Component of Computer System Essay

Output devices: Monitor printer, plotter and voice output device, Modem, Automotive navigation system, Projector. Peripheral device that converts machine-readable information into people-readable information. Processing devices: CPU,  Motherboard, Chipset, bus, RAM. Hardware components process information within the computer system. Storage devices: Hard disk drives and  compact disk  drives. Hardware components allow data to be stored within a computer system. Software components of a computer system have no physical presence; they are stored in digital form within computer memory. System software is an  operating system  designed to operate and control the  computer hardware  and to provide a platform for running  application software. Utility software: anti-virus software, firewalls, disk defragmenters. Which helps to maintain and protect the computer system but does not directly interface with the hardware. Applications software: Web browsers, Office software, Games, Multimedia Software, Database Software, and Graphic Software. Designed to allow the user of the system complete a specific task or set of tasks. Different  types of computer software. Programming software, system software and application software are the three main types of computer software used in computer networking. Programmers use the programming software to develop the programming languages necessary to run computer software. Compliers, interpreters, linkers and text editors are some of the basic tools used in programming software. System software offers a protective shield to all software applications. It also provides support to the physical components of computers. System software †¢ Operating system software(windows, Linux, Mac) †¢ Utility programs (anti-virus software, firewalls, disk defragmenters. †¢ Library programs †¢ Translator software (Compiler, assembler, interpreter) Application software is used for commercial purpose. The application software is widely used in educational, business and medical fields. Industrial automation, databases, business software and medical software prove to be of great help in the respective fields. Web browsers, Office software, Games, Multimedia Software, Database Software, and Graphic Software. Application software †¢ General purpose application software. †¢ Special purpose application software. †¢ Bespoke application software

Ethical Issues Walmart Paper

There are several factors that account for the changes in the way business is conducted today. Factors such as increased global competition, economic conditions, technology, electronic commerce, workforce diversity, and ethics have all play a significant role in how business is conducted. How a company conducts itself as a business and a corporate citizen is critical to its success. Wal-Mart is the largest retailer in the world; however they are not exempt to acting ethically. In December 2008, Wal-Mart settled 63 laws suits that spans over several years across 42 states accuses Wal-Mart of cheating workers on pay. The settlement cost Wal-Mart $352 million. Based on comments made by Wal-Mart attorneys and spokespeople, it was clear that the company realized that they acted unethically. This paper will provide a brief overview of the ethical issues violated; outline the impact the issues has had on the parties involved and society as a whole; identify the cause or contributing factors to the issue; and finally propose a plan that outlines revised ethical standards and communication methods to prevent the issues from reoccurring. Overview of Ethical Issue. Wal-Mart as a company acted very unethically in this situation. They hired managers to supervise the other employees and not to take advantage of them. The managers were also the one’s acting irresponsible and unethically. Changing the time cards, making the employees work off the clock, is not something that should be done at all. When the managers altered the time cards, they were thinking about now and not the consequences they were going to have to pay. The managers were only thinking about the now and maybe not what the company wanted them to do but they did a selfish act and it hurt the company. The managers possibly could have done this to get more work out of the employees for less money. The article says the employees were forced to work off the clock this is just not ethical in any sense. Maybe the managers had a quota they had to meet and if they met it they would get a bonus. The company has put so much stress on the managers to do the right thing that now it has become an unethical practice. The theory that comes in to play is the goal based theory the managers and the company were only orried about the outcome. Now the company has to worry about all the people coming together and suing the company for lost wages. The impact that this could have on society is that fact that the company may lose the integrity and trust from the public. The company stock may drop so therefore the people that own stock will lose some money. What has happened in the company not only will affect the employees but will affect the business because when society gets word of the things that we re done, the shopping will stop. Prices might even go up so the consumer will have to purchase less and that will always hurt any business when you stifle how much the customer can buy. The theory that comes to mind would be the goal ethical theory because it seems like the managers or the company was only looking out for the outcomes of the business. This type of concern is so unethical because it affects so many other people. This time the employees were affected and the company acted improperly. Ethical Change, Deficiency, and Conflict. Wal-Mart was accused of forcing some hundreds to thousands of current and former workers to work off the clock and exhibiting poor wage practices which resulted in multiple lawsuits in both the federal and state courts. Wal-Mart was accused numerous and various illegal acts of wage practices. The allegations included forcing employees to work unpaid off the clock, erasing hours from time cards, and preventing workers from taking lunch and other breaks that were promised by the company or guaranteed by state laws (Greenhouse & Rosenbloom, 2008). Wal-Mart leadership definitely dropped the ball when attempting to manage within the wage compliance and standardized state laws. Management had the obligation to maintain compliance with all employment and fairness laws and they failed tremendously. If Wal-Mart’s management had responded to these allegations prior to the lawsuits, they could have definitely saved the company millions and their reputation as cheaters. It was their duty to know how the daily operations of each store were being performed and managed. All companies have defined standard operating procedures and a code of ethics and in these cases it was evident that neither was enforced. Their failure of standardized consistency in policies and procedures and lack of management skills were the two major obstacles that caused the company to be plagued with a bad reputation among employees and the public. Management recognized and accepted the responsibility for their mistakes in judgment, and unethical behavior but, as a result of lawsuits. Lessons learned, not so sure, regardless their unethical acts drew major consequences. With the continued embarrassment over these allegations and lawsuits Wal-Mart made the most ethical decision to settle the claims of proposed allegations. Wal-Mart officials have made continuous statements pleading that these illegal and unethical acts took place many years ago and they have made strong strides in reducing wage violations and following the state wage compliance laws and agree to more future improvements. These improvements include such actions as implementing standard of ensuring an employee takes the designated breaks and programming the cash registers to identify when an employee is off the clock. They are making a conscious effort to clean up the wrongs of the past. However, any way you look at it, they were cheating the employees in order to gain company profits. Lawsuits and illegal allegations continue to be a nuisance for the Wal-Mart Corporation, with pending cases alleging sex harassment and forcing employees to miss meals. Again, these are acts from the past but it still outlines the existence of the major inconsistencies with Wal-Mart’s management and their responsibility and ability to maintain a fair and healthy working environment. Future Resolution Wal-Mart has not completely settled the dispute over employee hours worked without compensation. Wal-Mart has tried to make things right with the workers, as well as trying to clean up its image with the public by setting the 63 lawsuits. It will take more than $352 million dollars to make sure this problem does not resurface (Greenhouse & Rosenbloom, 2008). Another incident such as this one could be detrimental to the very existence of Wal-Mart. One solution to the problem would be to unionize Wal-Mart. There are pros and cons to being unionized. Under the protection of a union, Wal-Mart workers will be protected from unethical practices such as uncompensated working hours, sexual harassment, as well as the right to fair pay. Being part of a union would also mean that workers would have the right to health care. In January of 2006 Wal-Mart reported that their health care only incorporated 43% of their employees (Wake-up Wal-Mart, 2005). Wal-Mart does not want to become unionized because it would make the company slightly inflexible. The company would have to adhere to the rules and regulations of the union. One major problem discovered by other companies that became unionized was that workers were less motivated to work for the company and put forth 100% of their efforts. The treat of being fired also went away because under the union rules, in order to terminate an employee for a decline in performance is now regulated under union contract (Free Republic, 2003). Regardless of Wal-Mart’s opposition to become part of a union or not, the company will have to step up efforts to ensure ethical practices are being followed. A set of consequences should be put into action for those managers who violate and infringe upon those rules. Conclusion It is not clear from the article what policies Wal-Mart had in place at the time of the unethical behavior, however the company claims that â€Å"the allegations are not representative of the company we are today† (Greenhouse-Rosenbloom, 2008). The unethical behavior may have been a factor in the company’s highly regarded financial performance. The accusations and these settled cases will serve as precedence for future cases that involve Human Resource and the use of Corporate Resource issues.

Enterprise’s success Essay

Do you think that Avis/Hertz will be able to replicate Enterprise’s success in the local car rental market? It’s hard to believe that Avis/Hertz would be able to replicate Enterprise’s success (at least in the near term) in the local car rental market. Given their current dominance in the market, relationships with auto shops/dealerships/insurance companies, and reservation system’s direct interface with insurers, Enterprise is the most well positioned car rental company for discretionary and insurance repair/replacement rentals. Dominance – Enterprise initially sacrificed investment in the airport market in order to dominate the local market. With its 6,000 branches, one wonders how Avis/Hertz would begin to match Enterprise’s footprint? I imagine this could only be accomplished via substantial capital investments on the parts of Avis/Hertz coupled with initial price breaks for customers in order to tear business away from Enterprise. This action, however, would eat into the profitability of said market. Additionally, Avis/Hertz would have to compete with the burgeoning car sharing industry. These obstacles appear to be too significant to overcome so late in the game. Relationships – The ties established between Enterprise and the auto shops/dealerships/insurance companies are deeply rooted and well founded. In order to convince these institutions that an Avis/Hertz relationship would also be beneficial (or would be superior to Enterprise’s), a compelling sales pitch would need to be made. What can Avis/Hertz offer these institutions that Enterprise isn’t currently providing? The products/services of all three-car rental agencies appear to be of equal quality (if not a slight edge given to Enterprise), so what is the end benefit of new relationships to auto shop/dealership/insurance company? Interface – The case does not quantify any initial investments made by the insurers to develop the reservation interface, but one must assume the investments were substantial (either measured in capital or time). In order to be profitable/dominant in the local market, Avis/Hertz would either have to abolish these ties, establish new ones (assuming there are untapped institutions), or run their systems in parallel with Enterprise’s. The latter appears to be most likely, and that could result in profit erosion, as Avis/Hertz would likely have to reduce prices in order to gain market share. I question whether an auto shop/dealer/insurer would even want to train employees how to use a competitor’s system, unless there is a  substantial upside in doing so. Side note: My only reservation in giving Enterprise sole competitive advantage in this space is their apparent penchant for risk. By handling all of its own vehicle sales, has Enterprise merely been lucky or are they simply more skilled at the buying/selling of their fleet? Given Enterprise’s long-term success, one must assume the latter†¦

