Monday, September 30, 2019

“Inheritance” by Hannie Rayson Essay

Inheritance by Hannie Rayson is a play about the war between two families, the Delaneys and the Hamiltons, over property. Rayson questions the authenticity of Australian values, due to the human weaknesses the characters present in the play. The Australian values Rayson challenges in this play include a fair go for all and strong family ties. In this play, not every character is entitled to equal chances. Nugget is an example of this. He is the bastard son of Farley Hamilton, and an aborigine. His adopted mother, Dibs Hamilton, disowns him immediately after his father passes away. She also denies his promised land by tearing up Farley Hamiltons legal will, because of his origins. Julia Hamilton works for a multicultural company, with colleagues from different heritages. She is pregnant with a tall Indian bloke named Graham, meaning she will have a brown baby. However, her efforts to give a fair go to all are shadowed by her sister-in-law, Maureen Delaney. Maureen is a politician, campaigning to assimilate, or eliminate if they refuse, immigrants and aborigines to her standard of the true Australian way of life. It is a typical Australian value to have strong family ties. In this play, the cracks in the Hamilton and Delaney families begin to show. This is because of the different lifestyles they have lead over a long period. Farley Hamilton betrays his wife by having an affair with a younger woman, producing a child in the process. He betrays her again when he changes his will without Dibs notice, giving the property to his son Nugget instead. The whole family is usually arguing, and fighting. There are even characters who whisper in others ears. Almost every character acts for their individual interests, and not for the family. Sometimes a family member might stand up for another, but it is usually also for interests of their own. The Hamiltons and Delaneys barely represent authentic Australian values. The strong relationships that the family once had, has now broken down. No one is directly blamed for this chaos. It was broken simply because of the lack of equality and the lack of strong relationships. Bibliography: no sources used

Sunday, September 29, 2019

History of Chines Opera and its effect on World Music Essay

The search for creativity and originality is deeply rooted in human nature such that it represents an inescapable and defining requirement of the human being. Since in man’s creative restlessness beats and pulsates what is most deeply human- the search for knowledge. A major issue in the history of china is its opera Extolling the great the importance of opera, it could be said that the Chinese by nature desire opera. Thus, making opera their delight and links it with their quest for survival. Opera can therefore be said to be ontological to them or the existentialist parlance, it is part of their existentiality since man for them is condemned to creative works and performance. To Elucidate more on the History of Chinese opera and its effect on world music is why I considered the topic â€Å"An analytical exposition on the history of Chinese opera and its effect on world music† very pertinent as an effort in enriching our human culture and our existence. My goal in this study is not to probe into the nature of Chinese opera but, to evolve and analytical exposition on its history and how it has imparted an effect on world music. The Concept of Opera: An opera is a staged dramatic work that is entirely sung. However, there are many exceptions to this rule. There are operas in which the actors sing in between spoken dialogue, and others that are semi-staged. Some operas are constructed with action scenes called recitative. Personal commentary or scenes involving inner thoughts and emotions are called arias. An aria is a song in which a character may share his or her feelings with the audience and fellow characters. Occasionally this is done in an ensemble with two or more singers and then the aria becomes a duet, trio, quartet, etc. epending on the number of singers involved. Composers used recitative to advance the story while arias, duets, trios, and quartets often were comments on the action. In most modern opera, composers no longer use the structure of recitative and aria, but blend the two styles together to create a more realistic picture of continuous drama. Characters in opera are developed by the composer and given certain voices to best illustrate their personality and role. Opera is thought to be the single greatest art form because it combines many artistic disciplines into one. The Nature of Chinese Opera; a Historical Survey: Chinese traditional opera is a comprehensive performing art which combines singing, music, dialogue, acrobatics, martial arts, and pantomime. It represents the culmination and distillation of two thousand years of Chinese civilization. A traditional form of stage entertainment, weaving together elements of mime, dance, song, dialogue, swordplay, and acrobatics into one fluid continuous flow. Gestures, movements and expressions incorporated within each performer’s script come together to bring forth an impressive performance. In contrast to Western stage entertainment, which is subdivided into different categories such as opera, drama and sketches, Chinese opera has remained faithful to its original format over the centuries. By doing away with three-dimensional stage props and complicated backdrops found in Western opera, Chinese opera conveys the idea of time and space to the audience through the acting of performers. This simple and flexible technique is called â€Å"imagined time and space† in Chinese operatic terminology. The acting, however, is not mere imitation of movements in daily life. Instead, it has been perfected to bring out just their essentials, making them highly-stylize and rhythmic dancing movements. Such acting is described in Chinese stage language as â€Å"stylized formula†. In addition, Chinese opera has specific costumes, facial make-ups, musical motifs and recitations to represent each character in the series of characters known as Xingtous. All this, plus imagined time and space and stylized acting, has enabled the story to rise above real life and create a strong dramatic atmosphere with distinct operatic effects. The history of Chinese opera dates as far back as the third century, simple plays were performed as part of court entertainment. In the twelfth century, during the Southern Song Dynasty (1271-1368). The Yuan zaju is a landmark in the development of traditional drama. It took social life as its main subject matter and was very popular at that time. Guan Hanqing is considered the greatest Yuan dramatist. One of his plays, The Wrongs Suffered by Dou E, is still appreciated by today’s audiences. In the later years of the Yuan Dynasty, Yuan zaju was gradually replaced by nanxi, a kind of southern opera. By the middle Ming Dynasty, a combination of Yuan zaju and nanxi, known as poetic drama, appeared. The Romance of drama, was written by Tang Xianzu who is considered the â€Å"Chinese Shakespeare During the late Qing Dynasty, a new type of traditional drama-Beijing Opera-came into being. In 1790, some troupes of Auhui Opera went to the Imperial Palace in Beijing to offer birthday congratulations to the emperor and other members of the royal family. They remained in Beijing and performed for the ordinary citizens. Because of their efforts to learn artistic techniques from other local operas and to the taste of the Based on Anhui Opera, Beijing Opera, Beijing Opera took shape as an independent opera form between 1840 and 1860. Having incorporated the merits of many other local dramas, Beijing Opera not only appeals to Chinese audiences but is warmly received by people all over the world. In the course of the development of the development of Chinese traditional opera, mutual borrowing has taken place among various types of local opera and new forms throughout have appeared continually. Recent surveys show there are 368 different forms of opera the country. Each variety takes its name from the place where it originated and is popular. The use of local dialects and unique melodies distinguish the different types of opera. Among the best known forms are Beijing Opera (actually a national form), Pingju (popular in the north), Shaoxing opera (popular in Zhejing Province and Shanghai), Yuju (a kind of Henan Opera), Kunqu (Kunshan Opera, popular mainly in Jiangsu Province), Qinqiang (Shaanxi Opera), Chuanju (Sichuan Opera), Hanju (Hubei Opera), and Yueju (Guangzhou Opera). Features of Chinese Opera and World Music;   A Synthesis:  China is the home of one of the oldest civilizations in the world, and is also home to the earliest musical scale in recorded human history. For ages, Chinese music has been seeking a type of spiritual release, a doorway to vitality. It is like looking for spirituality with a unique dignity of its own. Now, we are starting to see the religious sounds heard from the pious and faithful people throughout Tibet slowly being infused into the beautiful music we hear everyday, bringing us a quiet, serene peace of mind, as it does not strive to be real in its physical presentation, since it is more to instruct than to amuse.

Saturday, September 28, 2019

Role of e-commerce in todays business Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3750 words

Role of e-commerce in todays business - Essay Example The majority of business organizations perceive electronic commerce as application of the Internet or the electronic platforms as a platform to sell and promote products, services and goods to the customers. However, this constricted description of the e-commerce only describes the Internet based commerce. In actual point of fact, e-commerce contains a wide variety of other aspects as well. In this scenario, e-commerce can be defined as the electronic transactions for trading information, products, services, goods and payments along with additional processes such as the development and protection of Web-based associations. In this scenario, it can be said that electronic commerce encompasses a number of attributes and entities and it is not limited to only some entities such as the Internet, extranets, intranets, electronic data interchange (EDI), and various others. Some of the well-known instances of e-commerce comprise communications and collaboration with business associates and customers like that inventory management, transaction processing by means of electronic payment, customer self-service like that allowing them to track order status as well as researching problem resolution, and making use of a business intranet for omnipresent information sharing (Fruhling & Digman, 2000). Until recently e-commerce has transformed into a completely new form of business. Internet has changed the way people think and carry out their daily routines everyone simply wants to shop and order from their home using their personal computer, all with a single click. Moreover the latest tools and gadgets which are available online have...The emergence of the Internet has resulted in devising numerous ways through which business can be conducted online. An Internet business lets expert individuals to put forward their knowledge to others or to make money by advertising specific merchandise. An e-commerce business requires selling merchandise by means of the Internet. One common e-commerce enterprise involves recording merchandise for sale on auction websites, for instance eBay.com. Another process is drop shipping, where you work as a distributor for a company’s products by selling them at a raised price. E-commerce has been a foremost matter of internet for the last one decade. The concern in e-commerce has reached its zenith during the premature years of 2000. In this model there is a straight online transaction between the buyer and seller. The brokerage models fetch together the buyers and sellers but do not necessarily take part in any form of transaction. This model has seen the most advanced and is also anticipated to continue improvise in the coming years. This paper has discussed various examples of industries where the use of e-commerce has revolutionized the industry. This paper has also discussed a number of advantages offered by the e-commerce. This research concludes that the use of e-commerce is essential in order to endure and grow in this ever-increasing competitive business environment. Hence, in this cut-throat struggle, an interactive user friendly and determined website in the form of online shops can produce good business. E-commerce is an ideal platform for niche products.

Friday, September 27, 2019

Speaking to Inform ( Speech 100 level Class) Essay

Speaking to Inform ( Speech 100 level Class) - Essay Example In the third paragraph the article uses comparisons between Orthorexia and individuals with conditions such as anorexia or bulimia. The article includes a contrast in how the condition or Orthorexia could affect not just an individual’s body but the relationships an individual forms or has formed. The only examples in this article were statistical from a study. The article here on Orthorexia was very well written and easy to understand. In my opinion all points were covered. Not only was the condition defined and explained but the comparison to what we know as severe disorders were compared here. Comparing anorexia and bulimia to Orthorexia shows the seriousness of this condition. In preparing a speech on this topic for class there are only a couple steps I would include change to make sure the article was fully understood. I would begin the article with the definition instead of a description. The name of the condition itself would probably cause complexity; I would want to c larify right away. Next I would put in the comparison so that individuals would understand the severity of the condition. By doing this I would get their minds on a more serious aspect in understanding and wanting to know how to prevent this seemingly innocent condition from occurring. Finally I would find more than a statistic for an example.

