Charles Gains Conceptualism in Los Angeles Essay

Charles Gains Conceptualism in Los Angeles - Essay Example Ever since the 1960s2, when art in Los Angeles was defined by the introduction of abstract depictions, conceptualization has grown steadily amongst artists. Previous, one sees many faces in painting3 which had led to modernism by themed-nineteenth century. In conceptualization, the focus is on using abstract modes of expression to depict materials that we see around us in daily life, in an all new way. The main advantage of having such an art form was that lovers of art got a new perspective to look at nature and things around them. The perspective was believed to be initially impressionistic. Greenberg in his work Towards a Newer Laocoon, historically delineates how art has been evolving to become â€Å"pure† in its â€Å"medium† and in doing so it must retain the paint and the canvas for what it is and only convey sensation. Once this prescription has been satisfied the painter has achieved the â€Å"medium† of abstract art. Clark’s interpretation of Gre enberg’s Towards a Newer Laocoon, sparks a heated debate between him and Michael Fried. Clark argues that Greenberg is historicizing in his writing and ignoring that art is a reflection of the artist social environment. Formalism should not be the only thing accounted for in a painting but content as well. Artistic standards in history go hand in hand with social practice, which is evident in nineteenth-century Romantics. According to Clement Greenberg (1982), official painting and art forms were set to take a backseat in new forms of artistic depiction. Greenberg argues that if an artwork can be interpreted and agreed upon to be representative of a specific â€Å"situation† or â€Å" object†, then it is merely an imitation rather than a medium. Art (paintings and sculptures) in the 17th and 18th century was directly imitating literature, and so literature being the medium- art was just an illusion of literature.

Research Gaming as an Occupation Essay Example for Free

Research Gaming as an Occupation Essay This research paper attempts to focus on the topic â€Å"gaming as an occupation†. Specifically the paper focuses on the Formula 1, race car driving. Formula 1 is a sport that has millions of fans in all the corners of the globe and in my view a research paper on race car driving as an occupation would be interesting as well as enlightening. The objective of the research paper is to provide information on Formula 1 as an occupation. The paper focuses on the history of Formula one. How it started, when it started etc are the main objectives addressed in the history part. The paper will describe the salaries of different drivers as Formula 1 is one of the highest paid sports in the world. It will highlight the salaries earned by drivers in the business. It will focus upon the requirements of the sport, from age to physical fitness, from legal requirements to company requirements. Furthermore the paper will discuss the different stages a driver has to pass through, before he is qualified to become a Formula 1 driver. These stages include early training to a professional driver and the rigorous mental and physical training. Experiences of different drivers also narrate a different story about the world of Formula 1 racing and that is why such experiences will be used in the paper to provide insights. The paper also discusses the sport as a business. With time F1 has grown in to an industry earning huge sums of money in just one season for everyone, be it the constructors, the media or the sponsors. The paper then ends with a conclusion summarizing what formula one offers and requires as an occupation. INTRODUCTION AND THESIS: Formula 1 racing which is also known as F1 to many is the top class motor car racing certified by the Federation of International Automobiles. The word formula refers to specific rules that every team has to comply with. It dates back to European motor racing of 1920’s and 1930’s. The first formula one race was held in England at Silverstone in 1950 after the world war and a championship for constructors (those who provide the cars) first took in 1958. Today formula one has become a legend in the world of motorsports. The season consists of a series of races held at different places in the world and the championship is known as Grand Prix. It is held on proper circuits or city roads such as Monaco or Singapore. At the end of the season, two championships are awarded; one for the best driver and one for the constructor. Europe is like the headquarters of formula one. Most of the races take place in Europe and all the teams are Europe based as well. However in the recent years the scope of the sport has expanded and nowadays drivers from all around the world try to qualify as a formula one racer. To get the license of a formula one racer, a driver has to pass many tests and rigorous physical and mental training. The speed of a formula one car is approximately 360 km/hr which explains why stamina and strength and mental concentration are very important for these drivers. This is also one reason formula one racers are amongst the highest paid employees in the world and have a very large fan following. Based on the introduction my thesis statement would be: â€Å"As an occupation, formula one has to offer high wages, fan following, glamour and in return requires a great lot of physical and mental endurance in compliance with the requirements of the federation of International Racing. † HISTORY: Formula one is one of the biggest racing and television events of the world. As a sport it is as famous as football or cricket. The history goes down to 1950’s from where it all started. Europe was the base for motorsport racing and the era of 1920 and 30’s gave rise to motor racing as a professional sport. Thus motor racing got divided into many divisions based on engine specifications, constructors, car types etc. one of these was formula one. ‘The first formula one race was held at Silverstone, England in 1950 and a constructor’s champion ship was followed by in 1958. ’ (Bruce Jones, 15) The Formula in the name is a set of rules which all participants must comply to. This was a new formula which was introduced after World War II in motor racing. With the passage of time, the Formula saw many changes. Now it has totally modified into anew form because of the advanced auto mobile technology, the high speed engines and different track scenarios. HOW TO BECOME A FORMULA ONE DRIVER: To become a formula one racer, the drivers start from basic carting. As seen those who start at early ages, have been the most successful drivers in the history of formula one. The current champion Hamilton started carting at the age of 9. Carting is a basic cart with steering capabilities, acceleration and braking. This helps improve the driver’s skills in the art of steering, speed and brakes in closed circuits. After the driver is considered to be a qualified carter, he tries his luck in domestic championships or traditional European championships such as Formula 3 or Formula Ford. These races are the same as formula 1, but have lower car specifications and the circuits are closed and round usually. The top racers in these championships move to GP2. The Gp2 series started in 2005 though but the top three champions of GP2 since 2005 have been moving to formula one. Before GP2, formula two and formula 3000 were the criteria for qualifying as a formula one driver. Though mostly British F3 series is one of the best place where constructors look for formula one drivers. Also to be noted is that there are drivers who have made straight to formula one such as Michael Schumacher who came from simple Motor Racing. Thus qualifications are not a compulsion but obviously they do have an impact on the selection. THE PAYSCALE: As all other sports around the world, formula one is also a contract based sports. The drivers are hired on contract for a single season or for as many seasons as the constructors and the driver agree to. The earning there fore are on an annual basis. Last year’s champion Hamilton earned a one million pounds and is now on a five year contract with the constructor McLaren-Mercedese which is estimated to be worth approximately 70 million pounds and bonuses and endorsements are not included in this. Michael Schumacher according to the website Askmen. com earned a U. S. $67 million only from endorsements. From the tracks, his contracted pay was around U. S. $32 million only which is almost half of what he got from endorsements only. One cannot make an estimate on the industry average as the rates vary depending on the constructor that has hired the driver. Also usually the salaries are not announced that openly so whatever data is available is through what people or media find out form sources. Though based on estimation all the drivers on contract earn above a $5 million approximately as per the driving earnings listed on the website; ‘The F1 FAQ, 2008’. (Marcel, 01) REQUIREMENTS FOR BECOMING A FORMULA 1 DRIVER: Age: As far as age is concerned, a formula one driver can even be fifteen years old. As obvious, the requirement of the sport is not age, it is skills in driving and how you show them on the track. According to an article by the BMW Sauber Team, the famous driver Nick Hiedfeld says that these days anyone can enter the formula one BMW team at the age of fifteen. As these young amateurs enter the Karting stage early, it is obvious that they will hit the Formula one track early as well. (BMW, 01). The retirement age is not very explicitly specified but generally drivers retire around 30 because they themselves realize that now onwards racing would not be tough, it would be hard. Physical Fitness: Physical fitness is something that a team never compromises when selecting a formula one driver. As the car moves on a speed of 360 km/hr, there is great force acting on the body of the driver. This force is termed as the â€Å"G force. † This G force exerts a lot of pressure on the body of the driver and requires endurance. Similarly the lighter the weight of the driver, the faster the speed of the car as in formula one everything matters, from the fuel weight to driver’s weight. The suit is also of leather to provide maximum protection and on a sunny day conditions sometimes become miserable for the drivers. Thus becoming a formula one driver requires extraordinary physical strength. Mental Concentration: Mental attentiveness comes along with physical vigor in order to become a formula one driver. A short lack of concentration and focus can cost the constructors their car and the driver his career. Accidents on such a high speed are fatal. Apart from accidents there are split seconds decisions required such as when to speed up and when to hit the brakes at the right time or to overtake at the moment or not etc. All these choices require focus and sharpness. FORUMS: There are different forums for the fans to discus latest news regarding the world of formula one. Most popularly used forums include the forum on the homepage of Formula one and the forum on the webpage of Planet F-1. These forums also provide the fans to discuss driver ratings and performances and their views about the championships or a particular ace etc. These forums are reviewed by teams at times and important decisions related to fans are sometime taken with the help of discussions on the forums. FORMULA 1 AS A BUSINESS: The formula one racing has evolved into a business, an industry. The tickets are allotted on basis of stands owned by the constructors. The tickets sold earn a great amount of sum for the constructors. Ferrari stands for example are estimated to earn around U. S. $300 million approximately for the entire season (Financial Times, n/a). Though this is the one of the highest earned sums in the industry it still shows how much money is generated in this business. The constructors then also earn from media partners and sponsors. CONCLUSION: To conclude, one can confidently say that formula one is no doubt one of the sports that people would definitely prefer as an occupation. The sport has everything to offer which one requires from his or her occupation. Money, fame, world tours and a star studded life are the benefits of becoming a professional formula one driver. The sport though requires a great deal of physical and mental effort but then again fame and fortune do not come easy. It has already surpasses the stage of racing, it has become a business and an industry worth billions of dollars. Works Cited Bruce and Damon Hill. The Ultimate Encyclopedia of Formula One: The Definitive Illustrated Guide to Grand Prix Motor Racing 2007. MBI publishing company. 2007. Marcel Schot. The F1 FAQ, Atlas F1. 2000 http://atlasf1. autosport. com/2000/ita/faq. html ‘F1 Network’. BMW F1 Sauber Team. Dec. 4, 2006. http://www. f1network. net/main/s491/st108520. htm ‘The business of sports: Formula 1. ’ Financial Times. Sept. 25, 2008. http://www. ft. com/cms/s/0/57eb0d84-8922-11dd-a179-0000779fd18c,dwp_uuid=1d7d1f1a-2041-11dd-80b4-000077b07658,s01=1. html

