Life Span Perspective Essay

Lifespan perspective is gaining knowledge through the changes that occur during human development. Changes occur as a result of cultural influences and specific events surrounding change (Lerner, 1996. ) Many characteristics define lifespan perspective and how it relates to human development. Understanding lifespan characteristics led to different theories of lifespan development. Heredity works together with the environment to create individual differences in development. Life is constantly changing so understanding aspects of change will gain insight in lifespan perspectives. The lifespan perspective, in relation to human development obtains its definition from the characteristics of development. These characteristics are ever-changing, multidirectional, multicontextual, multicultural, multidisciplinary, and plasticity. Life is ever-changing and change affects human development. Multidirectional change comes in from every direction such as physical health, social interactions, and intellectual growth. The influences have an effect on how individuals perceive future events can change the way an individual thinks, and processes information. Multicontextual means human lives receive influence from different contexts such as historical conditions, family patterns, and economic conditions. Individuals in a cohort will have similar values because of their exposure to similar events, culture, and technology. Multicultural occurs when exposure to cultures influence the person’s development. Cultures are more than race, religion, and region. Cultures are workplace, school, and any other dynamically structured group. Multidisciplinary refers to the academic fields that provide insight and data such as psychology, biology, education, and many more. Last is plasticity that encompasses every trait, and every individual is vulnerable to change at any period in the lifespan development (Berger, 2008. ) Change is constant because typical humans and the world they live are ever-changing and ongoing. Many theories of lifespan development have emerged over the centuries. They summarize and shed light on how diverse individual development is. Diversity in culture, historical conditions, individual experiences, and the environment constantly change the perspectives of individuals (Lerner, 1996. ) This change directly affects the individual’s lifespan development. Theories on lifespan development such as psychoanalytic theory or cognitive theory are only a few of many. Understanding these two theories has shed some light into the diversity of development. The psychoanalytic theory, found by Sigmund Freud, stems from the belief that experiences from childhood and unconscious desires influence human behavior (Berger, 2008. ) The first six years of life the human body goes through three distinct developmental stages, each focused on a particular body part and characterized by sexual pleasure. The first is the oral stage, which occurs during infancy. Second is the anal stage, which occurs in early childhood. Third is the phallic stage, occurring during the puberty stages of life in both male and female children (Berger, 2008. ) Each stage has a direct link with sensual satisfaction and development regarding needs and challenges. Relationships in life will mimic those between parent and child. The driving force of behavior lies in unconscious desires. These desires are receive heavy influence during the first six years of an individuals life, and affects his or hers development throughout life. The cognitive theory, found by Jean Piaget, is the development of the mind (Berger, 2008. ) This theory explains the direct link between how people think and how thoughts form attitudes, values, and behaviors. Experiences in life influence perception, depending on the thought processes of the individual (Scheibe, & Freund, 2008. ) Over time the experiences that influence individuals can lead to a change in the way that individual thinks. Like the environment and individual lives in, the mind changes throughout life. The debate between nature and nurture has been ongoing for centuries. Heredity can explain hair color, eye color, height, and other physical attributes. Heredity may even describe some innate fears and beliefs. The experience in life and the environment an individual lives in interacts with the innate responses born in an individual to build his or her personality. The environment that individual lives in changes over time. This change will influence the individual to go through some emotional changes over time, leading to change in the individual’s personality. The different perspectives of individuals, even siblings, vary creating different responses to the same event or environmental stimuli (Baltes, Staudinger, & Lindenberger, 1999. ) The different lifespan perspective theories, which relate to development, have the common denominator of change. The constant in the environment and in individuals is change. Individuals experience new events, food, people, sounds, music, and many more stimuli daily. The experiences of life go through processes in the mind and into storage or cast away, but the direct mental influences each experience creates chisels away to create an ever-changing personality.

Early Childhood Education Programs Essay

Early childhood education or preschool education is education for children in the early stages of their childhood before they join school. Several researches that have been conducted by neuroscientists, pediatricians and other stakeholders shows that the biggest portion of the brain architecture takes place in the early childhood years. Research studies have also found out that intellectual and emotional development is critical during the first three years of life. Maria Montessori was one of many educationists who believe that the foundation of human development is laid during the child’s early years. She declared that: The most important period of life is not the age of university studies, but the first one, the period from birth to the age of six, (Pandor, 2008 para. 3). Many other educationists assert that the quality of education is determined in the first years of a child in school. Early Childhood Education Programs Preschool education or early childhood education is a quality education and it is beneficial to children from all economic and social groups. Development of quality early childhood programs should be emphasized as it can be viewed as a social and economic strategy. Investing in these programs is therefore not only important to the child but also to the development of the state and the country at large. A research conducted by the National Institute for Early Education Research (NIEER) in five states of the United States found out that â€Å"quality public preschool programs produce broad gains in children’s learning and development,† (NIEER, 2005 para. 4). According to the same study, state funded programs were found to have significant gains regardless of the child’s ethnic or economic and social background. The effects of the preschool programs were estimated by testing the literacy skills, vocabulary and academic skills of the kindergarteners. A total of 5,071 children in 1, 320 classrooms were tested in either English or Spanish depending on the child’s strongest language. The impacts on mathematics, literacy and language were statistically significant compared to the children without the program. Vocabulary scores were 31 percent higher than gains of children without the program. On mathematical skills which included basic skills such as counting money, simple additions and subtractions, number concepts and telling time, the gains increased to 44 percent. In print awareness the gains were 85 percent greater for children enrolled in state sponsored preschool programs compared to the growth of children who are not enrolled (NIEER, 2005). According to the NIEER study, participants at the age of 20 years were more likely to have cleared high school if they enrolled for the preschool programs. They were less likely to have required remedial education and also less likely to have committed juvenile crimes which warrant arrests. With the unnecessary costs of remedial classes and expenditure for justice systems and in addition to the increased revenues, it was estimated that there was a return of $7 for every dollar that was invested. At 27 years of age, participants had gained a higher level of education and their earnings were higher than those who did not enroll for the early childhood school programs. The number of those who received the social services was significantly low and the numbers of arrests were fewer. These studies were carried out on children from lower socioeconomic backgrounds. The befits gained can be intertwined in the sense that once this child gains a higher level of education most likely the earnings will be high, consequently economic prospects will be high, improvement on financial decisions, improved health and housing (NIEER, 2008). An opportunity to live in a classroom community, interact and get along with people from various socioeconomic backgrounds can be considered as a social benefit for children from low socioeconomic backgrounds. Learning how to get along with others will result to improved social skills and emotional competence. These programs set a stage and give a child preparedness to enroll for the formal education. Apart from improving on their communication skills and getting higher scores in school tests, they have lesser behavioral issues once they enroll in the formal learning process. When a child goes through the pre kindergarten learning they succeed in school and become good citizens, earn more, commit less crimes and pay more taxes. â€Å"Every dollar invested in quality early care and education saves taxpayers up to $13. 00 in future costs,† (http://web. mit. edu/workplacecenter/docs/Full%20Report. pdf. n. d pp. 2). The success of the early child leaning relies heavily on the quality of the preschool programs. In an effort to improve the schools and the learning process, most states in United States have established public preschool programs to cater for less privileged and disadvantaged. Most of these programs are established on the principle that early intervention will help the child unleash his full potential. For example the mission for Head Start is â€Å"to ensure that no child in America is trapped in poverty’s grasp,† (United Way of America, 2005 pp. 1). These programs have been criticized and their effectiveness has been questionable. From the findings of NIEER (2005) studies, â€Å"vocabulary gains were three or four times greater than those in the Head Start study,† (para. 9). In spite of this big difference in performance, such aspects such as the class size and the length of day remained the same. This difference was attributed to high educational qualifications and good remuneration for teachers in state funded pre-kindergarten programs compared to Head Start. Almost all state funded programs studied in the five states required teachers to be licensed, have a certification in early childhood education and be a holder of a BA degree. In the case of Head Start the requirements half of the teachers were required to have a two-year Associate’s degree while the rest to have a Child Development Associate (requires only 120 hours of training to acquire CDA credential) or an equivalent (LIFESTYLENIEER, n. d). Abbot, another preschool program in New Jersey was established to serve the highest poverty districts within the state. Substantial resources have been invested in the school and NIEER annual report rated it as one those with highest quality standards nationwide. According to the Abbot preschool program longitudinal effects study by Frede et al (2007), â€Å"the results presented provides clear evidence that by participating in a high-quality program regardless of auspice, children are improving in literacy and math at least until the end of the kindergarten year,† (pp. 35). It therefore remains clear that high standard and accountability are key factors to the success of these programs. Recruitments of qualified and well educated teachers as has been observed in performing preschool programs are instrumental in guaranteeing good quality. These teachers must be adequately compensated to boost their morale and hence increasing productivity. The classes should be manageable. This can only be achieved by having a reasonable child to teacher ratio. Finally there should be strong supervision to ensure that standard and quality of learning is uncompromised. Conclusion All children are entitled to quality education. From the studies conducted a disadvantaged child is likely to gain more from preschool program. If these programs are expanded more disadvantaged children will enroll and they will develop positive peer effects when they enroll for the formal school learning. â€Å"Failing to invest sufficiently in quality early care and education shortchanges taxpayers because the return on investment is greater than many other economic development options,† (http://web. mit. edu/workplacecenter/docs/Full%20Report. pdf. n. d pp. 2). There should be universal large-scale and state wide programs to benefit the minority and the poor. Reference: Early Childhood Education for All, a Wise Investment, retrieved on 20th July 2008 from http://web. mit. edu/workplacecenter/docs/Full%20Report. pdf. Frede E, Jung K, Barnett W. S, Lamy, C. E & Figueras, A. (2007): The Abbott Preschool Program Longitudinal Effects Study (Apples). Retrieved on 20th July 2008 from: http://nieer. org/resources/research/APPLES. pdf LIFESTYLENIEER (n. d): Economic Benefits Of Quality Preschool Education for America’s 3- And 4-Year Olds. Retrieved on 20th July 2008 from: http://nieer. org/resources/facts/index. php? FastFactID=6 Martina, A (2008): Column: Early Connections Are Key For Infants To Thrive. Retrieved on 20th July 2008 From: http://detnews. com/apps/pbcs. dll/article? AID=/20080715/OPINION03/807150398/100 National Institute for Early Education Research (NIEER) (2005):New Study Shows High Quality State Pre-K Programs Improve Language and Math Abilities of Children of All Backgrounds: State Programs with Higher Teacher Qualifications Outperform Head Start , retrieved on 20th July 2008 from http://nieer. org/mediacenter/index. php? PressID=46 Pandor N (2008): A call to focus on firm foundations for learning, Journal of Education, Vol. 8. Issue No. 11, pp 21-27, Retrieved on 20th July 2008 from http://www. anc. org. za/ancdocs/anctoday/2008/text/at11. txt United Way of America (2005): Early Childhood Education, retrieved on 20th July 2008 from http://www. liveunited. org/_cs