The Ideal Person Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

The Ideal Person - Essay Example An ideal person is truthful to others and is honest in his deeds. He never fails or gives up his efforts of self-cultivation. He gives little importance to earthly gains. In The Analects of Confucius, translated by Charles Muller, Confucius states that, â€Å"The Gentleman has nothing to compete for. But if he must compete, he does it in an archery match, wherein he ascends to his position, bowing in deference. Descending, he drinks the ritual cup. This is the competition of the Gentleman† (as cited in Muller, 2010, 3:7). So, we see that a true Confucius gentleman does not waste his time in planning for worldly gains like prizes, awards, and property; rather, he is a man of standards thinking high above the earthly possessions. He is a well-determined person and a good sport in himself. He places morals and virtues above everything else. He stays composed in hard times and is an inspiration for others around him. This makes him an important part of the society. This is the principle according to which an ideal person inculcates in him a sense of modesty and self-control. An ideal person is well-mannered and respects his elders. He acts honorably and is not self-centered. It is good for him to be ambitious but those ambitions should not be achieved through unjust means. Social etiquettes and mannerism matter a lot. According to this principle, a person should develop love for his family and then for the whole society. When parents love their children and vice versa, this strengthens the family bond and the whole society benefits in the

FINANCIAL MANAGEMENT assignments 1-4 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

FINANCIAL MANAGEMENT assignments 1-4 - Essay Example It is an indispensable tool for the economists, investors and analysts to measure the well-being of an economy. Real GDP is different from nominal GDP as it takes into account the inflation, thus producing a better scale of measurement. 2) Define and indicate the significance of the LIBOR. What was the LIBOR at the time you completed the assignment? LIBOR is the London Interbank Offered Rate and it is the rate at which the most creditworthy banks lend funds to each other. It is considered as a benchmark rate in the major countries of the world such as US, UK and Canada. LIBOR is considered as of paramount importance in the corporate world because when the LIBOR increases it creates a financial panic, which tightens the flow of credit and erodes the trust between the banks for their ability to pay each other. In addition to that, all the credit loans such as credit card, mortgages and student loans are dependent on LIBOR therefore it has a direct impact on the consumers. It is estimat ed that $360 trillion of international financial products are based on LIBOR (Reynolds, 2010). Current LIBOR LIBOR 1-Month 3-Months 6 Months 0.26% 0.31% 0.46% Source: LIBOR, other interest rate indexes (Bankrate.com) 3) Define and indicate the significance of the prime rate.

World word II concepts Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

World word II concepts - Essay Example In 1942-43, however, the U.S. Army Air Force went to war following a daylight precision bombing doctrine, then drifted toward area bombing, culminating in the Dresden raid and the firebombing of Japan. Conceding that "ethical restraints were not the most important limitation on terror bombing," Crane argues that their influence-amid doctrines, command pressures, and public attitudes--"cannot be completely discounted" (p. 8), and relies on official reports and statements to survey the range of views of strategic bombing among the senior airmen. USAAF trial night bombing missions are not noted, nor are such shaping forces as pacifist lobbying, the Army Industrial College, the Geneva air talks, the Nye Hearings, many, many boards and committees, and the Color/Rainbow War Plans. Nor will many students of propaganda agree that serious concern for public opinion in war-waging dates from the American Civil War. Much of the genealogy of RAF area-bombing lies out of view, from the Independent Air Force in World War I and interwar Air Staff processes, through various Bomber Command chiefs frustrations, the area-bombing scheme of Lindemann, Churchills science advisor, to the August 1942 Moscow Conference, when Churchill promised Stalin to bomb German cities in lieu of a "Second Front." However bellicose in style and rhetoric, Bomber Command chief Air Marshal Sir Arthur "Bert" Harris, was heir to that momentum. Whatever his influence was on Americans, especially on LeMay, the latter is cast as a kind of air-age Cromwell, and his considerable organizing and leadership skills are muted. After speculating how Nimitz or MacArthur might have reined in LeMay, Crane judges the twenty-first Bomber Command "more efficient" than the RAF Bomber Command, which is perplexing since their respective milieux varied widely, in duration, technologies, and distances. Whatever its debits, Cranes study is well worth reading. It describes how

Primary Influences on Individual Behavior and How Motivation can be Essay

Primary Influences on Individual Behavior and How Motivation can be used to Influence Others - Essay Example This research will begin with the statement that influences on human behavior are caused by several factors. Social, cultural, religious and environmental factors are some of the factors that influence individual behavior. Social factors may be influential on human behavior where such aspects like peer groups, family, and other social groups may shape the behavior of an individual. An individual can also be influenced by environmental factors such as trends in one’s life such as demographic factors, abilities, and skills, perception and attitudes. Cultural factors like values, customs, and beliefs can influence the behavior of a person in a society. Religious factors are some of the most effective influential ways to human behaviors. Further, behavior can also be influenced by motivation where it can be used to drive human actions. This paper aims at outlining the primary influences on individual behavior while analyzing how these influences affect the behavior of an individua l. It will also focus on discussing how an individual’s behavior can be influenced by motivation. Behavior refers to how a human conducts himself or how he acts especially to others or to the environment. Behavior is largely influenced by a response to internal or external stimuli thus causing a reaction on someone. An individual can react to various responses to stimuli depending on various influential factors. Social factors are well known to influence the behavior of an individual. Social factors involve actions that are adopted by a person in relation to influencing he gets from other people. An individual can develop a behavior in relation to influences from others that affect his emotions, character or opinions. The aspect of social influence comes from people that surround the life of an individual. Family, workmates, peer groups or the community living within the neighborhood can influence the behavior of an individual in many ways. The influence that comes through so cial factors may be based on forms like, leadership, peer pressure, persuasion, conformity, obedience, socialization or sales activities. An individual is likely to adopt a certain behavior following factors such as peer influence where one may develop a positive or negative attitude towards his parents. Further, conformity or obedience is the form of social influence brought about by socialization with such people like parents, relatives or seniors in the society such as teachers.

Hummingbird Effect Paper Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Hummingbird Effect Paper - Essay Example However, majority of these innovations possesses what is known as the causality effect where the results are virtually unknown. Each of the activities is connected and it is just important that we are able to predict the outcomes and create measures to prevent destruction. The Hummingbird effect is the kind of effect that is felt in relation to recent technological innovation that has been said to cause a positive change on one of the areas while a great negative effect is likely to take place in a completely different area. In this case, it refers to the sense that the innovations that are done in one field are likely to have unintended impacts on another. It is different from the butterfly effect in the sense that it is random and unpredictable. Therefore, it refers to the fact that one technological innovation can lead to the development of a chain of many others in different sectors. The adjacent possibilities take place in the form of finding solutions from the initial innovations when you are not looking for one. For instance, with the advent of the use of computers and the internet, people have been able to communicate in a faster and better way. However, there is also the issue of privacy, security and internet theft among other components (Jo hnson, 2014). In order to experience the best effects of the hummingbird effect, there are a number of technological factors and infrastructure that are required to enable its commercialization. Some of these include security software that will prevent the access of the privacy information of individuals in different sites (Johnson, 2014). It will also include training of the relevant personnel on security issues. In addition, the use of spyware will enable the entrepreneurs to make the predictions at the right time. In case, the hummingbird effects set in before time, they are likely to knock them over and affect the operations of different activities. The realization of the effects too late also leads to the

Toward a theoretical and substantial understanding of complex social Essay

Toward a theoretical and substantial understanding of complex social networks - Essay Example This research is being carried out to determine the viability of a theory. One of the best ways to do it is to compare it to the parameters and processes of real world systems. Aristotle’s examination of the physical manifestations of natural phenomena helped lead him to his theory of universals, which holds that an object has its own immutable and innate form: a pear is a pear because it embodies that form. The observation of complex social networks, both great and small, yields invaluable information about how their processes affect form, systemic characteristics and interact with other systems. The study of real-world networks reveals a wealth of information about the relevance of the random network model and the theory of scale-free networks, as developed by Albert-Laszlo Barabasi and Reka Albert. Thus, by observing systems such as food web networks, human physiological systems and various social interactions we may determine to what extent the laws of connectivity predict how they behave under certain circumstances. By extension, we may also utilize systems that approximate real-world network tendencies, such as the worldwide web and power network grids. Both random and scale free networks exhibit characteristics that are identifiable in natural systems. In Linked: The New Science of Networks, Barabasi and Albert describe random networks in terms of human physiology, explaining that the more links that are added within a system, the more difficult it becomes to find an isolated node. Thus the networks around and within us are very dense, which explains why â€Å"all molecules in our body are integrated into a single complex cellular map† (Barabasi and Albert 2002, p. 19). In this way, Nature creates redundancy to ensure survival by â€Å"repeatedly and extravagantly (exceeding) the one-link minimum† (2002, p. 18). In developing the theory of scale-free network, Barabasi and Albert found that most real-world networks display what they 2 describe as â€Å"

Public behavior change message Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Public behavior change message - Research Paper Example Some of these attempts encourage behavior change while others do not. This entirely depends not only on the content but also on the skills in these messages (Browning & Thomas, 2005). Some of The behaviors are encouraged if constructed in terms of their benefits versus their costs. Other people respond to a message when individualized orshaped in a personal process. Communicating behavior change is different from any other instruction method because it targets groups in the community. The strategy used to communicate behavior varies from one group to another. It is reasonable to consider issues like vulnerability, resources message type when communicating behavior to certain groups. It is crucial to have an extensive research and a clear plan for successful communication of behavior change in a community. Various health problems are caused by risk behaviors such as reckless driving, drug abuse and overreacting. Health behavior research helps to modify and maintain positive health behaviors. Therefore, individuals should put an effort to maintain positive behavior change by self-regulation. Many behavior change programs have been established that focus on individuals and the community. Communicating behavior change is a good strategy for dealing with many problems in a community. It is an effective strategy for mobilizing the community on public health outreach programs (Browning & Thomas, 2005). Improved knowledge on behavior change has reduced transmission of HIV/AIDS in the community. Various health-promoting strategies use the communication as an educative method to the society. High-risk groups such as women, drugs abusers and youth need communication strategies. This article discusses strategies that mass media use in promoting beneficial behavior change among individuals. Mass media can be used to influence public behavior directly or indirectly. This is through directly targeting people suffering from public

