Thursday, October 31, 2019

Hypovolemic shock and blood transfusion intervention Essay

Hypovolemic shock and blood transfusion intervention - Essay Example This research presented typical features of hypovolaemic shock, primarily developing from chronic alcoholism. The patient earlier episodes of epigastric pain and upper GI bleeds and was treated for the same by antiemetic drugs and antacids. Following that episode he was advised against drinking and smoking. In this event, Mr. Z developed nausea 48 hours before the haemetemesis. During the haemetemesis episode he vomited blood 5 times, containing blood coffee brown in colour and from the upper GI. In this case, the rationale for giving blood was that the patient’s haemoglobin levels were only slightly above normal, the blood loss was severe, and the patient’s condition was perceived to be serious. The physicians in this case had to make a close decision, as if the symptoms and the vital sign (especially blood pressure) could be managed effectively, blood transfusion was not needed. The criteria for blood transfusion are made based on general criteria and not the manageme nt or care setting for the particular patient. For example, if the patient is managed in the ICU, there is oxygen and respiration is taken care of and hence, anaemia may not be a serious issue that the patient has to cope with. Hence, the care settings have an important role to play. The most important criteria for transfusing blood for an ICU patient are whether the patient is hemodynamically stable or not. If the patient cannot be maintained properly in a hemodynamic state (even though the blood loss was minimum), then blood transfusion is needed. Haemoglobin is critical in ensuring oxygen supply to the vital organs and the tissues of the body. However, if the patient can be maintained hemodynamically stable (even though the blood loss was severe) and the haemoglobin levels is below 7 g/dl, the vital signs are seriously affected, then the patient has to be suggested for blood transfusion. In this case, it would be likely that blood transfusion was given as a precautionary measure although in the current care settings, stability of the vital signs and haemoglobin level it would not be necessary. Besides, the fact that the patient was currently in the ICU was not taken into consideration, and it is important that this fact be taken into consideration. The blood pack has been administered slowly over 3 hour duration (as per the mentioned in the case), and any risk of adverse effects were monitored. Though no urticaria and erythema were noticed, there has been a slight improvement in the patient’s blood pressure levels, APTT, Haemoglobin levels, heart rate and respiratory rate. However, there is not much improvement in other important components such as blood pressure, pulse, breathes rate and haemoglobin (Veenema, 2007). Ethically and legally, consent was obtained orally and carefully documented. The patient should be competent to give consent and only if the patient’s condition is such he is in a position to give consent, should consent be taken. There was also a need to ensure

Tuesday, October 29, 2019

Should I study accounting (I will say agree and should give reason.) Essay

Should I study accounting (I will say agree and should give reason.) - Essay Example Here the word value means in the monetary terms and also in the behavioral terms. An accountant is a respected person in all the businesses and the organizations. Many authors have listed several reason and advantages to study accountancy as the major subject. The future of an accountant is always secure regarding economic and monetary terms and conditions. The on-job promotions always give an open opportunity for growth and development of any individual and for an accountant there is a variety of promotions during their job trainings. The accountant may be offered a handsome salary package just because of his major studies and the skills and abilities, which he may possess after completing the accounting major. As I am interested in doing my own business, accountancy will also help me regarding all the techniques of the installing and then running any business. Accountancy major actually teaches the tips and tricks to handle or to govern the business in a proper and true direction, hence I chose accounting as my major. Firstly, I want to say that accounting is a field having a wide scope in many areas of the life or in professional terms we can say in many businesses accounting can be compensated. I am completely satisfied with accounting field and want to continue with it. There are many reasons behind my decision regarding the selection of accounting subject as my major. I am very easy at playing with numbers. From my early educational life, I am always attracted towards mathematical subjects and or we can say numbers and counting. Due to my interest and affiliation with the subject, I decided to take accounting as my major subject. Now at this point of time in my educational career, I must appreciate my decision of taking accounting as a major. This profession does not limit a person to a single line of business but has its roots to the personal finance management as well (Chavez 1981). Another reason for the

