The Silver Linings Playbook Chapter 4

The Worst Ending Imaginable Knowing that Nikki does a big unit on Hemingway every year, I ask for one of Hemingway's better novels. â€Å"One with a love story if possible, because I really need to study love – so I can be a better husband when Nikki comes back,† I tell Mom. When Mom returns from the library, she says that the librarian claims A Farewell to Arms is Hemingway's best love story. So I eagerly crack open the book and can feel myself getting smarter as I turn the first few pages. As I read, I look for quotable lines so I can â€Å"drop knowledge† the next time Nikki and I are out with her literary friends – so I can say to that glasses-wearing Phillip, â€Å"Would an illiterate buffoon know this line?† And then I will drop some Hemingway, real suave. But the novel is nothing but a trick. The whole time, you root for the narrator to survive the war and then for him to have a nice life with Catherine Barkley. He does survive all sorts of dangers – even getting blown up – and finally escapes to Switzerland with the pregnant Catherine, whom he loves so much. They live in the mountains for a time, in love and living a good life. Hemingway should have ended there, because that was the silver lining these people deserved after struggling to survive the gloomy war. But no. Instead he thinks up the worst ending imaginable: Hemingway has Catherine die from hemorrhaging after their child is stillborn. It is the most torturous ending I have ever experienced and probably will ever experience in literature, movies, or even television. I am crying so hard at the end, partly for the characters, yes, but also because Nikki actually teaches this book to children. I cannot imagine why anyone would want to expose impressionable teenagers to such a horrible ending. Why not just tell high school students that their struggle to improve themselves is all for nothing? I have to admit that for the first time since apart time began, I am mad at Nikki for teaching such pessimism in her classroom. I will not be quoting Hemingway anytime soon, nor will I ever read another one of his books. And if he were still alive, I would write him a letter right now and threaten to strangle him dead with my bare hands just for being so glum. No wonder he put a gun to his head, like it says in the introductory essay.

Liz Claiborne: Leadership Analysis Essay

Liz Claiborne was a revolutionary in the fashion industry. She overcame failures in her childhood and early adulthood to become a leader in the business world. Determined to find her place in the fashion world, she wanted to a design company with her own vision. She wanted to empower her customers with quality clothing at an affordable price. In 1976, Liz Claiborne, along with partners Art Ortenberg and Leonard Boxer, created Liz Claiborne, Incorporated. As a designer she was programmed to be task oriented. Because she was task oriented, her leadership skills main weakness in her leadership style. Nevertheless, because she was a role model and supporter of career driven woman, Liz predominantly portrays the transformational leadership style. Liz was able to create a company and a vision that moved milestones for women in the professional world and created higher standards for the fashion industry. The company made $2 million in sales its first year and went public in 1981. (need cita tion-Fortune 500?) Liz Claiborne, Inc. became the first company founded by a woman to make the Fortune 500 in 1986. (need citation-Fortune 500?) II. Biography Anne Elisabeth Jane â€Å"Liz† Claiborne was born March 31, 1929 in Brussels. Her parents were descendents of Louisiana ancestry. Liz was the youngest of three. The family returned to New Orleans in 1939 at the beginning of World War II. Years later, the family relocated to New Jersey. Liz attended primary and secondary schooling, only reaching her sophomore year. When she was teen, Liz was inspired by an art history teacher. (Ortenberg, page 25-27) A man of the times, Liz’s father did not encourage her education. He did, however, approve of her ambition for art. He deemed it â€Å"a proper activity for a woman.† (Ortenberg, page 27) With her father’s approval, she immersed herself into the art world. Liz Claiborne won the Harper’s Bazaar design contest the year of 1949. The prize included a trip to Paris for ten days. After a year in France studying art, Liz returned to America. (Ortenberg, page 28) Soon after, on a trip with her parents, she announced her choice to begin a fashion designing career in New York. Without emotion, her father handed Liz a fifty dollar bill and her suitcase. He wished her, â€Å"Good luck,† got back into the car, and drove off. (Ortenberg, page 30) Liz did not speak to her father for another twenties years. Determined to find her way, Liz worked the Harper Bazaar opportunity and landed a job interview. Although she did not get the job, she did get a date and later on married the interviewer, Ben Schultz. Liz’s marriage was short lived with Ben, but did produce her only son Alex. Through the next handful of years, Liz worked through her apprenticeship and raised Alex. Liz Claiborne was becoming the women she would later design for, a career driven woman. One year after Alex was born; Liz met her future husband Art Ortenberg. Art was department head of the dress department at Juniorite, a junior sportswear company. Liz was a new designer. Liz and Art were both currently married. When the company found out about the affair, Art was fired. Liz stood by Art and quit. The two began a relationship that led to marriage in July of 1957. Art Ortenberg and Liz Claiborne were married for forty-nine years. (Ortenberg, page 245-247) Over the next fifteen years, Liz Claiborne waited patiently to pursue her dreams fully until her son was able to support himself. She had found job security as a designer at Youth Guild for those fifteen years. In 1975, Liz passed on an opportunity to break off and develop Youth Guild separate from its mother company, Jonathan Logan. She new it was time to begin a design company with her own vision. In the seventies, the working woman was making a name for herself. Liz was there to dress her. Liz Claiborne, whom was also career driven, understood what her customer needed. As a woman, she new the daily insecurities females face. She wanted to empower her customers with quality clothing at an affordable price. In 1976, Liz Claiborne, along with partners Art Ortenberg and Leonard Boxer, created Liz Claiborne, Incorporated. Liz would head the design team, Art would be in charge of operations, and Leonard would work the production side. In the beginning, Liz was the salesperson for the company. Looking for feedback, Liz would present merchandise and sketches to potential and experienced buyers. She wanted the truth. She found it: price. (Ortenberg, page 247-251) The foundation of Liz Claiborne, Inc. would be created upon the idea of comfortable, easy-to-match separates. Although a simple concept â€Å"women should not have to spend a fortune to look good,† (Hayes) the notion revolutionized the way woman presented themselves in the workplace. The company made $2 million in sales its first year and went public in 1981. (need citation-Fortune 500?) Liz Claiborne, Inc. became the first company founded by a woman to make the Fortune 500 in 1986. (need citation-Fortune 500?) Liz Claiborne had her own sense of design, but she also had her own theories on management style. Liz emphasized equality in the workforce. According to Hayes, she thought with the team in mind and fostered their enthusiasm. (Hayes) Liz was also geared to teach techniques. She loved to teach through demonstrating. She thought of her work force as family. She believed good teachers and good programs involved good parents. According to Ortenberg, Liz and Art thought of themselves as the parents of the company. (Ortenberg page 37) Towards the end of her reign in 1989, Liz felt she was too far away from the actual process and could not make accurate management decisions. Therefore, she resigned as manager in 1989. Liz Claiborne was highly regarded in the fashion industry. Her success was marked in 1990 and 1991 with many awards and recognitions, including induction into the U.S. Business Hall of Fame and the Marketing Hall of Fame. She also received an honorary doctorate from the Rhode Island School of Design. (Ortenberg page 145-152) According to Ortenberg, this was the â€Å"highest point of Liz’s professional life.† (Ortenberg page 147) In her life after the company, Liz was an avid conversationalist. She took part in and donated too many wildlife-conservation groups. To date, Liz and Art’s foundation has given away $40 million to wildlife grants. (Johnson) In 2007, Anne Elisabeth Jane â€Å"Liz† Claiborne, fashion icon and industry revolutionary, lost her ten year battle to cancer. Following her death, she was awarded a plaque on the Fashion Walk of Hall of Fame in 2008. Liz was a leader that understood the beauty behind the design of her clothes. More importantly, Liz Claiborne understood the beauty behind the design of life and the people we share it with. III. Analysis of Leadership Liz Claiborne had her own sense of design, but she also had her own theories on management style. In the following section, the leadership approaches Liz Claiborne used will be discussed. In addition, the least descriptive and the most descriptive theory will be outlined and supported. A. Skills Approach The skills approach is the idea leadership is based upon capabilities that can be learned and developed. The skills based concept describes what a leader does. Skills are important because leaders must be able to communicate their vision and effectively accumulate and structure information to facilitate problem solving and performance. Mumford, Campion and Morgeson (2007) examine leadership based on cognitive, interpersonal, business, and strategic skill. In addition to the four capabilities, different levels of management require different levels of skill. For example, upper level management positions require more strategy skills than lower level management. (Kalargyrou) As Liz took an upper-level position of power within the company, she grew out of her task oriented comfort zone. Liz thought as a designer, â€Å"The further one removes oneself from the actual work, the less value one adds to that work.† (Ortenberg, page 151) Towards the end of her management days, Liz had come to a point where she was not gaining more knowledge and developing herself as strategic partner. The company was developing into a new environment around her. It was not the family size that she had once known. When she realized the weakness in her leadership approach, she retired from the upper level management position at the company. B. Style Approach Leadership can be separated into two types of leadership behaviors: task behaviors and relationship behaviors. Task behavior focuses on the production factor of the organization. Task behaviors are also concerned with the technical aspect of how duties are performed. Relationship behavior is geared towards the social awareness of the organization. It is the concern for the people of the organization. By combining different levels of each of the styles, various leadership styles can be formed. In The Relationship Between Paternalistic and Leadership and Organizational Commitment: Investigating the Role of Climate Regarding Ethics, the geru takes in a chela that is helpless and dependent. The guru recognizes it is his goal to nurture and develop the chela into a confident teacher. He encourages the chela to ask questions. By empowering the chela, the guru leads his disciple to success. Much like the guru, Liz Claiborne took on a nurturing and guiding role within in company. In this aspect, Liz takes on a paternalistic/maternalistic view of leadership. She considered her team a family, where she and Art Ortenberg were the parents. (Ortenberg) Liz encouraged her team to ask questions and lent her experience to help develop them into better designers. Liz used task behaviors to teach her subordinates and relationship behaviors to cultivate a learning and family-like environment. C. Contingency To effective lead subordinates, a leader must have the appropriate styles contingent upon the situation. The effectiveness is dependent upon the leader’s style and how it interacts in situations that are favorable to the leader. (Cruz, Nunez & Pinheiro) Leaders are primarily motivated by the tasks and relationships. Fiedler’s theory takes those motivations and applies them to situational variables. (Cruz, Nunez & Pinheiro) Three key components to the Least Preferred Coworker Scale (LPC) are the leaders/members relationship, the task structure, and the position of authority. (Cruz, Nunez & Pinheiro) Liz Claiborne had close relationships with her subordinates when she first started up the company. She had hired Nancy, a pattern maker. Nancy respected and had confidence in Liz’s position. Liz was the only designer at the time and had full control over the task structure in the beginning. Liz had maximum influence over her company. Therefore, she was task oriented and had a low LPC. As her company grew and her lack of control over the design process diminished, Liz Claiborne should have molded herself into a stronger, relationship-oriented leader. Because she did not adjust her leadership style based on the situation and of the company and what it need for growth, Liz Claiborne was not as an efficient leader towards the end of her time as CEO of Liz Claiborne, Inc. An important stressor is that the contingency theory allows for a leader not to be effective in all situations. (Northouse 2007) Liz was more efficient she was working in a one-on-one, task oriented environment. When Liz was taken away from a task oriented environment, she lost the structure that made her the career woman she started out as. D. Transformational Leadership Transformational leadership is a process between the leader and follower. Leaders motivate followers to strive to a higher level of achievement. In doing so, the follower is transformed. The first component of transformational leadership (TFL) is idealized influence. (Phipps, Prieto, Verma) Liz Claiborne inspired women through her leadership. She was a role model that many women could look up to. The second component of TFL is inspirational motivation. (Phipps) Liz had fought through adversity growing up and had still com out on top. She wanted to empower woman through clothing. Being designers and customers, many of her followers believed in her vision. The third component of transformational leadership is intellectual stimulation. (Phipps) According to Hayes, she always encourages employees to challenge themselves. Liz would conduct weekly meetings to spark new ideas. She loved to teach, and in doing so encouraged the promotion of many female designers. (Hayes) The fourth and final component of TFL is individualized consideration. Liz individualized the followers’ needs and would focus on their personal development. She loved to teach, and in doing so encouraged the promotion of many female designers. Was a transformational leader in and out of the business. Transformational leadership is most descriptive of Liz’s leadership style. She used transformational leadership in her company to promote organizational performance and employee motivation. She met upheld the standards of the components of the theory. It is the author’s belief that the transformational leadership approach Liz Claiborne took with the company led to her success as a business leader. IV. Conclusions Liz Claiborne’s determination and life experiences as an early adult and child helped shape her into a great business leader. Thanks to the encouragement in the development of her love and eye for art, she had the drive to follow her dreams to be a fashion designer. Struggling to reach the top as a single mother, made her a great leader because she could later on relate to her demographic of consumers and the followers she would one day lead in her company. Liz had her leadership ups-and-downs in the latter part of her management, but she knew when she was out of her scope. As a strong and determined woman, Liz Claiborne’s legacy will live on in the fashion industry as a leader who transformed the industry of women’s fashion design.