Journal Article Summary and Application Essay

This paper presents the summary of the article â€Å"Staff development and student learning: A synthesis of research on models of teaching† by Bruce Joyce, Beverly Showers and Carol Rolheiser-Bennett published in the Educational Leadership on October of 1987. The second half of the paper will discuss how the findings of this paper could be applied to real life situations. The objective of this paper is to demonstrate that theoretical assumptions of the authors about staff development can actually be used to enhance curriculums that would result to increased student performance. Summary This article argues that staff development must be and can be used to develop school programs and curriculums that would result to increased student performance and better learning. The authors discussed that the recent developments in the field of staff development have been very useful in designing new educational programs for students because the findings of said research have provided educational leaders the guide to which staff development can enhance student learning, provided innovative ideas and programs for more student involvement and a wider application of the different learning models. The authors assumed that the theoretical models and program designs that could be adopted to effectively improve student performance would only work in as much as how effectively the staff has been developed and trained. Thus, for the authors, staff development should come first before any improvements or programs can be designed and developed. The most important aspect of the measure of student performance and improvement was the effect size. According to the authors, effect size is akin to the level of change or value that was supposed to have occurred due to an intervening process or variable. Effect size can be used to determine how much the improvement was relative to its original value, effect size is important because it could tell just how effective the intervention was in bringing about change. On the other hand, the authors also pointed out that high effect size is desired but often a small effect size for a large number of people is more desirable as it would bring about greater change. The authors also discussed the teaching models that have been found to have yielded promising results and those that have been applied successfully in some research studies. Social models of learning refers to group and cooperative learning against individual learning, it has been found that students who learn by cooperation and group work are more socially equipped, have better self-concept and positive attitudes to learning. The authors recommend that staff development on how to teach cooperative learning can actually lead to better academic performance. Information processing models make use of the learning process as the strategy to help students retain more information and learn more in a given period. The authors mentioned the use of advanced organizers and mnemonics, which both had been proven to increase student learning and output but this would require intensive training of teachers and a highly technical staff development program. The personal models refer to the use of person centered learning experiences; the authors said that synectics and nondirective learning would help students learn both academically and personally. However, some have argued that the personal models would likely have lesser academic impact because it focuses on the person. The behavioral models were taken from the work of Skinner and it makes use of the different behavioral methods such as programmed learning, conditioning, reinforcement and the like. Much research have actually found that behavioral methods are effective in increasing student performance and this have been the focus of many staff development programs. The authors also identified specific teaching methods that could be used to increase student performance across levels such as wait time and teacher expectation and student achievement. Wait time refers to the process of allowing students enough time to think about the teacher’s questions while teacher expectation says that there are differential treatments in the classroom. The authors conclude that designing staff development programs should make use of the most effective working models and strategies and that this should be the focus of administrators who wishes to see their schools improve. Application The article has pointed out several learning models that could be used effectively to enhance student learning and this could actually be applied to the design of staff development programs. The assumption here is that teachers could not teach what they do not have, and since these models are not the conventional models and traditional ones teachers have been trained to do, it is imperative that staff development be able to teach teachers the exact method and process for a more effective classroom experience. For example, a staff development program on using nondirective learning should start with an input on the theoretical and technical aspects of the model, and then a workshop on how to carry out classroom interaction within this model can be demonstrated to the teachers and then critiqued by the group and resource speaker. Then the second part of the training session would be to have the teachers design a lesson plan and demonstrate it to the group and a series of critiquing would also be done to help teachers see their weaknesses and strengths in using the model and then be able to make improvements. The experiential learning was used in this design as adult learners learn more effectively in this way. References Joyce Bruce, Showers, Beverly and Rolheiser-Bennett, Carol. â€Å"Staff Development and Student Learning: A Synthesis of Research on Models of Teaching. † Educational Leadership 45/2 (1987): 11-23.

Graphics and Games Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Graphics and Games - Essay Example However it has a merit in that the processes involved in generating images are flexible. It is more or less like a graphics assembly language whereby there is the possibility of combining the pieces of the software’s functionality as building blocks to create innovative graphics. Another aspect of the software is that its specifications are not pixel exact. There are high possibilities of two OpenGL unlikely rendering the same graphics. As a result, the software can be implemented in a range of hardware platforms. Exact specifications would limit hardware acceleration, and further its standard applicability. In the single implementation, lack of pixel exactness persists. The divergent paths through implementation generate different fragments. Despite this, the specifications do not allow for a set of invariance rules guarantee repeatable actions in various circumstances. Features in OpenGL Features existing in OpenGL are Lighting, Shading, Material and Texture Mapping. This pa per will limit its discussion to Lighting and Shading in the programming perspective. Lighting Since light is a science and an art, there are many techniques of creating magnificent light in computer graphics. Through the design of OpenGL software, the lighting system approximates light behavior in a simple and efficient fashion. It fits best for computer games since it is possible to render light in real-time. Its lighting does not calculate reflections and scattering of light. At the same time, no shadows are produced. Lighting effects are achieved through textures, shadow mapping and shaders. Practically, light is present everywhere as objects too, react differently in the presence of light. Since light works with materials and has impact when a surface reflects it, OpenGL optimizes on this. Through its functions, it can define the characteristics of surfaces. The definitions focus on; what is the color of the surface now? And how much or little light does the surface reflect? Th ese material properties describe surface. The software applies default material values until the programmer specifies his or her own settings. The following are the lighting effects supported by OpenGL; directional, Spot, Ambient lights and attenuation. Lighting in OpenGL is defined by the Lighting and Shading models. Before any setting is done, lighting mode is enabled since it requires enabling of the depth buffer. The glEnable is a function that enables several features in OpenGL and one of the features is lighting. This feature becomes the input parameter but still light will be required. Since the software has a direct support for approximately 8 lights, a light has to be enabled through a call. A disabling function is also available to disable unwanted light functions during programming. During programming, there are two types of light properties to be considered; one that describes a light source and the other that describes light reflected by the material of an objectâ€℠¢s surface. This is specified by the function glLightfv. The light attenuation feature is responsible for reducing light intensity in relation to distance. It states the real-world policy that light intensity decreases with distance. During the operation, the position of the source of light must be specified (Ahmed, 2009 pp.1-2). Shading In the shading model, the function call glShadeModel

Heredity, Structure and Function - Discussion Unit 6 SC300 Essay

Heredity, Structure and Function - Discussion Unit 6 SC300 - Essay Example Man, being more gifted than all other animals in terms of intelligence has the responsibility of ensuring that nature is maintained. Otherwise, if it were not for the conscience of people who conserve the environment, more animals and plants would be extinct. However, there are those who do not care and are on the forefront destroying nature. Man is part of nature, and extinction of other creatures does have various effects on him. Some plants are of high value as medicine sources, for example, Cascarilla cinchona pubescens, a source of anti-malarial drug (Robalino, 2009). However, due to its overexploitation it is on the verge of extinction. Thus, man loses, as sources of medicine deplete with time. The dilemma that exists in man’s life is whether to give up on the gains from other creatures to avoid extinction or continue gaining at the cost of the almost extinct creatures. On the other hand, man can continue gaining from the creatures; concurrently, he can evaluate his ways to avoid the creatures from extinction. In the evaluation, man can exploit the creatures but at least provide a replacement of the same. In the case of plants, man can opt to plant others after using them. Ethically, it is man’s responsibility to provide protection to other creatures instead of killing them. Man’s efforts to preserve nature’s creatures face many challenges. These challenges include lack of adequate manpower to fight for the preservation of creatures against those who are after them. If I were president, I would take the initiative to salvage endangered species by introducing a policy that prohibits people from utilizing, in any way, an endangered species, not unless one has a permit. Moreover, for one to get a permit, he or she has to provide a valid and credible purpose of the work and provide a way of preventing extinction of the species. The tradeoff that I would make to enforce the policy is providing a permit

