Cyanide Mining essays

Cyanide Mining essays On January 30, 2000, Aural Gold Plant, in Romania, spilled an estimated 3.5 million cubic feet of cyanide-contaminated waste into the Tisza River, eventually poisoning the Danube and infecting over 250 miles of rivers in Romania, Hungary, and Yugoslavia. The spill was described by Hungarian officials as Europes worst environmental disaster since the 1986 nuclear accident at Chernobyl. The Washington Post reported on Tuesday, February 15, 2000, that The cyanide spilled when heavy snow and winter rain caused holding basin[s] to overflow at the mine in northwestern Romania on the border with Hungary. A representative from Esmeralda Exploration Ltd., the Australian co-owner of the Aural Gold Plant, claimed that estimates of the damage were grossly exaggerated while the Serbian minister of forestry and water resources warned riverside residents east of Belgrade to not use the water for anything. It is unknown exactly how much damage the Aural Gold spill caused to the Tisza river syst em, though Branislav Blazic, environment minister of Serbia, commented that the Tisza is dead. This example so thoroughly denounces the safety of cyanide mining that it seems absurd that Montanans would even consider reversing the decision of I-137 and allow more cyanide to be carelessly dumped into Montanas waterways. It is not a far-fetched idea that allowing cyanide mining back into Montana will result in spills of contaminated waste given the cyanide mining industrys track record. At the Zortman-Landusky Mine 52,000 gallons of cyanide solution spilled over the course of the mines operation, poisoning the freshwater supply of Zortman, Montana. A truck carrying 2 tons of sodium cyanide crashed into the Barskoon River in Kyrgystan at the Kumtor Gold Mine causing 2600 reported poisonings and four deaths. The Cyanide Leach Mining Packet, published by D.C. based Mineral...

Writing effective marketing materials, Medtech Business - Emphasis

Writing effective marketing materials, Medtech Business Writing effective marketing materials, Medtech Business Medical technologies may cross language barriers, but words are the building blocks of a marketing message. Rob Ashton of Emphasis explains how mastering writing skills can help you target and influence the right people. Your company has created an exciting medical innovation. Lets say its a new technology that replaces faulty heart valves without the need for open-heart surgery. Its been patented and is ready to take the world by storm. Not only will it save lives, in the long run it will also save hospitals considerable time and money. The technology may be impressive, but convincing the relevant decision-makers to buy the product is easier said than done. As you know, healthcare is a fast-moving area and your innovation will be fighting for attention with the scores of new products, techniques and studies released every day. Your sales team will be promoting the benefits of the product in sales presentations and one-to-one meetings. You can pave the way by creating compelling marketing materials that will generate interest even excitement before those meetings take place. But simply making such material available wont guarantee that your message is heard. Most managers have a stack of reports, letters and e-mails to wade through on a daily basis. Reading a leaflet or letter on a new heart surgery technology may be the least of their priorities. Thats why your marketing materials need to be carefully crafted. They need to be written in language that prompts your reader to take action. A powerful, well-written document can make even the most harried managers sit up and take notice. It can convince them that they need your product. But it must address their needs, not yours. How can you write marketing materials that will really get your products noticed? Do the groundwork Whether youre writing a leaflet, a poster or web content, you need to prepare. Research your market fully before you start and make sure you understand all the challenges your prospects face. A nursing home will have different needs from an NHS hospital, for example. So avoid a one size fits all approach to your marketing. Keep your focus on the reader by asking yourself the following questions: What is the document about? Who will read it? How much do they already know about the subject? What do they absolutely need to know? How important is the subject to them? How interested are they in the subject? (Note that readers arent always interested in whats important to them. So you often need to make them interested.) Then grab a pen and paper and brainstorm all the ways that your product can help to meet your prospects challenges. Use the headings Who? What? Where? When? and Why? to help this process. Then use the information to write a set of powerful reasons why they should buy your product. Arrest the reader The seven steps below will help you to write effective leaflets, posters, sales letters and web content. Create a snappy headline Eye-scanning studies of website users by research body Eyetrack III have shown that people read only the first two words of a headline and ignore the introductory sections. So it is essential to create a compelling statement that will motivate people to read on. For example, a headline that reads Hospitals gain 20 more beds a week through nanotechnology is striking because of the first two words: hospitals are usually overcrowded, so this introduces a solution to a familiar problem. Find an angle Generate more interest by including facts and statistics that relate to the problems faced by your audience. Appeal to their logic and explain how your product makes a difference. For example, you could write: The new nanotechnology means patients spend 40% less time convalescing. Bite the bullet The Eyetrack III research also revealed that only one in six people actually read websites sentence by sentence. Naomi Baron, a linguistics professor at the American University in Washington DC, calls this the search and seize approach. Assuming that your readers will treat all your documents like this will help you to create clear written work. So include lots of bullet points and subheadings and use important words that your readers will be looking for. Make your writing as simple as possible, but dont be afraid to use jargon if youre certain your readers will understand it. Jargon can actually help to build rapport but its a fine balance between that and alienating some readers. Be active Use the active voice where possible. For instance, write You should notice a difference in three days rather than A difference within three days can be expected. Give proof Boost your credibility by using testimonials or endorsements where leading experts have spoken about the technology. Offer a next step Make sure you tell the reader what to do next. In a letter, you might ask them to call you for more information. Or a leaflet might direct them to your website. Keep it simple Always choose simple words over complicated ones. And if you cant say a sentence all in one breath, the chances are that its too long. Aim for a maximum of 1520 words per sentence. Mail mastery According to an Emphasis survey of 200 companies in the UK, senior managers say that at least a fifth of the e-mails they receive are poorly written. So remember to take as much care over your e-mails as you do with your other marketing materials. The first step is to create a descriptive subject line. For instance, Follow-up documents from 20 March meeting may be accurate but if your e-mail is designed to market a product, you need to be creative. Five ways hospitals can save 50 minutes a day should be intriguing enough to persuade a manager to open your e-mail. Structure your e-mail by following the SCRAP formula: Situation Start by explaining the situation (where they are). Complication Introduce the idea that theres a problem (why they cant stay there) they need to solve or a request they need to fulfil. Resolution State how you can resolve the problem or request. Its likely that your reader will be glad to see a practical, considered solution, whatever it is. Action Suggest what action the reader can or should take. Politeness End with a polite sign-off. Following this formula will help your readers to understand your message clearly. (You can apply the same principles to your follow-up letters.) It can be difficult to read lengthy documents on a PC. So if your message wont fit on one screen, use an attachment for the details. You can make the message easier to read by including subheadings. But take extra care with e-mails. Remember that its very easy for them to go viral. So only write what you dont mind having broadcast on the 10 OClock News. Hot news Having news reports or features appear in newspapers and magazines is an excellent way to build credibility with the people you want to influence. Press releases are the standard format for sending journalists news. But with so many in circulation, it can be difficult to get yours noticed. Journalists are also starting to bite back against releases that are poorly written, irrelevant to their needs or little more than thinly-veiled sales pitches. How do you get your press release to the top of the pile? The secret is to give journalists exactly what they want: a news story. The headline is the most important part of your document. Press releases can be very effective if you tie the headline to a topical event. For instance, Medical software helps Haiti earthquake victims is compelling because it ties the technology to a major global health crisis. And it presents a clear angle that makes people want to read on. Next, state the facts of the story. Get to the good stuff straight away, as journalists wont have time to wade through background information. Try to put the word today in the first sentence to show that its news. For example, you could write: Doctors implemented a patient database today in Haiti. If you cant say today then use the present perfect tense (Doctors have saved) rather than the past tense (Doctors saved) where possible, as the former implies something closer to the moment. After using the present perfect tense, use the future tense to show that you have your finger on the pulse. So you could write: Doctors will now be able to track patient progress 75% faster than before. Using figures in this way is very effective. But where possible, also include people in your document. So opt for One in four people will benefit rather than 25% will benefit. Finally, go back to your first sentence and ask yourself: So what? If you cant answer that, your message isnt compelling enough. Refine your document until youre convinced that its news that cannot be ignored. Think of writing marketing material as an investment. Dont be disheartened if a campaign doesnt immediately strike gold. Keep working on your writing style and aim to make it as punchy as possible. The more you practise, the more youll be able to write your way to marketing success. Rob Ashton is Chief Executive of Emphasis, the specialist business-writing trainers.

