The Process of Benchmarking Term Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

The Process of Benchmarking - Term Paper Example The purpose of this paper is to examine how the process of benchmarking is important in financial decision making. An online quantitative research study of Jackson Health Care title Nurses downtime 2011 survey elucidates various aspects of benchmarking. This survey offers information that can be used by other organizations for comparison. Factors for comparison outlined in this survey include time spent in indirect care, issues that affect bedside nurse, recommendations on how to increase time spent on patients bedsides, job satisfaction among nurses, and ways to improve job satisfaction. Jackson Health Care has implemented strategies to improve these areas between 2009 and 2011and hence offers a credible basis for comparison. This article informed my understanding of benchmarking in that inequalities in relation to performance gaps are prevalent in healthcare and identifying these variances can help align processes in low performing institutions with those in organizations that perform highly. Subsequently, this article informed my understanding in that benchmarking can either be internal or external. External benchmarking is what is denoted as comparing the processes of an institution with another. Benchmarking involves the creation of specific objectives that ought to be achieved in a healthcare organization to achieve high levels of performance. In my organization, benchmarking can be used to assess the existing strategies under implementation and as mentioned earlier, compare them with those in other similar organizations. During this process, financial data relating to other organizations are collected and analyzed. It is only through this process that what needs to be done to improve performance in terms of finances can be identified and achieved in my organization. As Baker and Baker (2014) points out, "Benchmarking is used for opportunity assessment" (p. 220). In other words, benchmarking can help my organization to identify opportunities and

Equipment & Systems Engineering Essay Example for Free

Equipment Systems Engineering Essay Product overview CATIA Plant Layout 1 (PLO) enables organizations to optimize their manufacturing plant layout. This product is one piece of Dassaults integrated Digital Manufacturing Solutions. It deals specifically with the spatial organization and components of the plant, allowing quick easy layout and downstream evolution of the layout design. Through the CATIA V5 integrated product environment, users have a seamless solution to address all their manufacturing environment needs. They have the tools necessary to optimize production facility layout, leading to optimized factory production and output. CATIA Plant Layout 1 (PLO) provides an accessible solution for departments of small and medium enterprises. Its friendliness, intuitiveness, and ease of use makes it possible for inexperienced users to use the system with a minimal cost of implementation. The complete layout of the facility can be driven almost completely with the mouse and the product has a user interface that helps users make the transition from traditional 2D layout to 3D. With the intelligence behind the V5 Plant Layout model, plant designers and systems layout design teams can identify and solve problems with the layout or production process long before equipment is installed or moved inside the plant. The software enables users to not only complete designs faster, but also to significantly improve the quality of their designs. Today, every manufacturing company is looking for new methods to reduce the time it takes to ramp-up, reduce the number of problems on the production floor including downtime, and get products to market faster. Dassaults Digital Manufacturing Solutions, which include the CATIA Plant Layout 1 (PLO) product line, assist companies in achieving these objectives. CATIA Plant Layout 1 (PLO) , together with Dassault Data Management offerings, gives users the power to manage their plant layouts and associated components from initial design to plant operations, in a way that is easily adapted to how the customer works. Product Highlights Includes an optimized user interface for easy maneuverability and layout design iteration Provides an easy tool to define pathway route for preliminary space claim. Provides optimized tools for quick and easy layout of complex configurations.

Islam and Christianity :: Religion Religious Chirstian Islamic Essays

Islam and Christianity There are hundreds of religions in this world. Of them two are the most prominent. Islam and Christianity. It is averaged that there are 750 million people practicing Islam, and another 1 billion practicing Christianity. The start of Islam is actually derived form Christianity, history books indicates that one night in the year 610, the first of many revelations came to Muhammad from God by way of the angel Gabriel (In Christianity this is the same Angel which brings the news of Jesus' birth, Jesus of course is the founder of Christianity). The message Muhammad received told him that there was but one God (Identical to the inception of the Ten Commandments), not many gods, as most Arabs believed. This God was creator of the world (In Christianity, it's documented in Genesis Chapter 1 verse 1, In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth), and He would one day judge mankind (This is also true in Christianity: "The Lord will judge his people." Hebrews 10:30). Both of these re ligions share almost the same framework, but they also differ in many ways. The word Islam means "surrender" or "submission," submission to the will of Allah, the one God. Muslims are those who have submitted themselves. The basic creed of Islam is brief: There is no God but Allah, and Muhammad is the Prophet of Allah. Islam teaches that there is one God, the creator and sustainer of the universe. This God, Allah, is compassionate and just. Because He is compassionate, He calls all people to believe in Him and worship Him. Because He is also just, on the Last Day He will judge every person according to his deeds. On the Last Day, all the dead will be resurrected and either rewarded with heaven or punished with hell. In Christianity one of the Ten Commandments states that "I am the Lord you God.....you shall have no other gods before me", also identical to Islam God is considered the creator of the universe, and he is also just. On the last day, or judgment day, the same holds true as in Islam in the Christian beliefs, the dead will be resurrected and either rewarded with heaven or punished with hell. Mankind is regarded as the crown of creation, entrusted by God with management of the whole created order. In Christianity this was Adam, who had dominion over all the animals and beasts of the earth.

