Police Brutality on Minorities - 1643 Words

Minority Police Brutality in Major Cities of the United States Since the first state-sponsored police forces in the U.S. racial discrimination in police forces has been a characteristic of the American landscape. Racial profiling and police brutality have their roots in enforcement of slave codes, black codes, and Jim Crow Segregation laws. We Charge Genocide, a petition submitted to the UN by the Civil Rights Congress in 1951, documented thousands of incidents of police violence against African Americans alone. Police brutality against Native Americans has also been a regular of colonial culture in the U.S. as well. Official studies have consistently found that people and communities of color are disproportionately subjected to human†¦show more content†¦Most of the officers have never been sanctioned in any manner whatsoever. While Burge was ultimately fired from the Police Department, he continues to live free and receive a police pension. No other officer involved was terminated, and many were promoted and allowed to retire wi th full pensions. Another example of the use of torture against African Americans by law enforcement officers involves the case of the San Francisco 8. In 1973, John Bowman, Harold Taylor, and Ruben Scott were tortured by the New Orleans Police Department, with the assistance of two San Francisco detectives, Frank McCoy and Edward Erdelatz. The torture, which lasted for several days, included striping the men, blindfolding them, beating them and covering them in blankets soaked in boiling water. The detectives also used electric prods on their genitals.† As a result of the torture, the men confessed and signed pre-written statements. They were then charged with various crimes, including the death of the 1971 death of Sergeant John Young, a San Francisco Police officer. In 1974, a federal court ruled that the statements of the three men were inadmissible because they were obtained through torture.32 Subsequently; a California court dismissed the charges against Bowman, Ta ylor, and Scott. The perpetrators of this torture have never been brought to justice. The two former San Francisco detectives now serve as agents withShow MoreRelatedThe Effects Of Police Brutality On Minority Communities1152 Words   |  5 PagesThe Effects of Police Brutality on Minority Communities Police brutality thrives in the inner city regions where minority communities live and work. Police brutality is a crime punishable by law and is often instigated by law enforcement officers who are either racially biased or prone to authority abuse and violent (re)actions. Allegations abound concerning police brutality with police officers using unnecessary or excessive force, committing battery, conducting illegal body searches and bullyingRead MorePolice Brutality : Minorities Under Attack944 Words   |  4 PagesPolice Brutality: Minorities under attack On April 19, 2015 at approximately 7 a.m., Freddie Grey, a 25-year-old black man from Baltimore, Maryland died by mysterious causes. After being chased down and thrown into a police van by police officers, he was taken out of the van unresponsive and soon, â€Å"...lapsed into a coma, died, was resuscitated, stayed in a coma and on Monday, underwent extensive surgery at Shock Trauma to save his life (Ford, 2015). Michael Brown, Tamir Rice, and Eric Garner areRead MorePolice Brutality And Its Effects On Minority Citizens911 Words   |  4 PagesRecently in the news, Police have been under scrutiny for brutality, especially against minority citizens. There is no question that police officers face an extremely difficult job that puts them in life-threating situations, with split-second decisions that could be the difference of life and death. With the advent of low cost cameras, especially cell phone cameras, police are under constituent scrutiny. Is police brutality really an issue, or is it just an attempt to undermine our police officers? WithRead MoreThe Truth About Police Brutality Against Minorities754 Words   |  4 Pages Police brutality is one of the most serious human rights violations in the United States and it occurs everywhere. The reason why I chose this topic is because police brutality happens all the time in the United States and still remains unrecognized by many. Additionally, the public should be knowledgeable about this topic because of how serious this crime can be and the serious outcomes that police brutality can have on other police officers and the public. The job of police officers is toRead MoreYanna Pasley. Police Brutality Against Minorities. In The1532 Words   |  7 PagesPasley Police Brutality against Minorities In the movie, â€Å"Twelve Years of Slave† there was so much injustice for minorities. America has a come a long way since, slavery and segregation but there is still work to be done, specifically with police brutality. Police brutality is the use of unnecessary excessive force for the police’s purpose. Police brutality has risen over the past years. Ever since the Rodney King incident happened, it began the trend of police brutality against minorities. The majorityRead MoreThe Michael Brown Legacy : Police Brutality And Minority Prosecution Essay1822 Words   |  8 Pages1. Onyemaobim, Ikedi O. â€Å"The Michael Brown Legacy: Police Brutality and Minority Prosecution.† George Mason University Civil Rights Law Journal, vol. 26, Issue 2, pg. 157-182. Academic Search Premier. Web 7 Nov. 2016 This article was basically about the shooting of Michael Brown in Ferguson, MO by a white police officer named, Darren Wilson. The death of Michael Brown led to violent protests which lasted for weeks. Several weeks later, the officer who was responsible for the death of Ferguson teenageRead More Police Brutality: A Minority Group Concern Essay examples1926 Words   |  8 PagesRelations between the police and minority groups are a continuing problem in many multiracial societies. Surveys consistently document racial differences in perceptions of the police, with minorities more likely than whites to harbor negative views. (Weitzer and Tuch, Race and Perceptions of Police Misconduct, 2004) A great deal of society views law enforcement officers as heroic and honorable individuals, whose main purpose is to protect and serve the community. For many officers, thisRead MoreThe Effects Of Police Brutality On The Relationship1243 Words   |  5 Pages Bad Blood: The Effects of Police Brutality on the Relationship Between Minorities and the Police Brandon Seigle June 16, 2017 CRJS 498 NC AT University ..................Column Break..................As children we are taught that not only are police officers our friends, but that their job is to protect and serve our communities. Unfortunately, for many minorities this image is shattered as incident after incident occurs in the streets of their communities. With today’s technology, theseRead MorePolice Brutality Based On Racial Profiling1682 Words   |  7 Pagesothers; violence and brutality against innocent citizens is the key to getting the job done. For years, minorities have fallen victim to police brutality based on racial profiling, stereotypes and other unjustifiable reasons that has cost several innocent lives. The involvement of officers in police brutality against minority social groups causes tainted and negative views on policing and their overall duty to protect, when they are ultimately the aggressors in this case. Police brutality is a violent incidentRead MorePolice Brutality Today s Media1626 Words   |  7 PagesPolice Brutality What do most people think of the topic of police brutality? More than once, images and stories of minorities civil rights being taken away become the topic of conversation. It is heart wrenching to see these videos and hear these stories of police brutality in today’s media. Every day there seems to be another headlining case on the topic of police brutality. Police brutality isn’t just law enforcement officers abusing the power granted to them; however, it is a much larger issue

Brain Damage Free Essays

Essay cover sheet Essay Title: What does the study of brain injury and disease tell us about normal brain functioning? Word count (Excluding title and references section): 829 What does the study of brain injury and disease tell us about normal brain functioning? To understand atypical brain function, it is important to distinguish the expectations for a typical brain function. It is true that many diseases or injuries result in impairments in cognition; as different areas of the brain is designed to control specific cognition and processes. For example the hemispheres are known to control different functions such as language, spatial judgements, reasoning and abstract notions (Martin, 2003). We will write a custom essay sample on Brain Damage or any similar topic only for you Order Now Whilst, the frontal lobe is famous for processing memory, attention, personality, and behaviour (Martin, 2003). Parietal lobe tends to control spatial and sensory information; whereas occipital lobe processes visual stimulus. Language, retrieval of memory and behaviour is administrated through temporal lobe (Martin, 2003). Finally, the limbic system tends to control emotion as well as short term memory (Martin, 2003). Brain damage is the degeneration or abnormal growth of brain cells, which can be the result of outer (injury) or inner (disease) influences. Therefore, in cases of brain disease there are biological and psychological impairment that causes abnormality in the brain such as Alzheimer’s disease, Dementia, Amnesia and Aphasia; which some may be genetically inherited. Brain disease such as Alzheimer’s help us to understand the processes of the central executive function, which assists in producing controlled and flexible responses (Groome, 2006). In Alzheimer’s Disease (AD), this process is replaced by automatic and stereotyped responses; thus, it results in a dysexecutive syndrome (Groome, 2006; Baddely Wilson, 1988). Conditions such as AD, symptoms like amnesia and dementia are known to involve damage to frontal lobes (Groome, 2006); therefore, there are impairments in abstract and conceptual thinking, attention, behaviour and memory. For example, lesions to frontal lobes result in difficulty in retrieving contextual information (Parkin, Walter Hunkin. 1995); thus, when presented with series of items, the frontal lobe patients are likely to remember the item shortly after, however, are not able to specify the order in which they were presented in (Swain, Polkey, Bullock Morris. , 1998). Additionally, patient H. M had part of his medial temporal lobes removed due to his epilepsy; however most of his hippocampus were also removed to reduce seizures (Groome, 2006). Although his condition improved, he developed amnesi a, which affected his short term memory (Groome, 2006). This meant he was no longer able to form new memories due to the lesion made to his hippocampus. Schizophrenia is a psychiatric disorder that results in several cognition impairments such as: deficit in memory and learning, poor abstract thinking and problem solving, difficulty in sustaining attention. Studies suggest that such patients are likely to suffer from dysfunction in areas such as : frontal lobe, temporal lobe, left or right hemisphere and basal ganglia (Blanchard Neale, 1994). Heinrichs Zakzanis (1998) illustrated how schizophrenic patients tend to have impaired verbal memory. Furthermore, injuries or lesions to frontal and temporal lobes of the cerebral cortex can result in language deficiencies, such as Wernicke and Broca’s aphasia (Groome, 2006). For example, patient Phineas Gage suffered an injury to the Broca’s area (damage to frontal lobe), showed inability to produce language, as there was no sentence structure and the language was just string of disjointed words (Fleischman, 2002; Groome, 2006). Gage also showed emotional inbalance, where he was described to have acted out of character and was more aggressive, which was the result of damage to amygdale (Fleischman, 2002; Groome, 2006). Whilst, Wernicke’s aphasia (damage to temporal lobe) results in meaningless production of language; the patient is able to produce sentences but it does not convey information (Groome, 2006). Moreover, studies on blindsight suggest that patients such as DB have no conscious experience of perceived surroundings, however they manage to use the visual information at some other level to guide them through the surrounding world (Groome, 2006). It is believed that this neglect is the result of damage to the contralateral hemisphere. For example patients who have lesions to the right hemisphere have left spatial neglect, thus will fail to notice the left side of space (Groome, 2006). Such studies, highlight that spatial neglect is not a unitary disorder but a cohort of deficits. Thus, it allows us to distinguish between conscious experiences and the ability to respond appropriately to stimulus (Groome, 2006). The brain is a major organ that executes functions and vital processes essential to human activity; for example thinking, memory, language and emotions. The use of brain injuries and diseases, enables us to identify better models to comprehend cognition; as these areas will create a natural lesion in the processing mechanism. Thus, it identifies specific elements that play a major role in cognition. The mentioned studies show specific cognitions can be used to process information in a particular way. To ensure that specific cognitive model is processing properly, it is important to look at the neural activity of that region. Lack of activity in the interested area shows impairment in the model and that region. Therefore, by studying that specific area further, we can highlight its activity and information processing. This will allow us to understand normal functioning of the brain further. However, it is important to note that these theories might not be fully supported. For example, not much is known about the central executive system; thus, the vagueness only allows to corroborate processes that are not fully understood. Therefore it is vital to critically analyse theories before applying them. References Baddeley, AD. Kopelman, MD. , and Wilson, BA. (2004). The Essential Handbook of Memory Disorders for Clinicians. John Wiley Sons, Ltd Blanchard, J. J. Neale, J. M. (1994) The neuropsychological signature of schizophrenia: generalized or differential deficit? American Journal of Psychiatry, 151, 40–48. Fleischman, J. (2002). Phineas Gage: A gruesome but true story about brain science. Boston: Houghton Mifflin. Groome, D. (2006). An introduction to cognitive psychology. Hove: Eng land. Heinrichs, R. W. Zakzanis, K. K. 1998) Neurocognitive deficit in schizophrenia: A quantitative review of the evidence. Neuropsychology, 12, 426–445. Martin, G. N. (2003). Essential biological psychology. London: Arnold. Parkin, AJ. , Walter, BM. , and Hunkin, MM. (1995). Relationships between normal aging frontal lobe function, and memory for temporal spatial information. Neuropsychology, 9, 304-312. Swain, SA. , Polkey, CE. , Bullock, P. Morris, RB. (1998). Recognition memory and memory for order in script-based stories following frontal lobe excisions. Cortex. 34, 25-45. How to cite Brain Damage, Papers

