Psychological tests Essay

Aptitude test is defined as the test of suitability to determine whether an individual is likely to develop the skills required for a particular kind of work (Encarta dictionary, 2008). Aptitude tests are used to calculate abilities over a long period of time, as well as to envisage future learning performance. Example of aptitude tests are the Scholastic Assessment Test (SAT) and the American College Testing (ACT)). These tests are both college admission tests explored in the prediction of college success. Special aptitude tests The purpose of special aptitude test raises the concept of fidelity and bandwith. Bandwith determines the breath of the traits that is being evaluated while fidelity refers to the extent to which a particular measure focuses on a particular attribute or quality. These tests are explored to prognosticate on the future performance in a subject that the person in question is not currently trained. Goverment parastatals,institutions and business organization often will apply specific aptitude tests when handing over specific privileges to certain individuals. .Furthermore, vocational guidance counseling may involve aptitude testing to help clarify individual career goals (Microsoft Encarta, 2008). If a person has a similar score in comparison to that of individuals already functioning in a particular profession, the probability of success in that occupation can be predicted by the use of aptitude tests. Certain aptitude tests have a wide coverage that includes skills germane to many different professions. The General aptitude test, for instance aside measuring the general reasoning ability also covers the areas of form perception, motor coordination, clerical perception as well as manual and finger dexterity. Other tests may concentrate on a single area such as the Art, Engineering and modern languages (Microsoft Encarta. 2008). One of the examples of special aptitude tests is the sensory or perceptual test and this concentrates on the discrimination of color and visual acuity. It also involves the auditory senses. Another example of special aptitude test is the mechanical test which includes the test of spatial relations and this demands manual dexterity as well as space visualization. There is also the paper and pencil test which includes the Bennet Mechanical comprehension Test and the Minnesota Paper Formboard. Other special aptitude tests are listed below. The clerical test This includes the Minnesota clerical test that consists of 200 pairs of numbers and 200 pairs of names. It also includes the clerical abilities which is an embodiment of 7 other tests like test of proofreading and copying etc. The art and musical test. The Art ability test includes the Art judgment test in which the participant judges between two pictures and chooses the one that is better. In aesthetic perception test, the participant gives an orderly ranking of 4 versions of the same project. The grave design judgment test also allows the participant to adjudicate the best among a group of abstract pictures. Musical ability test The musical ability test gives an analytical assessment of musical ability and it makes use of tones as well as notes to evaluate 6 components of auditory discrimination. The wing standardized test of musical intelligence explores recorded pianoic songs to assess about 8 areas which include the memory, chord analysis and rhythm.

Human Resources Management: Outsourcing

Outsourcing certain human resources roles can save an organization time and money in many respects. While it is not necessary or often feasible to outsource all human resources roles, outsourcing various functions can help reduce overhead and result in greater efficiency in some organizations. To save money however organizations must decide what human resources roles can be effectively outsourced to save money and not impeded performance or harm the organization. This paper will discuss the benefits of outsourcing certain human resources roles, including payroll, benefits administration and recruitment and selection. By outsourcing each of these roles an organization can reduce overhead, risk and save valuable time when conducting normal business operations. These ideas are explored below. Outsourcing typically reduces the number of human resources staff necessary on hand to handle ordinary HRM activities (Sims, 2002). Outsourcing involves â€Å"long term contractual relationships† with businesses and external providers (Lever, 1997:37). Outsourcing relationships are increasingly common in human resources. Outsourcing can provide organizations with multiple competitive advantages, including cost savings. There are many roles that an organization can outsource to save money. Some of the more common roles that organizations are outsourcing to save money include payroll and benefits administration and employee hiring or recruitment (Lever, 1997). By outsourcing these functions an organization can maintain a smaller personnel base and reduce the number of experts needed to manage the human resources function (Lever, 1997). Outsourcing experts can recommend the best methods for conducting payroll and can handle the often lengthy administrative tasks associated with benefits administration. By outsourcing the recruitment and selection process an organization can rest assured that well qualified experts will screen candidates, background check candidates, and ensure that the best employees are hired to handle core competencies. In most organizations even if an external party manages the recruitment and selection process, internal managers or representatives still have the opportunity to meet with potential candidates and determine whether or not they are a good fit for the organization or a given team. Outsourcing can help reduce the business risks associated with hiring, payroll and benefits administration. Outsourcing companies share the burden of risk for all employees they recommend to a company and all job roles they carry out within the organization. For this reason they typically operate under stringent guidelines, policies and procedures that ensure optimal delivery of service. HRM typically focuses much attention on risk management. By outsourcing certain functions in an organization however, the firm will not only save money but also valuable time, and can concentrate its attention on building or developing other programs including employee rewards and recognition programs. It is important to note that most organizations will have to pay a premium price to outsource to certain experts (Lever, 1997). In larger organizations this may still result in a cost savings, when compared with the expense of paying annual salaries to multiple internal experts in charge of payroll, recruitment and benefits administration. It is important that each company take into consideration their unique situation and decide whether or not outsourcing makes sense in the long term. Outsourcing can provide substantial savings when it comes to filling positions requiring specialized skills (Lever, 1997). Traditionally human resource managers have spent hundreds of hours researching candidates to select ideal candidates for hard to fill positions. This often results in high expenditures. If a candidate does not work out, the cost to re-recruit and re-train a new candidate can be debilitating. Fortunately most outsourcing recruitment agencies provide access to specialized who are highly skilled and have access to networks of specialized candidates to choose from. Because the outsourcing agencies only task is to fill this position or others rather than handle multiple roles for the organization, they can often find a candidate more efficiently and quickly. They chances that a candidate will stay with the firm long term are also much higher due to better screening methods and more skills training and testing (Lever, 1997). Outsourcing does change the culture within an organization, but this change is not necessarily one that is negative. In fact, outsourcing can bring about positive change within the organization. Many employees fear that outsourcing is negative, a means by which an organization replaces internal candidates with external specialists. While this is true, in many organizations outsourcing makes sense and can benefit employees and managers alike in the long term. An organization that saves money outsourcing can redirect those funds into employee promotion programs and employee incentive programs. Outsourcing certain job roles including payroll, benefits administration and recruiting and hiring can result in risk reduction for an organization, can save an organization much time and often results in cost savings in the long run. These benefits of course are provided when the organization takes it's time to select an appropriate vendor to meet its needs and fulfill its obligations.

Blog Spot Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Blog Spot - Essay Example Iraq was then supposedly occupied by the Americans with the initial purpose of ensuring peace, progress, and modernity there and rescuing the public of Iraq from heavy influence exercised by the rigid and exacting government. It is my argument that though America presented many justifiable reasons for invading Iraq, the deteriorating condition of Iraq and the helpless condition of the American troops patrolling there have collectively imposed such a heavy burden on the economy of America that millions of families are getting badly affected owing to this purposeless war while not meeting the criteria given by the hawks. Proponents of the invasion of Iraq had a few primary justifications. There were fears that Saddam Hussein was developing WMDs. There was concern that he had been connected to al Qaeda cells (Rumsfeld, 2009). And, of course, he was a brutal dictator. One problem was that they kept offering different justifications, saying that one was central one day and the other the next, but the case did look compelling initially. They also claimed UN Security Council support. Some had messianic justifications: Falwell also argues that the Iraq war is justifiable and was indeed initiated by God’s will and authority (2004). Meanwhile, opponents said that the war was illegal. The UN Charter makes it illegal for countries to unilaterally invade other countries, no matter what other Resolutions are on the table. The Security Council had not acted, so it was illegal. They argued that the war would lead to more terrorism, a claim that seemed to become compelling in the aftermath of the invasion as suicide bombings began in a country that did not have them prior. They also argued that Saddam Hussein had no WMDs, which was hard to tell at the time but became prescient when it was discovered that he didnt. They argued that the invasion could lead to looting of WMDs, and that the invasion was mostly about securing oil and resources for

The Hero's Journey - The Mythological Structure of Films Research Paper - 1

The Hero's Journey - The Mythological Structure of Films - Research Paper Example For purposes of clarity, the heroes journey will be herein defined to exhibit the following 12 traits: 1)the heroes are introduced in the ordinary world, 2) they receive the call to action or adventure, 3) they are reluctant at first or refuse the call, 4) they are encouraged by a mentor, 5) they cross the threshold and enter the â€Å"special world†, 6) the encounter a series of tests, allies and enemies 7) they approach the in-most cave and cross a second threshold, 8) within this second cave they endure the ordeal, 9) they take possession of their reward, 10) they are pursued on the road back to the ordinary world, 11)they cross the third threshold and experience a resurrection/transformation, 12) they return with the elixir or treasure to benefit the ordinary world (Vogler 2). In this way, Volger sets out to express that the way in which a screenwriter interacts with his chosen topic, works to force it into a reality, and hones the acumen of its message follows precisely t he same steps as that the heroes journey represents. What is particularly interesting about this â€Å"mythological† approach to any given subject matter is that it nearly perfectly applies to the way that almost every story can be told. The author begins by recounting how the â€Å"ordinary world† presents the known reality and easy confines within which the actor(s) will develop. In this way, the hero is presented as an entity that is uncomfortable and/or unaware of the underlying tension and struggle that brews beneath the surface. This develops the actor into the secondary stage or â€Å"call to adventure†. This call to adventure is the impetus and or need that is exhibited by the deficiencies of the â€Å"ordinary world†. As a result of this imperfection this â€Å"call to adventure† exists as a means to answer this inequality. An interesting component of this call to adventure/action is the fact that the protagonist/character/actor is oftentimes reticent to heed its direction. This

