Literature Review and Report Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Literature Review and Report - Essay Example Succession planning is a process of identifying and developing people from within the organization with the potential to fill key leadership positions in the company. It increases the availability of experienced and capable employees that are prepared to assume these roles as they become available. It is now combined with leadership training and the processes together are very essential for the functioning of an organization. There are very many advantages of filling up the positions with existing employees, such as, they are already familiar with the values and the methods of functioning of the organization, the people of the organization already know them and thus it will be easier for them to fit in. Also, giving people such an opportunity ensures that they will work extra hard to get trained and developed so that they can fill in the gap required and aim for a promotion. Using internal employees also helps cut down on costs that would come up from the relentless head hunting acti vities for filling in a high post and gives out the message to the employees that the organization is closely knit and would rather give them the opportunities first. LITERATURE ARGUMENTS: Succession Planning Succession planning plays a very important role in regenerating a company's leadership, but quite often, the promises of traditional succession planning are not delivered. The whole purpose of succession planning in an organization, according to Leibman, Bruer and Maki (1996), is to develop a strong leader, not choose, but develop. This is because every organization has different needs and requirements from their leader. Allio (2007) insists that it is necessary to strategically build strong leadership teams in an organization, so as to meet these requirements. He discusses the importance of having good leaders in an organization and the effects that rogue leader can have. Barsh, Capozzi and Davidson (2008) on the other hand discuss the importance of the integration of innovati on into the strategic management of the organization. Leibman, Bruer and Maki (1996) write about the factors that play prominent roles in the development of these leadership teams. One of them is non discriminating hiring, which has led to work places being more diverse, in terms of gender, religious background, age group and ethnicities, all trying to balance home and work, to contribute to a better standard of living for the entire family. Thus, with increasing diversity in the workforce, it is essential that this factor be taken into account in the leadership development programs of organizations. Their research has shown that to achieve better results and higher productivity, corporations have begun to make changes in their structures. Allio (2007) adds to this view by stating, tall organizations are out, making way for a more lenient, flat structure that gives people greater authority and accountability, but also reduces chaos in the organization and encourages team efforts. Th is further contributes to the focus on preparing leadership team, rather than individuals. Also, having a team gives an organization more options and points of view. Barsh, Capozzi and Davidson (2008) provides an additional perspective that, this in some way makes the decision making process more efficient, if not easy, for the simple reason that more than one opinion is taken into account

“To Kill a Mockingbird” by Harper Lee as teaching material Essay Example for Free

â€Å"To Kill a Mockingbird† by Harper Lee as teaching material Essay There have been plenty of opinions and discussions around the statement if the well-known novel â€Å"To Kill a Mockingbird† by Harper Lee should be used as teaching material. A number of teachers have decided to use the book in classes but there are likewise several strong arguments for banning it in the education. Some claim that this is a novel that â€Å"every adult should read before they die†; while others prefer to say â€Å"this is a dangerous book†. Due to the somber, mighty but significant themes that the book brings up have resulted in that people have got an eye-opener if â€Å"To Kill a Mockingbird† is proper to occur in children’s hands. But the advantages weigh out the disadvantages. To kill a mockingbird should not be banned from schools since the novel reflects and includes the American segregated history in a trustworthy way that students can understand and as lively discussions likely will occur, possible repetitions from the past will be prevented. Since the release in the 1960s, the book has become a part of classroom study due to the instructive themes brought up in the book. Examples of these themes are racial injustice, courage, compassion and the destruction of innocence. However, due to the controversial nature of these themes, some schools have chosen to ban the book from education. Amongst these are the schools of the Canadian province Nova Scotia who defends their point of view with following statement quoted from the book â€Å"Bloom’s Guides: To Kill a Mockingbird – new Edition†: â€Å"The terminology in this novel subjects students to humiliating experiences that rob them of their self-respect and the respect of their peers. The word ‘Nigger’ is used 48 times [in] the novel†¦We believe that the English Language Arts curriculum in Nova Scotia must enable all students to feel comfortable with ideas, feelings and experiences presented without fear of humiliation †¦ To Kill a Mockingbird is clearly a book that no longer meets these goals and therefore must no longer be used for classroom instruction.† To not enlighten and discuss the true history may result into speculations around the not comfortable students and pointed them out because the school â€Å"is not able† to read the book because of them. Lately, ideas how to censor the novel has been presented. The author, speaker and public policy expert Anthony Jerrod discussed in the article â€Å"Should Huck Finn and To Kill a Mockingbird be Censored?† if the â€Å"n† word should be replaced with â€Å"slave† in the book â€Å"To Kill a Mockingbird† to be more adapted to today’s modern society. Jerrod claimed that critics mean that a modern copy â€Å"will result in more people being able to truly enjoy these narratives†. The risk with modifying the past can replace the emotions and the truly message Harper Lee wrote. Instead of erasing the history the society should focus on how, to in an accurate, way bring up the book’s content in a way black people can feel comfortable with. What we have done in the past can not be changed however we learn and comprehend from it. The book focuses on many sensitive themes that pupils may feel uncomfortable to read about. The fact that people in the novel are separated based on the skin color is upsetting in the modern society. In the book black people are discriminated which may lead to consequences as discomfort and pointed out while reading about it. Feelings, thoughts and ideas from the olden times become current once again. By realizing the surprisingly fact that it was only seventy-five years ago the occurrences took place in the society and not in an imaginary book, feels frightening. The elder perhaps remember how the segregation reflected their days in the past but the younger generations have not experienced it in the same extent and by removing the disrespect details it will result in further forgetfulness. â€Å"To Kill a Mockingbird† has become one of the world most famed books by a reason. The novel counts both as a fiction and a lesson in history and is therefore the remarkably accurate school material. When the class discusses the book the pupils might understand the segregation heightens and realize why this is a sensitive topic. The novel will not go in one ear and go out the other. The plot facilitates the reader to identify itself with the central figures leading to a greater understanding and empathy for the happenings. We have a responsibility to declare the inaccuracies we have committed. To use the original â€Å"To Kill a Mockingbird† in classes moves the discussion and development of equal rights, in several aspects, forward and increases the awareness of how we do not want our society.