An Inconvient Truth

Teachers PreparatoryTichina Class 10R2/19/13 Inconvenient Truth is a descriptive title because it explains the inconvenience towards our global warming problem; and puts the truth towards our planets slow destruction. What makes this a good title is because the truth that Al Gore explains to the viewers is current. He explains the relationship between all the weather changes and global warming and how it is affecting the natural world environment. The inconvenience part explains how discomforted it is towards our planet, people and nature.To explain the basics of global warming I can start off with saying that global warming is mainly caused due to the greenhouse gas pollution. Out in space the sun sends heat waves towards earth which makes earth livable. So when the sun rays are sent down some are supposed to be sent back to the sun creating a mini cycle. But outside of the earth there is an atmosphere of greenhouse gases surrounding the earth. Now that there are more factories more greenhouse gases are being sent up to the atmosphere making the layer of gas thicker.That is causing the sun rays to be trapped in the earth making the temperature rise. What makes the truth of our global warming problem inconvenient is that temperature rises are affecting the animals. In Al Gore’s movie he explains to you that cold environment like glaciers; North Pole, South Pole and Artic are melting slowly. Polar bears and other cold environment species are losing their homes. In his movie he shows you how some glaciers from 1990 till now are fully melted and turning to land or how they are slowly becoming heated.In my case everyone should know that it’s bad and it will only become worse. Another way is how the water temperature is starting to rise. If any hurricanes or water storms were to be created; it would be double the effect because as also stated in Al Gore’s video whenever you have a high water temperature it will increase the wind velocity in any storm making it bigger in size. With that said we can move on to diseases that are another way the truth of global warming is inconvenient.Diseases are a strong life taker and have a long history behind it. The way global warming comes in is that we had some strange heat waves that occurred and caused illness towards people. In 2012 we broke the record for the hottest heat wave. It affected many people through sickness and other different ways. In a previous article I read in class they said that in 2003 a deadly heat wave swept across Europe killing an estimated amount of 35,00 people. Heat waves like that could amp up heat-related illness.In conclusion, as you can see Inconvenient Truth is a descriptive title because it explains the inconvenience towards our global warming problem; and puts the truth towards our planets slow destruction. Global Warming is a serious incident and should be taken care of early before it amplifies in the future. With that said I hope I gave you a desc riptive, explained response of how Inconvenient Truth is a good title. What global warming is and how the truth of global warming is inconvenient.

Psycho – Shower scene study

This scene starts with Marion Crane, wearing a glossy robe. She is seated at the desk in her hotel room with pencil, paper and a bankbook. She is calculating the amount of stolen money she spent and must replace. She tears up the sheet of paper and is about to toss it into the wastebasket, but thinks better of it and takes it to the bathroom where she flushes it down the toilet. (I think this symbolises that she thinks she can just flush away her worries like she flushes away the piece of paper) She then closes the door, removes her robe, and steps into the bathtub. She draws the shower curtain closed and unwraps a bar of soap. She turns on the shower. You can see the joy in Crane's eyes as the water runs through her hair and down her body, this symbolises Crane is washing all her guilt away. The guilt is both from the money she stole and her affair with Sam, her lover. As she is showering, through the translucent shower curtain we see the door open. This starts the build up of suspense. A shadow slowly approaches, adding further to the suspense, Crane is facing away from the attacker. Crane is ironically ignorant of the imminent danger approaching her. The attacker pauses for 6 – 10 seconds before swiftly throwing open the shower curtain. At this moment high pitched music played by violins starts to play. The camera zooms to a close up shot of the attackers face, the attacker is in the shadow, only her (attacker) figure, hair and eyes can be seen. The eyes look vengeful. The camera then switches to a close up shot of Crane's screaming face, the camera then moves to an extreme close up of Crane's wide open screaming mouth. This shows the terror and fright installed on Crane by the attacker. The attacker then brings her knife backwards and lunges at Crane with the knife, the attacker only uses her arm, the rest of her body stays as solid as a rock. This shows the attacker is very calm. The attacker and Crane are contrapuntal. The attacker lunges with the knife once again, but Crane squirms attempting to dodge the knife. Crane flails her arms defencelessly; her face is contorted with fear as the attacker stabs faster. Whilst Crane is trying to push the knife away from her body, she is slipping on the wet floor of the bathtub. Crane tries to cover her breasts from the attacker with one arm whilst attempting to ward off the blows with the other, this is when the diegetic sound of the knife stabbing Crane starts. Marion loses her strength, the attackers blows strike unguarded. Crane continues to writhe in pain, as the knife starts to make contact with her skin. Crane face is knotted due to the pain. She grimaces as the knife stabs faster and harder. The knife is now seen being thrust at Crane's stomach. Her face crumples once again. The knife is now seen being lunged at Crane's ribs. Crane screams as the knife makes contact. Crane is then seen slipping in her own blood; I think this ands hysteria and irony to the scene. Her feet move rapidly and nervously, Crane subsequently turns away from the attacker this suggests Crane is desperate to get away from her. The attacker stabs crane in the back, bringing back the cruel reality, she cannot escape. The camera switches to Crane's feet where once again she is slipping in her blood. The camera then switches to a close up shot of Crane's hand grabbing at the wall. As the attacker leaves the room the audience notice she is wearing a dressing gown and slippers, she has her hair in a tight bun. The shrieking violin music stops, indicating the murder is over, the music changes to ominous bass representing Crane is dying. Crane's hand slowly slides down the wall as the fingertips struggle against the weight of Crane's own body. Crane is dying, she doesn't have the strength to use her hand anymore, it falls lifeless to the bottom of the bathtub. Crane then turns around and rests her body on the ceramic tiles. Crane's face is as solemn as a morgue; her body left with little life slowly slides down the wall. Crane's expression is constant. Every few seconds her flesh desperately clings to the wet tiles but once again the body weight pulls her down. This makes the audience feel pity for Crane. Nothing can support Crane's body, Crane gulps like a fish out of water, she knows the end is near. Crane gathers all her strength and reaches out to use the shower curtain to pull herself up. A close up of crane's hand clasping on to the shower curtain is shown. Her final attempt fails; the shower curtain is pops of the shower rail hooks. Crane's naked wounded body falls forward, sprawled half over the bathtub half over the bathroom floor. The ominous bass stops, all the audience can hear is the diegetic sound of the shower. The camera moves for a close up of the shower still flowing. I think this symbolises that life moves on, the world has not changed apart from her absence. The next shot is of blood from Crane's corpse running down the bathtub. The camera would follow the blood down the drain but an extreme close up of Crane's eye stops us. This reminds us of the murder which has taken place. The camera zooms out showing the whole of Crane's cold, shocked face pressed against the bathroom floor. Water runs from cranes hair past her eyes, it seems from the audiences' perspective that Crane is crying. Crane's face is as motionless as a photograph. A brief shot of the shower follows. The camera moves from the bathroom to Crane's bedroom at the Bates Motel the camera then zooms for a close up shot of the newspaper where Crane hid the money that she stole. Hitchcock is reminding us of the reason for Crane's death. If Crane hadn't stolen the money she would be at home probably in bed. If Crane had not been murdered she would have returned home the next day with the money she stole and a good excuse. Her life would have probably sorted itself out. This reflects on the whole shower scene as a whole. The trauma, hysteria and reality caused by the event. The shower scene gives psychological fear to the audience, they can relate to the shower scene because the audience have showers. Crane was an ordinary person with an ordinary job. This is why this scene is celebrated as a masterpiece in modern times. I was hesitant to pull the shower curtain shut after I watched the scene; I imagine the fear was even greater in the 1960 s because no film like this had ever been made. It was the first true horror movie.

