Jews Essay Example

Jews Essay Since the beginning of Christ, Jews have been fated from the mainstream of society. They have often been outcaste and therefore marginalised. Germanys defeat in World War 1 and a worldwide depression in the 1930s left the German economy in ruins and made many Germans angry and resentful. Adolf Hitler, leader of the Nazi Party, came to power in 1933. In the beginning, when Hitler took power, a steady series of laws eliminated all rights of German Jews until ultimately they were even deprived of the right to live. They seized Jewish businesses and destroyed synagogues. Many German Jews managed to flee Germany, many more were less fortunate and were trapped because no country would admit them and they had no means of self defence. Most nations had restrictive immigration policies and the depression led workers to fear that Jewish refugees would take their jobs. At the beginning of 1937, the United Kingdom bowed to Arab pressure and limited immigration to Palestine. Anyone with three o r four Jewish grandparents was automatically a Jew, regardless of whether that individual was a member of the Jewish community. Half-Jews were considered Jewish only if they themselves belonged to the Jewish religion or were married to a Jewish person. The proclaimed objective of the Nazi regime was Jewish emigration. The hostility towards Jews in Germany increased. This was reflected in the decision by many shops restaurants not to serve the Jewish people. Germans were also encouraged not to use Jewish doctors lawyers. Jewish civil servants, teachers those employed by the mass media were sacked. On the night of the 9th and 10th of November 1938, following the assassination of a German diplomat in Paris by a young Jew, all synagogues in Germany were set on fire, windows of Jewish shops were smashed, and thousands of Jews were arrested. In almost all large German cities some smaller ones, over 7,500 Jewish shops were destroyed a

Social Divide between the Rich and the Poor in GustaveFlauberts Madame Bovary essays

Social Divide between the Rich and the Poor in GustaveFlaubert's Madame Bovary essays Throughout history, literature has become an effective medium that reflects and illustrates social events and experiences of a particular period. Furthermore, literary works provide a subjective interpretation of experiences that the author/writer has that are also significant in studying the kind of society and people that lived in a particular period. Gustave Flaubert's "Madame Bovary" provides these functions in a literary piece; his depiction of life of Western society during the 19th century mirrors the rigidly conservative and intolerant nature of the people against individuals who are perceived to be outcasts' or non-conformists among people who follow strict norms within their society. In the novel, Flaubert centers on Madame Bovary, who, after witnessing the elegance and high status of the rich and elite class of the society, aspired for a life similar to theirs. In the process, Madame Bovary wasted her life committing mistakes, like committing adultery, just so she would have the wealth she have always dreamed of. Throughout the novel, Flaubert focused on illustrating to his audience the highly critical society that the Bovary couple lived in; why, in the course of the novel, they became victims of the illusion that wealth will come their way eventually (especially Madame Bovary). This paper discusses, through a character analysis of Charles and Emma Bovary and a study of their life as a couple, how the great social divide between the rich and the poor has led to the tragic end of Emma Bovary's life. The analysis and discussion centers on Part I of the novel, where Flaubert shows the transition of Emma Bovary's character from being a simple village girl to being a desperate social climber' and eventually, Chapter 1 of the novel gives the audience background information about Charles Bovary's childhood and the blatant discrimination that he ex...