In what ways can we argue that the international community has an Essay

In what ways can we argue that the international community has an obligation to alleviate poverty in the world - Essay Example This has been leaving the poor on the mercies of the rich in the society. Therefore, the international community has a role of setting up policies and implementing them, an aspect that will eliminate cartels who have been hijacking this noble process. International community has a role of ensuring that there is equal distribution of resources across the economies. In the past one century, developed countries have been marginalizing smaller economies which have poorly formed developed structure. Through brain drain and exploitation of the resources by economic powerhouses has increased the level of poverty in the world. The international community has a role of ensuring that all countries engaging in any form of trade where all parties benefit. This will play a significant role in ensuring that there is economic balance. In addition, it should follow-up in order to ensure that the money obtained through these transactions reach the needy in the society. This can be through supervising mega projects by the governments and auditing them in order to curb corruption cases. The fact that the world is not united towards the agenda of alleviating poverty makes it hard for the international community. Each country tries to drive its own economic prosperity. In addition, some countries are not willing to set up a certain amount of money to help the countries that are crumpling with high poverty rates. This has made it hard for the international community to achieve any remarkable

Critically evaluate the relevance of cultural theories to the study of Assignment

Critically evaluate the relevance of cultural theories to the study of International HRM - Assignment Example There are several theories that relate to culture including globe theory, Hofstede theory and Trompenaar theory. The Hofstede theory is retrieved from the research of a Dutch researcher Geert Hofstede, who derived his model from studying employee’s behavior at the work place. Some cultures value equality among people, while others value power. However, Geert focuses on five cultural dimensions that include power distance index, individualism, masculinity, uncertain avoidance index, and long-term orientation. In power distance index, the junior staff expectations are for the power to be distributed appropriately and equally, since they do not have authority in the organization or in the society. According to Hillebrand (2008 pp 3), in Low power distance model, people tend to see the members of the society as equal such as the western cultures. They believe that power should be equal and that managers or leaders should not have a lot of power compared to the subordinates; this a pplies to countries like Israel. However, the high power distance reveals that those in authority should have more power than the subordinates; this is applicable in Malaysia. Nevertheless, societies cannot be equal; there is always an element of un-equality among them (Jais, 2007, pp 34). Individualism dimension interests are divided into two - individual and group interests. In the society, every individual has a duty of looking after himself and his nuclear family. Collectivism come in where the extended family is involved, in which, one has the duty of taking care of them due to the strong ties in the family. This dimension only focuses on family interests. The third dimension is the masculinity verses femininity dimension, which focuses on the femininity concentrating on the distribution of duties between the two genders, male and female. The study shows that women and men values differ. For instance, male are believed to value material wealth and money, they also work hard to pursue their expected goals in life; it could be buying a Mercedes. In fact, most men in different countries are competitive when it comes to the way of living. However, in comparison, women have a strong value for the quality of life, social interactions and they have concern about the welfare of others; for instance, most women contribute to charity concerning children. The fourth dimension is the long-term versus short-term orientation, in which long-term orientation mainly concentrates on relationships, Work, and life and it involves the perseverance value. If a culture is willing to work for the long-term goals, then the culture has long-term orientation (Torun, 2007 pp 10). This orientation involves hard work and dedication. Short-term orientation is mainly concerned with the past and the present, whereas its values involve fulfilling of social obligation and respecting the values of tradition, in addition to protecting one’s image. This orientation is common in the Phi lippines (Bhagat and Steers, N.d). The fifth and final dimension is the uncertain avoidance index, this index deals with the level of uncertainty and to which level can it be tolerated and its impact on decision making in a society (Hofstede G, 1983 pp 83). Cultures that avoid uncertainties implement measures such as implementing strict rules and regulation and security measures this