A moral understanding of Utilitarianism and torture Essay

KSM is a mastermind terrorist who has been captured by the CIA. He refuses to reveal any information about his organization or the members thereof that could be fundamental to the welfare of hundreds of lives. Even under the presence of coercive methods such as sleep deprivation and water boarding, he has refused to talk. His nine and eleven year old children have been brought into custody and a suggestion has been made to torture the children. Is the option ethical or moral in any sense? Utilitarianism provides two answers for the question; one asserting the general rule of utility, the other expanding on justice implicating that the notion that no harm should be inflicted on the children. Each case will be dissected and assessed to reveal the most feasible answer to whether or not the children should be tortured. This conclusion will also be questioned on whether or not the provided answer is approaching the situation in the best possible manner. Utilitarianism in its simplest form distinguishes the difference between right and wrong by asserting that what is right is any action of good that will positively affect the common welfare of all. In short, the principle of utility implies that what is good is whatever promotes the greatest amount of happiness. This implies that the happiness of one individual is not as relevant or important as the happiness of a multitude of persons, or that the value of life can be measured in numbers and not by specific individuals. The general idea is that if five people are saved as compared to saving one life, then there is more happiness being created and as a result more good is being created. In KSM’s case, if the general rule of utilitarianism is to be applied, then the option of torturing KSM’s children is a plausible means of coercion. This rule fundamentally subtracts the happiness lost by torturing the children in exchange for the gain of hundreds and thousands of lives that could potentially be saved resulting in a greater amount of happiness overall. Therefore utilitarianism does advocate for the torture of KSM’s children. The tactic will provide the necessary information that the CIA needs to save lives. The proponents of utilitarianism may come off as rash, insensitive, and unsympathetic beings for allowing a method such as this one to occur in order to save many lives. Injuring two lives for the benefit of thousands more is sound, but may not be ethical or moral. It is a difficult feat to assess what is ethical and moral especially when encountered with a situation like this. An assumption that it is immoral to not torture these children could be proposed because not acting on the children could deter the CIA from attaining valuable information for the welfare and safety of the nation. Of course, it must not be assumed that torturing a child is acceptable in today’s standards, and utilitarianism will attempt to answer why it is not right to torture the children to obtain information through the utilitarian’s understanding of justice. Justice to utilitarianism carries with it great weight and resonance to the ideology. According to Mill, it is one of the sole features in which utilitarianism embodies. It is stated that justice contains in it the following rules: all beings must be treated with equality, and that each is given their just deserts; good for good, and evil for evil, that no one should be wrongly punished; that no life shall be valued over another, and that the punishment should be proportionate to the offense. Another feature is that all commitments and obligations whether they be declared orally or written, should be respected and upheld and the failure to do so is performing injustice and is a moral fallacy. Therefore, when considering the KSM case with the application of justice under utilitarianism, it seems as though it is not logical to torture the children to obtain information from their father. The torturing of children violates the laws applicable to the definition of justice under utilitarianism. If these children are tortured, the principle that all individuals are equal and to all their justice deserts, would be invalid. These children have done nothing wrong and do not deserve to be tortured, thus the punishment that would befall them is not parallel to the ideals presented in the definition of justice. Also, the lives of these children were not properly accounted for, for if justice states that all lives are equal and that none is more valuable than the rest, then it is rational and coextensive with justice to not torture the children. By not performing the horrendous notion, these children’s lives are not placed lower than the rest, but the opposing view could also be taken stating that by not torturing these children they are placed above thousands of other lives, giving their lives more value than the multitude, and this is does not correspond with the definition of justice. Therefore, torturing these children is not a favorable option when considering the application of utilitarianism. But there is one exception that utilitarianism allows, which is when certain cases arise that requires expediency, thus suspending applications of moral justice. Although both alternative methods of assessing the dilemma have been presented with each have a distinct approach. The first taking into consideration the principle of utilitarianism the latter using the principle of justice, both acting as derivatives of utilitarianism and paradoxically both approved of using torture to gain information. The principle of utility declared torture a necessary means to obtain a valuable resource that consequentially benefits the whole, and in turn increasing happiness and goodness – increasing utility. The principles of justice deemed the usage of torture an incompatible method of attaining the means in the presented situation. The equality of the children was not taken into account and disregarded, while the action of torturing them does not correlate with reason because the children did nothing to bring this suggested harm upon themselves. But, even justice allows for the possibility of torture to resume when extenuating circumstances do not allow for a well thought out procedure, and expediency is recognized as the only reasonable means of achieving a goal. So does utilitarianism allow for the torturing of children to occur? According to the principle of utility and somewhat present in the exceptions of justice – yes. This does not mean that this action is moral or ethical by any means. The intentional injury of children is wrong in many, if not all, philosophical and religious ideologies. It is not easy to accept this as the only method prescribed to remedy the situation. In this case, the means do not justify the ends. Although utilitarianism states that these children should not be placed higher than any individual and there sacrifice would benefit the greater good, the implementation of torture on children is not an attractive option. Utilitarianism states that this viable option is right, but just because it may promote the general welfare and happiness of a multitude of individuals, does not necessarily indicate that it will, or that any information will be extracted from KSM, thus giving the impression that it may seem right to a utilitarian, but most would consider this an act of inhumanity and a relentless, unsympathetic, irrational attempt to validate assertions created on the basis of assumption and plausibility.

Creating a new character for a soap Essay

The TV programme I chose to use as my soap is the American show ‘The O.C’ after watching numerous episodes of it in class and at home. I chose this programme because it was one that I was most familiar with, and a programme that I enjoyed watching. ‘The O.C’ is an American show, aimed at a teenage audience, as it follows the lives of teenagers and their families in Orange County, California. It mainly concentrates on the story of Ryan Atwood, a teenager from a rough town and a run down family who throw him out after a run in with the police. Sandy and Kirsten Cohen, who are part of a wealthy family, adopt him, and they invite him to live in their pool house at their home. They already have a son, Seth Cohen, who is your typical nerdy character, whom Ryan becomes brothers with. They both have to deal with life in Orange County, a place that comes across for the rich and good looking. They also have to deal with their relationships with Marissa Cooper, the girl next door when Ryan moves in, and Summer Roberts, Seth’s dream girl. Summer is portrayed as a stereotypical spoiled rich girl, with some snobiness. This is displayed in the first episode, where Summer is at first attracted to newcomer Ryan Atwood, until she finds out he is from Chino, prompting the response â€Å"Chino, eww.† However, different sides to Summer become evident as she develops. It is during her transformation that Summer falls in love with Seth, the boy who was never popular. Marissa also comes from a rich family, as the girl next door. But has a troubled time as her family falls apart. Ryan is the person who has to help her through this. The character that I have decided to create is called Claire Atwood. Claire is the sister of Ryan, but neither of them know they are related when the character is first introduced, and neither do the audience at first. She is fairly tall and slim, with blonde hair, and good-looking features like most of the other female characters in the show. Her good looks are what make her fit in with the show, as she full-fills the male gaze like many of the other female characters. The first scene that introduces the character, is the first day back at school for Ryan, Seth, Summer and Marissa. Seth and Ryan notice her walking down the hallway of the school, and can’t help but stare, as they are instantly attracted to her. They end up being in the same class, and she has to sit right in the middle of both Ryan and Seth. Nobody talks to her in the scene, and we don’t hear her speak either. The camera shows us a shot of her writing her name on a sheet of paper as she finishes her work, and she writes the name ‘Claire Atwood’. Only the audience sees this, and we instantly know that she is related to Ryan, as we know he has the same surname. I think the character would bring a lot to the show, including a sense of humour and irony. Marissa, who becomes Ryan’s girlfriend, becomes jealous of Ryan’s involvement with the new character as he offers to help her to do a school project. But only the audience knows that she is his sister, creating the irony and humour of the situation. The way in which she fits in, is because of her good looks. But Ryan and Seth become more and more suspicious of her, as she never lets anyone come to her house. They both follow her home one-day and discover that she is living in a trailer park. So we see that she doesn’t completely fit in, as she isn’t from a rich family, living in a big house like most of the other characters in Orange County. Ryan goes and knocks on the door of the trailer, and the door is opened by his biological dad, who has just come out of prison. This is when it is discovered that Claire is the sister of Ryan. Later in the programme, we discover that the father had been treating Claire poorly, and she comes to live with The Cohen family too. The character creates a lot of conflict in the show, something that greatly appeals to a lot of audiences. Ryan is very protective of her, and gets into fights with other boys who seem to take an interest in his sister, until Claire tells Ryan to stop being so protective. She is also a character that will attract more females to the show. We have followed the story of Ryan coming from the wrong side of the tracks and getting a chance to live in Orange County, being something that the male viewers can enjoy to watch as they are relating to another male character. But now we can follow the life of Claire, as she also comes from the wrong side of the tracks, in a very similar situation to Ryan’s. She has an aggressive personality, due to her poor upbringing as a child, and at first does not get along with the Cohen family, as she tells them she doesn’t want their help. She also gets into fights with other girls at the school, as she against most people who have wealth and tells everyone that she doesn’t need it. As her relationship as a sister to Ryan becomes stronger, and she becomes best friends with Marissa and Summer, they eventually convince her to move in with the Cohen family. Jamie Parker The first scene The fist scene involving Claire Atwood very much full-fills the male gaze. We see Ryan and Seth talking near their lockers, and they are instantly struck by Claire walking down the hallway. The camera cuts to her feet walking along, and slowly pans upwards to her face, then a long shot of her walking down the corridor towards the camera. The scene is played in slow motion, not only for the male gaze, but also to emphasize the importance of the scene, and the importance of the new character that is being introduced to the program. Because of the scene, we know she is going to have some importance, and not just a one off showing of a insignificant character. Whilst this is being shown, there is fast paced music playing, But as Claire, Ryan and Seth sit down in the classroom, the music slows and becomes more mysterious. The audience knows because of this, that there is something significant and important to this character. The camera zooms into Claire’s hand as she writes her name on the paper. And it is revealed to the audience that she is related to Ryan.

