The Natural State Of Man - 910 Words

The natural state of man has been a reoccurring theme when reviewing the history of political philosophy and theory. This study has helped societies develop laws and common goals. Thomas Hobbes (1588-1679) theory is still strikingly relevant in today’s law and order. His main concern was how people lived: how to avoid war since people lived in defensive fear. Jean-Jacques Rousseau (1712-1778) challenged Hobbes’s philosophy. He says, â€Å"The passage from the state of nature to the civil state produces a very remarkable change in man, by substituting justice for instinct in his conduct.† In other words, he thought that men were good by nature and when exposed to society they are corrupted. Although both philosophers study the course of society, they have very divergent views. This paper will examine both theories of the social contract. Thus, I will later conclude why Hobbes has a more feasible hypothesis. In Leviathan chapter 12, Hobbes describes society and the state of nature as such; No arts; no letters; no society; and which is worst of all, continual fear, and danger of violent death: and the life of man, solitary, poor, nasty, brutish and short. People are encouraged to act freely, but with precautions as they may pose a threat to others’ survival. As stated above, humankind is constantly threatened since we naturally have a built in defensive mechanism. He says, â€Å"†¦the passions that incline men to peace are: fear of death; desire of such things as are necessary toShow MoreRelatedThe Natural State Of Man2222 Words   |  9 Pagesargues that man has both moral and immoral qualities, but will lean towards his own self-interests when all things are equal—This leads to man being unpredictable. Pizan argues that as humans we are vulnerable within a society, and that there needs to be justice and the rule of law within society—This sense of vulnerabili ty she discovers in herself led to this conclusion. Both Hobbes and Machiavelli showcase similar arguments about the natural state of man and how inherently evil man is in the absenceRead MoreHobbes And The Natural State Of Man1617 Words   |  7 Pagesview of human nature and his theology. From this pessimistic view of the natural state of man, Hobbes derives a social contract in order to avoid civil war and violence among men. Hobbes views his work as laying out the moral framework for a stable state. In reality, Hobbes was misconstruing a social contract that greatly benefited the state based on a misunderstanding of civil society and the nature and morality of man. In order to analyze Hobbes’s work of moral and political philosophy, oneRead MoreLocke And Rousseau s Natural State Of Nature1252 Words   |  6 PagesBoth Locke and Rousseau describe the natural state of man as being innately free, although their opinions on freedom differ. In Second Treatise of Government, Locke depicts man as being naturally free because he believes that, in nature, we are able to do as we please and every person is equal. Rousseau describes the natural man as being free from the corruption and desires that society forces onto man. Locke and Rousseau agree that the best state is the freest, and that the purpose of a social contractRead MoreJean-Jacques Rousseau and The Essence of Human Nature Essay1449 Words   |  6 PagesRousseau starts his discourse with the quote, â€Å"What is natural has to be investigated not in beings that are depraved, but in those that are good according to nature† (Aristotle. Politics. II). It is this idea that Rousseau uses to define his second discourse. Rousseau begins his story of human nature by â€Å"setting aside all the facts† (132). Rousseau believes the facts of the natural state of humanity are not necessary to determine the natural essence of human nature, and adding facts based on man’sRead MoreComparison Of Cannibals And The Tempest1512 Words   |  7 Pagesshow, when man is left alone in a natural state, humans grow to perfection, compared to the state of a civilized man whom is corrupt and alters human nature to an animalistic form. The tempest portrays human beings in a civilized state, whom the characters do inhuman acts for material gain and Micheal de Montaigne’s â€Å" of Cannibals† represent man in a natural state whom when left untouched grows to an paragon society. Yet, which is better? a man in a natural state or a man in a civilized state. ThroughRead MoreCompare and Contrast John Locke and Thomas Hobbes1028 Words   |  5 PagesMan: The Social Animal Brian Greaney Political Science 230 Prof. T. Mullins April 18, 2011 John Locke and Thomas Hobbes were two main political philosophers during the seventeenth century. Hobbes is largely known for his writing of the â€Å"Leviathan†, and Locke for authoring An Essay Concerning Human Understanding. Included in their essays, both men discuss the purpose and structure of government, natural law, and the characteristics of man in and out of the state of nature. The two mensRead MoreRousseau’s Natural Man Favors his Sustenance Essay713 Words   |  3 PagesJean-Jacques Rousseau’s natural man is a creature characterized by self-pity and self-preservation. Rousseau speaks towards his natural man’s kind and virtuous being, but also makes mention of his need for survival. While Rousseau expresses a clear and firm sensitivity toward animals in his text, in his Second Discourse he does not make a solid case for vegetarianism. Rousseau begins his discourse through a conceit regarding the difficulty of reconstructing the primitive man faultlessly. Much likeRead MoreEssay on The Natural Ways of Locke, Hobbes, and Rousseau1207 Words   |  5 Pagesseventeenth and eighteenth century, that John Locke, Thomas Hobbes, and Jean-Jacques Rousseau introduce their varying opinions surrounding man in nature. The western philosophers mainly concern themselves with the concept of the social contract. Rousseau, Hobbes, and Locke begin with the conception of the individual, because in the natural state, they all believe that man is an independent character. Each of the philosophers used their revolutionary concepts to challenge power, yet their arguments differRead MoreJohn Locke : The Limitations Of Government And The Natural State1475 Words   |  6 Pages John Locke: The Limitations of Government and the Natural State Brandon Lee 10/31/17 Outline Submit for: Political Theory (Govt 251) Fall 2017 Professor Lindskog I. John Locke had been influential in the American governmental system. His ideas outlined in the Second Treatise on Government, dramatically influenced the America revolution and the formation of the United States Declaration of Independence. Modern democracy can thank Locke for his ideas on equal rights, separationRead MoreEssay on Rousseaus Philosophy in Mary Shelleys Frankenstein1262 Words   |  6 PagesIn Mary Shelleys Frankenstein, the titular character states that If [mans] impulses were confined to hunger, thirst and desire, [he] might nearly be free (Shelley, 97). With this assertion, Victor imparts his belief that man is most content in the state of nature; a state where only his most primal needs must be fulfilled in order to be satisfied. Man in his natural state is the central topic in Jean-Jacques Rousseaus philosophic essay A Discourse on Inequality, an academic work that had tremendous

A Study on Retail Loans - 12064 Words

A PROJECT REPORT On COMPREHENSIVE STUDY OF RETAIL LOANS undertaken at â€Å"PUNJAB NATIONAL BANK LTD† For the partial fulfillment of award of degree â€Å"MASTER OF BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION† 2009-2011 SUBMITTED TO:- SUBMITTED BY:- Ms RITU GUPTA Abhishek ROLL NO. 558/MBA/09 M.B.A. 4th SEMESTER P.D.M. COLLEGE OF ENGINEERING, BAHADURGARH MAHARSHI DAYANAND UNIVERSITY, ROHTAK SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY :-†¦show more content†¦Type of Research :- Research methodology is a way to systematic solve the research problem.it is a procedure, which is followed step by step to solve a particular research problem. There are basically four types of researches ⠝â€" EXPLORATIVE RESEARCH ⠝â€" DESCRIPTIVE RESEARCH ⠝â€" DIAGNOSTIC RESEARCH ⠝â€" HYPOTHESIS TESTING RESEARCH âž ¢ Explorative Research :- To gain familiarity with the phenomenon or to achieve an insight into it. âž ¢ Descripitive Research :- To poetry accurately the characteristic of the particular individual situation or a group. âž ¢ Diagnostic Research :- To determine the frequency with which something occurs or with which it is associate with something else. âž ¢ Hypothesis Testing Research :- To test a hypothesis of casual relationship between variables. The present project is Decriptive in nature. It is done to poetry accurately the characteristic of a particular individual situation or a group. The major purpose is descriptive research is the description of the state of the affairs as it exits at presents. The main characteristics of this method are that the researcher has noShow MoreRelatedChallenges Of Retailing And India1301 Words   |  6 PagesRural segment is one from where fresh demand of retail loan is being generated. PSBsare in real advantage as they have good network of rural and semi-branches where competition is less and opportunities are more. 3. Cross selling and up selling : is a very successful way of improving volumes. As a strategy existing customers should be offered products where profit margins are more e.g. offering car loan, furnishing loan etc. to existing housing loan customers. Further based on contribution of theRead Morecase study Iridium1062 Words   |  5 Pagesï » ¿Iridium Case Study Iridium is a famous case in which Motorola and other well known companies invested about $5 billion in a satellite venture that would enable a person to use his cell phone around the world. The investment included more than $2.2 billion in debt. Soon after operations began, the company declared bankruptcy and its assets were ultimately sold for only $25 million, leaving the lenders with a total loss. It is obvious that projections made by the company and endorsed by theRead MoreAn Open Air Shopping Center Located At 1345 U.s.1337 Words   |  6 Pagesintended market for the site is retail customers. The analysis of the market area and site demonstrated that the land use can involve retail project targeting retail customers. To support the retail development, it is essential to keep in mind two factors such as potential tenants’ stores and shoppers (Kahr, Thomsett 9). With these in mind, the target of retail development can be evaluated. With 14,551 households and 10,404 fa milies residing in the North Brunswick, the retail space analysis demonstratesRead MoreGraduation Speech : Millennials And College Debt 1485 Words   |  6 Pagesthat American students are carrying after college graduation is increasing at a rapid rate. A study conducted by The Institute for College Access Success resulted in the revelation that 70% of students graduate with a total amount of $28,950 in college debt, which is an increase by 2% since 2013. Shockingly, student college debt had reached 1 trillion by 2012, as well as surpassing credit card and auto loan debt. Why exactly is debt going up as time continues? Well, college tuition is slowly but surelyRead MoreEssay On Bad Credit Loans1222 Words   |  5 PagesBad Credit Loans Are Here to Stay--Despite Tighter Lending Standards Bad Credit Loans Are Here to Stay--Despite Tighter Lending Standards Bad credit loans seem likely to continue despite tighter lending standards and increased federal and state regulations. The debate over regulating the financial industry with tough reforms, limits on interest rates and other requirements has seesawed back and forth. 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Features of Retail Banking ïÆ'Ëœ Impact of Retail Banking in Indian Economy ïÆ'Ëœ Trends in Retail Banking ïÆ'Ëœ Role of Retail Banking in Indian Economy ïÆ'Ëœ Challenges in Retail Banking SCOPE OF STUDY The benefit of the study for the researcher is that it helps to gain knowledge and

