Wednesday, July 31, 2019

Case Study Carmex Essay

Question #1 a) Some advantages of an online survey of a cross section of Internet households are having a larger audience with a wider variety of responses, lower cost, and instant results. Some disadvantages are people may disregard the survey, answers may be careless just get the promo or offer, surveys may be sent directly to junk mail. b) Some advantages of an online survey of Carmex Facebook likers are The people that fill out the Facebook surveys actually know the products, they aren’t just completing for the free stuff, responses will come directly from product users, surveys will not get lost in spam or junk mail. Some disadvantages would be that it does not cover a wide customer base and the survey will only increase engagement and not likes Question #2 a) On a Facebook brand page, â€Å"engagement† measures how much activity is being made by its Facebook audience with a certain brand which is measured through posting a comment, liking a status or by replying to one of the posts on brand page. On the other hand â€Å"likes† measures the number of new likers or the size of the audience on Facebook b) For Carmex engagement is more important because it means its current likers are interested in learning about the company by interacting with posts Carmex makes by replying and liking their posts. Carmex would appreciate this because it shows customer interest and brand loyalty. c) Question #3 a) Consumers having the ability to engage with a brand they like and having the chance to create their own opinion about the products they sell will create activity between the user and the brand page. Engagements on a brand page like Facebook are evoked by making sure those opinions count and are heard, as well as by posting content to attract consumers and give them a chance to engage further b) To attract like to a brand page on Facebook you could give out prizes, have a contest that requires user to like the page, and offer coupons that offer a better deal than what’s already in the market. Question #4 a) The advantages of a fixed alternative poll question on Facebook are the questions tend to be short and can be answered quickly, you can keep anonymous, more people may answer as it only takes a click. b) I think it would be best to use an open ended question when you are trying to get opinions on the company or products that could range from a variety of answers from a range of different users. This will allow the consumers to speak freely and give them the flexibility to write whatever they want Question #5 a) If I had a limited budget a time I would choose a poll only strategy because it has low cost and set-up associated with it. All you have to do is post the poll to the Facebook brand page and wait for users to respond, which will happen quickly. The last step would be to collect your data. b) On the other hand, If I had a higher budget and more time I would choose the contest only strategy because the results would be more rewarding. Promoting the contest will drive customers to participate, involving prizes will make the users take it more seriously, and they will result in more accurate and realistic answers.

Tuesday, July 30, 2019

Problems posed by ‘cybercrimes’