A case study of Adina Apartment Hotel Free-Samples for Students

Question: Complete a report on the site visit undertaken to Adina Queen St on 26th March. Answer: Overview of the Hotel: Adina Apartment Hotel Melbourne is located at 189 Queen Street Melbourne Victoria, Australia 3000. The hotel is an ideal palace as a home base for Melbourne visit. The hotel not only provides facility of rooms and services but also has the facility of conducting boardroom meetings, seminars and functions. An analysis of site visit shall be carried on in this report to understand how the hotel works. Hotel staffing and different departments: The different departments in the Adina Apartment Hotel are: 2.1 Front office: A receptionist is present at the front office that is responsible for taking any booking of the visitors face to face and over the call as well. The person is also responsible for acknowledging any query or information to the visitors (Adinahotels.com 2017). 2.2 Housekeeping: Majority of the staffs belong to the housekeeping department. They are responsible for taking care of the needs of the visitors. Activities like cleaning rooms or delivering food to the visitors are handled by the housekeeping department. 2.4 Human resource department: The managers of the hotel are responsible for taking care of the staffs in the hotel. There is no separate human resource department (Adinahotels.com 2017). 2.5 Accounting department: The hotel also has an accounting department that takes care of the billing and the salary of the staffs as well. Room rate pricing and revenue management: The room rate starts from AU$ 143. The rates of the rooms vary according to the service. In fact in peak time, the rate increases to AU$ 225 as well. The price of the rooms and services are reasonable and is competitive as well. Room Type Rate (AU$) Single 143 Double 180 Mini suit 200 Double suit 225 Revenue management: Occupied revenue rooms 1-4 nights 52 974 5-11 nights 15 469 Occupied rooms 67 1443 Total guests 98 2280 Average daily rate 73% Organisational structure: The General Manager is the head of the organisation. Other people under his supervision are Reservation Manger, Executive Housekeeper, CE Manager and the Maintenance Manager. The Housekeeping Supervisor works under Executive Supervisor (Tfehotels.com 2017). On a separate note, the Assistant Manager hails at top. Under him is the duty Managers and under him are the receptionists and porters. Fig: Organisational Structure of Adina Apartment Hotel Melbourne (Source: Tfehotels.com 2017) The Guest cycle: Pre-arrival: The Guest Cycle suggests the systematic approach of managing the front office operations. The guest cycle include reservation of the hotel rooms that is carried on by direct booking or by the means of reservation over phone calls and online booking (Priskin et al. 2015). Arrival: The porter or the doormen are responsible for carrying the luggage and issuing keys to the visitors. Occupancy: The next stage is the currency exchange where the monetary transaction takes place. The guest account is maintained and details of the mails and information is kept by the team (Priskin et al. 2015). Departure: The last responsibility of the guest cycle is the baggage handling and the bill settlement. The last step of the guest cycle is checking out from the hotel that is carried at the reception area by the complete settlement of monetary exchange and the payment. References: Adinahotels.com 2017 Adina apartment hotels Available at: https://www.adinahotels.com/hotel/melbourne/ [Accessed on: 27-4-2017] Priskin, J., Ponnapureddy, S. and Ohnmacht, T., 2015. Identification of common sustainable hotel attributes and corresponding guest perceived personal benefits. Qualitative research results for the project" Intention to book sustainable hotels: application and extension of the Theory of planned behaviour".ITW Working Paper Series-Institut fr Tourismuswirtschaft, Hochschule Luzern, (1/2015). Tfehotels.com 2017 Adina apartment hotels Available at: https://www.tfehotels.com/brands/adina-apartment-hotels/adina-apartment-hotel-melbourne [Accessed on: 27-4-2017]

Washington DC free essay sample

My bill is the next on the docket. It’s the middle of the day at the JSA convention in Washington D.C.. It’s my turn to say what I think should be done. You’ve done this over and over. You’ve got this. I walk up to the podium and give the speech I have repeated over and over in my head for days. It goes well. I sit down and talk to my friends, one of whom I’ve known for a while and the other I have just met. We hear the con speech next and subsequent speeches by either side. I appear to have support and it should be close. Finally, we take a vote. Apparently the speech didn’t go well. My bill didn’t pass. I ask my partner, who is doing his speech in the House of Representatives section, if it passed in his room. We will write a custom essay sample on Washington DC or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page It didn’t pass there, either. I don’t get to take my bill before the full congress, but that doesn’t mean I’m done with the convention. I still have two days left to listen to the other 800 people talk about what they think is right. I still get to voice my opinion on these issues. I still get the chance to decide whose bills pass and whose don’t. My bill didn’t pass this year, but next year I will be back to try again.

6 Ways to Make ATS Work in Your Favor

6 Ways to Make ATS Work in Your Favor Resume screeners, formally called applicant tracking systems, are dreaded by most job seekers. While these robots make life much easier for the hiring manager who is inundated with applications, they are likely the reason you don’t hear back from many jobs for which you apply. When the human element of resume review is removed, your resume becomes purely technical. The good news? Technical means there is a strict set of guidelines by which ATS scan your resume- a set of guidelines you can follow when building your resume. Check out these 6 ways to make ATS work in your favor.1. Stick to a FormatYou’ve probably heard about the three main resume formats: chronological, functional, and hybrid. Each of these formats highlights a different part of a job applicant’s history. For example, the chronological resume, which is the classic resume format, focuses on work experience. The functional and hybrid resumes take some of the focus off of experience and shine it on val uable skills. Which format is best for ATS? Whichever format puts your work history in the best light.2. Introduce YourselfIt sounds pretty obvious, but forgetting to include your name and contact information on your resume could prevent you from getting your dream job. When an applicant tracking system parses your resume (distributes its information into sections), it includes the contact information so the hiring manager can send you an email or give you a call about an interview. Plus, many hiring managers will search ATS by zip code to find applicants who live in the area. So, include your name, phone number, email address, and full home address including zip code.3. Don’t Leave Out DatesOne way ATS work against the job seeker is when they forget to include dates beside their work experience and education. When your resume is parsed by the ATS, it orders your experience and education based on the dates. If you forget to include a date (month and year), that piece of infor mation could be parsed into the wrong section and never seen by the hiring manager.4. Keep it Visually CleanApplying through an ATS is not the time to use fancy fonts or bold designs. Research has actually shown certain fonts and designs (including columns) to parse incorrectly by ATS. Stick to Times New Roman, without columns, to be sure your font and design is not keeping your resume from being seen. When you get an interview, you can let your personality shine through.5. Customize Your KeywordsThis is a big one. After a resume is parsed by the ATS, it is entered into the database with every other application. The hiring manager can then search the database by keywords or skills. These skills will likely be the same top skills mentioned in the job posting. This means that before you apply for each job, you must customize your resume to be sure it includes all relevant keywords. Look for skills used more than once in the job posting and include them naturally into your resume. Be v ery wary of keyword stuffing when adding them more than once.6. Check Your WorkAll it takes is one letter out of place to make your â€Å"marketing† experience turn to â€Å"maketing† and send your resume to the bottom of the metaphorical ATS pile. Check your spelling and grammar, and then check them both again. Ask a friend to read it over one more time to be sure it is perfect. Run your resume through an optimization scanner like Jobscan to find out what keywords and other information is missing.Applicant tracking systems are a little bit like strangers- they are only scary until you get to know them. In fact, they can become your best friend if you learn to accept their secrets and quirks. The tips above will give you a solid foundation with which to build your ATS relationship.This post was written by James Hu, who is the founder and CEO of Jobscan, a tool that helps job seekers land more interviews by comparing one’s resqume against any job description for keywords and match rate.