Balance Sheet and Annual Financial Statements

The directors are responsible for the preparation and fair presentation of the annual financial statements of the Company and Group, comprising the directors’ report, the statements of financial position as at June 2013, the statements of comprehensive income, changes in equity and cash flows for the year then ended, and the notes to the financial statements, which include a summary of significant accounting policies and other explanatory notes, in accordance with International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRSs) and the requirements of the Companies Act of South Africa. The directors are satisfied that the information contained in the annual financial statements fairly represents the financial position at year-end and the financial performance and cash flows of the Company and Group. The directors are also responsible for such internal control as the directors determine is necessary to enable the preparation of financial statements that are free from material misstatement, whether due to fraud or error, and for maintaining adequate accounting records and an effective system of risk management as well as the preparation of the supplementary schedules included in these financial statements. The directors believe that the Company and Group have adequate resources to continue trading as a going concern in the foreseeable future. The annual financial statements support the viability of the Company and the Group. The Group’s external auditors, PricewaterhouseCoopers Incorporated, audited the Company and Group annual financial statements, and their report is presented on page 5. The external auditors were given unrestricted access to all financial records and related data, including minutes of all meetings of shareholders, the board of directors and committees of the board. The directors believe that all representations made to the independent auditors during their audit are valid and appropriate. Approval of Annual Financial Statements The Company and Group annual financial statements of Shoprite Holdings Ltd, as identified in the first paragraph, were approved by the Board of directors on 19 August 2013 and signed on its behalf by: CH Wiese Chairman JW Basson Chief Executive Officer Certificate of the Company Secretary In terms of section 88(2)(e) of the Companies Act no 71 of 2008 (as amended) I, PG du Preez, in my capacity as Company Secretary, confirm that for the year ended 30 June 2013, the Company has lodged with the Companies and Intellectual Property Commission, all such returns as are required of a public company in terms of the Companies Act and that all such returns and notices are true, correct and up to date. PG du Preez Company Secretary 19 August 2013 Directors’ Report Shoprite Holdings Ltd and its Subsidiaries 2 NATURE OF BUSINESS Shoprite Holdings Limited (â€Å"Shoprite Holdings†) is an investment holding company listed on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange Limited (â€Å"JSE†) in the â€Å"food retailers wholesalers† sector. Secondary listings are also maintained on the Namibian and Zambian Stock Exchanges. supermarket premises or developing new shopping centres to accommodate one of the Group’s supermarket formats. New retail developments and the redevelopment of existing properties are supervised through every stage of the planning-, design- and construction process. SHOPRITE INVESTMENTS LTD: SHOPRITE HOLDINGS COMPRISES OF THE FOLLOWING MAIN SUBSIDIARIES: As a wholly owned subsidiary of Shoprite Holdings, Shoprite Investments conducts the Group’s treasury function and financing of credit sales to third parties. SHOPRITE CHECKERS (PTY) LTD: Supermarkets: Serves a broad customer base through our Shoprite, Checkers, Checkers Hyper and Usave store formats. Supply Chain Management: Supplies the Group’s outlets in South Africa and 16 Non-RSA countries. The Group prides itself in running a state-ofthe-art distribution operation and became the first South African retailer to receive the ISO 9002 accreditation for import and export handling. Fast Foods: The Hungry Lion chain now boasts modern, well-designed stores with an inescapable focus on fried chicken and operates outlets within South Africa, Botswana, Zambia, Lesotho, Swaziland, Namibia, Angola and the Democratic Republic of Congo. Franchise: The OK Franchise Division’s stores offer a wide range of perishable and non-perishable food items and liquor under the OK, Friendly Grocer, 7-Eleven, Megasave en Sentra brands. Freshmark: Freshmark is the Group’s fruit and vegetable procurement and distribution arm and supplies fresh produce to the Group’s retail outlets. As one of the largest buyers of fresh produce in South Africa, Freshmark also imports fruit and vegetables to ensure a wide variety and continuity of traditionally seasonal fresh produce. Liquor Stores: Trading under the Shoprite and Checkers LiquorShop brands respectively, the liquor shops have extended the Group’s offering by providing a selection of wines, beers and a wide range of premium spirits to its customers. Meat Markets: The Group’s meat market division is the largest retailer of fresh meat on the African continent. Customers are served through in-store butcheries that employ qualified butchers and technicians. Money Markets: Money Markets offer a comprehensive range of financial services and products to the Group’s customers through dedicated in-store service counters. Furniture: The Furniture division offers furniture, electrical appliances and home entertainment products to customers for cash or credit through its OK Furniture, OK Power Express and House Home outlets in South Africa, Botswana, Namibia, Swaziland, Lesotho, Zambia, Mozambique and Angola. Pharmacies and wholesale distribution: MediRite’s in-store pharmacies offer consumers an easy access to affordable healthcare and healthcare professionals. These in-store dispensaries currently operate throughout South Africa and also in Angola and Swaziland. The Group’s pharmaceutical wholesaler, Transpharm, sells and distributes a wide range of pharmaceutical products and surgical equipment to hospitals and clinics, dispensing doctors, veterinary surgeons and private and corporate pharmacies. Properties: This division is tasked with the responsibility of expanding the supermarket portfolio through the identification and leasing of new SHOPRITE HOLDINGS LTD ANNUAL FINANCIAL STATEMENTS 2013 COMPUTICKET (PTY) LTD: As a premier ticketing solution provider and one of the most recognised brand names, Computicket offers theatre, concert, festival, sport and cinema tickets along with bus tickets and gift vouchers through a network of outlets located across South Africa and Namibia, a call centre as well as the Computicket website. Computicket also offers travel packages. SHOPRITE INTERNATIONAL LTD: Incorporated in the Republic of Mauritius, Shoprite International is the holding company for the majority of the Group’s non-South African retail and property investments. SHOPRITE INSURANCE COMPANY LTD: Provides first and third party short-term insurance to the Group and its customers. OTHER GROUP SUBSIDIARIES: The interests of Shoprite Holdings in other subsidiaries are set out on page  69 of the Annual Financial Statements. FINANCIAL REVIEW The Group’s headline earnings per share amounts to 675,4 cents for the year (2012: 607,0 cents). Details of the profit of Shoprite Holdings and its subsidiaries are contained in the statement of comprehensive income on page 7 with reference to the operating segment information on page 23. The financial position of Shoprite Holdings and its subsidiaries are recorded in the statement of financial position on page 6. Further details are furnished in the notes to the annual financial statements on page 10 to 68. The Group’s net asset value per share as at 30 June 2013 was 2  837 cents (2012: 2  382 cents). DISTRIBUTION TO SHAREHOLDERS PREFERENCE DIVIDENDS Details are reflected in note 27 to the Group’s Annual Financial Statements. ORDINARY DIVIDENDS An interim cash dividend (no. 128) of 123 cents per share was paid on 18  March 2013. A final dividend (no. 129) of 215 cents per share, is payable on 16 September 2013, bringing the total dividend for the year to 338 cents (2012: 303 cents) per ordinary share. 3 SHARE CAPITAL The authorised share capital of Shoprite Holdings remained unchanged at 650 000 000 (six hundred and fifty million) ordinary shares of 113,4 cents (one hundred and thirteen comma four cents) each. There was no movement in the number of issued Shoprite Holdings ordinary shares which remained at 570 579 460 shares of 113,4 cents each. On 28 June 2012, shareholders approved the issue of an additional 13  803  405 non-convertible, non-participating, no par value deferred shares in the share capital of Shoprite Holdings to Thibault Square Financial Services (Pty) Ltd pursuant to the issue of 27  100  000 ordinary shares during the previous reporting period. These deferred shares were however only issued on 25 July 2012. As at 30 June 2013, 35 436 472 (6,2%) ordinary shares were held as treasury shares by a wholly owned subsidiary of Shoprite Holdings. GOING CONCERN The annual financial statements of the Group were prepared on a going concern basis. The Board has performed a formal review of the Group’s results and its ability to continue trading as a going concern in the foreseeable future. The directors of Shoprite Holdings confirm that they are satisfied that the Group has adequate resources to continue in business for the foreseeable future. During the reporting period the following special resolutions were passed by main Group subsidiaries: SHOPRITE CHECKERS (PTY) LTD – Special resolution number 1: Approval of new Memorandum of Incorporation; and – Special resolution number 2: Financial Assistance to Subsidiaries, Related and inter-related entities. SHOPRITE INVESTMENTS LTD – Special resolution number 1: Approval of new Memorandum of Incorporation. COMPUTICKET (PTY) LTD – Special resolution number 1: Approval of new Memorandum of Incorporation. SHOPRITE INTERNATIONAL LTD Special resolution number 1: Approval of new Constitution. SHOPRITE INSURANCE COMPANY LTD – Special resolution number 1: Approval of new Memorandum of Incorporation. BORROWINGS DIRECTORS AND SECRETARY Shoprite Holdings has unlimited borrowing powers in terms of its Memorandum of Incorporation. The Group’s overall level of debt increased from R4  035 million to R4  151 million during the financial year under review. The directors’ names and details are furnished on pages 8 and 9 and the company secretary’s name, business and postal address on page 67 of the Integrated Report. In terms of the Memorandum of Incorporation of Shoprite Holdings (â€Å"the MOI†), no less than one third of the non-executive directors shall retire by rotation at each Annual General Meeting. Dr CH Wiese, Messrs EC Kieswetter, JA Louw and JF Malherbe retire as directors, in terms of paragraph 33. 5. 1 of the MOI of the Company, at the Annual General Meeting. Dr CH Wiese, Messrs EC Kieswetter and JA  Louw have offered themselves for re-election as directors of Shoprite Holdings. The board supports the re-election of these directors. SPECIAL RESOLUTIONS At the Annual General Meeting of Shoprite Holdings held on 29 October 2012, shareholders approved the following special resolutions: – Special resolution number 1: Remuneration payable to Non-Executive Directors; – Special resolution number 2: Financial Assistance to Subsidiaries, Related and inter-related entities; – Special resolution number 3: Financial Assistance for Subscription of Securities; – Special resolution number 4: General Approval to repurchase shares; and – Special resolution number 5: Approval of new Memorandum of Incorporation as proposed by the Board. Directors’ Report (continued) The company’s directors are responsible for the preparation and fair presentation of these consolidated and separate financial statements in accordance with International Financial Reporting Standards and the requirements of the Companies Act of South Africa, and for such internal control as the directors determine is necessary to enable the preparation of consolidated and separate financial statements that are free from material misstatement, whether due to fraud or error. AUDITOR’S RESPONSIBILITY Our responsibility is to express an opinion on these consolidated and separate financial statements based on our audit. We conducted our audit in accordance with International Standards on Auditing. Those standards require that we comply with ethical requirements and plan and perform the audit to obtain reasonable assurance about whether the consolidated and separate financial statements are free from material misstatement. An audit involves performing procedures to obtain audit evidence about the amounts and disclosures in the financial statements. The procedures selected depend on the auditor’s judgement, including the assessment of the risks of material misstatement of the financial statements, whether due to fraud or error. In making those risk assessments, the auditor considers internal control relevant to the entity’s preparation and fair presentation of the financial statements in order to design audit procedures that are appropriate in the circumstances, but not for the purpose of expressing an opinion on the effectiveness of the entity’s internal control. An audit also includes evaluating the appropriateness of accounting policies used and the reasonableness of accounting estimates made by management, as well as evaluating the overall presentation of the financial statements. We believe that the audit evidence we have obtained is sufficient and appropriate to provide a basis for our audit opinion. OPINION In our opinion, the consolidated and separate financial statements present fairly, in all material respects, the consolidated and separate financial position of Shoprite Holdings Limited as at 30 June 2013, and its consolidated and separate financial performance and its consolidated and separate cash flows for the year then ended in accordance with International Financial Reporting Standards and the requirements of the Companies Act of South Africa. OTHER REPORTS REQUIRED BY THE COMPANIES ACT As part of our audit of the consolidated and separate financial statements for the year ended 30 June 2013, we have read the Directors’ Report, the Audit Committee’s Report and the Company Secretary’s Certificate for the purpose of identifying whether there are material inconsistencies between these reports and the audited consolidated and separate financial statements. These reports are the responsibility of the respective preparers. Based on reading these reports we have not identified material inconsistencies between these reports and the audited consolidated and separate financial statements. The  most significant assumptions and estimates used in applying the Group’s accounting policies relate to the following: a) Impairment of assets: The Group performs a review of loss-making stores and considers the need for the impairment of assets under these circumstances. This determination requires significant judgment. The Group evaluates amongst other things, the duration and extent of the losses, the near-term business outlook for the store, and the possible redeployment of the assets between stores. Refer to notes 3, 9 and 26. Useful lives of assets: In determining the depreciation and amortisation charge for property, plant and equipment and intangible assets, management applies judgment in estimating the useful lives and residual values of these different asset classes. Refer to notes 3, 9 and 21. c) Income taxes: The Group is subject to income taxes in numerous jurisdictions. Significant judgment is required in determining the worldwide accrual for income taxes. The Group recognises liabilities for anticipated uncertain income tax positions based on estimates of potential additional taxes due. With regards to deferred income tax assets for unutilised income tax losses, judgment is also required to whether sufficient future taxable income will be available against which these losses can be utilised. Refer to notes 1. 11 and 28. d) Allowances for doubtful debts: Trade receivables include instalment sale debtors and franchise debtors for which allowances for impairment are made in accordance with the accounting policy in note 1. 15. These calculations involve the discounting of projected future cash flows and require the use of estimates. Details regarding the allowances are set out in note 12. e) Employee benefit accruals and provisions: Various assumptions are applied in determining the valuations of post-retirement medical benefits, share based payment accruals and long term employee benefits as set out in notes 1. 20, 1. 22, 14, 17 and 35. Estimates and assumptions that have a significant risk of causing a material adjustment to the carrying value of assets and liabilities in a subsequent year relate to the following: income taxes; allowances for doubtful debts and employee benefit allowances. All estimates and underlying assumptions are based on historical experience and various other factors that management believes are reasonable under the circumstances. The results of these estimates form the basis of judgments about the carrying value of assets and liabilities that are not readily apparent from other sources. Actual results may differ from these estimates. The estimates and underlying assumptions are reviewed on an ongoing basis. Revisions to accounting estimates are recognised in the period in which the estimate is revised and any affected future periods. Use of adjusted measures The measures listed below are presented as management believes it to be relevant to the understanding of the Group’s financial performance. These measures are used for internal performance analysis and provide additional useful information on underlying trends to equity holders. These measures are not defined terms under IFRS and may therefore not be comparable with similarly titled measures reported by other entities. It is not intended to be a substitute for, or superior to, measures as required by IFRS. a) Trading profit on the face of the statement of comprehensive income, being the Group’s operating results excluding foreign exchange rate differences and income or expenditure of a capital nature. b) Income or expenditure of a capital nature on the face of the statement of comprehensive income, being all re-measurements excluded from the calculation of headline earnings per share in accordance with the guidance contained in SAICA Circular 3/2012: Headline Earnings. The principal items that will be included under this measure are: gains and losses on disposal and scrapping of property, plant and equipment, intangible assets and assets held for sale; impairments or reversal of impairments; any non-trading items such as gains and losses on disposal of investments, operations and subsidiaries. c) Interest received on the face of the statement of comprehensive income, being only interest received on call and operating bank account balances. Subsidiaries Subsidiaries are entities (including special purpose entities) which are, directly or indirectly, controlled by the Group. Control is established where the Group has the power to govern the financial and operating policies of an entity so as to obtain benefits from its activities. The existence and effect of potential voting rights that are currently exercisable or convertible are considered when assessing whether the Group controls another.