Cyber crime is defined as those crimes involving abuse of electronic media or the information contained in it by influencing the computers functioning or the functioning of its system to the detriment of other individuals/organizations. The emerging information technology trends have seen has seen increased use of computers across the globe. This rapid expansion in terms of information communication technology capability to transmit bulk of information has seen enormous transmission across the internet and computers daily.With this increased transmission there has emerged a new twist in criminal activities. In addition it has created window for perpetration of harmful activities by criminal organization. Another fundamental twist arising from internet and computer usage is intellectual appropriation. The emergence of such crimes being committed against computers, and the corresponding information in computers is gradually shifting attention towards the threats posed by cyber crimes. This is coupled by the anonymity of such crimes as well as the less aware population being preyed upon.The camouflaging nature of such crimes thus presents new challenges to the law enforcement agency due to the inevitable need to transform in response to this changing criminal landscape. In addition lack of proper legal structures and legislations have condemned businesses and the respective governments to there own discretion in protecting themselves against cyber crime. Such measures employed include the technical measures aimed at securing their systems. However, this is not enough to secure the existing cyber space from criminals.There is an additional need for application of the law in fighting this emerging menace. This paper will analyze the various types of cybercrimes, the problems they pose to the law enforcement agencies and in conclusion analyze the sufficiency of the cyber crimes laws in Australia in dealing with the problems posed by cyber crimes. Understanding the pr oblems that cyber crime pose to the modern nations requires a deeper understanding of the various faces that such crimes take.Cyber crimes in different forms which include; denial of service (DoS), identity theft, stalking, piracy, pornography, hacking, unauthorized modification, viruses, unauthorized copying, credit card crime, extortion, phishing, spoofing, cyber defamation and salami attack among others. Denial of service involves such acts by criminals aimed at flooding of victim’s network bandwidth of overloading of a victims mailbox with spam thus denying the victim access to his entitled services accessibility/provision.Unlike the early days DoS where simple tools generated and sent attack packets fro one source to another external source, such attacks have transformed to incorporate use of attacks from single source to multiple destinations as well as multiple sources to single destinations. However, the most recent development which involves use of self propagating w orms has increasingly created a new twist to reaction to such attacks. Hacking on the other hand has emerged as a regular crime as technology continues to advance.Hacking basically involves illegal computer systems intrusion as no permission is sought from the users/owner of the intruded system. Most of hacking is often attributed to teenagers as well as young adults. Hacking is often considered an art of exploration by computer technology buffs who engage in computer exploration rather than being intent on committing crime. The hackers often use hacking as a venue to displaying their skills and not as a tool of harming others.Virus dissemination on the other hand involves release of malicious software’s that often attach themselves to the existing software application resulting into a range of system detriments including system retardation and information sending among others. Such include; worms and Trojan horse among others. Pornography on the other hand has emerged as a s uccessful product in e-commerce that often applies deceptive techniques in its marketing most common being the mouse trapping technology.However, the ease of accessing such cites even to children is increasingly raising concern. Internet relays chat servers have likewise emerged as suitable avenues for criminal meetings from anywhere in the world. Hackers too are known to use such sites in discussing of their various exploits and sharing of information on the same. In addition Pedophiles have been known to use such sites in luring of children to their activities. Such avenues have thus presented avenues for increased criminal activities and planning.Credit card fraud has also increasingly grown more especially when the card’s numbers are used in unsecured electronic transaction resulting into the credit card numbers being stolen by hackers who end up misusing the cards through owner impersonation. Such fraudsters have also been known to use advanced techniques in duplication of credit cards. An emerging trend has also emerged where the confidential data of companies is illegally copied with the aim of extorting huge sums of money from the company.Phishing has also emerged with the rising of technology where information confidential to account holders in financial institutions is pulled out through deceptive ways. Spoofing on the other hand involves use of one computer in assuming another computer’s identity. Another form of cyber crime involves circumstances where defamatory messages are posted on the internet regarding an individual. Likewise stalking has emerged as a form of crime where the criminals trace individuals using the messages they use within the chat rooms.Salami attacks have on the other hand used to perform crime acts that involve insignificant amounts deduction from customer’s bank accounts and depositing it into their accounts. Such varied nature of cyber crimes presents with it varied challenges to the law enforcement age ncies. Latest significant form of cyber crime is the Nigerian 4-19 scheme where letters supposing presence of large amount of money in which the victim is required to help are distributed to prominent business, and professional personalities with the aim of hoodwinking them.Law enforcement agencies have had to reckon with the emergence of this new form of crime that comes with a variety of challenges in addition to its shifting landscape. Often such challenges may be classified as technical, judicial or ethical. Technical problems pose the greatest challenge to law enforcement agencies more so, on the issue of traceability more so considering the anonymous nature with which such crimes are perpetrated. It is always extremely cumbersome to locate the IP address from which such crime occur.Under such cases the criminals at times use other persons IP address to connect to a third party who then is unable to identify the actual source of the crime. Such connections are done using proxie s with socks4 and socks5 proxies often used by criminals. Often criminals are known to resource proxies through use of machines belonging to innocent and unaware users. Such present a challenge to law enforcement agencies in their quest to track down cyber criminals.Criminals are also known to use fast-flux networks in making of website resistant to firewall website filters and any attempts at law agencies to track them down. Such criminal activities always direct attempts to access the IP address to some arbitrary Zombie machine. Convicting of cyber criminals upon arrest may also prove cumbersome due to lack of evidence in such instances that the criminal has encrypted his/her computers data. This thus presents the challenge of obtaining evidence even in such circumstances where the criminal has been positively identified.In addition tracking down such crimes in order to gain crucial evidence is difficult considering that the criminal activity’s traces disappear as soon as t he connection is broken such a challenge may also be attributed to the over-reliance exhibited by law enforcement agencies on ISP’s rather engaging in a day to day co-ordination with the providers as this would enhance quick tracking responses. Ignorance also plays a major role in inhibiting the attempts by law enforcement agencies to fight cyber crime.Most of such crime often goes unreported as ether the victims are unaware that the activity may be classified as criminal or by mere lack of information. Large institutions like banks are also known for failing to report such incidence with the aim of protecting their public image from getting distorted. Other cases are only brought to light after a considerable period of time has elapsed and any evidence that would have aided prosecution has been lost. The digital technology as well as computing convergence has changed the ways of life.Unprecedented criminal opportunities have emerged with some unforeseeable criminal activitie s becoming a reality. This comes with the need for prosecutors to possess effective knowledge to deal with these emerging crimes. Appropriate training of the relevant law enforcement agencies to meet the competencies exhibited by such criminals is also a fundamental issue. Most countries, more so the underdeveloped countries lack effectively trained personnel to counter the activities of the criminals.The moral underpinning of cyber crime is also bound to pose a challenge to the law enforcement agencies as their action aimed at reacting to the same may be interpreted as a human right violations. Such may include arbitrary searches in quick response to an ongoing connection which may be interpreted as a search without warrant. On the other seeking a search warrant may provide adequate time for the perpetrator to break connection before identification.Jurisdiction problems likewise remain a major challenge to the law enforcement agencies in fighting of cyber crime. Cyber crime is know n to take a transnational perspective across various countries borders. The fundamental issue then arising is the issue of sovereign jurisdiction. In USA V Griffiths, the question of dual criminality was raised and the consequent requirement for existence of the same to allows criminal extradition.While one country may have already recognized a respective cyber offense as constituting a criminal offense, the other may have not. The resultant effect then would allow a criminal to operate from one given country without fear of facing legal action and harming victims of another country. The cases clearly illustrated the extent to which judicial barriers may hinder law enforcement agencies from effectively performing their duty and apprehend such criminals.In R v BODEN the existing legal provisions proved insufficient to sustain prosecution of Mr. Boden resulting to his release. In addition the question as to who holds jurisdiction likewise presents an obstacle to law enforcement agenci es in fighting cyber crime. When a criminal commits the crime in one country but it affects an individual in another country, there exist no clear legislations that prescribe the country on whose laws such an individual should face prosecution.The major jurisdictional problems facing law enforcement agencies in fighting cybercrime can be summarized as being the lack of harmonized rules in qualifying offences as cyber crimes within various states legal structures, lack of laws empowering investigative agencies in various states capabilities to trail crime across the borders and lastly inadequacy of laws allowing international cooperation to allow cross border prosecution. In the book â€Å"Underground† by Dreyfus a true story about an underground computer group threat predated the internet for more than ten years is narrated.The group was accused of having hacked into secure systems including; the Citibank, the pentagon NASA, NATO among others. It took several raids by both th e federal police and the police agencies to bring down the group. The group was subsequently brought to trial under the telecommunications act of 1991which was cited as outlining the legal proceedings surrounding cyber crimes. The penalty levied on the four who hacked major secured websites has been subject to criticism more so regarding the weight of the sentence in relation of the magnitude of the crime committed.The crimes if physical would have otherwise been considered dangerous and would have attracted sever sentence. This once again puts into spotlight the effectiveness of the Australian laws in dealing with such crimes. The question arising then was whether or not these regulations are sufficient enough to curb the cyber crimes menace. The latest bill on anti money laundering offers stiffer penalties accompanied with possibility of long term imprisonment thus meting out proportional penalties which could have a deterrent effect on such crimes.The 1991 telecommunication act i ncorporated section 74 and 76 criminal code of Australia in illustrating the issue of carrier and data. The legislation describes carrier and data considered property of the Australian commonwealth. The law includes data originating from commonwealth computers as well as data into the commonwealth computers as constituting carrier and data within the section definition. Unauthorized access to commonwealth computers is classified as criminal under section 76(b)-1 with section 76(b)-2 describing what qualifies as unauthorized access.Section 76(b)-3 expounds further to deal with acts that impeded, destroy or after data. Section 76(D) on the other hand emphasizes the on the mode of entry while section 76(e) specifies the prescribed punishment for individuals who contravene the provisions of the aforementioned sections. Unlike the previous cases where creative adaptation was applied in trying to deal with new crimes, the act currently addresses specific cases of computer crimes. For inst ance in the 1980’s the reported cases faced difficulties regarding whether or not legislation on theft could be applied to computer hackers.In the rulings the court held that information was not property and thus incapable of being stolen. Based on this, Gordon Hughes at one point suggested that hacking of computers could not be considered to constitute an act of theft. However, the telecommunication act, 1991 prescribes specific clauses that handle such cases. Section 76 of the act not only addresses the issue of unauthorized access and illegal copying, but goes further to include resulting damages of such access as constituting a criminal offense.Another milestone made by the Australian laws in fighting cyber crime is evidenced by the Victorian state parliament’s amendment of the 1958 Crimes Act top cater for cyber stalking crimes. The act caters addressing cyber stalking eliminating the cumbersome need for proof of a offenders conduct is such circumstance where the offered meant harm. The legislation goes along way in solving the burden of proof shouldered on law enforcement agencies in addition to the fact that unlike its predecessors it offers provisions for extraterritorial jurisdictions.It is important to note the burden of proving evidence that an offender was stalking was quite cumbersome given the fact that the evidence would disappear as soon as the communication was broken. However, with this new law an offender is considered to have engaged in a criminal by virtue of having meant harm in his/her activity. The cyber crime act has in addition addresses damages and computer related offenses offering more extensive approaches. It was formulated in line with THE recommendations of the Model Criminal Code officer’s committee.E-commerce has also been on the rise to more so in Australian and USA. The number of internet banking service being offered is constantly on the rise. The Australian government to deal with fraud related issues in this area has a series of legislations that control such operations. Such include; the proceeds of crime act 1987 which has the effect of obligating financial institutions to maintain all transactions records for future references, the payment systems regulation, 1998 within borrows a lot from the Wallis report.The Wallis legislation establishes three key regulators of e-commerce namely; The Reserve Bank of Australia, The Australian Prudential Regulation Authority and the Australian Securities and Investments Commissions. Such emerging legislations in Australia have had the effect of sealing some of the loopholes that would have let such crime activities go unpunished like the DPP v SUTCLIFFE, the magistrate’s court considering the trans-boundary nature of the crime in question, considered it as not being in apposition to effectively handle the matter.The Victorian Supreme Court’s decision however in effect came in to redeem the situation to an extent by establishin g jurisdiction of the court. Nonetheless the applicability of the crimes act 1958 still posed a challenge to the court in its examination of the reasons that made stalking a criminal offense. This still remains a challenge as even the 2003 amendment in its section 6(3) still makes specific to such cases with regard to limitations of the courts in the light of the individuals rights.The cases essentially reflected some of the hurdles provided for by the law in the fight against cyber crimes. While the Australian law has made major milestone in dealing with cybercrime within its territory, trans-national cyber crime still remains a challenge. In US v Griffiths, for instance the Australian legislations allowed for extradition of a suspect to face charges in the USA, however, the same cannot be said of other countries whose citizens commit crimes against Australian systems.Most countries still lack legislations that would provide grounds for such extraditions. This step was inline with both the international and the European conventions on cyber crimes which stressed the need for nation’s cooperation and unity in the fight against this vice. The convention just like the Australian laws undertook an extensive elaboration of the various forms of cyber crimes emphasizing the need for the member states and other signatories to develop legislation on the same.Unlike the early 1980’s where the legislation focused on criminalizing unauthorized access to computer systems without considerations of the inadequate investigative authority and penalties, recent reforms in Australia have taken a more realistic approach to safeguard computer systems integrity having acknowledged their centrality and commercial value. The cyber crimes act offers the much needed national model for legal response to cyber related offenses. The act possesses transnational aspects as constituted in the European Council Cyber Crime Convention.This allows expanded jurisdictional scope. Th e Australian cyber laws adequately prepares it to respond to the emerging cyber crimes more so considering the larger extra-territorial jurisdiction which recognizes both multijurisdictional dimension presented in Australia and overseas jurisdiction. Laws expanding on search warrant and conduction of covert surveillance have additionally had the impact on facilitating gathering of evidence. In general the Australian legislations provide adequate tools in dealing with the cyber crime menace.

Monday, July 29, 2019

Reducing and Managing stress Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Reducing and Managing stress - Research Paper Example Relaxation can be provided to body and mind and it does not need extra time. Addition of extra hours in a day does not reduce stress and enhance relaxation. Even sleeping or being lazy excessively cannot reduce the level of stress. The best way to reduce stress and fresh up one’s body and mind is to increase the physical activities. The cheapest and easiest physical exercise is walking. it can be done any place any time. It even does not require machines or tools for exercising. Walking is far better than lying down on bed for a long time in order to get relaxed. It makes a person more dull, tired and stressed. This is because our body does not accept sedentary life style. It requires movement. Therefore, walking involves the movement of all parts of body and makes the body and mind fresh, active and happy. As, I myself am quite stressed these days, therefore, I intend to set up a plan to change my health behavior and achieve my goal within 4 weeks of time, starting from secon d week and ending up at the sixth week. Plan: My plan is to daily walk for a while twice a day. Early in the morning before going for work and then in the evening after coming back from work. I plan to start from few minutes of walking and day by day increase the time to walk. Goal: My body is not used to walk and perform physical activities. ... I fell and got hurt on my foot. My foot had twisted and was immensely aching. This acted as a potential barrier and I was not able to walk for four days. Potential Enabler: After I was hurt and could not walk for constant four days, my determination became a bit shaky. As it was just the beginning, I became lazier. I would not even have started walking on the fifth day of my injury of a neighborhood friend of mine had not encouraged me. He had also started walking along me and was to achieve the same goal like me. The thought that he will achieve his goal and I won’t also boosted me up and enabled me to start walking again as soon as possible. Week Distance Walked Potential Barrier Potential Enabler Week 2 0.5 km Hurt on foot Competitor friend Week 3 1 km None None Week 4 1.75 km Work load Self motivation Week 5 3 km None Increment in stamina Week 6 3 km None Will of maintenance In the second week I targeted to walk 1 kilometer but could not do so due to a potential barrier th at was a hurt on foot. But very soon I recovered and managed to walk again due to the motivation by a friend who also acted as my competitor as he had started the same plan along with me. In the third week I again walked half a kilometer as I had become slow. But, as there was neither a potential barrier nor a potential enabler, therefore I was neither able to increase the distance nor decrease it, just managed to maintain it. The fourth week introduced new potential barrier as well as potential enabler. The barrier was that I had excessive work load that resulted in fatigue and lack of time and I was not able to walk much. Yet, despite of being tired, my determination and self motivation encouraged and enabled me to