Oil ; gas Essay Example for Free

Oil ; gas Essay The economy is affected by many factors that determine if it is strong or weak. These factors have to do with buyers consuming goods and services and at what rate they do this. Do the goods and services that are consumed by people created wealth, jobs and a better overall economy for a country. Throughout history some economies have evolved faster and stronger than others. Policies that the government places on industry, technology and the environment can all affect the prosperity of an economy. Of the factors that affect economic growth the industry of Oil and gas is one that holds a stronghold in the worlds and Americas economy today. When evaluating the economic growth factor of economy and specifically oil and gas on must consider the following questions:  ¨ What relationship does the factor have with the whole economy?  ¨ How does this factor affect economic growth  ¨ Is the factor a cause or effect of economic growth?  ¨ what would the economy be like if there were significant problems with this factor?  ¨ What relation does a central bank have to this factor? I will answer each of these questions in respect to how economy is affected by oil and gas. The economy in the United States today is greatly affected by oil and gas. When there are large reserves and an increase of active drills in respect to oil, the economy seems to receive a boost. This is because prices for such things like gas and oil fall and people are able to consume more gas at a lower price. There is more supply and prices fall, therefore people save money on gas and can consume other items in the economy. People working in these industries have more job openings and more jobs filled, therefore creating a lower unemployment rate and a higher national per capita income. The need for substitutes are not there so, consumers will consume oil and gas at a growing rate. Since, people use oil and gas for so many different things like heating there homes, driving their cars, and a variety of other sources, the overall GNP for the consumer will rise. Economic growth is affected through significant fluctuations in inflation of oil and gas. If you look throughout history when there have been fluctuations in gas and oil prices you have vast fluctuations in the economy of our country. The instability of this factor has cause government regulation to come into play in times of crisis. For example during the mid-seventies we had the oil and  gas shortage due to the Middle East cutting off supply to Importers of their oil. By doing this, they caused a shortage in a lot of countries creating rising oil prices and high demand. Consumers could not rely on the oil prices to be stable, therefore they consumed less of other products due to the inflation of gas prices and more of their dollar began to be spent on gas. Americans particularly started to come up with more efficient means of using and consuming gas over the past 25 years. Oil and gas is a resource that can be used up if not conserved properly. That is why OPEC was formed, as well as organizations such as NAFTA to help regulate trade of these commodities and bring organization to a disorganized status. In addition, governments like the United States impose taxes on gas to regulated the prices in order to ward off against supplies of oil affecting the nations economy. This only works to an extent, in the early to mid-eighties one states economy lived and died by the supply of oil. That state was Texas. When Texass oil rigs began to dry up, their economy went into a recession. Their reliance on the oil supply as their main revenue producer caused a lot of people to lose their jobs and demand and consumption for other products fell as well. This caused a spiraling effect which caused people from all industries to lose their jobs. Texass economy suffered and so did parts of the American economy with High inflation and high debt which caused the economy to suffer. Increased regulation and diversification of a countrys resources can stop this from being the case. Countries representing OPEC all live and die by the constant production of oil. While this factor is used to stimulate their countries economic growth, it should be used to stimulate the building of a countrys infrastructure. Oil-rich countries should use the positive affect oil has had on their countries to build strong governments and consumer demand for other goods. This powerful infrastructure that could be built will give the economy stability and allow for a countrys GNP to grow in a slow, steady, and positive way. The building of a strong middle-class will allow for countrys to prosper for many years to come. Instead what has happened is that economies of these countries are in a state of flux. What I mean by this is that their economies are very unpredictable and unstable and their reliance on oil has made the disparity between the rich and the poor a gap that becomes too large to overcome. One prime example of this is Brazil, Brazil has large  reserves of oil in a very large country. Brazil is a developing nation and is very unstable when it comes to central governments. In the 70s and 80s Brazil made large amounts of oil from its reserves. Instead of investing the money made (from exporting oil) into their countries future, the leaders of that country used the money to make themselves rich and left the country in political and economic disarray. The middle class of Brazil became almost non-existent and their seem to be but two classes in that country. Those classes were the extremely rich and the extremely poor. The lack of infrastructure and consumer confidence in the economy due to the mishandling of oil profits lead to many political assassinations and increased crime rates throughout the country. It has taken and will continue to take Brazil years and years to recover from these economic crisiss , which all could have been avoided had Brazils government invested in its future. It is definitely true that an economy of a country can be vastly affected by the demand, consumption, and supply of oil. The affect that good supplies of oil has on a countrys economy is one that can only be measured in the sense that it is inevitable that they will be affected. As long as we drive cars that are fueled by gas and we use heat in the winter time, oil will always be a strong factor in determining the growth of a countries economy. In the United States, we have the strong infrastructure to adapt to problems that the instability of both the supply and demand of oil will cause. Countries need to look within themselves for managed growth in order to steady their economies if oil is what sparks their economy. A strong central bank and government will allow for funds to be invested in supporting the economy, the oil business, and consumerism. Once the infrastructure is set the shear reliance on oil will not be a factor, because the countrys economy will be able to handle the affect. When the day comes that oil wells ran dry and substitutes are needed the countries that will survive will be the ones that have braced themselves for the effect that this will have on their economy. Then these countries will adapt and overcome. Oil and gas should be used as helper of a countrys economy and not the passion by which it is run. The production of great income for a country and a higher GNP that oil production is something that should be able to benefit them for many years to come. If you look at the United States as a model you will see a country that handles oil with precision. When the oil industry is in a downturn, the  government can step in and regulate taxes and stimulate investment by having the central bank pump in funds that would not otherwise be used. When the oil industry is doing fine, the government can sit back and reap the prosperity of increases in employment and a rise in demand for oil. The prices will be lower for gas and oil, which means consumption will be up and the economy will be up too. Countries around the world can learn how to handle oil to the extent that it creates an agenda that the benefits far outweigh the costs. We know that oil and gas affects the economy and that it easily regulated by strong central government and bank. The infrastructure must be built up to manage growth. The leaders of the country should be committed to the development of the oil industry. Finally the consumers should be aware of how their role in the consumption of oil will affect the economy as a whole. When all parties are aware and committed to the prosperity of their country and to the industry then the consumption, supply, demand, profits, losses, and investment towards oil will be a mutually beneficial one for the country and its people.

United Arab Emirates and Asian Studies Map Essay Example for Free

United Arab Emirates and Asian Studies Map Essay 1. Which country in Asia lies farthest to the west? The country in Asia that lies farthest to the west Turkey. 2. Which country’s capital city is Baghdad? Iraq is the country’s capital city of Baghdad. 3. Which country is bordered on the north and west by Iraq, on the east by the Persian Gulf, and on the south by Saudi Arabia? The country that is bordered on the north and west by Iraq, on the east by the Persian Gulf, and on the south by Saudi Arabia is Kuwait. 4. Which country in Southeast Asia’s Indochinese peninsula is landlocked? Laos is the country in Southeast Asia’s Indochinese peninsula that is landlocked. 5. Which country is situated in the Indian Ocean and consists of more than 1200 islands and is a famous spot for scuba diving. Maldives is the country situated in the Indian Ocean and consists of more than 1200 islands and is a famous spot for scuba diving. 6. Which country in Asia produces the most: a. Barley Russia produces the most barley. b. Pig meat China produces the most pig meat. c. Bananas India produces the most bananas. 7. List the different land uses of the following countries: d. Thailand Thailand has land uses such as woods and forests. e. Saudi Arabia Saudi Arabia land uses are pretty minimal because it is very non-productive. f. Russia Russia has land uses such as woods and forests. 8. Which country is prone to flooding? It has borders with India, Afghanistan and Iran. Pakistan is a country that is prone to flooding that borders India, Afghanistan, and Iran. 9. What is the capital city of Brunei? The capital of Brunei is Bandar Seri Begawan. 10. Which country in Asia is both part of a peninsula and part of an island? Malaysia is a country in Asia that is part of both a peninsula and part of an island. 11. Which country in Asia has a large area that is sub-arctic, rainy climate with severe cold winters and less than 4 months over 10Â °C. Russia is a country in Asia has a large area that is sub-arctic, rainy climate with severe cold winters and less than 4 months over 10Â °C. 12. Where is the wettest place (annual mean)? Meghalaya, India is the wettest place in the world (annual mean) 13. What altitude is Beijing? Beijing is at the same altitude as the sea (sea level), more precisely 52 meters. 14. What is the average rainfall in Singapore during the month of March? Singapore’s average rainfall in the month of March is about 190 meteres. 15. What is the average temperature in Ulan Bator during the month of February? Ulan Bator average temperature in the month of February is about 00C 16. Name a country in Asia that has 3 climatic regions within its borders. China is a country in Asia that has 3 climatic regions within its borders. 17. Name a country in Asia that is largely categorized as tropical rainforest. 18. Malaysia is a country in Asia that is largely categorized as tropical forest. 19. Which region of Asia produces the most dates? Southwest Asia of Asia produces the most dates. 20. Name a country in Asia that has 100 – 999 million metric tons of coal. 21. Name a country in Asia that experiences frequent land tremors. Japan experiences the most frequent land tremors.

