GRE to GMAT Conversion How Does Your Score Compare

For more than 60 years, business schools have used Graduate Management Admissions Test (GMAT) scores to compare MBA applicants and decide who will be enrolled in their business programs and who will not. According to the Graduate Management Admissions Council, the organization that administers the GMAT, nine out of 10 global MBA students submit GMAT scores as part of the admissions process. But the GMAT is not the only standardized exam that MBA applicants can take. A growing number of schools are accepting Graduate Record Examination (GRE) scores in addition to GMAT scores. The GRE is commonly used by graduate schools to assess applicant readiness. Currently, there are more than 1,000 business schools around the world accepting GRE scores as part of the MBA admissions process. That number grows every year. Comparing GRE and GMAT Scores Although both admissions exams cover similar domains and utilize many of the same types of questions to assess test-takers, the GMAT and the GRE are scored on different scales. The GRE is scored on a 130-170 scale, and the GMAT is scored on a 200-800 scale. The difference in scoring means you cant make an apples-to-apples comparison between the scores. Sometimes, the best way to compare scaled scores from two different tests is by comparing the percentiles. But this isnt really possible with GMAT scores and GRE scores. The normed populations are different, which means you cant accurately convert and compare percentiles from the two tests. Another issue is the way the scores are used. Unlike the GMAT, the GRE does not provide a total score. The GRE test makers recommend keeping GRE Verbal Reasoning scores and GRE Quantitative Reasoning separate when making admissions decisions. The makers of the GMAT, on the other hand, recommend using the GMAT total score when making admissions decisions. Predicting GMAT Scores Based on GRE Scores Business schools are accustomed to making admissions decisions based on GMAT scores, and many of them prefer to use the context of the GMAT to interpret GRE scores. To make things as easy as possible for business schools, ETS, the makers of the GRE, created a GRE comparison tool that makes it quick and easy for business schools to predict an applicants GMAT score based on scores from the Verbal Reasoning and Quantitative Reasoning sections of the GRE. This makes it much easier for admissions reps to compare candidates who took the GRE with candidates who took the GMAT. The GRE comparison tool uses a multiple linear regression equation to predict total GMAT scores based on GRE General Test scores. The formula is as follows: GMAT Total score -2080.75 6.38*GRE Verbal Reasoning score 10.62*GRE Quantitative Reasoning score This tool also uses regression equations to predict GMAT Verbal and Quantitative scores from the GRE Verbal Reasoning and Quantitative Reasoning scores. The formulas are as follows: GMAT Verbal score -109.49 0.912*GRE Verbal Reasoning scoreGMAT Quantitative score -158.42 1.243*GRE Quantitative Reasoning score Using the GRE Comparison Tool You can use the formulas shown above to convert your GRE score into a GMAT score. However, the GRE comparison tool is the quickest, easiest way to convert your GRE score into a GMAT score. This tool is available on the ETS website and is free to use. You do not have to register on the site, create an account or provide your email address. To use the GRE comparison tool, youll need your GRE Verbal Reasoning score and your GRE Quantitative Reasoning score. Enter those two scores into the provided boxes in the online form. Youll then be provided with several predicted GMAT scores: a GMAT total score, a GMAT Verbal score, and a GMAT quantitative score. GRE and GMAT Comparison Charts You can find a lot of different charts online that can be used to convert and compare GRE and GMAT scores. These charts are easy to use, but they are not always entirely accurate. If a chart was the most appropriate way to convert the scores, the ETS would provide a simple chart. To get the most accurate conversion and comparison, you need to use the GRE comparison tool. And since this is the tool that business schools will be using to convert and compare scores, you can be confident in the accuracy of the tool. Youll be seeing the same predicted GMAT score that the business school sees when they review your application.

Ethical Leadership Decision-Making Process Class Notes...

SSD 3 – Module 1 Notes Mod 1 - Apply Ethical Leadership Decision Making Process: ï  ¶ 3 Perspectives: †¢ Virtues – Desirable Qualities – Courage, justice, compassion †¢ Principals – Authoritative – Army Values †¢ Consequences – greatest good, greatest number of people ï  ¶ Ethical reasoning – informal process – integral ï  ¶ Army Problem Solving: 1. Form of decision making. 2. Is a systematic approach to define a problem, develop possible solutions to solve the problem, arriving at the best solution, implementing the best solution. 3. Solve near-term problems, form the basis for long-term success. ï  ¶ Army Seven Step Problem Solving Model: 1. ID the problem – WWWWW 2. Gather information – Facts, Assumptions, Interest 3. Develop†¦show more content†¦Scheduled and id on annual training calendar b. Represents a snapshot of here and now c. Established beginning and conducting parameters d. Consideration of availability of unit personnel ï  ¶ Analyze the assessment cycle: 1. Survey/assess your command 2. ID key areas of concern 3. Agree to actions 4. Implement the plan 5. Reassess ï  ¶ There are 21 areas on the command climate survey. ï  ¶ Calculate the results of the survey: 1. Record the individual response 2. Record the number of responses 3. Add the numbers of responses 4. Divided the number ï  ¶ ID consideration of other (CO2) training: ï  ¶ 8 Key areas 1. Ethical development 2. American military heritage 3. Quality individual leadership 4. Team building 5. Equal opportunity 6. Gender issues 7. Family concerns 8. Health, safety, and drug alcohol abuse ï  ¶ Other training tools: 1. ECAS 2. UCP 3. TDS 4. GOQ 5. DEOCS Mod 1 – Full Spectrum Operations: ï  ¶ Effective training is the cornerstone of operational success. ï  ¶ 7 Training Principles: 1. Commander and other leaders are responsible for training. 2. NCOs train individuals, crews, and small teams. 3. Train as you will fight. 4. Train to standard. 5. Train to sustain. 6. Conduct multiechelon and concurrent training. 7. Train to develop agile leaders and organizations. ï  ¶ The foundations of army training are discipline, principles, and training support. 1. Discipline – good commanders and leadersShow MoreRelatedRoles And Responsibilities Of An Educational Leader1628 Words   |  7 Pagesinto the students. teachers, parents, administrators, students and community members must be in sequence when it comes to student achievement. The school holds PTO meetings, Faculty meetings, CFIP meetings and content are held in order to review the process for student achievement and to garner new ways of bringing about student achievement. The school and the community must band together in order to instill the values into their children. Raising money, tutoring outside of the school, parent involvementRead MoreEssay on Business Ethics and dilemma632 Words   |  3 PagesPrepare a 3- to 5-page paper titled,  Corporate Social Responsibility. 3. 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Complex and Dynamic Business World Free Essays

