Monday, September 30, 2019

Survival Models And Mortality Data Health And Social Care Essay

In the old chapter 2, we discussed approximately aggregative claims and how it can be modelled and simulated utilizing R scheduling. In this chapter we shall discourse on one of the of import factors which has direct impact on arise of a claim, the human mortality. Life insurance companies use this factor to pattern hazard originating out of claims. We shall analyze and look into the petroleum informations presented in human mortality database for specific states like Scotland and Sweden and utilize statistical techniques. Mortality smooth bundle is used in smoothing the informations based on Bayesian information standard BIC, a technique used to find smoothing parameter ; we shall besides plot the information. Finally we shall reason by executing comparing of mortality of two states based on clip.3.1 IntroductionMortality informations in simple footings is entering of deceases of species defined in a specific set. This aggregation of informations could change based on different vari ables or sets such as sex, age, old ages, geographical location and existences. In this subdivision we shall utilize human informations grouped based on population of states, sex, ages and old ages. Human mortality in urban states has improved significantly over the past few centuries. This has attributed mostly due to improved criterion of life and national wellness services to the populace, but in latter decennaries there has been enormous betterment in wellness attention in recent steps which has made strong demographic and actuarial deductions. Here we use human mortality informations and analyse mortality tendency compute life tabular arraies and monetary value different rente merchandises.3.2 Beginnings of DatasHuman mortality database ( HMD ) is used to pull out informations related to deceases and exposure. These informations are collected from national statistical offices. In this thesis we shall look into two states Sweden and Scotland informations for specific ages and ol d ages. The information for specific states Sweden and Scotland are downloaded. The deceases and exposure informations is downloaded from HMD under Sverige Scotland They are downloaded and saved as â€Å" .txt † informations files in the several difficult disc under â€Å" /Data/Conutryname_deaths.txt † and â€Å" /Data/Conutryname_exposures.txt † severally. In general the information handiness and formats vary over states and clip. The female and male decease and exposure informations are shared from natural informations. The â€Å" entire † column in the information beginning is calculated utilizing leaden norm based on the comparative size of the two groups male and female at a given clip.3.3 Gompertz jurisprudence graduationA well-known statistician, Benjamin Gompertz observed that over a long period of human life clip, the force of mortality additions geometrically with age. This was modelled for individual twelvemonth of life. The Gompertz theoretical account is additive on the log graduated table. The Gompertz jurisprudence states that â€Å" the mortality rate additions in a geometric patterned advance † . Therefore when decease rates are A & gt ; 0 B & gt ; 1 And the line drive theoretical account is fitted by taking log both sides. = a + bx Where a = and B = The corresponding quadratic theoretical account is given as follows3.3.1 Generalized Linear theoretical accounts are P-Splines in smoothing informationsGeneralized Linear Models ( GLM ) are an extension of the additive theoretical accounts that allows theoretical accounts to be fit to data that follow chance distributions like Poisson, Binomial, and etc. If is the figure of deceases at age ten and is cardinal exposed to put on the line so By maximal likelihood estimation we have and by GLM, follows Poisson distribution denoted by with a + bx We shall utilize P-splines techniques in smoothing the information. As mentioned above the GLM with figure of deceases follows Poisson distribution, we fit a quadratic arrested development utilizing exposure as the beginning parametric quantity. The splines are piecewise multinomials normally cubic and they are joined utilizing the belongings of 2nd derived functions being equal at those points, these articulations are defined as knots to suit informations. It uses B-splines arrested development matrix. A punishment map of order linear or quadratic or three-dimensional is used to punish the irregular behavior of informations by puting a punishment difference. This map is so used in the log likeliness along with smoothing parametric quantity.The equations are maximised to obtain smoothing informations. Larger the value of implies smoother is the map but more aberrance. Therefore, optimum value of is chosen to equilibrate aberrance and theoretical account complexness. is evaluated utilizing assorted techniques such as BIC – Bayesian information standard and AIC – Akaike ‘s information standard techniques. Mortalitysmooth bundle in R implements the techniques mentioned above in smoothing informations, There are different options or picks to smoothen utilizing p-splines, The figure of knots ndx, the grade of p-spine whether additive, quadratic or three-dimensional bdeg and the smoothning parametric quantity lamda. The mortality smooth methods fits a P-spline theoretical account with equally-spaced B-splines along ten There are four possible methods in this bundle to smooth informations, the default value being set is BIC. AIC minimisation is besides available but BIC provides better result for big values. In this thesis, we shall smoothen the informations utilizing default option BIC and utilizing lamda value.3.4 MortalitySmooth Package in R plan executionIn this subdivision we describe the generic execution of utilizing R programming to read deceases and exposure informations from human mortality database and usage MortalitySmooth bundle to smoothen the informations based on p-splines. The undermentioned codification presented below tonss the & gt ; require ( â€Å" MortalitySmooth † ) & gt ; beginning ( â€Å" Programs/Graduation_Methods.r † ) & gt ; Age & lt ; -30:80 ; Year & lt ; – 1959:1999 & gt ; state & lt ; – † Scotland † ; Sex & lt ; – â€Å" Males † & gt ; decease =LoadHMDData ( state, Age, Year, † Deaths † , Sex ) & gt ; exposure =LoadHMDData ( state, Age, Year, † Exposures † , Sex ) & gt ; FilParam.Val & lt ; -40 & gt ; Hmd.SmoothData =SmoothenHMDDataset ( Age, Year, decease, exposure ) & gt ; XAxis & lt ; – Year & gt ; YAxis & lt ; -log ( fitted ( Hmd.SmoothData $ Smoothfit.BIC ) [ Age==FilParam.Val, ] /exposure [ Age==FilParam.Val, ] ) & gt ; plotHMDDataset ( XAxis, log ( decease [ Age==FilParam.Val, ] /exposure [ Age==FilParam.Val, ] ) , MainDesc, Xlab, Ylab, legend.loc ) & gt ; DrawlineHMDDataset ( XAxis, YAxis ) The MortalitySmooth bundle is loaded and the generic execution of methods to put to death graduation smoothening is available in Programs/Graduation_Methods.r. The measure by measure description of the codification is explained below.Step:1 Load Human Mortality informationMethod NameLoadHMDDataDescriptionReturn an object of Matrix type which is a mxn dimension with m stand foring figure of Ages and n stand foring figure of old ages. This object is specifically formatted to be used in Mortality2Dsmooth map.ExecutionLoadHMDData ( Country, Age, Year, Type, Sex )ArgumentsCountry Name of the state for which information to be loaded. If state is â€Å" Denmark † , † Sweden † , † Switzerland † or â€Å" Japan † the SelectHMDData map of MortalitySmooth bundle is called internally. Age Vector for the figure of rows defined in the matrix object. There must be atleast one value. Year Vector for the figure of columns defined in the matrix object. There must be atleast one value. Type A value which specifies the type of informations to be loaded from Human mortality database. It can take values as â€Å" Deaths † or â€Å" Exposures † Sexual activity An optional filter value based on which information is loaded into the matrix object. It can take values â€Å" Males † , â€Å" Females † and â€Å" Entire † . Default value being â€Å" Entire †DetailssThe method LoadHMDData in â€Å" Programs/Graduation_Methods.r † reads the informations availale in the directory Data to lade deceases or exposure for the given parametric quantities. The informations can be filtered based on Country, Age, Year, Type based on Deaths or Exposures and in conclusion by Sexual activity.Figure: 3.1 Format of matrix objects Death and Exposure.The Figure 3.1 shows the format used in objects Death and Exposure to hive away informations. A matrix object stand foring Age in rows and Old ages in column. The MortalitySmooth bundle contains certain characteristics for specific states listed in the bundle. They are Denmark, Switzerland, Sweden and Japan. These informations for these states can be straight accessed by a predefined map SelectHMDData. LoadHMDData map checks the value of the variable state and if Country is equal to any of the 4 states mentioned in the mortalitysmooth bundle so SelectHMDData method is internally called or else customized generic map is called to return the objects. The return objects format in both maps remains precisely the same.Measure 2: Smoothen HMD DatasetMethod NameSmoothenHMDDatasetDescriptionReturn a list of smoothened object based BIC and Lamda of matrix object type which is a mxn dimension with m stand foring figure of Ages and n stand foring figure of old ages. This object is specifically formatted to be used in Mortality2Dsmooth map. Tax returns a list of objects of type Mort2Dsmooth which is a planar P-splines smooth of the input informations and order fixed to be default. These objects are customized for mortality informations merely. Smoothfit.BIC and Smoothfit.fitLAM objects are returned along with fitBIC.Data fitted values. SmoothenHMDDataset ( Xaxis, YAxis, ZAxis, Offset.Param )ArgumentsXaxis Vector for the abscissa of informations used in the map Mortality2Dsmooth in MortalitySmooth bundle in R. Here Age vector is value of XAxis. Yaxis Vector for the ordinate of informations used in the map Mortality2Dsmooth in MortalitySmooth bundle in R. Here Year vector is value of YAxis. .ZAxis Matrix Count response used in the map Mortality2Dsmooth in MortalitySmooth bundle in R. Here Death is the matrix object value for ZAxis and dimensions of ZAxis must match to the length of XAxis and YAxis. Offset.Param A Matrix with anterior known values to be included in the additive forecaster during suiting the 2d informations. Here exposure is the matrix object value and is the additive forecaster.Detailss.The method SmoothenHMDDataset in â€Å" Programs/Graduation_Methods.r † smoothens the informations based on the decease and exposure objects loaded as defined above in measure 1. The Age, twelvemonth and decease are loaded as x-axis, y-axis and z-axis severally with exposure as the beginning parametric quantity. These parametric quantities are internally fitted in Mortality2Dsmooth map available in MortalitySmooth bundle in smoothing the information.Step3: secret plan the smoothened informations based on user inputMethod NamePlotHMDDatasetDescriptionPlot the smoothed object with the several axis, fable, axis graduated table inside informations are machine rifles customized based on user inputs.ExecutionPlotHMDDataset ( Xaxis, YAxis, MainDesc, Xlab, Ylab, legend.loc, legend.Val, Plot.Type, Ylim )ArgumentsXaxis Vector for plotting X axis value. Here the value would be Age or Year based on user petition. Yaxis Vector for plotting X axis value. Here the value would be Smoothened log mortality valleies filtered for a peculiar Age or Year. MainDesc Main inside informations depicting about the secret plan. Xlab X axis label. Ylab Y axis label. legend.loc A customized location of fable. It can take values â€Å" topright † , † topleft † legend.Val A customized fable description inside informations – it can take vector values of type twine. Val, Plot.Type An optional value to alter secret plan type. Here default value is equal to default value set in the secret plan. If value =1, so figure with line is plotted Ylim An optional value to put the tallness of the Y axis, by default takes max value of vector Y values.DetailssThe generic method PlotHMDDataset in â€Å" Programs/Graduation_Methods.r † plots the smoothed fitted mortality values with an option to custom-make based on user inputs. The generic method DrawlineHMDDataset in â€Å" Programs/Graduation_Methods.r † plots the line. Normally called after PlotHMDDataset method.3.5 Graphic representation of smoothened mortality informations.In this subdivision we shall look into graphical representation of mortality informations for selected states Scotland and Sweden. The generic plan discussed in old subdivision 3.4 is used to implement the secret plan based on customized user inputs. Log mortality of smoothed informations v.s existent tantrum for Sweden. Figure 3.3 Left panel: – Plot of Year v.s log ( Mortality ) for Sweden based on age 40 and twelvemonth from 1945 to 2005. The points represent existent informations and ruddy and bluish curves represent smoothed fitted curves for BIC and Lamda =10000 severally. Right panel: – Plot of Age v.s log ( Mortality ) for Sweden based on twelvemonth 1995 and age from 30 to 90. The points represent existent informations red and bluish curves represent smoothed fitted curves for BIC and Lamda =10000 severally. Log mortality of smoothed informations v.s existent tantrum for Scotland Figure 3.4 Left panel: – Plot of Year v.s log ( Mortality ) for Scotland based on age 40 and twelvemonth from 1945 to 2005. The points represent existent informations and ruddy and bluish curves represent smoothed fitted curves for BIC and Lamda =10000 severally. Right panel: – Plot of Age v.s log ( Mortality ) for Scotland based on twelvemonth 1995 and age from 30 to 90. The points represent existent informations red and bluish curves represent smoothed fitted curves for BIC and Lamda =10000 severally. Log mortality of Females Vs Males for Sweden The Figure 3.5 given below represents the mortality rate for males and females in Sweden for age wise and twelvemonth wise. 3.5 Left panel reveals that the mortality of male is more than the female over the old ages and has been a sudden addition of male mortality from mid 1960 ‘s boulder clay late 1970 ‘s for male – The life anticipation for Sweden male in 1960 is 71.24 V 74.92 for adult females and it had been increasing for adult females to 77.06 and merely 72.2 for male in the following decennary which explains the tendency. Figure 3.5 Left panel: – Plot of Year v.s log ( Mortality ) for Sweden based on age 40 and twelvemonth from 1945 to 2005. The ruddy and bluish points represent existent informations for males and females severally and ruddy and bluish curves represent smoothed fitted curves for BIC males and females severally. Right panel: – Plot of Age v.s log ( Mortality ) for Sweden based on twelvemonth 2000 and age from 25 to 90. The ruddy and bluish points represent existent informations for males and females severally and ruddy and bluish curves represent smoothed fitted curves for BIC males and females severally. The Figure 3.5 represents the mortality rate for males and females in Sweden for age wise and twelvemonth wise. 3.5 Left panel reveals that the mortality of male is more than the female over the old ages and has been a sudden addition of male mortality from mid 1960 ‘s boulder clay late 1970 ‘s for male – The life anticipation for Sweden male in 1960 is 71.24 V 74.92 for adult females and it had been increasing for adult females to 77.06 and merely 72.2 for male in the following decennary which explains the tendency. The 3.5 Right panel shows the male mortality is more than the female mortality for the twelvemonth 1995, The sex ratio for male to female is 1.06 at birth and has been systematically diminishing to 1.03 during 15-64 and.79 over 65 and above clearly explicating the tendency for Sweden mortality rate addition in males is more than in females. Log mortality of Females Vs Males for Scotland Figure 3.6 Left panel: – Plot of Year v.s log ( Mortality ) for Scotland based on age 40 and twelvemonth from 1945 to 2005. The ruddy and bluish points represent existent informations for males and females severally and ruddy and bluish curves represent smoothed fitted curves for BIC males and females severally. Right panel: – Plot of Age v.s log ( Mortality ) for Scotland based on twelvemonth 2000 and age from 25 to 90. The ruddy and bluish points represent existent informations for males and females severally and ruddy and bluish curves represent smoothed fitted curves for BIC males and females severally. The figure 3.6 Left panel describes consistent dip in mortality rates but there has been a steady addition in mortality rates of male over female for a long period get downing mid 1950 ‘s and has been steadily increasing for people of age 40 years.The 3.6 Right panel shows the male mortality is more than the female mortality for the twelvemonth 1995, The sex ratio for male to female is 1.04 at birth and has been systematically diminishing to.94 during 15-64 and.88 over 65 and above clearly explicating the tendency for Scotland mortality rate addition in males is more than in females. hypertext transfer protocol: //en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Demography_of_Scotland.Log mortality of Scotland Vs Sweden Figure 3.7 Left panel: – Plot of Year v.s log ( Mortality ) for states Sweden and Scotland based on age 40 and twelvemonth from 1945 to 2005. The ruddy and bluish points represent existent informations for Sweden and Scotland severally and ruddy and bluish curves represent smoothed fitted curves for BIC Sweden and Scotland severally. Right panel: – Plot of Year v.s log ( Mortality ) for states Sweden and Scotland based on twelvemonth 2000 and age from 25 to 90. The ruddy and bluish points represent existent informations for Sweden and Scotland severally and ruddy and bluish curves represent smoothed fitted curves for BIC Sweden and Scotland severally. The figure 3.7 Left Panel shows that the mortality rates for Scotland are more than Sweden and there has been consistent lessening in mortality rates for Sweden get downing mid 1970 ‘s where as Scotland mortality rates though decreased for a period started to demo upward tendency, this could be attributed due to alter in life conditions.