Behavioural Issues in Budgeting Free Essays

string(58) " company set a budget of \? 15,000 for capital equipment\." To : The Chief Executive From : Management Accountant Date : 19th January, 2012 To : The Chief Executive From : Management Accountant Date : 19th January, 2012 | Behavioural issues which may limit the usefulness of budgeting:| | Management Accounting| | Behavioural issues which may limit the usefulness of budgeting:| | Management Accounting| The university of northampton By Matthew Matemba 10347139 The university of northampton By Matthew Matemba 10347139 Table of Contents 1Part A:2 1. 1Executive Summary:2 1. Background:2 1. We will write a custom essay sample on Behavioural Issues in Budgeting or any similar topic only for you Order Now 3Definition:2 2Purposes of Budget:2 3Budgetary Biasing Framework3 3. 1Budget Slack (Bias)4 3. 2Seat of Power:4 3. 3Budget Gaming:4 3. 4Gatekeepers:5 3. 5Beating the System:5 3. 6The Know-All:5 4Effects of Budgeting Slack (Bias):5 5Causes of Budget Slack:6 6Conclusion:6 7Part B:8 7. 1Cash Budget:8 7. 2Interpretaion of Cash Budget:9 8References:9 9Bibliography:11 10Appendices:12 Part A: Executive Summary: This report demonstrates behavioural issues which may limit the usefulness of budgeting in Langdale Ltd. Including in the report are origin, definition, purposes and types of budgeting. Prior to the above, the report shows different form of budgeting ‘padding’ causes of budgeting â€Å"slack† , researches and above all the control of aforementioned behaviours in organisations and three months cash budget for Duncan Distilleries plc. Background: According to Dugdale and Lyne, the emergence of ‘Scientific Management’ in the 1920s, standard costing and public sector budgeting was established by the development of business organisations (2010, P. xi). Quickly, this development became budgetary control with a budget designed to compare estimated planning with actual result of performance in aid to identify any variance either favourable or adverse. Keuning (1997) suggested that, budgeting is associated with higher managers assigning task to different departments. Definition: Chartered Institute of Management Accountants (CIMA) in the UK defines a budget as ‘A plan expressed in money. It is prepared and approved prior to the budget period and may show income, expenditure and capital to be employed. May be drawn up showing incremental effects on former budgeted or ctual figures or be compiled by Zero-based budgeting’ (Hannagan, 2008, p. 560). There are various types of budgets namely, Zero-Based, Incremental, Rolling and Activity Based budget. Purposes of Budget: The purposes of budget are planning of annual operations, co-ordinating the activities of various parts of the organisation, communicating plans to the various responsible centre managers, motivating managers to strive to achieve the organisation goals by meeting set targets. Finally, controlling activities and evaluating the performance of managers. Undoubtedly, budget plays major part in managing organisations because norms are set to compare budgeted and actual performances financially. However, research has showed that with new ‘realities’ of global competition, rapid change and modern technology the â€Å"Beyond Budgeting† movement has criticized the traditional budgeting that, it was not meeting the advance challenges in terms of technology. Therefore, Bunce and Fraser formed the â€Å"Beyond Budgeting Round Table† in the UK in 1998 and inspired by the Swedish bank, Svenska Handelsbanken (Michael, 2007). Contrary to main purpose of budgeting individual’s actions demonstrates some behavioural issue which may limit the usefulness of budgeting and this might not different from employees of Langdale Ltd. The diagram 1 below illustrates the relationship between objectives of budgeting contrary to behavioural issues of employees. Budgetary Biasing Framework Walker (2004) Budget Slack (Bias) As illustrated above, personal goals are a behaviour which may limit the usefulness of budgeting. It is a deliberate over-estimating of expenditure and/or under-estimate of revenues when setting budget in order to achieve easy targets. These actions from managers reduce the ability of management to control variances. Research has revealed that, the inclusion of budget Slack or ‘Padding’ is common in various companies. For example, Dugdale Lyne (2010 cited in Onsi 1973 p. 26) found that 80% of managers interviewed were preparing to admit they bargained for Slack. Though, budget slack are seen as unfortunate and dysfunctional, there are some indications that some slack can be desirable providing some flexibility to operating managers Dugdale Lyne (2010). This is known as manipulating of figures. However, reports show that due to complex inter-relationships between the various departments degree of manipulating of budgeting is difficult. Contemporary literature has reinforced the idea that slack can be desirable as well as dysfunctional. For example, â€Å"Nohria and Gulati (1996) noted that slack could act as a buffer that was necessary for organisation adaptation Tan, J. and Peng, M. W. (2003) See Appendix B. Dugdale Lyne (2010 cited in Van der Stede 2002 p. 6) found that slack could facilitate strategy in business units pursuing differentiation† in such circumstance ends up with surplus assets such as plant, equipment and buildings. Seat of Power: Additionally, from diagram 1 shows a power factor which is another behavioural issue which is a limitation to budgeting. This affects budgeting process when individual managers have influence over the outcome of proposed capital expenditure. Consequently, this could divert the com pany direction which is contrary to its corporate objectives. Performance measurement therefore, should establish to encourage the aim of the company and not individual or departmental goal. (Hannagan, 2008, p. 569) Budget Gaming: Moreover, another limitation of useful budgeting is budget gaming which is an attempt by managers to practice bias in advance. A study shows managers also tend to game the budget after it has been implemented by making accounting entries to portray their operation in a light that are driven by desire to report better result. Hopwood in his study showed that such behaviour is more likely if managers are evaluated Hopwood (1972) See Appendix C. For example, cost centre managers attempted to charge items of cost to other cost centres and tended to time the expenditure in light of their effects on the short-term variance but such manipulation was available to relatively few people. Gatekeepers: These are employees in high position who delay in passing on vital information’s to heads of departments. Such personnel have authority to regulate the flow of information also in a position to determine various levels of management decisions. Beating the System: Individuals or groups may be able to beat the system and they are even proud of behaving in such a manner. For example, a company set a budget of ? 15,000 for capital equipment. You read "Behavioural Issues in Budgeting" in category "Papers" Above this limit additional authority is required before any extra costs are incurred. However, the managers beating the system simply acquire a machine at a cost of ? 18,000 by ordering the capital equipment separately for instance, ? 14,000 and ? 4,000 per machine respectively. Surprisingly this behaviour happens in the real world and efficient internal control system and audit controls are called for further investigation. The Know-All: There are certain managers who think they will take decisions without consulting their subordinates not realising that, the said capital equipment will only work with certain additional equipment. In one case, although the subordinates were not consulted, yet they knew the know-all manager was buying a fixed asset; they remained silent knowing this machine might need additional parts to operate. Eventually, there was a problem and the subordinates were very pleased when things went wrong. To conclude, this highlights the importance of participation and meeting to discuss on capital investment in non-current assets. Hannagan, 2008, p. 569). Effects of Budgeting Slack (Bias): Budgeting slack creates an environment where budgeting goals are not met or exceeded. Employees therefore fail to maximise sales and minimising costs and actually rather providing incentives to overspending as managers’ fear losing money in subsequent years and above all, budget slack encourage waste. Cause s of Budget Slack: The problem of budget slacks is inevitable when the previous year’s budgeting is used as a basis for preparing the current budget as shown on diagram 1. This approach is known as ‘Incremental Budgeting’ being used by Langdale Ltd. Though, provisions are made for inflation, increased activities and easily to use and understand by managers and above all less costly to operate, incremental budgets have some draw-backs such as not considering operation priorities, not objective orientated hence leading to manipulation of budget figures and encourages â€Å"Spend it or Lose† mentality. Consequently, BPP (2005, p. 303) has recommended that, to eliminate budget slack, the alternative budget to adopt is ‘Zero-Based’ budgeting. Nevertheless, zero-based budgeting is mostly use in services companies such as Governmental organisations and non-governmental organisations. Conclusion: Debatably, Langdale Ltd being a publishing company, an alternative budgeting to improve incremental budgeting is Activity-based budgeting (ABB). ABB is contemporary approach to financial planning. It establishes the relationship between cost and activities. Resources are allocated to each activity which provides in-depth details especially regarding overheads because; ABB permits the identification of adding a value to activities and the cost drivers of such operations. It minimising the utilisation of resources by focusing on how to increase productivity. Furthermore, ABB will provide the company opportunity of focusing on why you need to undertake certain activities, how often to perform them and their relative cost. Certainly, this approach of budgeting will enhance on processing information and products of wasteful activities that may reduce and re-deploy the company’s resources for potential alternatives. Finally, in manufacturing sector being the scope of Langdale Ltd; ABB can enable the company to quantify decisions as follows: * Reduction in Set-up and machine repairs. * Facilitates detailed analysis of cost consequently, lead to avoid certain cost. Part B: Cash Budget: | | | | | Duncan Distilleries Plc. Cash Budget for July to September 2011. | | | July| August| September| | | ? ’000| ? ’000| ? ’000| Sales (50% IN 30 Days)| Note 6| 180| 180| 375| (50% in 60 Days)| | 180| 345| 345| Bank Loan| Given| | 100| 100| Total inflows| | 360| 625| 820| | | | | | Outflows:| | | | | Fixed cost| Note 1. 1| 32| 32| 32| Material| | 194| 312| 349| Variable cost| Note 2. 1| 208| 233| 235| Fixed Selling and Distribution | Note 3. 3| 3| 3| 3| Variable Selling and distribution| Note 3. 1| 14| 15| 18| Administration| Given| 18| 18| 18| | | | | | Finance Costs:| | | | | Bank interest| Note 4| -| 1| 2| Financing Costs (repayment)| | 0| 0| 0| Total Outflows| | 469| 614| 657| | | | | | Net Cashflow| | -109| 11| 163| Opening Balance| | 25| -84| -73| Closing Balance| | -84| -73| 90| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | Interpretaion of Cash Budget: The cash budget alerts Duncan’s management the company run into deficit in July and August. Although, the cash inflow in September will show surplus yet the financial position of the company is not strong since the first repayment of ? 50,000 loan will be due in 1st October. As a result, management has to negotiate with their bankers to extend the repayment to November. The company could also use different method of sales such as online in order to reduce variable selling and distribution cost. Finally, since the cost of material is quiet high, management could ask for more flexible terms of payment to their suppliers in percentage terms Scarlett (2009). References: BPP Learning Media, 2007. Advance Performance Management. 1st ed. London: BPP Learning Media Ltd. BPP, 2005. Management Accounting – Performance Evaluation. 2nd ed. London: BPP Professional Education. Dugdale,D. Lyne, S. , 2010. Budgeting Practice and Organisation structure, Oxford: s. n. Hannagan, T. , 2008. Management Concept Practices. In: 5, ed. Management Concept Practices. Harlow. Essex: Pearson Education Limited, p. 560. Hopwood, A. , 1972. An Empirical Study of the Role of Accounting Data in Performance Evaluation. [Online], vol. 10, pp. 156-182. Available from: http:/www. jstor. org/stable/248970 [Accessed 10 December 2011]. Keuning, D. , 1997. Management A Contemporary Approach. London: Pitman Publishing. Michael, A. , 2007. Beyound Budgeting. [Online] . Available from: www. cimaglobal. com [Accessed 10 November 2011]. Tan, J. Peng, M. , 2003. The Role of Organizational Slack: Theory and Evidence. [Online], vol. 24, pp. 1251-1252. Available from: http://www. utdallas. edu [Accessed 10 December 2011]. Walker, J. , 2004. Home. [Online] . Available from: http://maaw. info/ArticleSummaries/ArtSumWalkerJohnson99. htm [Accessed 27 November 2011]. Walther, L. , n. d. Home. [Online]. Available from: http://www. rinciplesofaccounting. com/chapter21/chapter21. html [Accessed 26 November 2011]. Bibliography: BPP Learning Media, 2007. Advance Performance Management. 1st ed. London: BPP Learning Media Ltd. BPP, 2005. Management Accounting – Performance Evaluation. 2nd ed. London: BPP Professional Education. Dugdale , D. Lyne, S. , 2010. Budgeting Practice and Organisation structure, Oxford: s. n. Hannagan, T. , 2008. Managemen t Concept Practices. In: 5, ed. Management Concept Practices. Harlow. Essex: Pearson Education Limited, p. 560. Hopwood, A. , 1972. An Empirical Study of the Role of Accounting Data in Performance Evaluation. [Online] Available from: http:/www. jstor. org/stable/248970 [Accessed 10 December 2011]. Keuning, D. , 1997. Management A Contemporary Approach. London: Pitman Publishing. MAAW, 2004. Home. [Online] Available from: http://maaw. info/ArticleSummaries/ArtSumVanderStede2000. htm [Accessed 27 November 2011]. Michael, A. , 2007. Beyound Budgeting. [Online] Available from: www. cimaglobal. com [Accessed 10 November 2011]. Scarlett, R. , 2009. Performance Operations. Oxford: Cima Publishing. Tan, J. Peng, M. , 2003. The Role of Organizational Slack: Theory and Evidence. [Online] Available from: http://www. utdallas. edu [Accessed 10 December 2011]. Walker, J. , 2004. Home. [Online] Available from: http://maaw. info/ArticleSummaries/ArtSumWalkerJohnson99. htm [Accessed 27 November 2011]. Walther, L. , n. d. Home. [Online] Available from: http://www. principlesofaccounting. com/chapter21/chapter21. html [Accessed 26 November 2011]. Appendices: A. Calculations – Cash Budget B. Journal – The Role of Organization Slack C. Journal – An Empirical Study of the Role of Accounting Data in Performance Evaluation How to cite Behavioural Issues in Budgeting, Papers