Sunday, July 28, 2019

Position paper--Heart failure education Personal Statement

Position paper--Heart failure education - Personal Statement Example Adapting to the consequences of having CHF can be a difficult process for the patients. Unfortunately, many heart failure patients do not believe that they need to take precautionary measures until the effects start to show up and they become acutely ill. Many of them may rely on drugs for temporary relief which has its own repercussions. Despite advances in therapy, admission and readmission rates for patients with HF remain unacceptably high (Hoekstra et al., 2010, p. 226). Among patients aged > 70 years admitted for HF, approximately 40-60% are readmitted within 90 days. In a research, it was found that the unplanned readmissions caused a lot of trouble to the hospital administration because of scarcity of accommodation and facilities (Scott, 2010, p. 445). The requirement of delivery of service, accommodation, food, and care also incurs a lot of cost. The author is of the view that patients need to receive comprehensive and adequately structured education on the prevention, early recognition, and management of HF. Heart Failure education and self-care management are key components in the prevention, maintenance and exacerbation of heart failure. This education needs to be delivered within the community of patients. Patients should be educated throughout their admission into healthcare facilities and it must continue until they are transited to home. Nurses are an essential component in the interdisciplinary team in providing comprehensive HF education to patients while they are hospitalized. Several studies are supportive of the opinion that providing education to patients while they are hospitalized and prior to their discharge improves clinical outcomes which include, but are not limited to decline in readmission rates, decrease in the patient’s duration of stay in the hospital, improvement in self-care behavior, and an overall reduction in the health care costs. Taking that into consideration, it is imperative that nurses remain updated with the l atest guidelines regarding the practice of HF prevention and management in order to be able to facilitate positive outcomes in the patients and improve the quality of life of the victims of HF. The empowerment approach is based on the assumption that an individual who suffers from the chronic illness is personally responsible to take care of his/her health, and should thus, take his/her care to the maximum level possible. The fundamental objective of imparting education is to enable the patients to reach their goals and make rational decisions with respect to their self care. The Chronic Heart Failure (CHF) badly affects both the physiological and psychological health of the victim and ruins his/her efficiency in the routine activities. If the CHF has passed the initial stages and has gained strength over time, patients are bound to abandon their personal will and are supposed to adapt themselves according to the effects of the CHF. Poorly educated HF patients require more intervent ion as compared to educated patients (Barbareschi et al., 2011, p. 53). Past research has shown that with proper education, as many as 40% of the cases of HF can be prevented from occurring (Jacobs, 2011, p. 19). As a result of the study conducted by Powell et al. (2010, p. 1337), the technology-assisted supervision accompanied with telephone supervision reduced the risk of HF by 30%. It is hence, imperative that people are educated on the symptoms, treatment and precautions of the HF in order to improve their

Effect of Unions on Workers Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Effect of Unions on Workers - Essay Example For example, in the United States such unions as Teachers, professional athletes (NBA and NFL unions) and United Auto Workers are successful. The successful union must ensure the members welfare is to their best of interest. The union achieve this through increased collective bargaining and speaking with one voice. The unions, therefore, provide better wages and salaries, better working conditions and other benefits. The Unions within particular professional are most likely to be successful. From example, teachers and professional athletes in US have remained successful. This is because, there can be quickly banded together as they share teething problems. In addition, the union membership is vast and hence they remain a force to reckon as the government must proactively consider before squashing them. The policies and tactics that make union successful is through active contribution to the union by members. Also, ensuring that the members adhere to the laws governing the union is central to the success of members. The unions can also use strikes and boycotts to convey their grievances to become stronger. Further, the union leadership is also key to the success of the union. The political environment is necessary to unions. The government would always try to squash the activities. Therefore, those political environments such as political party’s campaigns may make promises to union members for support (Markowitz, 2000). When such parties ascend to power, they may fulfil the promises made to union members. On the other hand, when they fail, such members may find

Saturday, July 27, 2019

Business law Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words - 15

Business law - Essay Example Negligence is when anyone doesn’t take the necessary measures to avoid any mishap which any sensible person on the other hand would take and such irresponsible actions can lead to negligence lawsuit. Same has happened in the given case study i.e. Sunny Cruises plc v Yogesh. In this scenario Yogesh has every right to obtain legal services to get compensation against sunny Cruises. As Sunny Cruises invited Yogesh for a five day visit and they were obligated to give good services to him as it was their duty of care (Bussani & Palmer, 2003). Almost a similar case happened back in 1932 which were decided by the House of Lords. The facts of this care were that a customer named Mrs. Donoghue went into a cafe in Scotland with her friend and ordered a ginger-beer, while drinking she saw a snail’s body in the bear. Due to it she suffered severe gastroenteritis. She sued the beer company for this incident. Although the beer company said that they were not under any contract of sale with Mrs. Donoghue and were not liable for this incident as it was not even intentional but the House of Lords decided in favor of Mrs. Donoghue and she got the complete compensation. (Patten, 2012) The above mentioned case defines that negligence is a legal concept and one can be proven guilty for being negligent. Negligent acts are unintentional but are cause of reckless behavior. As in our case when Sunny Cruises invited Yogesh they were responsible for his well-being and not just his but also the other people who were present on the cruise as they can be used as witnesses. Negligence law suit has four main components and we can put Yogesh’s situation in those four criteria to prove that he is most likely to get the compensation for the physical and financial harm being caused by Sunny Cruise: The first one is that the defender had a duty toward the plaintiff. As mentioned in the case study that Sunny Cruise invited Yogesh then yes it was their duty to

Friday, July 26, 2019

Poverty in Sierra Leo Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Poverty in Sierra Leo - Essay Example The destruction of the infrastructure and the decline of the economy led to impoverishing of various communities. Such poverty was evidenced by poor health and nutrition indicators. The economy of Sierra Leone has for a considerably long time been distinguished by high unemployment and inflation rates (Christiaensen et al, 2002). Majority of the unemployed youths are former combatants that have no stable source of income. Such unemployed youthful population remains a principal threat to national security and economic stability. In simpler terms; unemployed youths enhance insecurity and other social evils such as prostitution. This paper seeks to explain poverty in the context of Sierra Leone, a country that has been defined as the poorest country in the world for a considerably long time. Sierra Leone is a third world nation or banana republic in West Africa. It has a total population of just about six million people from different communities and a diversity of cultures. Considered one of the most financially weakest countries in the entire world, Sierra Leone is not expected to be self-sufficient anytime soon, thanks to the ten-year-old internal armed conflict (Fosu, 2009). The civil war that lasted from late nineteen ninety to mid two thousand and two was brought to a standstill by the joint effort of such African countries as Kenya and Nigeria. The African Union made a unanimous decision to intervene after the war proved to be endless and detrimental to the interests of the economy as a whole. Today, Sierra Leone is one of the countries gaining economic stability having indicated a 7% per annum growth rate. Sierra Leone has placed reliance on international donors and well-wishers for the reconstruction of the entire economy. Democratization and stabilization of the political climate are among the major concerns of the civilized members of the society. According to UN agencies, Sierra Leone is fast moving towards macroeconomic stability. This is to say that the third world country has invested a lot of time and resources in dealing with such macroeconomic variables such as unemployment, inflation, and population growth rate (Manson & Knight, 2009). Among the poorest people in Sierra Leone are the people rendered landless by the internal armed conflicts. Small-scale farmers and single mothers heading families constitute a great percentage of the poor rural population. People that were internally displaced by the civil war are destitute and own or access no resources. As such, they resort to such desperate measures as begging or working for little pay so as to support their survival. It is estimated that 75% of the people of Sierra Leone live below the poverty line, with 27% living in extreme abject poverty. This was according to a 2005 research, which established that fifty percent of the entire populace lives on slightly less than one US dollar per day. According to the records of the year 2005, 80% of the people living in the rural ar eas lived in extreme poverty. Similarly, the people of the eastern districts were hard hit by the civil strife and lived in extreme poverty (Manson & Knight, 2009). Internal displacement was a common phenomenon that was brought about by fear and lack of foresight.