Role of the Jury in the English Legal System

Role of the Jury in the English Legal System The jury trial is considered to be one of the most controversial elements of the justice system in the UK. The practice of trial by jury has shown over the years to have many disadvantages that which causes concern to society and must be reconsidered by Parliament. The key issues that have arisen of the years relating to the use of juries are a) the experience and intellect of the jurors making judgements in complex cases; b) the expensiveness and longevity of jury trials; and C) the fairness of jury selection. This essay shall try to critically analyse the role of the jury within the English legal system and explain why the jury trial should no longer play a part in the criminal and civil justice systems of the United Kingdom. Trial by jury was first introduced into the justice system in the twelfth century, however it was not a guarantee until many years later, when a clause within the Magna Carta stated that no free man shall be taken or imprisonedà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦except by the lawful judgement of his peers or by the law of the land[1]. The role of the jury has since evolved from the medieval times and was completely formed in the 18th century into what it is today[2], with modern juries playing a vital role in assessing the facts of the case and, in the case of a criminal trial, determining whether the defendant is guilty beyond reasonable doubt, or in the case of a civil trial, deciding whether the claimant has the right to damages on the balance of probabilities. Towards the end of the 1900s, public attention started to be drawn towards problems arising with jury reliability, selection, experience, and bias. The Criminal Courts Review by Lord Justice Auld in 2001 was a crucial argument in the discussions concerning jury trials. Auld goes on to say that support for the jury system is not universal, especially among those who have been jurors.[3] This suggests that there is a considerable amount of negative opinion among former juror members about the jury system. The main drawbacks presented within this report were a) lack of experienced jurors who represent different social layers, b) poor ethnic minority representation, and c) the game character of the trial process, where the truth is not as important as victory.[4] The Criminal Justice Act 2003 did however alter the jury system and selection process by stating that a) if the judge ruling the case is satisfied, certain fraud cases and cases where a danger of jury tampering existed are not t o be tried by a jury; and b) the jury selection system had to be improved in order to provide more experienced and unbiased people representing different social groups and ethnic minorities.[5] Statistics have shown that jury trials are actually very rare. Only one in every hundred criminal trials are actually tried by jurors due to restrictions on the use of jury trials.[6] But it is not only the restrictions imposed that make access to jury trial very complicated. What also makes it complicated is the extortionate amount of money and long periods of time that must be put into each case, which puts jury trials at a disadvantage. These problems can make it extremely inconvenient and draining for both the defendant and, in particular, the members of the jury as they will have to spend a lot of their time getting through the necessary procedures and partaking in the actual trial. Jury trials can last from a couple days to many weeks, even months. During that period, members can be on a jury for more than one trial during their service.[7] In one instance, a juror failed to turn up for a trial as she found it really boring, resulting in the trial being suspended before continu ing with 11 jurors.[8] This suggests that sitting on a jury is not what is hyped up to be, and that the negatives vastly outweigh the positives of sitting on a jury. The qualification rules for jury selection has also been often criticised. According to the Juries Act 1974[9], the criteria to serving on a jury are: 1) the person should be registered as a parliamentary or local elector; 2) the person should not be less than 18 and no more than 65 years old; 3) the jury should have been ordinarily resident in the UK for a period of at least five years since his or her 13th birthday. The criterion set out in the Act is quite narrow and should be broadened in order to ensure better quality of juries. Ineligible persons include past and present members of the judiciary, other people who have been concerned with the administration of justice, the clergy and mentally ill people. The Criminal Justice Act 2003 also disqualifies individuals who have served a custodial sentence within the past ten years, received a lifetime custodial sentence, or are released on bail and awaiting trial at the time the jury is summoned.[10] However the issue is not in relati on to the qualification of jurors, but the mere fact that jurors are subject to human error. As the selection criteria is very narrow, there will be individuals who are well educated as well as not; some who are very responsible and some who are not; and individuals who are wanting get gain a better understanding of the case while others just wanting to get home as soon as possible. In the case of R v Litchfield,[11]it was up to the jury to decide whether or not negligence was gross negligence. As a result, the jurys verdict was confused and instructions from the judge had to be restated. It is clear to say that members of the jury in this case were either not educated well enough or had no experience at all in dealing a complex judgement, which is presumably the case with all jurors.[12] Many jurors do encounter problems that are far beyond their training and experience, as the lack of legal knowledge allows prosecutors to easily sway jurors to believe their assertions. But not only are jurors unskilled and inexperienced, they often disregard logic presented by the lawyers because of their prejudices, past experience, or moral sentiment. Some jurors may even follow the majority and make the same verdict as the stronger personalities. But the main problem is that, as jurors do not usually know the law and legal procedures, they are often unable to understand complex evidence or to assess the reliability of a witness or evidence. A research study by Matthews, Hancock and Briggs[13] shows that jurors fees very enthusiastic about their role in the trial process, however one third of jurors feel that it is inconvenient. The report also shows that well-educated skilled people and professionals are under-represented as only skilled manual workers and unskilled workers have enough time to be part of longer trials. From this, it is clearly obvious that the education level of many jurors is comparatively low. Approximately 60% of the respondents were confused and had difficulties while listening to evidence and following instructions. Furthermore, about 30% of jurors face a language barrier and would need a translator. Having a translator would make the evidence unclear as translations are not always presented in the right way. The study also shows that a third of jurors are uncomfortable being in a courtroom, but also 90% of jurors are satisfied with being a member of the jury and realise he meaning and importance of the role. Additionally, 30% of jurors are not well educated (do not have a degree) and 40% of people have no knowledge of the court process. These statistics are an indication that jury selection must vastly improve. All these issues can be ratified by giving jurors more detailed instructions before trial starts and balancing the number of people with different education levels. Cheryl Thomas states in her research that there are serious race disproportions in the jury structure and ethnic minorities are truly under-represented.[14] Thomas also agrees that instruction need to be more clear, simpler and broad as many jurors claim they have faced difficulties when studying such instructions. However, she also goes on to report that some of the problems concerning race stereotypes within the jury system are highly exaggerated, and have found no proof that white jurors are likely to be biased and make unfair verdicts. With that in mind, remedies must be made to ensure that it is a fair selection and that individuals from all backgrounds are represented in a jury trials. In 2007, the Ministry of Justice published the findings of the Jury Diversity Project[15] which revealed that most defendants in Crown Courts outside of London will be tried by an all-white jury. The role of the jury in the English legal system remains a controversial part of the judicial system. Complications have arisen by issues of jury selection; costs and longevity of each trials; and the experience and intellect of jury members summoned to partake as a jury member. With many sources proving that a) jurors lack the required intellect and experience to handle complex trials and make fair judgements; b) individuals from all backgrounds, especially ethnic minorities, are under-represented; and c) the length of time for jury selection and trial being too long for an individual to handle suggests that the whole process of jury trials need to be reconsidered. A number of former jurors tend to have more of a negative opinion on the use of juries due to the fact that they did not know much about the law, instructions were not given clearly, they could not tell whether to disregard a piece of evidence or not, along with many other issues. However while juries have been an integra l part of the judicial system and being assessed by ones peers and not by the judiciary seems fair, non-jury trials have had the least amount of criticism. It is clear to see that jury trials should no longer be a part of the legal system of England and Wales and that all aspects of a trial including analysing the facts of the case as well as the application of the law should only be the responsibility of the judiciary. Bibliography Cases R v Litchfield [2008] AC 507 (HL)] Legislations Criminal Justice Act 2003 Juries Act 1974 Books Cairns J and McLeod G, The Dearest Birthright of the People of England: The Jury in the History of the Common Law (1st edn, Hart publishing, 2002) Davies M, Croall H and Tyrer J, Criminal Justice: An Introduction to the Criminal Justice System in England and Wales (3rd edn, Pearson-Longman 2010) Gibson B, Criminal Justice Act: The Statute (1st edn, Waterside Press 2005) Gary Slapper and Kelly David, The English Legal System (8th edn, Routledge-Cavendish 2006) Articles JER Stephens, The Growth of Trial by Jury in England (1896) 10 HLR 150, 155 Michael Zander QC, Lord Justice Aulds Review of the Criminal Courts: A Response (2001)   UK Government Jury Service accessed 30 December 2016 Huddersfield Examiner Juror in Leeds court because she found trial boring Huddersfield Daily Examiner (Huddersfield, 21 February 2012) Linda Woolhether The Disadvantages of the Jury System accessed 2nd January 2017 Roger Matthews, Lynn Hancock and Daniel Briggs, Jurors perceptions, understanding, confidence and satisfaction in the jury system: a study in six courts (Home Office, May 2004) accessed 3 January 2017 Cheryl Thomas Are juries fair? (Ministry of Justice, February 2010) accessed 3 January 2017 Cheryl Thomas Diversity and Fairness in the Jury System (Ministry of Justice, June 2007) accessed 4 January 2017 [1] JER Stephens, The Growth of Trial by Jury in England (1896) 10 HLR 150, 155 [2] John Cairns and Grant McLeod, The Dearest Birthright of the People of England: The Jury in the History of the Common Law (1st edn, Hart publishing, 2002) [3] Michael Zander QC, Lord Justice Aulds Review of the Criminal Courts: A Response (2001)   [4] Malcom Davies, Hazel Croall and Jane Tyrer, Criminal Justice: An Introduction to the Criminal Justice System in England and Wales (3rd edn, Pearson-Longman 2010) [5] Bryan Gibson, Criminal Justice Act: The Statute (1st edn, Waterside Press 2005) [6] Gary Slapper and Kelly David, The English Legal System (8th edn, Routledge-Cavendish 2006) [7] UK Government Jury Service accessed 30 December 2016 [8] Huddersfield Examiner Juror in Leeds court because she found trial boring Huddersfield Daily Examiner (Huddersfield, 21 February 2012) [9] Juries Act 1974 [10] Criminal Justice Act 2003 [11] [2008] AC 507 (HL) [12] Linda Woolhether The Disadvantages of the Jury System accessed 2nd January 2017 [13] Roger Matthews, Lynn Hancock and Daniel Briggs, Jurors perceptions, understanding, confidence and satisfaction in the jury system: a study in six courts (Home Office, May 2004) accessed 3 January 2017 [14] Cheryl Thomas Are juries fair? (Ministry of Justice, February 2010) accessed 3 January 2017 [15] Cheryl Thomas Diversity and Fairness in the Jury System (Ministry of Justice, June 2007) accessed 4 January 2017