Thursday, September 26, 2019

Ethics, Professionalism and Contemporary Issues Essay

Ethics, Professionalism and Contemporary Issues - Essay Example Throughout the design steps, there were minor considerations of the possible risks this game poses to the players, as far as human trafficking is concerned. However, a concerned player of my online game, who is concerned with the human trafficking issue, raised his genuine concerns about my game predisposing the young players to human trafficking, after being lured into the real world meetings. The concerns of this player should not be neglected, but considered seriously. This is because, with the sophistication of technology, human trafficking has taken advantage and flourished. As it is globally known, human trafficking is the illegal trade of people with the objective of selling them to forced labor, sexual slavery or tissue or organ extraction. Human trafficking is done through coercion, use of force, abduction, purchases or deception (Latonero 8). It has grown to be a lucrative business for some people despite being illegal and inhumane. This implies that users of the internet a nd other technologies ought to be cautious. How Technology has aided it Human trafficking is rampant especially through technology. Many people fall prey of this inhumane practice through coercion and deception, to submit their details and address lines over the internet. Thereafter, the traffickers lay a trap for the innocent internet users, abduct them, and trade them off (Latonero 10). The trends in education have necessitated the adoption of technology in research and communication. Financial constraints amongst many people have also motivated them to embrace technology for solutions. Therefore, as researchers and students seek for research and academic solutions, they also seek for business opportunities. With this trend in the use of technology, human traffickers have managed to lay traps through online adverts and fake employment opportunities, which have trapped many people, including children and adolescents. Most of the victims are traded for sexual slavery, where they are sold off as prostitutes. This explains why most victims have been women, both adults and adolescents. In this modern hi-tech society, technology has been the leading influencer and avenue for human trafficking (Latonero 11). How Technology hindered it However, contrary to the successful efforts by human traffickers, to build their business empires in this illegal trade, technology has also been instrumental in fighting this business. Since human trafficking became a global problem, security agencies have also come up strongly, to track and apprehend human traffickers. Most traffickers do their business online. Therefore, the security agencies have also setup traps online, to catch up with them. This has been aided by the internet protocol (IP) addresses, which allows the location of anyone using the internet globally. Technology has also allowed the tracing of the users of communication gadgets like mobile phones globally. Security agents can also intercept phone conversations of s uspected traffickers. Of course, the traffickers have learned ways of escaping apprehension by using aliases and hiding the protocols. This has been the greatest setback in the efforts, to fight human trafficking through technology. However, still technology has made it easy for the security agents, to fight this illegal business. With improved technology, videos and photos can be taken via the satellite, which aid tracking of these criminals. Possible set of actions and analysis Following the threat from

Wednesday, September 25, 2019

Ethics Form Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Ethics Form - Essay Example It was for the need to ensure that respondents had adequate time in reviewing their questions that questionnaire was preferred over interview. With questionnaire, respondents were free to attend to questions at any suitable time for them without rush. 8. Will informed consent will be appropriately documented? (While a consent signature is standard, note that anonymous surveys can obtain implied consent by informing the participant, â€Å"To protect your privacy, no consent signature is requested. Instead, you may indicate your consent by clicking here/returning this survey in the enclosed envelope.†) As far as participants are concerned, conflict of interest was avoided by ensuring that questions were given to respondents in such a way that participants did not deal with questions that bore their direct interest. The central explanation of the PIS was based on the research purpose. The statement of research purpose thus formed the first sentence of the PIS so as to ensure that participants came to appreciate the research purpose. No clearly defined compensations were put in place. It is for this reason that the researcher made personal contact with the participants instead of making participants spend fund to come to researcher. 18. Does the PIS explain how the participant can contact the researcher and the university’s Research Participant Advocate? (USA number 001-612-312-1210) or email address liverpoolethics@ohecampus.com). 21. Are adequate measures in place to adequately protect participants from coercion to participate, distress, loss of work/school time, damage to professional reputation, physical/psychological harm, and loss of privacy? 23. If the researcher happens to also serve in a trusted or authoritative role to the participant (e.g., health care provider, teacher, etc.), do the recruitment procedures

Tuesday, September 24, 2019

Leninism verse liberalism in an ex-colonial state Essay

Leninism verse liberalism in an ex-colonial state - Essay Example Other important influential trends in Iran may also include its two constitutional revolutions one in 1905 and the other in 1979. It is prudent to start by looking at the Leninists prospects in Iran. Without rushing to ridicule such an idea, we should not that a number of states in the Middle East are exhibiting left wing tendencies. A notable example is the Hashemite monarchy found in Iraq being replaced by a more Arab socialist state, which happened in1968.In 1950s, it was feared that Iran would adopt communism system that could see them ally the Soviet Union. In a more direct assertion, embracing Lenism by Iran as opposed to liberal democracy is minus not without precedent. Exhibiting similar traits to Rusia, prior and in the post Leninist revolution, Iran just like Russia was also ruled by absolute monarchs who are said to behave like the Russian Czars. Its rulers were draconian. The emphasis witnessed in personal norms in modern theocratic Iran resembles Czarist Russia signified by strong central figures, Iran being a devoutly Islam state shares the same inclination with Russia was also a devoutly Eastern orthodox. The main contention remains how transition into a Lenin state can occur. Proponents of this argument have asserted that, just as the Russians through threw religion and moved to secularization, Iran may surprisingly throw religion and adopt secularization too. However, some scholars have argued that adoption of liberal system could also be ideal for Iran. They have cited historical governance of Iran as their basis of assertion. That Iranian intellectual leaders as found in the 20th century had already stipulated constitutional revolution despite being a lower state than even Turkey and Egypt in the same period. They have compared this to the modern challenges facing Iran. Through citing the obstructionism that saw a revolution happen in 1979, they have suggested Iran is moving towards this direction, in this instance towards liberal

Monday, September 23, 2019

(can you come up with one) Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

(can you come up with one) - Essay Example Professional experience in a for-profit organization is a strong advantage, as well as the ability to demonstrate successful teaching experience. The position to be filled is that of a highly intellectual individual with specialized skills, knowledge and experience. According to Haesli and Boxall (2005), such individuals seek facets of employment ordinary workers do not, and would look to find the following qualifications when selecting an employer: From the foregoing, Sincere College, in its desire to source the best possible applicant for the position and maintain such an individual for the long-term, must offer above all work that is continuously interesting to the individual, not routinary but challenging to the person’s specialized abilities (Douglas, 2010). Sincere College should furthermore offer the candidate a competitive salary worthy of his/her high qualifications, in the area of $X,XXX.XX per month. He/she shall also enjoy the following benefits: XXXX Finally, he or she should be informed that the position is in the tenure track, and may expect to be welcome as a part of the long and illustrious tradition of Sincere College. The College should be shown to have a dynamic strategic approach to academic pursuits, as strategic flexibility determines the organizational commitment to ensure the satisfaction and growth of its employees (Roca-Puig, et al., 2005). Internal recruitment should first be attempted prior to advertising outside of the college. It is possible that qualified teaching personnel already exist in the college, and such announcement, through posting in the school intranet or HR bulletin board for notice of vacancies or by circulating through memorandum. This allows interested individuals the chance to express their interest to be considered for the position, and the skills and abilities are already known to the college,

Sunday, September 22, 2019

Nokia Smart Smartphone Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Nokia Smart Smartphone - Essay Example Nokia Company Nokia is a mobile phone company whose headquarters are based in Finland. The company started in 1865 through innovative skills of an engineer named Fredrik Idestam. The company started from humble beginnings but tremendously grew over the years beating up political and market waves to become the largest mobile phone maker in the world. However, Nokia’s market share has been declining over the years especially in the 21 century due to the emergence of touch screen phones and outstanding Smartphones from rival companies. This is a fact because statistics claim that in 2012, Nokia operated in 150 countries globally, with annual revenues of 30 billion pounds, and with a global market share of 18.0%, and 3.2 % market share in smart phones. More so, Fortune Global 500 claims that the company’s position stood at 274th in 2013 in terms of revenue measurement, an indication that Nokia’s market share is declining by the day. Nevertheless, Nokia is trying hard to improve its products and sales in order to retain its past market share. Among the strategies that the company has put forth is that it has teamed up with Microsoft Corporation in a way to add up strategy on mobile phone innovation and design. This combination has led to the development of Nokia’s windows phones like the Nokia Lumia 920. The innovation of the product was a great development for the company but the brand did not successfully hit the market due to copying by other rival companies. Analysts claim that the reason why Nokia lags behind in terms of innovation is because it lacks adequate design thinking and that it is dependent to its partner Microsoft for innovative designs, which yields to lack of unique models (Hinrichs 2013, p. 11). This is a fact because Nokia has... This paper approves that the device also has a transparent and flexible screen that could be viewed at any angle without light interference and reflections. This feature also applies to diverse customers who deal with diverse tasks in their daily activities especially the outdoor activities. This means that the screen of the Smartphone will not be affected by reflections but rather will have an accurate colour, image contrast, picture quality and above all flexible readability. The screen is a major determiner on customer behaviour while purchasing phones will mean that flexible and readable screen will attract a vast range of customers because customers love the uniqueness of the products. This report makes a conclusion that product designing and creativity means that the company needs to intensively research on appropriate products that aligns with the changing trends because it latest smart phone design Nokia Lumia 525, has outstanding features but still do not possess the required uniqueness compared to other Smartphones. This means that the company’s design team should research and borrow a piece from other leading companies like Apple’s design team whose product designing is unique and different from the rest and above all exactly befits customers’ needs. This seems to be the recommendable way for Nokia who holds a strong brand and outstanding customer loyalty because analysts claim that the company could experience more declines in revenue and market share if necessary innovations do not take place. Therefore, the ball lies on Nokia’s executive team to implement necessary measures that will rejuvenate the company from its current downf all because the company has all the needed resources and capabilities to prosper and become a leader in the industry.