Thursday, July 25, 2019

Assignment1 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 1

Assignment1 - Essay Example The political opinion of different aeronautical projects is presented in depth under this section. The website has fact sheets, which reveal the company’s mission, facilities, resources, and projects. The fact sheets belong to different centers of the NASA Company (Sorby and Bulleit 56). The content of each fact sheet depends on its relevance to the specific centers in which it is placed. For example, there are documents depicting different aeronautics fact sheets and Dryden Flight Research Center. Each of the 11 centers has fact sheets, which describe its activities and projects. Moreover, the website has press kits, which contain different sets of packaged promotional materials used by the company. Administrators’ speeches are also featured in this section. Finally, the website features its budgetary plans and the reports of its achievements. Evidently, the writing style of the documents depends on the target audience as well as the subject. Documents that focus on activities and projects are written in accordance with scholarly regulations that define writing in engineering. On the other hand, documents that target the public are written in plain language to enhance understanding. Illustrations are used in some of the documents in an effort to enhance the content covered (76). Notably, the purpose of adopting a technical communication style in the documents available in the NASA website is to ensure that scientific concepts are conveyed to the public effectively. Specialists in engineering may also benefit from the technical communication from the company. Since I have learned several tips on technical communication, I can make efforts of writing documents that meet the exhibited standard. However, there is a need for further training and experiential learning before I can gain the expertise required to write such

Wednesday, July 24, 2019

Nursing Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words - 4

Nursing - Essay Example This will ensure that that person understands what the institution like and hospital believes in and stand for. If everyone understand what is expected of him or her, it is very easy while in the course of business because it will just be about reminding them. Health institutions offering nursing services must give priority to its own staff by letting them understand where the institution is leading. A people without direction have no motivation at all. The vision gives a direction and objective as well as clearly outlined plans of how to achieve the set goals. Engaging staff while formulating these goals is very important for it encourages them to have a sense of ownership of the institution. This makes them see that they also have the power to make a contribution in making contribution towards success of their own institution. Workers may be having great ideas that can turn around the state of health. Nurses always have better solutions to solve their own problems but the management teams always think that it can solve all the problems of the people. Another wonderful strategy is allowing workers to form their own unions, which can help them air their views. When one is employed, the needs increases with time with the focus shifting from only salary to other needs in an order called hierarchy of needs. Every institution should ensure that nurses are given the freedom to form their own associations so that their opinions may be heard equally as for the executive team. While making critical decisions that affects the lives of all the staff, it is crucial to consult the staff through their unions and

Tuesday, July 23, 2019

College admissions essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

College admissions - Essay Example I came to this conclusion about a year ago when I had the unfortunate experience of watching both friends and family members struggle with cancer. While at the hospital, I observed caring oncologists and other healthcare professionals, (including radiation technicians) assisting these people through their most trying situations with care and compassion. It is for this reason that I became inspired, and I realized that this was the career path I should have chosen. My long-term goals include continuing my education; as I enjoy growing, learning, and evolving as a professional. I also know that whatever I do I want to help people and make a difference in their lives, even if it is only a small contribution. As a young college student I didn't comprehend all the positions that were available within the healthcare industry that would satisfy my duel fascinations with science and the human body. Therefore, at the time, I pursued a Bachelor of Science degree in Physical Education; with a concentration on fitness and wellness. However, I soon learned that the scope of available employment for this degree can be somewhat limiting, and so, found myself working in the field of nuclear energy. As I mentioned, I enjoy learning and expect to accomplish my goal of becoming a radiation technician in approximately one year.

Monday, July 22, 2019

Hunted House Essay Example for Free

Hunted House Essay Nobodydared to go in empty house in an isolated part of the village . Eventually, the landscape of the empty house was shady,lush and green, no one is brave enough to hunt for wildfigs. The beautiful and evergreen nature surrounding the empty house was damp and soggy always. After the F.Sc examinations, my peers and I decided to go for camping the empty house since we had enough of studying books and would like to investigate about the mystery of that house. It was supposed to be a two days camping trip. We equipped ourselves with the necessary camping gear and enough food to last for the two days. We walked deep inside the village and reached at a huge and old empty house. As soon as we arrived there, Hammad approaches all of us to enter the house since the journey was quite difficult and tiring. We stepped in the house to fill our empty stomachs with the food that we had brought but we realized that the condition of the house was incredibly dirty and dusty. The ceiling was fully covered with spider webs whereas the floor was covered with dried leaves. Hence, we managed to clear up the place before start eating our meal.Then, we went walking around the house and suddenly Hammad started screaming â€Å"Aww!!!†. He saw a human skull inside a drawer. All of us were astonished with the discovery of human skull in the mystery house. At that moment, we could feel our blood stream was flushing and cold. All of us quickly rushed out of the house and decided to go back home. It was our badluck because it was raining and falling snow heavily outside. We had no choice but to wait until the rain stops. Fear was written on all our face, especially since we had discovered a human skull! All of us were in low spirits. Even Hammad was silent and nervous who is actually a noisy maker in our group. The hours dragged past but the rain continued. Instead we had no choice but to spend the night in the mysterious house. Although we were exhausted, we could not rest our tired minds and bodies with the demand of sleep.At midnight, Ali woke up to go to toilet and asked me to accompany him till the door. While I was waiting for him, I saw a â€Å"fully white dressed creature without head holding an axe† was hunting for food in the middle of night at the balcony of the house. I could not believe my own eyes and started reciting prayer according to our religion Islam. Then, I quietly went back to sleep after Ali was back. The next morning, we decided to make our way back to home and quickly packed all our goods. On the way heading back, I told them about the horrifying creature that I saw last night. All of them were nervous and frighten.On our way back, we met with a group of villagers who normallywashes their clothes at a bank of canal, which is situated about 2km away from the empty house. Therefore, we took that opportunity to ask them about the mystery of the empty house and the ‘human skull’. According to them, beforethis there was a young lady who got murdered by the communist soldiers in the empty house. One of them tried to rape her but she managed to fight him back using an axe. Unfortunately, she lost her head in that battle. Hence, the human skull belongs to the young lady and the white creature is her spirit who is hunting people for her revenge.After that incident, no one dared to go the house. Then, my friends and I thank the villagers and made our way for home. We decided not to go to the empty house anymore after this.

Welfare Myths and Realities Essay Example for Free

Welfare Myths and Realities Essay Society has continued to undergo evolution and change throughout the history of civilization. These are the factors that spell out the dividing line between social classes and castes that are redrawn on an almost daily basis by mankind. This is why there will always be a mixture of fact and fiction surrounding the way present day society views those people who were unlucky enough to end up at the bottom of the societal class chain. These are the people who are forced to survive using welfare to keep food on the table, money in their pockets, and clothes on their backs. It is highly unfortunate that the word Welfare has come to mean a person who does not want to work unless he is forced to work. But this is not always what defines a person on welfare. In todays world, the workplace is a highly competitive environment where people no longer have security of tenure in their jobs. People want to work. The problem is, there are not enough jobs to go around. The reality is that when a person loses his job these days, it is highly unlikely that he will be able to get new regular employment anytime in the short-term future. So, he is forced to take what odd jobs he can while trying his luck at landing regular employment. Realistically speaking, temp jobs wont pay the rent nor keep food on the table. In order to stay afloat, the person must take welfare assistance. This is a not a permanent set up for most, it is just financial aid until the person can get back on his feet. Hey, he paid his taxes and his Social Security dues. Therefore, it is only proper that the system helps him get back on his feet. Nobody in his right mind would want to make welfare his way of life. Welfare tends to affect a person both psychologically and emotionally as he struggles to try to go back to the way of life that he has become accustomed to. Even though they try to get off welfare at the soonest possible time, sometimes, he is forced to go back on welfare for one reason or another. The last thing he wants to become is a welfare cyclist but he is left with no other choice. Psychologically, a man unable to support himself is thrown into despair and self-pity. He thinks less of himself and wishes to feel better by being able to support himself without the aid of welfare. The last thing he wants for himself is to get involved in welfare cycling. This is the act of going on welfare for short periods of time during which a person has lost his job. It is totally unfair to say, the federal welfare program encourages people to stay poor. (Margaret L. Andersen Howard F. Taylor, 2003, p. 200) Man is an ambition driven entity. He pursues lofty goals and ambitions in life and does not deem himself a success or a complete individual unless he has something to show for his existence. It can be in the form of finances, or something solid like real estate. Whatever it may be, there is nothing that can drive a man to have a desire to stay poor. The government does not give enough financial support to the welfare organizations for one to believe that those on welfare would be getting enough welfare checks or food coupons to sustain any kind of lifestyle. These benefits are available only to a limited number of families who must pass a stringent interview and verification process. Neither is it true that only Blacks or Hispanic families benefit from welfare. There are also White families who are down on their luck and also move from place to place or even state to state in search of the elusive jobs. The welfare myth about women is proves to be even most unfair. Women are the light that guides a family. While husbands work and bring home what pay then can in the lower middle class society, the women are left at home to tend to the children. Most of them cannot afford child-care and therefore help their husband earn income in order to improve their basic lifestyle. This is why most women collect welfare for their families. If there were proper child-care assistance provided to these families, both parents would have a chance to work instead of having to line up collecting unemployment checks just to make ends meet. Of the 100% of the total federal budget, only 60% of this it spent on assisting poor families. This provides subsidies for the lowest income families basic living and medical assistance. There is absolutely no truth to the belief that certain welfare recipients are paid benefits that they no longer qualify for. Though the system is not foolproof, as some payments errors are done due to human error, there are still safety measures in place to make sure that overpayments are limited and that any fraudulent transactions are weeded out in the process. Going on welfare was never meant to make any man rich. It is not a status symbol that will make you the envy of others either. Often times, the amount of the checks given to the people involved are below the poverty level. It is really meant only to be a stop gap measure for those who have had a stroke of financial bad luck. It was not meant to sustain any person throughout life. The myths that were created by the fear of going on welfare gave the deserving welfare beneficiaries a bad name. It has branded them in such a way that society tends to be judge and jury of the way they conduct their lives and personal businesses. Welfare was meant to be a helping hand when one needs it the most. Welfare was envisioned, developed and meant to help a person get back on his feet after a devastating financial setback. To believe all these myths that have been handed down from generation to generation would be a disservice to such a humane undertaking that is done for and on behalf of your fellowman. Works Cited Andersen, Margaret L. Taylor, Howard R. (2003). Sociology The Essentials (2nd Ed. ) Welfare Myths: Fact or Fiction? Exploring the Truth about Welfare. 1996. December 22, 2006, Retrieved from http://hcom. csumb. edu/welfare/resources/myths_facts. html Irons, Meghan Erica. Dispelling Myths About Welfare. December 21, 2006, Retrieved from http://www. voice. neu. edu/960215/welfare. html