Family, Friends and Fame: Handel’s Roots and First Influences Essay

A composer’s influence doesn’t end within the pages of his composition. It stretches on, to musicians and other famous composers. Georg Frideric Handel is one famous example. Being a primary influence to many of the most famous composers of all time, such as Beethoven and Mozart, Handel has been one of the most acclaimed men in the history of music. The entire English nation, owes him a debt of gratitude because of the masterly way in how he encouraged and command them to assimilate and accept the beauty of the music he created. Even a master such as Handel, though, has simple and humble origins. He encountered obstacles and experiences during his early years that nearly cost him and prevented him from creating the masterpieces he gave the world. Most of these came during his early years of being a musician, and stemmed from close relationships. Handel Family Origins Handel’s roots originally belonged to Breslau, a city in southwestern Poland, found near the Oder river. For several generations, their family has been coppersmiths. Valentine Handel, the grandfather of the composer, was born in 1582, and in his later years migrated to Halle. Two sons of his followed in the coppersmith trade, but his third son, Georg, became a barber-surgeon instead. Georg married a woman who was the widow of the barber who acted as his mentor. She was 12 years older than he. After the death of his wife, he married his second wife, named Dorothea Taust, the daughter of a clergyman. From this marriage, sprung four children, one of them destined to become famous for his compositions. Birth and Family Ties On the 23rd of February 1685, Dorothea gave birth to George Frideric Handel, in the Duchy of Magdeburg, found at the Upper Saxony. Halle, the place where he was born, was not a very attractive place. â€Å"Travellers unanimously complained of its dusky impression, its sooty buildings, and its crooked narrow, ill-paved streets. † Nevertheless, Halle was home for the Handels, and this was where George Frideric spent his childhood. Handel had a half-brother and half-sister when he was born, Karl and Sophie Rosine, respectively, and both were already older than him. Despite having different mothers, Handel maintained a good relationship with his half-siblings. Karl Handel even played an interesting role in a crucial musical incident involving his younger half brother and his love for music. Relationship With His Parents Even at a young age, George Frideric already had great love for music. When he was still a baby, the toys found in his nursery were those that produce musical sounds, including flutes, drums, and trumpets. The first few years, it was amusing, but as he developed, it seemed to become more serious. Handel had intimate, but very different ties with his father and mother. While one urged him to pursue his dream of being a musician, the other greatly opposed it. Georg, the composer’s father, wanted his child to obtain a proper occupation, and pursue law. He had big ambitions for his boy. When he observed the child’s strong propensity for music, he greatly forbade and opposed it, commanding him to stay away from anything that might steer him towards that profession. He did not understood art, and does not understand the noble part artists play in the world, only seeing them as men of amusement, entertaining the world during idle moments. â€Å" ‘Music,’ said he, ‘was an elegant art and a fine amusement; yet if considered as an occupation, it had little dignity, as having for its subject nothing better than mere pleasure and entertainment. ‘† He forbade the child to attend the public schools, fearing that he would be drawn nearer to his musical dreams. The child was also forbidden to visit places where he can hear music. The musical instruments found in the house were also banished. Despite his father’s harshness towards the dream he loved so much, the child persisted. He knew music was his calling, and even if he knew he was going against his father’s wishes and putting himself in danger of being caught, he found ways. He would manage to lay hands on a dumb spinet or a clavicord, hiding it in a garret. Usually, these were given to him by his mother or godmother, a woman named Anna. At night, when the whole house is asleep, he would sneak out and tinker and play with the instrument. These hidden, stolen moments allowed the young man proper concentration, leading to better understanding of music, and therefore, paving way to greatness. Dorothea, Handel’s mother, was filled with love and ambition for her child. While her husband opposed the â€Å"low dignified† profession, she silently encouraged him to pursue it. Even when he died, Dorothea and her son’s relationship were as warm and devoted to each other, drawing strength from faith. Along with her, Handel’s two sisters also showered him with love and affection. This influence is perhaps the reason why the composer worked with women as singers, and became knowledgeable in the ways of women. â€Å"Sometimes a mixed blessing, he seemed to have thought, but an opportunity and professional relationship most men did not have in that time. † The Incident at the Duke’s Palace Another interesting incident in Handel’s childhood also played a crucial factor in his ambition to be a man of music. When his father was to visit Karl, the son from his former marriage, the seven year old George pleaded to be taken with him, even following the coach on foot when his father refused to take him with it. Eventually, the father agreed. When they arrived at the Duke of Saxe-Weisenfields’ Palace, where the son was a valet-de-chambre, the child wandered off, and started tinkering with the church organ, unable to resist it. The Duke heard the music, asked questions, and the child was brought to him. He asked the boy to play. The royalty recognized the child’s talent and addressed his father telling him that â€Å"it was a sort of crime against humanity to stifle so much genius in its birth†. The father conceded, and swore to respect the vocation. Handel was grateful to the Duke for his good advice to his father. In his later years, he even regarded the Duke as his benefactor. When they returned to Halle, his father allowed the child to be taught by Friedrich Wilhelm Zachow, the Liebfrauenkirche’s organist and also permitted him to continue his school work. For the next five years, Handel acted as an assistant for Zachow, and finally got his first formal training in the field of music. Following His Father’s Wish Handel’s father ruled him with an iron grip, and even if he allowed the child to practice his ambition of being a musician, he still wished for him to continue a career in law. On February 11, 1967, the composer’s father died in his sleep, perhaps of old age. He left behind his widow, two daughters and son, who was then barely 12 years old. Handel became them the man of the household, and was forced into an adult world at a tender age. Five years after his father’s death, February 1702, he entered the University of Halle, as a student of law or â€Å"Studiosus Juris†. This career choice, however, was not meant to last long. In July 1703, the eighteen year old Handel moved to Hamburg, where he took a job in the theater as a â€Å"violon di ripieno†. Without his father keeping an eye on him, he was able to leave his home and his family, and become a musician. Friendship with Georg Philipp Telemann Handel was not the only musician who was imprisoned in his deceased father’s dreams of studying law. Another young man by the name of Georg Philipp Telemann was also in the same plight, unsure of his plans of studying law. His mother was insisting that he give up his dreams of music, in respect to his deceased father’s dreams for him. Telemann was born at Magdeburg in 1681, and was four years older than Handel. When they met, he was reluctantly traveling to the University of Leipzig to pursue law. Telemann says that while with Handel, he â€Å"imbibed so much of the ‘strong poison’ of music as to nearly overset all his resolutions†. Handel’s enthusiasm for the profession influenced the other man so much, that he became tempted to go against what her mother wanted. However, Telemann’s mother’s wishes prevailed. Fortunately for him, a friend discovered one of his psalms and presented it to a burgomaster, who declared it a fine harmony and inquired about the composer. He was employed to compose something for the church, and was given compensation. When he sent word to his mother (who was then supporting his finances) about this, he was able to prove to her that the profession she had been unfavorable to, yields good results and steady income after all. She finally gave him her blessing to pursue his dream. Handel and Telemann then renewed their friendship, corresponding regularly and meeting often with each other. One composer’s influence upon another is always extraordinary, as seen in Handel and Telemann. Like, their music, their friendship lasted a lifetime. They exchanged advice and encouragement, giving one another the much needed push to pursue the profession they both love. Meeting Johann Mattheson When Handel moved to Hamburg in 1703, one of the first people he made friends with was Johann Mattheson, a composer, theorist and singer. Despite Mattheson’s young age, he had also become one of the most influential men in Hamburg. Like Telemann, he was four years older than Handel. Mattheson was gifted, but vain. Nevertheless, Handel was eternally grateful to Mattheson, because the latter introduced him to the musical life in the new place he was in. Mattheson recounts that the first time he met Handel, the young man was â€Å"strong at the organ, stronger than Kuhnau in fugue and counterpoint, especially es tempore, but he knew very little about melody†. Mattheson helped Handel pursue his dreams, even introducing him to the English ambassador Sir Cyril Wyche. Their family music was assiduously cultivated, and here, Handel was able to get engagements and students. They worked at the opera together, and also went to social excursions and musicals, despite numerous controversies that surrounded their friendship. They also traveled to Lubeck together, to contest each other for the post of the organist at the Marienkirche, to succeed Dietrich Buxtenhude, who was about to retire. They both withdrew, though, upon learning that Buxtenhude wanted the successor to marry his daughter. During the time they spent together, the two became very good friends and inseparable companions. All good friends have their disagreements, and so did these two fervent individuals. Their personalities, fueled by the same music, can be very different at times, and often became the result of conflict. In the marketplace, in front of a large crowd, they fought with swords after a quarrel while conducting â€Å"Cleopatra†, Mattheson’s opera. The fight ended when a metal button on Handel’s coat broke Mattheson’s sword. Perhaps, they both realized the stupidity of their actions. Hence, the two musicians resolved the issue, buried the hatchet, and emerged better friends than ever. During his stay in Hamburg, Handel was able to produce a cantata on the Passion, four operas and several minor compositions. These, and the exposure and experience from this place would not have been possible, if not for the guidance and help of his good friend and colleague Johann Mattheson. Concluding A Life Of Music George Frideric Handel died on April 14, 1759, peacefully in his sleep. He left behind a life’s worth of compositions, the most acclaimed and famous one being the â€Å"Messiah†. If a study on his operas and dramatic works was made, people will discover a Handel that’s very unknown: a composer with an unparalleled sense for dramatic human character. Perhaps, majority of it came from a life of experiences, but a tremendous part of it came from the people closest to him. His family origins and closest friends influenced him, in such a way that he emerged as one of the most famous and celebrated composers in the world. References Bray, Anna Eliza. (1857). Handel: His Life, Personal and Professional. Harvard University. Dent, Edward Joseph. (2007). Handel. BiblioBazaar, LLC. Harris, Ellen T. (2001). Handel As Orpheus: Voice And Desire In The Chamber Cantatas. Harvard University Press. Hogwood, Christopher. (2005). Handel: Water Music and Music for The Royal Fireworks. Cambridge University Press. Lang, Paul Henry. (1996). George Frideric Handel. Courier Dove Publications. Sadie, Stanley & Hicks, Anthony. (1987). Handel: Tercentenary Collection. Boydell and Brewer. Schoelcher, Victor. (1857). The Life of Handel. Oxford University. Streatfield, R. A. (2005). Handel. Kessinger Publishing. Van Til, Marian. (2007). George Frideric Handel: A Music Lover’s Guide to His Life, His Faith and the Development of Messiah and His Other Oratorios. WordPower Publishing. Vaughan, Robert, & Allon, Henry. (1862). The British Quarterly Review. Hodder and Stoughton. Williams, Charles Francis Abdy. (2008). Handel. BiblioBazaar, LLC.

Music during WW2 and how it played a role Essay

Music during World War 2 was made to help get people through depression and motivate the men and women fighting in Europe and Asia. Everyone was into patriotism at this time including the music they listened to. At this time music has expanded its demographic to younger audiences, before it popular music was mainly appealing for adults. It contained many uplifting styles of music such as swing, be-bop, and country. For example Frank Sinatra became very popular to the young teenage demographic. He was the first singing teen idol. He created more swinging music to help with the war with songs like â€Å"The Birth of the Blues†. Jo Stafford also became famous with her romantic World War 2 ballads. Most of her songs helped the troops overseas remember their wives and girlfriends back home. Other songs also helped like â€Å"America Calling† by Meredith Willson, which helped boost morale of the country and convinced men to enlist into the armed services. It reminds them about what this war is about and to support it. â€Å"Angels of Mercy† by Irving Berlin, which was created after the bombing of Pearl Harbor dedicating the American Red Cross nurses, portraying them as Angels of Mercy wounded victims overseas. â€Å"Back Home For Keeps† by Carmen Lombardo, which is about a wife waiting for her husband to return home. This song gave a good mood and also helped support the war. â€Å"Cowards Over Pearl Harbor† by Fred Rose, which gave great American Spirit by talking about how America will over Japan, the evil country. â€Å"G. I. Blues† by Floyd Tillman, which describes the view of an American Soldier at war. It describes them as being lazy and doing nothing, which makes him depressed and wanting to come home. His thinks that if they continue to have lazy soldiers, America will not be able to win. â€Å"Hello Mom† by Eddie Dunstedter, which was about more about the propaganda during the war and gave more morale. Plus, it also supported the war bonds. It helped the parents who had a son in the war make them feel better. â€Å"Ma! I Miss You Apple Pie† by a G.I. at a training camp, which summed up what America is fighting for. The Apple Pie symbolizes Americas Freedom and how a soldier misses his Apple Pie. â€Å"Wonder When My Baby’s Coming Home† by Kermit Goell and Arthur Kent, which is yet another  song about a wife or girlfriend waiting for her lover to come home, waiting in her house. â€Å"I’ve been Drafted Now I’m Drafting You† by Lyle Moraine & Chuck Foster, which is about the pains about separation and a soldier convincing his girlfriend to be proud to so him in uniform. In conclusion, the music during World War 2 where mainly about the war, patriotism, propaganda, and much more with lyrics that helped Americans get through the war years.