Definitions And Theories of Teamwork

Definitions And Theories of Teamwork Definition: group cohesion is a dynamic process which is reflected in the tendency for a group to stick together and remain united in the pursuit of its goals. Stages of development There are four stages of development a group will go through but the time it takes to go through each stage is variable. These stages are: Forming Storming Norming Performing Forming This is when everybody meets for the first time and starts to get to know each other. This stage can be used to test whether or not the team can gel together properly or not. In a team situation the coach may use small games or strategies to break the ice between the new group members. This can also be explained as the stage where new team mates get together for the first time in search of a common goal or cause. Storming In this stage each individual is fighting for there place in the team therefore it can be a stage of very intense intergroup competition. This intense competition may include rebellion against the leader, conflict between individuals or resistance to the way the team is being developed or managed and the tactics that are being adopted. Norming The players now begin to realise that they are all there aiming for the same goals and therefore either agree on a way of getting on in order to achieve these goals or they leave the group. Now the group starts to cooperate and work together to reach their common goals. The group now pulls together and the roles are established and become more stable. Performing This is the stage where the relationship between the players is well established and they all pull together with the aim to achieve their common goals. Issues of leadership and strategies are well established and agreed upon. When a new player joins the group a new stage of storming and norming will occur and the new players will either be accepted or rejected. This refreshing of the team can be a good shake up as it prevents the team from going stale. Successful teams seem to be settled and take in two or three new players a year to keep the team fresh but the introduction of too many players can disrupt the team and change the nature of the group completely. A good example of this is Manchester united in the 1990s where an influx of youngsters came up through the youth teams and the reserves to the first team. They had already been through the norming stage therefore they knew what norms were expected of them, this is why they achieved so much so quickly. They brought in two or three players each year to keep the team fresh and to help develop the team. The team started to decline in 2001/02 when they signed Juan Sebastian Veron as he was seen to disrupt the group dynamics and reduce the teams effectiveness. Social/task cohesion In sport different teams may have different skill levels therefore team cohesiveness may be the difference between two teams that might mak the difference between winning and losing. There are two types of cohesiveness. Social cohesion Task cohesion Social cohesion can be defined as a general orientation towards developing and maintaining social relationships within a group. (Carron, Widmeyer, Brawley, 1985) Task cohesion can be defined as a general orientation towards achieving a groups goals and objectives. (Carron, Widmeyer, Brawley, 1985) In sports coaches and players, coaches especially, should be more concerned with task cohesion than with social cohesion. An increase in task cohesion can help lead to success. This can be achieved by setting goals. This goal setting can play a major role in the development of the teams task cohesion and it will lead to the development of the players skills. Success is also important in the accomplishment of team cohesion. This success doesnt have to be winning it can also come in the form of achieving goals that have been set by the team. Goals can help significantly in the development of task cohesion. A good example of a team that has good task cohesion but no social cohesion is the New York Yankees team of the 1970s when they were constantly bickering but they still went on to win the world series several times. The more success a team experiences, the higher the cohesion. (Bird, 1977; Carron, 1982).http://www.fcbarcelona.com/imagenes/jugadores/futbol/Partidos/Liga-2005-06/Betis-FCB/240905_CronikaAlegria.jpg Carron (1982, 1988) model of cohesion Albert Carron came up with a system for studying cohesion within sport. This system looks at four areas: Environmental Personal Leadership Team factors Environmental This refers to the normal factors which hold a team together eg contracts and scholarships. Other factors include age and geographic closeness. Having team members of the same age living in the same area increases the opportunities for interaction and communication between the group. The size of the group will also affect cohesion because of the manufacturing of cliques. Smaller groups always tend to be more cohesive than larger groups. Personal This is in relation to each person within the group; there are major differences between each individual in the group. Carron has split personal factors into 3 separate groups: Demographic attributes eg gender Cognitions and motives eg anxiety Behaviour eg ability to follow rules Leadership This refers to the leadership and behaviour. The role of leaders is important in team cohesion in offering communication towards team goals. Another factor is the relationship between the team and the coach as a good relationship will ensure a more cohesive group. Team This includes desire for group success, group roles, group position and team stability. Carron believed that the longer a team have together and also have a desire for success show higher levels of cohesion. Shared experiences of success or failure are also essential in developing cohesion within the group, as it brings the team closer together. Model of Cohesion Cohesion and performance, what comes first? There have been numerous studies showing that there is a relationship between team cohesiveness and success. The better the team the more cohesive the team. What research has not shown whether or not these successful teams performed well because of the cohesiveness of the team or is the team cohesive because they have shared the experiences of winning. Both of these explanations may be correct. Slater and Sewell (1994) measured team cohesion in sixty university level hockey players representing three male and three female teams, early, midway and at the end of the season. This research has shown that early success resulted in late cohesion and early success resulted in late success. Slater and Sewell (1994) concluded that while early success related to later cohesiveness, the stronger relationship was between early cohesiveness and later success. They proposed that cohesiveness and success were mutually dependant. High cohesiveness Greater success Higher cohesiveness Low cohesiveness Less success Lower cohesiveness As you can see from the above model, the cohesiveness of a team early on in the season affects the success of the team which in turn affects the cohesiveness of the team later in the season. This study shows why one of the main priorities of a coach is to develop a highly cohesive team. Team cohesion is shown to be related to a teams success on the field. Although many studies have found that a teams cohesion was related to is subsequent performance, many other studies found that team cohesion had very little to do with how successful the team became. Success is related to the type of cohesion that exists within the team. More specifically, if your team has a high level of task cohesion, meaning that they play well together and remain united in the pursuit of the teams goals, then they are more likely to enjoy success. On the other hand, having a high amount of social cohesion, meaning that the team members are good friends and that they enjoy each others company, means very little in the way of predicting your teams performance. It has even been found that teams who are high in social cohesion play worse as a team. The key is not necessarily that your team members like each other, but that they are united in their efforts to achieve the team goals set forth at the beginning of the season. Higher levels of team (task) cohesion appear to be related to team success as the season progresses, and as the team becomes more successful, the degree of team cohesion appears to increase as well. Some might say the relationship between team cohesion and team success is a circular system. As team cohesion improves, so does the teams performance, and as the teams performance improves, it becomes more and more cohesive.It also appears that the link between a teams performance and its subsequent cohesion is stronger than the link between the teams initial cohesion and their performance early on in the season. The answer, according to previous studies in sport psychology, to the question whether performance or cohesion comes first, is both. http://www.baseballnews.com/features/teamchemistry.htm Building an effective team and developing cohesiveness Team cohesion is shown to be one of the most important factors in a successful team therefore is of vital importance that the coach encourages team cohesion, especially in societies such as Britain and the USA where people can be very self centred and dont care about the team. Coaches therefore figure out strategies to bring the team together, this is known as team building. Carron et al. (1997) came up with the following steps for team building. Each player should be acquainted with the responsibilities of the other team members. As coach, learn something personal about each team member and use it to gain cooperation. Gain pride in the sub teams within larger teams e.g. the defence Involve players in decision making to make them feel the team belongs to them. Set the team goals and celebrate when they are attained. Teach each team member their responsibilities and convince them of their individual importance. Allow team members to have disagreements. Prevent the formation of cliques within the team, by giving every member opportunities to perform and avoiding scapegoating. Use routines in practice designed to teach team members how dependant they are on each other. Highlight the positive aspects of play, even when the team is on a losing streak. Leadership in sport Definition: leadership can be defined as the behavioural process of influencing individuals and groups towards set goals. (Barrow, 1997) Trait theory of leadership Early research on leadership was based on the psychological focus of the day, which was of people having inherited characteristics or traits. Attention was thus put on discovering these traits, often by studying successful leaders, but with the underlying assumption that if other people could also be found with these traits, then they, too, could also become great leaders. In the 1920s researchers tried to show that characteristics were common to all leaders therefore to be a good leader you had to have these qualities inbuilt when you are born. This means that a person who is a good leader in one situation is a good leader in any situation. McCall and Lombardo (1983) researched both success and failure identified four primary traits by which leaders could succeed or derail: Emotional stability and composure: Calm, confident and predictable, particularly when under stress. Admitting error: Owning up to mistakes, rather than putting energy into covering up. Good interpersonal skills: Sble to communicate and persuade others without resort to negative or coercive tactics. Intellectual breadth: Able to understand a wide range of areas, rather than having a narrow (and narrow-minded) area of expertise. McCall and Lombardo (1983) Stogdill (1974) identified the following traits and skills as critical to leaders. Skills Adaptable to situations Alert to social environment Ambitious and achievement-orientated Assertive Cooperative Decisive Dependable Dominant (desire to influence others) Energetic (high activity level) Persistent Self-confident Tolerant of stress Willing to assume responsibility Clever (intelligent) Conceptually skilled Creative Diplomatic and tactful Fluent in speaking Knowledgeable about group task Organised (administrative ability) Persuasive Socially skilled Kirkpatrick and Locke (1991) identified eight characteristics which are associated with successful leadership. They are: drive, honesty, motivation to lead, self-confidence, intelligence, expertise in the purpose of the group, creativity and flexibility. Kirkpatrick and Locke then concluded that inspirational leaders do not need to be great men or women by being intellectual geniuses or omniscient prophets but they do need to have the right stuff and this stuff isnt equally present in all people Kirkpatrick and Locke (1991) Behavioural theory This theory states that anybody can be a good leader by learning the behaviour of an effective leader therefore this theory says that the qualities of a good leader can be learned and developed through training and experience, contradictory to the trait theory this one is saying that good leaders are made and not born. As early researchers ran out of information in their research in personal traits of leaders, they turned to what leaders did, how they behaved and especially towards their followers. They moved from leaders to leadership and this became the dominant way of approaching leadership in the 1950s and early 1960s. Different patterns of behaviour were grouped together and labelled as styles. A variety of schemes appeared, designed to identify and develop peoples style of working. Despite different names for these schemes, the basic ideas were very similar. The four main styles that appear are: Â · Concern for task. Here leaders put emphasis on the achievement of concrete objectives (achievement of goals). They look for high levels of productivity, and ways to organize people and activities in order to meet those objectives. Â · Concern for people. In this style, leaders look upon their followers as people and can identify their needs, interests, problems, development and so on and be able to work around these to get the best out of them. They are not simply units of production or means to an end. Â · Directive leadership. This style is characterized by leaders making decisions for others and expecting followers to follow instructions, such as a team captain on the pitch giving instructions to the rest of the players on the field. Â · Participative leadership. Here leaders try to share decision-making with the rest of the players but when the need arises that a decision has to be made quickly then his attention turns back to directive leadership. Many of the early researchers that looked to participative and people-centred leadership argued that it brought about greater satisfaction amongst followers. However, as Sadler (1997) reports, when researchers really got to work on this it didnt seem to stand up. There were lots of differences and inconsistencies between studies. It was difficult to say style of leadership was significant in enabling one group to work better than another. The main problem may have been one shared with those who looked for traits. The researchers did not look properly at the context or setting which the style was used in. Is it possible that the same style would work as well in a group of friends? The styles that leaders can adopt are far more affected by those they are working with, and the environment they are working within, than had been originally thought. Interactional approach The interactional approach looks at the interaction between the person and the situation rather than the personality of the leader. This approach stresses the following points: Effective leaders cant be predicted solely on personality. Effective leadership fits specific situations, as some leaders function better in certain circumstances than others. Leadership style needs to change to suit the situation A good example of the way this theory works is; relationship orientated leaders develop interpersonal relationships, provide god communication and ensure everyone is feeling good within the group. However, task orientated leaders are concerned with getting the work done and meeting objectives. Stafford Browne et el. (2003) Critics argued that the continued focus on the leader, rather than the situation where leadership takes place, provided a limited view of leadership. This is why an interactional approach to leadership was developed. This took into account the leader, the situation at the time, the type of people who are being led and the interaction between them. This interactional approach is examined in the work of both Fiedler and Chelladurai. Fred E. Fiedlers contingency theory says that there is no best way for managers to lead. Situations will create different leadership style requirements for a manager. The solution to a managerial situation is reliant on the factors that are imposed on the situation. E.g. a coach may have to act on a situation such as player getting injured. He/she must get the suitable replacement. This is not planned it is an unexpected situation that has arisen and must be dealt with. (Woods 2001) Fiedlers Contingency model Fiedlers model assumes that group performance depends on: Leadership style, described in terms of task motivation and relationship motivation. Situational favourableness, determined by three factors: 1. Leader-member relations Degree to which a leader is accepted and supported by the group members. 2. Task structure Extent to which the task is structured and defined, with clear goals and procedures. 3. Position power The ability of a leader to control subordinates through reward and punishment. High levels of these three factors give the most favourable situation, low levels, the least favourable. Relationship-motivated leaders are most effective in moderately favourable situations. Task-motivated leaders are most effective at either end of the scale. Fiedler suggests that it may be easier for leaders to change their situation to achieve effectiveness, rather than change their leadership style. A good example of this approach was with Brian Mc Eniff when he won the 1992 All Ireland final with Donegal but has failed to do so since with rows in the camp between mentors and players. The leader was powerful but the relationship wasnt warm therefore pressure took its toll and he had to resign. Multidimensional model of sport leadership In 1978 Chelladurai proposed a multidimensional model of leadership developed on the basis of leadership theories and their effectiveness. Performance outcomes and satisfaction could be achieved by effective leader behaviours. This means that if things arent going particularly well the leader must stand and be counted and motivate his players to succeed. In this case the coach has to be able to change his leadership style to suit the situation. This model says that if a leader behaves appropriately for the particular situation and these behaviours match the preferences of the group then they will achieve their goals. The model Antecedents Leader behaviour Consequences 4. required behaviour 1. situational characteristics 7. performance satisfaction 5. actual behaviour 2. leader characteristics 6. preferred behaviour 3. member characteristics Situational characteristics The characteristics of the situation the group is in such as; size, type of sport or winning or losing, Leader characteristics The personal qualities of the leader such as; confidence, intelligence, assertiveness and self-motivation. Member characteristics The different personalities of different types of athletes such as; age, gender, ability and experience. Required behaviour The type of characteristics required from a leader in a particular situation. For example if a team is losing with 5mins to go, is it better for the leader to make the decision himself or discuss it with the group? Actual behaviour This is the behaviour the leader actually displays Preferred behaviour The preferred leadership of the team depending on the situation. Performance satisfaction This is the extent to which the team is satisfied with the performance of the group under this leader. A good example of this approach was with Brian Kerr when he was in charge of the Irish soccer team. He had a mix of different approaches between autocratic and democratic. Normally he was democratic with his more senior players making decisions and enforcing leadership. When things werent going to plan though he stepped in as the autocratic leader to set things right again. Leadership styles There are a number of different leadership styles that I will look at, some more successful than others. The different types of leader are; Autocratic authoritarian Democratic leadership Laissez faire Autocratic authoritarian This type of leader dictates to the group, he doesnt ask for advice, comments or ideas from the group. He is the one who makes all of the decisions. This leadership style has advantages and disadvantages. The advantages are that the members of the group can be directed towards purposeful actions even when stressed and exhausted. The disadvantage is that wise group members do not have the chance to input useful information into the group and thus they may find it difficult to motivate themselves. Democratic leadership This type of leadership encourages the involvement of the whole group as individuals and as a group. Participants are encouraged to give feedback, ideas and to help make decisions. If the group leader were to be absent then the group would be efficient enough to continue what they were doing on their own. The bad side of this style is that it can cause trouble when decisions need to be made quickly in an emergency. This type of leadership is usually the most successful. Laissez faire This style of leadership encourages group independence in the sense that the group makes their own decisions, the leader only gets involved when the group gets into difficulties or in cases of emergency. Lewin (1939) found that this type of group tended to become more aggressive with each other when things went wrong. Leaders in this type of group often fail to motivate the members of the group and fail to deal with a crisis.

