Monday, September 30, 2019

A Description of the Issue or Area of Public Concern Raised Essay

Unit 201 Principles of communication in adult social care settings Outcome 1 Understand why communication is important in adult social care settings 1.1 -Create and maintain relationships -To teach and to learn – To share opinions – Feelings and emotions -getting to know each other’s 1.2 Effective communication is essential in building a meaningful relationship between the resident and the carer as it can help build trust and respect. Effective communication is fundamental in regards to the resident’s needs and preferences and to ensure they are met. Effective communication can get positive results. 1.3 In face-to-face communication, the person listening may not always indicate verbally if they have understood or if they agree. Observing body language helps the speaker understand if the other person understand, agrees Outcome 2 Understand how to meet the communication and language needs, wishes and preferences of an individual 2.1 It is important to find out an individual’s communication and language, needs, wishes and preferences to: Enable effective communication, understand what an individual is trying to express, understand an individual’s beliefs, culture, and values. To stop an individual becoming stressed out, frightened or frustrated. To be able to support an individual in their daily life. 2.2 Non-verbal communication: -written words -facial expressions – eye contact – touch – physical gestures – body language – behaviour – gestures – visual aids e.g. flash cards, pictures, symbols Verbal communication: – vocabulary – linguistic tone – pitch Outcome 3 Understand how to reduce barriers to communication 3.1 Barriers may include: – not understanding or being aware of an individual’s needs, wishes, beliefs, values and culture – not making communication aids available or checking they are working – not allowing sufficient time to listen -being dismissive and nonresponsive -a noisy environment -an uncomfortable environment e.g. lighting, temperature – a lack of privacy 3.2 To reduce barriers to communication you have to ensuring the support for individual’s, be available for others. Establishing the individual’s needs, wishes, beliefs, values and culture . Also seeking advice from others. If necessary change the environment. 3.3 At the end of the conversation you can ask the individuals if understand everything you was saying to him. To make yourself sure. 3.4 -Translation services This service can help with changing the written text from one language to another. -Interpreting services This service can help with converting spoken language to another language. -Speech and language services This service can support people who have had a stroke and have problems with their speech. -Advocacy services This service can support people who are unable to speak up for themselves. This service tries to understand the needs, wishes and preferences of people, and will argue on their behalf. Outcome 4 Understand confidentiality in adult social care settings 4.1 Confidentiality means keeping information private and keeping information safe. Passing on private information only with the individual’s permission . Only passing on information without the individual’s permission to others who have a right to it or need to know it. 4.2 If you wants maintain confidentiality you have to be aware of bringing up personal information re: patients/residents. Think before you share information as it may be confidential. Do not share more than is necessary. You have to check the identity of the person before passing on information. Do not discussing personal information about individuals outside of work, you never know who may be listening. 4.3 Sometimes confidential information disclosed by a client may need to be passed on to others: If there is a risk of danger or harm to the client, or other people, if abuse is suspected, or if there is suspected misconduct of a colleague, in respect of care of a client, (Whistle-blowing). You must inform the client why the information needs to be passed on to others, and that it is your responsibility to do so. 4.4 The only time you seek advice when adult has spoken to you in confidentiality is when that person is in danger. For example. If being sexually abused, physically abused, threatening to kill themselves etc.

Sunday, September 29, 2019

The Caused and Effects of Lehman Brothers Bankruptcy

The caused and effects of Lehman Brothers bankruptcy. ? Lehman Brothers was founded in 1850 and it is a diversified investment bank provided financial services for global companies, institutions, governments and investors. Lehman Brothers was one of the most powerful stock and bond underwriters and dealers in the world, and it also as the fourth largest investment bank in the United States before. Because of widely recognized to Lehman’s operational capacity, the company had many world-renowned companies as its customer base such as Dell, Fujitsu, IBM, Intel, Philip Morris, Shell and Wal-Mart [1].Lehman Brothers had faced four collapses before it bankruptcy, one was the stock market crash of 1929, second it had interest rate loss of $6. 7 million in 1973, and then because of Lehman’s internal conflict led to be merger and acquisitions by American Express in 1984, and last one was shortage of funds in 1994. Richard Fuld as Lehman’s CEO from 1993, he led to Lehman Brothers grow up and avoid those four collapses. Even Lehman Brothers was turned the corner in these four collapses; it still declared bankruptcy as a result of $613 billion total debt in 2008 [7].Lehman Brothers went to collapse make lots of impacts on financial markets, the most important reason caused Lehman bankruptcy is under the subprime mortgage crisis and complex financial markets. Before the subprime mortgage crisis of 2007, the U. S. real estate market over the leveraged financing and oil price was increase rapidly, many people in the excessive lending. However, Lehman Brothers had continued business of mortgage bond until the outbreak of subprime mortgage crisis in 2006, Lehman’s asset management, economic services, mergers and securities underwriting business accounted for Lehman's operating income of 40% [2].In 2008, because the subprime mortgage crisis spread to Lehman Brothers, the company suffered a serious hit from the financial losses and caused that stock p rice fell to only a few dollars. In September 2008, the Lehman Brother’s CEO Dick Fuld had experienced the most painful financial crisis in the history of the United States and the company went bankrupt. The Lehman Brothers which had experienced 158 years history toward to end [1]. Also, the collapse of Lehman Brothers brought an unprecedented shock wave for financial market and investment banking. The terrorist attack on 2001, September 11 led to conomic downturn and the stock market depressed, the Federal Reserve decided to continue kept low interest rate to ensure the most of enterprises and publics can achieve loans easier [9]. Due to the public would had more money to be used for mortgages and other spending, Lehman Brother seized the opportunity to develop its business so that Lehman’s profits growth quickly in the second half of 2002. Lehman Brothers’ sales revenue of subprime mortgage raised double of profits in both years 2004 and 2005 [3]. And Lehmanâ €™s present value of subprime mortgage CDO (collateralized debt obligations) investment reached up to $80 billion [5].Lehman Brothers issued two mortgage bonds companies in the United States are BNC and Aurora. These two branches of mortgage bonds and purchased from other companies constituted the CDO package. The worth of CDO could be about hundreds of millions and even billions of dollars to divide for sale to investors around the world. The interest rate of CDO is much higher than the national bonds in the United States and other investments, so Lehman Brother took advantage of sale these bonds to gained large profits. After that, the public began to worried more about future develop of CDOs from Lehman Brothers and other companies.Then, Lehman Brothers shut down one of the mortgage bonds company BNC because of huge losses and this caused the public’s panic of the credit crunch. The public began to suffer a serious mortgage crisis [7]. As a result, the capital losses a nd lack of credit to the banking system, so that no banks willing to lend money unless borrower to pay high interest rate. The banks which involved in this business are worried about losing their money. However, Lehman Brother was still announced good quarterly results even had problems and other investment banks (e. g.JP Morgan Chase, Citibank) had losses. In January of 2008, Lehman Brother reported their earnings shown that highest income up to $4 billion and their capital just $30 billion [2]. At that time their stock price up to $65, but eight months later the price fell to $4 with more than $600 billion debt. Since 2008, Lehman’s stock price had fallen by 60%. Besides, Lehman Brothers had alternative assets about $40 billion such as hedge funds, private equity funds and real estate funds. In May, Lehman Brothers reported that losses in hedge funds but then said they are recovered [11].Because of Lehman’s total debt $613 billion, and then the negotiation with Barcl ays Bank and Bank of America about take over Lehman Brothers was failed on September 14. While at the same time the investment banks gave up to help Lehman Brothers, Lehman’s market value dropped dramatically, these fact forced Lehman Brothers to filed for bankruptcy protection from the U. S. Bankruptcy Court in Manhattan on September 15, 2008 [4]. After filed for bankruptcy, Lehman Brothers exchanged trading at the OTC (Over the Counter) market only $0. 05 per share.Lehman exercised put option to ensure holders could get profit when they buy the stocks as $0. 05 per share and sell for strike price [10]. When the news of the fourth largest bank Lehman Brothers went bankrupt came out, the dollar currency and the U. S. stock index futures was declined at the same time, this indicated that the New York stock market crash in the open market. In order to prevent the open market crash of Lehman Brothers, the U. S. Treasury and the Federal Reserve System made great effort on three d ays to save markets. The investment bank Barclays and Bank of America exited.The Britain's third largest bank Barclays decided to drop out after the government refused to provide financial guarantees to save Lehman Brothers. Then, the bank of America all announced exit the action. Because the government refused to help and no other support, Lehman Brothers final decided to file for bankruptcy protection caused by suffered serious financial crisis[6]. As we can see, there are many factors caused bankruptcy of Lehman Brothers, such as market changes and instability led to systematic risks, the internal problems and risks from Lehman Brothers.The internal problem is one of the most important factors to cause it collapse. As the fourth largest investment bank in the United States, Lehman Brothers more focused on the traditional investment business such as underwriting securities, mergers and acquisitions for a long term. With the rapid development of financial derivatives and fixed inco me products trading, Lehman Brothers strived to expand these businesses and achieved great success. The real estate and credit business develop rapidly after 2000, Lehman Brothers began to involve in these business as other banks [6].However, Lehman Brothers expanded too fast and even in the decline of real estate market in 2007, the commercial real estate bonds of Lehman Brothers still grown quickly. Thus, the rapid growth created more systematic risks for Lehman Brothers. In addition, Lehman Brothers was different from other investment banks like JP Morgan Chase, Bank of America because Lehman had less own capital and its capital adequacy ratio is too low [6]. In order to collected funds to expand business, Lehman had to rely on the bond market and bank lending market.The greater is the leverage ratio when the company borrowing more money from banks, but it has less equity capital. The profit is amplified by the leverage ratio when it makes money, but the loss is enlarging with th e leverage ratio when the company has loss. The lack of funds would be increase the risks for the company when it loss. Moreover, to analyzed the problem of Lehman Brothers’ collapse, it also should be related with the U. S. subprime mortgage crisis and recent financial turmoil intensified from the summer of 2007. In addition, it also considered about the problem of insolvent.Lehman Brother had more than $600 billion bank loans, $155 billion debt securities, and only $639 billion net assets [8]. Besides, the U. S. government took non-interventionism accelerated collapse of Lehman Brothers. As the U. S. government did not make any financial support or warranty to save Lehman Brothers, and leave the market accept the news of the Lehman bankruptcy. The government refused to guarantee Lehman Brothers directly caused many investors to exited, while the Barclays preferred to acquire part of Lehman’s investment business in the United States, this still not strong enough to sa ve Lehman Brothers.Furthermore, the financial markets turmoil around the world should be affect Lehman Brothers, and it also one of a reason affect many companies to left Lehman stocks and bonds whether the U. S. financial institutions or foreign enterprises. Since the market got the news of Lehman Brothers bankruptcy, the Dow Jones Index has dropped nearly 800 points [7]. In short, Lehman Brothers bankruptcy caused the devaluation of investment, cash flow problems and additional losses. Also Lehman financial crisis had a great influence on investors’ directions.Many investors worried about Lehman crisis would be exacerbated the financial crisis and the market prospect is gloomy. Therefore, the Wall Street investment bank Lehman Brothers was collapse in the financial tsunami of 2008. Then on March, 2012, it completed the bankruptcy reorganization and will be to repay debts to creditors. After that, the fourth largest investment bank of the United States has become a historica l. The bankruptcy of Lehman Brothers might impact the entire financial market, the investors worried about the outlook of the U. S. economic and the international oil rices continued to decline. And the investors also concerned that the demand of crude oil and other commodities is likely to fall under the shadow of global recession. At the same time, the risk aversion awareness prompted investors to sell commodities and high risk assets. The U. S. stocks sharply down and European stock markets also had a significant decline. The event of Lehman Brothers gave to the world economic recovery to cast more dark shadows in 2008. References [1] Lehman Brothers Collection. Harvard Business School. Baker Library. Retrieved from http://www. ibrary. hbs. edu/hc/lehman/history. html [2] Sean Hinton. Lehman Brothers (LEHMQ). Wikinvest. Retrieved from http://www. wikinvest. com/stock/Lehman_Brothers_%28LEHMQ%29 [3] Landon Thomas Jr. (July 23, 2003). Market Place; Lehman to Buy Neuberger Berman Fo r $2. 6 Billion. The New York Times. Retrieved from http://www. nytimes. com/2003/07/23/business/market-place-lehman-to-buy-neuberger-berman-for-2. 6-billion. html [4] Lehman Bros files for bankruptcy. (September 16, 2008). Retrieved from http://news. bbc. co. uk/2/hi/business/7615931. stm [5] Lehman Brothers Holdings, Inc.Spector Roseman Kodroff & Willis. Retrieved from http://www. srkw-law. com/areas-of-practice/international/lehman-brothers. html [6] Luigi Zingales. (October 2008). Causes and Effects of the Lehman Brothers Bankruptcy. Retrieved from http://www. scribd. com/doc/11096014/Causes-and-Effects-of-the-Lehman-Brothers-Bankruptcy [7] Lehman Brother. Retrieved from http://en. wikipedia. org/wiki/Lehman_Brothers [8] Kim Sarro & Justin Pak. (November 29, 2008). The Causes for the Collapse of Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc. Retrieved from http://www. articlesbase. om/business-articles/the-causes-for-the-collapse-of-lehman-brothers-holdings-inc-664202. html [9] Lehman Brothers: The last empire of wealth. (December 6, 2011). Retrieved from http://www. stockmarkettoday. cc/lehman-brothers-the-last-empire-of-wealth. html [10] What Happens To Options During Bankruptcy. Option Trading Pedia. Retrieved from http://www. optiontradingpedia. com/what_happens_to_options_during_bankruptcy. htm [11] Hedge funds post biggest losses since Lehman. (June 2010). Retrieved from http://connection. ebscohost. com/c/articles/52970726/hedge-funds-post-biggest-losses-since-lehman