Sunday, October 27, 2019

The Characteristics of Foreign Exchange markets

The Characteristics of Foreign Exchange markets Foreign exchange refers to money denominated in the currency of another nation or group of nations. Foreign exchange can be cash, bank deposits or other short-term claims. But in the foreign exchange market as the network of major foreign exchange dealers engaged in high-volume trading, foreign exchange almost always take the form of an exchange of bank deposits of different national currency denominations. Market Characteristics The foreign exchange market place is a twenty-four hour market with exchange rates and market conditions changing constantly. However, foreign exchange activity does not flow evenly. Over the course of a day, there is a cycle characterized by periods of very heavy activity and other periods or relatively light activity. Business is most heavy when two or more market places are active at the same time such as Asia and Europe or Europe and America. Give this uneven flow of business around the clock, market participants often will respond less aggressively to an exchange rate development that occurs at a relative inactive time of day, and will wait to see whether the development is confirmed when the major markets open. Nonetheless, the twenty-four hour market does provide a continuous real-time market assessment of the currencies values. The market consists of a limited number of major dealer institutions that are particularly active in foreign exchange, trading with customers and (more often) with each other. Most, but not all, are commercial banks and investment banks. The institutions are linked each other through telephones, computers and other electronic means. There are estimated 2,000 dealer institutions in the world, making up the global exchange market. Each nations market has its own infrastructure. For foreign exchange market operations as well as for other matters, each country enforces its own laws, banking regulations, accounting rules, and tax codes. They also have different national financial systems and infrastructures through which transactions are executed and within the currencies are held. With access to all of the foreign exchange markets generally open to participants from all countries, and with its vast amounts of market information transmitted simultaneously and almost instantly to dealers throughout the world, there is an enormous amount of cross-border foreign exchange trading amongst dealers as well as between dealers and their customers. At any moment, the exchange rates of major currencies tend to be virtually identical in all of the financial centers. Rarely are there such substantial price differences among these centers as to provide major opportunities for arbitrage. Over-the-Counter vs. Exchange-Traded Segment There are generally two different market segments within the foreign exchange market: over-the-counter (OTC) and exchange-trade. In the OTC market, banks indifferent locations make deals via telephone or computer systems. The market is largely unregulated. Thus, a bank in a country such the USA does not need any special authority to trade or deal in foreign exchange. Transactions can be carried out on whatever terms and with whatever provisions are permitted by law and acceptable to the two counter-parties, subject to the standard commercial law governing business transactions in the respective countries. However, there are best practice recommendations such from the Federal Reserve Bank of New York with respects to trading activities, relationships, and other matters. Trading practices on the organized exchanges and the regulatory arrangements covering the exchanges, are markedly different from those in the OTC market. In the exchange, trading takes place publicly in a centralized location and products are standardized. There are margin payments, daily marking to market, and a cash settlement through a central clearinghouse. With respects to regulations in the USA, exchanges at which currency futures are traded are under the jurisdiction of the Commodity Futures Trading Corporation (CFTC). Steps are being taken internationally to harmonize trade regulations and to improve the risk management practices of dealers in the foreign exchange market and to encourage greater transparency and disclosure. The various parties involved Today, commercial banks and investment banks serve as the major dealers by executing transactions and providing foreign exchange services. Some, but not all, are market makers, that regularly quote both bids and offers for one ore more particular currencies thus standing ready to make a two-sided market for its customers. Dealers also trade foreign exchange as part of the banks proprietary trading activities, where the firms own capital is put at risk on various strategies. A proprietary trader is looking for a larger profit margin based on a directional view about a currency, volatility, an interest rate that is about to change, a trend or a major policy move. . Payment and Settlement Systems Executing a foreign exchange transaction requires two transfers of money value, in opposite directions, since it involves the exchange of one national currency for another. Execution of the transaction engages the payment and settlement systems of both nations. Payment is the transmission of an instruction to transfer value that results from a transaction in the economy, and settlement is the final and unconditional transfer of the value specified in a payment instruction. The foreign exchange instruments Spot: A spot transaction is a straight forward (or outright) exchange of one currency for another. The sport rate is the current market price, the benchmark price. Outright Forwards: An outright forward transaction is a straight forward single purchase/sale of one currency for another, that is settled on a day pre-arranged date three or more business days after the deal date. FX Swaps: In the FX swap market, one currency is swapped for another for a period of time, and then swapped back, creating an exchange and re-exchange. Currency swaps: In a typical currency swap, counter-parties will (i) exchange equal initial principle amounts of two currencies at the spot exchange rate, (ii) exchange a stream of fixed or floating interest rate payments in their swapped currencies for the agreed period of the swap and then (iii) re-exchange the principle amount at maturity at the initial spot exchange rate. Direct and Indirect Quotation for Exchange Rates Purpose: This component enables you to manage exchange rates for each currency pair using direct or indirect quotation. The type of quotation used is dependent on the market standard. You can define the type of quotation per client and currency pair (business transaction). Indirect quotation has not been required until now, because direct quotation was usually used for exchange rates. With the start of the dual currency phase of the European Monetary Union (EMU), indirect quotation is now used within Europe for exchange rates with the euro. Indirect quotation is also becoming more widely accepted internationally. Until now, there were many limitations involved in processing indirect exchange rates. Direct quotation is where the cost of one unit of foreign currency is given in units of local currency, whereas indirect quotation is where the cost of one unit of local currency is given in units of foreign currency. Your local currency is GBP: Direct exchange rate: 1USD = 0.6464 GBP Indirect exchange rate: 1GBP = 1.5470 USD Direct or indirect quotation can be maintained as the standard form of quotation for a certain currency pair. You use: 1 for direct quotation 2 for indirect quotation If a standard form of quotation has not been specified for a currency pair, the system automatically uses direct quotation. Foreign currency options: A foreign exchange or currency option contract gives the buyer the right, but not the obligation, to buy/sell a specified amount of one currency for another at a specified price on a specified date. That differs from a forward contract, in which the parties are obligated to execute the transaction on the maturity date. An OTC foreign exchange option is a bilateral contract between two parties. In contrast to the exchange-traded options market, in the OTC market, no clearing-house stands between the two parties, and there is no regulatory body establishing trading rules. Trade mechanics Dealer institutions trade with each other in two basic ways: direct dealing and through a brokers market. The mechanics of the two approaches are quite different, and both have been changed by technological advances in recent years. Direct Dealing: Each of the major market makers shows a running list of its main bid and offer rates that is, the prices at which it will buy and sell the major currencies, spot and forward and those rates are displayed to all market participants on their computer screens. The dealer shows his prices for the base currency expressed in amounts of the terms currency. Although the screens are updated regularly throughout the day, the rates are only indicative-to get a firm price, a trader or customer must contact the bank directly. A trader can contact a market maker to ask for a two-way quote for a particular currency. Theories of Fund Flow Fund flow is usually measured on a monthly or quarterly basis.  The performance of an asset or fund is not taken into account, only share redemptions (outflows) and share purchases (inflows).   Net inflows create excess cash for managers to invest, which theoretically creates demand for securities such as stocks and bonds.  Ã‚   Law of one price The law of one price is another way of stating the concept of purchasing power parity. The law of one price exists due to arbitrage opportunities. If the price of a security, commodity or asset is different in two different markets, then an arbitrageur will purchase  the asset in the cheaper market and sell it where prices are higher. When the purchasing power parity doesnt hold, arbitrage profits will persist until the price converges across markets. Foreign exchange risk exposure : We can define exposure as the sensitivity real home currency value of an asset, liability or an operating income to an unknown change in the exchange rate, moreover foreign exchange risk means variabilty of the domestic currency values of assets, liabilities operating income due to unknown changes in exchange rate. The foreign exchange business is by nature risky because it deals primarily in risk measuring it, pricing it, accepting it when appropriate managing it. Market Risk: Market risk, in simple terms, is price risk, or exposure to adverse price change. For a dealer in foreign exchange, two major elements of market risk are exchange risk and interest rate risk. Exchange rate risk is inherent in foreign exchange trading. Interest rate risk arises when there is any mismatching or gap in the maturity structure. Thus, an uncovered outright forward position can change in value, not only because of a change in spot rate but also because of a change in interest rates, since a forward rate reflects interest rate differential between the two currencies. Credit Risk: Credit risk arises from the possibility that the counter-party to a contract cannot or will not make the agreed payment at maturity. In foreign exchange trading, banks have long been accustomed to dealing with the broad and pervasive problem of credit risk. Know your customer is a cardinal rule and credit limits or dealing limits are set for each counter-party and adjusted in response to changes in financial circumstances. Over the past decade or so, banks have become willing to consider margin trading when a client requires a dealing limit larger than the banks is prepared to provide. Under this arrangement, the client places a certain amount of collateral with the bank and can then trade much larger amounts. Other Risks: Numerous other forms of risks can be involved in the foreign exchange trading, such as liquidity risk, legal risk and operational risk. The latter is the risk of losses from inadequate systems, human error, or lack of proper oversight policies and procedures and management control. Interest rate swap and currency swap: Interest rate swaps: This type of swaps are derivatives as the the underlying asset is not exchanged in the trancation. It is an agreement in which two parties exchange interest payments of differing nature on an imaginary amount of principal for a defined time span. Actually, it is an exchange of different cash flows; one generated by a fixed interest rate on a sum, the other by a floating interest rate on the same sum. For instance, a party (such as a depository institute) that earns a steady stream of income may prefer one which matches (fluctuates with) the market interest rates. It may agree to exchange its interest income on a certain sum (say ten million dollars of principal) for a certain period (say one year) with another party (such as a mutual fund) which earns a fluctuating interest income but prefers a steady one. Currency swap: An agreement between two parties to exchange  interest  payments and principal on loans denominated in two different currencies. In a cross currency swap, a loans interest payments and principal in one currency would be exchanged for an equal valued loan and interest payments in a different currency. Different Types of Foreign currency option: Arrangement in which a party acquires (upon payment of a fee) the right but not the obligation to buy or sell a specified amount of a currency on a fixed date and at a fixed rate. Such options are used usually by importers as a hedge against exchange rate fluctuations. See also foreign exchange contract. Call Option: The call options give the buyer the right, but not the obligation, to buy the underlying shares at a predetermined price, on or before a determined date. Put Option: A Put Option gives the holder the right to sell a specified number of shares of an underlying security at a fixed price for a period of time. Knock-Out Options: These are like standard options except that they extinguish or cease to exist if the underlying market reaches a pre-determined level during the life of the option. The knockout component generally makes them cheaper than a standard Call or Put. Knock-in Options These options are the reverse of knockout options because they dont come into existence until the underlying market reaches a certain pre-determined level, at this time a Call or Put option comes into life and takes on all the usual characteristics. Average Rate Options The options have their strikes determined by an averaging process, for example at the end of every month. The profit or loss is determined by the difference between the calculated strike and the underlying market at expiry. Basket Options A basket option has all the characteristics of a standard option, except that the strike price is based on the weighted value of the component currencies, calculated in the buyers base currency. The buyer stipulates the maturity of the option, the foreign currency amounts which make up the basket, and the strike price, which is expressed in units of the base currency. Difference between a call and a put option : The main diffenence in writing a put option and buying a call option is that they both are opposite to each other an elaboration of a put and call option will diffenciate clearly. An inverstor who writes a call option sees the future price of the underlying asser will go up and they will be able to get profit from this investment. An investor who buy put options believe the price of the underlying asset will go down and they will be able to purchase another option on the same asset for reselling at a price lower than the current exercise price. Put Option : Because put options vest the buyer with the right to sell stock at a pre-determined price, these option contracts are frequently used to protected stock holdings from losses in the event of a market decline.   Much like insurance, a stock investor can pay a premium and purchase a put option to protect his holdings.   In the event of a market downturn, he may sell the put option at an increased value to offset any losses or the option may be exercised, and the stock sold, at what would be above market prices. Call option : A call option, often it is simply labeled a call, is a financial contract between two parties, the buyer and the seller of this type of option. The buyer of the call option has the right, but not the obligation to buy an agreed quantity of a particular commodity or financial instrument (the underlying) from the seller of the option at a certain time (the expiration date) for a certain price (the strike price). The seller (or writer) is obligated to sell the commodity or financial instrument should the buyer so decide. The buyer pays a fee (called a premium) for this right. Why are the premiums different with the same contact specifications but different trading dates: The premium is the amount that is offered to the contactor for taking the risk while making a forwad, future or options contract as the investor is making his/her investment safe the contractor is exposed to risk so he/she might charged an amount called premium. The reason that the contract might have different premium amount with the same specifications is that the risk of currency appriciation or depriciation or the maturity of the contract, foir instance if the contract is one month long the premium might be low as the contract time is less and more accurate predictoins can be made by the contractor but if the maturity date is too long it will be difficult for the contractor to predict the future or will be difficult for him to manage his/her own risk do he/she might charge more premium for the transaction. Deep in the money : An option with an exercise price, or strike price, significantly below (for a call option) or above (for a put option) the market price of the underlying asset. Significantly, below/above is considered one strike price below/above the market price of the underlying asset.  For example, if the current price of the underlying stock was $10, a call option with a strike price of $5 would be considered deep in the money. Many option traders (both professionals and individual investors) will exercise, as they have the right, an expiring option that is in-the-money by any amount, even though this amount may be less than OCCs thresholds for automatic exercise. Therefore, you might anticipate assignment on any in-the-money option at expiration. An option is  in-the-money if it has positive intrinsic value that is, if the holder would profit from exercising it. In terms of strike price, a call is in-the-money if the exercise price is below the underlying stocks spot price. A put is in-the -money if the exercise price is above the stocks spot price. If GBP would depreciate against the dollar a call or put option would have been better for a British exporter If the GBP would depreciate against the dollar a call option will be beneficial for a British exporter as he is carrying transactions in dollar and he can buy GBP on low price at the future date and when it appreciates he can again write a put put option to get the benefit

Friday, October 25, 2019

Cervical Cancer: The Best Form of Prevention Is To Be Informed And Awar

Cervical cancer is the second most common cancer among women and the leading cause of death among women in underdeveloped countries. In fact, 500,000 cases are diagnosed each year worldwide. This particular cancer is found mainly in middle-aged to older women; it is very rare to find it in women age fifteen and younger. The average age of women with cervical cancer is age 50-55; however, the cancer begins to appear in women in their twenties (2). It is also found in women of lower-class areas, as they are not able to see a gynecologist to be screened. African American, Hispanic, and Native American women are more prone to developing cervical cancer as well (1). The cervix is an organ in the female reproductive system; it is the entrance to the uterus. Cancer of the cervix develops in the lining of the cervix. The normal cells go through abnormal changes and become precancerous cells. These changes are called Cervical Intraepithelial Neoplasia (CIN). CIN is categorized as low grade and high grade. It progresses to one of two conditions: (a) Squamos Intraepithelial Lesion (SIL) which leads to invasive cervical cancer, or (b) Carcinoma in Situ which is non-invasive, or localized, cervical cancer (1). The causes of cervical cancer are unknown. However, scientists believe that there is a link between two kinds of Human Papallomavirus (HPV) and the cancer. HPV is a group of 100 different viruses. Some types of HPV cause warts and are considered "low-risk" when discussing causes of cervical cancer. However, other types of HPV cause precancerous conditions, resulting in different types of genital cancers, and is therefore considered "high-risk" (1). HPV is a sexually transmitted disease and it is extremely contagious. Recent resear... ...t like everyone else. Here is the unsettling part: Had I skipped that Pap smear during my sophomore year, I would have had invasive cervical cancer within a year and would have had to undergo chemotherapy. So once again, and I cannot stress this enough, the best form of prevention of cervical cancer is to be informed and aware. If you are a woman age 18 or older, whether you are sexually active or not, go see a gynecologist. References 1)Oncology Channel http://www.oncologychannel.com/cervicalcancer/ 2)American Cancer Society: Do We Know What Causes Cervical Cancer? http://www.cancer.org/docroot/cri/content/cri_2_4_2x_do_we_know_what_causes_cervical_cancer_8.asp?sitearea=ped 3)BestDoctor.com: Pap Smears http://www.bestdoctors.com/en/askadoctor/b/buchi/wbuchi_100300_q3.htm 4)Cervical Dysplasia Causes http://cervical-dysplasia-causes.com/

