The New Small How A New Breed Of Businesses Is...

Introduction of the Author This report is based upon the book The New Small: How a New breed of Businesses Is Harnessing the Power of Emerging Technologies, written by Phil Simon. The book was published by Motion Publishing and is copyrighted 2011 by Phil Simon. Phil Simon is the author of the Why New Systems Fail and The Next Wave of Technologies along with a few other management books. Phil consults companies on how to optimize their use of technology. While not consulting, Phil speaks about emerging trends and technologies. His contributions have also been featured in several technology-oriented media outlets. Simon currently resides in Las Vegas, Nevada. Abstract/Summary TRENDS THE FIVE ENABLERS Nowadays, technology is not solely†¦show more content†¦Next the focus is shifted to the current technologies that are at the center of the revolution. Essentially explaining how to go small to be big. This in turn introduces the Five Enablers. These technologies are: SaaS, Free and Open Source Software, social networks, mobility, and cloud computing. THE NEW SMALL This section is considered to be the heart of the book by the author. This section also specifies 11 interesting small businesses that have used emergent technologies to become a pioneer. The New Small are doing more with less, which strikes a balance between mobility and structure. Part II does much more than list the enablers used by each company. Phil Simon goes in depth and details how the companies experimented, often overcoming major hurdles in order to continue pushing forward. Amid, the triumphs and fiascos, each small businesses remained persistent by exploring and plotting its own path. In our day, being small can be a significant benefit. This group tends to be a group with a plan. Level-headedness, purpose, and long-term deliberations tends to motivate their decisions. Thus the New Small is doing everything quicker and becoming superior. BECOMING ONE OF THE NEW SMALL New Small businesses tend to adopt the new philosophy of emergent technologies with higher rates compared to larger organizations. However, Phil Simon goes on to state that â€Å"he has seen how small businesses struggle to implement new technologies.† That goes to say that: all else

Creating An Military Career - 853 Words

Creating an Military Career To put this quite simply, military is not for everyone. It can be a very strenuous process because it requires one to sign away a minimum of at least two years of their life. Upon enlistment there s no turning back. The first step is contacting a local recruiter. Recruiters are very useful because they can answer a variety of questions and concerns. While this is the age of technology, there are some things that the computer cannot do for you. Upon contacting a local recruiting station, the next step is usually to take a standardized test call the ASVAB. Asvab.com defines this test as â€Å"[a] multiple-aptitude battery that measures developed abilities and helps predict future academic and occupational success in the military† (asvab). Although people can go and take the ASVAB without accruing a service obligation, this test is used to determine job eligibility in the military. After discussing your scores with a recruiter Meps will be the next step. It is the general location of processing. â€Å"Processing is a very general term and does not just refer to signing a contract and shipping out. This is the place where you will go for your tests, physical, job counseling (depends on branch), security interview etc. etc. All of these things take place before swearing in and signing a contract. It is not until a contract is signed the 2nd time that really initiates a person. Most people don t realize that two contracts are signed. The first one enters theShow MoreRelatedPlease Also List Any Significant Or Meaningful Military1226 Words   |  5 PagesPlease also list any significant or meaningful military history from your family not already included in your application. My paternal grandfather was in the United States Army and deployed overseas during WWII. After several months into his deployment, he was shot in the neck and evacuated out of France and given an honorable discharge. My maternal grandfather was in the Italian Army and was captured by American soldiers during WWII. He became a prisoner of war and agreed to help the AmericanRead MoreEvaluation Of A Job Evaluation995 Words   |  4 PagesJob evaluation is a logical procedure intended to aid in creating pay distinctions among jobs within a single company. Job evaluation includes classification, comparison of the relative worth of jobs, combining internal and external market forces, measurements, nullification, and findings (Milkovich, Newman, Gerhart, 2014). One of the methods that can be used in the job evaluation is the point factor. The point factor method is where an organization pinpoints the compensable factors and breaksRead MoreThe Path Of An Instructional Designer Because1189 Words   |  5 PagesWhen I joined the United State Air Force in 2004, I quickly learned how easy it is to pass the blame. I noticed early in my military career, that broken processes were often ignored. Meanwhile, the person at the tactical level of the process was blamed for the result. After all the punishments are dealt out, new employees are assigned to the project, and all the smoke clears, the same problems seem to persist. When I suspect a process is inefficient, I feel a strong urge to find out why theseRead MoreLeaders Who Have Impacted Me The Most918 Words   |  4 Pagesthe most with their legacy. I decided to choose a leader whom I have known my entire Army career; SSG Lacy L. Behl (Brown). It was not an easy decision to select SSG Behl because I have known many leaders in the Army that have outstanding legacies that positively impacted my career. SSG Behl has always been there for me. She has shown me the strength of her character (through her actions in her milit ary career and throughout her civilian life) when she faces challenges head on. She has a commandingRead MoreWhat Is The Making Of A Leader Essay980 Words   |  4 PagesMaking of a Leader In the first eight years of my military career (overlapping time when I was a member of True Victory Deliverance Tabernacle), I exhibited transactional leadership more than transformational leadership. This is perhaps attributable to being a young leader in direct senior-subordinate relationships with young soldiers. While teamwork was always important, the emphasis at the time was more on accomplishing the mission than on creating harmonious relationships. Looking back, I alsoRead MoreThe Career Path Using My Christian Worldview1262 Words   |  6 PagesCognate/Career Synthesis: Apply what you learn How many friends, brothers, sisters and coworkers do you know that have a degree and don’t use them? This is a theme throughout our nation, especially those serving in the military. It has almost become a check in the box just to get your foot in the door. Once you get the job they train you on what that specific company needs or wants. I am here to tell you that you can utilize your degree in your job, not just to get the job. This paper will takeRead MoreJob Safety, Safety And Safety Of Others972 Words   |  4 PagesDuring my course of employment with the military and in a supervisor position there are definitely issues and situations that arise where I need to take action with employees. Recently, I had a member of our unit that was not keeping up their mandatory requirements to maintain their military duty. As the supervisor of this individual it was my duty to figure out why they were not keeping up with the requirements and see what I could do to help get the requir ements up to date before any furtherRead MoreIt Worked For Me By David Powell1358 Words   |  6 PagesThis book explores into the military life of Collin Powell, creating an open door for leaders to understand and grow from Powell’s life moments. Powell’s book â€Å"It worked for me† provides life experiences for readers. These life moments where build over time from the growth of his career through the military. Allowing readers into his personal life and beyond, leaving readers with messages to take from. Providing readers with military stories, sympathetic moments and acedenotes from Powell. SometimesRead MoreMilitary Leadership Styles And Philosophies1534 Words   |  7 PagesHowever, the military is an organization that differs from the rest of them, because of the specific mission and complex scenario. Therefore, military leadership styles and philosophies are very different from all other kinds, and are far more special. There is no leadership positi on outside of the military that deals with handling hard decisions and the motivation of people for activities that may require them make the ultimate sacrifice for a greater good. Thus, to be a military leader meansRead MoreInternal Relations And Employee Communication1393 Words   |  6 PagesThe main roles of military public affairs is to provide the public with information about military operations and polices; to enhance morale of the men and women who serve; and to showcase the efforts and accomplishments of the men and women serving in the Army, Navy, Air Force, Marines, and Coast Guard. The goal is for an informed citizenry and their elected representatives to have the best information available when making decisions about the policies and operations of the military branches. The core

