Working Memory?

Write-Up The field of memory provides excellent opportunity for research, drawing theoretical models and implementing them to check their validity. Working memory, in psychology, is a memory system that holds information to perform various verbal and non-verbal (even physical) tasks. It is very important from the viewpoint of processing information and enacting it in day-to-day life. Though a simple three stage model for memory (Encoding, storage and retrieval) was proposed initially, experts like Baddeley proposed that working memory is much beyond these three phases and memory functions of short-term memory and long-term memory are very complex in comparison to what initial chunking of memory into theoretical aspects initially suggest (Becker & Morris, 1999). He introduced a novel approach to depict working memory as a not as three-part system that temporarily holds information as people perform cognitive tasks but a perennial work-desk on which information is manipulated and assembled to help us comprehend decide, and in problem-solving (Baddeley, 1996, 2003). According to Baddeley’s view of working memory, we can pictorially imagine a managerial executive (Central executive memory) with two helpers (Phonological loop & Visuo-spatial working loop) (Hamilton, Coates & Hefferman, 2010; DeRenzi & Nischell, 1975). This theory and its fractionization have neuropsychological evidence, experimental evidence and developmental evidence. A study states that left posterior hemisphere of the brain is actively involved in working memory. Other studies show that even right posterior is actively involved but in working memory but non-visual aspects. It might be involved in spatial aspects. Despite the heavy argument, involvement of different brain regions in working memory (Phonological and visuo spatial) establishes a base for neuro-psychological evidence (Vallar & Baddeley, 1984; Hamilton, Coates Hefferman, 2010). Laboratory based experiments show how visual short-term memory task is strongly disrupted by visual as opposed to spatial interference, and also spatial memory task was simultaneously more strongly disrupted by spatial interference. This double dissociation supports the theoretically proposed fractionation of working memory (Klauer & Zhao, 2004). Developmental evidence suggests that visual subcomponent of the visuo-spatial sketchpad is distinct from the spatial subcomponent as seen in children aged 5-6, 8-9 and 11-12 (Logie & Pearson, 1997). Thus, arising from strongly evidenced studies, Logie presents a distinct model of two separate systems (Visual and Spatial) (DeRenzi & Nischell, 1975). The visual storage aspect stores information about form and colour whereas spatial control takes care of aspects pertaining to locomotion, limb movements and also rehearsal of information (or series of information in visual cache) (Logie & Pearson, 1997). The proposed study explores the topic of fractionalisation of memory in lines with the above mentioned strong theoretical and research based evidence. However, the trajectory of interest is along the lines of research done by Logie and Pearson (1997) in developmental field. This study examines the visual and spatial development in children and adults. There may be many limitations pertaining to use of methodology. The visual recall of design and Corsi blocks are two distinct materials, not only in terms of format but also in terms of material to be recalled. Thus comparison of two unequal factors may raise questions about the validity and outcomes of the studies. Logie and Pearson’s study focussed solely on children of different age groups, but since it is purported to measure visual and spatial aspects of working memory under a developmental pathway, this study will use children and adults are subjects (Logie & Pearson, 1997; Klauer & Zhao, 2004). Other arguments against the reliability and objectivity of studies in this area have been in terms of usage of participants and individual, genetic, ethnic and anthropologic differences within the patterns of development. It is not possible to outline a single or a group of factors that predict the pathway of development. Our research hypothesis is designed to measure two questions. The first part of the hypothesis seeks to inquire whether according to the fractionation; the visual and spatial systems should develop at different speeds in humans. In accordance to the first part of the hypothesis, the second part inquires whether the developmental trajectory for visual system is shallower than spatial system. MethodParticipantsThe study has 139 participants in all comprising of 65 (46.8%) children and 74 (53.2%) adults. Among these participants are 56 (40.3%) males and 83 (59.7%) are females. The mean age for