Saturday, September 28, 2019

Capote, Truman. In Cold Blood

Capote, Truman. In Cold Blood Essay Capote, Truman. In Cold Blood Essay. New York: Random House, 1965. 343 pages. Summary. In Cold Blood is the true story of a multiple murder that rocked the small town of Holcomb, Kansas and neighboring communities in 1959. It begins by introducing the reader to an ideal, all-American family, the Clutters Herb (the father), Bonnie (the mother), Nancy (the teenage daughter), and Kenyon (the teenage son). The Clutters were prominent members of their community who gained admiration and respect for their neighborly demeanors. After being introduced to the Clutter family, the reader becomes acquainted with Dick Hickock and Perry Smith. The two were former inmates who met in prison. After their release, the men meet up for what Dick calls Aa perfect emailprotected As it turns out, Dick=s cell mate had worked for the Clutters some years earlier and suggested to Dick that he check into employment at the Clutters= farm because the Clutters were such friendly, kindhearted people. The more Dick learned about the Clutters, the more he considered seeking fast cash as opposed to employment. During the trial in the last chapter of the book, however, Dick admitted that his sexual interest in teenage girls was the most powerful force in his decision to invade the Clutters= home. (Perry stopped him from harming Nancy.) Finally, the killers were identified by Dick=s former cell mate and tracked down in Las Vegas. In the time leading up to their arrest, the reader is offered greater insight into the characters of the two men. Because Perry opposed Dick=s crude behavior and showed compassion for the people Dick intended to harm or slight, we are left to feel a bit of sympathy for him. It becomes tempting to see Dick as the manipulative leader and Perry as the helpless follower. After the suspects were taken into custody, Perry eventually confessed that he had killed Herb, Bonnie, Nancy, and Kenyon tied each of them up, made sure they were comfortable, then shot each of them in the head with a shotgun. In addition, it was Perry who cut Herb=s throat. Though Dick didn=t actually pull the trigger or hold the knife, he shined the flashlight into the faces of the victims as Perry killed them. Both men were found guilty of 4 counts of premeditated murder, and each was sentenced to death. While awaiting their executions, they appealed several times, losing each time, but managing to have their execution dates postponed. They were finally executed (by hanging) in April of 1966. Genre, structure, persona, and style. In Cold Blood is one of the first successful nonfiction novels. Capote takes actual details and events concerning the murders of the Clutter family and weaves them into what sometimes seems like a fictional tale. The manner in which he leads the reader into shock gives the impression that the story has been fabricated with the sole intention of creating such shock. (For example: Throughout the first half of the book, Capote convinces us that Perry is the least evil of the two killers, that he is least capable of inflicting the sort of violence to which the Clutters were subjected. We are given the impression that Dick must be the one who pulled the trigger and cut Herb Clutter=s throat, for he is apparently the boldest, the most brutal, the most heartless of the two. Capote reveals much later in the story, however, that it was actually Perry who killed the four people in the Clutter=s house that night. Such an unexpected twist seems almost fictional, too well-crafted to be true.) We must continue to remind ourselves that the events actually took place that the story is nonfiction, as unbelievable as it may seem at times. READ: Bipolar Disorder EssayCapote tells the story in a way that makes the reader feel like he or she is being told about the characters by a close acquaintance of each individual character. When we aren=t hearing the voices of the characters as they tell their own stories (or being given what seems like their own individual perspectives through narration), we hear, not the voice of an omniscient author, but the voice of a friend who knew the characters well. (ABefore .

Friday, September 27, 2019

Philosophy Paper Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words - 1

Philosophy Paper - Essay Example An in-depth analysis of Aristotle’s criticism of Plato will necessarily reveal that, in some cases, Aristotle has failed to perceive the heart of Platonic concept of ‘form’. In other cases, it seems that Plato himself failed to predict oppositions such Aristotle’s criticisms and, therefore, to add some reasonable tenets to the concept of ‘form’. For example, he could say that Forms are the replications of the One and Oneness, and as the terms, ‘one’ and ‘many’, are meaningless without one another, ‘form’ and ‘particulars’ are meaningless without each other. For human cognitive process, both are simultaneously necessary, though ‘form’ precedes physical reality, as one precedes many. Indeed, these tenets are inherent to the idea of ‘form’ and they need not be invented; rather they need to be discovered. Aristotle’s criticisms themselves have limitations; therefor e, referring to those limitations and proving the effectiveness of the concept of ‘form’ to explain those limitations, Plato could make his theory of ‘form’ more self-sufficient. Plato claims that different ‘forms’ of different physical realities exist prior to the existence of physical realities. For him, the physical realities are the replicas or facsimiles of the ‘form’. He sees it as the ideal essence of the physical existence of things in this world. It is perfect, indivisible, transcendent and immutable. He believes that because of an innate idea of these forms, man can know things as they are. On the other hand, Aristotle complains that though ‘form’, as Plato assumes, exists prior to things’ physical existence, â€Å"Forms arises even of things of which we think there are no Forms† (Socrates 27). He further complains that Plato’s ‘form’ is applicable to static images of things (which he often names ‘substance’); therefore, it is not applicable to dynamic process of things such dissolution, decay, birth, etc. In Aristotle’s own words, â€Å"what on earth the Forms contribute to sensible things, either to those that are eternal or to those that come into being and cease to be. For they cause neither movement nor any changes in them† (Socrates 28). He makes his third criticism on the ground that the ‘substance’, which is concrete also, cannot evolve from the abstract, as he says, â€Å"All other things cannot come from the Forms in any of the usual senses of 'from'† (Socrates 34). Aristotle’s most severe criticism of Aristotle comes in a form of question: â€Å"why should '2' be one and the same in the perishable 2's or in those which are many but eternal, and not the same in the '2 itself' as in the particular 2?† (Socrates 39) Here, he asks that if two different particulars have something in comm on, will there be three forms (two for the two particulars and one for the common feature)? Plato could star his refutation of Aristotle’s criticisms by excavating the inherent limitations of Aristotle’s theory of ‘substance’. According to Plato, â€Å"‘Forms’ are as it were patterns fixed in the nature of things. The other things are copied from the Forms and are similarities.†

Thursday, September 26, 2019

Brain and Physical Injuries Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Brain and Physical Injuries - Essay Example The researchers found that most of the family members were less psychologically distressed. However, people suffering from brain injury had poorer psychological outcomes than their relatives did. The study also found that spouses of patients with brain injury were subjected to trauma and psychological distress. Bell, Kathleen R., Nancy Temkin R., Peter Esselman C., Jason Doctor N., Charles Bombardier S., Robert Fraser T., Jeanne Hoffman M., Janet Powell M., and Sureyya Dukem. â€Å"The Effect of a Scheduled Telephone Intervention on Outcome after Moderate to Severe Traumatic Brain Injury: A Randomized Trial.† Archives of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation 86.5 (2005): 851-856. Print. The authors studied the effectiveness of telephone interventions in counseling and education for brain injury patients. These interventions, coming from home, were compared with the standard follow-ups conducted after one year. The researchers found that constant telephone interventions made patients feel better than interventions that come after a long time. Esser, E., Valencia, E., Conover, S., Felix, A., Tsai, W.Y. and Wyatt, R. J. â€Å"Preventing recurrent homelessness among mentally ill men: a "critical time" intervention after discharge from a shelter.† American Journal of Public Health 87.2 (2007): 256-262. Print. The authors set out to establish strategies that can protect mentally ill persons from becoming homeless. They sought a bridge between community care and mental institutions. They sampled 96 men with severe mental illness, including brain injury and gave them critical care in an institution. The researchers discovered that most of the men longed for home and families despite the good care they received at the institution. The researchers sought to determine the factors that predict family system functioning after one member of the family experiences brain injury. The