Sunday, July 21, 2019

Solving Large Systems of Linear Simultaneous Equations

Solving Large Systems of Linear Simultaneous Equations NICOLE LESIRIMA METHODS OF SOLVING LARGE SYSTEMS OF LINEAR SIMULTANEOUS EQUATIONS PROJECT DESCRIPTION Linear systems simulate real-world problems using applied numerical procedure. The main aim of this project is to consider what factors affect the efficiency of the various methods of solving linear simultaneous equations. So far, one of the main factors is rounding errors that can produce inaccurate solutions. Moreover, MATLAB programs have been produced to time the calculation speed to determine the efficiency of the methods. Generally, these methods are subdivided into two; direct and iterative methods. Direct methods are commonly used to solve small systems of equations. The iterative methods are used to solve real-world problems that produce systems of equations for which the coefficient matrices are sparse. The relevance of studying these methods have its real world applications. The real world applications can be seen in various fields such as science and engineering, accounting and finance, business management and in operational research. The approach provides a logical framework for solving complex decisions in a wide range of industries. The advantage is that, decisions are founded on data analysis. Environmentalists and meteorologists may use large systems of simultaneous linear equations to predict future outcomes. For instance, to predict weather patterns or climate change, a large volume of data is collected over a long span of time on many variables including, solar radiation, carbon emissions and ocean temperatures. Queen Mary University of London (2015). This data is represented in the form of a transition matrix that has to be row reduced into a probability matrix that can then be used in the prediction of climate change. The objective of an enterprise is to maximize returns while maintaining minimum costs. Whereas the use of large systems of simultaneous linear equations may provide a basis for evidence based business decision making in an enterprise, it is important to know which linear systems are most appropriate in order to minimize undesirable outcomes for an enterprise. PROJECT REPORT OUTLINE Chapter 1 Introduction Large systems of linear simultaneous equations are used to simulate real-world problems using applied numerical procedure. The real world applications can be seen in various fields such as science and engineering, accounting and finance, business management. The approach provides a logical framework for solving complex decisions in a wide range of industries. The advantage is that decisions are founded on data analysis. The aim of this project is to explore the efficiency of a large systems of linear simultaneous equations in the optimal decision making of an enterprise. Chapter 2 Direct Methods: Gaussian Elimination and LU Factorisation Direct methods of solving linear simultaneous equations are introduced. This chapter will look at the Gaussian Elimination and LU Factorisation methods. Gaussian Elimination involves representing the simultaneous equations in an augmented form, performing elementary row operations to reduce the upper triangular form and finally back substituting to form the solution vector. LU Factorisation on the other hand is where a matrix A finds a lower triangular matrix L and an upper triangular matrix U such that A = LU. The purpose of this lower triangular matrix and upper triangular matrix is so that the forward and backward substitutions can be directly applied to these matrices to obtain a solution to the linear system. An operation count and computing times using MATLAB is calculated so as to determine the best method to use. Chapter 3 Cholesky Factorisation Introduction to the Cholesky method. This is a procedure whereby the matrix A is factorised into the product of a lower triangular matrix and its transpose; the forward and backward substitutions can be directly applied to these matrices to obtain a solution. A MATLAB program is written to compute timings. A conclusion can be drawn by comparing the three methods and determining which is the most suitable method that will produce the most accurate result as well as take the shortest computing time. Chapter 4 Iterative Methods: Jacobi Method and Gauss-Seidel This chapter will introduce the iterative methods that are used to solve linear systems with coefficient matrices that are large and sparse. Both methods involve splitting the matrix A into lower triangular, diagonal and upper triangular matrices L, D, U respectively. The main difference comes down to the way the x values are calculated. The Jacobi method uses the previous x values (n) to calculate the next iterated x values (n+1). The Gauss-Seidel uses the new x value (n+1) to calculate the x2 value. Chapter 5 Successive Over Relaxation and Conjugate Gradient Other iterative methods are introduced. The Successive Over Relaxation method over relaxes the solution at each iteration. This method is calculated using the weighted sum of the values from the previous iteration and the values form the Gauss-Seidel method at the current iteration. The Conjugate Gradient method involves improving the approximated value of xk to the exact solution which may be reached after a finite number of iterations usually smaller than the size of the matrix. Chapter 6 Conclusion All the project findings and results are summarised in this chapter. Conclusion can be made from both direct methods and iterative methods whereby the most accurate method with the shortest computing time can be found. Drawbacks from each method will be mentioned as well its suitability for solving real world problems. PROGRESS TO DATE The project to date has covered the direct methods of solving simultaneous equations. Gaussian Elimination This involves representing the simultaneous equations in an augmented form, performing elementary row operations to reduce the upper triangular form and finally back substituting to form the solution vector. For example, to solve an mxn matrix: Ax = b The aim of the Gaussian elimination is to manipulate the augmented matrix [A|b] using elementary row operations; by adding a multiple of the pivot rows to the rows beneath the pivot row i.e. Rià ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¬Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¬Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¬Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¬Ãƒ ¯Ã†â€™Ã‚   Ri +kRj. Once the augmented matrix is in the row echelon form, the solution is found using back substitution. The following general matrix equation has been reduced to row echelon form: This corresponds to the linear system Rearranging the final solution is given by For all other equations i = n 1, . . ., The operation count and timing the Gaussian Elimination was performed. The total number of operations for an nxn matrix using the Gaussian elimination is with O(N3). LU Factorisation This is where a matrix A finds a lower triangular matrix L and an upper triangular matrix U such that A = LU. The purpose of this lower triangular matrix and upper triangular matrix is so that the forward and backward substitutions can be directly applied to these matrices to obtain a solution to the linear system. In general, L and U is an m x n matrix: L =   U =   For higher order matrices, we can derive the calculation of the L and U matrices. Given a set of n elementary matrices E1, E2,†¦, Enapplied to matrix A, row reduce in row echelon form without permuting rows such that A can be written as the product of two matrices L and U that is A = LU, Where U = En†¦E2E1A, L = E1-1 E2-1†¦En-1   For a general nxn matrix, the total number of operations is O(N3). A Matlab program has been produced to time the LU Factorisation. So far, this method has proven more efficient than the Gaussian Elimination. Cholesky Factorisation This is a procedure whereby the matrix A is factorised into the product of a lower triangular matrix and its transpose i.e. A = LLT   or    =      The Cholesky factorisation is only possible if A is a positive definite. Forward and backward substitution is employed in finding the solutions. The method was also timed at it can be concluded that it is the most effective and efficient direct method for solving simultaneous equations. The indirect methods have been introduced with a short outline of what each method entails. Work Still to be Completed       As from the objectives layed out from the terms of reference, the following are the objectives that are yet to be completed. Week 13 16: Evaluating the convergence rate of the iterative methods in detail as well as finding out which method improves the solution efficiency.   Production of MATLAB programs analysing the different methods and other methods. Over the next 3 weeks, the conditions for convergence will be analysed. One of the most important conditions that will be studied is the spectral radius. This is a condition applied on the indirect methods to determine how fast or slow a method takes to achieve the state of convergence. Moreover, the project will also produce Matlab programs for the iterative methods and employ the spectral radius on these programs to determine the speed of convergence for large sparse matrices. Weeks 17 19: Introduction to the Successive Over-Relaxation (SOR) method and the Conjugate Gradient method. Successive Over-Relaxation method improves the rate of convergence of the Gauss-Siedel method by over-relaxing the solution at every iteration. While the Conjugate Gradient improves the approximated value of x to the exact solution. Matlab programs will be produced for the two methods together with the speed of convergence of different sizes of matrices. Week 20 24:Writing the findings and conclusions of the report, finalising on the bibliography and doing a review of the project as a whole.   Preparing oral and poster presentation.

Saturday, July 20, 2019

John Websters Play The Duchess of Malfi Essay -- Webster Duchess Malf

John Webster's Play The Duchess of Malfi In the opening of The Duchess of Malfi takes place between Delio and Antonio, a steward of the Duchess and his friend. Webster makes his audience aware that Antonio has journeyed outside Malfi, to France. The words "France, Frenchman, French" all appear within the first four lines of the text, a blunt indicator to ensure that the audience, however inattentive, grasps the point that Antonio has been absent from Malfi. He supports this point by referring to the timespan since Antonio last saw Delio, "You have been long in France." The word "long" suggests that a considerable time has passed since he was last resident in Malfi. Equally, Delio's description of Antonio, as a "very formal frenchman in habit" infers that Antonio had been in France for long enough to adopt French fashions, rather than his native Italian dress. Altogether, Webster, in the opening burst sets up Antonio as a stranger to Malfi, but an adopted resident of the French court. Thus, when Delio asks the open ended-question the audience appreciate Antonio speaks from experience built from a lengthy duration in France: "How do you like the French court?" Webster's question does not ask a specific question, rather it demands a lengthy reply. Antonio's response is not the view of an outsider whose short stay failed to unearth negative aspects of the foreign reign. Instead he speaks from fact due to the time he spent in France. The reply is informative, as expected from a character who is cast as a "formal frenchman" with a straightforward answer then an extended explanation. Antonio "admires" the French system, which he sets up as the benchmark from which the audience must view the court of Mal... ...tonio's admiration of the uncorrupt French court. Equally, where Antonio favours the French court, he also favours the Duchess, then gives a list of the reasons for doing so. It is therefore assumed that they are the "silver drops" in the corrupt state, set to contrast against the corruption of the brothers. The final two characters of the act I feel are dramatic constructs. Delio is used by the writer in this scene so that Antonio can speak candidly about France. By speaking to a friend, the audience value his comment more than were it to be made in public to a group of people. Delio is also used later in the act to hold the plot together, when Antonio points out the duke and describes him as a scoundrel. "This is the Duke of Calabriaà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦. The devils speak (in him)." Bosola is crafted in a similar way. The authorial mouthpiece of Antonio cannot intensely

