Tenet Healthcare Scandal

Introduction Over the years, the healthcare industry has undergone through an exponential growth despite the tremendous market pressure. Tenet Healthcare Corporation is among the many organizations that the struggle for a position in the healthcare industry (Klaidman, 2010). However, this struggle has contributed to a series of legal and ethical scandals that have largely changed the reputation of the company. Based on theoretical and practical explanations, this paper seeks to critically analyze one of the most recent scandal involving doctors at Tenet Healthcare who carried out unnecessary heart surgeries on patients.An Overview of the Company This company was established in 1967 under the name National Medical Enterprises by three lawyers and headquartered in Los Angeles, California. In its early years, the business policy of the company was mainly focused on building and acquiring medical facilities and related services in order to address the growing medical demands in the new m arket. In the late 1980s, the company diversified into specialty hospitals such as building nursing homes, and rehabilitation centers among other developments (Klaidman, 2010). Tenet Healthcare before the scandalFollowing a series of fraud and legal troubles, the company changed its name to Tenet Healthcare Corporation in 1994 whose headquarters is based in Dallas. Tenet Healthcare operates a number of hospitals and other healthcare facilities that are mandated to provide health care services to its customers. It is essential to mention the services provided by Tenet Healthcare are conducted through its subsidiaries (Klaidman, 2010). Tenet Healthcare Corporation owns and operates 69 acute-care hospitals, which provides services to urban communities in 13 states, in the United States.Some of the services provided by the company include acute care, respiratory therapy services, clinical laboratories, operating and recovery rooms, pharmacies and intensive care (California Nurse, 2002). The involvement of the company in recent legal and financial troubles has contributed to the falling of shares of Tenet Healthcare, from over $50 a share in 1994, to $8 a share today. The involvement of the company in a number of scandals contributed to the reduced profits in the 1990s. Nevertheless, a number of hanges in the management of the company following the appointment of Jeffry Barbakow as the chief executive in 1993 contributed to the recovery of the company (Klaidman, 2010). For six years, Tenet Healthcare Corporation tried to consolidate its position in the healthcare industry by buying hospitals around the country. This move contributed to the strong recovery that saw tenet healthcare redeeming itself from a $425million loss in 1994 to a $302 million profit in 2000 (Taylor, 2005). The Unnecessary Cardiac Procedures Scandal Individuals or firms who knew about, participated in or condoned the behavior.Several individuals were linked to the scandal and specifically the ph ysicians who were recruiting patients by paying them. This means that most of the employees and especially physicians knew about the scam. Moreover, Tenet had been performing poorly in terms of finances, and this has been noted to be one of the reasons that prompted the corporation to enter into corrupt deals. During the past decade, Tenet Health Care Corporation has faced scandals pertaining to legal and financial matters. Its image had been tarnished, and thus a number of its customers were compelled to seek medical services elsewhere.Moreover, it had influenced the number of uninsured citizens and reduced employer insurance cover. This gave rise to an excess number of individuals who were unable to cater for their medical services and hence resulted in a significant drop in Tenet’s market. The scandal erupted in October 2002 following allegations from hundreds of patients who believed that many of the heart operations done to patients at the Redding Hospital, in California were unnecessary. After a series of investigation, it was found that Dr. Chae Moon and his counterpart Dr.Fidel Realyvasquez had allegedly carried out a number of cardiac procedures that were neither necessary nor indicated in the reports of over 700 patients. How was the scandal uncovered and by whom The scandal was uncovered when one of the patients, John Corapi, a 55-year old priest visited Redding Medical Center in California for a medical checkup. After consultation with Dr. Moon, Corapi was told that he needed an emergency heart bypass surgery. However, Corapi was not satisfied with the recommendation made by the two doctors (Taylor, 2005).It was at this point that he decided to seek for more opinion from five cardiologists who gave him a different answer from the one given by the two doctors at tenet Healthcare Corporation’s Redding Medical Center. According to the cardiologists, Corapi did not require a heart surgery contrary to the opinion given by the doctors at th e Redding Medical Center. After reporting his case to the FBI, the federal authorities revealed that, hundreds of medical records of surgical patients did not support the need for surgery procedures (The Spark, 2002).Furthermore, when the scandal was uncovered, it was revealed that many patients had become victims of unnecessary cardiac surgeries that left them with complications. According to Klaidman (2010), many patients suffered from a myriad of complications including stroke, heart attack and paralysis. As a result, many of the patients who had undergone unnecessary surgery now require assisted living and 95 of the patients succumbed to death. For that reason, the plaintiffs sued Tenet Healthcare Corporation for fraud, negligence, battery and elder abuse, since most of the patients ranged between 65 to 90 years of age.Additionally, the estates of the 95 patients who died sued the company for wrongful deaths (The Spark, 2002). Once the scandal was discovered, the investigation o f FBI agent led by Michael Skeen invaded Tenet’s Redding Hospital that is based in California. The FBI found out that most of the patients who were required to undergo cardiac operations had not fully qualified. In light of this, a number of the patients’ hearts were in superb condition. After the FBI's probed, it carried further probing with an aim of authenticating the validity of the truth concerning the matter before taking further action.What did they do with the information they uncovered? The information gathered by the FBI was used to sue the physician allegedly associated with the scandal. Tenet as a corporation was not charged. It gave the California State together with the federal government over $50 million (Bejjani et al. , 2006). Additionally, Tenet Healthcare also paid an additional $395 million to over 700 patients in order to settle litigation for the unnecessary surgeries (Taylor, 2005). How did the company reactedThe need to change its image led to a number of reactions from the company. First, the company reacted by stating that, it was not involved in the scandal based on the point that, it was the doctors who were responsible for healthcare and not the hospital. In this case, it implied that only the patients implicated were under investigation and not the hospital (The Spark, 2002). It can be mentioned that, the company had nurtured a culture where fraud could easily be perpetrated without any serious actions being undertaken.Following this scandal, the affected patients received their compensation. On the other hand, the company decided to sell Redding Medical Center which was later renamed Shasta Regional Medical Center (California Nurse, 2002). Despite the fact that the scandal involving Tenet Healthcare Corporation did not preclude criminal or civil charges against individuals, the company agreed to pay the fine in order to settle the allegations poised in the unnecessary heart surgery scandal. This implies that there w as no civil trial in this case.According to Currier and Eimermann (2010), civil trial refers to a court of law proceedings where the judge makes a deliberation about who wins. In this case, the judge examines the evidence provided in order to make a decision on whether the defendant should be held legally responsible for the allegations put forward by the plaintiff (s). Civil cases usually involve civilians and organizations. On the other hand, a criminal trial refers to a court of law proceeding that is intended to settle criminal cases.In this case, the government can sue a person on allegations of certain criminal activities. Additionally, the justice remains to be a principal aim of criminal trials, as opposed to civil trial, which usually seek to achieve a resolution to the dispute (Currier & Eimermann, 2010). With that said, there was no civil trial following the decision by the company to pay a fine to the government and the state of California and later an immense amount as compensation to the affected patients.Even though, this scandal was revealed in 2002, it is said that it had taken place since the early 1990s. Therefore, many people became victims of this scandal (Taylor, 2005). First, the main stakeholders were directly or indirectly affected by the allegations based on how it painted badly on the corporate image of the company. Additionally, over 700 patients and their families were subjected to emotional, psychological and financial problems. The huge charges for the heart surgery required patients to pay a lot of money in the form of medical bills (Klaidman, 2010).The shareholders were also affected because the share of the company dropped from $50 per share in 1994 to $8 in 2002. Lastly, the competitiveness and professional qualifications of the two doctors were also questioned thus making it difficult for them to secure employment in the future (The Spark, 2002). The case of Tenet Healthcare Corporation signifies the negative implications of scandals on the management of an organization. As mentioned earlier, the company has been burdened by financial and legal troubles due to its involvement in a number of fraud and scandals.In the end, the company suffered from the loss of public trust, investors’ confidence and dwindling financial performance. The future of the company depends on how it will use its past in order to redesign its present as the second largest company in the US healthcare industry. How much money did the plaintiffs receive, other agreements As mentioned, reimbursement was made available to the government, patients and their loved ones. Towards the end of 2004, Tenet agreed that it would pay the patients who had been victims of the unnecessary heart surgeries over $395 million. Do you feel it was fair?There have been many instances of corporations deciding to continue unsafe practice because they calculate that not all of the number of people injured will bring legal action. Furthermore, the peo ple who sue are not guaranteed a victory in court or can be settled out of court, for far less than a jury will award. With that said, no amount of money can bring the dead back. I think that the amount was not a fair one due to the fact that those doctors knew what they were doing. I do not agree with the reimbursement and I do not think the amount was fair because the families of the victims had to face a lot of pain.Some of the pain and suffering: Immediate expenses associated with the death (medical & funeral), mental anguish to the survivors, Companionship, Loss of care and Loss of earnings in the future. Background Tenet Healthcare formerly was named National Medical Enterprises, ranks as the second largest hospital chain in the United States. The organization owns about 114 acute care hospitals and related businesses in 16 states. Boasting with over 57, 000 active personnel and over 13, 000 certified hospital beds, Tenet Healthcare Company is a force in the United States†™ healthcare delivery industry.Awarding doctors with financial incentives as payment for their support has been ruled out under the state’s stark laws; however, the marketplace cites this as a necessary form of clinching and maintaining that support. Tenet’s hospitals stand accused of paying doctors for referring clients to them as a means of keeping their support. Illegal behavior The illegal behavior was its defrauding of its stakeholders who came to seek medical treatment (Wynne, 2008). The doctors admitted excessive numbers of patients being fully aware that their capacity was lower.The doctors were also aware of the poor conditions in the hospitals but still went ahead to admit patients. In what type of court was Tenet Healthcare tried? The Tenet Healthcare scandal trial took place at the Supreme Court of Appeal in St. Louis Indiana, (circuit court) (Browers, 2012 & The Federal Reporter. , 1997). All the trials including subsequent appeals took place in Court of Appeals, in St. Luis, Indiana; United State The case was forwarded to the superior court in San Diego under the presiding attorney, Carol C. Lam where Tenet subsidiaries were indicted, while Nazaryan’s case was filed in the U.S. District Court (Wynne, 2007). After the case broke out, The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) broke into one of Tenet’s hospitals in San Diego, the Alvarado Hospital, and charged its administrator of 10 years. The charges were brought against Tenet Healthcare In the original indictment, Tenet Healthcare was aptly accused of fraud that was inclusive of illegally admitting psychiatric patients to the institutes and hiking their charges (inflating the cost of admission and administration of medicine (Wynne, 2007). Provide key details about the trial and provide a timeline of key trial events.After the raiding of the Redding hospital by the FBI agents in October 2002, it was revealed that Tenet Healthcare Corporation performed inappropriate an d unnecessary surgeries on patients and also overbilled patients beyond the standard Medicare rates. As a result, a legal suit was initiated against the Corporations. The trial pitted Federal government of the United States versus Tenet Healthcare Corporations. As alleged by the government, the Corporations admitted patients who did not qualify for admission in rehab facilities.This took place between May 15 2005 and December 31 2007. Besides this inappropriate admission, they were charged with soliciting high Rehabilitation fees. This was the qui tam claim that allowed William Meshel and Man Tai to establish a legal suit against the Corporation on behalf of the Federal government. In May 2006, Tenet went to court to dismiss these claims. Did Tenet Healthcare enter into a plea bargaining agreement? If so, to what charges did he/she plead guilty? If not, what were the final charges? Did they differ from those in the original indictment?What was the verdict? After the government dismi ssed the claims of the appellant since they had zero impact on the pre-existing investigations of the government, an agreement bargain was reached with the government but the other suit remained pending. The other settlement between the government and Tenet Healthcare concerned 165 hospitals nationwide. A summary judgment was moved on April 2007, which included the appellant as the original source of the case. The summary judgment was made in favor of the Federal government.As a result, Tenet accepted to pay the fines of overbilling of Medicare within its facilities after pleading guilty to the charges. What was the sentence? Did you feel it was fair? Justify our position. Tenet Corporation was guilty of overbilling, but the appellant who established the suit were unqualified to do so on the terms of qui tam. This was simply because they did not possess independent and original knowledge of Tenet’s fraudulent activities and practices in Medicare. Consequently, Tenet had under taken the responsibility of reparations of damages to both the government and its patients.This sentence was not fair. Tenet had more liabilities on top of Medicare overbilling. A large number of its patients died due to unnecessary surgeries and rehabilitations. The appellant, acting in the public interest, had the right to make their case heard for justice to be done, something which the district court denied and dismissed. Did they differ from those in the original indictment? What was the verdict? They did not differ much from the original indictment in that they were the same issues that were evidenced in the first indictment; overbilling and malpractice.The verdict was arrived at after Tenet pleaded guilty of overbilling its Medicare and admitting stable patients into the rehabilitation facilities. Tenet Healthcare Corporation was, therefore, found guilty of overbilling its medical services. It was also found that the qui tam of the two appellants was not tenable due to the fa ct that they were not the primary source of such information. The information was already in the public domain when they moved to court. Did Tenet Healthcare appeal? If so, on what grounds did he/she base the appeal?Tenet Healthcare corporations did not appeal in this case since it had passed a compromise with the government to pay the fines, an action that was supposed to redeem the image of the health care sector and to serve justice to the victims. Did Tenet Healthcare have mens rea and actus Reus? Justify your position Yes. This is because they had agreed to settle the fine, which is a sign of accepting that their activities were not acceptable and went against the law. They, therefore, accepted the liability of their ‘profit-driven actions.The general basis for imposing liability in criminal law is that the defendant must be proved to have committed a guilty act whilst having had a guilty state of mind. The physical elements are collectively called the actus Reus and the accompanied mental state is called the mens rea. Moreover, it is the fundamental duty of the prosecution to prove both of these elements of the offense to the satisfaction of the judge or jury beyond reasonable doubt. In the absence of such proof, the defendant will be acquitted.According to Cheeseman (2010) actus Reus is guilty act, which is the actual performance of a criminal act and mens rea is evil intent the possession of the requisite state of mind to commit a prohibited act. What constitutional protections do your subjects have? Equal protection and right to appeal for the accused and plaintiff, by the case brought against either party (Mann, 2008). The Tenet criminal trial encompasses several cases and conspiracies charged against the Tenet Healthcare Corporation. References Brown, G. (2012). The trait & style approach to leadership. Houston Chronicle.Retrievedfrom http://smallbusiness. chron. com/trait-style-approach-leadership-21103. html Cashen, L. H. (2009). 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Coronary: A True Story of Medicine Gone Awry. New York: Simon &Schuster publ ishers. Taylor M. , (2005). Tenet settles Redding case. Modern Healthcare, 21, 35(47):20. The Spark (2002). Tenet Healthcare scandal: Part of a health care system that kills forprofits. Retrieved on 12 September 2012 from: http://the-spark. net/np692605. html. California Nurse, (2002).Tenet Healthcare: the seamy side of a dysfunctional system. California Nurse, 98(8):6-8. Currier, K. A. , & Eimermann, T. E. , (2010). Introduction to paralegal studies: a criticalthinking approach. New York: Aspen Publishers. Klaidman, S. (2010). Coronary: A True Story of Medicine Gone Awry. New York: Simon &Schuster publishers. Taylor M. , (2005). Tenet settles Redding case. Modern Healthcare, 21, 35(47):20. The Spark (2002). Tenet Healthcare scandal: Part of a health care system that kills for profits. Retrieved on 12 September 2012 from: http://the-spark. net/np692605. html.