Investigating Probation Strategies with Juvenile Offenders Free Essays

SUMMARY Investigating Probation Strategies with Juvenile Offenders: The Influence of Officers’ Attitudes and Youth Characteristics Benita Byers Ray Davis Jessica Hoff Jessica Stein Just 326 Juvenile Justice System September 14, 2012 Although large investments in resources are used to deal with delinquent youths, there have been only sporadic efforts to research effective probation practices. Since most youth encounters with the juvenile justice system, accounting for over 60%, occur under supervision by Probation Officers (POs), the Probation Practices Assessment Survey (PPAS) was used to evaluate various types of interventions. This was a web-based study that utilized a sample of 308 POs and measured deterrence, restorative justice, treatment, confrontation, counseling and behavioral tactics. We will write a custom essay sample on Investigating Probation Strategies with Juvenile Offenders or any similar topic only for you Order Now For example, while Lipsey’s influential multi-study analysis shows that â€Å"probation has a small but significant impact on youth outcomes,† literature on inventive and progressive probation practices shows little improvement to date. There is little research that describes various probation strategies for youth and their effectiveness. Youth probation usually vacillates between punishment and rehabilitation. Historically, advocates of progressive approaches viewed punishment and its reliance on monitoring and rule enforcement as a response to poorly trained and overworked POs. On the other hand, rehabilitation has been viewed as a benevolent relationship between POs and youths with intent to humanize the juvenile justice system. During the mid through late 1900s, the public demanded a more disciplinary reaction to youth crime, advocates of victims rights wanted more input into the process and increasing support of the rehabilitative model caused three objectives, known as the ‘Balanced Approach’ to become prominent in addressing youth delinquency. To protect public safety, POs utilize deterrence-based interventions utilizing increased monitoring, fines, detention, and technical violation of probation to promote youth expectations that delinquency is not worth the cost. To hold youths accountable for their offenses, POs promote restorative justice policies through offenders meeting with their families, the victims and community members to decide together how the offender can best make amends and promote reconciliation, often through community service and restitution. To promote rehabilitation, POs utilize resources such as tutoring to improve school performance; family, substance abuse and/or mental health counseling; mentoring programs to model achievement based skills and increase access to resources; and, other programs to improve life chances. While the balanced approach suggests that POs utilize individualized treatment of offenders in order to exact the best outcomes, research shows that POs attitudes towards punishment and rehabilitation vary. Additional problems occur when longstanding biases influence POs attitudes. For example, these unconscious biases include higher expectations of recidivism and endorsing stronger attitudes of punishment towards youth offenders of color and â€Å"girls being seen as very difficult to work with†. Previous research has not addressed the different strategies and frequency of specific interventions with an individual within a specific period of time utilized by POs in dealing with youth delinquency as does the PPAS. This survey utilizes 28 items measuring the frequency of three case management approaches, as deterrence, restorative justice and treatment orientations, as well as compliance enhancing strategies, as confrontation, counseling and behavioral tactics, during the past three (3) months. Method A sample of 308 respondents completed the survey, recruited through an announcement in an electronic newsletter for POs with inclusion into a drawing for a $20 e-gift certificate to an online retailer as incentive. The respondents were to insert their names into an alphabetical list of their juvenile caseloads and select the next youth who was (1) formally adjudicated, (2) known to the respondent for at least three months, and (3) under 18 years old. The respondents completed 31 questions about youth demographics, offending characteristics and psychosocial characteristics, including five items combined to measure prior heath and social services involvement and five items combined to measure psychosocial needs. Thirteen items measure case management approaches, fifteen items measure compliance practices. Respondents reported their personal demographics, years of experience in juvenile justice settings and level of education, six items addressing their attitudes toward punishment, two items measuring their beliefs about POs helpfulness with youths who have alcohol and mental health problems and two items measuring their beliefs about the effectiveness of mandated treatment on drug and mental health problems. Out of all cases, only 56% were completed correctly with all variables. Data was imputed multiple times using the SAS Proc MI (Schafer, 1997). SAS Proc MI is an interactive procedure that replaces missing data with estimates based on observable relationships observed in the data. By introducing random error, multiple imputations result in a more accurate variance estimates compared to other imputation procedures (Allison 2002). When comparing the complete data analysis, the listwise deletion and the imputed data, they were unimportant. Nearly 25% of the youth were female and about 40% were of color. Usually, youth were approaching 16 years old, were 33% were 15 or younger and 67% had prior offences. Felony adjudications were most common, about 33% had property related offences, 25% had person related offences and 20% had drug related offences. The average youth a specialized intervention prior to their recent adjudication (specialized mental health, substance abuse, or child welfare) and had nearly three out of six risk factors. PO’s were 64% females, 83% were white and 23% had master’s degrees. Analysis started with a confirmatory factor analysis for 7 PPAS subscales: deterrence orientation, restorative justice orientation, treatment orientation, confrontational tactics, counseling tactics, behavioral tactics and contact frequency (Muthen Muthen 1998-2006). This model had acceptable fit, however, it was unstable do to a high linear between the two factors: Deterrence and Confrontation. Several adjustments were made but they all continued to have errors. The final analysis examined the predictors of class membership. Ordinal regression was chosen because three classes possess ordinal-level qualities. The Latent Class Analysis began by estimating the optical number of groups or classes required to describe how probation practice clusters. Classes were not distinguished by a dominant subscale score, but rather by a general level across all of the subscale scores. Probation Officers reported using restorative justice interventions less than any other approach. In terms of contact, Probation Officers averaged about 18 contacts to the youth, parents, schools and service providers during a three month period. In terms of youth’s age, odds of having a more intensive probation decreased 28% for every one year of increase. PO’s attitudes about the helpfulness of probation, an increase in one point increased the odds of more intensive probation by 38% while an increase in favorable attitudes from one standard deviation below the mean to one standard deviation above the mean, led to a fivefold increase in the odds of more intensive probation. PO’s implement a balanced approach with delinquent youths, they blend both accountability and rehabilitation based approaches. In case management approaches, PO’s use approaches informed by deterrence and treatment equally, but are less inclined by restorative justice. PO’s use confrontation, counseling and behavioral tactics about the same when it comes to compliance strategies. Probation practices vary along key youth and Probation Officers characteristics. PO’s that really agrees with punishments emphasizes accountability in their interventions and may make fewer contacts with youth and PO’s who endorse treatment would strongly focus on the rehabilitation aspects of supervision and devote more time to each case. Younger youths receive a more accountability approach and more frequent contacts than the older youths. PO’s giving more resources to younger youths may indicate greater hope or urgency, for prevention with these youths and more dependency from the older youths. Several predictions did not predict probation in this study, race and gender, they stand out as a key findings. Research with probation and the juvenile justice decision making strongly suggests that the juvenile court interventions are influences by race and gender. Youth race and gender were not associated with probation practices in the current study suggests two alternatives. First, measures and methods employed in this study may not have been sufficiently sensitive to detect biased treatment leading to a type II error. It is apparent that youth with a higher cumulative risk and needs receive more probation approaches. This demonstrates the priorities of the PO’s convergence with the contemporary juvenile justice mandates which calls for individualized court interventions based on an assessment of risks and needs (Hoge, 2002; Howell, 2003). References Schwalbe, Craig S. and Maschi, Tina. (Oct. 2009). Investigating Probation Strategies with Juvenile Offenders: The Influence of Officers’ Attitudes and Youth Characteristics. Law and Human Behavior. Vol. 33, No. 5, Pp 357-367. Springer. Retrieved from JSTOR online 9/12/12 at 2:12pm. Schafer, J. L. (1997). Analysis of incomplete multivariate data. New York: Chapman Hall. Schafer, J. L. , Graham, J. W. (2002) Missing data: Our view of the state of the art. Psychological Methods, 7, 147-177. Doi: 10. 1037/1082-989X. 7. 2. 147. Allison, P. D. (2002). Missing data. Thousand Oaks: Sage. Hoge, R. D. (2002). Standardized instruments for assessing risk and need in youthful offenders. Criminal Justice and Behavior, 29, 380–396. doi: 10. 1177/0093854802029004003. Howell, J. C. (2003). Preventing reducing juvenile delinquency: A comprehensive framework. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage. How to cite Investigating Probation Strategies with Juvenile Offenders, Essay examples