Sunday, September 29, 2019

Learning Natural Resources and Energy Essay

A Paper on the Ecosystem and on the Biodiversity General Questions – General General Questions Write a 1,400- to 1,750-word paper on natural resources and energy. Include the following:  · Choose a specific ecosystem, such as a forest, a grassland, or a marine or freshwater aquatic ecosystem.  · Identify and discuss the effects that a growing human population may have on that ecosystem’s resources, including loss or harm to populations of wild species.  · Discuss one management practice for sustainability and conservation of natural resources in that ecosystem.  · Identify the risks and benefits of extracting or using one type of nonrenewable and one type of renewable energy resource from that ecosystem, or in areas near that ecosystem. Include at least two outside references. Format your paper consistent with APA guidelines. You can have a ton of fun in college, but it also involves a lot of work. Stay focused on the end result: a diploma. There will be many roadblocks along the way, and how you choose to approach them is important. Use the tips you have seen here to make college work on your behalf. This pack of SCI 256 Week 3 Learning Natural Resources and Energy Paper  contains: A Paper on the Ecosystem and on the Biodiversity General Questions – General General Questions Write a 1,400- to 1,750-word paper on natural resources and energy. Include the following:  · Choose a specific ecosystem, such as a forest, a grassland, or a marine or freshwater aquatic ecosystem.  · Identify and discuss the effects that a growing human population may have on that ecosystem’s resources, including loss or harm to populations of wild species.  · Discuss one management practice for†¦ To download this tutorial follow the link – https://bitly.com/1oJKyIe You can have a ton of fun in college, but it also involves a lot of work. Stay focused on the end result: a diploma. There will be many roadblocks along the way, and how you choose to approach them is important. Use the tips you have seen here to make college work on your behalf. General Questions – General General Questions Write a 1,400- to 1,750-word paper on natural resources and energy. Include the following:  · Choose a specific ecosystem, such as a forest, a grassland, or a marine or freshwater aquatic ecosystem.  · Identify and discuss the effects that a growing human population may have on that ecosystem’s resources, including loss or harm to populations of wild species.  · Discuss one management practice for sustainability and conservation of natural resources in that ecosystem.  · Identify the risks and benefits of extracting or using one type of nonrenewable and one type of renewable energy resource from that ecosystem, or in areas near that ecosystem. Include at least two outside references. Format your paper consistent with APA guidelines.

Saturday, September 28, 2019

Trifles Dead Bird Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Trifles Dead Bird - Essay Example Mrs. Peters points to a broken jar that the author refers to as preserves. From this, the sheriff wonders how a woman can worry about her preserves while she is facing murder charges. The sheriff, from this statement implies that there are certain things that only a woman needs to worry about. The preserves symbolize anything that women worry about more than men. At some point, the women also commented on the tidiness of the house. Well, men in the society from this play do not pay attention to such things and are always complaining of a messy house (Glaspell, 202). Mrs. Wright’s husband seemed to displease her. The mistakes her husband made, ‘trifles’ were considered among the reasons for her wanting to kill her husband. On another instance, the author expresses her belief that on marriage, a woman loses her identity, and becomes what her husband is. This is seen in the play when the County attorney says that a sheriff’s wife is married to the law. The sheriff’s wife is Mrs. Peters. Mrs. Wright is described as jovial and one who loves to wear colorful clothing. However, on marriage she becomes the opposite. The untidy state of her house is reflected to her husband. In the play, the ladies also share a belief with the men that they are of little importance. It is also observed from the play that women did not share trivial issues with the men. The men did not see value in whatever opinions they held. The women thought that if they shared their thoughts with the men they would be laughed at. They also considered their opinions as trifles. On the search for evidence, the women discussed minor issues that would collect up to substantial evidence. The men, however, were looking for a major piece of evidence since they considered the minor pieces as trifles. The women even had doubts that the trifles would solve the crime due to the little value put on them by the men. The fact that Mrs.