The life of Peter Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

The life of Peter - Research Paper Example During the life of Peter he faced accidental greetings, scenes which were divine and most importantly he faced refusal. Hence it is believed that the story of Peter in the bible is one of the greatest narrations that depict a transformation in the way of life. It has been observed that amongst all the twelve believers Jesus had during His rule on Earth, Peter is considered to be the most candid of all. Undoubtedly he was considered to be the part of the most gallant advocates of the belief. His birth was of a common man but the death was of a great apostle. It has been observed that the start of his life was very modest in origin. As mentioned earlier the original name of Peter was Simon. It was Jesus who improved his name to Peter. The name Peter has literally originated from the term Petra which means "rock". Peter was basically a fisherman from the Galilean times and is apparently the brother of Andrew. Peter and his brother are considered to have their origination from the settle ment of Bethsaida. It is said that Peter was also a follower of John (Baptist). He was married. Before he had experienced divinity was a corrupt and sinful man. The guilt of being sinful was seen at various occasions, especially when he was in the company of Jesus Christ. Peter and his brother Andrew have the honor of being the first believer. (Meyer, 35) Since the fishermen of that time were fierce, bold, fearless, hot tempered and often used abusive language all these aspects were also present in Peter. Since their job requires physical labor which had made them rough and tough. They were full of themselves and had a bossy attitude. Their life was rough and bold as they had encountered various ups and downs in life like storms and thunders which had shaped their personality. Peter before he had met Jesus was lost and did not have any goal in life. But once they found Jesus without any further thoughts they starting to believe Him and followed him. They did not question Jesus Chris t and left everything behind for the sake of being good humans and firm believers. Like I mentioned previously, peter was one of the first believers of Jesus Christ as well as he has the honor of being the spokesman of Jesus at various occasions irrespective of the good or the evil. The thing that separates Peter from any other disciple is the unique vision he possessed which was related to the image of Jesus. Jesus's title that is 'Son of the Living God – The Savior' was also given for the first time by this noble man. He was so humble and considered himself so guilty of the sins he did in his earlier life that he used to feel that he did not deserve to be in the company of such a holy man. The love Jesus had for his him and his brother made them distinct and the â€Å"fishers of men†. There were certain flaws that were associated with Peter. For instance, that the boldness Peter flaunted most of the times became wrong for him. It is said that once he scolded the God and claimed that he could even sacrifice his life for Jesus. Despite this when Jesus was arrested and trialed, Peter refused the Lord around three times. Jesus was insightful and he knew that among his disciples who is actually honest to him and who would ultimately cheat on him. Peter has the honor of witnessing many miracles associated with Jesus from his own eyes. Along with two other disciples he witnessed the Shekhinah Glory during the time of Transfiguration. This is considered to be the time when the humanity

The role of social media in building lasting valuable customer Essay

The role of social media in building lasting valuable customer relationships - Essay Example 1). Interactive market entails appreciating the experiences customers through communication channels whereby customers have a significant experience with the internet in the form of flow (Shankar and Malthouse, 2009, p. 1). Through following their preferred brands and retailers on social media platforms, consumers can get access to an insider view of commodities and the companies that produce them while at the same time looking at new releases, promotions and giveaways among other things. The present retail environment is in a new social norm with more and more people utilizing social networks every day. According to the Digital Consumer Report almost sixty-four percent of people who use social media tap into sites at least once every day on their computers, while almost fifty percent of social media subscribers access social networks through their smartphones. Progressive business entities such as Apple, Dell, Starbucks as well as Nike among other have adopted social channels such as Twitter, Facebook and Instagram as a means of boosting their bottom-line results (Safko, 2012, p. 27). Numerous brands have started realizing that social media can be employed as a powerful instrument in driving in-store engagement as well as sales. For most of the consumers, social media can be the source of inspiration on various ways of decorating space, planning an outfit or seeing how it fits on a real person rather than the conventional model. However, the participation of retailers in social channels is not supposed to end the moment when the customer pays for the commodity he or she is buying (Sparrow, 2010, p. 33). In order to drive continuous sales while promoting prolonged loyalty, forward thinking businesses employ social media networks to foster ongoing relationships and give value to their customers through time. Even though social media can assist in promoting quick sales and short-term goals of spreading the

Power Dynamics and Organizational Change Assignment

Power Dynamics and Organizational Change - Assignment Example It is evidently clear from the discussion that when a person is emotionally under stress what he needs is the care and consideration of his family. But, an ordinary soldier in his early years of service is not permitted to take his family along with him unless he is an officer. This is what makes difficult the life of a soldier. While realizing these unconcealed facts the educated youths of modern era prefer to revisit their prior decision. This should not happen as the fate of a country rests with its dynamic youths. So, it inevitably requires some sort of structural changes in the entire organization. For this things must be changed from their present state of affairs. Places where transformation is sought First of all, as Mundell points out, depression and stress are the unrecognized problems of a number of soldiers returning from war fronts. To illustrate, while some of them feel they are treated as guests at their own homes, others feel estranged as their children do not respond warmly to them. According to the writer, if they do not feel the support of their family members and the warmth of the love of their dear ones, they have greater difficulty in recovering from the symptoms of depression. So, measures should be adopted to accommodate the families, at least the wives of the soldiers with them. Moreover, soldiers are suffering from stress which is a result of frequent combat operations. As they are also flesh and blood they may become upset on seeing destroyed houses, dead bodies or on the event of the death of their colleagues or even for being directly responsible for the death of some enemy soldiers. In this regard, every soldier must be availed the assistance of a counseling expert as and when he requires. In order to help this, psycho care units can be started alongside cantonment areas. No commander or superior must be entitled to hold back this right of soldiers. Any soldier who has some severe emotional damage must be evacuated to a fitting pla ce for the further health check. It will do well to bring the stress down in his community as well as personal life. However, the primary duty of a soldier is to protect and fight for his nation. So, changes to be made should not affect the role to be played by him. Another important crisis is the detrimental relationship between superiors and the men under their command. There is always a chance for skirmishes between commanding officer and his men as they are not satisfied with the commands placed and orders made by the officer. But on certain occasions, the superiors themselves have a tendency to humiliate their men for silly matters. Instead of giving a word of praise for a remarkable work done, they are ruthlessly reprimanded even for a microscopic slip-up. When such humiliations cross the boundary, the soldiers either end up their lives or shoot at their own officers and colleagues. It is a matter of serious concern as such incidents are numerous. In order to curb this, as in any organization, a separate personnel grievance redressal forum should be established in the military set up. As the head of the forum is an expert in HR related matters it will be of tremendous help in solving out all personnel related affairs.

Samsung Electronics Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 3

Samsung Electronics - Case Study Example What the Chinese lacked in design and production, they compensated in their business acumen. They forged alliances with those market leaders only and got the license to from them to produce chips based on blueprints and sold at low cost, in order to penetrate the market. Thus, looking at the market strategy of the Chinese firms and their potential to imitate and innovate existing products, there is genuine threat from the Chinese firms. Samsung needs to look at the various options of competitive advantage to respond appropriately so that it could maintain its leadership position within the semiconductor market. There are two main areas where Samsung can keep ahead of the Chinese firms. The first one is its state of the art R&D which greatly facilitates development of new products through specialized product development teams. The new products ensure that the constantly changing preferences of the customers are met timely thus making certain that they maintain their leadership position. Chinese not only lack R&D facilities but lack of experience is also a big drawback in the area of R&D. The second important area is its design and production line. Backed by effective R&D team, the company has the requisite infrastructure and capabilities to design and produce innovative products. The Chinese firms have yet to acquire expert knowledge of the design and production technology of core units of semiconductors. This gives a huge advantage to Samsung to go in for new products and create niche market for them in the emerging new economies like India, China, Brazil etc. It is assumed that despite huge government concessions to Chinese firms in China, lack of effective intellectual property laws would be a big deterrent for other big companies to transfer technology. Samsung, therefore, would be right to continue innovative products and add-ons for existing as well as for new market. In the changing paradigms of business environment, there is

Effecyive team and preformance management Essay

Effecyive team and preformance management - Essay Example Challenges that can be faced by the recommendations 13 8. Conclusion 14 1. Summary The report highlights, analyzes and evaluates the team performance of the Electron Company, a small manufacturing company in North of England. The report identifies the critical factors that impact the team performance. The first section elaborates Bruce Tuckman’s Team Development Model and critically analyses how team dynamics and team formation has occurred in the case study. The second section of the report evaluates the effect of social loafing and cohesion on the success of an efficient team. The fourth section elaborates the recommendations for changes that are needed in the team focusing on the leadership and management styles. The last section points out the challenges that are faced by the recommendations made for the changes. Lastly a conclusion is given to sum up all that is learnt from the report and recommended in the report. 2. Introduction The report aims at analysing the Electron Company team case study with the help of Bruce Tuckman’s Team Development Model. It evaluates the performance of the team with reference to this model. Recommendations are also given to bring in changes in the working condition of the company. Electron Company, established in 1997, is a small manufacturing company which is located in North of England. It manufactures components for the telecommunications sector. The UK headquarters have 150 employees with 50 employees in the manufacturing department. The company follows a traditional business structure consist of sale/ marketing, engineering, human resource and manufacturing. It has both full-time staffs and part-time staffs. The electronic department has eight teams and each of which is named according to a colour. The team colours are white, red, blue green, silver, aqua, purple and yellow. The teams consist of 10 team members, some are on hired on temporary contracts and others are the full-time employees. Each teamâ€⠄¢s objective is to attain improved productivity within 2 months after the formation their team. The performances of the team are judged on the basis of how many electrical components they have made within this two months period. The team members are rewarded for achieving their improvements in the productivity. All the members of the successful team are paid bonus. The performance of the team is analyzed based on the Tuckman’s model of team development. 3. Bruce Tuckman’s Model analysing the formation of the team Bruce Tuckman identified five stages of development that every team practices and he also recommended that all teams confront a fairly unproductive primary stage before becoming an independent unit. The five stages are as follows: 3.1. Forming In the first phase the team formation takes place. The individual's behaviour is determined by a desire to be acknowledged by the others and also avoid controversy or conflict with others. Serious problems and feelings are seriously avoided and the people focus on being busy with their routine work. Individuals also collect information about each other and also about the scope of the task and how to advance with it. The team members gather and learn about the challenges and opportunities that they face and then they agree on the process which they will follow to eradicate the challenges and grab new opportunities. They are motivated for not to be ignorant of the problems and objectives of the team. Team members do their best for the well being of

