Computer programming Essay

1. What common programming language statement, in your opinion, is most detrimental to readability and why do you think that? The go to statement in my opinion can be the most detrimental to program readability, because it makes it difficult to keep track of where the program has been and will go during debugging. Extensive use of go to statements make it difficult to impossible to keep the program code in a top down format. 2. How does the distinguishing between upper- and lowercase in identifiers affect the three criteria? The affect to readability can be positive when it is used in conjunction with a cohesive programming technique. The use of upper case letters to help certain types of identifiers stand out in the code can be highly beneficial. The affect on writability will be positive because the readability of a program helps to improve the writability. The affect on reliability will also be positive because the more readable, and writable a language then there is a positive affect on the reliability. 3. How do type declaration statements for simple variables affect the readability of a language? Having type declarations that are easy to understand are very important to the readability of a programming language. When the type declarations are cryptic or easily confused it degrades the readability because it is not as easy to identify the variable type or distinguish between them. 4. Write an evaluation of Java and of C++, using the criteria described in this chapter. Please be thorough and provide a reason/justification for your evaluation. C++ Readability: C++ is not an overall simple language which complicates its readability. It does however have very good control structures and data type structures which can help the readability. But in general it can be difficult to read. Writability: C++ allows for high levels of data abstraction, and expressivity’s in the language allowing the programmer to create a myriad of structures to solve different programming problems making it very writable. Reliability: C++ has extensive exception handling and type checking capabilities, which lead to a more reliable language. Java Readability: Java because it is a functional programming language, which is structured completely differently than all other common programming languages. All of the computations in Java are carried out by applying functions to arguments. Java does not have the assignment statements or variables common in other languages. Alone this causes enough of a problem with the readability of Java, but the syntax for Java is doubly ambiguous because the same exact syntax is used for both data and function calls. Writability: Java has a high amount of expressivity’s with the use of functions, but the difficulties that can be encountered in readability will affect the writability of the language. Reliability: Java does not have the extensive exception handling of C++. 5. Evaluate both Java and C++ with respect to the ultimate total cost (as discussed in Chapter 1 of the Sebesta text). Again, please be thorough and provide a reason/justification for your evaluation. The total cost of C++ is acceptable. C++ is a very complex language that for a programmer to learn completely can take well over a year, but a programmer can learn enough to make powerful programs in a relatively short time. The style constructs of C++ help to improve it’s maintainability over time which is a major component to the cost of software development. The total cost of Java is potentially more than that of C++. The functional programming environment is sufficiently different from all other imperative languages that training for programmers to learn and become proficient in Java can take longer. Also the syntax similarities with data will make maintenance costs for Java programs to be higher because of their poor readability. Readability. Requiring the declaration of variables forces the programmer to document his/her expectations regarding variable names, data types, and scope (the region of the program where the variable will be applicable). Thus, the program becomes much more readable to the programmer and to others. Writability. Requiring the declaration of variables may actually decrease writability in its most direct sense, since a programmer cannot simply use variables as needed, but must write declarations in their appropriate places to avoid error messages. This increased burden on the programmer can increase programming time. On the other hand, without declarations there can be no local variables, and the use of local variables can increase writability by allowing the programmer to reuse names without worrying about non-local references. Forcing the programmer to plan the use of variables may also improve writability over the long run. Efficiency. As we saw, readability and writability can be viewed as efficiency issues from the point of view of maintenance and software engineering, so the comments about those issues also apply here in that sense. The use of declarations may also permit more efficient implementation of the program. Without declarations, if no assumptions are made about the size of variables, less efficient access mechanisms using pointers must be used. Also, the programmer can use declarations to specify the exact size of variable needed (such as short int or long int). Restricting scope by using local variables can also save memory space by allowing the automatic deallocation of variables. Note, however, that Fortran is a very efficient language in terms of execution speed, so it is not always true that requiring declarations must improve execution speed. Also, speed of translation may actually be decreased by the use of declarations, since more information must be kept in tables to keep track of the declarations. (It is not true, as Fortran and BASIC attest, that without declarations a translator must be multi-pass.) Security. Requiring declarations enhances the translator’s ability to track the use of variables and report errors. A clear example of this appears in the difference between ANSI C and old-style Unix C. Early C did not require that parameters to functions be declared with function prototypes. (While not exactly variable declarations, parameter declarations are closely related and can be viewed as essentially the same concept.) This meant that a C compiler could not guarantee that a function was called with the appropriate number or types of parameters. Such errors only appeared as crashes or garbage values during program execution. The use of parameter declarations in ANSI C greatly improved the security of the C language. Expressiveness. Expressiveness may be reduced by requiring the declaration of variables, since they cannot then be used in arbitrary ways. Scheme, for example, while requiring declarations, does not require that data types be given, so that a single variable can be used to store data of any data type. This increases expressiveness at the cost of efficiency and security.

Erik Peterson Case Analysis Essay

Inefficient employees (Hardy), or line manager with inadequate knowledge Technical issues at lower level employees Handling his employees’ lack of work, inventory control etc. No. of cells to be operational (16) by the turn on date was too many to handle, yet it was vital to have them all operational Construction of towers were already behind the schedule; HQ reluctant to terminate the contract since the former company did a great deal of work on the construction Peterson’s management and leadership on the start-up? Raised the issues & problems with top management; replacing employees Appointing trusted people to other departments; Construction coordination Prepared to solve the zoning problems (failed to get the approval of the top management) Helped improve Curt in his job, but wasn’t quite successful since Curt was a technical person and didn’t have much knowledge on management. He provided technical support to him and others, but went too much into details. Kind of micro-managing He at least had identified the problems and causes Weekly construction Meetings to involve everyone, yet some people weren’t active enough Established an inventory control system Actions to be taken by Peterson to improve the situation and to prepare for his upcoming meeting? He should build a detailed organogram of the company and define the roles and responsibilities of each employee He shouldn’t get involved in each and every issues for which his staff needs to deal with. He should be more a result oriented leader. Staff mobility; the overall idea is good, but shouldn’t move in a way to change the reporting line He should prepare a list of his recommendations and the support required from HQ with concrete results on success or failure of his recommendations and do a follow up to those recommendations The first support he needs to ask from HQ, should be more authority to get control over his employees Since the project is in a critical phase to meet deadlines, the reporting line may change temporarily until everything gets on track

Men and Women are Made Not Born Essay

In this essay I will write about how women and men are made not born. I will beintroducing different cultures and their views on men and women, how women at onestage in time did not have any rights to become what they wanted, I will give my ideas onthe subject and I will also research other authors work to get a different variety about whywomen and men are made not born. Firstly I will start by researching different cultures and their ways of life. This reallyinterests me because it is good to see how different people and their countries really andfrom each other. In Australia men and women are equal,they both can work in any job they desire, they both have the right to vote and go to war. It was not always like this though in Australia, it was a long time until women got equalright to men. It was the nineteenth century when women were given the right to vote andto stand for election into parliament. Although it was not until the 1960’s to the 1970’swhen women gained equality with men with work, the law and general social standing. Ifwe take a look into a totally different country like Afghanistan, women are ‘made’ bytheir fathers and husbands. Marriage for women is chosen by their families, women mustbe completely covered by a long veil and accompanied by a male relative when theyleave the house and women must do what they are told by their fathers and husbands. Soas we can see, it is hard for women in Afghanistan to become what they want and be whothey want to be. Another culture I want to look at is how women became men in the mountains ofNorthern Albania. A girl or her parents could decide to make them a male, circumstanceswhich would arise in order to do so would be that their husbands or fathers died at war orhad died from other reasons, so the wives or daughters would take on the lead role for thehousehold. They would become men if they wanted to work and build their communitiesinto something better, for example, working in the Communist Party Action Group, youcould only be a male to be a member. In order to get out of an arranged marriage orprotection against the kidnapping and trafficking of young women, it was easier for girlsto become men. What I am trying to say with researching different cultures is that in some countries menand women can choose how they want their lives to turn out and make a future forthemselves unlike other countries where people’s lives are made up for them. Another way we could look at the topic ‘Men and Women are Made Not Born’ is thatmen and women have to earn what they want to achieve, they are not just born with theirtalents. For example, if a person does a good job for someone then they are going torecommend them to other people, thus achieving a good reputation. As ( Mead, G 2007,p. 29) quotes ‘the self is something which has a development: it is not initially there abirth, but arises in the process of social experience and activity.’ This means that whenchildren are born they do not immediately have the social skills they require in life to dowell for themselves. The child has to go through a development which slowly teachesthem their life skills. It is up to the individual to decide what they want to achieve in life,they have the choice to carry on their education in what ever field they choose to bettertheir chances in the work force. The same in the work force, people have to betterthemselves to do better than others, to compete with the competition in order to get thejob. With an individual improving themselves in all kind of aspects, they are likely to geta good reputation and make something of themselves. This proves the heading ‘Men andWomen are Made Not Born’. In Australia it is a free country, everybody has the right to do or become what they wantto become. I believe the term men and women are made not born, to mean that it is up toboth men and women to make their lives and achieve what they want in life. Everybodyis their own unique person. Whether they are Australian, Chinese, Asian, American andso on, with their own personal beliefs. I guess the main reason I have focused on culturesis because I believe that an individual’s culture has a massive effect on the lifestyles theylive which develops an individual into their own unique, special person. References:’ Factors that brought about the women’s movement’, www.skwirk.com.auAlessandro Monsutti, ‘Culture of AFGHANISTAN’, www.everyculture.comBessant, J. Watts, R. (2007) Sociology Australia, Allen & Unwin. NSW. Gardner, J. (1987) Atlas of the World, Australia: Reader’s Digest. McWhirter, N. (1999) Book of Millennium Records, Virgin Publishing’s: Great Britain. Young, A. 2007, ‘Once Were Women’, Good Weekend, 20st October, 47-48. Mead, G 2007, ‘The Self’ in Classic Readings in Sociology’, Mind, Self and Society, pp25-32

The Commodification of Human Organs Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3250 words