Expertise and Rationality :: Philosophy Philosophical Papers

Expertise and Rationality ABSTRACT: I explore the connection between expertise and rationality. I first make explicit the philosophically dominant view on this connection, i.e., the ‘expert-consultation’ view. This view captures the rather obvious idea that a rational way of proceeding on a matter of importance when one lacks knowledge is to consult experts. Next, I enumerate the difficulties which beset this view, locating them to some extent in the current philosophical literature on expertise and rationality. I then propose that different lessons should be drawn for rationality from the fact of expertise. One is that some empirical and phenomenological studies of the nature of expertise can be fruitfully applied by analogy to theories of the rational agent. Chicken-sexers exist. It is a fact that there are experts in this and many other domains. It is also a fact that some philosophers, often epistemologists, take the fact of expertise to be bound up somehow or other with rationality. The standard articulation of this connection is that a rational way of proceeding on a matter of importance when one lacks knowledge is to consult experts. But does this view capture the full significance of the fact of expertise for rationality? In this paper I will argue that the fact of expertise has import beyond the standard view for the analysis of rationality. I will proceed by first considering in more detail the standard view, and then jump off from that discussion to draw a different lesson for our understanding of rationality from the fact of expertise. It would seem that the connection between expertise and rationality is so obvious as to be mundane: when one lacks expertise on a given matter of importance, and there are people who have that expertise and who can be consulted without undue cost, then (ceteris paribus) one should consult such people. This prescription links expertise and rationality by means of expert-consultation. When our cars are kaputt, when our tooth aches, when the soufflà © collapses, when our French falls short, and when our business lacks efficiency we consult the appropriate experts in order to believe and behave in ways that are sufficiently non-arbitrary so as to count as rational. Expert consultation is thus a resource for rationality: we have the remarkable cognitive ability to let the outcome of expert consultation affect what we believe. (1) The preceding paragraph captures in a simplified way the powerful idea that the connection between expertise and rationality is that of expert consultation.

Plato’s Conception of Justice Essay

The Republic is a dialogue between Socrates, Plato’s brothers, the Sophist Thrasymachus, along with Cephalus and his son, Polymarchus. The first book of the republic involves a presentation and refutation of the different views on justice. Socrates used the method of elenchus in order to show the flaws of the argument. Cephalus The topic concerning justice has started when Cephalus commented on living a just life. For preliminary, Cephalus have offered a definition of justice as that of telling the truth and paying someone what you owe. However, this idea was debunk by Socrates by offering a counter-argument which ask if this still hold in the case of a madman or someone who is insane. To further clarify, this issue that Socrates presents was whether or not a person shall return a knife that was borrowed from another person. With respect to Cephalus’s interpretation of justice, the knife shall be given back to its owner. However, Socrates presented a case, wherein the owner of the knife has gone insane and was planning to kill someone else. The madman was asking for his knife to be returned. Socrates, ask if giving back the knife shall still imply justice. Cephalus, himself, agreed with Socrates that this shall not imply what justice is. However, Cephalus have not managed to give further argument since he has to attend on certain things regarding the presentation of sacrifice. In the beginning of the conversion between Cephalus and Socrates, Cephalus could be characterized as someone who is very willing to converse with Socrates. Yet, when his idea was out rightly rejected to be false or to contain flaws he escape from the conversation using an alibi that something else came up and must be done, leaving the argument on the hands of his son, Polemarchus. Cephalus’s definition of justice and the way he reacts seems a bit related to how capitalist thinks. The mention of returning someone else’s favor or paying debts is a proof of this. For business people it would be just to return the debt you owe. Not doing so would be regarded as cheating or not being fair. Also, telling the truth is a must in the business world, if one would lie about certain transactions or about the real cost of something, it would is tantamount to deceiving the other person. The other person would not trust the liar anymore and the liar’s business would sooner or later fall down. Telling the truth is indeed just, since lying is always viewed as an injustice. However, as the case presented by Socrates shows, there are times, wherein man ought to tell lies and not to return debts or something one has borrow. With respect on how Socrates clarifies his point, it is obvious that giving back what you have borrowed and telling the truth does not guarantee a just action as what Cephalus pointed out, it might even lead to more injustice, if one would not look more closely. Polemarchus Polemarchus continued the dialogue by offering a related definition. He views justice as helping or giving favors to those who give you favor and harming those which does you harm. However, Socrates have been able to point out that, human judgment for whom to consider as a friend or as and enemy is open to error, such that the friend might just be pretending to be a friend and what you think as an enemy might be someone who is a friend. Also, some of your friends might turn as an enemy later in life and vice versa. The same thing goes with some of your friend might not be a good person and some of your enemy might be a good person. Socrates argued that it shall not be the case that you would only give favors to those who you consider as a friend for the time being and give harm to those you consider as an enemy. Polemarchus view was generally an immature view of what is justice. The definition was somewhat childish since it is the same principle as hating your enemies and keeping your friends. It also seems to be the most obvious view about justice in their generation, since it has political underpinnings. As war continued to shape their civilization, it was rational for those people living in that time to view justice in reference to enemies and friends. This shows that those who help you are your friends thus; they must be treated with respect and kindness. On the other hand, those who go against you or your country are considered as your enemy. Since â€Å"enemies† goal is to destroy or conquer each other, it would be rational not to help them and do them harm as what Polemarchus is trying to imply.   Relatively, Polemarchus holds the same view as Cephalus with respect to â€Å"giving someone what is owed to them†.   While Cephalus tried to incorporate money matters on his definition, Polemarchus treat his definition as a general version of what Cephalus has been trying to imply. Nevertheless, Socrates, remains unconvinced of their definition of justice, for both could be derived from flawed premises. Cephalus definition could not be generalized to cover all circumstances, while Polemarchus view is too relative and/or subjective. Thrasymachus Seeing how Socrates has been able to debunk the two popular beliefs of justice, Thrasymachus entered the conversation hastily offering a definition of justice that he believes to be better and more accurate. He argued that justice is merely the advantage of that which is stronger. He defends his definition as the advantage of other person aside from the just person himself. According to the statement of Thrasymachus, the person who is just is usually in a disadvantageous position, especially since most of the people are living with injustice. Those who do injustice, as can be observed generally, rise as stronger than those people who try to be just. This illuminates the idea that justice is a convention.   Justice, Thrasymachus believes, is meant to deter the action of the people to benefit other people. Thus he concludes that it would be more rational if justice would be ignored as a whole. To this view, another thing needs further clarification aside from the meaning of justice. The question involves if justice must be done or as Thrasymachus believes, must be ignored. Socrates first tried to clarify whether or not Thrasymachus have been imposing that injustice is actually the right thing to do or if Thrasymachus is advocating injustice over justice. Since by saying that justice is the advantage of that which is stronger, he holds that it is just to acquire more and more of power, wealth and everything else that makes one stronger. At the end of the argument, Socrates has been able to demonstrate how crude it would be to consider injustice as a virtue since it is contrary to wisdom which is a virtue. Furthermore, since Thrasymachus have presented an argument concerning following the instructions of those who are stronger, then it follows according to Socrates, that justice is adhering to certain rules. However, this rules which are set by the ruler/s might not be the right rules after all; as what we could find in the past, wherein leaders are very prone to commit certain errors. There are leaders who even act solely for his advantage, disregarding the efforts and sacrifices of the citizens. Socrates question, if following such ruler/s could still account for justice. Obviously, it does not. Thus, Socrates adds, that justice must be something that promotes the common good. Lastly, Socrates ended up arguing that justice is something that is a desirable virtue, while injustice is contrary to that. Thrasymachus is considered to be a Sophist. Since, he cannot withstand the arguments presented by Socrates; Thrasymachus have accused Socrates of cheating. In the dialogue he has with Socrates, Thrasymachus is portrayed as someone who would not let anyone to be better than him self. His stubbornness and unwillingness to be persuaded along with his constant doubt demonstrate that he would rather live following his false beliefs rather than to be persuaded by someone else. It can be seen on the way in which he defines justice, as that of promoting the interest of that which is stronger. In his dialogue with Socrates, it seems that he’s trying his best to become the stronger by showing everyone most especially to Socrates, that his view regarding justice is correct. At the end, when he could not find a way to further argue against Socrates, he accused him of deception. Discussion The traditional view on justice as have been shown in the Republic could be rooted on Hesoid, who view justice as following certain set of action. One has to be just because if he does not follow the set of actions that were ordained by the Gods, he would be punished and if he follows, he would be rewarded. However, in the time of Socrates and Plato, the view that indeed the Gods blessed those who act just was disregarded since many people who do injustices are seen to be better off than those who are just. This shall be the explanation on the views of justice made by Glaucon, Polemarchus and Thrasymachus. Challenge   Socrates would have to prove that justice is not only good in appearance, he would have to show that indeed, there is a higher level of morality which is beyond human conventions and that it must be followed not merely because of the rewards and punishment that goes with it, but because it is something compelling and universally desirable to do so. This has been the focus of Book II. A further elaboration of what should a just and an unjust man shall do is then presented through a discussion of a story about a mythical ring that would make a man invisible at will. According to the myth, unless men are stupid, a simpleton or just plainly insane, if nobody else could see him he would do unjust things. Indeed, it was always beneficial that men shall appear just and do injustice unknowingly. According to the arguments laid by Adeimantus and Glaucon, men naturally do injustice and it is out of question, since there are several instances wherein man would think that the action is just with respect only to its appearance, whatever the intention might be. It is common for man to give alms for instance, and it is a just action in fact. Whether the money comes from a just or unjust means is out of the question, provided that no one really knows where it came from. The Ideal State In Book III of the Republic, Socrates began to construct an â€Å"ideal just state†.   He does this in able to show that in order to clearly show justice, it shall first be presented without the presence of injustices. In doing so, he discusses that the evils that beset mankind may not come from God for God is all-good, ultimately, evil comes from man himself, in his selfishness and arrogance arise injustice. In Book IV, the ideal state is already finished.   Socrates intends to show that a just state is a state that shall display happiness. Happiness in this sense shall not be composed mainly of the material things, for the citizens of the â€Å"ideal just state† would be happy only if they would be able to do what they have to do.With respect to the ideal state that Socrates has proposed, he concluded that it shall contain wisdom, courage, temperance and justice. Justice is attained when the citizens have practiced his function well. Conclusion In Plato’s republic, Plato has been able to refute the different views on justice by his contemporaries. At the same tine, he has been successful in providing a clear view on what he believes shall be the concept of justice. That it is a virtue that could only be manifested and work best only if the entire state would do what their individual function is. As the dialogue unfolds, the different views on justice were proven to be misleading and are flaws since it is a view that certain group of people advocates. The view of Cepahalus mainly argues the view that the elder group of people usually holds, Polemarchus on the other hand gives a view of someone who is young and determined while the view of Thrasymachus resembles that which cannot accept that he is wrong. All of these views are primarily concerned in the individual justice, while Plato present a kind of holistic approach to justice stating that it must be in a state level to see its entirety and for it to work more effectively. Works Cited Jowett, B. (1901).   PLATO: THE REPUBLIC . The Colonial Press. New York.