The Relationship Between Exchange Rates Essay Example for Free

The Relationship Between Exchange Rates Essay The relationship between exchange rates, interest rates †¢ In this lecture we will learn how exchange rates accommodate equilibrium in ï ¬ nancial markets. For this purpose we examine the relationship between interest rates and exchange rates. Interest rates are the return to holding interest-bearing ï ¬ nancial assets. In the previous lecture we have pointed out that as being a ï ¬ nancial asset exchange rates tend to adjust more quickly to new information that goods prices. Like exchange rates, interest rates are also the prices of ï ¬ nancial assets and hence adjust quickly to new information. †¢ The proï ¬ t-seeking arbitrage activity will bring about an interest parity relationship between interest rates of two countries and exchange rate between these countries. †¢ A U.S. investor deciding between investing say in New York and in Tokyo must consider several things: – the interest rate in the U.S., i$ , (interest rate in aU.S ¿ dollar denominated bond, or rate of return in a U.S. dollar denominated US stock etc), interest rate in Japan (iY ; – the spot exchange rate, S; and – the future exchange rate for maturity date, forward rate, F . †¢ If the investor did not lock in a future exchange rate now, the unknown future spot exchange rate would make the investment risky. The investor can eliminate the uncertainty over the future dollar value of the investment by covering the investment with a forward exchange contract. †¢ If the investor covers the investment with a forward contract the arbitrage between two investment opportunities results in a covered interest parity (CIP) condition: (1 + i$ ) = (1 + iY ) 1 F S (1) which may be rewritten as (1 + i$ ) F = (1 + iY ) S (2) †¢ The interest rate parity equation can be approximated for small interest rates by: i$ − iY = F −S S (3) †¢ This later equation says that interest diï ¬â‚¬erential between a US denominated investment instrument and a Yen denominated investment instrument is equal to the forward premium or discount on the Yen. †¢ Example: i$ = 5%, iY = 3%. Suppose S = 0.0068 dollars per Yen. What should be the 90-day forward rate? 0.05 − 0.03 = F − 0.0068 0.0068 F = 0.0068 + 0.02 âˆâ€" 0.0068 = 0.00694 Thus we expect that a 90-day forward rate of $0.00694 to give a 90-day forward premium equal to the 0.02 interest diï ¬â‚¬erential. †¢ If the forward exchange rates were not consistent with the respective interest rates, then arbitrageurs could proï ¬ t by immediately changing currency in the spot market, investing it and locking in the proï ¬ table forward exchange rate. These actions in the market would increase the spot rate and lower the forward rate, bringing the forward premium into line with the interest diï ¬â‚¬erential. †¢ Suppose the actual 90-day forward rate is not 0.00694 dollars per yen but 0.0071 dollars per yen. Then proï ¬ t-seeking arbitrageurs could buy Yen spot, then invest and sell the Yen forward for dollars, since the forward price of Yen is higher than that implied by the covered interest parity relation. These actions will tend to increase spot rate and lower the forward rate, thereby bringing the forward premium back in line with the interest diï ¬â‚¬erential. 2 †¢ The interest rate parity condition (CIP) can be used to compute eï ¬â‚¬ective return on a foreign investment. Re-write (3) as: i$ = i Y + F −S S (4) This latter equation says that the return on a US dollar denominated asset (US dollar interest rate) is given by the Japanese interest rate plus the forward premium or discount on Yen. If CIP holds then equation (4) will hold as well. †¢ What happens when an investor does not use the forward market? Then we can not expect eï ¬â‚¬ective return on US dollar denominated asset be given by (4) as the investor in question will not be able to get the premium on Yen (or lose the discount). In this case, we say investor has an uncovered investment. The eï ¬â‚¬ective return then will be determined by the Japanese interest rate plus the change in the spot exchange rate between today and say 90 days from now. Letting it be the domestic interest rate on a domestic currency denominated asset, say US Dollar, between date t and t + 1, and similarly iâˆâ€" stands for foreign interest rate, t the eï ¬â‚¬ective return on a domestic currency denominated ï ¬ nancial asset will be given by: â ˆâ€" it = it + ∆St+1 (5) Which in our example will be i$ = iY + ∆S without time subscript. †¢ Suppose in the example we have been considering so far, the US investor did not use the forward market. After 90 days when the investor go to change Yen back to dollars, she ï ¬ nds that the Yen has appreciated against US dollar say by 1 percent. This means that your Yen buys 1 percent more dollars than they did before. This means that eï ¬â‚¬ective return on Yen investment then will be given by iY + ∆S = 0.03 + 0.01 = 0.04. 3 Hence, the return on a foreign investment plus the expected change in the exchange rate (in the value of Yen) is our expected return on a Yen investment. †¢ If the forward exchange rate is equal to expected future spot rate (Mathematically this means that E [St+1 | given all the available information] = Ft ) then the forward premium/discount is also equal to the expected change in the exchange rate. In this case we say that uncovered interest parity, (UIP) holds. †¢ More formally UIP condition says that the expected change in spot exchange rate is equal to interest diï ¬â‚¬erential. E(St+1) − St = i t − iâˆâ€" t St (6) where for E denotes the expectation operator. At this level you don’t need to worry about what this operator means, you can simply think ESt+1 denoting the expected future value of spot rate. †¢ As above analysis indicate forward exchange rates incorporate expectations about the future spot exchange rates. If the forward exchange rate is equal to the expected future spot rate, then the forward premium is also the expected change in the exchange rate. In this case, UIP is said to hold. †¢ Empirical studies indicate that there are small deviations from CIP. These deviations are possible due to presence of transactions cost, diï ¬â‚¬erential taxation across countries on the returns from investing in ï ¬ nancial markets, government control, and political risk involved in investing in diï ¬â‚¬erent countries. However, these deviations are small enough to assume that CIP holds true almost exactly in the real world data. Therefore, we can say that proï ¬ t-seeking arbitrage activities eliminate proï ¬ t opportunities in the exchange rate markets. Hence, CIP condition can be viewed an equilibrium condition that characterizes the relationship between spot exchange rate, forward rate and interest rates of two countries. 4 †¢ The problem arise in showing if the UIP holds or not in the data. Extensive studies have shown that UIP does not hold in the data especially for the industrialized countries. This means that percentage change in expected future spot rate is not equal to interest diï ¬â‚¬erential. Or, forward rate is not equal to expected future spot rate. Mathematically, this implies that there are deviations from UIP condition stated in (6) above. That is, it − iâˆâ€" − t ESt+1 − St =0 St This means that eï ¬â‚¬ective return diï ¬â‚¬erential is not equal to zero. There are several explanations given in the literature. – there should be proï ¬ t opportunities in the exchange rate market that are being exploited by the investors. That may be possible if the inside trading type of activities are possible and used extensively. In other words, there are informational asymmetries in the market, some investors have more information than others and they make positive proï ¬ ts. Although, this may explain part of the puzzle especially in the very short run, it is hard to believe that these informational asymmetries persist for a long time, especially in ï ¬ nancial markets where information ï ¬â€šow is very rapid and exchange rates adjust rapidly to new information. – It is possible to think that investors are systematically making mistakes in predicting the future value of spot exchange rate. That is, Ft = ESt+1 for a prolonged period of time. This means that forward rate is a biased predictor of future spot rate. Here biased means that it does not correctly predicts the future value of spot exchange rate on average. In other words, an unbiased predictor means that it predicts on average correctly the future value of a price, say exchange rate, so that over the long run the forward rate is just as likely to overpredict the future spot rate as it is to underpredict. Unbiased predictor does not mean that forward rate is a good predictor. What it 5 means is that forward rate is just as likely to guess too high as it is too low future spot rates. There is some evidence that indicates that investors in foreign exchange rate market make systematic mistakes in predicting the future value of spot exchange rate and hence causing systematic deviations from UIP. It may be possible to think scenarios where investors make mistakes in their forecast of future values of asset prices, but the magnitude of these mistakes shouldn’t be that large to account the large deviations we observe in UIP. That is, it is hard to understand why especially over longer time periods investors make big mistakes in a systematic fashion. Over time at least we should expect these errors to shrink a level where deviations from UIP become smaller. – Another explanation is that there should be a premium to take a risk by not covering the investment. This idea is based on the behavior of investors in taking risk. The eï ¬â‚¬ective return diï ¬â‚¬erential between two countries should be dependent on the perceived risk on each asset and the risk aversion of the investors. The risk aversion refers to the tendency of investors to prefer less risk. In terms of investments two investors may agree on the degree of risk associated with two assets, but the more risk-averse investor would require a higher interest rate on the more risky asset to induce her to hold it then the less risky-averse investor would. In ï ¬ nance, by risk we mean the variability of return from any given investment. This is because the more variable the return from an investment is, the less certain we can be about its future value. If investors diï ¬â‚¬er in their risk taking behavior we may observe that deviations from UIP and hence, changes in risk and risk aversion are associated with changes in eï ¬â‚¬ective return diï ¬â‚¬erential (that is interest diï ¬â‚¬erential). That is, it − iâˆâ€" − t ESt+1 â ˆ’ St = f (risk,riskaversion) St 6 The left hand side of this equation is the eï ¬â‚¬ective return diï ¬â‚¬erential (or deviations from UIP). The right hand side can be viewed as the risk premium. âˆâ€" – Since CIP conditionit − it = Ft −St Stholds almost exactly, subtracting ex-pected change in exchange rate from both sides: âˆâ€" it − it − Ft − St ESt+1 − St ESt+1 − St = − St St St Ft − ESt+1 ESt+1 − St = St St (7) or it − iâˆâ€" − t (8) Thus, we ï ¬ nd that the eï ¬â‚¬ective return diï ¬â‚¬erential (or deviations from UIP) is equal to the percentage diï ¬â‚¬erence between forward and expected future spot exchange rate. The right hand side of (7) is usually considered to be a measure of risk premium in the forward exchange rate market. If eï ¬â‚¬ective return diï ¬â‚¬erential is zero, then risk premium will be zero. If it is positive, then there is a positive risk premium on the domestic currency, because the expected future spot price of foreign currency is less than the prevailing forward rate. In other words, traders are oï ¬â‚¬ering to sell foreign currency for domestic currency in the future will receive a premium, in that foreign currency is expected to depreciate (relative to domestic currency) by an amount greater than the current forward rates. Conversely, traders wishing to buy foreign currency for delivery next period will pay a premium to the future sellers to ensure a set future price. The relationship between interest rates and inï ¬â€šation †¢ The real interest rate reï ¬â€šects the nominal interest rate with an adjustment for inï ¬â€šation. In other words, real interest rate is the nominal interest rate adjusted for inï ¬â€šation. †¢ Generally, the nominal interest rate will tend to incorporate inï ¬â€šation expectations. The relationship between interest rates and inï ¬â€šation is given by the Fisher equation: i=r+Ï€ (9) where i is the nominal interest rate, r is the real interest rate and Ï€ is the expected inï ¬â€šation rate. An increase in Ï€ will tend to increase the nominal interest rate. †¢ If the real rate of interest is the same across countries, then the Fisher can be combined with CIP equation: i$ − iY = Ï€U S − Ï€J = F −S S (10) This latter equation says that if real interest rates are the same internationally, then nominal interest rate diï ¬â‚¬erential diï ¬â‚¬er solely by diï ¬â‚¬erences in expected inï ¬â€šation. †¢ Note that relative exchange rate is given by the inï ¬â€šation diï ¬â‚¬erential and assuming that PPP, Fisher equation, and interest rate diï ¬â‚¬erential hold then real interest rates are equalized across countries. The expected exchange rates and the interest rates †¢ The pattern of interest rates over diï ¬â‚¬erent time periods for diï ¬â‚¬erent investment opportunities is known as term structure of interest rates. There are several interest rates. Short run interest rates, long run interest rates, namely 1 month, 3-month, 6-months etc. There are several theories explaining the the structure of interest rates on diï ¬â‚¬erent investment opportunities over time. – Expectations: the long term interest rates tend to equal to the average of short-term rates expected over the holding period. The expected return that will be generated from holding a 10 year bond should be on average be the the sum of holding a series of short term bonds, say 30-day bond rates. – Liquidity premium: Long term investment instruments must incorporate a risk premium since investors prefer short term investments. As the term of 8 holding an instrument rises, the interest rate on that instrument should rise as well. – Preferred Habitat: There exists separate markets for short and long term assets, with interest rates determined by conditions in each market. †¢ Under conditions of freely ï ¬â€šowing capital across countries, the term structures in diï ¬â‚¬erent currencies infer expected exchange rate changes, even if forward exchange markets for these currencies do not exist. †¢ If the term structure lines for two currencies are: – parallel, then exchange rate changes are expected to be constant; – diverging, then the high interest rate currency is expected to depreciate at an increasing rate over time; – converging, then the high-interest rate currency is expected to depreciate at a declining rate relative to the low-interest rate currency.

