Thursday, December 26, 2019

Define Value Engineering Analysis - 3363 Words

2) Define value engineering analysis. Discuss briefly the various approaches for VE and VA. Value Engineering (VE) or Value Analysis (VA) is an important and powerful approach for improvement in the performance of the products, systems or procedures and reduction in costs without jeopardising their function. L.D. Miles defined Value Analysis in his book Techniques of Value Analysis and Engineering (1961) as an organised creative approach which has for its purpose the efficient identification of unnecessary cost i.e., cost which provides neither quality, nor use, nor life, nor appearance, nor customer features. Thus the basic objective of VE/VA is to achieve equivalent or better performance at a lower cost while maintaining all†¦show more content†¦These job plans have various steps and phases with their associated VE techniques at each phase. In one of the job plans the seven steps involved are: (1) preparation, (2) problem selection, (3) information, (4) evaluation, (5) creation, (6) selection and presentation, and (7) implementation and follow up. The salient features of three different approaches to conduct a VE programme. These are: a) Job Plan due to Mudge b) DARSIRI method c) FAST (Function Analysis System Technique) The Job Plan due to Mudge is a very well recognised approach. The seven phases of Job Plan are: i) General phase ii) Information phase iii) Function phase iv) Creation phase v) Evaluation phase vi) Investigation phase vii) Recommendation phase. Each of these phases comprises or is supported by one or more techniques. There are work-sheets for each phase. The practice of Job Plan and the application of VE techniques should be made on properly selected project. Thus selection of VE projects is important. Those products should be chosen for the study which is significant in terms of cost reduction potential. In step-by-step application of the Job Plan the project unfolds from the information phase right up to recommendation phase. The general phase plays vital role throughout and provides a good base for other phases to succeed. Brief description of each phase together with associated VE techniques are given in the following sub-sections.Show MoreRelatedApproaches to Risk Analysis Essay912 Words   |  4 PagesWhen planning any kind of project, especially an information security project, risk analysis is very important. Risk analysis, in the context of information security, is the process of assessing potential threats to an organization and the overall risk they pose to the continued operation of the organization. There are multiple approaches to risk analysis, and multitudes of literature have been published on the subject. In their paper published in 2012, Bhattacharjee and associates introduced twoRead MoreThe Fuzzy Inference Rules ( Rule Block )1220 Words   |  5 PagesNow we define the fuzzy inference rules (Rule Block -1 –RB1) to the first four parameters mentioned in the table no -1 as inputs with the physical quality of the water as output in the following way using Mamdani method Table -2 Output result from the application of IF –THEN rules,with membership function. Now we define the fuzzy inference rules (Rule Block -2 –RB2) to the next five parameters mentioned in the table no -1 as inputs with the chemical quality of the water as output in the followingRead MoreThe Experimental Design Proposed By Taguchi Method1247 Words   |  5 Pagesmethod was developed by Dr. Genichi Taguchi of Japan who maintained that variation. Taguchi developed a method for designing experiments to investigate how different parameters affect the mean and variance of a process performance characteristic that defines how well the process is functioning. The experimental design proposed by Taguchi involves using orthogonal arrays to organize the parameters affecting the process and the levels at which they should be varies. Instead of having to test all possibleRead MoreEffective Quality Management And Risk Management874 Words   |  4 Pagesdevelopers, customers, and users.[1] Value engineering (VE) is a method that developed by general electric after World War II,[1]Developers can use this method to find the most valuable functions and deliver it with the limited resources. As for risk management (RM), which can be considering as a method to reduce both the occurrence possibility and aftereffect of adverse events, is a crucial part of many projects develop processes. Although value engineering and risk management are widely used inRead MoreCh. 4 Product and Service Design Essay1734 Words   |  7 Pages 4) Does it make sense from an economic standpoint? What are the potential liability issues, ethical considerations, sustainability issues, costs, and profits? For nonprofits, is the cost within budget? 5. Briefly define or explain these terms: Value analysis- Examination of the function of parts and materials in an effort to reduce cost and/or improve product performance. Manufacturability- the capability of an organization to produce an item at an acceptable profitRead MoreSoftware Development Life Cycle ( Sdlc )937 Words   |  4 Pagesthe system software v. Testing the system software. vi. Deployment and maintenance of the system software. SDLC life cycle defines a methodology to improve the quality of software and complete development process. Planning and Requirements Analysis Requirements analysis discovers the detailed real, business requirements deliverables, features and functionalities providing value to a system when delivered. The conditions help convey users expectations from the software product in design (Davis et alRead MoreHierarchical Document Clustering Based On Cosine Similarity Measure783 Words   |  4 PagesHierarchical Document Clustering based on Cosine Similarity measure Ms. Shraddha K.Popat* Ms. Vishakha A. Metre Asst.Professor, Asst.Professor, Department of computer Engineering, Department of computer Engineering, D.Y.Patil, College of Engineering, Akurdi, Pune, India D.Y.Patil, College of Engineering, Akurdi, Pune, India shraddhakp21@gmail.com vishakha.metre@gmail.com Abstract- Clustering is one of the prime topics in data mining. Clustering partitions the data and classifies the data intoRead MoreQuestions On Knowledge Process Outsourcing1018 Words   |  5 Pagessame as (BPO), however at a higher position in the intellectual value chain. The old Business Process Outsourcing firms which are used to deliver basic backend or customer care support are shifting up this value chain. Offshoring of knowledge concentrated or related business processes which require specialized domain oriented expertise, defines KPO. The KPO typically involves a component of Business Processing Outsourcing (BPO), Analysis Proves Outsourcing (APO) and Research Process Outsourcing (RPO)Read MoreSoftware Reliability Of Software Standards1116 Words   |  5 PagesSoftware reliability is dynamic stochastic. Unlike hardware, software does not age, wear out or rust, unreliability of software is mainly due to bugs or design faults in the software. The exact value of product r eliability is never precisely known at any point in its lifetime. The study of software reliability can be categorized into three parts: Modeling, Measurement improvement. Many Models exist, but no single model can capture a necessary amount of software characteristics. Software reliabilityRead MoreSoftware Engineering Frameworks And Methodologies1528 Words   |  7 PagesCIS 4655 Software Engineering Term Paper on Software Engineering Frameworks and Methodologies By Damancharla Harini 1. Introduction: Describing software engineering can be a quite challenging task based on the purpose of the definition and the anticipated beneficiaries. Discussing about frameworks and methodologies in software engineering can be somewhat difficult under whatever circumstances because of various ways in which the issues regarding frameworks, processes and methodologies

Tuesday, December 17, 2019

Many Beliefs Influence Our Lives Today - 1413 Words

Many beliefs influence our lives today. In fact one of the most well-known movie series today, was influenced by a belief, called Norse Mythology. That movie series is Lord of the Rings! Many of the main characters and items come from Norse mythology. Such as, the elves, the enchanted rings, the dwarves, and other realms. Most people only know one or two deities from Norse Mythology, like Thor and Loki. While most people in the world are more familiar with the beliefs of the Ancient Greeks, Norse Mythology is one of the most overlooked, interesting, and diverse forms of mythology in the world. Norse Mythology was started by the vikings and carried across the world by them. The earliest known accounts of Norse Mythology came from†¦show more content†¦There are many deities/figures in Norse mythology. Such as, giants, gods, supernaturals, and humans. One of the most important figures is Ymir. He was a brutal frost giant, created out of ice. He created every giant, who later created the gods. Two kings of the giants are Thrym and Skymir. Thrym is king of the frost giants. He is most famously known for using Mjolnir, Thor’s hammer as ransom for the goddess, Freyja. Skymir is the king of Jotunheim. He is known for being an illusionist, and tricking Thor. Most people only know one or two figures of Norse mythology. Even though there are so many more. Like, Buri the 1st god created. He is the father of Bor, and grandfather of Odin. He is said to have come into the worlds, by the cow Audhumla. She is said to have licked him free from inside a block of ice. There is no known accounts of who his wife is. Odin is the son of Bor and Bestla and ruler of Asgard. His is god of all wisdom and only has one eye. He gouged out the other one. His wife s name is Frigg. Frigg is an Aesir goddess and wife of Odin. She is the mother of Balder and hold, Queen of Asgard, and goddess of foreknowledge. Thor is one of the most widely known Norse gods, thanks to Marvels m ovies and comic books. He is the son of Odin and Earth, his wife’s name is Sif and he is god of thunder. He is known for being fierce and fighting a lot and his magic hammer Mjolnir. Loki is another widely known gods. He is known for his shape-shifting abilities and