The Devil Wears Prada

Office-Politics lessons from â€Å"The Devil Wears Prada† Think you have the world’s worst boss? How does your boss measure up against the Boss-from-Hell? By Franke James, MFA The Devil Wears Prada will no doubt fuel some hot, haute water-cooler chat. Based on the novel by Lauren Weisberger, the film is a wickedly funny tale about working for a boss who is a tyrant (rumor has it that the book was inspired by Weisberger's stint at Vogue Magazine working for Anna Wintour). Meryl Streep stars as Miranda Priestly, Editor-in-Chief of Runway Magazine. Think Cruella de Ville with Medusa eyes. While the movie is an entertaining romp about the travails of working for a tyrannical boss, it raises some important questions: If you work for a Boss-from-Hell how do you cope? Is your boss a Boss-from-Hell? Is your boss bullying you or simply delivering a tough-love message? Are you a victim or just paying your dues? Does your boss thrive on chaos? Does your boss make impossible demands? Does your boss play the office politics game 1. Is your boss a Boss-from-Hell? Miranda quickly established her role as the ‘Master’ over her ‘Slave’ employees. She lived, ate, and breathed her career. Work and life had merged into one unified and indivisible whole. She expected everyone to have the same devotion to Runway Magazine. Employees time with family and friends was an expendable commodity, a frill. Miranda refused to address her new assistant Andy (Anne Hathaway) by her proper name, and substituted the name of her other assistant. She demanded that Andy be on call 24/7 (without adequate compensation) She gave a long list of demands without allowing any questions and expected employees to know the details of each task, but did not provide any training. She sent Andy on multiple errands, without clear instructions, and an impossibly short time-frame under threat of being fired if she did not deliver. She insulted her intelligence and mocked her style of dress, publicly and privately She forbade any employees from riding in the elevator with her, which further underlined a Master/Slave relationship. While some of these incidents, if taken alone, could be dismissed as ‘minor irritations’, collectively they amounted to psychological warfare. All of these ‘power-plays’ shared one thing in common: a lack of respect by the boss for the employee. How to cope: Stand up for yourself You have to stand up for yourself to get what you want with a Boss-from-Hell. Remember that they are more concerned about themselves than you. They are the ‘center of the universe'. So don’t take it personally that your boss can’t remember your name, or won’t take the time to delegate tasks properly. Your best strategy is to be quietly persistent and firm. Repeat back what tasks have been requested, and the expected timeline. If the boss is too impatient to listen, then send them a summary email or memo, before and after the task. Document everything. 2. Is your boss bullying you or simply delivering a tough-love message? No one likes to be ‘dressed-down’, especially in public. Miranda routinely demeaned Andy in front of the other employees by calling her insulting names, mocking her style of dress, her level of intelligence, and her ability to handle the job. The funny thing was that there was a grain of truth to Miranda’s criticisms. You can’t expect to work for a fashion magazine if you don’t know the product. The belligerent delivery was inexcusable but the underlying truth was that Andy was ignorant of fashion and she would not survive without changing, learning and growing. Miranda’s criticisms (but not her bullying tactics) could be viewed positively as a tough-love approach. How to cope: Share the company values (or exit) Miranda was setting up a challenge to Andy and every employee: conform to my standards or you are fired! This is not as unreasonable or evil as it appears at first glance. It raises a question that every employee should ask themselves. Am I not fitting in because I don’t share the company values? An extreme example: if you wanted to join the Hell’s Angels, you know that you’d have an easier time being accepted if you rode a motorcycle, dressed in leather, adorned your body with multiple tattoos, drank a two-four daily, and (perhaps) had some illegal activities on your record. Clearly if you are working in the fashion field then it is a safe assumption that you share the value that fashion is important. Andy rejected that value. She did not fit in because she did not wear the uniform. She knew it, but she didn’t care. She thought her brains were what really counted, not the surface decoration. Showing up for work in outfits that look like she rescued them from a thrift store was akin to waving a red flag in front of a bull. Unkempt hair, shapeless argyle blend polyester sweaters, frumpy plaid skirts, and clumpy clogs labeled Andy as an ignoramus of the fashion world. Andy needed to embrace the fashion culture in order to survive, and ultimately to be accepted. Not knowing that a Manolo Blahnik is a brand of shoe is like a carpenter not knowing what a hammer is. Dumb, dumb, dumb. But it does make for good comedy in the film. (Just don’t make the same mistake in your career. ) Since the product in this case was fashion, it was elementary logic that Andy should show respect by following the dress code. She was part of the Runway brand, as surely as the clothes-hanger models and glossy pages of their magazine. Andy’s career turned around in the second half of the movie after a fashion makeover. She finally accepted that she needed to ‘be the brand’ in order to excel at her job. She accepted the ‘shared value’. Miranda won a battle that should never have been an issue. If you don’t accept the shared values of a company then that company is not the right place for you. 3. Are you a victim or just paying your dues? In the movie Andy frequently told her boyfriend (whose birthday party she missed), that she had no choice. She whined constantly, â€Å"But I had no choice! Miranda called! † You don't have to be a tyrannical boss to want to wallop Andy with a big designer purse and yell, â€Å"Don’t answer the phone! Turn it off. † Andy was a willing victim. She chose to put her boss’ needs (and her career) ahead of her boyfriend. She decided that to climb the ladder she needed to work 24/7. Was that wrong? Not necessarily (besides the boyfriend is about as exciting as a heap of half-eaten mashed potatoes). But for Andy, whose true dream was to be a ‘serious’ journalist, the pain was not worth the gain. How to cope: Decide if it is a reasonable price To cope with a tyrannical boss, the most basic question you should ask yourself is whether the price in aggravation and stress in exchange for your weekly paycheque is worth it. If it’s not worth it, then you have two choices. #1. Create an action plan that will change the aspects of your job you find most difficult. #2. Ask yourself what better job you could move to — and what skills you need to acquire before you make the leap. 4. Does your boss thrive on chaos? Miranda did not have a well-oiled system. Things were constantly springing leaks. Tyrannical bosses need help — and not just psychiatric. At Miranda's company there was a crisis every hour. Employees were running around in a frenzied panic. Sadly, Miranda demanded perfection but was unwilling to develop a system to train her employees. Although many people admired her ability to run a fashion magazine, she was a poor manager of people. At the end of the movie she expressed relief that she would still be at the helm — saying under her breath that no one else could handle the job. Which was probably very true. She was irreplaceable because she ran the business on fear and chaos, and it would have imploded on her exit. How to cope: Create a well-ordered system To cope with the Boss-from-Hell, realize their shortcomings and compensate accordingly. In Miranda's case, the company lurched from mini-crisis to mini-crisis. A smart employee could have created systems to help run the place efficiently, smoothly and to minimize crisis. And then that employee would have been highly valued, and very marketable. 5. Does your boss make impossible demands? Miranda was forever making impossible demands of her employees. One hilarious example was when Miranda’s plane was grounded by a hurricane. Andy’s dinner with her out-of-town Dad was interrupted, while Andy tried valiantly to schedule another flight. Of course, the only thing that flew that night was the s–t hitting the fan when Miranda’s request for a flight was not met. How to Cope: Can you think two steps ahead of the boss? Putting aside the truly impossible demands, how do you stay two steps ahead of the boss? Anticipate what the boss will need, before they've even thought of it. That was the key to Andy's turnaround success. When Miranda asked for the impossible, a copy of an unpublished Harry Potter manuscript, Andy pulled strings to get it. But she proved herself to be a proactive thinker by getting the manuscript duplicated and bound (just in time for Miranda's twin daughters to read it on the train-ride to Grandma's). The coping strategy in this is not to take your boss' requests at face value. Think further down the road to what the next logical step is going to be. That devil-boss will be eating out of your hand. 6. Does your boss play the office politics game? Miranda is an expert office politics player. The climax of the movie occurs when Miranda becomes aware of an imminent coup that threatens to topple her (the magazine owner wants to give Miranda’s job to his sexy new mistress). But Miranda checkmates the move very effectively by threatening to steal ‘her’ high-profile fashion designers away to a rival publication. The owner grudgingly allows her to keep her Editor-in-Chief job, and offers his mistress an alternate, if largely titular, job. An unlucky pawn caught in the crossfire is Nigel, Miranda’s loyal design assistant. His ambitions get decimated, prompting Andy to virtuously claim that she could never backstab someone like that. Miranda corrects her and says, â€Å"Oh, but you already have. You did it to Emily. † This uncomfortable truth forced Andy to look in the mirror and make a decision as to what she wanted out of life, and how far she was willing to go to get it. How to Cope: Learn to play the office politics game To cope with the Boss-from-Hell, employees need to learn how to play office politics, whether they want