A Sample and Critique of psi Research :: Telepathy Precognition Psychic Papers

"Do you remember how electrical currents and 'unseen waves' were laughed at? The knowledge about man is still in its infancy." - Albert Einstein Introduction Perception of future events (precognition), communication through thoughts (telepathy), material manipulation without physical contact (telekinesis), sight of an object or place millions of miles away with enough accuracy to draw it (remote viewing) – these are a few cases of what is referred to as "psi phenomena," also known as parapsychological or psychic phenomena. "Psi" refers to "anomalous processes of energy or information transfer... that are currently unexplained in terms of known physical or biological mechanisms."(1) Long dismissed by scientists and other skeptics all over the world, these occurrences are often attributed to trickery, hallucination, lying, chance, and even spiritual influence. Claims of psychic ability come from many varied sources. From the friend who has premonitory dreams and the dog who knows when the master has decided to come home, to the glamorous astrologer with a 900-number and the clairvoyant with a TV show, stories of paranormal abilities range from personal and thought-provoking to distant and Hollywood-esque. Are these things really possible? What does the scientific community actually know about these phenomena? Ultimately, one must ask the question, what can the scientific community know about these phenomena? This paper is intended to provide a small sample and critique of the available scientific research on these unexplained and often dismissed phenomena. The examples which form this review are: research on unexplained phenomena not associated with "psychic" individuals, large-scale research centering on many individuals with "psychic talent," and an investigation of the claimed abilities of a single internationally celebrated "psychic." Despite the historical and prevalent stigma and sensationalization associated with this field, many respected educational establishments have laboratories involved in the research of psi. The Princeton Engineering Anomalies Research program, instituted in 1979 to investigate mind-matter interactions (2); the Parapsychological Association, a 1957 offshoot of the Duke Laboratory (3); the Koestler Parapsychology Unit at the University of Edinburgh (4); and Stanford University's 1946 endeavor, Stanford Research Institute are four of these. It should be noted that Stanford Research Institute separated from the university in 1970, and became SRI International. (5) Examples Impersonal phenomena If a person is asked to identify the color of a rectangle, and is subsequently asked to read a randomly generated color name, it is well-known that a matching color name will be called out faster than a mismatching color name.

Back to the Moon

More than thirty years after America’s first landed on the moon, the current President of the United States, George W. Bush, recently announced his plan of sending American astronauts back to the moon (BBC News). The President’s target is to accomplish this goal by the year 2015 (Lane, 2004). The project can be said to be merely preliminary to Bush’s more flamboyant plan, which is to prepare the exploration to Mars. Moreover, the program also intends to make up for the setbacks experienced by the United States space program, such as the Columbia shuttle disaster (BBC News).The Columbia disaster prompted Bush and a group of administration officials to develop a new plan that would use the existing space shuttles to â€Å"complete assembly of the International Space Station (ISS) by 2010† (Lane, 2004). Bush revealed his new vision for the United States human space program in a speech delivered at the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) headq uarters. He called for the retirement of the space shuttle to give way for building new space vehicles that would, in the future, allow travel to Mars (Lane, 2004).The space shuttle is expected to fly in about 13 or 14 more missions before its expected retirement in 2010 (Hunt, 2007; BBC News). Bush’s vision also calls for the use of robots and human manpower in the exploration of the moon. The ultimate aim of the vision is to prepare the moon as a living base and to develop means for explorations to Mars (BBC News). The Space Shuttle The space shuttle is a brainchild of improvements and inventions in rocketry. The craft contains three main engines that provide huge amounts of force compared to previous spacecrafts.It also boasts of a reusable engine and engines that weighs quite lightly considering their power (The History of Moon Exploration). Considering its characteristics, it is no wonder that Boeing boasts of it as the â€Å"most sophisticated human-rated launch vehicl e in the history of space flight† (Boeing). The space shuttle had its first flight in 1981, and since then it was able to aid more than a hundred missions involving hundreds of astronauts (Boeing). Boeing claims that the spacecraft still has 75 percent of its design life to spare (Boeing).The space shuttle plays a major role in sustaining the International Space Station, being the ISS’ heavy-lift cargo vehicle. The space shuttle is responsible for having lifted the now existing structure in orbit, which comprises two-thirds of the ISS (Boeing). Bush wants to retire the space shuttle by 2010 at the earliest, hoping that by then the International Space Station is already complete (Hunt, 2007; BBC News). Bush also hopes that by the said time, the Crew Exploration Vehicle already becomes operational (Hunt, 2007; BBC News).However, before such goals are realized and as long as the shuttle remains safe to carry on its tasks, it shall remain as the primary spacecraft aiding th e United States’ projects towards space (Boeing). Picture 2. The Space Shuttle. Photo retrieved March 6, 2007, from www. boeing. com/†¦ / hsfe_shuttle/what_is. html The Crew Exploration Vehicle Bush’s vision is an echo of a similar dream by his father in 1989, which did not come to fruition because the cost estimates ballooned up to $400 billion (Lane, 2004).Working on the premise that the desire to explore is part of human character, Bush said that his dream is to build space vehicles that could travel far beyond the capacity of the space shuttle, which only reaches 386 miles (Lane, 2004). Bush thus announced his plans to develop a new spacecraft called the Crew Exploration Vehicle (CEV). This vehicle would be the first to take man to outer space since the Apollo spaceships (BBC News). The CEV is expected to be a versatile crewed vehicle that could carry American teams in a mission projected to be undertaken in 2014 or 2015.The CEV is expected to begin flight tes ts by the year 2008 (Lane, 2004). The CEV’s look is designed to look similarly with the bullet-like style of the Apollo-style command module (Lane, 2004). Aside from the design, however, NASA administrator Sean O'Keefe says that no design has yet been approved regarding the way of keeping the CEV boosted in the air (Lane, 2004). Robots in Space It is believed by some that robotic exploration is more beneficial than human exploration, since the former is less expensive (The Washington Post Writers Group, 2007).Moreover, Professor Robert Park of the University of Maryland claim that robots have less physical limitations than humans, which means robots have better chances of discovering scientific finds over humans (BBC News). Even other countries that spend resources on space explorations, such as China and Russia, are encouraged to use robots in such ventures (BBC News). There are current efforts using robots in space exploration. Just recently, the United States celebrated th e successful landing of its robot rover Spirit on Mars (BBC News). Budgetary ConstraintsSince the previous space plans formulated by Bush’s father failed because of budgetary constraints (Lane, 2004), Bush is careful to get around the same drawback. Naturally, huge projects such as space explorations would cost loads of money and other resources. Thus, Bush’s ambitious new vision would entail modifications on the current budget of the NASA. The NASA currently has a five-year budget plan. However, Bush requests a $1 billion boost on this budget (Lane, 2004). This means that additional $200 million per year would be allotted for the project (Lane, 2004).This amounts to a 5% yearly increase to NASA’s current budget, which amounts to $15. 4 billion per year (BBC News). A rise of another 1% after the first three years is also requested by the U. S. President (BBC News). It is reported that Bush wants that $11 billion from the existing budget be earmarked for his new vision (Lane, 2004). The exact cost of the vision was not given (BBC News), but one thing is certain: the budget would have to be approved by Congress. (Lane, 2004). The White House, however, maintains that a â€Å"sustained focus over time† would help keep the budget for the exploration in check (Lane, 2004).There is also a need to reorient the current programs of NASA, so that NASA would not exceed its current spending, which only amounts to less than 1 percent of the federal budget, despite the additional goal (Lane, 2004). The Orion Currently, a ship has been built to carry humans to the moon. This spacecraft, called the Orion, is scheduled to debut in 2014 (Hunt, 2007). However, budgetary constraints will cause a delay of about four to six months. The Orion is now set to fly in 2015 (Hunt, 2007).NASA administrator Michael Griffin stated that Congress only approved the amount in NASA’s budget in 2006, which means that the approved budget is $545 million short of Bu sh’s request (Hunt, 2007). NASA does not welcome this lack of funding and the concomitant delay in the project, as strategic and practical concerns such as the degradation of equipment and facilities, besiege the institution (Hunt, 2007). A Brief History of Explorations to the Moon A brief review of the development of moon exploration is in order, so that a clear perspective can be had as to the propriety and utility of Bush’s proposed space exploration.Chinese astronomers were perhaps the first people to notice the Moon. For thousands of years, man has been captivated by the Moon, and man’s curiosity for it has been first assuaged by the invention of the telescope in 1609 (The History of Moon Exploration). The telescope, invented by Leppershey, made thorough observations possible despite the immense distance between the Earth and the Moon (The History of Moon Exploration). However, this invention was a double-edged sword: man developed an even more intense curi osity for the moon, leading man to dream of someday setting foot on the distant place (The History of Moon Exploration).Because of the enormous distance of the Moon from the Earth, reaching it would only be possible through flight. Unfortunately, air transportation took quite a while to be fully developed. The groundbreaking invention of the Wright brothers can be considered the first step towards space travel, because they invented the aeroplane, which allowed man to fly (The History of Moon Exploration). In 1943, another milestone in space exploration occurred with the development of rocketry by Von Braun. Braun was responsible for the A 4, which was the first successful ballistic rocket (The History of Moon Exploration).Despite the United States’ exposure to the latest technology at the time, such as the rocketry of Braun, it was Russia that made one of the most significant developments in space exploration. 1957 witnessed the launch of Sputnik I, which was the first artif icial satellite in space (The History of Moon Exploration). Russia was also the first to take pictures of the Moon. In 1959, its Luna satellites were able to obtain pictures of the far side of the Moon (The History of Moon Exploration). In 1963, the United States followed in the affair of obtaining pictures in space.Its Mariner Series satellites were able to acquire detailed pictures of Venus, and a year later, of Mars (The History of Moon Exploration). Saturn rockers were the next to be developed by the United States; these rockets were later used to power the Apollo Missions (The History of Moon Exploration). The country also ventured into designing moon landing vehicles, and was successful with Surveyor 6 and the Lunar Module, which proved that rocketry could bring man to the Moon (The History of Moon Exploration).The United States is also responsible for the Command and Service Module, a vehicle designed for the trip back to Earth from the Moon (The History of Moon Exploration). Man’s First Walk on the Moon The United States has the credit for sending the first man to walk on the Moon. On 21 July 1969, the whole world watched in awe as clips of Neil Armstrong’s first steps on the Moon were aired in international television (BBC News). The video clips were taken by television cameras installed on the Eagle landing craft (BBC News).