Monday, December 9, 2019

Webb’s Stores Cloud Security Free Samples †MyAssignmenthelp.com

Question: Discuss about the Webbs Stores Cloud Security. Answer: Introduction Cloud computing has flourished in the recent years and is being used by the organizations and business units all across the globe. The cloud services in the present times have enabled the business owners and executive to provide better quality services to the users and have also strengthened the business integration, communication and continuity. One of the organizations that have recently decided to step into the world of cloud is the Webbs Stores. It is a retailer of food items and specialty items and is located in Australia. For the processing and management of the store information, there are two centres of the Webbs Stores that are located in Melbourne and Sydney. The store is spread across many different locations in Australia and therefore, there are regional data centres as well in Wagga, Port Macquarie, Auckland and many other regional locations. There are around 800 members of the staff that are associated with the store comprising of the warehouse and sales staff members. With the increase in the number of operations, sales activities, employee and customer count, there are increased complexities that are observed in the management and processing of the data and information. The decision to move the database to cloud has been taken to resolve all such problems. Security of IaaS Cloud Model and Database There are many cloud models that can be implemented for the database migration to the cloud in case of the Webbs Stores. IaaS cloud has been preferred and recommended as per the specifications and needs of the store. However, the cloud model is associated with certain forms of security risks and attacks. It would be necessary to identify and analyze these attacks so that the corresponding measures may be taken to avoid all the security occurrences. Some of the recommended measures have been listed below. There may be many of the network based security attacks that may take place in IaaS cloud database. The network based intrusion detection and prevention tools are available in the market so that the malevolent activities can be highlighted as soon as the attacker attempts to execute them. There shall also be application of data analytics tools used in security tools so that the behavior of the attackers and the attacking patterns that are used by them can be identified. The basic security set up shall be made strong so that the overall security of the database is improved. Access control is one of such measure that would prevent the access of all the malicious entities. Other similar mechanism to enhance the basic security would be authentication system. There shall be enhanced authentication with the use of multiple measures that shall be enforced. Many automated and ready to use applications are also available which can be used, such as anti-malware tools along with anti-denial tools (Ismail, 2017) Advanced encryption algorithm, digital certificates and hashing algorithms shall also be used to protect the information. Disaster recovery can be implemented by making use of the automated back-up of the entire data sets. Benefits for the Enhancement of Security Information is the key asset for the organizations. In case of Webbs Stores, there is a lot of information that the store manages processes and stores in the data centres. These include the information about the clients, products, employees, transactions, sales, payments, inventory and a lot more. In case of the security occurrence, the properties of the information may suffer poorly which may in turn impact the profits and revenues earned by the store (Simou, 2016). IaaS cloud security will make sure that none of such occurrences and events take place and the information is protected at all times. It will provide numerous benefits in the form of enhanced customer trust and transparency along with competitive advantage in the market along with enhanced revenues and profits. Types of Challenges Issues There are various forms of challenges and issues that may crop up with the implementation of cloud database with Infrastructure as a Security (IaaS) cloud model. The store must already be making use of a number of other technical tools and components. The database is required to be integrated with all such tools and there may be issues in this process. There may also be occurrence of technical faults and operational errors due to the involvement of so many different elements and components (Shahid, 2015). The process of migration will bring many of the costs along with it in terms of tools cost, resource costs and cost of the project tasks. Database Issues Security Risks The risks and issues in associated with the IaaS cloud database for the Webbs Stores may be in the form of the database risks in itself. The security of the database may be compromised due to the involvement of increased number of access points. The attackers may be able to succeed in identifying the access points and may make use of the same for breaching of the information. There may also be denial attacks executed by the attackers to make the database services unavilable for the users (Alashoor, 2014). IaaS Infrastructure Issues Security Risks The overall infrastructure that will be offered by the IaaS cloud model may also be put at risk. The staff members of the Webbs Stores will be making use of such an infrastructure for the first time which may lead to the execution of multiple errors and mistakes by them. This may enhance the security vulnerabilities that may go unnoticed and may be used by the attackers to execute the eavesdropping and impersonation attacks (Singh, 2001). Communication Issues Security Risks The information will not remain at rest in case of the cloud model. It will keep on traversing from one medium to the other and the information may be shared among many resources and access points. During this sharing and communication of the information, the attackers may execute the attacks like man in the middle or eavesdropping attacks to breach the information and capture its contents and properties. Backup, Storage and Retrieval Issues Security Risks The other category of risks that may emerge which may lead to compromise on the security of the data and information may be related with the specific data operations that will be carried out. Data Backups: Backup is an essential activity that is carried out in case of databases and system information so that a copy of the entire data sets is saved and updated. It is done with the aim of disaster recovery and control in case of a security attack. However, the attackers may trigger a malware during backup process and the same may lead to deterioration of the information properties. This may lead to problems of integrity violation. Storage: The primary purpose of a database is to store the information in the data repositories so that it can be managed and processed correctly. These storage containers and repositories may be misused by the attackers and there may be many attacks that may be executed in terms of information breach, malware attack, information loss etc. (Fowler, 2010). Data Retrieval: There are queries that are processed to retrieve the data from the database. These queries may be injected with malicious code by using SQL injection attacks. There may also be unauthorized users that may gain access to the database and retrieve the information that may not be permitted to be viewed by them. Disaster Recovery Changes in Strategy and Policy The disaster recovery strategy is essential to be updated on the basis of the disasters and types of attacks. It cannot remain static to handle all forms of security risks and occurrences. An improved risk identification and analysis will be necessary to be carried out which shall make use of automated analytics tools and applications. This process will provide an updated picture of the possible attacks that may take place (Tari, Yi, Premarathne, Bertok Khalil, 2015). In the next set of steps, each risk and occurrence that is identified must be mapped with a disaster recovery strategy. The strategy will vary on the basis of the risk type and the other contributing factors. There shall also be an updated backup and damage control process implemented which must also focus upon the encryption of the information. Access Control Mechanisms and Processes The basic security set up shall be made strong so that the overall security of the database is improved. Access control is one of such measure that would prevent the access of all the malicious entities. Access control in the present times is not restricted to physical security processes for the verification and validation of the entities. There are improved and new methods that may be used for the purpose of control on the access which shall be used in the case of the cloud database for the Webbs Stores. IaaS infrastructure: There shall be use and application of role-based access control measures for the avoidance and prevention of any of the intruder or unauthorized access. Cloud instance of MS SQL Server 2012 R2: There shall be use and application of role-based access control measures for the avoidance and prevention of any of the intruder or unauthorized access. Cloud network infrastructure: There shall be use and application of attribute-based access control measures for the avoidance and prevention of any of the intruder or unauthorized access. Backup, storage and retrieval: There shall be use and application of attribute-based access control measures for the avoidance and prevention of any of the intruder or unauthorized access. Access refers to the property in which the user is provided with specific permissions to perform a certain task or an activity. In terms of the databases, the access may refer to the permission to view the data, write the data or modify the data. There is also access required to perform other data operations as well (Khan, 2012). It is therefore necessary to provide the access only to the users who are authorized to perform certain and specific tasks. Role based access control is also abbreviated as RBAC and as the name suggests, the permissions are provided on the basis of the user roles. These may include different permissions for database administrator, data analyst, data associate, data scientist and likewise. The attribute based access control is another form of control that may be applied which considers the user attributes instead of the roles. Conclusion Webbs Stores is a retailer from Australia that is expanding at a rapid pace. With the increase in the number of operations, sales activities, employee and customer count, there are increased complexities that are observed in the management and processing of the data and information. The decision to move the database to cloud has been taken to resolve all such problems (Nadeem, 2016). There are security issues that come up with the use and implementation of cloud computing in the organization. The cloud model selected for Webbs Stores is Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS). IaaS cloud security will make sure that none of such occurrences and events take place and the information is protected at all times. It will provide numerous benefits in the form of enhanced customer trust and transparency along with competitive advantage in the market along with enhanced revenues and profits (Hashemi Hesarlo, 2014). The store must also look out for and explore the security parameters and mechanis ms that they may enhance with the involvement of other technologies. For instance, there shall also be application of data analytics tools used in security tools so that the behavior of the attackers and the attacking patterns that are used by them can be identified. Many automated and ready to use applications are also available which can be used, such as anti-malware tools along with anti-denial tools. Advanced encryption algorithm, digital certificates and hashing algorithms shall also be used to protect the information. It must be understood that the security of the information is of utmost importance and the measures shall be taken for smooth migration to the cloud. There shall also be careful and extensive planning that must be involved. References Alashoor, T. (2014). Cloud computing: a review of security issues and solutions. International Journal Of Cloud Computing, 3(3), 228. https://dx.doi.org/10.1504/ijcc.2014.064760 Fowler, S. (2010). Impact of denial of service solutions on network quality of service. Security And Communication Networks, 4(10), 1089-1103. https://dx.doi.org/10.1002/sec.219 Hashemi, S., Hesarlo, P. (2014). Security, Privacy and Trust Challenges in Cloud Computing and Solutions. International Journal Of Computer Network And Information Security, 6(8), 34-40. https://dx.doi.org/10.5815/ijcnis.2014.08.05 Ismail, N. (2017). The winding road to GDPR compliance - Information Age. Information Age. Retrieved 20 September 2017, from https://www.information-age.com/winding-road-gdpr-compliance-123468132/ Khan, A. (2012). Access Control in Cloud Computing Environment. Retrieved 22 September 2017, from https://pdfs.semanticscholar.org/ef20/bc1239539f9a8502715153c5af67fc9e9034.pdf Nadeem, M. (2016). Cloud Computing: Security Issues and Challenges. Journal Of Wireless Communications, 1(1). https://dx.doi.org/10.21174/jowc.v1i1.73 Shahid, M. (2015). Cloud Computing Security Models, Architectures, Issues and Challenges: A Survey. The Smart Computing Review, 602-616. https://dx.doi.org/10.6029/smartcr.2015.06.010 Simou, S. (2016). A survey on cloud forensics challenges and solutions. Security And Communication Networks, 9(18), 6285-6314. https://dx.doi.org/10.1002/sec.1688 Singh, K. (2001). IT Infrastructure Security-Step by Step. Sans.org. Retrieved 20 September 2017, from https://www.sans.org/reading-room/whitepapers/basics/infrastructure-security-step-step-430 Tari, Z., Yi, X., Premarathne, U., Bertok, P., Khalil, I. (2015). Security and Privacy in Cloud Computing: Vision, Trends, and Challenges. IEEE Cloud Computing, 2(2), 30-38. https://dx.doi.org/10.1109/mcc.2015.45

Monday, December 2, 2019

J.S. BachS Organ Fugue In G Minor Essays - The Well-Tempered Clavier

J.S. Bach'S Organ Fugue In G Minor ANALYSIS: J.S. BACHS ORGAN FUGUE IN G MINOR Bachs Organ Fugue in G Minor contains a six measure subject with a tonal answer. The countersubject first appears in the top voice in the last beat of the sixth measure. However, instead of a total repetition, there are variations of the countersubject prevalent in the remaining voices. For example, only the first two measures of the countersubject appear in the second voice with the rest free material, whereas the third voice contains a majority of the countersubject with limited free material. The exposition ends with a half cadence at the Dominant in measure 22. The development section of Bachs fugue contains episodes of the fugue subject in the lower three voices starting with the tenor voice in measure 25, followed by the alto and bass voices. Throughout the episode, the soprano voice contains real and tonal sequences until the end of the episode, which occurs in measure 45. Bach uses a pedal point in the bass as well as an invertible counterpoint in the alto and tenor voices between measures 45 and 50. The development section does not modulate from the tonic key. There is a restatement of the fugue subject in the tonic in the bass voice in measure 63. This piece ends with a Perfect Authentic Cadence in the tonic key. Music Essays

Wednesday, November 27, 2019

Art History Chapter 4 Essays

Art History Chapter 4 Essays Art History Chapter 4 Paper Art History Chapter 4 Paper Essay Topic: Literature What is considered the first great work of Greek literature the finest epic poem? Iilad The cities Troy, Mycenae, Tiryns were uncovered by ___ ___. Heinrich Schliemann Scholars believe the city of Troy had been destroyed by fire in ___. 13th Century BC Schliemann based his archaeological excavations on a careful reading of ancient ___. Literature The heyday of the ancient Aegean civilization occurred in the ___ ___ ___. 2nd Millennium BC ___ was the abundantly available on Naxos Paros. Marble The New Palace (Late Minoan) period began the ___ ___ of Crete. Golden Age The ___ ___ is a recurring motif in the Minoan Palace. Double Ax The new palace at Knossos was carefully planned w/ the ___ as a major organizing element. Court Minoan columns are characterized by their ___ ___ capitals. Cushion Like ___ adorn the walls of the palace at Knossos depicting many aspects on Minoan life. Frescoes The Minoans used the ___ ___ ___ fresco technique on their walls. True or Wet In the late cycladic period Thera was artistically w/in the ___ orbit. Minoan Cretian potters introduced the ___ ___. Potters Wheel ___ ___ ceramists placed dark silhouettes on a light ground. Late Minoan By 1500BC a distinctive ___ culture was flourishing on the Greek mainland. Mycenaean Mycenae was a large ___. Citadel The best preserved most impressive Mycenaean remains are the fortified palaces at ___. Tiryns The most important element in the Mycenaean Palace plan was the ___ or reception hall of the king. Megarom