Descriptive Essay Example for Free

Descriptive Essay Time The living room, or family room, is generally considered the main gathering area in most homes due to the television being located there. However, this is not the case in the more than one hundred year old, light grey, two story home in which I live. The main attraction of this particular living room is the comforting atmosphere and warm fires that take place in the wood-burning fireplace. Upon entering the living room, the golden honey colored hardwood floor creaks underfoot and the fireplace stands out from the roughly textured, earthy green walls that rise up to the textured white ceiling. The long narrow boards that make up the beautifully maintained hardwood floor run lengthwise making this room look even bigger than it actually is. The textured ceiling was done in multi-directional, sweeping, fan patterns that resemble seashells. Hanging in the center of the room is a fifty-two inch brass-trimmed ceiling fan with five dark wood colored blades. Below the fan blades are three frosted glass, bell shaped covers which shade the light bulbs. The massive, seven foot wide, brick fireplace juts outward from the wall as if in attempt to invade the room. Leading to, and as wide as, the fireplace are three rows of eight inch square, red brick colored tiles set into the hardwood floor. The dark brownish red bricks that form the fireplace surround are staggered uniformly, rising five feet high to the white painted wood mantle. The jet black mortar that fills the void between each brick and each tile ties them together. The opening, or firebox, is fitted with a brass frame that holds a pair of glass bi-fold doors. In front of the fireplace doors is a freestanding, flat black painted, tri-fold, wire mesh screen protecting the floor from the popping embers of a hot burning fire on those cold winter nights. To the right of the wire mesh screen are the tools used for tending to the fire and cleaning out the fireplace. They are black wrought iron and hang on a metal rack that matches the screen in front of the fireplace. On the mantle above the fireplace are two matching, and evenly spaced, square ‘infinity’ candle holders, as well as a glass, cone shaped reed diffuser. The candles above the fireplace give off an illuminating glow creating dancing shadows on the wall and ceiling in the evening hours, adding to the natural warmth of the room. The reed diffuser has bright red apple scented oil in it that can be smelled halfway across the room. One of the most interesting things in the room is also on the mantle and that is a nearly rocket shaped, fourteen inch tall by two inch diameter glass Galileo thermometer. Against the wall to the left of the fireplace is the large, grey trimmed, fifty inch screen television which resides atop a five foot long by two foot tall wood stand. The television and stand sits with its back to the front windows of the house that look out to the heavily trafficked Campbell Street that leads into town. On the front of the dark honey colored stand are two oak trimmed glass doors, that neatly frame the open center section, dividing it into thirds. The open middle area holds the black dvr and a dull silver colored surround sound system. On display behind the glass doors, on either side of the electronics, are several video games and movies standing as soldiers in formation. Hanging behind the television are a set of long sheer white curtains that shadow the matching white blinds. The standard horizontal blinds are recess mounted between the wide, off white painted window trim that wraps around the windows. The bright white trimmed, four year old, double pane windows take up about two-thirds of the wall, allowing an abundance of sunlight to come flowing in during the early daytime hours when the blinds are open. On both sides of the windows hanging on the wall, in plain dark wood frames, are family photos that captured happy and joyful times that often bring about stories that surround those times and people. The most favored seating area and best viewpoint for the television and entertainment stand is directly across the room against the opposing wall. This is where the large, three cushioned, cream-colored, smooth and soft feeling micro-fiber couch sits. This thing really looks like it means business when it comes to comfort and relaxation. The overstuffed cushions sink just enough to make accidental napping very easy. The padding in the outward arching arms have the feel of memory foam, soft enough to not reach for a pillow when lying down after a long day at the office or at school. Holding the couch about three inches above the floor are four, black, square, plain looking feet. On each side of the couch, tucked against the wall are a pair of small, somewhat ordinary, dark stained, wooden end tables. Further complimenting the space on the end tables, are a few decorative candles in tall holders. Also on the table to the right side of the couch is a bouquet of brightly colored silk flowers in a short, square, clear glass vase. All of the things in this particular living room are only a part of what makes this house feel like home. It is an area where stories are told, laughter is heard, entertainment is had, and cozy fires are enjoyed by friends and family. The living room is not just another room in the house, it is a place where memories are made.

Megans Law: Protecting American Families Everywhere Essay -- essays re

Megan’s Law: Protecting American Families Everywhere   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  In the summer of 1994 in Hamilton, New Jersey, a small girl by the name of Megan Kanka was raped and murdered by a convicted pedophile, Jesse Timmendequas. The shocking crime rocked not only the small town, but the entire country. A desperate mother told reporters â€Å"Please, please help us find our daughter, she’s a wonderful girl ... she’s only seven. Let her come back.† (www.crimelibrary.com) No mother should ever have to beg for her daughter’s life. People thought that everyone had a right to know if a child molester was living in their midst. Dick Zimmer, then a state senator in New Jersey, and later a one-term congressman, certainly thought so. It was the dawn of the get-tough-on-crime era, and, with the blessing of the leaders of his Republican Party and support from both sides of the aisle, Zimmer and his colleagues hastily cobbled together a package of bills, which, among other things, required that anyone convicted of a sex offense undergo evaluation. The bills required that the risk sex offenders posed to the community be assessed and that, depending on that assessment, the community be notified. (www.crimelibrary.com) Megan’s Law was passed and now everyone knew who is a child-molester living in their community.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  This law provides plenty of positive aspects. The law not only protects the children but it takes away the rights of the violator which to some, is a good thing. This man has committed unspeakable acts and deserves to have these rights taken away. After all he is a monster. â€Å"Every child ought to have the right to grow up in our state without the fear of being sexually abused. The damage inflicted on a child by sexual abuse is incalculable. No amount of money can buy enough treatment to remove the scars.† (Freeman). It may seem as though their freedoms are being taken away but it is only to ensure the safety of children. Because the parents are being informed of the presence of child molesters, it can prevent many horrible things from happening to their children. It comes down to simple things such as â€Å"Who are you playing with?† and â€Å"Stay where I can see.† They may seem like normal things a parent may say to their child but in ac tuality can save them from emotional damage or even death. (Freeman). Ev... ...ent for anyone who does anything so horrible, but this works just as good. Depending on the kind of neighborhood they live in, they can have the kind of neighbors who will ignore them and not acknowledge their presence or the kind who will let them know what an evil person they are. If I had someone living in the same neighborhood as my children, I know for a fact that I would make my presence known. Harassment may not be the moral thing to do, but if your child’s well being is at stake, morals do not really apply. Some say it may be instigating trouble, but really you are just letting them know what you think and what you would do to them if they ever came anywhere near your kid. Works Cited Amoroso, Mary â€Å"Knowing the Sex Offenders in Your Neighborhood† The Record (Bergen County, NJ) 3 January 2002 Crimelibrary.com http://www.crimelibrary.com 26 February 20055 Freeman, David â€Å"Children’s Right to Safety† The Kentucky Post (Covington, KY) 15 January 1996 â€Å"Leave Megan’s Law Alone† Editorial The Star-Ledger (Newark, NJ) 15 October 2004 Nj.gov http://www.nj.gov 26 February 2005 Umberger, Mary †Megan’s Law Now Real Estate Debate† The Seattle Times (Seattle, WA) 22 November 1998