Common High School Policies For Recommendation Letters

Common High School Policies For Recommendation Letters SAT / ACT Prep Online Guides and Tips When should you ask for a recommendation letter? Many high schools answer this question for you with an official timeline and procedure for your recletter requests. In addition to school policy, your teachers might also set rules aroundhow and when to ask for letters of rec. This guide will go over the most common recommendation letter guidelines, as well as some not so common ones that you hopefully won’t encounter (like a lottery system!). To start, let’s consider whichguidelines are set on a school-wide basis and which ones fall into the realm of individual teachers. What Do Schools Say About Recommendation Letters? You should receive directions from your school, or more specifically, your guidance or college counseling office, on two mainsteps: When to ask for letters of rec, and What information to give your teachers. Let's first take a look at the three most common guidelines around when to ask for letters. 1. Ask in the Spring of Junior Year Generally, schools with strong college counseling departments have their students ask for letters in the spring of junior year, usually by April or May. This system tends to be part of the school’s culture, so teachers, mainly th grade teachers, expect to get requests then. Asking later is seen as inappropriate and last minute. 2. Ask Within a Month of Your Deadlines Other schools take a more hands off approach and tell students to ask anytime up to three or four weeks before their deadlines. Larger public schools often use this approach, where students are given more independence and a longertime window in which to make their requests. Some students still may ask in junior year or email their teachers over the summer with a promise to follow up with information in the fall. 3. Submit a List of Names to Your Counselor A third, less common system used by a few schools involves some chance. Students give three names of teachers to college counselors, who then assign each student two teachers. Usually smaller private schools with a large percentage of college-going graduates use this method to ease the burden on teachers who get the most requests. Schools with this system are a bit more strict, while, as you read above, others put the responsibility largely in thehands of students. Most schools, however, have similar guidelines about what information to give to your recommenders. This information typically goes into a "brag sheet." Prepare a Brag Sheet In addition to setting rules for when you ask, your counseling department should give you a packet to fill out to help your recommenders. This packet should include space for you to write your college list and deadlines, as well as a formcommonly referred to as a "brag sheet." Here you'll describe yourself and your goals. There may be space for your parents to contribute their ideas, too. Whatever systems your school uses, there are two best practicesto go by when planning your recommendations: ask early, and give your recommenders a detailed resume and brag sheet. Just how early you ask may depend on your school’s policy, as just described, but it may also be influenced by the teachers you plan to ask. Let’s take a look at what teachers control in this process. Some teachers limit the number of rec letters they'll write, so you have to ask them early! What Do Teachers Say About Recommendation Letters? While your school tells you when and how to ask, your teacher decides how many recommendation letters they’ll write for students. Some don’t set a limit at all, while others set a cap at around fifteento twenty letters. It may be disappointing to learn that your teachers limit their letters, but on the bright side it suggests that they put time and thought into each letter they produce. In a few, unfortunate cases, teachers set a very strict limit and don’t seem too eager to write recommendations. One student on College Confidential talked about how his teacher collected everyone’s requests and drew only six â€Å"winners† out of a hat. Luckily, it’s not common for teachers to set a cap this low or to select students arbitrarily. If you have a good relationship with the teacher and make your request early enough, then she should agree to provide you with a letter of rec. At this point, you may be wondering what your school and teachers have to say about recommendation letter guidelines. If you don’t know already, how can you find out? If you don't know your school's rec letter policy, how can you search for clues? How Can You Learn About Recommendation Letter Guidelines? It’s never too early to find out this information, as you want to get your requests in early and devote a good amount of time to preparing your packet. Ideally, your counselors give you this information during college planning presentations. If not, you can absolutely set up an appointment to meet with your counselor. Prepare a list of questions, like when and how you should ask, and go into the meeting prepared so you find out everything you need to know. Your counselors should also have some advice on which teachers have a reputation for writing strong letters, and which ones get flooded with requests. If your counselor hasn’t already given you the details on your teachers, you can speak to older students, as well as your teachers themselves to find out when’s an ideal time to ask. Even if it’s only halfway through the year, you could tell your th grade teacher that you’re curious about recommendation letters and wonder if she has any special deadline for accepting requests. Even if you’re not ready to ask yet, you can plan when to do so. Some of these concerns are obvious requirements, while some are not so immediately apparent. Why’s it important to make sure you know about all recommendation letter guidelines from all involved parties? Guidelines help make sure your recommendation letters get into the system by your application deadlines. Why Do You Need to Know About Recommendation Letter Guidelines? These guidelines influence when you ask, who you ask, and what information you prepare. By figuring this all out early, you can spend a few weeks deciding who to ask and producing your materials. It’s especially important to put time and thought into your resume and brag sheet, as your recommenders will rely on these documents to write their letters. Not only should your recommenders already have a positive impression of you from class, but giving them thorough materials willalso impress them and show them how seriously you’re taking the college application process. As discussed above, some schools require students to ask in junior year while others take a more hands-off approach. Even if your school doesn’t give you a specific deadline, you might consider asking at the end of th grade. That way you’re fresh in your teachers’ minds, plus you can ensure that you won’t lose a spot to other students who were ahead of the game. If you’re unclear about the answers to any of these questions around recommendation letters, you should definitely speak with your counselor and teachers. Make sure you have the information you need to feel empowered through the process of applying to college. What’s Next? Speaking of the steps you need to apply to college, check out this full guideon how to apply to college. It goes over everything you need to know, from choosing the right classes to taking standardized tests to filling out your application forms. For more on planning your recommendation letters, you can learn about how to request your letters here and why exactly these letters are so important to your overall application. Want to improve your SAT score by 160points or your ACT score by 4 points?We've written a guide for each test about the top 5 strategies you must be using to have a shot at improving your score. Download it for free now:

Sydney Harbour Bridge Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Sydney Harbour Bridge - Essay Example In other words, Carl Hooper asserts that there should be a 'depoliticisation' of the Sydney Harbour Bridge and he makes use of the theories of Roland Barthes to explain this depoliticisation, as well as the aura and allure of the Bridge. In the explanation of the bitter conflicts between sectional interests as well as the tensions between public and private, Hooper makes use of the theories of Roland Barthes and the method has been greatly effective. "The explanation of this event is found nor in history nor politics, but in the function of mythology. The celebratory phenomenon enveloping the harbour bridge is similar to that analysed by Roland Barthes. In this explanation the harbour bridge constructed out of concrete, granite and steel acts as a mythic signifier, situated in a particular environment and history. This is its 'sensuous' dimension."2 Therefore, Carl Hooper explains the concept of the 'depoliticisation' of the Sydney Harbour Bridge as well as the aura and allure of the Bridge by the use of the theories of Roland Barthes. The Sydney Harbour Bridge, according t... Thus, Hooper suggests the significance of the mythology concerning the Sydney Harbour Bridge which depoliticises the bridge through the generation of images that conceal or deform the material, historical and political dimensions of the real Sydney Harbour Bridge. Through these images one may imagine that the bridge is something eternal and that it belongs to the natural order of things. Such perceptions make the bridge as something beyond question and beyond politics. Two of the most important vehicles for the bridge mythology are provided by the souvenir histories and the visual arts and Hooper is engaged in a critical reading of the mythology by examining some sample vehicles and he recovers the Sydney Harbour Bridge as a material, historical and political entity. In its planning, construction and continued maintenance, the Sydney Harbour Bridge has been identified as a public work, though the idea of public is limited here. The bridge is also identified as a vampire and as the ci ty as such because it represents the city's interests in relation to other cities. As the symbolic and aesthetic considerations were involved in the design of the characteristic shape of the Sydney Harbour Bridge, it has never been understood in purely utilitarian terms. There were several dangers and issues involved in the construction of the bridge and the estimates of its cost impressed the popular imagination with the specialness and uniqueness. The extraordinary benefits which would flow from the bridge were stressed by the supporters of the task. There were several other factors which contributed to the mythology concerning the bridge. "The spectacle of its construction in the midst of the daily life of the city

The inpact of immigration on the construction industry Essay

The inpact of immigration on the construction industry - Essay Example Immigration will lead to increased population in a country and this leads to an increase in the demand for social amenities and this indirectly affects the construction industry. This paper discusses the effects of immigration workers in the UK who work with the construction industry, the construction industry in the United Kingdom has over 250 thousand firms and the industry employs over 2 million people, the paper analysis the effect of immigrant workers with reference to health, skills, communication and infrastructure. The construction industry in the UK is termed as the biggest industry because it employs over 2 million people, it is also termed as the most risky job because in the past 25 year over 2,500 people have died from accidents in construction work, further there has been reports of many illnesses and injuries caused in the work process. The construction industry has a large number of injuries and illnesses compared to other industries. This is because in the industry the workforce is exposed to more physical activities. The immigrant workers in the UK are mostly from Bulgaria and Romania, these immigrants work in the most dangerous tasks and for this reason they account for more injuries and deaths in the construction industry. The immigrants however have been considered to be beneficial to the economy in that they have reduced the tax burden of the natives. Immigrants have differing cultural and social background and this shapes their attitude and their expectations in the work place. The high levels of injuries and deaths of the immigrants in the workplace can be attributed to the following factors; The immigrants have little or no training regarding safety and health in the workplace, for this reason therefore there is an increased occurrence of injuries and deaths in the construction industry which employs most of these immigrants. The immigrant workers who work in the