Friday, September 27, 2019

Intermediate Sanctions - Home Confinement Assignment

Intermediate Sanctions - Home Confinement - Assignment Example Electronic monitoring is mainly used as a supervisory tool. This helps the officers monitor the activities of the offender more effectively. The offenders are usually required to adhere to a strict schedule of activities. Under the home confinement, there are two main types of programs. First, there are the pretrial programs which use home confinement as an alternative form of detention before the individuals are taken to court. Secondly, there are post-adjudication programs which use home confinement as an alternative to incarceration. This program was initially intended to serve as an alternative to sentencing for drunken driving offenders but has expanded to include other offenders as well. Generally, home confinement mainly excludes offenders of serious and violent crimes. The level of supervision or restriction is given depends on the type of the offender. These restrictions may be simple curfews or may be as severe as lock-downs. There are three main levels of restrictions: curfews, home detention, and home incarceration. When it comes to curfews, the participants of this program are required to be at home every day at specific times. Home detention requires that the participant remains in his home throughout except for specific approved times. Finally, home incarceration is when the offender is put under complete lock-down, except for specific activities approved by the court. Home confinement may be used by the courts as a sanction for people who go against the regulations of their supervision. The purpose o f home confinement depends on the stage of the criminal justice process in which it is applied. Regardless of the stage, however, it is mainly used as a means of protecting the public.

Thursday, September 26, 2019

2.Discuss the work of a medieval composer. Examine what is known (and Essay

2.Discuss the work of a medieval composer. Examine what is known (and what is not known) about the specific details of the composers life and what is known a - Essay Example In 1098, a tenth child was born to two wealthy members ÃŽ ¿f the nobility, Hildebert and Mechtilde, in Bockelheim, Germany. This child, a daughter, was given to the Church as a tax, and became Saint Hildegard ÃŽ ¿f Bingen, a composer, visionary, healer and author ÃŽ ¿f major theological works. In the 12th century, Hildegard ÃŽ ¿f Bingen was one ÃŽ ¿f very few female composers, and also part ÃŽ ¿f a small minority ÃŽ ¿f medieval women who could even read or write. Her visions and instruction from God were initially questioned, and she met difficulty in making many ÃŽ ¿f her visions’ instructions into reality. Hildegard ÃŽ ¿f Bingen spent her life constantly defending the validity ÃŽ ¿f her visions, while gaining a form ÃŽ ¿f fame within the western world, which was rare for a woman in that time. Although many ÃŽ ¿f her strictly literary works reinforce many traditional beliefs ÃŽ ¿f the church, her music itself, in its lyrics and actual melodic construction embodies many different, even liberal ideas and images. By studying her life, accomplishments, compositions and other works, it is clear that Hildegard ÃŽ ¿f Bingen broke many patriarchal norms within her society, and saw recognition for her work beyond that ÃŽ ¿f any other women ÃŽ ¿f her time. When Hildegard was given to the church at the age ÃŽ ¿f eight, partially because she was the tenth child which was also known as the â€Å"tithe† child for wealthy families, and was usually given to the church. Also, she was sickly in health from a very young age, and also recalls having visions at an early age, mainly a vision ÃŽ ¿f an inexplicably bright light at the age ÃŽ ¿f three. Giving a child to the church as a tax was also a respectable way for noble families to deal with physically or mentally ill children, which is quite possibly how her explanations ÃŽ ¿f her early visions may have sounded to her parents. Likely because ÃŽ ¿f those experiences at such a

Wednesday, September 25, 2019

Lack of Empowerment in Government Organization Essay

Lack of Empowerment in Government Organization - Essay Example In an organization, empowerment is a broad perspective of dealing with its culture, leadership, practices and employees. In this paper, lack of empowerment effects on employees and stakeholders of organization ABC is looked at critically. This will entail organizational structure stability, employees’ satisfaction and job security and performance evaluation and reward structure. The report will conclude by trying to recommend solutions and courses of action to treat or work around this problem. Objective and research question Objective of the paper is to analyze â€Å"lack of empowerment’s† effects to Government Organization (ABC). Research question: What are the effects Organization ABC faces for lack of empowerment implementation? This is the guiding principle for this paper ensuring that the paper analyzes the effects of â€Å"lack of empowerment† to the organization. Definition of the Problem The problem of â€Å"lack of empowerment† within government organization (ABC) was identified through a survey conducted by the Human Resources Department to assess the levels of employees’ satisfaction.The survey showed that many employees felt they were unsupported by their managers, and that they were not given the chance to make decisions, even at very low levels. The results of the survey were analyzed and most of the negative responses were established to be correlated to lack of empowerment.... The report will conclude by trying to recommend solutions and courses of action to treat or work around this problem.   Objective and research question Objective of the paper is to analyze â€Å"lack of empowerment’s† effects to Government Organization (ABC). Research question: What are the effects Organization ABC faces for lack of empowerment implementation? This is the guiding principle for this paper ensuring that the paper analyzes the effects of â€Å"lack of empowerment† to the organization. Definition of the Problem The problem of â€Å"lack of empowerment† within government organization (ABC) was identified through a survey conducted by the Human Resources Department to assess the levels of employees’ satisfaction. The survey showed that many employees felt they were unsupported by their managers, and that they were not given the chance to make decisions, even at very low levels. The results of the survey were analyzed and most of the neg ative responses were established to be correlated to lack of empowerment. This was Employee Opinion Survey (EOS) thus the results are valid and credible since reflect employees responses. The problem was linked mainly to the organizational structures adopted by the public sector organizations, which can be characterized as centralized, hierarchical through the divisional and departmental structures, bureaucratic, with vertical communication lines. This in turn was reflected in many different forms like wasted time and effort required going through the proper communication channels, as well as friction between organizational departments. The problem of â€Å"lack of empowerment† also had drastic impacts on

Tuesday, September 24, 2019

Swot Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Swot - Research Paper Example As at 2011, the sales of the worldwide subsidiaries totaled to $65 billion despite the product recalls and the legal issues that the Company has battled in recent years. Other than dealing in medical products, Johnson & Johnson Company also produces baby and beauty products whose consumption is overwhelmingly popular in many of the consumers in the world market. With this, this essay will delve into the SWOT analysis of the Johnson & Johnson Company and the ways in which the company may improve its operations in order to increase the profit generation levels. List of Johnson & Johnson products Acuvue contact lenses Corn Huskers Lotion Johnson Baby powder Aveeno Ponstan Euthymol Healthy Woman Johnson’s Baby Combatrim Ideally, the products manufactured by J & J are in three categories namely medical devices, diagnostics, and health care products with its employee base amounting to one hundred and twenty nine thousand people. As of 2012, these products brought in $67.2 in revenue s, which translated to high profit margins for this pharmaceutical product manufacturer. SWOT Analysis Strengths One of the leading reputation that the Company holds is that it has attracted the admiration of many because of its involvement in the manufacture of consumer products that meet the quality standards in the globe. In 2011, the company received recognition from the UN for an award through its active participation in its campaign dubbed ‘Healthy Mother, Healthy Baby’, which influenced its brand to retain its market acceptability across the globe. The other strength that J & J Company has been that it operates in more than fifty-seven countries hence lowering their business operations risks through the widespread investing. The other strength is that J & J as a brand has been in existence for many years hence influencing its target market to have immense trust in the products manufactured by the parent company or its subsidiaries. Further, J & J has a vertically integrated supply chain in that the subsidiaries of this company have unity because they all have a common owner despite the fact that each of the supply chain members produces different products (Harrison, Lee & Neale 263). Therefore, J & J has control of its supply chain as this has helped in the improvement of coordination among the various subsidiaries spread across the globe. Moreover, J & J has diversified in the products that it manufacturers in that the Company has stable operations as this lowers the operational risk while increasing its value (Hendrikse J & Hendrikse L 41). This means that if one of the production systems brings in losses, then the other arms provide cash flow that may be applied in making investments. Therefore, this strength has helped J & J to operate in volatile markets and be profitable even when it is experiencing challenging times. Weaknesses Over the years, J & J has had to battle various challenges such as various litigations and product recalls that have made the Company to record dismal performance. Product recall In 2010, a subsidiary of J & J voluntarily recalled children’s medicine accessible over the counter totaling forty-three that appeared to have been endangering the lives of the users. McNeil Consumer Healthcare did so after conducting a routine check on its facility and ascertained that the products produced did not meet the quality and

Monday, September 23, 2019

Human Papilloma virus Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Human Papilloma virus - Essay Example They each have their own surface that they prefer to attack. Some like the moist areas such as the mouth, anus and genitals while others prefer the hands, face and scalp. â€Å"When HPV does take hold, it grows a lump of thickened skin. Thats the wart.†(Davis,2011). The wart will shed its skin in time and that skin will carry, and transmit the virus. They will form painlessly on the hands, face or scalp. The â€Å"Plantar† wart will form on the soles of the feet and are the only painful form of wart. On the genitals a painless cauliflower like growth will form. In extreme cases HPV can cause cancer of the cervix, penis, vagina or anus. The wart will cultivate its own blood supply and nerve and this makes it very difficult to just go away on its own. The body will eventually recognize and fight the virus by creating its own antibodies to HPV and will cause the wart to drop of, but, this takes time and normally will take one to two years. There are over the counter remedies including Salicylic Acid which will irritate and eliminate the wart. There are also prescribed therapies such as Antiviral Creams that stimulate the immune system and stunt the growth of warts and you can also have the wart surgically removed. Vaccinations are available for girls at 11-12 years of age and for boys from 9-26. I am not a medical expert, but it seems to me that warts are just a relatively innocent, annoying part of human life in much the same vane as pimples. We have medical experts who like to dramatize some aspects of medicine and try and frighten us with their fancy words and researches. â€Å"HPV Infection is Usually a Sexually Transmitted Disease (STD) and is Easily Spread by Having Sex with an Infected Person†.(Mayo Clinic,2010.) .There is a stigma as soon as â€Å"Sexually Transmitted† is quoted. Well guess what? you can catch the common cold if you have sex with someone who has the Flu. Does that make the common cold a sexually transmitted disease?, I think not.