How it's hard to leave your country saudi arabia to study in USA Essay

How it's hard to leave your country saudi arabia to study in USA - Essay Example Another difficulty is experienced in line with the curriculum. The curricula of the two countries are very different. One needs to have the basic knowledge of course he wants to study in the USA. Bridging the gap between the two curricula especially where transition is made to advance education presents problems to the learners who are required to gather the basics first before catching up with the other students. Socialization is another problem; shifting to the USA requires one to leave their family, friends and relatives. Being all alone in a country where you are not acquitted to anyone poses a socialization problem especially as guidance is needed to settle. Knowing places in school, churches, and hospitals requires that one be acquitted with others. Making friends becomes a priority from such a person. Cultures are also different. Interacting with people can be difficult when there is a cultural barrier. Some of the things considered to be culturally inappropriate in Saudi Arabia may seem to be a routine in the USA. Saudi Arabia is a very conservative country culturally while the USA is much modernized and has a mixture of many cultures. Coping with the western culture is a big challenge for a Saudi Arabia

Wednesday, September 25, 2019

Creation of a Teaching environment Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2750 words

Creation of a Teaching environment - Essay Example Each learning experience is unique and necessitates different needs, and so they may need a different rubric to address these unique needs of the student. The designing of a rubric can be cumbersome task but at the same time a rewarding and useful experience to nurse educators. Nowadays, health care environment is becoming more complex and diverse. There are an increasing number of patients from at-risk populations as well as an increase in the number of chronic diseases that need to be managed in a community setting. This complex and diverse scenario makes it mandatory on the part of the nurse educators to ensure that their graduates have the skills necessary to be leaders in this healthcare environment (American Association of Colleges of Nursing, 2008). The utilization of innovative strategies will assist the nurse educators to apply various teaching methods to facilitate learning to ensure core competencies attainment amongst the students, as well as during teaching and mentoring newer nurses. (Billings & Halstead, 2009). This paper will examine the core competencies needed by graduates of today’s nursing programs and how nurse educators can facilitate learning and attainment of these competencies needed for safe evidence-based practice. The American Association of Colleges of Nursing (AACN) has formulated nine essentials competencies that graduates should posses by the end of their various nursing program. These competencies are stated in a different manner by the National League for Nursing Accrediting Commission (NLNAC) as well as various other stakeholders of nursing education, but they fully support it. (Billings & Halsted, 2009; The National League for Nursing, 2005). This paper will discuss the core competencies of scholarship for evidence based practice, inter-professional communication/collaboration skills, the use

Tuesday, September 24, 2019

Writing about cultural practices Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Writing about cultural practices - Essay Example Among friends or acquaintances, before parting, they sometimes shake hands as gesture of saying good-bye. For people who have had some misunderstanding, a handshake would mean that everything is ok with them already and that the conflict has been resolved (Kissell , par 6). This social norm of shaking hands has persisted because it is an international norm which is accepted by all races. The handshake has been a mutual sign of goodwill and peace (Haymond , par 1). It is a socially acceptable way of greeting other people in public rather than kissing or hugging. The handshake was believed to have originated as a way of showing that one’s right hand was not carrying any weapon; thus, if two men met and they both show their empty right hands, that means that there exists a level of trust between them (Kissell , par 3). Kissell goes on further to state that the shaking of the hands was supposed to remove any hidden weapon that may be kept in the sleeves. In today’s modern world, the handshake is very difficult to avoid. Some even consider it an insult if the handshake is not accepted (Kissell , par 2). For example, if a person is trying to make amends with another person and he offers his hand and the other person refuses to shake his hand, this would convey the message that one is not accepting the other person’s apology. The norm of shaking hands should be abolished because the world today is exposed to numerous sources of infection and the handshake is one of the most common ways of spreading infection. The handshake makes every person susceptible to be infected (Potty , par 4). Viruses such as AH1N1, Swine flu or Avian flu can easily be transmitted through a hand shake. Although frequent hand washing is always advised, one cannot avoid touching door knobs, grocery carts, elevator buttons, escalator railings, train handrails or money. It has also been a common practice to cover one’s mouth with

Sunday, September 22, 2019

The Internal Chaos Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3500 words

The Internal Chaos - Research Paper Example The workings of the military and the government are to protect the nation from outside attack, secure the places for a life with freedom, and give the ignorance on who are on the right and wrong sides in wars. The real safety will not be achieved fully through sending military volunteers abroad and making treaties with other governments. The real peace and war avoidance lies in the hands of the individuals without relying to the governmental efforts.1 Objective of the Study For the purpose of the study, the focus would be on the American Civil War and the Ku Klux Klan as the history recorded evidences regarding both the event and the group itself. Several discriminations existed as conflicts arose during the Civil War and thorough understanding on the history of both the war and the group would be compared as they coexisted and affected the lives of people in America. Background Information Throughout the history of United States of America, the American Civil War was considered the most expensive war recorded on history of the nation. The battles separated the nation into half and the country received 600,000 deaths and 1,000,000 casualties. The winners were just the few who survived the series of armed fights. The survival of the fittest was inevitable in the Civil War. The devastating effects did not only happen in USA but also felt in the neighboring countries. The war happened as efforts were made to abolish slavery.2 The war started during the time of Abraham Lincoln on April 12, 1861 as the military and the Confederates had an encounter battle in South Carolina. In response to the first encounter battle, Lincoln made a volunteer army to free people... This essay discusses the American Civil War as the most expensive war recorded on history of the nation. The battles separated the nation into half and the country received 600,000 deaths and 1,000,000 casualties. The winners were just the few who survived the series of armed fights. The survival of the fittest was inevitable in the Civil War. The devastating effects did not only happen in USA but also felt in the neighboring countries. The war happened as efforts were made to abolish slavery. The war started during the time of Abraham Lincoln on April 12, 1861 as the military and the Confederates had an encounter battle in South Carolina. In response to the first encounter battle, Lincoln made a volunteer army to free people from slavery. Both the government and the Confederated created their own armies as the war progressed. During the battle in Maryland, the Confederates were defeated at the so-called Battle of Antietam dated September 1862. After such war, the Emancipation Procla mation was released that officially designated slavery as the main war objective. The causes of the civil war were the following: sectionalism, slavery, rights of States, slave power, nationalism, and battle of Fort Sumter and election of Lincoln. The North and South of USA had differences in social structure, culture and economies that caused the civil war to sprout. The differences happened as the North focused on progressive and modernized farms as the South continued to rely on slavery. The removal of slavery caused a great deal of fear in the South as slave revolts. In that case, the government made movements in stopping the spread of slavery.

Saturday, September 21, 2019

How Internet Affects Life Essay Example for Free

How Internet Affects Life Essay Nowadays, the use of Internet is increasing especially among adolescence or more accurately, students. The Internet issue is discussed by the adults and parents. Most of them are worried that the use of Internet is dangerous to their kids. Some others said that Internet may bring benefits to their children especially to those who will be sitting for an examination. On my opinion, Internet has both benefits and drawbacks. First of all, let me talk about the benefits first. As we know, Internet is mostly used by students. By surfing internet, students can visit various websites to assist their studies. The examples of popular websites are tutortv.com , unicliq.com , and tutor.com.my. They can visit the websites and revise their studies in more exciting way. Some of them are free. Students can visit it anytime they want. The websites also provide useful notes and exercises. At the same time, students can get additional information that they cannot find it in books. For instance, they can go to Google or Yahoo search engines to search for more ideas to write an essay. In short, Internet provides vast informations and knowledge which is very beneficial for the students. Next, Internet also provides lots of social networks such as Facebook , Twitter, MySpace and many other. Through these social networks, we can add more friends and make new friends. We can also know friends from other country as these social networks are used internationally. Other than adding friends, we can also strengthen our relationship with our friends and family who are staying far away from us using Skype. We can see them in front of our eyes eventhough they are actually far away from us through web camera. Besides, Internet also offers entertainment. We canwatch videos of our favourite artists by just one click through Youtube website. We can also watch favourite movies without paying. Plus, there are many artists born from Youtube. So, fans can know more about the artists from Youtube. Meanwhile, 4shared.com provides tracks, videos and files that can be  downloaded for free! Internet users can enjoy themselves at anytime watching their favourite artists performance for free. Internet doen not only offersbenefits for students but also to those who want to gain more money. It also provides business opportunities. As for example, mudah.my gives a wide room for surfers to promote anything they want to sell. Through this, people with no job can gain money and support their lives by doing the online business. However, as I said earlier, Internet also brings bad effects to its users. Firstly, it can encourage cyber crimes. Besides that, students who spend too much time on Internet may neglect their studies and do not finish their homework. This should be avoided as studies are important especially to teenagers. Although Internet can add more friends to our list, yet, it still can develop anti-social behaviour. Not all of the users use Internet to make friends, someof them only play video games or just sit down wayching videos on Youtube. They will only sit and ignore what is happening around them. The worst thing is, they may not realise that there is an earthquake out there! This anti-social behaviour may leads to health problems. The users will just stay at home and sit in front of computer and this will cause them to be lazy couch potatoes. It will also lead to obesity. Next, most students will not attracted to surf knowledgeable websites, but wasting their time on other non-beneficial things. Wasting timeon Internet can cause students to neglect their studies. Not only time is wasted but also money. With the uses of more electricity non-stop, utility bills may increase dramatically. We just not pay for the electric bills but also internet monthly bills. The conclusion is, everything has its own benefits and drawbacks. However, it depends on how we are using it. If we spend more time using it for benefits, we will get positive effects. But if we use it more to non-beneficial things, we will get negative effects. So, it depends on you.