Facebook Employees Love Mark Zuckerberg

Question: Describe about the Report for Facebook Employees Love Mark Zuckerberg. Answer: Introduction The year 2004 marked a revolution in the social networking site , led to the emergence of the most talked about and preferred social site named Facebook. It was found by Mark Zuckerberg along with his students and Harvard college friends. Firstly it launched the site amongst its university and later expanded to within various other colleges in Boston. In America , the university students are given a directory named face book and hence the name (www.bloomberg.com, 2016). After 2 years of its launch within a closed group, the site was made officially available to people across the globe. The users created there own users profile and added other users as their friends. This enabled connecting friends worldwide , exchange messages, photos videos, and many more important news also. The concept of Facebook soon led to te creation of various pages which helped in the promotion of business houses. However its existence became more prominent from the year 2009 and by the mid of the year 2010 it had more than 500 million users(Kux, 2015. The site has now not only become a common platform for friends to be in touch but also a platform for sharing news, advertising, conducting online business more successfully as well as connecting families across the globe. Non Electronic Communication Methods And Strategies Non-electronic communication means communicating in the form of letters, reports, verbally, with the staff members etc. Thus communication without the usage of media is what comprises of non electronic communication. Though this form of communication is not very popular in todays time yet there are certain circumstances when this form cannot be ignored in total. The CEO has removed barriers between the employees and the mangers as his entire office has glass walls including his own cabin which enables direct engagement of Mark Zuckerberg with his staff members face to face. He feels for employees to relax it is very important for them to work away from their desks also The CEO directly engages with its employees into a verbal communication which is a very important factor (Taylor, 2016). Facebook engages its customers and the suppliers by entering into contracts with them non electronically. Everything cannot be saved that is online for lifelong. Further for ensuring the validity of an agreement in the court of law non-electronic communication holds good. Thus Facebook cannot let go of the letters, reports as well as agreements electronically as the same is still not acceptable by many courts across the globe. With regards the public as a whole the company does not engage directly into any contract with the public. As its public database is huge and scattered there is a defined terms and conditions agreement which flashes when a new user registers with Facebook via its social networking site and agreeing to those terms is enough to be construed as a valid contract in the eyes of law also. Thus when it comes to using the method of communication with the public, it can only use electronic method due its easy reach where ever. But for entering into confidential contract s with employees, customers and suppliers the company uses the non electronic method of communications only (Zuckerberg, 2014). Electronic Media And Communication Strategies The company was formed to connect people from diverse regions and demography. Facebook was earlier developed for easy communication amongst a closed group of students in the Harvard University and soon became public within a short span of time. Facebook uses various communication strategies to reach people via its websites such as facebook.com, social media such as watsapp and other electronic platforms. It has provided such a platform that companies across the globe can easily communicate with each other instantly without much of time and money and thus has enabled organizations to make more profits by building new avenues every hour (lampe et.al. 2013). There are a number of electronic media and communication strategy used by Facebook which is enumerated as under: Facebook: It is a communication strategy formed by the company to enable people to connect. It is a mobile application as well as a full website easily accessible through a desktop or a laptop. It is a social networking site which connects people from various part of the planet. It is an easy way to know what is going on in the lives of the other person who may be your friends, office colleagues, employees , acquaintances etc. The website enables to share photos, videos, to let people know about what they are doing, many advertisements are posted, important news are posted which makes people aware of the happenings worldwide just by a click on the said app. It also enables people to form groups on Facebook and conduct online business. The website gives space to comment on the photos and the videos posted and thus share views, liking a particular page on the application keeps one updated with what is new in that section (Faustino, 2014). Watsapp: It is a messenger which enables free communication amongst people who have internet connection in their mobile. It is an application that can only be used in the mobile phone. It is a form of messenger which enables easy and fast communication and is replacing the normal messaging trend at a very faster pace. It enables to connect people personally and is not a public platform. This messenger also enables to create groups and broadcasts thus ensuring personal communication at a go (Journalists Resource, 2013). Oculus: It is a virtual reality technology. Facebook aims at increasing its reach nd provide its users a more entertaining environment. On a test being conducted of the same people say it is an experience which makes impossible possible. One of its kind is the Oculus Rift Headset which once put on takes the person into a different world altogether. It makes one feel that he or she is with some other people and ata different place. Messenger: It is similar to but not as user friendly as watsapp. It enables users who are on facebook to chat also via this application. Thus those who are a part of facebook can only use messenger as a form of communication. Unlike the site this is a personalized way to communicate (Krivak, 2008). Swot Analysis Of Communication Methods And Practices A SWOT Analysis enables one to understand the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and the threats that a company faces thus enabling it to identify its pros and cons. This analysis helps the top management to plan accordingly. On conducting a SWOT analysis of Facebooks overall communication methods and practices the following is results are extracted: STRENGTHS: The company has reported the highest profit against its rivals Twitter and Linkedin. The advertisements that flash on various apps of the company is very limited. It prefers to provide quality advertisements on its websites and social networking sites. This is one of the biggest strengths as the message which the advertisers want to communicate is well served as only limited ones are published. Thus its method of communicating and helping the businesses is very stringent and pro quality. Also its communicating methods and practices are being improved continuously and its new video delivery platform is all set to even challenge and pose a threat to one of the biggest platform of video communication i.e. YouTube (Ifergane, 2010). WEAKNESSES: The biggest weakness noticed in the communication method and practice that Facebook offers is how much of these advertisements are converted into purchases thus enabling gains in value terms. The company although only displays ads which are of good quality even then the conversion rate is seen higher in the ads displayed by Google. Also the company has been investing in ecosystems more which has also effected its profits majorly (Jureicius, 2013). OPPORTUNITIES: The biggest opportunity that the company has is its extension to the eco system which is way above its own News Feed, since news feeds do not provide information in the chronological order. China has banned the usage of Facebook and Instagram but Watsapp is permissible which ups a huge opportunity for the company to explore the population of China as well. Apart from that Facebooks acquisition of Instagram in the year 2012 could help to contribute upto 12 percent of the companys 2015 revenue figures. This opportunity can be explored if it is properly monetized with advertisements so as to make it more popular amongst the users (Blog.cayenneapps.com, 2015). Peer to peer payments is another development that the company is looking at via its messenger app which is an additional platform for generating revenues through the sponsoring accounts and integration with various other sites. Another area of communication method which poses a big opportunity for the company is its Facebook at Work which allows the business houses to create their closed social network and thus enable faster as well as more secured communication. The Oculus Rift Headset is also a long awaited method of communication which will help to push the revenues further up (Tahir, 2015). THREATS: Though the company has adequate strengths and long term prospects which will help to boost its revenues and pose a good platform for communication yet it has some threats which is required to be fought with. The biggest threat is that of privacy. How much of the communication methods and practices that the company offers via its electronic mode is secure and enough to maintain confidentiality in a business environment. Using facebook, instagram, watsapp as a method to connect socially still does not require much of confidentiality but when it comes to work the same needs to be addressed to make it more popular and increase its usage amongst the big business houses. Breach of data, passwords and personal identification of the facebook account holders can be a possible threat as this may lead to increase in terrorism, kidnapping and other unsocial activities (Sun, 2015). Another major threat to the communication methods which would effect the bottom line of the company is the Adblock facility which the company offers. Thus it can be derived from the above that although there are certain threats and weaknesses amongst its communication methods and practices that the company offers yet its strengths and the possible opportunities in place helps it to post good bottom line figures o a year on year basis. Competition Facebooks two main competitors are Google Inc. And Twitter Inc. Google is the biggest platform for the public to search data on any topic they desire for. Thus it helps communication on a wider platform. Facebook communicates by linking people across the world but communication is required and important data about various topics at length is what it still fails to deliver (Roesler, 2016). This is where Google has a monopoly. It although displays a hoard of advertisements and when it comes to quality per se Facebook display and communicates better quality ads yet its conversion rate is much more than Facebook. The penetration of Google into the business houses is much deeper in the form of the Gmail and Android and is more secured as compared to Facebooks method of communication offered .Further Googles YouTube offers videos which are more visited by the users than Facebooks video platform (Investopedia, 2014). Even if the two companies main businesses are different , one being a sear ch engine and the other being a social networking site yet the communication methods and practices used by both makes them competitors (www.adweek.com, 2014). Biggest way of communication is via video ads which is more famous in Facebook than in Google but the conversion rate of ads is more in Google. However its mailing platform makes it the most preferred one even today. Facebook has to reach the business houses cutting across this competitor (Nagarkar, 2015) . Second is Twitter. Inc. It is also a social networking site similar to Facebook but is yet to reach the world at large. It enables users to write and read short messages only. Those having an account in Twitter can post as well as read messages whereas those who are not registered can only read the messages (Robinson, 2015). It is a more effective to send messages publicly however the same can be restricted to be viewed only to its followers. Twitter poses the threat of fastest way of communication in lieu of the longer conversation strings that Facebook offers. While Twitter offers communication with strangers also Thus these communication features and methods enable Twitter to stand as a competitor to Facebook (Chang, 2013). Suggestion And Recommendation On Improving Facebooks Communication Strategies Even though Facebook has been buying off its competitors such as Instagram and Watsapp, the company still has some other major players in the market which offer such communication and e communication strategies. These companies deter Facebook from grabbing the maximum share in the market and create its own monopoly. The company has improve its communication strategies within the organization by creating some distance between the executives and the employees along with maintaining a transparent relationship and communication string. Its e communication methods such as the social networking sites and the websites needs further improvements. Facebook should be made a little private which should allow the users to enable viewing of their profiles and posts to only the selected group of people. A policy should be formed to disallow communication of unsocial and undesirable data on the social networking site of the company. It allows anybody to create a page on its site which should be app roved first by the company before being uploaded. This make the content of the communication more desirable and acceptable to the public (Sikka, 2014). Conclusion Thus on a concluding note I would like to summarize the report by simply highlighting the fact that Facebook Inc. has revolutionized the communication and e-communication strategies worldwide. It spread like a pest and today has become a vital part of most of our lives. The companys communication strategies are limited for within the organization but the e communication strategies that it offers is wide spread and highly recognized by all. It poses a great threat to Google and Twitter however it still needs improvements in various other domains of communication. The company has still not been able to provide a single umbrella to its users. It has basically contributed towards connecting people and helping them join hands across countries. It has made personal communication more easy and enabled people to break the inter-continental barriers. It has made people connect without much expense and also is now trying to stand as a competitor to major telecom companies also by introduction of the Watsapp calling feature. The most required area of concentration that the company fails to assess is to launch a search engine. Thus although its just been 10 years of the companys existence it has created its brand value very rapidly and aims to soar higher with the various opportunities it wishes to explore in the near future. References Kux, S., 2015, 10 Reasons Why 99% of Facebook Employees Love Mark Zuckerberg, viewed on 25th May 2016, https://www.lifehack.org/articles/work/10-reasons-why-99-facebook-employees-love-mark-zuckerberg.html Taylor, H., 2016, Why Facebook is going all in on chatbots, viewed on 25th May 2016, https://www.cnbc.com/2016/04/13/why-facebook-is-going-all-in-on-chatbots.html Zuckerberg, M., 2014, Facebook, viewed on 25th May 2016, https://www.facebook.com/zuck/posts/10101319050523971 Sun, L., 2015, SWOT Analysis of Facebook Inc. viewed on 25th May 2016, https://www.fool.com/investing/general/2015/05/08/swot-analysis-of-facebook-inc.aspx Krivak, T., 2008, Facebook 101: Ten things You need to know About Facebook, viewed on 25th May 2016, https://www.infotoday.com/IT/mar08/Krivak.shtml Journalists Resource, 2013, Social media in the workplace : Research Roundup, viewed on 25th May 2016, https://journalistsresource.org/studies/society/social-media/social-media-workplace-research-roundup Investopedia, 2014, Who are Facebooks main competitors?, viewed on 25th May 2016, https://www.investopedia.com/ask/answers/120314/who-are-facebooks-fb-main-competitors.asp Chang, A., 2013, Facebook and Twitters Growing Competitors, viewed on 25th May 2016, https://www.cnbc.com/2013/10/02/facebook-and-twitters-growing-competitors.html Robinson, P., 2015, Facebook vs Twitter: Social Media Strategy, viewed on 25th May 2016, https://www.meltwater.com/blog/facebook-vs-twitter-social-media-strategy-differences/ Nagarkar, V., 2015, Google Vs Facebook : Competition Heats up in Online Video Advertising, viewed on 25th May 2016, https://amigobulls.com/articles/google-vs-facebook-competition-heats-up-in-online-video-advertising Roesler, P., 2016, 3 Things to Expect From the Google Versus Facebook Battle in 2016, viewed on 25th May 2016, https://www.inc.com/peter-roesler/google-vs-facebook-3-things-to-expect-in-2016.html www.adweek.com, 2014, Comparing the Deep Linking Strategies of Google, Apple and Facebook , viewed on 25th May 2016, https://www.adweek.com/socialtimes/james-turner-urx-deep-linking-google-apple-facebook/436671 Tahir, N.M., 2015, Facebook SWOT Analysis, viewed on 25th May 2016, https://www.academia.edu/7370176/FACEBOOK_SWOT_ANALYSIS Ifergane, A.B., 2010, Exploring the Facebook growth Strategy and the future of Facebook, viewed on 25th May 2016, https://www.academia.edu/8219924/Exploring_the_Facebook_growth_strategy_and_the_future_of_Facebook Faustino, T., 2014, 5 Objectives Mark Zuckerberg Tracks for Facebooks Domination, viewed on 25th May 2016, https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/20140817211054-31240456-5-objectives-mark-zuckerberg-tracks-for-facebook-s-domination Sikka, P., 2014, Why investors punished facebooks stock despite strong growth, viewed on 25th May 2016, https://marketrealist.com/2014/11/investors-punished-facebooks-stock-despite-strong-growth/ www.bloomberg.com, 2016, Company Overview of Facebook Inc., viewed on 25th May 2016, https://www.bloomberg.com/research/stocks/private/snapshot.asp?privcapId=20765463 Jureicius, O., 2013, SWOT Analysis of Facebook, viewed on 25th May 2016, https://www.strategicmanagementinsight.com/swot-analyses/facebook-swot-analysis.html Blog.cayenneapps.com, 2015, Facebook- SWOT Analysis, viewed on 25th May 2016, https://blog.cayenneapps.com/2015/08/05/facebook-swot-analysis/ Lampe, C., Vitak, J., Ellison, N., 2013, Users and Non Users : Interactions between Levels of Facebook Adoption and Social Capital, viewed on 25th May 2016, https://www-personal.umich.edu/~enicole/LampeVitakEllison2013CSCW.pdf