Characteristics Utility Cyclists Queensland -Myassignmenthelp.Com

Question: Discuss About The Characteristics Utility Cyclists Queensland? Answer: Introduction: Management is the prime and the essential unit of the business that to certain extent determines the success of the business. Any lack or drawbacks in the management system can affect the organization as well as the profit of the same. In addition, the management faces various issues in the organization which needs the assistance of the management to resolve the same. However, the report is the presentation of the challenges faced by the management of the Rock Paper Scissors, one of the Australian hairdressing salons that are found to be having several management issues in the contemporary environment. The salon was started by the Fadi and Fatimah Khan after Fadi won one of the major national hairdressing competition in Australia (RockPaperScissors Salon., 2017). The salon was established about one year ago and provides hairdressing service to the men, women and children. Despite having sufficient staff and necessary equipments, the salon has unfortunately never experienced a profitable outcome from the business. However, the loss of the salon has never been properly measured. The prevalent and primary challenge in the organization is the lack of strategic planning and the absesnce of the mission, vision and the value statement in the organization. This basic problem is leading the organization towards other issues like absence of proper business objectives, de-motivated staffs, no monthly financial reporting, no measurement of the employee performance, no proper record on customer satisfaction and the presence of the unethical practice in the organization. Recommendation: The issues that are apparent in the organization need to be resolved immediately in order to ensure profitability of the business. To resolve the issues the effective recommendations are: The Rock Paper Scissors must design and implement the proper strategic planning in order to avoid the management issues in the organization (Barney, 2014). The strategic planning will include business objectives and the financial planning reporting stricture and process in order to ensure the measurement of the profit and loss of the organization. In other hand, the business objectives will provide the organization a clear and focused goal for the business. The next recommendation refers to the establishment of the mission, vision and value statement in order to the add value to the business as well as effectively implement the strategic planning in the organization (Darbi, 2012). The effective strategic planning will help the salon to operate the business in a proper and structured way, which will reduce the issues and risk in the organization. One of major challenges in the salon is the lack of the performance data of the staffs in the organization. The salon must implement strategy and the process to measure the performance of the staffs annually (Rothaermel, 2015). This measurement will also help the management to keep record of the any unethical practices by the employees along with the performance data. The last recommendation is to the management for keeping and analyzing the customer feedback on their satisfaction by the service of the salon. Analyzing the customer feedback will help the salon to understand the performance of the salon and the room for development in the service (Bauer Nanopoulos, 2014). Management Concept, Theories and Principles: The concept of the management entails proper handling and controlling of the all the resources in the organization and the understanding and resolving the issues emerged in the organization. In other words the management can be signified as the skill of getting the things done. Therefore, an organization is based on the management system and the management is the primary and central unit for the organization to get the business operation of the organization and the staffs to be done (Hendry, 2012). The business operation of the firm is designed, controlled and managed by the management system. Moreover, the management is also responsible for the prevention and elimination of any challenges and hazards in the business operation of the organization. To certain extent, the management is of the firm is responsible for the profit and loss of the organization as the strategic planning of the management implies the effectiveness of the same on the business (Goetsch Davis, 2014). In additio n, the management is also capable of ensuring the sustainability of the organization. However, in short, the concept of the management denotes that an organization and its business is based on the management of the organization, as this the management works as the prime control unit for the firm as well as for its business. Management Theories: One of the major, effective and the essential theories of management is the goal setting theory. The goal setting theory is based o the performance of the staffs as well as the overall organization in terms of the business profit (Daley, 2012). In other way, the goal setting theory creates the basis of the organization for setting proper business goals and objectives for the firms business. This particular theory refers that the organization must set goals for ensuring the success in the business and therefore the objectives must be clear and precise. It is the responsibility of the management to set proper specific goals, which will be challenging as well for the organization. The criteria for setting goals are such because the more challenging the goal is the greater outcome it provides. The goal setting theory contains five principles that are deeply related to the Rock Paper Scissors. The first principle is the clarity, which refers to the clarity of the objectives of the firm. The salon does not have any clear goal. Therefore, the theory implies that the clarity of the goals will ensure the success of the firm. The second principle implies that the salon must take challenge in order to strengthen their success and profit rate. Similar to the challenges, the salon should be ensure commitment to its business goals and provide service accordingly. It is discussed that the salon does not have any measurement too for receiving feedback of the customers. The theory recommends that the management must start taking feedback of the customer in order to improve their service as well as the business. Along with this the theory also refers to the goal setting of the firm in order to avoid the task complexity by the employees (Locke Latham, 2013). However, this theory individ ually is not capable of removing the issues in the management system, but implementing this theory can resolve most of the issues predominant in the salon. Management principles Management remains as the technique of achieving goals and objectives effectively through and with the people. It also remains as the technique of designing and maintaining an environment in which individuals work together in groups to effectively and efficiently achieve the selected aims. As put forward by Giacalone and Rosenfeld (2013) principles of management referred to a fundamental truth and it develops the cause and effect relationship between two or more variables under given situation. Thus, management principles are the statement of fundamental truth based on the logic that provides the guidelines for managerial decision-making and action. The management principles indicate that the managers or the leaders are the critical part to obtain success in business. As put forward by Haddow, Bullock and Coppola (2017) the managers take responsibilities of all department of the organizations such as budgeting, designing, selling, financing, accounting and creating artistic presentat ion. Each employee working in the organization is affected by the principles of the management. The principle of management may include several elements and some sub-elements of organizational activities; however, in the case of Rock Paper Salon, the organization is in the need of implementing an appropriate organizational and management culture. The organization suffered a great loss due to the poor organizational culture and leadership skills of the managers or the leaders. A skilled leader must have good communication skills to communicate with the employees and operate the entire organizational function. If the leader is not able to convey the messages to others, the organizational operation might not improve. The organization Rock Paper Salon is going through losses and the organization has observed poor productivity due to the absence of proper management. The performances of the employees have been affected, as the leaders do not hold any role in the operation. This means the organization did not follow the basic principles of management such as planning, controlling and organizing. As the organization Rock Paper Salon does not have proper organizational goals, objectives, the employees do not feel motivated, and they do not implement their job responsibilities. In addition to this, the organization did not implement a ny managerial initiatives such as supervising the performance of the employees, analyzing the profit and loss statement, the organization did not even conduct an environmental analysis to learn about the market demands and competitor positions and other significant marketing elements (Jesuno et al., 2016). Had the organization implemented an appropriate leadership skills and organizational culture, the organization would have been successful in leading the operation effectively. Management models The completing value framework theory developed and conducted on the major research indicators of effective organizations. On the basis of the statistical analysis of a comprehensive list of effectiveness, Quinn and Rohrbaugh founded two significant dimension underlying the conception of effectiveness. The first dimension of the model is associated with the organizational focus from an internal emphasis on the well-being as well as the development of people in the organization to an external focus on the well-being as well as development of organization itself (Lindquist et al., 2016). Another dimension differentiates the organizational preference for structure and it presents the contrast between the stability, control and flexibility (Ma, Kent, Mulley, 2016). Hence, in the case of Rock Paper Salon, the internal emphasis should be on organizational internal development such as a positive organizational culture, enhanced employee performance and achievement of organizational objecti ves and goals. On the other side, the external focus should be on the position of the organization in the market. This framework helps to determine the position of Rock Paper Salon considering the position of the competitors in the market. The second dimension is organizational preference for structure, which could determine the stability of Rock Paper Salon. This means here the organization needs to strengthen the market position by developing the quality of organizational performance. Moreover, the completing value framework, apart from these two quadrants, the framework presents four significant models for the organization. The first model is Human Relation Model, which focuses on the flexibility; hence, Rock Paper Salon could develop the flexibility by enhancing the performance of the organization and the employees. The second model is open system model, which deals with the flexibility and external focus; hence, the organization could pay attention to the market demands, available resource and market economy. Likewise, the rationale goal model deals with control and external focus and consider planning, goal setting, and productivity. Hence, Rock Paper Salon needs to develop its own goals and implement initiatives to achieve them. Lastly, Internal Process model pays attention to the control and internal focus, which Rock Paper could do by establishing an effective communication within the organization among the employees. External environmental factors affecting the operation of Rock Paper Scissors Salon Political Factor- As put forward by Sinnott et al., (2012), the political environment in Australia is stable, which certainly provides significant business opportunity for the businesses. The people in Australia prefer the current trends; thereby, if Rock Paper Salon improves its quality of service, it could establish its operation without any obligation. Economical Factor-The economic state of Australia is stable, the growing GDP in the nation brings the opportunity for business (Barnes Hunt 2013). However, it has also been observed that the price of property in Australia is high, which could affect the business operation. To deal with such issue, the firms could focus on the large populated areas such as Tier I and Tier II cities, where the demands of services may be high; thereby, the cost can be managed. Social Factor- It has been observed that upper class, middle class as well as the working class are the three major categories of social life in Australia (Januchowski-Hartley et al., 2012). However, people adapt to the recent trends and culture. The market demands change on a frequent basis, therefore, the opportunities arise for business. Technological Factor- As put forward by Hatfield-Dodds et al., (2015), Australia is technologically developed and people are used to the advancement and innovation of technology. This means the organization Rock Paper Salon could use the modern technology and speed up the operation. Legal Factor The governments of Australia are very strict and concerned about the implementation of trade regulations (Coumarelos et al. 2012). Non-compliance to regulation could certainly affect the business. Environmental Factor- Under the legal framework, the organizations also need to follow the environmental laws related to protection of environmental laws. The organization needs to follow Environmental Protection Act 1947 to sustain in the market (Sahlqvist Heesch, 2012) Management challenges and issues The major significant challenges, the organizations could face in Australian market is the dynamic market environment and dynamic economical state. The market demands changes on a frequent basis; therefore, any short-terms plans developed by the organization might not provide the expected outcome. Hairdressing Salon should pay attention to the recent trends of the market to lead the operation. However, Rock Paper Salon falls under small and medium size organizations; thereby, the sudden downturn in the demand of service or in the economy certainly remains as the significant challenges for Hairdressing Salon. On the other side, the internal environment of Rock Paper indicates that employees are not skilled enough to attract and retain the customers. The employees need proper training in terms of skills development but due to the absence of such enhancement programs, the staff of Rock Paper Salon is not able to cope up with the competition. Moreover, as the organization lack proper org anizational culture and style, the customer retention has been a significant issue for Rock Paper Scissor Conclusion The paper completely focuses on the organizational management of Rock Paper Scissor. It is observed that organization Rock Paper Scissor is small organization with limited profitability and strength. The firm does not have proper mission and goals, which would have helped the organization to lead the operation towards the desired direction. Such negligence also affects the employee performance because the employees are not serious about their work and the importance of organizational growth. Thus, the organization first needs to develop proper organizational goals and then based on competing value framework it could implement the strategies. In addition, the political and economical environment of Australia is stable, which remains as the significant opportunity. Nonetheless, the cost of property in Australia is significantly high and this could be a challenge for a small organization when it wishes to expand. Recommendation Selecting a proper location- The organization Rock Paper Scissor needs to choose a proper location where the population is high, as crowded market certainly increases the demand of services. The organization could focus on the Tier I and Tier II cities in Australia. Provide appropriate training for the employees- To meet the customer demand and maintain the quality of services, the organization needs to enhance the skills and knowledge of their employees. This could be done by providing the staff with weekly training. Social media platforms- Australia is technologically advanced and people have access to social media tools such as Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and others. The social media platforms could help the firms to promote its business and reach the wide market. References Barnes, S., Hunt, B. (Eds.). (2013).E-commerce and v-business. Routledge. Barney, J. B. (2014).Gaining and sustaining competitive advantage. Pearson Higher Ed. Bauer, J., Nanopoulos, A. (2014). Recommender systems based on quantitative implicit customer feedback.Decision Support Systems,68, 77-88. Boer, B., Gruber, S. (2017). Legal Frameworks for World Heritage and Human Rights in Australia. Christopher, E., Laasch, O., Roberts, J. (2016). New approaches to introduction to management courses.Journal of Management Education,40(3), 359-361. Coumarelos, C., Macourt, D., People, J., McDonald, H. M., Wei, Z., Iriana, R., Ramsey, S. (2012).Legal Australia-wide survey: Legal need in Australia(Vol. 8). Law and Justice Foundation. Daley, D. M. (2012). Strategic human resources management.Public Personnel Management, 120-125. Darbi, W. P. K. (2012).International Journal of Business and Social Science,3(14). Giacalone, R. A., Rosenfeld, P. (Eds.). (2013).Impression management in the organization. Psychology Press. Goetsch, D. L., Davis, S. B. (2014).Quality management for organizational excellence. Upper Saddle River, NJ: pearson. Gray, S., Harymawan, I., Nowland, J. (2016). Political and government connections on corporate boards in Australia: Good for business?.Australian Journal of Management,41(1), 3-26. Haddow, G., Bullock, J., Coppola, D. P. (2017).Introduction to emergency management. Butterworth-Heinemann. Hatfield-Dodds, S., Schandl, H., Adams, P. D., Baynes, T. M., Brinsmead, T. S., Bryan, B. A., ... McCallum, R. (2015). Australia is' free to choose'economic growth and falling environmental pressures.Nature,527(7576), 49. Hendry, C. (2012).Human resource management. Routledge. Januchowski-Hartley, S. R., Moon, K., Stoeckl, N., Gray, S. (2012). Social factors and private benefits influence landholders' riverine restoration priorities in tropical Australia.Journal of environmental management,110, 20-26. Jesuno, J. C., Torres, C. V., Teixeira, M. L. M. (2016). Theoretical and methodological advances in human values and management: an introduction to the forum. Lapoule, P., Colla, E. (2016). The multi-channel impact on the sales forces management.International Journal of Retail Distribution Management,44(3), 248-265. Latham, G. P. (2016). Goal setting: a possible theoretical framework for examining the effect of priming goals on organizational behavior.Current Opinion in Psychology,12, 85-88. Latham, G. P., Brcic, J., Steinhauer, A. (2017). Toward an Integration of Goal Setting Theory and the Automaticity Model.Applied Psychology,66(1), 25-48. Lindquist, E., Lindquist, E., Marcy, R., Marcy, R. (2016). The competing values framework: Implications for strategic leadership, change and learning in public organizations.International Journal of Public Leadership,12(2), 167-186. Locke, E. A., Latham, G. P. (Eds.). (2013).New developments in goal setting and task performance. Routledge. Ma, L., Kent, J. L., Mulley, C. (2016, September). Transport disadvantage, social exclusion and subjective wellbeing: the role of built environment. Evidence from Sydney, Australia. InAustralasian Transport Research Forum (ATRF), 38th, 2016, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. Mendling, J., Baesens, B., Bernstein, A., Fellmann, M. (2017). Challenges of smart business process management: An introduction to the special issue. Neubert, M. J., Dyck, B. (2016). Developing sustainable management theory: goal-setting theory based in virtue.Management Decision,54(2), 304-320 Rothaermel, F. T. (2015).Strategic management. McGraw-Hill Education. Sahlqvist, S. L., Heesch, K. C. (2012). Characteristics of utility cyclists in Queensland, Australia: An examination of the associations between individual, social, and environmental factors and utility cycling.Journal of Physical Activity and Health,9(6), 818-828. Sinnott, R. O., Bayliss, C., Galang, G., Greenwood, P., Koetsier, G., Mannix, D., ... Sarwar, M. (2012, October). A data-driven urban research environment for Australia. InE-Science (e-Science), 2012 IEEE 8th International Conference on(pp. 1-8). IEEE.