Review of Literature Essay

Dear client, please fill in the dates in the submissions and the blanks. thank you. Key milestones have already been established for this project, as recommended by the KBS’s PLS FILL UP PROGRAMME NAME. : Interim Project Submission 12 July 2006 Draft Project Submission 1 September 2006 Final Project Submission 30 September 2006 Through these dates, a draft of the programme has been formulated in addition to the enumeration of the additional milestones. At this point the framework is an estimation of the dates of deliverables of the objects in the milestones as these depend on the coordination and the cooperation of the identified proponents of this proposed research. At this point the research aims to get the appropriate permissions and letters needed that requests for the formalisation of the participation, especially as this requires working with bars and clubs. DEAR CLIENT, PLEASE FILL UP THE APPROPRIATE DATES FOR YOUR RESEARCH PROGRAMME IN THIS TABLE, THANK YOU. Activity No of Days Start Date Finish Date. Project Proposal Submission 0 Thu 04/05/06 Thu 04/05/06 Literature Review 90 Mon 01/05/06 Fri 01/09/06 Refine Methodology 31 Thu 04/05/06 Thu 15/06/06 Meet with potential project sponsor(s) 3 Thu 01/06/06 Mon 05/06/06 First Draft of Questionnaire 10 Thu 01/06/06 Wed 14/06/06 Identify Questionnaire Addressees 10 Thu 01/06/06 Wed 14/06/06 Identify and contact potential interviewees 10 Thu 01/06/06 Wed 14/06/06 Meet with Supervisor 0 Mon 19/06/06 Mon 19/06/06 Final Questionnaire 5 Tue 20/06/06 Mon 26/06/06 Pre-test questionnaire 3 Tue 27/06/06 Thu 29/06/06 Contact Interviewees 10 Tue 20/06/06 Mon 03/07/06. Send out questionnaire 1 Fri 30/06/06 Fri 30/06/06 Interim Project Submission 0 Wed 12/07/06 Wed 12/07/06 Follow-up to questionnaire 5 Wed 12/07/06 Tue 18/07/06 Interviews 10 Mon 17/07/06 Fri 28/07/06 Meet with Supervisor 0 Mon 31/07/06 Mon 31/07/06 Analysis of Primary Research 20 Mon 31/07/06 Fri 25/08/06 Telephone follow-up/interview as required 25 Mon 07/08/06 Fri 08/09/06 Meet with Supervisor 0 Wed 23/08/06 Wed 23/08/06 Draft Project Submission 0 Fri 01/09/06 Fri 01/09/06 Meet with Supervisor 0 Mon 11/09/06 Mon 11/09/06 Refine and amend Submission 19 Mon 04/09/06 Thu 28/09/06. Final Project Submission 0 Fri 29/09/06 Fri 29/09/06 Contingency As previously mentioned, one of the challenges of this paper is the lack of accessible scholarly and academic studies concerning events management in the bar and club businesses. In this regard, this research aims to utilise of the available literature and studies from similar sources such as case studies on certain events and similar operations such as restaurants. This study therefore relies on direct primary data which will be gathered depending on the degree of participation of identified club and bar owners. A contingency is that this paper goes on ahead with the research activity and source information from secondary sources as the foundations of this study; there will be therefore a heavier approach to analysis and the research framework is most likely modified should problems in resources come up. Cited Works and Bibliography Bowdin, Glenn, Harris, Johnny, O’Toole, William, Harris, Rob, McDonnel, Ian. Events Management, 2nd Ed. London: Elsevier, 2006. Brown, Douglas Robert & Miron, Amanda. The Professional Bar & Beverage Managers Handbook: How to Open and Operate a Financially Successful Bar, Tavern and Night Club. Florida: Atlantic Publishing Company, 2005. Chatterton, Paul & Hollands, Robert. Urban Nightscapes: Youth Cultures, Pleasure Spaces and Corporate Power. New York: Routledge, 2003. Craven, Robin. The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Meeting & Event Planning, 2nd Edition. Exton, PA: Alpha, 2006. Culp, Christopher. The Risk Management Process: Business Strategy and Tactics. New York: Wiley, 2001. Dommermuth W. P. Promotion: Analysis, creativity, and strategy, 2nd ed. Boston: PWS- Kent, 1989. Goldblatt, J. Special Events: Best Practices in Modern Event Management, new York: van Nostrand Reinhold, 1997. Henderson, Karla. â€Å"Marketing Recreation and Physical Activity Programs for Females†. JOPERD–The Journal of Physical Education, Recreation & Dance, 66(1995): 53+. Hormozi, Amir & Dube, Leon. â€Å"Establishing Project Control: Schedule, Cost, and Quality†. SAM Advanced Management Journal, 64(1999): 32+. Jones, K. S. Night club promotions manual & source list: How to create exciting, profitable event calendars for your bar. Hughes Company, 1993. Mack, Rhonda W. â€Å"Event Sponsorship: An Exploratory Study of Small Business Objectives, Practices, and Perceptions†. Journal of Small Business Management, 37(1999): 25+. Michman, Ronald. Lifestyle Market Segmentation. New York: Praeger Publishers, 1991. Roche, Maurice. Mega-Events and Modernity: Olympics and Expos in the Growth of Global Culture. New York: Routledge. Soares, Eric. Promotional Feats: The Role of Planned Events in the Marketing Communications Mix. New York: Quorum Books, 1991. Shore, Anton & Parry, Brynn. Successful Event Management. London: Thomson, 2004. Silvers, Julia. Event Management Body of Knowledge. 2009. Julia Rutherford Silvers. 16 June 2009. http://www. juliasilvers. com/embok. htm. Professional Event Coordination (The Wiley Event Management Series). New Jersey: Wiley, 2003. Smith, Robert. An Entrepreneur’s Guide to Running a Profitable Club Operation. Fairfax, Vermont: Upland Publications, 2001. Webster, Francis & Knutson, Joanne. â€Å"What is Project Management? Project Management Concepts and Methodologies†. The AMA Handbook of Project Management, P. Dinsmore & J. Cabanis-Brewin, Eds. New York: AMACOM, 2006. Westerbeek, Hans, Smith, Aaron, Turner, Paul, Emery, Paul, Green, Christine, van Leeuwen, Linda. Managing Sport Facilities and Major Events. Crows Nest, NSW: Allen & Unwin, 2005.