Saturday, September 21, 2019

Acc 422 final exams Essay Example for Free

Acc 422 final exams Essay 1) Which of the following is NOT considered cash for financial reporting purposes? 2) What is the preferable presentation of accounts receivable from officers, employees, or affiliated companies on a balance sheet? 3) Which of the following is considered cash? 4) If a company employs the gross method of recording accounts receivable from customers, then sales discounts taken should be reported as 5) Assuming that the ideal measure of short-term receivables in the balance sheet is the discounted value of the cash to be received in the future, failure to follow this practice usually does NOT make the balance sheet misleading because 6) Which of the following methods of determining annual bad debt expense best achieves the matching concept? 7) The accountant for the Orion Sales Company is preparing the income statement for 2007 and the balance sheet at December 31, 2007. Orion uses the periodic inventory system. The January 1, 2007 merchandise inventory balance will appear 8) Eller Co. received merchandise on consignment. As of January 31, Eller included the goods in inventory, but did NOT record the transaction. The effect of this on its financial statements for January 31 would be 9. If the beginning inventory for 2006 is overstated, the effects of this error on cost of goods sold for 2006, net income for 2006, and assets at December 31, 2007, respectively, are 10) Assuming no beginning inventory, what can be said about the trend of inventory prices if cost of goods sold computed when inventory is valued using the FIFO method exceeds cost of goods sold when inventory is valued using the LIFO method? 11) Which method of inventory pricing best approximates specific identification of the actual flow of costs and units in most manufacturing situations? 12) All of the following costs should be charged against revenue in the period in which costs are incurred EXCEPT for 13) In no case can market in the lower-of-cost-or-market rule be more than 14) When the direct method is used to record inventory at market 15) An item of inventory purchased this period for $15.00 has been incorrectly written down to its current replacement cost of $10.00. It sells during the following period for $30.00, its normal selling price, with disposal costs of $3.00 and normal profit of $12.00. Which of the following statements is NOT true? 16) The retail inventory method is based on the assumption that the 17) A major advantage of the retail inventory method is that it 18) In 2006, Lucas Manufacturing signed a contract with a supplier to purchase raw materials in 2007 for $700,000. Before the December 31, 2006 balance sheet date, the market price for these materials dropped to $510,000. The journal entry to record this situation at December 31, 2006 will result in a credit that should be reported 19) The cost of land typically includes the purchase price and all of the following costs EXCEPT 20) Cotton Hotel Corporation recently purchased Holiday Hotel and the land on which it is located with the plan to tear down the Holiday Hotel and build a new luxury hotel on the site. The cost of the Holiday Hotel should be 21) If a corporation purchases a lot and building and subsequently tears down the building and uses the property as a parking lot, the proper accounting treatment of the cost of the building would depend on 22) The period of time during which interest must be capitalized ends w hen 23) Which of the following assets do NOT qualify for capitalization of interest costs incurred during construction of the assets? 24) When computing the amount of interest cost to be capitalized, the concept of avoidable interest refers to 25) The King-Kong Corporation exchanges one plant asset for a similar plant asset and gives cash in the exchange. The exchange is NOT expected to cause a material change in the future cash flows for either entity. If a gain on the disposal of the old asset is indicated, the gain will 26) When a plant asset is acquired by issuance of common stock, the cost of the plant asset is properly measured by the 27) The cost of a nonmonetary asset acquired in exchange for another nonmonetary asset and the exchange has commercial substance is usually recorded at 28) Which of the following principles best describes the conceptual rationale for the methods of matching depreciation expense with revenues? 29) If an industrial firm uses the units-of-production method for computing depreciation on its only plant asset, factory machinery, the credit to accumulated depreciation from period to pe riod during the life of the firm will 30) Which of the following most accurately reflects the concept of depreciation as used in accounting? 31) Prentice Company purchased a depreciable asset for $200,000. The estimated salvage value is $20,000, and the estimated useful life is 10 years. The straight-line method will be used for depreciation. What is the depreciation base of this asset? 32) Harrison Company purchased a depreciable asset for $100,000. The estimated salvage value is $10,000, and the estimated useful life is 10 years. The straight-line method will be used for depreciation. What is the depreciation base of this asset? 33) Starr Company purchased a depreciable asset for $150,000. The estimated salvage value is $10,000, and the estimated useful life is 8 years. The double-declining balance method will be used for depreciation. What is the depreciation expense for the second year on this asset? 34) Costs incurred internally to create intangibles are 35) Factors considered in determining an intangible asset’s useful life include all of the following EXCEPT 36) The cost of purchasing patent rights for a product that might otherwise have seriously competed with one of the purchasers patented products should be 37) Malrom Manufacturing Company acquired a patent on a manufacturing process on January 1, 2006 for $10,000,000. It was expected to have a 10 year life and no residual value. Malrom uses straight-line amortization for patents. On December 31, 2007, the expected future cash flows expected from the patent were expected to be $800,000 per year for the next eight years. The present value of these cash flows, discounted at Malrom’s market interest rate, is $4,800,000. At what amount should the patent be carried on the December 31, 2007 balance sheet? 38) Mining Company acquired a patent on an oil extraction technique on January 1, 2006 for $5,000,000. It was expected to have a 10 year life and no residual value. Min ing uses straight-line amortization for patents. On December 31, 2007, the expected future cash flows expected from the patent were expected to be $600,000 per year for the next eight years. The present value of these cash flows, discounted at Mining’s market interest rate, is $2,800,000. At what amount should the patent be carried on the December 31, 2007 balance sheet? 39) General Products Company bought Special Products Division in 2006 and appropriately booked $250,000 of goodwill related to the purchase. On December 31, 2007, the fair value of Special Products Division is $2,000,000 and it is carried on General Product’s books for a total of $1,700,000, including the goodwill. An analysis of Special Products Division’s assets indicates that goodwill of $200,000 exists on December 31, 2007. What goodwill impairment should be recognized by General Products in 2007? 40) The intangible asset goodwill may be 41) The reason goodwill is sometimes referred to as a master valuation account is because 42) Goodwill 43) If a short-term obligation is excluded from current liabilities because of refinancing, the footnote to the financial statements describing this event should include all of the following information EXCEPT 44) Stock dividends distributable should be classified on the 45) Which of the following items is a current liability? 46) A company offers a cash rebate of $1 on each $4 package of light bulbs sold during 2007. Historically, 10% of customers mail in the rebate form. During 2007, 4,000,000 packages of light bulbs are sold, and 140,000 $1 rebates are mailed to customers. What is the rebate expense and liability, respectively, shown on the 2007 financial statements dated December 31? 47) A company offers a cash rebate of $1 on each $4 package of batteries sold during 2007. Historically, 10% of customers mail in the rebate form. During 2007, 6,000,000 packages of batteries are sold, and 210,000 $1 rebates are mailed to customers. What is the rebate expense and liability, respectively, shown on the 2007 financial statements dated December 31? 48) A company buys an oil rig for $1,000,000 on January 1, 2007. The life of the rig is 10 years and the expected cost to dismantle the rig at the end of 10 years is $200,000 (present value at 10% is $77,110). 10% is an appropriate interest rate for this company. What expense should be recorded for 2007 as a result of these events? 49) A contingency can be accrued when 50) Mark Ward is a farmer who owns land which borders on the right-of-way of the Northern Railroad. On August 10, 2007, due to the admitted negligence of the Railroad, hay on the farm was set on fire and burned. Ward had had a dispute with the Railroad for several years concerning the ownership of a small parcel of land. The representative of the Railroad has offered to assign any rights which the Railroad may have in the land to Ward in exchange for a release of his right to reimbursement for the loss he has sustained from the fire. Ward appears inclined to accept the Railroads offer. The Railroads 2007 financial statements should include the following related to the incident: 51) Which of the following contingencies need NOT be disclosed in the financial statements or the notes thereto? 52) The covenants and other terms of the agreement between the issuer of bonds and the lender are set forth in the 53) If bonds are issued initially at a premium and the effective-interest method of amortization is used, interest expense in the earlier years will be 54) Bonds that pay no interest unless the issuing company is profitable are called 55) Minimum lease payments may include a 56) An essential element of a lease conveyance is that the 57) While only certain leases are currently accounted for as a sale or purchase, there is theoretic justification for considering all leases to be sales or purchases. The principal reason that supports this idea is that 58) In the earlier years of a lease, from the lessees perspective, the use of the 59) In a lease that is appropriately recorded as a direct-financing lease by the lessor, unearned income 60) In order to properly record a direct-financing lease, the lessor needs to know how to calculate the lease receivable. The lease receivable in a direct-financing lease is best defined as