Lifestyle Overview free essay sample

The term was originally used by Austrian psychologist  Alfred Adler  (1870-1937). The term was introduced in the 1950s as a derivative of that of  style  in  modernist art. The term refers to a combination of determining intangible or tangible factors. Tangible factors relate specifically to  demographic variables, i. an individuals demographic profile, whereas intangible factors concern the psychological aspects of an individual such personal values, preferences, and outlooks. (4sk content) Peoples‘ lifestyles are affected by different factors, such as Individual Identity, Health, Environment and Technology. (5sk Individual identity) A lifestyle typically reflects an individuals attitudes, values or  world view. Therefore, a lifestyle is a means of forging a sense of  self  and to create cultural  symbols  that resonate with personal identity. Not all aspects of a lifestyle are voluntary. Surrounding social and technical systems can constrain the lifestyle choices available to the individual and the symbols she/he is able to project to others and the self. We will write a custom essay sample on Lifestyle Overview or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page The lines between personal identity and the everyday doings that signal a particular lifestyle become blurred in modern society. For example, green lifestyle means holding beliefs and engaging in activities that consume fewer resources and produce less harmful waste (i. e. smaller  carbon footprint), and deriving a sense of self from holding these beliefs and engaging in these activities. Some commentators  argue that, in  modernity, the cornerstone of lifestyle construction is consumption behavior, which offers the possibility to create and further individualize the self with different products or services that signal different ways of life. Lifestyle may include views on politics, religion, health, intimacy, and more. All of these aspects play a role in shaping someones lifestyle. In the  magazine  and  television  industries, lifestyle is used to describe a category of publications or programs. (6sk Health) An individuals health depends a lot on their lifestyle. Maintaining physical and mental health are crucial to an individuals longevity. The more time spent on hygiene, physical fitness, and diet regulation, the healthier lifestyle they have. Those who chose to participate in any kind of physical activity on a weekly basis are generally healthier than those who dont. Mental illness may occur through various variables. For example, depression may promote mental illness through stress and anxiety. Reasons for being depressed can be due to a number of things including job loss, recently widowed, divorce, etc. Depression may lead to or increase the frequency of poor habits not promoting physical health. Poor habits may eventually lead to a poor even dangerous lifestyle. More interestingly, a healthy or unhealthy lifestyle will most likely to be transmitted across generations. According to the study done by Case et. l (2002), it discovered that when a 0-3 year old child has a mother who practices a healthy lifestyle, this child will be 27% more likely to become healthy and adopt the same lifestyle. For instance, high income parents are more likely to eat organic food, have time to exercise and provide the best living condition to their children. On the other hand, low income parents are more likely to participate in unhealthy activities such as smoking to help them release poverty-related stress and de pression. Parents are the first teacher for every child. Everything that parents do will be very like to be transferred to their children through the learning process. (7sk environment) There are two types of environment for a lifestyle: nature and social. Natural environment is the conditions in which a person, animal, or plant lives or operates. an individual dedicated to this prefers to walk to close places, recycles plastic, papers, cants, etc. In an individuals lifestyle some of this natural environment is needed, fresh air, clean water, clean home, clean neighbourhood and a clean example for those at home. Those who are nature involved decide to plant flowers, vegetables and other crops in their backyard and are extremely strict on how to organize their household waste and uses positive and proactive ways to environmental sustainability. Social environment is totally different. Social Environment includes an individuals living and working conditions, income level, educational background, community and religious beliefs if they have any. In a social environment there are certain expectations from one self or from those around. expectations like success and wanting the best. Along with  success  come a lot of stress. If there is failure, then there may be mood swings and disappointment. In order for this not to happen, there are better ways to avoid disappointment and failure; organization and structure is the main key element. (8sk technology) Technology and diversity have greatly changed the lives of people in society. Technology has positive and negative effects on our daily lives. However, the positivity and negativity of technology depends on how much we use it and how much we are exposed to it. In other words, our lifestyle controls our use of technology, while technology influences our lifestyles. To begin, technology has changed the fields of agriculture, manufacturing, warfare, transportation, information, medicine, communication, among others. Technology has also made it easier for other factors to affect our lifestyles, such as the media. All in all, technology has made our lives much easier, therefore we no longer are required to live vigorous lifestyles that, in the past, contributed to the decline in our health. On the other hand, technology has complicated many lives and has many negative effects. Technology has the power to deliver media to us that can change our values and views on the world, which in return will change our lifestyles. Also, technology has negative effects on the environment such as pollution. Because of technology such as the computer and the television, Americans have a much more  sedentary lifestyle, which leads to health complications and issues.

Air Force One, Boeing 737

Air Force One, Boeing 737 Free Online Research Papers Development began in 1979 for the 737s first major facelift. Boeing wanted to increase capacity and range, incorporating improvements to upgrade the aircraft to modern specifications, while also retaining commonality with previous 737 variants. In 1980 preliminary aircraft specifications of the variant, dubbed 737-300, were released at the Farnborough air show. The CFM56-3B-1 turbofan engine was chosen to power the aircraft, which yielded significant gains in fuel economy and a reduction in noise, but also posed an engineering challenge given the low ground clearance of the 737 and the larger diameter of the engine over the original Pratt and Whitney engines. Boeing and engine supplier CMFI solved the problem by placing the engine ahead of the wing, and by moving engine accessories to the sides of the engine pod, giving the engine a distinctive non-circular air intake. The passenger capacity of the aircraft was increased to 149 by extending the fuselage around the wing by 2.87 meters. The wing incorporated a number of changes for improved aerodynamics. The wing tip was extended 23 cm and the wing span by 53 cm. The leading-edge slats and trailing-edge flaps were adjusted. The flight deck was improved with the optional EFIS (Electronic Flight Instrumentation System), and the passenger cabin incorporated improvements similar to those developed on the Boeing 757. The prototype -300, the 1,001st 737 built, first flew on 24 February 1984 with pilot Jim McRoberts. It and two production aircraft flew a nine month long certification program. In June 1986 Boeing announced the development of the 737-400, which stretched the fuselage a further 3.0 m, increasing the passenger load to 170. The -400s first flight was on February 19, 1988 and, after a seven-month/500-hour flight testing run, entered service with Piedmont Airlines that October. The -500 series was offered, due to customer demand, as a modern and direct replacement of the 737-200. It incorporated the improvements of the 737 Classic series; allowing longer routes with fewer passengers to be more economical than with the 737-300. The fuselage length of the -500 is 1 ft 7 in (48 cm) longer than the 737-200, accommodating up to 132 passengers. Both glass and older style mechanical cockpits arrangements were available. Using the CFM56-3 engine also gave a 25% increase in fuel efficiency over the older -200s PW engines. The 737-500 was launched in 1987 by Southwest Airlines, with an order for 20 aircraft, and flew for the first time on June 30, 1989. A single prototype flew 375 hours for the certification process, and on February 28, 1990, Southwest Airlines received the first delivery. The 737-500 has become a favorite of some Russian airlines, with Aeroflot-Nord (now Nordavia), S7 Airlines, and Rossiya Airlines all buying second-hand models of the aircraft to replace aging Soviet-built aircraft. After the introduction of the -600/700/800/900 series, the -300/400/500 series was called the 737 Classic series. The price of jet fuel has skyrocketed in the past five years; airlines devote 40% of the retail price of an air ticket to pay for fuel in 2008, versus 15% in 2000. Consequently, carriers have begun to retire the Classic 737 series to reduce their fleet sizes; replacements consist of more efficient Next Generation 737s or Airbus A320/A319/A318 series aircraft. On June 4, 2008, United Airlines announced it would retire all 94 of its Classic 737 aircraft (64 737-300 and 30 737-500 aircraft), replacing them with Airbus A320 jets taken from its Ted subsidiary, which has been shut down. Prompted by the modern Airbus A320, Boeing initiated development of an updated series of aircraft in 1991. After working with potential customers, the 737 Next Generation (NG) program was announced on November 17, 1993. The 737NG encompasses the -600, -700, -800 and -900, and is to date the most significant upgrade of the airframe. The performance of the 737NG is essentially that of a new aircraft, but important commonality is retained from previous 737 models. The wing was modified, increasing its area by 25% and span by 4.9 m which increased the total fuel capacity by 30%. New, quieter, more fuel-efficient CFM56-7B engines were used. All three improvements combined increase the 737s range by 900 NM, now permitting transcontinental service. A flight test program was operated by 10 aircraft; 3 -600s, 4 -700s, and 3 -800s. The first NG to roll out was a -700, on December 8, 1996. This aircraft, the 2,843rd 737 built, first flew on February 9, 1997. The prototype -800 rolled out on June 30, 1997 and first flew on July 31, 1997. The smallest of the new variants, the -600s, is the same size as the -500. It was the last in this series to launch, in December 1997. First flying January 22, 1998, it was given certification on August 18, 1998. In 2004, Boeing offered a Short Field Performance package in response to the needs of Gol Transportes AÃ ©reos, which frequently operates from restricted airports. The enhancements improve takeoff and landing performance. The optional package is available for the 737NG models and standard equipment for the 737-900ER. Boeing has already hinted that a clean sheet replacement for the 737 (internally dubbed Boeing Y1) could follow the Boeing 787. Engines on the 737 Classic series (300, 400, 500) and Next-Generation series (600, 700, 800, 900) appear not to have circular inlets, as most aircraft do. The accessory gearbox was moved from the 6 oclock position under the engine to the 4 oclock position (forward looking aft). This was done because the 737 sits lower to the ground than most airliners and the original 737s were designed for small PW engines, but additional ground clearance was needed for the larger CFM56 engines. This side-mounted gearbox gives the engine a somewhat triangular rounded shape. Because the engine is close to the ground, 737-300s and later are more prone to engine foreign-object damage (FOD). 737s are not equipped with fuel dump systems. Depending upon the nature of the emergency, 737s either circle to burn off fuel or land overweight. To save weight and reduce cost and complexity the 737 lacks full doors to cover the main landing gear. The main landing gear (under the wings at mid-cabin) rotate into wells in the aircrafts belly, the legs being covered by partial doors, and brush-like seals aerodynamically smooth (or fair) the wheels in the wells. The sides of the tires are exposed to the air in flight. Hub caps complete the aerodynamic profile of the wheels. It is forbidden to operate without the caps, because they are linked to the ground speed sensor that interfaces with the anti-skid brake system. When observing a 737 takeoff, or at low altitude, the dark circles of the tires can be plainly seen. The primary flight controls are intrinsically safe. In the event of total hydraulic system failure or double engine failure, they will automatically and seamlessly revert to control via servo tab. The 737 is the only modern passenger aircraft this size or larger that can operate completely without hydraulics Most 737 cockpits are equipped with eyebrow windows positioned above the main glareshield. Eyebrow windows were a feature of the original 707. They allowed for greater visibility in turns, and offered better sky views if navigating by stars. With modern avionics, they became redundant, and many pilots actually placed newspapers or other objects in them to block out sun glare. They were eliminated from the 737 cockpit design in 2004, although they are still installed in military variants and at customer request. These windows are sometimes removed and plugged, usually during maintenance overhauls and can be distinguished by a metal plug which differs from smooth metal which appears in later aircraft that were not originally fitted with the windows. Blended winglets are available as retrofits and in production on newer 737 aircraft. These winglets stand approximately 2.4 m tall and are installed at the wing tips. They help with reduced fuel burn (by reducing vortex drag), reduced engine wear, and less noise on takeoff. A short-field design package is available for the 737-600, -700 and -800, allowing operators to fly increased payload to and from airports with runways under 1,500 m. The package consists of sealed leading edge slats (improved lift), a two-position tail skid (enabling reduced approach speeds) and increased flight spoiler deflection on the ground. These improvements are standard on the 737-900ER. The 737 models can be divided into three generations, including nine major variants. The Original models consist of the 737-100, 737-200/-200 Advanced. The Classic models consist of the 737-300, 737-400, and 737-500. The Next Generation variants Research Papers on Air Force One, Boeing 737Never Been Kicked Out of a Place This NiceThe Fifth HorsemanThe Project Managment Office SystemOpen Architechture a white paperTwilight of the UAWQuebec and CanadaAppeasement Policy Towards the Outbreak of World War 2Bionic Assembly System: A New Concept of SelfResearch Process Part OneThe Relationship Between Delinquency and Drug Use