Dimensions of interprofessional practice Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Dimensions of interprofessional practice - Essay Example As well known, the role of the medical officer is to monitor, inform, mobilize, link, investigate among other responsibilities ( Freeth & Copperman 2009). Description The event involves the treatment of Mrs. Weber who is a 70 year old patient with multiple health disorders. She was admitted into the hospital due to her shin injury after a fall and it required immediate treatment. According to her medical history, she suffered from osteoarthritis and hypotension that became a fundamental cause of her repetitive falls resulting in shin injury and development of fear for mobilization. I called the social worker handling Mrs. Weber’s case and two specialists from the fall clinic, to help in her treatment since they were more conversant with her case in addition to her health care service provider. Feelings The adaptation of new rules governing patients-health officer relationship is a first step to interprofessional collaboration in the healthcare sector (Miers Barrett & Clarke 20 05). As would be expected of health care providers, the staff accorded the patient the best treatment and basic rules were observed. The rules stipulate that the nurse is in charge of coordinating the activities between the doctor and the patient, I felt that the rules housed the input of the nurses and support staff in regards to the whole inpatient registration and sign in process. Moreover, the organization had considered the role of junior officers, thus bring onboard a third group of specialist under my scrutiny for this essay. Subsequently, the necessary bond between working colleagues had been cemented to create space for harmony and teamwork in the performance of the daily activities (Gilbert 2005). Proper team work ensured that the nurse in charge consulted the specialists, and the social worker participated in the handling of the patient. I appreciated the contribution of the process due to the immediate care that Mrs. Weber got from the whole team. Evaluation According to my analysis it was evident that the relationship between the various key players, ensured that quality health care was given to Mrs. Weber’s. According to, an interprofessional relationship is a relationship between members of a team who have different professional education, identity and socialization ( McDonald & McCallin 2010). Moreover, in every organization, it is the responsibility of every member of the team to make sure that their contribution is valuable and helpful. Therefore, for interprofessional collaboration to be effective in healthcare organizations, players ought to work in harmony and an interact manner and this was the case in his organization (Meads Ashcroft Barr Scott & Wild 2008). For professionals to work efficiently without conflict, communication and willingness level should be realized. The communication process does not only involve the transfer of messages between people, but involves understanding and decoding of the information to come up with a conclusion. Hence, communication between different players improves the relationship amongst professionals (Scott Lewin Espin & Zwarenstein 2008). In reference to the case, if the communication path was inadequate, information would not have reached the different players consulted on Mrs. Weber’

Catholic domination in Ireland Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 5750 words

Catholic domination in Ireland - Essay Example In general, such a powerful influence is closely associated with the Irish self-government principle ‘Home Rule as Rome Rule’3. However, it is often argued that this principle â€Å"ignores the reality of the power of the Catholic Church in Irish society and in relation to the body politic under previous British rule†4. Another control tool, implemented by the Church is linked with strict censorship. It was required for protecting traditional moral values. Since censorship of any kind is grounded on prejudices, it influences the shaping of people’s morals and manners, and impacts perspectives on the entire concept of the rule of law. â€Å"Censorship can be defined simply as the restriction, by proper authorities, of intellectual, literary, artistic materials in any format†5. Moreover, censorship by the Catholic Church is best understood in the context of community. Hence, such concepts as teachings, or social behaviour, which are inconsistent with t he rule of faith, should be censored in order to preserve the life of the community. Hagstrom6 outlines censorship within the church among the believers as ‘in-house censorship’. ... ules for editing materials and ideas of the social life sphere, making â€Å"judgments on ideas, philosophies, behaviours and books that were contrary to Christian faith and morals†7. An example of such an early censorship implementation is known as the Index of Forbidden Books, or Index Librorum Probibitorum. This was issued in 1557 by Pope Paul IV, though, it had a historical precedence dated AD 496 â€Å"in a Decree issued by Gelasius, listing heretical and apocryphal books banned by preceding councils and popes†8 . This Index included a list of titles, which Catholics were not permitted to read and to own without ecclesiastical permission. Harold Gardiner conveys the Catholic Church’s censorship standards, accepted after achieving the independence, wee closely linked with the notion that church is the cradle of love, which is intended for directing various parts of society towards the common harmony and enrichment9. In accordance with the clerical philosophy, the state is regarded as a ‘natural’ institution, where a human being forms a community with his fellow man, as a part of the social unity. Furthermore, Gardiner10 emphasizes that the human origin as the God’s offshoot presupposes the necessity for the communal living, hence this need is also God-given, while the endeavour for the individuality leads to coercion, and its further development into tyranny and injustice. Since the government and its authority are ‘natural’, the institutions such as the Censorship Board are also regarded as ‘natural’, â€Å"and as such, legitimate guardians and assessors of the norms towards which one must strive†11. Hence, â€Å"the statement that authority is natural is a mistaken analysis of how authority in such circumstances functions†12 because according to the

Stoning in Iran Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Stoning in Iran - Essay Example However, she completely neglects the very reality that she is also guilty of human rights violations by imposing and inflicting the horrible and humiliating punishments upon the sex offenders in the form of stoning them to death because of developing extra-marital sexual relationships with one or more person(s). Since stoning to death maintains neither any religious background nor is it observed in any other part of the world except Iran, the dreadful act of stoning witnesses no justification in its nature and scope. The present study aims to analyse the implementation of the punishment by exploring its validity through the Islamic jurisprudence on the one hand, and its cultural and revengeful historical background on the other in order to prove or disapprove the validity of the so called justifiable penalty observed by the Iranian government of contemporary times. Stoning is one of the most popular traditional punishments applied by the authorities on the sex offenders and adulterer s, so that the viewers and spectators can take it as an exemplar and could avoid sex offences altogether in their individual and collective life. Since the Iranians consider stoning a highly effective method to prevent the masses from violation of the moral ethics and religious values, in order to protect the nation from becoming prey to the moral decline at large, stoning is vehemently practiced in all parts of the state on offenders without any discrimination of caste, class, community, region, age and sex. â€Å"At a time when momentum is gathering across the world to abolish capital punishment, the Islamic Republic of Iran (IRI) currently ranks second for number of executions, after China, and first for per capita executions in the world. According to the World Coalition against the Death Penalty, Iran executed at least 317 people in 2007, almost twice as many as in 2006 and four times as many as in 2005. In 2008, at least 346 executions were recorded.† (FIDH, 2009: 3) He nce, this type of ruthless punishment is admired, projected and supported by the Iranians without taking into considerations the severity of the trial the offenders undergo by becoming prey to the slow and painful death penalty. The history of stoning in Iran is not far to seek; on the contrary, it finds its roots over three decades ago, when the religious leadership came at the helm of the government after the successful revolution against the pro-western monarchical regime of the Emperor Raza Shah Pahlavi in February 1979. â€Å"Amnesty International says that at least eight people were stoned to death in 1986. Somehow, few people have linked this to the passing of a law that year which allowed the hiring of judges with minimal experience and that it led to an increase in the number of judges from a traditional religious background.† (Wooldridge, 2010: quoted in bbc.co.uk) Though the revolution was the reaction to the prevailing class discrimination of the monarchical Iran, yet it was hijacked by the religious leaders, who introduced strict laws in the name of religion and inflicted severe and harsh punishments upon their political and social opponents. Stoning and floggings were also introduced in the country, and the sex offenders became the worst prey of the religious regime, which left no stone unturned to suppress the liberal masses under the chariot

Staffing Handbook of Global Communications Incorporation Assignment

Staffing Handbook of Global Communications Incorporation - Assignment Example It requires talented human resources from different segments to man various positions in the company, and the availability of sufficient manpower is crucial to the operational success of the company. The company’s vision is to become a world-renowned provider of communication service to a global community and attain the position of the leader in this industry. It currently plans to expand its operation to South America and African nations. Its mission is to provide excellent communication services to the global community, with a specific focus on after-sales services. It also aspires to become the best corporate to the employees by providing them best competitive remuneration and working conditions apart from being a socially responsible organization. The company also lays emphasis on best ethical practices and exemplary leadership qualities. Companies need to adopt appropriate strategies to staff their organization with suitable human resources in order to ensure the execution of relevant tasks in time so as to enable them to run their operations smoothly. Strategic staffing can be understood as a â€Å"process of identifying and addressing† the implications of staffing on various strategies and plans that the organization implements in their day to day functioning (Bechet, 2002, p.7). Global Communications Inc perceives strategic staffing as a process of understanding staffing implications on the operations being conducted at various levels in the organization as well as in providing a seamless flow of after-sales services. Being involved in the area of communications, which is a major element in the modern world, our organizations need to maintain a high level of quality and service in our employees for attaining overall efficiency. Being in the service sector we also need to make sure of the availability of sk illed human resources at all levels.

Services Marketing of Ritz Carlton Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Services Marketing of Ritz Carlton - Assignment Example The standards of service offered are measured by the client or the customer’s experience. A customer or a client will look at a place where he is treated like a king of his time with all the attention from an unknown person accepting all his needs as his own and making the customer feel comfortable at the alien location. The important barriers to service are: Service is invisible that can only be felt. Service is providing experience irrespective of geography, culture, ethnicity, and traditions. Service is a global phenomenon but service providers vary with location. Thus each location has its own way of rendering the service according to the existing lifestyles of that region. Service includes effective communication irrespective of the region that creates another concern when dealing with people of a different horizon. Service providers need to adopt different pricing to brand themselves to target unique customers of different earning potential. Ambiance: A neat and tidy surrounding with pleasant fragrance creates a relaxing and welcoming ambiance in a service area whether in room, restaurant or at the lobby. A timely updating of the changing dynamic ambiance preferences will provide the repeated customer a chance to enjoy his stay Providing a new touch of experience with respect to taste, tradition, and ethnicity: A customer needs a unique experience with respect to ambiance either resembling the nativity or addressing a theme that exits a specific group.  