to or not. Burying your head in the sand will not make it disappear. It is in your best interests to be aware of the shifting agendas, imbalances of power, hidden motives, and swift-moving unseen forces that are shaping your workplace. You need to become a student of human nature, which is ultimately what office politics is all about. Oh yeah, and to survive the Boss-from-Hell, document everything†¦ You never know when you may be able to turn it into a best-selling book or a hit movie starring an Oscar-winning actress. About the author: Franke James, MFA is the site founder of Office-Politics. com, and inventor of the Office-Politics Game. Office-Politics lessons from â€Å"The Devil Wears Prada†  © copyright 2006 Franke James. First publication: July 2006 ICFAI University Press, Institute of Chartered Financial Analysts of India. All photographs: The Devil Wears Prada – 2006 copyright 20th Century Fox. The Devil Wears Prada starring Anne Hathaway, Meryl Streep, Stanley Tucci, Simon Baker, Emily Blunt. Directed by David Frankel. Based on the novel by Lauren Weisberger. The Devil Wears Prada The novel â€Å"The Devil Wears Prada† by Weisberger is about a girl named Andrea moved to New York and found a job as a junior assistant of a fashion magazine editor. However, Andrea has a hard time on her job. Furthermore, her relationships with her family and friends get very bad because she is too hard-working. However, at the end of this novel Andrea makes her own way out by her careful and wisdom. After reading the novel, I found myself and the protagonist of the novel, Andrea are both too hard-working and careful. Andrea and I are both so hard working that we forgot our families and friends. In the novel, Andrea is working very hard that she put all her time and energy into her job, so Andrea does not have any time for her family and friends. For example, in the novel Andrea promise to call her boyfriend at three o’clock, but she was very busy at her work that she never gets to call her boyfriend the whole day. I was very busy at work once, and I totally forgot to tell my mother that I will be getting off from work one hour later than usual. My mother was waiting for me at the supermarket one hour. Furthermore, I found myself and Andrea are both very careful that we notice or remember small things that others do not. Andrea finally made her boss approve with her ability because Andrea is very careful and she notices and remembers things that her boss does not. For instance, Andrea and her boss went to a big fashion party in Paris, and there were so many famous fashion designers. Many people came and greet to Andrea’s boss, but her boss does not recognize any of them. However, Andrea memorizes all guests name by flipping through guests list. After that her boss was very impress on Andrea’s careful. I found myself is very similar to Andrea. I always remember to check the address of the place we are going to, when all of my friends forgot to check. I enjoy reading this book very much because I have the same personality characteristic, too hard-working and careful, with the protagonist, Andrea. I will recommend this novel to English-second language readers because the novel is easy to understand and interesting.

Notes of a Native Son as a Literature of African-American History Essay

African-American rights were not easily given but rather earned throughout decades of protests. Struggles for race equality in America have gone peaceful and violent. There are numerous African-Americans (blacks) leaders and personalities who stood up to proclaim the world their stories and sentiments. Some of them tried to enter the politics, some excelled in academics and some devoted their time in propagandizing through their literary works. James Baldwin is one of the remarkable black writers whose essays have powerful impact on the civil rights struggle. This essay aims to provide insight on James Baldwin’s Notes of a Native Son essay through searching for facts and patterns of African-American history. To begin with establishing the essay let us take a short review about the writer’s biography. James Baldwin was born on Harlem, New York City in August 2, 1924 and an illegitimate son of a domestic worker. He adopted his surname from his stepfather and was raised in great poverty. He began full-time writing on 1943 and produced various novels and essays like Go Tell It on the Mountain and Notes of a Native Son, respectively. The book Notes of a Native Son (1955) is a collection of his Baldwin’s personal essays about the social environment of America during the era of Civil Rights Movement. One chapter of the book is entitled Notes of a Native Son which commenced with the events of August 3, 1943 which is the day we now know as the Harlem Race Riots. The essay Notes of a Native Son was themed and patterned after the life of James Baldwin especially his relationship with his parents. Baldwin has mixed emotions towards his father and he tried to explain the complexity of their relationship in his works. He provided a creative link of his experiences with his parents with the ongoing public and private happenings in his era. The story was stressed in the historical Harlem Race Riots of 1943, a city-wide riot following the famous Detroit Riot. The Detroit Riot is one of the most violent riots in America which lasted for almost two full days and took out about 34 lives and done casualties of injuries and property damages. What is the cause of such riot? Similar to what Harlem Riot has, the causes are not specific. Generally, it was considered to be caused by culmination of petite situations such as gossips, hot tempers and neighbour riots. Whites and blacks were pointing their fingers to each other as to who started or provoked the fights (Hughes, et al. 104). Similar to Baldwin’s personal life as metaphorically illustrated in his essay, his relationship with his parents was chaotic and there were several personal issues and causes that triggered every persona to act the way they were in the story. Baldwin showed his insights into the lives of African-Americans after the World War II. The essay mainly discussed the white versus black riots thus it is crucial to understand the essay using the history and facts. The story employed the history of Harlem Race Riot, a commotion exploded in New York City exactly at the date of his father’s death and days before Baldwin’s nineteenth birthday. It is not far that Harlem became a place of riots because since the turn of twentieth century the place has been a home to many ethnic groups including whites and blacks. With the diverse people converging in the place, arts and culture has become diverse as well. However, having diverse cultures cause difficulties aside from the beauty diversity has brought unto them. Difficulties such as racism emerge which are expressed n theatre, fiction, music, literature and other art forms (â€Å"Harlem History†). Harlem riots have two periods, one in 1935 and one in 1943. Both periods started with a confrontation between blacks and the police. In 1943, the riot began with a clash in a hotel between black soldier Robert Bandy and a policeman. The story was distorted and versions like Bandy was killed by the police came out in gossips. With the confusion and bursting emotions of the blacks, fires broke out and glasses were shattered while police struggled to maintain control (Gilje 157). If we are to look close, there is a pattern between the riots in Detroit and Harlem. The emotions of Detroit blacks might be shared by Harlem blacks thus made Harlem riot of 1943 more dramatic than the original. The one in Harlem was more physical and emotional than the one in Detroit because of the use of guns. In relation with the essay Notes of a Native Son, parents of Baldwin and the people at Harlem were treated as parallels. This is the reason why the essay was considered to be an autobiographical piece of Baldwin’s life. Baldwin loved and despised his father at the same time because his father gave him essential lessons in life but demonstrated lack of hope when it comes in blacks struggling for civil rights. Being a wide reader and socially conscious person, Baldwin did not share the same emotions with his father and became a civil rights advocate. With his wide knowledge on the undergoing of blacks during his time, he came out with insights reflecting the sentiments of blacks, especially Harlem people. Baldwin’s father can be compared with majority of the blacks during his time. Just like the passive blacks, Baldwin’s father needed an event that could awaken and trigger him to stand up against black oppression. For Baldwin, it is not enough to just see what the existing things but rather it is much important for people to act upon calling. There was already a need for a change in American society and Baldwin was trying to provoke the hearts of blacks to unite through his powerful fiction. The fiction is not actually fiction as it served as a mirror of Harlem society at his time. The public share sentiment but there was a need to unite them because without oneness, the protests will not be seriously taken and the riots will not promote change. The diverse culture gave Harlem problems but Baldwin used its product (powerful literature) as the tool which can help them solve the problem. Without the literature Baldwin and other black essayists wrote, the public black will not be more vigilant with their surroundings. The blacks will continue resorting with riots which is not the only effective key to cry out for change. Baldwin was successful in showing that his insights were not only due to his personal experiences. His sentiments and insights were product of the root problems of the society. He has the clear picture of the reasons why blacks need change. His personal experiences may be not so similar with all other blacks but the message he wanted them to realize was acceptable. Although there is no definite or exact truth about the root of Harlem race riots, Baldwin still brought to the public the summary of their problems. With this, aside from the literary expertise he showed, he can be coined as one of the strongest black personalities during his time. He inspired many other writers like Toni Morrison and photo-journalist Kevin Brown who founded the National James Baldwin Literary Society. With the number of existing essayists acknowledging Baldwin, his legacy continues and the struggle of blacks for full civil rights remain alive.