Bandung: The Perfect Weekend

Bandung, the Perfect Weekend Getaway Have you been wondering to which holiday destination should you visit? Or are you dreading to have the perfect weekend getaway but don’t know any place? Trust me, you don’t have to worry anymore because the answer is Bandung! It is one of the sophisticated cities in Indonesia that has incredibly panoramic views, delectable food and satisfying services as Bandung is known to be a popular tourist attraction. Bandung has a breath-taking garden views.Tourists can enjoy and buy the beautiful and colorful flowers or even spend their time with their children or friends at the strawberries farms and to actually pick as many strawberries they want fresh from the stems. â€Å"Delicious food† are the first two words that usually be pop out in most of the Bandung visitors’ heads, as it is renowned to be the perfect city for culinary tourism. It has the sweetest, crunchiest even until spiciest mouth-watering meals. The most famous f ood in Bandung is â€Å"Kupat Tahu† and â€Å"Batagor†. Not to mention the latest most-talked theme park in Bandung namely â€Å"Trans Studio Bandung†.It is the perfect theme park for both adults and children. The place is designed so creatively like a city and most importantly, it is indoors! Not many theme parks are indoors. Therefore, visitors will not have to worry about the weather and able to have fun until the end of the day. How great it is. Moreover, children can also learn at the same time, since in the ‘Science Centre’, visitors are allowed to see many experiments and unique science facts that most people need to know. Like the different densities of different objects and liquids, and how we can have colorful shadows.There are also extreme rides like roller coaster, â€Å"Vertigo†, â€Å"Dragon Rides†, and â€Å"Giant Swing†. They are the heart-pounding rides that will make some of the visitors scream at the top of th eir lungs. At the end of the day, if you wish to remember the spectacular experience, visitors can always buy the high-quality Trans Studio souvenirs with reasonable price inside the theme park. Over all, Bandung will be an ideal to relax, shop, and most of all, for you to step back from your work and refresh your mind. If you come to Bandung, there is no way you will regret it!

Cabeza De Vaca Essays - Exploration Of North America, Exploration

Cabeza De Vaca Essays - Exploration Of North America, Exploration Cabeza De Vaca Cabeza de Vaca was an explorer who was born in Jerez de la Fronteria into a family that took the title, Cabeza de Vaca, head of a cow, from his mothers side of the family. In 1212 one of her ancestors- a shepherd named Martin Alhaja- had helped the Spanish Christians win an important battle against the Moors in by marking a unguarded mountain pass with a cows skull. The Christians attacked, scoring a major victory, and Alhaja and his desendets were honored by the name Cabeza de Vaca. In 1527 he was appointed the treasure of a royal expedition led by Panfilo de Narvaez of about of about 300 me to Florida. In April 1528 the expedition sailed into Tampa Bay, he began an over march into Apalanche Bay, and then attempted to reach Mexico in makeshift boats. Seperated from Narveaz, Cabeza de Vaca led a small group of survivors of the expeditions Dorantes, Castillo, and Esteban. The Moor escaped and began a journey which are now Southwestern United States and Northern Mexico, in 1537 Cabeza de Vaca returned to Spain rewarded with the honor to be governor of Rio de la Plata (now Paraguay). His account of the Naraveaz expedition Relicon and his tales of Zuni and their villages the legendary Seven cities of Cibola, encouraged many other expeditions to America including Hernando de Soto and Franciso Vasquez de Coronado. For Historians, Cabeza de Vacas importance came from his having been the first European to travel into Southwest and to write reports that spurred explorations of the region. His reports were about his tribal experiences with the Karankawas, Caddoes, Atakapans, Jumanoes, and Conchoes, Pincas, Optans, and the loose band of hunters- formally known as the Coalitecans.

The ongoing National Policy Debate through the lens of the American Enlightenment

The ongoing National Policy Debate through the lens of the American Enlightenment A Summary of the Policy Reform Policy reform debate in the United States revolves around economic issues that the country is experiencing. Presently, the United States has a vast public debt. As a result, the United States is unable to meet its obligations towards its people and workers. Several states such as Illinois and California are almost bankrupt. Equally, most local governments have gone bankrupt, while rates of unemployment in the states remain relatively high.Advertising We will write a custom term paper sample on The ongoing National Policy Debate through the lens of the American Enlightenment specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More The quest to address these issues seems to have raised lots of contention among people from both sides of government. The Republicans and Democrats argue overtly regarding the best way to manage the economy of the United States. However, there exists some agreement between key economists from both side s, on key issues that affect the nation. In my perspective, the ongoing national debate is not genuine, as it obtains fabrication to serve the interests of a few individuals. In other words, this debate is political and it does not seek to serve the interests of common citizens. This paper presents a discussion about issues surrounding policy reform using the instruments of the founding debates, principles, and documents of the United States. Comparative Analysis Social Contract: Representative Governance Social contract theory argues that the government has two key responsibilities. First, it is the role of the government to ensure that citizens do not hurt each other and second, the government must ensure that citizens keep promises amongst themselves. According to this theory, citizens must be ready to surrender some proportion of their liberty so as to maintain a stable, social context. This theory also recognizes the role of the constitution and the need to ratify the constitut ion as a part of the social contract. Besides, the theory advocates for capitalism. Looking back at the ongoing national policy debate in the United States, it seems like the Republicans do not fully recognize the governance by the Democrats. The Republicans should surrender some proportion of their liberty and allow the Democrats to develop policy reforms that best suits the nation.Advertising Looking for term paper on government? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Classical Liberalism: Natural Rights Classical liberalism recognizes that all people have an entitlement to natural rights (Rosenblum and Robert 27). These rights obtain a declaration in America’s independent clause. Classical liberalists maintain that natural rights should determine the correct size and functions of government. The philosophers agree that government often violates natural rights of citizens. They also argue that capitalism is the onl y moral economic system, since it bases on voluntary action. One aspect of capitalism is property rights. America has property rights that get entrenched so well that their basic significance for the suitable functioning of the capitalist system becomes easily disregarded. Hence, policy reform should be directed towards attaining and safeguarding property rights. Faction: Pluralism Pluralism in a government refers to inclusion of rival parties in the government. Factions may destroy excellent governance since they ignore the need for the public wellbeing in a dispute involving rival parties and trigger instability. Besides, the most prevalent faction wins at all times in spite of rights or fairness. The only way to eradicate negative impacts of factions is to disallow liberty. This perspective describes the exact situation that the United States is experiencing. Most of the contentious issues that have caused the prolonged debate originate from the Republicans. Considering that the Republicans occupy a key section of government executives, they may opt to oppose every policy that originates from the Democrats. Ambition: Elitism This perspective requires leaders to be elites who can succumb to the needs of the masses. Besides, this perspective requires leaders to be submissive. The Democrats involved seem to be more knowledgeable than the Republicans when it comes to the ongoing public debate on national policy. Besides, these Democrats are extremely confident and ambitious when it comes to policy formulation. Federalist Position Federalists support the constitution and do not consider the bill of rights as an essential tool for creating an incorrupt government. Federalists’ opinion is that economic factors have triggered the debate, but not the incompetence of the constitution. Anti Federalist Position Anti federalists hold the perspective that the constitution cannot offer adequate protection similar to the Bill of Rights. Anti federalists opinion is t hat the United States, together with its local governments, are unable to meet their obligations towards their people and workers due to lack of an insufficient bills of rights system.Advertising We will write a custom term paper sample on The ongoing National Policy Debate through the lens of the American Enlightenment specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Constitutional Perspective The constitution stipulates responsibilities and rights of both executives and common citizens. While constitutions may not be faultless, written constitutions serve as the most excellent way of safeguarding different people and their interests. Hence, interests of Republicans obtain protection by the constitution. The United States Constitution recognizes democracy and the right of expression. Hence, the public policy debate is within the limits of the constitution. Bill of Rights Perspective The bill of rights protects civil liberties granted to each reside nt of the United States, as seen in the Fourteenth Amendment. Among these rights is the freedom of speech. Hence, both parties have a right to express their opinions through public debate. This tool entitles governments to meet their obligations towards citizens. Hence, the United States and entity local governments have denied these rights to their people by not providing adequate employment. Solutions: the Principle of Compromise and Consensus Federalism perspective The founding documents of the United States contain interests of citizens. The documents comprise the constitution, the declaration of independence, the bill of rights and amendments to the constitution (Jefferson 29). Politicians who seek to serve their individual interests should not be allowed to compromise any of the standards established in these documents, since they represent the American foundation. States Perspective The United States’ perspective on consensus and compromise is that Republicans should s upport extensive administration and elevated taxes. However, the government does not offer any examples of Democrats backing deregulation or reduction of taxes. According to the current government, the national interest is totally and wholly the growth of the scope, size and authority of government. The United States should, however, endeavor to provide the needs of its citizens. Most of these needs as identified by the debate include lack of employment and insolvency. The public policy debate should seek to address these issues, so as to ensure that life is affordable and comfortable to these citizens. Cooperative Federalism Perspective The public policy debate, in the United States, should embrace cooperative federalism perspective in order to solve the economic problems facing the entire state. It can be hard for representatives centered, in Washington, to identify the needs of entity states. Hence, entity states can establish effective and relevant policies through cooperative f ederalism. Besides, solving issues locally would involve a smaller population than solving these problems from Washington, as the number of those opposing significant perspectives would be less in these areas.Advertising Looking for term paper on government? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More My Proposal and Perspective From my perspective, the two parties should only compromise their principles, on public policy, after they conclude on the frailest agreements. This must happen because persons who show willingness to surrender their principles easily cannot be trusted to continue with the bargain. The purpose of compromise ought to be a win-win situation with both parties negotiating and not just agreeing. Conversely, consensus cannot be obtained in cases that involve a few people with similar minds. Whenever the effect of this public policy debate does not satisfy both parties, such consensus should not take effect as there will be lacking enough commitment towards the effort. The debate on public policy has turned out to be totally disconnected from consensus to a certain direction. Irritated Republicans have forced their members to accept positions that are in conflict with aspects of modern economic scholars. While this may serve the political needs of the Republican s, the policy is not suitable. The difference between the situation of economic information and public policy debate in America has significant effects. At present, many residents in the United States are experiencing difficulties because of high unemployment. Many books in the country contain potential solutions. However, Congressional Republicans do not create room for such books to be examined. Rather, they also obstruct those policy plans that do not seem to have any controversies, from the perspective of most economists. Jefferson, Thomas. The Constitution, the Declaration of Independence, and the Articles of Confederation. Radford, VA: Wilder Publications, 2008. Print. Rosenblum, Nancy and Robert Post. Civil Society and Government. Princeton, N.J: Princeton University Press, 2002. Print.