The Book of Kells essays

The Book of Kells essays ... you might believe that it is the work of an angel rather than a human being. -thirteenth century biblical scholar Giraldus Cambrensis The book of Kells is a beautiful translation of the four gospels based upon the Vulgate, the original latin translation from the original Hebrew. The book also contains the Eusipian canons and fragments of early Hebrew geneaology. It was presented to the Trinity College in Dublin, Ireland in the year 1661 by the archbishop Henry Jones. It is generally regarded as one of the most beautifull illuminated texts in the world. An Illuminated text are ancient books ussualy done on animal skin, Vellum. They were done by hand and contain marvelous illustrations often done in gold leaf and various other pigments. These pictures are designs that have pretty much spawned and defined what would come to be known as classical celtic art. These illustrations are pictorials of man and beasts, fanciful beings, gargoyles,dragons, birds, dogs, and horses are all woven together in elaborate patterns. What really strikes the viewer is not only the ornate detail of all this ornamentation, but the precis ion of the illustrators hand. The Book of Kells, is also called The book of Columba, after the Irish monk St Collum Cille. He died at the monestary of Iona, an island of the coast of Scotland, in 597 AD. In 806 vikings, probably of Danish origin, mounted a raid on Iona, killing sixty eight of the Ionic monks. Many of the remaining monks fled Iona to the monastary in Kells. Kells is on the irish mainland about seventy kilometers north of Dublin. Many scholars believe that this tranlation was commisioned to commemerate the anniversary of St Collums death in 797. It is believed that the half completed book made this flight with the monks. Very little is known about the actual authors, although scholars have been able to divine four very different hands in the calligraphy. ...

modem essays

modem essays Implementing a Single-Chip Once I was given the task to implement a modem chip, I immediately started to search for the various available types of such chips. The resulting searches gave me a large range of modem chips. The divide between most of the I.C.s found was whether the modem was so-called single-chip or dual-chip. The latter involves the same circuitry as in the single-chip modem but has another chip dedicated to DSP (digital signal processing) and some memory (both RAM and ROM). These chips were found to be too complex and beyond the scope of our requirements. On the other hand the single-chip modems found were also divided into two main types, being those with or without a microcontroller. The latter are not numerous and were initially thought to not even be viable, but upon further detailed research such I.C.s were actually found. The modem chip selected for this purpose is the MSM6926 produced by OKI. The following is a detailed description of the chip and its various functions: The MSM6926 is OKI's 300 bps single chip modem series which transmit and receive serial, binary data over a switched telephone network using frequency shift keying (FSK). FSK is one of the modulation schemes available for data transmission, and is one the most common. Other modulation schemes include ASK, BPSK and QAM but FSK was found sufficient in our case. The MSM6926 is compatible with ITU-T V.21 series data sets, where the ITU-T V.21 is data transfer protocol dictating the different frequencies for the FSK transmission. This device provides all the necessary modulation, demodulation, and filtering required to implement a serial, asynchronous communication link. OKI's single chip modem series is designed for users who are not telecommunication experts and are easy to use cost effective alternative to standard discrete modem design. CMOS LSI technology provides the ...

The Origin of Samuel Clemens as Mark Twain

The Origin of Samuel Clemens as Mark Twain Author Samuel Langhorne Clemens used the pen name Mark Twain and a couple other pseudonyms during his writing career. Pen names have been used by authors throughout the centuries for purposes such as disguising their gender, shielding their personal anonymity and family associations, or even to cover up past legal troubles. However, Samuel Clemens didnt appear to choose Mark Twain for any of those reasons. Origin of Mark Twain In Life on the Mississippi,  Mark Twain writes about Captain Isaiah Sellers, a riverboat pilot who wrote under the pseudonym Mark Twain, The old gentleman was not of literary turn or capacity, but he used to jot down brief paragraphs of plain practical information about the river, and sign them MARK TWAIN, and give them to the New Orleans Picayune.  They related to the stage and condition of the river, and were accurate and valuable; and thus far, they contained no poison. The term mark twain is for a measured river depth of 12 feet or two fathoms, the depth that was safe for a steamboat to pass. Sounding the river for depth was essential as an unseen obstruction could result in tearing a hole in the vessel and sinking it. Clemens aspired to be a river pilot, which was a well-paying position. He paid $500 to study for two years as an apprentice steamboat pilot and earned his pilots license. He worked as a pilot until the outbreak of the Civil War in 1861. How Samuel Clemens Decided to Use the Pen Name After a brief two weeks as a Confederate enlistee, he joined his brother Orion in Nevada Territory where Orion served as secretary to the governor. He tried mining but failed and instead took up as a journalist for the Virginia City Territorial Enterprise. This is when he began to use the pen name of Mark Twain. The original user of the pseudonym died in 1869. In Life on the Mississippi,  Mark Twain says: I was a fresh new journalist, and needed a nom de guerre; so I confiscated the ancient mariners discarded one, and have done my best to make it remain what it was in his hands- a sign and symbol and warrant that whatever is found in its company may be gambled on as being the petrified truth; how I have succeeded, it would not be modest in me to say. Further, in his autobiography, Clemens noted that he wrote several satires of the original pilots postings that were published and caused embarrassment. As a result, Isaiah Sellers stopped publishing his reports. Clemens was penitent for this later in life. Other Pen Names and Pseudonyms Before 1862, Clemens signed humorous sketches as Josh. Samuel Clemens used the name Sieur Louis de Conte for Joan of Arc (1896). He also used the pseudonym Thomas Jefferson Snodgrass for three humorous pieces he contributed to Keokuk Post. Sources Fatout, Paul. â€Å"Mark Twains Nom de Plume.† American Literature, vol. 34, no. 1, 1962, p. 1., doi:10.2307/2922241.Twain, Mark, et al. Autobiography of Mark Twain. University of California Press, 2010.Twain, Mark. Life on the Mississippi. Tauchnitz, 1883.

Causes of the decline of the Devirme System Term Paper

Causes of the decline of the Devirme System - Term Paper Example The non-Muslim population in the empire and outside the empire therefore bore the blunt of the Ottoman rule, since they were targeted by the Sultan as well as other traders who used to offer them as slaves instead of paying taxes to the Sultan, or either as a gift to the Sultan. The youth offered for enslavement could either become military personnel in the kingdom, while others could be educated and trained to joining the janissaries in the Harem. This was the Sultan’s home or center of governing where all the activities of the Sultan occupied. The Devshirme system however collapsed later, due to many external influences, such as the modernization from the external world that crept into the Ottoman Empire before its collapse, and due to the inclusion of many foreigners in the Palace and in the empire as a whole. One factor that led to the collapse of the Devshirme system could be the conversion of many of the non-Muslims in the kingdom, into Islamic religion. Duiker and Spielvogel (337) explained that as a result of hostilities that was directed to the non Muslim inhabitants of the empire, many parents saw it necessary to convert to Islamic religion to save their families from being abducted by the powerful men who could afterwards offer them as gifts to the Sultan. Many of such youths had died in the wars, since they were trained and used for military purposes by the Sultan. It was therefore very disheartening and painful for parents to learn of their children’s death in the military activities. To avoid this, a good number of non Muslims as Duiker and Spielvogel (339) explained converted into Islamic religion. Since it was cultural not abduct the Islam professing inhabitants in the Devshirme practices, it therefore translated into declining of the possible abductees in the kingdom. The practice therefore faded gradually as the people converted into Islam, until it ended by the collapse of the Ottoman rule. In the

Report Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words - 23

Report - Essay Example Notably, with regard to the understanding gained from the study, it can be said that dementia is a term used to describe the syndrome where there is a progressive decline in the ability of a person to function in everyday activities, behavior, thinking and memory owing to the unstable condition of the brain. These changes affect the social, psychological and physical life of an individual with regard to career, family and society (WHO, 2012). Though dementia is not a result of ageing, it certainly affects older age individual more than others. According to the report of the World Health Organization, around 35.6 million people have been diagnosed with dementia worldwide in the recent time. The second resource that was taken into consideration is the report regarding Alzheimer’s disease in Australia, which is a complication relevant to dementia (IAGG, 2011). There are many different forms of dementia and each has its own causes. The most common form of dementia is Alzheimer’s disease, which accounts for 50% to 70% of dementia cases, which is again followed to as vascular dementia (Fight Alzheimer’s Save Australia, n.d.). Again, Lewy body dementia and Fronto Temporal Lobar Degeneration dementia is other forms or complications relevant to dementia. The resource mainly contains the difference in memory changes amid a person with dementia and an older person. The next resource that has been developed is a brochure regarding Alzheimer’s organization about ‘five simple steps to maximize your bra in health’. The steps include taking care of the heart, physical activity, brain activity, healthy diet and social activity to further stabilize the health of the brain (Australian Indigenous Health, 2013). The fourth resource was published by the National Health Institute, 2010 on the Biological Basis of Behavioral Symptoms in Dementia. It contains both biological and psychological aspects of health. The biological

Operations Management at Amazon Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words - 2

Operations Management at Amazon - Essay Example The preceding discussion confirms the findings in the literature relating to the new and complex challenges facing e-commerce plays like Amazon, especially with regard to how its radically different strategy of optimizing operations efficiencies to execute a volume strategy in the online retail space needs new ways of managing operations. These new ways need to impute the opportunities provided by new technologies, but at the same time be mindful of the pitfalls of relying on old ways of thinking in order to solve problems that are unique to Amazon (Rao 2011; Karmakar and Apte 2007). One can see that aspects of process design, are intertwined with inventory management concerns. This is the case for inventory management considerations for digital content, for example, as those relate to the relative ease of handling virtual inventory on the one hand and the opposing difficulty and complexity of managing physical inventories. Here aspects of operations relate to optimizing warehouses a nd processes for managing inventories from the supplier to the warehouses, as well as those aspects of inventory management relating to the handling of physical goods at the fulfillment centers at Amazon (Rao 2014). A recommendation is to continue to use Amazon Prime as the benchmark for efficiency and success of the execution of the inventory management processes at Amazon, owing to the high bar it has set for orders fulfillment and the cost of fulfilling orders of physical goods (Graham 2013; Onetto 2014).