Increasing Participation in the Marriage Enrichment Group at Essay

Increasing Participation in the Marriage Enrichment Group at Tabernacle Church - Essay Example As communicated to the researcher by the founding pastor, the Tabernacle discovered earlier in its ministry that in a dynamic world, the process of ministry is as important and as critical as the product of ministry. Therefore, small groups became the process through which quality care of members took place. Small groups were also places where members developed personal relationships. However, over the years, the groups at Tabernacle have been reduced to four. The structure of the Tabernacle Church is hierarchical, with the senior pastor being the Chief Executive Officer. Three assistant pastors help the senior pastor in providing general care for the congregation. They are also responsible for leading Men and Women’s Ministries as well as the Marriage Enrichment Ministry. The church has an administrator, a deacon and elder, two praise and worship leaders and an audio technician. Additionally, the Executive Board of the church comprises of the senior pastor, assistant pastors, the head deacon, an elder and the administrator. The Executive Board is responsible for hiring, buying and selling properties on behalf of the church. However, the senior pastor has the final say in decision-making and all of the above leaders report to him directly. The senior pastor of Tabernacle Church communicated to the researcher his observation of an ongoing pattern of low program activity, resulting in low program participation in the marriage subunit; hence, the problem. Further observation with the senior pastor reveals the effectiveness of the marriage enrichment subunit, which is supposed to create a network of support to encourage couples to grow in intimacy and commitment, as well as learn skills that will improve their marriages, has significantly declined. Consequently, the needed leadership is not being provided for the subunit of the family services

A rhetorical analysis of the New York Times Essay

A rhetorical analysis of the New York Times - Essay Example This can be analysed to mean that although there are plans in minds of many people, there lacks mechanisms or ways of executing them. According to Nathan, it is only through autonomy, that this can be realised. The second comment is from, Rebecca. She is also pleased with Cain’s article. Rebecca is also worried that in her school, there has been efforts to restructure several buildings, but unfortunately, she only hears of open plan, which according to her, makes her very nervous (Cain, Para. 4). The way she puts across her statements, it is evident that ethos is strong in her case. She even argues that after reading the article, she forwarded it to her head of school and the committee dealing with the restructuring plan. This indicates that she found some ethical appeals, and in this case, from a reliable source and expert testimony, bout how collaboration lacks creativity. Maria, the third commenter, on the other hand, argues that group work inhibit her creativity. She further argues that when she is alone she is free to focus task at hand (Cain, Para. 5). Her arguments can be argued to be in logos because she gives accounts of her own experience. She points out that dealing with groups; she cannot be able to make firm decisions since she has to be rational with the observations of other persons in the group. Cain poses a rhetoric argument that pulls various mixed reactions from readers. Much of this is seen when every commenter tries to justify the issue of lack of creativity and implantation phase of collaborations. Comments or the top three comments use different techniques to catch the attention of the readers that follows them. For example, Maria goes on to point out how disappointed she was because even if there were plans in her school to restructure some buildings, they are only mere talks, which she terms as â€Å"open plans†, but without implementation or

Responsible Marketing and Advertising Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Responsible Marketing and Advertising - Essay Example Arguably, these corporate businesses are themselves a subject of these systems of governance, regulation and responsibility but CSR demand corporate businesses to be subject and object of these systems simultaneously. In this connection, PepsiCo responsible advertising practices to ensure that only healthy choices are offered to schoolchildren are widely admired and echoed by corporate peers and competitors. If we zoom into corporate culture and behavior adopted by PepsiCo in previous two decades, its responsiveness to societal needs and demands became evident. A recent voluntary commitment of PepsiCo along with an alliance of multinational food and beverage manufacturers to advertise only the products of specific nutrition value to children under the age of 12 is an exemplary display of its socially aware corporate behavior. Stepping ahead of its competitors, PepsiCo has voluntarily adopted this policy as a global strategy not only in beverages rather it encompasses all food and sna ck’s brand of the corporation. Independent, third party sources have confirmed the success of PepsiCo compliance for this volunteer commitment to IFBA’s policy, formally known to be the policy for advertising to children by International Food & Beverage Alliance. The rate of this compliance is 100 percent for the year 2010 in USA and 98.5 for the rest of major Asian and European markets. Beyond this PepsiCo has taken another initiative. The objective of this initiative is to cut off the direct supply of all full-sugar soft drink to primary and secondary schools by the year 2012. This is a gigantic objective as far the corporate business is concerned. However, it is equally commendable for its social responsiveness on the part of a multinational brand like PepsiCo. Conclusion The need of socially aware and responsible advertising for children under the age 12 is globally recognized. However, the concept of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) does not validate its enfo rcement through legislative and disciplinary measures. The beauty of the concept is in its believe in corporate volunteer responsiveness owing to growing acceptance of corporations who are socially more aware of their responsibilities. A proactive approach in committing itself to IFBA’s policy for marketing and voluntarily barring its sales to primary and high schools has further endorsed the social image of PepsiCo as a brand that stems from society and remains committed to it. Access to Nutritious Food and Corporate Responsibilities Naturally, corporate actions and policies are focused to shareholders’ interest and even if it is not intended, they are commonly interpreted on these grounds. More recently, media and masses have begun to focus corporate behaviors towards society more closely and minutely. So it has become increasingly important for corporations to show responsiveness to social demands and needs. Especially for the deserving segments of the society, corp orations are closely watched and monitored. The National Diary Council and The Quaker Oats, a subsidiary of PepsiCo have jointly announced a program to increase the children's access to breakfast, nutritious snacks and physical activity. PepsiCo has responded to this societal demand quite vigorously and have engaged in several socially aware plans to ensure provision of nutritious food to children. The initiative of PepsiCo to engage other corporation in a socially responsive program has once again surfaced its

Surveillance Security research assingment Essay

Surveillance Security research assingment - Essay Example Introduction In this global technological evolution of information systems, every organization protects the network by firewalls, intrusion detection systems and other dedicated hardware. The widespread implementation of these network defense equipments facilitated the organizations to be more secure. However, the other side of the picture demonstrates that it has also maximized opportunities for hackers to breach in the systems. Security is essential part of any computer network that is operational. Security measures are mandatory as ‘www.businessdictionary.com’ covers the basics and states it as â€Å"Prevention of and protection against assault, damage, fire, fraud, invasion of privacy, theft, unlawful entry, and other such occurrences caused by deliberate action†. Another definition in the context of network security stated as â€Å"Network security covers such issues as network communication privacy, information confidentiality and integrity over network, co ntrolled access to restricted network domains and sensitive information, and using the public network, such as Internet, for private communications †. Organizations spend enormous funds only for implementing advanced security devices and security applications The reason for doing large investments in order to protect networks is understandable as the impacts of security breaches are also equivalent. Security breaches related to data theft, hacking, unauthorized access etc. impacts on organizations reputation in the market as customer data is exposed to hackers, who can use it for many purposes for financial gain. Likewise, this will also lead in severe revenue loss. The current network of 1-Click Mobile Phones Ltd has only a firewall to combat all the threats. No internal access policies are implemented, no advanced security appliances are present, and no surveillance security framework is implemented. 1-Click Mobile Phones Ltd has recognized the importance of securing the net work and hence decided to equip the network with a surveillance security cameras and biometrics, advanced security appliances, wireless security and internal access policies. The objectives of this report are to identify and prevent Unauthorized Access, Monitoring Employee activities by surveillance, Monitoring critical server, database and equipments by surveillance and Preventing Wireless access. Although, advanced firewalls support packet-filtering technology to analyze every packet before granting access. Moreover, ‘computer security incident response teams’ are deployed to perform recovery whenever an incident generates on the network. Physical Infrastructure Policy The physical infrastructure policy will add surveillance security to the current network. There are no definitions available for video surveillance security apart from this one that states it, as â€Å"Intelligent Video Solution is a system of hardware and software that aids the security executives in performing their daily tasks. An intelligent video solution can be from a single manufacturer or it can be a compilation of components (both hardware and software) from a variety of manufacturers. The net end result is that it is the sum of all of its parts performing the tasks they were designed to do† (Elliott 2010). For the current network of 1-Click Mobile Phones Ltd, a cost effective network video recording surveillance solution s required. The ‘VS-8024 VioStor NVR (Network Video Recorder)’ will fulfill all the requirements of the network as it