The Commodification of Human Organs - Essay Example In short, these programmes have failed to make more organs available for transplantation. They are just unable to meet the requirements of the patients' needs for donated organs. On the face of this dearth of available organs that could have saved or qualitatively enhanced suffering human life, a more sympathetic attitude has long been entertained to create proposals for alternative procurement of organs. This includes provision of compensation to the organ donors. However, this has become an open secret in practice since there is an ongoing debate about the ethical pros and cons of this phenomenon and there are rigorous ethical norms exercised by the authority in this matter. The healthcare professionals who are involved in this area are actually in a dilemma, following ethics strictly leads almost to no practice, and hiding the truth is unethical. This work deals with this dilemma, and tries to critically examine this issue from this author's perspective. In the latter half of the 20th century, the possibility of transplanting organs became real. New advances in immunology and understanding of the mechanism of organ transplantation lead to development of new technologies for transplantation and support for the transplanted organ that, otherwise, would have been rejected by the recipient. Meanwhile, the medical profession accepted the concept of brain death that indicated a point at which death of an individual might officially be declared. Since organ transplantation has become feasible, many ethical issues and questions have arisen. The most important of them was the propriety of arbitrarily redefining death so as to make organ retrieval more easily possible. Gradually, as the science and technique advanced, more and more questions grounded on ethics started coming up. The history also indicates a future (Baker LR., 2000). The rate science is advancing, in the near future, the dream of growing organs from stem cells may materialize. In that case, naturally, the ethical issues encircling transplanting organs from newly dead or from living donors may become irrelevant. Regrettably, this is not the case at present. Ethical rigorousness in preventing financial exchanges around an available organ may, therefore, lead to a situation where some critically ill patients in need of an organ transplant would meet certain, agonizing, and perhaps unnecessary death (Dworkin R., 1993). At this point in time, some of the earlier ethical objections and quandaries, such as, whether organ or tissue donation is ethically permissible in the first place or whether selections made by groups of people were legitimate option, have become irrelevant largely, either because finding, advancement in science, or public consensus has resolved them. Despite this, some very critical ones remain still. These are not around the substantive question of the probity of transplantation in the first place. Ethics have accepted the legitimacy of transplantation very much, and now the probe is on the issues of allocation. In fact, among the most important of the issues that is to be dealt with in relation to the ethics of organ transplantation are the questions dealing with the mode, process, or rules of organ allocation, not to individual patients per se but allocation to centres which in turn allocate to individuals (English, V. and Sommerville, A., 2003). Death

Health and safety at work Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3500 words

Health and safety at work - Case Study Example Some of the employments by nature are hazardous and both the employer and the employee should be aware of the dangers involved in such employments. Definitely there are inherent risks of the employment and they vary in degrees depending on the kind of work, material used, mode of work and ultimate work achievement. If we go through some of the cases over the years, it is easy to find how difficult it is to avoid danger in certain jobs. Cases like Thomas v Quartermaine (1887), Smith v Baker & Sohs (1891), Paris v Stepney Borough Council (1951), General Cleaning Contractors Ltd. V. Christmas (1953), Ellis v. Ocean S.S. Co. Ltd (1958) show us the varied dangers that are inherent in different employments. But according to the modern law the employer is responsible for a duty of care towards his employees and the weight squarely rests in him. "Under the general law of tort, a duty of care arises when two persons are so closely and directly related that the activities of them may involve appreciable risk of injury to the other: Donoghue v. Stevenson [1932]" Munkman (1975, p.82). The Health and Safety Act is a landmark in the history of labour and employment, because it provides maximum safety and care to the workers and this is one act where the employer's responsibility is of major gravity in looking after the health and safety of his employees. "The Health and Safety at Work etc. Act (1974) is the most important statute for industry and commerce ever to have been passed through Parliament. Unlike the Industrial Relations Act, this one is here to stay. It affects companies, firms and individuals, employers, from Boardroom to shop floor; manufacturers, designers, importers, suppliersoccupiers, builders, erectors, installers," Mitchell (1976, p.xv). The employer, under the legal compulsion, must make all the attempts and take reasonable care not to expose his employees to any kind of avoidable and unnecessary risk. This responsibility is a personal responsibility and cannot be transferred to othersi. In Peter's case ABC cannot be held responsible to a very large extent, because they have provided all kinds of protective necessary clothing and mask. Safeguarding the health and safety of the employees is the duty and responsibility of the employer and ABC has done so. So, if the position of ABC is assessed from that angle, they cannot be held responsible for Peter's accident. All the injuries that occur during the work are not due to employer fault. Some of them could be because of the carelessness and easygoing habits of the employees like Peter. Still there is a possibility of a court ruling that it is vicarious responsibility of the employer because the employer is responsible for providing a safe workplace for his employee to work. It was not safe enough for Peter, because the chemical was insufficiently diluted by another employee causing grievous damage to Peter. ABC will have to answer for the insufficient dilution of the chemical by another employee. There is no doubt that Peter was at mistake because he did not wear the mask that has been provided for his safety by the ABC. Unfortunately for him, he thought, as his manager did, that the risk involved was very small. The risk involved w

Automotive production levels Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Automotive production levels - Research Paper Example Details Quarter ending 31st August 2012 Quarter ending 31st August 2011 1 Production levels 9.026 million Units 8.385 million Units 2 Inventory levels $ 14.32 billions $ 12.13 billions 3 Operational costs $ 144.62 billions $ 130.50 million 4 Sales $ 150.30 billions $ 135.40 billions 5 Price $ 16,650.00 $ 16,150.00 1. Demand -supply analysis Price $ 5,000 $ 10,000 $ 15,000 $ 20,000 Units sold 15,000 12,000 10,000 8,000 The above table shows different units that customers are wishing to buy at different prices. Given a price of $5,000, customers are willing to purchase 15,000 units, and this number reduces to 8,000 units given a price of $ 20,000. Graphical representation Price 20,000 f a? g ?e 15,000 ? Equilibrium point (e0) 10,000 h ? ? 5,000 c ? ?b j k 0 5,000 10,000 15,000 20,000 Quantity demanded The above graph slants downwards from left to right. Notably, as price reduces, quantity of automobiles demanded increases and it turns the vice versa when the price increases. 2. Equilib rium price and quantity The point (e0) gives the equilibrium price of $ 12,250 and quantity $ 12,000 units. This point represents the favorable price that the buyers are willing to pay for a certain car model they buy from the company. Any point above the equilibrium price represents a higher price with corresponding lower quantities of automobiles sold. On the other hand, any point below the equilibrium point represents a lower price at which the buyers would buy more of automobiles. According to the data collected for General Motors, the above graph shows that the company is selling at high prices, which results to reduced quantity demanded. The company is offering its automobiles at an average price of $ 16,550, whereby 9.026 million units are sold. To maximize the number of units sold, the management should consider lowering the price in response to the market forces of demand and supply, up to $ 12,250 in order to achieve equilibrium. At this point, the quantity demanded will i ncrease by 2.974 million units. This action will make General Motors automobiles cheaper than those of the competitors, thereby increasing their demand. Interestingly, the demand will continue to grow and will eventually lead to increased production that will enable the company to enjoy increased economies of scale from the suppliers of raw materials (Arribas et al., 2009). Since General Motors is a global company, the increased demand will cause internal advantages to the firm, as well as result to the establishment of additional subsidiaries across the globe. 3. Price Elasticity of Demand Price elasticity of demand refers to change in quantity demanded as a result of significant change in price. To derive price elasticity of demand, the following formula is used: Price elasticity of demand = (Q1-Q2)/ (Q1+Q2) (P1-P2)/ (P1+P2) The demand is said to be elastic if the price elasticity is greater than 1. This implies that the quantity demanded changes faster than the price. On the othe r hand, if the price elasticity of demand is lesser than one, the price elasticity is said to be inelastic implying that the quantity demanded changes slower than the price. Lastly, if price elasticity arrived at is equal to one, then this is referred to unitary condition, which shows that quantity demanded and price changes at the same rate (Freeman, 1977). Computation of price elasticity of demand for GM P1- $ 12,250 P2- $ 16,650 Q1- $ 12,000 Q2- $ 9,026 Therefore, Price elasticity

Will involvement affect academic performance Research Paper

Will involvement affect academic performance - Research Paper Example It also outlines the method I used to research and the questions to come up with a substantial conclusion. The method I used in the research was survey monkey which has an online platform where specific questions can be asked for a particular research. The first question I inquired related to the rank of class of an individual. This question enabled me to know the general performance of the class and the various factors that influenced their performance. In cases where the class performance was good, the individual would tell me that they spend much time studying in groups while at times individually. To the contrary, the student whose class was ranked low the students were less involved in their studies in terms of working as a team. The other question that I enquired is about the student’s Grade Point Average (GPA). This would help me to know how the students involved socially perform as compared to the students who kept their studies first. It was evident that those students that were more involved in the social life had a lower GPA while those that concentrated in their studies had a higher GPA. Another question that I asked related to the number of hours a student took to study. This question would enable me to know how the student managed their time during free time. For those that were working, I inquired how much time they were involved in their studies and their social life. This would enable me to know how their involvement in working would affect their studies. I also wanted to find out if the student were involved in any student organizations as it helped me identify the positive or negative impact to a student. The research also made me ask the students how often they went home to visit their families. Some students would say twice a month while others stated that every weekend they travelled to visit their families. I also wanted to find out if the student were dating and the

Marriage and Dating Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2250 words

Marriage and Dating - Essay Example Was it a consequence of parents not being concerned in choosing the one their children should date or marry Or was it for the reason that parents are so strained in choosing the partner/suitor for their child There are numerous cultures where the parents are implicated in choosing whom their children should rendezvous or who to marry. These are widespread scenarios as to traditionalists. There are some matters involved as to the reason of such conduct of parents such as cultural variety or religious wisdom but also occurrence to broken homes and just pure concern to their children. The optimistic side as to parents deciding the one you date or the one you should wed are the for the subsequent motives: your parents only fancy the finest for you; they want somebody that is maybe for them is more fine looking or presentable, reputable or for other basis; they would want a spouse that would best suite you as to ethnicity, monetary status or even political status; the affluence of the family will not be shared to of those they consider that are lesser than yours but ought to be equivalent or superior than you have is a must; or they want to follow cultural norms; or merely they believe that the person they would like would mesh well with you than the one you opt. The downside of this is how about what you would like Almost certainly being with the person they chose would be agony on your part because of indifferences as to fondness, cultures, compatibility issues and the like which may lead to unproductiveness of the connection or even break up, heart ache and eventually separation. Family sociologists have shaped a variety of theories to make clear cultural and tribal disparity in marriage. Financial resources, partner-selection course, and culture are the center notion for the most widespread of these enlightenments. Both premise and experiential scrutiny suggest that larger economic possessions allow marriage and can amplify the motivations for marriage, particularly for men (Becker, 1991; Oppenheimer, Kalmijn, and Lim, 1997; Landale and Tolnay, 1991). When we sight the whole range of history and at hand human societies matrimony can be portrayed as a ethnically accepted relationships or a amalgamation of one man and one woman that is monogamy, of one man and two or more woman which is polyandry, there is cultural support of sexual contact amid the wedded partners of the conflicting and, generally, the anticipation that children will be bear of the affiliation (International Encyclopedia of the Social Sciences, 1977). To get the endorsement of the society it is essential that the unification be formed and documented in agreement with the understood mores and taboos, as in customary societies, or in agreement with standard laws, as in more urbane societies (Westermark, 1977). The tradition of marriage differs in a variety of parts of the globe and every civilization produces a marriage prototype suitable to itself (Ludlow, 1965). For Asian cultures it is ordinary to them that the parents would concur to each other that their brood should end up collectively. Maybe for the grounds of the following: keeping their affluence within the family, not allowing other backgrounds to mix with their culture, their child's hand for matrimony for trade