Saturday, November 23, 2019

When to Use a Singular or Plural Verb in Spanish

When to Use a Singular or Plural Verb in Spanish Spanish has several situations in which it may not be obvious whether a singular or plural verb should be used. These are some of the most common such cases. Collective Nouns Collective nouns - ostensibly singular nouns that refer to a group of individual entities - can be used with either a singular or plural verb for reasons that arent always clear. If the collective noun is immediately followed by a verb, a singular verb is used: La muchedumbre piensa que mis discursos no son suficientemente interesantes. (The crowd thinks my speeches arent sufficiently interesting.) But when the collective noun is followed by de, it can be used with either a singular or plural verb. Both of these sentences are acceptable, although some language purists may prefer one construction over another: La mitad de habitantes de nuestra ciudad tiene por lo menos un pariente con un problema de beber. La mitad de habitantes de nuestra ciudad tienen por lo menos un pariente con un problema de beber. (Half of residents of our city have at least one relative with a drinking problem.)   Ninguno By itself, ninguno (none) takes a singular verb: Ninguno funciona bien. (None function well.) Ninguno era fumador, pero cinco fueron hipertensos. (None were smokers, but five were hypertensive.) When followed by de and a plural noun, ninguno can take either a singular or a plural verb: Ninguno de nosotros son libres si uno de nosotros es encadenado. Ninguno de nosotros es libre si uno de nosotros es encadenado. (None of us are free if one of us is in chains.) Although some grammarians may prefer the singular form or make a distinction in the meanings of the two sentences, in practice there doesnt appear to be any appreciable difference (just as the translation of none of us is free in the translation might have been used with little if any difference in meaning). Nada and Nadie Nada and nadie, when used as subject pronouns, take singular verbs: Nadie puede alegrarse de la muerte de un ser humano. (Nobody can rejoice in the death of a human being.) Nada es lo que parece. (Nothing is what it seems.) Ni and Ni The correlative conjunctions ni ... ni (neither ... nor) is used with a plural verb even if both of the subjects are singular. This is different from the corresponding English usage. Ni tà º ni yo fuimos el primero. (Neither you nor I was the first.) Ni el oso ni ningà ºn otro animal podà ­an dormir. (Neither the bear nor any other animal could sleep.) Ni à ©l ni ella estaban en casa ayer. (Neither he nor she was at home yesterday.) Singular Nouns Joined by O  (Or) When two singular nouns are joined by O, you usually can use a singular or plural verb. Thus both of these sentences are grammatically acceptable: Si una ciudad tiene un là ­der, à ©l o ella son conocidos como ejecutivo municipal. Si una cidudad tiene un là ­der, à ©l o ella es conocido como alcalde. (If a city has a leader, he or she is known as the mayor.) However, the singular verb is required if by or you mean only one possibility and not both: Pablo o Miguel ser el ganador. (Pablo or Miguel will be the winner.)

Thursday, November 21, 2019

Woolworths UK Management Challenges Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Woolworths UK Management Challenges - Essay Example Woolworths is affected by some human resource-based issues plaguing the retail industry. For instance, some clients have asserted that before purchasing items in any retail store, they usually consider behaviors of the store’s employees. Woolworths has received numerous reviews about this aspect. Consumer surveys have indicated that a half of retail purchasers are happy with Woolworth’s consumer service while the other halves have asserted that their employees are rude. Consequently, the company has to work on the latter percentage. (Hammer and Champy, 1993) Marketing strategies are crucial to running any business. For companies to dwell in the retail sector today, they need to portray a clear theme in their advertisement and marketing strategies. Woolworths’ marketing manager asserts that the company’s marketing strategy is largely centered on three major categories and these are; These three themes are what make Woolworths stand out. However, other critics assert that Woolworths is severely lacking in this area. They claim that while other retail chain stores are distinct and stand out depending on specific themes; Woolworths has nothing special that makes it unique. Consequently, this is a marketing or branding issue that will affect future decisions made by Woolworths. Demand determinants are also instrumental in determining how Woolworths performs in the UK market. There are a number of things that UK consumers look for when shopping in retail chain stores and some of them include When one talks about convenience, they are referring to the ease of reach with which one can find commodities in retail stores. This is usually depicted by the manner of arrangement.

Tuesday, November 19, 2019

IT Company and Globalization Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

IT Company and Globalization - Essay Example This report aims to offer an insight into the effort of an organisation to maintain its sustainability with the development of different marketing strategies to retain the pertaining competitive advantages and introduce new advantages over the competitors. The strategies have been discussed in light with the relative theories. Information technology has been a significant influential factor to shape up any company’s presence in the global market. As the numbers of elements in the business network have been increasing, maintaining the relationship between the elements has been becoming more and more difficult. This report aims to explore the contribution of the information technology to offer a sustainable position in the international business environment. A conclusion has been inferred from the analysis of the organisation’s marketing strategies to the enhancement and evolvement of new competitive advantages. Skype has brought revolution in the world of communication. Globally, a huge number of people use their product to make free audio and video calls, share files with other users, worldwide. The organisation was institutionalised in the year of 2003. Based in Luxemburg, the organisation has its offices in the Europe, United States and Asia regions. In the third quarter of the year 2009, the Skype users made 3.1 billion minutes of calls to various landlines and mobiles, spread worldwide. This leading internet communication company has reported of 20 million people to be online in the pick hours. The wide range of products and services has given Skype to be one of the leaders in global internet communications medium. â€Å"What’s most important, however, is what Skype can do. Voice and video calling, IM and SMS are now available on a wide range of operating systems and mobile devices† (Skype, n.d.). Skype has been software to bind the world in a single thread. This has bee n quite appreciated to help the people to cut on their costs as they are now

Sunday, November 17, 2019

Women in the Labour Force Essay Example for Free

Women in the Labour Force Essay Available evidence suggests that countries with low levels of income and difficult social settings have the greatest barriers restricting female participation in higher education that contributes to growth advancement within the labour force. Countries in Asia such as Pakistan, Nepal and Bangladesh and much of Sub-Saharan Africa [8]fall into this category (K. Subbarao, etal, 1994: 53). The demand for womens higher education is very low due to factors such as cultural restrictions of womens participation in education and labour force[9]. sabir4u, please do not redistribute this cours. We work very hard to create this website, and we trust our visitors to respect it for the good of other students. Please, do not circulate this cours elsewhere on the internet. Anybody found doing so will be permanently banned. According to Khoury (1995) a major problem to the study of women in the labour force is that women are not represented as does the men. In practice most women work in rural areas and their labour is subsumed under the family' labour and thus excluded form labour statistic (87). Consequently, women contribute enormously to the work force even though they are ill represented and their labour not included in statistics. A survey of womens work in rural areas shows that women do 70 to 75% of agricultural work. (88). Marx oppressed sabir4us marxism idea. Pacey who wrote The Culture of Technology (1996) argues that womens values are not valued and recognized in society. He demonstrates that this has been so through history. Pacey asserts that in Africa women are responsible for three-quarter of the food that is consumed yet they are un appreciated and not recognized for their labour, while the one-quarter of the men who help grow the crops are revered and recognized (98-99). pg4RB0Gia from pg4RB0Gia coursewrok pg4RB0Gia work pg4RB0Gia info pg4RB0Gia Agricultural Labour: The Business of Women  Apart from the different roles that women play as mothers, wives and members of a community, their roles in agricultural production merits special attention. Statistics compiled by Food and Agriculture of the United Nations (FAO) on the role of women in agriculture showed that in 1985 they represented forty-two percent of the economically active population in Africa, eleven percent in Latin America, forty-six percent in Asia and thirty-seven percent in the developing countries overall (L. Chelebowska, 1990: 24). As noted by Chelebowska, these figures do not reflect the true picture and there is sometimes a wide difference between official statistics and reality (25). AM9B81 Visit coursework bb in bb fo bb for bb more work bb Do bb not bb redistribute AM9B81 Bisilliat who wrote Women of the Third World (1987) emphasizes that women who are wage labourers in agriculture belong to the underprivileged social strata of the peasantry found in both Asia and Latin America (21). It is believed that these women who compromise the largest agricultural group does not work on big plantations, but belong to rural families without land. According to her, work of women are time consuming, repetitive, meticulous tasks, neither enhancing nor appreciated; temporary work; low pay; lower pay than that received by men for identical work. She also clearly states that women have to work double day (22) which evidently means that a woman assumes responsibilities not only as a bread-earner but that of a housewife.coeg egr seegegw oreg egk ineg foeg eg; Since she has to assume her functions as housewife and wage earner, women hire themselves out as day workers in the fields of the medium and large landowners at the time of sowing, planting, weeding and harvesting (22).cobd bdr sebdbdw orbd bdk inbd fobd bd:  For those women who would rather earn their wages else where the factory system is another option though the work and its environment is more stringent. This writing from www.academicdb.com Women in Factories Industries in the third world employ a large proportion of women between the ages of fourteen to twenty-four and this proportion run as high as seventy percent in other developing countries (J. Bisilliat, 1987: 23). In Philippines, women work in factories without contracts and are paid by the piece. A woman can earn somewhere between $54- $67, while her expenses for food and transportation takes up most or if not all her salary. The average pay for unskilled workers is somewhere at $37.50. Added to these miserable salaries are the working conditions where there are no fringe benefits and if there is any, they are extremely low (J. Bisilliat, etal: 1987: 68). Marx obfuscated sabir4us structuralism hypothesis. Working conditions are dangerous which attest to many accidents occurring. In 1970-76 disability cases multiplied by 2.7% (69). According to Bisilliat:cogg ggr seggggw orgg ggk ingg fogg gg:  In Philippines, 61% of the declared accidents led to temporary total disabilitythose who work in the textile industry suffer from backache and varicose veins. Those using microscopes in electronics ruin their eyesight in two or three years [Grossman 1978]. Others were exposed to skin diseaseand exposure to acid fumes and solvents (J. Bisilliat, etal, 1987: 69). NhT from NhT coursewrok NhT work NhT info NhT  Though many women are willing to deal with the harsh work environment as wage earners they could still get dismissed for other reasons like pregnancy. Bisilliat points out that, as for maternity leave a woman need not worry, for pregnancy is a cause for dismissal (69).coed edr seededw ored edk ined foed ed. By drawing your attention to the many factors that leads to womens under-development which is due in part to not receiving an education, which also in turn results in many not being recognized for playing their part in the labour force, one has to realize that some of these women who were not given the tool that would have equipped them to become prosperous members in their society -EDUCATION. This word seems to affect their daily lives. One could argue that it is the way they were socialized or it is the ways of their cultures and customs. Yet still, with the 21st century upon us, the discrimination still persists in some countries. There has been governmental involvement in alleviating the problems so that women will thus have an EDUCATION, still, with all the structural adjustment programs, various workshops and formation of womens group, this problem will continue. For as solutions are put into place to stop this trend, only one thing remains: it is the decision of parents and grandparents to decide whether girls get an EDUCATION and if so, will it be too time consuming when there are chores to be done as a womans place is in the home!cobd bdr sebdbdw orbd bdk inbd fobd bd: In concluding, this essay has tried to answer and point out some of the constraints of literacy that affects women in developing countries. Numerous of these constraints keep women form becoming literate members in their society. Finally, education does influences womens progression in the society and for most women a lack of education has profounding effects upon their development process. Durkheim denied sabir4us postmodernism .