Analysis of My Last Duchess by Robert Browning Essay -- Last Duchess R

Analysis of My Last Duchess by Robert Browning Murder mystery intrigue. All describe Robert Browning's poem, 'My Last Duchess'. From the speaker's indirect allusions to the death of his wife the reader might easily think that the speaker committed a vengeful crime out of jealousy. His flowery speech confuses and disguises any possible motives, however, and the mystery is left unsolved. The poem is a great example of dramatic dialogue, a poetic form used to narrate and dramatize. It consists entirely of the words of a single speaker who reveals in his speech his own nature and the dramatic situation in which he finds himself. This format suits this poem particularly well because the speaker, taken to be the Duke of Ferrara, comes across as being very controlling, especially in conversation. For example, he seems jealous that he was not able to monopolize his former duchess' smile for himself. He also seems to direct the actions of the person he is addressing with comments such as "Will't please you rise?" The title of the poem evidently refers to a wall painting that Ferrarareveals to someone yet unidentified in the first fourteen words of the poem. "That's my last Duchess painted on the wall." He says. The line suggests self-satisfaction. The emphasis in the title is on last, as the ending of the poem makes clear; the Duke is now negotiating for his next Duchess. Fra Pandolf and Claus of Innsbruck are artists of Browning's own invention. Emphasizing the word Last as the ending of the poem implies; the Duke, identified as "Ferrara" in the poem's speech prefix, is negotiating for his next Duchess. Finding ourselves being given a tour of a grand home for the first time, by the owner himself, and be... ...ssiveness of the prospective son-in-law. I think that another positive aspect of the poem was the fact that Browning allows the reader to asses the Duke for themselves. I as the reader could see that such powerful Renaissance rulers were ruthless and greedy. I also saw how jealousy and possessiveness can destroy things that we love the most. I think that framing his former wife is a way for the Duke to prevent the count's daughter from misinterpreting him. His absolute rule will allow him to prescribe her behavior, but he depends on the count's representative to convey his indelicate hints about propriety better than he could verbally respond to the last duchess's miscues. I feel that in the poem there is pain, jealousy, rejection and happiness. The majority of the spectrum of emotions associated with love and marriage is contained by this piece.

Hamlets To Be Or Not To Be :: essays research papers

To be or Not to be   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  “To be or not to be, that is the question.'; Hamlet is eager to escape a life of calamity and disaster. He sees his life as a terrible burden, something he yearns to escape. The problem, however, is that death brings one into territory uncharted by t se still alive. It is not death that he fears for he perceives death as a release; the problem is death through suicide. Hamlet makes a philosophical approach to the question of whether or not it is nobler to endure life’s hardships or overcome pain an agony. Despite the fact that life can be treacherous, Hamlet foregoes suicide because the afterlife may be worse if a person takes his own life.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Hamlet also talks about life long suicide, doing nothing and allowing life to pass by. Hamlet feels as if he has resorted to this passive mode. He suffers guilt from standing by and allowing Claudius to live. Hamlet feels as if he is too gutless to t e the king’s life until he has gathered all of the facts and the right opportunity arises. Hamlet is being extremely hard on himself . It is only human nature to feel nerveless when one is unable to take action. He must realize that he is not being c ardly, but smart to wait and take decisive action.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Evidence shows that Hamlet feels life is a burden yet Hamlet still remains tranquil as he soliloquizes. The perfect iambic pentameter of Shakespeare gives this passage a sense of fluidity in contrast with the whirlpool of emotions in other soliloquies Words such as suffer, troubles, dies, sleep, heartache, calamity, and weary, depict depression as Hamlet is a very low-spirited and depressed man. There are also images that are tools of destruction: slings, arrows, arms, and whips. Shakespeare’s c eful use of words and structure displays Hamlet’s ideas successfully.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  If one chooses to take the path of suicide as a result of an unfortunate life, the afterlife has the potential to be worse.

Personal Narrative- Growing Closer to God Essay -- Personal Perspectiv

Personal Narrative- Growing Closer to God My head spins as I fly down Capital Circle on my way back home from church. Church has always been the highlight of my week, but something was missing tonight. I just couldn't seem to focus on worshiping God. My usual words of praise were empty. My hectic life had become a distraction and kept me from focusing on God, who should be my main priority. The butterflies in my stomach feel more like a herd of elephants tearing through my body. I cry out, "Why God? Why am I so busy? Why can't things just slow down for a single night?" As I pull into my driveway the "elephants" continue and my stress level only escalates. An incredible urge to disappear overwhelms me. As I slump over my textbook and try to focus on studying, my gaze keeps shifting to my Bible. "Are you trying to tell me something God? Because I don't think you understand how much I have left to do tonight. My grade depends on studying for this test and I'm not ready for it at all." My arm creeps toward the Bible and snatches it up. It's as if the arm isn't my own; I can'...