Pestle analysis food industry free essay sample

. We are a government recognized Star export house and deal in Spices, Oil seeds and Dehydrated vegetables. Our main markets are Russia, Eastern Europe and The Middle East. We plan to expand our business into Brazil, Ukraine, Poland and Taiwan. Through the analysis we will try to look into several factors that we think will have an impact on our future investment plans. 2. 0 INDUSTRY ANALYSIS: PESTEL FRAMEWORK 2. 1 Political Factors. Internal factors In India as in elsewhere politics and economics get intertwined quite often. Sudden ban on exports of products such as onion, rice etc. have an adverse effect on our business. Many a time these policy decisions (Bans) are more of a knee jerk reaction to sudden crises rather than a well thought out strategy. This leads to disruption of supplies to the markets that traditionally the Indian exporter’s supply to and eventually gives an opportunity for other countries to get into the market. We will write a custom essay sample on Pestle analysis food industry or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page Also, NCDEX although is a tool for better price realization what it is actually leading to is more speculation leading to abnormal fluctuations in the commodities market. (b) External factors: The west is looking towards Asia for new markets. But wants to continue to subsidies its farm produce while at the same time it expects concessions from the developing nations. Many a times instead of putting bans they put non-tariff barriers which is an indirect mode of trade protectionism. Hence today most of the countries have their own Free Trade Agreements with other nations. The ability of a nation to have a balanced trade negotiations and in return get special access to markets leads to economic as well as political benefits. For example there are special trade incentives given by governments for doing business with lesser known and more risky regions such as the CIS countries under the Focus Market scheme. War and political unrest also effects our trade as it leads to increase in uncertainty. For example during the Arab spring there was a decline in trade between Egypt and the world due to the political unrests. Egypt is a major supplier of cumin seeds, dehydrated onion same as India. But due to shortage of these goods the international prices shot up and countries like India and China benefited from this. In many countries including Indiathere is debate going on GMO (genetically modified) and Non–GMO food (non-genetically modified). There is no clear cut decision being taken on the issue leading to uncertainty in the agricultural development of the country. Effect of impact: High impact Dimension: Both micro as well as Macro level Time: All the factors mentioned will have the impact on the present as well as future growth of the company. 2. 2 Economical Factors Economic factors are of concern to Deepkamal Exports Pvt Ltd as they are likely to influence demand, costs, prices and profits. Most of the economic factors are largely outside the control of the company, but their effects on performance and the marketing mix can be profound. Although our business with other countries is growing and is expected to contribute a greater amount to company’s profits over the next few years, the company is still highly dependent on the Russian market. Hence, the company would be badly affected by any slowdown in the Russian food market and hence we are exposed to market concentration risks. The other economic factors that have impact are listed as below: Economic Criteria’s to look for Reason Population of the country As it is one of the indicators of possible higher consumption As to the composition of the food industry Our products are mainly used in confectionary, meat and ready to eat food industry. This data helps us to decide which markets to focus upon. Per capita income and therefore disposable income Another indicator of whether a market is price sensitive or willing to pay a premium for quality products. Effect of impact: Positive Degree of impact: High Forecast for future: With the advent of institutions such as world trade organization, free trade organizations the economies are becoming more and more intertwined. If we consider the factors mentioned above then we will have a better chance to enter these markets as well as an increased chance of establishing business in future. 2. 3 Social/Cultural Factors Since we are into exports â€Å"Social factors† that affect us are mostly macro–environmental in nature. The food habits of the importing country is of great importance to us. The existing and acceptance of new tastes. Also, increasingly due to the busy lifestyle there are more and more instances were both members of a family are working. This has led to people consuming more ready to eat food products. Many of the European countries face severe winters which makes them stock food ingredients for the duration of the winter. Due to globalization people are getting exposed to different types of cuisine. This has given a boost to food and beverage industries were our products are used. In The Middle East the spices and herbs used in cooking are quite similar to that of India and hence a huge market for us. Effect of impact: Positive Degree of impact: Moderate Forecast for future: As people are getting exposed to different cultures and cuisines as well as migration of people from one part of the world to another food habits and tastes are evolving. Indian food especially the chicken curry has become a house hold dish in UK and Europe and hopefully around the world. We see demand for our products to be stable in the near future. 2. 4 Technological Factors It is an aspect which is rapidly gaining in importance. Many a times due to lack of technological advancement in our agricultural and food processing technology we lose out on final product and quality. This make Indian goods costlier as there are more wastages during the various processes. Also, the care that needs to be taken post-harvest is improper due to which Indian food products fail to meet the micro- biological specifications of many importing countries. Technology is a major macro-environmental variable which has influenced the development of many of our products. The improvement in food processing and packaging technology has helped to us to get faster production as well as maintain quality. Although this area still requires a lot of improvement. More and more countries are putting strict micro biological parameters for food products which is making exports difficult to these countries. We require to rapidly adapt to new technologies such as steam sterilization treatment of food products and stricter implementation of laws against the use of banned pesticides which are still being used for farming. Effect of impact: Negative Degree of impact: High Forecast for future: In future if our agricultural techniques and post-harvest practices are not modernized then our agricultural output as well as global competitiveness of our food products will be severely affected. China by using collective farming and modern technology has managed to increase its yield per hectare and has gained grounds in markets were India used to be strong. Same is the case in Cashew industry where with mechanization the Vietnamese are fast catching up with the Indians. 2. 5 Environmental Factors As we are into agro-commodities the monsoon plays crucial role in our business. As Indian agriculture is heavily rain dependent this is one factor which we have no control over. This phenomenon is not just specific to India but the world over due to the effect of El-Nino in the pacific and La-Nina in Asia the weather patterns are changing. This has led to heavy flooding in some parts of the world and soaring temperatures and drought in other parts leading to destruction of crops. Effect of impact: Neutral Degree of impact: High Forecast for future: These factors are all external in nature and one has to take them in stride. It is not possible to do much forecasting in these matters. 2. 6 Legislative Factors These are mainly macro environmental variables which affect our business. Nowadays there is more and more legislation towards non-tariff barriers as developed countries while using mechanization / packaging are not price competitive vis-a-vis developing economies. Therefore more and more legislation is done to protect their industry. Effect of impact: Neutral Degree of impact: High Forecast for future: These factors are all external in nature and one has to take them in stride. It is not possible to do much forecasting in these matters. 2. 7 Ethics: Good trade practices are pre-requisite for any business to have longevity. We at Deepkamal Exports Pvt. Ltd believe that our adherence to ethical practices has helped us to reach wherever we are. In future also it will be our endeavor to stick to ethical practices in our endeavor to grow into large organization keeping in mind the welfare of all the stakeholders. By stakeholders we mean not only the customers but also the supplier, employees and all others involved in our business.

Beowulf &Superman essays

Beowulf &Superman essays A hero is defined in classical mythology as a man, especially the son of a god and a mortal, who is famous for possessing some extraordinary gift. Beowulf, the title character of an epic poem and Superman, a more modern day hero are both prime examples. Beowulf and Superman exhibit several differences, but they also share some similar qualities. Beowulf possessed great strength that separated him from other men. Being able to use a sword that no ordinary man was able to carry gives the feeling that Beowulf is something more than a human being. It makes him special and causes him to stand out from all other men. Fame is something that makes a hero more noted. Beowulfs popularity had spread all over the world. He never let this go to his head and he never thought that he was better than everyone else because of it. By engaging in this foolish contest, Beowulf nearly got himself killed trying to prove he was better than Brecca. Jealousy is never a good trait, especially for a hero. Revenge is never a trait of a true hero. A hero has no scores to settle. A true hero should fight only to protect others and not out of his own rage. Also, with Beowulf being a human being, he was not invincible. Beowulf didnt realize this until he fought the dragon. He knew nothing of the dragon, its strengths, weaknesses or powers. Beowulf found out what the dragon was capable of and what its powers were. He knew that it could breathe fire, so he got a shield that would protect him. He planned his attack and thought it trough carefully. He was doubtful about himself and knew that this battle would be his last. Superman, also known as Clark Kent, is one of the most popular modern day hero(not as cool as Batman mind you but relates better to Beowulf). Superman spent most of his time saving people from natural disasters and corrupt businessmen. He would level slums to force the city to build decent housing, and he ...

Interactive Learning Environment Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words - 1

Interactive Learning Environment - Assignment Example   MUVEs are typically viewed as a popular structure of multimedia-based entertainment. It has been apparently observed that MUVEs are broadly executed in the field of education. The relevance of MUVEs to a learner can be determined by focusing on its usage particularly in the area of education. In this similar context, MUVEs are enthusiastically employed in education for a broad assortment of reasons. The reasons include generating online communities for the learners in order to provide greater opportunities relating to their professional advancements, involving in science-based activities with the intention of fostering communally responsive behaviors and supporting the learners to promote their moral as well as social developments through enrichment of societal cultures or cultural values. In addition, MUVEs are also used in education for delivering an environment of programming as well as collaboration, artistically discovering new mathematical perceptions and most importantly e ngrossing in any sort of scientific inquiry. The educational based MUVEs are specially designed for the learners in order to support their conceptual understanding along with inquiry-based learning. The different facets of MUVEs that comprise accessing diverse virtual contexts, establishing effective communication with other participants and interacting with various modernized digital artifacts ultimately prove to be quite relevant for a learner to advance his or her career in the field of education (Dieterle & Clarke, n.d.).  