Sunday, September 22, 2019

Measuring Disease Frequency Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Measuring Disease Frequency - Essay Example This means that if the birthing process is in order, there can be no odds or complications. c. On the last day of the school year, the number of freshman college students who are at least 15 pounds heavier than when they started the school year. The measurement process that must be used is the so-called cumulative incidence from the start.1 http://www.supercourse.cn/new_scc/ppt/ppt_checkformat.phple.. b. Shorter duration of health condition. Naturally, shorter duration decrease the risk rate prevalence since the number of cases which is usually included as part of the numerator is lesser. Resultantly, there will also be reduction in the prevalence rate. d. Loss of healthy people from the population for other reasons. In this case, the factor of loss of people due to other reasons cannot be a determinant. In short, it has no effect. For example, if we are to calculate the rate of mortality covering persons with tuberculoses and, after say a month, healthy members in the given population disappeared due to migration or travel, such incident or event has no bearing at all to the reckoning of the health risk rate. Works Cited Hami, Dr. Abdul Samad. Measure of Disease Frequency. United States Naval Medical Research Unit No. 3. Accessed July 1, 2009.

Saturday, September 21, 2019

Complexometric Determination Essay Example for Free

Complexometric Determination Essay Introduction Using a Lewis base neutral molecule to donate electron pairs (ligands) to a Lewis acid metal ion center to form a single cluster (complex) ion. When the complex ions forms with a metal ion (chelation) the ligand used is called the (chelating agent). EDTA acts as a great chelating agent due to the Nitrogen and Oxygen donating an electron pair to the metal ion center to form an octahedral complex. The metal ions especially with a +2 charge or higher are the reason for water hardness to form on various objects known as â€Å"scum†. Calcium ions are typically the most common contributing factor for water hardness so this experiment uses CaCO3 (Calcium Carbonate) to analyze the hardness of an unknown sample. A scale of water hardness identifies â€Å"soft† water with a value less than 60 ppm (parts per million) and â€Å"hard† water with a value more than 200 ppm. 3 mL of ammonia/ammonium chloride buffer (pH 10) is added to the mixture prior to the titration to capture the calcium metal ions so the indicator can work properly. The experiment adds 4 drops of Eriochrome Black T as the indicator to visually see the color change as complexes are formed and the solution undergoes chelation of metal impurities. The color change from indicator starts as pink and changes to a violet then light blue color to signify the chemical phase changes throughout the reaction until the endpoint. 3 titrations are experimentally conducted to calculate the mean average of the Na2 EDTA for experimental accuracy. The EDTA mean average is then used to calculate the water hardness of an unknown water sample (#97) using 3 more titrations to calculate a mean average of the unknown water sample. An absolute deviation is calculated for each titration experiment to calculate the experimental estimated precision. The final experimental result is then compared to the city of Tempe standard for water hardness and acceptable standards. Principle (Spurlock, 2014) (Spurlock, 2014) â€Å"A complex ion is an ion containing a central metal cation bonded to one or more molecules or ions† (Chang, 2013). Just like complex ions, a ligand is a molecule or ion that is bonded to the metal ion in a complex ion (Chang, 2013). A chelating agent is a substance that forms complex ions with metal ions in a solution (Chang, 2013). The process of the chelating agent forming is called chelation. E.D.T.A. (ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid) is a common chelating agent that will be used in this experiment to chelate the metal ions. Tetraamminecopper (II) [Cu(NH3)4]2+ will be the complex ion in this lab experiment. In chapter 11.1-3 the â€Å"Kinetic Molecular Theory† is being tested in this experiment (Chang, 2013). Solids are denser than liquids and allow very little empty space to exist between molecules limiting the freedom of motion. The liquids are less dense than solids, held closely together with little space between molecules (less than solids), however, the mo lecules in liquid do not break away from the attractive forces allowing them to move past each other freely. Gases are the least dense and have the largest amount of distance between molecules allowing them to move around more freely. According to the theory, the experimental Carbon, Hydrogen, Nitrogen and Oxygen ions are able to quickly attract and find the metal ion in the liquid by donating their electron pair to the metal ion center creating the complex. These complex ions in the experiment use intermolecular and intramolecular forces to break and hold chemical bonds thru the experimental process of chelation to identify the hardness of the unknown sample. After the reaction is complete, when evaporation and or vaporization of the liquid and gas in the molecules is separated the remaining metal impurities known as â€Å"scum† are left. In chapter 4.1 hydration is used to orient the negative poles of the diatomic gases to the positive pole of the Hydrogen and metal impurities in the solution creation the complex cluster. Chapter 4 is also used for titration of redox reactions using a standard solution (Na2 EDTA) to add into another solution of unknown concentration (unknown sample + ammonia/ammonium  chloride buffer + Eriochrome Black T) until the equivalence point is reached (has fully reacted) as visually identified by the indicators (Eriochrome Black T) from the color change of pink to violet to blue. Procedure 1. â€Å"Prepare about 500mL of approximately 0.004M disodium EDTA solution. To prepare your solution, weigh out 0.7-0.8g of Na2EDTA and dissolve in about 500mL deionized water in your plastic bottle. Seal the bottle and shake vigorously for a few minutes to dissolve the salt. 2. Standardize the Na2EDTA solution using a stock calcium ion solution as the primary standard: a. Use a 10-mL transfer pipet to add 10.00 mL of standardized calcium ion stock solution (1.000g CaCO3/L solution) to a 250-mL Erlenmeyer flask. b. Add about 30 ml of deionized water to this titration flask. c. Add a magnetic stir-bar, place on a magnetic stirrer and begin stirring. A piece of white paper under the flask gives good contrast for easier detection of the indicator color change. d. Inside the fume hood, add about 3mL of ammonia/ammonium chloride buffer (pH 10). The buffer is an inhalation irritant. Stir for 30 seconds. e. Just prior to titrating the flask, add four drops of Eriochrome Black T indicator solution. Continue stirring for another 30 seconds and then titrate this solution with your disodium EDTA solution within 15 minutes. f. Slow down your titration near the endpoint, as the color change takes 3-5 seconds to develop. At the end point, the color changes from pink to violet to blue. If you feel unsure whether you’ve reached your endpoint, read and record the volume delivered and then add another drop of titrant to check for a complete color change. g. Repeat this titration two more times. Calculate the molarity of your disodium EDTA from each titration. Average your molarities from the three trials and calculate your precision. 3. Choose one prepared unknown water sample as provided. Record the unknown code in your notebook, then titrate this water sample with your standardized disodium EDTA solution: a. Transfer 25.00mL of the prepared water sample to a 250-mL Erlenmeyer flask. b. Add about 20ml of DI water to the titration flask. c. Add a magnetic stir-bar. Place the flask on a magnetic stirrer and begin stirring. d. Inside the fume hood, add about 3mL of ammonia/ammonium chloride buffer (pH 10). Stir for 30 seconds. e. Just prior to titrating,  add four drops of Eriochrome Black T Indicator solution to your flask. Continue stirring for another 30 seconds and then titrate this solution with your standardized disodium EDTA solution within 15 minutes. f. Repeat this titration twice more. Calculate the hardness (mg CaCO3/L) of the prepared water sample from each of your titrations. Calculate your average hardness and your experimental precision from the three trials. 4. Compare your results to the expected range for municipal water hardness. Check your city’s water quality lab website (e.g. http://www.tempe.gov/waterquality/typical_values.htm)† (Complexometric Determination of Water Hardness Lab, n.d.). Observations Upon adding the preparing the Na2EDTA solution the Na2EDTA solid was quickly dissolved into the DI water to create a clear solution. Later on in the procedure stage of adding the ammonia/ammonium chloride buffer into the 250 mL flask, a visual chemical reaction was observed as the ammonia buffer was mixing into the flask with CaCO3 and the unknown solution in both procedures. Upon adding the Eriochrome Black T indicator the color was visually changed from clear to light pink in both procedures. During titration of both procedures the visual color change was observed from light see-through pink to see-through violet when the process was close to ending, then from see-through violet to see-through light blue signaling then end of the reaction process.