Thursday, October 24, 2019

Importance of Scientific and Technological Development in China

Countries are defined by a lot of factors, which include its geography, demography, technology, economy and military power. Whichever country is superior in all aspects gets to be described as one of the most powerful countries in the world, like America, the British Empire, and Soviet Union, for example. In the history of the world, these mentioned countries were known as superpowers and were capable of influencing other countries in major ways. In recent years, though, there is another country that is slowly on its path on having such a title as well. This country is China.China is a very famous country not only because it is one of the largest and most populated countries in the world but also because it is one of the four ancient civilizations of the world. In terms of technology in the ancient world, China was probably not far behind. After all, China was to the ancient world like America is to the rest of the world today. And in the present 21st century, China is starting to pr ogress again as it continues to improve its technology. After all, technological development can produce a better environment for the people of a country since it could make them happier and have good, satisfying lives (Spring 119).And truthfully, technology is one of the key factors for a country to be called successful or powerful. Whoever has the advanced technology is capable of holding the world in its grip. And since this paper is about the importance of scientific and technological development in China, then it is only proper to discuss first how the science and technology of China developed from the early times to the present. Anyway, China is an emerging power that given probably a decade or so, at least, will be able to compete with America on equal footing. And that statement is not an unfounded assumption.After all, there are now books like China: Friend or Foe by Hugo de Burgh (2006) and China, Inc. : How the Rise of the Next Superpower Challenges America and the World by Ted C. Fishman (2006) that fully discuss and explain the facts behind that assumption. Importance of Science and Technology in China Pre-Imperial China China’s science and technology had been booming since the fourth century BC1. According to David Wright in his book The History of China, pre-modern China, which was 1840 and earlier, already had advanced technology in the aspects of engineering, agriculture, and warfare, to name a few.Apparently, there were a lot of inventions, discoveries and innovations that the Chinese already made years before the Western world did the same thing. For example, in agriculture, the Chinese were the first to develop the trace harness. This was a very important agricultural invention, since prior to its invention, the farm animals that were used to plow the fields were harnessed around their throats and stomachs. (40) Of course, one can only imagine the pain those animals must have gone through.Not only would such a painful experience crea te an uncooperative attitude for the animal, but it probably could choke the animal if it carries a heavy load. With the trace harness, a yoke was placed â€Å"†¦across the animal’s chest from which traces or shafts connected it to a carriage. 1† He adds that it was only nine hundred years later that medieval Europe harnessed farm animals in the same way. At around the same time, the Chinese also did straight-line cropping, which was only practiced by Europeans in the 18th century AD, and in the sixth century BC, started using an iron plow.In medicine, the Chinese already understood that the blood circulates around the body and that it is pumped by the heart around the second century BC. This knowledge was obtained by the Arabs who later spread it to Europe. Also two centuries earlier, they were already using natural gas as a means for heating. They were even able to transport and store it after a few innovations. And even more amazing is the fact that around the same time, someone in China already thought of the first law of Newton and defined a circle properly as shown by Mo-ist writings (Wright, 41).Then, in 14th century BC, they were already using the decimal system and already understood and used the concept of a zero. The compass and crossbow also came from the Chinese. In addition, they were also the first ones to use chemical and poison gas as weapons in battle (Wright, 42). Early Imperial China During early imperial China, around 221 BC to AD 589, technological innovations in China did not cease. The Chinese were probably the first ones to use the power of rivers and streams and the waterwheel to produce power (Wright, 64). The fact that they already had this technology during that time is already amazing.Then add the fact that they actually used this to power huge bellows for iron-casting (Wright, 64). When I imagine the movies I watch were there are medieval blacksmiths, all I can visualize are the smiths themselves or their assis tants doing the bellows work. The Chinese were also the first ones to use suspension bridges. It wasn’t really a flat passage then because the â€Å"bridge followed the curved contours of the suspended rope. † (Wright, 64) But later, the Chinese were able to remedy this after their invention and use of iron-chain suspension techniques1.Then, when they first invented paper, the first kind they made were so durable, rough and hard it was not only used for writing but also for clothing, light armor, mosquito nets, and curtains (Wright 65). They were also the first ones to develop the stirrups for horses in third century AD (Wright 65) and invent and use a seismograph (Wright 66). The seismograph did not really measure the intensity of an earthquake but it could provide the direction which helped the government officials to efficiently provide help to the affected area. The Chinese were already hang gliding and using parachutes long before da Vinci sketched his design of o ne.There were actual recorded events that the Chinese really did so like an emperor requiring prisoners to jump from unbound kites or an instance of a Chinese jumping from a height and landing safely with the use of â€Å"several large conical straw hats tied together to his body† as written by the Chinese historian Sima Qian (Wright 66). Middle and Late Imperial China According to Wright, the technological ingenuity of the Chinese ceased after Mongol conquest. However, it was also during this time that the Chinese invented and perfected one of the most important inventions that had a great impact to the world, the gunpowder.The effect of this invention is an undeniable fact and further discussion on it will be made later in the paper. Then, the Chinese also were the first to print books, but not printing itself, via woodblock printing and invent the first movable type printing. They did the latter around 1040s, four hundred years earlier than Gutenberg’s invention, bu t did not make further efforts on it since it was impractical to use due to the thousand individual characters present in the Chinese writing. Then, they also made the first working mechanical clock and Mercator map projections (Wright 96).In addition, the Chinese made the first vaccines against smallpox and the first phosphorescent paintings (Wright 97). Spread of the science and technology outside China From the study of world history, one can determine that there are a number of factors responsible for how a certain country is today. For example, trade between people and countries in the early times were an important source not only of livelihood but also of science and technology. Knowledge, customs and cultures can also be spread to a certain area of the world via, ironically, war or conquests and religious activity.For a number of the inventions and innovations of the Chinese, some were spread to other parts of the world, both intentionally and unintentionally, probably by tra ding with other people and war. For example, despite efforts of the Chinese to prohibit its spread, the crossbow and secret of papermaking still spread anyway. Especially, the papermaking techniques, which was said to have been guarded by the Chinese for centuries, were supposedly shared to the Arabs when those who knew it became prisoners after the Tang dynasty were defeated by Arab armies (Wright 65).Then, there are the stirrups that were probably shared with Westerners by the Avars, whom the Chinese also knew (Wright 66). For the most part, it was revealed that Europe, the Arabs and the countries near China, Korea and Japan, were the beneficiaries of the science and technology of China. For example, for Europe, it was probably because it was then the superpower of the world. From world history, up until World War II, Europe had a lot of Asian colonies and having read parts of the history of China, it can be seen that Europe was interested in China as well.After all, it repeatedly tried to have both a friendly and not-so-friendly relationship with China. As for the Arabs, they were basically known to be desert nomads and thus it is not impossible for them to have been to China and traded with them. And since there also came a point in Arabic history that they were able to build their own dynasty that spread by conquering in Asia, they must have been to China as well and tried to conquer parts of it. And of course, Korea and Japan are just neighboring countries of China. Eighteenth century to the present ChinaUnfortunately, I was unable to find more technological inventions or innovations that the Chinese have made during this time. As Bodde mentions in his book, it is indeed puzzling that the Chinese did not have the same scientific and technological revolution that really changed Europe and the rest of the Western world (3). After all, the Chinese did have a civilization that had existed for so long and produced so many useful inventions and technology that are actually the groundwork of today’s advancing science and technology way before the Westerners did.To think that if the Chinese continued on with their work, it is interesting to think where they would be at this point in time. Would they be the superpower instead of America? But as Bodde writes, such decline may have something to do with the mindset of the Chinese during that time. After all, the Chinese do adhere to their Confucian beliefs which are opposed to war and competition (3). Then, there’s also the Taoist distrust of innovative technology (4). The social aspect was probably partly a reason for the decline.Or maybe, as Bodde said, the Chinese recognized the hazards of an advanced technology (4). After all, technology is like a double-edged sword. It is capable of defending one’s self and at the same time attacking others. Technology can help man have an easier life but it could also be used for his destruction. One of China’s most important inventions: Gunpowder Speaking of technology that had been used both for the good and bad of mankind, we’ll now talk about gunpowder.It’s probably weird to say that it was actually used for the good of mankind when it has been primarily and most efficiently used in war. Well, according to Embree, the Chinese weren’t looking for gunpowder when they discovered it during the Tang dynasty. In actuality, they were in search of a pill that could fight aging (849) and prolong life, in short, a form of the fabled elixir of life. The product was able to treat some skin diseases, fevers and ringworm. Its recipe was even included in some pharmacology texts.They called it huoyao, or firedrug, because of its explosive tendencies that led to fire in the alchemists’ laboratories. It was then later used for firecrackers and blasting and thus, its military applications were immediately realized. Conclusion It is ironic that the Taoists, who are known for their practices i n prolonging the lives of its devotees, were the ones who produced the gunpowder which was able to do the exact opposite. As mentioned earlier, its application was mainly in the military that used it to make bombs, grenades and cannons.Earlier designs of cannons used bamboo barrels. But they were probably able to improve it since bronze cannons that date back to 1332 were unearthed and are now at the Chinese History Museum. However, it was also discovered that as early as 1128, metal bombards were already used. Then, gunpowder was also used for its rocket-propelling capabilities which the Chinese used to develop â€Å". . . more than thirty different kinds of fire-arrows designed to rain down on the enemy, explode, and catch everything around on fire. † (Embree 850)The invention of gunpowder did not have as much impact to Chinese society as its introduction to the Western world did. After all, with gunpowder, Europe was able to move out of its medieval era via destroying the frontiers of the feudal castles that ruled it then and establishing a monarchy. This monarchy then further utilized gunpowder to strengthen and stabilize its position in Europe. It was later on innovated and used in guns and artillery and as the years go on in bombs, grenades, and everything else that explodes. But with the Chinese, the gunpowder did not have such an impact, as mentioned.Embree adds that it was because during the Tang dynasty, China was already a united empire and thus did not have feudal castles to destroy like the Europeans. Of course, the Chinese did not want to share the gunpowder and the other things they invented or innovated with it. What country would? However, they were unable to stop its spread. After using it to fend off invaders like the Jurchen from forests in the northeast and the Mongols, the Chinese still lost to them anyway in 1127 and 1234, respectively. Then, the Mongols ruled â€Å". . .China and used gunpowder against the Southern Song, the Jap anese, and kingdoms in Southeast Asia. † (Embree 850) As for the spread of gunpowder to the west, the Arabs are certainly not the ones responsible, even if it appeared suddenly in Italy during the fourteenth century. Embree quotes an article by Lynn White, Jr. titled â€Å"Tibet, India, and Malaya as Sources of Western Medieval Technology. † Although the article does not explicitly mention gunpowder, what he says in his article is a probable explanation of how at least the technology of gunpowder suddenly appeared in Italy.White explains that it might be because of the slave trade in Italy. Since the Muslim slaves were gruff and almost always escaped and due to canonical prohibitions, the Genoese merchants thought of securing slaves from central Asia and made it the main source of slaves. It is not impossible for the Genoese merchants to do this since they are known to have been the first Europeans to have traded with the Mongolians, Russians and the Chinese (Embree 853 ). In addition, the slaves that were sold were of both sexes and were relatively old enough to have accurate memories of their own homelands.A study on the records of the slaves also revealed that the majority of the slaves came from areas near Tibet and China (Embree 852). Thus, it certainly implies that the technology of the gunpowder may have been carried through to Italy and into the Western world by the Asian slaves. And gunpowder is still relevant today as the other inventions that the Chinese came up with centuries ago. In connection with that though, the thought of what the world might have been today if it was the Chinese who did it continues to bug the mind.Anyway, it certainly seems that after a long rest, the Chinese government is taking steps to revive its scientific community. China has now established its new science and technology management system that integrates science and technology with industrial and agriculture production. And with their opening up policy, its scientists and engineers concentrated on the world’s advanced level of scientific and technological development. Thus, international exchange and cooperation is now the priority of China since technology acquisition will continue to bring about changes in China’s own technology (Yu 222).An example of this is the increase in the information and communication technology in China, which has one of the world’s largest telecommunications market. Its information technology industry has also been helping the economy triple its gross domestic product (Qiang 2). Indeed, the reforms and opening up that China did brought positive effects, with a fast economic growth. With its continual development and improvement of its science and technology policies, it will certainly close the gap between those with other countries in the near future.