A Property Valuation Report Commerce Essay

A Property Valuation Report Commerce Essay Introduction In recent years, the real estate market becomes a focal point. Property value may change by the influence of the government, social, economic and environmental forces. Demographys report shows Australian home prices to be little increased in 2011, driven by the slow pace of construction approvals, strong immigration, and an economy that hasnt experienced a recession in nearly two decades. (Business day, 2011)These forces will affect the real estate markets up or down. This task focuses on the property inspection and valuation and specifically discusses a valuation of Burwood Vic. First it describes the external components and internal inspection of the house. Then it analyses what factors would affect the property value. After that, the market valuation approach is undertaken and five recently comparable sales within the local area are provided, with the valuation and details of each house being discussed. There are some opinions and discuses shown by references, graphs, images and R Pdata website finding. Current state of the residential market 1In recent years Melbourne real estate market is more active, with the house price gradually rising in the trend. And key fundamentals are in high demand, which is created by population growth in the city of Melbourne. There is a serious supply and demand imbalance in the Australian residential property market. Melbourne has major problems in meeting demand for new housing and is not building enough apartments and houses currently .Different regions in the Melbourne have different prices. According to Residex, houses grew by 14.3% and units by 12.3% in 2010. And Melbourne is now the second highest priced median housing market in the country behind Sydney. Besides, interest rate rise in 2010, which was influence by the Australian economy, grew well above its trend rate at 0.9% for 2009. (Iron fish, 2010) This incredible result, along with solid employment figures and buoyant business and consumer confidence have all but guaranteed the return of interest rates to a normal level by the end of the year .( Iron fish,2010). On the other hand, the secondhand room trade in Melbourne is very active, with about 65% people in Melbourne renting the private house. The RP Date shows that rent houses price is increasing 35% in the last 3 years. This is why the more investors see the high return in the property and choose to invest in real estate. Local suburban market The Burwood housing market has been increasing between 2002 and 2010 with the median house price around $200,000. At present, the May 2010 median house price is at $250,000 while unit prices average $280,000 (Domain, 2010). Between May 2002 and 2010 the Burwood property market has increased annually on average by 12%, however with the rise of interest rates on mortgage repayments, according to the Real Estate Institute of Victoria, the suburban market is likely to ease as housing becomes less affordable (REIV, 2010). In terms of the local suburban market with reference to the housing market, the property price in Burwoods long term trend is increase for house and units. The median price for house in year 2010 is increasing, but the price for units is going down. (Domain, 2010) 2 Source form: RPData.com.au Factors affecting home value There are major factors affecting the housing value. To sum up, first is the urban employment opportunities. The second is the secondhand market is activated. The third one is the government policies. In this section we will examine particularly how market and government forces affect the houses value. The government force can have a great impact on property value. In the 2010, VIC government increased Built permit license, the number of Home Starter allowance is grow 30 %.( RP Data, 2010). Government policies plan stimulates the economy and property market. Economic forces mainly in the external economic factors are: employment, wages level and occupancy rate. Related to the employment opportunities, higher income means high demand, this is an external factor to affect the house value. And Interest rates are a major component to a property market since high interest rates increase the added expense in borrowing money from banks. On the contrary, low interest tends to drive demand of the property result in an upward trend. In additional, KEY value influence ¼Ã… ¡ Access to workplace, shopping centers and culture facilities Transport Services Quality of schools 3Reputation of the area Residential atmosphere Supply of land Private land use restrictions ( lecture notes, topic 3) About this house- share house, a major influence is firstly, location. House prices most significant influence factor is the location, location can decided how good the most important factor is the traffic. Secondly, it is CBD. Business Centre is to determine the prices for key factor, located in the business centre will determine the house price growth fast. Lastly, its the environment. Including the ecological environment and human and culture environment, economic environment, any environmental conditions will improve property appreciation. Ecological environment is to observe without air and water pollution and so on, if inside the residential area have plenty of green space or garden, this area will fit for live in, and some improvements. Property inspection The physical characteristics of the Johnston property were examined as a result of a visual inspection on the 20th of January, 2011. The external components were first assessed, including boundary dimensions and improvement areas, Site characteristics. Details of the legal description and land, Land Channel report. And a description of the land characteristics, services and planning controls. Then, the inspection of the internal features of the property will be examining, analysis each room covering floors, walls, and condition of the room. External plan of the lands 4The image below is a cadastral map portraying, the propertys location on the street. The map from state government Victoria and google map. Description external Features Site size Encompassing 828 square meters, the Johnston site has two levels of the house. In general, the higher size the site attracts if it has higher utility. Site shape 5The site width measures to be about 17 metres and the length about 40 metres. The sites dimensions also contribute towards the property are the biggest area utility. Site Access The Johnston state has two direct accesses to the propertys appeal. From the highway having one access point, the other point is on the right through the road. The site is easy and continence to get in. Zoning The Johnston property is located in the Residential 2 Zone, and last year, the Victoria government zoned the areas of the distribution, from the city to Vermont south all cover the zone 1, ,that meaning that the site highest and best use in the residential development ,and develop the transport. Topography In this area, where the topography around the site, there are almost houses and several apartments. Due to the wide and height range of the zoning limitations, so the site used the residential house or the two-level units. At the Johnston site, the topography is used for the family housing. Available Utilities The Melbourne government makes the available utilities for the residential house people. Including services: electricity, water, gas, high -speed internet, Drainage and sewerage, security. These services increase the residential development and contribution. Environment The local environment is covering a variety environmental factors, climate, temperature, humidity also influence the environment. Historically the weather is not affect the Johnston site area. The air quality seems to be good, there is no factory near the site, make green by planting trees, landscaping of residential area. Descriptions Internal inspection 6Living comfort and appeal are exemplified in the propertys aesthetics and internal components. There are 3 bedrooms, a living room and 1 bathroom. Its an old brick house with a large backyard. Brief property description Property layout House is located the face south, the front door leads into the entry corridor, in front of the corridor is the bedrooms, entry the hallway, beside the wall is the large walk-in wardrobe, walk through the hallway, on the left is the bathroom and toilet, along the hallway is the laundry room, next the laundry is the kitchen, with the dining room with together in the middle of the house. In the dining room there is the other bedroom here, the entrance to the hallway, there are two bedrooms beside laundry two sides. The back garden is the through the hallway, open the door near the laundry room. Big balconies have been seeing. Downstairs is the garden. Hot/Cold water services Hot/ cold service provide the convince way to the life. Cold and hot water are made available at each water pipe, at kitchen, bathroom, back garden, and laundry room. This provide a help to water condition, using the hose down a garden, its helpful and easy for living. And the cold water can drink directly. Cold water was reused after chemical treatment, it is safe way. Air- conditioning /Heating systems There is the heating and air-conditioning installed in the house. Making a comfortable lifestyle. When temperature is below the specific point, the heating or air-conditioning will automatically start mode. 7 Room Descriptions Main bedroom The main bedroom is a medium-sized room with one large window that overlooks the small front garden and grows flowers and plants. Big wardrobe is inside the wall, double size bed, with wall-to-wall carpeting. Two sides to cover with yellow wallpaper, this room are location is backlight, although in the hot summer, it is still feel comfortable. And a floor lamp and bedstand in the two sides of bed. And has double window curtain. 