Government Functions Essay

In the economic system of any country, the government is the authority governing the day to day transactions and dealings between individuals whether private or public. Other functions are enforcement of rules and regulations, overseeing the making and execution of contracts and setting of standards to be followed. To do this, resources are required hence collection of taxes. The functions aside, the government itself owns firms within the economy hence a player. The role played by the state/government has been under close support and criticism simultaneously. In some countries, the government’s role is welcome whilst in others it detested. The main object of government in both scenarios though is the allocation of scarce resources and creating an environment suitable for such resources to be exploited. This is achieved through ensuring that law and order is maintained. External costs incurred by businesses that are not factored in the business transactions are also taken into account by the government. This is in order to protect them from exploitation which may otherwise lead to bankruptcy and collapse. The government’s role shouldn’t be solely that of creation of a good environment for business via maintenance of law and order. Rather, it should go beyond this by being a key player in the economy. Law and order though facilitates stability as well as reduces corruption hence encouraging investment. Using the opportunity cost principle, the uses to which scarce resources can be put are many and the real costs are those which are forgone. These are incurred in cases where corruption is existent. Examples of such costs according to Sowell include delay in performance of certain economic activities given an unviable corrupt economic environment this results to non-development of basic infrastructure that would have been used to carry out the economic activity. In turn, planned investments do not occur hence existing output levels are not increased due to lack of expansion. The final results are normally unemployment accompanied by brain drain as the environment is similarly not viable to work in. Simply put, higher corruption levels are accompanied by low economic growths and low per capita incomes. Other effects of corruption are discrimination in the employment sector and profiling of workers. Contributing to slow economic growth are also long bureaucratic processes. All these contribute to driving away investors. Corruption doesn’t necessarily come in the form of direct bribes. It may also be in the form of nepotism and tribalism which is currently prevalent in most countries. The law being a set of rules and principles that are used in the day to day running of a country ought to have the following characteristics;- reliability; uniformity in application i. e. they must portray a sense of fairness and equality; rigidity i. e. they should not change from time to time. Rigidity brings about stability. Countries with laws that have these characteristics are prone to boost investor confidence as well as encouraging skilled labor to immigrate into the country in search of job opportunities. Such skilled labor may not have been available locally. This set of rules and principles should be impartial but discriminatory at the same time. The discriminatory aspect of some laws has at times proven to boost economic growth. However the statement holds only when the discriminating facet is known by the parties involved well in advance. If the discriminating nature of the law is known, the economic environment will be more stable as compared to where the justice system is discriminatory in interpretation and application of the law. The law may be discriminatory on the basis of aspects such as religion and race. However, if the economy grows, the growth will be felt across the board and not just by those for whom the law discriminates. Even though some laws have discriminatory aspects, they should not in any way allow for the exploitation of one by another nor allow for the interference of one’s activities by another with malicious intentions. A country’s economy is majorly dependent on the existence of a government. Nonetheless, this dependability also takes into consideration the government’s effectiveness in law enforcement. Geographically, some regions within the same country will have laws being more enforced than others. However, extra costs incurred by businesses in ensuring that goods and services reach the consumers are always transferred to the same consumers. This reduces demand due to high prices. Property Rights On property rights, focus should be placed not just on the owners of such but more so on the general effect the existence and exercise of such rights has on the economy. The exercise of property rights may result to economic effects which impact negatively on the populace as there maybe no single individual to blame. As a result, property rights should be closely monitored but even more emphasis ought to be placed on automatic self-monitoring by individuals as a solution. The mere fact that the property rights do exist creates a sense of self-monitoring on the individual which is more effective and less costly as compared to government monitoring. This self-productivity results to increased productivity and lower commodity prices as there is less wastage. However, negligence may also result on the part of the property owners and class stratification. However, given that property rights do have a greater economic efficiency, the general population will have higher living standards when the economic growth that results trickles down. However, restrictions such as setting of minimum standards and creation of Boards to oversee the use of certain property should be put in place. These will help prevent exploitation. Stringent laws need also be put into place by governments and respective authorities. In creation and application of restrictions to property rights, one has to have in mind that property rights do have intentions and effects. Economic incentives by the government do play a big role and such rights need to be looked at from the economic angle i. e. the incentives that are brought about by them. One should also ask what the effects of changing them or completely doing without them are. Social order is a function of existence of laws, government institutions to ensure the maintenance of law and order and acknowledgement of such by the citizens. The degree of social order differs from one country to another as well as from one individual to another. It is the existence or inexistence of a social order and its level that determines how business dealings are conducted between individuals. Social order should be upheld in all aspects of government. This may in turn extend to the rest of the community hence doing away with corruption thus bringing down transaction costs. If the social order is inexistent or at a low level, enterprises tend to be small scale. This translates to lower production and by the economies of scale, the end user experiences higher prices. A good social order thus attracts investment. The government can boost this by encouraging honesty within its administration, indirectly supporting or detesting cultures that are pro-honesty. The same can also be achieved via school curricula. Another factor that can either undermine or develop the social order are the nature of a country’s law. However, the market has a way of creating its own social order. External costs and benefits do exist in business and they occur outside the parties that are part to an actual transaction. These are however not accounted for in the market place and it is for this reason that the government has to come in to make decisions regarding external costs and benefits via legislation and regulations. Some benefits are indivisible. They are either a whole or nothing at all. To decide any aspect about them is thus better left to government. External costs on their part are felt either directly or indirectly by individuals. The individuals thus decide basing on how the external costs impact them and their activities. In countries with popularly elected governments, most of the decisions made by are not put into much economic consideration. Focus is actually mainly placed on making the people happy and not necessarily on economic improvement. Most of such decisions are political and not economically beneficial to the country. CHAPTER 18: GOVERNMENT FINANCE Like any other enterprise whether profit making or non-profit making, resources are needed to enable a business e a continuing venture. On the part of the government, its spending aspect if a factor of revenue collection. Revenue is raised via tax collection. How this tax is collected greatly affects how much will in effect be collected as it impacts on the citizen’s view on taxation policies. Any change in taxation policy by the government will automatically result in behavioral change by the tax payer in terms of expenditure and savings. This change is however in no scale predictable and may go at length to affect the performance of the economy at large. No rule can be said to be applied by government to predict this change. The net tax paid by an individual is a factor of the number of taxes that are applicable on a said person and their position economically. Value Added Tax (VAT) takes a bigger share from the poor than it does from the rich as spending on consumer goods makes up a greater percentage of the poor person’s budget whilst saving or re-investment makes up a greater percentage of the rich’s budget. However, tax paid by individuals is a mixture of both regressive and progressive taxes. However, the official legal indicator of incidence of tax does not necessarily show who bears the incidence of tax. Before a government makes decisions on whether or not to increase a particular tax, factors to be considered are how the tax is collected. This determines whether