Blackwater USA security

Blackwater Worldwide in the past called Blackwater USA Security-Blackwater is the name for the peat-colored water of the swamp, is the U. S. government has inaudibly hired to maneuver in international war zones and on American soil. The contacts run from deep within the military and intelligence agencies to the upper echelons of the White House. This company that is a self-described private military company founded in 1997 by a man named Erik Prince and Al Clark which is also the same company also referred to as the security contactor or mercenary organization by the international reporters, the founder Erik Prince a former Navy SEAL.Prince attended the Naval Academy, graduated from Hillsdale College, and was an intern in George H. W. Bush's White House. Prince is a major financial supporter of Republican Party causes and candidates emerged from ancestors that was one of the top reservoir rollers of, not only the â€Å"Republican revolution† of the 1990s that brought Newt Ging rich and the Contract with America to authority, but also the growing of what the spiritual accurate or the Christian conventional lobby group. Erik Prince’s family gave the kernel money for Gary Bauer to found the Family Research Council.The founder Erik Prince of the Blackwater USA security is a major bank roller of President Bush, his cronies, and the Christian conservative movement in this nation and in 2002 Blackwater Security Consulting (BSC) was formed. It was one of several private security firms employed following the U. S. invasion of Afghanistan. BSC is one of over 60 private security firms employed during the Iraq War to guard officials and installations, train Iraq's new army and police, and provide other support for occupation forces.Blackwater was also hired during the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina by the Department of Homeland Security, as well as by private clients, including communications, petrochemical and insurance companies in Overall; the company has r eceived over US$1 billion in government contracts. In administration Blackwater's president Gary Jackson, is also a former Navy SEAL and Cofer Black, the company's current vice chairman, was director of the CIA's Counterterrorist Center (CTC) at the time of the September 11, 2001 attacks.He was the United States Department of State coordinator for counterterrorism with the rank of ambassador at large from December 2002 to November 2004. After leaving public service, Black became chairman of the privately owned intelligence gathering company Total Intelligence Solutions, Inc. , as well as vice chairman for Blackwater. Joseph E. Schmitz holds an executive position in Blackwater's holding company, Prince Group. He was previously inspector general of the Department of Defense, an appointment of George W.Bush. Robert Richer was vice president of intelligence until January 2007, when he formed Total Intelligence Solutions. He was formerly the head of the CIA's Near East Division. [20][21] Black is presently senior advisor for counterterrorism and national security issues for the 2008 Presidential election bid of Mitt Romney. Blackwater is based in the U. S. A in the state of North Carolina, where it operates a tactical training facility that it said to be the world's largest.The company trains more than 40,000 people a year, from U. S. A or foreign military and police services, as well as other U. S. A government agencies. The training consists of military offensive and defensive portioning and in smaller scale human resources security. Expertise and modus operandi trained are not limited by U. S. domestic law although we are not yet sure what legal status Blackwater operates in the U. S. and other countries and the fortification of the U. S. extends to Blackwater which is operations globally.Blackwater is the mysterious story of the ascending of a powerful mercenary army, ranging from the blood-soaked streets of Fallujah to rooftop firefights in Najaf to the hurric ane-ravaged US gulf to Washington DC, where Blackwater executives are hailed as new conquerors in the war on terror. Blackwater USA Security has massive of about 6,000 acres of the Great Dismal Swamp acre training facility as part of its headquarters, Moyock in North Carolina (just south of the Virginia border).The firm has additional offices in Baghdad, Iraq, and Kuwait City this is according to The â€Å"About Blackwater† section of its website states: â€Å"Blackwater Training Center which was founded in 1996 to fulfill the anticipated demand for government outsourcing of firearms and related security training. Blackwater has the finest private firearms training facility in the U. S. Blackwater has set a new standard for firearms and security training and is recognized as the industry leader in providing government outsource solutions in training, security, canine services, aviation support services, range construction and steel target equipment.Since its inception howeve r, the main work of Blackwater has been deploying its own mercenary army– recruited from elite U. S. military forces especially from Navy SEALS and Marine Recon, SWAT police forces, and international â€Å"soldiers of fortune. † In February it started training former Chilean commandos–some of whom served under the dictatorship of Augusto Pinochet–for use in Iraq. Blackwater has trained over 50,000 military and law enforcement personnel and provided solutions to hundreds of satisfied customers.This is an extraordinary delineation by one of America's most exciting young radical correspondents called Jeremy Scahill the undercover journalist in his new book â€Å"Blackwater† talks about The Rise of the World's Most Powerful Mercenary Army where he says that Blackwater is the honored Praetorian Guard for the global war on terror with its own military base. Blackwater is presently the largest of the U. S. State Department's three private sanctuary contra ctors, providing a total of 987 contractors.The correspondent in his book writes that Blackwater mercenary firm vehemently demonstrates the grave jeopardy of outsourcing the government’s cartel on the use of force many of which are U. S. citizens. At least 90 percent of its proceeds come from government contracts, two-thirds of which are no-bid contracts. Blackwater Worldwide is currently contracted by the United States government to provide security services in the Iraq War. In October 2007, Blackwater USA rebranded them as Blackwater Worldwide.Blackwater Worldwide has played a substantial role during the Iraq War, as a contractor for the United States government, especially in 2003; Blackwater received its first high-profile contract when it received a $21 million no-bid contract for guarding the head of the Coalition Provisional Authority, L. Paul Bremer. Since June 2004, Blackwater has been paid more than $320 million out of a $1 billion, five-year State Department the fi nancial statement for the Worldwide Personal Protective Service, which protects U. S. officials and some foreign officials in conflict zones. In 2006, Blackwater won the remunerative contract to protect the U.S. embassy in Iraq, which is the largest American embassy in the world. It is anticipated by the Pentagon and company representatives that there are 20,000 to 30,000 armed security contractors working in Iraq. Of the State Department's dependence on private contractors like Blackwater for security purposes, U. S. ambassador to Iraq, Ryan Crocker, told the U. S. Senate: â€Å"There is simply no way at all that the State Department's Bureau of Diplomatic Security could ever have sufficient full-time personnel to staff the security occupation in Iraq. There is no unconventional except through contracts.According to the republicans of early this year 2008, Blackwater USA security will leave the bureau armed and dangerous because Blackwater is the absolutely mesmerizing an explosiv e story of how the Bush Administration has spent hundreds of millions of public dollars edifice a comparable corporate army, an army enthusiastic to grounds it constitutes nothing less than a Republican Guard which is the most imperative and unnerving book about the death throes of U. S. egalitarianism in the estimative coverage about how insane Bush privatization efforts, not an iota is more worrisome than the corporatizing of military struggle forces.Jeremy Scahill admirably exposes a overwhelming example of this baleful scheme, the writer says that the only person interested in the privatization of the military is president Bush due to the advantages that we will gain from keeping the military force in the course of the Iraq fight. This engrossing investigative piece exposing, in shocking detail, a U. S. government-outsourced Frankenstein replete with helicopter gunships may leave you unconvinced. But you better believe it, for it poses a grave and gathering danger to the future of our Republic.According to Ray McGovern, CIA veteran and former intelligence briefer for George H. W. Bush, in this terrorizing and thrillingly written book, Jeremy Scahill initiates us to the shape of things to come, and to the kind of people and conglomerates apt to preside over our lives if we don't do something marvelous about it promptly. According to research from the writer Jeremy Scahill's comprehensive research and reporting elevates the shroud off the ever-tightening relationship between the federal administration and unaccountable private military corporations such as Blackwater USA.This type of mercenary army has no whatsoever reason to have this type of civilian military organization due to its relationship with the US government which is considered to be of intrinsic danger and moral conflicts involved in the using of public funds to engage a clandestine corporation which exists to generate profit to supplement and to supersede the military in its role to endow with for the common defense. Alarming issues leap to mind like a panther springing upon its prey.Moreover the Social Darwinists sitting atop the food chain in the wealthiest, most powerful nation in humanity's history now have access to their own paramilitary force. They can unleash their private army on the unfit when the need arises, whether it be within America's borders or otherwise. New Orleans is a prime example. 150 highly trained Blackwater quasi-military professionals openly armed with assault weapons descended on a tragedy-stricken city. As hurricane victims taking necessities were called â€Å"looters† and shoot to kill orders were in effect, those who value property over people saw to it that their interests were well-protected.Thankfully, Blackwater was there to protect the patrician class from the â€Å"savages† from the Lower Ninth Ward who had the audacity to attempt survival; also Blackwater's global presence includes Iraq, where the murder of four of their employees triggered the US military's revengeful attack on Fallujah in which it committed scandalous war crimes and mayhem against hundreds of Iraqi civilians. Why the four Blackwater contractors were near Fallujah the day of their deaths remains unclear. The mainstream media, Blackwater and the US government claim that they were on security detail shielding a food delivery.However, some suggest that the claims of protecting a food caravan were a ruse to cover the fact that Blackwater employees were completing a military operation. While the facts remain ambiguous, it is certain that the conventional media's description of the Blackwater victims as civilian contractors was significantly inaccurate, this led to the Blackwater's license to operate in Iraq being revoked by the Iraqi Government on September 17, 2007, resulting from a highly contentious incident that occurred the previous day during which seventeen (initially reported as eleven) Iraqis were killed.The fatalities occurre d while a Blackwater Private Security Detail (PSD) was escorting a convoy of U. S. State Department vehicles en route to a meeting in western Baghdad with United States Agency for International Development officials. The US State Department has said that â€Å"innocent life was lost. An anonymous U. S. military official was quoted as saying that Blackwater's guards opened fire without provocation and used excessive force, the incident has sparked at least 5 investigations, with the FBI now saying it will begin a probe.Blackwater helicopters were dispatched to evacuate the Polish ambassador following an insurgent assassination attempt. On October 2, 2007 Erik Prince was subject to a congressional hearing conducted by the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform following the controversy related to Blackwater's conduct in Iraq and Afghanistan. Blackwater hired the public relations firm BKSH & Associates Worldwide, a subsidiary of Burson-Marsteller, to help Prince prepare for his testimony at the hearing. Robert Tappan, a former U. S.State Department official who worked for the Coalition Provisional Authority in Baghdad, was one the executives handling the account. BKSH, a self-described â€Å"bipartisan† headed by Charlie Black, a prominent Republican political strategist and former chief spokesman for the Republican National Committee, and Scott Pastrick, former treasurer of the Democratic National Committee. The case went on until when testifying before Congress came and Prince complained about the lack of remedies his company has to deal with employee misdeeds.When asked why an employee involved in the killing of a vice-presidential guard incident had been â€Å"whisked out of the country† he replied, â€Å"We can't flog him, we can't incarcerate him. Asked by a member of Congress for financial information about his company, Prince declined to provide it. â€Å"We're a private company, and there's a key word there private, he later stated that the company could provide it at a future date if questions were submitted in writing when the term â€Å"mercenaries† was used to describe Blackwater employees, Prince objected, characterizing them instead as â€Å"loyal Americans†.A Committee on Oversight and Government Reform staff report based largely on internal Blackwater e-mail messages and State Department documents, describes Blackwater as â€Å"being staffed with reckless, shoot-first guards who were not always sober and did not always stop to see who or what was hit by their bullets. A staff report compiled by the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform on behalf of Representative Waxman questioned the cost-effectiveness of using Blackwater forces instead of U.S. troops. Blackwater charges the government $1,222 per day per guard, â€Å"equivalent to $445,000 per year, or six times more than the cost of an equivalent U. S. soldier,† the report alleged, during his testimony on Capitol H ill, Erik Prince disputed this figure, saying that it costs money for the government to train a soldier, to house and feed them, they don't just come prepared to fight. â€Å"That sergeant doesn't show up naked and untrained†, Prince stated.In the wake of Prince's testimony before Congress, the US House passed a bill in October, 2007 that would make all private contractors working in Iraq and other combat zones subject to prosecution by U. S. courts and Senate Democratic leaders have said they plan to send similar legislation to President Bush as soon as possible. The legal status of Blackwater and other security firms in Iraq is a subject of contention, before he left Iraq; L.Paul Bremer signed â€Å"Order 17† giving all Americans associated with the CPA and the American government immunity from Iraqi law. A July 2007 report from the American Congressional Research Service indicates that the Iraqi government still has no authority over private security firms contracte d by the U. S. government. On October 5, 2007 the State Department announced new rules for Blackwater's armed guards operating in Iraq. Under the new guidelines, State Department security agents will accompany all Blackwater units operating in and around Baghdad.The State Department will also install video surveillance equipment in all Blackwater armored vehicles, and will keep recordings of all radio communications between Blackwater convoys in Iraq and the military and civilian agencies which supervise their activities.Also on September 23, 2007, the Iraqi government said that it expects to refer criminal charges to its courts in connection with a shooting involving Blackwater guards. However, on October 29, 2007, immunity from prosecution was granted by The U. S. State Department, delaying a criminal inquiry into the Sept. 16 deadly shooting of 17 Iraqi civilians. Immediately afterwards, the Iraqi government approved a draft law to end any and all immunity for foreign military co ntractors in Iraq, to overturn Order 17.The U. S. Department of Justice also said any immunity deals offered to Blackwater employees were invalid, as the department that issued them had no authority to do so. Legal specialists say that the U. S. government is unlikely to allow a trial in the Iraqi courts, because there is little confidence that trials would be fair. Contractors accused of crimes abroad could be tried in the United States under either military or civilian law; however, the applicable military law, the Uniform Code of Military Justice, was changed in 2006, and appears to now exempt State Department contractors that provide security escorts for a civilian agency.Prosecution under civilian law would be through the Military Extraterritorial Jurisdiction Act, which allows the extension of federal law to civilians supporting military operations; however, according to the deputy assistant attorney general in the Justice Department’s criminal division Robert Litt, try ing a criminal case in federal court would require a secure chain of evidence, with police securing the crime scene immediately, while evidence gathered by Iraqi investigators would be regarded as suspect.To conclude the Backwaters should not have this type of civilian military organization in any part of the world including in the U. S. A because it is too costly especially to the Government of president Bush including the civilians who get to pay a lot to taxes to keep the military running. The innocent people dying all over the world where the mercenary army controls is an abuse of the human rights especially in Iraq, Bagdad and Somalia. References: 1. www. blackwaterusa. com/new/btwarchive. html 2. Blackwater by Jeremy Scahill 2007 by Jeremy Scahill.