Development of a measurement model for balance management Research Paper

Development of a measurement model for balance management - Research Paper Example They play an imperative role in motivating the goals of a development-oriented nation (Aaker 2001, p. 56). Additionally, there should be an integration of the tools through critical assessment of both qualitative and quantitative parameters as observed below. There are lots of fundamental links of culture, leadership and strategy in regards to the development of measurement. In other words, the aforementioned tools of development have direct ramifications on the aspects of balanced management especially in spurring the expansion of the economy. For instance, culture is an imperative objective when drafting plans for development oriented projects because it has a direct influence on people (Niven 2005, p. 124). On that account, a balanced scorecard is performance management tool of strategy that is in the form of a report. It is a semi-structured with support derived from design methods and other automation tools. For that matter, it functions in the tracking of duties and activities by workers to enable managers have a control in the actions of the organization. In other words, there is also a link on the context of personal refinement on the areas of education, lifestyle, ideals and national aspirations for future improvement. Therefore, this management tool has been key especially in the annual survey of performance-oriented firms such as Bain & Companies. Therefore, in terms of impacting on the development of the organization, it is crucial to note a few observations. For instance, a balanced scorecard inculcates the mixture of differing presentations that are both non-financial and financial. It has a direct correlation with development in the context of reforming the minds of the employees in balancing their income sheets. This suggests that factors such as traditional material culture of a society come in handy when defining the goals of development and the measurement success (Jacobson & Shepard 2008, p.156). Additionally, there are also other elements o f intangibles such as customs, language, dress code and even acquisition of technology that impacts directly on the balance scorecard on the management of a country. In contrast, culture also influences the strategies of development when stipulating the goals of a community through its leadership. In other words, there is a variable uniformity in the context of informational data imparted upon firms in influencing leading inputs such as physical and human processes. On the other hand, there is also the factor of culture gap strategy that entails a policy approach that affects development in several ways. For example, culture gap strategy plays a key role in affecting the operations of development measurement in the context of finding alternative solutions. Additionally, it brings harmony between the sociological context of the corporate firms and the concern of attaining the goal of a balance management. In other words, it is a grand folly in integrating the culture gap strategy in a society and its leadership in relation to the strategies stipulated. On that case, there is also an imperative need to evaluate the issues of development choices such as the GDP of a work group and inter-generational conflicts that affect the economy (MacKinnon 2012, p. 209). This suggests that cultural change should compliment with the development strategies set by the given leadership of the management in focusing for the future. Alternatively, cultural strategic gaps of development must also take into

The Pros and Cons of Search and Seizure Laws Research Paper

The Pros and Cons of Search and Seizure Laws - Research Paper Example The paper tells that sometimes, government representatives can search individual’s property usually regarded as private for constitutional reasons. Normally, the search happens when the person possesses or permanently lives in the area of search. When a representative of the government uses control over a person so he feels he cannot liberally leave or end the interaction with the representative there is occurrence of a seizure. However, a seizure occurs only when an individual yields to the government but in case the individual avoids detention or escapes, there is no occurrence of seizure. In the police department, Search and Seizure process is a famous occurrence. Since the process is legal, any official from the law enforcement department can carry out a search on one's individual property in case there is some kind of suspicion on the individual about involvement in any kind of criminal activity. However, several rules to observe when executing a search and seizure proced ure. In the United States Constitution, the search and seizure procedure is in the fourth amendment act. However, the society regularly violates this act because it additionally offers the affected citizens the assurance to ask for security against the seizure idea. The main reason for the Fourth Amendment was to shield the personal privacy and rights of American citizens. It states that every person has the right to be safe in their persons, papers, houses, and effects against insensible searches and seizures. In addition, this amendment explains the making and execution of specific warrants. This law is very important when tackling drug cases because the way the police discover and seize the drugs is important in any drug crime case. In addition, after a thorough investigation the search and seizure can be valid admissible evidence in court (California Criminal lawyers, 2010). It is evident that the African Americans experience an uneven share of arrests and prison sentences. Alth ough this could be because of differences in the disparity flows in crime rates across population groups, it could also be because of the discrepancy being an outcome of discriminatory targeting of suspects by the police. Since the fourth Amendment law says nothing about their exercise of enforcement judgment about the pool of potential suspects, the police can target whomever they desire. Consequently, the black drivers have no legal claim in case the police officers stop large numbers of black drivers allegedly for speeding but mainly examine the presence of drugs while stopping few whites (Law.jrank, 2011). The main reason why the courts invalidated vagrancy and loitering is the acts of racism together with broad police judgment. In order to fight these two vices, the modern government is turning its focus on suspects' privacy interests and taking on a fictive view of agreement that permits a good deal of informal coercion to happen. However, this method is not effective because the police have no authority like the one present in the old regime to help them carry out effective community policing (Stuntz, 1999). The major focus of the search and seizure law is to protect privacy. "Privacy" in this case does not mean the generalized right for exclusion but rather, the interest of being free from observation. Additionally, this law helps protect the community from the evil acts in which only the police can reveal and see but the ordinary citizen cannot hence the police are able to incriminate the criminals (Law.jrank, 2011). As Agarwal (2008) affirms, the major purpose of the enforcement of search and seizure laws is to protect the society against all insecurity and delinquency. The law of search and seizure helps to respect and protect the privacy of community members. In this regard, it helps in