Explain the different reasons why we observe low levels of intake of Essay

Explain the different reasons why we observe low levels of intake of health micro-insurance in many developing countries - Essay Example There is a general lack of trust about the insurance sector, with many people being under perception that the funds are either misappropriated or used for personal gains. Lack of essential insurance cover, such as that of health has led to challenge of addressing health of the population, especially in Africa. The paper will also provide some recommendation of what needs to be done to increase the uptake of health micro insurance in developing countries. Studies by the World Health Organization (WHO) indicates that the uptake of health insurance in many developing countries, especially in Africa, remains low (Ahuja & JÃ ¼tting, 2004). The situation remains a major concern owing to the fact out-of-pocket payment of health services is extremely expensive to majority of people. This means that most of them will not seek healthcare services from the formal health organizations. In counties such as Senegal, the traditional healers also play a role in treating patients. The use of traditional herbal medicine is also common, as it is perceived to be the cheapest means of treatment. The uptake of insurance is also associated with economic, ignorance, and lack of trust. The misappropriation of health funds has discouraged most people from taking insurance. With the insurance cost remaining high in most African countries, the uptake is common in the employed population. This owes to the fact that the employers is under obligations, in many African countries, to deduct health insurance from the gross salary. Lack of information about health insurance, coupled by negative attitude towards the system has also been blamed for the low intake (Dercon, & De Weerdt, 2006). For instance, most of those living in the rural areas are found to lack in health insurance. The number of health facilities in these areas are also few, and miles away from the people. One of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs)

In What, After All, Does Happiness Consist for Aristotle Is He Right Essay

In What, After All, Does Happiness Consist for Aristotle Is He Right - Essay Example In other words, moral virtue, however it is attained, will bring happiness. He divides goods into three classes, A person who loves justice, or virtue will find pleasure in carrying out just or virtuous acts. Thus a virtuous person will find happiness in both himself and in acting upon his own goodness, and then be happy. Aristotle further explains that such happiness needs 'external goods' because a person must be equipped with certain other ingredients to perform noble acts. He cites friends, political power and wealth, which can be used to achieve this happiness, and includes certain aspects which might be described as living a 'charmed life' in modern terms. Having noble birth, beauty, good children and so on, all help to enable a person to live well, (think virtuous thoughts, do good acts) and so make a person happy. The inference then is that if someone is ugly, childless, poor or lonely, they have little chance of happiness. be in. However, he does believe that to study and become of good character is the preferred method, leading to noble acts, complete virtue and a complete life. Aristotle acknowledges that changes encountered throughout life might overturn the happiness but concludes that the virtuous activities of man are the most long lasting and permanent, for by thinking virtuously and acting so, he is truly good, and by inference, and in fact, happy. Such a person, described in Chapter 10, will be able to take what life throws at him, handle it because of his 'nobility and greatness of soul' (Bk. 1 Chp. 10, 350BC), always be happy, even in the afterlife. In Chapter 11 he says 'the blessed dead will not be affected by good or bad fortunes of those left behind, their happy state is preserved' (Bk. 1 Chp 11, 350BC). (He considered that what happens to the living impinges on the dead). The hypothesis here would seem to be that thinking good thoughts, doing noble and virtuous acts, staying happy, secure in the knowledge that one is thinking well and living well, makes for happiness, in this life and the next. The soul, being the rational aspect of a human being, will ensure obedience and the production of such virtue will result. His non-evolutionary concept of the universe, (nature is as it is) and how man exists within it, made his ethics fit well with the teachings of the Catholic Church and later, with Christianity as a whole. Serious challenges only arose with the Enlightenment of the 18th Century and the ideas preceding it during the 17th. From Galileo to Darwin, and many others, overturned his views, suffering at the hands of religious leaders in the process. Now, in the 21st Century, surrounded by the knowledge of man's physical, psychological and scientific

Explain the different reasons why we observe low levels of intake of Essay

Explain the different reasons why we observe low levels of intake of health micro-insurance in many developing countries - Essay Example There is a general lack of trust about the insurance sector, with many people being under perception that the funds are either misappropriated or used for personal gains. Lack of essential insurance cover, such as that of health has led to challenge of addressing health of the population, especially in Africa. The paper will also provide some recommendation of what needs to be done to increase the uptake of health micro insurance in developing countries. Studies by the World Health Organization (WHO) indicates that the uptake of health insurance in many developing countries, especially in Africa, remains low (Ahuja & JÃ ¼tting, 2004). The situation remains a major concern owing to the fact out-of-pocket payment of health services is extremely expensive to majority of people. This means that most of them will not seek healthcare services from the formal health organizations. In counties such as Senegal, the traditional healers also play a role in treating patients. The use of traditional herbal medicine is also common, as it is perceived to be the cheapest means of treatment. The uptake of insurance is also associated with economic, ignorance, and lack of trust. The misappropriation of health funds has discouraged most people from taking insurance. With the insurance cost remaining high in most African countries, the uptake is common in the employed population. This owes to the fact that the employers is under obligations, in many African countries, to deduct health insurance from the gross salary. Lack of information about health insurance, coupled by negative attitude towards the system has also been blamed for the low intake (Dercon, & De Weerdt, 2006). For instance, most of those living in the rural areas are found to lack in health insurance. The number of health facilities in these areas are also few, and miles away from the people. One of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs)

Holocaust in the Middle East, and Muslim-Jew Relations Essay

Holocaust in the Middle East, and Muslim-Jew Relations - Essay Example It might seem rather surprising but Jews and Muslims were not so hostile to each other in the earlier centuries, rather they lived peacefully and harmoniously with each other but something transpired in between that vitiated their mutual relations and ties to a point of no return. At a first glance it seems Jews and Muslims are poles apart and there is absolutely nothing in common between them, rather they are so disparate that possibly mutual hatred is the only shared thread that binds them. But, a deeper look at these two religions would, quite surprisingly, bring out certain common strains that indicate these two religions have much similarity with each other. Both these religions have a common origin in Abraham. While Jews consider Muslims as true followers of ‘Seven Laws of Noah’, it might be a revelation to many that Quran refers to the inhabitants of Israel at least forty three times with Exodus of Jews led by Moses being given special importance. Judaism and Islam also share several broad common perspectives about religious outlook and practice and this theological proximity has over the last 1400 years, notwithstanding last ninety or so years’ hostility, woven certain bridges that neither Muslims nor Jews can ignore. Thus it seems more perplexing that these two religious groups that share the same geographical origin have become bitter enemies of one another (Prager and Telushkin). The most common similarities in religious practices between these two religions are circumcision, prohibition of homosexuality and consumption of pork. While Islam prescribes five times a day prayer, Judaism also insists on five times a day prayer that might however be reduced to twice daily under certain specific circumstances. Any honest student of history must admit that while there have been aberrations in the course of centuries, Jews have by and large lived peacefully and prospered under

Teenage Pregnancy Essay Example for Free

Teenage Pregnancy Essay Throughout life teenagers go through very tough decisions that could mold their future for the rest of their lives. At such a young age, adolescents believe that they’re old enough to make their own decisions on crucial matters. One of those choices is deciding that it’s time to have a child. Teenage pregnancy is a very difficult transition that no adolescent should put upon themselves at such a young age. Once you go through with it there’s no going back; your childhood is over, it’s time to become an adult. There are too many negative outcomes for teenage mothers that pregnancy as an adolescent should be illegal. The fear of poverty sets in along with the social challenges that accompany becoming a teen mom. Safe sex and being aware of possibly going through with an abortion should always be the option. Most, if not all teenagers aren’t aware of the struggles that come with becoming a parent at that age. Providing for one’s self growing up is tough enough, but to take on the role of mending for another life that young is just mind boggling. The first people that come to thought that influence a decision like this have to be those adolescents’ parents. Older parents have to make a better effort in talking to their children about sex and the consequences that are associated with it. According to the New York Times article â€Å"Income Inequalities and Teenage Pregnancy†, Teenagers are most likely to seek sexual information from their friends (61 percent). Although they are least likely to seek information from their parents (32 percent), a significant number of teenagers (43 percent) express a strong desire to have more information on how to talk to their parents about sex and relationships. Adults of course aren’t the only ones to blame. The world we live in today is full of different types of media that can mislead a teen into making wrong decisions. For example, the television show â€Å"Teen Mom† on MTV is a very good portrayal of the life of an average teen mom. The show depicts the various difficulties associated with having a child as an adolescent. The message it tries to get across can be taken one way by some and could be taken the complete opposite by others. Some teens may think that the struggles that come with the individuals on the show could never happen to them. This is where they’re seriously wrong. Raising a child isn’t just about caring for him and tending to all of its needs; finances play a huge role in making sure you and your child don’t live through poverty. You can bet that if you’re pregnant before you leave high school, getting a degree and education will be drastically affected. In fact, â€Å"The Unplanned Pregnancy for Teens and College Students† states that parenthood is the leading reason that teen girls drop out of school. More than half of teen mothers never graduate from high school. Not only that but less than 2 percent of teen moms earn a college degree by age 30. Now keeping this in mind, it’s very difficult to find a decent paying job without a degree these days. To top that off, 8 out of 10 teen dads don’t marry the mother of the child. So now we’re talking possibly becoming the sole provider for your child. Would you want you and your kid to growing up into poverty and living at ends meet? This isn’t always the case but it looks like the ideal situation to abide by would be staying in school, getting a degree and not putting yourself into a situation that you could regret for the rest of your life. There are many different ways you can avoid putting yourself at risk to become so sexually active that the chance of becoming pregnant doesn’t happen. Re-evaluate the people that you surround yourself with. The article from the New York Times concludes that â€Å"Adolescents (ages 13 to 18) report that they are most likely to get information about sexual health issues from their peers. † Peer pressure is something every teenager will go through at one course in their lives. It’s their responsibility to recognize when it’s good and bad pressure. Why associate yourself with friends that are all about sex, drugs, and money? Knowing which group of peers to avoid hanging out with will increase your decision making and make you a better decision taker. Another way you can stray away from being a parent so young is practicing different methods of contraception. Sexual intercourse will eventually happen for every teen. Putting yourself at risk for not wrapping it up or being on birth control is idiotic. As you can see, your teenage years are supposed to be the time of your life. There shouldn’t be any stress or any major concerns with how your future is falling into place. Becoming a teenage parent is a foolish decision and isn’t worth throwing the good times away. Raising a child is a huge responsibility and in my opinion, is more of an immature move than a mature one if you’re that young. Raising a family is supposed to be a rewarding experience, not one that you should have any regrets on.

