Saturday, August 31, 2019

Disparity and Discrimination Essay

Statistics continue to reflect issues of disparity and discrimination within the American criminal justice system. The issues that affect the enforcement of laws and government policy can result in justice for the safety of society and/or justice that will single out members of society. With the diverse population living in the United States, stereotypical judgments and attitudes can influence and possibly overwhelm the direction of the criminal justice system. The American system of criminal justice is thought to include equal rights, due process of law; in addition to fair and equitable treatment for all people – these ideas do not correlate to the information provided by law enforcement, court procedures and correctional facilities. Disparity is defined as, â€Å"The condition or fact of being unequal, as in age, rank, or degree† (American Heritage Dictionary, 2005). This idea whether on an individual level or communal, is something heavily affected by the difficulti es of crime. The conflict issues within members of society and the existing disparities are becoming ever more complicated by the growing immigrant and minority populations in the United States. From these disparities, the seeds of discrimination are sown. Discrimination is the act of singling out a certain individual/group for unfair treatment and has been defined as, â€Å"Treatment or consideration based on class or category rather than individual merit† (American Heritage Dictionary, 2005). Discrimination should not and cannot be tolerated in a just society, especially in its criminal justice system. There are varied causes of disparity including law enforcement emphasis on certain communities, criminal activity, policies by legislature and by criminal  justice professionals during decision making processes using broad discretion. Racial disparity in criminal justice is when â€Å"the proportion of a racial/ ethnic group within the control of the system is greater than the proportion of such groups in the general population†¦Illegitimate or unwarranted racial disparity results from the dissimilar treatment by the criminal justice system of similarly situated people based on race. In some instances this may involve ov ert racial bias, while in others it may reflect the influence of factors that are only indirectly associated with race† (The Sentencing Project, 2000, p. 1-2). The impact of racial disparity is evidenced in all levels of the criminal justice system. â€Å"Statistics show that more than one-fourth of all black males and 16 percent of Latinos can expect to spend time in prison during their lifetime, while only 4 percent of white males ever go to prison. African-Americans make up 12 percent of the U.S. population, but they compose about half of all prison inmates and 40 percent of those sentenced to death. Even more startling, a third of all African-American males aged 20-29 are right now either locked up, on probation, or on parole† (Brown, 2006). Interpretations of the crime data can vary based on its source and these variations call into question whether the disparities come from racism within the criminal justice system or other factors. There are those that believe racial disparity results directly from discrimination and is a violation of equal justice. It is often that disparities have a collective effect; for example, biased inf luences at one stage could contribute to an increase of disparities in the following stages. One illustration given by The Sentencing Project stated that if bail practices resulted in minorities with similar situations being detained before trial in greater occurrences that whites, these minorities will also be disadvantaged during trial and sentencing due to less access to defense counsel, community resources and treatment options (The Sentencing Project, 2000. p3). Another alarming trend is the use of capitol punishment practiced in cases of black offenders v. white victims. Disparities are a simple fact of our ever shrinking world as we continue to come into contact with multiple peoples from all over, especially in the United States. While these disparities can often lead to discrimination; the reverse can also be true. Society must realize that both of these issues affect decisions resulting from conflicted notions from its members.  Within the criminal justice system discretion should be used cautiously and provide justification for such use. In many stages of the correctional process there are possibilities of discrimination due to disparities. If this situation occurs, the action would be considered biased and inconsistent with the idea of justice as it should be upheld in criminal justice proceedings. It is unfortunate that disparity is often intertwined with discrimination directed at minority groups. Additional factors that can contribute to discrimination from disparity are income level, learned skills, education and connection to society. Crime and its conviction should be based on the knowledge of what is right and wrong; not the basis that one particular group is more likely to commit that particular crime. Differences or disparities should not have to result in discrimination; however, the key lies within the education of society as a whole. References The American Heritage ® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition. Copyright  © 2005, 2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Updated 2005. Brown v. Board of Education. (2006). Retrieved on May 17, 2009 from the Landmark Cases website: http://www.landmarkcases.org/brown/home.html The Sentencing Project. (October, 2000). Reducing Racial Disparity in the Criminal Justice System, A Manual for Practitioners and Policymakers. Retrieved on May 17, 2009 from The Sentencing Project website: http://www.sentencingproject.org/Admin/Documents/publications/rd_reducingrdmanual.pdf

Friday, August 30, 2019

Empathy: Emotion and People Essay

All of us have had compaction for one thing or another in our lives. Our sympathetic feelings toward something is empathy. It is a basic requirement for all human beings. It is natural for us to have an empathetic response towards things. Empathy is a very powerful tool towards our emotional distress. It is hard for us to resist the power of empathetic feelings. When we feel empathy we feel other peoples emotional distresses. We try to feel sympathetic towards the situation or the person. When empathy comes into play we try to solve the problem and take the other persons perspective on the problem. An empathetic person feels what the other person is feeling and why. One can be empathetic towards fictional situations and characters. Empathy is an emotion that we strive to satisfy even if it means risking our lives or being very uncomforadable. Empathy is an emotion shown in people as young as twelve months. Our empathy builds as we grow older. An important aspect of empathy is to be able to consider the viewpoint of another person. This is also known as perspective taking. This is why people risk their lives to save someones life or just save someone from harm. Usually people who risk their lives to save people are very empathetic of people. People who posses a low level of empathy towards people tend to not take as much risks for the sake of solving a problem. But some people find it quite necessary to satisfy their empathetic emotions. This breed of people obviously take more risks . When you imagine how another person perceives an event and how he or she feels as a result, this is called taking an â€Å"imagine other† perspective. When we see on the news that an innocent bystander was harmed, we take an â€Å"imagine other† perspective. This makes us feel empathy for the person, even though we may have never heard or seen of the person before until the news reported it. â€Å"Imagine self† is when one imagines themselves personally being in the situation. Both â€Å"imagine other† and â€Å"imagine self† perspectives go hand in hand. When one feels for a persons problems and tries to imagine how he or she feels, one tends to also imagine themselves in the same situation. These perspectives bring out the empathy that we possess. Those who take the â€Å"imagine other† perspective experience relatively pure empathy that motivates altruistic behavior. The â€Å"imagine self† perspective also produces empathy but it is accompanied by feelings of distress that arouse egoistic  motives that can actually interfere with people being unselfish about their thoughts. Another perspective of empathy is fantasy. This is when our empathy is for something that is not real. This is a very occurring situation to most people. People act emotionally to the joys and sorrows of an imaginary person or thing. When people watch a sad movie, people sometimes cry and feel for the person, even though the situation is not real. When we read a sad or depressing book or hear about a sad fair tale, we take the imagine other and imagine self perspectives to a fantasy situation just as we would a real life situation. The only difference being is you can’t physically put yourself into position to help the fantasy situation, as with the real life situations, one can physically help the situation. We might think that children have the tendency to have empathetic thoughts about fantasy situations more than adults. This is not true. Adults experience the same kind of empathetic feelings towards fantasy situations. When I went to see the movie TITANIC two summers ago, I observed that the whole audience was crying. Women, children and even men were crying. Even though the movie was a fantasy people still felt for the characters. Humans differ greatly in their ability to experience empathy. Some people are highly empathetic and feel distress whenever they encounter someone else is distressed. It doesn’t matter whether it’s real or fictional. People who are highly empathetic more motivated to avoid social disapproval or feelings of guilt. Some people are not very empathetic at all. These people are unaffected by anyone’s emotional state but their own.. People with low levels of empathy will avoid helping people because the costs are high and they can escape responsibilities easily. Genes account for about a third of the differences in people in affective empathy. Presumably, learning counts for the remaining differences in empathy. Our experiences in our life help us learn either affective empathy or non-affective empathy. The kind of experiences that are involved in our ability to have affective empathy is by a mother’s warmth and by clear and forceful messages from parents telling how others are affected by hurtful behavior. When parents discuss emotions with their children, the better their ability to empathize becomes. When  parentsw are abusive or use anger to control their kids, their ability to empathize with the world drops tremendously. Women tend to empathize with the world more than men. This could either be because of genetics or because women have different socialization experiences than men. We tend to be more empathetic to people who are most like ourselves. This happens because we can relate to people who are much like ourselves. When disasters occur similarity to self comes into play. If one has been involved in a similar disaster, one is more likely to be empathetic towards the situation.. Need for approval is an important aspect of helping behavior. People who want to be praised for their good deeds generally empathize with the world quite well. Empathy is higher in people who help with emergency situations. People who are very altruistic descibe themselves as being very responsible, socialized, conforming tolerant , self controlled, and wanting to make a good impression. Obviously people who help others in emergency situations are believe that it is just the right thing to do. People that have empathy for others see themselves as socially responsible for people in emergencies. To look the other way is not being responsible. One can’t say that someone with low levels of empathy would not help somebody in a particular emergency situation. It is just more likely people that have little empathy will look for someone else to help before they do. It also depends on the severity of the situation at hand. It is easy to see how the media reacts to how people react during emergency situations in today’s society. When bystanders fail to act, the media focuses on the lack of concern among uncaring people. When a bystander does to the emergency the media emphasises on how an ordinar person can suddenly become a hero to the public. This gives people with empathy all the more reason to act and give people with little empathy a good reason to at least try and do something for the sake of not being looked down on by the media. Empathy is a very powerful emotion that many of us possess. It is a very natural emotion that even infants have. Empathy comes in many forms. Taking an â€Å"imagine other† perspective and the â€Å"imagine self perspective is something we do everyday in one form or another. Empathy comes in many forms. We empathize for the smallest things. Some of us are not very  empathetic at all. This is seen as a bad thing by today’s society and media. But people with low empathy doesn’t necessarily mean they are cruel people. The capacity for empathy plays a crucial role in differentiating those who behave in prosocial behavior and those who do not. It is safe to say that people who are concerned with their own personal welfare and not others are unempathetic people to our society. We must remember that empathy is present in all of us. It just depends on the person and their life experiences whether they will show empathy for situations.