Good Research Topic Essay Example for Free

Good Research Topic Essay Many at times choosing an appropriate topic seem like a herculean task as a lot of problem areas may come to mind at the time of choosing the topic. What is more frustrating is being able to settle on a brilliant topic. Choosing the research topic is one of the most critical steps in conducting a successful by all standards. The truth is, the search for a good research topic is a daunting task, especially when researchers are often expected to know how to identify or figure out a good research question by themselves. It also is important for us to keep in mind that an initial topic that we come up with may not be the exact topic which we end up writing about. Research topics are often fluid and dictated more by the students ongoing research rather than by the original chosen topic. Such fluidity is common in research, and should be embraced as one of its many characteristics. The ability to identify and develop a good research topic depends on a number of factors. Fortunately, with every problem, there is always a place at which we can use as a starting point that will hopefully lead us to a desirable solution. The first important factor to consider when selecting or choosing a good research topic is to choose a topic that is of interest to them. The researcher should be able to ask themselves and identify where their interest lies, after all every individual will have at least an interest in one area or another. The fact that students approach their supervisors/ advisors with questions if they are faced with any confusion when conducting their research, the importance of the research advisor also having an interest in the chosen topic cannot be over emphasised. Research supervisors or advisors to a large extent, has a duty to coach, and give critical comments and reviews to the chosen topic. Uri Alon, a theoretical physics major turned systems biology expert (who is now one of the most renowned scientists in his field), per his own experience gave this piece of advice; â€Å"listen to your inner voice. † As he indicated, interest in a research problem is a subjective experience. In most instances, one’s actual interest clashes with the public interest and makes it impossible for the researcher to identify what their actual interest lies in. This however does not mean that pursuing a research of public interest is not a good option; in any case, a good research should be able to benefit the general population as a whole. We must be able to distinguish what we are interest in from other people’s opinion. This is what will inspire us and enable us stay focused throughout our research journey. For instance we can search within our hearts and minds problems in our various communities, industries or even continents which we are passionate about and would wish for these problems to be solved. This will help sieve out the many options from external sources such as the media, and focus on what we are interested in. In effect, if we have a research problem that has been bugging us for quite some time, chances are we have found our true interest to conduct our research on. Another attribute that makes a chosen topic a good one is whether the researcher has the requisite knowledge in their area of interest. It should be noted that doing a literature review enables us to have more insights in our area of interest, narrows down our research focus and directs us to ask more specific questions. In addition, knowing how much knowledge base is available on our chosen field will help us figure out what strategy to adopt in finding data. We can also read some other publications other than the text books and famous business journals available online as well as in print versions to be abreast with our chosen problem area. No matter how much potential our research question has, if we do not have the needed time to conduct our study, it can easily be a wasted effort and disappointment. A researcher can work on a time-feasible research project without having to sacrifice their interest, by breaking down the research problem into several smaller, manageable and more specific questions. It all depends how early they start their research activity. The main point here is for us as researchers to be more realistic about the time available and identify our research question accordingly. In order to ascertain whether an identified problem area must be researched on, it must satisfy primarily three (3) main conditions: i. There should be a perceived difference between what the current situation in the problem area is and what it should have been, all things being equal ii. The reason or reasons for this difference should be ambiguous. If the reason is readily known, then there is no point researching this problem area iii. There should be more that one (1) possible solution to the problem identified. It is very important and of a high significance that one chooses a research topic which is of significance to the current scenario in the society and one’s field of study. One therefore has to select research topics pertaining to business and management practices. Relevance is the key word in this regard. A clear understanding of the assignment will allow the student to focus on other aspects of the process, such as choosing a brilliant topic, which is, identifying the problem area and identifying their target audience. If a possible research topic is not addressing a priority problem, it is not worthwhile researching into it. To avoid duplication, care must be taken to ensure that the chosen topic has not been researched on. If one can find answers to the identified problem in already available, published or unpublished information, or just by using their common sense, then it will not be worthwhile conducting the research on the selected topic. Where it has been established that the problem area has already been researched into, the researcher must investigate whether the most important aspects of the problem area(s) still require some answers or the answers gathered by the predecessor researcher does not address the problem in its entirety. In this case, the same topic could be chosen otherwise the topic should be dropped. One of the most common difficulties in selecting a research topic is focusing on appropriate questions. Initially it might appear that the most exciting, interesting and relevant questions require a 10 year research programme, a team of research assistants and a multi-million research budget! But that isnt actually the case. The question here is, â€Å"how can you make sure that the research project is feasible, manageable and do-able within the normal constraints that he/ she will find themselves in? There are several practical considerations that almost always need to be considered when deciding on the feasibility of a research project. First, the researcher has to think about how long the research will take to accomplish. In addition, the researcher has to question whether there are important ethical constraints that need consideration. Also, one needs to establish whether they can achieve the needed cooperation to take the research project to its successful conclusion. Last and most importantly, the researcher should consider how significant the costs of conducting the research will be. Failure to consider any of these factors can be disastrous to the whole exercise. In general it is advisable for the one conducting the research to choose a topic that has the interest and support of the relevant authorities. This will increase the chance that the results of the study will be implemented. Topics that do not have the support or backing of the decision makers should be avoided as chances are they might never be implemented. In choosing a good research topic, the researcher must also consider the urgency in the needed research results for making a decision or developing interventions. Consideration must be given to which research should be done first and which could be done later. In effect, if the research cannot be done in a timely manner, then it better left not looking into. Topics or problem area that has been identified should be ethically acceptable. The researcher must be mindful of the possibility of their chosen area causing harm to others. We should consider whether there are any relevant ethical issues associated with our chosen area. If we happen to think our research isn’t ethical, we must drop the topic. In relation to the second part of the question which requires us to give five (5) examples of a good research topic and justify why we have chose them are as follow: Why doesn’t the average Ghanaian feel the effect of low inflation in their pockets? There have been impressive stories about declining inflation rates in Ghana in the past few months. The Ghana Statistical Services recently reported that inflation rate has decreased from 15. 2% in December 2003 to 8. 8% in January 2013. But while officials are painting a rather rosy picture of the economy, the average Ghanaian feels very ambivalent about these reported rates for the simple fact that they can hardly see the impact on their everyday cost of living. Economists have debated the seriousness of inflation since time immemorial, yet its economic cost remains ambiguous. It seems no matter the real economic cost of inflation, it does not show a real picture in the cost of living of the average Ghanaian. The confusion surrounding inflation rates in Ghana has to do with measurement problems. There are about three (3) ways of measuring inflation, that is, by the consumer Price Index (CPI), Producer Price Index (PPI) and the Gross National Product (GNP) deflator. The most commonly used index in Ghana is the CPI. Conducting a research on this problem area will inform us whether the CPI way of calculating the inflation rates reflects the actual state of the economy. In addition, we will figure out whether the various consumer products included are realist. The pricing structure of housing units in Ghana, how can it ever be regulated? Compared with other advanced countries, Ghana’s housing industry is at a rudimentary stage. High property prices particularly in the urban centres fuelled by a rapidly growing middle class and an uncontrollable urbanization have turned the housing industry into one of the critical developmental issues facing policy makers. It has been argued that the boom in the housing sector is largely driven by the surge to remittances. Others are of the opinions that the sector has experienced growth mainly because non-resident Ghanaians who have access to low-interest global funds are increasingly investing in the housing sector. If this is the case, then how come houses in Ghana are not affordable? A study into this area to a large extent will reveal the factors driving the pricing of housing units and alternative ways to make houses affordable to the middle class. Women in the corporate management, are they really improving performance? The impact of gender diversity and corporate leadership is not a new phenomenon. Gender diversity within senior management teams has become an increasingly topical issue for three related reasons. First, although the proportion of women at board level generally remains very low, it is changing across the world. Second, government intervention in this area has increased. About seven (7) countries have passed legislation mandating female board representatives to address the issue of fairness and equity. The third and most interesting of the debate around this topic has shifted from an issue equity and fairness to a question of superior performance over their male counterparts. If gender diversity on an entity’s board implies greater profitability then it would make sense to have more women in senior management regardless of government directive. This topic is of interest to a large number of people and as such has a lot literature available on it. It will make a brilliant research topic for these reasons. Are auditors really independent as they are perceived to be? Auditor independence has been termed the cornerstone of the auditing profession, since it is the foundation for the public’s trust in the attest function. However, auditors are faced with pressure to compete among themselves and the likelihood of them not being completely independent has increased overtime that is, staying in business over conforming to ethical requirements. A research in this area will inform us on the actual or perceived independence of auditors and how the business and ethical aspects can be managed. There will be a great literature review on this subject as are result of the Eron scandal in 2011, plus it is of interest to the corporate world. The social network phenomenon, Is it doing more harm than good to our relationships? It is a known fact there are many positives to social media and like everything, there is always a negative to balance the source. As social networks like facebook, twitter, myspace, instagram etc have left positive tracks within our lives; it has also affected us by turning us against one another. Social media whether we like it or not affects our relationships from family, both nuclear and extended, friends, schoolmates, work colleagues, marriages, dating partners, the list goes on and on. The question here is whether the positive effects outweighs the negatives and vice versa. A study in this area will help conclude if social media is worth it after all, on our various relationships. The importance of choosing a good research topic is the primary key to unlocking a successful research exercise. Getting the research question right is an essential, although not always a straightforward step in any research project. Settling on a research question is often difficult to do in isolation, therefore obtaining advice from experts and colleagues, collecting information from the literature and developing an awareness of the context in which the research is likely to be undertaken will all contribute to a successful outcome.

Stonehendge :: Architecture History Art Essays

Stonehendge When you think of Stonehenge, you think of the Ancient Druid Civilization that supposedly built it, this is in fact not true. In this essay, I will show you the building of one of the most amazing art forms in history, as well as give some insight on legend. Certainly the best known of all megalithic sites, Stonehenge stands in isolation on the undulating chalk of Salisbury Plain, west of Amesbury, between the busy A303 and A344 roads. At first sight, this unique and enigmatic site appears smaller than imagined, but the tallest upright stone is 6.7m (22ft) high, with another 2.4m (8ft) below ground. The outermost element of the site is the Avenue that runs straight down a gentle slope for 530m (560yds) into Stonehenge Bottom. The Avenue consists of twin banks about 12m (40ft) apart with internal ditches, and it begins at the entrance to the earthwork enclosure. Here is the Heel Stone, a large upright unworked sarsen (hard sandstone) that lies immediately adjacent to the A344 road. It is worth noting that the nearest source of stones of the size represented by the large sarsens at Stonehenge is on the Marlborough Downs, about 30km (18mi) to the NE. One may only imagine how these stones had been moved; it only seems logical that these stones (the heaviest of which weighs about 45 tons) were transported on some type of sledge. Moving inwards from the Heel Stone is an earthwork enclosure that consists of a ditch and an interior bank, the height of which was calculated by Professor Atkinson as being about 1.8m (6ft). It is known that there were at least two entrances, the one now visible (facing NE) and one to the south. Lying within the entrance is an unworked and now recumbent sarsen stone, stained a rusty red caused by rainwater acting on iron, and known as the Slaughter Stone. Arranged around the inner edge of the earthwork bank were originally four small uprights: the Station Stones, of which two are still visible. Immediately adjacent to the bank is a ring of 56 pits, known as the Aubrey Holes, marked by circular concrete spots. The area between the inner edge of the bank and the outermost stone settings includes at least two further settings of pits: the Y and Z holes. On the central area of the site, there are the stone settings, the sophisticated arrangements that set Stonehenge apart from any other prehistoric monument in Europe.