Society Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Society - Assignment Example The invention of the steam engine accelerated industrial revolution in Europe and later the entire world. However, although the intended purpose of this invention was met, there were other side effects due to the invention, and all this will be discussed in this write up. Keywords: Steam Engine, Invention, Science, Society, Inventor, Industrial Revolution, History of Steam Engine The power of steam is given credit for its earlier and current application in the power industry. Long ago, steam power made a lot of difference in industries, it still does. Its history is dated back to the first century. There were a lot of life challenges that required innovations to reduce the human labour and increase production. Miners during the 18th century faced a lot of challenges relating to the mining industry; they had to look for the ways of overcoming these obstacles. Their effort for minimizing challenges led to the introduction of steam energy to pump water from deep mines; this slowly trans formed to the fully developed steam engine (â€Å"Industrial History: The History of the Steam Engine,† 2013). Before the introduction of steam, power was obtained through wind, animals, and water. The steam engine was the first form of power generated by human beings (â€Å"A Brief History of Steam Power,† n.d.). Steam engine invention is not credited to one single individual, every inventor put in some small effort and with time, there was an improvement. One of the important principles used in the development of the steam engine was the principle of condensation of water vapor so that it could create a vacuum. In the steam engine, water and water vapor are the key ingredients, â€Å"work is done by the pressure which the substance exerts while its volume is undergoing change† (Ewing, 2013, p. 2). Historical Development of Steam Engines The historic development of the steam engine defines the beginning and the progress of the steam engine invention. It started with the need to have more power to solve the issues that were at hand. First, there was a lot of cold, people wanted to get warmth therefore they had to invent fire, as life went on, there were other developments in the industrial sector, for example for glass makers, there was a lot of firewood to be used in these glass industries, and since there were large forests around, the firewood was to be used to provide heat in the furnaces. As the needs increased, requirements for fuel also increased to meet the requirements of the increasing operations. Coal was then invented; a furnace that generated higher temperatures and used less fuel was invented by Abraham Darby (â€Å"A Brief History of Steam Power,† n.d.). Pumps were then needed to drain the coal mines. During the 1600’s, a German scientist called Otto Van Guericke invented the first air pump; this was after his discovery of gas as the third matter. He realized that he could remove air from a glass globe, leaving behind an empty space called a vacuum. Later on, he discovered static electricity and abandoned his work on pumps and vacuums, with this, he was already setting up some pace for the invention of the steam engine, although he had no idea about it. The progress that he had already made was enough for Denis Papin to pick up the idea about a piston and cylinder. His idea was that if air

Marketing and e-commerce Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2750 words

Marketing and e-commerce - Essay Example Essay "Marketing and E-commerce" is a very popular task in Universities and Colleges. The author of this paper is high leveled specialist in this area, that's why he tried to bring critical outlook at this problem, as much as it was possible. Also, he claims that e-commerce is an example of an industry, whereby trades and consumers buy services or products through the use of electronic systems, like computer networks, or the internet. In the modern times, E-commerce involves the use of the World Wide Web, in its transactions, and this involves using a wide range of technological innovations such as the social media, emails, mobile devices, and telephones. Collier reveals that electronic commerce is the backbone of the e-business, and this is because it is impossible to conduct an e-business without the use of electronic gadgets such as computers, or even mobile phones. E-business also involves an exchange of data, for purposes of facilitating the payment and financing of certain aspects of a business transaction. It is important to understand that e-Business is an effective method of communicating in an organization and a very reliable and effective method of carrying out a business operation. Scholars denote that e-Business is an example of a marketing strategy, when the company under operation, enters into a business environment without necessarily having a physical presence. This paper is an essay, that probably will help you to get the highest mark and to save your time for something you really like!

E-loyalty and Customer relationship management Essay

E-loyalty and Customer relationship management - Essay Example Some sole proprietors use online programs in targeting nationwide and global customers by using accurate information regarding the business and the use consumer programs such as credit card reward programs as a strategy in keeping their loyal customers satisfied. It is common that these reward systems are tailored according to the needs and expectations of the customers. Business-to-business (B2B) or e-biz is an effective tool in the exchange of products, services, and information between business and consumers. Over the years, B2B has proven to be very effective in closing business transactions between the business owner and the customers. According to a study that was published back in early 2000, the profitability of using B2B has exceeded the ‘e-tailing’ by 10 to 1% and is expected to have an annual growth of 41% over the next few years. (Jones, 2001) Customer Relationship Management (CRM) is a ‘software’ that helps a business organization in managing its customers better. (Walsh, 2007) CRM software enables the sales people and service representatives to have a quick access over the information related to the customers. This allows the sales force of the company to immediately provide the customers with a more customized service according to the customers’ needs regarding the products and services the business is offering. (Williams, 2006) According to Kumar and Reinartz (2006), CRM is defined as a strategic process of selecting the customers a firm can most profitably serve. It is also capable of shaping the interactions between a company and these customers with the goal of optimising the current and future value of the customers for the company. (Kumar and Reinartz 2006, 6) Based on the definition, CRM is a process of enterprise-wide that has the potential to affect decisions related to marketing communications, pricing, customisation of products and services, resource allocation across different customers

Homodyne receivers Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Homodyne receivers - Essay Example The architecture of homodyne receiver comprises the basic RF circuits which ensure the work flow of the equipment namely Band Select Filter (BSF), Low-noise amplifier (LNA), active mixer, oscillator and a Channel Select Filter (HFS, 2008). LNA is an amplifier which converts the received signal to acceptable levels while minimizing the noise. (Varma,Kunder,Daruwalla,2003). The active mixers are responsible for frequency up conversion and down conversion functions  (Beckwith, Schiltz, 2003) where as Oscillator generates a series of waves which is mixed with the RF signals (Fukatsu, 2005). Channel Select Filter converts preferred low power RF signal into significantly powerful ones. The primary principle of operation of a direct conversion receiver, is the down-conversion of incoming RF signal to base-band in one step by mixing with an oscillator output of the same frequency and hence the name ‘homodyne receiver’. The resulting zero frequency signal is then filtered with a low-pass filter to select the desired channel. (Ma,2001). This process of operation has been illustrated in the following diagram. The simplicity in its constitution and function is the prime advantage of this type of receivers. With relevance to the changing performance and functionality requirement for the emerging technologies, the homodyne model becomes more practical to implement. The major disadvantage of homodyne receiver is that the down-converted signal is extremely sensitive to DC voltage offsets due to current leakage from the local oscillator entering into the LNA and mixer. This demands high requirements on reverse isolation and low substrate coupling. Moreover because of the down-conversion of the RF signal to zero IF, the noise in the oscillator must be minimized and the distortion or linearity must be kept very low for the LNA and mixer. This causes power dissipation as well. (HFS,

Academic Poster ( Mental Health) in the uk Essay

Academic Poster ( Mental Health) in the uk - Essay Example Physical problems such as stomach problems, tremors, blackouts, and hangovers occur. Psychologically, the drinker is irritable and can be moved to angry outbursts (Livestrong, 2015). The costs of alcohol misuse are high. Before taking a drink, it is important to ask whether or not, the risk of becoming addicted and succumbing to the problems linked to alcoholism are worth the gains achieved through alcohol consumption. Based on the four stages of alcoholism, it is important to stop drinking as soon as it is apparent that you are at vulnerable to alcohol addiction. This realization should occur in the first stage or the adaptive stage of alcoholism. All efforts should be made to quit consumption of alcohol during this stage. As the alcoholic progresses, it becomes harder to quit until the conclusion stage where quitting might not make a difference since the alcoholic’s body and mind is likely suffering irreparable damage and death is imminent. Ideally, the drinker should recognize a drinking problem early on and make a determined effort to abstain. It is best not to wait until you hit rock bottom as rock bottom could mean a custodial sentence, harm to othe rs. o.oneself. Excessive drinking or drinking ‘more than the recommended limits of alcohol consumption’ (NHS, 2013). The government has established alcohol consumption limits that are believed to pose minimum health risks to those who want to drink. Keeping within the guidelines’ limits should mean the risk of harm is reduced, if not eliminated. Recommended Limits : Women should drink at most, 2-3 units (175ml glass of wine) daily. Men should at most drink 3-4 units (pint of beer, lager or cider) daily (NHS, 2015). However, Nichols, et al. (2012) reveals that even keeping within these limits will not prevent exposure to chronic illness due to alcohol consumption. Mental Health Issues: Alcohol interferes with the brain’s neurotransmitters and exposes alcohol misusers to depression,