Importance of Play Essay

Play is one aspect that is common in every child’s life. The importance of play for children is huge. It is so much more than a recreational activity for them. Play is essential for children; it contributes to healthy child development cognitively, socially, and physically (McFadden, 2010). Because of this, it is vital for parents, caregivers, and educators to recognize the importance of, and to encourage play. Why is play so important? Recently at the preschool level, there has been a push to reduce the amount of play time and increase the amount of time spent on academic work. With the increased academic work load that is being placed on school-aged children today, this appears to be a good idea; however, the lack of play time for children is actually detrimental to healthy child development. Children see play as fun. They do not engage in playful activities with the thought of learning social or mental skills, but play benefits these areas of development, as well as several others. When children play, they learn how to share and â€Å"be nice. † Learning these skills early will enable them to be able to get along with others in adulthood. Children also learn to interact with their surrounding environment. This interaction allows children to begin to make sense of their world (McFadden, 2010). Cooperation and good communication skills are essential in every profession and activity a child may encounter as an adult. By communicating with others, a child begins to understand the importance of language. They learn how to express their ideas and accept the ideas presented by others. Children also develop communication skills that help them resolve conflict and negotiate with thers. From infancy, children display the desire to gain control of their physical behaviors so they can become able to manipulate objects of interest (Feeney, 2010). Play contributes to this physical development and refinement of motor skills. The vigorous activity of a child’s play builds strength, stamina, and skills they will need for healthy physical development. When children are left to decide how they will play, the often gravitate toward physical activities such as running and chasing each other or playing catch with balls. This active play results in physically fit children and physical fitness is one of the key components in healthy child development (McFadden, 2010). As children develop the control of large muscle groups as a result of physical activities, they also refine fine motor skills and control. Building with blocks, painting, and playing with clay refine tactile dexterity, which children will need when they learn to write and progress in school. Play also has a role in the emotional development of children. Children at play feel in control of their world, practicing important shills that lead them to a sense of mastery of their environment and self. They learn to master their fears, resolve internal conflicts, and to act out anger, hostility, and frustration (Feeney, 2010). Often, play is used by therapists and social workers to help children overcome and work through abuse or trauma. As an educator, there are several ways to incorporate play into learning activities. Because children are innately curious, they enjoy investigating and discovering new things. Teachers should use this curiosity when introducing science and scientific ideas. Children cannot understand complicated scientific ideas; however, they love learning about plants, animals, and other objects within their environment. Science in early childhood education encompasses life science, physical science, and earth science (Allen, 2007). An activity to explore earth science is called â€Å"will it float? † Children select different objects from around the classroom and hypothesis whether the object will float on water. After making their guesses, the children get to test their theories by floating the chosen objects in the classroom water table. Children love this activity because they get to play with water, but the activity actually teaches them about weight, volume, and buoyancy of different things. Teaching young children mathematic fundamentals is made simpler when the lessons are presented as a fun activity. Math instruction in early childhood classroom settings must involve concrete ideas, and be naturally suited to the child’s play (Gabbert, 2009). Teaching children the idea of measurements can begin in the preschool setting. A great way to teach measurement is by adding measuring spoons and cups to sand and water tables. In the activity, children are allowed to scoop out sand or water from the tables and place their â€Å"measurements† into separate containers to see how many scoops will be needed to fill the new space. The educators should tell them the amounts they are placing in the new space to encourage the child’s understanding of the activity. The importance of play in the early childhood classroom cannot be underestimated. It is the duty of an early childhood education teacher to encourage and allow students to play all throughout the day. Play should be incorporated into everyday lessons. Young children are naturally curious and energetic. Incorporating play into their day will allow them to â€Å"absorb† more of what is being taught. Not all children, especially young students, learn well by sitting and listening to a lecture. Being allowed to play helps children see learning as an enjoyable thing. Play also ensures they develop other skills: motor, social, emotional, needed to become successful in their school careers, and beyond.

Thursday, August 29, 2019

Sociology .. just paraphrase Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Sociology .. just paraphrase - Essay Example f)Master status. This refers to a particular status in society that automatically ranks above all others, placing the individual with these characteristics within the top element of his or her society. g)Status symbols. Status symbols are specific material clues that refer to an individual’s position in society such as a doctor with a stethoscope or an athlete with a basketball. h)Roles. Roles are specific patterns of behavior that are expected of people who fall within a specific social status position. K) Major institutions. A major institution is any institution as defined above that are significantly large and well organized such as a school system or the national government. n)Mechanical solidarity. This refers to a situation in which things happen essentially in the same way they have always happened bringing about social cohesion based on shared experience and knowledge skills. o)Organic solidarity. Organic solidarity suggests there is a sort of collective consciousness which exists due to society’s inescapable mutual interdependence which exists in proportion to that society’s complexity in its division of labor. The theory that Goffman presents suggests that the forces that shape who we become, who we are and how we will act in various situations is significantly affected by the people with whom we associate. According to this theory, each individual has a tendency to present ourselves as what we want others to think of us as if we are permanently on stage. In keeping with the metaphor, he suggests we spend a great deal of time rehearsing our performances in the backstage action using the life script we are given by our society prior to our ‘live’ performance. This performance, again like that seen on a stage, also requires the participation of other characters/cast/individuals if it is to be successfully presented to

Wednesday, August 28, 2019

Was the Second Republic always destined to loose the war conflict in Research Paper

Was the Second Republic always destined to loose the war conflict in the Spanish Civil War - Research Paper Example The Spanish civil war started with a military revolution. The long history of intervention of military power and control in Spain has affected the political life of the country to great extent. The revolution of 17th July of 1936 became an intense one and used old instruments for the purpose of making significant political changes in the country. Josà © Sanjurjo was the leader of that time of the Second Spanish Republic. A group of generals who were under the leadership of Josà © Sanjurjo started the war through declaration of opposition. This opposition was declared against the government, against the President of that time Manuel Azaà ±a. Several conservative groups (most important of these groups were Spanish Confederation of the Autonomous Right) have supported this coup and created the revolution a significant revolution in the country. This revolution was the war between the new and the old. The war was against the democratic government of Spain which was ruling the country during 1930s. The war came to an end with the triumph of the Nationalists, more importantly conservative Nationalists. In this way the Second Spanish Republic came to an end in the 1st April, 139 when they were defeated by conservative Nationalists . This paper is aimed at describing a critical context of the loss of the Second Spanish Republic in the Spanish Civil War. It tries to answer the question, â€Å"Was the Second Republic always destined to loose the war conflict in the Spanish Civil War?† The background of the Spanish Civil War: The Spanish Civil War was a war in regard to the revolution of conservative nationalists against the democratic government of the country. ... This revolution was the war between the new and the old. The war was against the democratic government of Spain which was ruling the country during 1930s. The war came to an end with the triumph of the Nationalists, more importantly conservative Nationalists. In this way the Second Spanish Republic came to an end in the 1st April, 139 when they were defeated by conservative Nationalists1. This paper is aimed at describing a critical context of the loss of the Second Spanish Republic in the Spanish Civil War. It tries to answer the question, â€Å"Was the Second Republic always destined to loose the war conflict in the Spanish Civil War?† The background of the Spanish Civil War: The Spanish Civil War was a war in regard to the revolution of conservative nationalists against the democratic government of the country. The war began as military revolution and then it became the revolution of every citizen of the country and created significant political changes in the country. One of the most important features of this change was the demolition of the democratic government of the country and demolition of the Second Spanish Republic. At the time of revolution the country was facing several internal conflicts related to political, social, cultural and also to economic contexts. Various small revolts were going on in the country by reformists and conservative Nationalists. With the establishment of Spanish Constitution in 1812 the monarchy of the ancient regime has been abolished. This change led to the establishment of a compatible state with more ideologically constructed nature. After the creation of the Spanish Constitution and before

Tuesday, August 27, 2019

Rootkits Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Rootkits - Research Paper Example The most powerful aspect about this type of intrusion was that it had the ability to make the attack invisible to the users of the computer. Koch (2007) explained that rootkits are used in combination with Trojan horses. The infected system can be used for malicious usages without the knowledge of the user, for example conducting spam attacks, botnet attacks or changing the settings of a system according to the desire of the hacker. George (2006) stated that rootkits can even cause replacement, changing of executable programs in the systems or the kernel based files to jeopardize the entire functioning of the system. Rootkit attacks are known to cause hefty losses for organizations since they are difficult to be traced by a user. CCH Group (2009) included figures from a survey that took place in 2006; Computer Crime and Security survey concluded their study and stated that $241,150 is the average loss on an annual basis for organizations in the US. They also stated that 20% of these losses occurred from rootkits intrusions that may have caused leakage of sensitive information, login credentials, banking details etc. Koch (2007) gave an example of rootkits and explained that Sony BMG Music Entertainment had adopted the strategy of rootkits to setup digital rights management software on the system of the user whenever their CD was played to ensure that the music was not being copied or used for piracy purposes. This installation was being done without the knowledge of the user. Rootkits are hard to detect since the intruder’s tracks are cleaned and made invisible after the intrusion. George (2006) pointed out an effective mode of recognizing the presence of rootkits in the system by using an alternate media such as rescue CD-ROM. The involvement of such external medium may be able to detect the rootkits since they may not be executing at the time of running the CD and intentionally trying to hide their existence.