Friday, September 20, 2019

History Of The Body Area Networks

History Of The Body Area Networks Abstract In the recent few years there is tremendous advancement especially in the field of integration circuit, small sensors and in the wireless networks.in body area networks (BANs) these devices considerably suitable for integrating in any scenario like health monitoring , in sport, and even in military prospective due to its considerable light weight , low power, and sensing capability. BANs provide cheap, reliable, and scalable system for monitoring daily activities for short to long period of time. But still there are a number of challenges issues like integration of devices, system designing according to the user scenario, security and privacy of the data, modification and social issues must be resolved in order for BANs to become ubiquitous. In our report we discus BANs background, its applications, and relationship. Introduction BANs (Body Area Networks) is a combination of micro and advanced Nano technology components for to improve the speed and accuracy of data recording. Generally BANs consist of small but sensitive sensors and actuators for monitoring and log data, then data sent to base station for storage. Users can access to this data in base station via internet or by other mean. BANs are actually a modern invention and primarily design for health industry (doctor and other staff) to monitor the health status. By taking the benefit of this technology we can monitor much more closely patients with chronic diseases like, asthma and diabetes. Doctor update the patients record quickly and efficiently to store general information of patients health. In United States and other part of Europe, they made different pilot programs to monitoring patients health status. They introduced bracelet with chips and antennas that can used to follow the patient position. They attached antennas on patient cloths to track him in the hospital and it send alert when he begins to collapse. A company is currently working on a project Healthy Aims [1] which focused on body devices that helps millions of people. Body Area Networks take low power radio frequencies (RF) and transfer the data of patients in real time. Doctors are able to monitor and change the setting for specific deployed devices on the body to improve the performance devices as well patient health. Pacemaker devices was produce 1960s have to endure pain and stress of surgery because it setup as a part of the body and send the patient health situation to RF transceiver, where it send directly to the doctor. This time interval always up to date the doctor about patient. By BANs Doctor an d his staff can access to patient record at any time so they dont need to visit the patient or patient dont need to visit the clinic, it is a good method in prospective of save time and money by visiting the clinic many time during the month or weeks. BANs is extremely compact and may be complex by its design, but as the sensor devices are very unassertive and a patient will be able to live a normal life. All sensors have same controlable mechanism like same element, power supply, and wireless transceivers. But they are design in such method that they can self-govern for the entire life [2]. They are designed for the measurement of temperature, movement, and location. Sensor and actuator implanted inside the body and they interact wirelessly each others in BANs and process data is transmitted from implanted devices to external devices. Mechanism of a actuator is like environmental agent. In BANs the data passes through sensor to sensor then sent to it base station where it can be transmitted to recipient via internet. 2 Body Area Networks History History about the body area network is not so old to go back many years to find out some material about BANs, taking advantages of some tiny useful technology in this sense is a new and unique idea. A number of different groups was work on PAN(personal area network) in Massachusett Institute of technology and that later grew out of the work on 1990s. The group actually wanted to get the information by interconnect different appliance on the body and to measure the position of the body by using electric field sensor. The main head for developing Personal Area Networks was Thomas G. Zimmerman. He introduces the new technology that allows the body to act like conductor. There was another name Neil Gershenfeld in that field who was in the Massachusett Institute of technology, incharged of the Media and Physics group. He and his group applied a method near -field coupling to solve the problem of determine the accurate position and its relationship with other parts, by fixing pairs of ante nnas on body part for example elbow and hand, and then run an electric current through them. They learned that as one move the capacitance of the circuit was charged. So they determine the exact position of the antennas after measuring the capacitance. There was a problem in the measurement method that the measurement was no longer accurate if hand was placed between the antennas but it was solved by the Zimmerman. There was actually another group working in the Media lab asked them to develop a network such that all electric gadgets that a person can carry are connected together. Many people carried digital devices around thereself but no one communicate to other.For example a person who has a mobile phone, a pager, a PDA or a digital watch mean all about his person at the same time. They both Zimmerman and Gershenfeld learned that, they can represent 1 or 0s, if they modulated the electric field which flowing through a person body,and allowing the body to carry digital information. At the end they discovered that if they used frequency and power that kept very low then the signal will not propagate far beyond the body. It mean that if devices could detect the signal on the body. This used of current at very low or small amount was unnoticed by anyone before. 2.1 Body Area Network Applications There are many possible application for communication like in the hospital, in patients monitoring system at home (post-operative care), use in a large scale throughout the world. There is also a list of BANs usages in various field like in sport, military, mesh, and in sport fields. Body Area Network Sports Applications In the present sporting arena many different readings are possible to take without having an athlete on a treadmill in a laboratory. It provide the platform to measure various levels during different competition in real life, for example in race, where coaches, need his pi athletes strengths and weaknesses. Body Area Mesh Network Applications The body area network consist of low-power and very reliable sensor networking. The low power usage allows longer life Batteries of motes or Gateways. The mesh network provides high reliability and long range communication. Mesh Networking is much more reliable and much capable of data sending Body Area Network Medical Applications Body Area Networks (BANs) can be used to provide interfaces for diagnostics purposes, in the hospital they used for administration of drugs, aid rehabilitation, and for remotely monitoring human physiological data. And for future prospective in hospital or at home it is used for monitoring the patient continuously and give required medication. So by this way patient need no more in the hospital with connected machines for monitoring. Body Area Network Military Applications Body Area Network has done a tremendous job in the military. So many of the military applications that we can use includes, their locations, health monitoring, their temperature and hydration levels, also very useful to enhance the strength, and many more factors for military prospective. 2.2 Body Area Network Devices 2.2.1 Body Area Network Sensors With rapid improvements in medical research, more and more health sensors have been developed to assist caregivers in monitoring their patients conditions. These sensors have been getting smaller, making it possible for the sensors to be worn or to be implanted into the human body. 2.2.2 Body Area Network Actuators The most significant products by any company would be the actuators. we can express an actuator as a device that transforms or converts energy into motion. Also applied as a force, an actuator usually is a mechanical apparatus that takes energy, normally constructed by liquid, air, or electricity, and converts that into a specific kind of motion. This particular product that would help build effective engineering designs in a safe and efficient manner and easily implemented anywhere according to the requirement. [3] 2.2.3 Body Area Network Devices usages Two main non-computer devices (sensors and actuators) can be used in BANs network. The main function of sensors are to measure human body parameters like temperature, electrocardiogram, heart beats rates and the pressure on the joints, These can be taken insidly or outsidely of the human body. Whereas Actuators have some particular action like to get the information received by the sensors and do work on instruction given by web or PDA. They are as following For monitoring muscle activity we can use an EMG (electromyography) sensor . For monitoring brain electrical activity we can use An EEG (electroencephalography) sensor. For monitoring trunk position we can use tilt sensor (TS). For monitoring respiration we can use breathing sensors. For monitoring heart activity we can use ECG (electrocardiogram) sensor. A sensor for blood pressure. To estimate a users activity we used movement sensors (MS). Description: http://www.sintef.no/upload/BAN.jpg Fig 2: A BAN on an Athlete : http://www.sintef.no/home/Information-and-Communication-Technology-ICT/Instrumentation/Biomedical-Instrumentation/Body-Area-Networks/ . 2.3 Body Area Networking Before implementing the Body Area Network, a number of networking issues need to be solved. In this interferences when a node sends data (after processing) directly to central devices there is direct communication that might causes unnecessary rises of temperature in the tissues, there is another way data is sent through intermediate nodes to the destination by multihop communication. The data might pass to other nodes to the way to PDA if node attached to foot, that mean that at the same time the number of data pathways night exist in the same tissues. Node are like routers but it eliminate internal interference and more energy efficient. In PANs communication IEEE 802.15 standard used which basically sure that all group devices in the design of BANs should work with all togather. 2.4 Body Area Network Software UC Berkley in California is developed Tiny OS (Operating System) which is an open sourse operating system in used wireless embedded sensor network.OS is extremely small in sense of memory and code writing which make it suitable for sensor network where they use minimum memory. The search is going on by using this tiny OS in sensor networks to measure some extra ordinary work . For examples sensor networks that are used to monitor volcanic eruptions and tracking/tracing (for help purposes) of fire fighters in buildings. There is a another option available that is toolkit of MSR network embedded sensors that allow user to perform different actions like process the data, collect data, and also visualise data from sensor network. The search is still going on so let us see which development OS or MSR come fist but till yet both available for free download. 3. Challenges of Body Area Networks (BANs) Body Area Networks (BANs) consists of tiny sensor that actually placed around the body (attached on the skin or on the cloths), which take power from attached battery or from body. In BANs all the nodes communicate collectively to the central node (PDA) or other devices which are connected to the internet so data pass through to a particular person or to a particular application. There are a numbers of challenges still in BANs networks which must be overcome by engineer, they are as following: Power sources of life timer needs to be increased in the sensors networks (SN), or adopt different methods to get energy from other sources like body heat so it also should be perfected. The interaction of the different sensors or nodes and the main node like PDA, that should be designed in such a way that it allow some specialist applications to be written to perform particular functions for example disease management. The device needs to be intelligence in sense of memory and processing capabilities for processing, storing and transferring the data. To give a full and clear picture of human physiology, Sensor need to be integrated Physically, Chemically, and Biologically and the BAN components integrated for reliable and cost effective way. 3. Body Area Network User Cases . Body Area Networks (BANs) technology actually develop biomedical engineering according to the natural byproduct of existing sensors. Actually this technology is suitable for any scenario by its low bound of power and bandwidthHowever,there are many potential to use BAN technology due to its flexibility that is as following, Body Sensor Networks (BSNs) Integration of different mobile devices Different personal video devices (VD) Audio system of wireless (WS). Monitoring system for sport and fitness. Each case have unique requirement in term of bandwidth, power usage, signal distance and for latency. These cases use IEEE 802.15 standard which is use for different working group in wireless personal area networks (WPANs). So they think to use this standard within different devices for inside and around the body.And later they develop the standard for BANs and introduces a long range of possible devices to support this standard. For power balance and data rate the task group gave applications and appropriate devices for development. The figure below describe the comparison between power load and data rate in BANs. Fig (1) comparison between data rate and power.[1] In the above picture as we can see the range of different devices which can be used in BANs in comparison of power consumption and data rate. The table below also give us a full picture of devices that conform to work in a similar set of requirement, according to the demand of user case, yet still encompass a wide range and variety of devices Network setup time (Per device setup time excludes network initialization) Network Density 2 4 nets / m2 Startup Time Power Consumption ~1 mW / Mbps Network Size Max: 100 devices / network Latency (end to end) 10 ms Distance 2 m standard 5 m special use Effective sleep modes Operation in global, license-exempt band Effective sleep modes Peer to Peer, and Point to Multi-point communication Future proof Upgradeable, scaleable, backwards compatible Quality of Service Guaranteed Bandwidth Latency (end to end) [1] http://www1.cse.wustl.edu/~jain/cse574-08/ftp/ban/index.html 6. Zigbee wireless sensor technology ZigBee is the specification of a low-cost, low-power wireless communications solution design to fulfil the needs and requirement of our architecture. ZigBee is of high level Communication protocols using small, low power digital radios bases on the IEEE 802.15.4 standard for wireless personal area Networks (WPANs). The Zigbee protocol standard contains the specifications of the network layer (NWK) and application layer (APL). Inside the application layer, functions are defined separately as the application support sub-layer (APS), the Zigbee device objects (ZDO), the Zigbee device profile (ZDP), the application framework (AF), and Zigbee security services. The comparisons of ISO OSI, TCP/IP, and ZigBee/802.15.4 are shown in the fig below: Fig 6.1.1 Zigbee with OSI Layers. Zigbee builds upon the physical layer and medium access control defined in IEEE standard 802.15.4 (2003 version) for low-rate WPANs. The specification goes on to complete the standard by adding four main components: network layer, application layer, Zigbee device objects (ZDOs) and manufacturer-defined application objects which allow for customization and favor total integration. Besides adding two high-level network layers to the underlying structure, the most significant improvement is the introduction of Zigbee device objects (ZDOs). These are responsible for a number of tasks, which include keeping of device roles, management of requests to join the architecture network, device discovery and security. Fig 6.1.2 Zigbee stack. 4. System Capability Requirements The characteristics of sensor networks and requirements of different applications have a vital role on the network design objectives in terms of network capabilities and network performance. The main design objectives for sensor networks include the following several aspects. Small Node Size:- Reducing node size is one of the primary design objectives of sensor networks. Reducing node size can facilitate node deployment, and also reduce the cost and power consumption of sensor nodes. Low Node Cost:- Reducing node cost is another primary design objective of sensor networks. It is important to reduce the cost of sensor nodes so that the cost of the whole network is reduced. Low Power Consumption:-Power is a major role in any System prospective. Reducing power consumption is the most important objective in the design of a sensor network. Since sensor nodes are powered by battery and it is often very difficult to change their batteries, it is crucial to reduce the power consumption of sensor nodes so that the lifetime of the sensor nodes, as well as the whole network is prolonged. Self Healing:-In sensor networks, sensor nodes are usually deployed in a region of interest without careful planning and engineering. Once deployed, sensor nodes should be able to autonomously organize themselves into a communication network and reconfigure their connectivity in the event of topology changes and node failures. Scalability:-In sensor networks, the number of sensor nodes may be on the order of tens, hundreds, or thousands. Thus, network protocols designed for sensor networks should be scalable to different network sizes. Adaptability:-In sensor networks, a node may fail, join, or move. This result changes in node density and network topology. Thus, network protocols designed for sensor networks should be adaptive to such density and topology changes. Reliability:-For many sensor network applications, it is required that data be reliably delivered over wireless channels. To meet this requirement, network protocols designed for sensor networks must provide error control and correction mechanisms to ensure reliable data delivery. Fault Tolerance:-Sensor nodes should be fault tolerant and have the abilities of self testing, self calibrating, self -repairing, and self recovering. Security:- Sensor nodes are deployed in a hostile environment and thus are vulnerable to adversaries. In such situations, a sensor network should introduce effective security mechanisms to prevent the data information in the network or a sensor node from unauthorized access or malicious attacks. 5. Research Pappers. A number of major operations on Mobilehealth are being conducting all over the world especially in European countries like Sweden, Germany, Spain, and Netherland. It is used to monitor a limited range of condition in patient outside the hospital by the medical personnel. Germany: Telemonitoring of patients with cardiac arrhythmia. The Netherlands: Integrated homecare for women with high-risk pregnancies, Tele trauma team. Spain: Support of home based healthcare services, Outdoor patient rehabilitation. Sweden: Lighthouse alarm and locator trial, Physical activity and impediments to activity for women with RA, Monitoring the vital parameters in patients with respiratory insuffiency, Homecare and remote consultation for recently released patients in a rural area. [3] http://www.mobihealth.org/ But a number of different issues arose as a result of these trials like handover, operator errors, data rate fluctuation, and the most common issue of power supplies insufficient. There are also some other issues like privacy and security (For instance, will the data that is being transferred remain private or is it secure), control and legal issues (may someone send false information to the network ) regarding BANs. If someone tell it to perform some dangerous function like make a patient warm or overdose, or is this legal to inform someone like companies that are interesting about its work weather he/she has weak heart or having any kind of disease in advanced BANs. Lastly some imported functions are operated and controlled by the computer that can be damage or stop working at any stage and the actuators that regulated the flow of certain chemical in the body stop then who is responsible, so these issues need to be address before BANs applied in the daily life routine.