Thursday, November 14, 2019

Their Eyes Were Watching God Essay -- Character Analysis, Janie

Speech is arguably the primary source of communication for humanity, enabling us to experience and share life with one other through our words. However, we see a different path of life in Janie, the main character in the book Their Eyes Were Watching God. Janie’s character evolves with using control of silence to her benefit, helping her find what she has always struggled to have: Individuality and independence. The relationships Janie has with her three husbands revolve around three versions of silence, while in pursuit of what she calls her â€Å"pear tree†, her true love. Logan forces silence from Janie which becomes an oppressor; Joe exploits Janie’s silence and uses it as a manipulator; and Janie’s only true love, Tea Cake, allows Janie to control silence, which becomes her liberator. In the book Their Eyes Were Watching God, silence is manifest as an evolving source of empowerment and identity for Janie, in that her character is molded not only by her speech but, more importantly, by her silence. In Janie’s journey to find herself, she initially has limited control of her own life, being forced into marriage by Nanny. Nanny wants what she feels is best for Janie, wishing for her to have security and protection. This marriage provides the perfect solution in Nanny’s eyes; Nanny promises Janie that all will go well with her marriage even though it may not seem so at the time. Janie reluctantly agrees, but soon realizes that Logan does not have her best interest at heart, causing her to quickly tire of him. Soon after Nanny’s death, the reader sees Logan change entirely. He commands Janie by ordering her around, expecting her to do whatever he demands of her. With Janie being a child, she is somewhat helpless to defend herself ... ...of love the reader sees from Tea Cake is his rescuing Janie from the dog attack. This unravels the mystery, revealing that Tea Cake does really love Janie; he is her pear blossom on her pear tree. Hurston successfully uses speech and silence to create a fascinating story about a young woman who grows up to find her individuality and in the end, her pear blossom. Logan, Joe, and Tea Cake all play an integral part in Janie becoming the strong, independent woman she is, ultimately allowing her to break the chain of abuse suffered by her mother and grandmother. Silence is the barrier in Janie’s life that she endures; through the suffering, Janie emerges to honor the struggles in her life, transformed into a woman who is beautiful, mature, and strong. Janie is rewarded with peace and happiness that her life now offers, with the pear tree that is forever hers to embrace.

Tuesday, November 12, 2019

Diophantus’ Arithmatica

Diophantus, known as the Father of Algebra, lived in Alexandria, Egypt during the 3rd century A.D.   Little else is known about his personal life.   He was the author of the first Greek text on the essential branch of mathematics we know as algebra.His book, Arithmatica, included thirteen books with numerical answers to algebraic questions.   Using only positive rational numbers because zeros, negative numbers and irrational numbers were not available to him at the time –Diophantus algebraically solved linear and quadratic equations, in addition to simultaneous linear and quadratic equations.   With awareness of essential theorems in the number theory, he also found algebraic solutions to questions such as finding the value of y so that some polynomial equations in y are either squares of numbers or their cubes.Arithmatica solved a total of one hundred and thirty mathematical problems for its readers.   Apart from this important text on algebra, Diophantus has been c redited with introducing techniques for solving both determinate as well as indeterminate equations.   He also developed the method of using symbols for words in algebra.   Still, Arithmatica continues to be remembered as one of the most significant works of his life, for the simple reason that the sciences of modern times could not have progressed without the tool of algebra.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   As a matter of fact, algebra is an integral part of modern existence.   Both industry and our daily lives depend on this tool.   As examples, algebraic formulas for calculating loan installments; bank interest; distance, speed, and time; and volume, area and perimeter are as indispensable as the variables, relations and functions used in the analysis of activities that involve costs.So, whether we are dealing with the business of construction, managing expenses as consumers, or working on new innovations in chemistry labs, we know it is virtually impossible to do away with algebra †“ thanks to Diophantus who first introduced the importance of this mathematical tool to the world.

Sunday, November 10, 2019

High School Drop Out

Rates Are Increasing Many young adults view high school as a new territory with more advanced classes, more students, but other students only view the negative side of high school , rather than the positive. What most young adults do not understand is that when they choose to dropout of their high school, it is only stealing valuable knowledge from them. It is obvious that the high school drop out rate is increasing rapidly. Why might the rate of high school students be increasing, and why do students make such a dramatic change on their life? Also read: Should Boarding Schools Be AbolishedSome of this may result from the lack of parental guidance, bullying in our high schools, or teen pregnancy? First of all, parental guidance can be the most important element in a student’s education. Students who lack parental guidance have a greater chance of tossing his or her education away compared to those students who receive the help, support and positive guidance from their parents. Many high school students who lack a positive parental guidance to support his or her education, causing the rate of high school dropouts to increase.Not having a parental guidance causes student, to not take an education important and seriously, because they see their parents not showing any interest in their schooling as well. Parents can take action in their child’s education by keeping track of their grades, attending parent teacher conferences, or participating in more school activities. When students have parents who participate i n their child’s education that child is more likely to graduate from his or her high school. Another reason our high school dropout rates are increasing rapidly, is do to the fact of school bullying.School bullying is a type of bullying that occurs in connection with education, either inside or outside of the school. Bullying can be verbal, physical, or emotional and is usually repeated over a period of time. Bullying causes students to have a low self-esteem about themselves and may feel as if no one cares about them. School bullying can also occur in any part of a school building including, on buses, classrooms, even in sports. School bullying has become to be a serious problem in our schools system. The number one effect that bullying has on high school students, is students dropping out. Last,

Thursday, November 7, 2019

Idiolect Essay Example

Idiolect Essay Example Idiolect Paper Idiolect Paper For a while, I have been studying my speech syntax. I have noticed that In certain situations, my idiolect adapts and alters slightly. There are many words that I frequently use and others that tend to appear in certain conversations, but disappear in others. I have an accent which is a mix between Kent and Essex, as I moved from Essex to Kent, and from my collect have picked up the Kenneth accent in addition to my previous Essex one. This also means that I have picked up words from both areas, however the media is also a large influence on me and how I elk to my group of friends compared with the way I would speak to someone older, such as a teacher. When I am In conversations with my group of friends, I tend to use different words, such as ratchet meaning ugly or unattractive, which relegated from American slang. Another word we use Is Swag which means something along the lines of good and cool, but I think its a word we use to fit in and none of us are entirely sure what it means. These words are usually from the media, but occasionally I am not sure where the come from. I also use words such as legend to describe someone that has done something a little out of the ordinary. Or I use memo to describe someone whose been sad for a while, an memo phase. When speaking with my friends, I become lazy and dont think fast enough, forcing me to use sentence fillers such as like and basically. I also use abbreviations such as Dunn instead of the more formal l dont know. Or even words such as YOLK meaning you only live once when performing a stupid act, which Is abbreviated dramatically. However, when I speak to a person of advanced years, such as a friend of my parents, I would use much more advanced terminology and pronounceable my words In order to sound more formal and more intelligent than I would with a friend of my own. I do this to give good impressions of myself and seem more mature so that the person I am conversing with respects me as I do them, and so that I come across as a young member of society rather than a stereotypical teenager. I noticed that this happens naturally, and it also naturally happens when I return to my normal speech which includes playing down my intelligence to fit in with my friends. I also noticed that while genderless doesnt tend to change the way I speak (since I dont use words such as honey, or babe. ) it actually seems to affect adults more than teenagers. I noticed that my friends do not use genderless much, however the female adults I speak to often call me Darling or sweetie, and sometimes the males will call me darling or bird (pretty lady/gal., or simply a lady/gal. a cockney slang word used often In Essex. . Media is a big impact on the way I speak, and because of the TV shows I watch, my collect tenant to PICK up words Trot tense snows. A word I nave near a lot Is ream, which is from a show called The Only Way is Essex, and quiche which means extremely attractive, which is from Jamie Private school girl. These words started as a Joke to mock the characters on the shows, but now are used frequently as part of our daily idiolect. We use these words in our group of friends and would probably never use them with adults because we assume they do not know what they mean, making it easier to use words they already know. Americanism are also used a lot because many TV shows and songs in the media are American. These words include passed, which is used as a word meaning drunk here in England, however the word in American means angry. This meaning has been brought here, and now is used in OTOH terms, however the word is quite a rude so I wouldnt use it around my parents or other adults. Taboo language is also a part of my daily idiolect with friends, for example someone would say l havent done any of this sit meaning l havent done any of this stuff. This is normal and wouldnt be a shock to my friends, so it is used frequently, however when talking to adults, I do not say these words around them unless it is being used subtlety and comfortably, which is very rare. This is because they are still taboo language, and would not be expected or accepted from a child. I pick up a lot of language at home which I tend to only use with my close relatives, or sometimes it comes as instinct with my friends. My dad says put your feet on which simply means put your shoes on and I always say it now. Also, my Nans partner, Glen, says teeth out time when its time to go to bed because his mum had false teeth and would take them out while she slept, and this has become a frequently used phrased within my entire family. Another one is spas bowl meaning spaghetti which seems to have come from Essex, when my parents were young and stuck with our family. The word is a nick name which is most likely used in many other families, but seems like our own word for it. Paralinguistic are usually used, such as moving your arms while talking to exaggerate a word or sentence. Something I tend to do while with an adult is nod a lot more rather than say yes, which I think is partly to do with shyness. I also tend to almost act out what Im saying when telling my friends something, such as if I was to say there was something in his hand, Id most likely hold out my hand and point at the palm without even thinking about it.

Tuesday, November 5, 2019

5 Free Assessment Apps for Teachers

5 Free Assessment Apps for Teachers Teachers are always looking for new ways to assess their students work. Regardless of what curriculum you teach, assessment is something that teachers must do every day, even informally. Thanks to the latest in mobile technology, assessing students work has never been easier! Top 5 Assessment Apps Here are the top 5 assessment apps that will assist you in observing and assessing your students. Nearpod The Nearpod app is a must-have application if your school has access to a set of iPads. This assessment app has been used by over 1,000,000 students was awarded the Edtech Digest Award in 2012. The best feature of Nearpod is that it allows teachers to manage content on their students devices. Heres how it works: First the teacher shares content with their students, through materials, lecture and/or presentation. This content is then received by the students on their devices, and they are able to participate in activities. Then teachers are able to access students n real time by seeing the students answers and having access to post-session activity reports. This is by far one of the best assessment apps out on the market today. A Spelling Tests The A Spelling Tests app is a must-have for all elementary classrooms. Students can practice their spelling words, while teachers can track how they are doing. By each spelling test, students and teachers can see their results. Other great features include the ability to instantly see if you are right or wrong, unscramble mode to help sharpen spelling skills, and the ability to submit tests through email. GoClass App The GoClass app is a free iPad application that allows users to create lessons and share them with their students. Documents can be broadcasted through student devices and/or by projector or TV. GoClass allows users to formulate questions, draw diagrams, and share materials with students in the class. Teachers can also keep track of what students are using which lessons, and when they are using them. To check for student understanding, the teacher can post a question or poll and get immediate feedback. This will help the instructor tailor his/her lessons to make sure all students are understanding the concept that is being taught. Teacher Clicker If youre looking for a way to engage students while getting results in real time, then Socrative made this mobile app for you. Not only does this app save you time, but it will grade your activities for you! Some features include the ability to: ask open-ended questions and get real-time answers, create a quick quiz and receive a report with the quiz graded for you, have students play a fast-paced space race game where they answer multiple choice questions and you receive a report of their graded answers. There is a separate app called Student Clicker that must be downloaded for students tablets. MyClassTalk MyClassTalk was designed to assess students participation in the classroom. With just a tap of your finger, you can easily award points and rank students class participation. Users can even upload students photographs for an even better visual. Forget about writing names on the board for not participating, this easy-to-use app is all you need. Additional Assessment Apps Worth Mentioning Here are a few more assessment apps that are worth checking out: Edmodo - This is a great app for assigning quizzes and collecting homework.ClassDojo - If youre looking to assess student behavior this is a great app.Easy Assessment - Rubric Creation - This costs $1.99 but you can easily create a rubric in two steps.