The Domestication and History of Modern Horses

The Domestication and History of Modern Horses The modern domesticated horse (Equus caballus) is today spread throughout the world and among the most diverse creatures on the planet. In North America, the horse was part of the megafaunal extinctions at the end of the Pleistocene. Two wild subspecies survived until recently, the Tarpan (Equus ferus ferus, died out ca 1919) and Przewalskis Horse (Equus ferus przewalskii, of which there are a few left). Horse history, especially the timing of the domestication of the horse, is still being debated, partly because the evidence for domestication itself is debatable. Unlike other animals, criteria such as changes in body morphology (horses are extremely diverse) or the location of a particular horse outside of its normal range (horses are very widespread) are not useful in helping resolve the question. Evidence for Horse Domestication The earliest possible hints for domestication would be the presence of what appears to be a set of postmolds with lots of animal dung within the area defined by the posts, which scholars interpret as representing a horse pen. That evidence has been found at Krasnyi Yar in Kazakhstan, in portions of the site dating to as early as 3600 BC. The horses may have been kept for food and milk, rather than riding or load-bearing. Accepted archaeological evidence of horseback riding includes bit wear on horse teeth- that has been found in the steppes east of the Ural mountains at Botai and Kozhai 1 in modern Kazakhstan, around 3500-3000 BC. The bit wear was only found on a few of the teeth in the archaeological assemblages, which might suggest that a few horses were ridden to hunt and collect wild horses for food and milk consumption. Finally, the earliest direct evidence of the use of horses as beasts of burden- in the form of drawings of horse-drawn chariots- is from Mesopotamia, about 2000 BC. Krasnyi Yar includes over 50 residential pithouses, adjacent to which have been found dozens of postmolds. The postmolds- archaeological remnants of where posts have been set in the past- are arranged in circles, and these are interpreted as evidence of horse corrals. Horse History and Genetics Genetic data, interestingly enough, has traced all extant domesticated horses to one founder stallion, or to closely related male horses with the same Y haplotype. At the same time, there is a high matrilineal diversity in both domestic and wild horses. At least 77 wild mares would be required to explain the diversity of the mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) in current horse populations, which probably means quite a few more. A 2012 study (Warmuth and colleagues) combining archaeology, mitochondrial DNA, and Y-chromosomal DNA supports the domestication of horse as occurring once, in the western part of the Eurasian steppe, and that because of the horses wild natures, several repeated introgression events (restocking of horse populations by adding wild mares), must have occurred. As identified in earlier studies, that would explain the diversity of mtDNA. Three Strands of Evidence for Domesticated Horses In a paper published in Science in 2009, Alan K. Outram and colleagues looked at three strands of evidence supporting horse domestication at Botai culture sites: shin bones, milk consumption, and bitwear. These data support domestication of the horse between about 3500-3000 BC sites in what is today Kazakhstan. Horses skeletons at Botai Culture sites have gracile metacarpals. The horses metacarpals- the shins or cannon bones- are used as key indicators of domesticity. For whatever reason (and I wont speculate here), shins on domestic horses are thinner- more gracile- than those of wild horses. Outram et al. describe the shinbones from Botai as being closer in size and shape to those of Bronze age (fully domesticated) horses compared to wild horses. Fatty lipids of horse milk were found inside of pots. Although today it seems a bit weird to westerners, horses were kept for both their meat and milk in the past- and still are in the Kazakh region as you can see from the photograph above. Evidence of horse milk was found at Botai in the form of fatty lipid residues on the insides of ceramic vessels; further, evidence for consumption of horse meat has been identified at Botai culture horse and rider burials. Bit wear is in evidence on horse teeth. Researchers noted bitting wear on horses teeth- a vertical strip of wear on the outside of horses premolars, where the metal bit damages the enamel when it sits between the cheek and tooth. Recent studies (Bendrey) using scanning electron microscopy with energy dispersive X-ray microanalysis found microscopic-sized fragments of iron embedded on Iron Age horse teeth, resulting from metal bit use. White Horses and History White horses have had a special place in ancient history-according to Herodotus, they were held as sacred animals in the Achaemenid court of Xerxes the Great (ruled 485-465 BC). White horses are associated with the Pegasus myth, the unicorn in the Babylonian myth of Gilgamesh, Arabian horses, Lipizzaner stallions, Shetland ponies, and Icelandic pony populations. The Thoroughbred Gene A recent DNA study (Bower et al.) examined the DNA of Thoroughbred racing horses and identified the specific allele which drives their speed and precocity. Thoroughbreds are a specific breed of horse, all of whom today are descended from the children of one of three foundation stallions: Byerley Turk (imported to England in the 1680s), Darley Arabian (1704) and Godolphin Arabian (1729). These stallions are all of Arab, Barb and Turk origin; their descendants are from one of only 74 British and imported mares. Horse breeding histories for Thoroughbreds have been recorded in the General Stud Book since 1791, and the genetic data certainly supports that history. Horse races in the 17th and 18th centuries ran 3,200-6,400 meters (2-4 miles), and horses were usually five or six years old. By the early 1800s, the Thoroughbred was bred for traits that enabled speed and stamina over distances from 1,600-2,800 meters at three years of age; since the 1860s, the horses have been bred for shorter races (1,000-1400 meters) and younger maturity, at 2 years. The genetic study looked at the DNA from hundreds of horses and identified the gene as C type myostatin gene variant, and came to the conclusion that this gene originated from a single mare, bred to one of the three founder male horses about 300 years ago. See Bower et al for additional information. Thistle Creek DNA and Deep Evolution In 2013, researchers led by Ludovic Orlando and Eske Willerslev of the Centre for GeoGenetics, Natural History Museum of Denmark and University of Copenhagen (and reported in Orlando et al. 2013) reported on a metapodial horse fossil which had been found in permafrost within a Middle Pleistocene context in the Yukon territory of Canada and dated between 560,00-780,000 years ago. Amazingly, the researchers found that there were sufficiently intact molecules of collagen within the matrix of the bone to enable them to map the Thistle Creek horses genome. The researchers then compared the Thistle Creek specimen DNA to that of an Upper Paleolithic horse, a modern donkey, five modern domestic horse breeds, and one modern Przewalskis horse. Orlando and Willerslevs team found that over the past 500,000 years, horse populations have been enormously sensitive to climate change and that extremely low population sizes are associated with warming events. Further, using the Thistle Creek DNA as a baseline, they were able to determine that all modern existing equids (donkeys, horses, and zebras) originated from a common ancestor some 4-4.5 million years ago. In addition, Przewalskis horse diverged from the breeds which became domestic some 38,000-72,000 years ago, confirming the long-held belief that Przewalskis is the last remaining wild horse species. Sources Bendrey R. 2012. From wild horses to domestic horses: a European perspective. World Archaeology 44(1):135-157. Bendrey R. 2011. Identification of metal residues associated with bit-use on prehistoric horse teeth by scanning electron microscopy with energy dispersive X-ray microanalysis. Journal of Archaeological Science 38(11):2989-2994. Bower MA, McGivney BA, Campana MG, Gu J, Andersson LS, Barrett E, Davis CR, Mikko S, Stock F, Voronkova V et al. 2012. The genetic origin and history of speed in the Thoroughbred racehorse. Nature Communications 3(643):1-8. Brown D, and Anthony D. 1998. Bit Wear, Horseback Riding and the Botai Site in Kazakstan. Journal of Archaeological Science 25(4):331-347. Cassidy R. 2009. The horse, the Kyrgyz horse and the ‘Kyrgyz horse’. Anthropology Today 25(1):12-15. Jansen T, Forster P, Levine MA, Oelke H, Hurles M, Renfrew C, Weber J, Olek, and Klaus. 2002. Mitochondrial DNA and the origins of the domestic horse. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences 99(16):10905–10910. Levine MA. 1999. Botai and the origins of horse domestication. Journal of Anthropological Archaeology 18(1):29-78. Ludwig A, Pruvost M, Reissmann M, Benecke N, Brockmann GA, Castaà ±os P, Cieslak M, Lippold S, Llorente L, Malaspinas A-S et al. 2009. Coat Color Variation at the Beginning of Horse Domestication. Science 324:485. Kavar T, and Dovc P. 2008. Domestication of the horse: Genetic relationships between domestic and wild horses. Livestock Science 116(1):1-14. Orlando L, Ginolhac A, Zhang G, Froese D, Albrechtsen A, Stiller M, Schubert M, Cappellini E, Petersen B, Moltke I et al. 2013. Recalibrating Equus evolution using the genome sequence of an early Middle Pleistocene horse. Nature in press. Outram AK, Stear NA, Bendrey R, Olsen S, Kasparov A, Zaibert V, Thorpe N, and Evershed RP. 2009. The Earliest Horse Harnessing and Milking. Science 323:1332-1335. Outram AK, Stear NA, Kasparov A, Usmanova E, Varfolomeev V, and Evershed RP. 2011. Horses for the dead: funerary foodways in Bronze Age Kazakhstan. Antiquity 85(327):116-128. Sommer RS, Benecke N, Là µugas L, Nelle O, and Schmà ¶lcke U. 2011. Holocene survival of the wild horse in Europe: a matter of open landscape? Journal of Quaternary Science 26(8):805-812. Rosengren Pielberg G, Golovko A, Sundstrà ¶m E, Curik I, Lennartsson J, Seltenhammer MH, Drum T, Binns M, Fitzsimmons C, Lindgren G et al. 2008. A cis-acting regulatory mutation causes premature hair graying and susceptibility to melanoma in the horse. Nature Genetics 40:1004-1009. Warmuth V, Eriksson A, Bower MA, Barker G, Barrett E, Hanks BK, Li S, Lomitashvili D, Ochir-Goryaeva M, Sizonov GV et al. 2012. Reconstructing the origin and spread of horse domestication in the Eurasian steppe. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences Early edition.