Impact of Speech and Language Difficulties on Development

Impact of Speech and Language Difficulties on Development Explain the impact that speech, language and communication difficulties can have on a child’s overall development. ANSWER: The difficulties a child’s development can have are in many aspects of which are PSED (physical, social and emotional development), play, and literacy, maths, understanding the world and expressive arts and design. Looking at PSED, it effect the side of self confidence, self esteem, sharing views, discussing anything, being part of an activity physically, being amongst a group of friends and making a decision. Look at the from the view point of yourself, being a part of something where you are not able to contribute because you have a difficulty in SLC (speech, language and communication), it is just so hard to even be present there, you would just want to be in your own nutshell, but at the same time you want to study, achieve things, your friends laugh when you stammer, your friends bully or look down upon you or exclude in a very sly manner, these all are mental stress, emotional torture and withdraws oneself and hate builds. Let us take play in consideration, how do u play football silently? It is just not practical, playing rugby, cricket, tennis, badminton, there is so much to cheer and applaud to, you will even feel ashamed of yourself and probably not engage because you are not as competent as the other? That is not fair on an individual. You are not able to play as a team; you cannot comprehend instructions or even relate to other children whilst playing such as pretend play or friendly match. Now literacy and maths, these are educational subjects, you have to sit down, brainstorm, discuss, and ask for help, read, write, understand, solve problems and reason. When you are neglected, left alone, how do you cope? You might always avoid the library and group discussions because of your difficulty, on the other hand you can come out confident and tackle the situation come what may but within yourself, your own image, self confidence is extremely shallow, you may portray out very confident and self efficient, but within yourself it is a battle of struggle day in and out. Expressive arts and design, these need creativity, expressions, depth of understanding, communication, body language, eye contact, communication through writing and verbal, you may be very good artist but if you communication is difficult how will people appreciate your very, yes of course sign language is a benefit factor which will assist you in promoting yourself, not many people understand sign language, value it nor appreciate it, so finding a group which upholds you despite your difficulties is another task. In all, any learning difficulty has an adverse effect in a child life to achieve and excel not only in studies but also amongst friends, family, as most of those around will have the pity for you instead of empathy and such feelings do a lot of damage emotionally, mentally and socially. QUESTION 2: Describe how practitioners can modify or adapt the communication to meet the needs of individual children. ANSWER: Modify and adapt; change, accept and produce Practitioners are able to modify and adapt in various ways; having an interpreter, having computers for visual text or pictures or visual learners, one to one support, more lightning, take work home to do with parents, calm background, imply and reinforce unity and helping each other amongst children, making sure to the best ability every child is happy, review particular child every week, build a team of students who help other children and ensure the team rotates so all the children get the chance, always smiling and positive feelings and thoughts and suggestions, use empathy and support. Get professionals come in to meet child, encourage other children to engage with, working in partnership with parents, professionals and teacher becomes a strong triangle, use more visual aid, simple and clear statements, praise effort made by child, give time to listen, think, understand, go to the child’s pace, visual timetable, go down to child level and communicate, ask child to repeat what you have said, make learning fun and using simple words, you be the model of behaviour and language so other staff learn from you, being vigilant all the time, understand child and see what is the best way to communication, pictures, gestures, signing, written message and you continue to support. The one thing I strongly believe in, no matter what one goes through, if you have the right mentor and support, you can travel and achieve a lot in may be a longer period of time but you will get there one day, also keeping in mind perseverance is very important in a very gentle, simple and comforting manner. If a child does not want to complete a task, explain the importance, show the child light at the end of a tunnel and do give a positive reward too such as sticker, play time with special toy, take for a walk, showing the work to the rest of the children and teachers and putting it on the board to. All the support and one to one attention is not an easy task it takes a lot of patience, perseverance, calm nature, happy go lucky nature, sense of humour, and strong willed person, but remember the confidence, self esteem, bright future, success, achievement of that particular child will be a reward for the teacher that you were able to do something for someone which was of benefit to the person and enable them reach the skies. QUESTION 3: Explain how practitioners can meet the communication needs of children who speak English as an additional language. ANSWER: There are many methods to meet needs of English as second language, a few are; special time for those children, a teacher takes children to a quiet room use pictures and say the item in their language and than in English and encourage them to repeat after you, just within their concentration span such as 5-10 mins, you keep building words like that. Make sure you have the child’s attention when speaking to them and also you should be face to face with the child and mention their name to gain attention. Another way could be having dual books, reading a book aloud, very simple words such as animals example; a cat- heesna (in Arabic), cath (in welsh), punai (in tamil ). It depends on which language the child is, normally they do speak little English but simple things like â€Å"mum coming†, â€Å"food†, â€Å"water†, â€Å"tired†, â€Å"read†, â€Å"well done†, â€Å"bye†, words which bring comfort to a child depending on age if you say to them in their language and than English they form a quick attachment and settle quickly too especially with little ones. Making books with children using pictures, as you stick, you say in their language and English too such as; carrot- gajar, vegetable-sabzi, mango-aam, milk- doodh Ask parents to write down a few words for you which you can use with the child on daily basis Play games in a group and team, this will enable child learn English form other children, music and dance and rhyme too. If any of the practitioners know the child’s language let them be the key worker One must also keep a close watch on children and keep reminding of rules and boundaries, always come down to child level and explain and reinforce, nicely and calm. Keep a positive body language, facial expression and continuous speaking in English at the same time reminding them in their own language so the child is rest assured and remains calm. Use pictures to explain more if hard to comprehend, use writing skills, use gestures and remain in close partnership with parents and encourage using English at home. QUESTION 4: Analyse the role that other professionals play in supporting the speech, language and communication needs of children ANSWER: Every individual working in a field related to children is part and parcel of the team works, discussion and achievements with targets, of course some have a more specific target role but team work is what brings success. One of the main professional to be consulted with this specific difficulty is Speech Educational Needs Co-ordinator, we must keep in mind to always consult parents, take their views, have a discussion and then involve other professionals. Considering the SENCO team, they will suggest a few things to parents such as visiting GP to refer to Speech and Language Therapist. This professional will work hand in hand with parent/carer/nursery/school, pay home visits, carry out activities with child such as how can child express and analyse themselves, does the child understand instructions verbally and mentally, can the child respond clearly, how the child is engaging in play, carry out fun games and activities with child, response therapist received from child, behaviour of the child, skills the child uses for communication, will enquire about child strengths and what child enjoys and how much you know the child, will want a quiet session with child, would want to know about day to day experience and routine of child The therapist will than record and analyse. Once all that is done the therapist will decide if it is going to be beneficial for the child and in what strategy needs to be used, the parent/carer will receive a feed back and carry on from there. Giving children time and space, helps them grow, giving a child good listening ears and demonstrating good communication skills enables them to learn, we are the models of children around us so we must be very careful in our day to day behaviour, calling out the child’s name before you start speaking makes them concentrate and become attentive too, keeping words short and simple, remaining calm all the time, recasting to what children say such as; ‘ I am playing with car’ adult says ‘ yes, you are playing with your red speedy car’. It is important to engage children in play with exploration, mental and written learning, creativity and brain storm, discussion and inventions and promoting togetherness when doing an activity, problem solving and sharing thoughts and ideas. Team thinks together, give items, set targets and achieve them. Each and every step in a child life is crucial, so how a child is dealt with, given replies for questions, asked questions, given space, explore and learn in their pace is important, of course parents should shadow and keep track but at the same time allow them to take risks and build confidence, independence, self esteem, self reliant and understanding too, keeping in mind safety of child and adult is a priority. BIBLIOGRAPHY: Notes provided by college Google search www.idponline.org.uk www.naldic.org.uk Own experience and views

My Mother: Superwoman Essay -- Personal Narrative, essay about my fami

When I needed to talk, she listened. When I was ill, she healed me. When I was hungry, she fed me. This frail woman whom I call my mom was a superwoman while I was growing up. With wisdom, she guided; with tenderness, she spoke; and with love, she raised me. Although we were very poor, my mother made it a point always to give me a present on my birthday. That shiny blue bike I got for my birthday at the tender age of ten was my closest friend. But it was a sunny spring day when my comrade committed its evil treason. My bike had flung me from its metal frame as if it were a wild bronco and I were a rodeo clown. Over its handles I went, crashing to the unforgiving earth. It was at that instant that I realized two things: my pal had betrayed me, and my knee was bleeding like a b...