Eat2Eat Strategy

Eat2Eat. com 27th of November 2012 Strategic Management – Questions 1. What are the key success factors for competing in the online restaurant booking industry ? 2. What are the fundamental aspects of Eat2Eat's strategy ? Which of the 5 generic strategies do you believe Eat2Eat is pursuing ? Has the strategy evolved since the company's conception ? 3. Perform a SWOT analysis for Eat2Eat. 4. What role have strategic alliances played in Eat2Eat's success ? What types of partners are most valuable to Eat2Eat ?Which partners does Eat2Eat have the greatest potential to benefit ? Which partnerships should Eat2Eat focus on forming in the immediate future ? 5. Provide recommendations concerning Eat2Eat's future strategy. 1. What are the key success factors for competing in the online restaurant booking industry? * Quality of restaurants contracted * A large network of restaurants in strategic places * Good interface with relevant criteria (Place, time, ambiance, cuisine price, rating, †¦) * Clever communication * Favorable reputation * Good knowledge of the market Ability to respond quickly to shifting market conditions * Technical capability to make innovative improvements * Fast, accurate, technical assistance * Superior information system * Access to financial capital 2. What are the fundamental aspects of Eat2Eat's strategy? Which of the 5 generic strategies do you believe Eat2Eat is pursuing? Has the strategy evolved since the company's conception? First let’s say that Eat2Eat. com is an internet based restaurant portal, promoting fine dining in Asia pacific region, through twelve cities.The website is a guide to the region’s best restaurants with an online reservation service. The founder of this website believed that there was a value proposition in connecting dinners both corporate and personal with restaurants, with the help of a highly automatic process like the airline bookings, hotel reservations or car rentals. He also believed tha t restaurants could benefit by having a presence on the internet. And we think it is important to precise also that the revenue generated by Eat2Eat is different from other restaurants portal on the internet. 0% of their total revenue came from their commissions on the restaurants (between 7% to 10% of the customer’s bill); 20% of the company total revenue are from banner advertising on the website, and the last 40% came from the preferred arrangements between credit cards companies and restaurants. Whereas most of other portals derive revenues from advertising alone. Therefore one of the major customers for Eat2Eat remains the restaurants’ owners (through the commission and the advertisements), Eat2Eat signed them up as suppliers, but also there can’t be any commission without any bookings. Corporate strategy Looking at Eat2Eat present corporate strategy, it is following a growth strategy and more specifically an internal growth. Eat2Eat strategy is to capitali se on its core competencies, expanding its existing resources. We have the example in the case when the company wants to increase its geographic coverage, launching in Kyoto, Melbourne and Phuket. We can also add that this choice of strategy follows Aggarwal’s desire to conserve full ownership and control on his company. * Generic strategyThe reason why we think Eat2Eat is following a broad differentiation strategy is the augmented services and their high quality. First, let’s say that comparing to other websites Eat2Eat is offering a wealth of supporting information, these extra features include: restaurants reviews, recipes, interviews with leading chief and list of tops establishments in various categories. To propose this service in a more convenient way, the restaurant can be search according to various criteria including location, ambiance and accessibility for disabled diners, smoking preference, cuisine, price range, quality rating and hotel affiliation.The lau nch of the content and the booking function through the WAP system improved also the accessibility of the service for the user. * Leader offensive strategy Eat2Eat can be considered as a leader because comparing to the other Asian pacific portals which are only city specific, Eat2Eat. com is offering regional coverage. Google and Yahoo! , search engines consistently ranked Eat2Eat. com first in search results for Asian restaurant reviews and reservations. And also the Smart Diners Organisation in the United-States has rated Eat2Eat. om as the top restaurant information and reservation site in the world. * A transnational strategy Because Eat2Eat is dealing with cross-country variations in buyer preferences and market conditions, it is very important to notice the differences between those markets (as market observations in exhibit 4) . Eat2Eat employed a combination of global local strategy. Eat2Eat has the same basic competitive strategy in all country market, but it is also able t o develop the capability to customise service offerings in different countries.To illustrate this point, the launch of equivalent sites in Japanese and Korean to cover the restaurants in Tokyo and Seoul is an example of this â€Å"think global, act local† strategy. Focusing on Tokyo again, another example could highlight this strategy: when Japanese corporations were reluctant to encourage their employee to sign up for the service and also because many first-tier restaurants in Japan had their own website but not the technology to support on-line reservations, Eat2Eat. com enabled the reservation for the restaurants’ website. This is clearly an example of a small adjustment for a specific market. Has the strategy evolved since the company conception? In a way, we could say, yes the strategy evolved, because first Eat2Eat was focusing its promotional efforts on corporate customers. It seems at the beginning the best way to reach customers, and this strategy worked well because both the corporation and Eat2Eat were wining (except in Japan as we observed previously, and the cultural adjustment were the first step to an increase in personal dinners booking in Tokyo). The strategy evolution from corporate customers to individual customers probably occurred with the success of the adaptation of Eat2Eat. om for mobile phones for Japanese and Korean customers. In order to reach its potential, Eat2Eat had to do all it can to increase the customer base in the personal market. The partnership with The Asian Wall Street Journal seemed the best way to reach the customer base. And even if the Eat! had little immediate impact on Eat2Eat. com reservations and revenue, it allowed the company to expand its restaurant base in current cities and established the business in new cities. With the same idea to reach more individual customers, Aggarwal thought of an agreement with credit card companies.We can also add that due to the lack of time and resources it may app ear now to Aggarwal’s mind, that an external strategic alliances might be taken into consideration and may be the best way to improve Eat2Eat efficiency. 3. Perform a SWOT Analysis. * * Strengths * Highly rated Eat2Eat. com was the most highly rated Internet based restaurant reservation service covering major cities in the Asia Pacific region. * Airline booking The airline booking is highly automated process. * 12. 000 customers After only five years of operations, the company already has 12. 00 customers from differents countries. Eat2Eat. com covered 823 restaurants in Bangkok, Hong Kong etc. * Team members Vikram Aggarwal hired 1 chief officer, 1 programmer, 2 other people in order to help with the workload. It was a little company, with competent personal and easy to manage. Moreover, the personnel costs should not be high. * Revenues The company makes 40% of total revenues with 7-10% of bill's customer. Then, in 2005, advertisements on the website contributed an addition al 20% of the revenues. * Recognition The company had received considerable recognition.A poll taken by the Smart Diners Organization in the United Staes had rated the company as the top restaurant information and reservation site the world. Moreover, Google and Yahoo ranked Eat2Eat. com first in search results for Asian restaurant reviews and reservations. * On mobile phone In 2004, the company was adapted to make its content and booking function accessible on mobile phones. This added accessibility would significantly extend the company's reach and utilization, considering the high penetrationof mobile phone in the region. * Weaknesses * Enable on certain cities The service became popular but lagged elsewhere.The service had not found greater acceptance in cities like Hong-Kong or Singapore. * Approach customers Vikram Aggarwal approached himself their customers but this technique is much too long. May be he can ask to professionals to make it A SA PLACE. * No time As we have just said before, Vikram Aggarwal had no time to convince all partners. * Second-tier restaurants Eat2Eat. com dealt exclusively for first-tier restaurants, there were moderately expensive or very popular and busy. Because second-tier restaurants did not accpet reservations and therefore were of no to Aggarwal. Resources The company did not have the employees or finanacial resources needed to pursue such a vast market. * Opportunities * Third party The company engaged in another complementary business : negotiated arrangment between credit card companies and restaurants for the benefit of credit card holder This third-party negotiations contributed the remaining 40% of revenues. And a partnership with a single credit card company might expose Eat2Eat. com to millions of new customers. * Discounts He negotiated discounts for corporate customers and commissions for Eat2Eat. Easy to access The website was an easy to access for secretaries and personal assistants. * Corporations Aggarwal fo cused his promotional efforts on corporate customers. Because he thought personal diners were too numerous and consequently, too dificult and expensive to reach. So, this approach would bring more value for Aggarwal efforts and would be the best way to reach customers. Roughly 80% of the companies he approached endorsed the program. * Partners Aggarwal wanted to find partners as hotels, local or regional newspapers and airlines companies. * Investment 0% of the new capital would be spent on public relationss and marketing activites to reach the personal dining market segmetn. And 10% would be spent on a technology upgrade. Only if the company raise $2 million in additional capital. * Threats * Equivalent sites There were other restaurants portals on the Internet, covering Adia Pacific and other regions but Eat2Eat. com was different, in fact the company offered regional coverage compare to competitors which derived revenue from advertising alone. * Languages The original website app eared in English. * Bank LoanEat2Eat had not yet established a profitable track record, so, it would be difficult to obtain bank loan. * Cost of maintenance The cost of maintenance of a website can be more and more expensive * Conclusion The situation of the company is quite good because the company is the most highly rated Internet based restaurant reservation service, and they have a real recognition. Moreover, they can find some partners to improve their service. Perhaps Vikram Aggawal has to be careful about potential new entrants, their resources and he has to find some solutions about his investment to improve his strategy. . What role have strategic alliances played in Eat2Eat's success? What types of partners are most valuable to Eat2Eat? Which partners does Eat2Eat have the greatest potential to benefit? Which partnerships should Eat2Eat focus on forming in the immediate future? * What role have strategic alliances played in Eat2Eat's success? First of all, strategic allian ces are short or long-term partnerships of two or more firms working on a specific project or cooperating in a specific business area. Those alliances can be in form of joint ventures, franchises or licensing agreements, which are the main alliances.Actually, Eat2Eat has made several strategic alliances. First, the core alliances, on which the business model is based, are the alliances made with each restaurant. Indeed, Eat2Eat brings customers to the restaurants and those latters pay a commission to Eat2Eat. Thus, this first type of alliance has played a key role on the revenue of Eat2Eat. Then, the second alliance was one with a regional newspaper : The Asian Wall Street Journal. In the long-run, it had a tremendous impact on Eat2Eat revenue. In addition, the number of the website users increased thanks to the Eat! romotion put in the well-known critics’ pages. Now, Eat2Eat needs a new strategic alliance. Indeed, the issue that Eat2Eat faces is to find a way to get an incre ase in the capital of the company : exactly, US$2 million more than actually. * What types of partners are most valuable to Eat2Eat? One of the most valuable partners would be an Internet company such as Yahoo. Indeed, it would provide the recognition needed for the growth of Eat2Eat. In addition, another valuable partner could be credit card companies. This alliance would allow Eat2Eat to get access to larges customer’s databases.That would have a great impact on the number of the website users. Even if it takes time to create a relationship, those types of companies would have a serious and positive impact on the Eat2Eat success. Then, given that no Internet company was interested in Eat2Eat, they had to think about potential venture. There were two possible types of ventures : venture with capital firms and one with entrepreneurial companies. In the first venture, the companies expect a return around 30% within 5 years, but with a minimum investment whereas in the second o ne, they only want to maximize their profit.Therefore, the most valuable partner between the two options above is the last one : the venture with entrepreneurial companies. Indeed, the main reason is that they have the same business expectation on the investment than Eat2Eat. Furthermore, this latter wants to do a venture with only entrepreneurial companies which cover the entire Asian region. * Which partners does Eat2Eat have the greatest potential to benefit ? Eat2Eat will probably make several partnerships. In fact, Eat2Eat knew that, in order to increase its success, they will need to do some partnerships with firms in other businesses.As an example, Eat2Eat wanted to work with firms such as hotels chains or airlines companies. However, they can continue working with other companies in the sector as themselves. In other words, it could be some other websites, but which cover only limited areas. In addition, we think that Eat2Eat will undoubtedly benefit from local Asian restaur ant website partners. Even if the Asian website partners cover a limited area, they are already implanted in a specific town. * Which partnership should Eat2Eat focus on forming in the immediate future?The current problem of Eat2Eat company is to get recognition. Indeed, this lack of recognition is a crucial issue for the company at the time being. It leads the companies to face problems in the process of making deals such as valuable partnerships with other corporations. Therefore, in the immediate future, Eat2Eat should focus on the partnership with all the Asian restaurant websites. Then, when Eat2Eat had covered enough key towns, their coverage provided from it will give them the credibility to do ventures with some banks.And then, in this way, they will get the database of customer needed to grow. 5. Provide recommendations concerning Eat2Eat's future strategy. Brigitte CISS As we could see, the company Eat2eat has a great concept which pleases a lot of consumers. The idea and the way it is implented is are good, and the only remaining issue, is the recognition. Indeed, Eat2eat has a problem being considered by â€Å"serious† companes such as banks, and trusted by businesses. Therefore, to be more recognized, the company needs to have contacts with big websites such as Yahoo! or Google, to be more available on the Internet, to increase the awareness and the knowledge of people. As the case said, also, Eat2eat has to be in a relationship with credit card companies to facilitate the online payment, and to create joint ventures with such companies. To increase the recognition, the company has to broaden its services to big cities, outside of Asia. Why not ? There are no infrastructures to take care of since it is an online operation, and it might be well known internationally. We would also recommend to the CEO to hire people specially for public relations.Going to every potential partner himself is a long process, and the opportunity cost is quite hi gh, with the amount of time lost. With more people available, the company could bring to her much more clients. After creating a more efficient network, maybe Eat2eat. com should now spend a bit on advertising. A quick ad on the Internet, not for businesses but directly destined to end consumers who are looking for restaurants, would increase the awareness and therefore the profits. On the long run, the company could even try to advertise on television.