Leadership------read the requirement i send you carefully Essay - 1

Leadership------read the requirement i send you carefully - Essay Example Japan, China and USA. Finally the study will be concluding with an insight the recommendations to the managers of the organizations to enhance the domestic as well as international leadership. Table of Contents Abstract 2 Table of Contents 3 Introduction 4 Definition 4 Differences between domestic and international leaders competencies 5 Domestic Leadership Competencies 5 International Leadership Competencies 6 Leadership in domestic and international business 6 Discussion 7 Leadership styles & culture studies 7 Cross Cultural Leadership Model 9 Comparison of Domestic and International Leadership 10 Japan 10 China 11 USA 12 Conclusion 13 Japan 13 China 14 USA 15 Reference list 16 Introduction Definition Leadership can be described as a procedure to have supremacy on the group performance in order to reach to the business objectives. It plays an important role within the functioning of an organization. The incorporation of leadership theories or models helps in reducing various organi zational issues (Howell and Costley, 2001; Johnson, 2000). In this twentieth century, it has been evident that leadership characteristics have high importance in the efficient functioning in an organization (Song, Wang, and Wei, 2007). For eliminating the organizational issues and bringing a change within the organization, it is essential that the managers incorporate various leadership characteristics in their functioning (Yukl, 2009; Rees and French, 2010). There are mainly two types of leadership adapted by the leaders within the organizations. One is transactional leadership and the other is the transformational leadership. In transactional leadership, the leaders first set the objectives and goals for all the subordinates and then plans for implementation of different rewarding and punishment techniques in order to encourage them in conducting their operational activities according to the organizational objectives and goals. In transformational leadership, the transformational leaders first identify the required change and then set one vision thereby bringing the change process Transformational Leadership and Domestic Leadership- The transformational leaders believe in imaginative leadership for influencing the subordinates. They believe in strengthening the bonding with the followers and thereby building compassionate relationship with them. The domestic leaders follow transformational leadership for motivating the followers and encouraging them in making better performance. It becomes easy for the domestic leaders to develop compassionate relationship with the subordinates as there is no existence of cultural diversification. Thus form of leadership does not rely on the monetary rewarding techniques such as incentives, bonuses etc. Transactional leadership and International Leadership - The transactional leaders make detailed planning of whatever us going to be executed. These leaders prefer efficient organizations with high quality employees. These lea ders motivate their employees by means of practical methods rather than inspiration. It is so because only inspiration does not work out to be effective for the employees at certain point of time. In such a situation, it is essential to satisfy them by means of monetary rewards such as incentives or bonuses. The international leaders follow this form of leadership as it becomes easy for them to influence the subordinates by providing monetary rewards. Satisfying their demands would

No topic Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 25

No topic - Essay Example Malcolm X was just advocating self-defense, calling for them to band together to protect themselves. He also advocated for equality, and his assertion that Negroes should have the right to vote manifests his belief in the legal system that does not endorse violence. His last paragraph is a good strategy to gain freedom. In fact, it is the only way to have freedom. You have to get or seize it when it is not given to you. The oppressor can call names but if you insist, even the timid will join you once you have enough critical mass for the oppressor either to give freedom or for you to take it. Yusef Iman’s point was basic, love others but you have to love yourself first. Love is good but one has to love himself or herself also. When somebody burns your house, water-hoses you down and does many other despicable things, your love for yourself must prevail and you have to protect yourself. So, in protest to such despicable acts, resorting to violence becomes an act of love. One has to love but he or she has to love himself or herself

Ritual Sacrifice in a Nameless Society Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Ritual Sacrifice in a Nameless Society - Essay Example Moreover, the essay looks deep into instituting advanced ways of offering sacrifices (ways that have no impact to a living creature). Finally, here are the reasons for adopting better ways of instituting rituals. From time in the past, sacrifices offered to holy beings worshipped by the inhabitants of a certain community establish the terms that people are to live with one another. Interaction of beings in a society is crucial, especially to the rulers who desire to enact changes in the cultural beliefs. People from the same community should have similar guiding principals concerning who to worship and when to worship. Frazer asserts that it is necessary to offer as forfeit to the Gods. Rulers (specifically kings) carry out the burden of what is most presentable before the Holy being. Beings in the past communities performed rituals involving sacrificing human lives. Societies have much concern with the security of every individual being within it. The practice of ritual offering depends on several motives. The prime rationale is the need to live better and God pleasing lives. Craving to have a better destiny dictates why people opt for and choose the medium thought to bring forth good advances. An additional ground for sacrificing human persons is the wish to uphold the cultural ways of worshiping. Lastly, there is the urge for privileges to the community. The set ritual instills fear in other persons undertaking duties initially carried out by rulers (Frazer). Administration of sacrificial items is essential, as it dictates the degree at which people are worth to their Gods. People give sacrifices in terms of human blood by simply taking away an individual’s life (Chapter XXVII). Traditionally, offerings in terms of human sacrifice appeared to be the best way, denoting people who are ready to surrender to the will of their creator. The king is giving out his life as a way of compromising with God to obtain good fortunes

The environmental impacts of the Kuwait invasion and the main Term Paper

The environmental impacts of the Kuwait invasion and the main casualties and losses during the seven month long Iraqi occupation of Kuwait - Term Paper Example However, this invasion did not become without negative impact, especially to the local civilians. Some of the outcomes of the Kuwait invasion were environmental. The long term effect includes climatic, vegetation, and biological changes in Kuwait. They experienced high penetration of sun rays due to global warming, poor vegetation, and poor health. The invasion had some effect on air, water, and land. This paper aims at discussing the environmental impacts of the Kuwait invasion. After the United States of America had come to the aid of Kuwait, Sadam Hussein, the then Iraqi president orders his troops to undertake a scorched earth policy which would see to it that all the oil wells in Kuwait were lit on fire before the soldiers retreated from Kuwait (Wilcox 177). The main aim of using the scorched earth policy was aimed at giving them a military advantage by slowing down the USA troops. The scorched earth policy led to the burning of 700 wells in. The Kuwait atmosphere was one of the most affected by the scorched earth policy. When oil is burned in the presence of air there is always the production of carbon dioxide smoke (Austin 101). Carbon dioxide usually has negative effects to the atmosphere. One thing that is obvious is that the massive production of carbon dioxide, smoke led to climatic changes in the region. This means that the ozone layer was highly interfered with lead to an increase in the rate of global warming in Kuwait. During the burning there is definitely some oil that was not completely burnt and found its way to the atmosphere. Such oil led to the formation of invisible droplets in the air. Such droplets led to the formation of oil mist and fog which is believed to have led to the death of many animals and plants. This is because air, with such composition would definitely find themselves in the animals and human lungs whenever it is inhaled

Criminal Justice Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 1

Criminal Justice - Essay Example Amendment of the US Constitution guarantees â€Å"the right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures shall not be violated.† Thus, the process of law requires that search justification would encompass three pre conditions: 1. The warrant for the search should categorically and distinctly mention the premises which need to be searched, as also the principle objective for which the search has been undertaken. 2. It should be based on probable cause backed with reliable information 3. The judicial approval has to be sought before search justifications can be made. However, in the decided case law, Frank V. Maryland 359 US 360 (1959), the Court upheld the conviction of a person who prevented a warranted inspection of private premises. It needs to be stated that administrative searches can only be said to be justifiable if, and when there are sufficient tenable grounds to believe that the objective for which the search has been initiated, could be gained. A total search of an entire city for example, to locate hidden or contraband articles is not justifiable on any count. During periods of emergencies, searches could be conducted with no justifications whatsoever, since it is for public good to protect the citizens from hazardous situations. Therefore, in cases of search and seizing of contaminated and unusable food items by law enforcement agencies, ensuring community vaccinations to guard against outbreak of epidemics etc could serve as instances of searches with justifications. The police form part of the law enforcement agencies whose primary duties lie in the areas of protection of lives and properties of citizens They are fully justified in being given more powers for instituting roadblocks and check points for the following reasons: 1. Finding out criminal or key witnesses in recent criminal activities or deeds. 2. For intercepting vehicles carrying drugs, firearms, or explosives. 3.