Legal Positivs and the Rules of Law Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Legal Positivs and the Rules of Law - Essay Example This provides for the security of the people as manifested by the institution of a government willing to be able to enforce it for the benefit of the majority of the population at the very least. Law and morality are destined to be intertwined for they serve the same purpose and to establish a thought of segregation in a positivist perspective would essentially diverse any of its very nature. Any law, even if it does presuppose to be primarily lacking of moral substance finds the very same although in what may be a distorted moral view of the few to rendered it into being. The source of any law must come from a moral perspective and this is inculcated therein by spirit. The discussion on the Utilitarian proposition on the distinction of law and morals has long found its way to stimulate conversation and debate over the great legal minds and has spanned centuries in the process. Austin said in his book ‘The Province of Jurisprudence Determined’ that â€Å"A law, which ac tually exists, is a law, though we happen to dislike it, or though it varies from the text, by which we regulate our approbation or disapprobation† (p.184). This has then on been the subject of reference by discourse from other authors in the legal profession. This is perhaps another source of the thesis found Hart’s article of his distinction between what law is and what it ought to be. Thus from this discussion of Hart we were introduced to the exemplification of the German woman who has divulged to the military her husband’s resentment to Hitler which was a source of punishment for the latter by virtue of a statue. Later on the wife was found guilty by the appellate court under the German Criminal Code of 1871 for denouncing her husband to the German courts (Hart, p.2). This law clearly antedated the woman’s act and the decision can be perceived to be fuelled primarily by the moral institution of the law by the court. But what concerns Fuller on Hartâ⠂¬â„¢s argument although the same was not an absolute positivist in the same level as Austin, was Hart’s position on a mere intersection of law and morals instead of clear convergence of the two. He then answered in retort and quite aggressively that the content of Hart’s article is confusing in the same way that the writer may have been just as confused of his hypothesis himself (Fuller, p.630). But despite this criticism, Hart’s one rhetoric finds its way to be an effective question that permeates through. Consequently, he asked â€Å"Why should we dramatize the difference between them?† (Hart, p.3). Why indeed? Throughout the history of this debate it is fathomable that the minds behind the idealization of positivism such as Austin have parted their wisdom at a different day and age while the Utilitarian philosophical suggestion was a way of being. This enables for the advocacy toward strict adherence to the law devoid of moral rationalization. A law i s a law and as such must be followed to the letter. This renders the same to be an object of absolute prowess that could find its fault in the legislation process and the adverse outcome of which to be experienced during its actual enforcement with the weight of the law to be imposed by the courts of justice tasked to interpret and ultimately apply the law as worded by the legislative body. A law as a positive manifestation is a truth which may not be rendered otherwise. This

Provide a brief critical historical assessment of why and how Essay

Provide a brief critical historical assessment of why and how accounting harmonisation has been achieved internationally - Essay Example Investors can analyse statements from different countries and decide on the nature and magnitude of the similarities and differences (Nobes. 76). Harmonization of accounting standard provides a level playing field globally (Shil, Das and Pramanik, 2009: 195). This level requires standardized accounting structures to facilitate international transactions and cost minimization through foreign payments by providing usable information to the global society. Under the global business scenario, the community needs a common accounting procedure (Shil et al. 2009: 195). The international accounting standards committee that later adopted the word international accounting standard board (ISAB) was formed in 1973. The committee involved sixteen accounting bodies representing nine nations: Canada, Australia, Germany, United Kingdom, Japan, France, Netherlands, United States, and Mexico (Shil et al. 2009: 196). Currently, ISAB has a total of a hundred and fifty-three accounting bodies that represent a hundred and twelve countries. The process of harmonization has undergone a challenging path from inception. One of the critical breakthroughs was the adoption of international accounting standards by the international organization of securities commission on May 2000 for use in stock exchanges in member states (Shil et al. 2009: 196). The European Union used the fourth and seventh council directives to achieve harmonization. Company law harmonization of financial accounting procedures was based on the Article 54(3)(g) of the EC Treaty. The fourth ((78/660/EEC) Council directive of 25th July 1978 required all companies to prepare annual accounts (Com 95, 3). However, this directive did not aim to achieve complete standardization of accounting procedures. The seventh council directive (83/349/EEC) of 13 June 1983 was more interested in consolidated accounts. Companies were required to prepare accounts and parent companies