Friday, September 20, 2019

Democracy According To Karl Popper

Democracy According To Karl Popper Karl Popper (1902-1994) was one of the most provocative philosophers and thinkers of the twentieth century. Born in Vienna, he grew up in a city witnessing great intellectual ferment and cultural excitement. One of his most celebrated and well-known books, The Logic of Scientific Discovery, appeared in Germany in 1934; it marked Poppers decisive break with the philosophers who formed the prestigious Vienna Circle and exposed many of his most influential arguments and ideas, above all we should remember his theory on the growth of scientific knowledge. On the eve of World War Two, Poppers life took a dramatic turn: because of the threat of German invasion, in 1937 he was urged to leave his own country and he emigrated to New Zealand where, reflecting on the tyranny that was sweeping around Europe, he wrote The Open Society and Its Enemies, published in 1945. This work is undeniably a classic, Karl Popper decided to write it in March 1938, when the Nazis invaded Austria. This personal background says a lot about Poppers motivation for writing The Open Society, and about its main theme as well. In this book as well as in The Poverty of Historicism, he attacks totalitarianism and its intellectual supports: the attempt to impose a large-scale planning on the lives of human beings in the light of holistic and historicist considerations. In order to analyze Poppers idea of democracy we shall sets out key tenets of his social and political thought, as well as a few of problems with them. The paper will try to underline Poppers conception of human nature and show how this provides a framework for his theory of history, his critique of historicism and his conception of the open society and democracy. After considering Poppers central political values of freedom and reason, well go through the political programmes of democracy and piecemeal social engineering; after these considerations it will be possible to conclude that Popper can not sustain an exhaustive anti-dogmatism and, contrary to the philosphers own declaration, his political ideas can not be classified as liberal in any honest way. Historical and Intellectual Background Even if Popper rejected Marxism in 1919, he claimed to be a socialist till 1932; it was the socialistic ethic and its idea of justice to which he retained adherence, not its political strategies. Awareness of the growth of authoritarianism in the Soviet Union and what he saw as deficiencies in the Marxist theory and practice of Austrian social democracy pressed him to revise further his political views. Both the idea and the experience of violence were catalytic. Social democracy, by holding to their threat of achieving their objectives by violent means, were implicitly provoking state authorities to a ruthless response, Popper then adopted a more traditional, liberal political stance: deciding that freedom was more important than equality he reaffirmed his rejection of violence. The central core of Poppers social and political theory resides in The Poverty of Historicism and The Open Society and Its Enemies, regarded by the author as his war effort: they were intended as a defense of freedom against the obvious impulse towards totalitarianism and authoritarianism. Poppers further espousal of the values of reason, toleration, peaceful discussion and respect for the individual all find their predecessors in Kants moral and political philosophy. The Austrian thinker extends Kants ethical precept of criticism and self-criticism providing a foundation for his philosophy of critical rationalism and joins Kants optimistic idea and hope in the possibility of obtaining social reform and peaceful relations within and between nations. Human Nature To explain human behaviour and history Popper refuses the utility of a general theory of human nature; his conception of human nature may be found in his knowledge of biology and psychology since he considers human beings similar to any organism, in that they have inborn needs or expectations. According to the author, people tend to hold on to the uniformities they discover, become afraid of change and even wish to dominate others; so if this occurs, the failure of a regularity provokes social disorder and also encourages people to create traditions and taboos. Even though the attachment to regularities is a source of dogmatism and intolerance (attitudes which are anathema to him), Popper advocates social regularities, like social traditions, more favourably than would many other liberals. He suggests that the maintenance of traditions (by which he seems to mean culture or settled ways of thinking and acting) brings order and predictability into our lives and even provides the founda tion of social structures: the important political task is to discriminate between valuable and harmful traditions. This conception of human nature has direct implications for the sort of society he wants to promote and the principles by which it is to be guided. He suggests a slow, gradual reform because this kind of change will not suddenly remove the traditions to which people have become accustomed and thereby create anxiety, terror and violence. There are many contradictions between Poppers advocacy of boldness, novelty and revolution in intellectual but not in social life: I think they might be explained more with reference to his theory of human nature than to his epistemology, even if he justifies the distinction in epistemological terms, it becomes clear that objective knowledge is preferable because of the constraints it exercises over subjective fears and impulses. This account of Poppers conception of human nature demonstrates his concern for the practical impact of ideas upon the social life of human beings, here we may notice a conservative tone in his political thought. Epistemology and History Poppers social and political thought includes a more general, speculative philosophy of history which indicates the character of historical progress. For the author, ideas are the main influences upon whether or not human progress is maintained: all social changes and conflicts, wars and revolutions can be seen as the result of conflict between opposing ideas and ideologies. Even with these conclusions, he shares with the historicists, whom he so vehemently attacks, a belief that there exists a direction to human history given by the growth of knowledge. He claims that the growth of knowledge, and thus the history of science, is the heart of all history. The social dilemmas produced by the most crucial episodes in the evolutionary history still remain; for the author these are best exemplified in the evolution of the different social arrangements that have arisen from the exercise of different human facilities. So the open and the close societies represent ideal types of two differen t stages of social and cultural evolution. According to the author where the lower biological needs are dominant, the social structure has the character of a closed society in which all social life is guided by myths and rigid taboos. A kind of magical attitude prevails, in the closed society there is no scope for self doubt and personal moral responsibility; changes in these kind of societies come about more by the introduction of new magical taboos than by ration attempts to improve social conditions. Popper affirms that the breakdown of the closed society began in Greece around 600 B.C., when new intellectual values, methods and ideas of acquiring knowledge arose together with an original style of politics. The Ionian School inaugurated a new tradition of critical thought: its innovation was to question and discuss dogmas and traditions instead of merely accepting them. Within this historical and philosophical transition, according to Popper, we can trace the emergence of a scien tific method. The ideas of criticism and democratic practice allowed human beings to commence their entrance into the open society where they could become aware of the importance of personal decisions and individual moral responsibility. Where biological and physical bonds became weaker more abstract relations, like exchange and cooperation, linked together people and groups. Democracy and the Open Society One of Poppers most striking contributions to contemporary political thought maybe found in his conception of democracy and of what he defines as open society. The idea of the open society operates both as a minimalist ideal to be sought after and as a celebration of the achievement of modern rationality and liberal democracy. Much of its appeals lies in its apparent capacity to limit the impact of our inevitable errors and to contain potentially harmful social tendencies. The open society, which is basically identified by the author as his idea of democracy, aims to promote criticism and diversity without succumbing either to violence or irreconcilable social division. This adventure in a creative and critical thougth produces conflict, but such problems are resolved by peaceful means; the values of freedom of thought and speech, toleration and individualism operate as both a motivation for, and a constraint upon, individual behavior. Those more substantial differences are to be channelled into the democratic process whereby governments can be replaced by free and regular elections. Popper recognizes the presence of certain dangers in the historical evolution of the open society: he suggests that it could become an abstract society in which social relations might become too rational but, although Popper acknowledges that modern industrial societies exhibit many such features, he denies that the process of abstraction or rationalization will actually complete itself. According to the philosopher there will always be emotional needs which human beings can not satisfy in an abstract society; in this view we see the distinction made between the private and the public sphere. The familiar function of the private sphere provides emotional and biological regeneration for authentic life in the public sphere; though Poppers neglect of the problems of unequal power and authority within family and personal life places him clearly in the mainstream of patriarchal political thought. Even though he knows, and admits, that such democracies fall short of his ideal, he is quite optimistic about their potential. Anyway we must recognize that the transition to the open society remains incomplete and its achievements are always and constantly under threat. On the one hand, biological needs, old traditions but especially the difficulties of living with rationality and personal responsibility all combine to challenge the new society; the passions of our lower nature are always liable to rise up and overthrow the controls instituted by self critical scientific rationality. On the other hand the open society may be inherently self-destructive because critical thought continually erodes those older closed traditions that sustain social institutions. Democracy performs a vital function for both politics and epistemology. I tprovides a peaceful means for reform and change pf government, while ensuring the freedom of thought and speech necessary for intellectual progress. This process encourages a pluralism of ideas and groups, it is the necessary precondition for the working out of political meaningn and aims, and is vital for the processes of critical through and the goal of emancipation through knowledge. Poppers theory of democracy typically grows out of his criticism of other approaches to government, initially Platos than Marxs. Our philosopher denies that the guiding principles of politics should be determined by answers given to the question Who should rule?, instead we should ask How can we so organize political institutions that bad and incompetent rulers can be prevents from doing too much damage? which is followed by an other essential question How can we get rid of those rulers without bloodshed and violence?. In responses, Popper argues that democracy should be founded upon a theory of check and balances: basically we are assuming that even the best rulers might fail, so this theory relies on institutional means for curbing their power. The major check is provided by periodic elections that enable people to oust their government without using violent means: this shows the difference between democracy and its opposite, tyranny which consists if governments which the ruled can not get rid of except by way of a successful revolution. He denies any true meaning or essence of democracy, but he asserts it doesnt mean the rule of people or even that the majority should rule, if only because this is impossible in any practical way. Democracy relies upon the political methods of general elections and representative government and Popper considers that these are always open to improvement; so in such a system individuals are allowed both to criticize the majoritys decisions and, within the law, to revise them. Actually Popper provides little details on the practical aspects, like the methods of representation, size and nature of electorates, and length of terms of office. He does reject proportional representation because of its origins in dubious theories of sovereignty and also because of its propensity to produce unstable coalition governments; in Poppers view, two party government is preferable if only because it allows for more serious internal self-criticism after elections defeats: his view of democracy is, in this sense, a relatively conventional elaboration of liberal pluralist principles. But on their own these principles may not guarantee the survival of liberal democracy: issues of representation, size, nature of electorates and so on all have a bearing upon weather citizens would consider themselves to be member of a legitimate democracy. A pluralist system of checks and balances may be so restrictive as to prevent a duly elected government and business to manipulate public opinion there may be little pressure at all upon those in office in order to change their policies. Assuming that the mass of people can not govern,Poppers theory of democracy may be reduced to a theory of competing elites; for this reason his procedural arguments lie within the tradition of realist and revisionist democratic theory that gives priority to competitive elites and argues for democracy as a method for choosing governments. But Popper departs from realist democratic theory because he recognizes that control over government is not all there is to creating a democratic state and society; his solution, however, is not to encourage widespread political participation but to require that the state protect democracy in two ways. First, since democracies must always be open to new ideas, protection must be given and assured to minorities, except to those who violate law and especially those who incite others to the violent overthrow of the democracy, so we must exclude just those violent changes that could put the democracy in dangerous. Second, because Popper is concerned to avoid the misuse of political power and economic power, he exhortes democratic states to engage in social and economic reforms; he strongly affirms the need of institutions to be constructed in order to protect the economically weak against the economically strong. So he sees the necessity of some sort of economic interventionism as well as some social reforms, the necessity of reforms are essential ingredients for a democratic order: the democratic system should work step by step in order to safeguard freedom form exploitation. Although such strategies create greater possibilities for increased state power and bureaucracy, these may be diminished by strengthening democratic institutions and by following the principles of piecemeal social engineering. This kind of policy is not as restrictive as it is commonly thought, but it odes rule out the nationalization and socialization of the entire private industry of a country. A separate point in favo r of piecemeal social engineering is thought to be its scientific character. Popper considers it methodologically superior to holisitc and revolutionary programmes, in part because social engineers accept the limitations of their knowledge. By reformulating key questions about democracy, Popper sidesteps some of the more usual difficulties of universalist democratic theory. By requiring state action to remedy certain kinds of social and economic problems, he offers more of a policy substance that the usual realist and proceduralist forms of democratic theory. His goal is to avoid or at least minimize the violent conflict that he sees inevitably arising from arguments over the good society. Whereas we may not be able to agree on abstract universal values, the shape of an ideal society or the ultimate good of people, we can generally reach agreement on concrete social and economic evils such as poverty and disease; Popper doesnt develop any universal values but he doesnt abandoned the m. I think a major advantage of Popper commitment to non-violence, public-criticism and freedom of speech is that allows us to retain a critical perspective upon all kinds of governments. His idea of minimal proceduralism and gradualism, for example, may accommodate democratic aspirations less developed or developing countries without subscribing to wholesale westernization and modernization. Poppers substantive policy proposals reject the radicalism of laissez-faire economics and offer the social benefits of gradualism, stability and security. Their negative utilitarianism encourages governments to ameliorate the worst aspects of individualism and capitalism, and allows a legitimate role for state intervention in society and economy. Popper combines ethical proceduralism with a requirement for state-initiated reform, his theory advances somewhat beyond the usual forms of democratic elitism and revisionism. Poppers social and political thought comprises elements which may be designed as liberal, social democratic and conservative. He deeply respects individual freedom and emphasizes the power of ideas in promoting progress while critical rationalism lies primarily within the mainstream of the liberal tradition. Nevertheless his conception of human nature is a combination of liberal and conservative assumptions, which sets out both an optimistic view of human potential and a largely pessimistic account of human needs. Poppers social vision, however, is a liberal rationalist one: an open society in which the values of freedom, reason, toleration and non-violence prevail; he suggests institutional guidelines for building and maintaining democracy, advocating policies such as piecemeal social engineering, oriented towards protecting individuals form the ravages of the market. But for a liberal philosopher, however, the guiding values of liberty, rationality, toleration and non-violence of t he open society are relatively undeveloped. Poppers conservativism is most evident in his political realism and his uncritical attitude towards contemporary liberal democracies. Underlying his stress upon the need for creative and revolutionary thought there is the fear that this will bring social disorder. Hence, such intellectual processes need to be contained within firm traditions whose overthrow cannot be countenanced except to establish a democracy. I believe we might see his political project as an attempt to provide more suitable tradtions or controls upon human thought and action; but I still find an unavoidable conflict between his liberal rationalist values and his perception of the perverse and intractable nature of individuals even if his ethical individualism and cosmopolitism differentiate him form most conservatives. Popper sees totalitarianism of all stripes as essentially tribal, as a closed society, a rebellion against the strain of civilization. He assaults it by using his philosophy of science (which greatly emphasizes falsification, i.e. the refutation of statements and theories) to criticize the doctrines of those whom Popper takes to be behind modern totalitarianism, namely Plato, Aristotle, Hegel and Marx. Brian Magee ably summarizes Poppers reasons for defending the Open Society: Because he regards living as first and foremost a process of problem-solving he wants societies which are conducive to problem-solving. And because problem-solving calls for the bold propounding of trial solutions which are then subjected to criticism and error elimination, he wants forms of society which permit of the untramelled assertion of different proposals, followed by criticism, followed by the genuine possibility of change in the light of criticism. Regardless of any moral considerations he believes that a society organized on such lines will be more effective at solving its problems, and therefore more successful in achieving the aims of its members, than if it were organized on other lines. Such a society is what Popper takes to be social democracy, entailing the prob lem-solving of piecemeal social engineering. This social democracy may indeed have once inspired the intellectual elite of the West, seeking (as many were) alternatives to fascism and communism, but today it inspires hardly anyone. And for good reason, for what else is democratic social reconstruction but that postwar system of fine-tuning the economy, the reign of countless redistributive social programs designed by politicians and social scientists to meet those alleged social needs that a host of interest groups are pressing upon the political systems of the West as non-negotiable demands? Since the Second World War, most of the Western democracies have followed Poppers advice about piecemeal social engineering and democratic social reform, and it has gotten them into a grand mess. Intervention has been piled upon intervention; regulations have been continually modified in unpredictable ways (Popper advocates such revisions in the light of experience); taxation has increased dras tically to finance social welfare programs (as has inflation, with its resulting economic fluctuations); and the unhampered market economy, so forcefully defended by Poppers close friend F. A. Hayek, has been reformed out of existence. Interventionism, piecemeal or not, has worked its inevitable way, and has led to precisely those consequences that Mises, Hayek, Rothbard and others had predicted: economic stagnation and political conflict. Democratic institutions themselves are threatened by those whose vested interests are entwined with the State apparatus. Dime store tinkering, even with freedom of criticism and revision, is leading to the closed society that Popper so fears. There is indeed nothing new in this warning; it is the theme of both Ludwig von Mises Socialism and F. A. Hayeks The Road to Serfdom. In short, the Open Society is not enough. If the Open Society is equivalent to a society in which everything and anything is open to democratic revision except the basic institutions that make democratic revision possible then Popper is only focusing on one need of human beings (that a dubious collective need), not the broader need for liberty that is implied in the outline of his argument as stated by Magee. Popper makes a great deal of noise about individualism, but nevertheless only applies the structure of that argument to collective processes of hypothesis, testing (action) and revision in the light of experience; the argument would apply to individuals as well, since they are the sole constituents of society. By focusing on this collective democratic character of the Open Society, Popper ignores the more basic need for individual liberty in art, business, science, and all other areas as well.The arguments for democracy that Popper presents, then, are in principle identical to arguments for individual liberty. It is the principle of non-aggression, the first principle of liberty, that properly limits the domain of democracy. If Poppers arguments for democracy (as opposed to his advocacy of democracy itself) are valid, then it is not the rigidity of a technology of social engineering that we should seek, but an unhampered market economy, where people can constantly act on their own judgment and can continually revise their plans in accordance with the new information brought by change. This brings us not to social democracy, but to the doctrine of libertarianism. Far more important than the principle of democracy, then, even by Poppers own arguments, is the principle of individual liberty. Liberty is paramount, democracy at best secondary: democracy is important only insofar as it is the servant of and means to the end of liberty. Thus, in following the logical implications of Poppers views (which are not, after all, that original), we move from the open society to the Free Society, and find ourselves agreeing with Michael Polanyis claim, contra Popper, that the Free Society is not an Open Society, but a society committed to a very definite set of rules. In Poppers Open Society, the principle of democracy is regarded as fixed, as not being open to revision. In the Free Society, it is the far more fundamental principle of individual liberty and non-aggression that is not open to revision (though its implications may be refined with growing knowledge). Poppers reasoning is, by and large, correct, but it is individuals who must solve problems to survive, not societies, and therefore individuals who must be free to think and act to achieve values and to revise mistaken plans and impressions in the light of experience or more critical thought. Why is it important to consider The Open Society and Its Enemies after all these years? Very simply, because these are the times when totalitarianism is on the rise, and Western democracies are in the midst of crises that are threatening the stability of their basic institutions, and perhaps even their very survival. In this battle against totalitarianism todays right-wing social democrats the neo-conservatives such as Daniel Patrick Moynihan, Irving Kristol and Daniel Bell are once again raising the banner of social democracy against tyranny. But this is pointless, for such democracy combined with social engineering and statist reforms is inherently unstable and is unjust as well. No mere democratic machinery, no mere procedure, is enough to oppose fascism or communism, not in a world of those real social dynamics that are set in motion by interventionism. Only liberty can fully oppose closed societies, and only if liberty is seen as something that is not to be bargained away or a bandoned through as series of insignificant piecemeal reforms. Liberty must be regarded as the ultimate political end, foremost among those political values held dear by reasonable men and women, the highest and most noble political form possible to human beings. I do not wish to leave the impression that The Open Society is worthless. It is indeed a heuristic work, tossing off suggestive arguments and insights on nearly every page, and the criticisms of Plato, Hegel and Marx are always pregnant ones. Popper is a great and forceful advocate of reason, science and progess, and his passionate idealism shines forth continually from the pages of this work. But so too does nearly every moth-eaten philosophical cliche around, e.g., the attack on certainty, the fact/value dichotomy, and the Humean assault on induction. Moreover, Popper is unnerving in his treatment of capitalism. Opponents of the Open Society who see it as being too coercive are slighted by Poppers astonishing smears of laissez faire, his continual granting of Marxist historical points against capitalism, and his cheerful parading before us of those democratic reforms that have all but obliterated the unhampered free market economy. Social democracy, the Open Society, has been tried and found wanting. The question that faces us now is simply whether those lovers of experiment and flexibility are experimental and flexible enough to advocate that liberty be given a chance. If it is not given that chance, there may be no tu rning back, and we may yet arrive in an era when we shall look back at the totalitarianism of the 1930s as a veritable golden age. But in one sense, at least, Popper is right: the future is ours to shape. Liberty has never been fully tried. It is the task of readers of this journal to remedy that unfortunate situation; if we do not, no one else will.