8 Kitchen Located in the back of the house, the kitchen is with the living room together, the cupboards is made of the solid timber is large to put the whole things, there are two large cupboards the kitchen floor is a tiled floor, it is easy to clean. A large dinning-table and six chairs near the pantry. In addition, on the other side are the refrigerator, oven, and microwave oven. There is a kitchen ventilator in above the stove. The sink and tap are easy to use, there are hot and cold water from the two points, easy way. All things in kitchen have the good conditions. Bedroom * 3 Other bedrooms including: Corner -Big Screen 9-Entry Door -Carpet -Desk -floor lamp -double size bed Walls: -Shelves -double window curtain -shutter -Windows -Wallpaper -wardrobe Bathroom The main bathroom is Skid-free surface -cabinet -bath tub 10-shower bath Shutter ventilating fan Coat hanger Flush toilet Living room The living room is located at the middle of the residence house, there are several large sofas in around the tea table, in front of the table is the TV and DVD table, the other side is the garden, open glass door can directly enter the back garden. In additional, can enter the carport. 11 DETAILED PROPEONRTY VALUATION A property valuation was undertaken for Johnston Street, Burwood on the 20th of January 2011. In this section, the Burwood suburb will be examined to evaluate the current market price for the subject property. Source From the myrpdata.com 12 Subject property 20 Johnston Street Burwood VIC 3125 Property type: house Attributes: 3 bedrooms 1 bathroom 1 Toilet 4 lockup Garages Sale Price:    $478,000 Sale Date:    27/09/03 Local Govt: Burwood Distance To: CBD 18km Highest price paid last 3 years: $1,000,000 Lowest price paid last 3 years: $375,000 Average land size houses: 893 sqm Median Sold Price: $ 750,000 13 Features: Balcony, courtyard, garage, Wardrobe, kitchen, bathroom, living room Situated within close proximity to: 75 tram station (200m), Deakin University (1.4km), Burwood shopping center (2.5km) On the market history for Sale PUB.Date Sale Detail Agency 27/09/03 Normal sale $300,000-$400,000 Barry plant DOHERTY REAL ESTATE 20/09/03 Normal sale $300,000-$400,000 Barry plant DOHERTY REAL ESTATE 06/09/03 Normal sale $300,000-$400,000 Barry plant DOHERTY REAL ESTATE 04/09/03 Action-12:00pm 27/09/03 On site Barry plant DOHERTY REAL ESTATE BLACKBURN Source from Rpdata.com.au 14 Market comparisons The 5 properties below are a selection of sales chosen from the Australian property monitors database -RPdata. They are ranked by their superiority to the subject property and reflect comparable characteristics. They are all located within Burwood. Burwood 3125 26 Brockhoff DR Description Dwelling type: House Bedrooms: 4 Bathroom: 2 Land area: 448sqm Car accommodation: 2 Distance from subject property: Nearest tram station: 2.6km Sale Price: $ 610,000 Sale listed: end 26/08/10 15 Burwood 3125 3 Conservatory DR Description Dwelling type: House Bedrooms: 4 Bathroom: 2 Land area: 425 sqm Car accommodation: 2 Distance from subject property: Nearest train station: 2.4km Sale Price: $560,000 Sale listed: 26/11/ 16 Burwood 3125 41 Leopold st Description Dwelling type: House Bedrooms: 4 Bathroom: 1 Land area: 741 sqm Car accommodation: 1 Distance from subject property: Nearest tram station: 2 km Sale Price: $ 778,000 Sale listed: 05/10/10 17 Burwood 3125 9 Pescott CL Description Dwelling type: House Bedrooms: 4 Bathroom: 2 Land area: 502 sqm Car accommodation: 2 Distance from subject property: Nearest tram station: 2.6 km Sale Price: $ 646,980 Sale list: 08/01/11 18 Burwood 3125 5 Roadway Ct Description Dwelling type: House Bedrooms: 4 Bathroom; 2 Land area: 378sqm Car accommodation: 2 Distance from subject property: Nearest tram station: 1.8 km Sale Price: $ 850,000 Sale date: 25/07/10 19 House price estimate Address: 20 Johnston Street, Burwood Vic 3125 Valuation date: 2011/01 Valuation: $650,000 Valuation range: $600,000-680,000 It is based on the comparability of the sales to the subject property and widens the scope of the valuation. Based on the comparable sales and an evaluation of property markets, the Burwood property value will range between $600,000-$680,000. The valuation is based on current market circumstances so changing market conditions will alter the value of the property. Estimate compared to median price The current estimated market price for this property is $750,000 above the current median house price in Burwood. Conclusion To analysis the above the property, estimate a propertys value is not easy to say increase or decrease, need to consider different forces, such as marketing situation, government policies, economic forces , and environmental change. Melbournes residential property will make another steady start in 2011 and continue to do so in the long term. This assignment focuses on the property situated at 20 Johnston Street, Burwood Victoria where, both Australian and local markets were analyzed, the property was inspected and finally was valued. As always, look at the Comparisons property within the Burwood in Melbourne, real estate value is continuing to be good trend for property investment in the future. 19

Hero Worship Essay -- essays papers

Hero Worship When asked to conjure up descriptions of a hero or heroism, many people would imagine similar scenes. The firefighters pulling a family from a burning building, a soldier saving his platoon from certain death, rescue workers pulling a stranded mountain climber from a precarious ledge, and the Knights of the Round Table saving a damsel in distress, are all examples of the "common" hero. Many people display heroism in everyday life but are rarely recognized either by their peers or by the media. Heroism can be traced back in time as early as mythology has been present. People of that era felt a need to worship super-beings who could solve their problems. Current examples reflecting that age are evident on television today. Both "Hercules" and "Xena: The Warrior Princess" are ever present to save the peasants from the evil and cunning warlords. Mythological heroes had their deeds exaggerated as the stories were passed by word of mouth from person to person. Storytellers have always felt a need to liven up their stories and as they passed them from generation to generation, the stories continued to grow. Everyone knows what heroism is, but describing it can be difficult. Gallantry, valor, bravery, and courage are all traits normally associated with heroism. For the people who risk or sacrifice their own lives in an acts of selflessness, these words are accurate in describing heroism. Few would dispute that a person who pulls another from a burning flipped-over car ready to explode does show heroism. The news media is always looking for acts of heroism as they make for captivating news. Just recently, a fourth grade boy grabbed the wheel of a school bus after it was involved in an accident. Th... ...? There may be several other terms to call these superstars, but to call them heroes or to describe their actions as showing heroism is ridiculous. They may do other deeds away from the sport that could earn them this distinction, but on the playing field it is hard to imagine them rising to the level of a hero. Heroism is shown in many varied situations. The person who can make a split second decision to save someone is no doubt heroic. What does this say about the person who has time to decide a course of action and willingly helps someone? These types of heroes, the dedicated teacher, foster parents, counselors and a myriad of other examples, may show the most heroism of all by choosing to save a life. It is shameful that we do not recognize these people more often and have these stories told by the media and peers. They may be the greatest heroes of all.