Friday, September 20, 2019

The Concept Of Laicite In France

The Concept Of Laicite In France In France laÃÆ' ¯cità © has shaped the relation between religion and the State through enhancing a separation between them. This separation has been possible thanks to the existence of a legislation that has relatively succeeded in drawing the lines for both sides. However, the societal developments have influenced their relations and raised many questions about the States role in the face of the challenges on the ground. And so laÃÆ' ¯cità © in theory has been found to be incompatible with laÃÆ' ¯cità © in practice. How laÃÆ' ¯cità © has been challenged over the past years and how the State has reacted towards the influence of religion are major issues. Therefore, should laÃÆ' ¯cità © accommodate itself in view of the changing facts on the ground? The debate is now whether laÃÆ' ¯cità © is a rigid concept that refuses to change and recognize the role of religion and peoples rights to freedom of belief, or a dynamic concept that embraces multiculturalism and f osters religious groups rights without affecting the neutrality of the State. So this paper will answer the question about whether laÃÆ' ¯cità © is a rigid or a dynamic concept in view of the challenges facing the State. French laÃÆ' ¯cità © is taken as a case study in order to scrutinize to this question. The paper starts with a definition of laÃÆ' ¯cità ©, it traces historical facts about its evolution, highlights the challenges that it has encountered, identifies the new laÃÆ' ¯cità © forms before concluding on its capacity to adapt to societal developments. 2 Definition of LaÃÆ' ¯cità © Quite a good number of researchers tend to use the laÃÆ' ¯cità © and secularization interchangeably in their works about the place of religion and the relation between state and religion. In fact the two terms hold different definitions regarding the connection between religion and state. Though in English the word secularization to describe the relationship between them, the French word laÃÆ' ¯cità © is used also in English to refer to the unique separation between religious institutions and the state. According to Olivier Roy (7-8: 2007) the two terms are dissimilar. On the one hand, secularization is a social phenomenon that does not require a political implementation and is not anti-religious and anti-clerical, and so the place is defined by the people themselves. On the other, laÃÆ' ¯cità © is a political choice that defines the place of religion in an authoritarian, legal manner, and so it is decreed by the state which organizes public space. Roy adds that it is a b ody of laws before being a system of thought (p.17). The term laÃÆ' ¯cità © was first used in the 1870s, as were its counter parts the verb laÃÆ' ¯ciser (to secularise) and the nouns laicisation (the action and the result of laÃÆ' ¯cità ©) and laÃÆ' ¯cisme (the doctrine of laÃÆ' ¯cità ©) (Jansen 476:2006). Moreover, the two terms are contrasted in this way à   la diffà ©rence du processus de sà ©cularisation mouvement qui sinscrit sur une longue durà ©e, la laÃÆ' ¯cità © relà ¨ve plutà ´t dune volontà © de la politique à ©tatique qui dà ©finit a la fois les institutions et une vie sociale conforme à   ses principes(Gà ¶le 77:2005). In this view, secularization is a social process that has evolved over a long period of time, while laÃÆ' ¯cità © entails a political decision on the state level. The historian Jean Bauberot has argued that laÃÆ' ¯cità © was the result of a condition in which the state had to destabilize religious institutions mainly Catholic- to assert its authority and ensure democratic liberties, whereas secularization should be viewed as a cultural transformation that has taken place mostly in countries with a Protestant culture (Caron 115:2007). Blandine Kriegel, president of the High Council for Integration, in an interview published in Le Monde defines laÃÆ' ¯cità © as follows: Tout simplement la neutralità © de lespace public qui permet à   une pluralità © de croyance et à   une multiplicità © de citoyens ayant des croyances diffà ©rentes de vivre ensemble de faà §on tolà ©rantes et respectueuses les uns des autres. 3 Evolution of LaÃÆ' ¯cità © After the Revolution of 1789, one finds two Frances. In one camp, there are those defending the notion of a homeland founded on the Catholic Church and the army, often being anti-Protestant, anti-Jew and anti-freemason; they are conservative, even reactionary, and often monarchist. In the other camp, one finds the defenders of the republican ideals of 1789 founded on Reason (not on Catholicism), freedom, religious tolerance, a strict separation between the public and the private domains (Brulard 176:2002. Moreover, a law that separated the Church from the State and abolished Le Concordat of 1801 was voted by la Chambre in July 1905 and by le Sà ©nat on 9 December 1905. Since then, France has had neither official religion nor a privileged religion (Brudy/Marcon 3:1995). The 1905 law complemented the 1901 law which forbade secular associations from having religious activities (Brulard 177:2002). It is important to point out that this law was not negotiated with the religious institutions since it was a legislative act; it is based on the principle of freedom of conscience; it is the implementation of the principle of laÃÆ' ¯cità ©; and it is however, not a creation of the State, it is fundamentally the realization of a long struggle for the human liberation and the secularization of the society (Scot 54-56: 2005). In order to protect the republican nature of the State, Republicans needed to develop an ideology that could replace Catholic Morality and that would spread the ideal of secular citizenship across the country (Jansen 477:2006). In a report titled Rapport sur la laÃÆ' ¯cità © et lobligation de là ©cole primaire the school is viewed as follows: Là ©cole devra donc à ªtre ce quon appelle en France laÃÆ' ¯que, en Hollande neutre, et dans les pays anglo-amà ©ricain unsectarian. (Journal Officiel de la Rà ©publique franà §aise, du 26 mai 1880) On 28 of March 1882 came the law known as the Ferry Law after the Minister of Public Instruction Jules Ferry, which effectively laicized public education (Fetzer/Soper 70:2005). In fact public education became crucial to prevent people from voting for an authoritarian (Catholic) regime (Jansen 477:2006). In 1946, after the trauma of war and occupation, the principle of laÃÆ' ¯cità © was enshrined in the constitution, and is one of the major characteristics of the republican state: France is an indivisible, secular, democratic, and social republic (Article 2 of the Constitution). In addition, the State does not subsidize the religious institutions according to Article 2 and guarantees freedom of worship according to Article 1. It is also important to mention in this respect that not only did the changes on the ground contribute to the shaping of the idea of secularism; but there were also the French Protestants, for whom, the cause of laÃÆ' ¯cità © was synonymous with that of freedom: their wish was to reconcile religion and freedom (Brulard 177:2002). The Protestants found refuge in laÃÆ' ¯cità © as it is the only guarantee for them as a minority to practice their religion without being discriminated against. As we have seen so far laÃÆ' ¯cità © was used, and is still used, to confront the influence of religion. Olivier Roy says that laÃÆ' ¯cità ©, historically a matter of dispute between the republican state and the Catholic Church is founded on anti-clericalism (18:2007). However, it aimed not to exclude believers but to define a space of neutrality (Roy 21:2007). 4 Challenges Confronting LaÃÆ' ¯cità © Since the 1970s, immigration penetrated the public and political spheres as a social problem of ethnic / cultural relations. From guest-workers, factors of production, immigrants came to be perceived as objects of political controversy defined in terms of citizenship and identity (Inà ¨s 182:2002) The debate about laÃÆ' ¯cità © started in the school. The school system is described as a sanctuary for preserving the French laÃÆ' ¯cità ©. The new diagnoses related to the threats against laÃÆ' ¯cità © emerged in school (Bertossi 17:2006). In 1989, two girls in Creil came to class wearing Muslim scarves. This raised a legal challenge to laÃÆ' ¯cità © as there are no school uniforms in French state schools, and it was unclear whether there was an explicit rule preventing pupils from wearing religious symbols (Laborde 52:2008). Since the republican school was conceived as a microcosm of republican political society: within its walls, children would learn to become citizens, a shared public identity that transcend their local, cultural and religious affiliations (Laborde 49:2008) Consequently, any religious sign is considered as a threat to the particularity of the educational system, which is supposed to be neutral, and of course a threat to the ideals of the Republic . The legislation of 15 of March 2004 reversed the 1905 approach to laÃÆ' ¯cità ©; instead of being an abstract principle of State neutrality. It was converted into an identity principle; instead of being exceptional cases of proselytism, according to the 1989 State Councils decision, the interdiction became the common law (Bertossi 19:2006). As a result of this law, laÃÆ' ¯cità © is no longer a matter of the place of religion and its relationship with the State, but rather it is a matter of the French identity (17:2006). This has shifted the discussion about laÃÆ' ¯cità © from its being discriminating against religious minorities to a national issue that concerns every French. 4. 1 The Challenge of Multiculturalism In France multiculturalism is looked down upon because it is perceived to reinforce particularist and divisive identities that threaten the unified French identity. It is believed that associating laÃÆ' ¯cità © with multiculturalism and the recognition of identità ©s collectives is the emphasis of the religious identities, and this emphasis will lead to the fragmentation of the society and pose a threat to liberty since the radical religious people will keep making more pressure (Cohen 5:2007). In the French approach towards the cultural diversity, individuals are to adhere to the body of the nation; they have to adhere to the national values. This model is often referred to as assimilationist because it does not admit the others difference of cultural particularism (Inà ¨s 183:2002). In the 1970s, the concept of assimilation was challenged because it was found that the State did not have the right to erase the regional or ethnic differences. As a result, the term integration was introduced to refer to an open process in which the fundamental values of French society have to be preserved, but without incurring total renunciation of the immigrants original culture(Inà ¨s 183;2002). The efficiency of integration measures is somewhat doubtful, as politicians on the Left and on the Right keep advocating policies which are contradictory: integrating on the one hand and control on the other (183: 2002). Since laÃÆ' ¯cità © has been also associated with the national identity as I have mentioned earlier, it is endangered since there some minorities which have debated the national history and all the controversial issues during the period of the French colonization. Some of these cultural minorities which come from French-colonized countries raise other issues besides the one related to religion. And so, multiculturalism in this context is seen as a threat to the universal values of Enlightenment that was at the basis of all the advancement in France (Cohen 7:2007). 4.2 The Challenge of Religious Groups The diversity inside the religious groups brings up the issue of the contradiction between the States position based on the constitution which requires it to intervene in the religious matters lordre privà ©, and the right of the small religious groups to equality (Cohen 4:2007). For instance, in Islam women are not considered as equal to men, however, men and women are equal according to the French values. Therefore, should the State intervene in matters pertaining to internal religious issues? If the State is to be involved directly in such sensitive issues for a reason or another, the social pressure is building up to push the State to impose equality between men and women (Cohen 4:2007). Moreover, the problem of the sects in France comes to the surface whenever the debate about laÃÆ' ¯cità © starts, even when the attention is, as it the case most of the time, directed to Islam as an issue of controversy. The sects are weighed in the same manner like the radical and dangerous groups which tend to be violent. The challenge is that the as long as the sects do not resemble any of the known monotheistic religions or Buddhism or Hinduism, they remain unrecognized by the State (Gà ¶le 3: 2005). Therefore, the question is whether the State should intervene on one side to ensure that equality is granted to all religious groups and on the other, to control the groups classified as dangerous (like the sects and the extremist groups). When these two conflicting issues are addressed to the State in order to resolve them, it is confronted with the Law of 1905, separation between the State and the Church and the neutrality of the State in regard to internal religious affairs ( Cohen 2:2007). In other words Olivier Roy adds that the phenomenon of sects is troubling to the French society, and the temptation to legislate against them is as strong as in the case of Islam (Roy 6: 2007). The challenge is to give a place to religions in the public domain without running the risk of any of them becoming hegemonic and recovering their institutional authority on individuals conscience. While the conception of laÃÆ' ¯cità © confines religion to the private domain, the headscarf affair raised the issue of social dimension of religion and demonstrated that religion and the surrounding society are far more intricately interrelated (Inà ¨s 186: 2002). In the light of the ongoing changes in the demographic texture in the French society, changes linked to the growing influence of religious minorities on the one hand on their own members and on the other, on the State itself, which should be neutral towards religion. Since the sects are gaining a place in France, the State is in a position of either legislating laws against them or accommodating them within the French society. But the question is who is to be recognized, so some criteria are developed to legalize the sects. Again the State is facing the challenge of deciding which sect can be considered as eligible for its respect global de lordre public (Cohen 3:2007). Besides, the debate goes even further in relation to religion. Which religion is defined as a religion by the State? To this end, the State has to include or exclude some religious groups. In both cases, it risks losing its impartiality, a value enshrined by the constitution. To expound the previous point, the secular State has no competence when it comes to assessing the validity of doctrine. In the case of the Church of Scientology in 1997, the ruling of the court was based on the fact that freedom of belief is one of the fundamental elements of French public liberties expressed in Article of the 1789 Declaration of Human and Citizens Rights and that article 1 of the Separation Law ensures freedom of conscience and beliefs subject to observance of public order, and considering article 9 of the European Convention recognizing religious freedom for all persons. (Proeschel 14: 2008). The ruling stated that there is thus no point in wondering whether the Church of Scientology constitutes a sect or a religion, as freedom of belief is absolute, that to the extent a religion can be defined by coincidence of two elements, an objective element, the existence of a community, even a small one, and a subjective element shared faith, the Church of Scientology can cl aim the title of a religion and develop its activities in all freedom, within the framework of the existing laws, including its missionary activities, or even those of proselytism (Proeschel 14:2007). The Commission Stasi published a report on 11 of December 2003 in which it recommended the interdiction of religious signs in public schools as well as the fight against urban and social discrimination against racism and anti-Semitism, the appointment of Muslim chaplain in public institutions such as hospitals, prisons and the military and the creation of new public holidays. Only the first recommendation was finally implemented with 15 March 2004 and became a law. Yet, this law has been criticized over the compatibility of such ban with European Convention on Human Rights. In their turn official republicans point out to a number of decisions by the European Court of Human Rights which have recognized that a state like Turkey which is the only other laÃÆ' ¯que state in Europe may have a legitimate interest in preserving a secular public sphere (Laborde 59: 2008). Furthermore, the French State reacted towards the growing challenge of Islam by setting up a committee at the initiative of the Ministry of the Interior and Religions and chaired by Jean-Pierre Machelon who made a report in 2006. He came up with a plan to enable local authorities to make direct grants for construction of buildings for religious purposes within their boundaries (Proeschel 11:2008). Given the challenges facing the State, new laÃÆ' ¯cità © politics developed around two main issues. On the one hand, it focused on the so-called fight against collective ethnic and religious identities, what is referred to as communautarisme. On the other, counter- arguments emphasized the anti-discrimination agenda and used notions such as Islamophobia to describe the new context. The issue of gender equality appeared at the intersection of both lines of this debate (Bertossi 17:2006) In a report for the United Nations Commission on Human Rights titled Civil and Political Rights, Including the Question of Religious Intolerance submitted in 2005 by Asma Jahangir, Special Rapporteur on Freedom of Religion and Belief, the Special Rapporteur has observed that the government may have contributed to a climate of general suspicion and intolerance towards those communities on the list created by the National Assembly in 1996, of movements and groups classified as sects (109). And the report adds [a] number of improvements à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦remain to be carried out to ensure that the right to freedom of religion or belief of all individuals is guaranteed (à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦) (110). And in paragraph 97 in the report, the Special Rapportuer à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦considers that a thorough assessment of [laÃÆ' ¯cità ©s] application in the present context of religious pluralism is a necessary process in democratic society based on the rule of the law. 5 Forms of LaÃÆ' ¯cità ©s As a result of the controversies about laÃÆ' ¯cità © and the changes that have taken place in the French society; flow of immigrants with different cultural heritages and religions. The French State has found itself in a position where it needs to make decisions and respond to the rights of the religious groups. Two types of laÃÆ' ¯cità © have developed throughout past years; the soft laÃÆ' ¯cità © and the strict laÃÆ' ¯cità ©. The dichotomies between the two show the degree to which laÃÆ' ¯cità © is being challenged in the French society. Many of the supporters of soft laÃÆ' ¯cità © accuse the proponents of the strict form of trying to make secularist laÃÆ' ¯cità © the state religion in France (Fetzer/Soper 74:2005). In fact, Olivier Roy says that laÃÆ' ¯cità © is moving towards becoming a dogma (22:2007). A few defenders of soft laÃÆ' ¯cità © also lament that the strict version tends to sterilize the society of all cultural diversity and to strip public school students of all individuality (Fetzer/Soper 75:2005). In her book Critical Republicanism The Hijab Controversy and Political Philosophy, Cecile Laborde exposes the ongoing debate about laÃÆ' ¯cità © and identifies two versions of tolerant republican laÃÆ' ¯cità © towards the case for allowing religious signs in the schools. The first version, secular laÃÆ' ¯cità ©, it might be an appealing ideal, but on no plausible interpretation does it mandate that school childrens right to wear religious clothing be restricted. The second version of tolerant republican challenge goes further, and casts doubts on the laÃÆ' ¯que ideal itself (80:2008). She also adds in her criticism of the tolerant laÃÆ' ¯cità © the following: As separation is no more than a historical myth, and the French public sphere is far from neutral in the laÃÆ' ¯que sense, contextual fairness demands that privileges historically granted to Catholics be extended to minority religions such as Islam. Tolerant republicanism, therefore, substitutes pragmatic even-handedness between religious groups to abstentionist neutrality, and allows for the recognition of collective religious identities in the public sphere (80:2008). In addition to the two versions of tolerant republican laÃÆ' ¯cità ©, comes official republican ideal of laÃÆ' ¯cità ©, according to which, republican equality is best promoted through maintenance of secular nature of public sphere and non-interference by the state in religious matters. Finally, critical republicans in contrast to both official and tolerant republicans explicitly confront this complex question and believe that answering it would go a long way towards addressing the legitimate grievances of Muslims in relation to the existing practices of European State (Laborde 89:2008). Critical republicans tend to be fairly tolerant of the religious expression of ordinary citizens, but they adopt a less tolerant stance towards display of religious allegiance or support by the state institutions (86:2008). All in all, there are three attitudes that can be defined in relation to laÃÆ' ¯cità ©. Some, advocating an open laÃÆ' ¯cità © , are concerned with the free exercise of religion, but are also tempered by a revision of the 1905 law. Those favoring a laÃÆ' ¯cità © in movement are sensitive to social and religious change, but remain faithful to the history of the secular ideal. Finally, the more militant laics defend the French republican model by denouncing the dangers of communautarisme and calling for the strengthening of the 1905 law (Caron 117: 2007). 6 Conclusion In the light of the societal developments in the French society, laÃÆ' ¯cità © has encountered great challenges stemming mainly from the claims by the cultural and religious minorities. These minorities, and in particular, Muslims, have simply demanded that their rights to freedom of belief and expression be guaranteed by laÃÆ' ¯cità ©, but instead of granting them their rights, they have been confined to more restrictions in expressing these rights. Ironically, their requests have been estimated to be a threat to laÃÆ' ¯cità © and, of course, to the national identity. There is no doubt that laÃÆ' ¯cità © has evolved over the past years; an open form has come to existence as a result of the stagnation in the process of recognizing the religious groups rights More than one hundred years has passed since the 1905 Law, and the sects and other religious groups are still seeking the States recognition. Though laÃÆ' ¯cità © requires the State to be neutral in matters of religion as they belong to the private domain (lordre privà ©), it has practically failed to curb the States intervention in the internal affairs of the religious groups. Ingemund Hagg says in a paper presented in 2005 in Bulgaria that là ©tat laÃÆ' ¯que is an ideal but 100 years of French history shows that it is difficult to obtain, it has to develop in steps, and within new steps in accordance with societal development in each particular country Consequently, the fact that laicite is not perceived in the same way by its proponents; some believe that it is the only guarantee for freedom of belief and that the State instead of being neutral is abusing the rights of religious minorities under the pretext of protecting laÃÆ' ¯cità © itself. Therefore, laÃÆ' ¯cità © does not, as Claude Proeschel says in the end of her article French LaÃÆ' ¯cità © Confronted with New Challenges involve ignoring religious facts. It requires not mere tolerance on the part of the State, but active organization(15:2007). In that sense, it does embrace differences, but its implementation by the State that renders it rigid. As a result, laÃÆ' ¯cità © as a concept is rigid given the States practices towards the religious groups, but again it is dynamic regarding the controversies about it; different trends of laÃÆ' ¯cità © soft or open. Therefore, in theory, it is dynamic, but in practice, it is rigid. No. of Characters is 23 282.