the tax is being felt by the individual or not. Increasing or decreasing the tax may thus not necessarily result to behavioral change by the consumer. One way through which government raises income is through sale of bonds. It is this level of sale of government bonds that determines the national debt. The impact the national debt will have on the economy is a dependent on what percentage it is of the country’s GDP. However, both GDP and national debt increase over time as a result of increased population size. The vice versa is also true. Sale of bonds is considered a future investment by the government and who bears the cost of the national debt is worth considering i. e. whether it is the government or the tax payer. To the government, accrued interest over time is one cost. This interest may affect investor confidence both in the short and long term. As bonds are sold and re-sold over time, their interest rate has to be increased lest they lose their value. This however lowers investor confidence in the long run. The rise in government interest rates may bring about a ripple effect increase on other interest rates as investors look for money with which to purchase the bonds. Influence of government may however make product prices independent of their costs despite the above ripple effect they may have at the same time. In an economy, there always are unmet needs which the government must satisfy. However resource distribution by government takes into account not the maximization of their use but rather merely re-distribution. It is this that explains why government may undertake projects that are not economically profitable or necessary as well as why some public utilities are offered at prices which are way below their actual market value or at no value at all. Spending by the government is mainly a factor of whether or not there is the need to spend whilst the principles behind such spending are outlined by the law. Through its expenditure, the government is able to influence the economy’s net purchasing power. Increased government spending implies more money will be in the economy thus leaving more at the hands of households for spending on other commodities other than those for which the government has already paid for. Costs as a result of government spending can either be to the government or the economy. It should be clear who is bearing the cost and the nature of the cost. As utility varies from individual to individual, the desire to purchase due to price disparity can thus be controlled via price controls or subsidies. The latter have however proven more fruitful than the former since subsidies transfer the total cost of an item to the entire population rather than letting a single individual to incur it. Here the cost is thus on the economy, not the government. From this, one can deduce that government finance comes in to bring a solution to the price-utility problem by creating an even bigger problem or rather shifting the cost from the government to the economy. The pattern of government expenditure is majorly a political function. Projects that prove politically building are more likely to be undertaken. Any government has got its obligations and current and future expenditure make up the government’s obligations regarding expenditure. Future obligations may seem not that costly until it reaches a point where they must be incurred. Their costs are accounted for but not incurred until the need arises. Incentives can be either political or economical. Incentives such as government pensions are majorly dependent on the size of the working and the retired population. A good balance enables pension payment. On the private side however, payment of insurance benefits is dependent on the currently existing subscribers to the insurance. CHAPTER 20: INTERNATIONAL TRADE Some have argued that in international trade, while one country gains, another loses. But both parties should be gaining in a way otherwise there wouldn’t be a reason to trade. A country may gain via for example economic growth. This has been the general effect of international trade. However, terms used in international trade such as trade deficit and surplus do not necessarily reflect a country’s economic wellness. To determine this, one has to look past the figures involved in international trade. A country may have quite a number of reasons why it should or should not engage itself in international trade. Reasons for however outweigh those against. Those for include absolute advantage, comparative advantage and economies of scale. In terms of absolute advantage, one country can produce particular commodities at prices cheaper than those of another or products of a higher quality. This may encourage it to pursue international trade. As for comparative advantage, the opportunity cost of one country A to produce a certain commodity at the expense of another is much lower than that of country B. Comparative advantage is thus all about efficiency of one country as compared to another. The costs forgone in producing a product should be lower and income generated from the production line opted for ought to be higher hence making them economically viable. The returns should also be in surplus enough for the country to purchase the commodity it forgo to produce. In terms of economies of scale, some ventures are viable only if there is enough market to consume the output. Such markets can be created through exports of commodities hence maximizing advantages brought about due to economies of scale or large scale production. Apart from enabling countries to achieve economies of scale, international trade also facilitates countries to fully utilize their comparative and absolute advantages. However, economies of scale have also resulted in the downfall of some infant industries where protectionist policies are inexistent. In as much as many countries may engage in international trade, some succeed whilst others do not. Reasons for the downfall of others may be the restrictions that exist in International Trade. These include emphasis that has been placed on efficiency of the production process. Another effect of such restrictions are collapse of domestic industries where protectionism does not exist. However international trade itself brings about government interference with trade due to policies such as protectionism while it may result to creation of monopolistic markets and unfair competition finally. Arguments for International Trade restrictions Different arguments have been put forward for international trade to have restrictions. The high wage fallacy argues that commodities produced by highly paid workers cannot compete with those produced by low paid ones. This does not hold since the argument does not distinguish between wage rates and labor costs and between labor costs and total costs. Wage rates may therefore be higher yet the total costs are lower due to economies of scale hence higher profits. Restrictions may also exist so as to save jobs domestically. However, just as free trade results to growth in the economies of all countries engaged simultaneously so do trade restrictions result to reduced economic growth or even reversed economic growth. Restricting trade thus does not result in increased employment. Rather, there will be less spending in the economy. The infant industry argument posits that local developing industries ought to be given time to grow to a level at which they can compete with other industries. However, survival of an industry is not a factor of its growth in terms of production and sales. Political muscle plays a key role in determining the fate of an industry. The National defense argument tries to explain why countries opt to have suppliers of things that are essential for their own national survival lest the external supplier turn enemy. Examples of such commodities are ammunition. Last on the list of reasons for protectionism is the dumping argument which is however restricted given the uncertainties of determining production costs. Here economies of scale may come into play and a supplier selling his/her commodities at lower prices abroad may actually be mistaken for dumping. These restrictions to trade may come in the form of tariffs which are taxes on imports and aim to raise their prices. The restrictions may also be in the form of import quotas which bring about uneven competition beside achieving the same objective of raising import prices. CHAPTER 21: INTERNATIONAL TRANSFERS OF WEALTH International wealth transfers may take the forms of either direct or indirect foreign investments or remittances from citizens whose domicile is abroad. Rich countries always tend to invest in fellow rich counties due to fear of not getting a return on their investment if done in a poor country. Political and economic stability, corruption levels, level of honesty amongst the country’s populace as well as movement of capital within a said country’s economy are factors affecting the decision of whether to or not to invest. International trade takes into account only goods exchanged between countries leaving behind service output. It is for this that International trade has to be at a balance despite the fact that measures used in international trade may not be true reflectors of the trade. An economy that has concentrated in service production rather than goods will tend to export more services and import more commodities. The decision of whether a trade deficit is harmful or not is best done by comparing the deficit with the performance of the whole economy. As a result, the Balance of Payment measure is a better reflector of international trade than the Balance of Payments. Economic transactions are not zero-sum activities where only the buyer and the seller gain, rather it is a wealth creator to both the parties directly involved and to the â€Å"spectators. † Immigration and emigration which are key factors in international trade result to knowledge