Genome-wide screen for Salmonella genes required for long-term Essay

Genome-wide screen for Salmonella genes required for long-term systemic infection of the mouse - Essay Example In this respect animal models of the disease process being caused by Salmonella have proved to be quite useful. The process by which Salmonella invades and then onwards maintains itself in the host species is not only a complicated but indeed and intriguing process. It is also an example of adaptive evolution and selective preservation of a genotype. Given its prevalence across a range of warm blooded hosts it has been possible to study the infection and virulence factors in several species. For instance while, murine infection with Salmonella enterica serovar typhimurium has been used largely to replicate human typhoid (caused by Salmonella enterica serovar Typhi), bovine infection caused by Salmonella enterica serovar Dublin or S. enterica serovar Typhimurium has been the extensively used to model intestinal disease. The ability of Salmonella to exist within its host for months following the initial invasion requires it to resist any innate immunity or more likely evolve/adapt to resist the host resistance. Since these bacteria are well able to establish long term system infection in their hosts, the genetic factors responsible for such ability need to be well established to counteract any pathogeneicity. While, Salmonella enterica serovar Typhi is a strictly human pathogen, Salmonella enterica serovar Typhimurium is a murine pathogen that is increasingly been used to model human typhoid (caused by Salmonella enterica serovar Typhi). ... In the mouse model, S. Typhimurium invades epithelial cells and can survive and proliferate in macrophage before entering the blood stream and causing a systemic infection. The macrophages are ideal places for the bacteria as they are able to elude the host's immune response in this. Indeed it has been evidenced that the longest duration of stay for slamonella within the host occurs in the macrophages. However for the most part understanding of the murine salmonella species has been limited to the Nramp1 susceptible (Nramp1s) mouse strains i.e. the BALB/c and C57Bl/6. Macrophages from Nramp1s mice permit a much higher rate of serovar Typhimurium replication in vitro as well as in vivo as compared to Nramp1r (Nramp1 is functional) macrophages. While this has upuntil date allowed for observation of the diseased condition, the hosts (mice) invariably are most severly affected by the bacteteria considerabily limiting the scope of study. The paper here however focuses on the novel Salmonella persistence model based on the mouse strain 129X1/SvJ (Nramp1r), which are typically resistant to the replication of the bacteria not succumbing easily to the virulence. Consequently the bacteria can be obtained from systemic sites even up to an year post infection which would help to increase the time spectrum of study if need be. Clearly as intricate an adaptive mechanism as seen in the samlonella species would require the contribution of several genes and virulence factors.The invasion-associated genes are required for intestinal secretory and inflammatory disease, that intracellular survival in both the intestinal epithelium and macrophages is essential for