â€Å"The business world has become more complex and more dynamic. Planning tools are designed for stable environments. Therefore, planning should be abandoned. We will write a custom essay sample on Complex and Dynamic Business World or any similar topic only for you Order Now Please, comment on this statement. † 1035 Words 2 I. Introduction In today’s increasingly dynamic and complex business world, it is important to decide whether to use and trust in planning tools or if one should abandon them because they are made for more stable environments. This essay will give an overview of the planning tools and techniques that exist for assessing the environment. It will discuss the use of planning tools in a complex and dynamic business world. The statement that planning should be abandoned in a complex and dynamic business world will be discussed in the following. II. Main Body â€Å"A plan describes the chosen solution to a problem and lists what has to be done to achieve the goal† (Landau, 2012). We can categorize planning into three parts. During the first part goals have to be defined. In the second part the corresponding strategies have to be established. The third part focuses on finalising the plans. â€Å"Managers use planning tools and techniques to help their organizations be more efficient and effective. (Robbins Coulter, 2009) In a volatile and dynamic environment managers should not rely on planning. They should use planning as an indicator of what could potentially happen in the future and consequently try to restructure their organization in order to cope with market uncertainty. To do so, the managerial establishment has developed several techniques. One technique to assess the business environmen t is environmental scanning, which fundamentally consists of competitor intelligence and global scanning. Environmental scanning helps to foresee and decode changes in the environment via screening a lot of information. By applying this technique organizations are more likely to predict issues and concerns that could affect their current or planned activities right. Research results show that organizations that use this technique have a higher performance (according to Robbins Coulter, 2011, pp. 276f. ). One part of the environmental scanning is competitor intelligence. In this process organizations gather information concerning their competitors. The information will be compiled by asking questions about their competitors such as â€Å"Who are they? †, â€Å"What are they doing? and â€Å"How will what they are doing affect us? †. 3 â€Å"Competitor intelligence experts suggest that 80 percent of what managers need to know about competitors can be found out from their own employees, suppliers, and customers. † (Robbins Coulter, 2011, p. 277) Although this statistic indicates that collecting competitor intelligence can be achieved through the utilization of an organisationâ⠂¬â„¢s extended network, competitor intelligence can be seen as a problematic subject as it often features a fine line between ethical and unethical. Another part of environmental scanning is global scanning, which is important for organizations with global activities. In a complex and dynamic environment managers broaden their view to gather global information. â€Å"For instance, they can subscribe to information clipping services that review world newspapers and business periodicals and provide summaries of desired information (Robbins Coulter, 2011, p. 277). One can say that this technique is very suitable for an unstable and dynamic environment, because it helps to foresee the environment and consequentially helps to realign, if necessary, the organizational goals and plans. On the other hand, gathered information can be interpreted wrongly, which can trigger a chain-reaction from wrong forcasting to wrong goals and plans. A second technique to evaluate the environment is forecasting. Forecasting is a prediction of outcomes, which will help to identify events that will happen in the future. The common consent about this method is that is effective and time efficient. The ultimate goal of forecasting is to facilitate decision making through gathering information. There are two different forecasting techniques. One is quantitative forecasting, which is preferred when sufficient and hard data is given. It is based on historical data and tries to predict outcomes. The other one is qualitative forecasting, which uses personal judgment and knowledge to predict outcomes. This technique is used when hard data is limited or hard to gather. â€Å"First, it’s important to understand that forecasting techniques are most accurate when the environment is not rapidly changing. The more dynamic the environment, the more likely managers are to forecast ineffectively. † (Robbins Coulter, 2011, p. 79) 4 However, forecasting lacks the ability to effectively predict events like recessions or the actions of competitors. That leads to the assumption that organizations shouldn’t rely on a single forecasting method, but should use several models to be on the safer side. But the challenge for managers is to interpret and then implement the information into the planning decisions. Finally orga nizations must remember that forecasting, as a marginal skill, can be trained and improved. A third technique to assess the environment is benchmarking. Benchmarking is a tool to improve an organizations performance by adapting outstanding practices from the top organizations within the environment. Studies verify the statement, â€Å"that users have achieved 69 percent faster growth and 45 percent greater productivity† (Robbins Coulter, 2011, p. 279) when using benchmarking. Benchmarking can be seen as a four step approach. It starts with the forming of a benchmarking planning team. The second step continues with the gathering of information and external data. Thirdly, when all data is gathered the analysis to identify performance gaps takes place. The last step is the preparing and implementing of an action plan. (Based on Y. K. Shetty, â€Å"Aiming high: Competitive Benchmarking for Superior Performance,† Long Range Planning, February 1993, p. 42) Managers use benchmarking as a tool to approach the leading position of their competitors without overtaking them. And if all organizations work inefficiently it won’t be revealed. So this technique should not be followed in a dynamic environment, because it increases the likelihood that a manager will ‘copy’ the mistakes others make. So one can say â€Å"Plans serve as a road map, although the destination may change due to dynamic market conditions† (Robbins Coulter, 2009, p. 170). III. Conclusion To sum up, one can say that planning is very helpful and necessary but it can be misleading. No matter how many planning tools managers use, they can only plan effectively if they understand how planning in dynamic environment works. They have to keep in mind that planning should only be used as an indicator of what could potentially happen in the future. I believe that planning should not be abandoned, but improved. 5 IV. References Robbins Coulter, S. P. R. M. C. , (2009). ‘Planning’. In: Pearson International Edition (ed), Management. 10th ed. New Jersey: Pearson Education, Inc.. pp. (133-174). Robbins Coulter, S. P. R. M. C. , (2011). ‘Planning’. In: Pearson Global Edition (ed), Management. 11th ed. : Pearson Education, Inc.. pp. (204-276). Prof. Dr. Christian Landau, Principles of Management, 24. Sep. 2012 (Session 2), EBS Universitat fur Wirtschaft und Recht, Oestrich-Winkel How to cite Complex and Dynamic Business World, Papers Complex and Dynamic Business World Free Essays â€Å"The business world has become more complex and more dynamic. Planning tools are designed for stable environments. Therefore, planning should be abandoned. We will write a custom essay sample on Complex and Dynamic Business World or any similar topic only for you Order Now Please, comment on this statement. † 1035 Words 2 I. Introduction In today’s increasingly dynamic and complex business world, it is important to decide whether to use and trust in planning tools or if one should abandon them because they are made for more stable environments. This essay will give an overview of the planning tools and techniques that exist for assessing the environment. It will discuss the use of planning tools in a complex and dynamic business world. The statement that planning should be abandoned in a complex and dynamic business world will be discussed in the following. II. Main Body â€Å"A plan describes the chosen solution to a problem and lists what has to be done to achieve the goal† (Landau, 2012). We can categorize planning into three parts. During the first part goals have to be defined. In the second part the corresponding strategies have to be established. The third part focuses on finalising the plans. â€Å"Managers use planning tools and techniques to help their organizations be more efficient and effective. (Robbins Coulter, 2009) In a volatile and dynamic environment managers should not rely on planning. They should use planning as an indicator of what could potentially happen in the future and consequently try to restructure their organization in order to cope with market uncertainty. To do so, the managerial establishment has developed several techniques. One technique to assess the business environmen t is environmental scanning, which fundamentally consists of competitor intelligence and global scanning. Environmental scanning helps to foresee and decode changes in the environment via screening a lot of information. By applying this technique organizations are more likely to predict issues and concerns that could affect their current or planned activities right. Research results show that organizations that use this technique have a higher performance (according to Robbins Coulter, 2011, pp. 276f. ). One part of the environmental scanning is competitor intelligence. In this process organizations gather information concerning their competitors. The information will be compiled by asking questions about their competitors such as â€Å"Who are they? †, â€Å"What are they doing? and â€Å"How will what they are doing affect us? †. 3 â€Å"Competitor intelligence experts suggest that 80 percent of what managers need to know about competitors can be found out from their own employees, suppliers, and customers. † (Robbins Coulter, 2011, p. 277) Although this statistic indicates that collecting competitor intelligence can be achieved through the utilization of an organisationâ⠂¬â„¢s extended network, competitor intelligence can be seen as a problematic subject as it often features a fine line between ethical and unethical. Another part of environmental scanning is global scanning, which is important for organizations with global activities. In a complex and dynamic environment managers broaden their view to gather global information. â€Å"For instance, they can subscribe to information clipping services that review world newspapers and business periodicals and provide summaries of desired information (Robbins Coulter, 2011, p. 277). One can say that this technique is very suitable for an unstable and dynamic environment, because it helps to foresee the environment and consequentially helps to realign, if necessary, the organizational goals and plans. On the other hand, gathered information can be interpreted wrongly, which can trigger a chain-reaction from wrong forcasting to wrong goals and plans. A second technique to evaluate the environment is forecasting. Forecasting is a prediction of outcomes, which will help to identify events that will happen in the future. The common consent about this method is that is effective and time efficient. The ultimate goal of forecasting is to facilitate decision making through gathering information. There are two different forecasting techniques. One is quantitative forecasting, which is preferred when sufficient and hard data is given. It is based on historical data and tries to predict outcomes. The other one is qualitative forecasting, which uses personal judgment and knowledge to predict outcomes. This technique is used when hard data is limited or hard to gather. â€Å"First, it’s important to understand that forecasting techniques are most accurate when the environment is not rapidly changing. The more dynamic the environment, the more likely managers are to forecast ineffectively. † (Robbins Coulter, 2011, p. 79) 4 However, forecasting lacks the ability to effectively predict events like recessions or the actions of competitors. That leads to the assumption that organizations shouldn’t rely on a single forecasting method, but should use several models to be on the safer side. But the challenge for managers is to interpret and then implement the information into the planning decisions. Finally orga nizations must remember that forecasting, as a marginal skill, can be trained and improved. A third technique to assess the environment is benchmarking. Benchmarking is a tool to improve an organizations performance by adapting outstanding practices from the top organizations within the environment. Studies verify the statement, â€Å"that users have achieved 69 percent faster growth and 45 percent greater productivity† (Robbins Coulter, 2011, p. 279) when using benchmarking. Benchmarking can be seen as a four step approach. It starts with the forming of a benchmarking planning team. The second step continues with the gathering of information and external data. Thirdly, when all data is gathered the analysis to identify performance gaps takes place. The last step is the preparing and implementing of an action plan. (Based on Y. K. Shetty, â€Å"Aiming high: Competitive Benchmarking for Superior Performance,† Long Range Planning, February 1993, p. 42) Managers use benchmarking as a tool to approach the leading position of their competitors without overtaking them. And if all organizations work inefficiently it won’t be revealed. So this technique should not be followed in a dynamic environment, because it increases the likelihood that a manager will ‘copy’ the mistakes others make. So one can say â€Å"Plans serve as a road map, although the destination may change due to dynamic market conditions† (Robbins Coulter, 2009, p. 170). III. Conclusion To sum up, one can say that planning is very helpful and necessary but it can be misleading. No matter how many planning tools managers use, they can only plan effectively if they understand how planning in dynamic environment works. They have to keep in mind that planning should only be used as an indicator of what could potentially happen in the future. I believe that planning should not be abandoned, but improved. 5 IV. References Robbins Coulter, S. P. R. M. C. , (2009). ‘Planning’. In: Pearson International Edition (ed), Management. 10th ed. New Jersey: Pearson Education, Inc.. pp. (133-174). Robbins Coulter, S. P. R. M. C. , (2011). ‘Planning’. In: Pearson Global Edition (ed), Management. 11th ed. : Pearson Education, Inc.. pp. (204-276). Prof. Dr. Christian Landau, Principles of Management, 24. Sep. 2012 (Session 2), EBS Universitat fur Wirtschaft und Recht, Oestrich-Winkel How to cite Complex and Dynamic Business World, Essay examples