Evaluating creative writing pieces Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Evaluating creative writing pieces - Essay Example This remarkably brings to fore the conflict of emotions and the certainty of motivation in the character, which is so human and universal. The dialogue between Karen and Danny systematically unfolds the plot, exhibiting a mix of stability and surprise that the readers are bound to find interesting. The pace of the narrative is steady and terse, managing to gently hold on to the readers’ attention, until it culminates into a pleasant, open ended and a positively relieving climax, with the entry of Peter or possibly someone else. The writer immaculately exhibits a firm and understanding grip over the child psychology. The usage and treatment of dialogue is touchingly sensitive and emphatic. The conflict within the main characters that are Carmen and Sebastian, which stands to be so external in its scope and treatment throughout the text, almost suddenly metamorphoses into a purely internal struggle that between the constrained temporal realities of Carmen and her troubled and versatile imagination. The hallmark of the plot is that instead of relying on elaborate explanations ensuing forth from some omniscient point of view, as is so common to find in such writings, it leans on a systematic and stable development of dialogue to elaborate on the mindset of the main character. The rawness of power struggle between Luis and Carmen is expressed economically and effectively. The climax is gripping, apt and emphatically touching, furnishing a delicate but perpetuating release. In that sense, this piece of creative writing is very masterly and mature. Considering the visible affiliation of this piece to the thriller genre, the writer has to a great extent succeeded in exploiting the so essential elements of suspense, surprise and violence, which are the standard and inevitable trademarks of this discipline. The characterization is effective and apt. The writer has successfully managed to lead the dialogue from an initial simplicity to a

Management and Leadership Development Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Management and Leadership Development - Essay Example In this paper, Vodafone Group is used as a key case study for the application of theories in strategic human resource management that have been discussed earlier under literature review. As part of the application action, the key leadership and management issues in Vodafone group are going to be discussed as well as a critical review of the management development of Vodafone and how this is a contributing factor to the company’s five ranking on the list of Top 10 British Companies listed by market capitalization (Economic Help, 2012). The review shall clearly outline what Vodafone group is actually doing in terms of strategic human resource management and assign a general judgement as to whether or not the company has strategic human resource management strategy at all. Thereafter, there shall be a comparative assessment of the place of the strategic human resource management of Vodafone with theory to practice (Margit, 2011), after which general recommendations shall be given on the way forward to achieving a more enhanced corporate growth. Key leadership and management issues Leadership and management issues come in different forms and types within the Vodafone Group (Marek, 2011). Establishing considering the fact that the Vodafone Group employs some 86,373 people means that the company has a relatively larger scope of human resource issues to deal with than other companies because literature has actually showed that the human resource intensity of companies increase with increasing employee size (Schein, 1985). Among the number leadership and management issues in Vodafone however, three main issues shall be given attention, which are hiring, mentoring, and incentives. These are selected over the others because of the place these have in theory as the pivotal human resource issues for strategic organisational growth and development (Veiko, 2009). What is more, in the Vodafone Annual Report 2012, the company is emphatic about the role of these three ke y leadership and management issues to the success of the company. As seen in literature earlier, at Vodafone, there is a conscious effort by the top hierarchy of the company to clearly define what leaders need to do about these three issues, as well as what managers need to do. This way, there is a perfect harnessing of the human resource competence of the company and functions are not seen as overlapping (Pasmore, 2009). Management Development In terms of the critical issues identified as hiring, mentoring and incentives, the company does a number of things from a management theoretical perspective rather than a leadership theoretical perspective. For instance there is always a conscious effort to working towards alignment within the work team rather than just defining the company values (Gluck, Kaufman and Walleck, 1982). Using hiring as a typical example, Vodafone Group has an entire human resource management team that is made up of representatives and officers from all other dep artments of the company. This way, it is easier to align the needs of the company from all departments into a collective need of the company so that the hiring process will cater for the larger human capital inadequacies of the company (Waters, 1995). In effect, the hiring process at Vodafone Group is one that is done for corporate Vodafone and not one that is done

Fishers narrative paradigm Essay Example for Free

Fishers narrative paradigm Essay One could argue, for instance, that the narrative of Translators without Borders ultimately sustains and justifies an ethics of consumerism through the commoditization of human grief. By blurring the boundaries between commercial and humanitarian agendas, the narrative accommodates itself to the established cosmetic use of good causes by big business to improve its image and deflect attention from its less savory practices. Finally, the Translators Without Borders story feeds into hegemonic cultural narratives of social responsibility that are ultimately designed to make the donors feel good about themselves rather than directly address the needs of the recipients. This is evident in Lori Thicke s article, published in Multilingual Computing and Technology, where she explains the attraction of the humanitarian exercise as follows: Giving away translations for Ð ° worthy cause is Ð ° win-win scenario. Eurotexte feels good about it. The translators feel good about it, and they see Eurotexte as an agency that really cares which we do. And last but not least, our customers consider this to be Ð ° point of distinction. (2oo3:4) In the final analysis, as Hinchman and Hinchman point out, we extend or withhold allegiance to communities depending on our rational judgments concerning the narratives on which they are based (1997:238) Fishers narrative paradigm, as І have tried to demonstrate with the narrative of Translators Without Borders, offers us Ð ° framework not only for making rational judgments but also for assessing narratives in terms of fidelity and, thus, their ethical import. Gumperz (1982) demonstrated that speakers in Ð ° conversation are engaged in an ongoing and immediate process of assessing others intentions and producing responses based on the assessment of those intentions. He calls this situated or context-bound process of interpreting meaning conversational inference and the meanings themselves are flexible and evolve as conversations proceed (Gumperz 1977). To talk back and forth-to speak as well as listen-entails both sending and receiving multiple levels of meaning. In numerous examples, he illustrates how meanings are conveyed from multiple levels of language consisting of, but not limited to, lexical or phonological choice, syntactic patterns, use of formulaic expressions, code-switching, prosodic cues (intonation and stress), and paralinguistic (e. g. , pitch, register, rhythm, and volume). Meaning is not only determined by features of language, but also, as Gumperz demonstrates, by background expectations, prior knowledge or relationships, roles, cultural knowledge, and other social knowledge. According to Gumperz, interpreting meaning is Ð ° process of contextualization in which Ð ° listener associates certain kinds of cues within the language, called contextualization cues, with information content on the one hand and with background expectations, or social knowledge, on the other ( Gumperz 1978; 1982). Contextualization cues refer to any aspect of the surface form of utterances that, when attached to message content, function as Ð ° way of signaling how to understand what is said. These cues signal to listeners when speakers have made their points, which information is foreground and which is background, what the relationship is between comments, how what is said should be heard (whether anger or joking is meant), and many other kinds of information. Adopting Ð ° cross-cultural perspective, Gumperz developed Ð ° method for investigating the process of contextualization cues by examining situations where they fail to work. When speakers share similar cultural backgrounds, then contextualization cues are also shared and speakers rarely misunderstand. However, when cues are not shared, misunderstandings prevail. Schiffrin ( 1994) interprets his main contribution as emanating from his studies of the way people within Ð ° larger culture, who are members of smaller, distinct cultures, may share grammatical knowledge of Ð ° common language (such as English) but may also contextualize what is said differently than Ð ° member of the larger culture. In this way, messages are produced that are understood perhaps partially, but not completely, such that people take away different interpretations of what was said and done. The following is Ð ° well known example from Gumperz (1982: 3o) cited by Schiffrin (1994: 7): Following an informal graduate seminar at Ð ° major university, Ð ° black student approached the instructor, who was about to leave the room accompanied by several other black and white students, and said: Could І talk to you for Ð ° minute? І am gonna apply for Ð ° fellowship and І was wondering if І could get Ð ° recommendation? The instructor replied: oK. Come along to the office and tell me what you want to do. As the instructor and the rest of the group left the room, the black student said, turning his head ever so slightly to the other students: Ahma git me Ð ° gig! (Rough gloss: І am going to get myself some support. ) Before exploring how different interpretations were made by listeners, this example can serve to illustrate what interactional sociolinguistic data is and how its analysis proceeds. First, Ð ° sociolinguist analyzes actual utterances that have been written down immediately or recorded on tape by an investigator. Significant to sociolinguistics is that these are not data generated from the analysts mind or experience but rather have been actually uttered by Ð ° human being in Ð ° natural context. Second, examples from data are always accompanied by Ð ° brief explanation of the contextthe physical setting, social roles, relationships of other participants, and other information. Any utterance can be the focus of analysis by asking, how was this utterance understood by the people who heard it, and how did these participants arrive at their interpretation? For the sociolinguist, this entails describing the grammatical knowledge of participants and the socio-cultural knowledge that listeners rely on to understand the messages conveyed. Specifically, such an analysis accounts for the way explicit linguistic signs, such as word choice, intonation, rhythm, stress, and lexical and phonetic choices indicate speaker intent and also how social knowledge influenced Ð ° listeners interpretation. When these cues are tacitly shared by speakers, interpretive processes tend to go un-remarked. However, when Ð ° listener does not react to Ð ° cue or is unaware of its function, interpretations vary, misunderstandings occur, and judgments are made.