Al Capone Essay -- essays research papers

Alphonse "Scar Face" Capone was born in Brooklyn, New York in 1899, to an immigrant family. He was born with type O blood. People supposedly born with O type blood tend to have the drive to succeed in leadership quality. They are strong, certain, and powerful, as will be seen later. However Al Capones leadership was taken to the extreme. (4 Blood Types, 4 Diets Eat Right 4 Your Type) Certainly many Italian immigrants like immigrants of all nationalities, frequently came to the new world with very few assets. Many were peasants escaping lack of opportunity in rural Italy. When they came to America they ended up as laborers, because they could not speak or write English. This was not the case with Capones family. Gabrielle Capone, Alponse’s father was one of 43,000 Italians who arrived in the United States in 1894. He was a barber by trade and could read and write his native language. He was from the village of Castellmare Distabia, sixteen miles south of Naples. (Encyclopedia Of World Crime) Gabrielle who was thirty years old when he arrived in America brought with him his pregnant twenty seven year old wife Teresina, his two year old son Vincenzo and his infant son Raffaele. Along with thousands of other Italians, the Capone family moved to Brooklyn near the Brooklyn navy yard. (Encyclopedia Of World Crime) Gabrielle’s ability to read and write allowed him to get a job in a grocery store, until he was able to open his own barber shop. Teresa in spite of a growing bunch of boys, took in sewing piece work to add to the family helpings. Her third son Salvatore was born in 1895. Her fourth son and first to be born in the new world was born on January 17, 1899. His name was Alponse. The Capones were a quiet, conventional family. Laurence Bellgreen says "The mother†¦ kept to herself". Her husband Don Gabrielle made more of an impression(Blood Letters and Bad Men). Nothing about the Capone family was inherently disturbed. The children and parents were close, there was no apparent mental disability, and no traumatic event. In May of 1906, Gabrielle became an American citizen. Within the family his children would always be known by their Italian names. Shortly after Al was born, Gabrielle moved the family to a better area in an a... ...s sentenced to eleven years in federal prison. He was fined fifty thousand dollars and charged seven thousand six hundred and ninety two dollars for court costs. In addition to two hundred and fifteen thousand plus interest due back on taxes. The six month contempt of court sentence was to be served concurrently. While awaiting results of appeals, Capone was confined to the Cook County jail. Upon denial of appeals, he entered the United States penitentiary at Atlanta, serving his sentence there at Alcatraz. Following his release, he never publicly returned to Chicago. He had become mentally ill. In 1946, his physician and a Baltimore psychiatrist concluded that he had the mentality of a twelve year old child. Capone resided on Palm Island with his wife and immediate family, in a secluded atmosphere, until his death due to a stroke and pneumonia on January 25, 1947. In conclusion, Al Capone was a very strong, powerful, and deadly man which was seen in many of the cases stated. Al Capone influenced people back then and he will continue to influence people forever.

William Blakes The Tyger Essay -- William Blake Tyger Essays

William Blake's The Tyger In â€Å"The Tyger,† William Blake uses meter and rhyme to enhance both the meaning and the rhythm of his piece. The chanting nature is reinforced by frequent end-stop and catalectic endings for the lines. By melding these devices, Blake has managed to create a powerful poem – hidden in the casual style of a nursery rhyme. The meter of â€Å"The Tyger† is mostly trochaic tetrameter (four feet per line; stressed-unstressed). Or trochaic three-and-a-half meter, really – Blake uses a catalectic ending (the dropping of the last unstressed syllable) on every trochaic line. This, along with the insertion of several iambic tetrameter lines, allows every end syllable to be stressed – thus forming a forceful beat to the poem, reminiscent of the tiger’s power. The set beat goes along with the words of the first stanza to create an image of a tiger prowling steadily through the dark forest. Blake uses this chanting, plodding rhythm as an almost musical backdrop for the reading of his poem – where he varies, it simply adds to the harmony. The first instance of iambic tetrameter occurs in the first stanza’s last line. Personally, I think Blake switched meters for that line in order to draw attention to that particular line, and place more emphasis on the first (and pervading) question of the poem. That line is the first to be non-catalectic, and, as a result, seems more complete – which is supported by the meaning of the line. The speaker is wondering what higher power could possibly have created the tiger; in speaking of a higher power, it seems only natural that that line should somehow bigger than the others, and have more weight or emphasis. Blake uses the same idea in the fifth stanza, where both ... ...to folded steel, he personifies the stars, who â€Å"water’d heaven with their tears† – presumably at the beauty and power of the tiger. This lends majesty to both that which brought them to tears – God – and that which received the tears – the tiger. The stars give the reader almost an ‘outside’ perspective on the tiger; Blake uses them in order to show what others feel for its majesty, which reflects into what conclusions the reader will draw about the subject. Through his meter and techniques, Blake well manages to enforce a chanting rhythm and powerful voice. Demanding questions and vivid images belie the simple nature of his end rhyme – which turns out to be not simple at all, but to explore a deep, driving question. (All while alluding to his previous work.) â€Å"The Tyger,† upon close inspection, is shown to both sophisticated and complicated in its methods.

IOM and Nursing Transformation Essay

The Institute of Medicine (IOM) is an American, not-for-profit, non-governmental, unaffiliated, organization created for the sole purpose to serve as an advisor to the government and every sector in society in order to make better informed health care decisions. Established in 1970 the IOM organization has been answering the nation’s most pressing questions about health care over the past 4 decades. October 5, 2010, the IOM in collaboration with The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF), released its recommendations on nursing in the United States. The report entitled, â€Å"The Future of Nursing: Leading Change, Advancing Health† explore the need for health care nursing professionals to evolve and prepare for the dynamic work environment in which they will take part, providing an action-oriented blue print for the health care professional as a guide to practice (Institute of Medicine, 2010). The IOM report continues to have an immense impact on nursing care today, transforming primary practice, education, and the leadership roles of health care provider. Within the IOM report, 4 key messages were provided as follows, 1. Nurses should practice to the full extent of their education and training. 2. Nurses should achieve higher levels of education and training through an improved education system that promotes seamless academic progression. 3. Nurses should be full partners with physicians and other health care professionals in redesigning healthcare in the U.S. 4. Effective workforce planning and policy making require better data collection and an improved information infrastructure (Institute of Medicine, 2010, p. 4). On the grand scale, nursing is by far the largest force in health care, by sheer numbers the impact nurses make in health care is astounding. Nurses are vital to the change and success of health care reform. The IOM cites the Affordable Care Act (ACA), a new law signed into effect March 23, 2010, by President Obama. The ACA allows the public better access to care, stronger Medicare, more affordable coverage, and stronger consumer rights and protections (THE WHITEHOUSE.GOV, n.d.). What The ACA means for nursing practice is, with insurance becoming more readily accessible to the public, it is inevitable that patient loads will increase causing a higher demand for educated and skilled nurses. New rules mandating patients and practitioners meeting face-to-face at the start of care and mandating regular check-ups as preventative care will also increase demand for nurses. To meet this growing need for health care professionals current and prospective providers look to provide motivation. Funding has been made available to nurses as an incentive to pursue advanced degrees and become lifelong learners by creating stricter regulation for continuing education requirements. Employers are becoming extremely cognizant of the growing demand and are willing to provide career assistance, and tuition reimbursement in order to remain competitive in the healthcare industry as well as increase employee retention. Education is vital to achieve the goal of the IOM desiring to increase the number of BSN educated nurses from 50% to 80% by the year 2020(The Forum of Nursing Workforce Centers, 2012). With education, comes responsibility. As part of the vision of the IOM, nurses should become full partners in collaboration and shall become leaders, whether it be formal or informal. Leadership should be integrated in all aspects of nursing, â€Å"from the bedside to the boardroom† (Institute of Medicine, 2010, p. 221). Leaders aren’t just policy makers and managers anymore, they are mentors, teachers and advocates, for their patients as well as each other. As leaders nurses should collaborate with multidisciplinary team members to provide safe and effective care, sharing their knowledge, skills and critical thinking expertise. Being an informal leader also involves mentoring peers and acting as a resource, fostering an environment conducive for growth and success as well as professional development. Addressing the call to action by changing practices to meet the recommendations is vital to the transformation of nursing. To meet this call to action, my first goal is to obtain my Bachelor of Science in nursing degree. Education is the foundation the gives us the ability to grow and thrive in our profession successfully. I challenge myself to continue with my education and going forward continue on the path as a lifelong learner. I vow to seek opportunities available to me to enhance my knowledge and skill base whether it is through my employer, my state required continuing education credits (CEU’s), or a nursing organization such as my membership with the American Association of Critical Care nurses (AACN). I will continue to collaborate with all team members, be an advocate and to be a mentor and a resource to my peers, and promote education and learning through them as well. And finally I will accept this call to action by challenging my other peers and cohorts to do the same. References Institute of Medicine. (2010). The Future of Nursing: Leading Change, Advancing Health. Retrieved from http://books.nap.edu/openbook.php?record_id=12956&page=R1 THE WHITEHOUSE.GOV. (n.d.). http://www.whitehouse.gov/healthreform/healthcare-overview#healthcare-menu The Forum of Nursing Workforce Centers. (2012). http://nursingworkforcecenters.org/Resources/files/StateImpactOfIOMReportOnNursing.pdf