To what extent is New Media Technology to blame for increase in Assignment

To what extent is New Media Technology to blame for increase in anti-social behaviour within social groups - Assignment Example New media entails digitalization of content that can be produced at once at the set time, as contrasted to traditional printed media (Bers & Bers, 2011). Digital activities can be seen in DVDS, the internet and social media, computer games, amongst others. Basically, what is correlated to the internet, and interplay between technology images and sounds may be termed as new media (Bers & Bers, 2011). In the work of Clarke (2003) and Cardwell & Flanagan (2003) anti-social behavior refers to behaviors that lack thoughtfulness for the other persons and the society at large. At times, the behavior may either be premeditated or unintentional, but as Morrison, (2007) indicates, these behaviors create unsociable individuals. This is to mean that anti-social behaviors are contrary to the norms of the society. They may range from rape to drug addiction. While the new media has been instrumental in making the world a global village, the media has also had its dark side on the society. As seen in the research by Bull (2000) new media has brought a completely new auditory experience to the users. The work clearly explains the experience of a user with the iPod that can select music, which has been termed by Bull (2000) as an urban experience. Through personal stereos, Bull (2000) emphasizes that users can control their aural environments by blocking the ‘undesirable city sounds.’ He gives an example of a passenger travelling, and how musical experience rearranges their experience of time (Bull, 2000). It is evident from this iPod that the individual locks the ‘outside world’ contact to a creation of their own world, be it traffic or a neighbor starting a conversation. Cardwell & Flanagan’s (2003) work indicates that negative influences on the environment like noise may aggravate anti-social behavior. Applying the social learning theory (vicarious reinforcement and observational learning) an individual is likely to imitate what is heard especially if the

Social Security Program Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Social Security Program - Essay Example Both the States and the Federal Government had started to distinguish that certain dangers in an inexorably industrialized economy could best be met through a social protection methodology to open welfare. That is, the contributory financing of social protection projects might guarantee that security was accessible as a matter of great with an open assistance approach whereby just those persons in need might be qualified for profits. In the United States, as in most streamlined nations, social protection first started with specialists remuneration (Mathews, 2014). A Federal law coating non military person workers of the Government in risky employments was received in 1908, and the first State recompense law to be held sacred was ordered in 1911. By 1929, specialists compensation laws were basically in everything except four States. These laws made industry answerable for the expenses of remunerating specialists. Advancement of U.S. programs has been logical and incremental, formulate d because of particular issues, and portrayed by an incredible level of decentralization (Livingston, 2008). The Office of the Chief Actuary (OCACT) arranges and coordinates a system of actuarial gauges and examines relating to the SSA-managed retirement, survivors and handicap protection programs and supplemental security pay program and to anticipated changes in these projects. Evaluates operations of the Federal Old-Age and Survivors Insurance Trust Fund and the Federal Disability Insurance Trust Fund; gauges future operations of the trust stores; behaviors investigations of project financing; performs actuarial and demographic research on social protection and related system issues; and appraisals future workloads. Provides specialized and consultative administrations to the Commissioner, the Board of Trustees of those two Trust

Celestial Seasonings Tea Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Celestial Seasonings Tea - Research Paper Example specialty tea market by exceeding consumer expectations with: The best tasting, 200% natural hot and iced teas, packaged with Celestial art and philosophy, creating the most valuable tea experience† (Stone 3). The values of beauty and truth are its viewpoint in order to produce the highest quality of specialty teas through the use of the botanical products. To ensure the financial stability of Celestial Seasonings, the company decided to merge with the Hain Food Group and become The Hain Celestial Group. The Hain is a market leader of natural food products and a successful distributor of organic foods and personal care products. The company has a market capitalization of $1.05 billion with total revenue of $917.34 million. The reported revenue for this year is lesser compared to the revenue of the previous years (â€Å"Income Statement†). However, the company’s operating income as well as the position of financial statements is performing well. Also, the stock price performance for this year under the ticker symbol HAIN is increasing with a closing rate of 24.48. Celestial Seasonings is having a â€Å"50-percent market share in the herbal tea segment and 32-percent of the total specialty tea category† (â€Å"The Hain†). The Hain Celestial Group competitors in share market are General Mills Inc., Kraft Foods Inc., Nestlà © and Processed & Packaged Goods (â€Å"Competitors†). In the field of herbal tea segment, its major competitors are Lipton Tea, Bigelow Tea, Luzianne Tea, Twinings and Tetley, and all of these companies are fighting over the tea sales in America. â€Å"The Hain Food Group to Merge with Tea-Maker Celestial Seasonings.† All Business. All Business.com, 13 Mar. 2000. Web. 4 Nov. 2010.

MQP Markiting assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

MQP Markiting - Assignment Example Following the vision and mission is the present market condition of Buxton, based on which are the marketing strategies and tactics. These marketing strategies will depend upon the current demand, rivals in the market, present customer perception and current market share. Vision and mission of Buxton water Buxton water aims to establish its natural spring water as an item which carries the same daily importance as bread and milk. Seen earlier as a premium product, bottled water should now be included in normal diet and water intake of people. Hygiene, purity and health should not be compromised with even abundant things like water. Present market condition Presently, Buxton water is sold under the brand name of Nestle which is renowned for its eatables and beverages. However, bottled water is something which still needs to be known to a majority of population who consider it as a luxury item. Especially in UK, masses are unaware of healthy hydration and rely on tap water. Buxton is c ontinuously rising as a brand in UK but this is the time when it has to establish its name and brand to do away with initial competition. ... Sporting events are the biggest demanders of bottled water where long term contracts are signed with renowned bottled water companies. Health of sportsmen and officials is of utmost importance and no compromises are done even with the water brand. Buxton water can encash this opportunity by sponsoring various sports events and tournaments (ECB n.d). Generally it is found that sportsmen are the idols of millions and people try to imitate the lifestyle, habits and even brands which these sports personalities use. If popular stars are using Buxton water, it will automatically spread the message of healthy hydration and benefits which Buxton garners. With the support of sports stars, Buxton can also organize its own events in which consumers can participate. It will allow interactive sessions between the company and the consumers, bringing them closer to the brand and associating themselves more closely with the message of healthy hydration. Details of sponsored events can also be given on the packaging to add value and awareness of company’s strategies. Packaging Packaging serves as a ‘silent salesman’ in the field of marketing because apart from differentiating the brand from that of its competitors, packaging also carries advertising appeal and convincing power. For products like groceries, bottled water and other eatables, packaging is essential to convey healthy diet messages and benefits of the product to the consumers. Buxton water attaches greater significance to healthy hydration and Corporate Social Responsibility drive in which packaging will promote strategy of Buxton water. To incorporate packaging principles, Buxton water should go

Statistics Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Statistics - Essay Example each patient who has lost weight has also experienced a decline in triglyceride level therefore there can be a relationship between weight and triglyceride level. The straight line regression model should be used with utmost caution when predicting future values. The linear regression model assumes that the data points are scattered around a straight line but unfortunately there are certain cases in which data points may be scattered around a curve and they can be fitted by the straight line model. This can be a ghastly mistake and it can have profound consequences. For the above scenario, if we predict the change in triglyceride level of a patient with a loss of 10 kg in weight than this can be a case of extrapolation. By extrapolation it means that one can not use the regression equation to make predictions for x-values that are outside the range of the x-values in the sample data. Since the x-values in the sample data are limited to (-9.6 kg) therefore it is not viable to make a prediction for (-10

Women's Sufferage Movement (NAWSA and AWSA) Term Paper

Women's Sufferage Movement (NAWSA and AWSA) - Term Paper Example In the earliest days of these movements, the major driving force was always the need to enable women to vote in the elections. The National American Woman Suffrage Association (NAWSA) and the American Women Suffrage Association (AWSA) have indeed played a great role in trying to bridge the gap that always existed and making the lives of women better throughout the country1. However, the core of the argument in this respect concerns the success of these women movements in their activities. This argument arises out of the general feeling that the activities of these movements have not always addressed the fundamental discrimination that faces women in the country. The major focus of these women’s organizations in the early days of formation was basically to secure the right to vote. However, in the present case, these movements are always in a constant search for equity between men and women in all spheres of life. It has indeed been realized that the activities of NAWSA in the suffrage movement was always absorbed in dealing with the challenges faced by minority women in the marginalized areas of America. In this regard, it was therefore much difficult for these organizations to realize their ultimate objectives. In any case, it was always imperative that the organizations address the challenges faced by the minority women in America. ... In the same manner, it was further realized that there was a lot of infighting between the women movements mostly emanating from the need to gain recognition across the country. Without doubt, the infighting was certainly a ground that never favored the activities of these organizations. It must be admitted that woman’s suffrage movements actually became a vital force in the fight against the discrimination of women in the country. However, much success for the organizations would be realized in the event of a united force seeking to address the fundamental issues affecting the women. For instance, in 1914, Paul and Burns broke from the NAWSA when they formed the Congressional Union which later changed its name to the National Woman’s Party. As a result of this divide, it was realized that the activities of the organization actually diminished as much focus was now geared toward leadership jostles and other aspects of the organization instead of the major focus of seeki ng to address the injustices that were directed towards women in the country. The success of these women suffrage movements has therefore been much limited compared to their potential to address the needs of women in the country. Despite the common feeling that NAWSA and AWSA have not really performed to their full potential, it must be realized that on the overall scorecard, it can be stated that the women’s movements have indeed played a great role in the creating a sense of equity between the lives of women and men in entirely all phases of life in the United States. Much success for these organizations has been realized to the extent that the United States is presently ahead in terms of gender equity for most of its

Philosophy Contemporary Moral Problems Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Philosophy Contemporary Moral Problems - Essay Example In that context a sense of duty gains preponderance over claim over rights in the sense that it raises the issue of propositions related to duties (Tuck 5). Any attempt to elaborate on the meaning of a term like ‘rights’, is dependant to a great extent on the enjoining theories and since times immemorial, varied theories have played a pivotal role in the determination of the meaning and the spirit of the term ‘rights’ (Tuck 8). This raises many questions pertaining to the meaning of ‘rights’, as to whether rights are something whose application and expression could be directly controlled by its possessors, or is it the moral and political duty of the public institutions and laws to make way for a hassle free extension of rights (Tuck 8)? Thus, the natural rights theory pertaining to the basic freedoms and rights which should be accessible to all individuals is not that simplistic and straightforward in its philosophical and political scope. Before delving on a philosophical delineation of the concept of natural rights and the successive developments and the emergence of varied classifications, it will be really pragmatic to delve on the notion of natural rights in a simplistic context. Natural rights are the rights that tend to be universal in their scope and application and that are readily accessible to all the individuals simply by the virtue of their being human. Natural rights include within their ambit a range of rights affiliated to civil, cultural, political, social, and economic rights. The theory of natural rights is quintessentially based on the notion of human dignity and worth. In a historical perspective, the notion of natural rights could be traced back to the tablet of Hammurabi. Though the codifications of Hammurabi tended to protect the individuals from arbitrary persecution and exploitation, they

Judicial term Essay Example for Free

Judicial term Essay Forum non convenience is a judicial term used for an inconvenient place of judicial trials for one of the parties involved in the case. In judicial trials if parties involved are not satisfied for the place where their case will be executed they can take a motion to dismiss the case on the basis of forum non conveniens. Any parties involved in the case can submit a proof that the current forum is not sufficient or suitable for them. Instead another place (forum) is more suitable for their case and the dismissal of the case in the current forum is more in favor of both the parties than carrying out in the same forum, and the alternative forum is suitable for both the parties. All the factors of the plaintiff’s and defendant’s interest involved in the decision of dismissal are considered. The balancing between the parties must be equal and favoring them. The facts involved in the forum non convenience grounds are weighed before the decision is taken. Also the convenience of court and the justice itself is considered. Whether it would be convenient to dismiss the case and carried out in another forum would be an appropriate step itself? If it satisfies the needs of both the parties and justice would be more balanced in an alternative forum then court has the right to dismiss the case on the forum non conveniens. This also involves that the new forum will not pose up new issues for any of the parties involved. The plaintiff and defendants must be satisfied with the new forum and will not make it an issue when the trial will be conducted.