Stereotypes and Prejudice Essay Example for Free

Stereotypes and Prejudice Essay The authors examine overt and subtle forms of stereotyping and prejudice. Two theories that explain overt prejudice are reviewed: realistic conflict theory and social identity theory. Although overt prejudice seems to have declined, subtle stereotyping is still pervasive. The authors review one theory, aversive racism theory, that explains this phenomenon. They also discuss two perspectives, attributional ambiguity and stereotype threat, which provide accounts of the impact of subtle racism. Both overt and subtle prejudice present challenges for the classroom. The authors describe one intervention called the jigsaw classroom that encourages work toward common goals and helps reduce the expression and impact of overt discrimination. A second intervention program, wise schooling, is presented, which aims to reduce the impact of subtle stereotypes by reducing stereotype threat. Why do prejudice and discrimination exist? Has overt racism been replaced by more subtle forms of prejudice? How does stereotyping affect its targets? In this article we describe two theories, realistic conflict theory and social identity theory, which provide an answer to the first question. We address the second question by noting that although overt discrimination has decreased, subtle forms of prejudice are still quite common and we describe one theory, aversive racism, that provides a compelling account of this change in the expression of prejudice. Finally, we answer the third question by describing two phenomena, attributional ambiguity and stereotype threat, that result from the pervasive nature of subtle stereotyping. This article is a selective overview of what social psychology has to say about these crucial issues. In addition, we review two effective intervention programs that offer promise in ameliorating the effects of stereotyping and prejudice in the classroom. In its earliest conceptions, prejudice was treated as a manifestation of pathology (Ashmore Del B oca,1981 ). For example, the frustration-aggression hypothesis (Dollard, Doob, Miller, Mowrer, Sears, 1939, pp. 27-54) considered prejudice to be a result of scapegoating, and authoritarian personality theory (Brown, 1965, pp. 477-546) posited that a severe childhood upbringing could result in a rigid, authoritarian adult who is prejudiced against anyone who is different from the self. But more contemporary accounts of stereotyping and prejudice have emphasized that prejudice may be a more common and normal result of group interaction. In developing realistic group conflict theory Sherif and Sherif ( 1969, pp. 222-266) dismiss the notion that prejudice is pathological and suggest instead that it may frequently arise out of ordinary conflicts of interest between groups. In their studies of a boys’ summer camp, they discovered that ordinary group competition for valued resources led to highly negative and stereotypical views of opposing groups and their individual members. Perhaps the more interesting aspect of these studies, however, was the manner in which conflict and hostility were ameliorated. The Sherifs found that mere contact among opposing groups only intensified the hostility (cf. Stephan, 1987). Events that required cooperative action, however, did function to reduce intergroup conflict. After several such events, all involving superordinate goals (i.e., goals shared by members of all groups), cross-group friendships began to develop and intergroup hostility began to diminish. Working cooperatively toward shared goals transformed the skills of individual group members into valued resources. So, although conflicts of interest resulted in prejudice and intense disliking between groups, action toward superordinate goals helped foster positive opinions and mutual liking. According to another influential line of work, social identity theory (Brewer, 1979; Tajfel Turner, 1986), we categorize people into social groups and locate ourselves within a category. We then evaluate the value or worth of our social identities primarily by comparing our group with other groups. The basic premise of social identity theory is that we are motivated to maintain a positively valued social identity and we may do so by creating or taking advantage of favorable comparisons with other groups. The need to maintain a positive distinction between our own group and others can lead to behavior and attitudes that are biased in favor of our own group and against other groups. According to this perspective, prejudice, intergroup conflict, and stereotyping may arise simply from the struggle to attain or maintain a positive social identity (e.g., Crocker, Thompson, McGraw, Ingerman, 1987). DOES RACISM STILL EXIST? Many historical perspectives on stereotyping, including realistic group conflict theory and social identity theory, attempt to explain the prevalence of overt prejudice and discrimination. However, this kind of directly expressed racism, particularly prejudice directed toward African Americans, is becoming less common. For example, a variety of surveys that directly measure negative178 stereotypes about African Americans, attitudes toward school and residential integration, and general beliefs concerning equal opportunity all indicate that there has been a dramatic shift toward more egalitarian and less racist views over the last 50 years (see Dovidio Gaertner, 1991, for a review). Dovidio and Gaertner (1991) note, however, that across the variety of samples, there are still indications of overt racism in fully 20% of Whites. But what about the 80% who consistently report more positive attitudes toward African Americans? Despite the evidence that a majority of Whites now feel generally more supportive and accepting of African Americans, there is also considerable evidence that these positive feelings may be held with some ambivalence and may mask a more subtle form of racism. For example, survey research reported in Dovidio and Gaertner ( 1991 ) indicates that although Whites seem to endorse the general idea of egalitarianism, they are opposed to specific ways in which it might be implemented, including giving preference to qualified African American job applicants and government intervention to ensure school integration. Although Whites have positive attitudes toward the abstract ideas, they also remain less than enthusiastic about personally having African American neighbors and about interracial marriage. In addition to the survey research mentioned above, laboratory research also provides a great deal of compelling evidence demonstrating the subtle but continuing influence stereotypes have on information processing (Hamilton Sherman, 1994). Stereotypes make cognitive processing about our complex social worlds easier and more efficient. However, the negative consequences of this increased efficiency are reflected in the numerous studies indicating that stereotypes can significantly bias our judgments about other people (e.g., Rosenthal Jacobson, 1968; Sagar Schofield, 1980). For example, Rosenthal and Jacobson’s (1968) work on teacher expectancies suggests that a priori expectations about a student’s academic ability can easily lead a teacher to treat the student differentially and in accord with those expectancies (perhaps causing the student to conform to the expectancies, regardless of his or her natural ability).

Fighting for a Better Health Essay -- essays research papers fc

  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Fighting for a Better Health   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  As of today, America has undergone many issues involving health like diabetes, heart disease, and lung cancer. Many of the health issues are caused by components very well known to us such as pollution, alcohol, drugs, sexually-transmitted diseases, and so forth. Little was known about the fact that food, being an important necessity for human life, has started America’s major epidemic among children and teens -- obesity. With more than 50 million youths attending schools everyday (HHS 1), it’s scary to think of the fact that three-fourths of the adolescents don’t eat a healthy diet. In order to fight against the trend of obesity, we must take action with methods to reduce the rate in which obesity is growing among adolescents. The voice of the people has already gotten government officials working together with school and state officials to develop ways to reverse the trend of obesity in teens starting with schools. With one out of seven students being obese (Brownlee 1), high schools are the main targets to fight obesity. For this reason, government nutrition inspectors sought to find out what America’s children were eating; to their surprise, they found that the majority of students only consumed high calorie snacks and chips along with a high volume of carbonated drinks rather than the school cafeteria lunch. The foods that are consumed by the students have lower nutritional values than that of the government standards. Several students were asked why they would eat low nutrition foods other than that of the cafeteria; many said it’s because of the long lunch line while others responded that the cafeteria food tasted horrible. Nicole Talbott, a student from Fremont High in Oakland, Califor nia, said, â€Å"Lunch for me is chips, soda, maybe a chocolate ice cream taco. Everyday, just about the same thing. That’s all I eat – the bad stuff† (Egan 1). â€Å"Most of it’s a time issue,† â€Å"claims Mary Ann Weber, assistant director for the division of Child Nutrition Services for the Ohio Department of Education.† â€Å"Kids don’t want to stand in line† (Vail 2). Through my experiences in high school, I remember that many students don’t have the patience to wait their whole lunchtime in line, especially when several schools on... ... 2002: 1+.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  SIRS Researcher. SIRS Knowledge Source. San Bernardino   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Valley Coll. Lib., San Bernardino. 22 Sept 2002   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  . Kiefer, Francine. â€Å"Bush Joins New War: Battle of Bulge.†   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The Christian Science Monitor 20 June 2002: 1+.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  SIRS Researcher. SIRS Knowledge Source. San Bernardino   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Valley Coll. Lib., San Bernardino. 27 Sept 2002   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  . Khoo, Adrianna. â€Å"Food for Thought: What Parents Can Do To   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Prevent Childhood Obesity.† Children’s Advocate   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Newsmagazine Mar/Apr 2001: 1+. SIRS Researcher. SIRS   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Knowledge. San Bernardino Valley Coll. Lib., San   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Bernardino. 27 Sept 2002 . Vail, Kathleen. â€Å"Insert Coins In Slot.† American School   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Board Journal Feb 1999: 28-31. SIRS Researcher. SIRS   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Knowledge Source. San Bernardino Valley Coll. Lib.,   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  San Bernardino. 23 Sept 2002 .