The Growth and Importance of English Essay Example for Free

The Growth and Importance of English Essay The definition of a global language, is a language which has been given a specific place within countries and communities around the world, even in places where there are very few native speakers of this language. Although English is not the most widely spoken language in the world in terms of the number of native speakers there are many more native Chinese speakers than native English speakers it is described as a global language and Chinese is not. This is because there are few other communities in the world that give Chinese, be it Mandarin or Cantonese, a particular use or function, probably due to the fact that its alphabet is so different from that which is used in the majority of the rest of the world. It is impossible to know exactly how many English speakers there are in the world, but according to estimates, there are more than 350 million native English speakers and more than 400 million speakers of English as a second, or foreign, language. These figures are especially impressive considering the fact that this mass popularity only came about in approximately the last three centuries. The English languages influence spans across the globe and is more influential in the world of media, communication, business and government than any other, even in certain countries where English is used, or regarded, as a minority language. It is the language of maritime communication and international air traffic control and is acknowledged as the language of popular culture primarily in the entertainment fields of cinema and music. The English languages earliest origins are from the Germanic language group. This group began as a common language about 3,000 years ago. Many different European languages developed from this Germanic group, depending on which part of this sector the region of the Elbe river they were closer to. For example, North Germanic evolved into the modern Scandinavian languages of Swedish, Danish, Norwegian and Icelandic; and East Germanic, which was adopted by Southeast European countries. West Germanic, however, is the language from which English developed, along with German, Dutch and Flemish. This West Germanic language first came over to Britain in the 5th Century when Germanic peoples from Jutland (the Jutes) and Denmark (the Saxons) invaded. They forced the original inhabitants the Celts to the outskirts of Britain Scotland, Wales, Cornwall and Ireland. It is for this reason that the a lot of the original Celtic language still remains in the Scottish, Irish and Welsh languages. The Germanic invaders language was almost identical to Modern Frisian, the language which is now referred to as Old English. Depending on where in Britain the Jutes and the Saxons settled, new dialects emerged. The most prominent of these being Northumbrian in the North of England, Mercian in the Midlands, West Saxon in the South and West, and Kentish in the Southeast. Around two hundred years later, during the 8th Century, the Vikings invaded Britain from Scandinavia. As with the original Germanic invaders, they brought with them a new language dimension Old Norse. This language however, was itself descended from North Germanic and so was very similar to the Old English which was being spoken in England. As the language spoken throughout Scandinavia at the time was mostly understandable by the Anglo-Saxons, they brought, with relative ease, many new words to the language of England, especially to the Northern regions. In 1066, the Duke of Normandy, William the Conqueror, did as name suggests, and invaded and conquered England, and its Anglo-Saxon inhabitants. As with the Viking invasion two hundred and fifty years previously, the new rulers of England brought with them a specific addition to the language. However, also like the Vikings, the language spoken by the Normans had descended from the Germanic group and was called Anglo-Norman. However, it was in fact a French dialect which had simply been influenced by Germanic language features. It therefore was unlike the languages which had been brought to England during the previous two conquests, as it featured Latin based lexis and grammar, but with a basic Germanic heredity. Although Old English had already been remotely influenced by Latin during the Roman occupation of Britain during the 7th Century, the language of England now properly incorporated distinct Latinate linguistic features. The mixture of these two languages French and Old English came to be known as Middle English. The French dimension began to slowly dilute itself however, when the original Norman rulers lost ownership of Normandy when it was conquered by the French King in 1204, and therefore lost contact with the province they had once owned, and focused on their main land England. The Middle English language remained more or less the same for several centuries (apart from inevitable lexical developments) until the late 1400s, when a great invention revolutionised the English language and became the last major factor in the development of Modern English. This ground-breaking device was the printing press, which was created by William Caxton in 1476. It made such a significant impact because, for the first time ever, the English language could be written and produced in mass amounts relatively easily. This meant that news could be spread quicker and with less difficulty, as bulletins, leaflets and books could be produced in large quantities at a lower price, as writing was no longer done by hand and therefore took a lot less time. As books were now cheaper, the literacy rate rose and the masses began to educate themselves. Reading was therefore no longer reserved for the nobility. This also meant, however, that the English language had to be standardised for everyone to be able to read it with the same facility. The dialect of London, where the first printing press and most of the future publishing houses were located, therefore became the standard way of writing. Spelling and grammar rules were fixed and the Middle English dialect, finally became the standardised language that we know it to be today. This was later confirmed in 1604, when the first ever English language dictionary was published. So, now that English had more or less fully developed itself, how did it, instead of other, ancient languages such as Latin, Greek, Arabic and Chinese grow to become so powerful and overtake these well-established languages in between Shakespeares era and the 20th Century? The first reason is the exploration and colonisation of distant countries and areas around the world by Britain who, at the height of its empires rule (late 19th and early 20th Century), ruled over 1/3 of the world. The British explorers travelled far and wide, conquering regions and establishing English as their primary language, as a means of exerting a civilising influence on countries within the empire, and in order to demonstrate their superiority. Many of these colonies, most of which have since become independent, still use English as their principal or official language, for example the United States, Australia, New Zealand, Hong Kong, Singapore, Nigeria, the Philippines, and Malaysia. This is due to the fact that many of these countries have numerous different regional dialects, for example in India (which utilises English as its official language) a census recorded over 200 different mother tongues even though the Indian constitution recognises only 18 official Indian langu ages. The colonisation of the United States in particular made a great impact upon the use of English as a global language. As early as during the 1750s, renowned philosopher and writer David Hume rightly stated that, Our solid and increasing establishments in America promise a superior stability and duration to the English language. This is because during the 1800s, England was firmly establishing itself as the workshop of the world, and with the onset of the Industrial Revolution, during which, England paved the way for the invention of technological wonders, America gained speed in the race for economic power. With the invention, in the early 1900s, of steam technology, came the real breakthrough in the globalisation of the English language, as the press became mechanised and so news about British and American technological developments travelled further, and more frequently, to the colonies by the new railways and steamships. The news of these miraculous inventions now reached the rest of the world with such haste, and international markets soon realised that if they wanted to make a significant impact during the Industrial Revolution, they had to improve their knowledge of what technology was being invented. As much of this technology came from England and America, the directions about how to use the machinery were written in  English and so foreign traders had to learn English, or at least have enough capability to ensure basic understanding. In fact, it has been stated that when all of the industrial and scientific developments from America are added to those from Britain, it can be calculated that over half of the significant technological yield of the Industrial Revolution was written in English. These technological advancements that were being made had widespread linguistic consequences. New terminology used to describe the industrial and scientific developments was invented, and rapidly became part of the English language, adding thousands of words to the already growing lexicon. These newly improved modes of transportation (steamships) also helped the expansion of English, as travel and exploration became easier. New lands were being discovered and so the English language was able to spread even further. For example, in 1769, British explorer James Cook discovered Australia and by 1790, Britain had already set up its first penal colony in Sydney, in order to relieve the pressure on the overcrowded English prisons. It became the destination for British convicts who had been declared criminally incurable. However, the convicts thrived and began farming, which built up a reasonable economy. The population increased, and eventually Australia was no longer regarded as the island made up solely of prisoners, and it became an economically developed continent with English as its mother tongue. Slavery was also a way of spreading the English language. During the 1700s, Westerners began to take Africans from their native land, which had already almost entirely been colonised by the Europeans, and exported them back to their own countries as a means of free labour. Even once they had been shipped abroad, their captors were worried that they would band together and revolt against them. The way in which they decided to stop this from happening was by grouping up the slaves by what language they spoke. Those who were from the same parts of Africa or who spoke the same language or dialect were separated. They were now helpless they could not communicate with each other in order to rise against their new masters, which was  exactly what their owners wanted. However, in order to be able to get these slaves to work for them, the Westerners had to teach them their own language. As many slaves were transported to America in particular, they were taught how to speak English. This language became their only means of communication with not only their masters, but with each other as well. The English language was thus expanded even further. It was also from this that the black vernacular of today developed itself. Although during the first half of the 19th Century (the beginning of the Industrial Revolution) new transport systems were developed (as mentioned above) and vastly improved communications between countries and continents, the real breakthroughs came in the second half of the century. This was the invention of the telegraph and then the telephone by Alexander Graham Bell, which made interpersonal contact across countries almost instantaneous. These means of communication greatly helped the growth of the English language, because they are widely regarded as two of the most influential developments of the century, and were either patented, developed or created by an American. By the end of the 19th Century therefore, America had overtaken Britain, as well as everyone else, as the worlds fastest growing economy. By the early 20th Century, Britain and the United States were known for their economic imperialism they together invested more money than any other country in the world and were known as the global economic trade capitals. The rest of the world could see how much money these two countries were making and therefore wanted to join them, however, like with the Industrial Revolution, to do so, they had to learn the economic language, which at this point in history, was most definitely English. David Crystal states that If the metaphor money talks has any meaning at all, those were the days when it was shouting loudly and the language in which it was shouting was chiefly English. Today English is incredibly wide-spread and it is constantly expanding. The main reason for this, in my opinion, is because of the media. The first medium through which English is, and was, spread is through newspapers.  Everybody needs to know what is going on, in not only their country, but abroad as well. Newspapers are the main publication which are indispensable, because no matter what scientific or technological developments are created, the world will still need this type of information delivered through this simple and cost-effective medium. This is why the fact that five thousand newspapers, more than half of the newspapers published in the world, are published in English, is so important to the constant growth of the English language. Television and cinema are other forms of media which greatly helped English get to the position it has reached today. The technology of this industry was first developed in Europe and America during the 19th Century, and by 1900, Britain and France were leading the way in the art of filmmaking. The First World War stopped them in their tracks however, which gave America the chance to gain dominance within the field. Feature films were developed, and the actors became stars across the world, thus solidifying Americas control over the film industry, which it still maintains today. Their industry is the largest and richest, and therefore the films which are produced, are sent off all around the world where they are subtitled (or dubbed). Through watching these movies, people abroad are learning the English language, whilst being entertained. The same can be said of the power which American television has over the world, and its obvious benefits. For example, two hundred and fifty million Chinese people (more than the population of the United States itself) are learning English on TV. Popular culture, in particular pop music, also affected and is still affecting the growth and spread of the English language. The phonograph the first machine which could ever record and reproduce sound, was invented in America in 1877 by American, Thomas A. Edison. Most of the significant technological developments made in the record industry therefore took place in America. The invention of LP disks and records was obviously not the beginning of music, but it gave music the ability to travel across the world without the composer or artist having to travel themselves. It therefore  allowed other countries to experience foreign music, especially American music, which was increasingly popular because of its often fast-paced beat which was ideal for dancing, which symbolised the carefree notion which Europe, during the First World War, craved. In conclusion, the English languages label of global language is one which is entirely founded. It has proved its dominance all around the world, its power has spanned many centuries, and today, with the internet the means of communication of the future recording 94% of its sites as being written in English, it is safe to say that it will continue to do so for many future generations.