The strengths and weaknesses of the EU

The strengths and weaknesses of the EU In 2005 Turkish Foreign minister stated I believe that Turkey will become a full member of the EU in the end. Then those who have some hesitations about Turkey will have totally different views. In fact, Turkeys orientation towards the institutions of the West dates from the creation of the Turkish Republic in 1923. Since then, commitments to Westernization and modernization have been central themes of Turkeys state ideology.Indeed, Turkish political elite considers that accession to the EU is a symbol for the successful completion of the longà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ term Ataturk revolution On the other hand, from the European perspective and according to the last European progress report; Turkey has significant deficiencies from a political, economic and even institutional perspective. And so, Turkeys membership might not be very well perceived from the European angle. In fact, even thought significant political and economic changes were made, Turkish accession to the EU is still at a slow pace. Some consider that this is due to the fact that turkeys membership will push the European borders to some troubled region, and as a consequence the EU will acquire direct contact with region of instability. And so, if for some, Turkey will weaken the EU because not only it does not belong to the EU geographically and identically but also because it has many structural and institutional weaknesses for others a literate and qualified Turkish population will make a positive impact on the EU . Therefore, the question here will be whether the Turkish membership will strengthen or weaken the European Union. And my thesis is that Turkeys membership could affect not only the nature but also the functioning of the EU. In order to answer this question, focuses will be made on the liberal intergovernmentalism theory. In fact this theory considers that members will calculate the advantages of enlargement in terms of the cost and benefits of socioeconomics interdependence of various types. And so, liberal intergovernmentalism seeks to analyze how can we rescue and adapt the nation states mainly by analyzing state preferences not only in economical but also in geopolitical and ideological field. Hence to achieve this Chapter I will approach how Turkeys membership will strengthen the European Union Chapter II will analyze how Turkey can weaken the EU and finally Chapter III will be a synthesis. Main part: The European Union has never been an exclusive club. From the beginning of the integration process, fellow European countries were welcome to apply for membership. However, as the Union was deepening its integration and growing in size, the question of where and when to stop the enlargement became controversial. In fact, with Turkeys possibility to join the EU many debates seems to be emerging. Therefore, it seems necessary to the EU to a democratic governance system to ensure that a Union of 28 or 30 or more countries can function effectively not become a recipe for stagnation or even implosion. For the accession to be possible Turkey has also to maintain its progress in both economic and political because regression would be fatal to its goal of EU membership. 2.1- Turkey Weakening the EU: Many European leaders have argued that the European identity will be lost if Turkey joined the European Union. For instance, former German Chancellor Helmut Kohl once said that a Muslim country like Turkey does not belong in Europe. In addition, the former President of France, Valà ©ry Giscard dEstaing stated in an interview in Le Monde in 2002 that a future inclusion of Turkey in the Union would be the end of Europe since Turkey is not a European country. In fact, from the unions perspective the accession of a country is rational if it provides security to the union and raises the economical benefit. However since Turkey has a small economy and has limited trade volume, many assume that it will have marginal effect on growth in the current EU. As the numbers that were published concerning this subject shows Turkey is considered to have the poorest income in the region. And so, Turkish accession (à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦) would increase regional economic disparities in the enlarged EU by an estimated 9%, representing a major challenge for cohesion policy. In addition to that, Turkeys demography is also considered as a burden to the EU. In fact, Turkeys population estimated at 73 million is considered one of the largest populations in Europe. And so, with the accession of Turkey there is a risk that migration from Turkey to other European countries raises. Moreover, Turkeys demography might also affect negatively the decision making in the European Union. As Laffan and Stubb note there are fears that Turkey as one of the largest states in the EU could deteriorate not only the voting relations between the members states but also the whole political and institutional European architecture. And so, with a population predicted to increase to 83 million by 2014, Turkey will be the most powerful country in the voting system. In fact, if Turkey joined the EU, Turkey will have right to 96 members in the European parliament and by this she will be joining the club of the big countries such as France, Germany, Italy and the United Kingdom. So with this sharing system Turkey will have a proportion of 12, 8% of votes. This is why smaller countries such as Holland are opposed to this enlargement. Actually, they refuse the idea that Turkey, a new coming country will play such an important role in the decision making of the union whereas their role is being reduced with every enlargement. In fact, with Turkeys adhesion, and a European union with 28 countries, Germany, France, the United Kingdom and Turkey will be deciding the future of the 24 others. Turkish demography is also considered a problem because the Turkish population in mainly Muslim. In fact, some government insisted to mention the Christian nature of the EU in the draft of the European constitution in 2003 and this shows to what extent some might refuse the idea that countries without Christian tradition become members of the EU. Moreover, recent polls show that the majority of Europeans now oppose further enlargement of the European Union, and that Turkey receives particularly low levels of support in France, and across Europe more broadly, mainly because it is perceived as religiously different . Furthermore, Turkish accession means that the EU in reality swaps the instability problems of a stable neighbor with severe instability problems of Iran Iraq and Syria. In fact, Turkeys difficulties in gaining EU membership might be better understood as practical geopolitical problems associated with enlargement. And so, being caught between the Middle East and the Caucasus would make the enlarged EU more exposed and vulnerable. Finally, Turkeys relation with its neighboring European countries does not bring any help and so Turkey faces two local rivals (Greece and Cyprus) in the EU who hold veto power over Turkish accession. 2.2- Turkey Strengthening the EU: In opposition, Turkey might positively influence the European Union. First of all, and from an economical perspective, Turkey is considered as one of the largest market in the world. It is the seventh major import partner with the EU and the fifth major export partner. As Avery notes its growing economy and young labor force would bring benefits for the single market. And so, since EU will need in the future young and cheap labor, Turkeys accession might then be helpful for the future development and the economic growth of the European Union. Besides, Turkey is a large country with a large demography, and so its potential as a market of good is important. In fact, as the statistics shows turkey is the seventh major important partner of the EU and the fifth major import partner. In addition, and since the construction of the oil pipeline Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan Turkeys role as a key transit country for energy supplies is also imperative to the EU. And so, It can be argued that in economic terms Turkey not only is important to the EU both for its impact on internal and external economic relations but also that it will strengthen the EUs economic capabilities. Secondly, Admission of Turkey to the European Union would provide undeniable proof that Europe is not a closed Christian Club . In fact, with Turkeys accession the union will appear as a more tolerant society. And so, with this integration Europe could play an inestimable role in future relations between the West and the Islamic world. This can also help promoting the soft power of the European Union and reinforcing it. Moreover, due to her geo- strategic position Turkey would add new dimensions to the Unions foreign policy efforts in such vitally important regions as the Middle East, the Mediterranean, Central Asia and South Caucasus.And so; this will help the union gain an important role in those regions. For instance, concerning the Middle East region, Turkeys membership would be very helpful to the EU. In fact, the good relations that Turkey entertains with both Israeli and Palestinians will help increasing the unions weight and this could be put to good use in common efforts towards peacemaking and stabilization in this strategically critical region. Furthermore, concerning the European Security and defense policy Turkeys considerable military capabilities and the countrys potential as a forward base would be important and much-needed assets. In fact, Turkey has participated in the work of the convention to the future of Europe and brought her own vision to improve the European security and defense policy so that she can be able to face todays challenges. In addition, As one of the strongest NATO partners, with a clear orientation toward ESDP, Turkey would be of great value for the European defense system. Finally, refusing the integration of Turkey, might affect the credibility of the EU. In fact, as Smith notes The sense of responsibility toward the candidate countries, the sense of shared European identity, the strategic imperatives favouring big bang enlargement and the fact that the EU could not have backed down from its promises without a serious loss of credibility and legitimacy all helped to sustain the momentum. Synthesis: Turkey has two souls: one secular and European, the other Asian and Muslim. And this is where the whole problem stands. On one hand, Turkey tend to join the EU and resemble to the European countries and on the other questions about whether Turkey is European or whether Turkey should join the EU are still subject of debates. In fact, another problem needs to be raised here: The Turkish public opinion. Actually, The Turkish public is becoming increasingly resentful towards the EU because of a perception that, while the country is negotiating membership, the EU itself is still debating whether or not it should be allowed in. Even thought Turkey has made many reforms in order to attain the European standard, some changes still needs to be done. First of all and from a political perspective, Turkey has ratified two UN treaties the first concerning civil and political rights and the second social and economic rights but this is still not sufficient. The European Commission still argues that political, civil, economic, social and cultural rights are not fully guaranteed and that more efforts are needed to enhance the coherence of legal provisions and practice. From an economic point of view Turkeys recent economic reforms have shown it capable of lowering inflation and promoting enterprise growth while weathering two recent, regional economic shocks. And so, if liberal intergovernamentalists, such as Moravcsik, perceives economic groups as the key driving force for integration then with the changes that were made Turkey can be perceived as capable of being member of the EU since both Turkey and the EU will benefit from this integration. In fact and as we said before, Turkey is an important market of good for the EU and can provide the young labor force that the union needs which makes it eligible to be a member. From a religious point of view, its true that Turkey is a big country with a population mainly Muslim, but lets not forget that 12 million Muslims live already in Europe and many more are likely to make their way to Europe. In addition, Albania and Bosnia-Herzegovina are also Muslim countries and potential candidate to the EU and no one is objecting their potential candidature. Finally, a NO to Turkey-now or in the very near future-would have extremely grave and negative consequences not only for the nearby region but also for European security interests. And so, the thesis that Turkeys membership could affect not only the nature but also the functioning of the EU is proven. In fact, even if the arguments that proves that Turkey will strengthen the EU seems to be more convincing from my perspective, the idea that Turkey will bring changes to the nature of the EU seems to be a fact whatever ones conviction is. However, the changes can be seen differently according to ones perspective. And so, being convinced that Turkey will weaken the EU, then the changes will be seen negatively and vice versa. 3. Conclusion: In his recent book, The Limits of Europe, EU Commissioner Frits Bolkestein warns against European overstretch. Turkish accession, he argues, would reduce Europe to a glorified customs union, and create risks for the European project. What Bolkestein meant, as he made clear in September 2004, was that Turkeys large population might well create a more Muslim Europe, either by intra-European migration or by EU voting mechanisms weighted by population size (à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦)The advantages for an enlarged Europe, he argues, lie in exporting stability but at the risk of importing instability. However, And based on the arguments showed below, we can say that the conditions that are presented as weakening the EU are not very convincing anymore. In fact, since the enlargement in 2004, things have changed. And so, if the European Union would like to prove today, that shes a united international actor, and if the European Union would like to prove that having one purpose might bring together actors no matter how different they are, but willing to work for that purpose, then the EU should accept Turkish membership. But what about the alternative presented by the French president Nicolas Sarkozy? Will turkey become a privileged partner instead of a full member? And what about the possibility to make some changes for reducing Turkeys influence before Turkeys entry to the EU, as it was the case with the Nice Treaty before the eastern enlargement?