How To Read Document Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

How To Read Document - Essay Example re of course only interested in their present, with presenting their opinions and viewpoints about contemporary events that they wish to either control, alter, or preserve. The people that took the time as well as the effort to write these documents wanted to have their views understood by their contemporaries, and these have in some cases survived to the present day. When reading a document it is best to examine the background of the author or authors that wrote it. The content, style, and meanings of documents can be heavily influenced by social, economic, political, military, and sometimes religious events that were happening at the time the documents were written. For instance documents written during stable and peaceful periods should be more moderate and well considered than other documents produced during periods of high drama or conflict. The reader will read documents with a higher degree of understanding by taking into account the beliefs, the attitudes, and the position of the author or authors of those documents. Attempting to fully grasp the beliefs and the motives of the writers will help the reader to place individual documents in the most apt context. Knowing why people decided to write something can allow us to understand how they wrote their documents in the ways that they are actually written. Such an understanding allows us to understand the bias or the subjectivity within each document. Bias is something that is very difficult to keep out of documents that were written in relation to social, economic, political, military, and religious issues or events. Having an awareness of bias can help to explain why some documents seem to be full of extreme or radical viewpoints not to mention concepts, which might be considered to be out of date in our contemporary period. It would be very difficult to consciously produce a document that does reflect the time and the place it was actually written in. Documents intended to record events as they

Adaptive Optics for Vision Science Term Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Adaptive Optics for Vision Science - Term Paper Example Astronomers have come up with a system that improves on the optic systems; used to study space that can counter this distortion brought about by the front waves, a system known as â€Å"Adaptive Optics†. Adaptive optics refers to an astronomy technology that improves the performance of optical systems through reduction turbulence of the earth’s atmosphere distortions. Adaptive optic system purposes to correct deformations Caused by the turbulence of the earth’s atmosphere. This correction happens by using deformed mirrors that are controlled by a computer so as to compensate for the distortion by the incoming wavefront. The image obtained through this system is usually as sharp as the ones taken in space. The system allows observation of dimmer (faint) astronomical details of the corrected optical system that would possibly be observed from the ground. For the system to work effectively, it requires a bright reference star located close to the object being studie d. Astronomers do create artificial stars by shining a very strong laser beam into the upper atmosphere of the earth, in cases where an appropriate natural star is not available around the object of study (Hardy, 2010). Normally, light gets distorted as it passes through the wavefront thus preventing the formation of sharp images by a telescope placed on earth’s surface. The adaptive optic system eliminates this blurring effect of the atmosphere. The adaptive optics works by measuring atmospheric distortion in the light coming from the star or the other artificial source of light. Electronic signals are then sent to a deformable mirror that rapidly changes its shape to correct this distortion. This system has the ability to see hundreds of separate beams of light while looking at a single beam of light from a star even those that have been deviated due to atmospheric turbulence.

Slum Life Empowerment Activities Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words - 1

Slum Life Empowerment Activities - Essay Example Among those activities, I enjoyed community mobilization and community empowerment through environmental cleaning as well as public awareness through talks. It is now the third year since I chose and decided to pursue a course of life in giving back to the society in form of youth mobilization for behavior change as part of my leisure activity. Studying from the city presents a challenge in time management in that weekly daily routines are often defined by waking up for school early every day and returning home late in the evening, very tired and having a lot to accomplish in studies before I retire for bed. Nevertheless, much of my free time is over the weekends and especially on Saturday when I do not attend school. On weekends, I engage in the activities of visiting the slums around the city for empowerment programs especially aimed at youths who often indulge in drugs and are associated with crime. I enjoy the whole experience of mobilizing and gathering people together for a pub lic lecture on behavior change, for street cleaning exercises as well as for talent shows. After growing up within the city suburbs, passing through slums have not been new to my life and I have observed the challenges that life in slums entails. Life in slum is characterized with poor living standards, lack of basic needs like food shelter and clothing as well as deprivation of such basic services as education. This contributes more to antisocial behaviors especially among the youth where drug use and insecurity becomes part of their lives. This, therefore, informed my decision to spend my leisure time interacting with slum dwellers in efforts to help them change behaviors for a positive living. More specifically, my delight is in engaging the people in community welfare activities such as environmental cleaning activities, drugs and substance campaigns as well as in talent  search through sporting activities.

Global economic development Essay Example for Free

Global economic development Essay If Gwlad want to achieve any economic growth and attain a strong economy as its neighbors in Western Europe it must carry out detailed SWOT analysis. Such an analysis involves determining the country’s strength, weakness, opportunities and threat. One of the major strength that Gwlad enjoys as a country is it strategic location. Being close to the most developed nation in the world then it will be easier to access and export goods abroad to a market which is willing and able to buy. The second strength is the relative peace that the country enjoys and that of the surrounding nation which means that foreign investors will be willing to set up businesses (Anderson, 2007). One of the main weaknesses in this country is low level of industrialization which will translate to low out put and therefore less export compared to other country in the surrounding. Also with a population of just 3 million people it means that the aggregate demand is very low and for multinational who want to venture into such country and market their produce, the low demand expected for their products may discourage them. Furthermore this country seems to be expecting poor infrastructure and this raises the cost of doing business which discourage foreign direct investment (root 2006). The low level of services may be another hindrance to foreign direct investment. Foreign investors Global economic development 2 values a strong financial system that is able to allocate capital efficiently, mobilizing saving, monitor firms, share and diversity risk with the low level of GDP the consumers’ purchasing power is weak and therefore this further reduces the aggregate demand and output levels in the country. Also the country relies on few sectors to support the economy and there is a need to expand on such areas (Carroll, 2006). One of the major threat that the country faces is competition form rivals who are well established and their industries have become stable such that they are able to supply goods in the global market at low cost. Secondly since the country is not a member of European Union then members may impose both tariff and non tariff barriers to trade from goods exported from Gwlad which will increase the prices of good exported on members country. High prices will discourage consumers’ consumption of such goods which will ultimately reduce export and affect the country’s balance of payment. The country should take steps to proceed with privatization of most public corporations since such move encourage foreign direct investment and also improves on transparency and good governance of such companies (ridout, 2005). Since the financial system play a pivotal role on the growth of an economy the government should implement policies designed to streamline the sector. To encourage investment in the country then it is also vital to revise its taxation policies and develop a scheme geared towards benefiting foreign business. Entry of multinationals in the domestic market have some adverse effects in that some of the domestics firm are not strong enough to compete favorably with foreign firms such that they require protection from the government. Therefore the government Global economic development 3 should develop policy geared towards protecting domestic firms and also protecting capital flight which mostly affect the balance of payment of the country if not taken into consideration. To ensure that employment level in the country rises and that multinational does not take advantage of lack of employment policies to bring in expatriate even in areas where local can work then labor policies should be drawn which includes issues of minimal wages to be paid. Regional trading blocks such as the EU and others aid international trade by reducing or eliminating both tariff and not tariff barriers to trade therefore incase Gwlad want to participate more in the global market then it should realign its foreign policies which will enable it to be accommodated in such trading blocks. Active signing of both bilateral and multilateral agreement is necessary in improving penetration to foreign market thereby improving on export which translates to a higher GDP (melchet, 2005). CASE STUDY 2 Though strategic location and the issue of wages rate are considered by a foreign investor in determining whether to invest in a certain country or not, there are other major factors which are first considered. The availability of energy and associated cost are given priority in manufacturing industries since energy cost comprises a huge percentage of manufacturing cost hence one of the main determinants in making investment decision. The level of infrastructure is also considered by business. The possibility of growth and political stability should also be an integral part of such a marketing strategy since these two factors will determine whether a business will grow in foreign market. Through most of the study conducted it has also been proved that vibrant financial system Global economic development 4 also plays a major role in encouraging FDI (zedillo, 2005). On marketing Gwlad I would include such issues as tax system which benefit inventors e. g. tax allowance on investment. To increase foreign income from tourism then issues such as beautiful scenery and variety of wildlife have to be included. Further more technology play a major role in global market and therefore a mention of the technological achievement and possible advancement in technology should be included in the countries marketing strategy as firms currently rely on technology in performing it core business. Case Study 3 Technology advancement have led countries like china and Japan to be the most industrialized and leading exporters in the global Market. Consequently their economy have grown and a country like china with a population higher than the whole of Africa have been able to support its citizen and even offer loans and grant to other nations. Though technological advancement is key to economic development it has to be matched with good governance and visionary leaders who are able to inspire their people to reach new height (Polanski, 2004). In developing the economic policy there are others sectors which should be considered. This includes, health, financial sector which includes among other banks, insurance market, and the capital market and aerospace and automotive sectors in the transport industry. Case Study 4 One of the major strength of developing domestic companies is that it protects capital Global economic development 5 freight which adversely affects the balance of payment and the exchange rate. Domestic companies mostly employ people from within the country which reduces the level of unemployment. The income generated by domestic firms is usually re invested back thereby improving in economic growth. Some of the other income which is distributed as dividend to the owner increases the level of aggregate demand and saving levels due to increase in disposable income. Where aggregate demand increases business will be forced to produce more goods which lead to their growth and expansion (McDonnell, 2003). As saving levels increase businesses will have available capital for investment and through the multiplier effect where investment increase the GDP will also increase therefore accelerating the economic growth of the country. If steps are taken to develop domestic companies then they may grow to a level of being multinationals which will generate foreign income to the country. One of the major threats in developing domestic companies is that in case of harsh economic condition they may not withstand and therefore collapse. There are also possibility of political interference in the management and operation of such firms. Due to the limited fund available it may not be possible to avail all the required capital for expansion which means that such business will be operating below capacity and there will be under utilization of resources. Further more the economy can grow at a very low rate if only the domestic business are relied upon to accelerate growth. Lack of competition will be another weakness in that business will not improve on core area of performance such as technology therefore products will be of low quality and higher Global economic development 6 price with inability o compete in global market. Where competition lack then there is low level of creativity and innovation in products and service development therefore the economy will lag behind (Coparosa, 2004). Where the country is able to attract foreign direct investment then it is able to improve on technological advancement since such investors transfer technology to the host country. Further more since the country is experiencing a capital rationing this foreign firms do not require any form of financing from government and the funds available could be used to develop other sectors where foreign companies are unwilling to invest. Furthermore this foreign firm introduces competition which forces business to produce goods effectively and efficiently. The major threat of encouraging multinationals to invest in the country is that they can kill local industries incase where such firms are not able to compete favorably. Some of the multinational which occupies a greater stake in the economy sometimes dictate or influence the policy made by government to their advantage since where e government fail to comply they threaten to withdraw. One of the main weaknesses of using FDI is the issue of capital flight. Most usually send the profit generated from its operation back to it parent company which adversely affect the economy. However such businesses are able to sustain harsh economic condition and also improve the level of infrastructure in the host country. In using combination strategy the government ensures that domestic firms grow while at the same time attracting foreign direct investment which steers the economic growth. There should be a balance between protecting domestic firms and maintaining Global economic development 7 environment which enables foreign firms to compete fairly with domestic firms (Roca, 1983) Due to shortage of funds that the country experience and other benefits that accrue from having FDI it is advisable that the country employs a combination of strategy if it aim to achieve faster economic development. Case study 5 In persuading multinationals to develop local supply chain then the country have to change policies on taxation of this foreign firms. Issues such as tax allowance on investment can encourage such multinational to set up business to take such advantages of allowance. Also policies that streamline the financing system are also important since the financial system is a factor considered by multinational before venturing into any market. To encourage multinational to undertake research and development in the country then the country should have a well designed policy concerning copyright, trade marks or use of intellectual property. Also where commercial services such as advertising, local research firms and professional service are established and well regulated then multinational can be motivated to use such services. Furthermore policies concerning regional integration are important since it assist business to supply it commodity to other international market without barriers to trade both tariff and non tariff therefore improving on it competiveness in the global market. In addition the transport system is necessary for efficient operation of any supply chain therefore policies should be designed to improve such systems. Global economic development 8 CASE STUDY 6 Where a country is a member of the EU then there is no obstacle on free movement of goods, people and capital therefore the country can easily market and export its goods to members countries thereby improving on its balance of payment. Through the European social fund then the country will be able to improve on its level of employment thereby raising the standard of living of its citizen. The creation of European investment bank will facilitate the economic expansion of the country through creation of new resources. The EU has also developed a well established system of ensuring that competition is fair in the common markets which will therefore means that weak members states such as Gwlad are not exploited or taken advantage of by other strong and developed nations. However being such a member of EU then you have to adopt a common custom tariff and common commercial policy towards non members which may therefore reduce the country aggressiveness to participate in the global market. Countries such as China, Brazil and Australia are the new fastest growing economy in the world hence they provide a ground on which new market can be found. Further more bilateral and multilateral agreement with such country can be more beneficial than joining a trading block for a country with a weak economy (godison, 1988). For a country like Gwlad which need to achieve faster economic development it need to develop free trade agreement with this growing economies as they present a better opportunity for growth than a trading block. CASE STUDY 7 Global economic development 9 One of the merit of having a cluster development policy is having a balanced economy in that you do not allow foreign firm to dominate the local market but also give chance for domestic business to grow and reach a level at which they can compete in the global market . having both local and foreign firm present multinational from influencing government policy with threat to with draw since their position will be taken up by local firms. One of the problems inherent in such a cluster development policy is development of policy which attracts foreign entity while at the same time ensuring protection to domestic firms. The best option of organizing sector development is having specific policies that take special need of each sector rather than general policies which just give a general outlay instead of specific guideline for sector development (madon, 1997). CASE STUDY 8 As the company is ready to employ 30,000 people this will be a great boost to the economy as it will reduce the level of unemployment and ultimately increase the GDP. However where foreign suppliers are contracted to supply good rather than local suppliers this will lead to loss of business and capital flight from the country. Furthermore the demand by this firm that the country liars with the host country of these suppliers to request for a tax break may be an added cost to the country as they may in return ask for other favors which may hurt the economy. The government should agree to give research and development grant but not succumb to demand of allowing foreign supplies to be contracted as this will erode most of the benefit generated. Global economic development 10 References Anderson, AT 2007, Developing m-services: lessons learned from the developers perspective, Communication of AIS, VOL. 2007, issue 20. Carroll, M 2006, An interview with Prime Minister Lee, Institutional Investors, vol. 40, issue 9. Caporaso, J 2004,Dependence, dependency, and power in the global system: a structure and behavioral analysis, International Organization, Vol. 32 Issue 1. Emerging Markets Debt Report 2000, Political risk: Thumbs up for Brazil, Stormy Clime in Vennie, Vol. 13 Issue 4. Godison, N 1988,Londons place in the global securities market, International Affairs, Vol. 64 Issue 4. Madon, S 1997,Information-Based Global Economy and Socioeconomic Development: The Case of Bangalore,’ Information Society, Vol. 13 Issue 3. Melchet, L 2005,The Age of Environmental Impasse? Globalization and Environmental Transformation of Metropolitan Cities, Development Change, Vol. 36 Issue 5. Global economic development 11 McDonnell, I Lecomte 2003, Public Opinion and the Fight against Poverty, DAC Journal, Vol. 4 Issue 2. polenske, K 2004, Competition, Collaboration and Cooperation: An Uneasy Triangle in Networks of Firms and Regions, Regional Studies, Vol. 38 Issue 9.