Making People to Vote

I believe there are many ways to get people to vote, but I believe the main way is through education. When people are educated on a subject, they know about it and what to do with it. A lot of people are uneducated on voting, so they don't know things, like how to register and where to vote. If we educate the public on voting and the benefits of it, more people would vote. This essay will discuss some of the possible ways of educating the public on voting. One way would be to make an educational commercial aimed towards the younger people in our society. Kind of like what Rock The Vote did, but more informational. My commercial would inform people how to register, how to find out where the voting booth is, along with all the set backs of not voting. I would talk about how you're giving up your freedom by not voting, because you're letting someone else decide who should be in charge. I would also make it very clear that everyone's vote matters! That's another big problem, each individual feels that they can't make a difference, because â€Å"they're only one vote†. I would also talk about the importance of knowing the people running in the elections and what they stand for, because if you're uneducated, you really won't make a difference. This is basically what I would talk about and it would definitely be aimed towards younger people. Another way to get people to vote would be to have a required educational program in high schools, that teaches kids every thing they need to know in order to vote. This would work very well, because it would teach younger people how and why to vote. You could also discuss candidates, how to find out about them, and what they stand for. Another way would be to educate people through fliers and brochures. This would be a lot harder and wouldn't reach as many people, but it would still educate some. A better way would be through a national magazine that talked about the importance of voting and the candidates that are currently running. This would work very well, because you would be educating people and getting them excited to vote. Overall, there are many ways to get people to vote, but I personally believe that voting comes through education. I believe the best way to increase the voting, is to increase the education of it among younger people.

A View on Letter from Birmingham Jail essays

A View on Letter from Birmingham Jail essays A View on Letter from Birmingham Jail Being a letter (correspondence), this article, does not have a title per say, it has come to be known as Letter from Birmingham Jail. In the letter the writer, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. (Dr. King) discusses his views on what was happening in the Civil Rights Movement and why. Dr. King is a credible writer and becomes qualified to write on this topic since he is possibly the best-known leader for the movement for African-American civil rights. Being a leader in this movement Dr. King adds more strength to his letter by being very appealing to authority, establishing credibility, character, and confidence; he gains all this by telling the reader about his position in the Civil Rights Movement. Dr. King has a certain type of philosophy that most people tend to agree with. Dr. King wrote this letter while he was in the Birmingham jail where he was detained after being arrested by the Birmingham police for his part in a demonstration. He was in Birmingham because an affiliate invited to Birmingham to participate in a non-violent direct action program. Dr. King sent this letter to Fellow Clergymen and has since been published in many forms because of the historical impact it holds. Initially directed towards the eight clergymen that had made statements that his present activities were unwise and untimely; Dr. King wrote this letter because he felt the need to defend his actions. This letter is easy for the reader to understand and very clear about the purpose, because of the good use of ethos, pathos, and logos. It appears he was trying to get the readers attention to let them know that he was going to explain his ideas and actions. He is very effective in his use of ethos and logos when explaining his purpose and reasoning for the actions. First, LOGOS is an effective appeal that Dr. King uses in this letter by being logical ...

Causes of American Divorce Essay Example for Free

Causes of American Divorce Essay For the last decade, the issue of American divorce has increased dramatically. A significant change in economical, psychological and emotional mind set could be the explanation of why so many American are ending their relationship in divorce. Issues such as, not having enough financial stability, lack of communication and lack of commitment, in other words infidelity, could provide an explanation to society of why divorce has increased throughout the years. The first cause of divorce may be because of not having enough financial stability from one of the spouses or both. The quote, â€Å"Money is the root of all evil,† may be true, especially when it comes to American marriages. Although, instead, the quote should say â€Å"Money is the root to all reasons marriages fail.† Money may not be the only reason it fails but could be one of the reasons. An example of this could be, if a spouse is paying for necessity based things, such as, bills and food and the other spends too much on things that are useless, this could become a problem, especially when children are involved. Most married couples tend to forget that when they say their marriage vows, there is an important line that pertains to money and that is, â€Å"Til debt do us part.† Relationships sometimes begin and the spouse may not know the financial difficulties one may be having. This could cause a problem when the couples try to buy a house or a car. Frustration could come upon them and eventually end the marriage due to the arguments. However, financial problems might n ot be the only cause of divorce. The second cause of American marriages ending in divorce could be, lack of communication. Most couples tend to stay fairly busy with work or college and don’t get a large amount of time to talk about issues one may be facing with the other, for fear that an argument may happen. However, not talking about the issues could become a problem. For example, the spouse may do something the other doesn’t like and if it keeps happening, the petty problem could cause an outrage to spark and since they were unable to solve the problem before because of lack of communication it could lead to the marriage possibly failing. The quote, â€Å"Love is communication, so the bottom line is; a lack of communication is a lack of love,† could be true for most marriages because not talking could cause separation between the spouses. The third cause of American divorce could be lack of commitment or infidelity. Infidelity is the act of unfaithfulness to a person. This could be the number one cause of marriage failure. For example, a spouse may not be into the sexual arousal game as the other spouse is. This could then lead to the spouse engaging in sexual activity with someone other than the person they married to. Sexual desire is not the only form of infidelity. Lust may be consider as adultery as well. A spouse may begin to have fantasies of being with someone else or an intense desire of love toward a person. To conclude, the three possible reasons American marriages fail could be because of financial issues, lack of communication and lack of commitment or infidelity. The numbers are becoming dramatically alarming. To stop this problem from happening marriages should build their relationship on a strong foundation and beware of rushing into things before talking about. Communication should be an important matter in any relationship. Causes of American Divorce. (2017, Feb 08).

Queer Theory Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Queer Theory - Essay Example Queer Theory presumes that sexual characteristics that are a function of representations. It assumes that representations pre-exist and define, as well as complicate and disrupt sexual identities. Queer theory results in an effort to speak from and to the differences and silences that have been suppressed by the homo-hetero binary, an effort to unpack the monolithic identities 'lesbian' and 'gay' including the intricate ways lesbian and gay sexualities are inflected by heterosexuality, race, gender and ethnicity.' Queer theory allows us to examine Western culture and problematize its approach to attributing everyone to not only certain behaviour's but identities and its tendency to label, box and categorise. Queer theory also seeks to not only break down gender roles, sexual order and dichotomies but break down the very thoughts around sexuality in regard to biology and reproduction. Much discussion in queer theory has been cantered on the issue of spectatorship. In her frequently quoted and highly influential essay 'Visual Pleasure and Narrative Cinema,' Laura Mulvey (1975) described how dominant cinema codes have been constructed by a patriarchal system of looking and the desire to obtain and consume. The gaze championed by Mulvey (p.11) is assumed to be male, white and heterosexual, and therefore endowed with the power and privilege enjoyed by white and heterosexual men in a patriarchal society. In essence, she contends that in a classic narrative film, the subject of the narrative and the gaze, is male; woman functions as spectacle, the object of the gaze. In terms of spectatorship, the viewer is split between these two positions - the male subject and the female object of the gaze. Hence, being the spectator - identifying with the subject of the narrative and the gaze, presents a difficulty for female viewers (Mulvey, p.11). However, when Mulvey penned this article, she seemed to have neglected the presence of queer audience; her account of the sexual hierarchy of narrative cinema has been challenged by many critics who have insisted that identification can also occur across gender and sexual demarcations (Smyth, 1995, p.125) As Doty (p.151) argues, all texts are open to multiple interpretations; queer readings of texts are not alternative or sub-cultural readings, but readings to position side by side to normatively straight readings. "Boys Don't Cry" is arguable the earliest mainstream movie that is based on a real life story, to scrutinize the female to male transvestism. The 'gender as performance' notion is explicitly depicted in Boys Don't Cry; in the opening sequence, Brandon (Hilary Swank) is seen grooming and gearing up for her date. The idea of performance in this sequence seem to have a dual connotation, besides performance as in portraying a male role, I see performance here also as theatrical presentation where the socks for her crotch and the cowboy hat are seen as her props, and her cousin Lonny (Matt McGrath), and spectators of the film are the audience. Further into the film, when admiring Brandon's facial features, Lana (Chloe Sevigny)'s mum (Jeannetta Arnette) commented that Brandon looks like 'like a movie star', further emphasizing the performative nature of her gender to the

