even existed at the time of the previous presidential election, it was a very encouraging result. At the same time, the House of Representatives began to turn Republican. By the late 1850s, the House was dominated by Republicans. The Republican Party had become a major force in American politics. And the election of 1860, in which the Republican candidate, Abraham Lincoln, won the presidency, led to the slave states seceding from the Union.

Sunday, November 3, 2019

Debate notes Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 1

Debate notes - Essay Example At the University of Colorado, football coach Bill McCartney was accused of publicizing his religious views and giving priority in hiring, recruiting, and playing time to individuals sharing his religious attitude. [FN1] While similar practices might have gone unchecked in the past, several recent Supreme Court decisions have limited the days of blind indifference to these rituals. Pre-game prayers are regularly held in public high school and university locker rooms throughout the United States. These rituals are often undertaken without any thought to possible legal consequences because the coach, team, or school have never received any complaints from concerned athletes or parents. However, the Supreme Court has recently limited the various avenues by which prayers can enter into public school activities. [FN2] The First Amendment protects student-athletes by providing them with certain safeguards against state endorsed adherence to a specific religion, most often the coachs religion. This constitutional protection must be balanced against the coachs right to effectively run his or her team without having every word or action scrutinized. The conflict of prayer in a public university locker room centers on the students right to be free from state imposed religious indoctrination and the coachs right to free speech. This conflict can be examined through the eyes of the First Amendments Entanglement, Free Exercise and Free Speech clauses. Courts have yet to specifically address the topic of prayer in a public universitys locker room. Since there are no cases on point, this article will attempt to present the possible legal arguments that would be presented by the two sides of this debate. The players interest in practicing their religion is weighed against a coachs right to motivate his/her team. Both of these rights have to be examined in light of any action undertaken or attributable to the state, and whether those actions constitute endorsement

Friday, November 1, 2019

Hepatitis B Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Hepatitis B - Essay Example There are also two cases of Hepatitis infection. If a person develops the virus later in life there is a higher chance of the person’s body defeating the virus. The virus can take somewhere between weeks and months to clear the body in such cases. The infection can be deadly however, and is most lethal in infants. The disease can also become life threatening if it becomes mixed with different live problems. Currently, there are several different solutions to the virus. Antiviral treatments are available, as well as several different immune system boosters. New antivirals are always under investigation. Vaccines have also been developed in preventing the spread of the disease. Health workers and even some college campuses are now requiring this vaccine. The vaccine has been found to be highly effective, as it greatly reduces the number of viral incidents, as well as reducing the risk of liver cancer. The Hepatitis B virus is a double stranded DNA virus (Hepatitis). When it enters into a host cell, it locates the cell’s nucleus and changes the cell to produce viral proteins. Viral RNA is also produced, and transferred to the cytosol of the cell, where it translates the viral polymerase and core proteins. Using the polymerase protein the RNA is then converted into genomic DNA, and then the mature core particle leaves the cells through normal passageways (Hepatitis). The transfer of this possibly deadly virus happens between fluid contact of people. The virus can be transferred through â€Å"unprotected sexual contact, blood transfusions, re-use of contaminated needles and syringes, and vertical transmission from mother to child during childbirth†(Hepatitis). In low risk areas, drug abuse and unprotected sex are the main forms of virus transfer. In high risk areas however, the passing of the virus from mother is much higher, it can even reach a 90 percent chance of a mother passing the virus to her