Understanding Term Spreads or Interest Rate Spreads

Understanding Term Spreads or Interest Rate Spreads Term spreads, also known as interest rate spreads, represent the difference between the long-term interest rates and short-term interest rates on debt instruments such as bonds. In order to understand the significance of term spreads, we must first understand bonds. Bonds and Term Spreads Term spreads are most often used in the comparison and evaluation of two bonds, which are fixed interest financial assets issued by governments, companies, public utilities, and other large entities. Bonds are fixed-income securities through which an investor essentially loans the bond issuer capital for a  defined period of time in exchange for a promise to repay the original note amount plus interest. Owners of these bonds become debt holders or creditors of the issuing entity as entities issue bonds as a means of raising capital or financing a special project. Individual bonds are typically issued at par, which is generally at $100 or $1,000 face value. This constitutes the bond principal. When bonds are issued, they are issued with a stated interest rate or coupon that reflects the prevailing interest rate environment at the time. This coupon reflects the interest that the issuing entity is obligated to pay to its bondholders in addition to repayment of the bond principal or the original amount borrowed at maturity. Like any loan or debt instrument, bonds are also issued with maturity dates or the date at which full repayment to the bondholder is contractually required.​​​ Market Prices and Bond Valuation There are several factors at play when it comes to the valuation of a bond. The issuing companys credit rating, for instance, can influence the market price of a bond. The higher the credit rating of the issuing entity, the less risky the investment and perhaps the more valuable the bond. Other factors that can influence a bonds market price include the maturity date or the length of time remaining until expiration. Last, and perhaps the most important factor as it relates to term spreads is the coupon rate, particularly as it compares to the general interest rate environment at the time. Interest Rates, Term Spreads, and Yield Curves Given that fixed-rate coupon bonds will pay the same percentage of the face value, the market price of the bond will vary over time depending on the current interest rate environment and how the coupon compares to newer and older issued bonds that may carry a higher or lower coupon. For instance, a bond issued in a high-interest rate environment with a high coupon will become more valuable on the market if interest rates were to fall and new bonds coupons reflect the lower interest rate environment. This is where term spreads come in as a means of comparison.   The term spread measures the difference between the coupons, or interest rates, of two bonds with different maturities or expiration dates. This difference is also known as the slope of the bond yield curve, which is a graph that plots the interest rates of bonds of equal quality, but different maturity dates at a specified point in time. Not only is the shape of the yield curve important to economists as a predictor of future interest rate changes, but its slope is also a point of interest as the greater the slope of the curve, the greater the term spread (gap between short- and long-term interest rates). If the term spread is positive, the long-term rates are higher than the short-term rates at that point in time and the spread is said to be normal. Whereas a negative term spread indicates that the yield curve is inverted and the short-term rates are higher than the long-term rates.

Foals The First Year essays

Foals The First Year essays STATEMENT DESCRIBING CAREER GOALS AND RESEARCH INTERESTS RESEARCH INTERESTS AND BACKGROUND INFORMATION Introduction: The following is a report on my research information on foals nutritional need through there first year of life. This report will also show a research project that I would like to do for my Masters degree B. Other items required for good nutrition B. Nutritional advantage for creep feeding III. Research and personal information A. Research project using a group of new born foals 2. Details of what Im hoping to prove 2. Detail of work history and professional background Research project for Masters in Animal Science Feeding should be based on both practical experience and scientific research. Horses are kept for a much longer time than most farm animals and feeding programs must support the development of sound feet and legs to sustain along and athletic life. Although horses obviously utilize hay and other roughage more efficiently then of other non-ruminants such as poultry or pigs. The anatomy of the equine G I tract limits this ability as compared with ruminant. The site of fermentation in horses is the cecum and large intestine, where large number of microorganisms digest hemicelluloses and cellulose utilize protein and non-protein nitrogen and synthesize certain vitamins. Some of the products of fermentation such as volatile fatty acids and use microbial protein synthesized from nitrogen entering the cecum and calm under foes only limited proteolysis and the supply of essential amino acids from an unbalanced dietary nitrogen source is not satisfactorily balanced by microbial ammo acids for optimal growth. Horses therefore depend more on the quality of the diet than do ruminants. Water requirements depend largely on environment amount of work being performed nature of the food and physiological states of the horse. Daily consumption by an adult horse typically is 5 t...

Modernism In Photography †Art Essay

Modernism In Photography – Art Essay Free Online Research Papers Modernism In Photography Art Essay Edward Weston’s creative philosophy seems to be about internalising the camera process so that what the artist envisions and what the camera produces are as closely aligned as possible. Unlike pictorialists who personalise the photos after they are taken by applying craft and classically ‘artistic’ effects, Weston in a sense melds the man and machine into one – he talks of â€Å"seeing photographically† – learning to see the subject matter in terms of the tools and processes of the medium, and then use it to portray his personal, subjective view. As such, the photo doesn’t need to be touched up or changed, because it is in itself a faithful representation of the artist’s vision – trying to minimise the discrepancy between the creative idea and its manifestation. So he uses the camera to distil the subject into its basic materiality – black and white gradations, crisp detail, formalistic patterning, flattening of the perspectival plane, concentration on surface – in both the convolutions and detail of the subject, and the glossy surface of the photo, as in Pepper, 1930. This reflects a Modernist, Materialist idea that the ‘essence’ of the subject, its ‘eternal’, ‘universal’ qualities can be accessed through an accurate, sensitive rendering / recording of its features. Research Papers on Modernism In Photography - Art EssayThree Concepts of PsychodynamicHip-Hop is ArtIncorporating Risk and Uncertainty Factor in CapitalAnalysis Of A Cosmetics AdvertisementWhere Wild and West MeetComparison: Letter from Birmingham and CritoMind TravelTrailblazing by Eric AndersonUnreasonable Searches and SeizuresHonest Iagos Truth through Deception

Synthesizing two books regarding business Essay

Synthesizing two books regarding business - Essay Example I prove not be a very good team member, may be because I am an introvert. Hence, my introversion is the basic reason why I cannot work in teams, and hence, my practical projects suffer. 2. As I already said, introversion and inability communicate well are the basic factors that make me unable to work in teams and groups. I am shy, get nervous at times, and lack leadership qualities. Collaborating with other team members and making them understand my viewpoint becomes difficult for me. When I do not convey my messages properly, they do not understand, and hence, my queries remain unsolved, due to which I do not understand a part of or many parts of the project at hand. This is how all of these factors interrelate to make me lag behind in practical work. 4. Holistic tradition persuades students to work in groups and engage in vigorous group activities to discuss and experiment with their topic while focusing on the practical illustrations. The team leader serves as a facilitator rather than an instructing boss, and this aids other team members in better communicating with the leader and with other members of the group, and in getting an improved understanding of complicated problems related to the project. To narrow down the performance gap I identified earlier, I need to learn to better communicate with peers and get to know them better along with achieving a clearer concept about the topic in hand. I need to feel empowered and make others feel the same when we are given the chance to have the classroom all by ourselves, where we can sit in whichever manner we want and engage in healthy discussions full of enthusiasm. I need to take training classes to overcome my introversion and shyness. I need to attend seminars and training ses sions regarding communication. Hence, I plan to overcome my personal flaws through sessions and classes. I also plan to do research on the internet regarding brain exercises that can help

International Human Rights Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 5000 words

International Human Rights - Essay Example Despite ideological difference among these great personalities, they have accepted that it is most essential to build â€Å"a world in which all people might enjoy certain basic and inherent rights simply by virtue of being human beings.† However, there is no denial that shaping up of the International Human Rights movement as one of the most powerful mediums to claim judicial rights for the oppressed has not been at all a smooth process. Despite several obstacles, success of the mass movements during the 18th and 19th century, in different parts of the world clearly aspired leaders of the movement for further success. The consecutive World Wars of the 20th century, the Cold War and series of civil wars in different parts of the world provided a clear picture to all human beings, irrespective of the apparent factors of discrimination that to which extent forms of brutality can be extended. Such realisation turned out to be the strongest foundation for the International Human R ights movement and contemporary leaders of the movement also found a strong platform that helped them â€Å"to champion the cause of international human rights as never before.† Currently, the scope of human rights has become so vast and pervasive that legal scholars of this discipline have gone to the extent of claiming it â€Å"an inherently multidisciplinary enterprise.†3 Consequently, if a glace can be projected over the range of aspects which have been encompassed by the Universal Declaration of Human Rights UDHR, it can be said that such claim is not an exaggeration at all. The UDHR has brought several issues within its scope, starting from rights to life and all those related issues that support evaluation of such right, protection from torture, presumption of innocence, economic, educational and social security rights.