Nursing and Student

INTRODUCTION The aims of the assignment is to examine how the reflective account or our experience of facilitating learning opportunities assessing and teaching a student will help the future development with in the mentor or practice teacher role. In order to achieve this teaching session, educational theories. The formulation of a lesson plan wills be included focusing on my objectives rational for my action. In assessment session a brief Introduction will be given on relevant theories, concepts and principles of assessment in practice with further discussion of the assessment process. Assessing a student in clinical area will take place.Effectiveness of my mentoring will be critically analysed and skills in teaching and assessing will be reflected up on evaluation of developing my mentorship role will be discussed, highlighting any changes that can be made to my practice to improve mentorship. It has now mandatory requirement that qualified nurses and midwives becomes mentors affe ct one year of registration and practice (N. M. C 2008). Mentors play a vital role in supporting, teaching and assessing students in practice Quinn (2007) define a mentor as someone who experienced, and many cases more senior than the learner, and who provide support, encouragement, and guidance.PART II : ROLE AS A MENTAR An N. M. C. 2008 mentor is registrant who following successful completion of an N. M. C approved mentor preparation programme. According to N. M. C mentor should exclusive the knowledge, skills and competence are required to meet the defined outcome. Mentors are responsible and accountable for organizing and co-ordinating students learning activities in practice (N. M. C 2008). Mentor need to supervising students in learning situations and providing them with constructive feed back on their achievements. Mentor should assess the total performance including skills, attitudes and behaviours.The fitness for practice and purpose report of the U. K. C. C. post Commissio n Development Group 2001 looked at the competencies of newly qualified Nurses. They concluded that the mentor was to be responsible to contribute constructively to the learning environment for the evidence progress of student, be approachable and supportive to gain confidence of the students have knowledge of assessment tools to assess the competence in order to ensure patient safety, be competent to share knowledge of patient care, make time for interviews to discuss the specific requirements of the student.Provide time for reflection and encourage enquiry based learning. As per N. M. C 2008 there is a developmental frame work to support learning and assessment in practice. There are 8 dominants in the frame work. It includes: 1Establishing effective working relationship 2Facilitation of learning 3Assessment and accountability 4Evaluation of learning 5Creating an environment for teaching 6Evidence based practice 7Leadership As per N. M. C standard Student need to spend minimum 40% of the time with their mentor.As a role as mentor, their knowledge, skills and competency need to update ongoing basis. Each mentors as reviewed every 3 years to ensure that only those who continue to meet the mental requirements. Remain on the local register mentor at least two student with due regard with in 3 years period participate annual updating. Duffy states that N. M. C. Standard for the preparation of mentors provides a tool for preparation but it is the mentor knowledge, skills, ineffectively arrying out their role that protect the public by ensuring that students who are lacking incompetence do not progress to become registered nurse or midwives. The reality of being a mentor is that as per R. C. N tool kit for Nurses 2007 all mentors supporting students, gain registration, have responsibility to ensure that they are fit. Mentor should be prepared to assess student performance in practice and will be accountable for their decision to pass, refer or fail a student. N. M.C recognise that failing student may be difficult and that all assessment decision must be evidence based, mentor should recognise various assessment†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦that direct care, simulation, OSCES and other†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ Common criteria for sign off mentor, the N. M. C states Registrant who makes judgement about whether a student has achieved the required standards of proficiency for safe and effective practise must be on the same part or sub part of the register as that which the student is intending to enter. Only sing off mentors and practise teachers that are the same part of the register and the same field of practise.May confirm to N. M. C that student have met relevant standards of proficiency for the particular programme leading to registration. Signing off proficiency must be assessed by all existing sign-off mentor at least 3 occasions. The role of mentor on the preparation of practitioners who are fit for practice is paramount. However mentor need to be supported in her demanding role (Glyniscells pellet 2006). Mentors in the study identified constraints on their role owing to staff shortage, busy clinical work atmosphere, too many students.This result in lack of time to spend with students and left mentor feeling guilty. Kathleen Duffy (2004) identified some mentors failed to fail students early on their programme, pick things up later. Nurse mentors are faced with many difficulties in fulfilling the dual role of facilitator and assessor (Sharples Ketal 2007) ASSESSMENT Assessment defined as the measurement of candidate’s level of competence in theoretical and practical Nursing Skills (Brooker 2001, as cited in Howard and Eaton, 2003, page 46).Assessment in clinical practice ensures safety and competent standard of practice. Assessment is a critical element of the mentoring process, as Duffy (2204) explains mentors must ensure that assessment of clinical skills does occur as required. Many mentors have been passing students who should have failed in the hope that they will improve later although they are aware that this puts patients at risk. Kathleen Duffy was commissioned by the N. M. C to investigate the reasons for this.The four main issue is that emerged in her report of January 2003 included the mentor leaving the indication to the student about their problem for too late in their placement, the mentor having difficulty to take action during their placement because such action could eventually cause critical consequences to the student, the mentor having to face the challenge of a weak student because Nursing is viewed as a caring profession and such action would be uncaring and lack of adequate time for assessors in the clinical environment to work with students (Fraser et al 1998), lack of support for the mentor from lecturers when faced with a fail situation (Sharp 2000). Stuart (2007 page 1) defined assessment as the judgement of performance during clinical practice and any other ways of measuring profession al learning. There are 3 methods of assessment. They are Continuous Assessment, Formative Assessment and Summative assessment. Continues assessment provides a measure of how the student is progressing according to the level and knowledge expected at each stage of their training (R. C. N 2007).The assessment consists of formative and summative dimensions, the later being as all the outputs from the student in the clinical area are observed, providing opportunities for Nursing Practice to be explored and not missed. Gibbs (1998) suggests that assessment should be continues as they are more authentic. Formative assessment occurs throughout the placement and during learning activities using feedback and feed forward and can determine whether re-explanation, arrangement of further practice or moving to the next level is required. Summative assessment normally takes place at the end of the placement and focuses on how much students have learned and have the learning outcomes been met. It does judge achievement of the specified competencies for the student to progress in training.The formative and summative assessment are reliant on each other as Formative Assessment provides a facilitating process which guides and increases learning and serves to give a series assessments whereby a summative assessment can be made. Regardless of the type of assessment, employed every effective assessment must meet the four cardinal criteria. Which are Validity, Reliability, Discrimination and Utility (M. Quinn 2007). Dogra and Wass (2006) note any assessment of clinical performance need to accommodate the diversity of patients and their needs. So performance is judged in terms of cultural sensitivity. A mentor has an important part to play in the assessment of practical work, as well as providing education, role modelling and direct feed back (Nicklin & Ken worthy 2000).We assess the knowledge of the students and how competent they are (what) (In the case of the student nurse, how c ompetent she is in administering oral drugs). The staff nurse achieved this by asking the questions set out in the lesson plan (appendix 4) and evaluating the return demonstration. We assess because (why) we need to test the progress of the student, provide feedback to learners leading to future improvement and demonstrate to students that they have attained a goal or acquired a new skill (Cox & Harper 2000). In this situation, the staff nurse assessed (How) the skills and competency of the student through questioning and observing the return demonstration.As part of the preparation for the role of the mentor, the assessment of the student nurse related to the practical procedure of drug administration began prior to the procedure itself. The student mentor assisted the learner previously with information about other topics and skills in the clinical environment which helps her to reduce assessment stress as the learner was comfortable due to previous interactions as predicted by Ca lnan, 1983. In addition to this, to ensure that all relevant issues were covered, the mentor observed the student throughout the lesson by using a performance checklist as stated by Quinn, 2000 (p. 231) which was designed to identify the knowledge, skills and attitude required for efficient performance.The mentor also communicated clearly and assertively, which helps to interact in a more effective way (Wondrak, 1998). He gave verbal guidance to the learner and informed the student, prior to approaching the ward area that feed back would be presented in the privacy of the office to avoid embarrassment and promote confidence and discussion between the two. When I assessed my student the assessment tool choose to use observation and the use of checklist. Questioning, an important part of the assessing was aided by blooms classification system which enabled the student mentor to ask questions at different intellectual levels to determine the level of knowledge of the student. The learn er received ample time to answer the questions to her full potential.To facilitate self reflection, the staff nurse encouraged the student to discuss (Muijs & Reynolds, 2005) upon her own performance and the students realised how the assessment enhanced here knowledge. A mentor is also provided with the privilege to provide feed back targeting the improvement of the student. The staff nurse chose to give constructive feed back where