transfer, new ideas and businesses being created, job creation amongst others. However, on the dark side of the same are diseases, brain drain, increase in crime, collapsing economies and terrorism. Imperialism which implies the domination and exploitation of one country by another is also a means of wealth transfer. However, international investments have been argued to be equal to imperial looting as the subject country loses more than it gains. This explains the class strata of first, second and third world countries. Ceteris paribus, imperialism is more of a moral than an economic argument. Foreign aid, which entails wealth transfer from richer to poorer countries or from one government to another, may or may not be used for intended purposes. The use of foreign aid in government investments has more often than not resulted to mismanagement due to corruption. Some foreign aid comes with strings attached in the form of Structural Adjustment Programs (SAPs). Such aid has proven to deter rather than encourage development. World over, the inexistence of a body to oversee the giving of aid to poorer countries has resulted to exploitation of the recipient. Aid may be in the form of cash grants or goods and services to the recipient country. However, the under-utilization of most of the resources in the recipient country is what leads it to have a need for foreign aid. CHAPTER 23: MYTHS ABOUT MARKETS The name â€Å"market† in itself is a myth as a market is viewed as a thing rather than the people in the market themselves who are engaging in business activity. This has led to rigidity of the market. In a market, variation of prices from one seller to another is always notable. This, economists would say defy the laws of supply and demand but in actual sense they do not. Rather, supply and demand should be looked at from the point of view of different consumers. Each consumer will have a different of demand and supply curve intersections due to utility. Prices in the market ought to be ‘affordable’ and ‘reasonable’ is a notion that is not realistic. It implies that prices should be independent of the market forces of demand and supply as well as production cost but should instead favor the purchasing power of the consumer. The third myth about markets is that some firms may tend to sell their products at below normal prices so as to drive away competition. This myth has not been proven though hence is not that realistic. Fourth is the issue of branding. Despite its advantages of making suppliers and manufacturers to emphasize on quality, the products being sold are more or less the same. What will actually be different is the pricing products or services with brand names that are widely known will definitely cost or charge more. A business, no matter how small is linked to the economy as a whole. Te role different enterprises play in the economy is a factor of whether they are classified as profit and loss or as non-profit making enterprises. However, there exist differences between the two in that profit and loss organizations will always tend to emphasize on quality in order to maximize profits whilst in non-profit making organizations, the customers themselves will not be in a position to emphasize on quality since they are already paying far less than the true value of the commodity or service they are getting. It is the nature of the organization that finally determines what name will be given to the extra amounts remaining after costs as well as how it will be used. In some its called profit whilst in others it is revenue. The ‘Trickle down theory|; is more of a political than an economic theory. The theory posits that those opposed to equality in resource distribution tend to believe that resources should be bestowed on the rich so that it may in effect trickle down to the rest of the populace. The theory is a myth since economically one has to spend first so as to make an income. This spending comes in the form of say purchase of goods and services for sale as well as payments made for their delivery. The economic reality is thus exactly the opposite of the ‘Trickle Down effect. † CHAPTER 24: NON-ECONOMIC VALUES Economics is not a value in itself. Rather it compares values. The market on its part is a reflector of the people’s attitudes and actions as well as beliefs. The issue of the market with respect to moral and social values arises when the market is looked at from the angle of the impact it has on such issues. The society’s moral standards will determine how transactions are conducted in the market. Non-economic values in the market tend to introduce morality into business by defining words such as greed alongside maximization of profit for example and others. These non-economic values however put aside economic concepts like the laws of demand and supply that are used in price determination. These non-economic values are also one-sided since they tend to lean on the consumer’s side mostly whilst forgoing the seller’s side. However, greed cannot be termed to be a product of any particular economic system. Rather it is an intricate trait in all humans and which all have to cope with. The difference however comes with regard to how this greed manifests itself in the different economic systems and how it is controlled. The term greed is however neither adequate or fair in explaining the desire of the seller to make as much profit as possible out of the buyer nor the wish of the buyer to purchase the product with the highest quality at the lowest price. Greed is thus a two way concept which only looks at who is on the gaining end. Exploitation is another term that crops up whenever non-market values are mentioned. It can simply be said to be that which is beyond the acceptable as per the society’s moral standards. Exploitation is thus based on emotion and not the facts existing on the real world. The disparity between greed and exploitation comes in that whilst the former occurs in almost all types of economic systems, exploitation mostly occurs in monopolistic markets where no free competition exists and the buyer has no wide choice of commodities given the factor of the sole supplier. To regulate the above, the government may put in place regulations such as trade barriers, tariffs and quotas as well as value added tax or corporate taxes. Taxation by the government may however be considered as both greed and exploitation. Greed since even the poorest of persons in the economy pays taxes whether in the form of VAT or income tax and exploitation as the government enjoys a monopoly of taxing the people yet one may argue that the quality of services is not guaranteed. The market however takes into consideration many factors before pricing decisions are made. At times the employer for instance may be at the receiving end when the employee has a greater bargaining power or where the demand for services he/she can render is higher than what the market can supply. Here, both greed and exploitation come into play. In as much as governments try to control or maintain at a low the levels of exploitation and greed, the measures put in place might actually serve to make even worse the life of the consumers in cases where exploitation and greed did not exist before. The principle of fairness when looked at from the non-market values point of view carries with it two assumptions. First is that all individuals are playing by the same rules and secondly that all players have the same potential. However, these two may not hold as different individuals have different desires, priorities and thus derive different levels of utility from the same activity, commodity or service. Fairness doe not have a specific definition hence it is majorly those in power who are left to define what is and what is not fair. However, vested interests may underlie the making of such decision. Some groups may also be completely ignored in deciding what fairness is. Economics being majorly concerned with the distribution of resources and values tends to critic â€Å"unmet needs† of the society. Here, the decision of whether a government should carry out a project or not is a function of what has to be sacrificed in order to satisfy the unmet need. However, the existence or identification of an unmet need is not a justification of it to be met. CHAPTER 25: PARTING THOUGHTS The economic concepts and principles cannot all be listed given the imaginative nature of the human mind. However, in as much as new concepts and principles are being developed whilst older ones continue to be refined and refuted, the bottom line should be that they all ought to divorce from emotions which vary from human being to human being. Rather there ought to be basic concepts and principles that are followed by both new and old economic ideas. The above fallacies ought to carry precision in the use of words as well as clarity in order to ensure their true or intended ideology is achieved. A common feature of most economic fallacies is that they focus on the initial consequences of particular policies and not the long term effects of the same. Confusion thus results as focus is placed not on the benefits or effects of policies but rather on the objectives of such policies. The importance of economic principles supersedes their use in only economic factors. If keenly looked at, most things do have economic aspects in which economic principles ca be applied. Instead of focusing on the objectives of goals, of main concern should be the activities that will be pursued t achieve such goals, what the particular legislation or goal encourages and discourages, the regulations that will follow the attainment of the goal, the long term effects of activities aimed towards attaining the goal. Last but not least, we ought to look at similar goals that were attained in the past and the impact they had. In as much as economics carries many fallacies, a distinction should be made between what is practical and what is indeed a fallacy.