Understanding the Factors Affecting the Unemployment Rate

Understanding the Factors Affecting The Unemployment Rate Through Regression Analysis An Individual Report Presented to The Faculty of Economics Department In Partial Fulfillment To The Requirements for ECONMET C31 Submitted to: Dr. Cesar Rufino Submitted by: Aaron John Dee 10933557 April 8, 2011 1 TABLE OF CONTENTS I. INTRODUCTION A. Background of the Study B. Statement of the Problem C. Objective II. THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK AND RELATED LITERATURE A. GDP B. Average Years in School C. Population D. Literacy Rate III. OPERATIONAL FRAMEWORK A. Model Specification B. List and Description of Variables C.A-priori Expectations IV. METHODOLOGY V. EMPIRICAL RESULTS AND INTERPRETATIONS A. Regression of the Original Model 4 4 5 5 6 6 6 7 7 9 9 9 10 12 13 13 2 B. Summary Statistics C. Testing for Misspecification in the Model D. Testing for Multicollinearity E. Testing for Heteroscedasticity VI. CONCLUSION VII. BIBLIOGRAPHY 15 16 17 18 21 22 3 I. INTRODUCTION A. Background of the Study When we we re still kids, we dream of what we want to be in the future. Older people will usually ask us if what we want to be in the future. Most of us will say, they want to be a doctor, lawyer or engineer to name some.We think and think about our career, but once we are already in the college level, we now dream to become successful in life and have a stable job. But with the rate of unemployment here in country continue to increase, there are no guarantee that once we graduated we will have a job immediately. Unfortunately, many still fail to have stable jobs. Some even can’t find a job even though they graduated from top schools. Then we found ourselves ending in the pool of unemployment. Unemployment is indeed a very important issue all over the world. People are getting laid off, some cannot find a job, and the number is increasing.Government wants to achieve full employment but we all know that it will never happen simply because there are millions of people in country and the g overnment or even the private sectors can provide for that huge number of laborers. The government cannot just expand and increase total output so that it will provide job opportunities to the unemployed because there also negative impact on the economy. I am aware that our country is suffering from high unemployment rate, because some workers are only on a contractual basis. Sure they can work but usually it is only for 6 months plus there are no benefits included.After the span of 6 months, they will find themselves unemployed again and they will have a difficult time especially if they did not finish schooling. Companies now a day are more sophisticated and competitive, they don’t just hire college 4 graduate students even if you graduated from top schools. Having a master’s degree will surely be of help in finding a job for companies look only for the best. Some people engage in work that they are not inclined with like for past year, people work as call center age nts even though their college degree is not mass communications or anything that has a connection of being a call center agent.They do this because they don’t want to be unemployed and do nothing for an extended period of time. B. Statement of the Problem Unemployment is very important issue, not just here in our country but also for the rest of the world. This paper will seek to answer whether the literacy rate, average years in school, GDP and total population have a relationship with the total unemployment. Can these exogenous variables explain the unemployment that is happening all over the world? C. Objective The objective of this paper is to (1) find out what are the determinants of unemployment.For this study, literacy rate, average years in school, GDP and total population will be considered as a determinant of unemployment. (2) Create an econometric model that will explain unemployment and (3) to give the readers idea what should be done to alleviate unemployment 5 I I. REVIEW ON RELATED LITERATURE A. GDP Gross domestic product or GDP is considered as an indicator of the standard of living in a certain country. The higher the GDP the higher is the country’s standards of living and the lower the GDP the lower is the country’s standard of living.According to (Abuqamar, Coomans, & Louckx, 2011), unemployment is an important factor in measuring country’s economic strength like GDP per capita. If the unemployment level is high, then economic growth is very low because they have a negative relationship. A sustainable growth accompanied by macroeconomic policies that promotes employment will eventually cut down the level of unemployment in the economy and growth is considered as a solution to decrease unemployment (Hussain, Siddiqi, & Iqbal, 2010). This is true because when government wants to increase output by building infrastructures and the like.They create job opportunities for those who are unemployed thus, alleviating unempl oyment in the economy. More people will get jobs and earn to sustain their standard of living or even increase their standard of living depending on their salaries. B. Average Years in School Education is very important in everyone’s lives. It is our foundation of knowledge which will reflect us. Even though going to school and doing homework are boring, we will still benefit from it because we learn and by learning we become mature and responsible.According to (Weisberg & Meltz), the higher the level of education or the years in school of a person, the 6 lower will be the unemployment rate. Which make sense since people are educated, they will have decent jobs and they can even create their own firm or business thus promoting employment. C. Population Population in a country is always increasing and that is inevitable. Population is also a determinant of unemployment. Based on the research paper of (Rafiq, Iftikhar, Asmat, & Zahoor) entitled Determinants of Unemployment: A C ase Study of Pakistan Economy (19982008), population growth has a negative effect on unemployment.The results of their tests show that when the population is increasing, unemployment also increases which is bad for every economy. Rapid growth in population is bad because it will only increase unemployment further. There will be pressure in employment since many people don’t have any job, unemployment will increase. Moen (1999) argues that in the competition for jobs, workers will prefer to have higher degree attainment so that they will have an edge over the other workers. With the preference of increasing a person’s educational attainment, the rate of unemployment will decrease. Nickell, 1979; Moen, 1999). D. Literacy Rate Literacy is important just like education. People must be literate in order to fit in the norm. According to the article Literacy and Unemployment, people who are illiterate have disadvantages because they cannot read and right, thus they will be mo re likely to be 7 unemployed. It is also stated in the article that once people get part of the unemployment cycle, it will be difficult for them to break it and because of long term of being unemployed they will feel discourage and therefore will lack self confidence. 8 III. OPERATIONAL FRAMEWORKA. Model Specification totunem = ? 1 + ? 2litrate + ? 3yearisnch + ? 4gdp + ? 5totpop + ? B. List and Description of Variables Before we proceed to the a-priori expectations of each exogenous variable to the endogenous variable and the discussion of the results, we must describe first the components of the model. The model is comprised of both the exogenous variables and the endogenous variable. The exogenous variables or the independent variables are not affected or determined by any other variables in the model unlike the endogenous variable which depends on the exogenous variable.Table 1 will tells us a brief description of the variables used in the model Table 1. Names of Variables Used and Descriptions Description This quantitative variable pertains to the total unemployment rate of all the countries in the world for the year 2000. lirate This quantitative variable pertains to the literacy rate of all the countries in the world for the year 2000. yearinsch This quantitative variable pertains to the average year in school of an adult ages 15 and up of all the countries in the world for the year 2000. dp This quantitative variable pertains to the gross domestic product of all the countries in the world for the year 2000. Variables totunem 9 totpop This quantitative variable pertains to the total population of all the countries in the world for the year 2000. C. A-priori Expectations The a-priori expectations capture the effect of an increase in the exogenous variables to the endogenous variable which in out model is totunem. The a-priori expectation are taken from the review on related literature a while ago.Note however that the a-priori expectation does not cover the magnitude of their relationship. It only tells the direction of their relationship. A positive sign implies that the exogenous variable has a positive relationship with the endogenous variable and a negative sign implies otherwise. The magnitude of their relationship will be discussed later on. Table 2 shows the relationship if the variables, their signs and the intuition behind it. Table 2. Variables, Sign and Intuition Exogenous Variable: totunem Signs Intuition + Literacy is very important to everyone because it is a social norm.Therefore it has a positive effect on unemployment because when literacy increases, it implies that people learned and attended school. Companies will hire them so there will be a decrease in the unemployment rate. Variables lirate 10 yearinsch +/- An increase in yearinsch doesn’t necessarily mean that you finished every level successfully. It can also mean that your year in school increases because you always fail in school. If the increase i n average years in school is positive, people will be able to work or create businesses that give job opportunities to the unemployed.But if the increase in average years in school is negative, it implies that people didn’t learn and therefore they will have a hard time looking for a job because companies will only accept people who performed well in school gdp + An increase on GDP will promote employment because when the government expands by building infrastructures, it gives job opportunities to those unemployed thus alleviating the unemployment. totpop – An increase in total population will have negative effect on unemployment.It means that when the total population increase, more people will now demand for a job creating a pressure towards the unemployment and if the government cannot supply the increasing population with jobs, they will severely increase the unemployment rate. 11 IV. METHODOLOGY A cross sectional data comprising of 65 countries all over the world for the year 2000 was used in the study. All of the data sets were obtained from the World Bank data sets. The researcher will use the software program Gretl to estimate the model. With this software, the coefficients of the exogenous variables will be obtained.A lin-lin type of model is used in this study and the Ordinary Least Squares approach will be used. After regressing the data, several outputs will be obtained like the coefficients, standard error, p-value and Rsquared to mention some. The model will now be subjected to various tests to check for any CLRM violations namely multicollinearity and heteroscedasticity. Autocorrelation is not present in this model since we are using a cross sectional data. To test for multicollierity, the auxiliary regression and the Variance Inflation Factor (VIF) will be used.To check for the presence of heteroscedasticity, both the Breusch – Pagan Test and the White’s Test will be used. After the tests, if there are presence of m ulticollinearity and heteroscedasticty, corrective measures should be applied in order to correct the model. The Ramsey’s RESET is a test for misspecification errors in the model. The interpretation of the results will be also showed after every test on the model. 12 V. EMPIRICAL RESULTS AND INTERPRETATIONS A. Regression of the Original Model The regression results shown below are obtained by using the Ordinary Least Squares method also known as the OLS method.Model 1: OLS, using observations 1-65 (n = 11) Missing or incomplete observations dropped: 54 Dependent variable: totunem coefficient std. error t-ratio p-value ———————————————————–const 14. 6143 6. 02794 2. 424 0. 0516 litrate -0. 344479 0. 129558 -2. 659 0. 0376 yearinsch 3. 48303 1. 04882 3. 321 0. 0160 gpd -1. 34898e-011 5. 94827e-012 -2. 268 0. 0639 totpop 1. 08535e-08 5. 83976 e-09 1. 859 0. 1124 Mean dependent var Sum squared resid R-squared F(4, 6) Log-likelihood Schwarz criterion 6. 200000 40. 74309 0. 740853 4. 288221 -22. 80997 57. 