Sunday, November 3, 2019

Current space system Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 1

Current space system - Essay Example This is to imply that it has a geostationary orbit (Chesley 202-211). In the provision of remote sensing imagery, satellites provide the greatest deal and through their unique sensing characteristics they are able to provide detailed imagery formation. Additionally, this adds to the fact that the rotation of the earth from west to east causes the satellite swath to shift position, and be able to cover a new area with each consecutive pass. The complete coverage of the earth imagery is made possible by the rotation of the earth and the orbiting of the satellite. The technology that swaths use is that which relates to the crystal video receiver that was used in the enhancement of World War II. With this form of technology, the satellite swath is well thought-out to have been the foremost to use a high tech automated system of processing data, and be able to handle hundreds of radar pulses per second. However, the swath and the size of the scene both depend on the type of sensor used by the satellite (Chesley

Friday, November 1, 2019

New Technology in the Medical Field Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 1

New Technology in the Medical Field - Essay Example many healthcare organizations have come up with privacy and security policies that govern the access, use and exposure of organization’s information in order to minimize such risks. An analysis of the privacy and security policies of three recognized healthcare organizations namely Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center (BIDMC), Mayo Foundation and Georgetown University Medical Centers reveals some themes that are among them. For all the three healthcare organisations unauthorised access of the organisation’s information is not allowed. This could be those that are stored in computers or those produced as hard copies. In relation to this, there is no unauthorised alteration, revision, transmission or modification of the organisations information or other information within the organisation’s system (Georgetown University Medical Centers, 2007, Mayo Foundation, 2002 and BIDMC Technology Resources Policy, 2007). For all confidential information or programs installed in the organisation’s computers, the staff must get authority from the organisations information officer or office in order to access, delete or modify them. All information deemed to be confidential is protected from external access and their release or exposure constitutes a breach of the security and privacy policies. All staff are not allowed to use the organisations IT for activities that are not related to the organisation’s business activities so as to limit the availability of the network resources to other people. Remote access to organisation’s information is not allowed except for selected workstations or persons authorised by the chief information officer. There are some security and privacy policies that differ significantly between the three healthcare organizations. An example are policies relating to personal privacy when using the organization’s computer information or technology resources. In Mayo Foundation, no one has the permission to access a computer using another

Wednesday, October 30, 2019

Corporate Cultures and Their Impact on Recruitment and Retention Essay

Corporate Cultures and Their Impact on Recruitment and Retention - Essay Example The study suggests that global companies are realizing the importance and need to invest in the human ‘capital’. They can no longer take people for granted and sit back. Global economy is expanding, business opportunities growing but the available workforce steadily reducing. A culturally strong organization succeeds in attracting and retaining the top talent and can expect to climb the ladder of success. By the close of the twentieth century, business houses came to accept that people, not cash, buildings, or equipments differentiate one company from another. Corporate culture is moving into the limelight and proving to be an untapped asset for employees and businesses alike. Researches have shown that at the time of economic turndown the companies having strong and adaptive cultures are better able to handle the financial crisis than those with weak and poorly defined cultures. The right combination of people and culture can mean the difference between the financial su ccess and failure. As technology advances corporate culture will assume an even bigger role especially in the IT sector as competition increases. Organizations today recognize the need to attract the right brains to thrive in the competitive market and retain the employees. The norms of an organization are transmitted from generation to generation and are responsible for its financial success, which is the ultimate goal of any business organization. Understanding and assessing the company culture at every stage is vital.