Thursday, September 19, 2019

Essay --

Before Augustus, there was Julius Caesar. Caesar appointed himself as dictator for life in Rome. Caesar declared himself all powerful and had control over the entire government. However, Brutus and Cassius assassinated Caesar because they believed he was becoming too powerful and had created a monarchy. Caesar was the granduncle of Augustus and because of this, Augustus wanted to avoid a connection with Caesar roots in becoming a dictator. Augustus avoided a tyranny and he could eliminate the risk of being assassinated like Caesar. In turn, Augustus put on a facade of seeming as though he was not becoming all-powerful. In order to deceive the government, Augustus denied any attempts that were given to him to take the throne as an authoritarian and continued to do great things for the will of the people, to be seen in a good light. While putting on a disguise for the Senate and the people, he made it seem as though power was in the hands of the Senate, when in actuality, he was consol idating power into his own hands. Augustus was seen as the savior of the people of Rome during the time of starvation. In the Res Gestae, Augustus explains that he declined the offer of being king by the people and the senate; he further states, â€Å"I did not decline at a time of the greatest scarcity of grain the charge of the grain-supply†¦I freed the entire people, at my own expense.† Augustus refused to take the throne because it would make him seem as though he was a dictator, similar to Julius Caesar. Instead, to gain the people’s respect, he entice the Roman people. According to Tacitus, an action of this gratitude was one form of gaining the people trust and keeping the Senate in the shadows of his true plan. Tacitus, though, sheds some negative... ... as though he was, no one could challenge his authority. Augustus persuaded the Roman people and Senate through briberies that he was not all-powerful, but a good person. He wanted everyone to see him as no less than the average Roman person. Through Res Gestae written by Augustus, he shows his lavish gifts and the ways in which he declined the throne a few times to move away from becoming Julius Caesar regiment. However, many people such as Dio Cassius and Tacitus were not fooled by his ways and knew that he had a plan the entire time to have absolute power, similar to that of Caesar. The Senate and magistracies were weaker under Augustus’ rule because he had maintained the Senate powers in his own hands. Due to this, many people did not oppose him. In the end, Augustus formed a monarch and use discretion to not show the people and the Senate of his true tactics.

Wednesday, September 18, 2019

Rape Victims :: essays research papers

Rape Victims Outside in the rain, a young man approached the house. He knew exactly where to go, he had been watching the back door. No one knows how often he had been out there, but he knew exactly where to find the hidden key. It was hidden in a woodpile behind some bushes next to the whit picked fence. He used it to let himself in the back door. He walked through the kitchen, around a corner, up the stairs, past the kids' rooms, and into Ross's bedroom. She'd been asleep for about half an hour, and the movement in the room startled her awake. Her first thought was that one of the children had come to her with a problem. Then she noticed the flashlight held by a tall figure dimly illuminated by a night-light down the hall. "Who are you? What do you want?" She demanded. "My friend is with your children, and he has a gun," the man said. "He'll kill them if you don't do what I want." Ross pleaded with him to take whatever money was there and leave. Her told her not to scream, and when she began to cry, he told her she should stop, because he said "you're a grown woman." He performed oral sex on her, and then raped her. When he had finished, he said to no one in particular, "That was awesome." Then he put a pillow over her face, told her to count to 100, and then he left the house. When she was sure he was gone, she checked the children and found the asleep and unharmed (apparently there had been no accomplice). (Grossman) This is just one of the disturbing situations where an innocent person is made into a victim. Rape is a felony crime in which a person is forced to have sexual intercourse without giving consent. Rape is traumatizing, and has a long lasting effect on how victims cope in society. While most rapes are unreported the number of cases reported in the United States more then doubled between 1970 and 1986. Rape is often motivated by extreme anger toward the victim or a need to overpower the victim. The motive is rarely sexual. Rape is intended to abuse, humiliate, and dehumanize the victim. 50% of all rapists are under the age of 25 and are most frequently with someone the victim already knows.

cloning :: essays research papers

Introduction The possibility of human cloning, raised when Scottish scientists at Roslin Institute created the much-celebrated sheep "Dolly" (Nature 385, 810-13, 1997), aroused worldwide interest and concern because of its scientific and ethical implications. The feat, cited by Science magazine as the breakthrough of 1997, also generated uncertainty over the meaning of "cloning" --an umbrella term traditionally used by scientists to describe different processes for duplicating biological material. What is cloning? Are there different types of cloning? When the media report on cloning in the news, they are usually talking about only one type called reproductive cloning. There are different types of cloning however, and cloning technologies can be used for other purposes besides producing the genetic twin of another organism. A basic understanding of the different types of cloning is key to taking an informed stance on current public policy issues and making the best possible personal decisions. The following three types of cloning technologies will be discussed: (1) recombinant DNA technology or DNA cloning, (2) reproductive cloning, and (3) therapeutic cloning. Recombinant DNA Technology or DNA Cloning The terms "recombinant DNA technology," "DNA cloning," "molecular cloning,"or "gene cloning" all refer to the same process: the transfer of a DNA fragment of interest from one organism to a self-replicating genetic element such as a bacterial plasmid. The DNA of interest can then be propagated in a foreign host cell. This technology has been around since the 1970s, and it has become a common practice in molecular biology labs today. Scientists studying a particular gene often use bacterial plasmids to generate multiple copies of the same gene. Plasmids are self-replicating extra-chromosomal circular DNA molecules, distinct from the normal bacterial genome (see image to the right). Plasmids and other types of cloning vectors are used by Human Genome Project researchers to copy genes and other pieces of chromosomes to generate enough identical material for further study. To "clone a gene," a DNA fragment containing the gene of interest is isolated from chromosomal DNA using restriction enzymes and then united with a plasmid that has been cut with the same restriction enzymes. When the fragment of chromosomal DNA is joined with its cloning vector in the lab, it is called a "recombinant DNA molecule." Following introduction into suitable host cells, the recombinant DNA can then be reproduced along with the host cell DNA. See a diagram depicting this process. Plasmids can carry up to 20,000 bp of foreign DNA. cloning :: essays research papers Introduction The possibility of human cloning, raised when Scottish scientists at Roslin Institute created the much-celebrated sheep "Dolly" (Nature 385, 810-13, 1997), aroused worldwide interest and concern because of its scientific and ethical implications. The feat, cited by Science magazine as the breakthrough of 1997, also generated uncertainty over the meaning of "cloning" --an umbrella term traditionally used by scientists to describe different processes for duplicating biological material. What is cloning? Are there different types of cloning? When the media report on cloning in the news, they are usually talking about only one type called reproductive cloning. There are different types of cloning however, and cloning technologies can be used for other purposes besides producing the genetic twin of another organism. A basic understanding of the different types of cloning is key to taking an informed stance on current public policy issues and making the best possible personal decisions. The following three types of cloning technologies will be discussed: (1) recombinant DNA technology or DNA cloning, (2) reproductive cloning, and (3) therapeutic cloning. Recombinant DNA Technology or DNA Cloning The terms "recombinant DNA technology," "DNA cloning," "molecular cloning,"or "gene cloning" all refer to the same process: the transfer of a DNA fragment of interest from one organism to a self-replicating genetic element such as a bacterial plasmid. The DNA of interest can then be propagated in a foreign host cell. This technology has been around since the 1970s, and it has become a common practice in molecular biology labs today. Scientists studying a particular gene often use bacterial plasmids to generate multiple copies of the same gene. Plasmids are self-replicating extra-chromosomal circular DNA molecules, distinct from the normal bacterial genome (see image to the right). Plasmids and other types of cloning vectors are used by Human Genome Project researchers to copy genes and other pieces of chromosomes to generate enough identical material for further study. To "clone a gene," a DNA fragment containing the gene of interest is isolated from chromosomal DNA using restriction enzymes and then united with a plasmid that has been cut with the same restriction enzymes. When the fragment of chromosomal DNA is joined with its cloning vector in the lab, it is called a "recombinant DNA molecule." Following introduction into suitable host cells, the recombinant DNA can then be reproduced along with the host cell DNA. See a diagram depicting this process. Plasmids can carry up to 20,000 bp of foreign DNA.