Balanced Budget Amendment

As we discussed and read about this week in our class, the topic of the US Budget and how, why and what should we do about it has become a topic with many views and opinions. The United States of America currently holds over 16 Trillion dollars in debt based on our governments spending practices for the last ten years. Two wars, numerous fiscal collapses and cliffs, a bubble popped housing market, looming medical care costs from a socialized healthcare law and a recession have caused the government to acquire enormous amounts of debt.This debt with caused by what seems to be from irresponsible spending on both the Legislative and the Executive Branches have done nothing to lessen this deficit. One idea that has been discussed not only in Congress, but on prime time news networks is the passage of a Balanced Budget Amendment. A Balance Budget Amendment (as recently seen in House Bill HJR2, 28 NOV 2011) would require that Congress balance its budget every fiscal year unless a three-fif ths majority of both houses approved of maintaining a deficit[1].In a CNN Poll, conducted by ORC International, 74% of Americans surveyed would be in favor of a constitutional amendment to require a Balanced federal budget. So, why did it miss passing by the House of Representatives 23 votes short of the two-thirds majority needed? In the graph we see that federal debt will remain above 73 percent of GDP, far higher than the the 39 percent seen over the last four decades as stated by the Congressional Budget Office. This level is of debt is unsustainable to the our economy and a Balanced Budget Amendment may be the answer to get wasteful spending under control and reduce out national debt.There is a lot of debate for a Balanced Budget Amendment in the United States. The trade-off between â€Å"discipline† and â€Å"flexibility† is at the core of the debate surrounding the establishment of a Balanced Budget Amendment[2]. Those who oppose a Balanced Budget Amendment argu e that it may limit the scope and power of the Government to fully discharge its duties. Under this version of the amendment , three-fifths of congress would have to vote suspend requirements, the government would have to cut expenditures or raise taxes during a recession.This in theory would make the recession worse and limit the ability of the government to use fiscal policy to stabilize the economy. Also, Congress could simply devise special budgets to get around the requirements. An example would be to take some programs â€Å"off budget†, which means that they would not be counted towards the total amount of expenditures by the government and not counting them as part of the Official Budget. However these expenditures would have to get funded from somewhere.Third, Congress could issue regulations or impose mandates or requirements on businesses or other government regulations as non-budgetary ways to get programs funded and these actions could have serious ramifications on the taxpayers and economy. Those in favor of the Balanced Budget Amendment say that if we look at the States within the US who have Balanced Budget laws (all but Vermont have some form of budgetary regulation) there are excellent examples we can use in drafting an amendment which could work for this country.Marina Azzimonti, writes in her article, â€Å"The Political Economy of Balanced Budget Amendments†[3] several very good theoretical findings supporting ways that Congress can use the lessons of the States in drafting a Balanced Budget Amendment that introduces a rule that restricts deficit spending and limits increases in government debt. Her first point is that stricter budgetary rules induce policymakers with discipline regarding how money is spent. Reducing these expenditures it is argued supports positive economic growth by lowering interests rates , higher savings rates, and hence more consumer confidence and economic growth.Also the inclusion of an â€Å"Escape Clause† proposes that a bill to increase revenue or public borrowing may become law if two-thirds of the members of each house approve it. Thus allowing the government to be able to meet certain â€Å"emergencies† to include war, national crisis, or natural disaster. Proponents of these amendments also that running deficits over the long term or persistent deficits can be dangerous as well. When the government runs persistent deficits , a increasing portion of consumer's savings is used to purchase government debt instead of being invested in private capital goods .This is called â€Å"crowding out†, and this effect lower output and incomes in the future. Growing Federal Debt can lead to a sudden fiscal crisis in and of itself. This type of crises can occur when debt levels become so large in relation to the economy's output that the government has difficulty selling it. Current and potential bondholders lose confidence with the governments ability to repay its d ebt and refuse to buy anymore. The government is then forced purchase new debt at higher interest rates, often leading to inflation, reduction in government services and rograms and increased economic hardship on its citizens. There are several good examples of this type of debt crisis in Argentina, Mexico and Greece. The US saw a version of this in 2011, when S&P concerned with the US climbing debt and its credit worthiness reduced its credit rating or the ability of the country to borrow money at lower interests rates. A federal Balanced Budget amendment based loosely on those instituted by the States of this country has many benefits. One such advantage is that a Balanced Budget Amendment can reduce inefficiencies in spending.Azzimonti argues in a theoretical environment model, Politicians tend to be short-sighted since they have no guarantee of being being reelected next time around. This short-sightedness often leads them to increase spending to their constituencies now through excessive deficit spending and accumulate too much debt. These deficits are are less politically costly than raising taxes, which often is a good way for a politician to get voted out in their next election. However, with fiscal restrictions in place politicians are forced to take long view and be fiscally responsible.This leads into the next positive of a Balanced Budget Amendment, and that is reducing future financial burden on taxpayers. When the government releases bonds to be purchased, it agrees to repay its holders in the future for spending today. Those repayment burdens are placed on future taxpayers who may not have received the benefits of current spending. This future tax burden also can hamper long term interests rates today, which can hamper economic activity in the short term.Despite arguments both for and against enacting a Balanced Budget Amendment, Congress needs to come to a solution regarding its fiscal policy. The Federal reserve Bank can not continue to print money to stimulate the economy, and the government can not keep spending money wastefully and hope for our economy to get better. The American People deserve a government that is responsible with its wallet and looks out for all Americans in making the economy stringer and reducing the national debt for future generations.When properly explored and drafted, and if Politicians can agree, transcend party lines and focus on getting spending and debt under control a Balanced Budget Amendment could work to makes the United States financially stronger and more prosperous than ever before. Resources O'Sullivan, Sheffrin and Perez Economics: Principles, Applications and Tools 7th Ed 2012 Azzimonti, Marina. â€Å"The Political Economy of Balanced Budget Amendments. † Business Review Q1 2013 Eddlem, Thomas R. â€Å"Before the Income Tax: How the Federal Budget Government Balanced the Budget Before 1913. The New American February 2013 McCullouch, J. Huston. â€Å" An Improved Balanced Budget Amendment. † The Independent Review Fall 2012 ——————————— [ 1 ]. McCulloch, J. Huston. An Improved Balance Budget Amendment (Art). Independent Review, Fall 2012 [ 2 ]. Azzimonti, Marina. The Political Economy of Balanced Budget Amendments (Art). Business Review, Q1 2013 [ 3 ]. Azzimonti, Marina. The Political Economy of Balanced Budget Amendments (Art). Business Review, Q1 2013

Child Hunger

Ending Child Hunger in America Studies prove that children that do not have enough food to eat do not do as well in school, they are likely to be sick more often, they are less likely to graduate high school – which in turn will keep them from going to college and in turn will have a negative Impact on their economic future. If these things happen then In the future that child will have a harder time providing for their children, thus causing a cycle In the effects of hunger.For this reason, It Is our duty as a society to do everything we an to ensure that these children have the resources available to them so that they can have the tools they need to prepare themselves to be functioning members of society In adulthood. There are currently more than sixteen million children In America whose families struggle to put food on the table – that's one In five children In America. That number is astonishing. Millions of children In America are on free or reduced lunch plans at their schools; this allows them to have nutritious meal while at school.But what happens when they go home? What happens during the summer when kids are out of school for several months? Only one in seven children on free or reduced lunch plans receives summer meals. What happens to those other six children – who ensures that they have enough food to eat? The solution is simple – we need to end child hunger in America. There are many ways to do this. First, there are church programs locally that offer summer and weekend home meal plans to children that are on free and reduced lunch plans.One such church is Midtown Church in Benton, Arkansas. They're program, known as the â€Å"Backpack Ministry† helps to provide weekend meals and snacks to children throughout the community who otherwise would not have anything to eat. Secondly, these types of programs should be better advertised and more easily accessible to those who need them. Access to programs is of utmost importance when ending child hunger. Next, education is vital – the parent's of these children must learn and understand the effects that hunger can have on their children.They must be educated on good food hoicks for their children and what the best things they can give them are. They need to know where to go to get connected to the right people that can help them find access to these programs that are designed to end child hunger. Spreading awareness of child hunger can ago long way. If the public has knowledge of what the numbers look like in the world of child hunger, they would be more likely to take action. The public has a greater power than they realize – people have the power to promote change.