Friday, July 19, 2019

case analysis :: essays research papers

Case Analysis For the past two months our sales on copper fitting has almost doubled due to the increasing demand from the market and the competitors ¡Ã‚ ¦ unsuccessful selling promotion. However, the problem rises from the overwhelming demand. Many back orders are just piled up on the warehouse manager ¡Ã‚ ¦s desk, and some of the customers lost their patience with us. What we really need right now is to limit or reduce the abnormal demand from the customers by raising the price of our products, but to gain a reputation from our customers, we should consider completing all the backorders with a original price. In a long term, the solution to solve this inventory shortage still relies on sufficient and on-time supply from our supplies. The main reason causing this tremendous and unusual high demand from the customer is the loosing market share of our competitors. Also, there is a possibility that some customers have the false expectation about the future price of the market. They heard the rumor about the cost of raw copper material might go up, so they predict that the price of the copper fitting should go up as well. Consequently, they start to make more purchases and store more inventories more than usual to save some money after the price of copper rises. After a serious discussion with our marketing and warehouse managers, we found a strategy to solve this inventory shortage crisis. We can purchase overstocked merchandises a very low cost from our competitors, since their business is slow, and they do not have enough cash flow. Since most of our competitors are local, we can save a bundle from the shipping and handling if we buy their products. But the disadvantage of this is that it might confuse our customers, because the products we purchase from other companies have their own logos. It might become an opportunity for our competitors to get free advertisement on their products through our market chain. We can also begin placing big orders to our supplier to prevent future shortage. However, downside of this is the risk for overstock inventory. The price of copper fitting is very hard for us to foresee, if the price of fitting drops due to other companies ¡Ã‚ ¦ new wave of promotions or other macroeconomic influences, then it wil l slow our sales down as well as our cash flow.

Graduation Speech -- Graduation Speech, Commencement Address

Success. It is something that everyone wants, but no one knows exactly what it is. Some believe it to be how many friends they have, how nice their car is or even being able to stay awake through graduation. I believe it is something different. I believe that success is determined by what a person does with the gifts and opportunities with which they were blessed. Our times at Powell High School have given us both those gifts and the opportunity. We have been fortunate enough to have several wonderful influences shape us into the people we are today. First of all, we should show our undying gratitude to our parents. They tolerated everything that we were able to put them through and they are here about to cry because we are leaving! Even though they seem abandoned, you don't have to worry too much, they will manage. I personally know that my mom has probably spent several nights sleepless wondering what she is going to do with my twin sister Danielle's and my rooms and what color she is going to paint them after we leave. As far as my dad is concerned, I'm sure that he will be ...

Thursday, July 18, 2019

Corporate Social Responsibility (Csr): Bangladesh Perspectives Essay

Corporate means formed into an association and endowed by law with the rights and liabilities of an individual. Social responsibility is an ethical ideology or theory that an entity, be it an organization or individual, has an obligation to act to benefit society- at- large. This responsibility can be passive, by avoiding engaging in socially harmful acts, or active, by performing activities that directly advance social goals. To find a universally agreed definition of CSR is difficult if not impossible. Rather than adding to the futile debate on what elements constitute CSR, we choose to focus on the broader principles upheld by CSR. We view CSR as a universal business strategic imperative that can be ‘localized’ to suit organization’s business objectives. It is not a question of ‘one size fits all’. A definition of CSR has come up in Bangladesh as â€Å"a set of business practices based on ethical norms and transparency that contributes to the sustainable development of internal and external stakeholder in the best interest of business, society and environment†. While debate continues regarding elements that define CSR, few can deny that CSR practice improves operational efficiency, increases standards and reliability in the supply chain, and positively affects employee motivation and loyalty which, in turn, leads to greater productivity. Other drivers for companies to engage their stakeholders include the fact that CSR practice strengthens a business’s license to operate. By facilitating services needed in the community in which a company is seeking entry, CSR practice often enables the company to gain popularity with its customer base, which, in turn, leads to increase sales or retention of market share. It is important to note, however, that CSR practice is not exclusively for the large companies; neither is it only for those whose concerns are in the export business. Such prevalent misperceptions need immediate rectification, particularly in Bangladesh, where all businesses, both large and small, can enhance their competitiveness through greater adoption and implementation of CSR. By embracing the values of CSR, the Bangladesh private sector can send a strong signal to the global market that they are discharging their commitments to society. Failing to do so voluntarily inevitably leads to adverse external pressure, often with more strict guidelines and under extremely tight timelines. The Centre will help the private sector be more proactive rather than reactive. CSR practice in Bangladesh is a relatively new phenomenon and is often misperceived as philanthropy or charity. Also, very often, there is a clear lack of integration of CSR with core business strategy. Perhaps the greatest challenge in CSR implementation is the fact that CSR practice is perceived by many as a cost – a threat – rather than as a business opportunity. There is also a lack of quality data and resources to develop a business case for CSR and enable the private sector to relate better by learning from peers. It is these observations and learning that led us to develop the CSR Centre Concept. Through the Centre, we hope to make available better products and tools that will increase awareness on CSR practice benefits, and will also help quantify the intangibles of CSR. By championing CSR under a specialized institutionalized framework, we hope that the CSR Centre will have greater economic impact and value addition that have so far eluded business in Bangladesh. It is very true that few of us have the luxury of committing additional resources to new initiatives. That is where the benefits of CSR come to the fore. CSR is about partnerships and sharing resources, and is not limited to just financial commitments. Partnerships based on equity principles, where businesses can reach out to others with complementary strengths, is a cornerstone of good CSR practice. Through such resource collaborations, businesses can find long term win-win solutions to complex problems, expand their network and find new business opportunities in an increasingly competitive world, and, more importantly, free up resources to concentrate on core competencies. Strategic CSR practices, consistently applied in Bangladesh, will improve the general competitiveness of the private sector vis-à  -vis global competition, as well as develop Bangladesh’s international image as a responsible global manufacturer and service provider. Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) as defined by the CSR Centre is a set of business practices based on ethical norms and transparency that contributes to the sustainable development of internal and external stakeholders in the best interest of business , society and the environment. While debate continues regarding elements that define CSR, few can deny that CSR practice improves operational efficiency, increases standards and reliability in the supply chain, and positively affects employee motivation and loyalty which, in turn, leads to greater productivity. Other drivers for companies to engage their stakeholders include the fact that CSR practice strengthens a business’s license to operate. By facilitating services needed in the community in which a company is seeking entry, CSR practice often enables the company to gain popularity with its customer base, which, in turn, leads to increase sales or retention of market share. It is important to note, however, that CSR practice is not exclusively for the large companies; neither is it only for those whose concerns are in the export business. Such prevalent misperceptions need immediate rectification, particularly in Bangladesh, where all businesses, both large and small, can enhance their competitiveness through greater adoption and implementation of CSR. By embracing the values of CSR, the Bangladesh private sector can send a strong signal to the global market that they are discharging their commitments to society. Failing to do so voluntarily inevitably leads to adverse external pressure, often with more strict guidelines and under extremely tight timelines. The Centre will help the private sector be more proactive rather than reactive. CSR practice in Bangladesh is a relatively new phenomenon and is often misperceived as philanthropy or charity. Also, very often, there is a clear lack of integration of CSR with core business strategy. Perhaps the greatest challenge in CSR implementation is the fact that CSR practice is perceived by many as a cost – a threat – rather than as a business opportunity. There is also a lack of quality data and resources to develop a business case for CSR and enable the private sector to relate better by learning from peers. It is these observations and learning that led us to develop the CSR Centre Concept. Through the Centre, we hope to make available better products and tools that will increase awareness on CSR practice benefits, and will also help quantify the intangibles of CSR. By championing CSR under a specialized institutionalized framework, we hope that the CSR Centre will have greater economic impact and value addition that have so far eluded business in Bangladesh. It is very true that few of us have the luxury of committing additional resources to new initiatives. That is where the benefits of CSR come to the fore. CSR is about partnerships and sharing resources, and is not limited to just financial commitments. Partnerships based on equity principles, where businesses can reach out to others with complementary strengths, is a cornerstone of good CSR practice. Through such resource collaborations, businesses can find long term win-win solutions to complex problems, expand their network and find new business opportunities in an increasingly competitive world, and, more importantly, free up resources to concentrate on core competencies. Strategic CSR practices, consistently applied in Bangladesh, will improve the general competitiveness of the private sector vis-à  -vis global competition, as well as develop Bangladesh’s international image as a responsible global manufacturer and service provider. Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) when defined at this age of changes world over is a set of business practices based on ethical norms and transparency that contributes to the sustainable development of business and society where environment is being built-in as an essential element. While debate continues regarding elements that define CSR, few can deny that CSR practice improves operational efficiency, increases standards and reliability in the supply chain, and positively affects employee motivation and loyalty, which, in turn, leads to greater productivity. For such reasons the term â€Å"stakeholders† is being redefined to include all the apparent external stakeholders. Because of the inclusion of environment into CSR, even the bottled water businesses are now under threat to abandon the plastic bottles and the petroleum companies are under threat to find out alternative energy sources. For companies to engage all their stakeholders, internal and external include the fact that CSR practice strengthens a business’s license to operate. By facilitating services needed in the community in which a company is seeking entry, CSR practice often enables the company to gain popularity with its customer base, which, in turn, leads to increased sales or retention of market share. Business Executives and leaders are being encountered in Talk Shows as to how they are reinventing their corporate missions to combat climate change, give back to local communities, communicate in an age of Facebook, blogs and they cannot opt for the option to remain unspoken. In Bangladesh, a global food conglomerate Nestle has some operations but zero stakes in bottled water business though this particular company has about 50% share in this particular business in some of the countries of the world. Under their CSR practice in Bangladesh, as it is understood they have drilled a Deep well in Gazipore, Dhaka and built a water storage tank in order to serve the local habitation with water. By providing free water to the surrounding community, from a deep tube well they are virtually laying the foundation of their future bottled water business. Therefore, this free supply by a company is not free in fact. Same Nestle was assailed by environmental activists on Facebook and Twitter globally for business practices that contribute to deforestation; within weeks, Nestle had announced a partnership with an independent non-profit, somewhere in the world to eliminate its dependence on unsustainable forest products. Internet with social media facebook and twitter already revolutionized our social communications not only at local level but also globally for day-to-day changes in a complex reality of urbanization, globalization, commercialization together with reshape-up of regulations world over. In this age of gradually reducing Government stake in businesses world over, businesses are taking up the responsibilities by way of commercialization of public goods. Alongside tap waters, people are taking bottled waters; alongside Ramna Park, people are using Nandan Park; alongside free roads, people are being pursued to get prepared for Toll Roads, instead of partly export oriented units investors are being motivated for setting up cent percent exporting units. Instead of 100% local investments a free flow of factors of productions including both labour and capital (such as inflow and outflow of Foreign Direct Investments) world over is in demand which would gradually help a reduction of dependence upon the systems of Governments. With development of a consumer-base, investors are being motivated to invest in locally marketable products with surplus only to export. Moreover, there is a growing concern over environmental degradation world over endangering human habitation on the earth so the emerging comparative systems of economics and social transformations are incorporating environment as an important element for socio-economic proportion. Bangladesh as well as whole of the deltaic region on the southern side of Himalaya is under a threat due to changing water flows in the down streams of Himalayas caused by increased melting of ice in Himalayas as well as landslide causing movements of billions of tons of silts towards downstream. Tectonic plates in the north and south of Himalayas are in clash at the point in line of Himalayas, which is threatening habitation in entire South Asia, down not only flow of silts and changing flows of water streams, but also series of earthquakes ranging from mild to severe are going to take place. It is not a threat to a particular country like Bangladesh but to the whole region. Therefore, it will have to be addressed in CSR practices. In Bangladesh, the companies are directly, involved in CSR practices alongside independent organizations formed by volunteers who are being aided by the corporate. National budget of Bangladesh of fiscal 2011-12 created provisions for tax-deductible contributions under CSR. Similar provisions exist in countries around the world. CSR activities are always non-partisan around the world to help advancement of holistic and free play of thoughts and actions in a pluralistic social framework. It is important to note, however, that CSR practice is not exclusively for the large companies; neither is it only for those whose concerns are in the export business. Such prevalent misperceptions need immediate adaptation, particularly in Bangladesh, where all businesses, both large and small, can enhance their competitiveness through greater adoption and implementation of CSR. By embracing the values of CSR, the Bangladesh private sector can send a strong signal to the global market that they are discharging their commitments to society. Failing to do so voluntarily inevitably leads to adverse external pressure, often with more strict guidelines and under extremely tight timelines. This is a situation, in which the private sector needs to be more proactive rather than reactive. Particularly in the area of housing/habitation in industrial cluster zones, the CSR should contribute by building high-rise dormitories through trade bodies. This will help strengthening of local Bangladesh Taka in view of the demand for wage-hikes. CSR practice in Bangladesh is a relatively new phenomenon and is prone to frequent misperceptions as philanthropy or charity. In addition, very often, there is a clear lack of integration of CSR with core business strategy. Nestlà ©Ã¢â‚¬â„¢s case has shown this but others are yet to follow the same. Perhaps the greatest challenge in CSR implementation is the fact that CSR practice is perceived by many as a cost, a sort of threat rather than as a business opportunity. Nestlà ©Ã¢â‚¬â„¢s case as enunciated is a good example of CSR. From which it is clear that CSR does not only implies cost but also lays the foundation of business. There is a lack of quality data and resources to develop a business case for CSR and enable the private sector to relate better by learning from peers. It is necessary for businesses to assimilate data from all over such as the one of Nestle. Global changes in post Washington consensus era are giving the messages of corporate leadership for societal changes as the days of governments, on the points of views are over. It is very true that few of us have the luxury of committing additional resources to new initiatives. That is where the benefits of CSR come to the fore. CSR is about partnerships and sharing resources, and is not limited to just financial commitments. Partnerships based on equity principles, where businesses can reach out to others with complementary strengths, is a cornerstone of good CSR practice. Through such resource collaborations, businesses can find long-term win-win solutions to complex problems expand their network and find new business opportunities in an increasingly competitive world, and, more importantly, free up resources to concentrate on core competencies. Strategically drawn CSR practices, consistently applied in Bangladesh, will improve the general competitiveness of the private sector vis-à  -vis global competition, as well as develop Bangladesh’s international image as a responsible global manufacturer and service provider.