Autism Spectrum Disorders: Causes, Diagnosis and Support

Autism Spectrum Disorders: Causes, Diagnosis and Support Autism Spectrum disorders Introduction Autism awareness in todays society has moved from the shadow of shame and unknown to the forefront of research and education as an increasing number of children and people with Autism Spectrum disorders gain attention in every aspect of their everyday lives. This paper will attempt to explore the many faces of autism: identification, possible causes, treatment, societal reaction/interaction, the learning/teaching cooperative, and expectations for the future regarding this disorder in an ever evolving and expanding society. What is Autism? How does it manifest? Are there specific characteristics inherent to the disorder? How was it discovered? Who gets it? How is it diagnosed? When? Has the cause been identified? Is it hereditary, environmental or societal? Is there a cure? What kind of treatment is available, and how has it changed since discovery of the disorder? Do autistic children face specific learning challenges? What teaching methods best reach autistic children? Are some methods more effective than others? Autism is very broad, far-reaching and involved, but herein I expect to go from a brief discussion of the broad topic to the specific: How does autism affect the learning/teaching relationship between children and teachers? What is Autism? Autism was first thought to be mental retardation or insanity. In 1943, Leo Kanner noticed that these children did not fit the pattern of emotionally disturbed children and instead recorded patterns of being slow learners. Hans Asperger, making similar discoveries, discovered what has come to be known as Aspergers Syndrome often used to label autistic people that can talk. Leo Kanner and Hans Asperger, working completely independent of one another, recognized autism for what it was: a developmental disorder that interferes with a childs communication, social and interaction behavior. (Carew, 2009) Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) is a Pervasive Developmental Disorder (PDD). It is a bio-neurological developmental disability usually appearing before the age of three, best known for impairing a childs ability to communicate and interact. Life-long disabilities significantly impact several areas of development: communication impairments, social difficulty, sensory processing deficits and a need for solid routines within their lives. Characteristics of Autism manifests in a myriad of ways: delay in verbal development, a need to finish what they begin, a rather h3 resistance to change in daily routine, lack of spontaneity, distress at being touched and the ability to show any kind of emotion, as well as an inability to process and respond to humor. There are five subcategories associated with ASD, each with its own distinctive and unique features: Autistic Disorder, Aspergers Disorder, Childhood Disintegrative Disorder (CDD), Retts Disorder, and Pervasive Developmental Disorder-Not Otherwise Specified (PDD-NOS). Treatment within each subcategory is as diverse and varied as the individual being treated, depending on the individuals personality, unique symptoms and manifestation of autism. How is it Diagnosed? To help determine the difference between autism and mental retardation, a qualified professional will examine and score children who are suspected of having autism through a questionnaire based on direct observation by professionals and reports given by parents, family members, and teachers. This test is known as CARS (Childhood Autism Rating Scale) and was developed by Eirc Shopler, Robert Reichier and Barbara Rochen Reiner. (Schopler, Reichler, DeVellis, Daly, 1980) CARS was published in 1980, but the development began a lot earlier, in 1966. A Study conducted by the University of Texas Health Science Center determined an accuracy rating of 98% in diagnosing children and showed encouraging results in diagnosing adolescents as well. CARS incorporates the criteria of Leo Kanner (1943) and Creak (1964), and characteristic symptoms of childhood autism. (Schopler et al., 1980) The test focuses on 15 categories of behaviors, characteristics, and abilities and how the expected development is different than the actual development if autistic symptoms are present. The categories are: Relating to people, imitation, emotional response, body use, object use, adaptation to change, visual response, listening response, taste, smell and touch response and use, fear or nervousness, verbal communication, nonverbal communication, activity level, level and consistency of intellectual response, and general impressions. A child can score on a scale of one to four. Scoring a one meets a normal range for a childs age and scoring a four means the child is severely abnormal. (Secor, 2009) Who Gets It? Although it is unclear how much of the surge reflects better diagnosis, recent data suggests a 10-fold increase in autism rates over the past decade. The journal, Pediatrics, released on October 5, 2009, reported one percent of U.S. children ages 3-17 have an Autism Spectrum disorder, a prevalence of 1 in 91. This is a dramatic increase from the 2007 report by the Center for Disease Control reported 1 in 150 children diagnosed with Autism. Boys are diagnosed four times more often than girls. There has been no connection established regarding socio-economic status, race or religion in identifying autistic individuals. (Kogan, 2009) Cause of Autism All over the world, researchers are working to find just what causes Autism. However no direct, specific cause of Autism has been determined, to date. The pressure to identify a cause is a top priority among researchers and it appears, due to the various levels of severity and combinations of symptoms, there may be multiple causes and scientific evidence suggests both genetic and/or environmental factors. Because of intense research, there are several specific claims that have been disproven. Bruno Bettelheim, a once well-renowned child psychologist, blamed autism on parents, specifically mothers, claiming they did not properly bond with their children. There is no evidence to support that claim. Due in large part to Dr. Bernard Rimland, who has an autistic son, founded the Autism Society of America and the Autism Research institute. Dr. Rimland was instrumental in helping to determine autism as a biological disorder not a causal effect, ie., neglect, isolation, cold, indifferent or bad parenting. He disproved the theory by defining ASDs as biological disorders, not emotional illnesses in his book, Infantile Autism: The Syndrome and Its Implications for a Neural Theory of Behavior (Rimland, 1964). However, Dr Rimland is a proponent of another high profile controversial claim suggesting vaccinations given to children during babyhood may be a cause of the disorder. Despite Dr Rimlands advocacy and beliefs, this claim has little or no scientific backing. In fact, in a timely ruling Friday, March 12, 2010, the so-called vaccine court, a special branch of the U.S. Court of Federal Claims, found that the mercury-containing vaccine preservative thimerosal is not to blame for autism, and concluded the last of three cases on theories related to a vaccine-autism relationship. A 2009 ruling rejected a theory that thimerasol can cause autism when combined with the measles-mumps-rubella vaccine, which perhaps was based on a discredited medical journal article published in 1998 by British physician, Dr. Andrew Wakefield, linking a particular type of autism and bowel disease to the measles vaccine. The 2009 ruling predicated the dropping of a second case based on a theory that certain vaccines alone cause autism. Interestingly, in this third case, the court found that none of the expert witnesses who argued mercury can have a variety of effects on the brain, offered opinions on the cause of autism in any of the three specific cases argued. (Schmid, 2010)(emphasis added) Two studies conducted by researchers at the Childrens Hospital of Philadelphia link specific genes to autism. One study pinpoints a gene region that may account for as many as 15 percent of autism cases, while another study identifies missing or duplicated stretches of DNA along two crucial gene pathways. Significantly, both studies detected genes implicated in the development of brain circuitry in early childhood. (Wang, 2009) A specific connection between fragile x (FXS) and autism has also been found. Dr. Don Bailey , director of the Frank Porter Graham Institute, and colleagues found that in young boys with FXS, 25% met the criteria for autism using the (CARS). Their profile of behaviors was very similar to that of children with autism but without fragile X. Consequently, they also found that children with autism and FXS together, had a lower IQ than children with either FXS alone or autism alone. (Bailey, Jr., Hatton, et al., 2001) Methods of Treatment Since 1943, many ways have been developed to help the autistic child. Then, the famous Sigmund Freud discovered that parents who did not attempt to communicate with an autistic child saw no progress, while a close parent/child relationship seemed to cause the child to thrive and move forward. Although it lingered well into the 50s and 60s, Freuds theory lacked two critical bits information: first, oftentimes the parent didnt try to interact with the child due to the Autistic behavior; and second, in some cases it was a genetically inherited personality. For a time, children were removed from their home to see if they would recover although there was no clear-cut evidence of any value in future use of this method. Due to research and study, it was found that facilitated communication could teach the child to communicate with the world; for example an autistic child could be taught to manage and control his emotions; a parent could help a child desensitize from the over sensitivity to sound. Today, Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA), Occupational Therapy (OT), Pivotal Response Training (PRT), Physical Therapy (PT), Sensory Integration Therapy, Floortime, and medications, all have a place in accepted scientific treatment. Alternative methods are also sometimes used. These can include Dietary intervention, Vitamins and Minerals, Social Skills Groups, Music and Art Therapy, and even Dolphin Therapy. One of the most tried and true methods utilized today, Applied Behavior Therapy (ABA) is usually accompanied by Physical Therapy and Occupational therapy. As with any treatment there are good and bad points associated with each. ABA was developed by Dr. Ivar Lovaas and contains the B.F. Skinners theories on operant conditioning. This treatment includes rewards which may include toys or treats, for acceptable behavior. There is no punishment for wrong or incorrect behavior, however. There are a myriad of steps involved, and a fairly rigid structure to this method. ABA is very time-consuming and has shown many positive results. According to some ongoing research, diet may be fueling Autism. There is convincing empirical evidence that special diets help autistic individuals. Karl Reichelt of Oslo has been a pioneer in this area for decades, showing the highly significant effects of removing gluten, gliadin and casein from the diets of autistic children. There are now about forty research studies in Norway, the U.K., Italy, and the United States supporting this finding. Special diets are, most often, hard to implement. Eighteen research reports have been published since 1965, by scientists in six countries showing that about half of all autistic children and adults improve significantly when given large amounts of B6. Unlike drugs, B6 is a safe, natural substance that the brain requires. This vitamin, along with the mineral magnesium, is used in the production of serotonin. In a comprehensive review of the neurochemistry of autism, published in 1990, Dr. Edwin Cook wrote, The most consistent finding has been that over 25% of autistic children and adolescents are hyperserotonemic. However, after 29 years of investigation, the mechanism of hyperserotonemia has not been determined. (Genetics, autism and priorities, 1997) Teaching Methods Autistic children all have specific learning challenges; however, the method of approach depends entirely on the child. When teaching an autistic child, environmental considerations, a set schedule and routine for the student and a visual structure the student can see clearly to enable them to understand what is expected of them, and when it is expected of them. No one method is necessarily better than another. Many of the various methods utilize the same basic principles needed to help focus and teach a child with autism. An effective instructional strategy is one that incorporates structure, a communication system, sensory accommodations, individualized programming, inclusion, social integration and access to the general curriculum. It is important to find research-based methodology that has proven effective through application and data collection. This helps enhance the effectiveness and accountability of the program. There are also different teaching approaches enabling students with this disorder to learn and function as well as any other student in the classroom. No one approach has proven more effective. However, Treatment and Education of Autistic and Related Communication Handicapped Children (TEACCH) (Shopler, E 1997) incorporates several methodologies and techniques into one program. Developed in the 1970s at the University of North Carolinas School of Medicine, the philosophy behind TEACCH was: the environment should be changed to meet the needs of the students, not the students changed to meet the needs of the environment. Techniques are developed to meet the specific communication, social and coping needs of the student. The goal is to help students with ASDs learn functional skills so they can live productively and reach their full potential at school and home, and later in their community and working lives. TEACCH stresses the need for elements of behavioral and cognitive interventions, direct teaching of social skills, the need for structure, and the use of visual cues to show tasks to be done in work or play areas. Another stand alone method of teaching, also one of the components within TEACCH, Structure-Positive-Empathetic-Low Arousal- Links (SPELL), emphasizes a clear routine and an atmosphere that helps maximize positive relationships and reduce anxiety while teaching children with ASD. This can be accomplished by trying to anticipate the experiences, settings, or problems the children may consider threatening. This methodology has been integrated into most of the centers run by the National Autistic Society. Basic strategies need to be implemented inside a classroom to help transition students with ASD. These include: A clear structure and daily routine Use of clear and unambiguous language (not a lot of humor or irony) Make clear which behaviors are unacceptable Address the child individually Provide a warning if there is an impending change in routine or activity switch Know the students ticks and what abnormal behavior might be Specific teaching using photographs, video recording, how feeling are expressed and communicated so they can be recognized. Regular opportunity for simple conversations to help increase the use of how and why questions Use charts to record behavioral progress reinforcement How Does Autism Affect the Learning/Teaching Relationship Between Children and Teachers? Any teacher can get very frustrated with children in general, and if a disability is added to the equation, it can make for a difficult learning and teaching experience for both parties involved. It is important to remember what the student is going through and having to deal with. Patience truly is a virtue for the teacher, combined with empathy, understanding, encouragement and compassion. Within any teaching strategy, to work and develop a method of structured teaching, there must be an understanding of the unique features and characteristics of the autistic child. A teacher must organize the childs environment so the child is able to focus on relevant information and not be distracted by irrelevant things. The teacher must also develop appropriate activities to engage the student and not frustrate them. The instructor must also help the student understand what is expected of them so they do not have any disruptions to their routine or be inadvertently thrust outside of their comfort zone. Despite a teachers best efforts to reduce the stress, anxiety and frustration of the environment, behavioral challenges will still arise, depending on the characteristics of the autistic child. Conclusion Autistic Spectrum Disorder has come out of the shadows and gained notoriety in todays society through the actions of celebrities, organizations, and parents of autistic children as awareness of this increasingly prevalent disorder increases exponentially with research, education and mainstreaming. Since it was identified just a little over a half century ago, ASD has gained attention and momentum and tremendous strides in identification, possible causes, treatment, societal reaction/interaction, the learning/teaching cooperative, have provided lofty expectations for the future. While teaching students with ASD is challenging, it can also be hugely rewarding. Teaching methods like TEACCH, which encompass the basic principles and techniques found to be most effective and least upsetting for the autistic child: consistency in a passive environment, an unvaried schedule and basic repetitive routine enable teachers to help the autistic student learn and progress within a safety zone geared toward their own individual learning style. Although there is no cure, there have been significant strides in identifying, developing and implementing new treatments every day. Children with ASD are often able to lead full, happy, and productive lives, interacting with society on their own terms. One can only hope that the strides of today will be not only matched but outpaced in the future as ASD becomes not a mysterious disorder of unknown origin, but a minor affliction overcome by millions, unidentifiable and without stigma in the mainstream world. Bibliography Carew, Betty. (2009, January 28). The History of autism. Retrieved from http://healthmad.com/children/the-history-of-autism/ Kogan, Michael, et al. (2009). Prevalence of parent-reported diagnosis of autism spectrum disorder among children in the US, 2007. Pediatrics, 10.1542(1522) Schopler, E, Reichler, RJ, DeVellis, RF, Daly, K. (1980). Toward Objective classification of childhood autism: childhood autism rating scale (cars). J Autism Dev Disorder, 10(1), 91-103. Secor, M.L. (2009, january 6). Child autism rating scale. Retrieved from http://autism.lovetoknow.com/Childhood_Autism_Rating_Scale Rimland, Bernard. (1964). Infantile autism: the syndrome and its implications for a neural theory of behavior. New York: Prentice Hall. Schmid, Randolph. (2010, march 12). Court says thimerosal did not cause autism. Associated Press, Wang, Kai, et al. (2009). common genetic variants on 5p14.1 associate with autism spectrum disorders. Nature, 459(528-533), Retrieved from http://www.nature.com/nature/journal/v459/n7246/full/nature07999.html Bailey, D. B., Jr., D. D. Hatton, et al. (2001). Autistic behavior, fmr1 protein, and developmental trajectories in young males with fragile x syndrome. Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders , 31(2), 165-174. Genetics, autism and priorities. (1997). Autism Research Review International, 11(2), Retrieved from http://autism.about.com/gi/o.htm?zi=1/XJ/YazTi=1sdn=autismcdn=healthtm=27f=00tt=14bt=1bts=1zu=http%3A//www.autism.com/ari/faq/faq_diets.htm Exkorn, Karen Siff. (2005). The autism sourcebook everything you need to know about diagnosis, treatment, coping, and healing. New York, NY: HarperCollins. Shopler, E (1997) Implementation of TEACCH philosophy. In D. Cohen and F. Volkmar (eds). Handbook of Autism and Pervasive Developmental Disorders. New York: Wiley. Autism Spectrum disorders Introduction Autism awareness in todays society has moved from the shadow of shame and unknown to the forefront of research and education as an increasing number of children and people with Autism Spectrum disorders gain attention in every aspect of their everyday lives. This paper will attempt to explore the many faces of autism: identification, possible causes, treatment, societal reaction/interaction, the learning/teaching cooperative, and expectations for the future regarding this disorder in an ever evolving and expanding society. What is Autism? How does it manifest? Are there specific characteristics inherent to the disorder? How was it discovered? Who gets it? How is it diagnosed? When? Has the cause been identified? Is it hereditary, environmental or societal? Is there a cure? What kind of treatment is available, and how has it changed since discovery of the disorder? Do autistic children face specific learning challenges? What teaching methods best reach autistic children? Are some methods more effective than others? Autism is very broad, far-reaching and involved, but herein I expect to go from a brief discussion of the broad topic to the specific: How does autism affect the learning/teaching relationship between children and teachers? What is Autism? Autism was first thought to be mental retardation or insanity. In 1943, Leo Kanner noticed that these children did not fit the pattern of emotionally disturbed children and instead recorded patterns of being slow learners. Hans Asperger, making similar discoveries, discovered what has come to be known as Aspergers Syndrome often used to label autistic people that can talk. Leo Kanner and Hans Asperger, working completely independent of one another, recognized autism for what it was: a developmental disorder that interferes with a childs communication, social and interaction behavior. (Carew, 2009) Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) is a Pervasive Developmental Disorder (PDD). It is a bio-neurological developmental disability usually appearing before the age of three, best known for impairing a childs ability to communicate and interact. Life-long disabilities significantly impact several areas of development: communication impairments, social difficulty, sensory processing deficits and a need for solid routines within their lives. Characteristics of Autism manifests in a myriad of ways: delay in verbal development, a need to finish what they begin, a rather h3 resistance to change in daily routine, lack of spontaneity, distress at being touched and the ability to show any kind of emotion, as well as an inability to process and respond to humor. There are five subcategories associated with ASD, each with its own distinctive and unique features: Autistic Disorder, Aspergers Disorder, Childhood Disintegrative Disorder (CDD), Retts Disorder, and Pervasive Developmental Disorder-Not Otherwise Specified (PDD-NOS). Treatment within each subcategory is as diverse and varied as the individual being treated, depending on the individuals personality, unique symptoms and manifestation of autism. How is it Diagnosed? To help determine the difference between autism and mental retardation, a qualified professional will examine and score children who are suspected of having autism through a questionnaire based on direct observation by professionals and reports given by parents, family members, and teachers. This test is known as CARS (Childhood Autism Rating Scale) and was developed by Eirc Shopler, Robert Reichier and Barbara Rochen Reiner. (Schopler, Reichler, DeVellis, Daly, 1980) CARS was published in 1980, but the development began a lot earlier, in 1966. A Study conducted by the University of Texas Health Science Center determined an accuracy rating of 98% in diagnosing children and showed encouraging results in diagnosing adolescents as well. CARS incorporates the criteria of Leo Kanner (1943) and Creak (1964), and characteristic symptoms of childhood autism. (Schopler et al., 1980) The test focuses on 15 categories of behaviors, characteristics, and abilities and how the expected development is different than the actual development if autistic symptoms are present. The categories are: Relating to people, imitation, emotional response, body use, object use, adaptation to change, visual response, listening response, taste, smell and touch response and use, fear or nervousness, verbal communication, nonverbal communication, activity level, level and consistency of intellectual response, and general impressions. A child can score on a scale of one to four. Scoring a one meets a normal range for a childs age and scoring a four means the child is severely abnormal. (Secor, 2009) Who Gets It? Although it is unclear how much of the surge reflects better diagnosis, recent data suggests a 10-fold increase in autism rates over the past decade. The journal, Pediatrics, released on October 5, 2009, reported one percent of U.S. children ages 3-17 have an Autism Spectrum disorder, a prevalence of 1 in 91. This is a dramatic increase from the 2007 report by the Center for Disease Control reported 1 in 150 children diagnosed with Autism. Boys are diagnosed four times more often than girls. There has been no connection established regarding socio-economic status, race or religion in identifying autistic individuals. (Kogan, 2009) Cause of Autism All over the world, researchers are working to find just what causes Autism. However no direct, specific cause of Autism has been determined, to date. The pressure to identify a cause is a top priority among researchers and it appears, due to the various levels of severity and combinations of symptoms, there may be multiple causes and scientific evidence suggests both genetic and/or environmental factors. Because of intense research, there are several specific claims that have been disproven. Bruno Bettelheim, a once well-renowned child psychologist, blamed autism on parents, specifically mothers, claiming they did not properly bond with their children. There is no evidence to support that claim. Due in large part to Dr. Bernard Rimland, who has an autistic son, founded the Autism Society of America and the Autism Research institute. Dr. Rimland was instrumental in helping to determine autism as a biological disorder not a causal effect, ie., neglect, isolation, cold, indifferent or bad parenting. He disproved the theory by defining ASDs as biological disorders, not emotional illnesses in his book, Infantile Autism: The Syndrome and Its Implications for a Neural Theory of Behavior (Rimland, 1964). However, Dr Rimland is a proponent of another high profile controversial claim suggesting vaccinations given to children during babyhood may be a cause of the disorder. Despite Dr Rimlands advocacy and beliefs, this claim has little or no scientific backing. In fact, in a timely ruling Friday, March 12, 2010, the so-called vaccine court, a special branch of the U.S. Court of Federal Claims, found that the mercury-containing vaccine preservative thimerosal is not to blame for autism, and concluded the last of three cases on theories related to a vaccine-autism relationship. A 2009 ruling rejected a theory that thimerasol can cause autism when combined with the measles-mumps-rubella vaccine, which perhaps was based on a discredited medical journal article published in 1998 by British physician, Dr. Andrew Wakefield, linking a particular type of autism and bowel disease to the measles vaccine. The 2009 ruling predicated the dropping of a second case based on a theory that certain vaccines alone cause autism. Interestingly, in this third case, the court found that none of the expert witnesses who argued mercury can have a variety of effects on the brain, offered opinions on the cause of autism in any of the three specific cases argued. (Schmid, 2010)(emphasis added) Two studies conducted by researchers at the Childrens Hospital of Philadelphia link specific genes to autism. One study pinpoints a gene region that may account for as many as 15 percent of autism cases, while another study identifies missing or duplicated stretches of DNA along two crucial gene pathways. Significantly, both studies detected genes implicated in the development of brain circuitry in early childhood. (Wang, 2009) A specific connection between fragile x (FXS) and autism has also been found. Dr. Don Bailey , director of the Frank Porter Graham Institute, and colleagues found that in young boys with FXS, 25% met the criteria for autism using the (CARS). Their profile of behaviors was very similar to that of children with autism but without fragile X. Consequently, they also found that children with autism and FXS together, had a lower IQ than children with either FXS alone or autism alone. (Bailey, Jr., Hatton, et al., 2001) Methods of Treatment Since 1943, many ways have been developed to help the autistic child. Then, the famous Sigmund Freud discovered that parents who did not attempt to communicate with an autistic child saw no progress, while a close parent/child relationship seemed to cause the child to thrive and move forward. Although it lingered well into the 50s and 60s, Freuds theory lacked two critical bits information: first, oftentimes the parent didnt try to interact with the child due to the Autistic behavior; and second, in some cases it was a genetically inherited personality. For a time, children were removed from their home to see if they would recover although there was no clear-cut evidence of any value in future use of this method. Due to research and study, it was found that facilitated communication could teach the child to communicate with the world; for example an autistic child could be taught to manage and control his emotions; a parent could help a child desensitize from the over sensitivity to sound. Today, Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA), Occupational Therapy (OT), Pivotal Response Training (PRT), Physical Therapy (PT), Sensory Integration Therapy, Floortime, and medications, all have a place in accepted scientific treatment. Alternative methods are also sometimes used. These can include Dietary intervention, Vitamins and Minerals, Social Skills Groups, Music and Art Therapy, and even Dolphin Therapy. One of the most tried and true methods utilized today, Applied Behavior Therapy (ABA) is usually accompanied by Physical Therapy and Occupational therapy. As with any treatment there are good and bad points associated with each. ABA was developed by Dr. Ivar Lovaas and contains the B.F. Skinners theories on operant conditioning. This treatment includes rewards which may include toys or treats, for acceptable behavior. There is no punishment for wrong or incorrect behavior, however. There are a myriad of steps involved, and a fairly rigid structure to this method. ABA is very time-consuming and has shown many positive results. According to some ongoing research, diet may be fueling Autism. There is convincing empirical evidence that special diets help autistic individuals. Karl Reichelt of Oslo has been a pioneer in this area for decades, showing the highly significant effects of removing gluten, gliadin and casein from the diets of autistic children. There are now about forty research st