Monday, August 26, 2019

Market research assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Market research - Assignment Example This study analyzes three different scenarios for the formulation of the best research strategy to be used din the data collection and analysis phases of the study. The target respondents for this scenario are residents of the Lochiel Park as they are the ones affected because they live there and benefit from the sustainable technologies offered at the Park. Sampling will be done through systematic Sampling that relies on arranging the study population according to some ordering scheme and then selecting at regular intervals through that ordered list, starting with the first project then proceeded with the selection of every 4th projects in the project list (Association for Qualitative Research, 2002). Qualitative research approach is the most appropriate research type for this scenario with the use of phenomenological research that aims at identifying the experience of the residents in the area (Hennink, 2011). The main reason or the choice of qualitative research in the study is that the research deals with the opinions, views, and feelings of the residents on living at the park. The choice is also pegged on the fact that the aim of the resea rch is to explore a given phenomena, which is the experience of the residents living at the Lochiel Park and not testing a hypothesis (Gehlbach, 2012). The appropriate data collection method for the use in the study is in-depth interviews and questionnaires for the study the research to get the views of the researchers on the research topic. The sample size has to be a small sample, preferably 40 to allow for the in-depth interviews and questionnaires to be filled by a sample of the residents at Lochiel Park due to high time requirements for the data collection method and to allow the researcher to get all the information for the formation or a required valid conclusion. This will also allow the

Sunday, August 25, 2019

T S Eliot The Love Song of J Alfred Prufrock Essay

T S Eliot The Love Song of J Alfred Prufrock - Essay Example Prufrock is depicted as a damned person who seeks to woo a woman. The world seen in the poem through the epigraph is dull and boring. Prufrock is not hopeful that the surroundings will offer his the conditions that he wants to win the love of a woman. His inability to perceive the world as a better place is seen in the second verse where he says, â€Å"Like a sole patient etherized upon a table† (Eliot 1). The allusion to a historical prophet is evident and reinforces the theme of inadequacy with the world. He sees himself as a person who cannot achieve the goals he had visualized in the beginning. Allusion has been used to convey Prufrock as a character who does not believe in himself because of his wretched situation. The title of the poem symbolizes the love concerns in the poem. The reader expects Prufrock to pursue his love interest after setting the environment in the first verse. However, he is portrayed as a man who cannot act on feelings because of the questionable mindset. The strong attraction of love does not grow in the process because Prufrock does not act on his infatuation with the woman. He has fears rejection, obsessions, and anxieties he has about the world. The title is anchored on the theme of love, but Prufrock does not succeed because of the people in the world who prevent him from interacting maximally. Prufrock ends up being condemned in a world of loneliness isolation. The speaker struggles with the self-identity in the poem. Use of repetitive questions, for example, â€Å"Do I dare disturb the universe?†(Eliot 5) has been used to depict a person who is struggling with finding himself and his real identity as a man. Eliot was a modernist who was concerned with addressing issues that revolved around self-identity but within the larger universal context. Questions of finding meaning in the speaker are evident and the speaker wants the universe to walk

Saturday, August 24, 2019

Property law - Land Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Property law - Land - Essay Example The next year, Mr. Kernott and Ms. Jones acquired a loan to extend their house, with Mr. Kernott undertaking most of the construction work. The couple separated in 1993 and Mr. Kernott left their home in Badger Hall Avenue. Mr. Kernott stopped contributing to the household bills and the mortgage. Further, he made little contribution towards maintaining the two children that the couple had. Three years later, Mr. Kernott and Ms. Jones decided to redeem their life insurance policy, dividing the proceeds between themselves. Mr. Kernott bought a house on 114 Stanley Road in Essex with his share of the proceeds. However, in 2006, he sought payment for the value of his share of the house on Badger Hall Avenue. Ms. Jones declined, requesting that the Appointment of Trustees and Trusts of Land Act 1996 grant her total ownership of the property2. The court decided, after considering precedence in the cases of Dowden v Stack and Hiscock v Oxley that both parties share the total value of the property in different proportions, awarding 10% of the property to Mr. Kernott and 90% awarded to Ms. Jones. According to this judgment, Mr. Kernott would recieive  £24355 and Ms. Jones would receive  £219,190 in the event that they sold the property then Mr. Kernott appealed this decision at the High Court4. Mr. Kernott argued at the High Court that the judge wrongly imputed or inferred an intention that after the separation of the couple, both parties’ beneficial interests were supposed to change. Further, he claimed that the court was unfair in its quantification of the beneficial interests owned by both parties. By a simple majority, Mr. Kernott’s appeal went through. The court declared that both parties were joint owners of the property, and were tenants with equal shares5. Judges Wall P., Rimer L.J. and Jacob L.J. presided over the appeal6. Wall and Rimer argued that there was no way to indicate a change in the intentions of both parties

Friday, August 23, 2019

Strategic human resource management Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Strategic human resource management - Essay Example The increased efficiency of any organization may be due to ideal way of utilizing the human resources which is accelerated by the successful implementation of strategic human resource management. Only those organizations who adopt the flexible management strategies survive in the present day global market as the element of competition creeps in at a faster rate day by day (Schuler, 1992). This necessitates the application of key strategies based on the changes in the tastes of the customers and market demand. The strategic human resource management plays vital role in supplying the necessary information to the managers related to the production of best quality produce so that the organization survives in the global market. In other words, the formulation of strategic human resource management is important to come up with innovative products that compete well with other market players. ‘Several emerging issues that strategic human resource management systems must include are tec hnological fluidity, workforce demographic changes and shifting worker values’ (Lepak and Shaw, 2008). One should keep in mind that various elements or indicators of strategic human resource management like structure, team work, style, dynamic leadership, employee organization commitment and creativity help in enhancing the organizational efficiency. Ideal structure of the organization facilitates efficient flow of resources and hence it results in increasing the overall efficiency of the organization (Kenneth et al., 2006). Employee organization commitment also plays crucial role in enhancing the organizational efficiency by reducing the absenteeism and improving the employee adaptability to the organizational changes (Su et al., 2009). Dynamic leadership is another key indicator that aids in overall monitoring and guidance of the key operations of any organization. Similarly, the team work plays vital role in production of quality product by the integration

Thursday, August 22, 2019

Interviewing Sales Professionals assignment (15%) Essay

Interviewing Sales Professionals assignment (15%) - Essay Example The hotel is rated four-star, with comfortable guest rooms and dining facilities; a conference centre; entertainment centre; and a health and wellness centre. Services include all the standard services for luxury four-star hotels, from laundry and room service, to satellite television and broadband. These services are available in deluxe rooms, executive deluxe suites, business suites and super-large deluxe suites. Maggie sells to groups focusing on business, conferences, wellness tours, and tourism. Impressions of the Interviewee Nonverbal techniques Maggie uses very clear nonverbal techniques to make the person she is speaking to comfortable. Her greeting is formal, and her voice pitched low and smooth. Confidence in what she is saying is expressed both in her voice and in the relaxed, attentive posture she maintains when listening or speaking. After the formality of the greeting, her expression is friendly and receptive, with eye-contact maintained. Her body directly faces the per son she is speaking to, leaning slightly forward, and she maintains a slightly lower level of contact, seeming to look upward at the other party. She keeps her hands and arms relaxed, using some gestures to emphasize what she is saying in very controlled ways. When she listens, she slightly tilts her head, looking interested, and does not interrupt. It seemed throughout the interview, and sales presentations, that she has only one focus – the person/people she is interacting with. Appearance and demeanor In appearance, Maggie Chen is very well-groomed. She wears the dark-colored corporate uniform of the hotel chain. A friendly and approachable personality is evident. She reacts to questions in a thoughtful, confident way, thinking for a moment before answering in detail. The Presentation The sales presentation I attended was to a large chain of travel agencies, specializing in business conference organization for USA and Chinese companies. They were looking for hotels across China in which to stage conferences and business meetings for up to 100 delegates at a time, and ranging from 3 day to 10 day events, over the next 18 months. Their business would allow Ms. Chen to come close to achieving her targets for the year, as she would be able to report advance room bookings at approximately 30% of occupancy – half of what she was aiming for. A PowerPoint presentation had been prepared, and Maggie had thoroughly worked through the presentation. We arrived at the venue in the hotel 15 minutes before the representatives of the travel company were set to arrive, and all the technical aspects had been checked. Refreshments were laid out and the exact number of places had been arranged at the table. When the representatives arrived each was greeted in turn, from the most senior to the least senior and I realized that Maggie had researched the people and the company well enough to know all the details about them. Her PowerPoint presentation really just gave an overview of the hotel and what it has to offer in pictures and with music. It was the commentary by Maggie that identified the possible packages that could be put together to meet the exact needs of the travel agency and their planned conferences and meetings. She had also prepared a glossy handout, listing 4 options for the room bookings, and the