Wednesday, October 23, 2019

Reasearch Paper

w w w e tr . X m eP UNIVERSITY OF CAMBRIDGE INTERNATIONAL EXAMINATIONS GCE Ordinary Level e ap . c rs om MARK SCHEME for the May/June 2012 question paper for the guidance of teachers 1123 ENGLISH LANGUAGE 1123/12 Paper 1 (Composition), maximum raw mark 60 This mark scheme is published as an aid to teachers and candidates, to indicate the requirements of the examination. It shows the basis on which Examiners were instructed to award marks.It does not indicate the details of the discussions that took place at an Examiners’ meeting before marking began, which would have considered the acceptability of alternative answers. Mark schemes must be read in conjunction with the question papers and the report on the examination. †¢ Cambridge will not enter into discussions or correspondence in connection with these mark schemes. Cambridge is publishing the mark schemes for the May/June 2012 question papers for most IGCSE, GCE Advanced Level and Advanced Subsidiary Level syllabuses a nd some Ordinary Level syllabuses.Page 2 Mark Scheme: Teachers’ version GCE O LEVEL – May/June 2012 Syllabus 1123 Paper 12 MARKING of LANGUAGE Section 1 and Section 2 General Assessment Objectives for WRITING W1 W2 W3 W4 Communicate appropriately, with a clear awareness of purpose, audience and register. Communicate clearly and develop ideas coherently, at word level, at sentence level and at whole text level. Use accurate spelling, punctuation and grammar. Communicate creatively, using a varied range of vocabulary, sentence structures and linguistic devices.The above objectives are assessed by impression, using as guides the Band descriptions in this mark scheme, the photostats and the exemplar marked scripts attached to this mark scheme, showing performance across the expected range of achievement. Specific Assessment Objectives for Section 1: Directed Writing To test the candidate's ability to: 1 2 write a speech which communicates information clearly, accurately an d economically; carry out the instructions as detailed on the question paper regarding the particular information required.Detailed Marking Instructions for Section 1: Directed Writing The 30 marks are allocated as follows: Task Fulfilment 15 marks Language 15 marks Please indicate the TF mark first at the end of the essay, e. g. 10 + 12 = 22 N. B. Assessing task fulfilment means more than including the bullet/content points. N. B. Candidates who address only two points must be in Band 3 or below for TF.  © University of Cambridge International Examinations 2012 Page 3 Mark Scheme: Teachers’ version GCE O LEVEL – May/June 2012 SECTION 1 TASK FULFILMENT MARK Syllabus 1123 Paper 12Band 1 (15–13 marks) †¢ Good understanding of purpose. †¢ Clear awareness of situation and audience. †¢ Format entirely appropriate. †¢ All required points developed in detail, fully amplified and well organised. †¢ Given information well used to justify person al opinion and interpretation. †¢ Tone and register entirely appropriate. Band 2 (12–10 marks) †¢ An understanding of purpose. †¢ An awareness of situation and audience. †¢ Format appropriate. †¢ All required points addressed but not always developed in detail. †¢ Given information organised to support personal opinion. Tone and register appropriate. Band 3 (9–7 marks) †¢ Some understanding of purpose. †¢ Some awareness of situation and audience. †¢ Format generally appropriate. †¢ At least two required points addressed (and partially/fully developed). †¢ Given information may not be logically used to support opinion. †¢ Tone usually appropriate, although there may be slips of register. Band 4 (6–4 marks) †¢ Only partial understanding of purpose. †¢ Some confusion as to situation and audience. †¢ Format may be inappropriate. †¢ At least one of the required points addressed (and parti ally/fully developed). Given information may be used irrelevantly. †¢ Tone may be uneven. Band 5 (3–1 marks) †¢ Misunderstanding of purpose. †¢ Confusion as to situation and audience. †¢ Little evidence of a specific format. †¢ None of the required points addressed. †¢ Given information misunderstood or irrelevant. †¢ Tone may be inappropriate. A mark of 0 should be given only when: †¢ the response is totally incomprehensible or †¢ the candidate has merely copied out the question or parts of it at random or †¢ the question is not attempted at all.  © University of Cambridge International Examinations 2012 Page 4Mark Scheme: Teachers’ version GCE O LEVEL – May/June 2012 SECTION 1 LANGUAGE MARK Syllabus 1123 Paper 12 Band 1 (15–14 marks) †¢ Highly accurate, apart from very occasional slips. †¢ Sentence structures varied for particular effects. †¢ Verb forms largely correct and appropriate te nses consistently used. †¢ Vocabulary wide and precise. †¢ Punctuation accurate and helpful. †¢ Spelling accurate, apart from very occasional slips. †¢ Paragraphs have unity, are linked, and show evidence of planning. Band 2 (13–12 marks) †¢ Accurate; occasional errors are either slips or caused by ambition. Sentence structures show some variation to create some natural fluency. †¢ Occasional slips in verb forms or tense formation, but sequence consistent and clear throughout. †¢ Vocabulary precise enough to convey intended shades of meaning. †¢ Punctuation accurate and generally helpful. †¢ Spelling nearly always accurate. †¢ Paragraphs have unity, are usually linked and show some evidence of planning. Band 3 (11–10 marks) †¢ Mostly accurate; errors from ambition do not mar clarity of communication. †¢ Some variety of sentence structures, but tendency to repeat sentence types may produce monotonous effect. Er rors may occur in irregular verb forms, but control of tense sequence sufficient to sustain clear progression of events or ideas. †¢ Simple vocabulary mainly correct; errors may occur with more ambitious words. †¢ Punctuation generally accurate and sentence separation correctly marked, but errors may occur e. g. with direct speech. †¢ Spelling of simple vocabulary accurate; some errors in more ambitious words. †¢ Paragraphs may show some unity, although links may be absent or inappropriate. Band 4 (9–8 marks) †¢ Sufficiently accurate to communicate meaning, with patches of clear, accurate language. Some variety of sentence length and structure, not always for particular purpose. †¢ Errors in verb forms and tense consistency may cause uncertainty in sequence of events or disturb ease of communication. †¢ Vocabulary usually adequate to convey intended meaning; idiom may be uncertain. †¢ Punctuation used but not always helpful; occasional sentence separation errors. †¢ Spelling of simple vocabulary accurate; errors in more difficult words. †¢ Paragraphs used but may lack unity or coherence. Band 5 (7–6 marks) †¢ Overall meaning never in doubt, but errors sufficiently frequent and serious to hamper precision and distract reader from content. Some simple structures accurate but unlikely to sustain accuracy for long. †¢ Errors in verb forms and tenses will sometimes confuse sequence of events. †¢ Vocabulary limited, either too simple or imperfectly understood; some idiomatic errors likely. †¢ Simple punctuation usually accurate, but there may be frequent sentence separation errors. †¢ Spelling of simple vocabulary accurate; frequent errors in more difficult words. †¢ Paragraphs used haphazardly.  © University of Cambridge International Examinations 2012 Page 5 Mark Scheme: Teachers’ version GCE O LEVEL – May/June 2012 Syllabus 1123 Paper 12Band 6 (5–4 marks) †¢ Many serious errors of various kinds of ‘single-word' type (i. e. they could be corrected without re-writing the sentence); communication established, although weight of error may cause some ‘blurring'. †¢ Sentences probably simple and repetitive in structure. †¢ Frequent errors in verb forms and haphazard changes of tense confuse meaning. †¢ Vocabulary conveys meaning but likely to be simple and imprecise; significant idiomatic errors †¢ Spelling may be inconsistent. †¢ Punctuation and paragraphing may be haphazard or non-existent. Band 7 (3–2 marks) †¢ Sense usually decipherable but some error will be ‘multiple' (i. . requiring the reader to re-read and re-organise); meaning may be partly hidden by density of linguistic error. †¢ Unlikely to be more than a few accurate sentences, however simple, in the whole essay. Band 8 (1–0 mark) †¢ Scripts almost entirely or entirely impossible to recognise as pieces of English writing; whole sections make no sense at all. †¢ Where occasional patches of relative clarity are evident, 1 mark should be given. †¢ The mark of 0 is reserved for scripts that make no sense at all from beginning to end.  © University of Cambridge International Examinations 2012 Page 6Mark Scheme: Teachers’ version GCE O LEVEL – May/June 2012 Syllabus 1123 Paper 12 Detailed Marking instructions for Section 2: Creative Writing 30 marks are allocated. The ‘best fit' prindple is applied, as in the following table. N. B. Primary emphasis is on quality of Language; comments on Content used to adjust mark within Band. SECTION 2 MARK Band 1 (30–27 marks) †¢ Highly accurate, apart from very occasional slips. †¢ Sentence structure varied for particular effects. †¢ Verb forms largely correct and appropriate tenses consistently used. †¢ Vocabulary wide and precise. †¢ Punctuation accurate and helpful. Spellin g accurate apart from very occasional slips. †¢ Paragraphs have unity, are linked, and show evidence of planning. Consistently relevant. Interest aroused and sustained. Tone and register entirely appropriate. Discursive essays are well developed, logical, even complex, in argument. Descriptive essays have well-developed images helping to create complex atmospheres. Narratives are complex, sophisticated, possibly tense, and may contain devices such as flashbacks. Band 2 (26–23 marks) †¢ Accurate; occasional errors are either slips or caused by ambition. †¢ Sentence structures show some variation to create some natural fluency. Occasional slips in verb forms or tense formation but sequence consistent and clear throughout. †¢ Vocabulary wide and precise enough to convey intended shades of meaning. †¢ Punctuation accurate and generally helpful. †¢ Spelling nearly always accurate. †¢ Paragraphs have unity, are usually linked and show some evidenc e of planning. Relevant. Interest aroused and mostly sustained. Tone and register appropriate. Discursive essays have clearly-defined, cohesive, logical stages in their argument. Descriptive essays have interesting images and range of detail, helping to create effective atmospheres.Narratives have effective detail creating character or setting, and may contain some sense of climax.  © University of Cambridge International Examinations 2012 Page 7 Mark Scheme: Teachers’ version GCE O LEVEL – May/June 2012 Syllabus 1123 Paper 12 Band 3 (22–19 marks) †¢ Mostly accurate; errors from ambition do not mar clarity of communication. †¢ Some variety of sentence structures, but tendency to repeat sentence types may produce monotonous effect. †¢ Errors may occur in irregular verb forms, but control of tense sequence sufficient to sustain clear progression of events or ideas. Simple vocabulary mainly correct; errors may occur with more ambitious words. †¢ Punctuation generally accurate and sentence separation correctly marked, but errors may occur e. g. with direct speech. †¢ Spelling of simple vocabulary accurate; some errors in more ambitious words. †¢ Paragraphs may show some unity, although links may be absent or inappropriate. Relevant. Some interest aroused, although there may some lack of originality and/or planning. Tone usually appropriate, although there may be slips of register. Discursive essays make a series of relevant points, with some being developed; linking of ideas may be insecure.Descriptive essays have satisfactory images, ideas and details which help to create atmosphere. Narratives are straightforward with proper sequencing of sentences. Band 4 (18–15 marks) Sufficiently accurate to communicate meaning, with patches of clear, accurate language. Some variety of sentence length and structure, not always for particular purpose. †¢ Errors in verb forms and tense consistency may cause uncert ainty in sequence of events or disturb ease of communication. Vocabulary usually adequate to convey intended meaning; idiom may be uncertain.Punctuation used but not always helpful; occasional sentence separation errors. †¢ Spelling of simple vocabulary accurate; errors in more difficult words. †¢ Paragraphs used but may lack unity or coherence. Attempt to address topic but there may be digressions or failures of logic. May lack liveliness and interest. Tone may be uneven. Discursive essays have mainly relevant points but may be only partially developed, with some repetition. Descriptive essays have some detail but may rely too much on narrative. Narratives are largely a series of events with only occasional details of character and setting.Band 5 (14–11 marks) †¢ Overall meaning never in doubt, but errors sufficiently frequent and serious to hamper precision and distract reader from content. †¢ Some simple sentence structures accurate but unlikely to sust ain accuracy for long. †¢ Errors in verb forms and tenses will sometimes confuse sequence of events. †¢ Vocabulary limited, either too simple or imperfectly understood; some idiomatic errors likely. †¢ Simple punctuation usually accurate, but there may be frequent sentence separation errors. †¢ Spelling of simple vocabulary accurate, frequent errors in more difficult words. †¢ Paragraphs used haphazardly. Some relevance.Some interest. Tone may be inconsistent. Discursive essays make a few points but development is simple and not always logical; some obvious repetition of ideas. Descriptive essays are relevant but lack scope or variety. Narratives are simple, everyday or immature.  © University of Cambridge International Examinations 2012 Page 8 Mark Scheme: Teachers’ version GCE O LEVEL – May/June 2012 Syllabus 1123 Paper 12 Band 6 (10–7 marks) †¢ Many serious errors of various kinds of ‘single-word' type (i. e. they could b e corrected without re-writing the sentence); communication established, although weight of error may cause some ‘blurring'. Sentences probably simple and repetitive in structure. †¢ Frequent errors in verb forms and haphazard changes of tense confuse meaning. †¢ Vocabulary conveys meaning but likely to be simple and imprecise; significant idiomatic errors. †¢ Spelling may be inconsistent. †¢ Punctuation and paragraphing may be haphazard or non-existent. A little relevance. A little interest. Some recognition of appropriate tone. In Discursive essays only a few points are discernable and the argument progresses only here and there. In Descriptive essays the overall picture is unclear.Narratives are very simple and may narrate events indiscriminately. Band 7 (6–3 marks) †¢ Sense usually decipherable but some error will be ‘multiple' (i. e. requiring the reader to reread and re-organise); meaning may be partly hidden by density of linguistic error. †¢ Unlikely to be more than a few accurate sentences, however simple, in the whole essay. Little relevance or interest. Tone may be inappropriate. In Discursive essays only a very few points are discernable and the argument barely progresses. In Descriptive essays the overall picture is very unclear.Narratives are extremely simple and may narrate events indiscriminately. Band 8 (2–0 marks) †¢ Scripts almost entirely or entirely impossible to recognise as pieces of English writing; whole sections make no sense at all. †¢ Where occasional patches of relative clarity are evident, 2 or 1 mark(s) should be given. †¢ The mark of 0 is reserved for scripts that make no sense at all from beginning to end. Discursive essays are rarely relevant and may well be disordered, as are Descriptive essays and Narratives.  © University of Cambridge International Examinations 2012