Adding customer value to your financial organisation for competitive Essay

Adding customer value to your financial organisation for competitive advantage - Essay Example These perceptions extensively influence their decisions on their interests to purchase from, work with, and market or support these companies. In the present competitive market and unpredictable economic environment, customer value may be an organization’s greatest asset – an aspect that makes a company to survive and beat their competitors in the market. Therefore, effective customer value is crucial to aid the company manage its public image by communicating and establishing strong relationships with other companies and stakeholders. This paper will investigate how Deutsche financial company in Australia can add customer value and importance of customer value in maintaining the competitive advantage of an organization. Additionally, it will investigate different ways of enhancing customer value to enhance the profitability of an enterprise. Background Customer value is an effective concept of marketing and business that aims at analyzing the customer satisfaction from the products and services provided. Customer value attempts to analyze the tendency that clients will turn out to be a permanent customer offering an ongoing organizational business. Our organization analyzes the value of customers to strengthen the customer base, investigate performance of product and effectively market products. The value of customer is a crucial means in which the board has always wanted to attain satisfaction of customer. The competitive nature of the business and government policy is an external issue that brings the issue before the board to increase the repeated purchase and increase the competitive advantage of the organization. Satisfaction of customers has been the main aim of the organization because of market saturation (Barnes, Blake and Pinder, 2009, p. 37). The board agrees that growth is mainly possible through market share attainment, from rivals. In addition, when clients perceive the value of customer to be extensive, they always share the experi ence and spread the public image of the organization via a word of mouth, leading to increased sales. The value of customer has occurred since the business world inception and customer loyalty is significant factor of business in various industries. Various 1990s studies have revealed that organizations can utilize value of customer to enhance the margin of business. Similarly, applied market literature suggests increased expectations for strategies of building loyalty. The theory of expectations-confirmation of satisfaction of customer suggests that satisfaction of customer about a service and product is centered on the expectations of the clients for such products, together with the expected product performance. The value of customer exploration tries to measure clients’ satisfaction; methods entail investigations about satisfaction or customer disconfirmation. Disconfirmation happens when expectations of customer differ from the possible satisfaction that products can offe r. Negative disconfirmation suggests that services do not satisfy the expectation of the customers, while positive disconfirmation indicates customer expectations are met. Discussion Financial services is an increasingly developing worldwide industry and entails various products and services types such as those related to insurance, management of funds, banking, trading of securities and superannuation. Irrespective of the form of market, marketing role has a crucial popular significant theme – that is to create critical value of customer which is more effective over the available alternatives whereas at the same time establishing organizational value. Marketing

Criminal Justice Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 1

Criminal Justice - Essay Example Amendment of the US Constitution guarantees â€Å"the right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures shall not be violated.† Thus, the process of law requires that search justification would encompass three pre conditions: 1. The warrant for the search should categorically and distinctly mention the premises which need to be searched, as also the principle objective for which the search has been undertaken. 2. It should be based on probable cause backed with reliable information 3. The judicial approval has to be sought before search justifications can be made. However, in the decided case law, Frank V. Maryland 359 US 360 (1959), the Court upheld the conviction of a person who prevented a warranted inspection of private premises. It needs to be stated that administrative searches can only be said to be justifiable if, and when there are sufficient tenable grounds to believe that the objective for which the search has been initiated, could be gained. A total search of an entire city for example, to locate hidden or contraband articles is not justifiable on any count. During periods of emergencies, searches could be conducted with no justifications whatsoever, since it is for public good to protect the citizens from hazardous situations. Therefore, in cases of search and seizing of contaminated and unusable food items by law enforcement agencies, ensuring community vaccinations to guard against outbreak of epidemics etc could serve as instances of searches with justifications. The police form part of the law enforcement agencies whose primary duties lie in the areas of protection of lives and properties of citizens They are fully justified in being given more powers for instituting roadblocks and check points for the following reasons: 1. Finding out criminal or key witnesses in recent criminal activities or deeds. 2. For intercepting vehicles carrying drugs, firearms, or explosives. 3.

Concept of health (dementia) Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words - 1

Concept of health (dementia) - Essay Example arteries in the Heart are responsible for carrying the pure oxygenated blood and when it gets narrowed down due to the building of fatty substances on its walls, enough blood is not pumped in and out of the heart. This leads to symptoms such as chest pain, shortness of breath and in extreme cases, it leads to Heart attack. Coronary Heart Disease is called by different names such as Coronary Artery disease, Atherosclerotic Heart Disease and causes a combination of symptoms. The most important condition caused is called Angina which blocks blood flow in heart. Limitation of blood flow in turn causes a condition called ischemia in myocardial cells. When myocardial cells starve and die of oxygen it leads to a condition called myocardial infarction and there will be numbness in the body which is called as paresthesia. This disease is of particular interest because in England alone it kills more than 110,000 people annually. The disease does not have a big history as it was discovered very late after many changes have happened to the eating and working habits of people. CHD is also the most important cause of death in the US where more than 15 million people have some form of this condition. Also, according to Guinness Book of Records, Northern Ireland is the country with the most occurrences of CHD in the world. CHD is not biased with gender affecting both males and females equally. Although men in the 40’s are more susceptible than women, it gets evened out because as women get older, their risk is equally high as that of men. From 1984, more women have died of this heart disease than men. Already one in three females die of CHD while one in twenty five females die of Breast cancer. Forty to Fifty percent of women older than 45 have high levels of Blood pressure called Hypertension and high levels of Cholesterol which are the well-documented risk factors of heart diseases while smoking is the most common and preventable reason for cardio-vascular diseases in