criticism follows praise and then ends with a positive note which is hoped to give the student adequate confidence to deal with more negative aspects of his/her performance (Neary, 2000). The assessing section of the teaching session proved comparatively easier. I used Blooms Classification system to formulate questions at different intellectual levels in order to understand extend of the student knowledge.The practical demonstration was easy to assess as the checklist provided the exact actions that I should be looking for an assessing. I felt confident while assessing the student and observed every step he took carefully. Assessing is something that I thought it is always done automatically rather than theoretically and methodically it was quite interesting to relate it to theory. My assessor was pleased with my performance and advised me to keep it up. I think my confidence in the subject influenced the student to learn more from me as the image presented through usually givers other a good impression. If a situation arises again I would try my best to keep up my good performance. I feel that the improvement I could make realise on time.I should probably try to make the session longer so that the student has enough and more time to understand, improve, reflect and perfect. It would also help me to build up a better support with the student. This session provided me enough confidence. TEACHING Professional teaching in Nursing, Midwifery and Specialist Community Public Health Nursing, teaching is an International Enterprise that a ims to facilitate learning. It is characterised by an acceptance of responsibility for facilitating other people’s learning by means of planned and purposeful educational interventions (Quinn 2007 p. 183). Teaching can either be formal or informal. Formal is normally pre-planned whereas informal teaching tends to be spontaneous (Hinchiff 2004).For effective teaching to be carried out, it is important to understand the process of learning. Reece & Walker (2000) defines learning as a relatively permanent change. There are different learning theories associated with teaching, firstly, behaviourism, this theory is based on stimulus and response Pavlow (1936 – 1949) among other physiologist experimented on this theory. The humanist theory is however linked to feelings and experience. Maslow (1971) defines this theory as motivation and hierarchy of needs. Meaning the student must identify what he or she wants to learn. Lastly, the cognitive theory, this theory involves think ing and the mind.According Hinchiff (2004) suggest that some key elements are essential in creating a good environment for the student, which are approachable staff, welcoming confident enough to share knowledge supportive, helpful, available and contactable and knowledgeable. Teaching session was carried out to prepare staff nurse to be a mentor oral drug administration was the topic chosen for this session. The rationale for this decision is the fact it is an integral part of a patients care. I notice that numerous management students have been failing their drug assessment test. There are two management students in our ward, next week they have a drug exam. I choose this topic to try to create a difference to these unfortunate occurrences.Knowles indicate that adults are self directed and expect to take responsibility for decisions motivated about by the identification of humanistic needs (Knowles 1985). My students are adult and thus I chose andragogy to teach my students. Andra gogy is defined as the art and science of helping adults to learn. In contrast pedagogy, which can be defined as the art and science of teaching children (Knowles 1973)? According to Knowles 1990, andragogy is where a student controlled approach is employed and thus enhance the students self concept, promotes autonomy, self direction and critical thinking. While encouraging reflection on experience and involves student in the diagnosis, planning, enacting and allows the student to evaluate his or her own learning needs (Knowles 1990).On other hand, Pedagogy implies that learning occurs as a result of the input of others, the student – teacher relationship is unequal – student’s look-up to their teacher, teaching methods is teacher-led and the teacher accepts responsibility for the students learning (Hinchiff 2004 p. 69). The session took place in the staff room at the acute respiratory unit on Tuesday afternoon at 16. 30 hrs commenced after coffee break. The tim e chooses as there would be less activity compared to morning time. The rationale for this decision was to maximize concentration by the student and me (Gibbs 1998). The room was calm and quiet and devoid of any disturbance. It was also well ventilated, spacious and bright which ensured comfort for everyone in to the room. The atmosphere was positive for learning. The session was well planned and the room was arranged beforehand to produce the best possible learning atmosphere.The student mentor prepared handouts for the students prior to the teaching session in order to provide record of what had to be taught (Hinchiff 2004). The mentor prepared a lesson plan before the lesson, thus ensuring that everything was prepared; she made SMART aims and objectives (Hinchiff 2004) to reach perfectionism. British National Formulary was used to teach the student where to look for information pertaining to groups of drugs. The domains of learning described in Booms Taxonomy were used for the se ssion. In Bloom’s Taxonomy, the Domains of learning include Cognitive, the Psychomotor and the affective (Bloom 1972). I started the session by introducing myself and my assessor to the students. In addition I explained the aims and objectives of the lesson.Then I asked some few question regarding the drug administration (Cox & Harper 2000) to understand the scope of the student’s previous knowledge us it. The staff used Bloom’s Taxonomy of educational objectives (1956) to formulate questions at different intellectual levels (Bloom 1956) in the session. Staff Nurse described the N. M. C. guidelines and Whippscross Policy of oral drug administration. The Staff Nurse used a drug chart and explained to the student how to read it, explained the important document features to ensure safety. At the end of session the staff nurse demonstrate to the student the administration of oral drugs. The mentor followed the step by step policies of the N. H. S. efore and after th e administration of the drug while explaining the rationale for each action. After her demonstration, he asked the student for a return demonstration to facilitate evaluation. Finally, a short feed back session was held in the office and the student was provided with the opportunity to clarify her queries. The staff nurse began with positive feed back and then moved on to negative and constructive feed back. Ultimately the student asked to complete questionnaire to evaluate the session (see appendix 3). After the session, my assessor and myself sat down to reflect on the session. He gave me aspiring feedback about the session. ReflectionReflection is a process of reviewing an experience of practice in order to describe, analyse, evaluate and to inform learning about practice (Reid 1993). Reflection enables the practitioner to explore, understand and develop meaning, and also highlights contradictions between theory and practice (Johns 1995). Reflection can be two categories namely r eflection on action, which involves looking back at events that have occurred and reflection in action, which involves learning as it happens and adapting to new situations (Bulman & Schutz 2004). Baud et al (1998) defined reflection as an active process of exploration and discovery which often lead to much unexpected outcomes.Reflection helps to create an environment where professionals are helped to analyse and review their practice, thus enabling the professional to work in a more responsive, creative and untimely more effective manner (Redmond 2004). Reflection has been analysed by many and models have been designed to facilitate reflection. I choose the model, Gibbs’ Reflective Cycle (1998) to help me reflect on my session. I incorporated it into the teaching and assessing of my lesson for a methodical approach. Reflection is said to encourage practitioners to challenge the way they think, feel and believe (Burnard 1989). Reflecting on an experience is a highly skilled a ctivity, it requires an ability to analyse action to make judgements regarding their effectiveness in particular situations.Clearly, Boyd & Fales see self awareness and learning from experience as the key features of reflection. In Reflection, I felt that , humanistic approach was effective as it helped to make the student felt good about her. Contrary to my early fears, the students appeared to be confident about what she needed to know and asked questions accordingly. I would use pictorial demonstrations because this would have reduced the number of doubts that the students presented as many areas would have been self explanatory. Conclusion To develop the role of the mentor, I have made some recommendations. Staffs needs to be encouraged the student to teaching is a part of their role and need to be enthusiastic about this.Attending regular mentorship updates in order to provide relevant, evidenced based information and keep abreast of developments in students teaching may motiva te them and enhance professional development. A regular informal meeting at L. S. B. U between students and mentors to identify problems that arise and act accordingly. This would give both parties the opportunity to discuss what is expected and reduce barriers in the learning /teaching role and may improve the working relationship between mentors and students. Regular audit which are useful in identifying strength and weakness for teaching in the clinical area and all staff are to take part, they should be informed of date and time of audit and have the opportunity to participate in the ward evaluation. In conclusion becoming a mentor is one of the difficult roles of the nurse.It is a very big and serious responsibility because it is in the hands of a mentor to shape the development of the potentials and skills of the students. It is not just teaching a student, what he or she knows, it is about making sure that students will be knowledgeable and competent, enough to practice as a Professional Nurse in the future. Mentors are essential part of the Nursing Students and prepare the next generations to inherit our jobs and further improvement. To let students achieve their maximum potential, supportive and experienced mentors are required. An incompetent and different mentor could impair the students motivation to learn and thus create choose in the future.The N. M. C guidelines state that mentors are essential, however I am afraid they have left out the fact that enough time is also required to maintain the high standards set. This would ensure that students stretch their abilities to the maximum and that mentors are able to reflect upon their experiences and thus improve and perfect themselves to become much more experienced and competent. 10th December, 2008 To, Pauline Mills, Dear Madam, Please find enclosed herewith my mentorship essay preparation. Kindly check and re-correct the essay and return it at your earliest. Thanking you, Yours truly, SARAMMA KORUL LA Encl: Mentorship Essay (p. 1 -11)