Demand and supply for eggs free essay sample

Introduction Demand and supply is one of the most essential fundamental concepts of economics and it controls the behavior of market economy. Purpose of assignment is to study the reasons for increase in price of egg over the period. Egg price at markets may be affected by many factors related to demand and supply. Article says that the main cause for the price increase attributed to increases in price of inputs, especially in feed prices. In order to elaborate the topic, economic models/concepts such as price elasticity of demand, income elasticity of demand and cross elasticity of demand are being used. These models will give a clear explanation about how the demand has changed in different situations. However, it is required to study all factors those are affecting to demand and supply in order to obtain a clear understanding about the market. 2. How the prices of egg get increase in the market? According to prices listed on the National Egg Coordination Committee (NECC) website, the wholesale rates of eggs have gone up by nearly 47% in the last five years. Egg prices could increase either due to increase in demand for eggs or decrease in supply of eggs. Following graphs will further explain effects on the price due to changes in demand and supply. As shown in figure 1 increase in demand from D-D1 leads to increase in the quantity and as well as the price and in figure 2 it shows decrease in supply from S-S1 leads to decrease the quantity and increase the prices of eggs. 3. Supply factors Supply means the quantity of a product that a producer is  willing and able to supply  onto the market  at a given price in a given period of time. According to the content of the article egg farmers find it difficult to supply their products at a lower price due to various reasons. Major reason for increase in price of egg is increasing price of feed. â€Å"The feed for hens mainly consists of maize, soya, sunflower, maize bran, fishmeal. Prices of those items have been rising by around 25 to 30% annually†. Due to this situation farmers will have to bare a high cost and therefore their profits are likely to go down at a higher rate. There may be other factors which have led to increase prices of eggs such as increase in overheads such as administration cost and losses for deaths of laying hens due to diseases like bird flu and also lack of protection from government for poultry products. In order to increase the supply and control the cost of production government can give subsidies to farmers and also remove taxes imposed on eggs and other products which affect prices of eggs. However, increased market price of eggs encourages new farmers to enter the market and supply will help to reduce the market price in the long run. Nevertheless some farmers may leave the industry for it does not generate more profits due to high production cost. We are getting at Rs 4. 50 per egg and we are selling it at Rs. 5.00 As egg is a primary product, therefor supply cannot be increased in a shorter period of time. Due to high cost on inputs new firms may be reluctant to enter the market. 4. Demand factors Demand  is the quantity of a good or service that consumers are  willing and able to buy  at a  given price in a given time period. Demand may change due to various reasons such as purchasing power, prices of substitutes, prices of complementary products, income level of peop le, changes in consumption patterns and taste, population factors and advertising by retailers. .Price elasticity of demand for eggs Price elasticity of demand measures the responsiveness of the quantity demanded of a good or service to a  change in its price. During the month of December demand is likely to be inelastic for eggs as it’s an essential ingredient in Christmas goodies from puddings to cakes. Demand is inelastic when the percentage change in quantity demanded is less than the percentage change in price. â€Å"Prices of eggs have seen an increase of 30% as compared to the rates prevalent during the month of December last year. † As mentioned in the article average wholesale price of 100 eggs was around Rs. 225. 27 in 2009 it has increased to Rs. 331. 80 at the end of the current year. Due to inelasticity of demand, suppliers are able to gain larger income by increasing prices of eggs. It is shown in the diagram below. However, this situation is likely to change during other months of the year. People may reduce the demand if the prices are too high and they will switch into other substitute goods such as fish, meat or imported eggs if their prices are lower than domestic eggs. Therefore eggs tend to have an elastic and inelastic demand during different seasons. .2 Income elasticity of demand Income elasticity of demand measures the responsiveness of quantity demanded to a change in income. Product like an egg tends to be a normal good as the demand does not increase due to the change in income. Consumers purchase this product only when it is necessary therefore YED is positive but less than one. Increasing prices during the month of December may affect the disposable income of consumers. .3 Cross elasticity of demand Cross elasticity of demand measures the responsiveness of the  demand  for a  good  to a change in the price of another good. With cross price elasticity we make an important distinction between substitute products and complementary goods. It is hard to identify close substitutes for eggs. Positive XED shows substitute goods. As substitutes we can show fish, meat and other types of eggs (goose, duck and bantam). Negative XED explains complementary products for eggs. There are many food products which eggs are used as an input.Eg:-cakes, puddings. Following shows a relationship between two complementary goods. It shows increase in the price of good Y leads to decrease in demand for good X. 5. Other factors lead to increase/decrease demand. Demand for eggs may change due to consumer taste. Due to health issues like cholesterol and issues like bird flu lead to reduce the demand for eggs. Rapid increase in population in India tends to increase demand and more low and middle incom e people tend to consume more eggs and therefore the demand for eggs increase. More over advertising by retailers persuade people to buy eggs without making them move into other substitute goods and these lead to increase/decrease demand for eggs. 6. Conclusion Taking into consideration all the above information we can identify that many factors are affecting the price of eggs. Some factors offset results of the other and mostly cost of feed had led to increase in cost of eggs. However, this could reduce by providing subsidies to farmers and other incentives in order to increase the output and reduce the cost.

African-American Tennis Champion Althea Gibson Quotes

African-American Tennis Champion Althea Gibson Quotes Althea Gibson, a sharecroppers daughter raised on welfare mostly in New York City, learned tennis through public clubs. She rose to become the first African-American to play at Forest Hills and in the Wimbledon championships, and the first African-American to win either. Althea Gibson broke the color barrier in tennis, helping make possible the later careers of other African-American tennis players including Arthur Ashe and Venus and Serena Williams. Selected Althea Gibson Quotations I hope that I have accomplished just one thing: that I have been a credit to tennis and my country.I want the public to remember me as they knew me: athletic, smart, and healthy... Remember me strong and tough and quick, fleet of foot and tenacious.I always wanted to be somebody. If I made it, its half because I was game enough to take a lot of punishment along the way and half because there were a lot of people who cared enough to help me.I dont want to be put on a pedestal. I just want to be reasonably successful and live a normal life with all the conveniences to make it so. I think Ive already got the main thing Ive always wanted, which is to be somebody, to have identity. Im Althea Gibson, the tennis champion. I hope it makes me happy.No matter what accomplishments you make, somebody helped you.In the field of sports, you are more or less accepted for what you do rather than what you are.I knew that I was an unusual, talented girl through the grace of God. I didnt need to prove that to myself. I only wanted to prove it to my opponents. In sports, you simply arent considered a real champion until you have defended your title successfully. Winning it once can be a fluke; winning it twice proves you are the best.Most of us who aspire to be tops in our fields dont really consider the amount of work required to stay tops.People thought I was ruthless, which I was. I didnt give a darn who was on the other side of the net. Id knock you down if you got in my way.I just wanted to play, play, play.I was born too soon. Quotes About Althea Gibson Alice Marble, 1950, in American Lawn Tennis magazine: The entrance of Negroes into national tennis is as inevitable as it has proven in baseball, in football, or in boxing; there is no denying so much talent. The committee at Forest Hills has the power to stifle the efforts of one Althea Gibson, who may or may not be succeeded by others of her race who have equal or superior ability. They will knock at the door as she has done. Eventually, the tennis world will rise up en masse to protest the injustices perpetrated by our policymakers. Eventually why not now? New York Times writer Robert Thomas, jr., 1953: The lean and muscular young woman had a dominating serve, and her long, graceful reach often stunned opponents. New York Times writer Neil Amdur, 1955: She hits the ball and plays like a man. Betty Debnaun, principal of the new Althea Gibson Early Childhood Education Academy, 1999: Its only fitting to name the school after a woman as great as Althea Gibson. She excelled in everything she did. Shes a living legend. New York Times writer Ira Berkow: She was the Jackie Robinson of tennis, being first and doing it with so much pride and dignity. But she was also not like Jackie in that she never came out aggressive. Venus Williams, 2003: I am honored to have followed in such great footsteps. Her accomplishments set the stage for my success, and through players like myself and Serena and many others to come, her legacy will live on.