Sunday, October 27, 2019

Speech Act Theory

Speech Act Theory Introduction Speech act theory is a technical term in linguistics and the philosophy of language. The contemporary use of the term goes back to J. L. Austins doctrine of locutionary, illocutionary, and perlocutionary acts. It is developed by the great philosopher J.L Austin in the 1930s and set forth in a series of lectures, which he gave at Harvard in1955. These were subsequently developed in 1962 as How to Do Things With Words. He founded the modern study of speech acts. The approach has been greatly developed since by the philosopher J.R.Searle (Austins pupil). The central insight of the speech act theory which is attributed to Austin, Searle and other philosophers is that speech is action and language is used to perform things not only to describe a state of affairs. Moreover, Austin pointed out that many utterances do not communicate information, but are equivalent to actions. When someone says, I apologize. , I promise , or I name this ship. the utterance immediately conveys a new psychological or social reality. Many scholars identify speech acts with illocutionary acts, rather than locutionary or perlocutionary acts. As with the notion of illocutionary acts, there are different opinions on the nature of speech acts. The extension of speech acts is commonly taken to include such acts as promising, ordering, greeting, warning, inviting someone and congratulating. Definition of speech act with elaboration A speech act is an act that a speaker performs when making an utterance. To Jennifer Spenader, speech act theory is: A theory where the effect of an utterance is analyzed in relationship  to the speaker and listeners behaviour. Speech act theory can also help us examine utterances from  the perspective of their function, rather than their form. Austin pointed out that when people use language, they are performing a kind of action. He called these actions speech acts. Traditionally, philosophers have distinguished between actions and speaking on the basis that speaking about something is quite dissimilar from doing it. Austin challenged this by demonstrating that utterances can be regarded as events in a similar way to other actions. The below lists are samples of speech acts which Austin reckoned that this sort of list could be extended further. Statement I live in Edinburg for five years Order Pay this bill immediately Question Where are you from? Prohibition No right turn Greeting Hello Invitation Help yourself Felicitation Happy new year (grudging) apology I hereby apologize as required by the magistrate (Griffiths, 2006:148) We can say that each utterance on the right is based on single sentence and the sentence is the level of language. Here, the language is used to accomplish actions as Austin stated. The above sentences are not used just to say things, that is to say describe states of affairs, but rather actively to do things. Further, one cannot assess such utterances as true or false. Moreover, most speech acts are not so official but they rely on the speaker using an utterance to signal his/her intension to achieve some action and the hearer inferring that action from the utterance. One can say that speech act cannot only be done in speaking but also in writing. The clue is the example number (7) in which it would be equally appropriate printed in a card or spoken. As a matter of fact, there are purposes behind any utterance. Consider these examples A-Somebody has broken my leg. In the above sentence, the following purpose appears The first one is to describe things which are not the basic purpose and the second purpose is to complain which is the basic purpose as it doesnt describe things. B-I love you. The purpose here is to please or to assure somebody. C-Watch out, the gun is loaded. The purpose is to warn someone. D-She is a fool. The purpose is to insult or to ease. Thus, the gist idea of speech act theory is to do acts (things) and not simply to describe because description is not the important function of language. Dichotomies (constative and performative) Many writers, in their books, define the dichotomy constative (descriptive) and performative clearly. Riemer in his books Introducing Semantics that an utterance is constative if it describes or states facts about a situation. Whereas performative is one which does not describe or state any facts, but which itself constitutes the performing of an action. The following pair of examples serve the above point A-I promise to visit tomorrow. B-She promised to visit tomorrow. In the first example, you promise to visit but if you dont visit it, the person you said it can complain that you broke your promise. Sentences which perform actions are known as performatives while other sentences are called constatives. Although constatives perform actions. The example (b) serves this point which performs the action of reporting her promise. Thus, the difference between the two (constatives and performatives) may not be as significant as the idea that all sentences can be used to perform actions of various sorts. Broadly speaking, all utterances are performative in the sense of constituting a form of action rather than a matter of saying something about the world. Ultimately, a single utterance can have both aspects constatives and performative elements; they are all sayings and doings simultaneously. Typical examples of performative verbs are ask, beg, beseech, command, congratulate, deny, deplore, declare, implore and warn. Only certain forms of the verb count as performing the speech act, mainly first person simple present active and third person present passive. Furthermore, a performative verb in a performative use can typically be accompanied by hereby. See the following A-I hereby declare the bridge open. B-I hereby command you to surrender. While in the below instances using hereby is not possible with non-performative verbs speaking. A-I hereby persuade you to accompany me. B-I hereby tell the truth. As we said earlier, the performative use of performative verbs is extremely restricted grammatically. They must be first person simple present active and third person present passive. Consider, first, active uses I hereby promise to pay you next week. Not: I herby promised you pay him the following week. Similar contrasts are possible with passive uses Passengers are hereby requested not to smoke. Not: Passengers were hereby requested not to smoke. You are hereby warned to leave immediately. Not: They will be hereby warned to leave immediately. Characteristics of Performative verbs The sense of the verb is always present. The subject is always first person (singular,plural) Since performative verbs are not descriptions but actions they are not subject to truth-value. In performative sentences the illocutionary act is explicit. Performative verbs like (affirm, allege, assert, forecast, predict, announce, insist, order, state, name, declare, bet, agree). For testing whether a verb is performative we can insert the word (hereby). The book entitled semantics and pragmatics by Dr. Misbah Mahmood gives extra examples about the distinguishing between performatives and constatives. Performatives Constatives I promise I will be there. I will be there. I warn you, the gun is loaded. The gun is loaded. I thank you. I am very grateful. I order you to read. You must read. I request you to send me the book. Send me the book. I apologize. I am sorry. Are Performatives truth-evaluable? Verschueren, in his book, entitled Understanding Pragmatics states that Austin drew a distinction between constative and performative utterances. In this dichotomy, constatives are utterances in which something is said which can be evaluated along a dimension of truth. Performatives, on the other hand, are utterances in which something is done which cannot be said to be true or false but which can be evaluated along a dimension of felicity. According to Austins account, it is an essential characteristic of performative utterances that they are neither true nor false, that is, not truth-evaluable, instead when something is wrong with them then they are felicitous (happy) or infelicitous (unhappy). The uttering of a performative is the doing of a certain kind of action , the performance would not normally be described as just saying or describing something. For example, when Tom says I promise to do the dishes in an appropriate context he does not just describe what he is doing; rather, in making the utterance he performs the promise; since promising is an illocutionary act, the utterance is thus a performative utterance. If Tom utters the sentence without the intention to keep the promise, the sentence is not false: it is rather unhappy, or infelicitous. In the absence of any such flaw, on the other hand, the utterance is to be assessed as happy or felicitous, rather than as true. What Leech states is that Constative utterances could be evaluated in traditional terms of truth and falsehood, performatives were neither true nor false: instead they were to be regarded as felicitous or non felicitous. (Leech,1983:176) By felicity and infelicity, as Yule points out, they can only be as appropriate that is the performance of a speech act to be recognized as intended or inappropriate that is if the speaker is not a specific person in a special context. Briefly, felicity and infelicity are not subject to truth-value. A sentence like I pronounce you man and wife, the performance, here, will be infelicitous on condition that the speaker is not properly qualified. Regarding felicity condition (happiness condition), it can be grouped under three headings: preparatory conditions, sincerity conditions, and essential conditions. Types of Felicity Conditions There are normally conditions which must be fulfilled before a speech act can be said to have been properly performed. These are usually called felicity conditions or happiness conditions. 1-Preparatory Conditions The preparatory conditions for a promise and warning are unlike. When I promise to do something, two conditions appear: first, the event will not occur by itself, and second, the event will have a beneficial effect. But when I utter a warning, it is not clear that the hearer knows the event will happen whilst the speaker does think the event will occur, and the event will not have a beneficial effect. 2-Sincerity Conditions They require the speaker to be sincere. When one promises to do something must genuinely intend to do it; someone congratulating somebody else must feel pleasure at that persons good luck. 3-Essential Conditions By the act of uttering a promise, an obligation created to carry out the action as promised. In other words, the utterance changes my state from non-obligation to obligation. When speaker A warns speaker B, speaker A changes his state from non-informing of a bad future event to informing. Aspects of Speech Acts Austin found great difficulty in drawing a completely clear distinction between performatives and constatives; he came to the conclusion that to state something is to perform an illocutionary act, which renders all constatives as performatives; Austin proposed that in uttering a sentence speaker is involved in three different acts. In other words, he isolates three basic senses in which in saying something one is doing something, and thus, three kinds of acts that are simultaneously performed. 1-Locutionary act. Lots of writers define locutionary act. One of them is Levinson in the book Pragmatics. Locutionary act is the utterance of a sentence with determinate sense and reference. (Levinson,1983:236) Another definition is by Finch. It refers simply to the act of saying something that makes sense in the language; in other words, that follows the grammatical rules of language. (Finch,2000:180) The last definition said by Cruse, in his book, Meaning in Language in which Austin explained as follows: the utterance of certain noises.. certain words in a certain construction, and the utterance of them with a certain sense and a certain reference. (Cruse,2000:331) From the above definition, we conclude that locutionary act is related to the inherent meaning of the lexical item and it is the province of semantics. It is the act of expressing the basic, literal meanings of the words chosen. Besides, performing the act of saying something that makes sense in the language; in other words, that follows the grammatical rules of language. For more elaboration, see the below instances For example, Tom is outside the room. In this sentence both words (Tom and the room) have meaning and we should know what the words (Tom and the room) refer to. In uttering the words, You will get your hands blown off, a speaker performs the locutionary act of stating that the hearer will get his hands blown off. Suppose speaker A says to hearer B There is a bear sneaking up behind you! (Fasold,2006:162) Speaker A utters the word there and refers to the addressee with the word you. 2-Illocutionary act Cruse, in his book, entitled A Glossry of Semantics and Pragmatics defined that illocutionary act is an act performed by a speaker in saying something (with an appropriate intention and in an appropriate context), rather than by virtue of having produced a particular effect by saying something (Cruse,2006:167) According to Finch illocutionary act is one which is performed through the medium of language: stating, warning, wishing, promising and so on. Context can be seen in the definition and this leads to remind us the province of pragmatics. If we come to talk about intention, which is also found in defining illocution, we can regard that the intention is to inform, complain, thank, apologize, threaten, etc. Consider the below instances Father: I will turn out your light. Here, the intention of father is to threaten her son. It is duty of pragmatics since the idea of threatening doesnt relate to meaning but the context. In the sentence like, There is a lion behind you, suppose that A is a speaker and B is a hearer. At the illocutionary level, A asserts a fact (that there is a lion behind B) and warns B that he/she is in danger. The speaker has the illocutionary force of warning. In short, context in which the sentence is uttered is crucial in interpreting the illocutionary force of a speech act. If someone says: I order you to leave now, the intention is ordering by virtue of having uttered the words, whether or not the addressee acts in the desired way. 3-Prelocutionary act Concerning prelocutionary Levinson states the bringing about of effects on the audience by means of uttering the sentence, such effects being special to the circumstances of utterance. While Fasold points that prelocutionary is an action which goes beyond communication such as annoying, frightening, or tricking. The contrasts between illocutionary and prelocutionary lies by lists of verbs Illocutionary: report, request, suggest, announce, predict, order, propose, reprimand, promise, thank, express, congratulate, admit, ask Prelocutionary: persuade, deceive, encourage, irritate, frighten, amuse, inspire, distract, impress, encourage embarrass. Briefly, prelocutionary is the act of producing an effect in the hearer by means of the utterance. It is outside the province of semantics and pragmatics, because it involves many other aspects of the situations. It is not always intended by speaker, is not under his control, and is not evident until after the utterance is made. The speaker tries to carry out a prelocutionary act for example to shock, to amuse, and to annoy somebody. The following examples serve the above point A-You will get your hands blown off. The above sentence might be to prevent the hearer from playing with a lighter and a stick of dynamite, to frighten the hearer. B-John is inside the hall. The prelocutionary act for the above sentence is perhaps to disappoint, shock or annoy. To explicate more about the three types of speech acts, we take instances to apply the three acts. A-There is a wasp in your left ear. The first act: we know speaker and listener. (reference) The second act: the intention is the act of warning. The third act: The hearer is panic (afraid). The hearer may scream and scratch his ears. Panic is not intended but the speaker tries to make the hearer panic. B-Someone says Good night late at night in forest. The first act: speaker and listener. (reference) The second act: leave-taking, there is greeting purpose behind saying good bye. The third act: to horrify or to frighten. C-Father: I will turn out your light. The first act: I refers to father, your refers to sons light, having meaning and reference. The second act: to intend the act of threatening The third act: to frighten the son to sleep. The father tries to frighten his son. It is not under the control of the speaker and it may not be intended of the speaker that he wants to frighten his son. Types of Illocutionary Acts Implicit and explicit illocutionary force Implicit performatives are those which dont have performative verbs. For example when one says I will turn off your light, it is implicit since there is no performative verb and besides, the force doesnt relate to the meaning of the words. Another example Be aware of the dog means that I warn you to beware of the dog. Whereas explicit performatives are those which have performative verbs, that is, a verb which names the action being performed. For example when I say I warn you that.., it is explicit as I am not describing or stating the existence of any independent fact; I am, instead performing an act (act of warning). Speech Act Classifications Searle (1976) has set up the following classification of illocutionary speech acts that one can perform in speaking. David Crystal in his book, The Cambridge Encyclopedia of Language, sheds light on five basic types. 1-Representatives: the speaker is committed, in varying degrees, to the truth of proposition. For instance, affirm, believe, conclude, deny, and report. The following examples illustrate the point. A-The earth is flat. B-Chomsky didnt write about peanuts. C-It was a warm sunny day. In all the above instances, the speaker represents the world as he/she believes it is. 2-Directives: the speaker tries to get the hearer to do something. For example request, challenge, insist, command, advise, and suggest. A-Could you open the door, please? B-I suggest you take a taxi. C-Dont go too far. The above-mentioned examples illustrate that the speaker tries to make the world fit the words through the hearer. 3-Commissives: the speaker is committed, in varying degrees, to a certain course of action. For example, promise, oath, refuse, pledge, threat, guarantee, vow, and swear. The instances, which shown below, point out that the speaker undertakes to make the world adapt the words through the speaker. A-I will be back. B-We will not do that. 4-Expressives: the speaker expresses an attitude about a state of affairs. For instance, congratulate, excuse, thanking, deplore, apologize, welcome, and thank. A-Congratulations! B-I am really sorry. The sentences indicate the speaker makes words fit the world of feeling. 5-Declaratives: the speaker alters the external status or condition of an object or situation solely by making the utterance. For example, resign, sack, appoint, name, christen, sentence (in court), bid (at auction), declaring war, pronouncing someone husband and wife. The below instances clarifies more about what we said. A-Priest: I now pronounce you husband and wife. B-Referee: You are out. One can say that the speaker changes the world via words. Direct and Indirect Speech Acts It is obvious that we have three structural forms (declarative, interrogative, imperative) and the three general communicative functions (statement, question, command/order) respectively. The table below clarifies more about what we pointed out. Whenever there is a direct relationship between a structure and a function, we have a direct speech act. Furthermore, there is a match between sentence meaning and speaker meaning, that is to say, the form of the utterance coincides with what a speaker is intending to convey. But in case of having indirect relationship between the two which mentioned before we have indirect speech act. Therefore, when a declarative used to make a statement it is functioning as a direct speech act, but when it used to make a request it is functioning as an indirect speech act. Consider the following instances A-It is hot. B-I hereby tell you about weather. C-I hereby request of you that you open the door. It is clear that the sentence A is a declarative, the sentence B used as statement so, it is direct speech act but the last sentence C used as command therefore; it is indirect speech act. A speech act can be indirect where one illocutionary act is performed by another. Well-known examples are requests which are superficially question. We expect actions rather than answer. A-Can you pass the sault? B-Would you mind if I opened the door? So, the above mentioned sentences superficially are interrogative and they are direct speech act but if we look at them deeply they become request and in this case they are indirect speech act. It is quite true to say that different structures used to attain the same function. The examples below show that the speaker wants the addressee not to stand in front of the TV. A-Move out of the way! B-Do you have to stand in front of the TV? C-You are standing in front of the TV. D-Youd make a better door than a window. The basic function of all the utterances is a command. The first instance is direct speech act because its structure is imperative. Whilst the rest of the sentences are indirect speech acts because the interrogative structure is not used only as question and also the declarative structures are not used only as statement. Conclusion Needless to say, that conclusion shows the product of any turn paper, research and etc. In this turn paper, a formal account of speech acts provided. Throughout reading it, I infer that we can extend what a speaker means by his/her words. Thus, utterances are not uniquely used to describe states of affairs but rather they convey speakers intention to the addressee. Speech act comprises the notion of speaker meaning since through it the intentions of the speaker can be felt or found it. Also, I conclude that speech act is one of the helpful factors for decoding those words that uttered by a speaker. It is obvious that there is communication in speech act between speaker and hearer and this communication conveys not only linguistic meanings but also expressing attitudes, and understanding is a matter of recognizing the attitudes being expressed. Another conclusion which is not to be forgotten is that if a sentence is interrogative, the same sentence could be regarded as request if we look at it deeply. The sentence Could you sign the papers, please? is our evidence. So, this case only occurred in speech act, one is direct and the other is indirect and the sentence has two functions question and request.

Friday, October 25, 2019

Essay --

CHAPTER 2 CAUSES OF MENTAL HEALTH AND THE BURDEN ON THE POOR Lack of awareness has made mental illnesses appear mystical. Some people suffer from mental disorders since birth(mental retardation) while some develop the disorders overtime(mental illness).Mental illnesses result from complex interactions between the mind, body and environment. Factors like long-term and acute stress, biological factors such as genetics, chemistry and hormones, use of alcohol, drugs and other substances, cognitive patterns such as constant negative thoughts and low self-esteem, social factors such as isolation, financial problems, family breakdown or violence are the scientific causes of a mental illness. (http://www.mentalhealth-matters.com.au/resources/ID1367819089.pdf) But rural people in India in general and tribal populations in particular, have their own beliefs and practices regarding health. Some tribal groups still believe that a disease is always caused by hostile spirits or by the breach of some taboo. They therefore seek remedies through magico-religious practices. (Current health scenario in rural India, Ashok Vikhe patil, K.V.Somasundaram and R.C. Goyal) This is an inevitable consequence of the barriers in seeking timely and effective treatment for mental illness in rural India: unavailability of mental health services, low level of literacy, socio- cultural barriers, superstition stemming from traditional and religious beliefs, stigma and discrimination associated with mental illness. About 75% of health infrastructure, medical professionals and other health resources are localised in urban areas where 27% of the population live. The poor penetration and the basic nature of rural health is also attributed to lack of health litera... ...urden increasing to 15% by Disability Adjusted Life Year( DALY) * (Mental health services in rural India : challenges and prospects by Anant Kumar) Mental illness constitutes nearly one sixth of all health-related disorders. With the population on a rise, altering values, life-style, unemployment and frequent instability in incomes, lack of social support and increasing insecurity, it is predicted that there would be substantial increase in the number of people suffering from mental illness in both urban and rural areas. In order to get rid of the vicious cycle of poverty feeding into mental illness, there is a need to think of mental health as a development priority instead of just a concern of public health and human rights. †¢ * DALY – it is a measure of overall disease burden, expressed as the numbers of years lost due to ill-health, disability or early death.