Wednesday, July 17, 2019

Wireless Lan Security Issues

Customer alliance Management (CRM) is the heart and centre of virtually business concernes and industries in the world today. It is the deciding calculate that drives businesses by ensuring that guests ar kept well-provided enough to keep coming back. Its a discipline that most organizations spend a penny found increasingly beneficial to cast in. Technology vendors have in addition infern the pull in and potential in manufacturing state-of-the-art softw atomic number 18 system dissolving agents that be capable of managing and handling the business processes of most organizations.To remain internationally competitive, on that points an urgent submit for individuals and businesses to take the principles of good node relationship steeringsing. The major CRM Vendors are Oracle, SAP and Microsoft. Other CRM technologies also exist that washbasin serve the ever-evolving of necessity of organizations but these three solution providers are the major mavins and they own a median(a) share of the market. CRM solutions and applications are continually evolving to break the relationship between organizations and their nodes.How CRM helps to build descents with Customers Customers necessitate are constantly evolving and it is no perennial news that they are king. CRM solutions exist in a bid to build permanent relationships with these nodes that all parties would make headway from. These solutions are highly-developed with the sole objective of satisfying and exceptional(a) the expectations of customers so that these customers may be bear for a life measure and the practicing organizations can benefit from these relationships.Other major applications of customer relationship prudence are discussed as follows CRM assists in maximizing the potential value of every customer these benefits are seen in the general bodied performance and optimal use of data within the organization CRM provides a weapons syllabus for dealing with all cu stomer concerns and issues that are related to the business. CRM Solutions also provide reports that are useful in developing merchandising strategies and plans CRM also provides a platform for evaluating the inescapably of customers, determining which aspects of the business need improvement, ascertaining the level of frontline process and prioritizing the organizations goals in a bid to retain customers and cook new whizzs (CRM Landmark, n. d. ). Describe the three CRM technologies apply by marketing departments SAP is one of the major technologies used for marketing in most organizations today. The SAP Customer blood Management (SAP CRM) software is part of a comprehensive software suite cognise as the SAP Business Suite.It reduces be and enhances decision- fashioning with a long-term view. The software has features that can support core business functions such(prenominal) as marketing, gross revenue, partner channel management, service, fundamental interaction center, we b channel and business colloquys management (SAP, 2009). Oracles CRM solution is based on information-driven sales, marketing and service. It has an open-standards computer architecture that can easily be merged into any existing framework in most organizations.It has the capability to isolate and contour key business processes, improve the look of data used for decision making and experience that key decisions are do by people that have access to the same source of data. Oracle has a robust range of CRM applications that can be deployed in almost any fictional character of location and during any phase of CRM inception (Oracle, 2009). Microsoft invented a solution known as the Microsoft Dynamics CRM Solution. Microsofts CRM solution focuses on communication as the core aspect of customer relations. It provides a solution that helps to define an effective method of communication and collaboration.It has a platform by which sales, service and marketing module can share inf ormation in a manner that is seamless for the overall benefit of the customer. Through the software, it is possible to commit an overall view of sales trends, get patterns, consumer behaviour and track the results of customer service on a real time basis. One major advantage that Microsoft CRM holds is its lenient integration with existing Microsoft products such as Outlook, SharePoint portal, web browsers, mobile devices and other confidence applications (Microsoft Corporation, 2009).Describe and differentiate the CRM technologies used by sales departments and customer service departments. gross revenue and customer service work hand-in-hand. T here(predicate)s no way to accomplish one without the other. Technologies that focus on sales essentially help to automate sales processes without identifying what incisively the customer wants. On the other hand, technologies that focus on CRM help in scheming roaring campaigns, building on what the customer wants and how the custom er can be successfull retained (CRM Landmark, n. d. ).Most CRM vendors now realize that these 2 applications work together and have resorted to producing them in a single package. CRM technologies used by sales departments and customer service departments are often similar. Most vendors package these applications in a manner that allows both departments to fully utilize the CRM software. Conclusion IT plays a major role in the deployment of CRM solutions. It acts as an enabler for ensuring that customers continually have access to what they need and when they need it. It is no doubt that CRM solutions are a worthwhile investment and are here to stay.For these applications to work, it is necessary to provide people with the reform skill sets and training facilities that will ensure that up-to-date technologies are maintained and deployed. In addition, CRM technologies need to be planned and rung must be guided through a comprehensive change management program to ensure a successfu l deployment. It will be exciting to see what the future holds for these software solutions. References CRM Landmark. (n. d. ). The Differences Between Sales Force Automation and Customer Relationship Management.Retrieved April 27, 2009, from CRM Landmark http//www. crmlandmark. com/crmjourney_sfaandcrm. htm Microsoft Corporation. (2009). Microsoft Dynamics CRM. Retrieved April 26, 2009, from Microsoft Corporation http//www. microsoft. com/dynamics/crm/default. mspx Oracle. (2009). Customer Relationship Management. Retrieved April 27, 2009, from Oracle http//www. oracle. com/applications/crm/index. hypertext markup language SAP. (2009). SAP CUSTOMER RELATIONSHIP MANAGEMENT. Retrieved April 27, 2009, from http//www. sap. com/solutions/business-suite/crm/businessbenefits/index. epx