Motivation In The Case Of Technocraft Commerce Essay

Motivation In The Case Of Technocraft Commerce Essay Motivation is a reflection of the reasons why people do things. All behavior has a specific purpose (often several). Motivation can be considered to compromise an individuals effort, persistence and the direction of that effort. It is the degree to which an individual wants and chooses to engage in certain specified behavior. Notably in case study, Technocraft , there was an intrinsic motivation, employees were just motivated by salary, promotion, condition of work etc. It focuses primarily on motivation of the individual in the workplace. It explores the influence of organizational change, communication and conflict on personal motivation. Additionally, concepts such as intrinsic, extrinsic, rewards, personal needs and environmental stimulation are discussed.Thus, motivation had some affect in employees but they are negatively influenced in terms of different factors of an organization. Determination: Construction and culture of the formal organization: The construction or the structure of Technocraft contemplates management model with its functional relationships. The workers in this organization were closely prescribed or were in possession, or we can rather say negative command. This is a mechanistic organization and recurring in nature. According to Drennan 1992-93 culture is how things are done around here. It is what typical of the organization, the habits prevailing attitudes, the grown up pattern of accepted and expected behavior. Like wise, in Technocraft, it matches to role culture because it has gained a combination of size, departmentalization and ordering of activities. Generally, Mr. George, the chairman of the company can be taken as an example that was harsh and gives orders. The culture of the organization needs to be given, importance as the opportunities to learn. 4.2 Management and leadership style: Management is the process of getting things done effectively and efficiently through other people so as in their company. Mr. George Newell, the company chairman managed or organized his employees in a different way. It can be matched with MCGregors theory X because most of the employees did not enjoyed working for Technocraft and just motivated by money but the workers can be categorized or stereotyped in intrinsic motivation ready for challenging job, appreciation and recognition. 4.3 characters: 4.3.1 George Newell: He is the chairman of the company. He views his workers in a negative way and he doesnt recognize his employees. He is an exploitative- autocratic ruler. It matches with contingency style of leadership style rather than trait theory because he does not possess charismatic behavior, self-confidence etc. as we can see he brought Helen, management consultant to solve the problem. Employees were discouraged by his behavior because he promised to give reward for their heroic deeds and efforts but he felt proud by distributing the t- shirts to all the employees. He did not possess a degree of power, influence, responsibility and accountability which should be used in the pursuit of effective leadership performance. One of the Georges problems in the company was high labor turnover and his opinion was that the women had prompted this. As we know, motivation influences in individuals to succeed but he judges performances on the activities of the organization. Likewise, he reprimanded the employees who were late from the lunch, he could have warned them, may be he used this coercive power and this showed the low morale, seniority and distances. He also did the job rotation because he was not satisfied by the Maggies efforts, (the wiring department supervisor). 4.3.2 Helen Mckiernan: (management consultant) She was a management consultant and a very calm nature person. She was brought by the companys chairman to provide a solution of the problem. She mainly focused on the nature of the wiring job because the recruitment procedures were unduly lax. Helen kept in mind that the reason for the job satisfaction might be through informal situations and social side of the work. She analyzed the likes and dislikes of the workers and she found that the chairman was completely wrong about the labor turnover. 4.3.3 Elena and Veronica: (wirers) Both of them were wirers in Technocraft. They had a problem due to inexperience and fear of making a mistake and the problem caused directly from their slow work rate and they need some experienced wirers to correct them. In my opinion, they are in need of on-the job training. 4.3.4 Maggie Francis: (supervisor) Maggie Francis, the wiring department supervisor, who was given responsibility for bringing two women, i.e: Elen and Veronica, up to speed within a specific time. Maggies leadership style fits or matches with her supervising role. She was more understanding in nature. As a theme throughout this book of organization behavior, by Ian Brooks, organization change is particularly worthy of consideration in any discussion of leadership and it matches with consideration category of Blake and Mounton 1964, she was defensive and she was in a job rotation by the company chairman in place of Robert because she was too soft to the employees. 4.3.5. Robert Houlden 🙠 Line Manager) On the basis of Blake and Mounton 1964, managerial grid, in this study there was a concern for production, autocratic and task oriented. He was appointed by chairman to sort out the shirkers in the hope of raising productivity in upcoming future. 4.4 Perception: George style of leadership was like autocratic towards the women. It is some what like coercive power. Although the staff possesses no confidence in their ability, they are in need of a positive motivation. New comers i.e.: Elen and Veronica were in a learning phase. There was no respect for Maggies job as well as womens in the work place. The women were reprimanded by the chairman who could be done in a polite way as well. 4.5 Motivation and shopfloor: The management of conflict in organizations affects the motivation of individuals and groups. According to Schmidt (1974), following empirical research conducted among management executions in USA, revealed both positive and negative effects of conflict. Maggies as a supervisor, the autocratic style of had adverse affect due to the sudden change in leadership.i.e.from wiring department supervisor to packing. Research indicates that conflict can stimulate creative thinking and can inspire people to confront long term problem and explore new approaches. It may also encourage reflection and help people clarify their views and heighten their interest in the task at hand and also test peoples abilities. However, negative effects of conflict can lead to dissatisfaction, demotivation and reduced performance. Schmidt (1974) found that certain people felt defeated by conflict and the consequences would be contactless and leads to suspicion. 5.0 Recommendation: What I can recommend is that the culture of the organization needs to be improved. Combining the two incident, there is a change in the level of output. The women were believed that they are matched with VH Vroom expectancy theory. In the 1st incident, there was a change in job design to fasten up the speed of the employees. He could have said in a polite way to the workers after they returned from their lunch break. This can be a good style of autocratic leader, and some how matches with McGregors X theory and coercive power as well. Finally, in my point of view, the management should be more systematic so that the workers would perform their activities more efficiently and effectively. 5.1 Reconstructing the work force: Reconstructing the shop floor is done for encouraging competition between workers. A group leader role could motivate the work force but Helen, management consultant investigated number of workers about the likes and dislikes of the company and the answers was negative management. So , the managerial practice at technocraft convinced her that the shop floor labor turnover was not only incorrect but actually a part of the problem. However, for better number of employees in the work place, the team should be encouraged and motivated. 5.2 Leadership Style: As in the technocraft everyones complain is towards management. George needs to enhance the considerations of the worker and to think of his employees. I think he lacks the ability to influence a group towards achieving certain objectives. Leadership and responsibility of mangagement should be open and consultative style. It should be implemented on the workers so that they would be motivated by the help of different programme. According to continuum tunnerbaum and Schmidt leadership style there should not tell and sells but there consults and joins in a democratic way. In the company, it matches with autocratic style which sub-ordinates could not use their respective freedom. 5.3 motivating the work force: George should bear in mind or adopt a consultative style which motivates its members, aiming the specific goals. The first two level of needs, salary and job security should be fulfilled by the management inorder to motivate the workforce. It would be the informal group which already exists. It also depends upon Georges perception for the feedback and support. In his opinion, unemployment are well below national average and many women are living with husbands who earned a decent living wage or salary. According to Maslow hierarchical needs, the lower level needs should take precedent, if they were not fulfilled. However, a link between job satisfaction and absenteeism, staff turnover, and the incidence both physical and mental health problems (Schneider, 1984). Furthermore, the model is highly ethnocentric. Finally, applying their theory to the workplace is fraught with difficulties although this theory is intended to be managerial or organizational tool. 5.4 Job Design: According to Herzberg, two factor theory, one of situation matches with the one theory among two:i.e; hygiene and motivators, which is hygiene factors. These methods should help in to participate in decision making. Herzbergs vertical theory has two sides: Dissatisfaction and 2. Extreme satisfaction with the environment, job and the work place. Like wise, the workers at Technocraft also faced the extreme dissatisfaction towards their job and relationship with supervisor was worse. Organization failed to provide adequate hygiene factors which as results, high level of conflict, absenteeism, labor turnover and low general morale was emerged. 5.5 Rewards: There is a difference in the distribution of rewards and the people differ due to the perception. The first is to discover the activities of the shopfloor staff. If there are specific objectives then Management must give response or feedback for the work done. During the productivity drive, George established a program called employee- morale boosting and the program succeeded. Thus, he promised to the employees that they would be rewarded for their efforts but the employees were distressed because there was no bonus payment except few t-shirts with the company logo. As a result, many of the employees resigned and this was the problem aroused in Technocraft which is labor turnover.it also can be compared with goal setting theory of locke. He firstly concentrated on objectives and he doesnt give the rewards. By the behavior of George what we can draw the outline is that he was in lack of morale, unsuitable in the post and the harsh leader. 6.0 Conclusion: In every change effort and programme someone loses or gains. Attention should be pursued for all gainers and losers as well. All change processes and program requires whole -hearted organization, commitment, support with adequate level of resource and time. They key issue for organization to adopt attitudes of flexibility, dynamism, responsiveness and positiveness and the drive is to maximize output and change in resource. So, I have compared this company Technocraft in many different theories. Likewise, in Technocraft, power is ultimately in the hand of single person. Chairman appreciates and consults with the problem of the company. A well planned theme that has been drawn up is loyalty and dedication by the employees and the autocracy by the top level of management. Above all, the role of managers and supervisors must change from the operation of systems and procedures to the development of expertise skills, knowledge and qualities in their people.