Performance Management Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 2

Performance Management - Essay Example The employees who are in lower levels than the management are disregarded. The management failed to comply with giving proper employee compensation and proper performance evaluation systems. The effort of achieving low operating expenses is often found the main reason why management is giving low compensation rate. The management's pay rate is set based on two other law firms: Melbourne-based and Sydney-based law firms. This type of political system is not good since it tries to limit the pay rate at some level, which in our study is of equal rate. This type of management is biased since it eliminates the employees' right in situations where pay rate is inversely proportional with its job functions. On the management's part it will only sound effective if the agreements between firms are followed. But the case was not, the management failed to climb up to the rate level imposed by the other two firms which led them behind in the competing market. The power to dictate market activitie s is unethical in nature. The fact that these market levels are set by business owners giving less consideration to the employees' part showed management's overuse of authority. 2-Within the case study organization, how should performance management be integrated with other management activities One of the main issues confronting management is employee management. Employees are often disregarded by some organization despite the fact that they are playing a very crucial role in the organization in achieving its goals. Employees are considered as one of the primary resources of any organization. Successful Human Resource Management is giving value to developing and motivating employees to cooperate towards achieving productive outputs. To motivate employees is to give them due respect, give them proper compensation, and maintain employment equality by avoiding discrimination in terms of rank and gender. In our case study, there are problems that the management needs to address: Equal employment opportunity, compensation, recruitment and retention. All of these are the main functions of HR department, and are all affected by systems of performance management. Performance management should be integrated with other management activities since though these activities differ from e ach other in lots of ways, but the bottom line is still the same. These are all directed towards high productivity rate, cutting down operational expenses, and maintaining competitive advantage. As stated, the firm is dominated mostly by males. In the issue of equal employment opportunity, it is biased to give female employees lowly levels in the organization. In the issue of recruitment, selection, and retention of employees, the management should consider the value of hiring employees that fits the qualifications needed for any vacant positions. The picture of a male dominated organization should be wiped out. Every individual should be given equal employment opportunity regardless of gender, age or disabilities as long as he/she is found effective and qualified for any position being applied. Employee selection system should be clear on the viewpoint of any organization to encourage new applicants, and existing employees could clearly see that the organization treats all employee s equally and considers them valuable. The compensation system of the firm is not effective. The procedure of how the compensation system work should be clear at the viewpoint of the employees. Performance appraisal is playing a very important role in determining the proper compensatio

Turbochargers to be used in commercial two wheelers Essay - 1

Turbochargers to be used in commercial two wheelers - Essay Example The first turbocharger was invented in the early 20th century by the ‘Swiss engineer Alfred Buchi’ who introduced a prototype in order to increase the power of a diesel engine. At the initial stage, turbocharger was meant to be used on airplanes which could use thinner air and fly at higher altitudes and to be used to deliver ample power for stable flight. In the engineering world turbochargers was in much attention as World War I brought the increased need for the aviation technology. The concept of turbocharging in those days was very little accepted. But, in the last few years, turbocharging has been a vital product in almost every diesel engine, with an exception being very small diesel engines. Turbochargers use in the petrol engines have also shown good boost for the power output. The first turbochargers were applicable limited to large engines such as marine engine. In the automobile industry turbocharging was firstly implemented into truck engines. In 1938, ‘Swiss Machine Works Saurer’ built turbocharged engine for trucks. In 1962, the Chevrolet Corvair Monza was the first turbo powered engine car which was introduced in United States. Poor efficiency and reliability made them to disappear from the market. In 1973, after the oil crisis step in, turbocharging was again found be acceptable in the diesel engine applications resulting an increase in the turbocharged truck engines. As a result today every engine of the truck is turbocharged. After few years, turbochargers were introduced in the motor sports mainly into Formula 1 racing. The word ‘turbo’ started to become quite popular. In those days, almost every manufacturer of automobiles implemented turbocharging in at least one of their top model with a turbocharged petrol engines. Although this engines were very powerful it still did not made an impression to take a further step because of the more fuel consumption and more importantly the delayed response named as ‘turbo lag’ was