Personal Reflection on Learning Outcomes of Professional Practice

Personal Reflection on Learning Outcomes of Professional Practice In order to reflect upon my learning throughout this module, I will identify and critically discuss three Module Learning outcomes that reflect the range of possible issues of the Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) Proficiencies (2004). I will then identify appropriate literature and reflect on my learning and experience. This will enable me to identify personal strengths and areas for further development. The first learning outcome is: Recognise the importance of reflective practice and understand the process of reflection. The second outcome chosen is: Discuss the difference between data and information?. The third outcome is: Demonstrate appropriate non-verbal and verbal skills, including the use of silence, open and closed questions and summarising, to gather information. *Please note that the names of the patients mentioned in this essay have been changed in order to protect their identity for confidentiality reasons. 1 Recognise the importance of reflective practice and understand the process of reflection This outcome relates to the NMC Proficiency of Demonstrate the responsibility for ones own learning through the development of a Record of Achievement of practice and recognise when further learning is required. Reflection is a new method of learning for me. With regard to nursing, the term reflection and reflective practice has been defined by many academics, resulting in various models and theories being developed. The Oxford Mini-dictionary for Nurses (2008) describes reflection as the careful consideration of personal actions, including the ability to review, analyse and evaluate situations during or after events. It is an essential part of the learning process that will result in new methods of approaching and understanding nursing practice. Johns (2000) defines reflection as a window through which the practitioner can view and focus self within the context of his/her own lived experience in ways that enable him/her to confront, understand and work towards resolving the contradictions within his/her practice between what is desirable and actual practice. Schon (1983) proposed that reflection occurs on action or in action. The first occurs after the incident whereas the latter occurs during the incident and is said to be the hallmark of the experienced professional (Somerville Keeling, 2004). The more traditional theories and models base reflection on critical incidents. Love (1996) states that a critical incident does not have to be negative or dramatic but should provide deep thought and raise a professional issue. Gibbs (1988) developed The Reflective Cycle. The model divides the reflective process into sections; Description, Feelings, Evaluation, Analysis, Conclusion and Action Plan (see Appendix 1). Johns (2000) developed a Model of Structured Reflection (MSR) (see Appendix 2) As with Gibbs (1988) Reflective Cycle, the MSR uses a series of questions to guide an individual through the reflective process. Johns model is based on five cue questions; Description, Reflection, Influencing Factors, Could I have dealt with it better? and Learning. The volume of studies and models on reflection demonstrates the value that is placed on this tool. Newell (1992) described the process of reflection to be a cornerstone of nursing professionalism. Gustafsson and Fagerberg (2004) support the notion that reflection is a vital tool and advantageous in terms of the improvement of a nurses professional development and patient care. Many consider journal writing to be an effective reflection strategy (Johns 2000; Paterson, 1995; Cameron Mitchell, 1993; Lauterbach Becker, 1996). Journal writing is considered to offer writers the opportunity to become participants/observers of their own learning, to describe a significant experience and to reflect on that experience to see what they can learn from having had it (Weisberg and Duffin, 1995). While in clinical practice, I have written a journal of my experiences. I recognise its value to aid reflection as I feel that the act of writing things down is important. This is supported by Somerville and Keeling (2004). To demonstrate my understanding of reflective practice, I will now reflect on an incident that occurred while on placement when I was feeding a patient, named Tom*. I will utilise Gibbs (1988) model as this is my first experience of using reflection and feel that it is concise and appropriate at this stage. Tom had dementia and had recently suffered a stroke, which had left him confined to bed. As Tom had difficulty feeding himself, I offered to assist him; he smiled, agreed and appeared to recognise me. Halfway through the meal, Tom became agitated and asked if the food was mackerel. I told him that it was turkey. He shouted aggressively that he wanted mackerel and then became verbally abusive towards me. I was unable to calm him so I left the room with an assurance that I would be back soon. I then asked a senior nurse for help. This was the first time that I had fed a patient but felt comfortable. I knew Tom well and felt that I had built up a rapport with him. I was pleased that he seemed happy and relaxed. When he shouted I felt shocked, worried and conscious of other peoples reactions; they may think that I had done something wrong. Even though Tom was disabled he did have some use of one arm so I was afraid that he might become violent. I was upset that I had to stop feeding him and leave the room. When I left I felt relieved but also anxious that I may have contributed to the way Tom was feeling. When evaluating and analysing the incident, I was pleased initially with the way the task started as on admission he had a poor appetite. The negative side of the situation was that Tom became angry and didnt finish his meal. I realise that dementia is a complex progressive illness and there may be times when a patient experiences sudden mood changes. I believe that I would now do things differently if a similar situation arose. With hindsight, I questioned whether I should have just agreed with Tom that the turkey was mackerel then this incident may not have occurred. However, this raises ethical issues such as whether it can be acceptable to not tell the truth. A report published by the Nuffield Council on Bioethics (2009) discusses the ethics of dementia care and states that ethical dilemmas arise on a daily basis for all those providing care for people with dementia. Research suggests that challenging someone with dementia could be detrimental and cause unnecessary distress (Shellenberger, 2004). Naomi Feil developed validation therapy between 1963 and 1980 as a technique to communicate with patients with dementia by recognising and accepting their view of reality of people with dementia in order to provide them with empathy and respect (The Validation Training Institute, Inc). In the future I could use this technique; for exa mple, when Tom asked if it was mackerel he was eating I could have replied by asking him if he liked mackerel which would have avoided giving a direct answer. With regard to strengths and areas of development, I feel that I have reflected successfully on this incident. However I would like to strive to reflect in action as opposed to on action as this is the most effective. In terms of development, I believe that it would be beneficial to patients and myself to learn more about caring for patients with dementia. The Dementia UK Report (2007) published by The Alzheimers Society states that there are currently 700,000 people with dementia in the UK. The report also predicts that by 2025 there will be over 1 million people with dementia so it is inevitable that I will be caring for many dementia patients in my career. In summary, although the models of reflection span over 20 years and vary slightly, the principle of reflection is very similar, which implies that reflection is a robust tool and still applies to modern nursing. I have learnt that reflective practice is a vital tool, particularly when associated with journal writing. Continuous reflection will allow me to develop skills and knowledge to enable me to provide the best care possible for patients and their families. 2 Discuss the difference between data and information This learning outcome links to the NMC proficiency of Demonstrate literacy, numeracy and computer skills needed to record, enter, store, retrieve and organise data essential for care delivery. As a student Im not involved in using my computer skills on the ward but eventually will be involved in audit and data entry. My literacy and computer skills are demonstrated throughout my portfolio and assignment. I demonstrate my literacy and numeracy skills when writing patient evaluations, calculating fluid balance and assisting with drug calculations. There are many examples of data and information used within nursing care. Due to the broad nature of this area I have focused on a particular type of data and information to demonstrate my understanding of these terms. My focus is data collected from patients vital signs and the information that relates to this. I will demonstrate how the process of giving information to patients rather than just data is an essential part of nursing. Gathering, giving and recording both data and information accurately is vital. Data can be described as facts and statistics used for reference or analysis. The term information can be defined as the meaning applied to the data (Concise Oxford English Dictionary, 2008). Observation data collected from patients includes pulse rate and rhythm, blood pressure, respiration rate, temperature and oxygen saturate percentage. These measurements are taken on admission as it is important to gain base-line readings to which future readings can be compared. It is necessary to apply meaning to this data to form information to be able to judge a patients condition. Throughout the module I have learnt what data means in terms of acceptable values. As I now have the information about the data I can make judgments about data. For example, I now know that the information I can get from the blood pressure data of 160/110 mmHg is high (Blood Pressure Association). However, this information needs to be put into context to allow use of the information to make a judgement. For example, if a patient has just completed cardiovascular exercise, this may account for a high blood pressure reading. With this information, the plan would be to wait for 30 minutes before repeating to gain more accurate data. Readings can vary temporarily due to a number of reasons; for example, medication, an existing health condition, fluid intake, exercise and alcohol consumption. However, a change in blood pressure can indicate deterioration in condition, which alerts health care professionals to investigate. In order to show my understanding of the difference between data and information I will now give an example of an incident that occurred while on placement. During observations of a 70 year-old lady named Eileen*, I noticed that her systolic blood pressure had dropped from 127 to 90 mmHg. Her other observations remained consistent. I informed a senior nurse who asked a doctor to review the patient. I discussed her fluid intake with her as this could have had an adverse effect on her blood pressure. As she had only drank a small amount I encouraged her to drink more and continued monitoring. Eileens blood pressure eventually returned to her baseline. This example shows how data, such as blood pressure readings, prompts gathering information which, in turn, enables problem solving. As demonstrated, I need to have an understanding of the information gathered from the data but additionally I feel that it is important that patients understand what the data means. Bastable (2006) defined patient education as the process of assisting people to learn health related behaviours so that they can incorporate those behaviours into everyday life and achieve a goal of optimal health and independence in self care. I will now provide an example of my experience of patient education: During a blood pressure check on Paul*, who was hypertensive and took multiple medications, I asked him whether he would like to learn about blood pressures. He gladly agreed so I explained what the reading was and what can affect blood pressure. I explained that exercise, healthy eating, low salt intake and weight control would have a beneficial effect on his blood pressure. He was unaware of how his current lifestyle could have a detrimental effect on blood pressure and said that he now intended to make some lifestyle changes. Research supports my thoughts about the benefits of giving patients information about aspects of their health rather than just the data. Florence Nightingale, who has been described as the founder of modern nursing, recognised the importance of educating about adequate nutrition, personal hygiene and exercise in order to improve well-being (Bastable, 2006). The Department of Health (2009) states that giving people relevant, reliable information enables them to understand their health requirements and make the right choice for themselves and their families. (Bastable, 2008). Partridge and Hill (2000) found that patients who are well informed are better able to manage their health, have improved psychological outcomes, have fewer exacerbations of their condition and less hospital admissions. Glanville (2000) states that if clients cannot maintain or improve their health status when on their own, we have failed to help them reach their potential. Abbott (1998) reported that by involving patients in their state of health by keeping them informed has been proved to improve patient satisfaction and concordance. However, there is research to suggest that providing information may not result in a change in health outcomes (Kole, 1995; Sherer et al. 1998). They found these reasons to be that patients dont