A 'middle class, quasi scientific, technocratic or mangerial form of Essay

A 'middle class, quasi scientific, technocratic or mangerial form of collectivism very different from the ambiguites of social d - Essay Example Fabian society is popular for its achievement during nineteenth century proceeding into First World War. The movement formulated a stolid base for the Labour Party. It also subsequently influenced policies of nations rising from the decolonization of the British Empire, particularly India. Presently, the Fabian Society constitutes one of the communalist groups affiliated with the Labour Party and its presence can be felt and seen in nations such as Australia, Canada and New Zealand (Blackburn 2007). The Fabian Society, a London based movement, was formed in 1884 as a budding from The Fellowship of the New Life of 1883. The Fellowship Society’s main objective was to transform society through leading by example by demonstrating a simple lifestyle for others to emulate. However, because of varied thoughts, some affiliates of the society were focused on involving politics to assist in transformation process of the society. Consequently a decision was reached that a distinct societ y was to be founded. This was the rise of the Fabian Society. After its establishment, the Fabian Society campaigned for restitution of Western European Renaissance principles and their propagation globally. The Fabian Society was named after a Roman general, Fabius Maximus popularly known as â€Å"Cunctator† to connote â€Å"delayer.† According to theGuardian (2001), the Fabian Society preferred a gradual change approach to radical change. Fabius adopted the tactics of harassment and attrition as opposed to one-on-one combats against the Carthaginian army led by General Hannibal. The Fabian Society attained great heights of influence, especially through their publication of Fabian Essays of 1889, in which Webb and other Fabian authors made great contributions. The Fabians idea of social reforms and transformation were based on the concept of â€Å"permeation† of already established political systems or institutions. Their argument was that the infiltration of t he existing political organisations was the main way of achieving natural socialism. The Fabian Society was opposed to Marxist revolutionary approach to social change (social democracy). Renouncing the need to have aggressive and brutal class struggles, the Fabian Society affiliates embraced the idea of developing trade unions as well as other labour movements up to the time when Beatrice Potter, latter referred to as Beatrice Webb because of her union with Sidney Webb, became a member of the society. Webbs in 1900s assisted the group to establish Labour Representation Committee, from which the Labour Party was born. After its inauguration, the Fabian Society lured many famous figures into its socialist foundation. The central figures of the Fabian Society were Sidney Webb and Beatrice Webb among other key members. The two key pillars of the movement published numerous articles on property ownership under capitalism in industrial Britain. In the wake of 1900, majority of affiliates of the Fabian Society took part in the formation of the Labour Party and the establishment of its constitution, in which Sidney Webb extensively applied the principles in the initiating documents of the Fabian Society. As unbelievable as it may look, the Fabian Society started as a mere nine-member movement, who endorsed an executive committee of three members. A former chairman of British Fabian Society, Mrs. Cole, pointed out on the group’s success in instilling its socialist ideologies in the entire society and nurturing the schemes to flourish and change

Abuse in the Workplace- a case of Gender Discrimination Research Paper

Abuse in the Workplace- a case of Gender Discrimination - Research Paper Example The notion of discrimination is best described as favorable treatment towards individuals not on the basis of merit but on the basis of bias or other immoral attitude (Mill, 1963). In what follows, a critical approach towards gender discrimination is taken along with its implications for organizations. Cases of gender discrimination are a common sight in the workplace today. Not long ago a lawsuit was filed against the Boston Cigna HealthCare Company for charges of gender discrimination. According to the lawsuit, it is alleged that the company intentionally discriminated against Bretta Karp and other female employees by displaying unfavorable treatment towards them compared to their male counterparts in terms of promotion practices, pay increases and an uncongenial workplace environment (Chase & Reidy, 2011). The company, however, denied all charges by claiming that it is committed to diversity management and does not allow any such behavior that leads to discrimination of any sort ( Chase & Reidy, 2011). Discrimination, such as the above, adds to the woes of females in the workplace by lowering their morale and threatening their self-esteem. Research suggests that after having controlled for factors such as age, education, experience, skills and parental status, women still receive only 81% of the pay of men for similar nature of work (Ashkanasy, Wilderom, & Peterson, 2010).