Exploration of the New World essays

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Multitouch Gesture Generation and Recognition Techniques Abstract: A huge number of users are using smart phones to communicate with each other. A smart phone user is exposed to various threats when they use their phone for communication. These threats can disorganization the operation of the smart phone, and transmit or modify user data rather than original [1]. So applications must guarantee privacy and integrity of the information. Single touch mobile security is unable to give efficient performance for confidential data. Hence we are moving towards multitouch mobile security for high security. In computing, multi-touch is authentication technology that enables a surface to recognize the presence of more than one touch points of contact with the touch screen [2]. By using multiple touch points to authenticate user for access confidential data in mobile phones. we are presenting our study about biometric gestures to authenticate user through multitouch finger points for more security [1]. Keywords: Multitouch, biometric gesture, authentication, security, smart phone Finger-tracking, Android Operating system. Introduction Todays IT admins face the troublesome task of managing the unnumberable amounts of mobile devices that connect with enterprise networks a day for communication through network. Securing mobile devices has become increasingly important now days as the numbers of the devices in operation and the uses to which they are put have expanded in world wide. The problem is compounded within the enterprise as the ongoing trend toward IT users or organizations is resulting in more and many more employee-owned devices connecting to the corporate internet. Authentication is a nothing but process in which the credentials provided are compared to those on file in a database of valid users information on a operating system. If the credentials match, the process is completed and the user is granted authorization for access to the system. The permissions and folders came back outline each the surroundings the user sees and also the method he will move with it, as well as the amount of access and differ ent rights comparable to the number of allotted cupboard space and different services [1]. The generally a computer authentication process is to use alphanumerical usernames or text based and passwords. This method has been shown to have some  disadvantages. For example, users tend to pick passwords that can be easily guessed and recognized by other hard to remember. To device this problem, some researchers have  developed authentication techniques that use multitouch biometric gesture as passwords for authentication. Multi-touch, in a computing environment, is an interface technology that enables input gestures on multiple points on the surface of a device. Although most generally used with touch screen devices on handheld devices, such as smart phones and tablets, and other multi-touch has been used for other surfaces as well, including touch pads and whiteboards, tables and walls [2]. In other words, multi-touch refers to the capability of a touch screen (or a touchpad) to recognize two or more points of contact on the surface simultaneously. The constant following of the multiple points permits the portable interface to acknowledge gestures, that modify advanced practicality similar to pinch-to-zoom, pinch. wherever gesture recognition is much of deciphering human gestures via mathematical algorithms. Gestures will originate from any bodily motion however normally originate from the face or hand and alternative human biometric gestures but the identification and recognition of posture, and human behaviours is additionally the topic of gesture recognition techniques. We used Equal Error Rate (EER) to measure accuracy. This is the rate at which False Acceptance Rate (FAR) and False Rejection Rate (FRR). To find out whether using multiple gestures would improve the systems performance, we combined scores of 2 different gestures from the same user in the same order and evaluated the EER of the combined gestures as: FAR= FRR= Developing a Gesture Authentication Technique Biometric systems are an effective way to authenticate valid users generally based on the something they are property [2] in mobile authentication. The goal of biometric identification is that the automatic verification of identity of a living person by proving over some distinctive gestures that solely he possesses in authentication method. Figure1: Multitouch behavior The biometric authentication system has two phases: enrollment phase and authentication phase. If new user must first record his secret hand signs at the first enrollment phase to the system. The process is performing the hand signs at the users discreet choice with sufficient space for hand movement during registration phase. Gesture Taxonomy [1] 1. Parallel: All fingertips are moving in the same direction during the gesture. For example, a bush swipe, during which all 5 fingers move from left to right the screen. 2. Closed: If all fingertips are moving inward toward the center of the hand. For example, a pinch gesture. 3. Opened: All fingertips are moving outward from the center of the hand. For example, a reverse pinch gesture. 4. Circular: All fingertips are rotating around the center of  the hand. For example, a clockwise or counterclockwise  rotation [1]. Figure1: Single touch Matching Touch Sequences to Specific Fingers: Hidden Markov Models [3] Hidden Markov Models (HMMs) are statistical models and simplest versions of dynamic Bayesian Networks, where the system being modelled is a Markov process with an unobserved state. It is a collection of finite states connected by transitions, much like Bayesian Networks. Each state has two probabilities: a transition probability, and an output probability distribution. Parameters of the model are determined by training data [4][5]. Figure2: Hidden Markov Models hidden states, as well as N dimensional observable symbols. Figure3: Multitouch Movement The conventional HMM is expressed as the following [4]. HMM is the mathematical tool to model signals, objects à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ that have the temporal structure and follow the Markov process. HMM can be described compactly as ÃŽÂ » = (A, B, à Ã¢â€š ¬) (Figure 4b) where, Figure 4: Conventional Hidden Markov Model A = {aij}: the state transition matrix aij=P[qt+1=sj|qt=si], 1à ¢Ã¢â‚¬ °Ã‚ ¤ià ¢Ã¢â‚¬ °Ã‚ ¤Naij=P[qt+1=sj|qt=si], 1à ¢Ã¢â‚¬ °Ã‚ ¤ià ¢Ã¢â‚¬ °Ã‚ ¤N B = {bj (k)}: the observation symbol probability distribution bj(k)=P[Ot=vk|qt=sj], 1à ¢Ã¢â‚¬ °Ã‚ ¤jà ¢Ã¢â‚¬ °Ã‚ ¤N, 1à ¢Ã¢â‚¬ °Ã‚ ¤kà ¢Ã¢â‚¬ °Ã‚ ¤Mbj(k)=P[Ot=vk|qt=sj], 1à ¢Ã¢â‚¬ °Ã‚ ¤jà ¢Ã¢â‚¬ °Ã‚ ¤N,1à ¢Ã¢â‚¬ °Ã‚ ¤kà ¢Ã¢â‚¬ °Ã‚ ¤M à Ã¢â€š ¬ = {à Ã¢â€š ¬i}: the initial state distribution à Ã¢â€š ¬i=P[q1=si]à Ã¢â€š ¬i=P[q1=si] Set of states: S = {s1s2, à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦, sN} State at time t: qt Set of symbols: V = {v1, v2, à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦, vM} Given the observation sequence OT1=O1O2OTO1T=O1O2OT and a model ÃŽÂ » = (A,B,à Ã¢â€š ¬), how do we efficiently compute P(O | ÃŽÂ »), i.e., the probability of the observation sequence given the model. Now let us consider following two states: Training: based on the input data sequences {O}, we calculate and adjust ÃŽÂ »=ÃŽÂ »ÃƒÅ'„ ÃŽÂ »=ÃŽÂ »ÃƒÅ'„ to maximize likelihood P(O | ÃŽÂ ») Recognizing: based on ÃŽÂ »ÃƒÅ'„ =(AÃÅ'„ ,BÃÅ'„ ,à Ã¢â€š ¬ÃƒÅ'„ )ÃŽÂ »ÃƒÅ'„=(AÃÅ'„,BÃÅ'„,à Ã¢â€š ¬ÃƒÅ'„) for each class, we can then assign the class in which the likelihood P(O | ÃŽÂ ») is maximized. The observation symbol probability distribution P[Ot = vk | qt = sj] can be discrete symbols or continuous variables. If the observations are different symbols. B(i,k)=P(Ot=k|qt=si) B(i,k)=P(Ot=k|qt=si) If the observations are vectors in RL, it is common to represent P[Ot | qt] as a Gaussian: P[Ot=y|qt=si]=N(y;ÃŽÂ ¼i,ÃŽÂ £i) P[Ot=y|qt=si]=ÃŽÂ (y;ÃŽÂ ¼i,ÃŽÂ £i) N(y;ÃŽÂ ¼,ÃŽÂ £)=1(2à Ã¢â€š ¬)L/2|ÃŽÂ £|1/2exp[à ¢Ã‹â€ Ã¢â‚¬â„¢12(yà ¢Ã‹â€ Ã¢â‚¬â„¢ÃƒÅ½Ã‚ ¼)TÃŽÂ £Ãƒ ¢Ã‹â€ Ã¢â‚¬â„¢1(yà ¢Ã‹â€ Ã¢â‚¬â„¢ÃƒÅ½Ã‚ ¼)] ÃŽÂ (y;ÃŽÂ ¼,ÃŽÂ £)=1(2à Ã¢â€š ¬)L/2|ÃŽÂ £|1/2exp[à ¢Ã‹â€ Ã¢â‚¬â„¢12(yà ¢Ã‹â€ Ã¢â‚¬â„¢ÃƒÅ½Ã‚ ¼)TÃŽÂ £Ãƒ ¢Ã‹â€ Ã¢â‚¬â„¢1(yà ¢Ã‹â€ Ã¢â‚¬â„¢ÃƒÅ½Ã‚ ¼)] A more flexible representation is a mixture of M Gaussians: P[Ot=y|qt=si]=à ¢Ã‹â€ Ã¢â‚¬Ëœm=1MP(Mt=m|qt=si)ÃÆ'-ÃÆ'-N(y;ÃŽÂ ¼m,i,ÃŽÂ £m,i) P[Ot=y|qt=si]=à ¢Ã‹â€ Ã¢â‚¬Ëœm=1MP(Mt=m|qt=si)ÃÆ'-ÃÆ'-ÃŽÂ (y;ÃŽÂ ¼m,i,ÃŽÂ £m,i) where Mt is a hidden variable that specifies which mixture component to use and P(Mt=m|qt=si) =C(i,m) is the conditional prior weight of each mixture component. In our approach, we both implement continuous and discrete output variable distribution for 1st and 2nd HMM stages respectively [3][6]. Dynamic Time Warping Dynamic Time Warping (DTW), introduced by Sakoe and Chiba in 1978, is an algorithm that compares two different sequences that may possibly vary in time. For example, if two video clips of different people walking a particular path were compared, the DTW algorithm would detect the similarities in the walking pattern, despite walking speed differences, accelerations or decelerations. [3][7] Figure 4: Dynamic time warping The algorithm begins with a set of template streams, describing each gesture available in the system database. This results in high computation time, and hence, limitations in recognition speed. Additionally, the storing of many templates for each gesture results in costly space usage on a resource-constrained device. Consider a training set of N sequences fS1; S2; : : : ; SNg, where each Sg represents sample of the same gesture class. Then, each sequence Sg composed by a set of feature vectors at each time t, Sg = fsg1; : : : ; sgLgg for a certain gesture category, where Lg is the length in frames of sequence Sg. Let us assume that sequences are ordered according to their length, so that Lgt1 _ Lg _ Lg+1; 8g 2 [2; ::;N ], the median length sequence is _ S = SdN2 e. This sequence _ S is used as a reference and the rest of sequences are aligned with it using the classical Dynamic Time Warping with Euclidean distance [4], in order to avoid the temporal deformations of various samples from an equivalent gesture class. Therefore, once the alignment method, all sequences have lengthLdN2 e. We define the set of warped sequences as ~ S = f ~ S1; ~ S2; : : : ; ~ SNg. Consider a training set of N sequences fS1; S2; : : : ; SNg, where each Sg represents a sample of the same gesture class. Then, each sequence Sg composed by a set of feature vectors at each time t, Sg = fsg1; : : : ; sgLgg for a certain gesture category, where Lg is the length in frames of sequence Sg. Let us consider that sequences are ordered according to their length, so that Lgt1 _ Lg _ Lg+1; 8g 2 [2; ::;N1], the median length sequence is _ S =SdN2 e[4]. This sequence _ S is used as a reference, and the remaining of sequences are assigned with it using the classical Dynamic Time Warping with Euclidean distance [3], in order to remove the temporal deformations of different samples from the same gesture category. Hence, after the alignment process, all sequences have lengthLdN2 e. We define the set of warped sequences as ~ S = f ~ S1; ~ S2; : : : ; ~ SNg [3]. Input: A gesture C={c1,..cn} with corresponding GMM model ÃŽÂ »={ÃŽÂ »1,..ÃŽÂ »m}, its similarly threshold value  µ, and the testing seprate Q={q1,..qn}, Cost Matrix M is defined,where N(x), x =(i,t) is the set of three upper-left location of x in M. Output:Working path of the dected gesture, if any. //Initialization for i=1:m do for j=1:à ¢Ã‹â€ Ã… ¾ do M(i,j)=v end end for j=1:v do M(0,j)=0 end for t=0:v do for i=1:m do x=(i,j) M(x)=D(qi,ÃŽÂ »i)+minà ¡Ã‚ µÃ‚ ªÃƒ ªÃ… ¾Ã…’à Ã‚ µ N(à ¡Ã‚ µÃ‚ ª)M(à ¡Ã‚ µÃ‚ ªÃƒ ªÃ… ¾Ã…’) End end if m(m,t) W={argminà ¡Ã‚ µÃ‚ ªÃƒ ªÃ… ¾Ã…’ à Ã‚ µ N(à ¡Ã‚ µÃ‚ ª)M(à ¡Ã‚ µÃ‚ ªÃƒ ªÃ… ¾Ã…’)} Return End end [4] Artificial Neural Networks Artificial Neural Networks (ANNs) are networks of weighted, directed graphs where the nodes are artificial neurons, and the directed edges are connections between them. The most common ANN structure is the feed forward Multi-Layer Perceptron. Feed forward means that the signals only travels one way through the net [4][8]. For input pattern p, the i-th input layer node holds xp,i. Net input to j-th node in hidden layer: Now Output of j-th node in hidden layer: Then Net input to k-th node in output layer: Finally Output of k-th node in output layer: Network error for p: Neurons are arranged in layer wise, with the outputs of each neuron in the same layer being connected to the inputs of the neurons in that layer . Finally, the output layer neurons are assigned a value. Each output layer neuron show the particular class of gesture, and the record is assigned to however classs neuron has the highest value During training, the gesture class for each neuron in the output layer is known, and the nodes can be assigned the correct value. Critical Analysis A critical analysis based on the results achieved by is shown in this section. ANNs, HMMs, and DTW algorithms were implemented on a mobile phone, and measured in performance according to recognition speed, accuracy and time needed to train [3]. Since Bayesian Networks are a super class of HMMs which have been tweaked towards gesture classification, they are not considered. Thus according to recognition, accuracy and training time we can say that DTW gives better performance as compare to HMM and ANN. These results are summarized below: Table 1: Comparison between different algorithms [3] No. Algorithm Recognition Speed Accuracy Training Time 1 HMMs 10.5ms 95.25% Long 2 ANNs 23ms 90% Medium 3 DTW 8ms 95.25% No Training Finger Tracking: Firstly we need adjust finger tracking parameters, thats why we need to activate the calibration in the tab in on-screen display [5][9]. a. Projection Signatures: Projection signatures are performed directly on the resulting threshold binary image of the hand [5]. The core process of this algorithm is consists of adding the binary pixels row by row along a diagonal (the vertical in this case). Previous knowledge of the hand angle is therefore required. A low-pass filter is applied on the signature (row sums) in order to reduce low frequency variations that create many local maxima and cause the problem of multiple positives (more than one detection per fingertip). The five maxima thereby obtained correspond to the position of the five fingers. b. Geometric Properties: The second algorithm is based on the geometric properties and, as shown on line 3 of figure 5, uses a contour image of the hand on which a reference point is set. This point can be determined either by finding the centre of mass of the contour (barycenter or centroid) or by fixing a point on the wrist [6]. Figure 5: Hand Movement Euclidean distances from that point to every contour point are then computed, with the five resulting maxima assumed to correspond to the finger ends [5]. The minima can be used to determine the intersections between fingers (finger valleys). The geometric algorithm also required filtering in order to reduce the problem of multiple positives. c. Circular Hough Transform: The circular Hough transform is applied on the contour image of the hand but could as well be performed on an edge image with complex background if no elements of the image exhibit the circular shape of the fingertip radius. This can be done efficiently for finger ends by eliminating points that are found outside the contour image. The inconvenient is that the set of discard points contains a mix of finger valleys and false positive that cannot be sorted easily [5]. d. Color Markers: While the three previous algorithms rely only on the hand characteristics to find and track the fingers, the marker algorithm tracks color markers attached to the main joints of the fingers. Each color is tracked individually using colour segmentation and filtering [5]. This permits the identification of the different hand segments. The marker colors should therefore be easy to track and should not affect the threshold, edge or contour image of the hand. Respecting these constraints makes it possible to apply all algorithms to the same video images and therefore to compare each algorithm degree of accuracy and precision with respect to the markers [5]. Comparisons: Properties Projection Signature Geometric Properties Circular Hough Transform Color Makers Locates fingers Good Good Good Good Locates fingertips Poor Normal Normal Good Locates finger ends and valleys Poor Good Good Good Work with complex background Poor Good Normal Good Precision Good Good Good Good Accuracy Poor Good Good Good Table 2: Comparison between different techniques [5] All the presented algorithms have succeeded, in various degrees, in detecting each finger. The projection signatures algorithm can only roughly identify a finger, but the circular Hough transform and geometric properties algorithms can find both finger intersections and finger end points, it is important to note that in the case where finger are folded, the end points dont correspond to the fingertips [5]. Conclusion: We have plot three prominent strategies that comprehensively characterize the signal acknowledgment that should be possible on advanced mobile phones Artificial Neural Networks, Dynamic Time Warping and Hidden Markov Models were optimized, and tested on resource constrained devices (in this instance, cellular phones), and compared against each other in terms of accuracy, and computational performance. ANNs proved to have the slowest computation performance due to the large size of the neural network. HMMs performed better, but the DTW algorithm proved to be the fastest, with comparable recognition accuracy. DTWs also did not require training, as is the case with HMMs and ANNs. References [1] Kalyani Devidas: Deshmane Android Software based Multi-touch Gestures Recognition for Secure Biometric Modality [2] Memon, K. Isbister, N. Sae-Bae, N. and K. Ahmed, Multitouch gesture based authentication, IEEE Trans. Inf. Forensics Security, vol. 9, no. 4, pp. 568-582, Apr. 2014 [3] Methods for Multi-touch Gesture Recognition:Daniel Wood [4] http://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.5772/50204 [5] Finger Tracking Methods Using EyesWeb Anne-Marie Burns1 and Barbara Mazzarino2 [6]https://www.cse.buffalo.edu/~jcorso/t/CSE555/files/lecture_hmm.pdf [7]DWT: Probability-based Dynamic Time Warping and Bag-of-Visual -and-Depth-Words for Human Gesture Recognition [8]https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Artificial_neural_network [9]http://whatis.techtarget.com/definition/gesture-recognition Prof. Ramdas Pandurang Bagawade, Miss Pournima Akash Chavan, BE Computer Pursuing degree in PESs College of Engineering Phaltan. Miss Kajal Kantilal Jadhav, BE Computer Pursuing degree in PESs College of Engineering Phaltan