understand the information, are unable to absorb it due to pain, anxiety, or that they choose not to act upon it. Additionally, absorption of information is decreased when there is too much information; therefore health outcomes remain unchanged. The question is how much is too much information? This is difficult to determine. In terms of personal strengths, I felt very satisfied that I had initiated this conversation which resulted in Paul considering lifestyle changes. On reflection, this incident highlighted the importance of patient understanding and has encouraged me to take time to educate patients where possible. It has emphasised the need for continuous learning so that I am able to answer questions and educate patients. Additionally, I am aware of my limitations and when to seek advice or refer patients to others. I also need to develop confidence in speaking to patients about sensitive issues such as weight management by researching this area. 3 Demonstrate appropriate non-verbal and verbal skills, including the use of silence, open and closed questions and summarising, to gather information This outcome relates to the NMC Proficiency of Engage in, develop and disengage from therapeutic relationships through the use of appropriate communication and interpersonal skills. Communication is a reciprocal process that involves the exchange of both verbal and non verbal messages to convey feelings, information, ideas and knowledge (Wilkinson 1999; Wallace 2001). In nursing, communication and information gathering is essential to provide quality care. Sheldon, Barrett Ellington (2006) report that Communication is a cornerstone of the nurse-patient relationship. Information gathering commences from when the nurse greets the patient. In order to communicate non-verbal and verbal cues are used. Non-verbal skills are portrayed with body language and impact on communication (Hargie Dickson 2004). These include posture, facial expressions, head movement, eye contact and hand gestures showing active listening. Verbal skills include the use of silence, open and closed questions and summarising. The tone of voice and rate of response are significant. The emphasis is on effective communication; the way we communicate can hinder or enhance the information we gather. Sheldon et al. (2006) state that the power of effective nursing care is strengthened and enriched by good communication. Maguire and Pitceathly (2002) suggest that clinicians with good communication skills identify patients problems more accurately, patients are more satisfied with their care and are less anxious. It has been reported that that ineffective communication can lead to patients not engaging with the healthcare system, refusing to follow recommended advice and failing to cope with the psychological consequences of their illness (Berry, 2007). The scenario below demonstrates my understanding of appropriate verbal and non-verbal cues. It is part of a conversation with a patient on admission regarding current medical history. When meeting Arthur*, a 78 year old, I smiled, introduced myself and explained the purpose of our conversation. I asked Arthur Do you have any chest problems? he answered Yes. I then asked What chest problems do you have and how do they affect you? he answered I have emphysema causing wheezing and a cough. I also get breathless when walking and have oxygen at night I left a brief silence at this point. Arthur then disclosed I cough up a lot of horrible phlegm in the morning which is embarrassing. He then asked will I get a chest x-ray. I asked Have you any particular worries about your chest? to which he replied well I am quite worried about lung cancer. I told him that I would pass on his concern to the doctor and then summarised our conversation. With regard to verbal responses, I initially asked a closed question as I wanted a specific answer. Silverman et al. (2005) supports the theory that closed questions are appropriate when wanting to narrow the potential answer. Due to Arthurs response I asked an open question to encourage him to go into more detail. An open question often results in a lengthy answer, so I used fillers such as mmm throughout, to show active listening and to encourage him to continue. The brief pause was successful as it enabled Arthur to disclose his embarrassment. I summarised his response in order to clarify what Arthur had said for my own benefit but also to give the patient confidence that I had understood and opportunity to correct me if not. With regard to my non-verbal communication, I kept an open posture with eye contact and leant forward slightly to show that I was listening. I also ensured that my facial expressions were appropriate. For example, when greeting Arthur I smiled, but during descriptions of distressing symptoms my facial expression was one of concern. Egan (2002) supports the notion that conveying these non-verbal cues in this way will facilitate emotional disclosure and encourage the patient to talk more freely. Egan derived the acronym SOLER to portray awareness of the non-verbal responses; facing squarely, maintaining an open posture, leaning slightly forward, having appropriate eye contact and being relaxed. There are approximately 700,000 different non-verbal cues that may or may not have meaning (Birdwhistell, 1970; Pei, 1997). As nurses, we must be aware of our use of non-verbal cues as they can convey unintentional meaning. In addition to awareness of our responses it is imperative to be aware of patient cues, as this is part of the information gathering process. Arthurs hesitancy indicated to me to remain silent to encourage further disclosure. Being aware of patients verbal responses is more straightforward than what their non-verbal responses convey and it may be that patients body language contradict the spoken word (Miller, 1995). Barriers to communication include anxiety, language, hearing, sight or speech impairment. During communication, I would like to think that I am non judgemental. According to Underman Boggs (1999) most of us have personal biases regarding others that are based on previous experiences. In relation to my scenario, Fuller (1995) suggests that health care professionals may underestimate the verbal capacity or abilities of older people, which results in their conversations being undervalued. In terms of personal strengths, I feel fairly confident with the use of verbal and non-verbal cues and how these can deter or catalyse communication. I feel that I used silence successfully as Arthur disclosed embarrassment and mentioned about an x-ray, which he may not have done otherwise. I was able to reassure him that we would provide a disposable sputum pot and acknowledged his fear of cancer. I realise that it can be difficult communicating about sensitive information and this is an area of development for me, which I feel will improve with experience. Although at this stage of training I would not be expected to lead consultations for diagnostic purposes, it was informative to research consultation models. I intend to become more familiar with these models in order to utilise some of the communication skills (Newell, 1994). To form an overall conclusion, I feel that through theoretical learning and clinical experience I have demonstrated my achievement of the NMC Proficiencies (2004). I have critically discussed and concluded each learning outcome in turn throughout the essay but to summarise; patient focus and effective communication are paramount. I feel that in terms of reflection, self-awareness is key (Rowe, 1999). This will enable me to look at my skills to recognise strengths and areas of development to ultimately provide best practice in patient care. I realise that I will gain experience and confidence as my training progresses. Word Count: 3289 References Abbott, S. A.(1998) The benefits of patient education Gastroenterol Nursing. 1998 Sep-Oct;21(5):207-9. Bastable, S. (2006) Essentials of Patient Education. London. Jones and Bartlett Publishers. Bastable, S. (2008) Nurse as Educator: Principles of Teaching and Learning for Nursing Practice. Third Edition. London: Jones and Bartlett Publishers. Berry, D. (2007) as cited in Health Communication: Theory and Practice (Health Psychology). Berkshire: Open University Press. Birdwhistell, R. (1970) as cited in Nursing knowledge and Practice; foundations for decision making. London: Bailliere Tindall. Blood Pressure Association www.bpassoc.org.uk. [11th November 2009] Cameron, B. Mitchell, A. (1993) Reflective peer journals: developing authentic nurses. Journal of Advanced Nursing. 18, 290 297. Concise Oxford English Dictionary (2008) Eleventh Edition Revised. Oxford: Oxford University Press. Dementia: Ethical Issues Report (October 2009) published by Nuffield Council on Bioethics (http://www.nuffieldbioethics.org) [13th December 2009] Dementia UK Report (Feb 2007) published on The Alzheimers Society (http://www.alzheimers.org.uk/site/scripts/documents_info.php?categoryID=200120documentID=341) [7th December 2009] Department of Health (2009) Better information, better choices, better health. London. Department of Health. Egan, G. (2002) as cited in The Royal Marsden Hospital Manual of Clinical Nursing Procedures. Student Edition, Seventh Edition. London: Wiley-Blackwell. Fuller, D. (1995) Challenging ageism through our speech. Nursing Times. 91, 21, 29-31. As cited by Miller, L. (2002) Effective communication with older people. Nursing Standard. 17, 9, 45-50. Gibbs, G. (1988) Learning by Doing: A guide to teaching and learning methods. Oxford Polytechnic. Oxford. Gibbs, G. (1988) Reflective Cycle. Queen Mary University http://www.qmu.ac.uk/els/docs/reflection1.pdf. [20th October 2009] Glanville, I. (2000) Moving Towards Health Oriented Patient Education (HOPE). Holistic Nursing Practice. 14(2) 57-66. Gustafsson, C. Fagerberg, I. (2004) Reflection, the way to professional development?. Journal of Clinical Nursing, 13, 271-280. Hargie, O. Dickson, D .(2004) as cited in The Royal Marsden Hospital Manual of Clinical Nursing Procedures. Student Edition, Seventh Edition. London: Wiley-Blackwell. Johns, C. (2000) Becoming a reflective practitioner. Oxford: Blackwell Science. Kole, L. (1995) A lot of knowledge is not enough: compliance and a positive outcome with asthma require more than knowledge. Journal of the American Academy of Physician Assistants. 8, 3, 8 11. As cited by Caress, A. L. (2003) Giving information to patients. Nursing Standard. 17, 43, 47-54. Lauterbach, S. Becker, P. (1996) Caring for self: becoming a self-reflective nurse. Holistic Nurse Practitioner 10(2) 57-68. Love, C. (1996) Critical Incidents and Post Registration Education and Practice. Professional Nurse. 11(9) 576. Maguire, P. Pitceathly, C. (2002) Key communication skills and how to acquire them. British Medical Journal. September 28; 325(7366): 697-700. Miller, L. (1995) The human face of elderly care? Complementary Therapies in Nursing and Midwifery.1, 4, 103-105. Ac cited by Miller, L. (2002) Effective communication with older people. Nursing Standard. 17, 9, 45-50. Naomi Feil http://www.vfvalidation.org/web.php?request=Naomi_Feil_Bio [7th December 2009]. Newell, R. (1992) Anxiety, accuracy and reflection: the limits of professional development. Journal of Advanced Nursing. 17, 1326-1333. Newell, R. (1994) Interviewing skills for nurses and other health care professionals. London: Routledge, Oxford Mini-dictionary for Nurses (2008). Royal College of Nursing. Sixth Edition. Oxford: Oxford University Press. Partridge, M. Hill, S. (2000) Enhancing care for people with asthma: the role of communication, education, training and self-management. European Respiratory Journal. 16, 2, 333-348. As cited by Caress, A. L. (2003) Giving information to patients. Nursing Standard. 17, 43, 47-54. Paterson, B. (1995) Developing and maintaining reflection in clinical journals. Nurse Education Today. 15, 211-220. Pei, M. (1997) as cited in Nursing knowledge and Practice; foundations for decision making. London: Bailliere Tindall. Rowe, J. (1999) Self-awareness: improving nurse-client interactions. Nursing Standard. 14, 8, 37-40. Scherer, Y.K., Schmieder, L.E., and Shimmel, S. (1998)The effects of education alone and in combination with pulmonary rehabilitation on self-efficacy in patients with COPD. Rehabilitation Nursing 23: 2, 71-76. As cited by Caress, A. L. (2003) Giving information to patients. Nursing Standard. 17, 43, 47-54. Schà ¶n, D. (1987) Educating the Reflective Practitioner. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass. Sheldon, L. K., Barrett, R. Ellington, L (2006) as cited in Nursing knowledge and Practice; foundations for decision making. London: Bailliere Tindall. Shellenberger, S. (2004) Therapeutic Lying and Other Ways To Handle Patients With Dementia. Wall Street Journal, November 11. Silverman, J., Kurtz, S. Draper, J. (2005) as cited in The Royal Marsden Hospital Manual of Clinical Nursing Procedures. Student Edition, Seventh Edition. London: Wiley-Blackwell. Somerville, D Keeling, J. (2004) as cited in Nursing Times http://www.nursingtimes.net/nursing-practice-clinical-research/a-practical-approach-to-promote-reflective-practice-within-nursing/204502.article [30th October 2009] Underman Boggs, K. (1999) Communication styles. Interpersonal Relationships: Professional Communication Skills for Nursing. Third edition. Philadelphia PA, WB Saunders. Validation Training Institute Inc. http://www.vfvalidation.org/web.php?request=index [10th December 2009] Wallace, P. R. (2001) as cited in The Royal Marsden Hospital Manual of Clinical Nursing Procedures. Student Edition, Seventh Edition. London: Wiley-Blackwell. Weisberg, M. Duffin, J. (1995) Evoking the moral imagination: using stories to teach ethics and professionalism to nursing, medical and law students. Change, 22. Wilkinson, S. (1999) as cited in The Royal Marsden Hospital Manual of Clinical Nursing Procedures. Student Edition, Seventh Edition. London: Wiley-Blackwell. APPENDIX 1 Gibbs (1988) model of reflection