British Rule in India to the French One in Algeria Essay Example for Free

British Rule in India to the French One in Algeria Essay Critically Compare the British Rule in India to the French one in Algeria. Throughout the nineteenth century, the rivalling countries of Britain and France were both looking to expand into different continents and build a successful empire. There are many reasons for this thirst for expansion, including economic growth and territorial gains. According to Gildea the emergence of non-European countries such as United States and Japan as great powers fuelled the nationalistic appetite for the extension of borders and influence. The British rule in India; later coined the ‘British Raj’, began in 1858 and although coming under much strain in periods throughout, lasted until 1947 when they were finally given their independence. The French rule in Algeria spanned from 1830 to 1962 following the conclusion of the Algerian War and the signing of the Evian agreements. It is clear when examining both the rules of Great Britain in India and France in Algeria that there were significant differences in the ways the two countries were ran. The French used military might to control the population and quell any uprisings; one instigator of such revolts was Abd al-Kader. These heavy handed tactics seemed to be less successful when compared to how the British reacted to Indian violence. Great Britain decided to grant concessions when faced by fierce opposition limiting the amount turmoil and essentially making it easier to diplomatically push western ideas upon them. France’s colonisation of Algeria was not the first time that they had tried to expand their borders and compete on a world stage with the other world powers, infact before looking to Africa France had the second largest empire in the world, second only to Great Britain. In 1605 France had secured a territory in what is now Nova Scotia in Canada. Throughout the 17th century they had been highly successful in adding much of the North American continent, also the West Indies. However after a string of conflicts such the ‘Seven Years War (1756-1763)’ and the Napoleonic Wars (1803-1815) the other world powers had been successful in annexing these territories from France. The end of what has been labelled the ‘First French Empire’ was now coming to an end. In 1830 during a meeting between the French ambassador and the Algerian Dey regarding loans and trade the Dey struck the French ambassador with a fly whip. This act is said to be the final trigger cause which lead to the French occupation. However it is a wider known fact that there was a distinct lack of political support for the new monarchy and this act of war would help stir up national pride and increase confidence. Whilst appearing on the front of it a petty reason for declaring war on a country and occupying it for 132 years, there are other motives behind the bold political decision to initiate a ‘Second French Empire’. Algeria was seen to be of high strategic significance as it offered a springboard into the rest of Africa, including such nations as Tunisia, Libya and Niger. Gildea agrees with this argument noting â€Å"Algeria, which it [France] occupied in 1830, was the cornerstone of her Mediterranean and African ambitions†. Therefore, by occupying Algeria and furthermore Congo and Niger in 1880 they had secured themselves once more as a successful Empire capable of competing in the world stage. In 1869 the Suez Canal was officially opened for traffic, this narrow strip of water dissecting what is now Saudi Arabia on one side and Egypt, Sudan, Ethiopia and Somalia, offered a significantly faster shipping route into the East. It also eradicated the need for trading ships to visit the perilous coastline of Cape Horn in South Africa where piracy was rife. This vital water passage was also utilised by the British in order to transport good to India. The East India Trading Company was founded in 1600 with the purpose of travelling to Asia in search of previously unsourced trading links. They operated under the authority of the British crown and even controlled a military force. They were responsible for directly trying to impose Western beliefs and cultures on India much too soon in the occupation and too forcefully. This lead to a largely hostile reception and in 1857 there was a large scale rebellion. The British had been religiously insensitive towards both the Hindu and Muslim populations. The British had issued new gunpowder cartridges which were believed to be greased using cow or pig fat. This practice would have been unacceptable by both the Hindu and Muslim sepoys, however it wasn’t just the Bengal Army who wished to be rid of the British; the Indian aristocracy had lost vast amounts of power and influence. Officials such as Sir Thomas Munro could see little use in â€Å"a parasitic land owning class† commenting on how preferential methods of governance would be village communities as â€Å"it fitted better with the europeanized and more efficient type of administration that had been built up during the nineteenth century† The British leant many lessons from the 1857 Rebellion, and as subsequently the British Raj was created. This is a far more sympathetic approach t o ruling over India. No longer did the British Government and the East India Trading Company underestimate the need to be culturally aware. This issue of religion and culture provides a distinction between the British methods in the India and the French methods in Algeria. In comparison the French continually used military force to repress uprisings. Abd al-Kader, as previously mentioned was an instigator of such uprisings, however after the French Army swelled in size it became possible for them to employ ‘scorched-earth’ tactics, ferociously supressing the local population, consequently al-Kader was forced to surrender in 1847 . In the late 19th Century France began emigrating large numbers of Europeans into Algeria, â€Å"By 1881 there were 300,000 Europeans (Half of them French) in an area of 2.5 million Arabs.†Another example of France trying to reduce Islamic culture comes from after the Second World War. Charles de Gaulle; the leader of the French provisional government offered to grant French citizenship to certain Algerian Muslims, however in doing so they would essential renounce their faith and religion. In India Britain used a ‘divide and rule’ policy in order to retain peace. Akhtar Sandhu suggests â€Å"the British adopted the policy to maintain harmony and peace. They valued unity and tranquillity in the British India.† These are the act of a â€Å"conqueror who decides to stay and rule†. It is clear that the British way of integrating Western culture within Indian society was more successful than the equivalent process involving the French in Algeria. This can be seen from the fact that within the upper classes of Indian society a new elite was being born. These people had respected professions, such as â€Å"lawyers, doctors, teachers, journalists and businessmen†, they had â€Å"established a Western life-style using the English language and English schools† Outside the upper class Great Britain had introduced Western technology to help improve the livelihood of the population. The introduction of railways and the improvement of irrigation methods had improved both industrial and agricultural efficiency. In Algeria the French also brought about Western civilisation to some extent, creating schools and building cities as well as constructing hospitals, however they spent 162 years with almost constant violence. Their eagerness to us military force to resolve issues lead to resentment from many Algerian nationals. In Conclusion, there were a number of similarities when looking at the resistance of the colonial occupation in both Algeria and India, however what differed is the reactions of the occupying country’s and how they learnt from their mistakes. The British at first tried to force Western ideals against the Hindu and Muslim Indians. However they quickly learnt that countering their revolts with over aggressive military action was counter-intuitive to their cause. Instead they began to offer concessions in order to appease the nationals. The policy of divide and rule ensured there would be minimal friction between the multiplicities of religious beliefs. In contrast the French confronted violent upheaval with similarly vicious tactics such as the policy of ‘scorched-earth’ instead of pacifying the African ideals. However, both the French and British Empires did to differing extents manage to integrate Western technologies such as railways and modern irrigation methods. In addition both occupations were valuable building blocks in which to expand their empires; France into Africa and Great Britain into Asia. Bibliography -Carter., M, From the East India Company to the Suez Canal, (Duke, 2004), pp. 667-668 -French Colonial Empires, http://www.thelatinlibrary.com/imperialism/notes/frenchempire.html, (Accessed 10th January 2012) -Gildea., R, Barricades and Borders: Europe 1800 – 1914, Third Edition (Oxford, 2003) pp. 337 -Gildea., R, Barricade and Borders: Europe 1800-1914, Third Edition, (Oxford, 2003), pp. 338 -Jones., J, Algerian Independence, http://courses.wcupa.edu/jones/his312/lectures/algeria.htm, (accessed 8th January 2012) -Pritchard., J.S, In search of Empire: the French in the Americas, 1670-1730, (Cambridge, 2004) Sandhu., A.H Reality of ‘Divide and Rule’ in British India, Pakistan Journal of History and Culture, Vol.XXX, No.1, 2009 -Thompson, E and Garratt., E.T, History of British rule in India, Volume 2, (Cambridge,1999), pp. 426 -Tanford., L.S, Countries and their Culture: Algeria, http://www.everyculture.com/A-Bo/Algeria.html#b, (accessed 14th January 2012)