Cognitive Therapy for Mood Disorders: Analysis

Cognitive Therapy for Mood Disorders: Analysis Cognitive therapy is a highly effective treatment for mood disorders. Discuss. As Karasu noted in 1982, there has historically been a polarization of the field of treatment of all psychological conditions; on the one hand, there is a camp which touts psychotherapy as the most effective and superior form of treatment, and on the other, there are those who champion the cause of pharmacotherapy as the most effective treatment.[1] In Karasu’s words, this separation between the two disciplines is likely to be â€Å"symptomatic of the post-Cartesian mind-body dichotomy at the core of modern medicine.† Statements about the effectiveness of the one or the other, which is often held to be thus the superior of the two, should be viewed through this lens. Before we can address the question of whether or not cognitive therapy is a highly effective treatment for mood disorders, we need to be clear about what we mean by â€Å"cognitive therapy† and â€Å"mood disorders†. Mood disorders are typically taken to cover a range of depressive disorders which include both unipolar depression and bipolar disorder, and which might range from full-blown major depression through to the display of some depressive symptoms. According to Blackburn et al., citing Beck’s (1967, 1976) cognitive theory of depression, someone who is depressed will view themselves as a â€Å"loser† and will interpret all their experiences in terms of their own inadequacies. They will anticipate that their present difficulties will continue indefinitely and, blaming themselves, they will become increasingly self-critical. As well as this negative view of the self, the world and the future, they will also make â€Å"logical systematic errors†, which will lead them to draw erroneous conclusions about their experiences. Such errors might include personalization, over-generalization, magnification and minimization. They will also have â€Å"dysfunctional basic premises† or â€Å"idiosyncratic schemas†, which help them to sieve, categorize and act upon information that they receive from their experiences of the world around them..[2] The aim of cognitive therapy is to change these negative schemas through the use of a variety of cognitive and behavioural techniques. The approach is problem-oriented and time-limited, typically lasting about 12 weeks.[1] The most frequently reported forms of cognitive therapy in the literature are cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) and interpersonal therapy (IPT). Other techniques include psychoeducation, psychodynamic focal therapies and mindfulness-based cognitive therapy (MBCT). Throughout this paper, the terms cognitive therapy and psychotherapy are used interchangeably. Among these different cognitive therapy techniques, CBT is the one most often considered in the literature, and it is widely reported to be effective, but how do we decide if something is highly effective or not? To decide how effective a treatment is, we need to consider the available evidence. What follows is not a full and systematic review of the literature, which is beyond the scope of this paper, but rather, a look at some of the available evidence to date on the subject and an outline of the key issues. In it, I propose that the evidence for the effectiveness of cognitive therapy as a treatment for depression is not unequivocal and that a more integrated approach would be more beneficial. Writing in 1981, Blackburn et al. cite a study by Rush et al. (1977), which was one of the earlier studies comparing cognitive therapy and pharmacotherapy, and which showed that cognitive therapy was superior to the drug imipramine in outpatients with unipolar depression in both level of response and rate of premature treatment termination.[2] They attempted to replicate that study, but comparing a range of drugs with cognitive therapy, rather than just imipramine, and they also tested a combination of both cognitive therapy and pharmacotherapy. They found cognitive therapy to be only minimally more effective than the drugs in a group of mildly to moderately depressed hospital outpatients, but significantly more so than drugs alone in general practice, both alone and in combination with drugs. In both groups, using a combination of cognitive therapy and pharmacotherapy produced the greatest effect of all.[1] However, as the researchers do note, they used no objective method to assess patients’ compliance with the pharmacotherapy regimen.[2] In their study of cognitive behaviour therapy (CBT) and assertion training (AT) groups for patients with depression and comorbid personality disorders, Ball et al. found CBT alone to produce a significant improvement in all the outcomes measured, including at follow-up.[3] However, the group that received a combination of CBT and AT showed only minimal improvement on the social competence and anxiety measures[4], and only two of the four measures that were significant immediately after the treatment were still significant at follow-up.[5] In short, the presence of a comorbid personality disorder appeared to impede the response to CBT and AT and the outcomes at follow-up.[6] Since depressed patients have high rates of comorbid personality disorders[7], these results have significant implications for the use of cognitive therapy in combination with other forms of non-pharmacotherapy for the treatment of depression. The use of a much briefer CBT protocol in this study (15 hours over five weeks), which as Ball et al. note is about half that in most studies in the CBT outcomes literature, should be noted. If briefer protocols like this can produce appreciable long-term improvements in the prognosis of depression, then this is likely to be more cost-effective than the longer protocols typically employed.[8] However, since the study was uncontrolled, there may well be other explanations for the results. Clearly more studies, particularly randomised controlled trials (RCTs), of cognitive therapy in this under-researched group are needed. In their recent review of psychotherapy and pharmacotherapy treatments for mood and anxiety disorders, Otto et al. noted that in terms of acute outcomes, both CBT and pharmacological treatments have repeatedly been shown to be efficacious and in most cases to offer an approximately equal effect, though there are some suggestions that CBT is more tolerable and especially more cost-effective.[1] CBT has, however, consistently shown a strong relapse-prevention effect, in direct contrast to pharmacotherapy, which often requires ongoing treatment to prevent relapse.[2] It has been suggested that pharmacotherapy and cognitive therapy have differential effects, the former on symptom formation and affective distress, and the latter on interpersonal relations and social adjustment, each activated and sustained on a different time schedule, the pharmacological treatments sooner and over a shorter duration and the psychotherapeutic treatments later and over a longer duration.[3] There is some evidence that CBT and pharmacotherapy may produce similar limbic and cortical changes in the brain, but also that they target different primary sites.[4] There is, moreover, some evidence of complementary modes of action among patients who fail on one form of treatment but gain benefit from the other.[5] Such complementarity favours a more integrated approach to the treatment of depression that combines the beneficial effects of both pharmacotherapy and cognitive therapy, but is there any evidence that such an approach does indeed work? In their 1986 review of the evidence for the effectiveness of combined psychotherapy and pharmacotherapy for the treatment of depression, Conte et al. found a combination of the two approaches to be more effective than either of the treatments alone, though the apparently additive effect was not a strong one. Conte et al. highlight a number of possible explanations for the observed effect, including the high drop-out rates in the studies they considered, making generalization difficult, the differential response to pharmacotherapy or psychotherapy dependent on whether the diagnosis was endogenous or situational, questions about whether it is either ethical or even practically possible to have a placebo in psychotherapy trials, and the low power of their own overall approach to their review.[1] Conte et al. also suggest that whilst their results might support the additive model, they might also be explained if some patients benefit more from one treatment and some more from the other. [2] The non-standard nature of diagnoses, therapies, training and experience of therapists also makes comparisons and generalizations difficult, if not impossible.[3],[4] In 1997, Thase et al. suggested that their mega-analysis comparing psychotherapy with psychotherapy-pharmacotherapy combinations provided evidence of the superiority of a combination of psychotherapy and pharmacotherapy over psychotherapy alone for the more severely-depressed outpatients, both in terms of overall recovery rates and a shorter time to recovery.[5] However, none of the patients older than 60 received psychotherapy and none with non-recurrent depression were in the combination group.[6] The less seriously depressed patients treated with interpersonal therapy (IPT) or CBT alone achieved results comparable to those in the combination group.[7] As it is, this evidence for the effectiveness of a combined approach is ambiguous. There are further problems with this study, though. Comorbid patients were excluded[8] – and as has been noted earlier, comorbidity is typically associated with poorer outcomes – and a disproportionately large number of the patients had recurrent depression, so if the combination of psychotherapy and pharmacotherapy is more effective in this sub-group, this will lend a skew to the picture suggesting effectiveness in all severely-depressed patients.[9] Finally, inasmuch as this is a mega-analysis, the non-standard nature of diagnoses, therapies, training and experience of therapists highlighted earlier makes generalizations very difficult, a problem noted by the authors of this study also.[1] In their 2004 review, Pampallona et al. concluded that a combination of pharmacotherapy and psychotherapy produced a greater improvement in depression scores than pharmacotherapy alone.[2] Pampallona et al. note that the addition of psychotherapy does appear to reduce the degree of non-response and increase adherence, but they question whether this is because psychotherapy has a genuine therapeutic effect or whether it is merely enhancing compliance with the pharmacological regimen, and suggest further studies with an improved range of outcome measures, including patient satisfaction, well-being and social functioning.[3] In their 2005 review, however, Otto et al. found that acute outcome studies with depressed outpatients provided only limited support for the theory that a combination of pharmacotherapy and psychotherapy is more efficacious than either approach alone. They did find higher rates of treatment response, but the differences were small and not statistically significant.[4] Adding psychotherapy to the acute phase of a pharmacological treatment regimen was found to offer a comparable efficacy to a long-term pharmacological regimen in helping to prevent more than one relapse.[5] Otto et al. did find that adding CBT to a pharmacological course of treatment improved medication adherence, reduced the impact of psychosocial stressors such as negative life events and anxiety comorbidity, prevented or limited the severity of prodromal episodes, and directly improved outcomes in bipolar disorder.[6] The evidence, then, for the effectiveness of cognitive therapy as a treatment for depression is not unequivocal. It does appear to improve outcomes, but it is unclear whether to a greater or approximately equivalent extent to pharmacological approaches to treatment. Whilst the evidence for adopting a combined approach is also not clear-cut, since the vast majority of people with depression experience multiple episodes over their lifetime, and are especially prone to relapses shortly after their first episode[1], and in light of both the possibly complementary mode of action of cognitive therapy and pharmacotherapy and the possibly harmful effects of long-term anti-depressant use, a more effective long-term strategy might involve the integration of both approaches. This might involve a drugs-based regimen in the earlier stages of depression, to treat symptoms and affective distress, and cognitive therapy throughout, to treat the interpersonal and social dimensions of depression, enhan ce compliance to the drugs-based regimen and treat and prevent relapses. Vos et al. modeled the impact of adopting a longer-term maintenance strategy on the burden of major depression, and suggested that this could avert half the depression occurring in the five years after an episode.[2] A combined strategy would appear therefore to show some promise in reducing the quite significant disease burden placed by depression on society and improving the lives of those who suffer from it. Further robust controlled trials are clearly needed to assess the effectiveness of cognitive therapy, both alone and in combination with pharmacotherapy, as a part of an integrated long-term strategy. References Ball, J., Kearney, B., Wilhelm, K., Dewhurst-Savellis, J. Barton, B. (2000) ‘Cognitive behaviour therapy and assertion training groups for patients with depression and comorbid personality disorders’, Behavioural and Cognitive Psychotherapy 28, 1, 71-85 Blackburn, I. M., Bishop, S., Glen, A. I. M., Whalley, L. J. Christie, J. E. (1981) ‘The Efficacy of Cognitive Therapy in Depression: A Treatment Trial Using Cognitive Therapy and Pharmacotherapy, each Alone and in Combination’, Brit J Psychiatry 139, 181-189 Conte, H., Plutchik, R., Wild, K. V. Karasu, T. (1986) ‘Combined Psychotherapy and Pharmacotherapy for Depression: A Systematic Analysis of the Evidence’, Arch Gen Psychiatry 43, 471-479 Karasu, T. (1982) ‘Psychotherapy and Pharmacotherapy: Toward an Integrative Model’, Am J Psychiatry 139, 9, 1102-1113 Klein, D. F. (2000) ‘Flawed Meta-Analyses Comparing Psychotherapy with Pharmacotherapy’, Am J Psychiatr 157, 1204-1211 Otto, M. W., Smits, J. A. J. Reese, H. E. (2005) ‘Combined psychotherapy and pharmacotherapy for mood and anxiety disorders in adults: Review and analysis’, Clinical Psychology: Science and Practice 12, 1, 72-86 Pampallona, S., Bollini, P., Tibaldi, G., Kupelnick, B. Munizza, C. (2004) ‘Combined Pharmacotherapy and Psychological Treatment for Depression: A Systematic Review’, Arch Gen Psychiatry 61, 7, 714-719 Thase, M. E., Greenhouse, J. B., Frank, E., Reynolds, C. F., Pilkonis, P., Hurley, K., Grochocinski, V. Kupfer, D. J. (1997) ‘Treatment of Major Depression With Psychotherapy or Psychotherapy-Pharmacotherapy Combinations’, Arch Gen Psychiatry 54, 1009-1015 Vos, T., Haby, M., Barendregt, J. J., Kruijshaar, M., Corry, J. Andrews, G. (2004) ‘The Burden of Major Depression Avoidable by Longer-term Treatment Strategies’, Arch Gen Psychiatry 61, 11, 1097-1103 1 Footnotes [1] Karasu, T. (1982) ‘Psychotherapy and Pharmacotherapy: Toward an Integrative Model’, Am J Psychiatry 139, 9, 1102 [2] Blackburn, I. M., Bishop, S., Glen, A. I. M., Whalley, L. J. Christie, J. E. (1981) ‘The Efficacy of Cognitive Therapy in Depression: A Treatment Trial Using Cognitive Therapy and Pharmacotherapy, each Alone and in Combination’, Brit J Psychiatry 139, 181 [1] Blackburn, I. M., Bishop, S., Glen, A. I. M., Whalley, L. J. Christie, J. E. (1981) ‘The Efficacy of Cognitive Therapy in Depression: A Treatment Trial Using Cognitive Therapy and Pharmacotherapy, each Alone and in Combination’, Brit J Psychiatry 139, 181 [2] Blackburn et al., 182 [1] Blackburn, I. M., Bishop, S., Glen, A. I. M., Whalley, L. J. Christie, J. E. (1981) ‘The Efficacy of Cognitive Therapy in Depression: A Treatment Trial Using Cognitive Therapy and Pharmacotherapy, each Alone and in Combination’, Brit J Psychiatry 139, 188 [2] Blackburn et al., 188 [3] Ball, J., Kearney, B., Wilhelm, K., Dewhurst-Savellis, J. Barton, B. (2000) ‘Cognitive behaviour therapy and assertion training groups for patients with depression and comorbid personality disorders’, Behavioural and Cognitive Psychotherapy 28, 1, 77 [4] Ball et al., 80 [5] Ball et al., 81 [6] Ball et al., 82 [7] Ball et al., 73 [8] Ball et al., 81,82 [1] Otto, M. W., Smits, J. A. J. Reese, H. E. (2005) ‘Combined psychotherapy and pharmacotherapy for mood and anxiety disorders in adults: Review and analysis’, Clinical Psychology: Science and Practice 12, 1, 73 [2] Otto et al., 73 [3] Karasu, T. (1982) ‘Psychotherapy and Pharmacotherapy: Toward an Integrative Model’, Am J Psychiatry 139, 9, 1111 [4] Otto et al., 74 [5] Otto et al., 74-75 [1] Conte, H., Plutchik, R., Wild, K. V. Karasu, T. (1986) ‘Combined Psychotherapy and Pharmacotherapy for Depression: A Systematic Analysis of the Evidence’, Arch Gen Psychiatry 43, 477-478 [2] Conte et al., 478 [3] Conte et al., 478 [4] Klein, D. F. (2000) ‘Flawed Meta-Analyses Comparing Psychotherapy with Pharmacotherapy’, Am J Psychiatr 157, 1204 [5] Thase, M. E., Greenhouse, J. B., Frank, E., Reynolds, C. F., Pilkonis, P., Hurley, K., Grochocinski, V. Kupfer, D. J. (1997) ‘Treatment of Major Depression With Psychotherapy or Psychotherapy-Pharmacotherapy Combinations’, Arch Gen Psychiatry 54, 1012-1013 [6] Thase et al., 1012-1013 [7] Thase et al., 1013 [8] Thase et al., 1014 [9] Thase et al., 1014 [1] Thase, M. E., Greenhouse, J. B., Frank, E., Reynolds, C. F., Pilkonis, P., Hurley, K., Grochocinski, V. Kupfer, D. J. (1997) ‘Treatment of Major Depression With Psychotherapy or Psychotherapy-Pharmacotherapy Combinations’, Arch Gen Psychiatry 54, 1014 [2] Pampallona, S., Bollini, P., Tibaldi, G., Kupelnick, B. Munizza, C. (2004) ‘Combined Pharmacotherapy and Psychological Treatment for Depression: A Systematic Review’, Arch Gen Psychiatry 61, 7, 718 [3] Pampallona et al., 718 [4] Otto, M. W., Smits, J. A. J. Reese, H. E. (2005) ‘Combined psychotherapy and pharmacotherapy for mood and anxiety disorders in adults: Review and analysis’, Clinical Psychology: Science and Practice 12, 1, 73 [5] Otto et al., 75 [6] Otto et al., 76 [1] Vos, T., Haby, M., Barendregt, J. J., Kruijshaar, M., Corry, J. Andrews, G. (2004) ‘The Burden of Major Depression Avoidable by Longer-term Treatment Strategies’, Arch Gen Psychiatry 61, 11, 1102 [2] Vos et al., 1101-1102