Thursday, September 19, 2019

Pay It Forward - We Can Change the World :: Film Movies Films Movie Essays

Pay It Forward - We Can Change the World If someone did you a favor, something big, something that you could not do on your own, and instead of paying it back, you paid it forward to three people. Imagine the next day, they each paid it forward to three more people. And imagine the day after, those 27 people each paid it forward to another three people. Then each day afterwards, everyone in turn paid it forward to three more people; in two weeks that comes to 4,782,969 people. This is the idea that gives the movie Pay It Forward such persuasive appeal. The specific persuasive purpose is to get people to think how such a simple idea can make a big difference. Another persuasive goal of the movie was to get people to not be afraid to help others, and tell those people to help other like they were helped. The idea must follow these three rules: First, It has to be something that really helps people. Second, It has to be something they can't do by themselves. Lastly, if I do it for them, they do it for three other people (Pay It Forward 2000). The title of the movie is Pay It Forward; it was released into the theatre on October 20, 2000 nationwide. The director was Mimi Leder who did other films such as Peacemaker and Deep Impact. The screenwriter was Leslie Dixon, known for Overboard, That Old Feeling, Mrs. Doubtfire, Look Who's Talking Now; co writer of The Thomas Crown Affair and Smoke & Mirrors. The basis of this movie is from the best-selling novel Pay It Forward written by Catherine Ryan Hyde. The movie received mixed reviews from film critics the most common was the one written by www.rottentomatoes.com, which said, â€Å"Pay It Forward has strong performances from Spacey, Hunt, and Osment, but the movie itself is too emotionally manipulative and the ending is bad.† This is not to say the movie is bad at being persuasive just because the movie is emotionally manipulative, and the fact that the ending is bad is purely opinionative. This shows the movie’s good use of pathos by using strong acting and a p ersuasive plot. The plot of the movie is a school social studies assignment leads to acts of kindness that spread from city-to-city. When assigned to come up with some idea that will improve the world, a seventh grader boy Trevor McKinney (Haley Joel Osment) decides that if he can do three good deeds for someone and they in turn can "pay it forward" and so forth, then the world might be a better place.