Free Essay on Nathaniel Hawthornes The Scarlet Letter - Good vs. Evil :: Scarlet Letter essays

Good vs. Evil in The Scarlet Letter The Scarlet Letter is a wonderful and not so traditional example of the good versus evil theme. What makes this a unique instance of good versus evil is that either side could be considered either one. Hester could very easily have been deduced as evil, or the "bad guy," as she was by the townspeople. That is, she was convicted of adultery, a horrible sin of the time. As for punishment, a sentence to wear a scarlet "A" upon her chest, it would hardly be considered a burden or extreme sentence in present day. Another sin that Hester committed was the fact that she never told who the father of her child, Pear, forcing her to be without a father. Hester's silence also caused Dimmesdale to live in torture every day. Chillingsworth was also hurt by Hester's act of adultery and because of her, his life was destroyed and the only thing he could do was seek revenge against the man who had been with her. Hester's child Pearl had to be raised by only one parent and that caused the child to be less disciplined and more outrageous making the townspeople more suspicious of who the child's father was. It also caused the religious leaders to wonder about the religious stability of the child, and if there might be witchcraft involved, "The little baggage have witchcraft in her"(p112). Hester also caused numerous a sleepless night for Dimmesdale. If Hester had just announced that Dimmesdale was the father he would have never have lived through all the guilt that she forced him into. Dimmesdale was a weak and frail man because of Hester's silence. Chillengsworth was pushed into a life of revenge and anguish since Hester had betrayed their marriage and Chillengsworth's trust in her. She had turned Chillengsworth into a fiend, "I have already told thee what I am, a fiend!" (P169). Hester admitts to causing Chillengsworth into becoming the fiend as well. The guilt rests solely on Hester Prynne for destroying not just her own life from this sin but also of many other people such as the minister Dimmesdale, the physician Chillengsworth, and her own daughter Pearl. Free Essay on Nathaniel Hawthorne's The Scarlet Letter - Good vs. Evil :: Scarlet Letter essays Good vs. Evil in The Scarlet Letter The Scarlet Letter is a wonderful and not so traditional example of the good versus evil theme. What makes this a unique instance of good versus evil is that either side could be considered either one. Hester could very easily have been deduced as evil, or the "bad guy," as she was by the townspeople. That is, she was convicted of adultery, a horrible sin of the time. As for punishment, a sentence to wear a scarlet "A" upon her chest, it would hardly be considered a burden or extreme sentence in present day. Another sin that Hester committed was the fact that she never told who the father of her child, Pear, forcing her to be without a father. Hester's silence also caused Dimmesdale to live in torture every day. Chillingsworth was also hurt by Hester's act of adultery and because of her, his life was destroyed and the only thing he could do was seek revenge against the man who had been with her. Hester's child Pearl had to be raised by only one parent and that caused the child to be less disciplined and more outrageous making the townspeople more suspicious of who the child's father was. It also caused the religious leaders to wonder about the religious stability of the child, and if there might be witchcraft involved, "The little baggage have witchcraft in her"(p112). Hester also caused numerous a sleepless night for Dimmesdale. If Hester had just announced that Dimmesdale was the father he would have never have lived through all the guilt that she forced him into. Dimmesdale was a weak and frail man because of Hester's silence. Chillengsworth was pushed into a life of revenge and anguish since Hester had betrayed their marriage and Chillengsworth's trust in her. She had turned Chillengsworth into a fiend, "I have already told thee what I am, a fiend!" (P169). Hester admitts to causing Chillengsworth into becoming the fiend as well. The guilt rests solely on Hester Prynne for destroying not just her own life from this sin but also of many other people such as the minister Dimmesdale, the physician Chillengsworth, and her own daughter Pearl.