ART Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 6

ART - Essay Example Two heads of a raven were carved and positioned in a way that they appear to be like a horns or ears. These have the same colors as well that with the black color being dominantly used, giving a perfect match for its function. Brown twisted cords were used for the feathers which complement not only the colors but the mask as a whole. In totality, the artwork gives the picture of birds that could be scary not only in this mask but in reality as well. As the galokwudzuwis is considered a monster by the American Indians, cranes are known to be predators of small animals like rodents. Ravens on the other hand have a similar diet but in addition portray bad luck as they are believed to represent death because of their color. This piece of work attracted me because of the beauty the colors brought to it. However, it could also be pretty scary to be looking at it intently because it brings a chilling effect to the nerves especially as I ponder on what the birds represent. This could well be appreciated in the context of art appreciation but could really be challenging looking at it for a long time. George Walkus is a rare

Critical thinking Mo Coursework Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Critical thinking Mo - Coursework Example Some of the banks that have been affected by the uncertainty in the oil industry are those from the European Union, America and from the oil producing countries, however, banks in the United Arab Emirates have remained relatively stable especially in the bleak outlook of oil industry of 2011. Revising down of the economic outlook of the growth of OPEC countries from 3.7 to 3.6 was an ill advised idea, this is because that made the stakeholders get an escape path from being innovative and implementing structures that would have ensured that the growth rate is maintained even in the reduction of global demand for oil and oil products. Looking for other ways to diversify risk and cushion the economies would have produced better results than just revising down forecasts for growth. Investments in the oil industry are a key in ensuring stability in oil production and the $300 billion the OPEC member states have set aside for upstream investment in the oil industry is a right step in the right direction. Ensuring constant supply of oil and maintaining a reserve potential will enable the OPEC countries to be able to regulate prices from rising too high or going down too low. The idea of United Arab Emirates bank having weathered the economic crisis of the euro zone that happened in 2011 being solely dependent on internal structures to manage their risk preparedness is far-fetched and cannot be solely relied on to explain the stability. This is because the country, which exports second hand goods to Africa, has a significant part of its economy being driven by these exports; banks’ diversifying their products to this sector was also a contributing factor that made them more stable amidst the euro zone crisis. However, internal structures are needed in the banking industry of the oil producing countries especially those that have no other source of revenue to drive their economy and failure to this may

Discuss the law of consent to treatment and the law of negligence Assignment

Discuss the law of consent to treatment and the law of negligence - Assignment Example According to the law of consent to treatment and health care directives act, every person seeking medical attention has a right to: permit or refuse to give consent to health practitioners on whatever reason (Corfield, Granne, & Sayer, 2009). In addition, they may choose the best treatment among provided treatment methodologies, given assistance by qualified medical practitioner, and be involved in decision making on any medical practices to be performed on him or her (Hockton, 2002). For this law to be valid, various factors should be put into deliberation. For example, the person issuing the consents should be provided with all necessary information on the medical procedure to be undertaken (Thornton, 2008). It should be able to address, the benefits, side effects of treatment, and indicate other alternatives (Rozovsky, 2003). The consent be given voluntarily with the patient and not forced of him. It should be understandable to help the patient make an informed decision (Bartlett, 2008). However, there are cases in which treatment of a patient may go on with or without their consent. This include (a) Supplementary actions; this is mostly prominent in surgery processes where during an operation the surgeon might encounter an extra problem that needs an additional procedure, here the surgeon has no choice but to go ahead and perform the process for he cannot waken the patient to approve the consent (Herring, 2010). A choice made in the interest of the suffering patient. (b) Emergency treatment; this happens mostly during emergencies e.g. When a patient is unconscious and cannot provide a consent, the medical practitioners will provide treatment and after consciousness is regained by the patient all reasons on why the treatment was given (Rozovsky, 2000). (c) Risk to the public; a person can be held on the hospital unwillingly until he or she has fully recovered if the person has an infectious disease that can a public health risk. (d) Mental condition; mental disoriented persons can be held either willingly or unwillingly in hospital without their consent, this differs globally according to laws of the given land (Dimond, 2008). Treatment given to such people must for their wellbeing. (e) Changes in capacity; a patient’s capacity to consent can change. There are different reasons that might affect a person’s capacity to give consent to treatment. Issues like panic, extreme tiredness, instant shock, patients under drug and unstable medical conditions such as schizophrenia influence are usually not fit to give medical consents (Bartlett, 2008). Such persons are advised to make early decisions on the treatment they would prefer in case of future incapacity (Dimond, 2008). Negligence; this implies failure to act with the prudence that a rational individual would exercise under the same conditions. The law of negligence states that a person or an institution is liable for any Injury caused negligently on the person seeking servi ces from the person or organization (James, & Deeley, 2002). Medical negligence or medical malpractices are terms used to indicate a negligent act by either medical practitioner or medical facility that leads to injury (Bartlett, 2008). When such injury arises the affected party can take legal action and such cases fall below the category of individual injury law. In many jurisdictions, there certain approved standards that people should receive. In case of irresponsible or erroneous

Creat a company profile Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Creat a company profile - Essay Example The management of the organization will try to source quality product resources from reliable and efficient suppliers to maintain the high quality of the mentioned high quality products. The management of the organization will try to provide free home delivery service for the placed orders by the customers who used to stay within the distance of 4 kilometers from the outlets. High product quality and efficient customer service are the major corporate objectives of Hangout Plaza. The organization will try to recruit skilled and efficient employees in order to enhance effective business performance and significant customer service management process. Hangout Plaza will try to maintain environmental sustainability by ensuring water recycling and zero solid waste. Value added services and high quality fast food products for the customers, employee engagement in strategic decision making process and environmental sustainability are the major business themes of Hangout Plaza in Dubai. (C) Hangout Plaza is a small family owned Local fast food organization in the United Arab Emirates headquartered in Dubai. It is true that the business environment in UAE is becoming highly potential as the several multinational and local organizations are trying to target the Dubai market due to several favorable external environmental factors. In addition to this, demand for high quality fast food items is significantly increasing among the people of Dubai. Hangout Plaza will try to meet the recent market demand and needs of target customers by ensuring effective quality of fast food products and high quality customer service. The organization is small family owned domestic firm. The organization will incorporate different operational management strategy. Despite the family owned structure, the top management of the organization will incorporate decentralized decision making process in which the thoughts, views and opinions of the employees that will be considered that can enhance str ategy development and decision making process. On the other hand, the organization will try to focus on effective employee motivation in order to enhance the business performance of the organization. The entrepreneur of the organization will try to adopt and implement horizontal organizational structure as the organization is a small family owned enterprise (Khanka, 2007). This horizontal organizational structure will help Hangout Plaza to enhance the communication process between the employees and top level management. It is quite important for the organization to focus on effective human resource management practices as the business environment in Dubai is becoming highly competitive due to presence of several multination leading fast food chains. (D) It is highly important for Hangout Plaza to develop an effective recruitment plan to sustain the proposed and developed size of the organization. The recruitment plan includes several elements that are provided below. (i) It is highl y important for Hangout Plaza to consider several important elements in developing a recruitment plan. Elements like employee turnover, new business development, effective workplace environment and culture, and external outcomes can be considered as the important to consider in developing recruitment plan. Employee turnover need to be considered as one of the important element in the decision making p

Critical thinking Mo Coursework Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Critical thinking Mo - Coursework Example Some of the banks that have been affected by the uncertainty in the oil industry are those from the European Union, America and from the oil producing countries, however, banks in the United Arab Emirates have remained relatively stable especially in the bleak outlook of oil industry of 2011. Revising down of the economic outlook of the growth of OPEC countries from 3.7 to 3.6 was an ill advised idea, this is because that made the stakeholders get an escape path from being innovative and implementing structures that would have ensured that the growth rate is maintained even in the reduction of global demand for oil and oil products. Looking for other ways to diversify risk and cushion the economies would have produced better results than just revising down forecasts for growth. Investments in the oil industry are a key in ensuring stability in oil production and the $300 billion the OPEC member states have set aside for upstream investment in the oil industry is a right step in the right direction. Ensuring constant supply of oil and maintaining a reserve potential will enable the OPEC countries to be able to regulate prices from rising too high or going down too low. The idea of United Arab Emirates bank having weathered the economic crisis of the euro zone that happened in 2011 being solely dependent on internal structures to manage their risk preparedness is far-fetched and cannot be solely relied on to explain the stability. This is because the country, which exports second hand goods to Africa, has a significant part of its economy being driven by these exports; banks’ diversifying their products to this sector was also a contributing factor that made them more stable amidst the euro zone crisis. However, internal structures are needed in the banking industry of the oil producing countries especially those that have no other source of revenue to drive their economy and failure to this may

Creat a company profile Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Creat a company profile - Essay Example The management of the organization will try to source quality product resources from reliable and efficient suppliers to maintain the high quality of the mentioned high quality products. The management of the organization will try to provide free home delivery service for the placed orders by the customers who used to stay within the distance of 4 kilometers from the outlets. High product quality and efficient customer service are the major corporate objectives of Hangout Plaza. The organization will try to recruit skilled and efficient employees in order to enhance effective business performance and significant customer service management process. Hangout Plaza will try to maintain environmental sustainability by ensuring water recycling and zero solid waste. Value added services and high quality fast food products for the customers, employee engagement in strategic decision making process and environmental sustainability are the major business themes of Hangout Plaza in Dubai. (C) Hangout Plaza is a small family owned Local fast food organization in the United Arab Emirates headquartered in Dubai. It is true that the business environment in UAE is becoming highly potential as the several multinational and local organizations are trying to target the Dubai market due to several favorable external environmental factors. In addition to this, demand for high quality fast food items is significantly increasing among the people of Dubai. Hangout Plaza will try to meet the recent market demand and needs of target customers by ensuring effective quality of fast food products and high quality customer service. The organization is small family owned domestic firm. The organization will incorporate different operational management strategy. Despite the family owned structure, the top management of the organization will incorporate decentralized decision making process in which the thoughts, views and opinions of the employees that will be considered that can enhance str ategy development and decision making process. On the other hand, the organization will try to focus on effective employee motivation in order to enhance the business performance of the organization. The entrepreneur of the organization will try to adopt and implement horizontal organizational structure as the organization is a small family owned enterprise (Khanka, 2007). This horizontal organizational structure will help Hangout Plaza to enhance the communication process between the employees and top level management. It is quite important for the organization to focus on effective human resource management practices as the business environment in Dubai is becoming highly competitive due to presence of several multination leading fast food chains. (D) It is highly important for Hangout Plaza to develop an effective recruitment plan to sustain the proposed and developed size of the organization. The recruitment plan includes several elements that are provided below. (i) It is highl y important for Hangout Plaza to consider several important elements in developing a recruitment plan. Elements like employee turnover, new business development, effective workplace environment and culture, and external outcomes can be considered as the important to consider in developing recruitment plan. Employee turnover need to be considered as one of the important element in the decision making p

Ap Chemistry - Gravimetric Lab Essay Example for Free

Ap Chemistry Gravimetric Lab Essay By filtering and weighing the carbonate after it has precipitated, the mass and moles of CaCO3 could then be found; with these values, a molar mass of M2CO3 can be found. Using gravimetric analysis, it has been determined that the unknown Group 1 metal carbonate compound is K2CO3 (potassium carbonate). Experimental Sources of Error: A) The first source of error had to do with the precipitation section of the lab. Not only is possible, but it is almost guaranteed that the CaCO3 did not precipitate to its fullest extent. Attaining a precipitate that is 100% pure and is exactly of the composition represented by its chemical formula would be extremely difficult. A second source of error was in the filter paper. No filter paper can be perfect, and it is very likely that it did not filter all of the precipitate, which would then decrease not only the mass of CaCO3, but also the molar mass because only the majority of the correct mass of the precipitate was found; by lowering the mass of a compound, its molar mass will also fall. B) After the precipitate had been filtered and dried, the filer paper that contained the precipitate was mishandled and its contents was scattered all over our lab bench. The dried precipitate had to be then gathered and then put back onto the filter paper; this contributed a large portion of human error to this lab. Spilling the dried precipitate is a source of human because it is almost guaranteed that not all of the precipitate was collected that had been spilled. This would have then lowered the mass of all of the following data, and wholly, our end result (i.e. molar mass). C) Percent error = your result-accepted valueaccepted value x 100 Percent error = 128.79-138.21138.21 x 100 = 6.8157% Considering that any percent error that is under 5% is often times considered accurate, a percent error of 6.8% can be viewed as fairly accurate. It is not too far off to completely disregard, but it is also not close enough to use as fact.