Tuesday, October 22, 2019

A Short Summary of the Persian Wars

A Short Summary of the Persian Wars The term Greco-Persian Wars is thought to be less biased against the Persians than the more common name Persian Wars, but most of our information about the wars comes from the winners, the Greek side. Greek historian Peter Green characterizes it as a David and Goliath struggle with David holding out for political and intellectual liberty against the monolithic theocratic Persian war machine. It wasnt just Greeks against Persians, nor were all the Greeks on the Greek side. Conflict began before the usual start date of the Persian Wars; however, for practical purposes, the term Greco-Persian Wars covers the invasions of Greece by two Achaemenid Persian kings from about 492 B.C. to 449/448 B.C. Earlier than the (mostly failed) attempts by the Persian kings Darius and Xerxes to control Greece, Persian King Cambyses had extended the Persian Empire around the Mediterranean coast by absorbing Greek colonies. Some Greek poleis (Thessaly, Boeotia, Thebes, and Macedonia) joined Persia, as did other non-Greeks, including Phoenicia and Egypt, but many Greek poleis, under the leadership of Sparta, especially on land, and under the dominance of Athens, at sea, opposed the Persian forces. Before their invasion of Greece, Persians had been facing revolts within their own territory. During the Persian Wars, revolts within Persian territories continued. When Egypt revolted, the Greeks helped them. Summary Locations:  Various. Especially Greece, Thrace, Macedonia,  Asia MinorDates:  c. 492-449/8 B.C.Winner:  GreeceLoser:  Persia (under kings  Darius  and  Xerxes) When Were the Greco-Persian Wars? The Persian Wars are usually dated 492-449/448 B.C. However, conflict started between the Greek poleis in Ionia and the Persian Empire before 499 B.C. There were two mainland invasions of Greece, in 490 (under King Darius) and 480-479 B.C. (under King Xerxes). The Persian Wars ended with the Peace of Callias of 449, but by this time, and as a result of actions taken in Persian War battles, Athens had developed her own empire. Conflict mounted between the Athenians and the allies of Sparta. This conflict would lead to the Peloponnesian War during which the Persians opened their deep pockets to the Spartans. Medize Thucydides (3.61-67) says the Plataeans were the only Boeotians  who did not Medize. To Medize was to submit to the Persian king as overlord. The Greeks referred to the Persian forces collectively as Medes, not distinguishing Medes from Persians. Likewise, we today dont distinguish among the Greeks (Hellenes), but the Hellenes were not a united force before the Persian invasions. Individual poleis could make their own political decisions. Panhellenism (united Greeks) became important during the Persian Wars. Next, when the barbarian invaded Hellas, they say that they were the only Boeotians who did not Medize; and this is where they most glorify themselves and abuse us. We say that if they did not Medize, it was because the Athenians did not do so either; just as afterwards when the Athenians attacked the Hellenes they, the Plataeans, were again the only Boeotians who Atticized. ~Thucydides Individual Battles During the Persian Wars 1st NaxosSardisEphesusLade2nd NaxosEretriaMarathonThermopylaeArtemisiumSalamisPotideaOlynthusPlataeaMycaleSestusByzantiumEionDoriskosEurymedonProsopitisSalamis and Cyprus End of the War The final battle of the war had led to the death of the Athenian leader Cimon and the defeat of the Persian forces in the area, but it didnt give decisive power in the Aegean to one side or the other. The Persians and Athenians were both tired and after Persian overtures, Pericles sent Callias to the Persian capital of Susa for negotiations. According to Diodorus, the terms gave the Greek poleis in Ionia their autonomy and the Athenians agreed not to campaign against the Persian king. The treaty is known as the Peace of Callias. Historical Sources Herodotus is the principal source on the Persian Wars, from Croesus of Lydias conquest of the Ionian poleis to the fall off Sestus (479 B.C.).Thucydides provides some of the later material. There are also later historical writers, including Ephorus in the 4th century B.C., whose work is lost except for fragments, but was used byDiodorus Siculus, in the 1st century A.D. Supplementing these are Justin (under Augustus) in his Epitome of Pompeius Trogus,Plutarch (2nd century A.D.) Biographies andPausanias (2nd century A.D.) Geography. In addition to historical sources, there is Aeschylus play The Persians. Key Figures Greek MiltiadesThemistoclesEurybiadesLeonidasPausaniasCimonPericles Persian Darius IMardoniusDatisArtaphernesXerxesArtabazusMegabyzus There were later battles between Romans and Persians, and even another war that might be thought of as Greco-Persian, the Byzantine-Sassanid War, in the 6th and early 7th century A.D.

Monday, October 21, 2019

CASE BAGBY COPY COMPANY essays

CASE BAGBY COPY COMPANY essays 1. Discuss the tradeoffs that Bagby faces in choosing between specialized and broad task assignment. Bagby Copy Company manufactures 10 different copiers. The main part of these copiers is a wiring bundle. This device is plugged into various components during the assembly process. They can assign each major task in this process to different employees using a broad task assignment or one individual can be assigned the task of producing the completed bundle using a specialized task assignment. Some of the advantages that Bagby's managers will obtain if they divide the total task of the manufacturing process into specific jobs or tasks are: Exploiting comparative advantage: Specialized task assignments will permit managers at Bagby to match people with jobs based on skills and training so this will permit employees concentrate on their particular specialties. For example, Bagby can hire engineers to design and develop a product and business people to do the marketing. The principle of comparative advantage suggest that this specialization will often produce higher output than using individuals to perform a broad tasks. Lower cost-training expenses: With specialized task assignment, each employee is trained to complete one basis function. With broad task assignment, employees are trained to complete more than one function, this can be very expensive. For instances, suppose at Bagby the designing function requires an engineer, while in the line of production function requires a person with a lower education. Specialized task assignment allows Bagby's managers to hire one engineer and one person without an advanced degree. With broad task assignment, the level of education required is usually the highest level, so it will cost more for Bagby to hire two persons with college degree than one. Broad task assignment is more expensive than specialized task assignment. Some of the costs of specialized task as...