Downsizing: Corporate Restructuring Strategy

Downsizing: Corporate Restructuring Strategy Downsizing or layoff is a widespread strategic decision and change practice since 1970s and during the economic downturn in the year 2007 it became a more common phenomenon. In 2001 alone fortune 500 companies reportedly cut a total of 1040466 jobs and one predicts that by 2015 a further 3.3 million jobs will be outsourced. Changing patterns in reasons cited for job loss support this impression of the rising importance of restructurings. Differences in factors such as the state of the economy and the signal sent by job loss could make the process of downsizing and the effects of job loss differ between restructurings of healthy organizations and downsizing due to financial distress. Recent companies to pursue downsizing include American Express, Alcoa, Motorola, HP, Dell, Lucent to name a few. DOWNSIZING APPROACHES There are many kind of approaches in downsizing. The reasons for the firm to undertake such approaches also varies. As documented by Palmer et al,. they include restructuring, closing or selling of a business unit, cost reduction, cost savings, increased productivity through greater efficiency and effectiveness and coping with external pressure including recessions and economic downturn, economical change, increased competitive pressures through greater globalization of business and technological change. Multiple strategies may be associated with downsizing beyond the simple cost cutting approach. For instance, after the terrorist attack on united states on September 11,2001, Praxair Inc. a supplier of speciality gases and coating the United States, experienced a downturn in productivity. They announced the need to reduce their worldwide workforce by 900 employees as well as the need to restructure their business to cater to products where demand was increasing. To this end they simultaneously downsized and invested in two new product plants. Sometimes employees are the last resort for cost cutting and thus the company follows downsizing. For example, in the end of the second quarter of 2001 Charles Schwab company was hit by a major economic downturn in commission based revenue. This company has hired a lot of workforce during the boom period of the business cycle. So they had an overabundance of staff and finally realised the need to restructure and downsizing was their last resort of cost cutting. As a result by the end of 2003, the company has reduced nearly 25% of its workforce and significantly decreased the staff bonuses in a move to save the company from its declining profit. But downsizing will not necessarily lead to gains in productivity unless and until its complemented with other business strategies. For example , a research in 1990 showed that expected increase in profits did not increase in two out of three cases through cost cutting by downsizing. This research showed that share prices may initially rise with the announcement of cost cutting by downsizing but often fall, trading at or below the market over a two year period. TYPES OF DOWNSIZING There are mainly three types of downsizing. They are as follows: Retrenchment Downscaling Downscoping The above three strategies are further elaborated below: (1) RETRENCHMENT: it is a corporate strategy by which the firm centralizes or specializes its operations to maintain and improve the productivity and profit. It can brought about by removal of unnecessary jobs and amenities or reengineering process. This finally helps in gaining competitive advantage and improve the economies of scale. If a company or government follows the process of retrenchment, it decreases the money which is outgoing and the expenditures or have a new focus so that they can become more solvent financially.Retrenchment is a general strategy of cutting back the cost and a useful approach towards the layoff process. Companies usually use the strategy of retrenchment through two approaches. One of them being reducing the overall expenditure by decreasing the workforce, closing of offices and branches which are not performing according to expected profit, freezing hiring and cutting salaries. As the firm centralizes the operation it may move its head quarters to a favourable place where the operating cost is lowered or easy availability of raw materials is possible. It can also streamline its process and decreasing the quality of materials used in production. The other approach of the company is by downsizing in non profitable market, i.e. following the process of downsizing in the market segment which is not performing well currently and in turn building upon its operations in market which has proved to be profitable in long run. This usually happens when the non profitable market becomes saturated or obsolete for the sole reason of new and improved technology and modernization. There are basically five major activities that take place for retrenchment: Turnaround: there are two strategies to do it. Firstly the company can consolidate the operation and secondly it can contract its operations by cutting cost of labour and marketing. Captive company : for a captive company to perform well they can be an exclusive supplier to a giant company. Its future is held by another big company Divestment : it mainly involves in removal of a portion of the business. It may sell, close or spin-off any strategic business unit, a product line or any operating division. They actually downsize their scope of business functioning. Liquidation: The process is simple. It is done by Taking the book value of assets, subtracting depreciation and selling the business. There can be potentially viable assets which are lost in the process. Bankruptcy: this is when the company looses its total profit. It is a legal protective strategy. There can at least be a possibility of turnaround if the company declares itself bankrupt to its loyal customers. (2). DOWNSCALING: the process of downscaling involves permanent alterations to employment and tangible resource capacity. The decrease in resources decreases the necessity of workforce operating them and thus the process of downsizing is easy and viable for sustaining the company. It improves the competitive advantage of the company and reduces the firms economies of scale. It can also involve improvement in the competitive market share of the firm. This strategy is actually followed by firms who are facing increased competition in the market place and wants to improve the efficiency by implementing changes in the workforce. (3). DOWNSCOPING: when the form divests operations and activities or markets in which it operates. This is usually achieved by decreasing the vertical and horizontal integration. If a firm has over diversified its operations it can use the corporate strategy of downsizing to improve its performance. The strategy helps in refocusing the organizations core business. It involves two main processes. Firstly reducing the level of diversification by divesting the business which are not related to its core competency. Secondly selectively removing workforce units and employees who do not contribute to the strategic objective of the organization. The assets of the firm which are unproductive are spun-off or sold. It helps the firm to achieve the optimal level of diversification. The process of refocusing also reduces the information processing requirement of the top management. The emphasis of the firm is more on strategic control rather than financial control. It is reducing the diversity o f business in its portfolio. European firms use more of downscoping as compared to the United Statess firms. One of the best examples of downscoping can be the Tata group who have restructured its business to retain only 91 of its 250 business. The company has tried to build a more focussed approach without actually abandoning the best traditional manufacturing process. CHALLENGES IN DOWNSIZING There are certain challenges the organization has to face while the process of downsizing is being implemented. They are explained as follows: Survivor syndrome : this is mainly observed in employees who are retained in the organization after the downsizing process has been done. They feel guilty that they are still in the organization when their valued work colleagues are and employed. They suffer from low morale and feel that they also can get laid off in future. Particularly when they are not involved in the organizations restructuring process they feel left out and dissociated. Managing such survivors effectively is a major challenge Due diligence: there can be questions in the organization regarding the necessity of the downsizing in the organization if the process is unplanned or non selective. This may lead to damage of the employee-employer relationship in the organization. Employee retention: loss of important and skilled employees can occur due to unplanned downsizing. Sometimes the retained employees become unsure about their future in the firm and reconsider their decision to stay back with the firm. Loosing these employees can greatly affect the productivity of the firm. Cultural adjustments: downsizing leads to significant cultural change. For example the subcultures of the firm may be broken down by restructuring and downsizing and disruption of informal networks may occur. So the management must pay more attention to reintegrate the culture and formulate new strategic decisions Communication: the company should make sure that they convey and communicate the future of the present employees and also the market situation they are presently in. they should communicate their future strategy and vision to the shareholders, employees and the customers. Choice of restructuring technique: downsizing is not always the most viable technique for restructuring. Many companies do not seek initial alternative to it. The decision of using any substitute method should be analysed properly before carrying on the process of downsizing. DOWNSIZING IN THE PHARMACEUTICAL INDUSTRY There has been major downsizing and lay off in the pharmaceutical companies over the last few years. From the year 2007 when the recession started nearly 80,000 jobs in pharmaceutical industry is lost. The recent consolidation of the industry, e.g., Merck-Schering, Pfizer-Wyeth and Roche-Genentech suggests that many more biotechnology and pharmaceutical jobs may be lost over the next year or so. Companies like of Amgen, Genentech, Gilead are lacking funds to maintain its operations in the down economy. There is a lack of venture and private equity capital which is ultimately leading to cost cutting by reduction in work force. Xenoport, a San Jose based pharmaceutical firm has announced that it will downsize 222 person from its existing workforce in the next few months. The company executives claim that this downsizing is necessary as the US Food and Drug Administration failed to grant approval to the leas drug candidate. The move will help the company save nearly $15.6 million annually and in turn invest them on future drug development. Another firm named Exelis which is based in San-Francisco will cut down its workforce by 40% to have more focus on development of the late stage drug candidate. This biotechnology firm wants to reduce their cash expenditure by nearly $90 million in the year 2011 and wants to focus on anti cancer drugs like XL184, XL147 and XL765 development. It has been less than a year when the company has announced a $1.0 billion deal with Sanofi-Aventis in which $140 million was invested by Sanofi in order to license two of its major oncology drug candidates. Finally, BNET compiled a top biotech layoff list for 2009. The notables that made the list are shown below. Sepracor (530). The layoffs represented 20 percent of Sepracors workforce, and another 410 contract sales reps also got the axe. The restructuring apparently worked and Dainippon Sumitomo Pharma the company later in 2009. Allergan (460). This represented a five percent reduction in the companys workforce. Genmab (300). Arzerra (ofatumumab) the companys leukemia drug won FDA approval a week before layoffs were announced (go figure). But Genmab wanted to cut manufacturing and late-stage clinical work to refocus on antibody discovery. Oscient Pharmaceuticals (280). Oscient cut about 100 jobs in February, 2009 to entice acquisition partners. When that didnt work, the firm cut another 180 in June as it dumped the sales force for its two marketed products. Cornerstone Therapeutics later picked up Oscients antibiotic Factive during bankruptcy. Amylin Pharmaceuticals (200). After cutting 340 jobs at the end of 2008 amid declining diabetes drug sales and regulatory delays, Amylin eliminated 200 sales reps in mid-2009. The above represents one of the largest lay offs in 2009. It was earlier considered that life science wont be affected by the downturn of the economy. But contradictory to the popular belief it is one of the hard hit sectors. Most of the companies are following the downsizing with the mixture of junior and senior employees. But during major lay-offs most of the downsized employees are not experienced. Entry level employees are also downsized for the process of cutting cost. Pharmaceutical companies require nearly 15 years for the drug development process. There may be many critical decisions to be made during the process. For taking such decisions more experienced and expert employees are required and without their suggestions they can not actually render the drug development process to complete. The ability to take proper decision and the corporate knowledge is not observed in the entry level employees. It might take those years to understand the complexity of the process. So mostly the sales level employees are suffering from the downsizing effects. To summarize it, the fact that choosing the employee to be laid of is very crucial in pharmaceutical industry. They should not loose experienced workforce a s it might lead to their loss of efficiency of operations and competitive advantage in the market. The current lay-offs of the industry can increase the drug stock prices for short term period but the future of such measures in the long term is still uncertain and cannot be predicted. CONCLUSION: Downsizing can be fairly costly strategic decision. For example it has been calculated that the total cost of the retrenching of a single employee who earns around $ 30,000 is around $7,000. the process of downsizing can have major pschycological and emotional effect on the employee. The employee may loose his/her morale and efficiency to work better elsewhere. There can also be social effect on both those who remain in the organization and those who leave. For these reasons the smartest companies make sure that they address the right issues in right ways before they jettison jobs and further explore alternatives for their operations before they restore to downsizing as their corporate strategy.