Herodotus and the Scythians

The accounts of Scythia in Herodotus’ The Histories are organized in concurrence with the timeline of the Persian invasion of Scythia, led by King Darius, where as the invasion progresses Herodotus repeatedly digresses about the history of Scythia until the Persians and Scythians meet, at which point the apparent essence of the accounts of Scythia in The Histories, the Persian invasion, is concluded. Although Herodotus’ description of Scythia seems to be a byproduct of the accounts of King Darius, it is nonetheless thorough. Along with detailed descriptions of the origins of Scythia, as well as its diverse populace, Herodotus seems determined to write extensively on the geography of Scythia. Concerning the veracity of Herodotus’ accounts on Scythia, there is no effort to provide one point of view as fact, but instead he provides many possibilities and then gives input on which he believes to be most accurate. Because of this, there is little evidence supporting Herodotus having a Greek anti-†barbarian† bias. In fact, as Herodotus is considered by many to be the â€Å"proto-historian†, his work is not easily weighed against the efforts of those that followed. Rather, the stories Herodotus relates weaves a fuller more comprehensive picture of the time than later histories. This unschooled effort should not be construed to suggest a bias, but a rich and new writing style undiluted by the socratic method to follow in later years. Herodotus describes three possibilities for the origin of the Scythian nation. The first possibility described is the position of Scythian people who state that, â€Å"theirs is the youngest of all nations. †? As claimed by the Scythians, the first man born on Scythian soil was descendant from the daughter of the Borysthenes River and Zeus. This man, Targitaos, had three sons whose descendants were that of the first three tribes of Scythia. Herodotus clearly states he does not see much merit in this claim, but acknowledges that this is what the Scythians believe, â€Å"†¦ though that does not sound credible to me. Nevertheless, that is their claim. †? Because Herodotus acknowledges the position of the Scythians and does so politely, the idea that he has an anti-†Barbarian† bias is further diminished. His commentary disregarding the Scythian claims should not be construed as a bias, because it is not forced upon the reader. It is simply an his opinion that is completely up for discussion. This same idea applies to the next possibility of the origin of Scythia, because, although Herodotus does not necessarily believe it, he leaves open for discussion. The second possibility for the origin of Scythia described by Herodotus is according to the Hellenes. The Hellenes believed that Herakles, or Hercules, came to the land of Scythia before the Scythians and as he was heading through the land he came upon a woman who was half woman and half serpent. This woman and Herakles had three sons together and, at the request of Herakles, when they became men any of the three who could draw Herakles’ bow and wear his belt would stay in the future land of Scythia, whereas any of the three who could not do these things must leave.? The youngest of the sons, Scythes, was the only one who achieved this task and, â€Å"the descendants of Scythes son of Herakles have succeeded ever since to the kingship of the Scythians. † ? The third possibility of the origin of the Scythian nation discussed in The Histories is the one preferred by Herodotus. It says that the Scythians were originally from Asia, but because of conflict with other Asian inhabitants they left Asia and settled in was what to become Scythia. At that time Scythia is said to have been inhabited by Cimmerians, but when the Cimmerians learned of the approach of the large Scythian army they either fled or killed themselves. Herodotus believes this to be the most viable possibility of Scythian origin because there is remnants of Cimmerian ruins within Scythia.? After discussing the origin of the Scythian nation, Herodotus goes on to discuss the differences in the people who inhabit Scythia, based on there region. According to Herodotus the easternmost Scythians, know as the Greek Scythians, practice the same basic tenants of Scythian culture besides the fact that they grow grain, onion, garlic, lentils, and millet for sustenance. To the northeast of the Greek Scythians are the Scythian plowmen who, â€Å"grow grain not for their own consumption, but for sale. ? East of the plowmen are the Scythian farmers and southeast of the farmers are the Scythian nomads. The nomads do not farm, but instead live a nomadic lifestyle of hunting. Further east, across the Gerros River are the Royal Scythians. The Royal Scythians are considered to be the most noble of the Scythians and, â€Å"consider the rest of the Scythians their slaves. †? To the north of the Scythians, from west to east, are Neurians, the Maneaters, and the Black Cloaks.? Although Herodotus spends a lot of time discussing the different peoples of Scythia, most of the information given is in the form of stories or very detailed arbitrary aspects of Scythian culture, which does not have a central theme. One aspect of Herodotus’ accounts of Scythia that does have a central theme and is extensively discussed is the geography of Scythia and more specifically, the rivers of Scythia. It is clear that Herodotus was impressed by the rivers of Scythia and was eager to convey information about these rivers to his readers. He discusses each river that flows through Scythia territory, from west to east and credits the rivers for being the most important natural resources of the Scythians.? It is hard to say what information Herodotus deemed most important to know about the Scythians. Discussion on the customs of the Scythians is vast, but largely arbitrary, while remarkable emphasis is placed on the geographical tenants of the area of Scythia. Though, throughout Herodotus’ accounts of Scythia one aspect is largely consistent and that is his determination to provide multiple points of view regardless of the source. There is no real attempt to provide evidence on the veracity of what is being said, besides his commentary, but there is also no bias. Notes 1. Herodotus, â€Å"The Histories,† in Landmark Herodotus, ed. Robert B. Strassler (New York: Pantheon Books, 2007), 282. 2. Herodotus, 282. 3. Herodotus, 284-285. 4. Herodotus, 285. 5. Herodotus, 286-287. 6. Herodotus, 289. 7. Herodotus, 291. 8. Herodotus, 298. 9. Herodotus, 301-306. Bibliography Herodotus. â€Å"The Histories. † In Landmark Herodotus, edited by Robert B. Strassler, 282-306. New York: Pantheon Books, 2007.