Why Sherlock Holmes Is Just as Original as C. Auguste Dupin

Why Sherlock Holmes is Just as Original as C. Auguste Dupin After reading two famous amateur detective stories by Edgar Allan Poe and two by Arthur Conan Doyle, I found myself questioning the originality of Doyle's stories as compared to Poe's stories. The stories in question are â€Å"The Purloined Letter† and â€Å"Murders in the Rue Morgue† by Poe and â€Å"The Adventure of the Speckled Band† and â€Å"A Scandal in Bohemia† by Doyle. All four of these stories had very exciting story lines and had very interesting mysterious aspects . Since the Poe stories of C.Auguste Dupin were written well before Doyle's stories of Sherlock Holmes, this leads to the question of whether or not Doyle's stories are genuinely original or if much of his stories ideas were copied from Poe. I believe that Doyle's detective stories are just as creative and original as Poe's detective stories. One of the biggest and probably most obvious similarities between the stories is tha t of the plots. In â€Å"The Purloined Letter†, Dupin is contacted by the prefect to help the police retrieve a letter that had been stolen.This letter was of great importance to a certain person and if this letter was released to the public it would reveal things that could ruin that person's reputation. The prefect knows Minister D- stole the letter. He also knows that the letter must to be very close the minister who stole it because the ability to produce the letter when needed is just as important to the minister as actually having it. The police have searched the minister's hotel room and were not able to find the letter.Dupin then goes to the minister's hotel room and easily retrieves the letter because he knows that the minister would hide it in plain sight, since he knew the police would come looking for it. Many of these aspects of Poe's story are repeated in Doyle's A Scandal in Bohemia†. In â€Å"A Scandal in Bohemia† Holmes is confronted by an import ant king to retrieve a letter and a photo of him with his ex lover that proves their relationship. If the photo was released it could hurt his reputation immensely. The king has tried many things to retrieve the letter but was unsuccessful.Holmes then goes to the woman's house and tricks her into revealing the location of the letter by faking a fire thinking that the photo would be the first thing she would grab. Because of these similarities between the two stories by Poe and Doyle it appears that Doyle had copied his ideas from Poe who had written his story years earlier. In â€Å"Murders in the Rue Morgue†, Dupin goes to investigate a murder scene. At this scene there are many clues that would lead one to think it was a human that committed the murder.However, it was difficult to come up with a motive for that person because bags of money were still on the floor and the women that were murdered hardly ever made contact with others which makes it difficult to believe that t here is someone who would want to cause them harm. Dupin goes on to find some more clues that lead him to believe it wasn't a human that committed the crime but a sailors Ourang-Outang. Dupin then gets the sailor to come to his house and gets him to admit that it was his animal that committed the murder.Again these scenarios in Poe's story are very similar to those in Doyle's story â€Å"The Adventure of the Speckled Band†. In â€Å"The Adventure of the Speckled Band†, Holmes is consulted about a very suspicious case. A woman was killed a few years ago and before she died she had said it was the speckled band that killed her. Holmes goes to the house where she was killed to investigate. At first Holmes believes the speckled band was a group of gipsies that would hang out on their property, but after further investigating he had realized it was not gipsies but a speckled snake that the girl's father kept inside the house.Another huge similarity between the two stories t hat would imply Doyle had copied Poe's ideas is the narrator of the story. In â€Å"Murders in the Rue Morgue† and â€Å"A Scandal in Bohemia† the reader is given a lot of information by the narrator about the main character. In both stories the narrator is a close friend who lives with the detective. Also the narrator always tells the reader everything that is going on and he is also a fairly smart person but not as smart as the main character. Holmes and Dupin also have very similar detective methods.Both characters are capable of seeing things that normal people are not. They will put themselves in the suspects shoes and think as they would to discover more clues. When they discover clues they will come up with a hypothesis and then investigate it until it is proven true or more clues are revealed to them causing them to come up with a new hypothesis. They also will never tell the narrator what they are thinking or ask him for advice. They do all of their sleuthing on their own and reveal it to the narrator once they have solved the case.In both â€Å"Murders in the Rue Morgue† and â€Å"The Adventure of the Speckled Band† the detectives inform their partner what they have been thinking all along and how they solved the mystery. Even though there are all these similarities between the Dupin and Holmes stories there are also many differences that give each story their own originality. For example, â€Å"A Scandal in Bohemia† is extremely similar to â€Å"The Purloined Letter† however, at the end Dupin is successful in his endeavour whereas Holmes is not.The ending of a story is always the most important and such a drastic difference between the two stories certainly provides Doyle with a little more originality. In â€Å"Murders in the Rue Morgue† which is very similar to â€Å"The Adventure of the Speckled Band†, Dupin comes up with his hypothesis and he is correct. In â€Å"The Adventure of the Speck led Band† Holmes comes up with his hypothesis but soon realizes that he was incorrect and is forced to come up with a new hypothesis. Dupin gives off the impression that he is the perfect detective that never makes mistakes and Holmes actually makes a mistake.This huge difference between the stories makes Doyle's story very original and not so much of a copy of Poe's story. One noticeably large difference between the Dupin and Holmes stories is that of the background story of the mystery or information as to why the crime happened. In the Dupin stories the plot jumps right to the events that happened and what Dupin does to solve it. For example in â€Å"Murders in the Rue Morgue† Dupin reads about the murder in the paper and then goes to solve it. There is no background information given on the people involved in the murder.In the Holmes stories the reader is given significant amounts of background information to the characters involved in the mystery. For example in â €Å"The Adventure of the Speckled Band† the reader is given much information on the background of the victims in the murder. Being given this information the reader understands more how the victim is feeling and can become more involved in the story. This effect on the reader is something that makes the Doyle stories very original and not an exact copy of Poe's stories.The biggest difference between Dupin and Holmes would have to be their personality. Dupin is described as a loner that sits at home and spends his time thinking whereas Holmes is a very well known person to other people and is also addicted to cocaine. Dupin can be seen as a very serious person where Holmes is more of a quirky and adventurous person. This difference between Holmes and Dupin gives Holmes a much more creative and interesting character than Dupin, implying that Doyle did not rip off Poe's detective character when he was making his own.All of the similarities between Doyle's stories and Poe's stori es would lead one to believe that Sherlock Holmes was just a rip off of Dupin. Since Poe was the first author to write about a detective it seems obvious that other authors would take ideas from his stories just as Doyle did. There was most likely something that Poe had read or experienced that gave him his ideas for Dupin so it is only natural for writers to get their ideas or concepts from other places.However, because of all the original ideas and differences to the Holmes stories I believe that Doyle's detective stories are just as creative as Poe's stories. It is the main ideas of the story such as the outcome or the personality of the main character that are different which causes the stories to actually be much different. For this reason I believe that the Holmes stories are genuinely original and that Arthur Conan Doyle made significant contributions to the detective story.

Killing vs Letting Die

In a paper entitled â€Å"Why Does Removing Machines Count as Passive Euthanasia?† Dr. Patrick D. Hopkins argues that â€Å"the removal of a machine which substitutes for a failed vital organ is equivalent to removing that life-sustaining organ.†( Killing 2004 p. 1). In this scenario, removing a breathing machine such as BiPap that essentially breathes for the patient when they are unable to breathe for themselves, would be tantamount to removing the patient’s lung in order to stop him from breathing. The ground becomes a little shaky if we rely on this theory; the patient or surrogate making decisions for the patient, when confronted with a terminally ill medical situation,   asks that all â€Å"life-support† machines and feeding tubes be removed. Is the doctor or nurse who performs this act of mercy â€Å"killing† the patient, or just removing artificial means of life and â€Å"letting die?†Ã‚   Unlike Dr. Hopkins, I don’t feel tha t â€Å"pulling the plug,† or ceasing life support machines is equal in any way to cutting out a vital organ. I believe â€Å"letting die† is a morally responsible act, while actively â€Å"killing† is quite another matter.Many people make a distinction between passive euthanasia and active euthanasia.   While the AMA maintains that people have a â€Å"right to die with dignity,† and believe it â€Å"morally permissible,† for a physician to allow the death of a person who is suffering unmercifully and has an incurable disease, they are unwilling to â€Å"countenance active euthanasia for a person who is in similar straits, but who has the misfortune not to be suffering from an illness that will result in a speedy death.† (Tooley 2006 p. 1).   Therefore, while a patient might have a terminal illness and be in extreme pain, if the illness is not likely to kill them fairly quickly, euthanasia is not an option, rather they are required to su ffer for a lengthy period of time before receiving assistance in ending their lives.This becomes a very touchy moral issue, with passionate arguments on both sides.   The motives of a person who intentionally kills someone is surely more evil than the motives of a person who lets someone die, most especially if the motives for letting that person die are purely non-selfish and a result of empathy for the person’s pain.   Watching a loved one die slowly and painfully is a hardship on those who love them as well as the person themselves. When a beloved member of your family is begging you to â€Å"let them go,† how can it be morally wrong to grant that wish?In the realm of withholding treatment versus withdrawing treatment, the consensus seems to be that if withholding treatment can be justified, then withdrawing it can be justified by the same criteria. (Jennings 2001 p. 2).   The reality is that while administering treatment that may, in fact, have to be later wi thdrawn buys time in the sense that the physician is able come to a solid prognosis of the patient’s chances for survival, many ethicists feel that it is â€Å"easier to justify not starting treatment.†Ã‚   (Jennings 2001 p. 2).   So, while administering treatment may allow the doctor, patient and family members time to accept the reality of the imminent death of a loved one, doctors are hesitant to administer treatment that they are fairly certain will have to be withdrawn somewhere down the line, and find it easier to let nature take it’s course in the first place.Life sustaining treatments are considered to be: mechanical ventilation, dialysis, cardiopulmonary resuscitation, antibiotics, transfusions, nutrition and hydration.   While most of us are relatively â€Å"okay† with the idea of withdrawing (or not administering in the first place) the mechanical ventilation, dialysis, or performing CPR, we are less okay with the idea of removing a feeding tube and iv’s or not administering antibiotics.We equate these acts in some sense as â€Å"starving† our loved one to death, or making them do without water, and we see this more as torture than assisting an inevitable death. The fact is that dehydration can produce a sedative effect on the brain, making the dying process more tolerable, so essentially it is an issue in our minds rather than one based on reality.   Technically it is all the same; if a person is unable to feed themselves in the traditional way, or drink a glass of water, then feeding tubes and IV’s are artificial means of keeping a person alive. However, if we were to disallow these basic medical care issues, many, many, people who go on to live happy, productive lives, would surely die.The question becomes to what degree are we good with measures to sustain life? Many times â€Å"comfort measures† are determined to be the most solid course, and, in general, family members are much more agreeable to allowing a loved one to die provided they are still administered IV’s, feeding tubes and pain medication.Extraordinary measures may in some cases be determined by the level of technological complexity, yet this can be misleading. â€Å"Certain procedures for providing artificial nutrition and hydration, for example, are technologically rather complex, whereas administering chemotherapy is not.†Ã‚   (Policy 2006 p. 3).   Therefore, we cannot say that administering chemotherapy is a rather simple procedure, therefore only an â€Å"ordinary† means of treatment while the complex artificial nutrition system must then be â€Å"extraordinary.†Ã‚   There must, therefore, be an assessment of the â€Å"benefits and burdens for the patient that each procedure or treatment provides.† (Policy 2006 p. 3).CPR is generally used to restore breathing capabilities to someone whose breathing has been interrupted for whatever reason. Because resuscitati on has no value in the management of terminal diseases, but is rather intended to return a person in a health crisis to a normal healthy state, CPR, while certainly an extraordinary, live-saving measure, is not a factor in a terminally ill patient. Mechanical ventilation may be ethically removed from a terminally ill patient at their request, just as blood transfusions may be refused by the patient who is terminally ill.Tony Bland was a victim of the 1989 Hillsborough disaster when football fans were crushed and 95 people died.   Tony survived but was in a coma that doctors believed he would never emerge from. (Tony Bland 2006 p. 1).   Tony could breathe on his own and all his vital organs functioned normally on his own. He could digest food but could not feed himself, so was put on feeding tubes.Because we don’t consider food and water â€Å"medicine,† but rather basic necessities to stay alive, the feeding tube for Tony Bland could not be considered â€Å"treatm ent,† and because Mr. Bland was not actually dying at the time, his food and fluids would have had to be withdrawn in order for him to die. The courts ordered, after four years of Mr. Bland being in a â€Å"permanent vegetative state,† that the fluids and feeding tubes be removed, and he be allowed to die, a process that took nearly two weeks as well as causing the suffering of his family.   (Tony Bland 2006 p. 2).The issue of medical euthanasia is one that will be debated passionately for many years to come, with ethical arguments on both sides.Works CitedJennings, Bruce (February 2001). Medical Ethics and Clinical Practice. Retrieved onMay 29, 2006 from:http://www.pubmedcentral.gov/articlerender.fcgi?artid=1071269Killing vs. Letting Die (June 13, 2004). Should Removal of Mechanical Life SupportMachine at the Request of a Patient be Considered Killing or Letting the PatientDie? Retrieved May 30, 2006 from:http://www.hsc.usc.edu/~mbernste/ethics.killingvs.lettingdie.h tmlPolicy (2006). Policy on Forgoing Life Sustaining or Death-Prolonging Therapy.Retrieved on May 30, 2006 from:http://www.clevelandclinic.org/bioethics/policies/policyonlifesustaining/ccfcode.htmlTony Bland. (2006). Tony Bland and PVS – Euthanasia. Retrieved June 1, 2006 from:http://www.spucscotland.org/education/students/euthanasia/tonyblandpvs.html.Tooley, Michael (2006). An Irrevelant Consideration: Killing versus Letting Die.Retrieved May 30, 2006 from:http://www.sunysuffolk.edu/pecorip/SCCCWEB/ETEXTS/DeathandDylingTEXT/Tooley