Tawam Hospital History And Background Commerce Essay

Tawam Hospital History And Background Commerce Essay Tawam Hospital is a JCIA accredited hospital and considered to be a training and research hospital linked with UAE University, Faculty of Medicine and Health Science. Tawam Hospital was opened officially on 17, December 1979 under the directions of the late H.H Sheikh Zayed who had chosen its location. The hospital is owned by Abu Dhabi Health Services (SEHA) and it is complied with the Health Authority à ¢Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬ Abu Dhabi (HAAD). Tawam Hospital is a Middle East Center of Excellence for oncology care, Neonatal Intensive Care, and general ICU services in addition to outstanding patient care delivery programs in other specialties such as the home care services for elderly in addition to the baby friendly services that is recognized internationally (Docstoc, 2010). Tawam works to provide a quality health care services that meets the expectations of their patients because they promise to treat patients as part of their families as stated in their mission and vision (Tawam Hospital, 2010). The managerial practices At Tawam, the CEO office hold a weekly meeting for the A-Team members to negotiate the overall performance and issues related to all the hospital departments. Medical issues and concerns are discussed to seek a solution and guidance. Administrative issues are also negotiated like promotions, policies transfers and re-structuring. The hospital overall strategy is presented to allow all the departments to do the necessary actions to comply with it. In the past 2 years, the main objective of the A-Team meetings was to negotiate the plans and objectives on the construction of the new hospital building and the alternatives till the project finish. Current problems and difficulties The major difficulty that faces Tawam Hospital is the integration of the new Hospital Information System (HIS) with the lack of technology of our professional doctors. A comprehensive and planned training program for IT and computer basics was given to all the doctors prior to the implementation of the HIS that led to the success of the initial implantation of the project. Another major problem at Tawam is the conflict with SEHA regarding the internal policies at Tawam that prevent Tawam from taking independent decisions regarding the health care systems or the IT infrastructure. The new evolving role of HRM is the strategic management that is aligned with the corporate mission and goals in addition to performing the basic functionality of HRM. In other words, decisions related to employees should be analyzed to consider their effect on the organizations mission and goal accomplishment (U.S. Office of Personnel Management, 1999). What is manpower planning? According to BusinessDictionary.com, manpower planning is defined as estimating the required skilled personnel to accomplish work tasks overtime and specifying how and when they should be acquired. People are considered the most valuable assets for any organization, therefore; financial and technological assets cant give organizations a competitive edge without human capital. For our case, Tawam Hospital which is a healthcare organization, planning the human resource is classified according to the job context where there are different classifications like physicians or health care specialists, laboratory technicians and administrative staff. Mainly, for healthcare organizations, the manpower market is similar to other organizations labor market which is based on demand and supply. Healthcare organization demands for workforce are based upon the population demand for health care. Careful considerations of the population size and structure in addition to patients expectation of healthcare services and the society income and living standards should be considered while planning the workforce for any hospital (Bloor Maynard, 2003). Many factors affect the labor supply in healthcare organizations. Most healthcare professionals expect high incomes and have a special perceived social status in the society. Also the relation among healthcare professionals can be controlled by the skill mix they adhere and their usage of complements and substitutes in their work; and this can affect the supply of healthcare professionals based on the current available professionals in the field hospital (Bloor Maynard, 2003). Other factors may affect the supply in UAE like the labor law and the government regulations. At Tawam Hospital, the manpower planning is affected by the rules and regulations of SEHA where the all the departments needs to submit their business plan to HR and then HR sends them to SEHA for analysis, approval and budget estimations. When SEHA approves the business plans and the future positions, it sends them back to Tawam Finance to allocate the budgets for each new positions then the HR Director approves the plan, the manpower planning maintain the new positions in the database of the HRIS for each department. The hiring process cant be processed unless there is a vacant position for that requesting department. Sometimes the need for the position forces the manpower planning to find a way to create the position even if the department doesnt have a vacant position in the database. Sometimes they split/merge available positions to create the required position. For the medical departments, manpower planning used to suggest borrowing positions from department to department under the approval of both parties and the HR Director to cover the need for the new position. Manpower planning gives organizations a value in managing workforce diversity; and also adds an important effect in recruitment, employee retentions and development. Moreover, proper planning for workforce increases the quality of the corporate staff and hence improves the output services or products accomplishment (U.S. Office of Personnel Management, 1999). At Tawam Hospital, the manpower planning provides a monthly study that identifies the number of filled/vacant positions within each section and department in the organization. Also the monthly report analysis the workforce diversity based on the number of national and non-national employees in each department. This report is sent to SEHA monthly to prepare the plan for the workforce yearly or help to made adjustment to the current plan. HR department is the only department in any organizations that affect all employees in all the different levels, therefore, Human resource planning is considered to be important because it can help organizations be more productive and cost-efficient. Human resource planning can help organizations to forecast their future needs of employees and also the expenses; where tactical plans are set based on long term forecasting that is aligned with corporate strategy to determine the required skills at the right time with the expected costs. Planning workforce helps also to minimize the corporate expenses to cut unnecessary jobs that can be accomplished by the available employees. The hiring process can be improved if HR plans well the recruitment process based on the forecasting and needs analysis, also the communication between HR department and line managers can help a lot in developing a good plan for what skills are required to accomplish the corporate goals (Schwartz, nd). HR planning helps organizations to estimate the types of KSA (Knowledge, Skills, Abilities) with their employees and how to utilize them efficiently. Also, good workforce planning helps organization to keep their employees by providing the good career development paths (Vareta, nd). At Tawam Hospital, the manpower planning performs many activities that serve the organization. One of those activities is called Reporting Structure Hierarchy which aims to identify who reports to whom using the HRIS database to assist in transferring or promotions activities. Another activity is called the Position Master Change PMC where requests for changing the position titles goes under the approval of HR to be reflected in the organization hierarchy in the HRIS. Promotions at Tawam should be identified initially by the manpower planning where they check if there is a vacant position for the department requesting the promotion and if there is a position, the manpower planning approves the promotion to enter the promotions committee; otherwise, the promotion is rejected. When the promotion is rejected, the merging/splitting positions may be a solution if the requesting department has other vacant positions or they can borrow positions from other department within the same divisi on under their approval. Approaches for manpower planning Rationalized approach Organization Strategy Targets Organization Practices Methods Manpower Review and Analysis Forecasting Internal External Demand Supply Adjust to Balance Recruit Retain Reduce Chart 1: The Rationalized Approach to Manpower PlanningPlanning is defined as the outcome of series of processes to find a solution to a problem. Rationalizing HR planning is done to provide easy methods to be followed to take decisions about choices of available alternatives before the implementation. Rational considerations of the issues surrounding the organization are the base for the rational model of manpower planning. In this approach, the organization strategy along with the implemented practices and methods to achieve the goals are considered when analyzing the manpower supply and demand based on the internal and external factors that affect the organization performance. SWOT analysis to determine the corporate strength and weakness and the surrounding market opportunities and threats helps in this approach to forecast future needs. Based on that analysis, decisions related to future recruitment, retention or even reducing the manpower can be taken easily to adjust the balan ce of the skills available(Bratton Gold, 2007). Diagnostic approach Chart 2: The Diagnostic Approach to Manpower Planning Manpower plans and policies Operations Monitored through Qualitative Quantitative techniques Understanding of causes Plan of action to control The diagnostic approach for manpower planning is based on the rationalized approach that aims to identify problems related to workforce using quantitative and qualitative techniques and also identify the causes for those problems. The ideal situation of manpower demands and supply doesnt exist in the real life where continuous imbalance between what skills needed and the market supply faces the organizations. Diagnostic approach of manpower planning can identify such problems with their causes. As illustrated in chart 2, identifying manpower problems is done through monitoring the operations using qualitative and quantitative techniques to understand their causes and prepare action plan to solve those problems (Bratton Gold, 2007). As mentioned earlier, the manpower planning receives the approved planned positions after the approval of SEHA, Finance department and HR director to open the positions in the HRIS only without producing a clear plan on the demanded manpower for the hospital. SEHA prepares the manpower plans based on the business plan developed by all departments of Tawam and after the analysis, they send their approval to the finance department of Tawam for budget allocation and process. Stages for human resource planning The planning for an organizational workforce requires a systematic procedure to be implemented that will assure getting the objectives of the manpower planning which is at the end helping the organization to achieve its goals using efficient human capital and resources. According to Bratton Gold (2007), the planning process for human resources involves four stages. Evaluation of existing manpower resources Estimation of the proportion of currently employed manpower resources that were likely to be within the firm by the forecast date Assessment of labor requirements Measures to ensure the needed resources are available when required The process defined by Bratton Gold, 2007 involves the process of forecasting the supply in the first two stages, and forecasting the demand in the third stage and then developing the plan to utilize the human capital when needed in the past stage. Priyadarshini (2009) had proposed another manpower planning process that has four different stages: Analyzing the current manpower inventory Making future manpower forecasts Developing employment programs Design training programs According to Priyadarshini (2009), the demand forecasting for new skills of workforce should be done after analyzing the overall organization business nature, its department and employees skills and quantities within each department. After analyzing the available human resources and future forecasts, procedures for employment programs can be settled through the prober selection and placement plans. Training programs will be designed and planned according to the new market trends in technology and also based on the available skills that need to be enhanced or developed according to the analysis result of the first stage. At Tawam, the manpower planning produces monthly reports that help SEHA to analyze the business plan of the hospital to plan the required workforce for the next year. At 2008 a complete analysis of the manpower planning was developed by one staff of the manpower section as an assignment for the probation period evaluation. The plan was on the medical departments to examine the number of patients in each clinic and how many consultants or physicians available and needed in the upcoming year. Indeed, that was an individual effort that doesnt reflect the actual practice because the manpower forecasting and planning is controlled by SEHA not the hospital. Internal external factors affecting healthcare human resource planning Healthcare supply and demand processes for human resources are influences by two factors: the first factor is its narrow approach in its focus that leads to focus only on medical practitioners ignoring the fact of the inter-relations or the substitutions possibilities of other medical fields like the nursing. The second factor is that it had a mechanistic approach with supply side driven (Bloor Maynard, 2003). Healthcare resource planners estimate the supply of medical practitioners graduated from medical schools or migrated to the country ignoring the behavioral changes of their career paths. Chart 3: Healthcare practitioners supply factors Tawam hospital manpower planning is affected externally by the labor low that enforces the approval of the private sector medical center of the new hires to work at Tawam. Also the planning at Tawam is affected internally by the departmental business plans which determine what is requires and by the available allocated budget from SEHA that forces the hospital to freeze the recruitment for a while. Recommendation: Since the manpower planning is controlled by SEHA based on the budget and departmental business plan, Tawam manpower planning can analyze the departmental business plans and provide the complete plan for the required workforce with their budget estimation instead of wasting the time waiting for the approval from SEHA. The monthly report or study should be linked to the HR theory to be more valid and also it should include suggestions on how to re-plan the workforce not just figures and numbers. Resources: Schwartz, Rick, nd. Importance of Human Resource Planning. Retrieved on: 10/April/2010 from: http://www.ehow.com/about_6130541_importance-human-resource-planning.html U.S. Office of Personnel Management, Office of Merit Systems Oversight and Effectiveness, 1999. Strategic Human Resources Management: Aligning with the Mission. www. BusinessDictionary.com Bloor, Karen Maynar, Aland, 2003. Planning human resources in health care: Towards an economic approach, An international comparative review. University of York. Vareta, Nyamupachari, nd. Importance of Human Resources Planning in Organizations. Retrieved on: 11/4/2010 from: www.coursework.info Bratton, John and Gold, Jeff, 2007. Human Resource Management, Theory and Practice, 4th edition. M Priyadarshini, 2009. Manpower planning in organizations. Retrieved on 24/4/2010 from: http://www.articlesbase.com/human-resources-articles/manpower-planning-in-organisation-1399674.html#axzz0lxChq8Mf Karen Bloor, Alan Maynard, 2003. Planning human resources in health care: Towards an economic approach- An international comparative review. University of York. Tawam Hospital, 2010. Retrieved from: www.tawamhospital.ae, on1/May, 2010. http://www.docstoc.com/docs/DownloadDoc.aspx?doc_id=29675768, on1/May, 2010.