Discussion Question Example

Discussion Question Example Discussion Question – Coursework Example Discussion Question AHRQ Disparities Report The AHRQ Disparities Report s about the current scenario of healthcare quality and disparity within the sector. The report primarily highlighted the effectiveness of healthcare in various scenarios for numerous diseases including cancer, HIV and Diabetes among others. This discussion put light on the prevalence of proper and effective healthcare services in the domain of Diabetes. As per the report, the diseases ranked 7th in terms of its impact on the death rate of the nation. The report also depicted that since the number of people with the disease is increasing on a continuous basis, the overall healthcare cost of the nation is also increasing at a significant rate. The findings of the report suggest that the four diabetes service intervention is proved to be vital in dealing with the disease, especially amid the people above the age of 40. These intervention processes to deal with the disease include flu shot, dilated eye examination, e xamination of foot and HbA1c tests. Findings suggested that there has been a decline in rate of Diabetes amid the White people while others depicted a rising trend in the recent years (AHRQ, 2013). These aspects can further be aligned with the current scenario of the disease in Florida. The state has showed a rising trend with regard to the prevalence of diabetes over the years. However, with regard to the prevention of the disease, concerned authorities has focused on self-management of the disease rather than emphasizing clinical intervention (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, n.d.). This aspect depicts the lack of relevance amid the report and the approach followed in Florida. ReferencesAHRQ. (2013). National healthcare disparities report. Retrieved from ahrq.gov/research/findings/nhqrdr/nhdr13/2013nhdr.pdfCenters for Disease Control and Prevention. (n.d.). About the program. Retrieved from cdc.gov/diabetes/prevention/about.htm Discussion Question Example Discussion Question – Coursework Example Discussion Question Fibromyalgia is a pattern of scatter body pain, which is mainly observed in women. In order to vali the diagnosis, the health care practitioner should initially intend to identify the syndromes of fibromyalgia. The diagnosis of fibromyalgia includes different phases of few clinical evaluations such as physical examination, history of the several health complaints and paying attention to the past health status. Recently, the criteria of diagnosis have been developed, used for validating the diagnosis (Hauser et al., 2010). As per the doctor’s advice, after reviewing EPs health conditions, the intake of hydrocarbon has certainly not been much helpful for her. She is taking these hydrocarbons four times a day, as per her current medication consultation. In this regard, EP has been suggested to opt for a no- drug therapy treatment for fibromyalgia. Apart from medication, EP can adopt the physical excursive therapy, such as swimming, relaxation techniques, acup uncture techniques and aromatherapy techniques. Moreover, the psychotherapy and Cognitive Behavioural Therapy treatments are also recognised as very effective for treating patients and dealing with their pains in an efficient manner (Bennett & Nelson, 2006). The Cognitive Behovorail Therapy (CBT) is expected to be more useful as an efficient treatment for fibromyalgia. It is thus expected that CBT will be able to eliminate EPs dependency over consumption of hydrocarbon. Under the CBT treatment, EP will need to undergo educational session, pool-based exercise class or aquatic jogging, spa therapy and aerobic endurance training (Huser et al., 2009). Reviewing the patient’s medical case history, it can be concluded that the CBT can prove as an efficient therapy for her, competitive to treat the problems of EP, which she is suffering due to fibromyalgia. In this regard, EP is not recommended with any kind of non-traditional therapy, such as taking of drugs and other chemical medi cines (Huser et al., 2009). ReferencesBennett, R. & Nelson, D. (2006). Cognitive behavioural therapy for fibromyalgia. Nature Clinical Practice Rheumatology, 2(8), 416-424.Huser, W., Eich, W., Herrmann, M., Nutzinger, D. O., Schiltenwolf, M. & Henningsen, P. (2009). Fibromyalgia syndrome classification, diagnosis, and treatment. Clinical Practice Guideline, 106 (23), 383-391.Hauser, W., Hayo, S., Biewer, W., Gesmann, M., Kuhn-Becker, H., Petzke, F., Wilmoswky, H. V. & Langhorst, J. (2010). Diagnosis of fibromyalgia syndrome - a Comparison of Association of the medical scientific societies in Germany, survey, and American college of rheumatology criteria. Clinical Journal of Pain, 26(6), 505-511. Discussion Question Example Discussion Question – Coursework Example Discussion question Discussion question Ayn Rand approach of extreme capitalism is self-destructive. Rand believes in the fact that capitalism has been the root cause of elimination of moral values in the present day society (Farrell, 2013). As argued by Farrell (2012), Rand has been instrumental in campaigning for capitalism, which has led to the increasing drift and chaos in the world system. The citizens seem to have their own welfare at heart, which can be attributed to Rand’s extreme capitalism. It would be argued that Rand’s policy of extreme capitalism has resulted to lack of conscience among individuals who are constantly on the move to satisfy their wants. Farrell (2012) says that the vision for the future may be bleak; morality will be completely reduced and short term goals will shape the economy. With these threats in mind, it is evident that Rand’s approach of capitalism will in the long run be completely destructive for the American society in gene ral (Farrell, 2013). The public will also have a huge price to pay as much value will be placed on market reasoning. All persons will mostly focus on the prices and value of items exchanged as opposed to the moral value of the kind of transactions taking place. Instead of this form of capitalism being an inspiration, Farrell (2013) says that it has become a virus that is mutating throughout the country and has rendered so many people blind to the sensible market principles that existed in the times of Adam Smith. ReferencesFarrell, P. (2012). â€Å"10 bubbles that will kill capitalism†. Market Watch May 7 2012. - (2013). â€Å"The ‘cult of capitalism’ and U.S. moral decline†. Market Watch May 29, 2013. Discussion Question Example Discussion Question – Coursework Example Kmart and Sears analysis Kmart and sears corporations were U.S. discount department stores dealing with hard goods. Kmart was strategically located in discount stores in populated and highly visible corner locations which are not very prone to competition. On the other hand, sears was located inside large shopping malls and majored strongly in hard goods like home appliances and tools. It was the second efficient store in sales after Walmart with the second-highest annual sales controlling 40% sales of major home appliances. However, up crop of new stores in the malls and in the stores presented upcoming tastes and preferences which rendered those of Kmart outdated. Competition and lack of viable business strategy has seen the Kmart struggle and go through bankruptcy petitions. It’s emergence from bankruptcy did less to solve its problems as the company did not have a business strategy which will reclaim their market share. Both stores were going through the same ordeal. Comp etition was threatening to oust Kmart out of business as other well-known stores like Korvettee’s, Grant’s, Woolco, Ames among others had become outdated and were already out of market. Sears was also going through the same fate as most of their customers were turning from shopping malls to big-box retailers on stand-alone stores like Lowe’s ad Home Depot to buy their home hard goods. The two were struggling to find a strategy that would improve their competitiveness and increase their sales. Kmart regained its profitability by closing some of their stores while selling some to Sears and Home Depot. This move was able to revitalize sales in the stores. The next move was the acquisition of Kmart by Sears. Despite the fact that both the holding and the acquired company were experiencing problems with their sales, they felt the move would cut their costs by $500 annually. The failure in the sales performance in the two stores can be attributed to lack of business strategy and a viable business model which would invest more in store and brand improvements as opposed to buying the already sluggish stores like sears and Restoration Hardware. The store continues to experience low sales. Work citedFrank, Rothaermel, Strategic Management: Concepts, 1 edition , McGraw-Hill; 2012.Wheelen, T. & Hunger, D., Strategic Management and Business and Business Policy, 13the edition, Pearson Education Inc. 2013.

The Case for Contamination by Kwame Anthony Appiah Essay

The Case for Contamination by Kwame Anthony Appiah - Essay Example The writer starts the article by describing a setting in a town, Kumasi of Ghana. The town of Kumasi has had experiences with globalizations and cultural diversity yet the original culture of the town was still there. The writer explains a Wednesday festival occurring in the king’s palace. The writer explains how beautiful there was the combination of both globalization and culture at the same time in the festival when there were suited people sitting in the hall talking on their cell phones and on the same time the typical cultural display of honor and grace by the king. The writer explains in the essay that Kumasi is one of the few towns of Ghana which have a vast cultural diversity, one can find people from almost every ethnicity living in the city and yet the original culture of Ghana was observed on the Wednesday festival. The writer explains in the article that forced globalization has been affecting world’s cultures and the global imperialization by the media as well as the globalization has led much culture to the level of their extinction. The affect of globalization on the cultures is that the people watching TV have started to follow the cultures and trends shown mostly on it as they are shown so explicitly that it is almost impossible to avoid them. By doing so they have somewhat lost what was their original culture and are now lost in the modern world. â€Å"Across the street from us, when we were growing up, there was a large house occupied by a number of families, among them a vast family of boys; one, about my age, was a good friend. He lives in London. His brother lives in Japan, where his wife is from. They have another brother who has been in Spain for a while and a couple more brothers who, last I heard, were in the United States. Some of them still live in Kumasi, one or two in Accra, Ghana's capital. Eddie, who lives in Japan, speaks his wife's language now. He has to.† Talking from a religious point of view, the write r has explained in the topic how religions can have both positive and detrimental effects on globalization. As we all know that every religion in the world has given powers to the individuals rather than a central power source which controls everything. Giving powers to the individuals will allow them to decide what they want to have and what want to do. It is up to the people of a specific culture to decide whether they want to continue living in their culture or adapt to the modern world in which modernization is everything and globalization has affected the cultures so badly. Religion gives everyone freedom of speech as well as choosing what is suitable for him. This freedom has been affecting the preservation of cultures so far as impressed by the global media people are choosing ways which are taking them away from their original culture. This is what most of the religious people fear. The religious people who have taken steps for the preservations of their respective cultures fear that the globalization has been having severe detrimental effects on their religions. the most important issue raised by them is Media Imperialization as told by the writer in the article. This imperilization has been affecting many cultures of the world. the writer also describes his hometown that even though globalization has been visiting there too but the cultural roots of the people are still very strong. â€Å"Even here, the villagers will have radios (though the language will

Managing Diversity Journal Questionnaire Assignment

Managing Diversity Journal Questionnaire - Assignment Example Oprah Winfrey talks about the bridges in her life: Sojourner Truth, Harriet Tubman, Fannie Lou Hammer and others. Which people have been bridges for you? Why?† Page 37 My uncle; at my present part-time job work-place, my uncle used to be a favorite for my boss. I am also being favored effortlessly by the boss and other colleagues due to my uncle’s goodwill (Cardinal & Brown, 2007). They are parallel in my life; what I love to do is not related to my academic performance. My academics just help with knowledge but I love to undertake duties that give me pleasure and freedom instead of structured career systems. 13. â€Å"In today’s workplace, many individuals do not use all their potential, and particularly their insight, resourcefulness and talent. Does a lack of diversity consciousness shown by employees or their managers contribute to this situation? Explain.† Page 55 Yes. Most of the Asian managers do not promote employee participation in their workplaces. They perceive themselves to be intelligent and other minority groups to be inferior in regards to intelligence (Cardinal & Brown, 2007). 16. â€Å"Some government officials have argued that profiling is needed to track potential terrorists. They argue that it is negligent not to look at everything, including racial and religious factors. Others say that the United States should not use any kind of profiling in the war of terror. They argue that it is reckless and there is no proof it works. What is tour opinion? Is profiling justified in order to combat terror, and if so, under what circumstances.† Page 76 18. â€Å"Given the magnitude of the challenge, how do you summon the energy that is necessary to deal effectively with prejudicial beliefs, discriminatory behaviors and other social barriers that you may encounter? To flourish in the face of adversity, what can you do?† Page 84 I change my