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In today days Atrial Fibrillation (AF) is the most common cardiac dysrhythmia that is often seen in clinical practice. There are 700,000 strokes in the USA each year and 15% of it caused by Atrial Fibrillation. For a long period of time warfarin was the only oral anticoagulant available in the US for patients with atrial fibrillation to prevent stroke events. Recently a new oral anticoagulants, including apixaban, dabigatran, and rivaroxaban have been developed and became available in the US for the stoke prevention and systemic embolism for patients with atrial fibrillation. Now, when all three new anticoagulants are available as an alternative to warfarin for the same indication, they make the health care providers question which agent is the best and for which patients. New agents have practical advantages over warfarin that has many limitations such as need for monitoring, regular dose adjustment, food and drug interaction and side effects. The major goal of the health care prov iders is to prescribe the safest and the most effective alternative drug and dose to each individual patient with AF. However, the approval for clinical use by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the European Medicine Agency differ for anticoagulants and their dosages, and for the individual indication (Harenberg & Kraemer, 2012). Thus, more research needs to be done regarding the monitoring tools for new anticoagulant agents, and extend the use of these agents to other patient population. Keywords: anticoagulants, apixaban, dabigatran, rivaroxaban, warfarin, atrial fibrillation, stroke. Warfarin or New Anticoagulant for Stroke Prevention in Patients with Atrial Fibrillation Atrial Fibrillation (AF) is one of the most common arrhythmias that ... ...s and may not fully understand the importance of their medication, therefor, Advanced Practical Nurse should take every opportunity to reinforce the need of the patients to adhere to anticoagulant therapy and may play an important role in patient’s adherence by providing constant education about their health condition and the importance of their medication. More research should be done on new oral anticoagulants with different study population and similar patients that are seen in everyday clinical practice as well as attempt to define the best pharmacodynamic monitoring tools. Research should be conducted to outline monitoring protocol including timing relative to dosing and frequency as well as therapeutic targets. Using these strategies, future trials could enhance further the efficacy and safety of these new agents and could extend their use to new indications.

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Gerald Arenas Ms. Howell English 10 CPA February 25, 2014 Annotative Bibliography of Romantic Era Poetry Blake, William. â€Å"The Marriage of Heaven and Hell†. The Sorcerer’s Apprentice. 2010. Web. 2-10 24. January 2014. â€Å"The Marriage of Heaven and Hell† is about Heaven and Hell. It questions if Heaven is as good as it seems, or is it deceiving us. Throughout the poem we see that the narrator is on the deception side. Firstly he states that the Bible is the causes of human errors. The narrator also feels positively about Hell, because he describes his walk in Hell as, â€Å"delighted with the enjoyments of Genius†¦Ã¢â‚¬  Finally, in the narrator’s imagination, he explains that he read the following sentence, â€Å"How do you know but every Bird that cuts the airy way, Is an immense world of delight closed by your senses five.† What the author is trying to say is that we commonly use the Bible as our religious beliefs, but it’s possible that the Bible is limiting how we perceive the world. Coleridge, Samuel. â€Å"The Rime of the Ancient Mariner.† The Pennsylvania State University. 2013. Web. 27 January 2014. â€Å"The Rime of the Ancient Mariner† begins with three men walking to attend a wedding. One of the wedding guests’ hand gets grabbed by and old man, the mariner. After the mariner lets go, the wedding guest â€Å"listens like a three years child† to the story the mariner is about to tell. The story begins with the mariner and he crew out at sea. The mariner explains it suddenly got dark and they unexpectedly encountered a giant sea bird, called the Albatross. The Albatross was a symbol of good luck, but the mariner felt the need to kill it. The mariner did just that. Once the Albatross was slain the weather got clearer and the crew congratulated him for his... ...ther example from â€Å"The Marriage of Heaven and Hell† would be is sight of a â€Å"mighty Devil folded in black clouds†. â€Å"The Prelude† uses personification to further explain the potential of the earth. This can be seen from the quote, â€Å"Walk on this Earth† (148). It tells us the earth is powerful and it is also imagination, because the earth can’t walk. In â€Å"he Rime of The Ancient Mariner†, the author uses imagination to better display the mood of a certain scene. After the mariner shot the Albatross, the narrator sets a creepy mood by stating that, â€Å"The bloody Sun, at noon†. Imagination can be seen here, as the sun cannot be bloody. The author in â€Å"Adonais† uses imagination to further set the mood of the scene. â€Å"The shadow of white Death, and at the door.† (VIII) describes how scary death is and is imagination, because Death isn’t a physical person that can stand at a door.

Heart Of Darkness :: essays research papers

Heart of Darkness Heart of Darkness, by Joseph Conrad is a fictional novel with an overflow of symbolism. Throughout the entire novel Conrad uses a plethora of simple colors, objects, and places in order to clarify very complex meanings. By doing this, Conrad is able to lure the reader into a world unlike his or her own: the Congo River, located in central Africa. Although the interpretation of these symbols is so elaborate, the simplicity of each makes it somewhat easy to overlook. A few examples of the many symbols found in Conrad’s novel include the jungle, as well as the colors of white and black, better known as the colors of life and death. In Heart of Darkness, the images of black and white have the usual connotations of evil and good. These pigments are found throughout the entire book. Ironically, although black, the native Africans seem to represent a sort of good by doing what they feel is right. On the other hand, the white foreigners carry themselves with some kind of evil as they exploit the great kindness of the blacks. I guess you could say that the white men were filled with a black hatred inside. Another example is found when Marlow enters the Belgian company’s office. Sitting in the office are two women dressed almost completely in black. Marlow is no beginning to understand the seriousness of the journey he is going to make. Even his predecessor dies because of a quarrel over two black hens. The usage of black is almost too much to handle. Another example that I also remembered from the movie was how Kurtz’s pictures were always placed within a dark ebony back round. Another ironic example is the continued description of the white ivory. Its beautiful white shine makes it look righteous, even though it really demonstrates a great evil as the elephants were being destroyed along with other people. Other colors were of importance as well to truly understand the symbolic nature of the story. The plaid patches and trimmings on the Russian’s harlequin clothes portray his ever-changing moods and foolish, light-hearted behavior. By simply using a description of clothing, Conrad is able to show us how he tends to stay out of trouble with his befriending nature. The color yellow will usually symbolize some sort of corruption or decay. We first read about yellow as it marks the area of Congo on the map in the Brussels office.

Lord Jim Essay

â€Å"The writers, I do believe, who get the best and most lasting response from the readers are the writers who offer a happy ending through moral development. By a happy ending, I do not mean mere fortunate events – a marriage or a last-minute rescue from death – but some kind of spiritual reassessment of moral reconciliation, even with the self, even at death. † In his literary masterpiece, Lord Jim, Joseph Conrad’s theme development is complex but mirrors Fay Weldon’s statement. Dealing with the paradox of whether a human being is capable of both good and evil the moral focus of the novel is the degree of the central characters guilt, his related attempts at self-justification, and in the end, whether or not good works can make up for one bad act. As will be supported in the following paragraphs, Lord Jim is a story of guilt, punishment, obsession to regain lost honor, and moral rescue. Within the opening pages of the novel, Conrad’s central character is presented as less than the romantic hero. Described as being â€Å"an inch, perhaps two, under six feet† (Conrad, p. 9) Jim, the young son of a minister, is drawn to the sea as a youth and has developed a romantic view of himself as one who will meet crisis with calmness and determination. Ultimately, he is not shaken in this belief by his failure to reach the cutter of his training ship. As the plot continues, due to an illness, Jim is left behind in Singapore when his ship returns to England. As a result, he decides to take berth on a local steamer, the Patna, which is involved in an accident. Faced with what he determines to be a hopeless situation, he jumps and deserts his ship when it appears that the Patna is going to sink with all 800 passengers onboard. When it becomes known that the passengers survived, Jim becomes a social outcast. Despite the fact that he was â€Å"one of us† (Conrad, p. 63) his jump â€Å"into a well-into an everlasting deep hole. . . .’ ‘(Conrad, p. 87) associates him with the other officers, known as troublemakers, who have deserted the Patna. His offense is one upon which the Court of Enquiry can have no mercy. Jim however, refuses to accept this association and does his utmost to distinguish himself from them as evidenced by the quote â€Å"They all got out of it in one way or another, but it wouldn’t do for me. † (Conrad, p. 64) He even goes to the extent of attempting to pardon himself as is evidenced when he reports to Marlow, â€Å"There was not the thickness of a sheet of paper between the right and wrong of this affair. † (Conrad, p. 100) Not entirely convincing however, his hope is that he can ultimately rehabilitate himself. As in his first failure in the training ship, he remains certain that he can still be prepared for any emergency and has only been betrayed by circumstances. He finds it impossible to accept his weakness and chooses not to stay in a place where men know his story. Therefore, he is driven farther and farther east in the search of a refuge where he can start over again by establishing himself as a trustworthy man and seeking escape from his feelings of guilt. In what seems to be a distinct second part of the book Lord Jim, Jim is able find relief from his guilt by settling in the remote village of Patusan. Acting as an agent for the trader Stein, it is here that he rises to be â€Å"Lord Jim,† where the â€Å"jump† is never questioned, and the natives become dependent on his strength and character. It finally seems that he has successfully isolated himself from his past, in a place where, â€Å"The stream of civilization, as if divided on a headland a hundred miles north of Patusan, branches east and south-west, leaving its pains and valleys, its old trees and its old mankind, neglected and isolated. † (Conrad, p170) Despite the fact that he has achieved â€Å"the conquest of love, honor, men’s’ confidence,† (Conrad, p. 169) his past comes in search of him. Gentleman Brown and his crew invade the â€Å"wall of forests† (Conrad, p. 307), which keeps Jim in his isolation. Physically, as determined by numbers, the people of Patusan are more that a match for Brown, but mentally Jim is helpless before this man who holds scorn for mankind and who â€Å"would rob a man as if only to demonstrate his poor opinion of the creature†. Conrad, p. 261) Brown opens the wound of Jim’s past when he asks whether he had â€Å"nothing fishy in his life to remember that he was so damnedly hard upon a man trying to get out of a deadly hole by the first means that came to hand-and so on and so on. And there ran through the rough talk a vein of subtle reference to their common blood, an assumption of common experience; a sickening suggestion of common guilt, of secret knowledge that was like a bond of their minds and of their hearts†. (Conrad, p. 86) Everything that Brown says recalls Jim’s past weaknesses and thusly undermines his certainty that he has placed his past cowardice behind him. As a result, Jim finds that his inner peace was just an illusion, that â€Å"his fate, revolted, was forcing his hand† (Conrad, p. 290), and that his ability to act decisively is paralyzed. He allows Brown and his followers to leave the country unharmed if they promise to take no life. They however break the pact by killing the chief’s son, Dain Waris. With solitude shattered, Jim sees the path of destiny before him because he guaranteed the lives of all the people against Brown and his men. He feels that he can only conquer his fatal destiny by suicide, so that â€Å"the dark powers should not rob him twice of his peace†. (Conrad, p. 302) Though given the opportunity, he does not try to escape with Jewel, but allows himself to be killed by Doramin. Upon reflection of the events of Jim’s life Marlow understands, with sad irony, that for Jim the sacrifice might seem ‘an extraordinary success† (Conrad, p. 07) for â€Å"that in the short moment of his last proud and unflinching glance, he had held the face of that opportunity which, like an Eastern bride, had come veiled to his side. † (Conrad, p. 307) Therefore, at last, Jim feels himself become a hero by finally being given the heroic chance he had been waiting for. Twice before (on the decks of the training ship and Patna) he had failed to act heroi cally when given the opportunity to act with honor and courage. At the end of the novel, by offering his own life to Doramin, Jim is able to face and pass the final test with bravery although it costs him his life. Thus, the novel ends on a positive note because Conrad’s central character triumphs when he finally receives moral redemption. It certainly may sound peculiar to say that the death of the hero provides a successful ending to the novel. Usually, such an ending would be considered to be unsuccessful and in fact, to be a tragedy. However, in Joseph Conrad’s Lord Jim, as the central character, Jim is plagued by guilt over an incident that occurred in his youth. It is this very incident that has dominated his life from the very beginning pages and despite Jim’s â€Å"conviction of innate blamelessness,† (Conrad, p. 4) he was to blame, and the rest of the book is taken up with his attempts to deal with his actions. He, in a sense, becomes obsessed with redemption and each choice he makes is controlled by this need. It is only in the end that he comes to the realization of the significance of his choices and to the fulfillment of his destiny. Cowardice in the fac e of the crucial test was contained in Jim’s destiny and only by realizing that he will never be able to run away from himself could he atone for his offense. In the end, as described by Marlow, Jim â€Å"passes away under a cloud â€Å"(Conrad, p. 307), as he had lived under a cloud. Marlow suggests the irony of his narrative by saying that â€Å"Not in the wildest days of his boyish visions could (Jim) have seen the alluring shape of such an extraordinary success! † (Conrad, p. 307) Thus, it is only through this last and final act that Conrad’s Lord Jim was finally able to reach success by bravely giving up his life for respect, honor, and redemption.