Changes of several household chemicals Essay Example for Free

Changes of several household chemicals Essay REACTIONS OF SUCROSE WITH WATER AND HEAT Mixture/Solution Process Observations Sand, salt and water none -salt dissolves in water -some san   particles settle at bottom, others float in suspension -mixture is murky Sand, salt and water filtration -residue is sand -filtrate is salt water Salt water evaporation -solute is salt -solvent is water -water evaporates -salt is left in dish -salt is white forming a layer or crust. OBSERVATIONS OF THE MIXTURE AND SEPARATION OF SALT, SAND AND WATER Residue/Solute Observations Sand (residue) -brown color -large and small particle sizes moist -grain-like composition Salt (solute) -white color -tiny particle sizes -particles sticked together to form crust -dry -crystal-like composition COMPARISON OF SALT SOLUTE AND SAND RESIDUE Compound Condition Change Silver Nitrate Dark (locker) None Silver Nitrate. Exposed to light -turned copper brown color -black edges around brown -paper was dry REACTIONS OF SILVER NITRATE IN LIGHT AND DARK CONDITIONS Compounds Change after grinding Change with magnet Iron filings and Sulphur powder poweders mix together turns olive green color iron filings attract to magnet sulphur poweder remains unchanged OBSERVATIONS OF IRON FILINGS AND SULPHUR POWDER AFTER GRINDING AND MAGNET ATTRACTION DISCUSSION: In this lab the physical and chemical properties of given substances were investigated along with the determination of chemical/physical changes observed in certain mixtures. Separating methods were also used to separate certain mixtures. As a result, these three objectives were completed successfully. In the first experiment, a 2cm magnesium ribbon was added to 4ml 3M of hydrochloric acid. The resulting reaction caused the mixture to fizz and dissolved the magnesium strip. This was found to be a chemical change due tot eh fact that an acid (HCl) reacted with a metal (Mg). From the reaction the magnesium dissolved due to the production of hydrogen (white gas visible) in the test tube; moreover, the magnesium was converted into aqueous magnesium chloride and thus no solid was visible after the reaction. The second experiment, in which 2 test tubes were filled with sucrose, one also with water and the other heated, showed two distinct characteristics of table sugar. When water and the sucrose were stirred it was observed that the sucrose molecules dissolved into the water. This physical change occurred due tot eh fact that the sugar, acting as a solute, dissolved into the solvent, water, in turn forming a homogenous mixture that was uniform throughout. Also, the fact that no chemical means is needed to separate such a solution proves that it was a physical change occurring. Secondly, when the sucrose was heated it was observed that after a certain amount of time, the sucrose melted and turned color. This was due tot eh fact that sucrose has a low melting point and it reached this point in the experiment thus causing it to change state. This was seen as a physical change as well due to the fact that the identity of sucrose was not changed chemically, only its state. As the third experiment was conducted, a mixture of sand, salt and water was combined and separated to observe any sort of change. When the three substances were combined it was found that the salt dissolved in the water while the sand remained the same. The salt again, acted as a solute and the water as a solvent thus producing a homogenous solution and a physical change in the salt; however, because the sand did not dissolve into the water, it was concluded that the sand particles floating in the water formed a suspension (mixture in which each substance keeps its own identity and characteristics). When filtration was performed the sand was left on the filter paper a residue while the filtrate of salt water was found in the beaker. The sand particles were too large to fit in the spaces of the filter paper and thus could not pass into the beaker, but the filtrate of salt and water, because it was a liquid solution, it passed with ease. After evaporation was complete, the solvent was evaporated and only the salt was left in the dish. This was so because the water had a lower boiling point that salt and thus evaporated into the atmosphere and left the salt to collect in the dish. This was found to be another physical change due tot eh fact that salt was returned to its original state. The next experiment involved the reaction of silver nitrate with both light and dark conditions. The silver nitrate in the dark did not show any change at all, but the one exposed to sunlight showed significant chemical change. The fact that it turned copper brown and black edges proved that silver nitrate is very sensitive to light. Because the light hit the silver nitrate it reacted with positive silver ions reducing them to silver metal. This caused the darkened areas on the paper that were observed. Lastly, when iron filings and sulphur powder were mixed it produced an olive green powder. This physical change occurred due to the fact that there was no reaction between sulphur and iron filings thus both remained unchanged but mixed. When the magnet was passed over the powder all iron filings, due to their metallic attraction to magnetic fields, all iron filings attached themselves to the magnet leaving only sulphur powder again. Sources of error may have included the fact that the wafting of certain substances for odors were faulty in the view that the scent was so mild it could not be detected easily with olfactory senses; moreover the actual process or reaction of silver nitrate with light was not observed in step by step detail resulting in some uncertainty or poor clarity in results. Nevertheless, the conclusions were reliable due to the fact that each experiment was carried out in a systematic and precise way. Also, the fact that all results matched theoretic values and prior knowledge of the reactions occurring proved their acceptability in the lab. CONCLUSION: All objectives were achieved successfully as several experiments were conducted to prove their reactions and changes. The first reaction with baking soda and vinegar was a chemical change due to the fact that the solution fizzed forming a new one and gas evolved thus outing the splint. The second reaction of HCl and Mg was chemical as well because magnesium dissolved and hydrogen gas evolved (both results of a chemical reaction between magnesium and HCl). The third conclusion drawn was the fact that sucrose mixed with water was a physical change. This was so because even though the sucrose dissolved it did not change chemically and could have been separated from the water back to its original form; moreover, when sucrose was heated it was another physical change as it changed state but remained the same compound, sucrose. Physical changes were also observed in the sand, salt and water mixture. The salt was ultimately extracted from the water through evaporation proving it was a physical change. After this, when the silver nitrate was placed in the sunlight a chemical change occurred as light reacted with silver ions thus changing the color of silver nitrate. Lastly, a final physical change was observed in the grinding of iron filings and sulphur powder because when the magnet attracted iron filings it showed that the iron did not change its identity but only mixed in with the sulphur powder. Anuar Flores CHE 124-1 Show preview only The above preview is unformatted text This student written piece of work is one of many that can be found in our GCSE Patterns of Behaviour section.