Loving v. Virginia Essay -- Miscegenation

Miscegenation: Noun; Marriage, cohabitation, or sexual relations between two members of two separate races. Most commonly used in reference to relations between African Americans and Caucasian Americans (blacks and whites.) In 1960’s nearly 4 out of every 225 marriages was interracial. This was frowned upon in the early to mid 1900’s and this is what two people, Mildred Jeter and Richard Loving had to face. Racial indifference or a racial supremacy has been an issue in America as long as it has existed. It began with the Native Americans on this soil we thrive on today. The whites of the time pushed the Natives of what land they could and fooled them off of the rest of it. They took their children, and tried to conform them into a race they were not, and never would be. From there on, our nation grew larger and more independent. In 1619, 127 years after North America had been discovered, a Dutch man traded his cargo of Africans for food. This gave our nation its first g roup of â€Å"servants.† The uproar of slavery did not start until the 1680’s as far as the records show. The idea of slavery gave some, not all, Caucasian Americans the idea that they were better than the blacks who worked for them. Mind sets like these set the ball in motion for anti-miscegenation laws. 41out of our 50 states had these laws at one time, leaving only 9 states without ever having an anti-miscegenation law. These states being: Alaska, Hawaii, Minnesota, Wisconsin, New York, Vermont, New Hampshire, Connecticut, and New Jersey. 15 of these states abolished these laws only after the Loving V. Virginia case which was ruled on the 12th of June, 1967. That day, this couple got what they had wanted more than anything. They’re home back and their love to be a... ...icant. This one for many families today is very important. These cases are also the reason why during a census you have the opportunity to check multiple races, instead of just one. This case stirred debates of gay marriage, which is a matter of personal opinion. It is up to you whether that is a pro or a con. As we can now see, Loving v. Virginia opened plenty of doors. It took a couple that were strong and would not be beat down by hearing their marriage was illegal or how wrong they were. Richard and Mildred Loving did what every interracial couple wanted to do; make a difference. The couple gained the right to move back to their home with their families, to stay in their hometown peacefully, and to hang their marriage license on the wall and know that it is now recognized by every state. Race made no difference to them, it shouldn’t to anyone else either.

Judgments of Conduct in Sense and Sensibility Essay -- Austen Sense Se

Sense and Sensibility is an elegant story that portrays the advantages of the first over the second, as manifested between two sisters of opposing temperaments, one of whom loves wisely and the other passionately. Set in London and its surrounding countryside, the story relates how Elinor, the eldest of Mrs. Dashwood's daughters, and Marianne, the second eldest, share in the agony of tragic love. In the opening of the book, Mrs. Dashwood and her three daughters are forced to move to a new and smaller abode, as her husband's death left her fairly unwealthy. During their transition, the Dashwood's stayed with her step-son and his wife, Mr. and Mrs. John Dashwood. It is there where Elinor, practical and conventional, met and fell in love with Edward Ferrars, Mrs. John Dashwood's brother. One rainy morning, after being settled in their new cottage at Barton, Marianne, emotional and sentimental, was brought home from her walk with a sprained ankle by Willoughby, a dashing young man in his mid-twenties. Marianne immediately fell for Willoughby and he for her and in the following days and weeks he was invariably found at Barton. Another new friend to the family, Colonel Brandon watched the formation of this couple with sadness as he too, had fallen in love with Marianne. To her distress, while on an extended trip to London with friend and neighbor, Mrs. Jennings, Marianne suffered a broken heart upon hearing that Willoughby was concerned for his financial well-being and therefore had bestowed his affections elsewhere. A few months prior to the trip, Elinor learned that Edward was privately engaged to another woman, Lucy, but was bound to secrecy by this woman herself, who was not aware of Elinor's attachment to him. So while tr... ...d, representing sense, tried to relate her imagination and her feelings to her judgment and to the tradition on which society was based. She knew how to govern her feelings as she responded calmly and serenely in the most distressing circumstances. Elinor was more concerned for the feelings of others, but Austen indicates that Elinor suffers a great deal, and her thoughts were often diverted from her own misery to the afflictions of her sister, for whom she had a great deal of compassion. Jane Austen pulled off her aim as a matchmaker and true love triumphed as sense gave way to sensibility and sensibility gave way to sense. In the novel, Austen expresses a universal truth which is the key to her character development-- 'the imaginations of other people will carry them away to form wrong judgments of our conduct, and to decide on it by slight appearances'. Â  

It Should Be Mandatory for Everyone to Donate One of Their Organs When They Die

There is a technology such as organ transplant which replaces patient’s organs to save life. Nowadays the heart, liver, lungs, kidneys, intestines and pancreas can be transplanted. Therefore the demand for organs is very high. This essay will discuss as to whether or not people should be forced to donate one of their organs when they die. Firstly, the demand for organs is higher than supply. In the United States, more than 80,000 people are in the waiting list for organ transplant. Almost 28,000 people’s organs were transplanted in 2005. So, many people think government needs to make it compulsory for people to donate their organs when they die. Patients will still have chance to live. Secondly, people should have a meaningful way to die, by donating their organs, so people who are needing organ transplant will have the chance to live. When people die, heart can be preserved for 4 hours, pancreas and liver can be preserved 12 hours. In China, executed prisoners are allowed to donate their organs to have a chance to do good things for the society. In many religions, people are not allowed to donate their organs. In Japan, many people believe Shinto. The rule of Shinto is the wholeness of body. According to Shinto tradition, if people died, their bodies will be impure. If some people have organ transplant which use dead persons’ organs, they will have bad luck. So organ transplant is not favorable. Doctors can use high technology product to replace patients’ organs rather than using organs from death. For example, the use of a Jarvik 2000, a machine that assists to get the heart works again. Another technology is Colon, it can use organ’s cells to make a new same organ. So, people don’t have a need to wait for suitable organs from the hospital. In summary, organ demands are increasing than supply. However, many religions do not allow organ donation. In China, although many organs are donated by executed prisoners, still cannot accommodate for patients waiting for organ transplant. The government should make it mandatory for everyone to donate their organs when they die.