boys is 15.65 years and that for girls is 18.5 years.MaterialsTwo basic materials (tests) have been utilised viz: Visual recall of designs and Corsi Blocks. The recall of design is a paper-pencil task that requires the experimenter to show a particular design on paper to participants for 5 seconds and the participant recalls it by drawing it on paper (Logie & Pearson, 1997). The Corsi test presents a blue board with nine wooden cubes. The experimenter taps out a sequence of blocks (in increasing order after each successful completion) and the participant taps out the blocks in exactly the same sequence (Fischer, 2001).DesignThe variables design in a classroom based experimental condition testing factors between subjects (Adults, Children) and within subjects (Males, females) performance of Recall of design and Corsi. The visual and spatial working memory development are the Independent variables whereas the developmental trajectory is the dependent variable. Procedure In a classroom settings, both children and adult group were individually given tasks performance on Visual recall of design and Corsi block task. The scores of recall of design and corsi test were done during task administration itself. Calculated scores for each individual in the adult and the children group are put up before conducting statistical analysis. Statistical analysis Statistical analyses used can be divided into Descriptive statistics and inferential statistics. SPSS 19.0 was used for data analyses. Graphs, Histograms and Comparitive bar charts along with mean and median related data falls into descriptive statistics category. We have also conducted two unrelated t-tests; one to compare children’s recall of design with adults and the other one to compare children’s Corsi scores with that of adults. The mean score of children on visual memory is 14.17.(Mean=11.02, sd=1.727) and that of adults is 14.42 (Mean= 17.45, sd=2.765). The mean score of children on spatial memory is 11.02 (Mean=14.17,sd=2.275) and that for adults is 17.45 (Mean= 14.42, sd=2.196). The above table clearly shows that with respect to the spatial component there is a statistically significant difference between the adult mean and children’s mean (p=0.000) which is well below the 0.05 threshold. In fact from the above table it can be seen that the adult mean score is 17.45 whilst that of the children is 11.02 meaning that on average the adults scored about 6.4 more than the children. The above table clearly shows that there is a statistically significant difference between the adult mean and children’s mean on spatial component (p=0.000) which is well below the 0.05 threshold which is very highly significant The above table clearly shows that in terms of the visual component there is no statistically significant difference between adult mean and children’s mean (p>0.5) which exceeds the 0.05 threshold. It depicts how the mean difference between adults and children in relation to the visual component is very small resulting in no statistically significant difference in mean scores. Since there is high significance between the children and adult’s spatial component but no statistical significance between children and adult’s visual component, we can say that there might be a different trajectory in children and adult’s development patterns. It doesn’t however completely fulfil the hypothesis. Discussion The findings do not support the hypothesis in all earnest. There is no correlation between children and adult scores on visual component but there is a very significant relationship between children and adult scores on spatial component. It may be said that the difference has emerged because of the previously raised issue of different methods. Since, Corsi and Recall of design are two distinct tasks, it can be argued that their performance cannot be correlated. However, since the spatial component shows good correlation, it signifies that the trajectory may be well defined and that it develops more easily. However, not much light is thrown on why the results have come up the way they have. Further research may be interested in using Multiple regression to predict the possible factors that may have caused a high correlation in spatial scores and if there are any common factors in children and adults, they might as well be highlighted. However, like previous studies, this study support s the Logie -Pearson model as well as justifies the fractionation approach given by Baddeley. Memory is much beyond its’ structural and functional aspects. Though initial divisions on memory and development of theories have described functions and its’ aspects at a superficial level, this research has gone in depth to investigate difference in developmental trajectories. Since, it is a part