Great Expectations by Charles Dickens | Summary and Analysis

Great Expectations by Charles Dickens | Summary and Analysis Charles Dickens wrote his enduringly popular novel, Great Expectations, between December 1860 and September 1861. As was usual for this most prolific of novelists, the book was first published in serial form, and the instalments would be as eagerly awaited as the ‘soap operas’ of today. This novel, however, contains an interesting and informative retrospective by the author on aspects of his life, hidden from even those closest to him, which he had first addressed in the painfully autobiographical David Copperfield some ten years earlier (a difficult decade for Dickens in his personal life) and to some extent alters the perception of himself which Dickens had there vicariously presented. The intricate plot of Great Expectations surrounds the life of an orphaned boy, Pip, who is brought up ‘by hand’ by his rather cruel sister and her kindly husband, Joe, the local blacksmith, to whom Pip turns for the only affection available. He sees Joe less as a father-figure than ‘a larger species of child, and as no more than my equal’ and this rather telling reference to ‘equality’ is to be one of the major themes of the book, i.e. Victorian class-consciousness and notions of what constitutes a ‘gentleman’. (One of the reasons Dickens chose, in fact to write the book was to redress the imbalance he felt he had created in the earlier creation of the ‘gentleman’ Copperfield and his snobbery towards the lads with whom he was compelled to work in the factory to which he had been consigned; Dickens had suffered a similar fate as a child and never spoke of it though he never forgot it.). Pip’s encounter at the beginning of the novel, in the graveyard where his parents are buried and from the stones of which he gains his only sense of self, with the terrifying convict, Magwitch, whom he is compelled to help yet for whom he feels compassion, is quickly followed by his being called to ‘play’ by the enigmatically grotesque Miss Havisham, shrouded in her wedding gown and frozen in time as a result of her being jilted, and this juxtaposition has much importance as the plot progresses, clearly foreshadowing the later unravelling of the mystery of Pip’s benefactor. It is at Miss Havisham’s house that Pip meets and falls instantly in love with her ward, the beautiful and distant Estella, whose name, with its link to ‘star’, is emblematic of both these characteristics. Chiefly because of this fateful meeting and Estella’s ‘disdain’ of his social class, Pip decides he ‘want[s] to be a gentleman’. Th is, significantly, he confides only to Biddy whom Dickens makes clear he should have married but his obsession with Estella obscures his vision on this as so much else, until it is too late. The plot advances significantly when Pip is told, by the sudden arrival of the lawyer, Jaggers, that he is to be the recipient of funds from an unknown benefactor which will make his dream come true and so begins the London phase of his life where he meets the amiable Herbert Pocket and his feckless family, the amusing and shrewd clerk, Wemmick, and re-encounters Estella. Pip is naturally encouraged by both circumstance and history to believe that it is Miss Havisham who is his benefactor but in fact, it is Magwitch, the convict, he helped as a child, who is making him into a gentleman, as he learns when Magwitch suddenly appears, and this dislocation of origins adds to Dickens’ development of the central theme of gentility. In fact, the true gentleman of the book is Joe, as Pip ultimately realises. In Great Expectations, Dickens is attempting to write both a mystery story, influenced by his friend Wilkie Collins’ success with the genre, and to examine the nature of what makes a man the object of respect and admiration. By making Pip want to ‘climb the ladder’ he is investigating the way in which Victorian society operated: more on wealth and station than worth. He was, indeed, ambivalent even about the ending to the novel, wanting at first to have Pip emphatically destined not to marry Estella: I was very glad afterwards to have had the interview; for, in her face and in her voice, and in her touch, she gave me the assurance, that suffering had been stronger than Miss Havishams teaching, and had given her a heart to understand what my heart used to be. Â   Clearly, here, Dickens intends that Pip and Estella should part and the only hopeful resolution is in her apparent change. Nevertheless, the astute author changed his mind because he wanted to please his audience rather than himself, and qualified the certainty of separation in the original by offering at least the possibility of their marriage in his revision: I took her hand in mine, and we went out of the ruined place; and, as the morning mists had risen long ago when I first left the forge, so, the evening mists were rising now, and in all the broad expanse of tranquil light they showed to me, I saw the shadow of no parting from her. The significance of the difference, notwithstanding the employment by the author of one of his favourite words, ‘shadow’, is that it is optimistically inconclusive but the disparity between the two endings clearly defines the author’s own increasingly embittered view of life. True, the couple depart the ‘ruined place’, an emblem of the wreckage of their shared past, but the ‘mists’ remain to obscure the certainty of unbounded happiness present in the ‘tranquil light’. Part of the enduring appeal of Great Expectations is to be found in its author’s power perpetually to please and the evidence is in this willingness to adapt his own directives to those of his audience. The vivacity of the characters, the twists and turns of the plot and the intensely personal style of the first person narrative all combine to make Dickens’ ‘mystery novel’ a book which continues to engage fresh generations of readers. Bibliography: Peter Ackroyd, Dickens, (Sinclair Stevenson, London, 1990). Charles Dickens, Great Expectations, (Clarendon Press, Oxford, 1993). John Forster, The Life of Charles Dickens in Two Volumes, (J.M. Dent Sons, London, 1966). F. Hopkinson Smith, In Dickenss London, (Charles Scribers Sons, New York, 1916). John Manning, Dickens on Education, (University of Toronto Press, Toronto, 1959). Steven Marcus, Dickens, from Pickwick to Dombey, (Basic Books, New York, 1965). John R. Reed, Dickens and Thackeray: Punishment and Forgiveness, (Ohio University Press, Athens, OH, 1995). Paul Schlicke, Dickens and Popular Entertainment, (Unwin Hyman, London, 1988).