How you define the term ‘profit’ in terms of the changes that Hussain adopted to move one business to another Essay Example for Free

How you define the term ‘profit’ in terms of the changes that Hussain adopted to move one business to another Essay Question 8: How you define the term ‘profit’ in terms of the changes that Hussain adopted to move one business to another? The term ‘profit’ that Hussain earned when he changed from one to another business is the result of success as he willing to take chances and risks. He started from zero and his creative business minds be the ladder of sucess to him. A lot of challenge that he had faced make he became a great entrepreneur nowaday. He had struggled very much to expand his business in other word to change and overcome his miserable circumstances. We can see the ‘profit’ that Hussain gained from his small business as chocolate’s hawker to became an entreprenuer is started with his first petty step. He started the business with selling chocolate at the market for the beginning of his business is because he want help his family. As the bread earner replaced his illness father, he must search income to support basic needs of the family. He is lucky because although oman’s economy grow at thelower level those day, his small business still growing faster. But, due to the rising price index, he had difficulty to make ends meet. This difficulty had bring him to another business which gave him more profit than the profit of chocolate sale. He found a new avenues in business by started selling book. When he made a comparative analysis between the two product, chocolate and book, he realized that the percentage profit he gained by selling a book is very high than selling a chocolate. He use this good opportun ity to change his business from a chocolate hawker to become a bookseller. So, he gained more profit. From this changes, we can see the ‘profit’ that he had gained by changing the product. Then, Hussain not longer selling chocolate. He focused to the book sale. He had found a new way of a profitable business by selling book. But, he faced difficulty to bring many book everyday and return with them the next day. This situation leads him to find the alternaltive to solve this problem. Finally, he got a brilliant idea. He make a decision to convert his late father’s steel workshop where are had rented to become a bookshop. He try to convince his uncle that idea and because his sophisticated way of looking at thing differently made his uncle proud and agree with him. So, husin managed to open his own bookshop and it became the first bookshop in the village. he was the sole book seller at his village and this situation had bring him to became a sucess book seller at t he village. So, we can see the improvement that he had done by change the way  of his business from a book hawker to became an owner of bookshop. Hussain’s teacher had make he thought a new great idea. It started when his teacher gave him a mission to buy some gifts at the market. hussain brought the required gifts as his teacher order but with a cheaper price. Another teacher heard about that and asked him to do the same ones. This condition made he think that he should selling the same product as the teacher want. This idea bring him to provide products that were used as gifts such as pens, pencils, notebooks and other school’s needs. Since that, he became popular not only at his school but also in other schools. He able to explore more opportunity in businees by convinced the school to buy from his bookshop. So, from this we can see that he was success in converting the bookshop concept to became more wide concept. Hussain again change his business. He sold his bookshop with high price then he opened a new company. He established a new company for office supplies not far away from the bookshop. This is a good techniques for him as a alternative to reduce the cost at once increase the profit and income. Because the buyer of bookshop can not go through the business challenge, he failed and closed the bookshop permanently. Hussain closed the new office and reopened the bookshop. He relocated the office that he had closed in the bookshop for serving wholesale. But the bookshop still served individual customers. So, customer can buy from the bookshop and at the same time, the wholesale buyers can see the product and test them before placing order. He can reduce the cost facilitate his work. Finally, hussain succeeded to convert his bookshop into a big company for office supplies. With the new technology just entered the country made his work more easier. He started provide new office equipment suah as printers, photocopies and other related devices to the customers. Then, he became a major supplier of various stationery and office suplies. His company was developed with very advanced and he became an icon for leadership and entrepeneurial fields. We can see the high profit that hussain gained when he convert his bookshop into a big company. For the conclusion, from this case, Hussain who is the Sultanate of Oman have proved that hardship make people stronger. He proved that people can earned more profit if they are wise in taking opportunity and willingness to take risks in business.

Factors That Restrict Success Within Youth Sport

Factors That Restrict Success Within Youth Sport Part 1 With reference to the theory undertaken in this module, evaluate the key factors that restrict success within youth sport. Theory that has already been undertaken in this module includes details of the factors that restrict success in Youth Sport. Factors that have been researched prior to this piece of work are Participation Rates, Support Structures, Maturation Rates, Talent Identification and School Sport Competition. Follows, will be a detailed report underpinning three of these factors and it will stress why they each restrict success in Youth Sport. Youth is another common title for a young person or young people (Konopka, G., 1973). People have different views on how they would define sport, people suggest that sport is an activity governed by rules or customs and often engaged competitively whilst others suggest differently. Sporting people have different attitudes when it comes to playing sport. Sportsmanship is an attitude that strives for fair play, courtesy toward teammates and opponents, ethical behaviour and integrity, and grace in victory or defeat (Fish and Magee 2003). Sports are most of ten played just for fun or for the simple fact that people need exercise to stay in good physical condition. Although they do not always succeed, sports participants are expected to display good sportsmanship, standards of conduct such as being respectful of opponents and officials. The three factors that will be that will be detailed are Relative Age Effects, Talent Identification and Significant Others. These seem to be the most contrasting factors that restrict success therefore there will be outcome of an understanding from different views and aspects of the sporting world for youths. Depending on the dates of a childs birth, they will be in either one season or the other to determine what school year they will be entering. For sports players, physical appearance is an agenda when it comes to selecting players off an appearance basis and measuring biological maturity is a way of finding best players; (Vaegans et al 2005). Youths that are involved in sport must be adequately prepared for a life in sport Long Term Athlete Development (LTAD) provides a model that they can work from. Phase 1 FUNdamentals (FUN) Objective TO LEARN FUNDAMENTAL MOVEMENT SKILLS Content Overall development, focusing on the ABCs (Agility, Balance, Coordination, Speed) to underpin the generic skills used in many sports: Running, jumping and throwing. Frequency Perform physical activity 5-6 times per week. Phase2 Learning to Train (L2T) Objective TO LEARN FUNDAMENTALS SPORTS SKILLS Content Concentration on the range of FUNdamental sports skills, such as throwing, catching, jumping and running. Introduction to readiness: being mentally and physically prepared. Basic FUNdamental tactics, e.g. if fielding, net/wall, invasion games can be introduced. Cognitive and emotional developments are central Skills are practised in challenging formats Frequency As above. If there is a favoured sport, it is suggested that at least 50% of the time is allocated to other sports/activities that develop a range of skills. Phase3 Training to Train (T2T) Objective TO BUILD FITNESS SPECIFIC SPORTS SKILLS Content This phase ideally occurs post-puberty and attention switches to: Fitness Training Detailed mental preparation A focus on sport-specific skill development, including perceptual skills (reading the game/tactical understanding). Decision making Detailed and extensive evaluation Frequency For the aspiring performer, sport specific practice will now be 6-9 times per week. Phase 4 Training to Compete (T2C) Objective TO REFINE SKILLS FOR A SPECIFIC EVENT OR POSITION Content Event and position specific training Physical conditioning Technical and tactical preparation Advanced mental practice All of the above come together and are developed under competition conditions. Frequency Training could be up to 12 timesper week. Phase5 Training to Win (T2W) Objective TO MAXIMISE PERFORMANCE IN COMPETITION Content Development and refinement of the aspects above, but with more use in competition modelling and more attention to rest periods and prevention of injury due to heavier load. Frequency Training could be up to 15 times per week Phase6 Retainment For athletes/players retiring from competitive sport, many sports are developing Masters Programmes. An additional phase retainment- keeps the players/athletes involved in physical activity. Experiences gained as competitors can be invaluable, should they move into administration, coaching or officiating. A move to another sport, perhaps at a more recreational level, may better suit some. There are consequences that the sports person could be faced with as well as the advantages and disadvantages. According to research it has been found that approximately 70% of successful hockey and football players had a relative age advantage because they were born in the first-half of the defined age-group for their respective sports. By comparison, only 30% of these top-level players were born in the last 6 months of the respective â€Å"sport year†. One consequence that has been found is an increased drop-out rate for those youthful hockey players that had been disadvantaged by age in the past (Barnsley Thompson 1988), suggesting that given the choice, younger children will seek to leave or avoid an activity in which their competitive position is hampered by their relative age. Interestingly and predictably, the relative age effect has also been found in other competitive sports such as baseball (Thompson et al 1991). Steven Gerrard was affected as a youth when it came to playing football and furthering his career. Follows is a prime example of how he overcome his relative age effect. Steven Gerrard, one of Englands most talented footballers, was born in May 1980 and was also a late developer. He describes in his autobiography his huge disappointment at not getting into the FA school at Lilleshall and subsequently not playing for England under-16s. Michael Owen, born some six months earlier in December and more physically developed made both squads easily. Steve Gerrard wrote in his autobiography: â€Å"The one nagging doubt in the back of my mind was that my rivals were bigger: I was really small and facing some tall, strong units in my position. â€Å" Steven resented his rejection but had coaches and mentors at Liverpool who knew he needed more time. Significant others can be described as the people who are around the sports performer. There are 4 sectors; Technical, Peers, Family and Supporters. These are also the key interpersonal support factors that affect a young persons participation and progress in sport. The technical others are the people who see the person as a sports performer. They could be their coach, teacher, club official, sport sciencetist or medical health sciencetist. Peers are made up of people such as friends, classmates and team mates. Family is made up of parents, grandparents and siblings. Finally, supporters are people such as fans and neighbours. All 4 sectors have some form of impact on the sports player whether it is a big one or a small one. Parents are major part for the youths life. It is the parent that has brought the child up and it is their duty, by nature, to mould the child into a young promising adolescent. Parents have empathy for their children, perceived sharing their childrens on court em otions. They are perceived to possess knowledge and expertise of the sport so they feel entitled to comment. They also have a continuum of reactions throughout their childs sport, good and bad. In-game negative comments are usually about 10%. (Holt et al 2008). Significant others can have a negative impact on the sports performer. These effects could include dropping out of sport all together. This could be caused by pressuring parents, lack of peers during adolescence and sibling rivalries. The parents could be either really demanding of the child and either expect too much of them in their sport or could be too strict towards them. Eccles and Harold (1991) proposed the parents expectations influence the child decision to engage in sport and activities including the intensity of effort expended and their childs actual performance level. Next is an extract which is a study examining parental influence on childrens participation in sport, giving an idea why the parents could restrict success in Youth Sport. X. Yang et al (1997) states ‘The purpose of this study was to examine parental influences on childrens participation in sport and their later physical activity. The population for the study consisted of a random sample of 1881 9- to 15-year-old boys and girls who were exposed to the extensive research program called Cardiovascular Risk in Young Finns in 1980. They and their parents have been followed up for twelve years at three-year intervals by means of a short questionnaire concerning physical activity and other factors. The results indicated that the fathers physical activity in 1980 was related to their childrens habitual physical activity in the same year, and gave in boys and girls a significant prediction of PAI values twelve years later when the starting point was the age of 9, and also among boys from 15 years of age to 27. During the three years follow-up period, the extent of participation in sport was higher in families with active parents than in families with pas sive parents and single parents. The relationship of physical activity and sports participation with fathers socioeconomic status and education was not strong as with fathers physical activity. Talent Identification is a where a talent is found in a person. In this case it is when a talent is found in a Youth. There are different processes in which talent identification can be used in order to find potential sports persons. Scouts are trained talent evaluators who travel extensively for the purposes of watching athletes play their chosen sports and determining whether their set of skills and talents represent what is needed by the scouts organization. Many scouts are former coaches or retired players, while others have made a career just of being scouts. Skilled scouts who help to determine which players will fit in well with an organization can be the major difference between success and failure for the team with regard to wins and losses. Talent can not only be identified by an official spectator, it can be identified by standard spectators e.g. team mates, coach, teachers. It can also be identified by parents and grandparents. If the non-official spectators were to recog nise a talent within a Youth playing Sport then they could hold the boost that the player needs in order to further themselves in their chosen sport. If the non-official spectator fails to let on to the sports person then it could restrict them from being successful in sport. UK Sport holds a number of talent identification programmes for youths and generally people aged 17-25. These are ‘Pitch 2 Podium, ‘Sporting Giants and ‘Girls4Gold. UK Sport (2008) and the English Institute of Sport (EIS)began asearch for highly competitive sportswomen with the potential to become Olympic champions in cycling and other targeted Olympic sports (bob skeleton, canoeing, modern pentathlon, rowing and sailing). Girls4Gold is the single most extensive female sporting talent recruitment drive ever undertaken in Great Britain. Girls4Gold can only take a number of people onto their programme, same with any other programme. Following the tremendous success of Team GB at the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games, the Girls4Gold team received over 1300 applications and cant take on anymore applicants until the next opening. This could be a restriction in itself because this programme could be missing out on extreme sports people including male participants. This is only available for females and therefore could hold a feature which a sporting male might need for success but doesnt have on offer anywhere else on their sporting grounds. After summarising the three factors discussed in this essay, it is clear that they all hold possible restrictions for success in Youth Sport. Relative age effects take a greater approach to the physical side of the sports people body, as the older the sports person is, the more mature and developed their body is and the younger the person is the less developed they are. This could be a restriction when it comes to team games more than it could be a restriction to playing sport individually. This means that the player could have more chances of becoming successful in an individual sport rather than a team sport. The restriction depends on what the players sport is and which ‘school year the player is born into. Significant others can be a restriction in itself depending on who the ‘significant others are around the sports player. Provided that there are the right people, technically as well as emotional and mentally, the then player could be stable and could be successful. However, if those people arent in place to give the young sports person the interpersonal support they need then they could be self reluctant to take up opportunities in order to be successful. Talent identification is the main key to success in sport. If the payer is not recognised then the player is not faced with the opportunity to make their sport official or even turn it into a career for themselves. With this it could be argued that the sports person should not take chances and wait to be noticed and that they should help themselves be acknowledged by talent identifier. This is when they could apply for programmes such as ‘Girls4Gold. This is when it could be ‘make or break for the sports player, as sometimes they are not always faced with people on the search for talent.