Tuesday, September 17, 2019

Polygamy Its Negative Implications and Consequences Essay

Polygamy: Its Negative Implications and Consequences Introduction                     The affinity for human beings to live in pairs is entirely natural. A blissful marriage is characterized by love, respect, and trust. Warmth becomes the motivational drive towards the perfection of life in the present world and thereafter (McMahon, 2010). On the contrary, an unhappy marriage leads to despair and disillusionment and negatively affects the people involved. Defined as the practice or condition of marrying more than one wife at the same time, polygamy has persisted in many cultures world over. In most societies such as Islam, the practice is very much prevalent (Ward, 2010). The sacred books and scriptures contain abundant evidence of the fact that polygamy was indeed practiced by patriarchal prophets Hindus and Jews. In Arabia and the countries adjoining, polygamy, temporary marriages, unrestricted concubinage, and marriages of convenience were highly rife (Jencks and Milton, 2010).  Their effects were reported to be disastrous on the entire social and moral structure. Polygamy remains a common, well-buried secret that is often problematic and still exists throughout many countries to date. It is a more common practice than most people actually realize (Jacobson and Burton, 2011). Thesis Statement: Polygamy has been tried many times in free democratic countries, and it never succeeds. It is not compatible with freedom, equality, and human rights. It always results in child brides and brainwashing. Types of polygamy                     Polygamy as earlier defined is a form of marriage where a person has more than one wife. It generally occurs in two types. The most common is polygyny, where a man marries more than one wife. The less common type, polyandry, is a system of marriage where a woman marries more than one man (Darger, 2011).  In the Islamic culture, the practice of polygyny is highly condoned while polyandry is highly condemned. In ancient times, polygamy existed in the Judaism culture. In the Old Testament of the Bible, Abraham had three wives and Solomon had more than three hundred wives. This practice continued until Rabbi Gershom ben Yehudah issued a decree against it. The Jewish Sephardic communities living in Muslim countries continued the practice until late 1950’s when a ban was extended against marrying more than one wife (Bennion, 2012). In any of these forms, polygamy should be against the law in any religion culture or country. A third type of polygamy exists as polyamory and is often referred to as postmodern polygamy. Polyamory is a relationship of multiple men and women. These relationships may take the form of one man with several female partners, two men with several female partners or several women with no men. Unlike polygamy, polyamory offers more equal opportunities for divorce (Crooks and Baur, 2014). Virtually all polygamous marriages are polygynous in fact. There is no evidence that points to polyamorous relationships being likely to lead to polygyny. As such, polyamory remains problematic for much the same reasons that the current practice of polygamy (Gallichan, 2012). Due to these views, polyamory is not a clearly preferable alternative to polygamy. Practice of polygamyIn his paper, polygamy and non-heterosexual marriages, David Chambers emphasizes that in the country’s history, the most widespread and significant practice of polygamy by far transpired among the Mormons during mid nineteenth century. To them, Mormons believed that polygamous marriages were biblical and approved by God. Polygamy is neither exclusively western nor non-western. Over the ages, Muslims, Hindus and other religious groups have practiced it. However, the number of polygamous marriages is relatively miniature despite cross- cultural presence of polygamy. (Beaman and Calder, 2013).  The standard debate over the permissibility of polygamy has been characteristically pitiable. Proponents argue that in part, married men form relationships with mistresses. These unions involve emotional commitments that are not easily terminated unlike polygamy. In essence, a married man and his mistress are involved in a polygamous relationship. Funny enough, this does not appear to generate much hostility from critics. The New Testament in the Bible never deemed it immoral or inferior to be in a monogamous union. Shockingly, more Americans are practicing polygamy than one might think. Even more horrendous is the fact that more than half of the non- industrialized societies still permit it (Bennion, 2012). It is regarded as deeply sinful to engage in sexual relationships outside the institution of marriage. In Christianity, it is believed a man should not have more than one registered wife with the state. Such an action would violate tax codes and many other legal umbrellas (Ward, 2010). The legal laws in the United States document registered plural marriages and polygamy as illegal and therefore not be practiced (McMahon, 2010). In my opinion, polygamy is disgusting and should not be practiced neither in countries nor in cultures alike. One could easily argue what exactly does polygamy try to prove. That a man can have multiple wives, become unfaithful and get away with it? Imagine the silent anguish that a young naà ¯ve girl of twelve years endures when coerced into marrying a feebly, wobbly looking old man whom she has never seen before. Imagine the grotesque images that come into mind when this girl is forced to bear children until her body become sore due to excruciating labour pains. Imagine the girl being brainwashed and battered for contradicting beliefs held by another man and forced to live with him for her entire lifetime. Now stop imagining. This is the scary would of polygamy that exists in a form not known to many. Such are the cases that continue to r ecur in most countries, especially Africa and Asia. In itself, polygamy is considered a right to a selected few and a bane to majority (McMahon, 2010). Reasons why polygamy is practiced                     Before we look at the negative implications of polygamy, it would be important to understand why the system was and is still practiced to date. To many, this custom serves as a dynamic principle of family survival, growth, security, prestige and continuity (Jacobson and Burton, 2011).  One of the main reasons polygamy was practiced is that several wives were seen as a symbol of wealth, power and influence in traditional African societies for many centuries. Secondly, it was important for a man in traditional society to continue his family name into future lineages (McMahon, 2010). Marrying many wives ensured that the husband would have many male children to carry on his name. It also meant that one would be remembered and honored long after their death through his children and grandchildren (Jacobson and Burton, 2011). In the agricultural perspective, many wives meant that one would have necessary laborers for farming, taking care of livestock and performing all household chores. This was coupled with provision of help when necessity arose. A larger family was symbolic of strength and unity. It was also seen as a way to maintain happiness and add meaning to life. Having many wives was also a route of keeping the man from being amorous. The reason was that most wives denied their husbands conjugal rights after childbirth for up to two years. Hence, having an additional wife meant the husband would not be unfaithful (Jencks and Milton, 2010). For the husband, having many wives meant he would get many daughters from them. This contributed to a significant increase of his wealth through bride price at the time of his daughters’ marriage. In most traditional African societies, it was considered a vice for a woman to lack children especially in marriage (Jencks and Milton, 2010). It was for this reason that most African women preferred to have a co-wife than remain single in ridicule. As such, polygamy solved the problem of single parenthood. It also offered women the security and dignity required for self-realization. Finally yet importantly, polygamy resulted through the ancient tradition of wife inheritance. The death of a husband whose wife had not passed childbearing age qualified for wife inheritance. The brother of the deceased was obliged to marry his brother’s widow (Beaman and Calder, 2013). All the above reasons applied in traditional African societies. However, in the contemporary world today, most of these practices have been overtaken by time and can no longer be practicable. Negative implications of polygamy                     Effects on women in polygamous marriages.In my view, polygamy is a way of life that should not be allowed in society due to its negative implications. Primarily, it creates male dominated marriages where the woman is left voiceless in the whole setup. Secondly, it forces women into subordinate roles and results in unworkable families full of strife, abuse and incest (Ward, 2010).  Polygamous families usually live in isolated communities that are totally unaffected by the outside world. The seclusion of these towns raises eyebrows concerning security, safety and health of the town dwellers, state law enforcers, federal laws and the country at large (Beaman and Calder, 2013).   It can therefore be argued women face greater risks in polygamous marriages. The standard argument remains that polygamy subordinates women and fails to treat the latter as equals with men. Some scholars argue that the state should not take interest in voluntary family arran gements (McMahon, 2010). The reason behind it being that it would illegitimately endorse one comprehensive doctrine over others. To them, an unjust family arrangement is one that undermines the equality of women and fails to recognize that wives are equal citizens with their husbands. As such, polygamy is a structural inegalitarian practice that subjects women to higher risks of harmful effects compared to men (McMahon, 2010). It is for this reason that polygamy should be forbidden since it denies women the liberty, rights and opportunities available to men. In essence, polygamy represents an unjustified asymmetry of power between men and women and in my opinion should therefore be banned. Overpopulation in affected countriesIn sub-Saharan Africa, the culture of polygamy has contributed to explosive population growth since the early 1950’s (McMahon, 2010). By exposing almost all women to early and prolonged dangers of pregnancy, polygamy results in high fertility rates of between seven and nine children in these countries. The introduction of low-priced and effective healthcare and sanitary technology from developed countries is also a contributing factor (McMahon, 2010). The control of sexually transmitted infections becomes overly difficult in the practice of polygamy (Beaman and Calder, 2013).   Take for instance a man who has five wives under his wing. He will engage in sexual relations with all of them and since he is married to all, using protection becomes inconsequential. If either the man or one of the wives is suffering from a sexually transmitted disease, every other participant in the fold is at risk of contracting it. In a study conducted in Nigeria, West Africa, it was found that those men in the survey had more than three or more wives (Beaman and Calder, 2013).  This meant that they were more likely to engage in extra-marital sex and were at higher risk of contacting sexually transmitted diseases and infecting their wives. This proves women were at higher risk from men with three or more wives both as their wives and as extramarital sex partners. As a form of behavior, Christian missionaries and Eurasian societies consider polygamy morally wrong. Well-read Christian-African elites in sub Saharan Africa believe polygamy is backward, bush and barbaric behavior (Jencks and Milton, 2010).   To outsiders, polygamy is a highly undetestable social system whose origin is traced back to pre-colonial times. In addition, polygamy often coincides with crimes that target women and children such as incest, sexual assault, statutory rape and failure to pay child support (Jencks and Milton, 2010). Marital dissatisfaction                     Another argument against polygamy is that more often than not, it is likely to present harmful effects especially towards the women and children. Women in polygamous marriages are at higher risk of having low esteem issues, depression and constant worry compared to women in monogamous relationships. Studies have also revealed these women enjoy less marital satisfaction and more problematic mother-child relationships (Bennion, 2012). Additionally, women in polygamous marriages are prone to depression when they become pregnant since their husbands divert their sexual attention to the other wives. These women are typically subservient to their husbands who only value them for the childbearing role. Consequently, polygamous women are left devoid of any powers to exercise any control of the marriage. This buds into feelings of powerlessness and emotional turmoil (Bennion, 2012). Several studies also show that only a small fraction of women in polygamous marriages work outside the home (Ward, 2010).  