Wednesday, August 21, 2019

The Essence Of Human Resource Management Theory Management Essay

The Essence Of Human Resource Management Theory Management Essay According to Martyn Shuttleworth (2009), literature review is a critical and in depth evaluation of research in which all sides of an argument must be clearly explainted, and areas of agreement and disagreement should be highlighted. In order to deal with the objectives and question proposed in the chapter 1, the author is going to find related theories in academic journals both online and paper, and other academic sources to provide the supervisor as well as readers a comprehensive overview of why the author is pursuing the research. In the chapter, the definition, components and practice of human resource management, human resource management in Vietnam and SMEs will be presented. In addition, the author will address the problems and find solutions to improve human resource management. 2.1: Human resource management definition There have been many lessons and also so much research both national and interational on the human resource management, which are widely applied in enterprises. And these primarily concentrate on the areas including the concept of human resource management, functions of human resource management and its applications. An debate on what is the essence of human resource management theory is still ongoing conversation. A review and research agenda put forth by Guest (1997) has endeavoured to pull all those arguments together. He indicates that there are diverse theories about human resource management including illustrative, strategic and normative. Firstly, descriptive theory states that the important inputs of an alternative of human resource management policy and practice such as creating employee influence, enforcing human resource flows and establishing incentive reward systems will influence on four key effects, which are commitment, competence, congruence and cost effectiveness. These leading to they will produce low labor turnover, loyal and faithful employees, who will commit to build up an organizations efficiency. This statement is also presented by Beer et al (1984) and Beaumont (1993). Secondly, strategic theory suggests that a good coordination between business strategy, human resource policy and practice will strengthen enterprises performance. Finally, normative theory describes a set of value that indicates human resource management practice applied to gain normative targets of high commitment to the enterprise. This will affect the performance of enterprises. Definition of human resource management is still in argument. Boxall and Purcell (2003) argue that this definition is affected by three issues. Firstly, human resource management is derived from a range of antecedents and depends on the stance and philosophy of the analyst. Secondly, it contributes to the analysis of the employment relationship, and is reliant upon context. Finally, the significance of human resource management is variable, which emphasize people, strategy, employment relationships etc. In order to emphasize human resource management, Redman and Wilkinson (2006) compare it as the utilization of individuals to achieve an organizations objectives. People management not only critical to business performance but also much more significant than priority over quality, technology, competitive strategy or RD terms of influence on the bottom-line. They present functions of human resource management, which include employee and labour relations, staffing, human resource development, compensation and benefits, safety and health. Storey (1995) states, similarly, that human resource management is a distinctive approach to employment management which seeks to achieve competitive advantage through strategic development of a highly committed and skilled workforce, using an integrated array of cultural, structural techniques. In addition, Cherrington (1995) confirms that human resource management is responsible for how people are treated in companies. It is the commitment on taking p eople into the organizations, assisting them carry their work out, compensating them for their labours, and settling issues that arise. 2.2: Human resource management functions and performance According to Mondy (2002), there are four functions in human resource management including recruitment, training and development, performance appraisal, compensation and benefits. Together they make up the human resource management system. Top management views these functions as an important tool to enhance competitiveness. Recruitment is, firstly, the process of attracting individuals on an opportune basis, in sufficient numbers and with suitable qualifications, and motivating them to apply for jobs with an organization. This process involves analyzing and forecasting the talent that companies need to execute their business plan, it is an important strategic step, enabling the organization to recognize, develop and sustain the workforce skills it needs to successfully accomplish its strategic intent whilst balancing career and lifestyle goals of its employees. Better recruit would lead to improvement in organisation productivities outcome compare to a poor recruit process. This process is very crucial to the success of the business. Failure to recruit appropriate worker will result in slow or stunted the grow of business (Boxall and Purcell 2000, p.140). The firm may then select those applicants with qualifications most closely related to job specifications (Mondy, 2002). He confirms that finding the r ight way of encouraging qualified candidates to put in for employment is extremely important when a firm needs to hire employees. Training and development is, secondly, the heart of a continuous effort designed to improve employee competency and organizational performance. Mondy (2002) argues that training provides learners with the knowledge and skills needed for their present jobs. On the other hand, development involves learning that goes beyond todays job, which has a more long-term focus. It prepares employees to keep pace with the organization as it changes and grows. Training Development activities have the potential to align a firms employees with its corporate strategies. According to Leonard Nadler (1984), training and development are ornanizational learning experiences took place in the certain period of times in order to increase the job performance and improve the development capacity of organizations and individuals. The concept emphasizes the ultimate goal of human resource development is to develop the organization, also focuses on the combination of personal development goals together with development objectives of the organization. However, the term also confirmed the development activities only increase job performance and organizational development capability since only when are employees interested in appling the learned knowledge to the work then the change will be created. On the other hand, the concept also clarified the role of direct managers in improving the job performance of employees yet definition of the concept is still in debate. Similarly, Henry J.Sredl Willam J. Rothwell (1997) defines training and development is to refer to the organizational learning experiences which are sponsored by the business ower. They are designed and implemented along with the goal of improving the job performance and enhancing the human condition through ensuring the combination of organizational and individual goals. The concept emphasizes the support of employer for their employees in the human resource development activities. On another view, Jerry W. Gilley (2002) states that training and development is the process of promoting organizational learning, improving job performance, and creating changes through the implementation of solutions (official and non-official), initiatives and management activities aiming at performance improvement, competitiveness and innovation which has more emphasis on the official and non-official remedies in human resource development activities, and also more focus on organizational management s olutions. Thirdly, according to Mondy (2002), performance appraisal (PA) is a formal system of review and evaluation of individual or team task performance. While assessment of team performance is essential as long as teams exist in an organization, the focus of PA in a number of companies remains on the individual employee. In spite of the emphasis, an effective appraisal system evaluates achivements and initiative plans for improvement, targets, and objectives. Finally, Mondy (2002) shows that compensation administration is one of managements most difficult and challenging human resource areas on account of containing quite a lot of elements and has a far-reaching impact on an organizations plans. Compensation is the total of all awards provided to employees in return for their services. Generally speaking, pay system are designed to attract, preserve, and encourage employees, to attain internal, external, and individual equity, and to keep a balance up in relationships between direct and indirect forms of compensation, and between the pay rates of supervisory and non-supervisory employees. As far as the relationship between human resource management and organizations performance is concerned, there has been increasing numbers of research. Most of them support the positive correlation between high performance as a result of human resource management practice and efficiency of enterprise performance. Poole and Jenkins (1996) examined the development of comprehensive human resource management policies by the survey of 909 firms in Britain and investigated that human resource management is one of the key factor to achieve a competitive advantage. With the general consensus, Dunphy and Stace (1992) have the same view with Poole and Jenkins. They emphasize that people themselves and their skills are the important factor to the added value of the organisation and human management will have an influence on enriching the efficiency of an organization. As a result, human resource management must be added in enterprises strategic development. The empirical study on effects of management training of Wong (1997) finds out that there are considerable impacts of management training and development on reforming performance of small and medium enterprises. In addition, Bratton and Gold (1994), Bearwell et al (1994) and Storey (1995) conclude that an organisation, which strives to improve its operations and demand for success, leads to the greater emphasis on human resource management. Hence, these studies have suggested that policies and practices of human resource management contribute to business success. Furthermore, there are several studies in which have included performance-based compensation as one of the high performance in human resource management practices. Redman and Wilkinson (2006) state that compensation is the total of all rewards provided employees in return for their services. There are two types of compensation including financial and non-financial compensation. Financial component consists of wages, salaries, bonuses, social security, health services etc. In contrary, non-financial one covers the satisfaction that an employee receives from the job itself and job environment such as teamwork, skills, autonomy, flex time and others. Huselid (1995), Delery and Doty (1996) consider compensation and benefits as the single strongest predictor of an enterprises performance. Based on empirical studies, these authors conclude that there is a positive correlation between performance-related pay and company performance. Therefore, performance-based compensation and merit-based promotions can be evaluated as important factors in incentive systems (Guest, 1997 and Huselid, 1995). At present, there are quite a lot of ways to progress the practice of human resource management. One of the key factors for the success of enterprises in a competitive market is to keep up continued competence through the development of human resources, which employee performance appraisal is a crucial tool. Borman (1991) defines that performance appraisal is a system of reviews and evaluations of an individuals or teams performance. It covers human resource planning, recruitment and selection, training and development, career planning and development, compensation programs and evaluation of employee potentials, of which compensation is widely apply in performance appraisal. A professional appraisal system could significantly improve employee performance and enterprise profitability (Robert, 1995). 2.3: Human resource management in small and medium enterprises Hill and Stewart (2000), with respect to human resource management in small and medium enterprises, state that SMEs lack resources like large enterprises, which tends to follow informal modes of operation such as short-term perspectives and the owners preferences and experience. However, many studies indicate that issues in SMEs are similar to those facing large enterprises such as the difficulty of linking investment in training with performance outcomes, the delivery of training courses and impacts of technology. Patton et al (2000) suggest that understanding the link between training interventions and achieving performance might be complicated by several variables that could impact the relationship. These factors might contain surrounding factors and particular ones to the firm, such as the owner and background of the management team, and the partnership between the training supplier and the recipient. Patton et al recommend that it could be more productive to encourage training as beneficial to the firm in the widest sense rather than attempting to reveal clear causal relationship. Huang (2001) argues that inadequacies in the definition and measurement of training have hampered attempts to show links between training and improvements in performance. Huangs study suggests that, where firms grow up sophisticated training courses with efficient management assistance, the effectiveness of the investment in training will be high (Huang, 2001). However, it might be argued that, by their very natu re, small and medium enterprises might lack the ability to build up sophisticated training programmes, with or without management assistance. There is a huge challenge in thinking up incentives for small firms to invest in formal job related training when it is often difficult to argue that it is in their short-term interests to do so. In relative terms, the effect of the owner manager in a small firm is much more pervaise and powerful than may be the case with the CEO of a big firm. In the view of Mazzarol (2003), he suggests small businesses are the product of their owners, whose personality and personal involvement dominate. The owner managers perspectives to training will be an essential hindrance or assistance in the implementation of training programmes. Hankinsons (2000) study of owner-managers found that these managers typically invested 93% of their working day inside the firm and made little deliberate attempt to up-skill themselves through joining courses or reading relevant literature as they regarded experience as the most relevant from of their continuing achievement. Managers with these views to training are not likely to encourage high rates of participation in training amongst their staffs. One response to this low regard many owner-managers have for the relevance of available training and developm ent schemes might be to develop an approach based on mentoring (Hudson-Davies et al. 2000). Sharply becoming a key issue, technology is in association with training on two sides, first the rapid development of technology coupled with the increasing pressure to keep up technical skills in order to maintain competitive, should supply an important incentive for continued investment in training and development. As McCole et al (2001) note, the generally negative attitude and low priority given to training in many SMEs is a matter for concern. Following their study of training in SMEs in Northern Ireland, McCole et al summarized that the short-term emphasis in small companies, which depresses investment in longer term masters such as training, might result in small companies experiencing a decline in their ability to keep up competitive in terms of their key human resources. The second side of technology is that new forms of electronically mediated training design and delivery should overcome several the problems of access, that have been often cited by managers in SMEs as a maj or obstacle. In spite of the importance of technology and the chances now emerging, research seems to suggest that SMEs have not been quick on the uptake. From a number of managers of SMEs, a frequent complaint is that available training programmes are not well designed for the commands of the small companies, or are difficult to adapt to the specific requirements of a firm. The issues here might be more complicated than simply a question of content. Anderson and Boocock (2002) argue that the big firm model of learning, on which the majority of formal training courses are arranged, is inappropriate for small companies in which the distinctive culture and communications systems could be more suited to learning which occurs through more informal processes. Advances on training in SMEs has to contain concern not simply for content, but also for problems of timing, location and delivery and such training might require a significant level of customisation given the heterogeneous nature of the SMEs sector. Clearly there is a problem here for SMEs as highly customized products for small clients are not an appealing prospect for training provi ders. According to Patton (2000), he points out that the relationship between training interventions and improved performance may be hindered by factors such as the owner and nature of management team, the relationship between the training provider and recipient. In addition, Mazzarol (2003) states that the influence of the owner manager in SMEs is more pervasive and powerful than ones in large enterprises. Moreover, Huang (2001) argues that SMEs are not capable of designing sophisticated training programs with the management support, which is a challenge for SMEs to invest into jobs related to training programs. 2.4: Human resource management of SMEs in VietNam Vietnamese government with the assistance from international organisations in many countries in the world has paid more and more attention to the development of SMEs since the renovation doi moi. In order to support Viet Nam along with its efforts, some donors came and joined hands to support Vietnamese SMEs as key actors in the countrys socio-economic development. A number of researchers have been implemented with the mandate to provide assistance to the development of SMEs. Almost these researches have aimed at financial issues, businessworking environment of SMEs and business services. This area has been mentioned by some reports in different aspects although there has not been any research specialising in human resources management issues in Vietnamese SMEs. Nguyen Duc Vinh (1999) indicates that the faster the growth experienced by the small firm the more likely it will experience human resource masters. The management of SMEs tends to be small and multi-functional. Often, entrepreneurs run companies dingle-handed or take a disproportionate production of the key decisions, in addition to functioning as the general interface to the outside world. Creating a larger, professional management is desirable, but until a certain size is reached it is difficult to create much division of labour and to develop specialised interfaces. These leading to management functions in a brutal cycle of overwork, which results in inability to consider and exploit externally-derived improvement opportunities, that in turn leads to overwork. The lack of specialised is completely absent. Notably, a number of small firms have no engineers and therefore no intelligent interface to technological changes and opportunities. Other key skill and resources might be abse nt. Usually, for instance, new technology-based companies have few marketing or business development capabilities. SMEs, which are trying to orient to export markets, require good entrepreneurial and management skills. However, business management skills are not up to the mark. Only a few owners are equipped with business knowledge of a market economy. Most of the proprietors run business based on their own experience. In general, entrepreneurs in the SMEs sector are often home-grown, obtianing their skills and leadership qualities in their own workplace and business environment. Beyond a certain point, this learning by doing approach becomes less useful in assisting small firms in graduating into modern small enterprises, equipped with advance models of technology and marketing skills. Furthermore, SME management rely on being experienced and being able to communicate both inside the enterprise and with outside partners. Thus, according to Tuong Lai (1999), training and support programmes might be needed to build up the quality and skills of both employees and management. In Vietnam, the facts have showed that employers are reluctant to invest in training potentially highly mobile workers. To a certain extent, the demand for technical and vocational training is being dampened by employees tendency to leave for a better job once they have been trained. Employers do not believe in contracts that require their workers to stay firm a certain period of time after training, either because the workers are not registered or because they think the contracts will not be enforced. A survey by MPDF in 89 manufacturing companies in both public and private sectors (MPDF, 2000) found that: On average, each month, firms invested three days of internal staff time in training and bought-in an average of 16 days of training services. Seventy eight percent of external training was provided by the public sector. The respondents also state that training content needed to be more up-to-date, of global quality, and localized for the Vietnamese context. Training should be carefully matched to customers demands with both basic and advanced training options. The training itself needed to be practical, not theoretical. The method of instruction needed to be designed to ensure skill transfer from the classroom back to the workplace. Fifty nine percent of the companies indicated that they were not able to get the training expertise they needed in Viet Nam. Additionally, although labour is abundant, most job seekers are unskilled staffs. While only a small number of SMEs could provide training for their staffs, government assistance in training is insignificant. Viet Nam Chamber of Commerce and Industry (VCCI), though, plays an active role on organising seminars and some training courses, a number of private companies do not apply such programs, nor they aware of VCCIs training services that is particularly the situation in the poorer provinces (Stoyan Tenev et al., 2003). According to a survey by MPDF, private firms, especially SMEs are the least preferred place of employment. Students and their parents think of a private employer as failing to provide suitable jobs and to ensure job security for employees (MPDF, 1999). This perception makes SMEs more difficult to attract qualified labour. In a seminar on development of SMEs under the umbrella of Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) in 2005, Dodd (2005) points to another weakness arising from the fact that smaller Vietnamese businesses tend to have the bulk of their labour force make up of family members, friends or relatives. In this opinion, good brothers do not necessarily make good associates. It is often difficult for a company leader to have a good judgement of his employees, especially when it comes to one of his skin. And even when the right judgement is made, other employees may still see the directors decision as an unfair one. Brown and Davison (1999) shared this opinion with Dodd that human resource management within family-owned and managed small firms can also be made difficult when family members hold key positions within the business or find themselves in dispute with other or the human resource manager.