HIV Patients Should Have Equal Access to Kidney Transplantation Essay

HIV infection may be obtained by patients receiving renal replacement therapy (RRT) through blood transfusions, renal allograft, sexual contacts, or needle sharing of drug addicts. Viral infection or HIV-associated nephropathy can cause renal failure. In the early 1980’s, prognosis of patients with the acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) was very low, and survival rate of HIV-infected individuals with ESRD was miserable. Accordingly, several people even doubted the worth of providing continuance dialysis to patients with AIDS. Due to progress in diagnostic techniques in serologic and viral markers of disease, and use of extremely efficient antiretroviral agents, the prognosis of HIV-positive individuals has radically improved. Today, skills and knowledge in hemodialysis are effective modes of therapy and many centers, though some are reluctant, are now starting to practice renal transplantation in HIV-infected patients. Human Immunodeficiency Virus HIV infects CD4+ T cells, making the immune system weak as these cells malfunctions. Abnormal activation ofCD8= T cells may contribute to the loss of both CD4+ AND CD8+ T cells through apoptosis, which may represent a major cause of infected and non-infected cell death in HIV infection. Many HIV-infected individuals proliferative responses to recall antigens, irradiated stimulator peripheral blood mononuclear cells from healthy, unrelated donors, or T cell mitogens (Roland & Stock, 2003). HIV infection can worsen existing renal disease and can trigger pathologically distinct disease named HIV-associated nephropathy (HIVAN), a focal segmental glomerulosclerosis (FSGS) associated with severe cystic tubular lesions, leading to chronic renal failure. Renal syndromes include: fluid and electrolyte malfunction, proteinuria, nephrotic disease, progressive azotemia, inflamed kidneys, and fast succession to end stage renal disease (ESRD). HIV-infected patients who developed renal disease have short survival span. Transplantation process may increase the risk of HIV-infected patients in accelerating the depletion and dysfunction of their CD4+ T cells, which may further result in the development of more serious and complicated disease, such as AIDS, making HIV replication harder to control. On the other hand, immunosuppression might reverse the immuno-pathology associated with HIV disease (Roland & Stock, 2003). End Stage Renal Disease  When the kidney totally lost its ability to filter waste from the circulatory system, renal failure finally meet the end stage renal disease or ESRD, the final stage of nephropathy or the premeditated degeneration of the kidneys. In 1998, over eighty-six thousand patients received therapy for treating ESRD in the United States. Autonomously, Medicare expenditures rose to 12. 9 billion dollars from 12 billion in 1998. The total cost of ESRD program through medicare was 17. 9 billion and is now projected to be 28. 3 billion dollars by 2010 (Winsett et al, 2002). The most common causes of ESRD include diabetic nephropathy, systemic arteral hypertension, glomerulonephrities, and polycystic kidney disease. In the case of ESRD, GFR declines to less than 10mL/min/m2, once it declines to that level, the normal hemeostatic function of the kidneys can not be sustained anymore. Whatever the cause, if untreated, ESRD may cause severe infection and even death to the patient. When the kidney function decline to less than twelve percent to fifteen percent, the patient survival will depend on the kidney transplantation and the therapies associated to it (Winsett et al, 2002). Chronic Dialysis versus Kidney Transplantation According to the New England Journal of Medicine (1999), transplantation is superior in saving life than long-term dialysis. The mortality rates were analyzed among over 200, 000 patients who underwent dialyses for ESRD and only twenty-three thousand received a kidney. Based on the research, patients who undergo transplantation live twice more than the projected years of life of patients who remained on the waitlist having dialysis. A successful transplantation improves the quality of life and lessens the mortality rate for many patients. Moreover, it consumes less time and energy. However, this procedure may cause bleeding, damage, and infection to other organs inside the body, even death can occur. That is why after transplantation, patients must undergo immunosuppression process for a lifetime period to monitor signs of rejection (Berns, 2007). Despite the greater risks, when it comes to quality and length of life, a transplanted kidney is more preferred. It’s man over machine. Statistics Over ten thousand kidney transplantations are being performed each year on patients with ESRD. Records show that patients who undergo kidney transplantation live longer than those who are just taking dialysis; but eight to nine patients on the waitlist die every day due to scarcity of organs to be used in the transplantation. Cadaveric kidney supply has an average of more than two years to come, and only 15-20 % of patients in the list were granted to receive them. The condition of renal failure and what causes them have direct effects on the transplantation rates of patients. Individuals with cystic kidney disease (25. 5%), obstructive nephropathy (24. 9%), and glomerulonephrities (23. 2%) have the utmost successful transplantation rate while patients having diabetes (13. 3%) and hypertension (8. 5%) have the lowest rates (Wallace, 1998). Why transplantation should be considered in HIV-infected patients? Organ malfunction has been the principal grounds of morbidity and mortality of HIV-infected patients, AIDS-related complication is only secondary. Before, immunosuppression was thought to be an unconditional contraindication in the circumstance of HIV infection, now, it is gradually more valued that immune activation is a major aspect of HIV pathogenesis. Consequently, immunosuppression has advantageous effects in people with HIV infection through temperance of immune activation or reduction of HIV reservoirs. Some specific immunosuppressant agents also have antiviral properties or interact synergistically with certain antiretroviral agents (Roland & Stock, 2003). Reasons for reluctance of performing Kidney Transplantation for HIV-infected patients: In a survey conducted to 248 renal transplant centers in The U. S. in 1998, 148 requires HIV testing of prospective kidney recipients and that the vast majority denies patients with HIV to undergo transplantation. Most centers believe that transplantation is not suitable for HIV-infected patients (Spital A. , 1998). Before, chronic dialysis was the only option for treating ESRD of HIV-infected patients for fear of increased morbidity and mortality due to therapeutic immunosuppression. The allocation of cadaver kidneys to these patients was also considered improper due to expected inferior patient graft survival (Anil Kumar et al. , 2005). Also, according to the research led by Professor Andrew Grulich from the University of the New South Wales’ National Centre in HIV Epidemiology and Clinical Search (NCHECR), immune deficiency is responsible for the increased risk of contracting several types of cancer than the general population. HIV patients are eleven times more expected to develop Hodgkin’s lymphoma while there is almost four times the risk for those who had transplants (Staff Writers, 2007). Professor Grulich further proposed that people’s immune system must be maintained at a higher level through the use of anti-retroviral drugs. The main historical exclusion of HIV-infected patients with ESRD was rooted in the coherent basis that immunosuppression necessary for organ transplantation would aggravate an already immunocompromised state. Although there were numerous initial reports signifying worse outcomes after solid organ transplantation in HIV seropositive recipients, there have been reports as well suggesting there were no unpleasant effects of HIV infection on allograft survival (University of California, 2007). Indeed, there have been two reports of HIV-infected patients going through liver or renal transplantation who demonstrated normal graft function for at least eight years following the transplant. The HIV status of the two was unknown at the time of transplantation; therefore no endeavors were prepared to adjust immunosuppressive therapy. The distinction in these studies may recount to differences in the time of HIV acquisition, with those of longstanding HIV infection prior to transplantation having a faster end relative to those who acquired HIV infection at the time of transplantation. Regardless of standard cyclosporine-based immunosuppressive treatments, there was no proof of OI or progression to AIDS in the first eight years following transplantation (Roland & Stock, 2003). There are multiple other reports of patients with HIV who had gone through transplantation and demonstrated long-term graft survival in the presence of immunosuppression with variable rates of developing AIDS or death. Six of eleven renal allografts were functioning at a mean follow-up of thirty-one months (Roland & Stock, 2003). Effects of Immunosuppressant Agents In order to avoid rejection reaction of the body against transplanted organs, immunosuppressant drugs are being taken to block the immune system from attacking the transplanted organ and preserving its function. As side effect, these drugs can help in HIV progress to AIDS. However, recent studies show that these drugs can also contribute in the reduction of HIV. Inactive T lymphocytes serve as a vital reservoir for HIV regardless of HAART. Immunosuppression may affect the reservoir of HIV-infected cell that persist throughout HAART through reduction of cell-associated HIV by either direct inhibition of viral replication, potentiation of HAART effects, or exhaustion of infected cells and lessening in the accessibility of permissive target cells by preventing T-cell activation. Otherwise, improvement in viral reservoirs can be caused by reduced immune management of HIV-expressing cells (Roland & Stock, 2003). Ethical and Medical Issues Organ shortage is one of the ethical issues in organ transplantation. One distributive fairness criteria is equal access which include length of time waiting (first come, first saved basis), and age (youngest to oldest). The supporters of this criteria has a strong belief that since kidney transplantation can save live, it is an important remedial practice and worth offering to anyone who needs it (Center for Bioethics, 2004). The second type is the maximum benefit, aiming to maximize the quantity of successful transplants. The maximum benefit criteria include medical need (the sickest people are being prioritized for a transplantable organ), and probable success of a transplant (giving organs to the person who will be most likely to live the longest). People who support the maximum benefit philosophy aspire to avoid the wasting of organs, which are quite scarce, so that the greatest benefit is derived from every available organ (Center for Bioethics, 2004). During the Pre-HAART era, HIV-infected patients have a very poor prognosis, many people believes that it would be a waste to use the limited supply of organ to those group of patients that is why many transplant centers are reluctant to practice the transplantation. However, now that the HAART has been launched and the mortality and morbidity rate has been decreasing, it would be unethical to withhold this option in the absence of evidence that it is either unsafe or ineffective. Advancement in HIV Therapy: HAART era Highly Active Antiretroviral Therapy (HAART) has been the primary improvement in the treatment of HIV-infected patients in the previous decade. Numerous studies and observations had proven that advantageous outcomes of HAART also include improvement of HIV-related renal complications. Virologic and histologic evidences imply that HIVAN perhaps the result of HIV-1 reproduction in the kidney. The potential relation of HIVAN with HIV-1 replication in the kidney is associated with epidemiologic and medical records showing that HAART may improve HIVAN. On the other hand, from nephrologist’s perspective, one effect of this achievement has been the emergence of new kidney diseases related to (1) enhanced management of the HIV infection and (2) the prospective nephroxicity of antiretroviral treatments. According to the studies of MD Roland and Stock, medical tests have confirmed apparent survival benefits linked with the use of protease inhibitor (PI)-containing or non-nucleoside reverse-transcriptate inhibitor (NNRTI)-containing regimens (HAART). Epidemiologic statistics show reduced mortality, hospitalization rates, and opportunistic infection (OI) incidence associated with HAART. There have been vivid decline in new AIDS-related OIs, the majority of which are now occurring in people with low CD4+ T cell counts and those who are not receiving medical care (University of California, 2007). Epidemiologic and modeling information sustain the clinical trial efficacy data, signifying that HAART has a considerable effect on medical result (Roland & Stock, 2003). Survival Rate Using the United States Kidney Data System (USRDS) data, the Journal of the American Society of Nephrology analyzed and studied these inputs to find out whether recipient HIV serologic status remains the primary factor in graft and patient survival in modern clinical transplantation. Ninety-five percent of the HIV-infected patients survived after transplantation and only 4. 3% died. Although in the earlier USRDS studies of kidney recipients before the introduction of HAART, the results showed that HIV-infected recipients had a survival of eighty-three percent while the uninfected patients have eighty-eight percent survival rates. While endurance records of HIV-infected and HIV-uninfected patients is almost the same, selection bias may have occurred, prioritizing the healthier patients than HIV-infected individuals. Also, in the studies of MD Roland, data showed that graft survival and rejection rates of HIV-infected patients who had gone through transplantation were similar to those HIV-negative patients (Roland & Stock, 2003). Studies and Observations Methods. This study aims to observe safety and success of kidney transplantation, and learn the effects of immunosuppressant treatments on HIV infection, with the approval of the Institutional evaluation board of two universities: the Drexel University College of Medicine and Hahnemann University Hospital. Forty-five recipients with HIV infection from February 2001 to January 2004 were observed. Patient inclusion criteria were maintenance of HAART, plasma HIV-1 RNA of