of developmental aspect, it has many possibilities of further research (Baddeley, 2003; Logie & Pearson, 1997). References Baddeley A (2003) Working memory: looking back and looking forward, nature reviews Neuroscience, 4, 829-839 Baddeley, A (1996) The fractionation of working memory, Proceedings of national academy of sciences, 93(24), 13468-13472 Becker, J.T & Morris, R.G (1999) Working memory, Brain and cognition, 41, 1-8 DeRenzi, E & Nischell, P (1975) Verbal and non-verbal short term memory impairment following hemispheric damage, Cortex, 11, 341-353 Field, A (2007) Discovering Statistics Using SPSS (Ed:3 ), Sage Publications: London (United Kingdom) Fischer, M (2001), Probing Spatial working memory with Corsi blocks task, Brain and cognition, 45(2), 143-154 Hamilton, C; Coates, R & Hefferman, T (2010) What develops in a visuo-spatial working memory developmentEuropean journal of cognitive psychology Klauer, K.C & Zhao, Z (2004) Double dissociations in visual and spatial short term memory, Journal of experimental psychology, 133 (3), 355-381 Logie, R.H & Pearson, D.G (1997) The inner eye and the inner scribe of visuo-spatial working memory: Evidence from Developmental fractionation, European Journal of cognitive psychology, 9(3), 241-257 Vallar, G & Baddeley, A (1984) Fractionation of working memory: Neuropsychological evidence for short term store, Journal of verbal learning and verbal behaviour, 23(2), 151-161

Lvmh in the Recession the Substance of Style

http://www. economist. com/node/14447276 LVMH in the recession The substance of style The world’s biggest luxury-goods group is benefiting from a flight to quality, but the recession is also prompting questions about the company’s breadth and balance Sep 17th 2009 | Paris | from the print edition * * Bloomberg â€Å"THERE are four main elements to our business model—product, distribution, communication and price,† explains an executive at LVMH, the world's largest luxury-goods group. â€Å"Our job is to do such a fantastic job on the first three that people forget all about the fourth. For decades LVMH's formula has worked like a spell: seduced by beautiful status-symbols, perfect shops and clever advertising, millions of people have swooned forgetfully towards the firm's cash registers. At Louis Vuitton, LVMH's star company, the model's pricing power has yielded consistent profit margins of around 40-45%, the highest of any luxury-goods brand. These days customers are finding it far harder to forget about price. The seriously rich, of course, are still spending freely.But much of the industry's rapid growth in the past decade came from middle-class people, often buying on credit or on the back of rising house prices. According to Luca Solca of Bernstein Research, 60% of the luxury market is now based on demand from â€Å"aspirational† customers rather than from the wealthy elite. The recession has quickly reversed the trend to trade up, and people are delaying expensive purchases. Bain & Company, a consulting firm, expects the industry's sales to fall by a tenth in 2009, to â‚ ¬153 billion ($225 billion).Some executives even expect a lasting shift in customers' preferences, towards discretion and value. Bernard Arnault, chairman and chief executive of LVMH, believes that the whole industry needs to rebrand itself. â€Å"The word luxury suggests triviality and showing off, and the time for all that has gone,† he say s. Brands which sold â€Å"blingy† easy-to-sell products, milking old names, he says, will fare particularly badly in the new environment. LVMH, by contrast, has never taken such an approach, he says, instead emphasising quality, innovation and creativity.To underline these values, the group is going back to basics in its daily operations. â€Å"Before the crisis, we were putting a lot of energy into beautiful stores, but now we care a bit less about expanding our network and even more about design and price,† says an executive. A few years ago, for instance, at the height of the boom, one LVMH brand was putting diamonds all over its watches, so that it was almost difficult to tell the time. â€Å"Now we are getting back to what really matters, which is nice movements and design,† he says.For some luxury firms, the recession's effects have already been brutal. Private-equity firms and other outside investors which rushed into the industry at its peak have suffer ed most. â€Å"At the top of the market this industry was perceived as easy by outsiders,† says Mr Arnault. â€Å"You borrowed 80% of a target's asking price and hired a good designer, but the strategy has not been successful in several cases. † Lenders to Valentino, an Italian fashion house, are reportedly trying to renegotiate its debt. Permira, a private-equity group, bought the firm in 2007 