The Politics of Highly Radioactive Waste Disposal Essay -- Radioactive

The Politics of Highly Radioactive Waste Disposal Nuclear waste disposal is a political problem, not a technical problem.1 — Dr. Edward Teller Highly radioactive waste disposal has become one of the most controversial aspects of nuclear technology. As the amount of spent nuclear fuel from commercial nuclear reactors and high-level radioactive waste from defense-related processing plants has continued to mount, the issue has become increasingly contentious and politicized.2 The politicization of this issue is especially evident in the site selection process of a permanent national repository for the disposal of highly radioactive waste. Paradoxically, as the need for action has become more acute, the conflict generated by the politicization of the site selection process has delayed progress on the establishment of a permanent nuclear waste storage facility. As early as 1957, the National Academy of Sciences recommended the disposal of radioactive waste in deep underground rock as the best means of protecting public health and safety.3 However, it was not until 25 years later that the federal Nuclear Waste Policy Act of 1982 began the process of establishing a deep, underground permanent national storage repository for highly radioactive waste. The 1982 Act mandated that the Department of Energy (DOE) would study multiple sites in the West and select one to be ready to serve as the first national repository for highly radioactive waste by January 31, 1998.4 A second site in the East, where the majority of highly radioactive material is generated, would be designated later. The site selection process was slow and arduous due to opposition generated by states identified as potential hosts for a national radioactive... ...S Issue Brief, Congressional Research Service, December 3, 1996, [http://www.cnie.org/nle/eng-18.html], 5. 29 Mark Holt and Zachary Davis, "Nuclear Energy Policy," CRS Issue Brief, Congressional Research Service, updated December 5, 1996, [http://www.cnie.org/nle/eng-5.html], 7. 30 Will Nixon, "High Energy," E/The Environmental Magazine, [http://www.adams.ind.net/Environment.html], May/June 1995, 4. 31 Associated Press, "Court: U.S. must take nuclear waste by 1998," The Courier, July 24, 1996, A1. 32 See U.S. Congress (S. 1271), "Nuclear Waste Policy Act of 1996," Congressional Record,104th Congress, 2d Session. Also see U.S. Congress (S. 1936), "Nuclear Waste Policy Act of 1996," Congressional Record, 104th Congress, 2d Session. 33 See U.S. Congress (S. 104), â€Å"Nuclear Waste Policy Act of 1997,† Congressional Record, 105th Congress, 1st Session.

Children in Blake’s Poetry Essay -- William Blake Poetry Poets Essays

Children in Blake’s Poetry The use of children is a prominent theme in a number of William Blake’s poems. It is apparent in reading such poems as, â€Å"The Lamb,† â€Å"The Little Black Boy,† and â€Å"The Chimney Sweeper,† that Blake sees the world through the eyes of a child and embraces the innocence of the young. Blake’s poem â€Å"The Lamb,† from Songs of Innocence really illustrates the innocence and purity of a young child. The persona in the poem is of a young child. The child questions the lamb as to where he came from and asks, â€Å"Little Lamb who made thee? / Dost thou know who made thee?† (9,10) The child is expecting the Lamb to answer him but it is obvious to the reader that the Lamb can’t talk. When the child receives no answer, he decides that he’ll tell the lamb where he came from. He says, â€Å"Little Lamb, I’ll tell thee!† (12). The child says: He is called by thy name for he calls himself a Lamb; He is meek & mild, He became a little child; I a child & thou a lamb, We are called by his name. (13,18) The child really shows that his innocence here. The Lamb is being referred to as Jesus, the Lamb of God. The child is saying that that Lamb, Jesus and the child are all the same. What the boy does not understand, because he is a child and so innocent, is that the Lamb will be sacrificed, and the child will die, just like Jesus did when He was crucified. â€Å"The Little Black Boy† from Songs of Innocence is another poem that illustrates the innocence of children. The poem is written from the persona of a little black boy who has been told that being white is better then being black. The little boy says: And I am black, but O! my soul is white; White as an angel is the English child; But I am b... ...s parents have gone to church to pray. The child blames his parents as well as society for his present position in life and says: â€Å"And because I am happy, & dance & sing, They think they have done me no injury, And are gone to praise God & his Priest & King, Who make up a heaven of our misery.† (9,12) Unlike â€Å"The Chimney Sweeper† from Songs of Innocence, the young boy in this poem realizes that he is going to die and that this is wrong. He blames God, his parents and society for letting this happened to him. Blake is still seeing the world through the eyes of a child in this poem, however, he is looking at it from a more mature or experienced point of view. Many of William Blake’s poems contain images of children and depict children as innocent and naà ¯ve. Blake sees the world through the eyes of a child and he shows this through his poetry.

Alexander Von Humboldt

Alexander Von Humboldt â€Å"The Last Polymath† Rhiannon Hewin Geography 10004/04/2018 Born, Friedrich Wilhelm Heinrich Alexander, Freiherr (baron) von Humboldt (whom from this point I will refer to simply as Humboldt) was born on Sept. 14, 1769 in Berlin, Germany.to Alexander Georg von Humboldt and Marie Elisabeth Colomb. The five years Humboldt spent in South America would later prove his proficiency in multiple disciplines and yielded the most fruit for his efforts. Mapping the land (maps of mexico they say helped President Jefferson in his decision in making the Louisiana Purchase, suddenly being able to identify with the new neighbors down south) and other illustrations, climbing 19,286 ft up Chimborazo, only to miss the summit by less than 2000 ft, discovering ocean currents, that would later be named after him, climbing peaks-including every volcano, wading rivers, and crossing the Andean Highlands. Unlike todays extreme outdoorsman, they had no GPS, no inoculations, oxygen was however much or little was in the air around them, not to mention sporting good stores still had about 150 years before making their debut. Despite the odds they conquered South America in 5 years. Returning with a treasure trove of over 60,000 specimens, climate data, cultural observations and electromagnetic experimental data gathered along the way-. Not including what Humboldt sent home to his brother, Wilhelm, over the years.- which, thanks to the british navy, wasnt much. Humboldt would later find himself in North America (United States,) Europe, Asia and Russia. Although his trek through Russia and Central Asia would be less of a 5 year trek and more of a 6mth long carriage ride, complete with royal bodyguards/chaperones, Humboldt was still able to work his magic and chart much of central Asia, which would be of great importance to the western world since very little existed prior to Humboldts findings about Central Asia. Humboldts idea â€Å"Unity of nature† was that † The combination of all physical science of a region determined what organism could live in that region.† He showed the relationships on maps as isothermal lines, comparing climate across countries and continents based on temperature latitude and elevation. These isothermal maps would be the building blocks for the modern-day disciplines of climate science and meteorology. Humboldt challenged the ideas that man was the focal point of the universe and plants and animals wouldn't go extinct (nor do they rely on each other,) claiming quite the contrary. In fact, it was man who faced extinction due to â€Å"the destructions of forest, through the distribution of water and through the production of great masses of steam and gas industrial centers† adding â€Å"The wants and restless activities of large communities of men gradually despoil the face of the earth.† Ideas like these would've added environmentalist to his long list of accomplishments – had the term existed. Humboldt's work in the field of demography are of enduring value. He introduced â€Å"the examination of the quotient of extremes into population statistics, thus making it possible to supplement the abstract figure of population density by citing the low quotient in countries uniformly densely (or sparsely) settled and the high quotient in countries unevenly settled. He also made allowance for population dynamics, furnishing birth and mortality rates for Mexico. These figures were long unavailable for such regions† Humboldts efforts did not go unnoticed. Humboldt was admitted to The Royal Swedish Academy of Arts and Sciences, The American Philosophical Society, The New York Historical Society, The American Ethnological Society, The Prussian Academy of Sciences, The American Academy of Arts and Sciences and the Royal Society. With exploration complete he would not only spend the next few decades collecting his thoughts (and data) in order to share his findings with the masses but take a step back to smell the roses and other flora he was so fond. He enjoyed large gatherings and inspire young scientist to push themselves to be more than expected of them and to learn for the sake of learning. He assisted those he could even if that assistance was using his influence around that particular city to get the scientist what they needed. Unknown scientist were not the only people he inspired. While working on his first works, Charles Darwin corresponded with Humboldt. The man who fought for the creation of Yosemite National Park, John Muir, 70 years after Humboldts death wished he â€Å"could be a young humboldt.† President Jefferson had many conversations with Humboldt and even though Humboldt HATED slavery an couldn't understand how Jefferson could own slaves while talking about freedom. Other Inspired (through conversation or posthumously) included Henry David Thoreau, Robert Frost and George Perkins Marsh, who followed in Humboldts footsteps by throwing himself into the middle east taking samples and observing as he went.. German chemist Justus von Liebig as well as Swiss born zoologist Louis Agassiz owed Humboldt the means to continue their studies and embark on an academic career. Humboldt was able to publish his findings in many different forms, but the 23 volumes based on his travels was one of the â€Å"most comprehensive ever published by a private individual† That said his final gift to the disciplines he loved so much would be Kosmos referred to by some as the most ambitious scientific works ever published, Kosmas gave a generally comprehensible account of the structure of the universe as then known. He would see 4 volumes published but the fifth would be published posthumously. Written in a pleasant literary style, his excitement and aesthetic enjoyment at his discoveries are not withheld.Humboldt had taken immense pains to discipline his inclination to discursiveness, which â€Å"often gave his writing a certain lack of logical coherence† Hardly diminished, and with an unimpaired memory, Humboldt suffered a stroke in the middle of publishing his 5th volume. On May 6, 1859, a few months shy of his 90th birthday, Alexander Von Humboldt was dead†¦.but who says just because you died at 90 doesnt mean you can't have a global 100th birthday party? On September 14 1869, worldwide concerts,parades and gatherings celebrated 100 years since the birth of a much-loved, highly revered scientist. There were speeches and festivities in Buenos Aires, Mexico City, Moscow and Melbourne. In almost every major US city, thousands attended concerts and parades.25,000 people gathered in central park for the unveiling of a commemorative statue and a torchlight parade. In berlin, where Humboldt was born and died, offices were closed for the day and 80,000 people came out to celebrate in spite of torrential rain.I admit, I had no knowledge of Humboldt whatsoever prior to this assignment. However after a few weeks of reading everything Humboldt I discovered that my thoughts on his erasure from history is actually shared my many others. The first being that, thanks to him, the world got smarter. As people got smarter, science disciplines got more specific. People mastered those disciplines, and those were the people who we started to admire. For example, everyone wears clothes, so much so, that most of us cant/couldnt live in a world without clothes. That said, an even bigger majority of us have no idea who invented clothing or when. However, names like Versace, Calvin Klein and Donna Karen-clothing designers, are well known today. The more obvious reason is the world wars and Germany's role in them. The hatred of Nazis became a hatred for Germans and the desire to erase them. A symbol of pain, hatred and death, part of the end game became burn all things German. As Schools burned, we cheered. As libraries burned, taking their past with them, we cheered. As the world started to heal, new up and coming Germans were accepted but none were returned to fame.