Jessica :: English Literature

Jessica Jessica Our Greatest Evil TKAMB Prejudice is just one of the many forms of evil found in the novel To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee. Prejudice is found everywhere, in the workplace, on the street, at school, everywhere. The novel takes place in a small town called Maycomb. The town is full of citizens who love to gossip and people who discriminate against others. The discrimination is not only against those of colour, but those of lower lass as well. They are most commonly found during the trial of Tom Robinson. Harper Lee presents prejudice as an extensive problem, most commonly in the form of social class, race, and behavior prejudice. A type of prejudice found in the novel To Kill A Mocking Bird would be social class. For example, the Ewell family is considered ‘white trash’. Mr. Ewell is someone â€Å"who will never change his ways,† (31) and will always be considered this way because of several reasons. Mr. Bob Ewell is a part of this WPA organization, a type of welfare program. Because he is the very first person to be kicked out of this program because of his laziness, it shows how much of a lower class he really is, and he is constantly bothered because of this. His several uneducated children never went to a full year of school, and worked long and hard on the farm. Another example would be the Cunningham family. â€Å"The Cunningham family never took anything they can’t pay back†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (20) And when they couldn’t pay back in money, they paid their debt back in anyway possible, whether it is labor, or nuts. The younger Cunningham, Walter, came for lunch at the Finchs’, and Scout bugged him about his unnatural usage of syrup when both Atticus and Calpurnia stopped her. Calpurnia made the comment â€Å"There’s some folk who don’t eat like up†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (24) The lack of availability of syrup caused him to pour syrup on food such as potatoes and meat. The Cunningham family is well known throughout the though of Maycomb, though they aren’t highly though of. Along with the Ewells’ and the Cunningham’s, Aunt Alexandra can also be used to explain social class prejudice in To Kill A Mockingbird. She feels that not only is she above everyone, because â€Å"†¦everyone in Maycomb, it seemed, had a streak: a Drinking Streak, a Gambling Streak, a Mean Streak†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ,(129) but Alexandra also feels that that is a better mother influence than Calpurnia, simply because she is white. This is proved throughout the novel beginning at chapter 13. She continually imposes Scout with rules and etiquette for behaving like a proper lady, because when she grows up, she’s not