High Yield Explosives (CBRNE) Analysis

High Yield Explosives (CBRNE) Analysis Chemical, Biological, Radiological, Nuclear, and High Yield Explosives (CBRNE) Analysis The terrorist group that has been chosen for this analysis paper is ISIS which is also known as ISIL. ISIS means the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria or Levante and was created in the year 2014. In the previous years, this terrorist group was an affiliate of the Al-Queda terrorist group that was responsible for the infamous 9/11 attacks and warcrimes in Iraq and its neighboring nations such as Iran and Syria. The organization was responsible for driving the Iraqi government military out of key cities in Iraq and has also been responsible for many attacks in Syria making it the most dangerous terrorist group currently. The primary means of attack that is normally used by ISIS is the decimation attack. In this form of attack, the terrorists plant explosives in strategic places and detonate them in order to inflict havoc. This form of attack has been the main form of attack being used by this terrorist organization as many suicide bombers and mass shooters have been able to use this form of attack in not only Syria and Iraq, but also in the recent Paris attacks which took place in the year 2015. The organization is primarily against inasion by western nations such as the U.S. and the EU and retaliates by targeting the citizens of these nations, making them the primary targets. On the other hand, the citizens who get attacked in their domestoc nations are the secondary targets. This organization likes to publicize its attacks in order to inflict terror. This method is very effective for the organization. Besides that, the organization is also very quick to claim responsibility over many terrorist attacks taking place all over the world, which is a clear indication that ISIS is very effective. Attack Mode Evidence Color Code Firearms This is one of the major atatck mode that is normally used by ISIS as firearms are relatively easier and cheaper to acquire than explosives. November 13, 2015, separate attacks were launched using assault weapons. Shootings took place in Brussels, leading to the dealth of three individuals on May 24th, 2014 (Lister, Sanchez, Bixler, OKey, Hogenmiller Tawfeeq, 2017). Shootings at Orlando, Florida led to the death of 49 people and the death of the attacker after the attcker shot a crown at a night club known as Pulse. IEDs Three suicide bomber attacked Atatruk International Airport in Instanbul, Turkey, killing 44 people on June, 28, 2016 according to (Lister, Sanchez, Bixler, OKey, Hogenmiller Tawfeeq, 2017). Explosions in Belgium at Brussels airport while a different explosion went off at a subway station leading to the death of 32 people. Paris attacks on Novermber 13, 2015 leading to the death osf 130 people. Biological Given the fact that the organization uses IEDs and firearms as its primary form of attack, this could be a threat if the organization gets access to biological weapons in future. Radiological Given the fact that the organization uses IEDs as its primary form of attack, this could be a threat if the organization gets access to radiological weapons in future. Chemical Given the fact that the organization uses IEDs as its primary form of attack, this could be a threat if the organization gets access to chemical weapons. Hostage Taking ISIS has been known to use this tactic to intimidate its enemies. Common victims of these attacks are: soldiers, journalists and foreigners. The following is a list of such attacks. Shootings at Orlando, Florida led to the death of 49 people and the death of the attacker after the attcker shot a crown at a night club known as Pulse. Although the attacker used a firearm, it was a hostage taking form of attack (Lister, Sanchez, Bixler, OKey, Hogenmiller Tawfeeq, 2017).. On January 9 2015, a lone attacker was killed in Paris after a botched hostage attempt at a grocery shop. Cyber Attacks Coordination of the Paris attacks was coordinated and facilitated using encrypted communications. References