Most of them lack the mandate or ability to seek employment. Research on polygamy amongst the Arabs revealed that first wives are inferior to junior and subsequent wives. They experienced more economic hardships and less satisfactory relationships with their husbands. Some scholars also noted that polygamous marriages caused harmful psychological effects on a number of first wives (Ward, 2010). This caused most of them to seek mental health treatment and psychiatric outpatient services. Several of these psychological disorders seen widely among first wives included anxiety, depression and somaticized symptoms (Ward, 2010). It has also been shown that first wives and teachers described relationships with husbands and fathers as neglectful. This showed a lack of interest and minimal interaction with them and their children. This caused them to suffer adverse effe cts from the polygamous union. On the contrary, junior wives were highly favored by their husbands. They were allowed to obtain more economic resources and support. Effects on children from polygamous familiesResearch indicates that children from polygamous families are at heightened risks of developing harmful effects. There is considerable evidence that points to these children experiencing higher incidence of marital conflicts, family violence and disruptions than do children of monogamous families (Jacobson and Burton, 2011). Moreover, children from polygamous backgrounds are more likely to develop behavioral and socializing problems. The same problems are also reflected in their performance in school. Most teachers unanimously agreed that problems faced by polygamous children are somewhat similar (Jacobson and Burton, 2011).These include disobedience, hyperactivity, repeated lying to a teacher or person in authority, sibling fights, enuresis and stuttering. Their levels of academic achievement were also below average. Polygamous children displayed inability to concentrate in class, had low attendance, incompletion of homework, maladjustment to classroom procedures, peer and teacher relational problems (Jacobson and Burton, 2011). On the other hand, situational problems are likely to arise such as higher number of siblings, higher number of parental figures, absence of the father figure, competition and jealousy of family members over resources and emotional relationships with the father (Bennion, 2012). In addition, living areas were often crowded and economic resources taxed to the limit due to the high number of dependants. These children do not grow up to experience the parental love that is overflowing in monogamous systems (Bennion, 2012). Such children will be tempted to resort to other avenues to compensate the missing love. It is then that they find themselves trapped in the world of crime, adultery and other social vices. Children from polygamous marriages are more susceptible to drug abu se (Bennion, 2012). Adolescent males in these unions were found to fair much worse than those from monogamous marriages. This was attributed to exposure to a chaotic life where the child is responsible for protecting his mother and sisters from dysfunctional stressors of living in a polygamous household (Ward, 2010). Children often become defensive of their own families and display resentment and anger towards the other sub-family. In times of discord, most of the senor wife’s children side with their mother over the biological father. The reason for this is obvious; loyalty to their mothers, half-sibling rivalry and jealousy in equal measure. However, the father and his tribe have expectations that they would side with. This has caused man of the children significant confusions with their boundaries and loyalties alike (Ward, 2010). Effects on polygamous men                     Men in polygamous marriages have been linked to several negative effects. To start with, men are more likely to suffer from alcoholism, which can arise due to psychological problems (Jencks and Milton, 2010).   Secondly, men in polygamous marriages in most times fall short in terms of education achievements compared to their monogamous counterparts. This suitcase of evidence is substantial enough to believe there is a prima facie case of polygamy being linked to adverse effects. Though this effects impact upon all members of a polygamous family, women are at higher risk (Jencks and Milton, 2010). One proposed argument defines polygamy as a structurally unequal practice. This inequality lies in the fact that polygamy as practiced today normally permits men to marry many wives while the vice versa is highly critiqued. The most convincing argument against polygamy is that men are permitted plural marriages while women are not (Jencks and Milton, 2010).   This asymmetry of power is blatantly unacceptable. Structural inequality raises concerns with other issues that affect women. The argument continues to state that asymmetry of power plays a crucial role in the theme of sexual harassment. Polygamy represents asymmetry of power between man and women, which is simultaneously linked, to male domination of women (Jencks and Milton, 2010). These reservations against polygamy are conditional upon the justification of unequal status of women. If women shared equal opportunities to marry more than one husband, then the asymmetry of power might be broken. Essentially, if there were a sex-equal polygamy that respected the consent of men and women equally, such polygamy would be justified (Beaman and Calder, 2013).While there may be structural asymmetries in the system of polygamy, the unequal status of women would be in existence together with other contributory facts. Polygamous marriages need not entail unequal status quo for women. It remains objectionable therefore for polygamy to be reserved only for men, consent notwithstanding (Beaman and Calder, 2013). In the contemporary liberal society, civil marriages that fail to assign equal importance to consent of all spouses are not tolerated. They are also rejected if they do not offer the exit option of divorce to either spouse (Beaman and Calder, 2013).Polygamy is thus un justified because spouses lack equal options to divorce. In critical view of all these parameters, polygamy is not justified regardless of whatever ground. This asymmetry of power exists whether the polygamous marriage is polygynous or polyandrous (Beaman and Calder, 2013). Polygamy also discriminates against non-heterosexuals. All forms of it presuppose that polygamous marriages are heterosexual marriages. If we were to defend polygamy, then we would have to make available opportunities that would include heterosexuals and exclude non-heterosexuals. Human beings must be able to exercise several capabilities including the capability of affiliation (Jencks and Milton, 2010). However, this capability forbids discrimination on basis of sexual orientation. Hence, polygamy violates the capability of affiliation as it discriminates based on sexual orientation in excluding non-heterosexuals. This paper has highlighted many issues about polygamy, its origin, pros, and cons. The main purpose of the essay was to examine the negative effects of polygamous marriages in society. Limited defences of polygamy have been highlighted throughout this report. Most of the defences do not hold water in the current day and age. In the first place, polygamy is a structurally inegalitarian practice in fact. This article has provided prima facie evidence those polygamous marriages subject women to a greater risk of harmful effects. Furthermore, I have argued that polygamous marriages are most often polygynous marriages. Therefore, women lack the equal opportunity of men to form polygamous marriages with multiple partners of the opposite sex in practice. The second ground is that polygamy is a structurally inegalitarian practice in theory. I have argued that polygamy not only threatens the equality of men and women in fact,  but also the equality of polygamous marriage partners as the  latter have asymmetrical opportunities to divorce. Additionally, the findings nonetheless associate polygamous family structures with somatic complaints among senior wives, family dysfunction between the sub-families and within the senior wife headed sub-family. Economic deprivation within the senior wife headed sub-family is also rife coupled with behavioral and scholastic problems among senior wives’ children. Moreover, the children’s behavioral problems are noted and correlate polygamy with behavioral problems, sibling rivalries and drug abuse. However, every right needs to be guaranteed by law. It is therefore necessary that the right to polygamy be reviewed and revised accordingly. Harsh and more stringent laws should be enforced on those found practicing polygamy since it is considered illegal in most states. Justice is only possible when people have access to the judicial system, thus it is necessary that family courts be established at the provincial and district level to address issues such as polygamy. Religious scholars and clerics, consider the huge responsibility that they have towards increasing the Islamic knowledge of public and informing them on their Islamic obligations. They should consider it their duty to explain the philosophy and rational of polygamy to the community and should prevent men from polygamy. Women are the principle victims of polygamy. They must learn more about their religious and human rights mainly when it comes to family rights and issues related to polygamy. It is only at such a time that this knowledge and awareness and practicing their rights will close the way for unjustifiable marriages of their husbands. Building the capacities and economical empowering of women is considered the main method of fighting this vice. Economical empowerment will help women to resist against the new marriages of their husbands. Thus, it is required to search areas for capacity building and economical empowerment of women through their own efforts and with the collaboration of government and other responsible organs and to implement specific programs in this regard. Children are amongst the most vulnerable in polygamous systems. The psychological effects of discrimination and injustice between children of wives cause problems in the process of their normal growth. Specific research has been done on the psychological effects of polygamy on children and illustrated the dimensions of the forthcoming effects. Awareness might be raised via the local media, religious leaders, and the formal and informal education systems. Such awareness may lead to public discussions about the benefits and the economic and psychological burdens of polygamy. Thereby, this will enhance the ability and the freedom of individuals in the community to choose their own ways of family life. Programs should be developed to assist women and children in polygamous families to cope with the difficulties in their lives. For those already in polygamous marriages, a support group for wives could be offered in the community. In such groups, women can share their feelings and find ways to overcome pain and conflicts. Children in polygamous families can be supported through the school system and via after-school programs. In addition, social practitioners and family therapists should develop methods of intervention with polygamous families, possibly adapting concepts and techniques taken from both family therapy and group work. All members in the family could learn how to negotiate for attention and resources, how to compromise, and how to build a successful small. Beyond counseling, for the well-being of the family as a whole, it is crucial that concrete assistance be provided where it is needed in the form of financial benefits, school materials for the children, food aid, and health care. Both men and women in polygamous families should be helped to acquire marketable skills and to enter the job market, which would give them both a modicum of financial independence and some sense of empowerment. Conclusion                     In conclusion, the effects of polygamy in family, society to the country have been shown to be diverse. It is clear for many particularly men that there are positive aspects of leading a polygamous life. For the remaining many, polygamy remains a stubborn lesion that results in sadness, depression, confusion, resentment, loss of identity and love. It is therefore not surprising to realize that women and children oppose this type of family life and wish to form monogamous families in the future. Moreover, members of the family do not succeed in overcoming their anger, jealousy, and antipathy. It has also been highlighted how intergenerational suffering in the form of disengagement, fighting, emotional turmoil, and interrelational conflicts are prevalent. It is important that community awareness of these potential negative effects of polygamy be elevated and addressed urgently. References Bennion, J. (2012).  Polygamy in primetime: Media, gender, and politics in Mormon fundamentalism. Waltham, Massachusetts: Brandeis University Press. Crooks, R., & Baur, K. (2014).  Favourite Wife. Escape from polygamy. Darger, J. (2011).  Love times three: Our true story of a polygamous marriage. New York: Harper One. Gallichan, W. M. (2012).  Women under polygamy. London: Holden & Hardingham. In Beaman, L. G., & In Calder, G. (2013).  Polygamy’s rights and wrongs: Perspectives on harm, family, and law. Jacobson, C. K., & Burton, L. (2011).  Modern polygamy in the United States: Historical, cultural, and legal issues. Oxford: Oxford University Press. Jencks, E. N., & Milton, D. (2010).  The history and philosophy of marriage, or, Polygamy and monogamy compared. S.l. : Born Again Pub. McMahon, K. (2010).  Polygamy and sublime passion: Sexuality in China on the verge of modernity. Honolulu: University of HawaiÊ »i Press. Ward, P. (2010).  Family law in Ireland. Alphen aan den Rijn, The Netherlands: Kluwer Law International. Source document