Grape Farms in Jaffna (Sri Lanka)

The dying art of Jaffna â€Å"The next generation is not keen on getting their hands dirty and they dislike hard work. They do not want to take up the field of farming. They prefer being in air conditioned offices or being doctors and lawyers. They have dreams of their own and being a grape farmer is hardly one of them† For thirty long years Sri Lanka was torn apart by a malevolent war between the country’s majority and minority; a war that not only claimed the lives of many, soldiers and civilians alike, but also destroyed much property and dammed the country’s growth in uncountable ways.The whole of Sri Lanka grieved as one at all that was lost but it would not be incorrect to say that it was the north that suffered the most; it affected the education, economy, health, security, agriculture and overall the lives of the people of that part of the island. One trade that was deeply affected in the field of agriculture is grape farming, an industry that was and is carried out at a commercial basis only in the district of Jaffna. It was stated by Mr. Sivakumar, Provincial Director of Agriculture Northern Province, that before the war the district of Jaffna had over 250 acres of grape cultivation.The war brought upon difficulties in marketing the crops which resulted in gradually increasing numbers of farmers leaving the trade as it was no longer profitable. However since the ending of the war and the opening of the A9 road, new marketing prospects have been found and the trade has yet again been taken up and currently is spread over 110 acres in Jaffna. While cultivators who lost their farms during the war have been given the opportunity to revive their lost businesses, new cultivators too are being encouraged to take up the trade by the government said Mr.Sivakumar. The Ministry of Agriculture Northern Province is currently focusing on introducing new varieties of grape fruit to Jaffna farmers in order to harvest better crops. These new varie ties Sonaka and Sharad have been imported from India and are said to produce grape fruit that is larger in size and sweeter than the local grapes. This idea of importing new varieties has been supported by the Central Department of Agriculture which is the agency that gives permission for importing any sort of planting material, and also by the Ministry of Agriculture.The financial support has been given by Cargills food city as it is them who invested in the project. The total project investment has been Rs 222 million and 92. 2 million of this investment has been shared by the USAID. The imported seedlings have already been introduced, distributed and promoted among Jaffna farmers and is currently being cultivated and within another two years the peninsula will have a greater variety of quality grape fruit, noted Mr. U. L. M Haldeen, Secretary of the Ministry of Agriculture Northern Province.Grape crops are harvested twice a year; during the season of March- April and August- Sept ember. These are considered peak periods as it is the dry season during these months and for grape fruit the dry season is considered very important as this is the time that produces the best crops. However certain farmers prune in such a way that they can produce crops even off season. Grape cultivation, compared to other farming industries needs a fair amount of investment and effort to inaugurate and to maintain. To grow a quarter acre farm it costs approximately 150 thousand Rs just to install the pandal system.For the maintaining of such a farm it costs about another 150 thousand Rs stated Mr. Sivakumar. Even though it is a costly trade it brings in enough money to be called a profitable trade. Farmers have reported that a quarter acre farm brings in nearly 200 thousand Rs per season. This good income is one of the main encouraging forces for other cultivators to begin grape farms of their own which in return will increase the overall crops produced by Jaffna which would prove to be healthy for the economy of the district.On a positive note, locally grown grapes are cheaper than the imported ones as a kg of Jaffna grape fruit costs 200 to 300 Rs while the Australian imported grapes cost 600 to 700 Rs. However on the contrary the imported grapes are much larger in size and taste sweeter than the locally grown Israel Blue. Therefore, even now, customers who look for quality are willing to pay more to purchase the imported fruits, which pose a threat to the growth of the local grape fruit farming trade. This is the reason as to why he ministry is trying all possible options to grow grape crops that can compete with the imported ones. As there is already a fairly good market for Jaffna grapes in the southern part of the country it is their hope to widen this market by dominating the imported grape fruit market. As earlier mentioned maintaining a grape farm is both an expensive and difficult venture. Especially to the farmers of the north it is something much more than just a trade, it is a significant part of their lives. They have many beliefs and traditions entwined with the grapevines.It is said by these farmers that growing grapes is in many ways much like raising a child; it requires constant nurturing, caring and attention. There is a manner in which every move should be made: choosing the soil, installing the pandal system, preparing the drainage, watering the farm, fertilizing, and last but not least pruning should all be done in a proper manner to ensure the well being of the grapevines says Mr. Inuvil, a successful grape farmer. The preciseness of this trade makes it appear that grape farming in actuality is more or less an art than just an agricultural trade.Even though the number of farmers stepping into this field is on an increase, according to farmers the future of the industry remains uncertain. It is because of the lack of young farmers who are willing to follow in the footsteps of their precursors. According to Mr. Inu vil â€Å"The next generation is not keen on getting their hands dirty and they dislike hard work. They do not want to take up the field of farming. They prefer being in air conditioned offices or being doctors and lawyers. They have dreams of their own and being a grape farmer is hardly one of them†, and so it seems that the â€Å"like father like son† days are long gone.It is evident that times have changed and that even in a country like Sri Lanka where traditions and culture are a main part of its people’s day to day lives, the younger generation is hardly found being limited by said traditions or cultures. Today’s youth is much more commercialized and they crave ways of earning riches in much easier ways than laboring away in farms and fields under a scorching sun. Another reason for the possible declining of future farmers is the perception that agriculture is an unprofitable or oor industry to be in as this is often the image that is projected by t he media and otherwise, however many successful farmers like Mr. Inuwil would strongly disagree. According to him, it is a matter of willing to be hard working, committed, sacrificial and patient; all traits that he says most of the younger generation lack. Here arouses the question; even though grape farming in the north is at present in a very good state, after the existing generation of farmers is long gone will the industry still survive or will it simply turn into yet another dying art? -Sandarangi Perera

Team DISC Assessment Coursework Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Team DISC Assessment - Coursework Example Team building often involves the bringing together of new teams and giving them a new sense of direction, a period of getting to know their colleagues, as well as recognizing abilities and skills. Team working on the other hand involves the sharing of ideas, supporting one another and being open. It is also important to note that good leadership is essential to any business; it is an important factor for making an organization successful. Leaders are a key human resource in each and every organization (Hersen, 2004). In fact, the importance of leadership in management can never be overemphasized. In order for things to get done by people in the organization, the management must supply leadership in the organization. Team work is especially essential in order for one to realize the organizational goals, and it is the work of the managers to influence the team to work and accomplish through leadership. Further, it is imperative to understand that leadership often aids authority and it must go hand in hand with team work. Pursia’s DISC assessment was an impresser. This was her strongest quality. Being an impresser in the organization is extremely useful (Sugerman, 2011). This is because it helps one charm to the business partners as well as breaks the ice when it comes to meetings within the organization. Further, being an impresser is also important as it helps employees to take greater responsibility when it comes to decision making and also helps team members to take control of the work processes (Avery, 2001). The impresser often helps in improving morale as the employee can be able to effectively gain more authority as well as ownership over the projects that one is working on. With the help of the impresser, she can help with the extra responsibility which can effectively lead to a more rewarding work environment as well as lower turnover. Further, with the impresser working on a team it gives the employees a greater sense of belonging and