Emerson Self Reliance

Ralph Waldo Emerson's works â€Å"Self-Reliance† and Nature esteem transcendentalism as a romantic, individualistic philosophy of life in hopes of establishing contemporary concepts in society which reject traditional institutions and customs. Emerson’s thoughts are generally based on inward reflection, in which the capabilities of one’s soul and intuition are fundamental. He believes that a rejuvenated sense of personal inspiration can overpower the dogmatic constructs society imposes on its members.Emerson stresses the potential for genius and creativity in all people through the depth of philosophic interest in nature and in oneself, allowing people to find self-truth or their purpose. He further expounds upon this concept of the pursuit of self-realization by describing the process of gaining insight through opening oneself to the powers of nature in solitude and closing oneself to the influence of society in isolation. Isolation reflects Emerson’s sta tement of individualism as its emphasis is placed on the mental strength of a person over traditional systems of thought.This philosophy esteems individuals above all: society, religion, and other institutions and systems of thought. The dogmatisms imposed on human beings are part of a course one must deviate from in order to achieve individual freedom of thought and expression. A person must use society as a standard from which they must rise above by disregarding its norms. Emerson repeatedly calls on individuals to value their own thoughts, opinions, and experiences above those presented to them by others. Each individual is a unique expression of creativity and will, capable of contributing different ideas and reforms to society.Mankind’s divinity also plays a prominent role in the methods of isolation. All people, according to Emerson, have divine powers within. Success and achievement are derived from people themselves, not bestowed by another superior being. He uses th e example of â€Å"prayer as a means to effect a private end, is theft and meanness† (Self-Reliance 545). This direct link between divinity and the individual provides assurance that the individual will, when correctly exercised, can never produce evil.Individual will, in Emerson's philosophy, is not something to be rejected or hidden, as done so by many who are unable to see past society’s dictums, but rather a force to be asserted and upheld for the more advanced progress of man. In this context however, an individual who fails to be self-reliant, who does not intend to act upon his or her own thoughts and ideas, is out of step with its purpose. Such a person, in Emerson's view, cannot be productive, fulfilled, and therefore happy, as they are not living for anything real.These people are only temporarily pacified by ideals that have already been established, innovations that have already been discovered, and abilities that have already been exhausted. On the other h and, a person who is self-reliant can be assured that he or she is carrying out a divine purpose of life, as no one before them could have had the exact same ideas, strengths, or mental environment to work with. Those who flout the rules and conventions of society and religion do, however, suffer disapproval as a result.But, Emerson points out, those men who were earlier condemned are now considered some of the greatest thinkers of all time: Galileo, Socrates, Copernicus, and countless others. Amending the immediate thought process of one’s world exposes the counter ideas of those who do not want change, but is ultimately beneficial when they are given time to adjust and open their minds to new ideas. The first innate reaction of man is to reject that which is different and may pose dangers to the familiar way of life.This â€Å"terror that scares us from self-trust† (Self-Reliance 537) is the beginning of the emergence of universal conformity which, in turn, eclipses innovation and personal growth. However, the more people open themselves to their personal judgment and intuition, the more trust they will have for each other as a mutual respect for ideas will develop. People will be able to relate to each other through their processes of thought, ensuring acknowledgment amongst all for the effort and uniqueness society will experience through individual contributions.Self-reliance is not a merely a matter of averting tradition but, just as importantly, a matter of believing and doing what one is uniquely suited to believe and do. Emerson expects the self-reliant to substitute originality for imitation in every sphere of life. Referencing architecture, Emerson explains that originality will yield a product that is superior to one made by imitation: If the American artist will study with hope and love the precise thing to be done by him, considering the climate, the soil, the length of the day, the wants of the people †¦ e will create a house in which all these will find themselves fitted, and taste and sentiment will be satisfied also (Self-Reliance 547). A commitment to live according to one's own ideas about every matter will certainly result in benefits far greater than those which are given by adhering to former ideals of society as people will be able to almost customize the different aspects of their lives. Isolating oneself from the mental influences of others provides people a tool to aid their focus on what they really desire from themselves and their lives.Though solitude arrives at the same product as isolation, abilities and confidence in oneself, it requires a separate course of action. In solitude, one must physically disconnect from civilization and open oneself to the influences of nature and the powers of the unquantifiable. In Nature, Emerson displays the overwhelming sense of unity, harmony, and the blending of man's identity with the divine essence of nature, as the entire â€Å"universe is composed of Nature and the Soul† (Nature 493). By being in nature, one comes upon the feeling of losing his human point of view.An omniscient one is then created through the feeling that man exists as part of nature-â€Å"I am nothing. I see all† (Nature 494). Nature’s constructs, such as the sublime, help people to not only appreciate their positions in the universe, but realize the vast unknown and the consequent pettiness of everyday temporal problems. By ridding oneself of the perceived dualism between people and nature, one becomes part of all creation and is able to access the power nature exerts. Solitude also includes the awareness of time and its genuine importance that nature conveys to man.Emerson counsels the self-reliant to keep their focus on the present. â€Å"Man postpones or remembers,† (Self-Reliance 541) he explains. â€Å"He does not live in the present, but with reverted eye laments the past, or, heedless of the riches that surround him, stan ds on tiptoe to foresee the future† (Self-Reliance 541). One who lingers in the past or worries about the future wastes one’s life in regret while another who looks to the future misses today's opportunities and pleasures. It is Emerson’s confidence in the present that leads him to establish that consistency is foolish.That a certain belief or course of action was correct, useful, or best in the past does not guarantee that it remains so in the present. Conversely, to leave behind a belief or a way of doing things does not mean that it was not useful at the time or that one was wrong to have pursued it, but it no longer applies. He refers to a rose’s ability to just grow, no matter what may happen in the future and what had happened in the past. The rose simply does what it is supposed to do, and does not let its goal out of sight by becoming distracted with mere possibilities or previous occurrences whose effects cannot be altered.The ability to live in t he moment ensures that an individual uses the potential of every moment to its fullest, ultimately creating a genuine purpose for said individual to work towards and a higher probability of fulfillment in life. This individual goal, however, comes with its own approach. Emerson acknowledges the fact that through isolation, people gear towards finding something they that they either want to achieve or experience as they are able to focus their thoughts on their own potential. Reaching a goal, however, has no preset or guideline; people must go about doing so in their own way.To demonstrate the effectiveness of an apparently inconsistent course through life, Emerson uses a sailing journey as a metaphor: â€Å"The voyage of the best ship is a zigzag line of a hundred tacks† (Self-Reliance 538). The knowledge that one is following the true path to the right destination, despite apparent inconsistencies, gives one confidence to ignore the taunts of others who deride one for changi ng course. By complying with both isolation and solitude, intuition judgment and appreciation become the powers by which people liberate themselves from the constructs and opinions of others and focus on personal growth.Emerson’s perception of solitude suggests that one opens themselves to the exterior influences of nature to gain insight whereas his theory of isolation contends that people use civilization as a standard from which they must deviate. If the individual is able to progress, society will do so automatically. Therefore people must trust their own characters and way of life. Isolation also combats the notion that all people are obliged to acquiesce to societal conformities that are ultimately detrimental to both individual and communal well-being.The â€Å"norm† is not always right, society regresses instead of progresses as people refuse to change what has been, in fear of being different. Solitude results in personal acceptance to where they are in life a s people open themselves to the sublime or powers they cannot compete with, imposing a sense of humility and therefore a realistic outlook to life and one’s own potential. Consequently, nature along with the powers of the human mind embodies true happiness and fulfillment.

Educational Psychology and Special Education

What is the definition of a learning disability and who should qualify to be special education? What assessments should be made to be able to know what child belongs where? This is what we are going to explore in this paper. We want to see exactly who qualifies and how to go about assessing what needs can be met by choosing to place a child in special education or leaving in general education and making some modifications. The main point to remember for any child is doing the best we can for their success.Learning disabilities are a bit tough to diagnose, the reason for this is because learning disabilities affects everyone differently. While one person may have difficulty with reading or writing another person may have trouble with math or following through with directions. â€Å"Researchers think that learning disabilities are caused by differences in how a person’s brain works and how it processes information† (Medicinenet, 2013) Usually the people with learning disa bilities, such as Aspbergers, are highly intelligent and only have problems with how the brain sends the information, not being non-intelligent.IDEA states that â€Å"A learning disorder in one or more of the basic psychological processes involved in understanding or in using language, spoken or written that may manifest itself in an imperfect ability to listen, think, speak, read, write, spell, or do mathematical calculations, including conditions such as perceptual disabilities, brain injury, minimal brain dysfunction, dyslexia, and developmental aphasia†.This encompasses a wide range of children and we have to figure out how to best assess whether these children should be put into special education, or if they could function better with modifications to the general education classroom. Because learning disabilities are so multidimensional the assessments must also be in order to properly diagnose what steps to take. One of the most important parts of assessment is to alway s keep everyone involved in the child’s life in the loop.Keeping open communication and checking often to see what is working and what is not is a vital key to the assessment process. Checking first who needs to be involved within the team and then going from there with making the plan and seeing if it works or what needs to be changed. It is important to find out first if the child truly has a learning disability, second the nature, specificity, and the severity of the learning disability to know how to proceed with it. If you do not know the extent you cannot do very well at teaching for their abilities when you do not know what is lacking.â€Å"Schools are required to implement a system of interventions before evaluating a child for a disability† (Logsdon, 2013) This is important because we do not want to put any child into a special education classroom without reason, this would not benefit that child at all. It is so important to know exactly what needs the child has and modify to try to benefit them before you place them. We must not simply send children to special education because the teacher does not want to deal with them.People tend to want to box people into certain categories and this just cannot happen with learning disabilities. A child who may have difficulty reading may be dyslexic, or they may simply not be being read to and worked with enough. They also may have moved into the country fairly recently and may be lacking because of a language barrier. There are 9 ways that are great for adapting instruction to be more easily understood by children with learning disabilities as stated by Teachers First. The first is adapting the size of what they are to read or do, then adapt the time for assignments and testing.Next, increase personal assistance by peer teaching, pairing students who are less adept with more advanced students. Fourth, is input, allow for more hands on types of teaching. Fifth, Adapt the skill level or the amount of problems that they must accomplish and change the output, how they respond to what was taught, such as drawing pictures, writing a story, or working with a computer program related to the lesson. Allow the child to participate in the lesson either mentally or physically to keep them on task.Alternate is the next one, adapt the goals and outcomes with the same  materials, tailor the lesson to the child’s needs and what they can handle, and lastly change curriculum if necessary. If the lesson is on the Vietnam war, you might be able to have them interview a person from the Vietnam war instead of having a discussion about it as they might get more out of that. It is all about our children and making the lessons understandable to them. An example of making adaptations to a lesson would be a child with vision impairment. For this child it is very difficult towards the end of the day to be able to read because her eyes are fatigued and cannot take much more strain.For this rea son her parent is allowed to read to her and she can write her answers to questions because the child simply cannot do that for herself at the end of the day like the other children. She also has adaptations in her regular education classroom with magnifiers, a monitor by her desk to blow up what is on the board, all her books and papers are blown up, and she always sits in the front of the classroom. These are modifications for a visually impaired person who is very bright, but lacks some because of her vision impairment which creates the learning disability.â€Å"The world is full of examples of accommodations that permit people with disabilities to perform specific tasks they might not otherwise be able to. Drivers with poor vision wear glasses or contacts, elevators mark the buttons in Braille, and voters with disabilities may be given assistance by the person of their choice . † (Luke, Schwartz. 2010) We must do the same with our children. We need to take them and assess where their issues lie and do the best we can to create a successful learning environment for them!