in a deal valuing it at â‚ ¬5. billion. Permira has since written down its equity investment of about â‚ ¬900m by more than half. Prada Holding, through which Miuccia Prada and her husband control Prada Group, another Italian house, recently restructured its loans in order to defer payment to banks. Prada Group has denied that there are talks to bring in a minority shareholder. Two particularly weak firms, Christian Lacroix, a Paris-based ready-to-wear and haute couture label which used to be part of LVMH, and Escada, a German maker of luxury womenswear, filed for bankrupt cy earlier this year.Amid this turmoil, LVMH is performing relatively well (see chart 1). It has benefited from an established pattern in the luxury industry: when people have less, they spend what they do have on the best quality. Shoppers are going for fewer, classic items—one Burberry raincoat, rather than three designer dresses, or a single Kelly bag by Hermes, a French luxury-goods group, instead of four bags from various lesser designers. For this reason, says Yves Carcelle, chief executive of Louis Vuitton and president of fashion and leather goods for LVMH, â€Å"Vuitton always gains market share in crises. As reliable and sturdy as one of its own handbags, therefore, Vuitton is carrying LVMH fairly comfortably through the recession. In the first half of 2009 the group's revenues were about the same as a year before, though profits were 12% lower. Two divisions—wine and spirits, and watches and jewellery—were the worst affected: their revenues each fell by 17% and their profits by 41% and 73% respectively (see chart 2). Rapid de-stocking by retailers exacerbated the effect of falling demand.But the falls were offset by Vuitton, where revenue rose by a double-digit percentage, registering gains in every market. â€Å"It is incredible that in a downturn the consumer still buys so many Louis Vuitton bags, but she or he does,† says Melanie Flouquet, luxury-goods analyst at JPMorgan in Paris. Vuitton's performance, and the overall robustness of LVMH, a global conglomerate with more than 50 brands and revenues of â‚ ¬17. 2 billion in 2008, should allow it to take advantage of its competitors' weakness in the recession. In the next few years we expect several failures in the industry and good opportunities to acquire assets at attractive prices,† says Mr Arnault. Shareholders in the firm are particularly preoccupied by what he might buy and sell in the next few years. What explains Vuitton's resilience? Beneath the gloss of advertising campaigns, catwalk shows and each season's fleeting trends, Vuitton brings a machine-like discipline to the selling of fancy leather goods and fashion. It is the only leather-goods firm, for instance, which never puts its products on sale at a discount.It destroys stock instead, keeping a close eye on the proportion it ends up scrapping (which it calls the â€Å"destruction margin†). In 2005, when Maurizio Borletti, owner of several prominent department stores in Italy and France, was preparing for the opening of a refurbished La Rinascente department store in Milan, he recalls, the Vuitton people built a scale model of the building in their offices to understand customer flows and get the best positioning. â€Å"In this they're the most professional in the industry,† he says.Unlike most other luxury marques, Vuitton never gives licences to outside firms, to avoid brand degradation. Its factories use techniques from other industries, notably carmaking, t o push costs down ruthlessly and to allow teams of workers to be switched from one product to another as demand dictates. It has adopted methods of quality control, too: one quality supervisor came from Valeo, a French auto-parts supplier. The result is long-lasting utility, beyond show, which is valuable in difficult times. Owning shops gives Vuitton control over levels of stock, presentation and pricing.It was not therefore affected by the panicked price-slashing of up to 80% by American luxury department stores in the run-up to Christmas last year—a â€Å"catastrophe† for others in the industry, according to Mr Arnault. Although other LVMH divisions have been hit by outside retailers de-stocking during the crisis, Vuitton has managed its own inventory, with no competition for space from other brands. With a global network, says Mr Carcelle, the firm can move poorly selling stock to shops where it has performed better. The luxury of diversityVuitton's ability to offs et the steep falls in other divisions shows the value of the diversified conglomerate model in luxury goods. Richemont, the industry's second-largest company, has a less varied portfolio and greater exposure to watches and jewellery, demand for which has been especially weak. According to a recent