Wednesday, September 18, 2019

Bigfoot: In Search of the Truth Essay -- essays research papers

Bigfoot is, without a doubt, the most recognized mystery in all of North America. The apelike being has reportedly been sighted thousands of times since the beginning of the 19th century. According to eyewitness testimonies, Bigfoot, also known as Sasqautch, is a gigantic beast that towers in at eight feet tall and weighs as much as six hundred pounds. Reports also say that the monster’s form is well built and usually covered in a thick, brownish fur. Many have asked if such a creature could possibly be roaming through the wilderness of North America and around the world, and the answer is yes. The amount of evidence supporting such a creature’s existence is astonishing. From footprint casting and fur samples to video evidence and numerous human sightings, Bigfoot’s existence cannot be doubted.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  There are three pieces of evidence supporting the existence of Bigfoot, the first of which is the thousands of eyewitness accounts. The first recorded sighting occurred in 1870 near a small town in California. The town newspaper, the Antioch Ledger, reported that a â€Å"gorilla man† or â€Å"wild man† had been sighted in the woods near the town. The paper deemed it unsafe to travel outside unless absolutely necessary because of the beast. Next, in 1901, a lumberjack on Vancouver Island reported seeing a â€Å"man beast† washing itself in a river near his base camp. The courageous lumberjack decided there and then to approach the beast and confront him. The strange â€Å"monkey man† quickly fled, though, as the man approached the river. Upon examining the tracks left behind, the lumberjack concluded that the prints were almost identical to that of a human, except for the extremely large size. After the incident, many reports began pouri ng in from the Vancouver area of Canada. The residents of the area became well aware of the existence of a very elusive creature in the area, and it was they who first coined the term Bigfoot. By 1960, thousands of reports on the existence of Bigfoot flooded in from all over the United States. The sightings usually occurred in mountainous, woodland areas near rivers and streams. Many thought that those who claimed such things were crazy, but it was at this time that the inevitable happened: Bigfoot was captured on film.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  On October 20, 1967, Roger Patterson and Bob Gimlin, two Bigfoot researchers,... ... over the print is correct. All of these facts are bittersweet though, since sample specimens have nothing to be compared to since no actual creature specimen has been collected. It can be concluded, however, that these remains did not come from any animal currently known to modern science.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Bigfoot’s existence can no longer be denied. No longer is it a question of Bigfoot being real, but rather a question of man’s capability in being able to believe the truth. The facts cannot be mistaken. Besides being seen time and time again, video footage has been collected. This alone is enough to make many believe, but for the rest, the physical evidence is unmistakably real. As the theory progresses, more and more credible researchers come forward to show support in such a creature’s existence. They do this at the risk of losing their own credibility. None, however, are capable of an explanation for Bigfoot’s uncanny ability to remain hidden from human observation, the nature of which remains to be a question. Perhaps, though, as more and more people start to believe in the truth, questions will be answered and the mystery solved.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Bigfoot: In Search of the Truth Essay -- essays research papers Bigfoot is, without a doubt, the most recognized mystery in all of North America. The apelike being has reportedly been sighted thousands of times since the beginning of the 19th century. According to eyewitness testimonies, Bigfoot, also known as Sasqautch, is a gigantic beast that towers in at eight feet tall and weighs as much as six hundred pounds. Reports also say that the monster’s form is well built and usually covered in a thick, brownish fur. Many have asked if such a creature could possibly be roaming through the wilderness of North America and around the world, and the answer is yes. The amount of evidence supporting such a creature’s existence is astonishing. From footprint casting and fur samples to video evidence and numerous human sightings, Bigfoot’s existence cannot be doubted.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  There are three pieces of evidence supporting the existence of Bigfoot, the first of which is the thousands of eyewitness accounts. The first recorded sighting occurred in 1870 near a small town in California. The town newspaper, the Antioch Ledger, reported that a â€Å"gorilla man† or â€Å"wild man† had been sighted in the woods near the town. The paper deemed it unsafe to travel outside unless absolutely necessary because of the beast. Next, in 1901, a lumberjack on Vancouver Island reported seeing a â€Å"man beast† washing itself in a river near his base camp. The courageous lumberjack decided there and then to approach the beast and confront him. The strange â€Å"monkey man† quickly fled, though, as the man approached the river. Upon examining the tracks left behind, the lumberjack concluded that the prints were almost identical to that of a human, except for the extremely large size. After the incident, many reports began pouri ng in from the Vancouver area of Canada. The residents of the area became well aware of the existence of a very elusive creature in the area, and it was they who first coined the term Bigfoot. By 1960, thousands of reports on the existence of Bigfoot flooded in from all over the United States. The sightings usually occurred in mountainous, woodland areas near rivers and streams. Many thought that those who claimed such things were crazy, but it was at this time that the inevitable happened: Bigfoot was captured on film.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  On October 20, 1967, Roger Patterson and Bob Gimlin, two Bigfoot researchers,... ... over the print is correct. All of these facts are bittersweet though, since sample specimens have nothing to be compared to since no actual creature specimen has been collected. It can be concluded, however, that these remains did not come from any animal currently known to modern science.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Bigfoot’s existence can no longer be denied. No longer is it a question of Bigfoot being real, but rather a question of man’s capability in being able to believe the truth. The facts cannot be mistaken. Besides being seen time and time again, video footage has been collected. This alone is enough to make many believe, but for the rest, the physical evidence is unmistakably real. As the theory progresses, more and more credible researchers come forward to show support in such a creature’s existence. They do this at the risk of losing their own credibility. None, however, are capable of an explanation for Bigfoot’s uncanny ability to remain hidden from human observation, the nature of which remains to be a question. Perhaps, though, as more and more people start to believe in the truth, questions will be answered and the mystery solved.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  

Tuesday, September 17, 2019

Drinking Alcohol Makes Women More Beautiful :: Research Essays

Drinking Alcohol Makes Women More Beautiful While driving around in my friend’s car my other friend, Michael, commented on how he was going to get plastered, and find some girl to hook up with and he didn’t care about anything else just as long as she had a "nice personality". Others chimed in to the same affect and this got me thinking is this what people really think about when drinking? Is only one thing on their mind? My answer to this question is yes. That is why I chose to do my research paper on this topic. Going into this I decided on a hypothesis that is after a certain number of alcoholic drinks people find others more attractive. This in turn leads them to do other things that normally they would never dream of doing, but it doesn’t really matter, because they have the drunk factor to fall back on. Through a survey, interviews and a case study I have found my hypothesis to be more than just a theory. I will begin with my survey finding. I conducted a survey of 10 people, both males and females, consisting of 10 questions. Now I figured this would happen, but it was the opposite of what I thought they would answer. All of the questions were non-bias and helped me to get a better understanding of the relationship between attractiveness and alcohol. Let’s begin with my survey findings. Among some of the questions I asked were how many times a week do you drink, does your confidence go up after consuming alcohol, do you think alcohol affect others attractiveness to you, and who do you think males or females are more likely to be affected by "beer goggles". A surprising 80% said they drank more than 3 times a week. 20% of males said they had more confidence after drinking, where as 40% of females said they did. I assumed everyone would answer peoples’ attractiveness is affected by alcohol, but the votes were split 50-50. And 90% of those surveyed said that "beer goggles" affect males rather than females. I also interviewed a guy and a girl that had differing opinions about the questions. Some of the answers I got surprised me from both the male and female. My first interview was conducted in the cafeteria, with a 19-year-old sophomore female. The other was in Stouffer and with a 20-year-old junior male.