Thursday, October 24, 2019

Avian Influenza in the Media

The article that I chose to discuss is entitled â€Å"Avian Flu: Is the Government Ready for an Epidemic?† and was published on the ABC News website on September 15, 2005. The journalists name was not published. The article opens with the lines â€Å"It could kill a billion people worldwide, make ghost towns out of parts of major cities, and there is not enough medicine to fight it. It is called the avian flu.† Throughout the rest of the article, the journalist goes on about the horrors that could occur if avian flu were to mutate so that it was able to be transferred from human to human, and not just from bird to human as is now the case. The journalist quotes Dr. Irwin Redlener, the director of the National Center for Disaster Preparedness as saying â€Å"The tipping point, the place where it becomes something of an immediate concern, is where that virus changes, we call it mutates, to something that is able to go from human to human,† and then states that scientists around the world are now working around the clock as they wait for that tipping point. However, at no time does he inform the reader that all viruses mutate naturally over and over again, and that the chance of the H5N1 strain, mutating into a strain that could pass from human to human is in no way an eventuality, or even a likely outcome. He just takes quotes from various scientists around the world who are expressing a worry about what could happen in the event that H5N1 were to mutate, and uses them to imply that this is a very likely possibility. The journalist also likens an Avian Flu pandemic to Hurricane Katrina, an event that was at the foremost of people’s minds when the article was published and uses purposefully disturbing imagery that has been shown on TV about Hurricane Katrina, such as people dying in the airports and the utter helplessness of the Superbowl, to cause people to panic and worry that bird flu is likely to devastate the country at any second in order to bring to light the Government’s unpreparedness for an outbreak. He then goes on to discuss what he calls an â€Å"inadequate stockpile of medicine† and blames the Government for not having stockpiled enough Tamiflu, which he equates to a miracle drug which will stop H5N1 in its tracks. However, while he is happy to imply, in the beginning of the article, that the H5N1 virus is likely to mutate at any time, he conveniently ignores this when he talks about Tamiflu, and nowhere does he state that while this drug can help people who have contracted bird flu, it is only useful to the current strain of the virus and if it mutates, which he assures us it will, there is no guarantee that it will be of any use to those infected. I feel that these are unforgivable exaggerations of the disease and its dangers and that the journalist was simply interested in sensationalism and causing a public outcry and panic. Expert opinions on the dangers of the H5N1 virus are currently very varied and divided and a lot is still unknown about the disease, but at no time does this article bring that to light. Laura Chang, of the New York Times said it best when she said that journalists shouldn’t â€Å"write articles that might feed a sense of panic, such as telling people to stock up on Tamiflu, or dramatizing how a pandemic would spread through a particular city. Sometimes silence is the best journalism.† Website: http://abcnews.go.com/Primetime/Investigation/Story?id=1130392&page=1 MRSA in the media This article on MRSA, or the Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus, was published in the British newspaper, the Sunday Metro, under the headline â€Å"Strain of superbug ‘may be new HIV.'† The article opens with â€Å"A deadly new drug-resistant strain of the superbug MRSA could spread rapidly through the gay community, experts have warned.† It then goes on to equate MRSA to the HI virus when it says: The infection is already moving through parts of San Francisco in the same way as HIV and Aids did in the early 1980s. The bug, which can lead to a deadly flesh-eating form of pneumonia, is 13 times more prevalent among the city's gay men than other people. However, at no time does the article explain what MRSA is or that it is not in fact, anything like HIV or AIDS. MRSA is in fact caused by a bacterium, already a vast difference from the virus that causes aids, that is responsible for difficult-to-treat infections in humans. The organism can also be further classified into either Community-Associated MRSA or Hospital-Associated MRSA depending on the circumstances in which the patient acquired the disease. The article goes on to focus on one strain of the disease, a strain known as the USA300 strain and the journalist notes that â€Å"the USA300 bug, is not caught in hospitals but spreads through a community, often by casual contact† which is true, as it is a community-associated strain of MRSA that is spread by skin to skin contact. However, the journalist then goes on to suggest that this strain, which is as a particularly antibiotic resistant epidemic that is responsible for rapidly progressive, fatal diseases, is only likely to affect the gay community. However this is not the case and as MRSA is not a sexually transmitted disease there is no way it could only affect only the gay community. The USA300 strain is passed on by skin-to-skin contact and therefore cannot be liked to HIV which is transmitted only through direct contact with the bodily fluids of an infected individual. While practicing homosexuals are at risk of being affected by the USA300 strain, the disease has also been reported by people in athletic teams, correctional facilities, military recruits and newborn nurseries. I believe this article is simply an example of sensationalism in the media. It does not focus on any of the facts, and makes purposefully sweeping and false statements about MRSA and its similarity to HIV, which couldn’t be further from the truth. The two are nothing like each other, one caused by a bacteria and one by a virus. One transmitted sexually and the other just by touching someone that has been infected. It was written simply to get people to by the newspaper, and should be ignored. Website: http://www.metro.co.uk/news/article.html?in_article_id=83921;in_page_id=34;expand=true