Tuesday, August 20, 2019

Problems with Cheap Food

Problems with Cheap Food Casey Vorfa Food fight: Worldviews on food production and consumption Cheap Food Is Simply Unaffordable During the past few decades, the Food industrys productivity levels have skyrocketed and our food system is now able to produce large quantities of food in very short time spans. Furthermore, these products are sold at extremely low prices in order to attract consumers. At first glance this seems like an ideal food system but unfortunately things arent as they seem. Producing unlimited amounts of cheap, processed food actually costs a lot of energy and has harmful effects on the environment, animals and our own health . Therefore, finding new sustainable ways of producing food remains crucial. First of all it is important to understand how the food industry manages to sell its products at such an irresistible price. The reason is simple. All large food companies have one single goal : maximizing their profit. In order to do so, they want to make sure that they produce and sell as much as possible in a very short period of time. In order to increase their yield companies use advanced technology and an alarming amounts of resources such as pesticides, herbicides, fossil fuel and corn. In particular corn is of great importance, it is used as a preserving agent and also as food to cattle. More than 12 billion b.u of corn are produced annually(1). Furthermore, with fossil fuel levels running low, corn is turned into ethanol and later used as fuel. The food companies can sell us their products at such cheap prices because the corn that they buy and use doesnt cost them a thing. The price of corn is being maintained at low levels in an artificial way. Over the past decade the US Federal Government has spent more than 50 billion dollars into the corn industry(2). This is the why unprocessed organic foods are so much more expensive. A study in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition found that a dollar could buy 1200 calories of potato chips or 875 calories of soda but just 250 calories of vegetables or 170 calories of fresh fruit (3). In a few words, the large food companies have been receiving financial support by the government. No wonder unprocessed foods are much more expensive and unaffordable. They havent been receiving any royal treatment. One of the main flaws of our food production system is that it is very energy-intense. The food industry is heavily dependent on the use of oil and fossil fuels. In order to increase their output food industries use diesel powered tractors, irrigation pumps, pesticides and herbicides made of natural gas and petroleum. In fact, in the U.S about 10 percent of the energy budget goes to producing, distributing, processing, preparing and preserving the plant and animal matter we consume (4). However, the amount of food that is produced is much smaller than the amount of energy used to produce it. For instance, the U.S expends roughly ten units of fossil energy to produce one unit of food energy (5). Thus, if companies are already producing large amounts of food an unimaginable amount of energy is used to make it. It seems that the large food companies are ignoring the energy crisis we are in. For decades industries have been exploiting Earth’s natural resources as if these resource s were to last forever and the food industry has been no exception. Considering the fact that the global population is increasing and that we are running out of fossil fuels we will no longer be able to satisfy the increasing demand.The demand for meat and poultry is expected to increase by 25 percent by 2015 (6). In addition, the price of oil and other fossil fuels will also increase. Hence, the current food production system is unsustainable and will eventually collapse. Not only is our current food system very energy demanding but it also damages our ecosystems and harms animals. As one of the main energy consumers the food industry is also one of the major water, air and soil polluters. Burning fossil fuels create greenhouse gases which contribute to global warming. Intensive farming requires large amounts of chemical fertilizers. In American farms more than 10 million tons of fertilizers are being used for corn alone. 23 million for all crops (7). All these chemicals end up in rivers, lakes or in seas contributing to water pollution, soil contamination and in what we call dead zones .Dead Zones are areas of approximately 6000 -sq-mi area which contain no oxygen, killing all forms of sea life. There are nearly 400 dead zones and these dead zones cause the fishing industry to lose 212 000 tons of seafood a year (8). But our food system does not only pollute our land by releasing chemicals. Our ecosystem is also affected by the large amount of manure our system releases. One pig can produce four times more waste than humans (9). Considering the number of pigs and other livestock we can definitely say that a tremendous amount of waste is produced. All of this waste is thrown into giant pits called lagoons. These lagoons contain so much waste that they become toxic and they are one of the main causes of pollution in the United States (10). They also pollute the land with heavy metals like cadmium, selenium, zinc, copper and arsenic(11). Furthermore, industrial agriculture also contributes in soil erosion and the loss of biodiversity. Monoculture crops are vast spaces of land where only one type of plant grows. These crops create an ecological vacuum that insects take advantage which reduces the quality of soil (12). These crops also reduce biodiversity which damages the food chain. But the degradation of animal life doesnt end there. Because the food industry wants to make us much profit as possible thousands of animals are cramm ed together in small contracted areas where they never get to see sunlight. Apparently, for large companies animal welfare and our environment are much less important than making profit. Most importantly cheap food has also affected consumers health in a variety of negative ways . Processed foods are low in nutrients, high in salt, sugar and fat. Moreover, three-fourth of the world food sales involve processed foods which means cheap food has reached almost every country. Different studies have shown that there is a strong correlation between consuming cheap foods and the chances of developing different types of diseases. Since the late 1970s, obesity rates have more than doubled among children 6 to 11 of age and more than tripled among those 12 to 19 of age (13). Products like SSBs (sugar sweetened beverages) are major contributors to childhood obesity, as well as to long term weight gain, type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular diseases (14). Furthermore, the chemicals and hormones that are added in our food also cause health issues. Danish Scientists have proven that hormone residues in beef are linked to high rates of breast and prostate cancer, as well as early onset puberty in girls(15). Moreover, all the waste and pollution that is caused by our food production system doesnt only affect animals but it affects our health as well. For instance, livestock manure pollutes the air with hydrogen sulphide which is linked to respiratory and neurological diseases (16). Hence, cheap food comes with very high costs to our health. Our current food system has many drawbacks, therefore it is important that we find new sustainable ways of producing food. First of all we posses technology that could decrease pollution and spare resources. Anaerobic digesters and micro turbines can convert manure into renewable, low-carbon biogas-fired electricity. Carbon dioxide could be used to grow algae for food and algae could easily be converted into bio-fuels. In addition, drip irrigation seems promising. Drip irrigation consists of underground tubes that deliver water directly to a plants roots. Researchers at Iowa State University estimate that corn farmers would use 40 percent less water and lower their energy bills by 15 percent with drip irrigation (17). No-till agriculture is yet an other promising option. This method involves planting seeds without turning the soil which reduces soil disturbance. Argentina already uses this advanced technique for more than half of its farms. Even though these methods are very helpful there is a lot more to be done. For the past decades large food companies have driven farmers off the land. In fact, nine out of ten hog farmers have left the business since 1979 (18). With unemployment levels getting higher by the day returning to the old way of farming might be a solution. Although it may seem that local farmers dont stand a chance towards the large food companies that is not necessarily true. If we support local farmers and the local food movement we are playing our part into stopping the food industrys harmful practices. Furthermore, companies like Niman Ranch have created networks of small scale farmers who only sale natural meat to restaurants (19). Other companies like Bon Appetit encourage their costumers to make environmental friendly choices. Our behavior as consumers also has a large impact on the energy ratio. Even though we might not realize it, our every day choices do have an influence on the amount of energy that is being used. Our diets one of them. If we eat meat every single day the amount of fossil fuels used is a lot greater than if we ate grain everyday. Meat is four times as energy demanding as grains are. That doesn’t necessarily mean that we should eat grains everyday but reducing our meat consumption and eating more foods that are less energy demanding does have a large impact. Restaurant owners might decide to sell in smaller proportions and keep the leftovers. Moreover, maybe we should think twice before going to eat at buffets. As consumers we should also think about not wasting our own food and not buying more than we need. The USDA estimates that Americans throw out 14 percent of the food that they buy which results in the waste of large amounts of resources (20). Thus our decisions as consumers can have large impacts on the food system. In conclusion, our society simply cannot afford cheap food. Our current food production system is not only highly inefficient but also harms our planet, animals and our own health. Fortunately for us it is not too late to change things. The use of modern technology to manage waste, supporting local farmers and Eco-friendly products are only some of the few ways to create a new sustainable way of producing food. References (1),(2),(3), (6),(7),(8),(19),(20) : Walsh, Bryan, Getting Real About High Price of Cheap Food , Time in Partnership with CNN, August 21, 2009 (4),(5)(9),(16)(17) : Webber, Michael E., More Food Less Energy, Scientific American, January 2012 (10),(11) (15),(16)(18) : Schloser, Eric â€Å" Cheap Food Nation Siera, November/December 2006 : Kaplan, David, Food Encyclopedia of Environmental Ethics and Philosophy : Nestle, Marion Food Marketing and Childhood Obesity The New England Journal of Medicine, Boston, June 15 2006. : Stuckler, David and Nestle Marion, Big Food, Food Systems and Global Health Plos Medicine, Volume 9, Issue 6, June 2012