Rich World Poor World

Debt is made when one party owes party money (Sofas, 2005). Just like people, governments of both developed and developing nations borrow money in order to function well and to maintain their economies (George, 1994). Debt is the economic mode that promotes economic activity in the global market (Lombard, 2004). The acquisition of debt comes through loans, grants and aid that are provided to developed and developing nations by multilateral creditors and bilateral lenders George, 1994).These creditors are international institutions such as the International Monetary Fund (MIFF), the World Bank (WEB) and other banking institutions (Millet & Toasting, 2004). The international community with their neo-liberal approach and capitalist notions of eradicating poverty was through, economic growth and development (Schaeffer, 2009). Due to increased profits (petrol-dollars) made off increased oil prices developing countries were encouraged and some even coerced to borrow money from developed na tions in the sass's and sass (George, 1994).Although their profits were invested in Western banks it did not yield impressive returns thus encouraging the global South to acquire debt (George, 1994). The global South grasped the opportunity and borrowed money to advance their infrastructure (roads and dams) and also fund industrial projects in their countries Airman, 2006). Some countries even borrowed more money what they needed. So keen the developed nations were to borrow money that they disregarded any moral and ethical standards they might have had, and granted loans knowingly, to corrupt governments and military regimes (George, 1994).Unfortunately like everything else this spending spree did not last and came to a sudden halt in the sass's, which even left the United States economy in a recession (Study Guide, 2012). Developing countries had borrowed so much money that domestic currency and macro- economies collapsed, paralyzing everything Airman, 2006). This created the firs t international debt crisis of the inalienable era (George, 1994). When Mexico announced their inability to make debt repayments in 1982, it shocked the financial community (Ambition, 2004).The impact of the debt crisis affected the entire global racket, causing interests to rise, commodity prices to fall, and income earnings to fall (Lombard, 2004). All this eventually made it difficult for developing nations to make debt repayments. The Western nations acted quickly and gained control of their economy and for them the debt crisis was soon over (George, 1994). Unfortunately the debt crisis and the nightmare for the poor developing countries were far from being.In fact it had only Just begun when they found themselves faced with much bigger debt than they initially acquired this despite having made repayments since the sass's (George, 1994). Even though Mexico was the first to default on their debt panic (Lombard, 2004). Growing concerns for the financial stability of the lending in stitutions, major creditors, and international financial institutions, sought new strategies to address the lending criteria in order to bring debt relief (Millet ; Toasting, 2004).This resulted in the implementation of the Highly Indebted Poor Countries Initiatives (HIP), and the Multilateral Debt Relief Initiatives, under the supervision of the World Bank and the International Monetary fund (Sofas, 2005). According to the MIFF and the World Bank these organizations were the answer to the bet crisis (Sofas, 2005). The notion that the debt crisis is over, is purely a myth and we will see. This essay will reveal the causes and impacts that resulted from these debt relief organizations, and incinerate the myth of the debt crisis having been addressed.The debt crisis affected the lives and dreams of many people living in developing countries Airman, 2006). Debt is nothing new but as the debt crisis grew the gap between the rich and poor widened Airman, 2006). A country debt is not just measured by the size of their particular debt, but also clearly how it impacts or effects that nation's economy Airman, 2006). A country GAP (gross domestic product) per capita is also a clear indication of a countries capacity to not only service their debt, but to also ensure that the health and well-being of their citizens are met (George, 1994).If this does not happen then clearly there is a problem, not Just a financial one but a humanitarian one (George, 1994). This was the result for many poor developing countries that led to the debt crisis Airman, 2006). But it was not only developing nations that had debt, United States is the world's biggest debtor tit $6 trillion being owed at 2002 Airman, 2006). The total debt owed by developing nations in the world came to 2. 5 trillion dollars in 1999 Airman, 2006). In Nicaragua (Latin America) their debt repayments in 2004 consumed 43% of their total earnings Airman, 2006).Many commentators argued that the debt crisis was also due t o irresponsible lending by the Western Nations (Millet ; Toasting, 2004). Like the Bhutan nuclear power station in the Philippines, that was built on a volcano in 1974 Airman, 2006). A clear indication where misleading advice caused poor developing overspent to make wrong decisions Airman, 2006). A nuclear power plant that had never ever been used, but a debt that was incurred with interest are expected to still be repaid Airman, 2006). What exploitation of the poor!The Jubilee 2000 (social justice group) lobby's that debt crisis be recognized and that unjust debt like the Philippines be cancelled Airman, 2006). They argued that poor countries cannot afford to make repayments without meeting the basic needs (education, food, healthcare) of their citizens (Cheer, 2002). They maintain that debt was conducted on unfair terms and contracted illegally (Cheer, 2002). Jubilee argues that all debts be forgiven because it perpetuates a balance of power Voluble Debt Campaign, 2007).The soluti on for the debt crisis was restructuring the debt of developing and developed countries (Millet & Toasting, 2004). The International Monetary Fund and the World Bank formed Structural Adjustments Programmed (SAPS), to provide debt relief and bring it to sustainable levels in order to maintain repayments (Millet & Toasting, 2004). SAP's were conditionality's set up specifically for poor developing countries to meet their debt repayment obligations (Cheer, 2002).They squired that poor developing countries raise interest rates, cut government barriers on trade, increase their export production and even cancelled subsides on local food production and healthcare (Cheer, 2002). This was met with criticism and caused outrage in the world. Critics argued that the West used controlling measures to control the economic policies in the poor developing counters Voluble, 2000). When Jamaica signed up with the MIFF and SAP conditionality's, they experienced catastrophic impacts Airman, 2006).Soci al service spending dropped 50% between 1980 and 1986, unemployment rose, living conditions deteriorated, infant illumination, poverty levels increased and even school pass rate dropped by 50% Airman, 20060) Not only poor developing countries had conditionality's imposed but even developed nations like New Zealand experienced the wrath of the Miff's Airman, 2006) SAP's were abandoned and the MIFF and World Bank launched the Highly Indebted Poor countries Initiative (HIP) in 1996 (Cheer, 2002).The HIP was implemented to act as an international relief mechanism, in order to reduce bilateral, multilateral and commercial debt to a â€Å"sustainable level† in poor developing counties (Cannot & Mammogram, 2009). The principle objective was to reduce debt burdens and to ensure that no poor country through restructuring was compromised, that would cause them to default on their debt repayments (Cannot & Mammogram, 2009). In other words, their mission was to assist to a certain point and then ensure that the creditors and lenders still got their money!Just like the SAP's, the Hip's initiative came with conditionality's (Cohen, 2000). The eligibility criteria required that a country be very poor, have no unsustainable debt burden and have a reformed policies track record, all under the guidance of the MIFF and the World Bank, of course (Cohen, 2000). This eligibility process was further imposed with more conditionality's until a country came to the â€Å"completion point† (George, 1994). The HIP was met with criticism because only 30 countries benefited under the HIP intuitive, and that the eligibility process took too long causing further danger to poor developing countries (Cohen, 2000).The â€Å"one size fits all† notion was unfortunately not working, because they failed to address the real issues of the inability of countries being able to provide for the basic needs of their citizens Airman, 2006). Jubilee activists pressured the MIFF and the W orld Bank with a petition at the 68, with the mission to write off all debt completely (Cohen, 2000). The enhanced HIP initiative was then launched and implemented. The enhanced HIP initiative was to provide stronger, faster, deeper and broader debt relief (Cohen, 2000). The 67 and bilateral creditors promised 100% debt relief for highly indebted poor countries (Cohen, 2000).This was unfortunately empty promises. Further protests and pressure to â€Å"drop the debt† led to Millennium Development Goals (MEG) being launched in 2000, as a benchmark for measuring the reduction of poverty (Sofas, 005). Meg's were goals set to eradicate extreme hunger and poverty, to achieve universal education, promote gender equality and empower women, reduce child mortality, improve material health, combat HIVE/AIDS, malaria and other diseases, ensure environmental sustainability and develop a global partnership for development (Sofas, 2005).In conjunction to this the Multilateral Debt Relief In itiative (MIDI) was launched in 2005 at the â€Å"Make Poverty History campaign in the UK (Sofas, 2005). MIDI was about granting debt relief and their requirement was Although many countries benefited from debt relief, only 23 countries reached implosion point and 10 reached the decision point. The HIP initially promised to cancel $63. 4 billion, but only $45. 4 billion delivered in April 2008 Airman, 2006). In April 2008 MIDI promised $50 billion cancellation, but cancellation delivered only $42. Billion Airman, 2006). All this structures and organizations that were set in place only looked to help poor developing countries on a superficial level (Cheer, 2002). The impacts of the debt crisis led to devaluation of local county currencies as inflation increased. Import costs rose, debts increased proportionally and there were he rise in export (Cheer, 2002). Employment opportunities were not enough to offset these losses. Poor developing countries made loans on the notion that their export taxes would be able to repay or maintain their loans (Cheer, 2002).Government's commitment to pay their debt came with conditionality's that exhausted their economies, unemployment increased due to income and living standards declined. When health care and food subsidies were cancelled by international creditors it forced food prices to soar causing families not able to feed themselves. This led to malnutrition and poor health. According to Jubilee Campaign (2000) Just like debt, Aids is a ‘killer† and although sickness and diseases adversely affected men, it hurt both women and children (Cheer, 2002).The burden of meeting their debt repayments caused some to compromise on the health status of their citizens (Cheer, 2002). South Africa has the largest HIVE/Lads infected population 4. 2 million) more than 12% of its people and this affects their employment market (Cheer, 2002). A health crisis that caused the health of lawyers, doctors, ordinary workers and teache rs unable to be active in their Job market, further affecting the countries social economy (Cheer, 2002). Teachers that had HIVE/AIDS are unable to work, then unable to buy medication which ultimately leads to ill-health and even death (Cheer, 2002).Disease, epidemics and pandemics places a huge burden on a countries health sector (Cheer, 2002). Children from these families suffered too because when one parent was affected some were kept home so the other could go work. If both suffered from Hides it often left children orphaned (Cheer, 2002). Girls in unemployed families were often kept home, while boys were sent to school because the cost of education was too dear. This increases the gender inequality in developing countries (Cheer, 2002).Due to unemployment, rise in prices and taxes most people in developing countries were living well below the poverty line (Thrall, 2008). According to Thrall (2008), the economic and social development of the world's poorest countries is perhaps the greatest challenge facing society at the present moment (Thrall, 2008). Over 1 billion of the 6 billion populations live in absolute poverty and suffering malnutrition (Cheer, 2002). The MIFF and the World Bank entrapped highly indebted poor countries with foreign debt that far exceeded heir entire national yearly income (Cheer, 2002).In 2000, the debt repayments of sub-Sahara African countries were about 38% of their individual country budgets (Cheer, 2002). This is unreal and even immoral, that a country earnings through import and export, is overshadowed by an unbearable burden of debt repayments (Cheer, 2002). When debt repayments affects the basic needs of any country, and a country is unable to maintain their social obligations of providing health, education by the window society survival is really slim. Hughes (1999) argues that debts hooked not be forgiven because the debt crisis is the developing nations own fault.Corrupt governments caused their countries to be in this situations and conditionality's are they only way to maintain control (Hughes, 1999). There are too many flaws in the so called economic model, and we have created a society where material gain supersedes moral and ethical commitments and standards. I believe an erosion of trust erupted, because of the exploitation of the poor by the rich colonists. The fallacy of promoting poverty reduction and debt relief had surfaced, ND exposed that the Western strategies was built on greed and power.So has the debt crisis been addressed, unfortunately not? If the international community is serious about the Hip and the MIDI initiatives then their design needs to be improved in favor of developing countries. The focus should be less on filling the coffers of the West but, instead maximize burden sharing. Have a heart and share in the burden of the developing nations by ensuring that projections are more realistic. The HIP and the MIDI could maybe become responsible for ensuring that the interna tional community commit to reducing poverty and reach their millennium goals.The mission to transform societies, improve the lives of the poor, eradicate poverty, encourage and enforce the right to healthcare, education and economic growth, is what true development is all about. By completely writing off, deleting all foreign debt gives all countries an opportunity to start afresh. This then could be the start of bridging the gap between the wealthy West and the poor South. The creation of a new world order where there is no suffering and the right to live is not questioned, but encouraged, the way it should be.