60942 S. D. ependent var S. E. of regression Adjusted R-squared P-value(F) Akaike criterion Hannan-Quinn * ** ** * 3. 965098 2. 605862 0. 568088 0. 056084 55. 61995 54. 36586 Excluding the constant, p-value was highest for variable 5 (totpop) The results from the initial regression are shown above. We need to look at several values in interpreting the results for our model. We need to look first the coefficients and the pvalue but what do these things tells us about our model. Since our model is linear, the coefficient basically tells us the effect of a unit increase in the exogenous variables to the 3 endogenous variables. It is interpreted like this, a unit increase in an independent variable will increase or decrease the dependent variable by the coefficient value. The p-value shows us the individual significance of the exogenous variables. For the exogenous variables considered to be significant, the p-value should be less than or equal to the risk level of 0. 05 at a 95% confidence interval. The next thing that we need to look at is the R-squared or the goodness-offit. It tells us how many percent of the endogenous variable are explained by the exogenous variables.The value of r-squared should be multiplied by 100% to be in percentage form. Interpreting the above model, it shows that a unit increase in litrate and yearinsch, totunem will decrease by 0. 344479 and increase by 3. 48303 repectively. These two variables are seen to be significant to our model with a p-value of 0. 0376 and 0. 0160 respectively. The other two variables which are gdp and totpop are seen to be insignificant in our model with a p-value of 0. 0639 and 0. 1124 respectively. With a unit increase in gdp and totpop, totunem will decrease by -1. 4898e-011 and increase by 1. 08535e-08 respectively. We now look on the Rsqaured o f the model, as shown in the results above the R-sqaured has a value of 0. 740853 or 74. 08%. This implies that 74. 08% of the endogenous variables are explained by the exogenous variables. Note that these results and interpretation are only reliable if our model is free from any violation. These violations will be discussed later on and we will apply the corrective measure if necessary. 14 B. Summary Statistics Summary statistics, using the observations 1 – 65 (missing values were skipped) itrate yearinsch gpd totpop Mean 74. 787 6. 9008 3. 3822e+011 4. 5753e+007 Std. Dev. 20. 570 2. 8389 1. 2582e+012 1. 5949e+008 Median 79. 555 6. 8000 3. 7718e+010 1. 0467e+007 C. V. 0. 27505 0. 41138 3. 7202 3. 4859 Minimum 25. 654 0. 83900 2. 1546e+008 7. 8661e+005 Skewness -0. 66121 -0. 080552 6. 9480 7. 0442 Maximum 99. 767 12. 049 9. 8988e+012 1. 2626e+009 Ex. kurtosis -0. 67087 -0. 86711 49. 954 50. 864 litrate yearinsch gpd totpop The summary statistics shows us the details of our mo del. The mean, variance, skewness, and the kurtosis are the four moments of random variables.Discussing further, the mean measures the central tendency, it is basically the sum of all the values of the observation with respect to the total number of observation or the average. The variance measures how spread out or dispersed the variables are from the mean. If the values of the variance are far from the mean, then it implies that observation are scattered around the mean. The values of the variance should be small so that the observations are near to the mean. A dataset is negatively skewed if the value of the mean of the model is less than the median. This focuses more on the higher values than the lower ones.The positively skewed on the other hand tells us the other way around. 15 C. Testing for Misspecification in the Model RESET test for specification (squares and cubes) Test statistic: F = 0. 727289, with p-value = P(F(2,4) > 0. 727289) = 0. 538 RESET test for specification (c ubes only) Test statistic: F = 0. 874685, with p-value = P(F(1,5) > 0. 874685) = 0. 393 RESET test for specification (squares only) Test statistic: F = 0. 664374, with p-value = P(F(1,5) > 0. 664374) = 0. 452 Misspecification occurs when there are important variables omitted. If the model is not correctly specified, the estimators will be biased and inconsistent.Also, the error term is not estimated correctly. Because of the misspecification errors, the statistical significance of the variables will give us misleading conclusions. To be sure that our model is correctly specified, we run the Ramsey’s RESET test. The results above are from the Ramsey’s RESET test, this is the general test to check for misspecification of error in out model. There will be a null hypothesis that will be tested here which is Ho: there is no misspecification and the alternative hypothesis will be Ha: there is misspecification. To interpret the results above, we need to look at the p-values o f the three results.You will notice that all of the p-values are greater than the significance level of 0. 05, therefore there is no evidence that we need to accept the alternative hypothesis and we have no reason to reject the null hypothesis which tells us that there exist no misspecification of error. We can say confidently that the model is not misspecified. 16 D. Testing for Multicollinearity Multicollinearity exists when the independent variables are related to one another (Gujarati and Porter, 2009). It means that there is a linear relationship among the independent variables.This is one of the classical linear regression violations and this is usually present in multiple regressions. Gujarati and Porter (2009) also pointed out that even though there is a presence of multicollinearity, the estimates are still BLUE. With the presence of multicollinearity, the standard error of the variables become larger than what their values should really be. Therefore the estimation will be difficult to determine whether it is precise or not. To know if the model exhibits multicollinearity, the model should be tested it and the Variance Inflation Factor (VIF) must be examined.If the VIF of the independent variables exceed 10, then multicollinearity exists between the exogenous variables and corrective measures are taken in order to eliminate the multicollinearity between the variables. Variance Inflation Factors Minimum possible value = 1. 0 Values > 10. 0 may indicate a collinearity problem litrate yearinsch gpd totpop 5. 011 4. 724 4. 890 4. 480 VIF(j) = 1/(1 – R(j)^2), where R(j) is the multiple correlation coefficient between variable j and the other independent variables Properties of matrix X'X: 1-norm = 1. 8146616e+024 Determinant = 3. 3597218e+046 Reciprocal condition number = 9. 335124e-026 17To interpret the results above, we need look at the individual VIF of the exogenous variable whether multicollinearity exists or not. If the VIFs of the exogenous variables are less than 10, it implies that multicollinearity is tolerable and there are no corrective measures to be applied. But if the value of the VIF are greater than 10, then severe multicollinearity exists and the necessary correction should be done. As seen in the results above, the VIFs of the exogenous variables are less than 10 which implies that the CLRM assumption of multicollinearity is tolerable in the model thus, it does not require any corrective actions.E. Testing for Heteroscedasticity Heteroscedasticity is also a classical linear regression model (CLRM) violation that is usually present in panel data and cross sectional data sets. This problem violates the assumption that the model exhibits constant variance as the sample size increases. Therefore, if anyone still continues with the normal testing procedures even though heteroscedasticity is present, whatever the conclusion one draw from the results may be misleading (Gujarati and Porter, 2009). In order to know whether our model exhibits heteroscedasticity, we need to perform the Breusch-Pagan Test or the White’s Test.Let us look first at the result for the Breusch-Pagan Test for heteroscedasticity. Breusch-Pagan test for heteroskedasticity OLS, using observations 1-65 (n = 11) Missing or incomplete observations dropped: 54 Dependent variable: scaled uhat^2 coefficient std. error t-ratio p-value ————————————————————const 0. 353903 2. 83863 0. 1247 0. 9049 litrate 0. 0400827 0. 0610102 0. 6570 0. 5356 yearinsch -0. 394681 0. 493903 -0. 7991 0. 4547 18 gpd totpop -1. 46506e-012 2. 07008e-010 2. 80111e-012 2. 75001e-09 -0. 5230 0. 07528 0. 6197 0. 9424Explained sum of squares = 2. 80998 Test statistic: LM = 1. 404991, with p-value = P(Chi-square(4) ; 1. 404991) = 0. 843327 Ho: Constant Variance vs Ha: Heteroscedasticity exists As we can see from t he results above, the p-value is 0. 843327 which is greater than the 0. 05. Thus, the null hypothesis which tells us that our model exhibits a constant variance must be accepted and the alternative hypothesis to be rejected. Let us also use the White’s test for heteroscedsaticity to check whether the results from the Breusch-Pagan test performed above is the same with here.White's test for heteroskedasticity OLS, using observations 1-65 (n = 11) Missing or incomplete observations dropped: 54 Dependent variable: uhat^2 coefficient std. error t-ratio p-value —————————————————————const -111. 711 169. 951 -0. 6573 0. 5785 litrate 3. 22957 5. 32033 0. 6070 0. 6056 yearinsch 0. 271900 18. 2904 0. 01487 0. 9895 gpd 2. 20028e-011 9. 24076e-011 0. 2381 0. 8340 totpop -7. 59484e-09 1. 24364e-07 -0. 06107 0. 9569 sq_litrate -0. 0208996 0. 033 1887 -0. 6297 0. 5932 sq_yearinsch -0. 142336 1. 28197 -0. 1110 0. 9217 sq_gpd 0. 000000 0. 000000 -0. 437 0. 7639 sq_totpop 0. 000000 0. 000000 0. 2166 0. 8486 Unadjusted R-squared = 0. 470293 Test statistic: TR^2 = 5. 173227, with p-value = P(Chi-square(8) > 5. 173227) = 0. 738911 Ho: Constant Variance vs Ha: Heteroscedasticity exists 19 The results from the White’s test give us the same intuition as the Breusch-Pagan Test. The p-value here is 0. 738911 which is greater than 0. 05. Based on the results, we should accept the null hypothesis and reject the alternative hypothesis. Since both of the test’s that was performed have a p-value greater than 0. 05 which implieas that they are insignificant.We should accept the null hypothesis which is the model exhibits a constant variance and reject the alternative hypothesis. There is no heteroscedasticity in the model. 20 VI. CONCLUSION Based on the results in the regression, we can conclude that all of the exogenous variab les except for yearinsch match our a-priori expectations. The results after regressing the model shows that litrate, gdp are significant thus we can say that they are indeed factors in determining unemployment. The variable totpop is insignificant because when population increase, it doesn’t mean that there will people already available to work immediately.But the review on related literatures proved that when population increases the unemployment rate will also increase eventually. As for the variable yearinsch, this is most significant variable among the four exogenous variables. The effect of this variable captures the negative effect. As said in the a-priori expectations, years in schooling may continue to increase because of poor performance in school, thus the students will repeat again and again and again, Yes it increases the years of schooling but it implies a negative effect.People will end up unemployed since they are not doing well in school. The government plays an important role in maintaining a low level of unemployment. They will not be able to achieve its goal of having full employment but the government can provide job opportunities to alleviate unemployment. The people should also do their part in order for them not to be part of the unemployed by simply performing well in school and aim for higher level of education. 21 VI. BIBLIOGRAPHY Abuqamar, M. , Coomans, D. , & Louckx, F. (2011, January).Correlation between socioeconomic differences and infant mortality in the Arab World (1990-2009). International Journal of Sociology and Anthropology Vol. 3(1) , 15-21. Gujarati, & Porter. (2009). Basic Econometrics. USA: John Weily and Sons. Hussain, T. , Siddiqi, M. , & Iqbal, A. (2010). A Coherent Relationship between Economic Growth and Unemployment: An Empirical Evidence from Pakistan. International Journal of Human and Social Sciences , 332-339. Literacy Fact Sheet. (n. d. ). Retrieved from Northwest Territories Literacy Council: http://w ww. nwt. literacy. a/litfacts/LiteracyandUnemployment. pdf Rafiq, M. , Iftikhar, A. , Asmat, U. , & Zahoor, K. (n. d. ). DETERMINANTS OF UNEMPLOYMENT:A CASE STUDY OF PAKISTAN ECONOMY (1998-2008). Abasyn Journal of Social Sciences Vol. 3. No. 1 , 17-24. The effects of education on the natural rate of unemployment. (2008, 4 1). Retrieved 4 7, 2011, from Goliath: Business knowledge on demand: http://goliath. ecnext. com/coms2/gi_0199-8128098/The-effects-of-education-on. html Weisberg, Y. , & Meltz, N. M. (n. d. ). Education and Unemployment in israel, 1976-1994: Reducing the Anomaly. 22