The Dental Induced Bacteraemia

The Dental Induced Bacteraemia Your Uncle not the same as last time who has been taking clopidogrel for a number of years approaches you, a dental student, to explain something to him. After two weeks of weariness and fever, his doctor recently diagnosed Infective Endocarditus by blood cultures. An echocardiogram indicated a bicuspid aortic valve, and listening to the chest using a stethoscope the doctor could also detect a slight murmur. His doctor had asked him whether he had had any dental treatment recently. He admitted that he had not seen a dentist for a number of years and a cursory investigation revealed dental caries and inflammation of the gums. His reason for avoiding the dentist was because of bleeding in the mouth following visits. Your Uncle was quizzical about a number of things and has asked for your advice. He wants to know what information the echocardiogram and stethoscope can reveal. Further, he wants to understand the connection between oral health and an individuals general medical condition. Specifically, what oral bacteria are present, what roles do they play in oral biology, how they could cause systemic problems, and what sort of strategies could be employed to prevent infection. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦. Working in your groups, generate a list of leaning outcomes for this topic and return an individual copy by 23rd November by email to [emailprotected] These learning outcomes will be assessed, and intended learning outcomes returned to assist you with your report. Individually write a 2000 word manuscript in a scientific manner addressing the learning outcomes by 7th January (2013) and upload via QMplus. Please note that with QMplus the time cut-off is 23:55. Learning Outcomes 1. To identify the connection between clopidogrel and excessive bleeding gums. 2. To describe normal and abnormal heart valve formations. 3. To understand and describe the information that echocardiograms and stethoscope can provide regarding heart function. 4. To explain how oral derived bacterial flora can colonise heart valves. 5. To explain why the heart valves are susceptible to bacterial colonisation. 6. To describe when prophylactic antibiotics should be prescribed prior to oral treatments. Introduction Bacteraemia is a condition that is caused when bacteria enters the blood stream. When large amount of bacteria are present in the blood it can cause infections such as meningitis, pericarditis and endocarditus. Individuals with heart valve disorders, prosthetic joints, chronic diseases or weakened immune system are at increased risk of developing infections during Bacteraemia. Dental induced Bacteraemia is caused by minor injury from tooth brushing or from dental procedures. In the above problem based learning scenario we have been presented with our uncle who has been taking Clopidogrel for a number of years and has now been diagnosed with Infective Endocarditis by blood cultures. Below I will expand on the proposed learning outcomes. [2] FIG.1Identify the connection between Clopidogrel and excessive bleeding gums. Clopidogrel is an oral antiplatelet drug which reduces the risk of blood clots forming. It works by preventing Adenosine diphosphate (ADP), which causes platelets aggregation, from binding to its P2Y12 receptors on platelets and stops activation of the glycoprotein GPIIb/IIIa complex. This prevention reduces the likelihood of clots forming. [1] [3]Source:Harvey, R; Champe, P Lippincott illustrated reviews: Pharmacology, 4th edition. LWW: 2009. Blood clots can be very dangerous as they can cause blockages of blood vessels reducing the blood supply to an organ. A reduction in blood flow to the brain or heart can cause a stroke or heart attack. This explains Clopidogrels biggest use in patients who have had a recent heart attack or stroke; it helps to stop a reoccurrence. [1] Taking Clopidogrel therefore can cause excessive bleeding gums. If a blood vessel ruptures when brushing the teeth, through dental treatment or even by eating the gums will carry on bleeding for longer than usual because of the lack of platelet aggregation. http://birthnow.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/05/Clopidogrel.gif Describe normal and abnormal heart valve formations. A healthy human heart consists of four chambers; two upper atria and two lower ventricles and four valves; two semilunar and two atrioventricular valves. The aortic and pulmonic valves are both semilunar valves and found in the arteries leaving the heart. The tricuspid and mitral valves are the atrioventricular valves and are found between the atria and ventricles. [5] Valves are made up of cusps which basically act as flaps or leaflets that are responsible for the one way flow of blood going into and out of a ventricle. Each valve has three leaflets, except the mitral valve, which only has two. [4] FIG.3Strong fibrous cords called chordae tendineae also known as heart strings are attached to the papillary muscles found on the floor of the ventricles and they act as anchors to stop the valves from inverting back into the atria. When the valve closes the papillary muscles contract and tenses the chordae tendineae to ensure the one way flow of blood. The valves are also supported and surrounded by a fibrous skeleton called annuli that also acts as another anchor. http://www.tokresource.org/tok_classes/biobiobio/biomenu/transport_system/heart-valves.jpg [6] FIG.4Blood flows from the right and left atria into the ventricles through the open tricuspid and mitral valves respectively. When the ventricles are full, the tricuspid and mitral valves shut. The ventricles now begin to contract and the pulmonic and aortic valves are forced open and blood is pumped out. Blood from the right ventricle passes through the open pulmonic valve into the pulmonary artery and carries deoxygenated blood to the lungs while blood from the left ventricle is oxygenated and travels through the open aortic valve into the aorta and goes to the rest of the body. This happens in a cycle, between heartbeats the ventricles will then relax, the semilunar valves will close and the atrioventricular valves will open and allow blood from the body and lungs to enter the heart. [7]http://mitral-valve-repair.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/01/heart-valves_heart-chambers.jpg Heart valves can however malfunction in several ways. Abnormal heart valve formations fall into two main groups; Regurgitation and Stenosis. Regurgitation of the valves is when they fail to close properly which causes the backward leakage of blood, this is often happens as a result of coronary heart disease, rheumatic heart disease or because or bacterial and viral infections including infective endocarditus. [8] Mitral regurgitation is the most common heart valve disorder being found in 20% of adults over the age of 55. [9] The backward leakage of blood causes an increase in atrial pressure and the wall of the left atrium will thicken by hypertrophy and possibly dilate. The pulmonary venous pressure will also rise which produces pulmonary oedema (fluid accumulation in the air spaces).It also reduces the blood supply to the rest of the so the left ventricle will also become thicker and the heart rate will increase to try and maintain normal cardiac output. Symptoms include shortness of breath, chest pains, dizziness and the pulse becomes faster. [10] [11] Stenosis of the heart valves occurs when the valve is narrowed and obstructs the forward flow of blood, it is usually a result of a congenital defect which has caused the valve to become inflamed or calcified. [12] FIG.5 Aortic Stenosis Aortic valve Stenosis is one of the most common valve disorders, when the valve doesnt open correctly there is reduced blood flow from the left ventricle into the aorta. In severe cases the walls of the left ventricle will become thicker as it has to work harder to maintain cardiac output into the aorta. Symptoms include dizziness, chest pain and an irregular heart beat. If the condition worsens it can lead to heart failure and more uncommonly to endocarditus.http://www.heart-valve-surgery.com/Images/aortic-stenosispicture-275.jpg Aortic Stenosis develops over time because or turbulent blood flow through a usually bicuspid aortic valve. Calcific valvular disease is an inflammatory process and the biggest cause of the disorder, calcification of the valve makes it very stiff and makes it difficult for the valve to open easily. Again as with regurgitation rheumatic fever and endocarditis are also causes of Stenosis. [11] [12] Valve deformations are more common in the left side of the heart but they do also occur in the right hand side. Stenosis and regurgitation can affect all four valves and not only the two mentioned above. [13] Other abnormal valve formations are congenital heart valve diseases which are those present at birth when the aortic or pulmonary valves dont form properly. Understand and describe the information that echocardiograms and stethoscope can provide regarding heart function. Echocardiography is a non-invasive technique used to assess cardiac structure and function by the use of ultrasound. Echoes are used to listen for congestion in the lungs, irregular heartbeats and murmurs. [11] There are several types of echocardiograms; transthoracic (TTE) are the most common. A device called a probe or transducer is placed on the chest and high frequency sound waves are used to produce sounds and images of the heart. It picks up echoes of sound waves and transmits them as electrical impulses which are then converted to 2D or 3D moving pictures on the screen. A Doppler echocardiogram shows the movement of blood. If a clear picture cannot be formed a small amount of liquid can be injected via IV to give a better picture. [14] Echocardiograms show details of the chambers including size, volume and thickness of the walls which helps to identify certain disorders including hypertension, the pumping function can also be reviewed and this can show conditions such as cardiomyopathy. Echoes also help with diagnosis of heart valve disorders including those mentioned above. It identifies the basic structures of the valve including thickness and movement and shows any abnormalities such as calcification and scaring. The Doppler will show any leakage through the heart valves and if there is a restriction in blood flow. Echoes of mitral regurgitation will show a dilated left atrium and left ventricle and echoes of aortic Stenosis will show the thickened calcified leaflets. In cases of suspected endocarditis a transesophageal echo can be used instead to show high-quality images of the heart and its valves. It is slightly more invasive and a long tube is passed down the oesophagus. [15] A stethoscope is a non invasive diagnostic instrument used to listen to or auscultate a patients heart, lungs, pulse and abdomen. It can also be used to help check blood pressure by listening to blood flow restoration when the sphygmomanometer cuff is removed. The diaphragm is placed on the patients chest where it picks up vibrations and amplifies them as sounds to the earpieces going via a hollow tube. [16]http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/3c/Stethoscope_(PSF).png A healthy heart produces a double beat or lub dub with little other sound when the semi lunar valves open and close. A stethoscope helps detect a heart murmur which makes a whooshing sound after the heart beat, this can indicate serious other problems such as infective endocarditis. [17] [18] FIG.6 S Mutans adhering to surface of mitral valve Explain how oral derived bacterial flora can colonise heart valves Explain why the heart valves are susceptible to bacterial colonisation. Streptococcus mutans are a type of bacteria found in dental plaque of the oral cavity that is largely responsible for causing tooth decay and cavities via the process of demineralisation. However on occasion after dental treatment or from brushing the teeth if blood is exposed it can enter the blood stream and cause bacteraemia. Diseased Aortic Valve Endocarditis typically develops on surfaces of the heart, which have become rough and sticky after sustaining endothelial damage after being subject to turbulent blood flow. (In bicuspid valves blood flow is more turbulent and this creates a high pressure which makes the surface of the valve rough and more susceptible to bacterial colonisation). [19] Platelets and fibrin attach to the endochardium surface and form a platform which the bacteria can attach to; vegetation is now formed. This vegetation can damage the heart valves and affect how they open and close, or breakaway and cause complications in other areas of the body. The aortic and mitral valves of the left side of the heart are the most common to be affected. S mutants are thought to be responsible for 50% of all bacterial endocarditus cases. Staphylococci found on the skin can also cause it. [11] The risk of developing endocarditis is increased in a person who has already got artificial heart valves, general heart valve conditions, congenital birth defects, rheumatic fever and those with a lowered immune system. The problem with when bacteria colonises heart valves is that the valves dont have a designated blood supply to them so white blood cells are unable to fight the infection that is forming there. [20] [21]Full-size image (41 K) [22] FIG.7 Transthoracic echocardiogram (a) and apical four-chamber view (b) demonstrating a well circumscribed vegetation measuring 2 ÃÆ'- 1 cm, confined to the posterior mitral valve leaflet and impinging on the left atrium. Describe when prophylactic antibiotics should be prescribed prior to oral treatments. The term prophylactic antibiotics refer to when antibiotics are given prior to an event as a preventative measure to infection. Where rheumatic fever is still common, control and prevention will prevent rheumatic heart disease and associated endocarditis. [11]Previously people with heart valve conditions and artificial valves were thought to be at high risk of developing endocarditus when receiving dental treatment and other surgical operations so a treatment of antibiotics, usually penicillin were given prior to the procedure in question. Today however this practice is questioned as there were no placebo trials conducted. The large scale use of penicillin as a preventative measure comes with risks such as anaphylactic shock so now as recommended by the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) it is mainly only offered to those patients who have an infection beforehand and those with artificial valves. Conclusion In conclusion to this PBL I now understand that the presence of bacteria in the blood can have serious consequences all over the body and not just at the site of entry. In answer to my uncles question about preventing infection it would be worth noting that meticulous oral and skin hygiene is significant in preventing such infections like endocarditis. With regards to oral hygiene a dentist should be seen at least every 6 months so any issues that may be present can be resolved before they develop further. Brushing twice a day, flossing and keeping ones toothbrush clean are always that can prevent bacteraemia.