Shakespeares Childhood :: essays research papers

Life as a Child in the Renaissance   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  There have been many classic rag-to-riches stories, and while they may seem almost clichà ©, there are so few that are overlooked. For example, many musicians in the rock era who we know today grew up in lesser homes, and they struggled to earn a dime. Elton John, as well known and wealthy as he is today, spent the greater part of 10 years fighting diligently to fill small clubs to make a living off of his wonderful musical talent. While it may be hard for many people to believe, not all quintessential icons in our day were bathed from golden faucets in oversized mansions; quite the contrary, rather. The famous William Shakespeare is a thriving example of this theory; however, there is a main difference between Shakespeare’s fame from the normal rag-to-riches story, and his eminence is most comparable to Van Gogh. During the time when he was alive, his literature was not taken seriously. It was merely viewed as a form of writing not meant to be explored, and much less, praised. Aside from this, he came from an extremely poverty-stricken family, where most of them died from diseases. Also, the quality of education in those days was determined by how much money families could lay down to have their children accepted into pristine schools, which was not possible for the great William Shakespeare. In Shakespeares’ days of inadequate education, he must have had a very strong ambition to become a world-reknown writer and poet.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  As mentioned, Shakespeare’s family was plagued with much sickness, and it spread like wildfire since they were such a large family crammed into a small, musty English cottage. Third-born William was accompanied by his 6 siblings, Joan, Margaret, Gilbert, Amney, Richard, and Edmund. According to â€Å"In the Days of Shakespeare’s Childhood,† most of his siblings lived only into their teen years due to diseases such as yellow fever and malaria. Because of so many child deaths, the exact number of children is debatable, because many died before coming out of infanthood. In fact, when William was born to his parents, John and Mary, he was the first surviving infant. To give an idea of just how many people were affected by various diseases of the time, as stated by John F. Andrews, in 1592, there were 15,000 deaths. This number was significant enough to have the globe theater close down! The home they grew up on was in Stratford-Upon-Avon on Henley Street, a small village that now houses his home as a

Boundaries...What For? :: Argumentative Science Technology Papers

Boundaries...What For? There seems to be no boundaries when it comes to scientific advancement. Scientists are struggling to come up with new and exciting procedures that are supposed to make our lives better. In the process, I think that they are getting out of hand. The advancement of science and technology today has brought up some very interesting and controversial issues. Nowadays, it seems that many scientists are on a mission to create the perfect human being, but in the process are breaking a lot of ethical boundaries. Do scientists know when enough is simply enough?, that is the real question. Through the use of such scientific and technological advancements, its amazing at just what scientists can do with the information. Often times they aren't thinking in terms of the world but in terms of them selves. Which on of them can discover the next biggest thing in science and technology, which can find that cure. It's all a game that is not played fair. There is a lot of craziness going on in the sciences, and with that comes consequences. Take Dr. Frankenstein for instance. In the article Frankenstein by Mary Shelly, she created a character that defied all the scientific and technological boundaries that were around in those days. It was against the law to work with dead bodies, especially for the purposes that he was going to use them for; which was to select the best parts forthe creature he was going to bring to life. He set out to create a "super-human being" out of inatimate objects, and he was successful, but in the end did pay a price. He spent two grueling years that consisted of long days and sleepless nights, for the sole purpose of creating life out of nothing. "For this I deprived myself of rest and health, but now I had finished, the beauty of the dream vanished, and the breathless horror and disgust filled my heart" (Shelly 234). Dr. Frankenstein went way over the line, and tried to play the creator, and in the end got what he deserved, a monster. He abhorred Frankenstein so much, that he chose to alienate him from the world. Which was really unfair to the monster, considering he was created by the sweat of Dr. Frankenstein's brow. Sometimes all that scientific information can get you into trouble. If Dr. Frankenstein had not gone ahead and pursued the role of playing God, he wouldn't have created such an ugly mon ster in his eyes.

Financial Planning Essay

1.How can using personal financial planning tools help you improve your financial situation? Describe changes you can make in at least three areas. Personal financial planning helps you create a stable future and improve helps create a stable future and improve your financial status by creating a plan that lets you save and invest your money so that it can start working for you. A comprehensive financial plan can enhance the quality of your life and increase satisfaction by reducing uncertainly about your future needs and resources. The advantages of personal financial planning can 1. Increase effectiveness in obtaining, using, and protecting your financial resources throughout your lifetime. Secondly, increase control of your financial affairs by avoiding excessive debt, bankruptcy and dependence on others for economic security. Lastly, improve personal relationships resulting from well planes and effectively communicated financial decisions. A sense of freedom from financial worrie s obtained by looking to the future, anticipating expenses, and achieving your personal economic goals. 2.Explain the life cycle of financial plans and their role in achieving your financial goals. Financial and personal satisfaction is the result of an organized process that is commonly referred to as personal money management or personal financial planning. Personal financial planning is the process of managing your money to achieve personal satisfaction. Every person, family or household has a unique financial position, and any financial activity therefore must also be carefully planned to meet specific needs and goals. To achieve these and other goals, people need to identify and set priorities. 3.Discuss the reasons for the changes in your goals and how you’ll need to adapt your financial plans as a result. For many families, one of the biggest sources of disagreements and aggravation is the subject of family financial planning. Before I became a mom I planned on just having fun, shopping all the time and taking road trips but the reason for the changes in my goal is because I have a daughter now I have to think about her and not just myself. Having control of my finances means a lot more than just getting control of money. It means getting a handle on my habits both thinking and spending as well as my short and long term goals. I need to  adapt my financial plans by building new habits, reducing stress, controlling my spending and aligning priorities. 4.How should you use this information to make personal financial and career planning decision? After reading the current and projected trends with regard to the GDP growth, unemployment, and inflation. I plan to finance wisely and not spend money all crazy without a care in the world. I have a family now and I don’t want my daughter to struggle like I have too. As for my career I plan to have short and long term goals. I don’t expect to stay in one field, I always had the mindset to where I want to expand and explore different career path. I know things happen and the economy can be pretty messed up and I don’t want to end up jobless and have to stress about finding a new job so I plan to go beyond the dream I am chasing. However, just in case I was to end jobless smartly financial planning is a good thing to do because I can have money already in the bank and be able to pay my bills without going into debt. No one likes to struggle because all it does is cause s tress and problems, so I plan to stay on the right track and that is continuing going to school and providing a stable life for my family.

People Attend College for Many Different Reasons Essay

Although people attend college or school for many different reasons, one of the most common reason for people to attend a college is for a career preparation. Although we have new experiences and also gain knowledge by attending a college or university, those are not the primary reasons for people attending a college because we can also get new experiences wherever new we go and whatever new we do. We will surely have new experiences if we attend a college but we do not attend a college for new experiences. Second, we do not just attend a college only for increased knowledge. If increasing the knowledge is the only motivation for the person, then we have many other sources like textbooks, journals, internet and many other sources which can help us to gain knowledge. We need not attend a college if gaining knowledge is the only reason. However, we gain knowledge if we attend a college but gaining knowledge is not the only impetus to attend a college or university. For example, if a university offers a very splendid environment and it can impart knowledge to the students better than any other university but if it does not offer any degree and does not show any job opportunities, I am pretty sure that few people will prefer to join it. Similarly, if a university is not so good at infrastructure and research work but if it still able to provide a better placement and career growth, it is no surprise that many people will be ready to join that university compared to the latter. So, from the reasons and examples stated above I think there are many factors that influences a person to join a college or university, career preparation is the most important of all.