Brahms Symphony No.3 Programme Note

â€Å"Many music lovers will prefer the titanic force of the first symphony; others the untroubled charm of the second, but the third strikes me at being artistically the most nearly perfect. † – Edward Hanslick, music critic. Brahms’ third symphony was long awaited by his fans, after a six year break from his second symphony. It is neither forceful, nor charming. It is a strange, non-traditional work. Its opening is reminiscent of Schumann’s â€Å"Rhenish†, making us wonder, why? Is it an homage to his friend? Or is it yet another alleged reference to Clara Schumann?The premier was one to remember. On December 2nd, 1883, under the conducting of Hans Richter, the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra debuted the symphony to fans and hecklers alike. Even with the death of long time enemy Richard Wagner the feud lingered on. Wagner fans chose that night to attempt an interference. However, it was unsuccessful and the show was a hit. After the premier, Brahms polished the score several times before releasing a final copy in may of 1884. There are many strange attributes to this relatively short piece.The first obvious one is the third movement; it is a poco allegretto, which is unusual for the time period. The other is the repeated use of an F- Ab – F motive, which gives a diminished sound that is completely unexpected. The motive (F – Ab – F) is said to be derived from a saying of Brahms’ close friend Joseph Joachim, â€Å"Free, but lonely† or â€Å"Frei aber einsam†. Taking the first three letters of each word you get F- A- E. This short motive Brahms, Schumann and Dietrich used to compose a violin sonata in honor of their friend.Brahms later declared himself â€Å"Free, but happy† or â€Å"Frei aber froh†. This gives us the motive F – A – F. Why, then, does Brahms choose to use an Ab instead of natural A? Probably because the Ab gives his harmony a non–tradit ional sound. Instead of the regular chord progression he uses an F major chord to a diminished 7th. This should resolve to a C major, but instead it goes back to F major. It then slides to an F minor chord, and then to an unexpected Db minor chord before another diminished 7th, finally resolving to C major, as it should.This motive is heard throughout the symphony, whether quite obvious as in the first three bars, or in the bass line as in bars 4-6. This unusual chord progression also explains why the last movement is in F minor, instead of the expected F major. The final movement of this piece leads you to think of dark, dramatic struggle due to the F minor. Rather than a tragic ending, he lets the clouds part and brings back the motive of F – Ab – F, and finishes his symphony as it began.The finale is lyrical, passionate and rich in melody. The motive is quoted just before the recapitulation and the symphony ends very peacefully. Julie White Symphony No. 3, Free Scor es at The International Music Score Library Project. Leonard Burkat; notes for the 1998 recording (Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra) Kamien R, (2000) Johannes Brahms. In Music: An Appreciation (9th edition, P. 352) McGraw- Hill Walter Frisch. Brahms: The Four Symphonies, New Haven: Yale University Press (2003) : 91 – 114

Hurricane Katrina Essay

Mike Mulally 10-11-19 In 2005 Hurricane Katrina swept through the city of New Orleans and destroyed the lives of thousands. Katrina was one of the largest hurricanes and natural disasters in the history of the United States (Wikipedia, 2009). While most of the casualties’ occurred during the actual storm, still a many took place days after, and were do to the fact that the local, state, and national government were slow to respond. This slow response was due to the nature of federalism. I believe Americans got a glimpse at how federalism and bureaucracy have flaws. These imperfections will be discussed in the pages below. The PBS documentary â€Å"The Storm,† depicts the destruction Hurricane Katrina caused, as well as what went wrong with the evacuation and rescue of New Orleans residents. Local, state, and national government officials were interviewed, such as New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin, New Orleans governor Kathleen Blanco, and FEMA Director Michael Brown. Each official gave his or her version of why events happened the way they did. Some of the their accounts contradicted each other. I believe everyone was just looking out for him or herself, trying to save face. This seems to be a common problem in American politics. I will next explore how federalisms can be a inconvenience in a situation such as a natural disaster. Federalism by definition â€Å"is a system in which governmental powers are divided between a central government and smaller units, like states†(Greenberg & Page, 2009, Ch. 3). The officials at all levels of the government were somehow confused during Katrina on who exactly was in charge. Was it New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin, FEMA Director Michael Brown, was it President Bush? † (Marcela, 2005). There was also a lack of communication between the different levels of government, which, as was talked about in class, is an obvious downside or barrier to federalism (Oxendine, 2009). In a situation like a natural disaster, communication is key. If one cannot communicate with another, how is anything supposed to be accomplished? Having several l evels of government involved just makes everything in a disaster situation more complicated. I believe the U. S. needs a more centralized form of a disaster agency. If a natural disaster is to happen there ought to be one plan of action carried out by one agency. Having this central organization would have alleviated much of the confusion and frustration that we witnessed with Katrina. According to Director Brown, after Hurricane Katrina, New Orleans’ local government did not communicate very well with FEMA officials. Brown says he was never told what sorts of manpower or supplies were needed (Marcela 2009). However Louisiana National Guard Adjutant General Bennett Landreneau stated in his interview that he specifically sent requests to FEMA for what help was required. A few days after he was interviewed he sent in the documentation that proves he did indeed ask specific needs from FEMA (Marcela 2009). FEMA Director Brown lied on television. So often politicians lie about issues, why can’t they ever own up to their mistakes and just tell the truth. I believe the American public deserves to know the truth on issues, especially when dealing with something like Hurricane Katrina. In a natural disaster it is at first the state that has control. If the state becomes overwhelmed and can no longer control the situation, the state then needs to clearly articulate what services they are in need of, and that is when FEMA will then intervene. Several days after the storm, Director Brown apparently believed the state of Louisiana had the situation under control (Marcela, 2005). While the Mayor and Governor thought FEMA was going to step in and help. There was a period of time where nobody knew who was in command. Consequently there was a period of time where the many of the people of New Orleans had no food, water or shelter, and that is when many lives were lost. It bewilders one to think that this sort of miscommunication and misunderstanding could happen to a country like the United States. One would assume that our country would have one of the best disaster protocols in the world, considering our global supremacy. I will now touch on another part of U. S. government that I consider to have flaws, and that is bureaucracy. A bureaucracy as defined by Greenberg & Page (2009) is â€Å" A large, complex organization characterized by a hierarchical set of offices, each with a specific task, controlled through a clear chain of command, and where appointment and advancement of personnel is based on merit† (Ch. 13). Individuals are appointed not elected and therein lies a problem. Anyone that the president chooses can be in a position of power. Many believe Michael Brown was absolutely not qualified for the position of FEMA Director (Greenberg & Page, 2009, Ch. 13). After all he had no formal training in disaster relief or anything of that sort in his resume. Positions like FEMA director should have to have some sort of qualifications. One cannot just be put into that situation like Director Brown was. I believe that positions such as director should be an elected one. When someone who is not qualified is put in charge of one of biggest natural disasters in U. S. history, nothing good can come from it. And indeed that is exactly what happened, total chaos and confusion took place due to Director Michael Brown’s incompetence. After the attacks of 9/11 President Bush reorganized FEMA into a Bureaucracy. FEMA was downgraded and became a sub department of homeland security. Many believe this reorganization really hurt FEMA. Personnel, IT systems and other resources were dramatically reduced due to President Bush’s budget cutting agenda. The President also cut project impact, a program started by FEMA to help communities become disaster resistant, due to tax cuts (Marcella 2009). In addition 80 million dollars was taken from FEMA and distributed to other sectors in homeland security. This is just another problem of FEMA becoming a part of the U. S. bureaucracy. How would anyone expect an organization to do their job when they have had significant funds and resources cut? Clearly part of FEMA’s inadequacies can be linked to President Bush’s choice to make tax cuts and cut parts of their program. Again, the reorganization of FEMA was really detrimental. Hopefully in the future leaders will make more conscientious choices about which agencies should be cut back. Most would believe a disaster relief program such as FEMA should have some of the most funding and personnel available. Apparently former President Bush thought otherwise. Although President Bush does deserves a little bit of a break considering â€Å"the sheer size and complexity of the executive branch. There is so much going on, in so many agencies, involving the activity of tens of thousands of people, that simply keeping abreast of it all is no easy task† (Greenberg & Page, 2009, Ch. 13). He is in charge of so much in the U. S. there is no way he could keep an eye on everything. So while the President may have indirectly affected FEMA by inducing budget cuts, he cannot be held directly responsible for the government’s lack of involvement in Katrina at the national level. The president relies on his appointees to do their jobs, which Director Brown did not fulfill. However, President Bush choose Michael Brown, so maybe Bush is in fact responsible for FEMA’s inadequacies. Obviously having a large federal bureaucracy is an inconvenience to say the least. I believe Hurricane Katrina has taught our country a few lessons. First of all that while having a federal bureaucracy has its pluses, it also brings with it it’s many flaws, and the main one being communication. Our government should be striving for interoperability. The ability for several groups at all levels of the government to communicate what resources are needed during a natural disaster will prove to be the single most important tool during a relief operation. I hope that in the future, Presidents will choose more wisely when filling high-level positions such as FEMA Director, and not just appoint those who helped with their campaign. I also hope more cities around the country have better evacuation plans than those of New Orleans. I hope National Guard buildings are better equipped with resources and manpower in the future, especially along costal areas that are known to have hurricanes.