Thursday, September 19, 2019

We Must Ban Therapeutic Human Cloning Essay -- Argumentative Persuasiv

  Ã‚   The Senate is considering a proposal to outlaw human cloning. Two alternative proposals would ban only "reproductive cloning," which would mean explicitly legalizing human cloning but not the implantation of a clone embryo into a womb. Pro-cloners are willing for the most part to outlaw reproductive cloning because it isn't safe, but they oppose a ban on cloning for research and experimentation--known as "therapeutic cloning"--arguing that such a cloning license is necessary to the development of future medical treatments for human ailments. This opposition to a ban on human therapeutic cloning is misinformed.    The case against cloning, including therapeutic cloning, has mainly been argued on grounds of morality. Opponents have warned that creating embryos through cloning for the purpose of research (with the full intention of destroying them later) is a breathtakingly radical enterprise. For the first time in history, human lives will be created for the explicit purpose of exploitation. Such considerations have led activist Jeremy Rifkin to opine that the cloning debate is to the 21st century what the slavery debate was to the 19th.    Unfortunately, we live in a time of widespread and extreme non-judgmentalism, an era when many Americans simply do not respond to moral arguments in public policy debates. For these folk, what counts is not right versus wrong, but whether it will or won't work--in a word, utility.    Does this mean that the public policy amoralists among us must end up by default on the pro-cloning side? Not at all. There is increasing evidence that therapies based on cloned embryo cells would be so difficult and expensive to develop and so utterly impractical to bring to the bedside,... ...ork on embryos? The Red Cross representative could not have been clearer: "We really need to focus our resources, our attention, on those areas where we could most likely provide, in the shortest period of time, some therapies for our patients."    To pour money into human cloning embryonic stem cell research is to risk drilling one dry hole after another. The moral policy thus also turns out to be the pragmatic one. The United States Senate should vote to ban all human cloning now.    WORKS CITED: Civin, Curt I. "stem Cell Selection." http://www.stemcellselection.com/transwithselection/overview.htm Prentice, David. "The Truth About Stem Cells. http://www.nationalreview.com/interrogatory/interrogatory022601a.shtml Odorico and Kaufman. Embryonic Stem Cell Research - a Reality Check. http://www.stemcellresearch.org/info/quotes3.htm

Wednesday, September 18, 2019

Friday :: essays research papers

FRIDAY A handsome, in about 26 years old, with straight and strong limbs, tall and well shaped fellow who bare name Friday which he got for the memory of a day he was rescued. The native who was saved from a certain death by Robinson Crusoe during one of the cannibal rituals of a local tribe. By the man who was actually on his way to Africa to buy Negroes! His hair was long and black but not curled, he had very high forehead and great sparkling sharp eyes. Friday’s appearance was somewhere in between Negro and European, black but tawny skin, round face and small but not flat nose as most of the Negroes have. Of course, like all Negroes have, had he fine teeth well set and white as ivory, but oddly enough – thin lips. To lay his head flat upon ground, close to person’s foot and set other foot upon his head – this was Friday’s way of showing the servitude and submission. Robinson understood him in many things and let him know how very pleased he was with him. This was something Friday understood before he could speak Robinson` s language. Still he was a cannibal in his nature, full of lot abhorrence. We can see how the other culture is suppressed from the very beginning. Robinson cures Friday of his cannibalistic habits and gives him a new Western name. But the first words he taught him in English were words that one servant has to know and use! So Friday was domesticated and incorporated into Western society. The main fear and an idea throughout the book is Crusoe `s goal to re-educate Friday to a civilised human being and if he wouldn’t have, he would have no mercy but to kill him!