The Causes Of World War I Essays - Causes Of World War I

The Causes Of World War I Essays - Causes Of World War I The Causes of World War I The First World War had many causes; the historians probably have not yet discovered and discussed all of them so there might be more causes than what we know now. The spark of the Great War was the assassination of the Archduke Francis Ferdinand, heir to the throne of Austria-Hungary, and his wife by a Serbian nationalist on the morning of June 28, 1914, while traveling in a motorcade through Sarajevo, the capital city of Bosnia and Herzegovina. The Archduke was chosen as a target because Serbians feared that after his ascension to the throne, he would continue the persecution of Serbs living within the Austro-Hungarian Empire. The Serbian terrorist organization, the Black Hand, had trained a small group of teenage operatives to infiltrate Bosnia and carry out the assassination of the Archduke. It is unclear how officially active the Serbian government was in the plot. However, it was uncovered years later that the leader of the Black Hand was also the head of Serbian military intelligence. In order to underezd the complexity of the causes of the war, it is very helpful to know what was the opinion of the contemporaries about the causes of the Great War. In the reprint of the article "What Started the War", from August 17, 1915 issue of The Clock magazine published on the Internet the author writes: "It is thought that this war that is been ongoing for over a year, began with the assassination of the Archduke Francis Ferdinand. However, many other reasons led to this war, some occurring as far back the late 1800's. Nationalism, militarism, imperialism, and the system of alliances were four main factors that pressed the great powers towards this explosive war." According to the article above, the author stresses that the nationalism was one of the primary causes of the war. In the ninetieth and twentieth centuries, especially after the French Revolution nationalism was becoming a powerful force in Europe so people that had the same culture, language wanted their own country. And that was the problem for the government of Austria-Hungary that did not want to lose their power and control. The Slavs in the southern part of the empire were their main concern since they wanted to join up to Serbia. Militarism is the second cause according to the article above, which comes after the nationalism. To underezd what the author means by militarism one should be familiar with the situation of the world in the beginning of the century, which was the result of both industrial and democratic revolutions. Britain at that time was the largest empire in the world, and it also had the largest navy. The navy was so big and strong because the Britons needed to protect their empire and maintain the sea routes between the different colonies. The Kaiser William II of Germany hated and envied Britain for having a stronger navy than his. He increased the German navy and built many warships. Britain responded with building more ships and increasing its navy too. This started a race for building more and better warships and it created tension and competition between those two countries. Imperialism and the system of alliances are the last two major causes of the War. There was a quarrel between France and Germany about controlling the colonies, and especially Morocco, which leads to a greater conflict, the Great War. Europe at that time was divided into two rival alliance systems: Triple Entente that included Great Britain, France, and Russia and the Triple Alliance, which included the Central Powers of Austria-Hungary, Germany, and eventually the Ottoman Turkish Empire. Austria-Hungary must take a large proportion of any blame for the outbreak of war in 1914. The reason for Germany's part in the causes involves Germany's "blank Check" policy. Before sending its ultimatum to Serbia, Austria needed to be sure of the support of its ally, Germany. Such support was forthcoming in the form of a telegram to the Emperor Franz Joseph on 6 July 1914. The telegram has become known to history as the "Blank Check". In order to balance the power, France and Russia signed an alliance. Russia saw itself as the 'protector

law respecting

Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the government for a redress of grievances. Two clauses in the First Amendment guarantee freedom of religion. The establishment clause prohibits the government from passing legislation to establish an official religion or preferring one religion to another. It enforces the "separation of church and state". The free exercise clause prohibits the government, in most instances, from interfering with a person's practice of their religion. In determining weather the a governmental practice is violate the First Amendment Establishment Clause, the Courts have developed the "Lemon Test." The Lemon Test organized in the Court's 1971 Lemon v. Kurtzman, is a three-pronged inquiry: 1) Does the challenged legislation or activities have a legitimate secular purpose? 2) Does the legislation or activity have a primary effect that neither advances nor inhibits religion? and 3) Does the legislation or activity excessively entangle government with religion? Several cases that demonstrate the use of the Lemon Test are Zobrest v. Catalina Foothills School District argued February 24, 1993 Decided June 18, 1993. The issued raised was whether the State may refuse to pay for a deaf child's sign language interpreter in a parochial school. The school district has successfully argued in the U.S. District Court and in the U.S. Court of Appeals (9th Circuit) that permitting a government-funded interpreter to work in a Catholic school would have the primary effect of advancing religion by constituting public aid to a religious institution, which violates the effects prong of the Lemon test. It was also held that paying for the sign language interpreter in a Catholic school would create, in the eyes of Zobrest's Cath