Reebok Pursuing Generation X

Reebok: Pursuing Generation X Reebok is a global, American inspired brand, in a highly competitive athletic and sportswear industry, committed to creating products and marketing programs that reflect the brand’s unlimited creative potential (Reebok). The 2003 rankings place Reebok in third place of U. S. athletic shoe market share with 13%; Nike dominates at 36% while other athletic brands make up 26% of the U. S. market (Sporting Goods Intelligence). In 1982, Reebok was a main component in introducing a women’s athletic shoe designed specifically for the latest trend in exercise known as aerobic dance.This, as we all know, was not a trend but rather an athletic revolution towards women’s fitness and increase entrance into sports, which expanded the target market for the athletic and the sportswear industry. The acceptance of sneakers as an adult casual wear evolved in the 1980’s as well as a market prediction that was a catalyst to the early success of Re ebok as an athletic brand leader. Since the 1980’s, the market environment has changed dramatically and has proven to be a complex and highly competitive advertising arena. Print and TV ads of the past are no longer the premier marketing platforms as they once were.The athletic and sporting goods companies of today must bring to the consumers a compelling and gripping advertising campaign to earn the attention and revenue of today’s technology driven consumer. Target markets are evolving from the baby boomer era to the Gen Xers and with that shift, comes a new consumer ideology and therefore new marketing strategies. The advertising mediums that companies utilize are challenged to reach an elusive target audience guarded by TiVo technology, mobile internet as well as personal philosophies seeking purpose and added value, even in product selection.This case outlined advertising challenges, as well as opportunities Reebok faced in an expanding digital media world and its players; Generation X. Question 1: How would the team explain viral marketing to the class? Viral marketing wasn’t made up out of thin air; it started before the birth of the Internet under another name known as word-of-mouth. There are many differences between the two strategies but the principle is identical: exchange information about an event, place, person or idea from one outlet to another. So, to understand how viral marketing works one must understand word-of-mouth.Word-of mouth marketing is when a company provides consumers, a reason to bring up their company in normal conversation. This could be from an ad on the television, a flyer that you saw downtown in a deli, or maybe an advertisement that you heard on a radio station that caught your attention while you were driving. That sounds a lot like viral marketing, but a person only has so many hours in the day; so why would they ever think of calling all of their friends/family up to tell them about something they s aw, previous to their conversation?Unless it was a catastrophic event or something that was deeply related to them personally, that’s just not likely to happen. With viral marketing, there are two main components that are needed: a large audience, and a way to spread information exponentially, also known as the Internet. The first traces of Internet viral marketing were, according to â€Å"The Virus of Marketing†, in 1997 when Hotmail attached ads to outgoing messages. It was rather astonishing the reaction that the public had after forwarding the ads to other email addresses, allowing users to reach thousands of potential clients in the matter of a few easy clicks.These were only the primitive years of viral marketing, and it has become one of the most valued marketing strategies of the 21st century. The term ‘viral marketing’ is one that is used, both, on a regular and large scale. This is mostly due to the highly populated areas, such as YouTube and oth er social media outlets where video, music, photographs, ideas and other forms of entertainment, can be passed from one individual to another easily. Social media sources and YouTube allow users to be interconnected with millions of people in the matter of seconds.Over 500 million people around the world, have an account with Facebook, which not only makes marketing researchers drool, but also makes up a huge population of word-of-mouth users that are able to upload and send information to their ‘friends’. Within the past decade, viral marketing has taken exponential leaps thanks to the increased use of the Internet. A successful viral marketing campaign works when an individual views information online and passes it on to another; the individuals whom were showed the information to will also share it to their list of friends via the Internet.This creates a snowball effect and the subject in discussion becomes extremely popular in an impressive amount of time through ma ss word-of-mouth aka viral marketing. Question 2: How did Mickey Pant introduce viral-marketing to Reebok’s promotional strategy? To what extent does viral-marketing replace traditional media such as TV, radio, direct mail, etc.? Mickey Pant, the chief marketing officer at Reebok, understood the increasingly changing culture of consumers today.Gone are the days where TV advertisements and radio spots were enough to capture the mass audience of target consumers, waiting idly by to be swayed into purchasing the latest and greatest products. Evolved, is a new generation of consumers, known as Generation X; not easily penetrated by brand loyalty and logo suaveness, but are rather driven by a sense of worthiness and greater purpose. Gen Xers are characterized as skeptical of advertising and are active users of digital media, especially the Internet and are compelled to lead a life filled with meaning rather than monetary gains alone.According to OnPoint Marketing, Gen Xers make up 17% of the population and spend $125 billion annually on consumer goods in the U. S. With a growing target audience that thrives on digital media, Mickey Pant understood that Reebok would have to pursue a new direction in advertising that would resonate with the Gen Xers. This concept would have to connect and appeal to what drives the consumers and outshine the competition in an already saturated market dominated by Nike and Adidas.Pant chose the 2003 Super Bowl XXXVII as the platform, launching â€Å"one of the most popular viral marketing campaigns ever to be aired in history: the infamous Terry Tate Office Linebacker ad. † The commercial was a largely successful campaign that reached a market of consumers that were heavy users of the Internet and TiVo, which earned Reebok. com the ninth largest content provider on the internet. The Tate commercial became an instant hit with its office humor of politically correct antics and depiction of cubicle mishaps, which appealed to the undervalued Gen Xers and caused the ad to go viral across the Internet.After the Tate commercial aired, the Reebok website underwent 20 commercial downloads per second and the Reebok online store traffic increased seven-fold, creating a viral phenomenon. Ultimately, Mickey Pant understood the cultural changes that characterized the life of Gen Xers and relied upon the Internet to carry the campaign. Even though the ads weren’t aired on TV again, they will forever live on, on the Internet. With the undoubtedly increasing digital age, a shift from the more traditional media platforms such as newspaper and TV, to online and mobile advertising is inevitable. 003 was the year Reebok launched the first digital media campaign, and since then, numerous digital campaigns have followed. The growing need for companies to create a more interactive and transactional experience with its customers is expansive, allowing for such outlets as the Internet and mobile advertising to become more attractive. In the case, Reebok notes a shift in investments away from magazines and newspapers, to online and mobile platforms. The advertising breakdowns, according to an outside source, the Yankee Group, reports that TV advertising dropped 21. % during 2008-2009 and fell an additional 12% in 2010. The trend fairs similar for the newspaper industry, reporting that in 2005 the industry had revenue around $47 billion while today it is only half that amount. The report lists the 2009 statistics for U. S. consumer’s average time spent watching TV as three hours 17 minutes, while the average time spent online is four hours and 13 minutes and mobile phone usage average per day is one hour and 18 minutes. Due to consumers spending less time viewing television and extended time on the internet, online advertisements revenues grew 8. % between 2008 and 2009. While traditional TV advertising still has a large role in sportswear marketing strategies, viral marketing, digital adve rtising and mobile marketing are the platforms to focus in on to reach the largest consumer base. Question 3: What’s the Team’s assessment of the Terry Tate campaign? Did it increase Reebok’s brand equity? Was the central message effective? Memorable? In 2003, Terry Tate and Reebok teamed up to produce a series of 60 second T. V. ads, at a cost of $4 million, which aired during the Super Bowl; these commercials were an instant hit.Reeboks website, soon after the ad’s aired, was clocking 20 downloads per second. While the ads were an instant classic, having more than 20 million views to date, they did not produce an increase in sales or market share. How could an ad so popular and funny not create the brand equity Reebok was hoping for? Our team, after reviewing the Terry Tate spots, decided that was because the ads did not tie Reebok sufficiently into the ads. During the videos, Terry Tate wore a gold Reebok chain and the Reebok logo was shown at the end of the spot; this was not enough.One of the consequences of Reebok not showing its brand enough in the commercial was that people would not be able to tie Terry Tate to Reebok. The commercials were memorable, yes, but in order to have brand equity, the viewer needs to remember Reebok and Terry Tate, not just Terry Tate. Reebok’s marketing team believed that the Tate commercial brought a â€Å"new cool dimension† to the brand, even though Reebok’s brand perception and awareness had not changed. Overall, we think the central message was not entirely effective. While the ads were memorable and funny, they were not memorable and funny in a way that helped Reebok’s Brand Equity.Even though there main goal with the ads were not met, Reebok did create something that generated a massive â€Å"buzz† and hype around Terry Tate. Question 4: To what extent should traditional advertising effectiveness measures be relied upon in the Terry—Tate/Reebok case ? In this Reebok case, the traditional advertising method was the â€Å"Terry Tate Office Linebacker† television advertisements. The campaign was extremely successful on television and the Internet. The Gen Xers and the public related to the commercials because they were office based and because a large linebacker would tackle employees that everyone hates.We believed that Reebok understood that their target markets would see the commercial on television, like it, and then seek other ways to view or learn more about the commercials and the brand. Because Gen Xers were technology savvy and used the Internet on a regular basis, even after the commercials had stopped airing on television, the public would watch the commercials and advertisements on Reebok. com. Reebok decided to make longer Terry Tate films, and after that marketing move, Reebok’s website became the ninth largest content provider on the Internet, streaming 1 terabyte of data per day and using 16 servers.R eebok. com was averaging 20 downloads per second and 20 million downloads to date. The Reebok online store increased and even began to sell Terry Tate bobble head dolls and shirts. We believe that traditional advertising was relied on heavily to launch the Terry Tate advertisements, but once the commercials became popular, the Internet was the predominant method of exposure. The Internet gave Reebok more freedom and versatility to really push the limits and make their audiences fall in love with the brand. Mickey Pant was able to air longer films of Terry Tate and sell Terry Tate merchandise from the online Reebok store.Not only did the Internet help Reebok develop the Terry Tate character, it also increased Reebok sales and brand awareness to the world. Question 5: Is this type of campaign capable of capturing the attention of the Gen. X consumer? Why, why not? We felt like this type of campaign was very capable of gaining the attention and respect from members of Generation X, bec ause of one general thought: it was something that they could easily identify with. This series of commercials showed instances that Gen Xers were familiar with and had some sort of emotional connection to.In many office cultures, it is considered very rude to do such things as, drink the last pot of coffee and not refill the coffee pot, or to fart when in a small elevator when there are other people in there; those were the norms that the Reebok ads sought to use. According to Rawson Thurber, the man who played Terry Tate, â€Å"(the popularity) has very little to do with football and a lot to do with how much people hate office culture† (Thurber, 10). To us, that meant that Gen Xers enjoyed the commercials so much, not because they were dedicated to the Reebok band, but because the commercials depicted things that they could easily identify with.Even though there were so many different things that could have gone wrong with this campaign, it went off without a hitch. Gen Xe rs were drawn into this series of commercials because they enjoyed Terry Tate so much: he was the person who punished those who didn’t obey the unspoken etiquette rules that office life comes with. When looking back on this campaign and its success, Mickey Pant, the chief marketing officer of Reebok, mused that the success of the campaign was, â€Å"that the campaign was hysterically funny and immediately generated a massive â€Å"buzz† and hype around Terry Tate and, by extension, Reebok† (Pant, 10).In essence, the campaign worked because Gen Xers loved the spokesperson of Reebok, and not because they had some sort of brand loyalty to Reebok as a whole. Overall, we believe that the digital revolution played a major role in getting Reebok’s name out there. Even though the ads never really had any major ties to Reebok, as a brand, it still helped generate revenue to Reebok, through their website.As a team, we feel like the Terry Tate ads wouldn’t ha ve been as successful if they were just present in print or even if they were destined to remain on TV. TV ads are vastly different than Internet ads because of the simple fact that TV ads cost a lot more to produce. As mentioned before, Reebok spent $4 million to show the Terry Tate commercials on TV; having commercials on the Internet cost much less. The digital revolution has made cheaper, more widespread advertising possible and more available to everyone.