Sunday, October 20, 2019

How to Cite a Journal Article in MHRA Referencing

How to Cite a Journal Article in MHRA Referencing How to Cite a Journal Article in MHRA Referencing Since â€Å"MHRA† stands for Modern Humanities Research Association, it won’t surprise you to learn that MHRA referencing is used in the humanities. And if you’re studying a subject like English language or literature, knowing how to cite a journal article in MHRA referencing is wise. Luckily, that’s what we explain in this very blog post! How to Cite a Journal Article in MHRA When citing a journal article in an  essay, you should indicate footnotes with superscript numbers in the text. For instance: Footnote numbers usually go at the end of a sentence.1 In the accompanying footnote, the format to use for a journal article is: n. Author Name(s), â€Å"Article Title,† Journal, volume (year), page range (page number). â€Å"Page range† here refers to the complete page range for the article, while â€Å"page number† is the specific page cited. Only the latter is preceded by â€Å"p.† For example, we could cite a journal article as follows: 1. Joan M. Herbers, â€Å"Time Resources and Laziness in Animals,† Oecologia, 49 (1981), 252-62 (p. 260). If citing an online article that is only available electronically or differs from the print version, give a URL/DOI and date of access instead of a page range: 2. Laverne Jones, Stuart Cox, and Polly W. Brecon, â€Å"Sleepy Town: Why Are You Always Tired?,† Somnambulant Studies, 6 (2008), https://www.jstor.org/stable/3058956 [accessed 12 March 2017] (p. 129). However, if an online article is identical to the print version, you can simply cite it in the same way. No extra details are required. Repeat Citations If citing the same article more than once, give a shortened citation in subsequent footnotes. The format for this will depend on whether you are citing the same source consecutively: For consecutive citations, use â€Å"ibid.† plus a page number for the new citation (if different from the previous one). For non-consecutive citations, use the author’s surname and a page number for the new citation. If you have cited more than one source by the same author, include a shortened article title as well. In practice, then, we would format repeat citations in MHRA as follows: 1. Joan M. Herbers, â€Å"Time Resources and Laziness in Animals,† Oecologia, 49 (1981), 252-62 (p.260). 2. Ibid., p. 258. 3. Joan M. Herbers, â€Å"On Caste Ratios in Ant Colonies: Population Responses to Changing Environments,† Evolution, 34 (1980), 575-85 (pp. 576-7). 4. Herbers, â€Å"Time Resources and Laziness in Animals,† p. 262. Here, citations 1, 2 and 4 are all for the journal article â€Å"Time Resources and Laziness in Animals.† We use â€Å"ibid.† in footnote 2 because it is a consecutive citation of the same source. And we use the author’s surname plus title in footnote 4 because it is a non-consecutive repeat citation. Journal Articles in an MHRA Bibliography When listing sources in your bibliography, make sure to include full publication information. The format to use for a print journal article is: Surname, First Name, â€Å"Article Title,† Journal, volume (year), page range This is similar to the first footnote, but with the first listed author’s names reversed and no period. With online articles, the URL/DOI and a date of access are given instead of a page range: Surname, First Name, â€Å"Article Title,† Journal, volume (year), URL/DOI [date of access] In practice, this would look something like the following: Herbers, Joan M., â€Å"Time Resources and Laziness in Animals,† Oecologia, 49 (1981), 252-62 Jones, Laverne, Stuart Cox, and Polly W. Brecon, â€Å"Sleepy Town: Why Are You Always Tired?,† Somnambulant Studies, 6 (2008), https://www.jstor.org/stable/3058956 [accessed 12 March 2017] As with footnotes, though, if online articles are also available in print, you can usually cite them in the same way you would a print article (check your style guide if you’re unsure about this). And if you’d like anyone to check the referencing in your document, submit it for proofreading today.

Saturday, October 19, 2019

Monitoring Internal Training Load using perception based measures - Essay

Monitoring Internal Training Load using perception based measures - RPE's - Essay Example Training loads are always adjusted at various times during the cycle of training to either increase or decrease the levels of fatigue depending on the training phase. Fatigue is a phenomenon that is complex and multifaceted having several mechanisms that are possible. Monitoring the training load of individuals is seen by many people as an important factor in the determination of whether an individual is adapting to the program of training or not. It is also important to minimise having the risk of non-functional overreaching, illness and injury. Today, monitoring training load has become a common thing, and several reasons lie behind the practice. Inexperience and knowledge on the use of monitoring load techniques may lead to an inability to implement a sustainable and practical system and inability to interpreting the collected information. In order to gaining the knowledge and understanding of the training load and its general effect on an athlete, several markers are available for the coaches, scientists and athletes to use. Nonetheless, few of these markers do have scientific evidence that is strong in support of their usage, and there is yet to have a single one in practice (Viveiros et al. 2011). When monitoring training load, the units of the load are thought of as either internal or external. In the past, external training load was frequently used as the foundation of a several system of monitoring. Whereas the external load is important in knowing the completed work, capabilities, and the athletes capacities, the internal load forms the critical part in determine the training load and the after that adaptation. The training load is influenced in most cases by the volume and intensity of training. A precise knowledge of the training loads that is completed during training is beneficial to the coach as well as the athlete. The coach can use

Friday, October 18, 2019

What goals has liberalism pursued and why have they proved so Essay

What goals has liberalism pursued and why have they proved so controversial - Essay Example The ideally competitive market in economic theory, where economic representatives are fully informed and ideally rational, is a fiction. It is not in existence, nor is it even compared to, in the real economic practice.Yet this fiction influences greatly upon modern political theory. The tempting power of the ideal market grounds on its capacity to create elegant and disarmingly easy solutions to difficult problems. We can come to see, for example, how the uncoordinated activity of economic representatives can cause socially desired states of affairs (Moore 1993, 97). In much the same manner, the ideal market gets into normative political philosophy partially because it can be showed as illuminating essential values. Defenders of the market maintain we can get to know much about individual liberty, the encouragement of mutual advantage, and efficiency in the distribution of goods by studying it (Guathier 1986, 119). However, this cardinal limitation of the market for many theorists s hows its supposed insensitivity to the demands of egalitarian justice (Ashley 2003, 112). This is partly because modern market societies demonstrate a great deal of social and economic inequality. However, egalitarians have also been inclined to suppose that there is an integral flaw in the ideal of a free market society (Berkowitz 1999, 140). In traditional left-wing critiques, the market has been showed as the opponent of equality on various grounds: it results exploitation; it causes alienation; it is an enemy of genuine freedom; and it is corrosive to the bonds of community (Kautz 1995, 32). It is necessary to notice then that the leading contemporary advocates of egalitarianism, for example Ronald Dworkin (1991), violently defend the use of the ideal market as a theoretical method for the articulation of egalitarian distributive justice and liberal political morality. On the same grounds Judith Shklar's "barebones liberalism" (Whiteside 1999, 501) actually fails to justify either values she proclaimed or liberal ideals of equality. In the end of her career, Shklar made her liberalism specific and took it in an egalitarian direction. She did so by launching skeptical issues at the certainties usually used to rationalize inequalities. While defending equality she ended up making empirical and ethical affirmations that her skepticism had expelled, providing strong proof for the conclusion that skepticism alone is insufficient for creating an egalitarian politics (Tomasi 2000, 46). In this direction of her thought, Shklar defined what Isaiah Berlin calls a "plurality of values." Like Berlin's, her way of thinking affirms "the permanent possibility of inescapable conflict between values" (Berlin 1990, 80) Although Shklar in some way agreed with the liberalism of Hobbes and Locke, she doubts the premises of their arguments (Dagger 1997, 98). The problem is that real consent - as opposed to the consent imagined in tales of the social contract - is elusive (Plaw 2002, 267). The fact of the matter, Shklar (1986) suggests, is that liberalism rests on moral intuitions that are plural, vague and controversial. All along liberal universalism was an illusion. "To a large extent," she concludes, "it was European ethnocentrism and indifference to historical variety and change that made discourse relevant to all' seem plausible in the first place" (Shklar 1967, 278). The difficulties befalling her "barebones liberalism" are the same as those that debilitate the "agonistic liberalism" of theorists like Joseph Raz and Isaiah Berlin (Gottfried 1999, 211). Like Shklar, these theorists propose a defense of liberty grounded in a "radical choice between incommensurables," to use John Gray's phrase (cited in Hardin 1999, 162). This is a choice that can only be settled in political competition - rather than in a putatively rational consensus. But Gray argues convincingly that accepting value pluralism does not entail privileging a liberal political

Gaunilo's argument from Anselm's point of view Essay

Gaunilo's argument from Anselm's point of view - Essay Example Gaunilo, a fellow monk and believer sought to oppose Anselm’s argument, saying it would force people to conclude existence of other non- existent things. His critic is usually described by philosophers as an overload idea, because he does not show how Anselm’s ideas are wrong but rather how it unsound in all applications, if it is unsound in one. Gaunilo argues that â€Å"god† in the argument placed by Anselm can be replaced by anything, in his case, â€Å"the perfect island. â€Å"Suppose we replace God with an island, this is how it would flow. Imagine a perfect island of which none like it is conceivable, now this idea exists in your mind. The existence of a perfect island in both the mind and in reality is greater than if it only exists in the mind. If the concept of a perfect island exists in the mind then we can imagine an island better than the â€Å"perfect island†. But we cannot imagine an island greater than this; we can conclude that this perf ect island exists. In defense of his theory, Anselm would argue that the idea of what entails a perfect island varies from one person to another, for example, to me, a perfect island would be one with sandy beaches and human occupation, while to another that would be one that is deserted and with abundance of let’s say fruits. ... In the second way he argues that no object can create itself, therefore there must be a first cause (God), who began the chain of existence of all things. Aquinas reconciled faith and reason, by borrowing heavily from Aristotle. The second cause is explained using the following steps; 1) The natural world has things that are caused by other things. There is therefore an order of efficient causes in the sensible world. Every sensible event that takes place has a distinct cause. 2) In the natural world, nothing can be the cause of itself. There is hardly a case in which an event in the natural world was caused by itself. Events occur that were caused by events rate than themselves. 3) In the natural world there cannot be an endless string of objects causing other objects to exist. We can therefore say that causes are preceded by effects. 4) There exists a supernatural being that causes the first chain of events; therefore the cause of such events is called God. The supernatural force h as to be a person with immense power and with divine attributes such as being omnipresent. These inferences are drawn from nature and causation. This argument has some flaws for example the identity of the cause does not have to be God. It is flawed to assume that the cause of the events that take place in nature has to originate from one location for all of them. There is a possibility that there may be multiple causes, not related to each other. Moreover, the cause does not have to be supernatural, but could be other causes such as the universe. In conclusion, this theory begs the question as to why infinite causal chains are impossible, for example it can be assumed that there exists no beginning, middle or end time, therefore the