Monday, September 16, 2019

Definition of a Business Essay

Fuzzy Dice, Inc. manufactures and distribute novelty items. Fuzzy is having a great demand on their products and are holding a large amount of cash on its balance sheet. In the same area are other manufacturing companies, among them Tiny Toys LLC, a children’s toy manufacturer. Tiny has been having financial troubles and recently filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. Fuzzy is interested in Tiny’s manufacturing facility, location and capabilities. Tiny’s manufacturing equipment is operational; they don’t have any goodwill, but have some intangible assets. Since, Fuzzy is holding so much cash they decided to buy Tiny’s and are in the final stages of the transaction. The Company is not certain in how to use Tiny’s facilities. They will either: a. continue to use the facility to manufacture toys or b. renovate the factory in order to expand their current operations. Issues: Fuzzy is having trouble determining how they should record the transaction. There are three scenarios: -Operate the factory in its current capacity to manufacture toys. -Refurbish the factory to manufacture novelty items. -Structure the acquisition through its French subsidiary, which issues stand-alone financial statements under IFRS. For each scenario they should determine if they would record the transaction as an acquisition of a business or acquisition of an asset. Research: Asset acquisition: The purchase of a company by buying its assets instead of its stock. An asset acquisition strategy may be used for a takeover or buyout if the target is bankrupt. Market knowledge, research and experience are important to a successful asset acquisition strategy. In some cases, a plan for selling the asset, called asset disposition, is built into the asset acquisition strategy. Bankruptcy proceedings represent an opportunity for a company to implement an asset acquisition strategy. By taking advantage of one company’s distressed position, another company can purchase  assets like equipment and machinery for its own business at reduced prices. Business Combination: A transaction or other event in which an acquirer obtains control of one or more businesses. Transactions sometimes referred to as true mergers or mergers of equals also are business combinations. If a business combination occurs because of a bankruptcy reorganization or troubled debt restructurin g under fresh start accounting, the purchase consideration should take into account the value of the restructured debt. In these cases the original book value of the debt will likely differ from its fair value. Business (ASC 805): An integrated set of activities and assets that is capable of being conducted and managed for the purpose of providing a return. This definition is broad and can result in many transactions qualifying as business combinations when they are actually only asset acquisitions. When determining if a set of assets and activities is a business, the relevant factor is whether or not the integrated set is capable of being conducted and managed as a business and not if the seller operated the set as a business or if the acquirer intends to do so. Unless there is evidence to the contrary, any set of assets that includes goodwill is assumed to be a business. However, the existence of goodwill is not required to meet the definition of a business. If the acquired assets are not a business, the acquirer will account for the transaction as an asset acquisition. The definition goes on to explicitly discuss mergers of equals. A change of control can occur without the exchange of co nsideration or even without the acquirer holding any ownership interest. The acquisition date is defined as the date the acquirer obtains control of the acquiree, regardless of the legal date of the transfer or the date the consideration is transferred. If a business combination is affected primarily by transferring assets or by incurring liabilities, the acquirer is usually the entity that transfers the assets or incurs the liabilities. If a business combination is affected by transferring equity interests, the acquirer is usually the entity that issues its equity interests. However, in some business combinations, commonly called reverse acquisitions, the issuing entity is the acquiree. In a reverse acquisition the legal acquirer is defined as the acquiree for accounting purposes. 55-4 A business consists of inputs and processes applied to those inputs that have the ability to create outputs. Although businesses usually have outputs, outputs  are not required for an integrated set to qualify as a business. The three elements of a business are defined as follows: a. Input. Any economic resource that creates, or has the ability to create, outputs when one or more processes are applied to it. Examples include long-lived assets (including intangible assets or rights to use long-lived assets), intellectual property, the ability to obtain access to necessary materials or rights, and employees. †¨ b. Process. Any sy stem, standard, protocol, convention, or rule that when applied to an input or inputs, creates or has the ability to create outputs. Examples include strategic management processes, operational processes, and resource management processes. These processes typically are documented, but an organized workforce having the necessary skills and experience following rules and conventions may provide the necessary processes that are capable of being applied to inputs to create outputs. Accounting, billing, payroll, and other administrative systems typically are not processes used to create outputs. †¨ c. Output. The result of inputs and processes applied to those inputs that provide or have the ability to provide a return in the form of dividends, lower costs, or other economic benefits directly to investors or other owners, members, or participants. Identifying a Business Combination Classifying or Designating Identifiable Assets Acquired and Liabilities Assumed in a Business Combination 25-6 At the acquisition date, the acquirer shall classify or designate the identifiable assets acquired and liabilities assumed as necessary to subsequently apply other GAAP. The acquirer shall make those classifications or designations on the basis of the contractual terms, economic conditions, its operating or accounting policies, and other pertinent conditions as they exist at the acquisition date. 25-7 In some situations, GAAP provides for different accounting depending on how an entity classifies or designates a particular asset or liability. Examples of classifications or designations that the acquirer shall make on the basis of the pertinent conditions as they exist at the acquisition date include but are not limited to the following: a. Classification of particular investments in securities as trading, available for sale, or held to maturity in accordance with Section 320-10-25 b. Designation of a derivative instrument as a hedging instrument in accordance with paragraph 815-10-05-4 c. Assessment of whether an embedded derivative should be separated from the host contract in accordance with Section 815-15-25 (which is a matter of classification as this Subtopic uses that term). Identifiable Intangible Assets 25-10 The acquirer shall recognize separately from goodwill the identifiable intangible assets acquired in a business combination. An intangible asset is identifiable if it meets either the separability criterion or the contractual-legal criterion described in the definition of identifiable. Additional guidance on applying that definition is provided in paragraphs 805-20-25-14 through 25-15, 805-20-55-2 through 55-45, and Example 1 (see paragraph 805-20-55-52). For guidance on the recognition and subsequent measurement of a defensive intangible asset, see Subtopic 350-30. 05-4 Paragraph 805-10-25-1 requires that a business combination be accounted for by applying what is referred to as the acquisition method. The acquisition method requires all of the following steps: a. Identifying the acquirer b. Determining the acquisition date c. Recognizing and measuring the identifiable assets acquired, the liabilities assumed, and any noncontrolling interest in the acquiree d. Recognizing and measuring goodwill or a gain from a bargain purchase. †¨ 805-10-25-1 An entity shall determine whether a transaction or other event is a business combination by applying the definition in this Subtopic, which requires that the assets acquired and liabilities assumed constitute a business. If the assets acquired are not a business, the reporting entity shall account for the transaction or other event as an asset acquisition. An entity shall account for each business combination by applying the  acquisition method. Accounting After Acquisition 35-1 After the acquisition, the acquiring entity accounts for the asset or liability in accordance with the appropriate generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP). The basis for measuring the asset acquired or liability assumed has no effect on the subsequent accounting for the asset or liability. Recognition Principle 25-1 As of the acquisition date, the acquirer shall recognize, separately from goodwill, the identifiable assets acquired, the liabilities assumed, and any noncontrolling interest in the acquiree. Recognition of identifiable assets acquired and liabilities assumed is subject to the conditions specified in paragraphs 805-20-25-2 through 25-3. 55-2 Paragraph 805-10-25-1 requires an entity to determine whether a transaction or event is a business combination. In a business combination, an acquirer might obtain control of an acquiree in a variety of ways, including any of the following: a. By transferring cash, cash equivalents, or other assets (including net assets that constitute a business) †¨ b. By incurring liabilities c. By issuing equity interests d. By providing more than one type of consideration e. Without transferring consideration, including by contract alone (see paragraph 805-10-25-11). 55-3 A business combination may be structured in a variety of ways for legal, taxation, or other reasons, which include but are not limited to, the following: a. One or more businesses become subsidiaries of an acquirer or the net assets of one or more businesses are legally merged into the acquirer. †¨ b. One combining entity transfers its net assets or its owners transfer their equity interests to another combining entity or its owners. †¨ c. All of the combining entities transfer their net assets or the owners of those entities transfer their equity interests to a newly formed entity (sometimes referred to as a roll-up or  put-together transaction). †¨ d. A group of former owners of one of the combining entities obtains control of the combined entity. 55-5 To be capable of being conducted and managed for the purposes defined, an integrated set of activities and assets requires two essential elements—inputs and processes applied to those inputs, which together are or will be used to create outputs. However, a business need not include all of the inputs or processes that the seller used in operating that business if market participants are capable of acquiring the business and continuing to produce outputs, for example, by integrating the business with their own inputs and processes. FRS 3 Business Combinations outlines the accounting when an acquirer obtains control of a business (e.g. an acquisition or merger). Such business combinations are accounted for using the ‘acquisition method’, which generally requires assets acquired and liabilities assumed to be measured at their fair values at the acquisition date. Alternatives: Fuzzy Inc should determine how they will account for the transaction with Tiny Toys if either as an acquisition of assets or as a business combination. Conclusion: Using FASB’s ASC 805 definition of Business combination and acquisition of assets is hard to choose one alternative. The definitions are broad and can result in different interpretation on how to account for the transaction in the Balance Sheet, but I think the one that suits best the transaction is acquisition of assets. As guidance, I used ASC 805-05-4 Paragraph 805-10-25-1 that says: requires that a business combination be accounted for by applying what is referred to as the acquisition method. The acquisition method requires all of the following steps: a. Identifying the acquirer b. Determining the acquisition date c. Recognizing and measuring the identifiable assets acquired, the liabilities assumed, and any noncontrolling interest in the acquiree †¨ d. Recognizing and measuring goodwill or a gain from a bargain purchase. †¨ 805-10-25-1 An entity shall determine whether a transaction or other event  is a business combination by applying the definition in this Subtopic, which requires that the assets acquired and liabilities assumed constitute a business. If the assets acquired are not a business, the reporting entity shall account for the transaction or other event as an asset acquisition. In addition, manufacturing equipment and trucks are functional, but the case doesn’t mention anything about other type of assets necessary (e.g computers) for the operation of the business. This means that if Fuzz is in the intention of using the facilities as Business they will not be able to meet the three elements of a business: input, process, output. Fuzz probably is using the bankrup tcy of Tiny as a strategy for acquiring needed assets and good stand geographical facility in a good price. Also, Fuzzy is not assuming any liability from Tiny. Questions 2 and 3 will be answered by acquisition of assets, considering the information above. None of these two scenarios represent a business combination since neither of them can operate as a business. In case of question 1, is more difficult to determine how to account for it. Fuzz in the position to account for it in either one of the possibilities since the definitions presented are vague in structure and cannot be taken into account to conclude one straight answer. 1. If Fuzzy decides to operate the factory in its current capacity to manufacture children’s toys, should the transaction be accounted for under ASC 805 as an acquisition of a business or an acquisition of assets? 2. If Fuzzy decides to refurbish the factory to manufacture novelty items, would this affect its assessment of how to account for the transaction under ASC 805? 3. If Fuzzy decides instead to structure the acquisition through its French subsidiary, Dà ©s Floue Inc., which issues stand-alone financ ial statements under IFRSs, should the transaction be accounted for differently under IFRSs with regard to whether it should be deemed as an acquisition of a business or a group of assets?