Monday, September 16, 2019

In Defense of Food: An Eater’s Manifesto Book Critique Essay

McDonald’s, Taco Bell, Chipotle, Subway, Jimmy Johns, Burger King, Chick-fil-A, Popeye’s and countless other food places are visited by thousands of Americans each day. Sadly, because of the convenience and price I am one of these people who give in to the endless fast food options we have in America today. Grocery shopping for most Americans is buying food that is the â€Å"best bargain,† or something you can get your moneys worth for. Quantity over quality is the mindset that a lot of people have in today’s society and how can you blame them? With rising costs in every aspect of living, a lot of people cannot afford to purchase organic, better quality food. Reading Michael Pollan’s book In Defense of Food: An Eater’s Manifesto has surprisingly helped me in becoming a better consumer and to make healthier choices in what I eat on a regular basis. As the title suggests, throughout the book the author tries to get the reader to take common sen se approaches in improving the way they eat. The main argument he points out is that having science incorporated into the way we eat (especially the additives and chemicals put into foods) has vastly decreased the quality of our food and increased diseases and health complications in America. The â€Å"Western diet† compared to other regions of the world is obviously not the best diet and it would be in the best interest of everyone to go back to a more traditional diet. Pollan also wants us to remember to â€Å"Eat food, not too much. Mostly plants.† Interestingly enough while I was writing this paper I was drinking Mango Passion Fruit Juice from Welch’s and I thought I would read the ingredients because there is a section in Pollan’s book that says to not eat or drink things with ingredients you don not know or cannot even pronounce. My juice contained high fructose corn syrup, filtered water, apple juice concentrate, mango puree concentrate, citric acid, natural and artificial flavors, sodium citrate, ascorbic acid, gum acacia, beta carotene (color), and ester gum. Most of the ingredients listed sound like they are from a science laboratory experiment and not the ingredients needed to make simple fruit juice. Pollan discusses many methods an d guidelines of how to eat healthy and what foods to avoid and to eat more of. Throughout the book the main arguments that I thought were the most important and that I agree with was that having science dictate what we deem is healthy or nutritious in our diet should be changed and have us go  back to traditional diets, that foods are essentially the sum of their nutrient parts, nutritionalism (the history of the isolated nutrients in our diet) is not a good approach to eating and the food manufacturing industry does not help the consumer’s health because all they really care about is marketing their products and increasing yields, and that our mindset when eating and purchasing food should be quality over quantity. The first main argument from In Defense of Food is the one that says having science dictate what we deem is healthy or nutritious in our diet should be changed and we should go back to traditional diets (versus a Western diet). An article by Livestrong.com compares a specific Asian diet versus a western one. The traditional Japanese diet includes fresh fish, rice, soy, vegetables, fruits, and green tea, while the Western diet relies heavily on red meat, poultry, fried foods, and processed foods that are high in salt or added sugar (Campbell). Looking at the two diets from a broad perspective and not from a narrow scientific view, it seems that the Japanese diet seems much more healthy to the consumer. Another few guidelines he lays out is that people should eat whole foods, purchase free range meats, buy from fair and local farmers markets or even directly from the farmer, savor your meals at the table with friends or family, avoid foods your great grandmother would not recognize, and to grow a garden to get the most fresh, ripe produce. I whole-heartedly agree on all of these points. It seems that the most natural and close you can get your food from the original source itself, the better quality it will be. There are many health claims and benefits about eating free-range meats, which include less cruelty inflicted on the animals, being able to obtain better nutrients from the meat itself, and to help local farmers. Compared to free range meats, conventional meats are fed a specific grain diet that increases rapid weight gain (Walls-Thumma). There actually is a difference in the meat that comes from rapid weight gained animals from the slow free-range animals. Slow growing animals produce meat with lower lipid content and higher proportions of polyunsaturated fatty acids, making this type of animal attractive from a nutritional point of view (Bianchi et al. 318). In today’s world, science and technology are a part of our everyday lives and has improved our quality of life tremendously. With such improvements in our well being due to science, it seems silly that there would be a drawback to having â€Å"too much science† in one’s life. However,  with the increase in health conscious consumers, most food products that are currently sold have added ingredients in them to make them more nutritious. Jennifer L. Pomeranz writes that health and nutrition claims have been shown to increase consumers’ perception of healthfulness and willingness to purchase the products. However, studies indicate that these claims are misleading and confusing, detract from the use of the Nutrition Facts Panel, generate inaccurate references and often convey healthiness for products that do not meet objective nutrition standards (2). Minute Maid’s Cranberry Apple Cocktail advertises that it is â€Å"all natural† but in actuality contains citric acid, while Thomas’ Hearty Grain English Muffins claim the muffins are â€Å"made with the goodness of whole grain† but is mostly unbleached enriched wheat flour (white flour) (Center for Science in the Public Interest). This goes along with not eating anything your great grandmother would not recognize as food. Too many people are informed on diet by untrustworthy marketing with little knowledge of real science, and even scientists cannot agree with each other. One report would claim that saturated fats are bad while another claims they are healthy (Parker-Pope). Pollan writes that in response to the 1977 and 1982 dietary guidelines, animal scientists genetically bred for leaner pigs and beef. A pork chop could now compete with chicken and be advertised as having â€Å"reduced saturated fat intake.† Genetically modified foods have been ever increasing in our supermarkets and grocery stores because they can be produced in greater quantities and at lower costs. Alcaraz, Bellows, and Hallman reports that by 2004 the U.S. accounted for 59% of the total area cropped with genetically modiï ¬ ed varieties worldwide. This proportion could grow in the coming years due to the increasing rate of adoption of genetically modified crops by U.S. farmers (541). Several health concerns have been raised by researchers on genetically modified foods including not having enough research done on the long and short-term effects on our bodies, how the changes may mutate within our bodies, and the loss of natural seeds (taken from native wild plants) from be ing replaced by genetically modified seeds (Domingo 722). The ideology of nutritionalism (isolated nutrients in our diet) is not in any means a good approach to eating. Throughout the book there are several examples of how overall a particular diet is great for a group of people, but when the nutrients are isolated and added to other  foods, the achieved health effects are not the same. Nonessential and essential nutrients cannot be considered to operate in isolation; rather, they work in a dynamic, constantly changing milieu. Greater attention to all components of the diet and elaboration of their interactions should make possible specific and appropriate recommendations for the general population and allow for recommendations tailored to specific subgroups or individuals (Milner 1658). Also, the food manufacturing industry promotes false health advertising in order to market their products and increase yield. They have helped to justify â€Å"foods† such as vitamin enriched Diet Coke and bread with Omega-3 fatty acids (Pollan 53, 80). Similar to nutritionalism, reductionism also takes complex things and reduces them to simpler constituents. Reductionism as a way of understanding how certain foods or drugs work may be harmless and quite beneficial, but when it comes to actually practicing it by applying to the way we eat (reducing foods and plants to their most salient compounds), can lead to problems. Nutrition scientists especially those involved with conveying health messages should adopt as their primary public health perspective one which recognizes that the influence of diet on health and diseases likely results not only from the subtle effects of a vast multitude of individual food components but from whole foods and the interactions that occur among t heir constituents (Appel et al. 1417). By isolating nutritional elements from the whole foods package in which they originate, food manufacturers can convince us that their highly-processed and nutrient-poor products are heart healthy, rich in omega-3’s, contain zero trans fat, provide daily fiber requirements, or contain no cholesterol. Lastly, I thought that one of the more important arguments Pollan talked about in the book was how we should consume and purchase food that chooses the value of that product over the amount of what we are purchasing. However, in today’s world where our food system is organized around quantity rather than quality, the more low quality food one eats, it seems that the more one wants to eat in a unsuccessful but highly profitable quest for the absent nutrient (Pollan 124). Farmers have doubled or tripled the yield of most major grains, fruits and vegetables over the last half-century. American agriculture’s single-minded focus on increasing yields over the last half-century created a blind spot where incremental erosion in the nutritional quality of our food has occurred. The concentration of a range  of essential nutrients in the food supply has declined in the last few decades, with double-digit percentage declines of iron, zinc, calcium, selenium and other essential n utrients across a wide range of common foods. As a consequence, the same-size serving of sweet corn or potatoes, or a slice of whole wheat bread, delivers less iron, zinc and calcium (Halweil 5). Understanding not just what to eat to obtain our nutrients in the best way possible, but in how to eat will help to improve people’s lives that are on the Western diet. Many health problems, avoidable deaths, and other negative factors that have come from the way they eat will be eliminated if we take into consideration the many valid points that Michael Pollan lists in his book. The few arguments Pollan listed that I was able to validate from other sources were the ones that I thought were the most important but by no means were they the only ones.

Sunday, September 15, 2019

Privacy by default

The word ‘pervasive' is indicative of the intrusive nature of TIT, as can be evidenced by two of its features, namely data collected would come from various origins, and that it would be done without the user's awareness. The paper highlights five objectives to be achieved for TIT to avoid being misused and end up harming the users. The right of deletion, the right to be forgotten, data portability, privacy, and data protection principles must not be compromised or neglected. The following examples below list just three common ways that these five objectives were not met in many internet applications.Firstly, one such risk is that a user's personal information might not be directly known, but it could be revealed through lots data collection from different sources or even uncover new information, thus violating the users privacy. A person who does not wish to be recognized online can therefore be identified through such means. Secondly, the paper details that many applications only consider the installation of â€Å"information security, privacy and data protection† only as an afterthought, rather than in the beginning, at the drawing board.This compromises the application's security and the users privacy substantially, as he capabilities of these measures would be reduced. Thirdly, with the advent of cloud computing and social networking services, the likelihood of users becoming â€Å"locked-in† to a particular TIT service provider increases because it becomes more difficult to import and export their information to other service providers. The lack of data portability here also means that users do not have control over their own data. The paper mentions that there are t-von. O general principles that should be followed in the policy making of TIT. Firstly, the TIT should not â€Å"violate human identity, human integrity, human rights, privacy or individual or public berries†. Secondly, individuals should have control of all their p ersonal information created or processed within the TIT, unless such an action violates the first principle. With regards to this, the paper illustrated four methods to reaching the objectives: 1 . Privacy, data protection and information security risk management 2. Privacy by design and Privacy by default 3.Data protection legislation: harmonistic/coherent application/enhanced enforcement 4. Standardization Each of the above four options address various challenges related to TIT. The first option is not simply a technology-focused idea, as the paper states that it loud also be important to look into other measures, such as legal, regulatory, procedural and organizational. The main idea of this option is to avoid leaving said protection measures till the end of the development process as an afterthought, but to be included at the planning stage, with an adherence to best practices to avoid or reduce common risks.The second option operates on the basis that while the technology might not be the factor that puts privacy and security at risk, but the way that it is created and implemented. It claims that applications should not collect data necessary to its functions, and that users should be made aware of what information would be gathered from them as well as what said information would be used for. Users should also be informed on how to exercise their rights, and the applications should adhere to data protection principles.The flashlight application example mentioned before was in clear violation of this, and this real life example further enforces the need for an option such as this. From the technical standpoint, the paper states that personal data protection should be defined, such as in-built privacy options and mechanisms to inform ND educate users on data processing, although the challenge would be to do such things while operating within limited processing power and/or memory of the applications.The third option focuses on the legal aspect of data prot ection, such as strengthening, clarifying and harmonize the powers of data protection authorities in order to make sure that all legislations are enforced, and not just pick and choose specific laws to be followed. The paper also states that violations should be sanctioned significantly to deter people from making applications that would neglect such issues. This is to ensure transparency of applications and for users to have control over their own data.The â€Å"concept of indirectly identifiable data† also has to be improved and elucidated to avoid uncertainty in legislations. The last option, standardization, allows ease of conformity with legal requirements and certification due to the clarity provided from it, thus being cap bled of educating users on how to exercise their rights and allowing them to make informed choices. One weakness with standardization is that â€Å"standards are voluntary and non-binding†, and thus it might not be very effective. It would req uire measures which are more binding.The impact of these options is the building of trust between consumers and the applications. Trust is important in this online environment because without trust, consumers are less likely to buy and use new applications, thus slowing progress of the invention of new technologies, economic growth, and cause the public sector to take longer to benefit from digitizing its services. The paper concludes that having a binding law with more data protection enforcement is the best option to achieve the goals for TIT to ensure that the applications are trustworthy and compliant with user rights.