Fetal Alcohol Synodrome Essay Example for Free

Fetal Alcohol Synodrome Essay Introduction It sounds simple: women who drink excessively while pregnant are at high risk for giving birth to children with birth defects. Therefore, to prevent these defects, women should stop drinking alcohol during all phases of pregnancy. Alternatively, women who drink alcohol should not become pregnant unless and until they can control their drinking. More than 20 years ago, when fetal alcohol syndrome (FAS) was first described in the published medical literature, there were high hopes for its prevention. In fact, this has not been simple, and the biomedical and public health communities are still struggling to eliminate a birth defect that should be absolutely preventable. HISTORY Although references to the effects of prenatal exposure to alcohol can be found in classical and biblical literature, fetal alcohol syndrome was first described in the medical literature in France by Lemoine et al. in 1968. Researchers in the United States soon also published a landmark report describing a constellation of birth defects in children born to alcoholic women (Jones and Smith, 1973). FAS has since been described in most countries of the world. Briefly, FAS refers to a constellation of physical abnormalities, most obvious in the features of the face (see Figure 1-1) and in the reduced size of the newborn, and problems of behavior and cognition. These latter features lead to the most concern. The degree of abnormality in any one measure can vary greatly between individuals and can change with time in the same individual. For example, people diagnosed with FAS can have IQs from well within the normal range to the severely mentally retarded range. The physical anomalies can be slight or quite striking. Some people with FAS live fairly normal lives if given adequate and structured support throughout their lives, whereas others are severely impaired. The defects may or may not be apparent or easily diagnosed at birth. Although the manifestations of the damage might change with age, FAS never completely disappears and, as with many developmental disabilities, there is no cure, although there might be some amelioration in some individuals. FAS does not refer to signs of acute alcohol exposure or withdrawal at birth. Newborns can have blood alcohol levels high enough to affect acutely their central nervous system function and not have FAS. Newborns can also have no alcohol in their bloodstream at time of delivery but still have FAS. FAS is not a drunk baby. The costs of FAS and related conditions can be quite high—for the individual, for the family, and for society. Three groups have tried to estimate these costs, and these estimates vary greatly (Bloss, 1994). These estimates are problematic, because of uncertainties regarding the incidence and prevalence of FAS and uncertainties related to the full extent of health (and other) problems experienced throughout the lifetime of people with FAS. Estimates of the occurrence of FAS in North American communities range from 0 per 1,000 (incidence; Abel and Sokol, 1987, 1991) to 120 per 1,000 (prevalence; Robinson et al. , 1987), although rates in several of the most complete studies are similar—on the order of 0. 5 to 3 cases per 1,000 births. Assuming an annual birth cohort of approximately 4 million, this translates into 2 to 12 thousand FAS births per year in this country. As described in the report, there is a lack of longitudinal data on the extent of possible problems of adults with FAS. Therefore, cost estimates for the United States range from $75 million (Abel and Sokol, 1991) to $9. 7 billion (Harwood and Napolitano, 1985). The total lifetime cost per typical case of FAS for a child born in 1980 was estimated to be $596,000 undiscounted1 (Harwood and Napolitano, 1985). These incidence and cost figures are offered not as established facts but they are intended to emphasize that regardless of the details, or any one specific estimate, the costs of FAS to the individual and society are high. FIGURE 1-1 Photographs of children with fetal alcohol syndrome. SOURCES: Figures 4C and 4D: Reprinted with permission from Jones et al. (1973). Copyright 1973 by the Lancet Ltd. Figure 4B: Reprinted with permission from Clarren and Smith (1978). Copyright 1978 by the New England Journal of Medicine, Massachusetts Medical Society. Since publication of the papers by Lemoine and by Jones and Smith, the biomedical, public health, research, and public policy communities have devoted much time and energy to a fascinating problem of teratology (the study of the effects of chemical exposure on the developing fetus), neurobiology, disease prevention, and social disarray. The U. S. Public Health Service has spent millions of dollars in research, public education, and service programs related to the topic. Important concepts have been established through research. For example, well-controlled research studies on rats, mice, and nonhuman primates have demonstrated that alcohol exposure causes FAS. However, while alcohol is the necessary teratogen, it alone may not be sufficient to produce FAS in humans or birth defects in animals. As with most teratogens, not every fetus exposed to significant amounts of alcohol is affected. The outcomes might be modulated by numerous biologic and environmental factors, such as nutrition, threshold, timing, genetic susceptibility, pattern of alcohol exposure, or fetal resilience. Further research is needed to fully elucidate the factors that influence the expression of alcohol teratogenesis. Public education campaigns have taught many women and their partners, as well as the medical community and society at large, that excessive alcohol consumption is dangerous during pregnancy. Reduction in the occurrence of substance abuse during pregnancy, reduction in the incidence of FAS, and an increase in the questioning of patients by health care providers about alcohol and other drug use are goals of the Public Health Services Healthy People 2000 initiative (U. S. Department of Health and Human Services, 1991). See Table 1-1. Prevention of birth defects as a salient public health goal presents some exemplary success stories. A good example is the advocacy for and impact of rubella immunizations for children and women of childbearing age with no history of natural rubella or rubella immunization. An outbreak in the United States in the mid-1960s resulted in an estimated 20,000 children born with congenital rubella syndrome (CRS). CRS occurs in 20 to 25 percent of babies born to mothers who get rubella in the first trimester of pregnancy and results in congenital heart disease, deafness, mental retardation, and other fetal abnormalities. An estimate of the lifetime cost of CRS is about $330,000 per case. With widespread introduction of rubella vaccines in the late 1960s and the requirement for rubella immunization prior to school entry, the number of reported cases of CRS in the United States hit a low of 225 in 1988. As another example, new findings that folic acid deficiency during pregnancy can result in neural tube defects have led to recommendations that grain be fortified with folic acid to prevent these birth defects. Availability of effective prevention strategies led to public policy debates and recommendations for action. The emergence of crack cocaine as a major medical and public health problem in the 1980s led to worries about a generation of crack babies who would cost the medical care system, primarily neonatal intensive care wards, huge amounts of money and who would overburden the education and social service systems with problems attributable to prenatal exposure to cocaine. Further research has shown that crack cocaine can lead to serious obstetrical complications and that some of the exposed newborns do have problems. TABLE 1-1 Examples of Healthy People 2000 Goals Relevant to Fetal Alcohol Syndrome (FAS) Objective 1987 Baseline. Target 2000 Incidence of FAS (per 1,000 live births) 0. 22 0. 12 Abstinence from alcohol during pregnancy 79% Increase by 20% Screening by obstetrician/gynecologist for alcohol use 34% 75% Referrals by obstetrician/gynecologist for alcohol treatment 24% 75% Screening by obstetrician/gynecologist for drug use 32% 75% Referrals by obstetrician/gynecologist for drug treatment 28% 75% Cocaine-exposed children have not been followed as extensively or for as long a time as alcohol-exposed children; what data have been published show some effects of prenatal cocaine exposure at three years of age, but the problems do not seem to be nearly as devastating as predicted, nor as severe as the long-term problems associated with alcohol exposure. In fact, some of the long-term effects associated with prenatal cocaine exposure may be due in part to the concurrent use of alcohol during pregnancy. The federal government invested millions of dollars in demonstration projects for services for substance-abusing women. Some of these programs included services for women who abuse alcohol, but the emphasis was usually on drugs, particularly illegal ones, other than alcohol, or on polydrug use. The attention to crack cocaine and its effects on the fetus is curious given that the percentage of pregnant women who drink (approximately 20 percent) far exceeds the percentage who use cocaine (approximately 1 percent; National Institute on Drug Abuse, 1994). At the time, however, the cocaine epidemic and its potential risks to unborn children led to heated public policy debates. Policies of mandatory urine testing in delivery wards, and subsequent removal of a child from the care of a mother who tested positive for illegal substances, were instituted in many places (Blume, in press; Chavkin, 1990). The unintended negative consequences of these actions have led to a reconsideration and reversal of these policies more recently. THE FEDERAL RESPONSIBILITY FOR FAS RESEARCH As will be described in many parts of this report, FAS is a complicated health and social problem, involving many different sectors of the government. The U. S. Public Health Service (USPHS) contains the agencies with primary responsibility for research in the area. The National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA) of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) has the lead role in research on FAS. However, NIAAA is a relatively small institute of NIH. The NIAAA appropriation in 1993 was $177 million, compared with more than $400 million for the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) and slightly less than $2 billion for the National Cancer Institute (U. S. Department of Health and Human Services, 1993). NIAAA programs related to FAS include very basic animal research, which has been the mainstay of research in this area; clinical and epidemiologic research on the effects of low to moderate alcohol use by pregnant women; and prevention research. The alcohol and pregnancy program at NIAAA included $9. 8 million to $13. 5 million for approximately 70 grants in each of fiscal years 1990-1994. Most of these research grants were RO1, investigator-initiated awards. NIAAA funds one fetal alcohol research center. In addition, many research programs sponsored by NIAAA have ancillary importance to FAS, for example, the research it funds on the epidemiology of drinking by women or on general approaches to the prevention and treatment of alcohol abuse. As an example of the level of commitment by NIAAA to this issue, the prevention research program at NIAAA has ranged from $15 million to $19. 8 million annually in recent years. As the lead research agency on alcohol, the institute and the USPHS can serve as a bully pulpit for the prevention of FAS and other alcohol-related problems. In fact, this has been the case. The U. S. Surgeon General first issued a warning against the dangers of alcohol during pregnancy in 1981. In addition to funding and conducting research, NIAAA publishes information for the public on FAS, sponsors research workshops on FAS, and has its staff speak at public meetings. Other NIH institutes fund research relevant to, but not directly about, FAS. For example, NIDA funded a $4 million National Pregnancy and Health Survey on substance abuse, including alcohol, during pregnancy. The data on alcohol were a small part of the entire project. In addition, NIDA funds epidemiologic and clinical research on the effects of substance abuse during pregnancy, and alcohol is frequently one of the substances used by these populations. A rather large study funded by NIDA was the Perinatal 20 demonstration project assessing prevention of substance abuse during pregnancy. Although the major purpose was to look at the abuse of illegal substances, some data were collected on alcohol use, as well. Another key USPHS agency involved in FAS work is the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). The FAS Prevention Section is housed in CDCs National Center for Environmental Health, Division of Birth Defects and Developmental Disabilities. CDCs role is to collect data to define the scope of the problem; support the development and evaluation of FAS prevention projects; and build state capacity for coordinated, state-based FAS surveillance and prevention programs (CDC submission to IOM committee). The CDC maintains and analyzes surveillance programs that include FAS, such as the Birth Defects Monitoring Program. In addition, CDC sponsors and supports efforts to prevent FAS. The CDC currently has FAS prevention and surveillance projects supported through states and universities. As with NIAAA, CDC has ancillary programs related to maternal and child health, alcohol abuse, and epidemiologic surveillance that can support and inform FAS programs. Other agencies in the USPHS maintain important programs related to FAS, but these programs have much less emphasis on research. The Indian Health Service, the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA), and the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) fund services or demonstration projects directly or indirectly related to FAS. At this time, no agency has been able to support research on the clinical aspects of FAS, on the medical treatment of children with FAS, or on the education and remediation of these children. A notable USPHS program is the Pregnant and Postpartum Women and Their Infants (PPWI) initiative. This program was authorized by the Anti-Drug Abuse Act, passed by Congress in 1988. The demonstration grant program focuses on the development of innovative, community-based models of drug prevention, education, and treatment, targeting pregnant and postpartum women and their infants (National Center for Education in Maternal and Child Health, 1993). The program is funded jointly by the Center for Substance Abuse Prevention (CSAP) of SAMHSA and the Maternal and Child Health Bureau of HRSA. It has funded 147 demonstration projects. The most common drug addressed was cocaine, followed by alcohol and polydrug use. Because demonstration projects are rigorously evaluated only infrequently, the nature, utility, and transferability of their findings are difficult to assess. The Center for Substance Abuse Treatment (CSAT), a part of SAMHSA, was charged by Congress to support grants for residential and outpatient substance abuse treatment for pregnant and postpartum women and their infants (information provided to the committee). CSAT funded 31 residential projects in 20 states in the PPWI program and 34 projects in 24 states in its Residential Treatment for Women and Their Children program. The five treatment programs that serve Native American women include comprehensive services specific to FAS. In addition, CSAT has other activities, such as its Treatment Improvement Protocols, relevant to FAS, but the abuse substance of focus is usually cocaine or opiates, not alcohol. CONGRESSIONAL INTEREST In recognition of the seriousness of this problem, which affects both the health and the societal functioning of many Americans, several times in the past few years, members of Congress have introduced legislation related to FAS (see Table 1-2). The bills have focused largely on creating an interagency task force on FAS and increasing resources for prevention programs and prevention