Tuesday, September 17, 2019

Science and My Daily Life

Science and My Daily life Brenda Durbin Kaplan University Science and I Science has and always will play a constant important role in my daily life, maybe more so than others. Science for me has not always been my strong subject in school and I very easily tend to get intimidated. But when I look at my daily life and realize how much science plays a role in it, I cannot help but smile. Science is not at all bad, it has allowed me to do many things every day, even if I do not take the time to stop and think about it, it is there.From the way the microwave heats up the water for my coffee every morning or the way my body digests the food I eat every meal and makes it into energy or even a trip to the doctor’s office with my son, science is a constant companion and without it, my life would have turned out very different indeed. If I arrived home late one night and after unlocking the front door, I tried to turn on a light and it did not respond I would begin a process of elimina tion, or in other words, using the scientific method to find out the problem.First I would check the light bulb, to see if it had blown, once replacing the bulb if I still did not have light I would then go to my back porch and to the fuse box. I would then check the fuses to see if maybe a breaker was tripped or I had a blown fuse. If even after doing this I still have no power I would then call my electric company, asking them if someone had hit a power pole, or if they were conducting some kind of random test(s) or even making repair(s) to the line. Once finding out some information from the company I would then know whether to light some candles and to be patient or if I would have to call an electrician.For scenario number two I will use the situation of my car not starting. First I would check the level of gas in my vehicle, if that was found to be not the problem I would then check the battery and the terminals making sure they are all clean and connected. I would then check the spark plugs to see if they were misfiring, dirty or corroded. If after checking these items I still would be finding no solution, I would do my best to get a jump start from a passing motorist. If the jumps start did not elp to start my car I would then have to call a tow truck to bring my car to a garage where a mechanic would be able to research the problem better with his/her equipment and tools. While waiting for the answer and the problem to be fixed from the mechanic I would have to plan to either take a cab or find a ride with my friend(s) and/or co-workers to work, appointments and any place I need to go for my routine errands. Every day I get up at 5:30am. Without science (to tell the time of day) and the technology that goes into my alarm clock chances are 5:30am would not be the time I would be getting up.I then go upstairs and wake up my sons Warren and Ryely to get ready for school. When Warren comes down stairs I help him get his morning treatment machines ready. W arren was born with Cystic Fibrosis and relies on science and the continuing scientific advances of treatments, medicines and therapies to continue living. Warren’s first treatment is called a nebulizer, this lasts about 15 minutes. The nebulizer loosens the thick mucus on the walls of Warren’s lungs. Then his next treatment is done with what is called â€Å"the vest airway clearance system† (Hill-Rom Services, 2011).This vest gently compresses and releases the chest wall up to 25 times per second (Hill-Rom Services, 2011). In other words it basically pounds the loosened mucus (from his first treatment, â€Å"the neb† as we call it) off and out of Warren’s lungs so that he may cough it up. This vest treatment last for thirty minutes. After his treatments are finished, I then help Warren break down the machines, clean them and put them away until they are needed again in the evening. Warren does both of these treatments twice a day. Without science I would not have had Warren in my life for so long.He is nineteen and each day he does these treatments is another day I get to have my son in my life. Next, I prepare breakfast for both Warren and Ryely. We have a gas stove in our kitchen so the use of science plays a big role in the cooking of the food for all our meals. After dinner I then lay out all of Warren’s many medications they he needs to take. The absolute most important of all the medication is what is called Creon. Creon â€Å"contains pancrelipase – a combination of three enzymes: lipase, protease, and amylase† (Drugs. com, 2011).These enzymes are produced in the pancreas of people without CF. In people who do have CF however, the thick sticky mucus plugs the ducts in the pancreas so that the enzymes cannot reach the food to help break down and digest what food is eaten. So every time Warren eats he needs to take these, five capsules for snacks and seven with meals. Without science, everything War ren eats would pass right through his system and no nutrition would be absorbed by his body. After breakfast it is usually time for the boys to leave so that they can go to their bus stops.When they leave I will usually either start getting ready for any appointments that are scheduled or start cleaning the house. I must also admit there are some days that I do in fact go back to bed to catch an hour or two of more sleep. Science plays a huge role in the cleaning of my house also. From the hot water I use to mop the floors to the cleaners I use to disinfect and make my home smell clean science is there. Science has improved the quality of my life so very much. In explaining how I will get very emotional and I hope you understand.Without science Warren would not have lived, therefore I would not have become a mother. Without the scientific understanding of genetics and genetic diseases not only would I have lost Warren but I could have very well ended up in jail for child abuse. Befo re a doctor thought of giving Warren a sweat test (a test which measures the amount of salt in sweat) I was being investigated by the state of Maine for suspicion of child abuse. Warren was only 3 months old at the time and got down to 2 pounds 1. 3 ounces.The doctors and nurses immediately thought where I was a young mother I must have not been feeding him. This hung over my head the whole time Warren was being tested and in the neonatal critical care unit. Only when a CF specialist visiting Mid Maine Medical Center from the Children’s Hospital of Boston, after examining my son decided that a sweat test was needed, and done did this allegation clear up. Removing all doubt from the doctors and nurses of my mothering skills and love toward my son. The sweat test came back positive that Warren had CF. It was right then my life changed.Not only did my life change due to the treatments, medications and care Warren needed daily but also I was taught a most valuable lesson, never t ake anyone (who is in your life), no matter how small they are for granted. Every smile, laugh and memory with and from both my children have become even more precious to me now knowing that without the help of science Warren would not be a part of the family. Warren fought so hard to live (and continues to fight) so that I could be a mother, his mother. That in itself changes a person. To be perfectly honest, there has been only one negative impact that science has had on my life.I have always wanted to have at least two children. I underwent genetic testing soon after Warren was diagnosed with CF and the results that came in were scary. Warren’s father was found to have passed a gene unto him that is very common in about 80% of CF cases, while I had passed on to him a much rarer gene that was only evident in 2% of CF cases. The guilt was unbelievable and very painful to work through. And if that was not enough we were also told that with every child I would have with Warren ’s father the chances it would be born with CF were 1 in 4.I do not believe that I could live without science and I sincerely do not think anyone else could either. As people, we get sick, have headaches, toothaches and need surgeries for a multitude of reasons and without science we simply could not and would not be here. From a small aspirin someone takes for pain, to the food we eat or the healthcare we need and receive science is all around us every day! Science has made it possible for people such as me to live longer, be cared for, and to eat a variety of foods no matter if it is in a box or can and to live.To be honest I have always been too busy with my daily life that I have never stopped to think about how much science was in my life and the ways it presents itself. But through this course I have found a definite respect for science. I will look at things differently now and probably always will since taking this course. Science has been around me long before Warren was born but it was when he came into my life that I began to appreciate science and all the possibilities it holds for the future.One of the biggest possibilities that my family and I are hoping for is one day when CF will stand for cure found. Through the length of this course I have shared many of my own opinions and life experiences. Reflecting on them all I cannot help but smile, I should never be intimidated by science, because it is through science I have the life I live now. References Drugs. com, (2011). Creon, Retrieved on November 12, 2011 from http://www. drugs. com/creon. html Hill-Rom Services, (2011). The Vest Airway Clearance System, Retrieved on November 12, 2011 from http://www. thevest. com/products/

Monday, September 16, 2019

Walmart Stores Inc.

Management Control Systems Assignment Case study: A) Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. , Case 1-2, Page no. 31 B) Vershire Company, Case 4-1, Page no. 145 Case A) Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. Question 1. What is Wal-Mart’s strategy? What is the basis on which Wal-Mart builds its competitive advantage? Answer? Wal-Mart’s Strategy is a. Winning strategy of Wal-Mart is based on selling branded products at a low cost. b. Marketing strategy of Wal-Mart is â€Å"Everyday low prices† is to pull in customers everyday. c. Saturation strategy of Wal-Mart is for the store expansion. The standards was to be able to drive from a distribution centre to store within a day.And a distribution centre was strategically planned so that it eventually serve 150-200 stores within a day’s drive. d. Bulk strategy of Wal-Mart is for purchasing branded products at bulk can help to drive hard bargain which help Wal-Mart to sell the products at low prices. These are the main basic policies which Wal-Mar t follows to become world’s largest retailer. On the basis of selling branded products at low cost and everyday low prices at Wal-Mart store and also continuously following the above strartegies helps Wal-Mart builds its competitive advantage over other retail stores to pull in more customers everyday.Question 2. How do Wal-Mart’s control systems help execute the firm’s strategy? Answer? The Wal-Mart’s control systems help execute the firm’s strategy is given below, †¢The Information Technology- The IT that powered Wal-Mart’s supply chain and logistics was the most powerful. Therefore it pursuads its suppliers to adapt latest supply chain technologies like RFID- which increases monitoring and management of the inventory. †¢Each distribution center 24 operated hours a day using laser-guided conveyer belts and cross-docking techniques that received goods on one side and simultaneously filling orders on other side. The Wal-Mart had la rgest privately owned satellite communication network in US and broadcasted television. †¢Each store constituted an investment centre and was evaluated on its profits relative to its inventory investments. †¢The data from â€Å"outstanding† performers among 5300 stores were used to improve operations in â€Å"problem† stores. †¢For the employees loyalty and dedication- the Wal-Mart offers Profit sharing for the employees who spends at least one year and who worked at least 1000 hours. Several policies that help Wal-Mart to execute the firm’s strategy such as- incentive bonuses, a discounted stock purchase plan, promotion from within, pay rises based on performance not on seniority basis, open door policy . †¢Wal-Mart had implemented a satellite network system that allowed information to be shared between companies wide network of stores, distribution centers and suppliers. By following these above mentioned control systems it help to execute the Wal-Mart’s strategy.