Why Spiderman is better than Batman

In my opinion, Spiderman is the best comic book hero ever, and significantly superior to Batman. He is the most popular and most commercially successful superhero, according to a poll by Empire magazine in May 2011. I grew up loving Spiderman! He was the superhero that I most related to. I would watch avidly of his exploits and victories, his life as a reluctant super hero and his emotional turmoil in his non-Spidery times.When I was a kid, I couldn’t quite understand why they made a TV show of Batman but not one of Spiderman. You remember the show with Adam West as Batman in a somewhat camp romp through Gotham City as â€Å"POW† and â€Å"SLAM† was emblazoned across the screen. And yet, no Spiderman TV show. It was the same with the movie genre – the first Batman movie starring Michael Keaton as the caped crusader was released in 1989, but the first Spiderman was not released until 2002. Batman always seemed to get the bigger billing and all the glory .We ll I think that Spiderman is the better super hero by far, and here are some reasons why†¦ Spiderman has the longest lasting comic; his comic ‘The Amazing Spiderman’ was created in 1962, and continues to capture the imagination of every generation, which shows how relatable his character is. Spiderman is more agile and flexible than Batman, he has the famous spider reflexes, and he has in the past proved that he is an equal match for Batman’s brawn, when he defeated evils such as Dr Octopus, The Green Goblin, Venom and many more.In the 2001 adaptation of the movie, I’ll be the first person to raise my hand and admit that Tobey Maguire is creepy. There is no doubt in my mind that, he is a little bit weird, and maybe not the best person in the world to represent the world’s greatest comic book hero, but never the less, for its time the movie is still impressive, more so than the Michael Keaton version of Batman. Compare it to the new ‘Amazi ng Spiderman’ with Andrew Garfield in, and there is no competition. The new movie itself boldly knocks spots off the dreary Batman competition, and its special effects are truly phenomenal.And Andrew Garfield is pretty darn cute! If Captain America can beat Batman, anyone can. Simply, if Batman can allow himself to be beaten by Marvels campest creation, he is clearly no match for Spiderman. Spiderman, unlike Batman, actually has a girlfriend. For all his money and ‘playboy’ reputation, Bruce Wayne never has a relationship worthy of the one that say Spiderman and Gwen Stacey have. Peter managed to pull Gwen without Bruce Wayne’s money or fame, which goes to show Peter Parker, is the nicer guy.Spiderman broke the mould as the first teenager with his own comic book series, since previously teenage protagonists usually took the understudy role as the mere side kick. Unlike previous teen heroes such as Bucky and Robin, Spider-Man did not benefit from being the protà ©gà © of any adult superhero mentors like Captain America and Batman, and thus had to learn for himself that â€Å"with great power there must also come great responsibility†Ã¢â‚¬â€a line included in a text box in the final panel of the first Spider-Man.Unlike Bruce Wayne, Peter Parker doesn’t use being an orphan as an excuse to parade around as a vigilante; instead he accepts his gift and uses it for the greater good. Spiderman actually has super powers; Batman has to rely on gadgets such as ‘shark repellent’ to get him out of tricky situations. And what self-respecting ‘hero’ carries around shark repellent in his purse? Spiderman doesn’t have to train in the mountains with weird ninja monks and he doesn’t have the big financial advantage of Batman. He doesn’t need to showy gadgets etc, he just crawls around, doing his thing, without the aid of a sidekick like Robin.Ben had Jerry, Morecombe had Wise, and SpongeBo b had Patrick, whereas Spidey flies solo. He is so good at what he does; he doesn’t need someone to hold his hand as he crosses the road. No matter what, Spiderman gets the job done, unlike Batman who needs his birdie to save him from the bad guys, to lay out the guy behind him who was about to clock him over the head with a chair (another KAPOW! ), and to be the blundering rookie to make Batman look better than he really was. Spiderman needed nobody, because he doesn’t have ego issues.Spidey is a good role model because he over came adversity etc, he was a nerdy teenager, who was bullied a lot by a guy named Flash. This makes him a good role model for kids, since he doesn’t go around scaring people in the night, like Batman. Batman puts on a stupid voice and tries to scare his foes. It has no effect or purpose, he just looks stupid. Batman deliberately asks for trouble, he’s a creepy guy in a costume. If a guy started parading around in a costume and run ning around at night in your town, I’m sure you would have something to say about it, and he would be thrown in the loony bin.Batman gets too much attention, just like his alter-ego, whereas Peter Parker manages to maintain a normal life as well as masquerade as Spiderman. Peter Parker has, over the years, developed from shy, nerdy high school student to troubled but outgoing college student, to married high school teacher to, in the late 2000s, a single freelance photographer, his most typical adult role. Whereas, Bruce Wayne has pretty much not developed as a character over his span of comics. Batman could never catch Spiderman; Spidey is just to fast for him. Batman would be nothing without his car/money/gadgets.At the end of the day he’s just a normal guy with a fetish for bats. Think about it. Batman has great abilities and gadgets, but they are nothing that any normal human can't get. Spiderman has physical abilities way beyond the grasp of non-mutated humans; pr ecognition, the strength to bench 10 tons, incredible agility†¦ but batman is a normal human. Spiderman is a mutated human, mutated to be stronger, faster and more agile than a regular human. I know this is fiction, but let's be a bit more realistic here, in a fight, the chances are heavily in Spiderman's favour.I'm a firm believer in the idea that superheroes teach you things, and it's usually a pretty simple lesson. Superman teaches you to be nice and to be a good person; because that's the way you make things better for everyone. Batman teaches you that if you're determined enough, and if you try your hardest, one man can change the world. And also, that is okay for a man to wear black tights, as long as he is a millionaire playboy. Those are great guidelines, not just for comic books or films, but for life. But Spiderman's lesson is a little less sugar-coated, and a little more human.Spiderman teaches you that you're going to screw up. It's going to happen, and it's going t o be bad. You're going to make bad decisions and it's going to feel like they're going to crush you. It's going to hurt. But Spiderman also teaches you that the only way to get through it is that you never, ever quit. It's not easy, but even if it seems impossible, you can beat anything that stands in your way. You can become the person you want to be, therefore being the better hero of the two, because the most important thing is to learn something from the selfless behaviour of your childhood ideal.