Practice Nurses Role in Treating Chlamydia

Practice Nurses Role in Treating Chlamydia The practice nurses role in treating chlamydia and improving the sexual health of the nation Introduction Chlamydia treatment has been the focus of considerable research interest in the past few years. A huge proportion of what used to be called NSU, or was even undiagnosed non-specific pathology, is now recognised as being due to the chlamydia pathogen. It has now achieved the unenviable status of being considered responsible (numerically) for the greatest amount of sexually transmitted disease in the UK today (Duncan 1998) Given the fact that it is now therefore recognised as being a major contributing factor in the overall picture of sexual health, we must examine ways in which the NHS is set up to tackle the problem. (HPA 2003) As with many health related issues such as this there are a number of subsidiary issues that must be considered in relation to the main theme. These include the role of the screening process in trying to contain the prevalence of chlamydial infection, the practice nurse’s role in that screening process, the current thoughts on the treatment of chlamydia and the practice nurse’s role in not only the treatment, but also the partner tracing activity that is vital to try to stop the spread of the disease. (Fenton et al 2001) The practice nurse is generally ideally placed within the primary healthcare team to act as a central liaison point for many of these activities If we start by considering the whole issue of screening. On one level, one could be forgiven for thinking that the issues relating to screening are actually rather simple. We know that many cases of chlamydia are actually asymptomatic (see on). Given the fact that it can cause considerable damage and is eminently treatable, why not screen for it and get rid of it? Sadly, it is not as simple as that. (Simms et al 1996) The National Institute for Clinical Excellence (NICE) has set up the National Chlamydia Screening Programme (NCSP). It quotes its rationale for doing so as: Genital Chlamydia trachomatis is the commonest Sexually Transmitted Infection (STI) in England Genital chlamydial infection is an important reproductive health problem ~ 10-30% of infected women develop pelvic inflammatory disease (PID). A significant proportion of cases, particularly amongst women, are asymptomatic and so, are liable to remain undetected, putting women at risk of developing PID. Screening for genital chlamydia infection may reduce PID and ectopic pregnancy. The study itself was exemplary in design with an entry cohort of nearly 8,000 patients. The authors considered the efficacy of several different methods of screening and then compared the results of the programmes against the costs of allowing the disease to continue untreated in the community and these include all the sequelae of infertility, pelvic inflammatory disease and ectopic pregnancy in women together with the complications that can occur in the male partners (infertility again) and prostatitis. (Berry et al 1995) The paper even covered the incidence of both pneumonia and eye infections in their children. The structure of the study was quite comprehensive insofar as it compared the results of four separate groups One group received no screening at all, a second group were screened if they exhibited mucopurulent cervicitis, the third group included all women who were less than 30 yrs. old and the last group was all women irrespective of symptoms. The actual screening tool was the Polymerase chain reaction (PCR) which is a very specific and sensitive antibody based test. It was performed on either urine or direct cervical samples. (Barlow et al 2001) The study protocol then called for all positive testing patients to receive treatment with doxycycline for seven days. The analysis section of the paper is both long and complex. We shall therefore condense our examination of this part of the study into an examination of the results. The overall treatment costs of treating all of the medical complications of chlamydial infection was calculated as $676,000. Each of the positive screening strategies produced a significant reduction in the expected cost of complications that was greater than the cost of the actual screening exercise. A condensation of the tabulated results is shown here: Screening method Screening costs ($) Medical costs ($) Total cost ($) Number of PID cases PID cases prevented No screening 676,000 676,000 152 CDC criteria 55,000 390,000 446,000 88 64 Women 75,000 297,000 372,000 67 85 Universal screening 120,000 270,000 391,000 61 91 The results need little explanation, as it can be clearly seen that both the costings and the number of cases prevented argue strongly for a case for screening. The only point of contention is the decision on the population that the health care system will fund for screening. Overall, the authors state that their regime reduced the incidence and prevalence of pelvic inflammatory disease by 60% when compared to the unscreened group. The other significant factor was that, taking all groups as an average, they noted a total healthcare saving of about $50 per woman screened, and this clearly does not take any account of any associated comorbidity, pain and suffering that is caused by the chlamydia infection A further corollary can be drawn from the results. The authors went on to provide an impressive statistical analysis of the comparative costs of different community groups with different rates of prevalence. Of great importance to our considerations here was the fact that the authors concluded that the cost of screening was cost effective when the incidence of infection in a population of asymptomatic women was above 1.1%. when the incidence rose above 11% then they found that the screening of all women and their partners became the most effective strategy. To some extent, this study can be considered the â€Å"gold standard† for most of the studies in this area. It is well conceived, meticulously executed and well and thoughtfully analysed to give meaningful results which are of great practical importance. Despite such comments it should be noted that there are a number of negative points to be considered in this particular study. The universal treatment constant was the seven day doxocycline treatment. We should note (as the authors did) that there is therefore a potential for non-compliance with the whole seven day regime, and this may introduce a potential source of bias in the figures(Haddix et al.1995). We can also point to other studies that have addressed this particular problem with a one dose treatment regime (azithromycin). It is fair to note that despite the potential for bias, extrapolation to these other studies does not appear to show significant differences in the overall results (Lea et al 1997) The issue of screening, although covered reasonably comprehensively in the last paper, certainly as far as matters of cost are concerned, is examined further in the paper by (Duncan et al. 2001). This paper approaches the issues from a different perspective. It includes the issues of male screening And takes an overview of the Public Health issues from a sociological viewpoint, which makes it, (in our examination of the current literature), almost unique. We should note that we have already addressed the issues faced by the NCSP, but the other major public document in this area is the report commissioned by the Chief Medical Officer (CMO 1998). It is instructional to discuss the recommendations of this group as they differ significantly from the screening criteria used in the previous paper. The recommended groups for screening here are the following: Everyone with symptoms of chlamydia infection, All those attending genitourinary medicine clinics, Women seeking termination of pregnancy.1 Opportunistic screening of young sexually active women under 25 years Women over 25 with a new sexual partner or two or more sexual partners in the past year. In the context of our considerations here, we should note that the advisory group identified the optimum sites for screening as the primary healthcare team (family planning clinic) as well as the usual GUM clinics. (Stokes 1997) The Duncan paper is particularly well written and a major point that comes from it is in sharp contrast to that found in the Howell study. One of the criteria that they suggest for screening males in the population is that women may find that being screened has connotations of being dirty and unattractive A positive result is said to be associated with promiscuity. The authors suggest that not screening men not only fosters gender inequalities but it reduces the Public Health impact on the Man’s responsibilities for sexual health. (Pierpoint et al 2000) There is no argument that this is a valid point, but the paper does not produce any evidence to show that male screening has a positive impact on the cost-effectiveness of the screening procedure. (Stephenson et al 2000) The paper does however, contrast these statements with the accepted fact that women are actually easier to target than men, as they are generally heavier health care users than men in the major at risk age range. (Oakeshott et al 1998) The paper points to the need to tackle the issues of sexual inequality, as it could be considered that the screening programmes may have less than the desired effect if they are perceived by women to be little more than surveillance of their particular sexual habits. It draws a clear analogy between a women only screening programme for chlamydia and the well established women only cervical cytology screening clinics. The paper quotes (Holgate et al 1998) in the comment: The potentially adverse consequences of sexual intercourse a private event can be surveyed and treated through screening services a publicly based and funded system . It is women who transcend this private, public dichotomy and find their lives scrutinised in a manner alien to men . The focus is commonly upon women both as transmitters and contractors of relevant viruses as both those whose cervixes are surveyed and whose sexual activity comes under surveillance. The paper then has a long middle section which, as a critical analysis, is little more than a diatribe against women being singled out for screening. It is fair to say that all of the arguments put forward are valid, to a degree, but are presented with a strongly feminist viewpoint, which is both understandable and worthy of merit form a sociological standpoint. The arguments are not however, convincing from a scientific, financial or practical perspective. The conclusions of the paper are entirely justified in calling for a greater understanding of the woman’s point of view when organising and running screening clinics, in order to broaden their appeal to the target groups. (Santer et al 2000) With specific reference to the role of the nurse in the primary healthcare team screening for chlamydia we can now turn and examine an excellent paper by Grun (et al 1997) which looked at two different methods of screening for chlamydia in a nurse run primary healthcare setting. The study set out to try to accurately determine the prevalence of chlamydia in the North London area using the ligase chain reaction (LCR) technique which is similar to the PCR mentioned earlier. (Butt et al 2001) This particular study used the rather labour intensive cervical scrape method for sampling, which had the added benefit that cervical cytology could be assessed at the same time. The paper is quite detailed in its description of its method and appears to be rigorous in its execution. It is worthy of our consideration here because of it’s direct relevance to our prime consideration. The results and conclusions of the paper make for interesting reading One of the more significant conclusions was that, on the basis of their findings, if there was a policy of simply screening all women aged 25 and all women who had had two or more partners in the past year, they would have detected 20 out of a possible 23 positive chlamydia infections in their cohort. The authors make a salient comment that including other screening criteria such as marital status (which has been suggested by other authors [Lossick JG, et al 1996]), would have made no statistically significant impact on their detection rate. They also make the comment, in line with the other authors we have examined, that selective screening appears to be more cost effective than universal screening, although the actual cost implications were not specifically considered in this paper. In contrast to the Howell paper, it suggests that screening become a viable tool when the community prevalence rate approaches 5% The fourth paper to be reviewed is the more recent paper by Adams (et al 2004). This paper takes a more general overview of the whole issue of chlamydia in the UK. This is effectively a meta analysis of nineteen different papers (selected from 357 studies) which report the incidence of chlamydia as tested by the PCT method on urine samples. This is significant as it is the first meta analysis to be carried out on UK data. (Armitage et al 2001) The results are extremely detailed and many are only of marginal relevance to our considerations here. We shall restrict our comments to those aspects that are specifically relevant. Firstly, the authors comment on the current prevalence of 8.1% of the population testing positive in the under 20 age group, progressively diminishing to 1.4% in the over 30 group. The significance of this is that it is very much lower than other studies. For example studies set in GUM clinics put the prevalence in the under 20 age group in the region of 17% and antenatal clinics at about 12%. (Piementa et al 2003) This may therefore have relevance in targeting of specific at risk groups. It should be noted that this study gave no data with regard to the incidence of chlamydia in the male population. (Dixon et al 2002) Our comments made earlier about the asymptomatic nature of the bulk of the infections, is borne out in the fact that only 8% of those tested and found to be positive, actually volunteered that they had any genital symptoms (of any sort). Another important consequence of this study is the fact that it highlights the comparatively high detection rate to be found in attenders at primary healthcare team premises. This shows a gap in the reasoning and recommendations of the National Sexual Health and HIV Strategy for England (D of H 2002) which currently suggests targeting GUM clinics and family planning centres as prime sites for screening centres. Following on from the reasoning expounded in the last paper, we can look at a provocatively entitled article by Kufeji (et al 2003)† Who is being tested for genital chlamydia in primary care?