Sunday, September 15, 2019

Judeo Christian Veiws on God

Explain how the Judeo Christian tradition shows the goodness of God The ‘goodness’ of God, as a concept, refers to the holiness and care that god himself initiates on his people, however the Judeo-Christian tradition hold that gods attributes cannot be a ‘concept’ as god is personal, and treats all living beings as individuals.The biblical god, a completely different god than that of Plato or any philosopher, who can be seen as a ‘concept’ can be referred and described to as ‘good’ throughout scriptures through acts of kindness and his characteristics of denying those who are evil for the better of mankind; ‘You have rejected me, says the lord, your are going backward so I have stretched out my hand against you and destroyed you’ (Jeremiah 15. 6). According to this Judeo-Christian tradition gods goodness cannot have attributes of evil and portray his acts of being hard done by as help to those who need it.However this a nger is not subjected to those who have done nothing wrong, but to those who are unjust and mistreat those of equality to them. The simple understanding of gods goodness is to look at what he does, he is beneficial to his creatures and doesn’t act for his own profit, but for those on earth to create a helpful father as he wishes to be conceived; ‘I myself, said, how gladly I treat you like sons, and give you a desirable land, the most insurance of any nation.I thought you would call me father and not turn away from me’ (Jeremiah 3. 19-20). God also promises Abraham that he would be the father to the Israelites, a great nation. The goodness which is a strong participant of gods role in the bible, along with the ten commandments ‘do not commit adultery, do no steal’ and so forth, conduct a role in which those who follow the doings of god will also take on. This also helps the follower of god to feel innate and closer to god as they respond and follow h is rules with obedience.Gods acts on individual people whilst helping them, is simply for their faith to be held with him, and they believe whatever god puts forth for them to do, they shall do it as god is good, and wouldn’t want to cause intentional hurt without reason. (quote 1). God can further can be seen as having personal feelings, as he is seen to be hurt and becomes angry when people disobey his orders and when people fail to respond to his commands, for example committing adultery would be a sin against god; ‘Instead, as a faithless wife leaves her husband, so you have been faithless to me, Oh house of Israel, says the lord’ (Jeremiah 3:19 19-20).God also shows love and compassion, another two attributes to gods goodness, as he bore a son to Hannah as she prayed to him to ‘look on the misery of your servant and remember me†¦.. give to your servant a male child’ (Jeremiah 3:19-20) Although his anger and the justice he serves on those wh o disobey him are sometimes seen as mean, they are attributes to his personality as a god and believers see this as him being fair and just.He does these as comeuppance to supposed faithful ones to take advantage of his goodness, and is still seen as perfect; ‘He is the rock, his works are perfect and all his ways are just. A faithful god who does no wrong, upright and just is he. They have acted corruptly towards him, to their shame they are no longer his children but a warped and crocked generation’. (Deuteronomy 32. 4-5)       It is essential therefore, for people to respond to god’s demands with faith and obedience as god is the only one who understands and defines goodness, humans cannot understand this concept as we are tempted by evil.Having faith in god when you are poor and with nothing may be hard, but as Abraham sets example and continues believing in god, others should follow and having faith may lead them to a better fortune and not give up on ho pe. The goodness of god in the bible is represented through situations and stories told for centuries, they show his many attributes that fold into the one personality of god, to be and always be infinitely good.

Saturday, September 14, 2019

The Math in Figure Skating

Alexis Dillon l. Introduction This paper will be discussing the involvement of math in figure skating. There are three parts of skating that will be discussed in the essay; Jumps and moves in the field. Jumps require a lot of power, strength and knee bend in order for the Jump to be successful. I will be looking at the appropriate angle of knee bend a skater needs to successfully land a Jump. Moves in the field are series of test that include certain turns and moves that are tested in front of Judges.Moves in the field require grace, knee bend, speed and strength. This essay will discuss the correct angle of the knee bend required to correctly complete specific turns, including counters, rockers and brackets and to successfully remain on the correct edge. I have been skating for nine years. I have done many types of skating, like freestyle, moves in the field and synchronized skating. I'm currently a competitive synchronize skater and working on my novice moves. Both these parts of f igure skating require speed, grace, edge quality and strength.Many things can affect how well a skater can preform and the quality of the skating. Knee bend is one of the many crucial parts of quality skating. II. What Is Skating? Figure skating is defined as a â€Å"competitive on ice sport in prescribed fgures and/or choreographed free skating. † Figure skating includes many different types and levels. Ill. Basic Skills To start, many skaters complete basic skills classes, which, in short, teach the basic components of skating, needed to be successful. Children under the age of six usually begin a beginner class called â€Å"snowplow'.This level consists of very basic skills including things like learning how to stand up and fall down. After the skater has completed these levels, or is above the age of six, moves on to the levels â€Å"Basic Skill† There are eight levels in this section, where each level increases in difficulty. The basic skills provide the fundamen tals of skating. These levels will also provide more challenging skills including, edges, turns, and crossovers that are necessary for successful skating. Once the skater has successful passed these levels, the skater may move on to â€Å"freestyle†.There are six levels in this section. These levels teach the skater basic Jumps and spins. ‘V. Freestyle Freestyle skating consists of Jumps, spins and footwork sequences choreographed in a program using the skater's style. Some Jumps include axel, the loop Jump, lutz and salchow. These Jumps can be preformed as singles (, doubles, triples, and even quadruples. The axel is one of the hardest Jumps to master, whether it's a single, double, or a quad The axel requires knee bend, power and speed Competitions are based on levels. There are eight levels in freestyle.Each level gets harder and the harder Jumps require programs with required moves, Jumps and spins. These test are preformed in front of Judges. These test are importa nt for a fgure skater because in determines what level the skater competes at. These tests ake practice and skill. V. Moves in the field Like the freestyle tests, there are eight tests the gradually increase in difficulty. The tests are as follows; pre-preliminary, preliminary, pre-Juvenile, Juvenile, intermediate, novice, Junior and senior. Each test consist of certain step sequences, turns, and moves that require knee bend, grace, and speed.Example of a very simple pattern on the preliminary exam: This pattern consist of a very simple inside three-turn in which you start on an inside edge and turn onto your outside edge. Example of a two very challenging patterns on the Junior exam: Figure 2 Figure 3 This pattern requires a lot good edge quality, grace and knee bend. This turns, also known as a rocker, requires you to stay on the same edge before and after a turn. To determine the correct amount of knee bend, twenty forward inside rockers were done and photographed.Each turn was a nalyzed to determine whether or not the turn was on the correct edge or not. The photos were separated into two groups, turn with a perfect edge and turn with imperfect edge. The angle of the knee was measured for each photo and then averaged. The average angle for a turn with perfect edge quality was 1090 (refer to fgure 3 for what the edge is supposed to look ike). The average angle for a turn with imperfect edge quality was about 1230. Below are the pictures of a person doing the turn and what the turn looked like on the ice. RFI Rocker. How does math relate to this turn?Although, the differences between the two angles may have seemed small, it made a huge difference. IVe been working on these types turns for about a year, and from experience, I know there are some many things that need to be perfect in order for the turn to be on the correct edge and successtul. One ot the most important and influential part of the turn is the amount of knee bend the skater has. So, how does the angle of the knee make the turn have good or bad edge quality? When you bend your knee, you are doing what's called, â€Å"pressing your edge†. This means you are on the correct edge because of your knee bend.So, how much knee bend is enough? Is there a certain angle needed to perfect the turns? The answer is yes. This experiment has shown that a very large angle and a very low angle will disrupt the turn. VI'. What is an axel? Axel is one of the most difficult Jumps. The axel takes off from the forward outside edge and is landed on the back outside edge of the opposite foot. A single axel is 1. 5 revolutions. Axel is one of the many Jumps that skaters practice and attempt to master. Like most other Jumps, the axel can be increased in difficulty by adding more rotations to the Jump. VIII.What things affect the success of an axel? Many experienced skaters would say the most important things to master when learning how to land an axel successfully is power, speed, and height. How can you master all of these things? Through knee bend. Knee bend provides many things for a successful axel. When you bend you're knee while you skate, you â€Å"pressing on your edge† letting your skates skate with the ice rather than on top of the ice and merely liding.. No matter how fast your feet move, you will not gain speed if are â€Å"stepping† rather then bending your knees and actually skating.Knee bend also provides grace when preforming an axel. The more you â€Å"get down in your knees† or bend your knees, the more graceful and elegant you appear. This will help those who compete. Finally, right before the Jump takes off, knee bend provides height and the power of the Jump itself. But, how much knee bend is enough knee bend? Skaters, like me and those who think analytically, would love to know how much knee bend will lead to a successful Jump. ‘X. Figuring out how much knee bend is enough knee bend Like what was done for the rockers, a si milar experiment was done for the axel.To determine the correct amount of knee bend before the Jump, twenty axels were done and recorded and photographed. Each Jump was analyzed to determine whether or not the turn was a successful Jump or not. The photos were separated into two groups, turn with a perfect edge and turn with imperfect edge. The angle of the knee was measured for each photo and then averaged. The average angle for a Jump with good height and a quality Jump was 1070. The average angle for a turn with imperfect dge quality was about 1280. These results are very similar to the rockers.The Jumps that were considered unsuccessful landed with a fall or it was over or under rotated. This is most likely because the skater either had too much or too little power. X'. How does math relate to this Jump? Even though the differences between the two angles may have seemed small, it made a huge difference. From experience I know that an axel can up to about a year to perfect. Like the rocker, I know there are some many things that need to be perfect in order for the turn to be successful. One of the most important and influential part f the turn is the amount of knee bend the skater has.