Wednesday, October 23, 2019

Family Approach Research Paper Essay

Abstract This research paper will in detail find influences donating to the degeneration of African American marriages, increase of African American divorces, and how structural family therapy can impact it. Structural Family Therapy was developed by Salvador Minuchin and his associates in the 1960s due to the growing curiosity in alternative ways of hypothesizing suffering and familial dilemmas. Structural family therapy is reinforced by an undoubtedly expressed model of family functioning, and has been developed and used reliably in counseling sessions for children and their families (Ginginch & Worthington, 2007, 343). Also, this report will examine what can be done to change this disturbing status amongst African American families. Monetary, emotional, and cognitive stability are a few of the common reasons and profits of marriage. Studies have discovered that marital couples in contrast to unattached couples are better-off, healthier, less stressed, and tend to live well into their mid-80s (Pindgerhughes, 2002, p. 269). Thus, there are numerous welfares of being married; it could be assumed that matrimony would be a shared objective for most citizens regardless of race. However, studies have publicized a radical deterioration of marriages inside the African American families alongside an increase in separations. African Americans are the least expected to wed, when they wed, they complete this task later in life, spending a smaller amount of time wedded than White Americans, and are more likely to become divorced. Keywords: African American, Marriages, Structural Family Therapy, Minuchin Family Approach Research Paper African American Marriages There is a strong importance for research of the state of African American and marriage because there have been major changes from past African Americans’ marriages relating to this major decline. According to the National Center on African American Marriage and Parenting’s (NCAAMP) Marriage Index, in 1970, 70.3% of African Americans were wedded and those ratios steadily fallen about 61% in 1982, 51.2% in 1992, 38.9% in 2003, and  41.7% in 2010. The rate is declining so noticeably that marriage has been referred to as an â€Å"alternative life† for African Americans (Dixon, 2009). The NCAAMP’s marriage index exposed the proportions of wedded Americans which comprises 77.8% in 1970, 70.1% in 1980, 59.3% in 1990, 62% in 2000, and 59.7% in 2008. An assumption can be drawn from the above Marriage index reports that there is certainly an important variance between all married Americans and married African Americans along with a change in rates of matrimony fr om 1980 to modern periods. Additionally, the declining rates of marriage, African Americans seem to be at greater hazard for matrimonial instability (Dixon, 2009, p. 30). Many of these influences are related to high male imprisonment, low sew ratio, poverty, uncertainty toward marriage and premarital sex. Rendering to research, there are numerous dynamics affecting the decline in marriages and rise of divorces among African Americans. These influences can be characterized as organizational, ethnic, individual, and interactive. Organizational issues as economic and demographic are most commonly focused on during the course of history. The extreme sex ratios between African American males and females have emotional impact on the African American nuptial rates (Rowe, 2007, p. 19). In 2003 there were an estimated 1.8 million more African American females in the population than males (U.S. Census, 2005 & Pinderhuges, 2002, 269). Another donating feature is the high confinement and mortality rate of African American males (Hill, 2006, p. 421). African American males make up about seven percent of the populace but over fifty-one percent of the prison population (DuCille, 2009, p. 605). Furthermore, the desire to marry women of different races and choosing homosexual lifestyles contribute to the African American marriage rates. Another major issue that makes African American males less desirable for marriage is their struggles of the workforce. The joblessness rate among African American males has been consistently twice that of White American men from the time of the 1930s (Holland, 2009, p. 113). Research has also discovered that companies show negative opinions of African American men comprising that they are indolent, unreliable, deceitful, contain little work ethic, drag their feet, have deprived verbal skill and many others characteristics. Consequently, these men do not have the capability to deliver for their families also make African American men postpone marriage and also become regarded as less  wanted to espouse by the female population. The second sort of factor studied is ethnical. There has been shifting cultural trends disturbing African American marriage. The sexual revolt, gay and lesbian efforts, and activist movement are activities that distress wedding rates. Forty years ago, sex without marriage was not acceptable, but now it is a communal standard of culture. The feminist movement allowed women to obtain advanced positions in the labor force declining their dependence on males, triggering them not to marry or endure unhappy marriages. And, unconventional lifestyles were presented through the gay and lesbian population (LaTaillade, 2006, p. 327). Moreover, living together (cohabitation) is a cumulative behavior particularly within the African American community. Historically, living with a partner before marriage was unacceptable, but is now widespread among African Americans and many other races. In contemporary times, individuals are determining on gaining independence before becoming married (Dixon, 2009, p. 31). The mass media industries and the way relationships are depicted on television and through music contribute to the marriage decline. Because of the support of extended family networks, divorce may seem less detrimental, making it more of an option when marriages are faced with challenges among African Americans (Hill, 2006, p. 439). Individual factors are tided in by considering individuals’ desire to marry, features they look for in spouses and what makes them commit to a relationship. For an individual to get marry the desire to be married has to be present. One study found that when compared to White American men, African American men, anticipate less improvement from marriage in their sex lives and personal friendships and these account for most of the difference in the desire to marry (Holland, 2009, 107). The mate desired characteristics and expectation of marriage and whether it is realistic plays a major role in marriage. Similar to other cultures, African Americans generally believe in the husband being superior economically, educationally and acts as the provider of the family. Unfortunately for African American women, when compared to African American men, they are more likely to attend college and to marry someone below their educational and professional status. This pattern of education continues as two-thirds of African American college graduates are women (Hill, 2006, p. 423). The desire to commit is another donating factor in related to marriage. Recent studies  have revealed the beliefs of African American males having the incapacity to pledge to an eternal relationship. Lastly, as stated above separation rates are greater amongst African Americans than another culture. The features cited directly above are funding to these separation rates as well as African American not having the means to allow them to uphold vigorous long-lasting relationships. Studies have also displayed that the African American population is less expected to pursue marriage therapy adding to the state of African American divorce rate currently. Structural Family Therapy Structural family therapy (SFT) is a counseling technique of therapy developed by Salvador Minuchin which addresses problems in functioning inside a family. Structural Family Therapists attempt to pass in, or â€Å"connect†, the family in therapy in order to understand the boundaries and rules which oversees its effectiveness, record the associations between family members or amongst subsystems of the family, and eventually interrupt dysfunctional relations within the household, triggering it to become stable into healthier arrangements. Minuchin states that dysfunction does not rest in the singular identification, but within the entire family system. Minuchin’s tactic is originated on the interrelationship of the entire, and the foundation that individuals cannot be detached from the whole. Therefore, Minuchin assumed that a change in the conduct of one household member will necessitate a consistent transformation in the behavior of other family member. Duplicate roles can affect the ability for a mother to parenting effectively. For example, a mother attempting to a both a parent and a friend or a father that was forced to raise his younger siblings (Rowe, 2007, p, 23). Structural therapists view the facilitation of structural variations in the dysfunctional family as the main objective, supposing that individual behavioral modifications as well as lessening of altercations will follow as the framework for the family’s communication changes (Goldenberg & Goldenberg, 2013, p. 329). The structural family model expresses families as systems and subsystems, roles and rules (flexible and adaptable to changes), boundaries, power, and hierarchy. Minuchin defines a functional family as one unit with clear boundaries between individuals and subsystems, promotes growth, and prevents  interruption. The primary objective when utilizing Minuchin’s model is assisting the family to change its structure or its organization. For instance, he stated that establishing a structure in which members and subsystems are clearly differentiated from one another and hierarchically integrated. Minuchin and other structuralists perceive standard family life as always altering and as a result endlessly creating adjustments to altering circumstances. What distinguishes functional from dysfunctional families is the flexibility in functional families to change or modify its structure to adjust to changing life cycle stages or to adjust to role changes or situational crises. The clarity of boundaries between subsystems within the family, and an effectively functioning spousal subsystem, help ensure stability despite changing conditions (Goldenberg & Goldenberg, 2013, p. 472). Due to a recent mounting body of empirical evidence, studies continue to verify the value of structural family therapy. This method it was widely evaluated during the 1980s by radical novelists and during the 1990s by those interested in the allegations of a social constructionist point of view. Structural family therapy continues to progress in response to experiments built from within the systemic field, and as part of integrative practice and multisystem approaches, with practitioners ever mindful of the need for regular feedback from family members themselves (Rowe, 2007, p. 21). By 1965, Minuchin had become director of the Philadelphia Child Guidance Clinic, originally in the heart of the African American ghetto, where he focused on intervention techniques with low- income families (Goldenberg & Goldenberg, 2013, p. 130). The structural approach to therapy has been critiqued and has withstand various experiments from disbelievers; nevertheless, it has withstood throughout the years. Personal Integration The trial of integrating Christian and non-Christian clients fluctuates between different counselors. When clients unambiguously expressed a want for Christian counseling, for example, if a client initiates a prayer within a counseling session. The Bible frequently assists clients to absorb; the implementation of scriptures can inspire progression within the session. Between sessions homework examining particular biblical themes likewise inspire development. For instance, our Worthington text states that the use  of interventions make change sensible, and thus increases hope. Such interventions can involve physical manipulations, behavioral actions or interactions or making physical products (such as reports, written lists or tapes) that are completed and verbally processed. Worthington (2005) also stated that any theory of marital counseling can be used along with the counselor’s favorite techniques. The requirements of integration are increased hope and willpower, fit within the strategic framework, and make change sensible to clients (p. 262). I believe that the frequency of use of scriptures should be guided by the consumer’s articulated openness. Although traditionally I am trained as a counselor not to reference spirituality or religion unless it is first stated by the client, I believe that many consumers who are not currently attending church would be reassured when I fling open that door. After which they can be provided the opportunity to walk through the door, lock it, or leave it partly open to be entered once ready. If my clients were to inquire for details on my beliefs, I would openly speak about my spiritual journey but also specify that I still have a ways to go. Conversely, this does not take the practice of preaching on my individual Christian principles, or persisting them to trust what I have faith in. In addition, I could look for openings to propose the matter of religiousness and faith in an overall sense as a portion of my holistic approach; I would like to reassure my clienteles to discover the notion that stability in emotional and mental remedies are not exclusively associated with the rectifying of a particular issue; rather, comprehensiveness in therapeutic healing must integrate the multiple magnitudes of the client. With this instruction and initial outline, it would be up to my client to make the decision to discover how their faith and current behavior are correlated to the complications that have been facing and how their spiritual philosophies influence their mental and physical healing. Studies proposes, that it is highly probable that counselors greatly misjudge â€Å"the sum of consumers that are experiencing faith-based problems due to† consumers â€Å"frequently misguided norms that religious concerns were not suitable for conversation† in conditions that were not plainly defined as Christian therapeutic settings (Worthington Jr, 2005, p. 262). Spiritual Genograms In this course, I began to understand how past generational beliefs can still impact my current viewpoint with assumptions and predisposition. As a result, I believe that it would be important for my clients to understand their spiritual journey on both a personal and generational level. During this course, we complete a genogram in order to observe certain behavioral and health patterns; however, I would like to integrate spiritual â€Å"family trees† into my counseling sessions. Spiritual histories, spiritual lifemaps, spiritual genograms, spiritual ecomaps, and spiritual ecograms are five harmonizing assessment approaches that have recently been developed to highlight different aspects of clients’ spiritual lives. Spirituality can be agreed as the client’s connection with (their) God, and religious beliefs can been understood as flowing from spirituality, the open expression of the spiritual bond in specific views, approaches, and principles that have been est ablished in a community with other individuals who hold similar experiences of transcendence (Hodges, 2005). Consequently, spirituality and religion are similar yet present differences. Therapists must understand that a single assessment approach is not ideal for all consumers and circumstances. The assessment tools examined in this article was purposefully designed to highlight different aspects of clients’ spiritual worldview. In a counseling session, these assessment methods can become a useful resource to providers that require assistance with clients handling with challenging issues. These interventions can be used as coping strategies since the user can visibly see their peer support networks on paper. Spiritual assessments are beneficial for clients that have misplaced their connection with God; spiritual ecograms permits the user to see where their spiritual journey is currently and where it used to be. For example, it may benefit clients with major depressive symptoms to recognize support organizations such as professional group memberships, church, and household. An alternative intervention to complete this task would be spiritual ecomaps. Counselors geared with this assessment, can assist their clients survey their previous and existing domestic and faith-based support systems. Subsequently, some assessment approaches will be implemented more effectively in some situations but preferably these assessments are seamless for clients that have gone astray. Various assessments can be used to meet the needs of the client; however, certain assessments may be more operative  with some clients than others. Consequently, the therapist must primarily evaluate the clients’ needs and what they wish to gain from counseling. This will support the therapist in selecting a suitable spiritual intervention approach. If I am offered a client that desires to change to a diverse faith but it religiously disorganized, I would implement spiritual genograms. This intervention would aid counselors to view if the clients’ preceding descendants all practiced the same religion. Accordingly, I could determine that the client has an admiration for customs which is producing the spiritual misperception. A consumer may want to change to a different spiritual belief system but does not want to insult their families; this approach can be paired with spiritual ecograms; letting them to evaluate their previous and current rapport with God. After assessing their support systems and their spiritual journey, the client could productively create the judgment on whether to alter their religion or not; the therapist should not make this choice for them. In my opinion, couples should undergo marriage education and counseling before being able to marry. My marriage and family counseling session would contain the data of African American marriages since couples need to have insight on the problem in order to prevent from being a part of the problem. Hence, unions would gain awareness on the low marriage and high divorce rates within the African American community. Thereafter, perhaps these marriages would fight harder for their marriages and maintaining their families. Conclusion In conclusion, couples receiving education on the state of African Americans marriage and divorce along with counseling prepare them with the utensils required to maintain a healthy marriage. I believe that any union seeking assistance would profit with these counseling technique both prior and during the course of marriage. Additionally, I also have faith that this these methods can produce an upsurge in couples getting and/or staying married and a reduction in the shockingly elevated rates of African American divorces. References Berenson, S.K. (2011). Should Cohabitation Matter in Family Law?. Journal of Law & Studies, 13(2), 289-328. Burton, L.M., Winn, D., Stevenson, H., & Clark, S. (2004). Working with African American Clients: Considering the â€Å"Homeplace† in Marriage and Family Therapy Practices. Journal of Marital & Family Therapy, 30(4), 397-410. Clarkwest, A. (2006). Premarital Characteristics, Selection into Marriage, and African American Marital Disruption. Journal of Comparative Family Studies, 37(3), 361-380. Dixon, P. (2009). Marriage Among African Americans: What Does the Research Reveal?. Journal of African American Studies, 13(1), 29-46. DuCille, A. (2009). Marriage, Family, & Other â€Å"Peculiar Institutions† in African American Literary History. American Literary History, 21(3), 604-617. Gingrich, F., & Worthington Jr, E. L. (2007). Supervision and the integration of faith into clinical practice: Research considerations. Journal of Psychology and Christianity, 26(4), 342-355. Goldenberg, H., & Goldenberg, I. (2013). Family therapy: An overview (8th ed.). Pacific Grove, CA: Brookes/Cole. Hill, S. A.(2006). Marriage Among African American Women: A Gender Perspective. Journal of Comparative Family Studies, 37(3), 421-440. Hodge, D. R. (2005). Developing a Spiritual Assessment Toolbox: A Discussion of the Strengths and Limitations of Five Different Assessment Methods. Health & Social Work, 30(4), 314-323. Holland, R. (2009). Perceptions of Mate Selection for Marriage Among African American, College- Educated, Single Mothers. Journal of Counseling & Development, 87(2), 170-178. Kostenberger, A. J., & Johns, D. W. (2004). God, marriage, and family: Rebuilding the biblical foundation. Wheaton, IL: Crossway Books. ISBN: 9781581345803. Leslie, L. A., & Letiecq, B.L. (2004). Marital Quality of African American and White Partners in Interracial Couples. Personal Relationships, 11(4), 559-574. Marsh, K., Darity Jr., W.A., Cohen, P. N., Casper, L.M., & Salters, D. (2007). The Emerging Black Middle Class: Single and Living Alone. Social Forces, 86(2), 735-762. Martin, T. L., & Bielawski, D. M. (2011). What is the African American’s Experience Following Imago Education?. Journal of Humanistic Psychology, 51(2), 216-228. Mc. Clain, C. (2011). Family Stories: Black/ White Marriage During the 1960s. Western Journal of Black Studies, 35(1), 9-21. Pinderhughes, E. B. (2002). African American Marriage in the 20th Century. Family Process, 41(2), 269. Rowe, D. M. (2007). Marriage and Fathering: Raising Our Children Within the Context of Family and Community. Black Scholar, 37(2), 18-22. Worthington, E. (2005). Hope focused marriage counseling: A guide to brief therapy. Downers Grove, IL: Inter-Varsity Press.