trading statement, its sales fell by 16% in the five months to the end of August. A group structure also yields savings when negotiating deals for advertising space, property and credit-card fees. It helps to have a specialist beauty retailer, Sephora, and a chain of airport shops, DFS, to sell perfumes and cosmetics.When Vuitton develops watches, say, it can call on the talents of TAG Heuer. But LVMH's breadth also comes in for criticism. Although there is undoubtedly value in some diversification, some people ask whether 50-odd brands under one roof are too many. Vuitton, for instance, would doubtless like to see disposals of weaker brands as a result of the crisis, and a greater concent ration of resources on the group's key businesses. The group's executives devote the bulk of their attention to the most important of these: Louis Vuitton, Moet Hennessy in drinks, TAG Heuer in watches, Christian Dior in perfumes and cosmetics, Sephora and DFS.The group has many smaller businesses, and these get much less attention in such a big group. LVMH does not disclose financial figures for individual brands, but at its presentation of first-half results the group's finance director replied to an analyst asking about fashion and leather-goods that a â€Å"handful† had lost money â€Å"somewhere†. There is speculation that Celine, a ready-to-wear clothing and accessories label, Kenzo, a fashion brand which analysts have long suggested LVMH dispose of, or Loewe, a Spanish leather-goods brand which has so far failed o win much of a following outside Spain and Japan, are among the less profitable. Nevertheless, the group can use the might of Vuitton to support its sm aller, upcoming brands. A department store, for instance, may be asked to take Loewe or Celine in order to get Vuitton. That often frustrates people at Vuitton, however, who would prefer to use the power of the brand for its own benefit, says a person who knows the company well. â€Å"They've never heard of another of LVMH's brands saying, ‘Either give this to Vuitton or I won't come',† he says.Apart from the synergy in watch design, Vuitton does not find that it benefits much from the rest of the group. The reason why LVMH has many small brands which aren't quite making it, says another person familiar with the company, is that Mr Arnault is an optimist who believes that every property can at some point be turned around. That can pay off: some years ago Mr Arnault halted the imminent sale of a make-up line. Thanks to the distribution muscle of Sephora, it has since turned into a bestseller in America.Investors, however, are nevertheless wary of what they see as Mr Arna ult's tendency to collect brands. The crisis has also underlined the fact that Vuitton dominates the group's results. Were it not for Vuitton, estimates one analyst, LVMH's sales would have fallen by 3% in the first half of 2009 and profits would have plunged by 40%. In normal times Vuitton contributes about half of the group's profits, and most of the rest comes from Moet Hennessy. In the first half of this year, however, Vuitton contributed an estimated 70% of profit.That leads some people to question whether LVMH is overly dependent on the leather-goods firm. â€Å"You can argue that there's nothing as good as Vuitton in LVMH's portfolio,† says Pierre Mallevays of Savigny Partners, who was formerly director of acquisitions at LVMH, â€Å"but that simply states the fact that LV's business model is the gold standard of luxury brands; no other brand in the world compares to it. † The biggest risk to LVMH is Vuitton, argues Ms Flouquet, since it accounts for such a big proportion of profits; the company depends on it, she says.The risk to Vuitton, in turn, is that it could fall out of fashion or lose its exclusivity in the eyes of consumers. So far there is no sign of fatigue with the brand. LVMH's senior managers have devised ways to refresh it. In the late 1990s, for example, Mr Arnault saw that there was a risk that as a maker of leather goods alone, Vuitton could be perceived as boring. In 1997 he hired Marc Jacobs, then a relatively unknown designer, to design a fashion line. The aim was to generate seasonal buzz and press coverage.Vuitton's senior executives at the time were against the idea, fearing that adding fashion could undermine a timeless image, but Mr Arnault's move proved successful. To avoid overexposure of its signature â€Å"Monogram† print, Vuitton has taken care to develop a wide range of products and other patterns. â€Å"We increase the number of product lines and we are careful to have several different colours and shapes,† says Mr Arnault. Thus Vuitton sells reasonably priced handbags—the smallest Speedy Bag costs â‚ ¬430 in Paris—but also wildly expensive custom-made luggage, reinforcing