Monday, August 19, 2019

Like Water For Chocolate Character Descriptions :: essays research papers fc

Tita - The protagonist of the novel, Tita is the youngest daughter of Mama Elena, prohibited by family tradition from marrying so that she will be free to take care of her mother later in life. The novel follows Tita's life from birth to death, focusing mostly on her tortured relationship with Pedro and her struggle and eventual triumph in pursuit of love and individuality. Mama Elena - The tyrannical, widowed matriarch of the De La Garza clan. Mama Elena is the prime source of Tita's suffering. Her fierce temperament inspires fear in all three of her daughters. She keeps Tita from her true love, Pedro, and it is later revealed that Mama Elena herself once suffered from a lost love, embittering her for the rest of her life. Pedro - Tita's true love, and the eventual father of Roberto and Esperanza. Denied marriage to Tita by Mama Elena, he agrees to marry Rosaura, breaking Tita's heart. Nevertheless, he asserts his continued love for Tita throughout the novel and pursues her secretly. Pedro dies after he and Tita are finally blissfully united while making love at the novel's end. Rosaura - The second daughter of Mama Elena, Rosaura marries Pedro, much to the despair of Tita. Rosaura leaves the ranch when Mama Elena sends her and Pedro to San Antonio to keep Pedro and Tita apart. Her first child, Roberto, dies as an infant; her second, Esperanza, prohibited like Tita from ever marrying, weds Alex after Rosaura dies. Gertrudis - The eldest daughter of Mama Elena. Gertrudis escapes the ranch after reacting mysteriouslly to one of Tita's recipes. She runs away with a rebel soldier, works in a brothel at the Mexico-Texas border, and eventually returns to the ranch as a general in the revolutionary army. It is eventually revealed that Gertrudis is the offspring of a hidden, extramarital affair between Mama Elena and her true love, a mulatto man. Dr. John Brown - An American doctor who cares for Tita when she experiences a breakdown, and the father of Alex. John eventually falls in love with Tita and helps rehabilitate her soul, revealing to her the nature of the fire that resides in each individual. Tita becomes engaged to him, but eventually denies him marriage to pursue Pedro. Nacha - The ranch cook, of unspecified indigenous background. Nacha is the prime caretaker for Tita throughout her childhood, and provides her with the love and support that Mama Elena fails to give. She is also the source for most of the recipes in the novel. Nacha dies on the day of Rosaura's wedding but returns throughout the narrative as a spiritual guide

Sunday, August 18, 2019

Bamboo Growth (Dracaena sanderiana) Essay -- Environment, Lucky Bamboo

This research was conducted to investigate light intensity effects on lucky bamboo vegetative growth in Azad University, Abhar Branch during 2008. The experiment was arranged as a complete randomized block design with 5 treatments (0.75, 1.14, 1.89, 2.29 and 4.09 Â µmol∙m-2∙s-1) in 10 replication. Results showed that 1.89 Â µmol/m-2/s-1 had significant differences from others treatments. The higher level of root number, shoot length and total weight of plants were obtained in 1.89 Â µmol∙m-2∙s-1 reatment. Number of shoot, shoot length and number of leaf per shoot were differ in different nodes and were highest in upping nod. Seedlings characteristics are during the growth time as a crucial factor in determining the ultimate fate of the plants. Therefore should be tried always seedlings have to very good condition. Seedling growth and quality are under influenced by environmental factors including light intensity (Lavendar, 1984). If environmental factors such as light intensity changes, also are under affect other factors and final quality of seedlings (Chaar et al., 1997). Seedling producers with changing and optimizing the light intensity regulated the seedlings growth, development, and plant vegetative quality (Lavendar, 1984). Lucky Bamboo with the scientific name Dracaena sanderiana has owned to Dracaenaceae family. This variety of dracaena does not belong to real bamboos of the Poaceae family. This plant are popular because beautiful leaves and robustness to apartment conditions. This plant is among plants that allowed indirect and low light intensity. So they classified in plants group with low light need (Brown, 2008). Brown (2008) reported ... ...results of this experiment showed that Lucky Bamboo is including Plants that have required too little light intensity. High light intensity can be cause yellowing of leaves. If want of results these experiments have a general recommendation for keeping these plants in apartment thus can say Because the total amount of light produced by sodium lamps with 400 watts at 3 meters distance is equivalent to 19 Â µmol s-1m-2. So use of a sodium or fluorescent lamp with 40 watts can to provide power equal to 1 / 9 Â µmol s-1m-2 for the plant (Barzegar & Yadegari, 2010). As that observed of this experiment the best treatment of light intensity for the optimum growth in Lucky bamboo plant is equivalent energy to 1 / 89 Â µmol s-1m-2. Can also provided light intensity needed for this shade-friendly plant with use a 40-watt incandescent lamp at a three meters distance apartment.

Saturday, August 17, 2019

“by the Waters of Babylon” vs Epic of Gilgamesh.

â€Å"By the waters of Babylon† Vs Epic of Gilgamesh. A lot of stories concerning religions and cultures have lot of similarities and differences, despite the fact that they are not from the same era of time. Humans used these stories and writings to express their culture and religious views. â€Å"By the Waters of Babylon† is very similar to the writings of the Mesopotamian writings in The Epic of Gilgamesh more specificlay â€Å"The story of the flood† and â€Å"The Return†.These similarities include many gods in both, a unique quality in the characters of both than can include â€Å"born to greatness†, people of both writings lead to their death themselves, John and Gilgamesh Come home with lessons. etc In most of all ancient influences, there are characters in the stories, who are born to some kind of greatness, or we can say, a special type of person.In â€Å"By the Waters of Babylon† when John and his father goes to the dead places, Joh n, explains that only priest can touch metal and are believed to have special powers that no other normal human being would have , â€Å"and then he who touches the metal must be a priest or the son of a priest† (Benet 75). This shows how is John born to greatness, being the son of a priest and can touch metal wherever he wants. The priests are believed to have special powers that no other normal human being would have.This compares to the Epic of Gilgamesh, when Author of Epic of Gilgamesh said â€Å"Two thirds they made him god and one third man† (Prologue). This shows how Gilgamesh was born to greatness by having 1/3 characteristics of man and 2/3 of god and this compares the born to greatness in both the writings . Some religions and cultures believe in one god; monotheistic religions, and others believe in many gods; polytheistic religions.In â€Å"By the Waters of Babylon† Benet’s main character, John, speaks of The Place of the Gods, â€Å"It is f orbidden to cross the great river and look upon the place that was the Place of the Gods –this is most strictly forbidden† (75). When speaking of gods house means multiple gods, this shows that the religion in which John follows is polytheistic and worships many gods. In The Epic of Gilgamesh, Gilgamesh speaks of the names of the gods, means a lot of gods ,â€Å"There was Anu, lord of the firmament, their father, and warrior Enlil their counselor, Ninurta the helper, and Ennugi watcher over canals† (N.K. Sandars 25). This shows that the Mesopotamians and people from â€Å"By the Waters of Babylon† were both polytheistic and believed in multiple gods. Almost in all writings there are lessons or message that characters learns in the end ,the same thing happened in our story, where ,Gilgamesh and John both learned lessons in the end of their voyage or journey . In â€Å"By the waters of Babylon† when john returns from the Place of Gods ,â€Å"But they are men who build the city, not dos or demons. †John says â€Å"They are men . I remember a dead man’s face† (Benet 85).This shows how John came home with a message, about the ,City of the Gods, that it is really New York City, and the gods were actually humans, so they have nothing to fear. And on the other side, Gilgamesh also comes home with a lesson which is that immortality is not obtained by some flower or going on a journey but you can be in hearts of the tourists and explorers but making your name fame , which Gilgamesh does but making Uruk’s walls and being in the hearts of people forever. And so, with that it proves a lesson learned in both writings.