Constructive Criticism vs Disciplinary Actions on a Nursing Unit Essay

Constructive Criticism vs Disciplinary Actions on a Nursing Unit - Essay Example On the other hand, disciplinary actions are means of dealing with unfavorable job-related behavior, especially those which do not meet with work and performance standards (US Legal, 2012). The primary purpose of these actions is to support the employee in understanding that performance issues for improvement exist. It is basically a way of imposing discipline for the employees (Hessler and Humphreys, 2008). While constructive criticisms provide a means for the employee to re-evaluate his actions and further improve on these, disciplinary actions are imposed punishment for failing to live up to the standards of the practice (Kennedy, 2006). Constructive criticism is more palatable for employees who can choose to consider the criticism as a means of improving their practice; however disciplinary actions are mostly met with disfavor due to its final and imposing nature on the work of employees (Hendren, 2011). B. What are likely outcomes to delivered action? 1. In order to deliver the n ecessary actions while still retaining employee productivity, it is important to first identify the unacceptable action, specifically indicating what the staff member is doing or is failing to do well (Hendren, 2011). The focus in effect is in the action, not the behavior or his personality. Specifying what the employee did wrong is also an essential part of achieving the best outcomes in establishing constructive criticism (Nursing Times, 2007). It is also important to explain the outcome, which behavior is not acceptable and how the action negatively impacts on productivity and on patient outcomes. Descriptive terms must also be used in order to establish how the behavior is wrong and how such behavior can be changed (Nursing Times, 2007). The expectations must also be indicated and clearly established from the very start. The employee must know what behavior is unacceptable and the various actions which can be applied to improve behavior. 2. Personal feelings must also be set asi de when giving constructive criticism. There are various outcomes to delivered action and for employees, their actions may produce unfavorable or favorable outcomes (Nursing Times, 2007). In giving feedback to employees, personal and subjective opinions have to be set aside (Clynes and Raftery, 2008). Saying to the employee that they are â€Å"useless† is an unnecessary comment and achieves nothing except feelings of discontent in the employee. It degrades the employee and makes his performance even worse (Nursing Times, 2007). Instead, the focus of the criticism must be on the activity, what was not done, what was done well, and what the criticism would be expected to achieve. The criticism must also be clear and concise, as well as professional, indicating positive feedback with information on how to improve actions and performance (Hendren, 2011). Asking the employee how he feels about his performance is a means of achieving improved outcomes and constructive benefits for the overall nursing profession. The manner of giving the feedback must focus on the problem, not the individual (Hendren, 2011). It must be direct and not contain any mixed and confusing elements. It must also be given in person and in private, preventing any embarrassment for individuals involved. The employee should also be involved in the discussion, allowing him to express his issues with his work, and inquiring about his coping skills and difficulties (Nursing Times,

Emotional intelligece Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Emotional intelligece - Research Paper Example In order to attain high level of emotional intelligence, one is required to firstly, recognize their emotions. Managing one’s emotions help in avoiding conflicts and embarrassing other people. For example, when a person says something wrong in a meeting, you only need to correct them after the meeting, but not when the meeting is on session. Secondly, one needs to manage their emotions. This helps you communicate effectively with colleagues in a clear manner without creating any misunderstanding. Thirdly, you need to recognize other people emotions. This way, you are able to avoid any conflicts that could have occurred and it helps in maintaining personal and group peace. Lastly, one needs to effectively respond to others emotions. By doing so, you make other experience a sense of belonging in any company. Also, in order to improve emotional intelligence, one needs to be empathetic, have self-regulation, motivate others and be aware of himself or herself.   Working with lead ers of different emotional intelligence from that of his or her employees would be a challenge. However, this is achievable through acquiring skills that will improve the relationship. Such skills include understanding and observing the way they react to other people, understanding their environment, performing personal evaluation, cross examining the way they react to stressing conditions, being responsible of their actions and understanding the way their actions affect others.

Analysis on Team Dynamics Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Analysis on Team Dynamics - Essay Example Self managed teams are known to operate in a much effective and efficient manner and their productivity levels are even quite high. This is because when trust is bestowed upon employees, they end up learning at a higher rate and they tend to correct their mistakes and face issues on their own instead of depending on a manager to correct them in their operations. One of the major benefits that self managed team is that such teams are able to identify new ways of performing or attaining targets. Since, these teams are not being lead or are not being provided with the objective of attaining targets, members of these teams tend to come up with their own ideas of performing a particular job which can result in methods that are much effective as well as efficient. A major issue with these teams is that they may end up applying methods to work that may result in heavy losses since they implement trial and error method to figure out new ways to perform tasks. A major disadvantage of a manager controlled team is that in such teams decisions are mostly made by the managers and a manager who is directing such teams may not get the time to work on other important tasks. Mistakes and costs in manager lead teams are quite infrequent as they tend to use methods of operations that have already been tries and tested. Different members in a team are awarded with different roles and these roles contribute to the successful operations of a team. According to Belbin’s Team Role Theory, a team requires a Monitor Evaluator in order make contributions that are unbiased in nature and to analyze different solutions available to a team with a neutral mindset (Utley 284). Another role identified is that of an implementer, an implementer is necessary in a self directed team in order to identify a way to implement the strategy that was created by the team. The role of a shaper is even quite necessary in a particular team to ensure that all team members are focused on the target at hand

The Last Supper by Leonardo Da Vinci Essay Example for Free

The Last Supper by Leonardo Da Vinci Essay The Renaissance, which took place in the fifteenth century, was an important time for artist. For many years, art had not played a significant role in the lives of individuals. Instead they had worked hard and worshiped a god that they felt was out to destroy them. Then came the Renaissance when art was reborn and wisdom was encouraged. Artist began to experiment with new techniques and materials. Many of the creative people of the day looked at their subjects in a different way. They wanted them to look realistic instead of the stiff figures in earlier works. Leonardo Da Vinci, a true Renaissance man, was no exception. The Last Supper was one of his most famous works and embodied the characteristics of the Italian Renaissance. The Renaissance movement followed the Gothic art of the Middle Ages, also known as The Dark Ages. After the lack of learning of the Middle Ages there was a complete turnabout in the Renaissance. It was as if there was a burst of enthusiasm for learning and experimenting with every new idea that artist could fathom. There was no shortage of patrons to support these skilled and talented individuals of the art world. There was a renewed interest in the ancient Greek and Roman art and architecture. It seemed to those whose art was produced in the Renaissance felt that it was more beneficial to study the works of the ancients instead of the previous period. In ancient Greece and Rome, there was a keen interest in the human being. They felt that mankind was the most interesting subject for an artist. Man was complex and there was always something to be learned about him. In an attempt to present man in the way that he had never been before, the artist of the Renaissance period delved into the practice of experimenting with perspective. It was only through painting a three dimensional figure that man could be seen as the complex being that he was. In order to make a figure seem more than one dimensional, chiaroscuro, or the use of light and dark to create depth. Duke Ludovico Sforza was a patron of Da Vinci. He commissioned him to paint the mural of The Last Supper on the wall of his dining hall. He accepted the commission and began his work in fourteen ninety-five. As was true to Da Vinci’s nature, he wanted to experiment with new materials. He covered the wall with a sealant, gesso, and then painted the mural with tempura paint. Like many experiments, this one proved to be unsuccessful. While the painting was a masterpiece, it did not hold up well and it was not long after he finished in fourteen ninety-eight that the painting was already showing signs of deterioration. The mural has been restored many times over the centuries and has now recently been restored to what is hoped to be an accurate one. However, it was a difficult task since not all of the ones who tried to restore it had the same objective as leaving in its original form. The painting itself is of the Passover that Jesus spent with his twelve disciples just before his arrest and crucifixion, later known as The Last Supper. Religious subjects were quite popular in Italian society because Italy was the center of the Roman Catholic Church. In this painting Jesus has just informed his disciples that one of them would betray him. This shocked and confused his disciples because they wondered how one of the twelve could go against the man they had given up everything for, who was the one who would commit such a vile act, and would the culprit be them. The look of surprise and disdain is on their faces. Jesus is placed at the center of the painting and then he is flanked on each side by six of the disciples. This creates a balance to the stark room, which is the setting of the last meal that Jesus would share with his original twelve disciples. Judas is just to the left of Jesus and is holding his finger in a way that would suggest he is being challenged. The others are discussing the situation amongst themselves. The disciple to the right of Jesus has been the center of discussion lately with the popularity of the book and movie The Da Vinci Code. The disciple of all of the focus is John, the one who was the â€Å"beloved† disciple. Da Vinci painted him to look extremely feminine. Dan Brown questioned the identity of this figure. He suggested that instead of John, the identity was Mary Magdalene. Perhaps Brown was right, but it also makes sense that Da Vinci actually meant for the figure to be John. John was the youngest of the disciples and he could have emphasized his youth by purposely painting him in a feminine light to stress his youth. The setting of the painting is the upper room of the Passover meal. The room is dark and stark. Da Vinci brings light to the painting by using light and vivid colors for the clothing of the disciples. Light blue is the predominant color with pink, green, and yellow used as complimentary colors. The viewer’s eye is automatically drawn to the center of the painting which is Jesus, but is shortly drawn out in both directions because the colors seem to elongate the view. Jesus and the disciples have a multi dimensional appearance as was popular during the Renaissance. However, they were not accurate in the sense that they appear European. These men were Israelites and their complexions and hair would have been much darker than they appear in the painting. This is also a trait of Renaissance art. The artist tended to make their biblical subjects look like the artist. Leonardo Da Vinci and his painting, The Last Supper, are typical examples of the Renaissance movement. His courage to experiment and yet still focus on religious themes that were popular at that time was enhanced by his superior artistic talent.