its exclusive image.Another effective tactic is to make limited-edition handbags which are hard to get hold of. Five or so years ago Vuitton depended to a large degree on one market, Japan. Most Japanese women owned at least one Vuitton product—and hence provided a large proportion of Vuitton's profits, which worried analysts at the time. Yet the Japanese market for luxury goods was souring. Spending on such items in Japan has fallen sharply since the end of 2005, according to a recent report by McKinsey, a consulting firm. Young women are more individualistic than their mothers, and are seeking out lesser-known brands. You used to see thousands of Vuitton bags coming at you in the Ginza shopping district but far fewer now,† says Radha Chadha, author of a book, â€Å"The Cult of the Luxury Brand: Inside Asia's Love Affair with Luxury†. That reliance on one country is no longer so marked (see chart 3). Fortunately, Vuitton has since rapidly established a strong position in what it hopes will become another Japan: China. â€Å"The Chinese consumer is in a love affair with the Vuitton brand,† says Ms Flouquet. According to LVMH, in the first half of 2009 sales to Chinese people (at home and travelling) made up 18% of Vuitton's revenue.Despite widespread concerns about counterfeiting in the country, the Chinese are now Vuitton's biggest customer base after the Japanese. The key to the firm's success, says Mr Arnault, has been approaching the market exactly as if it were a developed market. â€Å"We treat the Chinese customer as being very sophisticated. † Many competitors, by contrast, have at times lowered their standards for shops in China, he says, using inferior furniture or positioning their stores poorly. Going into new markets and developing new product lines will enable Vuitton o continue producing double-digit growth for years to come, says Mr Carcelle. On every trip to mainland China—he makes five or six a year—he tries to discover a new city and meet its mayor. Mr Carcelle is also tackling other new frontiers: in October he will open a shop in Sukhbaatar Square in Ulan Bator. â€Å"Already if you go to an upmarket disco in Ulan Bator you will see a significant number of our bags,† he says. Vuitton's expansion into China, Mongolia and new product lines such as watches and shoes, suggest that the leather-goods firm will continue to be LVMH's main source of growth.However, it also means that the group may become more rather than less reliant on Vuitton. In theory, the answer could lie in strengthening some of LVMH's smaller names, such as Fendi, a fashion and leather-goods brand. But buying a big, established, global brand with potential for growth could be both a quicker and a sure r route. Or maybe that oneImagineChina A new collection? Analysts and bankers are convinced that Mr Arnault wants to buy the Hermes Group, a producer of leather goods and fashion which matches Vuitton for quality and design.Because Hermes is run so conservatively, says an investment banker who knows LVMH well, it is only a quarter of the size that it could be. â€Å"Mr Arnault would grow it while preserving its values,† he says. Earlier this year, there were rumours that LVMH would sell Moet Hennessy to Diageo, the world's biggest spirits group, which already owns 34% of the business. Such a sale could raise money to buy Hermes. Mr Arnault, however, refuses to be drawn into commenting. For the moment, such an acquisition is impossible, since the family which controls Hermes does not want to sell, and the firm is strongly defended against takeover.Nevertheless, says the banker, the family which controls it has several branches, all with different views. â€Å"It's a pressure cooker and some day it will blow up,† he says. Chanel, another closely held global luxury brand, could also make a desirable target for LVMH. Some people recommend a merger with Richemont, which, Mr Solca argues, would address LVMH's relative weakness in watches and jewellery. Any such deals, or selling Moet Hennessy, would radically change the balance of the group. â€Å"I would be surprised if LVMH sold Moet Hennessy. The business has high margins, high ashflow and it is well managed,† says Ms Flouquet. â€Å"They would probably only sell it if they had a large deal ahead. † Shareholders are nervous that LVMH will pay too high a price for a large acquisition. For this reason the group's valuation may not fully reflect its performance during the crisis. Such concerns are not likely to deter Mr Arnault, who has demonstrated his confidence in LVMH's prospects in luxury by raising his stake in the group over time: he owns 47%. If LVMH does go shopping, it will prob ably behave like one of its best customers: with price in mind, but willing to spend on enduring prestige.