History Ia (Ib) on Russo-Japanese War and Its Effect on the 1905 Revolution Essay

Russia during the 19th century was considered to be the mystical land of the Great Tsars and Tsarina’s. It long held the imagination of visitors and storytellers alike from its grand courts and palaces to its superb Caviar, Vodka and Faberge eggs. Russia was also the land of magic and superstition due to the powerful presence of the Russian Orthodox Church. But life for the most of Russia was not as starry and glamorous as described above. In fact the oppressive autocratic system was still living in the medieval age with poor peasant and serfs slaving for whatever little their rich masters would allow them. Most Russians lived in abject poverty and oppression and had little chance to advance. Russia was also the last to start its rise as an industrial power and relied mainly on the agrarian industry. Russia previously famed military now laid idle and ill trained to fight modern battles. Unknown to the Tsar and Russia the world has long left Russia in the rotten medieval age and had moved on. During the first half of the 20th century witnessed some repercussion in the mindset of the Russian bourgeois towards the oppressive Tsardom. The first strike came in 1905 through a revolution. Several factors contributed towards this revolution among them special mention is to be given for the Russo Japanese war. Through this essay I am attempting to dig out the possible connection between the war and the Revolution of 1905. The Russo-Japanese War was from 1904-1905, it was caused due to Japans and Russia’s desire for expansion and dominance in Korea and Manchuria. Russia suffered many defeats in this war, against a nation that was considered inferior and was not one of the Great Powers. This humiliated the people of Russia who were a proud group of people who always believed to fight to the last man and never give up. This loss caused them to lose confidence in Tsar Nicholas II and created great military, economic, and political problems for Russia. This caused the Russo-Japanese War to be partly responsible for the outbreak of the Revolution of 1905. Huge military defeats in the Russo-Japanese War, which outlined the weakness of the military once famed for its excellent discipline and technologically weapons such as the moisan nagant resulted in national humiliation, thus contributing to the outbreak of the 1905 Revolution. An example of such a defeat was in January 1905 when the Army surrendered Port Arthur even though they had enough food and ammunition for 3 more months, this is was a great dishonor for Russia as surrender is against Russia military doctrine till date. This is believed to be because of the divide in the commanders of Port Arthur. They had taken Port Arthur at start of the war due to a treaty made with China. Another example of the failure of the military was at the Battle of Tsushima. The Russian Baltic fleet had sailed from Northern Europe to the Far East to help the Defenders of Port Arthur only to be defeated by the Japanese navy. The brutal destruction of Russian’s military added to the Revolution of 1905, as it made the people of Russia aware of the weakness of their military and made them ashamed to be Russian as Russia was the first European nation to lose a battle to any Asian country. They were losing to a nation very few had heard of and though to be inferior. However, many of the defeats to the Russian military occurred after the Revolution had started, not causing its outbreak, but added to the opposition to autocratic rule by the Tsar. The Russo-Japanese War also brought about significant economic problems to Russia, and this therefore meant there was a significant lack of funds to solve any other problems, which were present Russia, hence partly being responsible for the outbreak of the Revolution of 1905. The war cost a huge amount of money. As it resulted in failure no money could be gained from the invaded territories. Russia had already had economic problems, and its economy was still far behind that of other European Nations. Further more the lack of funds meant that Tsar could not do anything about the living and working conditions in Russia, or the problems in the rural areas of Russia. Also the economic problems brought about shame for all Russians and by Russia’s being unable to solve any of its other problems due to financial constraints were also responsible for the 1905 revolution. The political implications of the Russo-Japanese War perhaps were the most important reason as to why this war is considered to be responsible for the outbreak of the Revolution of 1905. The war was fought in the very far eastern reaches of the country, far away from where the majority of the population lived, and they must have felt removed from it, especially as news was still slow to travel, as Russia did not use modern methods of communication. There was therefore little public enthusiasm for the war. Many people felt there was little justification for it: public opinion was not on the side of the war. Moreover, the military was very ill equipped for the war and was malnourished and did not have the appropriate technology. This showed to the people of Russia the government’s failings, and caused people to turn away from the Tsar as a leader and move onto political groups who were prepared to take any means necessary action to their aims. The political implications of the Russo-Japanese War helped cause the Revolution of 1905 because the public did not support it and people therefore lost faith in the Tsar and looked in other places to groups that could possibly rule instead of the Tsar. Another reason for the outbreak of the Revolution of 1905 was the growth of opposition groups to the Tsar. These groups gradually became more organized. The four main groups were the Populists, Social Democrats, Social Revolutionaries and the Liberals. These groups were slowly providing more opposition, in particular the Social Revolutionaries. Between 1901 and 1905 this group was responsible for a wave of political assassinations such as that of Plehve, the Minister of the Interior and Grand Duke Sergei. These opposition groups were becoming more widely known and provided an alternative to rule to autocratic rule by the Tsar. Their cause was furthered by the dissatisfactions with the Tsar’s methods of ruling especially since the news of his wife controlling him and Rasputin controlling her and having sexual relations with her. Another reason for the Revolution of 1905 was the lack of constitutional reform. It was only through extreme measures that the population of Russia could make their views known to the Tsar. There were no elected parliament and since Alexander III had passed the Statute of State Security Act and the Zemstva Act barely any percent of the population had any say in the war Russia was governed. Therefore their growing dissent caused by events such as the Russo-Japanese War and expressed through opposition groups could only be shown by violence towards the Tsar and his government. The lack of constitutional reform pushed something as extreme as a revolution to occur, as there was no other way for the people to influence the government other than using force. The personality of Nicholas II also added to the outbreak of the Revolution of 1905. Nicholas II did not have the personal qualities necessary to lead Russia. He was said to be quiet, and easily led. He was not at all charismatic and this did nothing to be loved by the people of Russia. This lead to the hatred towards the Tsar. Nicholas II had a very narrow, conservative view, partly due to his tutor having been Konstantin who was Slavophil. This meant that he was unable to empathize with the groups that made liberal demands for equality and justice. He did not understand them. Those around him also easily influenced him and he had harbored deep hatred for the Japanese due to an assassination attempt, which eventually lead to the Russo-Japanese War furthered by economic and strategic advantages for Russia. The economic problems in most of Russia were another reason for the outbreak of the Revolution of 1905. Both peasants and the landowners were suffering. Agriculture systems were very backward when compared to that of other countries, as under the Witte system nothing was done to improve it. Therefore the land was not cultivated properly, and famines occurred quite regularly. The peasants were free after the Emancipation of Serfs Act in 1861, but they were bound to Mirs and could not leave without permission. Also the redemption payments for the land were very high and still enslaved them. The landowners were also suffering: they had lost free labor, and with the selling of the land to the government, many of them were in deep debt. They too were dissatisfied with the Tsar. Nicholas II was unable to help neither the peasants nor the landowners: after the Russo-Japanese War money was an issue. The discontent, resulting from these economic issues, in rural areas partly contributed to the event of the Revolution. Another main cause of the Revolution of 1905 was industrializations when factories were made people flocked to the cities: Moscow, for example, doubled in population but Living and working conditions were extremely bad and because of this huge population growth it lead to overpopulation and crime. This caused the peasants to hate the Tsar. Industrialization therefore caused deep resentment for the Tsar, and added to the resentment caused by the Russo-Japanese War and the economic problems. Bloody Sunday was a short-term cause of Revolution. It happened when a large group of peaceful protestors under Father Gapon marched to outside the winter palace in St. Petersburg with a petition that would improve their working conditions. Father Gapon, who is believed to be a double agent working for the Okhrana, led the crowd and the Tsar feared he might have switched sides to the Liberals. The Tsar therefore ordered the Cossacks who were the Tsars Personal Guard to open fire upon these demonstrators, and about 300 protestors were killed, including women and children. It was a massacre. It led to wide public outrage, not just from revolutionaries and radical that a peaceful demonstration had led to such an event. After Bloody Sunday, many of the surviving demonstrators were exiled from St. Petersburg. This furthered public outrage, and damaged the Tsar’s popularity. He was no longer trusted and the Bloody Sunday was the spark that ignited the 1905 Revolution. In conclusion, the Russo-Japanese War was certainly a main factor responsible for the outbreak of the Revolution. It caused military, political and severe economic problems that contributed to the Revolution. However, many of the events of it such as the defeats, occurred after the Revolution had started. The greatest effects therefore of the Russo-Japanese War occurred after the Revolution had started, prolonging and worsening it, rather than causing it. There were also many other factors that caused the Revolution, the most important of these being industrialization and the economic trouble. These contributed more to the start of the Revolution than any other factors including the Russo-Japanese War because it exposed a problem that was present in Russia, and by that itself it would have eventually caused the revolution. By itself the Russo-Japanese War would have not been able to be the main cause of the Revolution of 1905. Therefore the Russo-Japanese War was somewhat responsible for the Revolution but not as important as other factors discussed above.