† The paper makes the point that we already have enough evidence to clearly identify the target populations that are the most likely to give a good yield as far as screening is concerned (viz. the most â€Å"at risk† groups). The raison d’à ªtre of this paper was to compare the characteristics of the actual groups screened with the characteristics which we know to be representative of the groups most likely to be at risk. The corollary of this reasoning being that if the two groups do not match then all the calculations made about the cost effectiveness of a selective screening process do not hold water. (Kinn et al 2000) The most striking feature of this paper is the fact that we know (Adams et al 2004) that the maximum age incidence for chlamydia is in the sexually active under 20 age group and the incidence rapidly decreases with age to the over 30 age group. Kufeji and his co-workers found that the majority of the tests done (63%) were done on the over 25 yr. age group where we would expect the results to be positive only in about 1.5% of the population. Adams’ findings were confirmed with a positive rate of 13.3% found in the under 20 yr. olds tested. The paper also point to the fact that the practices studied had a comparatively high healthcare staff to patient ratio. In the practices where the ratio was lower, even less opportunistic testing was done. (Shefras et al 2002) This correlates to the finding that the Townsend score ( of social deprivation) correlated highly with both a reduction in the amount of testing and an increase in the prevalence of chlamydia. In the words of the authors the study points to the fact that screening programmes for chlamydia in primary healthcare settings suffer from â€Å"a selection bias and social desirability bias, and they do not aim to provide complete descriptive information on testing patterns across a population.† It should be noted that this particular study was not just on a small sample. The authors took as their entry cohort all of the 119 General Practices in Nottingham which collected a total of over 7,000 samples. The authors note that the number of tests done in General Practice is increasing at about 35% per year. It follows that if a significant number of these are inappropriately targeted, this has profound implications for the related costings of the exercise. One other salient point in this study was the fact that only 1 in 40 tests were done on men. (Chernesky et al 1999) The last major paper that we shall review in this section is the paper by Cassell (et al 2003) this deals with the thorny issue of partner notification when screening turns up a positive result. Hitherto contact tracing had largely been in the realms of the GUM contact tracing nurse. With the expansion of the screening role into the realms of General Practice and other clinics, the contact tracing role has also expanded and may well have lost some of it’s efficiency due to both a lack of skill, time and resources. (D of H 2002). Cassell and her colleagues have tried to investigate the extent to which this perceived reduction in contact tracing may be responsible for the relentless increase in the overall incidence of chlamydia. (Radia et al 2001). The study was done by postal questionnaire to all GPs in Nottinghamshire. They got a 56% response rate. Arguably the most significant finding of the study was the fact that 86% of respondents considered that chlamydia testing was part of the remit of the primary healthcare team, while only 40% considered that partner notification was a primary healthcare team role. The rationale for this was, that most of the non-contact tracing respondents felt that it was their role to inform the patient that they should inform their partners. Given the fact that we have evidence from the Duncan paper that women tend to equate a positive test with promiscuity and being â€Å"dirty†, it is perhaps not surprising that a substantial number of partners do not get told. If you add to this number the unknown number of chlamydia infections that may have come from clandestine or extramarital liaisons, then this number may be higher still. This is clearly both hypothesis and conjecture but it would seem to be dictated by common sense. The paper goes into considerable detail about the reasons why different primary healthcare teams have different practices, but rather worryingly a surprising 20% treat chlamydia with a dose of antibiotic which is less than the currently recommended therapeutic level recommended by the Central Audit Group for Genitourinary Medicine, (Stokes et al 1997) The difficulty of a postal questionnaire study is that there is an intrinsic bias in the study design. It is quite conceivable that the 56% of primary healthcare teams who responded were the ones who may have been sufficiently motivated to be positive about matters to do with chlamydia and may therefore have been better informed that those who did not respond. In the words of the authors â€Å"our study probably over-represents primary healthcare teams already testing for chlamydia and may exaggerate the extent of good practice.† The paradox outlined by this study is that while the majority of GPs and their teams are already willing to assume the mantle of diagnosing and managing chlamydial infection, the same majority agree that contact tracing is the main difficulty in managing these patients. The study made enquiries relating to the presence of follow up strategies which were designed to minimise the risk of further infection and found that there was â€Å"very little evidence to be found† other than by putting the onus on the patient to tell their partners. It follows from this observation, and the authors put it quite succinctly: If testing in primary care continues to increase without adequate support for partner notification, much of the resource used in testing women will be wasted. (Griffiths et al 2002) If we accept the premise that an increasing amount of chlamydia screening will be done in General Practice in the future, it is likely that an increasing proportion will fall to the practice nurse or the family planning nurse specialist. (Stokes et al 2000). If this is the case, then it is common sense to maximise the benefit of chlamydia screening by supporting the healthcare professionals with time and resources to perform proper contact tracing to minimise the risk of re-infection. (EHC 1999) Conclusions In this review we have selected six primary papers which each represent a significant contribution to the evidence base in our knowledge of the rationale for screening and treatment of chlamydia infection. (Sackett 1996) From our examinations it is clear that there is a considerable disparity in the figures pertaining to the prevalence of chlamydia infection in the community. The paper by Adams (Adams et al 2004) gives us a partial rationale for this and that is that studies done in different areas of health care practice will yield different results because they have a different clientele. It is not, perhaps, surprising that a study done in a GUM clinic will report different prevalences than a study done in a General Practice setting. The common factor that runs through all of the papers examined is the fact that it is rare to find that men are screened. Generally the figures suggest about 2-5% of men are screened when compared to the number of women. There is no evidence to suggest that they have lower infection rates than women and, according to Duncan (et al 2001), there are a number of very good sociological reasons why men should be screened as frequently as women. The fact of the matter is that women are subject to screening with much greater frequency than men and therefore bear the brunt of both the indignity and the responsibility. There is no doubt however, that the case for screening and treatment and contact tracing is made on both economic and health grounds. It is equally clear that the practice nurse has a central role in the efficient administration of all of these vectors to varying degrees. The advent of nurse prescribing (Legge 1997) will make the practice nurse as valuable in this area as they already are in both the screening and contact tracing roles. The only concern here is that according to Kufeji (et al 2003) we are collectively targeting the wrong population in terms of efficacy and efficiency. References Adams EJ , A Charlett, W J Edmunds, and G Hughes 2004 Chlamydia trachomatis in the United Kingdom: a systematic review and analysis of prevalence studies Sex. Transm. Inf., October 1, 2004; 80(5): 354 362. Armitage P, Berry G, Matthews J. 2001 Statistical methods in medical research. Malden, MA, 2001. Barlow RE, Cooke ID, Odukoya O, et al. 2001 The prevalence of Chlamydia trachomatis in fresh tissue specimens from patients with ectopic pregnancy or tubal factor infertility as determined by PCR and in-situ hybridisation. J Med Microbiol 2001;50:902–8 Berry J, Crowley T, Horner P, et al. 1995 Screening for asymptomatic Chlamydia trachomatis infection in male students by examination of first catch urine. Genitourin Med 1995;71:329–30. Butt A, McCartney R, Walker A, et al. 2001 Economic advantages of ligase chain reaction for diagnosis of genital Chlamydia trachomatis infection in GUM clinic attenders. Sex Transm Infect 2001;77:227–8. Cassell JA , M G Brook, R Slack, N James, A Hayward, and A M Johnson 2003 Partner notification in primary care Sex. Transm. Inf., June 1, 2003; 79(3): 264 265. Chernesky M, Lee H, Schachter J. 1999 Diagnosis of a Chlamydia trachomatis uretral infection in symptomatic and asymptomatic men by testing first void urine in a ligase chain reaction assay. J Infect Dis 1999;170:1308-11. CMO 1998 Chief Medical Officer. Main report of the Chief Medical Officers Expert Advisory Group on Chlamydia trachomatis. London: Department of Health , 1998. Dixon L, Pearson S, Clutterbuck DJ. 2002 Chlamydia trachomatis infection and non-gonococcal urethritis in homosexual and heterosexual men in Edinburgh. Int J STD AIDS 2002;13:425–6. D of H 2002 (I) Department of Health. The national strategy for sexual health and HIV: implementation action plan. London: DoH, 2002. D of H 2002 (II) Department of Health. Action plan for the sexual health strategy for England. London: DoH, 2002 Duncan B, Hart G. 1998 Screening for Chlamydia trachomatis: a qualitative study of womens views. Prevenir 1998; (suppl 24): 229. Duncan B, Graham Hart, Anne Scoular, and Alison Bigrigg 2001 Qualitative analysis of psychosocial impact of diagnosis of Chlamydia trachomatis: implications for screening BMJ, Jan 2001; 322: 195 – 199 EHC 1999 Effective Health Care. Getting evidence into practice. York: University of York, 1999. Fenton KA, Korovessis C, Johnson AM, et al. 2001 Sexual behaviour in Britain: reported sexually transmitted infections and prevalent genital Chlamydia trachomatis infection. Lancet 2001;358:1851–4. Griffiths C, Cuddigan A. 2002 Clinical management of chlamydia in general practice: A survey of reported practice. J Fam Plann Reprod Health Care 2002;28:149–52. Grun L Julia Tassano-Smith, Caroline Carder, Anne M Johnson, Angela Robinson, Elizabeth Murray, Judith Stephenson, Andrew Haines, Andrew Copas, and Geoffrey Ridgway 1997 Comparison of two methods of screening for genital chlamydial infection in women attending in general practice: cross sectional survey BMJ, Jul 1997; 315: 226 230 Haddix AC, SD Hillia, WJ Kassler. 1995 The cost effectiveness of azithromycin for Chlamydia trachomatis infections in women. Sexually Transmitted Diseases 1995 22:274-80. Harry T, Saravanamuttu K, Rashid S, et al. 1994 Audit evaluating the value of routine screening of Chlamydia trachomatis urethral infections in men. Int J STD AIDS 1994;5:374–5 Holgate HS, Longman C. 1998 Some peoples psychological experiences of attending a sexual health clinic and having a sexually transmitted infection. J R Soc Health 1998 Howell MR , TC Quinn, CA Gaydos. 1998 Screening for Chlamydia trachomatis in asymptomatic women attending family planning clinics. Annals of Internal Medicine 1998 128:277-84 HPA 2003 Health Protection Agency, SCIEH, ISD, National Public Health Service for Wales, CDSC Northern Ireland, UASSG. Renewing the focus. HIV and other sexually transmitted infections in the United Kingdom in 2002. London: Health Protection Agency, 2003 Kinn S, Macnaughton J, Noone A, et al. 2000 Chlamydia trachomatis in primary care: knowledge and practice in Glasgow. Br J Gen Pract 2000;50:214–15 Kufeji O, R Slack, J A Cassell, S Pugh, and A Hayward 2003 Who is being tested for genital chlamydia in primary care? Sex. Transm. Inf., June 1, 2003; 79(3): 234 236. Lea AP, HM Lamb. Azithromycin. 1997 A pharmacoeconomic review of its use as a single-dose regimen in the treatment of uncomplicated urogenital Chlamydia trachomatis infections in women. Pharmacoeconomics 1997 12:596-611. Legge. A 1997 Nurse prescribing is a success BMJ, Feb 1997; 314: 461. Lossick JG, et al. 1996 Recommendations for the prevention and management of Chlamydia trachomatis infection, 1996. MMWR 1996;42:1-37. Oakeshott P, Kerry S, Hay S, et al. 1998 Opportunistic screening for chlamydial infection at time of cervical smear testing in general practice: prevalence study. BMJ 1998;316:351–2. Pierpoint T, Thomas B, Judd A, et al. 2000 Prevalence of Chlamydia trachomatis in young men in north west London. Sex Transm Infect 2000;76:273–6. Pimenta JM, Catchpole M, Rogers PA, et al. 2003 Opportunistic screening for genital chlamydial infection. II: Prevalence among healthcare attenders, outcome, and evaluation of positive cases, Sex Transm Infect 2003;79:22–7 Radja N, Slatter E, Thin N, et al. 2001 A tale of 2 cities: a comparison of demographic details, source of referral, spectrum of infection and contraceptive practice in patients under 16 years attending genitourinary medicine clinics in London and Swansea. Int J STD AIDS 2001;12:361–4. Sackett, (1996). Doing the Right Thing Right: Is Evidence-Based Medicine the Answer? Ann Intern Med, Jul 1996; 127: 91 94. Santer M, Warner P, Wyke S, et al. 2000 Opportunistic screening for chlamydia infection in general practice: can we reach young women? J Med Screen 2000;7:175–6. Shefras J, Edmondson S, McNulty C. 2002 Countywide survey of the current practice of chlamydia detection in primary care. J Fam Plann Reprod Health Care 2002;28:145–8. 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The Lie of the Land :: Haydn Middleton The Lie of the Land Essays