Diary extract from the poem blessing Essay

Today was the best day ever; the pipe through our village burst. I first spotted it on the way back from my two mile hike to the well, I had two buckets in my hands had spilt a little water on the way back when seeing a spurt of water coming from the pipe. I filled up the buckets and ran home, I told everyone in the village to bring buckets and cups and everything, by this time the gap had grown and there was a good amount of water coming from it. Everyone gather around bring mugs and tin cans to collect some clean water, we filled our metal bath tub with our buckets and everything we could, we have so much water now, the crops we have tried to grow have been watered and we have kept a good amount to water them more often, the drought had finally ended, there hasn’t been rain in a while, but I believe that this is the work of god, he’s finally come through for us, everyone had prayed and thanked him for this deed, the party still hasn’t finished, I am tired, I have been dancing and singing and drumming until the sun rose again, I was the village’s favourite person today because I spotted the leak that has praised us all, I wouldn’t trade the feeling I had for anything in the world, people chanted my name and cheered all night long I loved it, none of the water is being wasted anything waterproof is being filled with clean healthy water, I will not have to go on my hike for water for the next few days and I will not have to be thirsty we are going to church again tomorrow and I think that the whole village will be there just to thank him for this blessing. I can’t believe how lucky we were, this is truly a miracle, the water came when we needed it the most, when everyone was finding it harder and harder to drink the dirty water, but the question is how long will this water last? How long will it take for the rich people to realise they are paying for our water? And will they stop it? I believe that these questions will be answered in time, God may have let this miracle but I don’t think there is much he could do to change those idiots, they have everything, clean house, clean food and clean drinking water and we have nothing. Our homes are dirty so is our food and out drinking water they just get water whenever they want whereas we have to walk over 2 miles to get dirty water from a well. Everyone hates them if only we could swap places for a week, they would know what it’s like how hard it is for us just to survive, to stay alive but they have no idea I wish something could be done about this.

Drinking age Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Drinking age - Essay Example Using the research conducted in 2005 by White and Hayman via ‘Australian Secondary School Students and Drug Use Survey’, reports show that approximately 40% out of samples from the 16-17 year-old drinking Australian population confessed that parents bear chief influence in alcoholic consumption. Additionally, such findings had no substantial variance from among those who obtained influence from friends through the peer pressure of drinking on a weekly basis. Still the question remains what age must one be legally allowed to drink and to what extent should it be tolerated relative to other forms of addiction. White and Hayman (2006) examined whether parental control of drinking may be attributed to the occurrence of risky drinking for short-term harm (RSOD) and alcohol-related difficult behaviors such as physical and verbal assault from a sample of underage drinkers. Research indicates that 86% of adolescents 16-17 years of age are existing alcohol consumers whereas some 20% appear to be weekly RSOD and more than 34% get involved in at least one case of alcohol-linked problem with conduct. Moreover, it is found that mere banning of alcohol drinking for the sake of youth 18 is not practically sufficient. Fresh plans for appropriate mediation and avoidance are apparently essential according to the study of parental supplication that was figured to impact lesser rates of RSOD and alcohol-related social behavior. This rather implies the likelihood that by changing the normal supply of alcohol from the source other than the parents to the parents alone, the shift may bring about good restrict ion to the amount of consumption and injury among the adolescents. However, as much as parental guidance toward alcohol supply control is considered one positive approach, it is quite unexplored and must therefore undergo thorough investigation as promising alternative (Dietze, Livingston,

The cold War and Masculinity Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

The cold War and Masculinity - Essay Example The Cuban missile crisis had been the most glaring example of a possible nuclear war. While the possibility still remains valid today, the menace appeared more eminent in cold war era. The cold war can actually be compared to a chauvinist conflict, whereupon both nations involved tried to use their supposed technological supremacy as a tool to undermine the influence of other nation. This notion is quite obvious in Stanley Kubrick's movie "Dr Strangelove: or How I learned to stop worrying and love the bomb", as well in the text authored by Nobel Peace Prize laureate Joseph Rotblat, "A war-free world". Though the cold war no longer exists but the situation in Iran, Iraq and the role of International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) has again compelled this world to think of a very different approach towards nuclear deterrence. Mohamed ElBaradei, the eminent scientist who is heading IAEA while giving a lecture at Stanford, called for a new commitment from the peace loving world to go for nu clear disarmament rather than nuclear deterrence. The human urge to use things of mass destruction in satisfying their hatred and paranoia has been the main theme of the movie Dr. Strangelove. Right at the start of the movie,