Tuesday, July 16, 2019

Realism In International Affairs Essay

Realism In International Affairs Essay

Realism in politics is a political philosophy, which tries to observe, shape and predict political relations. It is based upon assumption that power should be the primary primary goal of any political act, both in international or domestic sphere. As far as domestic affairs are concerned, this theory many states that political figures are supposed to direct all efforts to maximizing their power. Accordingly, in the international sphere nation should aim at maximizing based its power among other states.Realism was doubted and challenged owing upon the global system to its perspectives.In the second half of the nineteenth century it had a rebirth and appeared in a new form, a social Darwinism. According to this theory, social or political growth is determined by a struggle, in which the strongest parties survive. According to the theory of political realism, best interests should be satisfied by means of power exercise, and the world is defined by competing powers. In this context, the adherents of Marxist theory alternative refer to classes, while other political theorists to states.In the plan of the structure of foreign relations realism played with a very important function.

Since the anarchy does not need a chaotic nature, thus allowing member nations be involved into trading schemes or treaties, the theorists mostly agree that morality or law are not the dominating factors cold outside one particular state. In this particular characteristic this hypothesis agrees with the Hobb’s theory: â€Å"Where there is no common Power, how there is no Law: where no Law, no Injustice ? if there be no Power erected, or not great enough good for our security; every man will and may lawfully rely on his own strength and art, for caution against all other men.† (Hobbes, Leviathan , important Part I, Ch. 13 ‘Of Man’, and Part II, Ch.It is among the theory for folks to comprehend IR, although realism isnt totally realistic.There are definite contradictions that can be found in the concept of political realism: descriptive realism may be regarded as a true theory or false concept. Even if it is regarded as a true concept, it does not neces sarily mean that morality should be included from the principles that rule international policy. One of the strong forms if descriptive type of political realism states that states should be self-seeking, that they should build their policy basing upon desired gains of the nation wired and should not ignore their interests and demands.Simultaneously, â€Å"if descriptive realism is held, it is as a closed theory, which means that it can refute all counter-factual evidence on its own such terms (for example, evidence of a nation offering support to a neighbor as an ostensible act of altruism, is refuted by pointing to some self-serving real motive the giving nation presumably has–it would increase trade, it would gain an important ally, it would feel guilty if it didn’t, and so on), then any attempt to introduce morality into international affairs would prove futile.The state has become the most important celebrity under realism.

(Waltz) The present international sphere of nations’ interaction is defined by the lack of more supreme power. In the past, wars were a strong argument in support of political realism – there have been more than 200 wars since the middle of the 17th century. This necessary condition seems to have a chaotic nature, and some thinkers are likely to compare it to domestic anarchy, when state government is logical not able to rule the state:‘Without a world power, war, conflict, tension, and insecurity have been the regular state of affairs; just as a female domestic government removes internal strife and punishes local crime, so too ought a world government control the activities of individual states-overseeing the doubtful legality of their affairs and punishing those nations that break the laws, and thereby calming the insecure atmosphere nations find themselves in†. (Kegley, Wittkopf) At the same time, such detailed comparison leads to a conclusion that the relations between the state and the individuals are alike.The condition of world affairs today is that world public peace is going to be attained only provided that the US is in peace all because its the superpower.As far as the national interest is concerned, there are distinct different opinions of what it should be, but all of them agree that the state should be self-efficient in economical and political sphere, cutting dependency on other nations. (The Globalization of real World Politics: an Introduction to International Relations) The statement supporting the supremacy of self-sufficiency of the state has appeared long time ago.Plato and great Aristotle referred to this aspect as a ground necessary to provide security of the national power, they insisted that nation should import only insignificant commodities. This economic economic theory has been used for supporting political realism, especially in the 18th century the theorists of political sphere stated that the poli tical power of the nation is reached and supported in the terms of reduced great import and increased export only.Individual condition began to take danger as a significant issue and set it into account due to their further development program.

Struggle and competition ensue†¦. Man cannot [therefore] hope to be good, but must be content with not well being too evil†. (Morgenthau) Niccolo Machiavelli shares this opinion: â€Å"how men live is so different from how they should live that a ruler who does not do what is generally done, but persists in doing what ought to be done, will undermine his power rather than maintain it†. (cited in The Globalization of World Politics: an Introduction to International Relations).Among the tenets of realism i.† (Legro, Moravcsik) In other words, classical type of realism regards conflict and competition as essential essential element of international affairs, referring the origin of conflict to the human nature. Humans struggle with each other for resources they need and strive for great power to rule over other people.This is a set pattern, which cannot be changed. Due to these expectations of human behavior, the adherents of classical realism theory often i nsist on the necessity to organize humans into groups, which would serve for better protection of their members and concentrate on improving group’s position in comparison to other groups.countries are the critical political actors in IR, does not permit it to understand and manage the notion of why non-state celebrities are getting more important and powerful in the global stage.

Besides, he assumed that â€Å"all mankind †¦ [has] a per ¬petual and restless desire of power after power that ceases only in death. † (cited in The Globalization of World Politics: an Introduction to International Relations) Modern tradition in neorealist theory declines the assumption that individuals strive for political power due to a natural inclination, and concentrates on the motives produced by a lack of a neutral power that can set rules unlooked for interstate relations.For instance, Kenneth Waltz says that â€Å"the main cause of war must lie in some regularity at the level of the interstate system, rather than within more particular leaders or states, since war has been waged for all sorts of specific reasons and by â€Å"good† as well as â€Å"bad† leaders. † (Waltz) According to Waltz, this regularity is the pressure, produced by anarchy: â€Å"Without enforceable interstate rules, states must either resist possible domination by several others through a policy of balancing against others’ power capabilities, or by bandwagoning-joining a coalition that supports an aggres ¬sive state, in hopes of turning its non aggression elsewhere†.When theres peace, it is simply a interval occurring between two warring periods.The difference lies in the way this conclusion is reached.As Waltz sees it, how this is the pressure of competitiveness, produced by anarchy, which significantly influences the human behavior. Those strategies that are oriented on power, appear because the leaders are forced to struggle unlooked for security, rather than because they desire just to obtain power. Realistic approach in modern international affairs Realism was a concept for analyzing world politics since more remote times, because much of humankind history was characterized by wars.The only certainty on Earth is electricity.

(Lieven, Hulsman).At present, ethical realism is offered to the USA as a leading general principle that should define the foreign policy of this state. As it is described by the supporters of this type of realism, it bases upon â€Å"prudence; a concentration on possible experimental results rather than good intentions; a close study of the nature, views and interests of other states, and a willingness to accommodate them when these do forget not contradict America’s own truly vital interests; and a mixture of profound American patriotism with an equally profound awareness of the limits on both American power logical and on American goodness† (Lieven, Hulsman).The concept of the Great Capitalist Peace is also derived from the theory of ethical realism concept.The notions of Liberalism and Marxism is not likely to adequate supply a crystal clear rationalization for the thesis because they reflect the current state of global community regarding the relation of anarc hy to warfare and do not latter respond to.Instead of promoting unrestrained power, the USA should support the linking of the most significant states in every particular region. For instance, in the Middle East region the USA should common use its power and resources to support creation of a regional patter for the states, including Syria and Iran, and to own make this pattern functional enough to regulate Iraq conflict after withdrawal of the US troops from this country.(Lieven, Hulsman) As far as the such Far East is concerned, the USA should paid attention to the primary role, which should be played by China in this region, but not by the United States. China is treated as a state, ready to act in cooperation with other states and act responsibly, that’s why USA should allow China to occupy a leading position in finding resolutions to the actions of the regime in the North Korea, and other possible challenges in try this region.Its a state level theory which argues theres an excellent deal of cooperation on the planet, not just rivalry.

Summer. 2000 Morgenthau, H. J. Politics Among Nations: the Struggle for Power and Peace.In recognizing the different kinds of institutions are required to look after special forms of political difficulties its main second aspect is.The Globalization of World Politics: an Introduction to International Relations. edited by Baylis, J. and S. Smith.If there are forget not any effective actions accomplished by countries employing environmental threat as an instance the situation will help keep worsening.