The Lie of the Land This is a list of explications--things a North American reader might need to know in order to make most sense out of Haydn Middleton's The Lie of the Land. I re-read the novel and made a list of unclear references or ambiguous words or terms. I included the page number and a short explanation of the context; I then proffered each word with the definition I was able to find! Before delving into my textual explications, let me add a short "preface" first. As I re-read Middleton's novel, I found myself intensely interested in the cultural differences between North Americans and the English from (you guessed it...) England. My fascination with the inexplicable difference, yet explicable intertwining of our two cultures is probably provoked by a book I'm reading for another class, Cultural Misunderstandings by Raymonde Carroll, a French anthropologist. Carroll has extensively studied the differences between Americans and Europeans, mainly French. She gave an interesting analysis concerning Americans and our way of conducting or cultivating relationships. Well, I was reading the novel again, and if you caught it, Rachel offers Alasdair an invitation to dinner. This might not strike you as significant at all, but hold on--note that here in the United States, we will frequently end a conversation with, "Call me!" or "Let's get together, sometime, okay? I'll cal l you sometime!" These advances are never realized, of course, but are merely conversation climaxers. Rachel says to Alasdair, "Look . . . you should come round some time with Maggie. We'd love to see you . . . " (25). A couple of chapters later, the dinner scene is a very significant addition to the story, hmm? Carroll made the comment that Americans portray themselves as superficial and flighty with their many unrealized invitations. Europeans, on the other hand, tend to extend invitations and set the date in the proceeding avenue of discourse. Details. Dr. Gilgun taught my Fiction class last semester, and we learned that details develop ordestroy the story. Details divorce me from the story or seduce me, leaving me wondering where reality ends and the surreal begins. Details characterize the culture behind the author, the culture in and within where delight is reached, found, discovered and eventually shared. But anyway . . . enough of diversion! TEXTUAL EXPLICATIONS--please feign acquiescence, and pretend that this list is complete and can stand alone; there were so many more textual nuances that I wanted to include! Hmm .