Innovations in computer technologies (this needs to be narrowed down Essay

Innovations in computer technologies (this needs to be narrowed down pls review the comments from teacher - Essay Example Considering the present scenario it has become an essential component in nursing education. Just recent years ego new technology has been emerged in the nursing education and which is named it as clinical simulation. â€Å"Clinical Simulations is the use of model-driven patient simulators, such as the METI HPS, ECS and iStan, in a realistic clinical environment for the purpose of immersing the healthcare profession students/trainee in environments that closely mimic real patient environments† (What is clinical simulation? 2008, para.1). The use of this simulation assists nursing students in many ways. This helped in making clinical decision, data analyzing and in solving the problems. The evolution of this technology has bought many changes in the field of nursing education. These changes are due to a rapid expansion in technology. â€Å"These changes have been associated with incumbent ethical and moral dilemmas which are borne out in the daily practice of nurses† (Simpson & Courtney, n.d., p.3). These clinical simulation has bought significant change in the learning abilities of nursing students as it models real life nursing situations. It also ensures competency and self-taught learning strategies for the nursing students. By utilizing these simulations, many problems can be solved and learning can be increased in very cost effective manner. It is sure that clinical simulation can provide low cost learning atmosphere. Traditional system requires lots of costs input in order to facilitate needs for the students in learning. Traditional system requires lots of faculties for teaching purposes. With the evolution of this system it requires only very less number of faculties in order to teach the course. Presently hospitals are not allowing students to perform nursing intervention, as they believe that students will put patients in jeopardized state. Also to use

Abortion vs Adoption Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Abortion vs Adoption - Essay Example Though there are many debates on making abortion safe for mothers, the fact is that no abortion may be considered safe. Considering the varying degrees of effects that affect the mother after this exercise, there should be no debate on the safety of an abortion. These complications may be physical, emotional, spiritual or psychological and do usually affect a mother for the rest of their lives. For instance, statistics today show that about 10% of all mothers in induced abortions have immediate serious complications, with 2% of these complications being life threatening. In addition, there are many mothers who suffer from many minor complications that may involve infections, damage to the uterus, too much bleeding, hemorrhages, and serious injuries in their cervix among others. Some of the major complications that are known today include premature births. This is because in induced abortions, the cervix is opened before its time is due, which damages the cervical muscles. Consequentl y, depending on the degree of the damage, as the woman bear another pregnancy, the baby increases pressure at the cervix where the weakened muscles open prematurely. Moreover, the mother may suffer from sterility on the long term with 3-5% of all aborting women becoming sterile after abortions mainly due to the morbidity of the process. This is more serious when a woman may have venereal disease at the time of an abortion. The major psychological effects related to abortion are mental problems. In a study of aborting mothers in their eight week after abortion, 44% of mothers complained of having nervous disorders, 36% complained of having some serious sleep disturbances, 31% bitterly regretted of having aborted their babies and 11% were placed under psychotropic drugs by a doctor (Ashton 1117). In fact, the research noted that women who had procured an abortion had much higher chances of admission in psychiatric facilities than those who did not. Moreover, these effects are compounded by increasing guilt, and increases in the level of anxiety in the mother, though there is a short period marked by post abortion numbness of what may be termed as emotional paralysis. Teenagers are particularly affected by these post abortion complications. These effects are mostly related to the internal conflict between one’s moral standards, ethics and the decision to abort, which explains the temporary period in which the mother feels relieved. Therefore, with these abortion danger s and side effects, there is need to consider a better and healthier approach for the mother and the baby in cases where the mother may not be interested in the; consequently, pro-adoption becomes the best alternative. In the last three decades, adoption practices have considerably changed in the US; today, there are many couples across the US willing to adopt a child than bearing their own child (Berry 125). This is because today there are more career based families where both partners are in highly involving careers and lack time to undergo the normal child bearing process, mainly driven by changes in the role of women in the labor force. Moreover, there are increasing cases of infertility among many couples, which increases the number of people seeking to adopt children (Berry 125). However, there is a trend where abortion practices, birth controls and a changed impression of families towards single motherhood has drastically reduced the number of available children for adoption (Berry 125). Considering these factors, there are no reasons for women to procure an abortion when there is an increasing demand of healthy children to adopt across the US. One of the adoption practices that has gained much success today is open adoption.