Review of the Child Protective Services Investigation Process Essay

In the beginning of 2004, the tragic death of a young boy in San Antonio, TX raised concerns about Texas Department of Protective and Regulatory Services’ (TDPRS) procedures relating to the investigation of the child protective services (CPS) process, including responding to telephone reports and assessing the risk of maltreatment accurately. TDPRS is currently under investigation ordered by the Governor, Rick Perry. The Governor stated, â€Å"there is enough evidence from various parts of the state to suggest that some of our most vulnerable children are not receiving the protection they need from abusive situations. The evidence leads me to believe we have a systemic breakdown in the safety net that must protect abused children† (www.governor.state.tx.us July 1, 2004). This paper examines current procedures in the investigation process and provides recommendations for improvement related to several of the details and feature of the operations process. â€Å"Reinventing government† initiatives draw heavily on supply chain management, total quality management, business process reengineering, and just-in-time delivery – concepts that fall under the Operations Management umbrella.(Chase, 2003). Because this review is narrowly focused on the CPS investigation process, there are several essential elements of child welfare services that are not addressed in this paper, including substitute care and permanency services. OVERVIEW OF FUNCTIONAL AREAS The overall goal of CPS is to protect the unprotected children from abuse and neglect. This report focuses on specific CPS functions and crosscutting themes. These functions are those that comprise the child protection response to allegations of abuse and neglect. Operational definitions described in this report include: * Screening and Intake – the process by which CPS receives a referral and a report concerning allegations of child abuse or neglect, and decides whether or not to respond to the referral and report. * Investigation – the process by which CPS determines whether child maltreatment has occurred or if a child is at risk of maltreatment, and the decisions and actions that are needed to ensure the child’s safety. * Other CPS Response and Alternative Response – a response to an allegation of abuse or neglect that assesses the needs of the child or family with or without requiring a determination that maltreatment has occurred or that the child is at risk of maltreatment for the purpose of providing the family with services. For each function, there are several different features. The workflow of these functions is described in Table 1. SCREENING AND INTAKE Receiving community referrals, which includes those from mandated professional reporters and the population at large, is the gateway to CPS. Features of the intake procedures include the availability to receive reports, methods for documenting reports, and timeframes for accepting and forwarding a report. Intake is available 24-hours a day 7 days a week, and centralized in Austin, TX. Referred reports are generally categorized into two groups. In the first group, CPS caseworkers are dispatched immediately for children believed to be in imminent risk of harm. In the second group, investigations are usually initiated within 10 days. The policies indicate that a decision protocol for forwarding cases for investigation. The hotline workers conduct quality assurance (QA) reviews on each case and decision to forward a case to investigation is made with supervisor approval. In case of sexual abuse and serious abuse, the case must be notified to law enforcement. INVESTIGATION The investigation function addresses the process of determining whether a child has been maltreated or is likely to be maltreated, and if services are needed to ensure the child will not be harmed in the future. TDPRS implemented the use of risk and safety assessment (IRA) as tools to guide decision-making as to when and how to intervene to keep children safe in the immediate future and to reduce long-term risk. The result of IRA was included at case closure, during case planning at any major decision point, or whenever circumstances suggest a child’s safety is at risk. Investigators usually check if the child’s family has had a prior validated report of abuse or neglect. Investigators then visit and interview the family, including initiating face-to-face contact with the children, and begin collecting information about the alleged maltreatment incident. If an investigator, during the initial investigation, believes that a child has been maltreated and needs the court to protect the child’s safety, the investigator must initiate judicial oversight of the case, which can be time-consuming and complicated. While the investigator is following the procedures involved in investigating the alleged maltreatment, he or she is also developing a tentative plan to address those conditions in the home that CPS believes contributed to the maltreatment of the child. This plan ultimately becomes the case plan that outlines treatment services for the child and the family. The plan described what actions are required of all the parties involved to correct the condition that caused the maltreatment. OTHER CPS RESPONSE AND ALTERNATIVE RESPONSE The overall goals of alternative response are to provide a response option to those families whose situations did not meet the mandate or criteria for CPS involvement, to serve low-risk or low-severity situations, or to improve family situations. This is to emphasize partnering the families with the community and creating a network for the family, protect children and assist parents to recognize and remedy conditions harmful to their children, provide preventive services before the need of CPS involvement is required, and prevent the family from potentially being re-referred. The causes of child abuse and neglect are complex, and a case plan can involve referrals to an array of individuals, including caseworkers from other units in the agency, private service providers such as mental health and counseling professionals, other public agencies such as housing and transportation services. CURRENT WORKFLOW Documenting business process flows visually not only helps in ISO and QS initiatives, but it is the first step toward continuous improvement. (Gould, L. 2000) A good way to start analyzing a process is with a diagram showing the basic elements of a process (Chase, 2003) Table 1 describes the overview of current workflow from the time the report of maltreatment was reported to CPS until the completion of the investigation. Table 1 UNDERLYING PROBLEMS Because child protection is a critical service and because of the seriousness consequences of errors, CPS must seek to insure the quality, timeliness, and accuracy of the process both through detailed specifications (laws, regulations, and policy) and thorough supervisory oversight. However, the process must be balanced with systems that give workers and supervisors sufficient flexibility to apply sound professional judgment. Increases in the number of maltreatment cases, the changing nature of family problems, and long-standing systemic weaknesses have placed the CPS system in a state of crisis and undermined its ability to fully carry out the responsibilities for abused and neglected children. First, child maltreatment reports have risen steadily across the state. The caseloads of CPS have grown correspondingly, and CPS cannot keep pace with this workload. Second, these caseloads are increasingly composed of families whose problems have grown more troubling and complicated, with substance abuse a common and pervasive condition. Finally, systemic weaknesses, such as difficulty maintaining professional and skilled workforce, inconsistently implementing policies and procedures, and poor working relationships with outside resources has created a long-standing problems. The combined effect of difficult caseloads and systemic weaknesses may endanger the lives of children coming to the attention of CPS. In CPS, the staff sometimes deal with life-and-death issues, the knowledge of and consistent application of appropriate policies and procedures are critical. However, CPS staff is unable to consistently apply existing policies such as inadequate safety assessment. This is because policies change frequently, no procedures manual exists, and information is inconsistently distributed to all staff. By necessity, CPS should work efficiently and effectively with outside resources to protect children. However, the outside resources, like CPS, also face problems associated with the large volume of increasingly complex cases, budget cuts, and Medicaid reform. Unnecessary time spent to transfer or refer cases diverts the investigator from performing investigative activities on other open cases and create â€Å"congestion† in workflow. COMPARE AND CONTRAST WITH OTHER PRACTICE In 1994, Missouri developed a new strategy to handle the overwhelming number of reports coming into its CPS system. Missouri recognized that state government, acting alone, had neither the resources nor the local community, neighborhood, or family base to effectively alter the cycle of abuse and neglect. The agency and local CPS offices have turned to the broader community of churches, schools, mental health providers, and others to expand their reach. By developing partnerships with these community groups, CPS is able to quickly increase the number of people available to serve children and their families, without increasing CPS staffing levels. The model in this state is also based on the premise that not all CPS cases require the same traditional approach. Instead, the models incorporate a flexible response, whereby CPS cases can be grouped according to the nature of the allegation, recognizing that different types of allegations required different responses. RECOMMENDATIONS Build Community Partnership Different types of maltreatment require dramatically different prevention and treatment strategies. It is critical for CPS to form partnerships between CPS and community service providers. This will allow the cases to be referred and transferred more smoothly and in a timely manner. However, ultimate success will depend on the CPS staff’s ability to overcome certain challenges, such as developing willingness within the community to become more active in protecting children from maltreatment and to adapt to new roles and responsibilities. Refine the Key Performance Requirement Key Performance Requirements How to Achieve These Requirements Report Receipt (Intake) * Community awareness of when and how to report * Minimal wait to reach the intake workers * Effective use of the CAPS (agency computer system) * Enhanced phone system that provide real time information, manage call distribution to available workers, and support estimation of staffing requirements Screening * Immediate response to high risk situations * Reasonable timeliness of decisions on other situations * Sound screening decisions * Screening guidelines that provide consistent direction * Immediate access to relevant information system * Real-time consultation from experienced supervisors Assessment (Investigation) * Sufficient thoroughness; reasonable and prudent efforts made to obtain relevant information * Timeliness of decisions * Decisions consistent with information and with policy * Assessment guidelines that provide consistent direction * Assessment timeliness requirements that balance thorough information gathering with responsiveness * Reasonable caseloads and adequate number of staff * Accessible consultation from experienced supervisors Management Reporting * Information that enables management to make sound judgments regarding overall performance and other matters, such as staffing requirements * Information that enables supervisors to manage caseloads and monitor quality and timeliness * Use of the information to identify targeted improvements where needed * Real-time information about on-going cases * Reports on both the detailed (by worker) and summary (by unit) level on caseloads and case status (pending, deadlines, overdue, etc.) * Reports of quality assurance findings * Designation of specific performance measures that will be tracked and monitored with comparisons across local offices * Management reports on overall program performance including workload, timeliness, quality assurance results, investigation outcomes, list of outside resources, etc. CONCLUSION TDPRS is facing increased reports of child abuse and neglect, as well as a disturbing increase in the number of families with severe and multiple problems. The burden to improve the ways CPS responds to children at risk of abuse and neglect falls on state and local governments. When a process is operating at capacity, the only way to take on more work without increasing the waiting time is add more capacity (Chase, 2003) CPS management must recognize that the traditional approaches to child protection cannot keep pace with the demand for services. CPS needs to reach out to communities to establish partnerships among service providers, as well as our citizens. Furthermore, the CPS management team must look at the entire workflow of the operations process and recognize long-standing systemic problems. It is critical to seek ways to correct deficiencies and to build and maintain the personnel that will support the operations management strategies. REFERENCES: Chase, R. (2003). Product design and process selection. Operations Management for Competitive Advantage, Tenth Edition. The McGraw-Hill Companies. Chase, R. (2003). Operations strategy and management change. Operations Management for Competitive Advantage, Tenth Edition. The McGraw-Hill Companies. www. tdprs.state.tx.us www.governor.state.tx.us Gould, L. (2004) Designing a better business. Gardner Publications, Inc. Retrieved from www.autofieldguid.com on 8/23/04 McDonald W. (2001). National study of child protective services systems and reform efforts – Literature review. Retrieved from www.aspe.hhs.gov.hsp/protective01/ on 8/22/04. http://www.gao.gov/archive/1997/he97115.pdf