Thursday, October 17, 2019

The major problems that emerged from the fall of the wall for the Essay

The major problems that emerged from the fall of the wall for the newly united Germany - Essay Example Reflecting upon and referring to the events outlined in the lesson, this paper will give the writer’s opinion on what the major problems emerging from the fall of the wall were, and if and how they could have been avoided. The problems Germany faced after reunification arose from the initial causes of the division. Although it was clear by 1990 that both East and West Germany intended strongly to reunite into a common German federal republic, the most notable problems were political, economical and social. In East Germany, not only did the Party of Democratic Socialism undergo heavy defeat in the first free elections, but East Germany’s infrastructure and economy almost collapsed (Muller, Judd & Yzerbyt 2005). East Germany may have been considered the most vigorous economy in the Soviet bloc, but I think it’s economic near-collapse was a manifestation of its shaky and ill-planned communist foundations. Rather than gaining stability from its relative wealth, East Germany’s relative poverty destabilized it. There continued to be different mentalities between those from the East and those from the West. East Germans had been guaranteed the right to work, with 80 percent of its women employed, and outstanding childcare had been provided by the state. In contrast, the West, whose systems were driven by the markets, social services were continuously being cut and getting jobs was difficult. The reunion made it even more difficult for workers from East Germany to get jobs (although those who got them benefited greatly) because they had to adapt to new systems that rendered them insufficiently trained (Muller, Judd & Yzerbyt 2005). My opinion is that this was a consequence of the conception of two new identities which had no roots in the history of the country prior to 1949. Four decades of division had created a social problem in which West Germans (Wessis) were perceived by foreigners as well as most West

Business final report Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Business final report - Research Paper Example Economically, Wal-Mart has been able to expand its sale to almost 50% even during the recession. Wal-Mart has been admired worldwide due to its social aspect in respecting it customers and other individual who form part of their social life. In addition, Wal-Mart has been able to create environmental sustainability through submission of important sustainability goals. However, the company has had allegations of disregarding its employee’s rights. In another dimension, Wal-Mart is a leader in the use and application of technology in the effort to maximize operational efficiency. I would like to thank all those helped me in the research. In particular, I would like to thank Dr. J.L Waltman for being part of my research as he guided me through, especially on the best approach to use in order to perfect my report. Table of Contents 1.1 Introduction 4 1.2 Political Factors 4 1.3 Economic factors 5 1.4 Social Factors 7 1.5 Environmental factors 8 1.6 Legal factors 9 1.7 Technologica l factors 10 1.8 Conclusion 11 References: 12 1.1 Introduction Wal-Mart is one of the renowned supermarket brands in America running numerous chains of large departmental store and warehouse stores (Wal-Mart Stores, Inc., 2011). Apparently, the multinational store has been able to maintain its thriving market especially in the United States of America and other parts of the world (Matusitz & Lord, 2013). According to a research that was conducted in regard to Wal-Mart operations, it is evident that the multinational corporation has immensely gained a negative bad image in most part of the world where most of its stores and branches are found (Hicks, 2009). In light of this, Wal-Mart is continuously seeking to lessen the brand image through ensuring that they work professionally. 1.2 Political Factors Initially, Wal-Mart Corporation has placed its stores in the United States of America and other parts of the world. As such, it is important to ensure that there is political stability in such countries as this plays a huge role in maintaining market. If it happens that the some of the countries where some of the branches are suffer from political instability, it is advisable for the corporation to withdraw it market avoid poor market generated through politics in specific countries. Similarly, the corporation should be aware of the different government regulations and deregulation in the United States of America and other foreign countries such as Canada, Argentina, and China where the branches are situated (Karlgaard, 2013). Also, it is worth noting that government regulation and deregulation varies according to different countries. Any organization, corporation or business entity that wants to thrive in business must work within the regulations of a given country or state. In relation to this, the corporation should ensure that it follows the trade restrictions that are used in all its locations. In relation to this, Wal-Mart has continuously paid tax in all th e countries that its branches are located. Payment of taxes indicates that the corporation is politically responsible and is ready to work and follow the rules and regulations of the given countries. 1.3 Economic factors Economic factors specifically affect the corporation’s operations, as well as, the making of its decisions. Thus, there is must be economic growth, substantial rates of interest, over and above,

Wednesday, October 16, 2019

Building Supply Chain Relationships Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Building Supply Chain Relationships - Essay Example The result of such relationships was simply that the suppliers tended to keep their best ideas for the companies who value the suppliers. There existed an open market for the suppliers. On the side of buyers, the buyers would go for any supplier who has an outstanding reputation in the international market or the supplier that has got the lowest bid. These kind of relationships while having a negative aspect but the companies were able to make profits. Why was it so? The reason to this is explained in the second question. On the other hand long-term relationships were those that were practiced in Toyota, Prato Wool Textile Industry, Airbus and Acer group. These relationships are based on trust, bilateral dependence and mutual friendship and are a more partnership like. There existed more face to face communication, continuous feedback, more collaboration and a high level of commitment from both sides. There is a lot of information sharing in long-term relationships which tends to enh ance the level of trust between the buyer and the supplier.

Business final report Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Business final report - Research Paper Example Economically, Wal-Mart has been able to expand its sale to almost 50% even during the recession. Wal-Mart has been admired worldwide due to its social aspect in respecting it customers and other individual who form part of their social life. In addition, Wal-Mart has been able to create environmental sustainability through submission of important sustainability goals. However, the company has had allegations of disregarding its employee’s rights. In another dimension, Wal-Mart is a leader in the use and application of technology in the effort to maximize operational efficiency. I would like to thank all those helped me in the research. In particular, I would like to thank Dr. J.L Waltman for being part of my research as he guided me through, especially on the best approach to use in order to perfect my report. Table of Contents 1.1 Introduction 4 1.2 Political Factors 4 1.3 Economic factors 5 1.4 Social Factors 7 1.5 Environmental factors 8 1.6 Legal factors 9 1.7 Technologica l factors 10 1.8 Conclusion 11 References: 12 1.1 Introduction Wal-Mart is one of the renowned supermarket brands in America running numerous chains of large departmental store and warehouse stores (Wal-Mart Stores, Inc., 2011). Apparently, the multinational store has been able to maintain its thriving market especially in the United States of America and other parts of the world (Matusitz & Lord, 2013). According to a research that was conducted in regard to Wal-Mart operations, it is evident that the multinational corporation has immensely gained a negative bad image in most part of the world where most of its stores and branches are found (Hicks, 2009). In light of this, Wal-Mart is continuously seeking to lessen the brand image through ensuring that they work professionally. 1.2 Political Factors Initially, Wal-Mart Corporation has placed its stores in the United States of America and other parts of the world. As such, it is important to ensure that there is political stability in such countries as this plays a huge role in maintaining market. If it happens that the some of the countries where some of the branches are suffer from political instability, it is advisable for the corporation to withdraw it market avoid poor market generated through politics in specific countries. Similarly, the corporation should be aware of the different government regulations and deregulation in the United States of America and other foreign countries such as Canada, Argentina, and China where the branches are situated (Karlgaard, 2013). Also, it is worth noting that government regulation and deregulation varies according to different countries. Any organization, corporation or business entity that wants to thrive in business must work within the regulations of a given country or state. In relation to this, the corporation should ensure that it follows the trade restrictions that are used in all its locations. In relation to this, Wal-Mart has continuously paid tax in all th e countries that its branches are located. Payment of taxes indicates that the corporation is politically responsible and is ready to work and follow the rules and regulations of the given countries. 1.3 Economic factors Economic factors specifically affect the corporation’s operations, as well as, the making of its decisions. Thus, there is must be economic growth, substantial rates of interest, over and above,

Tuesday, October 15, 2019

Determining sample size Essay Example for Free

Determining sample size Essay Another five days of data was collected to add to the first 10 days of data having a total of 15 days of observation. The following are the text thread data obtained for a total of 15 days. A larger sample is now present for the analysis of the text thread that I have for 15 days. A large sample is really important in statistics. As the sample become larger, the data will approach the data of the whole population. The data will become as close to the real data (Israel, 2009). For example, the mean number of hours at work for the population of workers in United States is 8 hours. The sample mean of 50 workers 7. 5 hours. As the sample size increases, it is possible that the sample mean will become closer to the mean of the population. In this case, why should one use samples instead of the population? Or, why use large samples instead? Certain reasons are given to support the use of samples instead of very large samples or the population itself. One of the common reasons is population are sometimes infinite. When one speaks of infinite population, it means that one cannot actually count the total number of the members of the population. Another reason is time constraints; one cannot collect data for a very large sample or the whole population because there are certain time limitations. After having 15 samples, the mean for the 15 text threads were computed. The mean obtained from the 15 sample is 8. 2 threads per day. The mean for the 15 sample is less than the mean obtained for the data when there are only 10 observations included in the sample. The current sample of 15 observations is still insufficient in order to conclude something from the population. One still cannot determine whether the sample is already sufficient. Sufficient sample size can be determined through formula and different assessments such as the precision, confidence and variability a person wants on his sample. Nevertheless, as long as it is not the population itself, any kind of samples will still have an uncertainty associated in it; the uncertainty associated with the sample is called the sampling error. The smaller the sampling error, the better the sample size one has obtained (US Census Bureau, n. d. ). Reference Israel, G. (2009). Determining sample size. Retrieved August 20, 2010 from http://edis. ifas. ufl. edu/pd006. US Census Bureau. (n. d. ). Things that may affect estimates from the American community survey. Retrieved August 20, 2010 from www. census. gov/acs/www/Downloads/ACS_Affect_Est. ppt.