Using ABC Countdowns to Summer in School

Using ABC Countdowns to Summer in School Lets face it. Everyones counting down the days until summer vacation- the students, the teachers, even the administrators! Instead of merely marking each passing day off on your calendar, make the countdown fun and give everyone something unique to look forward to! Whats the ABC Countdown? The ABC Countdown is something that teachers put together so that something cool and exciting happens each day to count down to summer. When there are 26 days left in school, assign each day a letter of the alphabet. For example, the 26th day is A, the 25th day is B, and so on, all the way down to the last day of school which is Z. Have Fun With It There are fewer than 26 school days left in your year, consider spelling out a shorter word, such as the school name, mascot, or even just the word Summer. It doesnt matter so much how long the countdown is, just have fun with it. Examples You Can Use Next, its time to get creative! On A Day, we called it Art Day so the kids got to do a special Art lesson in the classroom. On B Day, we called it Buddy Reading Day so the kids brought books from home that they got to read with a friend during silent reading time. C Day is Career Day and the kids dressed up as a person in the career they would like to enter someday. Future doctors wore white coats and future football players wore their jerseys and brought along a football. The countdown continues like that until the final day of school, Z Day, which stands for Zip Up Your Bags and Zoom Home Day! The kids love the countdown because it gives them something to get excited about each day. We would recommend making up flyers with the information for the students to take home. You might also like to make a copy for each child to keep at school for reference. We would bet your students would tape the sheets to their desks and check it off as each day passed. They would really get into it! If you already have fewer than 26 days left, dont worry! You can still countdown the remaining days with style! Consider spelling out the name of your school, a school motto, or simply the word summer. The skys the limit and there are no rules. Brainstorm with your fellow teachers and see what they come up with! Sound like something you might like to do?   A Art day: Create a special art project in class B Buddy reading: Bring a book to read with a friend C Career day: Dress or bring props to show a job you may enjoy D Donut day: We will enjoy donuts E Experiment day: Experiment with science F Favorite book day: Bring a favorite book G Game day: Your teacher will teach a new math game H Hat day: Wear a hat today I Impromptu speech day: Perform speeches in class J Joke day: Bring an appropriate joke to share at school K Kindness day: Share some extra kindness today L Lollipop Day: Enjoy lollipops in class M Memorial Day: No School N No homework: No homework tonight O Obstacle course: Compete in obstacle courses P Picnic lunch day: Bring a sack lunch Q Quiet Day: Who is the quietest student in our class? R Read a poem day: Bring a favorite poem to share with the class S Summer birthdays and sing a song: You can share birthday treats T Twin day: Dress like a friend U Uplift someone day: Give compliments to each other V Video day: Watch an educational movie today W Water balloon toss day: Compete and try to not get wet X X-change autographs day: Go outside and trade signatures Y Year-end clearance day: Clean up desks and the room Z Zip up your bag and go home day: Last day of school! Have fun with your countdown and enjoy these final days with your class! Testing is over and its time to kick back and enjoy your students to the max! Happy Summer, teachers!

Bacteria Relationships - Bacteria and Humans

Bacteria Relationships - Bacteria and Humans Bacteria are all around us and most people only consider these prokaryotic organisms to be disease-causing parasites. While it is true that some bacteria are responsible for a large number of human diseases, others play a vital role in necessary human functions such as digestion. Bacteria also make it possible for certain elements such as carbon, nitrogen, and oxygen to be returned to the atmosphere. These bacteria ensure that the cycle of chemical exchange between organisms and their environment is continuous. Life as we know it would not exist without bacteria to decompose waste and dead organisms, thus playing a key role in the flow of energy in environmental food chains. Are Bacteria Friend or Foe? The decision as to whether bacteria are friend or foe becomes more difficult when both the positive and negative aspects of the relationship between humans and bacteria are considered. There are three types of symbiotic relationships in which humans and bacteria coexist. The types of symbiosis are termed commensalism, mutualism, and parasitism. Symbiotic Relationships Commensalism is a relationship that is beneficial to the bacteria but does not help or harm the host. Most commensal bacteria reside on epithelial surfaces that come in contact with the external environment. They are commonly found on the skin, as well as in the respiratory tract and the gastrointestinal tract. Commensal bacteria acquire nutrients and a place to live and grow from their host. In some instances, commensal bacteria may become pathogenic and cause disease, or they may provide a benefit for the host. In a mutualistic relationship, both the bacteria and the host benefit. For example, there are several kinds of bacteria that live on the skin and inside the mouth, nose, throat, and intestines of humans and animals. These bacteria receive a place to live and feed while keeping other harmful microbes from taking up residence. Bacteria in the digestive system assist in nutrient metabolism, vitamin production, and waste processing. They also aid in the hosts immune system response to pathogenic bacteria. Most of the bacteria that reside within humans are either mutual or commensal. A parasitic relationship is one in which the bacteria benefit while the host is harmed. Pathogenic parasites, which cause disease, do so by resisting the hosts defenses and growing at the expense of the host. These bacteria produce poisonous substances called endotoxins and exotoxins, which are responsible for the symptoms that occur with an illness. Disease-causing bacteria are responsible for a number of diseases including meningitis, pneumonia, tuberculosis, and several types of food-borne diseases. Bacteria: Helpful or Harmful? When all of the facts are considered, bacteria are more helpful than harmful. Humans have exploited bacteria for a wide variety of uses. Such uses include making cheese and butter, decomposing waste in sewage plants, and developing antibiotics. Scientists are even exploring ways for storing data on bacteria. Bacteria are extremely resilient and some are capable of living in the most extreme environments. Bacteria have demonstrated that they are able to survive without us, but we could not live without them.

Critique of Clinical Skill Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Critique of Clinical Skill - Essay Example Critical appraisal is a systematic process utilized to identify research strengths and weaknesses inherent in a research article. This is done with an aim of assessing the validity, reliability and usefulness of research findings. The primary components of critical appraisal include the evaluation of the study design’s appropriateness for the research questions used, and the careful assessment of key methodological design features. Other factors that should be taken into consideration while critically appraising an article are such as the examination of the suitability of the statistical methods used to analyze data, potential conflict of interest and the research relevance to an individual practice. Thus, the purpose of this paper is to appraise the below named article on wound management. Article: Annells, M., O’Neill, J., & Flowers, C. (2008). Compression bandaging for venous leg ulcers: the essentialness of a willing Patient. Journal of Clinical Nursing, 17(3), 350- 359.doi 10.1111/j. 1365-2702.2007.01996.x Analyzing whether the Research Study Questions Are Relevant A research can be of the highest methodological rigor but it may be of little value if it does not address a significant topic or add value to the already existing knowledge about the subject under discussion (Mays & Pope, 2000). The article sought to find answers to the following question â€Å"why do or why don’t district nurses use compression bandaging as a component of the management of venous leg ulcers?† The aim of the study was to help identify both constraints and enablers. The research question is relevant because it seeks to explain why some and not all nurses utilize compression management to manage venous leg ulcers. In addition to that, the study findings contribute to the existing knowledge because less has been documented as to why compression bandaging is not often used by district nurses in the treatment of venous leg ulcers. Furthermore, the research question is relevant to the clinical practice. As a result of the study, factors that might constrain the willingness of the patient to apply compression bandaging in the treatment and maintenance of the venous leg ulcer were identified. Then, the actions that need to be performed to facilitate patient willingness were recommended. Does the Study Add Anything New? Any scientific research aims at developing new knowledge and ideas on the basis of work done previously (Hawking, 2003). As a result of this particular research, district nurses were made aware of the significance of evidence-based practice. Proper understanding of the findings of the study will support the planning carried out by the district nursing organization. As a result, there will be an improvement in the rate of appropriate use of compression bandage on venous leg ulcers. The increased use will be facilitated via the provision of relevant resources and the needed education. Moreover, the research findings will up date nurses on how to appropriately asses venous leg ulcer patients. Similarly, the nurses are able to plan and implement strategies for best practice care which is sustainable and patient driven. The research adds new knowledge to the work done previously. The Type of Questions Posed By the Study The most significant task of critical appraisal is the identification of the specific research questions being addressed by the article.