research. These bills, with one exception, have never been passed. The U. S. Congress mandated in Section 705 of Public Law 102-321, the ADAMHA Reorganization Act, that the Institute of Medicine (IOM) of the National Academy of Sciences conduct a study of FAS and related birth defects. TABLE 1-2 Congressional Bills Related to Fetal Alcohol Syndrome (FAS) or Women and Alcohol Bill No. and Date Introduced Bill Name Major Sponsor Overview H. R. 1322 3/7/91. Comprehensive Indian Fetal Alcohol Syndrome Prevention and Treatment Act Campbell (D-CO) Authorize services for the prevention, intervention, treatment and aftercare of American Indian and Alaskan Native children and their families at risk for FAS and fetal alcohol effect (FAE). Authorization of grants to Native American tribes for training, prevention, and intervention programs. Convening of FAS/FAE task force including federal representation and representation from Native American tribes. Would have authorized $10 million annually for FY 1993-1995 and $15 million annually for FY 1996-2000. S. 923 5/7/93 Comprehensive Fetal Alcohol Syndrome Prevention Act Daschle (D-SD) Expand resources for basic and applied epidemiological research related to FAS/FAE. Establish programs to coordinate and support national, state, and community-based public awareness, prevention, and educational programs on FAS/FAE. Establish and facilitate a national surveillance program to monitor the incidence of FAS/FAE and the effectiveness of prevention programs. Establish a task force to foster coordination among federal agencies that conduct FAS/FAE research, prevention, and treatment. H. R. 3569 11/19/93 Women and Alcohol Research Equity Act of 1993 Morella (R-MD) Provide for an increase in the amount of federal funds expended to conduct research on alcohol abuse and alcoholism among women. Would have authorized up to $23,250,000 to enable NIAAA to increase such research. H. R. 3783 2/2/94 Comprehensive Fetal Alcohol Syndrome Prevention Act Richardson (D-NM) Establish a comprehensive program to help prevent FAS and FAE and to coordinate federal efforts to prevent FAS and FAE. CDC to coordinate and support applied epidemiologic research on FAS and FAE. NIAAA to conduct and support basic research targeted to developing data to improve prevention and treatment of FAS and FAE. Develop a plan to disseminate diagnostic criteria to health care and social services providers. Establish an interagency task force on FAS and FAE. SAMHSA to support, conduct, and evaluate training programs for professionals; and prevention and education programs for the public. S 170 1/5/95 Comprehensive Fetal Alcohol Syndrome Prevention Act Daschle (D-SD) Establish interagency task force on FAS and FAE. Organize a program of basic research on services and effective prevention, treatment and intervention for pregnant alcohol-dependent women and those with FAS or FAE [Originally introduced as S. 1821 in previous session but died in committee. ] H. R. 1649 5/16/95 Comprehensive Fetal Alcohol Syndrome Prevention Act Richardson (D-SD) Establish a program for the conduct and support of research and training and the dissemination of health information about the cause, diagnosis, prevention and treatment of FAS and related conditions. Establish an. Interagency Coordinating Committee on Fetal Alcohol Syndrome. Develop uniform criteria for the collection and reporting of data on FAS and related conditions. NOTE: CDC = Centers for Disease Control and Prevention; NIAAA = National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism; and SAMHSA = Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration. The National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism of the National Institutes of Health funded the project. This report is in response to that mandate. The Committee to Study Fetal Alcohol Syndrome was convened in mid-1994. Committee expertise included pediatrics, developmental psychology and neurology, obstetrics, nosology, teratology, epidemiology, sociology, substance abuse prevention and treatment, and psychiatry. The charge to the committee was to improve the understanding of available research knowledge and experience on: †¢ tools and approaches for diagnosing FAS and related disorders, †¢ the prevalence of FAS and related disorders in the general population of the United States, †¢ the effectiveness of surveillance systems, and †¢ the availability and effectiveness of prevention and treatment programs for these conditions. As part of its work, the committee assessed and reviewed U. S. Department of Health and Human Services agency research on the topic and provided guidance for the future. SOME IMPORTANT DEFINITIONS Before going further, some clarification of terms is warranted. Several terms are used in this report to refer to drinking patterns and problems. The terms used here are intended to be consistent in spirit with an earlier IOM report Broadening the Base of Treatment for Alcohol Problems (IOM, 1990), particularly in their emphasis on the heterogeneity of alcohol problems, the course of alcohol use disorders, patterns of consumption, and etiology. In this schema, alcohol consumption is seen as ranging from none to light to moderate to heavy. Alcohol-related problems (e. g. , medical, legal, social, psychological) also range from none to mild to moderate to severe. Research has pointed to a positive correlation between level of alcohol consumption and level of alcohol problems, with the most severe problems generally seen at the highest levels of drinking. This relationship is, however, variable across individuals; that is, in some cases, severe problems can be seen at comparatively moderate levels of drinking. The fourth edition of the American Psychiatric Associations Diagnostic and Statistical Manual (DSM-IV; 1994) defines alcohol use disorders as alcohol dependence and alcohol abuse. In general, these terms refer to maladaptive patterns of drinking and consequences which constitute a syndrome, usually associated with moderate to heavy alcohol consumption and moderate to severe alcohol-related problems (Edwards et al. , 1981; IOM, 1990). In DSM-IV, alcohol dependence is diagnosed when the individual meets three or more of the following seven criteria in a 12-month period: (1) tolerance; (2) withdrawal; (3) drinking in larger amounts or over a longer period than intended; (4) persistent desire or unsuccessful efforts to cut down on drinking; (5) a great deal of time spent drinking or recovering from alcohol effects; (6) declining involvement in social, occupational, or recreational activities because of alcohol use; and (7) use of alcohol despite knowledge of a persistent or recurrent physical or psychological problem caused or exacerbated by that use. Alcohol abuse is a less severe syndrome characterized by significant adverse consequences associated with alcohol use and is diagnosed when at least one of the following four criteria is met recurrently during a 12-month period: (1) failure to fulfill major role obligations because of alcohol use; (2) recurrent alcohol use in situations when it is physically hazardous; (3) recurrent alcohol-related legal problems; or (4) continued use despite social or interpersonal problems. In addition, the symptoms have never met the criteria for alcohol dependence (American Psychiatric Association, 1994). Alcohol abuse and alcohol dependence have fairly specific meaning in DSM-IV. However, these terms are frequently used as umbrella terms for maladaptive patterns of alcohol use. In this report on FAS, the committee has chosen to use alcohol abuse as an umbrella term to indicate heavy drinking, including binge drinking, that is risky for the given individual circumstances. If it is clear that a strict DSM-IV diagnosis is intended, it will be so noted. Similar conventions will be used for substance abuse, which is treated very similarly in DSM-IV (American Psychiatric Association, 1994). DSM-IV does not define the term alcoholic, but the National Council on Alcoholism and Drug Dependence does (Morse et al. , 1992). Alcoholism, too, is used but only occasionally in this report. It should be noted that there are no specific levels of consumption associated with alcohol abuse, either as used in DSM-IV or as an umbrella term in this report. Survey data from 1992 show that approximately 4 percent of all women and approximately 4 percent of women between the ages of 30 and 44 years of age could be considered to satisfy the DSM-IV criteria for alcohol abuse and alcohol dependence (Grant et al., 1994). As described in the report, the relation between levels and patterns of drinking during pregnancy and the risk of delivering an infant with FAS is complex. In this report, terms such as heavy drinking and heavier drinking are used to refer to levels of drinking associated with the highest risk for delivering an infant with FAS. Binge drinking is used to refer to a pattern of episodic heavy drinking, which is also associated with higher risk for FAS. Terms such as risk drinking, or moderate drinking are used to indicate lower levels of drinking, usually not associated with FAS, but which may be associated with alcohol-related effects in infants. It is important to note that definitions of these terms have varied across studies, settings, and samples. In particular, operational definitions of terms used to describe the level and pattern of drinking in studies of pregnant women frequently have not corresponded to definitions for women in general, which in turn often do not correspond to definitions for men. For example, a prospective study of the effects of prenatal alcohol exposure defines heavy drinking as an average of one or more drinks per day (Day et al. , 1989); a seminal FAS prevention intervention project defined heavy drinking as five or six drinks on some occasions and at least 45 drinks per month (Rosett et al. , 1981); large-scale surveys of drinking in women usually define heavy drinking as two or more standard drinks per day, where a standard drink contains approximately 0. 5 ounce of absolute alcohol); some clinical research projects define heavy drinking in women as four or more drinks per day (Wilsnack et al. , 1994), which differs from parallel definitions of heavy drinking in men (six or more standard drinks per day). The lack of consistency in terms regarding level of alcohol consumption across studies has led to confusion regarding the relationship between specific levels of drinking and risk for fetal alcohol syndrome and alcohol-related effects (see Abel and Kruger, 1995 for a review of this problem). The committee defines the relevant history for diagnosis of FAS (see Chapter 4) as one of a pattern of excessive intake characterized by substantial, regular intake or heavy episodic drinking. Evidence of this pattern may include: frequent episodes of intoxication, development of tolerance or withdrawal, social problems related to drinking, legal problems related to drinking, engaging in physically hazardous behavior while drinking, or alcohol-related medical problems such as hepatic disease. REFERENCES Abel EL, Kruger ML. Hon v. Stroh Brewery Co. : What do we mean by moderate and heavy drinking? Alcoholism: Clinical and Experimental Research 1995; 19:1024-31. Abel EL, Sokol RJ. Incidence of fetal alcohol syndrome and economic impact of FAS-related anomalies. Drug and Alcohol Dependence 1987; 19:51-70. Abel EL, Sokol RJ. A revised conservative estimate of the incidence of FAS and its economic impact. Alcoholism: Clinical and Experimental Research 1991; 15:514-524. American Psychiatric Association. Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders: 4th Edition. Washington, DC: American Psychiatric Association, 1994. Bloss G. The economic cost of FAS. Alcohol Health Research World 1994; 18:53-54. Blume SB. Women and Alcohol: Issues in Social Policy in Alcohol and Gender. R. W. Wilsnack and S. C. Wilsnack (eds. ). New Brunswick, New Jersey: Rutgers University Center of Alcohol Studies, in press. Chavkin W. Drug Addition and Pregnancy: Policy crossroads. American Journal of Public Health 1990; 80:483-487. Clarren SK, Smith DW. The fetal alcohol syndrome. New England Journal of Medicine 1978; 298; 1063-1067. Day NL, Jasperse D, Richardson G, Robles N, Sambamoorthis U, Taylor P et al. Prenatal exposure to alcohol: Effect on infant growth and morphologic characteristics. Pediatrics 1989; 84:536-541. Day NL, Robles N, Richardson G, Geva D, Taylor P, Scher M et al. The effects of prenatal alcohol use in the growth of children at three years of age. Alcoholism: Clinical and Experimental Research 1991; 15:67-71. Edwards G, Arif A, Hodgson R. Nomenclature and classification of drug- and alcohol-related problems: A WHO memorandum. Bulletin of the World Health Organization 1981; 59:225-242. Grant BF, Harford RC, Dawson DA, Chou P, Dufour M, Pickering R. Epidemiologic Bulletin No. 35: Prevalence of DSM-IV alcohol abuse and dependence: United States, 1992. Alcohol Health Research World 1994; 18:243-248. Alcohol (wine, beer, or liquor) is the leading known preventable cause of developmental and physical birth defects in the United States. When a woman drinks alcohol during pregnancy, she risks giving birth to a child who will pay the price — in mental and physical deficiencies — for his or her entire life. Yet many pregnant women do drink alcohol. Its estimated that each year in the United States, 1 in every 750 infants is born with a pattern of physical, developmental, and functional problems referred to as fetal alcohol syndrome (FAS), while another 40,000 are born with fetal alcohol effects (FAE). Fetal alcohol syndrome (FAS) is a condition that results from alcohol exposure during pregnancy. Problems that may be caused by fetal alcohol syndrome include physical deformities, mental retardation, learning disorders, vision difficulties and behavioral problems. The problems caused by fetal alcohol syndrome vary from child to child, but defects caused by fetal alcohol syndrome are irreversible. There is no amount of alcohol thats known to be safe to consume during pregnancy. Early diagnosis may reduce the risk of problems, including learning difficulties and substance abuse. Signs and Symptoms Fetal alcohol syndrome isnt a single birth defect. Its a cluster of related problems and the most severe of a group of consequences of prenatal alcohol exposure. Collectively, the range of disorders is known as fetal alcohol spectrum disorders (FASDs). Fetal alcohol syndrome is a common — yet preventable — cause of mental retardation. The severity of mental problems varies, with some children experiencing them to a far greater degree than others. Signs of fetal alcohol syndrome may include: Distinctive facial features, including small eyes, an exceptionally thin upper lip, a short, upturned nose, and a smooth skin surface between the nose and upper lip Deformities of joints, limbs and fingers Slow physical growth before and after birth Vision difficulties or hearing problems Small head circumference and brain size (microcephaly) Poor coordination Mental retardation and delayed development Learning disorders Abnormal behavior, such as a short attention span, hyperactivity, poor impulse control, extreme nervousness and anxiety Heart defects low birth weight failure to thrive developmental delay organ dysfunction facial abnormalities, including smaller eye openings, flattened cheekbones, and indistinct philtrum (an underdeveloped groove between the nose and the upper lip) . Epilepsy poor coordination/fine motor skills poor socialization skills, such as difficulty building and maintaining friendships and relating to groups lack of imagination or curiosity learning difficulties, including poor memory, inability to understand concepts such as time and money, poor language comprehension, poor problem-solving skills behavioral problems, including hyperactivity, inability to concentrate, social withdrawal, stubbornness, impulsiveness, and anxiety. The facial features seen with fetal alcohol syndrome may also occur in normal, healthy children. Distinguishing normal facial features from those of fetal alcohol syndrome requires expertise. Doctors may use other terms to describe some of the signs of fetal alcohol syndrome. An alcohol-related neurodevel.