Monday, October 14, 2019

Reflecting Personal Development Study Of Mental Health Nursing Nursing Essay

Reflecting Personal Development Study Of Mental Health Nursing Nursing Essay This essay will illustrate how I developed from being a novice to an expert within my three year study of mental health nursing programme. The chosen topic from my log book to be discussed will be management. Dreyfus and Dreyfus student model (1986) and Benners stages of skill acquisitions (1984) will be used to structure this essay. The stages that students go through in their skills acquisition are novice, advance beginner, competent, proficient and expert (Selinger Crease, 2006).Current evidence based literature such as mentors comments from my ropas including government policies relevant to my practice will be used to explore my strengths, limitations and experiences. Future recommendation for my post graduate as a newly registered nurse will be explored. Names of clients, practice placements and health professionals will remain anonymous to protect and respect confidential in this essay (NMC, 2008). Management is planning, organizing, staffing, directing and controlling in order to achieve your goals (Clark, 2009).Management also involves making good decisions, communicating effectively, motivating staff and being persuasive and sensitive (Manion, 2005).Due to the health care system changes in modern nursing it is vital for a professional nurse to acquire different skills to manage a shift regardless of your specific role (Yoder-Wise, 2003).I took an interest in presenting management as my topic of this essay mainly for the following reasons. Once am newly qualified I might face a challenge of running a shift and management skills will be essential for the shift to be efficient and effective. Management skills are also essential as they are required to obtain a job as a mental health nurse. Hewison (2004) states management in nursing is essential to delivers high standards of care. The above author further state that delivery and organisation of care has been influenced by manag ement ideas and theory throughout its history. First year of training I completed 4 placements starting with an acute ward and next being a hip replacement ward. From there I went to the community where they specialised in children with learning disabilities. My last placement was a day hospital for old people with dementia and depression; this is where I had the most exposure. In my first placement I could not under see lying problems with the patients, for example when it came to observing moods and effects patients get from taking the medication they are prescribed on. My other problem was communicating using the correct terminology in my notes and handover. Swannell (1986) defines communication as imparting or exchange of information, message, letter, etc; Social dealings (Ingram and Lavery, 2009.p.14). Communication skills are essential in healthcare as they help professionals to maximise their management (Darley, 2002). At that time my communication was poor, therefore my management was lacking as its vital and mostly an essential skill in nursing management (Adair, 2009). When I started my last placement I had done research on communication and the same principles of communication applied on different situation. At this placement I managed to reflect on my experiences as a novice, hence improving my skills (Quirk, 2006). I applied knowledge gained from research but still referred to the literature and communication principles taught in year one. I was able to communicate effectively using the right terminology in my notes, hand over, ward round and appropriately with patients. I was able to identify under lying problems portrayed by the patients and interpret them when communicating with staff. Research and applying it to practice helped my skill improve hence enhanced my management (Pilot Beck, 2004). First year of training I started off as a novice because I had minimal knowledge but could not connect it to practice (Dreyfus and Dreyfus, 1986) .Using the work of Benners (1984) Stuart (2007) describes a novice as a new student entering a clinical area without experience but expected to perform. Stuart (2007) further goes on to say they must be given rules and instructions to guide their performance, they do not see beyond the task and underlying problems with a patient. Considering experience gained in year one I was in the novice trajectory. By the end of the first year I was now fairly experienced and considered myself as an advanced beginner no longer a novice (Dreyfus Dreyfus, 1986). In my second year the first practice placement was at a day hospital for older people suffering from dementia. From there I moved to work with the community mental health team (CMHT) treating patients with different disorders. The second placement is where I gained the optimum exposure as different skills where developed. We dealt with patients discharged from acute ward and have been referred to CMHT for ongoing treatment away from hospital settings offering a wide variety of interventions tailored to their specific needs (D.O.H, 2002). My final placement in second year was elective. This was a day centre for adults 18-65 offering a large range of therapy thats beneficial to their aspects of life (France and Kramer, 2005). According to Swansburg Swansburg (2002) planning involves what to do, how, who is to do it, where its to be done and when in order to achieve goals. My last placement was a day centre for older people suffering from dementia and I developed planning skills. I was shift planning and organized daily activities according to their needs (Schultz and Videbeck, 2009). I was involved in care planning under supervision as I was assigned to a patient suffering from depression. This patient used to play in professional bands and his depression started when he stopped. I planned his recovery by completing tasks like contacting professional recording studios and looking into an option to obtain funding to buy his own equipment. This included booking suitable dates and times he can attend to record. I managed to negotiate with the studio to get 3 free sessions but had to attend only when they was no bookings for business purpose. Both my communication and planning skills where implemented succes sfully and no longer followed the maxims used during the initial stages of learning, as I had acquired my skills (Selinger Crease, 2006). Based on this experience I gained decision making skills to contribute to my management. According to Thompson and Dowding (2002) decision making should be logical, have a rationale and concentrate on how decision will be made in a real world. According to Lloyd et al (2007) decision-making is a process of gathering relevant information and analysed to make a decision. Lloyd et al (2007) further clarifies that in a clinical setting, decision making is a situation in which choice is made from a number of possible alternatives considering the outcome is weighed. I applied these skills as I gathered information like contacts and whom to call, weighing distance and cost of travelling from his home to the studio and also obtaining time of recording referring to his schedule. I also gained another management skill in organisation. According to Kneedler and Dodge (1994) organization involves the arrangement of nursing actions orderly and that actions need to be evaluated, ranked and carried out according to the nurse capabilities. I believe I evaluated and ranked my actions as I considered the patients safety, choosing a suitable recording time for both my patient and the studio by making sure its very close, accessible and its during the day. When I finished year 2 I had gained new skills and my communication skills from year one had paid off as the new skills required good communication skills. (Please see appendix 1 and 2). According to Dreyfus and Dreyfus (1986) model of skill acquisition, an advance beginner has the knowledge of key working aspects in practice. I noticed this as I applied knowledge into practice, therefore found it easy applying rules in real a situation. Tsui (2003) states that advanced beginners begin to recognize situational elements, I recognized these elements easily as I had the experience as a novice according to Dreyfus and Dreyfus (1986). According to Benners (1984) I managed to complete tasks using my own judgement which was acceptable to a limited extent. I started of my third year very keen to professionally modify my management skills and taking into account my skills need to adhere with the nursing and midwifery council (NMC, 2008). The first placment was in a mother and baby unit offering therapy which meet individuals physical, psychological, emotional and social needs based on evidence (DH, 2007). The next and final placement of the programme is where I had the optimum exposure in my management skills. This was an acute ward for old people suffering from organic mental health disorders. I applied all management skills acquired in year 1 and 2. At this stage I was practicing as a competent nurse according to Benners (1984). I was initiating and completing tasks without being asked or being monitored but under supervision from my mentor. Management was not only about completing the shift planner. I was now looking at the safety of the ward, reviewing general, constant and special observations, during handover, ward round and CPA. My decision making skills where implemented using assessment tools and the help of staff as we allocated appropriate levels of observations for the patients (The Scottish Government, 2002). I was planning and organizing tasks to tackle on duty and transport for transfers or appointments. I was using the diary for communication and checking tasks to be completed. I also collected and prepared information to be communicated in ward rounds, handovers and CPAs. I was organizing daily activities and decisions being made according to their needs. (Please see appendix 3). According to Cherry and Jacob (2005) stage three of Benners (1984) skills of acquisition state that competent nurses foresee long range goals and master their skills at this stage. Competent nurses are to cope with complex situations by analysing and planning (Dreyfus and Dreyfus, 1986).Dreyfus and Dreyfus (1986) go on to say they have the background knowledge of area practice and ability to use their own judgement to achieve tasks. According to Dreyfus and Dreyfus (1986) a proficient nurse approaches situations as a whole rather than in small portions and tackles situation according to priority. Benners (1984) further states that as they view situations as a whole their decision making is more improved and they also use maxims as guides. Tomey and Alligood (2006) state that level four of the acquisition skill, nurses stand outside the situation and at the same time be part of the situation, fully engaging in the situation. I believe in my practice I had started portraying some abilities of a proficient nurse, integrating my knowledge and experience into a whole (Jasper, 2006). I was running shifts, planning and assigned tasks, incorporating management skills learned in year one, two and three to a level of proficiency by managing ones self, ones practice and that of others. (NMC, 2004). The last part of the stage is the expert level and using Benners model (1984), Sitzman and Eichelberger (2010) state that they no longer, rely on rules, guidelines or maxims to make appropriate decisions for a situation. I believe I did not reach to the stage to fulfil the expert level but have the ability to succeed to expert level after graduating. According to Daly, Speedy and Jackson (2010) reflection is a process of monitoring practice to enable you to improve it. They go on and further state that the following are essential when reflecting, self-appraisal, research for practice, everyday reviewing of practice, feelings and belief, and the consequences. This is the part where I reflect my practice in order to enhance and maintain my practice within competent to expert level for my future practice as a registered nurse. Focused will be my managerial skills to reach expert level. As a newly qualified I will make use of clinical supervision as an opportunity to improve and continue professional development (Royal College of Nursing, 2003).I will engage myself into lifelong learning that will be of benefit to the service users and my profession. This will extend my skills hence making it easier to manage when in critical situations (D.H, 1999). This will also enable me to maintain high standard of care, therefore enhancing manag ement skills (D.H, 2006).I will continue using evidence based practice to offer best possible care and practice(D.H, 2006). I will also avoid favouritism and discrimination amongst staff as they are good management skills (Marriner-Tomey, 2004).This is further supported by Woods (2005) who encourages democratic management as it encourages those you delegate to, to be part of the team and feel valued. I will be aware of the policies and procedures as its essential to understand your work role and responsibilities in the work place hence helps in managing and guide day to day operations (Fradd, 2004).Above all I will undergo a period of preceptorship as a newly qualified, therefore this will provide a structured, supportive bridge during my transition from a student to a practitioner in my managerial skills and other skills (Illingworth and Singleto, 2010). To conclude, after going through both five stages of Dreyfus and Deryfus (1984) and Benners (1984) I also got the opportunity to reflect my three year practice as a whole, therefore this enabled me to see areas I will need to improve in management. I will work towards being an expert as I progress into my profession . Contexts of Nursing   By John Daly, Sandra Speedy, Debra Jackson/2010/Elsevier/ -Perioperative patient care: the nursing perspective   By Julia A. Kneedler, Gwen H. Dodge,1994